"Why do I feel like I'm about to die?" Crue wondered, as he cracked open an eye. What he saw was one Yang Xiao Long staring down at him, with her eyes red as blood. Crue felt a weight on his chest, and remembered the fact that Ruby was sleeping on him. "That would explain it."
"I can explain." Crue said slowly.
"You better do it fast." Yang warned, cracking her knuckles.
"We forgot our scrolls." Crue said quickly.
"Why weren't you in the room in the first place?" Crue gulped and lightly shook Ruby.
"Rubes. Ruby. Please wake up. Your sister's gonna kill me." He whispered to the sleeping girl. Ruby yawned adorably, and sat up from Crue's lap, rubbing one of her eyes.
"Oh. Morning, Yang." Ruby greeted, still somewhat groggy.
"Ruby. Why were you sleeping on Crue?" Her elder sister asked warningly. Ruby responded by lying back down across Crue.
"Cause he's comfy and warm." While this would have been a brilliant compliment any other time, for Crue it just made him more worried for his life.
"Any other reason?" Yang asked through gritted teeth.
"We forgot our scrolls." Ruby murmured, her face down in Crue's chest.
"Why weren't you in the room?" Yang asked once more.
"Bad dream." Ruby muttered. Yang's face fell into a concerning expression.
"Ruby, if you had a bad dream why didn't you tell me?" She questioned. Crue could sense a slight offense in the question, wondering why her little sister went to Crue rather than her.
"I didn't have the bad dream. Crue did." Ruby rose slightly, gesturing to the Faunus. Yang blinked, and looked to Crue. The boy refused to meet her eyes, instead staring at the ground.
"'S true." He murmured. Yang frowned lightly, looking between the two.
"Alright. But make sure it doesn't happen again. Or you remember your scrolls next time." She tried to re-enter the dorm, but found the door locked. She jiggled the handle, but the door remained closed.
Ruby and Crue both stared at the blonde, with smirks on their faces. "This didn't happen." Yang told them, rapping her fist on the door. A short moment later, a rather dishevelled looking Blake opened the entrance to the room.
She took one look at Yang, Crue and Ruby, and simply turned around, walking back to her bed and flopping down onto it, causing the bunk to wobble uncertainly.
The trio entered the room, Yang going over to her dresser and changing out of sleep wear into her regular clothes. Crue turned to his own dresser, and noticed the plastic bag lying at the side of it. He opened it, and then closed it immediately.
"I left my fucking helmet and the money in plain sight." He glanced around, thanking his luck that no one had checked it. "Hey Crue, what's that?"
"AAH!" He exclaimed, holding the bag tight and turning to who spoke. Ruby eyes were wide in shock at his outburst. "You surprised me. It's my suit for the dance." He clutched where his heart was in mock surprise.
"Oh. Sorry Crue. Can I see it?" She asked politely, giving the Faunus a set of puppy dog eyes.
"Must. Resist." Crue panicked. "You'll see it tonight at the dance. Sure you don't mind waiting?"
Ruby pouted, but nodded her head. "Alright. I don't mind." She said, turning back to her bed. Crue sighed in relief, scanning the room briefly.
"JESUS H. CHRIST!" He exclaimed, covering his eyes. "Yang! Put some clothes on!" He turned back to his dresser, trying to purge the image of a topless Yang from his mind.
"If it weren't for Polly, I would've sworn you swung the other way." The blonde told him. Crue said nothing for a moment, glancing over to where Ruby was, seeing she had frozen in place.
"Would that be a problem?" He asked the brawler.
"Wha?" She said surprised. "No! God no! I wouldn't think less of you for something like that!" Yang spoke quickly, afraid she had accidentally offended him somehow. Crue did not reply, watching for Ruby's reaction.
The girl slackened visibly, but the action went unnoticed by Yang, who was focused on Crue. "Good to know." Crue told her, smiling secretly. "I'm not gay though."
"Well, yeah. Polly is proof of that." Yang said, referring to his apparent girlfriend. "I like her. She seems nice." Crue had a sudden flashback to watching Yang and Neo fight on a certain train.
"Yeah…" Crue muttered distractedly. He shook his head clear of those thoughts, and got dressed for the day, putting his bag in the dresser. "So, what do we have today?"
"Nothing." Came the voice of the Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. Crue turned to look at Weiss, seeing the girl covered in a light blue towel, obviously having just come from the shower. He looked away politely.
"How come? The dance?" Crue asked, putting on his hunters clothes.
"That, and the fact it's Sunday." Weiss informed him. Crue blinked, grabbing his scroll from its place on the dresser and checking the date.
"Huh." He murmured. "I've been here for almost a month. I wonder if time is relative." Crue thought back to his old life, remembering that he left sometime in January. His eyes widened as he realised something.
"I'VE MISSED THE SEASON FOUR PILOT! MOTHERFUCKER!" He cursed out the 'Author'. "DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW MUCH I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO THAT?! THE ANIMATION LOOKED SO MUCH BETTER!"
Crue groaned, and let his head hit the dresser. "Crue? You ok?" Ruby called. Crue gave a grunt, holding out a thumbs up.
"Fine. Just remembering stuff." He told her. "I'll be outside." He rubbed his eyes, grabbing his sunglasses of the dresser. He exited the room, the hallway outside completely empty as opposed to a few moments earlier, when it was filled with himself, Ruby and Yang.
"CRY. That'd be a terrible team name." He thought. "Wait. Ruby'd be the leader probably. RYC. Rice. That's even worse."
A door opened, but it was not the one he was expecting. "Oh. Hey Crue." Jaune Arc greeted, closing the door to his dorm behind him.
"Hey Jaune. What's up?" The other blonde greeted.
"Ah, you know, failing to get a date to the dance." He laughed awkwardly.
"Yeah. I saw your little," He gave an awkward wiggle of his fingers. "serenade." Jaune's face fell, and Crue sighed, shaking his head. "Where'd you get the guitar?"
"Oh. There's a music room. Did you not know?" He asked, scratching his head.
"Dude. I only got here like a month ago." Crue exasperated.
"Right, right, sorry." Jaune apologised. "C'mon, I'll show it to you." He nodded his head down the hall, gesturing for Crue to follow. The Faunus did so happily, curious as to what the room looked like, and what it contained.
For a short while, the two walked the hall, chatting about their studies and anything else that came up. Jaune led Crue to a small corridor, looking rather unused.
He opened a random door, the object in question creaking upon use. Crue followed him into the room, and let out a low whistle at what he saw. Instruments upon instruments hung upon the walls, some of them covered in dust.
"Yeah, no one really comes here. I doubt anyone else even knows about it." Jaune took an acoustic guitar from its stand, it appeared to be the only instrument there that wasn't covered in dust. Crue scanned the room, looking for another guitar.
Instead, he found something better, albeit smaller. He grabbed a ukulele off the wall, dusting it off and giving it a few test strums. "You can play that?" Jaune asked, surprised at Crue's choice of instrument.
Crue nodded, taking in a breath and blowing the dust of the acoustic. "Yeah. Been a while. But…" He began to strum a tune.
[Rude – MAGIC!]
"Don't think this about you now." Crue told Jaune as he laughed, strumming the ukulele. Jaune laughed along, listening to Crue as he sang.
"~Why you gotta be so rude?~" Crue sang, strumming happily. "~Don't ya know I'm Faunus too~"
After a short moment, Jaune joined in singing along and strumming his acoustic guitar. "~Can I have your daughter for the rest of my life? Say yes, say yes.~" The two blondes sang, looking at each other with wide smiles, alternating between the chorus.
The song finished, the two of them clapping and giving bows to an imaginary audience. "That was awesome!" Turns out the audience wasn't as imaginary as they had previously thought. Jaune and Crue both looked up to see the members of RWBY and JNPR in the room.
It was Nora who made the outburst. "You two were like, so in sync! It was amazing." The ginger exclaimed. The statement was met with various other congratulations, even from Weiss.
"Perhaps you could perform at the dance tonight." Weiss suggested. "Not gonna work for me. Unless it's after midnight."
"I thought you got someone to play music though." Jaune scratched his head. The platinum haired heiress nodded in confirmation. "Huh. A polite conversation between Jaune and Weiss. Never thought I'd see the day."
"Correct. I have managed to hire a duo called 'Dust Punk'." The statement was followed by a squeal of joy from a certain reaper.
"You got Dust Punk!?" She exclaimed, hugging Weiss tightly, the girl becoming as red as her partners cloak.
"Get off me, you dolt!" Weiss shouted, prying the young girl off of her. "You're just lucky that was the only artist I could find on Crue's scroll happened to be bookable."
"I-You-What?" Crue stammered, not quite understanding what she had said. Weiss' eyes went wide as she slapped her hand against her mouth. It took a second for her actions and words to connect together with the Faunus.
"You went through my phone!? Scroll! Whatever!" Crue exclaimed, causing Weiss to fidget uncomfortably.
"O-Only your music. I couldn't think of what music to have at the dance, and I remembered that you had a lot on your scroll." She explained, the rest of the group looking at the Heiress with surprised eyes.
"And why didn't you just ask me?" Crue questioned. He would have happily given her his extensive collection, if she had simply requested it.
"You weren't around. And I couldn't call you on it, because you left your Scroll in the room." She clarified quickly. "In any other circumstance I would have asked you Crue, but it was a decision that required haste."
Crue sighed, rubbing his eyes with his thumb and index finger. "You only went through my music?" He asked.
"Yes. I did not want to invade your privacy." Weiss spoke earnestly. "Any more than I already had." She trailed off.
"It's, fine." Crue eventually said. "How do I set a password on this?" He asked the group before him.
"Oh, let me show you." Jaune offered, taking out his own scroll and showing it to Crue. "First, go into settings…"
A short while later, Crue had successfully protected his scroll, with a password only he and Jaune knew.
"Why'd you trust Vomit Boy with your code?" Yang asked, as the teams made their separate ways away from the music room.
"Because I trust him. And he's a guy." Crue told her. "Guys always trust each other with that stuff. And now you have someone to ask if I'm not around." His reasoning seemed solid, leaving the members of RWBY to simply nod in acceptance.
"So, Crue, will you and Jaune be playing tonight?" Weiss asked hopefully. Crue considered the decision. He needed to stop Cinder, but there was no telling how long that would take.
"I think she left just after midnight, cause that's when Ironwood showed up." Crue felt as though he was forgetting an important part of that plan. "What time would we be playing at?" He asked her.
"Probably around one A.M. . That's how long the band is scheduled to play. After that will just be a playlist, unless you choose to perform." Weiss explained the night, leaving Crue hopeful.
"Well, I'll probably be finished by then." Crue nodded, causing Weiss to clap her hands together happily.
"Brilliant! Live performances done by students are supposed to be well liked." Everyone looked at the heiress strangely.
"Where'd you learn that Weiss?" Yang asked.
"From a movie." She answered, then saw the disbelief on everyone's faces. "I am allowed to watch movies!"
"Yeah but, you just don't seem the type." Ruby said. Weiss fumed, stamping her foot lightly.
"What movie was it?" Blake asked, trying to resolve the matter. Weiss managed to calm down enough to give her a proper answer.
"Academy of Rock. Starring Jacque Black." The platinum haired girl answered. Ruby and Yang instantly let out a noise of amazement, and began talking about how they watched it together as kids, and how much they loved the movie.
Blake, who had never seen the film in question, was the only one to notice that Crue had fallen, and was currently face down on the ground. He was muttering curses like there was no tomorrow, something about an author.
"Crue?" Blake questioned hesitantly, bending down and poking the downed Faunus. The boys head flew upward, now resting his chin on the ground rather than his nose.
"Yes?" He asked, a tone in his voice that Blake couldn't quite place. Exhaustion? Exasperation?
"Are you, ok?" She asked hesitantly. She was never good with reading other people's emotions. Why couldn't people just be more like books? They were so much easier to read.
"Fine." Crue grunted out, standing up and looking over her shoulder. Blake turned to see Weiss, Yang and Ruby talking animatedly about the movie she had mentioned, apparently wanting to watch it together at some point.
"I'm just done." He sighed. "I am, so done." He walked after the trio, leaving Blake to wonder what exactly it was he was 'done' with.
With a shake of her head, the Faunus jogged to catch up with her team and Crue, all of them planning to get changed for the dance as soon as they returned to their dorm.
…
In team RWBY's dorm, the occupants, which included the team itself, and the two females from their sister team, heard a knock on the door. The girls all looked to each other silently, their expressions asking if any of them were expecting company.
When no one answered, Yang took it upon herself to answer the door. Her white dress bounced softly as she strode across the room to open the door. She saw no one, until she looked down.
"Oh! Polly!" The blonde greeted, seeing the raven haired girl smiling up at her. Polly looked past Yang, waving at the other occupants. They all returned the greeting happily.
The shorter girl squinted slightly, before turning back to Yang, and placing to fingers behind her head, in order to imitate ears. "Uh… Crue?" Yang answered. Polly nodded happily. "Oh, well he's in there, getting changed with the other guys."
Yang pointed behind her, signifying that JNPR's dorm was being used for the males. Polly pouted slightly, wanting to see Crue. Yang noticed this, and lightly nudged her with her elbow. "Don't worry." She whispered down at her. "I managed to convince them to do a little, performance for us."
Polly looked up at Yang with an inquisitive glance. Yang said nothing, instead deciding to wink at the girl. The brawler nodded her head back into the room, inviting the girl to come in. She did so, lightly curtsying to humour the buxom girl.
Polly entered the room, allowing her dress to be seen by all. She wore a sleek black dress with streaks of white, which came down to just below her knees, and hugged her curves in a way that would have lesser men drooling after her.
The girls complimented her on her choice of attire, Polly doing so in return mutely. After a moment of applying makeup, tying up hair, and generally just making sure their appearances looked perfect, a sound akin to that of a wolf howl let itself be known.
Yang instantly grabbed her scroll, seeing she had received a text from Crue. "Crue says they're ready." She opened her music app, and began searching for a song that Crue sent her to play.
"Ready for what?" Weiss asked. Yang did not respond, but a smirk made its way onto her face. "Yang Xiao Long what did you do!?"
Instead of answering the question, the blonde brawler began playing the song. A guitar riff sounded off, and the door to JNPR's dorm opened up, as the lyrics began to kick in.
[Sharp Dressed Man - ZZ Top]
"~Clean shirt, new shoes, and I don't know what I'm gonna do.~" Lie Ren entered the room, lightly pulling on his collar, before reaching down and dusting off his slick black loafers. Nora almost fainted at the sight, having to be held up by Pyrrha and Ruby.
"~Silk suit, black tie, I don't need a reason why.~" Jaune followed after Ren, fixing his sleeves, before adjusting his maroon bowtie. Ruby was now having to hold up both Nora and Pyrrha, the struggle evident on her face.
"~They come runnin' just as fast as they can~" The occupants of the room redirected their attention from Jaune and Ren, back to the door, as the final male allowed himself to enter. "~Cause every girl's crazy 'bout a sharp dressed man.~"
Crue wore a midnight blue suit, with a pure snow white shirt underneath. Where Jaune and Ren both had bowties, Crue wore a tie of the deepest navy any of the girls had seen. He raised a single hand, a light sparkle off a pair of cufflinks catching their eye.
"So, do I know how to make an entrance or what?" He asked. And he got quite an answer. A black blur tackled him, throwing him off balance and causing him to fall onto his back. Polly then proceeded to pepper the Faunus' face with kisses.
Everyone minus the boy on the ground laughed at the action. "I'll take that as a yes." Crue grunted out, managing to kiss back. The two shared a peaceful moment on the ground, before it was interrupted by a certain blonde letting out a wolf whistle.
"Alright, lovebirds, get up and let's go to the dance." Yang instructed them, the two lovers regretfully parting and standing straight.
The party made their way to the Beacon Ballroom, Crue and Polly hanging in the back of the group. Crue bent down to his date in order to whisper into her ear. "Why were you there?"
Polly pointed up at Crue, who looked somewhat surprised. "For me?" He clarified. Polly nodded. "Why?" The petite girl gave him a look that Crue interpreted as 'Really?'.
"Right. Dating. That whole thing." Polly whacked his arm, causing him to flinch lightly. Crue responded with a light glare. Polly smirked back up at him and turned her head forward. The Faunus shook his head lightly, but looked ahead as well.
"You remember the plan?" He whispered. Neo nodded. She now had the location of RWBY's dorm memorised, and could teleport there at will. "Alright. Then let's have a good dance, shall we?" Crue held out his elbow for Polly to take.
The raven haired girl blinked, her eyes becoming pink and brown, and smiled up at Crue, taking his elbow. With that, Crue and Neo made their way into the ballroom.
...
"How long should we dance for?" Neo mouthed up to Crue as they swept around the dance floor.
"Until Mercury and Emerald come in, so they can see us leave." Crue mouthed back. They would have been talking normally were it not for the fact neither of them could actually hear the other over the beat of the music.
As they danced, they passed by Blake and Sun, who were sharing a form of waltz. Sun looked up when he noticed Cure, and smiled widely, giving him a thumbs up behind Blake's back. Crue smiled back, nodding to his fellow blonde Faunus.
"He does not deserve the shit tumblr puts him through." Crue shook his head, turning back to Neo. "I swear, if there's a male in RWBY that actually speaks, they piss themselves." His eyes suddenly became distant, unnoticed by Neo due to his glasses.
"Oh God, how would tumblr react to me? Well, I'm guessing they wouldn't show half of what I do, mostly due to cursing, but also due to…" Crue looked down at Neo, who looked back up with a smirk. "Maintain eye contact. Maintain eye contact. Maintain eye con- fuck."
Even though his eyes were hidden, Neo had a fairly good idea of where Crue was looking. She pushed her chest upward, batting her lashes at Crue. The wolf Faunus gulped lightly, staring down at the girls mismatched eyes.
"Hey, Polly." Neo's eyes turned back to their disguised jade green, as the two dancers turned to see Ruby looking at them while tapping her fingers together.
Neo tilted her head to the side slightly, indicating she was listening to her. "Have you heard from Emerald? She's a bit late." The red reaper asked, meeting the shorter girl's eyes.
Neo frowned momentarily, taking out her scroll from her black purse and checking it. Crue leaned over to check the time. It was a quarter to eleven, and the time made Crue look around for the two antagonists.
He spied a head of green entering the ballroom, its owner going unnoticed due to the fact neither Ruby nor Neo could actually see them over the crowd. "She's down there, I think." In a burst of rose petals, Ruby had disappeared in the direction Crue had pointed.
"Why is she dancing with her?" Crue turned to Neo, looking at her seriously. She shrugged, then mouthed her response.
"I don't know. Cinder didn't say anything. Maybe she just likes her." Crue's eye twitched lightly. "Or, you know, an evil plot." Neo tried. Crue relaxed slightly, but his shoulders were still tense.
"Alright, let's go stop this bitch." He cracked his knuckles, and grabbed Neo by the hand, leading her towards the entrance of the ballroom, the girls face lighting up like a christmas tree. They passed by Yang and Emerald talking, while Ruby waited by patiently.
As they passed, Neo looked back to the trio who were watching them leave with wide eyes. She smiled back at them, pointing rapidly to Crue's back, then making an 'ok' sign with her hand. The three girls watched in disbelief as the couple disappeared around a corner.
"Mercury is gonna be so mad." Emerald half-laughed, half-complained.
"That's our Wolfy." Yang beamed.
"What are they leaving the dance for?" Ruby asked innocently to Yang. "It's not like there's somewhere else they could have more fun."
Yang froze, her mouth hanging open in a shocked expression. Ruby shrugged her shoulders. "Oh well. Come on Emerald! Let's dance!" She took the girl's hand and led her away from her paralysed sister.
The younger girl giggled as she began to dance with Emerald, the mint haired girl smiling awkwardly as she moved. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mercury trying to hit on some random girl.
Ruby spun her round, and when she saw Mercury again he was clutching his groin in pain, and the girl had disappeared. With a more genuine smile, Emerald began taking an active part in the dance, much to Ruby's enjoyment.
Perhaps this dance wouldn't be so bad after all.
...
"This'll come in handy." A woman clad in a black outfit muttered, as she stepped out from an elevator and over two unconscious guards. The woman wore a mask over her face, covering the majority of her features, but allowing her bright amber eyes to be seen clearly.
This woman was none other than Cinder Fall, and she had infiltrated the CCT Tower of Beacon. She came here tonight with a mission, and no one was going to stop her.
"Well, you look the part." A voice suddenly interrupted the silence of the scene, Cinder spinning on her heel immediately, determined to find out where the voice had come from. She did not have to search very hard, as the perpetrator made himself known.
A man dropped from the ceiling, falling to his knees and ending up in front of the closed elevator doors. He rose slowly, a deep emerald green cloak that came down to his calves swaying in an unseen breeze.
"But something tells me you're not here for the dance." The man spoke, his voice distorted by a jade green helmet. Cinder squinted her eyes at the newcomer, unable to recognise them or their voice.
She took a step backward, her hand going to a vial on her belt. "Who are you?" She spoke briefly. This man was an unknown, and that made her uncertain as to his strength, and she did not deal with uncertainties.
"Now, where's the fun in just telling you?" The man mocked, raising an arm to the sky dramatically, the sleeves of his cloak slipping down slightly, revealing a set of what appeared to be chainmail gloves, only they were coloured a dark green, like the rest of his outfit.
"Here's an idea, how about we take off our masks and introduce each other." He bowed lightly, angling his head downwards. "Ladies first." Cinder grabbed her dust vial the moment he stopped speaking, bringing it upwards and removing the cap.
She shot several crystals towards the intruder, but to her surprise, he spun on his heel, and a gust of wind appeared, scattering the crystals. Cinder said nothing, as she noticed that the cloak had begun to glow a lighter shade of green during the attack.
"You think you're the only one that can infuse Dust into clothing?" He asked rhetorically. Cinder grit her teeth, prepared to fight the newcomer. "But, I haven't answered your first question yet, have I?" Her opponent seemed to smile under that mask.
"Who am I? Well, that's a loaded question isn't it? I suppose I've got a few names. Over the years, I've been known as a leader, a monster, a demon…" He began raising his arms, stretching them out to his sides. "I've been branded a beast, but the name I choose now…?"
Claws suddenly shot out from what looked like the man's hands. "I am The Wolf. And I have a question for you." He pointed his claws at Cinder, who took a step back instinctively.
"Are you ready?"
[One For The Money - Escape The Fate]
"Are you ready? Let's go!"
Without warning, aside from perhaps his words, Wolf lunged at Cinder, claws whistling through the air. Cinder jumped back, spinning round, Dust escaping from her suit, forming into a pair of dual swords that she held readily.
The Wolf stopped momentarily, looking at her weapons. "So, you're taking this seriously. Good to know."
He slashed sideways, Cinder bringing up her swords in defence. The meeting of the two weapons caused sparks to fly.
The two fighters leaned close to the other, staring each other down while their weapons clashed.
Cinder froze upon meeting his eyes. The steely blue eyes of her opponent, they did not belong to any human or Faunus. They held an almost animalistic rage, like none she had ever seen. Wrath and warning hid behind those eyes. Eyes that did not belong to any sane being.
Eyes that belonged to an animal. To a beast. To a Wolf.
Cinder leapt back away from the battle, the eyes of The Wolf boring into her.
A part of Cinder told her to run. That was a part of Cinder that she thought she had stamped out long ago. A part that she had purged from her body and mind. And yet, fighting this man made all those feeling and instincts rush back.
But fear of failure outweighed her fear of him. And so, she did what any female would do when faced with a threatening male.
Cinder brought her leg straight up, connecting it with The Wolf's groin. After she made contact, time seemed to freeze.
Then, through the slots of his helmet that allowed her to see his eyes, Cinder saw something unbelievable.
Glee. The Wolf looked genuinely thrilled at her action. And judging from the way his eyes were angled, he was wearing an enormous smile.
"IT'S A CUP BITCH!" The Wolf exclaimed, locking his legs together and trapping Cinder there.
Wolf brought his claws down diagonally, making contact with Cinder and sending her flying backwards.
She land behind a terminal, and stood up immediately, clasping her swords together into a bow.
An arrow formed from Dust, and she fired it at Wolf. He rolled to the side, dodging her arrow, before grabbing the hem of his cloak and giving it a sharp tug. A blast of wind hit Cinder, making her eyes water.
There was a crackle of static in her ear, and Emerald's voice came through her headpiece. "A party guest is leaving." Cinder growled as she shot another arrow at Wolf. He dodged to the side, rolling behind a terminal to avoid the explosion.
Using the noise to cover her conversation, she spoke. "I'm a bit busy at the moment." She seethed, watching at the man's helmet popped above the desk. She shot another arrow, and he ducked back down.
"It's Ironwood!" Emerald's voice came through clear with panic. Cinder froze in place. One man, one beast, or whatever or whomever The Wolf is, she could take. But add the General of the Atlesian Army into the mix? No thank you.
The Wolf jumped out from behind the terminal and slashed his claws at her from the distance. Six arcs of blue energy hurtled towards her, the noise drowning out whatever it was Mercury had said.
Wolf rushed up to her, as Cinder fired three more arrows simultaneously. He slid onto his knees, a pair of black jeans scraping against the floor, and dodged the first two. He brought his claws up and sliced the third projectile straight out of the air.
He leaped into the air and spun horizontally, bringing a single claw down on Cinder. The raven haired girl rose her bow to block the attack, her legs groaning in protest of the immense weight they just endured.
Cinder threw her arms up, disconnecting her bow and sending the Wolf flying backwards. He landed atop one of the terminals, crouching down and staring at her with those steely blue eyes. Those eyes that caused Cinder to feel rage, but not at The Wolf. Rage at herself, for being unnerved by his stare.
"I see you're not the quip kind of bad guy." He said, bending his legs down low and leaning forward. "A shame, that means you won't have any last words." Cinder grinded her teeth against each other as she charged towards her opponent, swords angled downwards, preparing for an upward slash.
Wolf coiled himself down, and sprung from the terminal, blue steel boring into amber. A moment before they could connect and begin to attack, their fight was interrupted, by a single sound.
*DING*
The two battlers turned to see the elevator door beginning to open. Unfortunately, due to the fact they were both looking at the elevator rather than each other, they collided.
There was a scramble of limbs as they disentangled themselves from each other. They separated, and rolled behind a set of desks, only the main terminal between them. Cinder looked at The Wolf with curiosity and hatred.
If he was supposed to be stopping her, why was he hiding too? "Helloooo?" She watched as The Wolf's hands clapped against his helmet in what appeared to be shock. Did he know this new intruder?
"Is anyone there?" Cinder met his eyes for a third time that night, and watched as he sprung up from behind his hiding place to meet this new person.
"Hi!" He said, almost happily. There was a noise of surprise, and then the intruders voice came again.
"You're The Wolf!" The intruder, obviously female, exclaimed.
"Well, yeah, but-" He was cut off when a gunshot sounded, and he went flying from his position. If it weren't for the tense situation, and the fact Cinder never laughed, she would have been guffawing.
"I'm not the bad guy here!" Wolf exclaimed, jumping back to his previous position and throwing his arms wide in a show of passiveness.
"Then who is?! Me?!" The woman asked incredulously.
"Nope. Her." Cinder blinked. She was staring at the pointed finger of The Wolf. She met his eyes once more, and she swore she could see a 'shit-eating grin' underneath that helmet. Her eyes narrowed as a flame lit behind them, and she knocked another arrow.
She let it fly, but The Wolf dodged it by leaping back to another desk. She could still sense that damned grin, and realised she had just outed herself to the new comer. She stood slowly, rising to meet the new challenger.
She had to look down a bit, as the wom- girl, that had intruded on the scene was not as tall as she expected. "Good!" The Wolf exclaimed, both females attention now on him. "Now, I'm getting the hell out of here before the General shows up."
Cinder's eyes widened. How did he know? Was he listening in on her broadcast? Did he have his own connections. Her questions were cut short when there was a sound akin to someone being kissed. The Wolf made the noise, and had thrown up a peace sign with both hands.
"Later!" He ran, leaping from table to table until he landed on the window, and began running up it. At the top of the window was an open panel, which he slid out of, before dropping like a stone.
Cinder turned back to the girl in red, and for a moment, they both just stared at each other. The moment was broken by the girl reloading what appeared to be a mesh between a scythe and a sniper rifle.
And then the fight was on.
...
Cinder rushed through a backdoor, discarding her mask as orange rings covered her body, changing her appearance from her stealth outfit into a sleek sparkling black dress, with a drey sash tied around her waist.
She exited the door, hearing a pair of soldiers rush in just as the doors closed. She instantly lost herself amongst the crowd, leaving the men in a confused state as to where the woman they were chasing disappeared to.
She scowled as she made her way through the crowd, people giving her a wide berth out of fear. She caught Mercury's eye immediately, and he nodded behind Emerald. The girl let go of her dance partner and turned to meet Cinder.
Whatever she was going to say died in her throat when she saw the expression upon Cinder's face. "I'm guessing it didn't go as planned." Mercury spoke hesitantly, as he took her gloved hands in his and began to dance.
"Whatever would give you that impression, Mercury." Cinder spoke through gritted teeth, practically shaking with rage. "There was someone else there." She informed him, and his surprise was evident.
"A huntsman?" He asked. Cinder shook her head.
"I don't know who he was. He called himself, 'The Wolf'. And he prevented me from completing the mission." Cinder could still remember those eyes. Eyes that seemed to stare into her very soul, while lacking it's own.
"The name sounds familiar." Mercury murmured. "I think I heard something about a crook with that name." Whatever he was going to say next was cut off by a voice speaking over the music.
"If Jaune Arc could KINDLY GET HIS CROSS DRESSING ASS BACKSTAGE, that would be lovely." Cinder watched as a boy with blonde hair and blue eyes, that was in a dress for some reason, coughed up his drink and sprinted to where the DJ's were situated.
Cinder turned back to Mercury with a frown. "Find out what you can about him. See if Roman or Neo know anything about him." She glanced around the ballroom. "Speaking of… Where is our little lovebird?"
Mercury frowned, Cinder managing to gain a small amount of pleasure from annoying the grey haired assassin. He grunted and nodded his head to the left. Cinder followed his direction, and saw Neo, or Polly, rather, sitting slouched on a chair, her tongue lightly hanging out of her mouth, and a girl with bright orange hair fanning her.
"It seems she and Crue are getting along swimmingly." Cinder said, her distaste for the boy only increasing after connecting the dots between Neo's expression and that, unfortunate, fact she learned about Crue.
"Can't we just off him?" Mercury requested, and as tempting of an offer that would be, Cinder shook her head.
"Unfortunately, no. He's become to well known. A sudden disappearance would spark intrigue." Her reasoning was logical, and Mercury begrudgingly agreed with her. "Where is he? Neo was supposed to be keeping an eye on him."
Mercury was about to answer, but the male in question decided to answer himself. "Hello Beacon!" The crowd on the dance floor halted their movement, turning to the stage, where Crue and Jaune were both standing behind the robotic DJ's.
A few people whooped and clapped at his words. "Now, before we start, can we all just take a minute to admire, this." He gestured to Jaune, who was still in his white dress. A few wolf whistles sounded out, causing the blonde to blush.
"I have never seen a man pull off a dress that well in my life." The hollering died down as Crue picked up an electric guitar, Jaune raising an acoustic. "Now, I have a request for all of you." The hall seemed to fall silent, as a drum beat began to sound.
"Dance."
[Dance Dance - Fall Out Boy]
The two blondes both began strumming their guitars, as Crue took a step towards the microphone.
"~She says she's no good, with words but I'm worse~" He threw a wink to the crowd, the action directed at a certain petite raven haired girl, who was now up and dancing, her previous exhaustion forgotten.
Crue stepped back slightly as Jaune moved closer to his own mic. "~Barely stuttered out a joke of a romantical stuck to my tongue~" A certain red headed amazon felt herself blush at those words.
"~Weighed down with words too, overdramatic~" Crue rolled his eyes at the last word, faking annoyance.
"~Tonight it's 'It can't get much worse" Vs. "No one should ever have to feel like' ~" Jaune began singing again.
The two blondes threw a glance at each other as they both approached their microphone.
"~I'm two quarters and a heart down, And I don't want to forget how your voice sounds, these words are all I have so I write them, so you need them just to get by~"
Jaune stepped back, as Crue raised his hand, and his pic, high above the strings of his guitar.
"~Dance, Dance~" The crowd did exactly that, going into a frenzy as the boy sang. "~We're falling apart to half time~"
"~Dance, Dance~" A few people had to clear a circle around a boy with blue hair and goggles, as his 'dancing' was proving quite dangerous. "~These are the lives you love to lead~"
"~Dance, this is the way they'd love, If they knew how much misery loved me~"
Despite the depressing tone of the lyrics, people still danced the night away, forming a crowd around the stage, and no one was closer than Neo and Pyrrha, the two of them having to be held back during certain lyrics.
...
The song ended with both Crue and Jaune singing into the mics.
"~Dance, Dance. Dance, Dance. Dance, Dance. Dance, Dance.~" The song ended with a single strum, and the crowd went wild with applause. Crue and Jaune both held their guitars high, and performed a bow.
When they both stood straight, the Faunus was tackled by Neo, causing wolf whistle's and laughs throughout the crowd. Jaune broke down laughing at Crue, requiring his guitar as a crutch. Through his laughter, he made eye contact with his partner.
Pyrrha flushed, having been caught staring. Jaune smiled at her, and then winked, his deep blue eyes sparkling with kindness. She fell backwards, only being stopped from hitting the floor thanks to her teammates.
Crue finally managed to get a breath in, lifting Neo up, seeing her mauve lipstick smudged, and could only assume he had several lips on his face now. He grabbed the microphone and spoke. "Wow." He said, to a fair few laughs.
"That was something. And I'm not just talking about that little thing right there." His comment got him a whack over the head from Neo, and several more laughs. "Anyway, I think we're done here for tonight." He looked over to Jaune, who shrugged his shoulders.
There was an instant 'Boo', and then a chant. "One More Song. One More Song." Crue looked to Jaune, who shook his head.
"Ok, well, we hadn't planned for anything else. And this dude wants to dance." He slapped Jaune on the back, his skin becoming red due to the fact that it was actually his skin seeing as he was wearing a strapless dress.
Neo poked his shoulder, getting him to bend down as she whispered something into his ear. "Really?" His voice echoed into the mic. "You want me to play that?" She nodded happily. Crue sighed, turning to the crowd.
"I never should've let you listen to my music." He plucked his guitar and nodded to Jaune. "Get on down there ya blonde eejit." The leader of JNPR looked surprised, but leapt down from the stage all the same.
"Now, this comes as a special request." Crue said sarcastically, turning back to Neo, who smiled innocently. "And it is dedicated, to all the ladies out there. And by God are there a lot of you." Every female in the audience, minus a certain amber eyed half-maiden and her lackey, cheered.
"Can't believe I'm gonna play this." Crue muttered, as he turned his head to cough away from the mic.
[It's Raining Men - The Weather Girls]
"~Humidity's rising. Barometer's getting low. According to our sources, the street's the place to go.~" The crowd looked a bit confused, mostly wondering how this song was dedicated to the females.
"~Cause tonight for the first time, just about half-past ten.~" As Crue sang, he noticed Neo sneaking behind him and secretly unbuttoning his suit jacket. It was also at that moment, that Crue remembered he was not wearing a shirt underneath due to, earlier activities.
"~For the first time, in history, it's gonna start raining men!~" Neo tugged on the suit, somehow managing to take it off completely without tearing it, or without interrupting Crue's song. The crowd gasped, but instantly cheer.
"~It's raining men!~" The crowd was much more into the song now, although whether that was due to the song itself or Crue's partial nakedness, he didn't want to know. "~Hallelujah! It's raining men! Amen!~"
Crue groaned internally in disbelief that he was actually performing this song without a shirt on. And the fact Neo kept staring at him did nothing to help. "~I'm going to go out, I'm going to let myself get, absolutely soaking wet!~"
Crue slammed his foot down to imitate a clap. "~It's raining men. Hallelujah! It's raining men. Every specimen.~"
He pointed to himself. "~Tall~" To Jaune. "~Blonde~" To Sun. "~Dark~" And then to Neptune. "~And lean.~"
He stopped playing the guitar for a moment just to sing. "~Rough and tough, and strong and mean~" He sang while performing various flexes. Several more hoots and hollers sounded out, and Crue took a moment to send a soft glare to Neo.
The girl in question was blushing heavily, her lips curled upward in a disturbing smile. Crue could only sigh, predicting a long night.
...
Crue let out a low breath as he finally finished the song. His performance was met with immense cheers. He took a moment to savour that, before speaking quickly. "Ladies and gentleman thank you for being my audience. I would love to say more but I fear I will be quite busy for the next hour or so."
To prove his point, Neo grabbed him by his tie, that was still tied round his neck, and dragged him backstage. He waved goodbye to his audience, as he disappeared behind a curtain. The crowd laughed, before realising he wasn't coming back.
After a few awkward coughs, music from Weiss' playlist began to flow from the speakers, sparing everyone from any awkwardness. The members of team RWBY and JNPR congregated together, although they were wondering where a certain red headed reaper was.
"Maybe she went back to the room." Weiss suggested. "She wasn't particularly looking forward to this anyway."
Yang nodded, agreeing with her suggestion. "I guess that makes sense. But, just a part of me is worried." The blonde sighed. Blake frowned lightly, patting the back of her partner.
"Boys and girls." A voice came over the speakers. They recognised it as their headmaster. "While this has been a lovely dance, no doubt thanks to the tireless work of team RWBY." There was a small pause where the crowd clapped, Weiss and Yang bowing.
"It is also past your bedtime. And those of you from Beacon are receiving your missions tomorrow. So it would be beneficial for you to be well rested. Thank you." The headmaster ended his speech, music flowing back through the speakers.
Slowly, people began filtering out of the room, leaving scarce few couples, still slow dancing to the music. As they left, a certain redhead lingered, staring at the other couples longingly. Her partner, and leader, noticed this.
"Hey, I'll catch up." He told the group, as he jogged back to Pyrrha. He placed a hand on her shoulder, startling her slightly. The others could not tell what he was saying, but whatever it was made the amazon blush heavily.
" 'Bout time he noticed." Yang stated, leaving the ballroom with a smirk. She was soon followed by the rest of the group, most all of them with a smile of some shape or form.
Weiss turned back momentarily, seeing Jaune and Pyrrha dancing together, holding each other close, smiling at each other. She shook her head lightly, as a flash of blue ran through her mind. She followed after her teammates and neighbours, deciding in her heart that she would focus on academics, and not chasing boys.
And oh, what a liar the heart is.
Man, that last line got really deep all of a sudden. The fuck was that about? Hell if I know. All I know, is that Crue successfully stopped Cinder's plan. If you really want specifics, I can bring it up in the next chapter.
But aside from that, music, moves, and motives. All of these were in this chapter. Actually, I'm not too sure about that last one. I was just going for the alliteration. Also, eyes are always significant in Remnant. And would you look at that? Cinder has never actually seen Crue's eyes.
How curiously convenient.
Anyway, that's all for me. I hope you enjoyed, let me know if you did, and as always
Until Next Time
-Friday