The Schnee Black Sheep
A/N
I'm back and returning in full form!
I apologise for those of you who were expecting a cannon chapter but this is once again more filler. I had originally planned for this chapter to go straight back into cannon but I really hate time skips. In the Anime, it basically goes from a few days a Beacon to Glynda saying it's been weeks now which I didn't really understand and I have a very, very petty hate of time skips. I don't mind short ones but a figured a month worth of missed interaction was going to be too much.
Here are a few brief short stories that will take place during the first month of the twins' time at Beacon. Yes, this may be filler but it will all come around in the main plot line as this chapter does contain a lot of character interaction between Coal and the rest of them. Something I think this story has been lacking in points. I just want to make a point that everything that I write is for a purpose and everything has a meaning. I've got a friend who is studying phycology who is helping me with some of Coals personality issues.
Also, the poll for Coals pairing will be ending on the release for chapter 16 so that I can start writing it in. not that this will become a romancy kind of fic, I just feel as though the pairing will be one of the main reasons behind Coal's need to become a more stable person. It's all for character and story development.
Also, a huge shout out to Lelouch of Zero for suggesting the perfect surname for Coal which I have already found the perfect place to give it to him. I'll be giving you another shout out when that chapter comes up buddy! Never thought that the perfect name would come around so fast. So, that may be a few chapters away dude. Sorry.
Please enjoy!
I still don't own RWBY.
Chapter 13: School Days
[Coal and Ruby – It's Also a Bomb]
"What about this?" Ruby asked holding up a new gauntlet design to a coal black eyed teen.
"No! That is basically a cannon attached to my arm. I just need a small nozzle to eject dust, like the one I currently use." Coal replied having, for the fourth time that day, rejected one of Ruby's designs.
"Ugh your impossible!"
"It doesn't have to be fancy. I just need something which can switch between dust cartridges and eject the fire dust in a small burst rather than a light stream like I use for ice forging. That way I can add it to glyphs." He explained. He and Ruby were sat inside the library of Beacon academy surrounded by books and gauntlet designs Ruby had offered to help the boy who was struggling to adapt his current gauntlet to accommodate the new dust chamber. Ruby had suggested that it would be more beneficial to remake the entire gauntlet from scratch and took it upon herself to design the weapon / armour piece.
"But wouldn't that leave you with only one type of landmine?" Ruby countered, "I mean what if you need a bigger explosion or even a smaller explosion for some reason?"
"Err. I didn't think of that."
"You sure can be single minded."
"Hey!" Coal yelled earning a glare from the old librarian at the front desk. Lowering his voice he continued. "I'm good at storing information not creating it." Not telling Ruby just how multiple minded he really was.
"That's why you have me." The red theme girl beamed. Honestly, Coal couldn't help but admit that the younger girl couldn't be anything other than cute. Even when she was twirling around with her scythe. "But if it's going to be too much of a problem then why not just use two different port for the different types of dust. That way you can adjust the amount you need using two separate valves and could even use both at the same time if necessary."
Coal pondered for a moment as he absorbed what the younger girl had said. When it came to weapons she was defiantly an expert so he trusted what she was talking about. True he had developed his gauntlet to forge swords at the touch of a button, but if what Ruby was suggesting about combining the blades with a touch of fire dust, and what his sister had said about landmines…
"Ruby you are a genius!" he proclaimed earning a smile from his assistant. "Is there any way to make it more compact as well, like Yang's Ember Cilica?"
"I'll see if she still has her old designs that we can borrow." Ruby said excitedly before disappearing in a burst or rose petals.
(Several Days Later)
Having borrowed some designs from Yang, Coal stood outside a small abandoned warehouse outside the city of Vale with his newly made gauntlet equipped on his right arm. The gauntlet looked very similar to Yang's although rather than yellow, his gauntlet was coal black with a single white stripe running down the middle of it. Unfortunately, due to the amount of dust storage the boy had wanted, he and Ruby couldn't get the gauntlet to revert into a smaller, more pedestrian form so it remained a static piece of metal. Ruby had joked earlier in the day that the amount of dust stored in the piece armour could level Beacon academy itself. Something she had to force Coal into not testing out.
"Okay let's give this baby a shot!" Coal said as he stepped inside the warehouse, pulling on his black glove which immediately illuminated the dust infused glyph upon the back of the leather due to coming in contact with the boy's aura.
"You sure this is going to work?" Ruby questioned as she readied her scythe, Crescent Rose.
"I'm about sixty two percent sure that this is going to work out as planned, but one hundred percent sure that it will be fun!" He said as he moving into a fighting stance, one which Ruby had seen her partner do many times. He stood as if he was eying her down the tip of his blade that wasn't really there, much like his sister would do before dashing into a fight. Ruby couldn't help but think that despite the obvious openings he left there wasn't much of a chance she could land a hit on him.
As Coal got comfortable in the position, he activated both chambers in the gauntlet and ice forged an estoc while adding a small amount of fire dust which he made sure not to activate by mistake. The blade he had forged was almost perfectly constructed. The 52-inch frost white blade was pointing directly at Ruby yet it had a single strip of red running down the very centre of the blade, only visible due to the blade itself being made of ice. The hilt of the sword was also frost white which curved very slightly away from the grip and pommel of the sword, which were also frost white and constructed of pure ice. The pommel was very basic in design however also held a form of beauty due to how smoothly it had been crafted.
"Ready… GO!"
(10 minutes later)
"Seriously Coal, how much dust did you put into that blade?" Ruby yelled at him pointing at the raging inferno in front of the two teens that used to be the warehouse.
"Barely any! Holy shit I didn't mean to blow up the place!" Hey yelled back trying to call the fire services to be able to put of the fire that he had unintentionally caused. During his sparing match with Ruby, Coal had stuck his blade into the ground in the middle of the warehouse in order to practice switching out between blades like he normally would during a fight. After leaving the sword stuck in the ground, he backed away and activated the fire dust stored in the centre of the blade using a glyph causing it to explode in a massive fireball… One large enough to engulf the entire warehouse in the red flames.
"Well, all in all that was a successful test." Ruby piped up with a smile as if they hadn't just levelled a building. "Wouldn't you agree Coal."
Coal turned to face the girl with a worried expression. "Winter does not find out about this! If she finds out I've been blowing shit up again she will be furious."
Ruby gave the boy a confused look, not knowing who he was referring too. "So, what you going to call it? The gauntlet?" This caused the boy to show off his childish smirk. Something Ruby was becoming fond of seeing.
"Hephaestus."
[Coal and Wiess – A Typical Sunday.]
"Coal are you awake?"
…
"Well here we go again."
Weiss crept into her twin's room that he always left unlocked and walked right up to the lump hidden under the blankets of the bed, which was lightly snoring. Ensuring that she was standing far enough back just in case he reacted badly to being woken up. She knew he would never harm her, even when he was awoken from his sleep by the girl, he had never caused her any harm or even touched her. For some odd reason, she was the only one who could actually wake him without someone almost getting killed.
Weiss ripped the thick blankets away with both hands, throwing them over her head in the process and yelled at the top of her lungs. "COAL GET UP RIGHT NOW!"
The boy jumped up to his feet having been startled from his sleep, part of his subconscious having realised that it was his twin who had disturbed him, so there was no need to resort to physical violence to fend off a potential threat. Even though by the tone of his sister's voice indicating that she was pissed.
"Weiss? What the hell are you doing?" He yelled as he rubbed some sleep from his eyes still standing on his bed. "It's Sunday, let me have a long lie in for once."
"No Coal. You promised me we would go into town to go shopping, and that is precisely what we are going to do." Weiss huffed as she puffed out her cheeks like a small child.
"No. Nuh-uh, I'm not getting out of bed yet so you're just going to have to wait." He proclaimed as he flopped back down onto the mattress.
"But…" Weiss whimpered. "You promised." Shedding a single tear. 'Three. Two. One…'
"Fine, give me five minutes."
"Sure, no problem." She cheered having done a full 180 and was now beaming down at her twin. "And will you please at least wear some shorts or something to bed. I'm sick of waking you up and seeing you naked." She said as she turned away to give him some privacy.
"That's one thing I will not promise Baby Sis." He said as he stood from his bed and walked over to his wardrobe without any shame. They were family and twins no less, they had seen each other in their birthday suits plenty of times as kids to be used to it by now.
(City of Vale)
"Come on Frosty you can't keep wearing those baggy combats and tee-shirts all the time, you need something that will look more appealing to women if you're ever going to get a girlfriend."
"But Weiss." Coal wined, "I look like a compete tool."
"It's just a buttoned shirt! It's nothing compared to what farther made you wear to those dinners he arranged with those hussies. At least you don't look half bad in that."
The twins had only entered the first store and to Coal's hate, Wiess had brought him shopping for his own clothes. Not for clothes for her like he had initially thought. Standing just outside a changing room, the boy now wore a pair of black skinny jeans with a navy-blue shirt which was also rather tight.
"I still don't understand when I would ever need to wear something like this." He grumbled as he attempted to stretch the crotch of the overly tight jeans.
"For when you eventually get a date you dolt!" Coal was really starting to lose patience with his sister.
"Who says I'm even looking for a girlfriend!"
Huffing and folding her arms, Weiss looked her twin dead in the eyes. "Someone is going to have to take care of you and you can be damn well sure that it won't be me. You can be such an idiot!" She turned away and exited the store in a rather quick pace having said her piece to her twin. Weiss knew that her brother was skilled in many things and was without doubt one of the smartest people she had ever known, but there was one thing that he lacked… He knew absolutely nothing about romance. He had never even been on a real date before, not counting the many dinners her farther had arranged with possible women suiters for the boy. How Weiss was going to get him together with someone was going to be one hell of a mission.
"Stupid Coal and his stupid density." She muttered as she stormed down the busy streets of Vale. 'If only he noticed Pyrrha more… Even Blake or Ruby for that matter. Just don't let it be Yang. That girl just as much of a perv as him.'
"Hey sis!" Weiss turned around to see her brother running to catch up with her, still dressed in the outfit she chose for him. Having caught up with his sister, Coal continued to stretch his legs while also re-adjusting… "Damn these things are difficult to run in. Give me a minute here, I think my balls just went inside me." He said in a slightly higher voice.
"That's a mental image I didn't need."
"I'm sorry." He said having straightened himself up. "I know you're just looking out for me. I'm sorry I was getting annoyed at you because you're just doing what you think is right... You're not wrong, I could do with some nicer clothes if I'm going to be surrounded by the girls on your team and Jaune's team."
Smirking in victory, Weiss quickly wrapped her brother in a hug which he returned just as fast. "Your still an idiot Frosty."
"I know Snow Angel. Just, no more skinny jeans please. They are killing me right now."
"Sure." Weiss chuckled as she released her brother. "You did remember to pay for all those right." Indicating towards his clothing.
"Oh Shit, I knew I forgot something."
"You really are hopeless." Weiss said shaking her head. "If you ever do end up dating, I feel really bad for whoever it is."
"Fine then let's make a deal baby sis. You don't get yourself involved in my love life and I won't get in the way of yours." He said outstretching a hand. One which his twin shook.
"Deal" Weiss agreed, with her fingers crossed behind her back. The twins returned to their shopping and by the end of the day, Coal had purchased a whole new wardrobe courtesy of his sister. Maybe someday he would need to use them but only if he ran out of his usual attire.
[Coal and Blake – Something's Fishy.]
Blake was tearing through her book collection when Weiss walked into their room, finding the hidden Faunus girl on her hands and knees surrounded by dozens of books.
"What you looking for Blake?" Weiss asked catching the girls attention who looked up with a slight pink tint to her cheeks.
"Err… A book."
"Which one? I can help you."
"Its fine, I'll find it eventually." Blake said before going back to her frantic search. Weiss just watched her for a few moments before she remembered something earlier that day.
"Coal asked me this morning if I had any extra text books for him to borrow. Could he have taken one of your books by mist-"
"WHERE IS HE!" Blake yelled having moved as quick as lightning and grabbed the Schnee girl by the shoulders.
Weiss was surprised by Blake's actions, what kind of book did he take? "I think he said something about heading to the docks to chill for a bit or something."
Just like that Blake was gone.
Blake sprinted to the docks hoping that her teammate was right that he was there, but wrong about him taking her book. Not that she was embarrassed about reading such material, it was that Coal would constantly tease her about it. The book was rather detailed after all.
Sure, enough there he was, sitting on the end of the wooden pier with his legs dangling over the edge, facing out towards the water. he seemed rather focused on something in front of him. 'Please no!' Blake mentally screamed as she ran up the Coal and pulled on his shoulder so that he could face her and yelled. "What the hell do you think your-"
"Blake shhh." Coal whispered. "You will scare the fish away."
"Huh." Blake looked at the sitting boy, she really looked this time. He was sat on the edge of the wooden pier holding a fishing rod, the line barely visible stretching far out into the ocean water. But it was his face that intrigued the Faunus, she had never thought that the person who had almost ended her life, the person who she had watched kill another human and almost let herself kill could look so calm… his eyes were so relaxed that if he were any more passive he would be asleep.
"You'll scare the fish." He repeated as if it was obvious.
"Where. Is. My. Book." Blake whispered through gritted teeth. Trying not to admit to herself that she found him rather cute when he was so calm. Coal reached inside of a bag that was sitting just to his side and pulled out a black covered book with the title "Ninjas Of Love" and presented it to the girl.
"You mean this smut." Blake snatched the book from his hand with a light blush. He had read it after all.
"It's not smut." She whispered again, still falling under the boy's request to be quiet. "It's a… It's a…" She couldn't think of another way to describe the book.
"Smut." Coal repeated again with a sly smirk. "If it's not that, then Blake, what your reading there may as well be porn."
"How much of it did you read?" Blake questioned her blush deepening.
"Got halfway through the first lemon before I couldn't handle anymore." Coal shrugged turning back to his fishing. Blake just stared at him from the side, he hadn't even read past chapter four. The amount of innuendos and sexual jokes the boy made didn't reflect the fact he gave up reading a small bit of detailed reading. "Sit for a while lass. It's a nice day, so enjoy it. You've got your book back after all."
Blake pondered for a moment at the request. Sure enough it was a lovely day, the sun was out, there was a light breeze in the air and the only sound that could be heard was the water below them hitting the pier's struts. It was a very calming place to be. She took up a spot behind the fishing boy and leant back against his back using him as a seat rest, she didn't want to get a bad back after all and needed something to prop herself up against. He didn't seem to mind as he simply remained perfectly still. Blake could feel the muscles on his back, sure they weren't big but they were solid and rigid, yet she could just about feel his lungs expanding and retracting as he breathed in calm rhythmic breaths.
They sat in a comfortable silence before Blake's curiosity got the better of her. "When did you learn how to fish?" She asked not looking away from her book.
Keeping his eyes fixated on the water Coal responded. "Ironwood took me fishing when I was being trained by him. It was one of his ways to teach me how to keep calm and empty my head, while I learned how to shoot."
Blake looked over her shoulder at the boy Confused. "What do fishing and shooting have in common."
Coal let out a low chuckle, his eyes remained on the water. "Quite a lot actually. They both require patience, finesse and a calm head. And when the opportune moment comes you… STRIKE!" He yelled the last part jumping to his feet and yanking on the rod, reeling in his catch. "Come on ya little bugger you." He said as he continued to wind in the line. Blake also stood to see what he had caught, which turned out to be a fairly decent sized fish. "Alright! Mackerel for dinner tonight."
"You cook?" Blake questioned him again with doubt. Just how little did she know this guy… And why did she want to know more. Maybe it was because of them being in similar positions about trying to run from their pasts, but she'll never know.
"I can only cook the basics but I can make a mean fish and chips. You want some?" he said storing the fish in a bucket. Blake accepted the offer but only if he caught her, her own fish. She wasn't one for sharing. She never mentioned that she wanted to go back to reading while using him as a back rest… Somehow, she was comfortable in that position.
Only one question remained in her head. Was he fishing for fun, or was he fishing to keep himself calm? She never asked him as the silence they shared seemed to answer the question for her. He was here to escape the noise of his life at Beacon, to take a step back and relax. Something she did by reading her books.
"Coal?"
"Hm?"
"Next time you come fishing, let me know."
And with that, Coal gained a fishing buddy. Not that Blake would ever fish herself, she just enjoyed the peace and tranquillity of the time she spent on the pier with the boy. They would never need to say anything to understand how each other felt in the moment. Both teens had found the place where they could just be normal. Where they could be themselves and not feel like they were being judged on who they were. Coal had known about Blake's past and accepted it regardless, he had accepted her. Blake had forgiven him for almost killing her when they first met and had realised through his actions with his sister and the child, Ebony, on their first mission that deep down he was really a softy.
[Coal and Yang – A Night Out on the Town.]
Yang was pissed… and not the good kind of pissed. She was angry for one reason and that reason only. The reason… Coal was hording all the alcohol and refused to share any with her.
"Why the hell won't you share with me?" She asked for the tenth time that night. She and her team had decided to play a few games in Coal's room and the boy had decided that, after a major losing streak, that he needed a drink. Much to his sister's disgust. When Yang had asked for a drink herself, much to her own sister's disgust, he had refused saying that.
"This stuff is way too strong for a little lass like you." He said chucking back another glass of scotch. Why he was drinking such a thing or where he had gotten it from was a mystery. When asked about it he had only said, "Blame the General."
"Hey! I'm not some little girl!" Yang yelled getting right up in his face that their noses were touching. Coal simply looked into her gleaming red eyes without fear.
"Like I said, you couldn't handle it." Placing a finger to the blond's lips and lightly pushing her away to give himself some breathing room. "Not my fault that old Ironarse constantly left his liquor cabinet unlocked. Basically, left an open invitation for a teenage kid like me at the time."
"Oh please, I could drink circles around you." Yang stated as if it was a proven fact.
"Fine let's put that to the test shall we." Coal said with his childish smirk. Weiss instantly began to fear for her teammates safety. Something she had to say something about.
"Err Coal," Weiss began. "I don't think that's a good idea… We don't want you getting into more trouble."
"What's the worst that can happen baby sis." He said standing up. "I won't get as hammered as the time I nearly blew up father's classic car collection." That was the last thing that she needed to remember at a time like this.
"You did that when you were sober!" Weiss argued. "And we were seven at the time!"
"Details snow angel, details." He waved off. Instantly calming his sister down using his reserved nick name for his twin.
(Saturday Night.)
"Yo Yang, you ready yet." Coal yelled through the door of the girl's room after waiting for fifteen minutes longer than she had told him to.
"Just a moment Coal." Yang sang from the other side of the door. This caused the boy to curse the female population with every name under the sun. Yang as it turned out took longer to get ready than his twin and they were now losing drinking time.
Yang opened the door to find an irritated Coal who was dressed in his normal attire minus the coat with his Schnee insignia, she walked right on past him while grabbing his arm and dragging him to their evening out. Coal looked at Yang… She looked no different than normal. Same clothes, hairstyle and makeup. 'She kept me waiting all that time and she hasn't even changed!' he mentally raged. 'I will never understand women.'
"I've got this awesome place that we should go." Yang said still dragging Coal. "I know the guy that owns it. He's a bit shady but it's a sweet club."
'Shady guy who owns a club in the city of Vale. Oh hell no!'
"Nope we are not going there!" Coal protested ripping his arm from the blond's tight grasp.
"Buy why?" Yang pouted.
"I don't mix business and pleasure."
…
"Um. Okay… So where should we go?" Yang questioned, confused at the boy's answer.
Coal showed his evil smirk as he took Yang's arm in his own and lead the two into the city. "I know a place."
(3 Bars and Many, Many Drinks Later)
"Yang your drunk."
"No, your drunk. HICK*" Yang slurred as she put and arm around the boy's shoulders. They were sat at the third bar of the night and had each drank many drinks. Coal had drunk a few more than his companion due to pace of his drinking. Yang had tried to keep up at first but by the time they had hit the second bar halfway into their night out, Yang was beyond the point of tipsy by then. Coal seemed relatively sober though, if anything he only felt a little tipsy.
Right now, though it was well into the early hours of the morning and both teens were sat at another bar recommended by the boy, due to the fact he knew the owner, like he had for every bar they had walked into, and thus had no difficulty getting served.
"So Coal." Yang slurred after ordering another drink. "Why did you dye your hair?"
"Huh?"
"I wanna *HICK* see it naturally."
"I dyed it because I'm not a Schnee anymore. People with hair as white as mine are often identified as being associated with that family."
"That doesn't make sense." Yang stated as she locked eyes with the boy. "You still call *HICK* Weiss your sister don't you."
"Yeah but I do that for her sake… Not mine." Coal whispered. So maybe the alcohol was starting to get to him as he continued. "I'd do anything for her. I'd take any amount of pain and suffering so long as she doesn't have to… I won't let her get hurt again."
"Again?" Yang questioned hoping to finally get something from the boy. It was rare that he ever got emotional like this. Her plan was working like a charm. No one can hide anything after a few drinks.
Coal winced at his own stupidity. Maybe he had said too much. But Yang had a sister of her own, so maybe she could understand.
"What would you do if someone tried to hurt Ruby, if someone tried to kill her?" He asked as he stared into his drink. "What if you had the power to protect her but knowing that if you used it, someone would die?"
Yang looked at the boy and downed the rest of her strawberry sunrise before replying honestly. "I would end anyone who would dare hurt my sister." Coal turned to meet the girl's eyes only for her to jump from her stool at the bar and run out the door. Coal followed her out only to find her hunched over a bush, throwing up her stomach contents.
"Come on firecracker, let's get you home." Coal said with a soft smile as he put his arm around the girl and lead them back to Beacon. Hoping that she wouldn't remember what he had asked in the morning.
[Team VOID – It's a family thing.]
"Little more to the left."
…
"How's this?"
"hmmm, I liked it better against the other wall."
"For fuck sake baby sis! This thing is heavy!" Coal huffed as he and Jaune bent over to pick up the sofa again. He and both teams RWBY and JNPR had chipped in to get some furniture for their self-proclaimed common room which doubled as Coal's bedroom. So far, they had bought 2 three seater sofas, a leather armchair, fridge freezer combo and Ren was currently installing an electric stove and kitchen bench. Most of this was payed for by Coal's military earnings which he had saved away due to previously having access to his Schnee fortune. Even after his purchases he still had enough to buy a small house with. Unfortunately, it was the males of the group that had drawn the short straw and were made to do all the heavy lifting.
"Just do as your told and move it against the other wall." Yang ordered as she took a spot on the couch that Coal and Jaune were carrying. The boys locked eyes for a moment and with a silent understanding that only best friends could have, they tipped the sofa causing the blond girl to fall face first onto the floor with a girly yelp. The boys complied with their instructions from the females as placed the sofa back where they originally had put it several attempts earlier that day.
"I still don't like it…" Blake and Ruby said at the same time.
"Well I'll let you girls think about it for a minute then." Coal sighed, turning to Jaune he asked his best friend at Beacon. "Hey J, think you can give me a hand with the flat screen?"
"Sure." While the boys fixed the massive screen to the back wall and Ren continued with installing kitchen, the female members of the group all bickered and fought over where the sofas should go. Much to Coal's annoyance.
"When did my room become a hang out anyway."
"Well C," Jaune replied, "When a woman decides on something they tend to just do it regardless."
"Take it you have a sister of your own?" Coal inquired, knowing that the insight must have come from experience.
"I have seven." Coal nearly dropped his side of the screen at Jaune's answer.
"Your parents really need to find a different hobby." Ren quipped from behind the stove. Causing Coal to nearly drop the screen again, giggling.
"Dude! Not cool." Jaune protested, looking very red.
"Yo Ren, you need a hand over there?" Coal asked ignoring his blond friend.
"I could use some help yes."
"Great." Coal chipped leaving Jaune to handle the heavy screen by himself. "Don't drop that J. it was expensive."
"Coal you prick get back here!" Jaune yelled to no avail. As Coal crouched down to 'assist' Ren he whispered.
"How long do you think before Nora asks you about pancakes?" Coal asked only for Ren to sigh.
"She already asked me… Every five minutes." Coal laughed before sprouting a serious look.
"You ever wonder why we're here?"
"At Beacon?"
"No mate. Why the male population is here? All we do is eat, sleep and move furniture."
As if on cue…
"FROSTY! GET YOUR ASS IN GEAR AND MOVE THIS SOFA NOW!"
"REN WHEN WILL THE PANCAKES BE READY!"
"Coming Snow Angel." Coal said happily to his sister and left a chucking Ren who couldn't help but agree with the childish hunter for the first time. "Damn mate, she's worse now than when we got bunk beds as kids."
"You had bunk beds as kids?" Nora asked
"Yeah we did" Weiss said still thinking about where to place the sofa.
"We fought tooth and nail to get them though." Coal continued.
"Father wouldn't let us because we had our own rooms at the time."
"But we convinced him into knocking down the wall between them."
"To make one room for both of us." Weiss finished. Getting looks from the rest of the teens in the room. "What?"
"That was just weird how you guys did that." Ruby explained looking between the siblings.
"We are twins Red." Coal shrugged, as he and Jaune placed the sofa down once again.
"Exactly. We only do it" Wiess said.
"On occasion. It's more of a" Coal Continued.
"Rare habit. We don't even"
"Realise we do it half the time. Let me guess you want it back over there?" Coal finished pointing to where he and Jaune had just moved the sofa from.
"Yes, I think I was right the first time."
"More like the fifth." Jaune joked. "Seriously Snow Angel would you just- EEEP!" Jaune yelped having been instantly floored by the Schnee girl who looked rather pissed.
"How many times… Don't call me that!"
"But Coal gets to!" Jaune argued.
"She only lets me call her that mate." Coal explained, flexing his right hand, a nervous habit. "All the Schnee siblings have nicknames for each other. Kind of like a family thing that is reserved for us."
"Coal gets Frosty from me, but he gets different names from Winter and Whitley."
"I coined Snow Angel and Baby Sis for Wiess and I call my older sister Winter, Frostbite."
"What about Whitley?" Wiess asked having never heard him call their youngest brother by anything other than his name.
"I just call him shit stain." Wiess rolled her eyes.
"Get your ass back to work Jaune before I rip you a new one." Wiess ordered picking the blond back up from the floor having shrugged off her twin. Her brothers never got along so she had expected as much from her twin.
Once the room was somewhat organised, Coal and Ren prepared a meal using the fish that Coal had caught on one of his fishing trips and each teen enjoyed a film on the lopsided flat screen which was hung incorrectly by Jaune and Coal. the boys purposefully did so knowing that it would annoy a certain white themed girl.
[Coal and Pyrrha – Not a Date, Date.]
Pyrrha was worried. For the last three days Coal, had been very uncharacteristically quiet and had been constantly training in the gym, away from everyone else. Even Wiess was struggling to bring him around. She knew that he must be bottling things up again so she decided that what he needed best was to get away from the school grounds for a bit of fun.
She walking into the gym to find Coal beating on a punchbag which was splitting along the side. "Coal!" she shouted getting the boys attention as he broke rhythm for a moment before resetting. "Come on we're going into the city for the day. And that's not up for debate!" she finished knowing that the boy would argue, sometimes it was easier just to not give him a choice. Coal stopped punching for a moment before speaking between breathes.
"Why… Would we go… Out on a Sunday?" Pyrrha folded her arms and answered.
"Because you need to vent, and destroying the gym equipment isn't the best way to go about it." She said as she indicated to a pile of broken punch bags in the corner of the room. "You need to get out and have some fun. So, go get showered and changed."
"Ugh fine." Coal accepted reluctantly. He could never say no to a woman after all.
After changing into some clean clothes, which just happened to be a pair of jeans and a navy shirt and black trainers that his sister had forced him to buy, he had no spare sets of combats or tee-shirts due to forgetting about his ever-growing laundry pile. Coal walked beside Pyrrha through the city centre wondering where the redhead was leading him. She had also changed into something more civilian, she was wearing an emerald green tank top which hugged her figure with a pair of form fitting light blue jeans and a pair of leather heeled sandals. It had taken her a while to finally decide on an outfit.
"So, where we headed Pyrrha?" Coal asked from her left.
"To the arcade." She replied getting a confused look for the boy.
"You don't like games."
"Not so much…" She shrugged. "But you do."
Coal also shrugged. Maybe playing a few games would be fun. As the two approached the arcade Coal's face changed into the face that a small child would have after receiving a new toy. Pyrrha knew that this would fix his mood seeing that he ran on ahead. She followed behind at a much slower pace but was happy none the less that the boy seemed somewhat like his old self. It didn't take too long to catch up with him as she found him playing some kind of shooting game as he was holding a plastic rifle and pointing it at a large tv screen.
"Damn Zombies why can't they just stay still!" Pyrrha heard him grumble as he continued to shoot nothing at the screen. "Mother Fucker!" he yelled as he slammed down the plastic gun, even Pyrrha could tell that he just lost. She pushed him aside and picked up the hunk of plastic herself and, having paid her fee for the machine, had a go herself.
"Woah…" Coal awed watching the Spartan. "You just crushed my high score." She may have beaten his score but she didn't progress much further than that. But rather than just loose her temper like her rival she replaced the gun gently on its platform ready for the next player.
"That was… Mildly entertaining."
"How did you do that! You even got past the first boss in no time at all!"
"probably because I'm used to holding a rifle or something."
The two teens played a few more games, Coal winning most of them, before taking a break to get something to eat at a fast food restaurant located inside the arcade. Coal had ordered several burgers for himself while Pyrrha had gotten a vegetarian burger. Not that she was vegetarian, she was just self-conscious about what she ate when her rival was around.
"So how come you asked me out Pyrrha?" Coal asked wolfing down another burger. Looking up from his food he noticed that the girl grew a light blush. As to why he had no idea.
"Well… You weren't acting like yourself." Pyrrha said quietly, still flustered about the way he worded his question. "I figured a day playing around would help you let go of whatever was bothering you. Mind if I ask what that was?"
With a heavy sigh and finishing off another burger Coal figured that he could once again confide in Pyrrha. "I'm pissed off."
Pyrrha raised an eyebrow to the boy and waited for him to continue.
"I've been looking into dust infusion and human anatomy… you remember the thing on my back?" he asked, when he received a nod of confirmation he kept explaining. "Well, I want rid of it. Everything I've found out, every case study, every bit of evidence says that to extract the dust there is a good chance I could die from the operation. A very high change."
"And you still want to do it..."
"No!" Coal snapped, "I can't run the risk of leaving Wiess alone. It doesn't matter what I want."
Pyrrha placed a hand over his own in an attempt to calm him down. She spoke in a calming tone.
"Maybe you should speak to her about all this…" When Coal shot her a dirty look she explained her reasoning. "She has a right to know. She is your sister after all and you being pissed off is affecting her just as much as it is you." Coal released a deep breath before looking way from the girl and standing up.
"Come on lass." He said getting up avoiding Pyrrha's gaze, he hated it when she was right. "Let's play a few more games before we head back."
On the way out of the arcade, the duo walked passed a claw machine which Pyrrha noticed out the corner of her eye contained a bunch of small plush artic wolf. It was just the cutest thing she had seen. Doesn't matter how much of a badass she was, she was still a girl and fell for the cute things in life. Though she did well to hide it. But not well enough apparently as Coal walked up to the machine and inserted a coin to begin the game. Within seconds he had won the plush she had been eying. Reaching down to the prize slot his picked out his trophy and handed it to the girl with a soft smile.
"Thanks for today. You were right, I needed a bit of fun. And I'll think about what you said, about telling Wiess." Pyrrha accepted and thanked the boy with a red tint to her cheeks and they both walked back to Beacon as the sun began to set across the horizon.
As Pyrrha walked to her room, having left Coal when he returned to his, she thought over the events of the day and one question kept repeating in her mind. 'Was that a date?' during the walk back, she had accepted that she had a slight crush on her rival. She opened the door to her room to head straight to bed and sleep on the matter only to be met by a certain white themed girl sitting on her bed with an evil smile she had obviously learned from her twin.
"So Pyrrha." She said with a mischievous tone. "How was the date?"
"IT WASN'T A DATE!" Pyrrha yelled. Coal would probably say the same thing so she may as well accept it.
A/N
This chapter was such a blast to write. I know your all probably wanting me to get back to the cannon story which will be coming back in the next chapter don't you worry your pretty little heads about that. I just thought it was a bit different to a months worth of time skip.
Also, quick shout out to GhostToast42 for the date idea with Pyrrha, I was struggling to think of a scene between the two and that fit the bill perfectly so thanks for that buddy.
Now for some good news! For your patience over the past week I'm doing a double update this week so watch out for next chapter tomorrow!
BYE-BYE!
