Chapter 2 – Mirror Mirror.
- ASH -
It's funny, no matter how heated or confusing things are, it always makes sense in the morning. Maybe it was the two week bender that made it that way, perhaps this is just him sober again. Part of him wished he wasn't, it probably would make the day go smoother. He'd have to deal with Glynda, Cardin and the psychotic curriculum that is Beacon Academy. Oh, can't forget his team hates him too. His list of friends in this chaotic mess was looking rather depleted.
It's said the eyes are the window to your soul. No matter where you are in life you can look at your reflection and see exactly where you really are. Something about the eyes, you just can't lie to yourself. Ash had been staring at his reflection for a while now. In short, he looked like hell. His eyes were baggy, his face had scraggly hairs growing along his jaw and his skin looked rough and pale. There were still a few bruises here and there, most of the colorful ones were under his shirt. His hair, usually messy in a playful sort of way had migrated towards messy in a vagrant sort of way. He looked like he might have aged three or four years. Hell, if Lyra didn't mention it's been weeks he'd probably believe it. Those weeks were sort of a blur. It was the eyes though, that tells reveals your true emotions. His eyes looked dead, no matter how he tried to smile or brighten himself up they stayed lifeless and hollow.
He looked at his jacket, it was covered in stains. Some of it alcohol, some of it food, some of it something else he didn't want to know. He tossed it aside. He grabbed a razor and got to work. He shaved his horrible beard and combed his hair as best he could. Even after a hot shower he still smelt like alcohol. He glanced around and found Morgana's perfume. He found the least feminine scent he could find and sprayed himself. Now he smelled like sandalwood and whiskey. Combination of champions. He changed into his school uniform, he glanced back at the mirror and gave himself a sly smile. Just like old times. His eyes looked just as dead.
He grabbed his silver jacket and reached into it's pocket. He drew a hipflask and weighed it in his hand. Half empty, or half full depending on how you look at it. He stared at it, his lips felt dry. He was planning on tossing it, but he didn't really want to. He popped the cap and took a swig from it. He slid it into his coat pocket and hurried out the door. The light was blinding, his head was still throbbing and his stomach was percolating. In short, it wasn't the worst morning he's had in the last month.
The cafeteria was crowded, he waved to his group but they immediately looked away. Even Billy. That hit home more than anything. He found himself a place at a table on the opposite end of the cafeteria. It was weird not sitting with his team, some of the other students at the table were giving him odd glances. It's like they've never seen someone in the doghouse before. On his plate was the greasiest omelet he could find and he scarfed it down as quickly as possible. He heard someone slide into the seat next to him.
"Where have you been?" Gabriel asked. He looked a lot different without his combat gear on. Ash took a moment to realize he had never seen him in his uniform before. "You look like hell."
"I feel it too." Ash said. His brain was vibrating.
"Domestic troubles?" Gabriel asked. Ash laughed.
"That obvious?" He asked. He glanced across the cafeteria. His team were laughing at something. He sighed.
"Well, I'm no expert but without a team you won't last long here." Gabriel pointed out. He climbed out of his seat and patted Ash on the back on his way out. Ash shook his head.
He finished his food and was on his way to class, the hallway was pretty empty. His eyes lingered on the floor. He pulled out his hip flask and stared at it. He took a swig from it and stowed it away. He turned a corner and collided with another student. He backed up and his eyes climbed the students legs and past her skirt.
"Ah-hem? Eyes up here!" The girl's posture tensed. He looked up and found a familiar face. His whole body felt sore. Just who he needed to see right now, Yang. She had her arms crossed.
"Sorry." Ash said, her eyebrows rose. She looked like she was expecting more. He shrugged.
"That's it?" She asked. "Couple weeks ago you seemed like you had more to say."
"It's all I got." He shrugged. She frowned. She grabbed his shoulders and dragged him off to the side. He slammed into the wall. He swallowed hard.
"I don't know what you were trying to pull but that was my friend you attacked." She said with a quiet roar. She thrust a finger right in front of his face, his eyes went cross eyed following it. "If you try that again, if you even go near her or anyone else from my team, and I'll break your legs."
Maybe it was because he was hung over, or he's getting drunk again. Maybe it was that he had more issues than he thought, but she was kind of hot. She was continuing to ramble on about something. He wasn't really paying attention anymore. He watched her head bob up and down and her hands make various threatening gestures. Her eyes were really violet. She smelled nice too. He smiled weakly.
"Exactly!" She shouted, he had no idea what he just agreed to but she seemed to relax. "Weiss and I haven't told anyone about our little encounter. I hope we don't have to have this chat again tough guy!"
She stormed off, he watched her leave. His eyes gazed down at her hips. He didn't really remember what the conversation was about, he shrugged. He strolled off down the hall whistling. The day was already off to a bumpy start.
- Lyra -
Professor Port was rambling on about the vile grimm he fought and how he once rode on the back of a nevermore and brought it down from the sky by pinning it's wings with his arms and steering it into a ravine. That wasn't even the most impressive story he's ever told. He has a way of making exciting stuff like that boring. She had her hood over her head again. She was gnawing on her hair. This time it wasn't out of fear, it was out of anger. She was pissed off. Her teammate, their leader was an idiot. Shame to say they were stuck with him. Part of her wished he was dead, that way at least she could say he was a decent person still. She felt a little bad for thinking that but she was furious. She saw the door open and Ash strolled in. Her mouse ears started twitching. Port turned in surprise at the sudden intrusion.
"Mr Gray, you arrive at last." Port exclaimed enthusiastically. "I heard you were deathly ill."
"Absolutely, I was truly smashed." Ash replied. She scoffed. He was playing it a little transparent.
"Well, your partner had to deal with a mysterious Grimm alone last class. It's only fair you do the same today." Port said pointing to another cage. Surprise surprise.
"Alright, bring it." Ash said pulling Silver Faust out of his holster and spinning it idly in his hand. Lyra groaned. Just what she needed, a possibly drunk Ash showing off.
"This is a beast I caught off the shores of Mystral. It's a little different from your common Grimm." He said with the enthusiasm of a game show host. He kicked the cage open and stepped aside. Lyra tried to get a better view but the students were blocking her view, all of them were at the edge of their seats.
The beast emerged from it's cage, Lyra gasped. It looked like a gorilla, except for it's bull head. It slammed it's fists into the ground and charged full speed. Lyra watched Ash aim Silver Faust, but at the last second he holstered it and raised his arms out. The beast slammed it's fist into his face and he spun around and dropped. Everyone gasped. The beast dove into the air it's cloven feet aimed straight for him. He lazily rolled over out of the way. The beast began shake it's head in anger. Lyra watched them circle each other for a moment, Ash pointed behind the beast and it turned around. She watched it flailing around, the class gave confused glances. Ash tapped it on the shoulder and punched it in the face. It lunged, in the complete opposite direction. It was trying to tackle invisible opponents. He drew his blade and stabbed it from behind, it dropped like a rock. Professor Port just clapped.
"Bravo, an impressive performance!" He exclaimed. Lyra watched Ash crack his jaw in place and had to wince. Port dragged the beast back to the cage and tossed it inside, he was visibly struggling at one point. He slammed the cage shut and grabbed Ash by the shoulder and forced a bow. Lyra groaned. She noticed she was chewing her hair again and covered herself.
Billy was mumbling again. He does that whenever something bothers him. Considering how quiet the dorm was, it stood out. Lyra glanced back to Morgana who seemed to be really focused on her book. Except her eyes were staring at the exact same spot. Lyra buried her face in her hood. She didn't know what to do. They couldn't exactly abandon their team leader, yet that seems to be exactly what he did. She remembered Ash's speech about teamwork. He was right. They can't survive Beacon on their own, they are far enough behind the rest as is.
"Screw this!" Lyra shouted abruptly. She hopped to her feet. "I'm going to talk to him."
"And say what?" Morgana asked. Lyra paused. She hadn't really planned that far.
"I don't know." She replied. Morgana's eyebrows raised slightly. "I'll improvise."
"Well, it certainly can't make things worse. Good luck!" Morgana said with a smile. Lyra wasn't sure how sincere that smile was but it didn't matter. She had to talk some sense into Ash before they all suffer for it.
- ASH -
The sun was shining brightly over the academy. The wind rustled through the trees and the surprising absence of students made this area feel absolutely tranquil. The songs of birds carried Ash into a comfortable slumber against an old oak tree. He hasn't felt this good in quite some time. He reached into his coat and pulled out his flask. He shook it by his ear and listened to the sloshing sounds. He was running low, but he figured it shouldn't be too hard to find some more. He popped the cap and raised it to his mouth. A surge jolted through his nerves and it flew out of his hands, spilling everywhere. He saw a dart stabbed through it, he followed a steel cord all the way back to it's source. Maibaum. Lyra retracted the dart. Ash climbed to his feet.
"Oh good, I got your attention." Lyra said nonchalantly. Ash growled.
"What do you want now?" Ash asked. Lyra tilted her head.
"Seriously, you can't even figure that out?" Lyra asked. "You have a problem, it's becoming our problem. It needs to end."
"You know, I understand why Morgana hated you!" Ash spat back. "You really talk too much, and so self righteous too!"
"I'm trying to help you!" Lyra shouted. Ash laughed.
"You're trying to help yourself." Ash said. "Be honest about it at the very least."
"Maybe we should wait until your sober for this conversation." Lyra said. Ash laughed even harder. Figures she wouldn't have the spine to back herself up.
"No, we're having this conversation now." Ash said. He held his arms out as if he was challenging her. "What do you have to tell me? What great speech do you have planned?"
"I don't know!" Lyra screamed. "I don't know what to say, you're the leader. You were supposed to lead us, help us survive!"
"Ozpin made a mistake! He should have picked someone else." Ash said. He turned around towards the tree. "Go ahead and tell him that. You won't have to put up with me anymore."
"You know that's not an option." Lyra said. "We might not succeed here with the four of us but we sure as hell aren't going to with three."
"Well, figure it out then." Ash replied. He was about to slouch back against the tree when a dart flew passed his head. It embedded itself into the tree inches from his face.
"You are such a prick, you know that?" Lyra asked, she retracted the dart. Ash drew Silver Faust. Lyra recoiled. "What are you doing?"
"What's that?" Ash asked. He extended Silver Faust to it's sword form. "I thought the mouse was looking for a fight. What are you a coward?"
"Why are you such a prick?" Lyra squeaked. Ash twirled his blade around casually.
"Come on little mouse, let's see what you've got!" Ash shouted, he held his arms open.
Lyra lunged, she swung Maibaum high. It swooped inches from his face. Ash staggered back, he felt the hairs on his neck standing up. He swung fast and low. She threw herself out of the way. He lunged. She stabbed upwards. He flipped mid lunge and landed on the ground with a roll. He jumped to his feet, Maibaum flew at his face again. He parried, sparks shooting out of the tip as he did. He swung high, she staggered back. A small clump of hair fell from her head. She charged. He sidestepped out of the way and smacked her in the back of the head with the broad edge of his blade. She fell over.
"Getting tired?" Ash asked. He twirled his blade around. Lyra was on her feet again. She swung. He parried and swooped her legs up from under her. She rolled.
"Not even close!" She squeaked. She started swinging both ends towards him rapidly. He staggered back, tripping over a root. She stabbed downwards. He rolled out of the way and jumped to his feet. The staff was seconds away from his face. He swatted it aside and swung.
He could tell she was getting tired. She was slowing down and was having more and more trouble blocking his attacks. He had practiced sword fighting since he was a kid. She's only been training for a couple weeks. She doesn't stand a chance. He started laughing. He went out of his way to show how little effort it was to block her. He flipped around in a mocking sort of way. She was getting pissed.
"Come on little mouse, try to keep up!" Ash laughed. Her face was going red. He had to admit, he was impressed she even lasted this long. Her training had paid off, even if only by a small margin. He continued to parry her blows. "I'm sorry was that supposed to hit me?"
He spun himself around, bringing his weapon down towards her feet. She hopped and swung down. He blocked it, he didn't account for the other end, which suddenly swung upwards and hit him square in the chest. He flew off the ground. His nerves were spasming and his weapon flew from his hands. He hit the ground hard. Still shaking he tried to climb back to his feet. He dropped to his knees. "What?"
"I think the word your looking for..." She swung hard, hitting him in the side of the head. He flipped over onto his stomach. "...is sorry!"
He flopped around on the ground for a few moments, his senses went out of focus and his entire body felt like it was in agony. His vision began to blur and everything faded to black.
He woke up with a jolt, he was in his bed. His heart was throbbing. He rubbed his eyes, they were stinging dry. He groaning heavily as he did. He looked up to see his team glaring at him. He felt odd. The last month was a blur and so was most of the day. He pieced things together in his head, the fight returned to his memory. He felt terrible. He felt sober.
"I'm..." He looked back and forth between his team. Even Billy was glaring at him. Hell, if he was near a mirror he imagined he'd be glaring at himself too. "...I'm sorry."
"That it?" Lyra asked. He shook his head.
"I shouldn't have said what I said, I shouldn't have abandoned you." He continued. They didn't seem convinced. Neither did he. "I let things get to my head."
"What things?" Lyra asked. Ash felt something catch in his throat, he was ashamed to admit it. He was in bad enough waters as is.
"You know why I was in Bastion?" He asked. He had never told them the full story. "I was working for the White Fang."
"The White Fang?" They all shouted in unison. He buried his face in his hands. This was harder than he ever thought. He could feel them judging him. He felt they were right to.
"Why would you be working for the White Fang?" Lyra asked. "As far as I know you aren't a Faunus."
"My family needed the money. Things were desperate." Ash explained. The hairs on his neck were standing, sweat was starting to drip down from his forehead. He was never really good at opening up. "They needed someone threatened, a building trashed..."
He took a moment, they were glancing uncomfortably at each other. He leaned back against the wall and tried to find the words. It was exactly how he felt, back to the wall and nowhere to go. The air in the room was thick, not just from the usual amounts of dust. He felt he could cut the tension in the room with a knife. Hell, he'd probably need a saw.
"...I was good at it. They eventually gave me a big assignment." He felt himself going pale at this point. He never truly got over that day, even if he'd never willingly admit it. Then again, from the way he was starting to shake, he wouldn't have to even say it. "A package job, I had to take a package to a dead drop. Next thing I know the place is crawling with cops. Then the building exploded, I was delivering a bomb. Three cops died. It was all my fault. I read about it in the paper, while I was in prison. They had families. They had kids. I killed them. Well the bomb did. That's the little extra detail I tell myself every morning."
"Why didn't you tell us?" Lyra asked. "We would have understood."
"It get's worse!" He shouted. It was a sort of numbness washing over him. He clenched his fist. "I didn't stop working for them."
"What do you mean?" Morgana asked. The answer was already there for them. The tension in the room was unbearable.
"They delivered my weapon to me, they contacted me a few weeks ago and gave me a new assignment." Ash felt his fingers twitch. His mouth was feeling thirst. He tried to shake the feeling away but it seemed to enjoy the subject. "They wanted me to assassinate one of their enemies."
"You didn't!" Lyra squeaked. He let out a long sigh. There were several uncomfortable glances, he wished he could set their minds at ease.
"The target was Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. You know her." Ash returned his face to his hands.
"Her father was the one that ran your company to the ground." Morgana said. She nodded solemnly. "I remember you weren't exactly fond of her."
"I found her alone in the street, I made my move. Almost succeeded." Ash shrugged. He felt sick. "Then one of her team members interfered. I failed and the White Fang don't appreciate failure."
"So you decided to abandon responsibility and wait for them to kill you?" Morgana asked. "That's your excuse?"
"You could have come to us, we would have figured something out." Lyra squeaked. Ash laughed quietly.
"Do what? If they can't kill me they'll only go after my family." Ash explained. "I die and the Gray name lives on."
"Is that really all that matters?" Morgana asked. "The Gray name?"
"Yep, pretty much." Ash responded. He responded honestly at the very least. "Besides, it's not like our team can take the White Fang in a fight. We can barely take Cardin in a fight."
"So where does this leave us?" Lyra asked. The room went quiet.
"I'll talk to Ozpin in the morning. I'll tell him everything." Ash said. "You won't have to put up with my problems anymore."
"We're a team." Billy said quietly. "We're supposed to be a team."
"I'm sorry big guy." Ash said with another limp shrug. "You don't want me on your team, I'm no leader. I'm just a screw up."
"So are we." Billy replied curtly. The others looked like they wanted to protest that. "You said it before, we are all failures but together we can become something better."
"But that was before..." Ash replied. Billy quickly cut him off.
"Before you had to admit you have problems too?" He asked. Ash went silent. He might have had a point. It made him feel worse about himself than he already did.
"I..." Ash felt stuck, he didn't know what to say. He felt like a child. "How did things get this bad."
"Whatever problems you are having, you can count on your team to have your back." Lyra said with a slight smile. "We can't keep things like this to ourselves."
Ash felt like an idiot. He closed his eyes and his mind drifted back to that night. He didn't want to kill her, he didn't want to be the White Fang's lapdog. He lost his head in all the chaos. The tension started to thin and the glares faded from their faces. They had another semester to go through, a tournament in a few months, the White Fang could make their move at any moment. He really needed a drink.
He let himself out to get some air. He needed time to think. The air was cool and the wind felt like it was starting to pick up. There was a noticable lack of color outside, it all seemed so dim. He heard footsteps approaching him. He turned around, another person he didn't want to see was staring down at him.
"So you're back." Weiss said, her tone was a sort of forceful polite. "Last time we spoke you were adamant that the White Fang were out to get you."
"They are and they will." Ash said. "I waited for them. How I waited for them. It would almost be preferable for them to just show up and do it already."
"But they haven't, so until they do you might be able to help me with something." Weiss said. She leaned against the wall with her arms crossed. He wasn't sure if he liked where this was going but he figured he owed her big.
"Alright shoot." Ash said. She gave a slight nod.
"I need information, on the White Fang." She said. He wasn't expecting that. "I need to know everything you know."
"I don't really know that much to be honest." Ash said. She frowned.
"You worked with them." She said. He scratched his head.
"In the past I mostly dealt with rent-a-thugs and wannabes. Nobody of import." He said. She didn't seem entirely enthusiastic. "That last assignment I met somebody who seemed somewhat important. Even then I had more of a feeling I was talking to a sort of middle management or even an independent sect than actual leadership."
"What makes you say that?" She asked.
"Well, there weren't many of them, we met in a sushi restaurant that I'd assume they broke into for the meeting. The guy in charge seemed to have a bit of trouble keeping his officers in check, they kept butting into the conversation with bravado." He thought over the night carefully. They definitely lacked organization. He could have planned a better meeting himself. "They felt like the kind of people you'd put in charge of covering your tracks, rather than planning major operations or leading your movement is what I'm saying."
"So they wouldn't know anything about dust shop robberies?" She asked. He had to catch himself, he almost winced. Dust shop robberies. Roman was robbing dust shops. As far as he knew, she didn't know about Roman just yet and he'd rather keep his involvement in that particular scandal under wraps.
"They were more assassins than revolutionaries and thieves. So unless the shops mysteriously burned down or the shopkeepers turned up dead, I doubt it was them." Ash said. She shook her head in disappointment. He actually wished he could have been more helpful. "They also wore masks, I mean one of them had antlers and another had fangs but all that tells you is they were faunus. So stuff you already know. I wish I could be more help but that's about all I got."
"It's okay, it's a start." She said with sigh. She sounded a lot nicer than he remembered her. He was actually beginning to feel bad for hating her. Or maybe that was just the guilt for attempting to kill her.
"Listen, I'm really sorry about the whole..." He couldn't think of anything to say after that. She gave a quiet nod and he decided that was the best he could do. "I think I should go, Yang told me she'd break my legs if she catches me in the same room as you."
"I'll talk to her." She said. He was surprised, he didn't think he deserved it. "Just let me know if you find out anything more."
"I will." He said. He stared out the window as her footsteps faded. Roman, Roman works with the White Fang. Is that why they didn't go after him? Did Roman cover for him? Why was Roman working with the White Fang? Why did they need that much dust? All these questions were now burning in the back of his mind. His mind brought him back to the warehouse. He shook the thought from his mind. Just what he needed, more problems. He really needed a drink. He found that oak tree, the hip flask was still there, though the hole in the side betrayed it's usefulness. He strolled under the moonlight to the landing pad he arrived in. He tossed the flask, it twinkled in the moonlight as it plunged into the darkness below. He felt a gnawing sensation of regret wash over himself. Just another problem.
