Another lesion in the art of RWBY tattoos
Grimm blood, and its most common uses in tattoos
A recent technologic advancement has allowed the safely released formula for the application of Grimm blood into Tattoos. Even though generations of family's have already been using Grimm blood for hundreds of years. It was technically illegal until recently. To many people died from unlicensed tattoo artist codenamed [underground artist]. But the kingdom of Vale has allowed a certain number of formulas to be put on the open market. This has resulted in the high demand for specific Grimm, and the difficult process of harvesting their blood. Because as you know. Grimm turn to Ether soon after death. But the demand for more powerful tattoos is always rising
List of Grimm and its Rarity/most common use in tattoos
Boarbatusk-vary common- used for effect tattoos. No uses in power tattoos.
Ursa-common- used for adding strength to a person
Beowolf-common- used for one tattoo [berserk] banned from selling. To many deaths from its use
Deathstalker-rare- used to add a glowing property to tattoos. Often in [Glyphs]
King Taijitu-rare- used for skin thickening
Goliath- ultra rare- illegal- used for a life extending tattoo. Requires the user to steal the life force of someone else to live longer
Nevermore-ultra rare- used for giving flight in the form of a full back tattoo that looks like a pair of angel wings. But is still the one we know the least about. can do many other mysterious things
(chapter 2 Weiss Schnee) (Weiss pov)
I've been standing here for too long now. If I don't finish getting ready soon, my father will not be happy. 'wait? Why do I care. I'm done with him starting today' I thought, not allowing the feeling of joy to show on my face. I focused back on my reflection, the same unfamiliar face still looking back. I allowed my eyes to wander across my body. The pale skin running unblemished from my neck to my belly button. I still haven't found an appropriate tattoo to put on my chest, leaving it shockingly bare compared to all of my other limbs.
My left arm was almost as bare, but the five bracelet like tattoos, evenly spaced starting at my elbow then proceeding to my wrist showed off what kind of tattoo fighter I was. I used Glyphs. Sometimes called magic circles. But I used a wide variety of Glyphs, a few allowed me to create platforms out of ice dust. Then using the other four tattoos, I can augment those platforms to do a variety of things. Such as acceleration, gravity manipulation, give myself or others a hast buff, as well as summon ice crystals.
My right arm was another story, I decided a long time ago. This arm was mine. A silly concept from the outside, but the way my father talks, my body doesn't belong to me. 'it will after today'. My right forearm is covered in a tattoo I did myself. Time dilation. A concept thought impossible by many for years. But the books in the Schnee mansion were millennia old. I found this tattoo when I was hiding from my father, it immediately caught my interest. 'yeah, idiot. You thought it would allow you to skip the years when you were younger' I bitterly thought. All it allows is the slowing of time for a single person, doing the opposite of my old dream.
Both of my legs are currently empty, because I am always wearing a skirt or short dress, my father said "it would look bed for a Schnee to have an excesses of tattoos" however I will be getting one soon. I refuse to allow my father to control me anymore. I have been accepted into Beacon academy. I will begin my life as a huntress from this day onward.
I turned to walk out of the bathroom, feeling the chill of being naked in the bathroom for so long. But as I turned my eyes caught the thing that has haunted me every night for as many years as I've had it. My first tattoo. A full back tattoo, preventing me from getting any of the much more useful tattoos on the market today. From the bottom of my hairline, to just above my butt cheeks. A ghostly blue colored, ancient tattoo. The tattoo that every Schnee has had since the time magic tattoos first were created.
It was the Necromancy tattoo. A lost tattoo art, only know by the Schnee's. it has five basic components. The part that took up my whole back was called "the prime" it was a series of runic circles, all surrounding an empty dust Crystal, the crystal was used as a storage device, when a monster is killed by me, and I thought it a worthy opponent, the crystal stores its essence. The other four components are matching, one going along the back of each arm, down the back of them to the elbow. And the other two run down the back of both legs, to the back of the knee. These all look like three blueish lines in perfect alignment, but are in fact thousands of runic letters, from a long lost language.
It is the reason I only wear jackets with long sleeves, and skirts that go past my knees. I hate that tattoo I never asked for it, I never wanted it. But I never had a choice. I have grown used to it over the past seven years. 'it was my tenth birthday present. My father's last present' I thought. The week after I got it was the last time he looked at me, the last time he saw me as a daughter. Apparently it didn't work for me. I was, and still am, unable to summon anything.
I got dressed, finally ready to leave 'and never come back'. I packed as much clothing as I could. Fitting all of the items I actually wanted into one briefcase. But packed five additional ones just to placate the high slandered's of my father. I carried my final case myself. It had all of my tattoo equipment, dust vials, raw ink, Grimm blood, needles, and a tattoo gun. I dreamed of being a tattoo artist. I studied hundreds of books about the art, from the half disintegrated books of tattoo legends, to the modern books of wholesale tattoos today. I had to hide this all from my father. The Schnee dust company was the main supplier for dust, from the everyday dust used for lighting the streets, to bullets used for hunting Grimm, and most importantly for [power tattoos]. But to my father, being a tattoo artist was comparable to being a fast-food worker.
The only thing he hated more were Faunus. His views on them were horrendous "nothing but filthy animals pretending to be human" he often said whenever the camera was turned off. Yet without them the Schnee dust company would be a long forgotten memory. They were the ones that mined for dust, even though they are paid less than nothing for doing so. I did not share his opinion on that, although he thinks I do. 'just one more thing you no longer have to fake' I thought happily.
*knock* *knock*
A knock sounded at my door, taking me back to the reality of my current location. "ms. Schnee, your limo is waiting" a man said. One of the many butlers my father had, so many I stopped trying to remember their names. "you may enter and grab my bags. I shall wait for you down there" I said, using the formal way of talking down on everyone 'just like daddy taught me' I thought bitter-sweetly. I grabbed my personal bag containing my tattoo equipment and walked out the door. Feeling freer with every step towards the limo. I looked down the hall, the door to my father's study was closed. 'looks like he is refusing to face his disappointment of a daughter' I thought, letting a quick smile grace my face. It was a strange feeling, I hardly smiled. But I felt I could do so from this day onward.
(Ruby's first day at Beacon) [Ruby pov]
"ohhh I'm so proud of you!" my sister screamed at me, just before grabbing me in a bone breaking hug. "my baby sister is going to school along with me. You're so awesome!" she continued on, forgetting the fact I needed to breath. "gahh, yang. Cant breath" I gasped out. She dropped me and held my shoulders, looking into my eyes. A super happy face smiled at me, making me awkwardly smile back. "can you blame me!? My awesome baby sister got moved ahead !two years! How could I not be excited!?" she said. "ughh, don't remind me. It's so not worth being excited about. I'm going to stand out. I don't want to be someone who is the center of attention" I said, sounding much whinier than I intended. "don't be like that Ruby" Yang said, going into big sister comfort mode "you're going to be great. Don't even worry about standing out. You're going to be the best huntress here" then I saw the makings of a bad pun appear in her eyes "you're going to be the Bee's knees" she (unfortunately) said.
'how was that comforting. If anything I'm more panicked' I thought. "I don't want to be the 'Bee's knees' I don't want to be any knees. Why can't I just have normal knees" I pleaded, taking Yang's joke too far. Yang seemed to understand my panic. "it's okay Ruby. I get it. You want to be a regular student here, and you will be. But I'm am going to put you on a pedestal. Because in my mind, that is right were you belong" she said. 'that was actually comforting' I thought. "thanks Yang" I said, doing my best to give her a hug as powerful as she could, but I knew it was pathetic compared to hers.
"oh god, I'm gunna hurl" I boy said, ruining our loving sister moment. He walked right by us, but the airship we were riding swayed just as he passed us, causing him to miss the trashcan he was aiming his upchucked meal. It splashed on the floor right next to the trashcan, a small puddle forming. "aww, my shoes" Yang said. Much to my amusement, "nice job Vomit boy" I said in a nice-joking tone. I didn't want to actually make fun of him. "uuuuuhh" he responded dizzily, still in a daze from being airsick. But moments later the doors opened and we were all walking off the ship.
The school was breathtaking. Huge towers topped with old style roofing. Large walkways surrounding the campus. All with a forest back-round that looked right out of a painting. I was in awe. "well? What do you think sis?" Yang asked. "I love it" I said, a little breathless from trying to absorb everything all at once. Then I started to notice the students. "Yang, Yang. Look, Look" I said pointing at various students. "he has a winged-back tattoo! Ooo, Ooo, she has a shielded skin tattoo!" I said. I have an obsession with tattoos. Until recently I was scared of getting one, but that didn't stop me from reading about them every chance I got, and now that I am in tattoo heaven (according to me) I was in the mood to get tattoo after tattoo.
(privet Schnee airship) [Weiss pov]
I sat in silence the entire trip to Beacon. The men driving the ship were on my father's paygrade. I couldn't risk them ruining my plans, so I refrained from giving them any hints of my true intentions of going to school here. I held onto my briefcase containing my tattoo gun. Fearing if I put it down I might forget it. Once the ship touched down at Beacon, I was off. Not wanting to be near my father's property any longer than I had to. I grabbed my other bag, the one containing the clothing I actually liked, and started walking. I knew the men my father hired would handle the other bags for me.
The school was nice. Not as grand as my father's main house. But still a well-designed facility. I noticed the 'common' airships land, I decided to stay clear of them. Not because I was afraid of being noticed. I just wanted to enjoy being a normal student for as long as possible. But I knew in my heart, as soon as someone spotted who I was, I would have to be the daughter my father thought I was. It was the only way my plan would succeed, I had to be for at least the next few months. After that, I could rely on Beacon keeping me away from my father's grasp. Then i could finally be Weiss.
I waited for the majority of students to get off of their own airship, then started to walk. I was about thirty feet behind the large group of newly arrived students. I allowed my mind to wander, as I fallowed the people in front of me. 'I hope they have a tattoo artistry class like in Haven academy. I read beacon did have a wide selection of tattoo shops on campus. Using the freshest Grimm blood, harvested right out of the forest it guards' I thought. I was really obsessed with being a tattoo artist.
Suddenly I ran into something. The object then proceeded to take me straight to the ground. ""guahh"" me and this person yelled as we tumbled to the floor. It took several moments for my head to awaken from the shock of falling 'I thought I was far enough back to avoid everyone' I thought. Then my mind registered the absence of my briefcase in my hand. 'MY TATTOO EQUIPMENT!' I thought in a panic. But this person was trapping me under them. In an uncharacteristically violent motion, I pushed off the person, a girl, and ran to my tattoo bag. It had spilled open, and my dust vials were scattered around. I lost control of my temper "how stupid can you be?!" I yelled at the girl, who was still recovering on the ground.
At my words she shook her head. Much like a wet dog. 'cute' my brain told me, but my anger overpowered that mysterious thought. "you imbecilic, clumsy girl. Do you know the damage you could have caused?" I picked up a vile of dust from the ground "this is dust, raw power. You could have blown us both sky high!" I ranted. I often use hand gestures when I get really mad, so it was no surprise that when I finished my rant, the broken bottle of dust I was holding had spread a small cloud in front of me and this girl.
When suddenly the girl looked ready to sneeze 'oh no' my mind snapped out of its anger immediately.
*Ahh-choo*
*boom!*
(back with Ruby) [Ruby pov]
"okay sis, you go make nice with your fellow students. I'm going to go hang out with some old friends" and just like that Yang was gone. 'great. The only person I knew, left me alone in an unknown place' I thought. I turned around to start walking, I was just going to head to the orientation hall. When all of the sudden my face was filled with the color white. 'oh no!" I thought in a panic. ""guahh"" me and another voice yelled at the same time. We crashed to the floor at the same time, tangling in a pile of limbs and white briefcases. As we rolled to a stop, I looked at who it was I fell into.
pure blue eyes filled my vision. And everything else melted away. Suddenly I was pushed upward and to the side. I landed hard on my butt. But I didn't register the pain. My mind was still clouded by the deep blue of this girl's eyes. I sat there, looking up at her, when I saw her mouth start to move 'oh man, I better focus, she looks mad' I thought. I shook my head trying to banish the thought of her eyes. "how stupid could you be?!" she yelled sounding way too angry. I stood up, feeling two feet tall as she yelled at me. "you imbecilic, clumsy girl. Do you know the damage you could have caused?" she yelled again, then reached down grabbing a vile "this is dust, raw power. You could have blown us both sky high!" she continued her rant, waving her arms as she emphasized her anger at me. It still felt way too unjustified. But I kept my head lowered in submission, whenever Yang gets like this it's always better to allow them to get all the yelling out of their system.
As I was standing there, I felt a small tickle in my nose. That feeling you get when a sneeze is coming, and there's nothing you can do to stop it. 'this is going to be super embarrassing' I thought, just before I lost control of my nose.
*Ahh-choo*
*Boom!*
Me and this mysterious girl were blown away from each other. 'why did my sneeze just explode?' I asked myself. I looked back at the girl, she was covered in soot. I felt so, so bad. 'great, it is just like me to ruin the chance of being friends with the first person I meet' I thought, kicking myself internally. After the girl shook as much soot as she could from her white outfit she started her rant with newfound vigor. "this is exactly what I was warning you about" she yelled. 'wait? Warning. It sounded more like belittling' I thought, confused by her wording. "I mean really. This stuff is dangerous. This school is for training hunters. Are you even old enough to be here? You could have killed yourself, you D-dolt!" she seemed out of steam. But before she could catch a second wind I lost my temper "listen here Princess! I don't need to stand here and be lectured. I'm sorry for falling and knocking you down, but that is no reason to continually talk to me like I'm a child!" I said in a slightly loud voice.
She looked at me, taken aback by my tone. 'she must not get yelled at often' I thought 'great, now I feel bad for yelling'. But before I could apologize someone cut into our "conversation" a woman wearing mostly black, she had amber eyes, and walked like she owned the place "it's heiress, actually" she said. "huhh" I eloquently said in response she smiled at me, seeing my obvious confusion with her seemingly random statement. "not a princess, Weiss Schnee, Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company" the woman in black said.
I may have been going crazy, but for the smallest of seconds, the girl (now known as Weiss) looked defeated with the telling of her name. then like everything that just happened was a lifetime ago, Weiss stood straight and pointed her chin to the side, looking past me. "Finally some recognition, at least someone understands my importance". 'did she just become like, a totally different person. Yes, before she just sounded upset and angry that her stuff could have been damaged. But now, she sounded…entitled?' I thought to myself, confused at the change I just witnessed in Weiss.
The woman in black didn't look done with her introduction of Weiss though. "the same company that has been abusing Faunus for decades, treating them as nothing more than lesser class humans, worse than slaves" she seemed satisfied with her words at this point. I just felt bad for some reason, yes those were all terrible. But that doesn't mean you have to blame Weiss. She's not even old enough to be responsible for any of those things.
Weiss seemed angry, but I saw something else. I saw a piece of her die at this woman's comment. Like her hope had abandoned her. But again, as fast as I noticed it, she hid it away saying "how dare you! I do not have to be talked down to by the likes of you!" she said before quickly grabbing the two bags she dropped when I ran into her, and stormed off. Heading straight to the orientation hall. (A/N Ruby already knows where the building she is supposed to go is, F*** the meeting up with Jaune)
I turned around to yell at the girl in black who "saved me" from my fight with Weiss. I believe she just hurt Weiss' feelings, no matter how tough she sounded when she stormed off. But as I turned, the woman was gone. 'she must have those [stealth tattoos]' I thought. I helpful set of tattoos for a hunter, giving you the power to walk straight up to a Grimm, slap its face, then easily walk away. Of course people often didn't get them, because they demanded lots of concentration, and you couldn't use any other tattoos while you were stealthed 'that's a word right?' I asked myself
I decided to just head to orientation. 'I give up on making friends' I thought sadly.
(Two-faced Weiss) [Weiss pov] {just after Ruby's Snezsploasion}
*Boom!*
This young girl was blown away, I however raised my aura just in time, only soot and some ash from my burnt skirt covered me. No real damage done, but there could have been. She's lucky that was only a small amount of fire dust. That was the most dangerous type of dust after all. So many people have died trying to get tattoos that had even a small amount of fire dust in them. Even in its raw form it was deadly 'and it's my fault she could have been hurt. I was the one waiving it around' I thought, fully intending to take the blame if she had even the smallest of scratches. To my great relief she was completely unharmed. 'good. She's fine. Hopefully she can learn from these experiences' I thought. And said "this is exactly what I was warning you about. I mean really. This stuff is dangerous. This school is for training hunters. Are you even old enough to be here? You could have killed yourself, you D-dolt!" 'did I just call her a Dolt? What's a dolt, were did that come from? I hope I didn't sound angry. I really hope she understood I was trying to get her to understand the danger of this. I'm not good at being comforting with my words. All I've ever done was fight with my father' I thought. I sucked in breath to apologize for how that must have sounded. When she spoke up. "listen here Princess! I don't need to stand here and be lectured. I'm sorry for falling and knocking you down, but that is no reason to continually talk to me like I'm a child!" she said
'great. I did sound like I was yelling at her. I need to apologize fast, before this gets out of hand' I thought in a panic. Then a voice of to my right made itself heard. "It's heiress actually". 'NOOO!' I cried internally 'I don't want to be a heiress, I never wanted it!' I continued to cry. But it was pointless. I was Weiss Schnee. The daughter to a man of great power. I was now known. Time to act the part 'just like you have for the past 7 years' I told myself. The woman continued after the girl I was already talking with didn't understand the Heiress comment. 'she didn't even know who I was. She would have been my saving grace. A person who didn't know who I was. Someone who wouldn't judge me for my family. All ruined because the woman in black showed her face' I thought, sad at my missed opportunity of meeting and maybe making my first ever friend. The woman in black continued along 'so helpfully filling in the younger girl's knowledge of exactly who I was "not a princess, Weiss Schnee, Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company" I knew the response for this situation, my father made me practice it for days upon days.
I fixed my body stance, adopting my formal rigid form. Back straight, chin up. never completely face those who are below you, always show dominance. I said "Finally some recognition, at least someone understands my importance" my voice was back to its cold indifference. I was no longer Weiss, I was now Ms. Schnee but the woman in black confused me, she continued to introduce me. "the same company that has been abusing Faunus for decades, treating them as nothing more than lesser class humans, worse than slaves". 'perfect. Just perfect. Now not only would this young person hate me for my name. now I would never be able to make a friend here' I was hit by a wave of defeat. I might as well return to my father now. Nothing in my life would ever change, I would always be bound by my last name. 'might as well save what dignity I have left' I thought. I said in an angry voice, trying to mask my pain "how dare you! I do not have to be talked down to by the likes of you!". Then I grabbed my two bags before walking away in a brisk walk 'after all, royalty didn't run away from a conversation. Ever!' my father's voice rung in my head. I had to fight the erg to cry all the way to orientation.