Dear Reader,
Thank you for following Strawberry Milk! I apologize that this upload took so long. Converging due dates kept me from my fic. The good news is, I only have one more week of school left so I should be updating more consistently from here on out!
Also, if it makes you feel any better, this chapter is 3,000 words longer than the first!
"It started half an hour ago!"
Team RWBY arrived at the port city's movie theater later than expected. They stood in the foyer with one helpless, blue-haired Haven Academy student, Neptune Vasilias. He winced when his teammate, Sun Wukong, lost his composure. Another student of the kingdom of Mistral's Academy and a friend of Blake's, Sun was wailing over lost time. He gritted his teeth and twisted his tail in fistfuls of frustration. Weiss watched the unbecoming display and lamented, once again, over poor planning. This was supposed to be her chance to get to know Neptune, but he was distracted by the faunus' fussing. For that reason, she shared in Sun's frustration. It all could have been avoided if Weiss had arranged for a later show time. Planning was a passion of hers and she began to regret entrusting the evening to Blake, even if it had preserved her image of "elegant and mild heiress" in Neptune's eyes.
Running slender hands through her fine hair, she stroked the ponytail pulled to the side of her head. The slight asymmetry that the offset, ivory locks added to her appearance was a small, passive-aggressive rebellion, much like her advance on Neptune had been. She sighed as she remembered her resignation to "stay within the lines" like a true Schnee would as a result of his rejection.
When Weiss asked the blue-haired boy to accompany her to Beacon's dance she was turned down, assumedly for her unorthodox approach. That Neptune had been warded off by her actions was only speculation, but it may as well have been reality; those assumptions crept from the convincing miasma in Weiss' mind. When it spoke, ice cold and baritone, that smog, her inner Schnee, was full of doubt, guilt, shame, and malice.
It was too familiar not to trust. In the past, her hopes, fears and desires had always been met with a challenge, dismissal, or consequence. The voice responded in kind, so she drank its poisoned ideologies without question, let them soak into her skin. They pumped ice through the blood in her veins, to her heart and back again, all to preserve in its own twisted way what little worth there was to "Weiss" without her surname.
Schnee.
Many unscrupulous suitors had tried to court Weiss for her last name. Why was it acceptable for male counterparts to make the first, or any, move, especially when said counterparts were more often than not crude, entitled, and unyielding? Was she supposed to oblige every date simply because someone asked? Jaune Arc, team JNPR's amateur leader, was a perfect example. That boy could not take "no" for an answer. He was the epitome of nonchalant adamancy when it came to the object of his affections. From the first "no" to the fourth, her response was final. If she would continue to be called "Ice Queen" for refusing Jaune in a consistent, albeit curt way, then so be it. She had spent far too much of her short life under someone else's direction, satisfying someone else's wishes. Away from the Schnee Dust Corporation and her father, Weiss had options and one of them was "no." She savored the sweet sound of the word when it rose and fell with her tongue to brush past loosely puckered lips.
Neptune was an exception to the term. The heiress would most certainly say "yes" to date with him, if she ever had the opportunity to accept an invitation, of course. Oddly enough, the blue-haired boy had only been encouraged to talk to Weiss on the night of the dance by Jaune. She hoped that that would be the last of his interference in Weiss' life, and advice. She didn't want that goon sullying Neptune's good nature. Then again, Neptune had been teamed up with the arguably worse scoundrel, Sun WuKong.
She glanced at the faunus in question, who had yelled all the while Weiss was lost in thought. Perhaps an anxious habit of his, the tip of Sun's tail was now curling and uncurling in rhythm. The additional appendage gave away his primate heritage, and coupled with his shouts unsurprisingly attracted unwanted attention at the theater.
Blake met the scornful gazes of passerby with a threatening glare that only fierce, feline eyes could achieve. Many quickly focused elsewhere to avoid conflict. Others appeared fazed by the display of defense for a boisterous and bothersome faunus. Had Blake shed her bow and allowed her black ears to be exposed, there would be no question why she acted in solidarity. However, she would be met with heightened anger and fear, threats and perhaps violence. Needless to say, the bow stayed put.
Yang placed a hand on her partner's shoulder and Blake's expression softened to the touch.
Weiss sighed. If Blake trusted the simian, then in time, she supposed she could, too.
Turning to the posters that lined the foyer, rolling trailers of the films "Now Playing" at the theater, a red blur and scatter of Rose petals caught Weiss' eye. She watched her team leader dash to the closest poster, mesmerized. The heiress shook her head, and before she knew it Ruby had sidestepped to the next screen. Weiss would have assumed she took to the trailers to avoid the discord amongst the teams, but she knew better. The flashy posters were appealing to the eye, accompanied by evocative sound and song. Weiss could recognize marketing tactics a mile away. Shadowing her father, she'd watched the men and women at work on advertisements for the Schnee Dust Company. It required a basic understanding of psychology, which Weiss eventually learned. Much like a child, however, her distractible little Red partner simply could not resist indulging her senses. If this wasn't her first time at a movie theater, it certainly seemed like it was.
Sun had taken to pacing and tugging on his hair. RWBY's Yellow immediately released Blake and grabbed hold of the other faunus by his red and black bracers. She forced Sun's arms down by his sides, but not without resistance. Perhaps his similarly blonde locks inspired her to protect them. "Don't do that," she murmured, fixing his hair.
While Yang groomed him, Sun had no choice but to clench his fists in restraint. "I won't pay for a movie if I can't watch the whole thing!" he shouted, still perturbed by the team's tardiness.
Having witnessed Sun stow away on a ship and steal produce, Weiss questioned his morals. The simian's petty offenses certainly didn't help him win her favor or improve her general outlook on faunus. So long as he wasn't suggesting swindling their way into the movie with his last statement, however, she believed his logic was sound. Her family was frugal with their fortune; a Schnee would never purchase half of something they could purchase in full.
"For once, I agree with you," she chimed in, which might have appeased the faunus if she didn't follow up the statement with a disciplinary demand. "But could you please keep it down?"
He growled at her. "Stuff it, Ice Queen. You have more than enough money to buy the entire franchise, and you know it!"
"Oh, I do," Weiss conceded. She inspected her nails one hand at a time, first flexing, and then turning each hand over to curl it into a loose fist for another view. All eyes were on her as his suggestion hung in the air. She smirked. "I do, but I won't."
Before Sun took a swing at her Neptune slid his arms beneath his teammate's, and flexed them, restraining team SSSN's Yellow with what was almost a full nelson hold. "Come on, man, keep it cool!" He said, subduing his teammate. He offered team RWBY an apology. "Sorry, Sun's usually not like this. It's the mov-"
"It's not just any old movie, okay! It's the second Terra Carter!"
Still clenching Sun from beneath his shoulders, Neptune sighed.
"You know, the badger faunus whose Semblance is manipulating the earth?"
Yang, who had given up on the faunus' spiked hair, shook her head. For a moment, no one spoke. Team RWBY's lack of recognition for the film was something Weiss would have enjoyed rubbing in Sun's face, but Neptune had stepped in, and she wished to impress him with the poise, and not the provocations, of a Schnee.
She kept her mouth shut.
Finally, the Black bookworm spoke. "Well, I've read the series but I've never seen the adaptations."
"I already knew that," Sun muttered, disappointed that no one else was knowledgeable about, or interested in, the movie. The angry energy he had exerted began to subside. Neptune struggled to remain standing when the faunus slackened in his arms. He held his breath in exertion and the color of his face began to match his blue undercut, lined with beads of sweat. It wasn't long before Sun slipped from his grasp and to the floor.
Weiss took note that Neptune was not the strongest huntsman-in-training.
Returning from her tour of the foyer's movie trailers, Ruby gently tugged on Sun's tail to rouse the faunus from his stupor. Taking a seat on the floor in front of Sun, she gushed in earnest, "Terra Carter looks awesome! I mean, that Semblance is unstoppable! She's all like pulling up mountains from the ground and bending trees." The faunus perked up at her honest enthusiasm. "I wish she had a weapon but then she doesn't really need one. Her gloves are kind of cool, I guess, and I love her face paint!"
"Oh, that's not face paint," said Sun, matter-of-factly. He raised his hand to quiet Ruby's rambling. The gesture would have admitted his annoyance, if his expression did not indicate he felt otherwise; sitting tall and wearing a smug grin, he appeared eager to entertain the young leader with some expertise on faunus culture.
Ruby waited patiently for his next words, her eyes full of wonder. Sitting cross-legged, she scooched closer to Sun. She was propped up on straightened arms, leaning towards him. The two looked rather ridiculous sitting on the floor amidst their friends in the foyer, but Weiss withheld her criticism. Committed to the conversation, Ruby would not hear it, anyway. For someone so absent-minded, her ability to hyperfocus was extraordinary. Not to mention, Weiss' partner had finally pacified the faunus. Perhaps that was why Ruby had roamed the foyer in the first place, to better acquaint herself with the film and appease Sun. If so, it was surprisingly...smart. After all, inexperience and intelligence hardly went hand-in-hand. How could someone so callow be so considerate of others?
"Terra descends from a clan of badger faunus," Sun explained. "Have you ever seen a badger? They have small, fuzzy, white-tipped ears and black and white stripes across their faces, like she does." While he spoke Sun placed two curled fingers on the top of his head and then waved a hand in front of his face, for emphasis.
Ruby responded with excessive nods, brow furrowed in concentration.
Sun began to elaborate. "It's just like my tail or Bla-"
The ribbon reserved for Gambol Shroud was quickly stuffed in the faunus' mouth. As far as team RWBY was aware, the only people that knew of Blake's status were their team, Sun, and team JNPR, to whom Weiss had spilled the secret.
Unbeknownst to them, Neptune was already well aware.
Yang gave the simian a swift kick in the side, making sure to shut him up. To further protect her partner's privacy, she changed the subject. "What are we going to do about the movie, anyway? It's only gotten later."
Clutching his side, Sun ripped the ribbon out. Despite the discipline he'd just received, he offered a devious plan. "I say we sneak in," he croaked, "and wait until they roll it again."
"Oh, absolutely not! We are not going to steal a movie!" Weiss exclaimed. His suggestion was exactly the type of behavior she was conditioned to expect from the faunus. It was a shame he seemed to have learned nothing from his time spent with RWBY and more importantly, Blake.
Sun stood up, beaming, and wagged a finger in Weiss' face. "It's not stealing if I can't take it out of the theater with me."
"Technically," Yang interjected, rubbing her chin, "he's right."
Weiss glared at her teammate for supporting his scheme. "Maybe stealing isn't the right word, but it's still a crime!" she protested.
While they bickered, Blake took back her ribbon. Neptune remained silent, arms folded across his chest and frowning slightly.
Their leader had gone to look at showtimes. She cleared her throat for her teammates' attention. "They still have some tickets left for the 7:15," she said. Her nose and index finger were pressed against the glass of the ticket booth. The two attendants' appalled stares were visible only for an instant. The fog from her breath soon blurred them.
Weiss sighed. One moment, Ruby was a surprisingly admirable and conscientious leader, truly worthy of the title Weiss once wanted. The next, she was carefree and as absurd as a six-year-old. The qualities were contradictory. How could they all exist within one person?
Before Ruby could draw something on the canvas of exhalation that she had created, the heiress flicked her on the side of the head. Red winced, and White dragged her by the wrist towards the teams. "Dunce," she muttered under her breath, releasing her partner. Ruby rubbed her head and smiled, sheepishly.
"Didn't your mother ever tell you not to put your hands on glass in public places?" Weiss scolded. "It's full of germs!" She could have sworn the smile on her partner's face faltered for a second, but it happened so fast Weiss did not dwell on it. Instead, she turned to Sun. "Well?" she asked, staring expectantly. "Are you willing to pay for a ticket to the 7:15 Terra Carter, or not?"
"Yeah, I think I can live with that."
Blake's scroll read 5:00pm. "I think we can split up to spend the time," she instructed, taking charge of the reworked plans. "Just don't go far, and let's make sure to meet back here for 7, so we're not late again." She pocketed her scroll and swapped it with a book, preparing to take advantage of the time reading.
"Oh, no you don't" Yang snatched her source of entertainment. "C'mon, Blake, you can't read on our family fun night!"
Hairs raising, the faunus hissed, "And if I find reading fun?"
Her eyes, frisky and focused, locked onto the tome, and the bow on her head twitched ever so slightly. In spite of her serious nature, Blake's inner feline seemed to savor the imminent game of keep-away.
Several times she swatted at the target to no avail. Yang would wave the literary work, prompting the faunus to pounce, but before Blake could bat at it, Yang would pull it away.
While she watched, Weiss figured out the secret to Yang's success; Blake's pupils would dilate prior to an attempt on her prey, betraying a strike at the hardcover. Yang used this knowledge to her advantage, teasing her partner with precisely timed withdrawals of the book. The heiress wondered when her teammate had first noticed the sign. If it was during their duel, then perhaps Professor Goodwitch's assignment was not as arbitrary as Weiss originally thought. She glanced over at Ruby who was cheering for her feline friend. What more could she possibly learn about her simple-minded partner?
"Family fun night?" Neptune asked, repeating Yang's previous statement. "You really should get a dictionary."
The thrill-seeker chuckled as she swung Blake's book just out of her reach once again. "Is there a problem?" she asked, distracted.
"You don't remember? Just last week your friends Junior and his henchmen nearly opened fire on us at The Nightclub." Neptune drew out the word "friend" to emphasize Yang's questionable use of the word. "Now, you're calling us your family. With the exception of Ruby, none of us are actually part of it."
He was right, of course. In this regard, the self-proclaimed intellectual did not disappoint. Weiss was glad she wasn't the only one who found blonde brawler's antics outlandish and nonsensical. Ice cold, calculating, White, and blazing, unruly Yellow were polar opposites. Spending extended amounts of time with Yang or, for that matter, her team could drive the heiress insane. She was thankful for Neptune's company on this evening, not only for a chance to better get to know the boy but because of what she knew about him already. He was courteous and cool, much like the people she knew from Atlas and her home, White Castle. With the exception of Blake, dark and aloof, the terms "courteous" and "cool" hardly applied to the rest of team RWBY.
The blue-haired Haven student's vocabulary lesson had broken Yang's concentration, allowing Blake to retrieve her book. "Fine," Yang growled at him, annoyed by the early loss. "You're excused." Wavy golden locks were tossed over her shoulder, whipping Neptune's face as she walked away. The boy looked both elated and earnestly confused.
"Oh, just ignore her," Weiss huffed. She couldn't help but notice him swoon, and it wasn't the first time she'd seen him distracted so easily by another girl.
RWBY's Yellow sauntered over to team SSSN's about to taunt another target. She pressed a finger against Sun's chest with a challenge. "You and me, on the Dance Dance Infiltration machine." With her free hand she directed her thumb over her shoulder to the small arcade behind them. It was an old hovel in a corner of the foyer often overlooked.
The faunus clenched the hand against his chest and leaned in to size up the fiery blonde. Flames licked the tips of Yang's hair and Sun squinted. The pair sank into offensive stances, staring in a silent test of willpower that went on for quite a while.
The only one perturbed by the contest was Weiss. "What are they-"
"Shh, shh, shh!"
Ruby clasped a hand over Weiss' mouth and wagged a finger. "You don't want to interrupt a stand-off, especially when Yang's involved." Her eyes were brimming with excitement but her tone was completely serious. "It's all part of their training," she assured.
Weiss' expression could best be described as one of exasperation and shock, topped with a bit of embarrassment. Wide-eyed, she had half a mind to lick the palm placed on her mouth and repel her partner.
She took offense to the assault and role reversal; it was Weiss who educated Ruby, not the other way around. For years, Weiss trained and was tutored by qualified professionals, settling for no less than the highest of marks; her father had made sure to well round his eventual successor. Those experiences prior to Beacon gave her an edge over her peers. That included Ruby, who on the other hand, had advanced two years early with no apparent knowledge of anything besides wielding her scythe. Quite frankly, even that could use some refining. Weiss also happened to pay attention in class. The same could not be said of the little Red leader she frequently tutored. There was nothing Ruby could possibly know that Weiss did not already.
The standoff wasn't training. It was idiocy, and it was getting under her skin.
Weiss wrenched the hand from her mouth. "Staring contests are not part of our curriculum!" she burst, but was ignored.
Sun must have been satisfied for he smirked, stood tall, and threw the instigating hand away from his chest. "Yang Xiao Long, you're going down," he declared.
Flickering stray locks were tossed over Yang's shoulder. "You're right," she said, much to her on-looking friends' surprise, "because I'm gonna boogey down!"
Everyone groaned at the lame joke except for one giggling Ruby.
"Just go already," Weiss snapped.
Yang and Ruby exchanged nods and Weiss knew the sisters well enough to understand the silent interaction. When Grimm and weaponry were not involved, Weiss' trigger-happy partner settled for almost any other form of competition that she could. She was eager to act as either onlooker or competitor, even if it was only simulation. The young leader would support her older sister on the Dance Dance Infiltration machine.
"Yo!" Sun called to the faunus huntress-in-training. She had missed the dramatic display, reading her reclaimed book. "You cheering for me?"
Her eyes darted from the page before her, to Sun and back again. "Whatever." She shrugged, indifferent to the dance-off.
Yang's irises flashed crimson. "Remember who your partner is, Blake!"
"Well, I'm your team leader and I'm cheering for you," Ruby chirped.
Like one would treat a pet, Yang tussled her smaller sister's hair. Ruby instantly pulled up her hood, frowning.
Blake rolled her eyes but she trailed behind them nonetheless, reading even as she walked. The crowd in the foyer made way for the motley friends, staring once again and murmuring amongst themselves. The red-eyed blonde with hair alight had taken the lead accompanied by her faunus adversary whose tail flicked with excitement. If it wasn't for the book before her eyes, Blake would be protectively glaring at the spectators again. It would have made even more of a scene.
That left Weiss and Neptune alone at last.
"After all that I think I need some air," said Weiss, fanning herself. "Care to join?" she asked the tall Haven student, a little too enthusiastically.
He struck a pose with a grin, pointing at her with both hands. "Sure thing, Snow Angel."
Weiss walked with proper posture befitting of an heiress; chin up, shoulders back, chest out, and back straight with a small and swift gait. The heels of her long white boots clacked in rhythm against the paved sidewalk. Out of the corner or her eye she saw Neptune slouching slightly, hands stuffed in his pockets. The closed body language suggested disinterest or self-consciousness. Weiss hoped it was the latter. She could work with that.
He was fashionable, which he had proven when Ruby, Weiss, Yang, and Sun discussed formalwear for the Beacon Academy dance. Not to mention, he coordinated his everyday attire well, looking sharp. The white dress shirt and black tie were formal subtleties that complemented his casual jacket and jeans. Weiss' eyes wandered to his vibrant goggles. She wondered what the world looked like through them, imagining Vale's muted gray buildings suddenly looking lustrous and sunny. The accessory's brilliant color piqued her curiosity, but she knew there was probably more purpose to it than simply brightening their surroundings.
Neptune himself was quite the specimen, tall, tan, and lean. Those attributes along with his exotic hair made for a young man that was pleasing to the eye. Based on the brief conversations they'd previously shared, she believed his character was charming as well, and above all else cool. The moment she first laid eyes on Neptune she knew he was an asset to her future. A relationship between the two of them would help Weiss achieve one of the many goals set for her future as CEO of Schnee Dust - finding a desirable and profitable heir. She could see it now, the smartest girl in Beacon combined with the coolest boy in Haven. Paparazzi would be all over them during press conferences. They'd be popular, they'd be celebrities, they'd be unstoppable!
She didn't realize she'd been staring at the boy all the while.
"So," said Neptune, feigning a cough or two.
"So," Weiss repeated. She came up with a frivolous question to ward off an awkward silence. "What's the rest of your team like? We haven't met them yet."
In truth, she knew all she needed to about his teammates already. Their lack of presence at Beacon Academy said it all. They had opted out of the Vytal Tournament, an annual opportunity for students to immerse themselves in the cultures of the four kingdoms and celebrate both their diversity and unity. Competition with other students challenged the knowledge and training acquired at each institution. More importantly, winning the Tournament was an opportunity for fame and fortune. As far as Weiss was concerned, students that chose not to participate were lazy, unmotivated, underachievers that preferred a sheltered life and an easy way out. Although she'd yet to warm up to Sun, she had to give the faunus credit for trying his hand in the upcoming Tournament alongside his Blue teammate.
"Oh, Scarlet and Sage? They're cool."
Weiss waited for an elaboration, but none came. To keep the conversation alive she thought of another, arbitrary question. "Sun, Neptune, Scarlet, and Sage, huh? Your team name has three "S"s and one "N." What word did your Academy come up with for that acronym?"
"Sun," he said simply.
Weiss stopped in her tracks. "You're joking."
Neptune shook his head, styled blue locks swaying along with it. Weiss resumed her strut.
If Beacon's team acronym RWBY was any indication of its leader Ruby Rose, then Haven's team SSSN was led by none other than Sun WuKong. That was one way to encourage bad behavior. A mischievous faunus in charge of a team of exclusively male, teenage trainees, taking on missions involving Grimm and actual people's lives? Talk about a hazard to one's health. If nothing else, Beacon and Haven Academy had one thing in common - the questionable decisions made by their Headmasters.
Thinking back to SSSN's silly, simplified team name, Weiss thought out loud. "Technically, that should be pronounced Ssss-un." The excess consonants were emphasized with a hiss. "Why not use a word with more "S"s like session or season?"
"I didn't make the name," Neptune shrugged. He paused for a moment, before playfully ridiculing, "There's no "W" in the word ruby, you know."
Joke or not, Weiss' face contorted with anger at the statement. It appeared as if she'd taken a bite of something sour when her brows furrowed, nose scrunched, and lips pursed. "I'm sorry," she seethed, "but did I just hear you say there's no "W" in RWBY?"
"The word ruby, yes."
Once again, their walk was put on hold. Placing both hands on her hips, the heiress' eyes narrowed. She stared up at the Haven student, menacingly, but the thirteen inches with which Neptune towered over Weiss' petite frame made a mockery of any threat she may have posed.
He was unmoved by what Weiss had yet to realize was her all too familiar irritability. Instead, his lips twitched with what she swore to be the onset of a smile. How dare he! Not only was she unable to impress him, she was also unable to intimidate him, and yet both of these emotions she had so easily elicited from interested parties in the past. How else would she control his conduct and ensure his loyalty throughout a future of servitude to Weiss and Schnee Dust? She could not risk insubordinate outbursts. Such behavior simply would not do. This failure would not do.
The anger swelling in Weiss' chest caused increasingly labored breaths. She stepped closer to Neptune and raised her voice with each question she asked, until she was practically screaming. "Are you trying to suggest that I don't belong on my team? That I don't belong at Beacon? That I shouldn't be a huntress!?"
By the time her accusations were through, Neptune had backed himself onto a bench. He waved both of his hands at Weiss, nervous now that his perspective had changed; even at only 5'2," Weiss was now the one towering over him and his seated and slouched form, casting a foreboding shadow upon it. He swallowed hard in anticipation.
That was more like it. Weiss reached for his shimmering goggles, finding a good use for the otherwise decorative accessory that captured her interest earlier. Slowly, carefully, she lifted them from his head, creating tension among the straps. Satisfied by the short distance she'd stretched the goggles' elastic band, she held them there and watched Neptune wince through one of the tinted lenses. With them, she would put Neptune in his place and make her power known.
One by one she removed her fingers from the accessory-turned-weapon, until only her thumb and index finger were left. "I think you've just been spelling it wrong," she said, her voice soft and sweet, but stinging as ice. The goggles whipped onto his face with a painful snap, reddening the very skin around his eyes that they were meant to protect. Involuntary tears began to fill the lenses.
To expel the last of the explosive emotion lingering within her tense muscles, Weiss stretched. She took a seat beside the recovering blue-haired boy. He was groaning and ever so slowly pulling the accessory that had betrayed him from his face. The process was much like peeling off a band-aid, which the heiress would much rather rip off than gradually endure.
She took a good look at their surroundings. They were in the commercial district, not from the wide river separating it from the residential side of the port city. The buildings here were far more decorated than those in the rest of Vale, for each represented a company, business, or partnership competing for revenue. Weiss wouldn't waste her time shopping here, however. Across the district, bordering the upper-class residences, were boutiques with the latest in designer apparel, dealerships with outrageously priced luxury items, and shoppes with the latest and greatest technology. They were for the finer aristocracy, such as herself. Given her teammates' less fortunate upbringing and general lack of decorum, it had been quite awhile since Weiss' last retail therapy session. Her teammates would shop out of necessity, something she was not familiar with. The wealthy Schnee family always had the most expensive excess with which to provide her. When out with the team, Weiss curiously browsed through pawn shop oddities, and worn out works from dusty old bookstores, marveling at the simple and strange middle- to lower-class market.
Wondering what time it was, she withdrew her scroll. The numbers that flashed across the lock-screen, 5:34pm, suggested they had spent about half an hour walking through the city. Between the tall buildings, the sun hung low in the sky. It covered Vale in a bright, warm glow reminding Weiss of Neptune's tinted goggles. She glanced at her traveling companion who was now rubbing his puffy eyes. Either his Aura was particularly weak, or he did not know how to properly enhance the healing process with it. Once again, Weiss found herself hoping it was the latter of her assumptions. She could work with that.
"Take this, it will reduce the swelling." Lifting two fingers to activate her Semblance, Weiss conjured shards or ice from the creation of a small glyph. When Neptune opened his eyes, she offered the icicles to him. He hesitated. An expression of reverence and nervousness was still distinguishable from his features regardless of his distorted eyes, as he glanced from the offering to Weiss' face and back again.
"They're just going to melt if you don't," she snapped, causing him to quickly accept. With a shard in each hand, he pressed the substance against his brow and reflexively moaned with relief. It appeared he was finally learning his place.
At this point, Weiss had two options. She could return to the theater now and watch their teammates storm the arcade, or she could remain here with Neptune. The arcade might be both entertaining and exasperating, but if Weiss turned in early she would be straying from the path she set for herself.
A slight change in plans was trivial, really. It was the implication of the decision, however, - giving up, giving in, being wrong, failing - that made her uneasy. Weiss had originally intended to spend this time getting to know Neptune. Despite Neptune's rude comment and misconduct, which was a minor set back, she resolved to see her plan through.
She crossed her legs and placed her hands in her lap, sitting upright. Having made her decision, the heiress took up prim and proper posture. It was no longer to just impress Neptune, but to aggrandize her confidence, as well. "So, why do you want to be a huntsman?" Weiss asked.
He wiped the wet remains of the ice that was held in his left hand on his jeans. The shrunken shards in his right hand were still pressed against his brow. Thankfully, the swelling around his eyes had gone down. Weiss was beginning to think that Neptune's alluring features were his only redeeming quality.
Frowning slightly, he looked up as if trying to remember something. "Well," he started, "it seemed cool, and most of my guy friends were doing it."
Peer pressure and the preservation of a calm and collected bearing were his motivations, then? Weiss thought back to her conversation with Blake and Yang during their mission at Mountain Glenn. Dr. Oobleck had asked each of them why they trained to become huntresses. Blake fought for the social justice that the White Fang no longer stood for, and Yang wanted a life of adventure. Training to be a huntress was Weiss' duty as a capable fencer and Schnee. Not only that, she wished to redeem her family name, presently known for little more than wealth and unethical business practice. Was Neptune's "just because" motive really any worse?
Yes, it was. Weiss, Blake and Yang had set compelling, albeit selfish, goals that would allow them to persevere even when the going got tough. The same could not be said for Neptune. He lacked commitment and resolve for the line of work he'd chosen. After all, "huntsman" and "huntress" were hefty job titles, and nothing more.
The heiress expected Neptune to question her in kind but silence lingered. The last of the remedial ice left his face and palm damp. Rather than wipe away what remained, he allowed it trickle down his cheek like raindrops soothing and refreshing his skin before evaporating on their own. Clearly, he was still preoccupied by his injury so Weiss took it upon herself to answer the question that never came. She cleared her throat, and sat a little taller. "I am training to become a huntress for the respect of the title, so that I can turn my father's company around and protect it from the thieving, murderous White Fang."
He released a low whistle, impressed. "That's quite a goal. I guess I never gave it much thought," he admitted. It was perhaps the first sincere thing he'd said all day. "I've always carefully followed in the footsteps of someone else."
Weiss rested a reassuring hand on his shoulder, which was met with an instinctive flinch. She kept it there regardless, and smiled sweetly. "Don't worry, that's just as useful." The seemingly harsh statement was actually Weiss' encouragement and consolation in earnest. Neptune frowned slightly, but remained silent.
Weiss knew Team SSSN's handsome Blue to be lustful. What she did not expect was the weak, untrained, and impressionable character at his core, masked by his cool exterior. He would make a suitable figurehead for the company with good looks alone and better yet, she might be able to mold him to the specifications of her ideal suitor. After all, she did have access to the most highly trained professionals in all of Remnant. She could not rule out the possibility of a future as Mrs. Vasilias Schnee, just yet.
Satisfied with the amount of information she gleaned from her evening with Neptune, Weiss stood, brushing off her jacket and combat skirt. "It's time to head back," she said.
"You should've seen me on the Whack-a-Grimm," Yang boasted. Her arms were folded across her bountiful chest and her head was cocked to the side with a smug grin. Team RWBY, Sun and Neptune were seated in the theater waiting for the Terra Carter 2 movie previews to roll across the iridescent screen before them. Yang was recounting her contest in the arcade to pass the time. "Monkey boy's tail sure didn't help him there!"
"Yeah!" Ruby piped up. "Yang was hitting the Beowulf and Boarbatusk pop-ups like they were..." she paused, searching for an analogy to describe her sister's effort. Her countenance was one of concentration, absentmindedly circling her fists around one another while deep in thought. Eventually she took to humming, placing a hand beneath her chin for a seemingly knowledgeable pursuit of applicable terminology.
Seated beside her partner, Weiss's impatience inclined her to press, "Like they were what?"
Ruby snapped her fingers, silver eyes gleaming. "Yang was hitting them like they were little Grimm bongos," she exclaimed with pride, before adding, "that you punch!"
Weiss should have known that despite all the time little Red had spent sorting her thoughts, the resultant metaphor would still make little sense. She imagined her team leader's thought process involved something similar to a small, eccentric rodent running along a wheel for a prized piece of cheese it would never reach. Leave it to Ruby to take something simple like arcade gameplay, and convolute it entirely. "That's a terrible analogy."
Punching a bongo would break it. The instrument was meant to be played with the palms of one's hands. Not to mention, the Whack-a-Grimm games always came with a small, often comical hammer with which to hit the targets. No punching was necessary. Instead, it was discouraged.
How would Weiss know? Her family owned bongos and a personal Whack-a-Grimm game growing up, among many other gadgets and gizmos. Anything she or her sister Winter wanted, or items that happened to be popular at the time, their parents' bought for the Schnee sisters. It seemed to be the only way her mother and father could show affection, if one could even call it that. Perhaps bribery in exchange for conditional love was a more appropriate description.
Two seats to Weiss' right, Blake sighed. "Yang nearly destroyed the game."
"That arcade's old, anyway." The blonde brushed off the accusation with a wave of her hand. Before long, however, the pupils of her eyes flashed red betraying pent up rage. She grit her teeth and grumbled through them, "If Sun played fair and didn't use his third leg on Dance Dance Infiltration, then I wouldn't have had to destroy it!"
Ruby, who was seated between both Weiss and Yang, flinched and frowned. "She was a bit upset by the time they played Whack-a-Grimm," she chuckled nervously, "and you know how her Semblance works."
"A bit upset?" Blake asked, wryly. She turned a page of the hardcover book resting her lap. Weiss wondered whether Blake had gotten any reading done with Sun and the rowdy Rose and Xiao Long sisters. Most likely not.
Unsurprisingly, the Red sister failed to pick up on the faunus' sarcasm. Ruby pressed her index fingers together in apprehension. "Well, you know, Yang's hair wasn't blazing until after she los-"
As if Ruby had summoned the very flames she referred to, Yang's hair lit up in its entirety. She jumped out of her seat shouting, "I did not lose!"
A scoff came from the seat at Blake's right. Adding fuel to Yang's fire, Sun shouted back. "Well, you sure didn't win! Just admit that I'm better than you."
The commotion caused nearby moviegoers to vacate seats within three rows of team RWBY, Sun, and Neptune. Others harshly whispered, "Shh!"
There was no stopping Yang now. Her eyes were red and hair on fire; she had gone berserk. Using a technique similar to that of an athlete forcefully lifting a soccer ball, she kicked up from underneath Sun's seat. "You cheated!" The collapsible chair folded up on contact, crushing Sun's groin as it did. He doubled over, teary-eyed and temporarily unable to counter her or her accusation.
From the aisle seat beside Sun and his assailant, Neptune unwittingly crooned, "Forceful and fetching as always." His arousal was not an uncommon response to a woman's vehemence in his presence. Weiss, however, still found it somewhat disturbing.
"I wouldn't be surprised if Sun cheated," Weiss cut in, garnering a glare from her Black teammate and interrupting Neptune's fantasies, "but I can't imagine how he'd manage to cheat on something as calculated as a video game."
The faunus was rocking back and forth, his hands placed protectively over his lap. Yang took the opportunity to yank on his tail. "He wrapped this around the support bar, so he could play the game with all fours."
"There's no rule against it," Sun stammered with difficulty. He was finally well enough to defend against her verbal assault, unfortunately lengthening the Yellow teammates' never-ending dispute.
Ignoring their bickering, Ruby turned toward her partner and smiled politely. "How did you spend the time, Weiss?"
"Oh, just went for a walk with Neptune," Weiss said.
"Hmm," Little Red had that pondering look about her once again. It was as if the heiress' simple answer was spoken in riddles. What could she possibly be thinking now? "Sounds boring," Ruby concluded, the smile on her face no longer polite but rather pestering.
"It most certainly was not!" Weiss shot back. She raised her head and closed her eyes, portraying resentment and pretentiousness. "As my partner, you of all people should know that no activity is boring with Weiss Schnee," she scolded.
As always, the heiress was immediately on the defensive, hardly thinking before she spoke. She happened to miss Ruby mutter in response, "I don't know, studying is pretty boring," when she took a moment to consider what the team leader had said prior to her admonishment. Irritating though the statement was, Weiss realized Ruby wasn't entirely wrong. The weather was fair and the evening sun illuminated Vale making the quaint port city look all the more charming. It was nice to get some air, too, after standing in the stuffy theater's foyer with a shouting monkey faunus. However, enjoying the scenery was something Weiss would do walking alone. Neptune would likely have been silent the whole way if it weren't for the heiress' questions. When he did speak, his responses were short and did little to impress or interest her. In fact the most exciting thing to happen on the walk was her retribution; slapping Neptune's orange goggles to his face with force. Served him right for mocking her name's placement in team RWBY's acronym. She wasn't quite sure why, but that remark upset her more than the typical banter of her peers.
"By the way, if he asks, you spell your name with a "W,"" Weiss instructed. It was a precaution. She did tell Neptune he'd been spelling the word "ruby" wrong, after all.
Her partner laughed at the odd request. "Weiss, there's no "W" in my name." Soon she began to look nervous. Weiss recognized Ruby's expression, it was much like the one she wore when arriving to their study sessions unprepared. "Is this a trick question?"
"No, just go with it!" Weiss snapped.
"Alright, alright, jeez," she agreed. "And you think I'm the silly one."
Ruby did not see Weiss roll her eyes, for the lights in the theater began to dim. She fidgeted with excitement causing White to lean away and raise her arms to avoid Red's flailing limbs. The seat to Ruby's right, however, was still empty. Black, who had miraculously closed the book still resting on her lap, was pawing at her partner's jacket. The Yellow teammates would have continued to fight over Dance Dance Infiltration if it weren't for Sun's interest in the upcoming movie. Believing she won the dispute, Yang finally sat down.
The screen in front of them lit up. Just before the previews were about to roll, Sun whispered loudly to the team what they would need to know about the first Terra Carter movie in order to understand the second. "There's this huge battle between the badger faunus clan and the government over land that they've been living on for years. Terra stops them, but the government still manages to destroy the burrows and kill half the clan."
"Why would anyone want to watch something so depressing?" Weiss asked.
The simian ignore the question altogether and shushed her instead. "It's starting!"
"Hmph! It's only the previews."
"Shh! It's starting!"
The movie was nearly two hours long. It opened on a pristine cell with nothing but a table and two individuals sitting on either side. One, a middle aged man with slick hair and beady eyes, was wearing a suit. He scribbled something on a notepad in front of him.
Across the table sat the protagonist, Terra Carter. She was a stocky, dark-skinned woman with a ponytail of smooth, vermillion hair. Its consistency and color reminded Weiss of clay. The black and white stripes upon Terra's face accompanied by a second set of rounded ears indicated her badger faunus ancestry. A large, woven sun hat lay against her back, hanging from a twine cord about her neck. Her attire was simple; a sleeveless shirt exposing her firm arms, and a pair of long, jean shorts similarly exposing thick calves, complete with work boots. Besides her hat, the only other accessory she wore was a dirty pair of gardening gloves.
The slick haired man was in charge of the government agency interested in developing the land that formerly housed Terra's clan. He questioned her about the battle before revealing her clan's fate. The badger faunus who fought against the government were to be executed for their treason. That's when, with a menacing grin, the man proposed a deal. If Terra could convince her clan to give up the fight and surrender their land, they would be absolved of their crime. If not, execution. Terra would lose her family and lose her life, or live to see the sacred burrows, some of which she'd help shape, violated. She didn't know which was worse, either way the government was determined to get their land.
What Sun had forgotten to mention was Terra's status as the chieftain's daughter. As his eventual successor it was her responsibility to uphold the clan's traditions, including those she disagreed with, for example, dying with honor. What use was it beyond the borders of their home? Their relics, and their lore were lost when the burrows caved in. The chieftain's efforts to reclaim and rebuild were futile given the circumstances. Regardless, she spent each day among her badger faunus brothers and sisters using her Semblance to grasp the earth before her causing it to swell or compress at will. The movie focused on Terra's struggle to adhere to the clan's intricate and established practices, while at the same time searching for a way to acquit them, and if possible, preserve their land for good. The task was proving to be impossible. Tensions rose on either side when the chieftain became ill, passing quietly the day before the executions in his sleep.
Terra led her clan through the halls of an imposing, cavernous building. It was the agency's administrative center. She burst through the double doors leading to the pristine cell where she had been questioned. The slick-haired man was leaning back in his chair, his fingertips pressed together, expectantly. Behind him stood several men in uniform waiting for their orders. "So, what will it be?" he asked, and the credits began to roll.
The movie ended with a tense cliffhanger ensuring the industry their consumer's interest in a third. Much like the emotive trailers, Weiss knew the loose end was another technique of the trade, all a part of some larger strategy for corporate gains.
Sun was already whining in suspense. Neptune, his chaperone of sorts, gave the faunus a sympathetic pat on the back.
Yang stood and stretched. She'd taken little interest in the movie's introspective themes and was itching to leave. Blake was furiously thumbing through pages of her book. It was most likely the corresponding Terra Carter text, brought with her for comparison.
Beside Weiss, her partner was crying softly. She looked to the heiress with a face full of mucus and tears, sniffling while she spoke. "T-tough choices and then her dad, and, and..." She took a deep breath and squeaked through renewed sobs, "How is she going to s-save all the lives and all the lands?"
"It's not real, you dolt," Weiss said.
She wasn't quite sure how else to respond to her partner's heightened emotions. After all, the heiress could hardly handle her own. What little sadness managed to slip through fine cracks in her heart of stone she stuffed back in. Rather than plot or plan her partner's disturbance, Weiss acted on impulse, placing her hand atop the shared armrest where Ruby's lay.
The team leader raised her head and smiled, appreciatively. With her free hand she wiped her face, unfortunately, only managing to smear the secretions across it. Much like a freely crying child, her eyes were puffy, nose was red, and her face shone in the dim light from the mess of moisture slathering it. At least little Red was smiling now. Weiss couldn't help do the same at the sight of her hopeless team leader. Before removing her hand, she gave the one beneath hers a squeeze.
The theater was empty now save for team RWBY and half of team SSSN. The last of the credits scrolled to the top of the screen and the lights turned on. As soon as Yang saw the state her younger sister was in she rushed to her side, wrapping her in a tight embrace. Unable to break free, Ruby rubbed her snot-covered face all over her sister's front. Yang quickly recoiled, exclaiming, "Ew, gross, sis!" She leapt over the row of seats in front of her and hurried toward the nearest bathroom.
Ruby and friends followed her out, laughing at usual sisterly antics.
The night may not have gone the way Weiss anticipated considering the late start, but it turned out successful in the end; She learned more about Neptune and earned his respect, even if it was by force. Not to mention, Weiss actually enjoyed an evening someone else had planned, surviving the unspoken delegation of the task to Blake and without intervention. That was quite the victory in and of itself.
As another successful school week at Beacon came to a close, Weiss found it gratifying to cross one more achievement off her list.
Author's Note:
The Weiss that I am portraying is a bit more cut and dry. Everything she does for the most part is calculated, even impressing a certain blue-haired boy. She's constantly setting goals and thinking about ways to achieve them, using nearly any means necessary.
I intend to develop a relationship between Weiss and Ruby slowly, but not too slowly. There are a few things our little heiress must learn about herself, first.
On an unrelated side note, if any of you have watched or Fruits Basket, I imagine Yang and Sun's friendship to be similar to Kyo and Uo's; tense and competitive, but comical.
Now that you've got a bit more text to go off of, please consider leaving a review! Constructive criticism is always welcome.
Next Up: Nighttime shenanigans with team JNPR!