The Plot of Blake Belladonna
A/N: I like to call this one the story that just wouldn't die. It was supposed to be a oneshot, but I forgot to mark it as complete, so I wrote another chapter... and promptly forgot to mark it again. Third times the charm, right? Interesting tidbit, this one kept trying to go dark on me, and I had to delete and rewrite parts of it over and over to keep it more humor than horror. I originally had a big fight scene thought out, too, but switched it for the silliness below in order to stick with the rest of the story. I honestly think this ended up as one of the stupidest thing's I've ever written, but hell, it was written in the style of the first chapter, where I just wrote whatever came to mind. (Un?)Fortunately, it wasn't 3 AM this time.
And sorry for missing last week, my main laptop quit. So, to make up for it, I'll post another chapter of the AU Showcase tomorrow. Check it out if you want.
EDIT: 4/28/2015
Alright, screw it. I forgot to mark it complete for the third time in a row, so I guess it's meant to be a series. Lets see where it takes us, lads and gents.
Blake stared, entranced at the book in front of her. Now, in a broad sense, this wasn't that different from the normal state of affairs. Of course, 'normal' is a commodity in short supply at Beacon, but this particular encounter was devoid of any semblance of normalcy. Not like, a Semblance of returning things to normalcy, that's more Professor Goodwitch's thing, but I digress.
Said book was floating, and pulsing with an entrancing red glow.
"Blake."
And talking, that was new. Talking was- it was definitely a new one.
"Read me, Blake."
Talking in a voice that reminded her of Adam, actually. And Ozpin... and most other authority figures she'd had in he life.
Unfortunately for Mr. Book, Blake was a teenager. And a veteran of a borderline freedom fighter movement that had turned into a terrorist group, but yeah, still a teenager.
Put simply, Blake was a tad bit of a rebel. She had a problem with authority in the best of cases, and a voice giving her orders out of a book wasn't even close to the best of cases.
"Why should I?' After all, doing what a seemingly-inanimate object told you in the darkest reaches of the library was probably a bad idea.
"I can help you accomplish anything, and excel at anything you try. With my power, you could have anything you desire. You'd never have to run again, you could face all your problems head on, and annihilate them!"
Blake scoffed.
"And-" the voice shifted midway through the word, startling her. It became the voice of a young girl- no, a young woman, and it felt as if it was whispering into her ear. Blake could've sworn she could smell her, a faint trace of strawberries and sugar. "I could help you sate a few of your... baser urges."
Alarm bells started ringing in her mind. She swallowed. "I- she doesn't know. I couldn't-"
"You could tell her..."
The voice shifted, and continued on, in a vaguely recognizable voice. This voice was strong, confident. Everything she wished she could be.
"Oh, I see. You're afraid she'll reject you. Well, why wouldn't she? You're a weak coward who runs from everything she can't have her friends beat for her. You ran from the spider droid, from Adam, from the White Fang, you even ran from your heritage, but they found out, didn't they?"
Blake realized with a start that the book was speaking with her own voice.
"Use my power, Blake, the power of Mehreesuu, and you'll never have to run again. You'll have anything... anyone you could ever want.
Blake bit her lip and reached her hand out.
Later That Night
Coco squinted at the board in front of her."Well, that's fucking ominous."
"It is a bit creepy, isn't it?" Velvet asked, taking a quick step back from it.
"Well, yeah. Saying something like that to three different questions... think we got a broken one?"
"What if they actually work, though?"
Coco rolled her eyes. "Vel, it's sold to kids."
"But-"
"Kids! It's a novelty item, nothing more."
"Well... okay. Want to try it again?"
"Eh, why not?"
Their hands met once more, and Velvet purposefully avoided her teammate's eyes, which was surprisingly easy to do. Despite what she might say, Coco really did enjoy these types of things. She really was just like an overgrown kid at times.
"Will Yats ever sack up and ask Velvet out?" Velvet rolled her eyes. Coco was as oblivious as always.
She started as she felt movement under her hands. She'd asked Coco if it was her forcing the message to appear, but she'd maintained that it was obviously battery-powered.
Two sets of eyes followed the message, and two mouths muttered the letters. One set trying to look bored while containing her excitement, the other feigning excitement to cover up boredom and her own nervousness.
"T.. H..E..D..E..S..T..R..O..Y..E..R..I..S..M..A..N..I..F..E..S..T"
"Again?"
"Really?"
Velvet sighed, and suppressed a smile at her normally mature teammate's barely-hidden pout. "Think we can get a refund?" She turned to her bed to grab the box.
"For a Schneeja Board? Who cares? It was only, like, twenty lien."
Seven Days Later
"Professor Goodwitch, she's our friend. We have to go!"
Glynda met silver eyes with a stern glare. "While your concern is noted, I cannot allow students into the Restricted Wing. If Miss Belladonna managed-"
"The search parties have searched everywhere within ten miles except the Restricted Wing! What's inside that could possibly be bad enough to excuse that sort of oversight?!"
She turned to the glare of Weiss Schnee and sent her own back at her. To Schnee's credit, she didn't let her glare falter.
"Weiss is correct, Professor. Although it may be unlikely, there's always the chance that Blake was able to get in the Restricted Wing but unable to get back out." Nikos was trying to appeal to logic, Rose was trying emotion, and Schnee was clearly trying to fluster her into agreeing. That left Xiao-Long, who was, oddly enough, standing quietly in the corner of her office.
Glynda sighed. She knew the girls were right, and, worse still, she knew that Professor Ozpin would agree with them. Which meant that no matter what her decision on the matter, he would allow them access anyway.
She never was a fan of delaying the inevitable.
"Alright girls, you may go."
The four froze, clearly not expecting her to agree with them.
"However, you are to make up all the work you miss, and have someone take notes for you. Understood?"
Xiao-Long finally spoke up. "We do. Thanks, Professor."
"And be careful. The Restricted Wing is home to many things that are better left alone.
As the door closed behind them, Glynda once again considered applying to be the Headmistress of Signal. It'd certainly be less of a headache.
Pyrrha stood facing the door to the Restricted Wing, waiting as Yang paced behind her.
They'd came to the library at the start of 3rd period, and it showed. The place was entirely empty, devoid of even the librarians, as they were taking a lunch break. It was almost eerie to see the usually bustling building empty and quiet, a fact that Pyrrha found amusing considering the building's purpose.
The blonde opened her mouth then. "Alright guys, you sure you're ready? No clue what we'll find in there, so if anyone wants to back out, now's the time. I can probably-"
Weiss spoke up. "For the last time, Ruby and I are coming, and there's nothing you can say to convince us otherwise. We're perfectly capable huntresses, you know. You have nothing to worry about! We're prepared for any-"
The door burst open, launching Pyrrha into some bookcases on the other end of the library. The three remaining fighters turned, as one, to the new threat.
Blake floated in place, shadowy tendrils circling her body. Her eyes glowed with a malevolent light, fading through various dark shades of black, red, and purple. Behind her, but within arm's reach, floated an eerily pulsating book.
"Blake?" Ruby tentatively asked, lowering her weapon,"You okay?"
"'Are you okay?' Are you serious? She's floating, and her eyes are changing colors, and those... things are floating around her and all you can say is 'oh, Blake, are you okay?' for the love of-"
"I'm better than okay, Ruby." Blake cut off Weiss' rant. "I'm power."
"Uhm..."
"What?"
"You wanna elaborate on that one?"
"Of course, Yang. It's simple, really. By absorbing the power of Mehreesuu,-" Four pairs of eyes watched the book glow brighter as the name was said. "-I've gained the strength to do just about anything, and I know everything written in every book contained in this library. In fact, I-"
Mílo shot towards the book, only for Blake to wave a hand and send a wave of books from the shelf nearby into it, throwing it far off target.
"Have an almost complete control of every book in this library. You could call me a book witch if you want, I suppose." She sent a book flying towards where she thought Pyrrha was, and heard a yelp in response. "I have to say, I wasn't expecting you guys to take this long to find me. It's good, though... I'm finally too strong to be stopped."
"We're still gonna try!" Yang yelled, firing a shot at Blake and charging. Books flew at her from all angles, the multiple small hits strengthening her aura. Blake laughed, throwing her arms wide, and Yang skidded to a stop, guarding against a blow that didn't come.
"Yang, I'm your partner. I know your strengths, your secrets, and your weaknesses. I know your deepest thoughts. Hell, because you and Weiss still haven't figured out faunus have better senses, I know that you guys, uh.." She glanced in Ruby's direction. "Prefer Thursday nights."
Ruby snorted over Weiss' horrified sputtering. "We all prefer Thursday nights, Blake. We only have class from Noon to Four on Friday, remember?"
"I- uh... yeah. Of course. How silly of me to forget." Blake shared a look with Yang and Weiss.
"Anyway, It's because I know so much about you that I know the secret to defeating you."
"Small hits while you dodge in order to have her work off any energy you transfer while wearing her down?"
"No, Ruby. The secret to defeating Yang is simpler than that." She waved a hand and a gargantuan ball of magazines formed in the air above them.
"Oh really?" Yang fired several shots at the ball, and smirked when she saw the bullets come out the other side. "What would that be, Blake?"
Blake chuckled. "Vintage pornography, of course."
Ruby blinked.
Weiss tried and failed to talk, opening and closing her mouth repeatedly.
Yang just stared. "Wanna go ahead and elaborate on that one?"
"Nope." The ball of magazines slammed into Yang and kept going, carrying her to the opposite end of the library.
"Yang!" Weiss rushed to save her, but came to a dead stop only a few feet from where she started, gasping. "This shelf is sorted completely wrong!" She turned on Blake. "You have complete control over all these books, but you can't be bothered to keep them organized?!"
Blake smiled, and her eyes flashed. "Actually Weiss, I was hoping you could do that. I knew that even with my control of these books, I'd make mistakes. You, though... You're always so organized."
Weiss blushed. "Well, I-"
"OH GOD THEY'RE STICKING TO ME!"
"-I mean, I always say that organization is the key to success. Of course, you saw how much Ruby and Yang's grades improved after I made them start organizing their notes."
"EWEWEWEWEW"
"Of course I did! It was incr- Hang on." Blake waved a hand, and the shot Ruby had lined up on the Book was instead buried into a copy of 50 Types of Chains. Everyone present agreed this was clearly the best use for it. "It was incredible." Weiss smiled and hurried off to start reshelving.
She turned to Ruby. "Ruby, I'm not gonna lie, with Pyrrha here I can't really use my original idea to just hold you down with a huge pile of books on you. Not enough books, y'know? So, I'm gonna have to actually fight you."
"Oh, I've always wanted to see how Crescent Rose would beat Gambol Shroud in a real fight!"
Blake glared at the grinning girl. "Yeah, not gonna use that. I've got books now, y'know? Book witch and all that."
"But witches are ugly."
Blake blinked. "Are you-"
"But you're not. You're cute. So you can't b a witch." Ruby smiled victoriously. "You're a sorceress."
"Bow-chika- OH GOD THAT MADE IT STRONGER I HAVE REGRETS"
"I... you? You know what, just... Here." A book floated over to Ruby. "That's a copy of the diary of the first known huntress. Go wild."
Ruby exploded into rose petals reappeared in a chair by the widow, reading the diary.
Pyrrha burst from the wreckage and charged Blake, moving back and forth swiftly, dodging books left and right, until she was standing in front of the floating girl. In a well-practiced movement she swung her shield in and overhanded haymaker then used the momentum to dip into a sweeping feint that she came up from in a nearly 45 degree angle uppercut.
Blake dodged it all effortlessly.
Pyrrha's eyes widened. "What?"
Blake sighed. "I told you guys, I know everything that every one of these books say."
"So?"
"AGH BURNING IT JUST MAKES IT MAD SOMEONE HELP!"
"Do you have any clue how many biographies and articles there are of you here? I doubt there's more than one or two moves you've ever done that I don't know."
"Ugh. I'm seventeen, I shouldn't even have a bio-"
A huge surge of books blasted Pyrrha back, slamming her repeatedly against it for several minutes before finally letting her fall.
"Oh, by the way-"
"WHY AREN'T YOU PRICKS HELPING ME?" Blake waved her hand around. "OWOWOWOWOWEWEWIGONNAKICKYOURASS!EWOWWHYMEWHY"
"Ahem. By the way, that was for the cans, bitch."
Weiss nodded, and smiled proudly. She'd reshelved all the books correctly on a whole row, and it'd only taken her ten minutes!
Naturally, she turned around to gloat, and saw Yang entangled in at least 600 pounds of smut, and Ruby sitting at a table, calmly reading a book.
"Oh, right, Yang..."
Weiss blinked. Time to redirect this onto someone else.
"Ruby! Why didn't you help Yang?"
Ruby turned to her. "Yang could probably have gotten out by now if she agreed not to attack Blake."
Blake nodded.
"Aside from that, she said she had more books like this and I could read them if I was good."
Blake nodded again.
"So you just left her there? For a book? She's your sister!"
"HYPOCRITE! OW, SHIT, HELP!"
Weiss wheeled on Yang, and the populous pile of pornographic pictures printed on pulp-blended paper to be used for people's pleasure.
"And you! You can't struggle your way out of a pile of... of..Adult entertainment?"
"Well," Blake poke up. "In her defense, it's made to react to every move she makes."
"What? How?" She turned to Blake.
"OH GOD! THE POSTERS OF PRETTY POSTERIOR PLEASURING PEOPLE PLEASING THEIR PENILE GLANDS BY PRESSING PERPENDICULARLY-"
"Shut up!" Weiss turned back to Blake. "How?"
"I gave it a mind of it's own, of course."
Weiss blinked. "How'd you do that?"
Blake blinked. "How did I do that?"
On the other end of the room, buried under enough books to... Well, to fill a library, Pyrrha sent a text and smiled. Help was on the way.
Jaune was half asleep when his scroll rang. Loudly.
URSA, URSA, UR-UR-UR-URURURSAAAAAA
Professor Port moved with a speed that almost made the class believe some of his stories.
"Ah, Mister Arc! I'll need to see that!" Jaune handed him the scroll and inwardly sighed. Looked like another week of detentions for him.
The professor skimmed the message, before laughing. "Ah, an adventure to save a young love! Well, boy, it seems you have better things to do than be here! You'd best be along, this sounds serious!"
So it came to be that Jaune, hardly believing his luck, was let out of Port's class an hour ahead of schedule. He was halfway back to his team's room before he thought to check the message.
Jaune, help. Found Blake, Library, need you, hurry! Bring Weapon!
He sprinted to the library.
He walked in on what, years later, he would describe to his son as the weirdest thing he saw as a Huntsman. Yang appeared to be grappling against a monster made of porn, Weiss and Ruby were arguing, Blake was floating and generally having a good time, and a floating book seemed to be flashing red, while the occasional cackle emerged from it.
So, he did the only thing he was qualified to do.
Charge it.
He ran towards the book, and Blake turned towards him.
"Jaune?!" Her eyes widened. "No you don't!" She waved both hands towards him, and books seemed to shoot at him from every corner of the library.
Pyrrha saw light for what felt like the first time in ages, and the second she did she was 'treated' to the sight of nearly a million books converging on her beau.
"No!" She threw both her hands to the ground, and willed her Semblance to come forth.
Every piece of metal she'd ever touched in the library shot, as one, towards Jaune. Pens, sharpeners, tables, computers and chairs alike battered the books away from him, for a tense-and exhausting- minute. The last sight she saw before her vision failed was Jaune slicing the Book in half.
Blake collapsed immediately, and the two halves of the book rose high into the air.
"Yes, you may have defeated me today, but know this! Mehreesuu will live on in the hearts of all that desire power! And some day, I will watch as the life drains from your eyes!"
And the two halves burned to ash in midair, sprinkling across the library.
Blake regained consciousness, and slowly stood.
"What... what happened?"
Yang extricated herself, walked to her, and hugged her. "Blake, I'm glad you're back. Now, I'm not really sure how much of all that was you, so I'm sorry for this."
She released her, took off her right gauntlet, then punched her as hard as she could.
Blake flew about ten feet, and landed in a clump. About a minute later he stood up, albeit shakily.
"I... I actually saved the day!" Jaune's eye's were as wide and bright as headlights with fresh fluid. "Well, me and Pyrrha, anyway... Pyrrha!"
Jaune ran over to her, and offered a hand to her. The sunlight seemed to shine around him, and Pyrrha felt her breath hitch.
Weiss, watching the scene, was forced to resort to her tried and true tactic for encountering attractive men.
'I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay I'm gay'
She tore her gaze away from the surprisingly-attractive-in-the-right-light Jaune in time to see Blake touch her lips, and shoot Ruby a confused look. Ruby was in turn being lifted off the ground in one of Yang's 'Big moment in Ruby's life' hugs.
Well, if no one else was going to do it... "So... anyone have any idea what that was?"
A chorus of nos was the response.
Ruby struggled out of Yang's grip. "I do! That diary mentioned Mehreesuu as being this huuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuge nevermore she killed. Because this one tribe worshiped a god called that and they thought it was him, and-"
"Ah, yes. It seems you encountered one of the academy's most well-kept secrets." The entire group jumped, and turned towards the door. Professor Ozpin was there, trailed, as always, by Professor Goodwitch.
They all started to speak, but he held up a hand and continued.
"Mehreesuu. O'Malley. Demise. . It has many names, but they are one and all the same. It's a hostile spirit that appears every few generations and spreads havoc and death for months through a host-body, until it's aura is spent. The host dies, a hero is hailed for ending the host, and the spirit itself lives on, to cause chaos once more. With but one exception, well, two now,, it's reigns have always ended with the death of the host. It's container has never been destroyed, either."
He looked at each of them in turn. "However, you all managed to pull off the feat today. How?"
Ruby spoke up. "Blake didn't really try to kill any of us..."
"Hm. Perhaps" He said glancing at Professor Goodwitch. "The circumstances of it's sealing caused it to come back weaker. Or perhaps Miss Belladonna is just that strong-willed." He finished, looking at Blake.
"I guess we'll never know..." Yang said, looking tired.
"I suppose so. With any luck, these circumstances have allowed it to be snuffed out for good."
"Professor... how did you seal it?" Yang asked.
Ozpin smiled. "I didn't."
"I know, sir."
Goodwitch sighed. "My semblance activated when it tried to possess me, and forced it into it's container. We considered destroying it, but it was determined it was too dangerous."
Everyone visibly deflated.
"Now." Ozpin said. "I feel like a week of no classes is ample compensation for having it gone. Glynda?"
"Two." She said, looking at Blake. "Two weeks at least. If any of you need anything, or want to talk, please let me know."
And so it was that Team RWBY and half of team JNPR managed to defeat one of the greatest evils known to mankind.
Epilogue
Blake finally left the library... and returned to it the next week for "Team RWBY's Double Date Study Hour. And every week after that. Yang, to this day, refuses to call it anything other than TRDDSHit.