A/N: Sorry for the long delay between chapters! I got into a bit of a creative rut and I've had some personal stuff piled up to take care of too. Hopefully now updates can be more regular! Anyway, onto the story!
To say that Neo felt overwhelmed by everything that she was being presented with would be a good candidate for quite possibly being the understatement of the year.
When she had been informed that Weiss had wanted to take her out to the mall in downtown Vale to help her shop for some new clothes, she had already been blown away by being on the receiving end of such kindness and generosity; especially after the inauspicious start that the two of them had gotten off to the night before with the shower incident. When Weiss proceeded to escort Neo through the sprawling shopping complex to one of the more trendy clothing boutiques, she wondered if it was really okay for her to be accepting this. Ruby had told her that Weiss was actually one of the daughters in an extremely wealthy family, but Neo still felt that this was far too much to be spending on someone like her; in terms of both attention and money.
But this…well, Neo wasn't really sure how he was supposed to react to this.
"Well? Which one do you prefer the most, Neo?" Weiss held in each of her hands a hanger; one which was holding up a slinky-looking silver halter top and another doing the same for a pair of tight-fitting black pants. Flanking the young heiress on either side were two attendants employed by the boutique, who apparently are familiar enough with Weiss to be on a first-name basis with her from how often she must visit the shop, and both of the attendants likewise were displaying a handpicked outfit for Neo to evaluate with her currently whitish-pink eyes.
Her gaze flitted back and forth between each one of the ensembles, but no matter how much she looked them over she found it near impossible to choose one over the others. All three of her options looked so appealing, yet at the same time intimidating; not to mention that she was still far from comfortable with Weiss purchasing clothing this expensive for her in the first place. Being the center of attention was also not on Neo's list of favorite things, which only made her all the more nervous at this present time and more difficult for her to come to a decision.
The last thing that Neo wanted was for them to start getting impatient with her though, so ultimately she lifted up one of her hands and pointed to the attire that Weiss had selected to make her choice known. The white-haired girl promptly flaunted a satisfied smile.
"I had a feeling that you and I would see eye-to-eye on matters as important as these. I can just tell when a woman knows good fashion." Weiss said as she handed over both of the hangers she had been holding on to over to Neo. "Reese, Arslan, keep those other outfits on standby though; I still want her to try them all on." She added as the green-haired attendant and her platinum blonde counterpart both nodded before leaving their two customers on their own, resuming their normal work duties.
"Alright, now all you need to do is enter the changing room and try it on for yourself. In the meantime, I will be out here taking another look around. I'm certain that there will be more pieces I can find that will suit you just nicely." Weiss had already begun walking away on her mission to peruse the boutique and see what other articles of clothing she could gather for Neo to pass judgment on, leaving the silent girl standing there by herself feeling awkward and out of place. She knew that she probably couldn't even afford the cheapest things in this store, and while she was sincerely grateful for Weiss's willingness to bring her here to acquire some desperately needed new clothing that she could call her own, Neo felt embarrassed for having to make the well-financed girl foot the bill for everything.
When she ran away, she hadn't had much money on her. She made sure she had enough lien to afford a train ticket out of town, and what she had leftover was only good for a couple of nights at a cheap motel. With no one that she could turn to for assistance, she had to resort to less than ethical means just to scrounge up enough cash to get herself from one day to the next. Fortunately, she possessed some skill when it came to picking locks, and so under the cover of night she'd go around breaking into vending machines to grab what she could and put it towards food and shelter. Neo wasn't going to steal from people, but since they had already given away their money for a beverage or a snack, it made it a little easier for her to swallow what she was doing.
Of course, she wasn't just going to be able to live that way forever, but change was forced upon her abruptly and far sooner than she had anticipated.
It was early in the morning and Neo was on her way to pay for another night of lodging at the motel. The rooms were separated from the lobby, so you had to walk across the parking lot to get to and from the main building and the residences. The main building also had the aesthetic feature of a front wall made out of glass panels that you could see through, and fortuitously it was also the very reason that the runt-sized runaway was likely able to prolong her abscondence.
As Neo was walking up towards the doors, she stopped dead in her tracks when she peered through the transparent wall and spotted an unmistakable figure within. Standing there in the lobby, at the front desk seemingly waiting to be attended to, was a green-haired woman whom she had seen on several different occasions prior to this one; when she would meet with him. She knew that the woman's name was Emerald, and she also knew instantly that if she was here then that meant she was searching for someone – searching for her.
There couldn't be any doubt. Roman had hired Emerald to find her and bring her back home. In that moment, it felt to Neo as if somebody had dropped a hunk of cold steel into her stomach. Her legs somehow felt simultaneously like rubber and heavy underneath her. She was totally captivated by fear, but it struck her that there was still hope. As it stood, Emerald hadn't spotted her yet. She still had a chance to make a break for it and run in the search of safety.
And run she did.
Neo bolted on the spot and made a mad dash to head once more to the train station. If she was lucky, she thought that she might be able to put enough distance between herself and Emerald to make the trail run cold. And if not, there was no chance that she was going to let herself be taken without a fight. She was determined not to ever go back there, and the multi-colored mute was willing to do whatever was absolutely necessary to ensure her sustained freedom.
Once Neo had actually made it to the train station, she took the money that she was going to use to pay for another night's rent at the motel and bought a ticket on the next ride out of town. The location didn't even matter, as long as she wasn't anywhere near Emerald and she could put as many miles as possible between them.
A sharp knocking upon the door to the changing room snapped Neo back to reality and separated her consciousness from the memories that she had been reliving in her head for the past few minutes.
"Neo? What in Remnant is taking you so long?" Weiss's voice rang out through the door as she wondered what could possibly be taking her companion so long to swap outfits. A moment or so later, a pair of small taps against the door from the opposite side was all that Weiss received as a response, which she wasn't exactly sure what to do with. "I'm…going to go ahead and assume that means you're almost finished. I'll just be waiting right out here." She ended up saying while just hoping that two light taps wasn't somehow code for some sort of emergency.
Meanwhile Neo breathed a small sigh, disappointed in herself for getting so caught up in some of the events that had transpired over the last couple of weeks that she momentarily detached from reality. She hadn't even started to change yet into the outfit provided for her by Weiss, so she worked quickly to get undressed and slip into the stylish and trendy clothes, taking a momentary pause only when she glanced into the full-body mirror on the wall and caught a glimpse of the fading brownish-yellow splotch on her abdomen. The bruised girl quickly shook away those memories however before they could overtake her, not needing any further reminders of the life she lived before she fled.
After just about a minute or two of idly browsing the nearby racks, Weiss finally heard the clicking of the doorknob and turned her attention back to the changing room from which Neo was emerging, now fully decked out in clothing that was sure to make her the envy of any fashion-conscious young woman in the city. She pulled the look off so well too that it brought a tiny smirk of accomplishment to Weiss's thin lips for being the one who put the ensemble together for the mute girl in the first place.
"Oh, it looks absolutely perfect on you; just like I imagined it! You're positively gorgeous!" Weiss fawned while Neo blushed and looked the other way with a sheepish smile, rubbing the bare skin of her upper arm with her opposite hand and not exactly knowing how to take such a compliment. The only other person who had ever talked about her like that was him, but his words only ended up being sugar-coated nothingness to draw her into his web.
"Come on; give me a spin so I can see how it looks on you from every angle." Weiss instructed and to which Neo obliged, admittedly in a rather stiff manner of doing so. She had never been asked to model anything before, and she was still feeling embarrassed by the heiress's flattery, so her movements were not as graceful as they perhaps otherwise could have been. Personally, Weiss found Neo's nervousness to be quite adorable, and had to put her hand up to her mouth to hide a small giggle as she watched the even smaller girl give her best awkward flourish. "Alright, I think we can safely say that we'll be purchasing this outfit. We'll find a nice pair of heels to go with it too. For now, back in the changing room; you still have plenty more to try on!"
Weiss was clearly enjoying this, while Neo for her part found herself playing the part of the semi-reluctant accomplice. She was undoubtedly appreciative of what the wealthy daughter of the Schnee family was doing for her and she had no idea of how she would ever be able to repay this debt, but she was certain that this was far too much to be spending on her in terms of time, attention, and especially money. Still, Weiss wasn't going to be taking no for an answer, so Neo knew that there was little use in trying to resist.
Plus, even Neo had to admit, when she took another glance over towards the mirror, she thought she looked pretty damn cute too.
A boy barely older than seventeen watched nervously as the moderately older man standing before him opened up the envelope that the aforementioned boy had just handed him, removing the wad of cash from inside and proceeding to count through each individual lien note contained within it.
"I…I know it's not all there but…it's all that I've got." He figured it would be better to address the shortage himself before the collector noticed it, since it would get found out either way. "I promise though, I'll make up the difference with my next payment! Please…I've never been short before; cut me some slack this one time." He hated having to plead for leniency like this, but it would be better for him in the long run to suck it up and do so until he could repay what he now owed next time.
"I don't know…boss doesn't take too kindly to that sort of thing; says that it breeds weakness. Now, you wouldn't want people thinking that the boss is weak, would you?" The silver-haired enforcer replied with a malevolent smirk while staring down at the boy he'd come to collect weekly payment from. Truly, he loved this part of his job.
"N-No! Of course not, but—"
"Then you understand that I can't just let you off scot-free now, can I?"
The boy stammered trying to come up with something that could change his mind, but before he could do so he found himself getting grabbed by the collar and thrown up against the brick wall of the alley where they were meeting. In this moment he deeply regretted not arranging for the transfer to take place in a more public setting.
"P-Please Mercury, I'll have the money! Just…t-tell Cinder that—"
His pleas gurgled into an outburst of pain as he felt one of Mercury's knees plant itself forcefully into his gut, doubling him over and leaving him vulnerable to the kick to the side of the head that Mercury followed up with, sending the boy sprawling out onto the cement flooring of the alley.
"Oh don't worry; I'll make sure to tell her how sorry you are. I just gotta make sure you really mean it first." Mercury cracked his knuckles as he stood over the helpless teen, his smirk now twice as large as it was just a mere minute earlier before things had escalated. Cinder made no exceptions for failure, and Mercury's primary role in her organization was to ensure that everyone knew what the consequences were not meeting the expectations that had been set for them. Generally, those who failed in their duties once were highly unlikely to fail a second time after meeting with said consequences. If they did, more punitive measures would be taken against them.
These punitive measures guaranteed that there would be no third instance of failure.
"Are you…sure that's really a good idea?"
"Yeah, even I'm not sure that you should really go through with that."
Blake and Yang respectively voiced their concerns, but the third member of their small party simply scoffed and dismissed those worries with a wave of her hand.
"Don't be silly! This is what I get, like, all the time here!" Nora replied as she gestured back towards the abomination of a dessert that she had concocted. She'd been the one to invite the two housemates out for a meetup at a nearby frozen yogurt place; one which Nora happened to frequent quite often. At some point she felt that only having one or two flavors wasn't enough to satisfy her palette, thus why on the table there was now a large bowl in front of her containing seven different flavors of frozen yogurt, not to even mention the similar number of distinctly different toppings sprinkled all over the allegedly edible mountain.
"Besides, it only made me throw up later after like, the first four times I ate it. I just had to train my stomach and now it's more than strong enough to handle it!" Somehow, this failed to reassure either of the other two girls, who had each decided upon a much more reserved mixture of flavors and toppings to satiate their appetites. "Hey, so how come Ruby didn't come?" Nora then asked, her absence being somewhat peculiar considering the younger girl's fondness for sweets.
"Oh she was playing some game with Jaune when we left. Plus she said she wanted to be home when Neo got back. She had a feeling that she'd like some other company after spending an afternoon out with Weiss." Blake responded with a smile that she shared with Yang while Nora audibly snickered. They all of course loved their Atlesian friend to death, but Weiss could still prove rather difficult to get along with when it came to people who didn't already know her.
"Hopefully she's taking it easy on Neo. Someone like her, I can imagine having a rough time trying to keep up with Weiss when it comes to shopping." Yang remarked before swallowing a spoonful of her strawberry banana yogurt, adorned with crushed up bits of chocolate cookie. Truthfully though she had faith in Weiss to exhibit the right amount of patience with her. She had been a little surprised when Weiss had let her know that she wanted to take Neo out and buy her some new clothes, but when she thought about it she realized that this was probably the best way that Weiss could think of to help Neo adjust to her new surroundings.
"Is she staying with you guys for a while?" Nora's question, while simple on its face, actually succeeded in giving both Yang and Blake momentary pause. Neither of them had given that much thought yet to the duration of Neo's residency at their house, and the two girls exchanged a glance conveying their newly shared awareness of this as a point of discussion later.
"Umm…I guess so? We haven't actually had the chance to talk about it yet. Things have all been kind of crazy since last night." Yang admitted with a weak smile, now starting to wonder how that conversation would eventually go when it was time to be had. Personally she would be more than fine with having Neo stay as long as she needed, and she was assuming that Ruby would be in the same boat. Would Weiss feel the same way though? And what about Blake? Her gaze lingered upon her Faunus friend with the knowledge sitting in the back of her mind that Blake could be notoriously slow to trust others. What if she didn't actually want Neo around when admittedly they knew almost nothing about her past?
"For now I think we're mostly just focusing on helping her settle down. She's been living on the street for a while it seems, so giving her a roof over her head and food in her stomach is a good place to start." Blake added to which Yang agreed with a nod and slightly more reassured smile at her dark-haired friend's compassion; and from what they both saw at breakfast earlier in the day, Neo was certainly grateful for the nourishment. For as small as she is, she put Yang's cooking down with astonishing fervor.
"Ooh! That's a great idea! I'll get Ren to whip up some pancakes and I'll bring 'em over as a gift!" Nora joyously exclaimed after being hit by such a stroke of genius which elicited laughter from both of her companions at the round table located outdoors in front of the frozen yogurt shop.
"I'm sure Ren will be thrilled to hear that."
"Hey, he knows who wears the pants in this relationship!" Nora smirked in response to Blake's quip, thought it not exactly being a secret that Nora calls the shots between the two of them while her more passive and stoic boyfriend is more or less along for the chaotically delightful ride.
"Just let him know how much we appreciate his kindness." Yang joked as the three girls all took a moment to get back to indulging in their sweet treats. Still, she couldn't keep herself from worrying now. She couldn't imagine telling Neo that she was going to have to leave, especially not after Weiss informed her of the bruising that she got a glimpse of when she accidentally walked in on the runaway during her shower. If Neo had been an abuse victim, how could she live with herself after kicking her out of possibly the only safe home she'd ever had?
Yet there was still the other side of the coin that she was forced to acknowledge as well. What if there was something more unsavory to Neo's story than she was assuming? Has Neo been manipulating her this whole time? She definitely wasn't faking her malnourishment or anything else about the sorry state she was in when Yang had found her in the alley last night. Why was she even thinking about this as a possibility then? Yang attempted to shake it out of her thoughts, but apparently it had been showing on her face that she was conflicted internally about something.
"Hey Yang, you alright?" Nora asked in a much more subdued fashion, concern for one of her best friends taking over as the unease painted across Yang's features was as plain as day.
"Huh? Yeah! I'm fine, just…a little tired. There's been a lot going on after all." The excuse sounded believable enough, Yang hoped, as she couldn't let anyone figure out that she was having these kinds of thoughts about Neo. If they knew that she of all people was having even some minor questions about her, how could she possibly expect the rest of her friends and housemates to want to keep her around long-term?
"Maybe you should take a break when we get back home. You've been doing so much to try to help make Neo comfortable that you've neglected yourself a little." Blake suggested with a sympathetic smile towards the weary looking blonde. "I'll even make you some tea and tuck you in for a nap." She added trying to bring back a bit of a lighter atmosphere at the table, feeling relieved when Yang flashed her a sincere grin in response.
"Well with that kind of offer, how could I possibly refuse?"
Mercury stretched his arms out behind his back as he emerged from the secluded alleyway, feeling an undeniable sense of satisfaction from a job well done and the wad of lien stuffed into his pocket – light as it may be in comparison to the amount he was supposed to collect. Ah well, as long as he still got paid he didn't really give a damn. It was Cinder's job to manage all of the questionable businesses that she oversees; all he has to do is remind transgressors of what happens when they wind up on Cinder's bad side.
He noticed a small stain of that kid's blood on the toe of his right boot, and clicked his tongue with dissatisfaction as he tried to get rid of it by scuffing it on the sidewalk as he strode along it. Ordinarily he was pretty good about making sure he didn't get hit with any unnecessary spatter; he supposed he must have gotten a little caught up in the moment this time.
And then he stopped in his tracks as he picked his head back up and leered across the parking lot of the mall where he had come to pick up the revenue today. It was a fair bit of distance, but it would also be hard to mistake the prominent blend of colors being displayed in the hair of the girl that he spotted. Even more interestingly, she was walking with someone else – a white-haired girl who looked like the type he could pry a pretty good haul off of in a stick-up.
He had to put those ideas aside for now however. This had to be the girl he'd been told to keep an eye out for. Apparently she was a pretty big deal to someone, though all he really knew was that Cinder said an associate of hers was searching for this pink-and-brunette-haired girl, and that whomever it was that found her would be rewarded quite handsomely. That was pretty much all the information that he needed.
Keeping an eye on the pair of girls, he started to walk in the same direction as them from across the parking lot while scooping out his phone to quickly dial up his boss. It only took a couple seconds of ringing before he received an answer.
"Mercury. I do hope things are going well on your rounds. Why have you called?" Even Mercury, black-hearted as he was, couldn't ignore the slight chill that ran along his spine just from the sound of Cinder's voice that carried such menace behind a veil of sweetness. She was perhaps the most feared underworld figure in Vale, and rightfully so.
"Oh the rounds are fine, but I've got some interesting news for you. That tiny girl with the weird hair you said to watch out for? Pretty sure I just found her at the mall in the shopping district. She's not alone either; some rich-looking girl is with her." He relayed the information to Cinder and was met with silence for a brief moment before he got his new orders.
"Well done. I want you to follow her for the time being. If she's with someone else then there's a good chance she's found someplace to take shelter. Figure out where that might be." She instructed with a smirk curled upon her sultry, red lips. Of all the people she had on the streets, the fact that it was her best enforcer who happened to stumble upon the girl was most pleasing to her.
"And after I tail 'em back to their place? Want me to grab her then?"
"No. Don't do anything reckless, or without my permission. She's dangerous Mercury; it'll be more prudent to do our due diligence first."
"Her? Dangerous? That pipsqueak?" Mercury wasn't sure whether or not he was having his leg pulled, even while realizing that was hardly Cinder's style.
"Don't be deceived by her appearance. She's evaded capture for this long after all, does it not make sense that this is no amateur that we're dealing with?"
"Fair enough; I'll check back in once I've got more details to give you." He said holding back a sigh of disappointment at being kept on a leash, even if he understood his boss's reasoning. Besides, if this girl really was as dangerous as she's been made out to be, that only made him want to test her out for himself even more.
"I'll be waiting." Cinder replied before ending the conversation on her end and immediately swiping through her list of contacts to make a call of her own. It was time to let Emerald know that her faith had not been misplaced.
A/N: As always, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! If you did, please follow and favorite this fic if you aren't already! It really helps bring more eyes to it. Reviews do too! So if you have comments, feedback, or just want to speculate on what might happen next, feel free to do so!