Notes: Hello and welcome to the second round of our little game. In round one we got a few suspects for the murderer. It seems Weiss, Blake, and Yang are all suspects. I wonder if it will be one of them? We will have to wait to find out. And remember you can change your guess for the killer any time but only the last one counts. As for who our next sacrifice will be, well our only suspect is Jaune Ark. Poor Jaune I don't know if he stands a chance. Well lets see how he does in chapter two!

Hang em High

Parlor Room 9:00PM Day 1 POV Lie Ren

Tonight has been interesting to say the least. It's not everyday after all that you get to visit an island vacation home with all of your friends. And it's probably even more rare to witness your host die right in front of you but. It's not the type of experience most relish so after we were sure of Winter Schnee's demise. We decided that covering her body with a sheet and contacting the police would be our best course of action. Once we finally reached them, the police notified us not to move anything and that nobody should be allowed to leave until they arrived unless absolutely necessary. We thought little of it at the time but because of the remoteness of this island we soon realized that it would take them at least ten hours to arrive.

Feeling unsure of what to do next, we all decided to stay together and move our group to the parlor. I had suggested that we should return to our rooms and getting our combat gear but they decided it was a bad idea to have eight scared and heavily armed youths in one room together which I reluctantly agreed with. Once we arrived in the parlor room and shut ourselves inside, many of the others began to break down. Even the almost annoyingly chipper Nora was curled up beside me balling her eyes out. While watching her I get the feeling that she is blaming herself for what happened to Winter. I guess it's because she was the one who tripped the lights but. There is no way she could have known something like that was going to happen, so it's nonsense. Besides the true culprit is still here and she should be more vigilant at times like this.

Practicing what I preach I continued my observation of my companions. It didn't take long for me to notice that Weiss was looking even more pale than usual and that she even uncharacteristically decided to break into her sister's whine cabinet. Mind you I have never had an extensively long conversation with the girl but. From what I have heard from Yang, Weiss was far from the drinking type. The strangest thing though is the fact she was making no attempt to break free of the death grip her weeping reaper of a leader Ruby had her in. Lastly I noticed that Weiss's eyes were surprisingly dry at least in comparison to Nora and Ruby's but they looked no less haggard than the others, maybe even more so.

I then watched as Weiss began to glance around the room a address us. "I just don't understand. Who would do this?" Weiss's voice honestly sounded hurt and confused but at the same time you could feel the contempt oozing into her words more and more with each one. "Why would anyone do this to my sister?" By now Weiss's questions sounded hateful and with no one wanting to receive the blunt end of her wrath the questions of course went unanswered but. This did nothing to satisfy her as she turned towards me. "Ren, how about you you're a smart guy right? Do you know who did this, you do don't you?"

For a moment I was stunned by the question. I wasn't sure what she was implying but I felt the urge to respond logically. "If you are asking me who would be the most likely suspect if one of us did indeed do it then wouldn't that be you Weiss?"

"What, do you even know what you're saying!?" Weiss hissed as she finally pulled herself out of Ruby's grasp and made her way towards me. Within moments she is glaring down at me and screaming. "Well, don't you have anything else to say?! Why don't you go ahead and tell us why I would do such a horrible thing as poison my own sister!?"

The out burst has stirred the room and I get the feeling Nora is reading herself to jump in if the heiress decides to get physical. "Well not to be rude but who else has more to gain from Winter's death than you Miss Schnee? Since your father has stepped down and your sister is now gone. That makes you the sole heir to the Schnee Dust Company does it not?"

At this point most of the eyes in the room were focus on Weiss but she seemed to pay them little heed as she continued to rant. "I didn't kill her! I wouldn't! If I wanted to be a part of the company I could have! I chose to become a huntress because I didn't want that life!" Her focus then shifted to her butler Mister Maxwell who was staring at a small framed picture of Winter on the fire place. "Mister Maxwell you poured our tea didn't you?" She asked in a serious tone.

Maxwell turned towards the group and then focused on Weiss. I could see his expression was about what you would expect, the expression of both pain and loss. "Yes Miss Schnee, since the other servants have been given some time off I prepared everything for tonight's meal. Miss Weiss I do hope that you do not think I'm the culprit, you know I would never hurt Winter. She means… meant the world to me. Why would I do such a thing?"

Weiss's expression was hard as stone and as sharp as a razor. It was clear she wasn't ready to believe Maxwell on his word alone. "If you're asking what your motive would be then I know full well. You are currently credited in Winter's will. Winter had told me that she credited you and your next of kin if you passed before her, 1% of her whole fortune."

In response to Weiss's words all of the eyes in the room shifted their focus towards Maxwell and waited for his response. "Winter did that? Why have I never heard of this?" Maxwell's expression was unreadable. It was almost like mixture of grief and joy.

"Wait Weiss your sister had a will? But she was so young." Ruby asked as she wiped tears out of her eyes.

Weiss glanced at her partner and released a sigh before addressing her. "That's right Ruby, and I have one too. When you're a Schnee you have no shortage of enemies and you have to be prepared for the worst. With that said it seems that Winter's enemies were far closer than any of us expected." Weiss replied while staring back at Maxwell.

Maxwell's tiered eyes were almost pleading with Weiss's now. "Miss Weiss I swear I had no idea I was in her will! Even if I did why would I kill her now!?"

Weiss still didn't seem convinced at least if the audible scuff was any indication. "Please Maxwell, I know you've helped her sort and file her documents for years now. You honestly think I would believe you haven't even cot a glimpse of her will. And as for why you would do it now, well as of yesterday my sister became the CEO of our company. If she had died last week you would have gotten a few million credits but now, now you're looking at gaining billions. That would be quite the temptation wouldn't it? Even for the most loyal of servants it could be too much to pass up!"

"Weiss I…" Maxwell's pleading tone still could keep up with his eyes as tears began to slide down his cheeks.

"So now that we have our motive we also know you poured our tea didn't you? The very same that killed my sister!" Weiss shouted while giving Maxwell the most hateful glare that I have ever seen the girl manage. The rest of the room began to stare back and forth without saying a word. It seemed they were still unsure what to think.

"I… I.." Maxwell's lips quivered out as he attempted to speak.

Before Maxwell could respond I decided to spare him the trouble and cut in. "Well it is true that Mister Maxwell did pour our tea but." I began before standing up and moving to the center of the room. "He poured the tea for all of us and from the same kettle, so if we agree that he is indeed the killer and the kettle had been poisoned we should all have been feeling the effects by now. So why is it that we all seem to very much alive?" I asked the group. They remained silent with many off them staring off at nothing. Possibly they were thinking of an answer so I decided to spare them the effort. "If you recall, it was not until after the lights went out that Winter had gotten poised but. Mister Maxwell was seated at the opposing side of the room when the lights went out. Given the fact that he was the furthest from her during the moment of the poisoning it is unlikely that he was the one who poised Miss Winter." I argued.

Weiss scoffed again in response. "Well I guess you are smart after all but. If we are just talking about who could have done it based off seating arrangements. Doesn't that make you and Yang the primary suspects? You were both sat closest to my sister and if memory serves you are a practiced herbalist. A useful skill to have when it comes to creating poisons."

Yang and I shared a glance before I continued. "True Yang and I were well positioned to perform the act but let's not forget your partner Ruby's semblance is speed. She could have just as easily performed the act in the blink of an eye. So she is just as likely a suspect."

Weiss looks down at the still balling Ruby who had just moments ago had her head buried in her shirt. Ruby glances up to meet Weiss's tried hateful eyes and is struck by fear. Weiss pulls her gaze away and looks back at myself. "I guess you have a point but what motive could Ruby have."

"I am glad you asked. You may not have noticed but Ruby was quite upset about Winter's job offer. The idea of you leaving Beacon doesn't seem to sit well with her. Maybe she thought if your sister was gone, you would never leave have any reason to leave." I reasoned.

"I take back what I said about you being smart. What kind of insane reasoning is that! Ruby is clingy but not crazy!" Weiss snaps at me.

"Some times it's a thinner line then you may think Weiss." I reply. "With that said I don't think it was her ether. I just felt we should put all of our cards on the table."

"Oh then I guess none of your teammates are suspects then since you didn't bother to finger any of them?" Weiss counters while sharing a glance with each one.

I look over at my teammates who are scattered around the parlor. Jaune is currently comforting Pyrrha and Nora is still on the same sofa I was sitting on moments ago. They are all focused on me now. "True we can't rule out my own teammate's ether. I guess it is possible that Winter and Jaune's flirting earlier could have upset Pyrrha enough to want to get rid of Winter but I doubt it. Jaune himself is unlikely but if you are the one responsible Miss Schnee I could see him acting as your accomplice. And of course Nora was the one who hit the lights and was well positioned so she would have had the ability but. A motive escapes me, if you can come up with one I would like to hear it."

A flicker of rage appeared on Weiss's face. It was clear she didn't like all of my accusations. And I have to emit maybe I have gone too far there but. We really can't rule anyone out at this point. And I can't stop now since I had to save the most likely suspect for last. "Now then there is one other person who is even more likely to be your sister's killer. She would have both the position and motivation to enact this assassination."

"Oh and who could that be? And don't tell me it's Yang." Weiss said as she crossed her arms.

I simply pointed my finger in the direction of the black clad member of team RWBY who was seated next to Yang. "Blake Belladonna if my deduction is correct then the killer can be none other than you!"

Blake's eyes widen in what appears to be shock but before she can react Yang Xiao Long jumps to her feet and grabs me by the collar of my shirt and draws a fist back like she is going to hit me. "What the hell do you think you're saying you son of a bitch!?"

"I am only saying what we are all thinking. Don't act like we don't know who Blake is! The fact that she is a member of the whi…" Yang cuts me off by delivering a savage punch to the side of my face knocking me to the ground. I am shaken for a moment. I didn't think she would really deck me like that. I glance back towards my attacker to see that her eyes are beat red and her hair is ablaze. She is furious with me and not that I don't understand but it changes nothing.

"Go on keep talking see what happens Ren!" Yang taunts.

"Yang, stop this!" Blake and Weiss shout while Nora rushes to my side.

I push myself back onto my feet and wipe the blood from the fresh cut on my lip before I continued. "Blake is a member of the White Fang and we all know it!"

The mention of the White Fang instantly got Maxwell's attention as he turned towards Weiss. "The White Fang, Miss Weiss is this true!? You knowingly allowed a terrorist into this house!?" Maxwell ranted while glancing at the black clad girl in question.

"She was a member! She is no longer with them and does not agree with their methods!" Weiss snaps back before turning towards me with a hateful glare. "Of course you know this already, so why are you bringing this up Ren?!"

"Because doesn't something seem strange here!?" I ask causing everyone to look at one another in confusion. Clearly they weren't getting it so I had to clarify. "Very well allow me to explain. Why hasn't Blake mentioned anything about who the killer is?"

"What are you on about now Ren? How would Blake know who the killer is?" Yang asked.

"Blake is a cat faunus! Her kind have perfect night vision yet she some how didn't see anything when the lights went out? Despite the fact that she was seated only one person away from Winter at the time?" I responded. Everyone seemed to freeze for a moment as they let the new information sink in.

Seemingly unsure what to think Weiss turned towards her black clad teammate. "Blake is there…"

Before Weiss could even begin to question her teammate, Blake had already jumped to her feet and started to shout in a defensive tone. "I didn't do it! I would never, you guys know that! My head was under the table so I couldn't see a thing from down there."

"Blake calm down, nobody but Ren is accusing you here ok." Yang said in a reassuring voice.

"So she says. How can we trust her?" I stated causing Blake and Yang to shoot me death glares. Yang would have punched me again if Nora had not have stepped in between us.

"Out of the way Nora, this guy needs to learn something about accusing others like that!" Yang said as she cracked her knuckles.

"No! Anyone who hurts Ren has to answer to me!" Nora shouts causing Ruby, Jaune, and Pyrrha to finally step in and pull the two apart.

"Blake all I want is for you to be up front with me, is there anything you're not telling us? Is there anything at all Blake?" Weiss inquired with seemed to be real concern in her voice.

"No there's nothing!" Blake responds.

"Are you sure!?" Weiss shoots back

"Yes I'm sure! You really don't believe me do you!?" Blake hisses.

"Blake you're my teammate and my friend I want to believe you but…"

"But you don't! I thought you changed but you haven't! Faunus are still just liars and killers to you aren't they!?" Blake screamed.

"Blake that's not true I…"

"Enough I don't want to hear it! I know when I'm not welcome!" Blake roared as she pushed her way past Weiss and through the parlor door.

I watched as Yang rushed out of the parlor after Blake and shouted her intentions to her teammates who were now posted at the door. I nod to my leader Jaune and the rest of my team and we make our way over to the door as well. "Weiss what should we do now?" Jaune asks.

Weiss gives him a tiered scowl before responding. "We have to go after our teammates, we can't be wondering around on our own with a killer among us. We will take Maxwell with us, the rest of you can stay here."

"Sounds reasonable except I don't think we should stay here." I say as I turn towards Jaune. "I think we should head to our rooms and gather our combat equipment."

"I thought we agreed we wouldn't do that?" Weiss asked.

"The situation has changed, if Blake is the killer she could be heading there now and if we just wait around she could arm herself and hide the rest of our equipment. That is not a risk I am willing to take."

Weiss lets out a sigh before focusing on Jaune. "Fine, while you're at it, be sure to grab our gear as well and stay together. Do you understand me?"

"Yes I got it Weiss." Jaune replies.

"Good now get moving." Weiss says as she waves us away.

After that we split up and my team and I headed for our rooms on the other side of the first floor.

Team RWBY's Guest Room 9:40PM Day 1 POV Nora Valkyrie

I can't believe how crazy every thing has been tonight. I mean it's funny how the death of one person can affect so many people. It makes you wonder about a lot of things you take for granted such as your friends, your loved ones, and for most your family. It really is strange how things can turn out some times. We only took our weapons along with us since we through we may end up doing some sparing but here Ren and I are in team RWBY's room gathering their equipment for protection, while Jaune and Pyrrha handle collecting our own. It was really scary seeing everyone get so angry back there. I could stop thinking as I dug into team RWBY's bags. Inside a bright yellow duffle bag I find one of my objectives, Yang's Gauntlets. Seeing the yellow armament made me think about how I almost attacked its wielder moments ago. I can't help but wonder if we would be better off if I didn't bring these back to her. I don't want to help arm somebody who could hurt Ren but. I don't wish to put any more strain on a situation that is already teetering on edge though. So I guess I don't really have much of a choice. Besides even if something does happen I will be there to protect him. I won't let anyone hurt him. After packing the weapon away I look back at Ren who currently had Ruby's scythe strapped to his back and he was looking through a black sack.

After a moment of vigorously shuffling around its contents Ren shook his head and turned to face me. "It's just as I feared."

"What's wrong Ren?" I ask.

"Blake's weapon Gamble Shroud is missing, she must have already been here." He responds with a grim expression.

"Are you sure it's not here? All the other weapons are here so maybe it's just buried." I asked.

"I'm sure Nora, its not here. And if I'm right, that means there is an armed killer on the loose." He responds in a serious tone.

"So what do we do Ren?" I respond in the calmest voice I can manage.

"Simple, we stick to the plan. You finish things up here and I will go warn the others about Blake's weapon alright?" Ren tells me.

"Wait, by yourself?! Shouldn't I go with you? They told us to stick together." I ask causing Ren to chuckle slightly and give me a smile.

"Nora, I am a huntsman and they are just next door. I will be fine alright." He says while placing his hands on my shoulders in a reassuring manor. I still try to protest but he silences me by placing a kiss on my forehead. "Alright Nora see you soon." He says as he leaves me alone with my thoughts.

Ren has never acted so intimate before. Maybe it's the fear or I am just over thinking things but my heart is racing and if I don't express how I feel I think I will explode. "Boop."

Parlor Room 9:33PM Day 1 POV Yang Xiao Long

I shouted for Blake to stop and come back but she wouldn't listen. I mean I would really like to know how a girl with four ears can have such a hard time listening to others! Anyway I couldn't just let her run away again. If she runs away like this she might really get this shit pinned on her. I know she didn't do this and I know she doesn't deserve to take the fall for it. "I'm going after her!" I shout as I rush out of the parlor room to give chase. I hear the shouting of my teammates behind me telling me to stay but I ignore them. All that matters right now is bringing Blake back. And I have a good idea where to look.

I rush up the stair case and go to the first door on the left otherwise known as the library. I gently open the door and peek inside. The room is huge, it's almost as large as the library at Beacon and that's saying something. Not to mention it is well stocked. "Winter must really love a good read. Has she even read all of these books?" I ask myself as I creep my way deeper inside and reach over to a nearby bookshelf and pull out the first thing I get my hands on. "The Third Crusade huh, I don't know this work but it looks old and it's a signed first edition. I place the book back into the shelf and pull out another The Serpent in Plain Sight anther signed first edition but it looks more recent. Maybe she is more of a book collector than reader" I think to myself. I am about to place the book back on the shelf when I hear the sound of movement behind me.

I spin around into a fighting stance half expecting an ambush and catch a glimpse of my black clad partner staring at me like she has seen a ghost. I try to call out to her but before I can say anything she beats me to it. "Yang, what are you doing here?" She asks in a frightful voice.

"What does it look like? I am just doing some light reading." I say jokingly.

Blake doesn't seem to care for my attempts to lighten the mood though as she begins to glare. "Yang, I know you are here to bring me back. I am not going back. They all just want to push the blame on me!"

"That's not true Blake! They are just worried and afraid and not just of you. It's too dangerous for you to be out here on your own, and if things stay like they are now it will only make them more suspicious. I just want you to know that I trust you, and I swear as your partner that I will never turn my back on you. So please come back."

Blake looks away for a moment most likely processing what I had just told her. She then turns to face me again with tears in her eyes. She opens her mouth to say something but is stunned once again when her eyes glance at the book I am holding. "Yang what is that book?" She asks me.

"Oh this? It's just something I pulled off the shelf here by chance. It's called The Serpent in Plain Sight."

"That's it!" She shouts as she rushes over to snatch the book from my grasp

"What's it?!" I shout as I try to get my barings back.

"This is the book I have been trying to remember!"

At this point I am completely lost so I try to gain some clarity. "Why were you trying to remember this book so badly? What's it even about?" I ask her.

"It's a Murder Mystery with a very similar plot to what has happened tonight! A group of friends travel to an island home for vacation and when they get there the master of the house is mysteriously killed." Blake explains.

Despite Balke's efforts I still can't comprehend its importance so I continue my questioning. "Well that does sound like what's been going on but isn't that every murder mystery ever? To my understanding its standard fair so what makes this book so special."

Blake then holds up the book for my examination before explaining further. "In this book the killer was somebody that no one expected, even I didn't see it coming until the very end."

"And how did it end?" I ask her still not sure how any of this helps us.

She looks away with a sad expression on her face. "It was not a happy ending. The killer…"

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Before Blake could go on any further a bone rattling scream shakes us out of our conversation and into the hallway from which the sound came.

Parlor Room 9:45PM Day 1 POV Yang Xiao Long

Blake and myself quickly stepped out into the hall overlooking the first floor and we soon catch a glimpse of Nora on the bottom floor next to the guest area screaming her head off. We then see Jaune and Phyrra rush out of the guest area in response to her cries. On the other side of the room we also see the kitchen doors fly open to reveal Ruby, Weiss, and Maxwell rushing in. For a moment I wondered where Ren was until I notice what Nora had been screaming about this whole time. Hanging from the railings on the opposing side of the hall was the lifeless body of Lie Ren. Rapped around his neck was the black ribbon of Gamble Shround. Lie Ren was found dead by Nora Valkyrie at 9:44pm.

Notes: Well looks like Ark made it through alive, this time... Now a moment of silence for our black hair boy in green.