Author's note: MAN, has it been a while. That's right! I'm NOT dead! Things have just been really bad lately in terms of availability and writers block. I really did want to work on this for a long time. It's just that whenever I looked at it, I was stuck. Until today, when I cranked out a good majority of this chapter. Thank you all so much for your patience with me, and I hope to be back to writing on a more regular basis soon.
Just as Yang and I shout out Blake's name, she enters the room, her face buried in her scroll. She is oblivious to the glares that Yang and I are starting through her. After a few moments of absolute silence, which is something that doesn't happen in our dorm, Blake finally looks up from her Scroll.
"Hey guys, what's up?" She asks. Instead of a response, I just point at the dresser with my journal in it. Blake's smile immediately changes to a scared expression, and she bolts down the hallway, Scroll falling behind her almost cartoonishly.
"Stop, scoundrel! I will apprehend you!" Yang shouts after her as we give chase. Well, it wasn't much of a chase at all. I used my semblance and caught up with her, tackling her to the ground as Yang caught up, rose petals falling to the ground behind me. "Or she will…" Yang says, out of breath once she catches up.
"What seems to be the problem, officer?" Blake asks as I pin her arms to the floor so she can't escape.
"Why did you read my journal?" I ask, pushing more of my weight onto her.
"I saw Yang reading it and get really pumped up for some reason! I just wanted to see why she was so hyped about whatever she was hyped about! I swear!" She says, looking away from us. Her ears are folded back down to the side of her head.
"Can we trust her, sis?" I ask Yang.
"I don't know… but there's no way that we can disprove what she's saying. I say we let her slide this time." I roll my eyes and get off of Blake.
"Fine. You get a pass this time, Blake." I lean in close and grab her collar. "But don't read my journal, and NEVER leave it out of place again." I release her collar angrily, her head falling back to the ground. I start walking away towards Professor Port and leave them behind, not looking back. "And don't tell Weiss," I say over my shoulder.
I arrive at Professor Port's classroom after a few minutes of walking. I knock on the door, and from the other side, I hear a loud resounding, "Come in!". I step inside quietly and quickly. Professor Port is currently reading a large book entitled How to Weave Elaborate Stories of Grandeur by Ed Yukate, blocking his field of vision.
"Professor Port? It's me, Ruby. I have an answer for your offer." I say, approaching his desk.
"Wonderful! And what might that be?" he asks.
"I'm going." I say somewhat nervously and quiet, not completely sure of the decision. His head rises above the edge of his book as my mind starts racing. Is this right? Do I really want to do this? Do I really want to leave my friends and teammates for an extended period of time? Wait, how long was it again? I don't think he said!
"What was that, Miss Rose? You'll have to speak up. My hearing isn't as good as it used to be, what with all the Grimm I've fought. Reminds me of the time when I fought a Nevermore and it screeched directly in my ear, making me deaf for almost a mo-"
"I said I'm going!" I somewhat shout, but this time more confidently. Professor Port sets his book down and stands. He walks around the table, putting his arm around my shoulder, and begins walking around the room.
"Oho! Splendid! Like I told you yesterday, this trip will be on the fifth of next month, so I'd recommend starting to pack. You have two weeks time until the trip." We stop at one of the many bookshelves in his classroom. He approaches it and sorts through a few pieces of paper before seeming to find the one he was looking for. He turns to me and extends his arm and the paper to me. Upon looking at the paper, I found it to be exactly what I expected it to be: a packing list.
"Thank you, professor. And… how long will this trip be?" I ask after giving the paper a skim over.
"This trip will last two weeks. Well, at least it should, hopefully. There can be no real understanding of how long a mission can last. Why, when I was a hunter in training, one of my missions was to hunt down a nest of Grimm. We were told that the mission was going to last three days, but we ended up spending about three weeks as the group ended up…" His story, like most others of his before, drowned out to my ears as he droned on; my thoughts taking the precedence of my attention.
This is it. I'm really doing this.
"Thank you for everything, professor!" I interrupt, heading towards the door with the paper in my hand.
"And then right as a beowolf was about to pounce- … Oh… okay, yes. You're very welcome, miss Rose. Have a good rest of your afternoon." I turn around and smile before thanking him and walking out of his classroom.
The walk back to the dorm room was rather uneventful, as there weren't many people outside or in the hallways, which, I'm not going to lie, was rather peaceful. That, however, changed whenever I entered the dorm room.
"Ruby! You're back! Just in time! Come here and help me with something.." Right as I enter, Weiss notices me and acknowledges my presence.
"Sure, Weiss. What do you need?" I ask, walking over to my desk and placing the packing list in the middle of the desk. Exactly in the middle.
"I need your help carrying something to the foyer that the dance is going to be in." Weiss says. After a bit of minor adjustments of the paper to make sure it's in the middle, I eventually look back at Weiss who is staring at me.
"Yeah, sure I can help."
"Thank you, Ruby. What is that paper? Anything for class that needs to be done?" She asks, motioning to a large box that's sitting on her desk. We both grab hold of the box and walk towards the large foyer in which the dance will be held.
"Well, yes and no. It's something Professor Port talked to me about, I think it was yesterday. Anyway, it's a packing list."
"Professor Port is taking you camping?" Weiss asks, an almost snort escaping from her when she does.
A slight chuckle escapes me. "No, it's not a camping trip. It's a mission that a select few students are going on. He asked me to go, and I have to pack for it."
"Well that's… nice that he asked you to be on the mission squad." She tries, but fails to hide the disdain in her voice. It's probably the fact that she wasn't asked to go as well that's gotten her a little miffed. A little time passes, and we make it to the designated dance area.
"Yeah, I'm excited, but nervous. I think it'll be a good experience for me." I say, trying to make the mood a bit more cheery.
"Sounds like it…" She says, trailing off. Eventually she speaks up again after we've gotten the large box to where she wants it. "Right here is good," she says, motioning to slightly ahead of us with her head. "So when is the mission, what is the mission, and how long is it going to be?"
"It's two weeks from today, the fifth of next month is when Professor Port said. It'll last for two weeks, too. But Professor Port said something about it maybe taking longer than that. And as for what it is, I'm… not quite sure."
"So you'll be leaving two weeks from now, and hopefully getting back four weeks from now? Wait, the dance is three weeks from this Wednesday. You're not going to be here?" She asks, a slight tone of worry in her voice.
"I guess not," I say, shrugging.
"But Yang and I have put a lot of time planning the dance. You can't not be here for it!"
"I can't back out now, Weiss. I already told Professor Port that I agreed to going." I tell her.
"Fine, then! Go off on your stupid mission and miss what we've done! After all, that's what's important!" She yells at me, stomping away in the process.
"Great, Ruby. Way to go. You pissed off the girl you're in love with." I say under my breath to myself. Was this really the best decision for me to make? She's so angry. But… our responsibility is to protecting Vale, right? So the mission should be my top priority. And after all, this will help me get over her hopefully. Something to distract me… I guess only time will tell. I think to myself, and I walk back towards the dorm, hoping not to face Weiss until she's calmed down.
