A nice quiet day.

(King: No, really.)

They were few and far between, but they did exist. Today being one such day. With the holiday season in full swing in Vale, the students and teachers of Beacon all got a few days off to enjoy themselves and the company of friends and family. Port left the campus to spend time at home. Bart decided to do the same and stay with his father for his vacation. Alexander and Celia Peach took a trip to spend time together. Ozpin remained on campus, as per his responsibility to ensure the school remains operational at all times. Glynda stayed by his side the whole time to help him with his work.

What of Justinian, you ask? Well, he was… visiting family.

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Neo was sitting eating ice cream, watching the two Torchwick brothers sitting opposite each other occasionally sipping from their own mugs. This continued for about ten minutes without either brother saying a word. Neo just kept eating her ice cream with a little irritation. Just say something already!

After a while, Roman cleared his throat. "So… what brings you to my little warehouse?"

Constantine took another sip from his mug before answering. "I'm not allowed to visit my little brother and his girlfriend?"

"That psycho's not my girlfriend and you know it."

Neo was already trying to stab Constantine. To no avail, as usual. So, she disgruntledly retook her seat and shot a glance of your next toward Roman.

"I know. Doesn't mean I can't taunt you."

"Isn't the older brother supposed to do the taunting about the younger brother's female friends?"

"Normally… but we are far from normal, Roman."

"I'll drink to that." He raise his mug toward his brother.

"Then, may we never be normal, standard, or dull." The two toasted and drank from their mugs in unison.

Neo watched the two. They didn't actually get along, but they still seemed civil. They also looked fairly similar. Although, Neo would admit that Constantine had a very different aura about him. He seemed genuinely handsome, where Roman came across as smug and over-confident. Weird…

Her attention was caught when Constantine stuck a knife a few inches into the table. She reached for her weapon, only for Roman to stick a similar knife into the table on his side. Now she had to know what was going on. She started by examining the knives. They were both single-edge, straight blade knives. Roman's had a gold handle with an orange gemstone on the pommel, giving it an air of regality. Constantine's was a more savage. It was a toothed blade with a black-metal hilt and pommel wrapped in a red cloth. The blade even seemed stained with blood. Neo looked between the brothers. She wasn't sure what was going to happen, but she had a front row seat.

Constantine took the knife from the table and sheathed it, sliding it toward Roman. His brother did the same.

A gift exchange?

Constantine noticed Neo's confusion. "I'll explain. These knives were owned by our parents. Ever since the funeral, every year we exchange them between each other. I know, it's stupid… but sometimes, it just feels like mom and dad are still here."

"I just go along with it so Constantine feels better."

"Memory serves, this was your idea. And last year, you almost broke when I said I might be late."

Roman was flustered. "Shut up!"

Neo couldn't help but laugh. Seriously, though, this was just weird. Whenever Constantine was around, Roman seemed to become an entirely different person. He wasn't smug. He didn't try to crack jokes. What kind of power did Constantine have? I must know!

An idea popped into Neo's mind. A fiendish idea… It was evil. It was diabolical. It was lemon scented! Okay… it wasn't actually lemon scented. But if she played her cards right… No, Neo! Not the time! Neo smiled and held her scroll out toward Constantine. [Why don't you tell me more about it over dinner some time?]

It was Roman's turn to laugh. "Looks like the psycho wants to date little bro!" He continued to laugh for a solid three minutes before anyone else spoke.

Constantine never broke in his demeanor. "Nice try, Neo. You just want dirt on Roman."

The older Torchwick stopped almost immediately. "Wait, what?"

Neo puffed out one cheek. Was it that obvious?

Constantine smiled. "Information isn't cheap, you know. So, you can pick up the tab."

What? She grabbed her scroll and typed out something quickly. [Two things: 1) doesn't the guy usually pay?]

"Most girls can't kill a man with the flick of a wrist."

[Fair enough… and 2) Does this mean we're actually going out?]

Constantine had a devilish grin across his face. "I thought you were just looking for information…"

[I meant to dinner!]

Constantine laughed. "I know what you meant. Sounds like a plan. Just let me know when. After all, if you're paying, you get to pick the place. That said…" He looked at his scroll. "It seems I need to leave." He stood up and started to walk away. As he did, he raised one hand and waved. "See you then."

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As Constantine walked down the street, he felt that someone was following him. He made several turns and moved in unpredictable patterns to change this. It didn't quite work. The feeling was still there. Someone was watching… He moved back toward the warehouse district while always staying ahead of where someone would be able to sneak up on him. He knew, whoever it was, was somewhat skilled. After all, he couldn't tell much else.

He arrived and found an actual, abandoned warehouse. He waited inside. Nowhere to hide. He wanted to confront his stalker. He knew it wasn't Roman. His brother took time off from crime during the holidays. Neo's best chance to kill him would be the date. Team RWBY wasn't this skilled. Whoever this was, it wasn't someone he knew.

He found himself face to face with what looked like a member of the White Fang. He was carrying a large chainsaw and looked as menacing as his weapon. "So, are you ready to die, human?"

Constantine just smiled. "Do we really have to do this? It's the holidays. You know… good will towards your fellow man and all that." Constantine ducked a swipe of the chainsaw and jumped back. "Guess I don't have a choice…" Constantine reached both arms forward and, with a flick of his wrists, his flamethrower bracers became full gauntlets. "Let's dance."

The large White Fang lieutenant swung his blade downward at Constantine. "Die! Human scum!"

The young Torchwick blocked the attack with his gauntlets. "I think I'll take a rain check on that." His gauntlets erupted in fire and pushed the lieutenant back. "What's wrong? I'm just getting warmed up!" He punched the ground and a wave of flames flew outward and burned the lieutenant.

"Damn it! I won't lose to a human!"

"Too bad…" He reeled back his fist and delivered a strong, fire powered punch straight to the lieutenant's jaw, knocking him out cold. Constantine stood there, waiting to ensure his opponent was down for the count. After a few minutes he sighed. There's no way this was the guy following me… Though, that's not important. The real question is, where am I going to get a decent suit? Oh well. I'll deal with that when the time comes.

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King: A bit of holiday fun. Well... part one. In the coming weeks, I plan to release more as a special for the other teachers. Look forward to it.