A.N: IMPORTANT! I've edited some stuff from the previous chapters. Velvet now died five years ago, no ten. Weiss is 24 years old now, you can do the math from there. I'm sorry, but I felt it was important. If you started reading this story after I changed it: please let me know if there are any inconsistencies because of this. I'm pretty sure I got everything, but just in case.
Ruby grinned.
Blake glared.
Weiss snored.
Ruby giggled.
Blake glared.
Weiss whispered her name.
Ruby vanished in a cloud of petals, and Blake heard her echoing laughter coming from the hallway. At least she had the decency to leave before laughing and waking Weiss up. That would have been embarrassing. Well, even more embarrassing. Blake looked at Weiss. There was just no way around it. They were cuddling on the floor. And Weiss was groping her. Oh well. Blake went back to sleep.
Weiss woke up. The previous night came back to her and she blushed furiously as she realized where she was waking up. She opened her eyes and looked at Blake, who was failing to pretend to be asleep.
"Blake." No answer. "Blake, I know you're awake. You can't expect me to believe that, after all this time, this is the day I finally wake up before you." Still nothing. Fine, be like that. "Also you're still stroking my hair." And just like that, Blake was miraculously awake, her golden eyes opened wide.
"Hi."
"Hi." Weiss started to get up, and Blake quickly followed.
"Sorry about that. I just didn't want to wake you. Figured it would be less awkward that way." Blake said as she walked over to her room to get changed.
"It's ok, I get it. Sorry about…this. It was childish of me, but, well…"
"I understand Weiss. I've had bad nights too." Blake's voice came from the other room.
"So you said." Weiss suddenly remembered that bit from the night before. "We can talk about it if you want, you know? And maybe next time you have one of your sleepless nights you could wake me up? I could keep you company."
"That…is a kind offer. But no thank you. I've seen what lack of sleep does to you." Weiss gasped.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"I'm just saying, you're not exactly cheerful in the mornings."
"What?!" Blake's head appeared at the door.
"Did you…not know that? I assumed you knew that."
"Listen now, I know I'm not the most cheerful person around, but to insinuate I'm some, some…child that gets cranky in the mornings! That's preposterous!"
"Ok then. I'm sorry I suggested it. Say, we have a busy schedule today, why don't we skip breakfast? No need to waste time with coffee."
"I will murder you. Brutally. And I will laugh."
"That's what I thought."
Ruby left just as suddenly as she had arrived. She asked them to contact her if they needed anything, but warned that she would be 'off the grid' for some time, as her first job after her vacation was taking her deep into Grimm territory. Weiss felt conflicted about the huntress' departure. On one side, it had been good seeing Ruby again after so long, the girl was one of the few friends she had, and Weiss did feel safer having her around. On the other hand, the girl had broken a vase, a chair and three glasses since she first showed up. How could someone be so precise and deadly when in combat and so clumsy and careless out of it?
Weiss felt really quite guilty about it, but she actually wasn't too upset about her old friend leaving: it meant no more long planning sessions and debriefings with Blake. Being kept out of the loop had been annoying. She was sure Blake still kept details of her work from her, but at least not to her face anymore. It didn't hurt that this meant she got more time with the faunus, even if they just spent it working.
Weiss was the most important person in the whole world. For Blake, this had been a fact ever since she met her. The future of the entire faunus race rested on the actions of this woman, this incredible woman who, against all odds, had risen from the most corrupt and decadent of environments as a symbol of hope. Now, two months later, there was solid proof of this. Because all the hard work was paying off. It wasn't just the Schnee Dust Company. Weiss had been meeting with representatives from every single company that had business with the SDC, and she had assured them that if they did not implement similar measures, then she would have no choice but to cease all business with them. She had even made similar, if more polite, warning to the Kingdom of Vale.
It was working. Things were changing. The world was changing. And it was all thanks to Weiss. But Blake was not naïve. She knew what she felt for the girl went well beyond admiration and gratitude. She was amazed at her strength, bravery and intellect, and was more than aware of her beauty and grace. She wanted to protect Weiss, and not just because of her importance to the world. But for that, it had been important to keep some distance. She kept telling herself the more personal things got, the harder it would be to protect her.
Blake was watching Weiss when a thought occurred to her. It wasn't a particularly original or eloquent thought. It was not a sudden epiphany or a world shattering realization .'I am so fucked' It barely even got a 'huh' out of her. But it was an audible 'huh'.
Weiss had been sitting there thinking for over an hour when Blake's 'huh' snapped her out of it. She looked up and found the faunus looking at her.
"Is something wrong Blake?"
"No, everything's fine. I was just…thinking. I'm sorry I bothered you."
"It's ok. Actually, I was wondering if I could have your opinion on something."
"I'm listening." She talked. Blake waited patiently for her to finish. And then she told her she was insane. Completely insane. "So, you don't think it will work?"
"Oh, it might work. If there was a chance of you surviving. Do you know how many public appearances you'd have to make?"
"I can't just stay locked up in here forever anyway! Besides, that's why I hired you!"
"I'm good, but I'm not a fucking miracle worker Weiss." Blake sighed "besides, the White Fang is finally starting to come out of their shell. They know your plan is working and that they'll have to make a move before they lose even more support from the fuanus community. You can't just add this to our problems."
"So we take care of the White Fang before we announce it!"
"Easier said than done."
"We'll figure something out."
"And what about the SDC?"
"About that…I've got some calls to make."
"So, are you gonna tell us what this is about Weissy?"
"Patience Coco. Do you know how I managed to make all the progress I made in the last few weeks?" Coco sighed. Weiss figured she had that one coming. She was being a bit overly dramatic about the whole thing.
"I have a feeling you are about to enlighten us."
"My ancestors. They were a bunch of greedy bastards. In fact, they were so greedy, they made sure they had as much control over the company as possible. As far as the SDC goes, my word is the word of God. In other companies, I would have to put up with all sorts of barriers and be wary of various loopholes to kick me out if I went out of line. But my ancestors took care of all of that early on. I am pretty much untouchable."
"And we care about this because…?"
"Because, that means I can do whatever the hell I want. And if something were to prevent me from running the company, I could just put whoever I wanted in charge in my place." And there it was. The look on Coco's face as she lowered her glasses was priceless. Weiss wished she could take a picture.
"If you're implying what I think you're implying…"
"I am. I want you to run the company. The two of you." There was a loud noise as Jaune's cup of tea hit the ground.
"Blake."
"Yes Mr. Arc?"
"Has Weiss suffered any major head injuries recently?"
"Not that I'm aware of Mr. Arc."
"Has she been lobotomized then?"
"I'm right here Jaune."
"Sorry, sorry. It's just, well…have you gone completely insane? I make clothes! My thing are clothes! Clothes are what I do! In what possible universe could that make me qualified to run your fricking company?"
"Coco here is a lawyer specializing in faunus rights. That and she has probably studied every single move I've made in the past two months in hopes of catching me doing something wrong. She's passionate, but there's such a thing as too much passion. You Jaune, are a kind, decent, levelheaded and sensible person. In fact, I'd say you are so good at being a good person it's borderline creepy."
"This…is the first time I've heard you say anything nice about me in…ever."
"I don't do compliments Jaune. You know that. But I need you two on board with this, so I'm showing you all my cards."
"You are aware that neither of us actually know anything about how to run one of the largest companies in the world?"
"You won't have to. Everyone there is obsessed with making as much money as possible. Let them. You'll just have to make sure they don't destroy everything I've built while doing it." Jaune laughed at that.
"No pressure." He said.
"And what about the targets we'll be putting on our backs?" Coco sounded like she thought the whole thing was insane, but Weiss knew her better than that. She was still here asking questions after all. If she really thought this was ridiculous, she would have walked out the door immediately.
"You'll have security, of course. I'm afraid there's only one of Blake, but I'm sure we'll find something almost as good. And I seriously doubt you'll be in any real danger. Anyone with reasons to target you would assume you're just and easily replaceable puppet."
"And won't we be?" Weiss was surprised Jaune was the one to ask the obvious question.
"If I needed puppets, I'm sure I could find one with better manners than Coco. No, you won't be. I will be too busy to pull any strings. That's another reason why I'm talking to the two of you. I need people I can trust. I've known you for a long time. You are my oldest friends, and yes, I am aware I am stretching the definition of the word there. A lot. The two of you were there when this whole thing started, and I'd like you to be there now. However, there is a catch."
"What do you mean, 'there is a catch'? Catches come with offers, this is a favor you're asking of us."
"I am offering you something Coco. An opportunity. A chance to stop talking and actually getting things done. A chance to prove what you can do with the power I have. A chance to change the world. The catch is, for me to give you my job, you need to help me get a new one."
"And how would we do that, exactly?"
"You've always been heavily involved in the political process Coco. Tell me, how would you like to be my campaign manager?"
Jaune and Coco were sitting on the back of a limousine.
"So. What do you think?"
"I think she's insane. I think she's too young, too bitchy and too….Schnee to get elected into the council."
"You're actually considering it, aren't you?"
"Which I guess makes me even more insane." Coco paused to look out the window. She saw Jaune in the reflection, looking at her. That brought back memories. Or rather, a memory. A memory from the good old days, when everything was simpler. Jaune was just getting started with his business and Coco was discovering the perks of it. She would spend hours there, often dragging Velvet, Weiss or even Yatsu with her, just to try on all those fancy clothes. Then one time she had stayed longer than usual and Jaune thought he was alone. There she was, about to get into a new dress, when she looked at the mirror and…"Hey, remember that time you walked in on me getting changed?" Jaune blushed.
"No."
"Yeah you do."
"Yeah, I do. You told everyone. And I mean everyone."
"What happened to us? We were so, so…"
"Dumb?"
"Yeah. But we had fun. When did we stop having fun?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about. My life is like an endless roller coaster."
"You get motion sickness on escalators Jaune."
"I stand by my previous statement."
"I'm serious. I mean, I know everything went to hell when…when Cinder happened. But that was a long time ago. We shouldn't let that bitch take over our lives."
"But she did Coco. She took everything from me." Jaune didn't sound like himself when he said that. Coco turned to look at him and realized he was angry. Jaune never got angry. "She took everything, and left nothing but ashes."
"Jaune…I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have brought this up."
"No. No, it's ok, I understand what you're trying to say. And it's not like you didn't lose anyone back then too. It's just…Sometimes, when I'm working I kinda lose myself in it you know, forget about reality for a while. And then someone walks in, and I look up expecting to see her there, you know? And it's like…like…" She could hear Jaune's voice starting to break. This was all her fault. She felt tears welling up in her eyes.
"Like no time has passed. Like she was only there yesterday." She pulled him into a hug. "I know, Jaune, I know. I miss her too. And Velvet. And Fox." She felt Jaune's hand running through her hair.
"I'm sorry Coco. I didn't mean to upset you."
"I upset you first, you idiot."
"Yeah, well. I'm still sorry."
"I'm sorry too, Jaune. I'm sorry too." The stayed like that for about a minute, neither of them saying anything. Finally, when Jaune broke the silence, it was with a calm voice. The anger and sadness from before were gone, but there was no trace of his usual awkwardness either.
"I'm going to help Weiss, Coco. I know it's not exactly my area of expertise, but I'm going to help in any way I can. For all of them. I don't think I could live with myself if I didn't. And I would love to have you there with me. I've missed you. Who knows, maybe we'll actually have fun like you wanted." Coco pulled back and looked at him, thankful that the glasses were hiding her tears. She managed to smile.
"Together then? You and me against the world?"
"Sure."
"Well, why the hell not. I mean, what could possibly go wrong?"
"Is everything ok Weiss?"
"No. I wasn't lying back there Blake. Those two…they really are my oldest friends, as weird as that may sound. And what I'm asking from them…it's too much." When she felt Blake's hand on her shoulder, she held it with her own hand, making sure it stayed there.
"You carry a bigger burden every day. They can handle it."
"Maybe. Maybe not. It's not the point. I'm not sure I should be doing this to them."
"You know they'll only say yes if they are certain. You told them nothing but the truth. There is nothing to feel guilty about." Weiss let out a small sigh, which Blake understood perfectly: 'moving on…' "We need to talk about the White Fang."
"Not now."
"When? You know this can't wait."
"I said not now Blake. Later. I need some time to clear my head."
"Chess?"
"Actually, I was hoping we could spar."
"Of course."
"And maybe you could let me win this time?"
"Like you'd ever forgive me that."
"You know me too well, Blake."
Weiss couldn't sleep. The White Fang, Jaune and Coco, the elections…it had been too much for one day, she had gone into overdrive and now her mind wouldn't stop, no matter how much her body begged her to. Suddenly, she heard a faint noise from the other side of the room.
"Blake?"
"Weiss. Sorry, did I wake you?"
"No, I was awake. What are you doing?"
"…push-ups"
"What?"
"It helps. When I can't sleep."
"Ah." Weiss remembered the conversation they had had on the bedroom floor a few weeks ago "One of those nights?"
"I guess."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
"You have never asked about my past."
"What?"
"You know I was White Fang. But you've never asked."
"I… don't know if I want to know Blake." She really, really didn't. She had thought about it, sure, but she was terrified of what she would find out if she ever dared ask.
"I wasn't there. When Cinder took over, I wasn't with them."
"Oh thank god." Weiss couldn't stop herself from saying those words. She was sure Blake was going to say the exact opposite thing. She had had this conversation in her head many times, and it had never, not once, gone this way."
"I was there before her. I was a child when I got in, when it was still peaceful. When things got violent, I started having doubts. Then Cinder's people showed up, and I knew I had to leave. I wasn't the only one."
"What did you do?"
"I hid. I was scared, and alone. I had just left everyone I knew behind. I didn't know what to do. So I hid and I waited to see what happened."
"And afterwards?"
"After…everything, I started hearing rumors about the White Fang getting better."
"They weren't just rumors. I remember. With most of the leadership gone, they actually stopped being so…"
"Misguided?"
"I was going to say insane. But yes."
"So I came back. In all the chaos, no one really knew that I had deserted. No one that was still around anyway. And like you said, things were actually better. We were still on the darker side of the grey area but still, after the last few months…I could live with it. For a while. But every year things got a bit worse, just like the last time, except this time we didn't have Cinder to act as a catalyst."
"You had me instead."
"…I wasn't going to say it."
"But it's true. The White Fang hadn't tried anything as…messy as an assassination in the last five years. I got them riled up. And now they're back at it again."
"It's not your fault."
"Isn't it?"
"No. It's not." There was silence. Complete silence. Which made Weiss realize something.
"Blake…did you keep doing push-ups during the whole conversation?"
"Don't judge me."
"Never." The new silence told her Blake got the message.
"Thank you Weiss."
"Thank you Blake. For telling me." She reached for the lamp by her bed and turned it on. After her eyes got used to the light she saw Blake, still doing push-ups, one hand covering her sensitive eyes.
"What are you doing?"
"What I promised. Keeping you company."
"I seem to remember telling you it wasn't necessary."
"Well, guess what? I don't care." Blake looked at her confused.
"So what, you're just going to sit in your bed and watch me work out?" All Weiss could do was nod: most of her brain power was being used to keep the huge, dumb smile out of her face. It certainly wasn't the worst way to spend her night.
A.N: This chapter was hell to write. Mostly because part of it is damage control (I failed to introduce Coco being a lawyer in her first appearance and that came back to bite me in the ass, for example, so I had to improvise some exposition that kind of ruined the flow of the dialogue) and a lot of it was set up for future chapters. Set up can be boring. And as if that wasn't enough, I had to choose this chapter to have the first scene without either of the main characters. How did you feel about that one? Boring? Want more? Please let me know.
EDIT: WOW. Never, ever upload late at night. This thing was littered with all kinds of errors. I even slipped into the first person at one point, what the hell.