Author's Note: Now, I have a little bit of news that is going to upset people. I'm going to take a break from A Red Stained Remnant for a little while. Now, before you reach for your pitchforks and torches, let me explain why. My next semester of university starts tomorrow, and I need to take some time to work out how writing will be able to fit into my schedule. And I've been writing this pretty much non-stop for nearly three months, I'm kinda getting burned out/blocked. Not to worry, I will definitely come back and finish it. I just need some time to have break from it and to work over my ideas for the ending and how to get there. Now that I've completely bummed you out, enjoy the next chapter! Reviews are always appreciated. :)
Yang
"Okay." I said. "Well… that just happened." The four of us stood on the balcony where Ozpin had left us. We were still processing all the information that Ozpin had just thrown at us. It was hard to believe that, just like that, the entire academy was preparing for war.
Ruby and Weiss were talking quietly to each other on a bench a few meters away. I stood with Blake at the railing of the balcony. We were both leaning on the railing, looking out over the peacefully oblivious city below us.
"It's funny, isn't it?" I asked Blake idly.
"What is?"
"All those people down there," I said with a sigh. "They have no idea what's coming. They're just living they're normal lives, with no idea of what's about to happen."
"They do say ignorance is bliss." Blake said with a smile. "They also have no idea that they probably owe you their lives."
"Me? What're you talking about?"
"If you and Weiss hadn't gone down that tunnel, you'd never have found out about this. We would have had no idea this was coming at all."
"Ruby was the one who made us go down there." I said, shaking my head.
"That's true. But you two were the ones who put yourselves in danger to get the information while she sat with me on top of the wall."
"Well you couldn't help that, you couldn't come near the hole!"
"I know, I know. But the point remains, you two went into danger while we stayed behind. That means more than Ruby's curiosity." Blake said with a smile.
I returned her smile as I felt my heart swelling with joy. I gazed into her eyes, losing myself in their amber glow. I tore my eyes away and looked out at Vale again.
"Thanks Blake." I said, still smiling. I reached out and draped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. She laughed quietly as she wriggled into my side and wrapped an arm around my waist, which made me smile all the more.
"Don't mention it." She said quietly as she rested her head on my shoulder. I opened my mouth to speak, but hesitated. I took a deep breath and slowly closed it, it really wasn't the time. I love you Blake, I thought. I won't say it to you yet, but I love you all the same.
"Do you two want to be alone?" Weiss called out. We jumped apart in a flash and turned around. Blake's cheeks turned a bright red as we faced Weiss and Ruby. They were standing near the door, watching us and wearing sardonic grins. "We can go and eat alone if you want some time to yourselves." She continued, causing Blake to blush an even darker red. I felt my cheeks beginning to heat up as I grabbed Blake's arm and pulled her toward the door.
"No, thank you." I said. "We'll be just fine." I let go of Blake as we reached the others and walked inside. I led the way towards the cafeteria. As I turned the first corner I caught the sound of Ruby whispering.
"See?" she hissed to someone as I rounded the corner, just as I couldn't see who she was talking to. "I told you."
We'd been sitting in the cafeteria for five minutes before other students starting filtering in from their morning classes. None of us really seemed to have an appetite. We all picked at our food, unable to eat. So we watched the other students, and were amazed at the peace once again. The students clearly hadn't been informed of the coming attack either. It looked… normal. Like an average day at Beacon. And we were the only ones that knew it was anything but.
I gave Ruby a reassuring smile. She sitting was across from Blake and me, with Weiss. She smiled back before turning her attention back to her untouched lunch. My smile faded slowly from my face. It was tough to keep up a cheerful act when I knew what was coming. Ruby was worried, but she hadn't seen what Weiss and I had. All she had was a second hand account. I'd seen the army, if you could call it that.
"Yang!" I jerked my head up as I heard someone call my name. The table jolted as Nora thumped down next to me with a wide grin on her face. "Where have you guys been?" she asked as she elbowed me in the ribs a little too hard.
"Hey there Nora," I laughed. It was a sombre atmosphere, but it was hard to not smile when Nora was around. "Sorry, we've been kind of busy."
"I'll say! I haven't seen you guys in ages! Well, I did see you this morning while I was going for a walk with Ren. We like going for walks together. But not together, together, you know? Anyway, I saw you guys leaving campus early this morning. Where did you go? Was it exciting? Did something awesome happen?" she stopped talking for an instant to breathe in.
"No, nothing really." I said quickly, before she could start again. "We just had a job to do for Ozpin."
"Ooooh what was it?" She asked excitedly.
"Nora," Ren said as he sat down on Nora's other side. "If it were something we should know, we'd have been informed about it."
"Oh come on!" Nora complained. "I. Want. To. Know!"
"It was nothing important," Blake said placatingly. "And nothing exciting. You wouldn't have liked it, very boring stuff."
"Well I'm sure it was an important job, if Professor Ozpin himself asked you to do it." Pyrrha said. She sat down with Jaune, Jaune sitting next to Ruby. "So you shouldn't be prying, Nora. Like Ren said: if we were meant to know, we'd have been told about it."
"Uh, hey guys." Jaune said shyly.
I rolled my eyes as Ruby greeted Jaune with a small smile on her face. Trust Jaune to derail the conversation with Jaune's Awkward Greeting (Patent Pending). Nora fidgeted in her seat. I could see the curiosity eating at her.
"Nora," I said with a sigh. "We were just doing some inspections along the wall. You remember the Beowolf we fought at the festival last week? Ozpin wanted us to see if we could find out how it got inside the city."
"Cool! I've never been on the wall. How was it?"
"High." Blake said. I gave her a side-long look. Did Blake just make a joke?
"I bet!" Nora ploughed on, not noticing the sarcasm. "Those walls are huge! I wish I could go up there. Hey Ren, can we go up there? Can we, can we, can we?"
"I don't think they let people use the city's fortifications for leisurely strolls." Ren said. Nora's smile disappeared for an instant before reappearing.
"So did you guys find anything?" she asked. "Anything cool? Huh, huh, huh?"
"No," I answered. "We didn't find how it got in. We've got no… idea…" I trailed off as I put two and two together. I shared a quick glance with Weiss, and could that she agreed. The Beowolf had been sent by Myrka. He must have sent it as a test run, to see how easy it would be to penetrate the city's defences. I clenched my fists on the table, trying to contain my suddenly growing anger. So he's responsible for it. He's the one who hurt Blake. I swore to myself then that I'd get payback. He deserved to feel all the pain that Blake went through, and then some. And I'll give it to him.
"Yang, are you okay?" Pyrrha's voice cut through my thoughts, dragging me back to the present. I looked up, confused.
"Boy," Nora said. "Is it just me, or is it getting hot in here?" I ran a hand through my hair and realised it was beginning to heat up, and it was probably my fault that it was. I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. They didn't need to know yet. Ozpin would tell the rest of the students when they needed to know. Besides, they deserved to be able to eat. If we told them, they'd lose their appetites just like we did.
"Yeah," I said once I'd pushed the anger away. Having a semblance dependant on emotions had its disadvantages at times. "Yeah, I'm fine." I forced a smile on my face, trying to make it look as natural as possible. I felt Blake rub my arm reassuringly and the smile eased, becoming a real one. I lifted my hand up quickly and grabbed hers. I squeezed her hand as I lowered it, so no one could see it. I loosened my grip when I felt her squeeze mine back. Pyrrha was still eyeing me with concern, but no one had noticed me grabbing Blake's hand. I felt myself relaxing, growing calmer, as we continued to hold hands under the table.
I shifted my hand slightly, so our fingers were interlocked, and traced small circles on the back of Blake's hand with my thumb. I closed my eyes for a second and lost myself in the repetitive motion, the smoothness of her skin and our sudden, unexpected closeness. I opened my eyes and smiled at Pyrrha again.
"All good," I said calmly. Pyrrha inspected my face for a few seconds longer before nodding and smiling back.
"Okay," she said. "If you're sure." With that, Pyrrha turned her attention to her lunch. I shot a small smile at Blake. Blake smiled back with a faint blush.
I looked over at Jaune and Ruby; the two seemed deep in conversation. Weiss was pointedly ignoring them. She'd pulled a nail file from God knows where and was sprucing up her nails. Got to look your best for a war, I thought to myself with a chuckle. Wow, that was dark, even for my standards. Jaune laughed loudly while Ruby smiled. His laughter died when we realised Ruby, or anyone else for that matter, was joining in. His cheeks turned a bright red and he focussed on his lunch. I chuckled and shook my head. That guy was hopeless.
The rest of lunch passed as it usually did: we ate quietly while listening to one of Nora's stories until someone started a conversation of their own. I continued to hold Blake's hand, which made it hard to eat. For once I was grateful that the coming danger had ruined my appetite.
Nora was in the middle of her story when she was interrupted by an announcement over the PA. All students, the voice called out, are to report to the amphitheatre immediately. I repeat: all students are to report to the amphitheatre immediately. The member of Team JNPR shared concerned looks with each other.
"What's going on?" Jaune asked. Ruby pointedly looked away in attempt to avoid the question.
"I'm not sure," Pyrrha replied. "We'd best go and find out." She got to her feet while Jaune inhaled the last of his lunch. Nora and Ren followed suit, pushing in their chairs behind them. Pyrhha paused when she saw that none of us were getting up to follow them.
"Are you four coming?" she asked. We all looked at each other, wondering what to say. We'd been ordered to rest up for the rest of the day, and Ozpin wanting to talk to us himself probably meant he'd fill us in with everything we needed to know.
"Uh no," Ruby said. "Professor Ozpin asked us to do something else." Pyrrha looked at Ruby for a few seconds before turning her gaze on to the rest of us. Then, eventually, she nodded.
"Okay," she said. "Then we'll see you all later then." She turned to follow after Nora and Ren, who had already begun moving towards the door, with Jaune at her side.
I turned my gaze to the others and let go of Blake's hand. Interlocking my fingers together, I placed my hands on the table and leant forward.
"So what do we do now?" I asked.
"I guess we go back to our room and get some sleep, if we can." Ruby replied. Weiss nodded in agreement.
"Ozpin was right; we'll need to be at our best tomorrow morning. Getting some rest would be the best thing to do." she said.
We cleaned up after ourselves and waded through the throngs of students, eventually making it to our dorm. We collapsed on our beds and lay in silence. The sounds of footsteps stampeded past our door as the remaining student made their way to the amphitheatre. Once they passed, our room was filled with silence. The curtains were drawn, leaving us in darkness. And so, in time, we all managed to tumble into a restless sleep.
We all woke up at various times throughout the afternoon and night, none of us slept soundly. But we slept enough that by the time the clock read '04:00' we felt well-rested and ready for whatever was to come. We readied our weapons, performing last minute maintenance and replenishing our supplies of Dust. Blake and Ruby were idly grinding at their weapons with whetstones to sharpen up the blades before the attack. Weiss was sharpening Myrtenaster's point and oiling the axle of its cylinder. I'd cleaned out the barrels of Ember Celica and checked the mechanisms and was ready to go.
We stood in a small circle in our room, facing each other.
"Is everybody ready?" Ruby asked. We all nodded, standing at the ready. We were dressed in our combat gear, our weapons resting in their sheaths—or on my wrists in my case—and we were about to go to see Professor Ozpin.
"Okay," Ruby continued. "Well I guess we'd better go."
"What?" I asked with a grin. "No motivational speech?"
"We don't even know what we're doing yet." Weiss said with a small smile on her face too. Ruby's attempt at rolling her eyes was ruined by the blush flooding her cheeks.
"Come on, you guys. Let's just go." She said as she led the way out the door. I shared a smile with Blake as we followed her out into the hall.
We found Ozpin standing behind his desk in his office, poring over maps of the city, the academy and the surrounding grounds. He looked up as we entered and sat down in his chair.
"Excellent timing," he said as we lined up in front of his desk. "We've just finished setting up everything for our defence plan. I'm going to send you girls to the wall again. I want you to see if you can get back into Myrka's hideout and find any information you can that might give us an advantage."
"Uh… sir?" Ruby asked, raising her hand. Ozpin made a show of looking around the room intently.
"Hmm… Yes. Ruby," Ozpin pointed Ruby out like she was asking a question in a classroom. I turned my head to the side and sniggered into my hand. Ruby smiled and blushed slightly before continuing.
"Won't he be there?" she asked. "Wouldn't he be co-ordinating the attack?"
"No," Ozpin said. "We don't think so. His semblance only works over a certain radius around him. So if he wants to make a co-ordinated attack on Beacon, he'll need to be here. We think he'll move the other monsters into position under the city and open whatever doors he has to get them to the surface. He won't need to be there to keep them under control, because he only needs them to go wild and attack." It did make sense. And any intelligence we could get would be helpful to the defence.
"We're expecting the attack to begin in the next hour or so," Ozpin continued. "He hasn't attacked yet, so we're assuming he's still going to attack at dawn. We've sent the older students into the city to defend the citizens, and we've got the teachers here to defend the school. So the only job I want you four to focus on is getting us any information you can, we'll take care of the defence. Once you find something, anything at all, bring it back to me here. I'll stay here to keep track of everything."
"What about the first years?" Ruby asked.
"They're being held in reserve." Ozpin answered. "We don't want them getting involved if possible, but they're resting now in case we need them later in the day. I need you four to do this job for me because no one else knows where the hideout is, and we don't have time to explain it to someone else."
"Wait a second," Weiss interjected. "If the attack begins in an hour, as you're guessing, then to get back we'll have to make it back through the middle of an all-out war."
"That's correct." Ozpin replied. "However, if you follow the wall towards Beacon on the way back, you should be able to avoid most of it, if not bypass it entirely."
"We'll be off then!" Ruby declared as she spun to face the door. As we turned to follow her, Ozpin called out to us again.
"Even if you don't find anything, come back here. I'll have more for you to do." He said. He stood and resumed inspecting the maps strewn over his desk, and we left.
The halls of Beacon were empty as we walked down them. It was an eerie silence, like the calm before the storm. It all seemed too peaceful. The older students were in the city, guarding the citizenry; the teachers were outside, guarding the approach from Forever Fall; and the younger students were asleep, or at least resting. That left us alone in the corridors. It felt like Beacon had already lost, and no one was left. I shook my head, clearing any thoughts like that out of my head. We're going to win this, I thought, we have to win this.
We left the school as the light of dawn began creeping over the horizon. The sun wasn't coming up yet, but it was beginning to brighten in the sky ahead of its ascent. We took off running as we crossed the threshold of the main doors. Hell for leather, we ran. We had a job to do, and not enough time to do it.