Chapter 18 – Kold shoulder
Author's Notes
Welcome back! Updates resume right now, back to the usual schedule. I don't expect any more extra long pauses like this in the future, at least for several months.
Happy rats, and don't do crime!
His body ached all over, and he felt like he was about to collapse at any minute. The doctors had cleared Adam from the hospital, claiming that the worst of his injuries were in the rear view mirror, but it was still a long way before he would be fully recovered.
That was actually why he was out today. Training would be the fastest way of returning to peak physical shape. The Emerald Forest was permanently open to students of Beacon who wished to make use of it, a perk that Adam had not yet had need to take advantage of due to the absence of any truly powerful Grimm within its boundaries. Now, however, the simplicity and ease of what it offered, which had previously been unappealing, seemed like the only thing he could manage.
It hadn't rained in days, so the forest was starting to feel a whole lot less emerald. Dry, golden grass crunched under Adam's boots as he dragged himself on, step after step. The pain wasn't too much for him, but it was the tiredness that was getting to him. For whatever reason, despite all the rest he'd been forced to go through, his body still felt like it hadn't recovered from that fateful night. The way his muscles were wailing at him for a break, one might have thought it had only been a few hours ago.
He sensed it before he heard it. A single Ursa, likely separated from its kin, came out of the trees with a snarl.
Perfect. Exactly what I came for.
Rearing up on its hind legs, the massive beast let out a ferocious roar. Adam reached for Wilt, ready to engage the raging mass of black and white, only to realize that it was nowhere to be found.
What? How could I be so sloppy?
Marching into a Grimm infested forest without even packing his weapon…these were the mistakes of a first year recruit, not a hardened veteran. Still, Adam had been looking for a challenge, so he shouldn't complain about finding one. If slaying an Ursa with nothing but his fists couldn't whip him into shape, nothing would.
"Let's dance."
Adam raised his hands. The Ursa, still standing on two legs, lumbered closer. Dodging a wild swipe, Adam drove a fist into the beast's stomach, then followed up with an uppercut. The Grimm, clearly not expecting such resistance, took a step backwards and bent over in pain.
"Oh, you little bitch," the Ursa said. "So that's how it's gonna be?"
"We gonna talk or we gonna fight?" challenged Adam. "Put 'em up, big boy."
"Oh, gloves are comin' off," it said, raising its front paws and balling them up into fists. "Let's fuckin' go, eh?"
"C'mon, get some," taunted Adam as he blocked a right cross. The Ursa jabbed at Adam's undefended left side, but Adam was too fast for it, quickly dodging and following up with a gut punch.
"Fucker! Guess it's street rules, then?" said the Ursa. "Well, two can play at this game!"
It bent over and scooped up a bunch of pine needles and twigs and shit off the ground, then hurled them at Adam's good eye. Temporarily blinded, Adam could do nothing but try (and fail) to block the incoming flurry of punches and kicks.
"Oh, son of a whore!" the bull Faunus screamed as he fell to the floor. "Going for my disability? What gives?!"
"Whoa, dude. I'm sorry, okay? Chill, man." The Ursai exhaled overdramatically. "We cool?"
Adam brushed the dirt out of his eye and saw that the Ursa had extended a paw out for a handshake. Adam grumbled and glared for a moment. He then took the outstretched hand and shook it, but only once and very quickly.
"Fine. Sure."
"Hey, don't be like that man," said the bear Grimm. "You came onto my turf."
"Whatever. Just don't let me ever catch you sniffing around these parts again."
Adam heard the Ursa mutter something about being a dick under his breath, so Adam menacingly raised a fist and nearly threw it, stopping at the last minute. The Ursa flinched.
"Yeah, that's what I thought. Walk away, douchebag."
"Okay, okay, I'm going." It fell forward and landed on all four feet, then turned away, shaking his head. "Jeez."
Adam then saw two other Ursa holding their scrolls out, filming the entire altercation.
"Remnantstar!" one of them shouted.
"Let this be a lesson to you all." Adam pointed at them both. "Tell your friends not to mess with the Faunus, you furry fucks!"
"He's on so many sedatives right now that he's probably as high as a kite," one of the doctors explained to Blake. "There's nothing wrong with him bodily, but he just kept trying to climb out of his bed. We tried strapping him down, but he broke the restraints and gave an orderly a black eye before we managed to get him down."
"That does sound like Adam."
"Hmmm," said the doctor. He was a human, and Blake could tell he was visibly uncomfortable with this conversation. Not because he was a racist, but because he was clearly unsure of what to say that wouldn't accidentally paint him as one. Adam was probably the most unruly Faunus on this side of Sanus, but a lot of more image-conscious humans refused to call him out on it simply for fear of a bad soundbite being taken out of context.
It had only been a couple of hours since the fight, but it felt like it had been weeks. After the revealing chat with Ozpin and Goodwitch, Blake had decided that she would stay with her teammates and requested a flight back to Vale, which Ozpin granted. She'd spent the night waiting outside the surgery theater in which Ilia was being held, then went to check up on Adam when the dawn broke. They weren't letting him have any visitors, but Blake felt like she still needed to come by and see how he was faring.
She'd seen neither hide nor hair of her partner since Ruby had exited the CCT and run off after her own private debrief with the headmaster.
Class was going to start soon, and as much as Blake hated to leave Adam behind, his last words weighed heavily on her mind. She was the last s̶u̶r̶v̶i̶v̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶conscious member of K, and that meant that the entire mission now rested on her shoulders. If she skipped class for one day, no one would blame her, but it would be far too easy for one day to become two, and for two days to become ten, until Blake finally received a letter that she was no longer welcome at the school due to her extended absence. No, she needed to go back and keep at it.
By now, regular flights to and from the school had resumed, so Blake didn't need to call upon another favor from the headmaster or commandeer a second airship. There was about an hour before class, but Blake had already taken her breakfast at the hospital. She couldn't do any real mission-work or searching in that short time, so she instead set her mind upon seeking out Ruby.
Wait, I can't. Ruby's ignoring me.
Oddly enough, Blake felt a minor tingle of worry on Ruby's behalf over the weirdest thing – in the commotion, they'd left behind her math worksheets. It was the most trivial concern she could have, but Blake found herself able to remember exactly what problem they'd been working on when the coded message had appeared on her scroll, as thought it had been burned into her brain.
Given how much trouble Ruby had been having without Blake's aid in understanding the material, there was a decent chance that she hadn't been able to finish it on her own last night (or hadn't even tried). Thus, Blake decided to take her spare time to copy her own assignment in a crude impersonation of Ruby's hand. She isn't talking to me, but I can just hand her the paper before class without saying a word.
It took Blake little more than half an hour, so she went to Port's classroom early in hopes of bumping into her partner. She wasn't there, but Team Yellowjacket-P was. The quartet was chattering amongst themselves in a hushed tone, their chairs pulled out and arranged in a small circle.
Yang's eyes met Blake's, but she turned away upon seeing her. Blake made her way to the team and dug the forged homework out of her knapsack. The conversation quieted down when she arrived.
"Yang, do you think you could give this to your sister? I think she might need it for Professor Green's math class."
Yang didn't lift her head up to acknowledge Blake. Instead, she awkwardly stuttered something about whatever meaningless topic they'd been discussing before Blake had arrived. It was clear that she'd heard Blake and was actively choosing not to pay her any attention, but her intentional ignorance of what was right in front of her was not nearly as practiced as Ruby's. Ruby had made it seem like she truly couldn't sense any part of Blake's presence, whereas Yang was barely succeeding at keeping her gaze fixed on Jaune without her pupils accidentally flicking to Blake and then tearing right back.
"So, if we go out to Forever Fall at three as a group, we can be back in time for–"
"Yang, I know you can hear me. Please don't tell me your involved in Ruby's little game, too."
"…in…in time for our study group with Team Spinach."
Blake sighed and shoved the paper in Jaune Arc's face. "What about you? You also giving me the cold shoulder?"
"Y-Y-Yeah, Yang. That, uh, sounds like a great idea. I've been hoping to test out some of the Blakes – of the blocks that Adam showed me, and Forever Fall is teeming with Grimm."
"Oh, for Dust's sake. Pyrrha? Sky? None of you?"
Yang nodded. "Great. Let's meet up after the math lecture at the leisure center."
"Hey, math class. That's a great segue into the fact that Ruby doesn't have any homework," said Blake. "You're only hurting her if you don't give this to her. Her grades will take a hit, and she'll fall behind in class."
Jaune flinched.
"Why don't I just leave it here?" offered Blake, hoping to compromise and afford them whatever pride they'd invested in Ruby's game.
Blake gingerly set the paper down on their desk, then took her own seat. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jaune's hand slowly reach for the homework, only to be slapped away by Yang.
Ruby entered the classroom minutes before the bell rang. Blake stood up to greet her, getting through the first syllable of her name before Ruby passed her by and took an adjacent seat next to her. No eye contact was made, and it was like Ruby was blind to the portion of the universe that Blake occupied. Unlike the Yellowjacket-Ps, she was pretty good at denying someone's existence.
"It seems that's all the time we have today. Please remember to complete your assigned readings. Don't forget – you have a two page essay on the five cardinal qualities of a true hunter and how I embody all six of them due in less than a week."
Port nodded, and the students gradually began to filter out of the classroom. Ruby hopped out of the room without a word. Blake had given up on getting a response from her; at this point, she was beginning to feel like the immature one for constantly whispering and passing notes to her brick wall of a friend.
"Professor!" Blake called, trudging through the waves of students going in the opposite direction.
"Ah, Miss Belladonna! Do you have a question about my lecture or the assignment?"
"No, sir. Actually, I have a free period next and was wondering if we could just chat. I'd love it if you could share with me with another one of your stories about–"
Professor Port, in an incredibly uncharacteristic display of self-effacement, turned away from Blake and began to wipe down his chalkboard. The young Faunus' eyes widened.
"P-Professor?"
"Do you have a question that is academically oriented?"
"No, sir. But–"
"A team leader's orders are absolute. That is the last word I shall offer."
Blake couldn't believe it. Port, old chatterbox Port, not wanting to drawl on and on about his favorite topic – himself? Maybe the moon was going to reform and start tapdancing next.
Blake shook her head and exited the now-empty classroom. Ruby must've gotten really busy last night if the entire student body was now working for her, and the faculty too.
I̶ ̶k̶i̶l̶l̶e̶d̶ ̶I̶l̶i̶a̶.̶ ̶ ̶O̶f̶ ̶c̶o̶u̶r̶s̶e̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶'̶s̶ ̶g̶o̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶t̶a̶k̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶s̶e̶r̶i̶o̶u̶s̶l̶y̶.̶
It would be fine, though. Blake was a daughter of Atlas, colder than steel and just as unbending. If she had to go a few days without exchanging gossip over tea with a bunch of children, so be it.
A̶l̶t̶h̶o̶u̶g̶h̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶ ̶h̶a̶d̶ ̶j̶u̶s̶t̶ ̶n̶o̶w̶ ̶b̶e̶e̶n̶ ̶s̶o̶ ̶d̶e̶s̶p̶e̶r̶a̶t̶e̶ ̶t̶h̶a̶t̶ ̶s̶h̶e̶'̶d̶ ̶w̶i̶l̶l̶i̶n̶g̶l̶y̶ ̶a̶s̶k̶e̶d̶ ̶P̶e̶t̶e̶r̶ ̶f̶u̶c̶k̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶P̶o̶r̶t̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶s̶t̶o̶r̶y̶t̶i̶m̶e̶.̶
You know what, this was probably a good thing. The less time Blake had to worry about entertaining the riff-raff, the more of it she could devote to getting things done. She finally had a solid lead on Ozpin, and the sooner she got started on finding out whatever was underneath the CCT, the better. Yeah, this was definitely going to work out.
The elevator leading up (and down) the CCT was accessible from both the inside and outside of the tower. There was a door facing outwards, allowing Beaconites roaming the campus to enter without letting in a draft, and a door facing inwards, for entrance to the multiple floors of the tower. The CCT may have been Atlas made, but it was said that the zany headmaster himself had insisted the elevator be installed in place of the original funicular that snaked its way around the exterior of the structure.
Again, the failure of Beacon's architects was to be Blake's fortune. The elevator, while more straightforward, was far easier to monitor. It went up and down in a single line and could be kept under observation by a single, well-placed camera. Blake was currently in the process of trying to find the perfect spot for said camera. It had to be out of the way enough that if it was found, it wouldn't reveal K's interest in the tower, but also close enough to see exactly when Ozpin was using the elevator. If possible, she wanted a line of sight to the code pad, but she accepted that it might not be possible. The other criteria were more important.
Right now, she was thinking that the best place was stuck at the base of one of the four massive support beams that went around the CCT. Only two of them were on the same side as the elevator entrance, so Blake had a choice to make.
"I can't…oh."
Shit.
Blake forced herself to breathe. Someone had seen her, but she hadn't been doing anything untoward just yet. Right now, she was just a run of the mill catgirl hanging around a well-frequented student center/communication tower who wasn't handling any visible surveillance devices. Nothing weird about that.
Turning around, Blake found that it was Weiss Schnee who'd seen her. Blake resisted the urge to roll her eyes and waited for Weiss to speak.
She didn't.
"Oh, for the Brothers' sake, not you as well."
"…"
"Why are you even listening to Ruby? I thought you hated her."
Weiss opened her mouth, then closed it. Her face grew puzzled as though she were deeply pondering the choices that had led her to this point. She opened her mouth again, but still no words came out.
Blake raised her shoulders in an uncomfortable shrug. "Cat got your tongue?"
The Schnee's expression soured, but she still didn't reply. Then, she raised her head into the air, turned about face, and stomped off.
"Well, that was weird."
"I often find that weird is the norm at my school," said a modulated voice from behind her. Blake internally groaned at yet another interruption that took her away from her task. This was the most social interaction she'd had all day.
"Headmaster."
Blake hadn't even heard him approach. Sneaky son of a…
"Though I suppose when weirdness becomes the norm, it can no longer be considered weird. Quite the paradox."
"Just to be clear, you're saying that to me? And not just idly talking to yourself while pretending to be alone?"
"Worry not, Miss Belladonna. I shan't turn the other way and plug my ears."
Damn it. The one person I don't want need attention from, and right now of all times…
Still, Blake had no official reason to not welcome his presence. "I'm glad to hear it sir. It's been getting mighty lonely."
"I should imagine. I'd like to say that I personally think young Miss Rose's punishment is taking things a step too far. Whatever your flaws or missteps, you are a person who just lost her closest friends. No one should be forced to mourn alone."
Mourn–!
Blake's ears stood up on end, and her fists involuntarily balled up.
"I'm not–grrrr!"
Blake composed herself.
"There is no reason to doubt Ilia's survival."
"Of course. Forgive me; poor choice of words. I mean to say that you need your peers' support now more than ever. If Miss Rose weren't doing this to punish herself as well, I'd be tempted to step in with an executive override, leader's orders or not."
"Punish herself?" asked Blake. "It kind of feels like she's punishing me from where I'm standing."
"Oh, you haven't heard?" Ozpin smiled mischievously. "I suppose you can't have, given that no one is speaking."
"Heard what?"
"Miss Rose has imposed the same excommunication upon herself as you. I believe I am the last person she'd spoken to, when she gave her formal testimony to me last night."
"But that can't be right. She…I saw her…"
Actually, now that Blake thought about it, Ruby hadn't interacted with anyone. Blake had been so preoccupied with the fact that Ruby was shunning her that it hadn't stood out as odd, but Ruby hadn't even greeted Yang upon entering or exiting Port's classroom.
"Why would she do that? It's not her fault."
"Au contraire, my dear student. As the leader, all responsibility falls to her."
"That's–"
"Not fair? Not true? Not right? Miss Rose had ample opportunity to make her voice heard and demand you play it safe, but she did not. Nor, as I am led to believe by your and her recollection of events, did she even attempt to do so, save for a token objection. As penance, she now deprives herself of the only friend left who could offer any comfort. You."
Blake was taken aback. She'd realized the first night that part of her own punishment was being forced to watch Ruby wallow in misery without being able to offer her any comfort, but it only struck her now that Ruby wasn't getting comfort from anyone at all, choosing instead to suffer in silence. And I didn't even notice.
"I can't believe she'd torture herself for such a minor slip up on her part."
"Two hunters of Team Rabies are in the hospital. Would I be correct in assuming that you are feeling no small quantity of guilt over their situation?" Blake nodded. "Then simply imagine that Miss Rose feels the same guilt, but she has no one to deliver to her the punishment she believes she deserves…"
Save for herself went unsaid.
"She doesn't deserve this, sir."
"As I said, I disagree with her methods. Though I suppose little Ruby probably doesn't see this extreme silent treatment as that severe. Not with how she was brought up."
Blake searched the headmaster's eyes for an explanation to his vague words. "Did her parents do this to her? Was this how she was disciplined? If so, that's emotional abuse."
"Hmmm. If only it were so simple. I'd be more than…well, I'd never be happy to recall this tale, but I'd be more than willing to explain. If you can spare a minute for a hobbling old man with nothing better to do than bore his busy students, that is."
Blake nodded and turned to fully face Ozpin. She'd previously been tilting her body to subtly indicate that she was trying to leave this conversation in hopes that Ozpin would take the hint and leave her alone to her (spy) devices. Teased with the prospect of guarded secret insights into Ozpin's history with the Rose family, though, she now was willing to give him her full attention.
Ozpin leaned against the raised ledge of a plant enclosure that housed a group of trees. "Where to begin…I suppose it all starts with Team Stark. Taiyang Xiao-Long and Summer Rose – that's Ruby's parents – were two of my most exceptional pupils. Not long after graduating Beacon, the pair wed and settled down on a small island called Patch, located just west of Vale. They were a happy couple, sharing in their love and hunting. Ruby was born two years after their marriage, compounding their happiness and giving young Yang a playmate, and things were just fine…for a time.
"I suppose that the blame for what comes next falls to me. I sent Ruby's mother on a mission from which she never returned, and it tore the Rose family apart. Without his wife, Taiyang grew despondent and ceased to interact with the world, choosing instead to hide from it in his room. Ruby was always a shy little girl, but she fell inwards when her mother passed away, and she never was able to pull herself out. Her father slept all day and her sister left for school, so Ruby sat alone at home with no one to speak to. The lack of regular social interaction…it affected her development at a critical time, and I am afraid I cannot say it was for the better. Yang was probably the only thing that kept her from becoming socially stunted, but without a father to care for them…"
Ozpin sighed deeply and looked pained. "Some of the parents of Yang's schoolmates noticed how troubled her home situation was. They began to regularly invite Yang to their houses for dinner, sleepovers, and what not. Truly a kind gesture for a child in need, but as Ruby was not yet enrolled in school, none of those concerned well-wishers even knew of her existence. Yang, the poor, innocent thing, was too young to consider asking if the invitation extended to Ruby. With her elder sister gone overnight most nights, there would be times when Ruby didn't hear another human voice for days on end. I had been asking one of my close friends, Ruby's uncle, to check up on them, but I…overestimated his resolve. He was also a member of Team Stark, you see, and when he visited the site of his dead comrade's grave, he would drown out his sorrows in a bottle and fail to confirm the girls' welfare as I asked. In the ensuing silence, what should have been Ruby's first two years of school passed by without anyone realizing.
"I finally found out something was wrong when I asked Ruby's uncle how she was faring in her education, and he told me that it wasn't starting for another three years. I still remember that moment as though it were yesterday. The guilt of my own unintentional hand in Summer's death had never sat well with me, and I felt like I needed to see her children were well cared for. Well, imagine my shame when I discovered that her uncle forgot how children have to take five years of public schooling before they could join a primary combat school. I swear, Qrow sobered up right on the spot when I frantically explained that fact to him. At that point, with the full weight of Ruby's situation crashing down on me for the first time, I took matters into my own hands and flew to Patch. When I arrived…" The old man shuddered. "She just looked into my soul with her mother's silver eyes. Not a peep. Merely…confusion at the first person other than her family that she'd ever seen.
Ozpin rubbed at his eyes and forced a smile. "Things improved after that. Yang, Taiyang, Qrow – they all showered Ruby with affection and promised to never exclude her again. I don't think any of them realized just how bad it had been for the poor girl; each had been suffering in their own way and assumed that someone else would pick up the slack, and no one did. Ruby was put into school, caught up on her education, repaired her relationship with her sister, but…well…she was never quite…" Ozpin trailed off. "Perhaps you already know what I mean."
Blake remembered her first interaction with Ruby in the initiation trial. She'd been stumbling over her own words, flailing about in bewildered panic as she desperately tried to remember her own name. The awkwardness, originally irksome, had slowly begun to seem more endearing as time went on, possibly even cute but now Blake could only think back on that memory with rank horror.
"And now she doesn't see why doing this to herself is going too far," Blake finished. "To her, it's just another day in the life of Ruby Rose, sufferer in silence."
"Precisely. I cannot do anything to correct this behavior at the moment, but I believe that Miss Rose continuing to develop meaningful relationships with people who she can trust might be just what she needs." He cleared his throat. "This is quite personal information, but as you are her partner and shall become the closest confidant she can have over the next four years and perhaps longer, I feel that the extenuating circumstances absolve me of wrongdoing for this breach of privacy." Ozpin pushed off the ledge against which he'd been leaning and nodded. "I trust you'll look out for her when she resumes speaking to you."
"You can count on me, sir," Blake promised genuinely.
"Phenomenal. Now, I do believe I've taken up far too much of your times and distracted you from your…come to think of it, I've no idea what you were up to before Miss Schnee and I barged in on you."
Blake smiled. "Oh, I was just planting some wiretaps and spy camera around your office so that I could sell proprietary Beacon secrets to Atlas."
Ozpin stared at her for a beat. Then, he lightly threw his head back and chuckled.
"Ah, of course. Well then, wiretap away. Don't let me keep you from your…" He made finger quotes "…top secret espionage. Good day, Miss Belladonna."
Omake
Ruby: I suffer from partial elective mutism.
Yang: More like elective cutism, ya little sweetie pie!
Ruby: This is serious. I've endured severe psychological trauma.
Yang: More like tyke-ological trauma, dear pipsqueak sister of mine! So adorable!
Ruby: Yang, this social deprivation has severely hindered my neurodevelopmental progress.
Yang: Ruby, you put the 'fun' in dysfunctional family environment!
