On a normal day, Blake would have been content to lay in bed for as long as possible before dragging herself and going to work.

This was not one of those days, she thought to herself in some frustration as she prepared herself for the morning ahead. Today, her reason for getting up was nothing more than a rumor (And if she was in any other business, Blake would have immediately discounted it and moved on with her life.) Supposedly, Weiss Schnee, heiress to SchneeCorp was going to be flying into Atlas International Airport from Vale before it could get busy.

Blake wasn't counting on getting anything out of the woman, especially now, but she was going to follow the lead through. At the very least, she would get nothing, come back home, and crash for a few hours until it was a reasonable time.

So because of that rumor, Blake had gotten up at five in the morning, driven across the city, and had probably woken a good number of people that morning with the sound of her bike as a result. Blake didn't particularly care, instead focusing carefully on the objective that laid ahead of her.

Blake parked by the airport and walked over to the arrivals area, not needing to go in since she could easily get anything she needed by hanging by the door. She was glad that she had her jacket to guard her from the early morning cold. Once in awhile Blake would check her phone to check that there wasn't anything happening, but overall, her wait was nothing special.

Really, her job was mind numbingly dull most of the time when it came to the field work.

There was the sound of a car pulling up, and Blake picked her head up to see that it was one of the high priced white cars that belonged the Schnee family. Years of doing her job had put Blake in a position where she was able to recognize most proprietary Schnee company items. That meant cars, about a hundred different variations on the SchneeCorp logo, and the faces of just about everyone in the family as well as everyone on the SchneeCorp board of directors.

If she wasn't a reporter, she was sure that it would have felt a lot creepier than it did.

The sight of the man behind the wheel of the silvery white car was encouraging, because Blake knew him well enough. His name was Klein Sieben, and Blake knew him well enough. He wasn't involved with SchneeCorp directly, but was instead a highly trusted family servant that acted as a confidant from time to time. Historically, the man had managed to be a fairly reliable anonymous source, usually willing to pass Blake nuggets of information and leads from under the table. Meeting Klein Sieben in person was a first.

But Blake was sure that he could recognize her after so many times where she'd reported on SchneeCorp. It wasn't as though all of her articles didn't have her photo at the bottom of them.

Klein parked the Schnee car and was soon getting out of it and fixing his clothing. Blake was sure that he was going to be waiting there for the second that the plane came in. After that, he would head in and collect his charge.

But for now, Blake could take the chance to talk to the man. She probably only had as long as there was time before the plane arrived.

Blake reached into the pocket of her jacket and removed a small notebook which was quickly flipped open. Blake armed herself with a pen and began her advance on the servant.

"Klein Sieben?" She asked, raising her voice so that he had no choice but to address her directly. "Blake Belladonna, The Fang, may I ask you a few questions?" It was the same sort of introduction that she normally had to, but Blake had to do it anyways. The fact that she'd worked with Klein in the past didn't matter when she'd never seen him face to face.

The man turned to her, and smiled softly. "Miss Belladonna," He said, his voice as gentle as it always was. Blake was sure that he had already gone ahead to begin putting up the emotional and mental walls that he needed to be able to talk to her. Blake was sure that the man was under a number of non disclosure agreements, but that didn't bother her.

That was the point of an anonymous source, and Blake never outed her sources. Instead, she'd go ahead and do her homework to make sure that there were no major loose ends that needed to be taken care of.

He smiled at her though, so gentle. "I'm expecting you're here to to prey on the family's situation?"

"I'm just doing my job, Mister Sieben." Blake replied, scribbling the date and Klein's name down on the notepad quickly. She was sure to add the location and time for posterity's sake. "And getting reliable details has been difficult. If the company is going to be seeing a change in hands, I need to have my story straight as fast as possible."

"But of course." He replied. "I'm sure that your career is riding on the current situation."

"That's correct." Blake replied. "Is there anything that you don't mind sharing with regards to Jacques Schnee's condition."

"I"m afraid not, Miss Belladonna." He replied. "It would depend on what is done to preserve my identity."

Blake smiled. In that one question alone, Klein had managed to tell her everything that she could have ever needed to know with regard to his willingness to work with here. It was, quite plainly, him asking what the terms of her request were.

That was something that Blake could give answers about easily enough.

"I'm willing to offer you full anonymity." Blake said, keeping her voice calm and her expressions relaxed. "If you'd be willing to help me, then I'll write so that your identity can't be figured out. As I always have in the past."

Klein stared her down and nodded slowly, and Blake watched silently as his expression twisted into a much softer, much kinder one."I'll be willing to share a little, in that case, MIss Belladonna."

"It's greatly appreciated." Blake snapped back as she clicked her pen and put it against paper. "Where is Jacques Schnee being treated, and what is he in for?"

Klein raised an eyebrow, and Blake was sure that he thought that she was some sort of vulture for asking such a question. It could have been much worse, Blake thought but it was just the starting basis that she needed an answer on. "That's a rather invasive question, Blake." He said, voice all too serious. "Although if you must ask, he's in the premiere hospital in Atlas."

Blake nodded and scribbled down a note that read simply "Atlas General Hospital." It was well known to be the best hospital with the most experienced doctors available. It only made sense that the man would be there, and Blake was already wondering whether or not the Schnees might go ahead and make an effort to have a wing of the hospital in Jacques Schnee's name.

Of course, that would only happen in the case that Jacques survived. If not, then Blake was sure that any bills would be paid quietly and the hospital would be left to rot.

"I understand." Blake said calmly. "Do you have any idea which wing he is in?" She paused, because this was the only way that she was going to be able to dance around the exact words which would get Klein fired. "If you don't mind me asking."

Klein hesitated for a moment before finally speaking up. When he did, his voice was deathly quiet. "He''s in the cardiology wing." He said calmly. "And before you ask, I am here because Miss Schnee will be flying in this morning."

Blake felt her heart jump in her chest, because she'd just had a lead confirmed. If she could just get Weiss Schnee to agree to an interview, Blake would come out of this golden. Even if she didn't, Klein was a reliable source and had already made the trip worth her while with what little information he'd given her.

There was a part of her that was just glad that this would be Weiss Schnee arriving instead of her older sister, if only because Blake thought she might have a better chance with Weiss. Winter had brushed her off so many times that Blake was close to giving up on the elder sister entirely.

That wasn't to say that Blake hadn't been brushed off by Weiss as well, but the chances were still better. She and Weiss were known to be the same age, and Weiss didn't have a reputation for shrewdness like her sister. If anything, Weiss was just known for being spoiled above all else.

The thing that mattered to Blake above all else was that Weiss Schnee was the heiress to SchneeCorp. If anyone was going to be the most informed on the situation with regards to Jacques Schnee and the corporation's management, it would be her. In theory.

"Thank you," Blake said calmly, feeling her phone buzz in her pocket. She was going to have to check that later, but she was already assuming that it was from Yang asking about breakfast or something. Maybe asking where she'd gone. "Would you mind me staying here in case she doesn't mind answering questions?"

Klein seemed to freeze, standing up a little bit taller and looking thoroughly confused by everything that was going on. "You wish to speak to Miss Schnee?"

"It would be helpful." Blake replied, keeping her expression and her voice cool. "At the very least, would you mind passing my contact information on to her?"

"It would be up to Miss Schnee." Klein finally said, standing up tall despite the fact that it did nothing to make him seem more imposing. "If you wish to wait here for her, I will not stop you, but I also cannot promise you anything."

Well, Blake thought to herself, that was probably going to be about as good as things could possibly get for her.

"I'll wait." She said, taking a step away from Klein before quickly following it up with another half-step back. "I'm sure it won't take long."

Klein blinked and nodded patiently. "Very well." With that, he stepped inside of the airport and Blake was left alone outside, waiting for something to come and change how her day was looking so far.

She really didn't need a full morning of drawing blanks.


There were a number of things that made flying in the mornings easier, Weiss knew. The first and foremost thing was that she had a private plane that made her life so much more bearable. Not having to deal with people that knew nothing about her and would only want to know about what was happening in her family was a blessing. So was hot coffee, but that was more of an additional pleasure that came with the privacy.

As Weiss de-boarded her plane, she planned out her escape plan in the airport. She was just going to need to make a beeline to the door, and then when she got there she was sure that the car she had asked for would be there. If she was lucky, the one picking her up was going to be Klein.

After that, Weiss was sure that Klein was already going to have a schedule written out for her. Already she wasn't expecting to have all that that much time to herself that day, but that was just going to have to be how the day went. That was just the norm. Klein would help her keep on top of things as the day went- Weiss could trust in that at the very least.

Weiss had to fight back some of her nervousness as she grabbed her things. Ideally she would have had someone with her that could help her to carry it out, but Weiss knew how these airport pickups tended to go. She was going to just have to get to the doors, and once that happened Klein would be there to take her things, load them into the car, and then they would be able to go to the mansion.

The thought was enough to make Weiss pull her hood up a little more over her head, despite the fact that it did next to nothing to cover over her hair. She pushed her sunglasses up on her face, and just hoped that she could get through the airport without anyone paying her any attention.

But, as it was still early in the morning, it meant that Weiss was able to move on through the airport without anything to worry about for the most part. There were people there and present of course, but they were few in numbers and most of them looked so tired that they didn't even bother to pay attention to their surroundings. These were people that were more occupied with their own lives than hers.

That was exactly what Weiss needed.

She set a fast pace as she crossed the airport, and soon enough she was at the door and pushing it open.

Surely enough, Klein was there at the door and waiting for her patiently. He smiled at her when he saw her and took a few steps forward to meet. The squat man reached out for her bags and smiled at Weiss with his gentle eyes that Weiss had loved for her entire life.

"Miss Schnee." He said, keeping his voice gentle as ever. "I'm glad to see you made it in alright."

"I did." Weiss admitted with a slow exhale as she tried to calm herself. "Thank you for coming to pick me up so early."

"I'm glad to do it." Klein replied calmly. "The day will be rather long."

"I expected as much." Weiss said, hesitating. There was a tug of something deeply uncomfortable in her chest, and she couldn't help but to look down at the ground. "Has there been any news?"

"Nothing new, I'm afraid." Klein admitted as he wound his way around to the side of the car so that he could load her things into the trunk. "Although, since we're on the topic of news-"

Weiss froze up, completely unsure of what Klein could possibly be trying to refer to as the two of them stood there. "News?" She asked, keeping as calm as she could possibly manage. "Did something happen?"

"Heavens no!" Klein exclaimed, and that was enough to make Weiss feel like she was able to relax at least a little bit. "There's a reporter that wanted to meet with you-"

Before he could even finish, Weiss heard the sound of another voice over her shoulder. Weiss hadn't even realized that she and Klein had company.

"Blake Belladonna." The voice said, and Weiss let herself turn slowly to get a good look at the woman that had come to speak to her. She knew the woman's name. Weiss had heard it thrown around by board members in the past, and she'd seen it printed at the tops of articles that she'd never bothered to read herself.

Somehow, Weiss had never managed to see the woman in person. In fact, she'd initially been expecting that Blake Belladonna was the name of a man.

And really, the woman that stood there now was nothing like what Weiss would have expected. She wasn't someone standing in a suit that looked like she had come out of some meeting. She was younger than Weiss would have expected, and Weiss was quick to realize that the two of them were probably about the same age.

Above all else, Blake Belladonna managed to sell the appearance of someone that was deeply intimidating. It was there in the woman's leather jacket with the hooded sweater underneath, and the way that she slinked about, catlike. It was there in the way that she held her notepad made it seem like a weapon, and there was something that Weiss could only really describe as being dangerous written across her face.

A voice in the back of her mind told her that there was something about Blake Belladonna that was even alluring, but Weiss was fast to dismiss it.

"I see." Weiss replied. She held her head high, even though it didn't do anything to put her above Blake at all. Not much could, since Weiss was shorter than the average woman by quite a bit even when she was wearing heels. "And why are you here?"

"I'm a reporter with The Fang." Blake replied, her voice hard and dangerous. "I'm supposed to be reporting on-"

Weiss narrowed her eyes immediately and looked over at Klein before Blake got a chance to finish. "Klein, why did you-"

"I'm just here to try and do some honest reporting." Blake cut Weiss off. Weiss snapped her head back over to the raven haired woman. "I know that the timing is bad."

"Yes," Weiss snapped. "It is. I don't wish to speak to you." She didn't really know what she could do past all of this, but it was the least that Weiss could think to do. "Klein?" She looked over at her father's servant again. "Could we go?"

"We may." Klein affirmed, stepping up to the side of the car and pulling it open. Weiss advanced and slipped into it. Blake approached, and that only made Weiss' heart feel like it skipped in her chest. It was like every instinct that she had was screaming to her that this was a dangerous situation.

Blake held her hand out in front of her. Where Weiss was expecting something dangerous, there was simply a business card, white printed on black.

Weiss looked down at it and then up at the woman again. "What is this?"

"My contact information." Blake replied, all too confident. "If you ever want to help me with a story."

Weiss rolled her eyes, and she was beyond glad to have her sunglasses to hide behind. She reached out and snatched the card out of Blake's fingers before tucking it away out of view. "You can trust that I won't."

"Right." Blake deadpanned, finally taking two steps away from the car. "This won't be the last you'll hear of me though, Weiss Schnee."

Weiss ignored Blake. She pulled the door shut with a slam and faced forward and didn't dare let herself look back over at the reporter. Outside of the car Klein was saying something to Blake, but he was keeping his voice down so that he couldn't end up making things worse.

A minute passed. Blake left and dipped out of Weiss' line of site.

Klein took the driver's seat of the car. He sighed and reached up for the mirror so that he could adjust it and get Weiss in his view. "I"m terribly sorry about that, Miss Schnee."

Weiss felt her jaw set in frustration and at least some annoyance, and she had to fight to force back the more annoying thoughts that were threatening her train of thought. She knew that Klein only ever acted in her best interests, and he'd given her a chance to make a decision.

But still, annoyance was there.

"It's quite alright, Klein." Weiss said, keeping her voice as calm as she could manage. "Do you think we could just try to get home so that I can relax a little?"

"Of course, Miss Schnee." Klein answered, relaxing into his seat as he pulled out of the parking space that he'd chosen for them to use.

Weiss smiled and let herself lean back into her seat. While Klein, she let her eyes slip shut.

She only opened her eyes when she heard the roar of an engine. After a quick glance out the window, she saw the frame of a woman sitting on a motorcycle.

Weiss couldn't help the way that her heart began to beat a little harder when she recognized the woman's jacket.


"I didn't get her." Blake said into her phone, deeply annoyed. On the other end of the line, Ilia was sighing and Blake could hear the sound of the woman's keyboard clicking furiously. "I'm going to have to see what else I can do to get on the inside with this, but not getting an interview is annoying."

"Well, how did you go to her?" Ilia asked, and Blake could hear all of the annoyance on the woman's voice. "Because if you-"

"I caught her at the airport." Blake responded before Ilia could get a chance to say anything else or make any strange implications. "Asked some questions and got some help from the family butler. She didn't say anything but she has my number in case she wants to talk."

"So you won't get a call." Ilia snarled. "Great. You know, I remember when you were doing the gritty stuff-"

"This isn't like that." Blake said with an annoyed sigh. "I can't just talk to random foremen for information with this. They aren't on the inside with the Schnee family. Besides, I like this better than what me and..." Her voice trailed of. "I like this better than what I used to do."

"Yeah, I know." Ilia snarled back into the phone. "But you need a story for this, Blake. The Fang can't afford to get by on dated information, and you know perfectly well how Khan gets."

"Yeah, I do." Blake replied, gritting her teeth and leaning back against the wall where she'd decided to park. "Just give me the room to do my job, and we'll see how things play out."

Ilia was silent for a little too long, and Blake could hear the sound of someone talking in the background. Already Blake was sure that she had some sort of idea of what it could be, but decided not to comment on it too much.

Finally, Ilia spoke.

"Just don't waste our time."

Ilia's voice disappeared with a click and the phone disconnected, and all that Blake could think was that she was annoyed. Her break was over, and she needed to take her chance to go ahead and get her job done at that point.

She could do that. It was just going to be hard.