For the second time in one day Yang sat with her arms resting on the edge of a bed, someone close lying unconscious in front of her. The only difference this time was that it was Ruby instead of Blake, and that she wore her pyjamas over bandaged and bloodied arms, oblivious to the pain they gave her. Ruby had passed out at some point during the move, and Yang refused to move from her side. The early morning medical staff had scanned Rubys injured knee and left to decide the best course of action, having dressed the joint in a stiff bandage to hold it in place. Blake sat opposite Yang, watching her stare anxiously at her sister.
Yangs mouth was dry, she could feel it. Her eyes were brimming with barely restrained tears, knots twisting her stomach with a terrible feeling. Blake was right, Ruby had broken her leg. Or rather, it was broken for her. Yang clenched her fists subconsciously, rewatching the scene in her minds eye. It came out of nowhere, slamming her leader with an immense force. It's a wonder that only the leg was damaged. She wanted to blame herself, but no matter how hard she tried to convince herself it was her fault, she couldn't bring herself to do it. There was nothing she could have done, no way she could have prevented it. Her heart pounded against her chest, booming across the silence with every beat. All she cared about was her sisters safety, and it looked like she had failed in protecting her.
She glanced up at the voice over the bed, speaking softly to her.
"She's going to be fine. You would know if she wasn't."
Yang gave a sharp sigh, gathering herself for a second.
"It's as though someone is twisting my insides, how can I feel worse than that?"
"Trust me. I know what you're going through. It gets better." Blakes eyebrows raised slightly, giving her a sympathetic face. She retained her serious demeanour, but there was nothing except empathy in her eyes, warming the pits of Yangs stomach. Something about the way she spoke said more about her than words ever could, it lended her an even greater sense of depth. Yang wanted to know more about her partner, but she doubted Blake would give it up easily. She swallowed hard, returning to her worries.
"How?" She asked, a crack in her voice. It pained Blake to see Yang like this, she wanted nothing more than to hold her close until her sadness fell away, but she knew the golden-haired girl wouldn't rest until she was sure her sister was as safe as she could be. Blake did her best to be kind, though she was never good with people. Her eyes locked with Yangs once more, pouring comfort into her partner. She gave a slight smile as she spoke.
"When she gives you the best feeling you've ever experienced, you'll know what I mean." Blake nodded at Ruby, drawing Yangs eyes back to her sister. She looked peaceful, her calm face belying the agony she was in. Yangs expression softened as she stroked the edge of Rubys cheek, holding back the urge to hug her tightly. Blake felt her heart tingle at the sight, she had never had the chance to be close to someone in the way the two sisters were. Their relationship gave her an insight into happiness, something she dearly missed in her life. She felt a tapping on her shoulder, Weiss bent slightly to whisper in Blakes ear.
"I think we should leave them alone. As much as we care, Yang will want some time with Ruby by herself. And I'd like to talk to you about something." Blake gave a quiet acknowledgement, rising from her chair and walking with Weiss to the other side of the room. She stood with her back to everything, with Weiss beside her, speaking in a hushed whisper.
"I think I know how we can find out more about the Umbra..."
Weiss seated herself on the front row in class, holding her hands in her lap while she waited patiently, listening to the other students as trickled in behind her. Arriving early was a smart thing to do, there was plenty of time to set herself up in the optimal place. Her chosen target came striding through the door, head held high. They had no idea of the results their actions would make, but Weiss was secretly going to enjoy watching him squirm. He fell onto the bench, resting his feet on the desk lazily. Weiss slipped her scroll under her desk, brushing her fingers over the surface. She folded it up, placing it neatly in her jacket pocket for safety.
Blake cast her eyes over the screen once. 'In position. 7 minutes. Ready when you are.' The message faded with the image of Weiss's head, giving Blake the queue to move. Phase one was completed, and now came the part she quietly enjoyed. She too had her quarry in her sights, but she had to stalk him until he was alone. His schedule had been read in advance, and Blake positioned herself to follow without being seen. She could play the waiting game and win, that was fine with her.
The slew of students thinned as they arrived at their classes, gradually leaving the two people alone. Blake waited until he rounded a corner, whispering to get his attention. She had placed herself according to the most likely reaction, lurking flat to the wall. Sure enough, the footsteps reversed and he leant around the corner, brief confusion playing across his face. He shook his head, disregarding it as nothing. As he turned, he felt something sharp pressing against the back of his neck. Blake silenced his first whimper simply by pushing the point of her pistol further into his skin. She spoke in a disguised whisper to avoid giving her identity away, something she had perfected over the years.
"I know you lied. I know you ran. I know you fled like the coward you are. I won't judge you, don't worry about that. Do you know who I am?" He shook with fear, his voice trembling.
"N-no...w-who are you? W-what do you want f-from me?" Blake mockingly raised a finger to her lips, even though he had his back to her.
"Shhhh...all you need to do is tell me what you know about the beast in the forest. You know what I'm talking about, don't try to lie to me." She knew her words were convincing, he wasn't the smartest of people.
"Uh...m-maybe you should talk to C-ardi-ah!" He was cut short with a whimper as Blake pressured the blade further into his neck.
"I think you should talk to Cardin, don't you?" She asked, dripping a hint of temptation into her voice. She smirked as his entire body shuddered, breathing fast and loud.
"Now then. Call him...and don't try anything. You be a good student and tell your leader that Professor Ozpin wants to see him." The boy obeyed, shakily pulling out his scroll and fumbling to push the right buttons.
Weiss caught the beeping behind her, listening intently over the general noise of the classroom.
"Ey Russel, what's up?" Cardin Winchesters voice changed in an instant, anxiety and panic flooding him in waves. "What? Why do you ask? What do you mean 'Ozpin wants a report'? I told him everything I know!" He caught himself and lowered his voice, much to Weiss's amusement.
"He wants it where? Why does he-agh, fine! You keep your mouth shut about this!" Weiss felt the scroll vibrate in her pocket, she had muted the notification sound and opted for a physical alert instead. It slid open under the desk. 'Lecture Hall. 9:30PM. Tonight.' The whole thing went better than Weiss expected, she knew that Blake would have been successful and now they had something to work with. They were making progress.
She leant against the wall nearby, her arms folded with one foot propped against the ground. Weiss would be here any minute, so Blake admired the paling blue sky outside as she waited. A few stray clouds drifted slowly across the vast expanse of air, the last rays of sunlight catching the rooftops in a beautiful display. It was approaching the settled time, and the two agreed to wait some distance from the lecture hall to avoid raising any suspicions. She could hear footsteps approaching down the hall, light but fast. Her teammate had arrived, still in her uniform, carrying the large tome that Blake had previously read in the library. It was one of the few things they had relating to Umbra, and since Weiss had the bright idea to match up Cardin's information with the documented knowledge in the book, Blake asked her to bring it to the collection point.
Weiss stood opposite Blake, giving the impression of two girls doing small talk. Should Cardin come from this direction, and Blake highly doubted he would, he wouldn't suspect they were the ones who threatened Russel into lying about Ozpins request. As far as he was concerned, they were just threats to his macho bluff. He was a physically large person, and they both knew they'd hear him coming no matter how quiet he tried to be. Weiss glanced at her scroll.
"9:30 exactly, he'll be here any second." She gave a small sigh, shuffling her feet slightly. She seemed a little nervous, her moral code clashing with her burning curiosity. Blake could see how hard she was trying to keep herself under control, and found herself wondering how messing with the heiress would be like. There would be anger of course, but underneath that, past the icy facade and proper manners, was there a rebellious teenager striving to escape? Surely she'd be desperate to try new things, things she was told so many times that were unacceptable or unladylike? It teased at Blakes mind, a grateful change from the distressing memories she usually had.
Weiss snapped her out of her thoughts with a brief wave, indicating towards the heavy taps moving along the corridor hidden from their sight. No doubt, it was him. They heard the door click open and the wood creaking slightly. He was breathing hard, Blake could hear that through the wall. 'Probably ran all the way here, gullible fool.' The entire scene lasted no more than a minute, and as his footsteps faded into the distance they moved silently into the hall, making their way down to the central desk where a pile of papers was thrown onto the surface in a hurry. Blake gathered them up in both hands.
"And now we go to the rooftop." Weiss's posture tensed ever so slightly.
"Do we have to go all the way up there?" She asked, asking herself what was wrong with the library.
"Yes." Blake replied. "Nobody can overhear anything, and it gives us a clear view of the forest." She spoke matter-of-factly, somewhat tickling the challenging side of Weiss's brain. Weiss pushed the fire back down and nodded, Blakes logic did make sense. They set off for the stairs in a hurry, hoping to make it out of sight before anyone else could catch wind of them. The book had been 'borrowed' from the library, and they were now in the possession of documents of questionable origin. Weiss daren't think of the consequences if Ozpin found out what they had done already, let alone what they were doing. She dreaded what they would have to do next even before they had got that far.