Glacial Edge

Everyone in the room collectively winced at Weiss' words. They had somewhat been expecting them, but to hear them spit with such vehemence and disdain was still harsh.

"Weiss," Blake warned, voice low, but the SDC's vice president plowed right on through.

"Well?" she hissed, pale blue eyes narrowed.

Yang was stunned. Her mouth moved, but words failed to form. Her mind was reeling, as if Weiss had reached out and mentally slapped her brain. She had always figured her old teammate was angry with her over the way she had dealt with Ruby's death. The fact that she had never shown up on any of Blake's visits had been evidence enough of that. Yang honestly hadn't cared before, as lost in her pain and rage as she had been. But now…

Now she was recovering, now she was beginning to thaw and feel again. Now she was starting to reemerge into the world. The world that seemed to love kicking her down time and again. She felt her throat clench as Weiss' anger pushed her back towards that deep pit Blake had been fighting tooth and nail to free her from.

"What? So you can't even speak now? Did cutting yourself off from human contact degrade you into an animal?"

Yang flinched and sunk back into her seat while Blake flew to her feet. "Weiss!" the faunus said, voice raised. "That's enough!"

Weiss glanced at her teammate briefly before focusing on the blonde resolutely avoiding her gaze. "Can't you even defend yourself anymore, Xiao Long? I thought whenever you finally decided to crawl out of your hole that maybe you still had something resembling a spine. I must hand it to you, though," her tone making it apparent she was anything but impressed, "it's been quite a long time since I've been proven so spectacularly wrong."

A loud bang tore through the conference room as Blake's palms slammed down on the glass surface of the table. "Weiss!" she growled. "That's. Enough." Anger distorted the edges of her voice, making the others in the room nervous. It had been a long time since they had heard or seen Blake get angry with Weiss. Pyrrha shifted to the front of her seat, ready to move in an instant should things turn ugly.

"Enough?" Weiss laughed, bitter and cold. "I'm just getting started, Blake. Just because you coddle her does not mean that I'm obligated to. Nor shall I."

"I don't-"

"You do!" Weiss seethed. Yang watched the rage that rippled across Weiss' face, the pain, the anger. She watched the Huntress' eyes, wondering how exactly ice could burn that fiercely. "You continue to defend her after everything she's done! People are dead because of her, Blake. Or did you fail to notice the small mountain of corpses we pulled from those buildings earlier?"

Pyrrha, at this point, had heard enough. "Alright!" she cried loudly, standing and clapping deafeningly in one smooth movement. Blake bit off the retort that had been on the tip of her tongue, reluctantly turning her eyes to the crimson-haired woman rather than Weiss, whose glacial orbs were still burning holes through Yang. "That is enough! Both of you! This is neither the time nor the place to argue like this. We have far more important matters to discuss."

There were a few beats of silence before both woman exhaled. Blake tilted her head back and looked up at the ceiling while Weiss closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. Whenever she opened them again and looked up, she met Blake's now lowered gaze levelly. "Pyrrha's right. I'm sorry, Blake."

Blake nodded. "I'm sorry too. It's been a rough couple of days, and I'm a little on edge."

Weiss shot a sideways glance at Yang, but said nothing more than, "Understandable."

A smile stretched Blake's mouth. "I've missed you, Weiss."

"I suppose I've missed you as well," the other woman replied, though the quirk of her lips betrayed just how much Blake's absence had been noticed. Yang, watching the exchange, felt like she had been slapped. This was Weiss? Small, short-tempered, 'deny I have emotions even though they're really apparent' Weiss? What had happened to her in their time apart to change her so much? Yang had never known Weiss could make such a warm expression, at least not without a massive buildup. Blake and Pyrrha slid back into their seats as Weiss straightened her back, assuming a rigid posture.

"Now," she began, once more in Vice President mode, "before we begin discussing the operation, I think there's a few things we should clarify."

"Like why Nora and Ren are here?" Jaune interjected, earning him a glare from Weiss.

"Yes," she said in a measured voice, "like why your teammates are here."

"Weiss invited us!" Nora chirped happily.

Jaune, Pyrrha, and Blake all turned to give Weiss a confused look. Even if the heiress had been lonely, none of them could ever remember a time when she had reached out to Nora for company. It wasn't that she didn't like the other woman, it was just that her limitless energy tended to wear her out quickly. Nora was chaos incarnate. Weiss preferred order.

"Don't look at me like that. I invited both Nora and Ren here because I knew they had a mission not remarkably far away. I would have invited the rest of you," it was clear she was not including Yang in that statement, "but I knew you were all on missions that put you out of range to help. At least, that had been the case, but here you all are."

"What was it you needed their help with?" Blake asked.

Weiss sighed and tucked her head briefly into her palms. "Recently, Atlas has suffered a series of robberies. While this would normally be nothing new, the criminals have been targeting Dust shops and suppliers specifically."

Pyrrha made a face. "That sounds like…"

Weiss nodded. "My thoughts exactly. These robberies appear to match those Vale experienced during our first year at Beacon. If that's the case then I feel that the organization behind the Siege is finally making its next move." The tension in the room thickened as Weiss' words sunk in. Even Nora's smile was gone, replaced by a thin line. Yang's chest clenched, but the rage that normally seethed beneath her skin wasn't present.

"What about the SDC?"

"They've been avoiding robbing directly from us," Weiss answered Blake. "Probably to avoid drawing the company's ire. The unfortunate thing is it's working. The SDC refuses to investigate the incidents so long as they have no direct impact on us. There are things I cannot do, even as the vice president."

"Which is why you called Ren and Nora," Jaune finished for her with a nod. "Okay, so moving forward, if these robberies are in fact related to the group that attacked Beacon, then that's probably why Roman came back here after leaving Vacuo. Whatever their next play is, he's involved."

"That's the only sensible conclusion I can draw. I can only assume that bomb from earlier was meant to destroy any evidence and throw you off of his trail."

"Which means it's possible he thinks he's bought himself some time," Ren spoke up quietly.

Jaune glanced at him before returning his eyes to Weiss. "If he doesn't realize we've made the connection between him and the robberies…"

Blake nodded. "Then maybe he hasn't thought to get rid of any pertinent evidence. If we can dig up something during our investigation, then we may have our first solid lead on these bastards in years." The faunus looked up at her teammate. "Even if the SDC's not looking into it, I know you are. So where are we currently at?"

Weiss smirked a bit. "I've managed to identify two of the criminals' bases of operation. My team is currently investigating a possible third."

"Velvet?" Blake questioned, leaning forward in her chair. Yang looked at her, confused. As stunned and shocked as she still was by everything, that pierced through the haze of her thoughts. What did the little rabbit faunus have to do with any of this?

"She's helping my temporary replacement but at the company, but she's got her net out there." Weiss glanced down at her scroll, scowling at the time. "As for my bodyguard, he should have been back hours-"

At that exact moment, the door behind them crashed open. Somebody rushed through, calling out in a panic, "Weiss! Weiss!" They rushed up to the white-haired vice president and swept her up in their arms. Weiss blushed furiously, and pushed back against the tanned muscles holding her aloft. "Are you okay? You're not hurt anywhere are you?"

Yang could now tell it was a male, probably the bodyguard Weiss was mentioned. The amount of concern in his voice was large. She hadn't gotten a good look as he had torn into the room, but whoever it was, it was clear he cared deeply for Weiss.

"Yes, I'm fine! Put me down!" The person continued fervently asking her questions as if he hadn't heard her. "Put me down!" she demanded once more, blush fading from her cheeks and irritation creeping across her face. when he still did not, she slammed a hand into his shoulder. "Sun Wukong! If you do not put me down this instant, I swear I will shove Pyracantha so far down your throat you will shit Dust for a week!"

Yang's eyes widened, her jaw going slack in shock. There was no way. But when he laughed and set the still fuming heiress gently back on her feet, Yang saw that it was, in fact, none other than Sun Wukong. He still looked pretty much as she recalled. Well built, tan skin, unruly sun-kissed blonde hair. His outfit had definitely changed though. Gone was the open chested, tall-collared shirt he had been so fond of in their youth. It had been replaced with a white, long-sleeved dress shirt. Overtop of it was a fitted black vest, complete with a silver chain looping from the center to the left-side pocket, and black slacks covered his legs. It was such a far cry from how he used to look that Yang almost couldn't believe her eyes.

She noticed that there was still a lot of Sun in there too, though. His sleeves were rolled up above his elbows, and he still wore both his sneakers and those old red gauntlets on his forearms. The top few buttons of his shirt were left undone, exposing an amount of his chest that Yang was sure wouldn't be deemed appropriate in a professional setting. She could see that his medallion still hung about his neck as well.

Sun stood in front of Weiss, hands planted lightly on her hips and smile on his face. Grey eyes sparkled at her. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay, Snowflake," he said before gently pressing a kiss to her forehead.

Her blush returned full force, and she gave him a small shove to put some distance between them. Weiss glared up at him. "You could have just sent a scroll message."

"You know a scroll would never be enough to assure him his Snowflake's okay," Nora giggled, barely restraining her laughter. Everyone couldn't help but chuckle as Weiss' face grew even more crimson.

"Nora, I will end you," Weiss hissed.

Yang couldn't comprehend this. This was impossible. Sun Wukong and Weiss Schnee? Where had her disdain of faunus gone? Her irritation at the young man? Her anger at his flippant disregard for the law? What had happened? Whatever it was, one thing was clear. This Weiss was no longer the one Yang had known.

"And you!" Weiss rounded on her bodyguard who threw his arms back in defense. "Where the hell have you been? Why didn't you come back the instant that bomb went off? There's no way you missed it."

"I couldn't!"

One silvery eyebrow rose skeptically. "Couldn't, Sun Wukong? I have known you for many years now, but never once have I heard you say you couldn't do something."

He waved his hands in front of him. "For real though! I've been watching the address Velvet gave me since yesterday. It was pretty quiet until today and then bam! Guys everywhere! If I had made a move, there was no way they wouldn't have caught me." Sun glanced around the room. "Oh, hi guys! Hey, Yang!" He turned back to Weiss, and for a moment it seemed like that was it. Then his head snapped around so quickly Yang feared for his neck. "Yang?" Yang didn't reply, just looked at him blankly. "Is it…are you...oh, wow…" He shuffled from foot to foot, stumbling over his words in a very un-Sun way. "I mean, like, wow…you're here…um…hi," he finished lamely. A heavy moment of silence followed in which Yang continued to stare at Sun. No words came to mind, so she kept quiet while the monkey faunus avoided her gaze.

Eventually, when she determined the exchange was going nowhere, Weiss spoke up while nudging Sun in the ribs "So?"

"Hmm?" He looked back to her, face still confused. "Oh! Right, yeah." Weiss rolled her eyes. "Totally a baddy hideout."

"You're sure?"

"I've been casing the place for two days. I'm sure."

"Like you were sure with that devastatingly vicious flower shop three weeks ago?"

"I'm not sorry. Those bouquets were an affront to anything with eyes." Sun shuddered.

"You're just lucky they were trafficking drugs on the side, or else the APF would have had your head."

The faunus snorted, his tail twitching behind him. "Please, you would have skinned me alive before they even managed to reach me." Weiss opened her mouth to affirm that is exactly what she would have done, but Sun pressed a finger to her lips. She narrowed her eyes at him, but remained quiet. "But no, Snowflake, not sure like that. Sure like I saw White Fang tattoos sure."

Weiss pushed his finger aside. "So now we have three confirmed locations." She turned to the assembled group. "I think that's about as far as we're going to get tonight. Sun and I will compile a report on the bases and a briefing for investigation and infiltration. The rest of you should get some sleep." She reached inside her jacket and produced a small stack of cards, which she tossed on the table in front of them all. "You'll be staying at the SDC's guest hotel, free of charge. Those cards will get you into the building and your rooms. I've reserved the top floor for our exclusive use."

"Holy shit, Weiss!" Jaune exclaimed. "That place has like, a six star rating! How on Remnant did you-" Jaune stopped when he realized what he was about to say. "Oh, er, um…nevermind." He bashfully reached out and swiped a card from the stack.

"Quite," Weiss said while Blake distributed the cards amongst everyone else. Yang took hers without a word, and Blake noticed the blonde wouldn't even meet her eyes. Weiss' words must have struck a chord. "There should be a driver waiting outside of the entrance to take you there. Sun and I will be along later, and we'll all reconvene in the morning. Until then, get some rest, everyone. Things are only going to get harder from here on out."

The meeting broke up then, and they all filtered out of the room in short order, the promise of soft, comfortable beds giving them a small second wind.

When they were finally alone, Weiss let out a heavy sigh. She braced both hands on the glass surface of the table and leaned forward, releasing her tense posture. She felt Sun sidle up behind her, and a pair of strong arms slid themselves around her waist. Lips lightly brushed her neck as Sun pressed his chest against her back, causing her to shiver.

"That surprised me," he said softly. "Can't say I was expecting to run into Yang today."

Weiss answered with a non-committed "mmm."

"Are you alright?"

"Yes," she said in exasperation. "I told you earlier I was. Stop fussing; it's unbecoming."

"Not what I meant." His hands gripped her hips and spun her around to face him gently. Grey eyes looked down at her with concern. "Are you alright?" he asked again, the tone in his voice making it clear what exactly his question was about.

She leaned forward, resting her hands on his chest while her forehead nestled into the crook of his neck. Weiss closed her eyes and listened. Sun's heartbeat thrummed strong and steady through her fingertips, calming her mind, as it always did. She felt his arms tighten around her and his tail gently wrapped itself around her waist.

"I don't know," she finally answered his question. She didn't even bother trying to cover up how she was feeling. Sun would have seen through it. He always did. And besides, she had learned long ago that she could be unapologetically honest around him with no worries. "After everything that's happened, after what she's done, I just don't know. I'm angry, livid, but outside of that, I honestly just don't know."

His chest rumbled as he chuckled. "Weiss Schnee, admitting she doesn't know something. Stop the world, please, I'd like to get off now."

"Ass," she murmured.

"C'mon, let's get this report done quickly." He pulled away from her a little bit, and she immediately missed his warmth. His tail was still about her waist though, so she didn't say anything. "You need to get some sleep."

Weiss didn't argue, and they set to work.

"Where's Yang?"

Blake glanced at the little picture of Britain in the upper right hand corner of her screen. Lines of text with accompanying pictures dominated the center portion of the holograph.

"In her own room, probably. Why?"

Britain narrowed her eyes at the faunus. "She's not with you?"

Blake shook her head. "I just told you she's in her own room. More importantly, you really can't tell me anything else about the bomb?"

Sandy hair shook back and forth. "Unfortunately, no. Like I said in my report there, I collected anything I thought could have been a piece of the device, but it doesn't match anything I've ever seen before."

"Is it possible it's just a bomb you haven't seen?"

"Blake, dear, I've seen 'em all. Big, small, spiky, loud, quiet, fiery. You name it, I've disarmed it, probably built it too. There is absolutely no known bomb in Remnant that can produce that large and devastating a yield that isn't the size of a car, at least. There weren't enough pieces left for it to have been that big. And chances are somebody would have caught them even if it had been."

The brunette slid back in her seat, eyes finding Britain's. "So if it's something you've never seen before…"

Britain sighed. "It's a new type, yeah. I don't know how they did it, but it's like they maximized damage and blast radius and minimized the actual device's size."

Blake rubbed her eyes tiredly. It was late, and it had been a long, long day. She was exhausted. When she had entered her lavish and incredibly spacious hotel room, she had been more than ready to collapse into the infinitely comfortable looking mattress and just pass out. when her scroll had begun beeping with an urgent message from Britain though, Blake had steeled herself for a few more minutes of not sleeping. After she had plugged the device into the holographic interface system of the desk in the corner, the space above its wooden surface had filled with a blue projection of a text file.

The demolitions expert had sent Blake her findings on whatever explosive had been used in the bombing earlier. As she had read, Britain had started a video call with her to provide some exposition on her report.

"I'll show this to everyone tomorrow. See if they have any ideas." Blake hid a yawn behind her hand while Britain snorted.

"Not likely. None of them seem to be particularly boom-savvy."

A tired grin pulled at her mouth. "Remind me to introduce you to Nora sometime."

There was moment of silence where Blake almost nodded off before Britain's voice brought her back again. "So Yang's really not there?"

"No, Brit, she's not." Blake sat up and looked at the other woman. "She disappeared into her room the moment we got here, and I'm guessing she hasn't left. Why do you care so much?"

"Why don't you?"

Blake froze. "What?"

"Something's wrong with her Blake, and I don't mean in the way it has been. I mean something changed since this morning and now."

"It's…it's been a long day, and Weiss-"

"I seriously doubt it was just Weiss."

Golden eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"

"I mean she was acting like this before she even exchanged one word with Little Miss Frostbitch. She was with me the entire time at the bomb site. Did you know that?"

"I did," Blake nodded. "I saw you two a few times, and when we came to retrieve her you were still together."

"Okay, so then why wasn't she with you?"

"What does that matter?"

It was Britain's turn to narrow her eyes. Her voice was a tad lower when she answered, "Because you two have been inseparable since this whole fiasco with Roman started. Seriously. You may not notice it since you're on the inside, but you two have been practically welded at the hip. And now suddenly she's hanging around me? It wouldn't be such a big deal, but she isn't there now, either." Blake bit her lip as Britain's words sunk in. She had thought Yang had been so quiet because of Weiss' verbal crucifixion, but if what Britain was saying was true, then it was something else. "She was acting weird, wasn't she?"

Blake nodded. "I figured it was because of Weiss."

"When she found me at ground zero, she looked...lost. That's the only way I can describe. Lost and alone."

"She didn't say anything to me."

"Don't you think that should tell you something? If Yang had something to talk about, you're the first," she stopped for a moment, considering her words. "No, you're the only one she would go to. Yet why did she come to me, a person she had only met a few hours before?" Realization smashed into Blake, and she felt her stomach drop. Britain must have seen it in her face. "Figure out what you did, Blake, and quick. Else everything you've done for her won't mean a damn thing anymore."

The video call ended, but Blake was already on her feet and heading towards her door. Yang's room was just down the hall. She had to find out what had happened, what she had done to cause Yang to act like this. She had just started to get her partner back. There was no way in hell she was going to lose her again.

Sleep could wait.

Yang was far, far more important.

A/N: Woot, on time this week! And I am actually super, super pleased with how this chapter turned out

Also, surprise surprise (for some of you) Sun is the bodyguard! And you know what that means, Snow Monkey! or Frozen Star, as I like to call it. Wooooo. To those of you who predicted and/or wished for it to be Sun (I'm looking at you, Lucky and Zarrok) here you go!

Man did I write Weiss as vicious and vindictive this chapter. She wasn't supposed to quite that harsh, but I'm actually please that that's how she turned out. In very first draft of Redemption, Weiss was actually supposed to welcome Yang back just as warmly as Pyrrha and Jaune, but I had to throw that out the window, because who wants that much happiness and warmth, hmm? That's what I thought, no one.

Anyway, please do review and let me know what you guys thought!

As always, you are all very amazing and I love you. Stay awesome :D