A month or so later, preparations for the Vytal Festival began. Ahsoka came with Team RWBY out of curiosity and nothing better to do, and we looked around for possible competition. Weiss kept bad-mouthing the Faunus, and I had to to focus all my willpower on not hurting my teammate. Weiss scoffed.
"The White Fang. What an awful bunch of degenerates."
"What's your problem?"
"My problem? I simply don't care for the criminally insane."
"The White Fang is hardly a bunch of psychopaths. They're a collection of misguided Faunus."
"Misguided? They want to wipe humanity off the face of the planet!"
"So then, they're VERY misguided! Either way, it doesn't explain why they would rob a Dust shop in the middle of downtown Vale."
"Blake's got a point." Ruby agreed, frowning. "Besides, the police never caught that Torchwick guy I ran into a few months ago. Maybe it was him." Ahsoka nodded, her hood bobbing.
"The White Fang don't seem to be common thieves." Ahsoka spoke up, crossing her arms. "And they'd never do something like this in such an open, public area."
"That still doesn't change the fact that the White Fang are a bunch of scum." Weiss placed her hands on her hips. "Those Faunus only know how to lie, cheat, and steal!"
"That's not necessarily true." Yang tried to keep her cool. Then, we heard...
"Hey! Stop that Faunus!" We ran to the docks as two sailors chased a blonde boy with a monkey tail across the deck of a ship. The Faunus looked back and laughed deviously.
"Thanks for the ride, guys!" Then, he leapt onto the dock and stopped to eat a banana, hanging upside-down by his tail from a lamppost.
"You no-good stowaway!"
"Hey!" The Faunus disagreed. "A no-good stowaway would have been caught! I'm a great stowaway!" Then, he had to dodge a rock thrown by a policeman.
"Hey!" The cop shouted. "Get down from there this instant!" A banana peel hit him in the face. The Faunus jumped from the lamppost and started running, the cops following. As he ran past, the Faunus winked and smirked at me, but looked at Ahsoka curiously.
"Well, Weiss?" Yang asked coyly. "You wanted to see the competition. Well, there it goes."
"Quick! We must observe him!" Weiss started running, and we followed. I was wondering why that Faunus winked at me... Weiss crashed into someone and looked up. "No! He got away!"
"Uh... Weiss?" Yang pointed. Weiss noticed the girl she'd knocked over and stood.
"Sal-U-tations!" The girl waved. Why wasn't she getting up..?
"Um..." Ruby frowned. "Hello."
"Are you..?" Yang looked concerned for the girl. "Okay?"
"I'm wonderful!" The girl beamed. "Thank you for asking!" We exchanged worried glances.
"Do you wanna get up?" Yang asked. The girl considered it...
"Yes." The strange girl instantly shot to her feet, and we all backed away slightly. "My name is Penny! It's a pleasure to meet you!"
"Hi, Penny! I'm Ruby!"
"Weiss."
"Blake."
"Ahsoka."
"Are you sure you didn't hit your head?" I elbowed Yang. "Oh, I'm Yang."
"It's a pleasure to meet you!"
"You already said that." Weiss noted, seeming a bit scared. Penny frowned for a second.
"So I did!"
"Well, sorry for running into you." Weiss apologized. We all turned away as Ruby waved.
"Take care, friend!"
"She was..." Yang cringed. "Weird." Ahsoka shook her head.
"Nah. She reminded me a little bit of Nora when Ren isn't around, or my friends from home, Threepio and Artooey."
"Now..." Weiss focused. "Where did that Faunus riffraff run off to?" We all stopped short when we realized Penny was in front of us.
"What did you call me?"
"Oh, I'm really sorry!" Yang apologized while Weiss freaked. "I definitely didn't think you heard me!" Yeah, that makes it better...
"No, not you." Penny walked over to Ruby, confused. "You."
"Me? I-I-I don't know what I..."
"You called me friend! Am I really your friend?"
"Uh..." Ruby looked at us as we motioned for her to say no. Well, Ahsoka nodded for her to say yes to Penny. Ruby's resolve steeled. "Yeah, sure! Why not?" With that, three of us fell over.
"Sensational!" Penny laughed. "We can paint our nails, and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys!"
"Is this what it was like when you met me?" Ruby asked Weiss. The heiress shook her head.
"No." Weiss replied. "She seems far more coordinated."
"So..." Yang tried. "What are you doing in Vale?"
"I'm here to fight in the tournament!" The redhead replied. That immediately got our attention.
"Wait..." Weiss crossed her arms. "You're fighting in the tournament?!" Penny saluted.
"I'm combat-ready!"
"Forgive me, but..." Weiss frowned. "You hardly look the part."
"Says the girl wearing a dress." I barely held back a smirk. Weiss looked highly offended.
"It's a combat skirt!"
"Yeah!" Ruby stood next to her partner, and Weiss allowed a high-five. Then, Weiss' eyes widened.
"Wait a minute... If you're here for the tournament, does that mean you know that monkey-tailed rapscallion?!" Weiss asked. I got mad...
"The who?" Penny asked. Weiss held up a crude drawing.
"The filthy Faunus from the boat!" The heiress exclaimed. At that, I finally snapped.
"Why do you keep saying that?!"
"Huh?"
"Stop calling him a rapscallion! Stop calling him a degenerate!" I glared. "He's a person!"
"Oh, I'm sorry!" Weiss got sarcastic and angry. "Would you like me to stop referring to the trashcan as a trashcan, or this lamppost as a lamppost?!"
"Stop it!"
"Stop what?!" Weiss asked. "He clearly broke the law! Give him time, and he'll probably join up with those other Faunus in the White Fang."
"You ignorant little brat!" I got ready to storm off, but Ahsoka grabbed my arm and glared at Weiss from under her hood, enraged.
"You think all Faunus are criminals? That they're all White Fang?" Ahsoka marched up to Weiss. "You're judgmental, shameless, and cruel. You're stereotypical, you blame everyone but yourself, and you're pathetic."
"How dare either of you talk to me like that?!" Weiss asked. Ahsoka stormed off, and for the next few hours, all Weiss and I could do is argue.
/\
"I don't understand why this is causing such a problem!"
"That is the problem!"
"You realize you're defending an organization that hates humanity, don't you? The Faunus of the White Fang are pure evil!"
"There's no such thing as pure evil! Why do you think they hate humanity so much?! It's because of people like Cardin, people like you, that force the White Fang to take such drastic measures!"
"People like me?!"
"You're discriminatory!"
"I'm a victim! You want to know why I despise the White Fang? Why I don't particularly trust the Faunus?" Weiss gripped the windowsill, not meeting anyone's eyes. "It's because they've been at war with my family for years. War, as in actual bloodshed... My grandfather's company has had a target painted across its back for as long as I can remember." I slowly felt my anger fade. "And ever since I was a child, I've watched family friends disappear. Board members executed. An entire train-car full of Dust stolen... And every day, my father would come home furious. And that made for a very difficult childhood."
"Weiss..." Ruby tried, placing a hand on the heiress' shoulder. Weiss suddenly snapped.
"NO! You want to know why I despise the White Fang?! It's because they're a bunch of liars, thieves, and MURDERERS!" Weiss pushed me too far...
"Well, maybe we were just tired of being pushed around!" I snarled. Weiss backed away as my rage ebbed. What had I just done..? "I..." I darted out of our dorm room, running away as fast as I could.
/\
I found myself in the courtyard of Beacon, and I looked up at the statue. Slowly, I removed my bow and wiped away a tear as I let my ears show.
"I knew you would look better without the bow." A voice stated. I looked back to see the monkey Faunus from earlier.
/\/\/\/\
Two days later, I sat at a café in Vale with Sun, telling my story. I ran alone at first, but he'd followed and grown on me.
"So, here I am." I finished. "A criminal hiding in plain view, all with the help of a little black bow."
"So, have you told your friends any of this?" Sun asked. I looked down.
/\
Later, we walked down a sidewalk.
"So, what's the plan, now?"
"I still don't think that the White Fang is behind these robberies. They've never needed that much Dust before."
"What if they did? I mean, the only way to prove that they didn't do it is to go to the place where they would most likely go if they were to do it, and not find them there." Sun grinned. "Right?"
"The only thing is... I have no idea where that might be."
"Well, while I was on the ship, I heard some guys talking about offloading a HUGE shipment of Dust coming in from Atlas."
"How huge?"
"Huge!" Sun replied. "Big Schnee Company freighter."
"You're sure?"
/\
That night, Sun and I staked out the shipyard. He went to get food and returned with apples.
"Did I miss anything?"
"Not really. They've offloaded all the crates from the boat. Now, they're just sitting there."
"Cool..." Sun held an apple out. "I stole you some food!"
"Do you always break the law without a second thought?"
"Hey!" Sun complained. "Weren't you in a cult, or something?" I glared at him. "Okay, too soon." Suddenly, we were blasted by wind, and I looked up to see an airship land. Several people walked out, and my heart stopped.
"Oh no..."
"Is that them?"
"Yes, it's them."
"Alright!" A White Fang member snapped at the rest of the Faunus. "Grab the tow cables!" Sun looked at me, expression full of pity.
"You really didn't think they were behind it, did you?"
"No..." I sighed. "I think deep down I knew, I just didn't wanna be right."
"Hey!" A voice shouted. I looked up as a human criminal, Roman Torchwick, left the airship. "What's the holdup? We're not exactly the most inconspicuous bunch of thieves at the moment, so why don't you animals try and pick up the pace!" My eyes narrowed.
"This isn't right." I stood, grabbing my sword. "The White Fang would never work with a human... Especially not one like that."
"Hey, what are you doing?!" Sun asked. I leapt down and ran, hiding behind a container.
"No, you idiot!" Torchwick was yelling at a White Fang member, annoyed. "This isn't the leash!" With that, I ran up and held my blade to Torchwick's throat, glaring. "What the-?! Oh, for-"
"Nobody move!" I snapped. All the White Fang members whipped out their weapons.
"Whoa!" Torchwick exclaimed. "Take it easy there, little lady!" I removed my bow, glaring.
"Brothers of the White Fang! Why are you aiding this scum?!"
/\
Meanwhile...
"Not good!" Sun exclaimed, whipping out his staff.
"What's happening?" A voice asked, straight to the point. Sun yelped, turning to see a figure in a black hood. "Come on. I don't think I'm that scary."
"I wasn't scared... Blake's gonna get herself killed!"
"Who by?"
"The White Fang, and some human they're working with!"
"Great. This'll be fun... Come on, let's go keep our idiot friend from getting herself killed. You attack first. I'll cover you"
/\
"Oh, kid." Torchwick smirked. "Didn't you get the memo?"
"What are you talking about?"
"The White Fang and I are going in on a joint business venture together."
"Tell me what it is, or I'll put an end to your little operation." I held my blade closer to his throat. Then, I was hit by another gust of wind.
"I wouldn't exactly call it a LITTLE operation!" Torchwick stated as two more airships arrived. While I was distracted, Torchwick fired his weapon and threw me back. I barely dodged several more blasts, looking back as Torchwick was hit by a banana peel. Sun leapt down, kicking Torchwick in the head.
"Leave her alone." Sun glared at Torchwick. Several White Fang members leapt out and surrounded him as Sun stood up.
"You are not the brightest banana in the bunch, are you, kid?" Torchwick asked. A few White Fang charged, but Sun easily took them down, whipping out a staff. I leapt out and began fighting Torchwick, only to get thrown back. Sun attacked again, and I the Torchwick back. The human fired at a hanging crate, and it fell, separating me and Sun. I looked up as Torchwick aimed the gun-end of his cane at Sun, but a cloaked figure leapt in between the two.
"Finally." Sun glared slightly. "Backup comes when you're in trouble. Not when you're dead."
"I wanted to see what you could do, newbie." Ahsoka teased, then whipped out her light weapons. "You condemn my curiosity?"
"Hey!" Ruby shouted from a roof, whipping out her scythe. Torchwick looked up and smirked.
"Hello, Red!" The human greeted. "Isn't it past your bedtime?" Ruby was distracted, and Torchwick fired at her. Ahsoka started fighting him, Torchwick barely dodging the deadly blades. "Hey! You're gonna kill someone!"
"Nah. Maybe maim or injure, but you'll be fine... Eventually." Ahsoka did a spinning kick that threw Torchwick into a wall as Penny attacked the Bullheads. The thief and remaining White Fang fled, and I told Ruby, Penny, and Ahsoka my story. I sensed something change in Ahsoka...
/\
After I'd reconciled with Yang and Weiss, Ahsoka pulled us aside.
"Guys... I need to tell you something."
"What's wrong?" Ruby asked. Ahsoka slowly raised her hands to her hood, lowering it. Our eyes widened, Ahsoka looking down in shame. "Ahsoka?"
"Yeah." Ahsoka looked up. "I'm... Not from around here."
/\
Ahsoka proceeded to tell us the whole truth. About the Jedi, herself, the Clone Wars, and crashing on our planet. When the story was over, our friend sighed.
"You must think I'm a freak..."
"Hey." Yang glared. "Ahsoka Tano, you're our friend. Nothing will change that... And you look so cool!" Ahsoka blinked a few times, stunned.
"Not scary?"
"Can you teach me to make alien weapons?!" Ruby asked. Ahsoka slowly nodded.
"You accepted me." I stated. "So, now it's my turn."
"You're cool." Sun smiled. All eyes went to Weiss. The heiress sighed, shaking her head.
"I've gone insane... It's fine, Ahsoka." Weiss smiled slightly. "You don't look that bad."
"Is that a complement?" Sun asked me. I shrugged.
"Close enough."
Well, that was fun! I own nothing! Please read, review, check out my other stories, etc. Thanks!