"Ooooh," Nora admired the scenery as it passed them by. "Ahhh!"
"Nora, it's been nothing but trees for the last half hour," Ren pointed out.
"Naaaaature," Nora crooned, causing her partner to simply facepalm. Kay looked back at them through the rearview mirror with a small smirk. It had been a while since he had been on a road trip, even a short one. Glen Plains to Manhattan was a little more than an hour's drive, so it wouldn't be too boring. The only annoying part of the trip would be finding parking in Manhattan, especially since they'd be going to a specifically busy part of the city.
"You used to live in the city, Kay?" Oscar asked from the front passenger seat. Jaune was already knocked out in the seat behind him.
"I lived close to Manhattan," Kay corrected. "I went to school in Queens then went to college in Manhattan, the city."
"So is Manhattan a different city than New York City?" Oscar asked.
"No, Manhattan is the city part of New York City." Kay clarified. "New York City consists of five boroughs: Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx, Staten Island, and Manhattan. The first four boroughs are mostly suburban while Manhattan serves as the big commercial hub with a bunch of tourist spots and business buildings."
"So Manhattan," Oscar attempted to understand. "Is a city borough, but is only a part of New York City?"
"I know it's a little confusing, but that's the gist of it." Kay said. "I can't exactly explain why they made it that way, but it's how it works."
"Where are the boroughs in relation to each other?" Oscar asked.
"Let's put Brooklyn in the middle," Kay began. "On it's easter border is Queens, the largest borough. Across a river to the west is Manhattan, a long island surrounded by two rivers. To the southwest of Manhattan is Staten Island, which should definitely be more associated with New Jersey, another state. To the immediate north of Manhattan is the Bronx, which ends up being the threshold between New York City and Upstate New York."
"Why is it called Upstate past that area if we're still technically located south of Glen Plains?" Oscar asked.
"Oscar," Kay sighed. "Is Ozpin asking these questions?"
"Yes."
"Oz, let the boy rest." Kay chided. "The concept is confusing enough as a resident of this place, let alone an interdimensional visitor."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
"Ooooh," Nora crooned again. Kay let out a heavy sigh before turning on some music.
In the other car, Roman drove a large SUV that held Team RWBY and Winter, the latter of which sat in the front seat. The Specialist was used to uneventful travel; the Atlesian landscape is only so breathtaking so many times. Snow, snow, maybe a few mountains, more snow, you get the deal. The teenagers behind them were not so tranquil.
"I spy with my little eye something green!" Said the reaper from the middle row.
"For the last time, Ruby," Weiss, sat behind the team leader, pinched her nose in slight annoyance. "There is nothing but trees, most of which aren't even covered by snow. What else could be green?"
"The grass." Blake answered monotonously from next to her as she read through her favorite of Kay's stories for the tenth time in their stay.
"Correct!" Ruby cheered, ignoring Weiss completely.
Yang rolled her eyes as she played on the portable console Kay lent her. It was some sort of dungeon crawler game that consumed her attention completely. She growled as she died again and lowered the screen to look ahead at the road. The blonde looked around to Ruby next to her, who was looking out her window for something new to play "I Spy" with.
"So," Roman began. "How's living with Kay been for you?"
"Are you asking me?" Winter had not been paying attention, though her normally professional aloofness wouldn't let that show. Roman nodded, refusing to remove his eyes from the road. "He's been courteous enough to let everyone take his beds and couch. He's spent his own money to clothe and feed us. I doubt I'd be alone in saying that we owe him quite a lot for his kindness."
"No signs of bitterness or grouchiness?" Roman's surprised tone caused Winter to look to the editor. "That'sgood."
"He told me about his past relationship," Winter admitted. "Is that why you're so surprised he's not so bothered?"
"He's always been rather… off ever since then." Roman answered. "He'll go to work and be the teacher that the students love, interact with faculty with a golden heart, then go home and do nothing but sulk and stare at his laptop for hours into the night."
"Has he lashed out before?" Winter asked, giving him her full attention.
"No," Roman said. "Well, not at others at least."
"What do you mean?" This time Yang spoke up, her game completely forgotten. Roman's eyes widened in shock, as though he forgot the others in the back. The girls went silent to listen, the games and book now gone with any sense of fun sucked by Roman's statement. The redhead sighed.
"So, you know he goes out every Saturday or so for a couple hours, right?" Roman began. The girls nodded. Winter simply listened, already knowing Kay's story. "He goes to therapy every week to deal with his mental illness, known as Borderline Personality Disorder."
"What is that exactly?" Weiss asked.
"BPD, as it's known, is a complicated mental disorder that affects relationships, habits, and the way one thinks. Kay's suffered from depression and anxiety since high school, and it's definitely affected how he sees himself."
"Sees… himself?" Blake repeated.
"You read his poems, right Blake?" The Faunus nodded in response to Roman's question. "What does he see himself as?"
"He… detests himself," Blake recalled from the poetry book in Kay's office. The one he said was one of his earliest published works. "He doesn't see himself as anything truly worthwhile, or feel happy, and does his best to distract himself with jokes and little things that make him feel good even for a little bit."
"That's why he's leaned into writing so much." Roman finished for her. "His family pressured him to attend West Point, one of this world's most prominent military schools. For as much as he worked his ass off, he was absolutely miserable and his BPD began to grow more and more prevalent. After a medical check, he was released and his family essentially disowned him for it."
"Because he was kicked out?" Yang asked.
"Because he was weak." Roman corrected. "At least, that's what his family saw him as. So he ran. He ran north from home and landed in Glen Plains. Far enough away from both West Point and New York City. I followed him to make sure he'd be okay, and for a while, he was."
"He was hired by the local college and apparently found love. I was ecstatic for him!" He continued. "He worked well for a whole 2 years before things went to shit for him."
"When the girl cheated on him." Winter said, remembering Kay's story. The girls behind them gasped. "His ex-girlfriend."
"Correct," Roman nodded grimly. "I rushed over there when the police called me as his emergency contact. It was the only time I had ever seen Kay mad at anyone, let alone violent. Sure he kicked the guy's ass and tossed his ex out of the house but that was somehow the simplest part of it all. After that, he would come to my place and just lay awake for hours. I would do my best to look after him and keep him entertained, but he was just inconsolable."
"Because he was cheated on?" Weiss asked. Her fists were in tight balls on her lap. It was an uncomfortable conversation, but it felt like a necessary one to have.
"Because he felt he deserved it." Roman said, shaking his head. "He felt he wasn't good enough, and that he was just so much of a failure that he kept blaming himself for his issues. His relationships with his now-ex, with his family, and even his early exit from West Point."
"But that wasn't his fault!" Yang cut in. "He needed help and the world just didn't throw him a bone!"
"I think deep down he knows that," Roman agreed. "That's why he didn't hesitate when I recommended a local clinical psychologist. He's been going weekly and taking meds ever since then."
"Medicine?" Winter could vaguely recall Kay standing at an open cabinet for a few minutes, taking what she thought to be normal vitamin supplements, a trivial routine she'd witnessed several times already. "I see."
"Which is why I was so concerned when you guys popped into his life," Roman's words were met with a chorus of "hey" and "why" in offense. Roman chuckled, breaking the serious atmosphere a little. "Not because you're bad people, we know you're all lovely. It's not a secret his spending is strained literally tenfold since you've arrived. I almost expected him to explode when he first met me after your coming here. Instead he seems…"
"Content." Winter finished. "He seems none too bothered."
"It's the same reason why he loves writing and teaching about writing," Roman said. "It keeps him busy and it's related to something he enjoys. He loved your show and would use it as inspiration for a lot of his works. So y'all are both a blessing and curse."
"Is that why you told me you were glad to see us when we first met?" Ruby asked. "You said he needed new friends?"
"Yup!" Roman said, smiling. "I know the financial problem is only temporary while you're stuck here, so I can only see your presence here as a positive for Kay. You're keeping him distracted in a good way. I can only hope he stays this happy when you finally return to Remnant."
"We'll do our best to not be a burden for Kay," Ruby assured, speaking for the team. "We're already super grateful for what he's done. It's only right that we make sure he doesn't suffer because of us."
"Very mature of you to think so, Miss Rose." Winter complimented. "We should give him a sign of our gratitude when this is all over."
"Well, the timing's perfect then!" Roman's green eyes seemed to light up. "It's Christmastime!"
"Kay mentioned that holiday before," Ruby said. "We celebrate New Years on Remnant, but we've never heard of Christmas before. What is it exactly?"
"There's a lot of religious importance behind it for most people," Roman pointed out. "But Kay and I aren't religious so it's not too vital to my point. The main gist of the holiday, and the similar holidays that occur for other religions around this time, is to spend time with people you care about and exchange meaningful gifts!"
"That sounds quite lovely, actually." Weiss smiled at the explanation. "I take it the gifts differ upon age?"
"Yeah, most kids would hate to get clothes and prefer toys that would break in a few years." Roman remarked. "Most teens and adults love clothes, money, and even certain household items depending on their age."
"Would the city have any good places to buy such a gift for Kay?" Blake asked, her ears perking up.
"Only a bunch!" Roman affirmed. "Sounds like you have a mission, then!"
"We haven't been on a proper mission in a while," Yang pointed out playfully.
"And this sounds like a fun one!" Ruby cheered. "Alright, team RWBY, our mission is to find the perfect gift for Kay!"
"I may also participate in the mission as well," Winter butt in with a kind smile. "And we may also have to include Oscar and JNR."
"Agreed!" Ruby pumped the air with a fist. "Mission: Gift for Kay is a go!"
. . . . .
"Whoa!" This time, Nora's exclamation was purely genuine. Her face was smooshed against her window as she tried to look upwards at the tall buildings that made up midtown Manhattan. "Not even the tallest building in Vale is as tall as these!"
"Indeed, these are rather tall buildings," Ozpin spoke. Oscar had fallen asleep at some point during the drive. "Do people live here?"
"Not really," Kay shook his head. "A vast majority of people in Manhattan commute from the other four boroughs. There are some apartments here, but they're way too expensive for the normal person to rent."
"Yet you own a proper house upstate?" Ozpin asked.
"It's definitely cheaper than an apartment down here." Kay countered.
"Whatcha looking for, Kay?" Jaune asked, looking out of his window.
"Parking garage," was his answer. "Is Roman still behind us?"
"Yup." Ren answered, easily spotting them as he turned in his seat. Roman's bigger car was right behind. He smiled as Ruby peeked out from behind her driver to wave to him.
After a few minutes of driving through Manhattan traffic, Kay and Roman managed to find a parking garage that didn't appear too crowded. The Huntsmen and Huntresses stretched out and limbered up after the semi-long drive. Roman and Kay were conversing on the side while the Remnant residents huddled up as well.
"Alright gang," Ruby began. "We have ourselves a mission."
"Mission?" Jaune repeated. "Someone in trouble?"
"Yes!" Ruby nodded. "We need to find a good gift for Kay after he's given us so much while we're here."
"Agreed," Ren nodded. He had been Kay's right hand helper in terms of keeping the house clean. Jaune and Yang helped with some of the bigger chores like shoveling snow. The others would help out in little ways as well, but it still never felt like they had done enough to pay him back.
"I saw a few big stores nearby that could have some cool stuff for him." Yang suggested.
"How are we gonna pay for it?" Nora asked. "Our Lien isn't good here."
"Roman said he'd be willing to help us in that department." Weiss answered.
"Alright guys," Kay walked over, causing the group to break immediately. "It's still a little early in the day, so we'll do some walking around Times Square and check out the stores. The sidewalks are rather crowded this time of year, so make sure we stay close. Walk on the right side of the sidewalk and ignore anyone trying to give you anything. Just keep your eyes ahead."
"Those are some big screens," was all Nora could say as they entered the area known as Times Square. The ten visitors stared astonishedly at their surroundings as they found their way to a giant set of red stairs. "Why are there stairs here?"
"Tourism." Roman and Kay answered simultaneously. Tourism indeed, as it was obvious to see the stairs being used as a backdrop for many people's pictures.
"Can we have a group picture?" Ruby asked animatedly. Her eyes were wide with excitement at the thought. Kay nodded and began to retrieve his phone before Roman stepped away from the group.
"I'll take it," he said, getting his phone out. "Everyone stand close to each other!"
"Cheese!" Roman took the pictures as the group smiled and stood huddled on the first steps on the stairs.
"Lemme see!" Ruby rushed over to Roman to check the take.
"That's a weird sight if you really think about it," Kay muttered.
"It's definitely confusing sometimes," Blake agreed. "To see an almost carbon copy of the man. Minus the bowler hat, of course."
"What is that?" Weiss asked, pointing to a tower comprised solely of screens that alternated different advertisements. The block it was on acted as a sort of wedge between the streets.
"That is…" Kay began before faltering in thought. "Roman."
"Ya." The redhead looked up from giving Ruby and Yang his phone to take more pictures.
"What is the big screen tower thingy called?"
"That's literally called Times Square Tower." Roman answered.
"What's its use?" Weiss asked.
"Mostly advertisement space." Kay answered. "There's also a giant ball that falls down to count down the New Year every year."
"That's cool!" Nora cheered. "Does it explode when the counter hits zero?"
"By explode, do you mean light up and cue fireworks?" Kay asked. Nora nodded. "Then yes."
"Awesome!"
"Do you think it would be safe to use our Scrolls?" Winter asked.
"Mm-mm," Kay shook his head. "As advanced as our technology is, your Scrolls will definitely still stand out. I'd rather we didn't give a reason for people to pickpocket us."
"Understood," Winter nodded.
"Did you want to take a particular picture?" Kay asked.
"I simply wanted to show Ironwood proof of the type of civilization here. If that were somehow possible." Winter's response brought a specific idea to mind; if he could find a certain store in mind, he might be able to help them with that.
"Hey Roman!" Kay called his friend over. "Let's bring them over to Bryant Park for a little bit."
The trek to said park was filled with the teens chatting animatedly about their surroundings. Bryant Park around this time was occupied by what was known as the Winter Village, a seasonal exhibition of food and handmade crafts. Ozpin looked around from beside Kay as he led the group. There was a large tree covered in lights and large baubles that dozens of people were crowded around, taking more pictures. It wasn't long until they reached it, though Kay had to turn to the rest of them to address the moment.
"Roman, you mind treating them to lunch around here?" Kay asked, pointing at the small booth with a sign that read, Le Pain Quotidien. "I need to do something real quick."
"Alone?" Roman asked. "You sure?"
"I'm sure, I promise." Kay assured.
"Want anything?"
"Surprise me," Kay shrugged before turning to the rest of the group. "It looks like the seating area has plenty of space for y'all. I'll be back in thirty." Winter watched the man jog away from them and towards a far corner of their block.
"What's he going to do?" Jaune asked.
"No clue," Roman asked, looking around for the nearest street signs. Winter noticed his confused expression as he caught the closest one, before focusing on the moment on-hand. "So, the Winter Village has a bunch of little booths that have food and handcrafted stuff you can get. Just point out a place you wanna try food from while we browse around."
It wasn't long until the group were finally seated in a corner of the public seating area. Despite it being early winter time, Bryant Park was still rather busy with tourists and commuters dominating the sidewalks. Winter idly watched them as she finished her sandwich, specifically keeping watching for any suspicious individuals.
"This place is like Vale, but like, a zillion times more alive!" Ruby gushed as she looked around at the tall buildings around them. "I wonder where Beacon would be in that respect."
"Probably one of those super tall buildings in the distance." Nora suggested, pointing at two particular buildings that Roman easily identified.
"Those are the Chrysler and Empire State buildings, respectively," he said. "They were built in the 1930s in contention with each other to see which would be taller. Obviously, the Empire State building won, at 102 stories high."
"What about that building down there?" Jaune pointed south, at another tall, blue building that rose above the others in its area. "That looks important."
"That's known as a One World Trade Center," Roman sighed. "A beautiful building with a tragic history."
"Tragic?" Ozpin repeated. Roman nodded.
"The original two towers were struck by planes, hijacked by foreign terrorists." Roman recalled. "Thousands of peoples died, and the emotional shockwaves shook all of America and plunged us into another war. You may have read about it." Ozpin and Blake nodded while the rest simply listened somberly. "That incident was a long time ago, but that tower, and the exhibits around and below it, remind us of what was lost that day. So it remains as a culturally important building."
"Heavy," Yang huffed.
"Yup," Roman nodded. "But let's not get too down now, things are much better nowadays!"
"That's good to hear." Blake smiled, finishing her tuna melt sandwich. "It's a beautiful city."
"It definitely is," Roman agreed. "Oh, look who's back!"
"Kay!" Ruby's cheer caused everyone to turn and see their hose jogging his way towards them with a bag in his hands. "Whatcha got there?"
"Oh, hey guys," Kay greeted catching his breath. Roman looked at him curiously, his eyes glancing to the plastic bag with a gray apple logo on it. Green met brown with a moment of understanding. "Winter just gave me a really good idea."
He reached into the bag and retrieved a small box, the size of a small Scroll. Upon opening it, a small black rectangle with a screen was revealed to the group. He placed it on the nearest table, along with two other boxes of the same kind. Roman's eyes were wide open.
"Seeing as your Scrolls are definitely not the safest thing to show off around here, I decided to help you guys with recording your memories while you're here." Kay said. "This device is an IPod Touch, or simply iTouch. These are a few generations old by now, so they were relatively inexpensive. They can be used to communicate with each other, connect to the internet, and even take pictures."
"Wait," Winter spoke up, "You ran off and spent your own money to give this to us, right after I told you about my idea?"
"Well, it would be unfair for you guys to return without any sort of proof of our side's existence," Roman agreed. "And that's three iTouches,one for each team. Perfect choice, Kay. Speaking of which, here." Kay caught the small sandwich that Roman tossed at him and began eating it immediately.
"I activated all three devices instore," Kay said between bites. "So each group can take one and start using them right away."
Ruby, Jaune, and Winter each received an iTouch, and easily maneuvered their way through the apps. It made sense; their Scrolls were decades ahead of their own technology so this stuff must have been kid-level for them. The younger teens quickly found the camera app and started taking pictures of each other and their surroundings.
"Thank you Kay," Winter said with a grateful smile. Her sentiments were echoed by the rest of the group. "That's quite thoughtful of you."
"Not a problem," Kay smiled back as he finished scarfing down his lunch. "Shall we move to the tree and take more pictures?"
Nora had taken the iTouch from Jaune apparently, as she eagerly followed Kay to the decorated tree in Bryant Park as he led the group into a slightly less crowded area before letting them get into their own teams and taking quirky pictures with one another. Kay especially laughed as Ruby put bunny ears behind Weiss's head, much to the heiress's ire and Blake's amusement. Jaune was in charge of making sure Ren and Nora had a picture good enough to fit the hammer girl's directions. Suddenly, Nora pulled Oscar in and told Jaune to take a selfie with them.
Click. The somewhat quiet snap from Kay's side caught him off guard, and he turned to see Winter standing a few steps away with her camera facing him. She lowered the device, nodded at Kay, then turned and took pictures of the buildings around them. She also managed to take a couple pictures of Roman, which made Kay chuckle at the idea of presenting those pictures to Ironwood.
"That's fucking brilliant, dude." Roman compliment, stepping up beside Kay. "How much did that cost you?"
"For three previous generation iPods?" Kay shrugged. "Wasn't much. Definitely something they could use while they're here."
They ended up spending another fifteen minutes walking back to Times Square with much slower strides as the group truly took on the guise of foreign tourists. Their first stop was a fun one: Toys R Us.
"Is this a whole store dedicated to toys?" Nora's eyes were wide beyond perceived human proportions. That is, she was smooshing her face in excitement against Kay's as they entered the bustling store, rife with children.
"Yup," Kay nodded. Roman looked around with a jovial smile. "The paradise for children everywhere, Toys R Us."The eight adolescents, including Oscar, looked to each other and nodded in silent agreement. "Wanna look around?"
They would exit the store almost an hour later with Ruby and Yang holding a couple small bags of items. They were followed by Nora, who held a large teddy bear in her arms. Ren followed behind her, walking beside Roman.
"How do you manage, man?" The redhead asked the ninja.
"Day by day," Ren answered. "But it's worth it."
"That's the spirit." Roman smirked, clapping Ren on his back.
Blake, Winter, and Jaune were speaking amongst each other. Roman looked on with a raised eyebrow; recalling their first encounters in the show, he never would have guessed they would have gotten so close. Ren's voice quickly brought Roman out of his stupor.
"Ruby and Weiss told us what you talked about in the car," said the ninja. "As well as their ulterior motive for today. Did you plan for that to happen?"
"As I said to Ruby when we first met," Roman said, looking forward to his best friend at the front of the group. "The guy needs more friends."
"I see." Ren's eyes looked to the group as well with a small smile on his face.
The day went on as a blur of merging colors, between the rushing RWBY and ORNJ teams jumping from photo-op to souvenir store, to the majestic light shows that came to life as the winter sun went down. Kay was sure their iPods' memories would be filled by the end of the night.
"Where are we now, Kay?" Winter asked, stepping up beside Kay. The youths and Ozpin were enamored with their current surroundings. Between two skyscrapers was this giant courtyard including an ice skating rink, a large golden statue, multiple crystal exhibits, and of course, a gigantic tree.
"This is Rockefeller Center," Kay answered, pointing to the tree with a child-like grin. "This tree lights up every year with the most fanfare a tree would ever deserve. It's honestly incredible how people essentially worship this tree."
"It's beautiful." Winter whispered. Her blue eyes scanned the tree and traced over the complex interweaving lights. Her gaze caught and followed a projection of a snowflake on a nearby building."Not just the tree, this entire spectacle."
"Does Atlas not have anything like this?" Kay asked.
"Military parades can only be so momentous," Winter muttered. She recalled how the Council would often given overly large budgets for the most trivial of things and not for funding the defense of the kingdom.
"Hah," Kay chuckled softly. "You'll have to tell me more about them. I'm sure they're heavily overblown."
"I attended one as a rookie and pleaded with Ironwood to never let me stand on a float ever again." Winter admitted, taking a little pleasure in the banter. "Do you support your military?"
"Eh," Kay shrugged. If his response surprised Winter, she didn't show it. "I'm sure some people join it for the honor and dream of protecting the country, but there are definitely issues that need to be addressed, but they're quickly swept under the rug by propaganda. It's the same with certain local policies and forces."
"I'd be willing to discuss that when we get home, if you'd like." Winter offered. "I'd like to see if your views would garner any suggestions for improvement."
"I don't think my opinions would have much weight on your military." Kay responded with raised eyebrows. "But sure, if you think it'll help."
"It will."
The two seemed to reach a silent understanding and nodded, setting the appointment in their heads. There seemed to be a peaceful moment between them until another familiar voice called out to them.
"Kay, Winter!" Weiss called out to them as the teens were grouping together for a picture. "Come join us!"
"Shall we?" Kay gestured forward, like one would do holding an open door.
"We shall." Winter stepped forward, followed by the writer, as they happily joined the group. Roman had them grouped together tightly and made sure to take the pictures several times on each device: Ruby's, Jaune's, Winter's, and finally, Kay's.
Hope y'all enjoyed the update! Leave a comment below if you're feeling chatty. See you next chapter!
Much love, Kariotic.