Here we are at Chapter 79. Let's see how the gang is doing as the fall semester gets closer at Haven. Just listened to the RWBY Volume 6 soundtrack and I loved it. So far, I think my favorite song from that soundtrack is Indomitable. Rest in Peace, Monty Oum. I do not own RWBY or Tales of Berseria. They belong to their respective owners. Here's chapter 79. Enjoy.


Chapter 79: Another Tough Talk

It is morning in Mistral and Velvet and Ruby are sitting under the tree in the courtyard, Ruby napping in Velvet's embrace. After kicking the crap out of Zaveid the day before, Velvet is glad to have some peace and quiet in the morning with her girlfriend. Velvet looks down at Ruby, seeing the younger girl snuggle a little closer to her as she rests. Velvet smiles and gently kisses her head. This, however, seems to rouse the girl from her slumber as her eyes flutter open and she looks up at her girlfriend with a smile.

"Have a nice nap, Ruby?" Velvet asks.

Ruby giggles before laying her head back against Velvet's chest as they watch the sun rise.

"Yeah, things were a little crazy yesterday, so this is a nice change of pace," Ruby says.

"Yeah, after that talk with Yang and Weiss, and then having to knock Zaveid down a peg again, I felt like I needed at least a peaceful morning like this. That talk with Yang was a little more exhausting then I originally thought," Velvet notes.

"Hey, you make it sound like talking with me is a bad thing," they hear and look to see Yang and Weiss coming up to them, with Weiss carrying a tray with a few cups of coffee and a cup of tea for Velvet in her hands.

"If you're still a little tired, then this should help you perk right up," Weiss says. Yang sits next the couple, and happily accepts a cup of coffee from her girlfriend. Weiss then hands the tea to Velvet, who nods in thanks. However, when she is about to hand the next cup to Ruby, the scythe-wielder seems a little hesitant, and Weiss knows exactly why.

"Don't worry, I made sure to put in ludicrous amounts of sugar into your drink," Weiss rolls her eyes.

"Yay, nice Weiss saves the day," Ruby says as she reaches for the cup, only for Weiss to pull it back.

"I will spill this on you and it will burn," Weiss retorts.

"Heh-heh-heh, um thanks," Ruby chuckles nervously as she takes the cup, making Velvet chuckle a bit herself while Weiss sits next to Yang.

"Well, this is nice. The four of us, sitting out here, watching the sun rise with couple nice drinks in our hands. Still a little hard to believe that we're in Mistral," Yang notes.

"How do you think I feel?" Velvet notes.

"Huh, good point," Yang replies.

"Now if only Blake was here, then this moment would be even better," Velvet says.

At hearing Blake's name, Yang becomes bitter, "Yeah, well, she made her choice," she says bitterly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Velvet asks, while Ruby grows concerned.

"I mean she could've been here if she just stuck around. It's no big deal though. We'll be fine without her," Yang notes.

"Yang, don't tell me you don't want Blake here with us?" Weiss asks, placing a hand on her right arm.

"Why would I want her here?" Yang replies, her expression surprising Weiss a bit.

"Are you still mad at her for leaving?" Ruby asks.

Yang shakes Weiss' hand off her arm and scoffs, "Oh, whatever gave you that idea, Ruby? No, I'm totally fine. I'm great," Yang replies.

"Yang, please, just calm down," Weiss asks.

"Don't tell me to calm down!" Yang yells at her girlfriend

Her outburst startles Ruby, but it scares Weiss a bit that her girlfriend would yell at her like that.

Velvet activates her demon claw and aims it at Yang, "You need to calm down, Yang," Velvet tells her.

Realizing what she just said and did, Yang calms down a bit and her eyes turn back to normal. They then see her left hand shaking while holding her cup.

Yang calms down a bit more and looks at Weiss, "Weiss, I'm-," Yang begins to apologize.

However, Weiss quickly stands up and walks away without giving her a chance to speak, and not letting anyone see her face.

Yang gets up eventually and leaves as well, leaving just Ruby and Velvet as they watch the pair go. Velvet deactivates her demon claw as she looks at Ruby with a concerned look.

"That certainly didn't go well," Velvet mentally notes.

Meanwhile, in the early evening in Menagerie, Rokurou is walking through town, checking out the scene for anything unusual or any more signs of White Fang activity. So far, he hasn't really found anything, but then an idea comes to mind and he decides to head to the port. Reaching the port as the Faunus there begin to pack up and head back to their homes, Rokurou notices a distinct ponytail on one of the rooftops before disappearing behind a building. Deciding to investigate, Rokurou heads in that direction. Heading down a back alley, he finally finds what he's looking for in the form of Ilia, speaking with a few other Faunus.

"Have you sent the note?" one with bat wings asks.

"Yes, Yuma. I wrote it in a way that only Blake would recognize and that she would find. She'll come to me, and then we'll spring the trap," Ilia says.

"Good, and while you're taking the traitor to High Leader Taurus in Mistral, we'll launch our attack on the Belladonna home and kill her family. Then, there won't be anyone to stop us here in Menagerie. Progress will finally come to our people here," Yuma says.

"Yes... A necessary sacrifice," Ilia replies, though she seems a little hesitant when saying that.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that," they hear and look to see Rokurou walking from out of the shadows. "Is this a private party, or can anyone join in on the fun?" Rokurou jokes.

"The samurai. Argh, I must get the others ready. You three, deal with him," Yuma says before taking off into the air.

Rokurou pulls out his blades, getting a good look at his opponents. He sees Ilia, a male Faunus with short black hair and some kind of scales on his face, and a girl with short gray hair and gray hands with holes in her palms. The girl pulls out a knife while the boy brings out a short blade. Ilia attacks first by swinging her whip at him, but Rokurou leans to the side to evade it and runs at them. The boy meets his charge and goes to swing his sword at him, but Rokurou blocks it with his left blade and then swings with his right blade at his left side, leaving a large gash across the boy's chest. The boy screams in pain before Rokurou kicks him into some crates, taking him out of the fight. Ilia sees this and growls before attacking with her whip again. However, Rokurou swings his left blade to knock it away. The other girl tries to attack with her knife, but Rokurou blockd with his right blade held behind him and then spins around to swing his right blade at her, knocking the knife out of hr hands. Ilia comes in, thrusting her whip in its sword form at him, but Rokurou deflects it with his left blade, followed by a knee shot to her gut, knocking the wind out of her and sending her onto her hands and knees. The other girl then surpises Rokurou a bit by firing off some webbing from her palms, wrapping around his body and trapping his arms in the sticky substance.

"You won't get in our way!" The girl yells.

Ilia regains her breath and gets back up, "Hold him right there, Trifa. I'll finish him," Ilia says.

Rokurou just smirks, "You would think so, huh," he says, and then with movements too fast to see, the webbing around him is cut to ribbons and he's free.

"Wha-but how?!" Trifa yells.

However, Rokurou is already on her and makes a fast dual strike with his blades and then appears right behind her. Trifa then falls onto the ground, unconscious.

"Trifa!" Ilia yells fearfully.

"Don't worry, she's still alive, just knocked out. I used the back of my blades. Can't say your other friend there was as lucky. Sorry," Rokurou says as he turns to face her again.

"You'll pay for that. You won't stop this!" Ilia seethes.

"Stop what? You from hurting someone that deep down, you actually care a lot about?" Rokurou asks.

Ilia is taken aback by this for a moment, "You... you don't know what you're talking about," she retorts.

"I know that you care about Blake and that you don't want her to get hurt. So why are you trying to kill her family and then bring her to Adam Taurus, who will most likely kill her as well?" Rokurou asks.

"The Belladonna's have done nothing to help the Faunus. They'll only hold us back from doing what needs to be done. We must fight back to protect ourselves!" Ilia says before she swings her whip around again.

Rokurou swings his left blade to deflect it, and then runs fast at her. Ilia tries to defend herself, only for Rokurou to expertly thrust his right blade at her hand, knocking her whip out of her hand. He then kicks her into a pair of crates, crashing into them. A moment later, Ilia slowly crawls out, hurt, but okay, until she looks up to see Rokurou standing over her, with his left blade aimed at her throat.

Back in Mistral, Yang stands in front of her and Weiss' room, knowing that the former heiress is in there. She goes to knock on the door, but stops short of touching it, unable to find anything to say.

"Just go talk to her," she hears and looks back to see Eizen standing in the hallway. "There's no use in avoiding the subject. She's your teammate and your girlfriend. Whatever you did, apologize for it and try and make up with her. And make sure you don't ever make the same mistake again," he says before taking his leave.

Yang watches him go and then sighs before finally building up the courage and knocking on the door.

"Weiss... I'm coming in," Yang says and slowly opens the door to see Weiss sitting on one bed, her face focused on looking outside the window in the room. "Weiss..." Yang says again, but still gets no answer. Yang sighs again and goes to kneel before Weiss. "Weiss, please just look at me and hear what I have to say. After I'm done, you can do whatever you want. Please," Yang begs. After a few tense moments, Weiss finally turns her face to Yang, showing an expression that mixes anger, fear, and sadness. Seeing such an expression on her girlfriend's face makes Yang regret her earlier actions even more, knowing she is the cause of it. "I want to say I'm sorry that I yelled at you. I didn't mean to scare you like that, or at all. I won't try and make any excuses for my actions. Scaring you like that is the last thing I ever want to do to you," Yang says.

Weiss just stares at her for what feels like an eternity to Yang before she finally sighs herself and relaxes her expression.

"Fine, I'll forgive you. But, you will NEVER do that to me ever again. UNDERSTOOD?" Weiss asks, though the tone in her voice leaves no room for discussion.

Yang gulps a bit, but then gently takes Weiss' hand into her own, "I promise," Yang says planting a soft kiss on her hand for emphasis.

"Good. Now then, we have something else to talk about," Weiss notes.

Yang quickly figures out what that something is and sits on the bed next to Weiss, getting bitter again.

"I don't want to talk about it," Yang says bitterly.

"Yang, look me in the eye," Weiss asks, and Yang does so. "Did you ever feel alone in your life?" she asks.

Yang seems a little surprised by this question for a moment, "I... Yeah. After my mom left and then we lost Summer, I was... alone. Dad was busy with school, and feeling sorry for himself. Qrow was drinking, and Ruby could barely speak. I had to pick up the pieces. I had to keep us together. All by myself. I wasn't like you, Weiss. I didn't have a big family with big events like dinners and recitals to deal with," Yang replies.

"Yang... I was alone too," Weiss admits. Yang looks her way, but says nothing, looking surprised. "My father never truly cared about me, or my sister, or my mother. The only reason he married her was for the family name. They had a big fight, and that was that. Separate recitals, separate dinners, a glass of wine here, a glass of wine there. Then, it was NO recitals, no dinners, a bottle of wine here, and... well, you get the idea. My family was never a true family," Weiss says.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have assumed..." Yang trails off.

"You're right though, I don't know loneliness like you do. I have my own version. And so does Blake," Weiss says.

"She doesn't have to be alone though. I was here for her. We all were! She chose to leave us," Yang retorts,

"Yes, she did. But ask yourself this: why did she leave?" Weiss replies.

"What are you talking about?" Yang asks.

"The entire time Blake was at Beacon, she was afraid to open up to people. She tried to keep her past separated from us. She tried to protect us. Eventually, those walls she put up came down. And the moment they did, the one thing she was afraid of actually happened. The universe proved her right," Weiss explains.

"No one blamed her for anything! It wasn't her fault! If she had just talked to us, she would've known that! How could I be there for her if she doesn't let me? What if I needed her here for me?" Yang asks as she buries her face in her hands and starts sobbing a bit.

Weiss lets her sob for a moment before coaxing her to look at her and gently wipes the tears away.

"I know it's not easy. I wish she hadn't left too. The only thing we can do now is be there for her when she's ready. When she comes back to us," Weiss says, smiling a bit.

Yang looks away, "If she comes back," she mutters sadly.

"She will. Yang... You, Ruby, Velvet, and even Blake are more like family to me than my brother or even my own father. I would do anything for you four, and I'm willing to bet Blake feels the same way. So, when she's ready, I'll be there for her. And like always, I'll be there for you too," Weiss says, placing a soft kiss on Yang's cheek.

The loving gesture not only makes Yang calm down, but it helps her smile a bit. They hear a knock at the door, and look to see Ruby creeping through the door, with Velvet right behind her.

"Is, uh... everything okay?" Ruby slowly asks.

Yang and Weiss smile at each other before looking at the other couple, "Yeah, everything's okay now, Ruby," Yang replies.

Ruby sighs in relief, "Oh, that's good. I was getting worried," she says.

"Yeah, and I was worried I was going to have to kick your butt again for being an idiot," Velvet says.

Yang rubs her head, "Yeah, I'm sorry about blowing up on you guys like that. I was being an idiot," she apologizes.

Ruby sits next to her sister, "It's okay, Yang. I know that you were hurt when Blake left, but... I really want Team RVWBY back together again. Is there a chance you would like that too?" Ruby asks.

Yang just stares at her sister before pulling her in for a hug, "That sounds like a wonderful idea. When Blake gets back, we'll welcome her back... Together," she says.

"Thanks, Sis," Ruby replies and hugs her sister again.

Back in Menagerie, Ilia is still looking up at Rokurou as he has the tip of his blade aimed at her throat.

"Wanna keep going? It's not going to change anything," Rokurou asks.

"It's too late. The White Fang will destroy the Belladonnas, and then no one will stop us from destroying Haven Academy," Ilia retorts. Rokurou sighs before sheathing hi swords. "W-What are you doing?" she asks, confused.

"There's no point in fighting someone who's heart is not in it. For once in your life, just be honest. You don't want to see Blake hurt, do you?" Rokurou asks, looking at her with a bit of pity.

Ilia is taken aback by his question, "I-I already told you, Blake and her family are only holding the Faunus back. They have to be taken out of the picture," Ilia angrily retorts.

Rokurou kneels down to her, "Hatred only breeds more hatred, and that only leads to more violence and death. Now, I love a good brawl as much as the next guy, and I've killed plenty of people before, but still... Some problems can't be solved through fighting alone. Even more so when you're lying to yourself. Tell me this: do you really think your parents would approve of something like this? For you to become a monster like the Grimm?" he asks.

"You have no right to even speak about my parents! You didn't know them!" Ilia retorts as she struggles to get up onto one knee.

"Maybe, but I do know you. Everything about a person is revealed in how they fight, and from our brawl, I can see... That you're lost. Tell me: why do you think this is the right thing to do?" Rokurou asks.

Ilia goes to retort again, but finds no words coming out of her mouth. Any rebuttal she had died as tears start to form in her eyes.

"Because I... Because I don't know what else to do," Ilia says as she starts crying. "I don't know what else to do," she cries again.

Rokurou stands up, "And now the truth comes out. Now tell me: do you want to hurt Blake?" he asks.

"I... I... I don't. I don't want to hurt Blake. I want to help her," Ilia says through her tears.

"Ilia," she hears and looks to see Blake and Sun approach them. "Rokurou, what's going on?" Blake asks.

"It's better that you ask her," Rokurou says, gesturing to Ilia.

Blake walks up to Ilia and helps her up, "Ilia, what's going on?" Blake asks.

"Blake, I'm so sorry. I was supposed to lure you here into a trap, while the rest of the White Fang here attack your home to kill your parents," Ilia confesses.

"WHAT?! But why!" Blake yells.

"Adam wants them gone, and he wanted you brought to him in Mistral. But I can't do this anymore. Please, we have to go back and help your parents. We have to stop Corsac and Fennec," Ilia says, wiping her tears away.

"What should we do? Can we trust her?" Sun asks.

Blake stares between him, Rokurou, and then Ilia. After a few moments, she nods her head.

"I can. Come on, you can explain everything on the way there. We have to move!" Blake says and takes off running, with the others right behind her as she tries to call her parents.


And that's the chapter. Weiss helps Yang realize her mistake of being mad at Blake, and Rokurou helps Ilia realize what is truly important to her. Now the battle for Menagerie truly begins, while the others prepare before the Fall semester at Haven begins. Who know what will happen next? Until then, please Read and Review. Happy 4th of July!