Here we are at Chapter 3. Time for Weiss, Blake, and Yang to enter Ruby's dream together. I do not own RWBY. They belong to roosterteeth. Here's chapter 3. Enjoy.
Chapter 3: A Role to Play
"Okay, so when we enter the dream, we need to reach the castle and find out where Ruby could be inside," Blake goes over the plan.
"Yes, but the place is much larger than Beacon. Who knows how many rooms there are, or what they are even like inside. I never managed to get in," Weiss notes.
"Right, and then there's that guard dog lady you were talking about. What do we do if we run into her?" Yang asks.
"I was no match for her by myself. We might stand a better chance if we're all together, but I'd like to avoid her for as long as possible. Our goal is finding Ruby and taking down the Nightmare," Weiss says.
"Okay, then that will be our plan," Blake agrees.
Shion turns her hourglass around, "My aura has fully recovered. Now is the time to venture back into the dream. But remember, Ruby does not have a lot of time here. The longer she remains trapped in the dream, the worse her condition will become,"
"We get it, Professor Shion. I'm not letting this thing take my sister," Yang declares.
Glynda turns to Team JNPR, "As for you four, you have class to attend. I know you're worried about Ruby, but there's nothing you can do for her here. We'll let you know if there are any changes,"
Jaune sags a bit, "I wish there was something we could do to help,"
Pyrrha places a hand on his shoulder, "We just have to have faith in them. That's all we can do for now. Come on, let's leave it to Team RWBY,"
Ren nods, "Good luck to you all,"
"Yeah, and when you guys get Ruby back, we're gonna celebrate big time in the cafeteria!" Nora cheers, earning a glare from Goodwitch.
With that, Team JNPR vacates the room. Weiss, Blake, and Yang take their positions on Shion's strands and close their eyes.
"Now then, entrust yourselves to me. I will now invite you into the dream," Shion says as they fall asleep.
…
Weiss opens her eyes and finds herself back in the forest where she first started the last time. Checking her gear, she finds herself in the same outfit as the last time.
"Hey, Weiss!" she hears and looks over to see Yang and Blake approaching her.
Their outfits have changed as well. Blake's outfit is now a dark purple skintight suit under a sleeveless black kimono, black arm warmers going up to her shoulders, matching boots, and an oversized purple ribbon tied behind her back. The kimono is a little opened at the front, revealing the rest of her skin suit. Her ears are completely exposed and she even has a tail now. Her katana is holstered on her back. She looks like a bonafide ninja (think Sheena Fujibayashi from Tales of Symphonia). Meanwhile, Yang has her trusty shades on her head. As for her -clothes, she has on a pair of black pants with earth-colored armored boots. She has on a yellow halter top shirt under an earth-colored sleeveless jacket. The jacket is partially opened up and hanging off her shoulders. The jacket also has a long tail on Yang's left side (basically Elesis' outfit for her 4th path, 2nd job, Patrona, in Elsword). Her gauntlets remain, but they appear slightly bigger than before, as do the rounds on them.
"Wow, now you really do look like an Ice Queen," Yang checks her out.
"H-Hey, I am not-," Weiss takes a breath. "Blake, you know you look like some kind of ninja, correct,"
"Yeah, I guess this is how Ruby imagines me. My ears are out too. Guess Ruby prefers I leave them out," Blake inspects herself, her cat ears twitching.
"Ah, come on, they look so cute. I bet Ruby secretly wants to pet them. I know I do," Yang says, making Blake blush a bit at the idea. "I just love how my sister basically gave Ember Celica an upgrade. These things look like they had a growth spurt," she smashes her gauntlets together.
"What about your weapon, Weiss?" Blake asks.
Weiss takes out Myrtenaster, "The same thing happened to Myrtenaster. The Dust I use coats the blade in different elements based on the Dust type and I think the efficiency improved too,"
"Hmmm," Blake hums as she draws her katana. She throws its chain-scythe form and it goes farther than normal. Pulling it back, she takes out her sheathe sword and tries to combine them. The sheathe splits in half and fuses with the katana, becoming a three-bladed shuriken. She throws it and it spins in the air before returning to her. "I guess it's a bit different."
"Now, you really are a ninja," Yang teases her.
"Come now, we have a goal here. Shion said we should have-ah, here we are," Weiss pulls out four coins. "What about you guys?"
Yang and Blake each pull out four, "If we use all these up, then we'll be stuck here in the dream forever, right?"
"We'd best use them wisely," Blake adds.
"Okay, now onto the next issue. We need to move and reach the castle I found from before," Weiss says.
"Alright, saving the princess in the castle. I'm starting to feel like we're in of those fairytale books I read to Ruby when we were kids," Yang cracks her knuckles.
"Let's get moving then, before anyone finds us," Blake says, to which the two nod.
The group begin moving through the forest, with Yang and Blake following Weiss since she's been here before. After moving around for a bit, they come to a cliff and gaze at the city in the distance. Then Blake and Yang's eyes widen when they spot the castle further off.
"Wait... isn't that... Beacon?' Blake wonders.
"You think Ruby might be there?" Yang asks.
Weiss clenches her fists, "I believe she might be. It's as good a place as any. We're waking her up from this dream,"
Blake holds a hand on her shoulder, "We'll find her, but we can't rush in blindly. Come on, let's keep moving to the tower,"
Weiss calms herself and nods. She can't save Ruby if she doesn't keep her cool. She pulls out a coin, but Yang stops her.
"Hold on, what are you doing?' Yang asks.
"I left a door right outside the castle. If I create a door here, then we can take a shortcut straight to it," Weiss explains.
"Let's hold off on those for now. The fastest route isn't always the best one. Besides, Yang and I need to get the lay of the land here," Blake says.
Weiss sighs, but puts the coins away, "Okay, I'll hold off for now,"
"Let's go," Yang nods to the city.
They jump down and reach the city, finding one of Weiss' doors there.
"We can use this in case we need to make a hasty retreat. Let's keep moving. You said there were knights in red armor with scythes around here, right?" Blake asks.
Weiss nods, "Yes. No doubt they're a part of Ruby's thoughts in this dream,"
The trio move through the city. However, Weiss notices that there appear to be more knights on patrol than the last time.
"There sure are a lot of knights on patrol. I wasn't expecting so many," Blake notes as they hide behind an alley.
"It must've been from the last time I came here. A horde of grimm attacked the city and then the knights showed up to fight them off. Maybe that's why?" Weiss isn't quite sure.
"We'd best not get caught and find out. You said they address you as what now?" Yang asks.
"They called me 'Mistress Schnee'. Apparently I'm, or at least my counterpart in this dream, is supposed to be somewhere in the castle," Weiss explains.
Blake scratches her chin, "Mistress Schnee'? Perhaps your counterpart has a high position within the castle. I've read a number of fantasy novels that involved knights and kingdoms and all that. Maybe your close to the one who rules the castle here,"
Yang smirks, "What, like a concubine or something? 'Oh, Mistress Schnee, please join me in my bed chambers tonight," Yang makes a dramatic pose.
Weiss blushes at the insinuation, "Now is not the time for our heads to fall into the gutter, Yang! Stay on task!" she nearly yells.
"Wait!" Blake silences them and glances around a corner. A pair of knights are looking around for anything that seems off. "Yang, try to keep the jokes to a minimum. We can't be spotted yet,"
Yang sighs, "Fine, fine, I'll tone it down. Question: if Weiss has a counterpart with a spot in the castle, what about you and me?" she points between Blake and herself.
"I didn't see your counterparts when I was here last. Maybe they were in the castle somewhere," Weiss thinks.
"Perhaps. I wonder what kinds of positions we had. But, since we're here, then it's likely that our counterparts aren't here anymore. We'd best keep moving and think about it later," Blake says.
Weiss nods, "Right,"
They move through the streets of the city. As they do, they take a closer look at the stalls and businesses throughout the place. Though there are people moving about, they are all just shadow people. No descriptive features whatsoever other than the exact shape of their bodies. Like they were just there to fill a space in the dream. As they look around, Yang gets a pensive look on her face.
"Guys, I think I have an idea why this place looks like a fairytale," Yang says.
"What do you mean?" Weiss asks.
"When we were kids, our mom, Summer Rose, would read bedtime stories to us. Heroes fighting monsters and saving the day. You know, stuff like that. After she... after she died, I took over that role for Ruby. She was still so young at the time. It was those stories that became one of the reasons she wanted to be a huntress. Protecting those that can't protect themselves, and never asking for anything in return. Even as a kid, she knew that's what she wanted to be," Yang says as she gazes around at the dream.
Yang's speech hits something deep within Weiss' heart. She wanted to become a huntress to restore the honor of the Schnee name. The honor that her father destroyed with his greed. To uphold her grandfather's legacy. When she came to Beacon, she thought that she'd make a better leader than Ruby, that she was a better huntress than her. And yet, it was Weiss that was the first member of their team to be possessed by a Nightmare. And the only reason Ruby is possessed now... is because of her. Ruby is thinking about everyone, but Weiss... Who was she thinking about?
Weiss sighs, "Once again, I realize how wrong I am,"
This catches her teammates' attention, "Weiss?" Blake says.
"I once told Ruby that I'd be a better leader than her, and that I'd make a better huntress than her. I studied and trained, but it seems I forgot the most important thing to being a huntress. Huntsmen and huntresses fight to protect the people. Not just a select few, but everyone. But, I wasn't thinking about that when I enrolled at Beacon. I was just being selfish. Ruby was, however, and still is thinking of others. As I said, I am once again shown how wrong I am. About a lot of things. Ruby puts others before herself, even me. Even when I didn't deserve it. She deserves to be our leader and a huntress. And I'm going to tell her that when we wake her up," Weiss decides. Her words surprise Yang and Blake, which she notices. "What?"
"No, it's nothing just... I never expected this softer side from you, Weiss. You've always given people the cold shoulder until recently, except for Pyrrha though. Especially Blake and Ruby," Yang notes.
"This all must've really affected you, didn't it," Blake says.
Weiss looks away, unwilling to look them in the eye, "It did. It all did. This has all forced me to take a good, hard look at myself in the mirror... And I didn't like what looked back. Please, enough about me. Let's go find Ruby,"
They move further into the city, coming closer to the other side. Once they do, Blake and Yang notice how big the wall is around the castle. Weiss spots the door she left before. Weiss conjures some glyphs for her and Yang to hop up to the top. Yang's gauntlets would make too much noise. Meanwhile, Blake used her chain-scythe to climb up to the top. Getting to that point, they spot more red knights on patrol. Once the coast is clear, they move into the castle grounds and quickly find a spot to hide in the shadows.
"Weiss, this was as far as you got right?" Yang asks.
"Yes. We need to find a way in without being spotted," Weiss replies.
"I have an idea. Follow me," Blake takes the lead.
They follow behind her, matching her pace as the Faunus moves through the courtyard to reach the castle itself. Blake looks around, spotting a window a few stories above them. Nodding to said window, Weiss nods and creates more glyphs to get them to it. Once there, Blake finds the window is locked. Luckily for her, she learned a thing or two about lock picking during her days in the White Fang. They managed to get inside, and luckily, no one was around to see them.
"Do I want to know why you know how to pick locks?" Weiss gives her a scrutinizing look.
Blake glances away, "Let's just focus on finding Ruby,"
"Hold on, let me call Shion. We need to update her on our progress," Weiss says.
Using a coin, Weiss calls Shion.
…
In the real world, Shion's phone rings and she answers, "Shion here... I see, good work. Look for anything that could lead you to Ruby's location. There must be some clues around. Leave a bread crumb if you need, but do so sparingly. Contact me again when you know more," and Shion hangs up before looking to the professors. "They're in the castle. The real challenge begins now," she says, to which Ozpin nods.
…
Back in the dream, Weiss lets the phone go, "Professor Shion says we need to find some kind of clue that will lead us to Ruby, or at least point us in the right direction,"
"Okay, but should we split up and search or stay together?" Yang asks.
"I think we should stay together for now. We haven't seen that woman Weiss described yet, but that can be considered a good thing for now. And none of us know what could be lurking in this place," Blake suggests.
With a decision made, they move through the castle halls together. As they search, they notice how there are roses of different colors almost everywhere they go. As they come around a corner, Weiss quickly steps back, prompting the others to do the same. Weiss peaks around the corner, spotting two red knights on patrol.
"Mistress Schnee still has not been located. All knights on patrol are to be on heavy guard. This is an order from the commander of the royal guard," one knight says.
"I heard Lady Belladonna and Captain Xiao Long have also disappeared. What is the meaning of this? Abandoning their positions and leaving her side at such a critical time. The grimm are clawing at the gates of our fair kingdom, and Her Grace is worried for her kingdom. They shouldn't be off galivanting when they have their duties to perform," the second says as they start approaching the team.
They look around and find one door nearby. Blake quickly picks the lock and they race inside, closing the door before the knights come around the corner.
"That was too close. You think they know we're..." Weiss trails off as she looks at Blake and Yang, who stare at the room they found themselves in.
Inside, they find a large canopy bed up against one wall, a few dressers and desks, and a window overlooking part of the castle. However, what they also notice is how the furniture and trinkets within are either colored red or white, with the floor and walls being the only exceptions.
"This must be some kind of royal bedchamber or something," Blake notes as they look around.
"And how do you figure that? Yang asks.
"I've read fantasy novels before, remember. This place certainly looks fit for royalty," Blake replies.
Weiss looks around until she notices a picture frame up on a wall, on the left side of the bed. In the frame shows a picture of Weiss, or at least this world's version of her, sitting in a regal chair with her rapier on her lap.
"I guess this is the version of me in this dream," Weiss mutters.
"Hey, guys look at this!" Yang calls to them. They move to the other side of the bed, finding Yang staring at another portrait. "Is that... Ruby?"
Before them is a portrait of Ruby, wearing a black and red dress while sitting upon a small throne, hands clasped on her lap, and her scythe resting behind the chair.
"Ruby... it's like she's some kind of princess, or queen, in this dream. That chair is certainly not something for just anyone to sit in. Perhaps this is her bedchamber in the dream," Blake notes.
"But, then what's Weiss doing in here? Her picture's here and even half of the stuff in here is colored white," Yang notes.
Weiss has a thought then, "I remember that woman saying that I 'abandoned my duty'. Perhaps my duty relates to Ruby in some way. But, what if-," she stops when she notices something peeking out from under one of the pillows on the bed.
She moves the pillow, finding a small box hidden underneath. Opening it, she finds Ruby's rose emblem within, but in white. More importantly, the second she opened the box, music started playing a soft melody.
"A music box?" Blake's ears twitch.
"Hmm, not my tune exactly. Prefer something more upbeat," Yang jokes.
Weiss' eyes widen as she listens to the melody, "Wait... is this..." she recognizes this song and closes her eyes. "...Mirror, tell me something... Tell me who's the loneliest of all? Mirror, what's inside of me? Tell me, can it all be turned to stone... Mirror, mirror, what's behind you? Save me from the things I see. I can keep it from the world. Why won't you let me hide from me... Mirror, mirror, tell me something... Who's the loneliest of all?... I'm the loneliest of all..." she finishes her singing as she closes the box, taking the emblem with her.
"Wow, that was actually pretty cool, Weiss," Yang notes with awe.
"Weiss, was that..." Blake looks to her teammate.
"One of my songs. I sang it at a recital one time. Back then, I truly was lonely. A family torn apart because of my father, my sister off in the military. My mother reduced to drinking. And my little brother being a conniving weasel. I had a big mansion full of things, but it was still so... empty. So lonely," Weiss looks to the white rose emblem in her hand. "But, then I came to Beacon, where everything changed,"
"Weiss, I don't mean to assume or overstep, but given what we've seen here, I think that maybe Ruby cares about you more than you know," Blake says.
"How'd you figure that?" Yang asks.
"Look around, Yang. This is a bedchamber, not just for Ruby, but for Weiss as well. And the counterpart of Weiss in this dream has some kind of duty that connects her to Ruby. Maybe a duty that requires Weiss to be right by her side," Blake says.
Weiss sees where she's going with this, "Wait, are you saying that in the dream, Ruby and I..." she couldn't finish the sentence as a blush forms on her cheeks.
"Woah, woah, woah, no offense, Ice Queen, but that's a bit of a stretch. I mean, while things between you and Ruby have improved, which I'm grateful for, no way has it gotten that good that fast. Besides, Ruby would've told me if she was crushing on someone. Even if that someone treated her like trash not too long ago," Yang offers a little glare at Weiss, making her look away shamefully.
"That's another topic for another time. However, this might also be our ticket to finding Ruby," Blake says.
"What do you mean?" Yang asks, curious.
"If the Weiss in this world is that close to Ruby, then maybe we could use that. With us here, our counterparts have left their posts. What those posts are, I don't know. But..." Blake leaves the idea in the air.
"If we play along according to these roles, it might give us an idea of where Ruby is. I'll let the guards capture me and bring me to wherever they lead me. You guys remain behind and in the shadows. Once I'm alone, I'll create a door for you. You'd best make a door here as well," Weiss says.
"Alright, I'll take care of that," Yang flips a coin and a door appears off to the side. "You sure you'll be okay, Weiss?"
"I'll be fine. We just need to play along for now," Weiss says and leaves the room. Walking through the halls, she eventually comes across a pair of knights patrolling the halls.
"It's Mistress Schnee!" the guards notice her.
"Sir knights, I am here to return to my duty. My apologies for leaving so suddenly. Another matter took away my attention that had to be dealt with," Weiss tries to act in the most regal way possible.
Being in an upper-class family has its advantages.
The knights approach her, "Mistress Schnee, you mustn't wander off so carelessly. Please, come with us,"
The knights escort her away while Blake and Yang watch, "So far so good. Now we wait," Blake says, though she can't help but worry for Weiss' safety.
And that's the chapter. Weiss, Blake, and Yang infiltrate the castle, but still have no idea where Ruby is. Weiss decides to play her role in the dream, but will it only lead to more danger? Until then, please Read and Review.