Sun relaxed his grip from Weiss' shoulder, and leaned back in his chair.
"Trust me, alright? You just got done telling me how you were wrong about me from a first impression, before Cinnamon got here. Without her, we wouldn't have made it this far. There's more to it, but that's the truth."
"That's one way of putting it," Cinnamon agreed as she stood to her full height once again. She took up position leaning against the wall next to the bathroom door, with one sandaled foot pressed flat against it.
"Alright, alright," Weiss said, with a hint of nervousness in her voice. "Just, please, give me a little space, and let me think this through. There's a lot to cover, and… I'm going to need a bit of protection from the others, once it gets out that you're up to speed."
Cinnamon snorted as she shook her head. "And you call these others friends? What 'protection' do you need, exactly? Aren't you an inseparable team, according to the news that came out during the Vytal festival?"
"Weiss, has it really gotten that bad?" Sun asked in a far gentler tone.
"No! It's… not Ruby, or even Yang, that I'm worried about. It's Professor Ozpin, and Ruby's uncle Qrow. I get the distinct impression that they're not going to appreciate adding more people onto our cadre of adventurers. It's already becoming a bit difficult to manage, as-is," Weiss admitted as she began to wring her hands in her lap.
"Well, if it's any consolation, I won't be traveling with you," Cinnamon said with disdain. "I have my own affairs to attend to. I'll support whatever your endeavors may be from the sidelines, but the White Fang is my priority."
"Does JN-… do Jaune and the others know?" Sun asked.
"Yes, they're all well aware of what's going on. Did Blake mention the relics to you? I know she saw the relic of knowledge at Haven," Weiss replied.
Sun scratched his head. "Some weird gold and blue lamp looking thing, right? She mentioned it, but not what it does. So… what does it do?"
"Well that, I… don't know, exactly," Weiss admitted as she shrugged her shoulders.
"Convenient," Cinnamon added helpfully. "What do you know, that might be of use?"
Weiss shot Cinnamon an impotent glare, before continuing. "There are four relics- knowledge, creation, choice, and destruction. Each is protected by a vault within the four major academies, and each requires a maiden to unlock its potential. A maiden as in, spring, summer, winter, or fall, from the old fairy tale. Cinder is the fall maiden, and Yang's mother, Raven, is the spring maiden, who unlocked the vault at Haven to remove the relic of knowledge."
Sun couldn't help himself as Weiss finished speaking. "Why?"
"Why what?" Weiss replied.
"Why even remove it? If it's safe in the vault, and Cinder's after it, why even take the chance of bringing it out into the open?"
Cinnamon balked at Sun, and cut Weiss off before she could answer. "She likely didn't have a choice, given that she was at Haven to begin with. You don't know what these relics do, and now, your party has one in their possession. What's the plan?"
Weiss paused, and heaved a sigh. "That… is currently open for discussion. The only other thing I can tell you is that Professor Ozpin is, indeed, still alive… though likely not in the way you might think. A farmhand, Oscar Pine, found his way to Qrow not long ago. As it turns out, Professor Ozpin is capable of reincarnation, and he's living on through that boy."
Sun exchanged looks with Cinnamon, who seemed somewhat impressed for the first time since he'd met her. Slowly, Sun stood up, and walked his way over to the window.
"…you've got to be kidding me. Did I pass out and smash my head into something on the way to the floor?"
"If you did, then so did I," Cinnamon replied. "So, you're being led by an immortal professor, possess a presumably dangerous artifact with some sort of power, and you're dealing with legendary figures capable of casting actual magic, if these 'maidens' you're referring to are the ones I'm assuming they are. Anything else?"
"Yes, actually," Weiss offered. "Cinder may well be dead, Yang's mother has gone missing, and… Professor Ozpin has an enemy beyond just Cinder and her crew. There's apparently a woman named 'Salem' at the helm of it. She's capable of creating and controlling the forces of grimm, and will stop at nothing to get the relics into her possession."
Sun sneered as he turned and rested his palms on the window sill. "Oh, minor details you left out, there."
"I'm trying, alright?" Weiss whined as she, too, stood up. She folded her arms and glowered at Sun, as Cinnamon pushed off the wall and moved back to kneel beside Ilia.
"I think the bottom line, at this point, is that the situation has gotten incredibly serious, so long as these relics are in play. The two of you should sort your affairs and come up with a plan, alongside your teams, for dealing with the one in your possession. Once that's settled, bring me back into the picture, and we'll work out the steps from here. We don't have time to dawdle about, so get going, and make it happen."
Sun watched as Cinnamon picked up Ilia's hand again, and interlaced her fingers with those of her friend.
"And what are you going to do?"
"Simple. I'll keep watch over Ilia, while you and Weiss start making progress," Cinnamon answered. Weiss gave Sun a worried look, and he cast his own eyes down to the floor.
"But… I want to be here, when she wakes up."
Cinnamon rolled her eyes condescendingly. "Good for you. In case you haven't noticed, none of us have had a great track record for getting what we want, lately. I'm offering you time to let you get your situation sorted, get some sleep, and refocus. All the preparation in the world isn't going to matter if you're practically a zombie, Sun, and the only difference I can see at the moment is that you're not yet literally rotting. Do you trust me, or not?"
Weiss chimed in with confidence, though Sun had a feeling it wasn't quite genuine.
"I trust you. If Sun speaks highly of you, then I'll set aside my inclinations and assume he's making the right call. I'll send the leader of Team JNR over to help with the healing process."
Cinnamon paid her no attention at all as she looked over at Sun with a judgmental glare.
"…yeah. I do. Call me, as soon as anything changes. You can pull my info from Ilia's scroll, if you haven't already," Sun said. Cinnamon merely nodded, as Weiss gave her a small wave and made a hasty exit from the room. Sun lingered behind a moment, and approached Cinnamon.
"Something on your mind?" she asked, as she returned her gaze to Ilia.
"…I'm sorry that things keep getting tense, and shitty, and… just bad. I don't know how else to put it. Thanks for being here, and helping out," Sun finished awkwardly.
Cinnamon offered Sun a small smirk, before fixing him with a bewitching stare. "Just remember that, at the end of the day, it's faunus who will look out for you. Humans have failed you time and again, in probably more ways than I know."
Sun furrowed his brows as he looked down at Ilia, motionless and silent in her hospital bed. "…but faunus did this. Faunus killed Ghira, and faunus planned to destroy Haven Academy right alongside the humans. This isn't a matter of race, Cinnamon. It's a matter of individuals."
Cinnamon fumed at the statement, and narrowed her eyes. "Then keep in mind which individuals are worthy of your time, and trust. You might not like the answer, given the company you keep."
"Maybe not. I'll count you among the ones I can rely on, until you give me reason not to." Sun said nothing more as he turned and made a quick path through the room. He pushed his way through the door and closed it behind himself before turning to Weiss, who stood waiting with a look of unease on her features.
"Sun…"
"Weiss, I'm really sorry you had to put up with that, just now… and I'm sorry if I got a little aggressive. I'm not feeling like myself at all," Sun offered sheepishly. Weiss gave him a frown, and shrugged her shoulders.
"…maybe a little, but I understand. You really don't look good, Sun. Regardless, that woman is right about at least one thing- we need to get moving, and make progress… and you need to get sleep, and probably some food. Why don't I round up Blake, bring her up to speed, and plan a meeting with the rest of our extended team while you get some rest?" Weiss proposed.
Sun mulled over the offer, before slowly shaking his head. "Yeah. Yeah, alright, that sounds good… but I've got one thing I need to take care of, before I turn in."
"Sun…"
"One! Just one, I promise, and it'll be quick," Sun punctuated the statement by holding up one finger, before closing his hand into a fist. "After that, I'll find a place to get some sleep."
"I'll give you the address for the house we've been staying at, and you can rest in one of the upstairs bedrooms," Weiss replied. "But that 'one thing' had better be stress-free and fast, or Blake is going to have both of our heads."
Sun scratched the back of his neck. "It's… neither, but I'll handle it. It's gotta be me."
Weiss glared up at Sun, before walking forward and pulling him into a soft hug. Sun returned the gesture, as Weiss patted lightly at his back.
"No hard feelings, Sun. We're all a little stressed out, right now. Good luck, with whatever it is."
"Thanks," Sun replied. "I'm probably gonna need it."
Weiss offered a small wave as she retreated down the hallway. Sun watched her go, before removing his scroll from his shorts and tapping the screen a few times. He raised the device to his ear and let it ring, before the call connected.
"Hey, Neptune? What's the address of the place that you and the boys have been staying at?"
Sun shivered slightly as a cool breeze swirled around his shirtless chest. The frigid wind bit into the wound on his side a bit as he made his way up the small staircase, and found himself before a red door. Sun stared up at the dark green bricks of the massive apartment building, and shook his head. Several windows were boarded up on the upper floors, the stonework appeared misaligned and dirty, and the street outside smelled of rotting garbage.
"Sun!" came a voice that interrupted his thoughts. He turned around to find Neptune running up the street and holding out a hand.
"Neptune? Really, man? I can handle this on my own…"
Neptune slowed to a stop and doubled over to catch his breath at the foot of the small steps. He raised a finger before bracing his hands on his knees to breathe for a few moments. Sun waited patiently, until Neptune stood straight and shook his head.
"Don't care. Sage has been really uncool lately, and you're not at your best. I'm your wingman, guy, and this is a team thing. So, let's approach it as a team."
"A team of… two?" Sun asked, curiously.
"…shut up! At least I'm here, alright?"
Sun rolled his eyes and made his way into the hallway. The entire area had a faint smell of mold about it, and he pinched his nose as he moved toward the staircase.
"This place reeks."
"Yeah, well, we did the best we could, alright? There are only so many two-man jobs Sage and I could find in town. We had something better for a while, but Scarlet really screwed us over," Neptune complained as the duo began making their way up the steps.
"Any idea why? Anything at all that might tell us where the hell he is?" Sun asked as he looked over his shoulder.
"None. He just said that we were 'holding him back' by waiting on you, and preventing him from taking jobs up to his standard. Dude's always had delusions of grandeur, but I didn't think they went that far," Neptune recounted.
"…asshole," Sun accused. "He'll get what's coming to him, when I find him."
Neptune raised a brow as the two reached the second floor. "Uh, Sun? What do you mean? Why can't we just let it go, and move on with our lives?"
"I'm done getting stepped on," Sun snarled as he whirled on Neptune. "Yeah, maybe I left, and maybe it was a little selfish, but Blake needed me, alright!? I knew you three could look out for yourselves, and I knew she couldn't get on alone. I did what I had to do, in a shitty situation, to help out and protect one of my friends!"
"Whoa, whoa!" Neptune replied as he raised his hands defensively. "Sun, I'm not accusing you of anything! Calm down, man! You're practically steaming, and it's… a little scary…"
Sun paused, and found his chest rising and falling noticeably from his angry rant. He worked to rein in his breathing as he looked away from Neptune, and down the hall toward their destination. "…yeah. Sorry." He barely got one step away before Neptune's hand shot out to his shoulder, and stopped him in his tracks.
"Dude, are you sure this is a good idea? You look awful, you sound awful, and… you just kinda exploded on me for no reason. Sage is gonna push every button you've got, a-"
"Let him," Sun interrupted as he wrenched his shoulder out from Neptune's grip and began to walk again. His breathing picked up as it had before, and he stomped his way toward the apartment door.
Neptune jogged to keep up, and slipped around Sun to walk backward in front of him. "Sun, no, you're doing the crazy thing again!"
"I am not crazy!" Sun seethed. "Just wait outside. I'll handle this."
"How about I don't?" Neptune questioned as they reached the door. Sun fixed him with a death glare, and Neptune swallowed hard. "Calm down, or I'm not letting you in there. This isn't you, Sun! You're acting like some kind of…"
"Animal?" Sun finished for him. Neptune's face fell into a guilty expression as he looked down to the floor. "Is that what you were gonna say?"
"…no. Asshole, actually. This isn't you. The Sun I know wouldn't go stomping around while making vague threats and looking ready to strangle someone for disagreeing with him. Sage is already just about at that point with you, and right now, you're just looking for a fight. Admit it- you want him to open that door and start swinging, don't you? That's why I came." Neptune paused, and shifted his weight. "I'm worried about you, man. Blake's worried about you… I think everyone is, honestly."
Sun paused, and lowered himself to sit just outside the door, in the middle of the hallway. Neptune remained silent as he began to pace, and Sun closed his eyes.
"…it's really that bad?"
"Yes!" Neptune insisted as he threw his hands up. "Yeah, it's really bad! Everyone has their limits, and you're clearly at yours. Gonna be totally honest, I think this is a terrible idea right now. You need rest, not this. I know it's not your style to wait on things, but looking for a fight is only going to make things worse for you, me, and Sage. Trust me."
Sun felt his head begin to droop forward as he listened to Neptune's words, and then jerked forward as his eyes fluttered open again.
"…dude, come on. You're either about to go down for the count, or literally rip Sage's head off his shoulders. Neither one is productive," Neptune chided as he offered a gloved hand. Sun stared up the limb with weary eyes, before grasping it and pulling himself up to stand on shaky feet.
"…I'm not feeling so good."
Neptune nearly doubled over as he let out a sigh strong enough to deflate his entire body. "You don't say? Are my words just now starting to register? C'mon, lean on me, and let's get you to a bed."
"Weiss sent me an address," Sun mumbled as Neptune ducked under Sun's arm and wrapped it around his neck.
"Yeah, I know the place. Hang in there. Let's get you fixed up, and we can deal with this tomorrow, or the next day."
"Sorry," Sun said in a breathy voice as he began to walk once again. The last of his spiteful adrenaline fizzled out, and he felt himself dragging his feet heavily along the warped wooden floor.
"Nah," Neptune declined as he guided his friend. "Even the best leaders can't always lead. Sometimes, their second in command has to shoulder some of the burden. Save your breath, and just trust me. I've got you."
Sun nodded an affirmation. He felt his head droop once again, and remembered nothing of the journey back to the safe house beyond that point.
Author's Note:
Right- tomorrow's another holiday, so this is going up a bit early.
Next update on Thursday. It's... a little different from the rest of the story so far, to say the least.
-RD