Blake woke the next morning to daylight streaming in through the windows and an empty spot next to her. She could hear noises downstairs. The sound of a certain human clattering around.

Hopefully he isn't breaking anything, the oaf. A gentle smile tugged at her mouth.

She visited the bathroom, and smoothed her hair. Then frowned at herself.

Ah well.

Downstairs, she found Hegsih had been fiddling with a wall-mounted scroll.

"Trying to break the climate control?"

"Eh? Oh no. I was hoping to figure out whether this thing was smart-enabled." That got a questioning look. "Controlled other stuff." He pointed at the screen embedded in the wall. "Like the TV."

"Tee Vee?"

"The…. View screen? Broadcasts?"

"Oh… the CCT Broadcasts. You control that from your…. oh. She looked down at the scroll in her hand."

"I'm starting to see a problem."

"Yeah. Maybe they have some spares around somewhere, you know in case one gets broken. "I'll dig around."

"Thanks. I'm starting to get withdrawal. I need data! My exocortex is broken!"

She shook her head, charmed despite not understanding all the terms. She got the gist. "Oh, you have these back home?"

"Not quite this fancy, but basically yes. I think we have broader coverage, but less computing power."

"Right. Those satellite things in space you talked about." She sighed. "That would have saved me a lot of heartache."

"Yeah, but not nearly as fulfilling." He smirked.

"Lech."

"I prefer shameless." He laughed, then frowned. "Seriously Blake, I'm feeling pretty pathetic, here. At some point, you're going to get tired of babysitting me. I need to be able to learn how things work on my own without breaking your ears with a thousand questions."

"Okay, okay. Think you can rustle up some cold breakfast while I dig around?"

"What no cooking?"

"I see homelessness, fire, and fear in our future."

"Right. No cooking."

She found what she was looking for in a cabinet in what looked like a small office or meeting room, just off the sitting area. Several Scrolls, plugged into chargers. She pulled one out, swiped it, and was greeted by a menu. A few names had accounts already set up. Weiss was one. Lower left was an option for "guest". She clicked.

Password

Gah. Her eyes cast about, and found a sticky piece of paper on the inside wall of the cabinet.

ABC123

Seriously?

She typed it in, and it took.

Yeah. So much for security.

The Scroll's home screen flared to life, listing a plethora of helpful links, including one called "Cabin Systems." She picked around a bit, verifying that it had only limited access to systems that wouldn't, for example, extinguish the fireplace and then turn the fuel on full blast causing massive destruction and an embarrassed Popsicle-Man. Satisfying herself with that, she considered what else he might want.

The net was clearly marked, including a search field. He could figure that out, right?

There was also a spot for message and voice access. But that would require… hmm… can you do that? Just make up a new account? She'd never tried that. Never had to.

She poked around a minute.

Well, what do you know…

"Hegs, can you come here for a minute?"

"Got my hands full!"

"Oh. Sorry." She took the device to him. "I need your retina and thumbs."

"Excuse?"

"I'm setting up a communications account for you, Brownskin." He stilled, and her ears wilted.

"I'm sorry. Did… did I use a slur?"

"No. No that's not…" he smiled. "Dad used to call me that, when I was kid."

"Oh, I won-"

"No, it's okay. You. You're allowed." He eyed the scroll hungrily. "Now, show me this portal to a world of wonder, shining, shimmering, splendid."

She gave him directions and watched as he did the needful. "It wants some basic contact information. What do I put for name and stuff?"

"Hmm.. just…take your own advice. Put your actual info, best you can."

"Oh this is going to be hilarious."

Name: Hegsih Jorgensen

Kingdom:

He pondered, biting his tongue and sticking it out a bit. His most recent home address wouldn't work for that, but at least nominally, his birthplace…

Kingdom: Norway

Well, it was true. They did still have a King, even if it was just ceremonial.

City/Village: Bergen

And so on. When he was done, it created what Blake told him was an all-purpose address.

.

"Okay, now what?"

"Now people can search on your name, or your village of… Bergen?" Her eyes danced. "And find you. And they click whether they want to send a message, or a recording, or a voice call, or a video call."

"Ok, and who pays for all that?"

Blake blinked. Pays? It's the CCT network. "It's… paid for?"

"Ahhh…socialism. I knew it! The Proletarian Utopia!"

"Hegsih…"

"Da Komrade?"

"You're doing it again, and I don't have a YourWorldWebNet or whatever the hell you called it to look up all the stupid references you keep making."

"Well, maybe we'll have to fix that. Can I start a blog? A wiki?"

Blake deformed her face she rubbed it so hard. "I'm going to give your number to Ruby, if you don't stop."

That… sounded like an actual threat.

Speaking of which. "Have you called the Crew yet this morning?"

"You are worse than dad."

"Just looking out for you." She gave him a side-eye, but he wasn't grinning. He meant it.

She sighed. "Fine. Right after we eat."

"Great. And then you can send me to my room. I want to be sent to my room. I've got a lot of reading up to do."

The calls went fine. Mostly they just thanked her for checking in, asked how she was doing, and when she was coming back.

"Not yet. Maybe tomorrow? I'm playing this by ear."

They didn't push. Weiss seemed about to say something a couple of times, and bit it back.

When she went upstairs, she found Hegsih thoroughly engrossed.

"How goes the research?"

"This place is fuccckkkeddd uppp."

"Gee, thanks."

"No seriously. You have the makings of a paradise, except for the psychic-soul-sensing murdermonsters roaming the countryside, in seemingly unlimited numbers, attracted to negative emotions which seems like a really shitty thing to do to hum- er, people-anity." He waved his hand, "And then you have these Kingdoms, which are nominally democratic, except when they aren't. And Atlas lording it over everyone. And then there's Menagerie, which should be a Kingdom, but can't get recognition because apparently humans aren't racist here, but they are just as fucking bigoted as they are back home."

"Whoah slow down there chief." She realized he was actually angry about that.

"No. I'm not done. I haven't even started on the absolute shit cherry on the midden pile, the fact that Mantle and practically all the rest of the Kingdoms are dependent on a resource that is monopolized by… wait for it… the asshole who just happens to own the cabin we are staying in."

Blake stepped back, shocked.

"Yeah, kinda hard not to notice the logo everywhere. So much for Power to the Proletariat."

Blake recovered and snapped back. "Ok. Stop. You are seriously freaking me out. How the hell did you figure all that out so fast?"

He paused. "Sorry. Mom says I have an overdeveloped sense of justice. It gets me in trouble sometimes." He took a deep breath. "And like I said, I depend on my exocortex. I'm voracious when it comes to info. And I'm a fast learner, when I have info. I hate not having info. It's like missing part of my brain."

She was impressed despite her concern. This aspect of his personality completely spun her impression of the 'kind but oafish easy-going companion' sideways. But it also rounded him out nicely.

"Ok. What else have you learned?"

He looked at her strangely. And flipped the scroll around so she could see… images of her actual parents. "You, are a princess."

Her ears went straight up, then back. "I'm not!"

"Well, you should be. If Menagerie had the recognition it deserves."

"No. No it doesn't work that way. The Chief is an elected position. Even if we were a Kingdom by definition, I wouldn't inherit. And why am I defending myself to you?"

He blinked. "You're not. I mean I wasn't attacking you. Was I? Oh crap." He took in her pinned-back ears and tense posture. "God I'm sorry Blake, I didn't know that was a sore spot."

She recovered a little. "Yeah. Well it is. But you didn't know that."

He spoke a little more hesitantly. "Is it okay to ask how the daughter of the Chieftain of Menagerie ended up calling the Heiress of the Schnee Dust Company "mom"?

"I told you."

"No. No, let me rephrase the question. How did Weiss Schnee end up not being a self-entitled, self-absorbed, elitist. Or worse?"

Blake folded her arms. "You are way too good at this."

"I can't help it."

"Fine," she Huffed. Her eyes moved up and to the left, looking for the right words. "I think. I think part of it was her sister, Winter. When Winter joined Atlas military and was disinherited, Weiss had the weight of all that fall on her shoulders. But she idolized her sister. Something about that made her decide she cared more about being right than thinking she was right. It made her… question things. Herself, things she was told. She… well she's a lot like you, I guess. She makes assumptions. Just like the rest of us. She has her prejudices. But if you hit her in the face with something that contradicts them…"

"She actually pays attention."

"Yeah. You should have heard the fights we had over the White Fang and Faunus before she knew who and what I really was." She smiled at the memory. "It was something else."

The conversation from there devolved into questions about her family-friends-teammates. Things that weren't on the net, but that he now had more context to know what to ask. Some of the questions clearly upset her, and he was quick to read that and back off. But he clearly wanted to know her friends, to know her.

She appreciated that.

She asked him questions too. About life where he had lived. His family. His work. In addition to being some sort of apprentice, he was helping out at what he called a "Technical School". His mom was from somewhere called Kenya, and his father from Norway. The way he talked about it, that had been a big deal. But he pushed aside a lot of her questions. "If our situation was reversed, I'd go into more detail. But learning about there isn't going to help us here."

Lunchtime came more quickly than she expected. She showed him how to use the appliances, he did not burn the cabin down. Win-win. Another quick message to her Team was sent.

He spent the afternoon splitting his time between insisting on cooking a full-course dinner for the two of them and 'research' as he called it. He even found some candles and demanded she dim the lighting. For ambience, he said.

It really was an excellent meal. Some sort of baked fish. Chalk another one up for Brownskin.

That night, she made her evening call. Weiss answered.

"Hi mom!"

"Blake. Are things… settling?" Her tone was a bit odd.

Blake was able to give a genuine smile. "Yeah. Yeah, I think so."

"So are you ready to talk about things?"

Blake frowned. "No. I still think... I still think it's better if I wait and do this in person."

Weiss sighed. "Fine. Any updates on when that will be?"

"I think… Probably tomorrow. Yeah. I'll confirm in the morning. But tomorrow sounds about right."

"Fine. That's… fine. See you then."

Wow that was… odd. Blake wondered if it was her pushing her luck on delaying the conversation, or something going on with the Schnee family unrelated to her.

She called Yang next.

"Hey Blake! Wow you look loads better than you did yesterday."

"Thanks partner. I feel a lot better too." That got a smile from the blonde.

"Any thoughts on when you're coming back? I was hoping we could do something relaxing in Mantle once you've 'got your head screwed on straight'. Maybe go see a sparring match together? Catch a movie?"

Blake smiled. "I was talking about maybe combing back tomorrow with Weiss. I'll let you know in the morning for sure. And that would be great."

"Awesome. Woot! Girls' night out!"

A/N

I received an anon review accusing me of undoing the previous work (Not This Time Fate) and NTR'ing Blake Belladonna by having her cheat on someone. I'm over here scratching my head, because I had just finished reading Not This Time Fate this month, and if I'm not mistaken in the PRIMARY timeline Blake never started a relationship with anyone, so I'm not sure how I've "undone" any timelines nor had her cheat on anyone. (Ignoring of course the fact that in previous iterations Jaune has hooked up with pretty much every major character in the story) *shrugs*