Mercury couldn't help but stretch as he made his way through the crowded halls. While yesterday may have been frantic with the White Fang's attack on Vale the current day was anything but.

Sure the plan didn't go exactly as it was supposed to, but the important part went through. Now it was up to Roman to make good on his promise, with a little help from his partner later on. Speaking of said partner Mercury let his gaze lazily travel to the side, where one Neo was walking along with a single ice cream cone.

Just how the woman kept from dropping it as they brushed through the crowd was lost on him, but her new disguise looked to hold up well enough. Gone was her split hair tone, with the previous mix of pink, white, and brown being replaced with a coal black. She looked at him, blinking as her iris's swapped back to their usual pink and brown, only to change green a flutter later.

She was playing now, essentially teasing him and going 'look at me, I can change my eyes, isn't that cool. I don't need some stupid disguise, I have a stupid semblance that makes things easy so I don't need to try'. So maybe she didn't exactly say that, but he felt his irritation rise as she pulled her little tricks constantly. In the end he chose to let his shoulders slump in defeat.

At least she get's things done.

The girl was more skilled than most gave her credit for, and as much as he didn't want to admit it he knew she could hand him his ass on a platter. Neo wasn't the most feared assassin in Vale's underworld for nothing, notorious for her seeming love of violent murder and dairy treats. None of which were a surprise to Mercury as he himself had some weird kinks when it came to his work; key point being his personal love of recreating his favorite comic scenes for each kill whenever he could.

But alas here he was: stuck with 'miss murder' and his obsessive partner.

With a quick swipe of his scroll the door to their room unlocked and the two stepped inside. Emerald turned from her seat on the bed, raising a brow as he waltzed over to fall in the one opposite of her.

"Any new rumors?" She asked as he flopped over on his back.

"V's gotten in some shit, Vale is spooked, Fang is in deeper shit, same old same old. What about you?" Mercury didn't even bother to look at her, instead just letting his eyes shut in hopes of catching some rest.

"A few things actually. With Cinder unable to come with us we'll be entering the tournament as a team of three."

"Will they even allow that?" The silver killer asked as Emerald nodded.

"Cinder already has it set in motion, but we also have a new problem."

"Problem?"

"Yes, well... less problem and more warning."

"You lost me." Mercury let his confusion burn through the flat face he gave. Emerald rolled her eyes.

"Try to be serious for once please, this warning was issued to Cinder as well."

"To Cinder? Who co-"

His words stopped as a tension filled his body. There was only one person who held power over their boss. Getting a warning from Cinder was one thing, but the boss above almost never issued caution to them, unless the mission specifically demanded subtlety.

This just got a whole lot more dangerous.

"So what is it?" He asked as she met his gaze.

"The plan's still the same, but we've been asked to keep away from your new friend"

"Huh? Wait, are you talking about V?" Mercury questioned as she nodded.

"Yep, we've been told to avoid him if possible. The battle down in Vale was broadcast through several on scene news channels, and at this point it's safe to say almost all of Remnant saw what happened. People are going wild with it, several online forms are openly debating what he is, others are blaming the Faunus, the council is remaining silent, and everybody's on edge."

"So it's a shit show."

"Essentially." Emerald confirmed as a sly look overcame her. "But in light of these circumstances, all this chaos makes things easier for us. Everybody's so focused on our resident Grimm tracker that they would have no reason to watch over a random group of students enjoying the festival now would they?"

"No." His smirk now matched hers. "I guess not."

.

.

Through some struggle Weiss managed to make her way back to their room, scanning her scroll before walking inside. She let out a sigh of relief at finally being able to breath freely again. The halls were way too cramped after lunch, something she never expected from the students of the most prestigious hunter school on Remnant.

Brushing off her skirt she took a quick glance around the room, intent on finding her partner. It wasn't like Ruby to stay behind and miss lunch, not when it was pizza day. However the young girl was nowhere to be found.

Huh, she must have left already.

Weiss turned to make her way out when something caught her ears. She couldn't quite make out the noise but she knew it was something. Stepping back into the room she strained her ears to try and tell if she was just imagining things. Her eyes widened as she heard it again. It sounded muffled, and was coming just barely from her side.

The heiress turned, coming face to face with the bathroom door. Walking over she placed her ear to it and caught hold of the sound once more.

Ruby?

It was Ruby's pitch that was for sure, but she couldn't recognize what the girl was saying. Straining further the girl soon let her eyes widen as worry filled her. Ruby wasn't speaking.

She was crying.

"Ruby? Ruby are you feeling alright?" Weiss asked as she knocked on the door.

All noise stopped for a bit, and Ruby provided her with an answer moments later.

"I-I'm fine."

"Ruby... do you want to talk?"

Another silence, followed by the sound of footsteps nearing the door. The lock clicked and it creaked open as the girl stepped out, and Weiss was able to see a few stains around her partners cheeks, as well as a redness around her eyes.

"Come on, let's sit down and rest for a bit." Weiss told as Ruby nodded.

Both walked over to her bed, sitting on the edge as Weiss softened her voice.

"Do you want to talk about anything?" She tried, knowing full well how important it was to be delicate in certain situations.

"... Maybe."

"It's just you and me here right now. Blake and Yang are at the library, so they won't be back for a while. Would you mind telling me what's wrong?" Weiss asked as Ruby let a small scowl cross her features.

"It's just... it's dumb okay. I shouldn't even be mad, but I can't help it."

"What's dumb?" Weiss asked as the young girl pulled out her scroll, showing it to her.

Letting her eyes scan across the article she felt a certain wave of disgust build up in the pit of her stomach. She could see why Ruby would be angry, but she didn't know why it brought her to tears.

"I admit the amount of malice and ignorance is particularly vile, but it doesn't have anything to do with you."

"I know that, but still. It's not only here." Ruby fumbled around, bringing up another page, and another, and another. "They're everywhere."

"Okay, I understand, it's excessive, but I still can't understand what you're getting at?" Weiss asked as her partner glared her way.

"It's not right!" Ruby yelled, calming herself as Weiss raised her hands in defense. "Sorry, but it's just so frustrating. I know he's done some really bad things, but he's been helping us ever since he came to Beacon. He's been helping everyone!"

Weiss saw the look on her leaders face, feeling a rush of motivation flow through her at the raw passion on display. A smile snuck it's way across her lips as Ruby continued on.

"Every time we needed his help he was there. Even at the dance when he got confused he still told us everything afterwards. He was with us down in Vale, and he fought off the Fang and Grimm just like the rest of us! So how can they say things like that about him! All because of how he looks!"

"It's not only that, you saw him in control of the Beowolf too." Weiss told as Ruby looked away.

"I know, but that doesn't mean he is one. Other people had semblances that effected the Grimm before, and nobody calls them Grimm." Ruby looked back at her scroll. "All anyone's talking about now is how much he looks like one. It's like nobody cares how he helped in the fight."

"Sometimes people are like that." Weiss clarified as she placed her hands on her partners shoulders. "People don't always think about the good that others do, and sometimes they don't care. It's bad I know, but in the end there's nothing we can do. And in a way I don't think it even matters."

"What?" Ruby asked with wet eyes as Weiss held a softer smile.

"I don't think Vermillion particularly cares about what others think of him. Even when we were angry with him he still helped us, even though we showed him how much we disliked him. People can say anything they want about him, but I don't think that'll keep him from trying to save them if they're in trouble." She explained as Ruby looked away.

"I know that, but it still hurts." Ruby's eyes looked to glaze over as she raised her head. "Hunters save lives, they protect people from the Grimm. Anyone can be a hunter if they try, if they really fought for it. Hunters aren't limited by looks or race, and they were always known as heroes."

Weiss watched as Ruby faced her with a tired look.

"So why do they care now? Why do they only see him as a monster instead of the hunter who helped save everyone?" Ruby sighed as she sat down again. "I know he's done bad things, and I know it sounds childish, but I've always believed people could change. I believe anyone, no matter how terrible they seem, can change for the better. I don't think anyone should be completely given up on; beyond redemption. Everyone has it in them to rise up and be better."

Weiss felt the respect for her leader rise with every word. Ruby may not have been the most skilled, nor the most powerful or smart. But what she did have was an abundance of heart. Her childish innocence was something that Weiss found surprisingly enjoyable to witness. Just hearing the girl pour her heart out made her feel a sense of relief she'd not felt before. She could tell Ruby believed each and every word she spoke, and with that realization it filled her with a drive she couldn't understand.

Weiss felt as though she could take on the world with Ruby by her side.

"Well then, why not go talk with Vermillion about it?"

"Huh?" Ruby looked confused as Weiss stood.

"If you're worried about him so much why not ask him what he thinks? If anything it should help you feel better right?" The heiress suggested as she reached out her hand.

"I... okay, sure." Ruby said as she took it.

With a small dash of hope the two set off to pay a visit to their now controversial friend.

Author's note

...

Yes, I know this is a criminally short chapter for this story, but in all honesty I have a lot to do. Nothing that'll harm the next chapter, but enough to force me to shorten this one.

Anyway I don't have much to comment on, and not much to recap either. Emerald and Mercury had a moment, Ruby and Weiss had a moment, and I guess we saw some of the public perception of V.

That's all for this time.