Small Issues

AN: Welcome back everyone for another chapter of Small Issues! I'd like to thank Josh55 and Maxiduza for the follows of this series. And for those of you who have come here from Big Issues or even my other works, I do hope you enjoy this series. On with the show!

White

If there was anything Weiss Schnee knew well, it was the pressure of high expectations. Always to be the best at whatever she did from her academics to business knowledge to laws to her performances.

She was the model of an heiress to a very large and successful company despite her young age. She is beautiful. She could haggle and find loopholes in contracts. She received perfect grades on her own merits. She could leave audiences giving her standing ovations with her songs.

But few knew of her rebellious nature or her capacity to fight.

The ponytail that was always on the right side rather than in the middle of the back of her head. The thinly veiled disdain for the other 'nobles' of Atlas. Her disgust at her father's business practices.

Yet even as she stood in stage with no one but the orchestra nearby and thousands of eyes focused on her, she could perform her part perfectly even as her mind drifts to the source of the scar over her left eye that had come close to blinding her.

Several weeks ago…

"What do you mean you want to go to Beacon?!" Jacques Schnee, her father rage in his own way.

"As I've said, I want to be a Huntress and going to Vale to attend Beacon Academy appears to be my best option." Weiss stood in his office, her face a cold mask of indifference with a touch of irritation and frustration. The emotions were barely noticeable except to the most keen eyed and for Jacques, he simply didn't have that skill to read his daughter.

"And why not attend Atlas Academy if you are so intent on doing work that is beneath your station?" He steepled his fingers in front of himself.

"Because I need to know more than simply the Kingdom of Atlas and the Schnee Dust Company if I am going to run the family business successfully." There was the slight hitch in her voice that made her words sound rehearsed but he was so used to that from everyone around him that he didn't seem to take notice.

"Hmm… that may be true." He muses to himself, just loud enough for Weiss to hear in the near silent office. "But still, dealing with Grimm is not the place of a Schnee, that is why I help fund the military's science programs."

"And you don't think that a Schnee helping to fight off the Grimm would be good for our public image?"

"That may have been the case in your grandfather's time but not any more. We fundband supply those willing to fight for us." Jacques leans back in his chair as he waves his hands a little, far too happy to let others get their hands dirty for him and die.

"Then consider this as going back to the family roots." Weiss declares. "I'll be a Huntress, show the world that I'm not some spoiled princess in an ivory tower, and when the time comes I'll lead the Schnee Dust Company successfully."

"Is that so?" Jacques leans forward again to rest his hands on his desk. They lock eyes and match wills for a short time, neither backing down. "Very well then, I'll offer you a challenge: win and you can go to Beacon as you so deeply desire. Lose and you give up this silly dream of being a Huntress."

"Is that it? What will I be fighting?"

"Hmph, I'll leave that to be a surprise, after all, aren't Huntsmen and Huntresses supposed to be prepared for anything? But it will push you beyond your limits… no matter what your trainers have said of your skills."

"And when will this challenge be held?"

"How about this time next week? I'll ensure that everything is in place."

"I'll be ready."

"Oh, and don't forget that you have your part in the concert at the end of the month. Best make sure that you are presentable and prepared for that as well."

Weiss didn't give him another word or spare him a glance as she left the room. Closing the door behind her felt like closing a walk-in freezer and her knees nearly gave out as the stress was lifted.

"I take it that things went well, Miss Schnee?" There should have been no doubt that Klein would have been waiting nearby.

"As well as I could have gone. Better than I had hoped." Weiss spoke as she walks the halls with the family butler to get away from her father.

"And he's allowing you to attend Beacon?"

"So long as I can defeat whatever he plans for me to fight next week."

"He's making you fight?"

"I get the feeling he'd be more lenient if I said I wanted to attend Atlas Academy."

Klein wouldn't put it past the man to say that, he'd known him since Willow introduced him to her father, Nicholas.

A week later…

Weiss stood silently in a large room that looked as though it had been a ballroom at some point. But all of the decor had been removed and the lighting was dim yet usable. At the far end of the room is a balcony with a small rounded portion at either end. There her family stands. Her father and brother on her right side while her sister and mother stood on the other, Klein just behind the women.

Clearly this room was repurposed from its original design as the floor opened up to allow a platform to rise. Yet it was what the platform lifted that truly drew attention, a gigantic suit of armor kneeling thanks to the hard light cuffs on its limbs keeping it in place. It was hard to miss the broadsword laying in front of it that is nearly as long as the armor is tall.

"Let's get this over with, shall we?" Jacques seemed calm for a man about to set this thing against his own daughter, treating it more as a game. Whitley stood at his side, a slight hint of worry creeping over his smug face.

Conversely, Winter stood straight and tall with a stern and stoic expression on her face, yet there was some pride to be found in her eyes that her sister was doing this. Willow tried to seem uninterested in what was happening but worry was present. Klein just looked anxious and afraid for Weiss' safety.

The pianist began a soft slow melody and that was her cue to begin.

"Mirror… tell me something

Tell me who's the loneliest of all."

The rest of the orchestra began to join in and slowly built up, raising the suspense of the audience. Yet for Weiss, her mind turned back to that fight.

With the press of a button, the shackles that held the armor down vanished. It wasted no time grabbing the hilt of the massive blade that was no doubt at least two tons of steel. While it was slow to stand, it hefted the sword with a single hand with ease.

Clearly, the display was meant for intimidation.

Intimidation that failed as Weiss simply maintained her cold determined glare as her right foot slid back and drew her rapier from the sash on her waist with her left hand. With blade in hand, she stood ready for whatever the armor would do, content to let it make the first move.

And move it did, breaking into a sprint the Arma Gigas closed the distance in just three steps before the sword was swung overhead and crashed into the floor. A plume of dust was raised from the small crater that was created along with a scattering of shattered stones but Weiss was no longer there, having dashed to the left as nothing but a white blur.

The helmet turned to look for the aspiring Huntress and found her in a slight crouch and her sword slightly lowered, all in preparation to lunge.

The Arma Gigas straightened up to counter her attack but severely misjudged her speed, with Weiss able to cover the distance in a flash and was already slashing at its right leg before the massive creature could begin to react.

While the attacks did little more than scratch the thick metal, Weiss deftly backflips away from the retaliatory kick. A handspring gave her a boost into the air but she never came down to touch the floor- instead she landed on a glowing white glyph that holds the same symbol at its center that is on the back of her white jacket- a stylized snowflake. That same symbol was used by her family for generations.

The Arma Gigas snapped its head up, not expecting its target to stay airborne on a platform but had anticipated where she'd land on the floor to attack that spot. But doing so left it open for Weiss to leap at it again and slash at its head.

The flinching saved it from taking more than a few scratches and the girl was forced to kick off her much larger opponent to avoid its grasping hand.

Weiss created another glyph and used that to jump back to score a light hit in a tiny gap in the shoulder. That lunge sent her well past the armor and she lands lightly on the floor. Her opponent though was quick to bring its own weapon around in another overhead attack that crashed into the stones at least twice as hard as the first time.

But it came a moment too late as Weiss dove and rolled away from the epicenter before rising to her feet and waved her right hand with index and middle fingers pointed to cast a glyph below her feet. This one started out white but flashed black at the same time she was launched as nothing but a white streak through the air.

That worked to score another clean hit, this time in the armpit of the arm holding the sword.

Yet all that seemed to do is rile up the Grimm who saw that she had landed on another glyph high in the air- shoulder height for it- and it spun with its sword making a broad arc. Weiss leapt to dodge the massive blade to let the steel pass between herself and the glyph but tracking the weapon proved to be a mistake as a fist the size of herself rammed into the girl with all of the force of a speeding car.

That part of the memory was hard for Weiss as she kept singing, luckily it was a part that only had her not using any words but changing her tone slightly a few times to create a dramatic pause as her voice was projected.

Her eye throbbed slightly in pain just from remembering the blow, the phantom feeling of warm liquid running down her face, the sneering of her fathers words, "We're done here. She's lost."

But there was Winter. "You're blind to think that she done from just that." Not only did that insult their father but it helped encourage Weiss to push through the pain.

The orchestra picked up the pace again, building up the suspense again.

"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?"

Her song became more forceful, filled with emotions that moved those who heard her. And yet her mind continued to replay the fight.

Weiss fought through the pain that wracked her body, the sudden jolt had made her lose her focus on her defensive aura, allowing the sharp knuckle of the armor to create a gash over her left eye. While it was extremely painful to use that eye, she could still see, thankfully.

Yet the pain and the support of her sister bolstered her resolve and natural stubbornness, helping her focus on defeating this Grimm that her father had brought as her test. She couldn't wait to see his face when she wins.

Weiss slowly stood up, helped by using Myrtenaster as a cane. The blood ran freely across her face until her aura began to stem the bleeding as she ensured that it was active once more. The crimson stains on her white and pale blue dress didn't matter to her now, nor the drops on her white boots. Any liquid that was inside her jacket was lost among the red lining.

The Arma Gigas had stood patiently, as if savoring hitting her and relishing her pain. Yet when it saw her enter the combat stance again with her sword at the ready, it prepared itself to finish what it started.

And both combatants were determined to end the fight quickly.

The Arma Gigas swung its sword diagonally at Weiss who dove towards the semi-sentient armor under the blade, not bothering to look back as a trench was torn through the stone and debris was flung away. Hard light shields spared the audience from the shower if stones hurled their way.

Another glyph launched the girl as soon as she was on her feet again, rocketing her under its free arm where she created another glyph to land on. From there, the barrel within the guard of her sword rotated until she found the chamber she wanted. A tap of the trigger in the hilt allowed for a trickle of red, finely powdered Dust to pour out onto the blade. Dust that she was quick to form a trio of glyphs over the length of her blade and the white constructs turned bright red.

A flick of her wrist sent the now fireballs flying until they crashed and exploded across the back of the Arma Gigas.

To its credit, and quite possibly due to its sheer weight, the Grimm barely moved but it's back was now scorched and smoking slightly. It's response was swift, the massive sword cutting through the air and Weiss jumped over it like the last time. Seeing the same maneuver as before, the Arma Gigas punched at the girl.

Weiss hastily made a glyph that allowed her to jump straight to the ground where she landed safely and watched as the steel fist hit nothing but air.

With its target now on the ground, the armor lifted its foot to stomp on her, only to notice too late that Weiss had changed the setting and jabbed her rapier into the stones and a wave of ice rose across the floor and froze over its other foot and nearly up to the knee.

The raised foot slammed down, crushing and shattering most of the ice but the frozen one remained trapped and the broadsword swung again.

Weiss changed the setting again and with a circular motion in front of her and brief use of her glyph, a hard light barrier was formed between her and the blade and the enormous weapon was deflected off the shield.

The Arma Gigas stumbled as it lost its balance, breaking its foot free in the process but lost sight of its target. The sound of heels on steel was its only real warning as Weiss had leapt onto the broad blade and was running down its length, her own sword shining yellow and sparking.

A moment later, the electrified slash to the huge hand sent the much larger weapon flying from its grip, though the spasm from the limb forced Weiss to jump away.

The Arma Gigas flexed its hand as it glared at Weiss, the girl readying for another attack even as the massive sword behind her fell to the floor with a massive thud that raised dust and a few stones.

Clenching its fists, the armor stomps its way through the remaining ice and punches at the girl, only for her to leap out of the way but left a glyph behind. One that turned black and threw the Grimm backwards where it crashed onto the floor and shattered more stones under its weight.

Weiss landed on a new glyph and made several smaller ones that she quickly added Dust to, and soon the Arma Gigas was pelted with more fireballs that blinded it. By the time the explosion faded, blue streaks of Hard Light flashed like lasers and cut into the vulnerable joints of its arms and legs.

Blasts of ice ensured that the Grimm wouldn't move its limbs from the floor before the Arma Gigas looked up to see Weiss falling at it with her white aura surging around the blade just before the thin blade was rammed through an open space of the helmet and into its face.

In mere moments, all struggles stopped and the black smoke drifted out of the remaining steel and Weiss walked out of it calmly, her left eye closed to keep the blood out.

"It appears that you've underestimated Weiss, Father. And it would look bad for you if you'd go against your word." Winter coldly states as she motions to the camera that her superiors were watching the fight through.

Jacques made a fist before leaving. Whitley remained as he tried to imitate his father while also in awe of his sister. Meanwhile, Willow watched as Klein and Winter made their way down to tend to her daughter's injuries.

"I'm the loneliest of all!" Weiss finished the song as the memory ended as well. She even needed to blink as she was reintroduced to the real world rather than just that of music and combat.

Then the concert hall erupted into applause and cheers, camera flashes coming from everywhere. With a small smile, Weiss curtsies to her fans as the curtain drops and allows her to retreat in peace.

"You really do sing best from your soul." Winter was waiting in the wings.

"Perhaps, I just wish that the song wasn't so true for me."

Winter stops and places a hand on the shorter girl's shoulder. "Do not think of yourself as that lonely, I will always do my best to help you when you need it."

"Thank you." Weiss lowers her head in slight shame.

"And I'll be there for you when you leave for Beacon."

"Are you sure you won't be there just to rub it in his face that he couldn't keep me in Atlas?" Now Weiss was teasing.

"That is just a bonus to seeing you off." Winter let a rare laughing grin free, one that was echoed by the younger sibling. "Now, let's go find something to eat and talk while everyone is still occupied."

Indeed, someone named Marigold was now on stage and performing a song. Though to the sisters, he really needed to choose a different song.

—-

The training under Cinder had been harsh but very rewarding for Emerald. For every day that she fell into her bed exhausted, she woke up stronger than before. Her skills with gun and blade leapt tremendously and her Semblance… she was getting increasingly better with it to the point where even Cinder had trouble telling if she was under its influence unless certain unexpected events happened.

And Cinder definitely delivered on her promise that Emerald wouldn't go hungry where every meal was nearly what she was used to eating in a week. Though perhaps it was the extra nutrition that helped her not only gain so much muscle with the training but to gain some curves of her own in such a short time.

But they were also doing this on their way to the next person of interest.

"Do we really need him? The two of us are enough, aren't we?" Emerald pleaded to Cinder. Maybe the results of the training were too good in some respects.

SMACK!

"You'll do as you're told." Cinder told the thief coldly but she was quick to lighten up as Emerald began to nod in agreement, even with the welt on her cheek.

"Yes, Cinder. It won't happen again."

They were on their way to the furthest reaches of western Anima where a small town set in the mountains sat. Most towns along the coast existed almost solely for the trade of goods, trade by sea would often stop there for goods to take back to Sanus. Land transport would bring their goods to them for shipment to Sanus and would then take Sanus' goods back across the continent. Even with air travel, they would stop at the towns for rest at the very least before the long flight across the ocean.

But the town in the mountains, that is primarily a mining town as the mines held rate ores. It had plentiful farmland to feed the inhabitants and the value of the minerals ensured that they were kept safe by Huntsmen.

Yet even this town was t the real destination of Cinder Fall. Her goal lay outside but this was as close as she could get and have a decent place to land her airship.

"Sir? I'm looking for someone who's supposed to live in this town." Cinder stops a man on the street.

"Oh? And who would that be?"

"Marcus Black."

"Hmm… you're looking for him, huh?" The man was obviously suspicious about her seeking the man but shrugs after seeing the woman nod in confirmation. "Alright but just so you know, he's not exactly the best guy to talk to most of the time. Sure he helps protect the town and mines from Grimm and the occasional bandits but otherwise… eh, best to stay on what little good side he has left."

"Is he that bad?" Emerald asks, partly hoping that this man could help deter Cinder from recruiting him.

"Meh… shouldn't really be saying this but rumor has it that he took the death of his wife pretty bad. Not to say that he was the best guy before but losing a loved one… it leaves a scar that nothing can fill. And he never got over that. Though I think his kid is the only reason he hasn't left us."

"Thank you for the advice, we'll be careful." Cinder gives the man a small bow.

"Good. Now as for Marcus, he lives outside of town. It's a good walk to get there but his house is in a clearing in the woods you can't miss, especially if you follow the road."

"Thank you. I hope our meeting with him will go well." Cinder gives him a smile.

"You two looking to hire him for a mission, huh?" The man didn't miss the weapons on their hips.

"Precisely."

"Hmm, maybe getting out of town for a few days would help him clear his head. He. And back from his last mission well paid but… not exactly happy, even compared to normal lately."

It was nearing sundown by the time the two women made it to the clearing where a log cabin stood. However, the sight was not exactly as picturesque as one would think it should be, mostly due to the sounds of loud arguing from two men that carried through the otherwise quiet atmosphere.

Then a window shattered as what looked like a bottle flew out and broke on the ground.

"Let's wait this out." Cinder suggests as she makes herself comfortable leaning against a tree. Emerald followed suit but soon found herself sitting on a large root.

The window proved to be not the only thing to break as the argument inside began to devolve into roars of frustration, pain, and anger. An already broken chair soon broke out most of the remaining glass from the window. Several thuds impacted the door accompanied the glints of metal that could now be seen, no doubt that someone was throwing knives with great force.

Splintering wood, clanking metal, crashing ceramics and glass were frequently heard as portions of the door were broken from one of the fighters retrieving the knives from it. Then gun shots began going off and smoke that had only come from the chimney began to drift from open spaces.

Orange light from the fire inside allowed the women to see silhouettes in the windows and contrasted with the now dark sky and forest around them all.

Then the door was kicked out and the fight was taken to the much larger arena, though neither man took a chance to flee, too focused on the combat and they were beyond words by this point.

Now Cinder and Emerald had a clear view as them men beat on each other mercilessly for several minutes. The slightly smaller of the two got in a quick combination that stunned the other man long enough for him to jump up and wrap his legs around the larger man's neck.

From there, it didn't take long for them to fall to the ground and begin rolling down the hill, coincidentally towards their audience. Yet during that time, the one doing the choking beat down on his victims head every chance he could. At the same time, the man being choked pulled a knife from somewhere and stabbed it into the knees around his head several times.

Finally coming to a stop at the relative bottom of the slope, the pair continued their struggle until the one on top jerked his lower half quickly and a sickening crack was heard. Between his legs, the man went limp.

Slowly, the younger man fought his way upright to glare down at his victim, an odd mix of gratification and contempt on his face.

And that was when Cinder decided to make herself known. "Marcus Black?"

"Who wants to know?" The heavily injured man asks around his split and swollen lip and already bruising face.

"I'm looking to hire him for a job."

The man spits a mouthful of blood onto the corpse and waves a hand at him. "Well there you go, that's him."

Emerald stood back watching the entire thing with fear. The pure brutality of the fight, the burning home, the insults that had been heard, and the casual dismissal of having just killed a man.

"Hmm… So you're his son? What's your name?"

That seemed to catch the boy's interest, at least enough that he nearly lost focus on standing and had a small stumble. The wounds to his legs made it look like he was standing by sheer willpower. "Mercury."

"Tell me, Mercury, are your skills anything like your fathers?"

"Who wants to know?"

"My name is Cinder and this is Emerald. And I come to ask for assistance with a particular job. We are very well funded."

Mercury glances over his shoulder at the bonfire that was his home. "I could use a new place to live." He says with a shrug.

"That will be easy to provide. However, your legs could use some medical attention." Cinder points at his pants that were torn open and the wounds were bleeding freely. The fact that he was losing blood fast didn't help that his knees were barely holding him up with how they were stabbed and slashed.

"Hmph, I was able to beat the old man, so I guess that settles the question about my skills. If you can fix my legs and give me a job, then I'm all yours."

Cinder smirked at that casual acceptance, she had a feeling that coming here was a good idea. Not only did she get an assassin but she had a good show of his skills and grit.

Behind her, Emerald couldn't help but to be mildly disturbed at how casual this man was about the loss of his home and having killed his own father. At the same time, fighting through the pain that he must be in just to remain standing was impressive.

"Welcome aboard. Now let's get you patched up so you can make it back to my ship." Cinder smiles as the index finger of her right hand begins to glow with heat. A few minutes later, his legs were cauterized and wrapped with his shredded pants and the women were carrying him back to the airship.

"And what do I owe the pleasure of your call, Cinder dear?" A posh voice came over the scroll's speaker as they flew.

"I need your services as a doctor. My newest recruit requires extensive surgery to his legs if his skills are going to be of any use to my plans."

"Very well, forward me the details and I'll be prepared for your arrival."

A few clicks on her screen and the photos of the injuries and a short report were sent to the doctor. "There you go."

"Hmm… very thorough but I'll still need to examine him myself once you arrive. Hopefully he'll be awake to speak to me about the procedures ahead."

"Do what you must." Cinder orders before hanging up. "I detest that man." She mutters under her breath.

As much as she hated him, she had a grudging respect for his talents. His expertise lay in areas that she had little interest in and thus her group had to rely on him… for now.

In the back of the airship, Emerald watched over Mercury as he slept. Once they had gotten him on board and onto the bed, he'd scarfed down some ration quickly, washed that down with plenty of water, and promptly passed out from exhaustion.

AN: And that's a wrap for the chapter! Did you like the tweaks to Weiss' fight? It's rather interesting to know that the concept of aura hadn't been created by the time the White Trailer had been released, despite the use of her semblance. But hey, RT and Monty were still working out the basics at that time.

Either way, not only did we see Weiss but a chunk of Mercury's backstory. Kinda the reason I didn't have that in Big Issues... besides breaking the flow of things. Same with Emerald's story in the last chapter.

Next chapter being posted will be Big Issues Chapter 82, hopefully this weekend. Though don't hold me to that too hard as I'm moving to a new house and attending a bachelor party this weekend as well. Fun fun fun.

As always, reviews are welcome! I can't wait to get to the bigger fights in this series and the next chapter here is not going to be Black.