Chapter status: NEEDS TO BE LOOKED OVER, BUT IT'S ALL NEW CONTENT. So, yeah, there may be edits/changes later, but for now, enjoy!
Pyrrha's scroll vibrated. The sudden sound broke the silence they'd been sitting in for a while, and Yang glanced over at her partner. Pyrrha took her scroll out of her pocket and checked the message. Yang watched curiously as Pyrrha's expression softened before creasing in regret.
"What's up?" Yang wondered, concerned.
"It's Jaune. He just invited me to come see him at an event he's bartending for."
"Oh! Is it finally the second move?!"
Pyrrha sighed and slowly shook her head. "Yes, Yang. But it doesn't really matter, does it? We're stuck in this parking lot for another two hours."
Yang was quiet while Pyrrha sent a refusal or raincheck to Jaune. She looked outside through the dark towards Cryolife's warehouse. They'd been staking out in the adjacent lot since the middle of the afternoon, only taking breaks to go eat or relieve aching bladders. Ruby and Sun would then be taking over for them starting at midnight. So far, they hadn't seen anything suspicious – no vampires creeping along the walls to find a secret entrance or anything in the likes.
They were doing this just in case it sped up the process of meeting new vampires or possible suspects. Even if they'd be entering the building tomorrow, they had to take advantage of any chance they got.
Yang hated staking out. It was one of her least favorite activities as an enforcer, right down there with cleaning up bloody crime scenes. Fortunately, these days, she hadn't had to do much of either.
Except now, of course.
It bothered her that Pyrrha had to keep blowing Jaune off. Pyrrha was so dedicated to their job, but…several times now, she'd confessed to being, well, not unhappy, but definitely seeking company, to some extent. The very fact that she seemed so invested in Jaune despite not even having seen him in person again after that first time spoke volumes all by itself – they'd clearly been chatting often via text. And the longer Yang saw a lack of activity at the warehouse, the more her own underlying feelings of care and injustice snuck up on her.
"What if we went after we're done here?" she suddenly asked into the silence after a moment.
Pyrrha's eyebrows rose, half in surprise, half in doubt. "Yang, it'll be past midnight. We need sleep."
"But, Pyrrha, you deserve to be happy, too. You do so much for Aurora. Who's gonna be angry with us if we sleep in, like, one morning? We just have to be ready to come back here with Edrick tomorrow after lunch."
It was Pyrrha's turn to be quiet – which meant she was actually considering it.
Yang decided to give the nail one more hit with the hammer. "We haven't stopped – like, at all – on this case for almost two weeks. And before that we were running around in Mistral trying to stop a serial turner for a month, questioning vampires left and right. And now you finally have a date with a guy you genuinely like. I've never seen you like this, and that makes me think it's worth the trouble. What's a couple hours spent sleeping instead of working out for one day?"
Even if they didn't stay out late, the prospect of getting to sleep in just once made Yang long for her bed. There hadn't been a single night since arriving in Vale that Yang had gotten enough sleep or slept well at all, and she was beginning to feel that fatigue in her body like a literal extra weight bogging her down.
Pyrrha was staring out the window intently, but then she blinked and looked down at her scroll, at the conversation with Jaune. She'd already kindly turned down his offer, Yang saw, and Jaune had sent a sad face along with a quick reassurance that it was no problem. But then the redhead sighed, and her fingers started typing out another message:
Actually, never mind, I'll gladly make time for you. I'll just be late, sadly. What's the name of the place?
Yang grinned. Pyrrha definitely really liked that guy. For you, she'd made the blonde feel a whole lot better about convincing her friend to go see him while they should have been entirely focused on their mission – but even then, it wasn't like they could do anything more for the case in the middle of the night, so it should have been fine, right?
The way Yang saw it, constant work could be just as fatal as constant distractions. Enhanced with mutagens or not, they weren't robots. They still had feelings. Still had wants and needs. A few hours here and there versus years and years of diligence could only be good for them.
It was strange, in a sense, seeing Pyrrha put some thought into her own feelings apart from their obligations. As far as Yang could recall, Pyrrha had always been the perfect enforcer – smart, dependable, empathetic, proactive, and never hesitating when it came time to make difficult decisions. Above all, though, she was loyal and self-sacrificing to a fault.
But it seemed this Vale case wasn't playing a number on just Yang. For whatever reason, something was causing a shift in the duo's approaches…was causing a shift in them.
It was a little bit frightening, that even Pyrrha could be swayed.
Not too long after, Jaune gave Pyrrha the name of the place, a bar somewhere called Wicked Thirst Parlor. Normally, that kind of name would probably not have made anyone blink twice, but the enforcer duo shared a look – partly amused because of the irony, partly suspicious also because of the irony.
"What does Jaune do again?" Yang asked as Pyrrha started the engine and began driving out of the lot adjacent to Cryolife's. Another set of fruitless hours gone by.
"He's a bartender and mixologist for hire for special events. He says tonight is his friend's birthday party." Pyrrha seemed conflicted as she kept her eyes on the road. "It's probably just a coincidence. Jaune is…very normal."
At that, Yang had to slap her hand over her mouth to stop herself from laughing, but she still ended up giggling uncontrollably. It made Pyrrha blush, which only made Yang laugh even more. She removed her hand from her face and asked between fits of snickers, "I'm sorry, it's just – what is that supposed to mean?"
"No, I'm sorry, which one of us is going against every sensibility out there by having the hots for literally one of the most dangerous creatures alive right now?"
Yang raised her hands in amused surrender, still grinning, and managed to get her laughter under control. "Hey, I'm not judging, believe me. But, like, why has 'very normal' gotten your attention this much?"
Pyrrha relaxed in her seat, and she finally had the shadow of a smile cross her lips. "…It's very refreshing, you know?" she eventually admitted, and her tone betrayed that rare shyness that only talking about Jaune seemed to draw out of her. "He tries to be smooth, but he somehow always ends up awkward, and there's something about it that just feels so sweet and genuine to me. He's not…complicated? Shush, I see that smile getting wider again. I mean, compared to our own everyday lives and the situations we deal with. I don't have to worry about…anything, really, when we're talking together."
Yang's grin had not gotten any smaller. In fact, she turned her head towards her partner, making sure it looked shit-eating.
Realizing Yang wasn't saying anything, Pyrrha glanced over…and immediately groaned. "Dear gods, Yang. Yes, I know, I was gushing." She paused, and her expression softened again. "I guess it just means a lot to me, that…safety."
"Aw, Pyrrha…" Yang was sincere this time instead of teasing. She saw the vulnerability being admitted and didn't want to give Pyrrha a reason to hide it away. A part of Yang even understood, and it pulled at her heartstrings, forced her to reflect on her own situation. She touched Pyrrha's arm to show her support.
She really needed to have an honest conversation with Blake, though.
But Blake wasn't showing any signs of life.
They were arriving at Wicked Thirst Parlor now, however. It was located among other restaurants and bars, but the exterior differentiated itself by the tinted windows and dark grey stonework for arches. The name of the bar appeared near the door in bright red neon lights, at the top of a small but wide flight of stairs. It actually seemed like it was probably an upscale kind of place – that, or it was rather new, because it showed none of the wear-and-tear the other buildings had.
Pyrrha parked their vehicle on the side of the street farther off in an empty spot and took a breath. "Are you coming in, too?"
"I'll stay out here, try to catch a bit of sleep. If not, I'll keep an eye on who comes in and out of there. But if you need me for anything, I'll keep my wire on. Just shout in my ear or something." It was unlike Yang to skip an opportunity to party, but this was Pyrrha's evening. And Yang really was feeling perpetually tired behind her lids. A nap wouldn't fix the problem, but it could at least help temporarily.
Pyrrha seemed to understand. "Okay. Thank you. I'll hide my weapons, then, so I don't draw any extra attention." She paused, seemed to consider something, and then she undid her ponytail so that she could instead pull back only the sides of her hair into the elastic, unbuttoned one button on her blouse, and then got out of the car so that she could get the holsters of her guns under her arms instead of at her hips. She then got her light leather jacket out of the backseat and smoothly shrugged into it. "How do I look?"
Yang smiled and winked. "You look fantastic. Go get him, girl. He's not even gonna be able to do his job right with you nearby."
Pyrrha smiled, too, almost bashful. "Thanks. I'll see you later." She shut the driver's door and then headed off towards Wicked Thirst Parlor.
Yang watched her go until she was out of sight, and then let out a sigh. At least Pyrrha's interest in Jaune wasn't in direct conflict with her orders from Aurora. She was right, about Jaune being safe. He wasn't a literal menace to the mortal world. Was something wrong with Yang, that she was attracted to someone so dangerous?
But it's not the danger that attracts me. This, Yang was certain of. In fact, the danger did scare her, and not in a good way. It was the very reason why she needed Blake to explain herself. Yang got her scroll out of her pocket and checked her messages with the vampire. Still no answer to her last text. Maybe it was time for a follow-up.
Yang: Hello?
And then Yang waited for a while, but still no reply came up, so she returned her scroll to her pocket with a heavy sigh.
Did she die for real? It would be even more upsetting, though, if she was ignoring Yang. Which might have seemed callous, but at least if Blake was dead, Yang could put to rest all these upsetting and contradictory feelings. It would make this Vale case a lot easier. She slouched down in her seat, closing her eyes, frowning.
She didn't like thinking about Blake being dead, either, though.
Any thought about Blake made her feel tense and anxious.
Yang must have managed to fall into a fitful sleep without realizing because the shock she experienced at being suddenly woken up by Pyrrha's voice in her ear going, "Ember! Ember, do you hear me? Ember!" was unreal.
She jumped up in her seat, disoriented, heart pounding, and said, "Huh? What? What's…what's going on?"
Pyrrha sounded like she was simultaneously trying to keep her voice down while also trying to be heard over the sound of the bass-y music playing inside when she said urgently, "Fox Alistair and Yatsuhashi Daichi are here!"
Yang squinted. It took a moment for that news to register in her brain. When it did, her eyes widened and she checked the time. Only less than an hour had elapsed since Yang had fallen asleep. "Brothers…" she muttered, and started getting ready to leave the car. What a wild stroke of luck this was. "Have they seen you?"
"Yes. But I've just been staying at the counter with Jaune, they don't seem too worried. Look, Ember, I need you to come in and talk to them by yourself. I don't want to make Jaune suspicious of me or get him involved in this somehow."
"I'm on it," Yang replied. "I'll keep my wire activated so you can hear the conversation."
"Thank you. I owe you."
"Nah, you know you have my full support, Akouo. That's what partners are for." Yang got out of the vehicle and shut the door. Pyrrha didn't reply, so Yang had to assume she wasn't in a position to do so now. She hurried towards Wicked Thirst Parlor's entrance, already getting her fake VPD police badge prepared. The door opened to a dark hallway with more red neon symbols along the walls, near the ceiling, and Yang felt the deep heartbeat of the bass through the floor. She approached the bouncer standing beside the other double doors further down the hallway, showed him her badge, and was let inside.
Her eyes widened a bit, taking it all in. There was a live DJ at the end of the room, dancers by each side on platforms, smoke and lights playing against their gyrating silhouettes. The main seating area was a few steps inlaid into the floor, plush couches and armchairs arranged around low tables, while the bar, itself, was a long counter against the left wall, various spirits on showcase in the pale bricks behind it.
There were quite a few partygoers present, and Yang only caught a brief glimpse of Pyrrha sitting on one of the barstools. The lighting was edgy, almost chaotic, with its deep reds and purples glowing and thrumming from under counters and lounging the base of walls, and long hanging light fixtures twinkled in dark blues from the ceiling.
The place certainly befitted its name.
Yang stepped away from the entrance, surveilling the bar in search of her targets. In doing so, she noticed there was a second level that looked down on the first, high enough that it was impossible to tell what was happening up there, especially with the tinted windows, and the stairs leading up were blocked by a metal cage door and another bouncer. Shady. Yet still completely in theme.
Her eyes continued their seeking, and she finally saw two individuals sitting at one of the tables off to the opposite side of the bar – one of them sleek with dark skin and feathered auburn hair, white eyes visible all the way from here, the other a hulking giant of a man with angular eyes and a black buzz cut. Fox and Yatsuhashi. Their attention was currently occupied on something else, but Yang didn't get the time to walk over to them. The thing – well, the person – their attention was on got to them first. It was a young woman with long chestnut hair and tall rabbit ears sprouting from her head. She said something to them, Yatsuhashi nodded, and then both vampires stood from their seats and followed the faunus girl towards the bouncer Yang had spotted a moment ago – who opened the cage door and let them up the stairs without batting an eye.
Well, shit. Was that girl in trouble? She didn't seem to be…but did she know they were vampires? I have to get up there. Something wasn't right. But Yang highly doubted she'd be able to just ask the bouncer to let her through. She could, with her fake PD badge, but there was a nagging feeling at the back of Yang's mind that if she hoped for this encounter to go well, she'd have to take a page out of Pyrrha's book and try to seem less like law enforcement.
So, Yang found the women's bathroom and went into the larger stall to unclasp the holsters for her guns from her thighs, and strapped them under her arms instead, hidden by her jacket. She removed her orange scarf from where it was tied around the top of her combat boot and put it around her neck instead, and then took a moment to figure out what to do with her general look.
Then the idea came to her. She folded her tank top up neatly, baring the entirety of her abdomen, making it look like she was only wearing a sports bra under the jacket. That got rid of any air of professionality. Then, Yang finished it all up by passing her hands through her hair and ruffling it, making her already thick waves look even messier.
Once she was ready, Yang headed back out and started mingling with the partygoers who were dancing near the DJ stage, letting the music reverberate through her and adding some rhythm and sway to her movements.
It had been a really long time since she'd actually danced at a place like this just for fun. And although she had a purpose here, she did take the opportunity to enjoy the moment, letting her body move with the enthusiasm it wanted.
How simple life used to be.
It did not take long before she felt someone against her back, hands tentatively placed on the bared part of her hips. "You are a woman," the guy said into her ear, trying to be smooth but having to speak loudly over the music.
Yang grinned – not because the line worked in any kind of way, but because it was so unfathomably bad. She turned around, facing her wannabe charmer, and was met with actual azure blue hair atop a face that didn't seem to have realized the body it was attached to was that of an adult man. Yang was on the tall side at five feet, eight inches – this guy was even taller, and lean, too, but still had a good set of shoulders.
He was interested in Yang. He was perfect for her purpose.
She danced with him, got closer to him, close enough to ask in his ear, "What's your name?"
"Neptune! What about you?"
Neptune? Was that real? Yang couldn't help the hilarity on her face when she replied, "Ember!"
"It's my birthday today, Ember!" Neptune revealed, not at all fazed, and there was something about his tone that actually made him seem genuine instead of only looking to get into her pants. Also – This must be Jaune's friend, then. What a coincidence. That was the second one tonight.
"Happy birthday!" Yang told him with a smile. "So, you're the VIP tonight. Maybe you can give me a few pointers! How would you go about getting to the second floor?"
Normally, Yang was well aware that this was too direct, but Neptune was either too drunk or too naïve to question her motives. Maybe both. His expression lit up, and then he seemed to make this strange effort to look mysterious and smoldering, but that was apparently too much concentration for his brain and he stumbled. Yang laughed and steadied him, one hand on his shoulder, the other on his abdomen.
"Do you even know what's up there?" he asked instead of properly answering.
Now that was a suspicious question. Yang blinked and gave him an innocent beam. "There's people I wanna meet."
Neptune made an honest effort to read her expression, his dark eyes squinting, but then he became satisfied with whatever he managed to gather because he said, "Tell the bouncer you're a volunteer. The password tonight is 'Live the fantasy one last time.'"
A…volunteer? For what? Magic tricks? …Sex stuff? Whatever it is, better be legal. She didn't waste any more time, letting Neptune down easy by thanking him for the dance but saying she was eager to meet with her friends, and immediately headed towards the bouncer standing in front of the cage door.
He looked down at her with a frown. "Volunteers and VIP only," he said gruffly.
"Yeah, I'm a volunteer. Live the fantasy one last time."
The bouncer eyed her skeptically for a moment, and then finally moved to the side and opened the cage door for her.
"Thanks!" Yang went by him and began her ascent up the stairs.
Once she reached the top, she paused. Took it all in. Ahead of her, in the corner to her right, were two silver-barred cages hanging from the ceiling, containing a male and female stripper. They did appear relaxed in their sensual moves, but as Yang watched for a moment, she noticed that the keys for the cages were hanging from their necks – like they were in there for their own protection or something, not just for the purpose of temptation. Strange. Are those normally locked like that?
There was another bar up here, nearby, but no spirits on display. There was, however, someone sitting on one of the stools and ordering a drink, and the bartender was mixing something red and dark with another liquid. Since when is wine used as a base for tonics?
And since when did it look so…thick?
The enforcer found a plush chair with a table in front of it to sit at by herself. She took a moment to gather her thoughts and keep surveilling the premises. Further to her left, there were five booth alcoves, but the booths were opulent, demi-circle couches, low tables before them, and there were curtains pulled back against the walls between the alcoves.
One of the alcoves was occupied. Occupied by the rabbit faunus girl and –
Yang's breath caught in her throat.
Blake. Blake, wearing a black dress that cut off at the middle of her thighs and hid her neck and made her lithe figure and legs look fantastic, a white blazer with no buttons draped over her shoulders. Blake, who was already staring straight at her. The other girl noticed Blake's attention was focused elsewhere and followed her line of sight all the way to Yang. She arched her eyebrows, turned back to the ancient, assumingly asking about this.
Blake replied. Her bright eyes not once leaving Yang. Expression indecipherable, verging on predatory.
Yang swallowed hard. Shit, shit, shit. She's alive! She's here! Fuck!
Third coincidence tonight. Yang forced herself to avert her gaze despite the acceleration of her heartbeat, forced herself to observe her surroundings, to observe the people who were up here. It was much quieter than downstairs, definitely not as crowded. A couple tables were taken, guests chatting amicably. There were two pool tables in another corner, one of them being used by a group of friends. They all seemed like regular mortals…
…except for those who didn't. Like Fox and Yatsuhashi, who were playing cards at one of the tables that were in direct line of sight of the alcove Blake and the rabbit faunus girl were in – who was most assuredly also a vampire, Yang realized now, and not a mortal in danger as she'd initially assumed.
And there was that other person who had ordered from the bar, a man with the right side of his dark grey-blue hair cut close to the skull and the left side swooping down almost over his eye.
Yang grabbed the drink menu from the table and covered her face with it to hide her panic and get a grip. Five vampires. All at once. Right here, among mortals.
Mortals who fucking knew there were vampires among them. Neptune had known, too. In fact, based on the usage of identifying as a volunteer, and seeing those alcoves where curtains could be drawn for privacy… "Oh, my fucking gods," Yang whispered to herself, heartbeat pounding now.
Wicked Thirst Parlor was exactly right.
How was Aurora ever supposed to deal with this? What the fuck? The conversation I am going to have with everyone…
And Yang still needed to speak with Fox and Yatsuhashi. And who was the vampire Blake was talking to? And who was the other guy? One thing at a time, Yang. Focus on your targets.
But then before Yang could send a quick message to Pyrrha, she saw the only waitress up here pick up two glasses of sloshing dark red liquid from the counter and carry them towards the alcove where Blake and the rabbit faunus were, handing one to each woman with a smile – an almost hopeful smile, one that seemed suspiciously starstruck, even, when directed at Blake.
But Blake was still solely interested in Yang, gaze only breaking away when prompted by her…friend? They seem close, but not that close. As the waitress left with a tinge of disappointment in the gait of her walk from being ignored, the ancient brought the glass to her lips and downed the whole thing at once in slow, full gulps.
Yang stared, waiting to see, waiting for the reaction, needing to confirm that blood other than Yang's truly couldn't sate Blake's thirst.
Blake set the glass down on the low table before her. She swiped her lips with her tongue, but the expression on her face was…wanting, frustrated. Her eyes met Yang's again, just a glance this time, but the hunger seemed even more prominent that before. It was hard to tell at this distance, but was that red in her irises? Blake shook her head at the rabbit faunus girl, mouth moving as she spoke. Yang was too far away to hear.
She snapped out of it. There was a job she had to do, and for all intents and purposes, the vampires and the mortals here weren't hostile or afraid of one another, as crazy as that was.
"You are not going to believe what I've discovered is happening on the second floor of this place," Yang murmured, only for Pyrrha to hear through her wire. She didn't wait to get a response, instead standing up and heading over to the bar first with the intention of getting a drink to bring to Fox and Yatsuhashi. Hopefully, it wasn't rude to offer a drink here that wasn't her own blood…considering the circumstances.
Yang took a seat one stool over from the vampire with the grey-blue hair sitting at the bar. She noticed he was dressed rather expensively with the finely gold-embroidered vest with a burgundy chemise underneath. Before Yang could hail the bartender, though, she realized she didn't actually know what to order. What was being mixed into the blood here? Alcohol? Something else?
And I literally just had the drink menu in my hands. Nice going, Xiao Long.
Fortunately, Yang figured she could be at least a little smooth with the guy sitting near her. Either way, this was an opportunity to log an unknown vampire. She turned towards him with a smile. "Heya. It's my first time here. I'd like to bring something to the two good sirs over there." She motioned at Fox and Yatsuhashi. "Any recommendations?"
The vampire gave her a half surprised, half amused look, irises flashing orange. A little bit like fire, even. Hm. "Why not give them some of you if you want to be so nice?" He leaned closer.
"Uh, well –" Yang's mind raced, trying to come up with a plausible excuse.
But before she could say something along the lines of having already been fed from recently, several things happened in quick succession. The vampire moved onto the empty stool between them and leaned uncomfortably closer into Yang's space to take a long sniff of the air. He grinned. "You do smell absolutely div –"
He was not given the opportunity to finish that sentence.
Suddenly, a large, clawed hand made of smoke and darkness exploded into existence in the space between them, and grabbed ahold of the man's neck and face, pushing him back and away from Yang. It squeezed until it started cutting into his very flesh. His eyes widened in shock and pain as dark spots of blood began appearing where the tips of the claws were carving in. He tried to pry the monstrosity off his face, but his fingers just uselessly swept through smoke.
Holy shit. At first, Yang was too startled and horrified to do much else except stare, but then realization kicked in, and she swiveled on her seat to get Blake in her sights. Sure enough, from across the room, the ancient's glare was locked on the man, expression verging on fury. Her irises burned in a raging glow of yellow and crimson.
Yang glanced at the man from the corner of her eye, saw more blood, more panic, more useless struggling, and understood that Blake was ready to kill him right then and there. Stop. She waved her hand, urgently trying to get Blake's attention without causing an even bigger scene. It was almost instantaneous. Those damning eyes locked onto her instead, and Yang shook her head, motioned for Blake to cut it out, mouthed stop.
She would take out her guns if she had to. Make shit hit the fan in here. She didn't want to, but if that was what it took…
But Blake listened. Yang could hardly believe it, but she saw the clench of Blake's jaw as she turned away, and the black hand faded out of existence as if it had never been there in the first place. It was as immediate as that.
The younger vampire groaned and wiped the trails of blood from his face, first glancing over at Blake anxiously before setting this look on Yang, this look that seemed contorted between surprise and resentment. There were a few other people staring, too, and murmuring between themselves in interest. So much for not drawing unnecessary attention. Gods, why'd she do that for? Protect me?
There were so many other, better ways Blake could have done that. If that was what it was.
"I take it you and the dark mistress are acquainted, then?" the vampire muttered, grabbing his drink and finishing it up. The wounds in his flesh sealed themselves within seconds. He set the glass down. "My name's Henry, by the way, if you care."
Yang was finally able to turn in her seat again, switch her attention away from Blake as her heart relaxed out of its pounding. She found the waitress, standing nearby, also giving her this strange, squinting look. Yang narrowed her eyes, too. "Henry. Hi. And what do you mean, acquainted?"
The expression on his face became disbelieving. "I wasn't even going to drink from you and she just almost killed me for it. But stopped when you told her to. Who are you?"
The waitress was glaring at Yang now. Literally why. "Just someone with no answers to give and a whole lotta questions instead. Sorry to disappoint. I'm Ember. Do you know why she did that?"
Henry scoffed. "You don't have the slightest idea why Nightshade, herself, would want to stop another vampire from touching her food?" Then he sighed dramatically. "I guess it's only normal the strongest of us get the best meals."
He doesn't know what enforcers smell like, can't identify me as an enforcer. Wow. Aurora didn't know about him, either, though. Until now. She smiled weakly. "Yeah. I guess. But…we could fix that."
Henry was immediately intrigued. He started to lean closer again but then checked himself, glancing nervously back at Blake before returning his gaze to Yang. "And how do you propose we fix it?"
Yang whipped out her scroll, careful not to reveal her guns, and said with a wink, "To answer your earlier question, I've already been fed from recently. But if you give me your code, I can send you a text when I'm feeling good again and…" She was the one who leaned in a bit this time, hoping he'd get a clearer whiff of her. This is never not weird. "…And then you could have a taste, too."
Yang had never gotten someone's code faster than she got Henry's. Vampires do be thirsty. Right up there next to lesbians.
Ha, I'm stupid.
She looked back at Blake. The ancient was focused on her friend now, having some kind of intense discussion. Yang turned back towards Henry. "So, what about those drinks?"
Henry waved his hand, pushed his empty glass towards the bartender, a burly man with a well-kept beard. "Try giving Fox and Yatsu the Breath of Life. It's a good one."
So, he knows them, too. I wonder… "Thanks. I'll do that. Who, uh, who's the girl with Nightshade?"
"That would be Mimic." He gave Yang an arched-eyebrowed, knowing look, "Don't be jealous, now."
Yang ignored the comment. She wasn't jealous. Mimic. She knew that alias. Blake had gotten a call from her back on the roof of the library the night prior. She'd said…they'd meet. To talk about things. This must be it, then. So, that meant Yang being here at the same time was the third coincidence, not Blake being here. Yang was the intruder.
Gods, she couldn't believe this. Blake was alive. Blake had ignored Yang's messages. Blake did not look happy to see Yang here.
She doesn't care about you like that! Get it into your thick head already, dipshit.
At least Blake wasn't attacking her again. At least there was that.
"I think you're jealous," Yang finally retorted, trying to hide her unease, her…hurt, and thenhailed the bartender to order two Breath of Life's. "She gets to drink my blood, you don't." What the fuck was she doing? That was a taunt. Why was she taunting a vampire she didn't even know the age of? She hadn't meant to. The words had just slipped out in her anxious state.
The bartender prepared the drinks in front of Yang, and Henry – thankfully – only chuckled. "I know my place. I'm not sure you know yours, though." And then he stood up, and with a, "See you around, pet," he headed towards the stairs and left.
Yang frowned. It was only because he didn't know she was an enforcer. That thought didn't offer much comfort, though.
"What makes you so special?"
Yang's eyes shifted over to the waitress, surprised. Her name tag read Melanie. She'd gotten closer to Yang, setting a frown on her. Yang absolutely did not understand where this was coming from. "What do you mean?" she asked, confused.
"I mean…" Melanie walked two fingers on the counter slowly, as if thinking over her words, "how did you get into Nightshade's good graces so well that she basically claimed you? Even Henry thought you smelled super good. What's your secret?"
Yang's eyes widened. What the fuck? That really was the question of the night. Everything was so messed up here. Also, that wasn't what had happened at all. Was this girl for real? "What's up with the fascination?" she asked instead of answering, because now Yang was intrigued.
Melanie rolled her eyes. "What's not to be fascinated about? I'm super strict with my diet so that I smell the best for vampires. They feed off me, get to know me. Maybe, if I ask nicely enough after a while, I could get turned. And if I live long enough, I could start developing powers." There was a dreamy quality to her tone now as she continued, "But imagine if Nightshade liked me, if I had her protection. I'd be untouchable." She frowned. "Like you, apparently."
It was extremely hard for Yang not to narrow her eyes at the girl. They probably still twitched. The bartender set the two drinks she's ordered in front of her, and Yang paid for them. If this girl was a vampire, she'd definitely be a troublemaker. Yang hoped she never got turned. "Well, good luck with that." She took the glasses and stood up, offering a wink. "I think you'll find Nightshade is a bit too much of a mystery, anyway." And on those words, she started carefully making her way over to her initial targets.
Inevitably, though, that caused her to be facing Blake's direction. Blake, who watched her get closer like a hawk.
Yang did her best to ignore it, stood by the table Fox and Yatsuhashi were playing cards at and saying genuinely, "Hey, guys. Mind if I join you? Brought some drinks for you, on me."
They'd seen her arrive. They also gave each other a look, suspicious and debating.
"I know you know what I am. I'm not here to cause problems. I just wanna chat. I'm Operative Ember."
Yatsuhashi was the one to speak up, finally. "Sure. Grab a chair."
Yang was immediately relieved, glad this wasn't going to turn into another fight like with Cardin. Maybe because she wasn't a threat here, all by herself in public with other vampires – and one extremely powerful ancient – in the vicinity. Mimic was staring at her this time, too, like she'd grown a second head. Right. Mimic had come up with these two. They knew each other.
Yang gave her a sheepish smile before giving the drinks to Fox and Yatsuhashi, and then pulling a chair out and taking a seat at the table with them. They dealt her in, and Yatsuhashi said, "So, the murders and disappearances finally brought Aurora to Vale. How'd you find us?"
"Coincidence. We – well, I wasn't supposed to be here tonight. But we were looking for you." It occurred to Yang that they were close enough to Blake and Mimic that both faunus – especially with their more sensitive pairs of ears – could most likely hear this conversation no problem. There was nothing Yang could do except ask Fox and Yatsuhashi to speak with her elsewhere, or ask Blake and Mimic to leave…so, yeah, there was nothing Yang could do.
"Of course you were looking for us," Yatsuhashi replied. Fox continued to be silent, but it felt like his entirely white eyes were reading into Yang's very thoughts. "We're not responsible, just to put that out there."
"Yeah, I know. Well, I mean, I don't, but I figured. Thanks for clarifying, though."
"So, what do you want with us, then? Our status update so that Aurora can resume tracking us?"
"No. I mean, I probably should, but…" Yang frowned at her cards for a moment. Felt guilty for some reason. "I…don't personally care about that right now. You're not hurting anyone, are you?"
"No."
Yang jumped. Looked around in alarm. That had sounded like it was directly in her head.
And the voice continued despite her reaction, "We drink the serums provided by Cryolife, and from the mortal volunteers."
Yatsuhashi pointed at Fox.
So, Yang wasn't suddenly losing her shit. She stared at Fox in shock. There'd been nothing on his file about this. But then she saw the scars on his throat, barely visible dark pink slashes against his umber skin. She creased her eyebrows in sincere concern. "Fox? What happened to you? How do you have this ability?"
"Doesn't matter what happened. Something went wrong. But don't you already know we gain abilities according to our lives and what we hone? I worked for this."
Yang stored away that information for later. Resisted the urge to look at Blake again, to start wondering what that meant about her own powers of shadows and darkness – because it definitely didn't seem to mean anything good. Also, no – she didn't already know that about vampires. Vale was her first case dealing with vampires who even had powers beyond their charms. They've been alive longer here. She took a breath. "Okay, cool, fine. You're telepathic. No biggie. What's the serum you get from Cryolife, then?"
Yatsuhashi smiled a little, which caused Fox to follow suit. "Insulated juice."
Yang arched her eyebrows but couldn't help the smile, too, with the choice of words. "Reeeaally?"
"Yeah, they've created bottles that keep the blood good for a week. One meal per bottle. We go pick up a pack for the week, bring the bottles back. Different flavors, so they're more interesting than just blood packs. There's a synthetic plasma upgrade available, too, but those are expensive."
"Nothing beats treating ourselves to a fresh volunteer from time to time, though, of course."
Yang was having trouble wrapping her mind around all the implications. She chose to focus on the new information. "They…they make you pay?"
"Only for the bottles. Blood packs are free."
Yang assessed this. She was losing this card game pretty badly. But she was also very distracted. Yatsuhashi and Fox didn't press her or make any further comments though, so Yang took a moment to gather her thoughts. She hadn't meant to follow this particular line of questioning, but, Brothers, was it interesting.
The vampires in Vale truly had made their lives here. Among mortals, alongside mortals, although still in secret. Without Aurora's regulation. And Blake had been here, had been the one dealing with the vampires who decided to cause trouble. Yang couldn't stop her eyes from finding the ancient again.
…Only to find her beckoning Melanie over.
Melanie, who was dying for that moment, if the hurry in which she made her way over to Blake was anything to go by. Insane. Yang couldn't tear her eyes away, though, too morbidly curious and worried to know what was going on. Fox and Yatsuhashi didn't seem to make a case out of it, though.
Blake said or asked something to Melanie, who nodded vigorously, and proceeded to grab the curtains pinned to the wall and drew them shut, hiding the whole alcove from sight.
Dread settled in Yang's gut. She's going to drink from her. Yang understood now. What the fuck is Blake doing? She shouldn't even have been thirsty at this point yet – she'd drunk from Yang barely half a week ago. There were at least three more days to go. And Blake had been clear that she couldn't be sated by anything other than enforcer blood now. And only Yang and Pyrrha knew Blake was, in actuality, entirely dependent on only Yang for food.
Something about this didn't sit right with Yang at all.
She clenched her teeth. It's none of my business. Frowned harder at her own thoughts. Hello? Yes, it is my business. It's literally my job. Yang was supposed to protect mortals. Except…this whole situation was so fucked up and turned upside down because these mortals in here were giving their consent like utter brainless morons. And if they were giving their consent, then…what was Yang supposed to do? She wasn't the stupid mortal police. She was the stupid vampire police.
"Do you guys know who Vulpes, Mocha, and Axis are?" she suddenly asked, tense, still fighting with herself internally, trying to possibly find a distraction.
Fox actually grinned, sharp canines on display. His mouth didn't move when he spoke, making it seem like a toothy snarl. "Vulpes is me. Axis is Yatsuhashi. We took on aliases a few decades ago."
Yang blinked. "Oh." She'd be able to add that to their profiles for the SRO. It was a little update, at least. "What about Mocha?"
"We know who Mocha is," Yatsuhashi provided, unsmiling, "but we aren't going to tell you."
Yang felt a sharp spike of anger. She was already on edge because of what was happening not fifteen feet from her, already overwhelmed with all this information and all these new moral dilemmas she had to sort through, and now she wasn't getting full cooperation from these two vampires. And, yeah, there was a part of her that understood, so she tried her best to keep a rein over her temper, but it wasn't easy. "What about your connection to Mimic?"
But then there was a noise from behind the curtains further off. A cry. Something that sounded like a struggle.
Yang was on her feet before she knew it, was rushing towards the hidden alcove before having any kind of idea about what she'd even do, just that she had to make sure that civilian was safe. Had to make sure Blake wasn't about to kill.
She pulled the curtain open, but she wasn't the one to draw it shut. Fox and Yatsuhashi had followed her, blocking the outside view. Yang took in the sight before her. Mimic was tugging on Blake's arm, seemingly as hard as she could, but Blake wasn't budging. She had her fangs sunk into Melanie's wrist, and there was a mess of flesh and blood there as the waitress tried wrenching away, tears streaming down her cheeks. Blake's other hand was holding the other arm, stopping any retaliation Melanie might have tried.
Mimic set a desperate stare on Yang. "She's not herself!"
Almost at the same time, Yang heard Pyrrha in her ear urgently go, "Do you need my help?"
Yang couldn't answer either of them. Heart pounding, ignoring the danger, she half vaulted, half slid across the low table and, using her momentum, slammed her prosthetic fist with the silver knuckles into Blake's temple.
The ancient immediately released the woman, thrown back against the couch while skin sizzled briefly, but Yang didn't let Melanie make her escape. She slapped her hands onto the waitress' temples, forcing her to look at Yang. Yang met her stare, kept her entranced, and said, "You cut yourself with a knife at work, it was an accident, but you have to hurry to the hospital to get medical attention."
A dazed look entered Melanie's eyes. Then, she nodded, alarm coming back to her, and Yang let her go, let her run out of the alcove, holding her wrist close. The enforcer stood back up properly. Focused her ire on Blake.
Yang thought she'd find something feral and angry staring back at her from the couch. Thought she'd have to fight or somehow subdue a vicious threat. But, no, there was only devastation in the wide of Blake's tear-filled eyes, trembling in her fingers as she tried to wipe the blood away from her mouth and cheeks. She couldn't hold Yang's gaze.
"I'm sorry," she whispered, voice breaking, and then…
She vanished into a warping of the shadows. Within seconds, Blake was gone.
It took Yang a brief moment to realize the gravity of that. Blake had just left. Not facing what she'd done. Not offering any explanation. Again.
"Oh, fuck you," Yang spat where Blake used to be sitting, shaking out her clenched prosthetic from its fist. "Fucking coward."
Mimic was standing beside her in the next instant. "That's not fair to her! I've never seen her lose control like that. Something's wrong, Ember."
Yang narrowed her eyes at the rabbit faunus. 'That's not fair to her'? She might as well have been taking pity on a lion after it sprained its paw hunting a baby antelope. At least, Mimic sounded exactly that deluded from reality to Yang. Nobody pitied the fucking lion after it savagely killed its innocent prey.
Still, Yang humored Mimic and glanced between the three remaining vampires, and finally understood the connection now. Fox and Yatsuhashi were protecting Mimic. Mimic wasn't strong. Mimic was a newborn. Which spurred on a pretty important question for Yang. "I'm sorry, and how long have you known Nightshade, exactly? Just for shits and giggles. Because I don't know if you noticed, but she was going to kill that waitress! Empty her of her blood!" But then another thought occurred to her, and it made her even angrier. She spread her hands, gesturing at everything around them. "You have a fragile balance with mortals here! Nightshade could have ruined all of it tonight!" She was outraged for all the other mortals and vampires who would have had to probably change their entire lifestyle because of this. And all of it would have caused Aurora so much complicated work, too.
Yang must have hit the nail on the head because Mimic looked down, looked pained and vexed. "I knew Blake while I was still mortal," she said. She had an accent, like her or her family were somewhere from the plains of Sanus – a little similar to how people spoke in the medieval movies, but the vowels were longer, the R's barely pronounced, so that mortal sounded like 'mawtuhl'. "We were friends for nine years. Then Blake disappeared for fifty. I was turned into a vampire shortly after Blake was gone." Mimic motioned feebly at the couch. "She never had a problem like this. Not this, being so aggressive and bloodthirsty. Blake has always been…careful. So guarded. Restraint in everything that she did. I'm sorry you had to intervene."
Yang held her head. Her brain wasn't functioning anymore. Mimic had just said a whole lot of revealing information, and she may as well have been speaking gibberish. But it sounded like Mimic was unaware of Blake only being able to be sated by enforcer blood now. Blake had not shared that information with her.
Yang groaned and turned away a bit to say to Pyrrha, "Akouo, if you can free yourself to get up here, the password is 'Live the fantasy one last time.' Say you're a volunteer. But the situation isn't an emergency, not anymore, anyway. I don't want you to end your date for some talking." She did wish Pyrrha could join her up here, though. This was exactly why they needed to be in pairs. Pyrrha would have a more level head about all of this, she wasn't as close to the issues at hand as Yang was.
But, also, Yang really, really felt like Pyrrha deserved her time with Jaune.
Surprisingly, Pyrrha did answer. "Who are you talking to right now, then?"
"Mimic. The rabbit faunus girl who met with Fox and Yatsu."
"I – oh, gods…"
Yang furrowed her eyebrows. "What's with all the dread?"
"I'll tell you later. Gotta go."
Yang massaged her brow for a moment before clearing her throat and turning back towards the three vampires.
"Can I speak with you privately?" Mimic asked.
Yang glanced over at Fox and Yatsuhashi. Couldn't Mimic just ask them to leave? But then…Yang figured Mimic probably wanted to know if she was okay with it. Maybe. I should say no. She felt like her brain was too…all over the place. She'd get sidetracked, run the risk of unwillingly having her decisions get influenced by bias or pressure.
But there was no way to track these fucking vampires. The moment was now, not tomorrow or the day after or whenever else because then the chance would be evaporated in a puff of let out a frustrated sigh. "Yeah, let's talk. My partner still gets to listen through my wire, though."
Mimic nodded at Fox and Yatsuhashi, and the two vampires left the alcove, keeping the curtain drawn shut after they were gone.
Yang didn't sit down. She crossed her arms, set a glare on Mimic. "So? What's up?"
"Sorry, it's just that Blake told me something in confidentiality and I don't think she wants other vampires knowing…and after what just happened, I can't really help but believe her now. She said she didn't think anything less than enforcer blood would sate her hunger now since the time she drank from you."
Oh, so she did tell her. The spike of disbelief and annoyance was real. "Yeah, I know. Why the fuck was she drinking from the waitress, then?"
Mimic frowned. "Look, I'm sorry. I'm the one who encouraged her to try because…well, she doesn't seem to think she can drink from you anymore."
Yang blinked. Considered that for a second. She's not wrong. But Yang hadn't thought of it. Hadn't once believed Blake would be conflicted about it. Am I being lied to? For all Yang knew, Mimic wasn't any more trustworthy than Blake was. On the other hand, Mimic was a very young vampire, someone who was apparently quite shielded by others, and her thought process would be much closer to a modern mortal's than Blake's would be…and Mimic didn't seem to have a reason to be lying right now, anyway, or even much of a mean streak in her bones.
Yang tried to relax her jaw, tried to keep her tone level. She wasn't angry with Mimic. It wasn't fair to treat her like she was. Yang chose her next words carefully. "No, I won't let her drink from me anymore. Not unless she fucking explains why she attacked me last night. I'm not going to help a vampire who just arbitrarily does terrible things left and right, that's not my job and it's not what I believe is best."
"I told you she's not like that." Mimic crossed her arms, too. She had a gentle mannerism about her, even her voice wasn't biting, but now it was as if she were putting in an effort to seem firm. It still wasn't very intimidating. Maybe it was the rabbit ears. "Sure, if you compare nine years to thousands of years, I haven't known Blake very long at all. But I'd like to think that nine whole years without even a hint of an incident, only for something to happen now, after circumstances have apparently changed, means something, too."
Yang gripped the bridge of her nose. She wanted to pace. Needed to think. Needed to fucking sleep. But Mimic's argument reminded Yang of other thoughts the blonde had had in the recent past about Blake – namely, that Aurora never had issues with Blake before. There would have been a profile open about her already if they had, a mini-headquarters building for SUN operatives in Vale up and functional, too. And that was valid for much longer than nine years. That was valid for at least five-hundred years. Mimic was only confirming nine of them.
Still, for all intents and purposes, it seemed to be the truth. The aggressiveness and loss of control was out of character for Blake.
Which meant that…maybe what had happened last night was also unusual for her.
Which still begged the question… Why?
"I'm sorry about raising my voice," Yang said, calmer now. "So, what are you trying to say?"
Mimic let out a bit of a sigh, and she returned to her soft demeaner as if relieved she didn't have to be on the defensive anymore. "I'm saying that I've never seen Blake hungry. Not once. And, tonight, she was hungry. You saw how much she stared at you. Pretty sure it wasn't sex related. Although she definitely does care about you."
Hello, whiplash? "…No, she doesn't. She wants me out of Vale."
Mimic put her hands on her hips and looked down with a crease of her eyebrows. "I don't know the whole situation. This was my first time seeing her after those fifty years that she was gone, and things are certainly different now." Mimic firmed her expression again. "She's not okay, Ember. Tonight has shown me the reason why she's always been so excessively careful, why I've never seen her hungry. Something is wrong."
Yang was beginning to feel frustrated all over again. She raised her hands, confused and supplicating. "Why are you even telling me this? And I don't mean because I asked, I mean…telling me like you're trying to change my mind about her?"
"I don't have to change your mind. But I'm trying to help. Take it or leave it. Anyway, I'm heading out of here, I'll see if I can contact her. Enjoy the rest of your evening, Ember."
And before Yang could gather the wit to hold her back, Mimic was gone.
Yang had utterly failed to ask her mission-pertinent questions. The thing she'd feared would happen had happened – her feelings had sidetracked her, had caused her to forget there was important information she was trying to figure out to help save civilian lives. And now there was no way for Yang to get in contact with Mimic again.
She pulled the curtains open, gave the area a brief once-over. Fox and Yatsuhashi were gone, too. They would have left with Mimic.
Shit.
Yang shut the curtains again, slapped her cheeks a few times, shook out her arms, and rolled her shoulders, taking a few deep breaths to help calm and center herself. Every time she began to think she knew what to do about Blake, something else came up that completely turned everything on its head – and on top of that, the situation just kept getting more and more wildly complicated. If Yang had thought trying to keep Edrick and Oliver safe from the backlash that would occur because of this investigation would be nigh impossible, she had evidently underestimated just how dire the circumstances in Vale were.
And here was Yang, worrying herself to exhaustion and continuously getting distracted by this one damned woman as if her feelings were any kind of important compared to all that.
Okay, but I wasn't totally useless. I got Henry's contact info. That was something. That was one other vampire they could track down more easily. And she'd learned a few more things about how Cryolife was keeping the vampires fed, as well as finding out who Vulpes and Axis were. Those were all relevant and important details to build this Vale case.
Yang breathed a sigh and passed her hand through her hair, resigned to having to face Pyrrha with her failure, and finally headed out of the alcove. A few guests nearby stared at her as she walked by, and the bartender set an unfriendly glare on her from behind the counter, too. Yang swallowed hard as she focused her gaze on the stairs.
Something told her she wouldn't be welcome here again.
I guess from their perspective, every vampire I spoke to left because of me. I ruined their twisted fun.
They weren't technically wrong.
Yang almost ran straight into Pyrrha at the bottom of the stairs.
The redhead immediately grabbed Yang by the arm, and Yang braced herself for unkind words, but Pyrrha only pulled Yang into a brief but tight hug. "I'm so glad you're safe." And then she said the unkind words. "Also, you're going to be the death of me. We need to talk."
Yang groaned and hung her head, "I know –"
"Not here, let's get back into our vehicle."
Yang didn't protest, just quickly followed her partner out of Wicked Thirst Parlor without saying another word. The quasi-silence and calm outside were almost deafening after having loud music pulsing in her ears for so long. Yang looked up at the dark sky, too much light pollution making it impossible to see any stars. Somewhere out there, Blake had disappeared – alive, but hiding in her shadows. Because 'something was wrong,' apparently.
No shit, detective.
They got into their car and locked the doors, but Pyrrha didn't immediately start the engine. She took out her scroll and showed it to Yang. "Add this code to your contacts."
"Huh?" Yang took it, saw the name on the holographic display. Her eyes widened. "You spoke to Mimic? When?"
Pyrrha let out a long, slow sigh, and covered her face for a moment. Then, she murmured, "I didn't speak to her. Jaune knows her. They're friends." And then she was quiet.
Yang stared. A beat. And realization hit like a truck. "Oh. Oh, no, Pyrrha…" The dread Yang had heard in Pyrrha's voice earlier through her wire made so much sense now. She reached out, touched Pyrrha's arm, tried to be comforting. "Maybe he doesn't know. Maybe –"
"He knows, Yang." Pyrrha slowly shook her head. "He knows. Wicked Thirst is his primary job place."
Yang drooped her shoulders, defeated on her best friend's behalf. So, Jaune wasn't so 'very normal,' after all. He mingled with vampires, was friends with at least one of them – and, for all intents and purposes, probably covered for them to some extent by manning the regular part of the bar. Maybe, even, Jaune let them drink from him from time to time.
So much for Pyrrha not having to worry about anything with him. And she'd just been gushing about it not even three hours ago.
Pyrrha suddenly took in a ragged breath and blinked several times before undoing her hair and bringing it back into a loose ponytail again. "I just…I really like him, Yang. He's so sweet. I don't know what to do."
Welcome to the club, partner. Yang laughed a little, but her voice was a bit rough and her heart ached for Pyrrha. She would have hugged her if they weren't sitting in their car. "Well, lemme tell you, I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that there's no use in trying to decide anything tonight. There's a lot to process, and we have reports to write." Yang squeezed Pyrrha's arm affectionately. "Give yourself a bit of time to figure out what you want. Then decide. And whatever you choose, or if you need someone to crack a few jokes and get you outta your head, I'm always here."
Pyrrha laughed a bit, sniffled, and then took a breath. She gave Yang a smile and started the engine. "Thank you, Yang. I appreciate that a lot. It's almost like you're my friend or something."
Yang giggled. "Us? Friends? I was gonna request Aurora to switch my partner. Preferably for someone whose heart isn't made of gold, 'cause that's inconvenient."
"I see what you did there."
Yang sent Pyrrha a wink. "I have a boss memory."
Pyrrha only smiled wider.
Hey, I think I might secretly ship Yang and Pyrrha. Like I don't think I'd ever write a story about them romantically, but I think they'd be really good for each other, in a different life. lol
Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter! I've got a lot of content written all the way to chapter 16, and there are some scenes I'm really proud of that I can't wait to show you guys. Stay tuned!