Chapter 16: Looking for strays
Saturday.
A day where students all over the world are happy to greet. No classes, no homework, and only a day of lounging around or having fun with friends.
Ruby Rose was not having a good Saturday so far.
What happened yesterday put a damper on what was supposed to be a long weekend. None of them were really able to rest up last night because of it. That's how their sister team found them in the Cafeteria. Tired and uneasy.
Breakfast was a quiet affair. What would normally be a joyful beginning to a day is replaced by a somber and serious mood. This was usually the time where Ruby would talk to Weiss or Jaune but they're currently just looking at each other.
Even Nora is quiet and serious today! Nora! The embodiment of chaos. It seems even she's taking cues from her team leader today.
Out of all the things that have recently happened, one of the most surprising things, second only to finding out Blake is a Faunus, is seeing Jaune glare at Weiss.
She knew Jaune's stance on the Faunus from yesterday's argument. In fact, Ruby herself agrees with it. Racism is bad. She just can't understand why someone would think bad of someone else for how they were born?
And to hear Weiss, her own partner, talk about the Faunus badly hurt her. She's partly ashamed that Jaune had to stand up to her own partner when Ruby couldn't.
And to think Jaune did it because Pyrrha was wearing cat ears at the time, she's not even a real Faunus but Ruby saw Pyrrha's relief when Jaune stood up to Weiss.
How did Blake feel when that's how Pyrrha went through? She must've felt hurt or betrayed when none of her other teammates would defend her own kind from Weiss.
And now Blake has run away. That puts a frown on Ruby's face.
"Alright, what do we do?" Jaune is the one to finally break the silence with his arms crossed and Team JNPR giving him their support.
"Who says we have to do anything?" Weiss bites back at Jaune. Which causes him to look at her with a hurt and disappointed expression.
"Weiss…" Ruby calls out with a frown.
"No! She left on her own, Ruby! We don't have to do anything."
"She's still our teammate and my partner." Even Yang is intervening now.
"She's dangerous! She's Whi-"
"We don't know that!" Jaune cuts through, preventing Weiss from announcing to anyone within earshot Blake's secret.
"We don't know that. For all we know, she might've left the White Fang and that's why she's hiding in Beacon."
"You don't know that either." Weiss replies.
"That's why we have to talk to her. We need to find her." Ruby finally decides.
"No Ruby! We don't even know where she is!"
"Please Weiss…" Ruby pleads with her.
"No! It won't work on me!" Weiss bristles, looking away from Ruby.
Time to bring out the big guns.
A pout and puppy eyes enter the fray.
"But what if it was me?" She asks with a quiver in her voice.
"What?" Weiss finally looks back at her.
Good…Now for the tears.
"What if I was a wolf Faunus? Could you imagine it? Would you push me away too?" Ruby asks with a shaky voice and teary eyes.
Look into my eyes….You can't resist….
"I…" Weiss tries to reply, but she is interrupted by Yang.
Yang, Ruby's sister, who immediately figured out what she was trying to do adds more firepower to their action.
"Don't worry sis! I'll always be with you! I won't push you away or leave you even if we have to live in the streets of Vale." Yang says as she tries to wrap up Ruby in a hug with teary eyes too.
"Fine! Alright, fine! Just enough with the crying! I won't push you away!" Weiss interrupts with a shout, getting teary-eyed at the image of a Ruby with wolf ears having to scavenge for food in the streets of Vale.
Ruby and Yang celebrate immediately with a shout!
"Alright! Team RWBY is on the way back to being together!"
"Wha?! You tricked me?!" Weiss gapes at Ruby.
"No I didn't. I just asked you a question of what if I was a Faunus, and you just realized with your answer that you still care about me whether I have Faunus traits or not." Ruby replies with a grin. Ha! And people thought Ruby Rose was all innocence.
"That is no-" Before she can even argue. Yang interrupts her.
"Now you just need to think of Blake like that. Whether she was hiding cat ears under her bow or not, she's still Blake, our friend, our teammate."
That got Weiss to be quiet. Her eyes start to widen and her lips quiver, she takes a deep breath to calm herself.
"I believe…you are correct. Whether she is a Faunus or not should have no bearing on how we treat her."
"Hooray!" Ruby celebrates with Yang. Team JNPR giving them claps and smiles. Jaune finally looks at Weiss softly again.
However Weiss raises a hand to interrupt.
"BUT! We still don't know where she is and whether or not she is still a member of the White Fang. We still need to find her."
That gets the rest of the table quiet. They have today and tomorrow to find Blake before classes resume on Monday. If they don't find her by then…well, she's Professor Goodwitch's problem then.
So, they spend the rest of their breakfast planning how to look for Blake and thinking about the most important thing they can right now.
What was Blake Belladonna up to?
Blake Belladonna is currently spending the day roughing it out in the streets of Vale. Why, you ask? It all started with Weiss Schnee, you see.
Months ago, she expected Schnee's to be pompous assholes who only look after themselves, others be damned. But she actually did spend time with Weiss, sure she's still pompous and arrogant, but she wasn't necessarily an asshole to everyone. That at least made her tolerable.
She knows Weiss had trouble with Ruby because of the leadership position, but it seems like they've managed to patch things up and are doing better as partners. And with Ruby happy with her partner, Yang was also content to let things be and just have fun.
While Blake herself had no antagonistic feelings towards any of them, she was actually starting to have fun. It looked like Team RWBY was on the right track to being a great team.
What happened yesterday ruined it all.
Friday started out innocent enough. There was almost a food fight with Team CRDL in the cafeteria when she and most of Team JNPR met Velvet in the morning, but in the grand scale of things it was small and innocent.
Trouble started when Team RWBY went to the docks Friday afternoon. That's where the conflict with Weiss Schnee began, her teammate, and what once could have been her friend.
She knew Weiss was a Schnee, but the days she spent with their team, she kind of just forgot. Schnees have always been the White Fang's enemies. It just happened that for Blake, she saw Weiss not as a Schnee but as her friend and teammate.
So there was a degree of shock and hurt when Blake heard her talk about Faunus badly. She's thankful that she wasn't alone in standing up to Weiss though.
Jaune Arc, someone she thought would even agree with Weiss just to get her favor, stood up to her. It seems Jaune Arc is a much deeper person than she thought he was. The way he also looked at Blake at the docks makes her think that he had an idea about her secret heritage.
Frankly, his stance alone made Jaune her first choice of person to go to when she ran away from her team. Sadly, she didn't get to meet them in time.
While she thought Team JNPR would still be in Vale at the time, trying to catch the last bullhead to Beacon, it would seem like she passed them by while they were already on their way back. It would be awkward if Blake just went back to Beacon considering she just ran away from her team, so she stayed in Vale.
So here she is walking around Vale, she just spent last night sleeping in one of Vale's public parks, it actually reminds her of her old White Fang days. Except for the part where she is being followed by an annoying excitable blonde.
"Wow! I still can't believe you're a Faunus too!" Sun Wukong exclaims as he keeps following Blake.
Blake keeps her silence as she slowly walks towards one of the most familiar places to her in Vale.
"I thought Pyr was the only Faunus in your group! Hey! Since you both have cat ears, are the two of you related?" Sun continues.
Pyr this! Pyr that! Was this how Jaune was with Weiss before decided to be different?
"No Sun, just because we have cat ears doesn't mean we're related." Blake grits out.
Especially when Pyrrha was just wearing fake cat ears.
"Finally! She speaks! You've only been giving me one-word answers and weird looks quietly. Where are we going anyway?"
I've been giving you weird looks because you keep bringing up another girl when you're already out with one! Not that we are going out, but that's still rude!
Blake just rolls her eyes and gives him a narrowed look.
"Yeah! Just like that!" Sun interjects.
"One, there's nothing wrong with being quiet. Two, we're here." Blake answers as she stops in front of their destination.
"Tukson's Book Trade?" Sun asks inquisitively.
"Yes. Now tell me, are you familiar with the White Fang?" Blake continues as she opens the door to the shop, seeing Tukson at the counter already.
"Of course! I don't think there's a Faunus on the planet that hasn't heard of them. Stupid, holier-than-thou creeps that use force to get whatever they want. Bunch of psychos if you ask me! Why do you ask? Are you here to find a book on them?"
Blake smirks at his response as they walk up to Tukson who has just started raising an eyebrow. Pointing to Tukson, Blake answers Sun's question.
"We were once members of the White Fang."
Sun chokes on air as he suddenly locks eyes with the tall muscular Faunus. This tall muscular Faunus who looks like he's about to lunge and rip Sun apart with his claws.
"I'm so sor-!" Before Sun can even apologize
"What the fuck Blake? I don't announce my past criminal activities with strangers." Tukson interferes.
"Hahaha. I'm sorry Tukson, I just wanted to mess with him. This is Sun." Blake laughs as she points at Sun.
"You're lucky I like you kitten. So what brings you here?" Tukson grumbles out.
"Wait! You were both members of the White Fang?" Sun intervenes, looking back and forth at Blake and Tukson.
"That's right. I was a member for most of my life, actually. You could almost say I was born into it." Blake answers.
"I was a member since the early days of the White Fang, back when things were different. When the White Fang was still a symbol of peace and unity. I was friends with the founders and their family actually." Tukson answers, giving Blake a significant look.
"Okay great, you're not recruiting me, are you?" Sun laughs out nervously.
"No Sun, we aren't. I was actually just about to ask Tukson if he has news about the White Fang. They've been acting strange lately." Blake reassures Sun as she looks at Tukson.
"If you're wondering about the recent Dust heists, then I'm just as lost as you are. I cut off all contact from the Fang here in Vale to lay low. I've got nothing for you, sorry Blake." Tukson sighs out in apology.
"I guess it was a longshot anyway, do you know someone who could point us in the right direction?" Blake replies.
Before Tukson can even reply, they hear the door open. All three of them tense at that sound. Not willing to have strangers hear about their topic.
"And here's your copy of the new Ninjas of Love latest volume!" Tukson announces loudly in order to hide their discussion about the White Fang.
Just as Sun and Blake start to relax, they hear a familiar voice.
"Blake?!"
Turning around in shock, Blake brings out Gambol Shroud in an instant and locks eyes with Jaune Arc.
Jaune Arc was thanking his lucky stars that he insisted on bringing their weapons when looking for Blake.
Looking at her bringing out her sword-gun-machete-whip thing, his first instinct is to unsheathe Crocea Mors and hide behind his shield. A reasonable response when someone aims their sword-gun-machete-whip thing at you, he thinks.
He is also thankful for insisting that Team JNPR travel in pairs to cover more ground, because he hears Pyrrha in her Pyrene disguise bring out Milo and Akouo at the same time.
"Blake?!" Jaune shouts for a second time.
"Jaune?!" Blake shouts back.
"Pyr?!" The blonde monkey Faunus from yesterday shouts as he also brings out gun-nunchucks? Gun-chucks?. Jaune narrows his eyes at him.
"Sun?!" Pyrrha shouts back. Apparently the guy's name is Sun.
"Nobody move!" The Faunus behind the counter says, the Faunus who Jaune can only assume to be Tukson brings out a shotgun!
It's like a Vacuoan standoff!
"What the fuck is happening?!" Jaune can't help but curse at the tension currently in the room.
"Put the weapons down!" Tukson shouts.
"You're the one pointing guns at us!" Pyr rationally pipes up from beside Jaune.
"They have a point, you know." Sun says to Blake and Tukson, shooting Pyrrha a smile which irritates Jaune.
"Okay, we're all gonna put our weapons down at the same time okay?" Jaune announces, getting nods from everyone.
With everyone slowly lowering their weapons, they could finally talk again.
"What the hell, Blake? I call out to you and your first instinct is to pull your weapon at me?" Jaune grumbles out.
"I'm sorry. I panicked." Blake apologizes with a wince.
"It's fine. We were just worried about you." Jaune replies with a sigh. Everyone finally being calm enough seeing that they have no enemy in the room.
"How did you find me anyway?" Blake asks with a tilt of her head.
"Luck actually. You recommended me Tukson's bookshop remember? We were just gonna ask him if he saw you."
And what a stroke of luck it was. To find Blake at the first place Jaune thought to ask for her whereabouts.
"Ah, I did, didn't I? Well you shouldn't have looked for me." Blake says with a twitch of her cat ears while looking away.
This gets Jaune to finally notice her cat ears. This is the first time he is seeing it without the bow covering it.
"Is this because you're part of the White Fang?"
"What?! How did you know about that?" Blake asks in shock.
"Blake, you didn't even change your name. The White Fang and its founders were in the news a lot during its formation." Jaune rolls his eyes.
Blake's eyes widened at that fact.
"Then why didn't you say anything?!"
"Because it was your secret to tell, plus we didn't know if you were still in the White Fang or not. We know that the current White Fang is very different from when your parents founded it."
"Wait! Your parents were the founders?!" Sun cuts through their conversation.
"I told you I was born into it, didn't I?" Blake answers with a wince.
"I thought your parents were just members like Tukson! Not founders?!" Sun exclaims in shock which turns Blake's wince into a grimace.
"Members or founders, it doesn't matter. They were fighting for the right thing." Jaune glares at Sun.
"Yeah sorry, just in shock, that's all. Equality is good, but terrorism bad." Sun apologizes defensively.
Blake rolls his eyes at that. "Yes, terrorism is bad, Sun. Which is why I need to find out what is going on with the White Fang."
"Bla-" Jaune starts but is interrupted,
"No, Jaune. If you know about my parents then you know why I have to do this. I need to prove Weiss wrong. That the White Fang aren't all crazy psychopaths, even if the leaders have changed." Blake interrupts, remembering certain people in the White Fang.
"Blake, I was gonna say we're with you." That gets Blake, Sun, and Tukson to widen their eyes in surprise.
"You are?!" Blake shouts in surprise.
"Yes, but you need to talk to your team." Jaune says calmly, raising his hand in a placating gesture.
"...I can't." Blake replies, looking away from Jaune.
"Bla-." Jaune starts but is interrupted yet again.
"At least not yet. Maybe after I find- I mean we find out what's happening with the White Fang." Blake interrupts.
"You should really stop interrupting me." Jaune replies with a deadpan tone.
"Sorry." Blake apologizes sheepishly.
"Alright. So we need to find out what's happening with the White Fang. What's the plan?"
"We…uh..haven't got one yet." Blake answers apologetically while looking to Tukson for help.
"..sigh…You'd need an information broker to point you in the right direction." Tukson answers with a sigh.
"Where would we find an information broker?" Sun is the one who asks this time.
"..I know one." Jaune answers with resignation.
""You do?!"" Both Blake and Pyrrha look at him in surprise at that.
"Yeah, his place will be open tonight. Which means we can still catch up while we have lunch." Jaune says while giving Blake a narrow look.
"Yeah, hahaha, catch up." Blake laughs out nervously.
"Talk to us Blake, tell us the situation so we can help you." Jaune pleads.
"...Okay. I'll tell you everything." Blake answers with a sigh.
She gets smiles from both Jaune and Pyrrha at that.
Pyrrha was content to let Jaune take the lead in talking with Blake. The two of them are much closer than Pyrrha and Blake are after all. Still, through the events of this day alone, Pyrrha can already relate more with Blake than before.
Walking through the streets of Vale once again before finding the tea shop they are currently in, Pyrrha has noticed there was a hint of discrimination. Nothing outright, just some strangers giving her a close eye once in a while when they get near some shop doors.
She doesn't know how she didn't notice it yesterday when she went out with Jaune, but she's sure if it is happening now then it must've surely happened before.
Speaking of noticing things, she's been noticing Blake's reactions to her and Jaune ever since they found her in the bookstore. She's a lot more open, honest, and expressive when relaying her story.
Something Pyrrha never thought to see in Blake was how expressive she was being right now. Her ears twitch, her eyes wander when nervous, her brows furrow when upset. Pyrrha observed all this as Blake told them the story of the White Fang.
"Suddenly, our peaceful rallies were being replaced with organized attacks. We were setting fire to shops that refused to serve us, hijacking cargo from companies that used Faunus labor. And the worst part was, it was working. We were being treated like equals. But not out of respect, but out of fear."
That gets all of them to fall silent as they drink their tea around a small table. Pyrrha has only been faking being a Faunus for a day at most and she could already see the racism and discrimination aimed at her.
How much worse did it get for those who experienced it for years? Shops refusing to serve you? Restaurants refusing to cook for you? Unemployment? Forced Labor? Pyrrha shakes her head at the injustice of it all.
"So, I left. I decided I no longer wanted to use my skills to aid in their violence, and instead, I would dedicate my life to becoming a Huntress. So here I am: a criminal hiding in plain view, all with the help of a little black bow to hide my ears." Blake continues as she wiggles her cat ears for emphasis.
They're so cute!
It seems like she isn't the only one who thinks it because someone says it out loud.
"They're beautiful ears, Blake." Jaune compliments her with a smile.
"What are you saying?! It's like telling someone they have beautiful eyes or hair!" Blake responds with a light blush and looks to Pyrrha with an apologetic expression.
Normally, Pyrrha would be jealous or a bit irritated, but she can only smile at Jaune, who is just being himself. It's one of the traits she likes about him after all. The ability to see someone for who they are and the kindness to compliment them.
Plus it seems like Blake needs the assurance that she's still accepted.
"Jaune's right, Blake. You do have beautiful ears." Pyrrha adds with a smile.
"..Please don't tease me." Blake says shyly. Another expression Pyrrha thought she wouldn't see from Blake.
"Hahaha, sorry. We just wanted to tell you that you aren't alone, we're with you." Jaune apologizes as he adds.
"..Thank you everyone." Blake thanks them seriously, managing to get her blush under control.
"So…have you told your team about any of this?" Sun asks.
Blake can only be quiet at that question. Making Pyrrha and Jaune look at each other in concern.
"Blake, I'm sure that they'll understand if you talk to them." Jaune comforts her.
"You don't know that, Jaune. Weiss…I was one of the people who waged war against her family, Jaune. She probably blames me for a lot of it." Blake answers sadly.
"That's not true. Even now, they're looking for you here in Vale. They want you Blake." Pyrrha replies, adding her own support to Blake.
"I..I want them too. I like them. We were actually a good team." Blake admits with a smile.
"Great! We can just call them now!" Jaune responds excitedly, bringing out his scroll to call Ruby.
"No! Even if I do want to stay with them, I still need to prove that the White Fang isn't all crazy or violent. I still don't believe the White Fang is behind the recent Dust heists." Blake interrupts before Jaune can call Ruby.
Pyrrha and Jaune look at each other again, remembering the White Fang they stopped yesterday.
"I'm sorry Blake, but the White Fang are robbing the Dust shops. Pyrrha and I stopped one yesterday." Jaune says slowly.
"No, that's not true. Maybe someone's forcing them to." Blake denies in heartbreak.
"It's okay Blake, when we talk with your team, we'll be with you. And even after all this, I'll use my influence to bring up the issue of racism and discrimination to the public." Pyrrha tries to comfort her.
"Influence the public? Are you famous or something?" Sun asks in confusion, looking at Pyrrha.
"That's a secret." Pyrrha answers with a wink.
Sun is the first friend Pyrrha has made as Pyrene, well, acquaintance actually. But she'd rather tell Sun her secret when they have a much less heavy atmosphere. Plus, she's sure Nora would want to be there to see his reaction when he finds out she is actually Pyrrha Nikos. She'd milk this secret as long as she could just for Sun's face when he finds out, Pyrrha thinks with a small smile.
That makes Blake snap out of her melancholy and gets a laugh out of her.
"Thank you Pyrene. That means a lot to me." Blake thanks Pyrrha with a smile. Knowing that Pyrrha wants to prank Sun. At that moment, both girls feel like they understand each other a bit more.
Seems like Blake wants to get back at Sun for something.
"Okay, so what's the plan now?" Sun asks, getting the topic back at hand.
"First I tell Ruby that Blake's okay, and we're with her now. Blake, I know you don't want to talk to them yet, but we should still let them know you're safe." Jaune says as he types something in his scroll.
"Okay, I understand, tell them I need some time to myself first." Blake nods in acceptance.
"Okay, good, message sent. Second, we go to the information broker. Third, we follow the lead he'll give us." Jaune continues.
That fact surprises Pyrrha actually. She never thought that Jaune would have contacts with the criminal underworld. Still, he did forge his transcripts so maybe it's not that strange to think he knows someone.
"Sounds like a plan. So when do we get to meet this info broker?" Sun nods in approval and asks Jaune.
"I think they'll be open soon actually, are you ready?"
With everyone finishing their snacks and tea, they all nod in response.
"Great. Follow me."
With that last word, Jaune Arc leads the group towards a place he hasn't stepped a foot in ever since he got into Beacon.
…Though I feel like we're forgetting something…..
For one reason or another, Lie Ren has forgotten one thing about Nora Valkyrie. It might be because he unconsciously repressed the memories or maybe he just really forgot. Regardless, he is remembering it now.
Back when Nora and Ren were homeless and scraping by to survive in Mistral, they had a cat. A black tiny cat. They took care of it, fed it whatever they could, and kept it safe from the elements. Those were some happy times in a time of despair and sadness. Alas, it was not to last.
That cat went missing. Ren thinks that it just left on its own and was content to part ways with it. But Nora….Nora thinks that it was lost or catnapped, and did what she is doing right now. She started a cat hunt.
"BLAKEEEE! ARE YOU HERE, BLAKE!?" Nora shouts hysterically as she enters another shop.
The customers and shopkeepers are shocked to find a young woman suddenly screaming at them.
When Ren suggested to look around Dust shops to catch Blake in action if she's waiting for the White Fang to rob one, he expected they would come quietly and ask some questions if they saw Blake.
Ren did not expect Nora to enter shops like a woman possessed and shout at everyone inside.
"I apologize. We are looking for our missing friend. Have you seen her?" Ren apologizes to everyone inside as he describes Blake's features to them.
Everyone seems accommodating to them because of Nora's hysteria and the seriousness of the situation. Yet it seems that Blake hasn't been here. Ren could only go through this for some time.
This is the 4th Dust shop they've visited. Once they've probably looked at all, they might start narrowing it down to seafood restaurants or bookstores. And another round of being dragged around by Nora and apologizing to everyone will begin.
"COME ON RENNY! We have to find Blakey! Who knows what's happened to her?!" Nora shouts as she drags Ren towards another Dust Shop.
"Here kitty-kitty! Here kitty-kitty! Come to mama, Blakey!" Nora continues to call out to Ren's own mortification as passer-bys look at the ginger-haired woman dragging around a black-haired young man.
…Jaune…Help me….
…I feel like I'm forgetting something…..ehh, if I forgot it's probably not important.
Looking at his own group behind him, Jaune is annoyed at seeing Sun chatting up Pyrrha who seems to at least be listening to him. Blake rolls her eyes beside Jaune at the scene and just gives Jaune an apologetic smile.
Jaune lets out a sigh as he sees their destination.
Junior's Club.