"Would you… just…" Willow said frustratedly as she tried to anticipate the movement of the ever-shifting skin before her. None of the electrode pads bar the first had ended up straight, but it certainly wasn't her fault… and Willow had a feeling that in the end, it wouldn't really matter much. Still, the perfectionist in her couldn't help but be annoyed. "Stop squirming and giggling!"
"I'm sorry!" Summer said through peals of laughter, her exposed belly jittering as tears manifested at the corners of her eyes. There the potential Maiden sat on a metal table in only a sports bra and short shorts, her legs not quite reaching the floor as Willow stared at her with menace in her eyes. No matter how much Summer wanted to stay still, she simply couldn't do it. "It's just… it tickles!"
Willow let out a huff and rolled her eyes as she patiently waited for Summer to be still, or something close to it as she recovered from her latest giggling fit. Staring at her friend, she couldn't fathom that this was the girl that might have been somehow cosmically chosen to bear incredible power. Even Kali would have taken the situation more seriously… though she likely would've insisted on applying the pads while completely naked.
Not that Willow would have minded anymore.
"Summer, you know I love you, but get it together," Willow ordered as she slapped the electrode in her hand onto the left side of Summer's stomach with a bit more force than necessary. "Otherwise, I'll let that old headmaster do this. Is that what you want?"
Summer let out a small cry of discomfort at the forceful slap, followed by a little snort as it somehow still managed to tickle her a bit.
"Ew, no! Don't abandon me, I'll behave!"
"Will you?" Willow asked in monotone as she grabbed a nearby bottle and squirted more cold jelly onto her fingertips.
"Probably not," Summer admitted as she tried to stifle a giggle by biting her lip. Even the sight of the material was enough to get her going, as she knew what was coming next. "I just… wouldn't you rather see me like this than depressed and full of dread?"
Willow heaved another colossal sigh as she began smearing Summer's other side with the freezing goop. Predictably, Summer made the process more difficult with her writhing, but Willow persevered all the same.
"…yes, I would. Are you really still nervous about all of this…?"
"Well… yeah," Summer answered with a giggle. "I have no idea what's going to happen, whether I'm a Maiden or not. I can still barely believe any of this is real. I just hope that if I do have some kind of crazy power, it's not going to… you know… ruin things for us."
"…what do you mean?" Willow asked as she peeled the protective covering from the next electrode and met Summer's eyes. "How would it ruin things? Even if we're all given more responsibility from here on out, none of us are going to abandon you. We're in this together, Summer. STRQ, OKRA, and I are all here for you."
"That's not necessarily going to be the problem," Summer warned. "What if I don't have a choice anymore of who I work with? What if, once Professor Ozpin finds out all of this, he tries to… use me like a weapon? I might become the centerpiece of this whole Salem thing along with three other girls I don't even know… assuming they're ever found. What if it's just me? What if I end up b-"
"I'm hearing a lot of 'what ifs,'" Willow pointed out as she tried to slowly, carefully apply the next pad while Summer was distracted. Amazingly, the gambit worked, and Summer didn't move or react during the application. "I would advise that we just take it slowly, step by step, and roll with the punches, as it were. I trust Ozpin after everything he's done for me. At least… for now, I do. Let's not be too hasty with suspicions."
"Yeah, you're probably right," Summer admitted as she watched Willow dip down and begin applying some jelly to her inner thigh. With a twitch and shiver, she closed her eyes and tried not to think about Willow's fingers all over the sensitive area. "Maybe I just need a distraction to get my mind off of this stuff. At least our vacation has been kinda fun so far, right?"
"…you've been having fun?" Willow asked as she looked up, seeming stunned. "Summer, we've been blindsided by so much inconvenience and potential danger…"
"Well yeah, but I feel like I'm getting closer to everyone," Summer pointed out as another electrode was applied. "Especially you and Raven, what with the whole beach thing."
Willow fell silent for a moment, mulling over her options as she applied another pad to Summer's other thigh. She knew Summer was staring down at the top of her head expectantly and needed a distraction. She also knew that she couldn't hold it in forever, and there might not be too many more opportunities when she was truly alone with her friend during the vacation. Someone had to know.
"About that, I… I'm also feeling… closer to all of you. Especially after that beach episode…"
"Yeah, that was really something, wasn't it?" Summer asked. "With the whole… I mean, I don't really feel all that self-conscious in front of you just wearing this anymore…"
"…I have to tell you something, but it needs to stay between us," Willow said rather seriously as she worked to finish up Summer's legs. "Promise me you can keep a secret?"
"You're keeping mine, aren't you?" Summer asked rhetorically. "About seeing Beacon burning, our daughters, and all that?"
"Of course I am," Willow reassured. "That's part of why I know I can trust you with this."
"Then yeah, I'll keep any secret you want," Summer answered. "Sometimes you've just gotta spill to someone, and I'm happy we've got each other for that. What's on your mind?"
Willow finally came up from her crouching position, the pads all applied to the best of her ability. She kept her eyes away from Summer's, lest she lose her conviction. It would feel good to finally be able to talk about it and awful to back down… but it would also feel exponentially more embarrassing to see Summer's reaction.
"…I had sex with Kali," Willow said quickly as she busied herself with cleaning up the discarded plastic coverings from the electrodes. "In the hot tub on the deck. It was wonderful."
Summer could only stare in a state of absolute shock as she watched Willow work. Slowly, her expression turned into a wide grin and she shifted slightly atop the metal table.
"Tell me everything."
The man was breathing hard, his heart pounding in his chest as he ran for his life down the dark alley in the pouring rain. He had no idea where he was going, or if he had lost the terrifying figure somewhere behind him. Everything about Vale City seemed like a maze, and he knew he should have studied the maps more carefully before the job. The bag had been abandoned somewhere behind him, not that it mattered anymore. Escaping with the lien was nowhere near as important as escaping with his life. Such a thing hadn't even been a question at the start of the night- the police wouldn't dare apply lethal force over something so petty. The literal demon that was pursuing him, though?
That demon had already done it twice that night.
Turning a corner resulted in encountering a high concrete wall scrawled with graffiti. There would be no climbing the wet stone, and the nearby dumpster wasn't nearly high enough of a platform to jump over the obstruction. Behind him was a long alleyway with no branches, followed by a corner leading to another just like. He was trapped, and absolutely terrified to turn around lest he see the demon. There would be no chance of fighting back. Not after what he had seen happen to his comrades. The demon moved with uncanny speed, and clearly possessed some kind of training that none of his crew had. It was hopeless. He had half a mind to just cower and wait… but curiosity got the best of him, and he finally turned around.
A figure was slowly approaching from the far end of the alleyway, a blood red katana angled down at its side catching the moonlight. Patches of the steel were of a darker, almost brownish color and dripping a gooey trail as the figure walked. Two curved, black horns indeed gave him the appearance of a demon, as did the hateful expression on his face that became visible as he moved closer to the target.
"Stay away!" the panicked thief cried as he drew his own sword- a cheaply made blade with rust along its jagged, saw-like edge. "Who the hell do you think you are!? You killed my friends!"
"That wouldn't have happened if you hadn't gotten on my employer's bad side," the demon said coolly as he continued to slowly close the distance. "Taking what isn't yours and then whining about the consequences… you people make me sick."
"Don't you come any closer, you fucking animal!" the thief cried out, his sword arm shaking as he held up the implement toward his aggressor. "I'll… I'll kill you, you subhuman trash! I'm not going down without a fight!"
"…what did you just call me?" the figure asked as it came to a stop only ten feet from its target. "Say it again. Tell me I'm somehow lesser as I end your life."
"You f-fucking…" the man began as he took a step back, running into the concrete wall. "You savage, stupid beast…"
"Adam!" came a feminine call in a demanding voice from somewhere behind the demon. "What are you doing!? This wasn't the job!"
Adam chose to ignore the voice as he rushed forward, goading the thief into attacking him. Without the slightest worry, he raised Wilt to turn aside the blow as well as the subsequent attacks. The blade began to glow dangerously with each deflection, and still the thief continued to swing in a wild panic.
"Get away from me! You're just property! That fucking brand on your face tells me everything I need t-"
Adam took a step back as the blade of Wilt began to glow with enough stored energy to light up the alleyway. He could hear running footsteps behind him as Kali called his name once again, but he didn't care. The only thought in his mind was how utterly satisfying the man's death was about to be.
Adam swung the katana forward with as much force as he could muster to the sound of a horrified scream.
"Well… fuck 'em," Velvet said with a shrug as she and Adam continued to weave through and around members of the crowd. "They crossed the wrong guy and weren't prepared for the consequences. Besides, they were racist pieces of shit."
"The rest of the group doesn't seem to see it that way," Adam lamented as he followed the girl. "You really think I was in the right?"
"If someone started going off on me like that? I would've done the same," Velvet admitted. "People are really that openly racist in Vale?"
"Some of them," Adam replied. "You should hear what happened to Kali while she was trying to stop a robbery…"
"Oh, do tell," Velvet instructed as she and Adam joined the queue alongside the massive structure of the museum. "I'm sure it was completely justified and not-at-all something shitty just because she has an extra set of ears."
"It's a long story, but it looks like we've got time," Adam admitted. "It's nice to see the majority being faunus here in Vacuo. Maybe people won't be so bold to run their mouths here…"
"It is nice," Velvet agreed. "Nice enough that I've got no intention of leaving. The rest of Remnant is fucked, Adam. It's a shame you have to go back."
"Yeah," Adam echoed as he looked Velvet over with a new appreciation. "Yeah, it is…"
Author's Note:
Oh boy.
-RD
