The Grimm Lands Chapter 19
Hunting Grounds Part 8
Salutations!
Weiss
There was something profoundly calming about snowfall. The gentle touch of the ice against warm skin gave Weiss a deep comfort. It reminded her of better times in Atlas. The light blowing of cold wind against her flushed cheeks brought forth memories of her time spent in the company of Klein and his wife after school. She remembered the smell of pie baking in the oven, the warmth of a freshly lit fire pressing against the frigidness of the air. The snow reminded her of the times her mother had tucked her into bed after a nightmare, a warm cup of hot chocolate, and a fleeting smile that assured her everything would be alright come morning.
The winter months in Solitas were longer than any other continent on Remnant. The higher altitudes of the continent's rocky and mountainous landscape were almost blanketed by snow year-round. As such, being surrounded by snow and ice was a common occurrence. Yet the beginning stages of snowfall never ceased to amaze Weiss. As she looked up towards the mirky, cloudy skies of Vale, she could almost trace the snowflakes, watching them with bated breath as they descended.
The City was already fully embracing the changing seasons. Bright, ornamental lights were strung up in every shop's windows and door frames. As she walked through the streets, she saw endless decorations. For Vale, the beginning of winter also meant the beginning of the holidays. Every storefront, every food stall, and every road was packed to the brim with people. Weiss forced her way through the crowds. Despite the recent attacks in the Emerald Forest, it seemed nothing could dampen the city's growing enthusiasm.
It was all Weiss could do not to be swept away. A firm hand clasped tightly around her wrist, pulling her through the endless stream of people. Ruby was seemingly unfazed as she charged full speed ahead.
"Would you please slow down?" Weiss complained.
"We should check out that shop over there," Ruby said, seemingly ignoring Weiss. "Oh, but I read about a shop further up that sells the best ice cream this side of Sanus. "Oh, but if we go there, we might not have enough time to go to the weapons store downtown."
"We aren't here to sightsee," Weiss said. Pulling back against Ruby, she forced the girl to halt, guiding her away from the bustling streets, where they found refuge near a tight alley. "This was your plan after all, wasn't it?"
"Well, yeah, I know we have stuff to check out, but c'mon Weiss this is our first time being able to go outside the school. Don't you want to live it up a little?"
"What I want is to get this over with." Weiss snapped.
The serenity she had been cherishing blew away as irritation bubbled up. It had only been a few scant days since Team JNPR's celebratory party. Seeing the four friends brought back together, seemingly pushing past their hang-ups, had been a cause for excitement. However, as with most things in her life, the brief moment of happiness could only temporarily ward off the darker bits of reality that soon reared themselves once more.
"Don't be like that," Ruby pressed. "Aren't you the one who said we should hit the streets and get some hard evidence before we did anything else?"
"I know what I suggested. After all, this is the only reasonable course of action. If I had left it up to the rest of you, that buffoon would have charged straight into danger once more. At least this way, we have the option to evaluate our circumstances.
Team JNPR's emotional moment in the training grounds had only been the beginning of a very long night. The records and data files stolen from the White Fang contained endless shipping and transport records logs. The infinite series of numbers made no sense to Weiss, but Blake was able to identify repeat patterns of direct shipments between Vale and Menagerie. It hadn't stopped there. Vale was built with the concept of a Port city in mind. Unlike Atlas, which isolated itself above Mantle, and Haven, which settled itself deep within the Anima, Vale accepted shipments and trade goods from every area of Remnant. It was a key reason the city flourished in recent years. The constant influx of trade also meant the city became an easy target for smuggling.
JNPR had seen Grimm as the primary means of smuggling by the White Fang in the Forest. But if that was all, then why go through the extra layers of security? Why bother setting up such elaborate bases deep in the heart of a Combat Schools jurisdiction? In Weiss' mind, the Grimm was simply a means to another end, one which she couldn't figure out. Ruby had talked about a Dust Robbery he had stopped just days before Initiation. Did that have something to do with the increase in Grimm? And if it did, why were the White Fang also involved?
There were far too many questions that needed answers. Weiss had wanted to simply turn over the data to the administrators and let the school and Huntsmen handle the situation. Blake had argued that they should investigate first. Whether out of some sense of duty or an ill-twisted sense of guilt, Weiss wasn't sure, but the entire ordeal had left her stomach in knots for days.
Regardless, it had been Ruby's idea to split into teams to gather more information. Weiss had merely suggested going to Vale once the lockdown lifted. It was how she now found herself spending her weekend being pushed around through the crowded streets by her partner. Weiss was suddenly jealous of Blake and Ren, who had gone to investigate the docks.
"Hey, Weiss, we should try this!" Ruby exclaimed, rushing off towards another street vendor. Weiss tried to fight a groan as she trailed after. Punctuality had been ingrained in her from birth. Being on time was crucial for maintaining a proper image, whether it was meetings, events, or even friendly appointments. It was a common courtesy to try to keep to a schedule. Weiss tried to reason that Ruby was simply expressing her delight at finally being able to roam freely after weeks of strict surveillance and lockdown in the school.
They were two hours behind schedule, and Weiss' goodwill had frozen over.
With less grace than one befitting her social standing, Wiess ground her teeth and reached out to her partner. Gripping the back of the younger girl's hood, she pressed forward, dragging a flailing Ruby behind her. "No more distractions."
"But Weiss!"
"No more." Weiss marched through the endless crowds of people. Like a hot knife through butter, she sliced through every obstacle. As they made their way out of the shopping districts, the crowds started to dwindle. The short, brightly lit shops and colorful decorations were slowly replaced with the bland uniformity of taller office buildings. It was a bitter realization that these buildings felt more like home.
A slight pang of envy flashed in Weiss' heart as she saw a child gleefully rush past her parents, flaunting some new toy in her hands. Just as quickly as it had come, Weiss squashed it down. She released Ruby. Running a hand through her hair, Weiss took care to adjust herself. She turned back to Ruby. "I will handle all of the talking, understood?"
"Well, I mean, yeah, sure, but…" Ruby wilted under Weiss' stare. Weiss squashed the tinge of regret.
The SDC had operational departments open in every major city across Remnant. They were the backbone of every large-scale Dust shipment, purchase, and trade. Any records of legal transactions of Dust would be logged and recorded. While the others searched for other leads, Weiss would have direct access to the SDC's records.
Stepping through the entrance of the SDC's main building gave her a brief pause. It was almost identical to the one in Atlas. The reception area was a sizable marbled lobby, tailored with the Schnee insignia resting high on the back wall, easily seen by anyone coming in. A reception desk sat in the center of the room, and the bright, polished mahogany shined under the hanging luminescent lights. Two older women staffed the desk, bright, practiced smiles seemingly etched into place. Weiss barely glanced at the security guard hovering by the entrance as she entered. He wore the standard SDC uniform: White military slacks and a top with splashes of gray lining the center and sides. The guard moved to stop her before Weiss flashed her personal SDC identification card. The man had barely glanced at it before stumbling over an apology. She stalked past him, and with a handful of long strides, she had already reached the center of the lobby before Ruby's blubbering brought her attention back around.
The guard was talking to her partner. Ruby, suddenly uncertain and anxious, stumbled over her words. Without missing a beat, Weiss stalked back over again, gripped Ruby's wrist in her hands, and pulled her along. The guard offered a moment of protest, and the receptionist's smile flickered uncertainly.
Weiss cast a glare in his direction before turning her chin up. She had an image to maintain. More than that, the fewer questions asked, the less she would have to explain. No one would dare stop her; she was the crowned heiress of the company, after all. That did not mean she wanted any sort of report going back to her father.
"Stay quiet, and keep up." She snapped at Ruby.
"Sorry, Weiss, I just..." Weiss silenced her with another sharp look, and Ruby conceded.
Weiss would apologize later. There would be a better time for pleasantries. She swiped her ID on the elevator's control pad. The metallic doors slid open with a ding, and she pulled Ruby inside. Even as the doors closed, she maintained her composure. The small camera in the upper corner of the elevator stared down at her. Being back inside the SDC made her blood run cold, and she was suddenly uncomfortable. She beat down the urge to fidget. Ruby, to her credit, remained quiet. However, Weiss suddenly wished the girl would say something to break the tension creeping up.
An eternity later, the elevator dinged again, and the doors slid open. Every SDC building was designed the same. Her father had claimed it was for convenience, so any employee anywhere on Remnant would never have to flounder or waste time getting readjusted. Ever the pragmatist her father was.
Floor 43 was where the digital records of all global Dust shipments were tracked and logged. The entire floor contained rows of glass cases housing different databases and computers that anyone with proper authorization could come through and check on. The room was plain and unremarkable. Endless aisles of glass dividers mounted to the ceiling trailed down, dividing the room into tight, pact sections. A seemingly infinite array of servers hummed behind the glass, a constant dull buzz that grated against Weiss' ears. The low thrum of the cooling fans only added to her irritation.
She marched forward. A few personnel eyed her suspiciously, but she paid them no mind. She traced the placards mounted on the center of each sectioned zone. She counted aisles 31, 32, and 33 in her head. Fishing out her scroll, she pressed open the glass door to aisle 34, smudging the clear glass. Ruby tucked in close behind her.
"Is it really OK for us to be here?" Ruby whispered. Weiss wasn't sure why she was suddenly trying to be so quiet.
"Of course it is. Who do you think I am?" Weiss said. She opened the metal plating to one of the servers. She unplugged a blue cable running down the side and inserted it into her scroll. A progress bar sprang to life. "Besides, who exactly is going to stop me?"
"I mean, yeah, I get you're super important," Ruby said. "But I dunno, isn't this breaking some kind of law?"
Of course, it was, Weiss wanted to say. It was breaking every kind of corporate espionage law from Vale to Atlas. She bit her inner cheek, beating back the outburst. "You all seemed on board when we planned this back at the dorm. If the White Fang is a part of the surge in dust robberies around Vale, then there has to be some kind of record of where the Dust is going."
"I'm not worried about getting in trouble," Ruby said, her voice returning to its usual volume. "I'm worried about you getting caught."
"Me?" Weiss scoffed. "Please, I'm practically untouchable inside here."
"Is that why you've been so nervous before we even got here?" Ruby asked.
Weiss cursed softly under her breath. She intended to be in and out as quickly and quietly as possible. The less time she spent here, the less likely her father would ever catch wind of her escapades. It appeared she hadn't been as put together as she had been pretending to be.
"If something is bothering you, I'm here for you," Ruby said. "You know that, right?"
"While I appreciate the sentiment, I am perfectly fine." The scroll beeped once, and the progress bar showed a complete sync. Weiss thumbed through her scroll, data logs popping up in endless numbers and dates. "Let's just finish this and be on our way. I'll even treat you to that ice cream shop you saw earlier."
"I'm not a child." Ruby pouted. It hadn't been Weiss' intention to sound so demeaning, but she ignored an apology in favor of sifting through the records. There were far more than she had initially expected. Even narrowing her search to records of shipments between Vale and Menagerie alone left her with tens of thousands of separate transactions.
"Give me your scroll," Weiss said. Ruby, surprised, looked at her for a moment. Weiss sighed, willing patience into her tense body. "I don't have enough storage on mine. I'll download some of it on yours so we can review it all later."
Ruby tentatively handed over her scroll. Weiss quickly saved what she could on hers before disconnecting and restarting the process. It only took a few seconds before an error message flashed on the screen.
"Ruby?" Weiss asked, trying to keep the frustration out. "Why is your storage space filled?"
"It is?" Ruby asked. Tilting her head, she suddenly perked up with an answer. "It might be from that new game I downloaded last week. Oh, or the saved videos of our time at school. I also took a lot of pictures of the weapons I've seen around school for reference."
"I'm deleting them," Weiss said.
'Wait!" Ruby protested. She slammed into Weiss's back, her small hands waving frantically as she tried to grab for her scroll. "No. Those are mine."
"You said you're not a child." Weiss countered, shoving the girl back with one arm. "That means you have to make grown-up decisions. We need these records. Are a few pictures and a stupid game more important than a potential terrorist attack in the heart of Vale?"
"That's a false equivalency!" Ruby said. Weiss was surprised to hear the girl use the term so appropriately. "Those are my precious memories; you can't just get rid of them."
Weiss pushed Ruby back. "Be reasonable! I don't like this more than you do, but I don't see any other options. Now grow up, and let's get this finished."
Weiss watched Ruby still for a moment before pulling back. She assured herself she had convinced the younger girl. As such, she was wholly unprepared when Ruby launched straight for her. They stumbled onto the ground momentarily, a minor scuffle as they vied for the scroll. Weiss managed to keep it out of Ruby's hands before she could make another attempt to push Ruby back, and a new voice chimed in.
"Under Article 76 subsection D of the international trade agreement between Vale and Atlas, any offenders of espionage and or perpetrators of malcontent with intent to siphon or obtain legal trade documents will be fined under the judicial committee of the offended state."
"Umm…"Ruby said, pinned beneath Weiss, one arm reaching for the scroll. "Hello?"
"Salutations!" The girl said. She couldn't be more than a few inches taller than Weiss herself and, if that, certainly no older. The girl's bright orange hair bounced around her shoulders as she jumped in place. "Pleasure to meet you!"
Weiss pulled away from Ruby, straightening her clothing as she rose. The SDC had dozens of internal and external security layers protecting every layer and floor of their businesses. She had been able to bypass all of them with her identification. However, there should have been no reason for another teenage girl to be permitted access to this floor. Ruby was an exception, but only because of her association with Weiss.
"And who exactly are you?" Weiss asked, and the suspicion helped drown out the embarrassment of being found in such an awkward position.
The girl paused, her bright green eyes unblinking as if processing the information. After a moment, she finally spoke. "Hello, my name is Penny Polendina, a representative of Atlas for the Vytal tournament. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"You already said that," Weiss said. She tucked both scrolls into her bag. "Now, If you'll excuse me, I'll be on my way."
Weiss tried to push past the girl but was blocked as Penny stepped in front of the door. "Under Section 46 of the Schnee Dust Company protocol, any suspicious persons involved in or with the extrapolation of sensitive materials are to be reported to security officials and local police for questioning."
"Excuse me!" Weiss balked. "Do you have any idea who I am?"
Penny once more paused. This time, it took three seconds before a response. "You are Weiss Schnee, second daughter of current Schnee Dust Company CEO Jacques Schnee, and Willow Schnee, daughter of the Founder of the SDC Nicholas Schnee. You are roughly five foot and three inches. Your birthday is March 15th. As of two weeks ago, you are also now the former heiress of the Schnee Dust Company, having been replaced by your brother Whitely Schnee."
Weiss' world ground to a halt. The scathing remark she had readied died unspoken on her lips. The world tilted, and before she realized it, she was falling. Ruby caught her before she hit the floor, but Weiss's legs buckled and forced Ruby to ease her to the ground.
"Do you require medical assistance?" Penny asked, some weird emulation of concern in her voice. "I can contact an emergency team right away."
'What did you say?" Weiss asked, surprised by how fragile her voice was.
"I can contact-"
"Not that!" The heat returned momentarily as her patience finally whittled to nothing. She fought to keep a squeak out of her voice. "What do you mean, former heiress?"
"Former; having denoted something in the past. A position once filled." Penny said brightly, and Weiss wanted to throw something at her.
"That's not what I meant," Weiss spat. "What do you mean I am the former heiress? When was this decided?"
Her father had threatened it before she had left for Beacon. She had defied his orders just like her sister so many years ago. He wasn't happy with her, but even still, she had never heard anything from him. Though in all reality, that was expected. She had always believed that if his children didn't appear in front of him occasionally, then her father simply forgot they even existed. What did that mean if he had gone through with her dismissal and moved on to Whitely without telling her? Where did that leave her? What was she then?
Who was she?
She hunched over, her trembling arms threatening to give out. She wanted to vomit, to cry and scream. Even if she did, then what did it matter? It still wouldn't gain her anything. Her father would just dismiss her as the child he had always claimed she was. It would only solidify his choice as the correct one. Even knowing that she had found that she had no real strength to try and stand back up.
"And how exactly," Weiss ground out, pushing onto her knees. She was satisfied to find the shock wearing off. She rose, her narrowed glare bouncing off of Penny's ever-present smile. There was something strange to it like it replicated the look of a smile without any of the actual warmth. It reminded Weiss of a doll. "Do you know any of this?"
Penny tilted her head, processing the question. Just as before, it took a few seconds for a response. "It was made official during a private press release one week ago today. I can pull up the articles and press conference video if you would like."
He had done it during the lockdown. He had done it when she had no way of knowing, and nothing could have been done by the time she did. Once more, her father made a rash decision about her future, leaving her entirely out of the conversation. It made her blood boil.
"That bastard," Weiss whispered. She bit the nail of her thumb, a habit she had picked up in her youth.
"Would you like any assistance?" Penny pressed, oblivious to Weiss' worsening mood. "I can call someone to help direct you."
Weiss's response was cut short. Ruby, seeming to sense the mounting tension, stepped between them. "Let's just take it easy now. We're all friends here, and I'm pretty sure Penny didn't mean anything rude."
Weiss felt the frustration pound behind her eyes, a headache starting to bloom as the stress of everything weighed down. Penny still looked unperturbed. A dopey, replicated smile still plastered on her face as if she hadn't just delivered life-changing news. Though, looking at it another way, perhaps all the girl had done was confirm what Weiss had already expected. She hadn't bothered to contact home since she had left; outside of letters to her sister, she had steered clear of anyone else in her family. It was impossible to expect her father to accommodate her for so long. He had pushed against her becoming a Huntress, rejected her pleas to attend Atlas, and ultimately threatened to disown her when she left for Beacon. She had thought she had called his bluff, but she had never been much of a poker player.
"Friends?" Penny said. Her voice was robotic, with light inflection but still unnatural in its cadence. The girl repeated the word, testing it on her lips. "Are we friends?"
Ruby looked back to Weiss, pleading for some kind answer. A shrug was all she could muster. The scrolls of downloaded data still hung loosely in her hands. Her mind had stopped working. Weiss was grateful when Ruby took charge.
"Yeah, I guess so." Ruby shrugged. "Name's Ruby. Nice to meet you, Penny."
Penny looked down at Ruby's outstretched hand — another few seconds. Weiss watched as Penny gripped Ruby's hand tightly. Ruby yelped in pain as the other girl frantically shook their hands. It was the first time Weiss had seen something resembling a genuine smile grace Penny's lips.
"Oh, this is wondrous news!" Penny said. "I have always wanted to make new friends."
"I'm happy to help," Ruby said, discomfort painting her face. "But hey, Penny, maybe you could let go?"
Penny dropped Ruby's hand. Ruby chuckled, flexing her fingers. "Stronger than you look."
"Yes," Penny said. "I am combat-ready."
Weiss stared, a mixture of confusion and frustration straining against the back of her eyes. Her head was starting to pound, the workings of a headache eating away the last of her patience. "As charming as all of this is, who exactly are you, and why are you here?"
"Oh, of course," Penny said, turning. "Three terabytes of privatized shipping information suddenly transferred from the network to a nonregistered device. I immediately found this action peculiar and headed to investigate."
"You?" Weiss said, stalling for time. "And what exactly are you?"
This time, it took ten seconds. "Just a normal high school girl."
"So let me get this straight. A cutesy, innocent high school girl suddenly sees dozens of data files being downloaded, and her first instinct is to run off and investigate?" Weiss asked.
"That is an apt summation of the circumstances."
"And how do you have access to the SDC's security protocols?" Layers of privatized security data, hundreds of terabytes of confidential secrets. Mazes upon mazes of in-depth firewalls and complex security engagements. Someone could notice the transfer, but there was no way it would have been seen in real time. Weiss wouldn't have even been registered as a potential liability in the building with her clearance. Someone would have connected it all at some point, but for Penny, of all people, to catch her in the act was borderline fantasy. Something else had to be going on.
"I was granted access upon my arrival," Penny said. She stepped forward, Pushing past Weiss and coming close to Ruby. "Are we truly friends?"
Uh, yeah." Ruby hesitated. "I mean, I don't see why not."
"Truly?" Penny asked, leering closer, her face inches from the shorter girl.
"Uh…" Ruby's eyes darted to Weiss, asking for help. "Yes."
Penny pulled back. Sweeping her arms wide, she jumped in joy. "Oh, this is wonderful news. I cannot wait to tell the Professor about this most recent progression."
"You can't tell anyone about this!" Ruby said, preventing Weiss from making a similar outburst.
"But why is that Friend Ruby?" Penny asked, something akin to confusion flickering across her face. More than ever, Weiss couldn't shake the metaphor of a doll. Penny's wide, green eyes were unblinking, the tension and emotion in her face never synching in time with what she was saying.
"Friends help each other out, right?" Ruby asked.
"That is what the data and statistics I have pooled together suggest is the most common behavior amongst friends."
"Well, friends also keep secrets for each other, and right now, we have a super big one."
"Ruby," Weiss started, already dreading what was coming next.
"You see, Penny, we're here to stop the bad guys," Ruby said. Weiss bit back a groan. "The White Fang is up to something in the forest, and we need to figure out what it is. If we can figure out the shipping data, we might find out where they're getting their supplies from. We might also be able to stop them before anyone else gets hurt."
Naive. Inane. Self-righteous. What was the point in blurting it all out? What could be gained by spilling their entire plan to the first wayward stranger who happened upon them? The frustration piled up, driving the pounding in her head until it felt like someone was trying to wrench open her skull with a dull tool. Weiss had conceded the leader position, and she had made peace with it. Ruby had proved herself dependable, but in moments such as these, her unbridled willingness to let others in proved right all of Weiss' worries about her childishness.
"I see. I will report this to the nearest available officer," Penny said. Weiss' heart dropped. All it took was for someone else to get involved, and everything would fall apart. If security knew what she was doing, then her father would know. He would take her back to Atlas and everything she had run from.
"Come with us." It took Weiss a moment to realize Ruby had spoken.
"Come with you?" Penny asked.
"It'll be fun. We can sort out all the official stuff later. Right now, we have the chance to go out and kick some major bad guy butt."
"Is this what friends do regularly?" Penny asked. "Kick the bad guys' butts?"
"Heck yeah, it is!" Ruby smiled. The energy behind her words was mounting, and she shifted eagerly from one foot to the next. "It'll be great. I can even introduce you to some of my other friends. I think you'll like Nora and Pyrrha. Jaune can be a buttface, but he's pretty nice. And after all that, we can even look around Vale."
It was strange. Ruby had been so shy and introverted when they had started at Beacon. Unsure and unsteady about every decision that didn't involve combat. Weiss had grown so used to watching the girl trip over herself at every other interaction that to see her suddenly so giddy and excitable around a stranger felt almost unnatural. It was, Weiss realized, a sign that Ruby had grown and changed past the girl she had been when they started at Beacon. It was almost enviable. With guilt, Weiss realized she had been so single-mindedly focused on her own plights that she had overlooked entirely all of Ruby's own changes.
Weiss wondered if she herself had even changed at all.
"I would like to see this shop that sells the frozen cream," Penny said, startling Weiss out of her thoughts.
She looked at them, bright-eyed and excitable. They were eager and ready to face whatever new thing popped up in front of them next. How long had it been since she had felt that way? How long had it been since she had simply let herself go?
There was no longer the excuse of the SDC. That was gone, taken away from her like everything she had grown attached to. What image was she supposed to be protecting? Who was she trying to project herself to be?
"I could also go for some ice cream," Weiss said. Ruby's eyes lit up with unbridled delight.
"Then let's go," Ruby said, pressing a finger to her lips. She turned back to Penny. "But this is a big secret from friend to friend."
"Understood," Penny said, a more human-like smile spreading. She stepped forward, past Weiss, and touched the cool metal of the computer's back. The system hummed under Penny's touch for a fraction of a second before the girl pulled back. "I have successfully downloaded all of the files you had previously selected."
"That's awesome," Ruby said. "Wait? Downloaded?"
A.N: Here are a few updates: I've finally settled into an actual writing routine, so I hope these chapters will be more common moving forward. Less wait between updates and all that. Though they will all probably range between 5,000-7,000 words. So, probably no more stupid long chapters, though that may change depending on the contents of the chapters themselves. A shoutout is in high order for Kabuto S. Inferno for both beta reading and listening to my long-winded rants and tangents of what I want to do with this story. Honestly, I couldn't have done it without them. Another chapter will be out before the end of this month; that is a guarantee. Now, on to the reviews.
Guest: I'm quite happy with how the team reunion went. It was originally a much longer idea, broken into multiple chapters, but I'm glad it worked out this way, and you enjoyed it.
RohanVos: I'm glad you enjoyed it. Nora has been a surprisingly enjoyable character to write. I honestly never expected her to have as much focus as she has. I'm glad to see she's coming across well, and I'm also glad you've enjoyed the story. It's great to hear from you again.
Guest: Hey! Thank you for the reviews and the reactions. It's always awesome to see how readers enjoy the story as they go along. The story has actually changed a lot since it started. Many side characters became central ones, and on top of the flashbacks, they became way more integral than I wanted. They may have also become a little too large. I think the pacing has stalled because of it, so I'm removing all of the other ones I had lined up, barring one more for Jaune. As for romance... Well...there's something in the works.
Sir Lone: I wholeheartedly agree that Blake needs to apologize, but a lot is coming to force Blake to confront certain parts of her ideology and beliefs. As for the shifts in tone, I also agree. I think writing this thing has taught me a lot more about writing in general. Seeing where it started and how I wrote it until this point has been eye-opening. I'm improving as I go, so I hope it reflects in each new update. As for Jaune, he has quite a bit more to go, and he has a whole last section of his backstory coming up soonish. He hasn't quite found his way out of the woods yet.
Heyomen: It's finally here! It's been a crazy few months, but the story is finally moving forward. I hope you enjoyed it, and I'm excited to hear your thoughts.
Guest: As for Pyrrha, she is going to have her own issues to overcome in the near future. As for Lucia and Weiss, there's one last little bit of the puzzle left to be revealed. I hope that will tie it all together on Jaune's backstory and why he is the way he is. Though a part of me wonders if I should go back and rewrite some earlier chapters, they aren't really all that great, and the Weiss I wrote back then is vastly different than the one now. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I look forward to your thoughts.
