Chapter 9: One Man's Treasure
"Two weeks of community service is way too harsh!" Ruby complained to her team as Yang arranged trash cans with Blake to scoop up the litter that surrounded them. "All we did was waste some dust!"
Team RWBY were in Vale's residential district, cleaning up garbage after a local band concert. The red and brown buildings gave the wide alleyway an autumn feel in the midst of spring; the loose debris acting as fallen leaves in the warm wind.
"At least it's our last day," Blake said, righting a full can and attaching the lid.
"Thankfully," Yang agreed. "Guess it's to teach us to keep our noses in check."
"Hey!" Ruby stomped her foot. "It's not my fault dust is so irritating!"
"I'm kidding, Rubes," Yang said, motioning to the trash. "Come on, do your thing again."
Ruby stuck out her tongue at Yang before zipping down the street. She turned back to her team and yelled, "Ready?"
"Ready!" Blake shouted back. She and Yang were bracing trash cans at an angle; the rims slightly lifted off the ground.
Ruby shot forward, her semblance making her a blur of red, fast enough to catch the wind. The vacuum wave she generated gathered a ton of loose garbage, trailing it behind Ruby as she zipped in circles. Eventually, she turned to dash past Blake and Yang, who scooped up swathes of trash into the cans. Blake almost lost her balance as Ruby bounded over her can, but Yang caught her arm, steadying Blake with a wink.
"Couldn't the lot of you do that less messily?" Weiss asked, removing a piece of paper that had blown onto her skirt.
The other girls turned to look at her, frowning. Ruby gathered herself, stepping over to confront the heiress.
"Weiss," she started. "It would go faster if you helped out."
"Huh?" Weiss looked up from her clothes, giving Ruby a disinterested look.
"You- You could help me with your glyphs," Ruby faltered. "Make the trash… bounce, or something..."
Yang strolled over, throwing an arm around Ruby. "She's right, Weiss. Our last day would go faster if you would at least help Blake hold the trash cans down."
Weiss gave them a level look, then rolled her eyes and kicked a soda can into a grate across the street. She turned to them, folding her arms. "See? I'm helping."
"So that's how things are going," Velvet interrupted their confrontation, stepping beside them. She made a note on her scroll, then looked at the girls. "We do need you to help, Weiss; it's part of the requirement." She tapped a finger to her device.
"Well, I'm not touching any of this trash!" Weiss said, kicking another drink container about. "It's disgusting."
"Why don't you help them disassemble the bleachers?" Velvet pointed down the street, past where Blake was scooping up debris with a trash can lid. A group of people were taking apart a set of old bleachers by hand in front of the remains of a worn wooden stage.
Weiss frowned, then sighed and walked over, presumably to find a place to help.
"Thanks Velvet," Ruby said after waving Weiss off. "I don't want to see her suspended."
"Nobody does," Velvet commiserated. She looked at the street. "You're doing pretty good here. Do you think you can get the trash from behind the corner as well?"
"Yes, ma'am!" Ruby said with a quick salute. Velvet smiled, then left Ruby's team to reset their cleaning method. Ruby darted around the corner, kicked a pile of rubbish so she could stand among it, and shouted "Ready?"
"Ready!" Yang's voice called from the other street.
"Ready?" another voice asked, but Ruby was already moving, spinning up a tornado of trash.
She used her semblance to slowly bring as much garbage as she could around the corner, then began to move it toward her team. Yang was holding Blake's can along with her own against the wind Ruby was whipping up.
With a final zip, Ruby was standing behind them, followed shortly by a massive pile of trash that covered the three of them.
Blake popped her head out of the pile. "Go overboard much?"
Ruby, who was sitting at the top of the pile, giggled sheepishly.
Yang sprung out of the mess and began trudging over to help Blake, when she spotted an arm resting in the trash pile.
She gasped, quickly digging through the refuse to find the face of a ginger girl, who greeted her with a cheery "Sal-u-tations!"
"Uh, hi," Yang said, stepping back. "Are you ok?"
"I'm wonderful!" the girl said. "Thank you for asking."
"Do you want to get out of the trash?" Blake asked, removing a banana peel from Yang's shoulder.
The girl paused, thinking for a moment before saying, "Yes!" She burst out of the pile, shaking her plain beige dress of all the garbage with a proud spin. Blake and Yang took a step back as Ruby joined them.
"My name is Penny," the ginger went on. "It's a pleasure to meet you!"
"Hi Penny," the girl with a red cloak said, "I'm Ruby."
"Blake," the black haired girl with a bow said.
"Are you sure you're ok?" the blonde girl with matching bracelets asked. Blake elbowed her. "Oh, I'm Yang."
"What are you doing here?" Ruby asked.
"I'm exploring Vale," Penny explained. "I found a roped off section and I wanted to know what was going on behind it. Then, I was caught up in a strange, localized weather event, and landed in this pile of trash!"
"Ah, sorry!" Ruby said, shrinking. "That was my fault."
"It's ok!" Penny said with a smile. "I've never flown like that before." She paused, looking quizzical. "But why are you spinning trash into piles?"
"We're cleaning up for the Vytal Festival," Velvet said, coming back over after the commotion. "You can help out too, if you want."
Penny turned to her, beaming. "I can! Wow! I've never cleaned a street before!" She looked about cheerily. "How do I do it?"
"Scoop the trash up with this," Blake said while handing Penny a trash can lid. "And then put it into the can." She pointed to Ruby, who was filling another trash can in the same manner.
"Amazing!" Penny breathed, giddily taking the lid from Blake. "I can't believe I get to help out!" She started mowing through the garbage, filling the lid to the rim before depositing it in a random can.
"This one," Blake said, hefting a bin toward the rambunctious cleaner. "Put it all in here; then, when it's full, put the lid on it."
Penny came back to her, nodding while hefting the can. "Thank you, Blake!" She scooped up another lid full of trash and dumped it into the can. Velvet turned away as Penny and Blake kept working.
Before the faunus was out of earshot, Penny idly said, "Working for a critter is so much fun!"
Velvet stopped and turned around as Blake gripped Penny's shoulders. She twisted the girl to look her in the eyes. "Why would you call her that?!"
Penny's smile faded, dropping the can and lid. "But, she's a faunus?"
Blake shoved her to the ground, eyes narrowed. "How would you like it if someone called you Freckles?" She crossed her arms as Ruby and Yang trotted over.
Realization crossed Penny's face, which became a mask of sorrow.
"Oh no," she whimpered. "I'm so sorry, Blake! I thought-"
"I don't care what you thought," Blake bit out. "That wasn't a nice thing to say."
Velvet stepped forward, asking, "Where are you from?"
"Atlas," Penny said. She froze for a moment, like she was reprocessing her whole life. "People there… are not nice to faunus." She looked up at the rabbit girl, eyes appearing moist, but not crying.
Yang gripped Blakes shoulder, motioning for them to talk elsewhere. Ruby knelt down to talk with Penny as they left.
"You may be new to Vale, but that was still rude," Ruby said. Then she smiled. "And after you're rude to someone, you have to apologize to the person you offended."
Penny looked at her, then snapped up, standing and bowing to Velvet, professing, "I'm so, so, so, so sorry! I'll never do it again!"
"It's ok," Velvet said, placing a hand on the apologetic girl's shoulder. "They were just words. My name's Velvet, so call me that."
"Yes, Ms. Velvet!" Penny shot up, saluting. "I'll be the best worker you ever had!"
"Oh, I'm just volunteering here," Velvet said. "But, we could be friends, if you want."
Penny paused, staring at her. "Friends?" she repeated.
"Sure!" Ruby chimed in, now standing and holding out the trash can Penny had dropped. "We can all be friends!"
The ginger held her hands over her mouth, hopping. "I've never had friends before!"
She took the can and lid with a wide grin and started scooping up the trash as cheerily as she had before. Ruby shared a glance with Velvet. The second year shrugged with a smile before turning to check on another part of the clean-up.
"What was that about?" Yang asked Blake. The two of them had walked down the street to chat privately while Penny and Ruby cleared the mountain of garbage.
"She was rude!" Blake said, gesturing to the ginger.
"True," Yang said, "but so were you. You didn't need to shove her like that."
"People shouldn't say stuff like that!" Blake went on. "You wouldn't understand."
"Then help me understand." Yang met her eyes.
Blake paused, then let out a sigh. "I… I sympathize a lot with the plight of the faunus. Language like that really gets under my skin."
"That's ironic," Yang commented. "What with us being on a team with a Schnee."
She thumbed over to where Weiss was spinning screws out of the stand with her glyphs.
"Yeah," Blake said slowly. "I'm surprised this hasn't come up earlier."
"Eh, well, I guess she's not in charge of her family's company," Yang commented, folding her arms behind her head.
Another worker took a step above where the heiress was working and fell through the bleacher, the wood caving under her weight. She landed on Weiss, covering them in splintered wood.
Yang and Blake shared a giggle as Weiss let out an annoyed scream.
The two went back over to help Ruby and Penny. Blake gave a quick apology to Penny, who brushed the incident off with another emphatic apology of her own, before Weiss stormed over to them.
"Ruffians and klutzes!" the heiress huffed, wiping her dress free of wood pulp. "Why am I always surrounded by them?!" She spun and saw the ginger girl scooping up more trash. "Another one?"
"Hello, Ms. Schnee!" Penny greeted her, holding out a surprisingly clean hand. "I'm Penny Polendina! It's nice to meet you!"
Weiss stopped, eyes widening at her. She smiled, then shook Penny's hand. "Finally, someone with manners."
Yang scrunched her face as she asked, "Do you two know each other?"
"Not personally," Penny informed her. "But everyone in Atlas knows the Schnee family."
"We're quite famous," Weiss said, examining her nails with a lofty grin.
"Less talk, more help!" Ruby squeaked, carrying a full trash can to the edge of the street.
Penny spun on her heels, lifting up two filled trash bins with a hand each. "Of course, friend Ruby!" The other girls stared at Penny as she carried them effortlessly over to the side of the street, setting them down with ease.
"You're rather strong," Weiss commented. "Are you a huntsman student?"
"I am!" Penny answered happily. "I'm attending Atlas Academy." She picked up a can Ruby was trying to lift.
"What are you doing in Vale then?" Blake asked.
"I came to visit my family before the Vytal Festival," Penny said. She let out a small hiccup as she finished.
"We're huntresses too!" Ruby said, placing another lid on a can. "We're team RWBY!"
"Isn't that just your name?" Penny asked.
"Ah, sort of…"
"We didn't pick it," Weiss said. "I've tried thinking of a different name, but with Ruby as leader, I couldn't find anything good."
"...Team stRaWBerrY?" Blake suggested.
"That starts with an 'S', not an 'R,'" Yang said. She looked around the area they were standing in, then said, "I think it's time for another load, Ruby."
"Alrighty!" Ruby said. She darted down the street and around the corner.
"Oh, great," Weiss said. She grabbed Penny's hand and took her over to the side of the street as the other girls shouted their signals.
"Aren't you going to help, Ms. Schnee?" Penny asked as Ruby brought in more trash.
"I don't want to get dirty from all that garbage," the heiress said. "And please, call me Weiss."
"Oh," Penny looked at her for a moment, then beamed. "Ok, Weiss!" She trotted back to the others once Ruby's wind storm was over, getting another trash can lid from Blake.
Weiss' brow furrowed as she watched them work.
"That was an impressive use of your semblance, Ruby," Penny said, dumping a load of garbage into a can.
"I know, right?" Yang said as Ruby beamed. "My little sister's a genius!"
"Ah, stop it!" Ruby said. "You're gonna make me blush!"
"Your outfit could use more red," Blake said, causing Yang to laugh.
"Not according to Coco!" Ruby defended. "She's already suggested dozens of changes, and they're all terrible!"
The girls laughed as they worked together, filling another set of cans. As they were arranging them against the curb, Weiss approached them.
"I, um…" she started, trying to find the right words. "Do you, uh- Is there anything you need me to do?" The rest of her team gave her suprised expressions.
"Of course!" Penny said. "With your help, we can catch more trash when Ruby brings it over!"
"Not that," Weiss said hastily.
"Why not?" Penny asked innocently.
"Well…" Weiss tried to say something, but ended up only motioning to the filthy state of her teammates.
They looked down at themselves and then shrugged.
"It's not a big deal," Blake said. "We'll clean ourselves up later."
"Come join the trash pile, Weiss!" Yang said with a smile, holding up a soggy pamphlet.
Weiss cringed at the invitation, taking a step back.
"Don't worry, Weiss," Ruby said, approaching her. "You can shield yourself with a glyph so you don't get all dirty!" She smiled brightly.
Weiss gave Penny a nervous glance, then looked back to Ruby. "If you say so."
"Ready?" Ruby called from behind the street corner.
"Ready…" Weiss mumbled, holding a trash can with Blake. She had a loose grip on the container with her right hand, her left poised to activate her semblance.
"You've gotta shout it, Weiss," Yang said, bracing her own can in front of the others.
The heiress paused, then took in a breath. She let it out, then inhaled sharply and yelled, "Ready!"
Weiss' finger tips alighted with white sparkles as Ruby streaked from around the street, her form no more detailed than a red blur. Wind blew from every direction, whipping the hair of the four girls holding the trash cans.
Blake lifted her half up, catching a bundle of refuse, but the jostling caused Weiss to flail her free hand. A large glyph appeared beside the girls, angled between Weiss and Penny.
Before Weiss could dismiss it, a large collection of paper and plastics gathered against the plane. The second it vanished, a flock of food implements and pamphlets hit Penny. The trash jostled the ginger, causing one of the trash cans she was swinging about to fall from her hands.
Weiss screamed as a bin full of garbage toppled past her, spraying her hair, face, and dress with a greasy slime.
Ruby's storm came to an end a short time after, the girl striking a dramatic pose as she slid to a stop. She turned around with a big smile, only for it to vanish upon seeing Weiss sitting amongst the garbage.
"I'm so sorry, Weiss!" Penny said, trying to comfort the heiress. "I didn't mean to drop it, I-"
Weiss stood abruptly, spinning to glare at Ruby.
"Hey, Weiss," Yang said, stepping between her and her sister. "It's not anyone's fault, ok. These things happen."
Weiss itched to start an argument, but stopped herself. Instead, she said, "I'm done." She turned and stormed away, leaving her team for the rest of the day.
"Should we go after her?" Penny asked as the rest of team RWBY got back to cleaning.
"It's fine, Penny," Blake said. "She gets like that sometimes."
"Did it feel different to any of you?" Yang asked.
"Not really," Ruby said, dumping another lid full of trash into a can. "It feels like that every time."
They cleaned the last bit of garbage from the street in silence, then arranged the cans as they'd been instructed. Ruby, Yang, and Blake all sat down on the curb while Penny stood in front of them, studying their faces.
"Okay," Velvet said as she came back from a different group further down the street. "How are…" She trailed off, noticing the mood. "Where's Weiss?"
"She got covered in trash and left," Penny informed her.
"Ah," Velvet said. "Well, at least she helped out." She looked about the street. "It looks much better, girls. I think we can call it a day."
The remains of team RWBY nodded, standing up from their stupor as Penny looked to Velvet. "What should I do now?"
"Head home," Yang said. "Clean up, grab a drink, and sleep. That's what I'm doing."
"But I'm from Atlas!" Penny said. "I can't go home now! I have a tournament to win!"
"She meant go back to where you're staying," Velvet assured her. "You can come help out tomorrow if you're free."
"Really!" Penny's face lit up, "I can help out more! Stupendous!" She raced away, calling, "I will see you tomorrow, friends!"
The girls perked up again, waving her off.
"At least we made a new friend today," Ruby said with a wan smile.
"Did we tell her this was our last day?" Blake asked.
Yang shrugged. "I don't think that's gonna stop her."
Ruby, Blake, and Yang left the cleaning site, turning a corner on their way to the heliport by the docks. Down the street to their right, they noticed a shattered store window with police tape set out front. An officer stood by the broken door.
"Were you here too?" Yang asked Ruby.
"Ha, ha," Ruby laughed mockingly before sobering up, leading her team over to the crime scene. They stopped just within earshot of the policeman talking with his partner, who was coming out of the building.
"What do you think?" the first man, a lanky fellow with spurred boots, asked.
"White Fang for sure," his partner, a faunus with tiger ears said, holding up a bag with a white and red cloth in it. "Though all the dust is missing again."
"They've been stealing more of it lately," the human officer said. "Not sure why."
"It was Torchwick's MO to steal dust like this," the faunus officer said. "But the cash is gone this time. He'd always leave it." He looked at his partner. "You got any statements from the owner?"
"Not much," he responded. "The gal said she only recently started accepting Schnee products into her store. Maybe that was enough." He shrugged. "Let me look again."
Ruby, Yang, and Blake wordlessly watched them enter the building before wandering away. They walked in silence until the store was out of sight, then Yang hugged Ruby, giving her a nuggie.
"Look at that!" she said. "My little sister, intimidating old Torchwick!"
"Stop it!" Ruby said, squeezing out of the hold. "And you don't know that!"
"You heard what they said," Yang went on. "Torchwick isn't stealing dust anymore!"
"But the White Fang is," Blake said. She hung her head, whispering, "I wish I knew why."