Something was wrong, Weiss was sure.
Not just because Sasuke had disappeared after that emotional episode or the threat of the General who had managed to isolate Blake and her from most of the other students by turning them into enemies of the world; no, what had made her come to that conclusion was what happened next.
While Weiss and Blake were lost in thought ignoring everything else around them and wondering what to do next, a teacher came up to do a head count - surely to check that not one of them had run away to try and make a name for themselves with Sasuke's secret - and there was indeed a name other than the boy in question that was missing.
So far, as despicable as it was to discover that someone had possibly stooped so low, it made no difference.
Sasuke's identity would eventually be revealed in the next few days, there was no way to stop that from happening without erasing the memory of everyone at school and that wasn't possible.
If it were, it would come from Sasuke himself and his divine power in order to maintain his anonymity.
While that wasn't happening, the real problem lay in the fact that Yang, who had been forced to leave her younger sister in the infirmary and join the other students in the main hall, had quietly revealed that this student - a girl who looked as young as Ruby and went by the name of Yami Hitomi - hated Sasuke.
Unexpected, especially when almost all the girls and some of the boys seemed to feel the opposite about him, but perhaps a rejection could have that kind of effect.
There were people like that in the world and they could easily be even more despicable for much less.
Except that wasn't the case at all.
According to Yang, who had spent some time alone with Sasuke earlier and was still wearing some of his clothes without deigning to provide any explanation as to why, not only did she not know anything about this girl, but the kind of hatred she had for him was...extreme, to say the least.
The act of wanting to kill him with her own hands could only be described as such.
This in itself raised numerous questions, such as the reason behind her motivations - which Yang couldn't provide an answer to - only that Sasuke had his eyes on this girl because she was strong and wanted to recruit her too.
Something worrying to consider, especially when there were other much better and less dangerous options like Pyrrha - who had a great sense of honor and stood by them even when almost everyone in the school had turned away because of everything that had happened - and Winter who could easily be considered the strongest woman in Atlas.
In fact, even Yang with all her hostility proved to be a more acceptable and reasonable option.
So no matter how strong this girl possibly was and what kind of Semblance she had, ignoring the potentially lethal danger she posed and trying to recruit her made no sense.
Her sudden disappearance, on the other hand, did, and not in a good way.
Considering how emotionally vulnerable Sasuke was, it wouldn't have been a surprise if Yami had gone after him to take advantage of this moment of weakness.
Coming to that conclusion was a simple task and more than enough to bring to life the look Blake had, being one that made Nora and Ren finally follow the example of the other students and walk away.
A wise decision, considering what had happened earlier.
Worse still, Blake wasn't the only one reacting this way.
Yang, the girl who openly showed hostility towards Sasuke because of her little sister, had red eyes and flames burning in her hair to confirm feelings she refused to acknowledge when she declared: "No one can kill that bastard but me!"
Her physical language, on the other hand, contradicted her words by showing anxiety, worry and perhaps...even fear.
A reaction similar to that shown when Ruby had a panic attack.
That seemed to be all it took for these two, Yang and Blake, to reach a consensus and consider running away from the school by force.
Weiss was no different and wanted to go after Sasuke immediately, but...a part of her that still stood by logic and knew the consequences of such actions, hesitated.
As much as she hated to admit it, the General's threat had a great effect on her.
That man... he didn't have his head on straight.
To be able to dismiss Winter from her position as Lieutenant, someone who had served under his command with unwavering dedication for years, merely for showing affection for Sasuke without apparent hesitation, said a lot about the level of distrust and paranoia that dwelled in this man.
As such, there was no telling what James Ironwood was capable of doing to anyone who crossed his path.
Turning them into a martyr to keep everyone away from Sasuke was just a taste of what he was willing to do even in territory that didn't belong to him, inside Beacon, and in the presence of Ozpin of all people.
With that in mind, Weiss needed to hold back and be the voice of reason.
If they got carried away and acted on impulse, there was no turning back.
Honestly, even if they let themselves be consumed by emotion, there was no guarantee that they could do anything at all.
Because of everything that had been going on, it was easy to forget, but there was a literal army stationed around the school on full alert to try to confront and contain a god.
So what exactly could three girls do against all that?
A calm mind and an appropriate plan of action were needed.
Fortunately, once again Weiss managed to explain all this and calm these two down, even if she herself wasn't much better.
How could she when the life of the boy she loved could be in danger?
Something had to be done.
So Weiss decided that the best thing to do would be to appeal to her sister.
Winter, even if she had lost her authority as a Lieutenant, was still a Specialist and could help immensely in this situation with her strength and military knowledge.
Especially as she also had undeniable feelings for Sasuke.
While having her perfect older sister as a rival was still something difficult to accept and extremely intimidating, ensuring the safety of the boy who managed to melt that immutable heart of ice when no one else could, was the only priority.
They could fight over Sasuke after saving him.
However, for that to happen, they needed to find Winter first but because of the restrictions imposed by Ozpin, where even the Scrolls weren't working, they needed to look for her directly.
It didn't take long to realize that the task at hand was more difficult and time-consuming than expected.
Weiss couldn't find her sister anywhere inside the academy and looking for her outside was out of the question because of the new security protocols that had been imposed.
As if that wasn't enough, the guards who only followed her around to keep an eye on her refused to help or answer any of her questions.
Slowly, all the calm and composure that Weiss had been forced by her father to build up over the years - in order to one day become a leader capable of succeeding him - was collapsing along with the momentary trust that Blake and Yang had placed in her.
No one could blame them for that.
The longer it took to find Sasuke, the greater the chances of something bad happening.
It was then that Headmaster Ozpin, Professor Glynda, and General Ironwood made their return known to everyone.
Considering that each of them was physically fine, one could assume that the discussion from before hadn't escalated to the point of becoming physical.
Which was good, excellent in fact, as it prevented old conflicts between kingdoms from flaring up again.
Other than that, it also meant that they hadn't found Sasuke.
Hard to say if that was a good thing or not.
The heavy expression and air of seriousness that each of them wore seemed to answer enough to that.
In that case, Weiss couldn't help but step forward and ask, after Blake had asked about Sasuke and been openly ignored, about her sister's location.
The help Winter could provide was far from the only reason behind this. The fact that she had practically disappeared and hadn't tried to get in touch on her own was making Weiss extremely worried.
For the first time, she was experiencing what it was like to be in her older sister's shoes; something Yang certainly knew a lot about, given the sister she had in Ruby.
Unfortunately, this feeling only got worse as the expressions that these great figures of authority carried with them became even more severe and full of conflict.
The silence that followed as an immediate response could only be described as deafening.
Not a word was spoken and every second that passed resounded with the beating of her agitated heart.
Something wasn't right.
While Ozpin managed to put on a mask that remained unchanged, even smiling in the same old way to try and convey a feeling that should be comforting and failing, the way his hands clenched over his cane revealed what he was really feeling.
Those accompanying him confirmed the truth by doing an even worse job of hiding their emotions.
Professor Glynda, the most powerful and stoic woman in Vale - one of the few people in this world that Winter openly praised and admired - couldn't help but look away as she was unable to maintain eye contact or control her guilt-ridden facial expression.
Finally, there was the General, the person who held a similar - if not greater - amount of power than her father and Ozpin, and his physical response was full of emotion; full of hatred in its purest form.
Somehow, it was even more so than before, when he was antagonizing Sasuke and taking out his frustration on those close to him.
Except, this time, he was showing such a reaction after being approached about Winter and not Sasuke.
"S-something happened to my sister?" Weiss could feel her heart beating faster and faster, fear growing accordingly inside her. "Why aren't you answering my question?!"
This time there was an answer; one that made her heart almost stop instead of racing.
"Ask your boyfriend," James said, unable to contain the venom dripping from his words. "I'm sure he knows where the rest of the..."
"JAMES!" Ozpin made the hall shake under the sound of his explosive voice, his eyes glowing an emerald green like sparks of lightning. "Don't you dare say another word."
That wasn't a request or even a warning, but an order directed at someone who in theory had no superiors.
Perhaps that was why the tension in the hall only grew as two of the most powerful men in the world faced each other in a silent war.
Tension that Weiss ignored, focusing only on questioning the meaning behind the words spoken.
"R-rest? The rest of what?" she stepped forward, her voice trembling but in a way that paled in comparison to her body. "What happened to my sister?!" Her hands were on the man's uniform in the same second and the surrounding soldiers were ignored even after raising their weapons in warning. "Answer me!"
This time, Weiss wasn't asking but demanding an answer!
Glynda was about to do something to stop the situation from escalating further and she wasn't the only one, given the reaction of Miss Belladonna and Xiao Long, both of whom were about to attack if any of those soldiers were really stupid enough to try to hurt the heiress of the most powerful family in this world, but stopped at a mere gesture from Ozpin.
If it had been before, she would have questioned and perhaps even openly ignored this decision. After learning that this man was not what she had imagined him to be, she was afraid to even try.
More and more, Glynda questioned her position and authority; whether she really had any, and came to the conclusion that she needed to re-evaluate her life choices.
Slowly, the idea of leaving Beacon behind and returning to active duty as a Huntress was becoming tempting.
That aside, it seemed that her meddling wouldn't be necessary.
Despite the explosive behavior he had been displaying, James still had some scruples in his hot head as he dismissed his guards, but not so much as to stoop so low and insist on antagonizing those close to Uchiha Sasuke.
"As I said," James ignored Ozpin's warnings and removed the desperate hands of a girl who had to learn the hard way that her choices had consequences, "Ask your boyfriend."
For only that monster could truly answer her question.
Likewise, probably only one of these girls could find Sasuke and that was reason enough to justify his choice to continue antagonizing each of them.
A questionable method, but one that had the best chance of working.
Weiss staggered back a few steps until she found support and an unconscious attempt at comfort in Blake's hands, but was unable to recognize any of it as she was overcome by a wave of emotion.
"There's no way..." she murmured as she held the memory of her sister close to her heart, Winter being the only family she could truly say she had in this world, and feeling fear at the remote possibility of losing her. "Sasuke...did he do something to Winter?"
The mere notion of it was as frightening as it was ridiculous.
Because, while yes, Sasuke had the ability to harm and hurt people, the boy she had come to know wasn't like that.
Truth be told, she still didn't know much about him and darkness definitely dwelled within him, but that could be said of anyone and Weiss felt for herself how great the love he could feel as well as witnessing his innocence that made even Winter fall for him.
As if that wasn't enough, there was his kindness in having the courage to correct his mistake in dealing with the Grimm he attracted, recognizing his powerlessness against a superior opponent, and looking for allies instead of trying to do everything himself.
That was proof of his character.
Even more than that, Sasuke was someone capable of shedding tears of emotion like anyone else when conflicted over an act of kindness!
That was the person she fell in love with!
"Lies..." Weiss held back the tears in her eyes and looked at this resentful man to reflect the same level of hatred he showed in refusing to believe what was said without proof. "Sasuke would never do anything to Winter!"
Not just with her sister, but with any good person for no reason!
And if for some reason he did, it wasn't intentional.
Someone, probably this very man in front of her, must have been responsible for it!
James only observed the determination rekindling in this girl, who only got a taste of how despair felt, to remind him of the lieutenant he had been proud to raise and sorry for some of his more recent choices.
At the same time, his hatred inevitably grew for all of this being that false god's fault.
If that thing hadn't gotten into the minds of these girls so deeply, none of this would have happened!
No matter what anyone said, the fact that they hadn't known Sasuke long enough to form any kind of meaningful emotional bond, especially with Winter, remained.
Love, at first sight, was just nonsense and a teenage fantasy that shouldn't be able to affect so many girls, no matter how attractive Uchiha Sasuke supposedly was, especially a grown woman like Winter.
James made sure of that.
Over the years, he had forced Winter into life-or-death situations countless times. While she survived and grew stronger, her feelings and emotions died little by little as she witnessed so much tragedy and death. In the end, all that remained was the reasoning and logic needed to follow orders.
The result of this long process was the weapon known as the Winter Schnee that he was building to become the most powerful and perfect Maiden possible.
Her name alone was a sign of predestination.
For that reason, there was no way she could have been affected by something as stupid and trivial as the concept of love and thrown everything achieved away.
With this in mind, more and more his theory about Uchiha Sasuke being able to brainwash or manipulate females gained strength.
Otherwise, all James had done was waste his time training a failure.
"Let's hope you're right, Weiss," regardless of his losses and the fact that he had gotten a potentially powerful enemy, he wouldn't change his opinion of Uchiha Sasuke, but at least he would be sincere in his words for not wishing his former lieutenant any harm when she was potentially being controlled by the enemy. Otherwise, I'll be sure to bring justice against more than just that false god.
According to the law, treason should be punished accordingly.
With that decided, he headed for the exit to return to his ship, join the analysis team, and study the samples collected.
There was no reason to stay in this place that felt more like enemy territory than anything else.
James didn't need much more to realize that agreeing to go along with Ozpin's plans for the initiation was a mistake.
If Sasuke wasn't in Beacon, then his only duty remained to prepare for the worst.
In other words, nothing had changed, only that he was now alone on this front against the greatest threat Remnant had ever faced.
The General's cue seemed to carry away most of the weight in the air and the students could breathe again.
At least, that's how most of them felt.
For Weiss, however, her conflict only grew.
Even when she was sure that Sasuke wasn't responsible for anything that had potentially happened, the fact that her sister was missing remained and she didn't intend to sit still!
To hell with the consequences! For the first time in her life, Weiss wouldn't measure her actions! "Blake, let's find my sister and Sasuke!"
And save them both, no matter what!
"Finally." Blake smiled for more than just relief; for seeing Weiss pull herself together as she regained her resolve. She's stronger than I thought.
Much stronger.
That was the only way to describe someone like that, able to avoid the abyss known as despair and stand firm like a mountain that could be shaken but wouldn't crumble.
She already knew Weiss was strong from the fight they had, but that was only physically speaking and, honestly, anyone could reach that level if they really tried. Mental strength, on the other hand, was different and needed to be built through hardship and perseverance over the course of a life that most people didn't know.
With this revelation, she could tell that they had a lot more in common than initially thought, as well as showing that the Schnee family wasn't just bad for the faunus.
The scar Weiss carried was more than proof of that.
The world really wasn't black and white, ironically, and Blake needed to keep that in mind from now on, and she wasn't the only one who thought so.
Before, Yang would have liked to send this little princess, who had the audacity to antagonize her and cut her face earlier, to hell more than once with all her logic and false calm.
Obviously, Yang knew that letting her emotions control her would result in problems as it tended to happen all the time.
However, even knowing this and the consequences of acting on impulse, imagining that another girl was trying to kill Sasuke got the better of her.
That should have been a relief but after what had happened between them the truth couldn't have been more different and there was fear of the remote possibility of seeing his lifeless body.
Fortunately, the princess had excellent arguments and an even better suggestion to seek help from Winter Schnee, who was a lieutenant in the Atlas army until she was recently dismissed... for being another of the many girls who had fallen for Sasuke.
Yang couldn't even blame the bastard for that because they were the same and many had already fallen for her for less.
Except that, this woman was on a level of her own.
If Weiss was a princess, Winter was a powerful queen in almost every sense of the word and even Yang felt threatened by her as a woman.
Which was why she was sure she didn't need to worry about Ruby winning the race for Sasuke's heart.
The competition was brutal as it was and it would be even worse from then on as his identity was revealed to the world.
If that wasn't enough, there was the deal Yang made with Sasuke when they were alone to take an even greater burden off her back...if he didn't choose to create a harem.
She could only hope for the best.
Unfortunately, what happened changed everything, especially when she discovered that Winter had also disappeared and Yang found herself respecting Weiss rather than resenting her.
Naturally, someone who was able to prioritize her sister's safety and ignore everything else undeniably deserved to be seen that way.
At the same time, however, there was the level of trust Weiss placed in Sasuke and that was a tricky subject for Yang.
After all, as much as she hated to admit it, that walking sin - regardless of all the teasing done and that strange mark having taken hold of him - didn't hurt her or intentionally make Ruby cry.
In fact, it was Ruby who made him cry before being consumed by guilt and having a panic attack.
The indirect result of so many things that had accumulated over the years.
In that case, could Yang really blame him?
That couple from before, who came with the Scroll and showed that fuking video, had a lot more to blame for the way things had turned out than anyone else.
Perhaps that was the reason why she felt an unknown kind of pain piercing her heart when she saw him crying like that and tried to reach him before he disappeared.
Yang still had one of the leaves that Sasuke had left behind in her hands, besides wearing some of his clothes.
At this point, that bastard had already marked her in an even deeper way than all those other girls.
After all, Sasuke was not only her first kiss but also the first to almost have his way with her and made her wish she'd gone all the way more than once.
No matter what, that boy would be someone she would never forget as long as she lived.
This conflict felt like a kind of weakness Yang had never had, very similar to the feeling of envy at seeing Weiss being so honest about her feelings.
While some people could and certainly would judge Weiss as naive for blindly believing in Sasuke like that, just like Ruby and probably Blake did, this girl was proving to be a fighter that most could only dream of being.
"What about you?" For a moment, Yang thought she was hearing things; that her subconscious was questioning her resolve, but she soon came out of her trance to see Blake talking to her. "Still interested in working as a team?"
The sarcasm and the way she smiled could only be seen as a form of retaliation for before when Yang had used those same words to separate this girl and Ruby from Sasuke in order to get the chance to talk to him alone.
Touché. The world turned around, she noticed, and she could respect an irreverent girl like that. "That goes without asking."
While she was worried about Ruby, her little sister was under medical care and resting safely in the infirmary.
Honestly, she didn't need her.
Sasuke and that princess's sister, on the other hand...
"Let's find that bastard and put a little bitch in her place!" Yang had red eyes and flames in her hair for a different reason, her Semblance reflecting a new wave of determination. "But that doesn't make us friends."
If anything, they were more like rivals... not that she would admit anything of the sort.
For now, no one but her and Sasuke needed to know that.
"It was never my intention." Blake already had Weiss and honestly, that was enough under the current circumstances. "Just allies with a mutual interest."
The well-being of the boy who had turned their world upside down.
Before they could leave, however, someone else wanted to join them.
"Room for two more?" Pyrrha did her best to smile as she offered her help alongside Jaune. "I believe that more people on this quest would come in handy."
This would be her way of redeeming herself for having hesitated so far for stupid reasons like insecurity.
Realizing that she was behind in the race for the heart of this god in human form, the conflict with Blake and the General's threat was effective like that.
While the idea of remotely becoming something more to Sasuke had all but disappeared, Pyrrha still wanted to be grateful for what he had done for her and the world, as well as having the chance to become friends with loyal people who apparently didn't care about power and fame, but rather the person behind it.
"I-I know I can't do much, but..." Jaune mustered up the courage to speak, he had never felt so guilty about anything in his life and that was saying a lot. "I want to help too!"
To repay the hand that Sasuke extended to him; the power of his soul that was awakened and for inspiring him to be better!
Because so far, all Jaune had done was help reveal the identity of this incredible person by shouting his name for all to hear.
That made him feel like crap.
He had an obligation to do better!
Weiss had already left without waiting and Yang and Blake had no intention of staying behind, especially when there was no time to do so.
While involving more people could be a problem, all help was welcome.
"Do what you want on your own," Yang wouldn't sugarcoat her words. "Just don't get in the way."
There were already too many things to deal with as it was, she didn't need more weighing on her mind.
"You heard her." Blake agreed and narrowed her eyes as she focused on the supposedly invincible girl. "Don't give me any reason to continue the fight from before."
Because next time she didn't intend to stop.
The threat was clearer than the day and Pyrrha knew better than to take these words lightly, recognizing this girl's strength.
Jaune could only swallow nervously as he took a step back and did his best to ignore the fear he felt just by looking into those amber eyes.
This girl might be one of the most beautiful he had ever seen, but she was also the scariest and that could only be considered a contradiction.
But Jaune supposed that all of Sasuke's girls were like that, proving how incredible he really was.
Jaune had a long way to go to one day remotely be able to compare with this hero.
Without further ado, they all headed in the same direction as Weiss to begin their search outside Beacon now that the guards were gone along with Ironwood.
Watching all this with a critical eye was Ozpin, contemplating what to do next.
While this development wasn't exactly the best-case scenario, it was far from the worst.
"Are you... sure about this, sir?" Glynda managed to ask after a while, even though she knew she had no say in the decision. This...isn't right.
Not only about finding out how little power she really had but about not explaining to Weiss Schnee the events that had possibly taken place above Beacon.
"Maybe they have a better chance of finding him than we do." Ozpin could see through James' half-baked plans. "Let's just hope nothing else bad comes of it."
At times like this, he wished Qrow was there to help.
The powers Ozpin had given him were for situations like this.
Unfortunately, it would be a while before he arrived in Vale and Ozpin would have to make do with what he had at hand.
"Follow them, Glynda." This was the best move he could make at the moment and it would also give this woman time to clear her mind a little. "Do it discreetly and keep me informed."
The restriction imposed didn't apply to the teachers' Scrolls and Ozpin needed to look after his students as well as keep an eye on James.
This was one of those nights when hot chocolate would have to be replaced by coffee because sleep was about to become a distant memory.
As for Glynda, this was an order she would gladly accept.
The chance to get away, even for a moment, was what she wanted most.
"Very well, sir." She nodded and wasted no time in leaving before Ozpin changed his mind. Let's hope nothing bad comes from this.
For the world could only take so much chaos.
Yeah, I know. You guys want to see the fight, but this is the writing style that I have been following so far and I can't change it. I need to focus on the other characters.
Anyway, that's all for now, and if you want to read more, and support me, take a look at my P t r & on (slash) Bertoti.
Also, don't forget to Review and I'll see you all on the next one by the end of the month.
Until then.