Me?
Mint pointed at herself, soundlessly asking for clarification, and getting an eye roll from Weiss.
"Who else would I be referring to?" A pair of eyes swept towards Mercury, who sat blankly on the right dicking around on his scroll. The young killer in disguise noticed nothing going on, with Weiss in turn taking that as her proof. "He's not even listening."
She got her there; Merc, while the more tolerable of the duo, barely paid any attention as is, let alone when questions from people he didn't really care about flopped out of the sea and towards his little patch of sand. Mint supposed that was part of his cover and charm; the ditzy bad boy who didn't follow the rules and radiated coolness. Of course, there wasn't much "cool" to him when he actively went out of his way to act like a total weirdo - usually to appease Emerald and her cover, like the time he wore socks on his hand to present a level of childishness.
Ironically, that boyish immaturity earned him a layer of perceived innocence; something Emerald lost on the daily due to her habit of trying way too hard to seem normal.
"Look at that." Emerald elbowed her, smirking with a sassy coo. "You've got her thinking you're one of the upper class types~"
"Yes..." Weiss fought hard not to twitch, but she did - just a little though. Emerald, as usual, caught none of this, openly content and believing her actions not at all creepy. Then again, street rats rarely knew what the high life really entailed; Neo sure as heck hadn't known until Roman took pity on her orphan fanny. "Well, in any case, what do you think?"
But Weiss, despite being a spoiled bitch at heart who'd only just learned how to 'human,' showed off her upbringing with an air of practiced posh pandering. Mint, however, saw through the guise of professionalism, knowing Weiss spoke genuinely about wanting her help with decorating for the dance. In the woman's own words, her chosen aesthetic would coincide wonderfully with the Atlas styled sanitizing of the upper echelon.
If it gave her the excuse to slip spider stickers underneath the cups by the punch bowl, then Mint was all for it. One sign-off from the headmaster later and all was official. Unfortunately, Weiss allowed no such thing, leading to the question of whether accepting the offer had been worth it. This concern lasted all of ten minutes, before Weiss and Yang popped up before her.
Having chosen to pout outside of the auditorium where the chosen event would be hosted, Mint had to look up to see the... strangely knowing looks on their faces. Something about Yang's wide grin, and Weiss's curt but cheeky smile had her a little more willing to listen, as opposed to turning away like she had many times before.
"Hey there," Yang opened with, outright yelling "I've got a secret~" without actually spelling it out. "Why don't you come inside for once? We need you to check if all is good."
Frowning and scrunching her brows, Mint chose then to look away, huffing and puffing up her chest. She spent the few days showing up at best - since Weiss denied her innocent plot - and she wasn't going to change her mind now. She could hear Weiss sighing, but it wasn't the usual aghast droning. Instead, the unnaturally playful noise screeched past her rusted exterior, fairly out of practice for the one usually up everyone's asses over the smallest details.
"Don't be like that." That warmth and knowing; yep, something was definitely wrong with Weiss. Still, Mint wouldn't budge, until Weiss shocked her by taking hold of her hand. "Look, we can do this the easy way, or I can have Yang throw you over her shoulder, so what will it be?"
Being chucked into the arms of a buxom blonde wouldn't be a bad way to go; the delicious backside to fill her vision while bent over would do wonders to improve her mood - granted, Yang was two or three years younger than her, but Neo could broaden her horizons from MILFs and DILFs for something a slice more... conventional.
Roman called it mommy issues, but Mint considered it class, because she didn't have a mom; just a bitch who earned her slow and fiery death. Hopefully she could add a second bitch to that list; more than ready to savor the irony should things roll out that way.
Turns out, being potato-sacked wasn't so uncomfortable; again, Yang's buns may have helped ease the sharpness. Sadly, it didn't last forever, and the butterflies of perversion Mint so wanted to exploit were rudely kicked to the wayside when she was planted back on the ground, spun around, and stared in awe at the sight now in front of her.
Sure, she couldn't be a little goblin and spook unwary promsters, but she did enjoy the haunting mixture Weiss mashed into the flirtatiously fancy shell. The Atlas shone brightly, but within it sat an almost parody of Beacon, Halloween tinted and even sporting a layer of grotesque green burning into the ashy streamers.
"It's not perfect," Weiss began, a cocky smirk in place as she spoke. "But we've managed to convince the headmaster to allow a… let's say monstrous theme to the requested dress code."
"Or," Yang jumped in, devious as always to steal the limelight. "In other words: mamma's gonna break in the undead baddie she truly is~"
"You will dress family friendly or not at all," Weiss quickly interjected, sighing when Yang seemingly ignored her in favor of dancing amongst daydreams. Shaking her head, she returned focus to Mint, who honestly wanted to pat the taller girl's head; the dance, it seems, wouldn't be total crap. "But anyway, Yang's got the right idea. While not strictly required, everyone will be encouraged to partake in the somewhat out-of-season Halloween spirit." Following this, Weiss appeared a bit bashful. "Honestly, I'm surprised our idea was even considered, but I'm thinking the staff and him have been wanting to spice up the dance for a while now; our request might have been just the convenient excuse they were waiting for."
Convenience was nice, but Mint didn't really care what hoops they may or may not have jumped through. She expected this level of kindness from Ruby, but it was looking like some of that rubbed off on the rest of the team. Simple theming or not, she could still drum up some ideas for taking the piss out of everyone, especially her own team who, oddly enough, spent most of their time in the cafeteria these days.
Heck, Cinder was acting outright bizarre; not at all making mention of dark plans for the school and whatnot. This, as one might expect, left Mint wondering what was up with her "boss."
.
.
"There's too many," Cinder whispered softly to Emerald, who followed her with a mocking expression of boredom back to their chosen lunch area.
"Were we expecting anything less? This is Atlas, after all; they love showing off." Maybe so, but not to this extent.
"Then why are all of them here in Beacon?" Unfortunately, she had to drop the topic as they seated themselves at their spot. Lunch had been held outside today, due solely to the excess of soldiers patrolling the cafeteria. While not the only ones eating in the park, Cinder felt as though extra squads and duos were routing their patrols through the park solely to pass them by.
Atlas's arrival should have facilitated multiple "cock-waving shows" down in Vale; they so enjoyed prancing around their newest technological advancements. But in contrast, the city had few genuine troops; the scarce battalion here and there to show they weren't entirely focused on Beacon. Some news sites and outlets even speculated that Atlas was up to something shady in the school, relating it to the coming tournament between kingdoms showing off their students' skills and progress.
All in all, it didn't fit James Ironwood at all, which clued her into the fact that this decision must have been facilitated by someone else. And there was only one man on the planet who could overrule the general's decisions: Headmaster Ozpin, or Ozma, as Salem occasionally fell into.
"Hey Merc," Emerald began, twisting an almost disappointed look over his tray beside him on the small blanket, pointing out blatantly the lack of any progress. "Are you planning on eating today? We got practice later, you know."
"Relax..." he droned, continuing to play with his scroll while seated like a preschooler - legs crossed and wiggling every now and then. "I'll get to it. Besides, word has it the new cheer squad is peeping in on visitors like us, meaning I gotta show off our stuff."
So, even the arena isn't free from onlookers. The extensiveness of the Atlesian guard... Ozpin was serious, it seemed. Question was: why? What sparked this sudden level of extreme security? The obvious guess had something to do with Neo, because Cinder was fairly certain they hadn't-
Realization slapped her upside the face, choking her even as she fought off every urge to scream.
Damnit Roman! Unintentional perhaps, but the prodding of one Qrow Branwen - the wizard's personal dog - came rearing its ugly head. Some if that may have been her own fault, but what mattered was the fact Qrow knew of her involvement with Roman to some degree thanks to their dinner meeting some time back, where she hammered home how he needed to keep Neo on a leash. Her involvement with Roman, which in turn linked her to the White Fang.
All of a sudden, after the Fang's assault on the city itself, the encroaching Atlesian Army had taken more interest in Beacon; a place she could reasonably be seen within.
But when had Qrow spotted her here? Or, perhaps Ozpin had lent him a list of the visiting students, and he'd picked her out there. Either way, it became clear this swell of insects was brought on by her inclusion. Were they here to take her in? No, no that couldn't be right. If they were, then James would have ordered it so...
Actually...
"I'm not sure," Cinder coated her throat with a raspy chill. "I'm not feeling so great. Mind if I stay behind today?"
This got her weird looks from the both of them, and even a second glance from a passing soldier who unknowingly just confirmed all of her suspicions. Sharing a look, her two "teammates" agreed, with Mercury voicing it.
"Uh, sure."
And off she went, carrying no shortness of masked fury. Atlas knew by Qrow that she was linked with he White Fang, that could not be attested, but the thing was... They didn't have any proof. Yes, proof, the one buckle in every court case - both the saving grace and bane of corrupt lawmen everywhere. Qrow may have taken advantage of her slip-up, but he had only word of mouth to wield; and, if luck stood beside her, his witness itself had been during less than legal ventures, damning him if he ever spoke up.
You may have gotten a peek underneath, Cinder mused internally, shutting their shared room door behind her as she flopped herself on the bed for the evening; ready to commit to the bit for a few days while playing around with ways to circumvent this intriguing change of the status quo. But at the end of the night, I am the one who chooses to impart either sugar, or salt.
Perhaps she might make use of "Mint's" connection to Ozpin's favored Team RWBY?
.
.
"Hello there!"
Ruby almost jumped... but not really; forgo any auditory hallucinations of 'eek!' and whatnot. Flicking her eyes - and totally not her baby, Crescent Rose - up, her heartbeat returned to manageable levels when she spied Penny waving happily.
"Oh! It's just you."
"Hmm?" Penny blinked, smiling after. "Yes, I am myself."
I really have to get around to teaching you about social cues. Despite any hiccups, Penny was, as always, a sight for sore eyes. Not that she'd been in any particularly bad places lately - besides worrying for Mint- err, Neo; although really, they were interchangeable depending on context.
"Sorry." Ruby shook away her daylight meanderings, kicking off the tree she found herself resting under. "I was kind of daydreaming."
With Weiss, Yang, and even Mint off fixing up the auditorium for the upcoming dance, this left only Blake and her available to do much of anything. Blake, as to be expected, focused more or less on either her reading, or looking - in moderation - into the White Fang's activities, which meant Ruby ended up with far too much time on her hands. On the plus side, she and Jaune had come up with some killer team attacks for the tournament.
"Is something upsetting you?" Penny tilted her head, concerned in her own special way.
"I don't know." A little honesty wouldn't hurt, but being blunt, she wasn't so sure Penny could help her with the trouble surrounding them. While she trusted Penny, the idea of asking for advice when it came to crime wasn't exactly a brilliant call. Even if her non-fleshy gal-pal didn't blab, being a machine meant her creators probably installed some program or another that allowed them to record what she saw or heard.
Maybe they never actively took that data, but with one of her new friends now revealed as a hostage-criminal, Ruby wasn't comfortable going behind her back just because Penny might have an answer. She could deal with her worries on her own.
"Perhaps I may be of assistance?" Penny, stiffly setting her hands atop her hips, spoke at a noticeably elevated volume. "I am adept at problem solving in many scenarios; compatible with even the most personal of issues, such as bodily functions growing teenagers may be experiencing!"
With only a miniscule amount of immeasurable embarrassment, Ruby carefully took her friend by the hand, leading them from the park towards emptier places. She could practically feel the three or so others resting in the park peering into her soul.
"Y-you don't need to worry about that," Ruby quickly addressed as to avoid her friend bringing it up over the walk around back. While the park, and other key sights within Beacon were crowded by both students and staff alike - alongside a strangely large number of Atlas Soldiers, which Weiss had been keen to point out since their arrival - the backside overlooking the Emerald Forest ended up abandoned most days.
Tourists weren't allowed anywhere near it; too many accidental launches due to malfunctions in the spring platforms - or so she heard.
"Are you certain?" Penny asked midway through the journey, blaring out afterwards, "I am able to preload remedies for cramps and other symptoms surrounding premenstrual syndrome within 0.000-"
Ruby slapped a hand over Penny's mouth, speeding up past more students who now began to murmur as she all but zipped past the already thinning crowd.
"I'm certain." She didn't need PMS advice - at least not right now. She needed Penny to stop ruining her reputation in strange and unpredictable ways.
Normal knees, normal knees-! Darn it! And here Ruby thought she'd dropped that habit. Well... At least she wasn't alone in being a bit uncomfortable and unwary of the socially accepted norm. But then again, who from their friend group could even be classified as normal to begin with? Jaune was a friendly guy, sure, but he was also goofy; she liked it, but it wasn't exactly common with other students here. Weiss was professional and posh, but not a great representation of the ordinary people; she was sure her Uncle Qrow had a word for that... something about being a baby with spoons. Blake acted normal. No, wait; ex terrorist. How about Yang? Her beloved sister often got into fights at every club she came across. And don't even get her started on Neo.
Maybe normal was overrated.
Shaking her head, Ruby focused again when they finally reached the cliffside. Distracting herself with superficial stuff like normalcy wouldn't solve her problem. The pair stood in silence for a while, with Ruby doing her best to come up with something, and Penny being a perfectly patient friend while waiting for her to speak.
"Um... Penny?"
"Yes, friend?"
"If you wanted to help someone, but they weren't exactly a good person - b-but you know they could totally be one, and that they're just in a bad place with a bad crowd - how would you do it?"
"Helping a bad person..." Penny droned, her expression free of all emotion. Ruby knew Penny well enough to know that her looks were fairly deceiving. An ordinary person might think the question too obvious, but Penny was - and hopefully the girl would forgive her for thinking so if she ever found out - a little, maybe just a touch, dense. The whole 'unfamiliar with social cues' thing covered more than just situational appropriateness, like what is and isn't okay to say in public. "That would depend on what they need help with."
"Let's say, they wanted to get away from the bad people making them do bad things. How would someone help that person?"
"They could leave these bad people you speak of." Penny's innocent, unassumingly cute and cheerful grin at least made the mental swat of the frying pan against her face sufferable. Sighing internally, and so badly wanting to cuddle the truly trying girl, Ruby rephrased her query.
"Let's assume they can't just walk away. If they were having their lives or loved ones threatened, what would a helpful person do?"
Back to the distant, calculating stare of internal processing. Ruby slowly started worrying the longer Penny remained stationary; still to a ridiculous degree. Just when she'd been about to prod, her friend activated again.
"During that event, it is crucial to involve the aid of a trusted authority figure; someone known to be incorrupt. Cases involving dangerous individuals, and perhaps even criminal figures, require the resources and support of trained professionals to ensure anyone potentially innocent, or in a hostage situation, is able to escape without harm."
Oh Penny... She couldn't win; not when Penny was reading almost word-for-word from probably legal documents and safety guidelines - sadly, they usually didn't cover helping forced killers escape their captors.
"Never mind."
One minute of pause and reflection had Penny speaking up one final time.
"Friend Ruby, may I ask you a question of my own?"
Peeking with a curled brow, Ruby muttered, "Shoot."
"Are these questions what others often call a 'double entendre?'"
"Huh?" Ruby narrowed her eyes, somewhat stumped. She heard about those before, but couldn't quite recall what they were. Thankfully, Penny had her back. "Do these questions have secondary meanings?" Penny faced her fully, putting on an expression of mild worry; or, in Penny's case, a standard level of concern. "You have never asked such strange questions before, and I am curious as to whether these may be referring to a problem you are currently facing."
Ultimately, she relented; it seemed Penny was learning to be human faster than before.
"Yeah..." Taking a breath, Ruby told without telling. "I have a friend who's stuck with some pretty bad people. They're making her do bad things, and while it seems like a no-brainer just to get help, I don't want anyone to pin the really bad stuff she's forced into on her entirely; the ones holding her hostage are responsible for all of it, not her."
"Oh..." Penny blinked. "I see. You are worried the law will be unfair due to technical loopholes left in place for the sake of facilitating competition amongst legal circles while wearing the illusion of safety. You believe this friend of yours will be immorally incarcerated due to potential bribery and bias should a court of law try them for any crimes they were facilitated into on the grounds such trials are attended and influenced by those in the position of blackmailing her."
It was Ruby's turn to blink, at which point Penny capped it all off, thankfully ending the unintelligible mess she'd just babbled.
"That is most worrisome."
"Uh... yeah, it is."
Right as Ruby considered dropping the topic to distract herself with lighter questions on how Penny was feeling in Beacon, the girl popped back into things.
"If this is an issue you are dealing with, then maybe I might be of more personal assistance." Ruby didn't get a chance to even process that before Penny was striking a pose. "The classical saying goes, "a friend of yours is a friend of mine." Therefore, your friend who is facing their dilemma is also my friend, and friends are expected to care for and help friends. Due to this, it is my pleasure to offer my services in helping your friend escape from danger!"
"Penny?" Amazingly, Ruby caught enough of that to understand the basic gist. "Are... are you really okay with helping? My... um... My friend isn't exactly all that upstanding a person."
"Most certainly!" Never once did Penny's overt determination take a hit. "She is your friend, and you are a good person. A good person wouldn't choose to be friends with a truly bad person, meaning they cannot be entirely bad. I trust you, and so I am willing to trust them. I will do my best to help them escape in any way!"
Ruby almost wanted to cry; not literally, but she was touched. It was all but directly stated that her friend in need was a criminal, and yet Penny still decided she wanted to help... all because she trusted her.
"Trust me" Neo's reply lacked any real hope, and Ruby could tell she was just looking out for her. But what Neo didn't understand was that Ruby Rose didn't roll that way. If you needed help, she would help you. If you wanted company, she would stick by your side... depending on a few things, but she'd go if she could! And so, when you were being bullied by bad guys, Ruby wasn't going to sit around and let them walk all over you.
"Okay." For once, her own lips thirsted towards a grin; maybe a little too quickly, but whatever. "If you're promising to help, then I know we can do it!"
"I am eligible to assist!"
Maybe Neo believed they had no hope before, but back then - a few days ago at best - they didn't have an awesome robot girl with super strength and could shoot swords standing at their side. With Penny's help the villains didn't stand a chance. Now it only came down to convincing Neo that Penny could make a difference, and it was here Ruby festered a final, albeit critical realization.
How am I going to do that?
Author's note
...
Alright, so things are a little goofy in this chapter - not going to lie, the ending section came out a bit rougher than expected, but it still does the job.
Neo's with Yang and Weiss on décor duty for the dance, unknowingly setting a Halloween theme due to the desire for pranks; Ozpin approved, apparently. Cinder's got a plot in mind due to the staggering increase in artillery present within the school; I wonder how this one will go? And, on top of that, Penny makes her first - I believe - appearance in this story, and is seemingly a part of the Ruby and Neo squad... Once they can get the go-ahead from Neo.
Not too thrilling, but at least entertaining.
Stay tuned for more.
Peace~