Weiss sat alone in the interrogation room, doing her best not to think about the fact that she'd just watched three people die. A few officers came in while she waited, trying to get more information out of her, but all she told them was that she'd escaped from Roman Torchwick's capture and how to find the parking garage she'd last seen him in. She refused to answer any more questions until she spoke with the mayor or the man named Qrow who worked for him.
She was in there for about forty minutes before a familiar face entered the room. It belonged to neither Mayor Ozpin or Qrow, but to Winter. Weiss stood just in time for her older sister to pull her into a suffocating hug. The emotions she'd been bottling up since first getting in Torchwick's car broke free, and she buried her face in Winter's shoulder. A single sob escaped her, but no tears fell.
After too short a time, Winter tried to pull away only for Weiss to cling on tighter. For the first time in days, she felt safe. That feeling enveloped her like a warm blanket and all she never leave it. She was brought back to the day her grandfather died, old enough to comprehend the loss but too young to cope with it. She remembered crying herself to sleep in Winter's arms, and waking up curled up in bed next to her.
But she wasn't a child anymore. After a couple of minutes, she was able to bring herself to let go. She looked up into her sister's eyes to see disapproval staring back at her, suppressed only by the care and concern Winter had for her. The guilt that had been clawing at Weiss returned in full force and she had to look away.
"Winter, I—" she began.
"We will speak elsewhere," Winter said. "Let's go."
"Go where?"
She didn't answer her. She turned around and took one step before pausing to say something else, her voice softer than before. "I'm glad to see you safe."
"I know," Weiss said.
Winter led the way out of the police station. Outside, a different car was parked where Weiss had left the one she'd stolen. Winter opened the back door for her, then walked around to get in on the other side. As Weiss buckled her seatbelt, she saw a familiar pair of pale red eyes looking back at her through the rear-view mirror.
"How's Ruby?" she asked.
"Recovering," Qrow said. "But she's been more stressed about you than her arm."
"Oh," said Weiss. "Does she know that I—?"
"She will."
"I want to see her."
"That can wait until after we talk to Oz."
The conversation ended there. As soon as Winter had settled in, he switched gears and they set off. The drive proceeded in silence. Weiss leaned her head against the window and watched the city lights of nighttime Vale pass by. The scent of air freshener blew over her, making her feel at ease—it was a stark contrast to the ever-dusty air of the parking garage.
Again, she was reminded of the past—this time, of the day of her grandfather's funeral. She and Winter had been in the same positions with Whitley between them in his booster seat. It'd been their mother and personal driver in the front—their father had been "too busy" to attend. She recalled feeling a strange sense of foreboding. The worst had already happened, yet there was something else looming nearer. Later that day, her mother had her first breakdown, which had been the most terrifying thing Weiss had ever witnessed at the time.
She hoped the rest of the night would turn out nothing like that day.
Once they arrived at city hall, it was a short walk through the empty halls to the elevator. At the top floor, Qrow led the way to the mayor's office and invited himself in without knocking. Inside was the man himself as well as a boy, who looked around high school age, maybe older. He had untidy brown hair, freckled cheeks, and a skin tone that suggested he spent a lot of time in the sun.
"I brought her," Qrow announced as he stepped through the doorway.
Ozpin turned away from the window he'd been staring out of, and the boy looked up at them from a document on the table. He had an uncertain but calm demeanor, with hazel eyes that revealed a slight wisdom beyond his age.
"Oscar," said Ozpin, "please excuse us."
The boy stared for a few moments longer before obeying. "Right. I'll be outside." He grabbed his bag and left.
"I know you've been working long hours lately," Qrow said once the door was closed, "but you didn't have to make the kid stay late with you."
"I asked him to go home hours ago." Ozpin took a seat behind his desk and set his mug down on a coaster. "He insisted on staying."
Qrow joined him on that side of the room and leaned against the far wall. He reached toward his inner coat pocket for a moment before stopping, clenching his fist, and crossing his arms over his chest.
"I'm delighted to see you in good health, Miss Schnee," Ozpin said to Weiss. "Please. Have a seat."
Weiss did so, but her sister chose to remain standing. Everyone in the room was looking at her—if she didn't have plenty of experience being the center of attention, she'd feel nervous.
"If you would," said Ozpin, "we'd like for you to enlighten us to the events surrounding your disappearance."
Weiss had been prepared for this. She recounted everything that had happened since walking out of the hospital—where she'd gone, what she learned, and what she'd done. It was a much shorter story than the one she'd relayed to Qrow prior to her abduction, but no less significant. When she finished, Ozpin stood and turned his back to her so he could train a thoughtful gaze over his city once again.
"Mind control, telekinesis, and semblance blocking," Qrow said. "Hmm."
"Do you know of any such cleri gemma natura?" Winter asked.
A small smile crossed Weiss's lips. Only her sister would use the scientific term for "paragon" in casual conversation. It was so great to see her again, even though she was dreading the lengthy lecture Winter likely had in store for her.
"No," said Qrow. "Nothing rumored. Oz?"
"Nothing registered either, I'm afraid," said Ozpin. "Not within city limits, at the very least. I'll speak with Director Cordovin to determine whether the CAB knows anything."
"We should get the girl in front of a sketch artist in the meantime."
"I have a name," Weiss said.
"That can wait, Qrow," Winter said, uttering his name with an edge to her tone. "Weiss has just been through a traumatic ordeal and you're not even giving her a second to cope with it."
"I'm sorry if I care more about the fate of my city than your little sister's feelings," said Qrow.
Winter took a threatening step forward but didn't get a chance to say anything else.
"That's enough," Ozpin said, turning around to face the room. "We can discuss this later. There are more pressing matters at hand." He looked at Weiss. "Did Torchwick ever mention the name of the woman he works for?"
Weiss shook her head. "He promised he would after I did what he wanted, but we didn't get the chance."
"That's most unfortunate. These are ill tidings."
"Not entirely," Weiss said. "I mean, Torchwick doesn't want to work for her. Now that her leverage is gone, he'll probably leave Vale alone for good."
"That's if he even survived his encounter with these mystery paragons," said Qrow.
"If? Don't you know what happened yet? Shouldn't the police already be on the scene?"
"They are, but I've not heard back yet. And don't go thinking tonight was some sort of victory. If Torchwick's not dead, then he's still been let off his leash. Best case scenario, he flees the country like he claims to want to. Not that it'll make much of a difference. By the sounds of it, he's little more than a pawn in something far bigger and more dangerous than him—just the poster boy villain to draw the public's attention while the real threats can keep going about their business unnoticed."
"In a game of chess," said Ozpin, "a single pawn can often spell the difference between victory and defeat. Unfortunately, we cannot see enough of the board at the moment to know the severity of our adversary's blunder."
"Criminals don't play by the rules," said Winter. "From where I'm standing, it looks like they have two queens and have been moving their pieces around before you even thought to make an opening."
"And from where I'm standing, I think you should shut up with these goddamned metaphors," said Qrow. "Do they even still have a reason to be here?"
Winter growled.
Ozpin looked at Weiss. "Is there anything else you've failed to mention?"
She considered it, but she couldn't think of anything.
"Then I'll let you both be on your way. I'm sure you're eager to get some rest and enjoy a hot meal after what you've been through."
"Right," Weiss said half-heartedly as she stood. If she was being honest with herself, the only thing she was eager for was to see Ruby.
"The General will be updated on the situation with due haste," Winter told Ozpin.
"You needn't bother," he said. "I'll inform him myself."
"All the same. Come, Weiss."
"Miss Schnee," Ozpin said as they started to leave. Both turned around, but his eyes were on Weiss. "I can understand why you made some of the decisions you did, but—"
"I'm glad someone can," Weiss muttered.
"—in the future," he continued as if there had been no interruption, "I beg you not to leave it until the last minute to warn me of a potential terrorist attack in my city. The Vytal Festival is nine days away—people are coming from all over the world. A great deal of trouble could have been saved had you, Miss Rose, or Jaune Arc decided to come to us sooner."
Weiss bowed her head in shame. "I'm sorry."
"I'm not asking for your apology. I just want you to know that you should never feel afraid to seek help when you feel your life or the lives of others are in danger."
She didn't know how to respond to that, so she just gave him a meek nod.
The pair of sisters left together, passing the boy named Oscar on the way out. Except for Winter taking out her scroll to order a cab, they didn't say anything until they were outside. Weiss was on edge the entire time, waiting for the inevitable explosion.
But it never came. Instead of the loud, stern reprimand Weiss had braced herself for, all Winter said when she finally spoke was a calm, "Why?"
"What?" Weiss said, at last bringing herself to meet her eyes. They stood right at City Hall's entrance now, no one nearby except for the cars passing through the ever-active streets of Vale.
"When last we saw each other, I told you to be more careful. So, I want to know why you've gotten yourself entangled in something of this caliber."
Weiss looked away. "I don't know."
"That isn't good enough."
"I don't know what you want me to say! I was stupid and I made many, many mistakes and it nearly got me killed. Is that what you want to hear?"
"You know it isn't."
Weiss turned her back on her. "Well, I don't know, then."
"Quit saying that! We both know it's a false statement."
"You seem to know a lot more than I do, so why am I the one being interrogated?"
"I'm just trying to understand the reasoning behind your imbecilic decision-making. Were you trying to prove something?"
"Prove what? And to whom?"
"To yourself—that you're not him."
Weiss opened her mouth, but no words came out. Winter had struck a chord, and they both knew it.
"Is that what this has all been about?" Winter said. "You moved away from home, dyed your hair, and faded into anonymity all to distance yourself from our family name, and now you're jumping at every reckless opportunity to prove that you're a better person than him?"
"Yes," Weiss whispered. She felt a weight lift off her heart at the revelation, one that had been there for so long that she'd grown accustomed to it. A wave of self-loathing replaced it—she couldn't believe that such a simple answer had eluded her all this time.
"I beg your pardon?" said Winter.
"Yes," Weiss enunciated.
When Winter finally broke the silence that followed, her tone was almost gentle. "You've always allowed Father to hold too much power over your life. I'm saddened to see that his incarceration hasn't changed that."
Weiss said nothing.
"You can't hold yourself accountable for his crimes. No one blames you for what he's done."
"Oh, really?" Weiss scoffed. She turned around and jabbed a finger at the scar over her left eye, an action that spoke louder than words.
A pained expression passed over Winter's face and for once, she didn't immediately know how to respond. It took her many seconds to open her mouth again, but whatever she was going to say was interrupted by a short blast of a car horn—their cab had arrived. Weiss took a moment to carefully examine the driver before getting into the back seat, not giving the discussion a chance to continue.
While Winter was still paying their fare, Weiss was already halfway up the path to Taiyang Xiao Long's house. She reached the door, rang the bell, and waited. Several seconds later, Ruby's father answered with a look of surprise on his face.
"Hello, Mr. Xiao Long," said Weiss. "I'm here to see Ruby."
"Um, y-yeah, of course." He stepped aside and held the door open for her. "I, uh, wasn't aware you'd been found. I'm glad, obviously. Ruby's been out of her mind for days."
Weiss entered and took a brief look around. It was an ordinary home with pictures hung up everywhere—mostly of Ruby, Yang, and Summer, but a handful showed a younger Taiyang posing in front of various famous landmarks. Any other time Weiss might have been more interested in taking it all in, but right now she only cared about one thing.
"Winter Schnee," Winter introduced behind her, "Weiss's elder sister."
"You can call me Tai," said Taiyang. When he saw Weiss about to ask a question, he answered it preemptively. "Upstairs—her door should be open."
Weiss nodded her thanks and then climbed the steps two at a time. There were three doors in the upper hallway, one half-ajar with the sound of a television coming from it. She pushed it the rest of the way open to find a modestly decorated guest room on the other side. An episode of what Weiss recognized to be Warriors of Grimm played on a wall-mounted flat-screen. Ruby sat at a desk with her back to the room, engrossed in a laptop while her left hand worked with an elastic hand exerciser.
"Ruby," Weiss said.
The girl jumped, then whirled around so fast it could've given her whiplash. She stared, wide-eyed, for a moment before running forward and throwing herself at Weiss, who nearly fell over from the impact.
"Careful!" Weiss protested, but then she was hit with a strong waft of that flowery scent that had grown faint on the sweater she wore, and a sense of peace fell over her. She wrapped her arms around Ruby, who squeezed tighter.
"I'm so glad you're okay," Ruby muttered, her voice wavering. "I . . . I thought he killed you."
"I thought he was going to," Weiss said.
"What happened? What did he want? How did you get away?"
"If you let me go so I can breathe, I'll tell you," Weiss struggled to get out. Ruby was a lot stronger than she looked.
"Not yet," the girl said, but her hold slackened a bit. Weiss couldn't help smiling into her shoulder.
It should have made Weiss uncomfortable. This was a level of intimacy she had never grown accustomed to—a closeness she'd never shared with anyone who wasn't only an occasional presence in her life. Yet, with Ruby, it felt natural. She felt safe—as safe in Ruby's arms as she did in her sister's, and that fact had snuck up on her.
"Ruby," Weiss said after a time.
"No," the girl whined.
"Ruby."
Ruby sighed and let go. She met Weiss's eyes for a moment before looking away, for some reason acting suddenly sheepish. She raised her left hand to scratch her neck then stopped, glared at it, and dropped it to her side in an awkward fist, the entire limb quivering all the while.
That was Weiss's fault.
"Ruby," Weiss whispered, sounding like a broken record. She didn't know what else to say.
"It's nothing," the girl lied. "Now tell me what happened."
Weiss was hesitant, but had to agree that discussing Ruby's injury took a lower priority. So once again, she detailed her recent "adventure".
"And he never hurt you?" Ruby said.
"He threatened to—multiple times," Weiss said, "but no."
"I'm glad. About the 'no', part—not the threatening."
Weiss rolled her eyes.
"So . . . mind control. Telekinesis. Semblance blocking. Why do the bad guys get all the coolest semblances?"
"You think the ability to enslave people is cool?"
"Well, I mean . . . bad things can still be cool. Like bombs—it's fun to watch them explode, but like out in the middle of nowhere where no one gets hurt. But I mainly meant the other two. If that guy was on our side, we could've avoided this entire thing!"
"Possibly. But things just got a lot scarier, Ruby. Any number of people could be under this woman's control—politicians, police officers, military officials. She's been biding her time for at least two years. Whatever she's planning, it's going to be big."
"But she can only control one person at a time though, right?"
"What? Why would you assume that?"
"She only used her semblance on Neo. Wouldn't it be safer to use it on both her and Torchwick if she could do multiple people at once?"
Weiss hadn't thought of that. She often underestimated her friend's intelligence—a habit she needed to break.
"Perhaps she didn't see the need to. It could be that there's more of a strain the more people she controls."
"I guess. Either way, we don't have to worry about her controlling the entire world or anything."
"That hardly makes her any less dangerous."
"You never look on the bright side. Torchwick is gone! You saved Vale from him. I just wish he'd told you her name, though."
"I released him upon another part of the world, more like. I did miss your endless optimism, though."
"And I don't know what I would've done without your soul-crushing pessimism."
Weiss pretended to be offended while Ruby stuck her tongue out. Then they shared a brief smile before a sad expression took over Ruby's face.
"I mean it, though," she said. "I was really, really terrified that I'd never see you again. I don't know what I would've done if he'd—"
"Stop," Weiss said. "There's no use thinking about that because it didn't happen. I'm here, I'm alive, I'm hale. Everything's fine."
"It's not fine. Everything you just went through was because of me. And if something worse had happened, then that would've been my fault too. I don't think I ever could've forgiven myself for that."
"You never forced me to do anything. I was perfectly compliant in your admittedly reckless schemes. I knew what I was getting into, and I did it anyway, and that is not something you can take credit for. I'm equally to blame."
"But they were still my schemes, and—"
"Just forget about it, Ruby. More than anything, I just want to be able to put all of this behind us. Please."
Forgetting obviously wasn't easy for Ruby. "Right. It's just . . . Never mind. So, how are you doing? Are you hungry or tired or anything? Dad would be happy to let you stay here."
"Thank you. I'm not really sure where else I'd go. And I wouldn't say no to a shower right about now."
Ruby gave her a couple of spare towels and a set of pajamas to change into and directed her to the bathroom across the hall. She was about to ask Ruby to tell Winter that she'd be sleeping over, but then she remembered that her sister would probably be heading straight back to Atlas, so she went downstairs to say goodbye herself.
"—sometimes feel like punching the guy in the face, too, but I can't believe you actually did it!" Taiyang was saying. "I'm a tad jealous, if I'm being honest. Don't get me wrong—he gets on my nerves from time to time, but he's still a good dude. Great uncle, too, but if either of the girls try and tell you he's cooler than me they're wrong."
"I . . . won't be arguing with you on that," Winter said just before noticing Weiss's appearance in the kitchen and losing interest in the conversation, if she'd even had any in the first place. She met Weiss with an analyzing gaze. "Your disposition seems to have improved."
"I suppose," Weiss said, a bit confused by the curious look on her face.
Whatever Winter was thinking, she kept it to herself. "Are you ready to leave, then?"
"Actually, Ruby said I could stay here—if that's alright with you, Mr. Xiao Long."
"Oh! Well, yeah—more than." Taiyang smiled. "And you can call me Tai."
"Are you certain?" said Winter. "I can upgrade my hotel room to one with a second bed."
"You're staying in Vale?" said Weiss.
"For two days longer, yes. The General has a task for me while I am here."
"What is it?"
"That's confidential."
"Oh. Of course. Well, you don't have to go through the trouble. I'm happy sleeping here."
Winter seemed hesitant.
"I'll be fine," Weiss assured her. "Nothing's going to happen to me here. You don't need to protect me."
She was silent a few more moments, then ultimately gave in. "If that is your choice."
With another hug and assurances they'd speak again tomorrow, Winter left.
Weiss thanked Taiyang for letting her stay and then returned upstairs to take her shower. She sighed as the cool water washed over her. She was actually able to enjoy this. The time limit and the armed criminal waiting on the other side of the door ruined the ones Torchwick had allowed her.
After taking her time, Weiss left the bathroom feeling refreshed. Ruby was already waiting in the hall for her, likely having heard the water stop running, and led her to the last room on the upper floor.
"This was Yang's old room," Ruby said. "After Mom died, Yang insisted on me not living alone in a dorm anymore, so we moved in together halfway between her precinct and Beacon and Dad turned both our rooms into guest rooms. It's still mostly us who uses them, though, since we like to come by some weekends."
It looked nearly identical to the one Ruby was staying in, but it was slightly bigger.
"I love it," Weiss said.
Ruby stared at her. "That's a strong reaction."
"I've spent the last several nights sleeping in the remnants of an RV, and before that a month in an underground bunker. I'm eager to get back to some normalcy."
"Oh, right. I guess I would be, too."
Weiss placed her neatly folded old clothes on a chair and extracted the hoodie from the bottom of the pile. She turned around to give it back to Ruby, but found her friend lingering by the door, seeming nervous for some reason.
"What's up?" slipped out of Weiss's mouth without her even thinking. She was spending too much time around that girl. It was a good thing Winter wasn't still there to hear her say such an unseemly colloquialism.
"I was just thinking," said Ruby.
"About what?"
Ruby hesitated. "You."
Weiss had no idea what to make of that. Ruby shut the door and took a seat on the edge of the bed, patting the space to her right. Weiss, confused, sat next to her.
"I really thought I'd never see you again," Ruby said.
Weiss sighed. "This again? I thought we'd already finished this discussion."
"No! It's not that. I just couldn't stop thinking about if you died and . . . and if I'd never gotten to tell you . . ." Ruby bit her lip then changed course entirely. "I haven't slept since I woke up after that night. Even before that, most nights I don't want to sleep. It's always a coin flip whether I'll have nightmares or good dreams, and more often than not it seems to land on the first.
"And you know what the worst part is? When I do choose to sleep, it's because I want the nightmares. They're always the same. I see my mom in a dark room . . . being murdered by a woman with a clouded face. But I still get to see her, and it feels more real than any picture or any video of her."
Weiss opened her mouth, but Ruby didn't give her a chance to speak.
"And I know it's not healthy and I know you want me to talk to you about this sort of stuff," she said, "but that's not the point. Since that night, it's not her I'm thinking about when I look at a bed. I just hear his voice in my head and know if I Blink enough to feel tired, I'll have to live through it again."
"Ruby, I know getting shot is a traumatic experience," Weiss said, "but—"
Ruby was shaking her head. "You don't get it. It's not the getting shot part that's scary. Sure, it hurt and I wouldn't want to do it again, but I would if it meant protecting you. I'd do it a hundred times over."
Taiyang had been right on the mark.
"The most terrifying part of that night was hearing Torchwick tell his men to shoot you," Ruby continued. "I'm not worried about experiencing getting shot again. I'm worried I might not—that I'll shut my eyes, be back in that warehouse, and try to teleport in front of you, but I'll fail . . . and I'll have to see you how I see her."
A knife of guilt slowly pierced deeper and deeper into Weiss's heart as she sat there, listening to how devastating her disappearance had been for Ruby. At the same time, she couldn't help but feel elated to know Ruby cared this much for her, and she also wondered what she'd done to deserve it.
"When I woke up, and you weren't there, and they told me you were missing—it felt exactly the same as when they found Mom's body. Losing you would have been like losing her all over again, because . . ." Ruby's cheeks were red now as she met Weiss's eyes. "I realized that . . . Weiss, I'm—"
The door suddenly opened before she could finish, and the last person Weiss expected to see at that moment stepped into the room.
"Winter?" Weiss stood. "What are you doing here? I thought you left."
"Weiss." Her sister's expression was grim. "I received a call. I never gave you your scroll, so I returned here post haste . . . It's Father."
Weiss's expression tightened. What could he have possibly done from prison? "What about him?"
"There's been an attempt on his life," Winter said. "He's in critical condition."
"You can't go to Atlas!" Ruby said.
"I've made up my mind," Weiss said as she packed her things.
"But the Vytal Festival's in almost a week!"
"I don't care."
"How can you not care? Even if Torchwick wasn't lying, who's to say his boss won't carry through with whatever he has planned?"
"What do you expect me to do about it, exactly? You know how well our last attempt at playing the hero went. We pulled through on blind luck."
"We pulled through because I promised I'd protect you and I did."
Weiss paused and took a moment to look her best friend in the eyes. "I'm grateful for that, Ruby. I'll never be able to even begin repaying you for what you did for me, but that doesn't change the fact that we never should have been in that predicament in the first place."
"I don't want you to repay me. I can't even write my own name anymore, but it's more than worth it because you're still alive. That's why I'm worried. What if whoever tried to kill your father doesn't stop with him?"
Weiss resumed packing, folding her favorite skirt and placing it on top of the others. "Do you really think that thought hasn't crossed my mind as well? Someone has perpetrated an attack against my family, and my father isn't the only family I have in Atlas. My brother and mother are there, too, and I'm not just going to cower away here in Vale while they could be at risk."
"What are you going to do, then? Try and track down whoever's behind this? What happened to being done 'playing the hero'?"
"Of course not! I just need to see them . . . I need to see him."
"I thought you hated your father."
Weiss had always struggled to put a label on how she felt about that man. She hated what he'd done to her mother; she hated how he'd run her grandfather's company; she hated the way he'd raised her and her siblings. But could she really say she hated him? She wasn't sure—she tried not to think about it too much. More than anything, she just felt the pain of not having the kind of father everyone else did.
Weiss zipped up the suitcase, all ready to go for tomorrow. "He's still my father."
Several minutes later, Weiss led the way out of the sleeping quarters with all the possessions she'd had stored inside the safe house packed into two suitcases. She and Ruby passed by the computer on their way to the exit, its many screens still active. One showed the STC warehouse Torchwick had inhabited, now abandoned but closed off with police tape. Another had a large number 'eight' on it, proving how the Vytal Festival really was just around the corner.
"I'll be back before it starts, anyway," Weiss said as she ascended the stairs.
"Then I'm going with you," Ruby decided, using her good hand to take one of Weiss's suitcases for her.
"Excuse me?"
"I've never been to Atlas, and I've always kind of wanted to—it's the capital of Remnant, after all. It'll be nice to see the place you grew up in."
"But what about school and your recovery?"
Ruby shrugged. They were out of the building now, heading toward the sidewalk where they'd continue for a while before hailing a cab, so as not to draw any attention to the inconspicuous little warehouse that hid the Protector of Vale's base of operations.
"I already took my midterms last week," she said. "Nothing too important's going to happen next week, as we get the second half off and then don't come back until after the festival. And it's not like I'll just stop recovering once we're in Atlas. I don't have any more surgeries ahead, so it's just physical therapy, which I can do anywhere."
"Well . . . fine, but are you sure? I really won't be gone all that long."
"I'm sure. It'll be nice to get away for a little bit. And you've been there for me when I needed you, even when I didn't ask. It's time I returned the favor."
Weiss was about to say more, but then she recognized car up ahead which stopped her dead in her tracks. Stunningly white with gold accents, it was parallel parked between a few other ordinary vehicles, only just having come into view as they came nearer to it.
"Oh for fuck's sake!" Weiss said. She'd normally never use such language, but her frustration had just reached its breaking point. Why couldn't he just let her catch just one single break?
The car kicked to life and pulled out onto the road, pulling up beside them. The passenger-side window rolled down and Roman Torchwick looked past Neo at them from the driver's seat. The mute woman smirked and gave a little wave.
"How did you even find us?" Weiss said before he got the chance to make whatever opening remark he had planned.
"I had one of my boys put a chip in your scroll after I picked you up," Torchwick said, "but someone found it and removed it. So, I started feeding you mini tracking devices, and luckily one has still yet to pass through your system."
Weiss was horrified.
"What do you want?" Ruby demanded, taking a step forward and placing herself halfway in front of Weiss.
"Such hostility," said Torchwick. "Look. I'm not here to kidnap you again. Right now, I don't really give a rat's ass about what happens to either of you. A few blocks up that way there's this reputable little jazz club—a nice, public place. Hard to pull anything there. If you want me to keep my end of the deal, you'll meet me there. If you don't show up in thirty minutes, then we'll be on our way out of this awful country, and you can kiss your answers goodbye." He tipped his hat and then drove off without giving them a chance to respond.
It was a short yet thorough debate. They attacked the problem from as many angles as they could.
Neo had lost the fight and was under that woman's control again. Torchwick had decided against retiring and wanted to lure them somewhere Ruby couldn't teleport away from so he could capture them and exploit them for their semblances. He had snipers stationed somewhere and needed to bring them into their line of sight so he could tie off his loose ends. Roman Torchwick, the infamous serial bank robber and mob boss, actually wanted to keep his word and thank Weiss for the service she'd provided him by handing over the information he'd promised.
None of the scenarios seemed all that likely. But after all she'd learned and what she'd seen with her own eyes, Weiss had to believe that the last one was at least plausible. Neo had been under someone's control and Torchwick does care deeply for her—both these things were true. Weiss wouldn't be writing love letters to him any time soon and she still longed to see his face behind bars, but it was proof that some part of that despicable man was still human.
In the end, they both agreed that the rewards outweighed the risks. If he truly had ill intent, walking away right now wouldn't stop him from finding them again. Weiss tried to broach the idea of going in alone, but Ruby wouldn't hear of it—of the two of them, it had actually been her who was more hesitant to go through with this. So together, they hopped in the first cab they saw and rode to the jazz club—but they wouldn't be going in without contingencies.
They pulled up to the building where Torchwick had parked his car. Weiss left her suitcases in the backseat since they'd paid the driver to wait outside with instructions to call the police if they weren't back in half an hour—judging by his lack of an extreme reaction, Weiss guessed it wasn't the first time someone had asked him of something like that. Not only that, but Ruby had set up something of a dead man's switch on her scroll where if she didn't give it her passcode every five minutes, it'd send a message to her uncle with their location and what they'd done. It wasn't ideal, but she couldn't tell him beforehand lest he barge in and try to rescue them before they got the intel they were after.
It was rather busy inside—not surprising for midday on a weekend. Torchwick and Neo sat in a booth in the back, the former wearing a dark trench coat over his usual outfit with his hat angled in a way to cover most of his bright orange hair. This had to be the one point in his life where he didn't want to draw attention to himself.
"See?" he said as they sat down. "I told you they'd show."
Looking mildly annoyed, Neo slipped him some lien which he accepted without comment.
"What happened with those two paragons?" Weiss asked. "How did you survive?"
"I'm good at surviving," said Torchwick. "Always have been. Neo kept them occupied until Thing 1's semblance ran out of time, and then we were gone. She wouldn't kill them, though, because it 'didn't feel right'. Whatever you did to her head seems to have instilled some sort of newfound empathy or whatever."
"You managed to fight them both off without your speed?" Ruby said, impressed.
Neo put her hand on her hip and gave a look that clearly stated she took offense to the idea that she couldn't.
"Who were they?" Weiss said.
"Never needed to know their names," said Torchwick. "I just call them Thing 1 and Thing 2. From what I understand, the guy's some sort of professional assassin and the girl's a random orphan the boss—" he cleared his throat "—my former boss picked up off the street. They're about as close to the top as you can get, as far as henchmen go. You'll rarely see them apart, though, since it's Thing 1's job to train and supervise Thing 2."
"You know all that, but you don't know their names?" said Ruby.
"It's called the art of observation, Red. You hear things, put two and two together, but you can't clue in on a nobody's name—they either tell it to you or they don't."
"Are you telling us that after all of this," Ruby said, "you don't even know the name of the person who killed my mom?"
Torchwick knit his brow. He looked at Neo, but she just shrugged.
"Your boss," Weiss explained. "Or former boss. She murdered Ruby's mother."
You could almost see the light click on in his head. "Ahhh, I see. That explains quite a bit, actually. All your tedious little meddling has been part of some big revenge scheme. I respect that. Still not one hundred percent sure why you became so obsessed with Neo and I, though."
"Neo and me," Weiss corrected out of habit. Torchwick gave her a strange look.
"Do you know her name or not?" Ruby said impatiently.
"Of course I do." Torchwick pulled a cigar out of his coat pocket, just for Neo to snatch it away with a scowl as he was reaching for his lighter. He sighed and turned his attention back to Weiss and Ruby. "I promised I'd tell you, didn't I?"
"Oh, and your word is worth so much," Weiss said.
"True."
Something caught Neo's attention and she sat up straighter. She tugged on Torchwick's sleeve and pointed to something across the room.
"Well, ladies," Torchwick stood and straightened out his coat, "I hate to cut this little chat so short, but it appears I've been recognized. Cops'll probably be here in about five minutes, give or take. Might want to make yourselves scarce, unless you want to answer questions about why you were seen meeting with Vale's number one most wanted." He said the last part as if it was a mark of pride for him.
"What?" Weiss said.
"But you haven't—" Ruby started.
"Her name's Cinder Fall," Torchwick revealed at last. He and Neo left the booth and began heading for the exit, but then he paused and turned back toward them. "Oh, right. Nearly forgot. I've got a bit of a gift for you—I've got no use for it anymore."
He placed a device in Weiss's hands. She turned it over and saw that same strange symbol of a skull merged with a key. "What is this?"
"The key to my success," he answered vaguely. Neo winked from behind him.
"But—!" Ruby tried to say.
Torchwick lifted his hat by way of farewell. "Enjoy your trip."
Then they really did leave. Weiss regretted that they didn't get to squeeze more information out of him—they hadn't even gotten to question him about the Vytal Festival—but she couldn't say she was sad to be rid of him. Soon he'd be on his way out of Remnant, and hopefully out of their lives for good.
A/N: Credit to my beta readers: 0neWhoWanders, Bardothren, and I Write Big. They're great writers who are a huge help with making this story as good as it can be.