"Nope... I don't have a clue." Coco was just about as helpful as they could have suspected. "He seemed normal enough while they were here."
"Right..." Josh kept his lip from twitching, all the while a strong itch ran across his back. "And did you give 'em a dressing up too?"
"Obviously."
Coco didn't seem all that bad, and she was quite the baddie too; not that Josh had any desire to begin playing around anytime soon. Twisting a bit, he let her guide his hips as she ran the tape along them, tugging his trousers just low enough to get a good measurement. Normal people would have felt a bit invaded by so many brazen hands-on acts, but based on how she worked, he could tell she wasn't in the market for a timely fancy.
Off on the sidelines, and probably watching this all with a sense of amusement, sat Miltia and the one known as Velvet. Bunny girls were more his style, although that referred to his appreciation of all things cute. But to be real here for a second, the face this particular rabbit wore wasn't super adorable; rather it looked annoyed. She certainly wasn't a fan of watching her pal manhandle someone else, but she didn't look all that pissed about it either.
More so, she seemed bored from having to sit and watch.
Still, Miltia appeared to work her magic, drawing half hearted conversation from the least active rabbit character he'd ever seen. He didn't really have much time to listen in though, as Coco took his ears away with a pop quiz.
"So, you're friends with the guy, right?"
"Yeah." Something about the question had him on edge. "I probably wouldn't be asking about him if I wasn't."
"Well, in that case, I want to know a few things."
"Just so you know, I'm not giving away his junk size." A bizarre remark, maybe, but a legitimate one as he'd gotten certain… suspicious inquiries from a few of his less than polite female classmates some months ago, back during the peak of the homoerotic rumors between the two. The chances Coco was sleazy enough to ask such a thing were low, but she seemed particular with her work, to the point of accepting nothing less than perfection. And as such, there was a realistic chance she'd make accommodations for the "D" in any underwear or pants she put together.
That's something tailors did... right?
Coco snorted, never once pausing her work, and Josh had a feeling he may have been a bit off on his assumption. Oh well, you know what they say: assume makes an ass out of you and me - probably one of the few saying he could actually understand.
"Luckily for everyone involved, I have access to materials which stretch to fit most any size, so I never need to get that up close and personal." She then flicked her shades down a tad, and a brief flash shined across the surface as a teasing grin drew itself into place. "Unless, of course, you're packing a real honker, in which case I can make amends."
"I... guess I kind of deserved that." It was his fault for making a fool of himself anyways. With a mild chuckle, she returned to her work, standing up and maneuvering away and over to the counter, setting her tape down.
"The fact you had to clarify something like that at all tells me someone was stupid enough to ask at least once before." Turning back, Coco offered up a wink. "Good on you for sticking up for your buddy though; most guys would just cheer on with their mates like it was some sort of bro thing."
Yep, that checked out; Remnant was fast on track with matching earth in most ordinary regards - minus the inevitable tides of darkness and what amounted to superheroes.
"Someone's gotta stick up for my man." He said it in such a way as to imply nobody else did, but that wasn't quite the case. There were a decent, albeit small, few who would help him out at the drop of a hat. Unfortunately, Jay's very obvious self consciousness issues prevented the guy from recognising the honesty in it. He only saw mocking pity in their eyes, which made things worse.
However, when it came to himself, Jay always saw the truth of the matter: genuine concern.
Josh wasn't sure what set him apart from everyone else, but whenever he worried about his buddy, Jay wouldn't treat it like it was done out of an obligation to appear formally kind, like a dude smiling to your face before going behind your back to spread bullshit. Hell, he wasn't sure why Jay looked at people that way to begin with, but he could make a decent guess, and that guess came in two words: self pity.
It was selfish, and Josh could see why many of their casual acquaintances had given up on seeking a real friendship with Jay. But then again, was he really so different? There were some days where he was just as selfish as his buddy, and perhaps even worse, because on those days, Jay wasn't a friend to get along with or someone in need to help: he was a challenge to be conquered, for Josh himself to regretfully fuel his own sinful sense of self-righteousness.
It was only when he recognised his pride did Josh find the strength to reel himself back from the lake of the abyss; berating himself for even taking the dive to begin with, even if accidental.
"Oooh~ I'm sensing some real brotherhood here; mama likey~" Coco followed up her saucy expression with a giggle, folding out into a more lax tone as she made her way over to the cup of joe sitting peacefully beside a pair of scissors and some tattered fabric. Taking a good drink, she popped it back down with a pleasant sigh, whipping her head over to the pair watching from the sides. "Hey Vel, think we've got enough stuff for another set of digs?"
"If you're fine with getting skimpy, then yes." Rabbit girl glared rather hard their way, although Josh figured it was aimed more at Coco than he. The targeted recipient showed no signs of fear towards the discounted death glare, merely whipping back to him and beaming with far too bright a grin.
"I think I can work with it. Is that okay with you, big boy?"
"As long as I don't end up arrested." He could do scantily clad just fine, although he wasn't sure how he felt about someone designing a suit like that for him personally. On the one hand, he could probably get a rise out of Melanie when he showed it off, even if he was sure she wouldn't give the most appreciative of responses; seeing her angry side was always fun though.
It wasn't like he had to wear it everywhere, so really, there wasn't much of a downside to getting a free set of probably undies.
Clapping her hands with a clear spark of excitement on her face, Coco held back what must have been a squeal. "Then I'll call you up when it's done; for both you and your not-so gal pal." Soon her expression washed away into content satisfaction, and then a reserved sense of control took its place. "But you're more concerned about what happened to your buddy Jay, huh?"
He nodded, and she leaned back into the counter.
"Well, I've given you what I could for what went down between us. The best I can do now is send a message to Ruby; she was the one to leave with him, and she's probably your best shot in figuring out what might have tripped him up."
"Right." Not the answer he was hoping for, but it would do. Giving her a nod, he did his best not to sound displeased. "Thanks for your help."
"Bah, it was no trouble, honest. And hey, if you find something out, feel free to get in touch and tell me about it. Consider us pals from now on."
Josh couldn't help the grin eating away at the corners of his lips.
"Yeah, you got it."
It took him about all of until they were out on the streets again before he realized something.
"Shit." He cast a squeamish look at Miltia. "I forgot to ask where Ruby was."
"Beacon." The woman answered coolly. "She's one of the few accepted into the academy, and two years ahead at that."
"Huh." Two years ahead; that was honestly impressive. "So she's an overachiever. Good for her."
"Yep." Miltia slipped on a playful smile. "Although from the outside looking in, you wouldn't think she's all that different than most kids her age."
"I bet." Josh noticed they hadn't really made any moves in any direction. "So... where is Beacon?"
"On the other side of the city."
"Ah..." His shoulders slumped. "Ah. So like, a few hours away?"
Miltia grinned.
"Not if we take a cab." She proceeded to raise an arm, and as if by magic a vehicle rounded the corner. Josh, now mildly dumbfounded, tossed her the obvious question as their ride came to a stop before them.
"How did you do that?"
She gave out a perfectly disappointing answer.
"Luck."
In the end it was pure chance a cab was passing by at the exact time she readied to wave one down. She knew they worked this section of the city at evening hours, but she admitted to not knowing one would pop up so quickly. Around halfway through the predicted twenty minute ride, Josh made another inquiry.
"So is Beacon really all that?"
"Well, it's good enough to have its own cliffside territory in the distance. We'll be taking a flight right after this."
"Great..."
"Something wrong?"
"I... don't do well with flights."
.
.
"You were saying?"
Miltia bore a strong smirk as they stepped off the airship; straight out of something like Star Trek, or maybe Star Wars - he wasn't really all that into either.
"I stand corrected." Stepping on solid ground with a puzzled look on his face, he slapped his cheeks a couple of times to test for signs of sickness, but nothing came; probably should have patted his gut for that one, but whatever. "Apparently I do fine with some flights."
"So it would seem." Miltia moved ahead, hands flocked to her hips, and she leaned her head over. "Now come on." She nodded. "We'll probably find them ahead. Coco usually meets with her Beacon buddies near the fountain."
"A fountain?" Josh grinned, whistling lowly as he pulled up to her side, letting Miltia lead them on. "Fancy."
The trip took them all of a minute... or, it would have, had Josh not stopped to admire the scenery every few moments. Almost every step of the way he felt as though he were passing through a fairy-tale castle; something ripped straight out of a children's cartoon or Disney. Sadly, there weren't any singing woodland friends to lead them along, but the place certainly had enough winding stone and spires. If there was anything to take from the expertly paved path or professionally trimmed grass, of which no intern could be bothered to perfect, then it would be the absolute mastery of shaped and bleached stone. Of arches and pillars, creating décor far lovelier than what a simple school really should have bore, it made one thing clear, allowing Josh to hold fast a single, determined belief.
This was a pointy-ass palace.
"Lookie here." Miltia tugged at his sleeve, taking him away from his blind focus and directing it to the pair in the distance, standing before a monument to champions of war; or so he saw it; really, it was more akin to monster hunters, which was fitting he guessed. "There they are, like I said."
"That you did." Accepting the deflation of his previous doubts, Josh nodded her way and followed, until they stood before the duette of red and white; kind of like the sisters themselves, only far less unified.
"Hi." Came the small greeting from the red-tipped lolita, who was certifiably more shy than he remembered; granted, she was fighting back then, so the adrenaline of battle might have stamped out any timidness at the time. This, realistically, felt more natural in a way, and yet he noted how she tried to face him fearlessly.
No, it wasn't fear blanketing her, but more so an awareness of how she might be perceived; if anything, she reminded him of how Jay would act around new people, only mildly less flighty.
"What's up." Settling on a casual, tugging grin, Josh gambled on a less formal approach; Ruby seemed the type to like hanging out as bros more than someone all caught up in proper presentation. Ironically, his response, while gaining a lighter bubble of courage from her, ended up drawing some withheld irritation from the white ponytailed woman.
"Coco said you were coming." Ruby spoke again, relaxed a touch more than before. "You wanted to talk about Jay, right?"
"That's it." Getting down to business wasn't so bad, and hey, it even erased some of the annoyance from miss pretty princess - it would probably be best if he didn't ever, ever say that nickname aloud, lest he earn probably the fiercest scolding of his lifetime; she seemed the type just itching to do some bitching.
Then again, looks were deceiving... hopefully that's how that saying went.
"Perhaps we should head inside?" The little loli ended up cut off by her... friend? "Unless you'd rather we discuss it out in the open where anyone can eavesdrop."
Yeah... okay, maybe she had a point.
"That's cool with me." Josh nodded in as smooth a fashion as he could, winning himself an eye roll which he probably deserved. Attempting to save face, then - somewhat uselessly and off-topic - pointed out, "it's kind of cold out this evening anyway."
"I suppose it is." Turning away, the woman practically, albeit not literally, stomped off, with Ruby tossing him an apologetic look. Cringing a little to himself for the obvious screw up, he chanced a glance at Miltia, who looked to be holding her amusement inside rather well, although it still tickled her cheeks briefly.
Okay, shutting up next time.
.
.
Jay wasn't sure how long he spent staring at the ceiling, not that it mattered in this regard.
Leaning up, he kicked the covers off himself, flinging his legs over the edge of the bed, and then... proceeded to just sit there. What was wrong with him? He wanted to wonder, only such wonders would give him the same answer as pretty much every other question passing him by since his arrival in Remnant, with said answer being that he didn't know. Not knowing was the only thing he did know, aside from the basic series of events that the Remnant he was familiar with would move through.
A series of events which made his apparent "purpose" all the more perplexing.
Fuck.
Wrapping his arms around his head, he felt a monotonous thundering beat pound throughout his skull. I wasn't real, obviously, but how else could he clarify just how sickening the headache he felt coming on was? Moreover, there was no better way to describe his current - again supposed - predicament than that of a scattered puzzle, one who, instead of missing pieces, bore duplicates.
Most of all, he found himself hung up on the idea of having to murder Ruby.
Apparently, the salvation of this world relied on her death, but that couldn't be the case. If this Remnant followed the timeline of events the RWBY he knew walked, then the idea of her demise shouldn't have been an issue.
If his grasp on their current place in the timeline was correct, the Ruby Rose he knew died three years from now at the hands of Salem herself, all the while witness to the return of the brother gods who would wash the world away; ending both the fiction, and the series.
It was a supremely unsatisfying ending, but supposedly the intended end to the tale. Everyone just sort of assumed it was an ass-pull though, especially with the little bits of build-up towards a more heroic conclusion done during season 10. But what could they really do with so much bad blood built up over the years? Sure, he didn't necessarily like to watch as the characters he loved devolved, perhaps unintentionally, into archetypes, even worse than their original base appearances. But at least the story got an ending, as opposed to being left up in the air forevermore like many other failed - and even successful - stories.
Was this world really that different, though? So much so that Ruby might actually survive? If it was, then what about her survival damned it so badly that some... spectral dream spirit thing wanted her dead? And why so quickly? Everything in this world seemed to line up enough with Ruby in terms of personality; heck, even the landscape appeared to match - minus the shadow people of the earlier season.
Had his intrusion, and by extent his very presence, changed things? Was everything instead supposed to follow the show, but his arrival had altered that? No, that couldn't be right either, otherwise he wouldn't have been brought here in the first place.
With his head now aching worse than ever, Jay pushed himself to his feet. Grabbing his jacket, he tossed it on, embracing the weight and gloom to come with it, as seemed to be commonplace ever since he'd entered the picture. Contemplation and theory could only carry him so far. If he wanted his answers, he'd need to actually seek them out. And while that was easy enough to say, it wouldn't much be in practice.
After all, how the hell was he supposed to learn why a dream demon or whatever wanted her dead?
"Hey, sleeping beauty." Melanie's stern, unmistakable voice snapped him from his near delirious mental wanderings, and he made a beeline for her and, surprisingly enough, Junior. The man gave a curt, albeit not so tough, nod. Once he'd taken the spot on Melanie's side, she dug into him before he could even speak. "Still kicking I guess. Good. Now, if you don't mind, do you wanna explain why exactly you fancied a near dirt nap in the middle of what should have been a good time?"
She cut right to the chase, and it appeared Junior himself was of a similar stance.
"You don't have some illness we haven't been made aware of, have you, son?"
"No... No I just..." There was no easy way to say, well, much of anything. How do you just tell someone a ghost told you to kill a kid? That was some serial killer shit right there, and Melanie hated his ass as is; no use adding extra reasons on top of her already present disdain. "I don't know. I'm maybe tired?"
Melanie scoffed, although not as harsh as he'd expected.
"If you have to ask about it, I'd say no. Fine, don't tell us, but at least let us know if we should be expecting it again." Something about her glare left no room for argument, cornering him and shooting right through any and all rebuttal; excuses would see no success in the spotlight of her gaze. "I'd rather know if you're going to drop beforehand."
"Yeah... Me too." It was here Jay realized a distinct lack of noise; not really in terms of the brewing club activity, but rather an absence of his usual wake-up cheer. "Where are the others?"
"Gone to try and get info on you." Melanie said, toying with her empty glass. "We weren't sure when you'd wake up, so they went to see your playdates and ask if anything happened." Again she caught him with her stare. "Care to elaborate on that particular fact?"
"Nothing happened." Not true, but he doubted some near privacy shattering measurements were really what she was looking for. "I followed Ruby to Coco, and then we split. That's when I came back here."
Junior hopped in; his voice a strange mix of reserved force. "Nothing happened at all? No fevers or off feelings in your gut, light-headedness or any of that?"
"None... Sorry."
Melanie grumbled. "Apologize for shit when it's actually your fault." She slumped a little. "Or better yet, try to deal with your issues so it doesn't happen again."
"I'm so-... Yeah, okay."
She had a point there, as uncomfortable as it was. Apologies mean nothing if you just keep making the same mistake over and over, and as gross as it was, he knew he'd fallen victim to that mindset constantly throughout his life. Chances are, he was doing it right now and not even noticing; doubly bad, and a sign of just how shitty a guy he really was. But did he even care though? With how things were, was he really to blame for reacting so indirectly foolish towards it all? It was cowardly, yes, but did he care so much about what the woman who clearly had it out for him felt towards his realistically reasonable response to it, as in, at all?
Well... Yeah, he kind of did.
Up until now, Melanie had spoken with guarded caution, and even vexation at how close Miltia had been with him. The red sister got right up in his face, playfully flirty and fun-loving, and he got the feeling the white one was just being protective. But then she made her feelings known, multiple times in fact, and he could tell her hatred for him was more than surface level. She loathed him, his personality, his responses, and more than anything, his apprehension.
However, she did not know him; he wasn't like them. They, who were born in Remnant and acquainted with its rules and way of life. He came from a different world altogether, and while similar, it had vast differences as well. Due to this misunderstanding, she could fervently denounce his fear as cowardice quite easily. Remnant's people had always known bloodshed in some form or another, whereas he himself had not.
And yet her voice still stung, because unlike before, she spoke not with unwavering disgust and hatred, but rather disappointment.
There was a stark difference between the two, and that difference was enough to give him pause. It was easy to hate; he himself might as well be a factory for the stuff. However, his hatred was marred in fear, overtaken by terror of confrontation and all manner of other excuses to justify never having to face the sources of his rage. Hatred implied a lack of concern or care for the individual or element which sparked it, other than seeing said element removed.
Disappointment, in contrast, implied a level of respect and, at points, even care.
To feel disappointment told of how the owner of such emotions genuinely expected better of the one who'd let them down, and while it seemed small at first, to gain that level of attention from one who'd shown nothing but ire meant that the previous assumption was wrong. That Melanie could even be disappointed in him meant she never loathed him, but rather loathed the part of him she saw. She, indirectly, had just told him she hated the mask he wore, and it was here where Jay wondered if he was wearing a mask. Why was he now unsure?
Simple: the thought she expected anything from him stung, because it implied she, to the tiniest degree, saw something within him, and put her faith in that spark. He, on the other hand, could not see what she had seen.
Still, even blind he could tell her disappointment was warranted, and it got him thinking about things. Standing from his place, he made to leave, only to be called again by Melanie.
"Where are you off to this time?"
"To find the others." Jay said, only to pause as she huffed.
"Do you even know how to get to Beacon?"
"No, but I might catch them on the way back if I head over to see Coco." Ruby had shown him the way earlier, and if he was lucky, he could catch the leader of CFVY before she took off for the night. With luck, she'd be willing to take him with her to Beacon, where he'd hopefully find the others - or, as a part of him suspected, catch them leaving.
Letting her glass go, she stood with a stony expression.
"After the bullshit you pulled already, do you really think we'll just let you go like that?"
"No." Of course she wouldn't, but chances were she wanted to meet up with her sister and learn of any progress. Despite not showing it, he had an inkling she might have been a tad impatient, and probably didn't want to wait for her sis to get back. "But I won't be alone, will I?"
"Dust no!" She spat, strolling on over with a frustrated face. "Somebody needs to make sure you don't crumple over on the street."
"Then shall we head out?" He tried, earning nothing but a flat look.
"You're not a gentleman, so don't even try."
"Right... okay." He hadn't meant for it to sound like that, but that couldn't be helped now. "Can we go, then?"
Her glare lost a fraction of its edge, replaced with indifference as she walked past him.
"Just keep up."
Author's note
...
Back with another one this time, although more focused on Josh and Miltia.
Coco was entertaining as always, and with Josh being more relaxed, it made for a smoother ride, unlike Ruby and Jay. With their investigation taking them to Beacon, it seems they'll be getting some direct time with both Ruby and Weiss. Guess we'll see where that leads them.
Jay's awake, and with it his concerns continue to pile up. Melanie does her thing again, albeit with less rage and more annoyance. Now they get to try their own hand at investigation, or at least a manhunt of a sort; kind of an over exaggeration, but whatever. Guess that means It's off to Beacon, which I'm sure will have absolutely nothing to worry about.
Until next time.