MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
“Zzzz....no...Tai, you can’t...you have to beat them up.......Qrow, that’s not a kilt you...dummy........Summer.......I’m sorry....zzz...zz....zzz...”
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Fandom Distorted Mirror [IC]
- Thread starter MyrtenRose
- Start date
“Zzzz....no...Tai, you can’t...you have to beat them up.......Qrow, that’s not a kilt you...dummy........Summer.......I’m sorry....zzz...zz....zzz...”
MidwayLives
"What's your favorite scary movie...?"
"As long as I'm here, you'll never be lonely..."
Ruby smiled, seemingly content with having gotten her feelings off her chest in regards to Weiss.
She'd never had a relationship before. It wouldn't be right to settle into one before either of them were ready or if they could even manage one at all.
She'd be there for her all the same.
'Kiss me, Weiss...'
'Let's make-'
*extremely generic ringtone because weiss hates her songs and didnt personalize her scroll in any way*
"Excuse me, I have to take this."
*dutiful scroll chatter*
"Oh? Which one?"
*informative scroll chatter*
"...Have her transported to the Academy. I'll be right up."
---
On a rooftop all the way at the opposite end of the district, one of Ruby's tails from earlier watched with a gallantly dutiful expression as the cuffed and sedated Raven was loaded into a transport by some androids.
"Yes ma'am."
---
"I have to go now Ruby thank you for the pleasant conversation bye!"
There was a dotted outline where Weiss had stood just a second ago, the councilwoman disappearing down the hallway so quick it was a wonder there wasn't a trail of white rose petals left in her wake.
"....bye."
Oh well!
More opportunities would come.
Now that the two of them were going to take Ozpin on together!
MidwayLives
"What's your favorite scary movie...?"
Grey's door banged against the wall as he entered his office and shut it behind him.
The office itself was cluttered with masks, papers, different cloaks, and so on. Shambling over to the little space he'd made out near the back of the room to sleep and write, he settled onto the stool before his desk. The conversation from before hadn't exactly gone the way he'd expected it to. A tournament....? Can't say it was at the top of the things he'd be doing given recent events.
But he was and there was no turning back.
Pushing aside some papers into a pile onto the floor, Grey propped his elbow onto the desk and looked into the dim screen of his turned off scroll.
'This isn't the face of a reporter to many. It frightens people, it makes others uncomfortable.'
He ran his hand along the surface of the mask, the latex folding in as he pressed his palm against the forehead.
'...But at the end of the day, despite how cryptic I might be, how odd my social norms are....'
'It's still just me.'
He wasn't overly optimistic about his chances in the ring. None of what he'd said out there had been a lie in anyway shape or form. Fighting just wasn't in his blood and against people who'd apparently been waiting for a moment like this to spill blood? The chances of injury skyrocketed. The feeling wasn't great but the odds were high that he'd walk out of here with broken bones and a few new scars. If he walked out of there at all. But he knew all of this from the moment Ironwood explained the competition and what was at stake. There were reporters who covered war zones and got right onto the field of danger with others, who traversed chaotic and crime-riddled districts and streets. At a time like this it was put up or shut up.
Sure, he could die or wind up in the hospital for who knows how long?
But what was the alternative? Sit around as others risked their lives and well-being?
'No. Doesn't sit well. Not at all.'
If he even made it through the preliminaries, he'd give the rest of those fighting another to rest their hopes on.
'...If I win, great. If I lose, then...I'll know there'll be others who'll continue to fight just as hard.'
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
When Raven did eventually come to her senses, consciousness welcomed her back with the gift of three uniquely distinct sensations; all potent, all bad. It was difficult to put a finger on which of them was worst. The first, and most immediately notable, was the hangover. That needed no description. The second was the bleariness in her eyes and sluggishness of both mind and body, a surefire indicator that she had been kept under sedation. Exactly how long was impossible to determine, but she could feel that odd, groggy haze at the back of her skull only accessible by someone who had slept in too long and thrown their cycle into disarray.
The third was more the metaphorical sort of sensation. It didn't have much physical basis—She wasn't restrained in any way, her aura hadn't been suppressed or nullified, and the room around her was metallic, nondescript, no more than a spacious hospital chamber with a one-way mirror and various monitoring equipment wired up to her where she'd been placed in a bed.
And yet... somehow, someway, she couldn't help but feel as though she had been caged. A truth that proved... ironic, to say the least, considering exactly who it was that greeted her when she opened her eyes.
"Hi!"
Weiss's voice was like the fist of karma striking Raven full in the face, the bandit chieftain finding herself in a mirror scenario of just one of many terrible things she'd done back in her native Remnant. Only this time they weren't in her camp; Raven Branwen was the prisoner, and Weiss Schnee the captor. It appeared captives were treated a little differently in Atlas compared to the methods she and her tribe employed, though. The bed was comfy, Weiss's smile polite, an earnest and eager-to-please ring to her voice as if her fellow maiden was somebody she genuinely wanted to make a good impression on.
"I'm so glad to finally meet you! You're just as beautiful as your daughter. My, you must've been so young when you had her! How in the name of Dust did you keep your figure?"
MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
When Raven did eventually come to her senses, consciousness welcomed her back with the gift of three uniquely distinct sensations; all potent, all bad. It was difficult to put a finger on which of them was worst. The first, and most immediately notable, was the hangover. That needed no description. The second was the bleariness in her eyes and sluggishness of both mind and body, a surefire indicator that she had been kept under sedation. Exactly how long was impossible to determine, but she could feel that odd, groggy haze at the back of her skull only accessible by someone who had slept in too long and thrown their cycle into disarray.
The third was more the metaphorical sort of sensation. It didn't have much physical basis—She wasn't restrained in any way, her aura hadn't been suppressed or nullified, and the room around her was metallic, nondescript, no more than a spacious hospital chamber with a one-way mirror and various monitoring equipment wired up to her where she'd been placed in a bed.
And yet... somehow, someway, she couldn't help but feel as though she had been caged. A truth that proved... ironic, to say the least, considering exactly who it was that greeted her when she opened her eyes.
View attachment 727259
"Hi!"
Weiss's voice was like the fist of karma striking Raven full in the face, the bandit chieftain finding herself in a mirror scenario of just one of many terrible things she'd done back in her native Remnant. Only this time they weren't in her camp; Raven Branwen was the prisoner, and Weiss Schnee the captor. It appeared captives were treated a little differently in Atlas compared to the methods she and her tribe employed, though. The bed was comfy, Weiss's smile polite, an earnest and eager-to-please ring to her voice as if her fellow maiden was somebody she genuinely wanted to make a good impression on.
"I'm so glad to finally meet you! You're just as beautiful as your daughter. My, you must've been so young when you had her! How in the name of Dust did you keep your figure?"
"Hrgnh...bright lights...turn off..." She let out in a tired sleepy grumble, still in the process of--she shot up with sudden movement that greatly contrasted the words that just came out. Her eyes were wider as she took in more of the room, recognizing now that this was no dream. One hand sluggishly rose up to rub at her head where a bad migraine was coming strong. After a few seconds of her doing so and gritting her teeth in frustration, complete with directing several nasty thoughts at her past self, she bit down on the pain as best as she was able and focus on other things. Like the groggy feeling she felt all over, or, of greater importance, the fact that she was not on some rooftop any longer, but rather in some kind of hospital room. The rough feeling of that rooftop impromptu napping spot had been replaced by the smooth comfort of an actual bed, where she laid strapped up to several machines.
And she wasn't alone.
"...You." She replied back, returning the greeting with neither a friendly tone or open hostility. She spoke with complete detached indifference, not wanting to put on any airs of leaning in any particular direction. Her face was likewise carrying that indifference, even as her eyes focused on the councilwoman. Oh, how the tables had turned. She'd only personally seen this face twice in her life, and the first had been when she had kicked that face and tossed the girl into a cell to traffick her back to her family. And now, here she was, with the shoe on the other foot. Completely at the mercy of whatever Weiss intended here.
Apparently compliments were the first item on the agenda.
One of her eyebrows quirked up ever so slightly, almost impercetibly so unless one was specifically looking for that. "What's with the pleasantries?" Raven asked, seemingly fine with not answering that question she herself had just been asked.
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
If it meant anything, Weiss seemed equally fine with not being answered. Though she did roll her eyes, shooting Raven a much flatter stare and dropping all conjured pretenses of amicability in an instant. Oh well, she tried.
"Is it such a foreign concept that we can all be civil to one another even when our goals don't align? It's all gung-ho with you people. But very well; I really didn't expect anything less from you."
If it was ever really in doubt, the tone of that 'you' told Raven everything she needed to know about how the councilwoman really felt about a cowardly, murderous bandit who turned her back on her own child. Certain recent events in her own family tree had the second-hand sting of Yang's familial issues hitting even closer to home than they had otherwise, but she wasn't interested in wasting a lecture on a grown adult who'd already made all the bad life decisions that mattered. Professional and to-the-point, then. That suited Weiss perfectly. She dropped her formal posture and sank back into her chair, apathetically crossing her legs and arms in sync as she continued to level Raven with a gaze that seemed phenomenally unimpressed.
"You know littering is a crime, right? As is throwing bottles off of rooftops in a commercial area. What made you think acting like trailer trash in the middle of Atlas would fly beneath the radar? I know Yang didn't get her charm from you, but I had at least assumed you were responsible for some of her wits."
She arched one of her own neatly preened eyebrows, far more overt and scrutinizing about it than Raven had been with her subtler tic.
"Could it be you're finally showing regret for some of your life choices? Really, now, after so long and so many chances?"
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MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
"Tch." She grunted dismissively, ignoring the way her headache seemed to worsen as Weiss went off. "That wasn't civil enough for you?" She spat back with only the slightest hint of sarcasm, followed shortly after by a shrug. She thought she'd been pretty cordial, all things considered...including her current state of mind and her company. But whatever, she didn't really want to waste more words or attention beyond what was strictly necessary. Blunt and no-nonsense, fine. Ideal, even. "You really think I care about some petty littering laws? Pfft." She snorted in derision. "You'd have me on breaking and entering your fancy manor if you wanted...and if you know me as much as you seem to, a whole lot worse than littering." She shrugged again, showcasing fully how little fucks she gave about that.
"As for the rest...it isn't any of your damn business, so how about we just get right to the part where you explain what the hell you want."
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
"Yes, well, I don't care to ponder what the statute of limitations may be on crimes committed in another universe. Your counterpart's a model citizen, so as far your rap sheet here is concerned Raven Branwen has nothing to worry about."
Her drawl was downright flippant in comparison to Raven's dismissive intensity, Weiss seeming more amused by her standoffishness than anything. How adorable.
"But fine, straight to the point then. You've been unconscious for two days. I already have anything I could've possibly 'wanted' from you. Any need for a personal conflict between us has passed, so please, stow your fangs. I transferred you here because it's where the best medical experts in Atlas are on hand, some of whom have semblances that can be used to accelerate the restoration of your spine. You can have full mobility again in a matter of weeks."
She waved her hand lightly, looking every bit the image of a monarch graciously pardoning a convict. Her smirk, however, was smug, exuding superiority to the bedridden woman.
"See? This doesn't just concern what I want. It's about what you want too. Still so against the notion of pleasantries?"
MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
"Hrmph." She grunted in annoyance at the reminder of her double, the perfect, model huntress and all around great person. Yet that was not the most concerning part. Two days...was alarming...but... "What do you mean? What did you get in that time?" She fell silent, considering whether to continue. "...I'm listening." She eventually coughed up. "What is it you are looking to gain in return? I imagine this graciousness doesn't come from your heart for no reason."
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
Weiss just stared at her in response to the first question, a more icy look supplanting the conceit of before. At the second, though, she sighed, a little vexed that the penny still apparently hadn't dropped.
"Are you seriously telling me you can't even figure that much out? Fine. I'll dumb it down to a child's level of understanding, but I'm only going to say it once. So try to keep up," she instructed, narrowing her eyes. "First, one of few points I'm sure we both agree on. The only way to win in life, to be the one who gets ahead? Is power. I have power. Plenty of it; but it's still not enough. It will NEVER be enough."
If the resolve in her words were light, it would've been blinding. As it was, they were just cold.
"Until very recently, there were things in this world not even someone with my ability and power could stand against. That conflicts with my design, and that's why I had to rectify it. Which is where you came in. You see, you're... an extra wheel. Someone who's not supposed to be here. There were never meant to be two Spring Maidens walking Remnant at the same time. It's an unnecessary wrinkle. A needless complication. Fortunately, my kingdom has the technology to correct that error; and I've done so. You see, dear, it's not about what I stand to gain from you. It's what I already have."
She flicked her ponytail, keeping her tone neutral and informative.
"Oh, my. You really have no idea how much trouble you saved me by acting so rashly, do you? Did you forget whose city you were in? Did you forget what a target a lone maiden makes? I had all kinds of plans in motion explicitly intended to let me isolate and capture you, and now there won't be a need for any of them. You practically served yourself to me on a silver platter. So thank you. If there's one thing I can't stomach, it's wasted energy; a maiden who's a coward and a cripple is of little use to anybody. But what you've given me, however unknowingly... well, all of Remnant owes you a great debt. What I'm offering you isn't grace, it's gratitude; gratitude for your sacrifice."
Her increasingly lecturing tone was offset by a genuine earnestness, a deference incongruous with the rest of the woman's bearing as she offered Raven a single, appreciative nod.
"Getting the picture yet? Still confused? That's fine. This next part should dispel any lingering uncertainty."
"Why don't you try using your powers?"
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MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
"...…………………………………………………"
The major migraine she was suffering was no more than a minor nuisance in the back of her mind after hearing that, whatever parts of her that were still sluggish and groggy now fully awake. Yet...she didn't bother to actually try to use her powers. It wasn't about trusting Weiss at her word, though she didn't think the woman was lying. No, it was about more than simply that. Even beyond the hazy and vexing feel of the hangover, now that she knew what to look for...she could feel the lack of the familiar magic as clear as day. That loss stung like a shot straight to the heart. However, that was not what struck her the hardest.
It was her sheer stupidity that did so.
She'd been drinking in an attempt to somewhat forget about feeling so weak, to get over feeling this...useless, even if it were just for a delusional short while...and now...now she was even MORE powerless. All because she'd passed out, because she hadn't cared where she was drinking...because they'd found her there and taken her, and Weiss had taken it. And in doing so, had taken everything. The power, it had been the last thing she could cling to. Even crippled, she would have recovered, and when she had...as long as she had the power, she still could believe that...she had value. That her strength would still matter. A reason to justify her pathetic existence, even if there were nothing else. The tribe, left behind. Vernal, dead. Whatever relationships she'd once had with Tai and her brother little more than pale shadows of themselves...and a relationship with her daughter that was practically nonexistent. The crippling had laid waste to her skill in battle, she could barely walk, let alone fight with sword in hand that way, but so long as she had the power...there was a reason to see tomorrow's sunrise.
Now there was nothing.
She could offer nothing. Nothing that her counterpart, the ideal, best version of herself, could not also provide. She was just as powerful now, just as skilled, just as smart, but also unbroken. Kinder. Braver. The flaws that personally weighed her down hardly seemed to exist in her double. In comparison to that...it was like the councilwoman had just said. What use to anybody was a crippled, cowardly, crushed and powerless Raven Branwen?
Her head lowered as she stared at the sheets of this bed she laid in. It felt far more like a cage, a prison...a hell of her own making.
"Why, then? Why am I still alive? Why haven't you killed me? Why don't you just kill me? I'm in no condition to resist it, even if I...wanted to. Was it to gloat? To rub it in, is that what you wanted to see? To see my spirit crushed just as much as my body?! Is THAT WHAT YOU WANTED, YOU SPITEFUL BITCH?!"
Raven had a strong burning temptation inside, a wish that burned almost like a fever, so much did she desire to choke the life out of that cold and hateful Schnee. But that was not something she could succeed in doing. Not as a cripple. Not against the combined Winter and Spring maiden.
The time on this Remnant, all it seemed to be was a rollercoaster that only went down. A ride without end, that only served to crush her, break her, and steal away all the things that made her, her. She wanted off the ride.
"Just do it. Kill me." Raven muttered, far quieter than her shouting had just been. She lifted her head back up, unknowingly looking at Weiss with a face that was different than the one she'd seen so often in the mirror, thanks to what had occurred here.
"If...if you have as much kindness in you as my daughter believes that you do...then please. Do me that kindness." Raven pleaded like she never had in her entire life.
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
"Just do it. Kill me." Raven muttered, far quieter than her shouting had just been. She lifted her head back up, unknowingly looking at Weiss with a face that was different than the one she'd seen so often in the mirror, thanks to what had occurred here.
"If...if you have as much kindness in you as my daughter believes that you do...then please. Do me that kindness." Raven pleaded like she never had in her entire life.
"...So that's it, then. You want me to kill you?"
Over the course of Raven's tumultuous plunge down to the very bottom layer of her emotions, Weiss had stood as a marked contrast in the way she appeared to settle further and further into an effortlessly patient calm. She couldn't claim to enjoy it very much when people lost their temper, but it was an understandable reaction. She resolved to simply close her eyes, keep her demeanor prim and elegant, and wait for the thug to get it out of her system, willing to endure however long it took for civilized discussion to resume.
The final request Raven's woes led her to, however, had the councilwoman's face pull into a tight, contemplative frown, and she pinched her chin between thumb and forefinger like she was genuinely weighing out the costs and benefits of complying.
After a few more seconds of thoughtful silence, she threw up her hands and gave a light, obliging shrug of the shoulders.
"Okay."
Her fingers clicked.
Everything that happened next seemed to do so in the blink of an eye, yet at the same time felt stretched out over an eternity. A glyph spun into the floor by Raven's bedside, and like a creature from the depths of hell up rose the Arma Gigas, broadsword tightly clutched and stance already aggressive as it hefted the weapon back behind its mighty shoulders. It stepped forward, swung downward, and its blade cut a neat arc through the air to smite the other world's Branwen tribe leader in twain, giving her the end she so desperately sought.
Except that ending never came.
The massive, ethereal sword had come to a halt mere centimeters from Raven's face, its azure glow reflecting off the clashing eye colors that now stood out immediately from the rest of the bandit's face. The summon had gone completely still, as if frozen, and Weiss herself hadn't moved from the polite sitting posture she'd returned to the moment she gave the order, knees together and hands clasped daintily atop her lap.
A moment later, that perfect image of diplomatic propriety shattered like it was made of porcelain.
"SHUT UP, you pathetic SHREW. Kill you? You honestly think I'm going to KILL you and give you an easy escape from all the pain you're feeling? Every single iota of that pain is deserved! It's your just deserts! What in the world makes you think I'm going to do you the courtesy of killing you when there's so much you still need to make up to Yang?! And that's not even taking into account your litany of other crimes! As far as I'm concerned, they're NOTHING next to the sin of neglecting to do your duty as a mother! Guess what, all that heartbreak you're experiencing? All that suffering? None of it holds a candle to the pain Yang must've felt as a little girl every time she had to wonder why her MOM didn't WANT HER!"
Weiss could be a terror. There were no two ways about it. She had full faith in her ability to regulate her emotions, to keep her temper in check and prioritize logic and reason over impulsive thinking, but she found that sometimes the best foot forward in a situation was to allow that temper to slip, to tear into somebody and make them feel as small and worthless as she needed to to elicit the desired response.
This was different, and it was almost unprecedented. The kind of fury she brought to bear against incompetent employees and coffee shop workers was like an electric fan next to the hurricane Raven was currently being assailed with. Weiss Schnee was actually, genuinely losing her temper, and with the insight Raven had into certain recent developments in her own personal life it wasn't hard to imagine Yang's story may have struck a particular chord with her.
"And you did that to her, of all people?! To Yang? What the FUCK is wrong with you? Are you deficient, or something?! Are you incapable of seeing how special Yang Xiao Long is?! I'm a complete MISANTHROPE and even I could see that! I'd glow with pride if I had a daughter like her! ANYONE would! She's every mother's DREAM! She's CERTAINLY a damn sight kinder, smarter and braver than an arachnid like you could ever hope to be, and do you know how I know that?
Weiss stood up, and a fingertip went to brush against her left eye as she started blinking it rapidly. A contact lens popped loose, its hue the same glacial blue as her other eye. What lay beneath was rather different.
"The process involved exchanging a portion of our souls. I wasn't expecting this to be the outcome, but I suppose there's still a great deal we don't understand about these things. I wouldn't say we're a part of one another, but I do feel like I understand you a bit better now. And would you like to hear the truth, Raven? What really makes everything you just said no less pitiful and selfish than the rest of your life has been?"
She swept her hand forward, jabbing a finger at the bandit in imperious judgment. When she continued, however, her voice was slightly less harsh than it had been moments prior. Slightly.
"You don't want to die. You never have. It's the one thing you fear most; it's why you did everything that you did. The big, bad, bandit queen, and the thought of dying terrifies you, doesn't it? So what does that make all this?"
The maiden scoffed, giving the other woman a loose-wristed flap of the hand in dismissal. Her outburst had faded back into a more typically icy reprimand at this point, though it was no less scathing even if those burns were a result of arctic winds instead of a raging inferno.
"Crocodile tears. You finally feel remorse for your actions, and now you're caving under the weight of them. As I told you, I'm grateful, but you won't get a lick of sympathy from me. You haven't earned the right to feel sorry for yourself, and I am NOT going to do you the kindness of giving you an easy way out. If word got back to Yang that you died, then despite everything she'd be crushed. If she sees you acting this way, then she's the one who's going to start feeling bad, or guilty, or whatever else big-hearted morons like her feel. Let me repeat that for you: YOU will be making HER feel bad. She'll feel obligated to start treating you better. Does that sound right to you? Is that fair on the daughter you abandoned? No. It's not. So pull yourself together and find a better way of dealing with your guilt, or I'll find another way of making sure you stay out of her life and let her assume you just ran off again. That's a promise."
Heterochromia met heterochromia, Weiss glaring knives at her soulbound other a few seconds longer before she finally blinked and huffed out a breath. The gigas was dismissed, evaporating into clouds of glowing mist that lingered only for a moment and then were gone themselves.
"...Now. Enough of this. Are you going to take my offer or not? I don't actually care that much. You're not even a prisoner here, you can leave whenever you wish. I've got what I needed from you. The only question left is whether you'll accept something in return."
She crossed her arms and awaited Raven's reply, mouth a thin line of disapproval as she tapped a finger against her bicep testily.
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MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
Those eyes slid shut when the swing came down, for even while she asked...she didn't want to witness that end. But when that strike didn't land, those eyes slowly reopened to bear witness to the sight of the sword hovering in the air so close to her face that she could have licked it without moving an inch. Yet before she could question it, all of that happened. Raven was silent for a long time after all that, but when she did manage to speak, it was in agreement. "You're right. She's kinder, she's braver, she's...better than I am. Better than I ever was. It's..." Too late is what she planned to say. That it was too late to try to make amends in that way. Even if she wanted to be better, tried to be...she'd never be as good a parent as Tai or even as good a role model as her brother. Certainly not somebody that Yang deserved.
But she felt she wouldn't have gotten anywhere with Weiss by saying so.
So she didn't bother.
"....Nevermind. Just...okay. Fine. I accept." She sounded dead inside but nevertheless accepted.
But she felt she wouldn't have gotten anywhere with Weiss by saying so.
So she didn't bother.
"....Nevermind. Just...okay. Fine. I accept." She sounded dead inside but nevertheless accepted.
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
"Great. Bye."
And now to never associate with this woman or think about her ever again. She turned on her heel and left.
MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
“...Heh.” She couldn’t help but snicker. That bluntness was familiar and at least got her mind off things to a degree...and only for a few moments, but nevertheless it was appreciated. In her absence though, Raven’s thoughts ran wild. Including...that red eye on Weiss being a new one...
She couldn’t confirm it without a mirror but Weiss had said that hers had changed too. A red and a blue...hrm. That would take some getting used to.
“Hey can I get some greasy food?!”
MidwayLives
"What's your favorite scary movie...?"
"You know at least pretending it hurt would help a bit! I'm not asking you to sell for me but c'mon! You're making me look like a putz out here!"
Still, he had to admit that eating all those shots was pretty cool. He didn't have a damn clue why a drunken hobo had any business attacking him. But he wasn't really the idea person of the Hitman Team, he saved that kind of stuff for Abyss or Vanile. He just liked to do what he was told and live life on easy street. Babes, drinks, money, you name it. Everyone died so why not indulge yourself while you're good and able. As the mist from Beyond The Years continued to seep around the street, those within it's proximity screamed as they began to visibly age and scrambled away in fear. Getting caught up in Ashes-related business was a quick way to end up on the coroner's slab.
It was a deadly semblance, one with a horrible ending if Blanche was being honest.
"I dunno what your stake is in all this but how about you-"
Wait a minute, why had everything gone dark?
"Um...What the..."
he...He couldn't see.
Oh.
HE COULDN'T FUCKING SEE!!!!
Whatever injury had taken Blanche's right eye was known only to the other fellows of the Hitman Team. It hadn't been pretty and the sensation of losing sight in both eyes terrified him. It'd taken him months to re-train himself to get back up to where he'd been skill-wise when he'd had both eyes. As he flailed in the air, he couldn't help but start to lose his polite composure.
"You vile bitch! Give it back! GIVE ME BACK MY EYE!!!"
As Vernal closed the distance and tried to swat the gun out of his hand, he reached out and grabbed ahold of her by the neck. The mist seeping from his palm as he glared daggers at the ex-bandit. Even if he couldn't see her face. Due to the proximity to his mist, Vernal would have found herself growing weaker...frailer...older as the seconds clicked on by.
"...I'm not a vindictive man. We didn't get orders to kill. I'll let you walk away from this if you give me my sight back."
His grip grew tighter.
"If not....Then I'll age you until you're a decrepit feeb who can't move."
He spit his cigarette out into Vernal's face. Or at least he hoped he did. Couldn't see.
MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
"You vile bitch! Give it back! GIVE ME BACK MY EYE!!!"
As Vernal closed the distance and tried to swat the gun out of his hand, he reached out and grabbed ahold of her by the neck. The mist seeping from his palm as he glared daggers at the ex-bandit. Even if he couldn't see her face. Due to the proximity to his mist, Vernal would have found herself growing weaker...frailer...older as the seconds clicked on by.
"...I'm not a vindictive man. We didn't get orders to kill. I'll let you walk away from this if you give me my sight back."
His grip grew tighter.
"If not....Then I'll age you until you're a decrepit feeb who can't move."
He spit his cigarette out into Vernal's face. Or at least he hoped he did. Couldn't see.
"--Ghkk!" It was a weird sort of choking grunt/grumble that escaped from her lips when he caught her by the neck. She wasn't sure if it was more the lingering effects of how drunk she'd been or the results of whatever this mist was doing, but she had been sluggish in trying to avoid that and it ended with his hand firmly around her throat. She threw the gun off to the side out of spiteful dismissal and--flinched away at the sudden burst of cigarette embers that got spat into her face. She grimaced, one hand shooting up to wipe it away, just as she did...exactly what he wished. Gradually his sight began to fade back into existence, light illuminating the dark to reveal her glaring angrily at him.
As well as her fist slamming into his nose with as hard a punch as she could manage, followed by an attempt to wrench herself out of his hopefully weakened grip. "Y-yeah, okay. We'll do it yer way. Better you see how bad I kick your fucking ass, huh?" Vernal growled.
As well as her fist slamming into his nose with as hard a punch as she could manage, followed by an attempt to wrench herself out of his hopefully weakened grip. "Y-yeah, okay. We'll do it yer way. Better you see how bad I kick your fucking ass, huh?" Vernal growled.
MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
It was a lengthy procedure, though it did not seem as such from her perspective thanks to the surgical anesthetic. She allowed it this time because she didn't want to be conscious for it. As soul-crushing as this was, that...just seemed like it would be extra icing on the humiliation cake. Being helped by someone that was ostensibly on the other side, or at least for the moment, just made it sting all the more. Here, you aren't a threat anymore, and I'm so indifferent to you that I'm going to give you an assist! Weiss didn't say all that in so many words, but it sure felt like that. And she didn't want to think about it. Nor did she wish to stay a single second longer than was necessary once she was back up. Damn near the very instant her eyes shot back open, she slid out of the bed. She was out of the room entirely shortly after, stepping through a portal once she had was sure she had all her things.
A portal that brought her once again...to her brother, wherever he was. He'd probably have called it clingy...or creeping...or cramping his style...or just plainly unwanted. Most definitely was sick of seeing her, if all their recent interactions between them were any indication...and she would have felt the same, in his shoes. But, the truth of the matter was...she simply didn't know where else to go.
"Qrow, I...before you go anywhere, I need to...need to..."
A portal that brought her once again...to her brother, wherever he was. He'd probably have called it clingy...or creeping...or cramping his style...or just plainly unwanted. Most definitely was sick of seeing her, if all their recent interactions between them were any indication...and she would have felt the same, in his shoes. But, the truth of the matter was...she simply didn't know where else to go.
"Qrow, I...before you go anywhere, I need to...need to..."
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
Mostly he was just used to it at this point, however unwillingly, and he paused his video game to swivel around in the only chair he had in the crappy Mantle studio/mancave he'd been staying in, facing her expectantly.
"Sup."
MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
She stared at him in the chair for a length of time that seemed to stretch out into eternity, though it was in actuality only a few seconds. There was just so many thoughts, so much she wanted to say that it felt so much longer than it truly was. The fact that he was playing some video game hardly seemed to register as she looked at him, the normally harsh crimson eye expressing a miserable look that was matched only by the softer light blue eye opposite it. "I...just came to tell you that...I'm done." She averted her gaze after that. "That there's nothing I can offer that the other, more perfect me can't equally offer. Or you, even. I'm...………………...weak. Always have been...even more so now. Figure that's as clear a sign as any...the world's making it clear that being better was never an option for me. That I don't deserve the chance to try. And well, message received, world. I'm listening now. So, in a sense...I guess I'm saying goodbye, again." She swallowed, eyes flickering back to him.
"I'm of no use to anybody anymore, not like she is. Not like you are." Her hand reached over to remove Omen's sheath from her side and let it clatter to the ground. The blade itself followed soon after, Raven staring at the familiar red for a second or two before she likewise tossed it to the ground like she didn't even care about it in the slightest anymore. "For a good while there, I actually believed. I dared to imagine that I could be more like her. That I can be of use to someone other than myself. But I can't. That's not in me. Won't be in the future. There's no reason for me to continue bothering, continue pretending." She looked down towards her weapon for a second before she turned around and rather than use a portal, stepped for the actual exit door out of here. She stopped right before it, though.
"Just...keep looking out for Yang, okay? That goes for yourself, too. Take care of yourself, good luck with trying to get us all back home...and...I'm sorry for not being strong enough. For whatever that sorry is worth." She stepped out once that last word was spoken, even though she had no idea where to go from here.
Not yet, at least.
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
"Listen, Raven."
He'd been expecting... something else. A whole lot of something elses, actually. More scolding. Another sermon about what a weak tool he was. One last attempt to try and stick with him, he didn't know. Something along those lines, but not this. This was... familiar was the word that came to mind, a thought that had some unfortunate feelings of his own rolling in his stomach by the time she was finished. It wasn't his time to express them, though. Whatever it was, he could tell it was serious.
He didn't ask how exactly it was that she was walking pretty normal again so soon, or what the hell was even happening with her eyes. Didn't seem like the right time. But he did stop her, a grip on her elbow that was steady without being too firm as he stared at the back of her head with one of those impenetrable looks of thoughtfulness that made it impossible to determine what his true feelings were.
"...I can tell it goes without saying at this point, but... the fact is, you got one hell of a long backlog of bad karma to pay off. You dug yourself a hole then lay in it for years, now you're trying to climb back out. The world was never going to make this easy on you."
The words weren't intended as harsh, and his delivery of them reflected as much, earnest and about as close to gentle as his gravelly tones could be.
"It was never about being as good as me, the other you, or Yang, or anybody. And while I still think an apology might've been a good place to start, it's not about dropping in on her outta nowhere 20 years after the fact to try make up all your crappy mom points when she's already way past the point of figuring out her life without you in it, either. That ship has sailed. That's just how it goes sometimes. Sucks, but hey. What doesn't?"
He gave an eye roll, hoping the slight attitude reminded her of who the sadsack in the family was supposed to be.
"All I ever wanted from you was to be better than who you were. To at least try. From what I can tell, you have been. Or... you gave it a shot, anyway. So that's something; if I asked too much of you too soon, then I guess it's on me. But the attempt in itself means I know you have it in you, and as long as you don't completely fall to pieces and start backsliding then I'm all for you taking some actual time to figure out what the best way forward is insteada just beating your head off an increasingly dense series of walls. Was sorta wondering when you were gonna figure it out, to be honest." He shrugged, letting her elbow fall through his fingers and glancing down at where she dropped Omen. He stooped over, picked it up, and moved to press it into her arms regardless of her intentions.
"Gonna have to insist you take this with, though. My apartment isn't a place to dump your garbage, first off, and whatever you might be going through... I'm not about to let you leave your best way of protecting yourself behind on my watch. My gut tells me you were gonna regret doing that soon as you pulled yourself together, anyway. I'll see ya around... and whatever it is you plan on doing with yourself from here, good luck. Don't screw it up this time."
He watched her leave assuming she still did so, and when the door shut gave a sigh so heavy his shoulders dropped before heading back over to his insanely demanding game. Stupid Christopher Robin.
MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
MyrtenRose
Knight of Rebellion
She didn't say anything back. She couldn't, for she genuinely had no idea what to even say. Where does one even start with that...? But that conflicted doubt nevertheless kept her too passive to really resist Qrow shoving the absolutely-not-garbage back into her arms. And then she was out the door all the same, still with no idea where to go from this point onward. Well, at least she had the time to figure that out at least.
Gus Gungus
One Thousand Club
Weeks passed. What the majority of characters had done in that time, fuck knows. Certainly not me. The time was largely one of preparation on the part of Ironwood's forces, keeping their movements low-key and their ears to the ground as the resistance network took the necessary steps for their best to enter consideration for the tournament. There was... a strange tension in the air, it had to be said. The still before a hurricane. The fizz of static on the air before a storm. Carnelian and the entire Atlesian fleet had been recalled, but efforts towards rooting out the resistance had actually been lessened, as if their focus was shifting elsewhere. Likewise, given their recent discussions active opposition of Weiss and Atlas on their end had diminished significantly in turn.
Something was coming, but it was difficult to say precisely what.
"—and it was ALL the pizza I had left!"
Cobalt finished their story enthusiastically, squinting their happy little robot smile as they led the pit applicants into their contact point. It was apparently a locale they frequented, though it was almost impossible to imagine someone with their sunny outlook fitting in here.
In simplest terms, the Ace of Spades was a shithole of the highest order. Where Mantle's seediest gangsters and lowlifes came to ogle the pole dancers, harass the serving girls, sniff powder in the bathrooms (some didn't even bother going to that length of discretion) and otherwise engage in their criminal affairs, which didn't make for the friendliest atmosphere or patrons. The sleazier among the latter were the types who were insatiable even with the dancers on full display, and every single member of the party's fairer sex who walked in found themselves unwilling recipients of some ugly leers from many of the crowded room's tables. They even reserved a few wolf whistles for the ones they liked most, and Yang and Winter in particular drew a chorus of cheers and cries of "GET ON STAGE!" from a smokier table towards the very back practically as soon as they came in view.
The eldest Schnee daughter mostly ignored it, but it would've been fair to say even someone with her confidence levels looked out of her element here given her upbringing as she bristled and quickened her pace to walk ahead, posture a bit stiffer. Her mental fatigue of late certainly didn't help. She was waiting impassively for them at the bar when Cobalt led the group up, immediately drawing a sharp cluck of the tongue from the woman serving.
"Tsk tsk. What the fuck, Cobalt? Are all your little minions even old enough to be in here?" She hissed, thought it wasn't the spiteful kind as she stared long and hard at the Rainarts in particular. Rather, it was almost encouraging, as if the woman got a jolt of adrenaline at the mere thought of them saying no.
Cobalt flapped a hand. "Oh, it ain't like that Margaret! Only reason this posse o'mine moseyed on down here's cuz of..."
"...The thing."
"..." She ignored that, turning to someone more likely to give a straight answer sometime soon than Cobalt and who looked less uncomfortable being here than Winter. "What the shit's that mean?"
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