The morning sun was a brilliant orange, casting a warm glow over the rooftops of Vale. The sky was a vast, clear expanse, broken only by the swift shadow of an airship flying high overhead. Below, the city was slowly stirring to life, and on one quiet street, an old man was finishing a hopeful task. He was perched on a ladder, carefully fastening a new banner to the storefront of his shop, "FromDustTillDawn." Its bold, new letters declared the store was once again open for business, a sign of resilience after the recent troubles.
He let out a tired sigh of relief and began to climb down the ladder, but his foot slipped on a loose rung. He yelped, tumbling backward and bumping into a person on the sidewalk below. He braced for impact, but two quick hands caught his arms, steadying him.
He looked up to see a girl with short, vibrant green hair and matching clothes. She was smiling kindly. "Excuse me, I am so sorry," she said, her voice light and musical. A soft laugh escaped her lips. "I'm not really from around here, and I'm a bit lost." She helped him to his feet with an easy grace, and in the space of that brief contact, her free hand deftly lifted his wallet from his coat pocket.
Once he was steady, she showed him a small, crumpled piece of paper she pulled from her own pocket. "Would you mind helping me out?" she said, her green eyes wide and innocent. "I'm looking for the direction of this shop."
The old man, still a bit dazed, peered at the paper. "Mhm," was all he said, before pointing a weary finger down the street.
She thanked him with a bright smile and walked away, turning the corner and slipping into the shadows of a quiet alley. Leaning against a brick wall, his arms crossed over his chest, was a man with short, spiky gray hair and an equally gray and light blue outfit. He watched her approach, a wry smirk on his lips.
"I knew you were lost," he said, his voice a lazy taunt.
The girl stopped in front of him, her smile gone, replaced by a look of sheer annoyance. She pulled out the wallet she had just stolen and offered it to him. "Mercury," she said, her voice a low growl. "I will seriously pay you to shut up."
Mercury shook his head, his smirk widening. "That's not your money."
"But it could be yours," she snapped, a hint of desperation in her tone. "For five minutes of silence."
"Mmm... No deal," he said.
"Hmph. Fine," she said, a new idea striking her. She opened the wallet, pulled out the cash, and let the wallet fall to the ground, before continuing her walk.
"Whatever," Mercury laughed to himself as he shook his head before following her. "You know you want me."
They continued their walk through the bustling morning streets of Vale, the midday sun warming the back of their necks. Mercury dragged his feet with a dramatic sigh.
"So, how much farther?" he groaned, his voice laced with boredom.
"A few more blocks," she answered, without looking back at him.
He looked around at the towering buildings, the diverse crowd of Faunus and humans, and scoffed. "Oh, this place is so dull."
The girl finally stopped and turned to face him, a small smile on her face. "I kind of like it. Tall buildings, diverse culture, all kinds of people."
"And nice, dopey people who are easy to pickpocket," he said, the smug smirk returning to his face.
"That's every city," she said, her smile fading.
Mercury saw her annoyance and leaned in, his voice a mock whisper. "Ooh, Emerald! Master Thief! Please don't take my money! I barely have enough to get by!"
Emerald's face contorted into a furious glare, and she let out a low growl before turning and stomping away. Mercury just laughed, trotting to catch up with her. "You're no fun today," he teased.
After a few more moments, they found the shop they were looking for. It was a dusty, old building with a sign that read, "Tukson's Book Trade." The moment they stepped inside, a quiet hush fell over them, broken only by the soft thud of a closing door. The air smelled of aged paper and leather, and towering bookshelves, crammed with volumes from floor to ceiling, created a maze of knowledge.
Walking towards the desk, Emerald reached out and rang a small bell. Its crisp chime echoed through the silent store.
"Be right there!" a man's voice called from the back.
Minutes later, a man stepped out from the backroom, his arms laden with stacks of books that threatened to topple over. "Welcome to Tukson's Book Trade! Home to every book under the sun." He carefully set the books down on the counter and stood behind it, his eyes scanning the two of them. His cheerful expression faltered slightly, a flicker of suspicion in his eyes. He hesitated for a moment. "How may I help you?" he asked again, his voice now a little wary.
"Just browsing," Mercury answered with a nonchalant shrug.
"Actually," Emerald said, her voice dripping with fake politeness. "I was wondering, do you happen to have any copies of The Thief and the Butcher?"
The man's eyes narrowed just a fraction, but his voice remained professional. "Yes, we do."
"That's great!" Emerald said, her smile wide and bright.
"Would you... like a copy?" he asked, a hint of frustration now in his voice.
Emerald smiled, a slow, condescending grin. "No. Just wondering."
Mercury shut a book with a resounding thud, the noise echoing through the quiet aisles and making Tukson flinch. He put it back on the shelf with a careless shove.
"Oh! Oh! What about Violet'sGarden in paperback?" Emerald asked, her voice a little too sweet, her eyes scanning the endless rows of books.
"He's got it," Mercury said lazily, pulling a copy off the shelf and holding it up for her. "Hardback, too."
"Ooh, options are nice," she said, feigning delight.
Mercury flipped through the book with a bored look. "Ehh, no pictures," he said, before slamming the book shut and shoving it back onto the shelf. He then turned and called out to the man behind the counter. "Hey! Do you have any comics?"
"Near the front," Tukson answered, his voice a bit more strained than before.
"Oh! No, wait," Emerald said, her tone suddenly shifting to a crisp, cold focus. "What about ThirdCrusade?"
Tukson's composure broke completely. His hands tightened on the counter, and he looked away for a brief moment before turning back to them. His voice came out a bit shaky. "Umm... I... I don't believe we carry that one."
Mercury slammed another book shut with a loud bang that seemed to vibrate through the floor. "Oh," he said, the single word dripping with a chilling finality.
Emerald walked closer to the counter, her gaze unwavering. "What was this place called again?" she asked, the question feeling more like an accusation.
"Tukson's Book Trade," he answered, his eyes now narrowed, filled with suspicion and fear.
"And... you're Tukson?" she asked.
"That's right," he said, his voice a low, defensive growl.
"So then, I take it to believe that you're the one who came up with the catchphrase?" Emerald said, her smile returning, but it didn't reach her eyes.
Tukson let out a long, weary sigh, as if he knew what was coming. "Tukson's Book Trade; home to every book under the sun," he recited, his voice flat.
"Except The ThirdCrusade," Mercury pointed out, his tone utterly devoid of humor.
"It's... just a catchphrase," Tukson pleaded, a note of desperation in his voice.
"It's false advertising," Mercury declared, the words hanging in the air between them like a challenge. The game was over.
"You shouldn't make a promise you can't keep, Tukson," Emerald said, her voice now devoid of its false sweetness. It was a cold, venomous hiss that made the air in the shop feel heavy and dangerous.
Suddenly, a soft hum filled the air. Mercury, his smirk a sinister line on his face, looked down at his scroll. He casually tapped a few controls, and the blinds on every window in the shop began to lower, one by one. The vibrant morning light was slowly replaced by a suffocating, manufactured darkness.
Emerald took a step forward, her eyes narrowing. "I hear you're planning on leaving. Moving all the way to Vacuo." Her gaze was unwavering as she watched the color drain from his face. "Your brothers in the White Fang wouldn't be happy to hear that," she said, her voice now a low, chilling whisper. "And neither are we."
The last window went dark, plunging the store into a tense gloom. Tukson's eyes darted from Emerald's menacing smile to Mercury's unreadable, shadowy form.
"You know who we are, don't you?" Emerald asked, her question a cold formality.
"Yes," Tukson answered, his voice trembling just a bit.
"And you know why we're here?" she asked again, taking another step forward.
"Yes," he repeated, his hands clenching into fists on the counter.
Mercury walked forward, his footsteps silent, until he was standing beside Emerald. He looked at the trembling Faunus behind the counter, a look of lazy amusement in his eyes.
"So," Emerald said, her voice a cruel taunt. "Are you gonna fight back?"
A low growl rumbled in Tukson's chest. His eyes, once wide with fear, hardened with defiance. With a sudden lurch, he shot up, his hands twisting as his fingernails lengthened and hardened into razor-sharp claws. He leaped onto the counter, his cat-like features contorted into a snarl. "Yes!" he roared, a furious final act of defiance.
He lunged at Emerald, his claws swinging in a wide arc. She sidestepped with an almost bored grace, and Tukson, in mid-air, found himself hurtling directly toward Mercury. Tukson's eyes widened in sheer, helpless terror. A cruel smile spread across Mercury's face. He lifted his right leg in a practiced motion, and a loud bang ripped through the silence of the bookstore.
Moments later, Emerald and Mercury emerged from the darkened shop, stepping out into the bright sunlight as if nothing had happened. A casual glance at the storefront would have revealed nothing amiss. Mercury held a small, colorful comic book in his hand, a silly, childish item in the midst of their dark work.
"What's with that?" Emerald asked him, a hint of genuine confusion in her voice.
Mercury simply shrugged, flipping through the pages. "I like the pictures," he said. He closed the comic book, its cover a vibrant tableau of heroes and villains locked in a dramatic battle. Without another word, he walked off, leaving the silent, darkened bookstore behind.
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The cafeteria was a sea of noise, a chaotic symphony of clattering trays, murmured conversations, and the occasional burst of laughter. Yet, at a table in the corner, a pocket of silence had formed. Blake, her head bowed, was lost in her own world, sketching in her book of drawings. On the page, a familiar face with a wild smirk and a sword on his back stared up at her. Across from her, Ruby had her head slumped against the cool plastic of the table, utterly defeated by the nightmares that had plagued her all night.
A hand gently tapped Blake's shoulder, and she looked up to see Yang's sunny smile. "Whatcha doing?" Yang asked, her voice a calm contrast to the noise around them.
"Nothing. Just going over notes from last semester," Blake lied smoothly, closing her book and pushing it away.
Just then, a small green object soared through the air and landed perfectly in Yang's mouth. She chewed it with a satisfied grin. "Lame," she said, her voice muffled by the grape.
Blake looked in front of her to a table, to see a giggling Nora, her arm pulled back, ready to launch another projectile. Yang caught the second grape with an expert flick of her wrist and gave Nora a thumbs up.
Suddenly, a binder was slammed against the table with a loud thud. The jarring sound was enough to make Ruby's head snap up, her eyes wide and disoriented. "For fucks sake, Alex," Ruby grumbled, glaring at the figure in front of her. "Can you not?"
Alex simply smiled and shrugged, her gaze sweeping over the whole team. "Friends! Ruby," she said, her voice taking on a grandiose, formal tone. Ruby just rolled her eyes, leaning her head on her palm, a long-suffering look on her face.
"Is that my binder?" a sharp voice interjected. Weiss was staring at the object on the table, a suspicious scowl on her face. Alex immediately looked away, feigning innocence.
"Uh... no?" Alex said with a nervous smile before continuing her monologue. "Anyways, four score and seven minutes ago, I had a dream!"
Ruby leaned her head on her hand, a weary smirk on her face. "This ought to be good," she muttered.
Yang caught another grape from Nora, who was still giggling uncontrollably. Yang's attention returned to Alex, her expression now a mix of curiosity and amusement.
"A dream that one day, Ruby would come together and make this team her own," Alex said, looking directly at Ruby with a look of mock sincerity. "Which is always a hard thing, because she's never had a friend in her life, except for me, of course." She immediately felt a sharp jab in her ribs from Ruby. Alex winced and stared at her friend, rubbing the sore spot.
"Anyways," Alex continued, "I decided to make a binder, thanks to Yang stealing it from Weiss for me."
"Hey!" Weiss snapped, her arms crossing over her chest as she shot a cold glare at Yang, who made a point of not looking at her.
"A binder with fun activities for her and her team," Alex finished, a bright smile spreading across her face. Ruby, however, just looked away with a grumpy expression. "Hmph... I didn't need help. I could've done that myself."
Alex just rolled her eyes. "Oh really? Remind me of the last time I let you do anything fun, and you burned down the room they were keeping you isolated in?" Alex reminded her, a knowing smirk on her face.
"I... That was just a mishap!" Ruby interjected, a small, embarrassed blush rising on her cheeks. "They shouldn't have made that toy so flammable."
"Now then," Alex said, her voice cutting through the remaining tension in the cafeteria with an almost manic cheerfulness, "who's ready for the most fun anyone has ever had?"
"What are you talking about?" Blake asked, her arms crossed and her brow furrowed with confusion.
"I'm talking about kicking off the semester with a bang!" Alex declared, a wide smile on her face.
"I always kick my semester off with a Yang! Eh? Guys? Am I right?" Yang said, her smile wide and expecting.
A bright red apple sailed through the air, hitting Yang in the shoulder with a soft thud. "Boooo!" Nora's voice rang out from across the room, her infectious laughter following the projectile.
Ignoring the interruption, Alex continued, her voice full of earnest excitement. "Look guys, it's been a good two weeks, and between more exchange students arriving and the Vytal Festival tournament at the end of the year, our second semester is going to be great! But classes start back up tomorrow, which is why, I have taken the liberty to schedule a series of wonderful events for us today."
"I don't know whether to be proud or scared of what you have in store," Ruby said, her voice a mix of weary exhaustion and genuine curiosity. Across the room, Yang was on her feet, a sly grin on her face as she casually tossed an apple toward the Team JNPR side of the table.
"I don't know," Blake said, watching the exchange. "I think I might sit this one out."
"Sit out or not, I think however we spend this last day, we should do it as a team. We're stronger together," Weiss said, her voice filled with sincerity as she stood up.
"I got it!" Nora's voice bellowed, her eyes alight with a mischievous glint.
"I, for one, think that--" Weiss began, her hand raising in a gesture for dramatic effect. Yang's eyes widened in horror, and she quickly tried to stop Nora.
But it was too late. A pie, a magnificent concoction of whipped cream and fruit, flew through the air. It hit Weiss with a wet splat, the creamy filling caking her face and the fruit sliding down her cheeks.
Ruby giggled, a tiny, exhausted sound that was swallowed by the sudden silence. All of Team RWBY looked over at Team JNPR. Alex, however, seeing the escalating chaos, slowly began to back away, a look of pure, unadulterated terror on her face.
"Oh, boy... this isn't good," she whispered to herself before turning and running off to hide.
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Sun Wukong and a blue-haired guy were walking up to the entrance of the Beacon cafeteria, their footsteps a quiet rhythm on the stone path.
"Heh, man, that's harsh," the blue-haired guy said, a casual shrug of his shoulders.
Sun, however, was still buzzing with excitement, his hands gesticulating wildly as he recounted the previous night. "So then we were fighting, all three of us, side by side! And they were all so skilled and cool, especially Ruby! Who knew she had that much power in her?" Sun's smile was infectious. "And so I also threw a banana at the guy, which would sound gross but it was awesome!"
"Nice!" the guy beside him said, a slight grin on his face.
"Right? And the best part is, one of them is a Faunus!" Sun started, his voice a conspiratorial whisper. He then leaned in closer, his voice dropping even more. "But that's a secret, okay?" he said, his eyes wide and serious.
"Got it," the boy said, a look of reassurance on his face.
"I mean it! So don't say anything!" Sun insisted, the excitement from his story now replaced with a sudden wave of anxiousness.
"Whoa, chill out, man, okay?" the boy said, holding his hands up in a placating gesture. "I got it. I got it."
Sun let out a long breath. "You better. I just don't want to screw this up, you know." He ran a hand through his hair, his anxious gaze fixed on the cafeteria's windows. He didn't notice the strange, dark smudges appearing on the glass.
As they walked, a sudden splat of pudding smeared across one of the windows. Then a moment later, a half-eaten sandwich hit the glass with a soft thud. Just as the two of them stopped to look, a character was thrown against the window with a solid bang, their face a comical mask of panic before they slid to the ground.
Sun let out a bark of laughter, his earlier anxiety completely forgotten. "These people are the coolest! No offense to you guys," he said.
"None taken," the blue-haired guy said with a smile.
Sun's smile grew. "Okay, they're right in here. Be cool," he said, and the blue-haired guy just flashed him a confident smile in return.
"Dude," he said, a look of excitement now on his face.
Sun nodded. "Good point."
As they stepped through the doors, a wave of chaos hit them. Students were running past them in a panicked stampede, their bodies covered in food. One yelled, "Food fight!" while others shrieked and sprinted for the exit. Sun and the blue-haired guy stood in the middle of it all, a look of shocked amusement on their faces as they were swallowed by the chaos.
A makeshift fortress of overturned tables and stacked chairs loomed in the center of the cafeteria. On top of it, Team JNPR stood in a triumphant line, looking down on their opponents as if they had claimed a kingdom. Their eyes were narrowed in a mixture of mock solemnity and fierce competition.
Ruby, seeing the grand display, let out a theatrical sigh and stepped forward. "Justice will be swift!" she declared, her voice filled with mock heroism. "Justice will be painful!" She raised her arms wide, a dramatic flourish. "It will be delicious!"
A unified roar erupted from Team RWBY as they embraced her call to action.
The teams were launched into a chaotic food fight. A volley of food flew from Team JNPR's fort. The main projectiles, however, were two massive watermelons, sent hurtling toward them.
"Yang! Turkeys!" Ruby's voice rang out, her leadership on full display.
With a defiant yell, Yang charged forward. Her fists slammed into a turkey, a flash of her semblance making her hands glow. She used her hands like her own gauntlets, ready for the incoming watermelons. She didn't block them; she punched them away with explosive force, each one shattering into a messy shower of red and green goo.
Suddenly, Blake appeared in front of Yang, her movements as fluid and graceful as ever. In each hand, she held a long loaf of bread, which she gripped like her real swords. She swung the loaves in a perfect cross-pattern, slicing a watermelon cleanly in half.
Yang leaped over Blake, a powerful leap that sent her flying through the air, and she kicked a watermelon away from them with a powerful smash. She then turned and launched the turkeys she had punched earlier from her hands, sending them flying toward Team JNPR like feathered cannonballs.
Pyrrha, ever the graceful warrior, dodged one of the flying turkeys with an almost bored ease. She then grabbed a long loaf of bread herself, her hands taking a professional grip. Two of the turkeys were heading straight for another student, Jessica. Jess caught one with a gasp, but the other hit her squarely in the face with a comical splat.
Pyrrha jumped back as Blake ran forward, swinging her bread loaf at Pyrrha. The red-headed champion dodged the attack, a blur of motion before she sprinted toward Blake, swinging her own loaf of bread. Blake blocked it, the two bread loaves clashing in a soft, muffled thump. Their bread-on-bread fight was a graceful, choreographed ballet of mock violence.
Blake swung her loaf of bread toward Pyrrha's head, but Pyrrha ducked under it and aimed the top of her loaf at Blake's chest, who blocked it just in time. The two of them continued to fight, a duel of wits and bread.
As Pyrrha charged, Blake executed a flurry of elegant motions. She created a series of black and white clones, a ghostly procession of themselves, to dodge Pyrrha's relentless attacks. Pyrrha slammed her bread loaf into the last clone, sending it dissolving into a cloud of shadowy particles. With a snarl of frustration, she threw her own loaf of bread at Blake, but a powerful fist intercepted it. Yang appeared, she punched the bread loaf, turning it into a cloud of crumbs.
But Yang got hit by another bread loaf, the blow pushing her back a few feet as her team came under an intense assault. Dodging the rest of her teammates, Ruby was surfing on a food tray, weaving through the chaos like a pro surfer on a tidal wave of discarded food. She dodged a watermelon, a pie, and an apple as she closed in on Team JNPR. As she neared the fort, she launched into the air with the food tray, aiming it directly at Pyrrha. Pyrrha held up her arms to block the incoming hit, but the tray slammed into her with a surprising force, pushing her back and sending her tumbling to the ground.
With Pyrrha out of the way, Ren and Nora charged forward. Ren, in a move of pure grace, flipped over a table and grabbed two stalks of asparagus, using them as his new weapons. He kicked Ruby in the stomach, and she flew back, just as Weiss appeared. Using a bottle of ketchup, Weiss knelt down and shot the floor beneath Ren and Nora, the slippery red sauce pooling beneath their feet. Ren slipped and went down, but Nora jumped, grabbing a metal pole and snapping it off with a pop.
Nora landed back onto the ground and stabbed the metal pole into a watermelon, creating a perfect, makeshift hammer. She swung the weapon in a wide arc and was about to attack Weiss, but Ruby, in a blur of motion, jumped in front of her, taking the full brunt of the hit. The impact sent her flying backward, smashing into the fort.
Weiss, grabbing a swordfish from a nearby stand, used it as a weapon and charged at Nora, hitting her back with a series of quick, furious strikes. Nora swung her makeshift hammer at Weiss, the two of them exchanging blow for blow, the absurdity of their weapons adding a layer of hilarity to their duel. Nora then swung her hammer with a ferocious grunt, hitting Weiss with enough force that she was sent flying into a column. The column groaned, its foundation cracking as Weiss's body slammed into it, a fine layer of dust falling to the ground. The large column then began to fall, its weight a slow, deliberate force of destruction.
Ruby saw Weiss falling and, with her speed, she became a blur of motion, her body slicing through the air. With an outstretched arm, she caught her friend just moments before she hit the ground, the broken column falling harmlessly beside them.
"Weiss!" Ruby sighed, gently lowering her teammate to the floor. She looked at the chaos around her, a tired but determined smirk on her face. "This is ridiculous," she whispered to herself, but her eyes were already narrowed, assessing the battlefield.
Suddenly, a blur of motion went past her. It was Yang, who had recovered and grabbed two more turkeys. She let out a fierce battle cry and charged directly at Ren, who was just getting up. Ren, in his classic calm demeanor, intercepted her with a loaf of bread, and the two traded blows in a flurry of punches and food-based attacks. The fight was a blur of explosive force against serene precision until Yang landed a clean punch, sending Ren flying through a nearby table with a splintering crash.
A triumphant cry escaped Yang's lips, but she was interrupted by Nora, who appeared like a bolt of thunder. Nora swung her makeshift hammer with a ferocious grunt, hitting Yang with the full force of her semblance. Yang flew backward, a soaring projectile, and slammed through the cafeteria's ceiling with a loud smash, disappearing in a shower of plaster and debris.
Blake, seeing her teammate go down, gracefully jumped out of the way of the falling chunks of ceiling. She grabbed a long chain of sausages from a counter, using it like her signature ribbon. She swung the sausage-ribbon at Nora, the chain wrapping around her, and with a swift tug, she sent Nora flying back into a soda machine.
Nora hit the machine with a loud clang, but she was immediately back on her feet, a feral grin on her face. A single can of soda fell out of the machine, and she snatched it from the air, hurling it at Blake. The can exploded with a burst of carbonated fizz, causing Blake to jump back from the sticky mess.
From across the room, Pyrrha, who had gotten up after her earlier defeat, saw the fight. With a gesture, she used her semblance to levitate multiple soda cans, a shimmering constellation of metal. She aimed the cans at Blake, a controlled assault of projectiles. The cans slammed into Blake with surprising force, a chaotic pinging sound that sent her to the ground.
With all her teammates down, Ruby's eyes narrowed, her silver irises hardening with a cold, focused fury. She gently laid Weiss down in a protected spot behind a table and got into a running start.
Her speed was terrifying. In a flash of rose petals and a blur of motion, she sped up, running faster than the eye could see. A powerful gust of wind followed in her wake, sucking up every single soda can that Pyrrha had been using, turning the battlefield against the enemy.
All of Team JNPR saw Ruby coming, a fleeting glimpse of red, but it was too late. She ran past them in a single, impossible blur, the gust of wind from her speed picking them all up like they weighed nothing.
Ruby came to a sudden, screeching halt, her momentum causing the wall behind her to crack. The wave of air she had created sent Team JNPR slamming into the wall with a series of loud thumps. With a final, explosive leap, Ruby launched into the air, causing the gathered soda cans to fly toward Team JNPR like a deadly volley of projectiles, hitting them with a messy shower of food and soda.
Ruby landed back on the ground, a light thud of her feet on the floor. She looked at the scene, her team scattered and Team JNPR defeated, a quiet, satisfied smirk on her face.
Covered in a sticky, food-based ruin, Team JNPR lay defeated on the ground, groaning in a pile of soda and broken pastries.
"I love these guys," a voice said. Sun walked into the cafeteria with his new friend, their eyes wide with awe at the destruction.
A weary-looking Alex was right behind them, also covered in a coat of sticky food and soda. "I'm about to kill them," she said with a sigh. "When I said to have fun, I didn't mean to cause chaos."
Just then, the door to the cafeteria swung open with a loud bang, and Professor Goodwitch stormed in, her face a mask of furious disapproval. She didn't even acknowledge the three students standing by the door. Her eyes, magnified by her spectacles, scanned the scene of utter destruction, and a low, menacing growl rumbled in her throat. She raised her wand, and with a powerful wave of her arm, every single table, chair, and plate lifted into the air. The food splattered on the walls and floors was wiped away in a ghostly wash. She set them back into their original places with a series of loud thuds and clatters, the entire cafeteria magically restoring itself.
"Children," she said, putting her glasses back up with a finger, her voice strained with exasperation. "Please... do not play with your food."
The students, now humbled, all found their seats. Ruby walked up and sat on a restored table, a faint smirk still on her face. Weiss and Blake sat beside her, both with small smiles and suppressed laughter. Team JNPR, looking defeated, also took their seats.
Suddenly, a loud smash came from above, and Yang fell from the hole in the ceiling, landing squarely on a table and breaking it into two pieces. Blake helped Yang up, dusting a piece of plaster from her shoulder.
Goodwitch let out another growl, preparing to reprimand them again, but a gentle hand landed on her back. She stopped and turned to see Ozpin standing behind her, a small, knowing smile on his face.
"Let it go, Glynda," Ozpin said, his voice calm and reassuring.
"They're supposed to be the defenders of the world," Goodwitch stated, her frustration evident.
"And they will be," Ozpin answered, his eyes sweeping over the young students. "But right now... they're still just children. So why not let them play the part?" He turned and began to walk off, his cane a gentle tapping sound against the clean floor.
"After all," he said, his voice dropping to a quiet, bittersweet whisper, "it isn't a role they'll have forever."
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The air in the cavernous warehouse was thick with the scent of dust and stale metal. Rows of empty shipping containers stretched into the gloom, and a few disaffected White Fang members stood guard, their movements slow and lethargic. Into this vast, impersonal space walked Mercury and Emerald, their footsteps echoing with a crisp finality.
Roman Torchwick, ever the showman, ran a hand through his signature red hair and looked over his shoulder, a weary sigh escaping his lips. "Oh, look. She sent the kids again," he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "This is turning out just like the divorce." He strolled over to them, a forced smile on his face, and put his arms around their shoulders in a brief, condescending embrace. "Let me spare us all the awkwardness of you procreating," Emerald said, just as Roman let them go.
"That was a joke," Roman continued, pulling a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket with a flourish. "And this just might tell me where you two have been all day."
"What?" Emerald said, her brow furrowed in confusion. She reached down, her hands patting her empty pockets with a quick, desperate motion. "Hey!"
"I'm a professional, sweetheart. Pay attention, maybe you'll learn something," Roman said with a smirk, his eyes scanning the address written on the paper. He looked up, his smile gone. "Why do you have this address?" he asked, his voice hardening.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Emerald retorted, crossing her arms over her chest, a defiant look on her face.
"Yeah, I would. Now, where have you been all day?" Roman insisted, his patience wearing thin.
"Cleaning up your problems. One of them, at least," Mercury said, his tone flat and emotionless.
Roman scoffed. "I had that under control."
Mercury just rolled his eyes, a single, exasperated gesture. "Two packed bags and a ticket out of Vale says otherwise."
Roman's face hardened, his jaw tightening. He took a step forward, his voice a low growl. "Listen, you little punk, if it were up to me, I would take you and your little street-rat friend here and I would--"
"Do what, Roman?" a voice said, calm and cold, cutting him off.
Roman froze, his gaze darting upward. On a high platform, a woman in a red dress stood, her gaze fixed on them. Beside her, a shimmering, static-filled hologram of Dr. Merlot hovered. "Cinder... Why are you always popping up out of nowhere? With the doctor, no less," Roman said, crossing his arms and leaning back, a clear sign of his subordination.
"Cinder!" Emerald said with a bright, welcoming smile, her posture immediately straightening.
The platform descended, stopping with a soft hiss on the hangar floor. Cinder walked forward, her eyes narrowing as she looked at Emerald and Mercury. "I thought I also made it clear that you were to eliminate the would-be runaway," she said to Roman, her voice a low purr of contained fury.
"I was going to!" Roman insisted, gesturing wildly.
"When?" Dr. Merlot's voice was a disembodied, cold whisper that made Roman flinch.
Roman just growled, turning away from the group.
"He was going to escape to Vacuo. Mercury and I decided to take it upon ourselves to kill the rat," Emerald said, stepping forward.
"I think he was some sort of cat, actually," Mercury said, his voice flat.
"What? Like a puma?" Emerald asked, turning to him in confusion.
"Yeah, there you go," Mercury said, a small, knowing grin on his face.
The hologram of Dr. Merlot turned to Cinder, his arms crossed. His form flickered slightly.
Cinder's amber eyes blazed with anger. "Quiet. Did I not specifically instruct you two to keep your hands clean while in Vale?" she said, her voice now a sharp, dangerous edge.
Roman let out a small, quiet chuckle at Emerald and Mercury's predicament.
"I just thought--" Emerald began, a meek, stuttering excuse forming on her lips.
Cinder's voice was as sharp and cold as a shard of glass. "Don't think. Obey."
Emerald immediately fell silent. "Yes, ma'am. It won't happen again," she said, her head bowed in submission.
Cinder then turned her gaze to Roman, who was still chuckling at Emerald's quick surrender. She rolled her eyes, an uncharacteristic display of impatience. "And you," she said, her voice dropping to a low purr of menace. "Why wasn't this job done sooner?"
Roman's laughter died on his lips. He threw his arms wide, a grand gesture that encompassed the entire warehouse. "Look around, sweetheart! I've been a bit busy stealing every speck of Dust in the kingdom!" He gestured to the countless crates and vials, the sparkling piles of Dust that seemed to glow in the gloom.
"You're an inspiration to every punk with a ski-mask," Mercury drawled from behind him.
"Look around, kid," Roman retorted, ignoring the sarcasm. "I've got this town running scared. Police camping out at every corner. Dust prices through the roof. And we're sitting pretty in an old warehouse with more Dust crystals, vials, and rounds than we know what to do with. Speaking of which, if you guys wouldn't mind filling me in on your grand-master plan, it might actually make my next string of robberies go a little smoother."
Before Cinder could answer, the hologram of Dr. Merlot raised a translucent hand. "Roman, my boy, have a little faith. You'll know what you need when you need to know it." He paused, his form flickering. "Besides... we're done with Dust."
Roman's face twisted in confusion. "Okay... Then what now?" He looked from the Doctor to Cinder. "Does it have to do with the girl?" he asked, a hint of curiosity in his voice.
Dr. Merlot smiled. "In due time. For now, we're moving. Have the White Fang clear out this building. I'll send you details and coordinates tonight." The hologram flickered once more, a brief flash of static.
"Coordinates?" Roman asked, his mind racing.
"We're proceeding to Phase Two," Cinder answered, her voice a final, authoritative statement.
"What about the girl?" Roman asked, his eyes darting between the two leaders. Dr. Merlot looked to Cinder, a silent, knowing exchange passing between them.
"Cinder," the Doctor said, a light laugh echoing through the warehouse. "I believe it's time for school." The hologram flickered one last time before dissolving into nothingness.
A cruel smile stretched across Cinder's lips. She turned and walked away, her footsteps silent and purposeful. Emerald and Mercury followed without a word, a pair of obedient shadows at her back.
Roman was left alone in the vast warehouse. He let out a long, weary sigh and reached into his coat pocket for a cigar. He pulled it out, but as he patted his pockets for a lighter, a look of confusion spread across his face. He checked every pocket, his frustration growing with each empty pat. His eyes suddenly lit up with a mix of realization and anger as he looked up.
Standing a few feet away, with a mischievous smirk on her face, was Emerald. In her hand, she held his lighter. The small, chrome case clicked open, and a tiny flame flickered to life. She looked directly at him, stuck out her tongue in a final, childish act of defiance, and with a final click, she closed the lighter, plunging them into utter darkness.