Chapter 12: But we will part way for now.
~Sid’s POV~
Work was going smoothly that day at the Morning Sip, nothing much changing from the usual routine I was now accustomed too.
…
Except that someone was now not here working as a waitress, nor I expected to see Yang passing by today with some of her team.
I was fine, but still far from peachy as my mind couldn’t help but remember the grand topic that domineered from earlier that morning.
While the rescue attempt had been successful and Blake hadn’t suffered any major injuries during this ordeal, I ended up spending the few hours of rest before ‘waking up’ to think about some of the clues I had ignored until now.
With the pressing concern of a kidnapped Cat Faunus now dealt with, I was forced to face two distinct predicaments that certainly left a bitter and unnerving taste at the mere reminder.
The kidnappers hadn’t been from the White Fang, yet they had the uniforms and had contacts with the branch there to release the girl back to the group sited there.
Humans, there was no doubt those two weren’t Faunus and yet they had managed to avoid the disdain from the organization while also scoring some unknown favors with Vale Branch.
Knowing how aggressive the Fang had turned in the last few years, it had been a miracle that I had found Tukson so quickly and that the man had been so inclined to offer me some support in exchange of some explosive ‘I quit’ letter to his former work.
The man was no longer here in Vale, possibly having left the Kingdom altogether as his simple activity nearby the workplace had closed down without notice; the insignia left there detailing the selling of the building and the lack of books in the various shelves being more of a clear sign that he wasn’t there no longer.
Still, despite the overall victory gained the day before, I ended up making steps towards a slightly unpleasant but much-needed decision to avoid any further issues with those mysterious stalkers.
Blake had lashed out verbally at the mere request of returning back to Beacon, the Faunus actually snarling and close to hiss at me for even suggesting such a ‘horrible’ proposition to her.
From a normal standpoint, it was clear that she was taken off-guard by the sudden demand that I had forwarded with little explanation, yet there was some solid reasoning behind this choice.
Whoever had kidnapped here was still on the loose and… the two thugs weren’t the mastermind.
They were too uncoordinated with each other to be actually the brain behind such a complicated hit-&-run and I wasn’t stupid enough to not consider the presence of a third, or even an entire group behind them.
Someone that knew about me, enough to leave me right by the entrance of my workplace to give some sort of sign or… something like that;
Someone that knew about Blake, enough to know that this guy, Adam, wanted to bring her back to the White Fang;
Someone that… knew about Cinder.
This last detail was worrying me to no end as my sister had been cautious with her actions in the last few years, careful as to not get noticed by our father’s contacts spread all across Remnant.
To think that some group was onto us and knew so much about my life was… terrifying.
I knew little of this spies and they knew too much about us, this was dangerous for numerous reasons and I was quick to tell Marcus to keep an eye around for himself and his family.
If they had gone as far as to trace up the Tremaine family just for Blake, then Gods know how far they have gotten with those around us.
So when I considered the overall predicament at hand and pondered over the chances of keeping an eye out for everything… I ended up developing a simple, quite-disgruntling but effective plan.
Ozpin was mysterious, yes, and Blake had been adamant to not wanting to return to her team more as a mean to avoid dealing with Weiss, but if I had to pick between safety and discomfort, I think the choice would be clear as a cloudless sky.
The initial attempts to convince the girl to leave the flat and return to Beacon failed miserably when the Belladonna started to shout and scream, almost showing the cat-like behavior in retaliating at any approach towards her.
She didn’t want to go to Beacon, ‘not yet’ she would repeat so stubbornly and so lying, but in the end the escalation culminated with my own shouts.
I was calm and I was understanding her explosive reaction to all of this, yet I couldn’t just stay put and let her walk me over this matter. Especially if the topic was about her well-being of all things.
There was some hesitation from both sides, then some reconciliation of sort as the girl tried to make it clear that she would have been more attentive for any attempt and apologizing by saying it was her fault that what had happened last night… happened.
A quick-paced, soft-spoken approach from the girl that was curbed by a loud sigh coming from me as I provided a swift logical answer to what drove me to go for this incredible request.
There was surprise, there was silence and then there was quiet thinking from the Cat Faunus, the young woman thinking well about the motivations I was giving her.
Some questions popped out here and there about how then the situation would change for us, like ‘would she be fired by her current work?’ or ‘was she allowed to visit once in a while when she could?’ to which I replied the best possible with how I knew things were going.
It was best to keep the visits to a bare minimum and her job would have to be switched to a weekend-only days, which would entail a lesser wage but also shorter shifts.
I was a little nervous about this last situation as I knew that Yang was surely going to continue frequenting the Morning Sip.
Her interest to the place not a secret as proclaimed numerous times by the blonde, and that would mean having to find a ‘smart reason’ to have Blake joining in the job without seeming like she was Bianca.
Speaking of ‘Bianca’, this topic was going to be another issue to face once people would start to ask about her departure and… Blake taking her role as some-sort of replacement.
But just like it had been difficult before, I knew I could come up with some convincing lies to mask the entire development given the proper time and thought.
I was once again subjected with some more refusals from Blake, the girl mentioning even going as far as to make use of her identity as ‘Bianca’ everywhere we went as to ‘fool’ those stalkers from believing she was still there.
I didn’t even need to tell her it was dumb, the girl catching herself moments after this proposition had left her lips by saying it was stupid and she even quickly apologized about it.
I didn’t blame her, my brain was still trying to make sense of space and time as it was still fairly early in the morning and we both got so little sleep that I was actually surprised that this serious conversation was holding so well in that moment.
A few more pleas to stay, buying the girl some time to plan something that could actually work while also avoiding dealing with her problems and… I had enough.
While I could see some legitimacy in her opposition, I could see some of her worst trait displaying in that very case and I couldn’t help but point it out.
It was a problem that she couldn’t just run away from.
Not this time, not again and… not without a true reason behind it.
Her back was leaning to the silent but strong wall made by duty and need, one that was all in favor of giving her a mean to protect herself 24/7.
Ozpin would still ask for details, but granting herself the sole responsibility for causing the deafening explosion of the night before would have been more than enough to give herself some alibi for the time being.
Only behaving ‘well’ and not rebelliously would give her the chance of getting any suspect off her shoulders.
The Cat Faunus was still hesitant in picking everything up and, once she had everything put inside a backpack I decided to ‘lend’ to her, the girl seemed to freeze by the entrance door, looking back as if waiting for something.
A snort left my lips as I slowly made an attempt to initiate a hug- only to be glomped by an incredibly tense Belladonna, her head softly hitting my chest as she sighed.
“I will visit later,” Blake said so resolutely and determinedly. “I want to watch again the trilogy of Ninja of Love.”
I frowned at that. “But you buy the popcorn, I will not accept full responsibility in watching that trash.”
This time it was her time to snort, leaning away from the embrace to show an annoyed look.
“It’s not trash,” The girl said so genuinely. “You just need some more re-watching.”
That sounded more like a brainwashing attempt than else, but I just nodded and waved at her as she took her leave, her frame disappearing while she walked away and I closed the door of the flat.
In that brief moment of quiet, in that single instance of silence… I felt incredibly tired and…
Cold.
It took me about five minutes to finally shake off this strange sensation, my mind shifting its attention back to the next issue of the day and that was going to work.
I was already late on my morning routine and my already sluggish body was having some trouble going to a pace faster than usual.
After a gesture of inhuman willpower and determination, I managed to reach the bar just in time to begin my shift punctually.
I had to explain some things to Marcus, like the warning over the ‘stalkers’ predicament and what had happened the night before during the pause, but I was granted some peace by the time the second half of the shift began.
Clients poured in, the same quantity as usual, yet I was quickly noticing the sudden lack of my ‘colleague’ as my pacing had to return back to its pre-Blake pattern.
Quite difficult considering I was still tired, but the owner was kind enough to help me around as a mean of not seeing me faint for real during the work hours.
Yet, just as I expected to face a perfectly-normal day in that place, I ended up dealing with quite the unusual client, someone that I hadn’t seen ever come here before.
Why was I so sure of this? Her appearance was just too unique for me to just forget so easily.
She was a petite young woman, her long hair was divided in pink and light-brown with a white streak over the pink side; her eyes were heterochromatic, with one being a soft-chocolate brown and the other being a pale pink.
The lady was wearing a white tail jacket with its interior and wide broad tail pink, under it a brown corset curved in the middle; she was also donning some black gloves, brown pants that ended in white boots with high heels.
She was waiting patiently, yet the strange attention directed at the menu gaining my interest as I approached her.
The young woman blinked and looked up, eyes showing some minor crave as she started to point at a specific spot in the menu, by the ice cream section.
It was in that moment that I noticed how short she was, even shorter than Blake’s team-leader, Ruby, and the girl had to be… 15 or 16.
Still, confused by the lack of vocal input, I merely glanced at the indicated spot and noticed the specific treat the client was alluding to.
“A cup of… Neopolitan ice cream?” I asked quietly, the girl nodding swiftly as I signed down the order as I went to prepare the cup.
While I was doing that, I noticed the young woman’s heterochromatic stare directed at me while I went through the usual process.
It wasn’t nothing too intense, but I did feel quite unnerved by being looked at by someone I was so sure that wasn’t just a civilian.
It was the small parasol folded by her side, something about its form just… feeling completely weird for such a simple and harmless thing.
I decided to ignore it, my mind quick to remind me that there were hunters passing by once every few months and maybe this one was one of those.
Maybe it was this whole idea that people were spying on me that was getting on my nerves, my paranoia needing some proper checking before I started to doubt everyone that just seemed ‘strange’ with their theme style and possible weaponry.
I returned to the woman in question with her order, serving her little plastic cup and tiny spoon so that she could already begin eating.
Just as I did so, I noticed that there was something already on the table, some coins that were equal to… how much the sweet treat costed.
I blinked while I slowly went to pick the Lien, turning my attention to the girl as she seemed to be enjoying the first bite.
She glanced at me momentarily to flash a happy smile before returning to her food, something that just left me… even more confused.
Was she a mute? I couldn’t certainly ask her like that and at a time like this, it would have been far too awkward and rude.
Instead of pressing more to satisfy my curiosity, I merely nodded at her and let a small smile appear on my own face. “You are welcome.”
The young woman paused just a moment, surprised by the reply but not giving a full reaction out as I turned around and walked back to the counter.
While I had expected this situation to defuse by the time she was done with her ice cream, so that my worries could be quietened by reality itself, one can imagine my little shock as the pink-brunette decided to spend the entire rest of the shift there.
She slowly went through her treat, careful enough to not make it too slow but also not fast enough to appear like she had no other reasons to stay in there.
In the end, she concluded by the time everyone was done and already gone and the bar was close to end its activity for the day.
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But what truly got me perplexed wasn’t this strange behavior.
It was how she disappeared mere moments after walking outside the main entrance of the building, leaving no trace as I went to check as to where she was going.
It was like I had offered some ice cream to a ghost.
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~Blake’s POV~
If there was something that was truly surprising her right now, it was the curious disposition of the hospital ward here at Beacon Academy.
This was the first time Blake had come to visit the place, the first time she had been needing to go in there for some check-up.
It was pretty big compared to a single hospital room, the massive place seemed to be ready to house the entirety of the student body with how many beds and medics deployed in this section of the campus.
But if she had to be honest, the most surprising bit was how the conversation with Ozpin had gone and how she had been sent here of all possible outcomes from that weird discussion.
She could remember taking the earliest airship that was meant to go to Beacon, pretty early considering that some third years students had long decided to live together by the capital and out of their assigned dorm-rooms.
It was an optional choice available to all teams that had a full cast of adults, thus their decision was recognized as an absolute action that didn’t require any parent’s authorization.
Quite efficient considering the cheaper prices and expenses for the single flaw of sharing the house with someone else.
Something that Blake was now well-experienced with after spending two weeks with the young human that had taken her in as a flat-mate.
Trials and tribulations had ensued and now she was back to the school that she had left not so long ago, her mind stormed by doubts and worries over the possible development for her.
To avoid creating any major issues with the headmaster, the Cat Faunus had been quick to call Ozpin in advance as to address the situation.
The man sounded surprised at first, confused even when she started to describe ‘what had happened in the last two weeks’, which was actually a little credible story born from Sid’s quipping over the important subject.
Blake had been kidnapped by the White Fang when she spotted a child Faunus donning the White Fang uniform running away from the docks and she had given it chase.
In the end, it all proved to be an ambush that got her captured and sent to their main headquarters in Vale… and then she proceeded to blow it up before escaping from the area.
It was a plausible supposition for a former saboteur like the Belladonna to know how to mess with explosive bars and thus the man had been quick to incline to believe that the loud explosion had been perpetrated by her.
She felt safer when Ozpin had told her that some more talks would be required before deciding over the matter and he was quick to point out that Ms. Goodwitch would have been waiting by the main heliport by the entrance to escort the girl to his office.
The airship landed after half an hour and, just like promised, she was quick to spot the deputy headmistress waiting by the entrance of the heliport.
The blonde looked partly-concerned, quite irritated and incredibly tired… almost like she was, which was an interesting feat considering that Blake just had two hours of sleep to get ready for this situation.
School wasn’t in session just yet, but their pace was swift and silent as they both rushed to reach the main elevator that led to the peak of the tallest tower in the academy, where Ozpin’s office was sited.
It was curious to see the usually stern teacher this calm, but maybe it wasn’t because of the tiredness. Maybe it was because, despite the massive mess she had ‘created’, the Belladonna was one of the quietest students in class with an undeniably good grades compared to many other hunters-in-training.
There was no song by the elevator, the quiet ride giving her an ambivalent sense of nervousness and relaxation, to which the final ‘ding’ that dignified that they had reached the last floor culminated this duality with some slight panic.
Ozpin was sitting by his holographic desk, the old man sparing her a glance as he nodded the two women to approach, gesturing at the Cat Faunus to take a seat by one of the two chairs in front of him.
“Ms. Belladonna,” He addressed with a calm and quiet tone. “It’s good to see that you have survived your capture with just a noticeable drain to your Aura and no worrying injuries. How do you feel?”
The Belladonna blinked and her stare fell to the steamy cup the headmaster was holding by the handle with his right hand.
“C-Could I have a cup of coffee?” She asked as politely as her tiredness could allow. “I-I… I’ve caught just an hour or two of sleep yesterday and-”
“Sure, there is no need to explain,” Ozpin said with a nod, standing out of his chair and slowly going for the lone coffee machine set on some furniture behind his chair.
The preparation was quick and the steamy little cup of the bitter beverage was in her hold quite suddenly.
It was instinctive as she lifted said cup and took just two sips from it, letting the liquid seep in her mind as she felt more energy coming from her body.
She blinked and slowly nodded. “Thank you.”
“You are welcome, Ms. Belladonna,” The headmaster replied. “But I think now we can focus a little more about the situation you have presented to me by your last call and...”
Blake took another sip, expecting this to be a breeze compared to her worried scenarios-
“How you have lied to us.” Ozpin finally proclaimed with an irritated voice, catching the Cat Faunus off-guard. Almost enough to spill out the coffee in her mouth.
Gulping down the drink was much more difficult, the panic urging her to gulp quickly and uncaring of the heat coming from the still hot stuff.
“W-What?”
It was Ms. Goodwitch to reply to that, a tired look present even now as she addressed the situation.
“While your whereabouts were a mystery to us all, we were able to discern where you were hiding by the second day you have gone missing,” The blonde stated calmly, if not irritated herself. “When Professor Port reported finding a young Cat Faunus that matched your description… working at one of the most frequented bars in Vale.”
...That was before she had been given her fake identity. It has to be.
But how did she miss seeing someone as portly as the old professor that had found her?
And while this was a good question, the one that best garnered her curiosity was a completely different one.
“B-But if you knew where I was, then why didn’t you-”
“Recover you back to safety at school?” Ozpin concluded for her, a hum forming by his throat as he pondered over the proper answer. “I can say it has to do with the peculiarity of the situation we found ourselves to deal with.”
“At first we thought that the owner of the bar was somehow blackmailing you to work for him,” Ms. Goodwitch pressed on. “So we spent some time trying to check and see if this theory was correct or not. In the end, we understand that there was no manipulation from his part.”
The girl’s eyes widened at that absurd supposition. Marcus Cobalt wasn’t, or at least didn’t behave, anything that she could consider untrustworthy and dangerous.
A simple man with a modest activity to keep up with the expenses of the family behind him.
So Blake nodded, quickly enough to confirm her decision. “H-he didn’t do such thing.”
“Yet you still didn’t return back to Beacon, even though you weren’t restrained from doing so,” The headmaster commented impartially. “You could have given an effort to return here, yet you decided to stay back in Vale.”
“For some curious reasons too,” The younger teacher commented as she went to open up an image on the holographic desk, the picture of someone familiar popping up to her sight.
The Belladonna paled a little, her panic rising once again.
“Sidur ‘Sid’ Tremaine,” Ozpin described. “Young man hailing from Mistral, his family is filled with unique individuals that warranted no little attention from the Kingdom and beyond. His father is a good friend of mine and… I did spare some words with him before addressing this issue.”
W-What? What was he talking about?
“Ms. Belladonna, this question might sound invasive or awkward to find an answer too, but I need a genuine reply to properly ascertain what I should do with this individual,” The old man warned carefully. “Did Mr. Tremaine tried to take advantage of you in any shape or form?”
…
…
“What?”
Ms. Goodwitch sighed. “Mr. Tremaine housed you until now, Ms. Belladonna. We have proof of it and the only thing we don’t know about is the reason behind such a predicament.”
“You mean like… that kind of ‘taking advantage’? I-” Blake blinked with her eyes wide open, there was just so much wrong in that statement.
Sid had barely touched her, the closest thing to contact being simple hugs she was guilty of having started herself.
She blinked again and shook her head. “H-He didn’t do such thing,” The Belladonna finally answered. “A-Actually the situation is mostly my fault. I caused the issue.”
“Elaborate please.”
A nod left her head, still nervous as she had to explain the ‘awkward’ beginning of that odd relationship.
“Mr. Tremaine had a… plant of cat nip in his house, the ventilation from within his flat pushing the scent of the plant outside and… I was incredibly drained from the battle by the docks,” The young woman stated, pausing momentarily as to fight back the little blush evolving from that memory. “W-When I entered inside, I ended up missing the scent and… I ended up too tired. There was a couch as I had entered the living room and-”
“You invaded someone’s house, Ms. Belladonna,” Ms. Goodwitch finally showed her known sternness. “Someone that, I guess, was pretty much irritated by such invasion.”
The girl gulped nervously. “H-He was. He wanted to call the police and… I might have cut his phone in the process and-”
“Not only you entered inside private property but you also damaged more of said property?” The headmaster blinked, more impressed at the escalation than embarrassed by such behavior. “Please continue.”
“I was initially ready to leave the flat but… I decided to return to it later that day, by nighttime-”
“And you spent the night there.” The teacher sighed tiredly, her hand on her face as she tried to hold back the headache coming from such a tale.
“He let you stay, didn’t he?” Ozpin asked curiously. “And maybe he wanted you to repay the damage you have created during such panicking moments.”
The girl nodded, but the deputy headmistress jumped at this.
“But still, to have you work at the same place he was… and just for a phone?” She looked skeptical and it was the old man that decided to press the issue.
“Ms. Belladonna, how did you… enter the flat?”
…
“I might have...” She gulped again, this time her stare was fixed away from both teachers. “Broken through a section of the ventilation by the roof… twice.”
…
“Mr. Tremaine has to have been your luckiest bet, Ms. Belladonna,” Ozpin admitted suddenly, warranting a quick glare from his deputy. “But I still think what you have done will warrant some punishment. The story you have forwarded will be used to address the public and your team, but I expect you to never miss any appointment of your detention.”
The Cat Faunus blinked and she slowly turned at Ms. Goodwitch. “Which is?”
“Therapy sessions, Ms. Belladonna,” The headmaster replied instead, drawing the girl’s confused look. “I will be taking control of such duty onto myself, I wish to unfold this case myself as this goes beyond mere school teaching.”
“W-What?”
“You will find me free by the time normal lessons are over by Monday, Wednesday and Friday,” The man continued while he ignored the Faunus’ question.
“And Glynda, please escort Ms. Belladonna to the infirmary,” He concluded while looking at the blonde. “I think she requires some rest and some check-up over her Aura levels.”
There was no space for protests as Blake was escorted out of the office and right to the curiously-immense room that was assigned to take care of people that needed medical help.
Sadly, said realm was overseen by a particularly-creepy individual.
A young woman, a Fox Faunus with a penchant for needles.
She looked like a normal person at first, but Tsune was by no mean normal, especially when she had been so stubborn in trying to administer some needles to the Cat Faunus for the sake of the ‘check-up’.
It was a simple look at her Aura levels, not a transfusion, and so her stubborn attack was rejected with equally if not stronger determination.
She wasn’t in the mood to deal with needles of all things, especially since her mind was having trouble understanding what she was supposed to do with Ozpin’s words.
Therapy? For her of all people?
Sure, the insane development that led to her strange relationship with Sid could be seen as concerning if not worrying to a fair degree, but Blake wasn’t in need of some therapist.
Especially if said therapist was some cryptic headmaster that seemed to require some sessions more than she did with the way he seemed so weary and tired all the times, even though he was continuously drinking coffee and walking outside his office, away from the peculiar stack of paperwork piling by the holographic desk.
Now that she was alone to her thoughts, Tsune having retreated to ‘play’ with some other poor student and with Ms. Goodwitch having to start her lessons, Blake couldn’t help but start to realize how difficult it was all going to be.
With Ozpin knowing about what had really happened in the last two weeks, it sure was going to take a while to ‘rebuilt’ whatever sense of trust the man had over her to not put her under surveillance 24/7.
And yet, despite being spared from continuing to deal with both teachers during this hopefully brief stay at the infirmary, Blake’s eyes ended up widening in immediate panic as she noticed three individuals approaching by the entrance.
Ruby was leading the little group, a nervous look on her face as her silver eyes found the Cat Faunus.
Next was Yang, the blonde blinking in surprise but seeming surprisingly relaxed compared to what she had expected her to be… but she still looked quite concerned herself.
Finally, amber eyes locked onto light-blue ones and… Blake frowned.
The Heiress of the SDC, which the Belladonna had thought to find enraged and ready to spark some new escalation with the newly-returned team-member.
Weiss’ posture was slightly slouched, quite uneasy-looking as she kept quiet while following behind the brawler.
The Schnee’s eyes… those were red and puffy. She had cried, gods know how long ago but it was evident to see some guilt plastered on expression.
What happened to her?