RWBY: LIFE AND DEATH - CHAPTER 19

A month ago, I saved Cardin from an Ursa, and well… he promised not to bother me or other faunuses ever again, in a way I suppose I killed him with kindness by saving his life, though kindness or not, he got a very heavy punishing by Professor Glynda thanks to Pyrrha, cleaning the bathrooms for a semester, so all good. After that, the monotony of school came back.

Though not all was boring monotony, at times my team and I would hang with team RWBY, and that was always fun, especially when it came to little Ruby. Yang and Weiss were fun, Yang more than Weiss, but Ruby was adorably fun. She would spy on me every now and then, because she was sure I had a secret milk provider to help me grow, the entire thing was hilarious.

At times I would hear her whisper in the corners things like, “tell me your secrets, or my personal favorite, give me the secret nectar of the holy calcium!” the fact she was so innocent to some things, made those comments more hilarious than they had the right to be.

“Blake, I know you are there,” I muttered in a hush tone, smelling her fragrance coming out the window.

“Umber, we need to talk,” Blake replied from outside the window.

“Give me a second,” I sighed, putting the book I was reading under my bed. “So… what do you need?”

“Can we talk… face to face?” Blake replied.

“Fine,” I sighed, getting out of the bed, “Meet me at the fountain,” I added, before leaving the room.

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At the fountain, I found Blake standing beside a tree with a grimm expression covering her face, meaning this conversation we were about to have, was about the White Fang. “What is going on?” I asked.

Blake sighed, rubbing her ears with one hand, “The White Fang is moving,” I knew it.

“They always are, the question is… what do you want to do about it,” I asked.

“I need to stop them, and you know why…” Blake replied.

“I do,” I smiled, pulling her into a hug.

“Umber!” Blake protested.

“Count me in, after all… we ex criminals must stick together,” I smiled, ruffling her hair.

“Why the hug though,” Blake muttered with a chuckle, her head buried in my chest.

“I know you need one, like you know I need one,” I replied, images of Sienna flashing before my eyes, at this I shook my head, no time to think about that, at least not now.

“I know,” Blake chuckled, hugging me back, “Only we can understand this… right?” I knew her question had a deeper meaning, a second question under that… she was asking me if anyone else would understand our past, and in truth, I didn't know.

“Maybe, but at least we are not alone,” I grinned.

“The Ghost of the Faunus, and the Black Cat,” Blake smiled, a sad smile.

Breaking the hug, and feeling my chest wet from the tears Blake had apparently shed, I took a seat on the ground and asked, “What's the plan?”

“Nothing so far,” Blake replied, taking a seat beside me. “I have no idea when they are going to strike, or why… only that they will.”

“Well, I’ll keep an eye open,” I sighed.

“Do you think they will change,” Blake asked.

“The humans or the White Fang,” I asked.

“Both,” Blake replied.

Quite the question, not really sure I had the answer, “Maybe, Cardin promised not to bully anyone, and to respect the Faunus like equals… and so far I haven’t heard of him bullying anyone.”

“So there is a chance,” Blake chuckled.

“There is… as for the White Fang, well… the only way to change them is by destroying them completely, so that they can rebuild from the ashes a better organization, otherwise… this circle of hate will never stop.” I added.

“I thought the same,” Blake nodded, her tone sad and full of guilt.

“Don’t blame yourself for what happened,” I knew deep down she blamed herself for Adam, like I did with Sienna.

“Do you follow that advice?” Blake asked.

“No,” I answered.

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After that Blake and I started to hang out more and more, and every time our teammates asked why, we would make up things, like she was helping me with my homework, or I was helping her pick books, stuff like. We didn’t want them interfering in this, the White Fang not only was our problem, but it was dangerous, the path they had taken was one of darkness, and would not hesitate to go for the kill, especially Adam, and if any of them died because of our mistakes, Blake and I would never forget ourselves.

I was embarrassed to admit, in this short time I had come to care for my team, even though they know nothing of me, my past or my sins… I cared for them, just like Blake cared for her team.

“You were in the higher ups, when do you think they will strike?” Blake inquired, as we sat on the port drinking tea.

“Knowing Adam and Sienna like I do, I would say the Vytal Festival,” I replied, as it was the most logical date to strike, Adam and Sienna wanted attention, advertising, and a festival was just the place for it.

“That only makes things harder,” Blake sighed.

“Not necessarily,” I grinned, “To move such a big group of soldiers… they would need a big method of transportation, but the festival’s security is tight, meaning buses, taxis, or planes will be searched quite thoroughly… which leaves….”

“The port… they will come through the port…” Blake said, catching my train of thought, “Of course! The port’s security is considerably lower than in other areas…”

“But even then, they would need a good cover,” I sighed, “Maybe as port workers? Or inside a cargo,”

“Are all cargos subject to search,” Blake inquired.

“Not the Schnee ones, they… they are coming in the dust Schnee cargo,” I laughed, “the irony of that is too much…”

Blake chuckled, “Now that we know from where they come… what now?”

“We wait for them, and we strike,” I declared, “and don’t worry, if Adam comes… he’s mine,”

Blake looked at me, and with a soft tone said, “Thanks…” even now she was scared of him, and I couldn’t blame her.