Autumn Leaves: Just a Child 2 (Patreon)

Autumn Leaves

“I’m not entirely sure why she should be afforded another chance. Especially since the girl was right under her nose for the better part of a season.”

“I was out of mistral on your lead!”

“You spent all that time chasing ghosts, when the real one was right under your nose! Hehehe, ghosts! Get it? Because the last one killed herself!”

“I see no need to defend myself against a mad man.”

“Even when he’s right?”

“You…”

“Enough. All of you. The plan remains the same.”

Just a Child—Part 2

Ruby could only tug her hood lower as yet another reporter stepped in front of her. Her weak smile had faltered three minor news outlets ago.

“Miss Rose?” the man asked. “Miss Ruby Rose? Think you could spare a moment?” He already had his scroll and stylus at the ready. The sight filled Ruby with existential dread.

“I… uh, actually I’m running late?” she said.

“It will only be a minute I promise.”

Ruby kept walking “No really, my flight…” she started. Was it too much for even one of these people to just give up? Ruby didn’t even know that Vale had this many different reporters. “I need to get to the port.”

The man guffawed. Really there was no other word for his laughter echoed off the nearby buildings. “I’m sure a girl as fast as you won’t have any trouble getting there in time.”

I will if reporters keep getting in my way, Ruby thought. She wished she had the strength to say it out loud. Instead, she only hunched deeper into her cloak. “I… uh…”

“It’s only a few questions, I swear,” he said, smiling. “Everyone wants to know about this new sponsorship deal that’s up in the air. What are your thoughts on SDC’s offer?”

Ruby could only shiver.

“I, uh, well it was very, kind of them,” she managed. Somehow, the reporter had fallen in step beside her. Her last line of defense was quickly crumbling; Yang never said what to do after walking away! “I’ve been more focused on Beacon?”

“Not taking anything for granted I see,” the man said. “Surely after taking first place in the Mistral Regional, a simple entrance exam won’t pose much more challenge?”

“I—no it’s just that, I’m still wrapping my head around the whole sponsorships thing. Like, is it even something that happens to normal people? I don’t really know what to do about that so I’ve just been focusing on… stuff that I can actually work on.”

“Nothing you’d like to say on the terms of the deal? I’ve heard some rumors of course…”

Ruby held back another shiver, slightly increasing her pace. “Not… really? I mean—”

“Ruby! There you are!” For a moment, Ruby perked up, before she realized that she didn’t recognize the voice.

The reporter, on the other hand, very much did. “Miss Schnee!” he said. “You and Miss Rose are on good terms I see. You know, I was just asking her about your company’s sponsorship deal.”

“And I’m sure that if you contacted our publicity department, they could give you all the information you desire,” Weiss said. “Now if you’ll excuse us.”

Her hand closed around Ruby’s wrist like a vice, and for the moment she found herself caught between two great opposing forces. She felt like she was standing on the precipice of a momentous choice, between the man and his questions or Weiss and… whoever else may be in that Schnee Dust Company car idling on the street. It was something that might even define her future for years to come…

And then Weiss promptly took that decision out of Ruby’s hands as she pulled the younger girl into the car and shut the door behind her.

“To the sky port, please,” Weiss said to the chauffer. She gave a ‘look’ to the reporter through the tinted glass as the car pulled away. “Honestly, the nerve of those people.”

Ruby, for her part, only glanced around the car with thinly veiled relief when she didn’t see another person in the car. She still remembered when the SDC had approached her shortly after the tournament with their sponsorship deal, when ruby had still been riding high on her impossible victory.

At first the terms had sounded nice, plenty of dust, top of the line parts to upgrade her weapon, and lien to boot. But then the ‘exec’ had started talking about things like image rights and only buying from the SDC and about modifying her emblem and who does that?! It was the last thing she’d ever gotten from her mother and they told her that it ‘wasn’t good enough’. It killed any interest Ruby had in the partnership.

“…Weiss?” Ruby asked, cutting off the heiress’s rant about journalists. “Why are you here?” If anything, she thought the SDC would be less interested in her at the moment. 

“I’m heading to Beacon as well, of course,” Weiss said. Internally, Ruby blanched. These people knew her schedule too?

Weiss smiled charmingly, but then Weiss always seemed to smile charmingly. “I saw you on the sidewalk, so it seemed the appropriate response. We’re going to be classmates, and I’m sure we’d be excellent partners as well.”

“Oh,” Ruby said. “… is this about the sponsorship?”

Weiss blinked once. “What? No of course not! It’s simply that our styles are so complimentary. Dust users are always incredibly powerful, with the two of us together we’ll be the strongest pair at beacon.”

Ruby fought the urge to slump. She finally understood, dad always said that people would be after her for her body. Yang must have been lying when she made it sound like a good thing. 

“So this isn’t about the sponsorship?”

Weiss rolled her eyes. “If you feel the need to turn down an obviously beneficial partnership, I’m certainly not going to try and convince you otherwise” she said. 

Ruby felt the urge to ask what about the ‘partnership’ was so obviously beneficial, but she was more than a little afraid that Weiss would have an answer. 

“… Oh look, we’re at the port!” Ruby said. “Thanks for the ride!” She opened the car door as the vehicle rolled to a stop.

“And where are you going?” Weiss asked archly. As a huntress candidate herself, the heiress had no trouble keeping up with Ruby as they made their way into the building proper.

“Well… you know… I’m just meeting up with my sister.”

“You can introduce us then,” Weiss said. “I’m sure she’ll be happy to make my acquaintance.”

Ruby worried her lip. “Actually, we were thinking it would just be a family thing…before we’re all off at Beacon and busy all the time and stuff!”

Weiss raised an eyebrow. “You know, if I didn’t know any better. I’d say that you were trying to get rid of me. That’s almost rude, especially after I helped you with that reporter.”

“Wha—No!” Ruby started, waving her hands back and forth in alarm. “Nothing like that, it’s just, you know, family time?”

“I don’t see why you’re being so insistent about it.”

Ruby fought back the urge to slump. “Is it really so weird that I want to spend some time with my family…”

“It is if you’re excluding your future partner,” Weiss said.

“That wasn’t actually a question…” Ruby grumbled.

Weiss huffed. “Would it kill you to have a little more gratitude?” she said. “Or have you not noticed that no one has bothered you since we got here?”

“I—what does that have to do with anything?” 

“The SDC has a very clear policy in regards to reporters,” Weiss said. “The ‘professionals’ know what my response will be, and the amateurs are intimidated.”

Ruby blinked once, but when she glanced around she could easily tell that everyone in the building was giving her and Weiss plenty of space. She even saw a few cameras, but despite how much they’d hounded her this morning, not a single reporter came close enough to talk.

“This is the part where you thank me.”

“Uh… thanks?” Ruby said.

“So where is your sister anyway?”

“Well, she said she was going to be waiting by the gate.” Ruby shrugged. “You don’t have to meet my whole family or anything.”

“It hardly makes sense for me to wander off now. We’re taking the same airship.”

Ruby wondered why she wasn’t taking a personal airship, or why Weiss was in Vale before the start of the semester at all, instead of just flying down from Atlas directly. Still, Weiss would probably have a ‘good reason’ for that as well. With a small sigh, Ruby resigned herself to the older girl’s company.

They didn’t find Yang at the gate. 

“Running late, maybe?” 

Ruby shook her head. “She should have got here before me…” With a frown she pulled out her scroll, flicking over to Yang’s contact. 

“And who exactly are you?” Came Weiss’s voice. Ruby glanced up as she made the call, catching sight of Weiss standing between her and grey haired teenager that had come up out of the crowd. 

“Easy Ice Princess,” he said with a smirk. “I’m just a fan, you know?”

“I’m sure,” Weiss said, voice dripping with condescension. “We aren’t talking to any more reporters today, thank you.”

Ruby decided to make her call and let Weiss do the arguing for her this time around. After the scroll buzzed a few times Yang’s face popped up. “Ruby!” she said, “where the hell are you?”

Ruby blinked once at her sister’s red eyes. “Yang?” she started. As a little sister, Ruby knew it took more than a bit to get Yang’s semblance acting up like that. “I’m at the gate?”

“Huh? What do you mean, I was just following you.”

Ruby frowned, shaking her head. “I just got here.”

“That’s—”

Someone grabbed Ruby’s arm. She jerked to the side. “Hey!”

“Ruby? What’s wrong?”

Ruby’s head whipped around, trying to pull away from the grey haired teen. His grip felt like iron. 

Ruby saw a flash of silver, and suddenly she was free, backpedaling frantically over the smooth tiled floor. As she regained her balance, she notices that Weiss had placed the tip of her rapier on the teenager’s throat. 

A mutter swept through the crowd, which Weiss stoically ignored. “Ruffian,” she said. “Keep your grubby hands to yourself, if you please.” The cylinder in her hilt spun menacingly.

As she regained her balance Ruby saw something dark flash across the man’s face. Then he pasted on another smile. “C’mon, all I want is an autograph, Snow Angel.”

“Do not,” Weiss said, “call me that.”

“Look I even have the figurine,” he shot back. Ruby held back a wince as the teen held up one of the limited edition ‘Giant Slayer’ metal figures. At the time, they had sounded like a great idea, but the sight of her likeness clutched in this stranger’s hand made Ruby want to retch.

Ruby turned to the side. “Please, leave me alone,” she said.

From the corner of her eye she saw the teenager glance around, no doubt noticing the amount of attention they had drawn. “Wow, guess celebrities really are the same.” His easy smirk didn’t waver, even as he idly snapped the head off of the figurine. Ruby flinched as the two pieces fell to the ground.

With that parting remarked, he turned and slipped into the crowed, the first few rows of gawkers parting silently for him.

“What a complete…” Weiss started. 

“Rubes? You okay?” Yang asked over the scroll.

“I.” Ruby shook her head once, pushing down the hotness behind her eyes. “I’ll see you on the ship okay?”

“Uh, yeah. Okay,” Yang said. She put on one of her sunlight stealing grins, “Hey, walk it off! You’re a champ, sis!”

Ruby managed a small smile in reply.