Slam!

“Who do you work for, scumbag?!”

He scoffs.

“Tell us who yer’ boss is, numb nuts! Come on, spill the beans!”

“You better listen to him, shit for brains, he can get pretty ugly when he wants to.”

He turns to the second man. With a smirk, he scoffs again. The first man is not pleased.

“That’s it, bub, you wanna get ugly! I can get ugly! You’re gonna tell us who you work for whether you like it or not!”

As the police officer continues to scream aggressive demands at the suited, cuffed gentleman sitting at the table, the second turns to the large glass pane on the wall, shaking his head and shrugging. Behind the one-sided window, a blonde young woman lightly smacks her head against the glass and groans indignantly. Behind her, an older looking man stands, both hands atop his cane.

“Well, this seems to be getting us nowhere,” he says, sounding bored.

“Oh my god, ya’ think?” Yang pushes off the window and paces the hallway of the police station with hands on hips. “None of these guys are givin’ us anything good to work with. He’s like, what, the fourteenth guy we’ve brought in here today and what have we got to show for it? All these dudes Nora helped us find and not a one is of any use to us.” She stops her pacing and sends an annoyed, sideways glance to the interrogation room she and Ozpin stood outside of. “They are really not budging on this one…”

“My guess is that these men seem to be much more afraid of their employer than their captors.”

“That just pisses me off even more.”

“Yang,” Ozpin says with a tinge of warning.

“Oh, sorry. Mouth of a sailor.”

“Yes, I wonder where you get that from.”

Yang snorts at that. Her hand unconsciously reaches up to the yellow cuff on her right wrist and rubs it softly.

“They seem to be sharing your frustration.”

At Ozpin’s comment, Yang looks up into the interrogation room. Inside, the more abrasive of the two cops has just flipped the entire table. Just as he lungs at the suited criminal, the second cop steps in and grabs the angry man before he can do anything he’ll regret.

“Well, can’t say I blame the guy,” Yang comments.

“Yes, but hurting the fellow isn’t going to end well for anyone,” Ozpin responds.

“I wish we could rough him up a little. That ought to put a little fear in those suit pockets of his. I know what she did was wrong and all, but you’ve gotta admit, Ruby’s tactic really did get the job done.”

“Perhaps. But it was also a tactic that could have made it liable to put her behind bars.”

Not having a retort, Yang’s head dips low and her lips pokes out childishly. Her eyes refocus on the scene going on in the interrogation room. Right now, the second cop had the first in a corner as he chastised and tried to calm him down. The suited guy was in his chair looking like he was having the time of his life, chuckling away at the cop’s anger with his refusal to cooperate.

As Yang focused more on the criminal’s face, her’s starts to twist in wonder. A thought crosses her mind and she hones in on the cuffed man’s face more. The shape of his eyes, his slicked back hair, that revolting smirk, crooked teeth between his crusty lips; somehow, he actually looked familiar to the blonde.

“Hey. Ozzy,” she calls out the the older man.

“Hm?” he answers.

“You remember the day Ruby went out into that forest and that Grimm attacked? You know, the day she beat the brakes off of that one dude that was found unconscious in the warehouse?”

He nods. “I recall the day, yes.”

Yang points into the room directly at the man. “That him?”

Ozpin adjust his glasses on his nose and takes a closer look. “You know, I do believe that is the same person. How about that?”

At Ozpin’s reply, a cat-like, mischievous grin stretches across Yang’s lips, eyes narrowing in on her prey. Ozpin looks over and can’t help but to roll his eyes.

“Good lord, Yang, what are you planning now?”

“Do you think you can keep our stubborn friend here for a bit. I just got an idea.”

“Yang, is this something I’ll have to keep Glynda from finding out about?”

“I personally don’t think so, but lets just keep this under the rug anyway.” Without warning, Yang turns and begins to sprint down the hall.

“Yang! Where are you going?”

She turns back while running. “Just keep the jerk in the room for me! I’ve gotta go get someone real fast!”

As she turns a corner and disappears from site, Ozpin is left alone in the hallway. He palms his face, sighing. “The day Glynda asks me to come clean about everything, I might as well do so while digging my grave. Goodness…”

“Your mother’s a… decrepit old hag with no social life! Your sisters a… uh… lesbian! Hah! Yeah, your sister is a lesbian!”

“Dude, how is that even an insult? What are you talking about?”

“I don’t even know anymore! I just need to get this dirtbag talking! For god’s sake, just talk already!”

Twenty minutes this has been going on. He knows, he’s been keeping count. Ever since Yang left to do… whatever it is she’s going to do, Ozpin has been forced to listen to this ever-dwindling interrogation. By now, it was less of an interrogation and more of a plea of desperation from the two cops in the room with the suited man. As in, they were, quite literally, begging with the criminal to give them answers.

Vale City’s finest indeed…

Ozpin had his head leaning on the one sided glass pane, eyes closed as he tried (and failed) to drown out the endless insults and back and forwards between the two men in the room. Ozpin had always considered himself a man of great patience, but this was pushing it.

“Your underwear smells like booty and corn syrup!”

Really pushing it…

“Ozzy! I’ve returned!”

He sighs in relief at hearing Yang’s voice. “Oh good, you’re back. Now, Yang, why exactly did you have me hold this criminal in here for so lo…?”

Before he finishes what he was saying, Ozpin turns to the direction of Yang’s voice to look at her, only to have his words forgotten when he fully looks up, a deadpan expression on his face.

Yang stood before headmaster Ozpin, smiling as usual. Significantly shorter than the blonde in stature, a familiar, mild mannered redhead stood before him as well, hood pulled over her head as she looked up at him. Yang had her hands on both her shoulders.

Ruby waves. “Hi, Mr. Ozpin…”

Ozpin continues to stare, his expression unreadable. Rather than say anything, he simply wags his figure over at Yang, motioning for her to approach him. Rubbing Ruby’s head, the blonde moves around her and walks forward, stopping in front of Ozpin. Still not saying a word, he extends his hand out to Ruby. Yang catches what he’s trying to say.

“I’m gonna use her to get some answers out of our man in black in there.”

He continues to point at Ruby, emphasizing it more.

“Relax, I’m not gonna have her beat him up again. I just need him to know that she’s in the vicinity.”

This time, his hand drops to the side, then he lifts them both in a “why?” gesture.

“Look, you just gotta trust me on this. I can promise that this guy remembers exactly who she is and the moment he recognizers her, we’ll have him in the palm of our hands. I’m not gonna do anything bad, I promise. Now, are you gonna let me work, or what?”

He stares at Yang. She looks back with a smirk. This time, his eyes roll to the heavens and his hand comes up to his forehead, rubbing. He rolls his other hand in a “proceed” manner.

Yang nods. “Thank you very much. Come here, Ruby. This is what I’m gonna need you to do for me.”

Inside the room, things are going just about as well as expected, the first cop still slinging out childish insults, his partner about to fall asleep in his chair. On the other side of the table, the man who was supposed to be getting interrogated looks just as bored as the partner, staring on with half opened eyes, head drooping to one side.

Things are interrupted, however, when the door to the room pops open and Yang sticks her head in.

“Alright, take five, you two. I got it from here.”

The partner lands his head on the back of the seat he sat in, groaning. “Oh, thank god…”

“Aw, come on!” the yelling cop says. “I had this guy on the ropes!”

“Uh-huh, I’m sure you did.” She looks at the suited man. “You. Let’s chat.”

He raises a brow at her. “Okay, then. Speak your mind, blondie.”

“No-No, not here. Let’s say you and me take a little walk.”

She fully enters the room and makes a B-Line for the man, he looking taken off guard by her sudden action. When Yang reaches him, she grabs on to the hem of his shirt and pulls him out of his seat with almost no effort.

“H-Hey! What gives?!” he yells. She drags him out of the room by his arm. Walking across the hall from the room they exit from, she slams him, face first, into another glass pane. “What kind of walk was that?!”

“Shush,” she says. “So, let’s be honest here. We’re not really gettin’ anywhere with you like this. So, I think it’s time we try something a little different, don’t you?”

He laughs. “Do what you want, girly. Nothin’ you can do is gonna make me yap. I ain’t sayin’ nothin’.”

“You keep saying saying that, but I’m fully convinced of the opposite. You haven’t seen my ace in the hole yet. Hmm. Actually, you might have. Though, you might not really ‘remember’, per say, seeing as how she smashed your faced in the last time you two met.”

At this, his smirk drops and a suspicious look covers his face. “What are you talking about?”

It is Yang who smirks now. “Oh, I think you know exactly what I’m talkin’ about…”

With that, she reaches a hand forward and taps on the glass a few times. At the signal, the two blinders in front of the glass begin to slide open, slowly revealing what was inside the room.

His eyes slowly widen. The silva in his mouth runs dry, his throat reflecting it. Sweat begins to form all over his body as if the heat was suddenly amped up. His bones rattled as his body shook all over, a sudden fear spreading up his spine. Inside the room he was forced to peer into, his ultimate fear sat. The memories of how he received his many injuries began to seep back into his mind. He found that his ribs began to hurt all over again as if… its handy work had only recently occurred.

It paid him no heed… But he knew… He knew it was plotting to have its way with him again. The fear of confrontation overtook him. The pain of his injuries engulfed him. The memories of his torment drowned his mind. All of it originating from one source… One horrible source…

There, in the room, sitting across the table, Ruby sat, taking a strawberry from the bowl in front of her and inserting it into her mouth, an absolute innocent look on her face as she enjoyed the delicacy. Once finished with her strawberry, she takes up a glass of milk with both hand and sips from it, wiping her mouth of the stray droplets.

Horrifying.

The man opens his mouth wide and screams. “AHHHHHHHHHHH-“

Inside the room itself, Ruby continues to munch on a strawberry, blissfully unaware of the screaming man just outside the room. She pauses in eating and looks up toward the one-sided window as a knocking sound comes from it. She tilts her head.

“What was that?”

Beside her, he too eating strawberries, Ozpin looks up to the window with disinterest and shrugs. “I’m sure it was nothing.” He then takes another strawberry from the bowl.

Ruby chooses to ignore the sound and go back to eating her snack. “So, how come we’re eating strawberries in here?”

Ozpin, without looking up at Ruby, shakes his head. “Your sister is strange. I choose not to question her much these days.” Ruby shrugs in agreement, taking another strawberry. Ozpin looks to Ruby as she eats. “You like them?”

She looks up at him with a small smile, nodding. He smiles.

“That’s good to hear.” And he throws a strawberry in his mouth.

“-HHHHHH! No! Keep her away from me! Keep that freak as far away from me as possible!”

Yang laughs out loud. “Now we got a response! Looks like you and little red in there have a bit of a history!”

“That little demon can’t be human! You are not gonna make me go anywhere near that thing! She’ll rip my damn spine out of my back! She’s out of her freakin’ mind!”

“Yeah, that would be pretty bad, wouldn’t it? So, tell you what. How’s about you help me help you! You tell me what I need to know and I won’t feed you to the ‘demon from down under’ in there! Now, who’s your boss? Who is Conman?”

“Aw, come on! I can’t tell you anything about that!”

“Really? That’s too bad. Guess we’ll just have to let the demon in there beat it out of you then, won’t we?”

“No-No-No, wait! I mean, I literally can’t tell you anything! I don’t know squat about that guy, I just do what I’m told and I get paid for it! That’s it!”

“That’s not really gonna cut it, man! Gonna need more if I’m expected to keep you from getting mauled!”

“Hang on, just…! I… I can’t tell you anything about Conman…! B-But I can give you the next best thing!”

Yang lifts a brow. “I’m listenin’.”

He grunts under hang’s hold. “Conman is just the guy who tells us what to do. But he ain’t our boss. The real guy we work for is a man named Hei Xiong! Most people just call him Junior, though! Runs his own club! I can’t tell you anything having to do with Conman, but maybe he can! That’s all I’ve got! Really!”

“You sure about that? Maybe we should throw you to little red in there and make sure we’ve really squeezed you dry-“

“No-No-No-No-No, wait-wait, please! I swear, that’s all got! Dance club downtown, always bumpin’, people waiting in lines all time! I swear that’s all I’ve got to give you! Ya’ gotta believe me!”

“You sure you’re telling me the truth? Because, if you aren’t, I’m giving you to the demon. And look at that face. Does that really look like the face of someone who’s familiar with forgiveness?”

The man does as he is told and looks in at the redhead.

She raises a strawberry up to her mouth and accidentally drops it to the floor. Looking distressed, she bends down and goes to to pick up. Recovering it, she raises back up and places the strawberry down on the table, going for a cleaner one out of the bowl.

The man hyperventilates at the sight.

“I’m not lying to you!” he says. “I swear I’m not! You can go down and see for yourself! Just look for a guy named Junior, he’s the club owner! Ask him!”

Yang considers things for a moment, looking down in thought. After a moment, she begins to smile again, letting go of the man’s arm, still holding his head to the glass. “Alright. I think I’ve got what I need.”

She swings the man to the side, pushing him to the two cops, who take the man by the arms.

“Let me give you fair warning, pal. If I go down to this club and find out you’ve been wasting my time, we’re gonna be right back here before you can shit yourself. And next time, I’m just gonna skip the formalities and throw you into the ring with my girl in there, see how she deals you with ya’. We clear?”

He nods vigorously. “I got-I got it! Just please don’t let that thing near me.”

Yang addresses the two cops. “Take him back. But keep him on standby. I might not be done with him just yet.”

The cops nod. With that, they begin to haul off the man.

“You’re all psychopaths, I tell you,” the man says. “That thing in there is not human!”

“Ah, put a sock in it, ya’ mook,” one of the cops says.

Yang snorts then turns to the room door, opening it. Poking her head in, she says, “All done. We’ve got what we need.”

Ozpin looks up to Yang. “Oh good. That was quicker than I expected.”

“Is… that it?” Ruby asks.

Yang fully opens the door and leans her back on the frame, arms crossed. “Yep. Ya’ did good, sis.”

“Oh, great… what did I do?”

“Don’t worry about it. Why don’t you head on home. I’ll see you later, okay?”

“Oh. Okay then.” As Ruby lifts herself from the seat, she prepares to walk toward the door. Before she does, however, she looks back to the bowl of strawberries and takes one up.

“You can take the bowl, Ruby. It’s fine,” Ozpin says.

Ruby looks to him and smiles. She picks up the bowl and pops one of the strawberries into her mouth. “Thank you.”

Ozpin simply nods. Ruby continues her walk to the door.

“I’ll be right behind you.” Yang says. As Ruby passes by, she takes a strawberry out of the bowl and throws it into her mouth. “Got a few other things to finish taking care of. See you in a bit, ‘kay?”

Ruby nods. “‘Kay.”

“Gimme a kiss.”

Ruby stands to her tiptoes and pecks Yang on the lips. Right after, she walks past her older sister and down the hall, heading home with her bowl of strawberries. Yang turns back to the room to see Ozpin rise from his seat, using his cane as leverage.

“Did he tell you anything useful?” Ozpin asks.

Yang scoffs. “Squealed like a pig. Downtown dance club; some guy named Junior owns it. Says I can get some answers from him. I actually know the place. I’ve been there before.”

“You don’t say.” Ozpin puts his hand on his chin in thought. “A dance club, huh…? Well, I suppose we can’t just barge in shooting for answers, especially without a warrant, or any sort of consent. We can’t even really be sure if what that man said was true, or not.”

“I think it’s safe to say he was being pretty honest with me on this one. Poor guy looked about ready to cry on the spot.”

“Yes, well, even so. We should play this one safe…”

Yang looks at Ozpin. “What’re you thinking?”

He sighs, rubbing the back of his neck, then gives Yang a look. “I’m thinking I let you off the leash.”

A large, sparkling smile stretches across Yang’s face.

“Now, Yang, I’m only doing this so we don’t have to send fifty+ officers down there. I only want you to get in, get some answers, and get out.”

“Now, Ozpin, you and I both know if this guy really is in line with Conman that he isn’t just gonna hand out answers. This is most likely gonna require a bit of a physical approach.”

He rubs his forehead. “Be that as it may… I’d much prefer if you not get into any fights. If you can somehow avoid it, could you not wreck this man’s club? We only want some information. Nothing else.”

“However…” Yang leads Ozpin on.

He sighs. “…However… if it comes down to it… you do what you feel is necessary…”

A huge smile on her lips, she mock-salutes. “Don’t worry, sir, your faithful Huntress in training is on the job! You can count on me!” With that, she turns and begins to walk away.

Ozpin shakes his head. “Yes, I’m sure I can…”

“Oh, wait, one more thing!” Yang turns back towards Ozpin. “Is it cool if I bring along a tourist?”

“For goodness sake, Yang, you can’t keep involving that girl in these sorts of messes.”

“Stop with all the moanin’ and groanin’, Ozzy, she’s cool with it! Besides, I think she’ll be able to help me with this little mission of mine. Come on, don’t you trust me? Let me do what I gotta do!”

“Yang, I…” She wiggles her brows at him. “…I sure hope you know what you’re doing…”

“Oh, trust me.” She turns and continues her walk, a smirk on her lips. “I got this…”

The crowd of entering and exiting citizens bustle around her, chatting amongst each other about various topics. She hears nothing they’re saying. Waitress and cashiers converse with customers, working to keep the constant flow of new arrivals satisfied and controlled. She pays attention to none of it. Life and time moves around her, constantly flowing, never pausing. She ignores it.

She simply stares down. Her yellow eyes are glued to an open notebook, not a word written on the current pages. Those same eyes are dulled and half open. Her cheek is mushed up as she leans her head on an arm atop the table. The black pen intertwined in her thin fingers hangs limp, threatening to fall from her grasp, just barely being kept from doing so.

It is obvious the woman’s mind is on other things at the moment. And, because of that, she is able to block out the multiple events going around her.

“…ake.”

A voice tries to force itself into her ears. She does not pay attention.

“…lake…”

The voice grows louder. Yet she continues to pay no mind.

“Blake.”

It is only now Blake Belladonna is able to snap out of the trance she found herself in, lifting her head with a start, her once dull eyes filling with color and life once again. The slipping pen proceeds to completely fall from her grip to the tiled floor.

Reconnecting herself with the outside world, the black haired woman looks across the coffee shop table at its other occupant, who looks into her eyes with a worried expression, her red sleeve covered hands between her legs, equally red hair hanging down over her face messily.

At the sight of the young girl, Blake realizes what has just happened.

“Oh… dear, I…” Grabbing her head, the woman shakes it. “I guess I must have blanked out for a second there. Were you saying something?”

Ruby shook her head. “Nothing important. I was talking about this new book I was reading, that’s all. I noticed you tuned me out in the middle of my review.”

Blake sighs. “I’m so sorry, Ruby.”

“It’s okay, Blake, I know. Everything alright?”

“Just got a lot of mind lately.”

“Wanna talk about it?”

Blake looks up and gives the redhead an appreciative smile. “It’s fine, Ruby. This isn’t the kind of the thing I’d want to involve you in.”

“You sure? You know you can talk to me about anything, Blake.”

“Really, I’ll be alright. Just a few small concerns, that’s all. But thank you anyway, Ruby.”

Ruby smiles at the older woman warmly.

Honk-Honk!

Blake and Ruby, as well as a few curious bystanders, turn to one of the coffee shop windows where the sound of a honking car horn came from. Just outside the shop, a dark gray truck is parked on the sidewalk. From the driver’s side, a familiar blonde haired figure exits the vehicle and walks around the front of the truck. Looking through the glass window with sunglass covered eyes, the shorthaired woman seems to meet Blake’s gaze. When she reaches the passenger side of the truck, she leans back on it with arms crossed under her breast, one legged propped up. Her head flicks in “What’s up?” manner.

Blake sighs at the sight. “Well, it would seem my ride is here.”

Ruby can be seen slightly pouting at that. “Aww…”

Blake turns to Ruby with a sympathetic grin. “Sorry, sweetie, I know today wasn’t the best session. I’ll make it up to you later on, okay? Promise.”

Ruby returns her own small, still somewhat disappointed smile and nods at the woman. With that, the two raise themselves up from the table they sat at and make their way to the coffee shop doors. Blake opens the door and holds it for Ruby, who ducks under her arm. The two girls walk for the truck. In front of it, the blonde spots them and begins to smile. She pushes herself off the truck and stands up straight to meet the girls.

“Yo!” Yang greets loudly.

“Hi, Yang,” Ruby greets back.

“I’m liking the ride,” Blake says, inspecting the truck. “Where’d you get this from?”

“I know a girl who’s boyfriend owed me a favor and he let me take this baby for a spin,” Yang says. “My darn bike’s still in the shop right now, so I improvised. Had to remind the boyfriend about that test I helped him pass to get him to cough up the keys.”

At this, Ruby perks up, tilting her head. “Wait, Yang, you wouldn’t happen to be talking about the guy that got kicked out of his dorm because his girlfriend found out he was cheating on her, would you.”

“Nah, that was Maurice. I already hit him up for that favor a while back.”

“The guy who got his clothes stolen out of the locker room, so he had to run around the campus stark naked for the world to see?”

“That was Todd, and he already repaid me, too.”

“Then it has to be that one weirdo I almost got in trouble for beating up, because he tried to touch you inappropriately.”

“Nope. In fact, I didn’t even try to get a favor out of him. The guy I’m talking about did have a hand in covering that douchebag’s dorm in lubricated condoms, though.”

“Oh… Okay, I was way off, then.”

The whole time the two sister conversed back and forward, Blake looked between the both of them with an utter look of confusion, completely lost as to what they were supposed to be talking about.

“…Alright, what’s up with these stories?” she asks.

Yang chuckles. “Add 'em to the list. Now come on, I might even tell you some of them on the way to the spot.”

“Where are you guys going?” Ruby asks.

“Blake and I decided to spend the day together and hang out.”

Ruby gasps. “Are you two going on…” Her voice quiets to a whisper for the last part. “A date…?”

At Ruby’s accusation, both Blake and Yang turn to the young girl with wide eyes, then look at each other. They then turn back to Ruby and answer.

“No,” Blake says.

“Yes,” Yang says with a smirk. Blake and Ruby both turn and give Yang a look. She simply chuckles. “Just messin’ with ya’, sis. Nah, Blake and I are just hangin’ out as friends. Gonna go hit the town for a while.”

“Oh. O-Okay…” Ruby says, still not looking entirely convinced.

As Blake opens the door to the truck and enters through the passenger side, Yang walks to the driver side. “I might be out a little later than usual, Rube. I put some dinner in the fridge for you so you’ll have something good to munch on. If you don’t want that, there’s also some lien on my dresser. You gonna be alright until I get back?”

Ruby nods. “I’ll deal. Have fun, Yang. Don’t get into too much trouble.”

“Noted.” With that, Yang slides into the truck and slams the door shut.

Ruby moves to the passenger door, Blake sliding down the window for her. “You and my sis have a good time, okay? Maybe this will help take your mind off things, you know?”

Blake smiles at Ruby and reaches her hand out, lightly pinching the young girl’s cheek, causing her to giggle. “I’ll see you around, Ruby.”

Ruby then leans in close to Blake’s ears and say (not very) quietly, “And, if at all possible, try to keep Yang from trashing someone’s spot, or something. She can be a bit stupid when not under constant supervision.”

“Hardy har har, ya’ little butt sniffer,” Yang responds, clearly hearing Ruby.

Ruby and Blake laugh and the redhead backs up from the window, allowing for Blake to roll it up. She looks through the window at Ruby and waves, the young girl waving back. The truck then begins to move forward as Yang leans her foot on the pedal. Soon enough, the sight of Ruby begins to disappear from Blake’s view. By the time Ruby had completely vanished, Blake’s face goes from amusement to a more somber expression as her eyes fall to the floor.

“Do you really think it was right to lie to her like that?” Blake asks.

“What the kid doesn’t know won’t hurt her,” Yang answers, her eyes kept on the road as she drives. “I’d rather her stay out of this job. I don’t think bringing up anything about what happened in that forest is gonna sit well with her. It’s for the best.”

Blake sighs, her gaze moving to look out the window. “Yeah… I think you’re right…”

Buildings and people pass by as the truck drives along. The roads they drive on are actually quite empty, something she actually noticed before. This part of the city rarely sees vehicular travel besides the occasional car or two, most residents preferring to walk due to the small town feel of the place. She herself didn’t mind that one bit and actually remembered that being a reason she liked where she lived so much.

As they rode along, the area started to become less and less familiar to her. She’d truly never been too far outside the general area of her residence, so this was quite the adventure for her, really. The yellow eyed woman never really had much of a reason to explore. She had everything she needed at her home and at the various stores in her general vicinity. In fact, before now, the farthest away she’d ever been from her house was when she visited the two sister’s apartment, which was located closer to where Beacon Academy was.

For the most part, the journey had been fairly quiet. After the small talk the two women exchanged once they first took to the road, Blake leaned her head on the window as Yang focused on driving. To be fair, the silence was her fault. She really wasn’t in the mood for small talk. Other things plagued her mind at the moment.

“Not too happy right now, huh?”

She averts her eyes from the passing city over to Yang, who keeps her eyes on the road after speaking. It was an out-of-nowhere question, but Blake knew exactly what Yang had been referring to, apparently being able to read the the black haired woman’s thoughts.

She turns her gaze back to the window.

“Guess that’s a big no,” Yang says. Blake gives no answer. “You know, it was subtle, but I knew the instant that you agreed to tag along that something was bothering you. Only way I can explain it, really.” Still nothing. “It’s this Conman guy, huh?” Yang shoots a quick glance Blake’s way. Blake doesn’t return it. “No… No it’s that other thing… Melody, right?”

It was brief. So brief that Yang could have easily missed it had she not been expecting it. However, from the corner of her eye, she can see Blake ever so slightly, flinch, the hand around her seatbelt tightening it’s grip.

“Can’t blame you. That was pretty horrible to hear about… You know, I got the gist from Weiss’ recounts on the situation a while back, but… asking Jaune and getting all the gory little details…” Yang shakes her head. “Man… I just wanted go find Ruby and smack the hell out of her for getting involved in something so dark. It’s no wonder those three try not to bring it up much. Poor little pup…”

Yang, once more, gauges Blake’s reaction on all of this. She can just barely see it, but Blake’s face had scrunched up and contorted into a very repressed grimace, her bottom lip being bitten.

“I can’t even imagine how you feel. Hearing about all of this, knowing about some slavery business and not being able to do much about it… Realizing your people are having to go through all this crap…”

Now Blake’s face unscrews into a more confused look, her death grip on her seatbelt loosening. She begins to turn to Yang to question what the women was talking about. However, before she can even get her first word out, she finds a gloved hand outstretched her way, grabbing on to the black bow atop of her head. Her eyes widen.

Zip!

With a little tug, Blake’s bow unravels and is taken by Yang. It happens so quick, it takes a moment for the black haired woman to fully register what was happening. However, the moment a cool breeze from the AC unit rolls by her ears, a look of horror spreads across her face, one uncommon for the woman.

Scrambling to cover herself, her hands shoot to her cat ears and tries to obscure them, she bending over to try and keep out of Yang’s sight. “Yang, what did you do?!” she screams at the blonde.

Yang inspects her prize. “Y’know, with how much you wear this thing, I was seriously starting to think this bow of yours was glued to your head.”

“Why would you do something like that?! Give it back, Yang!”

“Whoa-Whoa, chill, pussy cat. I was just playin’ with-“

“No, Yang! This is too far! What gives the right to do something like this?!”

Yang looks at Blake, now she herself looking taken aback by what Blake was yelling at her. “Now, hold up there, girly, just take it easy-“

“You have no right to take off my bow like that! I don’t go around showing the world your scars! You’ve always played and joked around, but this is crossing the line! Now stop being yourself for one goddamn second and give me back my-“

Skirt!

Blake’s body jerks to the side as the van suddenly lurches to the left, no prior warning given. Soon, it skids to halt at a sidewalk, causing the woman to lurch forward, almost hitting the dashboard of the van if not for her seatbelt getting in the way. A few people on the curb jump back in fear and surprise by how sudden the truck stopped on the sidewalk.

Getting her bearings, Blake shakes off the sudden action, holding her head with her hand. She turns to look at Yang, just about ready to curse her out for such reckless driving as well as other things. However, she soon loses her words when she sees the blonde slightly hunched over, both hands on the steering wheel, squeezing tight. Her purple eyes were shadowed by her bangs as they slowly turn to look into Blake’s yellow, nervous ones.

Without warning, Yang leans back in her seat, her piercing gaze never leaving Blake, and begins to unbutton her beige top, slowly revealing her dark undershirt. As she did this, Blake looked back and forward between Yang’s face and what she was doing with her top, completely unsure of what to expect. Soon, the buttons are all unfastened and she tears open the two sides. Then, grabbing the hem of her undershirt, she pulls it all the way up to the bottom of her breasts, revealing her abdomen, a large, red scar running across it.

Blake is at a lost at to what was happening right now, a nervous, somewhat horrified look passing over her features, the gruesome nature of the scar making her flinch.

“Yang…” she says with a shaky voice. Yang, however, responds with reaching out and taking the woman’s hand, shocking her. “Wait, Yang…! Stop! What’re you…?!” Blake puts up a fight, trying her best to pull back, only for Yang to overpower her. She is able to force Blake’s hand to her scar, making her touch and run her finger along it. Blake, at the contact, looks away horrified, still trying to pull her hand away. “Yang, why are you doing this?! Let me go!

The blonde glares on. “You feel that? Does’t feel good, does it?”

“Yang, please, stop it…!”

“No! I want you to feel it. I want you to feel a real scar! I want to you to know about something that’s really worth hiding. This is something to be ashamed of. This is something you put makeup on and never show anyone! This is something you never show yourself! But, ya’ know what, Blake? I flaunt them like they’re the best parts of me! I make my self look at them every. Single. Day! These are scars, Blake!”

She finally releases Blake from her hold, the black haired woman pulling her hand back quickly, facing away from the stronger woman. However, she finds herself being forced to look into Yang’s eyes when her face is grabbed by Yang’s two hands and turned towards her.

“These are not scars…”

Blake knows she is referring to her cat-like ears. She tries to move her gaze away, but Yang doesn’t let her.

“These are not something to be ashamed of. This is who you really are. This is who Blake Belladonna really is! You should be proud of your heritage, not hiding it from the world like it was some kind of deformity! This?” Yang points to her own face, a large gash running across it. “This is a deformity! To the world, this is something you should be ashamed of! But, you know what? Screw that! These scars of mine; these ‘deformities’? This is proof of the things I survived! This is proof that I’m still here! This is proof that I’m still alive! The world doesn’t know shit! They don’t know what the hell I’ve been through!”

Yang doesn’t say anything for a moment, instead taking large, deep breaths. Blake looks on, her gaze softening the more Yang vented. The blonde slowly starts to release Blake’s cheeks, instead caressing them now.

“Of all the people to hide this from… you thought I was one of them…? You really think I’m an any position to judge you…? After everything I’ve told you… After all the trust I put into you… And you still feel the need to hide yourself from me…” Yang snorts bitterly. “I’m sorry… Okay? That was rash of me… I took the initiative and I hurt you… But why did it take all of that to make you realize that you have nothing to hide from me…? Haven’t I done enough to earn your faith in me… even a little…?”

Now Yang looks up into Blake’s eyes, almost pleading for an answer, honestly looking as if she were hurt by this whole situation. Blake looks back, a sad gaze in her eyes. She could barely hold eye contact with Yang, somewhat looking away out of a newfound guilt riling in her chest. Her hand reaches up to Yang’s and cuffs it, pulling it down. She glances at the blondes fingers, rather than her face.

“…People hate us…” she begins. “Fauna die everyday because of that hatred… We are seen as the inferior species… nothing more than animals that need to be put in their place… I’ve seen it firsthand… I’ve felt it firsthand… And I’m scared… I’m scared of having to feel it again… I don’t want to be looked at like some sort of freak when I walk down the street… I don’t want to be treated differently because of the way I look… I don’t want to be judged by what I am… I want to be accepted for who I am…”

Yang’s hand still in her grip, she looks up at the blonde.

“I’m not hiding from you, Yang… I’m hiding from everyone who isn’t you…”

Yang stares into Blake’s eyes, her gaze hardening at Blake’s final words. Her thumbs run across Blake’s fingers gently.

“…Screw them…” she says. “If they don’t wanna accept you for who you are… then they can all go to Hell…” Her hand lifts and lands on Blake’s shoulder, moving to reach around and grab the back of her neck. “But… just know… you are not alone… Even if the world turns its back on you… I’ll still be by your side. What happened to that little Fauna pup is never going to happen to you… I swear on my life… As a Huntress… And…”

She hesitates for a second, unsure of it was the right time to say her next words. However, the memories of the time she and the cat Fauna have spent together the past few months replay in her mind. The freedom of being able to confide her true story to someone and get those feelings off her chest come back to her. The genuine joy she felt having someone to talk to made her smile. So, turning back to Blake, she finishes her sentiment.

“…As a friend…”

The pure shock of hearing Yang’s final words is fully shown on Blake’s face. Her eyes widen, her lips slightly parting. A small, restrained gasp resounds frothier throat. “A… friend…?”

Yang nods. “Yeah… A real one…”

“Yang… I… I consider you my friend as well…” This makes the blonde smile even brighter. Eventually, Blake can’t help but to return her own, it forcing itself onto her lips despite how hard she tried to hold it back.

Soon, however, the smile fades and Blake remembers what lead to this point. The declaration Yang just made replays in her mind and she closes her eyes, shaking her head. “I’m sorry, Yang… As much as I want to believe in you and those like you… What happened to Melody… is still happening to others… And I don’t think I’m ready to go against that yet… I’m not ready to take on that fear… Not now… Does that… make me a coward…?”

Yang sighs, a soft smile on her lips. She shakes her head. “Nah. Just makes you alive…” From her lap, she takes up the black bow she took from Blake and extends it out to her. “I get it… I do… But don’t be ashamed of who you are. One day… you won’t need this thing. I swear…”

Blake lifts her hand and slowly takes back her bow. “I hope so…”

With that, the two girls sit back in their seats, not saying anything, staring out the front window. It is Yang who breaks the silence. “I’m sorry…”

Blake breathes out through her nose, putting an elbow on the window sill and leaning her head in her hand. “It’s okay…”

Yang snorts. “That got a bit out of hand, huh?”

Blake shrugs. “Just a tad.”

The blonde turns and sends Blake a small smile. “We cool?” She sticks her fist out, waiting.

Blake returns a smile. “Yeah.” She reaches out and bumps her fist with Yang’s. “We’re cool.”

The two look at each other for a few seconds longer.

“Alright,” Yang says as she turns forward, shifting the gear into drive and putting her hands back on the steering wheel. The truck lurches forward and they begin to move, back on the road.

“For future reference, you should really learn to handle these kind of things with some delicacy,” Blake says. “Goes a long way.”

Yang laughs. “Delicacy. Not really my style, girly.”

Blake gives Yang a sideways look, smirking at the blonde, shaking her head in amusement.

Untz-Untz-Unzt-Unztz!

Well, this was definitely a club. If the loud, booming music wasn’t enough of a tipoff, the long line of people waiting to get in would probably be another big tipoff. And if even that didn’t do the trick, the two big burly dudes standing outside the entrance, managing the long line of people had to do it.

Whatever the case, she knew she’d found her place. At least, she better have if Mr. Piss-His-Pants’ info was correct.

She leaned on her arm on the windowsill of her side of the truck, eyes square on the loud club, hand over mouth. She’d been scoping out the place for about ten minutes now, having parked across the street from the building. While she did that, Blake sat patiently, waiting for Yang’s assessment on the situation.

And she waited… and waited… and waited… and-

“Okay, Yang, I’m pretty sure nothing’s changed since we first got here ten minutes ago,” Blake blurts out. “Why don’t we just go in there and do what we have to do?”

Yang sighs, then turns to the black haired woman. “Kitty cat, you have no tact on these kinds of things, do you?”

“What kind of tact do I need for walking into a club? We could just go in there, find our guy, smack him around a bit and be done before the sun even sets. Why are we spending so much time just scooping the place out?”

“Okay, when did the roles reverse here? That’s something I fully admit I’d say.”

“Yang,” Blake says sternly.

Yang puts her hands out to Blake. “Cool your jets, girly. First of all, I can’t be havin’ you all tense and at arms when we go in there. We don’t wanna tip off any alarms before we can even find this Junior guy. And, really, we aren’t here for a fight. We just wanna talk to this dude.”

Blake looks as if she wanted to retort. However, she holds herself back and huffs out a breath a hair, plopping back into her seat with arms crossed, eyes closed. “Okay-Okay… I get it.”

Yang gives the woman a sympathetic grin. “Look, I know this whole situation is riling you up. But you’ve gotta mellow out a little. You being all tense and out of focus isn’t gonna help anything, and it definitely isn’t gonna make things go any smoother. You’ve gotta chillax, lady. Think you can do that for me?”

Yang sticks a hand out, motion for Blake to take it. Blake eyes the open palm with a raised brow, then she looks up to the blonde’s face. Yang wiggles her eye brows at the black haired woman, a sly smirk on her lips. Blake can’t help but to let out an amused snort and shake her head. She lifts her hand to Yang’s and shakes.

“I can manage that,” Blake responds.

Yang nods. “Good. Now, I think it’s time I told you the other reason I let you tag along this time,” she says, leaning in closer to Blake.

“The other reason?”

“Yeah. Now, I’m gonna need you to follow my lead on this one. Be as cool as you can be and try to act natural. I know you’re a writer, but I wanna see you strap on your acting boots for a minute. Gonna need you to bring your A-game for this little ruse, all right?”

Blake’s brow lifts. “What exactly do you plan on having me do here, Yang?”

“Oh, trust me. You’re gonna love this.”

She walks on the outside of the designated line area straight to the front where a bouncer stood in front of the club entrance. Her hips swung side to side, she making sure to exaggerate more than usual, being sure that every pop of her hip was noticed by anyone who looked on. Anyone being everyone of course.

She ignored the many stares of the waiting partiers, whether they be looks of envy at how much confidence she had in her strut, lust from the onlookers that obviously wanted a piece of her action, or glares of disgust at how highly she carried herself as if she were just the center of the world’s attention. Well, that, and how she bluntly ignored the obvious waiting line and headed straight for the front without a care.

As she approached the entrance, the two bouncers began to notice her and eye her form, their attentions slowly being stolen by her looks. One she’s only a few feet away, they have completely turned toward her, one’s arms crossed over her chest, the other’s hands folded before him. She came to a halt, placing a hand on her cocked hip, using her other hand to pull the shades over her eyes to her forehead.

“Evening boys,” she began, a seductive edge to her voice. “Nice place you’ve got here.”

“What can I do for you, ma’am?” one of the bouncers asks.

“You can stand aside and let me in. That’d really help me out.”

The second flicks his head to the waiting line outside the club. “Don’t you see the line? You wanna get in, you gotta go to the back.”

Yang plays along and gives the line a quick glance, snorts, then turns back. “Yeah, I saw it. But I figured you two could make an exception this time. Didn’t really feel like waitin’ out in the heat, y’know?”

“Well, that’s just too damn bad, now isn’t it? Sorry, but you gotta wait in line like all these other folks here.”

“Heh. I don’t think you understand, pal. I think Junior could make an exception just this once.”

This causes the two men to stand up straight and give Yang a surprised look. “How do you know the boss?”

“Uh, who do you think called me here? My partner and I are the hired help this time around?”

The bouncers give each other glances and the first looks down to the clipboard in his hands, flipping through papers. “What’s yer’ name, toots?”

“You aren’t gonna find me on that list, you know?”

This makes the man look at her with a suspicious gaze. “Oh yeah? And why exactly would that be I wonder?”

Yang leans in a little closer and says, matter-of-factly, “Because I’m the ‘hired help’.”

At ‘hired help’, the two men’s can be seen widening from underneath their sunglasses. They give Yang dumbfounded looks at what she was implying and Yang simply grins knowingly.

The two turn to each other.

“Shit, I didn’t know it was one of those days,” the second says to the first under his breath.

“You know how the bosses clients are, they just show up when they want to without even calling ahead of time,” the first responds in an equally hushed tone. “It’s whatever, though, just keep your cool.”

With that, the two guys return their attention back to Yang. She lifts a brow at them, arms crossed under her breast, being sure to push them up. She smirks when she catches both men taking a quick glance at her gauntlets.

The first bouncer decides to speak. “You said you had a partner, right lady? Where she at?”

“Oh, her?” The blonde puts a finger to her chin, taking a look around. “She’s just freshening up real quick. I’m sure she’ll be here in just a-“

“Hey, sorry about the wait!”

At the new voice, the two bouncers and the blonde turn toward it. Yang smirks. “Ah. Right on cue.”

She ran up clumsily. As she approached, she her left leg up as she tugged on her shoe to adjust it just right. She reached up and tries her best to fix up her slightly frizzed hair and the bow on top of it. After finishing that up, she runs her palms across her top, then her skirt to straighten out the extra wrinkles all over them. Finally, she gives her hair a good flick so it’ll fall down her back, but not before adding a little extra flair and adjusting her breast just enough to make it noticeable to all the onlookers, but not blatantly enough to make it seem intentional.

She runs up to Yang quickly, flashing an embarrass sort of smile at the slightly taller woman. When she reaches her, Blake wraps herself around Yang’s arm and gives it a good squeeze.

“Had the hardest time getting this bow on just right,” Blake says, her voice taking a noticeably more high pitched, soft spoken nature. “Did I make you wait long, sweety?”

“Nah, you’re good, babe,” Yang answers. “Just explaining the situation to the boys here.”

Blake turns to the two bouncers and smiles their way. “I always do this kind of thing at the last minute. I never think I look good enough right when we get to the party.” She looks back to Yang. “Well, thanks for understanding, honey. You know how I am.”

And right after that, with no prior warning, Blake gets up on her tiptoes and presses her chest against Yangs, wrapping her arms around her neck. From there, she firmly plants her lips on Yang’s, pulling the blonde into a deep, passionate kiss.

The two bouncer look a bit surprised, most likely taken off guard by how bluntly Blake just smashed her lips against Yang’s.

For a split second when she was kissed by Blake, Yang’s purple eyes widen and her body goes stiff, taken completely off guard by Blake’s action. But this shock only last for just that; a split second. After her initial surprise, she begins to return to kiss, wrapping her arms around Blake’ s waist, pulling her in closer, deepening the kiss.

After a moment of the two’s make-out session, the girl’s lips part, and they move back, still wrapped in each other arms, smiling at one another.

“Never get enough of that,” Yang says.

Blake giggles. “You’d better not anytime soon either.”

The bouncer turn and give each other looks, then turn back to the ladies.

“Hey, uh…” the first starts. “How long do you girls… plan on sticking around here?”

Blake and Yang look to each other, a bit caught off guard by the man’s question. Then, they begin to grin and look back to him.

“Well, your boss said as long as he needed us to,” Yang says.

“And as long as his client and staff want us to…” Blake finishes.

This makes the two men smile toothily at one another. The second of the two steps to the side and the first unhooks the chain guard, opening it for Blake and Yang. The two women, hand in hand, after smirking at one another, proceed through the entrance. As they pass through, Yang winks at the men.

“Thanks a bunch fellas,” Yangs says.

“You ladies enjoy yourselves in there,” the bouncer says.

“Hope to see you two inside,” Blake adds before she and her date proceed into the club doors.

“Hey, what the hell, man?!” a random civilian yells from the line.

“Why’d you let them in so easily?!” a woman can be heard screaming.

“Come on, how is that even fair! I’m a lesbian, too, you know!” another woman yells.

“Hey!” the bouncer yells back. “All of you shut up! I hear anymore bitchin’ and moanin’ and I’ll send all you bozos home early!”

Inside the club, after walking through the doors, Blake and Yang find themselves walking down a long, dark corridor, still hand in hand. Yang looks around to see if anyone was with them. When she sees that the two are alone, she grins and leans down to Blake.

“Annnd... we're good.”

At that, Blake releases Yang from her hold and straightens out her clothes. “Well, that was easier than I thought,” she says in her normal voice. “Nice acting back there, Yang.”

The blonde places her hands behind the back of her head as the two walk. “I could say the same to you. Nice touch with the lip lock. Pretty big ‘ad-lip’, though, don’t you think?”

Blake shrugs. “I had to make it look convincing. And I was confident you wouldn’t mind too much. It was your plan after all.”

Yang pokes her lip out and nods. “Touché. Although, I've gotta be honest, I wasn't planning on you stealing my first kiss today.”

Blake freezes in her walk at this, eyes widening, a gasp escaping her lips, her hand going over her mouth. “Shut. Up…”

Yang lifts her hand. “On my life.”

“Yang, I’m… I didn’t know. I’m so sorry.”

“Nah, don’t sweat it. You don’t see me complaining.”

Blake’s head dips low. “Well… if it makes you feel any better… that was my first kiss, too. So, I guess that makes us even, sort of.” She looks up to see Yang staring at her with her mouth slightly agape, at a loss for words. Blake grins at her.

Yang snorts. “Well. How about that.”

A quick chuckle from Blake and the two continue to walk down the dimly lit corridor. The closer they came to the end, the louder the music became. Before they knew it, they could actually feel each and every beat of the song playing. The two women reach a wall of double doors that automatically slide open, revealing the true interior of the club.

Yang whistles, putting a hand on her hip. “Well. It’s definitely flashy.”

Blake nods. “Most certainly.”

The club was sculpted into two levels: the top level, which the two girls were standing on, was shaped as a large rhombus like border to the second level that acted as the main party floor. A large group of people were gathered at the center, all dancing to the, loud, poppy, music protruding from the multiple speakers all hanging from the ceiling, some perched on the outer wall. Columns of glass were scattered all about the large, open are, each of the flashing with many different strobes of colored lights. In one of the corners, a large balcony with a DJ stand on the top, along with a raving man with a bear helmet on. He looked like he was having just as much of a good time as the partiers on the dance floor.

On the higher level, many bars were placed for those who didn’t really feel like dancing. At the sight, Yang found a smile stretch on her lips.

“Lot of people here,” Blake says, scanning the area. “How are we supposed to find this Junior guy here?”

“Down, kitty,” Yang responds. “He’s gotta be here somewhere, right? We’ll just play it by ear and see what happens.” She reaches down and grabs the black haired woman’s hand, taking her off guard.

“H-Hey, wait-“

“Come on. Let’s hit up the bar. I could use a drink!”

The blonde begins to drag Blake around the perimeter of the club, Blake futilely protesting the whole while. The two brush past the many people in the club before they arrive at one of the bars on the opposite side of the entrance. Knowing she wasn’t going to do it willingly, Yang pulls out one of the seats, grabs Blake by the shoulders and plops her down in it, the woman wearing an irritated expression all the while, arms crossed, lip poked out. Yang follows suit and sits next to Blake, a grin on her face.

The bartender behind the stall smoothly struts over to the women and leans in close.

“What can I get for you ladies this evening?” he asks with a deep voice.

Yang places her finger on her chin, pondering for a moment. After which, she responds, “Two Strawberry Sunrises. No ice.”

With that, the bartender nods and prepares to walk a-

“Oh, and one of those little umbrellas,” she catches him at the last minute. He cooly turns back to her and sends a smirk her way before continuing on with his task. After the encounter, Yang turns all the way around in her seat and leans her back on the stall.

Blake turns to face Yang. “Yang, we really should be-“

“You ever have one of those before, Blakey?”

Blake sighs, exasperated. “What?”

“A Strawberry Sunrise; ever got the chance to down one of those bad boys? Things’ll have you feelin’ real good real quick. You know, that actually used to be my mom’s favorite. She and my dad would order them if they ever had a date night.”

“Okay, yeah, that’s great. Yang we need to start looking for-“

“I never told her this, but while at Beacon, some of my fiends actually took me out to the town. That was the first time I ever had alcohol and boy howdy did I get hammered. I knew she’d kill me if she found out I got drunk before I was legal.” She laughs. “That lady would sprint down here just to smack me if she found-“

“Yang!”

At Blake’s yell, Yang is cut off from she was saying. Luckily, it wasn’t loud enough that anyone really got alarmed by it, nor seemed to really care; just stern enough to get the point across to the blonde. Yang looks at Blake with a cool face, looking as if she wasn’t even faced by the yell. Blake looked back with grit teeth and balled fist, irritation written all over her features.

Of course, it’s at that moment when the bartender returns to the two women’s part of the bar, placing two cups in front of Yang.

“Here you are. Two Strawberry Sunrises, no ice. And the little umbrella.”

Yang gives the man a nod and a smile, he departing to handle his next costumers. Blake slowly looks down at the table, eyes dimming. She just as quickly widens them slightly when a glass full of liquid is slid in front of her. She looks back up at Yang perplexed, finding the blonde sipping from her own cup.

“I just assumed you’ve had your fair share. It’d be rude not to order you anything even if you don’t want it,” Yang answers the unasked question. “Besides, I figured you could use something to calm your nerves a bit. Can’t have you constantly on the edge, now can we?”

Blake looks down at the glass of alcohol and plays with the little umbrella in it.

“You know, sometimes just relaxing could do you some good. Sometimes, if you just wait long enough, you’ll find exactly what you need. So, I’m gonna need you to relax, wait…” She turns to Blake. “And trust me.” She sends a wink her way, then goes back to sipping on her drink.

Blake decides to look back to her beverage, looking deflated, realizing Yang wasn’t going to budge on this one. With no other choice, she stirs the liquid around a bit, then takes the umbrella out of the cup. Her finger rings out the rim for a second, then she takes it up, gives it a little sniff, then takes a small, cautious sip.

Too her utter surprise, she finds the taste to not be so bad, eyes lighting up as she licks her lips. Shrugging, she takes a much bigger gulp, practically tipping the cup upside-down, the drinks flowing down her throat. Yang had to do a double take after catching a glimpse of the feline chugging down her drink. The more Blake drunk, the lower Yang’s jaw dropped. By the time the black haired woman had gotten to the end, Yang’s jaw had practically hit the floor.

Blake places the cup down on the table and wipes her mouth with her hand, sighing in content at the warm feeling now encapsulating her body. She just so happens to spot Yang, who continued to stare back completely at a loss for words.

Blake clears her throat. “I… quite enjoyed that.”

Yang looks back and forward from Blake, to her cup, then back to Blake. “I can see that.”

Blake chuckles. She looks around for sight of the bartender. When she sees him, she waves him over, a call which he heeds, now standing before the women.

“Do you think I could get another one of these?” Blake asks, lifting her glass to the man.

He nods silently, taking up the glass, then turns to Yang. She waves her hand and shakes her head. “None for me. She’s on my tab, okay?”

He bows politely. And with that, he takes his leave once again. Yang can’t help but to laugh to herself as she turns back to the dance floor, one leg crossed over the other, a finger playing with a strand of her blond, short, wavy hair. She watched the dance floor and the various people on it, most grooving to the sound of the music pumping out of the many stereos, other’s mingling closer to the outer edges, laughing and drinking. She looks over to the side, further down the bar star she sat it. A couple had each other entangled in one another’s arms as their lips locked. She can’t help but to chuckle at the shameless display of affection.

Just as she was planning to turn away and leave the couple to their “business”, she finds her view obscured by a bulkier body sitting in the chair, one more separating the two from being directly next to each other.

“Give me a something strong. I don’t care what,” he says to the bartender.

“Sure thing, boss.”

As the bartender leaves, the man lowers his head into his hands, his fingers rubbing his forehead. Curious, Yang bends a little to the side to get a better look at the newcomer’s face. Her brows lift when she sees the guy’s features clearly.

“Well. How about that…” she says.

Yang turns to her other side to maybe inform Blake of her new discovery. However, she was not expecting to see Blake fully hunched over the stall with her head in her arm, the other outstretched, holding onto her drink, 2 extra cups discarded to the side.

“Um… Blake? You good?”

Rather than respond, Blake’s hand raises and gives a thumbs up.

“You’re not drunk, are you?”

Blake’s hand does a “no” movement.

“Just chillin’ out, huh?”

This time, Blake’s index finger and thumb make a circular shape, her other three fingers still straightened.

“Good for you. You just keep doin’ what you’re doin’, all right? We’ll be out of here soon.”

Blake, once again, gives Yang a thumbs up. After, her hand drops back down to the stall and she proceeds to “chill”. Yang sends an amused smirk Blake’s way, shaking her head. With that out of the way, her eyes slide to the side, eyeing the man sitting close. Her neck bends to the side, a little pop sounding out. She breathes out hard, composing herself, straightening out her shirt hair and slightly rumpled clothes. Deciding she was properly prepared she returns to her original position, singling her arms back on the stall behind her, crossing one leg over the over, eyes pretending to scan the area nonchalantly.

After a moment, she leans in closer to the man and says, “Life got you down, huh?”

He sighs. “Life ain’t got nothin’ to do with it. Goin’ pretty great for me. Pretty god damn great…”

“Ah. Then what’s got you down, sailor? Storm during a cruise?”

The man raises from his leant over pose in his seat, rubbing his face, straightening out his red tie. “A hurricane would better describe it. A hurricane full of water spouts and a flying cow just for good measure.”

Yang nods. “Well, every hurricane’s got a calm center, right?”

“And that’s why we have the wonders of booze, girly.” On cue, a drink is slide directly in front of the suit-vest wearing man. He doesn’t hesitate to take it up and down it in one continuous swig, slamming the cup down with a deep groan. “Makes the ride go by a bit more smooth.” With that, he fully turns to Yang, she smiling a sly smile. “Aren’t you a little young to be in this club, Blondie?”

She chuckles. “Aren’t you a little old to have a name like ‘Junior’?”

This time, it is the man who snorts, swiveling in his seat to face away from his. “So, you know who I am. What’s a lady like you doin’ with a name like mine in your head?”

She shrugs. “Not much of a reason to tell, really. I happen to know people, who know people, who know big mouths that just so happen to know your name. A few people brought up this club of your’s and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. Just a nosy girl with nosy connections.”

“That a fact? Well, I hope my place meets expectations. I like to think I’ve got a pretty okay spot on my hands.”

Yang’s gaze wanders around the club. “It’s flashy, I’ll give you that. I could get used to hanging around here more often. You know, bring some friends, get down on the dance floor, school some of these poor saps who couldn’t dance they’re way out of a paper bag; could be fun.”

“I see you’ve got jokes, huh?”

“I like to think I’ve got a bit of a funny bone in me.”

“Wouldn’t have guessed it myself.” He stands up from his seat and leans on the bar stall, facing Yang. “So, you got a name, sweetheart?”

Yang giggles cutely. “Yes, Junior. I have many names.”

She slowly stands from her seat, making every moment defined and exaggerated. Junior’s eyes noticeably wander up and down her figure; over every curve, and crevice. Now on her feet, she puts two fingers on the counter and makes them “walk” over to the man as she draws closer. He raises a brow, a small smirk forming on his lips.

“But… just for you…”

She is now nearly chest to chest with him, her eyes glazing over his body just as his did to hers. The two fingers she had on the table now sensually walk up Junior’s arm, then moves to his chest. Now, her index finger slides down it, then his abdomen, getting closer to the belt of his black trousers. He looks down with a chuckle, nodding a little at what was happening. Yang bites the bottom of her lip. She stand up on the tips of her toes to get close to his ear.

From there, she whispers, “You can call me ‘sir’.”

His smile is quick to drop.

Crunch!

“OOOOOOOO!!” he screams in a much higher pitch than his voice would allow him to.

The minute Junior cried out, the various people at the bar stop what they are doing and turn to the scene. Following their lead, even the dancers on the main floor halt and look back, murmuring amongst themselves. On the outsides of the dance floor, the security men all stand at a attention when they hear their boss scream. Noticeably, the loud music playing just a second before shuts off with a record scratch.

Behind Yang, Blake stirs and lifts her head from the table, looking to side to see Yang standing in front of a strange man. She looks around to see everything coming to screeching halt, confused at what was supposed to be happening right now. When she notices that everyone has their eyes on the blonde and the man, she leans to the side to look at what Yang was doing.

It takes her a moment to process it, but when she notices Yang’s hand squeezing the life out of the man’s crotch her eyes go wider than she can remember ever going in a while, her gaze moving back and forward between Yang, the (poor) man with his crotch in a death grip by the Junior Huntress, and the crotch in question.

All the while this was going on, the bartender could be seen nonchalantly preparing more drinks as if he didn’t even notice the situation at hand.

Yang looks around and the numerous eyes on her. “Huh, looks like we’ve got ourselves an audience here.” She looks down at her hand and the object(s) in it and makes a mock surprised expression. “Oh, well would ya’ look at this! I don’t recall ordering the salted nuts!” She looks back up to Junior’s face with a cheery smile. “Junior, you shouldn’t have!”

With that, she squeezes harder.

“Haaaah!” Junior screams out. Sweat pooling down his face, he does his best to look down at the blonde. Through grit teeth, he says, “Look, girly… if you wanna get out of here… alive… I suggest you let go of me… right now…”

“I’ll be sure to do that, big guy. But it’s gonna take a bit of effort on your part to pry these bear claws of mine off Junior Junior down here. And you wanna know the best kind of pliers for situations like this? Answers! Whatcha got for me, bud?”

“That doesn’t… make any sense…! You didn’t even ask me a question…!”

Yang sighs and shakes her head. “You’re killing me here, smalls. Gonna have to do better than that if you want yer’ little friend to ever breath again.”

“Then… ask me a question already!” He makes a small yelp when Yang gives him a small squeeze. “Please…!”

“Nah, don’t sweat it, pal. We’re not gonna be able to talk here anyway.” Her eyes slide over to the side. “Feelin’ a bit claustrophobic all of the sudden…”

Stepping closer and closer, Yang notices the area around her starting to get more and more crowded as the club security begins to draw in closer, all of them holding red-bladed axes and cleavers. Blake, eyes still wide, looks to the large group of armed men, then back at Yang.

Yang lets out a chuckle. The hand holding on to Junior’s crotch opens, freeing the sweating man from the death grip, he back up and keeling over, hands on knees as he takes large breaths. One of the guards move to check on Junior-

“I’m fine!” he says in a commanding tone, putting his hand out to stop the approaching henchmen. “I’m fine, just… just give me a second…” He continues to inhale and exhale slowly.

While Junior is breathing, the henchmen send glares to Yang, who stood with a hand on her cocked hip. She looks back at them and sends a goofy looking face their way, tongue out, a cheesy grin on her mug.

Finally, Junior is able to compose himself and stand up, straightening out his suit and tie, trying his best to keep up his authoritative, collected demeanor. His gloved left hand reaches inside his jacket and he withdraws a pair of red tinted shades, then slowly puts them on his face, but not before sending a threatening glare at Yang.

“You’ll regret that…” he says with a growl before he begins to walk away, his men moving aside to let him through.

“Aw, Junior,” Yang calls after the man as she skips behind him, hands behind her back. She ends up moving next to him, walking backwards while looking at the man. The whole time, the henchmen moved to keep the blonde surrounded. “Come on, don’t be like that. I was just kidding with you.”

“Well, I guess you’re about to be torn apart over a joke then.”

“Now is there really any need to take it to that level?” She spins around to stop in front of Junior, he being forced to stop as he towers over the blonde. She puts her hands on his chest just for good measure. “I know my joke was a bit mean-spirited-“

“Oh, is that what you call it?”

“-but I was just teasing you a little. I figured a big, strong man like yourself could take my prodding. Plus, I though you could use a bit of a reprieve from your problems. You gotta believe me.”

He scowls. Smiling, Yang lightly pushes off of Junior and takes a couple of steps back, playing with her hair; twisting it on her fingers, swinging her body side to side.

“Tell you what: let me fix this. Let’s kiss and make up, okay?” She leans in and winks.

Junior crosses his arms over his chest and lifts a brow. Behind, back at the bar, still watching the entire confrontation take place, Blake lifts her own questioning brow, her expression, however, one of deadpan and unamused.

“Go on. I know you wanna. Just a little peck. Or… would you prefer… a bit more…?”

With that, she closes her eyes and puckers her lips. Junior looks at some of his men on either side of him, silently trying to get their input on the matter. Some of them simply shrug their shoulders or shake their heads in confusion. Others nod and cox the club owner into taking Yang’s generous offer.

Snorting, Junior places his hands in the pockets of his trousers and takes a step closer to the younger girl. He begins to slowly bend down and move in, his lips puckered to meet Yangs. Inch by inch, their lips come closer and closer to connecting. By now, they were so close, the two parties could practically feel each other’s breath on the tips of their-

Pow!

Suddenly, Junior goes flying through the air in a multitude of back flips, over the crowd of surrounding henchmen and dancers. When he comes down, he crashes through the bar stall and into a wall of alcohol bottles, a loud “crash!” resounding throughout the club. Broken glass and discarded bottles all over the ground, Junior sits in the middle of the carnage, his hanging. Groaning, his head lifts slowly, eyes rolling around in his sockets, shades hanging lopsided off his face.

Boink!

Of course, a stray bottle has to drop off the wall and smack him square in the head, his head bobbing around even more now. From above, a second bottle prepares to drop onto of his head. It falls and, just as it’s about to hit Junior, the bartender reaches a hand out and scoops up the falling bottle, inspects it, then walks back over to the mixed drink he was preparing without batting an eye.

The crowd of people watches with surprised expressions. The henchmen slowly turn to Yang and the black haired woman now standing next to her with a foot outstretched. Yang herself stared ahead at where Junior was supposed to be, looking just as out-of-the-loop as everyone else did. She looks to the side to see Blake standing, putting her foot back on the ground. Blake turns to the the blonde. Yang can only blink and stare for a second.

“…I was gonna do that myself, you know.” Yang says.

Blake shrugs. “Just in case.” Blake looks around at the many angry henchmen. “Don’t think they appreciate it, though.” She turns back to Yang. “Are you going to need a hand with this?”

Yang inspects the crowd of men around her with a pondering gaze, bottom lip poked out. “Hmm… Nah, this’ll be a cake walk. Besides, you’ve got another drink coming, right?”

“I would like that... Oh, hey.” Blake points behind the blonde. “Heads up.”

At Blake’s warning, Yang quickly bends backwards, a cleaver slicing over her face, inches from the tip of her nose. While in the motion, she completes the backflip, and sends her feet crashing into the attacking man’s chest, causing him to fly back and slide across the dance floor.

That was the cue for the innocent onlookers to begin panicking and scrambling for the club exit. Seconds later, the last of the partiers are escaping, leaving Yang, Blake, and the group of guards left with the club all to themselves.

Blake whistles, impressed. Sensing a movement behind, she takes a step to the side, twisting to dodge the axes coming down at her. Right after that attack, two more men slash at her. Her foot lifts up and kicks the cleaver out of the first attackers hand, it flipping through the air over her. She snags it out of the air and deflects the first axe to the side. Then blocks the second, locking herself and the man in a standoff, soon ended by her bringing up her foot and planting it in the man’s stomach, causing him to keel over. She follows up by spinning and kicking him in the face.

After, she runs forward at the group of other henchmen, they lifting their weapons, ready for the approaching woman. However, instead of attacking, she jumps high into the air, her foot landing on one the onlooker’s face. She pushes off and sails clean over the other men. When she lands behind them, she goes into various, graceful flips towards her original seat at the stall. One last backflip and she lands cleanly in her chair. Just as she returns, the bartender holds out another drink to her. She smiles at him takes the glass.

“Thank you,” she says kindly. The bartender bows politely.

The whole time, the attacking men stare at the woman dumbfounded.

“Hey!”

At being yelled at, the group of men turn to another of their comrades behind them. He lifts his hands and points at the blonde.

“You bozos forgetting about something?!” GACK!”

The yelling henchmen goes flying off to the side as Yang’s fist is lodged into his cheek. She turns to the rest of the men with a readied stance. The group gives each other looks, then turns to Yang.

“Haaahhh!!”

Raising their weapons high, they begin to run at Yang. She raises her fist up, blowing a puff of air out of her nose, although the plain “air” looks more like steam. However, just as she and the men are about to collide, she takes on a look as if she just realized something.

Putting her hands out to the attackers, she says, “Hold up, stop. Stop! Stop!”

For some odd reason, the charging men abide by her orders and slow to a halt, looking confused about the hold up. Yang stands up straight and clears her throat. She looks over to the large DJ stand and right at the bear mask-wearing DJ.

“Hey! Fuzzy!”

He looks around as if looking for the apparent person a Yang was talking to. When he sees no one, he looks at her with a cocked head and points to himself questioningly.

Yang can’t help to to roll her eyes at him. “Who else would I be talking to, genius? Look, your boys are about to get their Kung-Fu Hustle asses slaughtered anyway! Can you at least put on something cool for them to take this ass whipping to?”

He looks between his DJ board and Yang for a second. He then points at the board questingly.

“Yeah! Give me somethin’ funky, DJ!”

With only a moment’s hesitation, he simply shrugs his shoulders then confronts the many records found in the cabinet behind him. He’s quick to pick out one to his liking, spinning it in his hands for style points, then putting on the record table. After bit of tinkering, he pushes a red button, then flips two switches. Soon enough, loud music begins to pump out from the speakers. It was a fast pace, jazz sounding number.

Yang shows a toothy grin. “All right, I can work with this!” She quickly refocuses on her enemies, lowing into a fighting stance, a flame in her eye. “Come on boys! Show me a good time!”

They all charge, spreading out to flank her from all sides.

Her eyes are set on two men, one running up on her from the left, another from the right. She shoots for the man on her left first, pivoting her foot and spinning to send a powerful back kick at him, hitting the man in his chest, causing him to stagger back. She ducks under an axe swing from the man on the right. He swings in vertically and she catches his wrist with her left hand, slamming her right fist into his face once with a jab, twice with another jab, three times with a hook.

She spins around again to meet an attacker coming at her from behind with a back fist to the face. He staggers back, but she isn’t relenting, dashing at him and jumping at with two kicks, one to chest, one to the jaw, making him do a half backflip and landing on his head and upper back.

Three guys come at her. They all begin to simultaneously swing at her with cleavers and axes, she maneuvering quickly to dodge and block the strikes. While she was so focused on the three men swinging at her, she isn’t able to notice a fourth guy run up behind her and put her in a full nelson.

“Come on! Get her!” he says through a strained voice.

The three weapon holders move in on the blonde. The middle man attack first, but Yang acts fast and uses the man holding on to her from behind as support to lift both her feet and kick the attacker back. The two guys on the left and right come in. She plants her left foot into the guy on the right, then, using him as a jumping board, the brings her right leg from far off and right into the second guys’s face, he spinning and falling to the ground.

Now to deal with her captor. She sends the back of her head into his nose, forcing him to release her. That’s when she swings herself and jumps in the air into a vertical spin. She puts a foot on the ground as she throws a hook into the man’s jaw, then prepares to follow up with an uppercut from her right fist.

As she sends her punch out, time seems to slow down for a moment. The yellow and black wrist cuff on her right begins to extend out across her entire forearm. Mechanisms whir to life and twist in place. The top half of the elongated wrist cuff seems to cock itself as a red shell pops out of a small, rectangular opening, the sound of a shotgun reloading accompanying the action.

Bang!

As time speeds back up, Yang sends one hell of an uppercut into the receivers jaw, he going into flips over some of his other comrades. When he comes down, he lands on the floor outside of the main dance area and slides a few more feet, stopping directly at the feet of Blake Belladonna. As she sips her drink, her brows raise at the sight and she looks up to the fight on the main floor.

“Junior Huntress…” she says to herself before taking another sip of her beverage.

From behind, a hand holding another a cup of water sticks out. Blake turns to see the bartender offering it. Smiling, she takes it out of his hand and places her empty cup on the table.

“Well, aren’t you sweet. Do have any of those mini pretzels?”

Smirking, he bows to the woman, then walks off to retrieve the item she requested. Blake watches him leave, still smiling all the while.

“Ahhhh!”

Bang!

Next to her, another henchmen lands on the table, slumping off it and on to the floor slowly. Blake watches him with an irritated look.

“Excuse you,” she says.

A slash from left field is blocked by Yang’s gauntlet covered right arm. She grabs the man’s wrist, then shoots out her other hand to grab on to his neck. She notices another goon running up on her from behind. Twisting, she spins her captive with her and throws him into the running attacker, but not before giving the thrown man an extra push with a shotgun punch, causing both of the men to go crashing backwards.

She bends forward, then throws herself back into a multitude of backwards, passing by attacking goons and onlooking ones. She does one last handless flip into the air and comes down on a man with a twisting axe-kick to the top of the head, the comes back up with a shotgun uppercut to the stomach. When he keels over, spitting up saliva, she rolls over his back and launches a side-kick at another man’s chest. She twists around and backhands another guy, twists again and spin kicks another poor sap.

“Come on! Come on!” She yells out, huge, sadistic smile on her face. “Keep it comin’ boys! Let’s go!”

A guy flies at her with a jump kick, which she ducks under. He follows up his attack with a slice of his cleaver, which she blocks, then punches his biceps, making him grab at it in pain before glaring up at her. He slashes downward, but she grabs his wrist and head buttes him in the nose.

Three more guys run up on her from behind, so she swivels around and pivots her foot. She punches out her arm, then quickly bends it again, the gauntlet cocking like a shotgun. Two of the three men strike at the same time. She deflects the first slash, then ducks under the second’s axe. The third hops at her with an hack, which she dodges anyway.

The first goon slashes again, but she’s quicker on the draw and sends a jab into his face, then a hook into his jaw. She does’t even need to look directly at the second goon to catch his next attack. As he struggles to pull himself free from Yang’s grasp, she focus on the third man’s attack as he cuts at her. Still holding her captive, she twist around, dragging him along, and backhands the third’s hand away. As he stumbles, she takes her hostage and swings him around like a rag doll, hitting the third man with the second, causing him to go crashing to the floor.

However, she isn’t done with her makeshift weapon and continues to swing around, going fast and faster by the second. When she decides it’s about that time, she gives one last swing, then throws the guy through the air, right at the towering DJ stand.

“Waaaaahhhh!!”

As the thrown man flies directly at him, the bear head wearing DJ makes a panicked motion, then ducks down just as the goon flies over him and impacts the shelf of records behind the DJ. Mr. Bears stands up straight, taking one last look at his unconscious teammate. He turns to look down at the blonde on the ground, she looking back up at him.

A cheesy smile on her face, she shrugs. “Oops.”

The bear raises a shaking fist up at her, then slams it down on his table. He reaches down for something under his stand. When he finds what he was looking for, a mischievous chuckle can be heard coming from under his mask. He stands up straight, eyeing Yang. His hands come up, they holding on to a large Tommy-Gun. The very same gun was then pointed directly at Yang.

Her brows lift. “Oh. Well, that’s distressing.”

Bang! Bang! Bang Bang! Bang! Bang!

A flurry of bullets fly at Yang. Grinning, she starts running at the bear, zigzagging to dodge the bullets flying at her. She ducks and weaves to make sure the bear doesn’t get a good grasp on where she’ll be so he can shoot her.

“Ah!”

However, she isn’t fast enough to dodge a certain volley of bullets as they impact her stomach and chest, throwing her back on the ground to her back. However, the bullets don’t actually pierce her skin. In fact, it looks as if they bounce off her instead. Never the less, she is still thrown off her groove.

She flips over and lands on her knee. Just as she does, another rain of bullets shoot at her, so she jumps to the side with a roll and runs for pillar towards the outside of the dance floor. When she successfully finds cover, the bullets finally stop for a moment.

“Damn it, threw off my groove…” she growls under her breath.

She looks around the dance floor to figure out her next move, something that only takes a moment as she spots a discarded axe on the ground. With a smirk, she eyes the gun tooting bear. She plants her eyes on the axe and breaths out, preparing herself.

Soon enough, she darts out from the pillar and makes a B-Line for the axe on the ground. The minute she runs out, the bullets start to fly again, just barely missing her. She jumps for the axe and snags it up with a roll. With the weapon in hand, she twists around and sends it flying at the shooter. He isn’t even able to register what she did as the axe plant’s itself in his DJ board directly in front of him, throwing him off, he having to back up out of panic of being hit by it.

Yang is able to use that moment of hesitation and make a dash for the DJ tower, using the speaker system at the bottom of it as a jumping board, shooting for the top of the tower. When she reaches, she plants a hand on the board and sends a kick into the bear’s chest, smashing him into the back wall. She moves in, grabs his head, and slams it on the DJ board, causing the music to skip a beat. She kicks the man’s feet from under him, lifts him into the air, then sends a double punch with a shotgun blast into his abdomen, he flying over the edge of the stand and smashing into the ground, his bear helmet sliding off and across the floor.

It is only stopped when a red heeled foot lands atop of it.

Yang turns around, standing atop the DJ tower, and looks down at the newcomers on the dance floor. She walks forward and puts her hands on the board, lifting a brow.

Two young looking, black haired girls stared back at Yang from below, one dressed in an all red and black dress, the other in an all white and blue one. The red dressed girl had shorter black hair, a feather like hairpin sticking from behind exposed ear. The blue dressed girl adorned longer black hair and had a white flower hairpin. The two looked like they could be identical twins.

However their most striking features would have to be the weapons they each carried. While red had long, claw-like, very sharp looking blades strapped to her wrist, white had long, white, very sharp looking bladed heels to, most likely, attack Yang with.

Yang tilts her head a little. “What do we have here…?” She jumps over the side of the stand and lands on a knee. Standing up, she places a hand on her hip. “Well, would you look at this. Your boss is recruiting mighty young, isn't he?”

The red dressed girl crosses her arm over her chest. “Melanie, who is this girl?”

Melanie walks forward to stand next to her partner, a hand on her hip. “I don’t know Miltia. But we should teach her a lesson.”

Yang puts her hands out. “Whoa, whoa, easy now. No need for that, we’re just talkin’.”

Miltia kicks the bear mask away and steps forward, swinging her arms down, her blade making a “Ching!” sound.

“Or… we could just skip to this part instead.”

At the bar, Blake continues to watch the events unfold before her. She continues to down her drink, reaching the bottom of the glass. Her hand takes the glass and gently places it down on the table, her other hand reaching up and wiping an excess trickle of liquid from the corner of her mouth.

“Okay… I think I’ve had enough,” she says. Standing from her seat, she adjusts her top and brushes off her backside. She turns and looks to the bartender as she digs in her pocket. Before she can pull anything out, however, he puts his hand out and shakes his head. She looks at him surprised.

“It’s on the house,” he says with a deep voice and a smile. “This has been… quite the interesting afternoon.”

Blake smiles back at him. “Thank you for accommodating me, Mr….”

“Tukson. You can call me Tukson.”

Blake’s nods. With that, she turns to the current situation taking place and walks forward.

The twins look away from Yang and eye the newcomer walking up behind her. Yang notices and turns around to see Blake approaching.

“Had enough for one day?” Yang asks.

“I think I’ve had enough for one year,” Blake responds.

Yang snorts.

The two women face the two twins staring them down. Miltia slides her floor across the ground, walking over to the side, eyes plastered on Yang. Melanie moves in the opposite direction, her eyes on Yang, but also alternating between the blonde and Blake. On the other side of things, Yang keeps her eyes square on Melanie, who walks to the left; Yang’s side. Blake focuses on Miltia, the one walking to the right. The Fauna’s pupils can be seen dilating dangerously.

As she walked smoothly, hips swinging side to side, Miltia dragged her long, sharp claws on a passing pillar, an irritating scratching noise emitting from the contact. Blake’s bow covering her cat-like ears twitches, the woman making an annoyed face. On the other side, Melanie started slowly around the left with a had on her hip, looking right into Yang’s piercing purple eyes. A sly smirk stretches across her lips as if taunting the Junior Huntress. Yang returns the grin with her own, putting a fist into her hand and cracking her knuckles loudly.

The twins stop at the same time and fully face their respective opponents. Blake and Yang do the same, now back to back. For a moment, the two parties simply stare each other down, unmoving. The lights continue to strobe with different colors and various speeds, coating the entire club. All around, the taken down club guards were dragging themselves and carrying each other off to safety, groaning in agony.

Up on the DJ booth, Mr. Bear seems to have made his way back up to the top, dragging himself up each step until he finally reaches his board, where he pulls himself up. Shaking, he reaches for a button on the laptop to the side and quickly presses play before he falls to the floor yet again.

A fast pace, rock sounding tune starts up, the hard-hitting guitar strumming, building up. Yang couldn’t help but to smile even more at that.

“I’ll say this about Junior’s club: the music here is absolutely bitchin’.”

And with that, the battle begins.

The twins are the first to make a move, they each taking off speedily from either side.

Melanie jumps through the air in flips, Yang readying herself for the attack. Miltia runs low at Blake, her claws scratching across the floor as she sped across. Melanie’s bladed foot slices down at the blonde and Yang reaches up and grabs the blue twin’s calf and thigh. Pivoting her foot, she swings the girl around, yelling, “Blake, duck!”

The black haired woman follows the order and bends low. Yang is able to throw Melanie over Blake and right at her sister. Rather than stop her run, or even dodge, Miltia instead reaches out and catches her sister, Melanie spinning around the red twin and being thrown back at Blake and Yang. The two older women think fast and flip out of the way, each going in different directions, Melanie missing with her spinning kick.

Rather than go after their respective targets, the twins instead both run to at Blake, ignoring Yang, catching the Fauna off guard as she prepares herself for the attacks.

Miltia strikes first, cutting at Blake, forcing her to begin backing away, dodging the slash. Melanie slides over and sends a spin kick at Blake’s head, the black haired woman bending backwards into a backflip. She isn’t even able to finish before Melanie sends a low spin kick at Blake’s hands. However, the Fauna sees this coming and lets herself be hit, being knocked off balance into a flurry of spins, landing on one foot. Her other raised leg swings forward at Miltia, but she is able to spin out of the way. Blake uses the momentum of the kick to backflip. When she lands, she blocks a kick from Melanie, her bladed heel dangerously close to Blake’s face.

Melanie pulls her leg from Blake’s grasp, spinning around and dodging a punch from behind, thrown by Yang. Once she misses, she turns to Militia and jabs at her, only for the red twin to bend her neck to the side and dodge the strike, going into a summersault.

“Yang!” Blake warns, looking behind the blonde.

Yang catches the warning and bends over. Blake uses her back as support, planting her hand on it and kicking at Melanie, who was preparing to attack from behind. The kick manages to land solid on Melanie's cheek, causing her to twist away. Blake doesn’t stop there, however, continuing her spin on Yang’s back, kicking in the opposite direction at Miltia, who ducks under it and pounces with a slash. Yang’s eyes widen and she jumps back and away, a piece of her shirt being taken by the claw slash. Blake is thrown off of Yang’s back and she twists in the air, landing on all fours.

Her senses flair up when she notices a foot coming down at her. So, she rolls out of the way, dodging Melanie’s axe kick.

Yang sees this and runs for the battle fast. As she brings her fist back to attack, her maneuver is interrupted when a clawed hand soars at her. She is forced to backflip underneath the attack. Miltia is still on her, however, sending slash after slash Yang’s way, never relenting. Yang’s keeps her cool and repeatedly blocks and evades each cut, looking for an opening in Militia’s pattern.

She isn’t able to find one in time, however, when Melanie is seen running from her side.

“Ah crap!” Yang exclaims through grit teeth.

Caught in a bind, Yang decides to take the initiative. So, instead of blocking Milita’s next attack, she instead dodges the strike and shoots her forehead forward into Miltia’s nose hard, causing the red twin to grab it in pain, giving Yang just enough time to focus on her sister, who jumped at Yang with a kick. The blonde is able to send a palm out and collide with the kick, hitting it down to the ground, throwing the blue twin off balance.

She grins at the opportunity and moves forward quick. Melanie’s eyes widen when she sees Yang roll up on her, unable to defend herself in time. Yang sends a jab into Melanie’s stomach, making her keel over, saliva spitting from her mouth. Yang isn’t done yet as she grabs the blue twin’s wrist and spins her around, disorientating her even more with the erratic movements. Once Yang is sure Melanie is completely out of whack now, she throws her forward, tripping her up, making Melanie begin to fall face first to the ground. However before she can completely fall over Yang’s foot comes up and impacts Melanie’s face, throwing her to the ground on her back hard.

Miltia, the pain in her nose subsiding, looks over to see the situation and a wave of horror washes over her face. “Melanie!” she yells, half angry, half worried.

In her fit of worry, though, Blake takes the moment to run from behind. Miltia senses movement behind her and turns quickly. Blake sends a quick punch out, Miltia barely avoiding it. However, it would seem Blake was counting on that and sends her other and out to grab onto Miltia’s hair, causing the teen to cry out in pain. With Miltia in hand, Blake punches the girl in the cheek once, twice, three times, making the twin stumble back.

“Yang!” Blake yells out.

Yang turns to her partner, then notes the stumbling Miltia. She saw her opportunity.

So, she plants her foot into the ground hard, one hand on the ground. She plants her eyes on Miltia as if she were targeting her. A flame like aura begins to surround her gauntlet fist, it balled at her side. Her purple eyes look as if they had begun to glow, dilating.

Finally, she shoots off, making a B-line for Miltia, short hair blowing from the wind passing by. Miltia is only just able to snap out from her stupor to feel a heat wave coming at her and see Yang dashing for her. However, that is all she really can do as Yang jumps at her, fist cocked back. The blonde then shoots it out and her fist impacts hard into Miltia’s face, throwing her through the air in twists.

She hits the floor hard, rolling across the ground for a good distance. She is only able to stop when her back hits one of the large pillars towards the edge of the dance floor. Upon impact, she cries out in pain, blood spitting from her mouth.

Melanie, on the floor from where Yang promptly laid her out, shakes off the pain running through her body and sit up. She turns around fast, remembering what was going on right now. What she sees is her sister rolling across the ground and hitting the pillar hard. At the sight of blood coming out of Miltia’s mouth, Melanie’s eyes widen with horror, her one of fear and worry.

“Miltiades!” she screams out, then takes off for her twin.

Miltia plants a shaky hand on the ground as she does her best to push herself off of the floor, arm wobbling like crazy until it can no longer handle the weight and collapse from under the red twin, sending her crashing back to the ground in a heap, blood trickling from her mouth. As a shadow passes over her body, she opens one of her eyes with grit teeth, looking up from her position.

Yang stands over the downed young girl, fists to her side, ember like aura resonating from her body. Her purple eyes pierce into the black haired girl.

“Looks like you’re having a bad day,” Yang says.

Miltia growls up at Yang.

“Wait-Wait!”

From the side, Melanie reaches the scene and bends down to the ground, putting her hands on her sister protectively. Yang looks a bit taken off guard by Melanie’s appearance, her aura starting to die down. Melanie glares up at Yang, trying to muster up a threatening gaze, but looking more scared than anything.

“You win, okay?” Melanie says. “We’re done. Don’t hurt my sister anymore.”

Yang blinks, Melanie’s words only surprising her more.

“I can… still fight…!” Miltia, trying to stand, says through grit teeth.

Melanie turns to her twin. “No, Miltia, it’s over now. We’re done.”

“She hasn’t beaten me! It isn’t over until I say it’s-“

Smack!

Miltia’s face swings to the side as Melanie’s hand impacts her cheek hard, a red hand mark being left behind. Miltia turns back to her sister slowly, a hand going to her stinging cheek.

“I said it’s over, Miltiades!” The blue twin yells. “Your aura is depleted and you’re bleeding all over the place! This woman is obviously way out of our league! Continue this fight is suicide and you know it! Now stop being an idiot and lie down!”

The whole time Melanie screamed at her sister, Yang stared on at a loss for words. But then, a smile begins to form on her lips, a small snort coming out. Blake, by now, had walked up to Yang’s side, watching the whole scene take place with curiosity.

As Melanie ends her lecture, Miltia looks on with wide eyes, still holding her cheek, leaning back from her sister a bit. Then, her eyes begin to water. Her expression goes from shock at being slapped, to barely restrained, frustrated sadness. Her eyes drop on the floor, a small squeak reuniting from her throat. Her shoulders bounce up with a hiccup as she tightens her lips, doing her best to hold back the tears threatening to spill. Her fists ball hard.

Melanie notices all of this and sighs, a sad smile on her face. “Oh, Miltia. Come on, no need for that now. Come here.” She pulls her sister into a tight hug, rubbing her hair softly. “I’m sorry I hit you, okay? I just don’t want you doing anything that’ll get you killed. You know that, don’t you?”

Miltia’s head nods while in the crook of her sisters neck, her arms raising and wrapping around her back, returning the embrace.

“It’s okay, little sister. We may have lost this battle, but we live to fight another day.” With that, Melanie sighs and lightly pushes her sister back, then looks up at Yang while Miltia wipes her tears. “Looks like you win this time, Huntress. We know when to call it.”

Yang turns to the black haired woman next to her, gauging her reaction to all of this. Blake looks back and simply shrugs. The blonde returns her attention to the twins and begins walking forward. At this, Melanie pulls her younger sister in protectively, glaring daggers into Yang. Once she reaches the two, Yang bends down, getting on their level and stares at them for a moment.

The next, she begins to grin. “Not bad, you two.” This takes the two teens off guard. “I gotta be honest, you two’ve got somethin’ good goin’ on here. Your teamwork in the battlefield is stellar. Hell, I’d go as far as to say it’s ten times better than a lot of the teamwork I’ve seen even in Beacon. Damn fine showdown that was. And you-” Melanie jumps a bit at Yang directly referring to and pointing at her. “Way to step up for your family there. I like seeing that.”

The blonde then reaches into her back pocket. When she pulls her hand out, it is holding two wrapped lollipops.

“Candy?”

She holds it out for the twins to take. They give each other confused, unsure looks, then turn to Yang. At the same time, they each reach out and hesitantly take the offered candy. While Melanie eyes it with suspicion, Miltia doesn’t even hesitate to unwrap her lollipop and put it in her mouth.

“Sorry I had to be so rough with you girls. But your boss and I have a few important things to discuss and we need to do this, or innocent people are gonna be hurt.” Yang sticks up a fist toward the twins. “So, what do ya’ say? We cool?”

The two girls don’t make a move for a second… Well, actually, it is Melanie who hesitates to move. Miltia, on the other hand, raises her fist and bumps it into Yang’s, her other hand holding on to the lollipop in her mouth. Melanie looks down at her sister questioningly.

Miltia shrugs. “She gave me candy. And she’s really badass…” She says that last part under her breath.

Yang smiles warmly. “Aw, thank you. I think you’re pretty badass yourself.”

A clearing of throat comes from behind Yang. She turns around to see Blake looking down at her. “Uh, Yang, hate to interrupt, but…”

“Oh! Yeah, right! Hey, girls, you’re boss must have slipped out while all that craziness was goin’ down. You happen to know where he might have ran off to.”

Miltia nods, taking her lollipop out of her mouth. “I saw the boss sneak off while we throwing down. Just go through the door behind the bar. He’s most likely trying to get away with the truck out in the alleyway.”

Melanie rolls her eyes, groaning. “Oh my god, Miltia! Why not just give them the code to the safe while you’re at it! Give Junior another reason to fire us!”

“What? You said it yourself: she won fair and square. Let Junior get his ass kicked; save us the pain. And there’s no way he’s gonna fire us. Without us, he’ll be a sitting duck.”

Melanie puts her head in her hand, sighing. “Whatever… In any case, you two should probably get a move on, though. He’s probably just about to head off. You might be able to catch him if you hurry.”

Yang nods, standing up from her crouched position. “Appreciate it, ladies. If you ever need anything, or if Junior really does end ip firing you, just give me a ring and I’ll be right back here to sort things out.”

Melanie’s brow rises. “We don’t even have your number.”

Yang crosses her arms and smirks mischievously. “Don’t worry about it. You will.” With that, she turns and begins to walk away, Blake following close behind. “Good kids.”

“Horrible choice of employment, though,” Blake replies.

As Yang and Blake make off to deal with their cowardly boss, the twins watch the women leave, then turn to one another, Miltia still sucking on her lollipop. Melanie pokes her lips out and kisses her sister on the nose, causing her to giggle.

“Damn it, damn it, damn it!”

The growling man drags a large duffel bag across the floor, struggling to even do that due to his left leg having a heavy limp in it, curtesy of a certain blonde vixen. A blonde vixen who, by now, was probably still cleaning out his club and beating down his guards.

His teeth grit harder as he reaches the open back of his pick-up truck located in the back alleyway of the club. He slams his fist on it.

“Little brat!” he spits.

Junior bends down and takes the duffle bag up, grunting at the large weight, heaving it into the back of the truck.

“A goddamn Huntress! How the hell was I supposed to know that?”

The man leans on the truck as he moves around it’s side, walking to the driver side door. Once he reaches it, he takes the handle and pulls the door open, an unnecessary amount of force being put into the pull. He slides into the seat, wincing in pain as he slings his injured leg in as if he were handling another duffle bag. Once in, he shuts the door.

“Looks like a friggin’ college freshman! They’re getting younger and younger everyday!”

He pulls his seatbelt down and straps himself in, then begins adjusting the mirrors, removing various junk from the windowsill. Finding everything good to go, he reaches a hand into his pockets, looking for the keys to the vehicle. He ends up finding them in his left pants pocket and pulls out a ring of various keys and chains, scrummaging through them to find the one needed to start the vehicle.

“He is not gonna be happy about this… And, of course, he’s gonna blame this all on me.” Finding the right key, he moves to put it in the ignition. “Shit just cannot go my way…!”

“Hi!”

“Jesus!” he jumps in his seat at the sudden voice in his window, hitting his head on the back of the seat, his breath catching in his throat. His fear slowly turning into anger, his eyes move to side to see the last face he wanted in his window at the moment.

Leaning into the truck by the driver’s side, Yang has her chin propped on the arm in the window, a sweet smile on her lips, looking no worse for wear than when Junior first saw her. She waves at him.

“Where ya’ goin’, babe?” she asks.

Junior does his best to keep his composure, but looks just about ready to crap himself as he stares into Yang’s unblinking purple eyes. As cute as she looks, he knew better than to fall for the gaze. Last time he did, he went from a baritone to a soprano in .0010 seconds.

“We didn’t get to finish our talk. You’re not just gonna leave a pretty girl hanging like that, are you?” She bends to the side to look past Junior. “And you wouldn’t wanna upset my silent compadre over there would you?”

Junior gives Yang a confused look, then follows her eyes to where she was-

“GOD. DAMN IT!” Right next to him, in the passenger seat, Blake sat nonchalantly, giving him a silent, dull look, arms crossed over her chest, one leg crossed over the other. “How the hell did you even get in here?!”

Junior, unfortunately, doesn’t get the answer he was waiting for as Yang grabs the door, swings it open and grabs the man by the back of his collar, unbuckling his seatbelt at the same time. With a slight tug, she is able to fling the man out of the truck and to the concrete hard alleyway floor. He groans in pain, reaching at his aching back, turning over on his stomach.

He moves to maybe try crawling away. That is, until Yang swings a leg over his body and plops her behind down on him, putting a hand on his head and pushing his face down into the ground.

“Come on, would ya’ just…?!” he grunts. “What do you chicks want from me? I ain’t done nothin’ wrong!”

“Funny. If you haven’t gotten into any trouble, then do you really think it was a good idea to sic your grunts on us and then run?” Yang asks.

“You were the one who started all of that!”

“Oh, no you don’t. You aren’t seriously gonna start blaming me n-“

“Actually, Yang.” Blake leans down into Yang’s ear and whispers, “That… actually was on you. You started this one.”

Yang looks as if this was shocking news and turns to look up at Blake. The black haired woman simply shrugs her shoulders. Yang turns back to Junior, struggling for the right words.

“W-Well, hey!” Yang starts. “Let’s be honest, if I did just come out and ask you about this Conman guy, you wouldn’t have just told me, would you?”

“You are the worst Huntress I have ever seen!” Junior says. “I have rights you know! I ought report you to your head-of-charge for this, you psycho!”

“I think you’re forgetting the tiny fact that I’m a Huntress. I don’t report to anyone. This whole operation right here is under this ass that is currently on top of yours. And my ass just so happens to have a reliable consultant that referenced your ass along with Conman’s ass, so I thought I might as well do some investigating of my own and pay your ass a visit. You know anything about that, Junior?”

Not answering right away, his eyes close tightly, lips looking as if they were trying to hold in a curse. He releases his held breath and speaks. “I…I couldn’t tell ya’. Sorry to disappoint”

Yang gives Junior an incredulous look. “Really, Junior? We’re seriously about to do this? You honestly believe that playing dumb is your best option right now?”

“You know what, girly? You were right? Had you asked me that inside, I probably wouldn’t have even hesitated to rough you up and send your ass packing.”

Yang turns to Blake and gives her an “I told you so” kind of look, pointing down at Junior. Blake rolls her eyes.

“You’re really asking a lot of me right now. You have no idea what kind of bull I’m dealing with. I can’t just go blabbing about everything and expect things to turn out all right.”

Yang refocuses her attention back on Junior. “Well, I’m not really giving you a choice right now. So you either answer to me right here, or get what your mooks got in there. And, believe me, you don’t want what they got.” She leans down closer. “Look, guy. I’m willing to cut a deal with you. I just need some information. Depending on what you give me, I just might be able to compensate you for your time. So why don’t we just skip all the painful stuff and get down to business. What do ya’ say?”

He doesn’t respond right away, a conflicted look on his face as he breathed deeply.

“Come on, man, just come clean. There are people dying out there right now as we speak and I need to take this Conman guy in as soon as possible. Innocent Fauna are probably be murdered on a daily basis and you could be the key to saving their lives. You can’t be as heartless as Conman, can you?”

It was at this that Juniors eyes shoot open in surprise.

“Wait… What are you talking about?”

Yang rolls her eyes. “Junior, I was willing to play along the first time, but now you’re really starting to-“

“No-No, I mean… I have no idea what you’re talking about. I don’t know nothin’ about any murders.”

Yang looks taken aback by Juniors response. She turns and looks up at Blake who looks just as shocked, her arms now uncrossed. Yang stands up and gets off of Junior’s back, then reaches down and lifts him up. She pulls him across the ground and rests his back on the tire of the truck. Bending down, she gets on his level and looks him straight in the eye.

“Hold up-Hold up, back up a sec. You tellin’ me you don’t know anything about this Fauna slavery thing going on right now? Conman hasn’t told you about all that?”

Junior spits to the side. “Conman and me ain’t even partners. I’ve got nothing to do with that guy beyond resource delivery.”

Now Yang had her eyes widened, losing track of this entire conversation.

Junior sighs and slicks the sweat from his hair. “Look… Those guys in the suits? Black suits, red ties? Yeah, they belong to me. Those bozos work for me as grunts for hire. Basically, I got a bunch of guys on call, right? So, when a “client” needs a few extra hands for a job, he comes to me, pays the due amount and takes my guys with him for as long as he can pay for them. The grunts are pretty much up for any kind of freelance gigs. Usually those of the… underground variety, but anything goes so long as the client can shell out the dough. Client gets guys, I get paid, which means my guys get paid. And we generally get paid pretty good.”

Junior grunts in pain, reaching for his leg. Yang looks down and notices.

“You good?” she asks.

He looks at her deadpan. “Oh yeah, just peachy. Thanks for asking…” He leans his head back on the tire, sighing. “This is how this works… I give my guys to the client, he does whatever with them. From there, I don’t ask what he does and I don’t wanna know. His business is his business and that’s all there is to it. My guys? They just do what they’re told. Morals and ethics aside, what the client says goes. No questions asked, no ‘ifs’, ‘ands’, or ‘buts’ about it; just do what you gotta do, get paid and get out of there.”

Blake shakes her head. “Well, you’re right about that whole ‘no morals, or ethics’ part. I’d imagine it takes a rather depraved souls to gun down children and infants in a forest.” She seethes out those last words.

Junior looks to the side, avoiding Blake’s gaze. He runs his hand over his mouth and continues to speak. “Look… I ain’t saying I agree with what my clients do. But they aren’t my problem.”

“Oh yes they are.” Blake moves in closer, fists balled. “When you’re supplying them with the tools to commit such despicable crimes, they most certainly are your problem. So don’t try redirecting blame from yourself!”

“Blake.” The cat Fauna looks down at Yang. Yang brings her hand down like a lever. “Chill.” The woman, reluctancy, decides to listen and back off a few steps. Yang turns back to Junior. “Sorry about my friend. But I imagine you can see why she’s bit on edge.”

Junior slowly looks into Yang’s eyes. “…I hear things, you know…”

Yang tilts her head. “Oh?”

“Yeah… My guys aren’t supposed to tell me anything about the client. And they don’t. But, every once in a while, one of them’ll run a rumor about this Conman guy by me. One of them really caught my ear. They say he travels around from city to city. He won’t actually do anything, just… wander. As if her were looking for something. He might appear around town a few times. But, by the end of the week, he’ll be in another town altogether. It’s like, if what he’s looking for isn’t around, he’ll disappear like he was never even there. But then… it’s like, when he gets here… he suddenly finds what he’s been searching for.”

He shakes his head.

“My thing is… what the hell is he looking for? And why is he still here? And, worse yet… What the hell did he find here that made him stay?”

Yang looks to the ground in thought. Blake, behind her, has a hand on her chin.

“A name,” Yang starts, looking up at Junior. “Any of your guys ever happen to run a name by you?”

“Well… like I said, these are all just ‘rumors’ my guys brought up. But… a name has popped up before…” He looks up as if expecting someone to be watching him. When he’s sure the coast is clear, he leans in closer to Yang. “Roman Torchwick: that’s what one of my guys called him before.”

Yang turns to Blake. Blake returns a looks. “Roman Torchwick… Funky name.”

“I don’t know how valid it is, but that’s just what I heard. Whoever he is, I don’t really ask him questions. He kind of creeps me out. Something about him… he just seems off, you know? I got a feeling that diggin’ in any further with him’ll just open up a Pandora’s Box of problems. And, evidently, I’ve got plenty of those already. I think I’ll pass on that headache.”

“Well, it’s something. I think we might be able to use this.” With that, she fully stands up, placing her hands on her hips. “All right, Junior, I think we can call it here. You have been a wonderful host today and I must thank you for you incredible hospitality. You’re a doll!”

He scoffs. “…So? What happens now?”

Yang puts a finger on her chin in mock-thought. “Hmm… Now, I have a bit of a job for you. I need you to keep lookout. The very next time this Conman guy walks into your club, you let me know right away.”

Juniors rolls his eyes and shakes his head. “Oh good…”

“Here’s my number.” Yang hands Junior a piece of paper, a contact number written on it. In the corner, a smily cartoon version of her face with it’s tongue sticking out sits, giving a thumbs up. “Now, I’m counting on you, Junior. Your contribution to helping this lone Huntress in her endless endeavors to make the world a little better place will go a long way.”

He looks up at Yang, a thought popping up in his head. “Hey, wait a second. You call yourself a Huntress. But where’s your badge of proof. How do I know you aren’t just playing me right now?”

She sends him a smirk. Without missing a beat, she unzips her jacket and opens up the flap. On the inside, a shiny, Hunter insignia rests, staring Junior in the face. The minute he sees it, his expression drops as does his head.

“Now, go on, get. You’ve got quite the mess in there. Attendees won’t be happy to see the club in shambles like that and you’ve got a business to run. Should probably get on rectifying that, don’t ya’ think?”

Staggering, Junior uses the truck as leverage to lift himself from the ground, grunting in pain at doing so. Once he’s fully up, he sends an annoyed glare Yang’s way, preparing to walk off.

“God I really hate you…” he says as he limps away.

Yang shrugs. “Oh, and Junior! Start treating your workers better! They’re getting their asses kicked for yours, y’know! The least you can is compensate them! If you don’t, I’ll be back to have another ‘talk’ with you!” Rather than reply, Junior instead continues to walk off, holding up a hand giving Yang the finger. She turns to Blake and says, “I think he gets the point.”

Blake continues to look at Blake with a amused grin.

“What?” Yang asks, chuckling.

Blake giggles, shaking her head. “You are such a bitch.” With that, she turns and begins to walk to the garage exit.

Yang, smiling, turn and follows, walking next to Blake. “You now you love it.”

The two woman laugh together, Yang slinging an arm around Blake’s shoulders.

“I’d say that went pretty well, wouldn’t you?” Yang asks.

Blake snorts. “About as well as expected, anyway.”

“Kung fu master Blake Belladonna over here, huh? You are just chock full of surprises aren’t you?”

Swallowing the liquid in her mouth, Blake takes the straw down from her lips. “I don’t know about kung fu master. Kung fu expert maybe, but master? No, that’s a bit much.”

Yang sends a sideways smirk at the woman next to her. “Oh, look at you ridin’ your own jock. Have you no humility?”

“Hey now, I can be humble and still admit my own strengths,” she complains, using her cup to point accusing at Yang. “One of them just so happens to be the ability to absolutely wreck shop.”

“You totally meant to say wreck ‘club’ right?”

“No, Yang, because another one of my strengths just so happens to be a good sense of humor.”

Yang mock gasps, looking appalled at Blake words. “Did you just insinuate that I have a terrible sense of humor?”

“Are you not the same woman that had the nerve to say ‘ad-lip’ right in my face and think I wouldn’t notice?”

“That is comedy gold right there! I hope you know how difficult it actually is to come up with those masterpiece puns on the fly and not miss a beat. It takes true skill and a focused mind to stay on point with every passing conversation. Now shut up and feed me.”

Snorting, Blake puts the medium sized cup in her hand into the cupholder between the two front seats. She then picks up a wrapped up hamburger on her thigh and unwraps it, putting it in front of Yang’s mouth. The blonde gives it a quick look, then takes a hug bite out of it, mouth now full of food.

“Hum. Yeah, that’s what I’m talkin’ about. Real meat right there.”

“Ew, Yang, don’t talk with your mouth full like that,” Blake chastises the blonde.

“Oh, god…” She swallows the food in her mouth. “You sound just like my sister. She’s always whining about that same thing.”

“Well maybe she’s got a good reason for always complaining. For goodness sake, Yang, do you not have any basic manners?”

“No. I. Don’t. And you wanna know why I don’t have any manners, kitty cat?” She turns to Blake. “Cause I’m a nasty blonde bitch, that’s why.”

Blake turns to Yang. “Oh, that’s very classy. This is why I never take you out anywhere fancy.”

“And you know what? I, for one, am very upset by that. Are you ashamed of being seen with me, Blake? Am I not pretty enough for you?”

“You know, I would say no to that, but seeing as how you literally just admitted to having the same level of etiquette as a swine, I can’t deny your suspicions.”

“Oh, here we go! And the truth comes out! Is that why you look at me with disgust in your eye, Blake? Huh? Is that why you never look at me during? Do I upset you?”

“As I recall, you’re the one who likes facing away in the bedroom. I assumed it was a turn on for you.”

“That is completely untrue. I want you to look at me when I’m making you swoon and melt in the palm of my hand.” Blake slowly turns to Yang with a look of shock, her eyes going wide. Yang turns to the black haired woman with a smirk. “Think this joke’s getting a bit out of hand?”

“…I think it got out of hand weeks ago.”

For a second, the two sit in silence as Yang drives down the road. Soon after, however, the two burst out into uncontrolled laughter. Blake even keels over, holding her stomach with both hands. On the edge of her eyes, tears form due to how hard Yang was laughing. After a few moments of laughing, Yang begins to cool down and wipe the tears off her eyes, looking to Blake, who continues laugh, a hand going over her mouth to maybe muffle the sounds.

Yang continues to look on, a warm smile on her face. “You look good when you laugh.” Blake hears Yang’s statement and she starts to simmer down, a chuckle or two still escaping from her throat. She looks at the blonde. “You got a cute smile, y’know. Shame I don’t get to see it more often.”

Blake smiles, looking down. “Yeah, it really is. I should really work on rectifying that…” She looks back up at Yang. “You know, I never bothered to ask, but… How did you know? I mean, about…” She alludes to her ribbon covered cat ears. “When did you first figure out the truth about me?”

Yang snorts. “Since the moment I showed up at your doorstep ready to throw down.”

Blake gives Yang a surprised look, her mouth slightly hanging open.

“What? You really thought that thing was foolin’ anybody? Blake, I could see the ears moving under the ribbon.” A soft blush forms on Blake’s cheeks as she looks away embarrassed, reaching up to her ears. “Look! They’re doing it right now, see? Look at em’ go!”

Yang points out Blake’s ribbon, which was indeed wiggling around very noticeably. Blake, by this, point has covered her entire face, bending over. Yang could practically feel the heat radiating off the Fauna’s body. She laughs.

“Blake, you are somethin’ else, you know that? You gotta try harder than that if you wanna play the people around you.”

Blake peaks up at Yang, pouting indignantly. But, she soon drops it and replaces the expression with a soft smile. Sitting up in her seat, she readjust her bow and unkempt, long black hair, then sits back with a sigh of content. “…I’m not angry anymore.”

“You feelin’ better now?” Yang asks.

“A little… We’ve still got a long way to go… but at least something’s getting done. At least someone’s working to fix things. At least someone cares…”

“We’re gonna take care of all of this, Blake. I told ya’ I would do what I could. I’m a Junior Huntress. Comes with the territory.”

“Well… The world needs more Hunters like you…”

“Thank you… Yang…”

The junior huntress turns to Blake. “…That’s gay.”

Chuckling, Blake playfully jabs Yang’s shoulder, making the blonde chuckle herself. After all of that, Blake turns her gaze to look out the passenger side window, Yang focusing her attention on the road she drove down.

Beep-Beep!

That was the sound of Yang’s scroll ringing from inside one of her pockets. She reaches a hand down and digs through them, eventually pulling out her scroll. She looks at the transparent screen and only sees a number, no name given. Pressing the answer button, she puts the device to her ear.

“Yang Xiao Long speaking.” She remains quite, the voice on the other line speaking. As she listened, her expression turns into one of surprise. “Holy cow, is that you? H-Hey, kiddo, how ya’ doing? Haven’t seen you in a while!”

The voice continues to speak. It sounded alarmed; frantic. “Whoa-Whoa, hey now. Just calm down for a second. H-How did you get this number? What’s goin’ on? You ok-“

The voice continues to speak on, still frantic and unorganized. Blake, hearing Yang speak on the phone, looks over at the blonde curiously.

“Wait, hold— slow down a little, okay? What are talking about? Who’s—“

Yang is once again cut off as the voice continues. Blake could just barely hear the voice on the other line, but not what it was saying. With every passing moment, Blake notices Yang’s face sink deeper and deeper, Blake’s worry growing in contrast.

“Yang…?” She tries to ask.

Yang continued to listen, her face now covered in horror, the color in her face seeming to have drained completely.

Skirt!

The truck lurches forward violently, Blake being thrown forward, her seatbelt keeping her from hitting her head on the dashboard. When the vehicle stops completely, she slams back into her seat, her head hitting it hard. She grabs at the back of her skull, looking over at Yang.

“Easy!” she says. However, her annoyance is soon replaced by worry once more as she sees the horrified look on Yang’s face, the scroll in her hand having dropped to the floor. “Yang?” Blake calls out. No answer. She takes the blonde woman’s shoulder. “Yang? What’s wrong? Talk to me! Yang!”

Slowly, a grim expression on her face, Yang slowly turns to Blake. The Fauna could feel Yang’s body shaking, this only worrying her more.

“I…It’s…” Yang begins, stammering. “R…Ruby…She…”

At the familiar name, now Blake looks just as scared as Yang, a lump caught in her throat.

“Ru… by… Ruby… She… She…”

To Be Continued...