Capítulo 13: The Lady In Red (4)
"Helping other people is our responsibility. And no matter what I'm gonna live by that." – Shirou Emiya
Chapter 13: The Lady In Red (4)
To say that I was starting to notice a pattern slowly forming around my little family was… an utterly foolish understatement.
With Raven being properly tied and moved out of my home, I expected things to return stable as I didn't exactly have the particular condition that pushed me to seek a major involvement on the plot.
Remnant's complicated issues, ranging from family matters to world-end scenarios, were stuff to keep the furthest away from me. Especially since I was dealing with one of said issues because it was related to a good connection to part of the cast. The support cast to that.
Yet my hopes of enjoying a new day without facing STRQ anytime before lunch, which were legitimated by the fact the team would be keen to avoid trying to press on the sensible info 'I might be still having about the world', crumbled before a rather unusual sight as I walked towards the kitchen.
The snoring was soft, almost undetectable to my ears, and I would have easily associated the noise to Sienna deciding to pull an all-nighter for that day. It wouldn't be the first time the woman decided to 'guard' the house and making use of the couch but… then I turned my stare at the furniture and frowned at what I saw.
Raven's eyes were closed, further proving that the woman was still soundly asleep and unaware of the fact that I was looking at her. She was wearing a short half-sleeved white shirt that sported a dark-gray rose on it, mini-pants doing nothing to hide the pale and 'glowing' legs of hers.
Summer could have given her some clothes. The Branwen didn't exactly bring anything that could resemble a night-wear and the fact that said clothes looked rather tight on her frame was enough to conclude it was indeed a spare pair of clothes from the leader of her team.
Sprawled on the couch with her hair left unhindered with anything to tie her dark locks away, the sword-wielding woman looked like a lioness enjoying some much-needed rest and… now I was visualizing Raven with feline cat-ears-
No, we are not having this right now!
My hands slapped softly at my cheeks, the brief pain snapping me out of my embarrassment as I walked towards the kitchen cubicle. Holding back a yawn, I started to fix the fire on the stove and prepared the small saucepan with milk to put onto the flame.
My hands fluttered without hesitation while picking the cups that were supposed contain the warm milk. A few spoons were taken too, carefully handling honey and chocolate powder.
Finally a yawn broke away from my lips, my tired stare fixing over small pack of coffee mini-bars. While the bitter beverage was preparing, my attention shifted back to the saucepan as I turned off the fire and… poured the milk in the mugs.
The little steam coming from the sweet liquid, coupled with the delicious aroma that came from the mixture blending in the cups was what I needed to finally wake up and… it was time to wake up the kids.
With a nod, I picked the two cups that were meant to be given to Nora and Ren, turning around to start to walk-
And Raven was there, standing patiently just a few meters away from me. Her red-eyed sight was directed at my actions, there was minor surprise as she had been discovered but… my only reaction was just tensing up and giving her my own wide-eyed gaze.
"Good morning." I greeted quietly, giving nothing else from that. The woman blinked and nodded in return, letting me walk past her as I resumed my little march to the children's room.
I admit I was surprised at first at her lack of a stronger response at the non-commitment to truly interact with her, but soon I was calmly shaking the kids awake. Both were quick to finish the content of their mugs and I was sent back-tracking to the cubicle.
I glanced at Raven the moment I spotted her dark ahoge peeking from the couch she had used as a bed until minutes earlier. She was lying on it, sight covered by her arm as she sighed quietly.
Mugs to the sink and my cup placed on the small counter of the kitchen, I glanced momentarily at her as I tried to understand… Why, how and when?
Seriously, I thought that Summer would have gone out of her way to make sure the woman wouldn't have escaped her watch but… she failed. I blinked, the third and final mug quickly placed together with the rest.
My eyes turned once more at the young woman and I started to notice the awkward silence having been in the room for… sometime now. Curious, but not overly-dramatic.
I could only think of the reason behind her presence here and I found quite interesting lack of the intensity present until the day before.
Just as I was about to finally commence the discussion, I found myself beaten by the woman herself.
"Why are you… happy of this dull life?" She asked, her voice clear as it delivered quite the packed question.
I blinked. "Er- can you be a little more… specific?" I asked back, my mind trying to grasp what she was alluding to and… the former Huntress sighed.
"You take joy from preparing breakfast." Raven commented with a little stronger tone. "You enjoy something that shouldn't give you any gratification and… it confuses me to no end."
I hummed. "You mean something that doesn't give you any gratification." I felt chiding to the woman, causing her red eyes to turn to glance at me with some intrigue. "People can actually live without having to deal with highly-dangerous situations, Raven." I concluded with a sigh, her stare hardening a little in show of annoyance.
"Then what about Summer- or Taiyang?" She pressed with more determination. "They are still Hunters but… they hardly care now about training as much as they usually did when we were still in the same team." There was a brief pause. "I know that they now are taking care of the… children, but to fall to this pathetic predicament? Even Qrow looks stronger than them… and he is always drunk." She stopped with a frown, eyes turning to the ceiling as she waited for an answer.
… "You know that they have other responsibilities now-"
"But then why would they decrease the training?" The Branwen interrupted, her ahoge flickering left and right to show her inner confusion. "Why would they waste time that could give them the strength to protect Ruby and Yang-"
"Because they are still their parents." I interjected firmly, my tone turning colder as I felt irritated by the lack of understanding I was getting from the woman. As clueless as she could be about family-related stuff, I was sure that she should have been smart enough to connect the fact children had parents and not formal guardians around. "And as their parents is their legitimate concern is to make sure that-"
Just as I was about to finish that more-than-needed explanation, we both heard the distinct sound of the door bell.
I frowned, slowly advancing towards the entrance area and went to check from the peeping hole. I was surprised at whom was on the other side, my hand quickly going for the knob and twisting it open after unlocking the door. A smile forming on my face, I nodded and greeted the people standing by the porch.
"Good morning, Ghira, Kali." The couple nodded back as I turned to the yawning girl standing close by her mother's legs. "And hello there, Blake."
The child yawned and nodded. "'Morning, uncle John." She greeted softly.
...Did she just-
"She asked if she could call you like that… since it rings well, she says." Kali answered my silent question while ruffling the tired girl's hair. "And I find your resemblance with Ghira quite amusing." She commented mirthfully, deepening my frown at this very bit.
Ignoring the fact that he was taller than me, had muscles and could easily open me up as a tin can if the situation required, I think I could see… a very insignificant and minor resemblance.
I glanced at the man, he merely nodded silently, his face telling some imposition from his wife had put him on the corner over the matter. Just as I was about to ask why they were there, I remembered that the three members of the Belladonna family weren't the only ones present there.
Courtesy of a partly-annoyed Sienna, my poor cheek was targeted by a sudden pinching attack.
My eyes snapped open at the sudden pain and my sight was instantly to the not-so-amused Tiger Faunus. "Hello to you too, John." The woman replied with a stern smirk, her hold intensifying. "I see that you are courteous today. Enough to remember me very well."
I felt dread as I felt her annoyance flooding towards me, like a wave ready to consume everything on its way. "I'm shorry!"
Her lips twitched upwards at my pinch-induced impairment and both Kali and Blake giggled at the scene, Ghira merely nodding in sympathy at the situation that had fallen upon my poor face.
"I'm happy to know that you two are this close but… I think I should tell you that we are visiting for… her." The mother's smile widened as her index finger pointed behind me and… right at a very surprised Raven.
"Kali?" The Branwen said with a shocked tone, her red eyes widening at the fellow woman.
The Cat Faunus giggled. "It's been a while, Rae." She replied with a nod.
I blinked, glancing at Ghira and then Sienna. "They know eash other?" I asked with confusion dripping from my words… only to be yanked a little harder by the Tiger Faunus. "W-Why?"
"'Why?'" She parroted with a quiet tone. "You want to tell me that I should question why she is here after she had left yesterday?!" The woman looked- no, was livid and I gulped nervously.
...I was pretty convinced that a 'sorry' wouldn't have worked this time around.
Soon we were all sitting by the couches as Ghira, Sienna and I stared with mild curiosity as both women started to spare their respective attentions to each other.
It took me a while to understand how the two were connected and… I almost facepalmed at where I could draw any parallels from.
Old Times. It was from 'Old Times'.
The comic was pure slice of life with some Anime-like scenarios about the various misadventures of Team STRQ… and the grand cast formed by various other characters that weren't supposed to be in Beacon Academy to begin with!
Not that I complained, I always loved a good slice of life and…
The issue was that I could remember how Kali was characterized in that series. Albeit very kind, polite and reserved, the Cat Faunus did have a minor attraction to Raven, said interest materializing in the form of stories… she would write about her.
Nothing overly-romantic and cringey stories about any shipping but… the main discovery was that the mother was also a writer herself.
I mean, Blake's interest in literature was supposed to come from somewhere.
Now that sounded like a good thing to consider, since I wouldn't mind having Ilia learning from someone else other than me. As much as I was happy to help her around, finding time with the work hours and house chores proved to be a draining situation.
"-And do you remember when Qrow and Tai ended up hit by that squid? It was… amusing wh-when the old man passing nearby gave them both CPR."
The Branwen snorted. "My brother would whine about that 'incident' for two whole months. I swear, the Dorm room became unbearable by how he behaved about it." She commented herself.
Kali chuckled. "Yet Tai was very quick to forget about it, something about trying to impress someone." The Faunus winked at the huffing woman. "Do you remember the serenades he would throw at you?"
"More like hindrances to homework." Raven shook her head. "He was terrible when it was Valentine day." She concluded with a sigh.
"Indeed and-"
"Dear." Ghira interrupted right in that moment, his stare directed at his watch. "We should hurry, the children are going to be late for school."
My eyes widened and I nodded as I did notice it was getting late. Kali pouted a little but smiled sadly as she stood up from her seat. "It's been good to catch up with you, Rae."
"Likewise, Kali. It's always good to hear from you and..." Her red eyes turned to her friend's husband, narrowing at him much to the latter's nervousness. "Your husband… I hope he was the 'one' that could tame you." She mused quietly, her tone turning… odd.
…What?
I think it's time to bail, John. This is turning-
"Why yes! He truly knows how to untangle me up-" The cat-eared mother giggled and nodded to the sheer embarrassment hitting the witnesses of this last bantering. Sienna stood up and started to drag me towards the door.
"W-We are leaving!" She ordered with a hasty tone, pulling my arm and forcing me to stand up too.
I had a sheepish look about the 'hurry' the woman had and… then I remembered a little detail-
I had yet to change in my normal clothes and… I couldn't go to my workplace in simple shirt with baggy trousers.
"S-Sienna, wait! I-I am not ready-
I'm not readyyyy!"
"That's unacceptable, Jacques!" A closed fist slammed on the desk in front of the blank-looking young man.
The owner of the hand was an elderly businessman with icy blue eyes and pristine white-hair "I gave you half of my shares for the SDC because I wanted to trust your common sense and ability to make affairs but-"
"The company is faring well, father." Jacques replied cooly. "I made sure that the profits were tripled and that the board of directors was happy with our plans." He affirmed, pushing forward some papers with positive results.
"Your plans, you foolish brat." Nicholas Schnee snarled, his face growing redder the more he spoke with this idiotic mess of a person. "Applying extreme measures against Faunus-related workers, depriving them of rights that they got from the Council-"
"A lesser evil for the sake of improving the company." The Chief Executive pointed out snidely. "Being 'nice' is unbecoming for the SDC. Our priority should be the betterment of the Schnee family and the empowerment of our monopoly over Remnant." A smug smile appeared as the words left his mouth.
"You insufferable cur-" The official leader of the family paused a moment to cough, the fit lasting for a few moments. "Y-you, I will make sure you- you are ousted from the board-"
"Empty threats from someone close to the coffin." Jacques sharply stated, his eyes turning in slits as his anger started to show. "A foolish old man trying to use his reputation to ruin an upstanding young man and head of the Gelé family."
"Y-You-"
"I will be enjoying some quality life with my family." The younger businessman interrupted. "Winter is showing an impressive capacity to deal with complex math problems, her tutors are praising her as a young genius-"
"You w-will pay, Jacques." The head of the Schnee promised coldly. "I- I will make sure t-that once I'm done with you-"
"No more." The elegant young man demanded. "You are allowed to leave, father." The order was easily perceived by the elder and… Nicholas decided to retreat.
His body was partially shivering, once more the medications failing to help him withstand the annoying illness that he had contracted during one of his latest explorations. His health had deteriorated to an unbelievable rate and… mistakes have been made.
Giving his daughter's hand to Jacques was possibly the greatest of them all and now the founder of the greatest Dust-based company in the world was struggling to protect his family from the ambitious prick's plans.
He walked alone in the empty hallways of the mansion, glancing once or twice in a while around as he noted the strange looks the guard within his very house were giving him. Like an untrustworthy criminal, a deranged man ready to explode any moment now.
The last bit wasn't that far as, while he did look merely irritated and sick, Nicholas was truly having the greatest ire toward that smug bastard. He sighed, eyes closing as he tried to calm down and-
"Sir, I see that you have finished with your meeting." The hopeful and flippant voice brought the old Schnee out of his inner peace, his eyes softly gracing the butler that he had personally hired to take care of his grandchildren.
Klein Sieben was a diamond among coals, a man that proved to be not only capable of doing his job efficiently, but also provide the children someone that they could trust as a surrogate family member.
Something that Nicholas didn't mind as he did encounter the peculiar butler years before when he was but a babe at the time.
"Thank the Gods, yes." The elder replied amicably. "And I hope that Willow has finished with the sparring session of today." He asked quietly, getting a simple huff from the servant.
"Lady Schnee is patiently waiting by your room. She awaits news about-"
"What happened with my talk with the selfish prick and… it's not good news at all." The man interrupted, shaking his head in self-disappointment. If he had been younger, healthier, the discussion would have gone way worse than having a moron still sitting on his former chair.
"Indeed?" Klein looked quite concerned by this response. "Then would you prefer if I prepared for you some coffee and-"
The Schnee held his hand up, gesturing the butler to be quiet. "I understand your worries, Klein, but I will manage without one for what I've to say to my daughter."
His little girl, pride of his eyes and… a registered Huntress by Vale's registry. It had been amusing to see how Willow had preferred to continue her studies in Beacon Academy of all places… and yet he had been glad for that.
Without a close influence from other important Altesian families, the rebellious girl developed and matured in a wise and dangerous woman to face without proper tools.
Something that Nicholas circumvented unknowingly and so wrongly by setting up that arranged marriage with Jacques.
Regrets filled his once determined soul, his hand shivering a little as it hovered close to the door that led to his room, his heart aching at the news he was supposed to deliver.
He knocked twice and… entered with a faux smile.
The moment he stepped inside, Nicholas was surprised by a quick hug from Willow. The young mother of three children looked hardly different from before her marriage. Sharp and brilliant cerulean eyes expected proper news, her expression one of hope.
"Father." Her smile, once a symbol of being happy of, now felt hurtful. He had failed his baby girl.
"W-Willow." He smiled even more as he patted his daughter's shoulder. "I see that you are still holding strong with your sparring partners." He commented, drawing a minor pout from the adult but gaining another big smile soon after.
"They are particularly lazy-mannered in spars." She replied with an annoyed tone. "But I suppose that this is the best I can afford right now." Her voice trailed some resignation to the critical situation she was undergoing with her marriage.
Her husband had yet to show any disturbing attitude, but if Nicholas' gut feeling was correct (like always), then it was a matter of time, possibly after he passed away, for Jacques to snap and retaliate against his wife.
Willow was sometimes hot-headed, something that she had inherited by her father, but that was also a flaw that put her at odds with the former member of the Gelé family.
The old Schnee sighed. "Sweetie, can… can you help me to the bed. I think we both… needs to sit down for this."
She tensed a little at the request, nodding with some confusion and… concern. "S-Sure thing, father."
Her hold was strong, but cautious enough to mind his tired bones and soon… they were sitting by his bed.
"The discussion was… heated." Nicholas admitted quietly. "Jacques was very adamant over his stance and… and I understand that this is about your friend-"
"It's not only her." Willow interrupted quietly. "But to those children and their parents that work at the mine." She added with a serious tone, something that the father nodded at.
He could see a resemblance to the horror of child labor back after the Great War, how Mantle had to struggle painfully to return to stability.
A young Nicholas Schnee would learn how being humble and mindful of how things work all over the world was what made a man the best among high numbers. A man capable of standing up against odds and work himself out from poverty with ingenuity and capacity to take opportunities the right way, never the easy way.
What once was the Schnee Dust Company, a monopoly born to bring prosperity to Remnant as a whole, was now slowly crumbling in a… 'very large monopoly under Atlas'.
The council had been a pain in the butt to deal back when they demanded several times for the company's nationalization, something that would have crippled his hopeful dreams multiple times.
Then Jacques started to mingle with some members of the government and strange situations happened by the political landscape of the kingdom.
Some of the rights present for Faunus were rescinded one by one, meek explanations allowed and the military, having been silently and unknowingly bribed with a bigger budget, were fine about it all.
Many of the older generals, those that had been there to witness the horrors of the Faunus Revolutionary War, were quick to resign from their posts… but their actions mattered little when the media focused on 'other, more important news'.
"A-And I tried to have him to back down from his post and..."
There was a pause, his daughter realizing almost too quickly where he was going with his words and… the sadness was almost too much for him. The hug that she gave him, something that he should have initiated, brought him to tears.
After years of fighting injustice itself, Nicholas Schnee lacked the strength to properly match up with the vultures hovering over his family. He was tired, too tired to keep up with the burden and… it was infuriating.
He slumped over the woman's kind embrace and… he sighed. "I… I'm sorry, sweetie-"
"It's alright, father-"
"N-No, it's not." He interrupted angrily. "I-I should have noticed quickly that the mongrel was… like that. I should have- I-"
"Shhh..." The white-haired mother patted his weary head softly. "You did what you could have done and… I don't blame you." She said in a comforting fashion, causing more tears to flood through his eyes.
This was… unacceptable.
His sweet daughter… was here comforting him. He should be the one comforting her but…
Promises matter little if there wasn't any action backing them up.
If he wanted to truly redeem himself… he would have to remove the cause of the problem.
Jacques was problematic, part of his board was even worse. Even if he was close to his final day, Nicholas continued to fight for his family and… hopefully something would have come up within his mind when he would be with his grandchildren.
With tutors and teachers besieging the two granddaughters, the man was left only with little Whitley, the toddler being too young to be ushered into education just yet.
But the day after tomorrow, with the day in the schedule being freed for the children, the old man was offered the chance of enjoying some of his last moments with them.
Maybe it was melodramatic and overly-foolish but, for the first time in decades of being atheist, Nicholas Schnee prayed for a miracle to save his family.
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