Remnant's Calling

2x1: Runaway

"Ah, Vytal! Isn't it wonderful?" Weiss asked cheerfully.

"Yeah, sure, just uh... don't smile like that. It's creepy," Yang replied with look of half-disgust and half-surprise.

Weiss turned in a glare, making Yang put her hand up in surrender.

"You just came out here to spy on the other students," Blame stated bluntly.

"You can't prove anything!" Weiss blurted with clear guilt in her voice.

Just then, a cop rushed out of a nearby building and threw up. His face was pale as snow.

"Another brutal massacre," Ruby noted grimly. "That makes four now."

"I heard it's White Fang being targeted," Yang added with the same grim tone.

"Ugh, good riddance," Weiss retorted with scorn and vitriol. "They're nothing but a bunch of terrorists and thieves!"  

Blake glared daggers at the heiress with her fists tight at her sides. She goes to say something but Ruby goes first. "That's not true," she said. "They're just scared. Scared of people like you."

"Like me?" Weiss repeated with profound confusion. "I'm nothing but a victim! The Faunus-"

The tall frame of someone overshadowing her made Weiss's word catch in her throat. When she finally turned, Jacket's somber expression greeted her.

"Jacket? What're you doing at here?" Ruby asked, tilting her head curiously. 

"What a beautiful day, right?" Asked the familiar voice of his recorder. Despite the upbeat tone of the recording's voice, he looked exhausted and sleep-deprived. 

"You look atrocious," Weiss pointed out dryly. 

He seemed to chuckle while he glanced at the crime scene. He goes to say something, but another voice shouts, "someone stop him!" 

They turn to a young adult sprinting away with a couple apples and a banana. As he runs by, he and Blake catch one another's eye, and he winks at her with a toothy grin. Funnily enough, the glimpse of his monkey tail caught Jacket off-guard for a split moment before he realized the guy was a Faunus. 

"After him!" Weiss shouted, making a dramatic pointing pose before running after him. 

The others followed just a step behind. Although Jacket was left behind while he walked instead of running. It seemed like a couple minutes passed before he caught back up with them with the addition of someone else. A tall, ginger-haired girl with chartreuse eyes. 

"Hello, new person!" She said vibrantly, waving to Jacket.

He waved back to her, unfazed. 

"What're you even doing here?" Asked Weiss, looking her up and down. "Unless you're one of the transfer students." 

"Yup! I'm combat ready for Vytal!" She said with a salute. "Oh, I'm Penny, by the way, mister." She stuck out her hand after her introduction.

Jacket smiled and leaned forward, shaking her hand. "Jacket." 

"That's a weird name, and voice!" Stated Penny with adorable cluelessness. "Anyway, I must be going now! Bye bye!" 

"Well that was nice," Yang commented. 

"But that Faunus thief got away," Weiss addressed tartly. 

"What's wrong with you!?" Blake suddenly shouts, catching everyone by surprise. "You make it seem as if they had a choice to be this way!"

"Everyone has a choice!" Weiss snapped caustically. "And they chose wrong!" 

"Hey, let's not catch any attention we don't need, guys," Ruby suggested, stepping between them. "C'mon, let's head back to the dorms."

Both Weiss and Blake glare each other for a few fleeting moments before heeding the words of their leader. 

Jacket hangs back while as they walk away. His somber gaze slowly falls to the floor, a long sigh falling from him as well as a quiet curse. 

⋯

The moon sat in the starry sky beneath clouds like a white shadow, free of any burden. Jacket stares at it almost out of jealousy. The momentary peace of mind crumbles as a voice cuts through his silent mind. 

"I don't understand what's causing such a problem!" Weiss shouts. 

"That IS the problem!" Blake shouts back as the heiress rises. 

"You realize you're defending an organization that despises humanity, don't you?" Weiss questions adamantly. "The Faunus of the White Fang are pure, undeniable evil!" 

"There is no such thing!" Blake bellowed in retort. "Pure evil is the Grimm. The White Fang only hate humanity is because of people like you and Cardin that force to take drastic measures!" A massive flame burns in Blake and her words. 

Weiss is taken back. "What do you mean people like me?!" 

"You're discriminatory!" 

"I'm a victim!" Weiss shouts again. "You want to know why I don't trust the Faunus? Why I see them as nothing terrorists?" Her frenzied tone slowly dies and turns to a low, almost gentle tone. "They've been at war with my family for years. Bloodshed and all. For as long as I can remember, a target's been painted on the back of my grandfather's company, and everyone with it. Friends, family, you name them. They've disappeared or have executed, as if they were a warning."

Ruby steps to Weiss's side, trying to comfort her, but she violently shrugs her hand away. 

"I hate the White Fang because they're nothing but liars, thieves, and murderers!" 

"Well maybe we're tired of being pushed around!"

Time froze around Blake after uttering those words. Then fear took hold. She darted past Yang, Jacket, and Ruby before anyone could get a word out. Long moments passed before they snapped out of their stupor. Ruby goes to chase after Blake with Yang behind her. However, within their dorm, stood Jacket, juxtaposed to Weiss. His indifferent gaze burying something familiar.