Her One Weakness...

Fucked Up and Shattered Within

Roman P.O.V

What is going on in her head? I regard sceptically as Neo helps to move the crates into the non-descript moving truck. I'm usually good at reading people, but with Neo, I am reduced to some amateur street rat. The cold determination of her eyes seeped into every inch of her, she was so frigid surpassing even the coldness she possessed when we first met.

It's like she's closed the gates to me again. I miss seeing her rather than just her cold exterior - even with how sexy her exterior is-.

Chuckling to myself I continue to stack the dust crates into the truck. I'll get to the bottom of Neo's weird behaviour. I just gotta be patient.

I grimace at this thought. Another thing I am not good at: patience.

Neo P.O.V

This is great. Just my fucking luck. Huffing, I throw another dust crate onto the truck and turn back for another. Why Cinder decided we had to pitch in on the faunas work mystifies me. The sooner we leave for the new hideout the better. Then we can get down to the real work.

My rage boils within me again. 'The work that would evidently get Roman killed. Why Cinder thinks it's such a great plan to purposefully get Roman caught by the Atlas general as inside intel and evidently the means of taking over a military armed to the teeth with no defense or back up of any sort is yet another fucking concept that mystifies me, enrages me, terrifies me- Stop!' I grit my teeth, 'You have let Roman get too close than what is good for you Neo. He is your work partner, nothing more. Caring about him when his safety can't be guaranteed on this mission is just the same as giving him a knife to eventually stab you in the gut. It's better if I cut him off now , keep the knife away from him before he goes onto that aircraft. It's what needs to be done.'

My hands shake, rattling the crate I'm holding slightly and I rush to put it in the truck. In doing so shoved past someone causing them to fall. Not caring who it was I marched onwards only to be yanked back by my male victim a few steps later.

"Hey! I think you owe me an apology little lady!" Whirling around I kicked his legs from under him, forcing him to release me. Before he could land on the ground I grabbed his ear that resembled a fox. Of course, it just had to be a faunas! Disgusted by his whimpers I twist his ear and throw him against the side of the truck. I smirk at his weakness as I stare into his terrified eyes. Clutching his throat with one hand I raise a brow, 'still think I need to apologise mutt?'

My care factor of his demand for an apology must've been evident, for he began to profusely shake his head "M-my mis-s-take! I'm s-so-rry for sh-hoving you!"

'Pathetic!' I release him and he drops to the gravel in a crumpled heap. For a second, time stands still as the male faunas is replaced with a tiny woman with pink and brown hair covered in bruises and slashes from head to toe. She looks up at me with terrified white eyes and reaches out, "Help me!?"

No, go away, leave me alone! The helpless girl let out a broken sob, "Please, help! Naomi he's going to kill us!"

My head is in agony as the past stared me right in the face after so long of repressing it.'GO AWAY! I CAN'T HELP YOU!!!' As quickly she came she was gone and instead the faunas staring at me with his speckled golden eyes, eyes that couldn't be further from those white eyes but both wore the exact same expression. 'No, I can't go back! Not after everything I've worked for! I will not let some mangey,-' my fists ball together and draw blood with the force of my grasp, '-incompetent-' rage pours into my veins, making me shake, '-cowardly-' the faunus' eyes widen in fear, '-pathetic animal reduce me to Naomi; the helpless mute who couldn't take care of herself or lift a pinkie to stop her abusive faunas boyfriend!'

With blurry eyes that just fueled my shame, I kicked the faunas in the side as if to kick the girl that was of such likeness to him. A voice cut through the ominous quiet that had fallen upon the warehouse, one that had become all too familiar.

"Neo!" Roman called out casually as if I was the butt of his jokes but there was an insistent undertone. "Come on now! You don't want to mess up your new boots, do you? Besides I think you have proved your point that you rule and Faunas boy Daryll over there drools." He inclines his head slightly to the truck we were supposed to travel in. Throwing one last glare at the faunas, Daryll, before rolling my eyes and storming off to the truck. If Roman wants to scold me like a child he can go right ahead. It won't change a damn thing! If he thinks he can boss me around and get me to apologise to that beast he can go to hell!

Keeping it cool until I hide behind the truck and slam my fist into the side, leaving a small dent in its door. Yanking my hair I try to escape the stress of the buried past to no avail. My eyes blur once again but still don't brim over thankfully. I promised myself a long time ago that I would no longer shed tears for anyone, especially not myself. Leaning with my forehead against the truck, letting the cool surface cool soothe me. In...out...in...out...keep them out...let no one in...

Roman P.O.V

After everyone seemed to have moved on from the incident I ran over to the truck concealing Neo. Something wasn't right about her. Despite her hate for their kind, she never had the manic fury towards one. She's always cool and calculative but today she seemed, scared?

Rounding the front of the truck I found her leaning on the truck face first taking shaking breaths. She looked tinier than usual. Her cold-hearted killer persona seemed to be fractured slightly. I'm not going to lie, it broke me a little to see her suffer even a little. Reaching out to her shoulder I rubbed it a little but she stiffened under my grasp. Before I knew it she had me pressed up against the truck with her weapon at my throat, a glazed fury possessing her now blazing pink eyes as if she were someplace else.

"Ne-o!" I choked hoping to get through to her, "What's wrong with you? Tell me!"

She snapped back in an instant, eyes a horrified white before she regained control and they settled on the usual pink and brown. There was an instability within them though like she was just holding on. Releasing me she turns to leave but I grasp her hand. "Ice-cream, talk to me..." 'Why is she like this? What have I done wrong?'

Growling in frustration I tighten my grip when she tries to pull away, "Neo just let me in! I care about you and I want to help, to care for you, my sweet Ice-cream"

She glares at me and rips her hand out of her grasp and begins to furiously type on her scroll, I feel the buzz of my own and pull it out in cautiously. She stomps over to the front of the truck and hops in with a slam of the door.

What is going on? Furrowing my brows I open my messages and read her text:

Miss Badass:

You know what?! I'm not YOUR Icecream! I told you I hated that nickname and it still stands today! Have you ever thought you might be the problem! I don't want you to see inside, you have no fucking right to demand access to what's not YOURs! You do you get a kick out of this? Making me weak! Making me go soft! Making me care! I don't want to care, I can't afford to care about you. Just LEAVE ME ALONE!!! I don't want to shatter over you! I can't... we can't be anymore than partners in this crime death trap we are tangled in because I can't- I don't want to have you to lose. I'm not as Badass as you think I am... "

Miss Badass changed her name to Neopolitan: fucked up and shattered within.