Smile

Chapter 7

"Good morning sleepy head!" Ruby softly says to Weiss before gently shaking her side to wake her up.

"Nnh... Nooo... Moooom... Just five more minutes..." Comes Weiss's yawned out reply, the blankets being pulled over her head while Ruby giggles a bit. A few ticklish pokes to the side wake Weiss up fully, gaining Ruby a grumpy, pouty frown as her head comes back into view.

"Get up Weiss, we've gotta go have breakfast and select missions today." Begrudgingly, Weiss gets up out of bed, messy hair strewn this way and that. After a quick trip to the bathroom to freshen up and brush her teeth, she dresses in her combat uniform, then heads out to the cafeteria to eat, selecting a sufficiently soft meal before settling in with her teammates. Idle chatter breaks out while food is consumed, and once everyone has eaten they head out to the missions board to look over what is available.

"Let's see..." Weiss begins to hum to herself while looking at the current missions, deciding on what might be interesting and whether or not it requires multiple people.

"Ah, Weiss, good morning." Winter's voice speaks up from behind Weiss, soft hues glancing behind her after her momentary surprise.

"Oh, um, good morning Winter. What brings you here?" She asks, figuring that Winter would have some important. reason to be by the missions board given her position.

"General Ironwood has a special assignment for you and Ms. Polendina." Looking equal parts confused and intrigued, Weiss nods slowly, then follows Winter as she motions. "He would like for you two to go down to Mantle, spend the day helping the citizens and defending against the Grimm. He feels it would help ease tensions and instill trust in the Atlesian military if the 'Protector of Mantle' and a member of the Schnee family are seen together working to protect the citizens."

"That makes sense, I suppose. The Schnee family tends to be disliked by many, maybe this could let people know not all of us Schnees are, err... Awful people." Weiss muses, Winter nodding before continuing.

"Given the incident that occurred, he believes that if you were to be seen away from our father, it would help the people gain faith in the military and how well it can protect them. We were able to rescue you, after all, and without any adverse responses, which was what we hoped for." As Winter falls silent, Weiss nods, then gently brushes off her skirt before speaking.

"I... Understand. I'll help however I can, and with Penny at my side, I suppose nothing can go wrong." Winter smiles slightly in response to Weiss's words, then motions for her to again follow, leading her out to the waiting airship where Penny is stood.

"Sal-u-tations friend Weiss!" Penny cheerfully greets Weiss, embracing her in a slightly too rough hug that makes Weiss groan softly and squirm. "I'm so very excited to get to work with you down in Mantle, we're going to help so many people, this is going to be fun!"

"I... Ack... I'm happy to be working with you a... As well, Penny... Erk... T... Too t... Tight..." Weiss manages to squeak out before being suddenly released by Penny, stumbling slightly as she catches her footing.

"Oh no, my apologies friend Weiss!" Penny exclaims, Winter chuckling a bit before tapping at her scroll a few times.

"Alright, you're clear to leave. The airship will return to pick you both up at five o'clock sharp, so please be ready by then." Winter walks off once Weiss and Penny nod, the two boarding the ship and taking seats before it departs and flies them down to Mantle. Both girls disembark once it lands in the city, and no sooner do they touch the ground then do the Grimm sirens begin to blare. As a small pack of Sabyrs come into view, Weiss and Penny begin a tag team fight, swiftly taking down the offending Grimm before any harm can come to the citizens.