Beacons of Love

Cardi V

Winter is coming.

Weiss didn't know if she should feel elated or dejected as she read the message from Winter. On the one hand, getting to see Winter before the Tournament would be wonderful. Weiss basically idolized her elder sibling. Years ago, Winter had done what Weiss could only dream of doing – defying Father to pursue her own dreams. Winter's enlistment in the Atlas military had enraged Father to the point of nearly disowning his firstborn. He still blamed Ironwood for luring his daughter away from the SDC. That Winter could sacrifice her position in life and oppose Father so blatantly made her the bravest person Weiss knew. It also gave her hope that she could someday escape his control as well.

Weiss's joy at seeing her sister again was somewhat ruined by the mention of who was coming with her, though.

"What's the matter, Weiss?" Ruby asked, easily noticing her partner's mood. Normally, Weiss kept better control of her emotions, but she felt comfortable enough around her team to actually relax.

"Whitley is coming," Weiss complained.

"Who?"

"My brother." Her respect for Winter was only matched by her disdain for Whitley. He took too much after Father. His style. His false smile. His manipulation. That Whitley sided with Father against Winter had been the last straw for Weiss. "Father felt he should travel to Vale with Winter to experience the local culture." In reality, he was likely coming to spy on Weiss after her fiasco at Clemens. If nothing else, his presence would serve as a reminder of Father's watchfulness.

"Didn't know you had a brother," Yang commented. "He younger than you?"

"A little younger," Weiss answered, unsure of why that mattered. "I'll be expected to entertain him while he is here." In other words, she'd be tethered to the little narc for the foreseeable future. Guess I'll have to cancel with Flynt. And she'd really been looking forward to meeting his team, even if their name made her cringe a little. The last thing she needed was for Whitley to inform Father of her new interest. With him lurking around though, she wouldn't have a moment alone with Flynt. "At least Winter will be here as well."

"You plannin' to introduce your new boy toy to them?" Yang asked, drawing a look of terror to Weiss's face.

"Absolutely not!" Weiss quickly shouted back before regaining her composure. "We have only begun seeing one another. It is far too early to begin introducing him to my family." If all went according to plan, Father would never meet any interest of hers until her wedding day...not that she planned to have one of those anytime soon.

"I dunno. Four dates sounds pretty official to me."

"We've only been on three dates, thank you very much," Weiss countered, realizing a moment too late she'd been played.

"Ha! I knew you were meeting up with him last night!" Yang proudly boasted. Apparently, Weiss's claim of needing to meet with an SDC representative about the damages at Clemens had been less convincing than she'd hoped. "Ten lien, Ruby. Pay up."

"You two are betting on my dating life?" Weiss angrily demanded.

"Yang tricked me!" Ruby quickly threw her sister under the bus in a move that sounded far too rehearsed to Weiss. The fact that Ruby had apparently bet on trusting Weiss was the only thing that spared the short leader from Weiss's wrath.

"Well, it seems my fourth date will be put on hold," Weiss lamented, pulling out her scroll to message Flynt. With the exchange students leaving after the Tournament, Weiss wasn't sure they'd get a chance to see each other again before the end of the school year. She only hoped he'd understand.