[6/22 (Sunday) - Night]
[Zone 8 (Commercial) — Docks]
That was a lot of police officers.
Perched atop a wooden crate, Clerval watched the aftermath unfold around him. Flashing lights of red and blue painted the docks in alternating shades while officers moved between confiscated cargo, damaged containers, and captured White Fang operatives.
Across the area, statements were being taken from everyone involved.
Unfortunately, that included him.
The policewoman assigned to him had been scribbling furiously into her notebook from the start.
He had already given her everything he knew. And at some point, she had stopped asking questions altogether and simply kept writing, even when he was silent.
It was honestly beginning to stress him out.
Eventually, the officer thanked him for his cooperation and moved on to interview someone else.
The moment she left, Clerval let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Nearby, Ruby sat on a crate with her collapsed scythe resting beside her, looking exhausted.
Blake stood leaning a short distance away, staring at the ground in thought.
Sun lounged against a stack of cargo containers.
And Penny was sitting perfectly upright with her hands folded neatly in her lap, smiling brightly despite the sheer destruction that she had just caused half an hour ago.
The group remained in silence, each occupied with their own thoughts as police officers continued moving about the docks until the familiar sound of heels clicking against concrete reached their ears.
Clerval glanced up.
Ruby reacted instantly.
"Yang! Weiss!"
She sprang off her crate and hurried toward the two newcomers.
"Look, Weiss, it's not what you think; she explained the whole thing. See, she doesn't actually have a bow; she has kitty ears, and they're actually kind of cute..." She spoke quickly, trying to explain the situation, but Weiss ignored every single one of them as she stepped past Ruby and walked straight towards Blake.
The atmosphere immediately grew tense, with Blake straightening from where she had been leaning and taking a step forward, determination hardening her expression.
"Weiss, I want you to know that I'm no longer associated with the White Fang. Back when I was with them—"
"Stop!"
Weiss raised a hand before placing both hands on her hips.
"Do you have any idea how long we've been searching for you?" She paused, letting the words hang. "Forty-eight hours. That means that I've had forty-eight hours to think about all this."
"And in those forty-eight hours, I've come to the conclusion..."
She crossed her arms.
"That I don't care."
Blake blinked, surprised. "You... don't care?"
"You said that you've left, right?"
"Ye-Yes! I haven't been with them since—"
"Ah-bahp-bahp-bahp!" She cut her off immediately with a raised hand. "I don't want to hear it. That's all in the past. All I want you to know is that the next time something this big comes up..."
Her tone softened slightly. "You'll come to your teammates. And not some raps—"
She glanced toward Sun mid-sentence and caught herself. "Ahem... And not someone else."
Blake looked at Weiss for a moment, then shifted her gaze toward the others—Ruby, Yang and Clerval—who all watched her with varying degrees of support.
Clerval gave her a firm nod.
Blake blinked once more, then quietly wiped at the corner of her eye.
"... Of course, Weiss."
Weiss huffed and turned her head away.
"Good."
But the faint smile tugging at the corner of her mouth betrayed her anyway.
"YEAH!" Ruby suddenly screamed, waving her arms wildly in the air. "Team Ruby is back together!"
As the entirety of Team Ruby plus Sun gather with each other, Weiss points at Sun. "I'm still not quite sure about how I feel about you!"
Sun gave a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his head.
Her finger shifted.
"And you!"
Clerval blinked, pointing to himself.
"Yes, you!" Weiss stomped her foot. "Why didn't you tell us you found her sooner? If you had, all of this could've been resolved much earlier instead of—"
She gestured sharply around the docks.
"—this!"
"... To give her space from you?"
A beat of silence passed.
"Srk." Blake let out a small snort before quickly catching herself.
"You—That's not funny, Blake!" Weiss yelled, her face flushing instantly, prompting everyone to laugh along.
"You all—This heiress will remember this! You will sleep with an eye open for this transgression! Grrrr...!"
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FOOL (I): The Odyssey
Level 1 → 2 / 10
New Ability: Overnumber I [NEW!]
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NEXT UPDATE: 24 July, Friday
A/N: And with this chapter, we are one away from the end of V1!
P.S.: The Odyssey was such a good watch.
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