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'Why did she betray me?'
Weiss lowered her sword, but the fire burning in her chest flared hotter than ever before. Even with Ruby now out of her sight, the fury she left scalding in Weiss' heart burned everything it touched.
'Why you, Ruby? I thought I could trust you…'
She'd given Ruby and Yang everything. She kept them both inside the safety of the Schnee Manor, assigned her personal servant to look after them; made sure they had everything they ever needed inside the safe bubble she designed for them. All she asked was for them to stay out of her way so she could run her Kingdom peacefully.
Yet, despite everything, Ruby turned around and stabbed her straight in the back.
'Am I that unlovable?'
Her unanswered question further agitated the anger clawing at her chest. It pleaded for her to let it tear through something – anything.
Weiss grit her teeth, turning her attention back to the entrance of the Sacred Hall. There were small damages from the fight. It was nothing she couldn't get her servants to fix but it was damaged nonetheless. Scarred and mutilated because of her.
'Father's going to be upset with me.' The thought taunted her.
Weiss couldn't explain what made the stage so important, but it didn't matter. It was her responsibility to protect. It was a responsibility she'd failed.
'Are you worthy of inheriting the Schnee name?' Father's voice berated her even when she was alone.
"I am worthy." She said to no one in particular.
'A worthy Heiress would've never let this happen' Father's voice continued coldly.
Weiss held her head up high and summoned a Glyph that would take her back to the dining hall.
'You should know better than to disappoint me, Weiss.'
She'd barely crossed the threshold of her Glyph when her legs froze.
Fury surrendered to icy dread. It consumed her like a tidal wave, leaving her completely breathless. Her heart beat so loudly in her ears that she couldn't even hear her heavy breaths.
She stumbled back, her Glyph disappearing as she sunk to the icy ground. Weiss wasn't sure if she wanted to hide in the darkest crevice or plunge her sword into the nearest object.
'You are a coward.' Father would say if he saw her in such a state. Weiss would say the same thing in his position.
Weiss needed to recollect herself if she wanted to face Father. She focused on her breathing. The seconds dragged by like nails on a chalkboard with every ragged breath.
She cursed, her rage simmering beneath the mysterious dread overpowering her. Weiss didn't have time to get her act together. She still had responsibilities to address.
Weiss couldn't explain what caused the random attacks of fear. It was a poison buried deep in her heart, flaring whenever she knew Father would be upset with her. She had no reason to fear Father. She was the perfect daughter. She dedicated her life to the SDC as expected of her.
So why did she fall apart like a house of cards when he was upset?
'There's still one way I can get this sorted out.'
The mere thought of what she had to do made her skin crawl with disgust. Weiss wasn't sure why that room had such a calming effect on her during these moments. It went against all logical explanations. But when she lay withered on the floor like a pathetic child it didn't leave room to bargain.
'It's for the good of the Kingdom.' She consoled herself. It did little to dissolve the bitter taste in her mouth.
Weiss staggered to her feet, rolled her stiff shoulders back and summoned a Glyph. She grimaced at her creation. Its blazing red light contaminated the pristine white walls and floor like blood. Even the shadows seemed to recoil with disgust.
Father would kill her if he saw what she was doing.
Weiss ignored the drumming in her chest and stepped into the bloody Glyph. On the other side, she found herself in a cavern lit only with Red Dust Crystals. It gave the impression she'd stepped into the mouth of a beast. Icicles hanging from the ceiling loomed over her like bloody fangs.
Without stopping to orient herself, she proceeded down the dark cave. The cold knawed at her bones.
The cavern rested at the heart of her Kingdom. Hidden underground and completely untouched by the outside world. No one knew its existence. Not even Father. She was hoping the long walk through the isolated cavern would be enough to calm herself. All she accomplished was making herself cold and anxious.
She paused when she found the colossal white door at the end of her path. There wasn't a single doorknob or lock on it. Weiss hesitated for a moment before summoning a Glyph onto the door's surface. The entrance dissolved in white light, revealing a royal bedroom on the other side.
It was like stepping into a completely different world. Whereas the Schnee Manor had cold white walls, the bedroom was glowing with warm light and colour. Cathedral windows overlooked a rolling sea of clouds and endless blue skies. Sunlight danced off a crystal chandelier, scattering rainbows onto a dozen toys littered on the beige floor. A royal bed adorned in gold sheets sat in heart of the room.
She wanted to tear it all down.
She wanted to stay here forever.
"You're back!"
Weiss grimaced when a boy with red hair abandoned his collection of stuffed animals to come to greet her. He was barely taller than her elbows, wearing only a brown pyjama set and a white scarf around his neck. What made her skin crawl was the twin horns protruding out of his head.
He was a Faunus. Filth that her Kingdom – that she did not tolerate. She should've banished him to the furthest corner of the wilderness a long time ago. It was the right thing to do.
"You haven't visited in forever!" The boy latched his tiny arms around her waist.
If any of her subjects did that, she would've taken their head off within a heartbeat. Yet, when it came to the boy in pyjamas, she couldn't bring herself to attack. No matter how hard she willed herself to plunge her sword into his chest, her body wouldn't listen to her.
She blamed it all on the mysterious room. It had a way of playing with her head.
'I just need to wait until I'm calm.' She reminded herself internally. Eventually, the strange effects of the room will take over. Once she was calm she could leave the Faunus behind.
She stood stiff as a statue until the boy released her.
"You feel cold. Here, you can have this!" The boy took off his white scarf and held it out to her. A grey ring circled around his neck like a collar.
"I don't need your charity." She snapped.
"It's just sharing. You can give it back when you're warm again." He smiled. "I know it's super cold outside."
He wasn't wrong – much to her dismay. The cavern was freezing no matter how many layers she wore. Even with the door shut behind her, the cold never left her bones.
She clicked her tongue in annoyance, reluctantly taking the scarf from him. The moment she hung it around her neck a warmth travelled down her spine, expelling whatever chill clung to her body.
"You came just in time, Weiss. I was in the middle of setting up this epic battle between…" Weiss tuned out of his childish ramblings.
He was worse than the mini versions of herself. He rambled on and on about pointless games like they actually meant anything to the real world. What made it worse was that he didn't care if he was sharing this information with her. Even the Sillies had half a mind to show her respect.
Father would've told her to execute him for mocking authority and living in the Kingdom like a parasite. Weiss should execute him for breaking so many sacred laws.
It was her responsibility.
It made the fire in her chest roar once more. Her fury was suffocating her at this point.
"What's wrong?" The boy's question made the world go still.
He looked up at her with furrowed brows. Worry danced in his eyes. Worry for her.
Weiss thought the light was playing tricks on her, but the longer she stared into those eyes it became undeniable. The brat was being completely honest with her. It was a punch to the gut.
"Nothing is wrong." Weiss answered automatically.
"It isn't nice to lie." He frowned.
'I can say whatever I want. This is my Kingdom, you filthy little animal.' That was what she wanted to say.
The words were on the tip of her tongue. She glared down at the boy. Cursing at the way he stared defiantly back at her.
She knew those words would destroy whatever childish spirit was fueling his courage. One word from her and his entire world would shatter. There would be no way to put him back together again.
'Break him.' She urged herself. 'He's just an animal. He should know his place.'
The worry in those blue eyes continued to burn into her very core. She wasn't sure what would remain once she crushed his spirit.
'Leave him a shadow of his former self. He deserves it.'
The rage, her anxiety, wound into a suffocating knot in her throat. The longer she stared at him the tighter that knot became.
"We had intruders in the Manor today." She tore her eyes away, staring out the window.
A small gasp. "Are you hurt?"
"Of course not." She scoffed. "I'm not weak."
"I know, but strong people can get hurt too. I don't want to see you hurt."
Weiss wasn't sure what to say. Father and Whitley only asked this question when her competency was called into question.
Why did a Faunus care if she was hurt?
Why did she even believe him?
"I know what always makes me feel better when I'm sad."
A tiny hand grabbed onto hers. Weiss let him lead her further into the room. She wasn't sure why she didn't correct his false assumption.
At the end of the bedroom was a long dining table cluttered with chocolate desserts. From an endless chocolate fountain to a dish decorated with delicate chocolate roses, it was enough to feed her entire Kingdom.
The boy browsed the table until he found what he was looking for. A chocolate cake.
Weiss watched blankly as he cut two slices out of the cake. One for himself and one for her. She didn't indulge in desserts back in the Manor. She was mature and above childish cravings after all. Yet, when the boy handed her a plate of cake, she found her self-discipline crumbling before her very eyes.
With desserts in hand, they sat on the floor, their backs pressed against one of the windows. The boy dug into the cake without waiting for her to take the first bite.
Weiss would've strung him up by the thumbs if this was any of her other subjects – he would've been whipped for making her eat from the floor.
"You can't eat a cake by staring at it, silly." The boy teased.
"Some of us have table manners." She retorted.
"We're not eating on a table so we don't need table manners. We need…" He paused for a second. "We need floor manners."
The boy burst into a fit of laughter. It reminded her of the obnoxious shrieks she heard of the Sillies' cage. But for some reason, she didn't mind his laugh much.
The anxiety coiled in her heart went slack.
"Well? Are you going to eat?"
Weiss sliced her fork into the corner of her cake, hesitating for a moment before taking a small bite. It was sweet and packed with a rich taste of chocolate. The cake was gentle on her tongue despite holding such a strong flavour.
The boy had gone back for seconds when she made it halfway through her cake. She didn't say anything when he placed a second plate beside her.
"I've always wanted to eat with a friend." He said once they'd both finished with their second helping. "It's so much more fun than eating alone."
'I'm not your friend.'
Weiss clenched her teeth and examined the crystal chandelier strung on the ceiling.
"Do you eat with your friends out there?"
"I dine with my family." She answered curtly. She didn't know why she was entertaining his pointless questions.
"Wow. I bet you guys need a super big cake!"
"We don't indulge in sweets."
"Huh? Why not?"
"Father doesn't approve of it."
The boy looked at her with his head tilted. His eyes searched her face like he was trying to work out a puzzle.
"That sounds silly." He finally said.
A humourless laugh escaped her lips. What did a naive child – an animal know about the complicated matters of her family?
"Aren't you a grown-up? Why do you have to listen to your dad?"
"It's the law."
The law also expected that she banish him from the Kingdom.
Weiss fidgeted with the ends of the white scarf. The fabric was so delicate and soft. It made the white jacket draped over her shoulders feel stiff; heavy like a bag full of bricks.
"But you're still a grown-up. Can't you do whatever you want?"
"It doesn't matter what I want. It never has been." Weiss blurted.
She curled her hands into fists when those words hung heavily in the air between them. She knew coming here was a bad idea. This room, this wildly ignorant child, had a way of sneaking past her guard. Squeezing out secrets she kept buried from the world.
Every instinct told her to leave while she still could, but her legs didn't listen to her. The jacket around her shoulders grew so heavy it pinned her to the ground.
"Your dad doesn't sound very nice…"
Weiss ignored him. Her nails dug so deep into her palms that she swore they drew blood.
"Does he get mad at you a lot?"
The left side of her face, below her eyebrow cutting straight down to her cheekbone, burned.
She instinctively touched her face, fingers skating down smooth unblemished skin. It felt foreign beneath her fingertips. She didn't know why it was like touching a stranger's face.
She froze when he wrapped his arms around her again. This hug felt different. She couldn't quite put her finger on what made it so unique. It was like any other embrace. Yet it melted a layer of ice from her heart she wasn't aware was there in the first place.
"What do you think you're doing?" She meant it to sound intimidating, but it came out weak. Uncertain.
"Trying to make you feel better."
"And what makes you think I need comfort?" The word comfort rolled off her tongue strangely.
His tiny arms tightened around her. "I would be sad too if my dad was mean."
'You're speaking out of line.' Once again, the words she meant to say froze on the tip of her tongue.
"I wish your dad was nice to you, Weiss."
Her thoughts went silent. Even her rage and dread faded into a whisper.
A warmth buzzed in her chest. It was nothing like the fury that burned through her blood. The warmth reminded her of the sun embracing her back. It was gentle like the thin fragile arms wrapped around her.
Weiss thought back to the horrible White Fang agents sabotaging her cargo. She could still recall their monstrously distorted forms from the security footage. When she glanced down at the boy, she expected to see that very monster clawing her torso.
All she saw was a little boy.
A boy who asked if she was hurt not because he wanted to scrutinize her skill but because he cared.
'He's not like the others.' Weiss decided then and there.
He was different. If he was horrible like the White Fang, he wouldn't have calmed the storm brewing in her heart. Why else was he locked in the core of her Kingdom? Here, he wasn't contaminated by the horrors beyond these walls. At least not if she could help it.
Weiss was going to protect what was precious to her. This time she couldn't fail.
"Are you feeling better?" He asked. Looking up at her with those innocent blue eyes.
A ghost of a smile touched her lips. The warmth in her chest blossomed when his entire expression lit up at the sight of her small grin.
"I'm doing just fine." She wrapped her arm around his shoulders and held him for a brief second.
It was such a strange gesture. She'd never interacted with another human, let alone a Faunus, like this before. Her arm felt stiff and awkward, but the boy didn't mind. He laughed, letting her go so he could ramble about the power chocolate had in cheering people up.
"Do you want to play a fun game with me?" He asked at the end of his senseless rambling.
"I don't have time for games. There's still lots to do in the Kingdom."
She couldn't explain the new weight sinking into her chest at the look of disappointment he gave her.
"Oh…" He stared down at the floor.
Weiss got up to her feet, brushing the dust off her clothes.
"Can I ask you a question?" The boy asked.
Weiss gestured for him to go on.
"When can I play outside?"
Ruby's betrayal hurled into the forefront of her mind again.
Was the boy wishing to betray her as well? Was he planning to team up with Ruby once he got out of this room? Was there nothing she could do to keep what was precious to her locked up and safe?
"I like all the toys here, but it gets boring sometimes." He went on. "It's no fun being stuck in here every day."
"It's dangerous outside." She said simply. "You would be better off in here."
"What about after you make everything safe? Can I go outside then?"
'He trusts me to create order…' Not even her own family had that much faith in her abilities.
Weiss studied the bedroom. There were so many toys littering the space she could barely see the beige floor beneath all the mess. Yet, amidst the colourful junk, only the lifeless eyes of stuffies and action figures stared back at her.
It reminded her strangely of the Manor. Though she was always surrounded by robots and servants, it was always just her inside those icy walls.
For a moment, she almost wanted to take him out with her. As long as she was with him, nothing could harm him. She would never let it happen.
'What am I thinking?' She chastised herself. 'This place is making me delirious.'
Father would want him banished at best or executed at worse. Considering Ruby's recent betrayals, there was no guarantee she could protect him during another siege. He lived detached from the rest of the world for a reason. This was the only place he was safe.
"Once I have secured permanent order in the Kingdom, I can take you out for a bit." She said carefully. As expected, his eyes lit up like stars at her lie. "But there's no telling how long that will take–"
"Can I help you? I bet I could fight a bunch of bad guys too!"
"No." She answered at once. "If you want to make yourself useful then stay here and sleep."
"Wha–?! But how's sleeping supposed to help you?"
'It's going to keep you safe in here.'
"It will keep you out of my way." She said instead. "Once I have secured the safety of the Kingdom, I will wake you up. Until that time, I expect you to wait for me."
The boy looked over at the bed with a frown. With how clean and kept the bed was, she doubted he'd ever crawled beneath its covers before.
"You promise?" The boy turned his attention back to her.
Weiss couldn't bring herself to seal a promise she had no intentions of keeping. Especially not when she had to look him straight in the eyes.
"Go to sleep." She ordered stiffly.
The boy glared at her. Defiance sparked in his eyes once more.
"Please." She blurted. "Just sleep."
She didn't know if the boy noticed her change in tone, nor did she care. The tiny nod of his head was all she needed from him.
"Can you stay until I fall asleep?"
"Make it quick." She was already in deep trouble for delaying her meeting with Father so long.
She tapped her foot impatiently as he struggled to climb onto the large bed. It took him a couple of tries before he managed to hoist himself up. Weiss didn't realize just how small he was until he snuggled beneath the covers. The boy barely took up a third of the mattress. His blob of red hair was like a single rose resting on a pile of pillows.
Weiss pulled the white scarf off her neck, wrapping it around him once again.
"Aren't you going to be cold?" He was already struggling to keep his eyes open.
"I'll be fine." She left out the part where she thought someone as tiny as him would need it more than her.
Weiss put some distance between them before turning to summon that red Glyph again. In the warm sunlight, its glow wasn't all that out of place.
"Stay safe, Weiss." The boy said groggily. "I'll be right here cheering you on. I promise."
Weiss was glad she had her back turned to the boy. With the smile she had on her face, she doubted he'd be able to stay asleep.
"I'll see you soon. Sleep tight, Adam."
It was the first time she'd openly acknowledged him by his name. Though she'd never spoken it out loud, it sounded familiar to her ears like an old song she hadn't heard in years.
When he gave her no response, she peeked over her shoulder. He was fast asleep. A hint of a smile was still on his face. She watched him for a moment longer before turning her eyes back on the red Glyph.
Weiss schooled her expression before stepping through. Cold dark hallways welcomed her on the other side. A shiver ran down her spine, making her regret leaving that scarf behind.
'There's work to do.'
Her heels clicked down the empty hall, announcing her presence to the rest of the Manor.
Whitley eventually found her, wasting no time irking her with taunts of Father's disappointment. Weiss barely registered anything he said to her. All she had on her mind was the tranquillity of that mysterious room – of seeing Adam completely at ease and safe underground.
'I'll protect what's precious to me at all costs.' Weiss promised herself.
The next time her Kingdom was under siege she won't hesitate to enact the harshest punishment. It didn't matter if it was White Fang scum or further betrayals from Ruby. It was the only way to completely weed out the poison in her Kingdom. For herself and for him.
'Sleep well, Adam. No one will ever lay a finger on you. I promise.'