Chapter 60: Ch. 60 The Wolf, the Cat, and the Princess
"Thank you for the dance" Yang curtsy's by pinching and slightly lifting her dress wit a slight bow.
Alabast puts his left arm behind his back and places his right hand over his heart as he gives a slight nod. "It was my pleasure. Have fun greeting the guests, and feel free to grab me when you have free time"
Yang waves over her shoulder. "Will do"
Alabast turns towards where Ruby is and sees Ozpin walking away from her. He begins walking towards Ruby but a black cat crosses his path.
"Hello Blake" Alabast greets his Faunus girlfriend.
"They're playing another slow dance" Blake points out as she stands in front of Alabast.
"It does appear that way" He extends his left hand. "May I have this dance?"
"You may" Blake gives a small smile and takes his hand.
Alabast then steps closer to Blake and puts his hand on her hip, opposite of where her dress splits to reveal her right leg.
Blake puts her left hand on Alabast's shoulder.
"You know, it's normally bad luck for a black cat to cross one's path" Alabast says as they begin dancing to a slightly faster paced song.
"To that same superficial logic, doesn't a black wolf mean that you have a darker side you don't want anyone to know?" Blake matches her steps to Alabast's.
"Black wolves don't symbolize death?" Alabast is confused, he remembers in a movie….. Yeah, he shouldn't take that knowledge at face value then. Wasn't it a Harry Potter movie at that? Maybe he should have done a little more investigating into what a black wolf symbolizes.
"The black wolf could be the harbringer of death and doom. A few people do believe that, however it's not what I believe" Blake remembers her father talking about it a long time ago.
"What else does a black wolf signify?" Alabast wonders, maybe this is why Sienna gave him that title beyond just the obvious.
"There are many meanings. Everyone has their own version of what wolves represent in real life and in their dreams. Some are good and some are bad. While most treat the black wolf as bad based on its color, there are those that read more in depth into its meaning, it's symbolism" Blake explains.
Alabast looks at Blake's bow. "This is a lot more philosophical than I initially thought"
"Nothing is simple, it's just that some things are simpler than others. And it always gets more complicated the more in depth you look into something" Blake smiles.
"Yes…" Alabast remembers being mauled by the pack of black wolves. "Say, have you ever heard of a pack of black wolves?"
"Just black wolves?" Blake thinks for a few seconds. "Can't say I have"
"What do you know about white wolves?" Alabast asks, remembering his mothers hair and his original hair color.
"Alabast, i think you need to go to the library for more better answers. But I will tell you that there are beliefs that white wolves are the opposite to black wolves. Some believe white wolves to represent peace, love, hope, courage, humility, compassion, and faith. While the black wolf represents anger, envy, jealousy, greed, arrogance, and being filled with fear. They believe we all have these two wolves inside us. And that they are constantly fighting each other. And we can help decide which one lives by feeding it. Like if we want the black wolf to win we feed it the corresponding emotions and vice versa for the white wolf. That's just one of the beliefs that people have, and I feel like it applies to you very well" Blake looks at his hair color. It's just that there are so many stories, like how there are so many conspiracy theories.
"It really does hit a little close to home. Let's talk about something else" Alabast moves around Blake. "How about we talk about your dress color choice. I think purple was a good decision"
"Thank you, my mother used to dress me in purple when I was younger. It also felt better than just going with black for tonight" Blake speaks softly.
"I believe that you would have looked gorgeous in almost anything. The purple is nice, but I also hope to see other dress colors in the future. I just ask you not to go with the really big and fluffy dresses like in the stories" Alabast imagines Blake in a Cinderella dress, just not her style.
Blake chuckles. "No, I won't wear one of those. Not even if you begged me to"
"I'm now wondering if that's a challenge or not" Alabast muses.
Blake pinches his shoulder. "Get those ideas out of your head"
Alabast slightly winces for a second from the pinch. "Those ideas are just going to get replaced with others, so what do you want to talk about?"
"How about we just enjoy the dance" Blake rests her head on his chest.
Her bow just under his chin.
"Good, I've talked way more today than in the past month" Alabast maneuvers through the crowd and gets to the area on the dance floor where people aren't moving around so much.
The two Faunus just rock side to side for the rest of the song.
Alabast is looking around the room after a minute as the violin and other instruments continue playing. He sees two people that he hadn't expected to see.
It was Ozpin and Glynda, they weren't standing too far away from the other teachers.
Oobleck and Port were talking with Peach about something. Alabast even saw Peach add something to Oobleck's thermos and Ports mug. It was obvious that the three teachers were trying to be discreet about it so Alabst figured they were trying to get a little buzzed with their punch.
And then Alabast spots Penny not too far away. She had two Atlesian guards in full gear with rifles on either side of her. She looked awkward but like she was enjoying the atmosphere as she kept her hands behind her back and swayed slowly with the music. The guards were as still as statues, it was kinda weird but Alabat decided to worry about that later.
Alabast takes his hand from Blake's hip and moves it to the back of her head and runs his fingers through her hair. "Thank you for coming and getting some rest"
"I kept telling you guys that I was coming" Blake agitatedly responds, but she takes a breath and calms down. "And you should thank Yang, she's the one that convinced me to get some rest"
Alabast feels bad about that part, he wasn't able to help Blake. It was all Yang. He is thankful that Yang was finally able to help Blake a little. But at the same time it's like putting a bandage over a bullet wound. Blake is still obsessed with Torchwick and the White Fang. And he isn't able to help Blake take a break or wipe her worries away. It's like the only thing he can do to help her is solve this whole problem for her, but he isn't sure how he would even be able to do that. And he can't talk Blake down since she's going to be so stubborn…. He will have to figure out a solution after they finish their mission they will be starting tomorrow.
"I'll be here for you Blake" Alabast gently pushes her head against his chest. "I will ALWAYS be here for you"
"I know" Blake clenches some of Alabast's suit in her hand.
For some reason, to Alabast it feels like he is holding onto a stray cat. It's friendly to him, but also ready to run away at a moments notice when it gets spooked. The feeling disappears as quickly as it appeared, but it concerns him.
Alabast considers if he should take Blake back to her home after the Vytal tournament is over. They will have some time until their second year starts and it'll give them more time than if he tries to cram it in their 2 week break they have coming up. It would also be a good chance to talk with Ghira after all this time, although he isn't looking forward to the part where he tells him he's dating Blake… and 4 other girls.
Alabast holds Blake close for the remainder of the song until it comes to an end.
Blake moves her head back and puts both hands on his chest. "Even if we get separated we will find our way back to each other, right?"
Alabast feels some weight fall from his shoulders. Just hearing those words from Blake without having to prompt her for them….
Alabast kisses Blake for his answer. He makes sure to let her know he isn't gonna toss her to the side at a moments notice.
When Alabast moves back from the kiss he sees Blake with a slight blush on her face.
Blake wipes her lips on the back of her hand. "I'll take that as a yes"
Alabast nods his head. "A big yes" He looks around the room and spots Sun talking with some of the other guys.
Sun glances around the room and spots Alabast with Blake. He gives them a wave and is about to go back to the conversation but sees Alabast motion for Sun to come over with his head. "I guess it's my time to help out. See you losers in a few" Sun jokes to the guys who return a few choice words.
Sun maneuvers through the dance floor towards Blake and Alabast. "You two kids playing nice?" He points finger guns as he walks up to them.
"Hey Sun" Blake greets the monkey Faunus.
"I've gotta find Weiss, can you two manage to keep each other out of trouble?" Alabast ask but instantly regrets it when he remembers that these were the two that got chased by the giant mech when they were left to their own devices.
Sun smirks and wraps his arm around Alabast. "You have nothing to worry about man, what kind of trouble can we get into when we're at a dance?"
Alabast just blankly stares at Sun.
"Ok, fair. But you have nothing to worry about man. Right Blake?" Sun decides that having Blake back him up would be easier than convincing Alabast on his own.
Blake rolls her eyes with a small smirk. "Me and Sun will do our best not to get attacked by a crime boss in a giant machine"
"Hey!" Sun lets Alabast go and turns towards Blake. "Don't make it sound like that regularly happens. It was one time!"
"Like how you constantly get in trouble? If I remember, the first time we met you were running from the police for stowing away on a ship. In fact, you make it a habit to get in trouble" Blak points out. She even remembers Sun roping some of the other guys into his stupid schemes.
"That… I thought I already explained that one" Sun slumps his shoulders.
Blake waves Alabast off. "See you around my White Wolf" She grabs Sun and drags him to the dance floor.
Sun follows behind Blake. "White? But isn't Alabast…" Sun decides to delve into whatever weird inside joke they got going on.
"Don't try to comprehend it Sun, your brain might overheat" Blake laughs to herself.
"Peace, love, hope, courage, humility, compassion, and faith" Alabast mutters to himself as he exits the dance floor to find Weiss. He noticed Ruby had already disappeared off to some place.
Alabast gets off the dance floor and closes his eyes as he focuses on where Weiss' shadow is. He's marked all his girlfriend's shadows but has to focus on them to locate them like how he was able to know where Yang and Blake were the previous day.
Seconds later he had found where Weiss is. He moves along the side of the room and find the white haired girl next to some flowers. One of them keeps falling over and she keeps trying to stand it up.
"It seems a little sad" Alabast says as he walks up to Weiss.
The heiress huffs and stands up. "It was fine 2 minutes ago!"
Alabast reaches out towards the droopy flower and remembers something from Prof. Peach's class. "Maybe it just needs a more gentle touch"
He slowly and carefully stands it up and then let's it go. The flower doesn't fall but stands up.
Weiss looks at the flower irritatedly. "And I wasn't being gentle enough? Humph!" She folds her arms and pouts to the side.
"Partially, remember how I was studying plants for Peach's test? Part of it was flower care. Absolutely stupid that a Hunter needs to know how to be gentle to a plant, but still. It was in the book" Alabast grabs Weiss' hand.
"I know! I read that section too, but that was for medicinal plants and extracting the correct materials for medicine. Not helping flowers stand up" Weiss corrects Alabast.
"And suddenly I'm dreading my grades even more now" Alabast stands behind Weiss and wraps his arms around her.
"It's no use fretting about that now" Weiss relaxes. "So is it finally my turn?"
"If you want it to be, or you can continue to meticulously straighten flowers for a bit longer" Alabast jokes.
"Please no, I'm just trying to entertain myself. But I don't particularly wish to dance to a slow song either" Weiss spots two seats along the perimeter of the room. "Come with me"
Weiss drags Alabast by his right arm to the seats and sits down next to him. "We can dance to the next song"
"And what song would that be?" Alabast asks.
"It's about time that we switch to more modern dance music. Yang's djs should be all set up now" Weiss says and holds Alabast's right hand in her lap between both her hands.
"Have you enjoyed your dance so far? Aside from the drooping flowers" Alabast asks.
Weiss moves her thumbs across the back of Alabast's hand. She feels and sees the multiple scars on his hand alone. "Yes, but I'm enjoying it much more now"
"You and Yang did an excellent job. I'd bet it's even better than what team CFVY would have done" Alabast compliments. "And why don't you want to dance to this music? I figured you would be the one that would want to dance to it the most"
"My family, the Schnee family, regularly holds parties so that my father can keep up appearances. Some are more formal than others, but there is always this type of music…. It's nice, but I'd rather dance to something else with you. I don't want to keep up the facade with you. Just be Weiss, and not a Schnee" She hangs her head as she tightly holds onto his hand.
Normally Weiss would want to keep appearances in public. Alabast isn't sure if it's because she wants to or because that's how she was raised and taught. But her wanting to be herself with him in public, that's a big deal. Even if she doesn't want to bring the Schnee name into it.
"You know, I was wondering if you were going to sing tonight" Alabast puts his left hand over Weiss' hands and his own.
"I didn't plan on it" Weiss doesn't move.
"Good, because that means there are fewer people who hear your beautiful voice. I'm not saying I want to be the only one, but the fewer the better I think" Alabast squeezes her hands. "And if you don't like this music, there is plenty of others"
"Thanks" Weiss shakes her head and sits back up and leans against the back of her chair. "But I think you need to work on your comforting and speeches a bit more. Ruby beat you so far"
Alabast also leans back in his chair. "Ruby does have her moments… Why didn't you spend some time with her?"
"Why would I spend time with her? We are both capable of enjoying this night separately" Weiss turns her head to the side away from Alabast.
"Yes, that is true. But wouldn't it also be more fun if you two spent a little time together. I'm not talking about dancing together. I'm talking about hiding at the punch table together or something" Alabast spots Ruby next to Jaune at the punch table.
"I-!" Weiss holds herself back. "Perhaps I was a bit distant. I don't know… It just didn't feel right"
"Your team, and myself, we won't just disappear from your life. You're kinda stuck with us until we graduate and even after that" Alabast moves his right arm around Weiss. "You've got people here that care about you and love you. You aren't in an empty ice castle anymore"
"Still needs a bit of work...." Weiss leans against his chest. "But that was better"
Alabast knows that Weiss has some similar family issues with Yang. Everyone is afraid about the people close to them leaving suddenly, but these two have it worse than normal people.
Yang is because of her two mothers leaving and her dad barely being able to function afterwards.
Weiss is because her family is so distant to each other. They might have lived in the same house, but that doesn't mean they talked or acted like a family.
And Alabast knows that Weiss and Yang deal with this in different ways. Where Yang makes friends easily and tries to be extroverted, Weiss isn't able to do that. And Yang still keeps those friends at an arms length. Weiss finds it hard to make connections with new people due to last trauma and Yang finds it hard to make strong connections.
He ends up confusing himself by trying to compare their situations and decides to just leave it alone for now.
On the dance floor Ironwood is dancing with Goodwitch, and Alabast is a bit surprised by this. He figured Ozpin would be the one to dance with Glynda. Perhaps he misjudged a few things.
After a minute the song ends.
Random spotlights appear from seemingly nowhere and shine down on 2 people. They're wearing weird futuristic looking helmets that hide their faces.
Alabast tilts his head. "Is that… Daft Punk?"
"Pfff- Ahem!" Weiss laughs but stops herself. "No. I'm not sure who 'Daft Punk' is, but that's Absurd Thug"
Alabast figures it's some sort of parallel world shit. Absurd being Daft and Thug being Punk, very creative.
Music an upbeat and fast paced song begins slowly, starting as it climbs up to a beat drop.
"Ready?" Alabast taps Weiss' hands.
"What are you waiting for?" Weiss asks as she stands up.
Alabast follows her and lets his left arm go back to his side while his right stays around Weiss' back.
They make it to the middle of the dance floor and begin dancing.
The dance floor gets more and more crowded as more students decide to join the fray.
Glynda and James decide to sit this out and move back towards the other teachers. Glynda sending a glare to Port, Oobleck, and Peach due to their non-virgin punch. But Ozpin pacified her stating: "It's a night for fun, they have every right to enjoy tonight like everyone else. And they're not hurting anyone. If they need to take action they aren't too far gone to do so, we both know a dusty old crow that can function while significantly less sober than them"
Weiss and Alabast end up bumping into Ren and Nora. They exchange a simple wave or "hello" as a greeting and then get back to dancing.
Alabast definitely wasn't expecting Weiss to dance to any song other than a partner dance. But he's glad to have his expectations subverted this time.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Quade_The_Unknown
Quade_The_Unknown 3322 words
Things got a bit heavy in this chapter but I hope it made some sense.
Hope you enjoyed!
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