Ember Legacy, Volume 1

Chapter 8: Bloody Little Vermin

Western Kingdom of Vale

"To be honest, Briec doesn't consider fights with humans as battles. I think he sees that more as

hunting. Or a snack that runs."

~ G.A. Aiken, About a Dragon

Weiss flexed her right hand absent-mindedly as she stared into the campfire. She'd changed her gore-drenched clothing earlier, as had most of her companions once they'd travelled a fair distance away from the manor they'd recently assaulted, though her new clothes retained the same pale color motif.

I wonder what it would be like to own something in a color other than white or light blue, she mused idly. Red, or green, or… No, let's not get too drastic. Pink, perhaps?

Her eyes darted to the side where Ren sat, next to his exuberant girlfriend who was regaling the group with details of the fight earlier in the day. Nora was scrubbing off her armor, clad only in a pair of loose trousers and a baggy tunic, much like Jeanne was next to her. The two women shared a bucket that was growing more bloody by the minute.

Ruby entered into the light, carrying a fresh bucket with her for the pair. The blonde Knight-in-training gave her a grateful smile as she set it down.

"My thanks, m'lady."

"Pfft, no worries," the brunette waved her off as she sat across the fire. Her silver eyes focused in on Weiss immediately. "You get your coat cleaned off okay?"

The white-haired Elf nodded slightly. "Yes, a good dunk in the river and a little bit of magic did wonders, the embroidered runes are still perfectly functional."

"Good to hear."

Weiss tuned the others out, running her left hand over her other arm as if making sure it was still attached.

I don't believe yellow would be a good color. Perhaps a pale green…?

Her attention returned to the group once more, ears perked up as Nora's ramblings suddenly became more focused.

"I- I'm sorry?" Jeanne stammered, fumbling the shin guard in her hands.

"I said," Nora replied patiently. "What's the deal with you and Pyrrha? You two obviously have a thing going on, why keep it a secret?"

Jeanne's sapphire blue eyes flickered worriedly around the clearing, as if she could seek out where the redheaded Knight was patrolling along the perimeter on her watch.

"We are not together," she mumbled, downcast.

"No?" The orange-haired petite woman's eyebrows furrowed. "But-"

"No!" Jeanne practically shouted, this time dropping the piece of armor into the dirt. Her face immediately flushed in embarrassment at the outburst as she picked the armor piece back up, wiping it clean and returning it to the pile next to her.

"Jeanne… you don't need to explain anything you don't want to," Ruby interjected calmly.

"No, it's… I suppose…" The blonde let out a huff of frustration as she sat back against the log, her eyes closed and face upturned. Weiss was shocked to see a single tear trickle down the warrior's face, glittering in the firelight as it made its way down to her chin line.

"I have been with Lady Nikos for a little over a year now," Jeanne began softly. "Admittedly, I was attracted to her from the very start, but I never expected… You have to understand, within the Order, things are very… codified. She is my Knight, I am her squire. Anything that…"

The blonde swallowed, opening her eyes to stare into the fire. "Some months ago we talked. Just the one time, and we… we both admitted…"

Ruby shifted over to sit next to the struggling blonde, rubbing a hand along her back in reassurance.

"I have wanted to be a Knight ever since I can remember," Jeanne finally continued, her voice just barely audible over the crackling campfire. "If we were to ever… act… upon our feelings… And then for her, well, life would certainly become more difficult. She wouldn't be expelled as I would… but she would be so terribly dishonored. I could never... " Her blue eyes, shining brightly, turned to face an unusually solemn Nora once more. "So, no. There is nothing between us. And nothing ever shall be between us other than the relationship of a mentor and her student."

"But what if you were to attain Knighthood?" Ren asked quietly.

Jeanne sighed once more, despondency etched into her features. "For that to happen, I would need to actually be proficient with a lance. Or, perhaps with a deed virtuous and noble enough… But yes, I suppose if she would still feel the same, after all that time…" She smiled sadly, glancing around the campfire at the assembled companions. "I can still dream," she ended with a whisper.

The blonde got to her feet, sniffling discreetly, and gathered her armor up. "I believe I shall turn in," she remarked over her shoulder, her young voice strong once more. "I have the watch after you, Ruby, is that correct?"

"Yep, that's right. I'll wake you."

"Very well."

Weiss' eyes followed the blonde warrior as she stacked her armor neatly, unsheathed her sword to lay next to her, and then curled up under her bedding with her back to the fire.

She suddenly didn't feel like hiding anymore behind ridiculous ruminations of wardrobe changes.

With a quick inhalation, the alabaster-haired girl rose up, only to slide onto the log next to Ren.

The half-Elf looked over towards her with a warm smile. "How is your arm feeling?"

"Very well, thank you," Weiss murmured, rubbing at it with her left hand again. "I… I did want to thank you once more, for your healing."

"Of course," the raven-haired man replied quietly. "It was my duty as a Cleric of Oum, as well as my honor as a member of this fellowship."

The white-haired Mage nodded slowly, glancing aside briefly at the others. Ruby seemed to be absorbed in reading the tome she'd taken from the manor library, while Nora, for a change, was quietly scrubbing at her leather-and-chainmail chestpiece.

"You know I'm from the hinterlands, yes?" she finally asked hesitantly.

"Indeed, I did hear of this."

"It's been… difficult for me to adjust to life down South. The community I lived in, the entire city of Evereska, really, was so reclusive and… Well, I suppose you might call it 'elitist', really." She smiled slightly in self-depreciation. "You might have noticed that Elves can be rather full of themselves."

She ignored the snicker from Nora, though Ren simply waited patiently for her to continue.

"In any case, one of the, er, prejudices I've had to overcome have to do with…" She clamped her lips over the word mongrels before it could escape, and struggled to find something much less offensive. "People of… mixed heritage." Her pale blue eyes flickered once again, this time at his ears. While pointed, they were far less pronounced than Weiss' own.

"I see," Ren replied neutrally, his face not betraying any emotion.

"I thought I was doing so much better." Weiss gave a small, bitter laugh. "And then you joined us, the first… half-Elf I've ever seen. And once again, I couldn't manage to get past my ingrained prejudices. It took you saving my arm, and likely my life, for me to finally accept you as a… as a person."

She finally noticed that her right hand had been spasming open and closed, and quickly covered it with her left to still her neurotic fidgeting. "In any case… I simply wanted to apologize to you, and… I don't know, perhaps make a pledge to do better. To be better than the bigoted culture that produced me."

The silence stretched between them, broken only by the sounds of Nora's repeated strokes of her washcloth and the pop of wood burning.

"I don't believe you are as much a product of your culture as you think yourself to be."

Weiss swiveled her head, staring at the solemn Cleric next to her. "How can you say that?"

"Well, you are here next to me right now, are you not? Can you ever imagine an Elf still entrenched in your culture to be apologizing for their behavior?"

She allowed a slight smile to grow on her face at that. "No," she replied simply.

Ren straightened his shoulders and offered her a warm smile of his own. "Also, you have not exactly been openly hostile with me. I can tell how sincere you are, and how much you are trying to better yourself."

"I am, truly," the Elven Mage replied firmly.

"Very well, then." He extended his hand towards her, still smiling reassuringly. "Though I do not believe an apology is necessary, I will accept it for your sake. Also, if you are willing, I would be most honored to call you a friend."

"I… would very much appreciate that," she murmured, somewhat taken aback but pleased nonetheless. She grasped his hand, her smile widening. "I would like to call you a friend as well."

Ruby snickered softly from where she was sitting, causing Weiss to frown as she released Ren's hand.

"What is so funny, dolt?"

"Dolt?" Ruby repeated, not even trying to conceal her humor. "Oh, that's a good one… No, but you two, you guys are so funny, so… so serious!" She pitched her voice higher, obviously mocking Weiss. "Will you be my friend?"

"Oh, hush," Weiss returned, crossing her arms irritably. "Just because we're more civilized…"

That only caused Ruby to laugh all the harder. She turned to a grinning Nora, who was observing the interaction with humor.

"See, now… Nora and I, we fought next to each other," Ruby chuckled. "You're my bud, right Nora?"

"Yep, you bet!" the orange-haired warrior replied cheerfully.

"See, that's all there is to it!"

Weiss let out a huff as she turned her head away. "There is more to it than that. You are simply being irritating."

"So I've been told," the brunette giggled unrepentantly. "Well, how about us? Am I your bestest bud or not?"

"What?" she sputtered, rounding on the jovial brunette. "Of all the absurd… Whatever gave you that impression?"

"Oh, come on now, you know you love me, Weissy…"

"And what did I tell you about calling me that?"

"Thaaaat it was endearing?"

"No, you dolt!"

By this point Nora had ceased even trying to maintain any state of decorum. She'd dropped her chestpiece as she rolled over and onto her side, chortling merrily.

"You know," a new voice entered the conversation from the edge of the clearing. "It is customary to keep one's voice down while camping out in the wilds like this." Pyrrha entered, the firelight reflecting off of her burnished red-and-gold armor. "It attracts unwanted attention."

"Thank you!" Jeanne called out irritably from her bedroll.

"Sorry, sorry," Ruby chuckled as she stood and stretched. "My turn?"

"Indeed. Nothing that I could see or sense nearby." The redhead strolled over to where her bedroll lay and began to strip out of her armor.

Ruby gave them all a nod, including a cheeky wink at Weiss who studiously ignored it, and then quickly disappeared into the darkness as it swallowed her whole.

The alabaster-haired Elf stood as well, offering Ren one last shy smile. "Well… Thank you once again for saving my arm."

"You are welcome once again," he replied with a smile of his own.

As Weiss made her way to her own bedroll, Nora finally spoke up from her seat.

"Oh, hey, Weiss…"

She turned to politely regarded her, one elegant eyebrow raised inquisitively.

The orange-haired hammer-wielder gave her a smirk. "Glad you're making nice and all, but don't even think about trying to take my man away." Her smirk deepened into something far more dangerous. "'Cause they'll never find the body parts."

"Nora," the raven-haired man sighed in resignation.

Weiss just shook her head. "Men do not interest me in such a fashion."

"Oh, really?" Nora jumped up from the log, leaving her armor behind as she skipped over to where Weiss was now trying to prepare for bed. "Sooo how many women have you been with?"

The Elf blushed brightly. "If you must know… none."

"None?"

"Precisely."

"Hmm." Nora sat cross-legged next to her as she lay upon her blankets. The Elven Mage sighed as she realized Nora would not be deterred from her new-found interest.

"So then, what kind of women do you like? Ohhh!" Nora squealed softly, leaning over and dropping her voice to a whisper. "What about Ruby, is that why you tagged along?"

"Certainly not!" she scoffed. "She acts far too immature at times for my liking. Also…" She cleared her throat and turned away, blushing once more. "Nevermind," she mumbled.

She heard scuffling as Nora scooted around so crouch beside her head once more. "Nevermind what?"

"Nevermind, as in never you mind."

"Oh, come on now…"

"No. Good night, Nora."

"Nope, not gonna leave this alone. C'mon, you were about to say something… Oh, is it your type? The type of women you're attracted to?" Nora grinned widely as she leaned over Weiss' head, close enough to kiss were she so inclined. "Is it me?"

"No!"

"Well, then, who?"

"Nobody in this group, that is for certain!"

"I'm not leaving until you tell me… c'mon, you know you wanna…"

Weiss sighed deeply. Ren must have boundless reserves of patience. "Very well, if it will allow me to sleep…"

"Uh-huh, yeah?"

She lowered her voice to a fierce whisper. "And you tell absolutely nobody about this, do you hear me?"

Nora giggled, making a motion of sealing her lips.

Weiss sighed once more, rolling her eyes at the preposterousness of the whole situation. "I happen to prefer… buxom women."

"Buxom?"

"You know…" Weiss glanced around to make sure she wasn't being observed before she held her hands out from her chest. "With large…"

"Oh, you like big boobs!"

Weiss bit back a groan. "Yes, Nora, precisely."

"Why?"

"I don't know, I just…" A faint smile finally cracked her face as she decided to just go with the whole thing at this point. "Have you ever seen an Elf that wasn't slender?"

"Hmm, you're right…" Nora tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Sooo a woman with big boobs is as exotic to you as, say, an Elven woman to someone who'd only grown up around Humans."

"Er, yes, that's a fair way to describe it…" She blinked her eyes, perplexed at the sudden insight from the normally carefree and indecorous woman.

"Great! Well, good talk, Weiss, I'll let you get to sleep then…" As she made to stand up, she paused at looked down at her, turquoise eyes glittering in the dim light. "Hey, can I be your friend too?"

"Yes, Nora," the Elf sighed, good-naturedly this time. "We may be friends."

"Yay!" the orange-haired girl cheered quietly before skipping back to the campfire. "Renny! I made another friend!"

"That's nice, Nora," the raven-haired man replied patiently.

Weiss rolled her eyes before closing them. Such an odd group this fellowship is.

And yet… I feel more comfortable here than with any group I have ever associated with. Is that a reflection on me, or these people, I wonder?

o o o

When next Weiss woke, it was to startled shouts of alarm. She immediately popped her eyes open, only to peer into a rat-like face with glittering yellow eyes and facial hair that covered most of its elongated jaw. Clasped in the creature's hand was the silver clip that Weiss used at night to keep her hair from getting tangled as she slept.

The two looked at each other, unblinkingly, for the span of a heartbeat before Weiss let out a shriek, bolting upright. The creature scampered backwards and shot off into the dark before she could even summon a spell.

"Oum's blood!" Jeanne ground out angrily from where she stomped through the clearing. "Filthy little vermin!"

"Language," Ren called out sleepily. He was struggling to sit up, though he couldn't seem to extract himself from a still-snoring Nora.

"W- What was that thing?" Weiss asked shakily.

"Kobolds!" Jeanne barked out angrily. But then she glanced aside at Ren with an abashed look. "Er, and sorry, Ren, I just… Um… Why are the two of you naked?"

Weiss looked over to see Nora finally rousing herself, only to divert her gaze with a blush. Yes, yes they were both quite naked.

"Well, you see," Nora said in between jaw-splitting yawns. "When two people really like each other, they get together and-"

"I know what sex is!" Jeanne returned hotly. "I meant, why were you… Oh my Oum, were you two…?"

"Circle of Silence," Nora replied smugly. "Best Clerical spell ever."

"Nora," her boyfriend chided gently as he pulled his pants on. "Please get dressed."

Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose before turning back to the sputtering blonde. "Why were there… Kobolds… here? And where are Ruby and Pyrrha?"

"Wait, what? There were Kobolds here?" Nora demanded, leaping up and scurrying around the campsite, still stark naked. "Oum's bloody ballsack, they took my boot! I knew it!"

Weiss tuned the excitable girl out, as well as Ren's renewed chastising, to confront Jeanne. "Well?"

"Ruby and Pyrrha are trying to track down the Kobold lair. Kobolds…" The blonde shrugged as she looked about the clearing. "They're odd scavengers. Vicious in packs and when cornered, but mostly they raid campsites and steal just… strange stuff. Shiny things, like belt buckles or hair pins. They also have this weird thing about left shoes."

"Er…" Weiss stared back in perplexion. "Left… shoes?"

"Yeah, just the left ones. Nobody knows why." Jeanne sighed and tapped her finger along her sheathed sword. "Only thing I've found missing is one of the clasps for my cloak. I imagine we'll find more-"

"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!"

Both Jeanne and Weiss turned at the Banshee-like screech. Nora was standing over her armor, hands on her hips and fury radiating from every fibre of her still very naked body.

"They took all the buckles off of my armor!" she ranted angrily. "I'm gonna kill 'em! I'm gonna track 'em down, and spit 'em on a spear, and roast 'em over a fire!"

"Er, Nora," the alabaster-haired Elf began cautiously, her hands held out consolingly. "Why don't you stay and… protect the site, alright? I can see better in the dark, I'll try and track them…"

"I will go as well," Ren added, hefting his staff over a shoulder. He was fully dressed now, save for the shoes. Weiss glanced down curiously, which he returned with a sheepish smile.

"Left shoe?" she asked.

He nodded. "Left shoe. Shall we?"

Weiss was suddenly very glad she'd kept her boots on when she went to sleep. Still, that creature had taken her hair clip, a gift from her sister, and she was determined to retrieve it.

Leaving Jeanne and the still irate Nora behind, the pair headed through the woods. Initially they followed the trail left by either Pyrrha or Ruby, but soon enough they could see where the small creatures had converged together before moving off.

"Those are quite a few footprints," Ren commented quietly. "It's a large pack, I hope the others don't run into trouble."

"I'm sure it's nothing we can't handle," Weiss replied confidently. She froze, though, as her enhanced eyesight saw something up ahead. She rested a hand on Ren's arm to alert him since his vision wouldn't be quite as sharp as hers.

She nodded ahead and then stalked forward. Her memories returned to her childhood, playing hide and seek with her older sister Winter as they practiced the skills innate to any Elf, but she shook the thought off, focusing on the task at hand.

Only a few dozen paces later and she could make out the details of the form ahead.

"Pyrrha?" she asked hesitantly.

"Oh, thank goodness," the redhead called out. "I'm over here!"

"Yes, Pyrrha, we can see you perfectly well," Weiss replied wryly as they joined the redheaded Knight.

"Well, yes, sorry…" Pyrrha looked about abashedly. She was barefoot and clad only in a linen shift that came down just past her knees, though she clenched her drawn sword in her hand determinedly. "Er, I lost track of Ruby, and I cannot see well enough to return to camp." She chuckled mildly, rubbing the back of her neck. "I'm afraid I didn't quite think through the ramifications of my pursuit."

Weiss shook her head and chuckled in return. "Yes, well… Ren, why don't you bring Pyrrha back and I'll follow Ruby?"

The three of them agreed on that course of action after only some argument, Pyrrha wanting to continue the tracking and Ren unsure about leaving the Mage alone. Weiss assured them this was for the best, as she was able to see better than either of them in the dark and could join their brunette leader both quickly and stealthily.

Soon enough Weiss was racing through the forest, right hand firmly grasping the handle of her rapier. Her booted feet landed each step surely and quietly, missing any branch or dry leaf in her path.

So intently was she concentrating on her progress that she almost stumbled right into the pack of Kobolds.

There were about twenty of them gathered in front of a cave, milling about uncertainly and barking at each other in a guttural tongue. They seemed nervous, as if aware of the pursuit, though Weiss could see no sign of Ruby.

She clenched her sword even more tightly, gritting her teeth. An ice storm would freeze them all in place, though it would make retrieval of their items more problematic. Perhaps an illusion?

No, I've never been very proficient with illusions, and besides which, they'd just run away with our belongings...

She'd almost decided on a paralysis spell that might catch most of them, when she noticed the entire pack of Kobolds suddenly freeze, stiffening up and sniffing the air cautiously. Weiss began to trace the intricate runes for the complex spell, but then ceased as she saw movement at the other end near the cave.

Ruby emerged from the shadows, the hood of her red cloak pulled over her head. The reaction from the Kobolds was mixed, some of them turning to flee while others looked to be ready to fight. At a single incomprehensible barked order from the brunette, though, the pack once again stilled.

The alabaster-haired Elf watched Ruby approach the now-cowering Kobolds with interest. What's this, then? I'm fairly certain she's not a spell-caster, so how is she…?

She managed to suppress the gasp as Ruby lowered her hood, revealing swirling orbs of angry grey. Weiss had seen the brunette's eyes change color before, from silver to the color of storm clouds, but this was much more pronounced, almost as if she were projecting some sort of power.

Who is this Human girl?

Ruby made a few curt gestures, and the Kobolds fell over themselves to empty their pockets and packs of the fellowship's belongings. Another sweep of her hand and the creatures fled back into their cave without another sound.

With a sigh, the petite brunette bent down and began collecting up the various objects littering the ground in front of her.

"You going to just stare at me, Weiss, or can you help?" she called out without looking up.

"O- Of course," she stammered out, gliding out of the woodline. She bent down wordlessly, scooping up Nora's armor buckles.

As her hand closed around her stolen hairclip, she snuck a side glance at the now-placid girl by her side.

She resolved to keep a much closer eye on her intriguing companion, as she was reminded ever more forcibly that she was not all as she seemed.

A/N: I like big boobs and I cannot lie… Well, Weiss does anyways. Hmm, I suppose that tears away the last vestiges of mystery surrounding who the other pairings will be, correct? Yep, that's right faithful readers, we shall have Freezerburn and Ladybug up in here. Eventually.

So there are only two chapters left in this first volume, and the both of them deal with the merging of the fellowship with Yang and Blake. Thanks for reading up to this point!

Much appreciation to my Betas for this story, KellyConnely and PandaAnimeLover, and much love for all my wonderful reviewers: SeerKing, Sharkdude5, AntonSlavik020, ExKageFoxyFoxation, Reaper Whisper. Hugs!

Stay shiny!