Weiss was getting angry. She had more than enough of Aure's jokes and lies. "I already told, we're not together and never were."

"You say that after the night we spent together? I'm starting to think some rumors about you are true." Aure got closer to Weiss and was about caress her face when Blake caught her and shook her head.

Aure's friend moved quickly and tried to hit Blake's hand to make her let go. Blake, being a lot quicker and better trained, pushed the blond girl in the path of her friend, who had to stop to catch her. After making sure that her friend was okay, she turned toward Weiss, angry. "I see you aren't even able to train your doggie correctly." Hearing that, Blake raised her eyebrows and put a hand on her weapon, ready to take it out before Weiss stopped her. She heard the heiress whisper 'I'll explain later.' low enough that only a Faunus would be able to hear it.

"Umber, you better be careful of how you call my friend if you know what is good for you." Blake was surprised by how menacing Weiss could sound. She never heard her use that tone at Beacon. "Well, I guess I'm partly at fault. Let me do the presentations." Weiss' voice was back to her normal tone, which made Blake wonder if the interactions she had with those people were always as artificial. "This is Blake Belladonna, she's a fellow huntress-in-training and my teammate." Weiss emphasized the 'huntress' part to stop any idea the rich girls could have had to start trouble. "Blake, these two girls are Aure and Umber. Aure's family is in the gold business, as she so inconspicuously displays," the blonde waved at Blake, making her numerous bracelets clink together, "and Umber's family is composed of top-level athletes and also the owner of one of the best company in the prosthesis business, working closely with Atlas military."

The two girls were looking at Blake, judging her. Umber was the first to talk, finding something she liked in the appearance of the Faunus. "If you ever lose a limb, come see me, you'll make a killing as a prosthesis model."

Blake looked at her with her usual neutral face. "That was unnecessarily creepy." She turned toward Weiss, ignoring the girls looking at her. "Are they always like that?"

"They don't get out a lot."

Umber turned toward Weiss, angry. "Like you can talk, miss no-fun-allowed. Daddy finally found you a cure for your frigidity?"

"Don't be mean Umber, I would be scared too if I was that small. Even an average-sized guy could break her in half." Aure's fake sympathy was obvious and Weiss' expression didn't change. The two girls were looking at Weiss from above, trying to use their height to their advantages.

Blake was impressed by Weiss' calm when she answered. "At least I didn't have to explain to my family why I brought more diseases home than our company brought money." Two pairs of angry eyes were on Weiss after she said that and Aure's smile disappeared. Blake guessed she struck a nerve, judging by the reaction of the girls.

Aure was the one to break the tension, her smile back on her face as quickly as it disappeared. "Let's talk about something else. I like your new style, maybe a little… plain, but it fits you." Aure pointed at Weiss' new necklace. Since it was her family's business, she had a good eye for the quality of accessories. "I also like the necklace, but I'm sure a girl like you could do a lot better. And why a cat? I'd say you're more of a fox."

Blake looked at the ground, her face red with shame. She knew Weiss deserved a lot better than a crappy necklace she bought for cheap at a generic accessory store, and now someone made fun of her because of it.

Blake's reaction did not escape Weiss and only added to her anger. She turned toward Aure, doing her best to not lash out at her. "I'm going to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume you didn't mean to be extremely rude, but you better not do it again, or else you might get hurt."

Umber did not like Weiss threatening her friend and got between Weiss and Aure. She looked straight into Weiss' eyes, towering over her. "Pretty big talk for a small girl without a weapon."

Weiss kept her composure as she answered. "I think you're forgetting who you are talking to. I'm a Schnee, I don't need a weapon for someone like you." Accompanying her words, the Schnee crest flickered menacingly for a few seconds behind Weiss as she unconsciously displayed her Semblance. Weiss turned toward Blake, grabbed her hand and started walking away from the two girls. "We have to go. See you next time."

As they leaved, they heard Umber talk to her friend. "I guess the rumors about her and her sister not having any emotion have some truth to them, her face didn't change at all."

Blake felt Weiss tighten her grip on her hand to the point it began to hurt but stayed silent. They stopped in front of a tea shop, where Weiss finally managed to calm herself. "I know you must have a lot of questions, might as well make ourselves comfortable. I think you like tea, right?" Weiss was not really a fan of tea and hoped she'll manage to find something to drink, but for now she was just thinking of Blake.

Blake nodded and the two girls entered the shop. The atmosphere of the shop was very calming, with a subtle aroma of tea in the air. A waiter approached them when they entered, asking if they wanted a sit or where just here to buy tea. He looked at their hands, still together, and lead them to their table when Weiss said they wanted to sit. It was a small table for two in the back of the shop, in a small alcove, which allowed them to have their privacy. The seat was a bench forming half a circle against the wall, allowing them to sit next to each other. That and the little switch used to call the waiter indicated that the table was probably to be used by couples who wanted to spend time together and be left alone. The waiter left them, explaining that they should use the switch when they were ready to order.

As the waiter leaved, Weiss finally realized how tight her grip on Blake's hand was. "I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" The red marks on Blake's skin made her feel guilty. She should have paid more attention to her.

Blake dismissed her worries with a small smile. "Don't worry, it's nothing. And you had a good reason to be angry."

Weiss shook her head as she sat down. "It doesn't allow me to hurt you." Weiss put her hand on the marks she left, lightly caressing them. She got closer to Blake's ear and her voice became a little deeper. "Next time, I'll let you be rough with me."

Blake looked at the girl next to her, her eyebrows raised in surprise, wondering if she did it on purpose since it was very different from how she usually acted. The small smile and the glint of amusement in the blue eyes of the girl told her that, yes, she knew exactly what she did. "Didn't know you were into that. No wonder you like 'Ninjas of Love'". She was satisfied to see a small blush creep on her friend cheeks. Blake liked to see Weiss get flirtier, but she would have been a little sad to not be able to see her beautiful pale skin get tinged with red when she was teased. "Anyway, I have a few questions."

"I thought so. Maybe we should order first?"

The two girls looked at all the different teas they could get, trying to make a choice. Blake went with a classic, black tea, while Weiss choose something a little different, white tea mixed with vanilla, hazelnut and white chocolate. She hoped she would like it more than pure tea, which she found tasted like hot water with an aftertaste of leaves.

They called the waiter and ordered, after which Blake ask her first question. "So, what's the story between you and Aure? You said you were not together, was it a one-night thing?" Blake's words were a little harsher than she intended, but the possibility of Weiss having lied to her about having no experience made her a little upset. She knew she wasn't being reasonable, but it had comforted her a lot to learn that she wasn't the only one without any romantic experience.

Weiss understood that Blake did not like the idea that she lied to her and did not hold her tone against her. "Blake, when I told you I never had been with anyone, I didn't lie, and I have no interest in one-night stands. Aure was just trying to get at me, because she knows I hate it when she does that. Please, believe me." Weiss took Blake's left hand in her right, almost unconsciously. She didn't mean to sound so desperate, but she did not want to lose Blake's trust just because Aure wasn't able to keep her mouth shut.

Blake shook her head and squeezed lightly the hand Weiss just used to take hers. "Don't worry, I believe you, I just wanted to know why she did it. Was it really just to get at you? She did say you spent the night together." Blake took advantage of the situation to avoid having to explain her reaction. She knew that explaining why she reacted like that would make her look like stupid and immature.

Weiss sighed. The moment she saw Aure waving at her, she realized there would have a lot of things to explain to Blake. "It was a few years ago, I was at a party and it was getting late, the time where most people have found a partner to spend the night with. I usually went near the adults at this time to listen to them, I was more comfortable hearing about politics than… well…"

Blake decided to try and help her a little. "You said there was a lot of making out at those parties."

Weiss had a derisive snicker. "It went further than that…"

She was interrupted by the waiter who brought them their orders. He put a teacup and a teapot in front of each of them, and gave Blake a tea timer. Weiss looked at it with curiosity while the waiter gave advice to Blake about the brewing of her tea. The timer consisted of three hourglasses held together by two pieces of wood, beautifully engraved with the numbers three, four and five above the hourglasses. Each one contained a different amount of sand, all colored differently. She looked at the sand flow until Blake reminded her of her presence by clearing her throat. "Sorry." Weiss cheeks were colored a light pink at being caught staring at hourglasses. "As I was saying, most of them went further than making out. As you may have noticed, they don't consider sex taboo at all, for them, it's a way to show their status. Girls like Aure whose family have an incredible amount of money and power are the ones choosing who they spent the night with first, and people with not as much prestige that weren't picked had to go with whoever was left."

Blake frowned. Hearing that made her uneasy and reminded her to much of the way the White Fang treated those who couldn't fight, as inferiors. "That's… awful."

Weiss nodded. "I agree. Well, to be fair, Aure always managed to make it so that no one had to spend the night with someone they didn't like. She is very good at manipulating people to get them to do what she wants, but at least she tried to make things tolerable for everyone. And she always picked me first to be with her every single time. I always refused, but I guess it's a little flattering." Weiss wouldn't admit it, but she did like having Aure call her name every time when she could have ignored her.

Blake took back the hand she had let go when the waiter came and slowly caressed her with her thumb, trying to be comforting. If the only discussions about sex she had with people her age were those people saying she was frigid, it was no wonder she felt uncomfortable talking about it. "I guess we weren't that far off about what was happening at those parties, except that you were being a nerd that listen to politics." The small smile that appeared on Weiss' lips made Blake feels good, knowing she managed to cheer her up, even if only a little. "You should drink, your tea will get cold."

Weiss poured some tea in her cup with her free hand then took the cup and brought it to her mouth. She avoided drinking tea as much as she could and hoped she could at least avoid making a weird face. She took a sip of the drink and was pleasantly surprised. The taste of the vanilla and the sweetness of the chocolate hid the bitterness of the tea and she had no problem drinking it. "It's really good." Weiss' mood improved a lot after drinking and she continued her explanation. "So, I was at one of those parties and it was getting late, but instead of going to listen to the adults, I went into an empty room. I… was not feeling good that day, I think it was a mix of being tired and a little depressed. I just wanted to be alone but Aure found me. I never found out why she was there, alone, but she sat next to me and gave me a hug." Weiss had a little smile at the memory. "She didn't say anything, she was just there for me. It's very unusual for her, she never stops talking usually. You know, she is pretty nice when it's just the two of us, she only is insufferable when there is someone she wants to show off to."

Her tea having brewed long enough, Blake poured herself a cup with her free hand. She liked how convenient it was that their dominant hand was different. "Maybe she just wanted to help? Or maybe she didn't feel good that day, like you?" Blake didn't know Aure like Weiss' did, but maybe she was just trying to be friendly and Weiss had a bias against her because they only met in a context she disliked.

"Maybe. But she must have felt better soon after that, because at next party everyone knew we 'spent the night together' and she was going around telling people we were together. She was joking, but most people took it seriously and she found it funnier to let them believe it. Getting those rumors to stop was not easy."

"You managed to do it?" Blake took a sip of her tea, appreciating the higher quality than what was available at beacon.

"After breaking a few limbs, yes." Blake looked at Weiss, wide-eyed. She did not expect her to be so violent. Maybe have her family send people to do it, but not her directly. Weiss sighed at the display of surprise. "Don't look at me like that, it's not like I went and ambushed them in a dark alley. Duels were commonplace between us, so I just fought against those that kept the rumor alive. Since I trained to become a huntress and they only trained because their family wanted them to, I had no problem beating them."

Blake frowned, there was something strange with her story. "If those were duels, why did you break their limbs?"

"The duels were fought to Aura depletion, as a show of courage supposedly," Weiss' tone of voice left no doubt about her disdain for those who thought that putting themselves in danger for nothing was a proof of courage, "and some of them… well, they were pretty poor fighters for the most part. In two occasions, I misjudged how much Aura they had left, threw them with too much force and broke the arm of one of them and the leg of another."

"You didn't get into trouble? I can't imagine that their parents didn't say anything."

Weiss shrugged. She understood that an outsider would find it strange, but she was used to it, having lived in this environment her entire life. "Getting hurt in a duel is expected, and it's not like they can't pay for very good doctors, they healed without any problems." Weiss stopped to drink some tea and continued, realizing she had not been completely honest. "My family name might also have helped a little. Not many people would want to go after a Schnee. They could have challenged my father to a duel as retaliation, but it's easier to say that your child was a little impetuous and that it was a good lesson."

"Your father can fight? I never saw anything like that in the files the Whi— we had." Blake scolded herself for almost slipping up and admitting she had been part of the White Fang in public. Being with Weiss made her lower her guard way too much.

"That's because he can't." The look in Blake's eyes told her that she wasn't very convincing. "I know it doesn't make sense said like that, but I don't really want to talk about my family right now. I tell you someday, just… not right now." Weiss didn't want to start talking about the Schnee's Semblance, especially since she'd probably have to talk about her own shortcomings.

Blake squeezed Weiss' hand lightly. "I'll wait when you're ready, don't worry. By the way, what did she mean by doggie? Did she notice…?"

Weiss shook her head. "I don't think so, she wouldn't have let us go so easily if she did. Can you imagine, Weiss Schnee, friend with a Faunus?"

"Yeah, how could a girl like her be friend with a filthy Faunus?" The words were out before Blake was able to stop them, and the pained expression on Weiss' face made her regret them immediately. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that, it just… hit a little too close to home."

"I guess I could have expressed myself better. What I meant is that they would make a fuss out of it. The only interaction we—they have with Faunus is either the White Fang going after their family or hearing about it from the others. Not the best way to really get to know them."

Blake tilted her head, intrigued. "Really? I thought Umber was one."

"What makes you say that?"

Blake touched her nose, not wanting to say it out loud.

Weiss considered what Blake just said, trying to remember if Umber had expressed her views about Faunus. "Her family company does have a line of prosthesis for Faunus and they used Faunus for some of their demonstrations. It's not enough to confirm they are Faunus in hiding, but it's not impossible either." She had to remember to look more into it later. "Anyway, you were asking me what doggies were. It's a way to refer to the people they manipulated into doing what they want, some sort of servant."

"What?" Blake's tone was flat and her face showed no emotion. She didn't know if she should be offended or laugh at the childishness of the name.

"Since they're rich, they make a game of having people that do everything they want without having to pay them. They usually bring them at the parties and make contest to see who has managed to get the strongest or smartest or anything that come to their mind."

"You say 'they', you didn't take part in it?" While Weiss could seem the type of person who would enjoy having someone bow to her every whim, Blake knew she would get bored quickly. As much as she protested, she liked having her friends contradict her, tease her or just have fun with her without special treatment. Blake also knew that Weiss was very good at hiding her true feelings when she wanted, to fit with a group for example.

Weiss shook her head. "I find the practice disgusting and I usually went away when they started doing their stupid contest. Which has not helped with my reputation."

Blake winced at the memory. "They weren't nice."

"That's the way they interact, by being rude and trying to hurt each other. Coming to Beacon was such a breath of fresh air. And Aure has been horrible to you, badmouthing your gift." Seeing the surprised expression on the face of the Faunus, she explained with a little smile. "I saw how you reacted to her comment, you probably thought that it was cheap and that she was right when she said I could get a much better necklace, right?"

"I—" Blake was unable to continue. Weiss was right after all.

"Do you know how many necklace I was offered during my life? More than I can count. Yet, I'm wearing yours, because I love it, because you gave it to me not out of obligation, but because you are my—my friend. And no matter how clichéd it sounds, it's worth more to me than a very expensive one that I got because my last name is Schnee."

Blake tightened her grip on Weiss' hand slightly. Hearing that from her made her very happy.

The next few minutes were spent in silence as the two girls drank their tea, enjoying each other's presence. Weiss finished her teapot first and decided to rest a little until Blake finished hers. She leaned against her friend, putting her head on her shoulder, and closed her eyes. For just an instant, she was able to forget everything about the parties and what happened with Aure and Umber.

The reason this chapter took so long to come out is that it was pretty hard to write. I was trying to have Aure and Umber be at least a little interesting, and I hope I managed it. You judge.

I'll try to have the next update come out as quickly as usual, but I can't guarantee anything since there as some changes at work and I need to see how it will work out.

Thanks to everyone who has read, followed, favorited or reviewed this story. I hope you liked this new chapter and will keep enjoying the story.

If you have any comments, suggestions or anything you want to say, reviews are always welcomed.

Have a nice day and until next time.