9. At what cost

"This is it."

Penny waited for her guest to finish descending the ladder, before giving her the tour of the place. She hadn't been down there many times, but the memories she had of the laboratory would not soon be forgotten. It was still her father's workspace after all, and she missed him dearly.

"Fascinating… So much knowledge and power, just sitting here, right under my nose all this time. I had never felt this place, he must've had some serious protections." The woman quickly examined every inch and crevice, drinking in the overflowing source of energy around her.

"Yes, yes… this will do very nicely. And, oh! I haven't seen one of these in years, incredible!" The witch was lost in her thoughts, muttering out to none other than herself. But the soon-to-be-human golem wasn't feeling all that patient.

"So, do you have what you need to turn me?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah, that. Sure, shouldn't be too hard. Come here." A gesture invited her to join the magic-wielder, and she did so with no second thought. It was the moment she had been waiting for, nothing would stop her.

The sorceress dropped the containing the lycan ears, and started to draw a shape around her feet, a large circle in white chalk, then proceeding to add more and more intricate details to it. The marble sculpture felt the cold wind from inside the laboratory against her skin, a sensation she had never known before, lacking the necessary nerves for it.

There was a blinding flash of light, and then everything went quiet. The witch smiled knowingly, before getting up and going back to her analysis of the surrounding artifacts, no magic words, no chanting, potions or ointments. Penny felt outraged, the woman's promises coming up empty. She did nothing!

But when she reached her arm forward, beginning to form a complaint on her mouth, the corner of her eyes caught something odd. It was something… pink.

It took her a full minute to realize she was staring at her own fingers. Her own flesh fingers. She stroked for her own face, reveling in the touch of real human skin, so soft and warm against her hand, almost ticklish. It had worked! She wasn't a statue anymore, she wasn't a monster. She was a girl, complete with clothing and all. Oh, she had clothing, her attire now unshackled from her body, a totally separate entity caressing the outlines of her body, swaying with every movement she made.

Her enthusiasm was so strong she could barely stay in place, jumping up and down, feeling the way her new muscles tensed and released. Oh, and a heartbeat! She could feel a fast thumping in her chest, the undeniable sign that she truly was alive. It was all so new and fantastic, she couldn't wait to face the world, find all the new experiences she had been missing out on. The taste of food, the many smells of the countryside, the touch of someone else's skin against hers…

Ruby. She couldn't wait to tell Ruby, show her friend that there was nothing more to fear. She was a normal girl, no more beast inside seeking blood. And she was going to get her friend back, the sweet and caring girl she had met on the clearing above, no matter what.

She started to pace towards the exit, but was interrupted by the voice of her current companion, who was no longer paying attention to the many books around.

"Where are you going?"

"I have to tell Ruby about this! It's amazing, you really did it! Thank you!" Her grin was impossible to contain, and she turned back to the ladder, impatient to get out of that place.

"Get back here." Her body stood completely still, ceasing to move against her wishes. To her shock, her torso flipped, and her legs carried her all the way to the witch, who had an amused smile on her lips.

"You didn't think it'd be so easy, did you? I told you there was a price to pay. Now stand there and keep guard while I scour through your creator's archives."

"How… how are you doing this?"

"Oh you'll love it. Turns out your father had built in a method of controlling you in case anything went wrong. I bet he never even used it because he loved you so much." The scorn in her tone was palpable. She was adoring every second of this new power dynamics. "And now that you allowed me to unlock it, I'm in control. Now be a good girl and protect me, in case any of your friends decide to show up."

Penny felt trapped inside her own body. The sorceress had kept her end of the bargain, but at what cost.

She was utterly helpless.

Yang stretched her arms, feeling the aching sensation of spending too much time on the same position. It was already well past noon, so she got up from bed, and gave her hair a quick brush to return it to the natural blonde mane she was so proud of. She hated having to hide it when she went out, but there weren't many other men with overflowing golden locks around. She looked back at her cot, and stifled a giggle, before walking out.

It was nice to be able to move without the constant sting into her ribcage, threatening to keep her from drawing breath. She had taken longer to recover than she'd wished, but now she felt strong again, capable.

Entering the wide kitchen, she saw Ruby pacing around the room aimlessly, mumbling to herself. She picked up a piece of fruit from the counter, and wondered what was troubling her sister. The silver-eyed girl didn't notice her presence, not even when she sat behind the table, within arm's reach of the stressed-out huntress.

"Rubes? Everything okay?"

The redhead stopped and finally acknowledged her sibling, sitting down in front of her. She sighed, trying to vent off the nerves wracking her head, before replying.

"It's… Penny."

"Aww, little sis is worried about her girlfriend. You're so adorable I could pinch you." Yang gestured two fingers to the archer's cheeks, trying to deliver on her threat.

Ruby dodged the attack, and shot her sister a stern look, clearly not in the mood for teasing. But again, she never was in the mood for the blonde's teasing, since she got so easily embarrassed. And there was something else, if only slightly. Was she… blushing?

"Ah, you didn't say she wasn't your girlfriend." Leaning in closer, the brawler added in a whisper. "So, tell Momma Yang, have you two kissed yet?"

"N-" The red-hooded youngster began to deny vigorously, but a single mischievous memory struck her, forcing her mouth shut. She had kissed Penny, but that had been silly and striped of meaning, and so long ago. Yang picked up on the tell instantly.

"I can't believe it, you have! You must tell me EVERYTHING!"

Ruby shuffled in her seat, trying desperately to come up with a way out of the conversation. For an instant, her silver eyes flashed, no longer looking humiliated.

"All right, but only after you tell me everything about you and Blake."

"About… I don't know what you mean." The blonde froze, not expecting to be paid in kind on her gossip. Her sweet innocent sibling was more cunning than she appeared.

"Oh really? How about all the time she spends around you, checking on how you're feeling. Are you telling me The Great Seductress Yang hasn't picked up on it?"

"She's just been helping me recover, taking care of my injuries. You know, the ones she herself caused?"

"Yeah I heard her 'taking care of you' last night. Seriously, sis, gross. Our walls aren't exactly thick."

Yang's face went from light pink to bright red in a couple of seconds. She hadn't even considered the noise, and she certainly didn't consider being caught red-handed by her little sister. She waved her arms in front of her face, looking quite like an idiot.

"That's not… we didn't… Me and Blake…" Her pathetic attempts to explain the situation were interrupted by the sound of a throat being cleared across the room.

"Talking about me?" Blake walked in, wearing only a long yellow shirt, and throwing out the window any way of denying the events of the prior night.

"Join us, Blake. Yang was just about to explain to me the specifics of your relationship." Ruby could barely help herself from giggling. The lycan had walked in at the perfect moment, and now the blonde's embarrassment was well past the limit. Yang was so stunned her mouth was hanging wide open, looking around the room without making a sound.

"Oh? Now that's something I want to hear."

Both girls' outbursts of laughter were interrupted by a desperate scream.

"PENNY!" They looked startled towards the yellow-haired woman who had yelled that name. "We were talking about Penny. You were worried about her." Change the subject NOW!

The chuckles stopped, tension returning to the table. The huntress stared down at the floor, renovating the troubled look she had donned before.

"She's been gone for hours, I can't find her anywhere. It's not like her to just disappear like that."

"You think something might've happened to her?"

"I don't know, that's why I'm worried…"

Yang nodded in comprehension. It was odd for the statue to be away for more than a few minutes. She was always inside the house, looking for something to occupy herself, knowing the outside could be dangerous to someone of her kin. Her absence was, as a matter of fact, strange.

Looking at the raven-haired woman besides her, the brawler noticed the absolute silence she was in. She knew more than she was letting on.

"Blake? You wanna say something?"

"I… Penny's upset, okay? She's upset that you…" She glared directly into Ruby's silver eyes "…have been avoiding her. She feels like the odd one out in this house."

The young archer seemed like she's been hit by a carriage, guilt and realization slicing through her expression.

"I know what she did was extreme, but she was just trying to protect you. You've been treating her like a monster."

"I guess you're right… It's just hard to look at her after what happened."

"I understand, Ruby, I was there too. But you can't keep pushing her away, she might do something… crazy. If you still care for her, you need to show it to her, and fast, before it's too late." Yang didn't pick up on the ominous hints, neither did her sister. But they understood the message.

"Hear that, sis? Time for your great romantic gesture, you know, that part in the stories where the hero rides in to save her beloved!"

"You are seriously the most annoying sister one could have." Ruby failed at a disapproving look, too amused by her sibling's over-enthusiasm.

"And that's why you love me." The blonde crushed the youngster in an affectionate bear hug. "Now go, and get your girl back!"

"She's not my girl, Yang!" Ruby pleaded, while beginning to walk to the door, the mission at hand clear in view. As she walked out, Yang decided she wasn't yet done with the payback for being cornered earlier.

"Not with that attitude!"

Alone with the lycan, the brawler turned slowly, and as tantalizingly as she could, to her raven-haired partner. She was surprised to find a glimmer of mischief in those deep golden eyes. She wasn't used to the playful side of the panther, so it was quite a distressing sight.

"So, The Great Seductress Yang, huh?"

Before she was able to answer, the archer barged in through the entrance, flushed and out of breath.

"Forgot my bow." She said, as a means of explanation.

"Why do you need your bow?" The huntress merely shrugged at the question.

"Just in case. Oh, and could you do something for me?"

Ruby stopped as she reached the clearing, the urgency of her search tamed by the sight of the tulip orchard where it all had begun. It looked just as colorful as she remembered, back when she hadn't met talking golems or shapeshifting creatures. When it was just her and her sister, getting by as they could. She wouldn't have gone back even if the option was available. All the trouble they had gone through had been intense, but she had also won friends, emotional connections that she wouldn't trade for anything. She took her time taking in the nostalgic sight of the clearing.

Her trained senses picked up on a faint noise, clueing her in that she had in fact gone to the right place. It was coming from downstairs, so she ran to the hole in the ground and quickly descended it. Inside, she saw something she certainly did not expect.

There was a girl standing near the desk, her back towards it. There was something familiar about her, the short curled hair, the summer dress. She looked like Penny, but that girl appeared to be human, made of flesh and bone. Yet the lingering feeling was unmistakable, and the red-hooded huntress was forced to check.

"Penny?"

The ginger girl reacted at the call, a smile that faded within a flash into a look of fear. But the signs didn't lie, it truly was the girl, no longer made of marble. Ruby marveled in silence at the transformation that had happened. The once white spotless skin was now a soft pink, the equally-colored hair turned bright orange, much like the tulips above. Her garments weren't rigid, but flew with the breeze, a grey dress with green highlights over a cream shirt, the stockings and shoes black of color. Her eyes were vivid and deep emerald. She was beautiful.

Entranced with her friend's new exterior, she completely forgot her fears about her. That sweet looking human girl could never hurt her, it was not the look of a monster. She also failed to notice the white woman behind her, and the words that followed.

"Rose's here? Ugh, you know what to do."

The bodyguard moved forward, ignoring the questions the archer threw her way,

"Penny, is that really you? What happened, how are you human?"

The girl stopped right in front of her, but didn't make any more moves. She was just standing there, looking guilt-ridden.

"I don't want to hurt you, Ruby, please leave. I asked her to turn me, but it was a mistake, she tricked me." The silver-eyed youngster couldn't make sense of the information she was receiving, and before she could muster a retort, the third voice was heard again.

"Why are you just standing there? Why aren't you attacking?" Ruby managed to catch a glimpse of the source of the sound, a white figure in the distance.

"You told me to protect you, not attack. She's not being a threat." Penny looked back, facing her new master defiantly.

"Fine, then attack, damn it!"

"I'm so sorry, my friend."

The former-sculpture raised her arms, something Ruby innocently mistook as the start of a reconciliating hug. Instead, she received a firm punch to the thorax.

It certainly didn't hurt too much, now that her hard stone arm had been replaced by muscles. Still, it caught the short-haired girl off-guard, throwing her off balance. The next hit was aimed at her legs, propelling her to the ground. She saw the strike coming but couldn't move fast enough to deflect it, so she dove with it, curling her fall into a roll to the side.

"What the hell, Penny! Why are you doing this?" She was shouting, unable to comprehend what was going on. She had thought there would be no more monster, but there was the other girl, closing in on her with malicious intent.

"I told you, she's making me do it!" There was truth in both her eyes and her voice, compelling the huntress to trust her. The ginger didn't want to fight, but she wasn't the one pulling the strings. Which meant the other woman was the real enemy, making the puppeteer Ruby's target. She would need to defeat the witch if she wanted to free Penny. It was Adam all over again, but this time she didn't have a marble beast at her side.

The huntress dodged another couple of punches, and ducked to avoid the fighter. She then leapt to try to close the distance between her and the sorceress. She didn't foresee that the guard would keep up, and now that her back was turned, she was very vulnerable.

A powerful kick to her feet made her airborne for an instant, then landing on her back. The brutal impact drove all the air out of her chest, and she stayed down, unable to move. It was then that the woman in white finally decided to turn around.

The witch had long ivory hair, tied neatly into a side ponytail, bangs in the front falling near her icy blue eyes. She wore a white dress, almost too white considering the dusty countryside they lived in, along with white boots that reached all the way to her knees. Her cleanliness was strange but highly enticing, a bastion of purity over the surrounding lands. She was gorgeous beyond anything Ruby had ever seen, and the scar that crossed her left cheek and above her eye only made it further so. She would've held her breath, if she still had any.

The magician walked over with a victorious smirk on her lips, never ceasing the cold gaze in her stare. She raised her right foot, and placed the heel of her shoe on top of the huntress' neck. The slight pressure wasn't meant to suffocate, just a display of who was in charge. Penny was standing still by her side, looking sorrowful but unable to intervene.

"Ruby Rose, you just had to be a thorn on my side, didn't you?"

"What can I say, roses do that." The silver-eyed girl tried her best not to be intimidated, but it was hard to remain unwavering when facing that shiveringly icy tone.

"How funny, you certainly learned something from that buffoon you call a sister." Leaning downwards, the ivory-haired woman managed to sound even colder in her next two words. "Weiss Schnee."

"What?"

"My name. Weiss Schnee. We've known each other for years and you never even asked. No one ever did. You all treat me like a shop, never a person. First my family, now my village, nobody cares about me, only my powers. 'Oh please give me this. Oh please make me that' No one ever wonders what I want. And you know what? I'm tired. Tired of being treated like just another tool in your arsenal. Tired of being left alone while everyone lives out their lives happily. All I wanted was someone who cared about me for more than what I can do, someone who could quell the loneliness. But it's too late now, I don't care anymore. Your friend brought me to this place, and I have so much knowledge and power at my grasp. No one will mistreat me again. You only care about my abilities, then you will all see exactly the extent of what I can do."

"I won't let you hurt anyone."

"Would it even bother you? They hate you after all. Would it give you not even a little bit of satisfaction to get some revenge?"

"Why would I be happy about people suffering? You're insane! I'm going to stop you!"

"Ever the naive idealist, I see. And how exactly do you plan to do that? What is it that you think you have that I don't? Belief in yourself, the kiss of true love, determination? Some other foolish fairy tale notion?"

Ruby started laughing, as if possessed by some insane devil.

"So? Spit it out, you dolt, what is it?"

There was a massive noise outside, like roaring thunder very close by. The red-hooded huntress looked the witch dead in the eyes with a confident smile, fire burning within.

"I have backup."

It was Weiss after all, as many of you predicted. I thought it would be pretty obvious once Blake was introduced that the last remaining character would be the missing team member, and was very surprised that some still thought it was Cinder. I considered switching to Glynda just to annoy everyone, but that would've been really crappy writing. It was a lot of fun to plan and write our little Schnee, and the many scars she bears from her past.

Also, I swear I didn't plan on having Bumblebee in this story. It just kinda happened. The bees like to sneak up in my fics without my consent, it had already sorta happened in the last one. What can I say, they make a simple and fun pair.

I hope you liked this chapter, and as always feel free to comment. Next time we see each other again will be to conclude this tale.