Shadowed Red

I, Silva Branwen, have been enjoying the last month since Vernal and I changes our relationship. Things have been mostly casual between us, with pleasuring each other, and I found a few things out. Well, for one, it's actually easier for me to pleasure Vernal with my paws than it is to pleasure myself. I dulled my thumb claw to a rounded tip and used it to play with Vernal's clitoris, which brought her no small amount of arousal.

Another thing I found out about is Vernal's preferences in porn since we started watching porn together is that she likes animated Mistral porn or hentai, usually vanilla genre with plot and romance. Not bad, but I prefer something a bit darker and hardcore to Vernal's softer choices, although I watch those in private. I suddenly recalled what was said about Earth's internet, 90% of it is porn, and I started to wonder if this also applied to Remnant's Cross Continental Transmit System. Aside from that, I have been doing my best to try and remember what I could about Raven becoming the Spring Maiden to prevent Vernal's death, but I have come up empty on that end aside from Raven likely giving her a mercy killing.

I then considered what it would take to kill Vernal in general. Aside from a highly skilled team of Huntsman and Huntresses like with Cinder and her crew's takedown of the Fall Maiden, the only other way I can think of is to either poison Vernal or have her face several powerful Grimm. As I wondered what could have killed the original Vernal in the canon, Raven called me through my Scroll.

" Hello?"

" Come to my tent later; I have a job for you."

" Alright, see you in a bit."

Raven hung up, and I started to wonder what she had for me this time. I hoped it was not another tea run. Not long after, I headed to Raven's tent to wait for her, and after about an hour, Raven entered her tent and started brewing herself some tea. After Raven's first cup of tea, she took a seat across from me and started explaining.

" Ordinarily, I wouldn't consider hiring out the tribe for this sort of mission but considering who it's from and your desire to get that old armed airship in working order, I decided to let you take it."

While part of me was excited, my curiosity won out, and I asked Raven.

" Who is giving out this mission?"

Raven took a sip of her tea and then told me with a serious expression.

" It's from one of the most influential gangs in Mistral, or more precisely, its leader Lil' Miss Malachite of the Spider Organization."

The name sounds familiar, but I can't put a face to the name or recall exactly how it relates to the canon of RWBY. I decided to put it to the back of my mind for now and ask the next important question.

" What does the mission entail?"

" To put it nicely, bodyguard work, but in practice, your basically a babysitter."

I frowned slightly in displeasure at the thought of being an overgrown babysitter, but I put aside my dislike and then asked.

" What's the pay?"

Raven gave me an approving smile at the question and told me.

" Aside from gaining some favors from the Spider Organization, you will personally gain the blueprints of the old Manta gunship you're trying to restore and some parts as well."

I grinned at the payout I would be getting and then asked Raven.

" When do I start?"

***

Raven led me through lower Mistral to a tavern where I was supposed to meet Lil' Miss and my charges for the next couple of months. As we entered, I saw that all the patrons there were wearing purple and had a spider tattoo somewhere on their bodies and felt on guard as we were in the tiger's den or, I guess, in this case, spider's den. As we approached a heavyset woman with a fair complexion, neck-length blonde hair, and blue eyes, I saw a familiar face I wasn't expecting.

Roman Torchwich, in a green coat and black pants and shirt, was without his iconic hat, but his ginger hair was in a short ponytail. He looked bored out of his mind, and Raven then stood before the heavyset woman and said.

" Lil' Miss."

" Raven Branwen."

The heavyset woman, now identified as Lil' Miss, acknowledges Raven and looks towards me, then asks her.

" And this is?"

" My son, Silva. He will be the one to watch over your daughters."

Lil' Miss frowned at Raven, and Roman then said with a condescending smile.

" Not to be disrespectful to you, but HOW is this little furball guarding the twins when he looks like he is barely out of his diaper phase?"

" You are a fine one to talk, Roman, considering you almost got Miltia and Melanie killed during our war with the Parrot gang."

Lil' Miss chided Roman and then said with a questioning look towards Raven.

" Roman does, however, have a point. Your son seems a bit too young to be trusted with guarding my girls."

Raven scoffed, then said coldly.

" Silva is the one I trust the most with this mission, and besides, he is undoubtedly stronger than any of your subordinates if what I am currently seeing is any indication."

Raven's gaze swept across the Spider gang with disdain, and Lil' Miss arched her eyebrow questionly. Lil' Miss then appraised me, and after a few moments, she suggested.

" Then you don't mind if I see his skills for myself, do you, Raven Branwen?"

Raven gave the heavyset woman a slight smile and replied.

" Go ahead."

Lil' Miss looked at Roman and gestured for him to attack me. Roman pointed at himself to silently ask if she meant him, and Lil' Miss nodded in reply. Roman looked disgruntled at being ordered to fight me but complied as he swung his cane at me suddenly. I dodged it by a hair and thrust my glave at Roman's torso, making him stagger, and he grumbled.

" Of course, the furball knows how to fight..."

I did not stop there and struck Roman with the other end of my double-ended glave with a twirl and was about to knock him off his feet, but he jumped back. Roman then launched his grabbing hook from his Melodic Cudgel at my foot, and it wrapped around my leg. He smiled as he tried to pull me off my feet, but I stood firmly planted at my position, much to his surprise. I pulled my leg back and yanked Roman towards me and swiped at his face with my claws. I knocked him aside, and he quickly got up and commented sarcastically.

" Kitty Cat has claws, oh joy."

I thrust my weapon at his head, and he leaned back to evade it. I quickly swung it down on him, but he used his cane to block my strike, but he fell on his butt. As I applied my Aura enhanced strength against him, Roman complained to Raven.

" What are you feeding this brat, lady?!"

He pushed away my glave and bashed the end of his cane at my solar plexus, which staggered me, and Roman then swung his weapon at my head. As it hit, he was about to fire a flare at me at point-blank range, but I knocked aside his weapon and tackled him. I knocked him back and pinned Roman's leg with my foot, then raised my glave to strike down Roman when suddenly Lil' Miss stopped Roman and me from continuing.

" I think that's quite enough."

I looked toward Raven to silently ask her opinion, and she nodded in agreement with Lil' Miss. I backed off from Roman, who glared at me with an annoyed look and said to me.

" Your lucky Lil' Miss stopped me from finishing you, Kitten."

I ignored Roman and focused on Lil' Miss and asked her.

" Is this proof enough of my abilities?"

" Yes, and now let me introduce your charges for the next couple of months. Miltia! Melanie!"

" Yes, Mother?"

" What is it, Mom?"

A pair of twins about 17 years old walked in that I recognized from RWBY. They both had long black hair, pale skin, and bright green eyes. Their outfits were similar but different. One had on a strapless dark red dress with a black sash on, thigh-high high heel boots with black mesh fingerless gloves that almost reached her shoulder, and a red feather hair accessory on her head. The other one had a white strapless dress with a cyan-colored sash on with similar boots to her twin, but white plus white silky gloves that covered her forearm.

Lil' Miss introduced them to me.

" The one in red is Miltia, and the one in white is Melanie, and I expect you to ensure that they are unharmed during these next few months."

Melanie then asked her mother.

" Mom, what are you talking about?"

" This... young man will be your bodyguard while I mop up the remnants of the other gangs I have destroyed."

As Lil' Miss explains, the girls had similar reactions; Miltia, the girl in red, looked surprised, while Melanie incredulously screeched.

" This kid is our bodyguard?! Are you joking with us, Mom?!"

Lil' Miss answered her daughter with a deadpan tone.

" I don't make jokes, Melanie; you know that."

Melanie then asked as she looked skeptically.

" Can he even do anything? I mean, he can't be stronger than Miltia and me, right?"

Lil' Miss sighed and told her daughter.

" I had the same doubts, but when I tested him against Roman, he showed an impressive level of combat ability, so yes, he is stronger than you by a wide margin."

Melanie just opened and closed her mouth, unable to retort, and Miltia looked at me curiously, then asked her mother.

" Very well, mother, but please hurry in removing the remnants so that my sister and I can get on with our lives."

Melanie agreed with her sister.

" What she said!"

Lil' Miss pinched the bridge of her nose and told them.

" I will try, but it will likely at least take months to deal with the remnants if things go according to plan."

Miltia gave a slight bow to her mother as she replied.

" I understand."

Melanie then pouted but ultimately agreed.

" Fine..."

I am starting to have doubts about this job, and it's just barely getting started.