Ep. 20 - Grimm Slaughter, Meeting Father, Free

If there is something I should learn from today, it's that Weiss likes to dance, actually, and that Murphy's a bitch.

A few minutes before midnight, an explosion resounded through the night sky. You could hear the screams from Beacon, the wave of negativity was almost tangible (figuratively). I made another Light clone and left Weiss with it. I trasmated to the roof and took something I wanted to try out for a long, long time.

"MoonRay, pull up the footage of the Grimm on my HUD. Let's get rid of them quickly." I said, while loading my 'Gjallarhorn'.

With the targets located, I fired in their direction. The rockets were quite fast, but I risked hitting civilians if I targeted single Grimms, so I targeted the breach. People can't die if there's nothing to kill them.

I fired 23 rockets before Atlas came in with their mechanical soldiers. 'I did say that the invasion should have been in a week, but they must have prepared earlier. Better for me.'

I continued firing in the hole, quite literally this time, for maybe ten minutes before a wild Glynda came in and repaired the breach. With no new Grimm coming in, I decided to go back to the ballroom. Someone else can deal with this mess.

My friends were the only ones remaining, most of them dancing to some slow music. I am not surprised they decided to stay. In the time we spent together, they became more relaxed, not so hung-up on saving the world single-handedly.

"So, are you done saving the day once again?" asked Weiss. She was sitting while sipping on some punch. Maybe leaving the clone wasn't needed.

"Yes, you don't have to worry. Hm… Since the music is still on how about one last dance?"

"Sure, let's dance, Mr. Hero."

The next day, today, I woke up with Weiss stuck to me like rust. I didn't mind, it was just around 7 A.M. on a Sunday. Our only commitment today is meeting and threatening Jacques Schnee, so I didn't wake up the sleeping princess next to me.

Instead, I considered my plan again and decided to speed things up. The mission should be this week, unless it is rescheduled due to the Grimm invasion that happened a few hours ago. I doubt it will as completing missions is important during Hunter training and there wasn't that much damage: basically the only Grimm that did come were the flying types and the fast types, and not that many. My rockets prevented more Grimm to come from the breach.

Anyway, what was I saying? Ah, yes, speed things up. I decided that after the mission, I would remove Cinder, her group, and Salem. Things might get too uncertain for me to work effectively. I like adventure, but not at the cost of war and deaths I could prevent.

I will just bring relative peace to this world. I can have my adventure in the future, along with Weiss.

The sleeping princess woke up late, around 9, and groggily sat up. I went to quickly get some breakfast in town, the same cafe I visited previously. I guess they remembered about me since they gave me priority. Why wouldn't they after I left a kilo of gold? After getting some breakfast for Weiss, Yang, and Ruby. Blake had already gone to have breakfast with Sun a while ago. Trasmating back to the room, I saw that Yang and Ruby had barely started to wake up, while Weiss was already up.

"Good morning! I got you breakfast! Weiss, remember the meeting with your father. We will have lunch with him, though I am not sure where, I forgot to ask." I said. Weiss shivered slightly but composed herself. She had that look that says 'Come at me.'

I went next to her and caressed her cheek.

"Let's see if he acts reasonably. He won't be able to do anything to you. If he really tries something we can beat him up!"

She chuckled a bit there, probably imagining how he would react.

"Let's get this over with. Then we can laze around in the afternoon!" she said. 'I guess not having to worry about as much stuff as in canon made her more chill.'

Around 11, I received a message from Ozpin.

"Jacques Schnee wants us to reach him in Atlas. He probably thinks we wouldn't go there. Or maybe that we'd be late and berate us.

What do you think Weiss, should we surprise him a bit? We can get there in a few minutes by going slowly." I asked. The fucker is already getting on my nerves.

"That's so like him. Can you send word that we will be arriving? I want to see his face when he sees your ship!"

"I'll do that right now. I think I'll record our arrival. We can show it to him during lunch!"

I asked Ozpin to send the reply on my behalf. Then, me and Weiss said goodbye to the gang and trasmated to the ship.

"MoonRay, deactivate the cloaking. We are going to be as flashy as possible. We are heading to the Schnee Manor. If we get attacked don't retaliate, just go with evasive maneuvers and then make them bite the dust." I said, then sat with Weiss in the common area.

"Are you ready? You coming is a surprise for him, so if you want you can stay-"

��No. I'm coming. He has controlled my whole life. I want him to understand that everything changes from now on." She cut me off. I looked at her and she looked at me. She had a dangerous look in her eyes. I think Jacque will be in danger if he acts too much like an asshole. 'I totally need some popcorn.'

After about 4 minutes, we entered Atlas territory.

"Weiss, I think I'll give a demonstration of power, so to speak. I'll be in the cockpit."

I said, she smiled, but it wasn't a bright smile like when she is happy. It was dark. 'She's enjoying the situation. She is totally a sadist when it comes to others.'

With that thought, I went to the cockpit. I took my place in the pilot seat and waited for a bit. An unknown aircraft flying at high speeds is obviously seen as a threat from Atlas, so they sent their own aircrafts to intercept mine. I took the commands and started circling around those things. Compared to my spaceship, they are barely even moving, so I decided to slow down and have them chase me towards the Schnee manor. 'Oh, I should give them a demonstration of space flight.'

I started rising quickly. Their airships followed suit, but they stopped at what I guess is this planet's exosphere. I never really tested how high Dust can go. '

They stopped around 2000 Km in the air, huh. Either Remnant is smaller than Earth or they have certain safety protocols.

I decided that it was time to meet my father-in-law, so I stopped asserting superiority by flying in circles above their heads and took a nosedive. I headed straight towards the manor, stopping just about 10 meters in the air in front of the entrance, raising a ton of dust (not the explosive kind). 'Note to self, stopping abruptly is cool as fuck for a surprise entrance.'

Atlas' aircrafts didn't venture into the Schnee property, probably an order from above or Ironwood getting word about what I did.'

I went back to the common room, finding Weiss with a dark smile on her face.

"I wish I could see the pilots' faces. Let's go, I want to see my father's reaction! Maybe my sister will be here as well." she said.

We trasmated to the surface. I was wearing a suit, just for appearance's sake. Weiss was in the SnowPea outfit I gave her during initiation. It hasn't seen much action since we have uniforms at Beacon and I gave her the armor set. 'I should make a set to complement this outfit. It suits her more than the armor. At least that keeps her safe and it's still pretty cool.'

Jacques Schnee came outside with his bodyguards and when he saw Weiss next to me, holding hands obviously, the face he made was priceless. He totally didn't expect to meet a student and his daughter. 'Now that I think about it, what did Ozpin say to get me this meeting? This prick wouldn't meet a student if his life depended on it. Hm…' I looked at Weiss, who was currently gripping my hand. 'If I was human, my hand would no doubt be crushed.' I then looked at old man Jacques. 'Let's fuck with him a bit. It might help Weiss relax.'

"Hey old man, are you the butler here?" I asked, pointing at Jacques. 'Hah, his face! Priceless, a work of art!'

"You insolent little brat… Who are you? Why is Weiss with you?"

"'Insolent little brat' you say… Tell me 'butler', where is Jacques Schnee? I have decided to grace him with my presence. He should be grateful."

Weiss at that point couldn't keep it in anymore and started laughing, hard.

"P-please stop! I can't take it anymore! Pfft! T-that 'butler' would be my... father. Father, I present to you my boyfriend."

"Well, I knew it was him, but he's really underwhelming. I honestly expected… more. You sure he's a Schnee?"

"Well, he married into the family." At that point I nodded. 'It's so much fun.'

"Erm, Weiss? I think you broke him. He's been repeating 'boyfriend' continuously for a few seconds now."

"W-Weiss! What do you mean boyfriend! I will never allow you to frequent that brat!"

"Can I kill him? Can I?"

"No! He's still my father! Though he's very bad at acting like one. And you, father! You should be careful. He'll really kill you if you continue. Why don't we talk over some lunch?" Weiss said. 'That fucker is lucky. He will never allow it, huh?'

I really won't stay for this shit. I called my trusty Ghost out.

"MoonRay, hack into all scrolls, all computers, all cameras. I want proof of anything this guy has done since he's born."

"Roger!"

Weiss was smiling, while Jacques has probably never been more afraid.

"Jacques Schnee. We will talk, but know that you have no right to force Weiss to do anything. If you move a single muscle without my permission… Know that a single order is all I need to ruin you and just you, not the Schnee family. Did you understand?"

He stared at me in rage, he was trembling, probably resisting the urge to jump at me.

After a stare down, he turned around and went back into the mansion.

"I think we will be able to talk peacefully. I told you you would be free from now on, didn't I?" I said, smiling at Weiss.

"Yes… I think you said something about that." She kissed my cheek then continued. "Let's go, we still need to actually talk to him"

We were lead by the real butler into the dining room. It was quite luxurious. I wouldn't expect any less from the Schnee manor. On a side note, MoonRay reappeared when we entered the room. She informed me that all useful data had already been compiled and ready to be sent to all news agencies, the government, police.

"Very well. Now that you have seen that I was serious, let's talk." I said. "I am here for several reasons.

First, I wanted to inform you of my relationship with Weiss, so that you don't get any ideas about engagements and so on.

Second, you won't interfere with Weiss' life.

I don't have any interest in actually releasing all the juicy stuff MoonRay just collected.

Though the idea might surface in my mind if I hear anything from Weiss..

Third… I forgot the third." When I said that, she punched my arm. 'I seriously didn't think this through. I have dirt on him, Weiss is free to live her life as she wants, I have made my relationship with her known… What else is there to talk about?'

"Weiss, do you want to say something? He's your father, you must have some things to talk about."

She nodded. "Want me to leave you alone?" She nodded once more.

"Okay, I'll wait outside. Take your time."

I exited the room, then called MoonRay.

"I want to know everything that happens in that room. Right now."

'It might not be nice to just listen in when she wants to speak privately, but I think Jacques will try to pull something off. Eh, who am I kidding. Weiss must have already thought about me listening in on the conversation.'

She didn't even answer, but pulled up a video feed on my HUD. It was showing Weiss and her father sitting across each other.

"Weiss, what is going on?! You can't be serious! An unknown brat comes in and starts demanding things! And he even calls himself your boyfriend!"

"It's true you know, father? He IS my boyfriend. As for the demands, it's totally your doing. We wanted to come here just to talk about our relationship, but you just had to say I wasn't allowed to be with him. He puts my happiness on top of everything else, but you just have to control everything. You have no idea who he even is!" She said.

'Oh, this makes me happy. Don't know why.'

"No… No matter what I won't allow it. I'll have the guards throw him out. In the meantime, you will stay in your room."

"What?! You can't do this! I am tired of you controlling my life! You-"

"You little girl! Do as I say!" At that point, the bodyguards in a nearby room started moving toward Weiss, and I couldn't just watch this anymore.

I trasmated in front of Weiss and held her behind me.

"You know, Jacques… At the start of all this discussion I thought you were an intelligent man. 'I won't allow it', you say. Huh, that is interesting. MoonRay. Release everything you have. All of Remnant must have the information you collected within the hour." I then got my hand cannon out. "Now, you can choose. Live, have your life ruined, and watch your daughter be happy. Or be stubborn. I will ruin your life. That is definitive, but the rest depends on you. I will give you 30 seconds, after that, I will consider you to have chosen to be stubborn. Time starts now."

I looked back at Weiss, who was looking down.

"Now I remember my third reason for coming here it was telling you: 'If you hurt Weiss in any way, I will cripple you.'" I then shot both of his knees, the bullets bypassed his aura. "Sorry Weiss, he has gone too far."

After only a few seconds remained to my ultimatum, I talked again. "Time is running out Jacques. What will you choose?"

He was clenching his teeth, probably not to scream. "You monst-"

"Not an answer." I shot his left hand. "Let's try again. What. Will. You. Choose?"

"I want to live… I will leave Weiss alone, just let me live." I shot his other hand. Why? Because he was treating this like an exchange, a trade.

"Poor choice of words, wise choice. MoonRay."

"I'm here!"

"Did you send all of the information?"

"Nope, I knew you would do something like this so I kept the most important things for last."

"You heard that, Jacques? I will give you another chance: let Weiss live her life, you will stay alive, and your reputation will be tarnished but not completely ruined." When I finished saying that, I trasmated me and Weiss back to the ship, then I cloaked it.

I went up to Weiss and hugged her.

"Sorry. That wasn't what I had hoped for. I am sorry you had to see that." She started crying.

We stayed like that for a few minutes, then I brought her to my room. No, not to take advantage of her, but because she fell asleep.

I laid her down gently, before taking a seat near the bed. I stroked her hair and her expression relaxed a bit.

'What i did was definitely too much. But… I can't believe that fucker wanted to confine her with me here! Not because I'm all powerful of something, but wasn't he worried I'd go to the police or something? And did he think the part about hacking and evidence was a joke? I also shot her father in front of her… I fucked up big time. This might even become a trauma. Her father confining her and me, shooting him… Not the best combination. I hope she isn't affected too heavily by this.'

After a couple of hours, Weiss woke up, but she just stared at the ceiling.

"Did that just happen?"

"Yes."

"So he couldn't even stand me taking control of my love life? And… You shot him?"

"Yes. He wanted to confine you. I just couldn't stand it…"

She looked at me in the eyes and I saw a mix of emotions I couldn't even define.

She took my hand and dragged me into the bed, then she hugged me, putting her head against my chest. She didn't talk again and fell asleep again.

I didn't move. I really didn't know what to do.

'What is she thinking right now?' was all I could think about.

Weiss woke up again after a few hours. She didn't move. She just stayed close to me, so I stroked her hair again. I found that it calms her down.

It was only after another hour that she talked again.

"So… What now?"

"Whatever you want."

"What I want, huh? I am free?"

"Yes, you're free. You can do whatever you want. Just tell me, I'll help you accomplish anything."

"It just feels… Normal. Like nothing has changed."

"Then maybe… You were already free. Since we started attending Beacon, you seem pretty happy to me. At the beginning your smiles were forced, but now they feel natural. And they're beautiful, by the way."

She punched my gut.

"It's just that… Maybe it doesn't feel right because you gave me freedom. You saw it, didn't you? My father would have never let me be free. It's just because you were with me and forced him to accept…"

I couldn't really refute. I did shoot him to get to accept. I didn't know what to say, so I did the only thing I could do. I gently kissed her, then it hit me.

"If you think you didn't get this freedom by yourself… How about you demonstrate you can accomplish your own dreams? I will only support you. You will work for them yourself."

She looked at me and started tearing up yet again.

"B-but I don't even know what my dream is anymore!"

"Then find it. I will be with you the whole time. I love you and could literally do anything for you. You said it yourself, no? 'He puts my happiness on top of everything else', was it?" She got embarrassed and looked away. "It's totally correct. Making you happy is my dream you know? Actually my dream changed after meeting you. Now it's 'having a happy family and having fun going around the universes adventuring'. Well, the second part is subject to changes. The point is that without you, a happy you, my dream won't come true."

"Then that will be my dream as well. It sounds nice."

"Nope, that's my dream, you can't just copy it!" I said joking, though that made me extremely happy.

"Then… I want a normal life, one where I can decide to laze around one day and go around the next. A life with my friends. And you. For now this will be my dream, though I'll mark it as 'subject to changes'."

"I love your dream. Makes me jealous!"

She raised her head and kissed me. She even stuck her tongue out.

"Woah there! You aren't even 18 yet! And, technically I'm in a hundred years-old body." She pouted. Weiss pouted and my mind broke. I kissed her and this time I used some tongue as well.

We continued kissing for a while, then her stomach growled.

"Pfft! Let's go and eat something now. We can't accomplish our dreams on an empty stomach! Well, I can, but you can't, so let's go and eat!" When I said that, Weiss punched me again. I feel like today I've been punched the most ever since I arrived in this universe.