Ep. 13 - Kitty Cat Discovered, A Piece of Metal?, Hunt to the End of the World

I enjoyed my time with friends, in particular Weiss. We weren't a thing, for now, but we did enjoy each other's company, so we tended to stick together. Preparations for the Vytal Festival had begun, which means that soon we will encounter Sun Wukong and the whole 'Blake is a Faunus' thing will happen. It should be a good time for me to tell them I am an Exo. Well, I'll withhold some details so I don't freak them out. It is not the right time for that. 'I need to prepare a believable story. Shouldn't be too hard.'

The day has come! Salvation is near! Wait, wrong script! Today is the Friday during which team RWBY and I visited the city to, as Weiss said, welcome the visitors from abroad to this beautiful place (paraphrased) or, as Blake said, study the enemy (also paraphrased). We were leaving the docks when Ruby stopped to look at a Dust shop which had been vandalized and robbed.

'I'm not sure about the vandalized part. It looks to me like the crooks smashed the windows to escape. They were most likely carrying several cases of Dust, so the door was not an option. Why can't people draw a logical conclusion? I mean, I can see it and I've been here for less than a minute!'

As in canon, Weiss immediately put the blame on the White Fang.

"Weiss, to be honest the White Fang isn't the only group of criminals. Me and Ruby have seen Torchwick do the same thing with our own eyes after all. Also, it seems to me like the White Fang started out as a peaceful protest group, at least it wasn't as violent as it is now. Maybe they had a change in leadership? It is true that, at the moment, the White Fang IS basically a criminal/terrorist group, but that does not mean all Faunus as criminals. Is Velvet a criminal?" I said, while having a thoughtful look at the end, yet knowing perfectly what was going on. Well, what I said did have an effect on Weiss as she nodded and didn't continue insulting all of the Faunus of Remnant. Blake looked happy when I defended the White Fang, then her look turned sad when I mentioned the change in leadership and actions. 'It's true. Sorry kitty.' I thought. I found that when I want to mess with Blake I call her 'kitty' or something similar.

Just when Weiss had decided to not brand an entire race as criminals, a certain stowaway monkey Faunus came running towards us. 'Should I punch him? His face kinda makes me want to punch him… Punching it is.'

Before Sun could get away, I punched him in the gut. Gently though, in the end he is a decent guy. A night or two in custody won't hurt him… too badly at least. I hope. Well, he was knocked out, so the cops came and took him in custody.

"Good job!" said Weiss while clapping. 'This makes me way more happy than it should.' I thought while smiling at her.

"I want to make it clear that he does not represent all of the Faunus." said Blake.

After this fun event, we moved towards the academy. It was late in the afternoon on a Friday, so there weren't many people in the streets. Probably working or something.

While taking a turn, Weiss bumped into someone.

'This is definitely plot.' I thought as I looked at the rather peculiar girl. She was currently laying stiff on the ground. She wasn't knocked out or hurt, just very mechanical. It was obviously (me, DIO!) Penny the robot girl.

As Weiss moved to help her get up, Penny said her usual "Sa-lu-ta-tions!".

"Salutations to you. Are you alright?" I said. Weiss was kind of stunned by the girl's sudden greeting so I helped her up.

"I'm wonderful, thank you for asking!" she said, same as in canon. 'Are those answers programmed into her or is she just THAT stiff? Come on Mr. Poledina, at least teach how to act like a normal human. Banshee back in the Tower went through 44 bodies and acts more natural than her!'

She proceeded to introduce herself: "I'm Penny. Nice meeting you!".

'That was different. Is she simply stiff or awkward around people?'

"Hi there, I'm Ruby"

"I'm Weiss."

"Blake."

"I'm Yang."

"And I am Tula, nice to meet you, Penny." we introduced ourselves in turn.

"Well, it's getting a little late, we should go back to Beacon. See you around, Penny." I said.

"Sorry for running into you. Goodbye." Weiss said.

'I want to see if the plot actually exists. Uh, maybe I shouldn't use Penny as a benchmark. Ruby loves making friends after all.'

As if responding to my thoughts, Ruby said: "Take care friend!". 'She said it!'

We left a stunned Penny behind, while continuing on our way.

I noticed in a reflection that Penny jumped on a nearby building's roof. 'So that is how she appeared out of nowhere in canon. That makes more sense.'

Lo and behold, we soon found ourselves in front of a very serious Penny.

Weiss' confused face was adorable, so I saved it in my mental 'Weiss' folder. I started saving all of her different expressions just because she is adorable, or cute, or stunning. Depends really, but they are all fantastic.

Anyway, apart from my rant about Weiss' greatness, Penny asked menacingly: "What did you call me?" spooling the girls, before she added, looking at Ruby: "You called me friend! Am I really your friend?"

The girls were trying to signal 'No.' I just did a thumbs-up. She had the situation under control.

"Uhm, yeah! Sure! We're friends!" Ruby said. 'Good job.'

Penny looked like she had won a competition or something, then she said "Sen-sational!" and all that stuff about stereotypical female friends.

Yang then asked what she was doing in Vale, to which Penny responded that she was here for the tournament and was "combat ready".

"Excuse me, but you hardly look the part." Weiss said. 'Oh, I was waiting for this part!'

"You are literally wearing a dress, Weiss." said Blake, pointing out her not exactly fit for combat attire.

"It's! A combat skirt… Plus, we have Tula's under-armor. That's plenty of protection!" She said. 'Oh, I think I got diabetes. Can I even get it? Also, how can she be so sweet and not do it on purpose. Nah, maybe it's me.'

"Ah, if you're here for the tournament, does that mean you know that monkey Faunus criminal?" she asked. 'So she still asked that, huh? Well, it's not a problem.'

This started the whole argument with Blake, though I stepped in and said: "Hey, I'm not saying that you two shouldn't have a nice, long discussion on the topic, but we're in the middle of a street. How about we continue back at the academy?"

They looked at me then glared at each other. 'Saved!'

Ultimately, they agreed when they saw an old woman staring at them from a balcony. 'This isn't a reality show, old hag! Well, I can't really blame her… Weiss and Blake were LOUD.'

We bid farewell (*sips tea*) to Penny for real this time and went back to Beacon.

Once we reached our room, Weiss and Blake sat across each other on their beds, then continued their discussion about degrading Faunus, marking them as evil. To be honest, I don't know how the discussion moved from Sun to the White Fang. I was standing at the door, with my arms crossed (very chad-like). When the climax arrived and Blake gave herself out unconsciously, I perked my ears up.

"I… Uh…" she said, then tried running out of the room, but I stopped her.

"You can talk to us, you know? We are your teammates and friends." I whispered in her ear.

She looked at me, then took her ribbon off.

She started explaining how she was once a member of the White Fang, the change in leadership, the shift in m.o, how she left the organization to become a hunter, everything. At a certain point, she started crying. Weiss looked at me with a look that said "Do something."

'Guess she liked my actions back at the start of the semester.'

I did the same thing as back then: I went up to Blake, who was back on the bed, hugged her and started stroking her hair. While Weiss' has silky hair, Blake was more fluffy, soft. It felt nice to the touch and I guess she felt better… because she started purring. That was embarrassing for everyone in the room.

To get rid of the heavy mood I asked, "Calmed down?", to which she nodded.

"Ok. Thank you for telling us. I guess Weiss touched a nerve with her talk about Faunus criminals and the White Fang. Don't worry. It's pretty obvious you are nothing like a criminal or a terrorist. Plus, it was pretty clear that something happened with the leadership. I'm surprised no one asked themselves what caused the change in m.o." I said. Weiss' face twitched a little, though she knew I was right. Talking about such a sensitive topic without regard is a big no-no and she knew it.

After a few seconds, Weiss came and hugged Blake. The kitty was surprised, but she didn't refuse the hug. When they finished their reconciliation, which was faster than I expected, it was time for my part.

"Well, Blake, if it makes you feel better you are not the only one who is not human." I said.

'Hell, I think I can hear the crickets back on Earth right now.' I thought to myself.

"W-what do you mean 'not the only one'? You're a Faunus as well?" Weiss asked, probably about to overload her brain. Too much news for a single day.

"No, Weiss, I am not a Faunus. By the way, there is almost no difference in the DNA between humans and Faunus, they are basically the same except for some extra fluffy parts." I said, then I sighed. "Promise not to freak out?" I asked, looking at the four girls. 'This is probably going to be too much in a single day.'

Getting nods as an answer, I deactivated my skin layer.

Their eyes were about to pop out of their sockets, I swear. I saw them shaking a bit, which made me feel sad. 'I hope I didn't scare them too much. Now that I think about it, a human consciousness implanted in a robotic body is a sci-fi concept even here. Penny should be the first attempt at actual artificial intelligence, I think.'

"W-what exactly a-are you?" asked Weiss. Her voice was trembling. I didn't like it.

"I am an Exo. I was a human who transferred his consciousness into a robotic body. That is the short version. Sorry, for hiding this." I said while looking at her. She was facing the floor. 'Maybe I should leave, she's obviously scared. I would be too if the person you lived with for the last few months suddenly said he is not human. Faunus are normal and not as shocking. A robot? That would be hard to take in.'

"I will leave, if you want me to. Just know that, I'm me, your teammate, your friend. Exactly what I said to Blake a few minutes ago. That won't change."

I saw Weiss coming towards me. She weakly raised her hand for a slap. Before she could hit me, I gently caught her hand.

"I am literally a piece of metal. You'll hurt yourself if you slap me, and I don't want you to get hurt because of me." I said. 'It's true. I can stand it if she gets hurt due to a Grimm or in a spar, though that won't happen with my armor. That changes if she gets hurt because of me.'

I caressed her hand gently. All of a sudden, she hugged me and my mind went blank.

"If you dare leave, I'll hunt you down to the end of the world! So don't leave! Please." she said, her voice gradually losing strength as tears filled her eyes. I hugged her tight but not enough to hurt her. I used my thumb to wipe the tears from her face. Seeing her so sad, I felt the urge to keep her safe… and to kiss her. And so I did.

I raised her chin, reactivated my skin layer, and kissed her. It wasn't anything erotic, but I liked it. After a few seconds I stopped kissing her. She hid her head in my chest, her ears red. She stayed silent for a bit, then asked "So, you're not leaving?".

"You would hunt me down, so I'll make it easy for you and stay right next to you. What do you think?" I joked a little, partly to ease up the atmosphere.

"Hmph, you better!" she said. 'Yup, even if the other three want me to leave, I'll just stay on the ship. No way am I leaving her now.'

We were interrupted by a knock on the door. It opened to reveal team JNPR.

"Uhm, congratulations, you two… You know that we could hear you from the corridor?" Jaune said and only one thing came out of my mouth: "Fuck."