15
"So, did you arrive at your answer?" She still couldn't believe it!
General himself! General Ironwood! The General Ironwood of Atlas!
Was teaching her!
HER!
Yes, it took her a while to get over the fact that he practically arrested her father, but somehow, which was almost scary to her, when she realized it...
Weiss wasn't truly that much bothered?
Like really? How sad or bad was that, and what that it says about her as a person?
No! Wake up, Weiss! General Ironwood asked you something!
Do not embarrass yourself before him!
"Because they weren't prepared, Mountain Glenn lacked the natural defenses that Vale has, and nobody spotted the Grimm horde before it was too late to do anything about it." Weiss wanted to cock her head to the side as she watched a flash of an...
The dark look flashed on General's Ironwood face, and as soon as it came, it disappeared.
Weiss wondered why that was. Did General take the loss of Glenn so highly?
Well, of course, he did!
He was a General of Atlas! The greatest Kingdom on Remnant, he undoubtedly felt responsible that Atlas couldn't save Glenn before it was too late!
"Mn, yes. A failed system of surveillance, maybe they just let their guard down, as they still were set in the mindset of Vale that is protected from any large Grimm horde by their natural land protections, or."
There, General Ironwood stopped as he looked at her, and Weiss could feel her cheeks become hotter the way he looked at her.
"Or? W-was there anything more, General Ironwood?" Weiss asked and cursed herself for misspelling. Why, just why did she have to bite her tongue just now?!
At least Whitley wasn't there to laugh at her, with him spending time with mother.
That said, Weiss quite liked it this way. She liked the way General gave his attention just to her!
...
...
Why does that sound so wrong in her head?
"Or, maybe there was something more. Tell me, Weiss, why would even such a colossal Grimm horde so quickly and rashly gather when there were rarely even mentions of such Grimm activity in these lands? After all, Glenn was chosen on the peak of mountains, so it could observe the lands before it, precisely for the same reason, to never be blind from such occurrence that claimed its life."
Weiss's cheeks burned as she almost forgot what General Ironwood said when his big hand rested on her head.
It felt.
Warm...
"And I already told you, didn't I? I was defacto raised by your grandfather, and he viewed me as his surrogate son, so calling me uncle James or just James shouldn't be a problem when we are in private." Weiss didn't look at General's face!
She already knew what face he had!
She didn't want to once again become like an idiot before General!
Still, uncle?!
WHYYYYYY!!!!!
"That said, knowing your wish to become huntress, I have a question for you, Weiss." Weiss looked at General, glad she didn't need to speak or call...
Call.
Call him an uncle!
So, she just looked at General and looked impassively and gracefully as she should have.
Nobody ever told her how to behave in such situations! Where was Winter?
"I heard there are two times undefeated champions in Mistral, with the next tournament happening in a month. Do you wish to visit and look or even participate yourself?" General smilingly asked, and Weiss wished for nothing more than to be able to look on a such smile as long as she could have...
"Weiss? Weiss!"
"A-Y-YES?! I MEAN, YES! YES, I WOULD LIKE TO!" Weiss jumped from her seat, just too late to realize how she had acted.
As her entire body burned, and when she looked at the amusedly looking General.
Weiss had a sole battle happening in her mind...
Fight/Flight.
Fight or Flee.
But the decision was made for her by her own traitorous body before the mind could choose.
And it was a FLEE.
----------------------------------------------------
...
"Well..." That was an interesting experience, looking at the fleeting form of younger Weiss Schnee, the one who was still not so much damaged by Jacques's emotional abuse...
She was, damaged in some way, but not so much that she was in the show, that I could see...
"...Should I take this as yes?" I wondered, shaking my head.
This day was one of these. I took a little rest from my work and semblance and visited the Schnee family who resided in my home.
They had lived there already a month, and it seemed they got accustomed to my home quite nicely, and with my visits, I tried to repeat at least every third or six-day, my relationship with them deepened.
I didn't lie to Weiss in saying I wished for her to call me an uncle. Whitley had already done so. The little guy was so adorable when he tried to look serious, just with his red cheeks on his pale skin betraying his shyness...
"Well, I should visit Willow too." Shaking my head, I stood up, knowing Weiss wouldn't return, the way her body trembled...
It was, maybe, too funny and too cruel for me to enjoy her embarrassment, but then...
Weiss looked so much like her mother did, but where Willow was more aloof in her youth ness, Weiss thirsted for affection, something I had no problem in giving to her, just like I gave to Whitley, or Winter when we didn't work.
"Hmmm... Ahh..." I sighed.
Once again, we didn't move from the topic. Why I couldn't just be stuck to seriously teaching her...
Still...
"Mount Glenn..."
I looked at the information and frowned. Just another proof that Salem could end this shadow war charade any moment she wished. Why she hadn't was beyond me.
But I had suspicions that she just enjoyed in slowly torturing Ozpin.
Was Glenn the significant threat to Salem, or was it just another message from her to Ozpin that she could do it to Kingdoms too?
Or was it because of Merlot's actions?