RWBY Through Worlds (End)

BC77: Red Herring (Heroes and Villains)--4

"Well--" Weiss tilted her head after a pause. "--I think the problem with you two is you envy each other. Mercury envies Royal's ability to be open to being with people and express himself and his willingness to take that kind of chance that many people wouldn't... And, Royal, you envy Mercury's having someone who cared about him like that already, and if you'd had that kind of love, you think you'd have never let it go."

Pause while both guys had to think...and slowly realize that Weiss was pretty on point.

"So you're both frustrated, and you're taking it out on the other for having the opportunities you think you don't have," Weiss summarized. "I know other people who've done the same... I think I have too, actually. But envying people doesn't help us. If you see something in them you like, try to imitate it, don't envy it. Envy is just an excuse not to grow yourself. You might be able to help each other if you'd just quit tearing each other down."

She pushed them closer together with glyphs and then came up to put a hand on their shoulders, like she was their parent.

"Mercury," she said seriously, "you may not until why Royal feels like he needs to take this kind of chance, if he had a sign that it would be reciprocated, but it's not your job to judge his path, and I think you really know that. Hasn't this gone on long enough? Tearing down others doesn't make you a better person by comparison--it brings everyone down to the same level of bad. Just...can we agree on that?"

"Do I have to?" Mercury grumbled.

"No," Weiss said. "That's why it would mean so much if you did."

She looked at Royal. "And Mr. Zapato--Royal, I should say (you're our brother now after all)--I'm sure you see that this is stupid, and that it's not as easy for him to do this as it would be for you, because that's his story. I don't think us dissing him over it is going to make it easier. Just the opposite. Can we let it go?"

"This just makes it more embarrassing, Miss Schnee," Royal said uncomfortably. "I get what you're saying, and you're right, but spelling it out makes me feel like a child."

Weiss hit him in the back of the head and Mercury also.

"Then stop acting like a child!" she said, sounding exactly like her sister. "Honestly!"

She turned away from them. "Why, you two--" but her voice was cut off by a loud growl.

Three huge Ursas came lumbering out of the trees where somehow they'd blended in with the shadows.

They had been drawn to the arguing itself. Though it was now past, they'd already locked on the three of them and were hungry for battle.

* * *

The Ursas were all sniffing the air hungrily.

"Oh no," Weiss groaned. "Why are they here?"

"So? We have 3 out of 5 right here, problem solved," Mercury said.

"They're here because we were fighting," Royal said. "This reflects poorly on us."

"Save it for your report, Zapato. Isn't there some saying about turning every weakness into a strength?"

"It should be easy to kill them," Weiss said. "But technically, we still have to find two more, and if the others found more already, we could still be behind, so we'd better hurry."

"Hang on, are we sure these aren't the special kind?" Royal put a hand on her shoulder. "Attacking them blindly could backfire if they are. Seems to me they always activate their mutation once your guard is down."

"We can't just stand here. I'll just vaporize them," Mercury said.

They ducked while he focused, and his eyes flashed.