Chapter 13

[Vale, Beacon Academy]

"Look, Yang! We are here!" Ruby says excitedly.

"Ruby! Slow down!" Yang says aloud.

Ruby ignored her and continued to marvel at the beauty of Beacon Academy's architecture. Yang slowly moves out of the bullhead with her and Ruby's luggage in tow. Sage walks beside her silently.

"Ruby aside, I still don't trust you!" Yang says to Sage.

"That is a reasonable reaction, Yang. Don't worry, I won't fault you for it." Sage agrees with Yang.

Yang stops in her tracks and looks at Sage with scrutiny. Sage's eyes show her innocence, and it causes Yang even more distrust in her. Despite her innocence, Yang can't help but feel like Sage is seeing right through her.

"But, I will also make it my life's mission to earn both your and Ruby's trust," Sage adds.

"And why would you do that?" Yang asks.

"Like I said, you girls are like my sisters. I just love you girls that much!" Sage says nonchalantly.

"Yeah, sure..." Yang says with suspicion.

"For now, we should ensure that Ruby doesn't get into trouble. She's fangirling way too much over those mecha shift weapons." Sage says as she points towards Ruby.

"What? Why didn't you stop her?" Yang says.

"She's cute when she fangirls over something!" Sage says happily.

"Ruby! Watch out!" Yang shouts.

Sage rushed towards Ruby while Yang lagged behind her with her friends. Sage can move much faster but slows down since an important event is about to happen. She can't afford to disturb the canon event.

'Buk!'

Ruby flops into a pile of baggage, making it fly into the air. Sage, who was just running quietly, can't help but feel giddy about this particular turn of events. Now, besides Ruby, stands one of the main characters of the story, Weiss Schnee.

Her face filled with anger, and Sage could already guess that Weiss was angry. Sage ignored the massacre that was about to happen and immediately searched for the black-haired maiden who stole Yang's heart.

'There she is…' Sage thought inwardly.

Blake is still reading her book, but she is intrigued by the commotion that Weiss is making. Yang was still lagging with the baggage. Based on Sage's calculations, both should converge at Weiss and Ruby's location.

"Sorry? Do you have any idea of the damage that you have caused?" says Weiss angrily.

"Uh…" Ruby stuttered.

"Miss Schnee!" Sage calls out to Weiss.

Weiss stops in her tracks and turns towards Sage. She sees a mysterious masked figure decked out in a surprisingly expensive dress. Not to mention, Sage's posture and the tone of her voice show that she trained in etiquette.

"Who are you?" Weiss asks.

"Who am I is not important, Miss Schnee. I implore you, please forgive my friend Ruby for her mistake." Sage says politely.

"Why should I? What was she doing anyway, bumping into my luggage?!" says Weiss angrily.

"Hey! I said I…" Ruby tries to retort.

Sage raises her hands and stops Ruby from speaking. Ruby was annoyed, but she silenced herself since Sage showed Ruby a confident smile. Sage seemed to have her plans, and Ruby disliked talking to Weiss while she was angry.

"My friend was so mesmerized by your beautiful looks that she forgot to mind her steps. You can't fault her for that, right?" Sage says slowly.

"What?" says Weiss.

"Huh?" says Ruby.

"Indeed! She says that you are the personification of the Goddess of Snow. She says your blue eyes sparkle more beautifully than sapphires or dust crystals." Sage starts talking.

"Your snow-white skin and your luscious red lips. Your heavenly-shaped figure sends shivers to Ruby's body. You are…" Sage continues.

"Stop!" both Ruby and Weiss shout at the same time.

Both Ruby and Weiss blushed after hearing Sage's words. They turned to look at each other and noticed they were staring at each other. They quickly averted their eyes away from each other, and Sage couldn't help but notice their reaction.

"Hmph! I'm flattered that your friend finds me attractive, but that still doesn't excuse her rude behavior!" says Weiss.

"I don't…" Ruby again tries to speak up.

"She can make it up to you, Miss Schnee. How about an apology date at a club? We can set up a table for you, and I can ensure the club will be empty." Sage cuts Ruby off.

"Sage…" Ruby, once again, tries to speak up.

"She will pick you up. How about this weekend? 8 o'clock?" Sage asks.

"..." Weiss was shocked into silence.

"Are you being serious?" Weiss asks.

"Of course, Miss Schnee," Sage says modestly.

Weiss stops to think about Sage's suggestion, while Ruby just decides to stop talking. Sage never let her talk, so Ruby kept her mouth shut. After a while, Weiss turns toward Ruby and slowly walks to her.

'No way, right?' Ruby thought inwardly.

She slowly scrutinizes Ruby from top to bottom, and she nods slowly. Ruby can't help but blush and fidget nervously. Weiss then turns toward Sage, and she starts checking out Sage instead but with less desire in her eyes.

"She doesn't seem to like me that much?" Weiss asks slowly.

"I…" Ruby, again, tries to speak.

"Of course, she likes you. She's just shy, Miss Schnee." Sage again answers for Ruby.

"Hmm…" Weiss turns and looks at Ruby skeptically.

"..." Ruby blushed while she stayed silent.

Weiss smiled a little, watching Ruby fidget shyly in her spot. It appears that Ruby's naturally shy-against-strangers attitude manages to trick Weiss's naive mind into thinking that Ruby has a crush on her.

"You can dress her, right?" Weiss asks Sage after staring at Ruby for a while.

"Of course! I'll prepare her perfectly." Sage says humbly.

"Hmph! Make sure you are not late!" Weiss says with a smug tone.

"Of course, Miss Schnee. We will be punctual." Sage says modestly again.

She gave Ruby one last look before moving away from the area with her entourage. Her face is full of cheerful smiles, and Ruby can't help but blush at the idea that Weiss is excited about their date. Ruby was also slightly confused.

"What just happened?" Ruby shyly asks Sage.

"Yeah! That's what I was planning to ask…" a voice suddenly says.

Sage and Ruby turned around and saw Yang watching them with her mouth open. Beside her is Blake, who has been watching the entire show and is quite intrigued by Sage's masterful plan to get Ruby a date.

"Hey, Yang. Hello Blake Belladona." Sage greets the newcomers.

"What just happened? Did you just matchmake my sister?" Yang asks.

"Do we know each other?" Blake asks with suspicion.

Both Yang and Blake talk at the same time, which causes the two of them to look at each other weirdly. Blake didn't react much to seeing Yang's face, but Yang had a much more 'pronounced' reaction.

'Yang? No way! Did I speed up their progress just by mentioning Yang's future?' Sage asks herself.

"Uh, hey?" Yang asks Blake.

"..." Blake stays silent.

"So you know Sage, huh?" Yang asks Blake again.

"..." Blake continues to stay silent.

"Okay…" Yang says slowly.

"You know her, Sage?" Yang asks Sage instead.

"I know her family," Sage says.

"Her family? Are they famous?" Yang asks.

Blake's eyes widen for a split second, but she manages to hide her shocked expression. She glares at Sage as if to imply something to her. Sage, of course, catches on to her clue and decides to comply with her demands, for now.

"Famous enough! Now, Yang, I need your help dressing Ruby up for her date." Sage diverts Yang's attention away from the issue.

"And Blake can be our support, judging by her impeccable taste in clothing." Sage points out to Blake.

"Sorry?" Blake asks.

"Yeah! I was wondering what's that about?! You broke my sister!" Yang says while pointing towards Ruby.

Ruby is currently watching the sky with an empty look on her face. True to Yang's words, Ruby seems to have short-circuited. Sage can't help but chuckle while she moves towards her and slowly shakes Ruby out of confusion.

"Hey, Ruby? I know you're excited about the date, but you must return to the real world." Sage said softly.

"Huh?" Ruby says.

Ruby seems to have snapped out of her reverie and immediately locks onto Sage. Her face turns red, and Sage can see her anger. Fearing that it would cause a rift in their relationship, Sage sought to mend their relationship.

"Alright, Ruby. I'm sorry for getting you into this trouble, but you got a date with a beautiful heiress! Great, right?" Sage says nervously.

"Great?! She's a bossy girl!" Ruby angrily says.

"She is bossy, but nothing that a date can't fix! Trust me!" Sage says nervously.

"And why should she trust you? Why does my sister have to date some prissy chick?" Yang says suddenly.

"It is strange how you manage to rope the Schnee Dust Company heiress into a date with the girl. Did you know she would do that?" Blake asks instead.

All eyes turn to Sage, scrutinizing her every move. Sage suddenly feels vulnerable and can't help but feel like her plans might have been a bit hasty. It didn't help that she knew how to rile up Weiss's desires for meaningful relationships.

"Yang, Ruby does need some help with socializing, right? Weiss is her chance to make some friends." Sage says calmly.

"And Ruby, it's just a date. I'm not telling you to be her girlfriend or something. You can just hang out, right?" Sage says again.

"Blake. Being friends with the heiress of the SDC might be beneficial for you, right?" Sage asks Blake.

Sage's words seem to have caused everybody to be stunned into silence. Her words prove some points, and they can't deny the truth of her words. Ruby and Yang seemed to calm down considerably while Blake eyed Sage suspiciously.

"I guess she's right? I mean, it is just a date…" Yang says quizzically.

"But I didn't say any of those things! And it is not just a date!" Ruby says exasperatedly.

"I just need to stop Weiss from getting angry, Ruby. She is bossy, so she likes praise. Of course, none of those sentiments reflects on you…" Sage says slowly.

"You seem to be good at manipulation," Blake says suddenly.

  "Huh?" Sage says as she turns towards Blake.

"I know someone like you. Using your words to control people…" Blake says while looking at Sage.

Blake's eyes filled with judgment and prejudice. Her spirit burns from the inside, but sadly, Sage can also see reluctance in her eyes. She wants to tell Sage off, but she can't since Blake also lives a life of lies.

"And I know people like you. Living in the lies you tell yourself." Sage quips back.

That triggered Blake for good as her eyes widened with shock. She was speechless for a second, but she regained her composure. Blake, having enough, immediately leaves the three of them alone.

"Okay. I might have been too harsh with that! Yang! Follow her!" Sage says.

"What? Why do I have to clean up your mess?!" Yang asks angrily.

"Oh, trust me! She's your problem!" Sage says.

"What do you mean by that?!" Yang asks.

"Just go with her! I will tell you about your mother when all of this settles!" Sage says.

"..." Yang was silenced.

Yang looks into Sage's eyes, her heart filled with doubt and anger. Sage has been dropping hints about her mother, and Yang doubts that Sage even knows something about her mother. But Yang had no choice.

"I will make sure you keep that promise!" Yang says vengefully.

"As you will…" Sage says humbly.

"Ruby! Keep yourself safe! Okay?" Yang asks.

"Ah! Okay…" Ruby says hesitantly.

'Yang's desperate, huh?' Sage thought inwardly.

Yang runs to catch up to Blake, and Sage is left alone with Ruby. Sage then picked up Ruby's and Yang's luggage before moving next to her. Slinging her arm around Ruby's shoulder, she pushes Ruby towards the academy.

"Come on, Ruby! While Yang is trying to coax Blake, we got to hang out together!" Sage says happily.

"I don't think I want to hang out with you…" Ruby says hesitantly.

"Ruby! That is cold even for you!" Sage says astonishedly.

"Well, you forced me into a date!" Ruby says begrudgingly.

"I just wanted you to make some friends, Ruby! I care about you, believe it or not…" Sage says slowly.

"I have Yang as a friend!" Ruby retorts.

"She's your sister. You can't call her a friend!" Sage says with a chuckle.

"Well… I have you, right? You said you are my friend!" Ruby says slowly under her breath.

"..." Sage was stopped in her tracks.

"Pfft!" Sage then starts laughing profusely.

"What?! Am I wrong?! You said we are friends!" says Ruby angrily when she sees Sage laughing her stomach off.

"Of course not, Ruby! I'm just happy that you think of me as a friend!" Sage says with tears still in her eyes.

"Well, you don't give me a choice!" Ruby says begrudgingly.

"Indeed! I didn't give you a choice! But I'm still grateful that you accept me as your friend!" Sage says happily.

"So, can I not go to the date?" Ruby asks shyly.

"That I cannot permit, Ruby! You know I can read your fortunes, right? Weiss is a part of your fate. Goof or bad? I don't know…" Sage says nonchalantly.

"You believe in that stuff, huh?" Ruby says slowly.

"I believe in the Goddess, Ruby. They always have a plan…" Sage says ominously.

"Goddess?" Ruby asks.

"Don't mind it! What's important is your date! What dress are you going to wear?" Sage asks.

"Can't I just wear this dress? It's my best dress and easy to move in!" Ruby says.

"No way! A combat dress is not a date dress!" Sage says.

"Ugh! You sound like Dad and Yang!" Ruby says dejectedly.

"If you don't like my opinion, we might as well get a third-party opinion," Sage says as she turns towards a direction.

Behind them, Jaune is currently hiding behind the fountain. When Sage looks at him, he panics and falls onto his back. The Jaune of the past doesn't resemble his rugged and worn-out self in the future. 

'I need to get him in shape. Enough for Pyrrha and my plans.' Sage thought inwardly as she slowly walked to Jaune.

"Hello, Vomit Boy…" Sage says ominously.