Today, something happened that no resident of this miserable planet could have ever imagined! Magenta got serious—and without falling into a deep depression first. She decided to get her act together and drag her entire team along for the ride. To be more specific, the official leader of Majesty was currently standing with a ruler in hand, making sure her subordinates were doing their history homework.
Even in her wildest dreams, Goodwitch couldn't have hoped for her work to be this effective. Magenta hadn't just remembered her confession; she took it seriously and was now fanatically following it.
The pack wasn't ready for this. They were all used to slacking off, completely ignoring homework, and maintaining a high degree of chill when there was no need to rush. After all, none of them needed a diploma with honors.
And now, out of the blue, Magenta wakes the whole pack at half past six and forces them to hit the books.
Egrer could have just ordered everyone to ignore her; Yort and Illmond would have gladly followed that order from their unofficial leader. But he didn't do it. He had no strength or desire to fight back, so he obediently did what he was told.
Ever since he woke up, Egrer hadn't been feeling well. Not physically, but mentally. He'd had some nightmares he couldn't even remember now, and he'd spent the whole morning feeling both irritated and exhausted. He simultaneously wanted to hide under the blanket from all his problems and yell at Magenta for being so bossy.
He noticed the changes. The way she looked at them, the way she walked, the way she talked. Small details, but they were there and would stay with her forever.
Now Magenta was tougher than before. She had become a bit firmer, a little more confident, and just a tiny bit more responsible. Goodwitch had done what Egrer himself couldn't do since their very first meeting—change her. Make her more normal, more reliable.
Whatever fracture the Iron Lady had inflicted on their carefree butterfly, she had healed and become better than her former self. Truly, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger.
Egrer had already lost his nerve to "finish off" Magenta twice, and now staging a coup would be even harder than before. If it was even possible at all.
He thought about this all day, completely immersed in his thoughts, running them in circles over and over again. When they were doing homework, he didn't even grumble; when they went to classes, he just stared out the window; and during lunch, he barely managed to force down a single pathetic bowl of soup.
Egrer only paid attention to the outside world when Weiss approached him in the hallway and asked how things were going with the union's anthem.
"Great," he replied without much joy. "I finished writing it and even rehearsed it with my guys."
The General Secretary gave a majestic nod and reminded him that there would be a meeting tonight, where they could hold an audition at the same time.
To be honest, Egrer already had a headache from all these meetings and devious plans. He might have even refused to show up today, citing health reasons, if not for the anthem. Playing the guitar always calmed him down, and playing for an audience was what he'd been waiting for all these long weeks. Soon his insatiable need to be heard would be slightly satisfied, and that alone kept Egrer from completely falling into despair.
Plus, he had a nice surprise for them.
After classes, Team Majesty always messed around. They stole from the cafeteria so they'd have something to eat in the evening (half of Beacon was guilty of this), played board games in the library or more active games outside, or just wandered around Beacon looking for the interesting spots this place was full of.
In their free time, which other students spent on self-improvement and exhausting training, they just had fun. And even with the "new" Magenta, this tradition hadn't gone anywhere, because almost always it was she who came up with things for them to do.
But today Egrer had absolutely no desire to do anything. He wanted to think. And preferably in complete solitude.
"You know what, count me out today. I'm kinda beat."
"We didn't even do shit today," Yort noted. "No PE, no combat prep."
"My head is tired," Egrer clarified, slightly annoyed. "It can get strained too, in case you didn't know."
Yort's eyebrows crept up in surprise. He didn't know how to react, but his reflexes judged the phrase as a direct attack. And he had only one ready answer for things like that.
"Alright," Magenta said, stepping between them and preventing a brewing fight she hadn't even noticed. "Too bad, really... I came up with a new game, and now we won't be able to split into even teams."
"Maybe I should go too then?" Illmond asked ingratiatingly. "I'm soo tired too..."
"Well... if you're tired..." Barely had she said this when Illmond tried to go be a shut-in, but an angry Egrer caught him by the elbow.
"Aren't you ashamed of lying to her?" he whispered.
"We've always done this, why did your conscience suddenly wake up?"
He's right... what's gotten into me? Only now did Egrer somehow feel ashamed of it. For all those times he'd said "let's do it later," knowing full well she'd forget everything and he could just skip keeping his promise.
Yort also bailed, sensing the leader's weakness. He just said he remembered some business in his club.
In the end, Magenta was left alone. Only Egrer stood next to her, the very person who had started this mass exodus. Even though he wanted to be the first to haul ass, right now his legs somehow refused to listen to him.
"Eg, do you think I need to get even tougher? Sometimes I feel like our team is about to fall apart... Everyone has their own agenda, and I have to force you guys to do things together. How did you manage it?"
Helping Magenta now means complicating my life even more in the future.
"You're just imagining things." Egrer surprised himself when he started comforting her. "Majesty definitely won't fall apart; there are teams in Beacon with even bigger problems, and they're still holding together."
"Ruby, for example?" He nodded. "Poor Ruby, why is Weiss like that with her..."
"Well, Weiss really is a better fit for that role..." Egrer said without much confidence. "Actually, never mind. I spoke without thinking."
"You seem kind of broken today," Magenta noted.
"I'm fine. Just lost in thought."
"About what?"
"How to overthrow you and take your place," Egrer blurted out in annoyance.
"Wow, what a nightmare!" Magenta decided to play along, assuming it was just a joke. Why would he actually wish ill on his friend? It was so out of character for him that it couldn't be anything but a silly joke. "What should I do to make you stop thinking about that? I'm trying my hardest to be a worthy leader."
She thought they were just playing around or something like that. Egrer was the only one being serious here. He was swaying from side to side; one moment he wanted to slap her, and the next, he just wanted to bolt.
Magenta's words flashed through his mind: There is no one in the world more honest than Eg! He always speaks his mind and never hides anything. She really thought so. From the bottom of her heart.
Egrer was afraid that if this whole epic with the Order continued, it might ruin their friendship. He didn't know what to do, how to resolve this paradox. But he knew for sure that if he thought about it for even another minute, he'd do something very stupid.
"Just trying hard isn't enough," Egrer finally said, trying to end this conversation as quickly as possible.
"What else is needed?" Magenta started twirling her rainbow hair around her finger in feigned thoughtfulness. "Doesn't patience and hard work conquer all?"
"You don't just become a leader, you... you have to be born one, yeah. It's an innate quality."
She definitely won't be able to argue with that phrasing.
"But how do you know if you're a born leader or not? Are you a born leader?" she asked with a malice-free smile, making Egrer grit his teeth.
He almost swung his hand but stopped himself in time, pretending he merely wanted to thoughtfully scratch the back of his head.
What the hell is wrong with me today?!
And Magenta didn't even realize what he was actually going to do. She trusted him unconditionally and didn't believe Egrer could harm her in any way.
And that was true. In theory... He didn't even know himself anymore.
But what he knew for sure was that if he kept thinking about it, he would definitely do something very, very stupid. So he needed to run from here as fast as possible.
"Oh, look, there are butterflies flying outside!" naive Magenta immediately looked out the window.
There were no butterflies, of course, and Egrer used that moment to simply bail. She didn't have a chance to catch him, but she didn't try to. Magenta looked lost at the spot where he had stood just a couple of seconds ago, before trudging off to wander around Beacon all by herself.
***
"Today is a holiday, ladies and gentlemen!.." Egrer exclaimed with feigned cheerfulness as he burst into the union meeting. "...Or rather, just ladies."
He had deliberately delayed slightly so his entrance would have a bigger impact. Weiss and Nora were probably thinking, Where is Eg? Him being late? Impossible! What nonsense! and now he was throwing the door open so dramatically.
Taking a couple of steps into the classroom, Egrer gestured broadly with both hands toward the doorway.
"Someone has decided to join our brave cause. Ta-da-a-a!!!"
Ren followed him in, looking bewildered by such a flamboyant introduction. He was slightly surprised to see the table covered in sweets, but Nora and Weiss were much, much more surprised by his arrival.
The private recovered fairly quickly and sprang over to her childhood friend, hugging him tightly. Bones crunched, but Ren didn't even try to resist—he knew it was a futile effort. And the General Secretary still couldn't pick her jaw up off the floor. The realization that someone could actually join the union refused to settle in her head. She had already come to terms with the fact that her pet organization was just the Order of the Backstabbers, but with her in charge. And now everything was going to change forever.
After a short pause, Weiss stood up sharply, straightened her school uniform, and extended her hand.
"Pleasure to meet you, my name is Weiss Schnee," she said officially. "Satisfy my curiosity, why did you decide to join us?"
"Eg asked me," Ren admitted, and the Secretary to the General Secretary lifted his head proudly.
Not that it was very difficult; he only had to explain their pathetic situation, and Ren immediately agreed to help. Such an understanding guy!
And then Egrer's eyes landed on the chalkboard. He let out a muffled gasp and, before Ren could notice it too, rushed to erase the caricatures of Ruby and Magenta left over from the recent Order of the Backstabbers meeting. Along with the devious plans for their discrimination.
He had somehow forgotten to consider that they never had a reason to hide things during union meetings before...
"Have a seat," Weiss nodded toward the table. If she had any complaints about Egrer being late and his reckless surprise (and she definitely had them), she forgave it all.
Ren was given a quick briefing and brought up to speed. Of course, they didn't tell him that the union was a puppet of the secret Order of the Backstabbers, and that their main goal was to overthrow the leaders in their teams. Though Nora was clearly itching to break secrecy and delight her friend with the wonderful news that they were going to make him the leader of Juniper. However, Weiss's stern glare stopped her.
The newbie felt a little out of place; he had never experienced such active attention directed at him. The General Secretary acted as if she was afraid Ren might run away at any second, so she pampered him in every way possible: she personally poured him tea and gave him the tastiest cookie.
Meanwhile, Egrer twirled a piece of candy in his hands, pointlessly rustling the wrapper. Nora quietly slid over to him.
"Are you okay?"
"Yep," he lied, not even trying to fight a dumb smile.
"You sure?"
"Leave me alone, will you?" Egrer weakly waved her off. "Why are you all pestering me?"
He was so exhausted...
Weiss solemnly announced Ren's rank—Private—and assigned him a two-week probationary period. If he proved himself exceptionally, he could count on a promotion. In turn, he assured her he would try to be useful.
"And now I'd like to hear about the results of your missions." The General Secretary turned her attention to the rest.
"I haven't finished with the symbol yet," Nora sighed.
"I think Ren can help you." The newly minted private shrugged, not minding the task. "And you, Egrer? Ready for your anthem audition?"
"Yeah. I told my guys what time to get here." The greatest rock musician of the near future gave a weak nod, not taking his eyes off the candy. He finally forced himself to shove it into his mouth but couldn't chew it. So it just melted there.
His irritation started to grow again. This pointless meeting pissed him off, and the only thing keeping him here was the promise of ending it all with a beautiful musical number.
"Wonderful. And I, in turn, have come up with an excellent name that will perfectly highlight the entire meaning of our struggle..."
"By the way, there are four of us now!" Nora suddenly exclaimed. "We need to give ourselves a team name! It'll unite the union like we're brothers and sisters in arms."
"I don't think that's a good idea," Weiss replied uncertainly. "We're... we shouldn't imitate the headmaster's actions, we have to go against the system."
Oh, look who's talking now, hypocrite, Egrer scoffed. It was obvious she just didn't want her hard work thrown in the trash.
"On the contrary," Nora quickly found a counterargument, "if we give ourselves a team name, something only the headmaster has authority over, we'll show everyone that we don't answer to him!"
"And what will we do when there are five or more of us?"
"Nah, think about it, we're like the founders and our names will go down in history forever! You snooze, you lose." Weiss couldn't think of how else to stop her. Looking for help, she turned to Egrer and Ren, but the former didn't care, and the latter gladly supported the idea.
"Fiiine." She pulled out a blank sheet of paper and a pencil, tracing out four letters: "W," "E," "N," and "R." "Let's think about how to make a word out of this."
"Ooh, ooh!" Nora bounced in her seat. "How about NERW - Nerve? Sounds badass!"
Honestly, you could feel a certain power in that name. Then again, the private had never complained about a poor imagination.
"ENRW - Entropy. Sounds just as badass," Egrer said in a deep voice.
Weiss's eye just twitched at that suggestion because her letter wasn't in that word, which was a very sore subject for her. So as not to escalate things out of nowhere, the Secretary to the General Secretary quickly came up with another name.
"Or ENWR - Enversion. Like 'Inversion', but with an 'E'. Works?"
"In case you've forgotten, the first letter belongs to the leader's name." This time Weiss found an irrefutable counterargument and circled the "W". Three times. "If I hear something like that again, I will demote you, Secretary to the General Secretary."
"Come on, those were just thoughts out loud. That's how I get into a creative mood."
In reality, he was just trying to act like normal. The last thing in the world Egrer wanted right now was to be bombarded with questions again.
"Wenorv!" Nora suddenly yelled. "No, Weikren! Or better yet, Vrindaluvanen!"
"What even are those words, Private? They aren't in any dictionary."
"That's how I get into a creative mood..."
"You're just fooling around!" Weiss suddenly went quiet, and a second later, a flash of insight lit up her face. "WNER - Winter. A good name... Winter...." She repeated it, savoring the word on the tip of her tongue.
"I hope any similarities to real people are purely coincidental," Egrer grumbled in annoyance. He really didn't want their organization to be named after someone completely uninvolved in their cause. Just because Weiss was in charge didn't mean she could mock them like this.
"You know about my older sister?"
"Weiss, not to sound like a kiss-ass, but your last name is known worldwide and frequently pops up in the news. Not to mention that scandal a few years ago that made you the SDC heiress."
"Don't remind me, it was so stressful..." She shuddered. "And as for the name—pure coincidence. Besides, what's the difference if the letters fit perfectly?"
Egrer took a breath for a new argument. Weiss also prepared for the next round of the debate.
Meanwhile, Ren whispered to his friend:
"Should we intervene?"
"If you want them to gang up on you, be my guest." Nora shrugged flippantly. "They constantly argue over everything, it's normal. But it's best not to bother them during these moments. Got it, newbie?"
She grabbed him and started giving him a noogie. He accepted his fate and didn't resist, realizing the futility of any attempts to defy a Valkyrie.
"Will they ask our opinion?" Ren inquired after a couple of minutes of humble waiting. "Aren't we supposed to participate in the discussion too?"
"Stay out of it," repeated the experienced Nora. "If they can't agree, then there will be a vote. That's when you'll express your point of view."
And the argument showed no signs of ending.
"...for some reason your name doesn't really reflect the essence of our struggle. But Enversion, like we'll do everything backwards, stage an inversion," Egrer choked on his tea from Weiss's terrifying glare but continued, "fits much better. Just think about it."
"What is there to think about? Winter is a wonderful name. Winter signifies the end of summer, the end of the headmaster's rule, renewal, followed by a new cycle of nature."
"Are you serious right now?" his eye twitched. "Just admit that you want to name the union after your sister, no need to lie so shamelessly. Hell, why stop there, let's just call ourselves the 'SDC Public Relations Department of Beacon'. You're the boss, do whatever you want."
"E-excuse me?" Weiss was indignant but couldn't find anything else to say. She was too surprised by such rudeness, and from her most polite acquaintance in Beacon, no less.
In all their endless arguments, whether in the union or the Order, they had never been so blatantly rude to each other. Egrer himself started to realize what he'd blurted out.
"Never mind, forget it, don't pay attention to me."
"Maybe we should hold a vote?" Ren suddenly suggested, his sensitivity hinting at how loud a fight this situation could turn into.
Weiss and Egrer shot the brave soul disgruntled glares. They really didn't like that someone dared to interject in their dialogue without permission.
"I'm for Nerve!" Nora yelled, raising her hand. The rest had to accept the rules of the game.
"Enversion."
"Winter."
Glares crossed on Ren once again. His gut told him that if he didn't support someone's name and offered his own, a fight would definitely start. That same gut feeling made it clear that even if he did support someone, a fight would happen anyway. But Ren wouldn't be Ren if he didn't possess incredible negotiator skills and the ability to maneuver between the desires of those around him.
He pretended not to understand what they wanted from him and offered another option.
"In that case, maybe we should draw lots? Everyone writes their favorite name on a piece of paper, and then Weiss pulls one without looking."
This compromise more or less satisfied everyone.
Chance decided, and in the end, ENWR - Enversion won. Despite the fierce argument, Egrer couldn't find the strength to even slightly rejoice in his victory and add another point to his score.
He was so incredibly tired...
"Fine," Weiss hissed, "Enversion it is."
Egrer didn't bother correcting her; he just shrugged off the jab.
There was a knock on the door.
"Oh, that must be our musicians." The General Secretary perked up. Her deputy also suddenly filled with energy and started smiling. "I declare the meeting adjourned, but I ask everyone to stay for the audition."
Like a proper host, she hurried to open the door for the guests.
"Hiii!" Magenta greeted, immediately hugging Weiss right off the bat. At such unexpected physical contact, Weiss hiccupped and spread her arms wide, as if afraid to touch the butterfly. Pollen flew up her nose.
"Achoo!"
Having finished expressing her friendliness, Magenta began to wide-eyedly inspect the ordinary empty classroom. The highest degree of delight was written on her face, as if this were truly a revolutionary hideout from the times of the Faunus Rights Revolution.
"Where do I set up?" Yort asked professionally. He was carrying a massive box with a disassembled drum kit, blocking his view of the path, and ultimately crashed right into their table. The Vacuo giant himself didn't even stagger, but the candies spilled all over the floor. "My bad, you guys'll pick that all up yourselves, right? So, where?"
"Head over there." Egrer started bossing him around before he crushed somebody.
"I wasn't asking you. Madge is in charge of us, forgot?"
"She's the head of Majesty, but I run the musical gang!" the true pack leader didn't say anything ruder only because of the bright feeling of anticipation filling his every thought.
It took a few minutes to prepare the stage. The desks were stacked on top of each other against the wall, clearing space for the best rock band of the near future. The drum kit was set up near the window, Illmond tuned the amp for his bass guitar, and Magenta tweaked some knobs on her synthesizer. Egrer stood at the very front.
The audience, who were simultaneously the judges, took their seats on chairs near the chalkboard.
"Respected members of Enversion." Egrer tipped an imaginary hat and bowed slightly. "The track 'The Flame of Revolution Will Ignite' is declared~"
"Stop, stop!" Weiss waved her hands. "What did I say about the party's policy? We will not go into confrontation with the headmaster and we will not stage any revolutions. If your anthem is about that, you can go redo it."
"Quiet, it's just a provocative title, the anthem itself isn't about that. For the most part... Ahem-ahem, a-one, two, a-one-two-three-four!" Egrer hit the guitar strings, and the rest followed his lead.
Yort slowly started picking up the pace, the ringing hits on the cymbals alternating with the hollow thumping of the bass drum. He missed that feeling of his fingertips vibrating terribly, although he would never admit it.
Magenta played the synthesizer, pressing the keys with her right hand and tweaking toggles and various dials with her left. Every new sound coming from her instrument was unlike the last. However, this didn't create a cacophony, but rather, blended perfectly with the other parts.
Illmond was barely audible, but the bassist wasn't supposed to be in the foreground anyway; his goal was to lay down a sort of background pattern for the song. Without him, the composition would be flat and unexpressive, like a painting where the artist forgot to draw the shadows.
At the head of the orchestra, of course, was Egrer's Baby. The no-longer-young acoustic guitar, having gone through fire and water with its owner (sometimes literally), played both melodically and briskly, laying perfectly over the vocals.
The anthem told of feats, the light of the union's deeds, their strength, and promises of a better life. And of course, every single line was filled with deep meaning. How could you have music without meaning? Egrer tried very hard to make his great Magnum Opus as multi-interpretable as possible. Every listener would understand it their own way, interpreting the words to their own liking.
The irritation that had been building up all day slowly evaporated, consumed as fuel for the song. That emotion helped to emphasize certain parts of the anthem even better.
With every passing second, his soul felt lighter. The beast residing deep inside him was finally sated; he had been heard. For a while, this would be enough...
And so the final chords were struck, and Egrer froze, looking expectantly at his esteemed audience.
Nora whistled and clapped her hands, Ren expressed his ovations more quietly, and Weiss had been frowning since the very beginning.
"Egrer," she said calmly. "When people say the word 'anthem,' they mean exactly that—an anthem. You know, trumpets, a choir, and things of that sort... not a rebellious teen rock song."
"What don't you like about it?" grumbled the greatest rock musician of the near future.
"Let me think... Probably the fact that it's not an anthem at all? Did you listen to any references?"
"What? I didn't eavesdrop on anyone, the whole song is my own work."
"She means," Illmond started to explain, "that you should have listened to already existing compositions of that genre. It's standard practice in art."
"Exactly," Weiss nodded.
"Yeah, but why? I mean, I did an amazing job as is." The General Secretary facepalmed and sighed soundlessly. Her reaction seriously pissed Egrer off.
He poured his whole soul into this song! All his skills! He lost so many nerves convincing the pack to play it just once! And now, instead of a standing ovation, Weiss was showing him her dissatisfaction. If it weren't for the happy Nora, who gave him at least some peace of mind, he would have already thrown hands at her.
"Egrer," Weiss began pacifyingly after a brief breathing exercise. "Just understand—this isn't an anthem. I'm not saying your composition is bad, it's just not what the union needs."
"So what do we need?" Egrer grumbled. "You should've written what we needed yourself."
Weiss showed surprising calm and understanding. She knew from personal experience what it felt like to have your work criticized.
"Just listen to any anthem and you'll understand. And until then, I don't even see the point in discussing it."
"Alright, maybe as an anthem my song isn't great,"—Weiss's face easily read very not great—"but just as a song? How would you rate it?"
He was curious to hear her opinion. After all, she had a lot more experience in songwriting.
"First of all, give me the sheet music. I need to clarify a couple of points."
"What sheet music? Here are the chords, everything's written right here." Egrer tore a page out of his notebook (he was too scared to hand over the whole thing) and poked his finger at the right spot. Weiss cast an uncomprehending glance over his notes, then frowned. Egrer rushed to explain everything, just in case he wrote it unclearly. "This is my part, this is Illmond's, Magenta is on improv since it's pointless to teach her anything with her memory, and Yort has his own piece of paper over there."
Awareness didn't increase in Weiss's eyes. But suddenly, it was as if she had an epiphany.
"Did you go to music school?"
"No." To be honest, he'd only gone to a normal school for four years before Torchwick took him from the orphanage. "I'm self-taught. At first, I learned from acquaintances, and when I got a Scroll, I watched video tutorials on the extranet."
The General Secretary realized the full depth of the pit she found herself in.
"Who do I have to work with..."
"Hey, just because my song doesn't have sheet music doesn't mean it's bad." Weiss took a deep breath. Maintaining her current calm was clearly taking a toll on her.
What followed was a lecture in which she condensed a six-year curriculum from her music school (the best one in Atlas, naturally) into half an hour, gutting the failed anthem into its constituent parts along the way. She explained and vividly demonstrated how musical notes are useful and indispensable in recording music, and how they simplify the task of "reading" compositions.
Egrer didn't dare say a word to the contrary; he hadn't expected such a thorough approach from her to a subject she disliked. But listening to her was also difficult; her condescending, mentor-like tone induced gloom and boredom.
It's fine, it's fine, he thought, pretending to listen carefully. Once you shut up, I'll have a few things to tell you too.
Meanwhile, Yort whispered:
"Should we intervene?"
"If you want them to gang up on you," the experienced Ren shrugged. "But I wouldn't advise it. One time was enough for me."
"Well, I'm heading to the club then. We're not needed here anymore." Magenta and Illmond also found something else to do.
And even Ren and Nora left, since the union meeting was already officially adjourned.
"Musical notation is the foundation," Weiss concluded her sermon. "You can't get anywhere without it."
"Oh, really?" Egrer was slighted by even the hint of her condescending tone and look. "I've lived my whole life without it just fine, and I sing and play perfectly well."
Then he talked about the decline of modern musical art, telling her that the main thing is by no means a good school, but the feelings a singer puts into the song. Even a homeless guy on a barely tuned guitar can sing better than a pop star, because he actually has something to sing about, his emotions are real.
He told her about the pointlessness and stupidity of any attempts to bring some arbitrary rules and laws into art. They're only needed for those who have no inner fire, who are incapable of singing from the soul, and who are forced to resort to cheat sheets because of it.
He also explained that these creative impotents on the world stage only became popular because their songs sounded like thousands of songs by other such impotents. That kind of content is just easier to digest for a dumbed-down crowd that isn't used to more meaningful works.
When Egrer ran out of steam and couldn't think of anything else to say, Weiss began to speak. As before, she acted as a paragon of restraint.
"I have perfect pitch," she bragged, after which she talked about something called "harmony," but the meaning of this term eluded the understanding of the future world-famous musician. It eluded him so actively that Egrer decided it must be some kind of cruel joke.
She pointed out the incorrect rhythm of the playing and vocals, though she briefly praised the chosen tempo for the composition. When Egrer interrupted her and asked how she could simultaneously scold and praise him for the same thing, Weiss facepalmed again.
"Who do I have to work with..." And then came a terrifying revelation—in musical arts, tempo and rhythm are different things. Before, for Egrer, these concepts were like black and white bread: generally the same thing, but not quite. "But it's fine as it is, I'm asking too much of you. For a self-taught musician, it turned out not bad."
"Why is it that even when you apologize, it just makes me feel worse?" Weiss shrugged. "Fine, we learn from our mistakes, after all."
"Glad you took it so calmly. The first time my teacher pointed out my mistakes, I threw a tantrum."
"Ha, I can imagine that," Egrer chuckled.
"Don't laugh. If you knew what an unpleasant person he is... compared to him, I'd seem like a true fairy-tale princess to you. Every lesson was torture, especially considering that music never appealed to me."
"Only your lessons were torture; for me, it was every day. My dad considered it his sacred duty to mock me about it. Every single goddamn day, over and over again. And if he forgot or physically couldn't make fun of me, he'd definitely make up for it later. If it wasn't for my mom, I would have definitely quit music..."
Weiss looked at him the way one looks at a child with his petty, childish problems.
"You think I only suffered during lessons?" she asked with a smirk. Her hand reached for the remaining candies on the table. "My father demanded everything from me all at once, as if I could learn to read all sheet music in an hour. Every moment I rested from constant sessions with tutors, he was there scolding me for wasting time. And unlike you, I didn't have a choice; even if I wanted to, I couldn't have quit."
"Oof, our dads are total scumbags, you gotta admit."
"I would... use milder terms."
"Come on, be honest with yourself." Egrer scooted a bit closer to her. "Go on, say it. Say your dad is a scumbag. Half the world would agree with you, by the way..."
"No, I'm not going to say that. Because it's not entirely true."
"Not entirely?"
"Or rather, not true at all," she immediately corrected herself. "I just misspoke, you shouldn't pay such close attention to it."
"Come on, do it. Nothing terrible will happen, no one but me will hear you."
"The tone of a tempter serpent doesn't suit your voice at all, you know? Regardless, I owe almost everything to this man, so I won't insult him."
"I owe mine too, but that doesn't stop me from admitting the obvious—my dad is a scumbag," he repeated solemnly. Then, in the same ingratiating tone, he asked, "You won't insult him, even if you really want to?"
"Even if I really want to."
"I hear ya." Even if in such an indirect way, she had admitted it.
Suddenly, Egrer realized that they were just sitting there chatting about stupid things. It was the first time they had just talked about random stuff in all the time they'd known each other.
Weiss realized it too and hurried to scoot away, putting on a strict, official expression.
"I would like to ask you, how can you interact so amiably with Magenta? She did take your rightful place, after all. How do you manage to act this way? I wouldn't call you an experienced hypocrite or an actor."
And how did the idea of ruining this cozy atmosphere by starting a conversation "about work" even cross her mind? Only Weiss was capable of that...
Egrer sighed heavily. He had really hoped no one would touch on this topic. At least not until he figured it out himself.
"We're friends," he shrugged, "and I'd be a terrible friend if I hurt her. You see, she's so happy with her position and genuinely tries to do everything the best she can. I'd be total scum if I did that."
"But you'll have to hurt her anyway, if you want justice to prevail."
"Honestly, I don't even know if I can go through with it anymore," Egrer admitted, and Weiss looked at him in surprise.
"What do you mean?"
"I had two completely foolproof opportunities to stage a coup. Seriously," he said, seeing the skepticism on her face, "I could have just taken over and become the leader with a couple of words. Madge was completely crushed and wouldn't have resisted."
"And you didn't do it, as I can judge from the absence of a leader's badge on your chest."
"Yeah. I don't want Madge to get so upset..."
"There's no avoiding casualties in this conflict, figuratively speaking," Weiss said sternly. "Someone will have to suffer. Either her, or you."
"If she has to suffer because of me, then I don't want to be part of this anymore. This Order was a stupid idea, Weiss. I'm quitting."
His soul immediately felt lighter. The contradictions that had been poisoning him since his first day at Beacon were finally resolved.
"What?" Weiss whispered. "Is this some kind of joke? You can't just up and leave, we've already done so much."
"And what have we done? From the very beginning, the Order was just a club for the two of us, where we shared our grievances and cooked up 'evil plans for revenge'." Egrer replied with a sardonic chuckle. "Like a group therapy session for alcoholism at a shrink's office, honestly. Nora was always out of place there..."
When that thought slipped from his lips, he suddenly realized that this was exactly how it was. Every meeting they complained to each other about life and fantasized about how beautifully they would outplay everyone and flip the chessboard. After which they would leave satisfied, only to gather again a couple of days later.
And so it went, time after time, over and over. The wheel never stopped turning, and it could have gone on for an eternity.
All this time Egrer had been walking a knife's edge. A step to the left—drop this whole idea; a step to the right—do something terrible to Magenta. And if he kept trying to balance any longer—sooner or later he'd be sliced in half. He couldn't run from this choice forever. As Miss Goodwitch had noted during her lesson, eventually he would be pushed against the wall.
Egrer never actually made a choice; he plummeted and was simply lucky to fall in the right direction. He was cured. In truth, the resentment towards Magenta had evaporated a long time ago and was kept artificially alive all this time, just so he'd have some reason to fight her.
Now he had no need to stay in these psychological courses any longer. Now he would be exactly who Magenta imagined him to be—the most honest friend in the world.
And good friends don't build obstacles; on the contrary, they help overcome them. And that is exactly what he would do. Instead of pointless scheming, Egrer would focus on helping her along the difficult path of a leader. He would make Magenta a worthy replacement for himself. That was a much more noble and difficult task than trying to fix the headmaster's mistakes for him.
"Why do you want to be the leader?" Egrer suddenly asked. "I wanted to because I thought it would be better for the others. Sure, I was also driven by resentment, but now there's nothing left of it. So much time has passed... And you? Are you still resentful toward Ruby?"
"No, I'm not." She looked down thoughtfully, chewing her lip in tension. "And I want to become the leader because in my team, I'm the only one who deserves this post. For so many reasons that I'd get tired of listing them."
On any other day, Egrer would have agreed with her. He would have said, "Yeah, you're completely right," sincerely believing his own words, after which she would smile and also say something nice. That was exactly how their club worked.
"I think Ruby is a perfect fit for her role."
Those words finally knocked the ground right out from under Weiss.
She got angry. Really angry, not like before. She didn't wave her arms, didn't yell, didn't pace from side to side. Instead, she was overcome by an icy calm.
Egrer had never seen her in this state before, and when Weiss looked into his eyes, he involuntarily looked down.
"I'm curious where such conclusions suddenly came from."
"She's trying so hard to get along with you. So hard that she has to put up with your piggish attitude towards her," he said honestly, not even trying to soften his tone. "Why do you stubbornly try to push her away when you know yourself that you're doing the wrong thing? If you only knew how desperate she is..."
"Did she feed you all that? A psychological attack from our enemies?"
"Weiss, they were never our enemies. You just need some kind of reason to hate her, no matter how imaginary it is."
"Oh, of course..." She was no longer listening to him, having reached some conclusions of her own.
"If you had the chance to become the leader of your team, but doing so would leave Ruby crushed and broken forever, what would you do? This isn't a metaphorical example, it's a situation I've faced myself twice. Would you go through with it?"
"There are probably dozens of other ways to pull this off without unnecessary drama, so don't try to guilt-trip me. I don't hate Ruby at all to do that to her."
"Then why won't you even give her a chance?"
"Why should I? She has nothing to offer me, just as I have nothing to offer her. Close relationships with just anyone bring nothing but harm, and for both sides at that. Unless we assume she's after my money, which I doubt."
Egrer fundamentally disagreed with this point of view. Friendship isn't about mutual benefit. But Weiss was definitely hiding something, and a lot of it. She herself barely believed her own words.
"But Ruby isn't just anyone, she's a member of your team! Or is that not a strong enough argument for you? Then what is?"
"I still can't understand why you care so much about my relationship with Rose." She dodged the question. "If you want me to follow you and drop the idea of a coup, don't even try. We've spent over a month, and all that time will just go to waste if we back down. I'll make this venture pay off, believe me."
"Yeah, because now you're the Supreme Chairman of the Order. You must be happy." Weiss didn't look happy at all. "And I just realized that it doesn't matter at all who the leader is. Why do I need this damn badge if my friendship with Magenta falls apart? That's what's important."
"So, you've lost, since you've backed down."
Egrer scoffed.
"On the contrary, I won. And you'll lose if you continue. You'll lose even if you succeed in everything."
"I suggest we end this pointless argument. We won't convince each other, and we'll only end up fighting."
"Are you so worried about that? I thought you didn't make friends with just anyone." He snorted ironically. "Or am I an exception and you care about my feelings? I'm afraid it's too presumptuous to think so."
"Exactly. I just don't need any more enemies."
"Whatever you say, Weiss. We really won't convince each other."
Someday she'd understand. The main thing was that it didn't happen too late.