Alabast puts on his suit jacket and slides his scroll into his pants pocket.
There isn't much time left until 6 and he has enough time to mess with his toe to get it set properly.
Alabast's suit is a sleek black color. Instead of being buttoned closed, it has a chain keeping it together which lets his dark gray vest be seen more clearly. His dark red necktie is tucked beneath his vest.
He goes out into the hall when he receives the text from the girls. He only ends up waiting about 5 minutes when the door finally opens.
"Alabast~…" Ruby calls out as she stumbles into the hallway.
Alabast steps forward and grabs Ruby's hands before she falls forward. "You ok Little Red?"
Ruby leans on Alabast's hands as she gets her feet back under herself and struggles immensely. "Yeah, it's just these 'stupid' heels"
Ruby stands up and brushes her sleeveless dress. The dress is a similar red to the tips of her hair, and above her chest is a transparent black mesh that stops at her shoulders and neck. She also has black tights on. Her heels match the color of her dress and giver her an extra inch or two of height which brings her up to Weiss' height when she doesn't wear her own heels. Around her waist is a black sash that is tied into a neat bow on her left hip.
"Think you'll get used to them?" Alabast stands back up instead of leaning over to help Ruby.
"I'll be fine once I get used to them" Ruby stumbles backwards and flails her arms to stay standing. She's able to stabilize herself somehow. "That's what Yang said but I'm not too sure"
Pyrrha puts her hands on Ruby's shoulders as she comes out of the room behind Ruby. "You've never worn heels before so take it easy"
Pyrrha is wearing a sleeveless turtleneck red dress. It's back is exposed and there is a break in the fabric near her right leg to show it off. She's also wearing heels. Her hair is in a ponytail like it normally is. And she has her circlet on and with its green tear-shaped emeralds connected to the chain, it matches her vivid green eyes.
"Hello Alabast" She greets while semi-supporting Ruby to stand still.
"Pyrrha" Alabast nods.
Blake walks out of the room last and rubs her elbow with a slight blush on her face. "Good evening"
Blake's dress is a shade of dark purple and has a thin black sash going around her waist. Similar to Ruby's dress hers has a black mesh material to show off some skin without actually showing off skin. The mesh goes around her shoulders and some of her chest. Her dress ends just above her knees and has a slit in it like Pyrrha's to show off some of her right leg. And her bow sits atop her head, hiding her cat ears.
Alabast rolls his eyes. "Really?"
Blake worriedly and sadly looks at Alabast. "S-sorry"
Alabast walks up to her and she flinches when he reaches out to her. He pauses before surprising her with a hug and whispering into her ears. "I'm not mad, and I'm not going to hurt you. I just didn't like how you were being so formal and distant. Just be yourself for tonight"
Blake returns the hug. "Thank you"
Alabast moves away from Blake and tucks some hair over her ear.
"Let's get going already!" Ruby exclaims as she turns to petals and latches onto Alabast's back. "The faster we go the sooner I can take this stilts off!"
Pyrrha holds her hands together at her waist. "Shall we get going?"
Alabast feels Ruby move his hair so she can be under it. She wraps her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. Ruby's chin rests on his left shoulder. "Are you comfy?"
Ruby smiles brightly. "I am now!" She slightly rocks side to side.
Blake snakes her arms around Alabast's right arm. "Yes" She confidently says.
Alabast holds his left hand out for Pyrrha. "Let's get going"
Pyrrha smiles and grabs his hand with her right hand. She moves to his side and wraps her left arm around his elbow and leans her head on his shoulder.
The three of them then make their way out of the dorms, Ruby enjoys the free ride. Not many people were out and about. They are either already at the dance or not going to the dance. A few people were making their way, but would stop and look at the two women on either side of Alabast. It's not every day that you see a man with a girl on each arm and his back.
——————
They're walking through the courtyard as the sun sets in the distance.
Ruby messes with Alabast's hair to entertain herself. "So who are you dancing with first?"
Alabast sees the shattered moon faintly in the dimly lit sky. "I was thinking-"
Blake interrupts him. "My first dance is already spoken for"
"Really?" Alabast takes a few seconds before he remembers the previous day when Blake and Yang talked it out. "Right, well then I'll have your second"
"Who is it? Who is it? Whoisit?!" Ruby repeatedly asks and moves over to Alabast's right shoulder and gets in Blake's face.
Alabast rolls his right shoulder and moves his head to the left. "Relax and wait. You will find out in less than 10 minutes"
Ruby tightly holds onto Alabast. "We're gonna get there so soon?! But I don't wanna get down~!"
"You don't want to dance Ruby?" Pyrrha asks.
"In these things?" Ruby stretches her feet out in front of Alabast so that Blake and Pyrrha can see her heels. "I'd be lucky to even walk to the punch table without tripping"
"Maybe you can ask Weiss for some tips" Pyrrha holds her laughter in.
"Oh, don't even get me started on how Weiss can fight in these things" Ruby wraps her legs back around Alabast.
Blake looks at Ruby. "Is Yang used to heels? And has she danced before?"
Alabast taps Blake's hand with his thumb. "Yang has gone clubbing on a few occasions"
"And she's the one that forced me into wearing these constricting feet prisons!" Ruby shouts vengefully. "So she better be wearing feet prisons of her own"
"Right….." Blake looks away from Ruby's threatening expression. She then puts her head on Alabast's shoulder.
"What about you Alabast? Ever worn heels?" Ruby switches emotions at the drop of a dime. "Have you?! Have you?!"
"Ruby" Pyrrha calls out to the overexcited girl. "That is a VERY good question" She smirks at Alabast. "Have you ever worn heels?"
"No. And don't look at me like that. One of the things I WON'T do for you girls is put on heels. And there isn't much I wouldn't do for you girls" Alabast immediately denies.
Blake looks up at Alabast. "Oh really? What else wouldn't you do?"
Alabast now finds himself in a minefield again. And he walked right into the middle of this one on his own. "I will repeat myself. There are very few things I wouldn't do. I can't think of any off the top of my head at the moment but I'll let you all know when one of those few things come up"
"Hmmmm~" Blake humms accepting Alabast's answer.
Alabast is reminded of Blake's purring. It has been a while since he heard it and he's reminded how much he enjoys hearing it.
Pyrrha squeezes his arm. "Smart answer"
"Oh!" Ruby seems to have remembered something. "Would you~…."
She pauses for dramatic effect.
"…Let us win in a spar?!" She hopefully and wishfully asks.
Blake rolls her eyes. "That was much faster than I expected"
"What? But he didn't even answer me Blake!" Ruby complains.
"I don't know" Pyrrha seriously says. "I feel like if we all attack him at the same time he won't have a choice"
A bead of sweat drops down Alabast's cheek. He can take that two different ways. One is the Hintsman way and the other is the teenager-full-of-hormones way. And he's going the Huntsman way. "Pyrrha, with your semblance I already struggle enough against you"
Pyrrha closes her eyes and trusts Alabast to not lead her off the path. "If you would just take of your Bestia Fangs you would put up a much better fight. And it's not like we've sparred seriously against each other so far"
Alabast reminisces how Pyrrha trains her semblance. There would be little chance of victory if Pyrrha fought at 100%. Sure he could win if he doesn't use Nights Fall or Bestia Fang. But he doesn't want to overly rely on his semblance. Pyrrha's semblance is able to manipulate any metal and if she really wants to she could control way more than the soda cans she threw around in the cafeteria during the food fight.
"Getting punched in the face by my own fist got old after the fifth time" Alabast rolls his eyes. "Which reminds me that I need to add something"
Blake feels Alabast's wrist and can feel the metal. She isn't mad that he has it on, she's just glad he doesn't have the stupidly big sword on his back.
"Pfffft!" Ruby buries her face into Alabast's neck. "Hahahaha!"
"Yeah, really glad you find my suffering amusing. Can really feel tho love Little Red" Alabast slumps his shoulders.
"Sorry! But I just imagined it, and I couldn't help it!" Ruby apologizes and then moves back over to Alabast's left side and whispers to Pyrrha. "Do you have that recorded or….?"
"I'm sorry" Pyrrha whispers back.
"Alright. Time to get down Ruby" Alabst stops walking.
"Wait! I'm sorry! Really sorry! I'll be quiet! Just don't make me walk the rest of the way!" Ruby latches on tightly.
"I'm not kicking you off because you laughed at me. I'd let you laugh at me as long as you want if it meant you always smile. But we are here" Alabast points forward.
Ruby opens her eyes and sees the big doors that lead into the dance. "There's no way that it has already been 10 minutes!"
Alabast shrugs.
Pyrrha let's go of Alabast's arm. "Time flies when you are having fun"
"Time also goes by fast when you aren't the one walking" Blake adds in as she also lets go of Alabast.
"Fine~!" Ruby gets off of Alabast's back and walks forward a few steps with her hands out at her sides to keep her balance. "Hah! Already got the hang of this!"
Alabast opens the door and the music immediately bombards their ears. And it's music that he's heard before. He did hear Yang and Weiss discuss about a dj at one point.
Ruby walks into the building and sees her sister behind a podium.
Yang is about to greet the new arrivals like she normally does but she sees her sister. "Ooohh, you look 'beautiful'!" She squeals in excitement at seeing her little sis all dressed up and not wearing her hood for once. Ruby rarely dresses up, and it's even more rare for Ruby to not wear her hood.
Ruby walks inside. But as soon as she walks through the door she stumbles a bit. "Ok, we need to have a serious talk about how Weiss fights in these" Ruby stabilizes herself and walks up to Yang.
Yang tries to contain her laughter as Ruby walks up to her.
Alabast continues to hold the door for Pyrrha and Blake.
Blake walks past Alabast. "I knew you would look good in a tie"
Pyrrha walks in behind Blake. "She isn't wrong"
Alabast adjusts his tie before walking in. He sees the dance is going in full swing.
The ballroom is dark but not completely, it's dimly lit by glass chandeliers that hang from the ceiling. Pink streamers are hung through the chandeliers and around the room. Blue and pink balloons are everywhere throughout the room. The middle of the room is the dedicated dance floor while the perimeter of the room has tables covered with white cloths. There's also an upper floor but it's just a balcony to overlook the dance floor below.
Alabast sees Yang talking with Ruby behind the podium. But he can still see her in her dress.
Yang is wearing a short white dress that goes down to barely cover half her thighs. She has a white cloth tied around leg just above her knee. And there is a white bow exactly similar to Blake's on the top of her head, but it's behind the little cow-lick that always stands up on the top of her head.
Alabast walks up behind Ruby and puts his hands on her hips to help stabilize her. He looks at the pure white dress Yang is wearing. "Surprised you went with white"
Yang looks down. "Good surprised or bad?" She waves the question away with the back of her hand with a smirk on her face. "Just kidding~! We're you expecting a bright yellow? Sorry to disappoint but I didn't want to stand out too much and steal the show from all the other ladies tonight"
"Well that's unfortunate…" Alabast says as he looks behind Yang and around the ballroom where a bunch of other women are wearing white dresses. "…because you still put all the other ladies here to shame"
Yang whistles. "Flirting with me while you have your hands on my sister and two other beautiful ladies next to you…" Yang winks at Blake and Pyrrha. "…that's some confidence you have"
Alabast rolls his eyes as he slowly lets Ruby go to stand on her own. "Confidence is something I have plenty of"
Yang grabs her chin with her thumb and index finger as she looks him up and down. "Well, I'd say you have plenty of reasons to be"
Alabast can spot Nora and Ren on the dance floor. It's mostly Nora wildly dancing with Ren doing some lazy dance moves. But even his lazy dance moves are better than half of the other guys. "When will you be free to dance?"
Blake's bow twitches when she hears this question.
Blake looks down at her empty wrist. "Right… about…"
The music changes to classical ballroom music.
"…Now" Yang smirks.
Pyrrha giggles into the back of her hand as Ruby looks around the room to try and find out how Yang knew it would change. But Ruby only ends up spotting a wild Weiss off to the side walking towards them.
Blake taps Alabast's arm. "I'll see you after this dance" She gives a smile and walks ahead.
"That's my que" Yang waves to the others and gives her elbow for Blake to put her arm through and guides the Faunus to the dance floor.
"Oooohhhhhh~! Yang was the one who claimed her first dance~" Ruby says as she watches the two start dancing.
Yang and Blake hold one hand out to the side. Yang has her other hand on Blake's back. And Blake has her other hand around Yang's shoulder.
Weiss makes it to the others and greets them. "Glad you three can finally make it, and it looks like I just missed Blake"
"By a few seconds" Alabast says as he looks at the dress Weiss is wearing.
Weiss' dress is similar to Yang's. It's a sleeveless white dress that goes dow to barely half her thighs. But it's different in that it's white color matches her hair instead of trying to be as white as blindingly possible. And there are cutouts on either side of her hips to reveal her skin above her waist. The dress also has a gray mesh that goes from above her chest to the middle of her back. She also didn't put makeup over her scar.
"Well, I'm at least glad you can clean up well" Weiss compliments.
"As much as I'd would like to tell you how much I enjoy your dress I should join the dance. You look stunning Weiss Schnee" Alabast says, not bothered by the Schnee name in the least.
He turns towards Pyrrha. "May I have this dance?" Alabast holds out his left hand.
"I…" Pyrrha takes his hand. "…would Love to dance"
Alabast turns towards Weiss and Ruby. "I'll see you girls in a little bit, thanks for being patient" He then takes Pyrrha and walks onto the dance floor.
Ruby watches them go off and then turns towards Weiss with sparkly eyes and a hopeful expression.
"No, no, no. Don't even think about it Ruby Rose" Weiss says before walking away.
Ruby slumps her shoulders forward and slightly hangs her head as she watches Weiss leave. "But I didn't even ask you anything yet Ice Queen…"
After being rejected before she could even ask Ruby makes her way over to the side of the dance floor to wait her turn. It takes her 2 minutes to get there so she doesn't have to awkwardly wait around for very long.
Alabast took Pyrrha out to the dance floor. He holds her hand with his left out to the side and slightly up in correct posture. He then places his right hand on her waist while she puts her free hand around his neck.
"How were you ever able to learn how to dance? I thought you said you were too busy training all the time?" Pyrrha asks as they begin slow dancing.
"That…" Alabast pauses. "Would you believe me if I said I was a natural dancer?"
"I'd believe you as much as if you told me you had a new landing strategy that worked" Pyrrha can't help but smirk.
"Cruel. That one was truly cruel" Alabast moves closer to Pyrrha as they move their feet in perfect sync. "And I can ask you the same thing Invincible Girl"
"I don't believe I need a new landing strategy. I wasn't the one that decided to belly flop onto the pavement in front of the villains" Pyrrha innocently says.
"That was… a series of unfortunate events. And thats just mean. I was talking about how you know how to dance. I can imagine it was to help you in your training because dancing is like fighting in a few ways" Alabast leads their dance in a small circle.
"I just felt like teasing you a little. And yes, my mother had me learn to dance formally for two reasons. You were half right I would say. One was because I was getting popular and was invited to more and more fancy parties. And the other reason is because dancing, like you said, is a lot like fighting. You have to be conscious of the people around you so you don't bump into them like how you keep track of your surroundings in a fight. And moving in a fight could be like dancing. Now you get to answer" Pyrrha's hair flows behind her as Alabast leads her around.
"Without going too far into it. I witnessed a few dances while I was on missions. Some more formal than others. And as a curious lad growing up I learned a few things from watching them. A formal dance isn't too advanced. Just one step at a time until you reach the end and then you repeat" Alabast demonstrates with his steps.
——————
Ruby continues to awkwardly stand at the edge of the dance floor.
Weiss walks up next to her. "You know you are supposed to be having FUN right?"
Ruby nearly jumps back but manages not to since she would probably fall due to her heels. "Weiss?! Oh, hehehe. Yeah, I know. I'm just not… really used to these kind of events"
"You should find a way to enjoy this without Alabast. He isn't 'always' going to be there for us. He can be there as much as he wants, but always is asking too much of one man" Weiss folds her arms over her chest.
"Weiss…." Ruby sadly reaches out towards her teammate.
"I'm not saying he can't try. He's done exceptionally well this far. But the fact is, we are on separate teams. We will eventually be separated. And during the Vytal Tournament he very well be our enemy. I'm not saying this to be mean or rude to anyone. I just don't want you to get hurt by over-relying on him" Weiss watches him dance with Pyrrha and Blake dance with Yang.
"Right" Ruby takes her hand back. "But I wouldn't say we're over-relying on him. He relies on us as much as we rely on him" Ruby looks at Alabast and sees the small smile as he talks with Pyrrha. "Without us he would have been so lonely, so sad. So I think we are good to keep relying on each other. Even if things get rough…" Ruby looks back to Weiss. "If things get hard, we shouldn't separate. If anything, that's just another reason for us to come together closer than before"
Weiss looks at the small girl. "You know. You pick the weirdest times to actually act like a leader"
"What?" Ruby scratches her cheek.
Weiss walks away. "Nothing"
"Oh…." Ruby had hoped for Weiss to keep her some company a little longer.
"Not enjoying yourself?" Ozpin asks as he walks up on the other side of Ruby.
The small girl gets surprised again, but this time it's because the headmaster himself is next to her from seemingly nowhere at a dance.
"Oh, no, everything's fine! I'm just not much of a fancy pantsy... dancey girl" Ruby awkwardly admits.
"Well, you can't spend your whole life on the battlefield, even if you may want to" Ozpin tells his student and looks out into the crowd.
Ruby crosses her arms over her chest in slight annoyance. "Yeah, that lesson's been floating around a lot lately"
"If you think about it, fighting and dancing aren't so different. Two partners interlocked, although one wrong move on the ballroom merely leads to a swollen foot" Ozpin then spots Alabast and Pyrrha near perfectly dancing together and raises an eyebrow.
Ruby looks down at her lady stilts. "Or a twisted ankle"
Ozpin motions around at the room with his left hand while his right hand stays on his cane. "It's not every day that friends are able to come together like this. Time has a way of testing our bonds, but it's nights like these that can help keep them stronger than ever. Nights like these are ones we'll never forget"
Ruby smiles at the words of wisdom. She also realizes that tomorrow they will be jumping right back into danger, so being able to feel safe and relax together while having fun isn't as bad as she was making it seem. Even if she doesn't like or know how to dance.
"Say, Ms. Rose" Ozpin says while watching Alabast.
"Yes? What is it Mr. Ozpin?" Ruby turns to look at her headmaster.
Ozpin nods his head towards Alabast. "Who taught Mr. Noir to dance? Or was it a cumulative effort amongst your group of friends?"
"Actually" Ruby gazes at Alabast. "None of us practiced dancing" She embarrassingly rubs the back of her head. "We were a bit busy studying and training. In fact, I'm afraid I don't know how to dance"
"Hmmm" Ozpin narrows his eyes at Alabast. "There is plenty of time to learn, perhaps Mr. Noir can teach you a thing or two"
"I hope I don't end up getting hurt or hurting him" Ruby taps her heels on the ground. "Oh, Mr. Ozpin. Alabast has been expecting you to talk with him for a while, why haven't you?"
"Ah, yes. I did say that didn't I" Ozpin looks into the distance at something that isn't there. "An old friend of mine has decided to make a surprise visit and has caused some extra work for me. I've been a bit busy with that"
"Friend?" Ruby absentmindedly says.
Ozpin grins. "Yes, friend. Because believe it or not even I have those. At least I hope they stay friends. You may know this one. It's the Atlesian General, James Ironwood. An old friend at that"
"Ohmygosh! I'msosorry! Ididntmeantoberudeordisrespectful!" Ruby rapidly apologizes in hopes of not getting kicked out for various reasons.
"No need for that Ms. Rose" Ozpin looks down at his small student and is reminded of another student from his past. "I will let you in on a secret of mine, but you must promise to keep it a secret"
Ruby nods her head completely serious.
"The secret is…" Ozpin leans forward but not to her ear, just to her height. "… I am just as human as any of you"
"Huh?" Ruby's face becomes confused.
Ozpin stands back up. "I get lonely and wish to talk with other people just like anyone else. I also have many friends across Remnant. But that also means I have many enemies as well. I might seem above some things, but believe me. I am not" Ozpin mysteriously says as he turns to walk away. "And enjoy the dance-" The music changes. "-Ms. Rose"
Ruby watches Ozpin leave before frantically looking around the room to try and find how Ozpin and Yang can tell when the songs will change. "How do they keep doing that?!"
Blake is spun around by Yang before they both curtesy to the other, signifying the end of their dance together.
Alabast and Pyrrha also end their dance.
Yang gestures for Alabast to take Blake's hand for the next dance.
Instead of taking Blake's hand he grabs Yang's hand.
He looks at Blake. "Next dance?"
Blake smiles and nods as she gives a slight bow before turning and leaving towards the chairs around the room.
Yang sighs and rolls her eyes. "You were supposed to take her hand you idiot"
Alabast puts his free hand on Yang's hip. "But aren't you also my girlfriend? And won't you be more busy?" He sees her glare and smirks. "Cmon, you don't need to be 'Y-angry' right now. Let's enjoy the dance you worked so hard on"
Yang can't help the smile that grows on her face. "Is that the best you could do?"
"Considering I'm dancing with you, I'd say I'm doing quite alright" Alabst begins moving his feet and leading Yang. A step forward her, a step to the side there, and possibly a turn or spin mixed in.
"That one was smooth, but not very punny" Yang snakes her arm around his neck and gazed into his red eyes with her lilac eyes. "Ouch!"
Yang takes her hand back from around Alabast and shakes it.
"Are you alright? What happened?" Alabast stops dancing and grabs Yang's hand and looks for an injury.
"Oh I'll be fine" Yang smirks. "You're just dressed very sharp"
"Gaahhhh!" Alabast exhales and puts his hand back on her hip to continue dancing. "I think that one took a few years off my life just for hearing that one"
"Well, 'fur' what it's worth I think you are very handsome" Yang winks at Alabast.
"I like your bow, don't tell me you're also hiding something under there" Alabast changes the subject.
"Under the bow? No" Yang smiles. "But I'll say my dress is doing its best to hide some assets"
Alabast blinks a few times and looks at the smug smirk of Yang. "I…" He shakes his head. "… saying things like that is cheating"
Yang playfully pinches the back of his neck. "Says the guy with 5 girlfriends"
Alabast rolls his eyes. "Has that not gotten old yet?"
"Awwww" Yang puts her arm back around Alabast. "I'm just yanking your chain"
"Careful, the whiplash is hitting me hard on these" Alabast states. "And I hope you know CPT if you keep pulling on my chain, because you're taking my breath away" He squeezes her hip.
"Don't worry, I am pretty decent at mouth-to-mouth" Yang enjoys the back and forward they're having. Most people would just walk away after a few puns.
"I might need a demonstration later" He spins her around before bringing her closer to him than before.
"You might get more than a demonstration later if you play your cards right" Yang winks at him.
Alabast taps her hand with his thumb. "I did plan for the night to be Xiao 'Long~' anyway"