A/N: Let me just say right off the bat that this is written in a totally different style than my usual. It's even different from my sadder, angstier stories. This is a new twist - the slightly-psychotic (?) style.

It was very fun to write this way. I loved it. I hope you will too, despite the nature of the things happening. I guess I should put a warning for abuse/torture.

Incredible cover art made by jen-iii on tumblr! She's such an amazing artist, awesome person, and sweet friend and made this art just for this story! Please check her blog out!

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY.

Sanguine Syrup

Neo got everything she wanted.

Roman was always so good to her.

He'd steal the sweetest candies for her, rob any cafe for their treats, snatch ice cream cones out of children's hands if it came to that.

All so she could have whatever she desired.

She wasn't greedy often, but every once in a blue moon, there'd appear something she absolutely must have.

Which was how she came into possession of Weiss Schnee.

She'd first taken an interest in the girl after the White Fang rally, when Roman had taken off to battle the pesky quartet of girls. He'd bitten off more than he could chew, however, and it wasn't uncommon that Neo would have to interfere and lend him a hand.

Just before their speedy departure, he'd said something that had caught her attention.

"Ladies... Ice Queen..."

That.

Neo had perked up immediately.

It'd sounded like "ice cream."

So naturally, she'd taken an interest, thought about nothing more that evening other than what it would be like to have this Ice Queen for herself. She'd implored Roman with pitiful looks, needy tilts of the head, and trembling lips.

And yes, he'd muttered curses to himself, sighed and told her, "Y'know, you really have an expensive pallet, my dear."

But after one more innocent smile, he'd caved.

It had taken a little time, and a few missions on the side of the usual work for Cinder, but he'd really pulled through for her.

And now, the Ice Queen was all hers.

She didn't know how Roman had managed to capture her, but she wasn't about to start posing questions.

She had what she wanted.

The dungeon room where Roman had tossed the girl's unconscious body was dark, all except one bright light, produced from a single naked lightbulb dangling hypnotically overhead.

Neo all but pranced about her prize, skipping and smirking widely as she inspected every inch of her still form. Roman watched a few feet away, not too keen to see what she'd do to their prisoner, but he needed to make one thing clear.

"Remember, Neo, dear. Don't kill her. I went through a lotta trouble to get this one alone, and you're lucky Cinder's letting you have her for the night, but don't get cocky. We need her alive for a ransom - leverage for Daddy. She's worth a lot of Dust. Catch my drift?"

Neo paused mid-skip to toss her head back, her wavy brown-and-pink hair flowing out behind her as she cast him a delighted smile.

A nod, and that was all he needed to see. He wasn't terribly opposed to torture, but there was something about Neo's particularly sadistic methods that he still couldn't quite stomach.

"Alright," he called to her. "Then you've got five hours. Just make sure she's still... somewhat recognizable in the end."

With that, he headed for the sole door in the room and slipped out, the slam of it echoing out behind him as he disappeared.

Now Neo had her toy all to herself.

She crouched down with impish curiosity to scan the girl.

She was lying face-down on the hard floor, skin like flawless white vanilla ice cream. When she reached down, Neo found she was cool to the touch, another thrill that made her shiver with delight.

She wanted to see more.

So she propped the girl up like a doll in her lap and removed the long-sleeved jacket that adorned the symbol of her family name, letting it drop to the floor someplace unimportant.

The girl's head rolled back, exposing her porcelain neck and shoulders, naught but a small silver necklace to obstruct the view. Neo considered yanking it off, but she let it stay, thinking it added a bit of charm, a bit of character.

One hand stayed snaked around her prize's shoulders while the other crept up Weiss' body, starting at her hip, fingers swirling in circles as they traced up her side. They passed over the hilt of her rapier – the weapon that had done her little good in lieu of Roman's ambush – and continued up to her chest.

There, at her exposed collar, Neo dug in her nails a bit, just for fun, watching the four little red lines that were left behind before they faded slowly into pink – strawberry – and then back to vanilla.

She licked her lips that had curved up into a devilish smile before dipping her head, purring silently as she breathed in the lavish scent of the heiress' perfume. Neo flicked her tongue out, dragging it in little licks over the scratch marks, as though in apology.

She tasted heavenly. Cold and hard just like ice cream.

But regrettably flavorless.

For now, anyway.

Neo knew that just a bit more pressure with her nails would draw out a delicious red syrup to better enhance the taste, and she was tempted to do it right then and there.

But she forced herself to wait.

After all, she loved to play with her food.

She pulled away to glimpse the girl's body again - perfect, unmarred.

That would be a different story by the time Neo was finished with her.

Her free hand continued its way up until her fingertips cupped the heiress' cheek, dipping into the contours of her face, the soft flesh that gave so easily beneath her touch.

She was gentle for the time being, caressing beneath the closed eyelids.

She'd failed to notice the little pink line over the girl's left eye until now. Neo really liked it. It was a sprinkle of strawberry mixed into all that plain vanilla. That was probably her favorite part of her new doll.

All the while, the wicked grin never left her face, and before long her hand went southbound once more, trailing down the heiress' throat, and she needed to appreciate how fragile it was, how easy it would be to puncture and shred apart.

But Roman had forbade her from killing, so Neo would do her best to refrain.

Of course, accidents did happen.

She'd see if she could control herself.

It'd been a while since she'd last had a toy this pretty to play with, after all, and she was bubbling with irrepressible excitement.

Her fingertips paused once more over the girl's collar, resting there, feeling the meek breath leaving her lungs. There was a slow, steady beat as well.

Boring.

Neo wanted to make it go faster, so fast it would almost explode, like a carousel spiraling out of control, off its hinges until finally-

She licked her lips, letting the girl drop back down to the floor.

She'd need help with what she had in mind.

She scurried over to the door, opening it and beckoning Roman back inside.

"What is it? I hope ya didn't already go overboard."

Neo shook her head before turning her heterochromatic gaze upward. Roman knew exactly what she wanted.

"Fine, fine..."

He heaved another sigh.

Just above the only lightbulb dangling in the low-ceiling room, there were rafters, from which several ropes hung down. Neo hadn't used them on a victim in a while, but she wanted to use them on this one.

Roman lowered the ropes as Neo went to her doll, hoisting the girl up so Roman could slip the noose of the ropes around her wrists, above her head. He made sure they were tight before pulling the girl up until her boots just barely touched the floor.

Neo observed with great interest, the way the heiress was now presented to her like a hunting trophy - an albino deer, still alive and hers for the next five hours to do whatever she pleased with.

The smile stayed on Neo's face as she turned back to Roman, and he knew that his services here were no longer required.

"Alright," he said. "But just remember; keep her alive, will ya?"

With that, he left the room once more.

Neo's full attention returned to her prize, her alluring albino deer, her beautifully helpless and pure-white cygnet.

It was time to start the fun.

But first, she needed the girl to be awake. She wanted to see what kind of expressions she'd make, hear what kind of screams she'd cry.

Neo drew her umbrella and wasted no time in revealing the blade; an ice pick, tragically perfect for piercing the Ice Queen.

The maniac grin never left her lips for a second as she plunged the sharpened tip deep into the heiress' side, over her ribs that her tied arms so graciously exposed for her.

The ensuing scream was music to her ears.

A forced awakening brought on by excruciating pain; a good way to start.

Neo watched the blood well up, running down and seeping into the light blue dress like cherry syrup.

With great self-control, she withdrew the blade and took a step back, heels clicking lightly. She watched Weiss' eyes flutter open, watched the confusion in them turn to fear and then panic.

And ultimately recognition.

There was also a bit of rage at being abject to such primitive acts of humiliation, and Neo narrowed her eyes with a challenge.

Neo pulled her blade to her lips and lapped up the sweet sanguine taste. She found that this girl's blood was some of the best she'd ever had the pleasure of tasting. It clearly wasn't shed often; it was a valuable reward that only very, very few were able to obtain.

Perhaps Neo had been the first.

She kept her eyes trained on Weiss until her gaze was met with blue.

Defiant.

How cute.

Neo wondered how long it would take to break her.

The first question of what should have been several soon came from her toy.

"What do you want from me...?" she acclaimed.

Neo gave a shrug, grinning all the while. But she wanted to stop the questions before they began; she'd woken the girl to hear her scream, not talk.

Before Weiss could continue, Neo rushed forward, controlling her blade with terrifying precision as she slid the tip beneath Weiss' chin, balancing her face. The girl flinched slightly, as much as her pride as a Schnee allowed. Neo gave a little push, feeling the skin break just a bit, until a trickle of red started to run. Weiss tried to recoil, but her bindings didn't allow it.

"I won't beg for my life, if that's what you're after."

Neo hadn't particularly cared until she'd mentioned it.

But now, part of her wanted to hear that.

She went slowly.

After all, she didn't want to ruin her plaything within the first hour. What would be the fun in that?

She started with a favorite little game of hers that consisted of making small cuts over the skin. She'd make sure they were tiny, let the aura heal them before cutting again, a little deeper each time, so they'd take longer and longer to heal.

The initial wound in Weiss' side was deep enough to still bleed, and her aura struggled to close that along with the dozens of other marks Neo proceeded to make.

She went all along the heiress' shoulder blades, circling her like a hyena. She reached her blade as far up Weiss' arms as she could go, watching the blood run down the length of her body. She repeatedly carved an X over her heart, making each impression deeper - redder.

Weiss hissed, and it was a mixture of pain and annoyance. She knew that anything she said would only be met with silence, and either way, there was little she could do to help herself.

There was also the likelihood that in speaking, she might say something this girl didn't like, which would more likely than not enhance the brutality of this torture.

So she only uttered one more thing.

"You won't get away with all of this. My team will find me. I trust them."

And that was the last thing she said – Neo made sure of it.

Everything else after that was short screams and cries of agony.

Neo spun her beloved umbrella before digging the blade into the girl's skin again. She danced around her, running a line of red all around Weiss' body, tickling with the blade before pushing in deeper and deeper.

When she stepped back to observe her work, she found Weiss coated in swirling lines of red like a candy cane. The cuts ran horizontally around her, but the blood trickled downward, connecting bloody layers in a satisfying, almost artistic pattern.

Neo ran her fingers along her blade again, licking them one by one to taste the fruits of her labor.

Despite how exquisite it was, she found that drinking too much spoiled the taste, so she kept her indulgence of the cherry syrup to a temporary minimum.

She lost track of time easily, torn between dragging this out or finishing quickly to make sure she got in everything she wanted to do. She alternated between both – sometimes brushing the blade lightly, and sometimes stabbing in.

And Weiss was torn between suppressing her screams with stubborn defiance, or relenting and giving her tormentor what she wanted. She, too, alternated between the two – sometimes she bit them back - swallowed them down forcefully - and sometimes she sent them echoing around the room in reverberating shrieks.

Neo didn't know what she liked better; when the girl let her voice out - shrill and breathless - or when she tried to act tough.

Once, Weiss' refusal to give Neo what she wanted resulted in a short-lived fit of sinister rage, and Neo drove the blade into the first wound in her side - the one that remained the largest and deepest - until Weiss screamed in agony.

She smirked, jerking the blade out and flicking the blood to the ground, having clearly displayed her dominance so there was no mistake about who was in charge here.

She watched the girl tremble in the wake of the new swell of blood down her left side.

The other smaller cuts that twisted around her body like the gnarls of thorny vines were nothing compared to the pain of the pouring hole on her ribs.

Her dress was torn all over, tattered material hanging off uselessly, and it was a miracle that the overall piece stayed in place.

And yet, Weiss doubted she'd hold onto such luck for very much longer.

Neo's smile only widened as she watched her prisoner writhe, only the tips of her boots able to touch the floor as Weiss gasped for breath that wouldn't come like she needed it to.

Just for fun, she poked the most aggravated wound again, making the blood run a little faster.

A choked gasp got tangled in Weiss' throat, thick and suffocating, and Neo frowned. She plunged her blade in deeper again until the strangled cry was set free at last, and the smile returned to her lips.

She withdrew the ice pick and glided to Weiss' front again, wanting to check on her progress.

She folded her hands behind her back, keeping herself from stabbing for the moment as she strained onto her tiptoes. She pressed an ear to Weiss' chest, listening to the turmoil inside of her, the ragged breath and pounding blood. The pulse was definitely quicker, but Neo wanted to test it further, see just how fast it could go.

Disgusted, Weiss tried to move away, but a small arm slid around her waist, keeping her in place as Neo turned her head. She bore her mismatched gaze up into Weiss' dulling one, licking a trail over her pulse and up her throat.

She'd avoided Weiss' face until now, but that was her next target.

Neo's eyes were transfixed on her scar.

She wanted to turn it from pink to red.

She wanted to mark the heiress with matching scars alllllll over.

Neo stepped back, planning where she'd start next.

Weiss lifted her head slightly, eyes glazed and hazy, pale lips parted as she heaved for breath.

Neo was about to silence whatever it was she was about to say, but she froze as she watched those pale lips curl suddenly upward.

For the first time within the past several hours, their expressions were reversed as Weiss smiled and Neo temporarily forgot how to.

The heiress chuckled as her rasping voice worked its way up her throat.

"I told you... you'd never get away with this."

And before Neo could react, the room was in chaos.

The foundation of the door crumbled beneath pounding fists and furious flames. Shouts and yells erupted all around at the unmistakable sounds of fighting.

It seemed the rescue team had arrived all too early.

Neo narrowed her eyes, her lips curling into a snarl. In a fit of frustration, she stabbed Weiss again in the same spot, tearing through her skin and clothes. Weiss bit back the scream and laughed instead, just to piss her off.

And it worked.

And had it not been for Roman rushing into the room and grabbing Neo and telling her they needed to "skedaddle", Neo would have gone for Weiss' throat next.

But she could already see the scythe arching toward them, and Neo covered Roman before they vanished into a blur of shattering color.

Neo was upset; she hadn't gotten to have her cake and eat it too.

She hadn't finished.

But for now, she told herself she could live with what she'd accomplished.

After all, it had been some of the most fun she'd had in ages.

She just vowed that next time she would finish the job.

Weiss wasn't sure for how long she endured it all.

Her wrists were bruising beneath the tightly-constricting ropes, her arms were aching as they were forced to support her weight.

She was bleeding everywhere; her captor hadn't spared her much, save her face.

She could feel her conscious slipping as the cold metal impaled her again and again.

But the second she heard the shouts of alarm from outside the room, she knew.

The knowledge that her team had come for her was what possessed her to challenge her tormentor with a daring smile and taunting tone. She was satisfied with seeing the anger in the girl's mismatched eyes, though Weiss had to admit she'd brought that final stab upon herself.

But she allowed herself to be smug as she watched the girl step back into Roman Torchwick's shadow, sending her silent declarations of hatred before the pair vanished into thin air.

Seconds later, Weiss heard the shouts of her name as Ruby burst into the room.

The instant she saw her partner, severely bloodied and limp, Ruby was filled with a boiling rage and crushing fear all at once. She swung Crescent Rose upward to slice swiftly through the ropes before letting her weapon clang to the floor.

Reaching up, she opened her arms and caught Weiss gently as she fell, frantically asking if she was alright, where it hurt most. She pressed a hand to her partner's throbbing side and shared her aura with her, telling Weiss she would be okay and that she was so so sorry she'd ever let this happen to her.

And Weiss knew she'd be alright, now that she could feel the warm, caring arms wrapped gingerly around her, a pleasantly dire contrast to what she'd suffered for the past several hours.

She reassured Ruby as much, sighing as she lost herself to the tears.

But she did have to bitterly apologize that she didn't think she'd be able to stomach the sight of ice cream for a while.

A/N: As much as I enjoyed writing from the new perspective of Neo, there's no way I could give this a bad end. Sorry, not sorry.

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