The Writer Games (Or Something)
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Coeur's Prompt- Crack Pairing: Blake x Roman
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C.F.'s Fill:
The Other Side of the Boot
The Faunus didn't rebel- they conquered. A century later, White Fang special agent Blake Beladonna investigates a conspiracy that threatens to topple the status quo, and the smuggler who holds the key to saving it.
Concept - An AU story of Faunus Rebellion that didn't simply rebel against enslavement or marginalization, but conquered the humans in turn and established as a status quo as bad or worse than canon as a racial oligarchy lives in fear of being overthrown. Tensions are high, and the faunus elite fear the consequences of a Human Rebellion.
Beat 1 – The Hook – Why the protagonist needs/wants romance.
Blake is a member of the White Fang, one of the two elite police/peace-keeping units of the Animal Kingdoms. The Fangs (the White Fang and Red Fang) were created to protect against human terrorism against the Faunus regime, and its primary enemy are the Hunters- the rebel-insurgent-heroes of Human legend who lead a resistance from the Grimm lands. The White Fang is responsible for policing and the protection of faunus, while the Red Fang is responsible for counter-insurgency and fighting Hunters. Despite its founding purpose, the White Fang has a reputation of refusing to target innocent humans, with a motto of 'Our Fang Bites the Guilty.' The White Fang does not target or terrorize innocent civilians. The Red Fang has fewer objections, and is an ends-justify-the-means organization. Adam is a member of the Red Fang, and believes that peace requires a certain amount of fear. Blake herself is an idealist of the White Fang, and views her role as protecting the innocent of both races, with the White Fang's victories preventing the Red Fang from ever being needed.
Blake's idealism tars her as a human sympathizer, or even a human-lover. That's a serious charge in a time where race tensions rise. Despite her denials to the contrary, Blake does seem to dismiss all the interested faunus sniffing around- and appreciate the human male form. Blake's persistent suitor is fellow White Fang member Sun, who is a bit too nice for her taste.
Beat 2 – The Meeting – The two characters meet and an attraction, or reason for one, is established.
Blake gets a mission to investigate a new subversive conspiracy. The Queen Conspiracy threatens to spark a Human Rebellion. The White Fang and Red Fang are at odds on how to address it. The Red Fang believes racial war is inevitable, and that they need to strike first. The White Fang believes new but slow-moving reforms will eventually work, and that catching Queen will buy time. Blake's mission, since she can hide her faunus heritage, is to infiltrate and find Queen.
Her lead, and key into Queen's conspiracy, is Roman Torchwick. Roman is a smuggler, and has stolen and supported the resistance before. He's also eager to save his own neck, and is willing to cut a deal since he was captured. Blake is given a leash of sorts- a means to kill Roman remotely if he misbehaves or rebels- and the two begin their undercover mission.
Beat 3 – Conflict Point 1 – Wherein the protagonist realises they should not be together, as it conflicts with their goal/dream/beliefs.
Blake 'breaks out' Roman, and does tasks to win the trust of the resistance. Though she's nominally in control, it's soon clear that her leash has little use- Blake won't kill Roman so easily, and so can't keep him in line with threats. Roman is rude, condescending, and makes light of her age, inexperience, and idealism. Many of Roman's 'tasks' are to prove a point by making Blake look at the underside of the faunus kingdom- of exploited or ignored Humans- rather than the romanticized vision Blake has.
Despite Roman's banter, he is attractive- and he knows Blake sees watches for more than just security. Roman taunts her with her literature and teases her by making a show, flustering Blake even as he runs her up the walls. Blake is embarrassed, even as Roman annoys her, but also even as Roman's experience and leading her around shows her things she never knew.
The reversal comes when Roman himself is aroused- and is caught by Blake. Blake teases in turn, and a more equal dynamic picks up as Blake counter-taunts Roman. There's a physical tension that both know, but neither would be foolish enough to embrace.
Beat 4 – Raising the stakes – Wherein the two characters are bound together, despite the conflict. They accept their love/relationship/attraction.
Blake and Roman get into the Resistance, and the Hunters. The canon cast of Beacon provides most of them, and the Teams are there and they all have their sob stories. JNPR is a bunch of orphans, with Jaune being the newest (and weakest) recruit while Pyrrha is a legendary insurgent who has lost every partner she ever had. Yang and Ruby are half-faunus- even though they could fit into the kingdom, the discrimination drove away (Yang) or killed (Ruby) their mothers. Weiss gets special note- the Schnees are some of the leading human collaborators, and Weiss's presence is either a rebellion against her father's part in subjugating human workers, or proof of a Schnee-Resistance ling that's long been supported.
At the top of the tower are the teachers- and Cinder. Cinder is the unquestioned leader of the rebellion, and the most wanted human on Remnant. Not only is Cinder the full Fall Maiden- with all of the powers- but she has a devoted following amongst the hardliners of the rebellion. Practically a cult of personality, Cinder promises liberation and demands only obedience.
Cinder leads the resistance, and has ties enough with Roman to trust him about Blake. Roman is tasked (with Blake and the Teams supporting) to seize weapons and equipment. Cinder's intent is clear- revolution. Roman is the star smuggler, a hero of the resistance, and most of the younger Hunters (Blake's canon friends) look up to and admire him as a dashing rogue and rebel.
Blake takes part, needing to trace the outlines of this revolution and to get closer to Cinder. As she accomplishes missions, she gains the trust and comraderie of the Teams. Rather than blood-thirsty racist Hunters that she suspected, none of the teams are crying out for faunus blood. They oppose the regime, not the faunus- though some racists like Cardin suggest otherwise. Mostly, though, they want to be left alone- the Animal Kingdom ignores Humans for the most part, and the resistance largely springs from the crackdowns that occur when the Animal Kingdom gets nervous. Blake starts to realize that the Red Fang isn't an unwanted but possible solution- it's the cause of the continued resistance. Blake starts to question her mission, and the Fang, and wants to help the humans.
During this time, Blake and Roman are close as it actually falls on Roman to remind Blake of her mission. As people grow suspicious of their frequent alone time, they make the cover of being in a relationship- and Blake is lead by a subtly manipulative Roman into, hey, why not fake with the real thing? Blake and Roman sleep together, more mutual lust than personal attraction, and it's supposed to be over the next morning after they're 'discovered' by friends.
Blake just watches him afterwards because she has to. And the follow-up sex later is just keeping the cover, or stress relief from a long mission.
Beat 5 – Conflict Point 2 – The relationship looks good, all is working, but there is niggling doubt. The conflict continues to gnaw away at them, it's a false happiness.
Blake and Roman have a physical relationship that runs into a problem when Roman approaches her for a personal favor. He wants one person to escape the upcoming White Fang crackdown- but he needs to rescue her from prison first. Blake, Roman, and others take part in a jailbreak of Hunters, who will rolled up in the ensuing crackdown. In the course of it they have to disable the collars that would blow them up, and Roman gets his collar released as well. It's a dangerous move, but a risk Blake is willing to take… and then Blake meets Roman's real partner, Neo.
Neo is Roman's partner, and lover, and the ambiguity of what they have with each other- if they actually love each other- bugs Blake because it makes Neo an unknown. Roman doesn't taunt her, but definitely teases her by playing ambiguous. Neo, however, makes clear she intends to reclaim her place- and Blake finds herself continuing her physical relationship with Roman even as Neo does the same. There's jealousy, and rivalry, as Blake realizes she's- gasp- starting to have feelings with the witty, clever, and attractive man- who, for good points, has given her experience and a new perspective.
Neo and Blake's rivalry continues, even as there's a subplot of suspicion for a traitor amongst the Hunters. Blake dodges suspicion as long as she hides her ears, but it's a tension raiser. It comes to a climax- along with the Neo and Blake rivalry- when it's discovered that Neo is the traitor. Neo tries to kill Blake to keep her from spilling the secret, not knowing that Blake is on her side, and they fight- and to Blake's surprise, Roman intervenes and sides with her rather than Neo. Roman is torn, and apologetic, but kills Neo to save Blake.
Grateful to be alive, and wanting to comfort Roman, Blake and Roman have passionate survival sex. When Blake dares kiss Roman after it's over, Roman returns it.
Free, trusted, and feeling safe with Roman, Blake has desires of defecting, even as she knows it's not possible. The morning after, they prepare themselves for their next mission, which is to be the time they betray Cinder and invoke the White Fang.
Beat 6 – The Black Moment – It all goes wrong, all hope is lost. The relationship seems doomed.
The mission goes awry from the start. The White Fang appears to arrest them as plan… except that the sabotage that Blake and Roman were to have prepared doesn't go off. The resistance scatters the White Fang in sight, which reveals the Red Fang laying in wait, waiting in ambush for Cinder.
Because Cinder's powers as a Maiden are so immense, the Red Fang brings in overwhelming firepower. Collateral damage is immense, even before the killer robots that consider any human a target are released, and it's a blood bath. The Red Fang is indiscriminate as it seeks to kill Cinder and end her rebellion, much to Blake's horror but Cinder's delight. Cinder's plan for a Human Rebellion entails getting the Red Fang involved, and to start an atrocity that will spark a general uprising against the faunus oligarchy. This is exactly what Blake was supposed to prevent… and exactly what happened.
And it's Roman's fault. As the Hunters and students try to fight the Red Fang and end the massacre, Blake sees Roman slip away and to Cinder's side- and realizes it must have been him who sabotaged her sabotage. The betrayal is further compounded when Roman reveals her race, and her heritage- making her a priority target for Cinder's hardliners.
Blake flees into the chaos, and finds the last remnants of the White Fang, led by Sun. To her surprise, and amazement, the White Fang aren't fighting the Hunters- they're fighting the Red Fang, to protect the innocent humans. As she rejoins her comrades, RWBY and JNPR stumble across her as well- angry at her betrayal, but more angry at the massacre. Seeing the White Fang opposing it stuns them, and Blake is able to broker a cease-fire and common cause as she points to the real enemies- Cinder (for intending this) and the Red Fang (for doing it). With her canon team being the first to believe her, the White Fang and non-hardline Hunters join forces. They're still overwhelmed, though, and the only chance to end it lies with taking the fight to either the Red Fang or Cinder.
Thanks to her powers as a Maiden, Cinder beats the Red Fang herself, setting herself up as a messiah figure for the surviving humans. Adam is the last faunus standing- and in his own way he believes that killing Cinder is necessary to save as many humans as possible by averting a rebellion- but he is crushed. Blake brings the White Fang and her friends against Cinder, and Roman, to call her out and bring her to justice. Cinder responds by calling upon her loyalists, and final battle begins.
Final battle ends when Cinder falls- from a backstab from Roman. Despite (or because?) of a battle-field confrontation with Blake, Roman switches sides- and ensures that when Cinder falls, the last thing she sees is Blake. Blake feels a rush of power, and passes out.
Beat 7 – Resolution – Obstacles overcome, romance achieved, or tragic ending.
Blake wakes up in the smuggler quarters with Roman, who lays it out. Roman was part of a long game with the faunus regime. His goal wasn't to sabotage the rebellion- it will always reform- but it was to steal the powers of the maiden from Cinder. He'd been intending to use Neo, but circumstances happened. Everything else, though- it was a means to stop Cinder.
Roman's a hard guy to place- neither a hero or The Villain, neither a traitor or a double agent. He's a free spirit, and freer now that he's upheld his part of the bargain. Cinder is gone, his leash is removed, and he'll disappear soon enough. The Hunters will retreat to the Grimm Lands once again- occasionally waging resistance, emerging to defend the humans if the Animal Kingdom attacks- but the threat of a race war is gone for the moment. And Blake's come away with quite the prize- the powers of the Maiden, a farewell gift from him to her. With it, she can have the strength to remake the world into a better one, just like she wanted- not have to lie and trick like he did.
Despite her mixed feelings, Blake and Roman have a final sexual encounter, a bit more tender than the rest. Their mission together has come to an end- and though words like 'love' never pass between them, there's a little reluctance before they go. Roman leaves with a sincere compliment- and stealing the ribbon she used as a disguise in exchange for leaving her with the powers of the Maiden. Roman parts by telling her she looks better when she doesn't hide her ears, and they part.
Blake returns to the White Fang a heroine. Her mission was a success- even before she became a Maiden- and because of her there are tentative contacts from her friends the Hunters. The Hunters are reaching out, passing on information of corrupt or abusive government officials- and the White Fang believes that they could further lower tensions, and maybe even reach a detente, by bringing these abusive persons to justice. With the power of a Maiden at their side, a force for reform begins to emerge
It's a busy time ahead, and Blake has final memories of Roman as reports of his activity emerge. Content to focus on her duties rather than him, Blake moves on and considers Sun's invitation for dinner.
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Coeur's Impression:
Hmm, it's not bad - like C.F. says it misses a chance to explore the AU more, but that's fine and something you'd do in execution. In this case, you can just say it's something to explore in the full version, but it wasn't important to plot.
Anyway, I liked a lot of the angles, I think the only thing that felt weak to me was the romance itself - and not the premise, but the emotions, maybe because it was described here in very passive tense, or distant tense, rather. Maybe it would have been more immersive in the interim.
I'd have just like to see a bit more emotion from each of them, maybe a little dependence - after all, they're both in a catch-22 situation, and while sure - Roman has a plan to get out, he can't show that, or he'll be rumbled. I'd also have liked to see a moment where Blake threatens him with the collar - maybe even a few. But early on he capitulates, since he doesn't know her well enough... but at some point (maybe beat 4 ) he refuses, and moves up to take hold of her. Hell, it could be the first sex.
So she is nervous and angry about something - threatens the collar, he argues - she says she'll do it! He grabs her by the shoulders and shouts "do it then!" - Something snaps, they grab each other - make out, collar forgotten as they have sex.
You know, just something to make the collar into a symbol, a symbol of the control she initially has over him, and that same control which she starts to lose (a metaphor for her convictions) over the course of the story.
but these are niggling ways to improve it. :)
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C.F.'s Reflection:
A short one. Proving that it is possible... if I try really, really hard and keep to some vague outline like the beat structure.
The ending was a bit too complex, and got away from me. I wanted a Roman betrayal gambit, which would ultimately put him on the 'good' side after he back-stabbed Cinder, and give Blake a reason to care, but I couldn't think of it.
I don't think this is particularly romantic. More physical than anything else, with only an undercurrent of affection- but not enough to change alliances. Which is alright- this is about a physical relationship, rather than an emotional romance or True Love. Blake is supposed to grow up in various ways thanks to Roman- mentally, physically, maturity- but short summaries and meh arcs only go so far. I thought about trying to have Roman be part of secret conspiracy plan, and fall for Blake for reals in the process of seducing her, but it was too tough come up with, let alone describe, and would have been a mess.
Kind of feel I wasted the AU aspect. Like, I needed it, but I would have rather wrote a different story. (Though I liked the idea of Beacon being a sort of refugee haven in the outskirts, protected from Grimm by the last hunters.) May hit it again from a different angle later on- this 'The faunus didn't rebel, they conquered' is an AU angle I've wanted to hit or give for awhile, but Coeur's so busy with work and his fics that I've yet to give it to him.
Meh overall. Plenty of 'fill in whatever you feel is missing' space, at least.
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Special Note:
Not really an apology, more of an explanation. There were more Valentines week fills to come, but Coeur came down with a case of 'has a life,' 'has work,' and 'just plain sick.' He intends to make up for his when he has the time... whenever that is.
Until then, some other fills from me that have been dangling. This one was the first, deliberately crack pairing for Valentines week before I did Forbidden.
Please enjoy, share your thoughts, and be patient for when Coeur does his. The last one is sure to be the best for laughs.