Momentum Transfers

Chapter 3

One of the really annoying things about Beacon, Oregon, is that cell phone signal is persistently, inexplicably unreliable at the most inconvenient of times. No matter the provider, no matter where you are at; sometimes, cells just can't call out or get through. This was one of those times, and it had surpassed the territory of inconvenient to downright nerve wracking.

"Come onnnn," Yang groaned, phone pressed to her ear. "Come on, Ruby."

"I'm sorry. The person you are trying to reach-"

"Screw you!" Yang shouted into the heedless mouthpiece. She retained enough control to not chuck the device across the parking lot.

"Woah. Easy, tiger."

Yang spun on her heel, eyes clapping onto a familiar figure in purple and black plaid.

"Blake!"

Blake blinked slowly in confirmation.

"Blake, I need an axe and a vehicle - also, do you know where the graveyard is? GPS isn't working on my phone right now-"

"Hold on, that's a lot to unpack all at once?" Blake started, her amber eyes both a little bewildered and amused.

"No time for unpacking," Yang exclaimed, shaking her head rapidly. "I need a yes or a no! Cuz I gotta go, I gotta go right now!"

Blake opened her mouth, shut it, shrugged, and gestured for Yang to follow her, leading the way down the steps.

"Well, come on then," Blake droned when Yang didn't move fast enough. Yang snagged her journal off the porch rail and stumbled after the other girl, right as Blake rounded the corner of the shop.

There, in all its glory, was the aging golf cart that Uncle Qrow kept around for his employees to run errands on the property. Yang had yet to drive it yet, because it was typically in the possession of Jaune, or Blake. She hesitated briefly when Blake slid into the driver's seat, pushing her ushanka back out of her eyes before giving Yang an expectant look. Blake patted the passenger seat.

"So why are we rolling up on the graveyard with axes?" Blake asked as Yang got over her confusion, hopping into the passenger side. The blonde was still clutching the journal, and sandwiched it under a thigh for safe keeping.

"Uh – look, you don't have to go? I can drive, you know?" Yang protested a little, making a steering motion with her hand.

Blake stared at her pointedly.

"Wow, really?" Blake asked, oozing sarcasm.

Yang glared, pretending to rotate the wheel while flipping the other girl off.

"Incredible," Blake observed dryly. "So where are we going?"

"Ok, smartass," Yang started, as Blake backed the golf cart out of employee parking. "I gotta go rescue my sister from a potential vampire date in the freakin graveyard. Hence, the need for axes; and I have it on good authority that you are well supplied in them."

Blake glanced her way as the little golf cart zoomed over the gravel, its tires kicking rocks over the grass.

"Look. I don't really know you well enough yet for us to be hiding bodies in woods together, cowgirl," Blake said.

Yang snorted, brushing gold locks from her eyes.

"Kay, talking about a lot to unpack there. "

"I'm just saying," Blake smirked, cocking her head a little. "You can't go axing every person in Beacon you suspect is a vampire or some other cryptid, ok? Because most of the population here? All around, we're pretty sus. And even IF someone secretly is the creature from the black lagoon, it doesn't mean that they're chowing down on your little sister."

"Alright, I get it," Yang grumbled, shaking her head. "I get it. I need evidence."

"What's this supposed vampire date's name? Maybe I know them?" Blake offered. The golf cart jolted as they ramped over a bump in the driveway without slowing down; Yang had to give it to the other girl, she had a lead foot at least.

"Coco," Yang muttered. "Who names their kid Coco? Vampires. Friggin Count Chocula up in here-"

"Who?" Blake interrupted, making a face. "There is nobody named Coco around here. What is she, a summer local?"

"Why would I know that, Blake?"

"You're right," Blake drawled, her lip twitching. "I'm clearly expecting too much of you."

Yang's eyes widened incredulously.

Oh REALLY.

"Listen, you and that ewok hat can take a hike! Do you wanna fight? Cuz I only need one arm to kick your ass," Yang insisted, shaking her fist 'threateningly'.

"Tch, don't threaten me and my ewok hat with a good time, Texas Ranger," Blake laughed. It was low, pretty laugh, that was actually kind of rare. Yang could definitely stand to hear more of it. "You and your little cowgirl bootsies are way out of your league."

Yang puffed up. One does not talk smack another woman's boots, for that is one of the gravest insults imaginable in the sovereign nation of Texas.

"My little cowgirl bootsies are gonna make you taste last week's maple syrup, EH, pancake eater! Why don't you go blow some fat vape clouds, ya backwoods livin, lipring-havin, Pabst swillin, hipster-"

Blakes amber eyes widened in mock insult as she swerved around a big stick in the road.

"How dare you call me a hipster! Hipsters appropriated our culture!

"Sorry, I can't hear you over all that freakin purple plaid, Hozier!" Yang hooted.

"At least I'm not afraid to say fuck like a fucking adult! Go build another wall, you goofy fucking yeehaw!"

"TAKE ME TO CHURCH!" Yang belted suddenly at the top of her lungs. "I'LL WORSHIP LIKE A DOG AT THE THRONE OF YOUR LIIEEES-"

"COUNTRY ROAAADS, TAKE ME HOOOME!"

Yang swiveled towards the other girl in outrage.

"That isn't Texas, that's West Virginia!"

Blake's eyes widened in victory, her pale face bright.

"What's the freakin difference, Yang?!"

Yang scoffed aloud, pressing her hand to her chest at the sheer audacity.

"How DARE you compare us to West Virginia!"

"I'm not! I wouldn't want to insult West Virginia that way!"

Yang gasped, before her eyes narrowed menacingly.

"M'k. When I'm done stomping vampires? It's on."

Blake glared back at her briefly, before swerving back onto the road. They had finally reached the asphalt leading into town, and were blazing along at the cart's impressive twenty miles per hour max. Someone had definitely tampered with the governor at some point.

"Oh shi- yea. Yea it's on, cowpoke. You better watch out."

Yang chuckled darkly.

" You better watch out, since you're, ya know, actually driving."

Blake flipped her off, both hands firmly on the steering wheel and a wry smile on her face. Yang grinned, before forcing her own eyes back onto the road. She was glad it was pretty dark under the trees, actually; because her cheeks were just a little bit too warm.

….

Yang and Blake did not make any pit stops to pick up axes, stakes or any other sort of vampire hunting accouterments on their way to the graveyard. This was largely due to the fact that Blake was packing two canisters of bear mace already, and insisted that if whatever threat they were dealing with was impervious to bear mace, then they'd need to actually just go get her brothers for backup. Yang found this logic hard to argue with, and was honestly hoping that they would just pass Ruby and Coco on their way there, considering the pair had to be on foot. They did not see them anywhere, further rousing Yang's suspicions.

The Beacon area graveyard lay on the outskirts of the west end of town, a little ways south of Schnee manor's hill. It looked like most graveyards, tombstones, mausoleums, monuments and all, with a few balding trees and an iron fence enclosing it. The girls pulled up to the graveyard at precisely six thirty pm.

There was no one in sight. Yang hopped out of the golf cart before Blake had even come to a full stop, bear mace sticking out of the back of her jeans shorts pocket, journal in hand. Blake pulled the keys from the ignition and followed.

The gates to the graveyard were chained shut. The joint apparently closed up right at six, according to the posted sign always warned against trespassing after dark, and claimed the fine for graverobbing was five hundred dollars per disturbed grave. Yang could feel her nerves ramping up as she started looking for a way to climb over. She cursed.

"Is there another way in?" Yang asked, anxiety coating her voice. Blake nodded, biting her lip subconsciously. Yang found her gaze pulled to the motion.

Woa, now is not the time.

"Yea. Hang on," Blake skirted left, her converses crunching over the leaves and dry summer grass. "There's a portion of the fence that's been ripped open for years."

"That's not ominous," Yang hummed, trailing after the other girl.

"Right? But we've been using it to sneak in and have secret benders since before the dawn of time," Blake said quietly, her voice dropping.

"So it is possible Ruby is just at a weird hipster party right now?" Yang asked, keeping her head down. She had never been very good at being sneaky. She was the Rose-Xiao Long household expert in distractions, not subterfuge. "And that I'm completely off base here?"

"Honestly? Not really," Blake shook her head. "If there was a party in Beacon graveyard tonight, one of my friends would be throwing it. Nobody goes on solo dates here. Whatever this girl is up to? It's genuinely sus."

Yang frowned at the implication, but focused as they passed an old oak tree which concealed the ripped open segment of the graveyard. The bars bulged outwards and apart; as if something had torn its way out, not in.

Sharing a brief, apprehensive look, the girls slipped between the bars, keeping an eye out for vampires or other graveyard lurkers. The sun wouldn't fully set until near eight pm, but it was still hard to see in the twilight shadows cast by the mountains and rocky hills that encircled the valley. Yang was torn on whether to start calling for her sister or to silently search.

A noise. Blake's head pivoted towards it instantly, bear mace in hand as she ducked behind a tombstone, waving for her to do the same. Yang scooted behind a mausoleum, trying to enter the headspace necessary to pass her stealth check. There was silence.

Then, another noise, to the right. Yang tried to piece together just what it was, when something red and fluffy tickled her cheek. She leapt away, book raised menacingly, ready to concuss.

A little red fox was perched on the mausoleum's roof, following her movements with milky blue eyes. Yang hesitated, lowering the journal.

"Awwww. Hey little guy," she cooed quietly. The fox cocked its head. "Shh, we're being sneaky ok?"

"Yang, quit talking to yourself," Blake whispered, still crouching. "There's something out there."

"Yea, it's this handsome fella, isn't it? He is so handsome, yes he is-"

The fox giggled. Yang fought the urge to squeal.

"Oh my goodness, he can laugh."

"What are you talking about," Blake hissed, waving her hand broadly at the mausoleum. "There's nothing there."

Yang glanced at Blake, then back at the giggling fox, her concern mounting. The fox yawned cheerfully, his fluffy tails undulating in the evening air; there were now five fluffy tails, whereas before there had only been one.

"Uh huh," Yang nodded slowly. "I see."

Blake sniffed, before looking over in Yang's direction again.

"Are you eating something?"

"Nope. That would be this guy," Yang continued to stare. Instead of a fox with too many tails, there was now what was potentially a magical furry, perched on a mausoleum and chowing down on a rice bowl. He looked like Beacon's resident high school kid that wore fox ears and a tail to school, only they were actually real. He grinned cheekily at her and offered her some rice.

Yang questioned if she had somehow been exposed to hallucinogens as she stared at the proffered rice bowl.

"Um. No thank you?"

The furry kid shrugged. Blake had come closer to the mausoleum, looking seriously freaked as she glanced rapidly about them.

"Are you seeing all of these creepy lights?"

"No, are you seeing the fox furry eating out of a rice bowl?" Yang countered.

The furry kid laughed at that description, kicking his bare feet, his tails waving about. Blake's eyes widened at the description.

"The wha- ok,nope, we're going," Blake grabbed Yang's wrist and spun away from the mausoleum.

"No, hey! I still need to find Ruby!" Yang protested, digging her feet in and pulling herself free.

"Yang, I'm sorry, we'll find her, but we need to go get help first," Blake insisted.

"I thought that's what the bear mace was for?!"

"Bear mace doesn't do anything against kitsunes!" Blake tossed her hands up in frustration.

The fox furry beamed at them, waving. Yang paused, processing what Blake had said; instead of interrogating her on how she knew about kitsunes and what worked on them, Yang opened her journal instead, remembering what Ruby had read earlier. After struggling a little, she found the page and started reading rapidly.

"Kitsune lore originates in Japan, their native foothold in physical reality. They are fox spirits, in many ways similar to entities found the world over. (yokai, fae, djinn, nunnehi, menehune, etc) Beacon has at least one kitsune in residence, but considering they are master illusionists and classified as level five tricksters, then who knows just how many are actually running about? Still, the guy we do know about calls himself Fox. Because for some reason, he thinks that's funny. Despite his crap sense of humor, he isn't actually malicious; but he is a nosey little shit. You will run into him in the middle of some crisis or another eventually, if you stick around long enough. He gets bored. Just be polite and offer him some sake or wine from the liquor store; he might even help you out."

Further Notes: DO NOT ANTAGONIZE HIM. Not unless you want to end up trapped in a dimensional bubble for up to a week. Trust me, it's not worth it.

There was a drawing beneath these notes, of an angry, spiky stick figure trapped in a bubble in the forest; three other stick figures were standing about the outside of the bubble, question marks hanging over their heads.

"Sooo, uh. Fox, right?" Yang started, shutting the journal. 'Fox' perked up, a curious look on his face as he smiled.

"Yea?" he chirped.

"Sweet Modest Mouse," Blake cursed, jumping back when she finally laid eyes on him. Apparently, whatever magic he'd been using to conceal himself from her had dropped. He waved his fingers laconically; each one had little black claws instead of fingernails.

"Sorry kitty cat," he chuckled. "My bad."

Blake looked genuinely nervous, her bottle of mace raised uselessly as she shot Yang a distressed look. Yang scooted between the two, trying to prevent a potential bubbling incident.

"So ah. What's up, man?" Yang prompted. "Whatcha doin out here? Just chillin?"

"I live here. What are you two dinguses doing out and about?" he laughed, laying back on the mausoleum roof. "It's dangerous at night."

"Oh you know, just dinging around," Yang laughed as Fox smirked knowingly. "Um, I hear that you're a sake guy? Got a particular brand you like best?"

"I see," he squinted, but his smile didn't diminish. "What are you after, huh?"

Yang hesitated before taking a shot in the dark. Despite the manner of his appearance, and the fact that he was a literal trickster spirit, Yang got the feeling that he was a probably decent guy; just, you know, really mischievous.

"Alright, I'll be honest. I'm looking for my sister and I think a vampire kidnapped her," Yang continued, raising her hand. "But Ruby is yay tall, big silver eyes, dark short hair, and just a really sweet person? I'm actually really, really scared for her, because I thought she'd be here, and she isn't. And I'm not sure where else to look."

Fox cocked his head, ears twitching as he listened to some distant thing. He tapped his chin, sitting up fully to appraise the pair of them.

"Hmm. Well for starters, you're completely off the mark. A vampire doesn't have your little sister," he said, hopping down silently. All around them, little blue and gold lights floated, softly luminescent in the indigo air. "But it's not your fault for thinking that. She likes to play games, too."

Fox rounded the mausoleum corner and the girls cautiously followed. He paused in a clump of thick grass and drew a circle in the middle of the air; indigo sparks followed his finger, connecting in a ring that hovered over the grass.

"Go through here, and you'll get as close as I can get you to the heart of her kingdom without giving her a heads up. Oh, and I'd take some of that cast-iron on the ground along with you too. Just in case something nasty is lurking around."

Yang looked back and noticed several pointed metal bars left over from the fence lined against the mausoleum wall. She glanced at her book; perhaps she should take a lesson from Ruby and start wearing hoodies for the big, convenient pockets? Or actually start carrying a backpack or something useful. Blake, who had been watching Yang deliberate between 'book' or 'metal stick' finally rolled her eyes and snatched two rods off the wall. Fox smirked.

"I'm sorry, but why is getting into a creepy graveyard portal the best course of action here?" Blake huffed.

"Do you have a better idea?" Yang asked slowly.

"Sure. Literally anything else," Blake insisted, her tone dry as the sahara. "We can't trust this guy, he's bad news."

"Oh, that's real rich," Fox yawned loudly. He had teleported back onto the mausoleum and was throwing a shining rubber ball into the air and catching it. "Whatever you say, Belladona."

Blake glared up at the kitsune, inhaling slowly.

"Hey, Blake, it's cool. You really don't have to come with me," Yang gave her most disarming smile. "Hopping into mystical furry foxholes is kind of a tall order. Thanks for all the help. I seriously won't blame you if you wanna bounce."

Blake stared at her as if she'd suddenly grown a second head. There was a long pause in the little graveyard before Blake finally spoke again.

"Yang. You aren't ditching me to go jump into a portal to the moon or where the hell ever all by yourself. We'll go together. But I'm just warning you - if we get dumped into the vacuum of space, or the bottom of the ocean? I reserve the right to say I told you so."

"You wouldn't be able to say anything at all in those environments," Fox snickered.

"Dude, I swear-"

"Thanks for the assist, Fox!" Yang interrupted, grinning and waving. "I'll bring you something by this week ok?"

"Mhm," he hummed, still playing his game of catch. "Watch yourselves in there. Oh, and don't eat or drink anything they offer you."

Yang briefly wondered what would have happened if she'd eaten from the rice bowl, before sharing a last with Blake. Then, she turned, and leapt.