An Unexpected Surprise

RWBY is owned by Rooster Teeth, and the dearly departed Monty Oum, and any other series or products I may mention are owned by their respective owners and not myself or anyone I happen to know (to the best of my knowledge anyway).

Roman Torchwick was having a lot of issues with the woman in front of him, and mostly because she looked very familiar. Except he didn't remember the original ever taking the time to wave a gun in his face as he was usually too busy trying to do a job to actually need to be coerced into doing something.

"Mister Torchwick... judging from your reaction we have either met before or... wait..."

The woman in front of him was the spitting image of Cinder Fall, and it terrified him. She had the same mannerisms, almost the same face, the lavender eyes were a definite change of pace, but overall this woman was actually nicer to look at than Cinder. Most of that was because she wasn't trying to keep him off balance by throwing her false charm at him. Though her being here raised more than a few issues in his eyes.

Cinder's twin was eyeing him with a critical eye, but she lowered the gun with the subtle sound of the hammer being put back into its original position, and seeing the flick of the safety toggle made him visibly relax. However he still kept his hands up, and by extension Melodic Cudgel as well just in case he wasn't going to be in a situation he couldn't talk his way out of.

The woman with lavender eyes spoke again "Did you look into the Eye?"

Roman blinked in surprise, "Huh? You mean did I look at the hunk of rock? Of course I did."

"No, did you look into the Azure Eye?"

Roman Torchwick noted a few subtle hints at danger coming from the woman's mannerisms, but he was looking for tells. Something, anything to tell if she was lying about paying him or hiding something for when he turned this conversation to his advantage later.

"I guess...?"

The woman with lavender eyes ended up staring at him, far longer than he would have liked. Though there were a lot of subtle mannerisms this woman had that Cinder didn't. Her left eye had a minor tic in the muscle below her lower eyelid, her breath hitched when he last spoke, and her weight shifted back onto her left foot which was slightly behind her other foot. The other good thing is that she wasn't anywhere near having a proper combat stance so if things went bad now he could probably get a good punch in before leaving. Though the shift in her posture suggested she was surprised, and possibly apprehensive about his answer to her question.

"Mister Torchwick... what did you see?"

"What?"

The woman moved forward and took a hold of Melodic Cudgel, gently guiding it and his hands in front of him before she straightened his collar, and brushed his shoulder off lightly.

"The last person that looked into the Azure Eye went insane according to historical accounts kept by my family, but that was because he wanted the gift it could bestow so badly he shed blood to take it."

Roman shifted his weight onto his left foot in preparation for... something. He was always ready for something, especially with just how eerily similar this woman was to Cinder, and he wasn't about to let her fry him alive.

There was also a nagging feeling in his gut that he should spill the beans. So he took a breath and did exactly that.

What he expected and what he received were two very different things. He had expected this Cinder lookalike to act just like her, probably even roast him alive when he was busy talking. What he ended up with was a woman standing there casually observing every little mannerism he made, occasionally nodding or asking a polite question.

"Is that all Mister Torchwick?"

"Yes..."

The woman stared at him for a moment before holding out a hand toward the two woman near the Bullhead.

"You two, bring the Lien.", she then turned her attention to Roman, "You though, I think I wouldn't mind offering you a little business venture. Although I would have to introduce you to an old friend of mine..."

Roman Torchwick was dumbfounded.

He had gone from expecting a massive payday, which he did get deposited into five of his offshore accounts disguised as an investment into his more legal business ventures intended to launder his ill-gotten profits, but now?

He was sitting in the office of Professor Ozpin, the headmaster of Beacon Academy, and he was being incessantly questioned about his past exploits. His past criminal ties, and business practices were never being explicitly attacked or written down, or even recorded on a Scroll. What did happen however was at the end of it all Professor Ozpin asked a very unusual question.

He asked him if he believed in the old legends, the myths even.

Roman Torchwick gave him the only answer that he could.

"I don't know how to answer that. I mean I'd believe in them if I saw it, but... to be honest I've never held much stock in anything I couldn't sell."

Roman watched Professor Ozpin take a sip from his coffee mug with what he considered to be Ozpin's 'default - humbly holding all of the cards look' from what he managed to figure out about the somewhat enigmatic headmaster of Beacon Academy. Then he switched his attention back to the woman who brought him here, a woman he only just recently found out was called 'Violet' by listening to a conversation they had in Ozpin's office, of course he made it look like he wasn't interested in what they were saying.

Though he did notice that Violet was a lot more playful than the woman he kept thinking of, this Cinder. He didn't know why but the woman set him on edge, but Violet on the other hand seemed to soothe whatever distress he had in Ozpin's office as they questioned him. So eventually he decided to ask a few questions of his own.

"So Professor Ozpin... just why is it you're taking my being here so... well, for lack of a better term? I mean I'm not exactly someone you want to be seen with in public without being suspected of something criminally inclined by Vale's police force."

Ozpin looked at him for a moment, and then looked to Violet, and Roman watched as she gave Ozpin a non-committal shrug and a smirk.

"Well Mr. Torchwick, it may have something to do with the fact that a man in my position needs... unconventional... allies in every aspect of society. You are also most certainly one of the more... colorful of choices given what I know about you."

"I see...", Roman took yet another quick glance at Violet and gestured with his head and eyes, "...And what's the deal with her exactly?"

Ozpin looked at Violet again before answering, "Let's just say Miss Falls is an acquaintance of convenience and necessity, considering the fact that a certain heirloom you managed to secure has... certain peculiarities that we both don't want to see misused."

"Oookaaaaay..., so what you mean to say is that when I looked at that overgrown paperweight, I wasn't hallucinating anything I saw?"

"No, and for everyone's sake don't tell anyone what you saw."

"I saw my own death, and a lot of Grimm, no offense but I think I'd rather take my chances trying to live through that in the event it is going to happen."

Ozpin looked at Roman for a moment and then spoke with the recipient obviously being Violet, "He's hired, assuming you can convince him to take a job more beneficial to Remnant."

Violet smiled before walking up behind Roman in a manner that she shouldn't have in high heels and leaned down next to his ear before speaking, "I don't think that will be a problem Ozpin, but it's something that this less than gentlemanly thief will need to discuss with me over dinner."

A couple hours later, fairly close to 4 AM...

Roman woke up feeling great, better than great actually. He did notice something was very wrong, like the fact he wasn't waking up in his bedroom but in the back of a luxury car heading toward the airfield, and the fact he woke up leaning against a soft and warm object. Taking a look to his right he all but froze upon seeing exactly what, or more accurately who, he was leaning on. Violet, he was leaning on Violet, and she was quite awake and aware of that fact.

He half expected her to do something Cinder would have most likely done from what he remembered, which would have probably ended in his being burned alive, or something just as horrible in the end. Though he was surprised when she just looked at him for a moment before giving him a warm half-smile that gracefully curled her lips on one side before gently nudging him on the shoulder, and the intent was quite clear to him. He straightened himself so that he was sitting upright once again, but he wasn't exactly prepared for what she did next.

Violet looked at Roman with a sidelong glance after he sat upright once again, and then she spoke softly, "You know Roman, I think you rather enjoyed having an expensive dinner with the lady you stole from."

Roman cleared his throat, "I think I technically stole from the Museum of Vale, but I get what you mean. I did enjoy the meal, but I think I would have enjoyed not having to deal with Professor Ozpin and his questions."

He hesitated for a moment before asking, "How did you meet Ozpin anyway?"

Violet gave off an almost girlish giggle before answering, "My mother was a friend of his and I just happened to inherit an item that drew his interest."

Putting two and two together didn't always end up as four for Roman, but that was because it was a metaphor.

"Let me guess, a certain little gem I happened to purloin?"

"Oh, aren't you a smart one!"

Roman's eyes narrowed, "You know, usually I'm the one being the witty half of a conversation."

"Oh? You mean you have wit, or is it just a half of one?"

Roman closed his eyes and exhaled as he realized that she was enjoying this, as if the smile she had on her lips wasn't enough of an indication.

"You're enjoying this aren't you Violet?"

Violet let out a laugh and said, "Of course I am, but are you?"

Roman looked her in the eyes and said, "You're a lot like a woman I used to work for."

Violet's eyes widened in surprise and then the next thing Roman knew, he tasted blood just after hearing a loud smacking sound, and feeling a stinging pain across his face.

That and Violet wasn't smiling anymore meaning he had crossed a line he shouldn't have, but he didn't know that part.