I do not own RWBY! Is it bad I've been writing more on fanfiction than on my own original work? Also for the reviewer who'd made the mention of Sun's clones being his Semblance and not Aura, I picture them as being made of Aura, hence being able to pierce Jaune's Semblance. I could be wrong, but that's just what I see it as.

Chapter 9: Ever Seen A Bird Dance? (Pt. 2)

The morning began as it usually did at Thaddeus' place. Jaune started off by trudging out of his bed and trying to push his body through its usual routine of stretches, ignoring the stiffness of his torso and the soreness of his ribs. After that, he headed to the bathroom to begin his ritual of cleaning and positivity in the mirror, before finally joining Thaddeus in the main room, the smell of eggs and bacon wafting through the apartment and causing Jaune's stomach to growl noisily.

"Someone's hungry!" Thaddeus laughed, looking cheerful as ever.

"Hey, what can I say? You're an amazing cook." Jaune ran his hand through his hair as he sat at the dining room table, pulling out his scroll as his mind started to analyze and plan.

"Preparing so early?"

Jaune grinned. "The early bird gets the worm, as they say, or in my case, gets the Dust Crystal." The younger blond tapped away at his scroll, swiping as he scratched his chin. "Out of curiosity, if you were to make a replica gem, what material would you use for it?"

Thaddeus scratched his chin as he flipped the omlette he'd been working on, thinking. "Hm...honestly, I'd probably use some cheap, low quality dust and a Dust Fusion machine. From there, just use an alchemy knife to trim and shape it to look like the real thing."

"Let me guess; Dust Fusion machines are rare, expensive, or not in use anymore?" Jaune grimaced.

"What? No, I got one lying around in my closet." Thaddeus pulled out a pair of plates and served up the breakfast food, earning a mumbled thanks from Jaune.

"I swear, ever since I met you Uncle Thaddeus, my luck's gone through the roof. If I was still back at Beacon, a Dust Fusion machine would be some impossible to acquire object. Then again, I wouldn't need it."

"I'm guessing this isn't really curiosity or hypothetical, is it?"

Jaune grinned. "How'd ya guess?"

Thaddeus gave a silly grin and poked his head. "I'm psychic. Didn't you know?"

Rolling his eyes with a smile, Jaune nodded. "Oh, right, of course. And what am I thinking of now?"

"...Tacos?"

Jaune's eyes widened. 'W-what? Are you actually psychic? You have to tell me if you're psychic! It's in the rules!"

Thaddeus laughed heartily. "Nope, just a lucky guess."

Jaune sighed deeply. "Man, I'm never going to find out what your Semblance is, am I?" His uncle just laughed and smiled once more, leaving Jaune to groan and eat his breakfast in irritation.

[Vale – Dust'n'Dusters]

Jaune always liked shopping at Dust'n'Dusters, there was something about the store that just clicked with him. Maybe it was the proprietor who always greeted him with a warm smile and a cheerful wave. Maybe it was the atmosphere, harkening to the days of cattle drives and six shooters. Or maybe it was simply that the store had some of the best prices for low quality Dust that he could think of. No matter the reason, when Jaune needed low-quality dust, or a place to fix his awesome long coat, it was Dust'n'Dusters he'd find himself.

"Howdy John!" The store owner's greeting reached Jaune's ears as he stepped foot into the wood paneled store, the faint smell of cured leather and dust reaching his nose. John Crescent was his name when he was out in public, and he even had a fake identity card to go with it. He couldn't be too careful when he was out and about; Dust only knew if his family was still searching for him, or his friends.

"Heya Bill. How's business going?" Jaune nonchalantly asked.

"Well, what with the other Dust stores getting robbed and Grimm and White Fang on the rise, pretty damn good if I do say so myself!" The owner, named Pecos Bill, was an older fellow. A friendly chap, but there was a reason he was still in business. The man was a terrifyingly good gunslinger and the dual six shooters in his belt had seen a lot of use. The store had been the target of a number of attempted robberies over the past year, but every one of them had been foiled by the unassuming man.

It was he, who taught Jaune the art of firearms, after all. He was an old friend of Thaddeus' and during his grueling, brutal training, there had been at least couple months where Jaune was over at Bill's place almost every day, learning to draw and shoot with unerring accuracy. The two had a strange friendship, one of rare conversation and little knowledge, but an understanding of the other. Sort of like how Jaune and Blake had been during Jaune's stay at Beacon.

And of course, he knew that Jaune was under a false identity, but for appearance's sake, referred to him by the false name in public. "I stopped by to pick up some Red No. 1 for a project."

"Red No. 1? You need a quality grade that low? What, you starting a bonfire or something?" Bill jokingly asked, already reaching under his counter for the requested materials.

"Nah, more like...an art project." Jaune grinned. Bill knew of Jaune's training, but nothing of Thaddeus' or Jaune's private, and illegal private activities. "I'll need...say seven vials?"

"You're a gunslinger and an artist?" Bill asked incredulously.

"I'm a mufti-talented individual. I can also cook, clean, sew and dance."

Bill whistled under his breath. "How are you not being followed by women literally every second you walk?"

Jaune gave a wry chuckle. "For all my skills and talents, I am cursed, cursed I say, with loneliness! For mine is a lonesome path." Jaune finished as hammy as he could, earning a guffaw from the older shop keeper.

"Keep it up Shakespeare, you might be able to throw acting under your resume." Bill quipped dryly.

"Shakespeare?"

"Some writer I know. Thinks he's hot shit. He's not."

"I know those types. So how much I owe you, Bill?"

"It'd be 50 Lien, but seeing how you're a frequent customer, and the best damned student I ever had, I'll knock it down to 35 Lien." Bill grinned cheekily at Jaune, who returned the smile.

"Freakin' deal." Jaune happily shelled out the Lien and shook the man's hand. "Pleasure doin' business with you Bill."

"Likewise. And don't be a stranger! My firing range is always open for you, ya know?"

Jaune paused as he started to walk out the door and gave a thoughtful look. "You know, I might just take you up on that offer soon. I need to get some practice in anyway."

[The Cuppa']

Roman sighed. His day hadn't started off well at all. First, Cinder had called him early, obviously angry about something, something involving a Nevermore? He didn't really pay it much attention, he was nursing a hangover after having another long night with his best pals Captain Morgan and Jack Daniel. Either way, Cinder had started going on about how she wanted to pluck some bird's feathers or something and he simply just made agreement noises until she hung up.

Then, he was visited by Mercury and Emerald, and that was never a treat. They overstayed their welcome, drank the rest of his damn booze (Including the 2008 Triple Oak Barreled Whiskey, the best Lien could buy!) and kept arguing amongst themselves. Apparently they were there to confirm some details about something going on Friday involving Hei Xiong, and that was another thing he dreaded. Junior was a pain in the rear and always thought too highly of himself. Sad thing was though, he was too useful to get rid of, so Roman just had to deal with the headache that came with having to deal with him.

Lastly, he was visited by his partner in crime, Neo. Who promptly teleported in, started eating ice cream, and was busy ranting about something. By the time he actually started turning into her nonstop rambling, the im-petite girl had gone through at least five boxes of her trademark food. He turned to look at her and noticed her actually...crying? Was the world coming to an end? Why did he have to get involved with Cinder in the first place? He was doing well before she came along, and was drinking less. Hell, why couldn't he have people like that blonde kid who came in the previous week as his second? The kid probably would have been a whole hell of a lot less annoying than the rest of his accursed coworkers.

[WHY HASN'T HE CALLED?! Was I too forward? Did he think I was ugly? Does he hate ice cream?!] Neo kept rambling on, only increasing Roman's already growing headache.

"Ugh...why not try calling him instead?" He muttered, trying to pay attention to the news program. Neo started to 'speak' but then stopped and looked strangely at him. "Let me guess. You forgot to exchange contact information before you left, didn't you?"

[S-shut up!] Neo tossed her spoon at Roman's head, bouncing it off of his forehead.

"Ow! Don't hit me for your stupid mistakes! I don't know what your interest in him is anyway! He's just some blonde kid, there's a ton of them in Vale. They're a dime a dozen." Roman took a swig of the cheap, store-brand whiskey he was forced to attain after the two thieves stripped him of his supply earlier.

[Of course you don't understand, you are incapable of love!]

"I am not! I'll have you know I've loved a number of women!" Roman groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose. He was falling down to Neo's level. I'm losing control of my life, aren't I? "Listen, I don't have time to argue with you over your love life. We have business this Friday, apparently. Mercury is coming to pick us up and we're going down to Junior's. Turns out he's got one of those Dust Crystals that Cinder's been so damned insistent on getting her mitts on."

[Who cares about some stupid crystal, or a stupid nightclub.] Neo pouted, crossing her arms and frowning.

Roman felt his eye develop a twitch (a common occurrence as of late) and took another swig of the alcohol. It was at least dulling the pain of his headache, so there was that. "Listen, Cinder's orders. Besides, who knows, maybe short, blond and dorky will be there."

Neo's eyes lit up (and switched positions, Roman hated itwhen she did that.) and she turned to him, practically bouncing in her seat. [You think so? No, he must be there! Fate decrees it!]

Roman shrugged and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Fate. Whatever. Just be prepared to threaten Junior so he hands the damned thing over, alright? Oh and Cinder said something about watching out for Nevermores? I didn't think they'd get this far into the city."

Neo raised an eyebrow. [Nevermores? What? How drunk were you?]

"Drunker than I've ever been, but that's besides the point. I know what she said." The orange haired criminal sighed and shook his head. "Why do I get the feeling that this Friday is going to suck?"

[Because you're a little bitch with mental issues and a drinking problem? By the way, we're out of ice cream again. So hop to it little man!] Neo poked him with her parasol, causing Roman to groan and stagger to his feet.

Yep. Lost control of my life.

[Beacon Academy – Training Grounds]

KLANG! KLANG! BZZT!

Pyrrah's sword flashed in the bright sunlight of the training grounds as she proceeded to dismantle yet another training bot, dodging almost immediately as another converged on her location, it's own razor sharp blades swishing back and forth. A quick shot from her rifle disabled the creature, using her Semblance to throw her sword in a parabolic arc to slice through multiple other bots who were surrounding her. She was sweating, and her body was covered in wounds from her repeated fights against wave after wave of training bots.

The last one fell as she pierced it with her spear and the lovely Spartan took a deep breath. "Training Program, continue round."

A voice echoed in her ear, "Are you sure?"

"Ye-"

Another voice cut her off. "Belay that." Pyrrah turned around almost vehemently and stopped when she saw Ren standing there, frowning. "How long have you been here?"

Pyrrah frowned. "Since I woke up."

Ren sighed and shook his head. "Pyrrah, you need to stop this."

The flame haired warrior shook her head. "I can't. I need to get better. I should have been able to stop that thief but-"

"Not that. Everything. You've been destroying yourself Pyrrah. This isn't your fault. This isn't anyone's fault. We were unprepared and caught off guard; it won't happen again." Ren put his hands in his pockets and shook his head. "We need you Pyrrah. You can't keep doing this. This is the third day in a row you've been training nonstop and you can't keep going."

"Ren, you don't understand-"

"I understand perfectly Pyrrah. This isn't about the thief, isn't it? This is about Jaune. You're blaming yourself for him leaving still, thinking that if you were stronger you could have kept him here." Ren's expression was sorrowful. "Pyrrah, you need to stop. This isn't anyone's fault. Jaune made his decision. We have to resp-"

"NO!" Pyrrah shouted out, her eyes starting to brim with tears. "I should have said something, anything! I can't stand this Ren, you don't understand! Jaune was...he was..." The Spartan sank to her knees, sniffling. Ren slowly walked over to her and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "I miss him so much Ren. It hurts just as much as it did when he first left..."

"Pyrrah, I know. We all know. Trust me, we miss him just as much as you do. You have no idea how badly I want to hear from him, how much I want to see him again. He was like the brother I never had, and when he left, it took a part of me. Ruby misses him too, and so does Nora. But hurting yourself like this isn't going to help anything. All it's going to do is hurt the team when we need you most."

"Okay, I'll...I'll take a break."

"No." Ren looked down at her firmly. "You need to get out. You need to socialize. I understand that Jaune was the most important person in your life, but you have us too. We're your friends Pyrrah, and seeing you suffer like this hurts us too. I'm not saying to forget him, not at all. I know I never will, but you have to try to move on, at least until we can find more information on him."

Pyrrah looked up at Ren, and he almost recoiled at the utter pain her emerald eyes displayed, still watering. "I try to Ren, but every day I wonder if we'll ever see him again. I wonder if he's even...even..." She couldn't finish her sentence, her eyes starting to water over.

Dead. "He...I'm sure he's fine Pyrrah. If there was one thing about him, it was his stubbornness. He's too bullheaded to die."

"That's the problem Ren! He was always stubborn! He could be out there right now, getting hurt by a Grimm he wasn't prepared to fight! If he stayed, I could have helped him, prepared him! I only wanted to be by his side Ren!" Pyrrah was fully crying now and Ren felt his heart break for the millionth time that year, sinking down next to her to hug his despondent friend.

"Pyrrah, you have to have faith. You already taught him quite a bit during his stay here, so he's not fully under-prepared. Jaune was also a tactical mastermind, so he has that going for him too. I don't know how, but I know he's alright."

"Then why hasn't he contacted us?!" Pyrrah cried out.

"I...I couldn't say. If I had to guess, it's because he's ashamed. Ashamed of running away. Ashamed of failing. He couldn't handle the thought that he'd failed us, and so he ran. Now he might not want to talk to us again for fear we'd judge him harshly."

"D-doesn't he know I'd never do that to him? I knew everything about how he'd cheated his way here and never judged him for that!"

Ren shook his head. "I don't think it's that simple. It's a matter of his own pride and his own desire to become something great. He can't forgive himself for failing, and I think he fears we can't forgive him for running away."

"But...I..."

"Pyrrah, please. For us. Just make an effort. You're our friend. I promise, we're all here for you. You're not alone, not anymore. And who knows, maybe fate will smile on us and give us something about Jaune."

Pyrrah nodded, slowly, still sniffling. "O...okay. I'll try."

Ren smiled warmly at her, feeling a sense of relief wash over him. "Thanks, Pyrrah. Listen, this Friday, Yang is inviting all of us to join her at some nightclub called Junior's. They're going to have dancing and drinks and all that. You don't have to be super social or anything like that. Hell, you can join Ruby in the corner of the room being awkward like she usually is." Ren chuckled at that.

Pyrrah gave a weak smile and nodded. "S-sure. I m-might even try a drink myself."

Ren patted her on the back. "Awesome. Yang will be so happy you decided to come along." The green gunman stood up and stretched, before turning away to walk back to the school. As he did, he heard Pyrrah's voice speak up again.

"Thank you...Ren."

Ren looked over his shoulder. "Anytime Pyrrah. And don't worry. I know, in my heart of hearts, that we'll find him again."

Pyrrah looked to the side with a strange look. "That...that's all I've ever wanted."

Author's Note: Woof! That's a bit of mood whiplash there, ain't it? One minute we're laughing at poor Roman's terrible life, and the next, we get to see more of poor Pyrrah's struggles! And what of this particular series of events? The Phantom Nevermore, Cinder's Minions, Team RWBY and SNPR and Hei Xiong's men all meeting up at the nightclub? I've heard of a Melee a Trois before, but Melee a Quatre? This is going to be one hell of a fustercluck isn't it? Friday is a week away, can Jaune be prepared enough to pull off his first public heist? Who will get away with the Crimson Heart? Will Roman ever be in control of his own life again? And what are Cinder's three sizes!? Most of these questions will be answered soon, same Nevermore time, same Nevermore channel!

And keep up the reviews!

(Oh, and I really love writing Roman and Neo interactions. So much fun, so much pain.)