Chapter twenty-five: So it begins…

"Well?"

I asked, looking blankly at Sienna as I slowly sat up, pulling myself to a standing position in front of her. She smirked, looking over towards Glynda. "I see you've met the racist police officer. Care to make me an offer?" "Gag her again first, we talk about her future later. The now is my concern." I said. Sienna nodded towards one of her goons, who went over and gagged the struggling Glynda, not-so-subtly groping her breasts before he shut the trunk, walking back towards his post. I didn't care, Sienna didn't care, nobody did except the other goons. They mostly only cared because they couldn't do it themselves. "I hear you got rid of the one police captain that wasn't a speciest." "Sorry to disappoint, but you've got the wrong woman." I explained, sitting back against the truck's back bumper as I saw Sienna's ears perk up slightly.

"What?" "It's true I had planned to hire The Fallen to kill Pyrrha Nikos, but I'd yet to get around to doing it before the incident. Someone else got to her first it seemed." I explained, causing the faunus girl's fists to tremble in silent rage. She hated being told she was wrong, and I was about the only woman in the world willing to do that. "You're not lying, are you." "Sorry Sienna, but no, I'm not." I said. She'd seen me before, known me well enough that she could tell if I was lying. Of course, I never actually lied to her, just told her falsehoods knowingly while making up an obvious tell (lightly petting my hair) so that she would always think she knew when I was lying. Then again… considering my hands were bound, that tell didn't really help here. Thankfully I didn't need to lie about this.

She sighed, "Well… other than that, about the weapons shipment?" "Destroyed. A gang called the Sugar Sloths destroyed it before it could be recovered. The ship was sunk to the bottom of the harbor, any munitions it carried were detonated or stolen." I said. I could understand why she was pissed, why she punched the side of the van I was next to. After all, that shipment was meant to go to the white fang. They were some of my best customers… an unfortunate loss to say the least. Not even mentioning the amount of money it would cost to bribe another ship crew after this. "Who? Who the hell blew up that many munitions." "A gang that will soon no longer exist. Led by the ex-Khan Nora Valkyrie." I said. I'd known about her little gang for a long time, but to think they'd ever be such a headache… unbelievable.

She sighed, "Nothing else for it I guess… now, about the whore." "Her body puts her around eighty-thousand. She's a well known figure among my clientele, so make that 120 thousand. Though, she's well known in public, meaning we need to fake her death. That sets her down to seventy-five thousand. That fine with you?" "Hmm… deal, but fatten her up. I know a guy who'll pay big for her, but she'll need to be twenty pounds heavier before he'll even think about buying. Consider the seventy-five a finders fee." she said. I nodded, turning around and lightly holding up my hands. She shook them before uncuffing me, allowing me to pull my hands in front of me. I yelped as I felt her slap my rear, causing me to jump away from her. She smirked when I turned around, her eyes trailing down a bit. "I know a guy who'd pay a couple million to have you for a night." "Tell him if I ever find out his name I'll kill him and his entire family." I said. She nodded, motioning to the car. I got back in, looking over at Glynda, down towards her rear.

"That ass better make me a lotta money for all this trouble."

…

"Mercury."

I said, walking into the hospital room. He looked over, his knee covered in bandages, but not cast. He looked over at me for a second before he turned away, looking at the wall. "How's your knee?" "Doc said it wasn't broken, but it's never gonna heal completely. Said it'll hurt to walk for the rest of my life." he said, frowning down towards his leg, gently rubbing it. I traced his other hand back, frowning slightly when I saw that it was cuffed to the bed. They knew who he was, or at least Ozpin knew who he was. "I won't go to jail… mind smothering me with the pillow? It won't take long, you can leave before anyone knows you were here." "You're right, you won't go to jail… but I'm not killing you." I explained. He raised an eyebrow at me, looking at me like I was a crazy person.

"Whatever do you mean, Mr. Arc?" "Perfect timing as always Chief. Mind talking in the hall?" I said, turning around and smiling at the older man. He nodded, giving me a knowing smile before he turned around, opening the door and letting me go through. He shut the door behind him, turning and smiling at me. "You want to do the same thing you did to Ren?" "He saved my life Ozpin, the least I can do is return the favor." I said, my eyes determined against the older man's seemingly all-knowing gaze. Of course, I didn't have to focus too hard. It was Ozpin, he knew what I wanted, he knew I'd do what I had to to get it. "Very well… we have little actual evidence that he's the real Mercury Black, but if you can convince him to give up details about The Fallen empire in Mistral, I'm willing to look the other way. Erase all the evidence, let him go in a sense. Think you can do that detective?" "He won't have to."

We both turned, seeing Mercury open the door, leaning on the frame to support his bum leg. He smiled, "I've only got one condition, and I'll give you the names of every mercenary, killer, and terrorist that ever associated with Cinder, and their locations." "What's your condition?" Ozpin asked, his small smile giving away much more than Mercury seemed to realize. This would be a huge blow to the Mistral crime families, and especially so to the Arc clan, who relied on the Fallen and Mercury so much. "That Emerald Sustrai gets to walk free too. You'd know her better as the queen of thieves." "Done." Ozpin said, still smiling. His last concern when he was dealing with murderers was a thief that rarely really stole much of anything in recent years. Sure six years ago she was bad but, now? Now she was really just an old urban legend. Everyone thought she was dead anyway, why not let her go?

Mercury smiled, "Alright… I'll start writing their names down. Thank you… really, I mean it." he said, turning and hobbling back towards the bed, where the handcuffs lay on the bar, unlocked with a bobby-pin still inside them. Ozpin turned to me, "You better make sure he becomes a model citizen." "How about I aim to make him like me and Ren first, then worry about the model citizen part." I said, arousing a chuckle out of the older man. He nodded a few times, holding out his hand. I shook it, smiling up at him for a second as I saw a spark in his eyes. A spark of pity, of regret… of fear. I knew what he wanted to talk about before I even said it. "I'm getting too old for this Mr. Arc… I do believe it's about time I retire." "If you go every good thing about this city goes with you." I said, staring him down.

He nodded, smiling slightly, "I know… that's why I have a proposition for you, Mr. Arc." "Wait, me?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. That was… nothing like I'd expected. What could he possibly be talking about? Unless… no, no that couldn't be it, could it? I mean, she just lost her job, there's no way… there's no way. "I want you to become the police captain of the VCPD." there is a way… there is a way, and it's the one he's using right now. I looked at him… well, shocked would be an understatement. To think he'd be offering it to me of all people… "You… you can't be serious." "You're damn right he can't be!" I heard a voice shout to my left. I turned, feeling myself pushed aside by the man in the white coat, one that glared down at me before looking at Ozpin.

"Chief Ozpin you must be in-sane! Allowing an inexperienced child into the police force!?" "He's solved more crimes than your entire department put together. He's more than experienced." Ozpin said, giving a slight smirk as Ironwood's face went red with rage. I couldn't help but join him in that, it was so refreshing to see the seemingly perfect Ironwood get called out on something he did wrong. Nice change of pace. He took a breath, "How is he qualified? Regulations state that-" "A qualified person must be placed into office unless in the case of an emergency or temporary vacancy. Way I see it, Pyrrha isn't out forever. Just until she recovers." I said, glaring towards Ironwood as I recited the very code he was going to twist to his own purposes. He glared at me, looking towards Ozpin as the old man nodded. "Mr. Arc has demonstrated bravery, intellect, integrity, and courage in his work many times. To say he is just qualified would be an insult to his skill." he said.

Ironwood glared at him, then at me, "Very well Chief. I… suppose he'll be the new captain." "Good… if that's all settled, I'd like to start heading home. It's been a hard day for us all. Especially the youngers." he said, his eyes shining with sympathy towards me and -though he wasn't looking in her direction- Pyrrha. I could see the sorrow he felt that he'd had to lay her off the same way Ironwood had. The moment I saw Ozpin walk around the corner, I reached up and gripped my gun as Ironwood did what I predicted him to do from the start: slam me into a wall. "You really think you can come in here and ruin all I've worked for!? I had twenty more capable officers that could take that idiot Nikos's role and he chooses you!? Some third-rate private eye with a soft spot for animals!?" "Don't." I said, glaring up at him as I felt my own rage boiling. He raised an eyebrow as I pushed back, causing him to stagger away from me.

"Don't you ever, call them that. They are faunus. They're living, beautiful, proud, more than you'll ever be; Commissioner Ironwood." I said, still glaring as I insulted him on the one thing I knew would hurt. The fact that despite his influence, despite his connections, he was still a commissioner, and he couldn't be chief. No matter how hard he tried Ozpin would never give it to him. All because he hated faunus. He glared at me, reaching into his jacket. "Go ahead. I'll kill you before you can draw your gun." I said, glaring at him as I drew my own, aiming it right at his heart. He froze, slowly putting the gun away, letting his hands drop to his sides as I did the same, holstering my gun as well. "Don't mess with my plans Arc. Nothing good happens to those that do." he said threateningly as he turned around, walking out towards the door. I looked over, seeing Velvet, Ton-Ton and Neo dashing towards me, Blake among them.

"What was that about? I saw you meeting with Ironwood and Ozpin." Blake asked, raising an eyebrow, concern plain on her face. I reached over, pulling the bow from my shoulder and tying it back on her head, causing her to blush as she gazed up at me. I leaned over, pecking her forehead before I smiled, "Well… Pyrrha's out of commission for awhile so… he asked me to be acting VCPD captain." "REALLY!?" all of them shouted at once. Velvet's eyes were wide with shock and -if I guessed right- fear. Blake's were just shock, while Ton-Ton and Neo looked ecstatic, likely just because I'd said it with a smile. I crouched down, picking up the two young girls in my arms before I started walking towards the exit, smiling back at the two women. "We'll talk later, it's been a long day." I said, giving them a tired smile as I turned around, walking towards the exit.

"Jaune!"

I turned, raising an eyebrow as I unconsciously reached towards my gun, nearly bringing little Ton-Ton with me, as I saw the familiar silver eyed girl running towards me. She skidded to a halt in front of me, panting slightly before she gave me that bright, innocent smile of hers. One I knew hid behind it the most infamous killer in Vale, one of the most dangerous in Remnant. I forced myself to smile at her, unconsciously tightening my grip on Neo and Ton-Ton. She looked down, her eyes lighting up even more when she saw Ton-Ton. "Awww!~ Who's this little bun-bun?~" she asked, leaning in towards Ton-Ton. Ton-Ton -who normally loved getting attention for how cute she was- seemed a bit reserved, as if confused about something. I saw her little nose twitching slightly as she sniffed the air. "Are you a flower?" she asked, wide and innocent eyes gazing up at Ruby.

Ruby covered her mouth with her hands for a second, a high squeal slipping out as she nearly jumped at her, jerking Ton-Ton from my grasp. "OH MY GOSH YOU'RE THE CUTEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN!" she shouted, swinging Ton-Ton around, pressing her flush against her. Ton-Ton looked up, smiling slightly at Ruby as the taller girl suddenly froze, handing Ton-Ton back to me. She scratched the back of her head, shutting her eyes and smiling sheepishly, "Eheheh… sorry about that." "Uhh… it's, okay?" I said, trying to process what had just happened. I mean, it wasn't as strange as when Nora had done precisely the same thing to Neo -given Nora was much less childish and didn't hide her madness- but it was still strange. The bloody rose was a killer… did she have a soft spot for kids or something?

"You… don't care that she's a faunus?" Velvet asked, walking over and casually taking her daughter from my arms. Ruby looked at Velvet, not bothering to hide her confusion. Velvet could've grown a second head and Ruby wouldn't have looked more shocked. "Why would I? Cute is cute. Those little bunny ears just make her look like a widdle fluff-puff!" she said, reaching over and petting Ton-Ton's ears. Ton-Ton only smiled, enjoying the sense of being pet like she normally did. Velvet stepped back, causing Ruby to pout at her. "Aww… sorry Mrs. Jaune's Secretary. I… wait, why did I come here again?" she looked up, her face sporting a confused expression as she started tapping her chin, tilting her head a bit. Then she snapped, "Oh yeah! I came to give you this!" she said, reaching into her signature denim jacket and pulling out an envelope.

She handed it to me as I read the front of it. "Jaune Arc… huh, nothing else written." I thought as I set the strangely blank envelope in my trench coat. Ruby smiled at me, holding her hands in front of her stomach like she usually did. "Mommy felt really bad about you and Ms. Pyrrha not being able to come to the party and -as luck would have it- it was a really busy day so most people didn't show up anyway. So, we're inviting you to a make-up party! You uh, may need a new date though." she said, giving me a strangely sympathetic smile. Coming from a girl who killed people like it was nothing, I was surprised she had any sympathy. I looked over at Blake, the two of us sharing a knowing look. "I uh, don't think that'll be a problem." I said, giving Ruby a slight smile, gritting my teeth as I did so.

Ruby smiled right back, that same bright, innocent smile she'd given me when we met. Once I'd thought it endearing… now it made me sick to my stomach. She walked over, lightly pecking me on the cheek. "Bye Jaune!" she leaned down, doing the same thing to Ton-Ton. "Bye widdle fluff-puff!" she said, waving at us before she turned around, walking away and humming a happy little tune to herself. Though, before she left, she stopped mid hum, swiveling around and walking over to Blake. Blake froze, looking towards Ruby. Ruby just leaned over, pecking her lips. "Bye Blake!" she said, turning back and skipping away as if nothing had just happened. I slowly turned to Blake, raising an eyebrow. What had just… what was that? Blake met my eyes, looking over towards Ruby with a smile, a few tears gathering in her eyes before she turned back to me.

"She's still in there… my Ruby is still in there." "Woah woah woah, hold on. Your Ruby? What do you mean your Ruby? You've never called her your Ruby." I asked, feeling my confusion growing and -more than likely- spreading across my face as I walked over to Blake. Something felt so wrong about this… what was she not telling me. Blake sighed, tapping on the red patch on her jacket. "Ruby." she tapped the white, "Weiss.", finally, she tapped the yellow. "Yang. We all have a jacket. We all have patches for everyone. Everyone, except ourselves." she said, keeping that knowing smile on her face. The smile that told me she knew something. Something I didn't. She knew more about this than she was letting on, I could tell by looking at her.

Luckily, she didn't seem too hesitant to disclose what she knew. "First it was Yang and Ruby. Then Ruby and Weiss, with Yang and me on the sidelines. Then it was all of us… together. I thought when Ruby… when the Bloody Rose shot Yang, it was over. It is… sort of. But I was wrong. I thought Ruby was gone too… she isn't. The Ruby I knew is still in there. She's still kicking and screaming inside her head, trying to get out. That old Ruby, the kind, innocent little girl… she's in there. She's in that psychopath and she wants out. I can feel it." she said, still smiling as she walked over, wrapping her arms around me. She looked up at me, frowning slightly as her ears flattened. I knew in that moment that she could ask for the moon… and I'd find some way to give it to her. I knew I could never say no to that face. "We have to get her out… we have to save her from her mother, we have to save her from herself. I can't watch Ruby fade away like this…" she said, her eyes pleading with me. I didn't even feel myself speaking as the words slipped from my lips, right before they met Blake's.

"Don't worry… we'll get her back."

…

"So… I was right."

I thought with a frown as I walked down the street, heading back towards my home. I didn't want to believe it, I still didn't want to believe it. Yet, I knew it was true. "Once more… my stayed hand is what harms so many… forgive me Ms. Ni… Pyrrha. I'm so sorry…" I thought as I tapped my cane against the ground, striking uneven notes against the asphalt as I felt that familiar guilt bubbling up in my stomach. I needed a drink when I got home. I turned down the nearby alley, the same way I'd always gone. I stopped about halfway through, turning my head slightly as I heard the loud hitting of footsteps on the ground from behind me. I felt my eyes widen when I saw the culprits: Two men in trench coats with eyes zeroed in on a target. That target?

Me.

I reached for my own gun, but I could tell already I wouldn't make it. They drew their guns, both of them firing as I felt sharp pains strike my body, the gun slipping from my hands as they fired, one of them running over and pushing me against the wall. I felt my body shot full of bullets as they kept shooting, emptying their clips into me before they ran off, leaving me to slowly fall to the ground. I moved my head -the jerky motions of a dying animal- to look down at my hands. I felt myself fall over to the side, my right hand gripping my cane as I tried to hold on. I gritted my teeth, grunting as I started moving, dragging myself forward. I turned, facing the sky as I felt it. The first little, drops of rain. They started falling slow, landing against my face as I leaned back, my muscles relaxing against my will. I was just… so tired… so… tired…

"Mister!? Oh my god! Are you…" I heard a voice shout. I moved my eyes, watching as a young man ran towards me, crouching on the ground and -attempting- to dress the wounds. I knew it was futile, a wasted effort. I was going to die, they'd shot me right through the liver and stomach, I could see the bullet holes. But this young man… this tan skinned, amber eyed young man… he was trying to save me. He didn't know who I was… he was trying to save me. "Chi…ld…." "Nono! Don't talk! HELP! SOMEONE! GET A DOCTOR!" the boy shouted. I gritted my teeth as I reached up, grabbing his hand. I pulled him down slightly, gently wrapping his hand around my cane. "Take… this…" "W-Why? Sir? Sir why? Sir please, answer me! Oh god there's blood everywhere! Just hold on a little longer!" the boy said, redoubling his efforts in calling for help.

I started coughing as I looked up, feeling my conscious ebbing away. I had to tell him, I had to tell someone. It couldn't die with me, I wouldn't let it die with me. "My… cane… please… get it to-" I was interrupted by a coughing fit, falling back against the ground. The young man leaned down, eyes sparkling slightly in the light as I saw it. That same spark I'd had in my youth. That same spark I'd seen in Pyrrha Nikos's eyes, and in Jaune's. "You need me to get it to someone? Who? I'll get it to them, I promise! Just tell me who!?" he said, more and more panicked as I felt myself slipping away. I could hear other people moving in as I spoke, feeling my eyes slipping shut. I whispered one last thing to him, the only thing left. "Jaune…" I fell back, the last of my breath leaving me as I looked up at the sky, yet not seeing. It felt like I was falling, all the pain that I felt becoming less and less meaningful the further I fell.

I could only hope that young man had understood.

…

"Jaune… who's Jaune?"

I couldn't help but think as I reached over, closing the dead man's eyes before I leaned over, looking down at his chest. "Ozpin… looks like a police officer uniform. Maybe I should go ask them…" I thought as I stood, walking back out the way I came, clutching the man's cane in both hands. I looked around, suddenly worried that whatever it was about this cane had made that man a target. And I'd just accepted the next hit. So, I hid the cane as well as I could. Taking the shortcuts I knew towards the police station. I dashed down an alley, my eyes widening as I saw a man dart out in front of me. I skidded to a halt, hiding the cane behind my back. "Hey there kiddo… you got something of mine. Just hand it over, make this easy on yourself." he said, holding out his hand.

I started walking towards him, no longer caring about hiding the cane. "Just give it to him Oscar… it's not your problem…" I thought as I walked towards the man, slowly holding up Ozpin's cane. I was about to drop it when I hesitated, holding back slightly. The man raised an eyebrow at me, reaching into his jacket. "I promised him… I promised I'd get this cane to Jaune… whoever that is." I thought as I stepped back, gripping the handle a bit tighter. The man glared at me, as if he could hear my inner monologue. He pulled out a pistol, about to point it at me. I didn't even think as I spun the cane, slamming the side of it across his cheek before I dashed past him, out into the street as I started running towards the police station. Maybe 'Jaune' was some kind of recruit? Or maybe he was his son? A friend? Whatever it was, I could find it there.

I heard the sound of a gunshot, a bullet whizzing past my ear as I ducked into a nearby alley, crouching behind a trashcan. I held my breath, pulling a nearby trash bag in front of me to try and hide my body as much as I could. I watched the man dash past me, my heart skipping a beat as he stopped in the center of the alley. I didn't wait as I stepped over the trashcan, booking it out of the alley.

THUMP!

"AH! Sorry!" I said, stepping back away from the person I knocked down. It was a young woman, a few years older than I was. She was clad in a brown sweater and black pants, her eyes brown and sparkling with nervousness. Her most noticeable feature though? That had to go to the two long rabbit ears on her head. A faunus. I looked up, paling slightly as I saw a taller man and woman walk over to her, helping her up. The man was clad in a trench-coat and fedora, the bulge near his chest telling me he likely had a gun. I didn't get time to look at the woman as I heard that familiar voice. "You little brat! Give me that damn cane!" I heard a voice shout as I turned around, watching as the man aimed his gun right at me. I was about to run again when the man from before pushed me down, drawing his own gun.

BANG! BANG!

In two shots, the other man was down, lying dead in the alley. I looked up, seeing the blond man offering me a hand. "Thanks mister." "Don't mention it. Why was he after you?" he asked, his eyes trailing down, as if examining me for any possible reason before I told him. His eyes lingered on the cane I held for a few moments longer before meeting my own eyes again. "He wanted this," I held up the cane, "but I wouldn't give it to him." "You seem a little young to be using a cane." the woman I didn't get time to look at said. She had eyes not dissimilar to my own -a bright amber- and long, flowing black hair. I gripped the cane as I stood, leaning against it slightly.

"It's not mine. A man got hit in the street and asked me to take this to Jaune… whoever that is." I said. All three of their eyes widened, but one other voice spoke as if it was no surprise at all. "Hit? Who hit them? Did it hurt?" I looked down, smiling slightly as I saw a little rabbit-faunus girl looking up at me, sporting an adorable confused expression as she scratched her chin. Another girl walked over -this one with black hair and green eyes- and started whispering in the other girl's ear. Meanwhile, the blond haired man walked over to me, his eyes suddenly bearing a new intensity to them. "The man that gave you that cane, did you recognize him?" "No… but, he was wearing a police officer's outfit. The name tag said 'Ozpin' on it. Does that sound familiar?" I asked.

The man nodded, reaching over and grabbing the edge of the cane. "Yeah… you might know him better as Chief Ozpin." "Wait, that's who this belongs too!?" I asked, paling as I let go of the cane, letting the man grab it. I figured it was just some random cop, maybe a veteran but… the chief!? If he got hit on the street that could only mean… "Someone must've REALLY not wanted him to talk about something." I thought as the man turned over the cane, as if mulling over what to do with it. I walked over, lightly grabbing it. Blue eyes met amber as I spoke, "Uhh… do you know someone named 'Jaune'? Sir?" "You're looking at him. I'm Jaune Arc." he said, holding out a hand. I felt my eyes widen slightly as I shook it, looking down at his hand. It was rather calloused -about what I'd expect from someone who shot a gun all the time- and oddly cold. His eyes asked me a question, one I knew I was powerless not to answer. After all, he deserved to know.

"My name's Oscar… Oscar Pine."