Jet Scapegoat!~ Okay all you Shyarly fans, a big treat for you this chapter with plenty of fluff galore! Now, onto business.

Just to make things clear, I don't have anything against Capone 'Gang' Bege. The main reason why I was so reluctant to add him was that when I was reading the chapters at work that my friend was uploading for me, I didn't expect them to add in Bege out of the blue. When I asked them why they did so, they literally said "meh, you'll think of something to do with him right?" This rubbed me the wrong way as I felt like I was being forced to write something after someone took a shot for me in the dark and slapped the idea in my face with no preparation whatsoever.

In the end, I decided to keep Bege out of this story, as I do intend for Hawkins to remain as the only supernova.

Also, you guys should check back on chapters 29, and 40 as I've changed them to simple short fluff chapters for your enjoyment. As I felt those author's notes dragged down the mood of my story with their presence in my story.

I apologize to my readers because I have been unnecessarily petty and dramatic about all this. My main objective should be to write chapters for you guys to enjoy and share your reviews on, and I intend to continue to do so with gusto.

With that, cheers everyone and happy reading!


Hawkins was impressed by the layout of the gigantic space the theater had to offer. With a large donation from the movie producers and crazed fans, the building was put under construction for an expansion and now resembled an old fashioned theater with spacious booths draped with red curtains that were built into the walls. Nothing was held back when it came to the seats either. Dressed in leather, their count, instead of the regular 200, the theater sported a total of 350 seats if you included the luxury booths.

Hawkins broke free from Fiona's and Shyarly's hold and drifted down the main straight carpet toward his seat, but the white-haired huntress giggled at his actions.

"Did I do something comical?" Hawkins deadpanned.

"No silly, our seats are in one of the booths Hawkins, I told you I paid a pretty penny for our seats didn't I? Please tell me you at least looked at your ticket." Fiona smiled and pointed to a booth mounted at the eastern section of the room.

Hawkins pulled out said ticket and curled a brow to see the imprint 'BOOTH' marked in black ink in the top right corner with a golden star next to it.

"Why did you go to such an extent for a seat?" The magician couldn't wrap his head around Fiona's logic. Sure, it was nice to be comfortable, but simply being able to witness Sora the warrior in action should be enough.

"W-Why don't we hurry to our booth Hawkins, it looks like the movie is going to start soon!" Fiona swerved the conversation as the lights in the theater dimmed.

"I suppose you're right," Hawkins grumbled.

"Aren't you forgetting someone?" Shyarly said in a slightly miffed tone.

"How did you manage to get a ticket for a private booth that I already procured?" Fiona frowned.

"I have my ways.~" With that Shyarly linked her arm with that of Hawkins once more and led him to the booth above.

Fiona was quick to latch onto his other free limb, determined not to let Shyarly's presence ruin her evening. Hawkins took his place on the rimmed leather couches of the booth. Peering over the railing, Hawkins had a clear view of the movie screen with a table to rest his condiments.

Both women refused to release their grips on Hawkins until he took a seat forcing them off his person. The magician tried to keep his distance from the other two present, but every time he scooted over to one side of the couch, Hawkins would find himself being followed by a pouting Fiona and a flirty Shyarly who didn't know when to quit.

In the end, Hawkins gave up and opted to perform some tarot readings to get his mind off the two currently invading his personal space until the movie started. This worked to an extent, as the two Faunus understood how annoyed Hawkins got when interrupted while using his cards.

Minutes passed in awkward silence, and Hawkins was finally starting to relax and get comfortable, that is until a warm sensation fell upon his lap. Or rather a pair. The blonde man blinked and lowered his cards to see a pair of gray boots on his lap.

"Madame Shyarly," Hawkins grumbled.

"Yes, Hawkins?" Shyarly grinned.

"Get your legs off my lap. I don't have that much space on this couch, to begin with." The magician grabbed the ankles of the shark Faunus and tried to hoist them off his person, but Shyarly wasn't letting Hawkins get off that easily and threw them back on his lap once they touched the floor.

"I'm still not used to walking on my legs you know, so they get really sore when I'm up and about. You're not that cold-hearted to let me be in pain for the entire movie are you Hawkins?" Shyarly asked with a cute pout and tilted head.

"It's been four years since I met you, and I helped you learn how to walk. So the chances of you not being accustomed to your lower limbs astound me." Hawkins scoffed.

"Yeah, Hawkins' lap isn't a doormat. You should treat him with more respect Shyarly." Fiona added. A slight tint of jealousy apparent in her voice.

"I don't need you speaking on my defense Ms. Thyme, but I demand you remove your legs off my lap Madame Shyarly. I will not ask again." Hawkins said sharply.

Both Shyarly and Fiona winced. This was supposed to be an enjoyable day for them all, and to them, they felt like they were the reasons Hawkins wasn't having any fun. Then in an effort to salvage the situation, both women came up with different ideas.

"I'll be right back you guys, I left the honey glazed fortune cookies tin with Auntie Carla, it shouldn't take me too long to find them, so make sure to behave yourself, Hawkins." Fiona chirped with a sweet smile and disappeared through the booth's curtains.

She did pop her head back in though to check if Hawkins would act properly, but she didn't expect him to still be staring in her direction. When Fiona's olive eyes met with an annoyed and fiery crimson, she scuttled away as fast as she could through the dim hallways of the theater with an embarrassed blush on her cheeks.

"I hope she hurries with those fortune cookies," Hawkins muttered. Though his stomach was secretly eager to gobble up those delectable desserts.

Now, Shyarly's ploy of saving the day was much bolder than Fiona's approach. With only her and Hawkins present, she decided to reach for the tips of her toes, making sure to give Hawkins a teasing glimpse of her cleavage in the process, and shot him a flirtatious wink as she slid off her boots.

Exposing a pair of slender and perfectly arched ebony clad feet for Hawkins to ogle, the magician was taken aback. Though not out of lust or interest, merely confusion. His stoic expression never faltered as he turned to Shyarly and asked for her to remove her legs from his lap once more. The shark Faunus replied with a fake and irritating smile, showing her jagged pearly whites to show Hawkins that she wasn't messing around anymore. Wiggling her long toes, Shyarly agreed to put her feet down after Hawkins gave them a nice massage. "I'm not your damn servant Madame Shyarly. Massage them yourself for Oum's sake." Hawkins pushed the pair of size eleven soles toward his knees, but Shyarly curled her toes in defiance and dug her heels into Hawkins' thighs.

"The sooner you ease my sore calves the quicker you'll have your seat back," Shyarly said in a sugary tone and lifted a leg to draw small circles on Hawkins' chest with her big toe.

Now Shyarly wasn't one who enjoyed vulgar or rude behavior or being the one to initiate such lewd actions, but with Hawkins it was different. Perhaps it was due to her pride being shot down a peg when Hawkins denied any emotion of her attempts to flirt with him. She was used to seeing her staff get up close and personal with their customers both in Vacuo and in her past on Fishman island. Of course, there were limits and lines of decency that were clearly stated and forbidden to cross, but with Hawkins... Well, Shyarly felt like that line was somewhat blurred.

One could only wonder as to why a beautiful, elegant, and refined Faunus such as Shyarly would act in such an intimate display with such a cold, ruthless, oddly charming, handsome, secretly compassionate... Shyarly blinked and gently patted down her reddening cheeks. Her breath hitched when a tingling sensation trickled from the bottoms of her feet to her upper torso. Was Hawkins actually giving her a foot massage?

Shyarly would admit, she was a bit of a tease and she knew Hawkins would have declined her flirting advances right from the get-go, but time changes everyone, and to the shark Faunus' utter shock, Hawkins actually placed his hands on her ebony clad soles and began to fiddle with them.

"I was right... Hawkins has softened a great deal." Shyarly said, so softly Hawkins could only make muffled noises from what he'd heard.

Shyarly stared dreamily into the dark crimson eyes that were momentarily focused on her feet, she likened the fact that Hawkins' fiery and stoic gaze was a contrast to her kind and gentle one. The eyes also matched their owner's personalities. While Shyarly was open and welcoming, Hawkins was unapproachable and intimidating. Yet, if one put in the effort to see past that cold and offputting shell Hawkins wore, you'd find a man filled with compassion in the terms of loss and despair as he'd mentally and physically endured both subjects first hand.

Not to mention his attitude toward his children. While stern and acerbic in his teachings, he always did what he thought was best for them, and always took their opinions and those of their grandparents when making his decisions. Many say your children are a reflection of your true colors and Hawkins was no exception. The genuine smiles on their faces when they spoke about their father, mostly Jaune, but Emerald's lips did curl up from time to time.

Hawkins' kids were living proof that Hawkins, while not the most morally straight, did have an altruistic side to him. Like the time he accepted Willow's plea and acted as her representative mercenary, even though there wasn't anything Hawkins could not already obtain with his vast amount of substantial wealth.

Shyarly's lips stretched to a wide gracious smile, she clasped her hands on her lap as she tried her best to hammer down the blush that was starting to rise through her cheeks. A soft sigh escaping through her thin lips, she recounted the memory of when Hawkins returned to Vacuo three years ago, with a larger family no less. She met Sam and Carla for the first time and found out that Emerald was now officially adopted and under the mighty magician's care.

The most remarkable out of the group, however, was a gigantic Bartholomew Kuma, former tyrant, and warlord of the seven seas of the grande line who now followed Hawkins in respect for freeing him of his slavery under the SDC. Then there was 'Phantom Gun' Vito. A pirate who served as one of Capone 'Gang' Bege's right hands with a bounty of 95,000,000 berries who had earned himself the title of 'uncle' from both Jaune and Emerald. He was a good man, to say the least, and was much easier to get along with than Hawkins.

Shyarly veered her gaze to her hands on her lap. They were fidgeting, but she assumed that was because of the giddy emotions that were bubbling within her. Then, the most treasured memory she had of Hawkins rose to the forefront of her mind. When the Hawkins family decided to visit her newly established restaurant, Jaune asked her if she was still used to using her legs to walk and run.

While she was annoyed by the young boy's brash approach, what he proposed, in turn, was definitely worth it. Shyarly said so with a nasty scowl but admitted to her weakness on land which allowed Jaune to announce his preposition.

"I can teach you how to walk and run Madame Shyarly! Maybe even a few dance moves too!" Jaune grinned his trademark goofy smile, and Shyarly felt her frustrations melt away when confronted by such kind innocence.

"Your too short Jaune, Madame Shyarly would have to hunch over in order to hold your hands." Emerald deadpanned.

"What? Well, I, um... You're right Minty, then how about we get dad to teach Madame Shyarly instead?" Those words from Jaune were a blessing sent from above. Though it took a great deal of effort to convince the stoic magician, Hawkins agreed to tutor Shyarly, but only at night when no one was around.

The first day was a riot that's for sure. Hawkins' first lesson was to get rid of the muscle memory Shyarly's legs had developed when she still had her lower shark half. Hawkins took hold of her arms and patiently pulled her around the cafe floors. She would trip quite often, much to Hawkins' annoyance, but seeing that it was a good excuse for Shyarly to rest her head against Hawkins' delectable muscles, perhaps not every time she fell was an accident...

"Snrt!~" Shyarly's entire face shifted from a light creamy gray to a faint cherry, to a dark pomegranate at the unladylike snort that left her nostrils as a giddy smile slipped through her lips.

Hawkins curled a brow and tilted his head to see what was wrong with the shark Faunus. Truth be told, Hawkins knew how to massage a person's back, arms, neck, and head from his teachings from Sam, but he never did learn anything in regards to muscles below the waist. Hawkins did confirm that Madame Shyarly's feet had a 98% chance of being extremely sensitive through the means of a quick tarot draw, but Shyarly stated that she wasn't ticklish.

77% chance the stockings increased the sensitivity of Hawkins touch, perhaps they played a key role in the Faunus' actions? Or perhaps, the pain Shyarly felt must've been worse than Hawkins expected. So, he decided really light touches were the way to go in this scenario.

"Madame Shyarly?" Hawkins asked, a hint of caution apparent in his voice.

"I-I'm fine Hawkins, please continue, the knots in my feet are almost completely gone." Shyarly fanned her heated face with one hand and rested the other over her beating heart.

Hawkins stared at her for a few seconds but went back to work. He had deducted a 79% chance of Shyarly leaving him alone after her massage was done with, and Hawkins didn't want to waste any of his attention on other things while the movie of Sora played.

Shyarly at that moment, had another memory burst into clarity as she grabbed a nearby pillow and masked her abashed expression while biting down on her lower lip to prevent any more snorts and giggles from escaping.


"I've been speculating Madame Shyarly, perhaps the reason as to why you're uncomfortable with using your legs is because you're trying to treat them as one combined limb instead of two separate ones?" Hawkins guided his temporary student to her velvet couch and took a seat beside her.

"What do you mean Hawkins?" Shyarly asked.

"One tail is obviously different from two legs. There's a high probability that your brain is trying to apply orders meant for one tail and your new nerves in your lower limbs aren't responding properly as a result. We need to find a way for your mind to register that it has two independent appendages at work." Hawkins explained.

"And how do you suppose we do that?" Shyarly asked with a skeptical look.

"Give me your left foot first then we'll try your right." Hawkins grabbed her gray stockinged foot and placed it on his lap. Shyarly stiffened at the sudden contact and instinctively kicked. Unfortunately, the path of her heel found its way between Hawkins' eyes.

"You shouldn't just grab people's feet like that Hawkins, it's not polite." Shyarly giggled as Hawkins rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"Let's get this test over with before I lose my patience," Hawkins grumbled and lifted her slender leg just above his chest. Lazily, Hawkins slid a finger along the arch of Shyarly's pantyhosed foot.

"Snrt!" Shyarly clasped a hand over her mouth at her unladylike snort while a tint of pink colored her cheeks.

"Are you alright Madame Shyarly?" Hawkins curled a brow, while her leg jittered in response to his touch, Shyarly's other one acted just as violently.

"... Don't tell me you're actually ticklish." Hawkins deadpanned. If this were the case, Hawkins would have to resort to drastic measures.

"I'm not ticklish! Only children are and I've outgrown such an immature trait!" Shyarly hissed. She never expected her new pair of legs to be so sensitive, and when she still had her tail on Fishman island it wasn't nearly as responsive to another's touch!

Hawkins was skeptical, but shrugged his shoulders and resorted to plan B. Using his thumb and index finger, Hawkins twisted the soft skin of Shyarly's left calf muscle.

"Pwick!"

"Ouch!" Shyarly yelped.

"Good, only your left leg kicked when I pinched it," Hawkins muttered.

He put down the sore limb and reached for its partner, but Shyarly kicked Hawkins once more, the bottom of her sole thudding against his muscular chest. This time it was on purpose and with a lot more force. The magician glared at the shark Faunus, who returned it tenfold with a frown of pearly jagged teeth and narrowed eyes.

"You can't just twist somebody's skin and expect them to simply accept it, Hawkins!" Shyarly chided.

"Pwick!" Hawkins pinched Shyarl's right leg in the middle of her scolding.

"Ow!" Shyarly kicked the blonde man once more, this time her heel left a light bruise on his cheek.

"I swear to Oum Hawkins if you do that one more time I'm going to-"

"Pwick! Pwick! Pwick!"

In rapid succession, Hawkins aggravated the nerves in both of Shyarly's legs. The patience of the shark Faunus past its boiling point, the raging woman reached her hands to pull on Hawkins' golden hair in retaliation but he was too quick and hopped off his seat. Hawkins broke into a light jog and fled through the curtains of the room and made his way to the restaurant space.

"GET BACK HERE HAWKINS!" Shyarly screamed and charged after the blonde man with the intent to strangle him, or at least get a few petty pinches on his body to see how he would like it!

From the dark kitchens, Jaune and Emerald decided to sneak in and make themselves a late-night snack. What they didn't expect, was to hear Madame Shyarly screeching in rage as footsteps thundered across the restaurant floors. Two cautious heads peeked from the kitchen doors. Jaune eyed the scene with a half-eaten loaf of bread in his mouth, while Emerald had a quarter of an apple in her's.

"Hey Minty, why is Madame Shyarly running after dad?" The blonde boy asked through stuffed lips.

"I don't know, but it looks like dad's a good teacher. It's only been a week since he started Madame Shyarly's lessons and both her legs are already in perfect sync." Emerald replied.

"... Hey, Jaune." Emerald squinted at the facial features of her father.

"Yeah?"

"Is dad smiling?" Emerald curled a brow.

"Hm, it doesn't look like a smile to me. Moreso along the lines of a mocking smirk."

"Huh, I think you're right. Wanna get some dessert now? I think there were a few strawberry tarts in one of the ovens." Emerald grinned.

"Sounds good to me." Jaune followed his sister back through the doors but lingered for a few seconds.

When all was said and done, Shyarly was too tired to get her revenge and settled for a harsh glare as she took a seat at one of the tables. Hawkins approached, but did so with caution and made sure to keep his distance.

"It seems my tarot readings paid off." Hawkins sighed his stoic face never faltering.

"What?" Shyarly answered in a curt tone.

"You ran for three straight minutes Madame Shyarly. Teaching you while annoyed and frustrated offered a 76% chance of success, and luckily it yielded results." The magician said.

Shyarly blinked very slowly. Her gaze veering toward her sweaty legs, her mind finally registered her past actions.

"I... did?" After that night, Shyarly would try and convince Hawkins to take nightly strolls with her on the dimmed streets of Vacuo, but to her dismay, she never managed to do so as the magician's vacation had come to an end. It was then that Shyarly made a promise to herself, that she'd meet up with Hawkins again and join him for a midnight stroll. And it would be just the two of them.


Hawkins took Shyarly's silence as a sign that his massaging techniques were working. He continued to slowly and meticulously drift his fingers along the silky clad feet of his cohort, making sure to not miss a single patch of skin. Though, for some reason, her toes kept flexing and curling.

Assuming Shyarly's toes and the areas around them were the cause of her foot pains, Hawkins gently placed the tip of his index finger in the space right above the ball of Shyarly's foot and right underneath her toes then proceeded to draw small circles along the smooth silky surface.

This got her toes to separate, but they quickly retracted to their scrunched up position. Annoyed that his actions produced no results, Hawkins repeated the process over and over, not realizing the giggling agony his fingers were causing for a certain shark Faunus.

Shyarly's eyes widened and she clamped her sharp teeth on the poor cushion that was currently being crushed under the vice-grip of her hands. Her cheeks sporting a heavy blush, Shyarly's cheeks puffed as she took sharp breaths to steady the giggles and guffaws that bubbled in the pits of her stomach.

She tried to send Hawkins a hint that his hands were causing her poor left foot great grief, but couldn't risk opening her mouth in fear of the endless laughter behind her lips. Instead, she covered her left foot with her right mid-massage praying to Oum that Hawkins would understand. However, this only annoyed the blonde man as he softly scratched the instep of her right sole with his middle finger to allow him access to the foot he was handling. This sent Shyarly's head reeling back as she felt her legs jerk while her lips spread to a crazed grin that stretched from ear to ear.

Hawkins stuttered at Shyarly's sudden outburst. Did he hit a sore spot? Hawkins narrowed his eyes on the twitching toes of the foot his hands were currently holding. Performing yet another tarot draw, Hawkins found that Shyarly was on the verge of allowing him his personal space.

Deciding he had done enough care on the base of her feet, Hawkins moved his hands to work on Shyarly's long and delicate toes. They wriggled in the thin ebony fabric of her stockings, and when Hawkins made contact with them, Shyarly's big and index toes instinctively clamped themselves on Hawkins' fingers and prevented them from finishing his massage.

"This is so irritating..." Hawkins sighed and rolled his eyes.

Freeing his hand from Shyarly's clutches, Hawkins gripped the big toe and pinky of Shyarly's left foot with both his hands and wiggled them back and forth. This sent an unexpected ticklish jolt through Shyarly's leg, and she definitely wasn't prepared for it.

"SNRRRT!~" Shyarly let out the loudest and most unrefined snort she'd ever conceived. The blush on her face spreading to the top of her neck, the shark Faunus was practically chomping on the pillow that covered her face.

"H-Hawkins-hihihi!~ P-Please-hihihi!~" Shyarly felt her bastions of elegance crumble as Hawkins continued to wiggle her toes.

"N-Not the t-toes-hihihi!~" Shyarly begged through fits of suppressed laughter.

Hawkins heard her this time and veered his stoic gaze to the panting Faunus. Her entire body was twitching uncontrollably, and her eyes were shut tight. Though there was a smile on her face, so it was safe for Hawkins to assume that he had finished his task.

"Am I done Madame Shyarly?" Hawkins asked.

"Absolutely!" Shyarly squealed giddily in desperation. Thrashing like an excited child, she threw her pillow at Hawkins' face and kicked her feet wildly off his lap. Finally free to release all of her restrained energy, Shyarly accidentally delivered an uppercut to the magician's jaw with her heel.

"Gurk!" Hawkins stumbled to the floor with a blotch of blood dripping down his chin.

Shyarly used this opportunity to grab her boots and slip them on. Making sure to fix every silver button to prevent any chance of Hawkins tickling her again. When finished, Shyarly allowed her body to go limp and her legs to lazily splay themselves on the couch to rest. Her head propped up by a few pillows, the blush on Shyarly's face remained as her sweaty chest rose and fell with each hot breath. Her toes curled then stretched over and over again inside her boots while her body subconsciously shifted in an attempt to rid herself of the ticklish sensations that racked her body.


"Hawkins, I'm sorry that I took so long, but I found Auntie Carla and got the fortune cookies!" Fiona proudly announced as the curtains flew open to reveal a cheery sheep Faunus holding a green box with blue stars on it.

"Ms. Thyme?" Hawkins said groggily.

Setting the box of goodies on the table, Fiona rushed over to see if her blonde friend was alright. She glanced her gaze toward Shyarly, but the shark Faunus seemed out for the count with a slight smile on her face.

Assisting the stoic magician to take a seat on the couch, Fiona took out a handkerchief and wiped away the blood on the corner of Hawkins' lip. She wanted to ask what happened while she was away, but she felt that now was not the time to ask. Though she felt the features of her face slowly contorting to an intrusive one with each passing second. Biting hard on her lip, Fiona turned to Hawkins with a determined glare but couldn't think of a way to propose her question.

"..."

Oum damn it! Did Fiona want to ask what transpired in her absence! Mentally screaming in her head to come up with a casual approach, Hawkins could only curl a brow at the distressed pouting Faunus who was pulling down on her sheep ears and stomping her boots on the floor.


"Hey, Neo, don't hog all of the popcorn to yourself!" Roman frowned as his mute friend gobbled up two whole handfuls from the bag.

"..."

"Sorry Neo, no can do. There aren't that many windows to sneak by the food counter again to swipe a few sweets. Since most of the fans are in the main theater now security has an easier time keeping watch of everybody. If you want to see the movie we can't afford to get caught."

Roman sighed as a cute pout worked its way onto Neo's face. The salt and butter of the popcorn left her throat dry, and she wanted some sweet soda to wash it down. A few candies wouldn't hurt either.

"..."

"Aw come on Neo don't give me that face."

"..."

"Er... fine I'll get you a drink and a few candies, but this had better be the last thing you ask me from me today." Roman picked himself up and tiptoes across the dim hallways of the theater. Hopefully, there were a few oblivious fans he could pickpocket some lien off of...