HAWK GATLING!~ Gosh, I'm barely making my four-day deadlines, but I managed this time around folks!

Got zilch to say in this author's note, so as always, cheers and happy reading!


It was late in the morning, just one hour before the afternoon hit and Sienna Khan was on the move. Her first and most important stop was the household that this Hawkins character was staying at. Luckily Kuo Kuana was a fairly small city, and the tiger Faunus arrived at the building in record time.

"So this is where the infamous blonde is staying at? I would have expected something more extravagant." Sienna huffed and knocked on the door.

The tiger Faunus was alone today, as she had to stop by and gather the rest of the white fang members who lived in Kuo Kuana. No reply came, but Sienna understood the importance of perseverance. She banged on the door with force, until an old man with a straw hat and toothpick answered.

"Sorry for the late arrival, but I had to finish cooking the pancakes for today's breakfast. The name's Sam." The senior chuckled and wiped a few patches of flour off his face. He stretched out a hand and Sienna accepted the shake.

'Alright, so the owner of the house is a nice enough guy, but what about the human that he's housing?' Sienna hummed to herself and rested a hand on her hip.

"I've heard rumors about a blonde human who's living here. Tell me, has he caused you any trouble?" This blunt delivery gave Sienna immediate results.

The old Faunus' brows furrowed and the wrinkles on his forehead deepened. His lips curled to a frown and he crossed his arms.

"You're not the first one to send me a threat, but if you're looking for trouble there's an entire city that you can do it in. I'm sorry young lady, but I ask that you leave my niece's home and to keep your rude comments to yourself." He huffed.

Sienna was taken back. She didn't expect such a shift in attitude, perhaps this human wasn't as bad as she initially thought. Alright, time to play the nice card for now and wait until a proper chance of interrogation presented itself.

"Please do not misunderstand, I'm a friend of Hawkins and I want to catch up on old times. If he's not around could you tell him Sienna Khan came by to see him?" The tiger Faunus offered a strong smile and kind wave. She would have to play the long game to see what this 'Hawkins' man was really like.

"A friend of Hawkins?" Hummed a calm voice.

Sienna's heart almost jumped out of her skin. From the backyard, a giant of a Faunus with two round bear ears perched on his head leaned over the fence. He was almost the same size as the senior's house!

"Ah, if you want an opinion on the Hawkins, I think you'd better talk with Kuma here. He happens to be the uncle of Hawkins' kids. How the two are related is a mystery to me though." Sam grinned and politely excused himself before he closed the door.

"So, what is it about Hawkins that you want to know?" Kuma asked with a neutral face. He stepped over the thin rods of the fence and looked down at his guest.

"I-I only want to know what your opinion of him is." Sienna mentally cursed herself for stuttering, but who wouldn't when you had a literal giant in front of you?!

"My opinion of the magician?" Kuma cupped his chin.

"Magician?" Sienna curled a brow.

"It's a title that Hawkins preferred to keep after his retirement. I can only imagine he still upholds it for nostalgic reasons, as it is one of the only mementos he has of his past." Kuma explained.

"I see." The woman rubbed her arm and glanced down the road from which she came from.

"Are you in a hurry Ms. Khan?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. Well, it's been nice meeting you Kuma. I hope to see you again when I have the time." Sienna bid a hasty farewell and retreated.


"Please everyone, take your seats so we can get this meeting underway." Ghira stood behind a podium with an open pamphlet stuffed with papers before him.

The meeting was housed in the main hall of the Belladonna mansion, and the topics of today seemed to all involve a blonde human who arrived on the island yesterday. Ghira could only roll his eyes at this news. Was it really so bad to have a human among them? Word had it the man was staying at the house of a friendly Faunus, so could he really be that much of a danger to the citizens of Menagerie?

Once everyone took their seats Ghira cleared his throat and flicked through a few pages in his pamphlet.

"Alright, I know this is going to take up most of our time today, so let us address the issue that we all seem to hold about the human who has 'invaded' our haven for Faunus." Ghira did his best not to roll his eyes near the end of his sentence.

"He shouldn't be here!" Shouted a woman with curved deer antlers.

"He can literally be anywhere else on Remnant, I bet he's plotting something against us as we speak!" Cried a man with furry arms.

"That chameleon Faunus who's affiliated with the human took out a firearm and used it against some teenagers, we can only assume that the human he follows has ill intent!" Screamed a man with green scales on his neck.

A roar of approval with that one and Ghira immediately lost control of the situation. The authority in his voice drowned by racist opinions and personal experiences, the chieftain ordered his guards to ready themselves if a ruckus were to occur.

However, before anything violent could develop, everyone in the room veered their attention to the main entrance of the hall as a blast of cold air burst through the main doors. A Faunus with green feathers and amber eyes who wore a pair of baggy orange cargo pants, a top with the word 'HAPPY' boldly imprinted on it, and a set of blue sneakers leaned against the doorframe held a wide smirk at what she assumed to be a gathering mob. Snowflakes pittered around her heels, and it was a wonder to everyone how they got there.

"Sorry for the intrusion, but I was told by a nice fellow that there was a nuisance you all wanted to be rid of?" Her crude smile grew at the hesitant nods of the mob.

"Pardon me, but who let you in? This is a meeting for white fang members, and I don't recall ever seeing your face before." Ghira's voice boomed over the heads of his audience and the woman in question offered a flirtatious wink in turn.

"The name is Monet, Mr. Belladonna. A pleasure to make your acquaintance." The bird Faunus hummed and tapped her chin.

Monet strode down the long red carpet until she was a few feet from the platform which Ghira stood upon. She had orders to kill him from Doflamingo, but now was not the time to do it. There were too many eyes on her and if anyone survived after she committed the assassination, she would become a wanted target. That, and she had orders from Vergo to remain on the good side of things until she was told otherwise.

"Hold on, Monet?" Ghira flipped through his pamphlet and found a vague description of the bird Faunus who had taken center stage.

"You were elected as a vice representative of our Faunus protests in Mistral. Word has it you've done many noble services for our kind." Ghira pointed out.

"Indeed I have." Chuckled Monet.

Ghira curled a brow, but respect was due where honest work had been done.

"You have my gratitude Monet, but I have to ask, why did you not inform me of your arrival? I would have arranged a time for you to voice and share your opinions and experiences." Ghira said.

"Please, I'm not one who enjoys the spotlight. If anything, it was the hard work of my fellow Faunus that allowed our woes to be heard by the general populace."

The white fang members cheered at Monet's humble reply, but little did they know, they were walking right into her hands.

"While I do hate to cut our conversation short, but I'm afraid the fatigue from my journey from Mistral is finally kicking in. However, there is a sensitive topic that I must address with you, Mr. Belladonna." Monet slipped a rolled brown piece of paper from her pocket and held it out for Ghira to take.

With a hesitant hand, the chieftain accepted the gesture and unrolled it. His eyes wide and feelings distraught, he nodded and thanked Monet for keeping a matter as delicate as this in silence.

Monet decided to stay in the main hall and took a seat near the front that was provided by her fellow Faunus. As Ghira continued to speak and relay responsibilities among the white fang, he felt his retractable claws poke through the tips of his fingers whenever the blonde human named 'Hawkins' was brought up.

The piece of paper Monet had given him, was actually a poster with the intimidating face of Hawkins with his name boldly printed below it along with a bounty of 249,000,000 lien. This meant the man who was treading across his peaceful island, was a dangerous and bloodthirsty criminal!


"Come on Hawkins, why are you so glum?" Even a kind person like Fiona had her limits, and the irritated look on her face showed that she was fed up with Hawkins' rude attitude.

"I shouldn't be out and about like this. You heard what Jaune said at the dinner table last night, everyone he walked past treated him like dirt." Hawkins grumbled. The magician didn't care about his personal image, but some of the glares being sent his way were starting to veer towards Fiona.

The streets in the market were less crowded today, but Hawkins didn't think much of it. Perhaps it was due to the bustling commotion outside of that mansion he passed by earlier. Luckily most of the Faunus were too busy wedging themselves in through the front doors to notice the human among them, and Hawkins made a swift retreat down one of the side roads. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to escape Fiona's determination.

"How about we try some of the local food around here? Annabel told me that the grilled fish snacks in the aquatic markets are to die for." Fiona said with a forced smile.

"Fine, let's try that one over there." Hawkins pointed a lazy finger to a small restaurant with a sign reading 'The Fried Fish House.'

"At least there will be fewer eyes on me if I'm inside a building." Hawkins sighed.

Fiona's olive eyes lit up and sparkled. Her efforts to get Hawkins out of his secluded shell were finally bearing fruit! Though the reason for his choice did sting a tad. The two entered the building and were glad when they were politely greeted.

"Ah, hello there, where do you want to sit today my dear customers?" The Faunus who maintained the store was a burly sort with a wide flowing horse mane that he shaved to make it appear as a mohawk.

"Hello! Hawkins and I will take a table by the window please, but not on the side where the sun is shining." Fiona greeted with a warm smile, and Hawkins opted to keep his stoic expression in place.

The horse Faunus moved aside but stopped midway when his eyes landed on Hawkins.

"Hold on a minute, you're a human aren't you?" The man growled.

"Yes, what of it?" Hawkins curled a brow.

"I'm sorry, I'll gladly serve the fine Faunus here, but you'll have to look elsewhere for a meal. I don't want to attract bad business if you know what I mean." The Faunus huffed and raised his arm to block the magician's path.

Hawkins rolled his eyes and turned to leave, but a fierce grip on his sleeve dragged him back into place.

"Hawkins has done nothing wrong, why are you turning him away on the premise of him being a human? Isn't it said that Menagerie is a place for everyone?" Fiona scoffed.

"From my own experience lady, humans are nothing but greedy people who want to dominate everyone around them. Heck, my restaurant used to be stationed in Mistral, until a crowd of unruly humans decided to trash it for shits and giggles. Take my advice, don't affiliate yourself with that garbage, he'll only stab you in the back when you need him the most."

Appalled by the disgusting words of the restaurant owner, Fiona spat her tongue out at the Faunus and turned to leave. Hawkins took after her example and followed suit, but he managed to catch a glimpse of the horse Faunus who was midway of delivering a spitwad aimed for Fiona's back.

"H-Hawkins, what are you doing I can't see!" Fiona said in an irritated tone. The dark green cloak of the magician covered her head and blocked her line of sight. She swatted off the clothing quickly but didn't notice the wet and smelly stain that marked the magician's cloak.

Hawkins' shot a look that shook the bones of the one responsible for the spitwad, and to his amusement the horse Faunus broke into a sweat as his knees buckled together while under the magician's harsh glare.

"Let's try another restaurant, perhaps one with a more appealing staff." Hawkins sighed. He knew Fiona wouldn't be satisfied until they ate out, but unfortunately for him, his cohort came to a different conclusion.

H-Hawkins asked me to eat out with him despite what happened! I-Is he asking me out on an actual d-date?! Hold on Fiona, you don't see Hawkins that way do you? Sure he's cold, rude, socially awkward, surprisingly sweet, careful, and kind in his own way...

Fiona slapped her blushed cheeks but did so a tad harder than she wished. The sound of the slap echoed across the street and with a Faunus' enhanced hearing, the others on the road all turned to see what the commotion was about. With nothing to go off of except a sheep Faunus with a red and slightly swollen cheek and blonde human beside her... Well, it was a good thing Hawkins had plenty of sleep last night because he spent the entire time running behind Fiona as she tried to yell that it was all a misunderstanding to the pursuing mob.


"Good afternoon Jaune, how are you feeling?" Sam walked in with a tray of buttered pancakes and grilled bacon strips. The savory aroma roused the sleeping boy and Jaune forced himself up from his warm blankets.

"Hi Granpa Sam, thanks for the food." Jaune smiled and took his plate and fork.

Sam sighed, he hated seeing his grandson down in the dumps like this, but not much could be done. If he brought the boy out for a nice walk, it would turn into nothing but disrespectful glares and comments from the Faunus around them. The decision to bring Hawkins and his kids to Menagerie might have been a bad idea, but the last time Sam visited it wasn't nearly as bad. From an outside perspective at least.

"Granpa?" Jaune gulped down a bite of bacon and lifted his head.

"What is it Jaune?" Sam replied and sat himself down next to Jaune.

"Is Remnant really this racist? Against Faunus I mean."

Sam choked on his spit at those words. He didn't expect such a mature topic, but he figured it would have surfaced sooner or later. The senior rubbed his hands on his apron then patted the blonde tyke on the head with a weak frown.

"The world isn't as white and black as we would like Jaune. Take Trifa for example, she never did anything wrong, but people treated her poorly simply by how she looked. I can't say the actions of the Faunus who scrutinized you had any right to do so, but you have to try and understand that some old wounds never fully heal." Sam sighed.

"Maybe they're not getting the right medicine?" Jaune said after a loud burp. Though he tucked a pancake under his blanket during the long string of Sam's dialogue.

Sam's eyes widened and his lips stretched to a wide smile.

"Haha, maybe you can teach an old deer new tricks." He chuckled, much to Jaune's confusion.

"Was it something I said? I only said the truth." Jaune scratched his chin as the old Faunus' laughter grew louder.

"Don't you ever forget that kindness Jaune, Oum knows how much of it is lacking in Remnant." With that, Sam took his grandson's plate and tucked him back into bed.

With the door closed and the clicking of Sam's heels fading down the hallway, Jaune knocked on the floor signaling that it was safe for his sister to come out of hiding. Emerald crawled out from underneath the bed and yawned. She did her best to avoid Carla and Annabel, due to them constantly trying to get the girl to wear that stupid frilly dress.

"Did you save me any food Jaune?" Emerald asked as she patted the dust out of her hair.

"Yup!" Jaune presented a plain fluffy pancake that was still warm to the touch.

Emerald wanted syrup on it, but beggars can't be choosers. If she risked going to the kitchen to get some breakfast, there was a high chance Carla and Annabel would spot her. The woeful cries of a particular spider Faunus confirmed her assumption, as both Jaune and Emerald veered their attention to the closed door of the room.

"I don't want to wear another dress! Get Emerald to use it instead!" Trifa wailed. Her footsteps sped past Jaune's room with two other pairs in hot pursuit.

"We can't find Emerald Trifa, so you'll have to do! Besides, I bet Jaune would say you're really cute in that dress!" Annabel cheered in a coy tone.

"N-No he wouldn't!" Trifa blushed. "Gah! Get out of the way Vito!"

"Trifa-Rero?" The gunslinger walked around the corner and felt the wind escape his lungs as the head of the blunette crashed into his stomach.

"Y-You have to hide me, Vito! Please!" Trifa begged.

Vito's eyes darted around the hallway, and with time running short he opened Jaune's door and ushered Trifa inside.

"Vito! Have you seen Trifa or Emerald anywhere? They couldn't have left the house without us knowing!" Carla panted.

"Sorry Carla, but I haven't seen them since breakfast. Maybe they slipped past you and left through the backyard-rero?"

"Oum damn it! Annabel slap on your slippers, we're going to find those two by the end today I swear it!" Carla announced and grabbed her niece by the wrist. However, she also snagged a hand on Vito's orange cravat.

"C-Carla-rero?!" Vito struggled at the senior's fierce grip.

"Three heads are better than two Vito, and seeing that you're Jaune and Emerald's uncle you should have a hunch on where they'd hang out!" Carla grinned.

Despite his protests, Vito was dragged out of the house and had to rack his brain for a plethora of excuses of where the Hawkins siblings would be. It was also difficult to not spill their location right from the get-go.

Meanwhile, Jaune and Emerald blinked as a spider Faunus with disheveled blue hair pressed against the door with all her might. Not to mention she was wearing a long-sleeved and frilly pink dress that reached just below her knees along with a pair of opaque knee-high white stockings.

"Um, so how's it going Trifa?" Jaune spoke up to break the awkward silence.

"How does it look Jaune?" Trifa snarled through clenched teeth and a chilling smile.

Jaune yelped and raised his blanket for defense, however, Trifa's scowl quickly shifted targets when she saw a head of mint-colored hair behind him.

"Jaune, is that Emerald behind you?~" The cold and distant tone Trifa used screamed danger.

"Um, no?" Jaune felt an elbow nudge against his back. Hey, it wasn't his fault he wasn't good at lying under pressure!

"Best friends don't lie to each other Jaune.~" The Faunus said with a touch of malice and slowly approached the trembling blonde.

"Do you know how many dresses, skirts, socks, and shoes Carla and her niece made me wear when they couldn't find your sister?"

"Well, you do look really cute in it to be fair," Jaune remarked truthfully and did so with a straight face.

Trifa almost tripped at the blunt compliment. Her cheeks tinged a hot red, she turned her head to the side and covered her face with her hands in an attempt to hide her shock.

"T-That doesn't excuse your sister from l-leaving me to fend for myself!" She sputtered and turned her back to avoid further embarrassment.

Jaune bit his lip, he was lucky he was a boy, but to be honest the sailor uniform Carla made him wear was quite comfortable if he was being honest.

As Jaune floundered to calm the temper of his best friend, Emerald also looked for a way to ease the tension. However, instead of words, Emerald's attention peeked to a very large bug that had skittered its way onto the open windowsill. A smirk crossed her features as a memory of a squealing and frantic Trifa came to mind.

She poked her older brother in the ribs and Jaune turned to see what the issue was. When his ocean pupils landed on the long scaly centipede, his eyes nearly bulged out of his skull. Jaune feverishly shook his head and begged with his most pleading expression to stop Emerald's mistake, but by the mischievous and evil smirk on his sibling's face, he knew the outcome was inevitable.

Jaune reached to swat the insect back outside, but Emerald was too quick and snagged it by its tail. She tossed it over her brother's head, and Jaune jumped to catch it but failed. The centipede landed with a plop right next to Trifa, and for a moment all was quiet. Then, the spider Faunus registered that her most hated arthropod was beside her left foot.

Jaune broke into a sweat as he scrambled to his feet.

"Trifa, I know that you don't like those bugs, but please just let me..."

"J-Jaune." Trifa's knees buckled together and her lips quivered.

"Please..." Jaune whispered.

"J-J-Jaune!" Trifa's voice grew louder and her eyes widened. A bead of sweat trickled down her chin.

"Please no..." Jaune grumbled. The centipede finally woke from its dazed stupor and wiggled its antenna's in the air.

"JAUNE!" The spider Faunus screeched. She spun around with tears in her eyes and arms open for her blonde savior.

"OUM DAMN IT!" Jaune winced as the body of his friend crashed into him. Trifa's dress masked his eyes, but that didn't stop his best friend's panic.

Trifa's limbs flailed every which way as Jaune's arms struggled to keep up. In a desperate attempt to distance herself from the centipede, Trifa clambered behind Jaune's skull and onto his shoulder's then linked her legs around his neck and her arms around his head.

"T-Trifa, you're ch-choking me!" Jaune gasped.

"GET RID OF IT JAUNE!" Trifa yelped.

"I can't get rid of it while you're on me Trifa!" Jaune protested through puffs of air.

In the midst of the panic, Emerald decided it was best to sneak out and let the scene play out. She managed to get herself on the top of the roof of the backyard patio that extended from the house but froze when a disappointed Kuma looked at her with his arms crossed.

Trifa tumbled from Jaune's shoulders, but the blonde managed to catch her in yet another awkward bridal position. Trifa kicked wildly and her stockinged foot clocked the bewildered boy in the jaw. Jaune did his best to subdue his anger and maintain his balance, but even he had his limits.

"Come on Trifa, you're fifteen years old already! And your one-hundred times bigger than that tiny bug!" Jaune wailed.

"NO! KEEP IT AWAY FROM ME!" Trifa delivered another three swift heels to Jaune's forehead, chin, and cheek.

In a desperate act, Jaune twirled to his bed and tried to throw Trifa to a comfy safe place, but the frazzled girl didn't want to let go until the bug had been dealt with.

"PLEASE DON'T LET ME GO!" Trifa sobbed. The frills of her dress flapped against Jaune's eyes, and he felt his ankles twist from the awkward positions he was forced into.

In a desperate act, Jaune recited a line from his favorite novel, the same line that Sora used to calm down the princess of Dressrosa.

"Please oh, graceful Silkmoon! let me place thy beautiful butt down so I may deal with the buggy intruder!"

Well, Jaune might have botched the wording when he said that line, but it was close enough right?

Anyhow, this managed to calm Trifa's hammering heart a tad, and her wild kicking stopped as she looked up to Jaune with a confused look. Did he really call her graceful and beautiful? A hot blush bloomed on her features, and when Jaune's spinning head came to focus on the shaking girl in his arms, he flashed her a thin smile.

"There we are, you look a lot cuter when you're calm Trifa. Now, will you please let me put you down so I can deal with the centipede?" Jaune chuckled weakly.

"O-Okay." Trifa whimpered. Her feet touched the floor and she scampered behind the back of her friend to push him forward.

Jaune rolled his eyes and grabbed an empty plastic container from his bag, but when he looked to the floor for the centipede, he found it back on the windowsill, its antenna's flicking wildly as it skittered across it.

"Poor thing, it must be scared to death after that fiasco." Jaune sighed and gently nudged the insect with the container. The bug dropped to the plush grass of the backyard and back to its home in nature.

Jaune was glad that was all done with, but now he had to console the grief of his best friend. He tried to fetch Trifa a glass of water and a few sweets, but couldn't bring himself to abandon her in her trembling state. Then an idea dinged in Jaune's head. The brave hero in fairytales always carried the princess to safety when the battle was over, and then there would be peace after he did so.

It worked for the heroes in the books, and Trifa did look like a princess in that dress, so why wouldn't it work for Jaune? With a goofy smile, Jaune spun around and snagged his arms around Trifa's legs and back. The girl squeaked at the sudden action, and the hot blush returned to her face as she was carried in another bridal style. Though this one was much more comfortable.

Jaune walked over to the bed and sat himself down. The only problem was, Trifa wasn't getting off of him or showed any signs of doing so.

"Um, Trifa?"

Nothing was said as Trifa wrapped her arms around Jaune's neck. A faint blush spread across the young boy's cheeks as his beast friend nuzzled her head that was bright as a tomato into his chest.

"U-Um, Silkmoon?" Jaune tried again.

No results, so the blonde boy decided it would be best to wait it out. Besides, he couldn't move even if he wanted to. His legs fell asleep the moment his butt landed on his bed...

"Huh, I wonder what happened to Minty." Jaune hummed to himself when his eyes had time to wander.


"Uncle Kuma! Can you please let me down already! The circulation in my legs is starting to disappear!" Emerald called from atop a tree.

As consequence for the girl's mean deed, the bear Faunus had plucked her by the collar and snagged the back of her belt to a thick tree branch far above the ground.

"Don't worry Emerald, I've set a timer to make sure you don't lose your legs after your punishment." Kuma hummed as he pulled out a book which happened to be the most recent installment of Sora the warrior of the sea.

"Please uncle Kuma I have to pee!" Emerald begged.

Kuma shrugged and flipped a page.