Elderfire1
Oh, we're back! Hah! Let me just check the timeline for what is about to… ah…
JourneysEnd1
Oooo! Is it fluff!? I bet it's fluff!
Eldefire1
It's… something… sure…
JourneysEnd1
Aaaahhhhhh poop…
Once again, thank you to my dearest subscribers on a certain site, you make this all happen and I have a little present waiting for you...
Lyruil, Splash43, Enigma42, Lufftewaffle, James Conason and GreenTea,
Pink Lemonade
Chapter 32
Ashes begin to stir...
She felt fear… true and undeniable fear in this moment… fear for everything she had, everything she loved and had gotten so used to not having to worry about…
This… no.
It wasn't fear.
This was terror.
A terror she had only felt a couple times in her entire life…
Things had been going so well… so perfect… and yet now? Now… they were about to possibly be ruined by the fucking monster in front of her…
"You and Neo are close? Huh! Guess it makes sense, you kind of remind me of her"
"Oh! Very much so… why, you could say that we are thick as thieves! What about you and her? I mean, you are her… boyfriend, right?"
"Oh, me and Neo are really close! I tell you, she really brings the best out in me!"
This wasn't happening.
"Oh~? Really now? I would have thought the opposite, after all… she is a dear friend, meaning I know what a trouble maker she is"
This… this couldn't be happening… Why would it be happening?
"Well… yeah, Neo can be a little rough around the edges… but that's why I… heh, why I love her…"
"Oh! Love? Oh, she really has you wrapped around her finger, doesn't she~?"
But it was…
And Neo felt her heart shatter as kind blue and cruel gold looked upon her.
One oblivious to the avatar of fire and death in front of them.
The other more than likely already planning on how best to kill them without a sound…
He pulled her close, Neo freezing in fear and yet her arms on instinct clutched him close and placed her near his front.
Better to protect him, after all, if a fireball or burning blade were to come his way… she would rather die than allow him to get hurt…
But…
As Neo kept her, unnatural, silence in this 'meeting' she knew this fucking monster had set… she watched those golden eyes narrow even further, suspicion and annoyance in them… they were waiting on her… demanding that she go along with her words… or else.
Oh, hell yeah! Me and Cinder go way back! She… is kind of a big deal to me she smiled, this dark, boiling pit within roiling at having to act friendly with the witch of fire in front of her… but it was needed. Needed to protect Jaune. Sorry I never talked about her before, was a little too focused on… other things.
There was a flash of anger, something Jaune smiled obliviously at… and for once she couldn't blame it on his nature of not seeing things like this.
This monster… was one who was an expert in manipulating people. She was perfect at it.
Had her uncle believe she was someone he could use for getting them big money… before revealing that she was really there to force them into her service.. and had done so with ease…
But the most obvious and powerful claim to her manipulations… was Emerald… and Neo did not want to delve into that disgusting thing. Neo hated what was happening there, and even if she also hated Emerald… some things were just wrong.
"Oh! You wound me, Neo, I mean… why would you not tell him about me?" she asked, the question sounding joking and kind… But Neo knew that she was once again demanding a fucking answer…
And Neo was shocked when Jaune was the one to answer for her.
"Hah, Neo is… a little shy with telling me stuff sometimes, but I don't mind, why would I? Everyone has secrets after all" Jaune goofily smiled, gently running a hand up her back, Cinder raising an eyebrow at the words he'd spoken.
Dummy… don't go telling my friends this shit! she pouted at him, Jaune laughing and petting her head in the way Neo always loved… but now it felt like this may be the last time she would ever experience it... Play the part. Play it well… like you always do… do it and Jaune will survive this…
"Why, you have secrets yourself then~? Why, a regular man of mystery" she giggled, flirtingly, Neo's anger flaring and every part of her body screamed to remind her that she was his girlfriend… but then she remembered that Cinder wasn't like the other girls at Beacon… every move she made was either a test… or seeing if she was 'behaving'… "Well, why don't I introduce you to my other friends? I mean, I myself am not one for secrets after all"
Liar… She mentally growled, but kept the same stupid smile on her face… the one that usually real around Jaune and her friends… which she guessed was good, because it meant faking it wasn't too hard… but then Neo felt her blood cool once more as she realised just who she meant…
Emerald rolled her eyes internally as she walked up like a preppy idiot who had more hormones than braincells, sidling up to Cinder as she briefly narrowed her eyes at the scene before her.
There was the midget, looking pissed for a second as well, but it was gone just as quickly. Emerald had to guess she hadn't been expecting Cinder to approach so early, but hey? Why shouldn't she? Cinder was a genius.
She needed to make sure that Neo was behaving, naturally.
It was Neo after all.
Her loyalty was forced.
She would stab them in the back the moment she got the chance… which was why Cinder was proving how clever she was in showing just how she was able to get to the ice-cream psychopaths' boy toy any time she wanted. Emerald knew attachment when she saw it, Mercury narrowing his eyes with a smile as Neo had moved in front of him the moment she got close, proved to Emerald that even if the nutjob clearly was using him… she had claimed him and from what she had heard… Neo was vicious when it came to protecting things she considered her own.
There was no way in hell she actually cared about him as anything other than a possession.
This was the same girl she had watched skewer a thugs knees together after he pulled a gun on Roman, the same girl who had grinned as she booted a White Fang who had been trying to run to the police into the Vale river with weights on his feet… they'd all known that the traitor would survive… but the fear of thinking he wouldn't survive the swim to the other shore was fear enough.
And then Cinder had simply shot him with an arrow anyway, naturally, because Cinder was smart enough to know that loose ends needed tying up. She always knew what was best after all.
And that little psycho had actually looked angry at Cinder until her golden pools for eyes landed on the thief who had stomped away, probably angry Cinder had ruined the monsters 'fun'.
Anyway, she knew the midget well enough… now to her little toy…
And… to be frank? Emerald wasn't impressed.
Weak and pathetic were the first words to come to mind.
Sure, the guy had a little bit of muscle, but so did most teenagers that weren't starving orphans on the streets or fat tubs of lard living off of Mummy and Daddy.
His face, eyes, smile and even his stance screamed 'gullible idiot who is way too trusting', meaning he would be easy to lead into a dark alleyway if Cinder ever decided that he needed to be taken out… was this really the guy who had beaten back a bunch of White Fang and given Bane a run for his money?
The guy who had apparently bent Roman's cane with a punch?
It was either a fluke or…
Emeralds eyes widened… no way… was he…
She then narrowed her eyes as the mop haired idiot smiled at her disarmingly… those scars though… faint yet obvious marks of vicious battle…
"This is my dearest friend, Emerald. She's my partner and is the only person in the world who beats Neo in being so important to me" she smiled, Emerald skipping forward with a sweet smile that made her want to die.
"Hey! I guess Cinder introduced me, but what's your name?" oh gods… she thought she was going to throw up, but she needed to do as Cinder wanted of her.
"Oh! Uh, my name's Jaune! Jaune Arc, short, sweet and… well, at least Neo likes it! Heh, you've got just as much energy as one of my teammates, you should meet her sometime!" he excitedly told her, like a fucking puppy… but something about him… there was no way in fucking hell that someone as twisted and sick as Neo would ever go for a moron with terrible hair and a personality that made her want to shoot him… so what about him had made her decide she could stomach being around him and play girlfriend?
Maybe… just maybe, there was more to this guy than first met the eye.
She, after all, was easily playing to part of a peppy idiot like this was her real personality.
"Sounds fun! Say, why don't we make an evening of it soon? I mean, it would be nice to meet all of the friends our little ice-cream here has made!" Ah, there was the approving look from Cinder she craved… the one that told her she had done well coming up with that idea, a way to get close and study the others that Neo was 'friends' with. Hah, more like her soon-to-be victims she was keeping on hand for if she got bored of playing the goody two-shoes.
It was also fun to see the look of anger that crossed the thief's face as she giggled at the excited look on the idiots. He was acting like her wanting to hang out with them was the best thing in the world or something.
"Oh! Sure! That sounds amazing, actually… means I can get to know you all personally"
And there went her fun… why… did he say it like that?
Put emphasis on that last word? The word that could make it sound much more like he was trying to learn about them just as much as they were trying to learn about him?
… she would have to be careful around him…
Those innocent, baby blue eyes could hide malicious intent...
That smile could hide a sinister sneer…
Those hands… they could move to attack them at any moment…
Now, Emerald knew at even a moments notice, Cinder could erase him from existence with ease.
But… there was a thought that entered her mind…
Was Neo with this guy… because he was some outside help that had been brought in as muscle? Someone from their line of work? To help them escape when Cinder decided they weren't of use to her anymore?
Should she bring this up later? When they were alone?
… No… This could just be her distrust for the vicious little shit in front of her, could be that Neo really had brought him in as her boyfriend because he was that pathetic and awkward that he drew attention away from the thief just as Cinder wanted. Cinder wouldn't want Emerald to distract her with useless information that could be wrong.
She would simply have to keep an eye on him.
After all… no one was better at going unnoticed as her…
Neo hid her scowl behind her Semblance as Emerald narrowed her eyes at Jaune.
No.
That bitch was not allowed near him. At least on their own.
She knew what Emerald did. Knew what she liked to do in service of her fucking boss. Jaune was sweet and kind, would do anything for those he loved and cared for... but Emerald was different.
She was obsessed with Cinder. Would do anything to impress her and Neo had the feeling that Cinder enjoyed it. Enjoyed knowing just how much power she held over the lovestruck thief.
So if Cinder suspected Jaune knew, a key reason why she hadn't told him, about her plans... Emerald would be there to try and get information out of him with her Semblance. All to please her master... to the point she would happily make Jaune suffer until his mind broke from the horrific images she would force upon him.
A classic case of an abuser making the victim think they were loved and adored with trickles of love and affection to keep them hooked. Making them think if they kept doing whatever the abuser wanted, then her love would be returned in full someday...
Once again, she may hate the green haired bitch... but she couldn't help but feel sorry for her at times.
That feeling did not go for the bastard next to her though, that sick little grin he always wore when he found something he considered 'fun'... he scared her more than Cinder at times... purely for the fact that while Cinder would make sure you gave her a reason before killing you... that fucking psycho would do it for fun.
Jaune smiled as he looked at the green haired girl, she seemed nice, honestly.
Peppy and a liiiiittle bit loud, but frankly? After living with Nora and being next door to Yang, not to mention the orchestra of screaming and yelling that was his house, he was used to loud and happy people.
And he just knew that with her, and the rest of her friends, Neo would really love whenever they could set that night up!
With her green hair and ruby eyes, she honestly reminded him of a forest spirit like his mom used to say guarded the forest around their home. Especially with her dark, chestnut coloured skin.
Then again… he got the feeling that Emerald wasn't… he didn't know… there was something off about her, something that got him both confused… and a little worried.
Like, the way she was smiling.
The way she grinned while always glancing at Cinder.
Even the way she talked to him.
It all seemed a little… exaggerated? That was the best word he could come up with at the moment. Like, there was this… he didn't know… but he planned to find out.
Right now? All he did was smile and turn to Neo's other friend, besides Cinder who was still smiling at him.
Mercury Black smiled an unarming smile. One filled with positivity and trust.
Body. Slight yet toned like my own, though signs of recently increased muscle mass suggesting they will soon grow physically stronger than me. If needed, take out sooner rather than later for greatest ease.
One that said 'I am approachable, I am fun to talk to'.
Eyes. Filled with innocence and hope. An idiot who thinks himself a hero. Easy to manipulate. Lead into an alley under guise of worry for another, away from prying eyes.
It was with an extension of his hand that he shook the hand of the tall guy in front of him who smiled at his joking grin.
Scars. Multiple across the hand. Suggests having faced serious battle coinciding with the rumours he was the one to take a full-on attack by Banesaw. Break, don't cut, snap the wrists to minimise offensive ability.
"Hey, name's Mercury, though any friend of Neopolitan is a friend of mine, so call me Merc" He grinned, watching those blue eyes widen as the guy in front of him rubbed the back of his head.
"O-Oh! Cool, my name's... still Jaune, I… don't really have a nickname that… well, I can really say without getting embarrassed, heh"
Lower intelligence, easy to confound and discombobulate. As he focuses on his broken wrists, completely ignoring his opponent, snap his neck with a single strike before aura can raise.
Funny thing was... that was the last thing on his mind as he looked at the blonde and the bitch.
The little snot who had taken out screws and bolts from his legs during his sleep so that his one leg had fucking fallen off in the middle of a spar with Emerald.
And of course Cinder had laughed, so he wasn't allowed to kill her when he had seen her trying to act like she'd had no idea why his leg was suddenly halfway across the room from the roundhouse he had tried to pull off.
He would kill her the second Cinder let him… but he would make it painless. He was a professional after all. All he wanted to see was the moment that her eyes widened as she realised that he was better than her. She always thought she was better than him, always. Hah. At least he wasn't fucking moronic enough to form any kind of attachment to people. Her? He'd honestly thought better of her, but now? Now he realised she was just a deadlier Emerald. An idiot who let themselves have such a deadly weakness. But at least with Emerald, that weakness was Cinder... not exactly someone he could use to make her do whatever he wanted.
"Oh, c'mon, man! You can't say that without telling us!" He laughed, watching as the midget flinched for a second… but then she grinned, leaning up and poking his chest, the idiot in blonde blushing heavily as he stuttered… Neopolitan's smile growing as she kept poking his chest.
"Oh… uh… N-Neo… calls… me… uh…" and then he trailed off, Mercury twitching his eyes to the side to find that sadistic grin on Cinder's face… the one that said she enjoyed watching this little mouse squirm.
"Oh~ Go on~ Won't you please tell us?" She smiled, Mercury seeing that same smile on Neopolitan's face, never once failing, Cinder had asked him to keep an eye on the thief… but for now, he hadn't really seen anything of note. Sure, annoyance at their insults to her toy, but it was more like if someone talked shit about your pet than a lover.
Neo hid her fear. Hid her terror behind her smile as she poked her boyfriend, trying to get him to speak… the longer he stalled, the longer he went without saying it, the longer they would have to pick up on anything they decided made him a 'risk'... Neo couldn't allow that.
And so she poked him, giggling to herself as he sheepishly looked her way... before smiling and nodding his head.
"Neo... sh-she calls me... S... Sunshine..." And then there was his face, burning red, but perfect.
Perfect because... even if she hated it, them finding his embarrassment funny, it was keeping their attention from trying to figure out whether or not they needed to kill him
Jaune knew nothing.
Nothing at all that would put him in harms way.
He did know she was a thief, knew she was from crime... but so did many people in her life.
Many people that Cinder had met/dealt with and hadn't killed… so that would be the reason she would go with to calm her thundering heart down.
And until she could convince Cinder that Jaune wasn't going to be a risk to her plans, he was at risk… but that would hopefully end tonight.
Jaune smiled as Mercury chuckled, rolling his eyes a little at his next words, he'd heard worse from Yang and Nora.
"Hah! 'Sunshine'!? Where the hell did that come from!? That's so lame!" he laughed, laughed and laughed… and laughed... it... it wasn't that bad, right? Well, until Neo delivered a heeled boot to his gut in a vicious kick, Mercury flying back into the wall with a shocked gasp, shooting up with a look on his face that gave Jaune pause…
… for a moment it looked as if he was-
"Oh, Mercury, when will you learn? Neo here has always been a little quick to anger when you tease those she cares about~" Cinder smiled, appearing before him with rolling eyes and petting an angry Neo on the head.
Heh, he was used to this, gently running a hand over the one gripping him, feeling her tense and almost flinch, but then his girlfriend looked up at him with a 'whoops?' look on her face.
"Neo… c'mon, that's no way to treat your friend" he muttered, nervously looking Emerald's way, half expecting her to be angry… and yet she was… laughing?
Neo's friends… were weird…
Hey! Asshole was talking shit! She growled, refusing to apologise and Jaune… was once more made aware of just how much Neo cared about him.
Weird how Neo's displays of affection often involved violence…
"Oh, not to worry!" Cinder smiled, this coy, amused look to her as she swatted a hand against his chest. "I happen to have found that rather amusing, Mercury here simply needs to remember that Neo is not a girl who takes insults such as that lightly"
"Oh! No, it's not an insult, trust me! Should hear what I used to get called back home!" he laughed nervously, feeling an odd sensation begin to build in his chest. Was this what second-hand embarrassment felt like? Huh. He was only used to first-hand. "A-Are you okay, Mercury?" he asked, watching the guy still standing there, head lowered… before it snapped up and he laughed again, this time like he had been told the funniest joke in the world.
"Y-Yeah, man… Oum, forgot how hard shorty here can kick! Tell you what! I'll show you how hard I can kick later, and you can judge who has the better kick? Bet she's thrown a few your way!"
Neo seemed to try and shoot forward to kick him again, Jaune actually rolling his eyes.
"Neo, it's okay. You don't need to worry, I mean… you're lucky that wasn't Yang, she would have used me like a bat!" he laughed, Neo clearly not seeing the humour in it, but that was okay… they were working on her anger issues alongside Blake and Yang.
"Well, I for one, think that her calling you Sunshine is adorable" Cinder told him, smiling a sweet smile that showed she was definitely the loving and caring member of their little group. She seemed nice! And if even his… kind of standoffish girlfriend liked Cinder? Well! That was good by him!
She had apparently been looking for Neo when she and him had bumped into each other, Cinder apologising profusely, just as he had, and then? Heh, they'd broken into laughter.
Just… meeting someone as apologetic about stuff like this was hilarious! They'd been stuck in an apology cycle for so long!
But, after they'd finally managed to calm down just a little, Cinder had asked if she'd seen him from somewhere and Jaune had been certain he'd never met such a nice person like her before… until her eyes had widened and she'd grinned excitedly.
'Oh! You're Neo's boyfriend! Oh, my old friend has told me so much about you!'
From there… well, they'd just talked about her, Cinder heaping on the praise for him that had brought out the biggest embarrassed blush in him.
But, back to the present.
Emerald and Neo smiled as they walked up and talked to each other, Neo having to talk through her Scroll which he guessed made sense. Sign was hard to learn after all. Though Mercury seemed to know it, which he was happy to see, it cheered him up to know Neo'd had someone to talk to without needing her Scroll when she was with them.
They talked and talked, looking like the best of friends as Neo showed off all the pictures she had taken with him and the others to the excited looking girl.
"He's under my Semblance. Drop the act" Emerald growled, Neo rolling her eyes and stopped pretending to like the bitch. Her eyes flashing black as Mercury made a show of threatening her with a thumb across the throat.
Really? You forgetting the last time you tried shit, dumbass? Without Emerald here, you didn't stand a chance against me she told him, a bit pissed still that he was the only one amongst the group to know sign language.
"Shut the fuck up, little bitch" he growled, his own act of not being a mentally fucked up murderer falling now that she bet all Jaune saw was them having a lovely fucking chat.
"Why don't you shut up. Cinder is working here, do I need to remind you that she is in charge?" A look at their fire wielding 'boss' showed she was annoyed with Mercury's threat. And annoying Cinder was an easy way to get yourself killed.
So she took glee in the way he choked on his own spit and simply went back to glaring at her.
What the fuck are you doing here? I thought you were meant to come find me first? She asked, deciding the prick wasn't worth it and instead went straight to business. After all, the fact Emerald decided to have this here and made sure Jaune couldn't hear them was proof that they didn't want him dead yet.
That was good news.
"Cinder wanted to meet you now, your idiot just happened to appear and she wanted to see what he was made of… she at least finds how stupid he is funny" Emerald grinned, begging her to show any kind of upset for how she was talking about Jaune… But Neo hadn't survived this long by letting her emotions rule her when around people from the dark, dangerous corners of the world like herself.
Hah! You're telling me! Fucking moron was so easily fooled with a few bats of my eyes and a lil shake of my ass, pathetic! She laughed, hatred flowing within her at every word she typed out. He's a good meat shield with his high aura and strength, and a good slave for getting me food and shit, and all I need to do in return is blow him a kiss every now and then! Hah!
"Huh, I guess you really are just using him, I genuinely thought you liked him for a minute" she muttered, Neo feeling just the smallest twinge of annoyance at that show through, but she played it off as something that made her sick to her stomach.
Oi! I care about my things, he belongs to me 'till I get bored of him, so watch your mouth, bitch she said with a narrowing of her eyes, Mercury laughing once again, but noticeably much quieter now.
"Oh… Well, that explains things, always knew you were a little monster" the thief said with no small amount of annoyance at her, Neo narrowing her eyes behind her Semblance and forcing her hands to not clench too hard at the risk of breaking her disguise.
"Heh, and you call me a monster? Don't get me wrong, I would do the same if a job called for it, but now you can't go around acting like you're any better than me" he grinned… grinned a grin that unnerved her… the way he leered at her like she was a piece of meat. "Say… now I know you're just the same as me, I'm willing to forgive you for all the little pranks… so why don't you and I, when you get rid of him, go out some time? Bet I can be more 'interesting'. Especially in... certain areas~"
*ba-thump!*
A pain shot through her, an indescribable, agonising pain that made her choke out a gasp for air that seemingly wouldn't come… what… what was happening to her?
Her eyes widened, feeling her blood run cold as Neo did her very best to try and understand what this sudden feeling shooting through her was, what this horrible, terrible jolt that shot through her system.
The way he looked at her, like she was prey, this salacious smile on his face that told her all she needed to know...
ba-thump!*
This… was she… was she afraid? Why?
This… this made no sense…
This was messed up, what the ever loving fuck was happening to her?
And then Jaune gently squeezed her shoulder, looking down at her blissfully unaware of this deadly situation they were in… but that smile… those trusting eyes…
And then she felt it.
Felt this… this warmth enter her, Jaune was looking away again when she looked back at him, instead continuing to talk to Cinder about her nickname for him.
He was using his Semblance on her… without even realising it apparently from the way his hand just casually rested on her shoulder with no tension or grip to it…
Her breath caught once again, her heart slowing, blood warming…
She could do this.
She could do this, because Jaune was here…
She smirked at the fuck who back peddled a little at the look she gave him. It was vicious, it was dark… and it was something that she took glee in as she let him know a little something… that normally would have made her blush, but now? Now she said it with sadistic glee.
Hah! Yeah right, I bet all your packing is a pencil where he has a log.
"Well…I dunno how good I really am, but I… I love Neo. I love her so much. She just makes me so happy and I wanna do the same for her, y'know?" he admitted, rubbing the back of his head as Neo buried her own head into his stomach, grinning up at him cheerily, Cinder rolling her eyes and looking up at him with a knowing smile.
"You really must be important to her… Neo has never been this affectionate with anyone, a little heartbreaker she was, I tell you!" Cinder smiled, tittering slightly as Jaune… yeah, he got that, Neo hadn't even realised what liking someone was like until she'd met him.
*whump!*
Looking up again, he was confused to see Mercury steaming red and glaring at Neo while Emerald was on the floor laughing, his girlfriend proudly wrapping her arms around him.
"Oh, it would appear Mercury has been on the receiving end of another of Neo's teasing sprees" the girl with golden eyes giggled, patted Mercury on the shoulder.
"Heh, yeah, lil snot got me… really got me" he smiled through his teeth, Jaune frowning a little… what was that about? "Well, nice meeting you, Jiune!"
"It's Jaune, heh" he replied, getting that his name was a little easy to get wrong. Cinder smacked his shoulder again, scolding him like a big sister… heh, he kind of missed Saphron telling him off when he was being dumb, would have saved him a lot of embarrassment.
"Hah, anyway, we need to be going, we need to catch up with our dearest little friend of ours" She smiled, Neo pouting and holding him close for a moment.
He smiled, gathering up his courage… and lifting her up into a kiss that turned his girlfriend an adorable shade of pink, her eyes lighting up for a moment, pouting all the more at the chuckles from the other three.
"I love you" he whispered, saying he would meet up with her later, gently placing her down before walking away with a sigh… hah… things… things were going well for him… He rounded the corner with joy in his heart, Neo having friends like them was something that warmed his heart. "Oh! I need to remember to make us peanut butter brownies! It will be perfect for tonight!"
"Hrmm, that does sound rather good, Mr Arc"
She was pure silence, not even the sound of her heels against the floor, as they entered the dorm of team CME(N), apparently they'd had the Headmaster of Haven to say their teammate with the N was severely injured from a trip gone bad and staying in Mistral… which was something that scared the living shit out of her, to be frank…
They had a fucking headmaster on their side… something Cinder had told her and her Uncle as a scare tactic more than likely.
Just her way of saying 'Me and my cronies somehow have the ability to scare the leader of a Huntsman academy into bowing down' so behave. She had originally been part of that list, apparently, but with her joining Beacon through different means, they'd had to bullshit. She and her uncle had the running theory he had family out there that Cinder had more of her little slaves threatening.
It was the only way to explain having a man who was the epitome of what a Hunter should be, doing your bidding.
Honestly? She expected Cinder to be pissed… but from what her Uncle had told her, she had other plans for her… and that was fine. She'd do any shit they wanted, but the moment she got caught, Neo could happily tell Jaune and be done with this shit.
He… would be so angry with her… she'd betrayed his trust, hurt him so bad, but she would spend the rest of her life proving to him just how much she loved him.
She would tell him that she loved him… in a way she knew would prove how much she did.
But, in any case, it freed her from having to deal with that creepy bastard Mercury being her partner.
How terrible would that have been... the guy was good, powerful and she would admit in a fair fight, no Semblances, he would beat her... but in a real fight, she had always kicked his ass.
But... she still felt this anxiety around him whenever he looked at her, after those words... they squirmed and gnawed at the back of her mind... but she refused to show it.
"Well" And then she was back in the moment, placing on her mask for these assholes once again. Cinder was smiling, a smile that told Neo the bitch was feeling oh, so in control right now. "I must say, you have thoroughly impressed me, Neo~" she said with actual pride on her face as she clapped a hand to Neo's shoulder, the ice-cream coloured thief seeing the way Emerald's eyes narrowed.
I'm not here to impress you, boss she cut off, not wanting to be praised for what the bitch thought was her using the love of her life. She... she was still sickened by the words she had said.
"Oh, but the way you are manipulating him~" I'm not "The way he openly shows his affection for you like a lovesick puppy" Because the affection I show him is real "I mean, you have him wrapped around your finger, honestly, I am rather shocked but impressed at how callous you can be~ A woman after my own heart, using useful pawns for your own gains" ... I...
"C-Cinder?"
"Oh, but I would never do that to you, Emerald, you are extremely important to me, I mean, look how you handled the situation back there? You had that fool completely unawares of the real conversation happened around him" she purred, touching the green haired thief's cheek, Neo holding in a wretch at how she shuddered. "No, you? You are the most important person in the world to me" she smiled, only Neo seeing the bitch role her eyes as Emerald blushed heavily at the touch.
Yeah, well, what can I say? She hated her smile, it disgusted her, but this was literally a life or death situation. For both her, and the people she cared about. I am pretty damn good, what can I say?
"That you are… Oh, and your worries have been put to rest, Mercury" she announced, turning to the scowling asshole who did his best to not scowl at the woman who cocked an eyebrow at his mood.
"What's that, boss?"
"Don't play coy, Mercury, you are not good at it. But what I mean is, that the fool in blonde is clearly just that, a fool. An idiot. A moron of the highest calibre who has been fooled into thinking that Neo actually cares for him as anything other than a tool for both enjoyment and pleasure"
She announced with no small amount of callous disregard.
Stop. think. You are better than this. Don't do it. Pulling a blade and going for her eyes will only get you… and then Jaune, killed.
"I mean, he didn't even notice when I heated my hand against his chest, not even a twitch. So, no. You will not be having to remove him"
Fucking… stop. Just stop.
"Hah… fine! But I still say we keep an eye, don't need him looking for his 'wittle girlfwiend' to step on him and ending up stumbling onto our plans" he growled, cutting her a dirty look that she gave no shits about as Cinder moved her gaze back to her.
Don't worry about it she said, putting on a sadistic smile, forcing her eyes not to turn black with the hatred she felt towards the bastard in front of her. Forgive me, Jaune… none of this… none of this is true… I swear it. He sees anything he shouldn't? I'll slit his throat before he can even think.
She was surprised when everyone blinked, eyes wide for a moment before Cinder split her lips into a Cheshire smile.
"Neo… I think I am coming to like you" If you knew I've already imagined what your head would look like caved in for daring to threaten Jaune, you wouldn't. "But, with that out the way, it's time to talk business. Neo? I have questions regarding your 'friends'"
Like what? She asked, not afraid to raise an eyebrow with furrowed brows, after all, this was a natural reaction to this. This isn't going to risk my cover, right? I like the idea of being able to go back to thieving from rich pricks when this job you have me and my uncle on, afterwards. Without, you know, having an entire school of Hunters on my ass.
"No, I am not that foolish, you know that after all I have done to show that trying to disobey me will not go well for you" she reminded Neo with a casual wave of her hand, Mercury and Emerald huffing out a laugh as Neo was forced to admit that Cinder... well, on her own, Neo felt she stood a chance, but with the White Fang and her lackies? Not a hope in hell. "You will be playing your role of the doting girlfriend, go on dates and use him for anything you desire, as you have been. Once again, bravo. It will be perfect cover for you. All I require from you, for the time being, is to occasionally find out information for me from the professors and your slave"
Really? She asked, surprise written all across her face as internally she cheered... this... this was perfect! She wouldn't be abandoning her friends and all she would have to do is find out, what, where the cameras were? The teachers nightly routes in whichever building had whatever they were after? Easy!
This… this was going to be easier than she thought.
All it would take is her 'accidentally' tipping off Goodwitch and Mrs Arc of what was happening and… that would be it. They would be taken down on the spot.
And, if she once again 'accidentally' let Mrs Arc know these monsters were more than happy to kill her son the moment he got close to finding out their plans?
They would not survive the night.
But she'd need to be careful.
It would need to be an inescapable situation, or she had no doubt the bastards would escape somehow… and it would only be a matter of time before they came for her and her own.
"Oh, yes, you are in a perfect position to be close to those most at risk to my plans, after all. Neo, what I want from you right now… is to tell me of the Semblances of those around you. Of those you are 'close' to"
Neo felt her breath catch as those words left her mouth…
Her eyes widened behind her mask of a smug grin partnered with cruelly narrows eyes…
This… this fucking monster wanted to know about her friends, her boyfriends, Semblance…? And she knew what it was for.
What other reason would this sadist want this knowledge for, other than to use it against them if they ever got in her way? And they would do it a way so that none of them would stand a chance. Neo would be the first, naturally, but then? Then they would pick them off one by one…
Emerald would use her Semblance to make something horrifying appear, to make them panic and make mistakes. The deaths of everyone they care about, the slaughter of a town of innocents… even the loss of their own limb. Though doing too much would cause her pain, the thief was far too obsessed with pleasing her mistress.
Then, Cinder would employ her personal assassin.
He would know every single way to kill someone from any position. He would slaughter them without a care-actually, no. The sick bastard would enjoy it.
Of course Cinder would never get her hands dirty, no… she'd enjoy it from afar with a glass of wine.
The worst part was, they could easily prove her wrong if she straight up lied to Cinder about their abilities. They were masters of finding out secrets of others if they felt they needed to.
So… she really had no choice, when she thought about it…
Okay then, who do you want to know about the most?
"Hrmm…" Cinder purred. "Why don't you tell me about what your little boyfriend is using. I heard it is quite powerful~"
"Well, thank you for that information, Neo, you may go back to your little toy now. Do tell me if anything changes about them, including that boosting Semblance of his… I would love to see where that goes~" she thanked the thief with a smile, pleased with how this was going… very pleased. Her power, the one she had earned when she had defeated that sad little woman who could barely even defend herself from them, would soon be hers with the way things were going…
No problem, Boss, honestly? Looking forward to seeing how you deal with those idiots if they ever get in your way she grinned, skipping out the door with a silent whistle on her lips in the same carefree manner the thief always seemed to have. Hah, a sadist after her own heart... so long as she always remembered who was in charge? She may even be willing to let them live and join her after they got her power.
They watched and waited for the sound of her near silent footsteps to fade, Mercury at the door with his ear pressed to it.
With his nod, Emerald sighed and made her way back to the centre with an appropriately pleased look on her face from her earlier praise. Hah… she almost felt bad at how easy it was to convince Emerald to do whatever she wanted.
Hah… everything was coming together perfectly. Her destiny would soon be realised. The power she had earned rightly was practically all hers for the taking.
The only issue was-
"I don't like it" came Mercury's growl, he was clearly doing his very best to not look as if he were angry, but frankly? It was a rather pathetic attempt, to be perfectly frank.
"And whatever is that Mercury?" she asked, not bothering to hide her annoyance at his ruining of her pleasant thoughts.
He flinched, but did not stop, instead walking up to both her and her scowling thief.
"I mean, I don't like this, that little shit is planning something and it will end bad for us unless we deal with her and her little boy-toy!" he announced, seemingly looking for some sort of reaction that she agreed with him. Oh, that was quite precious.
"Mercury. I do not have time for your damaged ego, I heard about what happened earlier and frankly? I would have thought the son of the legendary assassin Marcus Black would be better at handling his emotions after a simple jab at the size of his manhood. It makes me wonder if you are going to be the issue to our plans, not Neopolitan. I mean, Emerald, despite her clear skills with her Semblance was unable to hide your animosity to that fool earlier for the briefest of moments" the heat built within the room, Cinder's one eye burning with flame as she stood, slowly making her way towards the fearful looking assassin who backed his way into a corner. Her burning blade of glass was at his throat before he could even react. "Let me make myself perfectly clear to you, Mercury Black. You are not to risk our whole operation, my plans, purely for your ego. Neopolitan knows fully well that if she dares rebel against me, she shall die. All who she cares about, shall die. She will not dare try anything; I fully believe this"
She pressed her sword forward for a moment, seeing the look of utter terror in his eyes as her own narrowed… before she pulled it back and let him fall to the ground, a gasp leaving him as his hand snapped to his throat.
"You are not to interfere with them. Neo is doing highly valuable work for me and could quite possibly be the key to securing our victory with the trust the staff will naturally have in her" she warned, but the fool seemed to think he had the right to object.
"But what if she goes to the staff about us!? We're screwed if Ozpin comes down on us!" he yelled, Cinder not even bothering to threaten him, instead all she did was tut at him like a child.
"Really? We would be long gone before they could even hope to catch us, and then her precious uncle would be dead before she could move to save him" she rolled her eyes as that fact seemed to sink in. "I shall say this once Mercury. Unless you can find concrete evidence that she is a risk to our plans as a whole, without interfering with the life she has built here, then you are not to bring this up again. Failure to follow these rules will result in your immediate demise. Am. I. Clear?"
The question needed no answer, the terror in his eyes as she raised a burning hand was enough for her, a smirk appearing on her face as she then turned to Emerald who straightened her posture at her gaze… Just like a dog. And just like a dog, Cinder would always make sure her pet knew her place and would be rewarded for doing 'tricks'.
"And Emerald? You I fully trust with a mission, because you have proven you can be discreet. You have proven to me that you can follow orders without question… and I must say, I am very happy that you do" she smiled, stroking her cheek once more, hiding her disgust for the way the girl weakly pushed into her hand with a smile.
Pathetic.
"Wh-whatever you need, Cinder, I'll do it. Some of us know to follow your grand vision to the letter" she jabbed at the scowling Mercury, but frankly? Cinder would allow it, after all… a loyal dog would never bite.
"Very good, now, what I want from you is something highly important to me… I want you to become very good friends with Arc…"
It was late at night and Mercury Black was lay awake in bed.
That was a common thing, really. Plenty of nightmares of his father beating the shit out him there, but meh, there was also a few sweet dreams of poisoning that fucker who the dickhead had tried to sell him to. Try and touch him? Enjoy drowning in your own blood.
But right now? Now he was awake for another reason.
After all, he was pissed.
Fucking enraged, actually.
That little skank had insulted him in front of Cinder and that bitch Emerald who'd dared laugh at him. Had made him look bad in front of the one person on the planet who scared the shit out of him.
In fact, Cinder had made it clear that if he caused shit for her, he was dead.
Assassin he may be, but open combat against an opponent who could melt his legs and burn him to sludge with a flick of her hand? He was fucked.
Which pissed him off even more, to be fair.
Neopolitan had gone and made a fool out of him, tried to act like she was too good for him.
And he would make sure that little bitch paid.
He just needed the perfect way to get to her, to get her to react and mess up the point Cinder decided that she wasn't worth keeping arou-
Oh.
That would do.
That would do very nicely…
All he would need to do is get Cinder to agree, and frankly, she always did love gaining knowledge, almost as much as power…
Emerald smiled as she looked at the ceiling.
Cinder had asked her to become friends with Arc and, no matter how hard this would be for her as she was forced to play nice with the idiot, she would gladly do so... and why? Not just for the fact Cinder had asked it of her...
But the fact that she still couldn't shake this feeling...
Something was up with that boy, something that... made her worried.
Boosting was a dangerous Semblance if used against Cinder, if the user of that Semblance had any skill of note, they could turn themselves into a one person army. She had no doubt that Cinder, in her magnificence, would be able to kill him... but that didn't mean he couldn't ruin all they had come here to accomplish before that.
So... she would simply observe him, while playing goody-two shoes with him... after all, Cinder's plan was rather ingenious.
After all... the best way to deal with a possible threat...
Jaune smiled as he laid in bed late at night, Neo resting her head on his chest as he sighed in happiness… this… this was perfect… truly perfect… he really should have been asleep… but he couldn't. After all… how could he when right in front of him was the most beautiful sight on the planet? In the universe?
Neo… she really was…
She was everything he needed in the world…
He gently kissed her hair, just enjoying watching her sleep on his chest...
Today she had been so tense for some reason, and now? Now she was still… still and breathing so gently…
He slowly wrapped the arm around her waist just that little bit tighter… he wanted her to know, even when asleep, that he loved her.
But then he felt Neo jolt, a look of fear and horror on her face for all of a moment… shooting up, her eyes wide and white, pinprick pupils seemingly not noticing him for a moment as she looked about ready to cry... and then she saw him, that fear, those white eyes, fading almost instantly as she rested her head on his. Her panicked breathing worrying him greatly as he gently stroked her back, trying to calm her down. She touched him, anywhere her fingers could touch bare skin, almost as if she was making sure he was real… that he was there. Her breathing was ragged, almost laboured and it took all he could to not call out to the others to help try and calm her down.
"What's wrong? Are you okay?" he whispered, pulling her close and kissing her hair as he felt her heartbeat slow…
Yeah… Yeah, I'm okay… just a nightmare, I swear… she answered, smiling shakily and kissing him gently… oh no, he knew Neo sometimes had them, but this time she had looked really scared… He would have to make sure that he would make her smile somehow tomorrow, it's what a great boyfriend would do after all. Yang and Nora had also beaten her in a gaming session earlier, so her mood had been a little bad already. She had been weirdly distracted tonight, what was that abou- Jaune? Can… Can you promise me something?
"Of course!" he smiled… before gulping as he caught the deadly glare of Nora, shushing him as she tried to sleep… sweat dropping just a little, he silently apologised before switching to mouthing his words to Neo who giggled lightly.
If… if something bad happens, if something separates us… do you promise to always come back to me? No matter what, no matter the distance or whatever caused us to separate? She was acting so shy, her head down, her eyes not looking his way in the slightest... her whole body seemed to be crumpling in on itself as the silence of the room began to swallow them up…
Jaune knew what he had to do…
She'd seen him die… die and die, over and over again, all because of her, all because she hadn't been careful enough and Cinder had found out.
She'd seen Emerald break his mind with illusions, leaving him a screaming, horrified mess… before cutting his throat with her bladed pistols…
He asked why I'd let this happen…
She'd seen Mercury take glee in breaking every bone, cutting every muscle… before kicking his head off, his eyes never leaving hers…
He begged me to save him…
She'd… she'd been forced to watch by invisible hands that clamped around her head and forced her to watch as Cinder had burned him alive… slowly… from the feet up.
Skin blistering, flesh melting, bone charring…
His screams echoed in her mind even now, screams that begged her to know that she had caused this. That she was the reason this had happened to him…
All while Cinder had laughed sickeningly… asking how far Neo thought she should go before she simply put him out of his misery, but she had been unable to even sign, the dream manifestation of all her fears that took the form of her enemy taking this as a cue to keep going…
Until all that had been left was the ash that had once been his bones…
And then she felt a familiar glow flow around her, felt this warmth enter her entire being… this feeling of wholeness within her returning like an old friend.
"Neo…" came his whisper, her body shaking gently as she clutched at him… he'd had no idea… no idea how close he had come to death today… which was why she had needed this answer, needed him to tell her that he would stay for her… "I will never leave you… I will always be by your side every single moment I can be… okay, Neo?" he told her, kissing her once more and she couldn't stop herself from melting into it… she needed this… she needed something to remind herself that he was here and alive.
The words very nearly left her lips, very nearly spilled out and revealed the truth within her heart to him… and she hated herself for every moment that her heart begged her to… every blip it had that said 'it wouldn't be so bad' but it would. Because how could it not?
Jaune… she was lying to him, lying to him about the risk she had allowed him to be put in.
For fuck sake, this… this was just sick… why couldn't she be allowed to tell him she loved him without knowing there was so much pain left to give out before he knew the full truth about her?
Hah… for now… for now she would have to be content with what she had…
She gently kissed him back with a whimper, just wanting this feeling of closeness to last forever… she knew there was every chance he would hate and leave her for what she was allowing... she had sworn to him she was done with crime, and look at her! Here she fucking was, letting criminals that would happily kill anyone in their way into the school and was helping them.
"What brought this up? Was it your nightmare?" he asked, thumb running just under her eyes, wiping away her fears with just that… he really was too good for her.
Yeah… I… but she paused, the lie on the tip of her tongue had so nearly been told, and easily at that... she was not lying to him on this one… but she also couldn't tell him the whole truth… I… I had a nightmare of you getting hurt… getting hurt so bad. I've had them ever since that night where you fought the White Fang-not a lie… she had been having nightmares… but in all of those he had only been hurt, not… not…-Jaune… you died… and-and I couldn't get to you and-
His arms were around her in a moment, pulling her close into a near crushing embrace. She froze, eyes flying wide as her mind and body tried to come to terms with what she was feeling… what she was seeing… this…
"I swear" he whispered, a firm and undeniable resolve in his voice. Something she had only ever heard in the most serious of situations. "I swear that I will never leave you, Neo. I love you… I love you so much that something as dumb as death couldn't hope to stop me from always coming back to you. I won't die, Neo. I promise. I won't ever allow something like that night to ever happen again" the words were so quiet that only she could hear them… and yet they sounded like thunder in her ears…
Something wet trickled down her cheeks as he gently pulled back and brushed a thumb under her eye. It was only as he pulled back that she realised she had been crying.
How… how can you say that? How can you say that with so much certainty? The tears flowed all the more, they wouldn't stop, she was so scared…
This wasn't her, this wasn't what she did.
She'd never cried like this before, why would she? Her uncle was never put in danger as severe as this before, he was useful to Cinder, she wouldn't dare kill him until he had fulfilled his half of the deal. She often made threats to find someone better whenever he called her out for shit, but they both knew there wasn't anyone better than him and her.
But Jaune… Jaune was her weakness… Jaune made her weak, and to most people in her world? That was something that needed cutting out.
But he was a poison that she gladly drank.
He was a chain she attached herself.
He… he was the one thing that turned her from the thief who would gladly harm those that would get in her way… to some stupid little girl who thought of love and happiness like it was something she could truly have with him some day…
And she couldn't stop herself from loving this sweet, sweet venom that coursed through her veins.
"Because an Arc never goes back on his word, it's as binding as any law and an absolute truth of the world. If I say I will never abandon you… that means it's a fact of world itself, heh" was all he said, smiling that same silly smile of his that always made her heart skip a beat.
And so, all she could do… as he sank back down onto the mattress, holding her close and kissing away the tears in her eyes with no idea why she was so scared.. thinking it was some stupid nightmare… was hold him just as close and let herself pass out from exhaustion after hours of him holding her close and whispering how much he loved and cared for her.
Just before sleep claimed her, however, she made a promise of her own.
I will never allow them to hurt you, Jaune… ever… even if I have to die to ensure it.
Wow… that… hah, that was a chapter. Pink Lemonade is heading into serious territory, folks.
Cinder has made her first move, Emerald suspects an innocent and Mercury… you will find out what Mercury is planning.
Neo is wracked with fears and Jaune for once can be forgiven for not realising why.
Next time… well, we find out just what all three villains have planned for our couple.