-(=RWBY=)-
Chapter 23
-(=RWBY=)-
Cinder Fall's veiled threat left Jaune in a dark mood for the rest of the night, and for well into the next morning.
It wasn't even what she wanted from him that bothered him. He would have been more than happy to back her against the traitor, since that was in his interest, and hers, and indeed the world's – the last thing anyone needed was for inter-cabal strife to potentially rob Vale of its Maiden.
What bothered him, rather was that she had been willing to threaten an ally working towards the same goal of protecting humanity. A person who would do that, who would issue such threats – that just wasn't someone you could trust to watch your back.
Jaune supposed that it was something he would have to worry about in the future; but for now, he shelved the matter into the back of his mind, determined as he was that it not ruin today –
– for today was a special day, and the first time since forever that he would get to see her.
His pace quick and his heart even quicker, Jaune made his way through downtown Vale and its towering skyscrapers, towards the hotel that was his destination.
The Sky Garden was truly a modern marvel, a glass spire whose exterior was covered by a curtain of trees and creeping ivy. Jaune had been here twice. Once, for that ill-fated soiree where their attempt to recruit the Valean elite's children to the huntsmen profession turned to tragedy, when Torchwick attacked to murder all and sundry. And the second time, when he and Blake met Jacques Schnee to buy his money with promises of popularity.
Today would make it thrice, and unlike before, Jaune could actually look forward to a good time.
Stepping off the street, he headed into the hotel lobby. Once inside, Jaune navigated his way to the Louis, the fine-dining restaurant they were meeting for lunch at, and whose menu prices were utterly astronomical. Ordinarily, he would never have set foot in a place like that, but his lunch partner had picked it, and there was nothing for him to do but agree.
At the restaurant's entrance, Jaune adjusted his suit, the one purchased two months ago, for that all-important meeting with Jacques Schnee. Amusing though it would have been to turn up in his Pumpkin Pete hoodie and make her gnash her teeth at the inappropriateness of it, he had restrained himself. He didn't want to risk appearing unsophisticated to her – and if that inane worry didn't say something about how hopelessly smitten he was, he didn't know what did.
He introduced himself at the restaurant's reception area, and asked to be brought to his awaiting dining partner. A smiling waiter, dressed all in black, was happy to oblige. With a slight bow and a flourish of his gloved hands, the man invited Jaune to enter the restaurant proper, and to follow him as the man led him to their table.
The restaurant, Jaune noticed, was rather spectacular, from the chandeliers shimmering with golden light, to the walls of polished mirrors and gorgeous paintings, to the elegant tree in an ornate vase at the centre of the dining area, its flowers white like the first snow of winter.
And yet it was all nothing, compared to her.
Weiss Schnee sat alone at the table, looking exquisite, and upon seeing her, Jaune's heart skipped a beat.
"Weiss."
She had been staring pensively out the window, but the sound of her name made her turn her head. Upon the sight of him, her eyes lit up, and a smile graced her face.
"Jaune!"
"Hey. It's good to see you again."
"Likewise. It's been too long."
Smiling himself, Jaune sat down across the table from her. For the longest moment, they looked at each other, neither speaking.
Their last in-person conversation had been... quite something. With perfect, painful clarity, he could remember how it had gone, with every word said and every expression made still burnt into his mind – and every heart-wrenching emotion he had felt then, still seared into his soul.
Summoning ever last ounce of courage, Jaune forced his mouth to move, and forced himself to say –
"Weiss. Do you want to date?"
She looked at him, then, her eyes inscrutable.
"A strange thing to ask about, Jaune. At Beacon, I've not had the time to worry about relationships or think about boys."
As Weiss gave her answer, Jaune didn't know whether to cry, or laugh.
She had misunderstood his question – she hadn't realized that he was asking her out, and not merely inquiring if she had considered getting into a relationship.
Or, and now the sneaking suspicion came...
... she had understood him perfectly well, and had tried to reject him with sufficient subtlety to spare him humiliation and leave him his dignity.
Jaune now utterly regretted opening his mouth at all; not only had he failed to get a positive answer, he didn't even know if he had been rejected – and now that uncertainty only festered in his chest.
Jaune hated himself, then, for being too much a coward to truly speak his heart.
Except –
Weiss spoke, again.
Softly, with a whisper barely audible, she said,
"Ask me again at the end of the year, once both our missions are done. By then, I'll have had more time to think about it... and will maybe give a different answer."
Jaune froze.
Unless he was misunderstanding, Weiss was implying –
She must be.
Weiss, Jaune realized, was in as much a bind as him. Even if she liked him, she couldn't be sure if he was asking her out, or just idly inquiring about her love life or the lack thereof.
Hence her noncommittal words, which could be anything to anyone – an encouragement to ask her out again, if he truly was interested; or just a innocuous reply to his idle question, if he wasn't. No rejection had to be risked, no awkwardness threatened.
What cowards they were, when it came to their emotions. All he and Weiss could do was dance around each other, too afraid of what might be lost to reach for their heart's desire.
It was all a mess – a complete, utter mess.
Jaune thought she liked him, and that she merely wasn't certain if he was asking her out – such that she refused to give a straight answer, and instead invited him to make a better confession in time.
Or, and this too was a terrifyingly strong possibility – he was being utterly deluded, and she didn't have any feelings towards him; she simply thought that he was being nosy about her love life, and hence shared her opinion of relationships accordingly.
The truth would be exhilarating on one hand, and crushing on the other – and while Jaune hoped reality was the former, in his heart he despaired that it would be the latter.
Resolution would come, at year's end, with the winter solstice – when he would gather his courage and unequivocally ask Weiss her feelings. For now, however, Jaune could only exist in this state of painful uncertainty, and for all tried to bear it with equanimity, it wasn't easy – especially with Weiss back in person and now smiling at him in fondly.
The silence between the two of them at the table was now stretching well to the point of awkwardness. Compelled to break it, Jaune gave a slight smirk, and reached for the obvious topic of conversation.
"Nice uniform, Weiss. Is that what's currently fashionable, or have you joined the Atlesian military, and am I now obliged to call you General Schnee?"
He sat up straight to gave a mock salute; and still smirking, he said,
"Reporting for duty, ma'am!"
Weiss really did look like an Atlesian general, what with her white, short-hemmed military-style dress buttoned up on one side. And while she wasn't wearing them right now, two other items draped on a nearby coat rack clearly completed the outfit – one a flowing white cloak inscribed with snowflakes, and the other a captain's hat boasting a crown-like design on its front.
His antics may have amused Weiss, if the faint quirk of her lips was any indication, even as she fired back –
"If you ever saluted a superior officer in the military without standing up, Arc, you would be chewed out for your disrespect."
"Ah, but Weiss, if I stood, then someone wouldn't be able to see my salute from all the way down there in short-ville, population you."
Now that got the reaction he was looking for, as Weiss's eyes narrowed and her face morphed into a scowl. Waving a finger threateningly at him, she said,
"Care to retract your last statement, Arc? Before I –"
She paused, then reached into her pocket to draw out some keys, which she jingled menacingly at him.
" – perform keyhole surgery on you, with actual keys?"
Jaune could only laugh; raising his hands in surrender, he allowed,
"Okay, fine, you're not short. You're petite, alright? I believe that's the tasteful euphemism, for people whose feet dangle above the floor when seated –"
The keys came pointedly closer to his eyes, which almost made him shut up, except his need for preservation was far inferior to his need to tease her, and he went for a final –
"I would be afraid of you kicking me under the table, if I actually thought your legs would reach –"
Her patience finally frayed, Weiss lashed out with a light kick, her right heel stabbing in Jaune's left knee and causing some pain to blossom.
It was all, of course, worth it.
Weiss's face was slightly red from letting herself get worked up, as she huffed,
"You really do bring the worse out of me, Jaune."
"I do my best."
Their little back-and-forth had drawn the attention of others in the dining area, and the waiter had a barely-suppressed smile of amusement as he approached to ask Weiss if we wanted to begin the meal. She gave an affirmative response, and as the waiter signalled his fellows to start bringing out the food, Weiss explained –
"In all seriousness, the outfit is for the gentleman we are meeting this afternoon. He needs to see me as less a Schnee, and more a citizen of Atlas, if you know what I mean. That, and I thought the design pretty."
She coughed in mild embarrassment as she admitted that last bit, and Jaune found himself hastening to assure her –
"Well, it is. It's very... regal."
Weiss seemed pleased to hear this, but further conversation was put on pause, as their food began arriving.
The Louis served high-end Avelin cuisine – the fare of the City of Vale itself, and of the broader central region within the Kingdom of Vale. The Arcs were ethnically Avelin, and Jaune was familiar with the rustic version of Avelin cooking from his childhood in Domremy – though the far fancier sort was well beyond his purse and palate both.
The meal opened with the appetizer of bite-sized raw fish arranged on large stones, which themselves rested on a bed of small stones within a copper basin. The smaller stones had been pre-heated to a searing temperature, so when the waiter poured water onto them, the liquid boiled immediately. The resultant steam the waiter trapped under a cover, cooking the fish slowly, if very artistically. Accompanying the fish were pre-starters, in the form of rolls of salmon and spinach, as colourful as they were dainty. They were also presented with a mesh basket containing six different kinds of home-made bread, served with a flask of extra virgin olive oil, and a large curl of fresh local butter placed on a pretty white octagon-shaped rock. There was wine, too, a heady, ruby-red of extravagant vintage.
Then came the main courses. There was shellfish in pureed chickpeas; sheep's curd delicately balanced on steamed stalks of green asparagus; white fish with chard leaves and calamari; grilled pigeon breast accompanied by a forest of leafy vegetables, roasted onions and green peas; and finally, fire-roasted guinea fowl glazed in brown sauce.
For the denouement of the meal, the courses turned towards the lighter sorts of food. One by one came salad tossed with olive oil; pink pepper sorbet rolled into balls; a mango and passion fruit soufflé rising precipitously from the copper ramekin it had been baked in; rum cake swimming in syrup and sliced in half for easy sharing; ruby-red raspberries with soft verveine ice cream; herbal tea made from herbs freshly-plucked from a flowerpot-bearing trolley wheeled right up to them; and finally Mistralian coffee made in a fancy hourglass-like contraption, the water in the sphere below boiling up to the coffee beans in the sphere above, before percolating back down.
All in all, the food was truly and utterly delicious. And, to Jaune's pleasant surprise, it was all very filling. He had always thought upscale dining involved tiny portions, fit only for anorexic models – he was glad to be wrong.
Throughout, as he and Weiss ate, they also chatted, about everything and anything. They had conversed over instant messaging, during Weiss's time in Atlas, but she had always been busy. She only ever replied slowly to his messages, and in time he too had learnt to put off responding, since she wouldn't get to see it for some time anyway – all of which translated to infrequent messages from both sides, and a disjointed conversation overall. Now, face to face, they could actually talk – about his post-Beacon life, about her work for her father, and even about where they could go if they ever chose to travel.
There was something strangely right, when he was with Weiss. He felt complete – no dissatisfaction, no longing, no piece of him missing, as was the case when they had been a world apart.
I really am hopeless.
Once the food was all eaten, and all light conversation exhausted, Weiss called for the bill.
As she withdrew her SDC credit card, she smiled at him, and said,
"I insist."
Jaune had always been expecting this – she had chosen the restaurant, after all, while knowing that it was well beyond his means. And where another eighteen year old young man might have felt embarrassment over having a girl pay for his meals, Jaune suffered from no such shame. It was only logical that Weiss – who had more money that anyone could spend in a single lifetime – paid. And besides, he had no particular respect for traditional gender roles – which was just as well, given that he was a descendent of Jeanne d'Arc, the woman who had traded her skirts for armour, and domestic work for battle.
To Weiss, Jaune offered a quiet and appreciative –
"Thanks for the treat. Let me return the favour one day. There are plenty of good, hole-in-the-wall food places in Vale, and I'll show you around some time."
Weiss favoured him with a dazzling smile, as she replied,
"I look forward to it."
They left the restaurant after that, with Weiss's bodyguards – a full team of Atlesian huntsmen – following. The serious-looking group, of two men and two women, had been unobtrusively taking their own meal at another table, while being ready to intervene if the White Fang had appeared to attack Weiss.
With those bodyguards flanking them, Weiss led Jaune towards the hotel's rooftop.
Ordinary folks like Jaune himself took the Valean metro. The rich, meanwhile, travelled by car. The truly, outrageously wealthy, however, didn't even need to keep to the ground – instead, they travelled the city via air, using their own private commercial bullheads.
One such Atlesian-style bullhead, painted white and emblazoned with the SDC logo, awaited them on the rooftop, ready to bring the Schnee heiress to wherever she so desired.
A young woman – an SDC employee, and Weiss's personal assistant – greeted them by the bullhead, after which the whole group of them boarded the aircraft.
Upon boarding, Jaune was treated to the sight of the SDC bullhead's luxurious interior. It was all white upholstery and mahogany panelling, the very image of decadence itself. With the aircraft being so large, the passenger area was divided into two parts – a general seating area, with two long sofa benches facing each other, as well as a private office, with oaken desk and plush chairs.
Weiss's personal assistant and the bodyguards seated themselves in the general area, while Weiss led Jaune into the private office, before shutting the door behind her.
Weiss took the chair behind the desk, while Jaune sat across her. And as the SDC bullhead took off, Weiss also started explaining what business she was attending to that afternoon, and why she wanted him along.
"Apologies for not briefing you on this afternoon's meeting far earlier, but the issue is politically sensitive, and I did not want to run the risk of it leaking – a possibility, if I briefed you via text and you were hacked, or if I told you at the restaurant and we were overhead. Here, in the bullhead's office compartment, we can speak in the strictest privacy.
Jaune felt some surprise, at how much Weiss was emphasizing secrecy in this matter. On the flipside, though, and as he pointed out –
"I won't have time to prepare for whatever it is you need me to do at this meeting, though."
"Don't worry, Jaune – your role is fairly straightforward. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. Let me explain the situation. The man we are meeting later is Professor Pietro Polendina. You may have heard of him."
"Professor Polendina? Of course. Actually, I attended a guest lecture of his on cybernetics, held at the University of Vale about two months ago."
Weiss nodded, and seemed pleasantly surprised that he knew of the man.
"Yes, the Professor is currently in Vale – at Beacon, actually, where he's working on some undisclosed project for Headmaster Ozpin. That project, the SDC understands, will be finished within the year, and we wish to engage his services thereafter. Professor Polendina is the world's foremost expert in aura, and some of his latest research suggests that developing artificial semblances is possible – that science can help people to develop specific semblances rather than just leaving things up to chance. Successfully developing artificial semblances will be enormously lucrative, and naturally the SDC wants to invest in making that scientific breakthrough. We want to work with the Professor, in an arrangement where he supplies his genius and we provide the money, so that together we can make artificial semblances a reality."
As the city passed far below them, Jaune absorbed all this information, and considered the matter. One thing was obvious to him –
"I see why you were so concerned about keeping things under wrap. I mean, your semblance is the manifestation of your soul, of who you are as a person at the deepest and most fundamental level. To alter that is... controversial. Lots of people – not just those ultra-religious followers of the God of Light, but ordinary, secular folks – will find this very morally odious."
Weiss inclined her head as he made his observation, before saying,
"Public opinion will indeed be a issue. However, there is an even more pressing challenge – convincing Professor Polendina to work with the SDC in the first place. He is a progressive liberal, concerned for faunus rights and leery of working with us because of the SDC's abusive labour practices. As the price of working with us, over any other of smaller rivals, Professor Polendina has demanded labour reforms – which we are willing to put in place, at least to some extent. The issue is that the promise of reform will not be seen as credible, coming from a company that has always denied that abuse happens at all. That is where you and I come in, Jaune. I will portray myself as the idealistic heiress who is coming into the company with a willingness to push for pro-faunus reforms. And you, Jaune, with your pro-Faunus credentials from doing political work for the Faunus Justice Party, will endorse my characterization of myself, and lend credibility to the image I am trying to portray. This way, the good professor will be persuaded that the SDC is serious about following through on our promise, and will agree to work with us."
That all made sense – and Jaune didn't object to backing up Weiss, knowing as he did that she really was sincere about reforming the SDC. She wanted to deny the White Fang their propaganda, and one of their strongest recruitment tools, after all. That said, and as he pointed out –
"You know, it would have been far more effective if you had just gotten Blake to come along and speak on your –"
Weiss's eyes turned to icy flints, the moment he mentioned their only surviving teammate.
"Don't you dare bring up that... terrorist. You say she's changed, but a leopard cannot change its spots, nor can a cat turn into a dog. A violent terrorist will always be a violent terrorist. I helped her previously because of your mission, but do not think for a moment that I will spend any more time with her, let alone seek her help."
The venom in her voice was real, and – Jaune noticed – not once did Weiss even deign to say Blake's name.
Jaune gave a melancholic smile as he looked down. The slight heaviness in chest did not lie. It felt sad, that the girl he liked utterly hated his other close friend, especially when the number of people in the world he personally cared about could be counted on six fingers.
Still, he knew a losing battle when he saw one, and so chose to steer the conversation back to calmer waters. Tiredly, he said,
"I understand. Anyway, I'm happy to tell Professor Polendina that your intentions are good, and your actions sincere, when it comes to reforming the SDC."
"Good."
Weiss's frigid tone made clear she hadn't forgiven him for bringing up Blake – or for having the temerity of not thinking that their teammate was the devil – but she chose to move on as well, saying,
"I should tell you too, that a military officer from Atlas will be present at the meeting, as a mediator. General Ironwood wants the SDC to successfully recruit Professor Polendina, since artificial semblances will have considerable military applications, and the SDC's wealth will be critical in ensuring any scientific breakthroughs. Yet the General is pleased that Professor Polendina is demanding reforms too, since Atlas finds Schnee labour practices to be a political liability."
Jaune inclined his head, though the Atlesian military's perspective didn't interest him half as much as what Weiss herself thought; and accordingly, he asked,
"You've been telling me what the SDC, and Professor Polendina, and the Atlesian military all want – but how about you, Weiss? Do you consider going ahead with the artificial semblances business a good idea?"
Weiss didn't hesitate in giving her answer.
"Of course I do. The ability to develop specific semblances will let us create powerful semblances that can defeat even Titan-class Grimm; mass produce healing semblances to save the seriously ill; and perhaps even fashion semblances that can provide clean energy. You won't believe how risky dust mining can be to the local water supply, and how expensive it is to prevent. We can save a lot of lives from this, Jaune – I really believe that."
Jaune considered her words. He had to admit that this first reaction to the concept of artificial semblances was that of recoil. Messing with someone's personality and innermost sense of identity just didn't seem like a good idea. Now, though, Jaune saw that he was being somewhat small-minded. Weiss was right; the number of lives they could save was enormous, and besides, anyone getting an artificial semblance would presumably be a willing volunteer – no one was having their soul was violated, or their freedoms infringed upon.
Nodding, Jaune smiled slightly, and told Weiss –
"Well, let's do our best."
The rest of the flight was spent in silence, as Weiss – apologetically, and only with great reluctance – flipped open an SDC tablet computer and turned to clearing some work that had piled up. Jaune, with nothing better to do, simply took the chance to enjoy the view outside.
Beacon wasn't very far, and the journey by air took only around fifteen minutes. Soon enough, they were hovering above the school, while waiting for clearance to land, and Jaune was treated to a view – one which, after all this time, still hadn't lost its power to take his breath away.
It was Beacon, in all its beauty and glory. Beacon Tower glowed even in the light of day, while around it the various smaller towers rose in majestic symmetry, as did the vaulting arches surround the school in a perfect circle. Outside the school, half a dozen rivers wound their way through the forests, passing through and around Beacon itself, before cascading down the cliffs to form one of the seven major tributaries for the River Aestral. The deciduous trees within the school, bare the last time he saw them, were green now, winter having given way to spring.
This was where he had always wanted to be, and yet his place was no longer here.
The melancholy bubbled up, then, and Jaune had to tear his eyes away from the windows of the SDC bullhead.
Once they had gotten permission to touch down, the SDC bullhead descended upon the Beacon aerial docks. Tight on time as they were, Weiss wasted no time in exiting the bullhead, himself and the SDC staffer in tow. The bodyguards they left behind, for it wasn't as if the White Fang could ever attack Weiss at the very heart of huntsmen power.
Jaune and Weiss led the way through the school, moving quickly and confidently in a way only former students could. Their destination was Beacon Tower itself. The place housed Huntsman Command, the CCT itself, as well as the administrative offices of the school. A meeting room in the school-operated portion of the tower had been booked for their use, and the two of them and the SDC staffer headed there now.
It was more than a month into the spring semester, and today was a Friday, which meant that students crowded the school grounds. As he and Weiss passed their former schoolmates, they ignored the glances thrown their way – glances that were curious, when directed at the Schnee heiress, and hostile, when it came to the last son of Arc. It couldn't be helped – Rothenburg and his alleged failures there still loomed large in the public imagination.
Upon arriving at Beacon Tower, they took the lift up a couple of floors, and went down a corridor towards the meeting room.
When they got there, they found their meeting partners already present and waiting.
Professor Pietro Polendina was just as Jaune remembered from the lecture, a dark-skinned, white-haired rotund older gentleman wearing pince-nez glasses and sitting comfortably in a mechanized wheelchair.
The other man in the room, meanwhile, Jaune had met a couple of times already. Vine Zeki, with his tattoos and paleness, was in many ways even more distinctive than the Professor.
Without pause, Weiss put on her singer's smile, and began seeing to business.
"Gentlemen! Thank you for coming. I'm Weiss Schnee, and allow me to introduce those with me. This is Jaune Arc, my former Beacon teammate. And that is Judith Jaeger, my SDC colleague. It is a great honour to meet you, Professor Polendina."
She strode forward to shake the Professor's hand, and the man smiled warmly when replying with,
"Likewise, Miss Schnee."
Weiss then turned to Zeki.
"And you, sir, must be the military attache representing General Ironwood."
"I am, Ms Schnee. My name is Vine Zeki, of the Ace Operatives, and I hope I can be of service today in helping you and the esteemed professor come to terms, in a way that will serve the interests of Atlas and all of humanity."
They shook hands, as Weiss said,
"A pleasure to meet you, Specialist Zeki. My sister has always spoken highly of the Ace-Ops."
Jaune, on his part, also went forward to exchange handshakes and pleasantries with the Professor and with Zeki; the SDC staffer did the same. Then, everyone took their seats around the meeting room table, at which point Weiss declared –
"Gentlemen, if it is not impolite to get straight to business, then allow me to announce that – having heard your concerns, Professor – the Schnee Dust Company is more than happy to commit to specific actions on improving labour standards in our mining operations. The details you may read about in this policy document –"
She gestured, and the SDC staffer stepped forward to hand out copies of the aforementioned document all parties at the table.
" – but to be summary, the SDC will –"
She listed the various steps the SDC was willing to take to address its abusive labour practices, and at the end, concluded with –
"I am hopeful, Professor, that this helps address your very reasonable concerns, and that you will find yourself comfortable with joining us on our very exciting journey to successful develop artificial semblances and advance humanity's humanity to combat the Grimm, heal the sick and mitigate environmental damage."
Throughout, the Professor listened to Weiss intently, and as he did so, his furrowed eyes betrayed his doubt. The issue, as Weiss had put it earlier, was that there was strong reason to doubt if the SDC would really follow through. And to assuage this concern, Weiss said,
"I see your scepticism, Professor, and I do not blame you. Promises are easy to make, but also easy to break. Would the corporate executives who have so far been unwilling to fix the problem – and who have, indeed, refused to acknowledge said problem even exists – truly do so going forward?"
The Professor's eyes widened, his surprise evident in the face of Weiss's frank critique of her own company. And as for what came next –
"Professor, what I ask is for you to put your trust in me. Please believe me when I say that I am not like my father or his cotorie. I am – though it is embarrassing to say – an idealist at heart; it is why I wanted to be a huntress in the first place, before tragedy destroyed my team. And as heiress to the SDC, I genuinely care about reforming my grandfather's company to make it respect faunus rights – not least because it reduces political support for the terrorists who want to kill me and my family. But please – don't take my word for it, Professor."
Weiss looked at him, and that was his cue. Bluntly, he said,
"Faunus rights is a cause that matters a lot to me, so much so that I've been helping the Faunus Justice Party here in Vale with a recent election campaign – recruiting the candidate, securing funding, providing rally security, and so on. In fact, I had the opportunity to work with Specialist Zeki in the course of my volunteer work with the FJP."
Jaune turned to Zeki, and the man responded by nodding in placid agreement, and saying,
"Indeed. Mr Arc was, I understand, a political consultant for the Faunus Justice Party, and he worked with my team to provide security for the party's candidate, Ms Blake Belladonna, against potential terrorist threats. As you would have seen on the news, Professor, Ms Belladonna's final planned rally was attacked by Ellen Nevrand, a human supremacist and huntress. Fortunately, between the Ace-Ops and the efforts of Mr Arc and his Beacon friends, the terrorist was put down without any casualties or injuries to the innocent."
Between Jaune's own words, and Zeki's, the scepticism in the Professor's face had faded, and Jaune judged it time to deliver the actual endorsement of Weiss.
"Speaking as someone who has worked on the cause of faunus rights – and indeed, who have literally fought human supremacists – I would like to earnestly assure you that Weiss is similarly supportive of faunus rights. Trust her in this matter, and she will deliver."
The Professor listened, even as his eyes seemed far away. Almost unconsciously, the smartest man in the world clasped his hands together and brought them close to his face, as he seemed to sink deeper into thought.
The seconds stretched, until Jaune began worrying that they had failed –
– but then the Professor exhaled, and gave a warm smile. His eyes crinkling, he said softly,
"I believe the two of you. Truly, I am glad, that you children have not lost your idealism, and are still fighting to improve the world, in your own different ways. Miss Schnee –"
He looked at her earnestly.
"– I will agree to the SDC's terms. I am willing to work with your company on artificial semblances, in return for these labour reforms being implemented. In this, I place my trust in you, Miss Schnee – please, do not let the promised reforms fall to the wayside."
Upon hearing this, Weiss smiled – and unlike the smile with which she had opened the meeting, this one was considerably more genuine, born as it was of triumph, and satisfaction at a job well done.
Their afternoon's business had turned out a success, and now all that was left was for Weiss to say,
"On my honour as a Schnee, I swear that I won't allow the promised reforms to be reneged upon."
It was at that point that Weiss's private secretary stepped in to call time on the meeting. With a pleasant smile, she said,
"Apologies, gentleman, but I believe we must cut this short. Miss Schnee, you have a number of upcoming –"
Weiss gave a slight grimace.
"Ah, yes. Onwards to the next meeting. I wish I could stay and chat, Professor, I really do, but work calls. It was a pleasure meeting the both of you today, and I am glad that we came to an agreement – one that I'm confident is in the best interests of Atlas and the world. In terms of the formalities, my assistant will send over the detailed contract for the position of chief scientific officer at the SDC's artifical semblances venture – do take a look at it, Professor, at your own leisure."
"I will, Miss Schnee. And the pleasure of today is all mine. Do have a safe trip back to Atlas."
Parting handshakes were exchanged and further smiles shared, after that, and the meeting came to an end.
Jaune's group made their way down Beacon Tower. Coming out into the gardens at the foot of the Tower, they had started heading back to the aerial docks –
– and it was then that they were accosted by a hyperactive hurricane of crimson petals.
"Jauuune! Weiiiss!"
Ruby Rose raced up to them within the gardens, her signature red cloak flapping in the wind.
As she came to a halt, she didn't even pause to breathe before excitedly firing off with –
"Why didn't you guys tell us you were visiting? Jaune, why are you in a suit? It looks good on you, though! I guess this is what all the guys will wear for the Beacon Dance? Anyway, ohmygod, Weiss it's been so long, how are you –"
Whatever Ruby was about to say next was lost, as two other people ran up to join her, each one just as energetic as Ruby herself.
"Break his legs before he can escape!"
"Friend Jaune!"
It was Nora Valkyrie and – most unexpectedly – that socially awkward girl Penny, from the Polendina lecture.
Taking things in stride, Jaune smiled, and said,
"Nora, I'm not escaping. There's no need to break my legs, alright? I need it for all that boring stuff like walking."
Nora squinted at him suspiciously.
"Promise? And you better not back out of meeting up regularly! Or else –"
"I'll suffer a painful case of Magnhild to the leg, yes, I know."
The banter came easy, too easy. And not for the first time Jaune felt immensely glad that he had caved to Ruby after the Nevrand attack. His friend had demanded that they meet up at least monthly, and Jaune could not but agree. He missed his friends, and while he did need to keep up the appearance of a bitter, friendless man alienated from humanity and willing to sell out the world to Salem, he had his reasons ready. If Watts's spies ever noticed him being too close to old schoolmates, he would say that he was merely cultivating them as useful assets which could be deployed in certain missions – as in the Nevrand incident.
As Jaune was talking to Nora, he caught sight of the last members of Team RVLY jogging towards them, Yang and Ren having finally caught up to their more excitable sister and childhood friend respectively.
"Ah, the animal minders are here."
He grinned at a pouting Ruby and an cackling Nora, before turning to raise a hand in greeting towards their partners, who slowed from a jog to a walk as they approached.
Yang returned his greeting with a lazy wave of her own.
"Yo, Arc. Didn't expect to see you so soon. And Schnee – welcome back."
Ren, meanwhile gave them a friendly nod.
"Jaune. Weiss. This is a pleasant surprise."
Weiss, for all her confidence in their earlier meeting, looked rather overwhelmed seeing their friends again. She had never been as close to Team RVLY as him, but she liked them well enough, and – as Jaune himself well knew – absence really did make the heart grow fonder.
When apart from your friends, as they had been due to their missions, then loneliness was your only companion – and it made you reflect, and realize, just how much you valued their love and friendship in the first place. At this point, Jaune cared quite significantly for Team RVLY, more so than he had ever expected to back in school – a fact he realized after meeting up with them for lunch in Vale two weeks ago, only to find himself reluctant to part ways when the time to do so came. As for Weiss – she seemed to have undergone a similar emotional experience, with her initial daze giving way to an uncharacteristically fond smile on her face.
Ren meanwhile, had proceeded to say,
"We understand from Penny that you and Weiss had just had a meeting with her father?"
His words made Jaune raise his eyebrows in surprise.
Penny is Polendina's daughter?
Weiss herself, meanwhile, evinced no such astonishment, instead informing Ren,
"Indeed. Did the Professor tell his daughter that we were here?"
Thus far, Penny had only been smiling brightly, and happily watching this reunion of old friends. Now, however, she stepped in, to cheerfully declare –
"Yes! I was so happy to have the chance to meet with friend Jaune again! He had been so busy, and unable to meet me!"
"You know each other?"
Weiss looked at Jaune as she asked that question, the look on her face quizzical. Jaune, in response, merely shrugged, and explained,
"We met at the Polendina lecture I mentioned, though I didn't realize Penny was the Professor's daughter. I guess his work was what caused you to move to Vale?"
He directed the question at the beaming orange-haired girl.
Since that one, chance meeting, Penny had been constantly texting Jaune, with Jaune himself replying infrequently. She was nice, but barely more than a stranger – and it wasn't as if making a lot of new friends was a great idea, what with the importance of keeping up appearances for Watts. For the same reason, when Penny asked to meet up to 'hang out as normal human friends', to use her peculiar phrasing, Jaune had fobbed her off with the excuse of being too busy with work. Anyone else would have taken the hint by now, but the girl was obviously on the spectrum, and Jaune would had felt himself a real cad if he told her straight up that they weren't really friends.
In response to his query, Penny nodded enthusiastically, and answered,
"Father had to come to Beacon to help Headmaster Ozpin on a secret project that I have no – hic – knowledge of, and I accompanied him. And I'm so glad I did! Remaining in Atlas all alone would have been dreadful, while Beacon has been nothing but wonderful. I have met such lovely friends like Ruby, and her team!"
Ruby, for her part, was looking inordinately happy they were having this great big friends' reunion. And as Penny finished explaining to Jaune why she in Beacon, Ruby turned to her friend to say excitedly,
"Penny! Why didn't you mention that you knew Jaune? It's so awesome that our friends all know each other!"
The question made Penny rub her head awkwardly, and the girl confessed,
"When I first arrived at Beacon, I asked some first year students about whether they knew friend Jaune, and they said that did, but didn't like him. They also said that no one, in fact, liked Jaune – because his arrogance caused a fellow student to lose their life. Later, when I met you, Ruby... I feared that you felt the same way. I didn't mention Jaune because it would have been sad to see one of my precious friends hating another of my precious friends."
Penny seemed to wilt as she gave her explanation; it was the shame, Jaune assessed, from wrongly doubting Ruby. He did think Penny was being overly harsh on herself, and certainly, Ruby agreed. Upon seeing her friend's distress, the red-cloaked girl smiled reassuringly, and stepped forward to hug Penny.
"Don't worry, Penny! We're all friends here. No one hates anyone else for stupid reasons."
Jaune wasn't the sentimental sort, life's tragedies and a spy's duties having made him colder than most. Yet for all that, seeing this touching scene unfold still coaxed a smile out of him.
Ruby gave Penny one final pat on the back, before stepping away again – and then turning to him and Weiss. To the white-haired girl beside him, she exclaimed,
"It's so good to see you again!"
And Weiss, more quietly, said,
"Likewise. I'm glad to see that all of you are well. I –"
The shadow of regret passed across her face, so faint and brief Jaune doubted anyone but him noticed.
"– am sorry I left, and so suddenly, without having said my goodbyes properly. My father wanted me back for my safety, and I have also come to believe I can make more of a difference to the world by working in the SDC."
Team RVLY listened on, the mood having made a turn for the sombre.
Ruby, as ever, was the exception. Truly irrepressible, she stepped in close, and slung a hand around both his shoulders as well as Weiss's, all the while ignoring Weiss's weak protestations.
It was a sign of how things had changed, and how they had all matured, perhaps, that Weiss didn't just shriek at Ruby and throw her arms off, as the younger girl looked around at everyone, and said earnestly,
"Let's have a welcome back party for Weiss in our dorm tonight!"
That suggestion was met by immediate agreement from the other girls in the group. with Nora and Penny cheering, and with Yang gaving a shit-eating grin of approval. And Ren, reserved as he was, gave an unambiguous nod of assent.
Weiss, though...
She looked torn, clearly wanting to accept but also being bound by her responsibilities – there was still more SDC work to do for the rest of the day, and besides, she had to fly back to Atlas tonight.
Something shifted in her face, however, and she sighed, half in resignation and half in fondness.
"Very well. Even if it means working through the midnight flight back to Atlas, I'll join you all tonight. Jaune?"
"Of course."
His answer was immediate – he wasn't going to pass on hanging out with his friends, and he certainly wasn't to say no to more time with Weiss, when he had only this one day with her until the end of the year.
They sorted out the details with Team RVLY after that. Weiss would still need to return to Vale for more business meetings, but could return by nine at night. Jaune, meanwhile, would help grab them some food and snacks and drinks from Vale, before joining Weiss on the bullhead journey to Beacon. As for RVLY – since Jaune and Weiss were no longer students, nor here on formal business anymore, RVLY would need to secure the deputy headmistress's permission for having them as guests on campus. Jaune worried about the feasibility of this, given Goodwitch's strict nature and the ugliness of his departure, but then he remembered what Qrow Branwen said – that she had advocated giving him a second chance, before Ozpin overruled her. The woman was sympathetic to him, clearly, and would also likely not see anything wrong with letting former Beacon students visit their old school and their old friends.
Once the details of that evening was sorted, the group dispersed. Jaune and Weiss headed for the aerial docks, while RVLY and Penny returned to class; though not, of course, without some energetic goodbyes from the usual suspects.
As Weiss and him made their way back to the SDC bullhead, conversation was muted, Weiss seemingly pensive; and it was only when they had finally boarded and were on their way back to Vale proper, that she murmured,
"It really was good, seeing them again. I hadn't gotten to experience such easy trust and affection in some time. Atlas was... difficult. Winter wasn't around; my father was himself; my mother continues drinking her life away; and my brother resembles my father more with each passing day."
"Do you want to talk about it?"
Jaune asked her that, softly – and in response, Weiss shook her head.
"Some other time, maybe. I have to concentrate on my work, if I am to free up time for tonight."
Jaune dipped his head, and Weiss shot him a grateful smile for not pressing the issue. Then, she turned with a sigh towards her tablet and the awaiting mountain of briefing notes and emails.
Once they were back in Vale, they parted ways. Weiss had her bullhead pilot drop Jaune off at the Valean metro station nearest to his apartment, before racing off to her next scheduled meeting. Jaune was then left to undertake some gang-related business for Junior, as part of their standing agreement, of Junior providing favours and Jaune providing protection.
That usually just meant patrolling the Axe Gang's territorial borders to deter rival gang attacks. Today, however there was also negotiating a ceasefire between two other gangs – before their fighting escalated to open warfare, thus bringing the huntsmen down on them all like a ton of bricks. And, rounding up the trifecta of favours Jaune was doing Junior, he spent some time training the Malachite twins, who were talented but lacking in formal combat training. It hadn't been that long since his training sessions with the twins had started, but they had since come along by leaps and bounds. He doubted that even Yang, who had been the strongest in their year after himself and Pyrrha, could so easily beat them now.
Doing all that took the rest of the afternoon, and it was evening by the time he got to take a break. He stuck around Junior's Pub and Club, doing some lazy reading on Mistralian sword techniques while nursing a drink. Then, once the time came, he collected food and bottles of soft drinks and alcohol from the pub. It was all on the house, of course, Junior was being generous to Jaune – though Jaune doubted if the gang boss would be pleased about the girl who had trashed his club being on the receiving end of his magnanimity.
Jaune proceeded to meet up with Weiss, whose bullhead picked him up at the nearby metro station – and then it was off to Beacon.
His expectations with respect to Goodwitch had been on the mark, the deputy headmistress having approved both him and Weiss as guests. Landing at the Beacon aerial docks and entering school grounds without any problems, they left Weiss's assistant and bodyguards to some well-earned rest, before trekking towards the dormitories.
It was a path they had not walked in some time, but it was too familiar to ever forget, and the two of them arrived at RVLY's dorm room in short order.
Weiss knocked, since Jaune's hands were full carrying all the food and drinks, and an exuberant Ruby opened the door to greet them.
"Hi guys! Oh wow, that's a lot of food. Come on in!"
Ruby divested him of some of his burden, and the two of them headed to the large table at the centre of the room.
"Oooh! The food's here! Pancakes, come to mummy!"
A ravenous Nora Valkyrie with a somewhat crazed look in her eyes was about to tackle him, Ren's valiant efforts to restrain her notwithstanding – but Jaune was smart, and had come prepared.
"Here's the all-day breakfast pancakes from the bar –"
He tossed the plastic bag with a container full of pancakes over to Ren, who ate the subsequent tackle from Nora with a long-suffering look of resignation. Meanwhile, Ruby and himself go around to getting out the food and setting the table. Penny helped, by distributing the paper plates and cups and laying out the plastic utensils, all with a machine-like precision. Yang, in contrast, was being a freeloader, asleep on her bed as she was, with her limbs splayed and belly exposed. Ruby had to poke her sister awake, with Yang rising only with much grumbling. And once that was done, RVLY's team leader declared eagerly,
"Alright, guys! Let's eat!"
They seated themselves around the table, and started tucking in with gusto. The Pub and Club served mostly popular Angraeli cuisine, from the northern part of the Kingdom of Vale. It was the furthest thing from fancy, instead tending towards the hearty – which was the way Jaune liked it, in contrast to Weiss and her taste for expensive, upscale Avelin cuisine.
There was the traditional full breakfast, all bacon and sausages and eggs; pancakes, covered in butter and honey; a whole roast chicken, cut into portions and served with potato wedges and carrots; and even more miscellaneous small bites, from deep fried chicken pieces, to nachos topped with chilli beef, to thick-cut fries. It was a weirdly breakfast-oriented assortment of food, but that was what The Pub and Club served, and no one seemed to be complaining – least of all Nora, who was inhaling pancakes by the dozen. Jaune had gotten a strange look from the waiter, when he specifically requested sixteen pancakes to go – but experience was the great teacher, and looking at Nora now, his only regret was that he didn't order an even greater number.
Everyone was also downing liberal amounts of cider or cola. The one bottle of whiskey he had brought was untouched, until Jaune reached for it and poured himself a glass.
Looking around the table, Jaune could see all present having a good time, chatting away without a care in the world – which made Jaune lean in to Weiss, and say,
"I wished we had done more of this, before we left Beacon. I had always been so focused on training, and classes, and those special Ozpin sessions on leadership – and I think I neglected our friends a fair bit."
Weiss was cutting away at her food daintily, but put her knife and fork down when Jaune spoke to her. Taking in his words, she replied, quietly,
"Same here. And I wish in particular that I had gotten to know Pyrrha better. She was always a bit distant, and I didn't understand why, back then. Nowlooking back, I think I finally understand. I always came on quite strongly, emphasizing how we made a good match with my smarts and her strength, my family and her fame. Perhaps I always knew it, but didn't want to admit it, but Pyrrha didn't like being reduced to just her strength and reputation as a Mistralian regional championship winner."
Listening to Weiss, Jaune's fingers toyed with his drink.
Pyrrha.
It was easy to slip into gloom, thinking about her, but Jaune made the effort not to let his mood slip, instead remembering what Ozpin had said at the funeral of his fallen partner. Offering his glass to Weiss for a toast, he said,
"To Pyrrha. We'll honour her memory by fighting on, and making the world a truly safe place, one where sacrifices like hers will never again be needed."
Weiss accepted the toast with a nod, lightly chinking her glass of against his.
"Indeed."
They downed their drinks, and shared a companionable silence, even as everyone else chatted away.
And for all the solemnity from discussing Pyrrha, Jaune felt that the night was shaping up to be a good one – with good food, good drinks, and above all, good friends.
He reached for the whisky bottle, to refill his glass, but Weiss noticed, and frowned, and said,
"You drink too much, Jaune."
She had made similar comments in Rothenburg, months ago, and even now, she was only drinking cola, having left the alcohol absolutely untouched. It was a sore spot for her, Jaune realized, when he recalled what she said earlier that day –
... my mother continues drinking her life away...
And Weiss drove the point home, when she said, sharply,
"Alcohol in excess ruins a good person, and makes a bad one worse."
She was probably right. With a rueful smile, the sort a husband would give his nagging wife, Jaune put the whisky down, and instead got himself some cola too.
All this hadn't gone unnoticed. The sisters, in particular, were staring at them from the other side of the table, and whispering to each other while giggling. And Nora, who had thus far been eating away with an almost intimidating determination, had stopped to give a shit-eating grin, as did Ren beside her give them a knowing smile.
Sighing, and hoping to redirect any potentially awkward lines of questioning, Jaune asked,
"So, how were classes today?"
Ruby only smiled, and shook her head in disappointment.
"Oh, Jaune. You think that sort of lame-o attempt will throw us off? Ha!"
Nora, a wild grin on her face, piled on with –
"Spill the beans, Jaune! What's up with you and Weiss? Oooh, are you dating? Will we be invited the wedding? Are. You. Already. Booping?"
Jaune could only wince under this onslaught on embarrassing questions, while Weiss had turned red beside him. Half flustered and half furious, she looked to be close to exploding at Nora, but Jaune got a word in first. With the perfect comeback in mind, he gave as good as they got –
"Our relationship, Nora, is the same as yours and Ren. Unless, of course –"
He gave an evil grin.
"– you guys are already more than friends?"
Nora frozen, before dissolving into blustering denial.
"Nooooo, we aren't together-together! Rennie, tell him! Tell him now!"
She looked to her partner for help, but help was not at hand. An amused Ren only chided her, saying,
"That's what you get for teasing others, Nora."
Yang, like a shark in the water going for whoever bled the most, went for the flailing Valkyrie. With a wicked grin matching his own earlier, she helped stick the knife even deeper.
"Nora, you always say you guys aren't together-together. But somehow I don't think that's what you really want, riiight?"
The conversation degenerated into a tease-fest, with Yang leading the charge, Ruby backing her up, and Nora the well-deserved victim. Ren, inevitably, was caught up in it all, but this was war, and in war, there were always acceptable casualties.
Leaving them to it, Jaune turned to Penny. With the girl's main conversation partner Ruby still busy trying to bait Nora into a drunken confession about liking Ren, Jaune felt somewhat concerned that she was feeling left out. Smiling at her, he said,
"Penny, you haven't been eating a lot. Is the food not to your liking? It is somewhat on the heavier side, and I would have gotten lighter stuff like salad and fruits if you had told me what you preferred."
Penny reacted by waving her hands around in denial vigorously.
"Oh no, the food is extremely pleasurable for the normal human palate, like – hic – mine. I just do not require much for sustenance."
The night went on in this agreeable fashion – just warm and lively conversation between friends, the sort of which lightened the heart, and made the world seem less dark.
And of course, it couldn't last.
The call came in an hour later.
As Jaune was chatting with Weiss once more, his scroll rang, and upon checking the number, he grew grim.
Arthur Watts.
"I'm sorry, I have to take a call."
Even as Weiss sent him a concerned glance, noticing as she did his expression, Jaune excused himself from the room.
Once outside in the corridor, and with no one around to overhear him, he accepted the call.
"Dr Watts."
"Mr Arc."
Arthur Watt's voice reached him over the encrypted line, rich and smooth as ever – though this time, there was just the slightest hint of tension.
"I have an important and critically urgent task for you. Adam Taurus is about to load their stolen dust onto bullheads for transport out of Vale, but the Ace-Ops have discovered the location of the warehouse where the dust is being stored. They have set up around the place, ready to ambush Taurus's team and eliminate them, after which they will recover the dust. We cannot afford to lose the dust at this stage – which makes it necessary to defeat the Ace-Ops, so that the dust can be secured and transported out of the city. However, the White Fang is simply is outmatched against a whole team of elite huntsman. That is where you come in. Kill the Ace-Ops, Mr Arc. That is your task."
Kill the Ace-Ops.
Those words were utterly chilling, and Jaune had to hold back a hiss of dismay. Seeking to push back on the task, Jaune spoke quietly into the scroll.
"Is that strictly necessary? Defeat with survival is surely preferable, since resulting retaliation will –"
"Mr Arc –"
Watts interrupted him, his voice whip-sharp.
"– do not be naive. They are too strong for even you to overcome while holding back. And regardless, this mission is of the utmost importance to the Queen. Do it, and you will be very near to securing your peace agreement with her. Reject it, and our negotiations are over."
Jaune's jaw clenched. That was an ultimatum, as blunt as any – and if the whole Salem infiltration mission turned on it...
... then he had no choice but to go through with slaying the Ace-Ops.
Good men and women, condemned to die.
Controlling his emotions, he gave his grudging assent.
"Fine. When is the mission?"
"Tonight. In an hour."
Jaune gave a sharp exhalation of breath.
"In an hour? Impossible! I may not even be able to get to the mission location in time, and even if I did, I would be severely weakened – I am very low on aura right now, from training. You should have given me advanced warning!"
His anger leaked out, despite his best efforts to control it.
All that training with Cinder Fall had drained his aura to zero, and the twenty-four hours since was not remotely enough time for full recovery. By the time the mission began, Jaune would be only at around a quarter of his reserves – severely limiting his semblance usage, but also leaving him vulnerable defensively. He could suffer at most one unguarded hit from an elite huntsman like one of the Ace Operatives, before his aura broke. And if up against a Champion-level opponent, there wasn't even a guarantee that his automatic aura defensives would hold up – with his aura levels so low, there would be a one in four chance that any cleanly-connecting attack simply broke through and left him wounded or worse.
It was a horrible situation he was in, and when Watts responded, he did seem apologetic.
"I am sorry for this. I would not ask if this was not important."
There was really nothing much to be said after that.
Watts promised to text over the rendezvous location with the White Fang, and then they hung up –
– leaving Jaune in the corridor, gripping his scroll in anger and worry.
Going up against the Ace-Ops would have been a meaningful risk at the best of times; as it was, victory was a coin toss.
Jaune took a deep breath, to control his agitation and restore some calm. Then, he made himself think things through.
This is for the mission, and for keeping the world safe from Salem; against that, nothing matters in comparison. And besides, the risk isn't really that great – you still have two shots of your semblance, and the help of Adam Taurus and the White Fang.
And besides –
You wanted to prove your bravery. Will you shy away now, and instead prove your cowardice and hypocrisy?
No. Never.
If the choice was death, or disgrace –
– then he chose death, always.
-(=RWBY=)-