A/N: I'm experimenting with telling portions of the story in an epistolary style, using newspaper excerpts rather than direct POVs. It fits better with the overall theme of the story and the way I'm trying to keep a focus on a few people and their small part in the action. Let me know if it works, or doesn't. Enjoy.
"You want us to what?" Nora asks, leaning both her elbows on the counter and staring at them.
"Join the Underground and start helping escaped slaves," Yang repeats.
"Obviously, it's a risky endeavor for us all, so it's only fair that all of you consent before we take any potentially dangerous steps," Pyrrha adds, although it isn't really necessary to say it again. That's just how Pyrrha deals with being nervous.
Yang has never felt so nervous for so long in her life. Her stomach is still twisting itself in knots, like it's been ever since she first saw Blake.
This isn't a game. People die trying to fight for the Faunus.
"Well, I think it's a great idea," Nora says brightly. "I'm in. Ren?"
"Sure," Ren says, and the four of them nod anxiously a little bit before Yang has to rush off to her next shift.
It all feels far too quick to be making life-threatening decisions. They're teenagers; shouldn't there be some sensible adult who shows up and rejects the idea because it's completely insane?
And, come to think of it, what are they doing? Actually helping people takes far more than a chance encounter and a decision that they'll join the Underground.
The monorail is on time for once, and Yang gets to the Black Lotus ten minutes early. That's ten minutes to spend pacing aimlessly wondering why she's so stupid, or ten minutes to spend doing something productive.
Neon is in the break room, dumping sugar into a cup of the bad coffee that's always there and sometimes warm, if nothing else. Yang walks up to her and tries to act nonchalant.
"How's it going?" she asks, and Neon gives her a weird look.
"I'm fine," she says, twitching her tail with its load of bangles. "It's not a busy night, so I left May to run the bar for a few minutes."
"What do you know about the Faunus Underground?"
Neon stares at her for a long moment, then glances around them.
"None of your concern," she says flatly, and Yang winces. She was far too blunt, it's true.
Yang busies herself with a cup of coffee in order to look less crestfallen, and Neon ignores her and starts tapping at her scroll. They stay there, dancing around each other when someone needs to move, not saying anything, until it gets awkward.
"I'm just – you know, trying to help people," Yang offers, avoiding Neon's gaze.
"Then maybe start by minding your own business and not getting decent hardworking people like me arrested." The reply is sharp, and Yang apologizes hastily.
Neon sighs and drinks half of her coffee, tossing the rest into the garbage.
"If you really want to help, find a community center or a food bank that needs volunteers," she says over her shoulder as she walks out.
It's hardly glamorous work, but at least it'll be a way to connect with the Underground and make a bit of a difference.
…
Roman Torchwick doesn't care where the money comes from. He wouldn't be much of a bounty hunter if he started getting picky about the jobs he took. All the same, some requests are just odd.
"The White Fang want me to catch an escaped slave?" he repeats incredulously to Neo. To her credit, she just shrugs.
The piece of paper in his hand is vague on details, but it's pretty unmistakable. It could be from some petty criminal or street smuggler trying to get respect from an existing name, but the group doesn't take kindly to imitators. The odds are very good that the White Fang want him to catch a slave. If not, there's still money in it.
"All right. What do we know about the target?"
Neo pulls a piece of paper out of her jacket and hands it to him. It's a label torn off of something, with the name Carter Farms on it in a neat script.
"The target's from there?"
Neo nods vigorously, then hands him another piece of paper. A newspaper clipping, one of the many advertisements searching for escaped slaves. The name and description match the White Fang's letter, but there's nothing else unusual about it.
"So they took out a newspaper ad. Maybe someone already has information on the target. That's a good sign."
Neo rolls her eyes and jabs at the date at the top of the clipping. It's from about two years ago.
"So it's been missing for that long and they just now decided to get a bounty hunter involved?"
Neo shakes her head, then pulls out a notebook and begins scribbling in one margin.
Target missing from Carter Farms for 2 years. Missing from White Fang for few weeks. Think.
"Escaped, then joined the White Fang. Oh." Neo looks disappointed that it took him that long to get the point. She grabs the pieces of paper again and pushes them into pockets that never look full but always have stuff in them.
"Any leads on the current location?"
Neo flicks a police report at him.
Two unidentified Faunus seen on Vale docks. One accused of theft by dockworkers. Both escaped before accurate information could be determined, but dockworkers testify that thief is a Monkey, roughly six feet tall, blond.
"Excellent job finding all this, Neo. We'll head to the docks tomorrow."
Neo nods and gives an exaggerated yawn, sinking back into the hard mattress of the cheap motel room. Nobody said bounty hunting was easy money, but it's the only way to get decent weapon permits as a civilian, and Torchwick will endure a lot for the ability to blow things up.
…
Sienna Khan Found Dead
Early this morning, White Fang leader Sienna Khan was found dead in her Vale home. Police are investigating the death, but a preliminary statement released says that the death is likely a result of natural causes. Khan's death has led to widespread protests in Vale and Menagerie, as many Faunus claim she was killed for her activism and believe that police are covering up her murder.
Khan was a member of radical Faunus liberation group the White Fang, but she did remain hopeful that peace between humans and Faunus could be established.
"Vale, Menagerie, the White Fang, we're all on the same side," she told the Vale Free Press in an interview last month. "There are a lot of decent people out there who don't believe that this is a just system, and I believe that if those decent people fight for what they care about and vote for the cause, it is possible to end Mistral's slavery without further bloodshed."
Analysts agree that Khan was a critical moderate voice in the leadership of the White Fang. Factions led by radicals have been gaining traction in the White Fang and the broader Faunus community for some time, and Khan's death may be the spark that leads to all-out rebellion.