Hey guys! I was able to get this chapter done really quick due to everything being closed right now! Been stuck at home with a lot of free time. I want to thank everyone for their kind words and messages regarding the not so constuctive review from a few days ago. Honestly it gave me a good laugh, reading it. Now, for everyone who has been messaging me worried I would be taking the closing words of that review to heart, fear not. I have absolutely no intention of scrapping this story at any point, I'm loving writing it too much to do that. With that out of the way I just want to thank you guys again for keeping with me for this long and being as supportive as you have been. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I own nothing!
"Speech"
Thoughts
Chapter Twenty-Five: Election
Ironwood sat at his desk, his fingertips resting against each other in front of him. He sighed from mental exhaustion. A crisp knock at the door brought him back at attention "Enter"
Winter led Qrow, Oscar and Slade inside "General" she saluted "Dr. Watts has been alerted you require his presence. I estimate at least fifteen minutes until he arrives"
Ironwood nodded "Then we should make this quick" he looked to Oscar "Still nothing from Oz?" he asked hopeful.
"No, General" Oscar sighed "Nothing"
"Fine then" he stood from his place and slowly made his way in front of them.
"What's this about James?" Qrow asked concerned.
"Tomorrow night an election for the open council seat will conclude... we don't have many people who seem to be stepping up to the plate right now, and as the military leader as well as the school headmaster I hold two of the five seats currently. The remaining two councilors don't appreciate how difficult it is to hold a vote at the moment" he explained.
"Right" Qrow nodded in understanding "Slade was the one who removed the previous councilor"
"Correct" Ironwood nodded "Everyone who has been running recently has been former enemies of McLaren. With her out of the way they're looking to expand their own power much like she did before starting her own criminal network"
"What is the council doing to fill the vacant seat?" Oscar asked curiously.
"They've been rushing to get the seat filled, money has changed hands multiple times to move along the election process" Ironwood answered.
"Sounds to me like they really wanted to make sure you can't just march to war with the other kingdoms" Qrow concluded.
"I imagine they wanted to make sure I didn't enact martial law. Without the council's approval my hands are tied, and without a clear threat they would never allow it"
"So? What do you want from us?" Slade asked narrowing his eyes.
"I received an intelligence report from a trusted source, that someone is going to be influencing the outcome of the election... I want you to keep an eye on things in the city when you're not training to help maintain the legitimacy of the election" he explained.
"You think our hacker is going to pull something?" Oscar asked.
"More than likely" Winter answered.
"Of course" Qrow groaned.
"Unfortunately I don't have any leads as to who our mystery hacker could be at this point beyond what we already know" he shook his head "That's why I need you all to be keeping an eye on things during the election. Winter and Penny are going to be pouring over every order given to my troops so something like this doesn't happen again, but if they know we're onto them and make a move that doesn't involve my men... you understand why I am so concerned"
"We'll get the job done, General" Slade answered "We're going to need the others for help though"
"Understood" Ironwood nodded "Oscar" he turned toward him as he stepped behind his desk, opening a drawer and reaching inside "I have a more important task for you" he lifted the Relic of Knowledge out of the desk.
"What!?" Qrow asked in shock "I thought you secured it-"
"I did" Ironwood sighed "Unfortunately, if someone working for Salem has security access, then they'll have access to even our deepest vaults. Without the Winter Maiden securing it for us, I need someone I can trust to look after it" he approached Oscar "I know you're not actually Ozpin right now, Oscar... but I can see you have what it takes to be a great Huntsman" he handed him the relic.
"T-thank you, General" he smiled "I will do my best to keep it safe"
"Good, I might've asked Penny to hold onto it but... with Polendina being a possible suspect, I don't want to allow him easy access to it"
"Why don't you ask Maria for help?" Oscar asked "I am sure she could keep an eye on Dr. Polendina and make sure he isn't up to anything"
"Not a bad idea" Qrow agreed.
"I agree, but I don't think-" Ironwood was interrupted by a knock at the door "Enter"
Dr. Watts entered the room "General, you asked for-" he stopped when he noticed the others "Oh, am I interrupting something?" Oscar quickly placed the relic on his hip, keeping himself behind Qrow to make sure Watts didn't see it.
"No" Ironwood returned to his desk "You're dismissed" he nodded to the others "Come in, Arthur. I need your help for something"
"Of course" Watts entered as Oscar and Qrow exited.
"What would you have the rest of us do?" Slade asked referring to Ruby's team.
"You and Qrow know what you need to do, Slade" Ironwood nodded to him "I know you can handle this"
Slade nodded in understanding, he exited the room following Qrow and Oscar.
"So, what's the plan?" Oscar asked.
"You and Ruby should keep training, you both desperately need it. Not to mention if you're going to be keeping the relic on you, we should probably be keeping you away from any major fights for awhile. Tyrian isn't going to go easy on you just because you're inexperienced" Slade answered.
"We should split the teams up too" Qrow offered "We'll cover more ground that way"
"Yeah" Slade nodded "The academy is probably the safest place for you and Ruby right now, given the fact that Neo and Tyrian are no doubt after you both and the relic"
"Jaune and I can take the polls here in Atlas, we should put you and Weiss on the polls down in Mantle" Qrow offered.
"Keep Nora and Ren close to the Academy, if Neo or Tyrian make a move on Ruby or Oscar we need someone who can be here immediately. Blake should take my place at the polls in Mantle, the Faunus need a friendly face right now or they won't be as comfortable voting tomorrow night" Slade added.
"Good thinking. Take Yang then and head to the Faunus in Junktown and make sure they aren't planning on starting any riots after what happened. They'll be fed now, and they'll probably be angry after the unprovoked quarantine"
"I know I would be" Oscar agreed.
"Right, for now we should probably just focus on getting some rest. We're gonna want all our energy for tomorrow in case something happens" Qrow replied.
"Sounds like a good plan to me-" Slade started but was interrupted by a voice shouting behind them.
"Guys!" Blake came racing around the corner in a hurry.
"What's wrong?" Qrow asked urgently.
"I don't know" she showed her scroll to them, it read "Your security access has been revoked"
"Revoked?" Slade asked confused, pulling out his own scroll "Mine doesn't say anything like that?"
"Mine either" Oscar added.
"She's a Faunus" Qrow groaned as he read on his scroll that nothing had changed.
"You think something is wrong?" Oscar asked.
"Get everyone together and get down to Mantle! Something is going down right now!" Qrow rushed past them.
"Blake, where is everyone else?" Slade asked.
"Yang went back to the dorms after you went to see Ironwood, everyone else is in the training room" she answered.
"Good, get them. I'll find Yang and we'll meet you down in Mantle" Slade ordered.
"On it!" she rushed past them.
"What about me?" Oscar asked, Slade kneeled down and placed both hands on his shoulders.
"Go back to Ironwood's office, tell him what's going on and stay with him. Protect the relic" Slade answered.
"But I can help!"
"You're the one doing the most important job, Oscar. If this is Salem, someone is going to be coming after the relic. If that happens, stay behind Ironwood and don't risk losing it unless you have to, alright?"
"You got it" he nodded then turned back toward Ironwood's office. Slade rushed off toward the student dorms to find Yang. Slade slid to a stop at the sight of blood staining the floor, he removed Defiance from his holster and followed the blood.
"-Finish what we need?" he heard.
"Looks like it" he entered the room, it appeared to be a security room, looking around the corner he found two dead Atlas soldier's striped of their uniforms. Looking to the left he saw two people sitting in the chairs, accessing the computer.
"Then we should be done already" the thinner one smirked.
"Better up in here than down in Mantle, our boys are gonna have some fun starting chaos before long"
"It's what we're paid to do-" the bulky man noticed Slade aiming Defiance right at them.
"Weapons on the floor now and your hands in the air" they reached for their weapons slowly "Good" he gestured to the wall "Slide them over there" they did as he said "Against the wall" he pointed to the opposite wall from the weapons. They backed up silently. Slade noticed a hard drive in the computer, it wasn't one of Atlas's he moved to grab it with his open hand. The bulky man kicked the chair in front of him at Slade.
Slade stopped the chair with his boot as the other grabbed his arm, wrenching Defiance from his hand, it clattered to the floor. Slade grabbed him by the back of the neck and slammed him into the counter as the other man punched him in the side of his ribs. Slade elbowed him in the chest and used his free hand to deflect the other man's arm as he swung for his face.
The bigger man reached for his gun on the ground, Slade kicked him in the chest, throwing him against the nearby wall. He recovered quickly and swung for Slade, he received a knee to his abdomen for his trouble. Slade grabbed the other man by his arm and forced him to his right, then slammed his knee into his abdomen as he pulled him down toward it with his hands. Slade wrapped his arms around the man's neck from behind, choking him as he turned toward his other assailant as he picked up his gun.
The man in his grip passed out just before Slade tossed him into the other man and grabbed his gun. Slade slammed his knee into his chest once again and then fired the gun into his chest, dropping him onto the ground. Looking down at the other man, he watched him crawling toward the discarded gun. Slade kicked him across the face, flipping him onto his back.
"Who are you? What the hell are you doing here?" Slade growled, pressing Defiance to his chest threateningly.
"My boss would kill me if I told you" he answered shakily.
"And if I told you I'll kill you if you don't?"
"It wouldn't matter, I am already dead anyway"
"Then there's no harm in telling me what you know then right? Do you work for Salem? Is it someone else?"
he laughed "You're not wrong... Salem is footing the bill, but she's not who I work for. My boss-gah!" his right eye snapped to the right and his left to the left, both sparking a single time followed by the sclera of each eye slowly becoming red from the blood flowing to them.
"What the hell?" Slade asked in shock. He checked his pulse to find he was most certainly dead. Slade grabbed the drive out of the computer and called Ironwood.
"Slade? Oscar just got back here in a hurry, what's going on?" he asked irritated.
"Blake's security access has been revoked, General. I think I found the men responsible, they killed two of yours. Qrow thinks something is going on with the Faunus down in Mantle, we're going to investigate but we don't know anything right now. Keep Oscar and the relic safe, it seems this is Salem's handiwork" Slade explained.
"Dammit! Winter!" he called just as he hung up.
Yang burst into the door, Slade pointed Defiance at her before realizing it was her "Yang!"
"I heard a gunshot" she looked at him with clear worry.
"It was me" he nodded toward the bleeding man on the ground "I'm fine" he assured her, she seemed to calm down.
"Good, what's going on?"
"I'll explain on the way, let's go"
Slade and Yang arrived to find dozens of Faunus all huddled together arguing amongst themselves angrily "That doesn't look good" Yang pointed out.
"No kidding" he called the rest of the group, looping Ironwood in as well "What's going on?"
"Faunus across Mantle and Atlas have had their credentials revoked, they can't get through any checkpoints" Weiss answered.
"I don't know what's going on but the Faunus look like they're gonna riot with Ren and I" Nora reported.
"We're getting the same things here, they look scared" Qrow added.
"What're we gonna do?" Ruby asked concerned.
"Calm them down" Ironwood answered "They're scared, that's going to draw Grimm. Focus on keeping them calm, tell them whatever you have to, just get the situation under control. I have ordered my men to keep the peace, they're not to start confrontation's only end them. Penny is keeping watch for any Grimm"
"How're we supposed to do that?" Yang huffed.
"Gotta start somewhere" Slade sighed approaching the group.
"What're you doing?!" she asked following closely behind him.
"What seems to be the trouble guys?" Slade asked as he approached.
"Get away from us, human!" one yelled.
"Yeah! We didn't do nothing wrong!"
"I am not accusing anyone of anything, I am just trying to figure out what's going on. You see, a friend of mine. Her name is Blake, she's a Faunus like you... she's recently had her credentials all revoked. I was wondering if the same thing was happening here" he explained.
"Like you don't already know!" a female Faunus shouted in anger "You don't actually care!"
"We do!" Yang protested "General Ironwood himself sent us after hearing of what's been going on. He's looking into it and getting everything resolved. Do not worry, the soldiers have all been informed of what's going on" she explained.
"Ironwood sent you? Then he must still care about us!" someone yelled.
"Don't listen to the humans! They're lying!"
"I assure you, we're not lying!" Slade announced over them "What do we have to gain by-" Slade was interrupted by the sound of loud marching behind him. Turning around he found dozens of Atlas soldiers all stopping across from the group, the front line had riot shields and the rest all had rifles along with batons and sidearms.
"What the hell do they think they're doing?" Yang asked "Ironwood said to keep the peace, not scare them" her eyes flashed red.
"This is an illegal gathering, disperse or you will be fired upon!" announced the soldier in charge.
"Woah, woah, woah-" Slade started as the Faunus behind him started to shout and panic "General Ironwood's orders were clear soldier! Lower your weapons!" Slade shouted.
"Rioting will not be accepted, remove yourselves from here or you will be fired upon! We will shoot if you do not comply!" he shouted back. Slade started slowly approaching with his hands up.
"Look! I don't know what you think you're doing, but when Ironwood hears about this I know he is going to-" Slade stopped as the man raised his hand up.
"On my order!" he shouted. Yang noticed something at that moment, some of the soldiers had blood on them.
"Slade-" she shouted.
"Fire!"
"Wait!" Slade held up his hands and stopped every round with his Semblance, struggling to stop them all. The Faunus ran screaming in the opposite direction. Slade dropped the bullets and charged as they reloaded their weapons, Yang followed shortly behind him. Slade's Semblance was keeping him upright, forcing him to move as normal despite the tremendous pain shooting through his body.
Slade kicked in the first shield he came up to with all the force he could muster, pushing him back. The next soldier in his way swung a shock baton at him, he dodged and kicked the man in the chest, throwing him onto his back. Turning just in time to catch another strike in his direction from a shield-bearer, he pulled his arm to the right as Yang slammed her metal fist into his face, knocking him unconscious.
Yang kicked a soldier's shield, pushing him back several steps and turned to catch a shield being swung horizontally for her face. Catching it in her metal hand she smashed it into the soldier's head before using it to block the baton of another. Slade grabbed a shield as Yang did the same to the soldier next to him and they pulled down as hard as they could, removing the shield from their grips.
Slade slammed his fist into his face and he pulled a pistol in response. Slade caught the gun in his hand and wrenched it from his grip, knocking it to the ground. Wrapping his hands around his head, Slade pulled the man to the ground, kicking him in the face afterward as Yang beat the other man down with her fists. A soldier with a rifle aimed at Slade, he grabbed the rifle from under his arm and elbowed him in the chest, then again in the face before wrenching the gun from his grip and breaking it in two. Charging toward another as he fired at him, Slade blocked the rounds and grabbed the gun by the barrel. Twisting the weapon around so it faced the butt toward the soldier, he slammed his fist into his face, and removed the clip from the weapon.
A soldier aimed his handgun at Yang but missed his shot when the clip from the weapon slammed into his neck from Slade throwing it, choking him. Slade turned back toward the man in his grip and smacked him across the face with the weapon. The soldier aimed his weapon at Slade as he regained his breathe and found his wrist snapped back toward him by Slade's quick movement. Slade kicked his left knee out from under him then leapt off his back and slammed his knees into another soldier's shield, knocking him down. Picking up the pistol from the ground he slammed it into the soldier's face twice then launched the shield to his right hitting the other soldier in the face.
Yang seemed to also be making quick work of her foes, beating them with their own batons. Slade smirked, a soldier smashed his baton into Slade's elbow causing him to drop the gun. Slade pushed a second away from him and as the other grabbed his arm. Smashing his fist into his face, he found himself free of the first but trapped by the second with a baton around his neck. Slade elbowed him in the chest trying to get free, then kicked the soldier in front of him in the knee dropping him painfully to the ground as a crack rang out. A third rushed at him with a baton in hand, Slade picked up his legs and slammed them into his chest, knocking the soldier holding him off balance and throwing them both to the ground. Slade elbowed him in his pelvis then slammed his own baton into his face.
Slade received a punch to his face and then a kick from another two soldiers. Picking up the shield from the ground he blocked a baton strike and then a kick from a second, turning he deflected several rounds from a rifleman standing right in front of him. Yang collided with his back, they stood back to back as Slade threw his shield into the man rushing him, knocking him down. Slade caught a baton strike by his wrists then dropped his hold to block another for his abdomen from a separate soldier, Yang kicked the first in the chest from behind her. Slade smacked his baton across the man's face then turned and uppercut the second before turning on a third as Yang kneed the first in the chest. Slade proceeded to knock out the three of them with the baton in hand. A soldier in front of them finished reloading and aimed right for them.
Yang!
Slade pushed Yang out of the way and threw the baton into his face as he dodged the bullets. Slade's Aura flashed red briefly as he rushed the soldier. Slamming his fist into his face, he twisted around and elbowed him wrenching the rifle from his hand and fired into the man's chest. Turning back toward Yang as she picked herself up, he rushed and grabbed a soldier by the arm, throwing him backward with incredible strength and then grabbed the rifle of the man aiming at Yang, slamming it into his face and kicking him in the chest. The man went flying across the street into the wall of the building.
Slade threw the rifle at the next aiming for Yang as she finished getting to her feet, Slade grabbed his pistol and turning it upward at the man as he forced him to his knees with his strength alone and fired the gun into his head. Slade turned and fired a few rounds at the shield bearing soldier in front of him. Slade grabbed the shield and fired the pistol over the top into his head, then turned and fired into the next one's head as well. Slade attempted to fire the pistol in his hand only to find it was empty, he grabbed the soldier closest to him and snapped his neck.
"Fall back! Fall back!" the man in charge yelled as the remaining soldiers standing rushed to get away. Slade removed Defiance from it's holster and fired into their backs killing them as they rushed to escape.
"Slade!" Yang called. Slade continued to fire with a malicious grin on his face "Slade stop!" Yang stepped in front of him. His grin dropped into a look of shock matching hers. She found when she looked at Slade his eyes held a red glimmer to them.
"Yang" he shook his head quickly, his hand coming up to grab it painfully just as his Aura flashed back to it's natural blue "What're you..." he looked around to see all the dead soldiers he had killed "Oh..." he dropped onto his knees, his hand shot down to his abdomen as the pain surged through his body.
"Slade? What the hell was that?" she asked.
"I... I..." he looked up at her, his eyes had returned to normal "I..."
"Yang! Slade!" Ruby's voice called as she and the rest of the group showed up.
"What happened?!" Qrow asked looking at the massacre.
"I happened" Slade answered, his eyes wide with shock at what he had done, he looked down at his hands and found them to be soaked with blood. A bloody handprint now adorned his armor.
"What?" Jaune asked confused.
"What do you mean? You killed these men?" Ren raised his eyebrow questioningly.
Yang lowered herself to her knees, placing her hand onto his shoulder "Slade... what happened?"
"I... I don't know, Yang" Slade answered honestly.
Several officers approached with their guns aiming for the group "Hands up, now!" one of them yelled. The group got in a defensive posture around Slade, all of them incoherently shouting over each other while the officers did the same. Slade coughed into his hand violently, but no one took notice over the shouting.
"Easy!" the captain yelled as he rushed in front of his men "They work for Ironwood!" he turned toward them "I just need him, the rest of you can-" he gestured to Slade, earning a fierce look from Yang, her Aura flaring.
"What!? They attacked us! You can't-"
"Yang..." Slade's soft tone caught her off-guard "It's alright" he stood up, raising his hands over his head "Just let Ironwood know what happened here, make sure it's not happening anywhere else" he handed her the drive from the computer he had taken "Find out what's on here"
"But Slade" she tried as he walked past her, allowing the officers to place him in a bolas.
"What is he doing?" Nora asked surprised.
"He was only defending himself right?" Weiss asked hopefully.
"He protected the Faunus too" Yang answered "Those soldiers would've killed all of us if he didn't stop them"
"Don't worry, kiddo" Qrow hugged her comfortingly "James will figure all this out"
"Winter and Ironwood will know what to do" Weiss added with a comforting smile.
"Let's hope so" Blake's fist closed at her side in anger.
"He will" Ruby placed her hand onto Blake's shoulder "They have to"
"This is him?" the officer asked the two detectives next to him, pointing to the glass. Behind the glass window sat Slade Stroud, still in full combat gear excluding Defiance, they had allowed him to clean the blood off of him and his armor before dropping him into interrogation "This is the guy who killed our boys?" he was a portly man, he had brown eyes and gray hair as well as a short bushy beard. His nametag said Daggett
"Yes, Sir" answered the male detective. He had short jet black hair and amber eyes along with a scruffy goatee.
"Be careful with him, he's always got something up his sleeve" Daggett warned.
"We always are" the female detective next to him replied before exiting the room and entering interrogation with him. She had a dark complexion, bright long red hair and teal eyes.
"Hello, Mr. Stroud. I'm detective-"
"Detectives Lancaster and Dominguez" Slade finished gesturing between him and then her in a bored tone.
"You know us?" she asked surprised.
"How?" he glared.
"It says so on your ID" Slade pointed at their ID tags attached to their belts.
"Well, Mr. Stroud. You have quite the extensive record" Dominguez dropped a large file and a slightly smaller file down onto the table both labeled with his name.
"Wow... you really did your homework huh?" Slade asked unimpressed.
"Aspiring Huntsman turned Bounty Hunter after you flunked out of Beacon" Lancaster taunted.
"Clearly you haven't done very good with your homework then" Slade chuckled.
"Your academic records from Beacon show that you were slated for graduation when you quit" Dominguez corrected.
"Good, at least one of you knows how to do your job" Slade leaned back into his chair "Is this really necessary?" he asked gesturing to the bolas trapping him to the table.
"Sorry, standard procedure" she answered.
"Lovely"
"Says here..." Lancaster opened the large file "You were a member of the immensely famous Stroud family, a family of well known Huntsmen and Huntresses dating back as far as we can tell... but then your brother died in a horrible accident followed shortly by both of your parents and your sister... all three of these accidents you were present for" Lancaster listed off.
Slade grunted in annoyance "Really did your research did you?" he asked reeling in his anger.
"You were accepted into Beacon Academy two years early and placed in charge of Team SHDW before the other three members of your team were brutally killed on mission and you left Beacon to become a Bounty Hunter working closely with Roman Torchwick over the course of the next year until Mr. Torchwick was killed during the Fall of Beacon. You did jobs all across Remnant, Mistral and Vale, then Vacuo and finally Atlas. You've led quite a distinguished career of losing just about everyone you care for didn't you?" he asked.
Slade remained silent, waiting for him to move on before he got very upset.
"You even worked here in the city and apprehended councilwoman McLaren or "The Dragon" as she was well known as among the criminals, then disappeared for awhile. Likely because you destroyed and murdered several innocent people along the way-"
"Never killed anyone innocent, anyone I personally killed was a criminal. Not to mention the fact that I was personally hired by General Ironwood for the express reason of arresting The Dragon, thank you very much. But I do very much appreciate that trip down memory lane" Slade growled.
"Why didn't Ironwood say so himself when questioned about the situation?" Dominguez asked curiously.
"Likely because he had a lot on his mind after somebody hacked his toy soldiers in Vale and the Grimm took over the kingdom" Slade answered "Until a couple of days ago he still wanted me to keep our connection a secret so he could oust the rest of the criminals that worked for her so unless you have something you could actually pin onto me right now, then I suggest you get to the point"
"Even if we can't pin anything else on you, we have footage of you killing several Atlas security officers no more than an hour ago in the streets"
"Have you been able to ID any of those men?" Slade asked, they remained silent "Hmm? Oh no? I take it you haven't... unless you have and you just don't want me to know, or are we not going to bring up the fact they attempted to gun down unarmed Faunus in the streets, and would have if I hadn't stopped them"
"Listen, kid-"
"No, Detective. Listen to me" he stood up, his eyes Aura flashing red for the briefest of moments before returning to blue "If you think you have any chance to have any one of your district attorneys make sense of what just happened and put me in the wrong then we have something to talk about. If not, then you have nothing to hold me on and I am free to go, you both know I could break out of here with no issue if I desired a fight"
"You're absolutely begging to be arrested you know that?" Dominguez asked crossing her arms as Lancaster seemed to be struggling to maintain his composure.
"If either of you actually had the balls to do it, but you won't" Slade smirked "You don't have anything, or we wouldn't be talking right now. You don't interrogate someone you already can pin, sorry, detectives... but this isn't my first time in an interrogation room"
"I promise you, kid. I can keep this up a lot longer than you can maintain that phony arrogance you have. The minute that you-"
"You don't know who they are do you?" Slade asked by the other detective's uncomfortable silence "Those men that attacked me, were they actually Atlas soldiers?"
The two detectives remained silent to his question.
Slade sighed "Detectives I know you believe you're just doing your jobs, but I know things that would give you nightmares. I have seen things worse than your wildest dreams and I have lost more than any one person should be forced to lose, I promise you nothing is normal about what's going on here and I am on your side. General Ironwood wouldn't have asked for my help if he didn't absolutely need it. You're walking into some screwed up-" the door swung open.
"Stop talking, Slade" Ironwood entered.
"General Ironwood!" the two detectives stood at attention.
"This is over, detectives" he glared at them.
"Sir, we cannot just let him go-"
"You will be, because he works for me" he answered.
"Bounty Hunter's aren't exempt from the law, General. It doesn't matter if you've hired him or not-" Ironwood threw an ID card onto the table.
"He's no Bounty Hunter" they looked at the card to find it was a genuine Huntsman's license.
"Shit!" Lancaster shouted as he stormed out of the room.
"Huntsman may not be above the law, but so long as they're following my orders I am the one responsible for their actions. Despite this, Slade hasn't actually done anything illegal within the purview of a Huntsman. Slade protected himself, his fellow Huntress Yang Xiao Long and multiple innocent civilians being fired upon by the soldiers"
"They were still our men-" Dominguez tried to argue.
"Come now, detective. You and I both know that's not true. My men were found dead not more than two blocks away and the dead soldiers in the streets were known criminals" he narrowed his eyes lightly "So again, you will be letting Mr. Stroud go" he turned to Slade to find him looking at the ID in shock.
"Huntsman!" Ironwood called grabbing his attention "Let's move" Slade nodded and removed himself from the bolas without using his Semblance, like it wasn't even on him in the first place.
"How did you do that?"
"Told you" he picked up his ID "Wasn't my first time in interrogation" he winked before following Ironwood out of the room.
"Glad to see you weren't breaking under pressure" Ironwood smirked handing him back Defiance.
"You know I wouldn't say anything they didn't need to know" he replied holstering his weapon.
"Indeed"
"You've gotta be kidding me with this" Slade held up his license "You made me a fake ID just to get me out of this" Ironwood pushed the front door open.
"It isn't fake" Ironwood answered.
"Slade!" Yang slammed into him, pulling him into an unexpected hug.
"Woah!" he tipped backward slightly but managed to maintain his balance.
"Are you alright? They didn't try and-"
"Yang!" Qrow called grabbing her attention "Give the guy some space, he's fine" he chuckled.
"Oh, right" she cleared her throat as she released him "Sorry"
"It's fine" he looked to Ironwood "what do you mean it isn't fake?"
Ruby's eyes lit up "He made us all Huntresses!" she showed off her license.
Slade's eyes narrowed at Ironwood "You did what?"
"I think they earned it" he shrugged.
"That's all well and good, General. But I am not a Huntsman" he growled.
"You are now, and you've been acting like one long enough. Start owning it" he smiled at him "Now, we have more important things to talk about"
"Such as?"
"What exactly happened back in Mantle?" Jaune asked concerned.
Slade sighed "It's gonna be a long night"
"Let's wait until we're back at the Academy" Qrow suggested "We have enough people trying to spy on us without us talking about this in public"
"Good idea" Blake agreed.
"How's Oscar?" Slade asked.
"He's fine, nothing happened beyond your situation down in Mantle"
"Thankfully" Ren agreed.
"I would've killed anyone who tried anything on our cute boy Oscar!" Nora slammed her fists together.
"Let's go" Ironwood motioned for the others to follow him into his airship.
Ironwood stood in front of the group with his hands clasped together behind his back "Make yourselves comfortable" he gestured to the empty tables in the cafeteria with food items spread across them "You all must be hungry after such a long day"
Nora excitedly leapt onto the seat and started digging in earning a warm smile from Ironwood, the rest of her friends followed suit and started eating as well. Qrow and Slade remained standing with Winter and Ironwood. Slade seemed to be stuck in his bad mood, despite the grumbling of his stomach. Ironwood sighed "Come on, Slade. Relax" he sat down across from Ruby and started filling a plate as well "None of us have had dinner yet, we're going to have to talk about it eventually. Why not enjoy yourself for a moment before-"
"Nothing crazy happened in Mantle" Slade answered "I saw Yang was in danger and just stopped caring about sparing the soldiers, that's it"
"Then why did you react the way that you did?" Winter asked having joined Ironwood.
"You did seem a bit distraught" Yang added trying to help. Slade looked to her with a slight amount of regret and sighed, finally sitting down beside her.
"Okay..." he looked for a place to start "I don't know what happened... the stress of the situation has been getting to me. I've been putting on a brave face the whole time, but in all honesty... I'm terrified" he explained. Yang frowned, she placed her hand onto his shoulder.
"You don't have to do that, Slade. You can talk to us. We're here for you"
"Yeah, you don't need to hide anything from us" Ruby agreed.
"It's not like we're gonna judge you for being just as scared as the rest of us" Blake added.
"I'm sorry" Slade shook his head "This is a big day for you all, we should be celebrating!" he smiled brightly "I promise I will be more open with you guys from now on"
"Good" Weiss nodded "It doesn't have to be all of us, Slade. But you should talk to someone when things are weighing on you"
"Yeah" Jaune agreed "My sister was always there for me when I needed to talk about things" he smiled.
Slade thought back to her words in Argus "Y'know, she told me the same thing" he smiled "I did have a nice talk with her too. She's a good listener, and she has good advice"
"Slade's right, we should take the time to celebrate receiving our Licenses" Ren smiled lightly "It is after all what we all wanted when we went to Beacon"
"What made you decide to make them all Huntsmen?" Oscar asked curiously.
"You all made that decision for me" Ironwood answered with a smile full of pride "All of you in here today have fought for your friends, your families, your school, and your kingdom during the Fall of Beacon, bravely and with honor. You fought for the innocent, what was right and just at Haven, and beyond that you even did the same again when it came to Argus. You've all been burdened by a truth so unfathomable that many have gone insane or given into despair merely by it's discovery, yet you all chose to press on. You chose to face this nightmare and the abominations yet to be seen despite it all. That doesn't sound like the actions of children, or students, or criminals" he looked to Slade "To me, that sounds like the heroism told of in all the greatest tales of Huntsmen and Huntresses" he held up his mug over his head "You've all earned it" he lowered his mug down to chest level "I know these have come a bit ahead of schedule from what you may have expected, but I believe your actions speak for themselves. I only regret that I cannot do anything more official for you"
"You all more than deserve it" Winter agreed.
"With Salem still out there and the tensions in the kingdom skyrocketing like they have been, I am going to be needing you all now more than ever. I figured it's the least I could do to make it official for you, you've all been doing the job long enough. This is a big moment for you all, take the rest of the night off and celebrate. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day, and Salem isn't going to be pulling any punches from here on out-"
Penny came bursting in the door "Did I miss it!?" she asked hopefully.
"No, Penny. I'd say you're right on time" Winter laughed.
"Oh, good" she took a seat next to Weiss and smiled brightly at the group.
"Well" Ironwood stood up with his plate in hand "I think that's about all the speechmaking I have in me for one day. Please, enjoy your night" he walked toward the door before he noticed Winter getting up "Stay, Winter" he smiled "Your sister isn't going to be getting her license twice"
"Thank you, Sir" she smiled back at him, returning to her seat.
"After everything we've been through, I almost forgot this is what we all wanted" Blake smiled.
"When Beacon fell, I didn't think this was going to be possible anymore" Yang agreed.
"among all the other things that've happened over the past few months, this certainly seems almost..." Ren started.
"Trivial?" Weiss asked.
"Geez, guys. Lighten up a little, you've earned a bit of time to enjoy yourselves" Qrow laughed.
"Yeah" Jaune smiled proudly "Just wait until Saph hears about this!"
"I'm gonna destroy you!" Nora shouted pointing at the large cooked bird on the table, earning a laugh from the group as she started digging into it.
As the celebration went on the group moved from table to table doing different activities from arm wrestling between Nora and Yang, to Weiss and Winter taking pictures together. Oscar, Penny and Ruby were trying to see who could balance more food on their heads than the other. Blake, Jaune and Ren watched and cheered for their friends arm wrestling. Slade stood away from the rest of the group, his flask in hand.
Slade moved toward the nearby wall, lowering himself painfully to the ground, he took a swig from his flask. Placing it down onto the ground, he removed a cigar from his coat and placed it into his mouth, flipping open the zippo lighter Roman gave him, he lit the cigar in his mouth, inhaling deeply. Placing the lighter away, he coughed violently once more, with a shake of his head, he put it out with his free hand and tossed the cigar away into a nearby trashcan.
"Rough day for you, huh?" Qrow asked as he approached, slumping against the wall next to him. Slade quickly placed his flask into his pocket.
"There's been a lot to take in today" he answered.
"Which part? Finally getting your license, the getting arrested and then un-arrested or the not quite telling everyone what's going on with you part?" Qrow asked with a knowing look.
"When you put it that way, it sounds like an average day" Slade answered with a shrug. He sighed "How did you know?"
"When you lied to us about it being stress" Qrow smirked "I've known you long enough to know when you're lying kid. What's with being upset about the license?"
Slade softly laughed "I guess I feel like I didn't really earn it, I left Oz when he needed me the most. Sure I did some good while I was gone and made friends with Neo and Roman... but still, I betrayed his trust"
"He betrayed ours when he left the whole truth from us"
"How am I any different?" Slade asked "I look them right in the eye and lie to them because I am afraid of what they might think if they knew. I tried telling everyone about stuff that was going on with me before Qrow, and it didn't help" he angrily punched the floor "...Ow"
"Slade..." he sighed "I can't tell you honestly if what you're doing is any different, but I know you better than you think. I know you wouldn't keep it to yourself just because you were scared of what people might think of you, if you're keeping it to yourself it's because you're scared telling people will make them push you away, because you want to be there for them when they need it. Oz didn't trust people with the truth because he was scared of what they might do with it... I think there's a pretty big difference but hey, what do I know right?"
"I hope you're right" he removed his license and looked at it with a frown "This says I am a Huntsman now, but I don't feel like I earned it at all"
"You've more than earned it, kid. No one else in this room, myself included has done more to try and help people just because it was the right thing than you have. Despite trying to play it off as part of your job as a Bounty Hunter" he laughed "Your family, your team... they'd be proud of you, Slade"
"I'm sorry for not telling you sooner, Qrow... but I am scared" he said honestly.
"What is it that's scaring you so much?" Qrow asked concerned.
"I care about them Qrow" he looked over to the group "That's something I have been trying not to do for a long time, because I know what always happens to people I care about" he sighed "When I was in Mantle... when Yang looked like she was in trouble... I felt something"
"I'm not having that talk with you kid" Qrow laughed "When a girl and a boy like each other very much-" he laughed loudly as Slade punched him in the arm.
"No, you ass" Slade groaned with a roll of his eyes "My Aura, it felt... darker... almost like..."
"Salem" Qrow finished for him, his tone turned serious.
"I'm worried she had control" Slade looked to Qrow with clear concern written on his face "I can't remember anything between knocking Yang out of the way and when she stopped me from shooting those men as they ran away"
"That just sounds like you blacked out to me. Everyone has done that in a fight once or twice, it happens" Qrow sighed "But, if you're really that worried about it. I think you should talk about this to Ironwood. Oz may not have been able to help you, but James has access to some of the best technology in the world. If anyone could do it, he could"
"And the others?" Slade asked.
"I would keep it between us for now, Slade. There's no telling how the others will react, I remember just how paranoid I was when I first found out about Salem messing around with you" he sighed "I trust you enough to know you'd tell me if you think you can't manage it, but the others... I don't want to chance anything just yet. Let's see what Ironwood says first and go from there"
"Alright, I am gonna trust you on this. If I start losing it, I need you to do what's necessary"
"You've got it, kid. We can focus on all of this later. For now you should head over there and have some fun" he smiled "I know a certain blonde niece of mine who really enjoys your company" he winked, elbowing him in the shoulder.
"Alright, alright" he laughed "I'll go, as long as you join me, old man"
"Well with an argument like that, how could I refuse?"
"Do you have a comment about the recent violence that took place in Mantle earlier today Mr. Schnee?" the reporter asked.
"Do I have a comment?" Jacques asked feigning surprise "I have several!" he turned to the camera "General Ironwood keeps telling us to trust him and he will make Atlas strong, but I haven't seen strength demonstrated in the past few months" he looked deeply saddened "First our Knights are hacked during the Fall of Beacon, then the embargo and the poor Faunus being quarantined to Junktown like animals? Now our own soldiers are trying to kill innocents in the streets and Faunus are having their credentials taken away from them as if they haven't suffered enough from the brutality of groups like the White Fang? All I am truly seeing is that General Ironwood cannot do his job to keep us all safe!"
"What do you think would be the answer to that, Mr. Schnee?"
"I think stronger leadership is in order. I think that the Atlas security council has had a vacant fifth seat for far too long, and I think the people of Atlas and Mantle all know that they need someone who is going to look out for them. I implore everyone listening right now to go to the polls tomorrow night and make sure you vote for the right candidate"
Slade leaned against the edge of the doorway leading to the balcony of the room he was staying in, switching the TV off with the remote in his right hand. He had a large bottle of alcohol in hand, taking a swig he found it to be empty. He reached down into the pile behind him and grabbed the last full bottle and popped it open.
"Slade?" Yang's voice called as she entered the open door "Hey, Ruby is going to be heading into town with the others-" she stopped when she noticed the large amount of empty bottles at his feet, he tossed the remote onto the nearby bed "Are you drunk?" she asked surprised "I thought you and Qrow had... stopped"
Slade looked over to her "Don't mention this to him" he looked ashamed as he took anther swig "I've been trying to keep my drinking out of sight from him. Don't want him starting back up again"
"You've been hiding your drinking from Qrow to... support him?" she asked stepping closer.
"He's been drinking heavily since I have known him, it would be good for him to stop"
"Yet you continue?"
"I have my reasons"
"Yeah, I am sure we all do"
"Yang, that's now what I-" he stopped with a sigh "It's not the loss I feel everyday that's been making me drink, I actually stopped mostly after I cut ties with Roman"
"What made you start up again?" she asked leaning against the opposite side of the door from him.
"Aside from Roman's death?" Slade asked with a rueful chuckle "Salem being stuck in my head doesn't help, being drunk keeps her away for the most part... but there's something else too"
"What is it?" she asked curiously.
"It's not something I want to talk about right now"
"Slade-"
"I know, Yang, I know" he sighed "I will tell you, I promise" he smiled up at her "I just need some time first... I don't even really know what it is yet?"
"What does that mean?"
"It means I am letting the alcohol do the talking by saying even that much" he shook his head "You ever wonder how different life would be if you did one thing differently?"
"Of course" Yang smiled "I think all the time what life would be like if Mom hadn't left, if Summer hadn't died... if I hadn't lost my arm... what Pyrrha would be doing right now if she didn't die that night"
"Yeah" Slade sighed "I thought I would think about if my parents were still around, or my brother, my sister, even my teammates and Roman... but there's only one thing that I really think about all the time, wondering how things would've turned out if I had played it different"
"What is it?"
"I think about when I left Beacon" he smirked "With how much of a fuss I kicked up about getting my license today that must sound pretty stupid"
"No, I think it makes perfect sense" she smiled warmly at him.
Slade smiled back at her "You wanna know the reason I regret leaving the most?" he asked.
"Ozpin?" she asked.
"No... Qrow" he answered "If I had stuck around Qrow would've taken me around to meet his nieces he couldn't ever stop talking about. He was always so proud of you two... and that means I would've met you sooner" he looked up at her, the sincerity in his voice surprised her "I think meeting you is probably the best thing that has happened to me so far" he laughed "Got me out of my drunken stupor and forced me to actually start being... well... me again" he put the bottle down and took her hands in his "Thank you, for thinking I was worth the effort"
Yang fought back a tear for a moment before composing herself "Yeah, anytime. Of course" she lost herself in his gaze momentarily.
"Hey" Qrow called from the doorway. Slade used his Semblance to hide the bottles from him, throwing the blanket from the nearby bed over them. Qrow didn't seem to notice.
"Qrow" he greeted.
That was fast! Yang thought looking at the absent bottles surprised.
"Oh..." Qrow noticed their closeness as they shifted apart "I didn't mean to interrupt" he looked at Yang apologetically "Pipsqueak is getting impatient and wanted to know if you two were coming"
Slade smirked at Yang "Go ahead, I'll catch up" she smiled back at him.
"You'd better!" she walked out past Qrow, who watched Slade with a smirk on his face.
"You two seem to be getting close"
"It's nothing, Qrow" Slade laughed as he walked toward him "I need to ask you for a favor though" he whispered in his ear. Qrow listened intently and then looked surprised.
"Oh..." he quickly handed Slade his old scroll from the drawer next to his bed "That's good, Slade" he chuckled "See you in town" he winked and then followed after Yang.
Now I am going to have to clean all this up Slade thought grabbing the bottles from beneath the blanket, he tossed them into a trashcan in the hallway, watching as the group left the corridor Really hope he didn't notice Slade tapped on the screen a few times and then pressed the device to his ear.
"Qrow?" Taiyang's voice asked surprised "I wasn't expecting you to call-"
"It's not Qrow, sorry to disappoint"
"You sound just as drunk" Taiyang chuckled "Who am I speaking to? One of Ruby's friends?"
"Qrow's actually been very good since we left Argus. He's been sober since then"
"That doesn't sound like Qrow at all" Taiyang said but was clearly happy "That doesn't answer my question though"
"We've met before, Mr. Xiao Long. My name is Slade" he was met with silence.
"What the hell are you doing with Qrow's scroll? Is he alright?"
"He's fine, Sir, I assure you. Both your daughters are too" he answered quickly before he could ask "I know when we last met it wasn't really under the best circumstances, but suffice to say I was working under cover for Ironwood and needed to maintain it and now I am working with Ruby" he explained.
"Surely you didn't call me just to clear the air with me. What is it?"
"I need a favor" the line went silent once again.
"Go on"
Dr. Polendina sat in his office, sleeping in the chair, clearly exhausted from the work he has been doing. A knock at the door jarred him awake "Mrg! Come in!" he said before fully composing himself. Slade entered the room alone and turned toward him "Doctor"
"Mr. Stroud, what can I-?" he started but Slade held up a hand for him to stop.
"I don't want anyone hearing about this yet, but I believe I can trust you. I need your help with two very important things" the door closed behind him as he entered locking the door behind him.
"What can I help you-" Slade fell onto the table in pain, struggling to keep himself upright "Mr. Stroud!"
"I need help, Dr." he groaned as he limped his way around the desk onto the table Oscar laid on when he was searching for Ozpin "I don't know what the hell is wrong with me"
"What seems to be the issue?" he asked quickly getting his equipment ready.
"I've been having issues for a little while now, I can't say exactly when it started... but every time I use my Semblance, I have an intense pain in my abdomen like a gunshot or a stab wound" he answered.
"Well let's take a look" he got his machines ready and started looking "You said there was two things you needed help with, are they related?"
"No" he handed him Qrow's scroll with a photo on it "Can you do it?" he asked.
Doctor Polendina looked at the scroll briefly and laughed "Can I? I could do this in my sleep" he took the device and placed it onto his desk "As important as that is I imagine we should figure this out first. How were you keeping yourself upright until you came in?"
"My Semblance of course" Slade chuckled "Ironic that the problem has been the solution huh? Also a lot of alcohol"
"How much alcohol?"
"At least a dozen bottles or so"
"A day?" Polendina asked surprised.
"Let's go with that" Slade answered with a groan.
"Well..." he placed his scanner down as he found the problem "I can see why... what is your Semblance again, son?"
"Matter manipulation" Slade answered "I can move things with my mind" he laughed "I can also separate molecules to allow weapons to pass through me or me to pass through walls" he continued "I don't honestly know if there's more to it or not but it's only been a couple of years since I unlocked it"
"How did you unlock your Semblance?"
"That's gonna take longer to explain than I would like" he groaned "Suffice to say my sister died and I used my Semblance for the first time in a blind rage and killed everyone responsible"
"Ah... not a happy experience then" he sighed "Well I can clearly-" he stopped "No... it can't be..." he breathed out barely above a whisper.
"Doctor?" Slade asked, nervous.
Polendina looked at Slade in complete shock "That's not possible...I thought... but could it?" he wondered aloud, whispering to himself.
"Doctor!" Slade snapped him out of his trance.
"Hm? Ah, yes! Your problem!" he sighed deeply "Well it is quite clear what is causing the problem, but I am not sure if it is something we can fix"
"What do you mean?" He was acting rather strange for a moment there, I wonder why
"There appears to be two very deep incisions in your abdomen that haven't fully healed and don't appear to be healing at all" he ran his hand through his hair "Honestly, Mr. Stroud... it looks like your Semblance is the problem. Every time you use it to split around something and then put yourself back together, you seem to be forcing it back together the same way. Because of that your body has come to recognize those two incisions as normal. I can help dull the pain but I am not sure I can do much else at this point. There's nothing I can do to force your body to heal something on it's own without consulting Ironwood about this"
"So you can't do anything for me?" Slade asked.
"Unfortunately, I am a doctor not a magician" he crossed his arms "I can give you something for the pain but if you keep using your Semblance you're going to keep agitating the incisions. They look to be made by a long blade, any idea what could've caused them?"
"Likely Adam Taurus stabbing me in the back... twice... literally" he sighed.
"Well, unfortunately unless I can figure something out I don't know how to help you, son. I will focus my spare time onto this as much as I-"
"No, focus on that first" he pointed to the scroll.
"You want me to... but I can't ignore a patient in need for-"
"Doctor, I am asking you to do this first. I can deal with some time without using my Semblance. I will only use it during emergencies"
"Good" he handed him a bottle of pills "I will send some more to your room so you have plenty to work with. I am sorry I cannot do anything more for you right now"
"I am sure you'll figure something out, Dr." he popped two of the pills in his mouth.
"Just be careful, Slade. Alcohol will cause you to have uncontrollable shaking throughout your body if you take them with it. You probably won't notice it right away but I assure you-"
"I get it, Doc. No Semblance and no alcohol" he laughed "I think I can manage" he forced himself off the table "Keep up the good work, Dr." Slade started to leave but stopped "Keep this to yourself would you? For now?" he asked.
"Of course"
"That means no Ironwood"
"I wouldn't dare"
"Good" Slade exited.
Doctor Polendina stared back at the scanner results in shock "I can't believe it... it's really him... if the General knew... no... he can never know. No one can"
Slade entered the club he knew his friends had gone to, looking around he caught Qrow staying as far away from the bar as possible. Looking around more, he found Blake and Nora dancing with a reluctant Ren while an unamused Weiss watched them. Ruby, Oscar and Jaune stood off to the side with Qrow chatting amongst themselves. Looking to the bar he found Yang leaning against the counter with an unconscious man slumped against the bar next to her.
"Do I even want to know?" Slade asked gesturing to the man as he approached.
"Oh this?" Yang asked "Just someone who had a headbutting contest with the bar... the bar won" she shrugged.
"In other words he tried flirting with you" Slade smirked.
"More or less" she shrugged.
"You!" someone shouted pushing Slade, he turned to look at the man "I know you, you all work for Ironwood! He's been doing nothing but keeping us all trapped because of this stupid lockdown and you get to just walk around and do whatever you want? It aint fair!" he had several men gathering behind him.
"Look, buddy. I'm a Huntsman, I fight Grimm and criminals for a living. If you did too, you'd have more availability to different areas too. Now, can I have a drink in peace?"
"What, you think you're better than me?" he pushed Slade again.
"I'll warn you, if you start this I will finish it... and it will hurt"
"Yeah? You and what army?"
"Do I look like I need an army? I have Yang" he smirked.
"Who?"
Yang turned to face him, she rolled her shoulders smacking her fists together threateningly "What do you think you're doing bud?"
The man smirked, looking back at his friends "I think he thinks we're scared of em!" he twisted back toward Slade and punched for his face. Slade ducked, grabbed his legs and flipped him up and over the bar.
"Hey! Not in my bar!"
Slade turned and used his forearm to block another strike for his face from the next man and slammed his fist into his face, knocking him backward. Another man used a bottle to attack Slade, Yang caught his arm and slammed her head into his knocking him down. Slade twisted around and slammed his heel into another man's chest, throwing him back into a nearby table.
Yang was pushed against the bar as a man attempted to tackle her, she stood her ground and slammed her elbow into his collar bone. Slade dodged a knife and broke the man's arm with one fluid motion, causing him to drop the blade. Lifting him by his arm, he slammed him into the bar and then smashed a bottle into his face. Yang lifted a man by his back and slammed him down onto the bar, then threw him across the side.
Slade was tackled by a drunken man angry about his spilt drink. Yang grabbed him by the back of the neck and threw him backward off of Slade, she extended her hand out to help him up "Thanks" he smirked, accepting her offer.
"Can we ever go anywhere without getting into a fight?" she laughed.
"What can I say?" Slade shrugged "I just have that effect on people"
Yang laughed "Well don't worry, I've got you covered"
"That you do" she smacked her fist into his shoulder playfully.
"What're you doing over by the bar, huh?" Yang quirked her eyebrow, a playful smile on her face "Don't think you've had enough to drink today?"
"One more wouldn't hurt right?" he winked back at her.
"We should probably leave before the bouncers come over, shouldn't we?" Yang laughed out.
"I concur" the pair started walking toward the dance floor, making their way around the edge as to not get involved with the crowd "You know, I am honestly surprised they haven't done anything already" Slade looked to the bouncers at each end of the bar.
"It's not like they weren't close enough" Yang agreed "Probably just didn't want to mix it up with a Huntsman and a Huntress" she shrugged pointing between the two of them.
"You're probably right" the two of them remained in awkward silence for a few minutes, neither of them knowing what to talk about.
"You... you wanna dance?" Yang asked hopefully.
"Me? dance?" Slade asked cocking his eyebrow "I'm... I don't... I haven't ever really-" he stuttered out.
"You've never danced before?" Yang asked with an amused tone.
"I've... danced" he crossed his arms over his chest "I just haven't danced... recently"
"How recently?"
"Well..." he looked away, clearing his throat in embarrassment "Okay, so I haven't danced before. Sue me. I focused on more important things while attending Beacon I guess"
"Did you ever go to the school dances at Beacon?" Yang asked.
"My team never would've allowed me not to" Slade laughed "Doesn't mean I actually danced. I mostly stuck to the corners away from all the bubbly people"
"Aw" she grabbed his cheek with her metal arm, speaking in a baby voice "You're just sociawy awkward"
Slade waved her off "Yeah, well so is your sister and your Uncle"
"Oh definitely" she giggled "Come on, it won't be that bad" she grabbed him by the arm and yanked him along with her onto the dance floor.
"Yang, wait! What are you doing?!"
Qrow watches with a smirk on his face as Slade unsuccessfully struggles against Yang's grip as she leads him onto the dance floor by Nora, Blake and Ren before letting go.
"You think he's ever going to figure out she likes him on his own?" Jaune asked leaning over toward Ruby.
"Probably the same odds on Yang figuring out he likes her" she replied with a small laugh.
"Has anyone ever thought about maybe, telling them?" Oscar asked. Ruby and Jaune turned to look at him like a second head had grown from his shoulder.
"Where would be the fun in that?" they asked simultaneously.
"My bad" Oscar held his hands up in surrender with a laugh.
"What is he doing?" Qrow struggled to contain his laughter at the sight of Slade trying to dance.
"Oh no" Ruby laughed covering her mouth with her hand as she did.
"What is he doing with his legs?" Jaune asked.
"And his arms?" Oscar added.
Yang and Nora were roaring with laughter by this point, while Blake was struggling to hide her own as she helped Ren try and settle them down. Slade stopped and crossed his arms indignantly like a child but had a light smile playing on his lips all the same.
"That's one thing he's definitely not good at" Qrow pressed his hand against the wall to keep himself upright from the amount of laughter erupting from him, shortly joined by Ruby.
"Just think how bad these two would be if they had actually been drinking" Jaune referred to Ruby and Qrow with a shake of his head.
"He's not going to be living this down anytime soon" Oscar chuckled.
That's everything for now guys! Next chapter might be out sooner than expected considering my work is closed for the next two weeks, so keep your eyes peeled. Thanks for reading.