Main theme: Can't Trust Anybody Now by Jeff Williams
Arc Theme: Deep Stone Crypt from the Destiny 2: Beyond Light soundtrack
Theme: Legacy from the Destiny 2: Beyond Light soundtrack


"So this is the big city, huh?"

"Yep. Been coming back and forth from here my whole life."

Jaune gazed upon all of the buildings around him, and spun around on his heal as he took in the sweet smells of bakeries and fruits and flowers around him, looking upon it all with wonder, "Wow..."

Every new sight for him in this city of dreams and people was a brand new experience. Every new smell from the shops and stands that were painted in pastel colours and bristled with life and movement was a brand new adventure. Every new sound was a new, earthshattering experience.

Everyone in the big city seemed to wear all sorts of extravagant outfits. Some of them must've been of the upper class of Vale. He could tell from the women's bright pink to blue to red to purple and so on dresses, sporting frilled patterns and fabric lines that all curled around the skirts and arm sleeves, and the men's crisp-clean suits and tuxedos in blacks and whites that sported no creases or curls or stains in them, freshly washed and as soft as velvet. Even those whom he thought to be of the lower classes of people- With there being more Faunus than with the upper class people- Dressed themselves in frilly outfits and uniforms, with some wearing shirts and shorts that commingled together to form a rainbow-splash of colour, and others going more elaborate by lining their outfits with fake fruit slices and flower buds that seemed to curl and expand and detract in the everchanging winds around them.

Everything around him was new and strange and amazing at the same time, and he didn't know how to deal with it.

STRANGE

STRANGE

STRANGE

STRANGE

STRANGE

STRANGE

STRANGE

STRANGE

"What's up with you?" Ruby asked with a raised eyebrow as she looked at the boy lost in wanderlust next to her, "Have you never been into one of the big cities before?"

That was enough to get Jaune to snap out of his stupor, "Sorry, I was just... I'm a little overwhelmed by it, is all. Lots of new places, lots of new things," a pause from him, and then, "I mean, I have been into one of the cities before."

Ruby looked up at him, "Really? What happened there?"

He didn't answer her question, "Is there, like, a celebration going on or something?" Jaune gestured to all of the people in colourful suits and dresses walking to and thro around them. The two of them had stopped in the middle of what Ruby had called the central Valerian market and shopping centre, being a wide open space with a large carpark nearby- Almost filled to the brim- And a large circle of flat pavement in the middle, serving as a junction for people taking the footpaths to meet and decide which of the dozen roads around them to take, or even stop to admire the water fountain- Surrounded by benches- In the middle of the circle as a road surrounded the pathway circle, filled with cars speeding hither and thither, stopping occasionally at the four traffic lights cutting off the circle into quarters, allowing flocks of people to walk between the pathways as the world seemed to pulsate with moving colourful life, like blood flowing through the veins and arteries of the body. Jaune continued, "Is there, like... I got confused by this earlier when I asked someone. Are these guys all Huntsmen and Huntresses?"

Ruby blinked, "What?"

Jaune gestured again, "Their outfits."

"What- Um, what do you mean 'Their outfits'?"

"I mean, is it not- Isn't it a rule for Huntsmen to have really flashy outfits? Like, an unspoken rule?"

Ruby blinked again, "I don't... I don't get what you mean?"

He wordlessly indicated to her own outfit.

She blinked thrice over, "I don't..." before looking over herself as well, investigating the black and red gothic dress and cape that she wore over herself, "I don't..."

"..."

"...Oh! I see- I see what you mean!" Ruby jumped up in surprise as she turned to Jaune and waved her hands in front of her frantically, "I don't- The expressive outfits that I wear! Like theirs!" Not specifically like her, but for Huntsmen and Huntresses in general, "No, no no no! These guys aren't Huntsmen! They're civilians! They're non-combatants! They don't get involved in any fighting!"

"Oh," Jaune muttered as he looked down and awkwardly kicked one of his feet forward, before shifting his gaze to the colourfully-dressed people around him and asking, "If that's the case, then why are these people dressed in rainbows and frilly, er, dresses?" he paused, "Sorry for the repetition."

Ruby patted him on the shoulder, "It's okay, Jaune," and then threw her free hand outwards to indicate the crowds of bustling people around them, "As for everyone else, in their clean suits and eye-catching outfits- Not as eye-catching as crazy new weapons, mind you- Well, everyone's excited for the Vytal Festival, you know! It's all about being able to express yourself through the arts and crafts of the world, and people are so excited- Which is a bit of a given, considering that Vale is hosting it this year- That they're celebrating early!"

A long pause from Ruby as she scratched her chin.

"Seriously, a lot of people are celebrating a bit too early. There's been- There's been a bit of an escalation in the case of drunken disturbances and illegal parties," she shrugged, "My dad's business deals with a lot of this stuff, so I should know."

"The Vytal Festival?" Jaune parroted curiously, taking the time to look up to the banners and bunting that was being loaded out of crates by workers and hung onto the walls, "Ah, that old thing? My hometown celebrates it every couple of years, but I've never really seen anything like this. Just a party outside our house, and that's that."

"Outside your house?" Ruby asked.

"I... I was sheltered, growing up," Jaune reached under the hood of his cloak and rubbed the back of his head, "Well, um... Yeah, that was a thing," he looked back around, "But I didn't think it was that big of a deal in the city."

"Oh, but it is, my little friend-"

"Wait, aren't I taller than you?"

A comical sweat drop fell down Ruby's head, "Er... Yeah..." recovering herself, she then coughed into her hand, pointed it in front of her at nothing in particular and said, "But anyways! The Vytal Festival is serious business, you know!"

Jaune blinked, "Really?"

Realising that Jaune must've been really sheltered as a kid, Ruby looked up to him and began to explain, "Yeah, really! It was created to celebrate the end of the Great War!" she paused, "...You do know what-"

"The Great War is- Yeah, I know that. Yes, I know it. I do know- Vale and Vacuo teamed up to beat the crap out of the schoolyard bullies Mantle and Mistral. I do know that."

"...Well, okay then! Never thought of putting it that way, but... Sure!" she coughed into her hand, "Anyways, the Vytal Festival! Yeah, its a big festival held every two years-"

"Why is it like that?"

"What?"

"Why every two years? Why not every year?"

"Er... I don't know. Because it's too expensive to do every year?"

"Yeah, well so are birthdays... I think."

"Well... I... Anyways!" Ruby pointed her hand to the sky, "Yeah, it's celebrated every two years to commemorate the free expression of the arts that was suppressed before and during the Great War! Things like music, acting, and-" she retracted her hand and patted her gothic red and black dress, "-Clothing! It's why everyone around here is wearing frilly outfits. Heck, it's also why you see so many Huntsmen and Huntresses out in the world with such extravagant and expressive outfits: They're celebrating their freedom to be able to express themselves! In all honesty, you'd be lost to find even a single Huntsman out there who isn't extremely out there and expressive with their outfits."

"Huh," Jaune muttered to himself, "So it is really is an unwritten rule..."

"Essentially," Ruby nodded, "Still though, everyone is really excited. More than almost every other time the Vytal Festival has been hosted."

"Mm?"

"Yeah, I've only seen Vale's people like this once or twice in my life. It must mean that it's Vale's turn to host the festival.

"Huh?" Jaune hummed, "Host it? I was under the- I thought that this was a global thing, the Vytal Festival."

Ruby blinked, "You don't know?"

"Know what?"

"About the tournament."

He blinked, "What tournament?"

"Wha- Jaune! I- Okay, look, the Vytal Festival is supposed to be a global thing, yeah. That is true. But every two years, there's a central festival that passes around between the four kingdoms. Each one has to host this central festival, as well as the tournament that comes with it."

"What, like a cultural tournament?"

"No, a Huntsman tournament! A tournament where the Huntsmen and Huntresses of the central four academies- Beacon, Atlas, Shade, and Haven-"

"I thought Atlas was a kingdom, not an academy."

"It's both."

"What?"

"I'll explain later," Ruby waved Jaune off to placate him, "Anyways, each Vytal Festival, there's a Huntsman tournament, where the best and the brightest of Remnant's academies are brought together to battle it out!"

"Why?"

Ruby blinked as she looked up at Jaune, "Huh?"

"Why would the kingdoms get their own academies to fight each other. From what I've heard about the Vytal Festival before, it's meant to be a celebration of unity between the kingdoms, right?"

"Er, yes?"

"So doesn't the kingdoms throwing their students into a tournament duel or whatever it is defeat the purpose of celebrating unity? It just seems like those same kingdoms would just use the tournament as an excuse to show off to each other."

"Well, the kingdoms- I mean, the schools do tend to bet their Huntsmen against each other, so-"

"So it is just a sword-waving contest between the kingdoms."

"Er..."

"Honestly, that sounds like the complete opposite of unity."

"Oh yeah, well it's fun," Ruby pouted at Jaune's raised eyebrow, "It is! I've always wanted to fight in the tournaments, and even if I couldn't, they're fun to watch! And it brings hope to the skills of the Huntsmen protecting us in the future!"

"Does it?" Jaune considered her reply, "Well, maybe, I guess... Or maybe it would escalate tensions between the kingdoms due to their champions loosing and being seen as weak in the eyes of the public thanks to those losses."

Ruby seemed to be surprised by his inquiries. In truth, so was Jaune. He was aware that he- Well, that he wasn't that smart. In fact, he considered himself to be quite the dullard in a lot of areas, so this level of insight into the events of the Vytal Festival, especially considering the fact that he had only learnt about these things only a minute ago.

Go figure, he guessed.

"Okay then, smart guy," Ruby emphasised the last words as she continued to pout at him, "What's your grand adventure for the Vytal Festival?"

"'Grand adventure'? What?"

"Idea! That's what I meant! I was too caught in the moment! I'm het up!" Ruby threw her hands into the air, and then put them to the side, "What's your idea for the tournament- I mean, festival? Instead of it being a tournament, what would you do?"

"I don't know... Make everyone go out and do, er, actually do Huntsman stuff?"

"...Like, fighting Grimm?"

Grimm? Well, Ruby mentioned something about God-Grimm back in Winry's mechanics shop. He made a mental note of it, and decided to shelf that topic for later, "Sure, but also, like, helping people, and stopping bad guys. Hell, why not get Huntsmen and Huntresses from all of the kingdoms to mix together on missions, like, as a sign of cooperation between the kingdoms, or whatever, and broadcast them all working together to the people? It's much more practical than just making them all fight each other, and it actually displays the message of cooperation that the festival is supposed to convey."

"I... Well I... That's..." Ruby let her hands fall limp, "That's... Actually a good idea."

Jaune blinked, "Is it?"

"Yeah..."

"...Huh. Didn't- I didn't think that I'd actually get a point for that."

"Mm..."

"...Do you, er... Want to talk about something else?"

"O-Er, sure, like... Ooh, look at all the pretty dresses and outfits!" Ruby grabbed Jaune's hand and pointed it to the people around her, "If they were Huntsmen, what kind of weapons do you think that they would have?"

"...What?"

Ruby looked away, "S-Sorry, dumb question. That was a stupid question."

"..."

The both of them fell into a long silence afterwards, standing still and looking away from each other as they fiddled with their hands and bit the insides of their cheeks, watching the world go by as they stood still like statues.

Jaune gave both himself and her a few more moments of silence, before he then finally asked, "Er, sorry for sounding... 'Brusque'? Is 'Brusque' the right word? Sorry for my brusqueness, but... Is there something that you want from me- I mean, is there something that I can help you with, because, well, no one's really went out of their way to run up and try to talk to me before, so, unless you've been dazzled by my handsome looks, or something… You know."

"..."

There was a long pause from Ruby, as, with a nervous twitch about her, she pressing her palms together awkwardly, fidgeting in place as she shuffled her feet, and looked down to the floor.

Jaune raised an eyebrow at her movements, confused as to what had caused her to turn so shy. Was it something that he had said? Something that he had done? He didn't know. He supposed that he'd have to wait for her response.

Then, finally, after a long pause, she said, "Well, er... Yeah, there is... It's about your cloak."

Jaune blinked. His cloak? What about it, "My secu- My cloak?"

"...You were about to say 'Security blanket', weren't you?" Ruby broke out of her awkward stupor and raised an eyebrow at him.

"...Yeah," so what if it was his favourite cloak, and so what if sometimes he used it like a blanket? It was his cloak, dammit! He could do whatever he wanted with it.

Ruby stifled a chuckle, before going, "Yeah, your cloak... It's just..."

Jaune tilted his cloaked head to the side in confusion.

"The emblem," Ruby cut in with, surprising them both, "On the back of your cloak. The gold rose."

He tilted his head to the side, before pulling the back of his cloak to him, and looking at the emblem on the back, "Oh yeah, that... I don't know why, but I... Well, I just felt like stitching that on, one day. Don't know why. I guess I was in a decorative mood, and a rose was the first thing to come to mind", his mother had taught him how to sow in his past time. Hey, it paid to have a talent.

"Well, yeah, sure, but," Yang went, rubbing her side, before she then went, "It's just that... That rose... It's the same emblem as mine and my mother's."

"Huh?" Jaune went, before another more immediate thought came to him, Wait, our insignia? My insignia? Mine's a golden double rainbow, what are they... Oh...

Sure enough, Ruby showed him the silver emblem on her belt, and indeed, it was the exact same shape and style as the emblem on his cloak, to the exact same details and weavings. The only difference between them was the colour, Jaune's being gold, and Ruby's being silver.

That was... That couldn't just be a coincidence, could it?

Could it?"

"I... Wow," Jaune muttered to himself, "Wow... Woah... That's... That's something, alright..."

"Yeah, but... White cloak... Rose emblem," Ruby began, an uncertain quiver on her lips as she then said, "It's the same as... The same as my... Our mum. Our mum wore a white cloak, and had the- Had the same insignia as me..."

…Oh, Jaune thought to himself, She did just mention her... Her mother... Was she... Not around anymore?

Jaune stopped and spared a look at the red and black themed girl, looking up at him with flexing fingers and shimmering eyes.

"Ruby...?" he slowly began with concerned eyes.

"Did you..." Ruby cut in with, pointing to him limply, "Do you... Know someone called Summer Rose? Do you... Do you know her?"

Summer Rose.

Summer Rose...

SUMMER ROSE

SUMMER ROSE

SUMMER ROSE

SUMMER ROSE

SUMMER ROSE

SUMMER ROSE

SUMMER ROSE

SUMMER ROSE

Something inside of his chest panged, right in the middle of his heart. He had no idea what it was, but for some reason, it felt... Familiar. Like he had heard it before.

Even though he did not remember hearing that name once in his life.

"I'm sorry, but I..." he slapped the side of his head, trying to regain equilibrium over himself, "I feel like I should know it, but I... I swear, I feel like I know it, but I... I'm sorry, but I've never heard that name before."

Ruby blinked in teary confusion, "But... You're wearing the same type of... You're carrying the same insignia as her..." her eyes were beginning to wet with tears.

"I'm sorry, I just..." he hit the sides of his head again, "I feel like I should know her, but... But I don't. I've never heard of her before... I'm sorry..."

"...Okay... That's okay..."

Jaune blinked, "Ruby-"

"Let's just move on, okay?" Ruby reached and grabbed his arm, pulling him along to another part of the shopping centre, "We can... I don't know. I'd like to maybe talk about this later, okay? I'd rather not... I'd rather not do this out in the open."

Jaune tried to say something else- He found that he actually wanted to continue this conversation, if only to gain some clarity and understanding on the situation, as well as provide Ruby with... Well, something. Anything that can abate her sadness, but...

But he didn't know what to do. He certainly didn't know what to say to her, to try and alleviate her concerns.

For now, he simply allowed himself to be dragged along down the bustling pavements and busy roads by Ruby Rose, suddenly content with the silence around them.


"""""NO! NO! WE WON'T GO! NO! NO! WE WON'T GO!"""""

"Justice for the Faunus!"

"We are not animals!"

"We're people like you!"

"We deserve rights like you!"

All of these voices on one side-

"Down with the beasts!"

"We won't loose to animals!"

"We've already given so much to a pack of wild beasts! Our food, our land, our homes, everything! And now they want to take even more!"

"Keep the Faunus beneath us! The human race must remain pure!"

-And all of these voices on the other.

One mob of Faunus on one side of the square, and a mob of humans on the other. All of them shouting and swearing at the other, holding picket signs and tossing objects at the other, throwing verbal shards of vitriol and hate at each other as their differences came out in racial slurs and discriminatory name-calling as each sided barked at the other and showed off their teeth and claws. Some in the Faunus crowd seemed to be wearing white masks, while others in the human crowd wore red bands around their arms. All of these particular individuals seemed to be focused on riling up their respective crowds, making them more violent, more hateful, more eager to tear the other apart for their respective racial differences.

These guys seemed to be only a few moments from tearing each other apart. Hell, from the looks of it, they were about a single stray comment away from a pair of protest groups to a damned riot.

The only thing that was preventing that from happening seemed to be a line of armed individuals standing in between them both, armed not just with riot shields and batons, but with rifles and carbines as well.

They weren't riot police. He would've recognised the green and black vests of Valerian law enforcement officers (A few of which were standing around the outskirts of the square, overlooking the protest nearby, however). These guys- These soldiers- Were instead wearing white and red body armour, helmets and all, with scrolls built into their armour's forearms, and the lead one wearing an enlarged red pauldron on his left shoulder, his hand teasing around the pistol holstered at his hip as he spoke into a black and red megaphone, ordering the crowd of humans before them to-

"Disperse, now!"

-Though the humans were quick to ignore it and fire back their own words, calling them 'Race traitors', 'Beast breeders', 'Animal lovers' and so on, so forth.

It was very ugly and very horrible and Jaune didn't like to listen to it.

"Ugh," he muttered to himself as he looked away from the scene before him, his face twisting into a grimace as the angry voices commingled together, sparing a moment to look away from the verbal battle between crowds nearby, and towards the square itself, and the trio of statues, made in the image of winged angels, that stood atop a stone pedestal in its centre.

Ruby had called this place Gris Square (Gris meaning grey in the old Valerian language), And had told him- As a country bumpkin coming into the city of Vale for the first time- That, according to the text books that she had read, was the place where Vale, the Knight, had planted her sword into the soil, and declared the lands around her to be the first city of Beacon, before the city itself was changed from Beacon City to Vale, in order to remember and commemorate her. It was on the place where the statues of angels had been placed where Vale had struck her sword, and had been immortalised by the angels themselves, positioned in a way that made them look like they were sprouting out of the ground itself, like flowers in the sun after the evening rain.

The square itself was wide and porcelain white, and filled with clay blocks and squares that were scattered across the square, as well as wooden bowls filled with soil and blooming flowers coloured in golds and pinks and blues and reds, blossoming under the sun as wooden and metal benches surrounded the trio of angel statues. In each tile on the floor, there was the carving of a handprint, with the name of an important figure within the kingdom of Vale, and at the far corner of the wide square, cutting off the walkable pathway to the busy roads that surrounded them, was a tall pillar made of white-coloured stone, with engravings of flowers and vines carved into them, reaching as high as a three-story building into the sky.

In the distance, the sun was cresting towards the horizon, and the sky was red and resting.

Jaune looked back to the crowds protesting against each other, and crunched up his face once more, "Ugh."

Ruby took note of this as they both stood to the side next to a coffee shop, leaning against the wall of its neighbouring building as the caped girl asked, "What's up?"

"I can't stomach this."

She figured out what he meant instantly as she looked back to the crowds, "Me neither."

"It just seems so pointless, how all of these people are so hung up over things like racial differences, or whatever," he frowned, before shrugging, "Back when I was younger, I couldn't tell the difference between humans and Faunus. I always thought that Faunus were just humans with extra ears, or a tail, or something along those lines," he paused, "...I-I hope that's not, you know... I hope that wasn't a racist thing to say, or- Or something."

"I don't think it was," Ruby commented, "And honestly, I always thought the same thing. About humans and Faunus, I mean. It all just- It all just seems like pointless hate, you know?"

Jaune nodded, "Yeah... Yeah it does."

"You do know about the two groups in the crowd, right?"

Jaune blinked at her, "Hm?"

Ruby pointed to the crowd, "The White Fang in the Faunus group, and the Human Liberation Front in the, well, in the human crowd. You know about them?"

"Oh," he went. He had shown ignorance to the obvious before, what with the Vytal Festival and everything surrounding it. She must've thought that he was ignorant of both the White Fang and the Human Liberation Front, and had prepared to educate him on it, "No, no. I do know these guys," a pause on his part, "Well, I mean, I know more about the White Fang than the HLF. Er, not in a- Not in a racist way, or- Or anything, I just... There's more in the media about them than the HLF. The other guys barely get any mention."

"...Ah," was Ruby's disappointed voice as she glanced downwards at her own feet. Was her disappointment at him, or at something else, "Yeah, that... That makes an uncomfortable amount of sense."

Jaune didn't say anything, feeling that it wasn't the right time to do so. Instead, he focused himself on the two opposing crowds in the middle of the square, ready to go to war with each other if not for the white and red soldiers standing in between them. He knew enough about the White Fang- The Faunus protest group turned mob of terrorists and fanatics after years of being ignored, or whatever the news said the reason was- Since the news always made a big deal about every move that they made, but there was less available for him to learn about the Human Liberation Front.

Less news about them available at least. He suspected that there were more... Racial motivations at play for their lack of spotlight in the news. Even so, when he became curious about them a year or two ago, he had to do a lot of research to look them up (Research that was monitored by his older sister, Viola, of course. She had been a great help in getting him the facts that he wanted to know, if only a little selective about it).

The Human Liberation Front was an organisation that began with the end of the Great War, focusing itself on the expulsion of the Faunus to Menagerie and their continued enslavement, as well as the purity of the human race via witch hunts against human and Faunus mixed families and half-breed Faunus with both human and Faunus parents. Hundreds of people were killed via their lynch mobs, and during the Faunus Rights Revolution, they had been the central enemy to the free Faunus of Menagerie, not the kingdoms. At least, not officially. He didn't know much about who had been fighting during the war, but he did know that a few military figures had clandestinely supported the HLF in their extermination of the Faunus, only to be disappointed when said Faunus rallied and almost completely wiped out the HLF to just a few dozen people.

After the Faunus Rights Revolution and the abolishment of Faunus slavery, what was left of the HLF scattered to the winds to regrow their numbers, and in the meantime, the White Fang emerged as a protest group seeking to further the rights of their kind across the globe, before the changing of the guard led to new leadership, and the protest group turned into a mob of violent terrorists, using fear and intimidation in order to get what they want.

Now, in response to the White Fang, members of the Human Liberation Front were emerging from the shadows once more, forming their own armed militia and terrorist groups, launching attacks on Faunus settlements, homes, and businesses, gaining popularity within the human districts and upper classes of the kingdoms, and becoming as much of a terrorist faction as the White Fang.

Both groups were practically at war with each other, with the White Fang attacking both the HLF and the Schnee Dust Company (Which already had rumours of HLF ties to its leaders) At the same time, and the HLF being hounded by Faunus sympathetic mobs and groups for their attacks on their friends and families.

Which led to Jaune's current confusion.

"Why aren't any of them being arrested?" Jaune asked Ruby, "I mean, both the White Fang and HLF are extremist groups, right? They're both terrorist groups. Why isn't anyone arresting them?"

"...Good question," Ruby quietly responded with. From the looks of it, she was just as confused, and didn't have a good answer herself. So, she scanned her eyes over the crowds, spotting both the White Fang and HLF members within both crowds, and then pointed to the white and red soldiers in between them, "See the Providence soldiers in between them?"

'Providence'? That was also something to file away for later then, it would seem, "Yeah?" he nodded.

"See how they're facing the HLF and human crowd, and not the White Fang and Faunus group?" Jaune nodded to her again, "They must've been hired to protect the Faunus protest, then. Those Faunus guys must be desperate for protection, though: No one wants to pick a fight with Providence, but their quality also makes them very expensive to hire."

Oh? So they're mercenaries, then? Soldiers for hire? "Why would the council allow mercenaries to function within their own city?"

Ruby shrugged, "Don't know. Maybe they didn't have a choice. Providence has a lot of political leeway nowadays," she then scanned her eyes over the soldiers once more, and her voice picked up in pitch, "Though I have always wanted to meet someone from Providence!"

"Really?"

"Re- Look!" in a flash, she threw her arms out to indicate to the mercenaries between the crowds ahead, "Their armour! Their gear! Their weapons! Doesn't it excite you?! I mean, they're wearing body armour that rivals- Maybe even surpasses- Atlesian military gear! They've got full body armour with advanced helmets, they're welding custom shields and batons, and the ML line of weapons- The ML-15, 15LE, 15M, 15A, 17, and 17M- They originated from Providence themselves! They're, like, some of the most rugged and versatile weapons available- Apart from the trusty old sword and hammer and my baby Crescent Rose, after all!- And oh I just want to go over there and ask them about all of their weapons and stuff and then meet the manufacturer and-"

Suddenly, she slapped a hand over her mouth, and looked upwards to Jaune, her face flushing with fresh embarrassment. Then, she put her hands together in front of her looked down to the side.

"Sorry," she muttered, "Sorry about that, I just... I get a bit too into weapons and stuff sometimes... I-I know its weird."

"I-It's fine, Ruby," Jaune waved her worries of, "It's fine, really, I-"

"I know you probably think I'm weird now too, huh?"

"Huh? No, no no no! No I don't, I- If you're weird then I'm weird," Jaune tired to ease her concerns off, "I- Sorry, that was a bad thing to say, I just... It's fine, really. It's okay?"

Ruby paused, and then looked up at him, "Is it... Is it really? You won't get, like, weirded out or even mad at it, will you?"

"What? No. No, why would I?" he shrugged, "It's just- I mean, we all have our quirks, don't we? We all have our habits, or something."

HABITS

HABITS

HABITS

HA-

He gently hit the side of his head again, and slid it down to the back of his neck as a rub, "Really, it's okay. I'm not put off by it."

"...Ah," Ruby smiled gently, "Thanks, I... Hm," she looked away for a moment, "That's a first."

"Huh?"

"Nothing," she waved it off, "It's nothing."

Another fresh wave of shouts emerged from the competing crowds. It looked like the HLF members were successful in egging the humans around them on into becoming more aggressive, which only further egged on the Faunus crowd and their White Fang members as well. And in between them were the Providence soldiers, trying to keep them all apart from each other.

The police on the outskirts of the square did not move an inch.

Jaune paused himself, and then continued, "Okay, so the Faunus crowd are protected by these Providence guys, and no one wants to pick a fight with them? I can understand that. But if that's the case, then why aren't the police arresting the HLF guys? They're not protected by anyone, right? And they're just as much of an extremist group as the White Fang, right?"

Ruby nodded, "Another good question," she shrugged, "I don't... Honestly, I don't know why they..." Ruby paused, and her eyes narrowed as she scanned all of the policemen around the square.

Jaune did the same, and came to the same realisation as she did:

All of the policemen were human.

"...Maybe... Maybe we should keep going," Jaune nudged Ruby on her side, "I mean, we should... These guys are starting to look more and more dangerous by the moment-"

DANGEROUS

DANGEROUS

GO

GO

GO

"-Maybe it would be best if we just kept moving along."

Ruby looked up at Jaune, "You really think so?"

"You don't?"

Ruby patted something beneath her cape, "If a fight does break out, then we can stop them. You've got a sword, right? You're training to be a Huntsman, so you know how to fight-"

Jaune supressed the wince successfully.

"-And so do I. If a fight does break out between these guys, then we can get in there and stop them before anyone gets hurt."

"Do you have a license to use that thing?" Jaune gestured to whatever was underneath her cape, "Because I don't think a Huntsman-in-training license is good enough to use a weapon in public, and... Well, what if we do hurt one of them? Most of these guys are innocents being egged on by a bunch of radicals. If we do successfully take out the radicals, then it will just spur on everyone else?"

It was part of the truth, but not the whole truth. In all honesty, he didn't want Ruby to see his lack of combat skills for herself. It was a cowardly act, and he would've liked to have helped out with making sure that the crowds ahead didn't go ballistic on each other, but there was nothing that he could do about it.

Ruby seemed to come around to his way of thinking, thankfully, as she then said, "...Yeah, yeah you're probably right," with a nod, and then a turn on her heel, "Best get going, then."

He nodded, and allowed himself to follow Ruby out of the square, leaving the crowds behind as they continued to bay for blood.


Emerald Sustrai found herself enjoying the sights of Vale around her as she and Mercury Black moved through the streets. So many colourful outfits and styles, and so many gullible idiots to go along with them.

That meant that she had just the widest selection of wallets and valuables to pickpocket from.

Tossing her freshly procured wallet (From the pocket of some rich looking fossil a couple of streets back) Up and down in her hand in a show of smug victory, she then narrowed her eyes as to her side, Mercury snatched it from out of the air and looked over the contents of it, before stealing it back from him and poking him in the chest with her other hand, "My wallet, my prize. You want one? Go get your own."

"Nah," Mercury, in all of his condescending smugness, and in a constant need to fuel his obvious superiority complex, just pushed his hands to behind his head and smiled, "Takes too much work."

Emerald raised an eyebrow, "Really? It's like-"

"Stealing candy from a baby, yeah yeah," her annoying 'Partner' waved off, "That old adage that I've heard from my old man hundreds of times before," he chuckled, "Before I killed him, of course."

Emerald went to chastise him for revealing that information in public, but stopped herself. He said it quietly enough for no one else to hear, and the streets were already noisy enough with people and cars to mask their conversations. For now, he was in the clear, though she suspected that he might be smart enough to have come to the same conclusion that she had.

Mercury might be smug, but he wasn't stupid, though he definitely seemed like it at times.

"Well, whatever, I don't care," she waved it off, pocketing her new wallet as she and Mercury continued to walk side by side down the road. They had just come back from a meeting with Roman Torchwick and his little mute psycho (Of which he acted as condescendingly annoying as ever, as did his pet assassin... Little bitches), And were on their way back to Cinder's hideout in the industrial district of Vale.

As always, Mercury proved to be the most annoying of travel companions, looking at everything and everyone with a mocking gaze, pretending that he was somehow the smartest person in the room when he could barely spell his own first name.

Though that last part was probably to be expected, considering that his 'Father' raised him to be an assassin, thereby eschewing the more traditional education that a child needed, Besides, it wasn't like the silver-haired boy saw any worth in education apart from learning how to kill people, anyways.

Emerald liked to think of herself as more sophisticated of a beast than he was, in that regards. At least she saw the value in education, hence why, unlike Mercury, she found simple pleasures in learning all she could from the books that she swiped from any unsuspecting persons. Y'know, when she wasn't pickpocketing them for all of their worth, of course.

She supposed she could thank her early years in Tipoca for that much, at least.

But getting back on track, if Mercury was just going to annoy her by existing, then Emerald felt that it was fair that she fired her own shots back, "Actually, I think I do."

Mercury looked at her with a raised eyebrow, though the smug grin on his face didn't change, "Oh yeah?"

"Oh yeah," she parroted, "I mean, pickpocketing takes a lot of effort, you know? And hey, god knows you need the exercise," she gestured to his stomach, "Your abs are going a little flabby."

That wiped the grin off of Mercury's face, as he looked at her with a grimace, and growled out, "Are you calling me fat?"

"Yep," Emerald smiled sweetly. Mercury looked like he wanted to throw down with her, but stopped himself, clenching his fists and continuing his walk at her side.

Aw, poor Merc. Couldn't take what he dished out in the slightest. Hypocrite to the extreme.

Ah well, whatever. As long as it shut him up for the rest of the trip, she couldn't care any less. Besides, maybe then she could get back to scoping out some more unlucky idiots for her to steal from.

And there were two of them, on the pavement on the other side of the street. A pair of dumb looking kids in red and white cloaks. Probably training to be Huntsmen, considering how the white-cloaked one had a sheathed sword at his best, but he didn't seem to carry himself as a Huntsman (Every step lacked confidence, and seemed uncertain about itself), Whilst the red-cloaked girl seemed to bounce with each step she took (Lacking the maturity of a Huntress, it would seem).

Good. Both of them would be easy pickings, then.

All it would take was for her to quickly pop over to their side of road, flash her semblance to deceive them, and-

Wait.

That boy.

His face under his cloak's hood.

It was...

Familiar.

Emerald's eyes widened as she stopped in place. Mercury walked ahead for a few moments, before noticing that his partner had frozen in the middle of the path, and looked back to her, "What is it?" he asked.

Emerald didn't hear him. Or at least, she did hear him, but her mind didn't register it.

She was too busy looking at the retreating boy in a white cloak, a gold rose emblem stitched onto its back disappearing into the crowds as the people of Vale continued on with their lives in ignorance and bliss.

A cloak belonging to someone that she hadn't seen in a decade.

A boy with sapphire blue eyes.

A boy with golden blond hair.

A boy with voices in his head.

A boy whom she had met years upon years ago, treasuring each other as they grew up, becoming the family that they never had, in a home that wanted them dead, before it all came tumbling down to the ground.

A decade had passed. Logically, she should've forgotten about him.

But she couldn't.

She wouldn't.

She wouldn't forget the face of her first friend.

Her first family.

Her first love.

The one who had brought her entire world crumbling to the ground, in fire and smoke.

Her lips parted with but a gentle whisper, that no one but herself could hear:

"Orion?"

(And atop a nearby building, the black-armoured sniper overlooking them all peered through his scope at her, and frowned.

An unknown element had just announced itself.)


Reviewer response time:

Xealchim: Yeah, maybe down the line I'll pull out an Arc family battle royale, just to torture our poor noodle boy! Who knows?


Aw, only one review this time? I suppose that not everyone's had a chance to see the chapter after this one, so if you haven't already, could you quickly go and check that out please, before reading this one, that would be grand.

Also, I did plan for two more sections in this chapter, one with Ruby and Jaune again, and another with our mysterious voyeur with a sniper, but I've decided to push the R+J bit to the next chapter instead, as well as disregard the other segment.

For now, at least.

Anyways, thanks for reading. Sorry if this seemed to be more exposition than it should've been for some, but I wanted to get some worldbuilding into the early chapters to start us off with, as well as properly introduce one of the central conflicts in this story: The White Fang versus the Human Liberation Front.

Racism is going to have a bit of a role in the story to come, specifically in how some are affected by it, and how some manipulate it for their own ends.

But with all of that said and done, please leave a review, follow and favourite, and I shall see you all next time!

Titanmaster117 out!