The ride east to Mistral was long and boring. After the first hour had passed in silence, Zed began talking nonstop during the ride over to keep himself from going insane. This was the longest he had ever sat in one place without doing anything. Before long, he began to feel a sense of amusement as the rest of the team became restive due to his constant chatter, to the point where Cecilia finally snapped and lunged at him, dragging him into the cabin's aisle and beating him down against the airship's floor. Luckily, no one else was in the cabin to see this; Vaughn was sitting quietly as he performed his daily calibrations to his DM-28 rifle. As he watched, Haiiden began to notice that he was performing these calibrations not because of anything being wrong with the rifle but as a way to calm himself, as it kept his mind focused on something else beside his mission. This time was different, however and when he looked through his supply of white Dust, and noticed that he was running low.
"Budge up," Zed said to him as he got up from his beating and attempted to sit down next to Vaughn, who scooted over at Zed's request.
When Zed had sat down, Vaughn looked to Haiiden and sighed. "I should have seen the Quartermaster before we left. I don't have enough Dust for this mission."
"Don't worry," Haiiden said, and pulled out the credit chit he had been given for mission expenses and flashing the black card to the team. "We can stop by a couple of shops to replenish and provision," he smiled as he reassured his teammate, and Vaughn responded with a silent nod. They all had credit chits for the mission, usable anywhere in Remnant, and an unlimited budget, for any reasonable or justifiable expenses.
Cecilia sat down next to Haiiden, her hands aching from the beating she had inflicted. Zed was laughing to himself a little, holding his sides as they began to hurt from the thrashing he had received, and the laughter only added to the discomfort in the cabin. As she sat down, she went back to what she was thinking about before she attacked Zed, something that had been on her mind ever since her duel with Haiiden.
Her mind kept reverting to the vision she had seen, with the fireplace and the woman in white. Her emotions ranged from a sense of warmth in her soul then to something cold, with only a single ember burning inside her. After realizing that she could not make sense of it, she then thought back to when she noticed her leader's disdain for Ironwood. Remembering the comment he had made when Vaughn had told their story of when they were in the military, as well as the meeting with Ozpin. After a few moments of silence, she was unable to hold in her curiosity any longer, and she cleared her throat to get his attention.
"Sir, this has been bugging me for a while," she stated loudly so that everyone could hear her, and she was successful, as everyone turned their attention to her.
"The comment you made about Ironwood," she said hesitantly as she wanted to start out slow, and hoped not to receive an aggressive response in reply. Haiiden rolled his eyes and looked away with a sigh as he could guess what the subject would be.
"It sounds like you hate him. He helped us, and if weren't for him, my brother and I would probably be dead," she stated while looking back to Vaughn as he froze at the realization that he was being drawn into the conversation.
"He doesn't come across as a bad man, is what I am saying," she said as she tried to clarify her point.
"He sent you to that hell and you say he isn't bad?" Haiiden responded while looking back at her from the corner of his eye; he clenched his clawed gauntlet as he thought about Ironwood.
"It's not like he wanted to it to be that way. He just left us with someone he thought he could trust," she said in an attempt to reassure him.
"And you trust that he was doing the best he could?" he asked her, the question caught her off guard, as trust wasn't something she'd thought about. As she sat silently thinking of an answer, Haiiden shook his head again and the grin faded.
"I don't trust him," he added.
"What did he do to you?" she asked with a hint of aggression as she felt that his answer was too vague.
"Drop it, Cecilia," Haiiden growled as he clenched his gauntlet further, almost bending the claws at the tips of his fingers.
"No. I want to—" she attempted to interject and push for more information when Haiiden suddenly got up out of his seat. Zed became a little uneasy and rushed over to him to block his path. He quietly patted Haiiden on the shoulder as he tried to get his friend to sit back down.
"You want to know?" he asked as his eyes began to turn crimson again. She continued to stare back at him, not wanting to back down but the red in his eyes made her strangely uncomfortable.
"That's what annoys me, you always want to know something that doesn't concern you."
"I just want to understand!" she yelled back, her face expressing frustration, at first because of how he was acting, but also because her curiosity was getting the best of her. Haiiden stood silently and waited for her to calm down, but also allowed himself to take a few deep breaths.
"My mother and Ironwood were friends. However, when she needed him the most, he turned a blind eye and abandoned her," he said, and the room suddenly turned silent for a long moment. Cecilia sat for a moment with her eyes wide open at this revelation. Then she turned away as she thought back again to the vision she had seen, wondering if the woman in white was the mother that he was talking about; although she couldn't really make it out for sure; she eventually hung her head and felt a hint of regret. A loud ding interrupted her thoughts as it signaled that they were arriving at Mistral and needed to put on their seatbelts. Everyone then returned to their seats, belted up, and sat in silence as the airship began its long descent towards their destination in Mistral.
After arriving at Mistral's central airport, HAVC got off, only to see that no one was there to greet them. Haiiden was a little annoyed by this; that, coupled with his conversation with Cecilia about Ironwood left him frustrated. He shook his head and motioned for his team to follow as they made their way out of the terminal. HAVC then met with one of Mistral's Customs Officers, who explained to them the difference between Mistral's and Vale's laws, in brief, and checked their luggage, making careful note of their weapons, and checking their papers and visas, which permitted them to bring such weaponry into the kingdom. After that, the officer then lightened up as he began to point out locations of interest. Haiiden shrugged lightly, as he had noticed upon arriving that it was already dark and his mind was solely focused on getting some rest.
As they made their way out of Mistral's airport, they were immediately struck by what they saw: beautiful architecture of the surrounding buildings that were laid with black bricks, which oddly seemed to separate itself from the darkness of the night. The lights that lined the streets seemed to add to this contrast. On top of each lamp post was a wreath of flowers, which seem to still show off a variety of colors, despite the dark. Most of the team stood awestruck, but then the wonder was interrupted when Zed let out a loud yawn. The others turned to see that he was unimpressed by the beautiful sights.
"If no one is going to meet us, then maybe we should find a place to sleep? I'm knackered," he said with a shrug, slinging his bag over his shoulder as he eyed everyone and awaited their answer. The others immediately agreed, as the long ride, as well as the awkwardness between Haiiden and Cecilia, had left everyone drained. They continued to admire the Kingdom as they seemed to find a new delight on every street corner. Despite how late it was, the Kingdom was still very much alive, with many shops still open. After a few minutes of taking in the sights, they finally stopped in front of a hotel and saw that Zed had already entered it. He was talking with the clerk at the front to arrange a suite for them. For a moment it seemed as if they were going to be turned away. However, after a few sly words from Zed as well as the clerk being a fellow Faunus, he was able to haggle and get a four-bedroom suite for the team, courtesy of his expense chit. Then, from the corner of his eye, Vaughn noticed a man sitting at a table and drinking tea. As he looked at the man, he noticed that he was also eyeing them for a moment, then turned his attention back to the paper he was reading.
After ascending by elevator to the top floor, Team HAVC made their way to their suite. Upon entering the suite, everyone froze at seeing how opulent it was. The beds seemed soft and luxurious, something that neither Haiiden nor the twins would be able to afford on their own. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling just above their heads. The door was shut and Zed locked the door behind them then proceeded to walk into his room, leaving the door open; as they watched, he dropped his bag on the floor and fell face-first into his bed, whereupon he immediately fell asleep, and the sound of muffled snoring filled the common room. Cecilia began to feel a bit heavy, and without thinking, she made her way to a vacant room, sitting down on the bed; she dropped her bag next to it and crossed her arms behind her head as she laid back. Vaughn joined her by walking to his bed, which was in a room adjacent to hers. That left Haiiden to take the remaining bedroom, which was to the right of Zed's
"I want to apologize, Cecilia." Haiiden said with a loud voice so she could hear him in the other room, figuring that Zed was out cold and would not be disturbed in any event. She forced herself to look up and watched the movement of the fan bolted to the ceiling of the room silently as she tried her best to stay awake.
"I shouldn't have snapped at you like that. You didn't know my mom and Ironwood-" He began, but trailed off. She looked away for a moment to process what was being said and looked back towards his room, responding with a shrug, which he could not see.
"It's alright, sir. It seems like a sensitive subject, so I won't bring it up again," she said in an equally loud voice. Haiiden nodded and fell backwards onto the bed, realizing how surprisingly comfortable the mattresses were. They were nothing like the beds over at Beacon, and he almost instantly began to blink with fatigue. After a few moments, his eyelids became heavy and he quickly drifted off to sleep.
Even after a couple hours into the night, the Kingdom was still alive and people could still be heard talking outside. Unable to sleep, Vaughn sat up in his bed after hearing a moan come from the other room. He sat up, then arose and left his room. He moved out into the common room, only to see that his sister was already up and looking into Haiiden's room. He crept over to join her and peeked into Haiiden's room himself, only to see that Haiiden's eyes were wide open and his arm outstretched into the air.
"Have you seen this before?" she asked him in a whisper, a bit groggy after having woken up and seeing this kept her from falling asleep again. Vaughn replied with a slow nod and his sister raised a brow, as it surprised her a little.
"He did this a couple times at Beacon. It became more frequent after your fight," he told her, and rubbed his eyes to clear the haze after having woken up. Haiiden didn't seem to be reacting at all to their chat, either the business outside had drowned out their voices, or he wasn't paying attention.
"Come on. Let's go back to bed," Vaughn said to his sister as he began to head back to his room. He crawled into bed, then shut his eyes and felt around for his pillow, a marker for where he should lay his head. Cecilia, meanwhile, held her stare onto her leader and seeing this only raised more questions in her mind. Eventually, she had to expend more energy keeping her eyes open than she did thinking about what Haiiden was doing. As she turned away to head back to her room, Haiiden's eyes shut and his arm slumped back down onto the bed.
The next morning, everyone had awoken and were feeling better as they were refreshed for the day, despite the jet lag. Everyone was sitting on Haiiden's bed as it had the best view of the shops across the street, and the team were all staring outside. The sights they saw the night before didn't do the Kingdom justice. As they stared, they saw that the district they were in had a much lighter shade of purple rather than the apparent black they had seen the night before. However, as one looked around the rest of the city, one could see that it was split into three districts, each with its own distinct color. There was one where the buildings were laid out with red bricks and another was all white. Most of the housing was composed of bricks, even the hotel they were staying in, but the interior was inlaid with teak wood, mahogany, and brass, for a more aesthetic decor.
"Why did they build it like this?" Haiiden asked himself aloud.
"I guess it's more visually pleasing," Cecilia responded as she thought that he was asking the team. However the tone in her voice made it sound as though she was also unsure of the answer.
"It does look like the dog's bollocks, I will admit," Zed said with a sigh, a little agitated as he was hungry and the room service was taking a little longer than he expected.
A knock on the door made everyone flinch in place, while Zed rolled backwards on the bed. Landing on his feet as he ran out of the bedroom and into the common room, he quickly walked towards the door. After a quiet chat between Zed and whomever was at the door, Zed closed it and came back into view pushing a cart with their morning meals. Everyone let out a sigh of relief as they walked over to pick out what they wanted to eat. Haiiden then pulled out a chair from a desk that was next to the wall in the common room. Everyone else then sat down in various easy chairs to enjoy their meals, with Zed sitting on the desk next to Haiiden, and the twins sat next to each and nodded their heads to Zed and Haiiden before they begin to eat.
"I wonder if there's anything good on the telly," Zed said, turning on the morning news on the wall screen and flopping into an easy chair to watch.
Haiiden looked up to see that Cecilia was staring up at him as she leaned forward to eat. As they made eye contact, they both quickly turned away to avoid each other. Haiiden felt the awkwardness creep up on him, so he decided not to look up from his bowl. After a few moments, everyone heard a ping from Haiiden's Scroll as he had just received a message.
"Thank you," he whispered to himself as he pulled out the data and communication device. His eyes began to scan the message and, as expected, the sender was Ironwood. He gritted his teeth but shook his head as he decided to read through it anyway.
"Meet up with a man named Lipesce at 15:00 in front of your hotel," he said out loud for his team to hear. As he finished, he looked up to everyone to confirm the plan for the day. Everyone nodded, but Zed looked down at his wristwatch and jumped from his chair.
"We got some time," he looked to Cecilia. "Want to snog? Perhaps a little how's your father?"
Cecilia glared at him with a death-stare. "I will cut your throat, you stupid git," she replied, mocking his Northern slang and accent.
Zed laughed, then continued. "But seriously, we have some time, so let's take a look around Mistral! We might not get a chance like this again," he said with a grin as he backed up toward the door between the common room and the hallway. Everyone turned towards each other to see if it was a majority decision, with each team member nodding to one another as they were clearly on the same page.
The team winced as they stepped out of the hotel and realized just how loud the Kingdom truly was. The sounds of people milling about, and the music of street performers practically drowned out the motors of the cars and trucks in the street. Haiiden sighed and was about to walk away until he noticed that Vaughn and his sister were already leaving. He remembered that they needed to stock up on Dust for Vaughn, so he turned to Zed to see that he was leaving as well.
"Hey. Where are you going?" Haiiden yelled after him and tried to run to him but was blocked by people who congested the sidewalks.
"I'm going to have a look around. Try not to have fun, alright?" Zed yelled back while he was still in view but then melded into the crowd of people. Haiiden slumped his shoulders as he was alone now, and didn't know where to go to pass the time. Then he remembered what Byeli had told him and sighed. He did enjoy watching people dance, but he was reluctant to go this time. Since he had been left alone by his team, he decided it would be best to check it out, if only to give him something to do before their appointment.
"You want Dust directly from the Schnee Company?" Cecilia asked her brother with a curious expression as they stopped in front of a Dust compounding and refinement laboratory. The chain had been bought out by the Schnees in an attempt to eliminate competition, and the compounding lab doubled as a shop.
"Some of the stuff I need can be found right here," Vaughn told his sister as he proceeded to enter the store. After the doors closed behind them, they noticed that the liveliness of the Kingdom was drowned out by the music that was playing in the shop. The twins looked around in wonder at the shelves that were filled with different colors of Dust, each with their own unique and magical properties. Cecilia was already looking around for what Vaughn needed, as she already knew the types of Dust he typically used. While she pored over the overflowing shelves of powder vials, jars, and crystals, Vaughn approached the clerk's desk and rang a bell to signal that he was a waiting customer. Shortly after he rang it, a clerk came from around the back with a smile to greet Vaughn.
"Do you have a manager I can speak to?" Vaughn asked quickly before giving the clerk a chance to greet him. The clerk's smile wavered as it broke the usual script that he was supposed to use to welcome customers. He looked away for a moment and turned back to Vaughn to reply with a nod before disappearing from view. After a few minutes, another man appeared, and his choice of clothing was a little more professional.
"Before I ask my initial question, I need to make sure if this is a certified compounding and refinement plant for Dust, right?" Vaughn quickly asked as he went straight to business. The manager was taken aback slightly by this, which was evident by a shift in his stance as well as a raised brow.
"Yes?" he answered, the tone in his voice made it evident that he was unsure as to what Vaughn's question implied.
"When you refine the Dust from its raw form, do you also keep the byproducts that are left over?" Vaughn continued as he asked his next question while keeping eye contact with the manager; the manager became more confused as he posed his questions.
"Yes, but we usually throw those out," the manager finally answered.
"I need five jars of Grey Goose. Do you mind if I buy it off of you?" Vaughn asked, and this question confused the manager further, to the point where he became slightly frustrated.
"That byproduct serves no particular purpose. What on Remnant would you use it for?" the manager asked as he kept his brows raised at him.
"Grey Goose is not entirely useless. It can be used as an ingredient for mixing different forms of Dust," Vaughn replied and with a smile. The manager was concerned by this as he took a deep breath and his eyes widened.
"Mixing dust is pretty dangerous—"
"I realize that," Vaughn interrupted as the manager tried to voice his concerns. "But you don't have to worry about that. I do it all the time: I use an Atlesian DM-28 re-configurable Assault Rifle with Sniper Option that uses a variety of Dust-based ammunition, including Sabot and High Explosive Case-less rounds. I use the Grey Goose to create non-lethal ammunition cartridges."
"I don't feel comfortable selling it to you if your intent is to mix, sir," the manager interjected but at that moment Vaughn pulled out one of the magazines that he used for his rifle. The magazine glowed softly, and had a piece of tape stuck on to it with the inscription "Crowd Control". The manager studied it with a perplexed expression and poured some of the Dust onto his hand, examining it carefully; there was white Dust in the shop, but not with this kind of glow. After he was done inspecting the product, the manager looked down as he thought to himself. His eyes scanned from side to side as he went over Schnee Company policy in his mind. A couple times he looked as if he wanted to speak but stopped himself. After a few moments, he took a deep breath and looked back up with a smile. He returned the cartridge to the magazine and handed it back to Vaughn.
"You obviously know what you're doing, sir. We would be happy to sell it to you," the manager told Vaughn. Vaughn then sighed with relief and nodded to the manager.
"How about five Lien per jar?" Vaughn offered at first but the initial offer made the manager smile coyly.
"Well since you seem to really need it, I think we can raise the price a little." The manager said, and his expression changed back to a more passive state, trying not show any signs of backing down. "Ten Lien per jar."
Vaughn knew that Mistral's was a haggling culture, but as an Atlesian, he had no patience for it.
"It's of no use to you; be glad I want to buy what you would normally throw away anyway. Six Lien," Vaughn said sternly and narrowed his eyes at the manager. He had made a good point, and the manager sighed.
"Eight Liens," the manager said.
Vaughn rolled his eyes, clearly frustrated. "Seven Lien or I find another compounding lab," he said. "That's my final offer."
The manager smiled.
"Done and done. Wait here, sir," he said to Vaughn before he headed for the lab in the back, and out of view. Vaughn then stepped away from the clerk's desk and went back to join his sister. Her arm was filled with jars of dust and seemed to have a little trouble holding them; there were a couple red and a few white ones. He tapped his sister on the shoulder and took the jars that she already had, placing them in a shopping basket. He looked over the red ones first and even though they had to be ignited to work, the jar still felt warm to the touch. Fire. He then returned to the clerk's desk and set the jars on top of it, with his sister bringing in more jars and set them beside the ones he had already set down. The manager then returned with five jars of the byproduct Grey Goose, but the color was a dull grey and emitted no light, unlike the refined dust.
"Two-hundred-and-fifty-seven Lien is your total," the manager told them and Vaughn pulled out his mission credit chit, then handed it to the manager. After inputting a couple things into the computer, he then handed the chit back to Vaughn and placed the jars into a bag.
"Have a nice day!" the manager said with a smile as he handed the bag to Vaughn. He bowed his head slightly in acknowledgment as he took the bag and proceeded to walk out.
"Two-hundred-and-fifty-seven and thirty-two. Pretty pricey," Cecilia pointed out to her brother as the door to the shop closed behind them.
"It's worth it. We're on a mission against the White Fang; I'm going to need some non-lethal ammo against to use against them, unless you want a replay of last time," he reminded his sister, and she nodded in agreement. She then almost fell forward as something heavy bumped into her from behind. She rolled her eyes and clenched her fists as she turned around to face what had run into her. Her anger quickly abated as she saw a young woman with orange hair, green eyes, and a dusting of freckles on her cheeks, who also turned to face her, and looked at Cecilia with her head tilted to the side.
"Penny! You have to watch out where you are going," said a man behind the girl called Penny. For a moment, Cecilia recognized the voice and looked behind Penny to see who it was. As she focused on the man, her eyes widened and a smile appeared on her face.
"Doctor Maynard!" she yelled out as she ran past Penny. Vaughn hoped that what he heard wasn't his imagination and turned his head upon hearing the name.
"Vaughn? Cecilia?" he asked them as he watched the two approached him, flinching as Cecilia ran at him at full speed before coming to a complete stop. Cecilia was standing in front of the Doctor with a smile that she couldn't control anymore. She stood speechless in front of the man who had saved her brother from going blind.
"We haven't seen you in a long time, Doc," Vaughn told the Doctor but kept his feelings under better control than his sister.
"Yes! Ever since I last worked for your father to analyze your optic nerves and prep you for the nano-procedure," Maynard said and smiled as he confirmed that it was the twins that he had met when they were little. He looked at Vaughn's glasses, "I see the retinal attachment and optic nerve repair was a success."
"It was, albeit not a complete success. It's so good to see you, sir! I haven't forgotten what you did for Vaughn," Cecilia said to the Doctor, and the memory of how he had helped her twin brother made her smile grow wider.
"It was nothing. I live to help others; in fact, it's a part of my Pelocratic Oath." Maynard nodded, a little embarrassed at the fact that Cecilia still praised him for what he had done.
"Doctor Maynard, who are these people?" Penny asked as she walked over and stood beside the Doctor. Cecilia's and Vaughn's eyes widened and looked to Maynard for clarification.
"Is this your daughter, Doctor?" Vaughn asked. Maynard smiled and put a hand on Penny's shoulder.
"Hardly," Doctor Maynard smiled and chuckled. "I work for her father; he's involved in a rather unique project regarding Auras, and Penny here is our leading test subject in that project," he said and looked back down at her but she quickly pulled away from his hand and stepped up to Cecilia.
"Will you be my friend?" Penny asked, rising onto her toes to get closer to Cecilia's face. The sudden question left Cecilia a little hesitant as to how to answer. She stepped back when Penny got too close, as it made her feel slightly uncomfortable.
"Penny," Maynard tilted his head and had a look on his face like he had already discussed this with her before. For a moment Penny didn't understand what was going on, but then realized how she was acting, and stepped away.
"It's alright," Cecilia interrupted with a slight chuckle and smiled at Penny. Leaning forward so that their eyes met and were on the same level. "I would be more than happy to be your friend, Penny."
Penny smiled, with a twinkle in her eyes.
Zed walked down the streets of Mistral while scanning the area around him. The sidewalk was less crowded now, so he didn't have to worry about drawing any unwanted attention. Turning his head from side to side to see as much as he could, he noticed that he had entered the part of Mistral that was mostly populated by the Faunus, the city's Little Menagerie. They all seemed to be living happily, but he knew that they were hiding something. The protests for Faunus rights had ended since the White Fang had turned violent, and this is what kept the Faunus from protesting further: their fear that they would be bunched with terrorists, or branded as terrorist supporters by humans.
He knew that Faunus were mostly concealing what they felt; the racism and discrimination would make some feel desperate, and many would feel as though they had no way out. They were the perfect targets for recruitment, as the White Fang would prey on those feelings and get them to join the cause. During their recruitment pitch, they would tell impressionable Faunus that there was no other way to handle the tyranny of humanity, and sometimes Zed felt like that was the truth as well. He flinched upon noticing another Faunus looking at him from the corner of his eye, then he stopped for a moment to see a slender young woman with a dark complexion, as though she had been in the sun for a good while, and it gave her skin a nice brown tint.
As he scanned her facial features, he realized that she had noticed him looking at her and that he was looking him over as well. This made her smile at him and she winked. Blushing slightly at the wink, coupled with the fact that she reminded him of Duana, another girl he used to date long ago, but it didn't last long: she had too much energy for just one man to handle. The thought made him chuckle a little, but then he remembered why he was there in the first place. He diverted his eyes away from the young lady and looked down as he walked past her, only pausing to look up again and scan the area around him after he had passed her, leaving her looking confused and dejected; she tilted her head and watched him as he walked away.
He stopped for a moment to collect his thoughts, leaning his back against a wall. He looked down at his watch to see if he had time to spare before he had to start heading back; he looked around for a while as he and waited for something to happen, almost as though he expected something to happen, something that would give him the opportunity for him to jump in and help. Two girls then passed by him as he waited, but he didn't pay much attention as they walked by.
"The White Fang," Zed thought to himself and his eyes turned orange as he began to seethe with anger. "Fighting for Faunus Rights. I used to believe that."
He then placed his hand on the karambit that he had kept sheathed behind him, hidden in case he ever needed it. He ran his finger and thumb along the double-edged blade as he sighed.
"But if I find you, I find Torchwick," he thought to himself again, but then jumped as he heard a loud, metallic clatter from the alley behind him. He turned to see that the two girls who had walked past him had accidentally knocked over a trash can. As he watched them pick it up, he then noticed someone walking out of the shadows, wearing a familiar uniform. He was a tall Faunus wearing a ceremonial Grimm mask, and that was when Zed knew that he was a member of the White Fang. Zed quickly put his back against the wall and inched closer to the corner to listen in on the conversation. He peeked around the corner for a moment while wondering why the two girls would be dealing with the White Fang; upon closer inspection, he noted that one of the girls had yellow eyes similar to a cat. A Faunus.
"I don't know. We aren't fighters," said the yellow-eyed Faunus girl, nervously.
"That's the thing. Once the people see that even the average Faunus will no longer accept their oppression, then they will know that we are serious, and that we have had enough," said the White Fang recruiter as he walked closer to the two Faunus with a smirk below his mask, which only covered the top half of his face. The two Faunus then exchanged some unsure looks, no words exchanged between the two, as if they were reading each other's facial expressions. After a few moments of this, they then turned back to White Fang. Yellow Eyes nodded her head, while her friend sheepishly hung her head.
"Good. It's only a matter of time before we are free from the tyrants, ladies," his smirk grew wider as he spoke, and handed them two Grimm masks. Yellow Eyes kept eye contact with White Fang and nodded, while her friend looked down at the mask and ran her thumb over the indentations where the eyes were. White Fang then looked up and turned his head to the end of the alley way where Zed was waiting. He turned back to the girls when he saw that no one was there, as Zed had quickly taken cover around the corner and waited for White Fang to leave the two alone.
"Come by in a week. We will have an orientation for new members, and I expect to see you two ladies there," he concluded and exited through the other end of the alley. While Zed watched, the two Faunus looked back to each other as the more timid girl was still unsure in her decision. Yellow Eyes sighed and put a hand on her friend's shoulder in an attempt to reaffirm their decision. Then, she narrowed her eyes past her friend as she saw Zed approaching them. They couldn't tell if it was the way he walked, or the broadness of his shoulders as he arched his back and puffed out his chest, but the posture made him look aggressive and intimidating. Yellow Eyes pushed past her friend and assumed a more defensive stance as he approached. He stopped in front of them for a moment and allowed himself to calm down. Yellow Eyes lowered her guard, and without warning, Zed snatched the masks from their hands, then threw them on the ground and proceeded to stomp them to pieces.
"H-Hey!" Yellow Eyes exclaimed and was about to strike at him before she saw how he looked back at her. His eyes were orange again and was staring intensely at her which made her freeze in place.
"Trust me when I say you want nothing to do with the White Fang," he whispered to them and hoped that whispering would not only calm them down, but calm himself as well. He knew that if he wanted to convince them, then he would have to act like a friend. The girl's eyes immediately widened as they realized that he was witness to their meeting with White Fang. The more timid girl backed away with her head lowered while Yellow Eyes attempted to stare Zed down.
"They fight for the Faunus. Maybe if we were treated better, then we wouldn't be forced to do this," she told him, keeping her voice low so as not to arouse unwanted attention from people passing by the mouth of the alley. Yellow Eyes knew that if people knew she was associating with the White Fang, then she would be in trouble.
"They fight for themselves. It's not about Faunus rights anymore," he growled at them as he towered over Yellow Eyes.
"You just don't understand!" she exclaimed in a hoarse, hushed tone.
"I do—" Zed said with a sigh, trying to explain his side before she interrupted him.
"And how would you know?" she yelled out, but was immediately struck by the sight of Zed's fox ears as they popped out of his head. The other Faunus girl looked back up at him and her eyes widened in surprise as she stared at his ears.
"Trust me. I do understand. For reasons you wouldn't even begin to believe, I do understand," Zed replied, his eyes turned back to its normal green as he took deep breaths to calm himself. He looked upon the two of them with a frown and sighed again. Yellow Eyes looked away for a moment, and felt defeated.
"What do we do?" she asked.
"I don't know. But joining the White Fang is a mistake. It's not the answer," he said to her as he crouched down so as to look up at her, in the eyes. For a moment he thought of Blake, but he banished the thought from his mind. "It is because of them that the fear and distrust of our people has worsened in human society. We need to show the humans that we are better than that."
The girls then looked back to one another, again scanning each other's facial expressions to try and figure out what the other was thinking.
"Go back to protesting. We need to show the humans that we are above violence." Zed told them with a smile and looked to the both of them to see if he could get a clue as to whether or not his advice was sinking in. Timid Girl nodded, while Yellow Eyes only kept eye contact.
"Ok. We will try again," she said him and she motioned for her friend to follow. As they walked away, Yellow Eyes glanced back one last time before disappearing from view. Zed smiled to himself and walked away, feeling victorious, and thinking that he had just saved another two from falling into the White Fang's trap.
"We need to show the humans that we are above violence," he stopped in his tracks as the phrase echoed in his mind. The feeling of victory left him as he realized that he was nothing but a hypocrite. He thought back to his fight with Cardin, and how he had beaten him nearly to death. In that case, he had also used violence to make people see things his way. He also thought about how, years ago, he once thought that he was fighting for the betterment of Faunus kind.
With his hands in his coat pockets, Haiiden was walking down the street in silent contemplation, walking down a crowded sidewalk as he made his way to the center piazza of the Kingdom if Mistral. Recent events and his reoccurring dreams had left his mind cluttered with all sorts of different thoughts; his first thought was his recollection of dropping out of Beacon Academy. Stepping into Headmaster Ozpin's office to announce that he was leaving, so he could find his own way, and forge his own destiny. How fighting other students was a waste of time when they had a common enemy to fight: the creatures of Grimm. Ozpin had tried to reason with him, but failed when Glynda had jumped in to yell at Haiiden. The yelling didn't help, as it made him feel like a child, and just like a child, he had stormed out of the office. He ran, as he knew that they would come after him, and went to find work for some money to support himself. It wasn't that he didn't have any money at all, he had an account with plenty of Lien that his had mother had left for him; he wasn't wealthy by any means, but had enough to allow him to make a start in life and live peacefully. Unfortunately, he knew he couldn't use it, as it had been transferred to Ozpin's stewardship, due to his being Haiiden's legal guardian. In order to go about his business without being tracked, he had to work for rent, food, transportation, and some pocket money.
Then his thoughts drifted back to when he first met team JNPR, and how they had a celebrity in their ranks: Pyrrha, and how they also had Jaune, who came from a family of famous warriors. They both had something in common: a name; the thought of having a name made him frown. He wanted to make a name for himself, and he had thought that staying at Beacon would keep him from doing that. Of course, he also wanted to help people, but he knew he would be lying if he said his intentions weren't entirely selfish. He wanted to make his mother proud, and hoped, were she still alive, that she would be proud of him.
His mother.
His mind then reeled back to Ironwood, and how he had abandoned her. He gritted his teeth and felt his eyes burning. His mind roared with a cacophony of angry thoughts, as he began to feel dizzy again.
"Your mother had a similar ability," he remembered Ozpin telling him after his fight with Cecilia. How she had touched him, and how he had invaded her mind and caught a glimpse of her memories. He then stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and looked down at his left hand. Under the glove was his bare hand, and his Semblance wouldn't work unless he made skin-to-skin contact. As a result, he always kept every part of himself dressed, so as not to expose any skin. At times, he cursed his power, but knew it was a part of him and what his power meant: the ability to see into other people's souls. He felt their joys as well as their pain, but most importantly, it allowed him to see into their souls. He felt the fires that burned within everyone, and to him it was a beautiful thing. It was why he was wanted to be like his mother, and to be able to fight: to keep those fires burning. He felt slightly stupid now, as he realized he couldn't make up his mind when it came to his Semblance. Did he hate it, or accept it? Maybe it was both.
People walked past him as he stood frozen in the middle of the sidewalk. So many people, all too busy to pay attention to the one person taking up space and standing motionless. Why, in such a busy walkway was someone just standing there and staring at their hand? "A true ghost," he thought as he took a deep breath, and took some time to collect his thoughts. Once he had them under control, he looked up and continued forward.
He seemed to have lost track of time, since he was lost in thought to the exclusion of all else, but it allowed him to pass the time, especially since he was by himself. He finally made it to the sprawling piazza, and in the center was a giant statue of a warrior standing over the fallen body of a Grimm. It was a little calmer now, and the music that was being played got louder as he stepped closer to the center. Then he finally saw what Byeli had mentioned to him, as there was a group of people dancing in the middle of the piazza. All had joyous expressions, as if they didn't have a worry or care in the world. The sight put a smile on his face and walked through the piazzato get a better look. He leaned forward onto some railings and watched as everyone danced. The dances would last for a few minutes, and then it would change as the small band moved on to the next song.
As the dance changed, Haiiden stood straighter as he realized the poses they were taking up. Staring into space as he reverted back into his thoughts, he recognized the dance. He remembered how when he was little that he would watch his mother dance by herself, or sometimes with an imaginary partner. Sometimes he would dance with her, while other times with her Huntress friend whenever she visited. He admired this Huntress, as she seemed to dress in a similar way to his mother. He marked this similarity between the unnamed Huntress and his mother, which caused him to like her, but her visits were rare when he was a child. So rare, in fact, that he was never able to remember her name. All he was able to remember was that it had an "R" in it.
His mind snapped back to the present as he noticed the part of the dance the participants were expressing now. He noticed how the man would keep a hand at his partner's waist and how she would put a hand on his shoulder, but the part that really got him was the fact that they would lock their free hands together and hold them over their heads while looking into each other's eyes. He always adored this dance, especially since it required making eye contact with one's partner. In a way, they were looking in to each other's soul and allowing them to meld into one being.
"Enjoying the view?" he heard the gentle voice of a woman that made him jump and turn his head to see where it came from. He noticed a young woman giggling at him, who found the fact that she had startled him amusing. A sheepish smile adorned his face as he attempted to greet her, but he couldn't as he scanned her features. She had pale skin that seemed to make her glow in the sunlight, as well as long, straight blonde hair that seemed to be as smooth as silk. She was wearing a white ball gown, and at the end there were some laces sewn into it with intricate patterns. She stepped closer and turned to face the dancers as she stood next to Haiiden. A smile crossed her face as she watched the dancers along with him.
"Y-Yeah. It's an amazing d-dance," Haiiden replied with a slight stutter as he was still embarrassed as to how he'd reacted to her greeting.
"It is. A passionate dance that fuses two people into one," she said as she looked down at the dancers with a smile. She turned to Haiiden and leaned in closer to him.
"You seemed pretty enthralled; do you know the dance?" she asked him.
"Umm, yeah," he said and wondered if he should tell her how he knew. "My mother taught me."
She raised her head when she heard his answer as she took his hand and began to pull him away.
"Well, my dance partner isn't here, so you will have to do," she said to him with a grin, pulling harder as Haiiden tried to resist, as he was trying to figure out who this woman was. She finally forced him to move, and they made their way to the center of the dance area. They assumed the starting position, even though everyone else was ahead of them in the dance. They stood a few paces away from each other, but still locked as they were holding each other's hands. He sighed as he knew it was too late to back out now, and they both began to step forward. After moving a few steps, they then turned to each and raised their free hands and locked them together. As they held each other's hands, they then began to skip to Haiiden's right in a line. After a couple skips, they spun their bodies but still held their hands together. At the end of the spin, they each let go of one hand and Haiiden raised his right arm in the air, which still held her other hand.
She kept her hand up and spun in a circle as Haiiden guided her, while he sidestepped as she spun, he reached out his free hand to catch hers. At the end of the spin, he then pulled his left arm out so that his elbow stuck out while she pulled her right arm, guiding each other as they moved in a semicircle to the left. At the end she spun her body again, and this time their right hands were on top of their partner's lefts and crossed each other. As the music swelled, Haiiden led her through the dance's traditional steps, sidestepping here, swaying there, and spinning her about as she smiled broadly. All the while, whenever she was not in a spin, their eyes were locked together, and it was if they were staring into each other's souls. Without meaning to, he realized that he was smiling back.
For a moment he wondered to himself why all of this was happening. Meeting Ironwood again, his dreams, and the dancing. Everything reminded him of his past, and it was as if fate was playing games with him. He laughed in his mind at the thought of the word fate; he didn't want to think he wasn't in control of the events as they unfolded. However, everything did seem eerily coincidental. Then his mind reeled as to how he used to watch his mother dance, but then noticed the woman looking back at him with a smile. Her hands at her hips as if she just finished chiding a child.
"You were supposed to catch me," she told him and tilted her head at him. He stared back and remembered where he was, realizing that he was still dancing with this woman. He smiled back at her out of embarrassment and looked away as he scratched the back of his head.
"It's ok. I had fun nonetheless," she said and motioned for him to join her. They walked back to a table and sat down together.
"Haven't seen you here before," she pointed out and he assumed that she was hinting at the question of where he was from.
"And you would be right. I am with Beacon Academy, from Vale," he told her with a bit of cockiness in his voice.
"Ah. A future hero," she responded, and then giggled.
"Well, I try to be," He said with a chuckle. Haiiden then noticed that the music had already changed, and the dancers were already doing a different dance. There was a few moments of silence save for the music as they both watched the dancers. He didn't know why, but he suddenly began to feel calmer.
"You said your mother taught you to dance?" She asked him, and he turned his head to face her. "Is she here with you?"
"No. She died when I was young," he replied to her, his face inscrutable.
"I am sorry to hear that," her smile disappeared, and she looked away as she felt bad about potentially bringing up any painful memories. Which she had; he remembered the day she died very well. He was having a good time, however, and didn't want to ruin it by discussing this particular subject.
"It's okay. Besides, do I look like I need my mother?" he joked, since he was legally an adult, but realized he spoke without thinking first. Everything he was, his dreams, his name, all came from his mother. For the first time in his life, he realized that he did need her. He had stumbled through life and made many mistakes, with no one to seek counsel from, and no one to help him. He kept his smile to hide this sudden realization, as he didn't want to seem pathetic to this woman.
"Yes. You do," she answered with an intense stare. Not a stare that showed anger, but a stare that bespoke her understanding. And this took Haiiden by surprise; he tried to vocalize something, anything, but all he could do was open his mouth: no words came out.
"You look like someone who is lost, broken, and in need of guidance," she continued. This seemed to come out of nowhere, and began to make Haiiden feel dizzy. Who was this woman? Why did she approach him? She reached her hand to hold his, but he immediately pulled back and got up out of his seat. Whatever she was doing, it had begun to annoy him to the point where he visibly expressed anger.
"Oh no! I'm sorry!" She exclaimed as she stood up and attempted to stop him from leaving.
"You don't know me, Miss," he said to her through tightened lips as he lowered his head and leered at her. She pulled her hand away and held it over her chest while trying to step forward toward him.
"Thank you for the dance, but I have to get going now," he said before he walked back toward the hotel, his fists tightened and pressed against his sides.
(I know that Lien is the currency in the show, but we don't know if its universal, or specific to Vale. So I decided to take the liberty and just make stuff up.)