Chapter 5: The Big Pay Back
"And then I was falling out of the sky while trying to fight a Nevermore all on my own." Ruby told her only audience, making sound effects to make it more dramatic.
"No way!" Jaune said his excitement about Ruby's story of initiation. Ruby seemed a bit happy that her story wasn't as boring as she thought.
"Then my partner, Weiss, saved me in the nick of time." Ruby moved her hand to point out the huntress-in-training dressed in all white sipping water through a straw. Her bored expression burning a hole in Ruby's head for telling what happened nearly 2 months ago.
"So, my partner, my older sister Yang, her partner Blake, and I, took down the Nevermore. We passed the initiation and the Headmaster announced our team with me as the leader." Ruby said to him with her chest puffed out in pride for her accomplishment.
Jaune heard stories about how Huntsmen fight Grimm. His family always told him how they fought Grimm whenever they show up close to a village. This was the first time he heard someone else tell him how they defeated a Grimm that wasn't part of his family, so when she told him her story he was on the edge of his seat with the big pay off when she told him she dealt the finishing blow, making him see her in a new light.
"Wow, Ruby. I knew you were special when we first met, but after you told me that story I can honestly say you're not special-" Ruby's eye grew wide from what he told her, showing a brief flash of hurt. "You're amazing." How he said that to her with such earnest and awe made the young girl's cheeks glow red and her body uncontrollably hot. She drank her entire glass of water to cool her off.
"I-I mean, I'm not that amazing. My teammates are pretty cool too, right girls?" She tried to direct most of his attention away from herself at to the rest of her group.
"What, we can finally talk now?" Ruby's partner finally snaps out of her boredom to join their conversation. "You two kept talking for so long he didn't ask us what we wanted to order." The girl in white's comment caused the waiter to go red from embarrassment for paying attention to Ruby instead of doing his job.
"S-sorry ma'am," Jaune quickly grabbed his pen and notepad to write down their order. "What would you like to order?"
"A chicken salad." Weiss then went back to drinking her water.
"Chicken with a side of fries." Ruby's older sister told him as she placed her menu down on the table.
"I saw baked salmon on the menu a few moments ago." Yang's partner still had her eyes on the menu, trying to find her order.
"Turkey sandwich please!" Ruby's flipped a page of her menu as she looked back at Jaune. "And I'll have a cookies and cream sundae for dessert."
"Baked salmon, please." The long black-haired girl said as she gave him her menu.
Writing down all their orders, Jaune placed their menus under his arm and nodded to them. "Thank you. I'll be sure to give this to the chef, I'll be back to get your refills."
Taking his leave from the group, the girls started to converse with each other about what was to come to Beacon. Soon, their talks shifted to their school year. But the main topic was the boy Ruby was so comfortable with.
"W-what? Since when did we start talking about Jaune?" Ruby's older sister was wearing a big grin from seeing her baby sister talk to a boy for longer than a minute.
"Come on, sis. We've been sitting here for over five minutes to give our order to the guy, and, yet, you had him all to yourself." Yang only laughed when her sister started to ramble on about her relationship between him and her sister.
"I told you guys before! He works at the Dust shop where I was checking a new weapons magazine. I haven't seen him after that, so it was a surprise when I saw him here. I just wanted him to know what happened at Beacon."
"You mean the same story about when you encountered Spider-Man?" Blake's interest soon piqued after the young teen told them her tale again. "Did you see him after they arrested the culprits?"
"No, Jaune went to the police station to get help, so I didn't get to talk to him after that." Ruby's explain made her feel a bit bad that she didn't go check up on him after that terrible ordeal with the robbery.
"Hmm." Blake stared down at the table after she heard what happened.
"Ugh! How come when we talk about anything for just a few minutes, it always goes back to that guy?" Weiss crossed her arms over her chest, now annoyed that her team started talking about that masked weirdo.
"Come on, Weiss. You gotta admit that thanks to that guy, this kingdom got even more interesting."
Weiss had to begrudgingly agree to Yang's argument about how popular this so-called hero became in Vale so quickly. It should be impossible to have someone who dresses up in a costume do what normal law enforcement and Huntsmen do for a living and not get caught was a surprise to her. They already should've put some form of warrant for his arrest, or even have the kingdom send Huntsmen to put this mystery man behind bars.
What's even more of a shock was that people started to accept that this guy is swinging around over their heads doing whatever he pleases. They should all be in an uproar that some stranger's going around, hiding behind a mask, and taking the law into his own hands. Instead they treat him like he's the only one doing anything right in this kingdom. Like Huntsman and Huntresses aren't doing their jobs.
People hate the White Fang for doing such terrible acts of terror while hiding their faces, but when this guy shows up committing his acts without proper authority and concealing his identity too then it would be plain obvious that he should be treated the same way.
It just doesn't make sense. We're supposed to be the ones the people should place their trust in, not Spider-Man. What makes him so different compared to the rest of us?
The young heiress snapped out of her thoughts when she heard civilians nearby begin talking about the webbed menace.
"You think the police in Vale should help Spider-Man rather than arrest the guy."
"I actually saw him one time helping an elderly woman cross the street. You don't see that very often."
"Yeah. Some guy does good deeds throughout the kingdom, and the Council decides to not help him. What are they even thinking""
Shaking her head in annoyance, Weiss placed her focus back to her team poking fun at the still flustered leader. Ruby was still being teased by her older sister about how close she'd gotten with their waiter, Jaune. Blake was the only one not paying any attention, simply choosing to look at her scroll trying to find something interesting online.
"I keep telling you guys that he's just a friend and I'm just happy to see him here." The red-haired girl said while crossing her arms and pouting.
"Sure, sis. It's just really nice that you can talk to people for so long. Normally you're only interested in weapons, or if they were a Huntsmen." Yang stated the truth. She always worried that Ruby would be friendless with no experience with the opposite sex and when she grew older she'd live alone with her house full of weapons rather than cats.
Still, he's pretty plain looking. Suppose I'm just glad that she's finally coming out of her shell and gaining more friends.
"Either way, I'm proud of you, sis." Placing her sister under her arm Yang ruffled her hair as the little girl struggled under Yang's vice like grip.
Weiss could barely contain her boredom from seeing her team's conversation about boys. Add in the constant talking about Spider-Man made the young heiress grind her teeth together out of frustration.
"Can you please stop that! I can practically hear you from across the table." The quiet member of their team said.
"Sorry, it's just- how come every time we go out we always hear people keep talking about that silly superhero." The young heiress told her teammate.
Blake looked at Weiss still holding her scowl on her face making the dark-haired girl put her scroll back in her pocket and focus her attention on what the Schnee was ranting on about.
"They're just talking about something new. I'm sure it'll pass, and they will lose interest." Blake told her, but after what news she found on her Scroll, it won't be for several more months. "Apparently, people are now believing that he's working with Roman Torchwick." The quite book reader told her, causing Weiss to stare at her with surprise at the sudden news.
Placing a well-manicured hand under her chin, Weiss tried to remember if she saw this on the news this morning. "I think I remember that, but I really couldn't believe that since that blow hart of a man kept screaming on the television. Even If I know that Spider-Man is setting a bad example wearing a mask, I do believe he has some morals to him."
Blake would have commented on that last remark, only nodded in agreement on who Mr. Jameson was.
I doubt a Faunus would stoop so low to work with a man like Torchwick, especially a man such as Spider-Man. He seems too nice to ever think about doing any crimes.
Just like Weiss, Blake was also wondering how this kingdom became so interested about the wall crawler. The White Fang, before it became under Adam's control, was a peaceful, nonviolent, organization that tried to give the Faunus equality throughout all of Remnant, but it all fell on deaf ears.
Then along came this masked stranger staying in Vale, web swinging over people's heads, stopping accidents, petty crimes, and being friendly to strangers. It made him an instant favorite to the people. Because of his good acts and positive attitude, people in Vale seemed more upbeat, even showing some semblance of peace between the Humans and Faunus.
It became even more apparent to her when she started to hear rumors that more and more of the Faunus community are being treated fairly, even going to the extent that some are going against the current White Fang with many of its members leaving.
It made Blake feel a sense of warmth to see that the Faunus are finally getting heard and being treated better in Vale. But, at the same time, worried that the White Fang are losing members because of Spider-Man and his selfless acts.
Did I make the wrong choice again? Should I have followed Spider-Man's example and do what he does, wear another mask and fight against crime?
Soon Blake had an image of her wearing a skin tight black costume posing on top of a tall structure under the broken moon light with Spider-Man crouching next to her, scanning the streets for crime.
The image was soon beaten, battered, and shoved in a corner of her mind. Blake instantly grabbed her glass of water to cool herself down then slammed her cup, causing the rest of her teams to jump in surprise.
"Dang, partner. I was just teasing her about Jaune." Yang's eyebrow shot up at her partner's abrupt movement. "What, you also want a piece of tall, blond, and normal?"
"No." She abruptly said. "I was just wondering when he'll be back with our food."
"Well wait no longer!" Their waiter finally arrived holding a pitcher of water in one hand and a large platter in his other. Pouring each glass on the table, Jaune placed the pitcher on an empty table and passed each plate of food on the table and received multiple expressions of gratitude in return.
"Please tell me if you need anything else, guys. I need to help a family get a booth. Enjoy your food." Waving good bye, the boy walked away as Ruby bid him good bye. In turn, Yang gave the young girl a exaggerated kissy face.
"Not funny, Yang." Balling up her straw wrapper she threw it at the mocking girl and laughed when it ended caught in her hair, leaving the blonde Huntress to fish it out of her golden lockers.
"Darn It! That's the fifth thing stuck in my hair today." She said while shoving her entire hand in her blond mane to get the piece of trash out of her hair.
As the team enjoyed their meal the group soon started to stack their empty plates at the center, now waiting for Jaune to come back when he was done helping someone else get their order.
"With some food now in our stomachs, I think it's about time we discuss the upcoming event." Weiss told the rest of her team.
"What event?" Ruby asked her.
"She's talking about the Vytal Festival. The tournament between the different Huntsman schools of the kingdoms." Yang said to her sister while using a toothpick to remove some food from her teeth.
"That's correct." Weiss voiced shrieked. "Soon we'll be able to observe how the other kingdoms teach their students to be professional Huntsmen."
"You mean spy on them and learn how they fight. Pretty sure that would be cheating." The white themed huntress-in-training sputtered at Blake's bluntness.
"It is not spying or cheating!" Weiss shouted to her team.
"Who's cheating?"
The four girls froze when their waiter walked in on their discussion, a look of curiosity evident on his face.
"I just finished giving orders to the chef, so I came back to take you plates." Taking the dishes away from the girls, Jaune pulled out their receipts gave it to them. "You can pay at the front when you're ready. Now, what did I hear about cheating?"
"Weiss was planning to spy on other students for the Vytal Festival when they get here." Ruby told him.
"Observing! Not Spying!" Weiss said to them as if they don't have the same meaning.
"What's the Vytal festival?" Asked the blonde boy.
"It's when all the four kingdoms show that the next generation of Huntsmen will be their new defenders and repel threats such as the Grimm back to where they came from." Weiss told him in a way that sounded more like a commercial add then actually speaking to him normally.
"I never heard about it actually. I'm too busy with work and school." He said as he scratched his head in embarrassment.
Plus being a part time crime fighter and trying to stay alive on top of that.
"That must take a lot out of you." Yang told him with the nodded to him as a sign of respect. She knows how hard it is to take so much work, especially when you have to take care of younger siblings. Her situation may not be the same to his, but she can respect how he takes his responsibilities more serious than most boys do who care about their masculinity and trying to get her attention.
"It does, but I'm just glad to help my Aunt." Another voice called out his name from nearby. "Well girls, I hope you'll visit again. I'll be back here tomorrow after school, so I hope to see again."
"Thank you, Jaune. See ya later." Ruby told him as she left her seat to pay for her food.
"Yeah, Ladies man, we'll see you later~" Yang winked at him, causing the tall blond to blush and Ruby to pout at her older sister.
With the four gone Jaune went back to work and started to wipe any food that was left on the table and take the dishes back to the kitchen for cleaning. Lugging the plates near the sink Jaune started to scrub them clean.
"I see you were done talking to your girlfriends, Jaune." An old man with bull horns said while chopping carrots for a stew he was making.
"They aren't my girlfriends, Mr. Pesto." Jaune told him while drying one plate and placing it on the drying rack.
I'm not even sure that could be possible. They're all Huntresses-in-training. They're all out of my league, especially the one with the pony tail.
Jaune let out a sigh of defeat knowing that even normal girls at school never give him the time of day, so he highly doubts that Ruby and her friends would do the same.
"You're doing that thing again where you feel sorry for yourself." The young boy shakes his head, so he can focus on cleaning dishes. "And you're wrong too. That girl with the red hair seemed nice. I'm sure if you could ask her on a date she'd say yes. All you need is confidence, Jaune."
"Yeah. Confidence. Now you sound like my father." Jaune wiped his hands clean as he finished the dishes. "Ruby's just a friend, all of them are actually. And if they do decide to get a boyfriend I'm sure they'll date a Huntsman who can do things they do.
"I don't think that works, Jaune." Mr. Pesto placed chopped carrots into a steaming pot and looked back at the disheartened boy. "The heart wants what the heart wants. Just because they're Huntresses doesn't mean they want a boyfriend who's the same."
Yeah, I can understand that. Then again, I'm a hero with spider powers, so I'm pretty sure finding a girl with the same dilemma is as slim as me winning the lottery.
"All I'm saying is that you should ask before it's too late." giving his last piece of advice, Mr. Pesto grabbed more vegetables and started chopping again, leaving Jaune to his thoughts.
Looking to the kitchen clock, he saw that he only had a few more hours before his shift ends, reminding him that after work was done he'd have to make sure to get some rest before patrolling the Kingdom to see if his hunch was right.
With his supposed 'death' now known, the criminal underworld will probably try and be more courageous or stupid. Which is a good chance for him to get a little pay back for what happened yesterday.
Out of nowhere, he heard a loud crash from behind him, followed by Mr. Pesto cursing up a storm.
"Jaune! Clean up!" The bull Faunus screamed as he stormed out of the kitchen to change his apron.
"Right away, sir." Jaune grabbed a mop and bucket from the supply closet. While filling the bucket he wondered if he should try and get a girlfriend. His thoughts go back to Ruby and her friends. His thoughts were cut short when the realization of what they did before they left caused him to bang his head on the broom handle.
I can't believe they didn't leave a tip.
Hours pass by while Jaune was waiting tables. As the sun was setting for the day the young hero said his good byes to his coworkers and began his walk home. He was already leaving out the back when he was stopped by Mr. Pesto.
"Jaune, I need to ask you something important."
"Yes, Mr. Pesto?"
"Do you remember my nephew? He goes to the same school you go to. His name's Denny. I got a phone call from my sister telling me he hasn't been home lately, and she was starting to worry."
"Denny? I think I share an algebra class with him, but I didn't see him today." The teen told the older man causing Mr. Pesto to shake his head. "I'm sorry, Mr. Pesto. I know him from class, but I was never really close to him to know anymore."
"It's not your fault, Jaune. Lately he's been hanging around with other Faunus at school." The man's voice was starting to grow anxious.
"Isn't that a good thing? I mean, I lived in a village, so I don't see racism often, but he at least has friends. Maybe he was staying at their place?"
"Not this type of group, kid. Apparently, his mother told me he was being bullied, making him distant at home." The bull Faunus informed him.
How come the only bully I'm thinking of is Flash? Who am I kidding, of course it's probably him.
"And that group decided that Denny should join them."
"Ya. I'm sure you heard of the White Fang." Mr. Pesto's tone turned dark after he mentioned the radical terrorist group.
"The group that fights for Faunus equality?" When Jaune spoke of what the group did the older man lifted his head up and laughed.
"Fighting for our rights? They're just shedding blood. They don't know what the Faunus want anymore." Mr. Pesto's sounded bitter at the groups actions recently.
"The White Fang recruited him?" Jaune said gravely. "Have they always tried doing this in school?"
"No, they usually do it discreetly, but with how Spider-Man's been going around giving the Faunus a good rep, less and less were joining." Mr. Pesto explained.
"So, they must be getting even more active in trying to gain followers." The young spider placed both his hands on his head. He already had his plate full trying to track down the boss pulling the strings. Now, he has a missing person to find too.
"I just wanted to know if you knew anything. Thank you for your time." Mr. Pesto turned away to go to his car when Jaune stopped the older man.
"I won't say that I understand how you feel right now, Mr. Pesto. But I will try to help as much as I can. I promise." Mr. Pesto seemed to believe the young spiders words. Usually, he doubted other people and their promises, but with Jaune it seemed that he was dead set on keeping that promise. Mr. Pesto grabbed Jaune's hand and gave it a shake.
"Thank you, Jaune." And with that, Mr. Pesto left him alone behind the diner. Jaune's fist clenched to his side with his mind now dead set on stopping whatever's happening to Vale.
I may not be able to do much, but I rather try and do something now before it's too late.
As he arrived back home, Jaune made sure to wait till Aunt May retired to bed before he left the house dressed in his spider costume and began his pursuit to locate Denny.
Shooting a web to the roof of a high five story apartment, Spider-Man launched himself high in the air and shot another web to nearby building, gaining momentum for the hero to start his web swinging.
"Ok, dust thefts, White Fang, Denny. All of these things must be connected. This can't be a coincidence for there to be this many." Web swinging higher in the air, Spider-Man shot a web line on to the side of a tall business building and pulled to take a sharp right turn.
Letting go of both of his web lines, Jaune did a back flip in the air, crossed his arms and shot two lines in front of him. He pulled his arms to his sides as he rocketed into the air for a bird's eye view. What Jaune could see below him was several roads with cars stuck in traffic, police cars near a few accidents, and over hundreds of people walking home or exploring the night life.
Ok, time for a close up.
Sky diving straight down, the web slinger was only a few feet from eating the pavement when he ejected a web line. He jerked to the right and started web swinging close to the streets.
So weird. I'm web swinging and I don't feel like vomiting in my mask. I wish I could say the same whenever I need to use air transportation.
It was always weird to him that while he web swings he feels right as rain, but when Aunt May takes him somewhere that require a bullhead, he immediately empties his entire stomach. Apparently, spider powers can't help everything in Jaune's body, but he was glad that he has some way to enjoy flight. After all, a spider that web swings and gets sick while doing it doesn't sound that appealing.
Taking a sharp left to the shopping district, Spider-Man was planning to web higher, but the back of his skull started to tingle. Following his instinct to get closer to where it was triggering his spider sense he came across a quiet street with no one around. A Dust shop across the street from the building he landed on seemed to have suspicious movement inside making him assume it was Roman's boys doing their regular routine.
"Hello flies, said the spider. Denny would have to wait, I need to do some clean up." Jaune said to himself. "Time for a little shock and awe."
Jumping off the roof, Jaune web lined to the Dust shop to land on its roof. Running to the back alley he jumped off and landed behind the store, surprising the crooks from his sudden entrance.
"Ok, fellas, you know the drill. Put away the Dust and I won't beat... you... much." Spider-Man was used to seeing the usual thugs with bowler hats, but with the help of his night vision he could see that these dark figures were wearing a black and white uniform with masks hiding their faces.
"Um, do you all have a certain dress code now? Or is this your casual Friday outfit?"
The crooks started to get their bearings and soon began to circle the hero. Their guns pointed directly at him.
"Don't move." The thief in front of Spider-Man said. "I don't want to hurt one of our own."
"One of your own? Dude, I'm wearing red and blue." Jaune grabbed a fist full of fabric from his costume. "Unlike you guys I only have the one outfit. Can't really make another design on my measly hero pay check, now can I?"
The group didn't seem to find that funny as they get closer with the barrel of their guns just a few feet away from the superhero's head. "We don't want to hurt you Spider-Man. The White Fang don't hurt their own. Just let us go and we won't cause any harm to the human."
When the leader of the group told him there was a hostage, the hero narrowed his eyes at the White Fang. "Ok, ok, I surrender." Raising both hands to show he was unarmed, the armed Faunus lowered their guns. Some seemed relieved that they don't have to fight the web head.
"Why are guys doing this? Usually I stop guys in suits, but this is the first time I see you all doing this."
"We're just getting what we deserve. You should understand." The boss of the group said and raised both his arms to his side. "For so long the Faunus have been treated poorly. It's time to take what we deserve."
"Yeah, I can see the taking part." Jaune said in with a hint of bite. Some of the group to look at each other wondering if this was the right idea. "Do you honestly believe that this is the right action? Your bringing people that have no business with any of this into your conflict."
"How can you say that?" The leader sounded genuinely surprised by the hero's statement. "You, who also wear a mask, doing whatever you like with no consequence, telling us that fighting for our equality are in the wrong."
What the man said caused Spider-man to put his arms down as he started to tremble. He knows what the consequences are. He always remembers when he returns home, when he eats with Aunt May with an empty seat across from them, and most of all when he looks at his mask, showing him what made him into the hero he is now.
With great power comes great responsibility. I can't let my anger get the better to me. I need to talk them down before they decide letting me live is too much of a risk.
"Please, whatever you're doing, do-"
*BANG*
Whatever he was about to say immediately died in his throat as a gun shot into the store causing him to move from his spot and spring into action.
"I said don't mo-" The leader lifted his gun to threaten him, but he was quickly knocked out when Spider-Man landed a punch in the middle of his face, causing the mask he was wearing to shatter. As the Faunus was lifted in the air from the force of the punch, Spider-man turned around and lunged towards the rest of the armed criminals.
TWIP! TWIP! TWIP! TWIP! TWIP! TWIP!
A blur of fists and kicks impacted them. Their masks shattered, along with several of their bones. As the bodies hit the ground or walls Jaune placed webbed nets over them, immobilizing them for when the authorities arrive to take them away.
After the brief flash of anger vanished, the teen hero rushed inside the store, hoping that whatever he heard was a trick and no one was injured. When he reached the front of the store he saw another White Fang member holding a gun with shaking hands, his voice half choking and half sobbing.
"H-he didn't listen… I-it's not my fault." He told himself over and over again.
Spider-Man didn't understand what happened to make him fire his weapon, or why he was acting like this. As his eyes trailed downward he saw an unmoving body face down on the floor, a small puddle of blood forming underneath.
Uncle Ben!
"Get away from him!" Jaune shouted to the White Fang criminal. The scared Faunus snapped out of his shock and aim his gun with quivering hands.
"S-stay back!" He screamed, but Spider-Man didn't listen. His sights were only on the injured man on the floor. With no sign of stopping the shooter fired a round aimed at the spider's head, but missed by a few inches when the hero dodged and delivered a straight punch to the killer.
Jaune still held back his strength, he knew if he truly let go he'd seriously harm someone, or worse. So, when the robber landed on his back Spider-Man jumped on top of him and prepared himself to deliver another punch but stopped when he saw who was behind the mask.
"P-please don't hurt me." Denny said while placing his hands over his face for protection. "I'm a Faunus too. We're all fighting for the same goal!" He whimpered as he tried to stop his punishment.
Denny? Mr. Pesto's nephew? Why would you do such a thing, Denny?
While the wallcrawler was staying motionless, Denny used this opportunity to grab a jar of Dust and smash it on the side of the hero's head. The surprise attack caused him to loosen his grip on his classmate, allowing him to crawl away and escape.
Jaune was about to web him to the floor when he heard groaning coming from the injured man. Giving up his chase of Denny he chose to tend to the wounded store owner.
"Why are you helping a human?" Denny asked as he tried backing away from his crime. "You damn traitor!" The scared teen made a mad dash to the back door, leaving only Spider-Man to clean up his crime.
"Please." Jaune begged, his webbing trying to close the wound. "Please hang on. Help's on the way." His words of encouragement made the man to open his eyes as he tried to stay awake to give his thanks.
"Thank you, stranger." He said weakly.
"Don't thank me." The teen hero told him, his arms still holding tight. "Just please, please be ok."
Please don't die like Uncle Ben.
Well, that turned bad real fast. I know once again that you all thought that this chapter was a rematch for Spider-Man to fight Roman and Neo, but it seems his personal life always bleeds into his hero career making it so much harder for him to separate the two.
This chapter is about how he has to deal with close friends he knows joining bad groups. He knows the right thing, but it's hard trying to help others when they keep fighting him. The last chapter was a way to show how his normal life keeps intertwining with his Spider-Man persona, 'causing him even more trouble when he knows what their doing, but can't say anything if he wants to let his cover be blown
Hope you all like this chapter, and like always feel free to comment, fav, and also check out my Beta-Reader too.
The next chapter will be of coarse the docks, so hope you all tune in next time. I try and release a chapter every Sunday or every other Sunday.