Welcome to the newest chapter of Silver Spectre. This was a really fun one to write, so I hope you enjoy.


Weiss's ice blue eyes darted around, carefully scanning the faces of the men surrounding her. They each wore a plain black tunic with a leather cuirass covering it, and brandished an assortment of axes, cudgels, and knives. The white-haired noble couldn't feel any magic coming off of them, with the exception of the man directly in front of her.

"You look surprised, princess," the cocky man remarked. He tossed the dull grey orb up in the air and caught it. "I have to say, I was hesitant to use this little toy. But after seeing you walk right into our trap, I'd say it was worth it," At that, he threw the orb behind him, shattering it like glass. The mystical fog quickly receded and allowed Weiss to get a better look at the man.

He was wearing a long white overcoat and black trousers, with a light grey scarf adorning his neck and a set of eight gaudy rings decorating his fingers. Weiss could feel the tell-tale sign of magic emanating from each article of clothing he wore, from his boots to his hat. She had no idea how powerful his aura was, but he just needed a small amount to activate the enchanted items he possessed, making him the most dangerous foe.

"And who would you be?" Weiss snarked without breaking eye contact with the man. Her armor could take a hit from a knife or cudgel, but she had no idea what the man's magical items could do to her.

"I'm glad you asked, snow angel," He said with a roguish smirk. "The name's Roman Torchwick, and I'm the greatest thief in all of Vale," Weiss just rolled her eyes.

"I see. And what is a thief doing trying to kidnap me?" The ex-heiress asked with a quirked eyebrow, receiving a shrug in response.

"I don't know, I guess I just saw the opportunity to make some lien and took it," Roman explained. "I don't need some deep, personal reason to drive me to do something like this. I'm not like the White Fang. I just want to live a life of luxury, and the fortune I'll get by selling you will help with that."

Weiss drew Myrtenaster and leveled it to the man before her. "I think you'll find I won't be going quietly," She declared threateningly. Weiss began to pour magic into her legs, tensing slightly. She needed to take this man out as quickly as possible, as he was the most dangerous.

"I figured," Torchwick said with a shake of his head. The man snapped his fingers and the men surrounding her broke out into a run, charging right at Weiss. The thief merely jumped backward and pointed a finger at Weiss.

"Behind you!" Ruby called out. Weiss whirled around and blocked a knife slash with her forearm and twisted the blade out of the attacker's hand with her own, driving its hilt into his stomach. As he groaned in pain, She flicked her sword up and slashed lightly across his face. It was no deep cut, but it would put him out of the fight.

The noble jerked to the right to avoid a cleaving strike from a thug wielding an axe. Her sword flashed outwards and left a long red gash on his forearm. He hissed in pain and tried to backhand her, but she merely lifted her armored hand up and blocked it. The man let out a scream of pain as his hand hit the magically hardened metal and fractured his fingers.

She pushed her aura into her legs to roll out of the way of a small bolt of electricity that Roman had fired from his fingertip. One of the rings he was wearing crackled with magic and dissolved. The rings clearly hadn't been enchanted well if they broke after only one use, but that didn't matter when he had so many arcane artifacts.

A third man came up behind her and tried to hit her in the stomach with a large wooden cudgel, but she dodged away and slashed across his chest with her enchanted rapier. The silver blade cut through the leather cuirass with ease, but the man had managed to avoid being injured by leaning back to avoid the cut. She followed up with a punch, but he caught it with his left hand. Smirking, Weiss swept his legs out from underneath him and plunged her blade into his stomach. It wasn't a fatal blow, but it would incapacitate him.

She had to be cautious with her attacks, as she had no desire to kill these men. Even if they were criminals, she wanted to avoid ending any lives. But fighting common criminals with several years worth of training under one of the finest knights in Atlas meant that it would be easier to kill then subdue. Her sword could sheer through their armor like cloth, her armor could block any of their slashes without getting scratched, and her with her skills she could put several Myrtenaster-sized holes in them before they could lift their weapon.

"Damnit. You're better than expected," Roman begrudgingly admitted before turning to his last lackey. He thrust his hand out towards him, one of the rings glowing a bright red. A thin, wispy cloud of arcane energy shot out towards the thug and surrounded him, absorbing into him. The hitman chuckled darkly as he ran forward, brandishing an axe.

He swung at Weiss, who lifted her blade and poured aura into her arms to deflect the blow. Too late did she realize that the magic Torchwick had used on the man had acted like enhancement magic, as his crude weapon slammed into hers with enough force to make her teeth rattle. Her right hand slammed into the tip of Myrtenaster and pushed. She strained against the burly man, who gave her a vicious grin.

Suddenly, Weiss heard a voice scream out behind her. "Weiss, on your left!" At Ruby's warning, the young woman threw up her right arm just in time to block a small fireball Torchwick had shot out of the palm of his hand. However, the large hitman's axe pushed past Myrtenaster and grazed her breastplate, leaving a faint scratch running horizontally across the Schnee crest before she could dodge and knocking her down.

She thrust her sword upwards into the man's shoulder, who roared and swatted at her with his hands. She rolled around his legs, stopping behind him and kicking the back of his knee. When he fell to the ground, she walked around him and slammed an armored boot into his face, knocking him out cold. Just one left.

Weiss turned around to face Roman and let out a small yelp as she lifted her sword just in time to deflect a glowing blue chain of arcane energy that shot out of his hand. His scarf glowed an eerie blue that matched the color of the chain, signifying it was the enchanted object. The mystical chain wrapped around her sword and tried to twist it away, but Weiss merely twisted the tip through the air and drew a glyph.

A streak of white light shot out of the center of the glyph and struck Torchwick in the stomach, sending him sprawling. The chain dissipated and Weiss was free to draw an even bigger glyph, adding an additional layer just to be sure.

Roman lifted himself up with his cane just in time to see several dozen razor-sharp shards of ice flying towards him at high speeds. He threw himself to the side to avoid them, but a few stray shards managed to sink into his upper thigh, causing the master thief to let out a howl of pain. He thrust a hand out towards Weiss and two of his rings began to glow orange and yellow respectively.

A fireball the size of Weiss's torso rocketed towards the Schnee, crackling with electricity. Weiss's eyes widened in surprise but quickly narrowed. She quickly flicked her rapier in a circle and drew a glyph, before adding an extra layer that caused it to spin. The fireball slammed into the glyph and strained against it, trying to push through.

The glyph held, however. Winter had taught her early on how to use glyphs to absorb magical attacks, and the spinning motion only helped absorb the kinetic energy of the blast. A few stray bolts of electricity crackled through the air, and the glyph finally burst, allowing the much smaller fireball to slowly head towards Weiss, falling short and landing right before her feet and exploding in a small puff of smoke.

Weiss drew another glyph in the air and slammed an armored hand into it, causing it to turn black. The slight amount of gravity dust she had used while activating it pulled Roman towards her quickly. The orange-haired man only just managed to lift his cane in time to parry her thrust. The man stumbled backward, cursing as he put weight on his injured leg, but Weiss refused to lose her advantage.

Her sword sung out as it carved a pattern in the air, heading toward Roman. Torchwick lifted his cane just in time to block each of her attacks, but was forced on the defensive by a flurry of stabs that pushed him away from the center of the square. As her blade met his cane, she could faintly sense his aura and was surprised to find it was rather weak, only about as strong as the average town guard's.

Eventually Roman was able to slam the bottom of his can on the ground, creating a large shockwave that pushed Weiss backward. The thief gave her a cocky smirk and drew a curved dagger with a flick of his wrist. He lashed out with his cane and thrust the dagger forward at the same time. Weiss was able to deflect the dagger, but the cane crashed into her stomach with more force than she had expected, throwing her back and knocking the air from her lungs.

She leapt to her feet just in time to bring her blade up and deflect the curved dagger, making it clatter to the ground. She charged at Roman, who lifted his cane for a large overhead swing. She blocked the blow with both hands and grit her teeth. Despite how light the cane seemed when Roman had been twirling it around, it felt like it was as heavy as a war hammer.

Roman just gave her a cocky grin as he flicked his left wrist, drawing the dagger she had deflected out of nowhere. Weiss's eyes widened in surprise, but she was unable to do anything before Roman slashed beneath her shoulder in one of the few spots her armor didn't protect. She winced in pain, allowing the cane to push past her defenses and crash into her other shoulder, making Weiss scream out.

As she jumped back to get away from Roman, she drew her sword across his upper arm and gave him a small scratch. The criminal hissed in pain as a small patch of red grew across his white overcoat. The thief glanced down at it and rolled his eyes.

"Are you kidding me snow angel? I just had this cleaned," Torchwick said sarcastically as he lifted his cane over his shoulder. He threw the curved dagger at her with a snap of his wrist, but she was able to deflect it with her armored forearm. Unfortunately, Roman just flourished his wrist and drew the weapon from his sleeve. It must have been enchanted to always return to its wielder's hand.

She leveled her rapier at Torchwick and hid her glowing black hand behind her back. A faint mist, different from the one Torchwick had used to create the illusion that lured her here, began to roll in from the alleyway. The man didn't notice, merely giving her a cocky smirk and pointing the tip of his cane at her.

"It's been a blast, princess. But I'm afraid this is the end," He sneered, twisting his wrist slightly. The metal cap fell off of the end of his cane, revealing an intricate circular design carved into the bottom. A slightly shiny red substance filled the design, and it took Weiss only a brief moment to figure out what it was. He had a glyph filled with fire dust on his cane.

The ex-heiress barely managed to get out of the way as a large plume of fire shot out of the glyph, scorching the ground and nearly reaching the other end of the square. Roman began to turn the cane towards Weiss with visible effort, dragging the plume towards her. She rolled on the ground to try and get around it, but it quickly began to close the gap.

Weiss broke off into a sprint, heading diagonally towards the wall and away from the fire. She could feel the intense heat as it was right on her heels, but she simply pushed her aura into her legs and ran faster. Once she reached the wall, she placed her feet against it and pushed off with a burst of magically-enhanced acrobatics, backflipping over the fire and shooting towards Torchwick.

The criminal tried to lift his dagger to block her attack, but she quickly pushed it aside with her rapier and grasped his throat with her right hand, lifting him a few inches off the ground. She activated the necrotic magic she had been charging up, draining the man's aura from his body rapidly. His eyes widened as he realized she was stealing the energy he needed to use his little toys and began to thrash desperately.

He needed aura to escape and get back to Neo. She needed him; she'd be killed without him. "I can't get caught here!" He screamed internally, lashing out with his legs in a desperate attempt to free himself from Weiss's grasp. He had no idea how she was doing this, but he knew that she hadn't been as easy of a target as he'd expected.

At last, one of his kicks managed to slam into Weiss's stomach where his cane had earlier, causing her to let out a gasp and let him go. Wasting not even a single moment, Torchwick pushed every last bit of aura he could manage into his arms and slammed his cane into Weiss's face. The noble was able to bring up her arms to block the blow, but was still sent flying by a combination of the man's strength and the cane's enchantments.

She rolled when she hit the ground, sliding to her feet and pointing the tip of her blade at the man, who just let out an exasperated sigh.

"Just give it up already kid," Roman panted out, leaning on his cane for support. "We're both exhausted and while I'd love to just let you go, I'd have to be pretty dumb to do that," He continued, slightly adjusting his hat as he did so.

"Exhausted? Me? Sounds to me like you're just being wishful," Weiss bluffed, barely able to stand straight on her own. They'd both injured themselves trying to take down the other, and if this fight continued it was likely that one of them would die. Nevertheless, Weiss held her blade steady and refused to look away from Torchwick.

"Gimme a break here, snow angel," The criminal pleaded sarcastically, straightening out and hefting his cane up onto his shoulder. He dagger flashed into view, having returned to his hand after Weiss had disarmed him. "Damn kids these days. So persistent," Roman complained with a shake of his head.

"Weiss! Call for help! Some guards are nearby!" Ruby shouted out to her, and Weiss habitually glanced in her direction. It was a momentary lapse in attention, but it was enough for the master thief of Vale. With a smirk, he tossed his dagger forwards and charged.

Weiss didn't even bother to block the dagger, instead letting it clatter off her enchanted armor harmlessly. She slashed at Roman three times, managing to score a small cut on his cheek on the third strike. The man hooked the end of his cane around Weiss's rapier and twisted it out of her grasp, sending both weapons tumbling away.

Weiss threw a clumsy punch towards his face, but Torchwick just turned his head slightly to avoid it. He grabbed her throat and drew the curved dagger out from his sleeve again, pressing it to her neck. She wrapped a hand around his arm and tried to free herself, but he held fast. Her other hand uselessly clawed at the ground He gave her a sneer and lifted the blunt end of his dagger into the air.

"Say goodnight, Schnee!" He hissed, but Weiss's lips curled into a triumphant smile. Roman's eyes darted to the spot she was looking at, and he cursed. There, on the floor where Weiss had been scratching at with her hand, was a small glyph drawn in her blood. Blood wasn't a very good magical conductor, but it would be enough to use simple glyphs.

Torchwick's instincts screamed at him to get as far from the glyph as quickly as possible, so he threw himself to the floor, crawling backward. Weiss's victorious smirk only widened as she lightly tapped it with a finger and caused a harmless beam of light shoot into the sky. She'd tricked him! That bitch!

"Hey, what was that?" A voice shouted out, making Roman curse even more. The little Schnee brat had called for help knowing that Roman wouldn't be able to fight them off.

"That came from the alley!" Another guard cried out, sinking Roman's hopes further. He might've been able to ambush one guard and capture the brat, but two wouldn't be possible.

"Someone might be in trouble!" A third voice stated, making Roman wince. He hoisted himself up to his feet with his cane and turned to look at his opponent. He could barely stand straight, but he wasn't worried.

"That was a clever move, Schnee," He spat out bitterly. "Annoying, but I have to give you credit for it," He said as he reached a hand into one of the pockets of his overcoat. "Looks like its time for me to run. Until next time, princess," He said with a tip of his hat. Pulling a cigar out of his pocket, he lit it with a snap of his fingers and a flash of innate magic. The smoke from the cigar quickly surrounded him before collapsing in on itself, revealing that he'd vanished.

"Over here! There's someone here!" One of the guards voices called out, and Weiss could hear the clanking of four different sets of footsteps as they made her way toward her. She rose to her feet and turned to look at the newcomers.

Three of them wore basic chainmail, with the forth wearing a full suit of plate mail. They held an assortment of weapons; knives, a halberd, a sword, and a mace. Each of them was regarding her with a mixture of concern and suspicion, which she felt was unjustified. She was armed, but also heavily injured and surrounded by the unconscious bodies of less than reputable individuals.

"What happened here Ma'am?" One of the guards, a man with blonde hair and squinting eyes asked her. Weiss just blinked and gestured around her at the thugs.

"These men attacked me, so I fought back. There was another one, but he got away," She explained to the one who asked the question as his companions went about checking the thugs and confiscating any weapons.

"Can you describe him?" A blue-haired guard with a halberd strapped to his back questioned, and Weiss just nodded.

"He had orange hair, wielded a cane, and called himself Roman Torchwick," The guards all glanced at each other. "And I'm guessing by your reactions that you know of the man in question?"

They nodded numbly. Eventually, the guard with a mohawk spoke up. "Roman Torchwick is the most notorious thief in all of Vale. We just want to be sure you're telling the truth before we arrest anyone."

That made sense, but trying to be fair was pointless when these men were obviously the instigators of this conflict. "I see. What do you want me to do to prove myself innocent?" She asked with an eye roll that none of the guards even noticed. Idiots.

"Who are you?" The burly one wearing plate mail blurted out. "What are you doing in Vale? You're wearing Atlesian armor, but this is Vale," He interrogated, getting way to close for comfort.

"I-I'm Weiss Schnee, former heiress to Jacques Schnee," She stuttered out, stunning the young men into silence. Immediately, it was if a switch had been flipped in their brains and they all stepped back and gave deep bows. Unfortunately, Weiss had already seen how they treated her when they thought she was a suspect so she wasn't that impressed.

"I apologize, Lady Schnee!" They all spoke in unison. Weiss rolled her eyes; they could read directly from a script and be less obvious.

"It's fine. I just want to return to Beacon, but I assume I have to go talk to someone?" She asked sarcastically. But the gods weren't smiling at her, because none of the guards seemed to get it through their thick skulls that she had just fought for her life and just wanted to go to sleep.

"Yes. We'll have to take you to Commander Port," The burly one said. "Follow me. Dove, Sky, grab the thugs. Russel, go tell the captain of the city guard about this. If Torchwick is out tonight, they need to be vigilant," He barked out orders quickly. Weiss just blinked in surprise; this one was actually competent when it came to commanding his subordinates.

"Yes Sir Cardin!" The men saluted in unison before going about fulfilling their orders. The large man now identified as Cardin began to walk toward Beacon Castle, and Weiss followed slowly. She began to use what little aura she had left to stimulate her body to naturally heal her wounds, but it was a slow process even with a full aura. Right now, she just wanted to go to sleep in her new bed.

But she was forced to walk behind Cardin as he led her back to Beacon, into the North Wing, and right up to a sturdy oak door with a bronze nameplate reading Commander Peter Port on it. She glanced at her eternal companion, who just shrugged. Great, Ruby had no clue who this was. That meant she couldn't just use the girl's prior experiences and get through this conversation easily.

Cardin broke her out of her thoughts by knocking firmly against the door, prompting a response to come from the other side.

"Come in," A jolly voice that slightly reminded her of Klein gave Cardin the response he wanted. Opening the door, he gestured for Weiss to enter, and closed the door after her. The room was cozy, with a large table taking up the middle and a roaring fireplace of to the right. A small window decorated the back, and a few doors led off to what Weiss assumed were bedrooms.

"Might I ask what it is you need, young lady?" Said the elderly man sitting in a chair facing the entrance, drawing her attention back to him. Weiss rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment as she took the man in. He was overweight and short, wearing a buttoned-up red coat, but between the way she saw his eyes piercing into her and the large axe hanging from the wall she was willing to bet he was more than he seemed.

"Are you Commander Port?" She asked, receiving a nod.

"Indeed I am. Have you perhaps heard of me?"

"No," She deadpanned, making the man recoil as if struck.

"I see. Ahem. What is it you need?" He asked, flustered.

"I was told to report an attack to you," Weiss said shyly, and the man's eyes hardened.

"Was anyone hurt?"

"No. I was the target, but I was able to fend them off," She said with a small hint of pride in her voice. Commander Port just let out a hearty laugh reminding her of her favorite butler.

"I see. I suppose whatever thugs attacked you learned not to mess with Weiss Schnee, eh?" He teased, making her eyes go wide.

"H-How did you know?" She spluttered, making him laugh even more energetically.

"While I would love to say I figured it out myself, I must give credit to my dear friend Barty for telling me of your arrival in Vale," He explained. Barty... did she know a Barty?

"He means Oobleck," Ruby told her, making her nod in understanding. The doctor had mentioned that he knew Commander Port, so it made sense he could've told him about her.

"I take it young Winchester and his men apprehended the assailants?" Port asked. Weiss nodded in response, but paused. "Or did they? Your expression tells me something happened."

"One of the attackers got away. Roman Torchwick," Weiss told the man, who let out a string of curses that would make a sailor blush like a noble lady at one of her father's balls. He slammed a fist down onto the table, knocking several papers and a quill pen off of it.

"Gods damn that insufferable vagabond!" He finally screamed out in frustration. Weiss just gaped at the man; he may have reminded her of Klein, but the servant never would've swore like that. It was jarring.

The man noticed her expression and coughed, straightening his collar. "I apologize. Roman Torchwick has been a pain in my ass for far too long!" The old man growled out.

"Then why hasn't he been arrested?" She asked, but Port just sighed and leaned back into his chair.

"Sit down, young lady. If Torchwick is going after you, you'll want to know everything you can about him," He told her, gesturing for her to make herself comfortable. He opened his mouth to start, but closed it with a sigh, a process he repeated several times before finding the words he wanted to say.

"Roman Torchwick was like many people who came to Vale from the countryside. Hopelessly optimistic and eager to strike it rich in the big city," Port began. "Unfortunately, like many others, he couldn't make it here in Vale. So after he found himself homeless, he turned to a life of petty crime just to get by. If we had caught him then, we wouldn't be having this problem now," Port said bitterly.

"What happened? How did he get so many enchanted items?" Weiss couldn't help but ask. Port just clenched his teeth.

"He got desperate. He needed money, so he did the riskiest thing imaginable for a thief. He robbed a mage," Weiss just nodded. "He actually pulled it off, but a few magic artifacts wasn't enough to survive on the streets. He pawned them off and kept stealing; kept getting lucky, too. Eventually, that luck turned to skill, and Roman Torchwick gained a reputation for being a master thief. Everyone was buying from him, and he got very powerful very fast."

Weiss nodded along numbly. "What next?"

"Something... happened. No one knows what, but Roman suddenly got very upset with the criminal underbelly in Vale. He went on a rampage; cashing in old favors to start massive gang wars, assassinating the kingpins of several powerful crime families, and personally placing himself as the most powerful crime lord in Vale. Now, he owns everything from the gambling rings to the smugglers. And he gets a cut out of all of it."

"And he went after me to sell me back to my father," Weiss surmised, but Commander Port shook his head.

"No. He wanted to sell you to whoever was willing to pay the most. Your father, the White Fang, any other group wanting to have you, it only mattered that they had enough lien to outbid the others," He explained darkly, causing Weiss to gulp. "He's a dangerous man, young lady. You were fortunately unharmed tonight, but you need to be more careful," He chided concernedly.

"I understand," Weiss said meekly. Port just sighed and shook his head wistfully.

"Ah, the recklessness of youth. If I were your age, I would have hunted Torchwick down myself by now!" He boasted. Weiss just stifled a giggle, before turning contemplative.

"Then why has no one gone after him yet?" She asked.

"That's the damning part. Torchwick is tough; tough enough to fight off the average knight or mage, let alone a couple guards. But he's constantly moving, too paranoid that he'll get caught by someone he can't beat. Unfortunately, we can't send our best knights out to flush him out of his hole otherwise we're taking them away from the more important fight; the Creatures of Grimm," Port explained.

"Then why not hunt him with large teams of people?" She asked, but Port held up a hand.

"Torchwick would notice that. And just because he isn't strong enough to win against some foes doesn't mean he doesn't have someone else who can. Or he could send hitmen to wear down his attackers before finishing them off himself."

"I... I see. I guess I'll just have to be more careful when I'm out in Vale," Weiss commented, but Port just let out a hearty laugh.

"My dear, you don't give yourself enough credit. Winchester and his men wouldn't have scarred Roman off if he hadn't been seriously injured from fighting you. I'm willing to bet it was a pretty even fight," The commander praised, and Weiss squirmed in her seat slightly, happy that the man was impressed with her combat prowess. For her instructors, her father, and Winter, her skills were never enough. Only Ruby praised her on her fighting.

"Thank you, Commander Port."

"It's no problem, young lady. Feel free to go to your room. But just remember that neither Roman Torchwick or your Father will get away with taking you without Vale trying to defend you," He told her with a reassuring smile, which she returned. She made her way out of his office and back to the room she'd been given earlier that day, deep in thought.

"Weiss... are you okay?" Ruby asked her once she had returned to her new quarters. The girl in question just sighed and tossed her satchel onto the ground and began removing her armor and changing into one of Ruby's old outfits Tai had given her. The silver-eyed girl just looked at her friend with concern as she slipped into her new bed and finally spoke up.

"I'm fine Ruby," Weiss said, and Ruby couldn't even tell if Weiss knew she was lying to herself by saying that.


Weiss tentatively knocked on the door that led to Doctor Oobleck's office, yawning slightly. It was early, and she'd had a long night. She was dressed in a comfortable grey tunic and light brown breeches she'd found in the bag of clothes she'd received. Her hand was covering her mouth as she yawned when the door swung open wildly and revealed Bartholomew Oobleck standing in the doorway, looking quite frazzled.

"Ah, yes. Ms. Schnee. I had lost track of time," He rapidly began to speak, and Weiss struggled to keep up with the words as they tumbled out of his mouth. "I have heard from Commander Port about your... eventful evening yesterday and wanted to offer my sincerest apologies. I ought to have warned you about Torchwick yesterday," the green-haired scholar stated.

"It wasn't your fault," Weiss said, still yawning slightly. The scholar beckoned her into his office, and they both took their respective seats. Weiss saw the ancient tome and her grandfather's journal sitting on the desk, with the two parchments pinned to a board on the wall. Several academic journals and research textbooks cluttered the desk, but Oobleck just pushed those off.

"I apologize for the mess, Ms. Schnee. I was up all night trying researching what you've given me," He explained excitedly. Weiss didn't judge him; she'd done the same thing multiple times before when she thought she'd gotten a clue to help Ruby.

"Its no problem. Did you make any progress?" She asked, but the man's eyes just turned dark. He gestured for her to sit, and di so himself. He pushed his spectacles further up on his nose, concealing his eyes.

"I must ask, Ms. Schnee, if you are aware of how illegal the contents of this book are?" He interrogated, and Weiss mentally cursed. It was a book on necromancy, of course Oobleck was going to be concerned. She just numbly nodded and struggled to respond.

"I-It was my grandfather's. I want to finish his work, regardless of its legality," She lied, and the scholar just hummed noncommittally.

"What would you do if you could translate this book?"

"I... I don't know. Probably just hide it away in the Schnee library, or give it to one of the kingdoms to hide," She lied again. If she could translate this book, she'd be following its instructions to save her best friend from an eternity of loneliness, not hiding it in some dusty library.

"An acceptable answer. I merely wanted to ensure you knew how dangerous this book is," Oobleck explained, and Weiss nodded.

"Of course I do."

"Good. Then once we have finished translating it, the kingdom of Vale will be locking it away forever," Oobleck told her, and Weiss just bit hir tongue to keep herself from screaming about how unfair that was. According to her story, she just wanted to finish her grandfather's work and had no reason to keep it afterward. She'd have to find out how to keep the book later, but for now had to actually translate the thing.

"That is acceptable," Weiss said neutrally, forcing her emotions down.

"I understand if that frustrates you, but those were the orders I received from his majesty when I spoke to him about the contents of this tome," The scholar told her. Weiss nearly cursed. Of course he had told the king. It was his job, and continuing to use an ancient book on necromancy to translate a dead language needed special approval. It didn't change that things would be a lot harder when she had to actually use the book.

"Have you been able to identify the writing?" Weiss changed the subject.

"Yes and no," Oobleck responded mysteriously. Weiss just shot him a confused look, and he sighed. "I know what language it is, but I can't translate it," He pointed toward the parchment containing the writing she had copied from the ancient fortress.

"Do you know someone who can?"

"No. There is no one alive who knows this language," The green-haired scholar's words crushed her, and it felt like she had been struck by Roman's cane in her stomach as the oxygen was knocked out of her lungs in a single shocked breath.

"W-what?" Her voice was desperate, and a quick glance toward Ruby showed that the ghost was looking at her with concern. Oobleck merely raised one hand to calm her down and pushed his spectacles further up his nose.

"The language comes from an ancient civilization that existed over two thousand years ago in what is now known as Vacuo. However, this writing style was used during the golden age of that civilization, roughly three thousand years ago," Oobleck explained, and Weiss clenched her fists in anger. If she couldn't translate this damn tome, then she was leaving Ruby to suffer forever.

"The language is so ancient that there are almost no books that can be used to translate it to the modern tongue," The scholar told her, and Weiss perked up. Almost no ways meant that there was at least one way to translate the passage.

"How can we translate it?" She asked, leaning forward on the desk, practically begging for him to tell her.

"Around one hundred years ago, the last native speaker of the language died. Before she did, she wrote an academic journal that explained how to translate it. Only a few copies of this journal remain, but I happen to know where a few of them are," Oobleck stated. Weiss wanted to draw her sword and force him to tell her, but instead just asked politely.

"Where would they be?" She inquired eagerly, causing Oobleck to chuckle at her.

"Unfortunately, we will not find any in the city of Vale. There is one close by, but it will not be easy to recover," He explained vaguely.

"I can go retrieve it. Just tell me where it is," Weiss said with a confident smirk. She was finally making progress.

"The book was in the library of Mountain Glenn," Oobleck said softly. Ruby looked at the floor and shuffled awkwardly. "It was a city near Vale. A fortress that expanded into a mining outpost, then again into a city. Over ten years ago, a horde of Grimm swallowed the city in a sea of black," Oobleck said.

"And the book was left behind," Weiss surmised.

"Indeed. It lies there, to this day. Retrieving it had never been a priority, so it slipped the minds of us scholars to go and do so."

"Is it safe to do so? Won't there still be Grimm?"

"Yes. Negativity lingers even after death, so Grimm are drawn to the city. But if you move with a small group, you should be able to move in quickly and retrieve the book without too much opposition while still being able to defeat the powerful Grimm that lurk there," He explained. "If you agree to do so, I will arrange for you and three others to make your way to Mountain Glenn and retrieve the translator."

Weiss didn't even hesitate. "I'll do it."

"Splendid. Now you just have to find a group of people willing to accompany you. I will arrange payment for them, so you have no need to worry about that. You should set out in a weeks time. Until then, find a group of people you can trust," Oobleck ordered.

Weiss glanced at the silver spectre floating in the corner of her field of vision and gave a slight nod and a subtle smirk. "I think I have an idea of who I'm going to take."


Roman Torchwick hissed in pain as he poured his aura into the ring he wore on his hand. The various wounds on his leg began to hiss, steam pouring out of them. When the steam cleared, the large red gashes had been replaced with small pink scars. His body would heal the rest. He finally sat back in his chair and sighed. Healing himself took hours, but he didn't trust anyone else but Neo to do it, and she was busy.

The crime lord was sitting in his dimly lit warehouse with a maze of boxes in the front. This was one of his favorite safehouses, and he needed the extra defenses after how injured that Schnee brat had left him. He pulled a cigar out of his pocket and lit it with a snap that echoed through the warehouse. With a sigh, he leaned back into his chair, closed his eyes, and began to relax.

His relaxation was interrupted by the sound of shattering glass, and he cracked an eye open to see a pair of mismatched brown and pink eyes looking back at him. He slouched forward and took the cigar out of his mouth and shot Neo a questioning look.

"Well? Did you find anything interesting on the princess?" He asked with a raised brow. Neo just smiled and nodded, making Roman chuckle. He reached over and ruffled the girl's hair.

"Good job Neo. What was it?" Roman asked, removing his hand from Neo's head. The multicolored girl pouted and huffed, but Roman just rolled his eyes. "Sorry, Neo, but I'm still a bit upset at that Schnee bitch for making me waste some of my best stock," He explained to the girl he considered his daughter.

She shot him a concerned look, but he just laughed it of cockily. "Do I look injured, Neo? I'm fine. It just annoys me that I used so many of my little trinkets and have nothing to show for it. I even had to use one of these!" Torchwick ranted, pulling out two cigars that surged with powerful magic. "Damn brat. But that's beside the point. What did you find?"

Neo mimed out opening a book, held up four fingers, then seven, and pointed at the cigar. Book, four people, one week, and the little princess. Deciphering what Neo meant with her little charades was a chore, but Roman had gotten pretty used to it.

"How much is this book worth?" He asked, knowing Neo wouldn't mention it if it wasn't important. The little girl gave a vicious grin and pointed at his cane. More valuable than his cane, huh? He gave Neo a wicked smirk and chuckled darkly.

"You know what to do. Get the book and grab the girl," He pointed, and the younger girl gave an exaggerated bow and a cruel smile. "Leave her alive. We make more money that way," The smile fell from Neo's face, but she still nodded. Roman placed his ordinary cigar back into his mouth and his magical one back into his pocket as Neo seemingly shattered into thin air. Roman frowned.

"You can come out now," He called out to the labyrinth of boxes, which seemed to shift and warp.

"You're good," A voice said right into his ear, making him jump in surprise. "What was that about?" A distinctly female voice asked him, and he just snarled.

"None of your business. Speaking of which, I assume that's why you're here?" He turned to ask the women, but found himself looking at nothing. He whirled around, but couldn't find any sign of her. With a growl, he slammed his cane into the ground and sent out a gravity dust powered shockwave, dispersing the illusion. "Stop screwing around, kid."

"Aw, are you not having fun?" Came the teasing voice of Emerald Sustrai as she strutted towards him, two curved swords drawn and pointed right at him. He just rolled his eyes.

"Look, kid, we've been through this. I can't beat you, I sure as hell can't beat your boss, and I have no interest in backing out of our arrangement. Death threats like these just send a bad message," Torchwick explained snarkily. Emerald just rolled her crimson eyes as she sheathed her twin blades. She placed a hand on her hip and gave him a bored look.

"Lady Cinder wants the next shipment to arrive before the next full moon," She declared suddenly, and Roman's cigar fell from his mouth after his jaw fell.

"Y-you're kidding, right? I haven't even met your damned quota. Even if I had twice the men I had now, there's no way I could make it in time," Roman complained, but was quickly silenced when Emerald drew one of her scimitars and pressed against his throat.

"That's a shame. But that's your problem, not ours." Emerald told him. removed the blade from his neck and began to walk away. "We've been in touch with the White Fang. In return for our support for their cause, they're willing to help us with our own. As a sign of cooperation, the Vale faction has agreed to cooperate with you in securing the supplies," The green-haired girl informed him.

"Those animals? You actually managed to put a leash on them?" Roman asked incredulously, but Emerald just shrugged.

"Not yet, but it's only a matter of time with Cinder," She stated. She began to head back towards the labyrinth, before pausing. "How'd you know I was here by the way? I thought I concealed myself," She asked curiously. Roman just smirked.

"Your illusion blocked out the sound of Neo teleporting," He explained condescendingly. "Maybe if you bothered to actually think for yourself instead of needing Lady Cinder to think for you, you'd have realized that."

Emerald just scoffed and walked back into the maze of boxes, the walls seemingly twisting and warping until the concealed her from view. Roman just chuckled; knowing her, she probably just climbed on top of the boxes and left that way. His mood was soured when he recalled what she had told him and he dragged his arm across the table, knocking everything over. He let out a frustrated scream and threw his cane across the room.

"Damn it, Neo. You better get back with some good news. We've been running low on that recently," Roman thought as he sat down in his chair and took a long drag from his cigar. When one of the wounds on his leg tore open and began to bleed, he growled. He'd been in a great mood before that Schnee bitch had come along and cut him up.

"Just you wait, princess. I'll get you back for this, even if it kills me!" Roman Torchwick vowed to himself in the empty warehouse.


Oh boy, Roman Torchwick. One of the most beloved villains in the RWBY fandom. If I'm being completely honest, I never got the hype for him and Neo. They're cool side villains, but I just don't get why they're so liked. I get that its cool that RT wrote a character that conveys emotion so vividly without talking, and Roman's voice actor is clearly having a blast with his role, but I just don't get it. I don't hate them, though. I'm just kind off... neutral about them.

Now, for something that might bother some people. In this AU, Roman and Neo are criminals. As such, they do not have the training required to fight trained warriors like Yang or Weiss. It made sense in RWBY, but it wouldn't work in this AU, especially as I get into later villains who are a lot stronger. If the main characters couldn't beat Torchwick in a one on one, I wouldn't fancy their chances against someone like Cinder or Watts.

But having Roman be a complete pushover doesn't make a very compelling villain, so I figured that it made sense for Roman to have a bunch of magical items that he uses to beat the shit out of people. It fits his character as a thief and a trickster, and allows him to actually hold his own against Weiss. Not to mention I get to come up with crazy magical items, which is always fun.

But do you know what's really annoying? While reading other stories for inspiration on how to write Roman's fighting style, I saw the same stupid trope over and over. They say something about how Roman fights dirty, then he throws dirt in someone's eye or kicks them in the balls. It's stupid. There are more ways to fight dirty then just doing those two things, which barely even count as fighting dirty.

Fighting dirty is bringing a gun to a knife fight. Fighting dirty is hiring armed thugs to help you beat the shit out of someone. Fighting dirty isn't using your fists to punch someone when they drop their guard. The dirt thing is somewhat acceptable, but people don't seem to realize how fast-paced fights are. Reaching down to pick up some dirt is just going to get you stabbed.

There was a lot of exposition in this chapter, and not all of it was written very well. I used a lot of dialogue without actually saying much, and I'm aware it's not my best work. But the next chapters should have a lot more character interaction as opposed to just exposition, which can be nice. Please review if you have any criticism, and have a nice day!