Chapter eight: Homecoming
"Finally." I thought as I stepped off the plane, finally onto solid ground again. It took every ounce of willpower I had not to just fall down and never get back up. The rest of the flight had been, surprisingly, uneventful, other than Blake trying to keep me from throwing up the rest of the way and me petting her ears for a major part of it. I felt a hand on my shoulder as I turned, seeing Qrow standing there, Coco behind him directing the terrified passengers away from us. "You alright kid?" he asked. I nodded, still gaining my bearings of the solid ground. I smiled slightly, "Yeah, fine. Just not the best flyer." I said. He nodded, looking down before he smirked. He started walking away, chugging back one of his flasks. "Yeah, take care of the kitty eh? She's one of the good one's." he said. I cocked an eyebrow towards him, but then I traced where his eyes had been, blushing slightly.
During the plane ride I'd taken Blake's hand at some point, and it seemed as if I'd forgotten to let go. I looked at Blake, whose eyes met mine, her face just as red. I hastily let go, "Uh, sorry." I said somewhat nervously. She nodded, looking ahead, "It's fine." she said. We stood there in silence for a moment, until someone decided to interrupt. "I've got all our luggage, nothing was damaged in the firefight." I heard Ren say from behind me. I turned, smiling slightly for the distraction he offered. "That's good, so… you guys hungry?" I asked, grabbing my luggage from Ren. We'd booked two rooms in a hotel and I had an… ally, to see. Blake nodded, "I haven't eaten yet." she said. Ren nodded as well, "A bit. Could use a drink more though." he said, smirking slightly. I sighed, but I knew what he meant. Back in Vale, illegal or underage drinking was dealt with harshly, but in Mistral? Oh, you'd find a drunk teen on every corner.
"Better than him being on White Lady… well, that's what Nora called it anyway." I thought. Ren never called it that but hell, I'd take a drunk Ren over a rampaging one with a machine gun any day of the week. "Don't worry Ren, I know a place around here where we can get some decent food, and some good cocktails." I said, smiling slightly. Sure, I didn't drink as much as Ren or Nora… god if I drank as much as Nora… but I was no stranger to the devil's brew. Ren smiled while Blake just gave me that odd look. I didn't even need to ask what she meant. "Blake, it's a long story." I said, reading her look instead of her words. She flinched back a bit, but then just nodded, swinging her backpack over her shoulder. "Alright then, how far's the hotel?" she asked. I pointed off to the left, "It's just that way, we'll be staying at the in inn." I said.
"Did you just say the In Inn?" Ren asked. I nodded, I'd stayed there many times myself after all. "Yes." I said simply. Blake was the next one to question me, "In, twice?" she asked. I sighed, rubbing the bridge of my nose, people always were like that about the name the first time around. "Look it'll make sense when we get there." I said. Ren nodded, not taking it further as he and I started walking. I looked back, seeing Blake still standing there, then she seemed to shake herself out of her stupor, rushing to keep up with us, wheeling her suitcase behind her as me and Ren were ours. We walked in silence across the sidewalk as I took in my surroundings. The buildings, with their slanted tiled roofs and familiar architecture… they looked just like I remembered them, from three years ago.
"Jaune! Please!"
I turned, reaching for my gun, only to find Blake behind me, an empty street beyond her. She jumped back, her eyes widening as she turned, then she turned back, confusion clear in her eyes. "What was that?" she asked, walking up next to me. I sighed, letting my hand thud lazily against my thigh. "Nothing just… nothing." I said, patting my pocket. "Here." Ren said, holding out a cigar, my preferred brand to. I took it, cocking an eyebrow at him. "What? You left it in my car last week, just smoke it, we know you want to." he said. I nodded, not questioning it much more as I pulled out my lighter, igniting the cigar as I inhaled, exhaling smoke as I felt the painful memory dulled, the voice calling out to me, but fading more and more. "Why do you smoke anyway Jaune?" Blake asked. I looked back over my shoulder, blowing out a puff of smoke to the side. I just smiled, "The smoke dulls the pain." I said cryptically, turning back towards the sidewalk.
Before Blake could interject I turned, smiling when I saw the sign. "We're here." I said simply. The sign above us was over a large building, the words 'The In Inn' created with neon lights. "Oh, that's what you meant." Ren said, slowly nodding. Blake did the same, but her eyes still looked towards me with that same curiosity… guess she never knew what that did to the cat. "Yep. Ren, the room's under your name, not mine. Go ahead and check us in." I said. Ren gave me an odd look but, likely from being used to this kind of thing by now, nodded, walking towards the front desk. The moment he was gone I felt a grip on my upper arm. I looked over, grabbing my cigar with my left hand as Blake spoke, "'Dulls the pain'? What pain could you be dulling?" she asked, glaring towards me. I sighed, letting out a puff of smoke again. "Do you believe in ghosts Blake?" I asked, looking down at her out of the corner of my eye.
She looked at me incredulously, "If this is some kind of 'cats can see the dead joke', it's not funny." she said, frowning. I chuckled at the thought of it, "That wasn't it but I wish I'd thought of that first. I might have to use that someday…" I said, looking away from her. Blake sighed, facepalming as I looked behind her bow, seeing the little bit of pink felt from her ears falling down, both her ears flattening. "Great, another punster (a/n- not taking credit for that, that's DragonManMax's joke)." she muttered beneath her breath. I smiled a bit wider as I took out my cigar, letting out a puff of smoke into the air before I breathed in the smoke again, the light the tip made reaching the brim of my fedora. "What did you mean?" she asked. I sighed, shaking my head slightly, "You didn't answer the question." I said. Blake growled at me before she sighed, seemingly trying to calm herself down.
"No. I don't believe in ghosts. What does that have to do with anything?" she asked, clearly getting frustrated. I looked out into the streets, completely void of anything resembling life. Then again, it was the middle of the workday. It was a small port city, nothing like Vale. Most people wouldn't be getting off of work for another hour. "I do. One in particular keeps coming back, the smoke makes her go away for awhile." I said. I turned around, heading towards the inside of the hotel, where Ren was heading towards us already, three keys in his left hand. He nodded, tossing the two keys towards me. I caught them in my right hand, wheeling my suitcase with my other hand. I held out my palm towards Blake. "Yours is 214." I said, holding my cigar between my lips. "Pardon me sir, but this hotel is a no-smoking environment." I heard someone say. I sighed, looking towards the man as I let go of my suitcase, taking my cigar in my other hand.
"Since when?" I asked, my expression unwavering. I'd stayed at the hotel plenty of times, never had there been a problem with my smoking. The man pointed behind him at a no smoking sign I hadn't noticed, "As of last month. Sir, is this going to be a problem? Will we be forced to remove you and company from your quarters because of this?" he asked, glaring at me. I shook my head, reaching into my coat and grabbing out a knife. I handed Blake the keys, "Hold onto these." I said quickly before I took the cigar out, slicing off the end of my knife. I normally didn't bother, cigar's tasted different the second time you smoked them. It was either much better, or much, much worse. I stuck it in my pocket before I set my knife back where it was, grabbing my suitcase. "They'll be anymore problems?" I asked, walking towards him. He took a step back before he shook his head, "Um, no sir. That was all. Shall I lead you to your room?" he asked.
I shook my head, smiling slightly, "No need. I know the way. Rooms 213 and 214, both on the second floor, three doors down from the third staircase from the exit door." I said. The man's eyes widened as he turned, swiftly walking away to go back to his duty. Which, based on his uniform, was likely holding the door open for customers. Blake looked at me oddly and, heck, so did Ren. I nodded to Blake, "Come on, let's get settled in." I said. Without another word I started walking, and if the sounds were anything to go by, Blake and Ren quickly followed me. I clutched the key in my now free left hand as I felt the slight bit of annoyance towards the new policy fade away with every step. "I can smoke later… hopefully." I thought.
After a turn up the stairs, a walk three doors down, we were at the rooms. "How do you know this place so well?" Blake asked, walking up next to me. I smiled, "I've stayed here a few times." I said simply. Even Ren seemed to comment on this, "Wait, how many times? You've never brought me here before." he said. I shrugged as I twisted the key in me and Ren's room, Blake's being next door. We all walked in and, before I tossed my suitcase on the bed, I answered. "A dozen, at least. I did a lot of things before we became partners." I said. I would've just left it at that, just let it sit for awhile until it became relevant again. They didn't need to know yet.
Of course, Blake didn't work that way.
"Like what?" she asked. That one question, the only one I'd wished she'd never ask. Or anyone for that matter, not just her. "Let's just say I wasn't always a detective and leave it at that." I said simply, unzipping my suitcase and starting to unpack my own clothes. Ren took it as it was, walking past me and setting up on the bed closer to the wall. This room had no windows, one vent, one way in and out. We were relatively close to the exit, and I'd stayed in the same room countless times. I turned, seeing Blake still standing there, her stare almost burning through me, as if looking for a weakness. It was a futile effort, she wouldn't find one while I was on the ground. In the air on the other hand…
"Like what you see?" I asked, smirking towards Blake when I saw she hadn't reacted to me turning around. Blake looked away, frowning as I saw her cheeks burn a little brighter. "I'll go unpack my things." she said, turning away and walking back towards her own room, shutting the door to ours in the process. I turned back around, continuing to unpack my clothes, only to feel yet another pair of eyes on me. I looked up, blue eyes meeting pink one's as Ren smiled slightly. "No…" I said, drawing it out since I knew what he was going to say. Of course, despite my warning, he said it anyway. "You like Blake, don't you Jaune?" he asked. I sighed, continuing to pack my clothes into the drawers as I replied, "Ren, I was making a joke. Do not, make this into another Velvet conversation." I said. Ren sighed, slowly shaking his head, no doubt remembering that day. "Not one of my best moments…" he muttered.
I nodded as I finished putting up my clothes, zipping my suitcase and setting it beneath the bed. "Exactly. Your sense of 'romance' isn't exactly that great. I mean, look at Nora. Just… just look at her!" I said. Ren glared at me, reaching into his jacket. "What?" he asked. I shook my head, holding out my hands. "That's not what I meant! I meant Nora and you aren't exactly a normal relationship! I mean for crying out loud the two of you met when she had a shotgun barrel on your forehead!" I said, fear creeping in on the edges of my voice. Ren wasn't crazy, but he certainly wasn't above killing people, and for insulting or hitting on Nora, he was much more creative than bullets. Ren nodded, putting his hand down, "Oh… that makes more sense." he said, nodding to himself. I didn't ask what it made more sense than, I didn't try and psychoanalyze Ren, it never ended well for me.
Instead, I just walked to the door, looking back at him as he finished putting away his things. "I'll get Blake, we'll meet you in the lobby." I said as I grabbed the key from the still opened door, holding up my fedora and taping the key inside, along with my wallet. I shut the door, walking over to Blake's. I knocked, waiting for a response. "Jaune?" I faintly heard through the door. I nodded almost out of habit, knowing she couldn't hear me. "Yeah, it's me." I said. I could hear the nervousness on the edge of her voice as she responded. "Hey, can you come help me with this?" she asked. I sported a confused expression, but slowly nodded, opening the door. "Sure? What is it?" I asked when I opened the door, only to clearly see what it was… and why her voice was so hard to hear.
I could see Blake, well, half of her anyway, still as always. Though, her head and hands were beneath the bed, her lower half bent at an odd angle. I kept my confused expression. "Uh, how… how did you get like this?" I asked, trying to fathom what possible reason she had for being in this state. "I uh, dropped something beneath the bed. I've got it just… if you could lift the bed up a little so I could get my head out." she said. I nodded, walking over to it. "How exactly did she… I don't wanna know." I thought as I crouched down, picking up beneath the sides of the bed. "Alright, on three I'll lift, and you move back, alright?" I asked. I heard a meek noise of approval from beneath the bed, and I took it as a go for it. "Alright, one, two, three!" I said, lifting up the bed a good two inches at least. I heard the sound of scuffling and, oddly, I high noise of panic. Succumbing to my curiousity, I looked back, frowning at what I saw as I let the bed fall back down.
In Blake's left hand was a comb, which I expected, nothing out of the ordinary there. In her right, on the other hand, was what looked to be a small rat. It was clawing at her hand and squealing in distress. I looked at her eyes, the at the rat, then back at her. "You know we're going to eat right? Might not want to spoil your dinner." I said, smirking slightly when I saw her face burn bright red. "T-That's not- How dare- YOU FIEND!" she yelled, throwing the rat at me as she shut her eyes. I just raised a hand, catching it. I looked at the rat, and I could've sworn it looked back at me, asking the same question I was. "Is she serious?" we seemed to share. I set the rat down, letting it scurry back into a small hole in the wall before I moved the nightstand, covering it. I looked back to Blake, seeing her staring right at me, her face bright red and her eyes clouded with rage and embarrassment. "Yeash, relax. I was joking. I know you don't actually eat rats. Though, uh, why… did you have it in your hand?" I asked.
She looked away, "I dropped my comb and kicked it beneath the bed, then a rat ran under. I didn't think okay!" she said, glaring at me. I chuckled, "You know, I think this is the most emotion you've ever shown me." I said, leaning back against the wall. She growled, jumping up and slamming a hand into the wall, glaring up at me, trapping me between her arms. "Do you really want to piss me off?! Cause it's working!" she said, baring her teeth in a way I'd liken to a tiger or some other large cat. I surprised her by wrapping my arms around her, leaning down. "Blake. Are you really angry at me? If you are, just say so, and I'll stop." I said, giving her what I called the 'Ren stare'. Also known as showing no emotion so people took me seriously. Her gaze softened as she looked away, "No… I'm not really angry just… annoyed, that's all. You remind me way too much of Yang." she said, smiling slightly.
I let her go, and she stepped back, both of us regaining our composure after the brief break in our normal actions. I walked past her, grabbing her hand, "I'll wait outside, grab your room key and let's go." I said, looking back over my shoulder. I saw her pull her hand back, nodding, her face still dusted with pink. She nodded, "Alright, give me a second." she said. I nodded back, walking out of the door and shutting it behind me. Then, I walked over to me and Ren's room, testing the door. Sure enough, Ren locked it. "Best make sure Blake doesn't forget that." I thought. That was a mistake you only made once. I just leaned back, looking around the hallway as I normally did when I was waiting. It was empty, as I expected, the only exceptions being the occasional paintings and plants lining the walls.
A minute or so later, Blake walked out, turning and locking the door behind her. "Good, I don't have to remind her." I thought. She looked towards me, holding out a hand, "Care to guide me?" she asked. I nodded, smiling slightly as I took her hand, walking towards the door. I hadn't noticed before, but her hand was really… soft, for someone that used a gun so often. I'd have thought her hands would be calloused, like mine. I concentrated on our goal, both of us walking down the stairs, hand in hand, towards the lobby. Now, I knew the place inside and out, every crack, bump, and fault in the stairs I knew almost by heart at this point. Blake, on the other hand, had no such luxury. I felt her lurch on the fourth step up from the lobby, and I reacted, moving around so I was in front of her. "Oof!" she said as I reached up, wrapping my arms around her back and swinging her around, setting her on the lobby floor. I stepped down, our hands still linked, as I smirked.
"Guess a cat always does land on it's feet… well, with a little help from me at least." I said. Blake sighed, but a saw the ghost of a smile on her face. I turned back to the lobby, seeing Ren waiting by the front doors, smiling towards us. Me and Blake walked towards him, ignoring the eyes of everyone around us. Most of which weren't even focused on us anyway. When the two of us got over to Ren, he took one look down and smiled at me. "No huh?" he asked. I looked down, so did Blake. When we looked up, our eyes meeting, we both blushed, looking away from each other. "Let's get going. It's not far." I said, walking out past Ren, towards the restaurant I knew of. I heard both of my companions following behind me after a moment, both catching up and walking at my sides.
It took us maybe ten minutes of walking through the streets, passing maybe two cars along the way, before we got to the restaurant. It was a small place, maybe about the size of the building my office was in… well, the first floor anyway. The name was 'A Simple Wok', it was a large restaurant chain around here, with even rumors of expanding into Vale in the near future. I walked towards it, Blake deciding to voice her opinion. "This is the place? What do they serve here?" she asked. I shrugged, "A few things. Steamed vegetables, noodles, fish," I stopped when I saw her eyes light up slightly. "Among other things." I said, trying not to let the stop be too noticeable. The three of us walked over to the restaurant, seeing the familiar 'Come in, we're open!' sign on the front. So I pushed open the door, a bell chiming as I walked towards the counter.
The place itself was pretty nice. A few tables, some booths, a nice mistralean architecture, reminiscent of the old style of decoration, with the wood frames and cloth panels over them. Though, the windows and air conditioning sort of broke that, but heck, I wasn't about to complain. I walked up to the bar counter, behind which was an assortment of wines and liquors that rivaled even Juniors. Ren looked at them, smiling towards me, "Why'd you never tell me about this place?" he asked. I shrugged, smiling towards him, "We've never been to Mistral together, remember?" I said, pointing out the fact he'd seemingly forgot. I turned back to the front, finding a woman walking out from the back, smiling towards the three of us. "Welcome! Welcome! Sorry about the late delay, dealing with some last minute delivery issues." she said, smiling towards us.
She was dressed almost like a geisha, her face hidden by a white mask, her body by a flower pink kimono. Her hair flowed down to her shoulders, and in her hands was a little notepad, ready to take orders. I smiled, "Give me the Tuesday special." I said. I didn't need to look at it, it was always the same. Blake and Ren, on the other hand, looked up at the large ink writings on the wall, what acted as the menu for this place. "Give me a small bowl of noodles, and a shot of whiskey." he said. The woman seemingly smiled behind her mask, "Which one sweetie?" she asked, her voice a bit higher pitched than a moment ago. Ren shrugged, leaning back a bit, "Don't care. Just make it strong." he said. The woman nodded, then turning to Blake, "What'll yo-" "Give me the fish special." Blake said, an intensity in her eyes that seemed to frighten the woman, her flinching back a bit before she wrote it down, tearing it off before wandering back a bit where she placed it on a hook, only for a long arm to snatch it back.
As the woman poured Ren a shot of some golden brown bottle I vaguely recognized as whiskey, I started talking. "Get many customers lately?" I asked, smiling at the geisha woman. She shook her head as she set Ren's shot glass down, looking towards me with that permanent smile. "Not really, been real quiet around here thanks to those Branwen bandits holding up nearby…" she said. My eyes widened as I leaned in a bit, my eyes taking on the same intensity as Blake's when she asked for fish. "Where are they exactly?" I asked. The woman looked back and forth, and even behind the mask, I could tell she was nervous. "Look, I shouldn't have told you that in the first place. They've got the whole town scared, I can't exactly tell you." she said.I smiled, standing up and walking behind the counter, the woman backing up. "I don't think you realize who you're dealing with geisha." I said, giving her a smile, but there was no emotion. The woman stepped back, "W-Who are you?" she asked.
"Name's Jaune. Jaune Arc."
The woman stepped back further, bowing down at the waist. "I-I'm terribly sorry! I didn't realize! I-" "Tell me. Where. They. Are." I said, glaring down at her. She gulped standing back up, "They're at the mountain pass, a few miles from the city limits. Do you want to know anything else?" she asked. I shook my head, regaining my genuine smile, "Nope. Just go back to doing your job, that was all I needed." I said. I turned, walking back towards my chair with that same small smile on my face as the woman poured a glass of water, slowly walking back towards the door. Exactly what I expected was going to happen, happened. Blake started asking questions. "Okay, what was that about?" she asked. I sighed, slowly taking a drink of water to think over my response. When I set it down, I had my answer, "I told you before, locals don't look too kindly on people that ask too many questions. Sometimes you have to lean on them a little to get things done." I said.
Blake wasn't satisfied with that. "No, what was with your name? The second you said it she got all terrified of you, what was that about?" she asked. Even Ren seemed to want to join in on the conversation, "Yeah, you were never like this in Vale." he said. I sighed as I took another drink, the woman having disappeared into the kitchen. "My family aren't pushovers, you don't want to piss them off." I said simply. Blake's eyes still burned with that familiar curiosity, and even Ren's had a spark of that in them. Though, thankfully, before either could answer, the woman came back out with our food. She set it down in front of us, but before she could speak, I saw her stand up straight. "Mi- Miss Arc! I hadn't expected you so-"
BANG!
"GAH!" Blake yelled, jumping back from the now dead woman. "Don't make us wait." I heard, the voice sending chills down my spine. Three years later, three fucking years… and she was still terrifying. I stood, reaching into my jacket for Crocea Mors. "Hold it right there fedora. Turn around." she said. I slowly turned, my eyes widening a bit as I saw her. She looked different sure, dressed in a tuxedo with long, flowing blonde hair, and bright blue eyes to match. Her eyes hardened as she saw me. "Jaune." she said, not disguising the anger in her voice. I nodded, "Jasmine." I said simply. The girl grit her teeth, walking towards me. "Don't you dare say my name!" she yelled, baring her teeth. I hadn't moved my hand from my coat, but she didn't seem to care. Ren had his gun out, aimed right at her, and Blake had already drawn hers. "Who is this girl?" Ren asked. I sighed, there was no hiding it now, "Blake, Ren, this is my sister, Jasmine." I said. She growled at me, pressing the barrel into my forehead, "You have no right to call me your sister after what you did to Citri!" she yelled. I saw the tears in her eyes, even after all these years she couldn't get over it. I didn't blame her. Hell, I couldn't either. "How could you Jaune!? Why!?" Then, she finally told Blake and Ren what they'd wanted to know, why I left Mistral.
"HOW COULD YOU MURDER YOUR OWN SISTER!?"
