I'm back! Did you miss me? I hope you guys haven't been waiting too long, I've been having some internet issues and was unable to update for five days. Long story short, the chapter refused to upload onto the website. On another note, you guys really liked Alice those two chapters back. Like, really liked her. Seriously the amount of tears that have apparently been shed has told me you all want her back. All I can say is wait and see what will happen, I wouldn't just insert something in for two chapters… would I? Honestly not much more to say than that so I hope you all enjoy the chapter and Follow, Favourite and Review if you did!

Onto the reviews!

Fuzzyjacket: rawr

gammabeta99: I had hoped that would bring some laughs!

SolarCorona: Geez, sorry. I'd like to say something but that would spoil the surprise. All I can say is keep your eye out.

StygianSloth: You're welcome, glad to hear it.

Cloy552: I know, I hope she gets more screentime.

dracohalo117: Thank you, happy to know you enjoyed it.

Benthino: Haha, more or less yeah.

NinjaFang1331: Thank you.

Guest (Guest): Okay, glad to know you found it initially interesting and a relaxing read.

Thehidden6lade: Thank you. Funnily enough, I had pizza the day I read your review.

The Spookiest of Noodles: I dunno, a lot of humour is going to come from the few moments of Iceberg around Jaune.

DarkElucidator: Sorry to hear you missed the reference, but hey, maybe you'll get this one.

SMxABULM: Thank you.

Uchiha Rai: Thanks I tried to make it so.

Gamer AlchemistZ: Thanks for the praise! I wont say who is and who isn't in the harem, I'll leave that to your imagination. However, I will say that I won't ship Blake with Sun.

Just me (Guest): Wow, thanks! I'm glad I was able to pull of a writer Jaune so well, but there are a lot of JaunexHarem fics out there so I can't say mine is the best yet.

Dareth: Thank you, I try to work on the errors and flow but I still need more experience.

Warlox: Thank you!

JNPinch (Guest): Wow, glad to see I'm not the only one.

Sentinel of Silence: Don't worry the SunxJaune thing is only for laughs. Adorable Blake being adorable is always adorable and I enjoy NeoxJaune as well, so that may come into play eventually.

ShadowDriver: Wow really? I'm actually surprised you caught on to that last part though, not many people noticed that and several were asking if Weiss knew so… congratulations on being perceptive.

tsun: Don't worry Neo will come eventually. There's no way she'd leave her cute little author alone for too long.

Stepnoski98 (Guest): You'll have to wait to find out!

OBSERVER01: Glad to see you enjoy my story. I've said to another reviewer previously that Adam is a wild card so it will be a bit until he is featured in the story. Don't worry, more Neo will be coming.

Dutoc: Thanks! Hope you keep enjoying it!

And that is all! I'd just like to say I really appreciate all of the support and reviews all you great readers have given me and I hope you continue to as we move along. Without further ado, bring on the chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY or any other franchises featured in the fanfic, they all belong to their respective owners.


Chapter 16- A Game of Cat and Mouse

It took Blake several seconds to allow the information to sink in as she stared blankly in thought, mildly surprised by the sudden revelation. So that's why he ate the banana like Jaune does, she mused to herself. If she was being completely honest it wasn't too much of a surprise, but it still came out of the left field for the young introvert. She shook her head, now was not the time.
"So… you were saying?" Started Sun suddenly, the girl opposite of him had just started to speak and now she was staying silent and shooting him looks again. The cat Faunus paused her thoughts and cleared her throat.

"Right. Have you ever heard of the White Fang?" Sun rolled his eyes at her, what kind of question is that?

The boy laughed, "Who do you take me for? There isn't a single Faunus on the planet who hasn't heard of 'em." He kicked back and rested his shoes on the tabletop, much to Blake's annoyance. "They're a group of 'Holier than thou' creeps with a messed up sense of justice. If you ask me, I think they're a bunch of-" The bookworm calmly put down her cup of white hot chocolate as Sun answered. In the back of her mind she still couldn't believe Jaune got her hooked on this.

"I was once a member of the White Fang." She stated simply. A small smirk formed on her face when Sun fell out of his chair in surprise, nearly choking on his drink as he did so.

The boy coughed the liquid out of his lungs before finishing his sentence. "-really okay guys who are probably not as bad as people portray them as… right?" Not receiving a noticeable response from the stoic girl he continued, "S-so what was a girl like you doing as a member of the White Fang?"

Blake sighed, "Well, I've been a member for most of my life actually." Sun's eyes widened, wait 'till Jaune hears about this. "You could almost say I was born into it."

"Back then, things were different. In the ashes of war the White Fang was… the humans and the Faunus… the Faunus were subjected to discrimination and… rose up as a voice of our people. And I was there, I was at the front of every… actually thought we were making a difference. But I was just a youthful optimist."

Sun sat 'wrapped' with the story, finding it incredibly 'interesting'. Who was he kidding? No offence to the girl before him but he didn't exactly come to learn about history. It wasn't that he found what she was saying boring, he just thought it was really… depressing.

"So I left. I decided I no longer wished to use my skills to aid in their violence and instead would dedicate my life to becoming a Huntress. So here I am, a former criminal hiding in plain view. All with the help of a little black bow."

The blond Faunus nodded slowly as if on autopilot, staring expressionlessly behind the girl. "Alright… so, have you told any of your friends about this? Specifically Jaune?" He asked robotically. The black haired girl looked sadly down, biting her lip in a guilty manner.

She turned to him pointedly, "No, and you mustn't mention it to them either unless I tell them first or I tell you to." Sun hastily glanced between her and the figure behind her,

"So that means I can tell Jaune that now right?" Blake shook her head, understanding his plight.

The girl gave him an apologetic look, "I know he's your childhood friend and all, but unless he heard it from me you cannot-"

A nervous chuckle came from behind the introvert, "H-hey Blake… long time no see?" Greeted a certain blond knight awkwardly from behind her.

Sun grinned at his childhood friend, Blake had –indirectly- just told him herself about her past so he was all clear. "Dude, you won't believe what Blake just told me!" Jaune facepalmed.


Ruby sighed for the fifth time that day as they continued their search for their missing teammate. "Blaaaaaake!" She cried out for what felt like was the thousandth time. She was beginning to lose hope. To her left her sister called out in a similar fashion, equally concerned for their teammate if not more considering she was her partner. Weiss just walked alongside them silently, her head filled with thoughts that a certain blond knight placed in her head. Ruby turned to the heiress with a rare frown on her face, "Weiss, you're not helping!" The white haired girl shook her thoughts away.

"I'm… sorry, Ruby. I was just… contemplating something." She mumbled quietly. Yang adorned an intrigued expression, sending a curious look to her younger sister for answers. The rose merely shrugged in response, having no idea what was going on in Weiss' mind. The busty boxer frowned,

"What do you mean you don't know? She's your partner." Ruby just shrugged again. The blond student sighed, there was just no telling what was in Princess' head was there? "So… any ideas where we can look next?" She asked in an attempt to lighten the mood.

The youngest of the three shook her head, "I think we've looked practically everywhere for her." She stated, a defeated look marring her normally ebullient nature.

Weiss nodded in agreement, "I think for once the dunce is right. We've searched high and low through Vale and haven't seen hide nor hair of her."

Penny smiled brightly, "Well I think Weiss' hair looks exceptionally sensational today." The three girls jumped in surprise, not expecting the awkward girl to be there.

"Gah it's the pole!- I mean, hi Penny." Greeted the young heiress politely, adding a small curtsy to emphasise her civility. Ruby gave her newest friend a look,

"Penny, how long have you been there?" The socially awkward girl continued to smile at the three.

"I've been here since the 967th yell of 'Blaaaaaake'." The members of Team RWBY, sans Blake, just stared blankly at the girl. "Since eight minutes ago." The rose blinked, huh, so that might have actually been the thousandth call for Blake. Go figure. Wait, how did she know it was-? "What are you all doing?"

"We're looking for our friend Blake." Explained Yang in hopes that the socially inept girl had seen her, "Have you seen her anywhere recently?"

Penny gave a look of understanding, bopping her hand on her palm like she had seen so many people do on the internet. "Oh I get it. You're playing what people call 'Hide and go seek' with the Faunus girl!" The girls faceplanted in utter disbelief at the pole girl's misunderstanding.

Ruby frowned and narrowed her eyes skeptically as something within her new friend's statement finally clicked. "Wait, how did you know she was a Faunus?" The orange haired girl gave the three students a confused stare,

"The cat ears." She explained, gesturing to her head.

Yang gave her an incredulous look, "What cat ears? She wears a bo… oh." She trailed off upon the realisation of the truth.

Penny frowned, "That was a bow?" She mumbled silently to herself. Her train of thought derailed as a tumbleweed blew past them. "Ooh? Is that a Salsola Tragus? What is it doing so far from the wilderness?" She queried excitedly, watching with bated breath while it rolled out of view. "Simply sensational."

Ruby placed a hand to her chin in thought, ignoring the strange girl's obsession with tumbleweed. "That does explain why she likes tuna so much."

"So… how long has this game of 'Hide and go seek' gone for?" Questioned the orange haired girl. Yang sighed,

"She's been missing since this Friday." Penny gasped in surprise. The blond smiled, maybe now she had finally understood the situation.

Her hopes were shattered once she cried "She is a really good hide and seeker!" The remainder of Team RWBY facepalmed. "Well don't you worry Ruby my friend, I won't rest until we find your teammate!"

"Th-that's really nice of you Penny but we're fine. Right guys?" The rose turned to find her teammates missing. "…" She stood in shocked silence at the two missing girls, unable to believe they had just done that.

Penny's eyes widened considerably as the wind changed direction and brought the tumbleweed back. "Ooh you're back! Hold up friend! I must observe how you've gotten this far away from your habitat!" Ruby watched with a look of astonishment as her friend ran off after the tumbleweed.

"Hey wait, Penny don't leave me by myself!"


Sun yawned as he placed his hands behind his head, sitting on a seat in front of a girl who wouldn't do anything but shoot looks every now and again was surprisingly tiring. "So what's the plan?" He asked, lazily rubbing his eye with his tail. Jaune nodded from beside him, he too was curious as to what Blake's plan of action was.

The introvert gave a skeptic glare at the blond knight, "Well I still think the White Fang hasn't taken part in these robberies, but I don't have proof." The two blonds nodded, "And how did you even find me Jaune?" The young writer brought up his hands, slightly threatened by her untrusting stare.

"Hey I didn't find you on purpose. You guys just happened to be at the café I frequent regularly. Y'know the one I took you to when we went to get that book of yours." Blake blushed, she just had to choose that place because of their delicious white hot chocolate didn't she? The black haired beauty frowned, not that the two childhood friends noticed, why did she feel disappointed?

She shook her head. "Anyway, the White Fang have never needed this much dust before." It's not like they could use it or sell it for lien. Shops already sold it for a decent price so there was never a need to look for cheaper options.

Sun's eyes widened in realisation, "What if they did?" He asked suddenly, "The only way to prove that they didn't do it, is to go to the place they would most likely go to if they were to do it, and then not find them there doing it… right?" Blake gave him a stupefied look, not understanding a single word he said.

Jaune in the meantime stared at his childhood friend with a surprised expression. He grinned, "Sun you genius!" The male Faunus glared at him,

"Hey! I am not a- wait did you say genius or pe-" The black haired bookworm interrupted him with a blush.

"What in Remnant did he say Jaune?" She asked, annoyed by how laid back the two were. Sure they hadn't talked since they were children, Sun had left without a goodbye and Jaune finally got another chance to talk to the one friend his sister's didn't chase away with their overprotectiveness, but this was a serious matter. Why is it when I put it that way I sound really inconsiderate?

The blond writer smiled at Sun's ingenuity, "Basically, we should be able to find out if the White Fang are not stealing dust if we just go find the place where they would steal it if they were going to steal it and see that instead of them stealing it, they are not there and are not stealing the dust." Explained Jaune. Blake nodded and placed a hand to her chin in contemplation, slightly surprised by Sun's idea.

"The problem is, we don't know where that would be." The blond Faunus gave the girl a look of disbelief.

He held up a hand, "Hold on, how did you understand that but not what I said?" The introvert shrugged. Sun sighed dejectedly, "Alright, well we could always check the docks." Blake tilted her head slightly to the left.

"Why the docks?"

"Well, while I was smashing that guy in chess I overheard one of them say that there was a huge shipment of dust coming in. Like a huge, big Schnee company freighter." The girl frowned,

"Are you sure?"

Jaune nodded for his friend, "When I was taking a walk through the city a couple days ago I heard the same thing." The bookworm nodded, trusting in the two blonds.


Yang smiled appreciatively at the shop owner as she and Weiss exited the establishment, making sure to give her thanks. Upon shutting the door she gave a small glare to the silent girl who hadn't spoken a word the entire search. "Alright Princess spill, what's wrong?" The heiress' head perked up upon being mentioned but didn't answer, "You've been silent the whole time, do you really not care if we find her?" The white haired student shook her head.

"It's not like that, of course I do." Spoke the girl softly. "I just… it's complicated." Yang raised a brow but didn't comment. Must be hard being a princess. "Let's just go find her so we can stop with this incessant searching."

The heiress sighed audibly as she thought back to the conversation with a certain blond knight.


Flashback


Jaune stood in surprise as Weiss opened the door to the JNPR room. The boy quickly ducked as Nora took advantage of his surprise to score an ace in their table tennis game, the ball flying over his head and nailing Ren on his. "Woohoo! And the queen's reign is undefeated!" The girl sang as she bounced around.

The visitor shook her head, "I'm not even going to ask how you got a table tennis table." Grumbled the girl, "I'm here for Jaune." The blond's eyes widened as he gave her a hesitant smile.

"What's up Snow Angel?" He asked her curiously, "I'm not in any trouble am I?" Weiss ignored the miniscule breaks in his voice as he addressed her.

"I want you to make good on one of your promises." She stated simply, grabbing his arm and dragging him out of the room. Jaune flinched, apparently she wouldn't take no for an answer.

The blond boy flashed her a smile midway to the library, "So… what's up?" He asked awkwardly. An unnoticeable look of hurt flashed across her eyes as she noticed his change in nature around her. It was barely noticeable, but it was there. The small breaks in his voice, his hesitance to touch or even look at her and the sad looks he'd shoot at her occasionally when he thought she wasn't looking all pointed to something obvious, but now was not the time for that. The two took a seat in the lesser-ventured section of the library. Jaune smiled nervously, hopefully he'd be able to survive this intact… maybe. "So how did your team's short stories go? My team and Velvet managed to barely manage to get it in in time." The look on her face reflected her thought process, oh dust we completely forgot. She sighed, they finished but the whole thing with Blake distracted them long enough to make them miss the deadline. Jaune decided to let the subject go, seeing the look of disappointment on Ali- Weiss's face.

After a few minutes of silence the girl finally spoke. "Remember a while ago when you said you're always ears if I need them? Well as much as I hate to admit, I need some… advice." The knight frowned, what could she possibly have to- don't tell me she found out that Blake was a-?
"Blake's a Faunus." She admitted, Jaune gasped. How did Blake's secret get released? Weiss nodded understandingly, "I know it's hard to believe but it's the truth." She watched as the person opposite of her took a moment to take in the information.

"So what exactly is the problem?" He asked curiously, hoping to get some form of backstory. Unfortunately it was apparently the wrong thing to ask as she gave him an incredulous look.

"What's the problem? What's the problem?" She cried, "Not only has a Faunus been living right under my nose for the past few months, a person who I thought was my teammate- my friend- has apparently been lying to me since I first talked to her!" Jaune staggered backwards, surprised by the amount of rage the heiress was currently emanating.

He held up his hands defensively, "Alright Snow Angel it was just a question. I mean, at least she told you now right?"

The white haired girl shook her head, "That's also part of the problem, she didn't. Well she did, but not in the way you'd think." The novice knight tilted his head curiously, not understanding what she had meant. "She said it indirectly, in the midst of a heated argument." Jaune sighed, that made a lot more sense. There was no way Blake would spill her secret any other way.

"So… what now?" Weiss gave him a confused look. Jaune scratched his head, "I mean, what are you trying to tell me?"

She glared at him indignantly, "What am I-? I'm saying that Blake is a Faunus! She's been one the entire time and she hasn't told us. She even said she was in the White Fang!" The young writer's eyes widened, Ok that's new. He shook his head and sighed, Weiss just wasn't grasping what he was trying to say.

"Ok, so Blake's a Faunus. What does that change?" The girl scoffed at the easy question but found herself silent. "You said it yourself, Blake has been a Faunus the entire time you've been friends. As in, nothing changed. All that's different is you now know she's a Faunus." Weiss stared speechless. "Sure she didn't tell you until now and you can yell about that all you want, but I'm sure she has her reasons. Just like how you have your own reasons for hating the White Fang."

The young heiress growled, "Well, she's still a part of the White Fang!" She cried, Jaune had to stop himself from thinking about how much she sounded like on of his younger sisters trying to win an argument.

"And did you hear her part of the story?"

"…" Her fists clenched, "Jaune, the innocent never run!"

He shook his head, "They do if they're in fear of persecution from the guilty or those in power, and considering how you're acting right now it was a good thing she did." Weiss flinched as if she had been struck. "Yes, she's a Faunus, yes, she lied to you, yes, she ran away, but stop and think Weiss. Just because she's a Faunus doesn't mean she's a bad guy. I mean, you have seen Velvet right? She could've whooped Cardin's ass to Atlas and back but didn't because that's just who she is."
"Sure Blake lied to you, but who doesn't? You've definitely told a big lie or two yourself, and tell me this. Look me in the eye, and tell me you still would have been her friend if you had known right from the get-go that she was a Faunus. Tell me that you would've been able to look past your prejudices and tried to see things from her side." The heiress stayed silent, staring at the floor as if trying to find something to rebut with.
"Okay, Blake ran away. I'll bite and agree with you that the innocent never run. However, the persecuted do. I don't know what the situation was like after she accidentally dropped that bomb on you all but I can assure you, if it was done after a heated argument the atmosphere was definitely not welcoming." Weiss glared at him weakly, she had come here because she thought he would advise her on what to do, not scold her like a five year old.
"Weiss just… talk to her. Get her proper side of the story and you'll see, she's still your friend and teammate even if she is a Faunus. I know that I don't care." With his spiel done he walked off, needing to go have a rest and maybe some cold water. That's twice now I've revealed my innermost thoughts and feelings to her huh? He mused to himself tiredly.

Meanwhile Weiss was having an inward war with herself, almost literally. 'I told you he wasn't like that', said a voice in a matter-of-fact tone. Weiss glared,
"Silence you, I'm not in the mood."


End Flashback


Penny tilted her head as she and Ruby walked down the street in search for her Faunus teammate. "So, Blake is your friend?" she queried.

The rose rolled her eyes, "Yes Penny."

"And you're mad at her?" Ruby shook her head,

"No Penny, she just- Blake might not be who we thought she was." The awkward girl still couldn't understand what her friend was trying to say.

She gasped dramatically, "Is she a man?" The young reaper facepalmed, shaking her head as she did so.

"No Penny, that's not what I meant by that." Blake definitely wasn't a guy with a bust size that big… The small girl adorned a jealous expression. Not to self, drink more milk after we find Blake. "We- I, don't know what she is. Blake wasn't exactly in the most talkative of moods when she ran off. Then again she's almost never in a talkative mood."

The pole girl's exuberant behaviour calmed slightly, "I don't have very many friends. That's why I would like for the ones I do have to talk to me about stuff." Ruby gave her friend a small thankful smile.

"Me too Penny. Me too." Muttered the red haired girl as she began to walk again. "Y'know Penny, maybe you're smarter than I gave you credit for."

The orange haired girl smiled appreciatively, a proud grin on her face. "Why thank you friend Ruby! I may not look like it, but I can be pretty-" her entire expression visibly lit up as the tumbleweed passed the two once more. "Hello again friend!" She greeted. The tumbleweed, being a plant with no face or limbs, gave no visible sign of acknowledging her greeting and continued to roll down the street. "Hold up friend! I'd like to ask you some questions!" Cried the strange girl once the wind picked up, increasing the plant's pace.

Ruby sighed, "I take that back."


Blake stared unblinkingly at the yard full of Schnee Company shipping crates from a warehouse a few hundred meters away. Having Faunus vision at night really helped the stakeout. She frowned at the containers, they no doubt held a large amount of dust. Fortunately or unfortunately, the two blonds were right after all.

Jaune shivered as he looked at the pitch-black yard. Why Blake had chosen such a far away place he had no idea. His stomach growled audibly, much to the ire of the cat Faunus to his right. Where's Sun with the food? He sighed, this was turning out to be a lot more boring than he initially thought it would be considering he couldn't see anything. Due to his hunger and boredom it did not occur to him that he could've used his semblance to enhance his eyesight.

"Did ya' miss me?" Joked Sun as he leapt onto the building. The knight's face brightened at the idea of finally getting a bite to eat. Meeting the two Faunus at the café kind of ruined his plans for lunch and it was already really late, the last few airships to Beacon had probably started to get ready to leave in a few hours. "Something happen while I was gone?" Questioned the monkey Faunus as he took a bite from an apple.

The introvert shook her head, "Not yet. They've offloaded all of the crates from the boat but that's all so far."

Sun shrugged, "Cool. Stole you guys some fruit, want some?" The blond writer grinned and held out his hands. "Catch!" Jaune gave a thumbs up in appreciation upon receiving a banana. Blake's ear twitched as she began to blush, something about two males deepthroating bananas on both her sides was unsettling.

"Do you always break the law without a second thought?" She asked her fellow Faunus in an attempt to get her mind off of the innuendoes forming within her head.

The boy gave her a pointed look, "Hey, weren't you in a cult or something?" Jaune facepalmed. The female bookworm gave him a harsh glare in retaliation. "Right, too soon."

The three were nearly blown off of the roof as a Bullhead began to 'stealthily' land, generating enough noise to wake the dead but apparently not draw attention. The students stared in surprise at the loud, eye-catching aircraft. Wasn't this supposed to be a covert mission or something? Wondered Jaune, Anyone within a mile radius would definitely hear the racket this ship is making!

Jaune squinted his eyes, trying to see if anyone came out of the ship. "What's happening? Is that them?" Screw not being able to see far away. Why didn't he get a semblance of supervision or something?

Blake grimaced at the sight, "Yes. It's them." Said the young ninja. Sun frowned uncharacteristically.

"What's the game plan?" Asked the blond monkey.

The blond knight tried to use his hands as makeshift binoculars, "How can you two see and hea- oh right Faunus senses."

The black haired beauty sighed, ignoring the young writer. "I just… can't believe it." Sun looked comfortingly at her.

"You really believed it wasn't them?" The girl shook her head sadly,

"No, deep down I think I kne-" she was interrupted as a voice began to yell at the grunts down below.

"Hey! What's the holdup?" Blake's eyes widened, a scowl taking over her sad look. "We're not exactly inconspicuous at the moment what with the whole noisy Bullhead notifying the entire neighbourhood. So unless you want all of Vale's security on our assess I suggest you pick up the pace." Berated an orange haired man as he walked off of the Bullhead.

The cat Faunus frowned, "This isn't right. The White Fang would never work with a human." Jaune blinked,

"Wait, what's happening? I can't see from here! What are they saying?" He paused but received no answer. "Blake?" He asked once more.

"Dude, she's already jumped off to go confront the human bossing those grunts around." Replied Sun helpfully, snacking on another banana. The boy grinned as he got up onto the ledge, "You coming?"


Roman sighed, hopefully he'd be done with this job soon. So long as nothing went wrong he'd be able to make it back to Neo in time for dinner. For whatever reason she was in a happy mood and he wanted to milk it for all it was worth, after all the crazy little she-devil wasn't in such a great mood very often. He loved her like the daughter he never had but dust did she love to be… aggressive when it came to her wants. Namely a knee to the jewels or a parasol to the neck depending on whether she was feeling merciful or not.

Before his thoughts could get any further off track the cold feeling of steel to the neck, fairly reminiscent of Neo's parasol on his jugular, was brought to his attention. "What the-" he looked to see a black haired girl with a similarly coloured bow holding a sword to his neck. The editor rolled his eyes, "Oh for f-"

"Nobody move." Demanded Blake as she tightened her hold on the admittedly fancy criminal. The grunts around the vicinity quickly pointed their weapons at the offender, ready to fight if it came down to it. The girl quickly removed her bow, revealing her secret to the world. "Brothers of the White Fang! Why are you aiding this scum?"

Roman smirked, "I don't think a certain kitty who ran away from home can really talk huh?" He winced as the sword was pressed further into his neck. "Now, now little lady, let's not get too hasty here. If you really must know the White Fang and I are going in on a joint business venture together."

The young bookworm's glare deepened, "Tell me what it is or I'll put an end to your little operation."

The well dressed criminal smirked as the wind began to pick up around the area. "I wouldn't exactly call it little." He commented casually, several Bullheads flying in from overhead. Before Blake's attention was taken off of the flying airships he quickly shot a blast from Melodic Cudgel at her feet, launching her backwards in a flashy explosion.

From atop the warehouse Jaune's eyes widened upon seeing the flash. "Sun what happened?" The monkey Faunus frowned as he downed another banana.

"It's not looking good, that human guy did something to cause an explosion while Blake was trying to hold him hostage." He answered. He looked worriedly at his childhood friend, it had been a while since he had seen the blond writer so concerned.

"Blake are you okay?" Exclaimed the knight suddenly. Sun resisted the urge to hit himself. What would calling out to her accomplish? All that served to do was alert the enemies of their presence.

Roman's eyes widened considerably as he heard a familiar voice call out. "Oh son of a- this is not good." He grumbled. He took out a scroll an began to dial, "Oi Neo, something came up so I may be a little late for dinner."

"…"

"No, unfortunately this is much worse than being caught by the police. Wait, what do you mean you made my favourite?"

"…?"

The orange haired man rubbed his temples, "Well unfortunately your boyfriend's here." Before he could say any more Neo blinked into existence and hit him in the gut. "Right, not your boyfriend. Got it." He coughed out. "Anyway, get your brother here for a second. I need a disguise and stat, or do you want your 'cute little author' to never want to see us again?" The ice-cream themed lady bit her nails for a moment before quickly grabbing her brother from… somewhere. The girl explained the situation with a couple of hand gestures and a three-minute game of charades. The young trap nodded and clicked his fingers, changing their appearances. Thanking him for the help, Neo brought him back to the house. Roman raised a brow at the multi-coloured girl. "What, are you staying?"

"…!"

"Hey, it's not my fault your future fiancé decided to show u-" a high-heeled boot to the chest interrupted him as it sent him skidding backwards. "Alright, I probably deserved that one."

"…"

"What do you mean don't hurt his friends? I'm going to die! Or get caught!" He cried indignantly.

"…"

Roman groaned as the girl walked off, "Figure it out she says. I swear Neo, one day you are going to-" Once again, a boot to the chest interrupted him as Blake kicked him out of nowhere. "Alright kitty, playtimes over." He rapidly fired four explosive dust shots in quick succession, making sure the girl could easily dodge out of the way while still being forced backwards. Using the clones to escape the black haired girl cursed inwardly as she was pushed back several meters.

"Heads up!" Grinned Sun as he leapt onto her assailant. The fancy robbed blocked the kick with his cane and easily knocked the boy back.

He glared at him, "Enough with the monkey business." As if to spite him Sun threw a banana peel onto his hat. "I just got this hat cleaned." The blond's eyes widened as a dust round knocked him back, sending him tumbling a few meters. From behind Neo glared at him. Roman rolled his eyes, "Butterfingers."

Before Sun could attempt to retaliate several White Fang grunts began to jump out of the Bullhead. "Landing strategies like we practiced!" Cried one of the Faunus. The blond monkey Faunus looked around curiously as a noise that could only be described as a prehistoric bird getting strangled by a steamroller while in mid free-fall filled the air. The sound stopped immediately once a grunt bellyflopped the concrete. The blond winced at the impact, for some reason that Faunus reminded him of one of his teammates.

The grunts began to charge him at once, and in the usual grunt-like fashion attacked him one at a time. Roman groaned, there were twenty of them! Surely at least two of them would attack at the same time! He was unable to outwardly express his pain as a familiar blond knight came down with a vertical slash that was telegraphed from a mile away.

The attack, unsurprisingly enough, was blocked. Jaune frowned as he stared at the blue haired man before him. "Do I know you from somewhere?" Roman's eyes widened briefly.

"O-of course not!" He laughed nervously before loosing a shot from a disguised Melodic Cudgel at the boy's face, launching him into a shipping container. Jaune, not expecting the force behind the blast, watched helplessly as his shield was sent a couple of feet to the left. When he turned to observe his opponent the blond was unnerved to find the criminal grinning wildly, a happy glint in his eyes. It had just clicked in Roman's head, he could now do whatever he wanted to the boy and pass it off as self-defence! Neo would never know a thing! He cackled, "Get ready for the fight of your life boy!"

Jaune gasped as his opponent closed the space between them in a second. The novice knight could barely keep up with Roman's attacks as they became twice as hard at double the pace. The young hunter-in-training's aura was slowly being whittled down, as he was not used to fighting without a shield. Neo glared at her father figure, she couldn't tell if he was actually trying to hit the blond author because the boy was that good at combat, or if he just wanted to get back at Jaune for supposedly winning his 'daughter's' affections. She didn't like him like that, their relationship was strictly professional… absolutely.

The slightly beaten student leaped backwards in an attempt to get some breathing room. Unfortunately that had been what the blue haired dust thief was waiting for. The older man grinned as he began to fire several rounds at the melee-bound hunter. Jaune groaned, rolling out of the blast range at the last second. This was why he should've chosen a long ranged weapon. He quickly turned his gaze to check up on his fellow blond. Are those gunchucks? That is awesome.

The shield-less knight moved to engage the blue haired criminal once more but was intercepted by what appeared to be his assistant. The girl smiled menacingly at him and got into a fighting stance. He frowned, no weapon? She winked at him, her yellow eyes staring suggestively into his. Jaune blushed before shaking his head animatedly. There was a time and a place for this type of stuff and this was not it. Unfortunately, his teenage hormones begged to differ. The enemy girl appeared directly in front of him with speed that felt as if she had teleported. She grinned childishly and flicked him on the forehead as if she was playing a game and before Jaune could make sense of what she had done the shorter girl delivered a kick that sent him skywards. As he fell comically back to Remnant the woman unrelentingly kicked him over a container and out of sight, forcing him to drop his weapon from the force of the kick.

The blond hacked harshly upon landing, this woman was leagues above that thug he had fought a bit back. It was almost laughable the difference between a common street thug and a full-blown criminal. The knight got up shakily, it was hard to believe it only took two kicks from her to reduce him to this. He grumbled in an irked manner, "And I was just feeling like I had gotten somewhere with training too." As if a light switched had been flicked on the student remembered something that would have come in handy. "Oh yeah, my semblance." Getting into a relaxed stance the hunter in training tried to begin the breathing exercises he used when utilising his semblance over long periods of time. Neo grinned sadistically as she leapt over the container using only the strength of her legs, no aura needed, and delivered an express knee to the face.

Not showing any mercy the disguised icecream went for a flurry of kicks, each hitting their mark as her cute little author was given no time to activate his semblance. The novice swordsman grimaced as he was pushed back, it was almost as if she knew not to give him time to start a comeback. Is this the power of those with actual years worth of training? Jaune gulped audibly as Neo pinned him to the container by the neck using her foot. The girl resisted flashing her eyes with glee, knowing she'd be found out immediately. Instead the surprisingly sadistic publisher showed her amusement by licking her lips and lending him a seductive wink. Jaune was in for a lot of trouble.

While Jaune was being molest- er, attacked by his publisher, Sun was busy dealing with the grunts. He smirked as he sent one of them Roman's way, forcing the man to duck under the unconscious Faunus projectile. This all went according to Sun's plan as he lobbed a banana onto his hat when he wasn't looking, "Three points!" He exclaimed childishly. The fancy robber growled and fired a dust round at the monkey only for it to be blocked by the staff.

"He's mine!" Cried Blake as she jumped out of the containers to full on assault Roman with everything she had. The blue haired criminal frowned, he may actually have to kick it up a notch if the fight became a two on one. The introvert scowled, no matter how many times she attacked in any given direction he blocked it with ease. How was someone as feeble looking as him so good at fighting? And what happened to Roman? When did this blue haired guy replace him?

Roman grinned and began to go on the offensive seeing that the cat Faunus was too caught up in her emotions to hit him. "C'mon kitty, what happened to your claws?" He taunted as he knocked her backwards with several well-placed hits with his cane. Blake growled and attempted to pick herself off the floor, all she knew was this man was just as irritating as the last. Sun hurriedly jumped in to stop the clearly one-sided fight.

With speed and technique that proved he had been using his weapon for years the blond Faunus began to unload and reload whilst swinging at the older man. The sheer speed and momentum paired along with having to deal with the shotgun shells as well began to put the criminal on the ropes as he still had to hold back or Neo would murder him anyway. Fortunately before he could try and push for an advantage Blake came in and knocked him away, effectively stopping the onslaught of attacks for him.

Deciding it would be hard to continue holding back if it was a two on one the criminal took aim at the shipping container above the two. "Heads up!" He cackled as he took out the chains holding the crate up. Sun leapt out of the way without thinking and found himself face to barrel with Melodic Cudgel. The blue haired man's attempt to 'finish off' the blond was cut short as a brown ball nailed him in the face, causing the shot to miss dramatically. Before anyone could comment on what had just happened a loud voice echoed from the rooftop of a warehouse.

"Wait come back! I need to show you to Pubert Spore Haywood! You're both miracles of nature!" Cried Penny, "He managed to get six achievements and you managed to travel 200 miles away from your natural habitat!"

From behind her Ruby panted exhaustedly, a side effect of running after a tumbleweed. "Penny, I don't think a tumbleweed can understand you! And for the sixth time, how does a fungus get achievements? It'd need to plug in the console and pay for the internet and-"

Roman groaned, this was just what he needed. More of Jaune's 'friends'. He sent a round right into the tumbleweed as a form of comeuppance for hitting him in the face. Regrettably, that was where his luck ran out. Ruby watched as he friend began to march forwards, her usual happy demeanour gone in place of a rather angry one. "Penny wait, get back!" The girl shook her head.

"Do not worry friend Ruby, I am combat ready!" The young reaper watched in awe as swords appeared to come out of Penny's back. "Those who harm my friends must be punished." The strange girl hastily leapt off of the building in the general direction of the blue haired man. The criminal rolled his eyes,

"Come on missy, it was just a tumbleweed!" He shouted in an attempt to calm her down. The well dressed criminal watched in mixed amusement and shock as the girl began to manipulate the swords and take out his henchmen one by one. Why kind of people does Jaune hang around? The man resisted the urge to hit himself from the stupidity of the White Fang grunts as they got mowed down like grass. "Did you idiots really believe that charging at her as a group in a straight line would make you a harder target to hit!" he cried exasperated. Today was just not his day.


Sun whistled impressed with the girl's handiwork. She was making short work of that blue guy's forces. A loud cry for mercy from behind him took his attention off of the one sided fight to a blue shipping container. The monkey Faunus briskly ran behind the crate to find Jaune being harassed by the man's blue haired assistant. The boy cried uncle as the assistant kicked him in the chest, sending him sprawling to the floor on his back. He gulped rather audibly as the girl placed her high-heeled foot onto his chest. Bending down and licking her lips while maintaining eye contact further proved to increase his fear, or was it arousal? Maybe a mix of both? The silent girl smirked mischievously at his blushing face. "Meep." Muttered the emotionally confused knight under his breath.

Before she could physically do anything however, Sun knocked her back with a kick. "Alright, fun's over." The blond grinned, he always wanted to do that. Jaune sighed thankfully at his saviour. The two students paused in confusion as the brunette pouted for a brief moment before her expression turned to one of anger, like when you take a child's favourite toy from them. Neo glared daggers at the newcomer, she had been looking forward to teasing him further. Unfortunately for the ice-cream lover and fortunately for the childhood friends she was stopped from acting upon her frustration as the voice of Roman came from above.

"Oi! Get your short ass up here, we gotta go!" He shouted. The blue haired criminal hated to admit it but the strange girl's appearance threw a wrench into his dust-stealing scheme. The brunette bowed politely before the two blonds, sending a death glare Sun's way and a playful wink at Jaune. Her two opponents were forced to cover their eyes as she leapt up and disappeared in a bright flash, reappearing in Roman's Bullhead. "I swear Jaune hangs out with the weirdest people- is that Red?" Neo gave him a strange look as he waved to a girl in a hood.

"…"

Roman rolled his eyes, "Don't give me that look, she's too young for me. Red's that girl who ruined my other robbery a while back." He pinched the bridge of his nose once the girl began to yawn, disinterested already. "Either way, you're lucky he didn't recognise us." Roman frowned as his surrogate daughter's face lit up upon remembering what had happened during the battle, a small tinge of red painting her cheeks.


As the two flew off Jaune and Sun were still trying to make sense of what had happened to the blue-eyed writer. "So… was she about to-"

The knight shook his head, shooting his childhood friend a glare. "Not a word to anyone." He stated simply.

"I'm fine with that but… weren't you wearing clothes on your torso before?" Queried his fellow blond with an amused smirk. True to his word the knight's armour, hoodie and shirt were nowhere to be found. Jaune groaned,

"During the fight she, uh, cut them to pieces. She also cut the straps keeping my armour on, so now I have to get that fixed." Sun resisted the urge to burst out in laughter lest he gets a fist to the face, but he also felt envy for his friend. Why did he get to fight the short temptress while he was stuck taking out the admittedly skilled thief? The blond writer noticed the look his friend gave him and shot another glare, "Not a word."

Upon making it back to the others they saw several police cars parked around the area as Blake, Ruby and the new girl all sat on crates. The two members of Team RWBY blushed upon seeing Jaune's clothing, or lack thereof. Ruby's expression became one of concern, "Jaune! What happened to your-?"

He silenced her by holding up a finger, "I'd rather not talk about it." The cat Faunus next to the rose frowned, if she remembered correctly the blond boy was facing off against that blue haired man's assistant but taking off the armour that protected him wouldn't exactly help, in fact quite the opposite. So what could he possibly have done with that woman that warranted taking off his- the young beauty's train of thought was interrupted as she was sent flying off the crate via a nosebleed.

Sun turned to Jaune, a curious expression on his face, "What's up with her?" He shrugged in response, he had no idea what Blake was thinking sometimes. Their attention was grabbed when a voice came from the right.

"Ruby, are these your friends?" Asked Penny curiously, her voice quieter than normal. The youngest of them frowned slightly, the pole girl was still upset over the 'death' of her tumbleweed friend.

The rose nodded, "This is Jaune, he's a fellow team leader and the first friend I made at Beacon, and that's… I'm sorry, who are you?" The monkey Faunus grinned,

"The name's Sun! I was friends with Jaune when we were kids." He greeted the two, complete with an over-the-top bow. "Who'd would have thought the clumsy blond would become a team leader! Looks like we're rival leaders 'cause you're looking at the leader of Team SSSN (Sun)!." Grinned the blond, affectionately noogying his head.

Jaune shook off Sun's grip after a couple of minutes and made his way to the new girl. "Hi, nice to meet you…?" he trailed off as he held out his hand.

The pole girl smiled, accepting his hand. "Penny. It is simply sensational to meet another of Ruby's friends." Once the two shook hands Jaune's eyes widened by a fraction. As he went to go sit down he couldn't help but stare at his hand. He could've sworn he was getting better at controlling his aura after a couple days of solid training by himself. There was no way she- someone who appeared as old as him, noticed his fluctuation in aura. So why didn't his semblance work against her?

His thoughts were put on hold as the familiar clacking of heels caught his attention. Ruby immediately shot up to confront her partner, "Look Weiss it's not what you think-she explained the whole thing-you see she doesn't actually wear a bow-she has kitty ears and they're actually kind of cute."

Penny smiled as she waved to the two, "Look, I found your friend Blake! It is now my turn to hide!" She exclaimed childishly. Yang rolled her eyes and motioned for the girl to go ahead.

The heiress chose to ignore the interaction and instead stared at the black haired girl unblinkingly. Blake wiped her nose in panic and was relieved to see there was no blood left. "Weiss. I- I want you to know I am no longer associated with the White Fang. Back when I was with-"

She was muffled as her teammate placed a finger before her mouth. "Stop. Do you have an idea just how long our team has been searching for you?" The black haired beauty stayed silent, "Twelve hours, and during these twelve hours I've had a lot of time-" she spared a glance at the shirtless blond knight, "-and a bit of help, to think about this. You know what I realised?"

Six pairs of eyes stared at her in suspense. "That you aren't as Weiss cold as we all thought?" Asked Yang hopefully. The white haired Snow Angel glared at her teammate. Jaune held back his laughter in hopes to not anger the heiress.

She shook her head at the blond boxer's antics, annoyed but thankful for the lightening of the mood. "I realised that I don't care." Blake took a step back in shock. Of all the things she was expecting, it wasn't this. "You aren't a part of that organisation anymore. So frankly, I don't care." Yellow eyes filled with relief at her statement. "I just want you to do one thing. The next time something of this magnitude comes up don't leave it to someone other than your teammates, your friends, to assist you." The introvert smiled softly at her words, wiping a small tear away as she nodded.

Jaune grinned proudly at his Snow Angel, she had done just as well as he'd hoped. "So… anyone up for some pancakes? Foods on me!" Chuckled the novice knight. The group cheered as they began the long trek back to Beacon.

Weiss gave a look to the blond Faunus, "You still haven't given any reason as to why we should trust you." She stated pointedly.

Sun chuckled nervously at her gaze, "Uh, I was friends with Jaune when we were young?" The blue-eyed student turned to the blond writer for confirmation, receiving a positive nod in response.

Ruby frowned, scanning the area as she realised something. "Speaking of friends, has anyone seen Penny?" Asked the black and red haired girl. The girl in question was already a ways away, looking back to the docks sadly. She already missed her friend. The tumbleweed would have made such a sensational match with Pubert the Fungus.


Ozpin stared cryptically at his scroll. He had known the situation was bad, but he had not expected for it to have reached this point so quickly. There was little time left, he had to work on moving to prevent the oncoming disaster or face the consequences. Placing his scroll down the headmaster watched the clouds outside the school. A storm was heading their way and for once he wasn't sure if he would be able to stop it.

He walked out of the room, cane in one hand and coffee in the other. This was going to be troublesome. As the lights began to dim in the office the illustrious headmaster's scroll flashed, displaying it's previous message.

Qrow

Queen has Pawns. Knight is not enough.


Roman groaned in annoyance, his disguise long worn off. He really did not want to admit it, he'd honestly rather be on the verge of death than tell him, but he had grown a liking for Jaune and his idiotic tendencies. The criminal really did not want this endeavour to affect him, especially since Neo would kill him if it did.

"I'm disappointed in you Roman." Called a voice from behind him. The criminal jumped in surprise, not expecting her to be here. "We were expecting… more from you."

The orange haired man rolled his eyes, "I thought performance appraisal was next Wednesday?" He chuckled jokingly. The man turned around to see a black haired woman in a seductive red dress, followed by her two assistants. "Right, well what's the big idea creating that competition? You do realise now we actually have to supply people with those stupid prizes?" The woman laughed, whether it was sarcastic, evil habit or actual laughter Roman could never really tell. Though he knew for sure it wasn't the latter.

"I'm just taking a page from your book Roman dear. It just might help out our cause after all." The well-dressed thief stared at her skeptically. "Don't worry, we have big plans for the future. If you're lucky you might even be a part of them. All we ask is a little… cooperation."

The man frowned, "And all I ask is for a little information on what in Remnant we are doing? Maybe a notification on what our next move is? How am I supposed to cooperate if I don't even know what I'm supposed to be doing?" Her assistants moved to help persuade him, but the woman held them back with wave of her wrist, moving closer to the master thief as she did so.

"Have a little faith Roman. You will know what you need to know, when you need to know it." Whispered the seductress, trailing her hand across his cheek. The orange haired man winced as she turned up the heat, burning him slightly. "Until then, I'll be playing with your toy knight." She licked her lips, "He seems… interesting."

Roman couldn't help but smirk as the woman left with her lackeys in tow, a small amount of sympathy leaking out for his author. Have fun dealing with… that. He thought to himself amusedly. His moment was ruined when he touched his cheek and swore in pain. "Definitely going to need to ice this." He grumbled to himself.


And as the curtain falls on the 'Black and White' Arc a sinister plot rises. Will Jaune be ready for when the storm hits? Or will the knight fall victim to the red queen? Now that history is changed, the future is unclear. Will our protagonist find himself in centre stage? Or is he doomed to be a side character to be sacrificed when it comes down to it? Only time, and my list of ideas for this story will tell. See you next time where we find out the results of the mysterious competition.

Well, not sure what to say other than: more Neo! The crafty little- er, petite devil has been on the wishlist for plenty of you in the previous chapters and like a good genie, with the ability to tell the future apparently, I provided. Honestly I didn't even have to change anything, she was already planned to be in this chapter.

Another thing to go over is two points:
One, yes Jaune is still unaware of Roman and Neo's involvement with the 'bad guys'.
Two, Jaune is aware that thanks to Pyrrha he has gotten better than he was at the start of the year. However, as much as he can take on a street thug who picks on people unfortunate to come across him, he is unable to beat Neo or Roman even while they are holding back. There is still plenty he needs to work on and now he is dreadfully aware of this thanks to his humiliating defeat by Neo, in almost all sense of the word.

Well, like always, if you enjoyed please leave a Favourite, Follow and a Review, and those who noticed a specific reference get to choose between a tumbleweed or a fungus with achievements.