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Jaune was, as always, the second person in the building to be awake.

The first was a simple janitor, four floors below in a bathroom, whose thoughts and emotions invaded his dreams and shook him awake just as the sun broke over the walls surrounding Vale, orange light reflecting off glass buildings like fire. Shadows crawled across the ceiling above him as he did his best to put the thoughts below and the dreams of the woman next to him out of his mind, eventually turning to look at the woman there quietly and reaching out, running a finger along one of the myriad jagged lines on her back. Scars of her willingness to fight for him, to die for him if necessary, the latter of which had been what she thought was going to happen as she leapt in that damned castle to protect him.

She shifted where she lay when his fingers ghosted across one of the eternally sensitive parts of the scar, curled up in a tight ball where she'd fallen asleep on the bed next to him a couple hours after they'd locked the door and gone to bed, and he withdrew. Slowly and carefully, to avoid waking her up, he got out of the bed and grabbed a pair of jeans. Pulling them up and walking to one of the windows that looked out over the city, looking as much at the buildings and roads as himself in the glass, he leaned against the window frame and sighed as his head rested against the cool metal.

Hard muscles, scars across his body - especially the more pronounced one on his side, still angry and jagged looking - and even stubble on his chin and long, shaggy hair almost to his shoulders. Had he changed so much, he thought as he scratched at the stubble and frowned. He could remember only a few of the scars, Cinder's stab wound the most prominent of them, and that was an oddly uncomfortable realization.

So many people had tried to kill him and his body showed that, but he had gone through it so much that he didn't even remember most of them now, standing there. What did that say about him? Did it say anything?

This was the life Huntsman lived, he knew now. Well,maybe not exactly, given his company, but fairly close he was sure. Fighting, killing, nearly dying... All normal, and with no laurels being handed out by kings, or wealthy businessman's daughters to save and get adopted. No real heroics.

At least, not in the sense Jaune had always viewed them.

He had always wanted to be seen as a hero, and now… Was he one? What was he now, after everything and with the literal war he was being forced to prosecute? How many more people would die because of him?

"Too damn many." He answered himself, eyes closing as he growled, his mind awash with his own anger, regret, pains and all those of the myriad people in the building now awake, either having woken up or come in for work. "All because people wouldn't leave me damn well alone. None of this is what I wanted… That matters, it has to."

"What matters is what you choose to make matter." He started, looking to his side where bright pink eyes watched him, the woman having rolled over and curled back up where he'd lain, chin on her knees and blanket pulled up just high enough to hide the curve of her thighs under it. "That's how life is for people. You decide what matters most and fight for it."

"Roman taught you that?" He asked, turning so that his back rested against the support and crossing his arms while he looked at her.

"No. You taught me that, Jaune." She answered, smiling coyly at him, "That and a few other things. How many of them do I need to do to you for you to tell me what's wrong? Because I won't mind doing them, and you know that."

"Going to interrogate me?" He asked, smirking at her and chuckling slightly, barely enough to make his chest shake.

"Don't you know, Jaune?" Her smile was coy, now, one of the arms wrapped around her legs trailing to the top of the blanket and teasing it down slowly, until it showed just the slightest hint of her thighs, "I'm a great interrogator, Jaune. I always get the answers I want, eventually."

Jaune shook his head, smiling thinly, "You don't have to try and woo me into talking to you, Neo. Besides, how are you going to bribe me with something I can have almost whenever I want?"

"Ruin my fun why don't you?" She pouted, wrapping her arm back around her legs and watching him closely for a few moments, "You're upset at something, I can see that. Tell me what it is. Or else."

"Or else what?"

"I'll go wake the others up buck naked, maybe kiss a couple. I bet that young one, Ruby, would have a heart attack if I waltzed in with my tits out and gave her a big, fat kiss. The Schnee girl could use some de-stressing too, or maybe I could just have my fun with Pyrrha." Jaune sighed, knowing she was right, and shaking his head at the threat while she smirked almost viciously. "So gonna tell me, or not?"

"I just… Was thinking, about how much I've been through. How much I've done." His hand moved to the scar in his side and he grimaced as he looked to her, "I'm… A good guy, right? Like, I'm not some kind of villain, right? I always wanted to be a hero, and I don't know if that's what I am now. All the things I've done… I've had to do them, at least most of the time, but that doesn't answer my question."

"That question doesn't really have an answer, Jaune." Neo said with a simple shrug, sighing when his frown deepened and he was very clearly not happy with the answer. Pushing the blanket off of herself, she stood beside the bed and spread her arms to either side of herself, chest puffed out and hip cocked to accent her curves as best she could and smiling coyly at him like she always did."Am I beautiful, Jaune?"

"I don't understand-" He cut himself off, not because of how she looked, he'd seen that enough, but because of her glare. "Yes. I think you're beautiful, Neo. In a way no one can possibly match."

"And now?" She asked,turning around and showing off the massive, ugly scar on her back, marring the perfect flesh there. Even with her behind bare to him and her long, toned legs as well, and her hip cocked while she looked over her shoulder at him, he understood what she meant even before she explained. "I know you do, you spend enough time behind me in bed that you can't mind too much. Do you think every guy would feel that way, though?"

"I… No, a lot of people would be turned off by it." He answered, smiling apologetically at her.

Turning back around and smiling forlornly, she added, "And what about my personality? I am a sadist, and you know that. You accept it. But how would anyone else see someone scarred like me, who can't even speak to them, and who gets her jollies off by cutting people, torturing them, and then killing them?"

"Beauty, morality, pain and pleasure, all of this is just perspective, Jaune." She continued, smile turning almost feral, but mixed with enough pride and confidence to make it something else Jaune couldn't place. "You may think I'm beautiful, and I mean of course you do because I am, but do you think anyone in that room over there would call me that? And you might accept my personality and my… Tastes, but do you think they would? Or that they even do, right now?"

"No." He finally answered, after a long moment of silence, Neo staring back at him before she let her arms drop and nodded. "So all this is just… perspective?"

"Yep." She answered, taking several long steps to close the distance between them and resting her forehead against his chest comfortably. "Hug." Sighing and smiling, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against him, "You're a good guy, Jaune. Just in a bad place, and you have to make rough calls. Do you think you're doing your best?"

"Yeah, I… I think I am." He answered quietly, pressing his face into her hair and just breathing, enjoying having her so close and safe. Even if it was only for a moment, he knew she was safe, and his friends were too, and that let him relax. Then he added, "But is that the same as doing what is right?"

"No." Neo answered honestly, shuddering and wrapping her arms around him even tighter, "But if you only did what was right by a normal person's opinion, you'd snap my neck right now and drop all of this. Then you'd work with that magical midget at Beacon and try and off Salem."

"You know I won't do any of that." He assured her, rubbing small circles in her back comfortingly. Smirking, he added, "Where else would I get a girl as beautiful as you genuinely wanting to be anywhere near my bed?"

"You have three of them in there." Neo chuckled quietly, Jaune huffing in amusement past her ear. She pulled away, looking up at him with nervous, pale white eyes and a tremor on her lips. "I'd let you do it, you know. If you wanted. It would let you be free of all this."

"The only thing I want is you and me, safe in our own home, with our own family." He said quietly, reaching up to lay his hand on the back of her head. "I may have my concerns about how we get there, but as long as we do get there I will get over it. I… I still want to be a hero, but I want this," he wrapped his other arm around her waist, pulling her flush against him and up, forcing her to stand on her toes and bringing him close enough that all either could see was each other's face, "to be happy. The rest is just… Just noise."

"Then stop second guessing yourself, pick me up, and kiss me." Neo demanded with a smirk, Jaune doing just that by shifting both hands to her rear and using it to pull her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist and rest her hips on his, turning to push her against the wall and pressing his lips against hers, sliding a hand to her throat possessively while she continued, "We have each other. Fuck everything else if it tries to take that, yeah?"

Pulling away and pressing kisses along her jaw, Jaune couldn't argue, instead saying, "We have time. Right?"

"Yeah. We have time." She answered, letting him push away from the wall and carry her to the bed. He laid her down gently, as always he was so gentle with her unless she asked him not to be, and she added as he pulled back to look down on her and decide what he wanted to do, "Be quick. I don't want any warmups right now. I just want you to feel better, okay?"

"I love you." He said first, Neo smiling at him and laying her arms above her head.

"You t-too." She forced out, Jaune smiling at the actual words and leaning down to capture her lips again, this time heavier and with more demand behind them.

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When the duo finally left the room half an hour later, it was to meet Cinder waiting in the entr area by his door, leaning against the frame with her eyes closed patiently. She smiled when she saw him, looking relaxed and refreshed rather than the mess he had the day before, and said, "Good morning, Master. I trust you slept well?" "If you did much sleeping."

"I slept quite well, Cinder." He answered, looking her up and down curiously. She'd traded out her dress for a pair of fitted jeans and a black shirt that hugged against her skin, with a denim jacket over it, bandages wrapped around her left hand and probably more of the arm under the long-sleeved jacket, as well as part of her bare midriff below her belly button where the shirt ended, and he asked, "What happened?"

"I went into the industrial districts, pressed a few favors, collected a few old earnings I left lying around. Some people didn't like how aggressive I was being, and… Opposed me." "With guns, and knives." "My clothing was damaged in the fighting. I sought a replacement that was suitable." She shrugged, as though it hadn't even been a consideration. And it might not have been.

In fact, Jaune was pretty sure she only explained it because he asked.

"You're all bandaged up, Cinder. What happened out there?" He asked quietly, Neo leaning against the wall behind him and watching him in amusement while Cinder fidgeted nervously. "Are you okay?"

"I am healthy, Master." "Enough to be useful, at least." She answered quietly, "I'm just a bit... cut up, that's all. Entirely my fault, and well on its way to healing already, I promise." Perking up, and in a more commanding voice, she added, "More importantly, everything I needed I got, once people were a bit more willing to work with me." "Or too dead to stop me."

"I…" He sighed, deciding against pushing her any further on what probably didn't really matter in the end seeing as she was here and distinctly more alive than he was willing to bet her opponents were, and instead said, "Just, did you get what we needed then? Or what did you get?"

"Ammunition, three fast-moving airships that can catch up with the Atlesian fleet fairly reliably, three pilots I can trust to do their jobs up to the point we fly alongside the great Grimm Dragons." "A reasonable point for anyone to turn against us, much less wish to leave a job." She explained, continuing on quickly, "I also secured ammunition, food, water, spare weapons' parts, and Lien to purchase whatever else I failed to attain as an aside. We shouldn't have anything to worry and, in a few hours of work, everyone involved should have enough Dust, ammunition and Aura supplements all to accomplish the mission before us."

"Seems like she thought of everything." Neo added, Jaune nodding as amusement scorched through her, "Ask her to get us condoms, too, since she's shopping for everyone anyways."

"No." He groaned, sighing and shaking his head while Neo snickered and Cinder's brow arched curiously. "I am not having Cinder spend her Lien on-on that, Neo, okay? I just... We can get some at some point on our own, alright?"

"I want some of the banana ones." She offered, making Jaune actually flush. Something which drew another snort of mute laughter and more amusement from Neo, as well as confusion from Cinder, "Oh my Gods, you are actually blushing! I can't believe that you, after literally just doing me, are blushing because I mentioned flavored condoms."

"Master what is-"

"Nothing!" He answered suddenly, smiling widely - too widely, he knew Cinder thought - and pushing past her towards the door to the room everyone else was suing, where he also knew they were milling about, thoughts numb blurs of ammunition, metal, food and the normal thoughts of maintenance. Absently, and in the hopes of derailing the prior conversation, Jaune asked, "Did you give them all the stuff already? I want to be gone by tonight."

"Yes, Master, I gave them everything and instructions to get ready as soon as possible as well." "Not that waking up these brats was an easy task." "I did so while you and Mistress Neo were…" "Sleeping together." "Indisposed." She explained, reaching out to grab his forearm when he reached for the doorknob, mostly to escape that line of thought again, "But, Master, there's something you should know."

"About?" He asked, giving Neo a meaningful glance that she knew meant she needed to get serious. The small woman caught his eyes and the look, blinking white and pink eyes to brown and pink and then nodding as she brought herself under control. "Is something wrong?"

"The White Fang, Master." Cinder started, grimacing at the memories that brought to the fore, "They are in the slums and the dock-district, recruiting, stealing and the general kinds of thuggery they are known for. But some are acting stranger than that. Some are said to be hosting a protest in three day's time."

"A… protest?" Jaune asked, surprised at the information and glancing to Neo. "Do they still do actual protests? I was pretty sure it was mostly just rallies, riots, and attacks now."

Neo just nodded, looking at Cinder in a prompt to explain, and the half-Maiden did so after a moment's delay to gather her thoughts, "Yes, Master, they generally do stick to that track. Just like they generally fly their red symbol, to signify their willingness to fight. But while I was out there, I saw that symbol flying and their symbol of blue. They're... fragmenting, for some reason. Even though, by all my knowledge, none of their actual leadership has died, or anything to that effect." "The Belladonna girl is the only one important who died, and she was only even important for her name."

"Her parents or something led the White Fang, right?" He asked, Cinder nodding simply in anwer. "Is it possible her dying to stop a terror attack like that might have, I don't know… Spurred some people to try and revive the White Fang the way it used to be?"

"If it did it wouldn't have come to the point of what amounts to a civil conflict among them, not yet at least. It's too soon for that. We'd likely have a year at the least before it came to a head." "Simply mustering them for my own ends took weeks and months, and that was a single cell." Cinder grimaced and inclined her head in apology, shame echoing off of her and into Jaune weakly, and the blonde paused. "I apologise, I didn't take the time to gather any information on it. I felt it more important to get my work done and return." "A mistake, perhaps. Hopefully a forgivable one."

"Something has to be going on, then." Neo added, Jaune as always translating for her in lieu of something better. "The White Fang are mostly fanatical idiots, a few thugs, and then the commanders. The little bit of them that's rest is all leftovers from the Faunus War."

"It's fine, Cinder." Jaune said quietly, smiling reassuringly at her and reaching for the knob again, "It isn't our problem, dealing with the White Fang. I'm sure that between the Kingdoms and Ozpin, anything they try will get shut down. But..." He sighed, shaking his head, and added, "Go get rest after this, and then tonight see if you can find out why that is happening."

"Are you intending to intervene?" She asked.

"No, but I want to know what's going on." Jaune shrugged, "I'm very, very done with getting surprised by things weeks after the fact, when I could have found out. Can you handle this?" She nodded but something about her emotions felt off and Jaune sighed, "Neo, can you help her? I know you worked together before."

"As long as you know everything that my information gathering almost always entails." Neo answered, Cinder grimacing at the idea of Jaune not trusting her. Which wasn't the case, and he'd have to have that conversation later he was sure,but Neo's next sentence occupied his attention too quickly. "Usually involves a dick coming out, maybe some tits, and then me cutting people a bit if that doesn't work."

"I… Didn't need to know that, Neo." She smirked and shrugged, and Jaune groaned, "Just… I trust you not to do anything you don't need to. And Cinder," he started, looking to her, "I trust you too, to keep an eye on her. But I'm not risking one of my people on a whim of mine. Don't take that as a failing. It isn't. I just… I have to be careful."

"I understand, Master." "Especially after Roman." He grimaced and she returned the gesture, murmuring an apology and pushing ahead awkwardly, "Mistress Neo, I would recommend you get some good sleep ahead of time. And food." "Rather than junk food and sex. No offense intended, Master."

Everyone in the room paused, a mix of emotions and thoughts washing over Jaune from them as the trio entered for a moment, before returning to their quiet work. Ren and Ruby were reassembling their weapons on sheets in front of the door, while Weiss carefully measured out Dust amounts and filled vials, Myrtenaster on the table across the room and Nora did pushups behind her. Pyrrha, in the kitchen sitting patiently on a stool with the full knowledge she was ready for whatever came, simply smiled at him and waved with Winter sitting next to her, equally content and simply waiting for the next step. Both veterans of combat of different kinds that brought experience that, itself, brought a lesson.

They'd be ready or they wouldn't, and then it wouldn't be a problem anymore, and there was nothing they could do more.

Taking a breath, Jaune said, "Cinder got us what we needed. We'll be leaving tomorrow, around noon, to catch up with the Atlesian fleet. If anyone wants out, then the door is open. I personally won't judge a single person for leaving, this is… This is a step or, you know, twelve beyond what anyone here is comfortable doing, so-"

"Jaune Arc, everyone here knows what is coming and has made our peace with it, or we will simply leave." Weiss interrupted suddenly, surprising Jaune and drawing a chuckle even as he reached an arm out to stop Cinder coming to his defence. She barely spared him a glance, actually looking somewhat content and even sparing him a thin smile, mind distinctly lacking in anything of note to hear. "We are all adults here. You don't need to give us some rousing speech to rally us like in a movie or two that we all have seen."

"The thought is appreciated, though, Jaune." Ren added tonelessly, sparing him a glance and smiling somewhat apologetically. "We all have work to do, so please, leave us to it. We can handle this." "Hopefully, at the very least."

Raising his eyebrow, he gave Neo an amused glance, and said, "Well… Cinder has Lien and ammunition, as well as extra supplies for your weapons, so feel free to ask her for whatever you need. Alright?"

After everyone called their affirmatives or, in Nora's case, simply grunted mid work-out, Jaune turned and walked around them towards the kitchen, nodding to Pyrrha as he pulled open the door to the refrigerator to find something to eat. Preferably with meat.

He was halfway through assembling a sandwich made of every piece of turkey and cheese he could find, and handing Neo anything sweet he could find, when Pyrrha asked, "Are you ready for all of this?"

Sighing, the blonde shook his head and said, "Not really, but kind of the life I live now, you know?" He shrugged, feeling her disquiet, and added, "Just have to keep moving forward. And that's just… Just the way it is."

"Yeah." Pyrrha agreed, nodding beside him. "Do you need anything from me?"

"No-" He blinked, smiling and changing his answer, "Yeah, actually. Would you mind working with Cinder and Neo on gathering some information tonight?" Intrigued, Neo actually paused mid-bite into a candy bar, to look at him, "The White Fang are being strange and I want to know what is going on."

"If you wish it." "Even if I would rather not…" Standing she rolled her shoulders, "I shall return to bed, then. I need my rest before going out."

"You both rest up too, Neo, Cinder." He said as the redhead left, taking a long breath, "Be careful out there, and let me know what you find. But don't take any risks you don't need to. This is just me being curious, after all. We have much more important things to deal with."

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A bit shorter than the norm, but honestly, a needed segue into the next chapter and all I could manage given events. Mainly centered around my sister's kid, and the help they keep asking for in keeping it calm, and my own poor time management around that. Apologies for both.

Curse me, being good with babies.

And curse little Loki being so damn cuddly.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed, thanks for reading and look forward to more as soon as I can get on it. Next chapter might be a bit coming, though, given the situation I just detailed. Apologies.

Another issue with all of this was needing to build up the next arc of problems to deal with, and involved Jaune in a somewhat sensible way, and build out the back lying issues. As well as the preparation something like what they intend to do - penning in and assaulting the Atlesian military like this, even a minor fragment of it - as well as rounding out characters while also not simply reiterating previous statements from themselves at each other.

Anyways, uh, cheers?

~ Twisted

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Csad21 :

Shit tends to escalate when you off folks. The original story was Mind Games.

CJ Hoax :

Sorry, I just have to tease you~

Blaseingfire :

I treat characters like people in real life. No one realizes, in the moment, their loved one is a monster. Not really, anyways. So him hating Ironwood for literally doing what Roman and Neo both did in the past is well within what a normal person would do. Most times, you have to be truly evil to get your closest loved ones to call you a monster.

As for him getting with Neo… A combination of a pretty face, people that actually offered him a hand out of the mess he was in, and Stockholm saw to that. Plus, you know. Reader demand.

Gizmo Gear :

I see it. It's where I draw my inspiration from, actually.

The Impossible Muffin :

#RomanDidNothingWrong