AN: Well hello there. Who was expecting this?
I've done a few tweaks to the story, and with the help of some betas, Silver and Arch_Angel, have cleaned up the worst of the typos and grammar errors. I've also made some minor alterations to the plot. Mainly though, the biggest change is the removal of the Jaune plotline, I.e. he's not gonna be brought in to replace Percy in the team.
I've also tightened up and cleaned the plot going forward. It is different from the one I planned, but better I think.
Hope you read it if you're still interested in the story. And please do leave a review or comment, and let me know what you think!
If you have any specific questions or suggestions, please feel free to PM me.
Another thing while I am at it, is this. I am a part of a discord group, there are tons of others there, plenty of writers, admittedly mainly PJO, but other stuff too, including a growing number of other writers. Feel free to pop along and say hi, I'm always happy to chat about the stuff I am writing. So if you fancy it please do join by sticking this: discord .gg / elibrary into discord, with no spaces, or using the link on my bio.
Thanks for reading and please do leave a review, or feel free to PM, I am usually much better at answering those!
Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson or RWBY.
( - )
(Last Time)
With that said, Raphtalia turned to leave, not giving Adam a chance to retort.
This had not gone how she had wanted it to. She had been so confident that Adam would recognise the potential Percy represented and turn on the charm she knew he was capable of. It appeared though that she had overestimated Adam, or rather underestimated his growing instability, something that had been getting worse ever since his partner Blake had left.
Raphtalia grimaced at that thought, even as she led Percy out of the rally and to safety. Adam was losing it, Sienna would need to be informed before he did something stupid!
( - )
Chapter 13
( - )
(With Percy)
He was on his own again.
Looking back as he walked, he saw the still-masked Raphtalia watching him leave. She stood just outside of the warehouse, two bodyguards at her side as she watched him leave. She was still wearing her mask, so he couldn't see her expression. But despite that, he still got the sense that she was unhappy about the way things had gone.
A bitter taste filled his mouth as he gazed at her for a moment.
He could just about make out the roar of the White Fang rally taking place inside the warehouse.
Grimacing, he turned and continued walking.
His meeting with Adam had been illuminating, to say the least.
The bull-headed man had been almost the complete opposite of Raphtalia in terms of personality. While she was well-spoken and used diplomacy and her words to get her point across, Adam was just an angry thug in a mask.
From what he could tell she was the brain, and he was the brawn.
He frowned at that thought.
That said, Adam had definitely been the one calling the shots.
Which was worrying. Especially considering just how reckless and hot-headed he appeared to be. The guy was a ticking time bomb. One that could be set off at any moment.
His frown turned into a grimace as he continued his journey through the shadowy streets and back towards the city centre.
The night was drawing in. He could already see the fractured moon, partially covered by clouds, hanging innocently in the sky overhead. Despite darkness beginning to settle upon the city though, Vale seemed to becoming lively as the daylight visitors made way for the night-time denizens. The young that wanted to party, and the grownups that wanted to dine out.
The further he got from the industrialised part of the city, the more buoyant things seemed to become.
And yet the lively atmosphere didn't comfort him. Instead, it made him nervous. After all, he still didn't have a place to stay. And the only person he sort of knew outside of Beacon was back at the warehouse and worked for a violent extremist.
Things were not looking good.
Holding back a shiver he pressed on through the gradually busier streets and alleyways. With the night came the cold.
Looking up at the shattered moon once again, he bit his lower lip and considered his limited options.
He had no money. He couldn't go back to the warehouse. But nor could he go back to Beacon.
This meant he either needed to rough it on the streets or hope to find some kind of temporary shelter. Or head to one of the few places that would still be open at this time, and where he could temporarily find shelter while coming up with his next step. Or even better, work or lodging.
From the top of his head the only places he could think of that would be open, and potentially hiring at short notice, were either a bar or a club….
He paused mid-step at that thought.
His eyes narrowed in thought. He remembered Yang had mentioned just such a place. A seedy night club apparently, which would almost certainly look the other way if convenient and play cash in hand for some easy grunt work.
Juniors.
A shady, all-night club, and one of Vale's premier hives of scum and villainy.
Yeah, from what Yang had said Junior's was just the sort of place a person with no identification, no papers, no money, no contacts and no other choices, could go if they had certain saleable skills.
Grimacing, as the realisation of his current situation, once again hit him, Percy grabbed the strap of his backpack tight and pressed on through the busy streets.
Now that he had a general plan in mind, he needed to find somebody and ask for some directions.
Slipping his free
hand into his pocket as he walked and closed his fist around Anaklusmos, he tried to look casual as he stepped out of an alley and joined up with one of Vale's main thoroughfares.
There were a lot of people around, far more than he had expected. On some of the streets further out, around the periphery of the centre. There had been a lot of people. But their numbers paled in comparison to the mass of humanity that was currently parading around in front of him. There were hundreds of people just going about their day-to-day lives, completely oblivious about the angry White Fang rally taking place barely half a mile away.
Looking around as he quietly merged with the crowd. He quickly noticed that the majority of those around him were in their twenties and thirties. They were mainly adults who had both the disposable income to enjoy a night on the town, and the freedom to do so. Though as he looked around, he could see that there were a few younger kids and teens dotted around, oftentimes walking along as either a part of a family unit or alongside a gaggle of other teens.
Perhaps more notable than the age demographic though. Was the complete lack of faunus.
The vast majority of those he could see were humans. And they were the ones looking around at the late-night shops, or queueing to get into restaurants or bars.
The few faunus he could see meanwhile, were all working.
In front of him, he could see a guy with rabbit ears and a fluorescent yellow vest emptying a bin. On the other side of a street, in front of a couple of busy bars, he could see some scantily clad female faunus in tight or revealing clothing, waving around signs and trying to lure passers-by into the rowdy-sounding drinking dens. In addition, he could see a few other faunus walking the streets hawking cheap-looking merchandise from garishly decorated carts or shouting out at passing humans from small food stalls.
It left a bit of a bitter taste in his mouth considering all he had seen and heard.
Where most of the humans were enjoying their evenings and spending their money on leisurely activities. The faunus were working.
Or they were for the most part, as every now and then he did see a faunus or a group of faunus going about their day-to-day lives, and enjoying their evenings. Similarly, not all of the street sellers, bar girls and city workers were faunus. Instead, it was just the majority.
Frowning at the sight of this, Percy broke off from the happily babbling crowd and approached one of the street vendors.
The vendor was a bored-looking old woman, with black and white hair, and a wiry black tail, with a single white stripe running down it.
As he approached he could see that the woman was selling what looked like hand-made bracelets. Only these bracelets had an array of different slogans and symbols on them. They were the kind of tat that he would expect to see in trashy tourist places like Las Vegas.
"What can I do you for? You new to Vale? You wanna souvenir?" The woman asked brusquely, her bored expression vanishing in an instant as she instead showed off a tray of pre-woven bracelets, an overly cheerful smile now on her face.
"Maybe later," Percy said, forcing a smile of his own.
In an instant, the woman's smile faded and her expression reverted back to one of disinterest.
"What do you want then?" She asked gruffly, her gaze already shifting past him as she looked for an idiot with a lot of money and not much sense. "I'm working here, I don't have time for timewasters."
"I'm trying to find Juniors?" He asked just as bluntly.
From past experience, he knew he had neither the charm nor the charisma that came naturally to the children of Aphrodite and the children of Apollo. He also lacked the roguish likeability that the children of Hermes seemed to casually exude. And he certainly wasn't as well-spoken or eloquent as Annabeth and her siblings.
There was too much of his father in him and not enough of his mother, for that.
After all, unlike his happy and friendly mum, he was moody and quick to anger. Unpredictable is what Annabeth had called it. He was the kind of guy that could be chilled and laid back one moment, and angry and pissed off the next. Neither of which were useful when it came to charming and influencing people. Which is why he didn't even bother half the time.
"Do you know where it is?" He continued.
The woman eyed him up and down suspiciously.
"You looking to cause trouble?" The woman asked, her eyes narrowing.
"Not particularly, just had the place recommended to me by a friend," Percy replied easily.
"Not a good friend I'd wager," The faunus hummed disapprovingly as she shrugged. "Well whatever, none of my business. The place you're looking for is three streets away from here, on King's Avenue."
As she spoke she gestured off vaguely behind her.
"Once you find the street, follow the obnoxious pounding music and you'll find it. It has a big red sign out front of it and blacked-out windows." She continued, already turning away from him.
"Thanks," He said.
She didn't reply.
Instead, she forced a smile and looked through him and instead at an approaching group of young men.
"Hey, you lot! Are you new to Vale? Any of you want a souvenir?" She said loudly, barging rudely past Percy as she quickly bustled over to intercept the group of lads.
"Piss off," One of the men said, his lip curling up in disgust as he looked the woman up and down. His friends all laughed or jeered raucously in response, even as they barged past her, throwing out a few more comments her way, the last of which involved her fucking off back to the zoo.
"I hope you get cancer and die," The older woman hissed at their retreating backs. Her words were loud enough for him to hear, but still too quiet for the group of laughing young men to pick up on.
Grimacing at the interaction, Percy eyed the group of guffawing twats for a moment, before he turned and shook his head.
Turned out Cardin wasn't an exception to the rule as he had initially thought back at Beacon. But was instead just one of many ignorant, indoctrinated morons.
Shaking his head in disgust, Percy made sure to keep his anger in check as he turned away.
If he allowed himself to lose his temper in the centre of Vale like he had at Beacon. He wouldn't have to worry about a few detentions or a suspension. Instead, he'd have the police after him, and that wasn't the kind of heat he wanted on him at the moment.
Taking a deep breath, he stepped off of the main strip and headed down another side alley.
He needed to calm down, pull himself together and stop acting like a kid. If he lost his shit every time he saw some kind of injustice, or people acting like assholes, he'd never end up getting anything done.
Plus, since he no longer had Ozpin acting as a safety net. It was time he took responsibility for himself. Starting with finding a place to live, and hopefully some kind of gainful employment.
A wry smile played around his mouth at that thought.
At the age of nineteen, it was probably about time he had his first job.
Repositioning the bag on his back, he kept his head down as he followed the street hawker's vague directions and made it to King's Avenue; a shady, street, with looming townhouses on either side, and the occasion bodega, Dust shop or hot food takeaway.
The road was a lot quieter than the main strip had been, or at least in terms of the number of people around. Though as far as the level noise went, it was substantially louder, as with every step he took he could hear feel his ears reverberate with the heavy bass sound coming out of a large, three-storey building.
Eyeing the place up and down he frowned. It looked like someone had knocked through three of the large townhouse and completely stripped off the original façade only to replace it with a large garish sign which spelt out the word 'Junior's' in massive, garish neon red letters.
Shifting his attention to the surrounding houses and apartments, a flash of pity through him as he imagined having to live next to the club. He didn't envy them.
It kind of reminded him of what growing up in Queens had been like. It had been noisy, and cramped, and the city had never slept. Add into that an abusive stepfather and his asshole friends, and it didn't exactly lead to a peaceful life. The only good thing about living there had been spending time with his mother.
His gut twisted and clenched at that thought, even as he brutally shoved his traitorous memories away and focused on the here and now.
Heading for the brightly lit club, Percy's gaze flashed past several of the scantily clad women – faunus and human both – trying to usher passers-by in, and the group of young adults queueing at the door. All of whom he could see were dressed to the nines in slinky dresses and spiffy-looking jackets and shirts. In contrast, he looked like a homeless beach bump.
Adjusting the strap of his bag, he shifted his attention to the club's bouncers. All of them were easily identifiable by their matching black suits, red button-up shirts, black trilbies and black shades.
They looked like a group of Blues Brothers cosplayer rejects.
Holding back a smile at that thought, he made to join the queue waiting to get into the supposedly 'seedy' bar.
Only before he could, he was stopped by one of the bouncers.
The guy was several inches shorter than him, with narrow shoulders, and a short, neatly trimmed goatee.
He didn't look at all intimidating.
Not that he seemed to realise that as he instead sent him a supercilious smirk, even as he barred his way, stopping him from joining the queue.
"There is a dress code," The bouncer smirked, lowering his shades and eyeing Percy up and down.
"Cool story," Percy replied, his eyes shifting down to look at the shorter man, and more particularly at the hand he had raised out to stop him. The man's other hand was in his jacket pocket, gripping onto something Percy couldn't see. "But luckily I'm not here to party. I'm here to talk to your boss…., Junior, I'm guessing?."
"Uh huh," The bouncer smirked.
Several of his comrades moved to back him up.
All of them looked tense, and several of them were also surreptitiously reaching into their jacket pockets.
From around him, he could feel a shiver of excitement and anticipation run through the crowd as people turned their attention to the brewing confrontation.
He couldn't feel any underlying fear or tension within the crowd. Instead, there was only interest and bloodthirst.
The spectators weren't scared or intimidated, they were treating the confrontation and the promise of violence like an entertaining sideshow.
It was enough to take him back for a moment, even as it solidified what he had heard about the club and its lesser-than-stellar reputation and clientele.
"Well, I don't know who you think you are pal…. But Junior doesn't 'talk' to just anyone, especially not some hobo looking for a handout." The same bouncer as before continued, his lips twisting into a nasty smile.
Around him, several of his fellow bouncers chuckled.
The rest remained silent and taciturn. Waiting for his response.
"Good to know," Percy replied, keeping his temper in check. "Luckily I'm not looking for a handout. So if you could just go in and ask whether he has a few minutes to talk, it would be appreciated."
The other man clicked his tongue in irritation.
"Look, mate," He said, taking a step forward, and shoving Percy back with a hand. "I don't think you get it. You don't just come here and demand to speak to Junior. So back the fuck off, and leave."
Percy felt his temper flare as he steadied himself.
Shifting his attention back to the overly aggressive bouncer, he narrowed his eyes and decided to use the 'wolf-stare' he'd developed while under Lupa's tutelage.
"Or what?" He asked, a soft growling rumbling in his throat as he flexed his hands and glowered at the shorter man.
He'd had a long, draining day, and was in no mood to deal with assholes. And now the night was drawing in, and he had no money, no shelter and no fucking idea what he would do next. He needed a roof above his head, and some food in his stomach.
The White Fang had been a non-starter, as despite Raphtalia being pleasant and personable, their leader had been a colossal asshole.
Beacon was out, as he had burned those bridges or at least with the staff.
His team, they were a possibility, but he didn't want to be a burden to them. Plus, with no Scroll and no idea what their contact details were due to his own recklessness, he had no way of contacting them.
He couldn't even get a proper, legitimate job because of a lack of records, identity, qualifications and home address.
Which left less than legitimate work as his best, last, and hopefully temporary, option. And considering he was new to Vale, the only place he knew of that could help him out, was Juniors…. Otherwise… well he didn't know what he would do. He had no idea what the welfare system was like, and he didn't fancy roughing it with no blanket or shelter.
Fixing the obstructive bouncer with a hard stare, he was gratified to see the man take a step back.
Percy's lips twisted into a dark smile.
"Carmel?" One of the other bouncers asked, his tone marred with confusion.
Quickly sideways at his fellow bouncer and then back to Percy, the now-named Carmel pulled his hand out of his pocket, a short red-coloured machete now clutched in his hand as he took a step back and braced himself for violence.
From around him, his fellow bouncer reacted by drawing their own weapons, be they knives, pistols, or in one case a curved metal crowbar, with a nasty-looking spike on one end.
At the sight of the weapons, the crowd stepped back, a surge of fear and anticipation rippling through the spectators. Some of the women let out screams. While others in the crowd hooted and hollered, excitedly encouraging further displays of violence.
"Carmel-" The same man as before hissed. His voice was layered with confusion and caution.
"Shut up!" Carmel snapped.
Percy tilted his head.
He wasn't sure who those words were directed at; him or the guy's friend.
Looking down at the sword, Percy twirled his pen through his fingers and licked his lips.
"It doesn't have to get violent." He offered, his gaze moving up to meet Carmel's blacked-out shades. "All I want is a moment of Junior's time. So either let me in or go in yourself and ask Junior to meet with me."
Carmel raised his weapon.
"That's not gonna happen," He said. Around him, his fellow bouncer began to fan out and surround Percy. "So here is my ultimatum to you. Back the fuck off, and we'll let you walk away now. Don't, and…., well… you don't want to know."
Pushing down his anger, Percy shifted his pen into its sword form. A soft scrape of metal on metal cut through the murmur of anticipation as the pen extended in all but impossible ways. Within the space of a few moments, it changed from a ballpoint pen into a four-foot-long leaf-shaped bronze blade. The single vein of mortal-slaying silver that threaded through its perfect form, glinted red as it reflected the light from the overhead neon sign.
At once the tension in the crowd grew, and several of the bouncers stepped back.
The certainty and violence they had been exuding before had suddenly changed into fear and nervousness.
The change from cockiness to fear was so fast, it was almost jarring.
The sword in Carmel's hand began to waver as he took another step back.
"Huntsman," Carmel whispered, his voice strained.
Cracking his neck, and rolling his shoulders in a deliberately nonchalant way, Percy neither confirmed nor denied his status. Instead, he raised his hand and drew on the surrounding air. Several beads of water formed above the palm of his hand, and start swirling around in a twisting helix as he continued to gather water. He was drawing from the humidity in the air, the perspiration of those in the surrounding heaving crowd, and the heavy breathing of the now nervous bouncers.
With every moment that passed the beads of water got larger and began to spin faster, as a small maelstrom began to form in the palm of his hand.
The droplets of water had grown in size, so they were now the size of marbles. Each one flickered around almost in a blur as a sudden wind picked up and gusted through the cramped city streets, rustling hair and T-shirt.
He hadn't wanted things to escalate like this.
He certainly hadn't expected them to.
But right now he was pissed off, tired and all out of fucks to give.
The armed men around him began to shift nervously as the tension built.
They didn't look as cocky and confident as they had just a few minutes ago.
Instead, some looked scared.
Like they were on the verge of turning and running away at any moment.
"Look," Carmel said after a few long moments. "I think there has been a misunderstanding here."
Percy gave him a flat look but otherwise remained silent.
He'd let the guy choose the path he wanted to take.
If he chose violence, he would defend himself and deal with the consequences whatever they may be.
If the guy chose peace though. Well, he was happy to lower his sword and talk it out like the civilised beings they hopefully were.
Carmel licked his lips nervously and after a few agonising moments of indecision, he lowered his machete.
Around him, his fellow bouncers shared several looks and then did the same.
Some of them looked pretty thankful.
Apparently, the disparity between regular people and those with Aura was far greater than he thought.
Lowering his own sword, Percy allowed the maelstrom in his hand to calm down and the water he had gathered to slow down, lose cohesion and then splash down to the cobbles at his feet.
"So," Percy said into the tense silence.
The spectators were all either muttering in disappointment or had already lost interest and turned back to their previous conversations as they waited to be let into the exclusive club.
Scowling, Carmel stowed his machete back into the sheath sewn in his jacket, and after another moment of thought he nodded his head reluctantly.
"We'll go round the back," He said through gritted teeth, his gaze flicking to the others. "Hold the fort and keep the patrons in line. Also, one of you call ahead, and let the boss know we're coming. And the 'girls' too."
They nodded and moved to continue what they had been doing before Percy's arrival, even as one of them pulled out a Scroll and started making a call.
"You though... you come with me!" Carmel continued, his lip curling as he gestured for Percy to follow him as he started off down the street.
Keeping Anaklusmos in hand, Percy followed after him. Despite getting his way, he still felt tense. After all, for all he knew Carmel could be playing him, and leading him into a trap.
Flexing his freehand at that thought, he passed the gossiping crowd without even a passing glance and followed Carmel as he headed down a dark side passage between two of the townhouses, and around to the back of the club.
As they walked his reluctant guide didn't say anything as he quickly thumbed a code into a keypad and opened a reinforced back gate to the venue. Before then continuing on his way, passing several large dustbins and empty beer casks as he instead led the way up the steps and into the back of the club.
"Junior won't be happy." Carmel finally said after several minutes of silence. His voice was rough and layered with dislike.
They were inside the building now and walking through a grungy service corridor, passed an alcohol store, and into an empty backroom which looked like some kind of staffroom. Complete with lockers, several vending machines, a couple of worn-looking couches and chairs, and a large TV screen.
"He doesn't like surprises," Carmel continued, as he took Percy through the staffroom and up another set of stairs.
The building was far bigger than Percy had expected, and as he walked through it he could see multiple closed doors on both sides of the corridor. Some of them were guarded by armed men wearing the same outfit as the bouncers. These men eyed him suspiciously as he passed. Other doors though were just covered by one of the dozens of CCTV cameras that littered the entire complex.
Following the aggressive shorter man for a while longer, they both soon came to a stop in a plush-looking room with dark wooden panelling along the walls, and several gaudy-looking pieces of furniture around the edges.
The chairs and sofas had ornate golden-coloured frames, and what looked like red velvet coverings.
The small side tables and coffee tables that sat beside or in front of seating, had golden-coloured frames, and glass table tops. Artwork decorated the walls, not that he had much of an eye for that sort of thing. And a large expensive-looking chandelier hung from the ceiling. At the far end of the room was a set of wooden double doors. The doors had decorative-looking golden door knobs.
More noticeable than the furniture and decorations, however, were the two young women he could see lazily hanging around the room. All it took was a single glance to tell that they were twins. One of the twins was dressed in a scandalous red dress, and the other in an equally daring white dress.
The red one was reclining on a chaise longue, a sultry smile on her lips, as she met his gaze and took a sip from a glass of red wine.
The white one, however, was leaning against the wall. Idly buffing her fingernails and not paying him the slightest bit of attention.
Ignoring the girls, Carmel approached the door, took a deep breath and knocked.
There was no answer.
Not that that seemed to concern him, as then after a few moments he gripped one of the door knobs and made to enter.
Before he did, however, he made sure to turn to Percy and scowl. "Wait here, and don't touch anything."
The red twin giggled a the warning.
With his piece said, Carmel then proceeded into the room leaving Percy on his lonesome as he looked around at his expensive-looking surroundings, and its two occupants.
Seeing that neither of them looked all that interested in interacting with him, he shifted his gaze back to the door, his eyes traced the symbol that had been carved into the wood on both of the door panels and then carefully painted crimson red.
The symbol showed a red axe.
Licking his lips, Percy sank into one of the seats in the waiting room and braced for the meeting ahead.
( - )
AN: So there we go. Hope you enjoyed it! Let me know what you think. I'll admit it is a bit of a slow chapter, which is to let me get back into the swing of things, and set out the scene. The next chapter will be more active, and from there the pacing will escalate, and we'll get some more Beacon and wider events. For the last few the idea was to introduce important elements, characters and plot points. And create some context and future setup.
Either way, thanks for reading and if you have any suggestions or questions feel free to PM me or find me on Discord.
Catch you later.
Greed720.