CHAPTER 14:

INTRIGUE

General Ironwood peered at the image of Ozpin on the video link. "So you were unaware that Hazel Rainart was in Vale last night?"

"Believe me, James, had I known, I would have found a way to apprehend him. I'm surprised that one of your people spotted him."

"We had someone keeping an eye on the movements of Roman Torchwick," Ironwood said. "We were lucky to spot him. Why would one of Salem's associates approach one of the most notorious criminals in Vale?"

"Why indeed?" Ozpin mused, taking a sip of cocoa from that damned mug of his. "Hazel may be one of Salem's best operatives, but he's far from invincible, and if my people had spotted him, we may have been able to take him into custody. So what had him risk contacting Roman Torchwick personally? It would be important to either himself, or to Salem. And I have a sinking feeling I know what…or rather, who."

Ironwood nodded, guessing who Ozpin was alluding to. "Harry Potter…his nephew."

"Indeed. So we had better hope that it is a personal mission rather than one ordered by Salem. In fact, we had better hope that, if Hazel suspects that Harry is his relative, he didn't share that information with Salem yet."

Ironwood frowned as he thought about that. "If Salem learns that the boy she experimented on while he was in the womb is alive, she might attempt to abduct or kill him, depending on whether she considers him of any use. But if Hazel is doing this on his own, if he learns the truth, that Salem experimented on Gretchen when she was pregnant with Harry…"

"My thoughts exactly. Hazel's desire for revenge may end up redirected against Salem, or at least divided between myself and Salem," Ozpin said. "I have little hope that he will wish to reconcile with me…but if he turns on Salem, one of her most powerful lieutenants will be turned against her."

"Better than nothing, but I have heard the rumours about some of those under her," Ironwood muttered. "Incidentally, those people you sent to Menagerie, have they found anything?"

"Nothing substantial. They're not spies by profession, James. The Belladonnas seem unaware of the direction that Sienna Khan has been taking the White Fang. Not wholly, but the White Fang have been engaging in information control and counter-propaganda. Jacques' practises and his possible links to the Jaegers don't help, either."

"He's good at covering himself, Ozpin, and you know it. The Atlesian Council is too deep in his pocket for me to do anything beyond standard investigations, and even those get bogged down in the bureaucracy," Ironwood scowled. "Winter has been a great help, but I can't help you, Ozpin, if that cold-hearted bastard manages to get the Atlesian Council to force me to step down. I despise politics, and I despise walking this tightrope, but…"

"I understand, James. I hate it myself. But sooner or later, the time will come for a stand to be made. Better to unite now in camaraderie than out of grudging necessity during a cataclysmic war against Salem. That's partly why I sent Harry to you in the first place."

Ironwood nodded. "It's also why I assented to Penny Polendina having communications with Ruby Rose." A smile touched the grizzled general's lips. "As eccentric as Miss Rose is, and as much as I fear those eccentricities may rub off on Penny, she has helped Penny become more confident. As for Potter, he's insolent and insubordinate, and takes after his father too much for my liking, save for his alcoholism, thankfully. But he's a damned good fighter. Too good, for his age…but if he's willing to fight, and aware of the risks…"

"He fights for those he loves, James," Ozpin said. "For family and friends. A monster may sleep within him, thanks to Salem, but she underestimated the power of the human spirit…"

Harry blushed a little as he closed the book. It was, admittedly, a bit raunchier than he expected, though at least the quality of the writing made up for it. He opted to buy it, along with the other books he had bought. Ninjas of Love by Patty Berdioler(1) had already gained his attention, and he wondered whether Velvet might be up to re-enacting the scene he had just read.

It was the day after his watching Velvet's initiation, and the formation of Team CFVY. He had decided he had wanted to do a bit of shopping in Vale before he headed back to Patch. And one of his stops was Tukson's bookshop. Harry had become a semi-regular customer of the burly puma Faunus on his visits to Vale.

That being said, Tukson did have some odd behaviour. He still seemed a little wary of Harry at times. Then again, maybe it was because he was a Faunus, and was used to being shat on by idiots. He had relaxed a little when Harry came in with Velvet and they had admitted their relationship. Harry couldn't call what Tukson felt towards him fear or anything. It was more of a heightened alertness.

As he moved away from one bookshelf, the door to the store opened, and a rather odd couple about his age came in, a boy and a girl. The boy was wearing a hat. He had a rather handsome face, framed by red hair, though his pale green eyes had something in them Harry didn't like. Especially when they spotted Harry, and something dangerous flashed in them. The other was a dark-haired girl, with a bow on her head, golden eyes peering at him curiously, if warily. She looked familiar to Harry.

"Blake, wait here," the boy said.

The girl nodded, and Harry realised why she looked familiar. Hermione had sent Scroll photos of a woman who looked like her, a cat Faunus. Kali Belladonna. There were differences in hairstyle and skin tone, and the cat ears were presumably being concealed by that bow, but Harry was sure that the girl was Blake Belladonna, Kali's daughter.

He then heard Tukson say, quietly, "Adam? What are you doing here?"

"We need to talk." The boy, presumably Adam, had a tone that brooked no argument, and Harry soon heard a door closing.

Harry tried to keep a grimace off his face. If Blake Belladonna was here, then that meant that the boy was Adam Taurus, the leader of one of the more brutal White Fang cells, according to Qrow. Which meant that Tukson had links to White Fang. And Harry was potentially in trouble.

However, Blake noticed the book in his hands. "Ninjas of Love?" she asked.

"Yeah, sorry. I thought it was…"

"A little steamy?" she asked, a slight teasing smile touching her lips, and a blush dusting her cheeks. "I've read it myself. It's a good book."

"Oh? So girls like reading it too?" Harry asked, slightly relieved of his own embarrassment.

"Yes. A friend of mine…she gave me a copy as a birthday present. I was a bit surprised, but it was a good book," Blake said.

"Harry Potter," Harry said, holding out his hand, which Blake took.

"Blake. Blake Belladonna."

Harry nodded, debating with himself whether to mention that he knew she was a Faunus. Instead, he asked, "So, you new to Vale?"

"Not exactly, but I haven't been that often," she said. "You?"

"I've been living in Patch with relatives for a while," Harry said. "My girlfriend's just started at Beacon, so I was there to wish her well."

"That's good to hear…"

"And another thing, Tukson," Adam Taurus growled. "You knew we had arranged a meeting for today, so why did you have a human present?"

"I have a business to run, beyond maintaining my cover and laundering our funds," Tukson said, crossing his arms and glaring at the belligerent bull Faunus. "Besides, Harry is one of my best customers, and he is a supporter of the Faunus cause."

"But not the White Fang, and in any case, he is a human, which makes him the enemy," Adam said.

"Remember who you are talking to, Taurus," Tukson said. "I am your senior in terms of both experience and position. My loyalty is to Sienna Khan directly, not to you. Our goal is to force human acceptance of us, not enslavement or extermination. We deal with the humans with the precision of a scalpel, not a sledgehammer, especially those involved with the Schnee Dust Company."

"And I think you should think about what we really need to do," Adam sneered back. "Sienna Khan may do more than that fool Ghira…but I still think it is not far enough."

"Regardless of what you think, Taurus, you are to obey any orders from Sienna Khan. She is the head of White Fang, not you. Now, here's the latest intelligence I managed to gather…"

"…And then, Yang sent that guy flying. He deserved it for spitting on Ruby's cookies, though," Harry concluded.

Blake seemed torn between mortification and laughing. "Really?"

"Three things to do that are guaranteed to piss off Yang," Harry said, showing three fingers, lowering them to count off the reasons. "Hurting someone she cares about, especially her sister; implying she embodies the dumb blonde bimbo stereotype; and damaging her hair."

"Really?" Blake said again.

"Ruby and I are the only people who can get away with it at all," Harry said. "The last time my godfather tried, he ended up being hung upside-down from a tree and smeared with Forever Fall sap to attract insects."

Blake actually began to laugh. And that was when the redhead, presumably Adam, came back. When he came up to them, he asked, "What's so funny, Blake?"

"Sorry, I was telling your friend about this one time my godfather tried pranking my cousin, and paid the price. Forever Fall sap and insects was involved in the retribution. I'm Harry."

The redhead looked at Harry's proffered hand, and took it, though Harry noticed a moment's hesitation. "Adam. I'm glad you kept Blake amused. She doesn't smile enough."

"Shame. It's better to smile if you can, given how the Grimm are drawn to negative emotions. You here to buy books?"

"No. Tukson's an old friend of our families," Adam said. "But we need to get going. Come on, Blake."

Blake nodded, and followed her fellow Faunus out of the bookshop. Harry shook his head as he watched them both go. Adam Taurus, and Blake Belladonna. There was something dangerous about the former, definitely, even without what Qrow and Ozpin had told him.

He shook his head, and went to pay for his books. He decided he really needed something to eat now…

Roman frowned as he got off the phone with Junior, a special line for getting information, scrambled. Junior's information hadn't really added to what he already knew from these files. Well, apart from this Harry Potter having one of those animals as a girlfriend. Then again, pulling up a photo from the Beacon's official Chirper feed about yesterday's initiation (Roman thought that Ozpin should have tagged it with #FreshMeat), he had to admit, she was a cutie with those bunny ears. Still, Velvet was marked down in his mind as potential leverage, just in case Hazel wanted that.

Hazel or his employers had already gained some important information. Apparently this Harry Potter was the son of that dipsomaniac Qrow Branwen (maybe Potter was the surname of the mother?). If he had even a tenth of the skill of his old man, he'd be a formidable Huntsman. Unlike Qrow, Harry apparently used a rifle-spear, more like that girl who was on the Pumpkin Pete cereal boxes.

What could Roman obtain that Hazel and his associates hadn't obtained already? Maybe what Harry's Semblance was? Or why he didn't actually attend Signal or any other academy? The file suggested he had been taken out into the field for training. Still, Hazel had paid him good money for this job, and while Roman would have loved to bilk most people stupid enough to pay him that much for a vague job, Hazel was not 'most people'.

Which was why it was handy to have a minion capable of camouflage, disguise and, if necessary, a quick getaway. And Neopolitan was far more than just a minion. If there was anyone Roman actually gave a crap about, someone to whom he had even a scrap of empathy for, it was her. He had found her standing over the eviscerated but still living body of the Boss, Junior's uncle and predecessor as a crime boss, probably due to become the old paedophile's latest fucktoy, but she fought back, and won.

The two weren't lovers. No, their relationship was of brother and sister, united not by blood, but by purpose. They'd been fucked over by the world (admittedly, Neo more than Roman), and so, they were going to fuck it right back. Their creed was to lie, steal, cheat and survive. And Roman didn't want to have her hurt.

So, he was having Neo tail Harry Potter whenever he was in Vale. Discreetly, of course: Roman cared about Neo's safety, and it wouldn't do to alert Potter, or Ozpin and his little cock-sucking sycophants that someone had an interest in him. Maybe he could get some useful information…

CHAPTER 14 ANNOTATIONS:

So, there you have it. Harry's met Blake and Adam, and plots and intrigue abound.

Review-answering time! coduss: I think the problem was that Cardin was savvy enough not to do it around the teachers (maybe the teachers only enter the cafeteria on 'patrol', so to speak, and Cardin does it when they're not around). Proving who is the bully isn't always clear-cut IRL, either.

MartinDeShade: Harry's upset because he's been effectively kidnapped, pulled away from everything he knew, thanks to the Branwens. Keep in mind, he's still thinking of Hogwarts as a magical refuge away from Privet Drive. And they're suddenly telling him they're his relatives, relatives that he thought should have come to help him sooner. He's a teenager, he's not exactly thinking clearly anyway.

1. This is the name given to the author of Ninjas of Love in RWBY Chibi.