This is a fanfic. BUY THE FUCKING MERCHANDISE!

There was just so much an average person could take in all at once. Fortunately for Akira, he was not exactly an average person. Yes, he still had his limits. But he still liked to think himself at least as the kind of person who is a jack of all trades, a master of none.

When he had first been thrown into the Metaverse, it did indeed send him for a loop at first. Mybe because he had never actually seen Shujin Academy before. Then again, schools did not look like castles in the century he had been living in. But, unlike Ryuji, he kept his composure rather reserved instead of bursting out with shock and surprise.

Although, Akira could probably consider it to be unfortunate to be able to take many things in at once at the same time. Recapping his thoughts, he found himself thinking back to Yaldabaoth when he had ended up killing the rest of the Phantom Thieves. A frown and diverted eyes had been the first thing that he had done when he woke up in Weiss' home.

He still remembered when each of them had fallen, only to never get back up. Like rocks in the ocean, they only sunk when he expected them to go up. It made him wonder. Why him? Why was it only he that was the last one standing? Why couldn't it be him that would have been downed instead. It would have been a much better trade in his own opinion.

Although he was concerned about family, those related by blood to him were not exactly included. He actually didn't exactly have much interaction with his parents. Mainly because if there was one way to perhaps describe his family, it would be… dysfunctional.

Those he considered family were Sojiro mainly as well as a few other adults that were his confidants. Iwai, and Shinya being some other perfect examples. Yes, they were odd to use. But Iwai was like an uncle while Shinya was like a little brother who he could console whenever the younger boy seemed down. He supposed that should mean all other adults would be considered aunts and Tora as another uncle, and that didn't sound too bad.

But then came the news about him not actually being on Earth, the planet he had lived on for hs entire life. One of the eight planets, nine in Akira's opinion since he preferred to include Pluto despite what people would say, of the solar system of the Milky Way.

But just for him to be given such news that he was in fact in a world called Remnant was a surprise for him. Was Remnant a new planet? A new dimension? He didn't know what it was, and for that he didn't like it.

When he was given an atlas to be shown a landscape of the titled land, the waves of realization and remembrance came crashing down. Once more, it flooded his eyes and he could see them all. All of the Phantom Thieves down on the ground as his world just washing away. So far away in just an instance when he had closed his eyes and fallen.

His exterior seemed fine, but the battle of turmoil within threatened that. Akira almost found himself breaking down with frustration if it weren't for Weiss interrupting his thoughts. His name being yelled out towards him helped stabilize the boy at the moment so he would be able to regain his own composure, managing to temporarily bury the shame that replayed in his mind.

Speaking of whom, Weiss. Weiss Schnee for him to be more specific. From quick observations during their conversations (if he could call them that) the female did not like nonsense at all. He wondered if she either had a sort-temper or he was just really good at getting on her nerves with how she reacted to some of his wording as well. Well, in her defence, he did ramble on a bit which did lead to more questions as she pointed out.

He suspected her to be rather rich as well, by the way that they were in the middle of a library when he had woken up. Another few things that gave it away were the large halls he traversed through, the maze-like layout of the building he walked out of, as well as several decorations no ordinary person would have. Not only that, but also the way their waiter had greeted before handing over the menu.

If there was maybe one more thing he could add so far to describe her it would be… well meaning. Once more, she overreacted over some things in his own opinion. But then he saw how she looked at him a few moments ago. It was… concern. Concern, for him? A complete stranger? The thought almost made him breath through his nostrils with amusement behind such air.

But, now was not the time for much more of an inner monologue.

As soon as the sounds of shots echoed through the building, screams and shouts filled the air next. The terror spread around like an infection, people ducking under the tables immediately. Fear was something most of the customers and staff shared.

Weiss was a part of that crowd as well. The ducking under the table part, not the screaming. Akira quickly descended as well, keeping a hand brushing around the inner pockets of his jacket. Feeling, his fingers touched the handle of the two guns that he had on his person. Despite their bizarre looks, they were still real and loaded. If he could be honest though, he didn't want to use them.

Only one marched straight into the establishment. Akira narrowed his eyes with a frown on his face as he got a better look. The single figure was holding a handgun, a glock if he were making it out properly, and wore a mask. But it was the mask that Akira had to admit piqued his interest a bit. It was covering their entire face except their mouth, attempting to make that one person look like some sort of creature.

Not only that, but their… extra feature; a pair of horns on their forehead despite the mask taking up pretty much all of their face.

The Faunus yelled out his instructions for everyone to stay on the ground. But the order were coming out bit slowly from what Akira had observed. They just kept on looking around while pointing his gun all over the place.

As Akira peeked up a bit more, he felt a hand grab the back of his jacket and yank him down. "What do you think you're doing?!" Weiss hissed quietly, keeping a clump of his clothing balled up in her hand. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?!"

"Of course not. In no way am I suicidal in the slightest." Akira answered quietly while looking at the white-haired female with a raised eyebrow, perplexed to why she had asked that. "I was just trying to see if I could get a better look at the fellow that is standing up at the moment." He gestured a bit with his head in the general direction he was looking originally. "Quite odd, a terrorist with horns. Then again, I suppose it could be another accessory one could wear to hide their identity even better."

With that said, Weiss gave him a weird look. "…What?" She asked in disbelief. "You've never seen or heard of a Faunus before?" As Akira stared at her with a blank expression, she blinked. It then went through her head as she remembered. "That's right. You're not from Remnant." She mumbled to herself before looking at the boy once more while taking in a deep breath. "I'll keep it simple for you, especially due to the situation we're in at the moment." A sigh escaped her lips. "Basically, in layman's terms, they are a race who look human but bear one feature of an animal; ears, tail, or something else for examples."

Akira's lips curled down, but his look was of interest rather than any negative thoughts. He hummed. Was that it? Were those features only there for physical appearance, or could they actually used for other purposes. "Interesting. I'll have to do some research about them later. But right now, there is the issue of being held at gun point at the moment."

Weiss sighed once again at how Akira simply peeked above the table as well. But curiosity took over despite her wanting to be cautious and she peered up as well. She frowned. "But what does the White Fang what in an establishment like this? Did this place absolutely refuse to serve any Faunus?" The female began to mumble to herself once more.

Those words caught Akira's attention as he craned his head once more. "White Fang?" He whispered, eyes blinking in a bit of curisosity. "Refused to serve?"

Weiss nodded her head. "The White Fang is an activist group that wants equality between humanity and Faunus kind. Due to the past, humans view the Faunus as lower beings and most even outright treat them as animals; even at one point hunting them for sport. Both races eventually worked together due to a common conflict, but then that didn't fix the relationship between both races. But to more present matters, and to really answer your question, the White Fang started off with peace rallies. Those did not work as they were ignored and even physically attack by other humans."

Akira frowned, making sure to keep his attention split between Weiss and the apparent Faunus that was keeping a watch on everyone in the building. To put such a speech from Weiss bluntly, racism. It was an issue back on Earth, but it seemed to be up to rather extreme degrees here. At least where he came from, people sometimes kept it to themselves. Here, it almost sounded like people were just open to voicing their own opinion.

"Apparently, the original organizer of the White Fang stepped down and moved to Menagerie; a landmass in the southeast of Remnant. A new leader then stood up and… took up a different belief. Rather than having humanity respect Faunus fairly, have them respect the Faunus out of fear." Weiss saw Akira turn his head a bit more in her direction but kept an eye up front. "Their methods do work, as unfortunate as it is."

"…I see…" Akira only answered, still staring in the direction he kept his eyes glued on for the past few seconds. There was also that history that Weiss briefly went over, but didn't go into detail due to their situation. So at the moment, there was a possibility that the White Fang was actually in the right. After all, the Phantom Thieves were viewed as heroes or criminals depending on the opinion of the person one asked.

But then there was the actual problem of this group going to an extreme of actually attacking places. While humans did seem to have driven them to that state, the Faunus are also in the wrong for turning to such actions. He didn't blame them, but their actions are still something he frowns on.

A situation where no side is in the right or wrong. Some of the toughest problems that one would ever encounter without any good solutions.

Weiss nodded her head to answer Akira silently. But then suddenly, the boy stood up and began to walk forward. "Hey – wait - what are you doing?!" She whispered quietly. But the black-haired male either didn't listen or didn't hear her. "Akira, get back down! Akira!"

Akira slowly moved forward, his hands raised up to show that he was unarmed at the moment. With him just standing alone among so many people crouching, he stuck out like a sore thumb. He didn't even manage to take a step forward when the gun the Faunus was holding was pointed directly at him.

"Hey, you," The person with horns shouted loudly, stepping towards Akira. "Get down on the ground now!" However, Akira only stared at him with narrowed eyes that seemed to be calculating something. "Didn't you hear me?! Get down or else I'll shoot!"

"…" Looking up and down, Akira scanned the Faunus in front of him slowly. The slightest shake from the hands. A bit a sweat seen along the neck. The nervous twitching of the mouth. "You won't shoot me." Akira stated calmly but not in a patronizing tone, still keeping his arms and hands raised, eyeing the pupils behind the mask in a calculated gaze. "Is this your first time pointing a gun at someone? Your first time doing something like this?" His question came out carefully.

"Shut up!" The Faunus yelled back, poking Akira's chest with the handgun. "Just… put your stomach on the ground already!"

Akira still locked his gaze towards the one who was pointing a gun at him without a single bit of doubt in his eyes. After feeling a few more pokes, Akira slowly looked down at the gun before eyeing the offender once more. A few more seconds passed and yet the Faunus still did not shoot at all. "…What is your name?" He asked.

The horned-male seemed to be taken aback by the sudden question. "Wh-what?" He asked with disbelief.

"Your name." Akira simply said back in return, his reply straight without hesitation. "I asked what your name is." He nodded his head just for a bit of confirmation with what he had said. He knew what he was doing was rather crazy, but he just wanted to try something. Yes, it would be risky. But if it worked out, nobody would have to get hurt.

"I-I heard you the first time!" The Faunus exclaimed, really just presenting all bark but no bit at the moment. As the two still kept their eyes locked with one another, there was still a nervous atmosphere all around them. A growl escaped the throat of the one holding the gun against Akira's chest. "… My name is Barro." He huffed out. "I really don't know why I'm telling you my name when it should really be kept a secret."

Akira nodded his head. "Thank you for answering my question as well as trusting me with your name." He replied back. "Akira Kurusu is mine." But then he quickly switched topics. "Tell me, Mr. Barro, what exactly is the White Fang's reason for taking up their time in a building like this? I highly doubt it is the desperate need for a cup of coffee."

"…" Barro's mouth gritted, clearly hesitating about what he should be doing at the moment.

"Come on, you can tell me." Akira beckoned with his hand.

Hearing Barro take a small breath, Akira only waited to be spoken to. "This establishment has been rejecting Faunus over and over again." The horned-Faunus stated. "But that is an extremely common thing here in Atlas! So many restaurants are against serving our kind! Even if they do, their servers are rude without any restraint!" Barro pointed his gun down only to jab Akira's chest in anger.

To that, Akira frowned. But he did not answer, seeing that Barro wanted to continue his rant.

"I've worked hard since I managed to get a job mining for the damn Schnee Dust Company!" Barro just continued on, not noticing the raised eyebrow on Akira's face. "But no matter how much time I put in, how much overtime I worked, me and all the other Faunus get absolute minimum wage while the other human workers actually are paid their proper amounts! Barely, I was able to get my family through with that small amount of pay I earned. But then I was fired for a mistake that a human had caused yet blamed me for it! Without any more income while supporting my own children, we began to have to resort to food from cafés and restaurants! But almost every single place I've tried to buy from flat out refused to serve me at all just because of my race! That's why I joined up with the White Fang, why I'm doing this! It's so that if Faunus fall into a terrible situation like mine, they won't have to go through what I have!"

Akira still stared, but his face showed that he was not pleased in the slightest at all. In fact, he was rather disappointed. Disappointed that humanity was extremely racist to such a degree. Disappointed that the Faunus have taken up extremely violent measures.

"So, you're trashing this place up in hopes to send a message to all of Atlas?" Akira asked slowly, his eyes narrowing even more with each passing second. "What if that doesn't work? Will you just continue what you do? Will each establishment fall victim to your group's methods? What if instead, it actually just makes humanity completely adamant to even serving your kind at all?" He paused, but then didn't let Barro reply. "Tell me, what about the gun then? Is that just used to intimidate people? Or is it just used to show that the White Fang is a group that wants to be feared? That none of you will hesitate to pull that trigger when pointed at anybody? To prove you are willing to kill to achieve your goals?"

Akira stepped forward, prompting the horned-Faunus to raise his gun once more and keep the tip of the barrel pressed against the boy's chest. "How much blood are you willing to put on your hands? How many lives will you ruin? Just how far are you willing to go?"

Barro didn't answer though. Instead, the horned-Faunus slowly looked at the firearm in his hand. Watching the body language of the Faunus, Akira saw that was the arm was also shaking. Akira took in a deep breath, and it brought Barro's attention to Akira.

Weiss meanwhile was just staring at the two with a bit of curiosity while feeling a bit disturbed at the same time. She was impressed and baffled at how Akira was not shot on the spot when he had risen up. She was partially right though, the boy was indeed charismatic. He had managed to take control of the conversation right away when they had started talking. But rather than take the chance to attempt to disarm the offender, Akira just continued to speak.

It almost stunned her at how Akira just acted as if it were nothing at all. There was no sign of him being nervous or arrogant as well during the conversation. Negotiating with an enemy on the spot while being held at gunpoint. Was it after so much practice that he would be able to keep his composure under threatening situations? Was he just a natural when it came down to talking to people? Weiss slightly doubted the latter due to their first conversation back in the library.

"Apologies, I seem to have… overstepped something. You said that you have a family, correct?" Akira asked in order to change the subject, slowly placing his hands behind his back. He bent forward a bit. "Boys?" He tilted his head. "Girls?" He shrugged his shoulders. "A wife?" A moment of silence passed between the two of them. "Go on." Akira then nodded, as if he had the man under a hypnotic spell. "You can tell me if you'd like."

"… I do have a wife." Barro let out, his grip tightening on the gun. But the finger was anything but resting on the trigger of the weapon. "Children as well. A boy and girl…" His lips twitched, turning down into a frown before swallowing. "It used to be two girls actually… but one of them…" Taking in a deep breath, Barro sighed while dangling his arms. "I don't even know why I'm telling you this. You're just a complete stranger and a human at that."

"…" Akira stayed silent, not answering the Faunus.

"My own daughter… beaten just because she was a Faunus… and was just left alone on the side of the road." Barro continued on, but in a somber mood. "They said that she was dead when the skull was shattered. Who would do that?" Behind his mask, eyes stared at Akira. "Who would be that heartless to do that to a teenager? The humans call us beasts yet look at the monstrosities they are themselves."

Akira then hear the click of a gun. This time, instead of the chest, he felt the cold metal press right against his forehead. Several gasps sounded around them, reminding them that they were not alone. It was odd, their conversation almost bringing them to their own world. Akira's frown grew deeper.

"You won't pull the trigger." Akira stated, his eyes narrowing. "Despite those memories triggering something, you won't do it."

"That's what you assume. Some events can change people though." Barro growled out, pressing the weapon down harder. "Tell me, do you know what it's like to see a dead body of someone you care or love? How it feels?"

"…" That was when Akira's eyes softened a bit and diverted their gaze for the first time through the entire conversation. "…I do, actually, yes." He nodded. "It's… scary. Just for a moment, the entire world around you turns grey. In such a brief moment… you don't want to believe… believe that it is real. You hope and pray that it is nothing more than a dream to only then realize that the nightmare is reality. Then the loss of strength, unable to hold yourself up as you fall to your knees. Even if you manage to stand, the legs threaten to give out with each passing second. The image and thoughts replay in your head on an infinite loop. It makes you think why… why did it have to happen? Why did it have to be them? Why not someone else?"

Akira shook his head. "Of course, that was for me. For everyone… it's different. Some could be silent, seeming stoic yet they mourn. Others cry and weep. Maybe there are ones who laugh, that do not care at all."

Silence passed. No one spoke. No one moved. Not a single soul attempted to go for Barro's frozen form. Blue and red lights soon began to pass over their eyes. As the both of them looked to their sides, they saw from one of the windows that there were police cars all around the area. From what Akira could tell, escape was not an option unless certain circumstances were available.

"It looks like you have a limited amount of options at the moment, Mr. Barro." Akira noted, the two of them making eye contact at the same time. "So, before you either shoot me here and now or take me hostage as leverage, mind if we both look to our lefts now?"

There was confusion and a bit of distrust on Barro's lips, but the Faunus did so anyways. Once more, the horned-figure went stiff. In his and Akira's vision, there were two female Faunus. One looked to be in her teens while the other was a child. The older one of the two pulled the younger one closer when they were gaining attention. As the teen covered the mouth of the younger female, the child meanwhile looked like she was going to cry just at the mere sight of being in Barro's vision.

"Mr. Barro…" Akira said, not even noticing Barro looking back at him as the black-haired male just kept his gaze on the two. "I'm sorry for what happened to you. Nobody should have to experience what you have. But… this?" Akira held out his arms. "This is not the answer of what you should do. Really, what you should have done is try to find another job. Sure… it would tough to find one from what I can understand for you. But that's for any job in general." Akira shook his head. "You at least still have family and friends with you."

Barro slowly turned to see Akira, the teen's narrowed gaze still hard but softened. Looking to the weapon still pointed to Akira's head, the Faunus then turned all around him to try and recognize his surroundings. Sluggishly, he began to put his weapon down onto a table with a nearly stunned expression judging by his mouth.

Silently, step by step, Barro walked to the door while raising his hands.

While eyeing the authorities arresting the Faunus, Weiss slowly began to rise from her spot. To describe herself again… it would be shocked that such a scene had played out before her eyes. "…Are… are you okay?" Her question still had a complete tone of disbelief behind it, still not sure if she should accept that the events that had just taken place happened.

Akira took in a deep breath, a lost look in his eyes as he hesitantly shrugged. "…I don't know."

Break

Akira stood on the spot where he apparently appeared out of some glyph, as quoted by Weiss, eyes squinted as the winds blew chilly air around him.

It was a rather nice view from where he stood. He could perhaps see most of the city… or Kingdom from what Weiss had to correct him on. Unfortunately, being so high up reminded Akira of the high cliff he and everyone else were on before against Yaldabaoth.

Folding his arms behind his back, he saw someone approaching from out of the corner of his eye. Turning his head, he saw who it was and nodded in a greeting. "Weiss." He acknowledged curtly, keeping his gaze locked on her.

"Akira." She nodded back slowly, as if unsure of what she was doing. Her approach was slow, a bit of awkward wobble in her steps. She was shivering a bit, unable to take in the temperature that the outdoors provided at the moment. "How are you able to tolerate this kind of temperature?"

Akira brushed a couple of snowflakes off of his jacket. "It may not look like it, but I too am a bit cold at the moment. This jacket may be able to help me withstand the temperatures do such a degree, but it still is rather chilly for me. Better than being fully encased in ice however."

Weiss gave Akira an odd expression due to how he released that phrase so casually. Then again, this was a boy who was possibly not a native to Remnant and talked a terrorist into giving themselves up. Quietly, the both of them looked out towards the Kingdom, eyeing the buildings and technology going around to transport people and goods.

"It's quiet a beautiful sight." Akira commented, his breathing perhaps seeming to try and start a conversation. "Although under all of that is a very spoiled civilization as well as a poor one from what I can tell from my first few hours here. I'm sure there are lovely, normal people here however."

Weiss didn't really want to agree with Akira, but she silently did just by a small margin. "So… what now?" She asked, still looking forward with the black-haired boy. "You don't exactly have anywhere to go… anything to do either."

Akira didn't say anything for about a second. "To tell you the honest truth… I'm not quite sure." He admitted. "Perhaps find a place to pawn off a couple of gems then find a place to stay." He shrugged his shoulders. "What I'll do from there though… I do not know."

"…You can stay here if you'd like."

Weiss watched as Akira craned his head towards her slowly, as if he were a rusted machine. Eyebrows were jumbled up in confusion on the boy's face as it looked like he wanted an explanation for what she had said. "…My family has many guest rooms that almost have never been used for years." She then narrowed her own eyes. "But fair warning though, any kind of suspicious activity from you, and I will have you kicked out into the snow with nothing but the clothes on your very back."

Akira kept his eyes on her with surprise, taken aback by such a rather generous offer. A nod came soon after. "I wouldn't have it any other way." He answered.

Weiss seemed satisfied with what Akira had said, but she didn't seem exactly content. "One other thing though." She watched Akira raise and eyebrow. "I want to hear what happened to you. How events built up to you arriving here."

Once again, Akira was caught off-guard. "…Why?" He found himself asking.

Weiss now found herself going silent, hesitant to even speak now. But Akira's gaze showed that he was being more than patient with her and he didn't mind that at all. Folding her arms, she rubbed her elbow while avoiding his look partially. "You look… lonely." She finally spoke. "I've seen that look too many times… more that I could count." She found herself spilling such previous information out, like that Faunus back in the café. Akira standing, willing to listen just made him so… trustworthy. She saw a new look in his eyes and just decided to stop there. "If you choose not to say anything yet, that's fine. I will not rush you. But just know…" She gave him a look of her own. "No one can help you if you don't tell them anything or don't ask for it."

With a curt nod of her head, she began to walk. However, she didn't even manage three steps when she hear him speak.

"It leaves a blank space inside me, an empty feeling." Akira stared off, making Weiss stop in place and slowly turn towards him as he continued to speak. "I fear as if I'm standing on one side of a wide chasm, shouting across, and wondering if the responses I hear is really my friends and companions or just my own desperate delusions." He inhaled, allowing a small pause. "My friends… they all died because of me. My family… companions… I was torn away from them… Perhaps to never see them again… I'll never see my home ever again…"

Akira found himself swallowing. "You want to know what's wrong with me? A couple of words do come to mind… Guilt… shame… maybe even regret… those are perhaps things that plague my mind, body, and soul. What we have done… what I have finished… I wouldn't have been able to do what had happened without them. We all changed the hearts of the corrupt and cruel, attempted to make the public a better place. Yet what was their reward? They all died… Though I guess it's a punishment that I lived. It makes me wonder… what would have happened if it were me instead? Would that perhaps be the better scenario?"

As the two stared at each other, the winds died down. The chill stopped and it became warmer just by a bit without the cold air. "Would you like to hear my story, about how it all started?" Akira asked. "I do warn you though, it's a very long tale."

Silently, Weiss walked back towards him. Quietly, she attempted to make herself comfortable as she stood in place. With a single nod from her, she began to listen to Akira's story.

Finally, finished!

Right, I'm satisfied with this end result! You all may think it was a terrible chapter, but I like it! Yes, this small result took long, but I have so much to do apart from this. School being the main and primary example. PASSED SEMESTER 2 AT LEAST! Which bring me to semester 3 while I am between average and getting under the passing grade at the moment.

This may turn out to be a disappointing fanfic to most of you judging by this chapter and the previous one. But those who don't like it… then don't read it. Yes, I'm constantly saying this. But really, stop PMing me about how you don't like it because of this and that. It's my fanfic, it's my writing.

I am doing the best I can with these. I hope that it is at least enough to satisfy you all considering how I'm just an average to below average writer.

No flames please.