All credit to respective owners!

Reviews are loved!

-Y.A.R.N.

Jaune collapsed in his bed as he got home and stared at his hand, letting the light seep from the limb and swirl around the room. Here was one of the few places no one could see him let his control slip a little and admire the beauty of his powers. He had never wanted them but he had to admit that there was something rather beautiful about the light he absorbed flowing free and bathing the room in a warm glow. His appreciation of its beauty faded when he remembered that he had come dangerously close to letting out the fact he was a conduit slip.

In front of Blake.

Why was that the worst thing about it?

Blake was his friend!

'But you aren't normal... she would hate you if she knew what you were.' A snide voice whispered in his skull.

She wouldn't betray him!

'She would abandon a freak like you. Anyone with a lick of sense would abandon you, you dangerous monster!'

Right?

'Wrong.'

Jaune took a deep shuddering breath, forcing his dark thoughts into the back of his head where they couldn't taunt him.

He didn't regret punching Cardin though, that may have been one of — if not the most — satisfying things he had done in recent memory. Still, if anyone else had caught that, he would have had a beatdown coming his way and he would have no choice to run or take it. For all of the general populace knowing Cardin was a grade 'A' asshole, Cardin's father was no regular dude. Maybe he wasn't some powerful conduit, but he clearly had a lot of pull in the city, he was the sole reason Cardin wasn't incarcerated already. Jaune didn't look forward to the day that he would meet Cardin and eventually his dad, and he knew it was an inevitability. As long as Cardin pushed him around, there was gonna be a breaking point, a point Jaune would no longer be able to hide what he could do. Cardin went after Blake and that was already an unforgivable sin; Jaune would slaughter him if he ever tried that again.

But if he wanted to have even a chance to stop him, he knew he couldn't take someone like Cardin with only the martial arts and physical evasion Curdun Cay drilled into him, he would be pushed to use his powers. He knew whatever training Cardin got in his time at the DUP was sub-par despite his unique ability to shift into the various forms of the DUP forces — from 'Pawn' to 'Bishop' to 'Rook' to 'King' without blowing up after taking too much damage — and then use them to adapt to the situation at hand. In the hands of someone who was less self-assured and actually acknowledged that he could be beaten and trained to limit that, Jaune wasn't sure he could beat that sort of person even with his powers. But Cardin let his skills — what little he probably gained — stagnate and deteriorate since the DUP's disbandment, thinking that so long as he had those powers, he was top dog in the food chain. Jaune hadn't been as idle, for all that he went to great lengths to hide his powers, kept his paces in his physical training from Curdun Cay as much as he could.

It wasn't like any of the strength he had with powers diminished — considering he did nothing but absorb light all day it was probably much stronger since he never used his powers in any capacity if he could help it — but he had to be super careful to be alone in the area he could train reliably. He hadn't wanted to use them and keep them locked up as much as he could, but the power straining against his body's control would explode in any violent action — like his punch against Cardin's jaw — he took if he didn't vent. Simply emitting light while he was alone in his room was like finding a snack for a starving man, it took the edge off but he was still starving. So he had no choice but to find a place to use his powers — and while he had to use them he still wanted to stay as hidden as possible — so he could relieve stress and tension. For all he knew, Cardin probably had a training area built for him that he used all the time to blow off steam or just play around. For all that New Empire City had been home to Cole MacGrath — and multiple other conduits — and had a pro-conduit attitudes, they didn't have an actual place where conduits could be free to use their abilities.

Which led Jaune to one of the few areas he could practice without much notice.

The underground.

It wasn't even worth mentioning compared to Curdan Cay even if the most delusional of people were to compare them, but if you actually had the patience to map it out, there were sections that only a Conduit could access that were of reasonable space for use. There were several large atriums that actually some lights lit and had graffiti done by the more art inclined Conduits that went there to stretch their metaphorical power muscles. Of course there was always a chance you could get spotted, but if you displayed powers down there, most of the non-powered individuals there wouldn't dare cross you for any reason. Conduits might strike up a conversation if you seemed the friendly sort, but mostly kept to themselves and out of fights.

Jaune had gotten his star-stream shift — a variation of the power-based-matter shift most Conduits seemed to have that didn't cost him any of his reserves (so to speak) — down to an art form after days of practice. He could shift into a simple mass of ethereal light and move through fences or if he really focused he could sear straight through obstacles although not nearly as easily or as fluidly. After he got his simple evasion down he focused on his martial arts and light bolts for his offensive arsenal. His own hesitance held him back at first, but somewhere after a month of bumbling about and his own attacks making him stumble, he stomped down on the wedge of panic in his chest and focused. Afterwards, his aim and intensity increased thorough hours and hours of drilling till he felt no fear if he was ever pushed into a corner. He was fairly confident in his abilities and capability to fight with his powers, he just never wanted to used them if he didn't have to.

Last thing he or anyone else needed is a live-fire test against another Conduit.

Though then again, who would want a conduit to be able to 'cut loose'? The sheer possibility of casualties was not something people of Empire City would accept. The Beast had nearly made this land an dead and dying wasteland unfit for any habitation, it had taken years for any effort of rebuilding to bear any sort of fruit, and Jaune had heard the rumors that in the beginning of New Empire City's reconstruction the bones and bodies of people lay like an almost literal hell-scape. The last thing the world needed was for some Conduit to do that again.

Still, every path in front of him seemed to lead to a confrontation he wouldn't be able to avoid.

Jaune flopped back onto his bed and rested his head on his arms, the light he was emitting cutting off in a flash as he tamped completely down on his power.

"Why does it feel like no matter what I do, I lose...?"

The darkened silence held no answers for him.

Weiss and Whitley Schnee both sat on the bed of their house purchased through their father's wealth in the unfamiliar city, leaning against each other as they were quite literally the only thing that was familiar in the world in the moment. It wasn't fair that they were cast aside because they were not willing to be quite literally dissected so they could buff their's father influence. Now, they were nothing more than loose ends to be discarded. Maybe the house they were given was opulent, but that was because their father loved to flaunt their wealth, not out of any real concern. To the Schnee family, purchasing a mansion would not even be as much as tossing a penny into random fountain.

"Weiss?" Whitley inquired.

"Yes?"

"Do you think Father still cares? Even a little? That he sent us here even though we are his children?"

Weiss was silent for a long moment and when she spoke there was a sliver of hurt in her voice she hadn't managed to suppress, "No. I'm sorry."

Whitely sighed and lowered his head, grieving what he never truly had and the at loss of a chance to ever get it.

'Maybe it is better this way though.' Weiss mused, wrapping an arm around Whitley's shoulders and watching as icicles sprouted from her free hand, 'We were never more than assets to be used, our status as conduits let us escape that. Here, we have a chance to be whoever we want to be.'

Weiss eyes hardened.

'And I will never be a tool again.'

Oscar hands stretched out to the shrubbery of the outdoor garden his father had placed in the middle of the house, away from the prying eyes from the city. Oscar breathed deeply, eyes closed as he gestured to manipulate the plants around him to bend to his will. Leaves exploded off the bushes, flying toward Oscar before circling around him in a storm of green. He clapped his palms onto the earth, the leaves slamming into the ground embedding themselves into the earth; raising his hands, plants sprouted from the earth and curled towards the dark-haired youth. Ozpin watched as his son played and practiced from the balcony, a small knot of worry in his chest.

Oscar claimed he was happy, as long as he had his father, he would be okay.

But Ozpin wouldn't live forever, he was but a mortal man, not a conduit or some superhuman immortal. Conduits always lived much much longer than regular people though, so Oscar would outlive him by a large margin naturally. Ozpin swore that he would not lose his son, no father should ever have to bury their son.

But Oscar would need to be able to stand on his own two feet and Ozpin knew he could.

But he needed support to get there and Ozpin was all he had right now.

Ever since Salem left, Oscar's heart was left broken and bleeding; and Ozpin sometimes dreaded that Oscar was only holding himself together for him.

What action would Oscar take should something happen to Ozpin?

That could not happen.

He would not let that happen to his son.

But Oscar needed people like him who would stay by his side for life, and Ozpin was no Conduit.

Ozpin strolled back inside and place his mug on the table as he picked up the blueprints for his final goal. The building he had in mind was very large and in the process of being renovated, and if modeled and correctly advertised, may be able to turn one of the islands of Empire City into a Conduit neighborhood/hub-of-sorts. He wasn't for the discrimination that some cities had for the super-powered community — especially because he fought tooth and nail to keep Oscar safe — and he knew that if they could just prove Conduits were just as 'human' as any normal person, people could look past their hate. A community made of Conduits that didn't sink within the first few months would be a resounding success. But more than that, the more chances Oscar had to meet people who could stay with him for a lifetime, the better off he would be.

"An Eden for the Extraordinary..." He murmured, "A 'Beacon' to those who need a chance to be free..."

That did have a nice ring to it...

Pyrrha Nikos shielded her eyes from the sun as it broke through the monotony of the grey skies. Getting a call to come Empire City had been a bit of a surprise, but she wasn't about to turn down an opportunity to see what could help Conduits actually fit in and not be ostracized because of what they could do. She had been a well-liked and admired person till her magnetism manipulation happened and she had suddenly become the killer and monster (or the hot freak who would be into freaky stuff). Her friends abandoned her and it was only because her mother and father loved her that she was able to avoid the DUP from transferring her into Curdun Cay as they hushed up the issue quickly. Of course with Delsin Rowe dismantling their power and them all but gone, she had no real problem with simply living her life (while dealing with minor jeering because of the previous rumors).

The thing was she no longer had any friends, she wasn't going to accept apologies from people who cut her off simply because she happened to be a Conduit. Her days before her powers manifesting had been great, she had friends to talk to and hang out with. Now, she knew that her spurning their insincere apologies only made them angry and ashamed, making them lash out with vicious rumors and lies. Having enough of that, Pyrrha had already been making plans to leave when she got the call from a Mr. Ozpin. The idea seemed to be simple enough, he wanted to convert one of the sections of the city into a Conduit-based sector. A place where the conduits didn't have to hide who they were and where normal people could also mingle.

Cities — for all that the whole DUP infrastructure going up in smoke, neon light, pixelated energy, and concrete — still had a heavy bias against conduits, except for places like New Marais or Empire City, and that was only because of The Patron Saint of New Marais. But as much as the idea sounded appealing, Pyrrha was no fool and knew that if not careful made, this idea might very well trigger a schism between the normal people and the Conduits all over again. The goal also seemed a bit simplistic, just make a city for conduits? That was the sort of the thing that sent New Marais into a state of panic as people with powers, mutants, and monsters all vied for control of the city before Cole activated the Ray Field Inhibitor. And while not a immensely politically popular figure, if Ozpin was truly intending to create a place for conduits, he was no fool either.

Either way, this was an opportunity she at least wanted to explore.

Jaune was tallying up the counter near the end of his shift when Ghira Belladonna walked over to him and clapped a hand on his shoulder, nearly making Jaune face-plant into the counter. While Ghira was a friendly and kind individual, he sometimes seemed to forget just how strong he was.

"You did good today Jaune." He complimented quietly, smiling at the young blond.

Jaune grinned, "Thanks boss."

Jaune took a lot of pride in his job for all that he was a barista in a cafe, there was something so satisfying about people lighting up from taking a sip from his beverages that made his day. Ghira had Blake usually working the counter on the days Jaune had off, and while he usually was told firmly to take a break, Jaune came back as soon as he could. He really loved his job and the people that were usually associated with it. Ghira was a great boss who always seemed to like him and his wife — Kali — often treated Jaune like a member of the family as he was always respectful when addressing her (She noted that it didn't hurt that he seemed to be one of the only boys who had managed to see the sweet and caring girl that Blake was rather than the standoffish mask she wore).

The door bell chimed and Jaune turned with his signature grin to greet the customer, "Welcome to the Aura's Gift! How can I—"

He froze as the person who walked in killed his good mood almost immediately.

Cardin Winchester blinked in surprise before he grinned mockingly as he sauntered up to the cash register and looked Jaune up and down.

Jaune already squared his shoulders and clenched his teeth as his face fell into his usual neutral mask when Cardin started picking on him.

"So this is where you spend you free time you prick?" Cardin laughed, conjuring a small pebble to flick at Jaune's forehead, "God whose dick did you suck to get a job? Anyone who has any sense wouldn't hire a moron like you!"

Jaune teeth ground so hard he was sure he could have bit through iron, but almost immediately a deadly weight of sheer anger descended upon Cardin.

Ghira Belladonna stared down at Cardin with the most cold expression that Jaune had only seen on his parent as he was arrested. Cardin instinctively stepped back as he stared at the mountain of a man that was radiating animosity. Jaune had no doubts that Conduit or no, Ghira Belladonna would be able to hand the ass of anyone who tried to fight him to said person on a silver platter. It was one of the reasons Jaune liked working here, Ghira may have been a small time Cafe owner, but he was indomitable when it came to protecting people he cared about.

But Jaune a sinking feeling that Cardin wouldn't react well.

"What did you just say to my employee?" He said, voice dangerously soft, "Care to say it again?"

Cardin swallowed and Jaune winced at the flash of arrogance come to Cardin's eyes, he was going to give Ghira an ultimatum and Jaune knew it was going to hurt him or Ghira greatly.

"Watch it old man." Carding sneered, "My dad is on the city council and could get your little cafe shut down faster than a virgin's dick goes up at a striptease."

Ghira's eyes narrowed and he opened his mouth, "You best shut your mouth and leave punk. We don't serve disrespectful brats at our establishment."

"You just sealed the deal then." Cardin scoffed and turned to leave, "I suppose I'll have to talk to my dad about what a shit-hole this place is. However I suppose there is one way to improve this dive enough to keep it open. Fire that faggot blond by next week or you'll find your little cafe in for some very hard times."

With that, Cardin spat on the floor and sauntered out of the cafe and into the street.

Jaune's eyes watered as his fists clenched and he bowed his head, his shoulders shaking as he squeezed his eyes shut in an attempt to keep the stinging tears from falling.

He whimpered quietly as he felt their burning sensation trail down his cheeks.

Why did this always have to happen to him?

What did he do to deserve this?

He suddenly felt two large hands clasp his shoulders and knew that Ghira was looking at him sympathetically.

"It that Cardin Winchester that boy who Blake says bullies you?" Ghira asked softly.

Jaune nodded slightly, unwilling to show his face to the man he respected so much about to lose because of his presence (and not cry in front of him).

"I... I'm sorry." Jaune whimpered quietly, "I'll return the uniform shirts tomorrow sir. I promise to leave and not bother you again."

"You'll do no such thing Jaune." Ghira said firmly, "I will not have a bratty child like that intimidate me into firing you."

"You don't understand!" Jaune burst out, looking up at Ghira, forgetting how pitiful he looked, "His dad really could shut this business down! I can't you lose your business! Especially because you chose to keep me on!"

Ghira gave Jaune a stern look, "Jaune. I expect you to be here tomorrow on time. And don't make me have to call my wife to fetch you because I will. And Kali will not take your excuses to skive of work lightly."

Jaune stared at the man and wondered for a second if this was how a father was supposed to be. Jaune's dad had never been cold per se, but he wasn't able to devote a decent amount of time to him with seven other children. His mother was in much the same predicament despite the fact she was a stay-at-home mom. Then when he was outed a conduit, they didn't even acknowledge his existence and let him get arrested without a goodbye. Ghira guided Jaune into the back office and set him on the chair he had once sat in in his interview.

He burst into tears and couldn't even bring himself to feel ashamed as Ghira patted his back and let him curl in on himself in the back office.

"Hello?"

"Taiyang. It's Ghira."

"Oh hey! How are you doing?"

"I need a favor."

"..."

"Well?"

"What sort of favor do you need?"