Writing stupid headlines is going to get really easy now with how dumb a lot of UK newspapers and politicians are being. Our home secretary literally suggested that the UK is receiving "billions" (her actual words) of migrants yesterday, and several newspapers aligned with them agreed.
Billions, is it? As in, plural? As in, more than one billion?
When the population of earth isn't yet eight billion?
Man, it's making me think my headlines are TOO REASONABLE in this, and that I should go full idiot.
Cover Art: GWBrex
Chapter 36
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General Ironwood dodges questions on taxpayer money spent on Arc's ungrateful family.
Atlas Times
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Council hails "steady progress" in understanding Arc's aura issues – current evidence cites over-use of aura as likely cause.
Vale Daily Tribune
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Mistral Council speaks out against "desperation tourism" – the dangerous new trend that sees citizens booking holidays to Vale in the hopes of securing a meeting with Jaune Arc.
The Mistral Review
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Gillian Asturias' arrival in Vale to spark new chapter in diplomatic relations.
Vacuo Today
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Adam Taurus SLAMS Sienna Khan for WEAKNESS in refusing to strike while Arc unable to resurrect fallen. Pacifist and cowardly Sienna full of excuses.
Kuo Kuana Express
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Mercury was odd.
Good odd, in Jaune's opinion. The guy had no filter, no sense of patience, and it sometimes felt like he didn't have any empathy either. Jaune hesitated to use the word psycho- or sociopath because he really wasn't sure either of those fit, but Mercury Black was a guy who gave no shits about what other people thought or felt, and that was refreshing in its simplicity.
"So, what happens if you just say no?" asked Mercury. "Tell them all to fuck off." It was a question Weiss would never ask because she was more married to his heroism than she was to him, and Pyrrha was too nice to imply he do it. Mercury, of course, just came out with it as the first idea. "It's your Semblance, and last I checked there's no way for someone to force you to use it if you don't want to. Just say no."
"It's the consequences of saying no that get me. They might not be able to force me, but they can drag my reputation through the mud – which isn't a problem for me specifically, but will be a problem for my family. If I upset a lot of people, it's not just me that'll suffer."
"Weak points. Got ya. So, fine, blackmail them. Tell them you won't use your Semblance until they give you what you want."
"Wouldn't work. What I want and what they want are exact opposites."
"How so?"
"I want to be left alone and allowed to live my life how I want to – which is specifically not being forced to work in hospitals every day. What they want is for me to work in the hospitals every day. The whole point of blackmail is that you have something you want that the other party can give up. No one will give up what I'm after."
"Hmm. You could demand they stop people going all media and public opinion on you."
"How would they manage that? You can't police people's thoughts and any attempt to squash the media or control how people talk about me would be seen as infringing on their basic rights."
"What about your rights?"
"Technically, no one has the right to be immune from criticism."
"Bah!" Mercury collapsed back on Jaune's bed and kicked his legs into the air. He saw no harm in making Jaune's room his own, nor in smuggling in some cans of beer that honestly tasted terrible, but were creating a warm buzz in his head. "Screwed if you do and screwed if you don't. What's the ideal, then? Live some hermetic lifestyle away from all people and focus on what you want to do?"
"That wouldn't work either." He had put a lot of thought into it. "Because as much as I hate being under the control of Atlas or Vale, or whatever Kingdom I'm in, you have to remember that they offer security. If I lose that then things go back to how they were before, and that means desperate people allowed to get to me and my family."
It didn't matter if he refused, or bargained, or tried to blackmail someone who was desperate and unhinged. They would kidnap his sisters, hold knives to their throats, and tell him to bring back their loved ones or they'd slit his sister's throat. They'd already tried to kidnap Amber once, and that was just desperate people in Ansel. What if crime groups, terrorists, or other bad people got a hold of his family? They'd care even less for his personal wishes, and they'd lock his family away from him where the threat of killing them really held weight.
"Man, your family is really a weak point of yours, aren't they? Never thought of how lucky I am to be rid of mine."
Mercury had told him the barebones of his family, or of his father; he didn't remember his mother. It had been said with such casualness that Jaune didn't know what to think or say. He hadn't been sure if Mercury wanted comfort, but then the guy shrugged and kept drinking. It was clear the horrific nature of his father, and his death, didn't faze Mercury at all.
"Pretty much," said Jaune. "Any plan I come up with has to keep them in mind because my actions impact them – and unlike me, they don't get a say in it. I'm lucky right now that Ironwood agreed to look after them. It could be much worse."
"Sounds it. So, what you really need is anonymity!"
"Yeah. I guess." Jaune's tone was wry. "But how am I supposed to manage that when I'm the most well-known face and name in Remnant right now?"
"Fake your own death."
Jaune stared at Mercury, then burst out laughing.
"What? I'm serious." Mercury was grinning. "It'd need to be convincing of course, but if you faked your death then your family wouldn't be targeted because you're not around anymore. They'd be hurt, sure, but you could get in contact on the down-low later and explain the situation to them."
"Ha." Jaune wiped his eye. "Yeah, sure, but where would I go after that? I'd be recognised anywhere."
"There are places." Mercury shrugged and didn't name any. "I mean, Remnant is a place overrun with Grimm and you can disappear pretty easily. My old man was an assassin literally known and wanted by the name he used, and no one knew him. Some far flung villages are so off the grid that they might as well be aliens."
"Sounds lovely."
"You laugh now but keep an open mind. If people are gonna keep treating you like shit and ignoring what you want, then maybe vanishing into the wilderness isn't such a bad idea. Better yet, find someone who'll help you do it in exchange for a few favours."
"Trade one master for another?"
"If your existing masters want you chained to a hospital for half the day, and the new one wants you to use your Semblance once every other month? I'd say yeah. Trade them in. Better still if they don't give a shit for fame and will help fake your death."
Jaune laughed. "Let me know if you find someone who fits that criteria."
"Sure thing, man." Mercury was smiling. "I'll let you know."
/-/
Making up with Pyrrha was surprisingly easy. He'd expected a lot of tears, some tough conversations, and maybe even a few days apart to come to terms with things, but there was none of that. Elm's advice about just brushing over the issue, even if it seemed like avoiding it, worked wonders. Pyrrha didn't mention the kiss and neither did he. They chatted, relaxed, and then were back side by side on his bed talking about nonsense and browsing the internet for funny videos. Jaune did wonder if it was leading her on a little – he decided to ask Elm about it later, though, rather than make things awkward now.
The important part was that he was happier having Pyrrha back as a friend, even if a dark little voice in his head said this felt too much like cheating on Weiss, and as a darker and quieter voice whispered that Weiss deserved it.
"You've made a new friend? That's great. Will I get to meet him?"
"I don't think you'd want to meet him." said Jaune. He noticed her conflicted look and expanded, "I'd be happy to introduce you both but he's kind of an asshole. Sort of an anti-you."
"An anti-me?"
"Yeah. You're polite and empathic and friendly and the type to always push forward no matter what obstacles are in front of you." Jaune didn't miss how Pyrrha basked in his praise. "And Mercury is… well, none of that. He's a misanthropic asshole who is lazy, apathetic, and who seems to genuinely enjoy poking fun at others and seeing people in the worst way. A true cynic."
"Oh. He sounds… um… lovely…"
Jaune laughed. "I'm not selling him well, am I? I guess it's just nice to have someone I can be a misanthrope with, you know? I love hanging around with you because you understand what it's like being famous and see me as myself, same as I do you, but sometimes I want to just get angry and kick doors and be cynical whiner. Mercury is good for that."
"I see." Pyrrha did not. He could tell. "Well, that makes sense. There are bound to be certain times when I can't help you, and it's good you have someone else. I think you'd love my team if you got to know them."
He probably would, but he was unsure if he wanted to expand his friendship circle right now. Mercury had put an idea in his head, intentional or otherwise, and he couldn't stop thinking about it now. Not seriously, at least he didn't think so. Faking his death and running away would upset a lot of people, and it wasn't likely to even work. Maybe he could do it on the short-term, though. Fake not his death, but an injury and take a week or two off. Sort of a holiday. Or even just go on an actual holiday, but officially book it to one place before sneaking off to another.
Elm would know, of course, as would his family, but he could work with them to have a secret break from things. It wouldn't work now of course – everyone was too worried about his aura issues, and he was too in all honesty. Pyrrha had shown her own interest but hadn't been able to contribute much. Her understanding of aura was better than his, thanks to her education as a huntress, but she'd never heard of someone's aura rising above 100%, let alone continuously.
"Weiss is still complaining about you," said Pyrrha. There was a hint of fatigue to her words. "It's really hard to listen to her go on. I told her she's the one being unreasonable but she just says I don't understand and that it's for the best that she do this on your behalf. It's infuriating."
Jaune agreed. Of course, if Pyrrha had feelings for him like the kiss suggested then there was a very good chance she was jealous of Weiss, so this could be her talking Weiss down. Then again, Pyrrha was also his friend and Weiss was completely in the wrong here – even Elm agreed on that – so Pyrrha might be angry at Weiss for completely understandable and platonic reasons as well. He decided to take it as that.
"I'm trying to break through to her on that front but she just won't have it," said Jaune. "It's getting to the point where I've considered contacting her father to ask him to talk to her."
"Why not Winter? Don't you get on with her?"
"Ironwood is considering her for the Arc-Ops and I don't want Winter stuck in a spot where she has to pick between her career and her sister."
"It's sweet that you'd think of that." Pyrrha was visibly proud of him, which was an odd thing to see. Jaune glanced away. "Then I think going to her father is probably for the best. Weiss has told me a little about her relationship with her mother and…" Pyrrha grimaced. "It'd be best if she were kept out of this. Far out of it."
He'd gotten that feeling himself, though Weiss hadn't really given him the full story there. It must have felt easier for her to tell a friend like Pyrrha than her fiancé. And that was the worst part, wasn't it? Weiss genuinely thought of Pyrrha as her friend and her confidant, and yet here Pyrrha was siding against her to him. It wasn't something he could feel Pyrrha was doing wrong either, because he'd always known Pyrrha was more his friend than Weiss'. He'd even done his best to warn Weiss in Mistral that she was alienating Pyrrha by putting her on a pedestal. Weiss simply hadn't listened, and the rest had played out exactly as he'd said it would.
Weiss doesn't understand what it's like to be normal before being famous. How could she? She's never experienced it.
Jaune and Pyrrha chatted for the rest of the night.
The kiss was never mentioned.
/-/
"-and there we go. How does that feel?"
It felt good, and Jaune said so. The various doctors around him chattered happily and double-checked his aura, now sitting at a comfortable 95%, while the mayoress of Vacuo, Gillian Asturias, stood with her hand on his bare wrist. The woman was pretty in an older kind of way, with long black hair and a complexion remarkably pale and smooth for a sand-blasted country like Vacuo. He'd been hesitant at first to meet her after what happened before, but apparently the whole government in Vacuo had been voted out in snap elections, and it didn't feel right to hold the mistakes of the past group against her.
"I'm happy to act in this capacity whenever I'm needed," said Gillian, her voice a melodic but powerful thing that washed over the various doctors and aura specialists. "That is, while I'm here for the Vytal Festival."
"That's wonderful," said a politician from Vale. Again, he was there just to say he was, because other than standing in the corner he offered nothing to proceedings. "If you can keep his aura at even levels then I see no reason why he can't do extra shifts in the hospitals-"
"Absolutely not," snapped Elm. "Asturias here is a temporary solution. Jaune won't be forced into shifts until we know for certain the long-term ramifications of his condition."
"I agree," said Gillian. Her eyes met his and she smiled faintly, even going so far as to wink. "I've offered my Semblance to help contain his aura while your teams find a cure, or an answer, for his condition. Using me to treat the symptoms won't help him any, and I won't be a part of it."
Several of the doctors and experts agreed, much to the chagrin of the politician. He looked inordinately angry to have been talked back to, but the people here weren't civil servants he could boss around. Gillian was of a higher rank than him, and Elm worked for another kingdom. Many of the researchers were similarly on loan from Mistral, so all he could do was make a sputtering apology that he hadn't meant it that way – even if everyone knew he had – and then excuse himself because he had an important call to take. His scroll wasn't even buzzing.
"Politicians," joked Gillian when the man had gone. "Always so eager to be praised, and so quick to run away when their plans backfire."
"Thank you for your assistance," said Elm.
"Don't mind it at all. I can spread the excess aura around those closest to me without harm to anyone. You certainly don't owe me anything." Her eyes met his again. "If anything, I dare say I am the one who owes you. Vacuo has much to apologise for after how you were treated."
Jaune shrugged. "It's fine. It was terrorists, right? Did you manage to catch them?"
"Not yet. They are elusive. In truth, I wonder if they haven't gone to ground for good. Though perhaps they'll make a move while I'm gone. I've left some trusted allies of mine to hold the fort just in case. I hear you had similar problems in Mistral. White Fang, wasn't it?"
"Yes," said Elm. "We intended to keep that secret for Mistral's sake but the White Fang went and claimed responsibility."
"Terrorists are often eager to boast, aren't they? Has there been any sign of them in Vale?"
"A little," admitted Elm. He shot her a look, having heard none of that, and she sighed. "The White Fang are present in every kingdom, and most towns as well, so I didn't think it worth worrying you. They're not any more active here than anywhere else, though. There shouldn't be any need to worry."
"That's good to hear," said Gillian. "The last thing we need is more terrorists causing upset, My team will be keeping their guard up either way; I advise you do the same. The White Fang thrives off publicity, and the Vytal Festival is their best chance to gain more."
"General Ironwood will be coming to ensure that does not happen."
"Atlas is to take over security?" Gillian was surprised. "That's news I haven't heard. Is it a recent development?"
"Yes. It will be announced a week from now."
"I see. I suppose I shall have to ask the Council of Vale why I was not informed. Thank you for letting me know." Gillian nodded to Elm, and then to him. "I should go, but here. Take my number." Two thin cards, business cards. Jaune took one and Elm the other. "If his aura gets out of control then contact me. I may request that Ozpin house me at Beacon if I'm to continue like this. I'd also like a chance to see the famous academy after studying at Shade. It would make attending to you easier if I was staying there."
"I can lodge a formal request if that helps," said Elm.
"It would. Thank you. I'll wish you both a good day. Though a word of warning to you, Jaune." Her voice wasn't threatening, and he nodded to show he was listening. "I get a feel for someone's aura when I take it into my system. A taste if you will. Yours feels unusually thin. Like soup with too much water added. I'm not entirely sure what that means, but most people's auras are thicker, more robust. I can only think yours being stretched so thin is a bad thing, so do be careful. Aura is your soul. Spending it at such a ruthless rate over just two years? There's no telling what the long-term consequences of that will be. And I dare say you've expended more aura in those years than some huntsmen have in twenty. Be careful."
Thin aura. Jaune grimaced. It was about what he expected, and he sure as hell felt stretched thin at times. Still, it was good information to have, and he was sure the researchers and doctors would be mulling over it over the next few days. "I'll keep that in mind. Thank you, Miss Asturias."
"Please, call me Gillian. Miss Asturias reminds me of my mother. Good day to you both." The woman moved around them, smiled, and waved once before leaving. Elm waited for her to go before speaking up.
"Remember what Ironwood warned you before you went to Vacuo. You catch more flies with honey than vinegar." Elm didn't look too worried, not in the sense that made him feel he was under threat, but she was cautious. "Keep that in mind."
/-/
Weiss was waiting for him outside his room when he returned.
"Has there been any news on your aura? What did they say?"
He considered telling her to stuff it, but the question was a fair one, and she did have some right to know as his fiancée, whatever their argument. Plus, this might be her way of opening up before an apology. He doubted it, but he'd give her the chance.
"My aura problems are persisting and Miss Asturias reported my aura as being unusually thin, like it had been stretched thin through overuse." He tried not to let the unspoken I told you so slip out. "It's not safe for me to keep over-using it, and I won't be doing shifts until the doctors clear me for action."
Weiss crossed her arms. "Is that their diagnosis? Very well – as long as it's official, no one can argue with your actions over it."
"As if facts will stop them," he joked. Weiss smiled faintly.
"We can dream." Was this it? Were they about to make up? Weiss took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "Jaune, I feel that I should apologise. My… team, and Pyrrha, have made it abundantly clear that I wronged you, and that I should make up for what I did."
Her team? Well, colour him surprised. Pyrrha, less surprised, but also warmly pleased that she'd genuinely put aside her personal feelings for his and Weiss' sake like that. It confirmed what he already knew – that Pyrrha was that good of a person. If he wasn't with Weiss- Well, the less about that the better. He didn't want to complicate things any further. But he could definitely have done a lot worse than someone who both understood what he was going through, and who was willing to communicate properly and not make decisions for him.
"I didn't understand your concerns at first," said Weiss, "but after being told time and time again by Ruby and Blake as to why what I did was wrong, I've come to the conclusion that I was unfair with you." Weiss finally opened her eyes. "As you've told me time and time again, you weren't born into this fame and attention, and I continued to gloss over that, assuming you were fine with what I was doing even though you gave me ample signs you were not."
Jaune nodded. This sounded positive. Surprisingly so. He should thank Ruby for it later, though hopefully in a way that wouldn't draw too much attention or spark any stupid rumours. The last thing he needed was people thinking he was trying to get into a younger girl's underwear. Some people were just bizarre when they had the protection of an anonymous internet connection.
"As such," continued Weiss, "I would like to apologise for dismissing your concerns about my revealing of your aura issues. You had – and have – the right to question and feel worried about what that entails, and I should have taken the time to explain why I did what I did more thoroughly, and not just brush it off as being for the best." Weiss huffed, and her shoulders slackened. "Looking back, I handled that poorly. I took your complaints as insults, when in truth you just didn't understand why I'd done what I did. I should have accepted your questions and done my best to answer them, not just run roughshod over them. For that, I apologise. It was immature and rather unfair of me, and I failed to consider you as an equal in that moment. I… I am sorry. Truly."
He believed her. He really did. "It's all right. I forgive it."
"You do?" Weiss smiled breezily. "I'm relieved. I'll admit, this has been eating at me. My pride gets the better of me sometimes. It's a fault I'm all too aware of. I shouldn't have acted as I did and refused to talk to you. I'm… I'm glad we could have this discussion and put this behind us." Without warning, she stepped forward, and Jaune welcomed her into a warm embrace. "I'm glad we could sort this out through words, Jaune. I've seen couples fight viciously over issues like this before. I'm glad we can rise above that."
Her parents. He suspected it, and Pyrrha had hinted at it. Jaune smiled, nodded, and let Weiss go when she said she needed to report to her team that she actually had apologised. He laughed and promised to confirm for her if any of them were suspicious, and he watched her go before turning to Elm, who had her arms crossed, and a thunderous expression on her face. Elm looked indignant. Utterly furious.
"She didn't even apologise for making the decision for you!" she snapped. "That apology – if one can even call it that! – was just at brushing your concerns away. Not once did she feel bad for leaking private information like she did."
Jaune smiled. "I know."
"Then why did you let hr get away with it!?"
"I didn't." Jaune made to unlock the door to his room but Elm stopped him by placing her hand on his, catching his smaller hand in her fist. He chuckled, amused a little – and touched – by how angry she was on his behalf. "I told her I forgive her for the things she admitted to feeling bad about. I accepted this apology. That's all. As far as I'm concerned, Weiss still needs to apologise for the rest, and I'm not going to let her forget that."
Elm grumbled and let go of his hand. "You should have told her that then and there."
"I thought about it but even this small apology is a big deal for her. Besides, when she tells her team and Pyrrha that what she apologised for…?"
"They'll get annoyed she got it wrong and get on her back about it," said Elm, realisation dawning. "And since it took all of them to get through to her the last time, you're hoping they'll get through to her here. I see your angle but is that really healthy? You're not going to have them at your beck and call to solve issues for you once you're married."
"I know. But if that's what it takes for her to realise her mistakes then that's what it takes. I've got a feeling her parental dynamics have made it so that anything I say runs into a wall. Maybe she sees Jacques in me."
"You're nothing like him."
"I know. I didn't say it made sense-" Jaune trailed off as he noticed Glynda Goodwitch approaching at a fast jog. Elm heard her too, and turned in time to see the woman come to a stop in front of them. She looked flustered and panicked.
"You're needed."
Jaune swore. "Has a student died?"
"No. Not that. It's best you see. Please, with me."
Glynda let them down a floor and out onto the lawns, then off toward the edge of the Emerald Forest. He had a bad feeling the moment he saw where they were going, and it grew when they entered the woods for a short while. There was a team coming back out, faces haunted, and they looked at him before hurrying on the opposite way. He didn't recognise them but they sure as hell did him.
The headmaster was already there, nursing a cup of coffee. He looked worn out. His eyes met Jaune's and he raised his mug in silent greeting, before turning and nodding to the bloody corpse on the floor of the forest. "Another one."
"Who is he?" asked Jaune.
"Apparently, he's a local influencer. Team CFVY – one of my upper year teams – were the ones to find him. It turns out he was livestreaming his journey to Beacon as part of a video on how to make the crossing." Ozpin was frowning now, his eyes drawn tight and thin. "The goal, I presume, was to cash in on all the people wanting to make the journey for their loved one's sakes, and go viral for it. The video has already been taken down as it showed his rather violent and bloody demise. Breached quite a few terms and conditions with that one."
Jaune's hands tightened into fists. "How long ago was this?"
"The alarm was raised within Beacon when a student saw it live two hours ago. Fortunately, they brought it to Glynda's attention and she was able to dispatch teams to try and locate the fool. Sadly, too late to rescue him while he was still living." He sipped his drink, and grimaced. It must have been cold by now. "We thought to contact you. It hasn't yet been four hours. He's within the window to be brought back."
He was. Jaune looked down at the man, only a little older than he, his face caved in and neck twisted. There were claw marks across him, but most had less left scars and more torn him asunder. He'd been reduced to a mess of flesh and bone that was almost unrecognisable. He'd also done this on his own, intentionally, and not even because he had family who had died. He'd done it for views, clicks, and his fifteen minutes of fame.
"I refuse." The words slipped out, and he was stunned to realise they were his own. Stunned, but not upset. Jaune closed his eyes and turned away from the body. "I refuse to bring him back. Let him stay dead as a warning to everyone else who would do this."
"Very well." There was no condemnation in Ozpin's voice. No anger. "His video was seen before his death so people will know he was within the window to be brought back. They will know you made the conscious decision to not resurrect him. I'm not criticising you. Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. I just do not want you to be surprised or feel that I did not warn you."
"I understand, sir, but, as you say, he played a stupid game. This is his prize. If I bring him back then he'll make a video about it, and he can edit the old one to remove the death and post it again. Other, more desperate people will follow his route to try and make it to Beacon. They'll die."
"Most likely."
"Then leave him dead." Jaune stepped away, and Elm flanked him. Before he left, he spoke clearly. "I want it known that I'm not some vending machine people can shake resurrection cans out of. And I'm not going to help anyone who breaks the rules to come here. If anyone gives you trouble, sir, tell them those were my words. Tell them I'm the one who refused to bring him back. Not you."
Let them choke on it.
"No! Not the consequences of my own actions!"
Jaune standing his ground for once.
Mercury being the worst and best influence at once…?
And, I mean, it's not even unrealistic. That's the truly shocking part. There are so many idiots on TikTok who would do something like this for the views. There's probably worse on there!
Next Chapter: 16th March
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