The Atlas times about to go very McCarthy-esque with its headlines.


Cover Art: GWBrex

Chapter 50


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How to tell if YOUR NEIGHBOUR is a White Fang sympathiser.

Atlas Times

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Arc's new security "playing for keeps" after pair planning terrorist attack on Beacon slain. Council says "no charges will be pressed" on team doing their job.

Vale Daily Tribune

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A deep dive into the Mistral team trusted with Jaune Arc's safety.

The Mistral Review

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Gillian Asturias to enter talks with Mistral on second trade deal, prompting rising business optimism at home.

Vacuo Today

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Sienna Khan dispatches team to compete in Vytal Festival.

Kuo Kuana Express

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Jaune wasn't involved in the planning and organisation of the festival, but he got to hear a lot about it second hand. That was usually thanks to the teachers informing all the students and transfers and him getting the information second hand from Cinder's team, but sometimes he was also present when Ozpin and Glynda would talk about it. That was typically when Cinder and her team were busy in classes, and he was trusted to Tsune or the other teachers, who would meet in the staffroom. Nothing was strictly confidential, so they didn't mind his presence there. Jaune also liked to think they knew that, out of everyone who could, he would be the last to ever think of leaking something to the media. Especially after his own leaks.

Most of the changes happening were small things. There were suddenly six less teams at the festival with Atlas leaving, and those slots had to be filled. Beacon already had too many teams, being the hosting nation, so Ozpin sent out requests to Vacuo and Mistral for more to fill the spaces. Mistral had come through with three more teams – none of them expected to have a chance, but willing to give it a shot. Sadly, Vacuo hadn't been able to muster the same. Their nation wasn't as well-off as the others, though that was looking to change with Atlas opening a big hole in the market, and they didn't want to stretch their budget to dispatch three teams who would have no chance.

The teams expected to actually have a shot were already here, after all. Anyone coming in late would be acknowledged as not being ready for such a tournament. The only reason Mistral had sent anyone was because the headmaster was apparently an old friend of Ozpin, and there might have been a little friendly begging involved. The rest of the slots could, and would, be filled with Beacon teams. That wasn't an issue. The problem was that this now meant the tournament was more than half teams from Beacon, which was unavoidable, but still looked bad.

"Is there a point where we just accept the necessity of cheating?" asked Doctor Oobleck. "It's unfortunate, I know, but we could rig the fights so that the better teams from Mistral and Vacuo go up against are weaker teams."

Port chuckled. "Rigging the tournament against ourselves, Bart? That's a new one."

"I know, but it would at least ensure the final rounds have an even representation of teams. People will forget that it was over half our teams if a lot of them are knocked out early. It's the quarter, semi, and finals that really matter."

"We'd be dragged over the coals if it was found out," cautioned Glynda.

It was interesting to see the teachers discuss such ideas with him sat nearby with a cup of tea. It didn't upset him that they were thinking of cheating, but only because he understood it wasn't to profit in any way. They were trying to fix the gaping chasm Atlas had left, and if the whole point of the tournament was to have exciting matches, then why not make sure they were so? It didn't feel immortal, and the teams would ultimately have the final say on whether they advanced or not. It wasn't as if they were handing out performance enhancing drugs.

"There is another, more pressing issue as well," said Ozpin. He looked over at Jaune, nodding his head to invite him in. "And this involved Mr Arc as well."

"Oh?" Port sounded interested, even as he shuffled over to make room for Jaune to sit down. The man was odd for sure, but quite pleasant. It was also fun to have someone who cared more for telling you stories (made up or not) about his adventures then hearing about your fame. "Don't tell me they're expecting the lad to make a show. That's macabre, even if the bodies were already dead when they were brought out."

"Goodness, no, Peter." Ozpin chuckled. "As if I'd ever allow a show to be made of the dead. No, this is with regards to a… late application for the tournament. It seems that Menagerie has opted to send a team to compete."

Menagerie.

The White Fang.

"Preposterous," snapped Glynda. "They don't even have an academy."

"But they do have Grimm," said Oobleck, "And, as a result, they obviously have huntsmen and huntresses. I believe they use an apprenticeship system over there, don't they?"

"That, and a mix of sending their young to other academies to graduate and return." Ozpin nodded. "Which, obviously, is perfectly legal. There are plenty of huntsmen running around the kingdoms that never attended an academy. We are the safest way of becoming a huntsman, but we are not the only way. This team… Their members are twenty years of age, which is still within our age bracket for the tournament. Three of them do have pre-academy education. Specifically, from Sanctum."

"Were they rejected from Haven?"

"No. It seems they returned to Menagerie to apprentice to a huntress there." Ozpin hefted a small set of papers in an envelope. "Miss Khan is, for all her faults, quite thorough. We've been sent their full details and criminal records which are, of course, clean."

"As far as we know," said Glynda.

"Yes. There's obviously the chance they could have performed actions under masks, but, at the same time, there isn't much reason to think they'd come here and try to do anything."

"Because it wouldn't help the White Fang," said Oobleck.

"I thought they wanted me dead," said Jaune.

"That was before." The teacher waved his hand as if to dismiss the notion. Jaune wasn't so quick to. "You have to understand that organisations like theirs are chaotic and undisciplined. Ideas will change. Why, for a moment it seemed that Adam Taurus would overthrow Sienna Khan, and yet now he's singing her praises."

Jaune had kept an eye on the media out of Menagerie as well so he knew that to be true. "Only because she agreed to the attack on Atlas."

"I believe that is the point Bartholomew is making," said Ozpin. "The White Fang are focused on Atlas right now, dedicating their might there, and the only reason they have any hope whatsoever is because Atlas has closed its borders and is refusing to open channels with any of us. If the White Fang try anything at the Vytal Festival, attacking you for instance, then that will change. The world will have ample reason to go to war with them, and then, working together or not, we'll be joining Atlas' side in the war. They can't afford that."

Jaune hummed. It all made sense laid out like that, and he didn't doubt Ozpin and Oobleck had a better grasp on this than he. This team sent to Beacon would be a risky ploy for the White Fang in many different ways. If they sent spies to sabotage, then their reputation would be dragged through the mud. If they sent a team that was too strong and dominated the competition, then they'd be accused of cheating. Too weak, and they'd be laughed at. If this was a play for legitimacy then the team needed to do "okay" but not "too well" and then be knocked out gracefully. Then, they should be on their best behaviour and let the festival end peacefully and stand as an example that Menagerie absolutely could play by the rules.

"I won't raise any complaints as long as I'm not expected to interact with them."

"You won't be," Ozpin was quick to assure. "In the very unlikely event that one dies in the festival and you're expected to resurrect him, we'll make sure it happens away from everyone else and under guard. You have my word."

"We're accepting them, then?" asked Glynda. "I can see the logic but I don't want them lodging here."

"That can be arranged; they're not technically students, after all, and Beacon only has an agreement to house the students of other academies, so they'll do the same to ours when it's their turn to host. We can be gracious hosts and pay for a hotel room for them, however."

"Will the other schools complain?" asked Tsune.

"Doubtful. Atlas would have if they were still at the negotiating table, but Vacuo are merrily exploring new trade opportunities. I expect them to be quite welcoming to Menagerie in all truth – not only will they benefit from the trade, but Sienna Khan now has to mesh White Fang and Menagerie diplomacy together, so good relations with Menagerie may end up securing you immunity from the White Fang as well. Mistral are worried enough at being caught as the middle-ground between Atlas and them as it is and won't want to do anything to favour one side or the other. They'll likely abstain from any votes and claim they had no hand in any decisions that might upset or favour either."

"Ah, politics," grumbled Port. "How fun."

"For now, politics are keeping this conflict from erupting into another Grand War," said Ozpin, "So we shall do our best to keep politicking. The ultimate takeaway from this may be that Menagerie has to be recognised as its own kingdom. If that puts a stop to this, then I'm all for it, but our focus for now is the festival. Cooperation is the name of the games, ladies and gentlemen, and we can't afford to be picky about who we cooperate with. That said, you're to refer to this team at all times as Menagerie's team. If I hear one mention of White Fang in the commentary box then I shall cut your budgets so low you'll be recycling coffee."

Neither Port nor Oobleck looked too worried about that, but Jaune doubted they would be so reckless anyway. This wasn't a time for joking with Atlas and Menagerie poised for war. Except, to some, who seemed to think it a joke that Menagerie even fought it could win a war with Atlas. They didn't seem to realise that this probably wasn't going to be a war that ended in conquest on either side. This was going to be a bloody, protracted mess of a conflict that would predominantly take place on Atlas soil, and which would cost a lot of lives. Menagerie weren't going to win, sure, but they were going to bleed Atlas and prove to the world that they could compete, and come the end of it, Atlas would still be holed up while Menagerie had stretched its wings, forged trade deals and alliances, and basically rebranded itself on the world stage.

Menagerie might not win the war, but Atlas was surely going to lose it.

This whole world is a complete mess…

/-/

"A team from Menagerie?" Mercury pulled a face and glanced over at Cinder. "Are they going to be a problem?"

"I doubt it. One team of four people isn't going to be able to do much, and we've already lost contact with Adam. If they were intending to cause trouble here, he'd want to involve us to make it easier for himself."

In truth, a lot of their plans had gone skydiving out the window. Exposing the Polendina project, hacking the Atlas Paladins, using the White Fang to cause chaos. All of that was so impossible now that the whole plan had to be scrapped, and yet Cinder wasn't too upset about it all. That convoluted plan had been necessary precisely because Atlas were a big problem to deal with. With them gone, things would be easier, and with Jaune firmly aligning with them already, much of the work was already done.

Roman was in a fine mood as a result. He'd been understandably dragging his heels over the idea of being sent to a destroyed city filled with Grimm to stock a train and then crash it back into Vale. He'd been underperforming purposefully to slow that down. Being told that plan had been scrapped had flipped the switch, and now he was back to the master thief he'd portrayed himself to be. Cinder had tasked him with smuggling their dust out of Vale for later use, and he was apparently almost finished with that already. It just went to show how much better people worked when they were committed to it. That went for Neo as well, who was now following her orders so thoroughly that Cinder would have been suspicious otherwise. Quite frankly, team cohesion has never been higher.

The door opened and Emerald entered, with Jaune and, for some reason, Pyrrha with him. Cinder eyed the girl she'd thought might become the next fall maiden. Nothing of the sort had happened yet, she would have known if it had, and she had to wonder if Ozpin had some other "Jaune-related" plan. Resurrecting Amber, for instance. That raised all sorts of questions. If she came back and woke up, then she'd out them the second she saw them, but, on the other hand, the power of the maiden really ought to pass on rather than wait for a resurrection, and there was always the chance Amber would come back to life but remain comatose.

Jaune's Semblance brought people back to life, after all. It didn't cure cancer, old age, or any of the problems that might have killed them in the first place. Amber was dying, and she should remain dying whether or not he interfered.

"I was just telling Pyrrha about the news with the White Fang team."

"Menagerie team," said Cinder, softly. "Let's not provoke them by calling them that."

"Ah. Right. I mean, there is a chance they're a completely innocent team." He looked embarrassed, but Cinder hadn't meant it as a criticism. He took things too literally. "I was asking because Pyrrha went to Sanctum before coming here, so I thought she might have known them."

Cinder raised an eyebrow to Pyrrha in silent question. The girl shook her head in return.

"I was already quite well-known toward the end of Sanctum, and that either frightened people off or had them fawning over me. I don't remember a full team of faunus, though there were a few. They would have been three years above me as well judging by their ages."

"Ultimately, she wouldn't have known if they were honest or not anyway," said Cinder, shrugging. "I don't expect them to be a problem. The headmaster's reasoning on them not wishing to cause trouble makes sense. The White Fang have all their attention on Atlas, and they'd surely want a team of capable huntsmen and huntresses involved in that if they had them."

Jaune relaxed. "That's what everyone says. You think it'll be all right, then?"

"I think they won't cause problems. I have concerns of another team being the issue…"

"Who?" asked Pyrrha.

"Team RWBY."

The two of them didn't react.

"Weiss' team?" asked Jaune, at last, laughing a little. "Why do you think they'll be an issue? They're not going to cause problems with us."

"It's not us I'm worried about. It's this Menagerie team."

Jaune didn't get it, but Pyrrha gasped. "Blake!"

Now, Jaune understood. "Oh shit, she's going to flip!"

Normally, Cinder would have been all for that. Free chaos, caused by another team and without her having to orchestrate it? Yes, please. It wasn't even a bad thing now if it did happen, but if that girl did harm, or heavens forbid kill one of them, then Jaune would have to get involved. If he resurrected the person and that was it, then fine. No problem. The problem would come if he resurrected them and they took the chance to attack him anyway. Then, he'd be rushed away into the tightest security Ozpin could offer, which would make it very hard to get him out of the city.

"You both know Belladonna more than I do – we've never even spoken. Do you think she would, for lack of a better phrase, lose her cool?"

"I really don't know her personally," whispered Jaune. "I could ask Weiss."

"We should probably warn Weiss either way," said Pyrrha, "but Blake has always seemed very collected in the past. That was before her parents died, though. I've heard from Weiss how difficult it's been on her, and if she mistakenly blames that team or gets it into her head they're White Fang plants…"

Cinder nodded. "I think you should talk with Weiss, Jaune. Now, preferably. Before Belladonna finds out from a less reliable source."

"Y-Yeah. That's a good idea." He already had his scroll out.

"I should-" said Pyrrha.

"Let the two of them handle it privately," interrupted Cinder, standing. "I'd like to talk with you in private." Immediately, the redhead was looking at her suspiciously. Oh, so catty. Cinder chuckled and raised her hands before her. "Nothing bad. It's about our security over Jaune. You're one of his most trusted friends and I thought we could help split some of the duty at the festival. My team has to be down there in the arena at certain times after all."

Pyrrha relented, blushing faintly. "Right. I'm sorry. I thought you were about to tell me to avoid him."

"Not at all. And never." Cinder nodded her head, drawing Pyrrha out the doorway and away from Jaune, who was already jogging off to meet with Weiss. Pyrrha led the girl away from the dorm with a tiny smile on her lips. "There, now that we have a little privacy, let me ask you something." Cinder turned to the girl. "You are in love with him. Aren't you?"

It was funny, in a way, how Pyrrha both tensed up and froze in place, and how she looked both furious and panicky at the same time. Her mouth opened and closed several times, but she couldn't quite form the words. Luckily for her, Cinder was not here to mock her.

"It's not a problem if you do. My feelings for Jaune are platonic at best, and I can guarantee Mint and Emerald feel the same way. Mercury too, if you were worried he might compete. I'm only asking because our job is to take care of Jaune, and that means both his physical self and his reputation."

Pyrrha grimaced. "You think I'm bad for his reputation? That's not-"

"That's not what I was saying – or implying." Cinder interrupted her. "And I've already told you we're not interested in telling him who he can and cannot interact with. All I'm asking you is to be honest with me, so that I can help plan around your feelings. Not to stop you or get in your way, but to make sure we can help you."

There was a stillness to Pyrrha Nikos at that. Cinder already knew the girl's feelings. Mercury had been the first to clue her in, but she'd confirmed it with her own eyes. Pyrrha might have done a good job at quashing them when Jaune was looking, but she was painfully obvious to anyone on the outside. Lingering looks, a pained expression whenever Jaune and Weiss were together, and a frankly childish pout whenever they were out on a date and she had to stay behind. The girl was young, in love, and the man she wanted was engaged to someone else. This was the kind of affair middle-aged women might get tangled into, and poor Pyrrha Nikos, seventeen and inexperienced, had no idea what she was doing.

The girl clearly wanted to be the better person and step back and let Weiss have him. It was just as clear that she didn't want that deep inside. Oh, Pyrrha might think she did, but what she truly wanted was for Weiss and Jaune to crash and burn, and then for her to swoop in and pick up the pieces. That she'd been able to stop herself making that happen spoke well of her, but it didn't change what she wanted deep inside.

Relationship drama can be just as convoluted as political conflict sometimes. And just as visceral.

Pyrrha wanted to be a good friend to Weiss…

But she wanted Jaune.

"Help… me…?" Pyrrha wet her lips and looked around guiltily. "W-What does that mean?"

Hook, line, and sinker.

"My job is to look after Jaune. It's not to tell fix his relationship." Cinder shrugged. "But that means I and my team have spent a lot of time around him. He's confided in us. He hasn't outright told us that him and Weiss aren't working out, but I think it's obvious to anyone who sees as much as we do. The dates in disguise, the way he spends time with us instead of her, the fact she spends more time with her team than him."

"Weiss is helping look after Blake."

"Pyrrha, darling, Blake's parents died days ago. This has been going back weeks and you know it." The girl bit her lip. She looked like she wanted to run away, but at the same time she wanted to stay and find out what Cinder was offering. And Cinder had a lot to offer. "You know, it's Mercury's opinion that you and Jaune would make a much better couple."

Pyrrha jolted. "R-Really!?"

It wasn't. Mercury's opinion was that Pyrrha was "fit" and he'd "love to tap her", but then he had that opinion about most women under the age of fifty. Pyrrha didn't need to know that. "I happen to agree with him as well."

"Y-You do!?"

"Of course. Jaune is my friend as much as my employer. And let's be honest, Pyrrha, he isn't happy with Weiss. You know that, I know that, and even Jaune knows it." Cinder laid a hand on the girl's shoulder, making her jump. "But you? He trusts you, he talks with you, he spends his free time with you of his own choice. I can't say for certain you'll be Mrs Arc, but what I definitely believe is that he'd be happier with Mrs Pyrrha Arc than Mrs Weiss Arc-Schnee."

"I… I… Um… I…" It was clear the girl was in fantasy land. How adorable. "I… I can't break them up…"

"I'm not saying you should, and I'm certainly not offering my team's help in doing so."

Pyrrha came back to Remnant at the mention of help. "W-What help are you offering?"

"Why, my assistance in winning him over of course. Jaune does so enjoy going out in disguise, and I could help set you up. And while Pyrrha Nikos cannot flirt with Jaune Arc, what's to say an entirely different girl can't get a little friendly with Jaune's alter ego?" Cinder walked around Pyrrha and rubbed her shoulders, speaking into her ear from behind. "I can tell you've backed off out of fear of breaking them up, but you're being far too passive. I'm not saying you should mount him, Pyrrha, but spend time with him outside Beacon. Have fun. Show him how much fun he has with you, so that he can compare that to the little he has with her."

"But Weiss-"

"Weiss will have plenty of chances to prove you wrong, won't she? You're not interfering. You're not telling him he should be with you instead of her. All you're doing is spending time with your best friend, and if he decides that he enjoys that more than he does her? Well, that's not your fault, is it? Being in a relationship is about reciprocating feelings. If Weiss cannot, and if she won't put the effort in, then whose fault is it when they break up?"

Pyrrha's breath shuddered. "It's… It's hers…"

Cinder purred into her ear. "Precisely."

"Why-? Why help me-?"

"Because I want what's best for Jaune." Because he had a tie to Weiss Schnee that would hold him back. "Because I think you want what's best for him as well." Because Pyrrha Nikos would do anything he asked her to, up to and including running away from Vale. "And because I want to. Isn't that enough?"

Cinder patted the girl's shoulder and let go.

"Think about it. That's all I ask. I'm not suggesting you drive a wedge between them, but you and I both know that Weiss wants him to be something he isn't comfortable being. You, on the other hand, are happy to support him in being himself. Aren't you?"

"Y-Yes. Of course. I hate my fame just as much as he hates his."

"And you'd support him, wouldn't you?"

"Yes."

"And we both know he trusts you dearly, Pyrrha. After all, you and our team are the only ones he's shared his secret desire to run away from Vale with." Pyrrha tensed, but Cinder only smiled. "Don't worry. The secret is safe with me."

"He's… He's not serious. Not totally about it. I… I don't think."

Not yet. Not yet…

"It could ruin him if anyone found out."

"No one will find out, Pyrrha. Not from us. Unless you are going to tell?"

"Never."

"Then it's fine." Cinder spread her hands warmly. "We both trust him. We're both willing to listen. Maybe it's just an idea, or maybe he's serious about it, but I'm loyal enough a friend to let him make up his own mind. If he asks us to help make that a reality…" Cinder locked eyes with the girl. "Then we will do our best to make it a reality."

Pyrrha sucked a breath in.

"You won't stop us, will you?"

Her head shook.

"I didn't think you would. It's his life, at the end of the day. His choice." Cinder's words had Pyrrha nodding almost automatically. "And besides, if he really did choose to run away from it all then he'd be running away from Weiss as well."

Pyrrha's eyes widened. There was desire there, and hope, but also guilt. A lot of guilt.

But that only confirmed her interest, didn't it? You didn't feel guilty unless you were considering something you shouldn't be. And just like that, the seed had been planted in her as well. Salem would have no interest in a famous huntress, and Cinder doubted that Pyrrha would ally with her, but she didn't have to. All she needed was another person to serve as a trusted witness to Jaune's "death" when it came. Someone who the world knew would never lie about something like this.

And if Pyrrha Nikos was to go and fall in love with someone in a village out in the middle of nowhere, then that was her own business.

"So," said Cinder. "Would you like my help with a little makeup? Jaune wants to go out into Vale. It's not necessarily a date, but that doesn't mean it can't become one…"

Pyrrha struggled.

And fell.

"I… I'd like that…"


Cinder is now the biggest Arkos shipper in the room. And this is not crack. Whut…?


Next Chapter: 29th June

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