I am getting updates from Fanfiction dot net again. I have no idea why, but hey, sure, I'll take it.

Anyways here's this...

Chapter 14

Waking up in the Arc family home was an experience for Mercury.

Namely, because for a moment, he forgot where he was, and his instincts kicked in. He kept his eyes closed as he listened in for any sign that might give him some idea of his location, thought about just how he might go about escaping, even crept out of his bed slowly, made his way to the door, sidled along the frame as he opened it, peeked out and–

"What are you, some kind of spy?" One of Jaune's younger sisters teased, smirking his way.

He deflated around there, shaking his head and muttering something beneath his breath.

"Yep. I'm actually an evil agent working against Vale."

"Huh. Well, you're doing a pretty shitty job, hanging out here." The girl said, snorting as she passed him by.

…

Well, she was right, wasn't she?

Breakfast was… it was good. Scrambled eggs and pancakes, with some bacon on the side – Mercury had always ravenously loved bacon – that each of them got to chowing down on.

"Thanks, mom!" Jaune exclaimed between bites.

"Yeah, thanks mama Arc!" Nora spoke, little bits of food spraying from her lips, causing Ren to place a hand in front of her mouth, sighing beneath his breath,

"You're mighty welcome!"

Mercury didn't say anything, just kept shoveling food into his mouth at what was likely a rather unhealthy rate. In between bites, though, he felt a chill run up his spine. It felt like someone was watching him.

Initially, he suspected Belladonna, so he turned and looked to her, but the girl had her head in a book even now, flipping the page on her novel – which, in the middle of so many people, was perhaps for the first time not smut – every so often as she daintily picked at her food.

It was then that he scanned the rest of the table, trying to find whoever it was that was looking at him, studying him, trying to read him. And yet, when he gave a cursory scan, he found no one else was observing him.

Mercury didn't like that. He didn't like that at all.

Still, it wasn't like he could do much about it. Instead, he picked up his fork and skewered a few cuts of pancake, shoving the three or four bites-worth of food into his mouth all at once.

"Y'know, it's not gonna' grow legs, honey."

He peered up to see Jaune's mom smiling over at him, a glint of mirth hanging about her eyes. Mercury wasn't really sure what he was supposed to say to that – given that he was fairly sure telling the woman to fuck off would be frowned upon – but before he could decide on anything, a hand had come to rest on the woman's arm.

"He's fine, darling." Nicholas Arc spoke, looking back over at Mercury and subtly nodding to him. "I'm sure he's simply hungry."

Mercury watched the man for a moment, unsure of quite what to say, before eventually accepting the excuse.

"Yeah. Forgot to eat last night."

"Well, it's no trouble, hun, I was only teasing."

He hummed noncommittally as he went back to picking at his food, and as conversation around the table restarted, and a few others began to speak, the feeling of someone watching him returned.

At least now, he had a suspect, and he had a reason for why he was so uncomfortable too.

It was Nicholas Arc watching him.

The question of why hung about his mind, even as he cleaned his plate, and moved towards the kitchen, placing the porcelain dish in the sink, and beginning to wash it.

"Oh, no, honey," Mama Arc came up behind him, and tapped him on the shoulder. "I appreciate it, but don't worry, I'll get it."

He didn't protest, just nodded his head, and tried to ignore the wriggling feeling in his gut, the horrid, clenching pains of his chest.

The longer he was here, the worse those feelings got. He didn't know why. He didn't know what he was supposed to do.

He shook his head as he passed by the table where the others were sat, laughing, and talking about worthless, meaningless things. Mercury himself didn't bother to listen in, just moved away from the room and towards the entryway of the home, pulling open the door and stepping outside.

The moment his shoes touched the dirt and grass, he let out an aching, desperate breath, placing his arm against the side of the house beside him and gasping for air.

What… what in the hell was wrong with him!?

What the fuck was he so scared of in there? Why the fuck was his body acting like he was in the middle of enemy territory, panicking at every little sound, unable to handle a single fucking breakfast without running away like some fucking bitch!?

He shook his head, letting out an angry growl as he pushed himself off of the house, and moved out into the yard of the Arc home. It wasn't really a yard, per se, more just a plot of land that technically belonged to the house. In it was a singular, large boreal tree, probably one of those… evergreens? Mercury was pretty sure that was what Jaune's sisters had told him they were called.

He moved next to it, let out a shaking breath, and leaned against it. He slid down it slowly, until he was sat against it, his back against the tree, and his head in his hands as he tried to control his breathing, tried to control his heart, which even now was still beating, beating, beating.

He wanted to laugh when he heard the sounds of footsteps just off in the distance, and the occasional click of a sword against the gate of whoever was stepping towards him. He had half a mind to yell at them to fuck off but managed to barely restrain himself. It wouldn't do to look like some fucking crazy person.

"Leave me the fuck alone, Jaune, I'm fine."

Jaune didn't say anything, just walked right up to him and stopped right in front of him, a few feet away. Mercury really wanted to scream at him, or yell at him, or, really, just to tell him to get the fuck out of his sight so he could brood in peace, and he was just about to, too, before the guy spoke.

"I'm afraid my son's still inside."

That voice…

Mercury desperately tried to resist the way his body flinched at hearing that voice, the voice not of Jaune, but of his father, as he broke out of his little fetal ball, and stood suddenly, using the tree as cover from the man in front of him.

Apparently, judging by the sorrowful look in Nicholas Arc's eye, it had been the wrong move.

"So, I was right. You are reacting to me."

"The fuck do you want?" He spat almost instinctively.

"Mm. Well, I'm not quite sure yet. Perhaps you could tell me."

Mercury didn't say a thing, just took a step back without really knowing why. Idly, he primed the pistons in his legs to be ready for combat if he needed them, despite how stupid the thought of him trying to break his way past Jaune's father would be.

The man wasn't an enemy combatant, despite the way that Mercury's mind kept thinking that he was. More than that, judging by the way he confidently walked with that sword on his hip, Mercury doubted he could take the man in combat if it came down to it.

At the very best, it would be close.

"I don't got a thing to say to you." Mercury spoke, shaking his head as he made eye contact with the man. "Why'd you follow me out here, anyways?"

"Because you looked like you were seconds away from throwing up." The man answered, somehow remaining entirely calm despite Mercury's standoffishness. "I wasn't the only one to notice. I just requested to be the one to come out and see how you were feeling."

Mercury sneered. "Yeah, well, I'm fine. You can go back inside."

"Somehow I don't think you're being entirely truthful with me, Mr. Black."

Hearing that name from out of that man's lips did… something. Mercury wasn't even really sure what to make of it, but he knew it was what made him take a step forward, what made him draw his lips back, bare his teeth like some breed of Grimm, and veritably charge at the man in front of him.

"What the fuck would you know, huh!?" He spat, getting right up in the man's face, despite him being far taller than he was. "I said I'm fine. So go!"

Nicholas Arc said nothing for a while after that, just held his ground as he looked right at Mercury, meeting his gaze with a steel in his eyes. Eventually, he did speak, but his words were not at all what Mercury had expected.

"You know, as a Huntsman, I have seen my fair share of broken people. I have met more than enough of them that can barely function. I have had to kill quite a few of them myself who threatened others' lives. And yet, oftentimes, I think the constant among them all is that almost every single one claimed to me to be 'fine'."

Mercury took a step back, his brow drawing down.

"The fuck are you talking about?"

"You have a certain look in your eye, Mr. Black. You're not alone in that among Jaune's friends. Ms. Belladonna has that same look to her. That deadened stare. But she, at least, seems to have adjusted, or perhaps made peace, with that fact. She ate at the same pace as the rest of them.

Mercury just stared.

"And yet… when I look at you, I can't help but feel like I'm looking at someone who's yet to face it. You… scarfed down every morsel you could get your hands on. Like you were used to not having much time to eat, or perhaps used to having food taken from you. Having to fight for every scrap."

"Wha–" Mercury took another step back, letting out a mirthless breath of laughter. "You don't know a thing about me, like I already said. So, get–"

"I'm willing to bet it was your father, yes?"

The wind was sapped from Mercury's sails faster than he could finish his words. It was all he could do, then, to try and remain standing, to try and stand against the man before him, who'd robbed him of the last bit of fight he still had.

"…What do you want from me?"

"I'm not really sure." Nicholas Arc spoke, finally looking away from Mercury's eyes, towards the tree he was leaning against. "I suppose… to help you."

"I said you don't know shit about me…"

"I'd like to is what I'm saying." The man sighed. "That look in your eye is… well, it's not my first time seeing it, and it's not my first time wishing that I could do something about it. I'd like to help you. But I can't do that if you don't want me to. And… if you don't, then that's fine. I'll head back inside and tell them that you just need a minute."

It was… honestly, it was a good offer. Mercury honestly should've taken it. It was what Cinder would've told him to do, were she here, able to whisper into his ear, control his every action.

…

"Yeah, it was my dad." Mercury spoke, shrugging. "So what?"

"So at least that answers one of my questions," The man in front of him spoke, nodding his head a bit sadly. "As to why my kids said you seemed fine until I got home."

Wait…

"You mean they all… noticed?"

"Yes. The others from Beacon… I could tell they were worried about you. I think they knew the reasons why you were upset; they just didn't want to tell me. Or anyone outside their group. Didn't want to reveal your secrets." The man shook his head. "Hah. You've got some good friends."

Mercury frowned.

"So, what… I'm some basket case, then?"

"No."

"Because that's certainly what it seems like." Mercury said, shaking his head. "What, think I'm going to threaten your family or some shit? Want me out of your fucking house? I'll go, get me a flight and I'll be out of here before you can–"

"I don't want you to leave."

"Why not?" Mercury spat out, taking a step forward now, feeling his teeth grinding together. "How can you know I'm not some psycho killer? I'm some damaged, edgy kid, right? You certainly seem to think you know every fucking thing about me, don't you, so why don't you attack me like the killer I–"

"You're no killer."

Mercury's lips flapped open, jaw working its hinge and opening and closing on repeat, seeming to try and find some words to speak.

"What?"

"I'm saying that in my line of work, I've had the unfortunate chance to meet an awful lot of I've killers in my day. People who enjoyed it. That killed for the sake of it. You don't strike me as one."

Mercury bit down on his bottom lip hard enough to draw blood, and the only thing that prevented him from doing so was his own inability to keep his mouth closed. Because the man's words were… they were insane. No, more than that, they were wrong.

"The only thing I see in your eyes, Mr. Black–"

"Stop fucking calling me that!"

The man in front of him didn't even flinch. But by a hair, by the tiniest of margins, his face fell.

"Mercury, then." The man began again. "The only thing I see in your eyes, Mercury… is indecision. Indecision, and guilt."

Mercury shook. Whether with rage, or some other emotion, he didn't know.

"…So what?"

"I'm not sure. It's up to you, I suppose." The man muttered, shrugging his shoulders with a casual air. "I could tell the moment I walked into my home that you were looking for some chance to leave it. As if coming was in and of itself a mistake. If you'd like, I'll call a bullhead from Vale and have them come and pick you up. It'd be no trouble, nor would it cost me a dime, the pilot in question owes me a favor. But on the other hand…"

The man stepped towards Mercury, and for some reason, the only thing he could feel was readiness. His muscles tensed, his blood pumped, his breathing quickened, his stance taken…

And then the man simply placed his hand on Mercury's shoulder.

"You're welcome to stay as well." Nicholas Arc said, smiling. "It's up to you."

And then, without any further words, the man turned around, his hand slinking off of Mercury's shoulder and falling to his side. He walked the way back to his house, and pulled the door shut behind him.

And Mercury was left alone, in the clearing, beside that tree, just…

Trapped with his thoughts.

As he always seemed to be.

/

"So, going over our information again."

Emerald swallowed as she sat down on her bed, taking in the dim lighting of the dorm room they currently occupied. It gave off an oddly sinister feeling, likely owing mostly to just who it was silhouetted against the single light hanging above them. Emerald felt her throat drying even seeing Cinder looking as dangerous as she did then, despite knowing her boss would never be a threat to her.

But, well… there were some things that sort of took away from the atmosphere.

Honestly, the whole vibe would've worked an awful lot better if what they were discussing was, say, their plans for Vale, and not the dating plans of a thirty-three-year-old teacher.

"She hasn't answered Ironwood's message as to whether or not she intends to go out with him."

"Mm. I confirmed as much via Watts' scouting," Cinder spoke, looking down at her scroll laying just off to her side, humming quietly. "They haven't exchanged correspondence in a few days, which leads me to believe she's mulling the idea over, given that she's not sent him a 'no' either."

Emerald nodded. "And yet there is some unfortunate news on that front."

"Indeed. That she sounded as if she was close to accepting."

Emerald nodded, not really sure why she was sort-of-kind-of mentally rooting for Ironwood.

…Ok she knew why, even if she wasn't proud of it.

"Which means if I mean to take action," Cinder said with a frown. "I'd best do it soon."

"How would you go about taking action, if I might ask?" Emerald said, leaning forward. "After all, forgive me for saying so ma– Cinder, but you have several key disadvantages to work through. For one, you're a student to Ms. Goodwitch. To me, at least, she seems the type to see this as a nonnegotiable black mark against you."

Cinder nodded her head, swirling the glass of wine she held idly around in her hand. "That is… true."

"Obviously, you are not a seventeen-year-old freshman, but at the same time, I believe it's not your age, but the position of power she holds over you that would make her hesitant. The setting itself, of Beacon, so to speak."

Cinder nodded again, continuing to swirl the liquid in her cup.

"So… if you don't mind me asking, Cinder… what are you going to do?"

Cinder's hand stopped at that, though the liquid inside of the glass kept sloshing back and forth. Eventually, it too stilled, and Cinder looked up at Emerald with the tiniest gleam behind her eyes, and a gradually growing smirk.

"Why, Emerald… I do believe you've just given me an idea on that front."

…Well, shit.

Her and her big mouth.

/

Glynda Goodwitch had begun her day planning to abide by a rather simplistic set of steps.

The first step was that she would attend to any outstanding business she had for the day, freeing herself up to have the rest of the day to herself. This was made easier by the lack of classes, owing to it being the break between semesters.

The second step was that she would make contact with Cinder Fall. She would locate the girl, and call her back to her office, so as to have a private conversation in, well, private.

The third step was to as gently as possible inform the girl that, despite her feelings, Glynda was her teacher, and she her student. They could not be together as she desired. This was, also, not at all her fault.

The fourth step was to calm the girl as best she could. Whether that was to simply offer a shoulder to cry on, or to, in the worst case, ease her anger or any other emotional responses.

The fifth step was to bid Ms. Fall farewell while keeping their generally good rapport.

This plan had seemed quite simple in Glynda's mind. Simple enough that even if it were to hit a snag or two, it would not be felled so easily. It was rock-solid. Air-tight.

Glynda Goodwitch completed step 1 of the plan. That much she could at least be proud of.

Around step two was where things all fell apart.

Oh, she managed to contact Cinder Fall just fine. In fact, the woman had come knocking on her door. It had been by far the easiest thing she would be doing all day.

The difficult portion began soon after.

"Hello, Ms. Goodwitch." Cinder said, smiling in an almost disarming way as she stood in her doorway. "How are you today?"

"Oh, I'm well." Glynda spoke, doing her best to smile back. "Yourself?"

"Good."

There was a moment of silence where Glynda initially waited for the woman to say her piece, why she'd come – and Glynda was fairly certain she knew why – before she decided perhaps it was best she just come out and let the girl down easy.

"Ms. Fall…" She began, trying to decide on how best to phrase this. "There's something I need to discuss with you."

Cinder, despite Glynda's fears, either didn't quite put together exactly what it was Glynda was referring to or had expected this.

Honestly, Glynda was glad.

"I understand." Cinder said. "There's something I'd like to discuss with you as well. Perhaps we could speak over dinner?"

Glynda's eyes widened.

"Huh?"

"Ah, I suppose I've gotten ahead of myself," Cinder spoke, shaking her head. "I should start at the beginning. A few weeks ago, I had planned on going to a restaurant recommended by a friend of mine. That same friend I was talking about the other day, the unreliable one?"

"Yes, I remember."

"Well, suffice it to say that the night I was planning on going was when the incident at the docks occurred. I had been planning on inviting someone– er, well, regardless, the restaurant shut down that evening." Cinder shrugged with a 'what can you do' sort of expression, but it was rather put-upon, and Glynda had the sinking suspicion that person she'd been planning to invite had been Glynda herself. "But they informed me that I could use my down payment I'd put as reservation another night, as long as I made it back within a few months. And, well… I was wondering if you'd like to attend. Purely as friends."

Glynda's mouth opened, closed, opened again, and then, naturally, closed.

"I… Cinder…"

"Ah, I understand, you must be busy." The girl said, looking away and rubbing at her arm, the textbook picture of disappointment. "I'll, uh… just head out, then–"

"No, no!" Glynda said, shaking her head. "I… I can make it."

"Oh, excellent!" Cinder's face lit up, her eyes gleaming, highlighted by what seemed to be an expert application of eyeshadow. "Thank you so much Ms. Goodwitch. Then, I'll meet you at the doors to Villa Avitas at 9 on the twenty-seventh!"

Around here was when Glynda's heart skipped a beat.

"Did… you say Villa Avitas…"

Cinder looked caught off guard. "Why… yes. My friend said they had quite good food. I uhm… wanted to make sure you– we'd both enjoy the meal."

It was clear to Glynda that above all else, the reason she'd gotten a reservation at such a high-end restaurant was that she had wanted to make a good impression. To impress her. Honestly, Cinder's intentions were so obvious that it was almost adorable.

But…

"And on the twenty-seventh you said?"

"Yes. Is that a problem?" Cinder's eyelids drooped. "I-I'm afraid I don't think they'll let me move the reservation a second time. But if you can't make it, then I understand."

Glynda swallowed on some spittle at the back of her throat, doing her best to keep a steady expression, even as her mind whirled.

She tried to stay objective. Really, she did. But honestly, with how un-objective she was feeling at the moment – so much so that she forgot the word 'subjective' – she felt she couldn't really be blamed for how much her opinion was entering into the equation.

Because by sheer coincidence, she'd invited her out on the same night Ironwood had. By sheer coincidence, it had been the same restaurant they'd be dining at. It was… gods, it was the kind of thing that would appear on one of those terrible soap operas that Peter loved so much.

And now here she was, a main character.

She tried, once more, to stay objective. This was, after all, still her student. The woman in front of her was for all intents and purposes someone she held power over. And yet some part of Glynda, some treacherous, tiny piece, reminded her that Cinder was a woman. At twenty-one years old – perhaps twenty-two already, it'd been a while since she'd checked the woman's transcripts – she was more than mature enough to make her own decisions.

And…

How expensive must that have been for a young woman like Cinder? Her mind continued to betray her, whispering into her ear. For a general in the Atlesian army, two seats at Villa Avitas is probably still quite expensive. For a student attending Beacon…

"M-Ms. Goodwitch?"

Glynda looked back up, trying to reconcile her own concerns, just as she saw the look on Cinder's face.

The expression there was one of absolute heartbreak. Oh, she was doing her very best to disguise it, but Glynda had been able to tell from the moment she'd met Cinder that the woman was terrible at keeping her emotions from showing on her face.

The girl looked so…

So pitiful…

…It didn't mean she'd have to agree to anything if she went, did it? She could simply attend for now, have a nice meal with Cinder… and clear the air.

Yes… yes that…

Glynda let out a mental sigh.

That would work fine.

"No. It's no problem at all." Glynda said, smiling. "I'll… I'll be there. At 9 on the 27th. And we can talk."

Cinder's mouth opened for just a moment, clearly stunned into silence, before it split into a wide, relieved smile. The girl clutched at her chest, taking a deep breath, likely to calm herself. Glynda felt terrible to have caused such a thing.

But even so, some part of her was still chiming in that this was a mistake.

"Mm." Cinder smiled, looking up at her with a rich, warm expression, meeting her eyes and darting her tongue out to lick her likely dry lips, which had Glynda's stomach rather unhelpfully fluttering. "I'll be looking forward to it."

And then Cinder walked away.

Glynda closed the door behind her, even as she let out a shaking, raspy breath, trying her best to remain standing when all she really wanted to do was collapse upon the floor. Over and over again, her heart inside of her chest told her that she was making a mistake. Hell, some other tiny piece of her was mad at the rest of her for missing a chance to go out on a date with James.

She pointedly glared at that little part, forcing it back and away into its little hole.

No. James was an adult, and a military general, for gods sakes. He was rather pointedly not a young woman experiencing what was likely her first crush. One of those two people would take her turning them down an awful lot better.

This was more important than a date with James. This was trying to make sure that Cinder Fall could live a good and happy life.

And besides, it wasn't like she'd even accepted James' invitation yet either.

So, she brought out her scroll, let out a deep sigh, and typed up a quick message to the man.

'I'm sorry James. Something just came up. I won't be able to make it to dinner on the 27th.'

The man responded within thirty seconds.

'Of course, I understand. We could always go another night? I'm told Villa Avitas has a rather forgiving reservation policy.'

Glynda let out an aching sigh, even as she leant against the wall behind her, and slowly allowed herself to slide down it, until she sat upon the tile floor of her kitchenette, staring at the opposite wall.

Yes…

She'd heard they had.

/

And a way's away, down the hall, Cinder Fall's lips curled into the most devilish grin as she sashayed away from Glynda Goodwitch's room.

"Check, Ironwood."

…Oh, who was she kidding.

Ironwood didn't even know he was playing the game.

End Chapter 14

Cinder is many things, emotionally damaged and in need of a lot of therapy and love, but she is, also, not afraid to manipulate others for her own gains.

…in this case she comes off as a bit of a stalker, but I can't help feeling it's realistic.

This chapter was a short one, but mostly because it's pretty much all set-up for the next few chapters. I honestly just felt like the endpoint here was too good to pass up.