Author's Notes

Well apparently I did something right this past week, because both The Empty Seat and Living The Dream broke their records for views (it may have had something to do with the update summary for LTD). TES had over 600 views in a single day, and LTD had over 800, the highest I've ever seen on any story. What's crazy is that that means LTD had over 5% of K's total view count so far (which has been running since February) in one day. Bizarre...

Happy rats, and don't do crime!

Chapter 12 – I'm From The East Side of Vale

In which Jaune Arc is taken under the wing of a huntsman and offered a hoagie date.

Ah, Vale. No distractions, no hindrances, no one to get in the way of Jaune and his destiny. He was completely alone, having quietly slipped out of the room when his teammates were still sleeping.

Well not completely alone. Amber was tucked away in his coat, but since she wasn't on a call at the moment, he was silent, so it felt like he was alone.

Today was the day. Nothing was going to stop him from marching into the city, finding the first huntsman or huntress he saw, and offering them any price he could afford to get them to unlock his aura. If that didn't work, it was on to the second hunter, and so on until his soul was on the outside or he exhausted the entire city's worth of heroes.

Jaune had done his due research this time, as he wouldn't be leaving anything to chance. Hunters had official licenses viewable on their scroll that he could use to verify their identity, but before even that, there were several telltale signs that gave them away when among a crowd of non-aura users. Among these tended to be a flair for dramatically flamboyant outfits (like any of the girls on his or Ruby's team), absurdly ridiculous weapons that were able to mech-shift into mundane household objects (like Velvet and her partner, who fought with a suitcase and a camera), and, above all, they were stacked. Like, swole AF. I guess having superstrength tends to make your muscles grow accordingly.

He could, in theory, reach out to one via a more legitimate medium, but Jaune felt like leaving a paper trial in his wake would only introduce even more problems in the long run. After all, even when he had aura, he would still be hiding his forged identity from Ozpin and Goodwitch.

And so, he set out in a straight line that took him through some of the most densely populated areas of Vale. There was just something poetic about the notion of letting destiny guide his hand and bumping into a daring huntress or charming huntsman on the street. Perhaps they would grow to care for him, or even become a mentor. Who knew what strange strings fate would choose to pull?

There weren't any obvious hunters visible as Jaune passed by city hall and strolled through Vale's downtown, but Jaune's spirits didn't fall. He had all day to take care of this, and the sun had only just risen.

Maybe Amber knows some popular hunter haunts? Wait, no, she said she didn't get out much. I wonder if Ozpin even let her see the city before.

It was weird just how vitriolic she could get about Ozpin, but then immediately turn around and defend him. Jaune had gotten a better idea of her situation after chatting with her about things over the past few days. Amber seemed to have a personal beef with the kindly old man that made her hate him, but she apparently respected the work he did, and even claimed to understand the logic of why he felt it necessary to lock her away. Jaune guessed that violently being burned to death upon one's first foray into the outside world would do that to a person.

Ozpin always seemed like a friendly old fellow to me, but I think I might need to revise that theory if he goes around locking up those in his employ. But still, Amber probably knows him better than me, and she says he's not so bad. At least she says that when she isn't actively ranting about how much she hates him.

Jaune idly patted her in the pocket she'd been tucked into and smiled at Amber. In the end, Jaune figured it would be best if he never learned. Interacting personally with the headmaster would just complicate things, both for him and for the technological guest stowed away in his pocket.

When he looked up, his prayers were answered.

"Let me get this straight. You want me to unlock your aura, and you're willing to pay me for it?"

Jaune nodded. This man, this glorious, wonderful, gods-sent man, was a huntsman. He was tall, roguishly good looking, and had all the signs of huntsmanhood pointing right at him. There was no mistake; he was the guy fate had sent to Jaune.

"Why?"

"I…want to become a huntsman. Like you. And I need aura to do it."

That was absolutely true. It omitted the important detail that he had already begun the process of the first without even knowing he'd needed the second, but he hadn't told a lie, so his conscience was clean.

"Ain't you a little old to start?"

Jaune shook his head. "Nope."

"Well." The huntsman shrugged. "Okay then."

Jaune perked up. This was happening, finally! "So you'll make the trade?"

"No," said the stranger concisely.

His face fell. "But…"

"Kid, let me learn you something real quick." An arm wrapped around Jaune's shoulder, and the man began to walk alongside Jaune. "Huntsmen like me, we're well paid. Throwing money at us isn't going to work, especially not with the kind of dough you've got."

Jaune's chipper outlook began to crumble away as the implications of the statement sunk in. It's not even this guy being unwilling. I have nothing to offer a hunter in return for them helping me out. That means that even if I find another, it'll be the same outcome. Darn it – every time, there's always something in the way! Now what am I going to do?

"Hey, chin up. Why the long face, kid?"

"You said you wouldn't unlock my aura."

"No," said the huntsman. "I said I wouldn't make the trade…trade in this case referring to the exchange of aura for money. Not that I wouldn't give you what you want."

"But–"

"Let's just say that it isn't lien I'm in need of. You might just be able to pay in favors instead." The man's arm grabbed Jaune a whole lot tighter, and he grinned.

Jaune suddenly felt significantly less safe around this potentially dangerous stranger. "I'm not that kind of boy –"

"Oh, Dust, not that! Look, I happen to be shorthanded on a little project me and my team are doing, and I need an extra pair of hands. You don't need to be a huntsman to help me out, it's just a little manual labor. You ever had a summer job before?"

"I used to work in a supermarket," Jaune said, recalling his early years of child labor.

"Wonderful," said his huntsman friend. "Just pretend you're loading and unloading crates off the truck during a restock, except these crates'll be full of different goods. Easy peasy, right?"

"And you'll unlock my aura, right?"

The man drew an X over his heart with a finger and nodded solemnly. "Huntsman's honor."

Wow, how lucky am I! I find the only hunter in the entire city who's willing to accept a day's work instead of money just by bumping into him off the street! It really is our destiny to meet.

Jaune's scroll chimed. When he checked it, there was a message from Amber.

Amber: I like this fellow. He seems trustworthy.

Jaune found himself agreeing. His gut was telling him that this was a hunter of strong character, someone he could truly depend on. Maybe it was the wholesome, benevolent look in his eyeliner-covered eyes, maybe it was the classy ensemble that perfectly matched with his bowler hat and combat cane, or maybe it was the hand of fate itself, guiding Jaune into the arms to a incorruptible soul.

"A-Ahem."

The pink and brown-haired girl looked up from her nails at Jaune. Her head tilted slightly to the side as she regarded him with curiosity.

"Are you Miss, uh, N-Neo? Mr. Torchwick said I should go to you, and you'd help sort me out."

She blinked.

"I confess, I sort of don't know what I'm doing here, other than apparently moving boxes…? S-So, I'll have to rely on you, ma'am. You just tell me whatever you need me to do, and I'll do my best to obey you, whatever you say. Miss Neo. Y-You are Miss Neo, right? I guess I just sort of saw you over here and assumed…because…you're…you're t-the…"

Miss Neo, if this was even her, had hopped off of the crate she'd been seated on and was now encroaching upon Jaune's personal space at an alarming speed. A wide grin had spread across her face, and he could've sworn he caught her tongue pop out of her mouth and lick her lips.

Jaune rapidly found his back against the wall as the diminutive woman came up closer and closer to him. "M-Miss Neo?"

She leaned in close and reached out a hand. Jaune had no idea what to do, so he tentatively gripped her tiny palm and shook it.

Miss Neo's eyebrows raised.

Her smile grew wider.

Her mouth opened.

"Hey, how's it hangin'?" said Miss Neo. "What's good, my brother? So, you must be the new blood that old Torchy scoped out. Sorry about just a minute ago – my lips were feelin' super chapped. Anyway, welcome to the crew. The name's Neo, short for Neopolitan."

The oddest thing happened. Jaune was in the middle of shaking Miss Neo's hand as she introduced herself when the sound of applause filled his ears. He looked around, but there was no one else in the warehouse besides the duo.

"Neopolitan, that's-ah me," she said. "Good old Neopolitan."

"Neopolitan?" Jaune cautiously repeated.

"That's my name, don't wear it out! Ahahahaha! Hey, hey, I'm just kiddin' around, just pullin' your leg. Now, why dontcha tell me all about yourself? C'mon, bub, don't spare the details. What's yer name, slick, where ya from? Nowhere too close, I hope – nahhh, I'm just bustin' your chops. Hey, you're alright, kid. Don't take yourself too seriously."

"I'm Jaune. Do you work for Mr. Torchwick?"

Neopolitan's eyebrows raised. "Me? Work for old Torchy? Why, with how many hours I put into this lousy old job, the gingerbread man oughta be workin' for me!"

There it was again! Just some weird, disembodied background noise, although this time it was the sound of laughter instead of applause. Jaune wondered if Amber was pumping noise into the room using her scroll's speakers. With how loud the laughter was, it sounded like there was an entire studio audience's worth of people responding to how he and Neo interacted.

Neo patted Jaune on the back and led him out the door of the warehouse to the yard, where several Faunus seemed to be doing odd jobs. Numerous wooden crates were stacked all around haphazardly.

"Now, I basically keep this whole show running when prettyboy Romey's busy, so you need anything, you come straight to me, you hear?" Neo patted him on the chest. "Old Miss Neo'll look out for you, kid. She'll set you straight. Hey, any chance I could bum a ciggie, if you've got one?"

A loud noise dragged Jaune out of his conversation, and he reacted just in time to step out of the way of a forklift before it ran him and Neo right over.

"AYYYY!" Neo slapped the hood of the forklift. "Watchit, ya lousy putz! I'm waaauulkin' heeyuhhhh!"

The laughs! They came back up in volume, and with a vengeance. I guess it's not limited to the warehouse. It's like the sounds are following us around. Is this block haunted?

"Sorry, ma'am," said the forklift driver.

"No worries, just watch the shoes, buddy boy. They's a brand new pair!" She redirected her attention to Jaune as the forklift continued on its way. "Okay, here's the deal, Jaune. You stick with me, and you're going places. You and me, we could run this town. Whaddaya say, chum?"

"Oh," Jaune gently removed her arm as she patted him on the shoulder once more. "That's real nice and all, but I'm probably not going to be working with you people for long. In fact, I think it'll just be today, and then I'll be leaving."

Neo nodded solemnly. "Fair enough, amigo, fair enough. A man's gotta find his own path, I always say. And I say it aloud, too, because I can speak audibly. Sound waves, they be comin' right out my throat-hole, and that's how I talk – audibly and with sound. Anywayyyyys…hey kid, you ain't too shabby, though. What say you and me head on down to Vinny's after this gig, grab a couple of hoagies, and catch the tail end of the big game? That guy makes the best meatball provies on rye on the east side of Vale, I swear to Dust."

A Faunus some distance away waved the two of them down. "Hey, I need help over here! Can someone take the other side of this container so we can get it into the truck?"

"That's your cue," Neo slapped Jaune on the back and pushed him over towards the Faunus. "Tony, this's one of carrot-top's boys! He's gotcha covered!" She gave Jaune a quick nod as he walked away. "Knock 'em dead, Jaun-o. Do me proud."

The disembodied sounds came back, but instead of laughter, it was back to cheering, with some whistles mixed in.

I really hope that that's the last time I cross paths with her. Neat hair, though.

It actually felt a bit better to actually earn his aura with a hard day's work, rather than just be handed it or exchange it for his savings from back when he still got an allowance. Jaune had learned the names of a few of the Faunus working, and they seemed like some of the most pleasant people, once he'd gotten to know them.

Whoever got it into their thick skulls that Faunus are any different than humans must be brain-dead. These guys have been so nice to me.

He and Big Leo had just finished loading up the last shipment of boxes into the trucks when it started to get dark. He'd seen neither hide nor hair of Roman Torchwick since the man had sent him to Neo, but she was a regular face around the warehouse, always barking out some order or another in that loud, gruff, completely audible voice of hers.

Jaune honestly wasn't sure how he felt about her. On the one hand, she had to be the cutest girl he'd ever laid eyes upon, but on the other, the ghosts always aww-ed and ooh-ed whenever they engaged one another. The idea of asking for her number (not for the offer of a continued job or to go out for hoagies, but just to see if she was single) had occurred to him, but Jaune didn't think he could genuinely consider a relationship with a girl who seemed to carry around sound effects with her.

"That's a wrap, Mike!" Jaune called to the Faunus in the front of the truck, slapping the metal door at the back of the vehicle to let him know that it was closed. The Faunus gave him a thumbs up out the driver's side window, then drove off. Jaune, unsure of what to do now that the entire shipment of crates was mobile.

"Hey, guys, what's next on the agenda?"

Don and Big Leo looked at him unsurely. "Jaun-o, you planning to stick with us for the night shift? It's not exactly normal temp work or somethin'."

"I told Torchy th– er, told Roman that I was going to earn my wage, and I intend to do just that. So, where're we headed?"

Don motioned with his head to one of the cars, and Jaune followed the duo, hopping into the backseat.

"A big shipment of Dust is going to be unloading tonight in the docks, and we're gonna help take it off their hands," explained Big Leo. "Neo's gonna be staying at the warehouse, but Roman's meeting us at the shipyards. He'll be taking over."

Perfect. Jaune would work with them through the night, and then he'd get his aura unlocked by Roman directly when they met up. He had yet to figure out why a huntsman was overseeing a shipping and handling operation, but he figured that since the cargo was Dust, it was something to do with arming his fellow defenders of the kingdom or something.

Thank the Brothers that I did this early on the weekend. As long as have Sunday to rest, I should be fresh for combat class on Monday. There's no way I'd be able to stay up this late on a school night and not be groggy in class the next day. Things really have turned out for the best ever since I met up with Roman.

Big Leo turned the car around a corner. "You know, you're a decent bloke, Jaun-o. You seem smart enough, you count well, and you're do what you're told without talkin' back to no one. If you wanted, I'm sure you coulda picked up the extra hours with, you know, nicer company than us. What's got you working with the lowlifes?"

"Roman's got something I need."

Don's eyebrows raised. "Hostage?"

Jaune laughed at the joke. Don sure was great at deadpan – Jaune could barely even detect the humor in his tone. "Nah. Just something I need to move up in the world."

"Ain't that a nice dream. Most of us don't actually buy into our collective's ideological fluff 'bout how we're making better lives for us and our people, we just join because we don't have many other options. I envy you, Jaun-o, I really do. What I wouldn't give to have a future worth fighting for."

Both Big Leo and Don grew silent after that depressing note. Jaune knew that Faunus had it bad, but he felt especially sympathetic to folks like these guys. Perry had told him that the White Fang scooped up Faunus left and right – that must have been the 'other options' Big Leo was alluding to. He admired what these Faunus had managed for themselves, rejecting it's influence and instead choosing to live life on their own terms, free of its terrors.

Jaune looked out the window as the ocean drew nearer and nearer and thought about what his own future would hold. The struggle wouldn't end when he unlocked his aura. He was still a false huntsman, and only many a long night training with Amber would remedy that.

I also need to get some more weapons. I'm starting to think that Yang hasn't even mentioned me to her mom. It's got to be such an easy thing for her to do – just go up and say, 'Hey, Mom! Can you do me a solid and return my buddy's sword? Thanks!'

But no, Yang can't even be bothered! How selfish can you get?

Jaune had also decided that he would be buying himself some extra weapons, or perhaps requesting them from the forgemasters. They had seemed happy to be given free range on the armor, so maybe they'd also do him a solid and craft some offense to complement his defense.

StormFlower proves that having some range in your back pocket is worth it, so I'll need a gun. I might also want to have something for hand to hand combat, like a knife or baton, in case I fight myself wrestling a Boarbatusk ever again. Nora had a taser; that wouldn't hurt to have either…

The car stopped moving before Jaune could expand his mental armory any further.

Big Leo stepped out of the driver's seat, flooding the car with a fresh wave of chilliness from the dark night. "We're here."

It was midnight before he even saw Roman show up to supervise. Jaune had been working like a dog, sweat pouring off his shoulders and down his back. He was burning up like he had a fever from the exertion. Even in the cool night breeze, with salty ocean spray slapping his body ruthlessly, he still felt only moments away from completely overheating. Big Leo had told him they were on a tight schedule and needed the entire ship unloaded onto their bullheads before the night was up, which meant neither Jaune nor any of the boys (who now numbered in the tens when they joined with another crew) could even spare a moment for a break.

"Man, I never knew there could be so much Dust," Jaune commented as he and Mike hauled another crate and gently set it down on a palette. Unlike at the warehouse, they had to manually use palette jacks rather than operate a forklift. Jaune lacked a license to operate the forklift, though, so it wouldn't have mattered to him either way.

"You never seen a Schnee mine? They got caverns in those kindsa places that stretch on for miles. When air and gas pockets inside the planet's crust scrunch and screech the raw minerals for centuries at the temperature of the sun, eventually the conditions get just right, and then boom! Dust for days, the exclusive property of Daddy Schnee."

Jaune had only seen pictures of underground Dust pockets, but he'd heard that they were a real feast for the eyes. "I take it you worked in one." Mike nodded. "What's it like?"

"It was a past life for me, one I'm not too keen on reliving. Workin' for Schnees is no cakewalk."

Jaune had heard about the complaints civil rights groups always raised on the Faunus' conditions, so he decided to leave it at that. Changing the subject, he idly brought up something he thought Mike might be interested to hear.

"You know, I had the good fortune of meeting Weiss Schnee once."

Mike lit up like a firework. "Did you shoot your shot?"

"Tried my best, but missed it by a mile," said Jaune.

That wasn't one of his proudest memories, one Jaune himself wasn't keen on reliving. Weiss and Cereal Box Girl had been gearing up in the locker room right before initiation when Jaune had approached then unwarranted. At the time, he'd thought he was projecting flirtatious bravery by randomly walking up to two new possible friends (of the girl variety), but looking back, he must've seemed like the father of all horndogs. He cringed at the thought of it.

Mike nodded knowingly. "Not every bullet meets its mark. You just gotta bounce back and aim better next time."

Actually, knowing what I know now about Weiss and Ruby, I realize that it might not have been my approach that turned her off, but my gender.

"Oi, get back to work, you lazy animals!"

Mike rolled his eyes. "Aye-aye, boss."

"Don't sass me, Don!"

"I'm not – never mind."

Jaune watched the exchange with unease. After meeting Roman by chance on the street, he'd had these grand designs of being an apprentice to the skilled huntsman, but if this was how he treated his underlings…

And calling them animals wasn't very kind either, especially given that they're all Faunus. Does he not see the implications…?

He would still take the aura-unlocking, as that was the sort of opportunity that only a fool would turn down, but Jaune began to rethink just how much he associated himself with Roman Torchwick.

After all, the White Fang is on the rise these days. I wouldn't want to associate myself with a human chauvinist like him and get a target painted on my back by terrorists like them.

Roman tapped his cane on the ground. "Jaune, lemme talk to you for a second."

"One sec, sir. We need to finish loading this–"

"I'm sure Leo can handle it on his own. Let's you and I have a chat."

"I…"

Mike, not Big Leo, nodded at Jaune with forlorn acceptance and took over on the crates they'd been working on together. It was clearly a two-person job, as Jaune could see the poor Faunus' muscles straining to carry the box as his footing adjusted to balance the heavy load. Jaune wasn't happy leaving his new buddy without finding someone to take over and replace him, but Roman was the boss, and he signed the paychecks (aurachecks?), so to speak, so there wasn't much Jaune could do about it.

"Yes, sir?"

"I wanted to talk to you about your payment."

"O-Oh." Jaune looked back behind him. The Faunus were hard at the job, which was probably about three-quarters finished. He was under the impression that he would be getting his aura unlocked after the work was done, not in the middle of it. "What about it?"

"Well, there's been a complication."

Jaune's heart fell.

I̶ ̶s̶h̶o̶u̶l̶d̶'̶v̶e̶ ̶k̶n̶o̶w̶n̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶ ̶w̶a̶s̶ ̶c̶o̶m̶i̶n̶g̶.̶ ̶N̶o̶t̶h̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶g̶o̶e̶s̶ ̶r̶i̶g̶h̶t̶ ̶f̶o̶r̶ ̶m̶e̶.̶

Roman immediately backtracked. "You'll still be getting it, but I just need you to work a few more nights."

"But–"

"Jaune, I'm gonna level with you." Roman wrapped an arm around Jaune in a gesture that was starting to lose its original comforting nature the more it happened. It now felt like the coils of snake constricting themselves around Jaune. "I like having you around. That's the truth, on my honor. Neo tells me you work well, and I agree. You're spry, you're sharp as a tack, and most importantly, you're not a dumb animal like those brutes."

"W-What?"

"So, I was thinking we work out a deal. Instead of unlocking your aura right away, I give you cash for now, and we make aura the light at the end of the tunnel. The tunnel, in this case, being continued employment under my watchful eye. I'm rather strapped for talent – human talent, that is – and you came at a perfect time. I want to offer you a job, Jaune."

"Sir." Jaune exhaled and tried to calm his rising temper. "I'm not looking for a job. In fact, I only want my aura unlocked because I already have a career path planned out."

"Hunting is a thankless job, kid." Roman pulled out a cigar, flipped up the tail end of his cane to it, and lit the rich brown roll up. "They risk their lives every day, and for what? Peanuts compared to what I make."

Alarm bells went off at the blatant admission that Roman wasn't actually a huntsman. Jaune's first instinct was to run away (which was stupid, because it would probably get him killed), but his arms and legs wouldn't work.

"Kid, these Faunus I work with are disgusting. It's only a matter of time before they stab me in the back. I see it in those animal eyes of theirs every time they turn my way. Now, when that happens, I could use some of my kind, of our kind, at my side. I've got Neo, but only a fool puts all their Nevermore eggs in one basket."

It was like Jaune was trapped in a giant ice cube, and melting it was just a foreign concept. Moving his limbs seemed unreal. Speaking? What even was that? Even Jaune's breathing halted as Roman continued his tirade.

"You're not exactly tough, but you might have potential. You're compliant, and that's something I admire in a man. Don't fret, Jaune; I will unlock your aura, but only after you've proven yourself. Trust'll take time, but I'll make it worth your while." A chilly breeze blew out his cigar, and Roman angled his cane to re-light it. "We – urgh, stupid thing – tend to have high profit margins at Torchwick LLC."

Jaune finally managed to wrench his neck around to look back at the shipyard.

A crew of men working for a shady dude I met on the street, operating at night to 'unload' an SDC boat, despite the fact that none of them are wearing uniforms or have shown me any credentials beyond the leader having aura. And I didn't even ask to see his scroll ID to verify he's a huntsman, in my excitement.

How did I not–

"BREACH!"

Jaune looked up to see a fourth Faunus member of the crew that he vaguely recognized, Ralphie or something, point to a shadowy figure that was knocking down his companions.

"MASKS ON!"

Oh, of course. It just gets better and better.

Even Jaune, as oblivious as he was, recognized the White Fang's Grimm-based face-coverings as his co-workers rapidly adorned them. Weapons were drawn, and within seconds, the entire plaza rapidly descended into a chaotic mess of hastily fired bullets and exploding crates of Dust.

Roman was looking down at his cigar as he tried multiple times to click on the pilot light at the bottom of his cane. "You know, if you're still thinking about signing on, this would be a great oppor–"

Jaune didn't even realize his hands had moved until the explosion was over, by which point he was already sprinting away from Torchwick. The dapper man was blown off his feet by the force of the cane-blast that his face had accepted point blank. Jaune honestly hadn't meant to kill him – he just thought that pressing the button on the combat cane would shoot out flames and catch the bowler hat on fire, giving Jaune a chance to escape. Or if not the hat, I'm sure that some chemical in all that make-up would've been flammable.

Still, as he slipped through the chaotic confusion, he couldn't feel too bad about the man's death. Roman was blatantly racist against the Faunus in his employ, which somehow felt even worse since they were all part of the White Fang terrorist organization. He was an aura-user working in conjunction with murderers and bombers, which meant that he was probably lending them his skills to hurt people.

Plus, he was aiming the cane right at his face when I reached out. That's poor workplace safety, especially around so much Dust. Can you really fault me when he's the one who's criminally negligent?

Jaune ducked to avoid the flying body of Big Leo, armed with a deadly-looking machine gun, as the shadowy figure from before charged through the White Fang's battle lines. Jaune's primary goal was to just make it out of this firefight alive without taking anyone's side. The White Fang were terrorists, but he didn't think he could knowingly hurt the men who he'd spent all day befriending. Sure, they would probably kill him if they knew he'd triggered Roman's cane on the man himself, and he probably had an ethical obligation to arrest them as a huntsman of Beacon if granted the opportunity, but the men who ran past weren't just nebulous training dummies and drones that he'd practiced on. It was Don and Big Leo, two of Jaune's new bros for crying out loud!

Plus, I'm unarmed and they're not. Even if I wanted to fight them, I'd probably lose.

On the other hand, this shrouded individual who had attacked the White Fang was moving so fast that Jaune could barely even keep track of her. They were a blur of sweeping white and gleaming black, knocking down enemy after enemy as they made their way through the crowd. If Jaune fought them, he'd definitely lose.

The fight wasn't limited to one location, nor was it moving in one direction. The bullets were flying around in front of Jaune one moment, and then the next there were swords slashing to his right, followed by the sound of punches and kicks behind him.

One of the many crates Jaune had spent all night stacking blew up right as he ran past it, and Jaune was thrown a great distance away from the combat zone. His head hit the ground, and the taste of blood filled up his mouth.

"Gaaah!"

When he looked down, his sleeve was torn and his arm bloodied and bruised. Jaune could hear a steady ringing in his ears, but he still managed to pick himself up and limp in the direction of the city, which offered safety.

The ringing only grew louder, and Jaune realized that it wasn't emanating from his head but from his scroll. Growling as he ambled, Jaune answered the call.

"This better be good!" he shouted at Amber.

"Jaune, it's the girl from Team RWBY! The one fighting the White Fang, it's her. Bl-Blaziken!"

"Blake?"

"That!"

Jaune looked around. The person was still moving faster than he could keep track of, but their color scheme certainly matched Blake's. And if Amber, who was watching through a high-scale camera had identified her, it probably was.

He looked out towards the city and could now hear the sounds of sirens, growing louder and louder. Jaune's chances for escape were growing slimmer and slimmer by the second. Any smart person would leave Blake to her business and take care of number one.

But if he fled and she got hurt, he would never be able to look Ruby in the eyes again.

It might not even be…wait, no, that's definitely her. He could now clearly make out her face and figure as she fought. That weapon she used was rapidly switching between pistol and sword form as the crowds of White Fang closed in on her. And…she'd grown two more ears?

"She's a Faunus," said Jaune, pointing out the obvious.

"Jaune, you need to–"

"I know."

The reason he could now see her face, as opposed to before, was because she was slowing down. Blake was a trained huntress, but she was still a student, and there had to be twenty or thirty heavily armed Faunus working against her all at once. Even a full team would struggle against those overwhelming odds.

He didn't have a sword, and he didn't have his armor. Jaune was completely and utterly in over his head right now. A single stray bullet, misaimed sword, or even aura-enhanced punch to the temple would instantly rip apart his flimsy body.

Amber wished him good luck and hung up the call. Jaune pocketed the scroll and dashed back into the firefight.

tl;dr Neo is a New Yorker and she talks and also she is in a sitcom

Next Chapter: Scream Until Your Dreams Come True

In which Jaune Arc beats up an innocent woman and allies himself with terrorists.

Author's Notes

Before anyone gets worried, Roman isn't actually dead. He tanked a cane blast to the bowler hat, which Jaune assumed killed him, but Jaune's lack of understanding of the durability aura gives someone has led him to some hasty assumptions.

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And now it's time for a quick quiz.

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Question 1: How do you write Neo?

a) Try to capture the core essence of her character

b) Rewrite her personality to fit the needs of the story

c) Retain her element of mystery by never revealing too much

d) Throw caution into the wind and embrace full irony

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Congratulations! If you chose D, you're a f#%&ing idiot and don't deserve nice things.

Happy rats, and don't do crime!