CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT

Oniyuri, Mistral...

Jaune

It hit us all like a blur. It started off smooth, barely any grimm, but the closer we got to Haven, the worse the situation became. Death lingered everywhere we went, even harder to stomach was the fact that not all of those deaths were caused by grimm. They were caused by people, bandits. We came across one abandoned town after another, all hope of seeing anybody else all but faded away, but this... this is something I never expected.

"Who is he!?"

Nora frantically yelled while she desperately gasped for air.

"Does it matter!? We have to help them somehow!"

Ren to, was hurt and his composure drained along with his stamina.

"DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!"

Qrow yelled while he kept the psychotic faunus with the scorpion tail busy.

"You have to trust me, uncle Qrow!"

But Ruby was just as persistent.

"No Ruby! It's not a matter of trust! It's that-"

The three of them fought hard and fast, but it was becoming more and more difficult for to trust that our savior from out of nowhere, to win, as he's too busy scolding Ruby mid fight. I don't get it. It only seems right that they work together to beat this freak, but it seems Qrow really doesn't want to Ruby to get in the way.

It wouldn't be very long after their bickering that Ruby and Qrow's distractions would come and bite them in the back, as the faunus nicked Qrow with his stinger. Almost instantly, the vitality in Qrow's body dissipated as he fell to the ground, but not before Ruby was able to cut his stinger off.

"AAAAAAHHHH! HOW DARE YOU!?"

He gritted his teeth and snarled at Ruby. He raised his hands up and pointed his blades at her, but before he could stab Ruby in the eyes, Nora launched herself forward and used the last of her strength to swing her hammer, knocking the faunus back away from all of us.

"RUBY GO! Now's your chance!"

At the top my lungs, I yelled so loud that it forced Ruby into action. She dashed forward with Crescent Rose in hand with the intention of finishing off the dazed faunus. But before her scythe's blade touched the faunus, a thick air of mist enveloped the faunus.

"Ezra?"

Ruby instinctively yelled as she came to a screeching halt, but Ezra wasn't there. Instead, what stood before us was a woman clad in black from head to toe with her feather covered cloak concealing most of her body. She wore a mask that resembles the face of bird and as dark as her clothes with a shade of purple around the eyes. The only part of her body that was exposed was her hair that elegantly ran all the way down to her chin in a bob, and her jaws that were smooth and white like porcelain. Her stance was frigid and cold, a part of me doubted she even breath.

"Interesting."

She calmly whispered. Behind her, the faunus struggled to get up, and looked back her with an irritated look.

"Swan. What are you doing here?"

Without looking back, the woman named Swan responded back.

"I was sent by my... employer to check on you. To make sure you didn't fail, Tyrian."

Tyrian responded with an even angrier tone in his voice.

"I don't need help!"

"And yet." Swan continued. "Here you are groveling on the ground."

Ruby's patience started to run out. She raised Crescent Rose up and pointed it at Swan and Tyrian.

"Curious."

Swan responded softly against Ruby's threat, unfazed by the barrel of her sniper rifle pointed at her chest. Now that I think about it, I don't think I've seen her move a muscle at all. I didn't even think I saw how she got here. The mist suddenly just appeared.

"Yeah? How so?"

Ruby asked, but Swan only slightly raised her mouth to smile.

"You'd prioritize killing me over the welfare of your uncle?"

Hearing that, all of us shifted our gaze at Qrow who was more than just weakened, he too was groveling on the ground like Tyrian. It was pretty clear that he was poisoned.

"Uncle Qrow!"

Ruby shook her head back and forth, unable to decide whether or not she should help her uncle or fight Swan, but fortunately for us, Swan is a bit tamer than her counterpart.

"Go tend to your uncle, and I'll tend to mine, but I'd advise you to keep your guard up. We're coming for you..."

Ruby slowly backpedaled as she watch Swan kneel and swing Tyrian's arm over her neck. The mist around them began to thicken and their silhouette began to fade away, but not before Swan asked us something that caught our attention.

"Before. You mentioned Ezra? How do you know him?"

But all of us held our tongue. It was the wise thing to do.

With the mist completely engulfing them, both Swan and Tyrian faded away just as the mist dispersed and we were left with nothing but an echo of Swan's final words.

"I'll find out soon enough."

Who was that woman?

Meanwhile in Kuo Kuana, Menagerie...

Blake

"MOM! How could you?"

I pointed gambol shroud right at Ezra's face, who was now standing emotionless inside my father's office. The very idea of it is like poison in my brain that's doing nothing but stir up all the anger I have for him. It's absolutely appaling and dad seems to agree.

"Kali, why did you invite this criminal into our home?"

His voice was tense. You can feel the frustration in his voice with every breath, yet in the face of my mother, it somehow still sounded soft and gentle. Dad begged mom to tell him her reasons, even though I can't think of it anything that would justify such... treachery.

Mom sighed and looked at Ezra, who gave in moments later and nodded.

"Fine."

She crossed her arms and whispered to herself, as if the telling the truth to her family was such a chore.

"I've had my doubts about the Fang, you know that Ghira."

Mom leaned in closer to dad and began running her hands on his shoulders.

"Ever since you stepped down, and Sienna took over, I haven't been able to complete put it away in head. She's a bit more aggressive and forceful than we were, yes we both acknowledged that at the time, and I know we made our peace with it."

Dad nodded while he looked away to reminisce momentarily.

"Yes, age was catching up to me, and it seemed like humans needed a more forceful way of convincing than the one I originally advocated for, which was something I could never do. Not with a family at least. That's why I handed the reins to Sienna."

He held on to mom's hands, still confused as to why there was a criminal standing inside our home, dad begged mom to explain.

"My feelings changed Ghira. I enjoy my life with you here in Menagerie, but after hearing about what our people went through after we stepped down is heart breaking."

Mom slowly began to tear up, but resolved herself to continue.

"Then Beacon happened, Blake came home, and all of a sudden, our ideal image of what we originally stood for seemed to be invalidated by the actions of the faunus upholding the same qualities that we sought to fight against in the first place. I needed answers, Ghira. Blake."

What she's saying is true, I even witnessed it first hand, but even so...

"But mom! Why did you ask for help from the one person that caused all this?"

Again, mom shifted her head to gaze at Ezra.

"That's exactly why I trust him. He knows more about this whole situation than everyone else. We finally have someone who's not in the dark!"

That doesn't make any sense. Me and dad looked at each other, dumbfounded by the things she's saying.

"Look, Ezra was a big part of why Beacon fell, but he's only a part of it. Blake, the damage that happened in Beacon, Faunus did that too. We protest, scream at the top of our lungs, and challenge those in powers for rights that we all know we deserve, and yet we turn around and demolish an Academy whose sole purpose was to save people."

Mom sighed, and with tender eyes she looked away from Ezra and pointed them at me.

"Mom, those were stray group of faunus! Not everyone is like that!"

But she would not back down.

"That's not how it works Blake. We can't just cut away a part of a cloth to clean the rest of it. The White Fang, for better or worse, is part of the faunus legacy now. In order for us to truly succeed in achieving the things we strive for, we need to see the White Fang as a part of us and fix it, not cut it away. To say that Adam and his crew were the ones that committed those crimes and say that it's okay because they were a 'rogue' group is hypocritical, and is just a form of running away from our problems."

I- I agree.

"But dear, what does this have to do with OWL?"

Mom smiled at dad, then asked me a peculiar question.

"Blake, do you think Ezra is OWL?"

What kind of question is that?

"Of course mom and that's exactly-"

She cut me off before I can rant away.

"Do you think that's all he is?"

All he is? I look at Ezra now and all I see is his OWL suit, but the harder I stare at him, the more of my memories of Beacon came crashing back. I can see Ezra joking around with Ruby with a laugh so unhinged and genuine that I can do nothing but laugh to, and not because of their fooling around, but with their happiness. I can see him pissing Weiss off, and him doing something thoughtful that she forgives him just as quickly, I can see him talking to Pyrrha like she was one of his sisters, I can see him flirt with Yang as they hold their cup of coffee that was starting to lose heat because they were too busy staring at each other's eyes to drink.

And I can see him with me, asking me about the stories I read, and him listening faithfully like he actually enjoyed hearing about my joy and passion...

Those were memories that I hold close to my heart. Which is why his betrayal is all the more painful. Because despite my absolute HATE for OWL, there in lies a kind person tarnished by his sins.

My jaw began to hurt as I was gritting my teeth so hard, my hands trembling in anger, and my vision started to blur. My anger was about ready to boil over, but the soft touch of my mother's hand shook me back to reality. She gently lowered my hand and pointed gambol shroud away from Ezra. Mom wrapped her arms around me and hugged me tightly.

"Blake, I'm sorry. You have to understand that OWL is only a part of Ezra, and I know you hate him because of that, but I believe there's a part of him that legitimately wants to help. No matter how much you deny it. It's that part that I'm pleading with to help us solve this conundrum with the White Fang once and for all."

She grabbed hold of my hand and dad's and looked us both in the eye.

"Besides, I owe him my life now."

How can I argue with something like that? I'm now forced to at least listen, and dad sees it that way too.

"Alright, Ezra. I will listen to what you have to say."

Dad, mom, and myself sat on the couch opposite Ezra. He took a minute to collect his thoughts, before he finally decided to open up his scroll and project a hologram in front of the three of us.

"Almost a year ago now, I was hired by a woman named Cinder..."

Ezra opened up about absolutely everything. Every heist he ever committed, every conversation he ever had, every deal he ever made. All there right in front of us, except up until the time he came to our room half-dead. Information from that point on was a bit iffy, I could tell he was keeping something secret from the three of us, but the rest otherwise looked legitimate. He explained how he was blackmailed and coerced to do jobs that he didn't want to do. He never said it outright, because he didn't want it to rub the wrong way, but I can tell that I was part of the reason the blackmail was working on him.

If you factor in the threats he received at the end of his job, provided they are true of course, then it would seem he would have nothing to do with the Fall of Beacon.

But he still heralded it.

"...and my colleagues believe that Cinder might be on her way to Haven. Since she announced in the intercom that she's from Mistral, though I can't vouch for the legitimacy of her country of origin."

Did he just say...

"Colleagues? You mean Jaune and his team right? Are they really going through with it? Who else with them?"

I asked.

"Ruby."

He answered as if it explained everything. But oddly enough, it did in some weird way, because of course Ruby would... of course she would. Oh Ruby. Now I'm even more confused. If you couple that with what we just heard from Ezra, then all of this would have been a lot to take in in one night, almost too much.

Of all the things Ezra said, it was the fact that the White Fang might attack Haven was what caught my father's attention. He mentioned it before, but I never really believed him. After all that's happened tonight, I'm a little bit inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt, almost obligated to. Thankfully, dad didn't let his emotions run rampant and approached the whole thing rationally.

"Ezra, listen."

Dad sighed and scratched his forehead, still trying to comprehend everything he just heard.

"I don't think I can believe you so easily to be blunt… and an attack on Haven Academy? I just can't trust the word of stray student hellbent on revenge for what happened to Beacon, and a criminal such as yourself."

Those were harsh words, but Ezra didn't flinch. Mom instead, spoke for him.

"That's why I hired him darling. To find the truth. He's the only one we have left. Anyone who knows anything about the Fang will simply shove us to the side cause who in their right mind would admit to their wrong doings to the people that can correct it? Ezra on the other hand, has been... in business with them before and they'd be a little more inclined to help. Maybe he can help-"

Mom put it kindly, but Ezra interrupted her with the truth she didn't want anybody in our family to hear.

"-Or, because I'm human, that they would hate me enough to force the White Fang's true colors out of the shadows."

Mom and dad sighed, after hearing the truth about mom's intentions.

"No need to sugarcoat it." Ezra proclaimed. "I don't take offense to it. It's a good strategy."

But based on mom's pained look, doesn't make it any easier on the conscience, but again, Ezra comforted her.

"It's okay. I understand. I'll go look for clues and start again in the morning."

He looked at dad straight in the eye before walking right pass me.

"I'll find your proof Mr. Belladonna, I swear."

"Any news on Corsac and Fennec?"

Before he could go, Mom asked a question that caught dad off guard.

"Corsac and Fennec? Why? Those two have been nothing but loyal to the cause."

Dad's concern is warranted, but I have to agree with mom's intent on investigating the two. I can't quite put my finger on it, but they rub me the wrong way.

"Oh come on dear. The twins are devoted that much is true, but not to the ideals of peace that we seek. They certainly project that, but do you honestly not find their 'excessive' devotion creepy? They're devoted to the results, not the idea!"

Dad leaned back on the couch and contemplated what mom said.

"I mean yeah that is true. They are a bit..."

"Weird."

"Kali!"

"What? It's true!"

Dad sighed and stared at me for a moment, his eyes asking for my opinion without even saying a word.

"Dad, like I said when I got here, I don't want to do with any of this. I came home to heal, get away, and figure out my next move. I've dealt with the White Fang enough."

A part of me wishes my parents would just let it go, but I know they won't since I'm partly to blame for mom's curiosity. When I first got here, I pointed the finger at Corsac and Fennec for the White Fang's actions in Vale. To mom, that probably was all the excuse she needed to follow through on her suspicions.

Mom was firm on her stand, even in the face of me and dad. Seeing this, dad could do nothing but give in. He sighed one last time and turn himself towards Ezra, fully committed to mom's intent on hiring him.

"So, Ezra? Corsac and Fennec, Any word on them?"

Ezra smiled for moment, before hiding his happiness under the sleeve of his hood. He moved forward and swiped down on his scrolls and revealed photos of the twins here in Menagerie, close to their home. The photo itself was nothing special, just the twins talking to each other.

"Kali said there were no White Fang members here that wore a mask in Menagerie. The mask symbolized fear, like the grimm. They wear it to scare off humans, but here in Kuo Kuana, there's nobody to scare, so why wear a mask?"

Ezra zoomed in on the photo, passed the twins. In corner of the building was a faint image of a grimm mask. It was blurry and pixelated, almost too abstract to make anything out of, but I knew better. I've seen those masks so many times not to know that that was a White Fang mask.

"No..."

Dad gasped in denial.

"Now I can't say for certain what this means." Ezra added. "The twins can be negotiating, are being threatened, or plotting something. It's not enough to convict them of anything and there's really no telling from this distance, but it's-"

"A start. Good good good."

Mom enthusiastically finished what he was saying, but something else was bugging her so she asked.

"But how did you know I was going to get attacked based off of this one image?"

Ezra lifted his gauntlet and pulled out the bullet that was shattered into tiny pieces.

"I didn't, but I had a hunch. This bullet, ain't meant to kill anyone. It's not made out of metal entirely, but a part of it is incased in glass. I think it's tranquilizer. Given that there was a loud bang, it's probably meant to sound like a killing blow. Getting hit by this well certainly cause you to bleed, but not die. Although, I'm pretty sure it'll look like it."

Dad, out of curiosity stood up with hands crossed over his chest.

"Why go through all that trouble?"

"Because they're trying to mask a kidnapping. People mourn when somebody dies, you close your home to a select few, or you limit the number of people you have to deal with when they're rushed to a hospital."

Spoken like a true criminal.

"Makes it easier to kidnap people." He looked at me with a raised eyebrow and spoke again after pausing momentarily. "Lucky for you, the shooter wasn't the best marksman in the world, Blake."

Me? My parent's eyes shifted towards with me concern painted on their faces.

"Regrettable that Adam didn't die in Beacon. I knew the moment Blake mentioned that Adam lived, that he'd find a way to her. If this image had anything to do with the White Fang Vale faction, then they'd be sure to target Blake. It's not solid evidence, but I can confidently say now that the Vale faction is active in some sorts here in Menagerie."

I don't know how to react to this. I-

"Adam's colluding with the twins?"

I asked.

"Inconclusive."

Was all he had to say. After the three of us paused to take everything in, Ezra quickly gathered all his stuff and nodded at my parents, before briskly walking away. Just like that, he was gone. It took a moment for the three of us to start talking. I'm sure everyone had questions they needed to process in their minds, but I can tell mom only had one concern at the moment.

"Blake..."

Mom stood up from her seat and leaned against me. I know what she's trying to do, and I don't want to listen.

"Can you forgive me? For asking help from the person that hurt you the most?"

I can never be truly mad at her.

"Mom, I do, and like you said, he did save your life... but still. This doesn't sit right with me. I don't trust him, and I got to see for myself what he's up to. For all we know, he orchestrated the attack."

I stood back up and abruptly left the room. Everything would have been fine, and I would have let him go peacefully if he didn't hesitate to tell us everything. I can tell that he was hiding something and that's really bugging me. What if he really did set this attack up to gain mom's trust so he can destroy my family from the inside. A million of those thoughts ran through my brain so fast that I simply cannot ignore it.

"Alright honey, but don't forget: curiosity killed the cat. Don't wonder off and put yourself in danger."

That saying applies to both of us Mom.

I look up at the night sky, fully resolved to follow Ezra through the dark alleys that he frequent. I jumped through palm trees after palm trees, gliding through rooftops trying to look for him. A couple hours passed, and I was on the verge of giving up, till all of a sudden, I was able to catch a faint sound from one of the abandoned buildings closest to the desert border of Anima.

There was no mistaking it. That voice was Ezra's.

I cautiously tiptoed my way towards the abandoned building, careful to not make any sound. I slowly crawled closer till I was able to rest my back against a wall that had Ezra leaning on the other side.

"Do you think it was a mistake?"

A question pointed to somebody? Then there's definitely someone else here! He's corroborating with somebody else to take down my family! Damn you Ezra! I just need to turn on the voice recorder on my scroll and figure out who he's talking to. I can't do it from this distance though, so I took a risk and crawled closer to the edge of the wall.

"Not telling them about the maidens, I mean?"

What are they talking about?

"All that information about the White Fang, I figured if I threw in all that mumbo jumbo about that thing with the maidens then it'd almost be like throwing away my legitimacy. My character would be put in to question. Not that it wasn't already, but you know."

I tilted my head to the side, carefully inching my head closer and closer to the edge while I pull out my scroll to send mom a message instantly.

[To Mom: -Recording In-progress-]

I peak my head out, ready to see who he was talking to, but when I laid eyes on him, I didn't see any other person. All that was over there in that dark corner of the building whose ceiling was destroyed was Ezra, alone and slouched down while he hugged his knees. On the other side was a golden shield, faintly lit by the glow of the full moon.

It was Pyrrha's shield. He's talking to Pyrrha... with tears running down his face.

[To Mom: -Recording deleted-]

I-I never imagined that this would be what was hiding behind this wall. Now what?

"I miss you, Pyrrha. I wish you were here."

I wish she was too.

Back in Mistral...

Swan

I admit, when that oaf with a mustache decided to send me all the way down to this forsaken part of Anima to make sure his psychotic best friend did what he was supposed to do, I never expected to see anything interesting.

"How long till you can walk again, Tyrian?"

I ask not out of concern, but of annoyance and Tyrian seemed to have noticed despite my efforts to make it sound otherwise.

"Shut up!"

His delays are of no consequence. Seeing him flop on the ground in pain was entertainment enough. I have to admit, that was delightful, and if my payment for a gruesome show is to deal with the incessant whining of a grown man, then so be it. Anything to ease my boredom.

Speaking of interesting... that Ruby must be the girl that foiled Cinder's plans. It was almost too perfect, Cinder's plan I mean. To blame OWL and cause all that commotion in Vale, right in his territory and under his nose was masterful. I hope that sorry excuse of a professional 'criminal' died during the Fall of Beacon. But...

"For her to say Ezra after seeing my semblance... could it be a coincidence?"

But if not, then that would mean...

"Swan! Let's go!"

Tyrian yelled at me, and I'm surprised that's all he did with all that killing intent seeping from his entire being. I supposed that's all he could do after being absolutely embarrassed by a bunch of children and a barely sober huntsman.

"What are you doing over there staring into the distance huh!? What were you even thinking about?"

Indeed, what was the point of all that curiosity? It's probably...

"Nothing. I just needed a distraction."