Wayfarer of Remnant
Chapter 2
"This is Whitley Schnee."
The Wayfarer stood there, an unreadable expression on her face, as she stared at the kid. Turning back to the woman, she said, "I don't deal with kids." She was ready to leave, not even to wait for a response as her hand gripped the door knob.
"Wait!" The lady spoke out desperately. "50,000 Lien. All you have to do is bring him across the barren lands to Argus." The Wayfarer froze, easing off the doorknob to once again turn towards the older woman. "I'll give you half right now and the other half plus a bonus when you finish," The Wayfarer was frozen in place, contemplating what she just heard.
"Show me," The lady stood up from the bed and crouched down, taking out a leather briefcase from underneath the bed. Opening up true to her word was 25,000 Lien. Again, the Wayfarer was speechless, though one could not tell what was going through her mind if they saw her.
"Just who are you?" She needed answers as she stared at the mysterious employer.
"My name is Glynda, and I am a representative of Vale's Council; I do business with Jacques Schnee. As I said, this here is Whitley Schnee, Jacques' son and only living heir."
"Last I heard, Jacques Schnee never had any son, only two daughters who passed away a few years ago from some sickness." The Wayfarer interrupted. Schnee was a big name across Remnant. He had risen up from the fallout of Merlot's nuclear fallout many years ago and found a new fuel source for Remnant to power on, becoming the worlds sole fuel tycoon. From there, with the help of some scientist named Poledenia, they created vehicles capable of the harsh terrain and environment, opening a monopoly for transportation across the land. His Heiress' were meant to take over the family business, but after their deaths, the company's future was looking uncertain.
"Mister Schnee didn't know of Whitley's existence until recently. The truth is that Jacques Schnee's wife, Willow Schnee, had fled the Schnee Manor in Atlas, pregnant. She was thought to be dead after her escape vehicle was found crashed and destroyed but Jacques held out hope that his child lived. There have been many trying to find her for a long time now. I was fortunate enough to have found the boy here among the sands of Vacuo, and Mr. Schnee very much wants his son delivered upon him safely, but I am not equipped for such travel, nor am I able to ensure Whitley's safety. I need someone who can accomplish what I cannot—someone like you, Wayfarer." Glynda told her story, hopeful to seal the deal with the Wayfarer." Glynda explained.
"How can you be so sure, this is Jacques Schnee's son?" The Wayfarer asked.
"Because I met with Willow Schnee in person before her passing. This is Jacques' son."
The Wayfarer contemplated the choice in front of her. She took a glance at the Lien and then the boy who nervously stared at the ground. This was her chance
"I…,"
"I'll do it," The Wayfarer had cut her off and locked eyes with Glynda. The Valean Councilwoman smiled and approached the Wayfarer extending her arm.
"Then we have a deal," The two shuck hands. Glynda handed the Wayfarer the suitcase and approached the young boy Whitley.
"Now Whitley, don't you worry. The Wayfarer here is going to take you to your father, like I promised. You're going to have to listen to her and do what she says. It's going to be a long journey, but you'll make it through. You understand?" She cupped his cheek.
"Yes Ms. Goodwitch," He spoke with a low voice.
"Good," She smiled as he turned back to the Wayfarer.
"Here is a map. There's a path jotted down that you can take that will get you to Argus the quickest." Glynda pulled out a map and showed it to the Wayfarer. Just as she said, it showed a red-dotted path from Oasis all the way to Argus. She would have to get to Vale and charter a ferry to Mistral.
"You can use a buggy that belongs to the SFC. It's parked out back; it should have enough gas and extra to get you there. We'll even fill her up when you head back, and these are the keys," Glynda handed the Wayfarer a set of silver keys. "There is no deadline, but please try and bring young Whitley as soon as you can to Mister Schnee and most importantly of course… alive," She added.
"What do I do when I get to Argus" The Wayfarer asked.
"There will be guards outside the settlement walls. Just tell them you have a delivery for Mister Schnee, and they will take you to him," It seemed simple enough. "Unless there's anything else I think I will be on my way, there are other preparations I must attend too." Glynda added. Hearing no questions or comments, Glynda excused herself, leaving the room and leaving the Wayfarer and Whitley by themselves.
The kid must have been intimidated as the Wayfarer stared at him. He tried to look anywhere but at her. "Follow me." She said simply as she opened the door and left the room, not waiting for him. Whitley rushed to keep up.
"Oasis seems like a nice town. Are you from here?" Whitley asked as he tried to force a conversation, but he was met with silence as the Wayfarer kept walking. He followed her all the way to a bar he had only gotten a short glance at when he first arrived at the town before she stopped in front of him.
"Stay out here; I won't be long," The Wayfarer entered the bar, not giving him a chance to respond. The kid would be fine; the Wayfarer knew the people of Oasis, and no one was going to hurt a kid for the hell of it. It's not like they knew who he was either.
The bar, still packed from earlier, was all the more merry since the disposal of the two hunters. Pretty Boy was serving two customers when he eyed a certain blonde-haired mercenary coming in and raised a glass. "She returns!" Pretty Boy greeted her as she entered the bar. 'Oh shit!' The first thing he thought as she b-lined it to him. He had seen that face many a time before. She was pissed and before he knew it, she was right in front of him and slammed her fist on the bar top.
"Jaune! "The name came out like a hiss. "Did you know what the job was?"
Oh, this was fucking serious; she was using his actual name. He immediately dropped the teasing act and got serious. "No... Just that it was high paying... What was the job?" He asked concerned.
"There was a goddamn kid, she wants me to bring him to Argus," The instant regret on Pretty Boy's face said everything.
"Shit! I'm sorry." He spoke sincerely. "If I had known I wouldn't," He was cut off.
"It's fine," she lied. Pretty Boy looked like he was about to say something before his attention was drawn to the front of the bar.
"I'm guessing that's your kid?" Pretty Boy asked, pointing to the front door. As she turned around, Whitley stood nervously, before walking towards her.
"I told you to wait outside!" She said, scolding him.
"I… I thought I heard you call my name; I guess I was wrong," Whitley meekly said.
The Wayfarer let out a groan, annoyed at the kid. "Pretty Boy, can we talk in the back?" She asked, not wanting to make a scene or draw more attention to herself or the kid.
"Of course, Beautiful," Pretty Boy opened the bar and led them to the back. Whitley silently followed, feeling guilty.
"I'm sorry," He tried to make things right.
"Don't do it again," The wayfarer spoke the harsh tone from before still lingering.
"So… uh, are you married or something?" Whitley awkwardly asked.
"What?" The Wayfarer asked while Pretty Boy laughed.
"You call him pretty boy and he calls you beautiful," Whitley brought up.
"Oh, kiddo, I value my life too much for that." The Wayfarer jabbed him for the extra comment, eliciting a small chuckle from Pretty Boy. "As to the names, Beautiful is just a nickname for our fair lady, and well, my name is Jaune Arc, but everyone here just calls me Pretty Boy. A pleasure to meet you, ah?" He asked as he extended his hand to the boy.
"Whitley," The two shuck hands. The Wayfarer coughed catching both their attention.
"This time stay here, don't move until I come back out. Got it?" She asked sternly. Whitley simply nodded in response. Pretty Boy gave him a sympathetic smile before entering his office with the Wayfarer.
"Was that really necessary?" She was annoyed.
"What? Did you want me to say more?" She watched as he sat in his chair. His casual grin looked like it was glued to his face, the cheeky bastard. In all the years she knew him, he only acted this way with her.
"I regret getting drunk with you," She shot back at him.
"I've known you almost 10 years now, and we both know that's not true," He was egging her on, but lucky for him, it was relieving the anger she had from earlier. She sat down across from him and relaxed in the chair.
"Why'd you take the job?" He decided to change the subject and get serious. The Wayfarer put the suitcase on his desk and opened it revealing the 25,000 Lien inside. Pretty Boy's mouth was agape as he stared at the contents.
"Shit, now that's a lot of dough," Pretty Boy said running his hands through his hair.
"That's just half, I get the other half when I finish, plus a bonus. That's enough for me to be done with all this shit," The Wayfarer exclaimed.
"Even with all that, I'm surprised, I thought with everything yo-"
"I know," She cut him off, she wasn't about to let him finish.
There was a silence between the two before Pretty Boy asked, "So, what's the deal with the boy? Why bring him all the way to the Argus?" He was curious.
"Apparently he's the son and last heir of Jacques Schnee," This caused a wide-eyed reaction from Pretty Boy.
"No shit! Well, I guess I can see the resemblance. Not that many kids running around with snow-white hair like that. So what, Daddy wants his little boy but is too afraid to leave the high walls of Atlas City?" Pretty Boy stroked his beard.
"Seems like it," The Wayfarer said. She didn't care why; all that mattered was the money. "That lady, she gave me a map as well that shows the quickest way to get there and a buggy to take the kid, might stop at Roman's outpost along the way." She threw Pretty Boy the keys to her bike and added, "I'm gonna be leaving Bee and the Lien here with my things," She grabbed her helmet when, all of a sudden, Pretty Boy had his hands on top of hers, stopping her.
"You sure you want to do this?" He looked right into her eyes. "After everything... I know it's a lot of money but still." He was worried, she could tell. He knew accepting this couldn't have been easy and it wasn't.
"It's just a job. If I do it I'll have enough to square away my debt. No more wondering what Cinder will ask me to do next. No more fearing what she'll threaten if I refuse, who she'll hurt..." She had grabbed the helmet and wiggled from his grasp turning around, ready to walk away.
"Yang." The simple call of a name froze her in her tracks. She felt his tender touch on her shoulders, turning her back towards him. She looked him in the eyes, as dark blue met lilac. Not saying a word he placed his forehead on hers. They stood like that for a few moments, silent, eyes closed, just soaking in each other's presence. "Just don't go dying on me now, Beautiful." He pulled back as he spoke. The Wayfarer said nothing; she simply nodded again and left the office.
Whitley waited patiently outside. He could hear them talking through the door but couldn't make out exactly what they were saying. He didn't know what to think of the Wayfarer. She seemed intense and harsh, but Glynda said he could trust her and should listen to her. He heard the door open and out came the Wayfarer. This was the first time he saw her with the helmet on. He wasn't sure if he was more intimidated by her wearing it or not.
"Come on." She ordered as she walked by and Whitley followed. He followed out of the bar, and towards a bike, he assumed was hers. The Wayfarer grabbed her rifle and a backpack from the bike. Pretty Boy would take care of her things like he always would. She trusted him and only him on that. Oasis might have been the town she rested in, but Jaune was her home, and it was the only home she had left.
"Let's take the backstreets to the buggy," The Wayfarer said, slinging the rifle over her back.
"Ok," Whitley responded. They took the alleyway, and true to Glynda's word, the Wayfarer could see a Valean-issue buggy behind the Inn. As she approached the buggy, she saw that there were already some bags in the back seats.
"Those are mine, some things from home and some food," Whitley explained.
"Mmhmm," The Wayfarer mumbled, not really interested as she checked the miniature sundial on her wrist. It was a little past 5, meaning they'd only have a few more hours of sunlight. If they were lucky, they might be able to reach a rest stop. The Wayfarer threw her bag in the back seat of the buggy with everything else, sat the rifle along the armrest in between the two front seats, and got behind the wheel. She pinned the map along the dashboard so it wouldn't fly away. Whitley quietly got in the passenger seat while the Wayfarer adjusted the mirrors.
"Strap yourself in; we won't be stopping till night," The Wayfarer said as she started the buggy's engine. The engine had a nice roar to it, and the Wayfarer could tell that this could take them to Argus without a problem. She could hear the seatbelt click as Whitley wrapped the seatbelt around him. With that, she reversed from the back of the Inn and drove out towards the south road from Oasis.
Their journey had begun.
Author's Notes: A little more of a look into the world of this changed Remnant. A lot of different characters will show up in different roles than you'd expect. Jaune will also still be very important in this story and will return. His role is not over yet. A very different Yang and Jaune on a very different Remnant.