Okay guys, So I'll tell you one thing, going to the gun store this weekend was fun. I showed up early since its my buddys store, but let me tell you the amount of customers they're getting is crazy. Which isn't surprising, theres always a ton of panic buying when a gun control bill gets past the house. One thing is for sure, business is good.

Shit even I had to resist the urge to buy a new gun. And I'm on a budget!

"Is Dad doing okay?" Nala asked as Jem hadn't come out of his rec room for awhile.

"Well...he just got some bad news." Winter said as they had just returned from the meeting with Ironwood.

Jem had not been too happy with the results.

FLASHBACK

"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!" Jem yelled as Ironwood took a sip.

"With all due respect Jem, we can't have you acting alongside our forces when it comes to delicate situations such as a Grimm Incursion." Ironwood said as he didn't like the idea of civilians being caught in the crossfire, no matter how crazy they were.

"I literally took out hundreds of Grimm! I saved dozens of people! I helped you guys evacauted the wounded!" Jem pointed out all the good he had done.

"And we appreciate that, but you're still just a regular civilian, you may have military experience, but you have very little training in the realm of politics, the council does not like the idea of a random civilian going in guns a blazing."

"Oh come on, those same guys got pissed I started a militia, they can go fuck themselves."

"I'm sorry Jem, but my hands are tied, we cannot use you anymore. Last time was an exteme circumstance, but in the future I would ask you cease from assisting our forces in the field."

Back in the present

"When was the last time he came out?" Nala was getting worried for her dad.

"I don't know, he has a bathroom in there and plenty of food, I think hes been in there for at least a day now." Winter would usually be going in there to try and comfort him.

But after he had finished swearing up a storm in front of Ironwood, and then proceeding to pick a fight with the guard who was asked to escort him out of the building, she figured he needed his space to cool off. However, she couldn't just let him sulk forever. So she walked up to the door and knocked.

"Jem? Honey? Can I come in?" She asked as she heard a muffled yes.

She walked in to see a pitiful sight.

Jem's guns were just laying on a coffee table right next to him as he was sitting back in his recliner. He was watching Rough Riders. Right now he was at the scene where they charged up San Juan Hill. His pants were gone, and he was currently munching on twinkies and washing them down with Mtn Dew Code Red. Overall it was a sad sight. Made even worse by the fact that he was wearing Crocs with socks. The universal sign of a man that had given up hope.

"You doing alright?" She said as she had learned how to deal with Jem over their time together.

Sadly sometimes it still wasn't enough.

"Eh, I'm okay I guess." He said as he put a whipped cream nozzle inside a twinkie and squirted it inside.

And then he looked disappointed when all it did was squirt out the middle hole and in his hand. The iron giant had lied to him all these years. But he ate it anyway, not like he was going to let a twinkie and whipped cream go to waste.

"You're eating twinkies and and washing them down with cherry flavored soda, thats so disgusting that I can't help but think you're not handling this well." She said as Jem sighed.

"Can you believe it? After all I did in that initial invasion, he goes ahead and says 'No matter how trained you may be, you're still just a civilian.' And even worse he brings up politics! I can't stand politicians!" Jem was keeping his voice even just so Winter wouldn't feel bad.

"Well, to be fair Jem he's right. Imagine if you got killed? The amount of fallback on the Atlesian armed forces for letting a civilian with no training help out would be bad for PR."

"Hey, some of the best soldiers of the American Revolution were farmers willing to pick up arms, I see no reason why this would be any different."

"Because in your world, you're only dealing with humans, not Godzilla sized monsters." Winter pointed out as Jem sighed.

"Still seemed kind of shitty to tell me after all that. You think that would have shown I could take care of myself." Jem said as he took the last sip of his one can of code red and reached for another one.

"I mean, you did almost get killed by your crazy ex." Winter shivered at that.

"WE HAD ONE BLIND DATE!" Jem didn't like referring to Melania as his ex.

Simply because their first night together she handcuffed him to a bed and tried to force her fetish on him. He could forgive her if she was into rimming, but he drew the line at certain kinks. It was just too freaky to think about. He just didn't get it. She seemed relatively normal despite her weeb tendencies, what the hell kind of trauma did she go through in life that caused her to turn into such a weirdo?

He supposed he should be grateful that she wanted to kill him. At least now he wouldn't have to worry about her showing up in his bedroom and watching him sleep.

"Okay, so still a soft spot." Winter was just glad she got one emotion out of him rather than self pity.

"Look, its just I still got Lost Liberty to hang out with, but I just kind of miss the action of it all." Jem said as Winter tilted his chin up.

"Jem, there will be other opportunities, I mean there's not much you can do to change the councils mind, they just don't understand normal people like you." Winter said as Jem looked at her.

"What do you mean?" He asked as Winter scratched the back of her head.

"Well, they don't tend to think of the people as people, most of them have no idea what a normal person is capable of under heavy fire simply because they can't relate to that lifestyle. However when you came here to Mantle, you were able to make friends easily with the population despite being an outsider, thats something that a lot of the Council members don't understand." She said as Jem thought it over.

And then she saw his eyes brighten a bit.

"So what you're saying is the people can relate to me because I'm just an average Joe who wants to do great things." Jem said as Winter nodded.

"There you go! You're getting it!" She said as she was glad she got him out of his funk.

"An average Joe with big goals! And big dreams!" Jem stood up from his chair as Winter was glad he was returning to his own self.

"Right!"

"An average Joe who has spent his time looking out for the people of Mantle since he arrived!" This got Winter a little confused.

"Well...I suppose so in your own little way."

"One who can go to the people and say 'Enough of these career politicians! Give us a man of the people!" And it was at this moment Winter knew...

She fucked up.

"I get it now! I know what I have to do!" Jem suddenly threw some pants on as Winter tried to stop him.

"Er, wait! Stop! Come back!" Winter tried to stop him but he cut her off with a kiss.

"I know what to do now Winny! Don't wait up! I got to go get the boys together!" He said as he left.

With Robyn Hill

"Uhm, could you say that again?" She asked as she was certain she heard Fiona wrong.

"Well, its as I said, you know that guy you pissed off in the ice cream shop?" Fiona asked as she nodded.

"Apparently hes challenging you for a spot on the council."