"Really~?"
Cinder was happy, very, very happy at what she was hearing. For the first time in a long time, the new outsourced hirelings were reporting back with something useful. Not only was this a miracle in and of itself, but the information too was superb. Then again, this was Roman Torchwick; a cut above the usual fodder - thankfully.
"Brothers above." Roman wasn't all that excited, but who cared what he thought; he merely needed to fill his role, and nothing more - he wasn't being paid to think. "Yes. I know it's-"
"I know what it is." Cinder, unfortunately, had to cut him off there. For a man renowned as the 'gentleman thief' he didn't seem to be all that capable of recognising sarcasm. Still, she couldn't be too harsh on him; knowing the White Fang as well as she did, they'd probably driven him to his wits end. Luckily for the thief, Cinder Fall was not a blubbering moron.
Unlike with everyone else, they could speak to each other as adults; kiddie gloves were off when it came down to them.
Roman huffed, sucking in on a pipe she didn't know he had before their little meeting today, and then spit out, "apologies I guess, but normally my clients need a second telling of the questions they ask, which makes me wonder what the point of telling them the first time around is even for."
"Then perhaps you should seek out a better clientele." She offered, only for him to grin.
"Why? Am I not working with the best right now?"
"Oh you~" Stifling a pleased moan, Cinder carried on with, "such a way with words, and yet you tolerate the imbeciles of Vale. Have you ever considered... broadening your horizons?"
He chuckled at that, taking a puff before telling her, "sometimes I finger the thought a little, but I've long since grown accustomed to the lunatics around here. Safety's a virtue in our line of work, and while new, exciting, and mature opportunities may present themselves with some rather grandiose boons, I'm more accustomed to the regulars of my turf, understand?"
Pleasantly, she did. "Reliability always did keep things moving."
"Of course." Roman spit one last puff from his pipe before snuffing it out and settling it back in his front pocket. It seemed cigarettes were just for cheaper occasions; this pipe must have been some show of respect, and Cinder liked that as well. "As tempting as the rewards may be, I'm more into living a long and comfortable life, as opposed to an excitingly quick one."
"Very well." She would let him keep that idea, allowing him to stew in the falsehood that he had a choice. When they were done here, he'd be joining her regardless, and he'd be doing it of his own free will; there was no need to rush the inevitable. "Still, I do believe your larger success deserves a suitable reward."
"A pay raise?" Roman suggested, not quite asking, but making it obvious this was his preferred reward. She pondered it for a second. They had a near endless amount of funds to work with, and he had given her the final piece for her latest decision to be, so a bit of money would surely be enough.
But she needed something else from him, and who said rewards only needed to affect the one recipient?
"On most days, I'd say yes." She leaned on one leg, letting her grin fall into a more casual smile; it would do her well to at least appear relaxed for this next ploy. "But I'm in a particularly wonderful mood today, so I think I'll offer up a little surprise."
"Oh ho ho." His chuckle was false - yep, all he wanted was the money. Still, his disappointment was temporary, and soon, curiosity dug its claws into his shoulders, as she knew they would. "And I don't suppose you'll be offering up any hints for what it is?"
"Ah~" She settled a finger over his lips, shushing him. "But where would the fun in that be?"
He sighed as she pulled away. "Fair enough. But to be honest though, it feels a little strange to toss out a secret reward for something as small as this."
With the information he provided her, she genuinely wondered why he thought that.
"Small huh?" She shook her head. "And I thought you knew the value of information."
"I do, but that's not the issue." He clapped back, not overly harsh in his defense, but definitely harder than his previous words. "All I did was reiterate something I'm sure Junior and his crew already know; heck, I reaffirmed it beforehand anyway. It isn't exactly new information that's exclusive to you."
"I'm aware."
When he first mentioned the boy, Jay, she immediately found the name strange. And, having her pawns follow him around determined that he was merely a citizen. But citizens don't make up Junior Xiong's crew. Before Roman took the spotlight, the Xiong Family was known as one of the greatest underworld powers in Remnant, and despite the rumors to follow, Cinder knew he wouldn't just accept any old schmuck. For average thugs, sure: he'd hire with, at least, some combat experience. But this 'Jay' wasn't walking around with them: he was strolling with the big boys... or in this case, girls. Junior never let either of the twins walk alone with the regular thugs - unless of course, they were leading the crew into a job.
Something set the boy a step up above the rest, and Roman and his pet had just told her what it was.
"Then why-?" He was shut up again when she raised her hand; a good thing too, as she wasn't about to finger his lips all day long.
"The ability to ignore aura, while useless against the grimm, is invaluable for a cold-blooded killer~" She eyed him up, watching Roman's barely hidden unease, and taking in all that delicious fear as she continued - her 'special' appendage quivered with delight, hidden behind its illusory visage. "You may be complacent in your current life, but tell me, do you know of the boy's standing on such?"
His eyes widened.
"Oh!"
And then they returned to normal.
"Oh..."
Roman then chuckled a bit, concerningly, and rolled his eyes. Was he... was he mocking her? Internally the fury began to stew, and Cinder inquired about his cheeky face.
"What is it?"
"Nothing!" He waved, before carrying on. "Nothing... except..." He hummed, crossing his arms, and went on with, "from what Neo's told me, he probably won't be too keen on whatever deals you have in mind for him." His eye hardened, and a brow went up. "That is what you're getting at, right? You're plotting to take him into your little fold, so you can use him as an assassin."
Yes, but that wasn't the crux of what she wanted to know.
"No no. Tell me why you think he wouldn't accept my offerings. What's stopping him?"
Roman answered with one simple word.
"Personality."
Cinder cocked a brow - it was her turn now.
"I beg your pardon?"
"Yeah, I was pretty much the same." Roman flattened a sideways look across his face, whistling a bit before adding, "granted, Neo was the one keeping an eye on him, but that doesn't really change much about the message other than the style of delivery, and I'm more than adept at picking apart her... unorthodox method of expression."
Which was basically just him telling her that Neo tended to embellish, but Cinder paid that little 'oopsie' no mind, and instead listened in on what he'd begun to explain.
"According to her, the kid's a few screws loose. Not exactly coo-coo crazy, but more like a rampant addict."
That one was a bit harder to explain, especially with how Neo went about her methods in compiling and presenting her information. Roman knew what his partner was getting at, and decided it was best to keep the brute of their reasoning to themselves; all Cinder needed was a simple breakdown of things, not a perfect explanation of the guy's issues. They couldn't have Cinder fixing Jay up on 'em; he was much more useful as he was now, which was to say, they really enjoyed the unpredictable reliability that his personal problems seemed to create, or could create.
"And how bad are these issues?" Cinder crossed her arms almost angrily, but her eyes lacked any real fury, and so he kept leading her along.
"Neo caught him downing several bottles of rum and spice midway through the job." Roman neglected to mention what they'd learned of the old buzzard they'd been sent to collect. "Barely walking straight, but at least he caught the guy; gave him a nasty beating too, with the butt of his own firearm."
"I see." The corners of her lips twitched upwards a little. "Even under the influence he could still remember the mission, and that his target was to be taken alive."
"It was more so that the gun wasn't loaded." Roman lied, and topped it off with, "and from what Neo described his initial use of the weapon as, he probably thought it was a rock or something at first." Fighting off his own grin, Roman took pleasure in Cinder's quickly dropping interest. He then shrugged. "But hey, if you're looking for a disorderly loser, then have at him."
Cinder evened her voice out.
"Your input is noted." She waved him off. "You may take your leave; I have work to do, and as much as I enjoy your efficiency, it's wasted every second off the playing field."
Hook, line, and sinker. Roman dipped into a polite bow.
"As you wish."
Straightening up again, he adjusted his hat, turning and taking off. With her gaze removed from the idiot, it would allow Neo and him time to properly groom the kid into slightly better shape. Make no mistake, he couldn't care less about the lad himself, but from Neo's report, he wasn't a complete lost cause. Cowards only needed the illusion of safety, and when given it, they'd walk right into the blender without a second thought.
Cinder wouldn't know what hit her...
But while this plan may have seemed sound to Roman, he was entirely unaware of Cinder's true thoughts on the matter, which boiled down to a singular belief on her end: a rampant thought which put her focus not only on him, but the boy as well.
Why are you so determined to downplay his worth?
.
.
"E-excuse me?" Jay was hoping he hadn't heard what he thought he'd heard, but Qrow wasn't about to let him fall into that little fantasy.
"I know you've seen her." The guy narrowed his eyes. "Team RWBY has so far, according to my other drinking buddies and all the bachelorettes in the coffee aisle at the supermarket, been making a bit of a name for themselves." His hard look fell off a little. "Granted, it isn't for good reasons, but I know for a fact their faces are scattered all over the place." His look hardened again. "And the resemblance you have to my niece is uncanny."
Were they really that famous? Or infamous in this case. Jay hadn't recalled the exploits of RWBY really making any headway or ripples this early on in the show's world... but then again, half the citizens were just black shadows during most of the early volumes. Sure, he could look at Remnant now as its own thing, but even then the thought of information actually making a tangible difference felt a little weird to him. RWBY, as a story, mostly wanted to focus on its plot, and even if a bit slow when trying to build up the world, it never deviated enough to show the little things.
Such as the fact Qrow apparently chatted with older women at supermarkets.
"Well?" Qrow's scowl began to stretch. "Say something."
"I-I think her style is cool?" Okay, so that for sure wasn't the right thing to say, but at least it didn't bring about anything other than a mild look of suspicion from the man.
"Her style?"
"Y-yeah." Jay had to take a moment to clear his throat. He wasn't lying, but Qrow wouldn't exactly take what he said as anything other than deflection if he couldn't spit the words out concisely. "I like the color combination she has going on."
It was a stupid excuse, even though it was partially true, but what more could he say that didn't sound creepy as all hell? He started his little efforts of cosplay as her because one of his old friends thought he could pull it off pretty well - sure, she herself was a bit creepy when it came to the other characters she had him dress as, but back then he still had a little hope for the future, so he didn't mind. Now though, he was stuck in the worst possible scenario.
RWBY was, at best, just an oddity in Remnant: a team from Beacon who seemingly attracted trouble with their mere presence alone. Jay highly doubted there were people who'd outwardly claim to be legitimate fans of them, especially with their leader being underage. This was what made it all the worse for him, because anything other than, "I think what she's wearing is good," would have both Qrow and Yang raining hellfire upon him. From where he stood, it probably looked like he had a thing for her.
But he didn't see Ruby in that light.
To him, she was an ideal: the personification of what hard work and hope could achieve. He'd just been on the decline for the first time in his life, coming out into the real world, and facing all its unfair elements head on. His grades were low, and he'd been wondering if it was best to just find a group after high school and bum it out at a minimum wage job; just enough to pay his share of the rent.
Unlike the rest of his peers, he had no goal; no aspirations for anything. All he wanted was a quiet life of solitude, one where nobody would notice him, remember him, or think of him. All he'd been before was a failure, and even if the rest of his family kept trying to prop him up, telling him it was alright to struggle from time to time, he didn't believe it. It wasn't the struggle which broke him down, but the realization that none of it mattered. With how he'd spent his childhood, so ignorant of the important elements he should have been building up, he'd never get anywhere in life.
So why even try?
Everything was on the decline, and everyone else had major talents that would strike them high above anything he could possibly put out. Add onto the fact he couldn't properly formulate any of the questions he had back then, and you have a winning combination of 'I can't do it.' Everyone was getting their scholarships, and the others were picking career paths they felt passionate about. Where did this leave him?
Wondering why he even bothered to show up.
"Okay then." Qrow's huff, accompanied by the clink of his glass hitting the counter, ripped Jay from his headspace. "How about that symbol on your jacket? My niece wasn't wearing that, and yet, you somehow are."
"What about it?" Ruby's symbol was one that wouldn't show up on her character design until much later in the series, and also, to an extent, Summer's as well. Jay could see why Qrow would take issue with it, but therein lay the mistake. Back in the day, Jay could never seem to find the right thing to ask, but over the years and at the start of his college life, he'd learned how to lie effectively. "It's just a rose emblem. I told the place I ordered it from to draw a stylized rose on the back because I thought it would be neat."
"And why's that?" Qrow bore a wary, but almost victorious expression. "I thought you just liked the style?"
"I do." And he'd messed up, but it wasn't like he was completely screwed. "But I can't just steal her style and not give credit. Symbols are striking, but names are lazy. Ruby Rose is a bit on the nose, but a symbol of a rose is just subtle enough that people can make the connection."
Such an idiotic response; not to mention it sounded creepy - and it was. However, Jay figured it was just stupid enough to downplay his sensibilities. After all, what threat could the dumbass who believed in that nonsense be?
The best of lies weren't born from making up a false scenario which sounded true, but instead were brought on by omitting the correct amount of information from the truth, and then molding it in such a way as to redirect the listener's focus. It was a deceptive tactic, good for confusing and wrapping up the victims who received it; nearly forcing people to look away from what they were originally talking about.
Qrow didn't look to believe it all that much, but apparently, he believed it enough.
"I guess." He rolled his eyes, standing from the stool. "But take this little word of advice to heart: there's a fine line between admiration and obsession. Consider that a freebie."
Following that, he left, and Jay was able to let himself fully flop on the table.
That was too close for comfort. He was almost certain Qrow was going to start calling him out on his bullshit, asking questions he couldn't spin around - not that he did much spinning anyways. It wasn't all lies either. It just… wasn't the whole story. He thought Ruby's style was good, but it wasn't the best.
He liked a little more light in his darkness.
Ironically, it was Ruby's personality which made the whole thing come together. Seeing just a silhouette of her outward appearance gave off an essence of danger, and her colors screamed dark and edgy. But her gothic atmosphere was starkly contrasted with her innocent and child-like outlook on things. She was a puppy with the fur of a wolf...
Until you actually spoke with her.
"Hi Jay."
Which was happening right now apparently.
"R-Ruby?!" He'd nearly fallen out of his seat as she walked over and took the spot next to him, right where Qrow had been just moments ago. She smiled, waved, and spoke.
"Yep; that's me." She then proceeded to just sit there, and he began to see the cracks in her bravado form. Jay could tell she was waiting for him to start the conversation, and he did so with the only acceptable method.
By asking a question.
"How did you know I was here?" And it was a stupid one too; great. Internally he sighed, and using his brain he rationalized that Yang must have told her.
"I asked Coco, who told me you were working here with... um." Ruby's face flushed a little. "Y-you were with... that girl who works here."
"Miltia?" He opted to put an end to her embarrassment, and it worked like a charm; she lit up like a star.
"Yeah, Miltia! I-I knew that." Ruby straightened herself, and Jay relaxed in turn. But relaxation didn't come easy, because there was one glaring flaw in this scene, and he knew it needed to be addressed.
But taking care of that little issue was hard when the girl you were looking at was the one you dreamt up dying on a nightly basis. Even now he felt this tingle in his chest, and everything almost began to spin. Sort of like drinking, but without the added benefit of not feeling stressed. Forgetting the anger was nice though, even if his limbs felt a little numb.
"Are you okay?" He saw her innocent expression curiously staring at him...
And he saw his own hand laid atop her shoulder.
Pulling away, perhaps a little too quickly as the girl seemed to stumble a bit, Jay felt the internal alarms begin to blare excessively. She caught herself though, but he was only seeing that from the corner of his eye. Right now he was staring at his hand, fighting the urges to leap or run. It was twitching within his sight as he curled around it, doing his best not to panic, but damn it was tough.
W-what the hell?!
He never reached for her, and he never thought about reaching for her, but for some reason his hand was there, on her, and he'd only noticed it because she'd bothered to check on him. She hadn't looked at him with any malice or contempt, but that only made the sour feeling worse. Did he really lack so much self control that he'd subconsciously try to touch her? That... that couldn't be it, could it?
Sure, her design was attractive to many, many people according to the internet back home, but he'd only ever been able to look at her like a little sister - as creepy as that itself was.
"Hey, are you okay?" Her voice wasn't all that forceful, and neither was the short motion she made to reach out to him on her own. Everything about her gave off the air of a concerned friend.
But that was just it: she wasn't his friend.
"W-why do you care?!" He'd pulled away, breathing far heavier than he had any right to.
Crap! He hadn't meant to sound so forceful, or even to jerk back; heck, he never even meant to ask such a thing. He was... just a bit caught up in things; yeah, that was it. The dreams so far had already put him in a jumpy mood, and now Ruby herself, the one he'd seen die time and time again, was treating him like they had some history together or something. It didn't make a lick of sense.
Ruby, though, twisted on a strangely questioning face, looking at him like he'd grown a third arm.
"Because you look upset?"
Jay nearly fell over. He looked upset. That was fair, because he was upset, but that wasn't exactly why he found himself confused. Ruby soon took on a new look though, and the confusion melted away. The heat around his chest rose up as panic almost took hold. Oddly, she seemed to be the one with the most panic of them, as she questioned him suddenly.
"W-wait, am I being weird about this?"
"No!" Again with the volume, but there weren't many people around to call him out on it; heck, even Rex and the others were nowhere to be found. Concerning as that was, Jay was more in the mindset to try and clear things up. "N-no, it's not." He took a moment to let that settle, before trudging along. "I'm just... a bit surprised. I mean, we've only met once, so I didn't think you'd come out here to find me, let alone ask if I was alright."
Really, she had no reason to.
"Well, yeah..." Ruby admitted, only to snap back with, "but you're just a regular guy, right? Not a hunter."
"Yeah." He said, wondering if this was even true. "I'm just a normal guy."
"Yep." Ruby popped the p, smiling a little. "And that's why I came to check on you." Her mood deflated a bit. "I wanted to see how you were doing after the attack."
Slowly, bit by bit, Jay finally caught on. Internally he smiled a bit, relieved. Even in this questionably real Remnant, Ruby seemed to be the same one he recalled from the earlier seasons. He hadn't realized it, but a small portion of himself was worried that this Ruby and the one he remembered would be drastically different. It was just like the Ruby he remembered to seek out some rando she'd seen on the street, all for the sake of making sure they were doing well.
Only she had both the blind faith and heart for it.
Jay remembered it now as it came swimming back: those days where he was once again being a doll for his friend. She'd had him dressing up as the characters, but that wasn't enough for her. He needed to be able to act out said characters as well. According to her, you couldn't just wear their mask, you had to be them. It was silly, but she was adamant on it, and so he'd spent most of his time during her 'creative' fits just sitting with her on the couch and watching whatever show she had him dressing up from.
Unlike most of the regular anime she pulled him through, RWBY struck differently.
It was more like a homage than its own thing, and its stories were, for all intents and purposes, simple in their content and execution. He'd seen plenty of 'I want to be a hero' protagonists before, but not like her. Ruby was more like... a side character, in the early volumes at least. She was second fiddle to most of the supporting cast, and you were only reminded she was the main character from time to time when she actually did something.
Her lacking importance and simplicity made those instances of her all the more enthralling in a strange sort of way.
"Thank you."
As cringeworthy as it felt, he was genuine with his thanks: for both her kindness to seek him out, and secretly the effect her fictional counterpart had on his life before, which offered him that fleeting sense of hope - even if it was brief. A portion of him, again around his chest, burned with hatred. That warmth wanted nothing good to do with her, and Jay was unwillingly accosted by his recollections of who Ruby would become, and of what she was: a tool to be tossed aside when the story came to its end, and Remnant was erased from existence. Jay ignored the anger this time; he could question it later, and besides.
This wasn't the Ruby he hated, but her original valiant self. She was, quite literally in some way, her own person.
It had been weird; even if the guy wouldn't say it.
Ruby kind of wanted to flee, but taking off in a swarm of rose petals would only make it worse. What the heck kind of person just goes to check up on a guy they barely knew? She was just relieved he wasn't looking too beat up from the whole thing with the White Fang.
"N-no problem." Stop it! Despite telling her voice to stop stuttering, there was this faint whisper in the back of her head that it wouldn't listen all that well without some serious discipline. She could already see Yang laughing at her now; stupid Yang. "Besides, y-you don't need to thank me. Any sensible person would check up on someone they knew after that, right?"
It was just the right thing to do.
Well... there was also the thing about promising Coco to bring him back to her for whatever evil scheme she had in mind, but that was Coco's doing, not hers. All Ruby wanted was for everyone to be okay, and she was determined to see it through, regardless of how awkward or dangerous it became.
Jay looked a little more relaxed now, which was certainly better than the fear he had on him when he pulled away. Sure, grabbing her shoulder was a bit weird, but Jaune and the others did it all the time; usually as a way of mourning her loss and saying they'll miss her when Weiss dragged her off for the horrendous task of reviewing the day's homework.
That... didn't exactly quell the guilt in her gut though.
She was sure he didn't mean anything bad by what he'd done - she hoped - but that didn't stop the strange unease in her chest that she'd got while looking at him. It was this odd sort of unexplainable danger she felt, like when walking out into the forest at night. A looming sense of dread, that would usually vanish when she put herself back into safety.
But she wasn't in danger right now; heck, she was the farthest thing from it.
Jay, as much as it pained her to say it - out of respect for his feelings, probably - was no match for her on any level. She didn't expect him to try anything like Yang had thought, as he just didn't seem like that kind of guy. But even so, that same sublime unease she got when facing down the grimm swelled at a startling rate.
It doubled just a second ago too.
Jay wasn't dangerous, and he didn't seem all that awful to her. To be fair, she didn't know him all that well... or at all, but she wanted to be fair. Based solely on his looks, she herself must have been someone to him. Either that, or he was a doppelganger and she just got super lucky with meeting him. Regardless, she was happy he was okay, and was willing to ignore her oftentimes correct gut feeling out of blind trust, just to give him a chance to become a friend, based solely on a whim; all because it was what a hero would do.
And she kind of already promised him to Coco, so they had to get a move on.
"So." She indiscriminately started, unquestionably normal. "You want to hang out for a bit; I know a cool place I've been wanting to check out, and seeing as you're doing okay, it might help you feel better from whatever weird thing has you down.
Ruby froze up again, and the panic of realizing how rude that sounded made itself known as she overcorrected her claim.
"N-not that what you're feeling is weird!"
She... could still use a bit of work on her approach.
.
.
"So he's a regular drunk?"
Ozpin made it sound so bad; sure, it felt nice to one-up the kid who was obviously creeping on his niece, but being drunk wasn't a net negative.
"From the sounds of it, yeah." He smirked, remembering the night before, and the twins. "One of Junior's girls is clearly clingy with the guy, and the other hates his guts on a level that puts Raven to shame, but both of them agree: when he gets wasted, he gets wasted."
Ozpin hummed over the call, and Qrow let his legs hang over the edge of the building, swaying senselessly with the wind. The excuses offered by the punk a bit ago were most certainly nonsense; nobody but Summer wore that emblem. He would know, because it was apparently a family crest; according to the woman herself. The chances this 'Jay' buddy got such a perfect copy of the thing drawn, with not but the simple request of a rose symbol or whatever, was a blatant impossibility.
Just who the hell was he, and what connection did he have to both Summer and Salem?
"And... you're certain it's the Rose Crest on the back of his jacket?"
"Positive."
"Then things may not be as simple as we've previously assumed. You don't think he has a connection to Summer, do you?"
"I hope not." Qrow scowled, holding back a growl as he withheld his suspicions. "Especially if he's under Salem's wing."
"Yes... that is concerning." Ozpin's voice took a slight turn. "Listen to me Qrow, I know you're not happy about this."
"What gave it away?" The man prodded, leaning back and taking in the breeze, all in an attempt to keep from blowing his top. "The fact our guy is creeping on my niece, or the fact he's one of Salem's pawns?"
"Listen to me. The boy is more useful to us alive. we can still help him."
"Yeah, well you're the only one who thinks so, because I sure as dust don't." Qrow bit his lip after, and his growl escaped.
Honestly, he wasn't all that angry with Ozpin, not at all. This was just how the man was; he was always willing to give out second chances, and third chances, and forths. To Ozpin, everyone had the ability to turn their lives around, they just needed to reach out and take it. In the infinite man's infinite wisdom, he believed the only thing really holding back a person was drive. Accordingly, a person needed to both want a better life, and they needed to believe reaching it was possible.
In Ozpin's own words, "Atlas did not evolve because they needed to survive, but because they wanted to thrive. Greed is a necessity to their survival, as while their contributions may not affect Remnant at large, they themselves want to live."
Qrow hated it.
It was such a revolting idea: that humanity was so selfish as to tie greed itself to their very survival. And yet, as he stood atop the roof's edge and looked out across the city and its people going about their daily routine, Qrow couldn't deny it. The kingdoms were born with the idea of strength in numbers, all for the sake of staving off the grimm. But hidden within, and once the peace of safety falls, the leaders formulate and construct methods for obtaining power, all at the expense of their citizens.
Racism, entitlement, faith, and charity: all of it was greed in one form or another.
From the negatives of hating others because of a misconception about their race, or a swell of pride and superiority for your own, to the belief that, because you were born in better living conditions, that you are owed a better life than others. To the positives of holding yourself and fellow believers in higher esteem due to your belief that you've found the truth, and that it's your responsibility to guide others towards and down that path, along with the feeling of sadness you get when looking at the less fortunate, which causes some to try and help said people, so they don't feel sad anymore. You tell yourself that it's for their benefit; sympathy as it were. And yet, the only reason you do so is based on the offhanded subconscious belief that, if you help them in their time of need, they may then help you if you ever fall so low.
No matter what it was, or who it was, everything came down to the individual. Selfishness and selflessness were two sides of the same coin; a coin marred in desire.
And here he was now, proving once more this idea's apparent truth by stewing in his own wants and greed. His own anger at the perceived danger towards his niece, toward Ruby, was erasing the logic of Ozpin's own greed to see their foe turned into a friend; to turn Salem's piece against her and gain a leg up.
Ruby Rose, his niece, and the blood reminder of his old friend. Funnily enough, Ruby herself was just as greedy as everyone else, perhaps even more. Ozpin made her the leader of their little team, even though she wasn't all that great with crowds. Qrow had mentioned it before, that Ruby might be better off as an ordinary teammate, but the man denied it, telling him to just watch and see.
Looking at it through Ozpin's lens, Qrow could somewhat see what the man was getting at.
Ruby's greed was similar to everyone else's, and yet it was completely different. The Schnee girl, for example, was heiress to the largest dust corporation in the world, and most likely had her eyes set on improving herself for the position. Yang, in contrast, mainly acted as though it was for the thrills, but he knew of her nightly excursions from time to time; whether she admitted it or not, Yang just wanted to find her mother: Raven Branwen, his sister. He didn't know the faunus girl all that well, but based on her actions and the trouble they all got up to, he assumed it was tangible as well.
And that really was the word here: tangible.
Ruby's greed was, instead, focused on the intangible: that of an ideal as opposed to a solid thing. His niece wanted to be a hero, plain and simple, just like her mother had. Ruby was far too trusting, and she too, like Ozpin, appeared to believe that everyone could be a good person. Unlike Ozpin however, she always wanted to help directly; to lend a hand to those buried too deep in their own muck to get out. Along with that, her goals of being a hero were so vague that they could pretty much dial down into anything; from helping the needy to fighting grimm and criminals.
Ruby wanted to be a force for good, plural, and wouldn't settle for anything less.
It was a goal she would never reach, and because of that, she would never stop striving for it. Her greed was, in that light, infinite in scope.
"Qrow... Qrow... Are you still there?"
Clicking back into reality, he held his scroll up to his face once again.
"Yeah. So how are we handling this." He would let Ozpin do his thing for now, because even if Jay was nothing but trouble, he was certain his niece could handle anything thrown at her. "You want him on our side, but from what I've seen, I'm not sure he'll be all that willing."
"That's the simple part. We just need to let Miss Rose do her thing." Of course it would come down to her again; so the plan was still the same. Begrudgingly, he accepted this idea... Before Oz decided to ruin it. "From what I've gathered, I'm sure she'll be with him any minute."
"What?!" All that good will he'd built up? Gone; zapped away just like that. Gripping his scroll with both hands, he nearly yelled into it. "What do you mean?!"
"Miss Goodwitch reported seeing her take off from the docks not too long ago. She should already be in Vale at the moment."
And like that Qrow shot his stare back down to the club a little ways off from his perch, and low and behold, he saw the pair of not-quite twins as they strolled along the sidewalk. Talking back into his scroll, he was yelling this time.
"Why didn't you tell me that first?!"
"I didn't see the issue." Qrow wanted to strangle him, he really did, but then he'd only pop right back up again as someone else. "Take it easy Qrow, this is perfect for us."
"Perfect how?" He dialed it back a bit, willing to hear his co-conspirator out at least - and then he could swear him out.
"Simple. We continue with the plan, and let your niece work her magic. You recall what I've told you about Miss Schnee, yes?"
"That she and my niece didn't exactly get along. What about it?"
"From what I'd heard through the grapevine, that's a bit of an understatement. Peter reported how Miss Schnee came to him, venting about how she should have been leader, and how she'd blown up at your niece earlier on in a previous lesson. Take into account their teamwork and tolerance for one another was sketchy at best during initiation, and you'd figure they'd go on hating each other."
"I'm sensing a 'but' here." Qrow hated it when Ozpin did this, but it was usually for the better.
"But look at them now. From what most of the staff have observed recently: the girls are, at the very least, respectful of each other's company. Recently though, they appear to enjoy one another's company. An ordinary leader would, at most, have been able to achieve the first of these effects over the course of a month, and yet Miss Rose did so in a few days. It's nothing short of miraculous."
"Yeah." Qrow kind of felt Oz was overplaying it a bit, but he couldn't deny the little gremlin's habit for bringing out the best in people; even if it was by complete accident most of the time. "Fine, I get your point. But I'm still keeping an eye on them. I can trust Ruby not to cause too much trouble on her own, but I have no such faith in the other guy."
"Then by all means, stalk them to your heart's content." With that, Ozpin hung up, and Qrow himself scoffed, settling his vision back on the pair in the distance.
He wasn't stalking them, he was just keeping watch over his niece; though unseen he may have been.
Author's note
…
And here we are again.
We've got a little thing with Cinder and Roman going on here, and while Roman's been putting his talking skills to use, Cinder doesn't seem all that fooled.
That was fun and all, but let's be real, you were all waiting to see how Qrow would react. I get you; he is the overprotective type - at least here. But he knows his limits, and remembered why he can't just beat the snot out of our protag - regardless of how much he may want to. And would you know it, Ruby pops her little head in the moment Qrow's gone; just missed him. Some of you may see her as a bit too trusting, and you're right. Jay is Jay again, quirks and all, but it seems Rex and the others have vanished. Where could they be?
And finally, Ozpin shows himself again, and we get some background on how he operates, as well as an interesting observation from Qrow.
Not gonna lie, the review - or comment, really - about suplexing Jay made me laugh; that was a fun one. Speaking of reviews, we actually have one with more substance than a quick jig. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate them all, but it's nice to get one with something to say from time to time. All I can really comment on is the negative atmosphere: it is intended, but it's also not really real to an extent, if that makes any sense. None of the cast are in a scenario where they can 'be themselves' so to say, and thus they appear more depressed than they really are; speaking of RWBY in particular here.
Anyway, I can't say more than that without spoiling things, so I'll end off with this.
Would it be smart for Jay to come clean as one has suggested? Probably. Will he come clean anytime soon? Knowing his current personality and feelings - as well as extra info not yet revealed - probably not.
Until next time.