A Second Chance

by BlackJackHero

Jaune thought his dream of being a huntsman was over once he was called to Ozpin's office. Given a once in a lifetime opportunity, he leaves for Atlas in the hopes of becoming everything he knows he can be. With a new team, a fresh start, and a tight knit circle of friends, his adventure towards being a hero begins here.

26. Chapter 26-Lines in the Sand

Hugest thanks to StrayGear for beta-reading this every few days to help me get it just right.

(Chapter 26)

Silence and a smoky haze enveloped the living room. Checking a message on his scroll, Roman nodded satisfied as he returned the device to his pocket and finished off another cigarillo. Another one of the tobacco products soon found its way to his mouth, but not before using the flame in the fireplace to light it.

Almost dying three hours ago, caused the former huntsman to chain smoke all the tobacco he had brought with him, trying to calm his nerves and convince himself that they managed to pull through somehow. It was bringing back old memories of the few missions he ran that didn't work out for everyone that was involved. The mound of tobacco buds in front of the fireplace only seemed to represent his level of stress, and how high it continued to pile.

Ciel, after watching Jaune save them from the Apathy, and dragging the blonde teen up the stairs, set to work cleaning him up and checking him for any wounds. The bleeding from his ears stopped, the mocha-skinned girl assumed that was his aura returning to heal him.

When she finished wiping away the dried blood, she wrapped a bandage around his head making sure to pad his ears in case more blood seeped out. As she stood, she let out a sigh hoping that her tiny bit of care would be sufficient until he could see a doctor. Looking around, the young woman remembered something, and took off down a hallway.

The group took this bit of respite graciously, everyone conscious using the chance to recuperate before leaving the area, deciding that rest was more important than the risk that came along with staying for a little longer. Neo and Flynt sat near Jaune, watching over him as they held small conversations, making Roman feel relieved. He recalled Whitley having gone out the backdoor, and after checking on him, saw that he was sitting on the porch outside, content with watching his breath on the cold wind.

Leaning back against the brick of the fireplace, Roman let the crackling flame light him another stick of tobacco. Absent-mindedly he began rubbing the knee that Cinder had almost taken from him, but he soon caught onto the behavior.

With a sigh, Roman stopped. He really had to kill this habit soon if he was to keep the weakness hidden, and to stop making Neo worry. A few footsteps caught the attention of the room, causing a small pause in conversations and thoughts. Everyone watched as Ciel walked out the hall and headed towards the backdoor with a blanket in hand.

Hearing the porch door open, Whitley said nothing as he sat there silently, petting his summoned sabyr while looking out into the wilderness. He heard the footsteps coming closer but made no attempt to greet whoever was joining him, before a blanket was draped over him and he glanced to the side as his timely partner sat down next to him, looking down at the summoned sabyr.

"Whitley, can I ask you a question?"

The girl waited patiently as white-haired teen continued petting the beast. After a full minute of silence, the teen removed his hand from the sabyr's head before wiping his eyes, the summoned grimm looking at the two of them curiously with a tilted head.

Ciel watched as Whitley turned to her with tear tracks staining his face as he nodded to her. The girl thought twice for a moment before she spoke, changing the question to lighten the solemn atmosphere, she pointed to the summoned grimm.

"Why do you do that?"

The younger teen cleared his throat, not trusting his voice initially before he responded with a question of his own.

"W-What do you mean?"

The youngest of the Schnee's looked to where she was pointing, seeing the grimm with a curious expression as Ciel clarified.

"That. You control everything it does, don't you? Why do you make it act so…alive?"

The teen thought for a moment before he started responding.

"I…don't know. I don't actually control my summons usually…"

The girl sent him a look asking for an explanation, and the teen seemed to relax the tiniest bit as he looked down at the sabyr laying in front of him before speaking again.

"I can control all of their actions, I just normally…don't. If I need them to do something specific, I can make them do it, but if I don't need them to, then I suppose I let them act as they please."

"So, wait. Your summons can function independently of your thoughts?"

"Evidently. I always wanted a cat, and whenever I summon my sabyr like this, I suppose I subconsciously project that as well."

The two looked down to see the summoned beast's tail swishing around to brush against Ciel's hand, causing her to try petting it as well.

"It's…warm."

"Hmm?"

The girl was fascinated, and distracted, as she began to rub between the ears of the summoned sabyr, earning low purrs as Whitley responded.

"Should it not be?"

Ciel thought for a moment before answering.

"I don't know. I just expected it to be cold since your summons look like they're made of snow. But…it's nice."

The two continued to sit in silence, idly petting the sabyr and watching the snow fall gently to the ground.

"Whitley?"

"Yes, Ciel?

"Would you…like to talk about what's bothering you?"

The white-haired teen's petting slowed to a stop, and the dark-skinned girl watched as the summoned grimm stood up as if it understood something and walked off the porch dispelling itself; whether by its own volition or her partner's command, the girl would never know. The teen shifted, sitting more withdrawn and guardedly before thinking of what he should say. The thoughts began to show on his face, as a hard frown took over his young features.

"I thought you were going to die."

The girl's lips pursed as she brought her knees to her chest, remembering how she'd become helpless in the cellar.

"…So did I..."

A silence hung and the two unconsciously scooted closer together as a sharp wind blew between them.

"But…I'm still here. We both are. Together."

Whitley stared at her for a bit, causing Ciel to fidget due to the silence, before she looked off to the side as she spoke again.

"M-My apologies! I'm not the best at this…I um…Don't know what I should say."

The dark-skinned girl trailed off as she tucked a bit of hair back behind her ear, looking around and trying to think of anything to lessen the embarrassment she felt. As she was distracted, part of the blanket was wrapped around her, and soon Whitley's shoulder was brushing against her own. Her cheeks heated up as she stole a glance at her partner who was staring off into the woods again, but with a soft smile that emphasized his charm.

"You don't have to say anything, you being here is enough for me," Whitley eventually spoke up.

The two looked off to the starry sky for a few moments, looking for anything to pass the time as they shared each other's presence, until Whitley remembered something.

"Oh. Ciel, I've something to show you."

The youngest Schnee's partner watched as he stretched a hand out towards the tree line and summoned a bit of aura. She watched as the boy's glyph appeared and imposed itself over one of the thicker branches where it connected with a tree. When the light faded, the dark-skinned girl watched in surprise as the tree's arm fell to the ground, separated cleanly.

"I'm assuming you discovered that while I was-"

"Yes."

It wasn't normal for Whitley to cut people off, showing the dark skinned girl just how much her partner didn't want to think about being back in the cellar.

"…Thank you, Whitley."

"You don't need to thank me for saving you, Ciel. It wasn't a decision I needed to think about."

The two sat in silence for a while longer, minutes slipping away as the snowfall began to increase.

"Whitley?"

The girl's leader seemed to flinch as he realized she'd been talking to him, before he shook his head slightly and answered her.

"Y-Yes?"

"You've been staring at me for a few minutes now."

The pale teen's cheeks turned the same color as his frost nipped nose.

"O-Oh! I'm sorry, I was just…thinking."

"I'd been trying to get your attention for a bit; what were you thinking about?"

"You."

Whitley blurted out his response, and both teen's eyes widened before they looked away from each other, their cheeks flushed at the embarrassment they both felt.

"R-Really!? Umm…what about me?"

The white-haired teen's eyes darted around her features as he swallowed a lump in his throat.

"T-The sigil on your forehead; what does it mean?"

"It's something like a tradition that's passed down in my family. It's to honor…"

The girl trailed off once she ensnared herself in Whitley's gaze, the same true for the youngest Schnee beside her. The two searched for something in each other's eyes, and finding the trail, they drew closer to each other, until their breath formed one visible mist on the winter air. The millimeters dwindled between the two as they steadily advanced, half-lidded eyes portrayed every emotion they felt and one more push would convey everything else.

The door to the house opened and the warmth of the house washed over the two in the middle of their moment. The sudden change and noise caused the two student's heads to snap to the door, and they found Neo standing there with a silent look of surprise, which quickly morphed into a devilish ear-to-ear grin. Whitley and Ciel both wore rather vexed expressions, but upon realizing what the tri-colored criminal had interrupted, a telling shade of scarlet painted itself upon their cheeks.

The girl brought a hand to her mouth, concealing her giggles as she slowly closed the door. Whitley and Ciel rose immediately before throwing open the door and rushing inside to prevent what they suspected the little devil might do.

But as they skidded to a halt in the living room, everyone looked to them rather surprised at the urgency they practically stumbled over each other with.

"What's got you two in a hurry?"

The two, discovering that Neo hadn't told anyone what she saw, began stuttering out excuses for their strange behavior. As they did, Roman took the chance out of boredom to look up from the book he'd been reading and started spotting all the little tells of two people who'd been 'spending time together.'

The flame haired man sent a look over to Neo, who had a mischievous smirk on her face while wiggling her eyebrows, before donning the curious expression she'd been portraying before as Flynt turned around.

"I'm nowhere near inebriated enough to deal with this."

The older man let his eyes return back to his book as Neo began soundlessly laughing, hitting the arm of the loveseat as she did. Flynt looked between the two pairs confused, trying to understand the subtext but missing the subtle hints.

The two younger and embarrassed partners stood silently before wordlessly making their way to sit down near the still unconscious Jaune.

Roman let out a puff of smoke, before tossing the remaining bud of his cigar into the fire and standing to his full height to stretch. With a satisfied sigh, the gentle criminal retrieved his scroll from his pocket to check the time.

"Alright kiddos, listen up. It's a quarter till midnight, and our pilot should be here soon, so get ready to move out. We're gonna drop you kids off five miles from the edge of the city; just outside of Argus's restricted airspace. Also, one of you wake up Jaune, better for him to be awake while we're in the air."

With instructions handed out, the flashy thief kicked the pile of buds into the fire and moved across the room before exiting through the front door. The man stood outside, letting the peacefulness of the countryside comfort him as he moved to another house on the Brunswick property.

His Uncle and Aunt's cottage.

The sound of his footfalls crunching the snow beneath him caused memories to bubble up to the surface of his mind. He used to visit them rather often, sometimes two or even three times a month, at the request of his father. He didn't understand why he was so often sent away from the city, but it didn't matter much to him because it let him see Trivia.

Arriving with a silent but heavy breath, Roman opened the door and stepped inside, closing it behind him softly. The former huntsman scanned the living room as he felt a choking nostalgia hit him, before he stiffly made his way towards the sofa.

Taking a seat, he was greeted with years of dust flying into the air, but it went unnoticed to the classy criminal. He retrieved a thin cylindrical container from inside his jacket, as well as his lighter and a guillotine-style tobacco cutter. Opening the container with an audible pop, the cigar within was revealed before being tenderly removed from its case.

The man worked methodically as he proceeded to cut the cigar, but as he was about to light it, something crossed his mind. He stood and walked over to an old locked cupboard, wiping his hand across the dusty glass he spotted what he was searching for. The old hand made quick work of the lock and he reached in, pulling out a small ornate cylinder. It had red leather sown to look like scales, lined with real gold, a strip of flint on one side, and a gold ring to slip a finger through to keep hold of the small trinket.

Holding it up to the tiny shreds of moonlight creeping through the curtains, Roman silently admired the cylinder in his hand turning it and pausing at the familia crest at the bottom. He unscrewed the small knob at the top and pulled it free revealing a thin stick with a tiny bit of burn dust at the end. Striking the stick along the flint strip it lit up with a small flame.

The thief once again paused nostalgia washing over him. He lit the cigar, waved the stick around to put out the flame before screwing it back into place. As he sat back down on the couch he watched as a trail of smoke wafted up to the ceiling while the tobacco burned slowly. The familiar woody smell filled up the space while he observed the smoke splash against the simple wooden boards.

The cigar Roman held was the same as the one his father and uncle would smoke when the two were together, as incredibly rare as that was. Taking a moment from his thoughts, he pulled the ashtray resting on the coffee table closer before setting down the burning stick, making sure the ash fell into the tray, and let the rolled tobacco burn on.

Leaning back into the loveseat he sat on, Roman looked over at the sofa, imagining his Uncle Ezra with an arm draped around the shoulders of Auntie Dierdre, laughing on the couch next to him, before their expressions rested into calm smiles with nothing but fondness in their eyes.

He bit his lip as he remembered the talk he had with his father, about how he was finally, at the age of eleven, ready to learn about the world he was born into, and until that point, unaware of.

In the span of twenty-four hours, little Roman had his entire world turned upside down. The children he was allowed to be around, the clothes he wore, where he went; absolutely everything had changed for the young boy, but most noticeable, was that his trips to see his aunt, Uncle, and Trivia ceased.

Of course, telling a child that they aren't allowed to see their dearest friend is both something that they will never understand or accept, as well as guaranteed to make them want to see that friend infinitely more, whatever the cost.

Roman never forgot.

---

(Flashback)

"Roman…"

An exasperated sigh that could only belong to a father who'd been worn down by his child's persistence filled the study. The man brought a hand to his temples as he gazed down tiredly at his son. The frustration on the boy's face matched what the father felt in his heart.

"Why can't I go see Uncle Ezra and Aunt Dierdre anymore!? I love going to see them, and Trivia and Neo are going to be sad if I don't go and visit them! So why!?"

The youth stood there panting with tears in his eyes, and a scratchy throat, having argued with his father for over an hour, trying to earn a compromise.

August Torchwick opened his mouth to speak before he closed it and thought for a few moments. This silence permeated the room for at least five minutes before the man spoke again.

"Son."

Roman wavered a tad, knowing that when his father took this tone, he was completely serious.

"Come here."

The young boy stepped towards his father, preparing himself for whatever was to come. Once he was sure he was close enough, he watched his father as the man stared down at him.

"Why do you want to go back out there to the middle of nowhere? What's there at your uncle's home that I can't give you?"

Roman fists clenched for a few moments more before he sighed and let his hands relax at his side before giving his answer.

"…You're always working. You never have time for me, and you send me off to stay with them all the time. But I really do like going there now. Auntie always makes me what I want to eat, and Uncle promised he was going to teach me how to hunt soon. And…Trivia is there, Neo too."

The older man looked down at his son quietly before responding.

"You keep bringing up those girls. Why?"

The awkward silence that followed, along with the obvious body language his son was exhibiting told him everything. August groaned as he brought a hand to his head, sensing a headache far down the line.

Moving from where he stood, the Torchwick patriarch sat down in the comfy chair behind his desk before looking over to the two glasses of spirits sitting on the desk. Roman watched anxiously as his father picked one of them up while seemed to think on things, before emptying the glass and speaking again.

"Son."

"Yeah Dad?"

"I love you, and I am sorry that I seem to always be busy. I know you don't understand right now, but I hope that one day you will. You're the age I was when my father taught me about who our family was; our responsibilities and what they mean."

The man beckoned the boy closer, and the young red-head took tentative steps towards his father, before arriving next to where the man sat. A large hand raised above the eleven year old's head, before landing upon it to ruffle the boy's hair.

"Roman. Julius. Torchwick. You are my world, and everything I do is for you Son. What I want to pass onto you,"

The man stopped his sentence before standing and guiding Roman gently to the window in his study, before drawing the curtains and standing behind his son, hands on either of the boy's shoulders.

"Is this. All of this. Your great-grandfather came to this kingdom, and worked hard to give us, his family he never got a chance to meet, the world. He established our Familia and gave us everything we could ever need to not just survive, but to live. You could have anything your heart desires."

Young Roman looked out the window, gazing upon the beautiful neon lights that sparkled through the streets of Uptown. The eleven year old felt himself getting turned around to face his father, who'd dropped to a knee to be at eye-level with him, before the hands on his shoulders moved to cradle the sides of Roman's head, as if holding something sacred in his hands.

"I'm not asking you to understand why I'm doing all of this, but I am asking you to trust me, Roman. Can you do that?"

The boy stayed silent for a moment, looking to the side as he did, before he swallowed a lump in his throat, and turned to meet his father's eyes.

"N-Non scendere mai a compromessi sui tuoi desideri."

August's head recoiled a tad as he looked to his son in shock. The older man went to speak, but found himself silent as Roman spoke again, the child's smaller hands wrapping, partially, around his own as he held either of his son's cheeks.

"Never compromise on your desires. That's our Family motto; you taught me that."

The young boy took a firmer position as he continued.

"You're the one that said I could have whatever I want. I want them; Uncle Ezra, Aunt Dierdre, Trivia and Neo."

The older man met his son's eyes before letting out a gruff sigh. The man removed his hands from Roman's grip and plopped into his chair exhaustedly, a hand massaging the sides of his head before dragging itself down to his chin.

"…Tell you what, Son."

The boy waited to hear what his father had to say as he prepared himself to keep arguing.

"I'm willing to let you see them again."

The eleven year old's eyes widened as he looked to his father, the frown on his face shifting to one of elation.

"But, on one condition."

Roman's expression shifted back into one of annoyance as he prepared to tell off his father, but paused as he saw his father motioning for him to let him finish.

"I'll promise to let you see them again, but only once I think you're ready."

The boy opened his mouth to protest, but quickly halted himself as he thought about the progress he'd made. He spent a large part of the day trying to get his father to cave to his wishes, and this was the first concession he'd managed to achieve, and knowing his father, it was the only one he was likely to coax out of him. So instead, he grit his teeth as he asked his father a question.

"…How long is that going to take?"

The man made a sound of thought before settling on a likely time frame.

"Probably between five and seven years, it could take longer or shorter, but that all depends on you. But, if you're willing to put your all into what I want to teach you, we can get started tomorrow, and I'll keep my end of our deal."

The boy seemed to mull it over, realizing that he would get what he wanted, but now there was one thing that he couldn't grasp.

"Dad?"

"Yes?"

"Why is it suddenly so important that I stop going to see them?"

The man looked at his son with mild surprise at the question, impressed that the eleven year old was keen enough to know that he wasn't being told everything.

"You care about those girls you keep bringing up, Trivia and Neo right?"

Seeing Roman nod his head apprehensively, August continued after deciding how he wanted to word his explanation.

"…I have a lot of enemies, Roman. Many of them would give life and limb to hurt me, or you. The more you're away from me, the less safe you are. And the more you're around those girls…"

"…"

The boy was beginning to understand the big picture, and decided to try another avenue.

"W-What about Uncle Ezra and Aunt Dierdre…"

The older man sat silently for a bit, glancing once at the other, untouched glass of liquor on his table before answering his son.

"It's…complicated. My brother isn't allowed to step foot in Vale."

The young boy recoiled at the news, and as if sensing the coming question, August continued.

"He…broke a promise, one that our Familia had a rule to never break."

The boy looked at his father, slightly uncomfortable with what he was hearing.

"Are you…mad at each other?"

The man shook his head solemnly before he answered.

"No, not any more. But really, I don't think he was ever mad at me to begin with, just…disappointed. If anything, I was the one who was mad."

The man took a deep breath before standing up and continuing to speak.

"Aside from that, he'll be safer this way too. Not many people know I have an older brother, so Ezra and Dierdre should be fine for the time being."

The young boy nodded absently as he thought about everything he'd heard. A peek told him that his father was awaiting his answer, and after a few minutes, the young boy looked up to his father and nodded his head.

"Okay Dad. When can we get started?"

August patted his son's head before answering him.

"We'll get started after breakfast tomorrow. But for now, why don't you go get something to drink. All that negotiating you did probably left your throat a bit dry."

The young boy went to speak before he started to cough with a blush. August let out a chuckle as he watched his son leave the room, before he let his expression fall as he looked back to the untouched glass of liquor sitting on his desk. The man locked the door to the study behind him before turning off the lights and sitting in his chair.

The Don of the Torchwick Familia let out a shaky, hurt sigh. How could he lie to his son like that? But, then again, it was all he could think after receiving a report from one of his men that his brother and his wife were found dead, and the little girls Roman liked so much were missing in the wilderness.

Pouring himself another drink, he raised it towards the glass that was poured in memory of his brother, downing with tears running down his rugged face. Eventually he'd tell Roman the truth, when the boy was ready.

(Flashback End)

Unfortunately, the years after that had been harder, the flame-haired boy had worked himself to the bone trying to become the man his father envisioned him to be.

Roman remembered his sixteenth birthday and how his entire life had been flipped upside down. The internal war that his father's gang went through left him an orphan exiled from Vale, a mercy that they would later come to regret.

The gentle criminal remembered stumbling his way from town to town before he finally arrived in Mistral. Hustles and schemes to put food on the table, getting hunted by angry 'customers', it was all still fresh in his mind. The only redeeming thing that came about in his life after his father's murder, was that he was reunited with Trivia, who'd started to go by Neo.

And when she finally saw him again, he was getting the shit kicked out of him in a back alley.

Bringing a hand to his knee, the flame-haired man began unconsciously massaging the area as he began to rouse himself from his reminiscing. Funny though, the happiest and most important memories he had all involved Neo.

Standing from where he'd been sitting, Roman reached into the pouch on his back hip, before retrieving the final bundle of explosives and placing it down on the living room table. With a silent prayer, the thief armed the explosives with a timer before moving to leave the house.

With his hand on the doorknob, he finally let a single tear fall as he whispered to the memories of his family.

"I'm heading out…"

Stepping outside, Roman closed and locked the door behind him before turning to make his way to where his partner in crime was.

"Stay."

The gentleman thief felt his body enter a sort of stasis as his eyes widened, not recognizing the new voice or seeing who its owner was. His first instinct was to yell for Neo, but repressed it as he couldn't even move his lips. As his possible assailant entered his view, Roman cursed his luck, immediately recognizing the Atlesian uniform.

The flame-haired man stood helpless as Marrow quickly retrieved one of his issued pairs of gravity bolas and moved the man's hands behind his back before restraining him. Seeing his hands bound, the Ace op did a search and removed all of the hidden weapons stashed throughout his outfit, including Melodic Cudgel, tossing them in the snow before finishing with a pat down to ensure he didn't miss anything that could be a possible weapon or escape tool.

Satisfied with his work, the green haired man moved to stand in front of Roman with his weapon trained on him as he released the thief from the hold of his semblance.

"Roman Torchwick. Wanted in three of the four kingdoms for numerous crimes."

The man in question blew some hair out of his face before regarding his captor.

"Are you this quick to the kinky foreplay with everyone or am I the exception?"

Marrow's tail stiffened while he gagged at the image he was cursed with, before shaking his head and steeling himself to focus on getting what he wanted.

"Cut the games. I'm bringing you back with me to Atlas; the General can decide what to do with you. But, before that, I have some questions."

Roman adopted a bored expression, clearly not impressed and unwilling to let the man taking him into custody feel like he was in control. So, he rolled his eyes and kept his silence while Marrow took this as a signal to ask his question.

"…I'm looking for some students. Four of them. They got separated from me and the rest of their teammates a bit away from here. Know anything?"

The man made an exaggerated look of thought before answering.

"Well, let's see. So far today, I've seen a lanky teen with snow white hair, a girl with dark skin wearing a beret; they totally have a thing for each other by the way, a classy kid with a trumpet, and a blonde in over his head. Sounds about right?"

"Where."

"You're new to this, aren't you?"

Marrow's eyes narrowed and he brought his weapon to a firing position, clearly ready to make this interrogation hostile if need be. Thankfully, the questioning didn't have a chance to escalate as a door opened, shedding light out onto the snowy yard. Four figures emerged from the home, and their eyes widened as they saw their chaperone standing outside with his weapon trained on Roman.

"Marrow!"

The man stowed his weapon away immediately, and ran forwards to go check on his four missing charges, tail swishing behind him at finally getting some good news out of this trip.

As the Ace op moved away, Roman felt a tap on his shoulder, and was made aware that Neo was behind him, cloaked by her semblance. He felt his partner start to tug at the gravity bola, and watched as Jaune interacted with the man. Swallowing a lump in his throat, the man made a decision.

"Wait."

The thief felt the petit woman stop what she was doing, and knew she must be confused at his request. Keeping his eyes forwards, Roman continued whispering.

"We might be able to make something out of this."

Neo apparently didn't like his line of thought as she went right back to working away at his restraints. Knowing she wouldn't stop until she either heard something that she thought was possible or the wires came off, the flame-haired man kept going.

"Neo, think about it. If we let ourselves get taken to Atlas, there's a chance we get put in the same room with the General. If we give him something on manipulative bitch, we might be able to work out a deal. It gets us away from her, and gives us a chance to get out of this mess."

He felt his partner beginning to slow in her efforts until she finally stopped. He could feel her lean head into his back while gripping at his wrists.

"I need you to trust me on this. If things don't look good, you can just break us out and we can smuggle ourselves out of Atlas. But we need to give this a chance. Hell, maybe even blondie can vouch for us. Neo. This could be our ticket out."

The mute woman wanted to scream at him for the pure idiocy of what he was suggesting, but instead let out a deep sigh before interlocking her pinky with one of his own from where his hands were still restrained. Roman watched as the group from Atlas began walking towards him before stopping a few feet away as Marrow spoke.

"Jaune told me you found them taking shelter here and after a rare grimm appeared, you assisted them and saved their lives."

Roman nodded his head, keeping notes of the story being told here. It wasn't a complete lie, but not the full truth either, something the man had to mentally applaud the blonde for. Most interesting to the thief, was that despite their distrust, Whitley's especially, they weren't correcting Marrow, speaking volumes of their trust in their friend.

Marrow studied his expression, before sighing and rubbing the back of his head.

"In that case, I'd like to thank you for keeping these students alive. I can't let you go, obviously, but I promise you'll get a fair trial."

Roman looked a bit amused as he responded to the huntsman.

"That's to say I wasn't before?"

Before Marrow could have a chance to either start sputtering at the accusation or trying to reword his thanks, a particularly cold wind blew forth. Marrow, shaking off a shiver, ordered everyone into the transport so they could begin heading back to Argus.

Putting Roman in the passenger seat next to where he would be driving, the green-haired man returned to the driver's seat, waiting for the students to enter so they could start the drive back. Jaune, noticing the trunk to the transport was opened, moved to close it.

As he shut the trunk closed, looking through the class revealed Neo laying there, secretly along for the ride. The look she was giving him was so intense, all Jaune could do was nod, before entering the vehicle and taking the back most row of seats so he could lie down.

As the vehicle began to move forth, away from the home that had almost become their grave, the relief of knowing that they were going to be okay started to hit them, and within minutes, all four of the students were fast, and very deeply asleep.

Checking the rearview mirror a few times, Marrow couldn't help the smile that crept onto his face, something that didn't go unnoticed by Roman.

"You seem happy."

The man looked over to the restrained criminal before returning his attention to the wilderness ahead.

"Yeah, I probably do."

"You're happy to have them back."

"Relieved is more like it, but…yeah. Things would've been too normal without them. Wouldn't be the same."

The silence that followed was awkward, and the constant squirming Roman was doing kept attracting Marrow's attention.

"You're not trying to break out of those right?"

Roman made a look of discomfort as he let himself uncharacteristically slump in his chair, defeated.

"No, but I can't sit right with how you put these damn things on."

Marrow had the decency to have a sheepish look as he responded.

"Sorry, I'm just following protocol. I'm honestly shocked you haven't tried anything yet, but I can't risk the possibility that you will. I hope you understand."

Oh, Roman did. In fact, if anything, he was inwardly impressed by the thoroughness of the operative.

In an attempt to take his mind off his discomfort, the only kindness or leeway he could afford to give, Marrow continued talking.

"Really though. Thank you for saving those kids. You definitely didn't have to, and no one would have expected you to."

"I really didn't do too much, but…you're welcome."

"Jaune's sister was a real wreck when we came back to Argus without him."

"His sister lives there?"

Roman couldn't help the small bit of genuine curiosity that had crept into his voice, but he realized immediately that he'd made a critical error when Marrow stiffened a bit before he responded.

"Surprised?"

"Well, yeah. Back at the farm the kid told me he was from Vale."

Marrow seemed to relax hearing that, and Roman felt unseen relief wash through him. He was going to have to be more careful when talking to this one. He got so comfortable that he made a mistake that could have damn well cost him, or Jaune.

"He is. But yeah, we were staying at his sister's house, and I mean, poor lady. Hasn't left her room since we got there. Her wife was hit pretty hard by the news too, but she was handling it better."

"Well at the very least, I'll sleep an inch better knowing I didn't let a few families get torn apart."

The Ace op gave a nod as he kept driving while Roman remembered something crucial; the bombs he and Neo planted back at the farm. They were far enough now that there was a chance that maybe he wouldn't hear or feel the explosion, but he wasn't willing to risk it.

"Hey…"

"Marrow."

"Marrow, well met. Think you could hit the radio for me?"

"The kids are sleeping back there."

"But at least the music will give me something to focus on, and help keep us awake, right?"

Marrow mulled it over before giving a slight shrug and turning on the radio at a low volume.

"Any preference?"

"Something slow paced."

Roman watched the man scroll through the radio channels before to one he recognized, and it had just begun playing a song, one that felt appropriate given the mood, but didn't know the name of.

"That one will do."

"You know this song?"

"Nope, but I think this might be what I was hoping for."

The two sat in silence as the song played, before Roman spoke out again.

"Hey Marrow."

"Hmm?"

"There's a cigar in my breast pocket. Could you get it for me?"

"Are you really asking me to let you smoke in a car full of sleeping kids?"

Roman gave the man a deadpan before he shook his head and responded.

"No, I just want to have it there to keep my mouth busy."

Marrow, realizing the man must have a smoking addiction, decided to grant him that mercy at least, and after reaching into the man's pocket, retrieved the cigar and let the man gently hold it with his mouth.

"Thanks."

Marrow gave a brief side glance at the captured criminal before responding.

"Don't mention it. Really."

Roman, seeing the time on the clock and realizing that he must've successfully distracted the operative, and himself, as neither of them noticed the explosion, turned to gaze out the window with a faraway look in his eyes.

"Sure thing."

---

(Saturday-Early Morning-Argus)

Neon, Kobalt, Ivory, Penny and Maria sat around the living room of the Cotta-Arc household. Only a quarter till seven, and everyone was prepared to make the long flight from Argus to Atlas that would eat up a portion of their day. Save for one issue; that Marrow seemed to have disappeared overnight, and now they were stuck waiting for him to return.

"Where do you think he went?"

Neon's question went unanswered as the silence in the room persisted. Kobalt was irritated, Penny looked downtrodden, and Ivori was, despite being harder to read than most, clearly not pleased. The girl leaned back into her seat, looking up at the ceiling hoping for more time to pass so they could just head back to Atlas and figure out what comes next.

"This is total bullshit!"

All eyes were on Kobalt as the blue-haired teen stood up and stomped towards the window beginning to pace. Ivori watched as his fuming partner moved away before sighing and beginning to clean his glasses while Maria spoke out to the blue-haired brawler.

"Calm down boy. You're starting to make me anxious."

Kobalt turned to the elderly woman enraged, but before he could say anything, Ivori called out.

"She's right, Kobalt. Either sit down, or go take a walk and cool off."

Gritting his teeth, the bluenette let out a growl before taking a few deep breaths and sitting down next to Neon. The girl brought a hand to his shoulder, silently comforting her squad mate as sat with his head in his hands. Ivori returned his glasses to their normal place before giving his thoughts.

"It is strange. I can't imagine a member of the Ace ops shirking their responsibilities during a mission. But…a part of me does agree with how Kobalt is feeling. He told us to prioritize our assignment, but then on the morning we're supposed to complete it, he's nowhere to be found."

Penny decided to jump into the conversation, trying to diffuse the tension.

"Maybe he had a good reason, friend Ivori."

"Good enough to justify leaving our friends to die?"

The android wanted to say something, but she couldn't, and as she replayed her stylish friend's words in her head, she felt her frown deepen.

"Is everything okay?"

All eyes looked to the stairs to see Terra ready for work and holding Adrian, ready to bring him to daycare, and Saphron behind her, who looked simply awful; messy hair, tear tracks, red nose, puffy eyes, and the lack of her usually positive energy.

The blonde woman and her wife finished descending the stairs, before making their way to the group in the living room. Terra looked around noticing that they were missing one and decided to ask the question.

"Where's Marrow?"

When no one answered, Terra studied the faces of those present, gathering that the dog faunus, or rather the absence thereof, was the source of their sour moods. The only one she wasn't able to get a read on was Maria, who was calmly sipping some tea she'd prepared for herself.

A knock at the door caught everyone's attention, and Terra handed Adrian off to Saphron, kissing her wife's cheek as she did before moving to open the door.

Undoing the locks, Terra opened the door to see Marrow standing there with dark circles under his eyes.

"Where were you? Did you even sleep; you look terrib-"

Her eyes naturally wandered to looking past the tired man, and her eyes widened as she began to tear up seeing who was behind him. The dark-skinned man moved to the side as Terra crossed the few steps to where Jaune was standing near instantly. She looked him over, noticing the wraps around his head immediately.

"Hey Terra."

The woman smiled as a few tears slid down her cheeks, before she wiped them away and hugged her brother-in-law. They stood there for a short while, before eventually they separated and the woman nodded her head towards the door to her house.

"We thought you died."

"I'm sorry. Things were really bad out there. How is she?"

The look she wore spoke volumes, and he said nothing as he moved to follow her inside, his friends following him. As he passed Marrow, he gave the man a questioning look as he saw him turning to head to the transport parked in front of the house.

"Someone's got to keep an eye on Torchwick. Just let them know we're outside."

With a nod, Jaune took a deep breath and entered the house. As he, Flynt, Whitley, and Ciel entered the living room, it felt like time stopped. Before anyone could react, Saphron launched across the room and was holding onto her younger brother like a lifeline, bawling her eyes out into his shirt.

The tearful reunion underway, Whitley and Ciel were quickly approached by Kobalt and Ivori, the team sharing a group hug that was initiated, surprisingly, by Kobalt. As team WICK enjoyed each other's presence, Neon stomped over to Flynt before pulling him into her arms. A few sniffs could be heard as the trumpeter wrapped his arms around Neon's smaller frame, a smile on his face.

Finally, as Saphron gave her brother a tiny bit of breathing room, still not certain this wasn't a dream, she saw his partner standing behind him, fidgeting impatiently, before turning him around and pushing him towards her gently.

The two stared at each other before Penny reached up and pressed her hands to either side of his face, pulling him down to her height. The android turned his head side to side, making sure he was okay before she gave him her most elated smile yet, pushing her forehead to rest against his, and while Jaune may have been too tired to blush, he had just enough energy to allow himself to hold that position contentedly.

Terra, who'd taken Adrian from Saphron, stood with her wife as they watched the group banter with each other as if they hadn't seen one another for years. The sound of a cane against the wood floor drew everyone's attention, and as Jaune and Penny separated and turned to see Maria, the woman did as she did when they first met, bringing her cane to the inside of both of Jaune's knees, but instead of falling to a kneel, he just stood there with an even expression.

"No more knot-knees, Boy?"

The blonde gave her a small smirk in response, which the woman chuckled to herself before moving towards the door. A ping from the scrolls of the huntsmen students earned their attention, and seeing the message Marrow had sent them, those who still had supplies went upstairs to go retrieve them.

"So…you're going back now…"

Jaune looked to his older sister who was still rubbing at her eyes, swallowing a lump he didn't know was there until now.

"Yeah…I've still got things to do, Saph…"

The elder sister looked as if she had things she wanted to say, wanted to beg of her brother, but she held her tongue. Seeing how lost and conflicted she looked, Jaune continued.

"I'm not gonna say 'don't worry', but…have faith in me Sis. I-no, we, got this."

The knightly teen ended his sentence by motioning to his friends around the house, who heard him and stopped what they were doing, giving their own reassuring smiles to the woman.

"Don't worry Miss, we'll keep an eye on him for you."

Jaune smirked as he looked at Whitley before replying.

"You do realize I'm two years older than you, right?"

"And yet, it's as if I'm four years wiser than you."

The room shared a laugh at Jaune's expense before movement around the house progressed smoothly. Within ten minutes, everything was loaded into the trunk of the transport by Jaune, who'd volunteered to do so. Students loading up, Saphron stepped outside of her home to see them off and say some parting words to Marrow.

Making her way to the driver's side window, the woman tapped on the glass before Marrow rolled the window down.

"Yes?"

"I just wanted to say thank you; for bringing my baby brother back. I know you would've done it for any of your students, but…again, thank you."

Marrow looked down for a moment, his expression falling for a moment. He did manipulate protocol to bring the kids back, but…he didn't make that decision easily, or entirely by himself. He'd spent the better part of a day agonizing over making the call, and even then, if the one person who told him to save them hadn't said anything, he didn't know if he would have done what he had. Shaking his head, the man met the blonde woman's eyes again before responding.

"Well, I can't take all the credit. I only got there in time to pick them up and drive them back. Someone else saved them from the…situation, they'd found themselves in."

"Oh. Who…"

"That'd be me."

Hearing a suave voice, she looked to past Marrow, who'd leaned back in his seat so she could see the speaker, her eyes widened to see none other than Roman Torchwick sitting there restrained, but looking none the less amused.

"…"

"Speechless? Typical."

There was no venom to his words, but Saphron knowing the reputation of the criminal she was seeing, was still in a bit of disbelief.

"YOU, saved my brother and his friends?"

The classy thief made a look of mock hurt as he faked a hurt tone.

"You doubt me? And after all I'd unknowingly done for you."

His face and intonation shifted not even a second later to an inconvenienced one as he spoke again.

"Normally, this is where I'd put a hand over my heart, or maybe even fake a tear to wipe away, but as you can see, my hands are tied at the moment. Marrow, would you do me a favor and lend me one of yours."

The green haired Ace op rolled his eyes, choosing to ignore him. Roman, seeing that his impromptu wasn't being appreciated, let out a huff before continuing his conversation with Saphron.

"Any who; yes, I saved your brother and his friends. If you still choose not to believe me, despite having this upstanding member of Atlas's military vouching for me, then I'm not sure what to tell you."

The woman stood in silence thinking for a moment before walking to the other side of the transport. Rapping her knuckles on the window like she'd done before, she had to wait a few moments whilst Marrow and Roman argued over something she couldn't hear. After a few moments, of which left Marrow looking truly exasperated, the window came down on Roman's side so that the flame-haired man could talk to her easier.

"Can I hel-"

He was cut off as the woman placed her foot on the step to the transport, and after making it to eye-level, gave a hug to the man who saved her brother.

"Thank you."

There was more she could've said, but instead, Saphron let go of the man through the window and leapt down to the ground before moving back to the sidewalk. Inside the transport was silent as Marrow made sure everyone was wearing their seatbelts, before beginning to pull away and drive towards the military installation, the sight of Saphron waving softly to them disappearing in the rear view mirror.

The roads being so empty, the drive to the Atlesian base in Argus was thankfully over quick. Arriving back on base, Marrow parked in the designated drop off for transports before exiting and waiting for whoever was in charge of overseeing vehicle returns to approach.

The wait wasn't long as within the minute, an officer carrying a clipboard approached him before saluting. Marrow nodded to him, but before he could begin asking questions or documenting anything, he spoke quickly and quietly.

"I'm Special Operative Amin. No need to write anything about this check-in down; all the details surrounding what it was used for and where it went is classified."

The officer seemed extremely out of his depth at this, but as he went to reply, Marrow continued.

"Also, I need a bullhead to make the trip back to Atlas."

The officer's eyes widened before he nodded and left to do what was required of him. The students all talking amongst each other nearby, Roman was sitting a bit away on a crate silently next to where Marrow was standing.

"Marrow."

"Hmm?"

"Could you do a guy a favor and gimme a light?"

A sideways glance from the operative came before a sigh as the green-haired man responded.

"You know for a man in restraints, you sure do have a lot to say."

"Well of course, I do love the sound of my voice~ but, in all seriousness, would you mind?"

"…I don't have a lighter, or matches."

"What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn't carry my own?"

Marrow turned to face him with a bewildered look.

"What? But I did a full sear-"

"Don't think too much about it. Inside pocket, right side, near my ribs."

With a tired sigh, Marrow moved to feel around the man's coat until he found the offending item; an old, ornate, and small box full of matches. Striking the match, Marrow lifted the burning stick to Roman's cigar, letting the man stoke his tobacco before waving the match out.

"You know I can't let you have this back."

"…Hold on to it for me. It's…important."

A bit of surprise danced upon the dark-skinned man's before he hesitantly nodded, placing the container into his own inner coat pocket. Seeing something out of the corner of their eyes, the two men turned to see the students approaching them, led by Kobalt. Marrow let out a yawn he hadn't realized he'd been holding before nodding to the teens, watching curiously as the blue-haired brawler stepped forwards before he bowed his head as he spoke.

"I'm sorry for doubting you."

The operative looked confused but before he could speak, the temperamental teen continued.

"When we lost contact with our friends, I thought you didn't care that they could still be somewhere out there, alive. Then, today, I was pissed that you were nowhere to be found after stopping us from going out into the wilderness. But then, you brought my friends back, so thank you, and again, I apologize."

Marrow waved the kid off. He hadn't been much better after what happened to Tortuga, actually, his reaction had been nearly identical.

"Well, well, well, isn't this a surprise."

All heads turned to see Cordovin approaching, something that seemed to annoy Maria greatly judging from her all too apparent groan.

"And here I was hoping we'd miss the She-devil."

"Witch. And to what do I owe the displeasure of having you on my base?"

"Well Caroline, since I've made this trip almost a dozen times now, I'm sure you already know, unless you're starting to forget in your old age."

Marrow and the students stood on the sidelines unsure of what to make of the two elderly women berating each other.

"Now, now Maria, no need to be so grumpy and short-sighted."

"Hmm, I suppose I see your point."

The elderly operative smirked as she went to address Marrow, before she realized that her insult had backfired. Marrow coughed into his hand to conceal a smile while a few of the students were holding back a snicker, but Roman had no reservations as he nearly doubled over laughing.

"I've informed General Ironwood that you'll be departing from my base instead of the normal bullhead station due to your…"

The short woman looked over to Roman with an upturned nose before continuing her sentence.

"Impromptu guest. General Ironwood was most interested to know that the infamous Roman Torchwick was apprehended here in Argus, and I can say with confidence he's looking forward to speaking with him as well."

Neo growled silently next to Roman where she hid in plain sight, but the fact that her partner's smile never left his face allowed her to calm herself as the small woman turned to leave, wishing Marrow and the students well.

The wait for an airhead craft wasn't much longer, just enough time for Roman to have enjoyed a portion of his tobacco, before they all loaded onto the craft that would deliver them to Atlas.

---

The flight felt as if it'd been over in the blink of an eye, the sun was at its apex as the military bullhead touched down on the general's personal landing platform. As the doors slid open, Jaune and his squad were happy to take a fresh breath of cool Atlesian air as they strode forth towards a waiting Ironwood, flanked by the Ace Ops, sans Marrow.

"Specialist, report."

"Sir!"

With practiced ease, the dark-skinned man slid into a rest before he began to speak.

The mission assigned to the squad consisting of teams JCKP and WICK went smoothly. Over the three day course, a moderate complication arose while traveling on the Argus Limited, and the students executed their duty as future hunters spectacularly. Yesterday evening students Jaune, Schnee, Coal, and Soliel encountered Roman Torchwick.

"Hold. Any casualties?"

"One. He was one of the two huntsmen assigned to guard the train."

"I expect a written report of everything that happened over the last three days, on my desk before 1800. As for the rest of your verbal report; I suspect that much of what you have to say is going to be classified information, so you'll submit a verbal summary report immediately after you're dismissed. Is that understood?"

"Yes Sir!"

Ironwood nodded to the canine faunus before moving to Roman, who stood silently a few paces to the side of Marrow.

"And you."

The tension was slowly suffocating as the two men stared each other down.

"You've caused a lot of trouble over the last few years. Not just for Vale either."

"Yes, well, not everything I've done till now was my choice. But being here is."

"Are you implying that you turned yourself in? Or that you're right where you want to be."

"What I'm saying is that despite what the council makes me out to be, I've never killed anyone who didn't deserve it, and since your specialist slapped these cuffs on me, I haven't done anything except be cooperative."

"Hm. Marrow, is this true?"

"Yes Sir. Since I apprehended him late yesterday evening, Roman Torchwick has shown no signs of deception or aggression. He's followed my commands and has been surprisingly polite. Actually…"

"What is it, Specialist? Speak up."

"He…he helped to save the four students who ran into him. Of course, from what they've told me, it was a mutual effort to survive, but he did help them make it back to their squadmates alive."

The older man's eyebrows raised slightly before turning his gaze back on the redhead in front of him.

"I see."

The air was tense on the landing pad before the general sighed.

"Ace Ops. Take him to the brig and prep an interrogation room."

"Sir!"

Roman was flanked on all sides as he was led away by the five elites, subtly glancing back to meet eyes with Jaune for the briefest of seconds before looking away.

"You kids did a decent job bringing me to Atlas, even if you were all as shaky as a leaf initially. All that's left now is to go find Pietro."

Ironwood adjusted his tie as he nodded to the small woman.

"Then with that, we shall consider your commission fulfilled and the first success of many for this squad on the record."

Ironwood's gaze fell on the blonde co-leader of the squad, noticing the bandage wrapped around his head.

"Jaune, make sure to report to the medbay before the end of the day. Wouldn't want whatever injury you sustained out in the field to become permanent."

"Y-Yes Sir."

"Polendina. I assume you'll be going to visit your father in his lab: escort Ms. Calavera since you're already heading there."

"Yes Sir!"

The disciplined man nodded to the group before dismissing them and turning around to make his way into the academy from his landing pad.

"Hey Penny?"

"Yes Partner?"

"Let me come with you to Mr. Polendina's lab, there's something I need to do."

The girl tilted her head to the side, but nodded nonetheless, the group going separate ways after agreeing to camp out in team JCKP's room. The walk to Pietro's lab didn't take long, and Jaune didn't stay long either, curiously enough.

Penny watched, listening to her father as her blonde partner refilled the dust for his unnamed weapon before he moved over to another machine. Her eyes widened with excitement, but before she could say anything as he was interacting with the machine, she was called over by Pietro.

Jaune, after retrieving his weapon from the machine, placed his weapon back onto his belt, and looked across the lab. Penny looked rather busy helping her father with something related to Ms. Calavera's optical implants, so he chose to silently make his way out, knowing he'd see her in the dorms later.

Having taken care of his weapon's needs, Jaune turned to walk over to the infirmary, which was luckily only a few doors down, but as he took a step, his scroll let out a ping, alerting him of a message.

After reading the contents of his text, he slid his scroll back into his pocket, and impatiently waited as the nurse completed his check-up, telling him that an electronic report about his injuries would be sent to both his scroll as well as the General's. With a hasty nod, Jaune left the infirmary before sprinting towards the elevator where Elm was waiting.

"Come on Kid, let's not keep them waiting."

Jaune gave the large woman a nod, before following her into the elevator, standing next to her as she pressed a code into the number pad before pressing one of the buttons that lit up in response.

"So Kid, are you okay?"

Elm's question went unanswered, causing her to pat the teen on his shoulder, earning his attention.

"What?"

"I asked if you were okay?"

"OH! Sorry, I messed up my ears on our mission, so my hearing isn't too good right now."

Understanding but somewhat curious, she decided to question him, raising her voice so that he'd be able to hear her .

"How did that happen?"

"Well, we were fighting a grimm that attacked with sound, and while I was out for the count…something happened. When I was starting to recover I did the only thing I could think of and…slapped my palms against my ears."

The tan woman's eyes widened as she found a response.

"You…ruptured your own eardrums?"

The blonde had the decency to look embarrassed, as the older woman was torn between laughing at the reckless ingenuity Jaune showed or scolding him, but decided to ask another question instead.

"So, what's the damage?"

"Nothing permanent. Luckily. My hearing will be pretty poor for a week or two, but as long as my aura is given a chance to slowly repair the damage I caused, I should be fine. I'm supposed to visit the nurse once every two days for the next two weeks to make sure my aura is fixing things the way it's supposed to."

The woman let out a sigh of relief she didn't know she was holding.

"Well then, I guess I can't scold you too much since you'll be fine, and everyone is okay, but try to remember that even if a situation looks dire, there's usually a different solution to the problem. One that won't involve mutilating yourself."

"I'll keep that in mind."

The elevator slowed, and with a ping, the doors parted to reveal a hallway of doors, windows, and staff.

"This is the area above the brig, our intel and interrogation center."

Jaune followed closely behind Elm, watching as the nest of information staff moved frantically through the hall into and out of rooms, until he noticed Elm come to a stop. Looking to the side, through what was actually one-way glass, he saw Roman seated and restrained, though none the worse for wear, across from Ironwood. Elm nodded towards the door, and Jaune took that as his sign to enter.

Entering the room, the tense atmosphere from earlier had thickened into soup, and the knightly teen awkwardly found his seat at the end of the table.

"Alright Roman, he's here. It's time you answer my questions."

"That was the agreement, wasn't it?"

The general eyed the flame-haired man suspiciously before leaning back to ask his first question.

"Why have you been stealing dust for the last half-year?"

Roman looked down at the table before giving a response.

"I didn't have a choice."

"You didn't have a choice but to steal millions of lien in dust from private storefronts."

Ironwood's accusatory tone wasn't lost on anyone in the room, but Roman kept his cool.

"As I'm sure your records have revealed to you, I'd been stealing from rich snobs all across Vale for years, but never once did I go after dust."

"And why is that?"

"Because stealing dust means stealing from the Schnee family. And while I'm not afraid of getting caught with my cane in the cookie jar, only a fool messes with the Schnee family or their business."

"And yet, here you are, saying all this despite the evidence towards the contrary."

"Oh believe me, I want nothing to do with all this dust nonsense, but the lady I've been…coerced to fall under doesn't like giving me too many options. I'm not even being paid."

"Tell me about her."

"...why don't we come back to that after you ask some more questions."

Ironwood narrowed his eyes as he looked at Roman, before glancing over to Jaune who was looking between the two silently.

"Alright. Why did you only agree to do this if my student was present?"

The flame haired man looked uncomfortable as he answered.

"...Blondie, the goodie two-shoes that he is, tried convincing me to turn myself in back at the house we were trapped in together. I was going to turn him down, until I found myself restrained in the front seat of a military transport. And…"

The man looked over to Jaune, and the blonde teen decided to speak up.

"General Ironwood. Ozpin told you about my falsified transcripts, didn't he? About how I stole my family sword and ran away to Vale. Well, the one who sold me my fake transcripts…was Roman."

The Atlesian General sat gobsmacked at the revelation before Roman spoke up.

"Listen Ironwood, I've never been a violent criminal; I'm a gentleman thief. Before I started having to do this shit job, I was enjoying a life in my penthouse: smoking expensive cigars, sampling exotic liquors, and taking whatever I fancied from those more crooked than myself. I know it's ironic to hear a criminal playing the victim card, but I want nothing more than to get away from this lady. Blondie never had any part in the things I've done, but I wanted us to go into this without any secrets."

"...What is it you want? Protection?"

"Protection, full pardons, reinstatement of my huntsman status, and I'm keeping everything I've stolen."

"I can't promise that."

"Yes, you can. You're the General of Atlas and Headmaster of its academy; you hold two votes on the council."

"If you want to negotiate your way to a better life, or having one at all outside of a prison cell, then you need to give me something I can work with."

"...I can give you the location of every single store house in Vale where we were keeping the dust. Is that enough?"

"No. But it's a start. Here."

The general used his scroll to bring up a projection map of Vale, and after cautiously freeing one of the thief's hands, the man began pointing out and highlighting warehouses, illegitimate business fronts, and areas in the shipping yard.

"...Just how much dust have you stolen?"

The dapper criminal took a pause from pointing out more locations to ponder.

"Hmm. Well, before I began stealing dust there wasn't a shortage. Due to how much I've stolen, I've created a higher demand for dust, since there is less for the average person to go out and buy. There also wasn't a blackmarket for dust before this, as it was readily available and rather affordable. If I used some of my contacts and measured how much I released back into circulation, I could easily sell between half to three-quarters of what legally allowed shops do. If I had to give a low estimate, somewhere in the two million lien range?"

"And do you have any idea what she plans to use all this dust for?"

As Roman finished pointing out the last of storehouses, he leaned back, looking at the ceiling before he responded.

"No. They haven't told me what they're going to use it for, but I know for a fact they have zero intention of selling it."

"...That's worrisome."

"It is."

"...Right. Your boss. What can you tell me about her?"

"Well let's see, she's a bitch with a fiery temper, for one. She's strong, and she isn't above murder or torture if it means getting what she wants. And that isn't the weirdest thing."

"Then what would that be?"

"She has two semblances."

"...Two semblances? Describe them."

"One of them lets her make things with black glass, while the other lets her mess around with the elements. When she uses that second one though, it looks like fire or maybe her aura starts leaking from her eyes."

A look towards Ironwood had Jaune and Roman cease breathing. The general's eyes were wide, and he sat frozen. In an instant, he shot to his feet, knocking his seat to the ground before slamming his hands on the table as he leaned towards the gentleman crook.

"Are you sure!? Are you absolutely sure!?"

"Yes!"

The man started to breathe heavily before he regained his composure and asked Roman another question.

"How…How old is she?"

"What? What does that-"

"Just answer the question! Guess if you have to."

Roman frowned before thinking it over and responding.

"Early to mid-twenties?"

Ironwood wasted no time retrieving his scroll as he knocked on the window. Not but a second later, the door to the interrogation room opened and the Ace Ops filed inside.

"Yes Sir?"

"Escort him back to the brig. I need to contact Ozpin, the situation has changed."

Clover saluted Ironwood, and as his team once again flanked Torchwick and escorted him out of the room, the general stopped the leader by his arm and brought him aside, the two talking quietly as the rest of the Ace Ops were out of earshot.

"Sir?"

"Make him comfortable. Whatever he asks for; give it to him. I can't shake the feeling that he has some escape method planned out. We cannot let that happen."

"Sir, if that's the case, then wouldn't it make more sense to keep him in lockdown?"

"No. If he has any more intel like what he just gave me, then we need him to be in a mood to cooperate. The last thing we want is to spook him into keeping his mouth shut, or worse, my bad feeling coming true and him breaking out."

"If those are your orders General, then leave it to us."

"They are. Go. And I want your team to personally keep him under watch until I send for him."

"Yes Sir!"

With that Clover slipped out of the room to join his team, and Jaune looked to the headmaster who nodded towards the door, and took that as his cue to leave. Walking briskly to the elevator, the teen pressed the button that would take him to the student dorms and mindlessly went to grab his scroll to check the time.

Strangely enough, as his hand went to grab the device that he usually kept in his right pocket, he felt a tiny shred of paper in its place. Pulling out the paper, he unraveled it to see something that made him stiffen up. Stuffing the paper back into his pocket, the teen frantically patted himself down searching for his scroll until he felt the weight of the device in one of the pouches on his belt.

Wasting no time, he sent a message to Whitley asking the white-haired teen to meet him in the courtyard ASAP. The weight of the paper in his pocket with the message 'twenty-four hours' in Neo's handwriting felt like a hundred pounds of lead, but he moved unimpeded and with a purpose nonetheless.

"Jaune?"

"Thanks for meeting me so quickly."

"Never a problem, but please, what's wro-"

"Not here! Come on."

The white-haired teen allowed himself to be led away from the campus towards the cafe their two teams would visit on occasion. Jaune peeked through the door to see an elderly couple making their way to exit, and held the door open for them. The two gave him a polite nod in thanks before he and Whitley slid inside.

"Hey! Been a while since I've seen you kids. Where're your friends?"

"Hey Boss, we've been pretty busy with Atlas academy; and they're fine, probably sleeping off the bullhead trip we had to take. I…hate to ask, but is it cool if we take a corner to talk about some stuff?"

The older man looked a little concerned as he answered.

"Sure, you kids settle in. Right now is a pretty calm point in the day, so I don't expect I'll be getting many more customers for at least an hour. You two need anything else?"

The blonde took out a few lien cards before handing them over to the cafe owner.

"We could both definitely go for something to eat, and two of your coffees as well."

"Comin right up. You boys hang tight."

With that, the man disappeared from their corner towards the counter, leaving Jaune and Whitley alone.

"Jaune, what's going on."

The blonde took a moment to compose before he began to speak.

"Okay. So, you remember when we all split up earlier at the bullhead platform, right?"

"Yes?"

"After I went with Penny to her dad's lab, I got a message from Ironwood, asking me to head down to where they were keeping Roman."

"What? Why?"

"Roman agreed to answer any questions they had, but on the condition that I had to be there in the room while it happened."

"So?"

"He gave Ironwood some intel, but only after telling him what he wanted."

"And what was that?"

"He wanted full pardons for every crime he's committed, protection, he wants to keep everything he stole, and you'll never believe the last one. He wants his huntsman license back."

"Wait; just one sec, Roman Torchwick was a huntsman?"

"I know, that was my reaction too."

"So what's the problem?"

Before Jaune could answer, two cups of steaming hot coffee were slid in front of them. They both gave the older man a nod of appreciation as he returned to making their meal.

"Look Whitley; I know Roman has done some bad things. He's broke the law a ton of times stealing from people-"

"Not to mention my own family's company."

The blonde winced a bit before he continued.

"But, I've been around Roman and Neo to know that they don't want to do what they're being forced to."

"Forced?"

"During the interrogation Roman mentioned a woman with two semblances and how she was keeping him and Neo on a leash."

"Wait. Where is Neo?"

"...She never leaves Roman alone if she can help it…"

"Jaune. Are you really planning to help them escape?"

"What? No, I want to figure out how to help him cut a deal so that they don't get killed."

"Alright, so what did you have in mind?"

"Nothing. That's why I need your help."

The two were cut from their conversation as two plates of curry were placed onto the table. The two ate slowly over the next half hour, brainstorming to think of a possible angle to even begin approaching this from. Sadly, as the last of the food was consumed, the two sat back, frustratedly looking at their now empty coffee cups.

"Alright, I've been watching you two sulk for long enough. What's the problem?"

"Nothing Boss, just…not able to figure out how to…help a friend of mine."

"With what? I may not look like it, but I like to think I give some pretty good advice when the situation calls for it."

The two teens seemed to think about it before Whitley started to speak.

"Jaune's friend…let's just say he broke the law. Repeatedly. And now, that friend is in custody."

"Oh boy, well that's already a pretty tough situation to be in."

"But, there's a twist. He only broke the law because his boss forced him to, at the cost of his livelihood should he refuse."

"Ah. So he works for one of those big organizations then."

"Something like that. According to Jaune, his friend didn't want to do anything that he did. And now that he's in custody, he's trying to negotiate a deal with the police, but…for him to keep his freedom, he has to give them information on his boss."

"Let me guess, he's afraid of what will happen to him if he talks?"

"Not just to him, but to his fiancée."

The man took off his glasses as he sat on one of the barstools thinking about the situation.

"Well, the way I see it, your friend realistically has two options."

The wizened man checked his scroll for the time before continuing to speak.

"Option one would be to keep his mouth shut, take the prison sentence, and resume his life once he's out. And if he's this afraid of whoever is controlling him, he might not even get a chance to live through his sentence. Option two, is that he completely rats out his boss and gives the police everything they want to know. The possible problem here is that if the police fail to take down whoever they're supposed to, your friend and his fiancée are in danger."

The two teens looked at each other, Jaune noticeably affected by what he was hearing.

"Mind if I ask what exactly he did?"

Jaune looked over to the cafe owner before he answered.

"He stole some, well, a lot of stuff for his boss."

"Hmm. Well you know what I think?"

The two huntsmen students shook their heads, waiting for the older man to continue.

"I think he should take the deal. If he lives through prison, whoever is putting the squeeze on your friend isn't going to stop. They'll keep making him do what they want until they don't need him anymore. And when the bad guy doesn't need you anymore, you become a loose end."

The two teens sat silently in thought about the older man's words before he spoke again.

"Can't he just tell them where all the things he stole are and be done with it? That would put all the heat on his boss."

"Well, he's already given the police the locations of the things he's stolen. Now they want to know abo-"

"Hold on Kid. He already gave them the locations?"

"Yea?"

"Then he must already be planning to take the police's deal. At this point, even if he started to keep his mouth shut and took whatever prison time they gave him, whoever his boss is would know he told the police where to look for the items. And that's if they haven't moved them after finding out he was in prison."

The man put his glasses back on before rising to his feet and speaking once more.

"Listen boys, I won't go too much into it but I used to do some government work back when I was a younger man. I know how the system works, and what you kids don't understand is that even if the police have everything to gain by cutting a deal for your pal, they aren't going to do it unless they're the ones getting the most out of the agreement. The harsh truth is that his life doesn't matter to them; all they care about is having someone to hold accountable, and if they can't nab the one pulling the strings, then they'll settle for him."

The older man seeing the two were hard at thought retrieved their cups and plates. Jaune and Whitley left a few minutes later, walking slowly towards the academy.

"No matter what, it sounds like he isn't gonna walk away from his easy, if at all."

"I don't understand Jaune, if he's already given them the locations of the dust, why hasn't he just come clean about everything else."

"Roman isn't the kind of person to do something without thinking about it. I know he gave up those locations on purpose, but maybe he wants some kind of guarantee."

"You mean, that the general won't just lock him up and be done with him after he knows what he wants?"

"Maybe, but I don't think so. I think he wants a guarantee that the lady he's working for isn't going to just walk away from this."

"You think he's more interested in putting away a fellow criminal than his freedom?"

"Maybe, but he doesn't have to worry about being in custody since Neo can just break him out whenever. I don't know. What if…what if he gave them those locations so that even if he does escape, they could handle it for him?"

"That sounds like a huge gamble."

"Yeah…but it would make sense, wouldn't it?"

The white-haired teen thought about it, and it didn't seem wholly impossible. But, he decided to ask another question.

"Okay, suppose that was the case. What would he need as a guarantee to feel safe giving them everything they want to know?"

"I…I don't know."

The two continued their snail's pace in thought, before Jaune began to think aloud.

"...The problem with him just going back to his boss is that if the police search even one of those storehouses, she's going to suspect Roman. But, what if…"

"Jaune. You're doing it again."

The words took a moment to register in the blonde's mind, before he stopped walking and gave a sheepish look towards his friend.

"Whitley, what if Roman became an informant?"

The younger teen gave him a nudge to continue walking as he responded.

"The thought crossed my mind too, but there are a few problems. One, how would he safely communicate with Ironwood? Two, what guarantee is there that the information he has is reliable? And three, how would we deal with the dust that our mystery villain has collected?"

"I trust Roman; I know that isn't a guarantee, but I really believe he wants a way out for him and Neo. I believe he'd be able to manage the first issue well enough on his own, but as for the third, I'm not entirely sure yet."

"...Jaune, if Roman was to act as an informant, he would continue to steal dust, wouldn't he?"

"Yes?"

"Dust that my family's company produces?"

"Are you suggesting…"

"We need to talk to Ironwood before putting this towards my father. I imagine he won't be pleased that you told me all this, but it's too late for that. Let's hurry back to the academy."

The former ten minute walk became a three minute sprint as the two hightailed it towards the general's office. The two practically lunged into the elevator before Whitley began to pace back and forth muttering to himself. As the elevator began to slow, the two exited and stood outside the doors to General Ironwood's office. The two teens nodded to each other and Jaune pressed the button to alert the headmaster of their presence.

There was a tense moment of silence, before the doors opened and the two slowly entered the room.

"I'll call you back Oz."

The headmaster ended a holo-call with Beacon's headmaster, pinching the bridge of his nose as he did so before managing to address his students.

"Jaune, Schnee, what brings you here?"

Whitley took a step forward before he began.

"Sir, it has to do with Torchwick."

The older man sent an exasperated glare towards the blonde before he responded.

"Jaune, I know I didn't say it, but I thought that it was obvious that anything you heard in Intel was classified."

"I'm sorry General, I really am, but the reason I told Whitley was because I had a feeling we could figure something out about Roman's interrogation."

The disciplined man looked at the two with an inkling of interest before he motioned for them to continue.

"So far, all Roman really gave you was the locations of every store house he knows about. There's no guarantee that whatever he's stolen is still in the same places they were. And when you brought up his boss, he didn't tell you what she looked like, but what she acted like."

"Yes, this could all be some elaborate act to throw me off so he can escape-"

"Or it's an attempt to get you to see eye-to-eye on a bigger threat."

Whitley took the reins of the conversation again as he continued to speak.

"Torchwick gave you strategically invaluable information. There'd have been no gain to revealing that he was merely a pawn. Furthermore, giving you the locations of where they'd been storing the stolen dust has no benefit to them either, as it sets you upon their trail."

Whitley looked over to Jaune, giving a nod, and the blonde took that as his queue to pick up the explanation.

"We came to the idea that maybe Roman really does want to work with you to get rid of her, and if you two can't reach an agreement, he-"

"I'd still have the information he'd given us to begin coordinating with Ozpin and Vale to exterminate this new threat…"

The man leaned forwards with his elbows on his desk, fingers laced together as he thought. Jaune, seeing that he didn't plan to share his thoughts yet, continued.

"Sir, we already know what Roman wants from the deal. He wants to keep his freedom, but more importantly, he wants his life back. He's willing to give you anything you could ask for, but we think the reason he's holding off on describing his boss is because he wants a guarantee. Not just that you'll actually hold your end of the deal, but that you can actually follow through and get rid of her."

The older man stood from his seat before talking around and walking towards the windows of his office, looking out over Atlas as he responded.

"I have the man responsible for millions in armed theft here, in my custody. Do you truly believe that I can afford to let one of the world's most wanted men just leave?"

"What if you got more use from him?"

All eyes were on Whitley as the teen spoke up.

"Have him become your informant. He obviously has more information that will be useful immediately, but having Torchwick relay to you what is happening before it ever does gives you the advantage."

"Roman Torchwick? As an informant? Let me ask you this: do you know what the most important thing is between an informant and who he reports to? Trust. You're suggesting I trust an infamous criminal con-man, to be MY eyes and ears in another Kingdom. The potential political damage that he could do to Atlas's image would be irreparable."

"But there's a chance you could save lives."

Whitley and Ironwood turned to Jaune as the blonde teen spoke.

"General, I know you can't trust Roman. But there was a time when Roman was a huntsman too. All he wants is to prevent a tragedy from happening in his home. He's desperate. Desperate enough to be willing to cooperate with you to get rid of the person who has a hold on him. And while Vale might not be your kingdom, isn't the chance to stop something really bad from happening worth trying?"

"...There are too many factors we can't control."

"With all due respect Sir, I believe that isn't the case. If we can get our way, we should be able to manipulate the situation at any angle. If Torchwick steals dust, we'll not only know when and where he did, but maybe why he did, and arguably more importantly, where they're keeping it."

"And what about the store owners? Those are all independently owned retailers. If they keep having their stock stolen, they won't be able to recoup their losses. Do you realize that would ruin the livelihoods of innocent people?"

"That hasn't been a problem for them thus far, Sir. Torchwick never steals lien during his dust robberies, all in the interest of making his crime spree self-sustaining. He always takes just enough that the shops have time to recover from their losses before he hits them again. Of course, this can't go on forever, but Jaune and I may have thought of a way around that problem as well."

"And what would that be?"

"My father, Jacques Schnee."

---

(The Next Day)

The last twenty something hours had been rather comfy for Roman all things considered. He could tell that despite how none of the elite operatives surveilling him trusted him, they were being impossibly courteous to him, their captured criminal.

When the leader of the super troop returned, he pulled the team over and afterwards began checking on Roman almost as if he was a guest, definitely under the orders of the general, but who was he to complain.

Seeing the genuine irritation on the face of the spunky looking one was probably the most fun he'd had. Everytime he asked for anything, she had to use her semblance to run off and go retrieve it for him.

So far, for the last twenty odd hours, he'd feasted like a king in the confines of his hardlight cell, smoked some of the finest tobacco he didn't even like, drank his fill of expensive, overrated spring water, and most annoyingly, only managed to go even in a game of blackjack with Clover, something that astounded the rest of the Ace Ops for some reason.

A few hours ago, once he'd grown bored of the book the creepy one offered to him, he found entertainment pretending to sleep whilst he watched the womanly one, Elm if he remembered right, walk around and stretch. That was until he felt a chill down his spine, no doubt from Neo who'd caught on to what he was doing, though knowing her, she'd probably been doing the same thing.

The flame-haired thief sighed to himself, figuring it must've been getting close to when Neo would be through waiting. His musings were interrupted once he saw the Ace Ops beginning to move from their usual posts towards the elevator, which he now saw was making its way almost assuredly to where he was.

Getting up from his position, he made his way to the table that had been provided for him before straightening out his attire and taking a seat. A few moments expired before the doors parted to reveal a group that he'd mostly been expecting, with two exceptions. Standing in front of his hardlight cell was Jaune and Ironwood, the former of the two holding a scroll pad, flanked by Whitley and most surprisingly, Jacques Schnee.

The man held his tongue as Elm entered his cell holding a pair of dust cuffs, causing him to let out a sigh. He held his arms out over the table, and waited as she came and latched them to his wrists. She didn't apologize, but she gave him a look he wasn't quite sure of, before watching very attentively as she turned around to leave his cell.

Her and the rest of the Ace Ops held a conversation with the General, and as he watched, he felt a tap on his shoulder from his concealed partner. The elite operatives exited via the elevator, before the four entered his hardlight cell, with Jacques and Ironwood taking the two seats at his table opposite him, while Jaune and Whitley stood.

"Well General, I must say I'm honestly surprised. I didn't expect the little Schnee to be seeing me again so soon, but I never imagined in my wildest dreams that Jacques Schnee himself would take the time out of his day to come visit me."

The white-haired man combed his mustache as he studied the criminal before him. After a quick glance around at the items on the table, Jacques decided to respond.

"Roman Torchwick, the criminal who's been interfering with my company's business."

The man reached up and pulled off his hat, giving it a flourish before replacing it onto his head as he responded in kind.

"In the flesh, though in all honesty, I never wanted for us to be meeting like this."

"I understand you have expensive tastes."

"Only the finest for me and mine."

"Cocktail?"

"Martini. Vesper."

"Scarfs."

"For the poor. Ascots."

"Coffee?"

"Menagerian."

"Clothes?"

"Made to order. Mistrali only."

"Watch."

"Codex. Vacuan rocks"

"Hmm…Brogues?"

"Perish the thought. Oxfords."

The man leaned back in his seat with the smallest hint of a grin.

"You may be a criminal, but you have class."

"Sir, I'm both the gentleman, and the thief. One does not acquire as much renown as I have without knowing what's truly valuable."

Ironwood took this as the moment to interject himself, ready to begin the important conversation that the criminal had likely been preparing for.

"Alright Torchwick, let's get serious."

The general nodded towards Jaune, and the teen pressed a button on the scroll pad, and after a few seconds of waiting, Ozpin's face appeared. The teen used the kickstand and propped the scroll up at the end of the table before taking a step back.

"Ozpin…"

"Hello Roman. I trust the General has been treating you well?"

"Well~ my room has a bit too many windows but all in all, none the worse for wear."

The spectacled man made a semi-amused sound before he looked towards Ironwood.

"James, would you like to start?"

The man in question nodded before he looked towards the flashy criminal.

"Protection, full pardons, reinstatement of your huntsman status, and the right to keep anything you've stolen. Those were your demands, correct?"

"Yes they are."

"Then before we go any further, here are our demands. You've already given us the locations of all dust storehouses you're aware of, in addition to this, you'll become our informant."

Roman felt Neo's grip on his shoulder tighten, but kept a straight face as he continued to listen.

"You will keep track of every known location that holds the stolen dust, and are responsible for minimizing property damage and preventing casualties where possible. You'll give us the names, descriptions, and other pertinent information about the woman controlling you as well as those surrounding her. If and when their plans escalate, you are to coordinate with us to prevent any and all acts of terrorism that would lead to mass panic. These conditions are non-negotiable."

Roman kept a straight face as he watched the general slide a few papers and a pen across the table before he continued to speak.

"In exchange, we are prepared to offer you a deal. Your protection and pardons for your crimes, reinstatement of your huntsman license, and we will allow you to keep any money you've made or items you've come into possession of during your tenure as a criminal."

Jacques chose this moment to interject himself.

"In addition to this, I'm willing to sweeten the deal by remunerating you for every month this goes on until the nonsense in Vale concludes."

Ironwood gave a sideways glance towards the Schnee patriarch, as that little detail hadn't been a discussed quantity during their own negotiations. All eyes were on the classy criminal as he stared down at the paper before him.

"...It truly does seem like this is a perfect deal."

"Then why does it sound like you're still having doubts."

"This deal, I'm willing to sign right now if it extends to my closest supporters."

Ironwood crossed his arms as he sat in his seat, glaring at Roman.

"That wasn't discussed before Torchwick; you can't expect me to extend this dea-"

"That is doable."

Ozpin's comment turned heads towards the device he was speaking from before he continued.

"If it means exterminating the cancer slowly seeping into my Kingdom, then so be it. Since we're already giving my former student a second chance, what's a few more?"

The disciplined man pursed his lips as he tried to contain his agitation from both Jacques and Ozpin. He rolled his shoulders before deciding to have a word with the both of them later, and watched as Roman picked up the pen and signed his name on the line. The flame-haired man set the pen down upon the papers before sliding it across to the Atlesian headmaster.

"Since you've made your decision, know this: you'll be assigned a handler. Their purpose is so that if you can't reach me, they'll be in Vale with their identity concealed so that they may pass along any information, messages, or warnings you have."

'So I'll have a parole officer…not the most spectacular thing in the world, but it shouldn't be a problem.'

At Roman's nod, Ironwood continued speaking.

"Since you've agreed to this, it's time to explain Jacques's reason for being here. Your crime spree, though sufficiently self-sustaining, can't last forever. Jacques has agreed to reimburse the shops you rob with dust to immediately replenish their inventories. Don't change your planning to account for this, obviously, but it was decided you should know his involvement."

Ironwood passed the papers in front of him to Jacques for the man to sign as he continued to talk.

"Most importantly. At some point during your infiltration, you'll need to either allow yourself to be captured…or fake your death."

The classy criminal hid his desire to swallow the lump in his throat masterfully before he responded.

"What'll happen then?"

"That's when we'll reveal to the world that everything you've done as a world renowned criminal was an act. It will be a hard sell, but, with ample planning, a few bribes, and just enough political favors on short notice, we can make it work."

Jacques passed the paper now bearing his signature to the general, who sent a look towards Ozpin.

"As, of course, I'm not there James, let my verbal assent serve as my signature."

The man nodded before picking up the pen and letting it hover near the line awaiting his signature. All minds present were slightly anxious as the point of the pen continued to hover above the line before it was moved away from the paper and put down. The air thickened immediately, but neither Jaune nor Whitley knew what to say. Ironwood laced his fingers together, as he stared down Roman.

"I don't trust you,"

All present watched silently as the disciplined man continued.

"Since you've arrived, you've done nothing except be entirely cooperative."

"And despite that, you still do-"

The general held up his right hand, interrupting Roman. He kept the hand in place as he used his other hand to remove his right glove, earning a tired exhale from Ozpin and widened eyes from everyone else. The room continued to watch silently as the robotic hand loosed his collar before unbuttoning the top button, revealing a piece of metal where his sternum should be.

"Do you know what S.O.P's are?"

Seeing Torchwick remain silent, Ironwood resumed.

"Standard operating procedures, things to fall back onto when you don't know what to do; things to live and die by. When I was only a few months out of the academy, my battalion and I were sent to do a routine inspection of our sector's part of the wall surrounding Mantle. A few people lost their nerve, forgot what they were trained to do in that situation, and suddenly everyone began to panic, a few grimm turning into hordes. That was the day I lost my right arm from the elbow down."

The battle-hardened man took a pause, allowing the room to digest his words before he spoke again.

"Years later, I'd risen through the ranks and became one of few selected to become specialists, alongside two lifelong friends of mine. We were on a classified assignment somewhere that doesn't matter, and after completing our mission, while waiting for the bullhead that would take us home; my…best friend and I were having a conversation. He told me how he'd found out he was going to be a parent, and he wanted me to be his daughter's godfather."

The man's hands clenched together as he grit his teeth, the faint sound of metal straining audible to everyone.

"In the next second, everything was mute and there was blood on his face. I don't know what happened after that, only that when I came to, I had the entire right side of my body from the neck down replaced with metal. Do you know what I found out? Marcus, the other friend that was there with us, turned traitor. Someone I'd have gladly died for, cut me in half, and left my best friend's daughter fatherless. The only reason I'm here today was because Karna had to have used his semblance to prevent me from dying."

The disciplined man refashioned his buttons before returning his tie to its usual, uncomfortably tight, resting place before continuing to speak.

"What happens next time? I replace more of my body with metal? Or do I get killed; put into a coffin with no one to mourn me, before I can finish doing everything I envisioned. But…I don't get to think so small now that I'm the General. The next time I put my trust in the wrong place…it could cost innocent people their lives. So you tell me Torchwick: why should I trust you. Why should I risk hundreds, maybe thousands of lives to bring you into the fold."

The air was stiff as ice but as hot as an inferno whilst the room rested deathly quiet. Roman leaned back in his chair thinking about what he was going to say, after all, what were the odds that someone probably more paranoid than even him was the right place to put all your chips. He knew that Neo was ready to make their quick escape, but with a steady breath that concealed just how terrified he truly was, the dapper criminal decided he was tired of running away.

"Neo. Show yourself."

There was a momentary pause, before the air shattered to reveal a very on edge girl with her hand on Hush's handle, ready to be drawn in the blink of an eye if needed.

"Drop it Neo."

The girl bared her teeth in disbelief and anger towards her partner, something she could count the number of times she'd done on one hand, as she looked at him.

"Trust me. We'll get through this, I promise."

The petite assassin clenched a fist before dropping Hush onto the table and standing next to Roman with her hands holding onto his coat.

The general watched, not pleased that his best security measures wouldn't have prevented these two from escaping.

"...Ironwood."

The exhausted Atlesian leader looked to the flame-haired criminal as he began to speak.

"The woman controlling me; her name is Cinder. She's about five foot eleven with black hair and golden eyes. She's on the paler side, and fights with swords or a bow. She has two lackeys; one of them is Emerald. Dark skinned, red eyes, mint-green hair, and uses some rather nasty gun-sickles. Her semblance lets her play with people's minds, but Neo thinks it has a limit. Finally, Mercury. Almost exclusively fights with his legs, his boots are his weapons. Pale, silver hair, gray eyes, white aura, but I've never seen his semblance."

With that, Roman looked back up to the ceiling as he waited silently for the verdict. A soft scratching was heard, and when he looked back down, the general, though still conflicted, had just finished penning his name onto the paper.

"In the interest of saving lives, I…am going to take a chance on you; give you the opportunity to help us and save yourselves from what has you two so desperate. So, I hope you fully understand the gravity of the situation."

Neopolitan looked genuinely shocked at Ironwood's choice, and after a few clicks on the General's scroll, Roman felt his restraints unlock and slip from his wrists. The two looked at each other, unbridled emotion in their eyes as Ironwood addressed his two students.

"Jaune, Schnee. Everything that has transpired is considered confidential, and what's going to be discussed from here on even more so. You two are dismissed, take the break to grow closer with your teams as you unwind."

The two wordlessly nodded to the General before stiffly walking towards the elevator. After the doors closed and they felt themselves begin to rise, the two teens nearly collapsed, using each other and the elevator walls to hold each other up as they gulped down air. The two stood there awkwardly before Jaune's knees gave out, him falling to the floor and bringing Whitley with him.

By the time the elevator doors opened, the Ace Ops were greeted with two teens resting against the elevator walls looking sick. Elm and Marrow were quick to help the two teens to their feet before the two co-leaders began to shamble down the hallway using the handrail as support.

Jaune looked to his friend and wanted to thank him, but before he could say anything, the white-haired teen let out a chuckle, followed by a few more. It must've been infectious as Jaune just knew he was feeling exactly what Whitley was in that moment as he began laughing as well. If anyone were to have passed down the hall within the next few minutes, they would have seen two teens laughing hysterically as they laid against the wall.

---

(Later That Evening)

Having postponed their squad sleepover, the eight teens now lazed around in JCKP's room, enjoying having everyone back together after the scare in Anima. Jaune and Penny had been whispering together in a corner of the room for a while now, despite the constant catcalls Neon kept making when their faces were hidden.

The green-eyed girl took a deep breath as she walked mechanically to the center of the room, gathering everyone's attention.

"Friends, do you remember the night before our assignment how I said there was a secret I wanted to share with you?"

A few silent nods was her answer as she sat down on the floor. Her hand hovered over a portion of her arm before she closed her eyes and pushed down, a slide moving away to reveal the machinery underneath. The silence persisted for a few moments before she cracked her eyes open while facing Jaune. To her surprise, he seemed amused as he looked at her before nodding towards the rest of their friends.

Flynt and Whitley seemed surprised, but nothing too outlandish of reactions. Ivori looked up from his book before smiling at the girl and returning back to his literature. Kobalt actually looked excited, most likely at the prospect of sparring with her. But the most shocking reaction for the android was Neon and Ciel's; the feline faunus just staring at her with her usual smile and the dark-skinned girl continuing to file her nails.

"...Huh?"

At this, Ciel looked over at Neon, nodding before resuming work on her nails as Neon took the stunned gynoid's hands in her own.

"Hon. You've never gone to the ladies' room, or done makeup, or eaten with us, and your hair is always perfect. By default, you fall under the A.R.A. rule for women."

"The A.R.A. rule?"

"Angel, robot, or alien."

Penny looked over to Ciel before her eyes met with all her friends around her. No disgust, no distrust, no doubts. She wasn't sure what the feeling was that began to bloom from her chest, but she did know that despite her greatest efforts, she couldn't keep the smile from being on her face. The group was about to fall back into their usual conversations before Penny remembered something.

"OH! Partner!"

"Yeah? What's up?"

"You used the engraver today when you visited my father's laboratory today! Did you finally come up with a name for your weapon?"

This got all eyes on the blonde as he answered the ecstatic girl.

"Yeah…yeah I did. Dia Somniator."

"Dia…Somniator?"

The blonde looked down at his hands as he began to explain.

"It means something in the language my fam…my old family made me learn."

"What does it mean?"

The blonde looked towards them with a grin as he answered.

"Daydreamer."

---

(Ironwood's Office)

The doors to James's office opened and he heard the familiar clack of heels behind him from where he looked out of his window.

"Sir."

"Welcome back to Atlas. Apologies for calling you back from your mission Winter, but I have a new assignment for you."

---

(A/N)

Kept you waiting, huh?

Sorry this took so long, this is the longest chapter I've ever written, coming in at around 18,200 words before the note, which equals out to about six of my normal length chapters.

Anyway, not much to say here, next season will be quicker, both in writing and in pace, but I won't bore you with everything to come.

As usual, I'll leave a link to the discord below, you have to add the stuff that's supposed to come before on your own, but if you ever wanted to come drop by.

Only other thing I can think of is to ask you guys to leave me some lengthy reviews, your thoughts help me to improve and challenge myself as a writer.

See y'all in the next chapter,

B.J.H.