Author's Note:

I needed to do a slight edit to this chapter. There's a scene transition that I forgot to add the usual break for, making the transition very confusing. My I was at it, I went back and changed a few things for some of the previous chapters as well. Some minor mistakes. I have no idea if this will spam you with notifications. If it does, I apologize.

Chapter 26. Nearly 120,000 words now. My longest story yet and still so far to go. I'm glad you're all enjoying it. It gives me the motivation to keep going.

"Text"

"Speech"

Disclaimer: I do not own Fallout, RWBY, or any associated characters.

Remnants of a Courier

Chapter 28: Differing Perspectives

It was a quiet day. A day off that Six could actually enjoy for once. There was nothing to do, no tasks from Roman nor annoyances from Ozpin. All of his projects and plans were proceeding as normal.

He could go and create equipment, research more about this world, or any number of things. But for once, Six wanted a small break. One day in the last seven months he had been on Remnant. Just one day to himself.

The Courier decided to relax in his room and keep up on a hobby he hadn't had time for in a very long time. Wood carving.

His knife slid along the surface of the small chunk of wood with ease. When he was younger, Six's father had taught him how to do this. One needed to be able to make their own equipment and wood could be used for many things. It was one of the only positive things his father had ever taught him.

The chunk of wood was barely starting to be shaped into more than just a blob when Six heard a knock at the door. People generally didn't just drop by his room.

With a reluctant sigh, the Courier stood up before grabbing his uniform's helmet and moving over to the door. He checked his Pip-Boy as its screen lit up. Ozpin wouldn't approve but he had installed a camera just outside his door. Peepholes were dangerous.

The screen revealed Weiss Schnee on the other side of his door. The girl seemed nervous as she glanced from side to side. What did she want?

Six went to work unlocking several mechanisms on his side of the door. Some would call him paranoid; he would call them lazy. This was followed by him donning his helmet.

"Something I can do for you," Six greeted as the door swung open.

The girl looked slightly startled from the door being thrown open but composed herself before looking up at him. Probably didn't help that she was already nervous.

The teenager looked him over for a moment as a quizzical look replaced her previous flustered one.

"Do you always wear a helmet?"

"Yes. Now, is there something you need," Six asked, doing his best to maintain a neutral tone. If he was being honest, Six shared that anxious feeling that Weiss was having. The girl brought back a lot of unpleasant memories for him.

Weiss met his gaze; seemingly more relaxed. "I need your advice on a matter."

Oh, more life tips? The Courier could help with that. It wasn't anything invasive and if it helped her it also helped to soothe his conscience.

"Come in," he replied as he stepped back and out of the way. Weiss took the opportunity to step past him and into the room.

Her eyes curiously shifted around the room. It was the first time a student had entered his room. Six took a second to eye it himself.

His room wasn't fancy or decorated. In fact, the only thing to indicate anyone was living there were the various tools and books on his desk that created a small clutter. A utilitarian approach was an efficient approach in Joshua's mind.

"Cleanly," Weiss commented as she turned around to face him.

The instructor nodded his head before moving over to the chair by his desk. "Feel free to take any drink from the fridge and find a seat."

The future huntress declined his offer for a drink but did move over to his bed before sitting. A shame, Six had taken time to stock that mini-fridge with any non-alcoholic drink he could get his hands on.

It was a bit of a hobby for Joshua as the food and drinks in this world were probably his favorite aspect of it. The variety, the taste, and the abundance all blew the Mojave out of the water.

The White Glove Society was the only thing that even came close in terms of food. No one here was serving him people so Remnant had a one up there.

"So," Weiss began before looking down. "I have an issue… No, a disagreement. With a friend…" The teenager's reluctance to find her words indicated this was a sensitive topic to her.

Six waved for her to continue. "There's a problem that we both disagree on how to solve… We're both… Passionate about the subject."

Joshua remained silent as Weiss wrung her hands together while continuing, "we can't come to an agreement and it's not only hurting our friendship but those around us as well."

"Is it one of your team members?" Joshua needed to get this out of the way if he was going to give advice to her. Weiss skirting around the issue wasn't helping. Besides, who else could it be? Weiss had a very small circle of friends.

The white-haired girl nodded her head before replying, "I think it's hurting the team dynamic and we'll fail if this continues."

Six sat in silence for a few moments before leaning against the back of his chair. "First," House began as he held up a single finger. "Tell me what upsets you about the situation."

He held up a second finger before continuing, "second, tell me what you think upsets your friend about the situation."

A pensive look crossed Weiss's face as she considered his words. Her gaze wandered to the window before she said, "I… Hate how she won't even recognize what my family has been through. How we've suffered. How she thinks the problem is the solution. It's infuriating."

The student's tone was still quiet but it held an anger behind it that indicated some level of hurt. He needed to be careful with his words.

"And your friend?"

"She… I…" At this part, Weiss seemed to be stumped as words were failing her. Her eyes remained firmly on the window as she tried to find an answer.

"May I give some advice?" Six's question caused the girl to look up at him. A quick nod of her head was all the confirmation he needed.

"I don't know the whole situation but if I had to guess… Your friend feels very much the same way. I would try looking at things from her point of view and understanding why she feels that way."

There was a pause from him as he leaned down to open the mini-fridge and take out a beverage. Some fizzy drink called "Dusty's Dust."

"I'd also ask her to try and understand things from your point of view. More importantly…" Six paused again as he opened the plastic bottle causing a small fizzling noise to fill the room.

"Make her feel validated in her opinions. That what she says matters to you and vice versa. Teams are built on understanding, communication, and trust. Show her that you trust her."

Six lifted the helmet just enough to slip the bottle under and put the top to his lips. It was a sour something drink. He didn't know many of the common flavors Remnant had. Something akin to it at least. The carbonization made his mouth tingle. The feeling reminded him of Nuka-Cola.

Joshua lowered the bottle down before saying, "that's the best advice I can give you without knowing the entire situation."

Weiss seemed to be in thought as she stared through him, not really paying attention to the room. Six hoped what he said worked. He did believe it but at the same time it was shit he pulled out of his ass.

To lighten the mood House let out a small chuckle before saying, "and you know, try not to be an asshole about it. People don't usually appreciate that."

The light glare he got from Weiss told him that those were the wrong words to say. She really was a stickler in the mud. He shrugged before taking another drink.

There were a few more moments of silence before Weiss finally spoke. "I… I think I understand." That was a good sign. "It's a matter of having perspective… Right?"

"Right, then you've already taken the first step. Considering other perspectives." Six tapped his foot against the floor while continuing, "was that all you needed?"

Six watched as Weiss's hair waved from side to side as she shook her head. "No, I think that's it. You've been… Helpful."

"Right," he responded as his helmet came back down. The Courier stood up before heading over to the door. "I think the best thing you could do is to start right now. Try to have a civil discussion."

"Of course," the girl answered as she hopped off of his bed; landing with a quiet thud against the floor. "A Schnee can always be civil."

Six's eyes couldn't roll any harder under his helmet as he opened the door for her. "I'll be here if you ever need more advice."

"Thank you, I'll be sure to think of you," the now confident girl answered as she moved past him and into the hall. "Have a good day mister House."

"To you as well miss Schnee." Six punctuated his answer by slowly closing the door. He didn't want to be rude to the first person that actually remembered to call him mister House.

Joshua waited for a few moments and listened to the sounds of her footsteps slowly fading down the hall.

Well, that was a brief distraction at least. Back to relaxing.

Six turned before he heard another knock at his door and he could feel his hand involuntarily twitch in aggravation. Whoever this was needed a good reason for bothering him now.

The door was once more swung open to reveal…

"Hey House. So, I noticed the beautiful Weiss come by and was just stopping by to possibly ask what she was talking about… And also for your advice…"

It was Jaune. Jaune was going to die if he didn't leave right this second.

"No," Joshua replied before going to close the door.

The corner of the door instead hit and squished Jaune's foot between it and the doorframe. A small whimper of pain came from the other side.

"C-Come on p-professor, I just need five minutes!"

Jaune was at least persistent if nothing else. A thing that would have gotten him killed in the Mojave. Still, he couldn't kill the kid and Jaune wasn't going to go away for the next hour if he didn't get what he wanted. Six had seen it before on the monitors as Jaune badgered Weiss nonstop for hours on end.

After a few seconds, the door opened once again and Jaune with a large smile on his face greeted Six.

"Five minutes, then get out. Also, I'm not a professor."

The blonde boy nodded his head ecstatically as he moved into the room. "Perfect, okay, first question…"

Jaune moved to the center of the room before turning to House as he asked, "what did Weiss want to talk with you about."

Joshua closed the door before moving back over to his chair. "It wasn't about you and that's all you need to know," Six answered while sitting down.

A look of disappointment crossed Jaune's face before it quickly turned to a nervous expression. "How can I get Weiss to like me?"

That was what this was about? Six was two seconds away from strangling Jaune. One more stupid question and the fake Ulysses likely wouldn't be able to control himself.

"You probably can't. She doesn't like you. In fact, she actively dislikes you. I'd say it borders on hate but that would be an understatement. You're the opposite of everything she looks for and it would take forces outside of your control to change her mind about you. Also, stalking Weiss to my room isn't romantic."

Six had never seen Jaune get sad that quick before. Sure, Cardin's bullying could get to him but the current frown and expression on the kid's face spoke of shattered pride and ego. At his last statement, Jaune seemed to panic for a moment.

"I-I wasn't-" Jaune didn't get to speak again as he was cut off by House.

"You want my advice? Go for that Pyrrha, the girl you're always with," Six continued as he leaned back in his chair. "You're always with her and she doesn't seem to hate your company."

In the last minute, Jaune's expressions had changed drastically. Curious, sad, flustered, and now confused were all emotions he had been displaying.

"Pyrrha? N-No, she wouldn't like me… She's basically the best in our class. Heck, maybe even the entire school. She wouldn't go for a nobody like me…"

Six's—totally not creepy—spying through the various cameras around Beacon said otherwise.

"Are you… Serious right now?" House's question caused the blonde teen to look at him with a confused expression.

"Do you always wear a helmet even when you're in your room by yourself?" Jaune's question nearly sealed his fate along with Six's hands around the kid's throat.

"Yes, and you are an idiot," the Courier began before pointing at him. "Pyrrha has a crush on you. She hangs off you like a lost puppy and I'm pretty sure she's been keeping secrets for you as well."

The blonde's face paled at the mention of secrets but he didn't say anything yet.

"She never gives anyone else the attention that you get. I don't know why, I haven't talked with her, but she seems to really like you."

That pale face was quickly growing a flush as House's words finally sank into the teenager's head. Maybe the truth would do the boy some good.

"Stop trying to go after Weiss and recognize what's in front of your face." Joshua tilted his head back before bringing his hands to the front of his helmet. "Why are teenagers so dumb?"

It went quiet for a bit. Six didn't bother to look at the kid and let himself calm down. Ozpin would have another "bonding session" with him if he didn't keep his cool.

Eventually, his gaze shifted down to the teen again. His eyes gazed upon a perplexed Jaune. A contemplative look had donned the kid's face. That was a first.

There was another moment of silence before Jaune finally spoke. "I… Wow. I never even knew. I don't know how to process that…"

"Well, give it some thought," Joshua began as he stood up and moved to the door. "And decide somewhere outside my room."

"Y-Yeah… I, wait… I did have one more question for you." Jaune had taken a few steps towards the door before he stopped. Six's eye twitched.

"What?"

"Why did you say yes to training me? Outside of when you were supposed to." That curious expression graced Jaune's face again though it wasn't as happy this time thanks to Six's explanations.

It was a good question from Jaune. One that made Joshua pause and think for a moment.

"Because Ozpin said something to me and I wanted to see what he meant," Six replied as he ushered the blonde out the door. "Your five minutes are up."

"What was it," the teenager asked as he stared at House from the hall.

"He said that you have potential."

Six didn't bother waiting for a reply as he said, "have a nice day Jaune," before closing the door.

The locks slid back into place ensuring no one would bother House again for the time being. He let out a sigh as he moved back over to his chair. Six could finally get back to carving and relaxing.

The Courier set his fizzy drink down; it having gone somewhat flat by now due to the lengthier conversations with Weiss and Jaune. What a shame.

Just as he sat down, the Courier's Pip-Boy buzzed. Someone was calling him. He gave the screen a glance and didn't recognize the caller. If it was Roman, he was going to be in for a bad time…

There was a small click as he picked up the call. "Hello?"

"Is this Joshua," a distinctly feminine voice asked from the other line. The Courier's heart began racing as someone who knew his previous name had just called him. Who could it be?

He did his best to remain calm and discern who the caller was as he replied, "I… Think you have the wrong number."

The voice on the other end grew poutier as they said, "no, my papa and me spent a long time finding this number. I don't know why you'd try to lie about knowing me or papa."

Oh, this was a surprise. It wasn't nearly as bad as he thought. Still, was it a good idea to stay in contact with her?

On one hand, it could be inconvenient to remain in contact with her. If she called during a poor time, or if some of his "bosses" got wind, the Spring family could be in trouble. On the other hand, there was a part of him that enjoyed her company.

Six took one last breath before saying, "is this Carmine?"

"It is! It took us so long to find your number!" Carmine's voice was ecstatic now that her theories were confirmed. Honestly, Six was surprised too. Who would have thought they would have been able to track him down?

"How come you didn't call in five months? You're supposed to visit twice a year you know!" Okay, this should have been something he had seen coming. It had been a long and weird day so far.

"Right, I was going to… But it just slipped my mind…"

"It slipped your mind for five months," Carmine chided from the other end. Six could imagine her pouting face. Her red hair being frizzled as always and her eye staring up at him with both irritation and excitement. Memories that brought a smile to him.

"Well, I was busy…"

"I know! Papa said you got a job at Beacon! A HUNTSMAN academy!" The girl emphasized "huntsman" in a shrill and explosive voice. "You should tell me about it!"

There was a pause from the other end of the line before the child continued, "papa says hi too."

"Tell Richter I said hello back."

"He says hello," a much more distant Carmine said before her voice became loud again. "So, what's it like?"

"Well," Six said as he lifted himself above the chair in a squatting position before grabbing it and turning towards his desk. "I act as security. Basically, I watch cameras all day and make sure none of the students are getting into trouble."

"Is there a lot of trouble?"

"Not too much usually," Six answered while moving his hand back over to the piece of wood he was carving. Maybe he could make a gift for Carmine?

"So… It's boring?"

"Not at all," he responded as he removed his helmet before placing it on the table. "It's interesting to see how huntsman and huntresses develop into what they are."

The Courier grabbed the carving along with his combat knife as he continued, "plus a few get rowdy every now and then and I have to keep them in check."

"Hold on a second." Six heard Carmine speak and waited patiently for her to continue as he began cutting. The paw on the small piece of wood now had a leg to match it.

A few moments later and his Pip-Boy pinged again. The hand holding his knife tapped a few buttons on the holographic projection before a larger screen came into view before him.

On the screen was the red hair of Carmine looking away from the camera. She was staring at the dining room table in their home and to the man seated there.

Richter looked the same as usual, his short grey beard still seemed like it needed a trim as it was slowly growing into a lengthy mess.

"Papa, you're on," the girl said causing the older man to turn. He waved before taking a bite of the piece of toast he was currently having.

"At least say hi," she continued but the older man shrugged in response. When Carmine turned back to the camera, she was sporting one of her infamous pouts. "Sorry Joshua, papa isn't great with modern stuff."

"I am too, I just don't get why a phone call isn't suitable enough for a conversation. And don't you forget who made you that scroll!" Richter's words reminded Six of the skillsets the old man had. When it came to hardware and smithing, there weren't many people who beat him.

The kid rolled her eyes before responding, "of course papa, I would never forget, but it's rude to not say hi."

A sigh escaped Richter. "Fine, fine. Joshua, good hearing from you. Make sure to come and visit so Carmine will stop nagging me about it. I mean she talks about it almost every-"

"Papa! Stop." The older man rolled his eyes at his daughter's words.

"I see you two are just as lively as always," the Courier commented causing Carmine to forget her father's words.

There was a quick nod from the girl as she replied, "well, nothing around here has really changed. Everyone was really on edge for a while after you left but nothing bad happened. Plus, the Grimm attacks stopped."

A likely cause of the last phenomenon was himself but he didn't bother to mention that. Instead opting to placate what he knew Carmine called him for.

"So, I know it's been a while. To make up for not keeping in touch I'll come to visit."

Carmine's face lit up at Six's words. "You mean it?"

There was a nod from the Courier as he continued, "yep. In about a month the academy will go on break for the students. Any break for them means a break for me. I'll get a few weeks off then and I'll use some of that time to come and visit. How does that sound?"

"Is that okay papa?" Carmine's question caused her father to look up from his food.

"Sounds good to me. Just keep all that drama at the capital there. I hear a lot of bad stuff is going on around the city and I'd hate it following you here." While Richter's words were seemingly joking, there was an undercurrent of seriousness to them. The older man knew the kind of work Six performed and didn't want it coming there.

"Right, nothing to worry about on my end," Six responded before turning his attention to the red-haired girl. "Anyone been messing with you around town Carmine?"

The girl had a thoughtful expression on her face as she tried to discern what the two adult's hidden conversation was but at the question, she shot him a smile.

"Nope, not since you left. Everyone was too busy getting the town back together and haven't really had time to focus on me." Despite the girl's words, there was a hint of sadness in her voice. Even if she wasn't being bullied, being excluded from the rest of the town must get tiring.

Joshua was about to ask another question when the girl looked at something on her scroll's screen.

"Oh wow, it's already getting to lunch. I need to head out to get papa and me food and groceries." Six nodded his head in response to Carmine's words.

"Sure thing Carmine, now that I have your number, I'll be sure to call more." Six did actually plan on calling more. It was nice to hear from someone that wasn't actively wanting anything but his company.

The girl gave him a thumbs up before saying, "thanks Joshua!"

"I'll talk to you later Carmine, have fun." Six waved to the camera as he spoke. Well technically to what the camera was scanning.

Since the Pip-Boy didn't have a camera built into it, live communication through the device was taken from a modification he made to the Pip-Boy. It would actively scan its surroundings—including him—and send an exact copy of him and his movements in 2D video format. Probably fairly advanced for this world so best not to tell the Spring family that part. It could probably do holographic communication if their scroll was advanced enough.

"By Joshua!" And with Carmine's last words, the connection closed, and he was left in the quiet of his room.

It was nice hearing from that family again. A good apple in a sea of problems. They were a good family. Family…

The thought caused him to set the carving he was working on down. Instead, he materialized an object he hadn't thought about since the Mojave.

A small silver locket he had retrieved during his last days on the Strip. Right when everything was going wrong. It brought back a lot of fond and painful memories.

He flipped it open to the image of a woman with long brown hair; a woman with a kind expression on her face. Next to her stood a small boy with black hair. The boy that hadn't gone through trauma and hardships. Who wasn't scarred by the Wasteland or the Mojave. Someone who should've saved that kind woman next to him.

His mind began to wander to the nightmares that had been reoccurring. It wasn't often but every few weeks he'd have that same dream from when he first came to Beacon.

Even now Six could recall in almost perfect detail his small and bloody form making for the door. The light blinding him as he opened it. The sight of his father over his mother…

The Courier shut the locket before dematerializing it. Thinking about that didn't help him right now. Maybe free time wasn't such a good thing for him. Six was starting to think off-days weren't meant for him.

To distract himself, he focused on recent developments with his current schemes and plans. Going over the events in his mind. All while carving the wood into something resembling a dog.

Six's two jobs paid for any expenses he might have but that wasn't nearly enough to fund what he had planned. Still, it was nice to have that extra bit of funding on the side for emergencies.

The Voidwalkers were not only paying for themselves but also bringing in a surplus as well. That was the idea behind the company but Six didn't expect it to be so successful so soon. It was a nice change of pace that things were just working out.

Likewise, the skimming operation he had going was coming along nicely. 300 accounts and counting were what he currently had access to. That was increasing the fund for the Voidwalkers by a good amount and left plenty on the side.

Still… Six needed an unreasonable amount of funds for what he had planned. So, thanks to his extra funds, the Courier set up one last money-making scheme.

This one used one of the spare warehouses he had bought out. One that had remained empty and abandoned for quite some time on the edge of town. A warehouse no one would go looting through.

Over the past month, he had been using the source code to most of the city's infrastructure to "move" certain items around. This included one printing press that was conveniently was lost in transit.

This was due to the driver's orders being changed by "perfectly legal software" to drop it off at a secluded location where the Courier received it.

That meant all he had to do was bring it back to the warehouse with supplies to keep it running. These supplies were also being generously donated by anonymous drop-offs that were scheduled by him using the same software.

With this unlimited access to Vale's security measures and records, it also meant he could erase these items having ever existed in the first place. For the most part. Some would come snooping but it was extremely unlikely anyone would put the disjointed pieces together.

This meant that he had an official printing press and a money-laundering scam going. The Courier could print his own currency, send it into the same offshore accounts he used before using smugglers, and use those to circulate that Lien back into the market.

In a week since he had set it up, the Courier had doubled his funding (which was already a considerable amount). This meant it was easy to pay for the automated defense system for the warehouse that would keep out any unwanted guests.

The Courier's successes so far made his mind relax from his previous thought trail. He was finally getting somewhere with funding and soon he'd be getting somewhere with information.

A few of the files on Ozpin's computer were heavily encrypted and were taking forever to decrypt but would likely contain information on what Cinder was after. But every day he was getting closer and closer to cracking the encryption.

Just a little bit longer and he'd have Cinder and Ozpin by the balls… Metaphorically speaking.

"Hey Weiss, welcome back!" Ruby's ever positive and loud attitude caused Blake's ears to twitch under her ribbon. She glanced up from her book—which totally wasn't a ninja romance novel—to spot the Ice Queen entering their room.

"Thanks Ruby," her partner replied as she stepped past Ruby. It was obvious there was something on Weiss's mind as she made her way over to the Faunus's position.

Blake was currently sitting on her top bunk above Yang who was watching something on her scroll sat on the bunk below her. She didn't care for her partner's taste in videos so Blake didn't often pay attention to what the blonde fighter was watching.

There was an awkward pause from Weiss as she stopped at the edge of the bed. What was she doing? Blake eyed her teammate's posture and the way Weiss was wringing her hands together.

The catgirl was about to speak but was cut off by Weiss. "I've been thinking about our conversation…"

Oh, that's what this was about. Blake glanced away from the heiress and to the wall. There was a part of her that wanted to yell at Weiss but another part of her that felt deep shame for what happened to her family.

The Schnee family wasn't without sin but they didn't deserve to have their father executed in front of them. Weiss was also keeping her secret about formerly being in the White Fang and being a Faunus.

Still, Weiss's anger extended to the entirety of the organization. There were plenty of people in the White Fang that wanted to do good. Adam and some of the other Faunus were confused about what "good" meant.

"And, I'm sorry," Weiss continued which caused Blake to turn back towards her. The Faunus's brow was raised in surprise. That… Wasn't what she expected to hear.

"I shouldn't have snapped at you earlier. I know we disagree on the White Fang but I should have controlled myself more. Tried to see things from your point of view."

While this was heartwarming to hear from Weiss, it also put Blake on the spot. She had no idea how to reply to that. Her mouth opened for a moment before closing again.

Weiss looked her dead in the eyes before continuing, "I know not every Faunus in the White Fang is a bad person. It's just…" The Ice Queen paused for a moment to press a palm against her own cheek.

"It's hard to see that after what's happened to my family. I hope you can understand. I'll try to see things from your perspective more."

Silence descended over the room as Blake searched for the right words. How was she even supposed to respond to something so heartfelt?

"I… Thank you Weiss." Blake finally settled on what she was going to say. It wasn't often that a Schnee would admit anything positive about White Fang members so she needed to encourage that.

"Thank you for not thinking everyone in the White Fang are monsters." Blake meant that for both the organization and herself. "I know they've done terrible things to the ones you love so… I appreciate your understanding." Dust she hoped that didn't sound cheesy or bad. She was trying!

"Thank you," Weiss muttered back before moving over to her bed and laying down. It seemed like it took a lot out of her to admit all of that.

But to Blake, there was more to it than that. The way Weiss was always nervous around her. How she acted during initiation. Some part of Weiss was still afraid of the White Fang and the memory of that day. That fear extended to her. It killed Blake inside to know that Weiss was afraid of her.

It had gotten better over the months they had lived together but judging by how that conversation went there was still some fear left. Blake would have to work on that. Weiss had to leave everything behind to come to Beacon. The former heiress needed support now more than ever.

The Faunus curled her knees to her chest as she tried to ignore the awkward aura that currently had the room in a death grip. Even Ruby seemed to be trying to find the right words to break the silence as she shifted her feet.

"So, you guys hear about professor House's girlfriend?" Yang had finally broken the silence. Though Blake couldn't see Yang's face from the top bunk, she could imagine the mischievous grin on it now.

"I think he actually prefers instructor House. And what?!" Ruby zoomed over to Yang as she spoke. "C'mon Yang, tell me more!"

"Alright, alright. Apparently, Cardin met the professor in the city when House was out on a date."

Blake tuned into this conversation. She always liked hearing about romance. Despite her distrust of House.

"Instructor," Weiss corrected from her spot on the bed. "And I don't think he would appreciate you gossiping about him."

"Oh come on Weiss, it's not hurting anyone." Yang's response got her a dirty look from the Ice Queen.

"Rumors are below a huntress," Weiss responded as her usual haughty tone returned.

"Does that mean you don't want to hear about what she looked like?"

A few seconds passed before Ruby intervened. "Well I want to hear about it!"

"Well Rubes, from what I understand. She was short and really pretty. Drop-dead gorgeous from what Cardin describes." Blake could see Yang get up from her position on the bed as she spoke.

"She had long black hair and a fairly nice figure. Almost as amazing as moi." As she spoke, Yang ran her hands down her sides. "What really got Cardin were her eyes. They were different colors."

Heterochromia was fairly rare even among Faunus. Blake was pretty interested in who this individual was. She was surprised that House would even consider dating.

The man was as paranoid as he was mysterious. No one knew what his face looked like and he always carried himself like he was expecting trouble. All anyone knew about him was that Ozpin hired him when he accepted Ruby into Beacon. And that he may be from Vacuo. It all seemed too suspicious to Blake.

Mix that with how similar his weapon design was to Six's, or should she call him the Mimic? It set off alarms in her head. She had only ever met the mercenary that one day but he had proved to be more than capable of murder.

It all seemed way too convenient to just be a coincidence. There had to be some connection there beyond that they both came from Vacuo.

She'd have to look into it after she got the White Fang rumors checked out. The rumors that the organization was running wild with Dust stealing and planning something. Why would the White Fang need that much Dust? Was it even them?

"The two were apparently holding hands too." Yang's words snapped Blake out of her musings. "I don't know about you but I'd love to know all of professor House's love life. It gets boring around here you know? Plus, the mysterious types are always pretty intriguing."

"Gross Yang," Ruby responded as she crossed her arms. "House is way older than us… I think?" A thoughtful looked crossed their leader's face. "You know, how old is House?"

"No idea," Yang replied as she moved back over to her bed. "Could go ask him."

Weiss looked over to the pair before responding, "probably not a good idea. I think it's his day off."

"Another time then," Ruby piped up before moving to the center of the room. "For now, let's do some team-building exercises!"

"You mean going to the cafeteria?" Yang's question earned her a nod from Ruby.

A pitch-black hand stretched outward as the fingers attached to it curled in an explorative manner. The forest it currently dwelled in was dark enough that it could almost disappear.

This form was still new to it but it was serving its purpose so far. The human city was interesting to learn about. They all went about their day like the darkness wasn't always creeping towards them; threatening to swallow humanity whole. Like ants that didn't know an anteater was looming.

Its prey was currently residing withing "Vale." The human name for both the city and the "country." Both human and foreign concepts to it. All that mattered was the prey.

If the humans were like ants, its prey was like a parasite. It hid within the city, preying on the inhabitants, before moving on to avoid danger.

Still, it couldn't just rush in and destroy the city. Alone the humans were weak, together they were dangerous. That was why it had created this form.

Its nonexistent eyes roamed up the hand and to its arm. It was slender, sleek, like the rest of its form. It supposed that it would be what the humans call "feminine" in appearance but that mattered little to it.

What did matter was this form made it easier to slip into the city. To discover its weaknesses. To spy on its prey. It only need wait for the right moment.

And with the plots of the undying one set in motion, that moment was coming soon. When its prey had initially moved into the city, it was frustrated at the protection it offered.

But as it gazed out over the army of Grimm it had assembled, enough to darken the landscape, it knew that its prey couldn't hide forever.

Author's Note:

Hey, dear reader, can you guess the Courier's remaining stats? Enhancements and all?

Current Gear:

(Warning: This list does not contain food, Chems, or other miscellaneous items.)

Burned Man's Armor

Elite Riot Gear (Modified: Mimic Edition)

Modified Stealth Suit Mk. II

Civilian Clothing

Beacon Uniform

Mysterious Magnum

Rebreather

Climbing Equipment

Maria

Survivalist Rifle

Modified Anti-Material Rifle.

YCS/186 Gauss Rifle variant.

C4 – Plastic explosives (4)

Detonator.

Frag Grenades (4)

Frag Mines (0)

Combat Knife.

Plasma Grenades (10)

S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Stats:

(The "+" stands for artificial boosts and perks that boost his stats past their base point. The more +'s, the more artificial boosts.)

Strength: ?

Perception: 10(+ +)

Endurance: ?

Charisma: ?

Intelligence: 10(+)

Agility: 10(+)

Luck: 5