Well, it's nearly the end of the year. And what better way to finish the year writing one last chapter. Enjoy.

Dark Souls: Embers of Remnant Volume II

Sixteen

Mark thine Warning

The sky had already begun to turn dark as multiple military trucks arrived at the mine's entrance. Team RWBY, JNR, Qrow and the Ace Operatives exited while Ash walked with them. Though all admired the new group's teamwork and fighting style, their attention was mainly towards the unkindled, as Ruby could not help but appreciate his Faraam Armour. "Wow! Is that your new armour, Ash? It looks so cool! Just by having a closer look, I'm betting that it's designed to withstand the cold. Is that why you switched it with your old one? That's really smart!"

"…" He didn't utter a word as he stared at her. Truth be told, he wanted an armour set that balanced between warmth and effectiveness in combat. He could have chosen many armours, but the Faraam set seemed most interesting. He could say the same for the others, especially for Weiss and Blake, but decided not to voice it out.

Speaking of voices, Marrow was still amazed by the earlier fight he and the others witnessed. "Man, you showed that abnormal Grimm who's boss, huh?"

"…" Again, the Unkindled was silent as he stared at the Faunus.

His silent stare made Marrow slightly uncomfortable. Elm can't help but comment on her teammate's uneasiness. "What's wrong? Afraid of the 'silent but deadly' type?"

He sheepishly replied while scratching the back of his head. "Uh… you could say something like that."

"At least all of us did our part of the job." Ash chimed in his unemotional tone, which would have gotten a reaction, wasn't it for the others truly admiring the Ace Operatives.

Everyone stopped in their tracks and saw a familiar figure speaking to a soldier. "Speaking of Jobs…" Clover said that further from where they were, General Ironwood was seen talking through the communicator before speaking to an Atlesian soldier, who eventually walked away. "Duty ever beckons." He glances at Jaune and Qrow. "You all hang back a second."

Ruby watches the Ace Ops walking away from them before letting out a sad sigh. Eventually, an idea pops into her mind and looks over at her teammates. "What do you guys want to do when we get back to Atlas? Sightseeing?" She let out a gasp as she had many ideas on her mind. "Oh, what should we visit first?"

The Faunus girl let out a yawn. "How about our beds?" She walks away from the group.

This causes the young leader to whine at their lack of enthusiasm. "Oh, come on, guys! This is a great time to go exploring! We haven't done that in so long!"

Weiss had to remind her of what they did before she, too, walked away. "Ruby, we just explored a whole continent on foot before flying to this one."

"Well, yeah, but... it was only the boring parts." She complained.

Her sister just crossed her arms over her chest. "We almost died."

"Pfft." Ruby waved her hands at Yang with an awkward chuckle, which made her walk away and be with the others. The younger girl then frowned and sighed sadly. But soon, she had her hopes up as Ash was beside her. "Oh, Ash! Would you and the Firekeeper accompany me in exploring?"

He was about to answer when… "Hey. Heads up." Qrow spoke to everyone still present.

They saw him pointing his thumb at Ironwood, who was talking to Clover while the other Ace-Ops walked away. Speaking of the General, he glances to where the others are. "Can I get the team leaders over here? There's something I'd like to discuss with you. You too, Qrow." He looked over at the new guy. "As well as you, Ash."

As mentioned, the three individuals walked to him, whereas Ash kept a slight distance. As the four were heading his way, the General had commanded Clover. "I need you on the ground but be subtle. If people see too many Huntsmen milling around, they'll get nervous."

The Ace Operative Leader salutes while nodding his head before walking away. "And Clover?" He turned around to see Ironwood looking at him. "Don't take Marrow." He looks over at the mentioned individual before looking back at him with a smile. He releases a chuckle and nods his head again. He walked towards his teammates and turned to Qrow, Jaune, Ruby, and Ash. The last of which he immediately spoke to. "Clover told me how you single-handedly fought against an Aberration Grimm in the mines alone. I was surprised to see them outside of the walls."

Ash didn't share the same reaction as him. "I was just doing my part, sir. Heard the Ace Ops have encountered them before."

Ironwood chuckled at Ash's blunt but humble words. "Likewise. But we can talk about that at another time. Right now, there are new problems in Mantle." He withdraws a Scroll from his pocket before it generates a hologram screen in the air in front of him. The left side of the screen displays an Atlas Military Police mugshot of a familiar man. In contrast, the right side shows a photograph of Forest's corpse in an alleyway in midtown Mantle. "Someone in Mantle is taking out public leaders who speak against Atlas. Specifically, people who speak out against me." Ironwood explained. "It didn't look like a pattern at first. But this is the third murder of its kind in the last week."

Jaune took a step forward as he recognised that face. "Wait a minute. That's the guy that rode with us after we were arrested." He looked at the side to see Ash and realised he wasn't there when he got arrested. "I-I mean when the three of us were arrested."

Ruby felt upset about the man's fate. "He, died?"

Qrow can't help but comment about the situation. "Your opposition in Mantle dropping dead isn't exactly a good look for you, huh?"

Ironwood deactivates the holographic projectile and puts his Scroll away. "Not really worried about my public image, but it is causing unrest. I think someone's trying to frame me and, by extension, Atlas. And it's working. That and more of those Aberration Grimms have only increased their presence outside of Mantle's walls."

This was taking a toll on the General's mental well-being. The blonde brought his point out. "Well, if it wasn't for the embargo making everybody so mad, people probably wouldn't be so quick to blame you for everything else." And that caused the General to look at him with a frown, and he awkwardly clears his throat before standing at attention. "S-sir."

"No. No, you're right." Ironwood spoke as he rubbed the bridge of his nose with his fingers. "Things in Mantle have been... hard to manage lately. I'm not blind to its issues. In fact, that's what I want to talk to you about." He looks to the sky to see Amity Colosseum. "With the launch of this mobile communications tower and tensions down in Mantle, I think there's a lot of good your teams can do here."

"Take my advice, will you?" Ash spoke without a hint of emotion. "Just take one step at a time. You don't have to do everything alone. If you don't, then things will be turned against you."

The General seemed to consider the Unkindled's words. "You seemed to be a wise one, Ash. It's no wonder your Firekeeper highly spoke of you." All of a sudden, his communicator beeps and puts his fingers on it. As he listened, the four heard him have a surprised tone. "What? Already? Here? No, it's fine. Let him land. I'll deal with him myself."

Seeing his reaction cause Ruby and Qrow to look at one another before looking at Ironwood. "More Mantle problems?" Qrow questioned the General.

Ash looked at the sky and saw a pure white airship fly by and notices that it has the SDC symbol on the side of the ship. He let a sigh escaped as he had a gut feeling as to know who was exactly coming. "Worse."

-Scene Change-

Team RWBY and General Ironwood were at the landing zone of the mine site while Team JNR and Qrow were standing further back. All of them were waiting for the individual to exit out of the ship. The all-girls team looked over to their side and saw Ash standing beside them. "You know Ironwood can deal with this." Weiss told him.

Ash looked back in acknowledgement, but it didn't deter him to leave. "That may be true. But I want to give my words to him. You know who's coming, right?" The former heiress felt uneased at his words.

As the ship's double door opened, all saw the individual exiting out from the ship with an angry look on his face. Jacques Schnee. "So let me get this straight, James." He began to walk while walking down the platform. "In addition to this nonsensical embargo of yours crippling my business, you've also decided you have the authority to commandeer private property?" He stops in front of Ironwood, who calmly stares back at him with his arms folded behind his back and watches Jacques aggressively pointing at him. "When the Council hears about this, you will never—"

"Actually, I've already informed them." Ironwood clarified to the SDC'S CEO. "As this is now the site of a classified military operation, it didn't even require a vote."

Jacques couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Didn't require a vote?!"

"You might want to brush up on Council law before you lose this upcoming election, Jacques." The General explained. "Now. I've allowed you to land here once as a courtesy. The next time, it won't be a friendly reception."

This made the other man glare at him. "Lately, you seem to forget who your friends really are. I'm going to get that Council seat, James, and maybe then, you'll—" His attention was turned behind Ironwood as he recognises someone within the crow. His daughter. "You…" He walked passed by the General while glaring at him in the process. "You roped my missing daughter into these schemes of yours, too? How long has she been back in Atlas? Did Winter know about this?"

Weiss became annoyed of her father's words, and she proceeded to step forward. "It was my decision to come here. Just like it was my decision to leave. Or have you forgotten all about that?"

Jacques turned towards her and glared harshly. "If you think I'm one to forget anything, girl, then you've misjudged the man your father is." The way he spoke to her made the Unkindled a bit irritated.

And Weiss responded with an attitude as she knew full too well what her father really is. "Believe me, I know exactly the kind of man you are."

That caused the SDC CEO to get angry at her words. "How dare you speak to me that way!? I have half a mind to—"

"Half a mind to what, Jacques?" Ironwood inquired to Jacques.

Said individual narrowed his eyes at her, then adjusts his cuff link, sighing angrily. "You know... your mother was devastated when you left." He sadly began to explain while hiding his smugness, which was obviously noticed by Ash as he began to look at him unemotionally and saw the ex-heiress began looking sad. "Didn't leave her room for days. You know how… she gets... when she's upset."

Jacques acts sad while he speaks, taking a moment to peek at Weiss' reaction. Her eyes glimmer with sadness, and she looks down with a frow. Ruby looks upset, and Blake and Yang glare at him. The Faunus glaring far more intensely. But Jacques failed to notice the sound of metal clinging together and turned to see an armoured individual standing right in front of him. Before he had something to say… "That's how you say to your own daughter? Honestly, I am no surprised by this considering the lecherous pest that you are." And everyone turned to Ash who was confronting Jacques.

Despite the satisfaction Jacques had for his daughter's defiance, he felt that anger again. This time, it was towards this stranger. "Pardon me, but do you have any idea who you are speaking to?"

"I do," Ash replied so unemotionally that it causes Jacques's skin to shiver. "A mere afterthought who desperately wants to stay on top no matter what. Regardless of the uses of abuse, exploitation, and cheap labour towards your own employees and your own family."

The CEO just growled uncontrollably at this stranger's unemotional mood before lashing out. "How dare you talk that tone with me! I will ruin your life! I'll see to it that you will be severely punished for crossing me! I'll see to it that—"

"That you will brand me like Taurus." Ash spoke, expecting him to say this.

"I will brand you like that animal!" Jacques finished before he froze in place to what he had just that.

"Schnee!" Jacques slightly jumps when he looks at Ironwood, who had a disgust look on his face. "What did you just say?!"

The CEO got completely off guard by his threats to this individual that he failed to see that there were other people within the vicinity. He shakily turned to the others, who shared the same disgusted and horrified expression before turning back to Ash, who stood there expressionlessly. Quickly finding a way out of this, he clears his throat and returned to his usual tone. "I said nothing. But mark my words. I knew one day; you would overextend your reach. I didn't come here to beg for an abandoned mine. I came here to thank you…for personally handing me the noose to hang you. You'll regret this." Now his attention turns towards the Unkindled with a disdain look. "As for you, you better watch that tongue. Otherwise, you will just end up like James."

"Then you better start doing it now, Jacques." Ash talked, still retaining that unemotional tone. "You can threat me as much as you want. But I've seen your kind, time and time again." He slowly shook his head in disappointment. "You always display dominance. Yet, you're recently starting to get sloppy."

Jacques felt angry at his words though eh he remained compose. He walked away from him, but not before looking over at his daughter, who was surrounded by her teammates. "So these are the little friends you threw everything away for?"

Weiss shook her head. "Not friends. Family."

Jacques glared at her once more before he walked back to his airship and Ash immediately noticed his hands were shaking for an obvious reason. When the ship flies away, he heard Weiss exhaling and drops her strong and confident façade before she looked at Ash. "Why did you do that, Ash?"

"…" He did not say anything to her.

Yang had to let out a chuckle to ease the tension in this environment. "I have to give this to you, Ash. That was some tough balls you had there."

"…" He nodded his head in acknowledgement.

Right before the conversation could go deeper, a truck arrives on the platform. Once the truck comes to a stop, Winter opens the passenger side door and peeks out at the ship. "Oh, now you show up, Winter." Weiss spoke jokingly with a smile. "You just missed father."

Winter got out of the truck and walked to where he sister was. "I wouldn't say I missed hi—"

Out of the blue, Penny comes crashing down, landing on one knee. The force from her landing sends Team RWBY flying with a small scream, while Winter steadies herself against the shockwave and Ash stood there while stabbing the Wolf Knight's Greatsword onto the metallic platform. The robotic girl straightens up and throws her hands into the air, the word 'CONGRATULATIONS!' appears above her head as a green hologram, with bright green hologram confetti spawning from it with a party horn sound. "Surprise!" She spoke before she looks around with a giant grin as the hologram flickers. When she notices Team RWBY on the ground, her grin, and the hologram both fades. "Uh, did we not start yet?"

The specialist puts her fingertips to her forehead in exasperation while Ironwood stares with a wide-eyed expression. Ash could already hear the faint groaning coming from Ruby before he heard Winter talk. "Apparently, we haven't."

Nearby, Jaune and Nora started to laugh, while the younger leader stands up with a look of confusion. "Start what?"

Before they could get their answers, a familiar voice spoke. "Ashen One…" Ash saw the Firekeeper exiting from the truck and walked straight at him despite her bare feet touching the ground, which didn't bother her as much. "Why must thou confronteth Jacques Schnee?"

The Unkindled lowered his head upon hearing the Firekeeper's disappointed tone. "I guess, I was teaching him a lesson on his mannerism." Not wanting to ruin this whole mood, he looks at the three Atlesian Officers. "Now, about that thing…"

-Scene Change-

He, along with RWBY, JNR, Qrow, Winter, Penny, Ironwood, and the Firekeeper gather in the centre of Amity Colosseum's arena. He, RWBY, and JNR stand lined up, with the three Atlesian Officials standing across from them and Qrow standing off to the side. The arena lights are on and pointing at the centre of the stage where everyone is standing. "It goes without saying that this arena holds a significance to all of us. It's only fitting that we should be able to reconvene here." Ironwood began his speech. "Now. When the world needs to be brought together more than ever. The road you travelled from our first meeting hasn't been easy."

While he talks, Ironwood begins walking along in front of RWBY and JNPR before stopping to where Ash stood. Penny, who is holding a tablet-sized Scroll, excitedly bounces up and down next to Winter, who places a hand on Penny's shoulder to hold her still. "You fought for your school and your friends at Beacon. You fought for the world and the innocent at Haven Academy and beyond. You faced down terrors people can't even fathom. That's not the behaviour of students. It's the behaviour… of Huntsmen and Huntresses." He looks over at Penny, who happily begins humming and walking past them, stopping in front of each person to tap on her Scroll. With each tap, her Scroll emits a beep and someone else's Scroll buzzes.

Ash immediately hears his scroll beeping and immediately brings it out. As he was not good with technology, the robotic girl helped him by simply opening it up. There, it displays his Huntsman licence, which displays him in his Faraam Armour with the symbol of the Darkmoon Blades seen on top left corner. He looked at his licence and saw the layout of it:

HUNTSMAN LICENCE ATLAS

Name: Ash

LN: 21000 – 04000 – 02017

Place of Issue: Atlas

Authority: Atlas Academy

Restrictions: Class C

It seems like Ash got his licence, which he nonchalantly responded by simply putting his scroll back in his pocket. The same can't be said for everyone. "Wait… what is this?" He heard Ren questioning the General.

Everyone else checks their Scrolls as Penny continues tapping hers. "You are being granted your Huntsman licenses, today." Winter had answered his question.

Penny finishes using her Scroll to grant everyone their licenses and walks away with a big grin. Her Scroll displays the Atlas Huntsman License Registry. "I know this is coming a little ahead of schedule, but Brothers know you deserve it." The General continued speaking. "I only regret that I couldn't do something a little more ceremonious for the occasion."

Ruby was still staring in awe at her new licence. "I—" She glance over to her friends and Ash, "We… we're honoured, General Ironwood. But you really don't have to do th—"

"Please." Ironwood interrupted. "With the threat of Salem still out there and tensions rising in our Kingdom, I certainly could use more trustworthy fighters by my side." Ash glanced at team RWBY, where he saw ang and Weiss' faint smiles fade, and Blake's cat ears droop. "I should be so lucky to have all of you." He stops for a moment before looking at them with a smile. ": It's okay. It's a big moment." He begins to walk again. "And what better way than to celebrate here? When this tower is ready and communications are back up and running, we'll tell the world about Salem and face down whatever comes at us after that, together." He only heard silence in response which caused him to exhale a breath of air while adjusting his tie. "That's… just about all the pomp I have in me. If you'll excuse me, I have to get back to running this operation. Um… Enjoy the cake."

They saw Ironwood walking away with Winter following behind him. Penny was the only one left. She raises her hand up in the air before giving her words of encouragement. "Your speech outros are improving, sir!"

Team RWBY, and JNR continued to stare at their newly acquired licence with Ash only being the one who didn't share the same emotion as them. "After everything we've been through, I almost forgot this is what I wanted in the first place." He heard Yang talk.

Blake was the next to speak. "When Beacon fell, I didn't think this would even be possible."

"It almost feels trivial now." Weiss commented.

Qrow can't help but chuckle at their reactions. "Geez, guys, lighten up a little. Enjoy yourselves for a change. You've earned it."

Firekeeper nodded her head in agreement. "Huntsman Branwen has a point. All of thee have finally your dreams." Her attention quickly went to Ash, who remained detached to this special moment.

Out of all people, Nora just let out a groan. "Finally! Someone said it. Let's kill some cake, huh?" She walks forward and throws a fist up in the air. "Because I can eat two slices before Ren even eats one. Who says I can't? Who says it, huh!?" the Unkindled shook his head at that.

-Scene Change-

There was a celebration for the new graduates within the amity Colosseum. Everyone was enjoying their share of the cake. Even Nora enjoyed it more as she indulged herself with his pieces of cake slice that had been stacked up. Ash and Ruby were the only ones not part of the celebration. Ash was sitting alone as he watched the event unfold while his chin leaned onto the Onyx Blade's hilt. "Ashen One…" He saw the Firekeeper walking towards him and sitting beside him while holding a slice of cake for each of them. "Art thou happy about thy licence?"

"It's just an entitlement licence." He answered, "It's not a big thing to celebrate."

His close friend quickly understood why he didn't have the same sentimental feeling as them. "To thee, of course. But to your new comrades, 'tis something they had waited for so long."

"So it seems," He calmly remarked.

She placed the plate between them and grabbed her share of the slice of cake before she began to nibble on it. "Thou must at least celebrate. Here's a slice for thee, Ashen One."

Ash looked at the remaining slice and back at her before taking his cut. Like before in the Cotta-Arc Household, he lifted his helmet that stopped on the upper lip and ate the ate. Despite being undead, Ash can still taste the sweetness of this slice of cake. Throwing the remains into his mouth, he quickly fixed his helmet back on before swallowing it.

Despite finishing their dessert, the Firekeeper noticed Ash was quieter than usual. "Something on thy mind?"

Ash glanced at her and could already tell she noticed the body language he showed. "About what I said about Lady Ruby's choice. I think I'm going to tell Ironwood."

The Firekeeper looked at him, concerned about his sudden mood shift. "Behind thair backs?"

The Unkindled knew he was being a hypocrite right now regarding revealing truths. But he had to be truthful to Ruby's decision. "Hiding that sort of secret from the general gets people killed. I had to learn that back in… you know what I am talking about?"

The Firekeeper smiled sadly to hear him bringing up the past. She placed a hand on his left thigh to comfort him. "Thou still carries burden from thy past. Still, I serve thee and will support thy decisions. Even if it's questionable."

Ash smiled back and comforted her by placing his own on her hand. "I'm sorry if I ruined the mood for the both of us."

She smiled back in assurance. "You shouldn't, Ashen One. It's what we have to carry from our past."

As the two were having their small moment, it was eventually ruined when Ruby called out to them. "Hey Ash! Firekeeper! Come here! There's something you need to see!"

"Looks like we're missing something?" He looked at his friend.

"Indeed we are," the Firekeeper said before reaching out to him as he pulled her with his hand.

-Scene Change-

As the two "lovebirds", as Yang would put it for Ash and the Firekeeper, arrived at where all of them were, they saw Ruby gazing at the multiple boards presented to them. "Oh my gosh, is that a mission board? It's an app now!?" She began pointing at the board with different missions. "Can we ride a Megoliath? Stop an underground crime ring? Do I get to go…" She turns away before putting on her hood and turns back to Penny while making a dramatic expression and a fake accent. "...undercover?" She flares her cloak out, knocking the hood off her head, and begins shaking Penny up and down.

"Someone's enthusiastic about this?" Ash commented thoughtfully.

"Hey, do you guys smell that?" Ruby stopped shaking the robotic girl, and all saw Marrow Elm and Vine walking towards them. The Faunus made a dramatic sniff in the air. "Smells like… fresh meat."

Vine did the same before speaking in his calm demeanour. "That's odd. I don't smell meat."

And so did Ren. "Neither do I."

"He was being metaphorical there." Ash clarified in his usual tone.

The Faunus Operative groaned as he finally met someone who understood him. "Finally! Someone can take my humour!"

"Let me get this straight." Elm began to speak, grabbing everyone's attention. "You've only been official for an hour now, and you're already looking for Huntsman work?"

The former Heiress held up a finger. "To be fair, we've been official for a whole…" She pulls out her scroll and checks the time before speaking with a pinch of disappointment. "Fifty-seven minutes."

"That's still an hour, Lady Weiss," Ash said, hiding the dry sarcasm within his voice despite his lack of technical knowledge. This earned him a glare from her, though she let out a slight smirk while the oranged-haired girl rolled her eyes.

"I'd like to remind you all that the real mission here is ensuring the successful launch of the communications tower." The stoic Atlesian Operative reminded the group.

"True, but we can also keep training and improving by helping where we can." Ren countered.

The buff operative sighed while smiling and proceeded to do a fist-bump. "The enthusiasm of youths!"

"Well, it's hard to argue with that," Marrow remarked to his teammate before he decided to explain to them how it works. "Okay, let me show you how it works." He walks over to the board and scrolls up as he selects a simple Escort mission. "Ooh, here's an important one. Who wants to volunteer?"

He turns to look, and the two teams all raise their hands, calling out 'Yes!' and 'Alright!' "We need someone to escort children to pre-primary school down in Mantle. There's no danger, but the parents fret, which attracts Grimm." He revealed, seeing everyone apart from a blonde boy putting their hands down.

"Perfect! Thanks…" Marrow said, looking at the boy. "Juan… Jwan… Jim?"

"Close enough, I guess," Jaune commented despite the disappointment heard in his tone before letting out an awkward chuckle. "Wow, my first Huntsman mission."

This didn't go unnoticed by the unkindled. He looked over at Jaune. "How about I take over that mission for you?"

Hearing this caused the newly graduated huntsman to smile. "Really!? Oh, you're the best, Ash!" That won't be his first job as a huntsman.

Vine saw this and couldn't help but take notice of Ash's unique attire. "You can take other jobs aside from that escort mission."

"As long as it's a job," Ash responded to the operative's words.

While this happened, Elm slid over and knocked Marrow aside with her palm, causing him to scream at the sudden action. "Next!" She quickly swipes down on the mission board, causing the missions to scroll by rapidly. She slaps one of the missions, bringing up a 'Search and Destroy' mission with an image depicting a rotating 3D model of a Sabyr. "A massive Sabyr is loose in the Mantle sewers! We need two brave warriors to flush it out!"

That alone made everyone raise their hand while gasping excitedly. The Blonde boy felt thankful that the Unkindled decided to take that job in his position. "Y'know, Ash? I'm just glad you had that mission instead of me. Who knows how boring it might get."

"…" The Unkindled said nothing and began to walk away from the group.

Seeing him walking away left a poor taste in someone's mouth. "Ash, wait!" Ruby called out to him, making him stop in his tracks. "Where you going?"

"Need some alone time," He simply answered.

The Faunus had a feeling that he might go on that mission. "You know the mission won't start until tomorrow, right?"

"Noted." He nodded his head before he exited Amity Colosseum.

With him, the guy, Marrow, can't help but make a comment out loud. "Sheesh! I know he's blunt and all. But I didn't expect him to have that manner."

The Faunus girl sighed as she felt the same way as him. "Yeah. Ash tends to be in his own world and does things his way."

"That sounds selfish," Vine stated.

"But he did take on that Grimm before all of you." Ren reminded him.

"Still, he's unwilling to socialise with us despite our pleas," Weiss added.

Elm let out a groan upon hearing that. "Well, the others and I are going now. We'll meet you tomorrow at the briefing room." With that, the three Ace Operatives left the area.

All that remained were Ruby and her friends, along with the Firekeeper. During this time, Ruby noticed that the Firekeeper was still standing there, rubbing her burnt fingers against one another. At that moment, she decided to converse with the blind woman. "So… Miss Firekeeper?"

The individual hummed upon hearing her "name". "Yes?"

"What's exactly your relationship with Ash?" The young leader asked, immediately grabbing all attention as they looked at her. Even more so than Blake and Weiss, and they wanted to know too.

The Firekeeper had her left hand curled near her lips as she let out a soft laughter, which caused some to have their hearts skip a beat. "I am but a humble guide to the Ashen One."

Weiss narrowed her eyes at that. "A guide?"

"Yes," the other woman answered, "I aid the Ashen One to the best of my ability on his journey."

This was some valuable information for them. The former Heiress wanted more. "Such as?"

"I keep him company when he has time to rest. I prepare him for the necessary strength he earns in exchange for every hunt in which he stood victorious." She listed off, hiding his personal secrets from them.

Qrow raises an eyebrow at a particular part. "What strength? As a matter of fact, just who are you two really?"

The Firekeeper ignored his question as she looked at Ruby and her group. "Has the Ashen One not spoken about himself?"

"Well…" Blake began to talk, "Not intentionally, just that we think he might be… something else."

"I see…" She muttered. "Then perhaps it's best that I do not say anything. For that is not my right to do so."

"And why not?" Yang can't help but ask.

"Everyone has the right to keep their own personal secrets. Either it be small or big, minor, or major." The Fair Lady explained to them. "I trusteth the Ashen One. His reasons for his secrecy are his own. Surely, all of you can see that the Ashen One holds no ill intentions despite the short journey you all had to reach Atlas?"

Jaune scratched the back of his neck while having the look of uncertainty. "Not that I'm against that logic. It's just… What if we don't like it?"

Nora had to chime into her leader's words. "Yeah! What if it's a secret we need to hear?"

"Then the truth will reveal itself eventually." The Firekeeper answered straightforwardly.

"Eventually?" The stoic of the trio said.

The Firekeeper nodded at that. "Indeed. After all, I, too, was curious about all of you and the obvious distress few of you hold. I have spoken with the Ashen One, but he has told me that this is a secret he had no right to say except for you all."

"That's…" Weiss was trying to find the best words to fit after hearing about Ash. So far, he seemed humble and wise in what he did. "…very considerate of him. For the lack of better words."

"I will not pry off your secrets." The Firekeeper promised the group before she gave her sincere bow. "But I hope you gladly accept me as you've all accepted the Ashen One."

-Scene Change-

The sound of a drink being poured into a glass was hear did a room before Jacques took a huge swing of his whiskey. He really needed it after his confrontation with Ironwood and his daughter. But honestly, he was in a very sour mood. Never before in his left that he was so insulted by that stranger that it managed to crack that façade he usually displayed to others. He was suddenly interrupted when someone opened the door and peeked from behind. "Father, you, um… have a visitor." He nervously told him.

Jacques slammed the empty glass on the arm of his chair and glared at Whitely. "I told you I didn't want to be disturbed. Why did you let them in?"

"I didn't." Whitely clarified. "He… let himself in." Just then, a man in a suit grabs the door and pulls it the rest of the way open, walking into the room as Whitley moves out of his way.

"A spitting image of you, this lad, Jacques." The man commented while looking at the CEO. "Creepily so, I might add." As this was happening, the young Schnee stood in the hall, holding the door open and watching as Watts walks around his father's office.

Jacques was shocked to who he was seeing. "Arthur?" He takes a moment to compose himself before looking at his son. "Close the door!" He ordered with an authoritarian tone. Whitley looked confused at his father and then looks suspiciously at Watts. He looked at his son once again and was irked that he didn't do it right away." I SAID SHUT THE DAMN DOOR!" He slammed his fist into his armchair.

This caused Whitely winced at his father's unusual emotion. But he closed it without giving a second thought. Arthur narrowed his eyes in interest as he has never seen The Schnee head display such behaviour. "That's quite the manners you have there Jacques?"

Jacques took a breath in before releasing it that managed to calm him down. He looked at the other man. "You're supposed to be dead."

"That is what I wanted people to think. "Athur explained to him as he got closer. "You're right. However, I've heard things about you too, Jacques." He leaned over to his left. "Namely, that you have an Ironwood problem."

Jacques scoffed at that remark before he gave his reason to Arthur. "That bastard is costing me more money every day with this embargo. I'd lay off every employee in Mantle if I wasn't trying to get their damn votes for this Council seat."

There was one more thing Arthur wanted to address. "You've got a lot of anger there lately. Is something bothering you?"

Now Jacques had to vent out what had occurred earlier. "That's because an armoured individual accompanying my daughter had the audacity to call me a lecherous pest." He pointed to himself. "A pest?! I am no pest because I provided everything to the company! How DARE he insult me! How ungrateful he is after I did everything to stabilise my company!"

The scientist scratched his chin when he heard that. It seems like things are getting more fascinating. "Interesting." He spoke before sitting down on the couch that was facing Jacques. "What if I say you can use a stone and kill two birds with it?"

Well. Ash's confrontation to Jacques went tell and he was really harsh, cold, blunt, and honest with his words. I can't blame the Unkindled for saying such statements. And it looks like it has made an impact on Jacques, who seemed to be now collaborating with Watts. How interesting.

With the holidays now in full swing, I might not be able to write on another chapter as personal life are in the way of my free writing. But I'll try to balance that with writing fanfic. Speaking of which, I really want to ask for a commission though I lack the funds. Perhaps it may be possible in the future.

I have to also thank triscythe59 for aiding me in certain parts of the chapter. His recommendation are really good, and it fits well.

Anyway, I hope you have enjoyed the chapter so far and please GIVE me constructive criticism so I can improve on next time. Other than that, I will see you all in the next update.