Sometimes Ozpin would yearn for the old days, not out of some misguided nostalgia-fueled misremembering of the past where he would try to convince himself that things were somehow better or simpler back then. All it would take is a peek at any history book worth a damn to see that the Faunus Rights War was not even a hundred years ago, just before that was the Great War and in between, where all manner of tragedies. Go back further and it was just more of the same but without many conveniences of modern life but at one point in the past Ozpin wasn't the head of anything, he was just a young man with a cane and a desire to do the right thing like saving a woman trapped in a tower. Back then he didn't have to think about the consequences and implications of every decision he made but at the same time he understood that the stakes were also much lower back then but now, his choices affected the lives of everyone around him and beyond. He needed people who would hold him accountable and judging by the sound of the footsteps heading to his office that was actually what was about to happen.
The door of his office slammed open as a visibly angry Ms. Goodwtich and Dr. Gris stormed in determined to get some answers from him. As they walked up to his desk Ozpin took a moment to consider the situation, No doubt they have some objections in regards to the mission I entrusted to PRAN and honestly, I can't blame them, I just hope they'll understand my reasons. He put his mug down, silenced his scroll, and put away anything that might prevent him from giving his trusted friends that attention they deserved, "Glynda, Gris I suppose this is about the upcoming raid."
Glynda opened her mouth to speak but looked back to Gris and gave him a nod and when he nodded back she took a step to the side to let him take the lead on this one, "Youse decided ta work with da cops and I ain't gotta problem wit dat, I didn't even ave an issue when youse decided to lend some of da student ta help wit raids and shits but wat da two of us do gotta problem wit da ones ya picked fer this one, dat is wat were ere ta talk ta youse about! Glynda ya wanna take it from ere?" He stepped aside to give her the space to stand next to him which she did.
"Thank you, Doctor Gris," She walked up to the desk and looked at the man who was both her employer and mentor and with all the quiet solemn dignity that a woman as respected and accomplished as her could muster, she slapped down with her riding crop right on Ozpin's neglected paperwork with enough force that the sound began to echo through the room, "Mr. Wukong and Mr. Vasilias I'll happily admit are excellent choices however why are you including Team PRAN in something as dangerous as a VSPR raid on a drug den that may be possibly storing Rage? Not to mention the information we received suggests that the distributors might actually be keeping addicts trapped inside the building as some sort of screwed up scheme where the hostages and guards are the same people! So what pray tell is your logic here!?"
For a moment Ozpin felt a powerful urge to smile out of sheer pride for just how passionate his two subordinates were being about this subject, They care so much about those children that they're willing to directory confront me, I'm honestly lucky to have these two but I cannot budge on this matter, "Team PRAN has a combination of skills and teamwork which make them uniquely qualified to handle a situation like this."
"I understand and I agree Sir that on paper they are well equipped to theoretically handle these kinds of situations however there are some upper-year teams and in fact, I can list five off the top of my head who not only at least as equally prepared but have actually handled similar mission in the past that makes them objectively better choices based solely on their experience alone," she quickly responded shooting down his excuse.
"But are they just as invested?" He asked both Goodwitch and Gris. "Jaune needs this, he needs to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that the problem is being handled and he needs to play a role in it. Ever since this curse was forced onto him he has felt like a powerless victim and that directly affects his ability to handle and control his condition, this raid won't free him but it will be a huge step in putting control of his own life back into his hands!" Ozpin then pulled out his scroll and pressed a few buttons before turning the computer screen on his deck so that it was now facing the other two professors as a video started to play.
It was a video of Jaune sleeping and having what appeared to be a nightmare, "Wat da point of dis?" Gris asked but instead of answering Ozpin sped up the footage till he reached the point when the boy began to transform in his sleep, "Pause da video," Gris's voice had a dangerous edge to it that the others noticed but chose not to comment on.
"What's wrong Doctor?" Glynda asked.
Dr. Gris ignored her and instead pulled out his scroll while keeping his eyes glued on the monitor and started to compare what was on his scroll to what was on the computer screen before him. Out of curiosity Glynda peeked over his shoulder and looked at his open scroll, she saw that he was looking at pictures taken of Jaune in various stages of transformation and was comparing what he had on the scroll to what was on screen. While she was an incredibly intelligent woman with numerous titles, awards, and even degrees under her name neither a Doctorate in Medicine or Biology were among them. The life of a Huntress meant she never had time to earn one however in exchange it took her eye for detail and honed it to a great degree, He's changing! Jaune is slowly becoming more and more... She didn't want to consider the possibility but certain details looked far too familiar to completely ignore, No, that's not right, Gris only used the term Grimm-esque to describe the changes, it was figurative, not literal… no, I mustn't allow myself to be distracted by this.
"When did dis happen? How long ave you ben holding to dis Ozpin!" Gris all but roared at the Headmaster who remained calm and unbothered by his outburst. "Wat else ave you been hiding from me from us?"
"I only learned about how far Mr. Arc's condition has progressed last night when I reviewed the footage as a way to get my mind off of the dreary council meeting that occurred earlier," Oz answered.
Glynda angrily stepped forward, "Then you should have informed Gris about your discovery the moment you uncovered it! At the very least you should have told him right at the start of the day instead of keeping it to yourself! Ozpin, what could possibly possess you to withhold information like this while sending Mr. Arc on a mission especially one involving a drug den that that's filled with Rag-!," she stopped herself and a look of shock and realization dawned on her face which soon warped into a snarl the like that neither of the men in the room had ever seen in the past, "You…," she hissed out with barely contained anger dripping from her voice and threatening to burst forth like a tidal wave, "You're not just trying to decide on the next Maiden. You're looking for Team STRQ replacements as guardians just like how they replaced Team RUQZ and the Brothers only know how many others there have been!"
This anger was the exactly the sort of response that Ozpin fully expected and it was one he could not fault her or anyone else for having, So many brave men and women, each one a true hero and each one either retired early due to what they have experienced or died well before their time and what has any of their sacrifices actually accomplished? A stalemate that might just be crumbling before my eyes… is this worth it?
"Well, youse gonna answer or not?" Gris asked, snapping Ozpin out of his thoughts and back to the conversation at hand.
I've been letting these past few events get to me, I need to refocus, I need to take control of the situation. "Salem is normally a rather passive foe, content to let her pets do most of the work keeping us all in check. We're safe behind these walls but now she is going on the offensive which means that something major has changed and she now sees an opportunity to sweep us all aside to get the Relics. So yes, I do want to make more Guardians because we are going to need them," Oz firmly spoke.
"But why them? Why not some other team of Huntsmen, why not one of the older teams like perhaps Team GREN who are graduating by the end of the semester and have already proven that they truly want to help others?" Glynda reasoned.
"Because they haven't seen how bad things can truly become, Jaune, on the other hand, has been mentally and physically violated by her, and yet he stands ready to fight with his team behind him. RWBY is already far too intertwined in all of this even if they are still ignorant and that is a blessing that already is being pulled out of their hands. CFVY has experienced firsthand the horror of failing to save anyone and despite that, they are stronger than ever and it won't just be Beacon, I've already spoken to Leo and James about training a guardian team of their own and they are eager."
"Dat still don't explain why you withheld dis info from me and Riviera," Gris pointed out while leering over Ozpin and staring unflinchingly right into his eyes making it very clear that this was not an issue he was willing to let go.
"You would have tried to stop Jaune from going and he deserves to be there when his attacker is brought to justice and being able to play an active role in that process will do more good for him than a hundred therapy sessions even with someone as talented as your boyfriend," answered Ozpin.
For a moment it looked like Gris would reach out across the desk and grab the Headmaster as Goodwtich just stood there wondering if she should intervene. Fortunately, it never became a necessity as Gris settled back down on his own with a reserved sigh before giving his boss and old friend an odd look of disappointment, " Oz, dis can't keep happening. Youse can't keep hiding dis shit from us."
"I understand your-"
"Shut up and let me finish youse asshole... how long before da raid?" Gris asked.
"It's scheduled to occur at the end of the week," Ozpin answered.
"Plenty of time fer a crash course on procedures…"
"Leave it to me," said Glynda, stepping forward to volunteer, "They'll miss some classes but a day out there is worth a week here. I'll get them ready, I just need to know all the details of the operation to prepare them."
"One more thing Oz," Gris spoke with an authoritative tone as he glared at the man that he currently considered a friend and employer. "Dis bullshit better not happen again ya hear? Cuz if it does I'm out, I won't be a part of yer school or yer inner circle no more." Right after the words left his mouth a gasp escaped the lips of Glynda but it was Ozpin's reaction that caught Gris's attention, the man looked hurt and even a little betrayed but the Doctor would not change his mind, "I refuse to ave anything to do wit a guy who'd go behind my back like dat and throw da kids in da line of fire of a war they don't understand, dis is yer first and only warning, knock dis shit off or you'll be choking on my resignation letter. Understood?"
Many people find it difficult to understand just how big the city of Vale was, it is not enough to simply recite the results of the lastest citizen's census or study a map of the city because Vale was constantly growing and changing and it wasn't just Vale, the same could be said for all the capital cities of all the kingdoms with Atlas benign the only exception and even then it found other ways to grow. Expansion, was the name of the game and it was one that single person on Remmanet played a part in one way or another and like every other game, there were winners like the small island community of Patch where Ruby and Yang hailed from but, there were also losers such as the infamous Mount Glenn project which not only failed but became a graveyard and worse, a spawning point for Grimm.
However not all stories ended so horrifically, most times it was just a series of little things that eventually piled up resulting in the residents packing their belongings and moving on with their lives leaving nothing but empty buildings behind. When that happens and of course assuming that it is feasible the Council will then reacquire the properties and then auction off the buildings and lands with the proceeds going to fund various projects. It was through such an auction that Beacon had managed to acquire several properties which were then refurbished to aid in the education of the next generation of Huntsmen such as Team PRAN who were currently standing in front of one such building while their bodies were covered in a variety of bright paints thanks to the machinations of Sun and Neptune who were noticeably clean in comparison and were currently performing a victory dance.
Professor Goodwitch then walked up to the paint covered future guardians of Remnant who shuddered as she approached no doubt expecting a stern lecture but it never came, instead, she looked them over and in an uncharacteristically gentle voice asked, "What happened?"
Pyrrha as the leader of the team stepped forward to answer, "We entered the building and began searching for the hostiles but…," She looked over to Sun and Neptune before looking back at Glynda, "They were a little more prepared than we anticipated and as you can see they had some traps prepared for us as well as an ambush."
"This is actually what I hoped would happen," Glynda answered shocking everyone.
"You wanted us to lose?" Ren asked, trying to piece together the professor's intentions.
"In a way, yes," she answered without hesitation but she didn't leave it at just that. "You are all formidable fighters, with a wide range of skills and solid teamwork and no offense to Mr. Wukong or Mr. Vasilias but in a straight-up fight you would have demolished them."
"None, taken," both Sun and Neptune answered together.
She continued, "However they managed to beat you, why? Both they and you were given the same information about building along with a dossier on what to expect from the other. The only difference is that Mr. Wukong and Mr. Vasilias were given a head start so they could play defense… or is that really the only advantage they had over you?"
Nora's hand was the first one in the air, "They're training to become supercops!"
Glynda gave a little sigh but relented, "While I wouldn't put it in those words, you are correct Miss Valkerie. Their training allowed them to read and understand the blueprints better than you or anyone else on your team and that allowed them to prepare and place traps in places where you would be blind and finally, it let them know exactly where to ambush you and the results speak for themselves." She paused to let them process what they just heard before continuing, "When you assist in that raid you will do so against people who most likely won't have their aura's unlocked and the ones who do will most certainly not have even a fraction of the training you have, you will go in with full knowledge of the building's layout and you will be receiving backup from the police. However, that does not mean that things will be easy, if you fail to give the situation the respect that it deserves then you or someone else will pay the consequences. Remember that the opposition you'll encounter will not be as kind as your fellow trainees, there might be traps or even hostages, you will have to neutralize any resistance you encounter and some will not surrender others might be confused people whose only crime was that they were in the wrong place at the wrong time but it won't matter, if they are in your way, you take them down. I won't sugarcoat it, there is much you have to learn and only a few days to cover it all and that means cramming it rather than giving it the time it deserves." It was not her intention to dishearten them but the reality was that actions and consequences mattered far more than mere intention and the doubt on Team JNPR face made it clear to Glynda that she may have made a mistake, But is it really a mistake?
"Miss Goodwitch, may I ask a question?" Pyrrha asked.
"You may."
"Why did Ozpin offer this mission to us when we're not ready?"
She nearly winced at the question and for a moment actually considered going against Ozpin's wishes and changing their assignment, Ozpin knows what he's doing. "This team is uniquely equipped to deal with situations like this, the only thing you all lack is a chance to practice it. Besides, all students of Beacon are required to assist law enforcement in one capacity or another before they are allowed to graduate, you are simply getting a head start on the matter," it wasn't a complete lie but the words still tasted like ash in her mouth.
"But surely there are other teams better prepared than us," Jaune suddenly spoke up surprising Glynda as his team remained silent. "Please don't misunderstand me Professor Goodwitch, I really do appreciate that Ozpin thinks so highly of us and I do want to do this!" I need to do this, "But I don't want to put others at risk." He turned to the rest of his team, "Look guys I'm sorry but that is just how I feel right now."
Pyrrha walked over to him and placed a soft hand on his shoulder, "Never apologize for being concerned about others, but don't underestimate yourself either Jaune. I agree that this task is daunting but Ozpin wouldn't give us a mission that we could handle," Right?
"I mean of course we can handle it! Jaune you're a berserker who will keep fighting even when your spine has been snapped in half, Ren's basically a Ninja with cool mind-numbing powers, I can bench five of me on a bad day, and don't get me started on my grenade collection, Pyrrha is Pyrrha, Sun's got them abs along with clone powers and I don't know what Neptune can do but he looks cool!" Nora excitedly added.
"Thanks, Nora! You guys are pretty cool yourselves," Neptune replied, "Besides you guys did just fine for your first drill when Sun and I first started training we accidentally set the building on fire!"
"Yeah it's true, they actually kicked us both out of the program for that one. Lucky for us the post-fire inspection revealed so many health and safety code violations that the whole building was condemned as a bonfire waiting to happen. In the end, they couldn't determine if we had actually started the fire so Headmaster Leo let us back in the program just so he could write the whole thing off as a freak accident." Sun spoke as he fondly remembered the aftermath before leaning in close and whispering with a wink, "It really was our fault."
Standing off to the side Glynda chose to ignore what Sun had said about Leo's apparent lack of responsibility and instead chose to focus on what actually mattered, the students. She took in the sight of these youths acknowledging their doubts and supporting each other to make up for any shortcomings. It was an event that would have filled the hearts of most educators with joy but, she couldn't bring herself to feel any happiness over this and how could she while knowing full well what they were really walking into. Then she felt an odd feeling beginning to swell, an ugly sick feeling that was shaking her, tempting her, and digging up the doubts she had thought long buried. Despite the boy's smile, despite her well-earned faith in Ozpin, there was always a shred of doubt buried deep within the recesses of her mind festering just below the surface. She realized that with just a few choice words she would be able to make them doubt themselves just enough that she might be able to convince them to refuse the mission. It would hurt Jaune now but it would save him so much pain down the line, it would save all of them from becoming pieces in a war beyond their understanding. Sure he'd miss an opportunity to confront a personal demon but that was a small price to pay especially when there would be other chances...
She took a step forward which was noticed by the students who immediately reformed into a line and waited for her next set of instructions. For a moment she was taken aback by their instantaneous actions and for a few seconds just awkwardly stood there pondering her next words, Ozpin knows what he's doing but they don't, there shouldn't be anything wrong with me letting them know that they have options... "Being able to acknowledge when you are not the best choice for a mission is one of the marks of a good Huntsman though I fear you may be selling yourself a little short." She looked over to the rest of Team PRAN and observed them, on the surface they were all fine but as a Professor and a Huntress she knew what to look for and found it in each one of them, They way they hold their weapons, the glances they give each other and even the way they stand at attention… They're scared of failure and they should be given everything that could go wrong. "What you experienced just now was just a taste of the training I have in store for you, Police Raids are usually conducted incredibly early in the morning or late at night therefore to prepare you all for the mission the real training will start at exactly midnight tonight. You are not required to attend and refusal will not affect your grades or your prospects, the only consequence is that the mission will be handed to another team as you resume regular lessons… if you decide to continue then all you have to do is be here by the time drills begin but know that I won't let you change your mind afterward. You are all dismissed."
Weiss took a deep breath to mentally prepare herself for what she was about to do, Weiss Schnee you are being ridiculous right now! Just go inside and get the information, that's it! What is the worst that can happen? Father will be too busy counting money and reading reports to care about what you're doing and even if he does so what? He is far too busy to act like a father. With renewed confidence, Weiss began her march up the stairs into the CCT, and once inside it was a laughably easy matter to gain access to the proper console, within minutes she was in contact with a representative of the company.
"Greetings, Ms. Schnee, would you like me to connect you with your father?" spoke the pretty woman on the screen.
"Thank you but that won't be necessary," Not now or ever. "All I need for today are copies of the following documents," she then sent the list over and made a silent wish while doing so, if someone just skimmed through the list they would most likely find nothing wrong as most of the information she was asking for was rather mundane and even the more sensitive documents could be easily explained away, however, hidden amongst the unremarkable were several documents of a highly sensitive nature that while she still technically had access to, it would raise a few eyebrows including those of her father.
"Uh, Miss Schnee? Some of these documents are a little…"
Shit, Putting on a fake smile Weiss looked at the concerned employee and put into practice the only useful lesson she ever learned from her father, how to lie, "I appreciate your concern and I can assure that I am very well aware of the sensitive nature of certain... sections of those documents and I can guarantee you that they will be well kept out of the public's eyes." She watched as the representative mulled it over wondering what to do and for a second she felt a pang of guilt over the distress she was causing this loyal employee who just wanted to avoid losing their job, Am I going to get this woman fired? But we need the information on those documents to find out everything that the White Fang has stolen which just might be the clue we need to know where it's all being kept!
Suddenly the woman placed a finger on her earpiece and for a moment gave Weiss what she could only describe as an apologetic look before pressing a button which caused the image on the screen to change to that of her father, Jacques Schnee. "Well, young lady are you here to explain your actions?"
There was a sick feeling in her stomach as she fought back an urge to look away from this man who would not hesitate to use any weakness to get what he wanted, Calm down Weiss he only has power over you if you let him. Forcing herself to look him in the eyes and smile she asked, "I suppose you mean the incident at the Docks?"
"Is there any other incident I should be aware of, Weiss?" He harshly spoke while giving her a look that would have withered an employee but that was not Weiss, she was not someone who could be cowed into submission which frustrated him. Why aren't you more like your mother? At least she knows her place!
"Is there something wrong father?"
"The fact that you could ask such a ridiculous question while there is a drug spreading uncontrollably through that sorry excuse for a kingdom that apparently turns people into rabid beasts is what's wrong! On top of that, the video from those damned Faunus has been causing all sorts of trouble for me as more and more of them are getting the idea that somehow the government owes them anything at all!" He loudly ranted as his daughter nodded along wondering when he would get to the point. "But do not think for a second that I've forgotten about you!"
"Me, father?" She asked while bracing herself for what she knew was coming.
"Did you honestly think that your vigilante activity or your choice of companions wouldn't come to my attention, did you even bother running background checks on them? Were you even aware that the Faunus," maybe it was due to Blake's influence but Weiss could swear she heard nothing but contempt in his voice as he spoke that word, "On your team seems to have no records beyond a birth certificate from Mistral?"
Truth be told, Weiss wasn't at all surprised to hear that. She already knew that Blake was from Menagerie which meant that the records did exist but they were not being acknowledged by the other kingdoms, which was a rather depressing state of affairs. Did her parents have to go to Mistral just so their daughter's existence could be acknowledged?! What would have happened if they weren't able to afford the trip, would she even be able to come to Beacon or even travel at all? It was a hard thing to wrap her head around and the more she thought about it the more distressed it made her, Just how many people are stuck in Menagerie because they have no records to prove that they exist?
"Weiss! Are you listening?" Jacques asked, forcing her attention back onto his stern grimace.
She ignored the look he was giving her and with a plastic smile told the man what he wanted to hear, "Of course father and I can assure you that Blake despite her mysterious origins is most certainly one of the good ones," the words left a foul bitter taste on her lips as she said them, intellectually she knew it was necessary but still saying that made her feel sick and no amount of justification would ever change that, I claimed I was nothing like my father and yet I… there is no point in focusing on who I was back in Atlas. It's far more important I concentrate on who I'll become here in Beacon.
Her answer seemed to please Jacques who decided to drop the subject for now, "Alright then, let's talk about those documents you requested," she reshifted all her attention onto the conversation ahead with renewed vigor, soon she and her father would begin negotiations and she was going to take everything she learned from him and come out on top.
Glynda Goodwitch loved her job, this was a fact beyond debate. Though she wouldn't deny that it wasn't easy raising a new generation of Huntsmen and she would also admit that it wasn't always rewarding. The harsh truth was that not every student of her's would live to see graduation and even the ones that did may not have long careers, she was well acquainted with both tragedy and trauma having both experienced it herself and having seen many others go through it. But being able to help those children work through the pain and come to a decision that they can live with was something she took great pride and pleasure in, they were the moments that helped her wake up every day and get out of bed.
But, she's just a person and people make mistakes, sitting by herself in a teacher's lounge she looked back to the training session she had with team PRAN and wondered to herself if she made a mistake. Then she was pulled back to reality by an unexpected cup of tea set before her, looking up she saw her colleague Professor Peach sitting down next to her with a cup of her own, "Having a rough day?" Peach asked while sipping her own unique blend.
"It's just one of those days when I ask myself if I'm being too harsh on the students," she confessed to her co-worker before trying some of the tea she had been given, it was creamy, sweet and just a little spicy and more importantly was hitting all the right spots, "Oh! I needed this, thank you."
"It's no problem, later I'm supposed to meet someone here so I made extra. But enough about me, what's gotten, you so upset Glynda?"
"It's nothing major but… I was preparing team PRAN for a special mission and… Oh, I don't know," she answered, never noticing how Peach tensed up for just one moment but it soon passed.
"Did that mission have anything to do with the madness that has been happening lately?"
"Yes, I was supposed to prepare them for a mission where they will be assisting law enforcement and I had the idea of running a simulation with the help of two of the visiting students since they trained for police work and… I'm sorry for bothering you, I'm just worried that's all." For one second it looked like she was going to say something important but she caught herself before the words could form, "I better be going now, thank you for the tea," Glynda got up and tried to leave.
"Glynda, surely you can at the very least stay long enough to finish your cup besides a little venting will be good for you!" to the Professor's pleasure, she saw Glynda mull it over for a bit.
"I'm sorry Peach but I have so much work to do, it really can't wait any longer," Glynda apologized and then left the room before Peach could say or do anything in response.
Picking up the left behind cup Peach walked over to the sink and began washing it, "Lazy bitch, you could at least clean up after yourself you pig," Next time I'll be ready. After putting the cup away in its proper place and seeing nothing left to do but wait for her contact to arrive, she walked back to the table and continued to drink her tea while checking the news with her scroll and eventually she overheard the door open and saw Professor Oobleck enter the room and make his way over her, Well this could be a fun conversation.
"Hello Professor Thumbelina Peach, Watts sends his regards," Oobleck spoke before sitting down across from her.
Peach nearly choked on her drink, "Bart!? You're involved in this too? And what are you doing talking about Arthur here where someone could overhear you?" She nearly shouted.
"Relax, we are the only ones here and the security camera has been taken care of, furthermore we have someone monitoring the hallway and redirecting anyone who might pass by. Oh, and in case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm not Oobleck. We happen to have access to a semblance that can alter appearances," the stranger corrected her.
Peach composed herself, "Then I apologize for my earlier outburst, would you like some tea while we talk?" So is it their semblance or does it belong to someone else? Either way, this person is probably someone hiding in plain sight here at the school, that's worrisome but I really have nothing to fear since my semblance makes assassination impossible.
The stranger thought about it over for a second, "Thank you, I'd appreciate it," within a minute a cup was set and the stranger was carefully and slowly sipping the warm liquid and enjoying every drop, "This might just be my new favorite drink!"
"You talk as though you've never gotten the chance to enjoy such a thing," Peach observed as the stranger flinched for just a moment, "Sorry about that but when you've worked in this field for as long as I have you tend to notice these things," she apologized with a friendly smile. New favorite drink? But you can buy this in just about any coffee shop and it's clear that they aren't opposed to trying new things… is it a lack of time or money?
The stranger suddenly realized that they were getting distracted and set the cup down before turning to the Professor, "The reason I'm here in person is as a show of goodwill and it would be wise of you not to take that for granted!"
"Sorry about that, I truly do appreciate you taking time off of your schedule to see me," she spoke, trying her best to sound sincere. Such an emotional response! There can be no doubt about it, this person is actually a kid, and if I had to guess probably someone from one of the other academies. Dammit, Ozpin! Not only did you let a Grimm into the school and hid something like Salem but you are completely incompetent! Removing you would be doing Vale a favor! And with that thought, any hesitation was dismissed from the mind of the Professor as she mentally dedicated herself to the cause no matter the price.
"I'll get to the point, what do I need to know about the files?" Asked the stranger.
"Looking through Dr. Gris' computer is a waste of time since that paranoid thug keeps his most sensitive files in physical form locked inside of a cabinet, I assume that you already have my contact info so send me a message I'll send you all the necessary information. Furthermore, there is a student from Atlas named Penny Polendina and she is a robot."
The stranger nearly choked on their tea, "I'm sorry but, what?"
"I only wish that I was lying but it gets even better, the robot did a full body examination of that Grimm and is now carrying the data inside of her so which gives you two places you can go to get the files."
The stranger considered the options before them, Cinder wanted me to handle this on my own but the existence of this "Penny," is something she'd find interesting, "Thank you for both the tea and the information, just leave it to us and I guarantee that we will take care of both Jaune and Ozpin." The stranger finished their drink and got up to leave but Peach called out to them.
"I won't tell you how to do your job but if it helps, Jaune and his team have signed on for a special mission helping law enforcement, I don't know the details but I'm sure you can find out easily. Also, I'll send you the contact info of a person named Iris Marilla, she's a would-be-huntress turned courier and more importantly, she's hopelessly addicted to Rage." Peach gave a small chuckle almost as though she had remembered something funny, "Her brain is so rotten that if you gave her a good enough offer she would agree to just about anything."
That last part caught the stranger's attention, Someone is willingly taking that stuff!? If that's true then I want nothing to do with her but it would be useful to have someone to risk their neck for us and take the fall… Cinder will know how to handle her, she always knows what best. "The information is appreciated, we'll see what we can do."
"That's all I ask," Peach said as she watched the stranger walk out through the door leaving her alone to continue enjoying her tea without a care in the world or a shred of guilt.
It was late into the evening as Sun and Neptune made their way through the hallways of Beacon's Dormitories until they were right in front of the door of Team PRAN's room, with little hesitation the pair knocked and waited, however, nobody answered. "Dude, you did remember to call ahead of time to ask if they would be here right?" Sun nervously looked over and asked his partner.
"Of course I did!" Neptune pulled out his scroll and checked the time, "Yeah, Pyrrha told me that she and the others would be expecting us right around this time, I'll give her a call just to see if everything's alright and next time I'll double-check before heading out."
"I'm not blaming you for anything man, if they're not here then we'll catch up with them tomorrow that's all! Besides, it is not like we have anything better to do for the rest of the day," said Sun as he wondered what to do next, Maybe we could check out that food truck in the courtyard?
"Well Sage did ask us to find some Vinyl for him and Scarlet asked to try and track down a copy of Captain Blood."
"I mean things that we could do today, it's getting late so we won't have time to head into Vale but if PRAN isn't here then we have a few hours to spare for example there is a foo-!" The door to the room suddenly and slowly opened up revealing a rather sleepy-looking Nora dressed in a loose black shirt with the word Boop printed on it and bright pink boxers.
"Oh hey, guys! Come on in!" she stepped to the side and held the door open for the two.
"Are you sure it's okay? We can come back tomorrow, it's no problem." Neptune said trying to be polite, She looks like she just crawled out of bed.
Nora gave a big yawn before insisting, "Nah, we were supposed to wake up about," she quickly checked her scroll, "30 minutes ago so it's fine! Now if you'll excuse me I have to step out for a bit!" She waited until the pair was inside the dorm room before she walked out into the hallway, "Ren's in the communal kitchens making some food so I'll be back with grub before you know it!" She closed the door and walked away.
The inside of the dorm room was a bit of a mess with some clothes, pillows, books, and some school supplies strewn about on the floor which gave the impression that the team was having a study session of some sort, though what really caught their eyes was a blanket and a large pile of fabric on the floor next to one of the beds. Out of curiosity Sun and Neptune came closer to the pile and upon examination, they found that Jaune was buried and still sleeping under that pile. As far as they could tell, he had rolled out of his bed taking his blanket and pillow with him but somehow didn't wake up upon hitting the floor. Their attention was then grabbed by the bathroom door opening revealing Pyrrha who was dressed in surprisingly simple bronze-colored pajamas, "Oh! Hello again! Don't worry about the mess we were doing a little studying earlier so please make yourselves comfortable and I hope you're hungry because Ren is making enough pancakes for everyone!" She then walked over to Jaune who was still on the floor and poked him, "Wake up, it's your turn."
Jaune pulled himself off of the ground and made his way over to the bathroom while giving the two visitors the warmest, "Oh hey guys! Wassup?" his groggy mind could muster. Never once did he register the fact that his sky blue onesie with a cute bunny logo in the center was now on full display or maybe he just didn't care. Either way, Sun took a picture of the sleepy knight before he could enter the bathroom.
Sun then quickly put the scroll back into his pocket before Jaune could realize what he had done, I'll tease him later about this then ask him where he got it, that thing looks comfy as hell. He then turned to his fellow captain Pyrrha and asked the question that was weighing on his and Neptune's mind, "So what exactly is going on here?"
"Well after what happened with Glynda earlier we had a team meeting to talk about what happened and what we were going to do next, eventually we decided to rest up now so we wouldn't be tired while training tonight," Pyrrha answered.
"Wait so does that mean you guys are in?" Neptune asked.
"Of course we're in!" she answered while walking up to the dorm room's closet and walking in before closing the door much to the confusion of her guests, "Don't mind me, I'm just changing out of my pajamas and into some real clothes, please continue, I can hear you just fine from inside," she assured them.
Neptune glanced over to Sun and gave a quick shrug before turning to the closed closet door, "That's great! It's better than great, it's perfect because Sun and I have a copy of the blueprints for the building we'll be raiding and a map of the surrounding area. We were originally planning on studying this after visiting you guys but why not check it out now?"
"Oh, that is a grand idea!" She emerged from the closet dressed in plain baggy and rather unflattering clothes which drew some surprised looks from the pair, "Yeah, I know this isn't what you'd expect the Invincible Girl to wear, but it is so comfortable!" For a moment there was a sad look on her face as if she was recalling something painful but it was soon replaced with a genuine smile, "People back home meant well but they would sometimes forget that I'm nothing special, clothes like this would go a long way to reminding them that I'm just a girl."
"We understand, everyone needs a bit of privacy!" Sun happily assured her.
"Also do you mind telling me where you got those clothes? They look incredibly comfortable," Neptune asked.
The door opened up and Nora walked in carrying plastic plates, utensils and then held the door open for her partner Ren who walked in while carrying a large tray filled with pancakes in one hand and a jar of syrup in the other "Food's done," he announced while Sun and Neptune took notice of the man's choice of sleepwear which was a green yukata that in their opinion looked rather out of place compared to the sleepwear of the rest his rest of the team but who were they to judge, especially given how cozy it looked. But soon any thoughts about Ren's choice of sleepwear were chased out of their mind by the rich smell of the pancakes filling the air and awakening the appetites of everyone including the still sleepy Jaune who emerged from the bathroom by the demands of his stomach.
"Well since everyone is here, let's clear some space to eat!" Pyrrha suggested as she walked over the mess and was followed by Jaune as Ren and Nora set down what they were carrying so they could help as well.
"We'll help too and don't even try and talk us out of it!" Sun smiled while pointing at Pyrrha who had opened her mouth to object. "We want to help and on top of that I'm going to make all of you a nice cup of proper Vacuo style coffee to really wake you all up!"
"Oh! I never had that before, how's it different from Mistralian style?" Jaune asked as he and Neptune started moving a desk so Ren could reach under it and clean.
"Vacuo style refers mostly to the cream which isn't as sweet as what guys have over in Mistral but instead it's a little spicy, the milk is also a little different but it tastes the same to me," Sun explained with a shrug.
"Spicy coffee? I've never tried anything like before, alright then it's a deal!" agreed Pyrrha!
Within minutes they were all sitting together on the floor right in the middle of the room eating the pancakes and enjoying small talk as a pot of coffee was brewing and in between the bites, Neptune finally asked the question that had been weighing on his and Sun's mind ever since they first arrived, "So, if you guys don't mind me asking. What happened? Back at the training grounds, you guys seemed close to just calling it quits and now you're all fine."
"Oh, we just talked it over and came to the realization that not taking the mission was a decision we'd all end up regretting for a long time, and besides we got you two supercops to help us train so what's the big deal?" Nora answered.
Jaune clarified, "The Docks was a real eye-opener for all of us, after that there was simply no way we could ignore the issue going on right under our noses. We're all Huntsmen-in-training and this is what we signed up for, to protect people." And yet despite your words, you continue to lie to all of them and now you've added a new lie to the list. He winced at the invasive thought but acknowledged that it had a point, I care more about finding a possible link between myself and Rage than I care about the victims but, is that really so bad? Even if I'm wrong and there is no connection people will still be helped and the sooner this is solved the sooner I can move on with my life… besides I cannot be the only one that's noticed how similar the drug is to my condition, I bet the others are just being polite about it.
"Jaune? Are you alright?" Ren asked.
"I'm fine. Why do you ask?"
"You spaced out for a second there, Jaune," Pyrrha answered.
"Yeah, I'm just still a little sleepy," He lied.
Sun then got up and walked over to the coffee pot, "Well then you're getting the first cup and once you're fully awake we'll talk about the raid, does that sound good to you?"
"Yeah, that sounds great!" Jaune replied, Maybe after all this calms down a bit I can tell my team. Or you'll just come up with another reason to delay it further and why? They already have seen your broken twisted body pulling itself back together, they already saw your "Berserker," state and they even accepted you after learning that you could kill without blinking. You're just being a coward.
Ruby was sitting on her bed enjoying a good comic book while Yang was teaching Blake the intrinsic ins and outs of her favorite video games when suddenly the door to their room opened up causing everyone to stop what they were doing to watch as Weiss walked in. She looked utterly exhausted and just stood at the door for a few seconds before walking over to the nearest bed and falling down face first on the sheets.
"So I take it you had a rough time?" Yang asked.
"I ended up having to deal with my father," she answered.
"That couldn't have been fun," Blake said while frowning at the prospect of having to deal with Jacques Schnee for any amount of time. "But were you able to get the documents?"
"At least let her catch her breath first," Ruby said in response.
"It's alright Ruby, the documents are after all the very reason why I even went in the first place, and as for the document which took a lot of negotiating," Weiss answered.
"Negotiating?" asked Yang.
"Yeah, I had to agree to do some things like befriending Coco and Pyrrha which should be easy since I'm already on great terms with both of them but he also wants me spending less time with the rest of Pyrrha's team which I'm not going to do." He also wants me to confront Blake about her lack of documentation but I'm just going to lie and say that I did.
"Wait, so he wants you to spend time with Pyrrha which even I get, but expects you to do it without involving her team? How does he think that's going to work?" Ruby asked.
"He expects me to figure it out but, I'm not going to do it. One main reason I defied my father to get to Beacon was to find real friends that want to be with me because of who I am as a person, instead of a potential business opportunity for their parent's benefits," Weiss answered bitterly.
Ruby sat down right next to Weiss and placed a warm hand on her shoulder that was soon joined by the others, "I'm proud to be your friend Weiss, we all are."
"Even though you were kind of a shitty person at first," Yang gently poked fun at Weiss.
"Well then being the shitty person I am, I suppose I'll just keep these highly sensitive documents to myself," Weiss replied with a laugh as she held her scroll up basking in the sweet afterglow of victory!
"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's get started!" Ruby declared.
"Ruby I appreciate your enthusiasm but these documents are very technical so maybe you should allow me the resident dust expert to do this!" Weiss suggested.
"Ha, but you forget my dear! That I-," Ruby leaped off of the bed and placed a hand on her chest, "-am the resident weapons expert so leave to me and my sister to find all the dust that could be used for weapons!"
Yang joined her little sister, "I'll search for explosives while you find ammunition!"
"In that case, I'll focus on the general-purpose Dust since we had to use that a lot back when the White Fang was still camping out in the Forever Fall Forest," Blake added.
"Then I'll focus on vehicles and specialized dust," stated Wiess just before sending a copy of the files to each member of her team who got to work upon receiving them, then any enthusiasm that they had at the beginning began to wither and die in the face of the sheer number of files.
They all knew that analyzing the documents was going to be a long process that would very likely be stretched out over the remaining week but that didn't help the sheer tediousness of line after line each one just listing out names and cold hard numbers all written down without an ounce of passion or care. This is just what you would expect of documents that existed only to double-check data and then be stored away somewhere out of sight until the next time someone might have a use for it. This soul breaking work necessitated occasional breaks just to maintain their sanity however, despite the monotonous nature of the task, they were able to power through the sheer boredom of it all and take notes whenever something stood out even in the smallest way and then cross-referencing all their findings with each other.
Adam wanted an army, this was something they already knew thanks to Blake and because of her they also knew that the Fang had been stealing dust and equipment well before their sudden and inexplicable alliance with Torchwick. They knew and even witnessed with their own eyes the results of that team up at the Docks where the robbery took place on a level that Adam had previously only ever dreamed of. However, none of those supplies meant anything without the personnel and equipment to use it... Then that Rage drug began circulating the streets leading to Adam releasing a certain video whose natural result was explosive support for the White Fang which translated into a rapidly growing membership. However, despite Adam now having the supplies and personnel, RWBY wasn't immediately concerned, after all, most of the recruits were just innocents wanting to help make a better world, they could be hardly called terrorists even in the broadest definition of the term. They were just civilians, not soldiers and that was something that Adam wanted to change, he wanted an army and what he had now would most certainly abandon the Fang should it go too far too soon.
To make the supplies count and to create a true army, Adam would have to engineer a situation where those civilian volunteers would have no choice but to stand and fight or somehow convince them that his way is the correct path. But how? How would he do that? What did Torchwick have to do with that? Did Rage play a role? Where did it even come from? Something happened to the White Fang after Blake left but what?
Author's Notes: I know that I said in the last chapter that we'd have some fun with Sun and Neptune beginning their Junior Detectives but, ultimately I couldn't find the space to fit it in. Either way, the next chapter should be a fun one for everything who enjoys a bit of gore.
Also, I'm going to start the rewrite right now but I won't start replacing chapters until the next one is done. Just a reminder that the Rewrite is mostly to improve the early chapters, you will NOT be required to read the new chapters to understand what is going on.