Displaced 13
Roman Torchwick strolled down the sidewalk of downtown Vale, a spring in his step and a smirk on his face as he rounded a corner in the coming night. The city's nightlife was just waking up and he had a destination in mind. No one dared challenge him and he and Neo made sure to skirt the eyes of any who would try, The Club's neon was lit and pulsing it's colors in a slow but dignified manner. Not for Junior the annoying and flashy strobe, no, he preferred the elegant and simple affair. Like the name 'The Club', it was about sending a subtle message, the place didn't have to be flashy or eye-catching. Everyone knew about it, it didn't need the pomp.
Roman tipped his had to Brutus the bouncer as he swept through the doors, the pumping music and flashing lights hitting him like a wall as he walked through the short hallway and into the main dancefloor. The place was already packed even though the night was young and Junior could be seen personally attending the massive bar along the back wall with at least three other bartenders. Of course Junior noticed the pair coming, finishing up his order and moving to one end of the bar.
Roman matched the movement and leaned against the bartop, Melodic Cudgle hanging off the crook of his arm, "Hey there Junior, how's your day?"
Apparently it wasn't going well because the information broker scowled at him, "Roman. Mind telling me what the hell you got yourself into?"
"Other than people's wallets, I have no idea what you mean." he replied innocently.
"Bullshit." The bartender retorted before hissing in a low voice, "Who the hell is that huntress."
"Roman felt himself pale and start to get clammy, "Which one?"
"Which-?!" Junior looked around, "The one with the eyepatch!"
Roman felt himself relax, but only slightly and only because it meant Cinder hadn't been the reason, "You're the information broker Hei, surely you would know more than I do."
"Yah there isn't much." Junior shook his head, "Carmine Rose. Huntress. Appointed to professor at Beacon not long ago and is definitely one of the youngest to take the position. Records say she's born to Patch and graduated Beacon seven years ago."
"That's it?"
"Yeah." He placed his hands on the counter and leaned in, "No mention of a team. No accomplishments. No trace of her existing until a few months ago. The woman's a fucking ghost. So tell me Roman. What the hell have you gotten yourself into? And what are you dragging me into that she shows up here demanding I bring you in?"
"She's here?" Roman looked around the club, "You didn't want to talk to me?"
"No." Junior shook his head again, "Just a scary as hell huntress strolling in here and demanding I get you in here. Said she needed to talk."
Torchwick felt his stomach flip uncomfortably, "So where is she?"
"VIP room 3."
"Thanks. And sorry if she caused any trouble." Roman turned to leave but felt his sleeve caught by the other man.
"Look Roman, you're in deep with something aren't you? This gonna bite you in the ass if you aren't careful."
It already has, Roman thought.
"I'm always careful, Junior." Roman replied instead, "Besides I don't think you'll have to worry about this one. I don't think she's after me, or you."
Junior finally released him and Roman turned to Neo but found she was nowhere to be found and got a very bad feeling. He started sweating as he powerwalked into the back rooms, opening the door to the third VIP room as he heard a crash from inside. What he found there was a blur of activity, Neapolitan flipping and bending in ways that would break most other people while the huntress, Carmine, was moving faster than even his eyes could follow.
Dammit! He'd warned Neo against testing the woman. He'd told her she was Dangerous with a capital D, but noooo she just had to test the woman, the little psychopath. Neop stabbed at Carmine with Hush drawn and it went clean through the huntress as the woman dissolved into red petal, her hand gripping onto Neo's wrist and twisting as she flowed behind her.
Even Roman winced as he watched Carmine put Neo in a hold that even the flexible girl couldn't get out of and she grew very still as the barrel of a wapon was pushed into her chin. He'd told Neo about the woman's bullshit semblance but it seemed that she'd still been caught unawares.
"Woah, woah!" Roman swept into the room with his hands raised in a placating manner. He didn't want to lose Neo because of something like this and he had no idea how the professor would take it but judging on the amused and slightly feral smile on the eyepatches woman's face it wasn't too terrible, "Okay how about we all calm down. There's no need for anything drastic. We aren't enemies. Right Neo?"
Neo sent him a powerful pout as he sent her a pleading one before she nodded reluctantly, The silver eyed woman looked down at the girl in her grasp before slowly removing her weapon and holstering it.
"Don't worry Neo, I won't bite." She leaned in to whisper, "Unless you want me to."
Neo's eyes widened before her form shattered and she reappeared right next to him, almost hiding behind him in the process as she cradled her hand. Carmine stood with a laugh before sitting roughly on the couch, throwing her arms along the back of it and crossing her legs, her lone eye meeting his as a languid smile played across her mouth.
"So glad you could come,Roman, and you brought Neo with you. That was quite the hello."
"Well," he put on his best winning smile, "She's just so eager to finally get to meet you in person." He neglected to mention that Neo had been observing from the shadows during their previous meeting, "I must say though, this is quite the roundabout way of getting into contact with me. You have my number if you needed to talk."
"Well I had something of my own to speak to Junior about." The huntress shrugged and then smiled broadly, "That and I like surprises."
Roman couldn't help but feel like it was bullshit but had no way to call her out. If she didn't want to tell him her reasons then he wouldn't be able to convince her to. At the very least it looked like she was willing to overlook Neo's method of greeting, which was a plus. If she'd done that to Cinder then they'd both have been incinerated. He was already coming out on top in this relationship which helped him relax some. Sinking into the sofa across from her, he picked up the glass that was sitting there, already filled with one of his favorite drinks, probably courtesy of Junior. The scotch burned warmly on the way down. Roman light up a cigar and took a long considering puff.
"So what was it you wanted?" Roman finally got down to business.
Rose picked up her own drink and took a sip as he pulled on his smoke, "The noose is almost ready."
The simple phrase sent a trill of excitement through him and Neo went still as she sat next to him, the professor having both of their undivided attention, "Are you saying you're almost ready to…"
"Kill Cinder?" She finished for him, "Yes.
He dared to hope, licked his suddenly dry lips, "How… How are you..?" His words were starting to fail him.
"While I don't want to divulge everything and all of the details haven't been ironed out… We're going to lure her into a trap. Make her commit to her plan."
"When?"
"During the Vytal Festival. Just before her plan kicks off or right as it is supposed to." She answered, no longer smiling and getting serious for one of the few times he'd seen her. The facade dropped and transformed into a cold, steely stare that sent shivers down his spine. Her felt Neo shift next to him and glanced her way and notice the girl biting her lip slightly.
"What do you need from us?" He hedged, almost afraid of her answer.
The smile returned to Rose's face, "Simple. You head to Mountain Glenn and do what she asks. Soon enough we'll have a team crash your operation, 'apprehending' you and the rest of the White Fang there before the train can impact into Vale. With no idea anything is wrong Cinder will proceed as planned, assuming everything is normal. What I need you to do is send her the green light, even afterwards, and let us know exactly when she's planning to strike."
The plan was simple and devious. Cinder's plan was to crash the train with all the stolen Paladins into the middle of Vale, breaching the underground and leading the Grimm into the city while using the White Fang and Grimm tro sow a massive amount of negativity. At the same time Cinder was going to be doing her own operation though exactly what wasn't something he was privy to. She was not about to share the detail of her plan with him.
Afterwards Neo was supposed to sneak the both aboard one of the General's ships to plant a virus to turn the defending mechs against Vale and sow further chaos.
A secret part of him hated the whole plan. Not just because it put him in the line of fire, but because vale was his home turf. It was where he had his reputation and with this it would have been ruined.
Now he had a way out. A genuine way out with someone who could take Cinder on, or at least he hoped so. It was enough of a tpss up in his mind that he didn't mind throwing his bets behind the one who wasn't a murderous megalomaniac. And if he needed to push things her way a little to ensure the bitch went down? Well he hadn't gotten to where he was by playing fair.
"I think I can do that, Prof." Roman took a long drag from his cigar, a satisfied vicious grin. Oh how he wished he'd be able to gloat in Cindy's face. Watch her twist in rage as she was taken down. Maybe he'd ask Carmine to take a picture.
"Good. Now why don't you tell me more about the details of Mountain Glenn?"
And so, for the next hour or two, he laid out as much detail as he could for her, from personnel to equipment, even location. He'd visited the site of the excavation just the other day to start setting up and was getting prepared to settle in for the long haul. Knowing what was in store at the end would actually let him deal with the White Fang with a smile on his face.
-SY-
The red swirling portal resolved as Jaune stepped through into a dimly lit bar. The strong smell of smoke and alcohol invaded his senses and instantly he missed the clean air of the Mistralian wilds. As his eyes adjusted they met the wide, red eyes of an older huntsman. Black hair flecked with gray and two day old stubble lined his chin. Qrow Branwen was half stood with his hand frozen reaching for his weapon. He seemed on edge but sat back down with narrowed eyes and a frown, though Jaune could guess why. Qrow didn't have a good relationship with Raven.
She had abandoned Yang, after all.
It wasn't his place to get in the middle of that kind of drama, however. While he wished he could, there were far more important things to deal with. Raven's issues could wait until they were sure they were all going to live to see them dealt with. His blue eyes slid away from Raven and back to Qrow, a much more familiar person than Raven, and one who instantly had him feeling more sure of himself. While Jaune wouldn't quite call him a mentor, Qrow was a close ally who had stuck with them through thick and thin.
"Raven?" Qrow asked his sister, "What'd you come to me for?" He seemed wary of them and though he addressed Raven he didn't take his eyes off of Jaune.
"What?" Raven asked as she drew out a stool and sat down upon it, mask coming off and clicking as she set it down on the counter. "Maybe I'm just here to catch up."
The look he gave her was unimpressed, "Out with it Raven, why are you in Vale and who is this? A new criminal you've picked up?"
"This is…" Raven trailed off as she started with the easiest question, "Jack. Jack Rabbit." Jaune wanted to slam his palm into his forehead and settled for staring a hole into the side of her head. She fastidiously kept her gaze on her brother who looked from her to Jaune and then back.
"You're shitting me, Ray. I know you made that up on the spot."
"You don't know shit, Qrow." Raven's fist impacted the bar and Jaune caught the quick glance his way and rolled his eyes. She obviously made it up on the spot with the way she would not look directly at him, "And I am here to talk to you."
That caught him off guard, if the way his eyes widened slightly was any indication, before it was replaced with more suspicion, "And what is it you wanna talk to me about?"
"I had some… concerns." Raven hedged, taking the seat next to Qrow, laying Omen against the bar beside her.
"You?" He scoffed, "About what? Mistral finally catching on to you?"
"No." Raven gritted out, "It's about Her."
Qrow's eyes widened and flicked over to Jaune before going back to Raven, "What do you mean?"
"I-" Raven sighed before turning to Jaune, "Jack, can you give us some privacy?"
Jaune shrugged and stepped out of the empty bar. He already knew everything she was going to say so if it made Qrow listen to her he could afford to step outside. The evening air of Vale was crisp as the sun sunk below the city's skyline. He could feel the strange looks on passing pedestrians, several crossing the street before they could pass in front of him. With a mental shrug he leaned against the wall to settle in. The negotiations could take a while, depending on Raven.
He lost track of time as he looked around, lost in though.
The sense of nostalgia from being in Vale was powerful, even if his recollection of his time at Beacon was vague at best. The school sat above the city, on the cliff top overlooking the bay with the iconic CCT tower poking up into the sky. The particular bar that they had found themselves at was a rather empty one. Jaune looked up at the name, Crow Bar, and did a double take.
Really Qrow? The Crow Bar?
Given that there weren't many people in the bar itself he wondered if it wasn't popular because of the name.
His attention was drawn by the clearing of a throat and he turned to see two police officers in front of him, both eyeing him warily.
"Can I help you, officers?" He asked politely.
The one standing closer to him nodded, "We got some reports of a suspicious masked individual."
Suspicious? Jauned looked into the window nearby and saw his reflection, red and white mask on his head with vague Grimm-like features and felt his stomach drop.
"I'm not White Fang!" He blurted out.
The two officers looked at eachother but clearly didn't believe him. Jaune bit his lip and made a quick decision. Reaching up he pressed the latch on the helmet and removed it, exposing his face to the two of them. Then he carefully fished out his scroll, opening it up to his Huntsman license but conveniently held his thumb in such a way that the date was covered. The two officers looked at it, noting that right under gender was Human. He could see the tension release from the two as the chances of him being a terrorist shrunk significantly.
"Huntsman." The lead officer addressed him, "What are you doing standing around like that? You seem an awfully long way from home."
Jaune put his scroll away, "Visiting for the Vytal Festival. More people in Vale means more work. And sorry about the helmet. It's a gift from someone and it helps protect my head. I guess I forgot how similar it was to theirs."
"Right. Well be careful, then." The officer warned him, "We can't arrest or ticket you for wearing a helmet or mask and you weren't doing anything suspicious so all I can do is warn you. You should probably leave it at home."
Jaune simply smiled and thanked the officers for warning him as they walked off to continue whatever they had been doing and Jaune looked down at the lagomorph helmet. It wasn't surprising the police had been called to investigate a person wearing a white and red mask, if he had a choice he wouldn't wear it but Raven had made a decent argument for maintaining anonymity. Even if he could go around with his face out since no one would recognize him the mask would let him move against his enemies and maintain a bit of disguise. Though he supposed if he was wearing it in broad daylight it wasn't as useful.
He'd really only worn it because of Qrow and that Raven had just given it to him.
The yelling reached his ears after a few minutes.
"CAN YOU JUST FUCKING LISTEN TO ME?!" Raven screamed from inside the bar.
"I'M NOT BETRAYING OZPIN FOR YOU, RAVEN1" Qrow answered.
"I'M NOT!" There was a muffled sound as the door burst open and Raven stormed out, cursing as she did so and stomping down the street.
Jaune rapidly put his mask back on by the time Qrow appeared right behind her but he didn't follow her because Jaune had gripped his arm. The older huntsmen spun, fist clenched and looking ready to lash out at him but managed to reign himself in at the last second. Instead he glared at Jaune and yanked his arm back. Jaune shook his head and pushed past his old mentor and followed after Raven, catching up to hear by the sound her her swear words. Qrow was left standing halfway between a scowl and a glare.
It took a while for Raven to calm down enough to at least not make a sailor blush simply by walking by. He walked silently just a step behind and to the side of her, other pedestrians making way for the very irate huntress walking down the sidewalk.
"Raven?" Jaune hedged but got no answer from the woman, "Raven." He insisted more firmly but she stoutly ignored him. Finally he had enough and grabbed her shoulder and she furiously whipped around with her eyes blazing and her mask inches from his. It seemed to bring her out of whatever funk she was in because she simply huffed and turned back around nut finally spoke to him.
"What do you want?" She said as she kept walking.
"To know if you're okay." He fell back in with her.
"Of course I'm fine." She denied, "It's just Qrow being his stupid self. His head's so far up Ozpin's ass he can't smell the lies."
Jaune snorted, "To be fair to him he probably has no idea what's going on. You've spent like, what, almost twenty years living the life of a bandit and avoiding the fight with Salem. He probably just needs time to take in what you told him."
To that, she didn't reply and as the silence drew out longer his sense of dread grew, "You did tell him, right?"
"He wouldn't listen to what I was saying!"
"Raven!"
"I didn't get that far!" She finally admitted.
Jaune was so dumbfounded that he stopped in his tracks and stared at her. It was only when she didn't also stop that he moved rapidly to catch up to her, "How?!"
"He wouldn't stop being a prick!"
"And you couldn't control your temper for long enough to just, I don't know, tell him the fucking truth?!"
He couldn't see her expression underneath her helmet but he hoped she was at least embarrassed about it.
"Whatever." Raven deflected, "My brother wasn't the main reason we came to Vale anyways."
That piqued his interest, "What else are we here for?"
"Information." She refused to elaborate longer as their walking drew them further into the city and eventually to a club with a long line outside the door, a suited man with a red tie at the door checking identification as he let people in. Raven walked confidently up to the man who noted their weapons and looked more than a little nervous.
"Uh ma'am, if you want to enter you're going to have to wait in line like everyone else."
"I'm not here to party." And Raven pulled out what looked like a business card with the symbol of a spider in a web on top of it.
The bouncer's eyes widened and he immediately apologized, letting them in much to the dismay of the others in line. The bass off the music filtered in as they stepped through and grew as they approached the interior. The dark room and flashing lights illuminated the mass of people grinding and dancing in the club as Raven gave the dancefloor a wide berth, instead walking to the bar at the back of the room manned by several suited men with red ties. One was head and shoulders taller than the rest and it was this one that she made her way to. She pushed past the crowd at the bar and placed the card down on the bar surface in front of him.
The man eyed it like it was some kind of snake that was about to bite him if he moved suddenly. It was to loud to discuss much so the pair followed him as he nodded to the side. The bartender led them both to a private room where the music was muted and it was much quieter, which Jaune appreciated.
"Who gave you that card?" The man asked, instead of introducing himself.
Raven removed her mask and the man scowled, "From the Lil' Miss of course." Raven was back to smirking, no doubt feeling in control, "A little rude not to introduce yourself, though."
"You can call me Junior." The man spit out, "But if you're here you already know that, Branwen."
Her smile widened like a predator's, "I see my reputation precedes me. I just want some information, Junior."
Junior took a deep breath and sighed, gesturing to the seats, "So. What information are you looking for?"
Raven sat down on the couch, Jaune taking his place next to her as she crossed her legs, "I'm looking on information on the White Fang and a huntress named Cinder Fall. Anything you can get me will be fine."
"That's… Unusual." He put a hand on the door, "You can order drinks if you want. It'll probably take a while for me to bring up all the information I have and to make some inquiries."
"That's fine. I have time."
With a nod Junior stepped out and shut the door behind him. After a while one of the bartenders came in to take their order and they were left in silence with their drinks. Jaune took his helmet off and set it on the table as he did so.
"So…" Jaune trailed off, "Wanna talk about it?"
"No." Raven refused flatly, scowling as she drank from her own glass.
"But Qrow-"
"I don't want to talk about my brother, okay?!" SDhe slammed the glass down and continued anyways, "I don't care that he won't listen me. I should've expected it."
He simply stared at her.
"What? He just assumes I'm some bandit. He hates me. Has ever since I left. It's no wonder he won't even give me a chance to speak."
The silence stretched. He didn't know what to say to her.
"I need some air." She got up and immediately xited the room, leaving Jaune to sit in consternation. Out in the corridor Raven ran a hand over her face, pinching the bridge of her nose. She rarely got emotional like that. Hadn't in over a decade. She'd thought she'd made her bed and had been prepared to lay in it.
And then she saw Jaune's past.
Her future. Or at least some of it. 'Dead woman' was right. She'd seen what became of her and it made her sick to her stom ach. All that history crammed into her head like a children's tale, Jinn the insufferable woman… thing. But it had still been an eye opener. No matter how hard she tried to stay out of it and live her life free of those two immortals, she'd be dragged in, especially having the Maiden's powers as she did.
Yet another regret to lay on the pile, as she thought of the young, fearful girl who was so like how she felt. She still remembered how it felt when she had tried to sneak out of camp. The fight, first with words and then with the intent to kill. The hot feeling of the power rushing to her as the young girl died in her arms and the slow dread at being saddled with something that would only leave her when she died.
And then Qrow. Her own brother. Somehow she'd held out hope that, even through everything that had come between them, that he of all people would give her the benefit of the doubt. Instead out had come the accusations and the assumptions. The hope she didn't even know she had had died on her lips. And it made her angry. Angry to the point that she was surprised she hadn't given the Maiden's powers away.
The sound of a door down the hallways drew her attention and she slowly opened her eyes and lifted it up from where it rested against the wall to look towards the noise. What she saw there froze her in her tracks, her blood running cold as nothing short of a ghost stood before her.
A young woman stood in the hallways, similarly rooted to the spot. She had dark hair with red highlights and a lone silver eye that was widened in something like recognition or shock. Perhaps a mixture of the two. But what drew Raven's eyes the most was the eyepatch adorning the woman's face. A black one with the silver stitching of a rose. A very familiar symbol.
She tried to speak but found she couldn't and her muscles wouldn't respond to her. The young woman broke eye contact and started walking towards her until she passed Raven, leaving behind only a small scent of some kind of liquor and roses. Raven spun around frantically, reaching out with her hand to catch the woman's shoulder before she could disappear from sight.
The hand made contact. Actual physical contact and Raven wasn't sure why that surprised her, "Wait!" she cried out and the young woman turned around, her lone silver eye regarding her with contempt.
"What do you want?"
A/N: Here's another chapter. Surprise!