The hallways of Beacon Academy were steadily emptying as its students went off to their dorms. Classes had been over for the day for little over half an hour, and in that time, KRME had tucked away all their school supplies and were now making their way to the city. They had chosen this evening to go information hunting, hoping to flush out SWAN's hiding place. Azure had a contact in the city, and Jad gotten in touch with someone he claimed could help. Though it had confused Gayle when she saw her partner passing a note to a rather large bird of prey one night after school, she was put at ease when Jad explained that it was apparently how they stayed in touch.
"So, are we all set?" Azure asked.
Jad nodded firmly. "You n' Foxy do your thing. We'll do ours. My guy always comes through."
"Yeah, that's basically it. Just lemme know when you're finished, alright?"
Jad gave a nod.
Azure smiled gratefully. "Ok, get outta here."
Taking their leave, the pair of redheads went with a wave of the hand and a skip in their step. Gayle looked up to her partner curiously.
"So, how are we getting to wherever we need to go?" she asked.
Jad thought about that for a moment. An idea then floated into his mind, and his face lit up with excited anticipation. Gayle saw the change, and an odd combination of worry and intrigue bubbled up in her chest. The last time he'd flipped to that intensity of joy, he'd almost destroyed the dining hall. So she was a little hesitant to ask what he'd just come up with?
"I know EXACTLY how we're gonna do this," he exclaimed, taking Gayle by the hand and running off as fast as he could. "But first, we gotta go grab her…"
"Guess we should get going too, huh?" Rember suggested to her partner, watching the other half of the team turn down a hall and disappear from sight.
"Yup."
The fox and the cat went the opposite direction from their teammates, not nearly as hurried.
"Is there anything else we should get while we're out?" Rember asked. "Kinda wanting to make some cookies tonight."
"I assume that means you want me to make some cookies tonight? Sure. We should have enough time to do a milk run and all that. But if you want me to bake, I expect some help. Deal?" Azure asked, to which his partner nodded enthusiastically. "Alright, we'll pick up what we need on the way back."
A pleased smile graced the fox girl's beautiful face, and the two continued on their way. Weaving through the familiar halls, Azure noticed a familiar flash of silvery blue hair at the end of the corridor they just rounded. Even from behind, the half faunus could tell who it was.
Valerie.
"Can you give me a second?" Azure asked as he watched the young woman turn a corner and vanish from sight. "I need to go...make something right."
Shrugging nonchalantly, Rember gave an affirmative, and the pale young man quickened his pace. As soon as he'd closed the distance, he made his presence known.
"Hey."
The greeting had Valerie looking over her shoulder curiously. Taken aback upon recognizing the pale, spiky haired boy. She halted and turned to face him.
"Oh! Uh, hi," she said. "This is unexpected. Do you need something?"
"Well, actually," Azure replied, absentmindedly glancing back to where Rember was probably waiting, "I just wanted to apologize. For the other day."
"Hm?" Valerie inquisitively raised an eyebrow before recalling the incident. "Oh, you mean when you gave me the cold shoulder the other day."
Azure cringed, ashamed. "Uh, yeah. That," he admitted. "I'm sorry I did that. Things have just...been kinda hectic lately."
Valerie smiled. "Don't worry about it," she dismissed lightly, "I'm over it already."
"Still, it's been bugging me," Azure admitted. "Is there any way I can make it up to you?"
Valerie blinked. This entire conversation was just littered with surprises.
"You're serious?" she asked.
"I am."
Valerie saw the determination in Azure's eyes, dissolving any doubts she might've had. Taking a moment, the red eyed girl mentally ran through all of the possibilities (there were a considerable number of them). Being put on the spot meant she didn't have any time to think, but it didn't take too long to come up with the perfect idea. Valerie grinned and uttered a single word:
"Dance."
Azure's gut twisted.
"What?" he asked stupidly, hoping Valerie was just playing around like she often did.
His flustered response only spurred her impish smile, and the churning feeling in his stomach worsened.
"The dance! The one that's coming up soon! You wanna make it up to me?" she asked eagerly, gliding up close.
The tactically enticing move was a little too much for the faunus' personal bubble, but he decided to endure it for the time being. After responding to the red eyed girl with a single nod Valerie drew back, a pleased skip in her step.
"Then you will be my date for the evening," she stated triumphantly.
Azure blinked in uncertainty. Was...was he just forced into a date? Like, a date date? He wasn't sure how he felt about that, but he would accept his fate.
"Alright then," the half faunus agreed, "you've got yourself a deal."
"Hee, yes!" Valerie giggled. "Don't worry, it'll be fun!" She gave Azure a warm smile, which he tried but failed to reciprocate.
"Well, there are things Rem and I need to do today. Maybe we could continue this later?"
Valerie nodded understandingly. "Sure. I'll see you around, Azure!"
With that Valerie jogged off, humming to herself, and Azure deflated. Walking back to where Rember waited, the young man wasn't surprised to see her leaning up against the wall, an amused smile on her face.
"You heard that, didn't you?" Azure asked flatly.
"Maaaaybe."
A sigh slipped out of Azure's mouth, gesturing for the faunus to follow. "C'mon, Rem. We'll talk about it later."
"C'mon Jad, can you just tell me where you've dragged me off to?!" Gayle pleaded.
"Not yet, kid. Just hang on a wee bit longer."
Gayle pouted, mildly irritated. She'd been led to some place in the kingdom she hadn't been before. It wasn't all that developed, with quite a bit of wildlife around. On top of that, Jad's uncharacteristic secrecy, coupled with his enthusiasm, had her wondering just what was brewing under that hat of his.
After a small trek across a worn down road, the two of them stopped in front of a padlocked shed that was a little ways off the paved path. Once there, Jad reached into his jacket and produced a set of keys, opening the shed to reveal a singular something covered by a protective tarp.
'So this is it?" Gayle asked, bemused.
"Hehe, yup. But first…" Jad walked inside and retrieved a helmet hanging on one of the walls, placing it in the girl's hands. Gayle took a minute to observe it while Jad pulled the tarp off in a dramatic reveal.
A polished black motorcycle with forest green and twinkling gold trim sat gleaming in the light, ready for use.
"So," Jad said as he pulled on his own protective gear, a comically seductive look in his eyes. "You wanna ride the dragon?"
"Here we are."
Rember took a moment to observe the building Azure had led them to. The outside consisted of aging brickwork, concrete, and tinted glass. If it weren't for the beat of electronic music blaring from within, the fox girl would've passed it off as any other building.
"So this guy can help us find Creed and the others?"
The young man nodded. "Junior was one of my contacts when I was still doing missions for Black Claw. Not a lot of underground info brokers in Vale, but he's still around."
Taking the lead, Azure lifted his hood and pushed open the front door.
Rember's ears were immediately assaulted by the full force of the music she'd heard from outside. Flashing lights of red and white danced throughout the room, illuminating the otherwise dimly lit chamber. The duo were soon met by a man dressed entirely in black, the only prominent item on his person being a pair of red tinted glasses concealing his eyes.
"Hey, you're a little early and a little young to be here, kiddos." the bouncer stated, a deep scowl etched onto his face. "High tail it outta here before you cause a scene."
One of Rember's ears twitched, but she was unfazed. Azure answered, a deadly serious look in his golden eyes.
"Tell your boss that Nightmare is here to see him, and that I don't plan on leaving until I get what I came for," he growled.
The man was clearly taken aback at the threat. Any other day, he would've taught this punk a harsh lesson, but the animalistic appearance and ferocity of this hooded boy's eyes jogged a few vague, painful memories, making him hesitate. Not to mention that the girl he was with had casually placed her hands on the hilts of her weapons. The bouncer narrowed his eyes at the faunus who smiled charmingly, revealing a set of elongated canine teeth. Unnerved by the confidence the teens displayed, the bouncer returned his attention to the kid in white. Wait, he'd seen this guy before...
"Fine," the man relented, turning and disappearing into the club.
Azure made his way towards the bar, Rember following close behind, stifling a quiet fit of giggles. Each of them claimed a seat on one of the stools and waited for Azure's contact to appear. Rember quickly discovered that the seats rotated, and amused herself by spinning around. The bouncer that had greeted them soon returned with another individual and Rember stopped goofing off to study him. His attire differed from the others, and he had cleanly kept black hair and trimmed beard. This had to have been this 'Junior' that Azure mentioned.
"Well," Junior started in mild surprise, recognizing the white hair, hood, and yellow eyes, "it's been awhile since you've paid me a visit."
Azure waited for the gruff sounding owner to place himself behind the bar, leaning forward onto the counter. "Things have been busy. I need a favor."
"Yeah? And why should I do that? I still remember you kicking the crap out of my men a couple months back."
"Then you know you should give me what I need."
Eyeing the pale boy, Junior let out an exasperated sigh. "Alright. One less headache to worry about then." Pouring himself a beverage, he took a sip before recomposing himself. "What is it you need this time?"
Azure glanced over at his partner, who made a good show of not listening as her green eyes inspected the club, before switching his focus back to the informant.
"I need to know where Reaper and Mirage are."
Junior raised an eyebrow. "You not with them anymore?" he asked casually.
"I'm the one asking questions here, Junior. Not you. I need their whereabouts, and it's time sensitive."
Taking another sip of his drink, the club owner took a moment to consider. "How time sensitive?"
"Time sensitive enough that it's in your best interest to get this done as soon as possible."
"Is that all?"
"For now."
Sighing, Junior scratched the back of his head and drained his glass. "I'll...see what I can do," he replied. "Finding any info on the three of you is tough at the best of times, never mind under a time constraint, but I'll do what I can."
Cleaning his glass and placing it back in its proper place, the man took one last look at the two teens sitting. Rember offered a disarming smile, but Junior wasn't fooled. If this chick was hanging out with Nightmare, she had to be dangerous. The best thing to do with dangerous folks was to give them what they wanted and get out of there quickly, which was exactly what he intended to do.
"I'll let you know if we dig anything up, but don't go holding your breath," the broker announced. "Now if there's nothing else, I have a club full of idiots to run."
Gayle braced herself as Jad slowed his vehicle down to a halt, an elated smile hiding under the helmet her partner had given her. Though she hadn't been all that convinced that riding a motorcycle would be fun, she'd been willing to give it a try. This short trip had only confirmed Jad's ramblings on how exhilarating it was, and Gayle was keen to go riding again.
Flicking up Joanna's kickstand, the tall redheaded rider waited for his passenger to mosey her way off his baby like he'd shown her and took off his helmet.
"Soooooo?" he asked, grinning lopsidedly.
"Hehe, you were right!" Gayle admitted happily. "That was fantastic!"
Jad couldn't help but smile. Everyone loved the motorcycle. If they said otherwise they were lying. Strapping the protective headgear in place on the bike, Jad led Gayle down an alleyway too small to maneuver Joanna down. If she remembered Jad's claims correctly, Gayle had been told that her partner was friends with someone who could help track down the people Azure wanted to find. And if she knew anything about her friend, it was that Jad was bound to know some interesting personalities.
As they walked Gayle found herself reflecting on all that had happened in the recent weeks. SWAN's appearance, Azure's lash out, and learning fragments of her leader and Rember's pasts. It had been a little overwhelming, to say the least.
Unbeknownst to her, Jad had taken note of the 'deep in thought' look Gayle was prone to wearing. He knew that it meant she was either daydreaming, or there was something on her mind.
"You have your thinking face on." he stated.
Gayle started when she heard her partner, but quickly relaxed. "Oh, I...it's nothing important. Just thinking about random stuff." The faunus replied, reflexively brushing off the topic, but Jad wasn't buying it yet.
"Go on. I'm listening."
"Mmmm. I guess...it's a little bit about what Bossman and Ber said. I'm just mulling it over. Don't worry about it."
Jad nodded his head. "Yeah, I can see that. They roped us into some pretty heavy stuff."
"Mhmm."
"You doing alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. We agreed to help, right? So everything will be fine."
"Hmmm...alright then." Jad conceded as the two neared their destination. He could've pressed a little bit more, but force wasn't really a thing in Gayle's world. She would say more when she was ready.
Jad stopped abruptly. He glanced over his shoulder and gave a quiet three tone whistle.
A black, glossy feather flitted down past Jad's face, and the redhead snatched it out of the air. Gayle watched curiously as he inspected the plumage, a sly smile creeping onto the young man's face.
"Hey, Beastie." the boy said, quietly greeted the unseen party. "Come out and play."
No answer.
"Uhh, Jad? There's no one here. You sure that this is the right place?" Gayle asked, looking around for this aforementioned 'Beastie'. As far as she could see, this was just some dime a dozen, dead end alley.
Jad turned around to assure his partner that everything was fine, but was abruptly interrupted when a figure dropped down from one of the buildings and landed with a solid *thud*. The sudden appearance startled Gayle, and Jad grinned, slowly turning back around.
"Hello gorgeous," the young man smirked, "did you miss me?"
It was now that Gayle got a good look at the person that had literally just dropped in. The first thing she noticed was that they were female and faunus. A wolf faunus to be specific. She was on the shorter side, probably even smaller than Gayle herself, but her musculature was far more developed and she carried herself so confidently that it was intimidating. Long, curly black hair shone in the early evening light, and eyes with irises so dark it was like looking into obsidian pools. She wore an entirely jet black, leather outfit, a fur sash similar to Jad's wrapped around her waist. What really caught Gayle's attention, however, was the fact the newcomer had both a pair of black wolf ears and a black with grey tipped tail. It was incredibly uncommon to find a faunus with two animal attributes, especially such obvious ones. It was only the second time Gayle had seen a faunus with two traits, the first being Rember's ears and fangs.
Eyeing Jad with mild disgust, 'Beastie' rolled her eyes and frowned, arms folded across her chest.
"Hello, mutt," she reciprocated curtly.
Jad smiled. "Well you haven't changed a bit, now, have you?"
"I could say the same for you, you pompous flirt. That's gonna get you killed one of these days."
"Oh you don't like my teasing? You used to thoroughly enjoy it, as I remember."
"Put a sock in it."
Gayle couldn't help but stare in confusion as her partner and the wolf girl bantered. Were they actually friends? Beastie seemed pretty hostile but the tall redhead kept at it, smiling like nothing was out of the ordinary.
"Alright, enough," Beastie stated, ending the verbal dance with a hand gesture. "You contacted me saying you need my help, so speak quickly. I have things to do with the pack."
Pack? Gayle thought curiously.
"Ya, I bet you do," Jad shrugged, but spoke in an appropriately serious tone. "I need someone tracked. So I came to the best."
Raising an eyebrow, Beastie relaxed her arms. "Details," she demanded, and Jad nodded.
"They call their group SWAN. Specifically, my friends and I are looking for two of them. Names are Creed Noir and Wisteria Dawn. First one's a creepy guy with black hair, wears a long black coat, and has a sword. The other's a short girl that wears magenta-y purple and has a long white twin-tailed scarf. Easy on the eyes, kinda cute."
Gayle couldn't help but notice the audible sigh from Beastie when she heard that last comment. Nonetheless, the wolf girl put a hand up to her lips in contemplative silence.
"Give me two weeks and I'll find your prey."
Jad smiled happily. "Done," he concluded, holding out a clenched fist. Beastie accepted the gesture, bumping fists before taking her leave, disappearing just as suddenly as she'd arrived. With their business concluded, Jad reached for his scroll and dialed his team leader.
"Hey," Azure's voice sounded.
"Hey, Pasty! All good to go here. Things are in motion."
"Awesome. Rem and I are all set too."
There was a brief pause, and Jad wondered if the connection had gone wonky. "You still there?"
"Uh, yeah," Azure answered, his voice hesitant.
"Something up?"
"You could say that. Hey, Jad?"
"Yeah, Pasty?"
"I need a favor."
Gayle watched as Jad conversed with Azure on his scroll, wondering what their next course of action would be.
"Heh….Heha….Hahahahaha…HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The lizard girl was overtaken by confusion as her partner succumbed to an unwarranted fit of laughter.
"HAHAHAHAHA! YOU BETTER NOT BE MESSING WITH ME, PASTY. IS THIS FOR REAL?"
"Jad? What's going-"
"Hahaha- hang-hang on-ehehehehe!" Jad managed to respond in between his hysterics.
The boy's face had lit up with something that surpassed mere excitement, and Gayle watched, bemused by his antics.
"You bet your ass! Brace yourself! Here comes the smolder!"
With a last laugh, Jad hung up and returned his Scroll to his jeans, looking eagerly at his baffled partner.
"We have work to do!"