"So you kicked their asses." Yang proceeded to chuckle, which tumbled out into a full blown laugh. Out of nowhere the elder sister pulled the younger one into a half hug, and ruffled her hair. "Way to go! I bet you showed them what for!"
"Yang!" The little one cried, desperately trying to wriggle out of her more muscular counterpart's grasp, all the while a perplexed Weiss watched from the sidelines.
Considering Yang's previous attitude towards Ruby being put into danger, she'd fully expected another outburst of rage. So, to see such congratulations being shoved on the gothic lolita's shoulders called for some scrutiny. This was not yet verbal however, as while Weiss would have loved to haul the paradoxical woman aside and give her a stern interrogation over her recent actions, she wasn't quite ready to spoil the mood.
They'd just gotten things patched up recently - if one could even call it that - and Weiss wanted to give them some time to relax; more so that of Ruby as opposed to Yang.
"I think she needs to breathe." The claim was tossed out by Blake, who while pretending to read, had snuck an eye past her book and towards that of the sisters.
"Oh, right." Yang let their leader go, who backed away and shook herself. "Sorry."
"I'm okay." Ruby confirmed, dusting off her crumpled battle dress. "And besides, it wasn't that big of a deal anyway."
"Ruby, we literally had an encounter with a terrorist organization." Weiss made sure to harden her expression as she crossed her arms; hopefully Ruby would see the severity of the situation that way. "And in the middle of the mall no less."
"She's right, Rubes." At least Yang could see the importance of things. Their more rash teammate took on a somewhat serious look. "As cool as it is how you stomped them into the dirt, they're still dangerous."
"I know that." Ruby's defense may have worked for Yang, who smiled, but Weiss wasn't falling for such a simple answer.
"People could have died." There was a second of silence between them all, and Weiss couldn't help but grit her teeth together a little before continuing. "Even with our intervention, a stray shot could have taken the life of anyone; the average person doesn't have aura. From what they're saying, there are only injuries; that alone is a miracle itself."
Ruby appeared to understand it all now, and as her eyes dropped she placed her hands behind her back.
"I'm sorry."
"It's not an accusation, I'm only telling you." Weiss let out a sigh. "I want to make sure you're aware of just how dangerous things were, and why, even though it was an easy fight for you, it was still a massive event."
"Kind of giving off mixed signals there." Yang curled a brow, laying a hand on her hip as she leaned on one leg. "Is this a lecture, or a compliment?"
"Neither. As I said, it's a warning that we need to put more consideration into what we do and face."
Did it sound like she was lecturing them? Truthfully, Weiss couldn't tell: she was just telling them what to keep in mind during dangerous encounters. But upon looking at the rest of her team, and more specifically Ruby's apparent doubt, she began to think she might have laid it on a tad thick. The White Fang were murderous monsters though, and while it was fun to entertain that all their future encounters with the rogues would be so easy, Weiss knew better than anyone about how deadly and vile they could be.
Instinctually, her left hand quivered.
"Did anyone know why they were attacking the mall?"
The question came from Blake, and it alone derailed the initial conversation with Yang just shrugging. Weiss shook her head, not having the faintest clue as to why the vagabonds decided openly assaulting one of the most crowded places of the day was such a brilliant idea. Looking at Ruby, the black haired beauty felt the last of her hopes dashed as her leader replied with the same sort of answer everyone else shared.
"They never said. All they did was start shooting."
"So we don't have any clues as to a motive?" Blake found that especially odd, as even with an attack doomed to fail, there was always, always something to be gained.
"Why the sudden interest?" Weiss crossed her arms again, and although she merely looked with askew curiosity, Blake realized she might have been pushing her luck if she continued.
"Nothing. I just found it a little strange based on their recent attacks. Usually they take easy, less direct targets, so I thought it was a bit weird that they started a fight in the open."
"They've been getting more brazen as of late." Weiss huffed after that, making no show to hide her discontent. Blake would have liked to call such a reaction surprising, but this was a Schnee she was talking with; the animosity was to be expected. "Although, I guess it isn't much of a surprise, considering they'd openly destroyed one of their own people's protests earlier at the beginning of the year; what a welcome to Vale that had been."
Blake badly wanted to say something... but she couldn't. She'd been able to work out the reasons for most of their decisions a while ago, but like the attack on the mall just some hours ago, that was one of the moves where the motive wasn't so clear. It had been a simple protest of faunus workers, targeted at yet another business abusing said workers. Nobody was in the factory at the time of the protest, and the only humans around were a few onlookers and law enforcement, and even then about half of the present police were faunus too.
Even looking back at the attack, Blake couldn't fathom why her once allies chose to break it up. Yes, the factory took some damage, but not enough to justify the amount of faunus who were hurt in the scuffle, some of which had even passed from their injuries. It was as if the Fang were actively trying to stir up hatred towards themselves.
"Pardon the announcement, but can team RWBY please report to the Headmaster's office immediately. Again, team RWBY is requested at the Headmaster's office. Thank you."
"Huh..." Yang's face screwed a little. "Did we get in trouble already?"
"It called for all of us." Weiss commented, rolling her eyes. "And with Ruby and I being gone for a portion of the day not too long ago, I doubt we've somehow collectively found a way to cause a ruckus."
"Then what did we do?"
"How should I know?"
"Not helping, Ice Queen."
Weiss groaned from the nickname, and Yang smirked. Blake found her mind trailing from the White Fang towards the possible cause of their newest predicament, and Ruby found her mind filled with wonder. She wasn't all that happy about being called to the office, sure, but for Ruby she saw what might have been an interesting meeting. If they hadn't caused any trouble, then the headmaster calling for them must have been a good thing... right?
They'd end up finding out soon, as once the initial surprise of the announcement faded the quartet were on their way. Oddly enough, they hadn't drawn all that many looks on their way up, and with their sister team JNPR currently in the combat arena - courtesy of a battle-itching Nora - nobody was around to ask why they might have been summoned. The elevator's ding was simple, and despite the sharp but still mostly pleasant noise, the girls came to stand before the man who'd supposedly called for them.
Miss Goodwitch could have called for them, being the unofficial secretary as well as combat instructor, but she wasn't here, so it was just the girls and Headmaster Ozpin.
"Good evening." He began, waving his hand towards four chairs set up before his desk; so he had been expecting them - Ruby would file this information away for about a minute before its lack of use caused its erasure. "Please, take a seat."
They did as told, and right after that the man continued on with a casual air.
"Now, are any of you aware of why I've brought you all here?"
The four eyed each other before Ruby spoke up.
"No."
"I see." The man uncrossed his fingers, leaning back in his chair. "Well, for what it's worth: you're not in trouble."
"Yes!" Yang pumped a fist, cheering, only to pause once she noticed the silence. None of the others, not even Ruby, were celebrating even remotely similar to her. With a tad bit more embarrassment than she'd ever admit, Yang sat back down and straightened herself. "I-I mean good."
Ozpin took it in stride though, chuckling to himself.
"Yes, well, for as much as I'd like to see you all celebrating this momentous occasion, I'm afraid the reason I've called you here isn't exactly a pleasant one." Everyone had ears ready to hear him out, but as for Blake, she'd noticed something the others hadn't paid attention to.
Did... did he just joke?
Since when did the headmaster joke around? Blake never got the chance to ponder the thought, not when Ruby was moving the conversation along.
"What's wrong?"
"Trouble in the city." The headmaster's slightly relaxed posture shifted, slowly, back into one of serious attention. It wasn't forceful, but it was enough for them to know he was done with whatever little games they'd been playing to break the air; it was time to get down to business. "And while I'd normally leave such things to the authorities, a certain little 'event' has called my attention."
Everyone was a bit unnerved, and this got even worse as his eyes shot right over to Ruby. The poor girl never got a chance to even act shocked before he laid it out.
"Miss Rose, is it true you and your partner had a run in with the White Fang down in Vale's central mall?"
"Damn." Yang whistled before shooting a look to her sister. "Word travels fast." Again, this was followed by silence, and she realized she'd butted in again where she wasn't wanted. "S-shoot! Sorry, my bad." With a bit of a red face, Yang looked away. "Go ahead Rubes."
"We did." Ruby said calmly, although the slight twitch on her cheeks never passed him by. "We were down with friends when they attacked."
"Friends?" Ozpin sounded... strangely confused, and Ruby felt a little unnerved. "You two weren't alone?"
"Umm, no." Ruby did her best to hide how... uncomfortable she felt. His face was strangely focused, and with how centered his attention already was, the intensity was tripled now.
"Were any of them injured in the event?"
Oh! So that's what it was. Ruby wanted to mentally slap herself; she'd been assuming he was weirded out over them having friends for some reason, and only now did she realize how stupid that idea sounded in her head. Shrugging the last remnants of her previous concerns away, she answered wholeheartedly.
"Nope!" And she was quite proud of that fact. "All three of them made it out okay!"
Ozpin's tension looked to melt away.
"That's excellent to hear, and it's also good to know you're all settling in with the other students. Speaking of which, if you don't mind, may I get the names of the three students who were with you during the attack: I'd like to speak with them also in regards to what happened."
Ruby's previous confidence deflated a bit, but nevertheless she carried on.
"Well, only one of them was a student."
"Oh?" He tilted his head, and seeing this as a sign to keep going, Ruby did.
"The other two were just regular people."
"I see... then, would you still be willing to provide me with their names?" Ozpin drew the conversation back in on the question... but Ruby was having a bit of a hard time coming up with an answer. Still, she gave it her all, even based on limited information.
"Coco was the other student, and she had a friend called Miltia too... um, I also think one of the guys was called Jay... and I heard someone call the last guy Rex."
"It sounds to me like you didn't know them very well."
She really didn't, but then again, she'd only just met most of them. To be fair, Ozpin didn't sound like he was trying to judge her, but even so, Ruby felt a little mean over not having asked their names at least. Twiddling her fingers, Ruby sheepishly revealed the truth.
"I only knew Coco, and kind of just met the rest immediately after."
"Ah..." For some reason, the headmaster was chuckling; it was done silently, but Ruby was sure everyone could see the way his shoulders shook. "Try not to hold anything against Miss Adel; she has a habit of failing to mention other guests on her little outings."
"Okay." Ruby let out, still a little perplexed... at least until Weiss jumped in.
"Hold on, are you saying this is normal for her?"
"Oh yes." Ozpin said with a relaxed smile. "She does this all the time."
The way he looked at them while saying that... it made implications that Yang of all people took a shot at; apparently, embarrassing herself twice wasn't enough to keep her down.
"Sounds like you're speaking from experience." Despite Yang's very blatant jab, the headmaster gained a twinkle in his eye to go along with his smirk.
"We've let her host some of the staff gatherings. And while we're usually fine with a few extra guests during the less serious events, being huntsmen and huntresses does not remove that uncomfortable feeling of being around armed police; not so much for our safety, but rather theirs."
A chill crept through all four of the girls, and they collectively decided in a spout of perfect unity not to question what any of that meant. Being the first to shake herself free, however, Ruby opened up again.
"G-got it. Is there anything else you wanted us for?"
Ozpin looked to take this as a sign she'd told him everything she knew, shaking his head and leaning back in his chair again.
"No, that's all I wished to speak with you about." There was a slight beep that sounded out, and while it certainly did not spook Ruby in even the slightest capacity, she still felt a little relieved when the headmaster looked over to the scroll on the side of his desk, and then back to her; the noise must have been a notification of something, although she'd never ask what. "With your side of the story under way, I need only check if Miss Adel herself has anything else to add. Thank you for your help."
"N-no problem." Ruby would admit, stuttering in a two word sentence probably wasn't the best look, and was the perfect indicator she should probably get them all out of there. "Can we go now?"
"Yes, you may go." His smile was pleasant, but Ruby couldn't help but feel he was laughing at her mistake behind her back.
Ozpin watched as they all stood up to leave, and once they did he himself arose and made for the window on the left. While most of the office had openings to the outside, there was always one he used when letting his prime agent inside. Once said window was cracked open a single black crow rushed inside, and bathed in askew shadows, it morphed into the shape of a man. Soon enough color covered the image, and there stood Qrow.
"You're fast." He commented, stretching a little as Ozpin himself returned to his desk.
"And you're late." He held up his scroll, showing the message which had arrived not twenty seconds ago. "Usually your messages are ten or so minutes early, so why the sudden change of pace?"
"Slipped my mind until I saw the girls from outside." Qrow took a seat on the chair previously occupied by his niece; crossing his legs and taking a more slouched posture. "I got some news on our guy, although not much."
"Little is better than nothing, so tell me what we have." Ozpin honed his ears, ready to let not even the slightest of nuances cross his attention.
"His name."
"I see, and what else?" A solid name was good, but that was only the beginning.
"That's it: I have his name. He's holding up at a club, but as for background: I've got nothing."
"Pardon?" Ozpin didn't like what he heard, and the reply had tumbled out almost entirely by accident.
"Yeah, I know: it doesn't sound like much... because it isn't." Qrow leaned up, laying his elbows on his knees and looking Ozpin straight in the eyes. "Look, I don't know what strings that kid had to pull, but he's downright invisible. My source had nothing else on the guy, and that's saying something when it comes to him."
A name... all they had was a single name. If Qrow was correct, then it posed quite the problem. Ozpin had been expecting some dark, or even bland news as a result of the boy, but with nothing but a name to go off, all suspicions of potential innocence had flown out the window. One did not erase their entire background without ample reason, and the truly innocent would not have access to the resources required for such a wipe.
Salem had a dastardly piece indeed.
"Very well; we'll solve the rest of the equation later. Tell me, what is his name, and where is he held up?" At the very least, Ozpin was hoping to do some of his own research into the boy. Qrow claimed his source had nothing on the young man, but if that source was who he thought it was, then they'd only have access to information in regards to Vale. While it was still a substantial discovery, perhaps the truth of the boy's origins lay in the other kingdoms.
"Name's Jay Williams, and he's currently working at a club known as Juniors. I don't know what he does, but he works there." Qrow twisted his lip. "Well, that's not quite it: one of the other staff has a thing for him, but that doesn't really have anything to do with the kid himself. The guy also has a friend, but that friend is just like him, invisible. We saw him already though: he was the guy who pounced on our man in the video."
So this 'Jay' was working at Juniors. Although a little interesting, it at least confirmed his previous suspicions. Junior's club was a popular place for most party seekers, and seeing as the man was head of Vale's largest crime syndicate, he had it on good authority that the source his agent was referring to was Junior himself. Ozpin could have called it out right there, but Qrow was better off not knowing he'd already backed up a list of all possible sources for underground information in all of the kingdoms; the man was owed his privacy when choosing his sources and other areas of secrecy after all, even if it was blatantly obvious who his info dealer for Vale was - all traders within Junior's territory answered to him, and him alone.
While that was all well and good, the name itself presented a whole slew of problems.
Our suspicions were right, we're too late.
Miss Rose had mentioned a 'Jay' mere moments ago, and from what they'd seen on the security camera, he had a strong suspicion their target was the 'Jay' she'd been referring to. One student and three 'potential' civilians, one of which held the guilty name, with another taking the moniker of a certain twin associated with the man who employed their individual of interest. With the stars seemingly aligning so quickly, Ozpin was tempted to chance his luck with the local lottery; perhaps more than once.
If this was indeed true, then they could only hope the meeting between the pair was pure coincidence. The worst case scenario would involve the man sticking his claws into the innocent little girl, and considering she was one of the last of the silver eyed warriors, something Ozpin was in no rush to explain to the young woman, then there was only one thing Salem would seek from Ruby.
Her demise.
If that weren't bad enough, he now had to not only tell Qrow, right now, that their suspicions were not only correct, but he'd also have to deal with the proceeding fallout. Qrow was cautious on the best of days, even despite his laid back attitude towards things, and while Ozpin considered such a steady hand admirable, he knew his family was always a soft spot. Add onto the fact he'd need to somehow convince Ruby to be cautious around the young man should they come into contact again, and to provide such suggestions indirectly... Well, he had quite the task ahead of him.
A task not made any easier by Qrow's awaiting look. From the White Fang launching off a surprise attack in public, to one of the most unstable first year teams contributing half of their members to its suppression: today was turning out to be a rather filthy mess.
There's still a chance.
This 'Jay' had yet to do anything damning, aside from working for Salem that was, and Ozpin was going to hold him to that. He knew better than anyone how easy it was to give into suspicion, and even if the boy was already on the wrong side, there was still hope he could be persuaded to change over. He just needed to keep believing in that idea. Actually, as he thought of it, a cheeky little plan came to mind. Like the slithering serpents of the forest, it crept along the woodland floor before coming upon its prey, at which point it lashed out.
Perhaps their meeting was not a curse, but a stroke of luck instead.
"Uh, Oz? You there?" Qrow was growing impatient, but he didn't blame the man. A shrewd smile planted itself over his lips, and while Ozpin could have whisked it away, he felt it a fitting look for a plan that would mostly have his associate on high alert.
Sorry my friend, but we cannot afford to pass on every opportunity that feels risky.
James would call him a hypocrite, but there was a stark difference between launching a brazen attack on their enemies, and sending in an unknowing spy to potentially sway a single soldier. Miss Rose always had a knack for drawing out the best in people, with her innocence providing comfort and safety to those willing to listen. Ozpin was not blind, nor deaf, so when he noticed Miss Schnee began to walk with her head no longer raised up high, looking down on those around her, he had a solid theory that the young leader had left her mark.
They would need that power now more than ever, for the forces of Salem were almost always broken beyond repair. If anyone was to delve into the pits of tar that were the hearts of her followers and pull them up by the single wick remaining, the last potential source of light within their souls, then it was Ruby Rose.
"Jay Williams, was it?"
"Uh, yeah." Qrow's expression twisted further with that, and Ozpin relaxed his grin.
"Well, I believe we may have a unique opportunity before us."
"Why?" He was suspicious now, and for good reason; Qrow's intuition was as strong as ever.
"Because, as it turns out, your youngest niece has just finished telling me of her encounter with the White Fang earlier. And, while that may have been impressive, she also mentioned a man by the name of Jay. I think it's safe to say our assumptions were right." Qrow's body locked up, but that wouldn't be the end of it. "Not only that, but she also brought up a Miltia as well." Qrow paled, and Ozpin leaned forward. "Now, if I recall correctly, this woman Miltia, isn't that the name of a bouncer in Junior's club, the one you suggested for our staff's 'beginning of the year' celebration? I distinctly recall Peter dancing on the table while Glynda drowned her sorrows away, as she does every year when we choose a club as our host."
Glynda usually berates Qrow for his constant alcoholism, but once every few years when the staff party is hosted at a bar of sorts, Miss Goodwitch chose to wash away her stress in booze. As for Professor Port... if only his students heard the stories he told when loaded; now that was something to see.
"So." Ozpin put a little more emphasis behind the word, and Qrow regained a little more of his focus. "I have a plan, but you're not going to like it."
"Oz... don't tell me..."
"From how she spoke, I'd say Miss Rose has somewhat gotten herself involved with not only Jay, but Miltia as well. Or, to put it basically, Ruby sees them as friends; she told me as much already during our talk."
"Brothers..." Qrow shook his head, which fell into his open palm as he hunched over.
"With this in mind, I have a new strategy." Qrow looked up. "We're going to let this go, and you are going to continue watching over both of them. If they are friends, this may make swaying the young man away from Salem easier. Your niece has that same odd habit her mother did, so I believe she might be our best chance to turn things around."
Summer always did tend to make more friends than enemies, even partially taming her troublesome teammate Raven, Qrow's sister, who'd been much more trouble than anyone was expecting. Qrow surely had things to say about this idea, but for the moment, he just sort of sat there, as if someone had pissed in his drink. Unfortunate as it was, this was probably the best way to handle things. After all...
Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.
Author's note
…
Here we are again.
No Jay or Rex this time, except in mention. While it's fun to keep up with one of our protagonists, we also have to keep an eye on the other. Who is this other? Well, based on what you've all seen so far, it should be pretty obvious. Yeah, everyone else is important, but it's these two who shove along the story.
So Ozpin is scheming again - wild, I know - and Qrow rightfully isn't feeling too cool about it. With the meeting out of the way, Oz has pretty much confirmed that Jay and Ruby are acquainted in some way, and hatches a plan to make use of that. But, despite the simplicity of the plan, will it work? Can they sway Jay from Salem's side, even though he isn't actually on it? Only time will tell. Oh, and I guess Ozpin is keeping secrets from Qrow or whatever.
Until next time.