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Jaune Arc's Counseling For Troublesome Youths - Chapter 12
🕑 Added 2024-06-17 19:51:39 +0000 UTCBeen a while. Figured I should update one of my ongoing stories. This one has Jaune having a talk with Adam.
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Jaune came back to his office to find an official-looking letter at his desk. That was weird, mostly because no one really used paper nowadays. Another reason why it was strange was because it was stamped with both the headmaster's seal and the council's. He picked it up and frowned, trying to ignore how nervous he felt. Had the council finally caught him out? Had they realized the counselor for mankind's future protectors had no credentials to his name? Was this the day he was gonna get fired?
He was wrong. It was so much worse.
"Dear Mr. Arc. We hope this letter finds you well. We of the council have heard good things about your contributions to the mental well-being of our future defenders." They did? Have they met Blake? "As such, we humbly implore you to use your skills in something that concerns the safety of all of Vale. Adam Taurus, the leader of the White Fang cell Miss Belladonna so ingeniously captured-" Jaune had to stop himself from laughing hysterically "-has proven difficult. He refuses to divulge his plans or even speak."
Well, that wasn't a surprise. He'd only met Adam Taurus once, but he could tell the guy wasn't the type to sit down and cooperate. What had Blake done to that man, Jaune wondered.
"As such, we are humbly asking for your assistance. Despite his reticence, Adam Taurus has indicated that he's willing to talk to you due to the rapport you established during your undercover operation." An undercover operation...was that what they were calling it? Also, what rapport? The one conversation they had? "We request that you talk to Taurus and see if you can gain any new information. The safety of Vale is in your hands. From, the Council."
...
Jaune set the letter down and walked to his miniature fridge. Humming under his breath, the student counselor of Beacon Academy picked up a half-drained bottle of red wine. He considered getting a glass before deciding, fuck it, why even bother? Because it wasn't like anything else was making sense right now. They were asking a student counselor to sit and talk with a terrorist. Even if he did have a license, that was insane. Cause why not, right? The safety of Vale was in his hands.
He took a generous gulp from the bottle and trudged over to his bed, making sure not to disturb the sleeping Bean on his dog bed. Without even bothering to change out of his suit, he collapsed on top of it and stared blankly up at the ceiling. It wasn't a request, he knew that. Oh sure, they framed it as a request - all polite words and encouragement - but he knew the truth. Ozpin framed helping out team RWBY (and Blake) as a personal favor to him. A request...that Jaune couldn't refuse. This was the same thing.
But that wasn't the worst part about this. He sat up and took another swig of the bottle, bracing himself for what was to come.
He was going to have to visit Blake.
A shudder passed through his entire body at the thought. She claimed that everything was water under the bridge, and he believed her. His disappointment was immeasurable and his day had been ruined, but he believed her nonetheless. But how would she react to being told he would talk with her ex-boyfriend? He could already see her making circular arguments about why she just had to be there and he was making a big mistake by not including her. Then she'd break into prison just to eavesdrop. And while a part of him relished the idea of igniting their war again, the much more sensible part reminded him that he'd become an alcoholic because of her.
He didn't have a choice. As much as he hated to admit it, Blake was the only person in the entire school who knew about Adam Taurus. Even if she was going to be biased, maybe he could still glean something from her crazy talk.
...That, and she had those stupid dog ears.
So, with a heavy heart and an empty bottle, Jaune stood and made his way to team RWBY's dorm room. A few students who passed by greeted him, though he barely paid them any mind. He was going to deal with a stubborn Faunus who thought they were always right...but before that, he had to deal with Blake.
Jaune knocked twice and stood with his arms behind his back like a man awaiting his execution. Seconds felt like hours as soft, padding footsteps came from the other side before the door opened, "Jaune?" Ruby blinked up at him and tilted her head. He was too distracted to focus on the cuteness of it, "What's up?"
"Ruby. Could I ask-"
"Actually, hold that thought!" She slammed the door in his face. Jaune blinked, unsure if maybe he was seeing things cause of that half a bottle he drank. He looked around for a moment and debated knocking one more time when Ruby opened the door again.
She was wearing glasses. And not just any kind. They were thick, soda bottle glasses that made her already wide silver eyes look even bigger than they already were. The frame was a particularly garish-looking green that only stuck out against her pale skin and dark clothes.
Elsewhere on campus, Coco Adel suddenly screamed, as if realizing that a fashion disaster was taking place.
"Um..." Jaune said eloquently. What else was there to say? He knew Ruby had 20-20 vision - she'd bragged about it once when talking about Crescent Rose's modifications - so he could only assume that she was wearing it for style. In which case...well, he wasn't going to say anything cause he actually liked Ruby.
"Hey, Jaune." And then, without breaking eye contact for even a second, she slowly raised her right hand and removed the glasses, shaking her head a bit as she did. She puckered her lips and looked up at him expectantly, "So?"
"Uh..."
"What? Why isn't it working? Hold on, lemme try again!" Try what again, he wanted to ask, but before he could, Ruby put the glasses back on her face. Then slowly raised her hand to remove them again.
Another voice cut in before she could repeat the routine, "Ruby, what are you doing?" Blake asked. He actually felt relieved to see her, as weird as that was to admit. Ruby was acting really weird right now.
"Why isn't it working, Blake?" Ruby rounded on her teammate, "Your shoujo manga always said-"
"Shoujo manga? What are you talking about? You're being so silly, Ruby." Blake smiled forcefully and then covered her mouth before dragging her back inside. Jaune didn't say anything and only watched as Blake practically tossed her team leader to the bathroom and then jammed the knob shut with her weapon's ribbon. Ruby screamed out loud about how 'it lied to her' and 'she'll win in the end'. Blake completely ignored Ruby's shouts like she did anything she didn't like and walked back to him.
...
"Huh."
"What do you want, Jaune?" Blake crossed her arms and stared at him through narrowed eyes. Ah, blunt and lacking in respect. Some things never changed, "I don't have a session today. Trust me, I checked."
"It's not that. It's..." He looked around the hallway, "Could we talk alone? It's important."
"...Fine, but if I see a single dog, I'm filing for harassment." Well, there went the idea of going back to his office. Shoulders sagging, he led her over to a secluded corner of the cafeteria. Normally he would've worried about the optics of inviting a student out to eat with just the two of them, but honestly? It was Blake. If someone accused him of trying something inappropriate with her he would've laughed in their face. Then kept laughing while going out to get another drink.
Maybe it was unfair of him. After all, Blake had already agreed to make peace and so far she'd kept her word. But then he remembered everything she did. All the trouble, the stubborn arguments, the kidnapping, and he suddenly felt a lot less guilty. It'd take more than one declaration of letting bygones be bygones for Jaune to forget all the reckless stunts she pulled or the massive headaches she caused him for multiple days straight.
They got some food and sat across from one another. Jaune slowly chewed on his spaghetti and considered his words carefully while Blake took a slow sip of her tea. This was Blake he was talking to, so he'd need to do this delicately. With tact. One wrong word and suddenly everything would go wrong...again. He had to be very careful, and slowly ease her into it...
"The council asked me to talk to Adam Taurus."
"PHHBBBT!"
Blake spat her tea right into his face. Thankfully, dealing with superpowered teenagers daily had done wonders for his reflexes and he blocked the spray with his tray. That and he was used to unreasonable antics when dealing with her, "Please be careful not to choke on your drink, Ms. Belladonna." He handed her a napkin and set the tray aside. Like a gentleman, he waited for her to stop coughing and spitting up on herself. Mama Arc didn't raise a brute.
"You what?!" Blake whisper-shouted. Even she must've realized that drawing attention would've been bad.
"Exactly what I said." Jaune picked at his spaghetti again, "The council told me to talk to him and I figured that just maybe you'd have some advice for me considering your past relationship." Because they used to date, he didn't say.
"You're...talking to Adam?" she muttered. He could already see the gears turning in her head. Uh-oh, "I should come with-"
"No."
"But-"
"No."
"I could."
"No." The last refusal was said in a tone that left no argument. For one of the first times since he'd met her, Blake actually backed down. It was history in the making, "The council 'requested' that I talk to him alone. They didn't say I could invite people, and even if they did, they'd certainly be asking questions about why exactly I thought to bring a student along to one of Remnant's most infamous terrorists." He gave her an unreadable look.
She was a former member of the White Fang. She didn't tell him, and he was sure she'd deny it if he brought it up, but it wasn't exactly Dust science. She was the daughter of the founders, knew a lot about the White Fang, and used to date Adam Taurus. Either she was a former member or she was a really obsessed stalker. And maybe it was a bad idea, but he gave her more credit and assumed she was a former terrorist instead of a crazy stalker.
...
Wait a second-
"This is a bad idea," Blake said. Of course, she didn't back down for long, "You don't know Adam like I do. I need to be there."
"No." He took a sip of his coffee.
"But-"
"Are we going to do this again?" He sighed, "You're not coming with me, that's not up for discussion. I came here because I was hoping to get your advice on dealing with him, but if that's not enough then I'll take my chances on my own" He didn't like it, but he had a better chance without Blake trying to butt in on that conversation, "I'm here to take any advice you can give me. That's it."
"Can I advise you that doing this without me is a horrible idea?" She scowled.
"Noted." And ignored, "Anything else?"
Blake growled under her breath and looked down at the table. For a second, he thought that she'd leave out of spite. Instead, she let out a long-suffering sigh (how ironic) and met his eyes again, "Why did the council choose you anyway? You're a student counselor."
"Because a certain someone kidnapped me."
"I seem to recall a certain someone accepting it in exchange for getting his Aura unlocked."
"Then that certain someone broke her promise
"...What do you want to know?"
"Everything." Jaune set the coffee down and pressed his hands together, "The council is expecting results. They didn't say it, but I can read between the lines." Another thing he got good at over the past few months, "I don't know what exactly they're expecting me to get out of him, though. I doubt he'd tell me even his favorite color."
"It's purple," Blake said absentmindedly. Jaune raised a brow and eyed the purple underside of her flowing dark hair. It was definitely eye-catching even if he had no idea how it worked. Just like Ruby's red tips, "And I expect the council is hoping you'd somehow find a way to have him tell you all about his plans. I'll admit, I'm curious too. Adam was always...driven, but missions always had a purpose, even when he got...spiteful. Trying to drive a train through Mt. Glenn and let the Grimm inside is different than how he used to be."
...
"Do you realize you basically just confessed to knowing his M.O. in a very suspicious way? Like you were there when he did said plans?"
Blake tried to hide it, but he saw her wince. He didn't know if it was a sign of trust or carelessness that she'd let it slip, "...You already know I used to date him. You even got on your knees because of it." Blake crossed her arms and frowned. Turning it around on him, hm? About what he expected.
"So you see now why I'm not bringing you along? The Council's gonna ask the exact same questions, and not all of them are as reasonable as I am." Blake scoffed at that and muttered 'reasonable my ass' under her breath. Ignoring the insult, Jaune continued, "So besides him liking purple, what else can you tell me?"
"Hold it. Before we continue, I want to know what I get out of this."
"Are you trying to extort me for information that's needed to help all of Vale?" Jaune raised a brow.
"I'm just saying that you've been pretty petty towards me lately." Blake said, face passive, "Taking me to that animal shelter, refusing my very reasonable requests to sit in for this...it almost feels like you're holding a grudge, Jaune. That's not very professional of a counselor to be."
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Ms. Belladonna. I'm only doing what I have to as the student counselor of Beacon," Jaune said, face equally passive. The two of them stared at one another, neither willing to be the first to break eye contact. At the back of his mind, he knew that she was at least partially right. He had acted petty towards her, but he also refused to admit it because that would mean giving her ground. Offer an inch and she'd take a whole kilometer.
The silence lasted for almost a minute before Blake sighed again and looked away. Success, "Fine. I guess I'll just have to hope you come to your senses." He wouldn't bet on it, "The first thing you need to know about Adam is that he's...angry." She shook her head, "No, that's downplaying it. He's had a hard life, harder than just about anyone I've known. He was already in an SDC work camp before he was even ten."
"Atlas has laws about child labor..."
"Since when did Jacques Schnee care about the law?" Blake scoffed. The genuine bitterness in her tone made him pause, "All he ever cared about was money. A child being forced to work to the bone? So long as he can help load a crate, it doesn't matter." Her hands clenched, "Growing up in that kind of environment, abused because of something you were born with...it would break just about anyone. And I think it broke him."
"Parents?"
"He never said, but they weren't around when I met him. I was just twelve and he was fourteen. He didn't act like it was a recent loss." She picked up her tea and swirled it briefly before taking a large gulp, "A part of me still hopes that he didn't actually plan to do what he did, but...I've seen him over the years. He got more and more extreme. It feels like...he stopped caring about actually helping the Faunus and only cared about hurting the Humans. Hurt them like they hurt him."
"Hm..." Jaune tapped his hand against the table. What was he supposed to say? He grew up luckier than a lot of people. A big family, loving parents, and close siblings. The worst thing he could say was that life was boring, and if he had the chance, he'd go back to past Jaune and slap him upside the head for thinking that was a bad thing.
Honestly, I don't know what I can tell you, Jaune. I used to think that I could be the one to change Adam. To save him," she said the last three words with noticeable bitterness, "But I was wrong. I thought that leaving...that it would make him realize how far he was falling. It didn't. Nothing's changed and he's only gotten worse. I don't know what you think you're going to get out of him, especially since you're..." A Human. She didn't say it, but he knew.'
"Well, thanks to a certain someone, I don't think he knows I'm a Human." He let the words linger in the air. Watching the realization hit her was more satisfying than he wanted to admit, "Yeah. As far as he's concerned, I'm just another Faunus who, to quote the council's letter, 'established a rapport with him'." Jaune snorted, "That's probably the only reason he's willing to talk to me."
"Oh...sorry." Huh. Hearing an apology from her wasn't as great as he thought it'd be.
"It is what it is." Jaune shrugged. He wasn't nearly as calm as he pretended to be, but he wasn't going to make that obvious, "So, just tell me everything and we'll go from there."
"Right..."
"...Also, give me those dog ears back. I'm gonna need them."
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Adam Taurus had a file a mile thick. Only 19 years old and he was one of the most infamous members of the White Fang, easily more notorious than people twice his age. Even a quick scan of the things he was ostensibly responsible for made him shudder. Adam Taurus was a murderer. That wasn't something he could excuse away or pretend otherwise. The list of targets he had included SDC branch offices, trains, Dust convoys, outside settlements...some 'acceptable' targets, some not.
And yet, Jaune couldn't help but doubt. Adam Taurus was definitely a dangerous man, but some of the things on the file sounded about as believable as Ozpin's D&D sessions. Stories of him taking down a whole group of experienced Huntsmen by himself or bisecting an entire train in half with his Semblance. It read like some kind of fantasy. 'Here's the big bad villain, the biggest threat in the world'. They made him out to be more a force of nature than a person.
That thought lingered in his mind as he sat across the man of the hour. The room he'd been taken to was small and nondescript. Four gray walls with a single searingly bright bulb overhead. The table in front of him was a big metal square bolted onto the floor. On the upper right corner behind him was a single camera that sent a live feed to the security room. The guard assured him that if it paused or cut out for even a second then they would come running.
Jaune tapped his feet nervously and took a sip of the (cheap) coffee from the paper up. He was patted up and down to make sure there was nothing Adam could use to escape. No metal, so even his pen was temporarily confiscated. They assured him time and again that it was completely safe and that Adam had been pumped full of Aura-dampening drugs plus reinforced cuffs, but being alone in a room with a terrorist really wasn't good for the nerves. The students at least had the wariness of getting in trouble (and fear of Glynda) to keep them in line.
The door to his left opened and Adam Taurus was led inside by a stern-faced officer. He looked...different from when he saw him last. It made sense, of course, but seeing the so-called 'Bane of Atlas' dressed in a drab gray jumpsuit with his hair falling over his face in messy waves was a bit of a jarring turn.
More than that, however, what really drew his attention was the scar on his face. Seared across his left eye was a gruesome scar shaped in three familiar letters: SDC. The eye underneath was blood red, likely blind, though it still moved to meet his gaze. Blake had warned him that Adam had been 'marked' by his time in the SDC camp but said that there were some things even she couldn't talk about despite everything. He chose not to push her on it.
Jaune kept his face carefully neutral as Adam sat down across from him. The officer chained his cuffs to the table before giving him a nod and leaving the room, shutting the door behind him. A heavy silence settled over the room. Jaune gulped nervously and adjusted his fake glasses. The fake dog ears felt heavy on his head all of a sudden.
"Mr. Taurus." Jaune nodded.
"Mr. Arc." Adam nodded back. He sounded remarkably calm despite everything, "I'm surprised you're here."
"You said that you were willing to talk to me. Apparently 'established a rapport'." He was beginning to hate that word.
"Hm." He tried to lean back in his seat but the chained cuffs kept him from going too far, "I didn't think they'd actually send you. Huntsmen aren't normally sent to do busywork."
"Maybe not. Then again, I'm not a Huntsman." His brows raised, if only slightly, "I'm...well, not a friend of Blake's, but an acquaintance, at least. She...insisted I came along." By putting a sack over his head and carrying him over her shoulder, "I work as...a consultant. I help deal with people's issues." Superpowered teenage angst, D&D plots, and (thanks to Weiss) family issues. He should ask Ozpin for a raise. He was doing way more than he was supposed to.
"I see." Adam tapped his fingers against the table, "A consultant. I know people like you. I understand." He hummed, "You never told me your name."
"Juan Arco." So he wasn't gonna tell the terrorist his real name and job. Sue him. He doubted Adam could look him up on a scroll while in jail, but it was better safe than sorry, "And you are Adam Taurus. You've made a lot of people nervous."
"Good." His smile was all-teeth and grotesque-looking.
"So tell me, did you really split a train in half?" Start with something to break the ice. That was something the guidebooks always said.
"Ha!" The laugh was loud and sharp, "I suppose they also said that I took on an entire army of Huntsmen all by myself without a scratch." Just a squad, but Jaune didn't interrupt him, "I can't tell if I'm annoyed or flattered that they've built me up to be such a mythical figure."
"I wouldn't find it flattering, personally." He took another sip of his coffee. The cardboard-tasting drink didn't do much to settle his nerves, "So...why did you ask me to come? I hate to make assumptions, but I doubt that our one conversation was enough to leave an impact." Then again, he got hired for this job cause a drunk Ozpin ranted at him. Maybe people trained as Huntsmen were just emotionally constipated and had low standards.
"Hm." He moved his bound arms and his face suddenly went blank, "How's Blake?" Jaune's brows furrowed. Ozpin assured him that only certain people would see the record of what happened here and the person watching someone he trusted, so there was no risk of Blake being outed. Which was good, cause that would've been a bad thing. And of course, Ozin knew about one of his students being a former terrorist and dink think that was worth worrying about."
Still, denying it would only make it look worse, "Huh? She's...fine, I guess. Like I said, we're not really friends."
"You certainly seemed familiar with her judging by how you reacted when you realized I was her...ex." He said the last word bitterly. Okay, that was a minefield.
"Why do you think we're not friends?" Jaune shrugged. He didn't hate Blake, even if some part of him took joy in seeing her suffering, but he wouldn't exactly go out of his way to hang out with her either, "You heard the saying 'familiarity breeds contempt'? Well, I'm familiar with Blake. Way more than I think is healthy." He shuddered, "I still don't know how Ghira and Kali raised someone like her." Did Kali take all of Blake's happiness in the womb?
"You met her parents." Adam's lips pressed into a thin line.
"Let's change the topic. I doubt you called me here just to talk about Blake." Jaune ignored the silence that came after, "Why? Is there something you want to say?"
"What? Expecting me to talk all about my 'nefarious plans'?" Adam laughed under his breath, "I'm sure Blake's already told everyone."
"...Were you really planning to let Grimm pour into Vale?" He still found it unbelievable. The White Fang were hardly paragons of virtue, but that...that was insane. It would've been the greatest atrocity in centuries if they succeeded. Even if the casualties were minimized, it would
"What if I told you yes."
"Then I'd say you were insane."
Jaune took considered it a monumental feat that he didn't scream like a little girl when Adam slammed his hands on the table and stood up. The officer outside rushed in but Jaune held up a hand, "Everything is fine, officer." Was his hand shaking? He hoped not, "Mr. Taurus got a little heated, but we're still willing to talk. Aren't we?" He met Adam's glare with only the slightest urge to pee himself.
"...Sure." Adam sat back down.
The officer glared at Adam before reluctantly leaving again. Jaune finished off his coffee and set the cup down, "You're not one of the people I 'consult', so let's be blunt. I won't hold anything back if you won't. I don't see the point in either of us dancing around each other."
"Hmph. What, no good cop bad cop?" Another soft, bitter laugh, "Fine. You're right, there's no point in trying to put on masks, Mr. Consultant. Before you ask. No, I'm not going to talk about what I did. There's no point to it. My 'crimes' have already made sure that I'll be spending the rest of my life in prison, and that's if I don't get executed next week. I don't see any reason why I should say anything else when my fate's sealed."
"They could offer you a deal."
"A deal by Humans? I'd rather take the execution. At least that's honest."
"You really hate Humans..." Again, the fake dog ears weighed heavily.
"I'm surprised you don't," Adam countered.
"People are people. I've seen both good and bad Humans and Faunus. Are you seriously telling me that you've never met any good Humans? Or any Faunus that you disagreed with?"
"I'm not an idiot. I know very well that not every person is like Jacques Schnee." Huh. Jaune wondered how he'd react if he found out what happened to him, "But what Humans are is apathetic. Maybe not all of them actively look down on us, but whenever they see one of our kind being oppressed, they just look the other way. They think it's good enough that they don't spit at us or treat us like animals. They pat themselves on the back for doing the bare minimum and think that's good enough."
This was the second time he'd made that argument. Again, Jaune found himself unable to say anything back. He hadn't done anything to stop the old timers from back home when they threw prejudicted insults against some of the Faunus. It wasn't any of his business, he thought."
"So that makes it okay to destroy a whole kingdom?" Jaune asked back, "The way you said 'crimes' earlier...you don't think you did anything wrong. It's all justified."
"The Humans will never accept us. Ghira Belladonna tried protests and boycotts. Boycotts!" Adam laughed like he'd just heard a really funny joke, "You know what his 'tactics' got us? Humans who thought we were weak and tried to kill us. I killed the ones who attacked our convoy. One of them refused to surrender and tried to kill Ghira, so I cut his throat. Do you know what happened afterward? Ghira, that pathetic old man, said that I went too far. How dare I save his life from that bastard? A week later, the Mistralian news ran a segment about how those bastards were innocent travelers that were oh-so-cruelly attacked by some Faunus and the man I killed heroically gave up his life to save the rest of his group. I should've killed them all."
"The only thing Humans understand is fear. We protested and they beat us down. We defend ourselves and they label us as monsters. So why not give them what they want? If we can't appeal to their nonexistent kindness, we'll do it to their fear. Make them afraid of us so they'll never look down on us again. The White Fang - I - fight for all the Faunus. For a world where we don't have to be ashamed of who we are!"
He said it with the conviction of the righteous. It reminded him of the old veterans from back home. They talked about how they lost the Faunus war, the things they'd seen the Faunus do. About how their units were killed down to the man, and how they held their comrades as they died. In their eyes, that made it okay to harass and throw insults at the Faunus who had nothing to do with what happened to them. It was a vicious cycle with no end.
"...What about the Faunus?"
"What?"
"What about the Faunus?" Jaune asked again, "You don't care about the Humans. You think they all deserve it. But what about the Faunus inside Vale? The Grimm don't discriminate between Humans and Faunus. They kill everyone and anyone. You don't care if they die?"
"It's a regrettable loss-"
"Bullshit." Adam scowled at him, and Jaune forced himself to keep going, "You don't have an excuse for that. You told me you're fighting for 'all the Faunus'. Do the Faunus in Vale not count? Are you willing to kill other Faunus just as long as you can tell yourself that you're doing it 'for all Faunus'?"
"This is the only way we can gain equality!" Adam snarled.
"No, all that'll do is convince every kingdom to band against you!" Jaune slammed his hands on the table and stood up, "What do you think will happen even if you succeed? Do you think the other kingdoms will forget that it was the White Fang that destroyed Vale? Every Faunus on Remnant will be targeted."
"Good! Then maybe they'll actually stand up and fight instead of cowering!"
"..." Jaune sat back down and let out a long, slow breath. Blake told him that Adam was spiteful, but even so, Jaune found himself surprised by the sheer venom in his voice, "...Blake talked to me about you." He said after seconds of quiet, "I heard about what happened to you. I won't pretend that you don't have good reasons to hate Humans." His eyes flicked to the SDC brand, "But that doesn't mean everyone deserves to suffer like you did."
"Moral platitudes? I expected more." Adam scoffed, "I won't apologize for doing what I have to. You haven't seen the Faunus like I have. They were enslaved, beaten...and for what? So fat, greedy old Humans could line their pockets from our suffering."
"You saw that and you decide it's worth it to sacrifice other Faunus to the Grimm or Human retribution." Jaune shook his head, "I'm not going to say I'm sorry for what you've been through. I'm sure you've heard it all before and it's not going to change your mind. I told you I was going to be honest, so here it is. I think trying to destroy Vale with the Grimm is crazy and will destroy any hope of the Humans and Faunus coexisting. And if you have any shred of care for the Faunus both in Vale and in Remnant as a whole, you'd say something about any more plans you had."
Adam looked away and scoffed, looking absolutely unconvinced. Jaune sighed. He was the second stubborn Faunus he'd had to deal with and it felt just as annoying as the last.
"I don't think we have anything else to talk about." Jaune stood up again, "I don't see the point in continuing this conversation if we're just going to go around in circles." He brought a hand through his hair and felt the bad on the fake dog ears. A thought suddenly came to mind...
Jaune took the ears off.
Adam looked up and his eyes widened ever-so-slightly at the sight of the fake ears on his hands, "We said we'd be honest." Jaune shrugged, "I'm still open to talking with you if you decide to change your mind, but I figured that I need to be honest if that's the case."
"Get out..." Adam looked back down at the table, his expression unreadable.
"...Just tell them if you change-"
"I said GET OUT!" The scream brought the officer back inside. Jaune sighed and left without another word. Maybe it was a bad idea, but sticking to the course wasn't going to do anything, that much was obvious.
He took a Bullhead back to Beacon. The Council would be disappointed that he didn't get anything, but he'd given it the best try, "Ugh." Jaune brought a hand across his face. He was exhausted, and it was barely past noon. He trudged back to his room after the bullhead landed and pressed his lips into a thin line when he saw Blake hanging around outside trying and failing to look nonchalant. She greeted him with the fakest look of surprise he'd ever seen.
"Oh, Jaune! There you are. What a coincidence." He just silently looked at the 'Counselor's Office' sign right above her head, "Did you want to talk about-"
"No."
"But-"
"No."
"I could-"
"There you are." A new voice cut in. Weiss walked to them both with a bright smile on her face, "Good news, Mr. Arc. I successfully got permission from the headmaster. We leave for Atlas this weekend. Be sure to pack warm clothes."
"Right..." He didn't bother arguing.
"Come, Blake. We should let Mr. Arc prepare." Weiss grabbed her hand (scandalous) and dragged her away, ignoring the Faunus' protests that she had to talk to him about something. Jaune's shoulders sagged and debated whether it was healthy to be a day drinker when he heard a shout from behind.
"I'm late, I'm late!" He turned around just in time to see Ruby Rose speeding towards him at full Semblance speed with a piece of toast in her mouth. She 'tripped', but it was obvious by the look in her eyes that it was absolutely deliberate. Jaune simply accepted the inevitable and didn't fight as the rose-themed reaper crashed into him, leaving the both of them sprawled across the ground in a tangle of limbs and rose petals.
And with jam toast in his face.
"Oh no! Are you okay, Jaune?" She grabbed his face with both hands and made sure that their eyes met, "I'm sorry, I'm just so clumsy!"
...
Jaune stood up and set Ruby down like she weighed nothing before going to his room and locking the door behind him. Ruby knocked and asked if 'he was in love with yet?', but it came in one ear and out the other. Jaune hummed and poured himself another glass of wine. He sighed in relief and turned on his speaker to something classical and smiled, the music easily drowning out Ruby's words. You just had to appreciate the little things in life.
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Not a lot of progress on Adam, but it makes sense. He's not gonna be turned around with just one conversation. Dealing with him will be slowgoing due to how stubborn and spiteful he is. Like, even moreso than Blake, if you can believe it.
Question:
1. I have two ideas for the next chapter. Tell me which sounds more interesting.
- Skip ahead to Jaune visiting Schnee manor with Weiss and Winter. Deals with the Schneeblings relationships with Jaune awkwardly forced to try and help the estranged siblings bury multiple hatchets in the wake of Jacques' big nap. More comedic and we get the first steps to Winter and Jaune's romance going.
- A more serious chapter with Glynda. One of her graduated students died during a mission and she's taking it badly. Jaune tries to get her to open up and talk about her grief in a healthier way besides drowning herself in work and just trying to bullrush past the grieving process.
So, which sounds more interesting? Tell me in your reviews :)
Comments
pilot puntastic
Back with a bang! This chapter is fantastic from start to finish. Blake is being the absolute best Worst Girl she can be, Ruby is trying out every trope to seduce Jaune. I really like that this chapter takes Adam really seriously. He has suffered and is lashing out at the world for it. That Jaune was able to turn his argument around about Faunus not just in Vale but across Remnant was a great way to poke hole in Adam's argument. You could really see what attracted so many people to Adam in just this segment. Hopefully Jaune taking off his very serious disguise doesn't end up biting Mr. Arco in the future. It looks like Ruby's current attempts have failed. It's time to get serious and pull out the big guns, The indirect kiss! Though considering what Jaune mostly drinks now it may be safer to get him to drink from her beverage than to steal a sip from his. I like how gung-ho Weiss is about getting Jaune to Atlas. She's made plans and she is following through! Though just like in Seasons I doubt that Weiss dragging Jaune to Atlas has any romantic undertones. For the question I gotta go with the more lighthearted Atlas trip. In addition to just really liking the comedy side of the story, the Schnee family drama has been building for a while now so going to Atlas would be some really solid pay off for all the Schnee stuff up until this point. Fantastic chapter! Looking forward to more!
