52Chapter 5: Ringside Rumble
The Black Ursa Diner had been popular with Hunters ever since it opened, just after the signing of the Vytal Treaty. It provided generous helpings of good food, a space for traveling Hunters to swap stories and plan missions, plus there was a small store attached to the restaurant that provided a selection of essential supplies and basic weaponry.
Yang had insisted on getting food and having a planning session before heading to the venue where they were going to bust the fight fixing ring, and Jaune agreed wholeheartedly. As he could attest from initiation, there was nothing worse than fighting on an empty stomach.
Jaune glanced at his reflection in the window. His armor and sword were nowhere to be seen, since undercover was the name of the game tonight. Even his beloved hoodie had been sidelined in favor of a leather jacket.
He looked back to Yang, who was in the middle of copying a map from her Scroll onto a napkin. "Wait, what's wrong with the map on your Scroll?"
"Cause dad taught me and Ruby that in the planning stages, you need something you can feel, hold in your hands." Yang explained, "Dirt is best, but a napkin will do in a pinch. Scroll maps are just... there's no weight to them, you know?"
Jaune couldn't help but agree. Based on the detentions that Nora had earned his team from Professor Port, the man relied solely on Scroll maps when it came to capturing the Grimm he used in class, and it was mildly annoying to Jaune that he didn't have something tangible in his hands.
It also hadn't helped matters that Pyrrha broke every compass in a twenty-five foot radius.
"Anyways, I hit paydirt with my contacts." Yang said, pulling up a mugshot on her Scroll, "This is Vacuo Red, he's our man. He started out his career in Vacuo, funnily enough. Went from armed robbery to racketeering, either he wants to extend his operations to Vale, or he had to run from people he pissed off."
To Jaune, Vacuo Red looked more like a slimy used car salesman than a dangerous career criminal. Tacky suit, slicked-back hair, and sunglasses.
Jaune blinked, "Wait... Vacuo Red? Like in Big Iron?"
Yang grinned, "Should we get cowboy hats and say we're Valean Rangers?"
"Better not," Jaune deadpanned, "Neither of us have a Big Iron on the hip. What's the lay of the land look like?"
Yang slid the napkin over to him, "Basically that. Main entrance, employee entrance, loading dock. Vacuo Red doesn't have any contacts with the Council, so he couldn't have made any modifications to the building's layout without the blueprint in city hall being updated."
"How the heck do you know that?" Jaune asked.
Yang shrugged. "I know people."
Jaune decided not to poke at that one, it didn't matter in the long run. "What kind of opposition are we looking at?"
"We caught a bit of a break here." Yang explained, "Apparently, Vacuo Red convinced a bunch of the Red Axe Gang to jump ship and work for him."
Jaune took a drink of his water, "How does that help us?"
"We know numbers, and we know weapons. Could be anywhere from ten to twenty goons, armed with cleaver swords and machine pistols. Less trained than you on your first day at Beacon."
Jaune nearly choked on his water. "Well, I suppose that's what the numbers are for." He said nonchalantly.
Yang snorted, "Basically. Did you get the tickets?"
Jaune nodded, producing said tickets, "Yep, made sure that they gave me physical tickets so they can't say that they're fake or something."
Yang frowned, "You know that they could still say that, right?"
Jaune grimaced, "The woman that works in the ticketing office is Vert's friend. With benefits. And she knows that I'm her brother, so we should get a free pass if Vacuo Red somehow gets a clue."
Yang snickered, Jaune probably learned more about his sister's private life than he had wanted to. It would probably be a good idea to get his mind off it, and what better way than to see how flustered he could get?
"So, Jaune," Yang asked, "Why Forest Fire? Not that I'm complaining."
A slight blush came to Jaune's cheeks. "Oh, that. Well, it's because you're... well, like a forest fire. Beautiful and dangerous. Plus your hair literally catches fire."
Yang leaned towards him, "I'm dangerous, am I? Does that excite you, Jaune?"
As per usual, Jaune missed the obvious subtext. "Yang, I came to Beacon and entered initiation without having my Aura unlocked, and tonight, we're fighting what amounts to an infant crime lord and his goons. I'd say by this point, I can handle danger."
Damn it, Jaune. You're lucky you're cute. Wait, how many times has Pyrrha thought that? "You're dodging the question, Lady Killer."
Once again, Jaune's obliviousness to feminine wiles reared its head. "I'd be lying if I said it wasn't exciting, Yang. By all rights I should be scared out of my wits, but I'm not."
Yang knew that Jaune was a tough nut to crack, romantically speaking. After all, the jury was still out on if he had ever noticed Pyrrha's feelings. The objective here was just to cut through the mire enough to where Jaune would consider it. "Maybe that's because of the beautiful, dangerous woman who's riding into the fire with you, Jaune." She batted her eyes for good measure, subtlety just wouldn't work with this human embodiment of a golden retriever.
Jaune's brain promptly short circuited upon realIzing that Yang Xiao Long was flirting with him, fortunately his mouth was still working. "Yeah, that's probably it." Jaune said, careful to keep his response noncommittal. He knew that if Yang pushed too hard, he'd go along with it, out of a desire to forget about Weiss.
Thankfully, Jaune was spared further interrogation by the arrival of their food, Yang's double bacon burger, and Jaune's chicken strip platter. "Anything else I can get you two?" Their waitress asked.
"Nope, this is perfect, thanks!" Yang said before digging into her burger.
They ate in relative silence, and Yang settled for smirking internally at the little glances that he sent her way. If anything, he had realized that she was interested in some way. She'd take that win.
As they were finishing, Jaune froze, "Yang, how are we getting to the place? It's not on any public transit routes."
Yang rolled her eyes, "I do own a motorcycle, Jaune."
Right, a motorcycle. That he would have to get very close to her to ride. Just the idea of it was enough to make Jaune blush.
Yang laughed, "Don't worry, Lady Killer. I've got no problems getting cozy."
Jaune took a deep breath, mission first, figure out what was going on between him and Yang later.
"Alright, let's get going, then."
Weiss was currently seated at a private table at Clemens, looking out onto a wonderful view of Vale, not to mention the decor. Crystal chandeliers, immaculate tablecloths, the staff were polite and efficient...
But yet, even with that, Weiss was in an incredibly foul mood, as it was currently 6:47, and Neptune was supposed to have met her for their dinner date over an hour ago.
She had even gone through the trouble of acquiring a new outfit for tonight, a light blue dress, with sapphire earrings. Only for him to blow her off. She had decimated the reserve that she kept in case Father ever disowned her for him!
Weiss sighed as true waitress refilled her water for what must've felt like the hundredth time. "He's not coming, is he?"
The waitress shook her head, her short blonde hair and dog ears reminiscent of a beagle flopping about. "Do you want the canned line I'm supposed to say, or my actual opinion?"
For the first time that evening, a smile came to Weiss's face, "Your actual opinion, please. I'm in no mood to be lied to right now."
"Whoever this guy is that left you here is an idiot."
Weiss sipped her water, then turned to the waitress, "But that doesn't make any sense! We went on two dates before this, and they were wonderful! Magical, even!"
The waitress tapped her chin thoughtfully, "Well, you strike me as a girl who cares a lot about commitment, am I right?"
Weiss did a double take, "How did you know?"
She grinned, "We waitresses are second only to bartenders as therapists. So, the only reason I can think of, outside of him being a cheating scumbag, is that he's got commitment issues. Could be both for all I know."
The waitress raised her hands, "But, that's me guessing without knowing anything about this guy. However, I'd say that unless he's in the hospital or something, don't give him the time of day again."
Weiss rose from her seat, then dug out a hundred Lien card from her purse, "Here, for putting up with me for the last hour."
The waitress gave her a pained smile, "I appreciate the thought, Miss Schnee, but the tips go into a pool then get split among us, and I typically get the short end of the stick." She then gestured at her ears, leaving no doubt in Weiss's mind what was happening here.
Weiss set her jaw, and made her opinion known, "That is not a tip, am I understood?"
The waitress cocked her head as she pocketed the Lien, "I have no idea what you're talking about, Miss Schnee, have a pleasant evening."
Weiss promptly left the restaurant before her jury-rigged mood dipped again. She took a moment to breathe in the night air, then took out her Scroll. Might as well pull the ripcord now.
"Neptune, whatever your reasons are for not showing tonight, I don't care. Not notifying me that you couldn't make it is unacceptable."
With that, Weiss went on her way, heading towards the pick-up point for a Bullhead back to Beacon. When she got there, she ran into a familiar face.
"Oh, hello, Pyrrha." Weiss said, "What brings you out tonight?"
Pyrrha rubbed her arm and looked away from Weiss, "I... almost went to help Jaune and Yang."
Weiss frowned, she had not been a fan of that excursion. "Oh, yes. That. I'm sure that they can handle themselves."
"What about you, Weiss?" Pyrrha asked.
Weiss flinched, such an innocent question with such a loaded answer. "I had a date with Neptune. He never showed."
Pyrrha's eyes started flicking around, like she thought she was being hunted and was frantically trying to find her pursuer. "No one followed you here, did they?" She asked, panic beginning to seep into her voice.
Weiss frowned, why was Pyrrha so panicked? "No, no one followed me, why?"
At that, Pyrrha seemed to calm down a little. "Sorry, Weiss. Just... bad experiences coming back to haunt me."
Normally, Weiss would leave it at that, but she wanted to take her mind off of the night's previous events, so why not help a friend with their troubles? "Do you want to talk about it?"
Pyrrha nodded, "Yes, that might help."
They were interrupted by the Bullhead landing. As they were boarding, Weiss finally got a reply from Neptune.
"Wait, that was tonight?"
A vein in Weiss's forehead pulsed. "If that's all you have to say for yourself, then we're through." After sending the last message she would ever send to Neptune, she muted her Scroll. Any more excuses and she might render him into a block of ice and punt him out a window.
"You were saying, Pyrrha?" Weiss said.
"Back at Sanctum, during my second year, I tried dating once." Pyrrha explained, "For the life of me, I can't even remember his name, but that's for the best."
"What happened?"
Pyrrha sighed, "After a couple of low key dates, he asked me out to dinner at a fancy restaurant, and stood me up, I was beside myself, and left the restaurant crying. Right into a group of paparazzi."
Weiss's eyes went wide. "It was a set-up?"
Pyrrha nodded, "Yes, it was all the tabloids would talk about for weeks. Even those I thought were my friends joined in the laughter."
Weiss leaned back in her seat, "That's why you fell so hard for Jaune, isn't it?"
Pyrrha laughed, "Can no one on our teams keep a secret? Yes, that's why. Because he simply didn't care that I'm the Invincible Girl."
"I know the feeling, after a manner." Weiss said, "Back in Atlas, if my father saw me in any sort of proximity of a boy he approved of, he would instantly start trying to set up a marriage contract with the boy's family."
Pyrrha crinkled her nose in disgust. "They... do that in Atlas?"
"Unfortunately." Weiss said, "That's why I isolated myself, why I became... the Ice Queen. To keep that from happening. Being here at Beacon, I've been able to start throwing it off, but..."
"You're worried that the next time, you won't be able to stop it." Pyrrha guessed.
Not trusting herself to speak, Weiss simply hugged herself and nodded. Pyrrha found herself at a loss, while she couldn't quite wrap her head around Weiss's predicament, she could understand the pressures on Weiss.
"Pyrrha, I-"
"Weiss, I-"
They both stopped dead in their tracks as they realized it. In front of them was a person that understood the pressures on the other. Someone that could be relied on to not falter when the media or Jacques Schnee got involved. Someone who understood wanting to become a Huntress to escape from their circumstances.
All they had to do was lean into it.
There was no one else on the Bullhead, so there was no danger of unwanted exposure. Knowing this, Weiss laid her head on Pyrrha's shoulder. "Weiss..." Pyrrha said.
"I'm sorry, Pyrrha." Weiss said, while making no attempt whatsoever to move, "I just... for all I know this is just a... what did Yang call it... a rebound."
Pyrrha sighed as she laid her head against Weiss's, and took her hand. "It's okay, Weiss." She paused for a moment, then continued quietly, "Maybe I need a rebound, too."
Weiss smiled at the absolute irony of her saying the same thing that Jaune had said to her, "So, Pyrrha, there's this dance coming up..."
Upon walking into the arena, Jaune was exceedingly glad he had Yang watching his back, because he felt like a fish out of water. Rock music blared from the speakers, and people crowded into seats surrounding an octagonal fighting ring.
Yang placed her hand on Jaune's shoulder, "Any other time, I'd say let's get some drinks, but we need to stay focused. We need to find your sister."
Jaune nodded, "Right, I already texted Vert to let her know that-"
"Jauney-boy!"
Before Yang knew it, Jaune was subjected to a headlock, from the owner of even more blonde hair. "Gah, Vert! Stop! Need oxygen!" Jaune said.
"You know what has to happen first..." Vert said in a sing song voice. Jaune tapped her arm, and was quickly released. Yang couldn't help but laugh a little, the situation fit what Jaune had told her about Vert perfectly.
Now that she wasn't trying to give Jaune hell, Yang was able to get a good look at her. Short blonde hair arranged in a bob cut, the Arc family crest was tattooed on her right forearm, and it seemed like Jaune's muscles ran in the family.
"Damn, Jaune, when did you get so ripped?" Vert asked.
Jaune laughed, "You try not getting stronger when you're getting trained by Pyrrha Nikos and this slave driver!"
Yang waved him off, "Please, you like it."
Vert's million Lien smile shrunk by a couple hundred thousand, "As much as I want to catch up, we don't have time for that right now."
"Better not have this conversation here. Too many ears." Yang said.
Jaune nodded in agreement, "Yeah, Vert, is there anywhere that we can talk in private?"
Vert nodded, and led them into the dimly lit hallways bracketing the fighting ring. Yang took note of the positioning of the "security" guards, who were clearly Vacuo Red's goons.
Vert led them into a thankfully deserted locker room, and after closing the door, Vert hugged Jaune tightly. "Jaune, thank you for coming, I had no idea what to do, so I-"
"Uh, you're welcome." Jaune said, "Vert, we need to know what's been going on."
"Right." Vert began to explain. "It started about a month ago, the old fight promoter vanished, and Mr. Slick took his place."
"Mr. Slick?" Yang asked.
Vert shrugged, "That's what we call him. One of the younger fighters, his name was Jet, found out that Mr. Slick was Vacuo Red, and threatened to go to the cops."
Jaune winced, "I'm guessing that didn't end well."
Vert shook her head. "Nope, Mr. Slick put him up against his... fixer. Bruno the Iron-blooded."
Yang shook her head, "Damn, there's always a big guy. What happened to Jet?"
"Coma. He still hasn't woken up. I'm the only one who's been able to stand up for the others since then, since I'm Vale's reigning Underdog champion, but I guess Mr. Slick had enough. I'm scheduled to fight Bruno tonight."
"Okay, your word is great and all, but we need evidence. Where could we get it?" Yang asked.
"The control room, you should've seen it coming in, that booth above the ring." Vert said.
Jaune's eyes narrowed, "So we have to get the evidence, capture Vacuo Red, and stop the fight. We're going to have to make a scene, I think."
"Oh no." Yang deadpanned, a wicked grin in her face, "What a tragedy."
Vert looked at her Scroll, "Ah, hell. He wants to see me before the fight."
"We'll go with you. You can say that we're bodyguards or something." Jaune said.
They all jumped at a knock on the door. "Or he could come to us." Yang said.
The door opened to reveal Vacuo Red, and four of his goons, two of which flanked him, the other two taking up positions behind Jaune and Yang. "Vert... What did I tell you about trying to bring help?"
Jaune yelped as the goon behind him shoved the barrel of his gun into his back. "Jaune, stay calm." Yang hissed.
"One more word, missy," The goon behind Yang said, "One more word, and you're a goner."
Unbeknownst to him, goon number 3 had just made his first mistake. He had called Yang "missy."
"What do you want?" Vert growled.
"It's simple, actually." Vacuo Red said, an ugly grin forming underneath his sunglasses, "Either you lose to Bruno tonight, or your friends each get a brand new pair of concrete shoes."
"Could you be any more of a stereotype?" Jaune asked before being silenced by another prod from a gun barrel.
"Hilarious, kid. No, really." Vacuo Red said, "I think after Bruno gets done with Vert here, I'm going to send him after your family next."
"Yeah, screw that." Jaune shifted his body to the left, grabbed the gun arm of the goon behind him, and delivered an elbow to his face.
For their parts, Yang and Vert didn't miss a beat. Vert dove for cover, as she didn't have her Aura unlocked, and had no desire to get filled full of holes. Yang whirled around and delivered a hook to the guy behind her, sending him sprawling.
"Ice those two!" Vacuo Red said before retreating, he didn't have quite enough clout in Vale yet to kill someone as high profile as Vert without it seeming like an accident and get away scot-free.
The other two goons fired at Jaune and Yang, only to watch in dismay as their bullets bounced off Aura. They surged forward, Yang dispatching her chosen target with a wild haymaker, while Jaune grabbed the henchman's head and violently introduced it to his knee. "Alright, Yang, you head to the control room to get the evidence, I'll go back out the ring and start taking out the goons."
"No way, Vomit Boy." Yang said, "I'm not leaving you alone out there."
"I'll head to the control room, then." Vert said, "I know how to get in, anyways."
Jaune's head snapped over to Vert, "Vert, no. If I have to explain to dad what happened if you died.."
"Just make enough of a racket to draw the guards. That shouldn't be too hard." Vert grinned.
Yang cracked her knuckles, "Not even a little. Let's go, Jaune."
Jaune looked back to Vert as Yang pulled him away, "Be careful!"
Vert winked at her brother, "Don't worry, Jaune. I've got this."
They left the locker room, Jaune and Yang headed back the way they came, and Vert made a mad dash in the other direction, angling for the control room.
As they were running, Yang pulled the fire alarm.
"Yang, what the hell was that for?" Jaune yelled over the blaring of the alarm.
"To get the civvies out of the way! Only downside is that it means that the fire department will be here soon, so we've got to hurry!" Yang explained.
They burst through the double doors that Vert had taken them through, only to meet the rest of Vacuo Red's men.
"Hello boys." Yang said, "We've got a date with your boss, and you're making us late."
Vert Arc knew the building like the back of her hand, so getting to the control room wasn't the problem. The problem was that Vacuo Red was undoubtedly locked in the control room.
Fortunately, this wasn't particularly a problem, as before Jaune had run of to Beacon, Vert had been the wild child of the Arc family. She had stopped by the maintenance closet to get a screwdriver and bobby pin for a reason after all. Luckily, all of the security had been drawn out to the ruckus that Jaune and Yang were causing.
She tried the door, and as expected, it was locked. "Oh, that's adorable. You think a locked door is gonna keep out an Arc with her mind set on something?" She knelt down and started to pick the lock, using the bobby pin to push the pins into place, and the screwdriver to turn the lock.
Damn, thirty seconds? I'm losing my touch.
She peeked around the corner, and saw Vacuo Red with his back to her, barking into a walkie-talkie, "I don't care if they're Beacon students! Take them out! That's what I pay you for, dammit! And turn off that alarm!"
Vert moved into the room, wincing when the fire alarm ceased. She had been counting on that to help hide the noise she made, after all, she wasn't subtle. At all
Vacuo Red whirled around, "How did you get in here?"
Vert grinned, and assumed her fighting stance. "I'm sorry, you must reach friendship level five to unlock my tragic backstory."
Vacuo Red drew his weapon, a switchblade. "Don't come any closer!"
Vert laughed, "You just don't get it, do you? That guy you threatened to have Bruno visit his family? That's my brother. We have six other siblings, not to mention our parents and sister-in-law." She took a step closer, "And we are all very protective of our baby brother, in our own ways, of course. Me? I take a... hands-on approach. Taught him how to fight, kinda. Dad was a bit of a stickler for not enabling Jaune's childish fantasy. But hey, I've always been a rebel."
Vacuo Red's eyes narrowed in confusion, "Why are you telling me this?"
Vert's grin turned to a glare, "Because, you threatened my family, you bastard. No one threatens my family."
With that, Vert moved, closing with Vacuo Red as quickly as she could. She might not have Aura, but she had built a career on beating up people who did have aura.
Vacuo Red swiped at her with his switchblade, but he was not a man used to getting involved himself, and it showed. Vert dodged his swipe, and used a kick to knock the knife out of his hand. The knife hit a nearby control panel, and a new song began playing from the venue's speakers.
Vert continued her assault, slugging the criminal in the gut, then putting him in a guillotine choke. He tried to break it, but Vacuo Red just didn't have much on the way of physical strength.
Once he went slack in her grip, Vert let go. "Heh, who needs a Big Iron on the hip when I've got these guns?" She looked around before remembering her actual task. "Right, evidence." She took out her Scroll, "Well, it's a good thing that I've got dad's detective friend on speed dial."
To date, Jaune had never needed to worry about being outnumbered, save by Grimm, and at those times, he usually had his team at his back.
This was not one of those times.
Jaune ducked out of the way of another cleaver, countering with a kick. At least it didn't seem like these goons had Aura, but there were a lot of them.
"Heheh, time to fry, Blondie." Jaune whirled to face the voice, its owner twirling a wicked looking chain and sporting a neon blue Mohawk.
Jaune opened his mouth to say something, which died in his throat when the chain started arcing with lightning. He started to move, when one of the other goons grabbed him in a full nelson. "I got him, Shocker! Go to town!"
Being slapped around by an electrified chain was nonexistent on Jaune's to do list, so he acted. He slammed his head back into the goon that was holding him, and stomped on his foot, hard. Now free of the full nelson, Jaune spun and delivered a punch to the poor guy's jaw, knocking him down.
Unfortunately, this meant that Jaune was wide open for this Shocker. A fact that he was swiftly reminded of when the chain raked across his back, and a jolt of electricity coursed through him.
Jaune turned to face his assailant, and had to dodge another swing. This was getting old real quick, and Yang probably needed help. Jaune lunged, trying to get in close, only to be met with another chain swipe.
"What's the matter, kid?" Shocker snickered, "Can't get close enough?"
If Jaune had learned anything from training and fighting with Nora, it was that a little electricity never hurt anyone, as long as their Aura holds. And Jaune had a ton of the stuff.
Shocker whipped the chain around again, but this time, Jaune lashed out with his hand, grabbing the chain and allowing it to wrap around his arm. It hurt, sure, but he was too hopped up on adrenaline to care. He yanked on the chain, and Shocker, bless his heart, didn't have the presence of mind to let go. Jaune took him out with a well placed uppercut.
Jaune turned again to find that Yang had already dealt with most of the rest of the gang. "Aw, no fair." Jaune said, "I wanted to help more."
Yang finished with her last henchman with a back fist, "Sorry, Jaune. It's your first time, so you got the annoying guy."
Jaune snorted, "The annoying guy?"
Yang nodded. "Yep, there's always an annoying guy, and there's always a big guy."
Their attention was drawn to a giant of a man, dressed in a button-up shirt and tie of all things. Yang turned to face the man, a grin on her face. "Speak of the devil, and he shall appear."
Jaune narrowed his eyes, if this guy could put fighters like Vert in the hospital, then he was no average opponent. "Bruno, I assume?"
He grunted. "Neither of you will leave here alive."
Yang cackled, "Ooh, ominous!" She leapt forward to deliver a punch to the giant's side, only for her to stop dead in her tracks after impact.
It hurt.
Yang jumped back just in time to dodge the follow-up swing. "Okay, good news, just punching this guy will charge my Semblance."
Jaune shot her a look, "And what's the bad news?"
"That punching him freaking hurts."
Jaune narrowed his eyes, "It's got to be a Semblance of some kind."
At that moment, a song began playing over the arena's speakers. A song that Yang was very familiar with.
Come at me and you'll see
I'm more than meets the eye
You think you'll break me
You're gonna find in time
Bruno lunged forward with a two-handed spam, causing both Jaune and Yang to have to dodge both the strike and the chunks of floor. Jaune, ever the tactician, zeroed in on his fists at the moment of impact. They turned to metal.
"His Semblance makes his skin harden in response to physical trauma!" Jaune yelled.
Bruno pushed his glasses up, "You're clever, boy. So, you'll get pounded first."
You're standing to close to a flame that's burning
Hotter than the sun in the middle of July
Bruno came right at Jaune, all while Yang was dogging at his heels, hair on fire. If just punching this jerk was enough to power her Semblance, there wasn't any point in holding it back.
Jaune parried punch after punch, all while slowly retreating. He saw what Yang was trying to do, and decided to roll with it.
"Can you not face me head on?" Bruno asked, "Disappointing."
Jaune however, had something in mind, the whole time he had been on defense, he was gathering Aura in his hands. After dodging another punch, he delivered one of his own, his hand practically glowing with Aura, right to Bruno's jaw. At the same moment, Yang landed a punch of her own.
Bruno's Semblance didn't activate.
Sendin' out your army but you still can't win
Listen up silly boy, cause I'm gonna tell you why
I burn
This was the first time that Jaune and Yang had fought together, but somehow, there were perfectly in sync. Unlike with Pyrrha, where Jaune would have to call out attacks, like the severing of the deathstalker stinger during initiation, Yang just knew.
Can't hold me now, and you're nothing
I burn
Swing all you want, like a fever I'll take you down.
With a final double uppercut, his Aura failed, and Bruno the Iron-blooded fell to his knees. "How? I was supposed... to be unbeatable."
In the moments before he went unconscious, Yang leaned over and told him why. "Well, didn't you hear? They were playing my song."
"Okay, we need to go check on-" Jaune began to say. He was interrupted by the front doors being kicked open, and a Vale PD SWAT team rushed in.
"Uh..." Jaune said.
"Chill, just show them your training license." Yang said, already digging her Scroll out her pocket.
Jaune did the same, "Um, my sister, Vert is here somewhere too, should be up in the control room."
"Thanks for the heads-up, Huntsman." The SWAT team member said before he hurried off to clear the rest of the building.
"Well, well, a disturbance at a place of business with a bar, should've known it was you, Yang."
Jaune and Yang turned to see a man with graying short cut hair and wearing a pea coat and jeans, with his Vale PD badge hanging from his neck.
Yang broke out into a grin, "Detective Storm! Jaune, this is Detective Storm with Vale PD's Organized Crime unit."
Storm grunted, "There's no need for introductions, at least in my end." He turned to Jaune, "I used to work with your father, back in the day."
Jaune started fidgeting, clearly uncomfortable with this line of conversation. "He never really talked about... that stuff with me."
Yang glanced quizzically at him, why wouldn't Mr. Arc have told Jaune about his life as a Hunter? Goodness knew that her dad and Uncle Qrow would talk your ear off about their past missions and experiences.
Storm cleared his throat, "Anyways, what brought you two here? If there wasn't anything actionable, that won't end well."
Jaune produced his Scroll, showing Detective Storm the initial message from Vert. "My sister texted me Tuesday, tipping us off about the fight fixing ring that Vacuo Red was running here."
Storm raised an eyebrow. "How'd you know it was Vacuo Red?"
Yang coughed, "I have contacts in the Valean underworld."
"I'm going to ignore that you said that, and chalk it up to Hunter's intuition." Storm stroked his beard, "You kids are still on shaky ground, legally. If we don't find any evidence..."
Yang shook her head, "Nah, we're solid. You can get him on attempted murder."
Jaune nodded, grateful that Yang knew her way around the legal end of their situation. "His exact words to his men were ice them."
"And you didn't attack anyone before that?"
"Technically we dealt with the goons that had guns in our backs beforehand, but that could be chalked up to self-defense, right?" Jaune said.
Detective Storm nodded, "Legally, no. But there's not a jury in the kingdom that wouldn't accept that."
"Sweet," Yang said, "So, we're free to go?"
Storm waved them away, "Yeah, get out of here. Now, I know you've been through this before, Yang, so this is for Jaune. Both your family and Professor Ozpin will be notified of your... extra-curricular combat exercise. Also, any relevant surveillance footage will be sent to Professor Goodwitch and will affect your Combat grade."
"Can I see my sister before we leave?" Jaune asked.
Storm shook his head, "No can do, she's giving her statement to one of my boys. Sorry."
Yang guided Jaune towards the door with a gentle hand in the shoulder, "Come on, Jaune. Let's get back."
Jaune turned to Yang as they left, "Why didn't you tell me this was going to count as extra credit?"
"You didn't need the pressure." Yang said, "You did good, Vomit Boy. I'm proud of you."
Yang had no idea how much hearing that meant to Jaune, but he figured that was a conversation for another day. "Thanks, Forest Fire."
A/N: I sincerely apologize for how long it takes this story to update. I have no excuse other than that I have to wait until inspiration strikes to write for this story.
The Black Ursa Diner was inspired by the real-life restaurant chain Black Bear Diner.
Yes, Vacuo Red was a reference to the Marty Robbins song Big Iron, and Bruno's Semblance was inspired by Senator Armstrong from Metal Gear Rising: Revengence.
Until next time. (Hopefully less than three months)