Playing For Keeps - Ch 54 (Adv) - A Kiss (Patreon)

The Álikoses shifted uncomfortably, even Bia. So much for the lighter mood.

“First off, you’re giving me a bit too much credit,” I replied. “I didn’t stage an argument to distract from anything; I took issue with his bullshit and called it out.”

“Fuckin’ A,” Vi muttered, earning a reproving elbow from Olivia.

“Secondly, while the outcome is regrettable — doubly so because I’m not the one who will end up dealing with the fallout — I needed to find Lionheart before Callows’ poison killed him, and Malachite knew it.”

“And as the one who will end up dealing with said fallout, not to mention taking responsibility for your actions as a member of my Familia, I asked what it is you promised her,” Grandma said evenly.

Swallowing, because that calm tone was somehow more intimidating than even Professor Goodwitch’s annoyance, I tried being formal. “Madame Roma–”

“Cut the shit, Jaune,” Grandma interrupted in the same tone. Apparently some surprise showed on my face, because she went on, “I’m too fucking old to care about obsequity in private. Just tell me what you did.”

“She wanted Aura for her bodyguards,” I ripped off the bandage.

“Jay what the fuck?” Vi snapped. “You gave Aura to the mob!?”

I bit my tongue, trying not to get defensive. “I didn’t exactly have a lot of time to make a decision.”

“Did you even confirm they actually had Lionheart?”

“Of course I did. She made a live call in front of me, and he looked fucking terrible. Maybe he could have held on longer, but for all I knew he had minutes to live. I can’t make an active diagnosis over the phone, but I’ve volunteered at the hospital enough to see he was hanging on by a thread.”

“You didn’t need to take her first offer!” Vi pressed. “Hell, you knew Malachite didn’t have Aura, what exactly was stopping you from crushing her like a bug?”

“You mean like an arachnid?” I smirked. Vi looked unamused, but Bia and Lorelei stifled giggles, so I counted it as a win. “Yeah, I wasn’t in danger, but Lionheart sure the hell was. His Aura was drained and he was comatose, a single word wrong and the enforcer watching over him could have slit his throat. And that’s on top of the fact that I still didn’t know where she was keeping him.”

“So instead you’re setting how many Aura-powered criminals loose?”

“Three,” I ground out. “Two bodyguards and one enforcer. Not Malachite herself. Again, I know it’s regrettable, but–”

“Do you stand by the decision you made?” Grandma cut in once more.

“A good man would have died otherwise.”

“That's not what I asked, Jaune.” Her cold eyes bored into mine. “Do you stand by your decision?”

I took a breath, thinking about the remorse Leonardo had shown for his actions, and the resolve I’d felt in his oath. “Yes.”

“Then there is nothing to regret,” she said, as if that settled the matter. Vi clicked her tongue, but didn’t say anything else.

My entire train of thought, focused on justifying the decision I’d come to, utterly derailed. “I’m… not sure that’s quite fair. I’ve caused trouble for you, and Mistral, because of a snap decision and without consulting anyone. Even if I stand by it, I still regret the negative outcome.”

“You’re misunderstanding my perspective, Jaune. Taking responsibility means owning both your decisions and their consequences. As a person, you can question yourself. But as a leader? You must trust yourself.” I opened my mouth again, but she went on. “Yes, sometimes that trust will turn out to have been misplaced. But when that happens you must, in turn, trust yourself to fix it, and to do better next time.”

“Or, in this case, trust those around you to help fix it,” Bia added, taking my hand and lacing her fingers through mine.

I’m still in the mindset of trying to manage everything myself, aren’t I? Shit, that habit’s hard to break.

Grandma picked up her coffee again, evidently considering the small interrogation over. “Spider is far from the worst mafia to have arisen in Mistral. They are only the most recent, and the reason they still exist is because Malachite knows to prioritize stability over ambition.”

“I should’ve known you keep a close eye on them,” I sighed. “Was this a test, then? Did you already know what our bargain was, and were checking if I’d be honest?”

“No. But I could have found out without difficulty. This merely saved time.” She sipped her coffee again, then held it out for a refill, which her butler silently provided. “There is a saying from Middle Mistrali that illustrates the idea: Tieni i tuoi amici vicino ed i tuoi nemici ancora più vicino.”

I blinked. My Italian isn’t very good, but I’m pretty fucking sure that’s just, ‘Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.’

[Linguist has increased by 1!]

“Wasn’t that from a movie?”

“Spider continues to exist because Malachite understands that minimizing negativity must be a priority,” Grandma continued without acknowledging my quip. “There’s no profit in Grimm destroying the city, after all. It’s very bad for business. Should her understanding of that fact change, so will the organization’s leadership, and she is well aware of it.”

“If I may, how exactly did she not have access to Aura already?” I asked something that had been bugging me. “Her daughters both have it, and they were never Huntresses. I’d assume they got theirs unlocked by Junior Xiong; frankly, I was shocked Spider didn’t already have it.”

“Lil’ Miss Malachite used to be a bit player. She didn’t establish Spider, she took them over from within,” Lorelei offered. “She’s smart and strategic, and it’s the reason she’s gotten so far. She’s a ruthless bitch, make no mistake — our best guess says she personally ordered the hit that killed her husband before he could cut some kind of deal with the Hana Guild — but she understood from the beginning of her rise that exceeding her grasp would see her unseated.”

“I couldn’t say precisely why she doesn’t have Aura herself, but her daughters are in Vale specifically because she was trying to extend her reach over there about four years ago,” said Olivia. “It set off a gang war with the Red Axes, which culminated in Spider bombing a Valic Councilman’s estate where ‘Jiaofu’ Hei Xiong was hiding. Councilor Jimmy Vanille and his entire family were also killed. Afterward, Junior Xiong presumably cut some kind of deal for an alliance with Spider rather than keep the fight going, because he gained Malachite’s daughters as enforcers, and she apparently stopped all attempts at expanding into Vale.”

“That doesn’t explain why Aura is so much more common in the Valic underworld,” I frowned. “The Malachite twins have it, and so does Junior; one of my classmates fought all three of them over the summer.” Yellow Trailer went off more or less as shown… Maybe Qrow and I should head off Yang’s little search though.

[Mental note added!]

“Roman Torchwick and his partner have it as well,” I finished. “And that’s just the handful of local criminals I actually know about.”

“Vale has their ways and we have ours,” Grandma sniffed. “Ozpin chooses to take a light hand with the underworld, believing that some number of Aura-capable criminals would help to defend Vale in the event of a Breach. In Mistral, Aura unlocks are regulated. It is far from impossible to have it done illegally, but it is far less common. Should Spider’s new capacity facilitate their crimes, and that capacity is traced back to you, you will be heavily fined.”

“Ah yes, the old ‘legal for a price’ trick,” I drawled. “Makes sense for an oligarchy. Well, we’ve already agreed I should stand by my decision, so fucking bill me.”

Bia nudged me reproachfully, but Lorelei and Allan exchanged smirks. Eyes twinkling, Lorelei said, “You say it’s the Arc in him, Jeanne, but I can’t help seeing a certain resemblance between you.”

Grandma and I exchanged a look that had Olivia stifling a giggle.

“There is a reason I gave Jaune’s father my blessing in the end,” Grandma said serenely.

I snapped my fingers dramatically. “That’s right, I was also planning to challenge Anicetus to a duel if he tried to level an objection to Bia and I seeing where things go. The sucker punch threw me off.”

“Just to have it spoken, seeking it or not you have my blessing, Jaune,” Lorelei sighed. “And now that he’s gone I feel no hesitation in apologizing for my uncle. “He’s… rather old-fashioned.”

“I first want to say that my negative impression of him doesn’t reflect on any of you, but let’s call a spade a spade,” I said, colder than I’d been all night. “He’s old and he refuses to recognize the world has moved on without him. That’s his problem, not mine.”

“Some old people are just like that,” Olivia said. I shook my head.

“That’s not an excuse. Old is not synonymous with stagnant. Don’t think I’m unaware that the the Home Guard consists entirely of human men. Equality is a good thing. Diversity is a good thing. Plenty of elderly people got with the program; refusing to learn new things is a choice he’s actively making, and I’ve made my stance on it clear.”

Bia took my hand. “Please don’t fight my granduncle on my behalf,” she murmured.

“All right,” I told her seriously. “I’ll do it on my own behalf, then.”

Bia blinked. Her cheeks reddened again — so! fucking! cute! — and she gave me a surprisingly shy smile.

“Are we sure he’s only eighteen?” Lorelei asked. Her voice wasn’t loud, but it still broke the spell. Bia, now scorching red, ducked her head behind my shoulder.

Violet snorted, and I had to pull on all my CHA to laugh along. Not because it wasn’t funny, but because cracks like that were some of the only times I still felt like a stranger who stole Jaune’s body rather than an amnesiac with foreign memories. And I still have no idea how to raise that subject to the family. How the fuck would I even start that conversation? Would it even be morally right to tell them Jaune is technically dead while I’m wearing his face?

Or, another part of me whispered, Would the right thing be to let the truth out and give them the right to grieve their lost brother and son?

Neither my Oath nor half-remembered ethics classes adequately prepared me to answer those questions, so I swallowed them past the lump in my throat and tried to catch back up to the conversation.

“–the first to say that,” Olivia chuckled. “But we are in fact medically certain that this is Jaune.”

“I’m curious, why do you say that?” Selena asked.

Vi rolled her eyes. “Because Az double-checked all his vitals when he visited Atlas, including blood type — and maybe fingerprints or hair samples for all I know; wouldn’t put it past her — and Bee confirmed his Aura still feels like ‘Jaune’ last month.”

“Pointedly setting aside the worrying violation of my bodily autonomy without consent,” I frowned. “Bianca was in Vacuo for like… years before I managed to unlock my Aura, wasn’t she? I assume she was, because I have no memory of the last time I saw her before this past April. I know I can sense a sealed Aura, but I didn’t know she could.”

“Then I guess you also forgot that anything you can do, Nightlight Barbie can do better,” Vi scowled, then muttered, “Like it’s not enough she can straight up erase literally anything…”

Oookay, sensing a bit of a complex there. Changing the subject, I said, “Dinner was lovely, Grandma, but I don’t want to leave Leonardo alone too long at the moment.”

She accepted my excuse with a nod. “Next time, have Branwen stay with him.”

I paused as she casually revealed she’d known Qrow was lurking all night. Okay, Grandma’s a sensor, too. It’s a pretty rare talent but I can’t say I’m surprised. So do I bother denying it…? Probably not. I raised a sardonic eyebrow. “Considering I got punched through a window during a low-key dinner, I think I’ll continue keeping backup nearby.”

“Touché,” Jeanne allowed. “Fare well, Jaune.”

“Goodnight, Grandma.” I gave her a hug, followed by Olivia. Vi contented herself with a fistbump. Bia had also begun saying her goodbyes, and joined me when I turned toward her parents. “Lorelei, Allan, Selena, it’s been a pleasure.”

“The pleasure was ours,” Allan insisted, shaking my hand first. “It was good to put a face to the glowing reputation.”

“I’m sure my smart mouth made short work of that reputation,” I chuckled.

Selena’s handshake wasn’t crushing this time. “Quite the contrary. It’s good to see young Hunters with strong principles.”

Lorelei ignored my outstretched hand and pulled me into another hug. “It was wonderful to meet you, Jaune. I’m glad my little soldier met you.”

“Not half as glad as I am,” I parried, flashing Bia a smile. “I might even forgive Sienna and Azure for the rest of the shit I put up with in Atlas.”

From the corner of my eye, I saw the butler knuckle his brow as Bia walked me out. Leaving us a bit of privacy, that was thoughtful.

I preceded her down the stairs as politeness dictated, but she beat me to the front door before turning to face me. Given a moment alone — actually alone, not just in our own little world — I was struck once again by how gorgeous she was. Her eyes shone almost like emeralds in the dim foyer, her dark blue dress shimmered, and her olive skin seemed to glow almost like satin.

“I wanted to thank you again for being so patient with my family,” she said, brushing some loose hair behind her ear, the bright red corsage complementing her auburn hair.

“Your parents were lovely,” I reassured her. “But to be honest, I’d put up with far worse than even your uncle if it meant spending the evening with you.”

Bia stepped closer, and her hands came to rest on my lapels. “I don’t know how you manage to make that sound so sincere.”

I bought my hands up to rest over hers, my palms curling around the backs of her hands. “It’s not difficult when it’s true.”

Bia’s tongue darted out to moisten her lips, and I decided it was finally time to make up for the moment Qrow had interrupted last night. Leaning forward, I closed the distance between us and pressed my lips to hers.

Bia made a small noise of surprise, but kissed me back almost immediately. Her light, floral perfume filled my nose, the soft warmth of her fingers felt almost electric, and as she leaned even closer to I could feel the silk of her dress against the knuckles of my right hand, and bare flesh against the left… but when I opened my eyes all I could think about was how captivating I found the happiness and affection in hers. So help me, I don’t think anything can stop me from wanting to see that more.

I kissed her a second time, then a third. Feeling daring, I pressed forward without breaking contact, forcing Bia to step backward until her back hit the door. She let out a soft moan, and her grip on my jacket tightened, but I declined to deepen the kiss even as I continued to press forward.

After another feverish moment, I broke off and rested my forehead against hers, watching her eyelids flutter a moment longer before she focused back on me.

“That,” I whispered in her ear. “Was well worth the wait.”

Bia shivered, and her smile was breathtaking when she tremulously answered, “I couldn’t agree more.”

Name: Jaune ArcLevel: 61 (Next: 63.35%)Title: Academy StudentRace: HumanAge: 18Job: Journeyman HuntsmanClass: PaladinSemblance: The GamerHP: 8301/8202MP: 4456/4456STR: 223 (100)CON: 279 (102)DEX: 162 (54)INT: 136 (51)WIS: 110 (52)CHA: 155 (53)Points: 112Money: 1,008,990LStatus: Cursed – Yellow Death [High]

A/N: If you’re enjoying this story, feel free to check out my discord server at https://discord.gg/H6V854Fvbg

Yes, yes, that saying originated from The Godfather Part II, not some ‘historical’ source. It fits the Mistral I’ve written.

Jiàofù (Mandarin 教父) means ‘Godfather’, in both the Christian and the Mafia sense. That Hei Xiong is Junior's father.Spider's backstory is an extrapolation of wiki details from the novel RWBY: Roman Holiday (which I have not read, and consequently Jaune doesn't know) with the gaps filled in by my own worldbuilding.