#Faunus James
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Jacques: you cannot Allow my Daughter into your ranks! This law *Out of Date Discriminatory law made during The Color War* States that no Faunus are allowed in the Atlas Military's Standing Army.
Ironwood: ... thank you for bringing that INjustice to light. It will be made right soon. In the Mean time, Welcome aboard Specialist.
Bear!Faunus Winter: Sp- Specialist sir?
Ironwood: Yes Miss schnee. You won't be part of our standing army, but you will be a part of our Military - in a place where you will earn the Respect you deserve.
Winter: Thank you sir!
In the 1940's a Bear cub was adopted by a polish military unit. Because Higher-Ups would not allow them to feed a 'pet' the officially instated him as a private, and eventually Wojtek (Voytek) was granted rank of Corporal.
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I just think. Tail.
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To me Mantle and the entire concept about it.
It's citizens.
How they're treated.
And how it's delivered to us in the show is what the Faunus should have been.
Mantle is this desolate, hopeless place.
It feels like something Atlesian parents would use as a boogey man to scare their kids.
You know, don't mess up or you'll end up in Mantle.
Mantle is the land of the forgotten.
It's not a city, it's not a town. Its just a place that exists.
You don't live in Mantle. You survive.
Atlesian's don't go to Mantle, even the Schnee's whole buisness there is through robots.
Because why visit? Why would you choose to sully your hands with the filth of society?
It's why the idea of someone like May, someone we know who comes from an Atlesian family, choosing Mantle is so shocking to them.
Because no one chooses Mantle.
Mantle isn't even supposed to exist.
They are looked down upon, as the ones who were left behind.
They have nowhere to go, they are cut off from the world.
The Happy Huntresses are it's saviours, they are the ones fighting for Mantle to be not only acknowledged but to be seen as Atlas's equal.
And maybe even better.
And to the Atlesian's, to even think they could be seen in the same foot as these... Land folk.
Is the most insulting thing in the world.
Why do they have access to Mantles heating grid?
Why doesn't Mantle have access to it?
They have no say.
They have no voice.
It's more than power.
It's a message
You are nothing without us.
You are the dirt I walk on every day, if you dare step out of line.
I can end you and no one will care.
.
Now think of the Faunus.
Who can live wherever they want.
Get whatever job they wish.
One of the people with the most power and influence was Leonardo Lionheart.
They can attend schools with humans.
Their homeland of Menagire is an island paradise.
They live in comfort, in freedom.
The Faunus are free to govern themselves without any human input.
Menagire isolates itself from humanity but suffer no consequences from doing so.
There is no overcrowding.
They are at peace.
They are free to visit and leave whenever they wish.
To do whatever it is they wish.
But they are not satisfied.
The white fang fights against injustice against Faunus.
... But what injustice are they facing that would require such violence to achieve?
They have no need to conceal themselves.
They are not restricted in any form.
They are no different to humans.
Aka...
We get told the Faunus are oppressed and that there struggling but we don't see it.
Apart from a few arbitrary things that are either so small or could apply to literally anyone non Faunus.
But we do see the intense surveillance of Mantle.
The way the Schnee Dust Company owns their power grid.
The fact Mantle is cut off from everyone.
We see people that are freezing.
We families huddling together by fires just trying to get through the night.
We see Ironwood take away resources that were supposed to aid Mantle.
And he was gonna kill thousands innocent Mantle citizens just to save Atlas.
We see that, we know.
We don't, or at the very least I don't see that with the Faunus.
And I think if they were portrayed like the Mantle citizens are it would've worked a lot better.
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Fandom: RWBY x Bleach
AU: Fusion AU, Crossover AU
Character(s): General James Ironwood, Yoruichi Shihouin
Summary: The origin of James cybernetic and Yoruichi reactions.
Theme: Semi-Dark, Romantic, Loss of Limbs, Love Confession
“Why did you did it?”
Yoruichi asked softly. Her yellow eyes moistened with restrained tears, but held anger as she looked at the large, physically imposing man who was laying on the bed with a calm expression on his face.
“Why Ironwood.” The Atlasian man slightly flinched at the usage of his name from the beautiful mantle-born faunus woman. “Why did you recklessly pushed me away when you knew I can dodge it!?”
She screamed hoarsely. Raw emotion filled her loud scream with a echoing boom.
James Ironwood, the General and Headmaster of Atlas Academy turned his icy blue eyes into the yellow catlike eyes to purple-haired woman. He stared at her with a grim look but his tone was gentle and soothing.
“When you see the love of your life in danger. All thoughts and logic jumped out of the window and you only act upon instinct and emotion.” He replied as he touched her face with his remaining hand, his thumb soothingly touched her soft cheek.
Yoruichi Shihouin, the Goddess of Flash, 22nd Head of the Shihouin Clan and the Supreme Commander of Atlasian Stealth Force felt her cheeks turned bright red when she heard the words from the normally reserved and stoic hunter-general as well as the soulful look in his icy blue eyes.
“I hate you…I hate you so fucking much.” She said to the General of Atlasian Military and Headmaster of Atlas Academy.
He quirked a sardonic smile at the purple-haired, yellow-eyed, dark skinned faunus.
“Hate you too…Chi…”
The two leaned forward for a soft, but powerful kiss from the bottom of their hearts.
#yoruichi shihouin#bleach#rwby#james ironwood#crossover au#fusion au#yoruichi is a cat faunus#ironcat (james ironwood x yoruichi shihouin)#shipping post#angst post#drabble post#tw amputation#tw trauma#tw near death
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not a mel/anie mart/inez fan (personal reasons) but me, writing Qrow at any moment, to the tune of “paci/fy her”: traumatize him... hes getting on my nerves you dont know him... hes a traumatized bird
#ooc: out of feathers#me cradling him in my hands: hes just a poor little meow meow! he doesnt even know anythign!#on that note iv decided to keep this blog open nd maybe start an oc sideblog for my Cat Faunus Ezra whos Blakes adopted godfather and is#in love w qrow and james both
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The whole current story is available on AO3.
#rwby#rwby fanfiction#my writing#rwby oc#female Faunus oc#qrow branwen#james ironwood#poly relationship#violet Lee#cheshire cat#retelling#smut#angst#romance#violence#child loss#cat Faunus
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RWBY Spanish dub
Minor Characters from Menagerie
Worried Mother
EN: Victoria Holden
LA: Gloria Obregón
Menagerie Guard 1
EN: Gio Coutinho
LA: Tatul Bernodat
Menagerie Guard 2
EN: Stan Lewis
LA: TBA
Menagerie Guard 3
EN: Jenn K. Tidwell
LA: Andrea Coto
Faunus Civilian 1
EN: Willem W. Keetell
LA: TBA
Faunus Civilian 2
EN: Ariel James
LA: TBA
Young Faunus Woman
EN: Christine Stuckart
LA: TBA
Older Faunus Man
EN: Patrick Rodriguez
LA: TBA
#rwby#rwby spanish dub#menagerie#mata’s mother#victoria holden#gloria obregón#menagerie guards#gio coutinho#tatul bernodat#stan lewis#jenn k tidwell#andrea coto#faunus civilians#willem w keetell#ariel james#christine stuckart#patrick rodriguez
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Since you're into Ratchet and Clank at the moment, how about the 'I can make it look like an accident!' from All 4 One?
Here's the link.
Yang: Ruby? Ruby, where are we?!
Ruby: I don't know, Yang. Have you seen Uncle Qrow?
Qrow: (Tangled) Hey, uh... little help?
Yang: Great. Can this get any worse?
Watts: (Dragged in, Cybernetics fritz)
Weiss: Oh, Jaune! Kiss me! Hold me! Love me like before you turned into a flesh-eating zombie~!
Jaune: RAAAAARGH!
Yang: Uh, Uncle Qrow, could you, uh...?
Qrow: (Punches Watts)
Watts: YOU FOOL! How dare you lay your inferior, bumbling hands on me! When I get free from these binds, I will rip you in half!
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Ironwood: It's good to see you, Team RWBY. How are things with J-A-C-Q-U-
Jacques: I can spell, James.
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Qrow: ...You did a great thing, Doctor!
Watts: Get bent!
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Qrow: You know, I'm starting to actually like it here. Sure, it's toxic and irradiated and filled to the brim with mutated Grimm, but when you take away all of that, you know what you got? A bitchin' headmaster retreat slash water park!
Watts: ...Can I kill him now?
Yang: No!
Watts: I can make it look like an accident!
Yang: How?!
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Qrow: This is it! This is the end! I can feel death's cold, icy grip! Arthur, I'm sorry I pushed you around in Beacon. You were so smart, and I was-
Watts: A moron?
Qrow: I was going to say "an Adonis," but if you wanna be a jerk about it.
Watts: I'm sorry, too, and I want you to know that even though I was wishing that Beringel was tearing you limb from limb so that I could Riverdance all over your smoldering, drunken ashes, I still considered you my friend.
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Whitley: Good evening, father. I hope you don't mind, but... Well, it seems the evil sidekick market is a bit thin these days. I do hope that the position as your assistant isn't filled.
Ironwood: Your heart is in the right place, Whitley, but today has been a revelation for all of us. Together, we faced a threat that was neither human nor faunus. We learned about life, friendship, and the tender bond held between us. So I'm afraid your father won't be doing anything except stealing OUR SHIP?!
Jacques: SO LONG, SUCKERS~!
#rwby#ratchet and clank#all 4 one#arthur watts#yang xiao long#ruby rose#qrow branwen#jacques schnee#james ironwood#whitley schnee#weiss schnee#jaune arc
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Quick question; Do you think James would be the type of father figure who fixes his students' uniforms whenever they get messed up in like accidents or in training? I don't mean like fixing ties I mean like, fixing small holes and ordering new ones that could be considered too small or too restricting for some faunus students?
One hundred percent yes. I’ve always head-cannoned that James kind of becomes a father figure for his students and is very fatherly towards them because he always wanted to have kids but never could for various reasons. He especially does so for students who have bad and or just no relationship with their parents. I also headcannon that he cares about all of his students and remembers all of their names no matter how long it’s been. He also knows Atlas is particularly bad to Faunus but he does what he can to help them as much as he can like helping them with their uniforms as you mentioned.
I also have this kind of silly headcannon that he has a “loan” department to loan out nice clothes for his students for special events like the Vytal dance and such. The council tries to discourage such things but James doesn’t listen because these kids are risking their lives to protect the world, the least he can do is help them out where he can to make things a little easier for them.
#james ironwood#ironwood protection squad#pro james ironwood#pro ironwood#general ironwood#general dadmiral#dadmiral ironwood
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I'm still fucking reeling over the fact that Remnant lives in passive racism and just does nothing with it anymore.
The heroes just accept that their society is racist and they decide, "thank you Schnee Dust Company!" because they produced dust bullets that slaves mined from the mines.
Call me dramatic or whatnot, but this one scene from Jaune and Nora just HAUNTS me because it outlines how nobody gives a shit about the horrors the Faunus have to deal with. It was only used to have Ruby remember Weiss, but damn, it's just shabby.
And this makes me ask, "okay, if James put up that embargo, then what's happening with the Faunus slaves that are being forced to work in the mines? Are they still working or are they out of work?" I supposed they were out of work because Jacques was on James' ass about not opening the borders the whole time.
BUT AGAIN, WE JUST NEVER HEAR FROM THEM.
If they ever did bring it up, I guarantee I never heard of it because the Faunus racism matters 🤏 that much.
The one time we see anything about Faunus workers was in Arrowfell when the story decided, "let's vilify the union leader and show him abusing a Faunus worker," and just never come back to this ever again.
This is why I wish they did more with Adam because frankly, it seemed like he was the only one that had to remind everybody that humans were doing crazy shit to Faunus. Because god forbid Blake actually brings it up ever again because she just somehow forgot for a few years after V5.
We just open with how Blake, this whole fucking time, was actually royalty and didn't actually have to struggle as much as her people. She chose to go rogue with Adam and left when the heat got too much. If only we got an introspective storyline of how Blake's privileged life was able to help her not be part of the poor who are easy to take advantage of, but, that would require Blake being flawed.
Oh yeah, and Ruby's kneejerk reaction to assume all Faunus are somehow in cahoots with the White Fang just because they're not human (Ruby vs. Tyrian, V4.) That shit was SO unwarranted, girl. Or wait, does she assume any Faunus that attacks her is a terrorist, too? There's a lot of shit Ruby needs to unpack, ASAP.
So that's why I think the dude-bro CRWBY should've never touched on the topic.
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A finished design for Helena! A couple fun facts about her design
Her emblem and allusion are both referencing the moon rabbit. I’m actually considering getting the emblem as a tattoo irl!
She’s a lop rabbit Faunus. Her rabbit ears are supposed to be able to blend into her hair, with that being how I’m representing my experiences with being whitepassing within the in universe lore
Also following in universe lore is her bandana. It’s tradition to wear an accessory that’s your partner’s color, so the red one is for universes where she’s married to Chae-Yeong and gray is for ones where she’s married to James
Her weapon is a shotgun ax combo called Lunar Phase!
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Things Beacon Students are No Longer Allowed To Do: Rule 54
54. “Atlas” is not a slur. You don’t need to bleep out “Atlas” and “Atlesian” in your After Action Reports.
54 a. We understand that tensions between Atl*s and the Faunus community are high. We also understand that the Atl*s Military also doesn’t have a great relationship with us, but censoring Atl*s and Atl*sian doesn’t help. Please stop.
(… - Prof. Goodwitch)
54 b. Students are not allowed to hack Beacon systems to censor words.
(How do they even keep doing this? - Prof. Goodwitch) (It’s impressive, at your request the Atl*s military upgraded your systems just a month ago. - Specialist Schnee) (… - Prof. Goodwitch) (Hang on. How is it censoring me? I’m on a secure Atl*s server. - Specialist Schnee) (Oh no. - Prof. Goodwitch)
54 c. This should’ve gone without saying, because it’s already incredibly illegal, but students are NOT allowed to hack Atl*sian Military systems. Even for dumb pranks.
(Weiss I know you’re involved somehow, please just turn the Atl*s censor off. Half of the general staff are becoming paranoid about infiltrators and Ironwood is starting to mutter something about atmospheric bombardment. - Specialist Schnee) (I had nothing to do with this! I don’t even know anything about computers so I wouldn’t know how to help. Have you tried turning it off and back on again? - Weiss) (HA. Funny one Winter. Atl*s can’t bomb its way out of this problem, Jimmy. - Prof. Branwen)
54 d. Now that Ironwood’s flagship has successfully had its dust-core deactivated, and reactivated again, solving the issue, the General has requested an audience with the parties involved. 75-25 he shoots/hires you.
(Uh…I was joking? You’d have to fly the airship all the way back to Atlas, tear half the ship apart, then use a literal metric ton of Dust to restart the core??? All that just so you can say “Atlas” again?!?!? - Weiss) (Rooting out infiltrators is worth any expense. And it was less politically costly to Atlas than the alternative. Thank you for your advice Ms Schnee. - Gen. Ironwood) (You’re…welcome? Wait, what was the alternative? - Weiss) (… - Gen. Ironwood) (James? - Ozpin)
54 e. Beacon would like to clarify that in the event of an atmospheric bombardment for ANY reason, Beacon students ARE allowed to use whatever force they deem necessary to remove the threat.
(Wait, he was SERIOUS? James, what the fuck, just get an IT guy. - Prof. Branwen)
#rwby#rules of beacon#weiss schnee#james ironwood#qrow branwen#winter schnee#54#atlas being bad at IT#is hilarious to me#for some reason
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Man, do you guys remember that time that I was like "okay let's say Ironwood was a clearly evil dictator from jump just like anti-rwdes have insisted, what would that mean for the characters of Team RWBYJNOR and what would it mean for the narrative the show presented us with?" And I got sent hate anons from anti-rwdes for like two weeks yelling at me for criticizing the mains for following James Ironwood?
I'm just thinking about that, and thinking about how.... Not actually grounded in any sort of morals a lot of anti-rwde stuff is. Like, I literally was just following their insistence to the logical conclusion - if James Ironwood was clearly always a dictator than Team RWBY who saw all the signs were willingly following a dictator for months and the narrative was not at all interested in presenting them as at fault or in the wrong in any way. But instead of being like "wait a minute yeah, the show I like should've had the mains regret that they were working for a clear dictator" they instead got angry at me for pointing out that their anti-Ironwood logic doesn't make the show or the main characters actually look that good. Because "rwby is anti-dictator" is just something some people say in order to feel good about the show they watch, not because they actually care whether or not RWBY condemns dictators. This is just like "RWBY is anti-racism," because anti-rwdes will talk about how RWBY has Weiss and Yang yell at anti-faunus people as if that makes it automatically super progressive but then when people are like "wish they would've apologized for how they treated Blake - with Yang's laser pointer and Weiss's blatant anti-faunus rants" and they'll get furious that anyone is daring to criticize their Best Girls.
If Ironwood was always a dictator, then the show should've either not had Team RWBYJNOR willingly working with him for months, or they should've addressed the fact that they were willingly working for him for months by having members of Team RWBYJNOR acknowledge that they were completely in the wrong for following him and need to change for the better in the future and be more careful about who they work with and express regret about the damages they caused by helping him in his oppression. And again, I don't believe that Ironwood was a clear villainous dictator prior to shooting Oscar, I think Team RWBY and co had been following a flawed good guy, disagreed with him on a trolley problem, and then randomly the flawed good guy turned into an evil murderous puppy-kicking villain (because of the writers doing a fall to villainy at the speed of light.)
But most of the people who have been yelling at anyone who likes Ironwood for the past several years on the grounds of his supposed blatant villainy and dictatorship aren't actually interested in the show exploring Team RWBYJNOR's responsibility to not follow dictators, they're not even interested in checking Winter for continuing to follow James in season eight while he was freely murdering anybody who stood in his way, because they do not care about the morality involved in the situation actually. They just like to not think critically about the show they consume. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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RWBY Versus Series: Adam Taurus vs. James Ironwood
"But fear itself isn't worthy of concern, it is who we become while in its clutches. Will you be proud of that person? Will you forgive them? Will you understand why they felt the need to do the things they did? Will you even recognize them? Or will the person staring back at you be the very thing you should have feared from the start?"
PHYSICAL
At first glance, this seems like a very simple conclusion to reach. While Adam Taurus certainly has James Ironwood beat in terms of physical health and wellness (blind in one eye vs. triple amputee with half your chest gone, one is decidedly worse), Ironwood’s alterations and implants more than make up for his poor condition. Though originally a run of the mill homo sapian, James Ironwood is now more machine than man, with superhumanly strong prosthetic limbs and built in armor turning him into a veritable juggernaut. As a Faunus, Adam may have anatomical traits that put him beyond your typical human by way of his horns and likely night vision, but these traits are either vestigial or useless on neutral ground, and his is otherwise just another squishy meatbag. Ironwood’s superior anatomy carries directly over to physical performance levels, boasting physical strength that is light years beyond anything Adam could muster up. Yes, carving through military-grade robots like they were nothing is a testament to a heavy hitter, but it really doesn’t compare to being able to manhandle a Beowolf with only one hand. Ironwood’s superior might is further supported by his agility, bringing every ounce of his weight and might to his target every time. Adam may be able to brace himself to deflect a flying Blake, but Ironwood doing the same would be far beyond his ability to handle. While Adam’s performance against Yang Xiao Long proves that he can contend with physically stronger opponents, this is all he can do, and jockeying in an arm-wrestling contest with Ironwood is well beyond his capabilities. Quite simply, Ironwood’s body is 50% metal and he’s all the more dangerous for it.
However, despite the General’s overwhelming physical might, this is not a one-sided contest, as his Faunus opponent boasts some critical physical advantages of his own. Adam may not have any anatomical advantages he can leverage over Ironwood, but he does enjoy a significant age gap, at minimum 20 years. Additionally, much like Cinder Fall, Adam’s impaired eyesight is not a gamebreaker, as he has never been seen suffering from a physical blind spot, owed to either Aura-enhanced senses or simple muscle memory. In terms of athletic ability, Ironwood’s titanic strength is matched and countered by Adam’s mind-numbing speed. Simply put, if Adam can keep pace with Blake, casually run laps around Yang, and demonstrate blatantly superior acrobatic ability, then Ironwood is going to have his work cut out for him. Dexterity and reflex also go to the High Leader, demonstrating greater precision and control in his sword style than the General’s simple pistol whips. Ironwood’s ability to match and arguably defeat Winter Schnee, to whom Adam is easily comparable, is proof that he can deal with speed demons, but as with Adam and his strength, that’s the limit. He can contend with Adam’s speed, but he can’t actually match or surpass him. As far as health and athleticism is concerned, Adam Taurus and James Ironwood demonstrate a balance of opposites. Both are stronger in areas the other is, while certainly not weak, comparatively lesser in, and either getting the opportunity to leverage that superiority could affect the tide of the whole battle. If Yang can overpower Adam, so can Ironwood. If Winter can outpace/fence Ironwood, so can Adam. Both have proven they can engage such opponents without being overmatched, so neither will be able to coast by on strength or speed alone in this fight.
This dynamic of opposing strengths and weaknesses carries over to their respective endurance and tolerances. Once again, Ironwood’s cybernetics afford him a clear and distinct advantage over Adam, his natural armor and displays of physical hardiness allowing him to work through hits that would leave the High Leader a burned-out husk. Getting back up after getting punched into a crater is great and all, but it’s not the same as literally burning the skin off of your own arm, and that’s before we consider that Adam’s last bits of Aura were taking most of the damage. But on the other hand, it is worth noting that Ironwood’s superior displays have been the direct result of him allowing himself to take the hits even when he doesn’t have to. Combined with his visible fatigue against the subversive Watts and his brief clashes with JNR and Winter, Ironwood’s survivability in the long term has a distinct cap. Conversely, Adam’s final confrontation with Blake and Yang was anywhere from double to triple the length of Ironwood’s fight with Watts, during which he was executing his own intense energetic fighting style the entire time and facing opponents whose offensive pressure slaps anything Watts could muster up. Despite that, Adam still had enough energy to keep fighting unaffected after losing his Aura, and considering just how much punishment Blake and Yang had to subject him to in order to finally get him to that point, I would say that Adam has the stamina advantage by quite a significant margin. Mental health and discipline follow a similar pattern. Adam is the more unstable of the two, his violent outbursts being far more pronounced, whereas Ironwood’s military discipline leaves his composure far stronger to the point of apathy. Yet Ironwood’s ruthless determination still compels him to take unnecessary risks, while Adam, be it by either cowardice or pragmatism, has shown a willingness to pace himself and cut his losses if need be.
As overall physical specimens, Adam Taurus and James Ironwood display a balance of major advantages and disadvantages over the other that match up extremely well. Adam is younger, faster, more sustainable, and better at staying alive, while Ironwood is tougher, stronger, better equipped, and better at keeping his cool. Both are well optimized to take advantage of their opponents’ weaknesses, and both are ruthless enough to fight to the death if need be. As such, this verdict is determined by the severity of the disparities in their respective performances, and it is here where Ironwood’s enhancements give him a leg up. Adam may have been able to contend with Yang Xiao Long’s greater strength and fortitude, but Ironwood is very likely stronger and tougher than Yang, making his advantage over the Faunus that much more substantial. By contrast, Adam merely matches Winter Schnee’s agility, he does not surpass it, so his speed advantage is not enough to put the general too far out of his comfort zone. Adam can potentially turn this dynamic around through skill at arms, but he cannot overcome Ironwood on the back of raw physicality. To be clear, Ironwood still has an uphill battle ahead of him, as Adam’s own strengths and displays mean that he cannot afford to coast by on strength and endurance. It must be remembered that Ironwood’s superiority is wholly in the fact that his cybernetics expanding the strength and durability gap wider than the speed and stamina gap, the latter of which are still eggs in Adam’s basket. I will go so far as to say that if we were examining a hypothetical non-cyborg Ironwood, then Adam would sweep the edge on the back of his youth. As it stands, however, Adam’s only hope lies in skill and power, and a battle of the body is Ironwood’s to lose.
James Ironwood gets the edge for Physical Ability and Equipment.
MARTIAL
Starting from the top with a comparison of their weaponry, both Adam Taurus and James Ironwood carry one standard firearm as part of their primary arsenal, their respective standard performances being more or less comparable. Where the weapon sets diverge from this point demonstrate the differences in each warrior’s approach. With Blush’s ability to shoot Wilt as a projectile, its use as a close-quarters bludgeon, and the versatility Wilt boasts as a sword, Adam’s arsenal provides a wider range of options in battle, which his fighting style fully leverages. With the secondary explosive rounds of Due Process’s silver half and the gravity Dust in the black half, Ironwood boasts an array of distinct yet extremely powerful attack modes which he then layered on top of each other. While both combatants have experience contending with each other’s outliers, meaning there is no significant gamebreakers, Adam’s more diverse arsenal and superior melee options do make him overall better armed.
Carrying over from the differences in their weapons, the combatants’ fighting styles are worlds apart yet have similar emphases. Adam Taurus’s technique is a sophisticated yet vicious method designed to overwhelm his targets with sheer speed and ferocity, while turning away any retaliation by way of evasive maneuvers and active defense and counters. Meanwhile, James Ironwood’s style is the manifestation of strength and power, leveraging his overwhelming might for maximum effect to pound his opposition into submission, relying on his fortitude to soak up anything the enemy brings to bear before responding in kind. One relies on a refined core technique that blends his diverse skill set into a singular, high performance fighting style, and the other relies on a much simpler technique that allows him to dominate the combat through the direct application of power. Both emphasize heavy offense as their first response, defending when needed when that fails before quickly regaining their momentum, in keeping with their mutual objective of dominating and controlling the engagement. Furthermore, both have shown great success at landing counters on overly aggressive opponents, while they themselves have both overextended when facing defensive opponents. While I do consider Adam’s guerilla assassin style as more refined than Ironwood’s gritty boxing style, the skill gap is not substantial. Between Adam’s repeated victories over Blake Belladonna and parity with Yang Xiao Long versus Ironwood overpowering Arthur Watts and fighting evenly with Winter Schnee, their developed skill levels are more or less on par. Technical sophistication will not be enough to allow the Faunus to simply outfence the general, especially given how Ironwood’s power is something that Adam has come up short against in the past. To be fair, though, the same can be said of Ironwood, as evasive duelists are well-optimized for staying out of his crosshairs. Experience-wise, Ironwood certainly has a significant edge over Adam by way of his greater years, affording him training and fighting time that Adam simply didn’t live long enough to accumulate. That being said, the value of Ironwood’s experience is undercut by the fact that he has spent the better part of his career behind a desk rather than on the battlefield, whereas nearly all of Adam’s comparatively shorter career was spent fighting, leading White Fang raids practically every other Tuesday.
With their skill sets and skill levels so closely matched, the most relevant factor in this verdict is going to be their respective tactical sensibilities, ironic given their mutual legacy of disastrous decision making. Both Adam and Ironwood are ruthlessly domineering fighters whose primary strategies center around asserting their control over the situation, their differing methods being paths to roughly the same destination. Adam’s strategy of active defense and counter allows him to turn any attack back on his opponent while he rushes in to eviscerate the target before they have time to recover, preventing his target from bringing their full might to bear against him. Meanwhile, Ironwood’s approach of enduring and powering through allows him to blunt any spearthrust against him before coming crashing against the opponent’s guard with more force than most are reasonably prepared for. Both frequently open as the aggressor, moving to overwhelm the enemy directly while refusing to give an inch of ground. Failing that, though they don’t like doing so, both are able and willing to fall back on defense to wait for an opportunity to counterattack. Due to his overwhelming offensive might, Ironwood would certainly dominate in a head-to-head engagement, bullying through Adam’s more refined technique with brute strength and pounding him into submission. However, I do not believe that Adam would fall into this trap. As a guerilla fighter, Adam has consistently been in a position where he does not have the strength to meet his opponents head-to-head. Instead, he opted to use that strength against the opponent, taking advantage of their overextended attacks to rush in, get inside their guard, and cut them down, or simply relying on his Semblance to use their own energies against them. Yang proved that the best way to defeat Adam is to play defense rather than offense, denying him the openings he needs to exploit, forcing him to come to you, and ultimately using his own tactics against him. This is simply something Ironwood doesn’t do. Whether barefisted or guns-ablazing, Ironwood is an offensive dervish, charging in and attempting to overpower his opponent directly with overwhelming might. On the one hand, this makes Ironwood extremely vulnerable to Adam’s counters, as he will be forced to chase after the Faunus and meet him on his own terms. But on the other hand, Ironwood’s sheer output is beyond anything Adam has encountered beforehand, meaning that if the general is able to get his adversary between a rock and a hard place, Adam could get into trouble very quickly.
As such, this is going to hinge heavily on Adam’s ability to contend with Ironwood’s offensive. The practical benefits of Ironwood’s simpler, stronger fighting style are best expressed in a close-quarters engagement; as with Winter, Adam’s refined swordplay will merely allow him to contend in a pure hand-to-hand brawl. However, Ironwood’s weapons of choice are firearms, meaning that he is just as likely, if not more so, to open with gunplay to strike his opponent at range. Therefore, the big question is this; can Adam Taurus reliably defend himself against James Ironwood’s primary forms of attack? Yes, he can. Guns are exactly what he built his defensive technique to address, and advancing vanguards are exactly what his hit-and-run tactics are meant to subvert. If he can deflect a firing squad’s worth of rifle fire, he can keep pace with Ironwood’s trigger speed. And if he can endure Yang’s machine gun punching spree long enough to find an opening to evade, he can certainly work his way around Ironwood’s more sluggish advance. Furthermore, Adam’s own marksmanship and unarmed skill, while outclassed by Ironwood’s, will still be adequate to interfere with the general and wear him down, whether by interfering with his focus in his normal state or chipping away at his Aura when he’s going full Mettle. Where Winter was trying to whittle him down with precise cuts, Adam would be tearing into his exposed flank. However, this isn’t to say that Adam will simply be able to dance circles around Ironwood and slice him to ribbons. We’d still be experiencing something of a stalemate here, as Ironwood’s sheer output still eclipses what Adam has confirmed experience with, meaning he is still going to be a serious danger if he gets the chance to properly leverage his own offensive power. Outside of Yang (who eventually killed him), all of Adam’s confirmed or implied opponents have been fellow skill-based warrior assassins like himself rather than domineering juggernauts. If Ironwood is able to get his target between a rock and a hard place, Adam would ultimately get crushed underfoot.
Making Adam and Ironwood’s dynamic with each other even more significant is the fact that their weaknesses are centered around their inability to deviate from their chosen patterns. Both combatants have come up short against each other’s fighter type in the past, Adam falling to a heavy-handed brawler in Yang Xiao Long, and Ironwood a dynamic speed fencer in Winter Schnee. In both cases, their only recourse was to double down and escalate rather than adopt a more appropriate strategy, meaning they ultimately had nothing to fall back on when overwhelming force wasn’t enough against their more measured opponents. And this approach would be equally ineffective against each other given they are both equally unyielding when their backs are to the wall. A pure contest of martial skill between these two would be both a spectacular display of combative talent and a savage war of annihilation. And given their shared mastery of contrasting fighting styles and tactics, their ruthless aggression, and the significant strengths and weaknesses they have over each other, I don’t see either combatant as having any sort of decisive advantage over the other.
I declare Adam Taurus and James Ironwood EQUAL as Martial Artists and Combat Strategists.
SPECIAL
Adam Taurus and James Ironwood are physical combat specialists who use their Semblances as a direct supplement to their martial techniques, and their applications of their abilities play directly into their respective strategies. With Moonslice, Adam’s approach of defense and counter is given a whole new dimension, with each blow he blocks or deflects providing him with fuel to unleash a devastating counterattack. Meanwhile, Mettle perfectly plays into Ironwood’s endurance strategy by giving him the means to leverage his strength and power without interference or distraction from even his conscious mind. However, when efficiency and application are added to the mix, one power is easily more viable than the other. While Mettle does reinforce and elevate Ironwood’s performance to a substantial degree, its nature as an inwardly directed power means that its ability to directly influence the combat is extremely limited. Ironwood may be able to hyper-focus every single one of his punches and bullets to get the most bang for his buck, but his attack output is still restricted to how hard he can punch and nothing more. By contrast, Moonslice is an ability that has direct offensive applications, affording Adam an additional attack vector to supplement his physical technique. Furthermore, Mettle’s properties could potentially exacerbate Ironwood’s overextensions, leaving him blind to threats outside of Adam’s direct attacks. Ironwood may have the means to power through injury, but Adam’s ability to absorb hits makes him the only one who can capitalize on injury. In a battle of pure Semblances, Adam’s more versatile powers afford a critical advantage.
Ironwood is not entirely helpless as an ethereal combatant, however, as he is the only one here who incorporates Dust into his fighting style. With the gravity bullets loaded into Due Process, Ironwood compensates for Mettle’s lack of offensive application by way of powerful shockwaves. Not only do these blasts count as a decent match for Moonslices’s energy waves, but Ironwood’s use of them to support his movements and recoveries affords him a degree of versatility that Adam lacks. The problem, however, arises when tactics are thrown into the mix. Adam may be something of a one-trick pony when it comes to firing off Moonslices, but deflecting gunfire to build up energy for those slices is his go-to tactic in just about every situation. Blake and Yang both proved that the best way to subvert this is to blindside Adam with shots he can’t see coming and can’t deflect, something Ironwood’s certainly capable of doing. Problem is…he doesn’t. While perfectly willing to sucker-shoot someone at point-blank range, Ironwood overwhelmingly favors long range gunfire to attack the target directly, which is the absolute last thing to do against this opponent. Trying to gun down Adam Taurus at range, even with magic bullets, is like trying to put out a fire with gasoline. Not only has Adam proven that he can keep up with Ironwood’s trigger speed, but his performance against the spider drone in the Black Trailer shows that he can easily deal with the magnitude of Ironwood’s rounds and throw them back. If a gigantic laser cannon couldn’t overwhelm Adam’s Semblance, comparatively dinky Dust bullets ain’t gonna do the job either. The only piece of Ironwood’s arsenal that even comes close to the spider drone is the energy cannon he utilized at the end of Volume 8, which isn’t applicable here because the cannon is not part of Ironwood’s standard equipment; he only breaks it out for special occasions.
At the end of the day, James Ironwood’s special abilities either gain him nothing or they seal his fate, especially when contrasted with the far more flexible powers Adam Taurus has at his disposal. Absorbing hits and throwing them back with a sword may seem like a very basic power, but not only has Adam made incredibly calculated uses of it, it is also perfectly optimized to use Ironwood’s own energies against him. Ironwood’s typical use of Mettle will merely enable him to keep charging after Adam without a thought to what his opponent might attempt, playing into the Faunus’s guerrilla tactics. Meanwhile, Adam will be able to capably nail the general with his own bursts of destructive power fluidly chained into his swordplay. And between Ironwood’s overwhelming offensive focus, emphasis on gunfire at range, and the extra oomph of his Dust rounds, he's going to be giving Adam quite a lot to work with. While Moonslice will not be enough to instantly one-shot Ironwood, it will still be more than enough for Adam to wear Ironwood down. Furthermore, for all his instability, Adam is able to maintain a more complete situational awareness without sacrificing his focus and aggression, only failing to account for the unexpected when he is being actively distracted. What Blake achieved with clever feints and flanking maneuvers, Team JNR achieved with an opponent with tactical tunnel vision. Ironwood has certainly mastered his Semblance and his use of Dust, but he is overspecialized and relatively one-note. Adam makes far more intelligent use of a Semblance that is more tactically viable and, dare I say, more powerful, and does so in a way that will make him the general’s worst nightmare.
Adam Taurus gets the edge for Special Abilities and Powers.
VERDICT
The name of the game here is Equal and Opposite. When looking at these two on paper, Adam Taurus and James Ironwood appear to have nothing in common, and in fact appear to be exact opposites to each other. One is a red and black garbed Faunus hailing from the dregs of society, leader of a smaller guerrilla force, and an openly malevolent, violent, and selfish young man who expressed his cruelty through both a terrorist campaign and a frighteningly abusive relationship. The other is a blue and white clad human from the most prosperous Kingdom on the map, commander of a large, organized army, and an outwardly charming, friendly, and honorable man who is genuinely dedicated to serving and protecting the world. However, when one observes the fine print and pushes aside the cosmetic details, the two are tragically far more similar that either would dare concede to. Both were powerful leading figures within two dangerously controversial factions in the world of Remnant. Both were initially driven by higher, nobler causes for the sake of their own people, only for those missions to become twisted and corrupted by their mutual preoccupation with power and control, itself heavily influenced by their severe physical and psychological trauma. But more than anything else, both were the architects of their own destruction, their egos and fear gradually driving away whatever allies they had as they slowly spiraled down a path of madness and murder. Both believed themselves to be the hero, but they merely lived long enough to see themselves become the villain. Just as there are a plethora of ironic similarities and stark reversals between these two, so too are their diametrically opposed approaches to combat perfectly suited for engaging the other. Physically, Adam Taurus has youth on his side and boasts superior agility and stamina, but James Ironwood’s cybernetic enhancements grant him vastly greater strength and durability. One is optimized for an endurance run, the other dominates a slugging match. With martial arts, Adam Taurus’s dynamic and counter-centric swordplay and James Ironwood’s domineering brawling and firepower are seamless foils to each other, perfectly optimized to hit the other where he is weakest. And in the realm of special abilities, Adam Taurus holds the means to attack using his opponent’s own power against him while James Ironwood possesses the ability to deliver each of his devastating blows with laser-guided focus, both powers elevating their respective fighting styles into something greater than the sum of its parts. This is nothing less than a contest of equals, and while both would be loath to concede to it, they are very much each other’s perfect adversary.
Given that both combatants predicate their success on controlling the engagement, the decisive factor in this matchup is going to be tactics and conduct, as he who can get the other to fight on his terms is he who controls. This is especially ironic given how both combatants are known for having made extremely ill-informed, borderline foolish, strategic decisions, a failing that went a long way towards driving them to ruin. However, neither Adam or Ironwood is truly incompetent, they simply lack forethought and tact, and it is worth noting that their blunders were often influenced by factors beyond their control. When examining their baseline conduct and approaches, they are again well-suited to engage each other, but there is a noticeable disparity that finally tips the scales one way. James Ironwood is the embodiment of the direct application of power, linear warfare. Everything he is bringing to the table, body, weapon and soul, is specifically designed to be the strongest and most formidable piece on the board, capable of overcoming any adversary while being virtually impossible to assail himself. He never deviated from this approach to combat simply because he never needed to 9 times out of 10, and the few times he did run into trouble, all he had to do was hit a little harder before the enemy finally broke. Meanwhile, for all his ambitions and delusions of grandeur, Adam Taurus is a guerrilla assassin first and foremost, non-linear warfare. He is operating from a position of lesser strength more often than not, so he works to avoid the head-on collision whenever possible. He rushes in to cut the enemy down before they have time to respond then quickly move on to the next target, and should they try to fight back, he will defend before immediately countering. Attacking Adam directly will either give him the opportunity to retaliate or provide fuel for his Semblance, and it is worth noting that most of his successes in battle were against opponents who actively resisted him. Adam had plans to subjugate the world, which would naturally involve eventually crossing paths with stronger armies, namely Atlas itself, so everything about him is built with the goal of undermining that strength. And because this is exactly the kind of approach to combat that James Ironwood specialized in, he is exactly the sort of opponent that Adam Taurus has optimized his skill set to combat. Adam’s ironic tactical and defensive superiority makes his narrow advantages in all other areas decisive edges. His greater speed and agility will keep him out of the general’s crosshairs, while his superior stamina will allow him to maintain his performance further into the fight. His fighting style is perfectly suited to take advantage of Ironwood’s overcommitments and land critical blows to further wear him down, while his Semblance will take his enemy’s own consistent attacks and throw them right back at him.
However, I need to stress that Ironwood is merely at a disadvantage, he is not overmatched. Adam’s advantages may be crucial, but Ironwood’s own are still guaranteed to give the Faunus problems. If Adam makes a single mistake or Ironwood gets the change to bring his full power to bear, he is going down. The only thing keeping Adam in this fight is his defensive technique, which he will only be able to execute so long as his head is in the game. Psychological health is the bane of both combatants’ existence, and their final defeats owed greatly to their deteriorating mental states. However, while Ironwood is outwardly more collected and stable than the disturbed Adam, his stubborn, borderline obstinate, determination was his greatest weakness, burning his candle from both ends by forcing his way through unnecessary risks, a factor that can lead him to either soldier his way to victory or completely burn him out. Adam may be the more overtly explosive and volatile man, but his instability is specifically rooted in childhood trauma and his relationship with Blake, and he only lost his cool when specific buttons were pushed. When Adam’s in the field, he is cold, focused, and all business. Even accounting for Adam’s clear hatred of Ironwood, Ironwood’s lack of intimate familiarity with Adam means than exploiting his instability would be unlikely even if he were one for psychological warfare. furthermore, Adam's conduct demonstrates that he is at least somewhat aware of his short fuse, operating in a way to prevent his composure from being tested. Both are extremely arrogant, yes, but Adam has displayed at least a small willingness to recognize his limitations and compensate for them, whereas Ironwood simply tries to be big enough to ignore them, damn the consequences.
In my view, if Adam Taurus and James Ironwood were pitted against each other in the context of the lore, they would no doubt approach each other the way they did Sienna Kahn and Ruby Rose respectively, the former playing it safe and assassinating him and the latter dispatching his forces to hunt him down. But if dropped in cold, their battle would most likely play out as a combination of their respective final duels with Yang Xiao Long and Winter Schnee. However, I also feel this would be a far more drawn out and vicious affair. To take a cue from YouTuber Antione Bandele, I will be breaking my projection into three stages; the Early Fight, the Mid Fight, and the Late Fight.
The Early Fight would begin as a simple standoff before exploding into action, both combatants charging in for the initial exchange. Despite their tendency for heavy offense, Adam and Ironwood typically open with a more controlled offensive, still aggressive but keeping their full might in reserve so they can assess and escalate as needed. Ironwood’s heavier guns and unarmed combat would enable him to initially gain ground through sheer force, but Adam has a better recovery strategy, absorbing hits with his Semblance and evading anything else before instantly countering. At the same time, Adam’s initial retaliation will be sure to knock Ironwood around a bit, but not in any way that would actually slow him down. As such, this battle will not be decided in the early fight, instead functioning as more of a mutual assessment.
The Mid Fight is where things will begin to escalate. Once Adam and Ironwood have each other’s measure, they would pull out all the stops, making more deliberate uses of their Semblances and powers while settling into an increasingly brutal rythem. Blades and bullets flying, surges of energy exploding around them, punches and kicks thrown, both intent on burying the other where he stands. It is here that Ironwood has his best chance of victory, as the increased intensity of his onslaught is certain to start putting Adam under serious pressure and potentially overpower him. However, I do not consider this outcome likely, as Ironwood’s approach is too straightforward to push Adam out of his comfort zone. It must be remembered that Yang defeated Adam by goading him into overextending, not by penetrating his defenses. Adam’s greater mobility will be more than enough for him to stay out of Ironwood’s crosshairs, while the openings provided by Ironwood’s attacks will be too great for him to ignore. This constant interruption will also undermine Ironwood’s own offensive, as he will be forced to respond to what Adam is doing rather than controlling the flow. While Watts’s slippery retreat gave Ironwood the opportunity to marshal his strength and power through, Adam’s in-your-face hack and slash will be chipping away at him at every opportunity. However, this will not be enough to seal the deal, as Ironwood’s greater durability and iron will will allow him to shrug off all but the most catastrophic hits and continue fighting.
As such, the final verdict hinges on what happens in the Late Fight. By this point, both combatants will be utterly exhausted, their Auras either already broken or one hit away, though Adam will be better off thanks to his more controlled approach to the battle while Ironwood would be leaning on the native power of his prosthetics and otherwise running on fumes. Both would be frustrated with not having ended their opponent yet, and would set aside grace to finish it once and for all. From here, I can see two potential outcomes. Option A; Ironwood’s fatigue will leave him exposed to a series of attacks that he can no longer effectively defend against and endure, and Adam will be able to cut him down. Option B; Ironwood goes all out and smashes into Adam with his full cyborg weight, willingly subjecting himself to any following injuries in order to bully through Adam's guard and beat him into a bloody pulp.
Of these two outcomes, I view a Faunus victory through attrition to be the more likely. Ironwood may be capable and willing to accept a pyrrhic victory, but he will only be able to do so if he is able to successfully get the drop on his target, and the only example we have of such was against a distracted Arthur Watts. Unlike Blake Belladonna, Adam has no reason to underestimate Ironwood outside of sheer stupidity, and would be on guard for any potential counterattack. In fact, Ironwood’s extreme threat level would no doubt play into Adam’s hands, motivating him to skip gloating and dispatch his target at the earliest opportunity. Compounding this outcome is the fact that Wilt and Blush are simply the superior option for such a takedown than Due Process; regardless of how powerful Ironwood's pistol whips are, battering someone into submission with blunt force trauma is not an efficient way of subduing your target quickly, especially when compared to a sword blade. Ironwood’s fierce resolve does him credit, but instead of pulling victory out of the fire, his final charge would merely prompt Adam to end it. In a scarlet flash, the High Leader would narrowly avoid the general’s mauling fist, and Wilt would carve into what remained of his flesh and bone. General James Ironwood’s body would fall to the ground dead, and the battered, bleeding, and exhausted Adam Taurus would use the last remnants of his strength to raise his bloody blade to the sky and roar in triumph.
I declare Adam Taurus the victor.
XX
Well guys, I hope you enjoyed this next installment of the RWBY Versus Series. I’ve done my best to explain my position as completely as I can, but I understand if you disagree with me. All I believe is that Adam is the more likely to end the fight on his terms. If you disagree, that’s perfectly fine. All I ask is that you keep your comments civil.
In the meantime, feel free to send me asks about future matchups, stay safe, and I’ll see you guys later!
*all images taken from the RWBY Wiki*
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RWBY Saints of Remnant Notes: Should the SDC and Jacques be bad guys? Or one of the few Good Guys amongst corruption in Atlas?
DISCLAIMER: This post contains is a radically reimagined Jacques Schnee and SDC in a positive light in a heavily reimagined RWBY AU and has cliche tropes such as "dead mom" which I intend to complement with as "dead dad" of another family, if Canon Jack and SDC has given you a permanent bad taste in your mouth along with Canon Adam Taurus, I understand, this is an AU, just please do not come in with bad faith and ignore me instead.
Said AU is connected to The Emperor-Verse
I'm writing down notes and my gut just wants to make Jacques redeemable, but given how much damaged he has done to others, both his family and an entire people, that seems to heavy of a task without him ending up dead. But that was when I rebooted it by the end of V3.
But making this a hard reboot from the beginning then it hit me, and you do not have to agree with this at all...
What if instead of the SDC and Mr. Schnee being part of Atlasian corruption...
They along with James and the Atlas Military/Academy are the only few good individuals and institutions in Atlas, and both are paying the price for it from their upper class peers?
What if instead of Jacques being this opportunistic conman, he is Nicholas' biological son, and a former huntsmen in his youth who was on the same team as James Ironwood who served as his leader and who Weiss and Winter fondly call “Uncle Jim”, basically to them what Qrow is to Yang and Ruby
Jacques stuck to his father's principles and has managed to uphold The Schnee Dust Company as one of the few ethical businesses in regards to the Faunus, as well as providing support to other ethical businesses in the northern kingdom, mostly forming genuine friendships with their owners, and refused to outsource labor and resources when everyone else in Atlas did.
But as a result, James and Jacques are being ganged up on left and right by the upper class.
The only reason the Atlas establishment has tolerated Jack and his company for so long because the Kingdom was heavily dependent on them along with other companies for Dust and other goods and products, until recently with a growing unethical conglomerate run by Dr. Gray(Watts) with his mega-corporation GigaWatts Incorporated(Think OCP from Robocop and Lexcorp from DC), and plans on getting rid of the SDC and becoming the kingdoms new source of manufactured goods, tech, and labor, including dust mining and GWI is known for unethical use for Faunus labor in both the mines and factories.
Though I might just toss the Faunus Racism thing given how much of a mess it is and rework the WF for something else and have Atlas Upper Class replacing well-paying jobs with robots to keep the lower classes underpaid, or I could try something with both, need input on that.
Buy anyway, The SDC used to be big, but not in a megacorporation way. The SDC was one of the top four successful companies in Remnant back in the day(because 4 is the magic number in RWBY), and as I said before, Jack had made partnerships with other businesses both in his homeland and a few in other kingdoms during trips with his family, but its very few and Jack had made genuine friendships with the owners. He never stripped the human element out of his business.
You could say GWI is a large-scale "Evil Queen" figure
While the SDC is a large-scale "Snow White" figure, in more ways than one, but that's once again another story for another day.
Now GWI is overshadowing them at an accelerated rate with hundreds of Atlasian corporate companies joining it in exchange for Watt’s technology as well as Atlas Military’s higher ups hiring Watts to develop their military technology and last but not least outsourcing Dust Mining to the likes of Vaccou and Jacques and James are the only few who suspect Watts’ whole campaign being a “snake oil” tactic for something insidious as Arthur has all of the upper class eating out of the palm of his hand.
Meanwhile the likes of the White Fang and other kingdoms see Jack, SDC, James and The Atlas Military as just a bunch of rich pricks due to being part of the upper class(millionaires though, not billionaires, and even that’s dwindling now), seeing Jack and Jim as "one of them"
and understandably so mind you, given the rest of Atlas’ actions, but also because the current leader Rina Kumokage is lumping them in deliberately to distract the other members and branches(North, West, and South to be exact) of her own selfish and twisted intentions for the White Fang among other things
Though the White Fang itself seems to be in the hands of corrupt individuals in their neck of the woods. With the likes of Blake and Adam seeking to root it out, Adam being a little too aggressive in his means while Blake seeks outside help, which has strained their brother-sister relationship.
Spoiler alert, the corruption of The White Fang is not from Adam but a new character, Adam isn't the bad guy or a psychopath.
In this AU Adam is more like a cross between Fall of Cybertron Grimlock and Zuko, but he's another post for another day.
But anyway, the persecution of the SDC by the rest of the Atlasian upper class has gotten so bad, radical anti-Faunus militia Kriegsratten Korps aka “The Rats”(they allude to the Rats in The Nutcracker and mixed with Wolfenstein Nazis) and most likely be members of the Atlas Military throughout the ranks supplied with tech from GWI even secretly supported the corrupt council and big business, start attacking the SDC mines killing Schnee family members for being “faunus lickers”, one of them being Jack’s wife Anastasia(both alluding to the Russian Princess, and Snegurochka a Russian fairy tale character) while James struggles to provide the mines and family security while being undermined by higher-ups.
Yes I know dead mom is cliche but I plan on complementing(is that the right word?) it with Blake losing her own father Ghira and leaving her mother, Noire(aka Kali), widowed. And I have a reason for that later on down the road.
Also Jacques isn't a monster, he just isn't a perfect parent and seems cold on the surface, but its mostly due the burden he bares of being a single parent, and upholding a noble family legacy, giving Faunus descent and honest work, and holding out with other businesses he’s made partnerships with. Their something of a resistance group against GWI.
All with countless of peers trying to sabotage him and James to the point its claimed his family and lover, all of which is straining his relationship with his daughters and his former teammates, James in particular. Plus losing his father at an early age and the board of directors forcing him to become CEO caused him to develop anxiety issues with only his mother and girlfriend and later on wife and children keeping him sane.
James and Jacques together allude to “Atlas” with a great burden weighing down on their shoulders they struggle to hold it up
He's a bit too harsh on Weiss with her huntress training(ie the White Trailer) but in order to defend herself against assassins, and sends her off to Vale in hopes she would be safer there(relatively speaking.)
But the way he does it comes off to Weiss as her father not caring about her other than making her a trophy for his own reputation and being out of his way otherwise, and HOO-BOY don't get me started with how pissed Winter is with him.
Like I said, if all of this you can't vibe with because its supposed to be Jacques and Canon Jacques along with Canon Adam has put a permanent bad taste in your mouth, thats fine, I feel the same about other characters in other stories. No judgement.
I plan on making a post to dive deeper into Jack, but I will say he's primarily Jack Frost, but his secondary allusion to "The Nutcracker"
I'm also recycling this concept for my own original works, not sure what exactly, but something.
#rwby au#rwby rewrite#I think?#does this count as a rwde?#jacques schnee#weiss schnee#james ironwood#rwde#winter schnee#Arthur watts#dr watts#rwby saints of remnant#rwby sor#the emperor-verse
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Birds of a Feather - Chapter 1 (RWBY FanFic)
A retelling from Season 3 to current season, with my OC Ambassador Violet Lee based off the Cheshire Cat. Trigger warnings for this chapter: none ||||| Content: OC is a Faunus, in a poly-relationship married to Qrow and dating James. OC is in later 30’s. I haven’t written anything to near completion in a long time, be nice.
Overlooking the expanse of the forest that surrounds the grounds of Beacon Academy from overhead gives the place a mystical appeal to it, like you would find a gingerbread house in the middle of it. Brushing off some dirt off my bare feet I looked over at the young woman sitting opposite of me. She is slender in full Atlas dress blues, her Special Ops insignia on her shoulder back straight gray blue eyes looking me up and down.
The aircraft we were in was part of a team flying to Beacon in Vale, for the Vytal Festival hosted there this season. The festival is held every two years in a different kingdom, last time was in Mistral this year was for Vale where I had gone to school quite a few years ago now. The aircraft was very militant in design and comfort; the seats barely had any cushion to it, several attendants stood at either door making sure no one went to the front to bother the captain or in the back to bother the soldiers.
“Traveling by foot isn't very dignified for an Ambassador of Atlas. . .” The woman spoke up, clearing her throat, breaking the silence.
“I was planting flowers along my way, that is all.” I said with a shrug, eyes flicking up to the front cabin door that opened revealing a tall broad shoulder man.
“Ambassador Lee, we can't have Atlesian Ambassadors walking. . .barefoot to Beacon, how would we look if we allowed that?” The tall man asked, a chuckle barely noticeable escaping his thin lips. His military outfit fit him snugly showing the well built frame the twin pistols at his side glistening in the early afternoon light.
“General Ironwood. . .you know I do not like to abuse your gratitude towards me, your favoritism to me is way too generous.”
“Tea?” General Ironwood asked, signaling to a drink cart.
“Yes please, I would enjoy a nice cup.” I answered, smiling at him, brushing a few strands of light purple hair out of my eyes.
The attendant that was standing at the cart was confused as Ironwood picked up a tea cup and started to prepare a cup of tea. Their eyes flickered to the woman then to me in their confusion why the General was prepping tea instead of ordering them to do so. Ironwood warmed the cup, dumping out the water while browsing through the offerings of tea, selecting a white tea he placed the sachet in the cup slowly pouring water on it. Adding a sugar cube and gently stirring it in the cup he brought over the cup with a few strawberry flavored wafers to go along with it.
“Just as you like it, Vi.” He said softly, our fingers brushing against each other as I took the cup from him.
“Thank you James, I appreciate it.” I said locking eyes with him, giving him a smile. “I'm assuming your guard dog is a Schnee.”
“Yes, Winter Schnee is my head of Special Ops. Winter Schnee, this is Ambassador Violet Lee, she is the one who started the Human/Faunus Relations program.”
“I just gave birth to the idea, others funded it and General Ironwood was so courteous to allow it to be placed in Atlas.” I said modestly, there was more to it than that but I didn't feel like going into the vast details.
“I'm aware of Ambassador Lee's feats with the Faunus, she has done a lot from what I've heard.” Winter replied, signaling to the attendant for an refreshment for herself.
“Is your visit to the Vytal Festival work or pleasure?” Ironwood asked, taking the seat next to me, angling to keep his attention on me leaning back in the chair, long legs stretched out before him.
“Both as usual. I'm doing an assessment of the Festival making sure it's compliant to Faunus treatment regulations of the vendor workers and to watch my nieces.”
“I have a few meetings myself but care to join me in my private box to watch some of the events?” Ironwood asked.
“Of course I will join you.”
“Prepare for landing sequences.” A voice said from the speaker above our heads.
Down on the ground at a bar just outside the festivities, a place that is normally fairly busy but with the Vytal Festival going it had only one patron going steady on drinks. The TV above the bar was broadcasting what was going on in the stadium, the sole patron was absentmindedly watching the screen while sipping the hard liquor. The bar itself was a traditional looking bar, booth seating, open dining seating heavily curtained windows with dim lighting surrounding the main bar area. This was a cleaner bar than most that patrons normally goes to but not by much, his long lanky frame was hunched over the shot glass, the large sword resting on his back glinting slightly in the dim light.
“Now that was a match!” The bartender exclaimed as Team RWBY won the match, as the results scrolled across the bottom of the screen.
“Heh, that was a mess.” The patron said with a slight slur the booze was already working its magic on him.
“Come on man, you didn't like them, the Vale kids, or any of the rounds before that? What fight are you here for?” The bartender asked in an exacerbated tone, this man had to be crazy to have not thought these fights had been amazing.
The patron scoffed, as he heard a loud whirring overhead turning to his left to the only exposed window, the one next to the door a large fleet of airships came into view. Large silver ships with elegant ribbons flowing behind them as they made their way towards the school just past the stadium.
“That one.” He answered, finishing his shot, pulling out a few Lien to pay off his tab.
Getting to his feet with a slight wobble, a casual hand waving back, “happy Vytal Festival.”
As he closed the door he heard the shatter of a glass and a soft exclamation of “oh no” from the bartender as he looked towards the horizon for the ships.
As the airship landed I stood up unwrapping my long tail from my waist I adjusted my skirt a little looking up to General Ironwood. The attendants were moving around taking things back to their proper spot, alerting the back hatch for the soldiers to leave and opening the exit door for us. Winter stood at the door as the first soldier exited her eyes were on Ironwood and myself for the whole time wary of me. I gave her a brief smile attempting to put her at ease.
“Would you like me to escort you to the fairgrounds before my meeting?” James offered as we walked down the steps out of the airship.
“Yes you may.”
Winter followed behind us a good ten paces as the soldiers and attendants filled to their assigned locations to watch over. The grounds looked amazing. The rustic appearance of the Beacon has always made me feel warm and happy. There were many festive balloons and signs welcoming people to the vendor strip and food stalls. There were demonstrations about weapons, dust, armor, accessories and tech from all over Remnant. Ironwood offered an arm for me, I snaked my left arm in with his as he guided me down the path towards the entrance.
My outfit was not my normal Ambassador outfit but my Huntress outfit with my Ambassador Insignia over my heart. I wore a black skort with dark purple shorts underneath, a black tank top with my crest on my back, and a playing card with the letter 10/6 on it. I had a pair of worn arm and shin braces on me, normally I would have a dusty pair of leather boots on but lately I've been prone to going barefoot.
The food stalls were cooking fresh food constantly to meet the demands, it was such a lovely smell, I could smell fried chicken, baked breads, sweet fruits making me remember the tea was the only food I had today. There was many vendors with their wares around us as Ironwood surveyed the area, looking for threats as I was looking for things to buy.
“This is as far as I can go, my dear. I must make my meetings.”
“Thank you James. I will text you later, okay?” I said looking up at him giving him a smile.
I had known James Ironwood for a long time, we had dated when we had been younger but now we were just friends. I am married to someone else now. I knew he still had deep feelings for me still. He gave my arm a gentle squeeze, “please take care of yourself, don't get into trouble.”
“I never get in trouble, it just follows me.” I laughed as I gripped his left hand, squeezing it.
I turned, giving Ironwood a smile and a wave as I headed towards the bar, making it down a side path of the vendors. There were only five vendors and two food stalls that were registered with Faunus, it took a moment for me to find all the locations on the pamphlet map I had. In my position at the Consulate I had a lot of free range on what I wanted to do mainly because I was the only member that was also a Huntress and had James Ironwood's favor. I still of course had to work with my other ambassadors as there were six others who worked in unison on big projects for all of Remnant and we all had small projects we worked on without interjections from others. It was true I had the idea for it, to work with Menagerie and any other Faunus Colonies and individuals to help get more fair treatment. It wasn't something I had wanted to do when I was younger but after a big event in my life that changed how I saw life I wanted to do something more for my fellow Faunus.
I spoke with each Faunus at the vendors asking them a series of polling questions making sure they were being treated fairly and paid well for their time. Vale was one of the higher ranked places for Faunus to live and work in, though there were still a lot of improvements to be made. The weather was warm out, it was starting to move into summer that is for sure as the afternoon heat was making me sleepy.
“A nap would be lovely. . .” I mused but it was too noisy for a good nap, a few good napping spots but too noisy.
“Gah! Well if you were hungry, why didn't you say so?” A loud familiar voice shout out as I was walking away from the last vendor.
“Come on! I know just the place.” Another familiar, huskier voice called out.
“Ruby – Yang?” I called out as I moved past some Atlesian Knights to see a group of children.
There were four girls, two I recognized as my nieces and two others that must had been their teammates. A girl with long black hair with a bow on top, a black and white outfit, a slender look of her and the other girl clearly was a Schnee by her long silver white hair in a ponytail with a blue silver outfit. I had made it a point to know the Atlesian family of importance as an Ambassador based in Atlas. It was wise.
“Aunt Violet!” Both Ruby and Yang called out rushing towards me pulling me into a hug, nearly crushing the wind out of my lungs.
“Hey girls, I'm so glad to see you. I heard you won your match, I won't miss the next match. I was a little late getting here.”
The young Schnee pulled out her scroll glaring at the readout, ignoring it and shoving it back into her pocket as they came closer to us.
“So these are your teammates, I assume.” I asked, looking at the two other women, giving me a nervous smile.
“Yes, we have Weiss Schnee and Blake Belladonna.” Yang explained pointing at each one.
“Any relation to Ghira Belladonna?” I asked Blake, “I'm an Ambassador for Human and Faunus relations in Atlas. I recently visited Menagerie on opening some trade routes.”
“Ah – yes he's my father.” She said almost nervously.
I understood her hesitation, as a Faunus myself I knew sometimes it wasn't safe to broadcast your Faunus self.
“No need to worry I will not call you out on anything, I understand the need for anonymity sometimes.” I said in a hushed voice.
“Oh I know exactly the place.” Yang said looking over to her right at a stall that advertised fresh noodles. “Care to join us Aunt Vi?”
“Sure, I am free for the rest of the day.”
“Hey! Might be hard to eat without this.” A voice called out, turning I saw a dark skinned woman with light green hair holding a bright red wallet.
“No, no, no, no!” Ruby shouted frantically looking for her wallet, patting all over her body for it.
“Good to see you, Ruby.” The green hair youth said, chuckling, handing it towards Ruby.
“Oh! Thanks, Emerald! Oh. Guess I dropped it. Girl pockets are the worst!” Ruby said defeated, slouching a little at the shallow pockets of her tactical-skirt.
“What's up, Em?” Yang asked, giving her a casual wave.
“Just left the stadium after your amazing fight! You guys were awesome!” Emerald said excitedly, a bright smile on her face.
“Oh, shut your stupid little face...” Ruby said blushing, looking away having a hard time accepting the compliment.
“I heard your team progressed to the next round too.” Blake commented, speaking over Ruby.
“You know, I feel that we haven't seen your other teammates.” Weiss commented looking around for the three others in the team, they only saw them all together when they first arrived.
“How'd they do in the fight?” Yang questioned.
Emerald tilted her head a little in thought, contemplating the match her team had previously. I moved to Ruby, my eye wandering to the only other person with her, a tall lanky male with dark hair. Something was familiar about him but I couldn't place it.
“Really well.” Emerald finally answered with a smug look on her face.
“That's great. Uh. Why don't we all go and get a victory food together?” Ruby asked, looking up at me then back to Emerald.
“More the merrier,” I added.
“Oh, gosh, that's so nice of you, but my teammates are all kind of...” She turns to her partner, giving him a semi-disgusted look. “...introverted. Really socially awkward”
The male was looking at a nearby vendor that was selling boots and other leather goods, inspecting the boot reeling back with a confused look at the bad smell. Placing the boot back down looking towards Emerald confused by her look.
“Ooh, yeah, I could see that.” Yang said with a chuckle.
“Oh yeah, looks like Merc and I are going to move on to the doubles round. What about you guys?” Emerald asked switching subjects, a curious tone in her voice.
“Well, as the leader of this team, I thought long and hard about this decision.” Ruby said proud of herself, hands on hips.
“We put it to a vote.” Weiss said matter of factly, leaning into Ruby.
“Yes, so, but I decided that we should put it to a vote.” Ruby pouted.
“We voted for Weiss and Yang.” Blake answered.
“I will happily represent Team RWBY.” Weiss answer, giving a small curtsy as she did.
“Yeah, we're going to kick some butt!” Yang said excited, pounding her fist together, ready for the next battle.
“Well, if Mercury and I see you down the line, don't think we'll go easy on ya.” Emerald said with a confident laugh.
“Wouldn't have it any other way.” Yang responded, sounding so much like her mother to me.
“Alright, well we're going to catch some more fights.” Emerald said, turning away and heading towards her partner.
“Have fun!” Ruby said happily as Yang led us to the noodle shop.
“See you later!” Emerald said her back to us now heading towards the stadium.
“I'll have a bowl of the regular, please.” Yang ordered, as she sat down looking at the elderly shopkeeper, a happy smile on her face.
I sat myself down in between my nieces, as the others sat down at the other free spots. There was no menu so to speak of, there were noodles three ways with a garlic sauce, fish and plain. Curling my tail around my waist as I placed my Scroll on the table looking for some text messages but still none, which I felt was a bit strange. I was waiting for an important one.
“Ooh. . . I'll take the same.” Ruby said her eyes were large upon looking at Yang's bowl placed in front of her.
“Anything spicy?” I asked, I enjoyed spicy foods and loved to try local cuisine.
The shopkeeper gave me a slow blink and slid a bowl of the garlic noodles towards me quickly. I shrugged amicably, grabbing a pair of chopsticks digging into the large bowl. I hadn't eaten yet today, got sidetracked with some other projects and forgot. The garlic was strong with a hint of honey. They smelled like it was freshly made.
“Do you have anything with a low-salt. . .?” Weiss asked with a bit of a concern with the huge portions, the same size bowl of noodles was slammed down to her. “Um. . . okay. . .”
Instead of saying anything, Blake just gives the shopkeeper a nod and smile who smiles back and rushes to the back door of the stall. In a moment he has a large bowl of noodles with fish on top of the noodles, head and all. Blake looks excitedly at the noodles, drooling a little at the massive mound of food. Weiss gives her a strange look, as she digs out her family credit card to hand over to the shopkeeper. The silver card glimmered in the light as the shopkeeper took it from her to ring up the meals.
“Aw, Weiss! What's the occasion!?” Yang called out with a mouthful of noodles.
“Consider it thanks for sending me to the doubles round.” Weiss said a pleased look on her face that was immediately ruined as the credit card was tossed back at her and an annoyed look on the shopkeeper's face, the register flashing, declined. “What?! How can my card be declined? I was barely into my monthly allowance!”
Blake looks a bit panicked as the shopkeeper glares at Weiss, as if to take the food back, I let out a soft sigh as I reach for my over the shoulder purse, pulling out a card.
“I will cover it, don't worry.” I said handing over my Consulate card that had the Atlesian crest on it.
As the shopkeeper rang up the purchase, a group came up to us, two males and two females. I recognized one of the females as Pyrrha Nikos who was the current spokesperson for Pumpkin Pete's cereal and a winner of several tournaments that happened in Argus that made her rather famous. I had attended a gala that she was at recently that was trying to open up the trade routes further in from Atlas to Argus. The others I didn't recognize were a shorter girl with pink hair, a large hammer at her side, a tall slender built male with long black hair, a calm serene look about him along with a stocky built blond male who looked very friendly.
“Mind if we join you?” The blond male asked, his voice friendly and reassuring.
“Hi, Jaune, of course you guys can!” Ruby said, pointing at the other four free spots.
“This is our Aunt Violet, she's married to our Uncle Qrow, she's a huntress and. . .” Ruby started to explain.
“And Ambassador to Atlas.” Pyrrha finished recognizing me. “Hello Ambassador Lee.”
“Oh Auntie you're famous.” Ruby laughed. “I guess you know Pyrrha, but there is also Jaune Arc, Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie. They make up Team JNPR.”
“Nice to meet you all, yes I'm an Ambassador for Human and Faunus relations in all of Remnant.”
We chatted casually for a bit as we ate, soon everyone was full to the brim either feeling a bit nauseous or heaving a happy sigh.
“Are you sure it's wise to have eaten before a fight?” Ren asked, looking over at Pyrrha.
“Of course! It will give us energy!” Pyrrha said excitedly as the shopkeeper cleared all of our bowls in a single sweeping motion, cleaning them quickly as he dished them out.
“I barf, I'm blaming you.” Jaune moaned, leaning against the table, resting his head down looking a bit green at the cheeks, as Nora burped loudly.
“Ooh!” Nora said with an evil grin on her face. “Aim at the enemy!”
“Nora, that's disgusting. But if you feel the urge. . .” Ren admonished Nora, but shrugged his shoulders.
“Got it.” Jaune said weakly with a thumbs up.
“Well, we should be off.” Pyrrha said, getting up from her seat, looking at her teammates with a motherly-like smile.
“So, you think you guys are ready?” Ruby questioned her friends.
“Of course! We've got a world-renowned fighter on our team, one's basically ninja, I can bench five of me, Jaune, we trained all year, our weapons are awesome, Glynda barely yells at us anymore, and uh... Jaune!” Nora said excitedly gesturing to her teammates.
“Are you gonna take that?” Ren asked, prodding him a little.
“She's not wrong.” Jaune replied in a slight dejected tone.
“I'm kidding, he knows I'm kidding.” Nora started. “Don't be so nervous! The worst that can happen is we lose, that is just a few more years of walking around school with everyone knowing we're failures, our friends will slowly abandon us to preserve their social status, we won't be able to show our faces in class, no one will sit with us in the cafeteria, Ren and I have no parents, we have no home left to go to, we'll be officially renamed Team Lose-iper!” Nora finished with maniacal laughter as she started to spiral down.
“So, yeah, we're feeling pretty good.” Ren surmised confidently.
“Don't fret. If anything, we should be looking forward to a fight with actual guidelines, and not, well. . .murderers.” Pyrrha said with a slightly nervous tone to her voice trying to quell that nervousness.
“Yeah, don't sweat it, we've all faced way worse before.” Yang said confidently trying to boost their morals.
“Let's see. Grimm invasions, violent extremists, a destructive sociopath...” Blake said counting off the incidents on her fingers.
“Um, please remind me to ask about those stories later. . .” I directed that question to Ruby and Yang.
“And that's all while were still in training! Oh, imagine what it would be like to graduate!” Ruby added.
“Maybe then I'll be able to pay for a meal.” Weiss said a little rejected still over the declined card.
“Would Team JNPR please report to the battlegrounds immediately!” A voice over the loudspeaker called out.
“Yes! Like they were scheduled to, several minutes ago!” Another voice joined in after the first one finished.
“Well, it looks like this is it.” Pyrrha said, ushering the other teammates away.
“Go get 'em!” Ruby shouted, cheering them on.
“Good luck.” I said as they left. “Well kiddos I must leave. I have to find my husband and want to watch a few matches myself.”
I leaned over giving Ruby and Yang both hugs as I got up pulling out my scroll checking for messages again. Shaking my head I opened the text messaging app, tapping up a quick message , 'did you make it to the Vytal Festival? I've already seen Ruby and Yang already. I'm going to be watching a few matches.'
At the entrance of the stadium I handed the usher my ticket. They wrapped a bracelet on my hand allowing me entrance. The stadium was the Amity Tower stadium, state of the art technology and a massive amount of seating available. I have seen the stadium before. It was a neat feat of tech, the battlegrounds were digital that could change to simulate a wide variety of terrain. It was all randomized for each battle, so it could be sometimes favorable for both teams or just one or none at all. Weather was also included and hazards there was a similar stadium in Atlas at the academy used for training. Finding a free seat I sat down, checking my scroll again I could tell he had read my message and the pop up bubble of a message being typed.
'I'm here too, sorry I got distracted by your ride. Have a few things to report to Ozpin, have you reported to him yet? I could wait for you?'
'No I haven't yet, going to meet up later. I wanted to watch a few matches first.'
I along with my husband Qrow did work for the Headmaster of Beacon Academy. It was a secret to most people of Remnant. I had very little to report to him, another reason why I wanted to wait a little. It wasn't like I was going to be punished, it was just that I felt like I needed to give more. But my current task from him was rather stale at the moment. I watched Team JNPR win their battle, they were a bit sloppy in their communication with each other but they had potential. I could see it. As they filled out of the grounds and the system refreshed itself to start new for the next set of teams getting ready to go out on the field. The screens above were showing a commercial right now, there were some robots on the field clearing out any debris.
I started to look around at the people in the stadium. There were a lot of civilians, young and old. There was also a decent number of hunters and huntresses that were in the area that attended. Most hunters visit for a match or two and watch the rest on their scrolls as most are busy dealing with Grimm. I haven't seen a full Vytal Festival since the one I had attended many years ago, I generally get to watch a few matches and head back on the road. A figure stuck out to me, stopping staring at them. Their outfit was out of place there mannerisms more so. They weren't acting like other viewers, hunter or civilian, they were a Faunus with small antlers, I couldn't shake that there was something different out of place about them. A person walking past them to head to the bathrooms bumped them a little, making them shake their head in annoyance exposing the back of their neck with a small tattoo showing. Had I not had my Faunus eyesight I probably wouldn't have spotted the tattoo as it was small but the symbol I recognized clearly, the White Fang.
“Scouts. . .” I whispered under my breath, slowly getting to my feet so as to not alert anyone.
Why would White Fang Scouts be here if not for something malicious? Sure the White Fang that resided in Menagerie was your typical protest group, they had a sound reason for what they did and did well at being rebellious and prove a point. Hence why my people at the Consulate have been working on small projects with them to help better their image and lessen the violent protests. There was a branch of the White Fang that wasn't working with the Consulate, or with the main branch at all was a rebel group. Adam Taurus was the leader of the branch and has caused a lot of bad name for the White Fang outside of Menagerie as of late. I have learned from the current leader of the White Fang, Sienna Khan about the scouts and how they tend to show up before attacks. They find all the weak points, exits and news to report back to the group before the attack.
I need to alert Ozpin about this now, moving swiftly out of the stadium I made it to Beacon Academy up the hill. I didn't bother to call on my scroll. I didn't want anyone in the crowd to over hear me and start any panic. With this many people anything that sparked fear would ensue a Grimm attack and we didn't need that. Once I got past the other vendor hallway to the path that led to the school, I picked up my pace and remembered my way to Ozpin's office easily. I spent quite a bit of time there during my years of school at Beacon.
Winding my way up the steps to his office, did the White Fang want to ambush the stadium to incite a riot? Qrow had told me that they had been doing more attacks in Vale as if to concentrate attacks there more than their typical scattered way of attacks. My tail swishing behind me as I made it up the steps to the hallway that led to his office at the end, I shook my head trying to rid the thoughts of the consequences of an attack here at the school with so many people so many Grimm would be here. A few steps before the door to Ozpin's office I heard a jumble of voices loud and upset.
“But sir!” A female spoke loudly and defiantly.
“Winter. Leave.” Came General James Ironwood's voice, deep and booming.
“Yes sir.” I heard Winter say stiffly the door opening her eyes going wide to see me about to get to the door.
“Ambassador Lee, this might not be the best time. . .” She said, looking back at Ironwood and the others.
“Ambassador Lee, please come in.” Ozpin said, ushering me inside.
“Go on.” Ironwood gestured to Qrow.
“Your little infiltrator isn't just another pawn. They're the one responsible for Autumn's condition.” Qrow said, taking a sip from his flask as I went to stand beside him, my tail wrapping around his waist gently.
“What?” Glynda Goodwitch asked, shocked in her voice.
“Despite what the world thinks, we're not just teachers, or Generals, or Headmasters. The people in this room, the leaders of the other two academies we're the ones that keep the world safe from the evils no one even knows about.” Qrow said forcefully pulling away from me getting into Ironwood's face. “It's why we meet behind closed doors, why we work in the shadows. So you tell me, James, when you brought your army to Vale, did you think you were being discreet, or did you just not give a damn!”
“Discreet wasn't working. I'm here because this is what was necessary.” James said firmly placing his scroll on Ozpin's desk, a projection of the fleet he brought with showing.
“You're here because Ozpin wanted you here! He made you a part of this inner circle and opened your eyes to the real fight that's in front of us!” Qrow responded angrily.
“And I am grateful.” Ironwood responded diplomatically.
“Oh, well, you've got a real funny way of showing it.” Qrow scoffed.
“May I interject. . .?” I pipped up trying to find a spot to speak about the scouts.
“The people of Vale needed someone to protect them; someone who would act. When they look to the sky and see my fleet, they feel safe, and our enemies will feel our strength.” Ironwood spoke over me, angered by Qrow's comment.
“You. . .You think they're scared of your little ships? I've been out there and I've seen the things she's made, and let me tell you – they are fear.” Qrow said threateningly.
“And fear will bring the Grimm. A guardian is a symbol of comfort. But an army is a symbol of conflict. There's an energy in the air now, a question in the back of everyone's minds. . .” Ozpin said, gesturing to the holographic display. "If this is the size of our defenses, then what is it we're expecting to fight?"
“So then, what would you suggest we do?” James asked, as he picked up his scroll not noticing the slight glitch in the display, a momentary picture of a chess piece showing up and disappearing.
“I suggest we find our guardian. What is it that you have to say, Ambassador Lee?” Ozpin asked, looking up at me peering at me over the rims of his glasses holding a cup of tea.
“White Fang Scouts are here, Qrow is right about the broken faction of White Fang and their increased robberies lately.”
“Violet, how do you know this? Have you been working with Ozpin too?” Ironwood asked, staring down at me a bit bewildered as I kept what I did with Ozpin a complete secret.
“It doesn't matter how long I've worked with Ozpin. On my recent trip to Menagerie I spoke with the head of the White Fang – the good part, I learned how they identified the Scouts. I know they didn't come to just innocently watch the festivities, we need to take action.” I said turning from James to Ozpin.
“What do these Scouts look like?” Qrow asked, grabbing my hand holding it tightly as to reassure me that things will be okay.
“They generally have tattoos on the back of their neck. It's a faint tattoo but it's a three claws most human eyes can't catch it easily. Like my back stripe tattoo.”
“Well good thing I don't always have human eyes.” Qrow said, leaning into my eyes steady on James as he placed a kiss on my temple. “I'll search for more. I'll be back shortly.”
“I'll get the drones to search for them as well.” James said, pulling out his Scroll and sending a message to the drones.
“Ozpin, sir the White Fang will attack soon, most likely tomorrow from what I have learned about the faction. Their work lately is abnormal for their normal routine. I feel the group they are working with is working with Her.” I voiced my opinion to Ozpin.
“I understand your view Violet, I appreciate the information but I think what we are doing now will be the best course of action. I'll be making a choice for a new maiden here soon. I suggest in the meantime keep a vigilant eye out for scouts and make sure not to cause a scene with any if possible. We do not want any Grimm crashing the festivities.” Ozpin advised me.
“Violet, my guards and Qrow have everything under control. How about you join me for dinner as the last of today's events have finished. In the morning you can do a round with me and join me in my private box.” James offered holding out a hand for me, a soft smile on his face.
“I must decline, James. I appreciate the offer, I truly do but I have a few interrogations of my nieces I must make. Their extra curricular activities make me worry.” I politely answer by putting him down gently, giving him a smile. “But I will join you tomorrow in your private box, please make sure to have some ice tea there. For me it's supposed to be a warm day.”
“I will make sure there is a variety to choose from for you my dear.” James said with a smile, placing a hand on the small of my back as he led me out of the room.
After spending an hour with Ruby, listening to the events she dealt with the last few months dealing with the White Fang and this man called Roman Torchwick it was very clear Qrow was onto something with them. I've heard of the name Torchwick before he was a rather low level smug con artist. What was he doing jumping up to big time stuff? Ruby and I sat on the steps of the school watching the sun set each with a mug of tea for myself and a mug of hot chocolate for her listening to the murmur of people enjoying the band playing in the fairgrounds as they closed up for the night. She had grown a lot since I last saw her only months before she had started school. There was a lot of her that was like her mother which made me miss Summer. She was a good friend of mine before she passed.
“So I've told you what I've been up to Auntie, what about you? Still love my Uncle Qrow?”
“Yes I still love him very much.” I laughed, looking at the simple wedding band on my finger, we didn't do anything fancy. “I have been focusing more on my Ambassadorship than anything. Of course I still hunt Grimm as I go from place to place working with the Faunus. I fought this Giant Ursa recently it was terrorizing this small farm, I don't think I've seen one that big before but I defeated it.”
“Of course! Beat it with girl power.” Ruby said with a smile.
“And a little bit of steel.” I said with a smirk.
“Ah look, here are two of my favorite ladies in all of Anima.” Qrow said, appearing out of the shadows sauntering over to us.
“Hey husband.” I said getting to my feet, Qrow pulled me into a hug nuzzling his nose into the crook of my neck taking in a deep breath, I wrapped my arms around him holding him tight.
“Everything is okay, I spotted the Scouts there were six and the drones took them away sneakily.” He whispered in my ear.
“That's good.” I said leaning back, planting a kiss on his lips, ignoring the disgusted groan from Ruby.
“You'll find someone you want to kiss each time you see them one day.” Qrow teased Ruby, ruffling up her hair as he helped her to her feet.
“Staying out of trouble Uncle Qrow?”
“Reasonably. It's getting late for you, pipsqueak head to bed.” Qrow admonished fatherly looking at the clock on the tower as it was nine at night.
“But I'm not tired. . .” Ruby whined.
“I'll bring a good breakfast to the dorms if you go to sleep.” I offered her a smile.
“Oh I request waffles, with extra syrup, coffee and bacon!” Ruby demanded taking the empty cups and heading up the steps. “Good night!”
“How do you plan to make that in a crummy hotel room we are staying in?” Qrow asked as he wrapped an arm around my waist.
“Let me work my magic, it will happen. Let's go to bed ourselves.”
It was Qrow's turn to pick a place for us to meet up and stay, with our jobs we don't get to see each other often as stuff he does for Ozpin and what I do for Ozpin also keep us in different directions. My Ambassador work keeps me on the move as well, so we made plans to visit each other as often as possible. We try to meet up each month for a few days. We've been married for a while now and still deeply in love despite what hardships we've come across so far. Qrow's Semblance made things hard for us to be together sometimes and some of the strife it has caused us made it tenuous but we still managed to be with each other. We had our own home in Patch not far from Tai Yang's spot that we visit sometimes when we want to take long breaks that we had other plans for at one point in life. On a normal day we would call and text each other making sure to keep contact so we never really felt like we had been gone from each other for long.
In the hotel room we both checked the room for weak spots, making sure the windows were locked and covered. It was common for Hunters to check over a room they rented because it was a dangerous life and bandits carried grudges often and even safe as Vale it was important to check. Especially with the Scouts being caught. Plopping on the bed after removing my armor and daggers, placing my bag on the nightstand I looked up at Qrow. He looked tired, a little tipsy but still very handsome, pulling off his jacket, his soft red eyes looking down at me and he smiled.
“I missed you my love.” He said in a soft alluring voice, flopping onto the bed beside me resting his head on my lap kicking off his boots.
“I missed you too.” I said warmly gently, poking the tip of his nose.
Slowly started stroking his thick black hair, there were some soft graying streaks starting at the temples that made him more distinguished and handsome. His hair was soft like crow downy feathers, he murmured happily enjoying the feeling of me stroking his hair. Our eyes locked as he stared into my light purple eyes, he reached a hand up cupping the side of my face just enjoying the simple touch of each other.
It felt like it had been a year since we saw each other last but it hadn't, sometimes it was too hard being away from each other and unable to actually work together due to our responsibilities and his Semblance. His Semblance was Misfortune causing bad luck to follow him, he could control it to a certain degree and influence it some but it was hard for him to do so. That is why sometimes it was easier for him to be drunk; it help dull the Semblance and not be too powerful. It caused a lot of issues for us when we were younger because we wanted to be together despite what his Semblance could do to us as the longer you are around him the more things happen and the bigger they are. But we grew up and learned that we could have a meaningful relationship and not always be together, it still made hard bouts of depression around for us from time to time. Sometimes it made it feel unreal like we were kidding ourselves but we did what we could do to stick together. Qrow did not like talking about his Semblance and didn't want anyone who didn't need to know about it to know, so I always respected it as a lot of people questioned our marriage. I often squash their antiquated views as we are just fine.
I moved my hands down to start and massage his temples and neck, Qrow let out a heavy sigh and a please look on his face. Resting a hand on his stomach with the other hand reaching out for my tail, Qrow gently stroked my tail which felt so relaxing after the stressful month. I normally didn't like my tail played with but Qrow gently stroking my tail could stop me from a tirade and bring me to a calm demeanor in moments. We were both so blissful from these simple acts of love to each other, enjoying the silence between us. A moment with no Grimm, no hundred of miles between us, no work just the two of us enjoying being in each other's presence.
There was a soft snore as Qrow breathing started to slow down as he fell asleep with his head in my lap, his hand just gently holding my tail. I smiled down at him, I never held it against him for any drinking, I didn't love that he had to drink to manage his Semblance but it was too much to control and do what he did as he said. I wished he could do without the drinking but I never pushed it. I pulled off the spare blanket placing it over the top of him tucking him in, reaching up I grabbed a pillow placing it under his head. I curled up beside him pulling the other blanket around me as I rested my head on the side of his chest for a comfortable spot to sleep.
By morning somehow we were both under the blankets curled up with each other, most likely Qrow woke up in the middle of the night and rearranged us to a better spot. He was still asleep, I think he only slept deeply when we were together as I know he normally wakes up early but when we are together he tends to sleep late. It didn't bother me, it made me glad I was able to let him get such a deep and restful sleep, I did my best to sneak out of the bed without waking him
#rwby#my writing#rwby oc#Violet Lee#Faunus OC#qrow branwen#james ironwood#polyamory#eventually there will be smut#RWBY fanfic#Vytal Festival#Team RWBY#Team JNPR#Ozpin
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