4 Chapter 4

The following day was silent, Aaron heard nothing from the White Fang headquarters. It took him a whole hour of staring at his scroll to get the message into his head, but as he laid back into his bed, he couldn't help but feel relieved. The emotions he had pent up from the night before were still there, lingering in the back of his mind, but knowing that'd he get a small breather to recuperate was wonderful. It wasn't like he was used to killing someone.

Aaron grimaced at the word, squeezing his eyes closed. It shouldn't have bothered him, but for some reason it did. He'd been taught to hunt by his father from a very young age and was used to butchering and killing animals, but this was another thing entirely. Aaron knew that Remnant wasn't a safe place, the number of Grimm attacks on a regular basis proved that, but the fact that some people would consider to take the lives of another intelligent being? That was something he couldn't understand. However, what kept Aaron up at night was the feeling that sparked the moment he actually killed.

He felt joy.

Joy, absolute joy. It was small, minuscule, but in those slow seconds, Aaron was quick to notice. It was like a jolt of adrenaline, running like a hot fire through his veins, and it made him want to vomit. Aaron sucked in a quick breath of air as he tried to rid himself from the awful thoughts, only to realize how hard he was clenching the covers underneath him. His fingernails had dug in deep, making large tares that resembled claw marks.

Ever since he left his village he had to be careful with how he moved. Whenever he got agitated his nails would sharpen into sharp claws. They could easily tear into anything with little effort and were incredibly hard to keep in check. Aaron regulated his breathing, feeling an overwhelming wave of calm wash over him. In a beat his claws were gone, returning to their regular human-like state. He sucked in another breath, forcing his head back down on his pillow harder than before. He wouldn't let this get to him, this was what he signed up for anyway.

"Brother?" A youthful and drowsy voice called from outside Aaron's bedroom door. He sucked in a breath, checking the digital clock resting on the bedside dresser.

"Shit." He cursed, Emilia was late for school.

"C-can I come in?" Emilia asked. Aaron frowned at the odd question, rubbing his eyes as he sat up from his spot.

"Sure." He yawned.

The doorknob jiggled slightly before turning completely, causing the wood door to go free and open up after a light shove. Emilia stood awkwardly in the middle of the doorway, with her purple pajamas on and a blanket in hand, not the standard school uniform Aaron was expecting.

"Why aren't you in your school cloths?" Aaron asked, rising to his feet. Emilia cocked her head to the side, faunus ears twitching amongst the messy black bedhead framing her face. She gave him a strange look, like he suddenly sprouted three heads.

"It's Saturday." She said.

Aaron froze where he stood, ears and tail shooting up at attention before dropping back down. His skin flushed a deep red as he glanced away from his sister. How could he have forgotten?! One look at his scroll only confirmed Emilia's claim. Aaron flashed his sister a sheepish grin.

"My bad, I had a long night." Through his grin Aaron noticed Emilia striking glances at his left leg every so often. He followed her gaze, before his eyes landed on the medical tape and gauze that covered his upper calf. He was shot there, by that annoying robot no less. It was a miracle that he got home, which made him even more grateful for his partner. Throughout the night his wound caused him trouble, and even though it was closed up, the pain was still there. Aaron smiled at his sister's concern, crossing the distance between them before kneeling to her level. He ruffled her hair, making it more of a mess than it was before, and gave her a softer smile.

"I'm okay Emilia, honest, now what's the real reason you wanted to talk to me?" Aaron asked. A loud grumble shattered the tender moment, causing Emilia to shoot her gaze down at the floor with a blush. Aaron laughed, standing up to his full height, ignore the discomfort from his left calf.

"It's no better time for breakfast I guess? But seriously Emilia if you were hungry you don't half to wait for me to get up, just ask." Aaron frowned. Emilia nodded, eyes still staring at the ground, but with a smile on her lips. Aaron to that as a good sign and grabbed Emilia by the wrist before steering her down the hall.

"Let's go make something good!" He chirped.

The breakfast they had been simple: a few strips of bacon, a glass of orange juice; and poached eggs. However, the process in which it was made had been the most fun that they had in awhile. It was just the two of them, sharing a nice and touching moment together like family. Which was strange since they were family, they were tied by blood. However, for the longest time fractured and incomplete, since two of the most essential pieces were stripped away. As Aaron looked at the happy and excited face of his sister, he couldn't help but feel a pang of regret. He knew he couldn't replace their parents. He saw how emotional his sister got whenever they were mentioned. Death was still a foreign concept to her, and having her innocence shattered like that rubbed Aaron the wrong way. Even so, he had to preserve the memory of his parents. They were far too important to forget about, Aaron couldn't even think he could forget about them even if he tried.

"Brother?"

Emilia's voice hurled him out of his thoughts. He realized that he'd been staring intently at the eggs cooking in the pan, much to Emilia's amusement. Aaron ruffled her hair again, causing the girl to laugh, which made him smile. He'd do anything to keep moments like these, no matter how short.

"Is it done yet?" Emilia asked, bouncing on her toes to get a look at the pan. Aaron stretched out one arm to shield her from the stove, chastising her for playing around something dangerous.

"Almost," He began. "Sit your butt down at the table so I can get your plate ready!"

"Yay!"Emilia beamed, skipping over to the small table to be fed. Aaron shook his head as he turned back to the food when he heard a knock from the front door. He froze, hand hovering against the stove dial as his ears perked up. There was another knock, steady, calculated, and with an irregular pattern and rhythm. Aaron wasn't expecting any visitors, especially not at this hour. Despite himself being a self described charmer he wasn't exactly friendly with anyone in his apartment complex, which made this situation all the more concerning. He swiftly turned the stove off before turning around to see Emilia's confused face. Aaron shot her a serious look and moved a finger to his lips.

"Stay. Right. There."He whispered, enunciating each word. His sister nodded warily and watched as Aaron disappeared out of sight. He stalked up to the front door, making his footsteps as quiet as possible. The peephole in the upper middle of the frame felt intimidating and unnerving at the same time, and as Aaron pressed his face against it he felt even more unnerved. However, his feelings of unease were short lived once he set eyes on the warped figure on the other side of the door.

It was Jackson.

An overwhelming sense of relief flooded through Aaron's shoulders, but as he unlocked the door a nagging question tugged at his brain.

Why was he there?

Aaron opened the door with that question in mind, forcing a cheerful smile on his face as he greeted his mentor. Jackson was dressed up in casual yet practical clothing: a closed bomber jacket with cargo pants and combat boots. A bit too dressy for a lay Saturday morning is Aaron was concerned, all he had on was a loose-fitting tank top and sweatpants. Aaron tilted his head to the side as he signed his confusion to Jackson. Jackson stared back at him as if he were the biggest idiot in the world, before pointing to his scroll in his hand.

Oh.

"You texted me?" Aaron signed.

"Yes you idiot." Jackson signed back with a deadpan look. "Can I come inside?"

He was taken aback by the sudden ask, looking around at the apartment subconsciously. It wasn't the best looking thing in the world, but Aaron had tried his best to make it look presentable. Aaron nodded wordlessly before stepping aside.

"Make yourself at home." Aaron signed, directing Jackson as he walked in.

"Brother, who is that?"

Aaron spun around, shocked to see his sister standing in the kitchen doorway. Jackson stared back at her, and from what Aaron could tell, he was incredibly surprised.

"I thought I told you to stay in the kitchen!" Aaron grumbled, fingers itching to pinch the bridge of his nose. Releasing his fingers, he found Jackson staring at him as well. It seemed like introductions were in order.

"That's my baby sister." Aaron signed. Jackson nodded, looking back at Emilia with calculated eyes.

"Emilia, this is Jackson. He's a friend."

"A friend?"

"Yeah."

Emilia narrowed her eyes playfully, tilting her head to the side. She didn't say anything, instead she walked back into the kitchen, giving one last glance at the two of them. Aaron sighed, knowing he'd get tons of questions after this was over. He hadn't been truthful to his sister about what exactly he did. He managed to convince her he goes on hunts sporadically for money, though now he wasn't sure that she believed him anymore. He could feel Jackson's eyes boring into the back of his head, so he turned his attention to him.

"Why did you come here?" He signed.

"Where's your aura?" Jackson signed back, bypassing Aaron's question with another question. His eyes were glued to the bandages on Aaron's calf. Aaron froze, suddenly feeling very self-conscious. He was never asked about his aura before, and it never even came up to him at any time. However, it wasn't like he knew what an aura was, as far as he knew his own father had his own unlocked for a number of years. However despite his constant pestering, his father was against unlocking Aaron's aura. He brushed it off with the clam that he wouldn't need it unless he became a huntsman. Unfortunately, it looked like he'd need it regardless now. Aaron massaged the back of his neck awkwardly.

"I haven't unlocked mine yet." He signed.

Jackson's face scrunched up in a mix of confusion and anger, the most emotion that Aaron saw from him as of late. In the back of his mind, Aaron couldn't help but find it funny to be told off in sign language, of course he'd never say that to Jackson.

"You must have a serious death wish to go off into combat without your aura to defend you! Are you retarded?!" Jackson was visibly fuming, with a glare so intense that it caused Aaron finch back an inch.

"I never needed one! I've managed to keep myself out of any serious trouble, I just thought that..."Aaron trailed off from his explanation, watching as Jackson rubbed his forehead in frustration. After a beat of silence Jackson motioned him to come closer, not even opening his eyes to face him. Aaron obliged, closing the gap between them when Jackson's hand rested on the top of his head. Aaron almost reeled back on reflex, but the muscles on Jackson's arms held firm and kept him in place.Aaron glanced at the man warily, not taking the invasion of his privacy lightly, but Jackson grumbled with enough intensity to keep him quiet. The two of them stood there for what felt like an eternity, until something bizarre happened.

Jackson's body began to glow, lightly, but enough to make out a green outline. It traveled rapidly from his head, trailing up his arm until it surrounded the hand resting on his head. Something strange pooled around Aaron, slowly seeping in and sending a small shiver down his spine. The sensation was strange but comforting, like falling asleep in a crinkling pile of autumn leaves. Aaron glanced at his arms and was surprised to see not a green outline, but a golden one.

This was his aura, his own aura!

The remarkable event ended as quickly as it came and with a slight pulse Jackson's hand was gone, returning to his side as his shoulders slumped down. Aaron felt winded as well, letting go a breath he didn't know he held in. After a few more seconds of panted breath, Jackson looked up at him with a faint smile.

"You're welcome." He signed.

Aaron smirked, knowing full well that Jackson was going to train his butt into the ground to get a firm grasp on his aura. Until then he should just be appreciative that Jackson even thought to do something like this.

"Brother, are you done?! The breakfast is cold!"

"Shit!" Aaron cursed, flinching at his sister's hungry whine. He started making his way to the kitchen before stopping in thought. He turned back to Jackson.

"Do you want something to eat? We were just about to start breakfast."He offered. Jackson frowned, lifting up his hand to deny when a loud grumble escaped from his stomach to the air. Even though Jackson couldn't hear, he could still feel it. His eyes stared off to the side as he sunk his hands into his pockets. Aaron rested a hand on his shoulder and gave the older man the saddest puppy dog eyes he could muster.

Jackson's shell cracked after a few long seconds.

--

Aaron was back in action the next Monday, completing new missions back to back. They weren't as lax as he hoped it would be but it did help him redirect the storm of emotions in his gut to something else. Over a period of time he gradually got over his first kill and as more of them piled on, he eventually became numb with it.

During their small training sessions, Jackson taught Aaron how to switch off unnecessary emotions from clouding his judgment. It was to keep him from hesitation, something that could decide your life and death, but sadly Aaron just couldn't get it right. Aaron's empathy was just to hardwired into his brain to shut off, even if he tried. The best way for him to even complete his missions was to picture the people on the receiving end as monsters, as Grimm.

It worked, though a bit too well to say the least.

As life went on Aaron began to make a small name for himself in The White Fang Community, unbeknownst to him. Many of the members dubbed him 'Two-Face' because of the extreme polarization of his personality both on and off battle. When he was on the field, he was calm, calculating, and vicious, while off the field he was charismatic, cocky, and immature. Though some of his off-field personality traits bled over, he was largely a different person when in action. It went on like this for a time until two years later.

In those two years, Aaron saw the world around him change. There was an overwhelming sense of darkness. Grimm levels were on the rise, and it cause an expected fear. People stayed under the protection of the major cities, with the only brave ones venturing out being established huntsmen. Even so, it was obvious that they weren't the only ones. Small villages outside of the cities protective walls were under attack from bandits, many of them being killed for valuables while others were taken as slaves.

It was during these times that Aaron saw a different side of The White Fang. It was vicious, far more radical than it had been when he first joined. Aaron had heard whispers about how the Vale branch was viewed. Since it was farther away from the main headquarters on Menagerie, that allowed the appointed leaders to take up more independent strides. Though it wasn't stated outright, many of the members were growing increasingly wary of their leader Adam Taurus, and it wasn't hard to see why. While still having his incredible tactical and passionate sides, his sadistic and ruthlessness tendencies have become more pronounced. Now Aaron hadn't met the man personally, but even he was concerned about whether their leader was competent enough to stay charge.

Aaron had vented out his thoughts to Jackson, and while the other pushed much of it aside, it was clear that Jackson believed him to some degree. So when Aaron got the call to meet with the Vale branch leader, it was easy to say that he was terrified. It wasn't often for someone like Adam to take interest in a specific recruit, since he was too busy with planning or completing missions with that Belladonna girl. But seeing that Adam had taken an interest in him, Aaron knew he couldn't mess this up.

His life was most likely on the line.

--

Adam's campsite was tucked away in a forest with beautiful red flora. The sturdy trees branched out, tuffed with leaves an incredible shade of crimson. Aaron's hike there was quiet and filled with anxiety, only lessened by Jackson's presence beside him. He was grateful for the older man accompanying him for the moral support, even if he didn't show it. As they entered the camp, it was already crawling with White Fang personnel. After a short stop checking their identification from the entrance guards the two men were in the clear.

"You must be Two-Face." A female voice called out. A young woman walked out in front of the two of them, arms crossed her black buttoned vest. Her black hair fell to her back, bobbing to the sides as she walked, air catching the neat bow on top of her head. With her cold yellowish eyes and signature chain scythe strapped to her back, it was quick to tell who she was. "I've heard alot about you."

"Miss Belladonna, It's an honor!" Aaron mustered a grin, bowing halfheartedly at the woman in front of him. He could feel Jackson giving him an annoyed glare from the side, but it looked like she didn't care for formalities.

"Please don't call me that," She sighed. "Blake's fine."

"Whatever you say, I'd also be cool if you called me Aaron." He asked, drawing an eye roll from Blake.

"Anyway, Adam's down here. He'll be glad to know you're on time."She deadpanned, walking away at a set pace."Follow me."The two quietly followed, passing glances at the rest of the White Fang members posted around.

Adam's tent stood out like a sore thumb. It was larger than the rest, colored in a dull shade of brown. The soft light of lanterns bled out through the slight crack in the opening, and the fierce sounds of a heated discussion grew louder as they neared. Blake stayed two feet away, holding a hand out for Aaron and Jackson to stop as well.

"Stay here," She whispered. "I'll let him know you've arrived." Aaron nodded cautiously, watching as she disappeared through the tent entryway. The heated discussion in the tent ended abruptly, and after a few seconds of silence an odd group of humans appeared from the entrance. Aaron's ears lowered instinctively as he moved out of the way. The three of them gave off a vibe that Aaron didn't want near him and the leader, a pale and black haired woman, seemingly smiled at his mild discomfort. Aaron watched silently as the group left and as he turned around, questions lingered in his mind.

"Come in, please." A male voice called out with an exasperated sigh. "And excuse my attitude."

The inside of the tent seemed to be bigger than the outside, with steel drums lining the walls. On the center wall was a map of the entirety of Remnant and in front of it stood a tired and angry Adam Taurus. Blake stood off to the side, near another large white fang member with a unique Grimm mask. Other White Fang operatives stood at ready, weapons pointed downward but out where they could be seen. Jackson knelt to the floor while giving a look for Aaron to follow his lead, Aaron obliged.

"You've caused quite a stir among the ranks, and I can't help but say I'm impressed." Adam praised as he paced back and forth, slowly analyzing Aaron's every fidget behind the half mask of his. "There have hardly been recruits with natural talent like yours, but don't let that get to your head." Adam stopped his pacing to stand tall in the middle of the tent, observing Aaron with a permanent frown.

"Natural talent can only move so far, and I'll be dead before I let someone go off on their own with only hearsay as leverage. I want you to prove yourself, show me what you learned from your training if anything."Adam commanded.

Aaron shifted under the others intense gaze. The eyes of the onlookers only added to the rising stress in his system, making him open his mouth to voice out his thoughts.

"And what do you want me to do exactly?" He asked. Adam's frown quirked.

" As you know many of our brothers and sisters have been discriminated over the years and while kidnappings have been an occurrence, there's been a startling incline in the recent months. Most are quick to blame lawless bandits, but I think we're dealing with something greater."Adam turned around to face the world map."There have been several spots where Grimm have completely avoided trespassing, however all of our scouts that we've sent haven't returned. I'm convinced that you realize how troublesome that is."

"So you want me to investigate? By myself?" Aaron felt his skin pale at the thought.

"No, that'd be a stupid thing to do. I've assigned a small entourage to accompany you, to asses whether you'll be capable of handling further missions. Jackson won't be accompanying you I'm afraid, but it's for the best."Adam explained, turning back around to face Aaron. After a few silent seconds, Adam motioned for the two to rise. They got up soundlessly, standing at attention as Adam crossed the distance between him and Aaron, he stopped only a foot away. His stare unnerved Aaron, but he stood his ground, locking eyes with the other. Adam's frown deepened.

"I'm a man who values excellence Aaron Wolfe, that also means I despise failure." Adam stressed, figuratively looming over Aaron. "Don't mess this up. It would be a shame to see great potential go to waste."

"Yes sir." Aaron agreed. Adam stepped back, giving Aaron one last calculating look. With a sigh he turned his back towards him, waving off a single hand in their general direction.

"Get them out of my sight." The command was short, but to the point. The White Fang operatives around them stiffened, all letting out a collective response. Two soldiers branched off gesturing at the tent entrance for them to get a move on. Aaron took a last look at Blake, whose face was impressively blank. However, in her eyes there was a small hint of frustration and...and worry? Aaron couldn't dwell on it too long, because Aaron was walking down the path he came in and eventually left the camp with Jackson by his side.

The two of them were silent for the most of the trek back to Vale, something that Aaron grew increasingly accustomed to over the years. With one glance at Jackson from the corner of his eye, he knew something was troubling him. It wasn't until they reached Vale when Aaron broke the silence.

"You alright?" He signed. The older man stared at him for a while before replying.

"You need to be careful." Jackson warned, hands tense as he sighed. "Something about this isn't right."

Aaron tilted his head to the side. What could have gotten Jackson so worked up?

"What do you mean?"

"Call it a hunch, but don't let your emotions take control of you. I won't be there to calm you down."Jackson's eyes stared down at Aaron, filled with worry. Aaron laughed, lightly punching the other's shoulder.

"I didn't know you cared that much!" He smiled.

"Take this seriously dammit!"