3 Chapter 3: Injustice Everywhere

Kuo Kuana's city hall was an octagon about a hundred feet across, with a skeleton of heavy wooden beams supporting the walls and roof, and decorative paper walls in the traditional Mistralian fashion. A number of lanterns hanging on the inside cast their warm light down onto the central podium, also octagonal, and the wooden bleachers lining six of the hall's eight walls in a horseshoe-like ring. (The remaining two walls held the building's two entrances.)

Normally, the town hall would have remained empty save a groundskeeper or two, but this night, it was crowded with several dozen of the city's council members and other authority figures. On the podium stood two figures wearing red hoods over their ceremonial white garb, their hands clasped together in a formal Mistralian prose as they addressed their audience.

"It is...disappointing, indeed, to hear of sister Ilia's falling in with our estranged brethren in Vale, of whose actions as of late we must once more reiterate our most grave disapproval. Equally disappointing, if not more so, are these new insinuations of our involvement in some mad conspiracy of Adam Taurus' devices to supplant our leader, to whom we both have pledged our undying loyalty."

Fennec Albain's silky voice was beginning to grate on Ghira Belladonna's ears. He looked around the hall to see if any of the council members and other authority figures were buying into the Albains' flowery words. To his frustration, it seemed that the two brothers had managed to sedate the room from its state of alarm.

"A conspiracy," the fox Faunus continued, "of which has no viable proof whatsoever been displayed."

Ghira was about to explode right then, but his daughter was quicker to speak.

"'No viable proof'!" Blake cried out, aghast. "Then what did you think the plans we found on Ilia's scroll were?!" Having now stood from her seat, she turned to address the others in the room while pointing an accusatory finger at the White Fang representatives. "The proof that Adam is planning this, and that Corsaic and Fennec are in league with him, is right in front of us! The time to act is now!"

"Come now, Miss Belladonna," Corsaic, the elder Albain brother and the more direct of the two, put in with an outwards gesture of the hand amid several cries of agreement. Ignoring Corsaic's slightly patronizing tone, Blake was instead taking note that while Fennec had a way of swaying others to calmness with his charm and carefully worded diplomacy, his brother possessed a natural graveness that lent him a more authoritative presence. She observed how he would channel this presence to subdue unrest in the room when his younger brother failed to calm it, as he was doing now.

"Let us explain exactly what we mean," Corsaic continued once relative silence was achieved and seats retaken. "Ilia Amitola is a spy, and we all know that no spy would carry with them a detailed layout of their superior's plans into potentially hostile territory..."

His pause was perfectly brief, building suspension between his words to ensure he had the council's full attention before continuing on:

"...unless the plans in question were, in fact, nothing but deceptions and falsehoods?"

Blake watched as the brothers exchanged a quick glance before apparently deciding that Fennec would take the reins from there.

"Though we are not surprised to learn that Taurus is planning to attack Huntsmen academies once more, we also know that he is by no means a fool. As brash as he is, even he knows better than to move directly against High Leader Khan. Therefore, I suspect that these 'plans' are little more than a plant, a misdirection to sow panic and division among we who do not adhere to his extremist tendencies."

The council mulled and muttered over this claim for a few seconds, and even Blake found herself almost considering its merits. After all, if Adam's plan was to divide and confuse his opponents on Menagerie, it would certainly appear to be working now. But then, she reminded herself, Adam had never been one to bother with such intrigues. His methods had always been of a more direct bent, and the plans they had found on the scroll fit his nature perfectly. Besides, she saw quite clearly that the Albains were making up whatever excuse they could to cover for Adam and simultaneously absolve themselves of any wrongdoing before the Council. She was about to speak out again, but her moment of indecision had cost her precious moments, and this time it was she who was beaten to the punch.

"Or maybe, Adam really is planning to take over the White Fang, and Ilia's just a really dumb spy!"

Yelled out Sun Wukong, as if that was obviously the right answer. Chuckles rippled throughout the hall, and even Ghira had to try not to laugh. Seeing this in particular seemed to please the monkey Faunus immensely. Blake resisted the urge to face-palm at her characteristically uncouth friend's outburst, in part to maintain appearances, and mostly because he hadn't been wrong. Well, not entirely, anyway.

The Albains, for their part, had not quite been prepared for such a response as that. Like most of the room, however, they appeared more amused than anything. Corsaic recomposed himself after a moment.

"Unlikely," he said. "Miss Amitola is highly skilled operative, and has not been known to fail on missions of such great import. I daresay that Adam chose exactly the right woman for the job."

"Say what you propose is true, then," said Ghira, and heads throughout the room turned to heed their chieftain. "If Adam Taurus's sole purpose in this venture here was to divide us, then why would he allow us to know about his plans to attack Haven? You said yourself that this, at least, should be believed."

"Simple: arrogance," said Corsaic without missing a beat, his face adopting a mask of distaste with an authenticity that Blake found superb. "His...successes at Vale, if they can be called that, have obviously emboldened him. He wants us to know of his power play. Whether this is to cow us into submission or to inspire young radicals here to take up his cause, we cannot say for certain. But given the evidence we have just discussed, this in no way validates any of these charges against us. We stand by what we have said: these false reports are as much news to us as anyone else in this room."

"And we can all agree that Taurus' planned attack on Haven is dire news indeed," Fennec picked up after his brother. "Which is why we must now stand together against him and his rogue band, instead of pointing fingers and bickering futilely among ourselves."

He grinned widely at Blake, but she saw little friendship in the gesture.

"Miss Belladonna is right to say that the time to act is now. In that spirit, we thereby propose for messengers to be sent to Haven Academy and the city of Mistral to warn them of the coming - "

"That has already been done," Ghira interrupted as he rose from his seat, his patience clearly thinning. "And further plans have been formulated to deal with the situation at hand. These plans I intend to put forward for approval by the Council this very night...after a decision has been reached regarding our White Fang Representatives."

"So be it," Fennec said as he bowed, his brother doing likewise. "We humbly submit ourselves to the Council's judgement."

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It was approaching midnight when the heavy double doors of the Belladonna manor burst open with a bang.

"Unbelievable!" roared Ghira as he stormed through.

"Complete and total garbage!" shouted Sun, entering right behind him.

The two men began pacing about the greeting room as they continued their respective, expletive-laden rants. Kali Belladonna, having been awoken by the clamor, walked down the hall in a night robe to stare at the two with tired curiosity. At last, Ghira and Sun simultaneously completed a little semicircle around the room and ended up facing each other. Their immediate reactions were identical:

"We can't let them get away with this!"

So it was when Blake, who had trailed somewhat behind the two on the walk home, finally arrived at the door. Kali, now fully awake and more than a little amused at Ghira and Sun's sudden camaraderie, decided to break the silence.

"Well, well. Look who's finally starting to get along."

The two realized what had just happened, and reverted to their default mode of standing awkwardly apart from each other. Again, Kali broke the now-tangible silence.

"I'm guessing the meeting went well."

"Terrible!" Ghira exclaimed, snapping out of the "I Really Don't Like You" glare he was treating Sun to. "Nothing but lies, and...and - "

"Bullshit!" Sun finished for him, and was surprised to see that Ghira wasn't glaring at him again.

"...Yes, what he said," said Ghira, and he started to build momentum as he continued. "They walked off that podium without a single charge! And then they had the audacity to claim that the evidence we found on the scroll was fake - fake! And the Council believed them!"

"Only just enough of them did," said Blake, not wanting to indict those council members who hadn't believed the Albains. "And they did agree to investigate Corsaic and Fennec."

"Still! It's outrageous..." Ghira said as he sulked off down the hall towards the master bedroom. Kali watched him go.

"Oh, he'll be over it," she said to no one in particular, and turned to her daughter. "So. That bad, huh?"

"...Yeah, it didn't really go our way," Blake conceded, her cat ears folding slightly before straightening out again. "But the Council did approve of our plan. Dad's gonna speak to the people the day after tomorrow."

"Huh, aren't you seeing the half-full side of the glass lately," noted Sun.

"Well, usually I leave that to you," Blake said. "But seeing how you've been so negative tonight, I figured I had to at least try to keep the universe in balance."

A second passed before Sun's neurons aligned and he laughed aloud, and it was a second more when he realized that Blake was laughing too. He took a good look at the grin on her face and was just about knocked off his feet - and not only by surprise. In spite of the sudden flood of thoughts in his brain, he did manage to stammer out:

"Wow, uh...that, uh, looks really good on you, uh..."

"Huh? What does?" Blake asked, looking down at her clothing. As far as she remembered, she had not changed anything with her outfit.

"Duh...no, no, that - you're, uh...I mean, it's been awhile since I've seen you, uh...you know..."

"What do you mean? No it hasn't, you've been with me all day." Blake could well guess by now that Sun was trying (and failing) to say something about her, and she had a decent idea of what that might consist of. However, she saw that it would be rather difficult to coax it out of him at this point, and so she had resolved to give up on that and simply toy with him.

"Well - no, I meant that...usually, you can be kinda - I mean, no offense - uh, it's just a nice change - from..." Sun's face was turning redder and redder.

"'I can be kind of' what, exactly?" said Blake, pretending to be mildly offended. Her smile cracked through the facade, though she otherwise kept her composure. Sun was too busy panicking and fumbling over his own words to notice.

"No, no, it's not like that, I just - when - ehhh..." The poor Faunus decided then that he had dug himself deep enough into his little hole and bolted. Blake had to laugh into her hand. Kali shook her head in mock disappointment.

"You know, if you want that boy to marry you, you're gonna have to at least try to lead him on."

"Mom! We're not even dating!"

"Well, that's one more problem we'll just have to fix sooner or later," Kali responded as she walked back down the hallway, relishing in Blake's practically audible eye rolls. As she did, she turned around.

"In all seriousness, though, you do need to get some rest. Your father won't be the only one on that podium, you know."

Blake sighed. "...Yeah, I do know. 'Night, Mom."

"'Night, love."

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Blake was not in any way heeding her mother's advice. Leaning over the edge of one of the manor's several balconies, she pondered over what was to come. So much stood in the way of success: they would be travelling to Mistral with a hodgepodge of not-quite-severely under-equipped militia to face off against not only Adam Taurus and his loyal band of terrorists, but quite possibly the powerful Mistral branch of the White Fang. Even convincing a small number of Menagerie's denizens to risk their lives defending some undeserving humans was in no way guaranteed. After all, in large part, this was a people of old soldiers with long memories. Many had fought in the Faunus wars of decades past, and had no intention of spilling any more blood - especially that of their own kindred.

And then there was the uncertainty of how the humans of Mistral would respond, considering the stigma that yet another band of armed Faunus carried. This unnerved Blake more than even facing Adam again, for good standing with the humans was the entire point of this endeavor. And if that failed -

Blake extricated herself out of her spiraling fit of anxiety. They had to succeed. Failure was not an option, and worrying about it was simply one more privilege she could not afford herself.

She looked around the balcony to take her mind off her worries, attuning to the sounds of nature's nocturne: the swaying of wide-leaved branches, the chirping and calling of countless small insects and other small creatures. Looking up, she saw every star in its place, exactly as she remembered from the days of her childhood. Blake almost regretted having dismissed the house guard keeping watch on the balcony; it would certainly have been nice, she thought, to have someone with whom to share such a beautiful Menagerian night -

Blake suddenly turned to face the shadowy figure crouched on the roof, and Gambol Shroud was in her hand in an instant. She wondered if getting her wish would be such a good thing after all.

"Wait!" Ilia Amitola hissed, her hands in the air. "I'm just here to talk."

Blake deduced from her tone that she was being truthful, having known the chameleon Faunus long and well enough. Also telling was that her weapon was nowhere in sight. Still, she kept her blade at the ready.

"Then take off the mask."

Ilia did so, reverting her skin color from nearly black to normal as well. She then hopped off from the roof and landed noiselessly on the railing in a graceful crouch. Blake relaxed a bit more as she saw some of her old friend return - only a bit more, that is.

"So then, Ilia," she asked, allowing wariness to creep into her voice. "What exactly is it that you wanted to talk about?"

"Well, I..." The smaller girl sighed, shaking her head as she unfurled form her crouching position to stand on the balcony alongside her. She caught Blake's unwavering gaze and shrugged. "I dunno. I guess I just missed you. Thought maybe we could just...you know, just sit here and enjoy it while we can. Before things get...bad..."

"You missed me?" Blake raised an eyebrow. "Sure had a funny way of saying that. Stabbing my friend, and all."

"Well, you did chase after me and attack me."

"Right, after we caught you spying on us...though, I might go so far as to say stalking."

"W-well, no, I..." Ilia stuttered at the probably-true accusation, then put herself back together with a sigh. "Look, I - I'm not here to fight, I'm not here to get information or anything - hell, I don't even want to be against you in the first place! I just wanna talk, is all. Doesn't even matter what."

"Mhmm." Blake's grip on Gambol Shroud loosened as she nodded. Ilia's smile was genuine through and through, she saw...and perhaps this small armistice was just what she needed right then.

"So, uh," Ilia began with a shrug. "I'm guessing your monkey friend's still a little salty about last time, huh?"

What?! How did she - And then Blake realized: Duh, of course Ilia was spying on the town hall meeting. She narrowed her eyes.

"'Salty' would be putting it very lightly. Let's just say you're lucky that he doesn't know you're here."

"Heh...well, if it makes you feel any better, I wasn't trying to kill him - just poke him, give him a nice little shock and put him under for a few. I'm assuming that's what happened?"

"It...was, yes..." Blake put her hand to her chin. While initially scary, Sun's wound had not been very deep at all, she remembered, and had been markedly far from anything vital. She also knew Ilia to be able to poke flies out of the air with her whip...

"I don't really blame him, though," Ilia chuckled. "I mean, if somebody stabbed me in the titty, I'd be kinda pissed at them, too."

Blake kept her eyes narrowed, even as the corner of her mouth curled up at her friend's bold choice of words. Ilia seemed to find her cracking grin contagious. The two of them were quiet, and then were stifling their laughter.

"Gods, I shouldn't be laughing at this..." Blake whispered guiltily through the giggling. "I'm such a terrible friend to Sun!"

"You are terrible, Blake - you are just the worst person ever, and you should feel bad!" Ilia poked Blake in sync with the last two words, and their laughter briefly breached the barrier of stealthy conduct - very briefly, before their stealth etiquette kicked in and they quieted down to almost nothing.

"But seriously, though," said Ilia, "I'm glad he wasn't in any real danger. If I'd realized you cared about him as much as you did, I wouldn't have lashed out...and I'm sorry that I did." Blake felt her own features soften involuntarily at this. "But besides that, I also - if I can avoid it, I don't want to...you know..."

Blake nodded wordlessly. This was quite the marked change from when last the two had conversed. Then, Ilia had taken no issue with the prospect of killing - even when it came to other Faunus - so long as justice (or her idea of it) was fulfilled. She didn't know what exactly had happened since then...but she had her suspicions.

They were quiet once again. Leaning against the rail, Ilia slid down to a sitting position and set her gaze to the heavens with a sigh. Blake decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and sat down next to her, setting her blade down on the wooden planks.

"It's beautiful down here," Ilia said, breaking any remaining tension. "The constellations...they're so different than they are up in Solitas."

"I imagine," Blake replied. "You know what that one is?"

Ilia squinted. "Can't say I do..."

"He's the Fox King. He's an old legend of our people, one of the ancestral spirits - "

"Oh!" Blake looked at Ilia, surprised to see the sparkling recognition in her eyes. "Yeah, I've heard of him! Pretty recently, actually; Corsaic and Fennec were telling me about the Fox King - the legend, I mean. He's a deceiving spirit, tricking the proud and foolish into losing their power and wealth." She chuckled. "Pretty fitting, if you ask me. I can see why those two revere him."

"No kidding." For obvious reasons, Blake wasn't as enthusiastic. Ilia seemed to catch on, continuing her upward stare - and then gasped.

"The Grimm Reaper! Gods, it's - it's huge!"

Blake looked to where she was pointing. Sure enough, barely scraping the great ringed arm of their galaxy was the curved belt of stars, with the rough shape of a perpendicularly-inclined handle. To a learned eye, it formed the shape of a monstrous, crooked scythe that rivalled the moon itself for dominance of the night sky.

"I can't believe it," her friend went on. "Up north, we could only ever see the end of the handle just above the horizon! I'd heard that it was big, but I never imagined it'd be so...so - " She inhaled, then sighed exultantly, evidently making peace with her inability to find the right adjective. "Just...that image of the silent defender keeping watch against the Grimm and all things evil, ready to tear them apart in a whirlwind of vengeance! Really wakes up the warrior in you, you know?"

But Blake's mind was honed on less nebulous concepts, instead reminiscing on one scythe-wielding warrior in particular...

...whom, along with all the others, she had foolishly abandoned.

"Blake?"

Ilia had, of course, noticed her cat ears folding unhappily. Blake did not meet her concerned gaze.

"You know, you weren't wrong about what you said earlier," she said slowly. "It was a joke, yeah, but...it's true. If there's anything I've learned, it's that I am a terrible person. And a terrible friend."

Ilia looked away, nodding thoughtfully. "Well, I guess that means we're in the same boat here."

This surprised Blake. "Really."

"Shocking, I know," her friend scoffed ever-so-slightly. "Me, of all people, admitting that I might possibly have been in the wrong..."

Blake was hit by a sudden epiphany. "You didn't just come here to spend time with me, did you."

"...No, I - "

A kindling of hope - real hope - lit up inside of the cat Faunus's heart. If Ilia was having second thoughts about joining Adam...!

"Ilia, listen to me," she began with an edge of urgency. "I've been where you are, I know what it's like to realize that - "

"No!" Ilia shot back, a little too loudly; she looked about frantically before she resumed, more quietly this time. "Look, I'm not switching sides, I - that's not why I came..."

Blake picked up the audible lack of conviction. The cat was all but out of the bag; now, she just had to catch it. "It's scary, I know, but I'm not going to leave you on your own. I'll be with you for - "

A pained look contorted Ilia's features - almost as if resisting temptation - before she suddenly shot to her feet.

"I came here to warn you!" she said, her voice quavering, yet defiant nonetheless. "To warn you that...that you're getting into far more than you realize. I said that things would get bad, but...you honestly have no idea."

She seemed earnestly afraid with those last five words, and Blake was certainly intrigued - but there were more immediate things to discuss. Still clinging to that hopeful kindling, she seized her apparent opportunity:

"If things are getting so bad, then why not try to stop it? We can - "

"Because it's already too late!" Ilia snapped back, then less discernibly as she looked down in lament. "Too late for me..."

"No, Ilia," Blake shook her head. "Stop it, you're only de- "

But Ilia ignored her, hardening her now-red face as she cut her off:

"And even if it wasn't, things have been set in motion that none of us can stop! This is bigger than just the White Fang, Blake...it's bigger than you could possibly imagine. The only thing we can do is go along and make the best of it."

"Make the best of what? Adam's gonna use the White Fang to destabilize Mistral - he'll kill thousands of people, he might even start a war!"

Ilia closed her eyes, her skin adopting a green tinge as she hung her head. "I know..."

Blake felt her patience beginning to slip. "Then why - "

"I already told you why, Blake! There's no turning back from Beacon, no turning back from Adam, no turning back from having killed in cold blood!" She went from red to yellow to green, and finally to blue as she finished with an anguished expression. "M-my...our path is set," she said, voice on the verge of breaking; but with a breath, she reigned herself in. "There's nothing we have left but to keep moving forward."

Blake shuddered at the inadvertent twisting of another dear friend's words. She struggled to formulate a response, but Ilia hadn't finished.

"That's what I came to warn you about. Nothing can stop what's coming - not you, or your little militia, or Sienna Khan, or even the Atlesian military! If you get in the way, you'll just be another casualty...and I don't want that to happen. I don't want to have to - to..."

She looked away, unable or unwilling to finish the unpleasant thought. Blake could see clearly that argument wouldn't sway her friend...but she knew Ilia well, and argument wasn't all that she had at her disposal.

"You don't have to," she said as she drew closer, letting genuine concern and affection into her voice's soft melody. Ilia turned at the sound, and gasped slightly as Blake took her hand in both of hers. "There's always a choice, Ilia." Blake slowly raised her hand to her friend's face, watching the pink slowly overtake the brown of her freckles. She saw Ilia's chest rising and falling with increasing intensity as she drew even closer, and went for the cinch: "And I'll be with you, every step of the - "

Her wrist was grabbed and shoved aside by a bright red hand. Still breathing heavily, Ilia staggered backwards and shot her an angry glare.

"Don't you fucking pretend with me!" she hissed. Her eyes were a furious orange, a strange color scheme indeed with the still-pink freckles. "Or have you really changed so much since Vale? Are you really promising me something that you'll follow through with?!"

"I..." Blake stuttered, realizing too late her mistake. They both knew what her answer would be. "I'm sorry, Ilia..."

Those orange eyes stared her down for a moment more, then looked away bitterly as Ilia reverted to blue once more. "I know."

And with that, her skin became like the night at her command. She hopped onto the railing without a sound, and then onto the gutter. Blake dejectedly retrieved Gambol Shroud from the ground and made for the door...but as she did, she heard a parting whisper from above:

"Please...stay safe."

Too ashamed to look back up, Blake merely nodded as she stepped through the door.

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Two days later, Ghira was pacing the greeting room once more. This time, however, he was very quiet and concentrated about it as he went over his speech for the umpteenth time that morning.

"Don't tell me you still haven't got it yet," Kali said, strutting up beside him while standing on her toes to try and read it.

"Oh, I do, I do...just going over it one more time..."

"Oh, you've gone over it enough," she responded as she snatched it away from him and started to read it.

"W-Wait, Kali," Ghira exclaimed. "I wasn't finished reading - "

"Why are you so worried if you've got it all memorized?" Kali indulged in her husband's indignant grunts as she read. Her nose wrinkled in distaste. "Ghira, what even is this? This is the worst speech I've ever read! Honestly, darling, you'll put them all to sleep."

Ghira had to try a couple times before getting his words out.

"I spent three hours writing that!"

"Well, it looks like you spent three minutes on it. Oh, and speaking of three minutes..."

"Oh, shut up. It's not my fault you figured out all my kinks."

Their playful banter continued on, which would have been fine by Sun had he not been present for its entirety. He turned to Blake, hoping desperately to distract himself.

"Uh...Blake! You, uh, doing okay?"

The answer to that was quite complicated. It had been a rough night for Blake after her encounter with Ilia, with most of that having been spent crying her frustration into her pillow. The day after hadn't gone so well either, as her body had tried to compensate for the lack of sleep; this in part had led to a little spat with her mother, though that had thankfully been cleared up later in the evening. Physically, she felt much better now - nothing a little tea couldn't help - but, of course, she was still a bit nervous.

And presently, thanks to her parents, about to die of awkwardness. Oh, no - she was not putting up with that.

"Mom, Dad! Stop! You're freaking out Sun."

Ghira and Kali stopped mid-sentence, and Sun honestly couldn't tell if they had been about to fist-fight or make out. All the same, he whispered his thanks to Blake.

"Oh - ah, yes, erhm...sorry, kids," said Ghira sheepishly.

"What were we talking about again?" Kali asked no one in particular.

"Uh...oh, my speech!" Ghira made a grab for the paper, only to be foiled again by his wife.

"That's right - that's what I was going to say! Ghira, darling: I don't know if you've realized this or not, but your speeches have always been at their best when you make them up as you go. Which is why..." She crumpled up the paper as she spoke. "...you will most certainly not be needing that."

"B-But, Kali...!" Ghira began to protest, and then relented. "Oh, very well. But this had better go as well as you think!"

"Of course it will, Ghira. Blake, Sun: group hug time!"

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"You know, Blake," said Sun as they walked down the streets of Kuo-Kuana. "I don't know if your dad really likes me or really hates me, but man - that guy hugs hard!"

"It's both," Blake deadpanned.

"Both? Is that even - "

"Oh, yeah. Guarantee it."

"Huh. Guess I'd better keep that in mind."

A substantial crowd had gathered at the square to hear the chieftain speak. At the mouth of one of the square's smaller alleyways, a podium had been set up for the speakers at hand. It was behind this podium that Ghira, Sun, and Blake stood with a pair of escorting guards, making their final preparations for the event. Ghira took a breath, and stood a little straighter.

"You know, Blake, now that I think of it, I suppose your mother was right. I'm just feeling very confident now; it almost seems like peace between Faunus and humanity isn't hanging in the balance here...Blake?"

No response came, and Ghira immediately felt bad for bringing up the high stakes of the situation. Blake was staring down into space, hands clasped in front of her and ears folded. Ghira put a hand on her shoulder to get her attention.

"Blake? Are you alright?"

She tensed slightly at this, prompting Ghira to retract his hand, but then relaxed.

"Huh? Yeah, I mean..." They both knew the answer was a definite no. "Well...what if the people don't get on board? What if they turn against us? You know as well as I do -almost nobody here wants to go to war again." Blake's midnight worries had come spilling out.

"Well, the truth is very often difficult for people to hear," Ghira responded after some careful thought. "And I doubt today will be any different. But right here is a people I am proud to have led for as long as I have. They are good, with a love for justice as well as peace. Today, I am going to put my trust in them. I am as confident that they will make the right choice as I am that you will. And that, I think, should say a lot."

This brought a smile to Blake's face. Ghira turned to leave, and Sun immediately seized the opportunity to redeem himself.

"See, Blake? It does look good on you!"

"Wait - what? Sun, what are you even talking about?"

Sun pulled the corners of his mouth into an exaggerated smile with his fingers. "That!"

He took his fingers out, leaving a very real smile. "It suits you."

"...Oh, Sun," said Blake as she went to hug her silly, silly friend.

As the two embraced, Ghira had just stepped onto the podium. The crowd murmured as he walked towards the stand, then quieted as he tapped the microphone to test it, producing a dull thud through the surrounding speakers. Looking around, Ghira could taste his people's restlessness as they awaited his speech. He would indeed put his trust in them this day, but he was more unsure of how they would respond than he had let on. Looking around, he saw that a few in the crowd had brought their weapons and were carrying them openly, a sight that stirred to excitement the old fighting cat inside of him. Evidently, word of his bold plan had gotten around. It was then that Ghira noticed the flash of multiple scrolls recording the event, and decided that the people had waited long enough.

"My brothers and sisters, I thank you all for assembling here this day," he began gravely. "Times have taken a troubled turn as of late, and it is critical that the people of this island hear the truth. We are all well-acquainted with the terrible events that took place at last year's Vytal Festival, and of the implications they had for the world. Chief among these is that there are dangerous people currently working to undermine the foundations of society as we know it. And while those who orchestrated the Fall of Beacon remain at large, it has been confirmed that Adam Taurus, the leader of a rogue chapter of the White Fang, participated in the attacks. Witnesses, my own daughter among them, have testified that these terrorists - there is no better description - slaughtered civilians in the streets and released creatures of Grimm onto academy grounds."

He let that set in for a moment; the crowd's reaction was properly disconcerted.

"As loathsome as these acts of evil are, there is worse yet to come. Eight nights ago, a spy under Taurus' command was encountered near our home. Though the spy managed to escape, we were able to retrieve her scroll."

He pulled said scroll out from his robe and handed it to a guard, who placed it onto a holo-projector to display its contents for all to see.

"That scroll contained plans of Adam Taurus's to unseat the current High Leader of the White Fang, Sienna Khan, and take control of the entire organization himself. Uncovered as well were plans detailing an attack on Haven Academy and Mistral's CCT tower, scheduled to take place on the last full moon of summer, which will occur in two months."

By the time he finished these words, the crowd was a-mutter with worry. It took Ghira a good ten seconds of an upraised hand to quiet them down to a reasonable level.

"All of this bodes terribly, for the Faunus in particular. Taurus's actions have already served to demonize our race in the eyes of the humans. This will serve nothing but to incite more hate and violence from humanity than ever. Many of us remember what that hate and violence has led to in the past...and we all know the ease with which history repeats itself."

It was as if a heavy wool blanket of solemnity had fallen over the square. Ghira could feel the instinctual tightening of grips on the hilts of old blades.

"Now, plans have been formulated to counteract this catastrophe in the making - plans that some of you are already aware of..."

He nodded to one Faunus who had donned a battle helmet, and smiled when he saw him straighten slightly.

"...But for those of you who aren't, I am going to ask you to bear with me. I have ordered messengers to be sent to Headmaster Lionheart, High Leader Khan, and the government of Mistral with warnings of the threat posed by Taurus. However, I fear that this alone may not be enough to turn the tide in our favor."

He paused before continuing.

"The White Fang was founded for the purpose of achieving justice and equal rights for the Faunus, yes. But it was also meant to bring peace between us and humanity. However, several years ago, many in our ranks became dissatisfied with the progress we had been making and began straying away from the latter goal in favor of achieving the former sooner. It is for this reason that I stepped down as High Leader...a decision that, at times, I have come to regret."

Behind the podium, Blake's ears flattened in shame. It had been more than two years since she had screamed all those terrible things at her parents before running off: Cowards! Traitors! Surely, Ghira was not thinking of that as he spoke...at least, Blake hoped not.

"Since High Leader Sienna Khan assumed control of the White Fang, the rift between Faunus and humanity has sadly widened, despite the increased legal protections given to Faunus. And now, thanks to the efforts of Taurus and others, the White Fang is being twisted into something unrecognizable from what it once was. In the minds of the humans, the White Fang represents nothing more than a hateful, destructive threat to them, their families, and their livelihood...and I am afraid that they now are right to think so. Now...a very wise man once said, 'Evil's greatest triumphs happen when good men forget that injustice anywhere is injustice everywhere.' My brothers and sisters, we cannot afford to sit back and watch while evil men like Taurus burn our world to the ground! If the wounds between our peoples are ever to be healed, then the White Fang must be restored to its former self."

On cue, the former blue and white banner of the White Fang was displayed on the holo-projector, the wolf's jawline proud and astute. Ghira spoke through the applause.

"As some of you have heard, the Menagerie Council has approved a plan to muster a volunteer militia. Once this is done, the First Menagerian Militia will travel overseas to Mistral...to defend Haven Academy and Sienna Khan at all costs, and to bring Adam Taurus and his followers to justice!"

Those who had brought weapons clanged them together and cheered, along with a number of others...but other than that, the people had gone silent. The enthusiasm was dampened as quickly as it had flared to the White Fang banner. Ghira pushed down the anxiety welling up inside him; as disheartening as this was, they were not done yet.

"My daughter, Blake, is a Huntress, a survivor of the Fall of Beacon, and a former member of the White Fang, as well as the architect of the First Menagerian Militia project. It is with immense pride that I invite her to speak before you, to testify her story and to elaborate further on the plan."

He stepped back from the microphone, and Blake stepped forward. She turned to her father, whose reassuring smile strengthened her. The audience awaited her words -

"RACE-TRAITORS!"

A sharp, quasi-operatic countertenor suddenly rung out, followed shortly by a commotion at the edge of the crowd. All eyes darted towards the dozen or so masked, shield-bearing White Fang who had set up a speaking platform of their own: little more than a few crates stacked together. One protester carried a megaphone and was yelling into it, his reptilian tail swaying restlessly.

"The ancient hunting parties...the Anima-Solitas slave trade...the post-war Segregate Codes...the Faunus-War Concords, the Vineyard Square Massacre, the S.D.C. Dust mine laborers! All humanity's crimes against our people lay bare before history's eyes, and the Belladonnas talk of peace and harmony?! Sell-outs! Everything they do is to benefit themselves! For years they sat back, complacent in their peaceful ways while their so-called 'brothers and sisters' scrape for their meals in the slums of the human kingdoms!"

Blake could scarcely contain her rage. "How dare you! We have done nothing but fight for our people's rights - for your rights!"

The speaker did not even acknowledge her, instead continuing his tirade. Ghira made for the microphone again, pulling his daughter aside.

"And now that they fear punishment from the humans, they would have us shed our blood to cover their own cowardly tails! And then they are arrogant enough to slander Adam Taurus, the only one who truly fights for our rights, with false accusations! But the White Fang will see through the justice that we deserve - "

"Shut up, fuckwad!" Sun had lunged forward onto the podium, his shout backed by several hearty cheers and weapon-clangs. "All I've ever seen the White Fang do is steal and murder! These guys are nothing but thugs, and they're just as bad as the S.D.C.!"

"People of Menagerie," the speaker cried out again amidst the heightened clamor. "The time has come to choose between justice and freedom, or cowardice and treason! But know that the White Fang will bring about a new dawn for our people - with, without, or in spite of you!"

He finished his sentence just as several of the armed citizens stepped forward to trade shouted insults with the White Fang protestors, injecting a nervous jolt into the crown around them. Some began dispersing, while a number of those who didn't continued recording the debacle with their scrolls. The helmeted Faunus stepped to the forefront, head and wolf tail held high as his comrades parted way.

"Listen here, you filthy lot!" His roar cut through the clamor. "You think the Fang fights for the Faunus?! I fought against the evils of human bigotry for every single one of the Revolution's seven years! I have spilled human blood and shed my own on the field of honor so that my people could live in peace and fairness! I made an oath long ago to raise my sword against injustice, and damned if I break it while cowardly men like Adam Taurus commit the same crimes of the humans who I fought in my youth!"

Newly invigorated, the other armed citizens began to slowly advance against the White Fang shield wall, yelling and clanging their weapons. The Fang agitators visibly tensed as a few among the crowd hurled rotten fruit at them, and the speaker raised his chin in nervous defiance.

"Race-traitors!" he shouted once more, though his voice lacked its earlier spirit. "These cowards would see their own people slaughtered - "

But he was cut short as a rock sailed from somewhere in the crowd and struck his megaphone, knocking it from his grasp to shatter on the cobblestones. A cry arose from the Fang protestors, and they charged in a poorly-organized line. The armed citizens responded with gusto, forming a tight circle that smashed a hole in the shield wall before pandemonium ensued. The crowd scrambled to get away from the brawl as Ghira ordered his guards to break it up. Sun was about to jump in when he was grabbed by Blake. Her father bellowed into the microphone:

"THERE WILL BE NO RIOTS IN THIS SQUARE TODAY!"

The square went silent.

The armed citizens dropped their weapons as the guards rounded them up along with the White Fang. Ghira wiped the sweat from his brow and turned to see Captain Saber Rodentia standing at attention.

"Chieftain, shall we take the rioters into custody for the day?"

"No...no, send them home. All of them. And give them their, ah, belongings back; I think they'll need them later."

"...As you wish, sir."

Ghira looked back towards the now nearly-deserted town square and sighed. He felt Blake's presence as she came up beside him.

"Come on, Dad. Let's go home. It's been a long morning for you."

"Yes...yes, I suppose it has. And it's going to be a long fight."

They walked off the podium and headed back down the alleyway from whence they came. Sun quickly caught up.

"Well, we are Huntsmen" he said, falling in line beside Blake. "The long fight's kinda what we signed up for."

Ghira chuckled and shook his head. "I really don't like you, Sun."

"Oh, yes you do," said Blake.

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