Chapter 7 - Laws are Made to be Followed

A bell jingled over me as I carefully pushed the door open. Stepping inside, I found myself in the right place as I glanced at the walls full of books. Isles of more books a little below eye level were strewn throughout the place with little signs labeling which genre they were.

"Welcome to Tuskon's Book Trade! Home to every book under the sun!" A jovial voice announced from behind the front counter. "Do you need help looking for anything?"

I blinked at the man. He was large enough that I wondered how I missed him in the first place, and the fact that he had no warmth apparent to my senses also made his size quite weird. A fact that had been connecting in my head was that the more fit members of society normally had a warmth, or power, that I could sense.

Still, I didn't think more on why that was as I looked over the man. A fairly middle aged shopkeeper with clean cropped, black hair and deep sideburns that traveled along his jaw to the outer fringes of his chin. Light hazel eyes watched me, crinkling as a welcoming smile spread on the man's face.

He wore a short sleeved shirt underneath another short sleeved zipper shirt of dark brown. His hairy arms were crossed in a way that hid his fingers on his sides, but I paid it no mind as my attention was focused on the fact that his forearms were huge. Larger than some of the people who I had seen in the gym regularly.

Idly, I felt as if I had stared too long. After my talk with Roman, and his explanation about how I was now someone of interest, I naturally tended to sizing everyone up in case they turned out to be enemies.

'I'm going crazy…' I joked internally. It was one thing to be cautious, but now I was even making sure that even kind shopkeepers were dangerous individuals.

With a small cough, I gave the man a smile of my own. "Sorry about my slow response. I, uh, am looking for anything in Aura." I answered him finally.

"Aura, huh?" The shopkeeper echoed. "I think I have a couple manuals in the back, but," He paused to look at me up and down, eyes slowing slightly on the thin scar that curled along the left side of my face. "No offense, but I need to see a Huntsman license or a unlocked Aura permit."

I coughed awkwardly in my hand, "Um, how about we skip that?"

"No can do, kid." The man didn't even falter in his denial. "There are laws against giving Aura manuals to unlicensed people. I recommend if you have Aura that you get registered at the nearest Beacon office; they have people who can handle these sorts of things." He frowned at me, his thick sideburns curling with his features. "If you're thinking of doing something illegal, then I ask you not to ask any other places. I am willing to overlook your questions, but other places will just call the police."

I blanched at the information, appalled at the fact that simply asking for a book can get me arrested. "I…" I felt myself stuttering, "I didn't know."

The man looked a little shocked at my admission for a second; his once stern expression falling into something of pity. "Hey, it's okay, kid. Normal civies are not supposed to know how to get Aura else everyone would be trying to get their hands on it."

"What?" I was once again shocked by his admission. People were actually hiding such a useful resource? The applications of healing alone would be a miracle to the hospitals around the city being the first thing that came to mind. "Why would they hide it?" I asked.

"Ah, kid." The shopkeeper just rubbed the back of his head, a little embarrassed. "Look, a lot of places have to follow several penal codes set in place by the Valian council. Most of it is to prevent the spread of panic, and other types of emotions that could send the city into a mass of negative intent. With Grimm being attracted to rampant, negative emotions, places like mine are forbidden from selling or offering certain things. You following?"

I nodded slowly. Grimm were a constant threat to humanity, and them being attracted to whenever people felt sad, angry or were in fear didn't make it any easier for the four Kingdoms to manage them. It was a miracle when a town expanded from their walls for a reason.

The man just looked at me for a second before continuing with a sigh, "Kid, what I'm going to tell you shouldn't be spread around, got it?" His face was all seriousness as I nodded once more. "Alright, well, people with their Aura's unlocked are basically beacons for Grimm even if they're not feeling too bad. One or three in one place is not too bad, but when you scale that up to populations, the Grimm are basically set on a warpath to any place with lots of unlocked Aura users."

The image of thousands of bloodthirsty monsters set on a crazed stampede towards my home was shocked into my mind as I tried to comprehend what he was saying. If what he was saying was true, and that all these powers were, in fact, Aura users, then that meant Vale should be under constant Grimm attacks. It was a miracle that there was never any reports of the Grimm besieging the walls of Vale due to its natural barriers.

With a steep bulwark of mountains to the southeast and a warding presence of shallow waters to the northwest, Vale was one of the safer kingdoms of the four. There were supposedly a very low amount of Grimm attacks that were always successfully warded off with contemptuous ease.

And, now that I had delved into a life of -sort of- vigilantism, I was beginning to wonder just how much was actually being told to us.

Slowly, I wet my dry lips as I asked, "Why are you telling me this?"

"Look, I've seen people like you hearing of all the wonders of Aura, and wanting to use it for something like impressing a girl or…" He nods to the scar on my face. "Revenge or whatever. Some of them give up after I simply tell them no, but others end up trying everything only to end up getting pressed into a gang because they can now shrug off bullets and punch people's lights out. I'm telling you now because I've seen that look of determination anywhere; if I let you go out, then you'd try to find a way despite my warnings. Better you know not to rather than let you be stupid."

"Oh…" I whispered, wondering just how many people were press ganged into the places that I was going to hit. "Then… then why doesn't everyone know what Aura does? Wouldn't that stop them from trying to getting it?"

The man just gave me a flat look that spoke volumes before he even opened his mouth. "Huntsmen use Aura, kid. Everyone knows that as fact with the Vytal Festival every two years. How safe would you feel if the supposed 'saviors of mankind and slayers of Grimm' were actually found to be one of the larger reasons that Grimm are drawn to cities and towns?"

I blanked as the new information hit me like a ton of bricks. His words, while easy to understand, were horribly hard to swallow. If people felt that the people who protected them were one of the main causes of said attacks, then it wasn't a stretch of the imagination to understand that there would be chaos. Some people were just not reasonable when the time comes, and if the fingers start pointing to the Huntsmen, there would be blood.

There would be Grimm.

"You catching up, kid?" The man said to me, giving me another look of pity. He was genuinely sorry for not helping me. "Look, you seem old enough to know what's right and wrong, but try not to go spreading that around, please. Best to keep some secrets to yourself, you know."

"Ah… right." I stalled, mind numb from the bomb that had just been dropped. There must've been some shocked expression on my face as the man patted me carefully on the shoulder.

"Hey, uh, you alright there?" My attention snapped back into place as I looked towards him. There was a sheepish smile on his face. "Sorry if I told you something you didn't need to know…" He began.

"No," I interrupted. "No, it's fine. I rather know now than to actually attempt something I might regret."

Slowly, I felt my wits come back to me. The fact that Huntsmen, the heroes of the world, were being selectively targeted by the monsters of darkness was only a small afterthought.

They had such a dangerous condition, and yet they still fought to keep us all safe. Bearing the weight of nations on their shoulders.

And the fact that some people used Aura for their own selfish wishes was something that now grated me. They were a festering wound that spread blood in the water to attract hungry sharks.

"Thank you." I smiled at the man who had enlightened me. There was no need for Aura anymore.

'All I need is training.' I decided. If Aura attracted Grimm, then it would be better to deal with everyone without it.

As a gesture of my gratitude for the information, I bought several books from the man. Taking my time to remember that my little sisters would probably want a fairytale to listen to when they came over, I asked the man, "What would you recommend for children?"

The complete turnaround seemed to stun the man, and he burst into a small bout of chuckles. "Sorry," he apologized after he calmed down. "Just wasn't expecting that. You know, coming in asking for Aura then going straight to fairytales. But, I would say that the Legend of the Four Maidens; kids seem to love that for some reason."

"Thanks, that really helps." I smiled once again, finding the book not long after. Returning to the counter and pulling an appropriate amount of Lien out, I frowned as I realized something. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I got your name."

The shopkeeper laughed and pointed in the direction of the doorway, "Don't know if you missed it or something, but it's on the sign. Name's Tuskon." He raised a hand.

I took it, still smiling. "I'll swing by again for some more books." Jabbing a thumb to my chest, I announced, "Your new number one customer, Jaune Arc, shall not let you down!"

Tuskon snorted, "Yeah, sure. You'd be hard pressed to match my real number one customer." The door jingled behind me, and I found a small smirk on the older man's face. "In fact, that's her."

Glancing over my shoulder, I didn't know who I was expecting, but a girl who shut down all higher thought processes was certainly not them. Long, black hair that ended in curly trusses a little below her shoulder blades. Her face was something sculpted out of a movie, and her eyes were bright amber.

A vest of midnight clung to her body with twin coattails trailing to her lower thighs. One silver button was fastened over her stomach in a way that exposed both her white crop top and firm belly. Something that did little to hide the curves of her body.

I had to catch myself before my eyes trailed to her white shorts and black stockings that faded to deep purple around her ankles. The clacking of heels meeting the floor clued me in on her shoes.

Then I felt the warmth coming from her. The Aura she radiated was on another level compared to the twins from before, and I couldn't help but reach out and link with it.

[Vector-dependent time-variable projections. Intent-based attention manipulation.]

I frowned slowly as I understand her abilities. One of them being a passive one that kept attention away from wherever she was most conscious about, and it currently was making my eyes seem to glaze over the large, black bow on top of her head.

If I hadn't had the senses to feel the power in effect, then I probably wouldn't have even found that bow. Then it twitched, and everything made sense.

I stifled a response to call her a Faunus as she was definitely hiding what I assumed her animal ears underneath that accessory. Instead, I continued to pretend to be dazed by her beauty. Which, while not true, was pretty darn close.

"Don't drool now, Jaune." Tuskon's voice cropped me out of my act.

I turned to him, sputtering in what I hoped looked like panic. "I'm not!" I announced.

"Right, right," the man smiled like a cat before its prey. "Anyways, meet Blake." He waved to the undercover Faunus whose face betrayed no emotions. "Blake, this is Jaune, my new 'number one' customer." Tuskon finished with air quotes.

"Uh, hey…" I waved to the girl after that rather painful introduction.

"Hey." Blake's eyes glanced over me, amber orbs falling onto the scar next to my eye. However, if she had a reaction to it, then it was probably the most well kept secret.

Then there was silence.

Tuskon seemed to catch onto the awkward moment easily, reaching under his desk for something. He pulled out multiple books, and I had to blink as Blake basically blurred to grab them before I could even read the titles. Tuskon smiled as Blake glared at him, then me and then back to him. It was a sort of twitchy response that told me that she definitely knew my eyes were on her; something that reminded me oddly of Neo.

"I, uh, I guess I'll go…" I stated evenly as I watched the whole scene play out.

Tuskon gave me a wry smile and a shrug, "Seeya around, Jaune."

"Yeah, you too." I said on reflex while sparing what I hoped was a smile to Blake. "It was nice meeting you, Blake."

The girl in question just took a second to look up from her book to nod once. "You too." Then she returned back to the book that was opened up before her.

I escaped the awkward situation with all the haste that I couldn't have.

-x-

Walking along the pristine concrete sidewalks was a pastime that I didn't appreciate till I realized just how dangerous my life choices were. From the surprising amount of high rises to the looming buildings in the distance, the city of Vale was definitely an acquired taste. However, the huge tower that could be viewed from anywhere within the city was something out of fantasy.

Beacon tower was a symbol of hope and prosperity alike. It was one of the four prestigious academies where the aspiring heroes known as Huntsmen or Huntresses were taught, and it stood as a stalwart sentinel in the hearts of everyone in Vale. I always wanted to be a Huntsman and protect the good people of the world from dangerous Grimm.

However, my past spars with my sisters told me that I would never have the training to match them in a fair fight, but, now that I knew of Aura, I realized that they were using it to always beat me. Even my parents never told me about Aura; keeping me in the dark about one of the most important tools for being a Huntsman. Something about that grated me as well as stuck out to my cautious mind.

There had to be a reason for not telling me. They were my parents and sisters and I loved them, so I had to believe they had a reason for not telling me about Aura. And, now that I know of it, I'm even less inclined to actually get it.

The energy is one of the causes for Grimm attacks, and, whether or not it helps, I'd rather try and stick to my own abilities before using it. The less Aura users in the city the less Grimm it'll attract.

'I sure hope I'm making the right decision…' I mused to myself as I made a turn around one of the larger buildings. 'No, whether I have Aura or not, I'm still powerful in my own right. I'll just have to get more skillful… And maybe buy some more Dust.'

So to make up for my shortcomings in the form of Aura, I needed to become much stronger in the ways of techniques. I also needed to get a gym membership, and start training as my last couple of fights really took the breath from me.

As such, I called the only person in the department of making me stronger body wise.

Two rings were all I needed before they picked up.

"Jaune?" Yatsuhashi asked from the other side.

"Ah, hey, Yatsuhashi," I stumbled to find my words. While his ability definitely helped immensely in training, my mind was really only wondering how normal people called their friends, and if the big guy even considered me a friend despite our short time knowing each other. "How was initiation?" I asked in a rapid bid to end the silence I drifted to.

"It was good."

There was more silence. "Uh, great! Awesome even… I'm sorry I'm not used to this." My head hung low on my side as I felt it unfair. Talking down to villains and criminals, easy. Talking to someone who is a maybe-friend, not so much.

"It is fine, Jaune." There was someone talking on the other end as Yatsuhashi spoke again, "Huh? Yes, his name is Jaune… I met him a couple days after I made it to Vale… Really?"

"I'm sorry?" I queried back.

"Oh, sorry Jaune. One of my teammates said they met you quite recently, and was curious if you were the same person. Do you happen to remember someone named Velvet?"

A brown haired Faunus came to mind, fluffy bunny ears bouncing in my head. "Y, yeah, I remember her." Internally, I made a note to treat the nervous and stuttering Faunus with more respect next time. Anyone who can pass into Beacon is strong in their own right.

"Great, I'm going into town in a day or two to pick up a whetstone for my weapon. If you want you can tag along with us." Yatsuhashi offered, and I could practically hear him smile a calming grin through the phone.

His calming mood was infectious as I smiled back. "Yeah, that sounds awesome. I can even ask you how initiation was."

"Hmmm, maybe not," Yatsuhashi paused. "After all, you need to take the test for yourself. Besides, I heard they change it regularly."

"Oh, that makes sense… I guess."

"Don't feel too bad, Jaune, though I hope you don't mind if the rest of my team comes along."

I shifted on my feet at the mention of more people. While I was getting more experience with dealing with people, I don't think blowing places up and punching their face in was very conducive at forming great relationships.

'Imagine: Jaune Arc, the terrifying Vigilante! Strengths: fighting and explosives. Weaknesses: Social interaction.' I stifled a small laugh, finally replying to my friend. "Yeah, my mom used to say that 'friends are strangers that I haven't met yet'!"

"A good saying." Yatsuhashi agreed. "I'll send to the details later."

"Right, seeya later, Yatsuhashi."

"Have a nice day."

The line clicked with a close, and I found myself standing in front of Rouge's Weapons. The place didn't really look all that impressive now that I looked at it. Tinted windows that displayed cartoonish approximations of actual weapons, and a small awning was all that adorned the outer parts of the store. It was like the owner didn't particularly care for customers.

Putting that out of mind, I strode through the doors. The unassuming man named Will looked up at me, eyes falling to my scar and smiled. Something about that smile unsettled me a little bit, but I was already in this too far to back out now.

"Took you long enough." He smirked as he opened a door behind the counter. "Want to discuss training prices now or later?"

I looked to the person I hoped would teach me how to fight and pulled out several cards of Lien. "How much will a hundred Lien get me?"