Chapter 22: Gathering clouds

TRIGGER WARNING!

IF YOU ARE EASILY TRIGGERED BY THE TOPIC OF RACISM, PROCESSED WITH CATION! THIS IS YOUR ONLY WARNING!

////////////////////////////////////////////////////

The sun rose over Beacon academy. At this time, normally students would be preparing for their first day of the semester, but due to an unforeseen event that took placing during yesterday's entries exam, the first day had been pushed back until tomorrow. As such the students had a day off to do whatever they wanted, even going down into Vale.

The newly appointed team AACE was one such team. They were seated at a pizza place, one set of them on either side. Two large pizzas were laid out before them as well as some bread sticks.

"Well, here's to becoming a new team!" Amber said, raising her glass along with the rest of her teammates. "I should probably know how to give a proper toast, but I've never been good at that kind of stuff. So let's just dig in!"

"Cheers!"

Cinder rolled her eyes as Eric matched Amber's enthusiasm, but didn't complain as she took a piece of her pizza and bit into it.

They had discussed the best thing to do and it had been decided each person would get to choose half the pizza's topping. This had seemed like a good idea right up until Cinder had decided on Pineapple for theirs.

After a little argument, Amber and Cinder's pizza had been split in half, with Cinder getting the Pineapple on her half.

Despite the cheery atmosphere, Cinder kept glancing over to Adam. She had heard about his skill and abilities, she was surprised how normal he was. Back in Atlas, if someone was a prodigy, they would be treated very differently, almost like royalty. Yet Adam had seemed pretty down to earth, if not a little ambitious.

But it's not like she could talk.

"So, I've been wondering." Amber said between bites of her pizza. "What happened to you guys? Ozpin said something about a political scandal or something? What was that all about?"

Eric and Adam stopped mid bite. They exchanged a look, a somewhat odd expression on their faces.

Cinder leaned forward in her seat, her attention peaked. What were they hiding?

"It's not all that complicated." Adam said, rubbing the back of his head. "Some dimwits thought that a member of the White Fang shouldn't be allowed to attend Beacon. So they enacted an elaborate scheme to try and get me discredited and kicked out."

"I don't see how that's political." Cinder said, resting her arms on the table. "Just sounds like standard racism to me."

Eric shook his head sadly. "Unfortunately, this wasn't some group of racist idiots. They confessed something interesting after Adam roughed them up a bit." He glanced around the store, then leaned forward to ensure nobody else could hear him.

"Ever heard of Councilman Anodeser?"

Now it was Cinder's turn to exchange looks with her partner. Both were equally shocked at the name.

"Councilman Anodeser?" Cinder asked, trying to keep her voice down. "You mean the fat ass who demanded Atlas demilitarized after the war? The one who gets more money than any other member and makes it go missing every time? That Anodeser?"

Adam gave a solemn nod. "And that's not all he's doing. After the Faunus were given Menagerie, he demanded the White Fang disband and surrender all means of travel between the mainland and the island."

"So basically, he wanted to have complete control over the Faunus and their resources." Amber said. "Why? I can't imagine what he'd need something like that for."

"Power." Adam said, not bothering to hide the disgust in his voice. "He wanted to control the White Fang, use us as his personal enforcers. Seems to think Faunus exists to serve humans and nothing more. If we hadn't publicized his threats, we would have been in a very bad situation. Thankfully, he has to run for election that year or else I doubt he'd have rolled over so easily."

Adam paused for a second, his face turning a little happier.

"Actually, that's something I wanted to thank you two for." He said kindly. "Thank you for protecting Faunus. I can't tell you how much I appreciate humans willing to save one of us. You wouldn't believe the number of people who would be happy to turned a blind eye to our suffering."

Adam lowered his head in a sort of bow, immediately causing Amber to become flustered.

"You don't need to do that!" She said, waving her hands in front of her. "Anyone would have done the same thing! You don't need to thank us!"

"It's something I need to thank you for BECAUSE most people wouldn't do that." Adam pressed, his voice somewhat strained to emphasize his point. "We Faunus have been forced to lick the boots of humans for as long as I can remember. Even after the war, we still struggle to get proper employment. Companies abuse us every day. And humans use examples of radicals to say we brought it on ourselves. So when someone is willing to sacrifice something to save one of us, I think it's very much worth saying thank you."

Slowly, Amber's face softened as she saw the honesty in Adam's expression. "You're a really nice guy, aren't you?" She said softly. "That's not the way you look on tv."

Adam smiled as he leaned back up. "Yeah well, that's because the media only portrays Faunus in certain lighting. It always has to be the radical psychopath, or the powerless victim. We can't just be ordinary people."

"Oh wow. That must be So hard for you."

All eyes turned to Cinder as she spoke, her voice dripping with sarcasm. Even from across the table, Amber could feel Adam bristle as he tensed up causing her to repress a groan.

Why did Cinder have to pick fights with everyone she met?

"I'm sorry, but do you have some input on Faunus rights? I'm sure we'd all love your opinion, given you must be an expert on the subject if THAT'S your reaction to a real problem." Adam's voice was low, but uneven. He was struggling not to give the dark haired girl a piece of her of his mind. And Amber could tell he was already getting close to his boiling point.

Something Cinder either didn't notice, or she didn't care.

"Faunus right? A hard time? Ha! What a joke." Cinder mocked, causing Adam's face to lose it's mask of calmness. This was a touchy subject and Cinder was fanning his flame into a fire!

"How convenient you forgot to mention the other side of the story. One guy refuses to sell his products to you people because they had a record of theft, and suddenly they're racist. And oh brothers help the Faunus who had to work minimum! That must be so tough!" With each sarcastic comment, Adam got more and more riled up, even making to stand before being stopped by Eric placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Here's an idea, stop lounging in the lap of entitled, self pity! It's disgusting!" Cinder snapped, drawing the attention of several other customers in the shop. "Just because you've had it rough doesn't give you the right to complain! I can think of other people who have been abused more than you AND don't get any attention because you're whining! So just shut up and learn to live with it!"

Immediately Adam was on his feet, hand flying to the sword at his waist. Cinder moved equity fast, drawing her blades as she stood.

"Learn to live with it?!" Adam yelled. "You can't be serious! We've lived under humanity's thumb for our whole lives! We deserve rights, same as you! Rights we've been attacked, made fun of, and slander for! How much of your cozy life came at the cost of our suffering!? How much of your dust came from our broken, underpaid backs!? How would you like to be treated like an animal everyday because of something you couldn't control!? No child should suffer because of them being born a Faunus! We deserve retribution!"

"Umm. Guys?" Eric said, placing a hand on Adam's chest to try to stop him. Amber had also gotten to her feet and was particularly between her partner and Adam, trying desperately to defuse the situation. "Maybe take a break from trying to break each other's necks and calm down. I don't think you want to cause a-."

"Oh! You Deserve retribution!?" Cinder yelled with a shrill laugh. "Oh please! You people don't know the first thing about deserving something! All you do is whine and complain! Only those who have attached true power deserve their do's! And you Faunus certainly haven't done any of that!"

"Okay guys! That's enough!" Amber said, this time physically stepping in front of Cinder. "I think we should all just stop and take a moment to cold out heads before-"

"We've been trying to get power! But the people in charge are trying to keep us down!" Adam returned fire. No longer trying to be the reasonable one. "How many Faunus in power do you see?! How many had to claw their way up there against the entire world working against them?! How can you say we don't deserve recompense?! Or are you just as much a racist as them!?"

"There you go again! Missing the point! Honestly if all Faunus are this stupid, then maybe it for the best that-!"

"Enough!" Amber bellowed, her voice drowning out the other two. "Both stop it before one of you says something you'll regret! You're supposed to be huntsmen and huntresses in training! Start acting like it!"

A long silence fell between the two, broken only by their heavy breathing. After several painstakingly long seconds, Cinder turned away with a flourish of her cloak.

"Whatever, not like he's worth the trouble." She said dryly before making her out of the restaurant.

Amber let out a deep sigh, then she tossed some money on the table before quickly following Cinder. Leaving the two bodies staring after her.

"So…shall we split the bill two ways?" Eric asked after a few seconds. "Neither one left enough to cover their half."

--------------------------------------------------------

"Cinder! Cinder! Wait up, would ya?!" Said girl slowed to a stop in the alleyway as her partner called after her. She didn't know why she felt so frustrated at the stupid bullheaded Faunus, but the way he talked like the Faunus rights were the only problem in the world rubbed her the wrong way.

How dare he whine about slavery and and being treated like an animal when she had been treated like less then a living creature for most of her life! And then started complaining about how the media covered them! Every time a single idiot so much as looked at Faunus the wrong way they were labeled as a racist!

"Cinder? You okay?" Amber said, snapping Cinder out of her thoughts. She said nothing, trying to even her breathing. Amber didn't know she was right, like most simple minded fools, she probably just believed the same thing that the news told her to believe.

"Don't say it. I'm not going to apologize." Cinder said, still not looking at her partner. "There are people out there who have no rights and nobody to speak for them. I know I'm right. That bullheaded idiot should be able to see it's not just about him, and it's definitely not just about human vs Faunus. I-"

"You were one of those people?"

Immediately Cinder spun around, staring at her wide eyed.

"No offense, but the way you talk, it's pretty obvious." Amber said gently, yet staying a distance back. "I'm sorry you had to go through that. It must have been horrible."

Cinder stared at Amber, her mouth hanging open. The girl was sharp, and tactful. Back at Signal, the one time she had opened up about her past, she had been treated like a spectacle, or with sympathy by the teachers.

She didn't want to be treated differently because of that, she wanted people to see her for all her incredible strength and abilities, not as someone who had drawn the short end of the stick.

Yet Amber wasn't looking at her with pity or as an object of interest. She seemed more unsure how to approach the topic or if she even should. Good grief, this girl was too nice of her own good.

"Yeah well, I'm stronger because of it, so I shouldn't complain." Cinder said, turning away from the dark skinned girl again. "But it just really ticks me off to hear that nobody cares about human trafficking because some horned idiots are yelling about needing to be paid more."

A long pause followed as Cinder waited for Amber to say something. But when she did, it wasn't what she was expecting.

"If I'm being honest, I feel the same way." Amber's words caught Cinder off guard. She had expected goody two shoes Amber to tell her off for being selfish. To hear that Amber also didn't think Adam's whining was pointless was a shock to say the least.

"I definitely feel like there are problems beyond racism that need more attention. The increasing gang violence, civil unrest, poverty in the villages far away from the kingdoms. There's a lot that gets swept under the rug while the media calls a celebrity a racist for an off color joke." Amber paused here, moving to sit down on a closed dumpster. She beckons to Cinder, who curiously went and joined her.

"You feel that way too and I can't really blame you for blowing up like that." Cinder noticed Amber's hands tense slightly and heard her voice change slightly. "It's not a good feeling to have someone, no matter how indirect, call your entire species evil. Honestly, Adam really shouldn't assume everyone good thinks the same way he does." Cinder let out a chuckle. Good to see someone agreed with her instead of giving her a lecture.

"But in the same breath, I understand his frustration with us."

Cinder whipped her head around to Amber. Confusion caused her to become temporarily tongue tied. Hadn't the girl just said Adam was out of line? Why was she now saying he was right?! His constant whining was both baseless and annoying! How was there anything to give him any credit?! He was just a bitch who called racist when things didn't go his way!

"H-how!? What!? Are you crazy!?" Cinder spluttered. "He just a whiny baby! What do you mean you understand his frustration when there's nothing to understand!? He just has to grow a pair and shut the hell up!"

"That's because to him, the problems we think are important are just a distraction from the real problem, racism. After all, we haven't been through the same kind of prejudice." Cinder rolled her eyes at Amber half answer. Of course the girl with the bleeding heart would try to see the side of that annoying brat.

"Oh please! Back when I was a kid, I dreamed about getting their treatment! To work as a person would have sounded like heaven to me back then! After everything I've been through, they don't get to complain! They-!"

"Cinder!" Amber cut in, turning to face the girl with eyes burning with emotion. "Can you honestly say you know what it feels like to have people treat you and your loved ones differently because of something you can't control? Can you honestly say that if people were denying you and your loved ones basic rights because you happen to have animal-like extremities?"

"Of course I can!" Cinder shot back. "I grew up as a slave! I was beaten and tortured for no reason! Everyday my life was a living hell! It wasn't until I found a friend who helped my strive for freedom that I ever saw hope! And then he betrayed me!"

"But what about the people you love!" Amber shot back, causing Cinder to pause. "What if your mother was charged a larger price because of something she couldn't control? What if your father was fired because he had horns growing out of his head? Can you imagine how hard it would be? Knowing that you couldn't do anything to help?"

Cinder immediately found herself struggling for words. As much as she hated to admit it, that did sound awful and she didn't know what that was like. Amber had once again one upped her.

Amber stared at Cinder as she struggled to find a counter. Then the dark haired girl let out a sigh. "I'm not trying to make you feel bad. I just want you to understand why Adam is the way he is. He's had to deal with all that frustration for his entire life. So while we may not find racism the most important issue right now, he does, because he's suffered from it."

"I still had it worse!" Cinder shot back, jumping off the dumpster. "If I could put up with worse then they should-!"

"That's not the point!" Amber cut Cinder off once again, causing the girl to to clench her fists. "Whoever suffered more isn't the point. It's that people react to suffering by trying to make it stop. You've escaped your suffering, the Faunus haven't."

Cinder bit her lip. Her knuckles were white from how tightly she was squeezing her fists. She knew she was being spiteful, but she still couldn't stand that the Faunus were all people seemed to talk about when it came to how unfair the world was.

Where were all those people when she needed them?

"It's not fair that you got ignored, but maybe you got something valuable from being able to pull yourself up with your own strength."

Cinder looked up at Amber's words and saw she had slid off the dumpster as well..

"You were the most powerful person at the entrance exam. Don't tell me that wasn't because of the strength you found when trying to survive with your abusers." Cinder bit her lip as Amber took a step.

"It's okay to feel jealous if others get more attention, or have an easier life than you. That's natural. But if you let that control you, you'll eventually do something you'll regret. Trust me on that one." Cinder tried to calm herself with a deep breath, but any calm she attained was lost as Amber took another step forward.

"You have a loving family now. They support you at all turns, right? You have a bright future ahead and many adventures waiting in the wings." Cinder found herself unable to look the earnest girl in the eye. Opting instead to stare at the ground.

"Couldn't that be enough? Just because you don't get the attention from the outlets you deserve, doesn't mean the world hasn't given anything back. And who knows, maybe it still isn't done. My mom always told me, don't waste time looking at the things you want, look at the things you have. Otherwise you might miss something important."

Amber's warm hands closed around Cinder's. Slowly, the dark haired girl looked up into the dark skinned girl's eyes. They were shining with honesty and hope.

"And for the next four years, we can find those things together, as partners. So, let's try to get along and be friends. Because that sounds much better than being at each other's throats for four years. And you're so incredibly beautiful and talented, I want to learn how you manage it all while kicking ass."

Cinder let out a loud snort. "Brothers, you are cheesy. Way to ruin the moment. Are you trying to sound cliché or are you naturally that way?"

Amber smiled warmly. "My mom told me that humor is the best way to release tension." She replied with that usual cheerfulness.

--------------------------------------------------------

A little while later.

Both girls approached Vale's CCT tower. Despite her initial apprehension, Cinder found herself growing to like the dark skinned girl. She was surprisingly funny and was good company. Her only real gripes were her unbearable goody-two-shoes act and her tendency to get touchy-feely.

"So, your family lives in Patch? Why do you need the CCT to talk to them then? Isn't it in Vale?" Amber asked as they approached the tower, Causing Cinder to chuckle.

"Patch has bad reception. Whenever I tried calling from Signal, it wouldn't always sound like my sister had a bad case of the hiccups." She explained. "We found that using the tower just works better. Although my dad is so hopeless with technology, he needed my help every time we came."

Amber laughed lightly as they approached the tower. When it had been first constructed, Cinder had her doubts about it. But after the first few months, she had learned it was the only good thing Atlas had provided.

Being able to talk with her family during her school years had been some of the best times she had. Even when Ruby had blasted her ears out with a high pitch scream of excitement. Thankfully, Summer had managed to teach her to keep it in check.

As they entered the tower plaza, Cinder saw police and huntsmen killing around. They had taken on a defense formation around what looked like a few overturned trucks.

"What the hell?" Cinder said as they approached the area. She could see the police look more than a little tense and the huntsmen were on high alert. This was some ordinary accident.

As they approached, one of the huntsmen stepped forward, baring their path.

"Hold it." He said. "Authorized personnel only. Sorry but you girls will have to turn back." He then grabbed Cinder's arm to try and turn her around by force, something that immediately set the girl off.

"Hey! We're huntresses in training!" Cinder snapped, wrenching her arm out of his grasp. "We only want to look! Piss off and do your own damn job!"

"Cinder." Amber said warningly, stepping between her and the huntsman. "I'm sorry about her behavior, but I am curious about what happened. Nobody got hurt did they?"

The huntsmen stood straight and crossed his arms, glaring down at the girls. "That is top secret. Only certain personnel are permitted to know. Now go away before I remove you by force!"

"I'd like to see you tr-! Mmpphh!" Cinder was cut off as Amber placed her hand over her mouth. Much to the girl's displeasure.

"I'm sorry to bother you! We'll be on our way now!" Amber practically yelled as she tried to drag Cinder off, but the stubborn girl refused to move. When suddenly…

"Just let them look, will ya?" A gruff voice cut in. "They'll see it in tomorrow's paper anyway. Might as well cut the middle man if you ask me."

Both girls looked over to see Qrow walking towards them, hands stuffed into his pockets and back hunched over like he always was.

"Qrow? What are you doing here?" Cinder asked pointedly, to which said huntsmen just grunted in annoyance.

"Is that anyway to say thank you? Geez, kids these days. No respect for their elders." He groaned, rubbing the back of his head.

"Oh, like you're one to talk!"

A loud cough interrupted their argument. "Excuse me, but I don't think it's a good idea for little girls to see-"

"Oh put a sock in it!" Qrow snapped. "I don't care about your need to feel important. Like I said, it'll be all over the news tomorrow anyway. So what's the harm?"

The huntsmen spluttered stupidly, trying to find an answer, letting Qrow the opportunity to push passed him and walked towards the site. After a quick exchange of looks, Amber and Cinder followed.

As they approached, they got a clear view of the wreck, and Cinder heard Amber gasp. And for once she understood why.

Several SDC trucks were laying flipped on their sides. Behind them, several security trucks with blood stains all across the sides. Several dead bodies were strung about around the area and it looked like they had been on the wrong side of a fight.

Despite the damage and the violence demonstrated, the raw dust was left untouched. And there were no other signs of robbery. What the hell happened?

"The Enlightened Seraphim. I'm sure you've heard about them, they're a fanatic group of Vale citizens who want Atlas' complete destruction as punishment for starting the war." Qrow said, answering the unasked question, stepping next to them. "They've been erratic ever since the Vytal festival. The celebration of the peace between Atlas and Vale has caused them to rally, expand their ranks. And while this was probably just the work of some inpatient newcomers, soon they'll make their real move."

Cinder and Amber turned in surprise at Qrow's words. They had known things were getting bad, but they never imagined it was this bad. If left unchecked, it might escalate into something much worse.

"Why now?" Amber asked, confusion in her voice. "Why are a group that primarily consists of radical youths making a move now? They've done small-time crime and the like, but this sounds like an act of potential war. Surely they must know the hammer is going to fall on their heads. Why start a fight they have no hope of surviving?"

Qrow looked over at Amber, a slight glint in his eye. "You've got a good head on your shoulders, kid." He said casually. "You're right, it does seem weird coming out now. But I don't think it's because of choice. From what some of my sources tell me, something forced their hand. Drove them into the open. Or rather someone."

Both girls turned to Qrow, surprise in their eyes. Who would be stupid enough to mess with a gang consisting of several hundred people! All of whom had a history of crime or violence.

"Apparently, whoever it is, they wear a mask to keep their face hidden. Smart move. The police are really on edge right now. One wrong move, and they'll probably go completely insane." Qrow said, walking a little closer to the tipped vehicles. "He has incredible skill in both stealth and direct combat. And has been reported as being vicious and heartless to a fold. He's been running around killing people who had a connection to the organization, going so far as to even beat some of their members to death with his bare hands. What's more, he only attacks at night and apparently, he's skilled enough to even enter high security areas without anyone noticing. So what's essentially a bunch of bikers don't stand a chance against him."

Cinder turned away as she felt her heart drop and her mouth go dry. This sounded very familiar to her.

"It's gotten so bad, the media has given the assassin a name, The Phantom of the Witching hour, as he attacks without warning, then disappears before anyone can catch him." Qrow paused here as he glanced over at the girls. "But then again, you should probably ask your partner. After all, she spent more time around him then I have. Isn't that right, Cinder?"

Surprised, Amber turned to her partner to see the girl's hands clenched so tightly her knuckles were white. Her mouth stretched into a thin line as she trembled with rage.

"Cinder?" Amber said gently, but the girl wasn't there anymore. She was back to that night, lying helplessly on that fire escape glaring up at the masked man. The same helpless feeling taking root in her stomach as she watched the flash bang go off letting him escape.

Cinder's teeth were clenched as fire burned in her eyes. Slowly she looked over at the overturned trucks as that feeling in heart ate away at her.

"Him again." She snarled as she glared at the accident.

--------------------------------------------------------

"Are you sure you don't want to talk to your family?" Amber asked as they made their way back to Beacon. It was late in the evening and getting closer to curfew as they walked through the school yard. They had spent the rest of the day helping the dark haired girl calm down despite Amber not even knowing what had happened.

"It's fine." Cinder answered. "I'll talk to them over the weekend when I'm not in a rush. Besides, if we're too late, the boys will probably destroy the room before we've had a chance to properly settle in."

Despite her calm words, Cinder was still struggling to keep herself from charging after the Phantom. As much as she hated to admit it, she wasn't ready to take on someone at his level yet. Whoever he was, he clearly had more experience and training than her. And clearly he had less humanity in him then her.

Humanity. People throw that word around as if the loss of it was a bad thing. Yet, from her experience a loss of humanity was a good thing. Let a person make the right call even if other weaker people would say it was immoral.

It gave them strength, and that was the important part.

"Good, your back."

Both girls looked up to see professor Goodwitch approaching them. Her stern demeanor caused even Cinder to straighten up as a reflex.

Once she got close enough, she took a note from her pocket and handed it to the girls. "Here, this is the password to your room. It's number 485 on the second floor. Make sure to give it to your other teammates when they get back."

Cinder and Amber exchanged yet another look as Cinder took the note. Then made their way towards the dorms. Once out of earshot of the professor, Amber asked the question on both of their minds.

"Where are the boys?"

///////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Yeah, if you haven't guessed by now, Amber is meant to be Cinder's moral compass. Right now, both girls are on the dangerously far side of their moral alignment. As the story progresses, they'll both have a chance to learn from each other.

As for Cinder getting yet another telling off, I'd like to remind you that self reflection is something Cinder doesn't do, at all. And I mean both in this story and in canon. Hence Amber needing to spell things out to her.

Don't worry, there's one more telling off she'll get for the foreseeable future, then I'll be done for a while. She just needs to have her eyes open a little more before the next part.

Anyway, hope to see you next time. Bye!