章 142: 44
Chapter 44 – Jaunst
Jaune looked down at the scroll that poked through the bars of the cage. The screen shone brightly up into his furry face as he pushed on the touch screen, slowly typing in his message. It was harder than it ought to have been. Mostly thanks to his oversized hands and lack of any fingers. His stubby arms had a tendency to hit two or three letters at once, but he persevered and the girl who held him hostage waited.
"I need to get back to Beacon." He read the words aloud before motioning for her to take it. The scroll was withdrawn, the girl still keeping a respectable distance between them as she looked at it. Her head tilted, fingers flying out to type a message in a tenth of the time it had taken him.
Why should I help you?
Good question. And one he didn't really have an answer to. Because it wouldn't be any effort for her? Not with her Semblance, she could likely drop him off in an instant and be gone before anyone even saw her. But that likely wouldn't be enough to convince her.
Because she was either scared of ghosts or teddy bears, and sending him off would get rid of him? True, but it would be just as easy to drop him into the ocean… and with the cage keeping him trapped, he'd likely be there forever.
He had nothing to offer but the fur on his back, and he was kind of still using that. With a prayer to any higher power, Jaune pressed in another message.
What can I do to make you take me to Beacon?
It probably wasn't wise, leaving himself open like that, but there really were no other options. He was beholden to her willingness to help him, otherwise he was going to be cut off from Blake forever. The girl took back the scroll and read his message. He shivered as she smiled, for the expression was less joyful and more sinister. Like a cat who had finally sprung the trap on her prey.
But he'd do whatever was necessary to return.
"I just hope Blake will forgive me for it…"
The scroll came back, new message in tow. I could return you to the blonde girl with ease. She thought Yang was Blake? He supposed that made sense. She'd taken him from Yang, and it wasn't like she'd know their names. Either way, Yang would see him returned. But if I help you, then you must help me in return.
"As long as it doesn't harm Blake and her team, I will do anything," he wrote and spoke at the same time, pushing the scroll back to her. Maybe he should have explained that Blake was a different girl to the one this person believed, but that felt like giving too much away. If she agreed not to harm the entire team, then it wouldn't matter either way.
I do not care about their team. So long as they do not get in my way I will not hurt them.
Not good enough. This was Team RWBY they were talking about, this was Blake and Ruby all in one. If this dangerous girl was even half as bad as she looked, then their team would be camping outside her door to try and arrest her.
"If you kill her then I die." Was it true, he didn't even know. But the frown on her face as she read the scroll said she believed him either way. If she needed him for something, then she would need him alive. Whatever she wanted him for it couldn't be now… he had nothing to give, and even if he did, she could have just taken it.
That meant she wanted him for something in the future… which meant she needed him alive.
I will injure them if they attack me. But I will not kill. The words seemed tortured, though only in the sense that she snarled as she typed them. It was the best he was going to get. He could tell. Good enough?
Jaune nodded. He knew he was buggered… this was probably going to be illegal, dangerous and immoral… but if he didn't get back to Blake then he'd never be able to apologise for the things he had said. If he had to, he would do anything.
Even if it meant taking another life? He wasn't sure… or rather… no, he was sure – and that was what scared him. Nobody else deserved to die for his happiness.
Do you want to be returned to Blake? The scroll teased him. Her smile taunted him. I can do this. But you will have to help me at a later time. If you refuse, I will kill her and the team. Her lips twisted even further. It would be very easy.
She wasn't even going to tell him what he needed to do… no, of course she wouldn't. She wanted his aid, so it would be best to make sure he had reason to follow. But if he said yes, she would kill Blake if he ever tried to renege on the deal. Could he risk her life like that, and the lives of her team?
Could he not risk it? What was to say she wouldn't become angry at his refusal – and threaten to kill them if he didn't aid her? She held all the cards, and he'd revealed that his life relied on Blake's – as untrue as that might have been. She could blackmail him… but instead she was bribing him. Likely because a willing ally was more valuable than a forced one.
If only that damn mutt hadn't brought me along, none of this would have happened. I'd still be safe in my room… But then Yang would have died. She'd only lived because he had been there.
Damn it all.
"I agree." He nodded, the only action she could understand. There was no response from her. He didn't need one. Not to understand the look of pure satisfaction in her eyes.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Yang slammed a fist into a nearby wall, splintering the plaster – for all the good it did her. The action wasn't nearly cathartic enough. Not with her partner still unconscious in the other room.
And still nobody was explaining anything to them! The stupid Atlas doctor wouldn't say why they needed Blake's damned toy, only that it was important. Did it contain medicine, was it something Semblance related? That would explain why she'd always been so adamant about it, especially when Cardin took it.
It would also explain why she had been so exhausted and weak during the fight with Cardin. Had she been suffering from it, even then? Suffering from what, though? Why does no one explain anything around here!?
And because there was no explanation forthcoming, Miss Goodbitch wasn't going to let them go back to Mountain Glenn. If they even could. The train had set off the Grimm behind them, not to mention collapsed much of the tunnels. If her teddy bear was out there then it was likely under several tonnes of rock.
And for fuck's sake – it was just a teddy bear. She already felt ridiculous even talking about it, let alone concocting a rescue plan for the damn thing.
Another blow shook the wall, plater and paint showering down around her. Fine. If the teachers wouldn't help her then she'd just have to do it herself. How hard could it be to get a Bullhead to fly over there? She could kinda remember where it was… it would be hard to dig through it all but… but…
Tears pricked at the edges of her eyes.
Damn it, Blake would have a lot of explaining to do if, when, she woke up. Making me worry like this. I'll kick your ass for it. Right after I'm done hugging you.
A flash of colour further down the hallway caught Yang's eye. Lessons were currently in effect, though they'd obviously been allowed to skip them in light of Blake. But either way, there shouldn't have been anyone else in the corridors of Beacon at all.
Forget it. Whatever it is, I don't care. Her partner was in agony. She wasn't going to rush around chasing shadows. Not when it was probably just some other students playing truant. She turned away to head back to the infirmary, only for lilac eyes to widen as she heard a whistling sound.
The attack passed overhead as she ducked, the blunt object striking the wall behind her, before a lithe leg struck her midriff, lifting her from the ground. The brawler kicked off the wall mid-flight, using it to spin herself in the air so she could see the dead man who'd decided to piss her off.
Yang's eyes widened as she saw that damned smirk, the tiny girl from the train grinning up at her as she passed overhead. Yang landed clumsily, half-stumbling, half-falling back in panic. Shit, why is she-? Oh gods, is she here to finish me off? Eyes darted left and right. She couldn't afford to fight her here, but the teachers were only a short walk away – they could handle her.
"Sorry pipsqueak," Yang said, with far more confidence than she actually felt. "Just got back from putting your boss behind bars. I don't have time to play." That garnered a scowl from the midget, though whether that was a good thing was in the air. The blonde used the distraction to edge a few steps back. If she could just put a few more feet between them, then it would be enough to turn and run without getting a stiletto heel to the back of the skull.
She didn't have to fight, she didn't have to be the one to distract this girl – and she wouldn't be so stupid as to make the mistake of thinking she could fight her one on one again. People may have called her stupid, but Yang Xiao-Long preferred the term reckless. That didn't mean she couldn't learn a lesson though.
Something rattled, a small metal cage being held up between the two of them. She had just the time to notice what lay within, sitting limply against one of the metal walls.
Before, with a roar of anger, Yang charged.
"Be gentle!" Jaune yelled, as much as he knew he couldn't be heard. Yang impacted the wall with a loud cry, before that was choked off by the smaller girl's hand. The blonde's face was pushed back with enough force to dent the wall, before a knee was driven into her stomach. Yang staggered and spat blood, but refused to surrender.
But that made little difference. Not when his captor ducked beneath Yang's dazed strike, bent her body almost unnaturally – and delivered a heel kick directly to the brawler's temple. Yang went down like a sack of bricks. She didn't even have time to scream.
"You've made your point!" Jaune growled and thumped his arms against the cage, catching the vicious bitch's attention. She lifted the cage up and shrugged, clearly enjoying her victory. With an almost casual flick she clicked the grill door open and shook him out. Jaune had barely hit the floor before he was scrabbling towards Yang.
He couldn't feel, so it wasn't actually possible to check her pulse. But as his furry appendage touched her neck, he could clearly see the way her skin rose and fell. She was alive… as promised.
A rasp of steel echoed behind him. Showing that such could be changed all too quickly.
Remember, the scroll she held out read. Renege on our bargain, or tell anyone about it, and I will make sure she suffers. The blade came down – and he tried to stop it – only to be flicked aside by the point. Instead he could only watch forlorn as the tip traced delicately over Yang's larynx. Almost as though it were tracing intricate little patterns.
"Yang!" An excited voice cried, "Blake's aura is calming down! She's-" Jaune fell limp almost instinctively, even as the figure above Yang and he turned to look down the corridor. From where he lay he could only make out the sounds, though it was hard to misunderstand the scream of pure rage that came from Ruby's lips. "Get away from my sister!" Metal shifted, the distinctive sound of Crescent Rose deploying as the tiny reaper dashed down the corridor.
Remember, the devil mouthed and winked at him, even as the scythe cut through her.
But there was no blood… instead only shimmering pieces of glass that scattered into the wind, mixing with rose petals as the red-hooded girl stood protectively over her downed sister.
But even with the girl gone, he couldn't forget what she expected of him.
His deal with the devil.
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