Chapter 6: Settling in (1)
"The best way to find out if you can trust somebody is to trust them." – Ernest Hemingway
Chapter 6: Settling in (1)
Kuo Kuana was the very representation of what one would imagine by thinking of a penal colony. An incredibly large settlement with so many people and buildings, while a good 75% of the rest of the island was conceded to the Grimm.
As we reached the capital of Menagerie, I was quickly briefed by Ghira with details regarding the city.
A homely settlement with so many people cramped all together. It wasn't that much of a ill thought to compare the real meaning of the sub-nation to the current predicament, especially with how crazy some laws here were.
The judicial system was a joke compared to modern nations, some issues legally settled by brawls in the local arena and the government was highly-centered in the hands of the Chieftain.
Speaking of leaders, I almost forgot to remind everyone that… it wasn't Ghira this time around. The man was still leading the White Fang, but the reason behind his sudden ascension to ruler of the island came in the form of blatant nepotism.
Zardula Lavana, Kali's father, was the benevolent leader of the Menagerie and one of the co-founders of the White Fang. Slightly taller than his daughter, the elder was still a bit shorter than Ghira. His face was a little wrinkled, signs of tiredness from having done so much in a lifetime permanently plastered on it.
When we all reached the large mansion owned by the Belladonna-Lavana family, I was kind of surprised to see Blake skipping in a moment of childish glee towards her grandfather. She jumped as soon she was close enough to him and the old man picked her with a careful hold. "Grandpa!"
He chuckled and raised the child up for a moment before bring her close to his chest. "Little Blake." She giggled and I cracked a smile at the scene. It was interesting to see that the girl had been this much cheerful in her childhood… but I was also reminded that the man wasn't mentioned in the Canon and he looks very old now. Man, my mind can be such a bummer once in a while…
As Zardula finished greeting Ghira and Kali, his stare turned towards me… and the kids.
Actually, I think I need to make a small step back in the narration as… my current situation was complicated in that moment. I was still making use of the wheelchair as my Aura-less ass was quite slow to heal up and my body was still strained from the previous predicaments, while the children were… doing something odd.
I had expected Nora to actually pick a free seat on my legs to keep the closest possible- but to see Ren not only join but also lead to some misadventures was quite the shocker.
You see, when you are given a wheelchair, your hands are supposed to move the wheels (at least this model required this kind of action). When the two incredibly curious kids took hold over the wheels, I was still 'sluggish' with my reaction time and-
"B-BOTH OF YOU STOP!" Leaving the airship had been the scariest thing as I had to move the chair through the various obstacles in the attempt of limiting the collateral damage. A true nightmare…
Anyway, as the elder took us to his office, I bowed my head respectfully at him once he had reached for his desk. "Chieftain Lavana." I waited for a reply and… nothing came back. Blinking at the lack of a response, I raised my stare up back to the man and I found him narrowing his eyes at… Nora?
The orange-haired child was staring back with a challenging stare. I blinked again, this time trying to hide the sudden pain erupting from my knee as Nora's nails were pressing onto my skin.
While I would comment how funny a situation I was looking at, a child and an old man engaging in a staring challenge, I think everyone could forgive me if I found the big picture bleak as this continued. We were the only three humans in Menagerie and… wasn't the Faunus Rights War supposed to have ended few decades ago?
WW2 wasn't something I was trying to achieve in this war- oh right, context. If a human dies in Menagerie, no matter what kind of nationality (or lacking one in my case), and the other Kingdoms caught news of that… then there would have been some War for 'Honor' or 'Duty'. Wouldn't be surprised if Atlas used the Casus Belli to literally enforce another, more humiliating peace.
So I went for the peaceful approach and placed my hand on Nora's head. The girl reacted to the sudden interaction with a blink, then her eyelids closed a little as I proceeded to caress carefully her hair.
Finally Zardula took notice of me (and just me), his stare softening a little. "Your child looks fiery." My smile widened a little at the words of the elder and I nodded.
"She is also very silly once in a while." Cue the Valkyrie glancing back with a small, mock-pout, continuing to accept my ministrations.
The Chieftain nodded, sparing just a passing glance at Ren as the boy avoided to have eye-contact with him, either because he didn't trust the Faunus or because he was just conscious of what I was trying to do. He was a smart cookie, I wouldn't pass up that possibility.
"I suppose they would feel quite intimidated by the circumstances." I had to force myself to not flinch at what he was referring to, forming up some response that would dissuade the man from that kind of theory.
"They don't know about that aspect of life, Chieftain." I started, my attention taken by Ren as his inquisitive pink eyes looked at me. If the show was 100% to believe from, then Ren and Nora were unaware of Faunus until before we encountered the community two days ago.
"Just two kids and… a very unlucky man?" A snort left the elder's mouth as I pointed at the cast around my arm.
"I can see that… but I also find you quite the unusual human, Mr. Bukharin." He paused just a brief moment, then nodded. "I hope you understand that I find your interest in joining Menagerie and the White Fang… surprising."
I nodded and he sighed. "Then I am sure you will also understand why I find it difficult to find this notion truthful and genuine." His words were expected. A punch in the guts, but expected.
Distrust was still a bitter, common thing in this world and I was sure that mere words wouldn't be enough to prove my honesty. Acta, no verba.
I blinked, my lips sealed in a thin line. "What do you wish for me to do then, Chieftain?"
The question reached a partly-surprised Zardula, the man possibly expecting that I was going to call some non-existing bluff for the sake of surviving in this situation but…
I was genuinely interested in joining the White Fang.
"I would want you to leave Menagerie and never bother us ever again." Shit. "-But I wouldn't forgive myself if I threw two children back in Mistral."
So… I was literally not getting kicked out of the island… because of Nora and Ren being with me?
Part of me was completely embarrassed by the fact that my plans were being possible because the elder had a soft spot for kids, being a grandpa and all, but it was also true that this wasn't something I had planned. It was a predicament that literally slammed on myself and… I shouldn't be feeling guilty about it.
"My daughter said that you are good with Economics." The leader spoke once more, drawing my attention back to him. "I think I will put you on probation about a job as an assistant for the bank. Nothing too much important and I would know if you… are honest about your intentions."
I nodded, putting some effort to not scowl at the job proposal.
I don't have anything against bankers, or anything bank-related… but the administrative duties were not something to scoff at. After all, I did spend some time with some former bankers while studying Economics and I did hear some unpleasant experience during while they worked there.
Biting down any protests, I merely nodded. "I humbly accept your kind offer, Chieftain-" "Call me Zardula."
I blinked and frowned at the interruption. "Wouldn't that be disrespec-"
He sighed. "I gave you the permission to call me as such, young man." My mouth closed instinctively and I barely glanced back as the elder looked at… one of the guards by the doors.
Wait, did I seriously forget about the guards? As I facepalmed myself within my mind, I found myself freezing up as I ended up noticing whom was guarding the entrance.
While the young man by the door was a silver-haired dog Faunus which I knew nothing about, the one on the other side was incredibly familiar.
Two orange eyes stared back, scorn barely hidden as her tiger-like cat ears twitched in frustration at the situation. Her brown hair was longer than the few moments she was seen in canon, but I could easily recognize- "Sienna, you will be the Mr. Bukharin's minder for the time being. Please… don't fail me again."
...Are you kidding?!
The bustling streets of Menagerie, which had been used in RWBY to induce some relief out to replace some difficult and dramatic scene, were hardly calming my nerves down.
Moving just what was needed to get the wheelchair going, I continued to keep a constant eye on the young woman I was following, knowing well-enough that she was doing the same about me.
While Sienna Khan was a very little developed character because Adam went full Stalin on her in Volume 5, the way she was mentioned, the way she had turned an entire peaceful organization in a full-fledged 'Red Army' was something that said much about her resourcefulness and her ambitious zeal.
In a direct fight I would be turned into mincemeat the moment I tried to reach out for my shotgun, but her death in canon pointed out her greatest weakness in an indirect fight.
She was too proud and too much paranoid to genuinely create a decentralized system to administer the White Fang and that caused the almost bloodless coup that saw her forcibly removed from power.
Hotheaded, she was supposedly easy to lead in a fight… but that was a silly edge to have, especially since I was pretty much useless in any confrontations as of now.
"We are here." Her tone was tightly restrained and I was half-convinced that she was studying my murder without bringing attention on herself. If that was the case then I would be more than happy to say that we were sharing something in common.
Moving my attention away from planning her death, I glanced curiously at the small household that was supposed to be 'owned' by me.
It had just one floor and it was incredibly cramped inside. A single bathroom, two bedrooms and a medium-sized living room with kitchen mixed in. My expectations were a little higher than this but… I could work around it.
As I had stated just now, the place was just one floor now, but given time and money, I could easily expand it and get it two or three floors taller.
I smiled a little and ignored the frown coming from Sienna. Maybe she was expecting me to actually whine about the size of the little flat but… I had much worse than this.
"So you are going to join us for lunch?" Her frown deepened but she entered inside the house without saying nothing. I took it as a 'yes' and, after sending Ren and Nora to wash their hands, I was checking what was inside the fridge.
Some veggies and fruits, some fishes and… is that a salami?
Picking the piece of meat out from the cold, I stared at it with some hunger. It's been a while…
Picking a small knife and some bread, I started to make eight sandwiches with the delicious meat, two for each individuals and… paused as I found Sienna giving me a long look.
It wasn't a hateful one, something quite surprising, but one of confusion and… hunger?
I shrugged at it, hoping that it wasn't going to kill me anytime soon and waited for the children to arrive. Nora was the first one to rush out of the bathroom, her blue eyes quickly locking onto her waiting plate and she eagerly blitzed through the room for it.
She gave a quick look my direction, a thankful one, before munching at her sandwiches. Ren appeared slowly after, his pink eyes staring first at me, then at Sienna and finally at his own plate.
With a small smile, the young boy started to take the first bites out of the bread, smiling just a little as the taste was more than acceptable. I wonder if his family had been vegan but… I think it was too late now to discover that.
My eyes were set on the only one person that wasn't eating, the Faunus refusing to satisfy her need for food and I sighed, picking my own sandwich and getting a bite out of it. Moments passed and I could see her hesitantly reach out for the treats offered, pausing a moment to contemplate whenever or not I had 'poisoned' her food, then she took it in her hands and… here is the first bite.
Munching it a little, she gulped it down and… slowly started to eat the rest of it. Then she moved to the second and finally… she stared at me.
It was right in that moment that I noticed that the stare wasn't for me but for my second sandwich. I narrowed my eyes at the silent request and was about to vocally deny her-
And for some reason I still offered it to her. I frowned, Nora giggled in her hands and Ren tried to appear clueless about what had just happened.
I looked at my hands, then as the smug-looking Faunus as she consumed my second treat slowly and cockily.
What the heck has just happened?
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