The Games We Play

DISCLAIMER: This story is NOT MINE IN ANY WAY. That honor has gone to the beautiful bastard Ryugii. This has been pulled from his Spacebattle publishment. Anyway on with the show...errr read.

Alerts

Once skeletal branches were now adorned in leaves and flowers of every color, blossoms growing on bark and branch as much as anywhere else. Standing out against it were deep discolorations where Autumn had once been wrapped around the tree, marking where the organic material of the two plants had melded together to create something new. Though once an Ash tree, the plant amalgam seemed unable to decide what it would be now and its structure and design varied from branch to branch, the bulk of its truck shuddering and shifting occasionally as it followed suit. Around the lesion-like remnants of their fusion, the tree's bark seemed to ripple in slow motion, setting down patterns and colors and even the occasional half-formed image as it changed. In one place it might be smooth, in another covered by almost scale-like patterns, though some of the oddity was hidden by the growth of the even stranger flowers.

Before, the flowers had been varied, the result of many different plants coming together. A lotus might burn with the colors of fall or a carnation might slowly take on more aspects of a lily, slowly creating something distinct and different and new in each blossom—but all leading back to some recognizable source, if you knew what to look for. A specific flower might combine a shape with a strange color or a find a middle point between two extremes, but you could still see where it came from.

But Autumn had grown beyond such things now. Flowers I couldn't identify grew from the wood of the tree or rose from the dirt around it, reaching up from the roots. A flower would fall away and something more vibrant rise in its place, white petals catching the light strangely and sending it back in opalescent shades. A fern-like leaf would twitch once and close, as if growing in reverse. Vines would fall from branches and twitch occasionally, curling oddly. I could recognize it all, ascribe traits to plants I'd seen and studied and knew existed—but they weren't plants I'd given to Autumn.

It was strange. What had once been a simple tree now seemed almost alien, something unreal. Beautiful in some ways, but also something that put you on edge, something that looked wrong. And yet…

"You've grown a lot," I said, smiling. Though someone else might have been frightened or alarmed, I wasn't off put in the slightest by Autumn's changes. Part of that may have been the Gamer's Mind, part of it might have been that I knew my own power—and part of it might have simply been that I was feeling bizarrely…hopeful. And to the extent that I felt nervous, it was for a different reason. "I've said it before, but…my name's Jaune Arc. I was the one who…well, who woke you up. I'm kind of your father, you could say. I, uh, I even gave you a name. Autumn, because you survived the Summer and because you have such beautiful leaves…do you know what Summer is? Or what, um….can you understand what I'm saying, now?"

Autumn's branches creaked slightly as they moved, shifting unnaturally in the windless night. There was the sound of leaves moving and brushing together, but even that seemed…off. Deliberate, maybe?

But she reacted to my words. She'd moved. It was still slow, cautious, and careful, but she'd reacted. I'd spent all night Observing her closely as I urged her to grow just a bit more. I'd leveled up Green Thumb greatly in the last few weeks and I knew Autumn's own skills had improved as she'd grown, but this…

I'd actually done it. Before I left for Mistral, I'd wanted to do at least this much, to guarantee nothing went wrong in my absence. As she'd grown ever bigger, I'd known that taking her with me would be unfeasible, but I needed to ensure that she'd be okay. In the body of an ancient tree with roots set firmly down, supported by the many plants she'd made a part of herself, I knew that she'd survive—and if I'd gotten her far enough to be able to understand what I was saying and react to my words…

It was thanks to my new skills, I thought with a fierce grin. I'd strongly suspected that reaching a hundred would give me something good, but three skills? That had surprised even me.

Medium Mana Capacity (Passive) LV1 EXP: 0.00%

An ability given to the few mana users that are born with an exceptional ability to handle mana.

Mana-based attacks are 15% stronger.

10% less MP used for all attacks.

Mana Regeneration (Passive) LV1 EXP: 0.00%

An ability given to those with a special heritage that allows for faster recovery of MP.

MP regeneration increased by 100%.

Clairvoyance (Active) LV1 EXP: 0.00% MP: 50

An ability given to those with the natural ability to clearly perceive the world through forms of Extrasensory Perception. Takes the form of enhanced visual acuity and perception beyond the limits of normal eyesight, as well as optical interpretation of information. Range, breadth, and visual processing increase with skill level, INT, and through related abilities.

Additional 50 MP used per minute.

All three were powerful skills even separately. Together, though? They were something else, both for what they said and what they didn't say. Medium Mana Capacity, even beyond the cost reduction to my other skills, seemed to have…well, increased my Mana Capacity, despite nothing indicating it. I wasn't sure why that was the case—perhaps it was a set amount that did not change as the skill improved?—but it was and it meant I suddenly had a lot more MP to work with, especially with Mana Regeneration assisting it. Boosting my passive MP regeneration from one percent to two percent on top of my increased MP meant I could maintain far more skills than before, as well as restore my full power much more quickly.

Clairvoyance, the random ability I'd gotten for going over a hundred INT, didn't play into that combination directly, but made up for it by simply being an amazing ability all around—so much so that I had to wonder if it was truly a random selection at all. Had I gotten lucky or had I gotten Lucky? Either way, I'd struck gold when I received it. At its most basic level, it improved my sight, allowing me to see far further and more clearly then I had with even Lenore—but then my Affinities and Skills came into play.

I wasn't sure if it was because I was a game character, but…really, it reminded me a great deal of some of the games I played. Sonar vision from Levant, thermal from Suryasta, what I assumed was EMF from either Vulturnus or Crocea Mors—or perhaps both—the list went on and on. For a long time, I'd used them to perceive such things for me and notify me in abstract was, but now…now I could see it for myself.

And it didn't stop there. Perhaps it was because of my meditation or past experiences, but…surrounding Autumn, Gou, myself, and everything around us…I could see Auras as clearly as if I was wearing Lenore, if not more so. When I'd used my power on Autumn, encouraged her growth with my own energy, I'd been able to see it with my eyes as well as feel it. When it came to applying Aura, the addition of 'sight' to what had formerly been only 'touch'…

Gou barked, drawing me out of my thoughts and self-praise. He stood beside Autumn, front paws on the tree's truck and head stretched back to look at me. I saw patterns of dark colored Aura ripple and pulse around him, colliding with Autumn's own in a prismatic display as the tree continued to shift.

I frowned.

"Autumn?" I said again, watching her continue to sway her limbs, brows furrowing in concern as I approached carefully. Of course, she didn't reply except perhaps by shifting herself in my direction a bit more than others. Almost as if… "Oh. Oh, no. Shit."

I continued my approach until I touched the tree as Gou had, hands flat against the truck. The movement of her branches halted as we touched—or rather, as my Aura touched her own.

God damn it…

"I'd hoped that as you grew, with so many plants and such a high level…" I sighed quietly, the happiness I'd felt at my power and success draining swiftly away. "But of course, you can't see, can you? The way you perceive the world is…"

I reached out beyond her trunk, Aura extending to grasp her own. I held her like that for a moment, watching the light of my soul surround her own as she calmed, quieting slowly at the contact. I'd just been thinking of how much of a difference even one additional sense made when it came to Aura, but Autumn…Autumn was blind. And deaf and numb and—

"I…dammit," I whispered, suddenly feeling exhausted and awful. "It's…I just…"

I wondered to do. I mean…the life I'd created had suddenly gained awareness of the world, not merely as a plant but as a truly sapient creature—and one locked within a body that could not see or hear or feel, but for the touch of another's Aura. Something like that…

It was a problem I had to make a priority. In comparison, the trip to Mistral was effectively meaningless; I couldn't leave her alone and scared for days or weeks, even if she could survive without me. If she'd been able to see and hear…that might have been different. I could have left her with my father, if I couldn't find another solution, or made plans, or…but…

No, I told myself. First of all, none of that mattered. I shoved it from my thoughts and focused, gathering my power. As I touched her Aura with my own, I shifted my power in a careful pattern, tracing slowly.

"Can you hear me?" I said pointlessly. I wasn't communicating with her through sound, but through the touch of my Aura—and not in the form of words, either, for what grasp would she have of language? Instead, I tried to give a feeling, to express something without words to someone who wouldn't understand anything I said. Really, what I was trying to do was something ridiculous, akin to teaching a language I didn't know to a newborn. If it was possible at all, it'd take years of trial and error to slowly establish meaning between us, but…

But if it was me…

"Please…" I said quietly, repeating the message carefully, again and again and again. "Please…"

A skill has been created through a special action! Through the repeated connection of souls, the skill 'Floral Communion' has been created to speak with plant life!

Floral Communion (Passive) LV1 EXP: 0.00% MP: 40

The ability to comprehend and communicate with plants. At this level, simple communication with an appropriate target is possible, limited by the target's Intelligence and sense of its surroundings, as well as their ability to respond to stimuli.

Increased closeness with plants.

Duration: 30 minutes.

"Yes!" I near shouted, smiling again. "Hell yes! Thank you!"

Of course, with my ability, something like this was nothing. Really, I've done way crazier things, this was just—

I used the skill and tried again, 'speaking' slowly to make sure I was understood. It wasn't much at all like talking, but it was something, and I was able to tell the nascent mind within the tree that I was here for her, who I was, and what was happening. I was able to connect my mind to hers slowly and hear her respond, however sluggishly. And so I tried to explain and allay her fears, keeping things simple as I did, even as I used the skill frequently to try and improve it. With my improved MP and Mana Regeneration, and with the skill's duration…I cast it until I had almost no MP, and while the skill lingered, regained MP to cast it even more.

As the skill improved, I tried to explain things to her, though I wasn't sure how much she truly grasped. I explained that I'd created her and how and why, told her about the world around her and tried to paint it in a way that she could understand. More than that, I tried to explain my power as the Gamer, tried to somehow convey what it meant. My power, the party system, the points she had…was that the solution? It might well have been, but how did I explain that to someone who had no reference point?

Perhaps I should try something else. An Elemental, perhaps? I wasn't sure if it would work for this, but I could certainly try. Or, if not for me, then perhaps she could use an Elemental? The Affinity required for the skill and how difficult such a thing was to get for anyone who wasn't me rendered the ability pretty much impossible for me to teach to others—but if anyone was likely to have a…Plant Affinity, one would imagine it would be a sentient plant. I had options, was the point, I just had to figure out—

A screen appeared before me so suddenly that I nearly stumbled back. It was one I didn't recognize, yellow in color, and I would have sworn at it if the Gamer's Mind hadn't calmed me. Instead, I look a deep breath and looked at it, figuring it might actually be important.

I stared.

You have 1 new message!

"What…?" I murmured, looking around as if I might find a message box somewhere. I had a new message? What kind of message? From who? And how? The only messages I got were from—

I paused before reaching into my Inventory with one hand, fishing out my scroll. Sure enough, the light was blinking, indicating that I had a new message.

I eyed it strangely. I suppose it wasn't that odd, relatively speaking. In games where you had scrolls and such, it wasn't uncommon for you to get an alert when you got something—except I never had, even when I'd gotten messages in the past, so what was going on? Had my power changed somehow or…

No, I thought as something occurred to me. This was something new and it just so happened that I had just gotten something new. I'd turned off most of my abilities to maximize my MP regeneration, but I'd left several on for being useful—including my new Clairvoyance. I'd kept it because being able to see my Aura made 'speaking' with it that much easier, but…

It had interacted with my Elemental Affinities, I mused. Could it be interacting with…I suppose it would be the Gamer's Body? It wasn't that hard to believe; the information I got from Observe appeared to me in the form of a pop-up window, so I knew stuff could work like that, but I hadn't…

It didn't matter, I thought. Though a part of me was tempted to just ignore the damn thing, only a few people had my number, none of whom would call me for no reason—especially at this time of night. So I opened it, keeping one had on Autumn's trunk reassuringly, and checked my messages. It was from Adam, I noticed with a bit of surprise.

We need to talk. Meet me at the shop.

I pondered the terse message with a slight frown, musing over it. 'The shop' meant Tukson's, of course, but for Adam to call me and request a meeting…

"He probably just wants to hang out," I said to myself. "Get me that drink he owes me."

I waited for a moment to see if I believed that and shook my head. Even though I'd sent some messages to Ozpin and things were beginning to calm down a bit, they were still very much on the edge and Adam—Jian Bing's most well-known accomplice—probably wouldn't risk meeting here in Vale just to hang out. I'd figured we wouldn't meet each other for another few months, in fact. For him to call me this early meant…I had no idea what it meant.

Trouble, I guess. And if it was trouble, Adam either needed my help, in which case it must have been very dangerous, or else wanted to warn me about something, in which case it must have been catastrophically dangerous. Either way, I should go see what he had to say.

But…with Autumn still in this state…leaving would probably mean abandoning her for hours. Maybe longer, if things were bad, and possibly a lot longer if things were really, really bad. A part of me wanted to swear, because good God, nearly two months of peace and things choose to pop up now?

I considered asking him to meet me here instead, but would that have been too risky? Adam was a wanted criminal, while I was…well, an even more wanted criminal, but better hidden. Walking around when he didn't have to, coming to my house…logic and wisdom said I shouldn't risk it, but…

I nearly growled when I heard something that made me turn around; the sound of another screen appearing—

And again, I stared. It would have been a normal status screen, if not for the fact that it was completely blank and released a strange, alternating hum.

"What the…?" I muttered, frowning as I tilted my head. What was this supposed to mean? Was it another new window caused by my Clairvoyance? And if so, what was it trying to tell me? Or—

I looked up at Autumn.

"Is this yours?" I asked, both aloud and with my power.

For a moment, there was no reply.

And then she started melting, branches beginning to droop under their own weight as bark liquefied and droplets of plant matter fell to the ground.

"What the fuck!?" I swore, immediately trying to heal her. I used Soulforge first, pulling out a Dust crystal when it did nothing. When that didn't work either, I tried Regeneration and Green Thumb, but neither made a difference. I started panicking—

I exhaled slowly and used Observe. Her HP was full, I noted in relief, so whatever was happening wasn't hurting her in that sense. I skimmed her stats quickly on my way to her statuses—

My gaze snapped back up as I caught something, mouth opening.

WIS: 111

As I stared, Autumn shuddered once before abruptly falling to the ground in a splash of liquid plant matter that sent Gou running back, whining in distress. I swallowed once, Observing her again—she was alive but…

The puddle stirred as something began to rise from it. For a moment, it was a misshaped blob of gleaming fluid, but it quickly seemed to solidify into something…I wasn't sure how to describe it. Like a snake, perhaps, but not; tough-looking green flesh in place of scales, a flat expanse where the eyes should be, and a mouth with teeth as long as my hand—

It fell back into a puddle an instant later and rose anew, forming something that could have been the upper body of a human, if a human had no head and four arms and was made of intertwining branches—but again, it liquefied and returned to the ground.

For a moment, the fluid was still enough that I considered approaching, but in a sudden flurry of motion it rose into a spiked expanse of whites and red, like a giant starfish made out of barbs and thorns. It held that form for a moment and I had a sudden feeling that I was being watched, even though there was nothing indicating eyes. But then that too fell away and it returned to a quicksilver expanse.

After a moment, it began to shift and swirl like a whirlpool, fluid rushing towards the center even as it shrunk in size—

And all of a sudden, there was a rose, rising serenely from the dirt. Not a bush, even, but more like something one might find in a vase, dismissing the fact that it seemed to have roots.

I hesitated for a moment and then approached, kneeling beside it to touch the stem with a finger.

"Autumn?" I asked. "Are you okay?"

The rose shifted, blossom turning to face me, even turning it in a gesture that reminded me bizarrely of someone tilting their head.

I exhaled harded, shaking my head.

"I…" I searched for the words and couldn't find them, but at last settled on a smile. "Hello. Hello, Autumn. I'm Jaune."

I couldn't actually say I had the slightest clue what had just happened or how I was supposed to react to it. I mean, I could make a pretty educated guess that in raising her Wisdom over a hundred, Autumn had either gained a new skill or greatly increased the effect of one she already had, but…wow. I had not seen this coming and it was…something.

But if there was anything I was becoming really good at, it was rolling with the punches, literally or metaphorically. I took a moment to process the situation and accepted it as strange, important, and definitely in need of further investigation—but also helpful in solving what had previously been a major problem. Given the situation, I was willing to put it aside for a time, until other matters could be addressed.

Which was how I ended up walking through Vale in the dim light of morning. Looped around the wrist of my left hand was a leash that connected to Gou's collar, the dog trotting happily along by my side with a panting, doggy grin. Autumn was curled around my right arm.

And I meant curled. When I'd picked her up, her stem had shimmered momentarily before bifurcating up to the blossom, both ends stretching and curling around my forearm in a crisscrossing pattern that left me with a bracer of binding stems leading up to a flower that sat atop my wrist like a liking watch. More alarming were the inch-long thorns it sprouted, more reminiscent of an Atlesian Blackberry then a rose, but I was fortunately very durable. I stretched my Aura to cloak Autumn as well and allowed my Vitality and Physical Endurance to reduce the damage from the vines to almost nothing, with a bit of Regeneration and some periodic healing taking care of the rest.

Still, I'd need to sit down and talk to her about it as soon as possible. While it didn't bother me any more than Gou's bites had before it, someone without the durability of a hunter could find themselves seriously hurt by it. Worse, it seemed like it was only a matter of time until she learned the tricks of one of the many, many, many poisonous plants that inhabited Remnant, at which point she might honestly kill people. Right now, she was still just a mostly blind child holding onto her father and dawning her defense mechanisms in preparation of a potential threat, but…

I pat her reassuringly as she squeezed my arm rhythmically—probably more to feel the vibrations caused by my heart beat than anything else—and was once more reminded that someone without the training and defenses of a Hunter would be dying very quickly right now, bleeding out through dozens of deep cuts.

Then again, I'd spent an alarming amount of time in situations that would have killed me…huh; a little over three months ago, now. And it was quite possible that I was about to add another mark to that particular tally. As just, I felt justified in being cautious.

As I turned down the street towards Tukson's book trade and slowed my pace to cast my gaze over the street once with my normal eyes before calling upon my Clairvoyance, causing the world to shift. It was hard to describe how things looked when my skill made them clear, not because the effects weren't obvious—because good God were they hard to miss—but because…it was like…

It was hard to describe. Human sight is trichromatic. That is, we perceive three 'types' of color, mixed in thousands and thousands of different ways to paint the world we see. It's more complicated than that and there are a bunch of factors that can affect it, but that's the basic idea. However…if you've ever seen a picture of the Electromagnetic Spectrum, the section for visible light is just this tiny sliver.

What if you could see a bit more? What if, instead of three primary colors, you saw the world with four? Or five? Or even more?

I wasn't sure how many I was seeing right now, but it must have been quite a few. Color swirled for a moment before settling and…I could still see everything the same way on one level, but on another…Something that should have been black glowed with neon light. Things that had long since faded from human sight marked the world in splatters and streaks while color hummed throughout everything, rising into the air. And…I made it sound like those were separate things, but they weren't. They were all happening at the same time. To everything.

That's the world under the full power of my Clairvoyance—my so called 'clear sight.' And it was clear, in a way, like I was seeing through a window that was smeared with mud for everyone else. But that much clarity…it was like a light that illuminated to the point of blindness. I had to focus to make any sense of it, draw individual forms of perception from the chaos. Maybe later, when the skill was leveled after weeks or months of use, I'd be able to look the whole picture, but as it was now I had to take glimpses.

But even so, a tiny fraction of what Clairvoyance could show me was still more than most people would believe. With the store technically closed and business afoot, the windows of Tukson's store were opaque, hiding everything inside.

I peered through them from several hundred feet away, looking into the front of the shop and then through the parted curtain of the back as I switched my sight, seeing two people. One was Adam, the other Tukson.

Drawing back, I kept walking, glancing around a bit to see if anything else was afoot. I was cautious—or, I preferred to think, smart—but I wasn't worried about them betraying me or anything. I mean, I wasn't stupid; I knew Adam's loyalty was to his people first and foremost. But I also knew that we were still friends and that in the short time we'd known each other, we'd gone through a lot. He knew I wasn't prejudiced against the Faunus and that I'd risk my life to protect them if I had to. Even if I assumed that he was cold enough to just call a friend out somewhere and kill them for being in the way, which really didn't seem to be the case, I was pretty sure he had no reason to do so to me. Tukson, one of the more peaceful members of the White Fang, I especially couldn't see going along with it without dropping some hint of warning. And even beyond that…I trusted both of them.

That did not, however, mean I was completely at ease. In fact, because I trusted Adam, I treated this seriously, making sure I didn't see anything unusual. After confirming that Adam and Tukson were alone and there were no suspicious individuals eavesdropping, I made sure nothing else stood out. No strange men stood nearby, no oddly placed electronics, nothing. The area seemed clean. The only question was…

I felt my lips twitch as something caught my eye, colored brightly in the light only I could see. I checked around again to make sure no one was watching, that I wouldn't give anything away—and then waved at one of the nearby rooftops. There was no reply, but I saw her react.

It was possibly, vaguely, vaguely possible that I was using caution as an excuse to play with my new toy, but God, I felt like a secret agent. A movie secret agent, that is; not one that shifts through people's trash and makes phone calls, fun as that could sometimes be.

"If only I had a suit," I lamented to Gou, who looked up at me with delighted incomprehension.

I walked down to Tukson's store and entered with barely a knock.

"Sup, Adam, Tukson," I said even before they came into sight, simply because it made me feel cool. "We gonna leave Blake out in the cold?"

Adam brushed the curtain and looked me up and down, not seeming impressed by my remark, much less off put.

"What's with the rose?" Adam asked, immediately assailing the foundation of my suaveness.

"It's my daughter," I said a bit curtly.

At that, he actually did pause. He looked at me silently for a moment, watching me with a blank expression before replying.

"I don't know how to process that," He said at last, to which I shrugged. He opened his mouth and raised a finger, preparing to ask something—and then seemed to change his mind at the last second, pointing to Gou instead. "You got a dog, huh?"

"Yup," I replied easily. "His name's Gou. But seriously, is this guy's night or something?"

"It is now, I guess," He mused, shrugging at my glance and elaborating. "Blake doesn't like dogs."

I raised an eyebrow.

"Isn't that kind of…cliché?" I asked, trying not to smile.

"Underneath Blake's poised exterior lays a very grumpy cat," Adam said solemnly before smirking ever so slightly and kneeling to scratch Gou's ears. Where a month ago, that would have gotten him a probably-meaningless bite, now the dog allowed the contact, sniffing Adam's hand. "Tail's gone?"

"Took off the title," I answered, looking down at him. It struck me suddenly that Adam was beating around the bush.

Wow. This must have been pretty bad if Adam was hesitant to address it. I mean, if we were talking about cliché's, Adam was the bull in a…well, book shop, currently, but the fact remained. He could be subtle, careful, even cautious, but given the choice…

In fact…

Several thoughts connected all at once and I looked over my shoulder.

"Blake might not like dogs," I said, feeling the thought out. "But she was out there before I showed up. I thought maybe she was on watch, but…if you thought there was a chance you were being followed, you wouldn't be here, would you?"

"No," Adam said, light gleaming off his mask. "I wouldn't."

"Then why…?"

"Because it's White Fang business," He said, standing. "And above her pay grade."

Maybe that was true, I thought. But it seemed safe to assume it also meant 'she wouldn't approve.'

"White Fang stuff," I said aloud. "Stuff you can't even tell Blake? Then why tell me? Is this about Jian Bing?"

"No," He shook his head before pausing. "Yes. Maybe. I don't know."

"That covers just about everything," I nodded.

"There's something going on in Mistral," Adam said, ignoring my remark. "A deal that's been in the works for a while, maybe pushed forward by…you know what. The White Fang's putting the finishing touches on negotiations with…someone."

"And I'm going to Mistral," I nodded, absently wondering how he knew that. "But, uh…if this is big White Fang stuff, why not just…not tell me? I mean, you know I'm not gonna rat you out or anything, but it doesn't have a lot to do with me, either. So…why tell me about something you wouldn't tell Blake?"

"Because, you'll be in Mistral," He answered. "And I have zero faith in your ability to keep from getting wrapped up in this somehow."

That seemed fair, I acknowledged, but…

"That's not all," I said, belief the words firming as I gave them voice. "There's more at stake here…you said this was pushed ahead by what I did? Do they want me to…?"

"Yes," He said and then. "And no. It's complicated."

"I can tell." I frowned.

"After word got out about your name and success…it got a lot of attention and interest," Adam shrugged. "A lot of people want to meet you, bring you in on things, get you involved. But at the same time…"

"No one knows a thing about me," I guessed. "Or what I think about things or what I intend to do. It's like a lot of people want to listen to me, but no one can guess what I'll say. Right?"

"Basically," He said, making me squint at him.

"And if she knew, Blake would want me to say one thing," I said. "And you and the leaders of the White Fang would want me to say something else. Right?"

"Basically," He repeated, sighing.

I cracked my neck.

"You should know already," I said. "I don't have a solution to the White Fang's problem. I can't appear and tell everyone to lay down their arms and embrace tactics that almost certainly won't work…but I can't truly support the things they do, either. If you're worried or hoping I'll make an appearance…"

He nodded, unsurprised.

"I know," He said. "I already told the others you probably won't attend, but I figured you should at least know about it. Like I said, with your luck, there's a real chance of you getting involved somehow and I really don't want you to stumble into this blind."

'The others.'

I occurred to me that I never did find out what exactly Adam did in the White Fang, beyond break faces. I mean, I'd had my suspicions, of course—I didn't want to stereotype because everyone has a hobby, but his grasp of socioeconomics and politics was a bit better than I would have expected from, say, an enforcer. And now he was apparently playing the role of emissary to Jian Bing with everyone just accepting it…

In fact, thinking about it, I never found out what role Blake played, either. Really, the only member whose purposes I actually knew was Tukson's.

I glanced at the store owner who toiled in the back room as we talked. He kept his head down and stayed out of the way—but I noted that he was still inside, despite Blake being kicked out.

Maybe, I appended. Maybe I knew what Tukson did.

"Okay," I said. "Thanks for the heads up. I take it that means you'll be in Mistral, then?"

Adam shrugged. I took it as a yes.

"Blake coming, too?" I wondered.

He grunted. I took that as a yes, too.

"Maybe I'll see you guys there, then."

"Hopefully not," He said, giving me a half smirk. "But probably yes. See you later."

He stepped passed me, reaching for the door.

"Hey," I stopped him suddenly and saw him turn his head slightly to show he was listening. "Can I ask you something? Well, two things, really?"

"Eh," He said, but didn't leave.

"Out of curiosity, how'd you know I was going to Mistral?"

"Maybe we were keeping tabs on you," He said, sounding amusing.

"My mom's been training me," I answered.

Adam clicked his tongue.

"Poor you."

"She's spent the last two months nearby." I continued, though I smiled at his words. I guess she had a reputation. "You weren't keeping tabs on me."

He chuckled.

"Fair enough," He said. "But you already know, don't you? How paperwork falls in all sorts of hands…"

"Ouch," I said, trying to keep from smiling even as I felt a little concerned. "You would use my own spy magic against me?"

"Absolutely," He smirked. "Though I only saw it by accident. I recommend not being obvious about it if you don't want a lot of attention drawn you way, but you might want to look into why you're mother's going to Mistral in the first place."

"I'll do that," I nodded. "And…again, out of curiosity—and yeah, actually, you probably shouldn't tell me even if I won't say anything, but…who are the White Fang negotiating with?"

"You're right," Adam said, opening the door. "I shouldn't tell you."

As he turned around to close the door, though, he stopped for a moment and shrugged.

"A human," He said.

"A human," I repeated. "Like me?"

"No," Adam shook his head, closing the door. "Not like you."