A Man of Honor.

Chapter 21: The Line Breaks.

"If tomorrow I go wrong. I would want to be hit so as not to bring harm to this thing of ours." ~ Vito Genovese.

After getting some much needed rest and cleaning up after that lousy heist I finally pulled out my scroll to call Ozpin about the news.

"Mr. Arc, I was hoping you might call me. I trust you saw the news on what happened last night," He said when he first picked up my call. He naturally had a less than pleased tone of voice.

"Yeah... I was there," I told them plainly. I had in fact seen the news on the heist, a bunch of White Fang terrorists having a shootout with the police and blowing up a dust shop was hardly something that people would miss out on.

"I was afraid of that," Ozpin told me with a deep sigh. "Why did you blow up that shop?"

"I didn't!" I hissed, pissed that he would even accuse me of doing something like that. "Roman had me running that job with some guys from the White Fang and they had the hairbrained idea to blast into the back safe when it wouldn't open."

"The White Fang?" Ozpin asked me. That had piqued his curiosity. "So it really was the Fang that robbed that place as the news is reporting."

"Yes, and I'm not talking about us just wearing masks to confuse people. These guys were the real deal, they had me meet them in some cell they were operating on the southside of town. Some guy named Adam was calling the shots there." I explained to him.

"Why didn't you tell me about this sooner?" He asked me.

"This was all last minute," I told him. "Roman was supposed to be there with us but he got called away unexpectedly. The three guys they had me working with didn't listen to a word I said. The safe we were supposed to have the code for wouldn't open and it tripped the alarm. I wanted to leave but they wouldn't go. But instead of drilling like they said they would they blew the safe and the dust inside while I held the cops off."

"So that was you shooting at Vale's finest last night," he said unamused.

"Hey! If it hadn't been me it would have been the White Fang. And they seemed pretty pleased at the idea of it turning into a bloodbath." I explained to him. "If anything I saved lives."

"You must understand that it is difficult to believe that from my position," he told me dryly.

"What the fuck do you want from me Ozpin!?" I snapped. "I can't keep my hands clean in this mission of yours! You wanted me to steal dust and now I'm stealing it! I'm sorry things hit the fan but I'm having to work with what I got!"

"I know that Mr. Arc but you need to also consider where I am coming from. This city is under my protection and when there's bombs going off and shootouts with the police it casts me in doubt. And with the Vytal Festival on the way things are extra sensitive in matters of security. Such public displays of violence and lawlessness are dangerous in my position." He explained to me.

I wanted to reach through the scroll and strangle him. "You wanted results!" I gowled trying to keep my anger in check.

"Yes... but I'm starting to have my doubts on this mission Mr. Arc. What have you really managed to learn in all this time?" He asked me.

"I learned that the dust is for the White Fang," I told him flatly. "They're collecting it for some reason."

"Are... are you sure of this," he said to me.

"Why else would the mob be working with a bunch of faunus terrorists?" I asked him. "That Adam guy even complained to me that the mob wasn't pulling its weight and that he had to lend us muscle for that job.