The Silent Howl

Chapter 16: Best Day Ever?

Inside one of the interrogation rooms at the Vale Police Station, Detective Gumshoe sat opposite of Arlo at a wide table. Arlo kept his gaze down at the table, where a screen that was built inside of the table displayed multiple crime scene photos. Each photo showed an unidentified male victims, each with multiple fatal puncture wounds.

Gumshoe: "You must have been through a lot. You don't even wince at what I'm showing you."

Arlo's eye gave an irritated look, before gesturing to his eyepatch. The detective snorted at the gesture, before taping on the screen to bring up a new photo. Arlo's eye widened when he recognized this one.

The man who led the assassins, the one Neo and himself left alive, had been brutally mutilated. Arms and legs had been severed, throat slit, and a large whole where the man's left eye had been.

Gumshoe: "There it is."

Arlo glanced up at the grizzled detective, who's eyes seemed to bore straight through him.

Gumshoe: "I know the look of recognition quite well. You knew him, but not in a familiarity way. I'm guessing, the two of you fought rather recently. Am I close?"

With a slight head jolt, Alastair materialized on the table in puppy form. Gumshoe glanced at the spirit dog for a moment, before snorting out of amusement.

Gumshoe: "That supposed to be a support animal?"

Alastair: "Something like that."

Gumshoe yelped in surprise as he jumped out of his chair, knocking it backwards as he stared at Alastair.

Alastair: "Calm down, Detective. You wanted answers; this is how I can give them."

Gumshoe: "A little warning would have been nice."

Picking up his chair, Gumshoe sat back down and leaned forward to fully focus on Arlo. From there, Arlo began to tell the Detective what had happened in the span of a full day.

Meanwhile...

As this interrogation occurred, a few rooms over, another was happening. Blake sat in her seat while staring over at the wall, as Professor Ozpin walked inside with a steaming cup of coco in one hand, and a folder in the other.

Ozpin: "Well, this has certainly been an eventful evening."

Blake: "Hmph."

Ozpin kept his calm smile as he sat down across from her, setting his folder down while sipping his drink.

Ozpin: "I'm sure that after a night of thwarting an attempted robbery, and fighting a giant shadow wolf, you probably just want to go home and take a nap. But, I was hoping that maybe we could have a chance to talk."

Blake nodded as she turned herself to properly face the professor.

Blake: "Of course."

Ozpin: "Wonderful. As you know, in order to enroll at my academy, students must first pass a rigorous entrance exam. Most applicants spend years of preparation training at one of the many combat schools around the world. You are one of the few that did not. And you passed the exam with flying colors."

Blake: "I was raised outside the kingdoms. If you can't fight, you can't survive."

Ozpin: "Well, you have most certainly survived, Blake. I admire your drive. And I am proud to run a school that accepts individuals from all walks of life. Rich, poor, Human... Faunus..."

Ozpin took a pause to sip his coco, all the while Blake merely glared daggers at him. Yet, he continued unbothered by the look.

Ozpin: "Why do you wear that bow, Blake? Why hide who you are?"