White Noise over the Past's Shadows (1)

"Sometimes friends make mistakes. Grievous ones that cry out for us to stay and prove we are true friends." – Beth Bernobich

~John's POV~

My awakening was a peaceful and quiet one.

I could hear birds chirping eagerly under the kind sunrays bathing them in light, the warm breeze tending over my tired body as I quietly started to look around at where I was.

My first thought was that this wasn't Atlas.

There was no snow on the tree branches up above my head, no signs of ice, or even the dreadful and chilling temperature that should have gotten my body stiff and aching after sleeping without… my bandages.

I glanced at my hands and realized that I was indeed missing the wounds that had been causing me quite the annoyances until now.

Glancing up and around my proximity, I found myself blinking calmly as I was graced with a sense of peace as I continued to study the natural heaven.

The mystical silence, adding to the pleasant loneliness the dense forest exuded, soothed me from going into a panic. My body slowly woke up as I started to better examine what I was looking at.

The chances that I had been kidnapped and dropped somewhere were slim if not nonexistent.

Considering the level of security in Atlas, even in the poor district where I had unceremoniously made a close encounter with the floor via pain-induced fainting, there were some guards wandering around, and I couldn't see why dropping me here of all places would be a smart decision for a kidnapper.

I certainly wasn't in the Grimmlands, thus I hadn't been scooped out by anyone working in Mami Salami's group. There wasn't even a hint of the pool of corruptions created by Salem to generate Grimm, nor I could hear anything that could dignify the presence of some dangerous animal nearby.

As there was no one else to socialize with, I tried mentally asking Ozpin for any answers to the many questions in my head.

When nothing but uninterrupted silence answered me, I paused to ponder what this could be.

Either it was another sign that things were far from fine, or perhaps this was the former Headmaster merely being a jerk by not responding to my questioning.

...No, he wouldn't try to do anything this cruel, despite how little he seemed to care about life after spending centuries of leading people to an assured death.

It was at that point that I threw the maddest idea that I had in the handful of theories within my head.

Could it be that this was my very own mindscape?

I couldn't exactly deny the possibility, nor I could confirm it without major clues… yet I had something where I could start from.

Considering that I felt in top-shape compared to how I felt before being forced to unconsciousness and that I had no bandages/injuries like I was supposed to still have, the hypothesis that I had been indeed yanked deep in my psyche seemed to gain more and more foundation the more I thought about it.

Still, as I stood up from the bed of grass and flowers, my eyes scanned around my surroundings once again, before proceeding to venture deeper into this lovely garden.

My steps were slow in order to me to be mindful of making any unwanted sound. Despite initially feeling like I was the only one in this forest-like haven, a gut-feeling was now making me feel that that I wasn't alone out in this strange place.

I was keeping a healthy closeness to some of the trees as to use some of those to shield myself from any eventual ambushes that I might found myself targeted by.

I didn't have anything to defend myself, no back up and… who knows, maybe this wasn't actually a mindscape.

Maybe this was much much worse than I wanted it to be.

I sighed as I finally caught something burning in the distance. A mix of smell and distinct noise, the odor of something being consumed by some flames, the little smoke rising from one of the sections within the forest.

It was a small light-gray smoke and-

It had to be a controlled fire, someone had set a camp here.

Tension rose as I continued with my search, hoping that this wasn't a horrible situation just like I was expecting it to be, rightfully so after having 'missed' some brutal karmic retribution in the last few weeks.

The injury at the hand? It was quite the limited problem compared to getting my head tattered by some Beowolf or my arm severed by a certain battle-lusting woman.

I paused in my steps, my brain pondering the pros and cons of approaching the clear presence of some sentient being, my eyes sharpening as I decided, begrudgingly so, that I had to see who was there.

Maybe it was some little camper, maybe this wasn't something born from my brain and… maybe I just needed to take another nap. A few hours should be enough time to get the last bits of uneasiness off my back.

Sadly, I couldn't have just gone and taken some more rest, at least not until I had verified whom was lurking around those woods, if it was a friendly individual or something to worry about.

The noise of fire increased the more I sneaked closer to the area in question, my intention being to move through the bushes as to avoid meeting up with any unpleasant being lingering in the area and… I was finally given the chance to glance at the glade where the bonfire was created.

A pair of hands was close to the edges of the fire, the pale skin and the delicate fingers careful enough to not get too close and risk some burning.

She was wearing a pair of brown bracers, my eyes moving up to notice the two dressed overlapping, the outer white one covering mostly the gray-colored one that had a green-blue crystal embed by the clavicle.

I stared up right… into her face-

...Oh no.

She blinked, slowly retracting her hands as her light-blue-eyed stare was now directed at me.

The terribly-familiar woman was giving me a fascinated look, as if she knew already where I was, behind some bushes.

OH FUCK N-!

I tried to bail, turning around as I was ready to bolt away from the clear sight of pure danger and possible torture.

But just as I gave my back and made my first step directed away from that trap, I found myself… stopped in my preventive blitz out of that horrible predicament.

A reddish hue was now coating my body, and I tensed up as I found myself incapable of moving out of that scary magic grip.

"I don't want to harm you," A gentle whisper that was easily denied by thunderous thoughts of panic and fear, my legs trembling as I tried to break out of that hold. "You… will not be harmed."

As if I was going to fall in that blatant attempt to corrupt me!

"I mean it." She continued, this time her voice turning whiny.

Soon I felt her magic slowly pull me closer to the bonfire, or at least close enough to 'listen' to her words.

Struggling wasn't working, my sudden lack of strength against the supernatural energy manipulating my physical capacities to surrender to her request intensifying the need of running out of that situation.

Nonononono-

"I'm not… her."

Sure-

"I really mean it!" The blonde repeated with a huff. "I'm not the Queen of Grimm."

"And I'm Santa Claus-"

…

"You do look quite portly-"

"S-Shut up!" I snarled back with a little bit of embarrassment.

Salem sighed. "Sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"Y-you are like an illusion. There is no way that-"

"I could be here, 'ruining' your chances of success by 'corrupting'… you?" She concluded this little interruption with a skeptical note, more than enough to fluster/anger me even more.

"I-I'm not that fat!"

"But you aren't certainly as fit as was… Ozma."

I had been struggling against the magical hold, but then I stopped wide-eyed at the mentioning of the real name of the Wizard.

Why would she tell me his name when… she doesn't know that I was aware of it?

The woman blinked and sighed, eyes closing as she ended the incantation holding me from running.

I felt the pressure on my body lessening to nothing, the capacity to move independently restored moments later as I found myself tensing at the quiet sight I was given by the magical user.

Salem had a saddened look as she looked up from her uneasy posture and nodded. "I'm… sorry."

...What?

Actually, what the goddamn fuck I'm listening to?!

I didn't restrain myself in showing my incredible confusion and shock at what was currently happening and the woman merely nodded.

"I- I know this is difficult to explain, and that you have all the reasons to… hate me," She said slowly, stuttering in quite the uncharacteristic way. It was different from the strong and fierce individual displayed by Jinn. "But my presence here isn't… connected to her. I'm not her."

There was a tense pause, I found myself quietened by the storm crashing inside my head as I thought well about what I was looking at.

This was… the human version of Salem, which shouldn't be there as she and Mami Salami were the same person.

They were still whole, they had to be still whole.

…

But what if-

No, I… I can't just trust her. Not now, not… ever.

Yet it couldn't be wrong to… consider the chances here, the strange details of this unplanned and unexpected encounter.

She seemed so genuine, the blonde barely giving off any resemblance to the angry individual that waged war against the Gods before becoming a shell of its kinder self by turning herself to the darkest pit of the world.

…

But what if this wasn't the truth?

"Who are you?" I asked carefully, gauging her reaction as she slowly looked at me with some surprise. "If you aren't the Queen of the Grimm, who are you?"

More silence, the pause extending to some more seconds before she blinked and spoke.

"I… I'm Salem," The woman replied cautiously. "And… I'm lost."

"Lost?" I quickly asked with some confusion dripping in my voice, causing her to nod once more.

"I shouldn't be… there. I shouldn't be creating these problems to you, I shouldn't be a bur-"

"No, stop," I interjected swiftly, my eyes narrowing at that odd escalation. Seriously, what was going on with her?

I was still skeptical from probing for more information as I was quite doubtful of her full authenticity, but then again it wouldn't be wrong to think that… maybe there was some sense in her words.

How would have Salem entered in my mind?

Despite the massive feat she was known for by the series, her magic wouldn't be able to mindcontrol someone… this far from her grasp.

And to appear so vulnerable and so genuinely so was just… too much. Why? WHY!?

Instead of trying to press her for more, my little fury was killed by what was happening to the blonde.

Tears were swelling, she looked a mess ready to crack and I was still standing there like a moron trying to figure out what the hell is wrong with my brain.

"I-I thought I was doing the right thing by- by bringing him back," She sniffed, falling back on her previous seat. "I- Why did I do that? Why… Why did I attack my own children!?"

Her hands were up to her face, covering her expression while I silently witnessed this mental breakdown, immensely confused about it.

WhyWhyWhyWhyWhyWHYWHYWHYWHYWHYWHY!

"Why." I finally spoke.

A single word, one that barely sounded like a query but that still got a reaction out of the grieving woman.

The blonde sobbed, her hands barely moving as she tried her best to reply to this and-

"I- I don't know!" Salem replied loudly, shivering as her tears continued to fall freely and without hesitation. "I-I remember- I was falling in the pit, I could remember the pressure, the pain a-and then-"

…

She paused just for a moment.

…

"I w-woke up in this forest," The woman continued, still trembling and crying. "I was alone- I thought that I was alone, and that this was just my own exile after what I did."

I took a seat near the bonfire as she narrated what she could about her presence in my mind.

"It was… so strange, so quiet and… and then I found this place," Salem described, her right palm slowly gesturing this little section of the forest. "I thought it was a sign of civilization, that I had been somehow been recovered before losing myself into the pool and then I tried to experience the warmth of the flames."

She stopped, once again staring at the continuous fire raging within the limitations imposed by the small light-gray rocks circling the never-dying pieces of wood fueling the natural agent of destruction.

"I… didn't found just the warmth," She said softly, her hands finally lowering as she gave a solid glance at me. "I… I found your knowledge."

...No. That's not something go-

"There is so much about what happened to me after I had turned into… that-"

Nonono. Don't continue down this-

"A-And then I killed him again, why would I-"

I beg you, don't do this-

"These four girls-"

If there is a God, and by God I mean someone overpowered but not also a jerk, then please help me or-

"And..." Salem stopped in her tirade, most of it lost in the current headache born from this discovery.

This wasn't good. This wasn't… acceptable.

Finally, after calming down a little, I noticed the blush on her face, her tears briefly interrupted as the blonde found it difficult to talk about what was next.

"For the love of life and everything else, don't finish that sentence," I replied sternly and almost begging her to.

She blinked at my soft outburst, feeling fairly surprised by my own embarrassment as I couldn't certainly control my own embarrassment and…

"You are odd," The woman blurted without thinking. "Like… you are really odd."

And this was coming from the one that lived the first two decades of her life stuck in a tower.

"Is your bluntness part of your charm, lady?"

She scoffed, shaking her head as for a moment the sadness seemed to vanish.

"As your sass is."

I blinked, a little smile twitching on my face. "Then it is~."

She frowned. "I'm not-"

"Too late and… how about we share a serious conversation," I proposed in a mindful tone, noticing almost immediately her tensing up but she didn't resume with her crying.

"Wh-What about?"

"You are not the evil, murdery Queen ruling by the Grimmlands," I started to explain. "Your last memory before getting 'here' was going for the 'turning'."

She nodded and so I continued.

"Now, from my understanding this is my mindscape, so you are technically in the same predicament as Ozzie,"

The woman's eyes widened. "O-Ozma?"

"The latest reincarnation," I nodded with an unsure look. "He isn't the same as back then, kind of become something 'similar' to a gray character but just becoming a poor manipulator at best."

"Ozma's plans are usually prone to failure," Salem sighed tiredly while shaking her head. "I could remember when he tried to create a new table for the library but ended up conjuring a dragon."

I faked a flinch. "How extensive was the damage?"

"E-Enough to revoke bed's privileges for three nights." The woman replied with a mirthful tone, a giggle drowned in her throat.

Ah, who would have thought that Ozzie was this much whipped.

"Returning back to the serious stuff," I said quickly, knowing that I had to quickly find a way to wake up considering how I had left stuff in the real world before going unconscious.

One can wonder how much time would it take for a concerned tiger to maul a friendly moron like me while I'm unconscious.

"So yes, there is an Ozzie here and no, he isn't your Ozma. Or at least not the man you married with his quirks and flaws," I summarized calmly. "I'm surprised he has yet to join this discussion, but maybe it's best he is kept blissfully unaware of this new development and- actually, do you know when you appeared chronologically speaking?"

"I… I think it was about the time you reached… that island. Menagerie?"

Annoyingly unspecific. Dammit.

"Well, I guess that is-"

BAM!

"Aw!- What?!"

I felt a powerful hit land on my cheek, almost sending me tripping backward with the suddenness of the blow.

Salem's eyes widened in surprise. "What's wrong?"

"I- Someone punched me and-"

SLAM!

SBAM!

SLAP!

SLAP!

O-Okay, what the hell is- GOING- OW- OVER- OUCH- HERE-AHW!

I blinked, finding myself pulled away from my mind and back to the real world.

And boy, was the real world turning into a world of pain as I realized that whoever had began beating the crap out of me was still going happily at it.

My sore body could barely move, especially with some of the constraints keeping me in the medical table when-

I blinked multiple times, my eyes narrowing as I tried to adjust to the blinding light coming from above, to try and see who was my aggressor and…

The beating stopped-

-Right as I noticed that Sienna was looking at me in surprise, her closed fists restrained in that very moment and stopping with its previous hitting.

"Y-You are back!"

"Restrain her! The patient is-!"

But before the guards could move in to stop the crazed-looking Faunus, I felt her entire weight plummeting right onto my poor bones.

[What a lovely woman, is she your-]

N-No, we are just friend and-

Before I could conclude, in the midst of that chaotic mess, I could distinctly hear some loud purring coming from the woman straddling close to me while she repeatedly whispered 'Thank yous' right onto my ear.

[Oh. I guess it's 'that' kind of friend.]

G-Goddammit, Sienna!

~Sienna's POV~

Moving John back to their room proved to be fairly awkward and uneasy, especially after the little scene she had gone with after getting overwhelmed by the various developments dispatched at once.

The human had returned back to the base mostly unscathed… but unconscious and bringing two more Faunus with him, a child with his mother.

Both had been following back to the headquarters, the woman looking nervous herself but she was soon granted some diplomatic immunity by Sienna on the ground that they were 'applying to join Menagerie'.

More paperwork, but that issue wasn't as concerning as the one presented by the comatose state her 'adjutant' had returned with and the way the man helping him back to the base looked to be affected by it.

The doctor with him, Watts, was seen muttering under his breath about 'a miracle', his wide eyes making him looking a mix of mad and shocked at whatever had happened while they were out.

He underwent a brief checkup, his hyperventilation causing the other doctors to promptly intervene before it could have turned into something a little more serious than just panic.

Still the aftermath proved to be fairly awkward because of how she had reacted to it all.

Maybe it was worry, maybe it was the fact that this has been the second freak accident that got the human to suffer something bad or… maybe she was just too stressed to deal with this kind of madness.

Silence was granted to the two of them, the room proving to be oddly easing of the insanity ensuing just moments prior returning to the 'safety' of the bed.

Yes, she had decided to not leave the now-more-bruised human in the couch, deciding to give half of the mattress to the partially-groaning man while they both stared at the ceiling of the bed.

If the Tiger Faunus had to be honest to herself, maybe showing so many emotions at once might have not been a particularly stellar idea.

Especially with the now-awake John, having some more bandages over his head after her little stunt caused by panic, stress and a little meltdown.

Maybe she should have expected some bad reactions at her 'rough-rousing', but to actually feel this much pressured by the human's irritated posture in the bed did make her feel like a naughty child that just got caught breaking the cookie jar.

"I'm sor-"

"You are a moron," The young man interrupted with a huff. "You know, considering the overall situation of today, I would have expected this moment to be the opposite of how it is right now but..."

He tried to shrug, the effort ending before its conclusion as his sore arm didn't manage the full action. "You did 'that'."

Her ears flapped down at that emphasized comment.

"I-It's was just the rush of the moment," The young woman admitted, her tone tight but giving some insight over her inner stress. "You should know about this after-"

"Beating doesn't sound like a solution to a state of pseudo-coma, Sienna," He commented over her explanation.

"And 'punching a sword without an Aura' is?"

"Since it actually saved a life and the damage is done upon myself- Yes!" I shot his arms up in a fit of anger. "Like- Why beating me?!"

… "I… I didn't thought it that well."

"I just want to know why?" He pressed on with some insistence, slowly turning to look at her. "I understand the worry and all of that but-"

He paused, his eyes going wide open for a moment and causing her to frown back at him… but it was in that very moment that she felt something trail down the side of her cheek.

A tear, then two.

Her left hand reached the edges of her eyes as she slowly began drying the wet sensations developing there. "C-Continue."

John blinked, but didn't comply with her request as he silently stared at her as she went through with this annoying activity.

Why now? Why would tears happen now of all times?

Why not before he woke up? Why not while he wasn't there to see?

Now a can of worm would have to be opened, mostly because she knew how persisting the young man was over this kind of situations.

"It was allergy," She spoke once again.

The human turned to once more stare at the ceiling, the furious expression now gone from his blank face. "Hm."

…

"I swear it-"

"I know," He interjected with a quiet voice. "I understand you don't wish to talk about whatever this is about."

…

What?

"There is no backstory," Sienna replied fiercely. "I really had a bad allergy moment and-"

"Sienna, you are the one that told me that you don't have any allergy."

…

…

"What if I said I lied back then?"

This time her query was met with silence, the human seemingly distracted with his own thoughts and that was quite the odd development.

Where was the pestering she had expected? Where was the probing for more juicy details?

"Are you… alright?"

He hummed. "A little tired. It's nighttime."

The woman quietly nodded, her eyes glancing at him.

"It never stopped you before from asking," The Tiger Faunus pointed out carefully.

"I'm still recovering from a beating," He replied sassily, causing her to flinch. "Plus, it wouldn't help you if I asked you now."

She lifted a curious eyebrow at that. "Care to elaborate that bit?"

He sighed, finally turning to glance right at her inquiring orbs.

"You are currently recovering from the stress of those few days, the little 'show of affection' proving that you aren't exactly well-receptive of positive help," The human explained softly. "So, for now I will just avoid causing you further stress-"

"I-It's not that, it's not you," The young woman interjected with some surprise. "I just feel like you are being too careless while helping others. Too much for it to be… healthy."

He blinked and nodded. "You are correct."

Her ears twitched. "Really?"

"I've been exposing myself to danger way too much in these few days," He replied with a sigh. "I guess that I need to put my mind back on some self-preservation or things could escalate to an ugly end."

And what an ugly end, she admitted to herself as she compared the odds the young man had endured until now.

It reminded her far too much of the carelessness that led to her father's death.

Lack of self-control in his selflessness and his easy-to-trust nature saw him killed in one of the protests before the foundation of the White Fang.

'You need to keep a smile on, always, or the world will never grant you the joys you want to experience.'

What a foolish statement.

Smiles can do so much until those turn stale and ineffective, so dull and emotionless.

"Sienna."

Her mind left the memory lane and she resumed the real world right on that very moment, his words bringing her back out of her mind.

"Yes?"

"Do you dislike humans?" He asked tentatively. "I don't mean as full-hating, but just like… how much of the society works. How flawed we are with our morality."

Now, wasn't that an interesting question?

Humans were flawed, but so were Faunus. This very concept wasn't difficult for someone as perceptive as she was to notice, but it wasn't easy to explain in simple words.

What difference made the latter stand out to the former? One had more freedom of choice, and decided to mostly succumb to some horrible path of despair-giving without much hesitation about it.

Humans were resourceful, but it was their number that made them so incredibly difficult to face in a 'fair fight'.

Faunus had their own abilities, making them of higher quality compared to simple humans.

Yet, the answer to that question wasn't something as lengthy or confusion-inducing.

"I dislike foolish ones," She ultimately answered.

John nodded and didn't pursue any conversation from this point, basking in the quiet note of the night as the two of them continued to calmly stay awake in that normal quiet.

How odd was it that there was no embarrassment from that predicament? How curious it was that she couldn't help but enjoy the little warmth she was gaining by his proximity.

"John."

Her voice broke through the transparent veil.

"Yes?" He asked softly.

"Are you… afraid of me?"

A pause followed, but the young man seemed to be thinking about this and thus she didn't push him for some answer.

Finally, he nodded.

"No," He stated resolutely. "I'm not generally afraid of you."

"But you are afraid of me in specific cases?"

"I don't like beatings for one," He repeated with more sass, at this point the flinch replaced by snorts from the young woman. "But I guess the unique case that would get me genuinely scared is… if I manage to get you ready to hurt me for the sake of hurting me."

...What?

"Is it wrong for me to think that my greatest fear I had about you was fighting you after doing something bad myself?"

She blinked perplexed at that followup, skeptical about having an answer to that.

"It depends on the circumstances," Sienna concluded with a hum. "It's a legitimate concern since you do care. I think you do."

He nodded at that and she continued.

"But you are also wrong to make it much of a big issue out of it," She admitted with a shake of head. "We are already past the point you can make me angry with some random madness."

"Oh," He replied 'smartly', nodding again as he resumed his staring up at the ceiling. "Understood."

Another pause ensued, but this time the fatigue was finally catching up on the young woman.

"John."

He hummed again, too tired to reply to that.

"Would you be mad if… I wanted to rest a little closer to you?"

…

"Why?"

"The pillow here is too cold and sturdy."

A stupid excuse, one that was born from quick panic and nervousness for even blurting that silly proposition.

She was ready for a refusal-

"If it's for the pillow… sure."

And she didn't get that much to her inner surprise.

She merely gave a distracted nod, shifting closer to the already eyes-closed human, almost ready to fall to sleep once again.

She felt her eyelids slightly dropping as to follow the human, a yawn drowned before leaving through her lips as she snuggled her head on the softer pillow where John was resting his head and… she fell asleep.

Sadly for Sienna, her stressed rest would see her move during her sleep and… John couldn't help but dream that someone was purring right onto his chest during the rest of his silly happy nightmares.