Intellectual Orange

After I, Silva Branwen, threatened Jacques Gele to leave Atlas immediately, which he complied as I saw he purchased a ticket out of the kingdom, I went back to check up on Willow. I saw her enjoying some vodka with a delighted smile adorning her face, and when the Schnee matriarch noticed my presence, she greeted me.

" Aw, Silva, here to join me?"

" I am still a minor sorry, so I can't be your drinking buddy just yet, Willow."

I replied as I sat across from Willow and asked.

" How are you feeling?"

" Liberated."

She to a sip of her vodka from the bottle and then said.

" I want to ask you something, Silva."

" Ask away."

The Schnee matriarch sets her bottle of alcohol aside and stares into my eyes.

" I was under the impression that you hated Jacques, so why let him leave with enough money to start fresh and with his dignity still attached?"

I laughed at the question as I sincerely found the insulation of me being nice to her ex-husband completely ridiculous, and I explained the method to my madness.

" For starters, if we had left Jacques with nothing to work with, he would have been desperate and willing to do anything for some sort of power which includes manipulating your children to do his bidding, and I think we can both agree that we don't want that sort of thing to happen."

" A fair point, but I don't think that is the only reason you have in mind."

I grinned as I explained myself further.

" I am a firm believer that there are fates worse than death, and regardless of where Jacques goes, he won't last long enough to matter to anyone, and speaking of which..."

I took out my Scroll to see where Willow's ex-husband was planning to scurry off to like the rat that he is and found that he had booked a flight to Mistral, now to spread the scent of blood to all the predators of Mistral's underground. Sending a text message to Lil' Miss to spread the news of Jacques's situation and his current wealth, I muttered with great relish.

" And his fate is sealed."

" What did you do?"

Willow asked me, looking curious, seeing that I had done something on my Scroll, and I answered.

" Your ex-husband is heading to Mistral, and I used my contacts there to ensure that he will find no allies amongst Mistral's upper class, and that money you gave him puts a target on his back since he has no means of defending himself or his last lifeline."

" So Jacques is done for?"

I nodded in confirmation at Willow's question and said.

" The chances of him making a come back are close to nil, and I am going to make sure he has no chance at all."

The Schnee matriarch sighed in relief and grabbed her bottle of vodka, then drank from it before saying.

" Thank you."

" My pleasure."

I replied with an easy smile as I did get myself something special to drink for the occasion as it had been a long time coming. I got myself a bottle of sparkling red grape juice to enjoy as I didn't want to be tempted into the habit of drinking alcohol at 13, going on to 14. Willow raised her bottle towards me, and I clinked against it with my own, and she said.

" To new beginnings."

" And righting old wrongs."

I added as this is just the beginning; by now, Sienna Kahn is the high leader of the White Fang, and I am sure it is only a matter of time before she shows the White Fang's change in policy in the most violent fashion possible. I hope I have succeeded in making the Schnee Dust Company a smaller target, at least but considering Adam Taurus's spitefulness and charisma, I doubt it. But on the plus side, I now have my first guy friend, which made me realize just how surrounded I am by various women in this life. I remembered my first meeting with Arthur Watts a few days ago before bringing Jacques back to Atlas for his divorce.

***

After Winter went to sleep for the night, I sneaked out of the dorm room like usual and made my way to the location where Arthur wanted to meet at. I didn't enter right away as I checked for all possible escape routes and any traps. After a quick sweep of the building, I entered and soon saw the doctor working on a PC as he ate an apple. I quietly moved up to him and got his attention as I stood directly behind him.

" Hello, Dr.Watts; you have business with me?"

He jumped a bit in surprise and appraised me, then commented.

"You're surprisingly quiet despite your size, and I certainly wasn't expecting a faunus to be the mysterious hacker that has access to most of Atlas. Not that I have a problem with your kind, mind you, but the fact you can hack your way into Atlas shows a certain level of knowledge and education that generally isn't available to faunus. So my question is, who exactly are you?"

" I am James Ironwood's secret love child."

I answered with a deadpan tone as Arthur looked incredlously at me, and I couldn't keep my face straight anymore as I cracked up after a few moments. The doctor arched an eyebrow as he said with a disinterested tone.

" Very funny..."

" All joking aside, my name is Silva Branwen."

I extended my paw toward him, and as he grabbed it to shake, I used Soul Archive on him.

" Arthur Watts."

After introducing himself, I organized the new rush of memories and found out that while Arthur has not been in contact with Salem, he is planning on leaving Atlas sometime this year. The reason for his departure was the fact I spread James Ironwood's psychological profile to the entire kingdom, and it confirmed all his thoughts and theories on Tindick's motives and actions. Knowing that regardless of how practical and useful the doctor's Paladin Project was, even if he didn't win James's competition for the next step in national defense, it would still be taken as Atlas's property to be used by the military.

After letting go of my paw Arthur then told me.

" The reason I want to meet you is simple, Mr.Branwen. It is because I was curious about the individual that managed to plant several back-door programs in Atlas's systems similar to myself."

" Oh? You did the same, for what reason?"

I already knew the answer, but I humored him.

" I felt like James Ironwood wasn't someone I could place my trust in, so I acted on the side of caution to ensure my well-being and the treatment of my research and development."

The doctor felt underappreciated and disregarded by the general more often than not, as James's actions of confiscating various research projects, both legal and illegal, left him concerned. Looking through his memories, I had an idea and made an offer to Arthur.

" Dr.Watts, may I be so bold as to make a suggestion?'

" Hmm, what do you have in mind?"

I pitched my idea to him, and as he listened, the doctor looked at me in a different light. After I finished telling him what I intended to do in the future, he said.

" When I found out about you, I was expecting someone more... self-centered, but hearing what you plan on doing, I see I was wrong, and I do find your ideas appealing; seeing that Atlas doesn't appreciate me, I am inclined to go along with you, but I have a concern."

" And that would be?"

I asked, feeling interested in what bothered Arthur, and he answered.

" How do you plan on funding this endeavor of yours?"

If that was all he was worried about, then I knew how to placate him. I dug up my bank account and showed him my current savings, and his eyes widened as he asked me incredulously.

" How does some as young as you have that much, Lein?!"

" Would you believe me if I told you that I am a fairly successful author?"

***

After that, Arthur was on board with what I had in mind for the future, and we then talked shop as I picked his mind on a few ideas I have for some new tech. I might have his knowledge along with the rest of Atlas's scientific community, but I don't have his inherent spark of genius for finding new ideas in preexisting solutions. I kept Willow company until classes in Atlas were nearly over, and before I returned to the dorm room, the Schnee matriarch said to me.

" Silva, before you go, I want to ask for your advice."

" What do you need?"

Willow sighed as she asked.

" I regret... a lot of things but no more so than how my relationship with my children turned out because I married Jacques, and I want to know. How do I make things right?"

" Willow, what's done is done. You can't change the past, but the future is another matter. If you want to reconnect with your children, you need to take it one step at a time, and my advice is this, invite them for a family meal to talk to them and let them know Jacques now has no say in their lives."

The Schnee matriarch considered my words and said with a slight smile.

" A dinner with my children sounds... nice."

" Oh, and I recommend getting a smaller table so that you are in nearer proximity to each other so you can not only show your intentions more clearly but also see their reaction first hand as well."

I gave her one more piece of advice because, from Jacques and Willow's memories, they made use of a pointlessly long table for family dinners. It just seems silly to me to use when you're trying to connect with somebody that is seated several feet away from you. I gave my goodbye to the Schnee matriarch before I left.

" I will see you later, Willow, and good luck."

" Thank you, and I look forward to your next visit."

Now with the Schnee business mostly out of the way, I can focus on getting out from under Tindick's thumb and move on.