We spent the morning helping the Oranges preparing documentation for the meeting between the Menagerian delegation and our own. The Military Admin Adjutant that had been sent to assist us with selecting and gathering the files that we needed had been even less than useless. He clearly didn't really know what files he needed, and when he finally decided to just tell us everything they needed, rather than one file at a time, he decided to inform us that physical copies of the files would be required. Copies we have barely two hours to make and get to the Starlight Tower.

Now, in fairness, most of that rant is probably partially the stress, frustration and copious amount of caffeine talking. But fewer things frustrate me more than the brand of apathy and idiocy that only really rears its head when Atlas meets with Menagerie. The first time it happened, I thought it was just a bad mess-up as sometimes happens in any career. But it happened the second time. And the third. And now it's happening a fourth time. And as the old saying unfortunately goes: Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is a pattern (or enemy action, depending on the situation).

So after longer than my sanity could take, I finished the file I was working on, and stood up. I emptied my coffee cup of its contents, and made my way through the Archives to Glover's office.

"Royce." I addressed Glover by name as I stepped inside. "I'm gonna take a walk. Clear my head a bit."

"Hm."

Okay, that's not alarming at all, is it? "Is something wrong, sir?"

"Captain Stirling has been suspiciously quiet." Glover said with a sigh. "The Greys will be keeping an eye on him, but the Captaincy is convinced he'll try something."

"Which is exactly what we need." I snarked, my voice thick with sarcasm. "The most racist man in the Military is up to something the very week that the Menagerian Ambassadors are in Atlas. That isn't suspicious in the least, is it?"

Glover gave a grunt in response, and took a deep sip of coffee. "Go take that walk, Casper. You're getting frustrated. And given you're usually the sanest person in the room these days, it'd be better for all of us if you've a clear head."

I offered a half-hearted salute to my Captain, and ducked out of the Archives building. A couple of my fellow archivists were also outside, sneaking in a cigarette or two before returning to the hecticness of the office.

I opted to just take a walk around the main academy building. The air was beginning to cool now, as Summer faded away, and Fall took hold.

"Things are that bad, huh?"

Approaching me, dressed in the white, blue and red uniform of the Atlesian Specialists was someone I actually recognised. Although it had taken me a moment, as her olive green hair was now cut short save for a braid on the left side of her face.

"Nonette?" She had been one of the students that had checked in with them during his breaks, and had taken care of Cinder during the Paladin Incident. Judging by her uniform, she stayed in the military after graduation. "You made Specialist?"

"Mhm, I did indeed!. Same with the rest of Team NYYT" She grinned. "Doing our duty to the Kingdom and all that. Someone even had the bright idea to have us be the bodyguards of our in-coming visitors. Honestly, you win one Vytal Tournament, and suddenly the higher-ups roll you out like a trophy at every opportunity."

I fought back a grin. Whilst Cinder and I hadn't managed to go to either the 70AW or 72AW Vytal Festival Tournament, we had watched them on TV (with popcorn!). The final of the latter had been hard fought, with the Atlesian Team achieving victory in the final by the slimmest of margins. Nonette's teammate (one of the Yesta twins, if I recalled things correctly.) managed to snatch a victory by aura exhaustion against a member of a team from Vacuo. It was a close thing, almost resulting in a draw.

But as the Vacuan had hit aura exhaustion mere seconds before the Yesta twin did, Atlas claimed a victory.

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

"Moving up in the world then."

"Fuck you Casper." She let out a cheerful laugh. "You know we don't mind doing it, but it's a fairly boring assignment. We're not expecting trouble, and the Menagerian's apparently aren't the type to start it."

"Just be careful, alright? Their visit isn't exactly going to be popular outside the Military."

"Hey, at the end of the day it's just guard duty." She shrugged. "What's the worst that can happen?"

"Don't go tempting Fate now, Specialist." I replied with a faint grin. "She is a petty bitch, after all."

"True enough!" Nonette clapped her hands. "Now! Tell me about the Little Lady. How's she doing these days?"

My grin widened, and I fell into a companionable conversation with the young woman, trying (and failing) not to boast about my little girl.

__________

Menagerie was, according to the Vytal Peace Accords, not permitted a military in any form. No navy, or airfleet or ground forces. For a number of decades after the Great War, Mistral had even objected to them even having a police-slash-self defense force, but after it was revealed that the Mistralli Government had on more than one occasion tried to smuggle Grimm to their island home (the only place on Remnant that didn't have Grimm no less), even Atlas had put their foot down and called their ally out on their bullshit.

It was this thought that ran through the head of Sienna Khan as she kept her gaze at the ever approaching form of the City of Atlas on the horizon with the ugly, urban sprawl of Mantle beneath it. Stood on the bridge of the MV Audumla, she kept her lack of confidence in this delegation to herself. Ghira trusted her to have his back, and she would not undermine him, even if her faith in the Atlesian's was…minimal, at best.

She was there as the head of security on the trip, as well as the representative of the Menagerian Outreach Group, affectionately known to Menagerie's citizens (and less affectionately by the wider world) as the White Fang. Ghira would be the Fang's representative himself, but as he was officially going to Atlas as Menagerie's Representative, their own laws prevented him from holding two positions. And unlike some Kingdoms that would remain unnamed, they at least prided themselves on not being corrupt.

So it was after considerable thought that they had bought a Sky-Sailor from YAMATO Shipyards to serve as their sole diplomatic Vessel.

The foremost shipbuilders of Remnant hadn't even sold them a second-hand or unfinished vessel. Sienna supposed it was due to valuing their name and brand too much to let a subpar vessel bear their name.

It still cost them considerably more than it probably should have done though. The Mistralli based Company had to do something so as to not appear as to be treating Faunus as equals after all, and charging them at least fifteen million Lien more than the Sky-Sailor was actually worth was clearly their way of doing so.

They had named it the Audumla (after the first Chieftain of Menagerie). Vacuo had been sent an ambassador to witness the launch of the vessel, the memory of their last Queen still kept fondly in their hearts. Vale too had sent someone, but Mistral had launched a protest with the Vytal Courts, claiming their having a vessel for diplomatic purposes violated the VPA.

Atlas had, predictably and thankfully, kept out of the whole thing.

"No matter how many times I see it, I cannot help but find the City of Atlas impressive." A familiar voice filled her ears. Ghira Belladonna, Designated Successor to the Chieftainship of Menagerie, loving husband and father and one of her oldest friends took up a spot at her side. "Even if I might not want to, sometimes."

"..Try growing up beneath it." Sienna replied quietly.

"I am sorry for dragging you back here." Ghira told her in a genuinely apologetic tone. "I know you don't have many good memories of this place."

His friend and colleague let out an almost wistful sigh. "If I thought my homeland was beyond saving, I wouldn't miss it nearly as much as I do."