This is an AU centered around Jaune as a police officer in the VCPD. Originally spawned from the prompt 'Nora is a mafia princess', I went with that but ended up writing this... I do have the whole current cast (and more...) planned to be put in, so don't worry if your favorite character hasn't come in just yet! Feedback will be appreciated greatly, so please drop a review/comment!

So without further ado, enjoy!

(21/1/2013: Updated Chapter 1)

"Hey... You ever wonder why we're here?"

"Huh? What?" VCPD Officer Jaune Arc looked up from the passenger seat of the cruiser, turning towards the source of the voice.

"It's appreciation." Sergeant Winchester continued his pseudo-philosophical rambling as he lounged on the driver's seat, having just finished counting off bills and a small bag of Dust shards. He casually raked his fingers through his short cropped brown hair, grinning to himself in the mirror.

"We keep the good citizens of Vale safe from their own stupidity and we do it so well that they decide we should be paid our dues directly, rather than have some greedy mayor tax out his own undeserved share." With a grand gesture he spread his arms wide and grinned at his imagined audience.

"In short, my simple friend, this is the pay we deserve." He grinned. "We just have to go out and collect it."

Winchester let out a short, barking laugh as he tucked the brown bag away into the depths of his winter uniform jacket, but a thought sent him back for it. With a devilish grin he counted then tossed a wad of notes onto the dashboard in front of the rookie.

Jaune stared at the dirty money in silence.

Pay they deserved... He glanced out the window to the dust shop owner, who was nursing his arm as he hurried back to the store.

Yeah. Deserved.

Like hell.

Winchester coughed and looked pointedly at the wad of untouched cash.

"What? Your think your cut ain't big enough?" A slow scowl spread across his lips as he tucked away the lion's share and started up the engine, turning on the siren to halt traffic as he pulled off the curb and into the lane, gunning the heavy duty engine to bring it up to full speed. His mood quickly brightened, though, as he settled into the drive through the streets of Vale City's commercial district.

"Aah, don't worry about it. You start pulling weight around here and Ol' Sergeant Chester will make sure you get your due." Laughed the burly cop, casually weaving through traffic with the cruiser. "Hell, all you did was stand around front of that shop while I went and did all the hard work."

Work, in this case, seemed to involve shaking down and beating a dust trader until he had shoved a brown paper bag into the Sergeant's hand. Jaune stayed silent as he turned away and watched the traffic around them.

"Count yourself lucky you got a forward thinking vet of a partner who's willing to show you what you can make yourself into out here if you play your cards right." Cardin said smugly.

"Yeah. Sure. Thanks." Murmured Jaune absently, looking at the collection of fives, tens and a twenty. He mentally counted and came up with a hundred. Cardin had pocketed at least three times as much, if his appraisal of the worth of the dust and cash had been right.

A familiar grin spread across his cheeks. "See? 'Course I'm right. Just listen to me and you'll be set."

(Scene break)

They drifted lazily through the streets now, Jaune manning the computer and punching in the license numbers of passing cars that the Sergeant pointed out to him. While driving he continued rambling on about his exploits, none of which involved policing, and many more about women and money. It had been like this for the past week, where the fresh academy graduate had been assigned to the sergeant as his new partner.

On paper, Sergeant Cardin Winchester was an experienced beat cop, unafraid of bending the rules a little to get justice served but with enough respect for the book not to outright break them. Paperwork got filed mostly on time, weapons were rarely used, and few citizens complained about his methods. Had the paperwork been right, he would have made an excellent pick to partner a rookie with.

The paper couldn't be any more wrong.

"Get out of the way, freak!" Roared Cardin, hammering on his horn. The pedestrian scrambled away from where he had been crossing and made it to the curb just before Cardin roared past.

"Stupid, blind little shits." He grumbled, leering into the rear view mirror. "I swear I'm gonna run one of them over some day."

Jaune settled back into his seat as the adrenaline ebbed from his system. He was watching the wing mirror as the man shakily found a seat on a streetside bench.

The car remained silent after that near miss, with only the occasional muttered commentary from the one man peanut gallery beside him.

It wasn't until they were on the home stretch to the station that his face finally lit up with a wicked smile.

"Hey, that money bothers you doesn't it?"

The rookie's head whipped around. What was his game…?

"Uh… yes?"

Cardin chuckled, giving Jaune a knowing wink. "I can see that the cash burns your wallet, lil' partner o' mine. Sergeant Winchester here says that if you got it to spare, spend it."

Jaune suppressed a sigh. He knew where his money was going; down Cardin's throat as beer.

"Say, why not have some fun with it, Jaunie? Let's meet later, we can go to a bar with some of the boys. Throwing round some cash is sure to hook you a nice girl if you play your cards right."

Jaune's cheeks reddened at the thought. He shook if clear and made a few noncommittal sounds.

"We ain't going there as uniforms, kid. Just enjoy it. You know... live a little!" Shrugged the older cop, pulling the patroller into the VCPD compound. He kneed the door open and stepped out with a faint chuckle that abruptly petered out.

Suddenly, Jaune felt the car rock as his partner slammed the door.

"Hide that cash. Now!" Hissed Cardin through the open window, his voice unusually shaky.

The rookie scrambled to comply, stuffing his cut of the dirty cash into his jacket and bending down to pretend that he was checking the glove compartment.

"What money would this be, Cardin?" Purred a voice coming from right behind him. It was female, but to Jaune's ears distinctly predatory. Cardin stepped aside to reveal a busty blonde in casual dress; a low cut leather jacket and hot pants which was pretty unlike what most police officers would wear. This was, however, offset by the large golden bracelets that he realised were stowed away shot gauntlets. Her long tresses of golden locks streaming in the wind behind her made him doubt for a moment that she actually carried the authority that her voice did, but the VCPD Detective's badge clipped to her belt said otherwise.

"D-detective Long." Stammered Cardin. His usual air of confidence had evaporated. Jaune's feelings were conflicted between being amused or afraid. "Why ain't you looking fine this evening..."

"Corrupting our newbies already, Winchester?" The detective growled, immediately stonewalling him with eyes hard set as she angrily crossed her arms over her chest. Jaune found it hard not to stare. "If only you worked as hard on actual policing as you do in mooching money, you'd have made a decent cop by now."

"Hey, the kid needed to make a withdrawal at the bank! And don't say nothin' you can't prove, Long."

Detective Long smirked as she looked down at the half-cowering rookie. "Which bank was it, kiddo?"

"That's none of your business!" Cardin interrupted.

Long's eyebrow went up slowly, dangerously.

"Winchester. Go take a walk."

Cardin flinched as if he had been slapped. He slowly nodded, and despite the breach of regulation and rank, ground out a reluctant 'Yessir' and departed.

Jaune watched in barely concealed awe as Cardin spun on his heel and walked into the precinct building, fuming all the way. Then he found a gloved hand clapping down on one shoulder, which transmitted through the leather gloves the soft chuckle the detective was enjoying.

"Don't run, I don't bite." Breathed a voice into his neck. "What's your name, officer?"

Even with the reassurance Jaune found himself quickly gathering sweat under his uniform collar. "Jaune. Jaune Arc."

Jaune felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. Holy… he never thought he could feel a smile.

Finally, the blonde spoke once more, grinning at him through the open window. "I'm Detective Yang Shao Long. Come with me."

(Scene Break)

VCPD's 2nd Precinct was, to use a cliche, a hive of activity. Officers moved in and out, on and off duty, some marching an arrestee between them. Others were taking statements or writing reports. More were checking in. It was true, actually, that the majority of police work involved writing things down or reading things that had been written. The two of them entered, Long giving the desk Sergeant a curt nod as she passed by.

She lead them into the VCPD building into her office, one with her name on it as well as the name of another detective, presumably her partner: Det. B. Belladonna. As soon as she closed the door, she pointed at a seat which Jaune quickly sat on. Detective Long didn't even try to ignore where his eyes were wandering and placed one set of her knuckles on a hip and gave him a flirty grin, which sent the rookie blushing.

"I was working with Vice today. They needed a face for some Johnny baiting." Long explained, giving her hair a quick toss as she went to her computer and began tapping keys. "I worked like a charm."

"So." Jaune hedged. He scratched the back of his hair nervously. "I think I know what you want, and I can't say anything about Winchester. I m-"

"Jaune Arc. Twenty seven, born 14th of December. Youngest in a family of three brothers. Almost all working for the police, I see."

Jaune let out a nervous chuckle. "Yeah. Lots would call it a family tradition. My great great grandfather was a cop. My grandfather was a cop. My dad was a cop, and so were all his brothers... And so are most of mine."

"And what was your great grandfather?" Long asked, arching an inquisitive eyebrow at the omission of the ancestor.

At this his nervousness doubled and he let out a nervous laugh. "He was a dust thief. Sometimes justice skips a generation, as my grandma would say."

The blonde detective smirked at that and continued on with reading through his file.

"Graduated last year, decent scores. Theoretical grades are pretty average but your physical and aura marks made up for it." Yang's eyebrows went up as she pulled a file on his aura analysis and assessment. Those scores were better than hers!

"Ookay, so you know what's on my record..." Jaune found himself immediately back on the defensive as she continued typing away. "What's your play? Rat out Cardin or I make your life hell?"

Long smiled. "Well, you're starting to think like a detective, not a beat cop, Arc. Look, there are unwritten rules out here, and one of them involves not throwing your partner in the cacky. Even with the worst of scum I respect that line." With a shake of her blonde head she tapped on her screen a few more times and closed down his file. "I would bet my hair I know more than you do about what Cardin gets up to, Arc, and what I know means that I don't like our dear Sergeant any more than the Faunus shop owners he likes shaking down. I know you took a cut before you came back to HQ. See how you winced? Yeah, that just confirmed it."

Her features softened just a slice at how his face screwed up with guilt. "... but that face you're making tells me you didn't ask for it."

Letting out a sympathetic sigh, Long gave her golden head a shake. "Look, you got a crap deal when you got Winchester as a partner. He's as rotten as it gets, and he's got enough of a brown nose from kissing brass arse that I can't touch him."

Jaune shifted uncomfortably as he looked from Long to the door. He let out a sigh of his own as he once more bemoaned his fate.

Long chuckled once again and leaned back into her seat, kicking her legs up onto the table. His cheeks reddened slightly at that. "All I can say is this, kiddo: Keep your head down and hands clean. Winchester's got enough rats here that I might need an exterminator rather than an IA shrink if I try to clean up house."

"Why?" Jaune asked, eyes narrowing. "Why are you helping me?"

"Because there are few enough good people in this city." Breathed the detective with a sigh. "I try to look out for them when I can."

The rookie let his stance relax ever so slightly. "... And just how do you know I'm a good person?"

"Hello? Does 'Detective' Yang Xiao Long mean anything to you?" Long grinned, pointing to her name on the frosted glass. The rookie let out a groan and nodded, embarrassed, which got a hearty laugh out of the blonde as she playfully punched him on the shoulder. "Comes with the territory, rook. I earned that badge, unlike some. You'll learn, eventually. Until then... Keep your head down, and your hands as clean as possible. Can you do that?"

"Thanks." Jaune nodded, smiling bashfully.

Yang grinned at him and began scribbling on her notepad.

"Oh, and here." She handed him a scrap of paper with a wink. At his look of askance, she shrugged. "My number. We just maaaaybe might have a date this Thursday, in case Cardin asks. He'll get enough green in his eyes that it'll get him off your case about being a twist." A devilish grin spread across her lips, and unlike Cardin's he actually felt comforted by this one. She moved to the door, opening it for him, and Jaune took his cue to leave.

"And call me Yang, all my friends do." She called out as he stepped through the door.

"Th-thanks, Det-Yang. I meant, thanks, Yang. Call me Jaune, if you'd like."

"Looks like you know how to learn quickly." Smiled the detective, making a shooing motion as she picked up a sheaf of papers and began to flick through them. "You're doing good so far, Jaune. Now scoot, I think Cardin's been sweating for long enough now."

Cardin was not one to mince words when his own skin was on the line. Jaune was immediately cornered as soon as he stepped out of sight of Long's office.

"Rook, you'd better not have said anything about me to the blonde there." Cardin hurriedly blurted out. His mask of beneficent veteran was starting to crack now, making Jaune take a quick step back, which Cardin quickly followed up on by all but slamming Jaune against the wall. "You know one of the first things I said to you was the number one rule about partners: we look out for each other. I swear, Arc, if you told her anything at all..."

"N-no! Actually, Long did most of the talking."

"About?" Pressed Cardin. Jaune scrambled for the escape rope he had been given and stored in his breast pocket.

"Eeeeh... Things. We got to talking about each other, actually... Uh, well, you could say I turned on the ol' Arc family charm, and now she wants to meet up this Thursday." Jaune held up the paper with Yang's number on it with a nervous grin.

The sergeant's nostrils flared as he saw the red ink on the paper. Wide eyed, he grabbed Jaune's wrist and dragged it closer so that he could read off the paper.

"How the f-" Cardin relaxed and kept himself in check though as he settled back into his seat, his face becoming a rather fragile facsimile of a mentor proud of his protege.

"Well, ain't you the lucky one. Blondie's taken to you of all people..." He muttered to himself, even though Jaune was in earshot he was too relieved to be insulted.

Just like Yang had said.

"Ah well, have fun, though I have no idea how a rook like you managed that." He groused, pulling open his locker and stowing his service pistol for his off duty, though the over large mace-like night stick still hug off his belt. "You're still coming with us to Pitch Black? Or is the new hot shot here too good for his own partner?"

Jaune let out a sigh. So much for keeping his head down. "Yeah, sure. Tonight, right?"

"I'll pick you up, Arc." Grinned Cardin. "I know where you live."