This story has been beta by TheMischieviousPuppyDog. Hope you all are doing well and being safe!

"Alright, you remember our deal, right?" asked Roman as he brought the White Fang Lieutenant Gray to Jaune's massage clinic.

"I won't be disruptive," grunted Gray as he adjusted his sunglasses despite the fact the sun had already set.

Gray didn't see why he had to come to this place to get a massage. Sure, he had heard some good words about it through the local grapevine gossip, but he wasn't one to put too much faith upon such things. Not to mention he heard a Schnee had been seen there getting a massage. Any place where a Schnee went was bound to be bad.

"Don't be like that," warned Roman, "Just because you hate Schnees, in general, doesn't mean you can write this place off. I can tell what you're thinking buddy, it's not hard to tell."

Gray scowled as he reluctantly entered Elysium Oasis, making sure nobody was watching him enter as he did so.

"Jauney, how are you doing?" greeted Roman as he swaggered into the room as if he owned the shop... which in a sense, he did, "Hope you don't mind me bringing some business for ya! Got a client here that really needs to learn to relax!"

Jaune looked up from his desk with his bowl of ramen that he had bought earlier from the local ramen stand that an elderly gentleman owned.

"Early dinner?" asked Roman with a smirk as his hand snaked over, grabbing a piece of chashu pork without touching anything else.

"Hey, I was saving that," pouted Jaune as he finished chewing the noodles he had been consuming.

"Oh, don't be a baby, there's still plenty more in your bowl," chuckled Roman as he lifted his hat up, "Anyways, my buddy here needs a good massage after dealing with some of the more troublesome sides of our business. So I figured you'd be the one to help him destress, to relax a bit! He may seem grumpy... and is grumpy all the time, but it doesn't mean that I don't care! Hey, get your butt over to the shower. It's down the hall to the right, you can't miss it."

Gray hissed in anger at the disrespect Roman was currently provoking, but decided not to do anything about it for now. The group they were working with had hired Roman into the group, and it would do no good to hurt Roman now, as he was getting them all the dust that they needed.

"You sure that's a good idea to treat your clients like that?" asked Jaune as he sipped his broth.

"He knows I don't mean it," waived Roman off without a care, "Long as I get him results, I can say what I want. Part of my side of the business, kid. If you're good at what you do, sometimes it doesn't matter what you say, as long as you get the results."

"I don't think that works in my line of work," chuckled Jaune, imagining taking on the same attitude and failing.

"You don't have the same temperament or the correct line of work to do so," shrugged Roman, "You suit the more friendly and cuddly sort of deal."

Jaune pouted at that as he quickly finished up his meal in case Roman tried to steal in a few more bites.

"Not bad," grunted Gray as he finished his shower.

He had to admit, after living the wilds or ruins for so long without proper plumbing, it was nice to take a warm shower without worry or haste. Back at camp, they had strict shower time limits so as to conserve water and keep everyone on watch. Even though quite a few of them were back in the city conducting raids or spying, none of the White Fang members had access to private showers. Vale wasn't known for having public baths, either, so they couldn't go to a local bath to wash up. The places they slept were mostly abandoned warehouses with rusted pipes. Nor could they afford to hack into the system to get water running to the warehouse less they risk being discovered.

Gray dried himself off with the towel, putting on the bathrobes provided before putting on his sunglasses once more. The reason being for the sunglasses was not only as a sign of camaraderie with Adam Taurus, who wore a mask almost all the time to cover his face, but to hide his snake eyes and the lack of eyelids. He was well aware that even within his fellow brothers and sisters, his eyes had a tendency to freak out most of the newcomers, much less the humans. So to avoid the hassle, he chose to wear sunglasses everywhere.

"Took your time, didn't you?" called out Roman as Gray stepped into the hallway, "Just head over to that room over there. Jaune is already inside ready for you. Now I expect you to be on your best behavior, alright? Otherwise, we'll have some trouble between us. Well, more likely you'll have trouble. Neo is fond of our little masseur, so anything that upsets him will upset her, which will lead to some troubling stabs."

Gray huffed as he ignored Roman's words, though he did keep in mind not to do anything rash. Much as he hated humans, Neo was someone that he didn't want to face yet. Something about her sent a shiver down his spine, and he knew it was one he shouldn't ignore.

Gray entered the room that Roman had pointed to see Jaune already preparing the spices and oils, which included the non scented oils.

"Oh good, you're already here," greeted Jaune politely before pointing over to the massage table, "You can go ahead and take off the bathrobe and lie down here, it's already been cleaned. You can put your clothes over at the coat rack over there."

Gray nodded as he shrugged off his bathrobe, lying down on the massage table. He was a bit surprised that the table was able to support his full body length, if just barely.

"Alright, Roman signed you up for an Aura massage, but I have to ask still. You have your Aura unlocked, right? Otherwise, this'll feel really creepy, according to a few of my coworkers," clarified Jaune.

Gray raised his eyebrow at this statement. Using Aura for a massage? Sounded excessive and pointless, but he wasn't going to say anything about it. With a grunt, Gray confirmed that he had his Aura unlocked.

"Alright, here goes," smiled Jaune as he rubbed his hands together to warm it up, pouring a bit of oil into his palms while surging Aura into the fingers.

Gray immediately tensed up, as if expecting an attack. Afterall, Aura was mainly used to attack and defend, and had no other uses for it, right?

However, as soon Jaune pressed down onto his back, tackling a knot that was clearly visible, a rather instantaneous reaction occurred within Gray's body. Like a snake, Gray instantly relaxed his whole body, as if his whole muscle structure was one giant muscle.

'That's new,' thought Jaune as he pressed onwards. He hadn't seen anyone instantly relax like this, but he shrugged and pushed on.

"...rrrnnnkkkk," snored Gray after what seemed only a few minutes into the massage.

"Wow, he really was tense," hummed Jaune as he began to work on the arms.

"...wakey wakey, little snakey," sang a voice from above Gray's head.

Gray groaned as he blurry opened his eyes to see Roman standing in front of him. Growling in annoyance, Gray pushed himself up off the bed, looking around to see Jaune already gone.

"He's upstairs," said Roman, answering the man's questioning look, "I told him to get some relaxation while I help close up the place for him. Now get dressed already."

Gray grunted as he pushed himself up, easily donning his clothes before noticing something.

"I feel so... light," said a dazed Gray as he gently touched his arms and body. He twisted his body a bit, marveling how his muscles didn't feel cramped or strained.

"You can stop admiring yourself and start getting out," pointed out Roman, causing Gray to pause for a second before quickly putting on his clothes with a slight blush.

As the two stood outside of the entrance, Roman turned towards Gray once more.

"So...," started Roman, staring at Gray.

Gray sighed as he looked around before replying, "The White Fang will actively not hinder this business so long as it keeps its policy the same."

Roman shook his head, "Not good enough. This place is one of my safe spots as well as a money maker. I want your boys to know this place is off limits period. I've seen your boys after a successful raid on a Dust store. Rowdy, undisciplined, and idiots once they get drunk. They would've gone out to the streets to intimidate others if it wasn't for the fact I run a damn tight ship with Neo making the point clear. If you just say it actively, your boys will try to passively bully this place, though they really don't know how to be subtle."

Gray gritted his teeth at the insults Roman was laying on his fellow brother and sisters, but the truth was that the recruits here really weren't subtle, as he said.

"Listen, you just got one of the best massages of your life here, right? Can you think of any place that can do the same?" asked Roman, "Without judging you for whatever appendage on your body? My boy Jauney here has a gold mine here, and I'd rather not lose that here. Perhaps your oh so famous leader could benefit from this?"

Gray remained silent for a bit before responding, "If he helps support us with some Lien, then perhaps an arrangement could be made. I could have some of my more discreet and elite forces act as guards for him here."

"No," said Roman sternly, "The kid doesn't need to get wrapped up on this political/social crap. Hell, the boy is so naive that he still doesn't know about my reputation. Plus, I'd rather not be stabbed by Neo. Can you imagine what she'd do? What, am I supposed to say 'Hey Neo, we're recruiting Jaune to our little pow-wow,'? I value my life, thank you. Not to mention he's already under Junior's protection, and he's also fond of the boy too. All I want you to do is tell your boys that Elysium Oasis... and maybe the block around it is off-limits. In return, I might be able to slip a few of your boys into Jaune's schedule, including your superior. He looks like someone who could definitely use an Aura massage."

Gray hummed as he thought about the proposition. He had to admit, the Aura massage was definitely something that he wanted to come back to in the future. It was something that he had never thought Aura could do... though to be fair, he doubted anyone would've thought to use Aura as a massaging tool. Perhaps they could get some of the less talented fighters with Aura and turn them towards the medical personnel? Adam could definitely use the massage, he was much tenser than he was, with everything that had happened.

"Fine," sighed Gray, "I'll put out the word that this area will be restricted."

"And that's all I'm asking," nodded Roman as he tilted his hat forward in thanks, "Now shoo. I have some things I have to catch up with my masseur here as well as grab some items."

Roman hummed as he entered back into the building, locking up the door before heading upstairs.

"Hey, I have marinated short ribs ready," smiled Jaune as he lifted a container up, "Been soaking in the soy sauce mix for the past day now."

"Good," grinned Roman as he took the proffered container, "This'll last me a few days with Neo. Can't get decent food nowadays. Least not of this quality."

Jaune shrugged as he put the other container away, saving it for tomorrow, "Neo doing alright?"

"She's itching for another massage, but I'm having her keep an eye out on some of my employees. They tend to slack off a bit if I'm not there watching over them."

At a warehouse

One of the White Fang grunts looked around before grinning. Roman wasn't here nor were any of the upper section leaders.

"I'm going to just take a nap," grinned the grunt as he laid back against the crate he was supposed to be carrying to the back.

Just as he was about to close his eyes, though, a sharp object slammed right next to his ear. The grunt quivered as he slowly looked at the knife stuck in the crate, only to slowly look back in front of him when a delicate hand grabbed the knife, jerking it out. He almost pissed his pants when he saw it was Neo.

"I was just umm... taking a breather! Just needed to catch my breath, I'll get this over there right away!" panicked the grunt as he quickly grabbed the crate and ran.

Back at Elysium Oasis

"I'm sure she's doing just fine," hummed Roman.

"I'd be happy to massage the both of you again," offered Jaune with a smile, "Though I'm thinking of cutting back on the Aura massage a little."

"Oh? Why?" asked Roman curiously.

"Been getting more tired lately even after getting tips on how to stream my Aura more smoothly in my hands," explained Jaune, "Yesterday, I conked out right after the last patient. Junior had to wake me up when he saw me asleep on one of the waiting couches."

Roman winced as he heard that, pondering just why that could've been. He almost smacked his head in realization that Jaune, despite his Aura reserves, had only unlocked his Aura for a few months now, meaning that his reserves weren't refilling as fast as someone who had Aura for years, especially with his reserves.

"Luckily Junior gave me a pick me up that really got me up and running again after a good night sleep!" continued Jaune.

'A pick me up for Aura? I've heard rumors about Junior having some sort of secret recipe, but it was hard to confirm... until now. Of course, I'm not going to tell anybody about this,' thought Roman to himself. He did not want a certain boss getting a hold of that recipe.

"So in the end, I'm thinking of putting the after hour specials on alternating days," finished Jaune, who hadn't noticed Roman's musing.

"Sounds like a good plan," hummed Roman, "Now go get some sleep. You're going to be busy tomorrow. I'll lock up when I leave."

Jaune nodded in agreement as he let out a yawn. Putting everything else away, Jaune headed to his bed carrying a textbook to read.

Sunday

Jaune stretched his back as he finished up with Sunday's patients, as well as his dinner. Yatsu and Fox had been the next two to receive the Aura massages. He had a light conversation with Yatsu and none with Fox, though he took no offense to that as Fox didn't really speak. Jaune hummed as he took a look at his schedule, making a few modifications. Starting tomorrow, he would only be during the after-hours specials on Wednesday, Friday, and Sundays. With the extra time off, not only could Jaune get some more rest, but also some time to work out and study more. He had been slightly slacking off on those as his new schedule kept him busy. Ren still managed to help him every now and then, but even then, he was busy with Nora.

"Let's see who's coming in...Alec Tris," murmured Jaune just as he heard someone knocking on the door, "Must be him now."

Jaune opened the door to see instead of a male, he saw a female figure. And if he was honest, the female in question was rather... hot. She oozed sexuality based on her posture, her every movement carefully refined. Jaune was well aware that some of his repeat customers were beautiful/cute. Glynda was a mature beauty, Blake had a mysterious beauty, Ruby was a cute girl, etc. etc.

"Can I help you?" asked Jaune as he found his tongue once more.

"I was hoping to see if you had an opening tonight for this 'Aura' massage I've been hearing so much about," said the female with a husky tone.

"Well, tonight's massage has already been booked, but I can certainly help make a reservation if you'd like," replied Jaune.

"Mmm, do you mind if I just wait then? Perhaps your client tonight might not show up," requested the female.

"If you want to, sure," shrugged Jaune, "Could I at least get a name?

"Cinder. Cinder Fall."

Dun dun dun! Here comes Cinder herself!

Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! Reminder, I have a pat reon, look up azndrgn making fanfic. Donators get perks!