History Fanfic / ARabbitAmongWolves

** Sienna and Adam had a '''terrible'' working relationship. Her relationship with the Albain brothers is also pretty testy too, with her not trusting them. Sienna comes around to working with Jaune because his natural politeness is a breath of fresh air compared to Adam's temper and caprices.

** Once he's no longer under Mettle's influence, Ironwood proves to be a rather levelheaded official. Besides being mortified by the embarrassing actions he took due to his Semblance, he goes along with Ozpin's ideas for the Fang once it becomes clear that they don't intend to be violent, [[spoiler:tries to save Jaune's life despite their amity and condemns the soldier who shot him, and commends both Team RWBY and his soldiers from their excellent conduct during the Beacon crisis, later on deliberately going against the Council's story to publicly state Cinder's involvement]].

* RuleAbidingRebel:
** Jaune is technically the leader of a terrorist cell, but he mainly sticks to targeting government and corporate corruption rather than engaging in Adam's style of mindless violence. He even [[spoiler: publically discloses his raids in order to prove to the public he isn't trying to be above the law]].
** [[spoiler: Sun is a lax guy who appreciates Jaune's efforts, but he makes it clear he'll take Jaune down if he crosses a serious line]].

->Jaune wanted nothing more than to become a hero – and in a way he got his wish. One man's criminal is another's hero and the faunus of Remnant need a champion. Who better to take the mantle of leader of the White Fang? Not a faunus? Not a terrorist? No aura, training or leadership skills to speak of? Minor details. All hail supreme leader Jaune Arc. Long live the resistance!

''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13420487/1/A-Rabbit-among-Wolves A Rabbit Among Wolves]]'' is an ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' AlternateUniverseFic written by Creator/CoeurAlAran. Jaune Arc [[RiddleForTheAges somehow]] accidentally kills Adam Taurus, and that means [[YouKillItYouBoughtIt he's the new leader of the White Fang's branch in this area]]. No matter how desperately he wishes he wasn't. Complete as of September 6, 2022.

''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13420487/1/A-Rabbit-among-Wolves A Rabbit Among Wolves]]'' is an ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' AlternateUniverseFic written by Creator/CoeurAlAran. Jaune Arc [[RiddleForTheAges somehow]] accidentally kills Adam Taurus, and that means [[YouKillItYouBoughtIt he's the new leader of the White Fang's branch in this area]]. No matter how desperately he wishes he wasn't. Currently ongoing.

* RiddleForTheAges: How Jaune managed to kill Adam. The author states they will purposefully never reveal how a man with no Aura killed a terrorist. We know that Jaune stabbed him in the neck, and the chapter 1 author's note mentions that Adam didn't see Jaune as a true threat and let his guard down, but we never learn how Jaune overpowered Adam in the first place.

* GoodIsNotDumb: Sun is a walking talking ball of sunshine as his name implies, but he's the leader of his team for a reason. [[spoiler: When he sees that Jaune is genuinely interested in helping Faunus, he decides to join up with the White Fang to make sure Jaune doesn't step out of line. If anyone tries to do him in, he's fully prepared to sic Beacon's forces on them.]]

** [[spoiler: Cinder's brutal atrocities and abusive behavior disgust Roman so much that he sneaks Jaune the means to escape her trap and take her down, while Mercury, having no real loyalty to Cinder, turns on her once he realizes how outmatched he is at the Vytal Festival]].

* GodzillaThreshold: Jaune initially refuses to use the Paladin. [[spoiler:Key word: initially. Cinder's attack on Beacon is a big enough threat that he breaks out the giant death robot to stop her.]]

* WarriorPoet: PlayedForLaughs with Adam, who wrote [[TastesLikeDiabetes really cheesy love poems]] about Blake. Listening to one of them from his hallucination of Adam makes Jaune wish for a quick death.

* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome:
** Ozpin makes it clear to Blake that he knew full well she's a Faunus and an ex-member of the White Fang, especially since she did absolutely nothing to cover her tracks except wear a bow over her ears. Plus, she used her real name to enroll. Coco also points out her disguise is pointless since most people would recognize her family name as most people already know her parents as the founders of the White Fang.
** Cinder calls Jaune, hoping she can bully him like she did Adam, only for him to put her on hold. Cinder realizes that while she is quite intimidating in person, her silky words aren't going to work on someone who doesn't know who she is, since Cinder only had contact with Adam. [[spoiler: This takes a comedic turn, when Cinder shows up unannounced in his hideout and Jaune assumes that Cinder was a stripper]].
** Sienna and the Albains gift Jaune's group with an Atlasian Paladin prototype. Real GameChanger right? Except none of them know how to pilot it, and it being a prototype means there was no instruction manual which means its sticking around the base as, in Jaune's words, '[[AwesomeButImpractical the most expensive, illegal, and criminally hot paperweight]].'
** Ozpin points out they cannot attack the new White Fang directly because their focus on charity and improved public relations makes anyone who opposes them look villainous.
** [[spoiler: Being felt up and blackmailed into a sexual relationship is ''not'' a fun thing to experience, even if the victim is male and the predator is female. The experience is so painful and dehumanizing, Jaune is reduced to tears]].
** While in many stories an organization would be able to get along fine and continue by utilizing loopholes, [[spoiler:Subtle Spice is noted to be soon defunct after Ivory Tooth exposed them. Lack of legal consequence will not stop them from losing business over scandal]].
** Coco develops a [[FriendlyRivalry friendship of sorts with Jaune]], [[DatingCatwoman flirting with Jaune]] and [[EnemyMine even working with him to bring down]] a corrupt modeling agency. But this leads to her getting a major chewing out by both her teammates and teachers for working with a known terrorist.
** After [[spoiler:Sun's arrest]], Lisa tries to get together information to publish a story on it (that would naturally bend the truth to make Atlas look as bad as possible). Unfortunately for her, Jaune and Sun have to nix the plan because the story could have ''only'' come from Sun, and that means that Ironwood could trace it back to him immediately.

* AllForNothing: As Jaune's success grows and people become more receptive to the White Fang, [[spoiler:both Sienna and Blake express uncertainty about their previous actions in the radicalized version of the group, asking themselves what exactly they accomplished for the cause of faunus by making themselves into feared criminals. Both soberly come to the answer of "nothing", meanwhile Jaune has come around and in the space of a couple months, not only healed much of the damage they caused but done more to relieve the plight of faunus than anyone has in years. For Sienna the realization is bittersweet, but Blake pushes back against Jaune's popularity in large part because she doesn't want to believe that she and Adam made the wrong choices when there was a better way]].
** Jaune himself [[SubvertedTrope disagrees]] with this notion. He believes that both the failed, peaceful White Fang and its violent successor were necessary for his own success.
--->'''Jaune''': I was seen as the better version of the White Fang, but if there hadn't been a ''worse version'' for people to demonise, then I wouldn't have gained half the following I did.
--->'''Ghira''': Then was I wrong? To try the peaceful approach?
--->'''Jaune''': No. It was needed to fail to spark the violence, and it was needed so that people could look at the new, violent White Fang in anger and think fondly of the kind and benevolent group under the leadership of Ghira Belladonna.

-->'''Coco''': I'm of the opinion that opponents don't have to be enemies.

-->'''Ozpin''': I shall spare you the comments below but rest assured that people are currently fighting about whether you are racist, violent, or merely incompetent. You may pick which you like the sound of more.

-->'''Mercury''': [[YouHaveGOTToBeKiddingMe Seriously? Seriously]]?!

--> '''Jaune''': If step one is revolt, step two is spread terror, and step four is profit, then what is step three?

* GreenEyedMonster: [[spoiler:Blake's attitude toward Jaune is because he has massively succeeded where she failed, which makes her feel like she has wasted her life on the cause]].

** [[spoiler: The Ace-Ops defy this, blatantly ignoring the Council's orders to arrest Jaune and his crew, who are trying to stop Cinder]].
* LeonineContract: The contracts faunus models are forced to sign at modeling agency Rosemary and Thyme. They are forced to give up their image rights even after leaving the agency, and have non-competition clauses that effectively ban them from ever finding another modeling job in all 4 Kingdoms that last 10 years, ie the typical lifespan for a modeling career.
* LikeADuckTakesToWater: Ruby quickly proves herself to be an excellent PropagandaHero, because she is a naturally cheerful, optimistic, and self-sacrificing person. Her dorky, cute nature also means that children love her.

** The amount of persecution, vilification, and hatred Jaune gets from the Vale and Atlas authorities ''just'' for being a White Fang member and for making both governments look bad is a sign of how racist and corrupt both societies are. [[spoiler: When he gets arrested, the Vale authorities treat him ''terribly'' in prison, while treating the white-collar criminals he busted decently, because they see him as a threat to their power and image]].
** Ilia even talks about how even when the White Fang ''was'' a lawful organization, the Atlas authorities refused to protect the activists' civil rights from racist mobs but would arrest ''them'' when they dared to defend themselves against those same mobs. This was a factor in why Ilia and others turned to terrorism.
* LopsidedDichotomy: Coco points out that the way Jaune angles his left breast at everyone he talks to during the fashion show suggests he either has a laser-nipple Semblance or is wearing a hidden camera. Of course Jaune admits its the camera.

** Adam's violent and hateful tactics debase the cause of faunus. Jaune's "freedom fighter" strategy, by contrast, earns him enormous support from both his minions and the public.
** [[spoiler: The oppressive behavior of the Vale City Council toward Jaune and his cause only enrage the public even more]].
** [[spoiler: Cinder's brutal atrocities and abusive behavior disgust Roman so much that he sneaks Jaune the means to escape her trap and take her down, while Mercury, having no real loyalty to Cinder, turns on her once he realizes how outmatched he was at the Vytal Festival]].

-->''Distantly, as he was dipped low, he realized he had become the woman in their little show, and that [[spoiler: Sienna Khan]] probably made a more confident man than he did anyway''.

* MalevolentMaskedMan: {{Inverted}}. Coco notes how Jaune's best decision to appear non-threatening is that he doesn't wear the White Fang mask, so he comes across as a person rather than an aggressive criminal. Played straight by the rest of the White Fang, who's masks look like the Grim threatening to destroy humanity.

* MistakenForPedophile: When Roman introduces Neo as his partner, Ruby immediately gets mad and declares she'll arrest him for grooming. Roman denies this is the case as he meant she was his partner in crime, but Neo decides to roll with it to {{troll}} him.

* MistakenForRacist: Blake's confusion of the White Fang working with a human at the docks get her mistaken for a bigot. Ozpin and Goodwitch decide to send her to sensitivity lessons as a result.

* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Minus the "my god", Ironwood namedrops the trope when he realizes that he activated his Semblance before his interview with Lisa. [[spoiler:And that's before he learns that he arrested a student based entirely on his abs, implemented nap time for his soldiers, and pushed himself to the edge of sleep deprivation, "roughly in that order"]].

* NoodleIncident: The incident where Jaune killed Adam in the first place. All we know is that Adam took him hostage in front of his minions and it ended when Jaune stabbed him on accident, but whatever happened in-between those two points is not clear (and if the author's comments are anything to go by, they won't ever be).

* OnceDoneNeverForgotten: The reason Ilia has a copy of Blake's outfit laying around, plus a black wig and fake cat ears, is from one time when a previous girlfriend suggested they try costumed roleplaying in the bedroom. Said girlfriend meant like a celebrity or something, not Ilia's actual crush who she'd rather be with instead, and dumped her for it. Everyone in the White Fang knows the story, and they keep bringing it up.

** Ozpin lampshades that Blake's idea of a disguise is to wear a bow over her ears but otherwise keep the same appearance and name as when she was a White Fang terrorist.
** During the Vytal Fashion Show, Coco recognizes [[spoiler:Sun as a transfer from Mistral due to the fact that he doesn't button his shirt up. Sun replies that he's 'Solar Flare,' to Coco's amusement.]]
* TheParagon: Jaune [[InternalReformist manages to reform]] the Vale branch of [[WellIntentionedExtremist the White Fang]] into more of a freedom fighting organization, and becomes beloved across Vale's faunus. However, while he is a genuinely decent guy, he has no real interest in the cause of Faunus: because he accidentally killed Adam Taurus, he was forced to join the Fang and reform them to prove to society he wasn't a monster. To his frustration, each success just leads him to be irrevocably tied to his movement, [[spoiler: to the point where if he were to quit, the White Fang could slip back into its old violent ways]].

*** Although he is awkward about it, [[spoiler: Perry tries to reassure Jaune that being sexually assaulted wasn't his fault. Also, they were charging to save him from Tanner long before Jaune said his codeword.]]

** Vale's law enforcement proves to be utterly incapable of solving the same problems that Jaune's White Fang and Beacon's Huntresses have been. At best, they're hopelessly limited by red tape, and in other cases they're explicitly compromised by the criminal elements they're supposed to target. [[spoiler:The government forcefully takes a lead out of Beacon's hands to investigate it themselves and get better PR, only to have the plans leak to the targets from somewhere along the chain of command. They then stonewall the authorities with legal threats, betting on the glacial pace of legal correspondence giving them all the time in the world to relocate their illegal activities before a single cop can set foot in the building. Before they can get away with it all, Team RWBY and the Fang take matters into their own hands]].

** As far as Ozpin is concerned, Huntsmen are for hunting Grimm and nothing else. Despite multiple attempts from the Council, he emphatically denies them Huntsman assistance against the brewing civil uprising against them, entirely because deploying Huntsmen against civilians would kill innocent people and traumatize the Huntsment responsible.

** Jaune's plans to reform the White Fang largely because he just wants to prove to everyone he isn't a monster. But his plans end up working a little ''too'' well. His initial plan was to lay low and stick to good works, but everyone of his successes leads to Sienna giving him even more resources and responsbility. Eventually, he becomes an ''icon'' of the White Fang, [[TigerByTheTail which makes it impossible for him to leave without what he built collapsing in on itself]].
** The White Fang's plan to investigate a corrupt hospital is to have Sun fake symptoms and see what the doctors do in response. The worst they're expecting is a steep bill and for Sun to be a bit woozy from getting blood taken twice in one day (once for a baseline, the other at the hospital). [[spoiler:They aren't expecting the place to be so crooked that they literally ''poison'' him to create real symptoms]].

* GoodIsNotNice: Coco is really, really abrasive, insensitive, and strict in turning Team [=RWBY=] into paragons.

* GoYeHeroesGoAndDie: Jaune gives an utterly uninspiring speech before the Vytal Fashion Show begins about how they were outclassed by the more experienced models and fashion designers, before saying that he has faith in them regardless. When Ilia asks him how, he returns the question back to her, saying that he is empowering her ability to choose for herself to ineffectually mask the fact that he has no idea.

** Jaune begins the story with a rosy view of humanity, but finds himself distrusting authority and sympathizing with the White Fang as he bears witness to injustice. He's taken aback when he finds himself relating more and more to the terrorists he was raised to distrust, and increasingly more resentful of "normal" people.

* GreenEyedMonster: [[spoiler:Blake's attitude toward Jaune is because he has succeeded where she failed, which makes her feel like she has wasted her life on the cause]].

* GuiltByAssociationGag: While some characters are wary of Jaune because he killed and usurped Adam Taurus, others insist he's a monster just ''because'' he's in the White Fang, and not because of anything he's done

** The second is when [[spoiler: he is sexually assaulted by the [=SDC=] manager. When talking with Adam, he admits it isn't about being assualted, he feels bad for not noticing the oppression of others feel]].

** Ozpin is attempting to avert this with Team RWBY, pointing out that having them attack the Fang directly would look bad.

** Blake, as in canon, used a ribbon to hide her cat ears, to little avail as Ruby accidentally outed her as a Faunus to their team, and Coco later points out that it was ineffective because of her known status as the daughter of the Chieftain of Menagerie.

* HumiliationConga: To say that [[spoiler:Neopolitan's]] attempt to kill Jaune goes bad is like saying that the Grimm are a minor threat to Remnant's population. [[spoiler:Instead of what should be a short and brutal beatdown for him, she instead gets covered in food, beaned by a potted plant, has her head shoved in a microwave (with food still inside it), has her pants dropped to her ankles, and ultimately falls and gets locked inside of a dumpster]].

* ImmortalityBisexuality: Ozpin has been many people throughout his thousands of years of life, and not all of them happened to be straight men. He says the appreciation he's gained for the male form helped him pay enough attention to realize that [[spoiler:the White Fang member with the amazing abs is the visiting student from Haven with the amazing abs]].

* ImTakingHerHomeWithMe: Coco in regards to Ruby, who is taking her role as a PR Hero incredibly well, to the point of even calling her 'Rubaby', much to Yang's jealousy.

* InherentInTheSystem: Lisa Lavender makes it clear to Jaune she would rather cover the real issues and NOT peddle in sensationalist lies. However, she is forced to work for a corporate media that doesn't want to threaten the bottom line of others, and her audience is a mostly [[ApatheticCitizens uncaring public]] more [[ViewersAreMorons interested in scandal than societal issues]].

** Blake is desperate to hunt down and arrest Jaune to "avenge" Adam no matter what she has to do to find him. Meanwhile, no one else even really cares that Adam is dead at all, her friends are worried, her higher-ups are annoyed with her, and she continues to make the situation worse.

** [[spoiler: Despite the White Fang's previous history with Schnee Dust, Weiss has a far more cordial relationship with Jaune than with Blake]].
** Jaune whines about how useless the mecha they got from the Albains Brothers was. [[spoiler: Once the attack on Amity begins, Jaune finds the mecha to be quite useful]].

** [[spoiler:Adam's ghost]] makes a lot of good points during one of his conversations with Jaune, even if he is a bit of a dick about it. [[spoiler:He points out (accurately) that Jaune has no real resolve to see the cause through to the end, simply working to prove he's not a threat and then let the flame of change he's created flicker out without him. He gives Jaune credit for what he has done, even admitting that he's better than Adam himself was in life, but says that regardless of the circumstances behind his new occupation it's now his duty to use his large amount of influence for the good of the Faunus]]. Additionally, during [[spoiler:his brief time in Jaune's body]], Jaune finds himself unable to disagree with anything he said or did even when he was a dick about it.

* KickTheDog: [[spoiler: The judges at Jaune's trial are willing to send him to a low security prison...but the Council override that decision out of pure spite]].

** Elizabeth Tanner. She seems a like stern but reasonable manager for the [=SDC=]. [[spoiler: In private, she is a remorseless serial rapist who exploits prejudice to force herself on Faunus men. Her violation of Jaune exposes him to the depths of corruption and exploitation found in Remnant]]. While the story does lighten back up once she leaves the narrative, it begins to explore more serious abuses people go through and never quite returns to the same light-hearted place that it began.

* KnowWhenToFoldEm: After expressing increasing frustration at Cinder's decisions, [[spoiler:Mercury finally has enough when Jaune (controlled by Adam's spirit) reveals his survival by interrupting his and Emerald's ramsacking Beacon and putting them on the defensive along with some students. The moment it becomes clear to him that they're on the losing end, he surrenders, disarms himself, volunteers everything he knows about what Cinder is doing in the school, and promises to give testimony exonerating the White Fang for the false flag attack in exchange for a lighter sentence. Emerald is shocked at his betrayal, but he spells out that he never had any real loyalty to Cinder and just went along with her to stay alive]].

* TakingYouWithMe: When Rosemary and Thyme try to tell [[spoiler:Swan that her career will be over if she exposes what they did to her, she counters that her career is over anyway thanks to the holes in her ears and at least this way she can take them down with her]].

** In a weirdly touching example, [[spoiler: Adam explain while hates Jaune, he admires the fact that he's sticking up for Faunus and won't be a bystander to injustice even if he quits the White Fang]].

** Subtle Spices Fashion, a fashion and modeling agency is known to force unfair contracts and poor working conditions on desperate Faunus who want to get into the modelling industry. The reason? Because the company's founders (both former models) lost to a Faunus model on a catwalk once.

** Roman is a shameless criminal and proud of it, but several of the operations Jaune takes down make him sick and he commends Jaune for closing them down, including the blood sport and [[spoiler:sex slave]] rings. He also mentions that he despises dog fighting in particular; his first heist was against a dog fighting ring and he led the police there himself. Additionally, as per usual for Creator/CoeurAlAran, [[spoiler:he reveals to Jaune that he's firmly against Cinder's plan and genuinely loves Vale WartsAndAll, and he hates the fact that he's too weak to stop her from throwing it into chaos. So much so, he covertly sneaks Jaune a knife to help him escape]].

** [[spoiler: The Albain brothers also end up attracted to Jaune, with one of their congratulatory letters quickly becoming love letters, complete with saucy pictures of themselves]].

** Sienna and her followers are extremists, but they weren't fond of Adam's wretched attitude.
** Lisa Lavender has become mostly aloof to scandal and oppression, but [[spoiler: she is ''pissed'' when she learns the [=SDC=] camp was run by a sexual predator]].

** As far as Ozpin is concerned, Huntsmen are for hunting Grimm and nothing else. Despite multiple attempts from the Council, he emphatically denies them Huntsman assistance against the brewing civil uprising against them.

** [[WellIntentionedExtremist Though not exactly evil]], Ilia and her fellow White Fang members see Jaune's genuinely pleasant nature and charity as a form of manipulation. Even the "heroic" characters end up seeing him as a [=PR=] mastermind. Considering he (technically) killed and usurped Adam, [[JustifiedTrope it is hard to blame them for being nervous]].

** [[spoiler:The Council, enraged at Jaune for shaking their status quo, have him sent to a maximum-security prison even though he was sentenced to lower security just to screw him over one more time for making them look bad]].
** Neo takes sadistic joy in [[spoiler:tormenting Jaune while he's captured with the news reports of the chaos his disappearance has caused, including making him watch a report where his mother grieved his loss two separate times]].

* EvilPowerVacuum: While Jaune is not evil, his presence is a stabilizing element to the criminal underworld. The various gangs are all willing to work together to free him as his loss would cause them massive losses as the general chaos and rioting from his capture ruins the local economy. The heroes also think that taking Jaune out of the picture could lead to a more violent person to fill his shoes, one less concerned with public relations.
* ExactWords: When Jacques Schnee releases a statement [[spoiler:condemning the acts of Elizabeth Tanner]], he specifically writes that his daughter Weiss was "leading the charge", making her out to be team leader instead of Ruby. [[DiscussedTrope Coco points out that this kind of PR is exactly what Team RWBY needs to learn about]].

* FalseConfession: [[spoiler:{{Downplayed}} somewhat, as Jaune ''is'' the leader of the White Fang in Vale. However, once he is imprisoned by the government they try to convince him to take a [[PleaBargain plea deal]] and renounce his companions to save himself, and thus delegitimize the Fang's recent actions and popularity. To do so, they lie about what's been happening in his absence (telling him that the White Fang have started acting violently and are actively promoting riots, when in reality it's been the opposite), [[GoMadFromTheIsolation keeping him alone in a blank, windowless room]], purposely keeping the room cold and providing no way of retaining his own body heat, and [[SleepDeprivationPunishment causing loud noises when he begins to fall asleep]]. Just in case all that doesn't work, they've also left a few otherwise innocuous items that he could use to [[DrivenToSuicide kill himself]], and have a security camera observing him so that should he do so they can 'prove' that they didn't do anything to him. [[TruthInTelevision This is a combination of sensory deprivation and white torture]], and Jaune only retains his identity and sanity with Adam's help.]]

** Many of the White Fang in return are not fond of humans, and are less than thrilled with the idea of Jaune trying to help them. Sienna herself holds a severe grudge against humanity, which terrifies Jaune to no end, since he doubts she would go easy on him if she discovered he was human.

** The White Fang's extremism and own dislike of humanity blinds them to the fact that their actions only alienate not only humans, but many moderate faunus and give other humans an excuse to persecute them.
** Adam's belligerent and violent nature make him hated not just by humans and the law, but by his own minions and Sienna. When Jaune kills him, almost nobody is sad to see him go, especially when Jaune's polite and humble nature make him more liked by Adam's former minions and Sienna.

* ForWantOfANail: The fact that Blake doesn't recognize [[spoiler:Sun Wukong at the fashion show]] even though Coco does implies that something happened to prevent the two from meeting, presumably Ruby accidentally exposing Blake as a Faunus earlier than in canon.

** [[spoiler: At the Vytal Fesitval, Jaune develops a similarly cordial relationship with Ozpin, Ruby, and Weiss, of all people. Subverted with Blake, who still has it in for him, and Yang who...is too busy restraining Blake to really interact with Jaune]].

** Roman has little enmity toward Jaune, only being against him because Cinder wants him too. [[spoiler: While being held captive, Roman becomes the first person Jaune confesses to not being a Faunus. Roman even sneaks Jaune a knife so he can escape, and Jaune in turn orders his gang to treat Roman gently]].

* FreudianExcuse: Perry once aspired to be a veterinarian, and applied to medical school for his chance. He was denied a scholarship (which he legitimately qualified for) just for being a Faunus. After his dreams were crushed, Perry found no other choice but to join the White Fang. The narration afterward notes that his situation is nothing new.

* DidYouJustFlipOffCthulhu: Jaune puts Cinder on hold when she calls, not knowing who she is.

** Sienna gave Jaune a Paladin mech without considering that no one on his team knows how to pilot the thing, making it completely worthless.
** The Subtle Spice designers [[spoiler:disfigure a model by putting holes in her ears in an attempt to emulate Ivory Tooth's designs. The result is not only bloody and looks horrible, but the model, Swan, decides to go out with the White Fang to show off what they did to her. When one designer tries to say that it will be the end of her career for legal reasons, Swan points out [[AlreadyTheCase her ears are ruined and her career is over anyway]], but at least this way she can get revenge and take them with her]].
** At the arms deal, [[spoiler:Cinder gets confused when the White Fang show up because she told Neo to tell her if someone else arrived. She then realizes the issue of putting the mute girl on alarm duty and scolds herself for her carelessness]].

** Emerald later decide that her illusion Semblance would be perfect for tricking a third party into doing her job [[spoiler:by making them think they've seen Jaune pull out a weapon]]. Unfortunately for her, she coincidentally chooses to try this on [[spoiler:Blake and Ironwood]], who were already being watched due to a history of biased behavior against Jaune, and they're stopped before they can get anywhere.

** Cinder decides to [[spoiler: dress up as a White Fang member while infiltrating the [=CCT=] tower, hoping someone will catch her in the act and discredit Jaune. However, with Jaune hogging the attention at the dance, no one bothers to even go to the [=CCT=], except for a distracted janitor]].

* DiscOneFinalBoss: Fittingly enough for someone trying to make the whole story about her, [[spoiler:Cinder isn't the final challenge. She instigates a low point in the plot, implements her plan to attack Beacon, and even finishes off the Fall Maiden -- but in the end, she's beaten with little to show for it, and the author confirms there's still an arc left to go. Cinder was ultimately nothing more than an obnoxious distraction from the real issues the fic is about]].

** Subtle Spices Fashion, a fashion and modeling agency is known to force unfair contracts and poor working conditions on desperate Faunus who want to get into the modelling. The reason? Because the company's founders lost to a Faunus model on a catwalk once.
** [[spoiler: This becomes PlayedForDrama when Jaune gets arrested. The amount of abuse and punishment he is subjected too by Vale's authorities is indicative of how corrupt and self-serving they are]].

* DoubleStandardRapeFemaleOnMale: Averted. [[spoiler: Tanner trying to force herself sexually on Jaune is portrayed as utterly vile InUniverse, and Jaune is so traumatized he ends up in tears. The fact that she had done this multiple times prompts Jaune to order a hit on the camp, and Coco to send Team [=RWBY=] to arrest the camp administrators for letting it go on]]. [[WordOfGod Reportedly]], this trope was originally meant to be PlayedStraight, but as soon as the author actually started writing the scene he realized how gross it was and chose to reverse it.

** [[spoiler: Mercury becomes increasingly impatient with Cinder's petty cruelty, noting that just slitting Jaune's throat instead of tormenting him and leaving him in an "inescapable" deathtrap would have been a much more practical option.]]

** Blake is the one convinced the White Fang (under Jaune at least) is pure evil and has to be stopped while Weiss is the one arguing that they're doing good and clearly aren't total monsters, a reversal of their disagreement from Volume 1 in canon.

** When [[spoiler:Ironwood arrests Sun, Ozpin argues on the student's behalf by pointing out that they have absolutely no evidence that would hold up in the court of public opinion]]. While we're still inclined to side with Ozpin anyway because of how [[InspectorJavert obsessed Ironwood is with the case]], we also know that Ironwood is actually completely correct.
** When Team RWBY talks with Jaune at [[spoiler:the Vytal Festival]], Ruby asks if he won his fight against [[spoiler:Neopolitan]], to which he says that he did and he had the fight handled from start to finish. [[ExactWords He's technically telling the truth]], but only technically; the only reason he had the fight so well in hand was because [[spoiler:his plans were so unorthodox and flat out stupid that Neo couldn't keep up]], not because of combat skill.
** At [[spoiler:the Beacon Dance]], Emerald and Mercury discuss what kind of Faunus Jaune must be; at Mercury's suggestion, they eventually decide he's a honey badger Faunus. Unlike the other examples of this debate throughout the story, what makes this one so ironic is that his logic is actually solid ([[spoiler:Emerald's supposed poison isn't affecting him like it should be, and honey badgers are incredibly resistant to toxins and poisons]]).

* {{Dramedy}}: The story [[MoodWhiplash pinballs between drama and humor]] multiple times a chapter. Overall, it's too funny to count as a drama, with storylines including Jaune publicly crossdressing with Blake's clothes, the White Fang constantly making Jaune a BadassOnPaper, and Adam being a lovesick horndog who still has unresolved issues with Blake. However, it's also too serious to count as a BlackComedy, with topics like racism, physical and sexual abuse, and the legalized borderline-slave labor present all being given the seriousness they deserve.

* EasilyForgiven: [[spoiler: Jaune's crew are quick to forgive him for lying about being a Faunus since he was an excellent leader who did a lot of good]].

** During the Vytal Fashion Show, the White Fang [[spoiler:and Coco Adel work together to help Swan, a mutilated faunus model, and take down Subtle Spices, her employers who force faunus models into unfair contracts and mutilated her for the show.]]

** After undeservedly gaining a reputation of a brutal murderer, Jaune proceeds to reform the White Fang, give charity to the poor, and attack Vale's corrupt institutions. Jaune has no genuine desire to do any of these things [[spoiler: at first]], but wants to improve his reputation.
** Realizing that Jaune is crafting a benevolent image for himself, Ozpin responds with his own PR campaign to help discredit the White Fang and enhance Beacon's reputation. Ruby notes with some frustration that Vale's attempts to help the faunus isn't being done out of altruism, but to discredit Jaune himself.
** [[spoiler:Eventually, Jacques Schnee decides to support Ruby's campaign for the Vale Council; while he's mostly doing it with the eventual hope of lining his own pockets, Weiss points out that it's a lot of support for Ruby's anti-corruption platform.]]
* EnragedByIdiocy: Mercury is really annoyed [[spoiler: with Cinder for not killing Jaune when they had him just to prolong his misery. It is part of the reason he turns on Cinder]].

** After discovering Jaune's transcripts were forged, Ozpin concludes Jaune was planning to infiltrate Beacon on behalf of the White Fang.

** Team RWBY's attempt to foil the Dust robbery at the docks quickly go pear shaped. Blake's asking why the White Fang are working with a human gets her MistakenForRacist, leading to a long argument that allows Torchwick to escape with the Dust. Then Bane goes into an UnstoppableRage at the sight of Weiss which leads to a long fight that results in the docks getting wrecked. End result is Torchwick getting away with the dust, a large amount of property damage, and a PR nightmare for Beacon with Team RWBY looking incompetent and Ozpin as their enabler.