Chapter 35 – The gathering storm

Pyrrha thought that after leaving the Colosseum and shocked (or maybe even disgusted, she was not really sure) faces of the spectators behind, some time spent away from the public eye would help her pull herself together after her ill-fated match against Penny Polendina. Yet the long and stressful 'conversation', or rather, an interrogation, in Ozpin's office after the accident only served to do more harm.

Now she knew exactly how Yang had to feel during her detainment and interrogation.

Despite all the evidence he was presented with, Ironwood still treated Pyrrha like a criminal. It was not like she did nothing wrong, at least not entirely, but she would never cause someone such devastating injury on purpose. Once hundreds of blades seemingly popped up out of nowhere before her, she acted purely on self-preservation instinct. Alas, when she realized it was all just a hallucination, it was too late to stop what was coming. The general seemed rather attached to the Polendina girl which Pyrrha found rather curious. Were the two of them related, perhaps…?

Even though angry, professor Goodwitch was being reasonable during the questioning… at least towards her. Most of her wrath was directed at Coco, Tanya and the rest of their fellow plotters. It was a known fact that she adhered strictly to the rules and condemned any forms of 'vigilantism' as she called Griffon's plan to catch the one that was casting those illusions. It was only the unprecedented circumstances of this affair that stopped the professor from handing out punishments. After all, Tanya did have a point that it was almost impossible for a person to prove that hallucinations were the direct cause of their offences.

Shortly after arriving to the Beacon tower, Pyrrha's teammates were sent back to their dorm as they were not involved in the incident. Needless to say she was disappointed by the decision; she could really use their support, even merely their physical presence would help her calm down a bit. Ironwood was probably worried that Nora would grenade him out of the window had he insisted on her guilt, she thought humorlessly. Not that she would do that; the pink grenadier was a bit of a loose cannon but even she knew better than to assault a general of Atlesian army. While she and her friends were being escorted to the tower, Penny was rushed back to Atlas; the soldiers had to literally tear Ruby away from the injured girl (or did destroyed prosthetics even count as an injury?). Pyrrha felt sorry for both of them and knowing that she had caused all this only made her feel worse.

As far as the interrogation went, first the general asked her all sorts of unpleasant questions; it almost seemed as if he was subtly pressuring her into confessing. Pyrrha described to the detail what she saw during her ill-fated match but for some reason the general did not seem convinced. This went on for at least five minutes before Ozpin interrupted him and asked Griffon and Adel to tell their side of the story.

Their take on the entire affair was more than just 'a little disturbing'.

The headmaster simply listened, a disconcerted frown etched onto his face, as the girls talked about the hallucinations during the fights, Yang's 'unprovoked attack' on Mercury Black that only thanks to Tanya's intervention did not end with something far worse, and their hastily devised scheme to catch the mysterious illusionist that turned to be successful only by miracle.

The trail apparently led to one Emerald Sustrai that listened to the entire exchange with a sour expression, dumped unceremoniously into one of the seats. They kept her hands tied and put an Aura dampener on her neck to keep her from escaping. Sure, presumption of innocence was a universally valid principle but after recent events no one was about to take any chances.

After the girls finished their testimony, Ozpin turned his attention to the fox Faunus from team TNDR. "How exactly did your Semblance help you identify this 'illusionist?' I feel the ladies left that part for you to explain."

When Nicolaus was explaining his Semblance, how it enhanced his sight and allowed him to identify and eventually catch her, Sustrai let out a stream of quiet curses. Predictably, when Ozpin asked her to explain herself she simply kept her mouth shut, refusing to cooperate.

"Very well," The headmaster said with a tired sigh. "I'll leave it to general Ironwood to find out the answers. I hear he has multiple ways of making people talk."

Emerald did not even flinch at the subtle threat.

"Don't worry, I'll find out the answers." The general promised. "No extreme measures." He added quickly when Goodwitch shot him a dirty glare.

Ozpin nodded curtly. "Fine, then. Would you kindly have Miss Sustrai escorted out of my office? There's no real need for her to remain here any longer."

Ironwood gestured to the couple of soldiers waiting by the entrance. "Move Sustrai onto the flagship; we'll hold her in the high security cell block."

"Yes, sir." Emerald did not even try struggling as the troopers dragged her out of the room, not even attempting to be gentle with her.

Once the door closed behind them, Ozpin addressed the students that took part in the hunt for the illusionist. "As for you, I'm torn between congratulating you for a job well done," Goodwitch huffed in disapproval at this. "and reprimanding you for illicit conduct. While your action did help to shed some light on today's unprecedented events, it also led to the violation of several rules of this school. First of all, the rules strictly forbid acts of violence among students outside the fighting ring," The headmaster cast a meaningful glance at Coco and Nicolaus. "and the same goes for acting beyond one's powers. It certainly was not your place to… 'dispense justice', if you will, not without explicit permission from the authorities. If you suspected any foul play during the Tournament, you were to report your suspicions to the leaders of this school instead of embarking on some crusade."

"With all due respect," Tanya objected. "There was no foul play at first, until Sustrai used her powers on Yang in the final round. As far as I know, only interference in a match by a third party is against the rules; technically speaking, she did nothing illegal when she cast her damn illusions in the first two matches since she actually took part in them."

"Still, that doesn't explain why you didn't inform us." Goodwitch pointed out. It was pretty clear that she was not about to forgive them so easily.

"And would you believe us if we told you?" Coco challenged. The fashionista did not seem to care just who she was talking to, much to Goodwitch's ire. "Our teams lost their fights; you'd just call us 'sore losers' anyway."

Ozpin leaned forward in his seat, his expression anything but pleasant. "Miss Adel, I saw plethora of things in my life; outlandish things which might seem impossible to you. So don't presume to say what I would or would not believe, would you kindly?"

Coco looked like if she wanted to argue… but then she thought better of it. Angering the headmaster was definitely not the wisest course of action.

"Now," Ozpin continued. "Is there anything else you would like to add? Any of you?"

Nicolaus cleared his throat. "I'm not sure whether it is relevant to you at all but when I caught up with Sustrai, she was talking to someone over her Scroll. Someone named 'Cinder', if it's familiar to you."

"Interesting," Ironwood murmured. "Was there anything else?"

The fox Faunus shook his head. "I heard her speak about how she was 'founded out'; that was moments before I, um, terminated the call."

The door suddenly slammed open and Qrow Branwen stumbled inside the office. "There was a word of some commotion so I ran here as fast as I could." He slurred. "Though I see you already started without me."

"Waiting would be counterproductive as we couldn't be really sure whether you'd arrive in time… or sober." Ironwood said coldly.

"At least I can think straight, even while drunk." Qrow shot back and sat down heavily on one remaining empty chair. The students flinched as the stench of alcohol hit them full force. Especially Blake and Nicolaus suffered as their enhanced senses made the experience even more unpleasant.

"Gentlemen," Ozpin interjected before the argument could escalate. "We've got a situation on our hands so I suggest you put your differences aside, at least for now."

"Whatever you say, Oz." Branwen snorted, earning a glare from Goodwitch.

The headmaster turned to the students once more. "Now, if you have nothing else to add, then you're all dismissed. Given the circumstances, I can overlook your transgressions this time, but remember; one more step out of line and there will be consequences." He fell silent for a few minutes, letting the message sink in, before he added. "Leave us."

The students did not need to be told twice and hastily made their way out of the room.

Except Pyrrha.

The Mistrali champion lingered in the room, waiting until the rest of her friends were gone. "Is something the matter, Miss Nikos?" Professor Goodwitch asked.

"No- Yes, actually, I-" Pyrrha struggled to form a coherent sentence but she could not find suitable words that could aptly convey the message she was trying to get across. After moments of awkward silence, she could only settle for four words. "I can't do it."

For some reason, Ozpin knew instantly what she meant. The same could not be said for the rest, though.

"I beg your pardon?" Ironwood asked.

She did not have it in her to meet his gaze. "I'm not the right person. I can't accept this responsibility."

The others finally caught on. Qrow stared at her with a mix of surprise and curiosity but otherwise refrained from commenting. Of course, it was Ironwood that openly objected to her decision. "Miss Nikos, I need to ask you to reconsider. The longer the Fall Maiden remains in coma, the greater the chance that her assailant comes here to finish her job. Do you realize what-" He was suddenly cut off by Ozpin.

"That's enough out of you, James." The headmaster barked out and rose from his chair. Pyrrha had never seen him angry, though this time it was rather close. "We will do our best to keep her from stealing the rest of Amber's power."

The general was fuming with anger but offered no response.

"I understand where this is coming from, Miss Nikos." Ozpin said to Pyrrha, his angry expression softening. "The decision was yours to make and we will respect it. However, I assure you that none of us blame you for what happened today. You couldn't have known."

But I should have, Pyrrha added inwardly. Nothing that Ozpin said would change her mind. As much as she wanted to dedicate her life to protecting the world and the innocents, becoming something akin to a mythical figure was not something she was ready for.

"Thank you… for understanding." She croaked and turned on her heels, quickly walking out of the room.

I need time to think.

After Pyrrha Nikos left the room, the conversation resumed, with general Ironwood being the first to speak.

"You shouldn't have let her back out so easily, Ozpin." He said accusingly.

Ozpin shot him a cross glare. "And what would you have me do, James? Threaten her? Transfer the Maiden's powers to her against her will? Is that what you want?"

"You should've reminded her of her purpose, her duty to the people of Remnant!" The general argued. "Letting her go without as much as an attempt to convince her was a mistake!"

Qrow rose up from the chair. "You know what else was a mistake? Letting a damn robot masquerading as a human enter the Tournament!" The veteran Huntsman spat out, regarding the Atlesian general with a scornful glare. "First you bring an entire damn army with you and scared the shit out of the entire city, and now this? What the hell are you playing at, Jimmy?!"

Qrow's accusation caught the general completely off guard; at the same time it served to gain the attention of both Ozpin and Goodwitch. "What? How-" Ironwood sputtered, too well aware of three glares boring into him. At least the drunkard was thoughtful enough to reveal this while no one else was around… if that was any consolation, of course.

"'How did I find out', is that what you're asking?" Qrow cut him off, pacing back and forth as he tore mercilessly into the general. "You should realize that not all people outside Atlas are complete idiots. Blades hidden in a backpack that Polendina seems to carry everywhere she goes? Or that she always has somebody chaperoning her even though she's fully capable of taking care of herself? Or that she barely talks to anybody? Don't think for a minute that everyone will buy your 'she has prosthetics' story. One way or another, the truth will come out; what are you gonna do then?!"

The Huntsman pointed at the Atlesian ships floating above the Vale City. "If people weren't afraid before, they are now thanks to the huge fleet parking at their doorstep! I've heard the rumors about 'annexation in disguise' and preparations for war! What would they think if they learned that Atlas built an android looking exactly like a human? Do you think they'd still trust each other if they knew there might be Atlesian robots among them? Mistrust and fear will start spreading; do you even realize how this could end?"

"I was trying to protect people, whether it be from the Grimm, or the terrorist or any other bastard that is planning to sow discord and chaos in our society!" Ironwood argued.

"And how's that working out for you?" Branwen sneered as he stared Ironwood down, only a less than a foot wide gap separating the two of them. "I've seen the reports from troops patrolling the fringes of Vale's safe zone; the Grimm are coming, in force. And after today's show, it's gonna get worse before it gets better."

"Please, Qrow; if we keep arguing about what is whose fault we'll never get anything done." Ozpin interjected.

Qrow let out a huff of displeasure but decided to back down. "Then let's get down to it."

The headmaster began pacing slowly around the office. "As you may have already heard, someone managed to infiltrate the Tournament and used an Illusion based Semblance to influence the outcome of the fights. For what ends we don't know. Nevertheless, it's quite alarming how she used the aforementioned powers to… trick students into doing bodily harm and thus discrediting both themselves and their respective schools, considering how many people watched the event."

Qrow frowned. "How do you know it was a she?"

"The students we have detained after Miss Nikos' accident claimed to have tracked down this 'meddler'." Goodwitch replied. "Although I strongly disagree with their methods, their line of reasoning seemed to fit in with the known facts, such as-"

"Wait a moment, Glyn." The veteran Huntsman interrupted. "Does it mean that Yang's innocent in all this?"

The professor appeared thoroughly annoyed by being cut off. "Yes, Qrow; it does. Anyway, I won't bother you with a detailed description of events but Miss Adel and her company succeeded in 'detaining' the meddler who turned out to be Emerald Sustrai, the student of Haven Academy." She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "Now that I think about it, maybe we should question her teammates. Maybe they were aware of her interference-"

"If they knew, they'd be probably long gone at this point." Qrow muttered.

"Maybe we should ask Haven authorities to check on their background." Ironwood suggested.

"A good point, James. However, the real question is; what was the purpose of trying to arouse a scandal?" Ozpin mused aloud. "Is the increased Grimm activity just an unfortunate consequence… or a goal? And if so, what's the point of provoking a large scale Grimm assault? After all, the monsters aren't picky about their victims."

"And don't forget about Sustrai's possible accomplice." Goodwitch pointed out. "'Cinder'… I wonder who that could be…"

"Maybe the woman that broke into the CCT tower a while ago?" The general said. "I've had my men scour the city for her but they've come empty handed so far."

The headmaster stopped pacing and pinched his forehead in frustration. "I have a feeling this could be a prequel to something even more serious. Even if not, the recent events still revealed huge gaps in our security. Either way, I'm afraid we have no choice but to put Beacon on high alert. I'll send a message through encrypted channels to all available Hunters to withdraw to Vale City and its close surroundings."

Goodwitch turned to the headmaster with a worried expression. "Ozpin?"

"If an attack comes, we'll need all the help we can get." Ozpin said grimly.

"What will we say to the media once the journalists come knocking on our door?"

"We'll say that somebody used a very atypical method of cheating during the Tournament and the event will have to be interrupted until the investigation is concluded. After all, Glynda, this is an unprecedented development." He replied with a thin smile; yet there was no trace of humor in his voice. "Speculations about Sustrai's motives, this 'Cinder' character and possible eventualities will have to be kept from the press; I don't want to incite further panic."

"I agree, for once." Ironwood concurred. "Involving the media in this would only do more harm. Plus, if someone out there is making their move on us, we need to make them believe they have the upper hand. At one point or another, they're bound to slip up."

Qrow snorted. "Finally you're talking something other than rubbish."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Branwen." The general retorted, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Anyway, my troops are already on red alert and I'll have our intelligence scour for any information that might be linked to 'Cinder' or their associates."

"Excellent, James. Let me know if you learn anything." Ozpin replied.

Ironwood nodded curtly and walked out of the office, muttering a quiet farewell to the headmaster and his colleagues.

"So… what do you make of all this?" Qrow asked once the general was out of earshot.

Ozpin did not spare him a glance, gazing instead at Vale City illuminated by the setting sun. "Only that we have to be very careful, Qrow. The people are restless, uneasy, and the monsters out there feel it. The last time the Grimm made into the city, we barely managed to keep them at bay. I'm afraid that the very survival of Vale city is at stake." He tore his gaze away from the window and looked at his colleagues. "Things depend on whether or not people believe that we have the situation under control. The more this trust is undermined, the greater the peril."

"Don't forget the White Fang." Branwen reminded him. "Ever since the Breach there's been no word on them. Some people think they're finished but I'd say they're waiting for the right moment to strike."

"And when it happens, the chaos and fear they cause will attract even more monsters." Goodwitch finished with a frown.

"In any case, I fear things will escalate soon and we'll be faced with difficult choices." The headmaster appeared a bit too impassive for someone facing such a dangerous situation. The stiff posture spoke volumes about what he felt, though. He was dealing with the unknown and had only the sketchiest of ideas about the motives or identity of his mysterious foe.

"The question isn't whether we can avoid the disaster… It's whether we can ward off the worst of its consequences."

An undisclosed location somewhere in Vale City…

"And now, breaking news with Lisa Lavender!"

"According to the recent statement of the authorities of Beacon Academy, the unprecedented and brutal resolution of the fight between Penny Polendina and Pyrrha Nikos was a direct result of a foul play by the contestants from Haven Academy. The ongoing investigation of the incident has revealed that one particular member of team MSER, who is currently being detained by Atlesian armed forces and whose identity so far remains undisclosed, deliberately interfered with the matches in the final round by the means of, I quote, 'an Illusion based Semblance that allows to plant false images into the victim's mind in order to provoke an extreme reaction'. It is implied that the same tactic was used during the fight between Yang Xiao Long and Mercury Black. According to our sources, Miss Nikos herself is deeply upset by the entire affair and Beacon officials strongly discouraged any attempts at contacting her. As for-"

The newswoman was cut off mid sentence as the TV was turned off.

The raven-haired woman sitting on the couch let out a huff of displeasure and threw the remote aside. She was wearing a short deep red dress adorned with glowing yellow designs and a pair of dark high heeled pumps.

Her attention was caught by the Scroll lying on the coffee table that suddenly started ringing, signaling an incoming call. The woman picked up the device; her glowing amber eyes narrowed as she read the name on the display. "And just when I was about to call…" She muttered to herself and accepted the call. "Mercury, just the person I wanted to speak to." She said in a well practiced pleasant tone.

"Have you heard the news, Cinder?" She could tell that Mercury was nervous, no matter how well he managed to hide it.

"I did. It's funny to see how things fall apart when I'm not there to… look out for you."

"No offense, but you don't seem all that upset that Em got herself caught."

Cinder flashed a brief smile. "And why should I? She did exactly what I asked of her. Our original plan may have not worked out but as I said before, it was only a minor hindrance. As for Emerald's incarceration, she didn't cover her tracks well enough which is no one's fault but her own."

"Uh-huh. So what should we do now?"

"Leave Beacon as soon as you can. We're moving to the next phase of the plan and I need you and your 'friends' ready."

Mercury sounded surprised by her decision. "Wait, does that mean we're ditching Emerald?"

"Of course not, Mercury." Cinder replied. "Emerald has her uses and she's loyal, unlike some. We'll break her out… eventually. However, she needs to learn that every failure has its consequences. And what is the better lesson than spending a few days behind the bars, sharing a cellblock with the very person she hates?"

Mercury chuckled. "Torchwick's never gonna let her live this down."

"One more thing; have any of you found out who exposed our master thief?"

"Well, before Nikos' match, Em ordered us to stay behind, probably thinking she could do it on her own. I guess we're lucky that the Neo girl didn't listen. While Em was busy getting arrested, Neo did a little scouting; turns out that the two teams we defeated earlier joined forces and invited girls over from team 'RWBY' to their crusade. Seems that Griffon and Adel really wanted some payback. Why are you asking?"

"It seems that I underestimated Ozpin's little flock." Cinder explained. "Especially this 'Ruby Rose' girl and her friends; even Griffon's team turns out to be more dangerous than we thought. These 'children' interfered with our plans on multiple occasions; I decided it's the high time we removed those nuisances from the picture, if we want everything to go smoothly."

"Uh-huh. And how do you plan on doing that?"

"I'll ask our friends from White Fang for some assistance." The woman smiled maliciously. "I'm sure they'll be more than eager to settle the score with human oppressors. And what could be a better target than the fairgrounds in the city… where some poor unfortunate students just might get caught in the crossfire?"

On the other end of the line, Mercury heaved a sigh. "It's always 'cloak and dagger' with you, isn't it?"

Cinder chuckled. "It's what I do best. Even if our enemy realizes what's going on, it'll be too late to stop it."

A few hours after Emerald Sustrai was detained by Atlesian soldiers, things took an unexpected turn for the worse.

Adel and Griffon were right to assume that there would be quite a scandal after Sustrai's machinations came to light. Neither them nor their fellow 'conspirators' expected the announcement that the Tournament would have to be interrupted due to 'unforeseen fraudulent machinations', as the journalists called Em's hallucination trick. It basically meant that one of the Vytal Festival's greatest sources of entertainment was out of the picture and that a lot of disgruntled spectators would be expecting a refund for the now useless tickets. Though this development was quite unfortunate, alone it would have not been that bad.

The worse things were yet to come, however.

In their hunt for a story that would sell, the ever nosy media somehow managed to dig up that it had been Beacon students that discovered the foul play and the likenesses of Tanya Griffon and Coco Adel were now all over the news. As if that was not enough, the authorities allegedly claimed that, given the extent of the machinations, the results of the Tournament so far might have to be annulled. This possibility did not sit well with anyone, especially with those who managed to fight their way into the final round.

In its entire history, the Vytal Festival was never faced with a situation like this.

So much effort, blood and sweat and all of it could be rendered pointless because of one cheater? Not many could stomach the thought. And in case the Tournament really got canceled, what would happen then? Start over? People all over the Four Kingdoms were now discussing the fate of the entire event… Some of them looking for someone to pin the blame on rather than discussing.

The official story said that Emerald Sustrai of Haven Academy was responsible for the scandal though her motivations so far remained unknown. A lot of angry Mistralian students were now marching around Beacon campus looking for someone to take their anger out on and since the culprit was out of their reach, her teammates were the next best target.

On the other hand, there were some that put all the blame on the ones that exposed the cheater, namely the few ones that advanced into the Tournament's final round. According to their own logic, had Adel and co. minded their own business and let the Tournament proceed, no one would have to deal with such a problem; the Tournament scandal might have ruined all the progress they made.

That was exactly why a group of Atlesian students started throwing all sorts of garbage at Adel and her fellow plotters on their way to the dorms, shouting insults that would make even a sailor pause.

Thank Oum the confrontation did not escalate into an all out brawl. None of them were in the mood for that.

With Emerald's arrest, things changed both for Yang and Pyrrha… though not for the better, for the most part.

After hearing the media ramble about her 'psychopathic tendencies, anger issues' and so on, Yang was grateful to hear that she was proven innocent. However, she had no reason to be happy either, since she saw on live broadcast how the fight between Pyrrha and Penny turned out. While she was not really acquainted with her, seeing Polendina get quartered by her own blades struck Yang deeply. Since Ruby had been miserable after the entire incident, the fact that Penny survived her devastating injuries was no consolation.

Still, she was still faring better than the other victim of Sustrai's illusions.

Even after the truth had been brought to light, Pyrrha seemed broken by the recent string of events. It might have sounded harsh but saying that she was a wreck was not really far from the truth. She might not have been the only victim of Emerald's tricks but she took the worst of it. The entire world saw her mutilate a fellow contestant; not intentionally, but the spectators had no way of knowing. Who knows what would happen if Tanya did not intervene… Nevertheless, not even the Beacon's official statement that explained what happened could repair all the damage.

She was disgraced… and for what? Was it because Mercury and his friends wanted to win so badly that they wouldn't shy from using the dirtiest tricks possible? Or someone out there, for whatever reasons wanted a scandal? Whatever the truth was, Pyrrha was now paying the price, simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

During the walk back to the dorms, she did not say a word and trailed behind her friends, her eyes fixed on the ground beneath her. Her teammates tried coaxing even only a few words out of her but to no avail. But could they blame her, given the situation she was put into? After the horrific demonstration of her powers during the ill-fated match, she had no reason to believe things would go back to the way they were before.

Despite being the famed Invincible girl, she was still a human and like every human, she had her fears. And her closest friends fearing, or even resenting her, that was the greatest of them all.

In TNDR's dorm…

Tanya knew she should have been proud of herself, of everyone who took part in the plan to catch the illusionist. For all its flaws, the plot was successful; Emerald was stuck behind the bars (good riddance, that conniving little bitch) and both Yang and Pyrrha had their names cleared of all the slander scandal sheets tried to pin on them… or so she thought, at least.

However, the moment her gang left the headmaster's office, things took an unexpected turn… starting with the possible annulment of the Tournament's results, and things only went downhill from there. First, the media somehow got the wind of who helped to apprehend the 'meddler' and second, it was quickly used against them.

It took her more than half an hour to get all that dirt off her jacket. Damn Atlesians…

"Why the hell do they blame us for Ozpin's decision?" The fencer ranted, pacing across the room. "It isn't like we wanted to get the Tournament canceled!"

"Sometimes, angry people just don't think straight." Nicolaus grunted.

"It's Sustrai they should be pissed at, not us." Roland argued. "It wasn't us who rigged the Tournament. Besides, this would come out eventually and the results would get annulled anyway."

"Exactly! If it weren't for us, this Tournament would turn into even bigger one of a clusterfuck." Tanya added to his remark.

"Aren't things bad enough already?" Desmond spoke up, not really looking at anyone. "I mean, have you seen Pyrrha? She doesn't really cope well with all this."

"I don't think anyone would." Nicolaus conceded.

"You think we should go talk to her?" Roland questioned.

"I don't think that's a good idea."

Tanya whirled around to face the fox Faunus and shot him a look of surprise. "Why not?"

"Have you seen how she hung back behind us on the way here?" He explained. "I think she wants to be left alone for the time being. Besides, even if she wanted company, I don't think it's us who she needs."

"Meaning?"

"The Junipers know her better than we do; if anyone can get through to her right now, it's them." He said simply. "I still think she still needs some time alone to cope before she's ready to talk, though."

Roland heaved a sigh. "I guess you have a point. Though, I don't really trust Jaune to take care of this."

Tanya giggled at that. "Come on, I know he's not the sharpest tool in the bunch but he can't be that thickheaded. One day, he'll get that Pyrrha wants him." She lowered her voice conspiratorially. "Maybe today something's finally gonna happen."

"I'd be pretty surprised if it did." Nicolaus remarked. "I imagine that being tricked into mutilating somebody and dealing with the backlash afterwards kind of kills the mood for romance."

The gunman shook his head. "I still can't believe what happened today. I mean, Yang slapping Merc was one thing but Sustrai nearly made Pyrrha tear Penny into pieces!"

"Yeah, I'm still wondering why she did that in the first place." Tanya sat down on her bed and regarded her teammates with a solemn look. "Sure, some people are willing to do anything just to win, but what she did was over the top. You remember the talk in Ozpin's place? As far as I know, Penny used at most ten of those swords of hers. Pyrrha said she saw hundreds of them; that's why she made that magnetic blast."

"And who would blame her?" Roland chuckled humorlessly. "I know I'd be scared shitless too."

"And don't forget Sustrai's from Mistral, just like Pyrrha. Was that her way of picking a bone with her?" The fencer speculated.

"That wouldn't explain what she did to Yang." Nicolaus said. "Or why all her victims were Beacon students."

"What do you think, then?" Roland asked him.

"That someone is trying to discredit Beacon Academy for some reason and Sustrai was just taking orders. She was talking to someone named Cinder when I caught her."

"Whoever that is, they sure got what they wanted." The fencer muttered. "The media will be grilling Ozpin and Ironwood for allowing this to happen, people are pissed and to top it all off, monsters are getting closer to Vale. At least the Fangers are quiet now…"

"Yeah, but how long that will last?" Nicolaus questioned. "They might've suffered some losses but that won't stop them from another attack. It's not about 'if', but 'when' and 'where'."

"Unless they want to tangle with Atlesian army that bad, I don't see it happening." Tanya gestured towards the window. Even from their dorm, they could see warships lined up in the sky. "Look at that; those ships must have thousands of troopers ready to deploy, and I'm not even counting all the robots and junk! Going against that would be suicide!"

"So they'll wait until Ironwood returns home. He won't have much of a reason to stay after the festival's over." Roland shrugged. "I admit, I wasn't really all that great on having a foreign fleet hanging above the city, but now I'm kinda worried what happens when they're headed home again."

"You're not the only one, man." Tanya admitted, gazing out of the window. "Strange things are happening, way too fast for us to understand. I wonder if we can keep up."

There was no good answer for the question she posed; just the hope things could go on without any more incidents.

Later that day…

"'Scuse me!"

The passers-by moved out of the way of the runaway train that was Jaune Arc. The blonde knight was barreling through the hallways at a speed professors would hardly tolerate, almost knocking over a few students that were a tad too slow to step aside. Ignoring all curses, he continued sprinting through the hall.

Where did she go?

Things took a strange unexpected turn today. First Yang, then the absolute mess that was Pyrrha's match, then his friends from other teams revealed that the Sustrai girl from Mistral caused all the trouble, using illusions of all things (Jaune was pretty sure he was not the only one who did not see that coming), and to top it all off, the authorities announced that the Tournament could even be canceled entirely. Even if not, the results of the final round would likely be annulled. That possibility caused quite an uproar among the finalists and for a good reason. Who would possibly be alright with all their effort being rendered useless just because of one cheater?

Jaune did not care much for the Tournament; it would make no difference to him if they canceled it. What really bothered him were Emerald's actions and what those did to his friends, especially Pyrrha.

After learning the entire truth, he had half the mind to find that green haired swindling skimpy-clothed skank and show her the error of her ways. But as it turned out, Adel, Griffon and co. already did that for him. Sustrai was now stuck behind the bars in one of Atlesian ships; serves her right, he thought.

Her fate was not important to him, however. Right now, he needed to find Pyrrha.

The entire incident really did a number on her. Jaune still did not fully understand how it came from a simple fight to the mutilation of one of the contestants. Someone could try and play down the gravity of the accident since the Polendina girl turned out to have prosthetic legs and so she would not be permanently crippled. True, it was some unbelievable coincidence but it did not make the entire affair any less terrible. No one expected that match go down the way it did, that much was certain. But if the audience was appalled, it was nothing compared to what Pyrrha was going through when it all went to hell.

Jaune was not that good at reading emotions but it was not that hard to realize what Pyrrha was thinking at that moment; the bone chilling dread as the realization of what had just happened started to sink in. Her anguished expression as the Atlesian troopers led her and the others to Ozpin's office was telling volumes about what she was feeling. Even after it turned out that Sustrai caused the tragedy in the first place she was not faring any better.

It seemed like hours before Pyrrha and the gang that exposed Sustrai were finally free to return to their dorms. Despite the success of their plan, Griffon and other plotters were not really pleased with the way things turned out. What was even more alarming, Pyrrha did not accompany them; they never even noticed she vanished. Jaune took it upon himself to find her before something happened. What if some Atlesians tried to hurt her as a payback for Polendina? What if she got jumped by Grimm? What if she decided to take her own life?

Alright, maybe not that, since she was definitely more stable than he was (I mean, applying for Beacon without any combat training? Now that's insane.); still, the incident with Polendina must have done much harm to her, not to mention what these tabloid hyenas had been spreading about her in the meantime.

Finding the red headed war maiden proved to be easier said than done, though.

His first guess was the Emerald forest, though admittedly he was praying that she did not choose to go there; in such case, he would be more worried about his own health, for obvious reasons. If someone at Beacon wanted to let off some steam, he would venture into the forest to kill some monsters but Jaune doubted Pyrrha was in the mood for killing after everything that happened.

With that option ruled out, Jaune spent the next hour checking out every secluded spot, including the 'recreation center' or the small clearing among bushes where Blake retreated whenever she wanted to read without being disturbed. Yet to no avail; she was nowhere to be found. At one point, Jaune even tried asking some of his fellow students; however, he ended up regretting that decision. The others knew nothing of her whereabouts and some of them were not even polite about it, passing some very scathing remarks on Pyrrha's expense. Jaune quickly abandoned the idea of asking around because he would probably end up punching someone, otherwise.

An hour of fruitless search passed and he was almost ready to give up when it occurred to him that there was one spot he had not checked out yet. It was the roof of the dormitory building, the place where he and Pyrrha would train every evening. It was also the place where he blurted out his secret, which eventually almost led him to dropping out of Beacon.

Jaune sprinted almost all the way to his destination. He was pretty sure he never ran that fast in his entire life. He bolted through the hallways, almost knocking a few people over in the process until he finally made it to the door leading to the roof.

Slamming the door open, the blonde knight staggered outside. There was a magnificent view of the Beacon campus and its surroundings from there but that was the last thought on his mind. Jaune glanced around the rooftop, looking for any signs of his partner. Much to his disappointment, he did not see anything.

He was ready to return back to his dorm when a quiet familiar voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Go away… Please…" The muffled croak was coming from somewhere on his left. Without a pause, Jaune turned his head towards the source of the sound.

Sure enough, there she was… and God, did she look terrible.

She sat on the cold floor with her back pressed to the wall, hugging her legs tight to her chest. Her head was rested against her knees as if she did not want anyone to see her face and her hair was a mess. Since the opened door shielded her from his view, Jaune would never notice her had she not spoken up.

"Pyrrha?"

She lifted her head, instantly recognizing the voice addressing her. Jaune felt a pang of pity when he noticed the dark lines running down from her eyes along her cheeks. He had to wonder how long she had been sitting there.

Pyrrha seemed genuinely surprised to see him there. "Jaune, I…" Whatever she was about to say suddenly stuck in her throat and she turned away from him instead.

Jaune did not intend to give up that easily, though; after everything she had done for him, he would be one cold bastard to leave her like this. "Pyrrha-." Is something wrong? That would be a stupid thing to ask after everything that happened. Sitting down next to her, he tried again. "Talk to me, please."

A shuddering sigh was the only answer he received.

Maybe I should leave her alone for a bit, after all. Jaune mentally slapped himself for the thought that crossed his mind. He would not walk away, not now. "Pyr, I'm not gonna pretend to understand I know what you're going through, or keep saying that things will get better, when I barely know what's going on. If there's anything I know for sure, it's probably how little I know. I mean, I'm the guy who thought getting into Beacon would make him a real huntsman. Yeah, that shows what I know." His attempt at humor elicited no response from her. He tried to conjure up a smile but it felt out of place, given the situation. Maybe Pyrrha wanted him to leave her alone but could not bring herself to actually say it. Yeah, she was always so polite… "Look, if you want me to go, just say it and I'll leave you alone. I just want you to know that I-" Damn, how do I say it? "I care about you, a lot," For some reason Jaune thought that putting it that way did not really do it justice. "and- and if there's something I can do to help I'll do it."

A second passed. Then another. Still no response.

Then her hand touched his.

Before Jaune knew it, Pyrrha threw her arms around him and buried her face into the crook of his neck, holding tightly onto him like a drowning man would hold onto a life ring.

"Please, don't…" With the quiet desperate plea the dam finally broke. Jaune pulled Pyrrha closer to him as she sobbed into his shoulder. He did not care in the slightest that they were just above CRDL's room and that their idiot of a leader might hear them. If Cardin turned up spouting some offensive remarks he would put him in his place, like he should have ages ago. All he cared about right now was comforting the crying girl in his arms.

The two of them sat there in an embrace until she eventually calmed down.

"I'm sorry you had to see me like this." Pyrrha said in a quiet shaky voice and broke the embrace. She still remained pressed into Jaune's side.

"Pyr, you have nothing to be sorry for."

"No, you're wrong." She sniffled. "You saw what I did."

Jaune frowned slightly. "Pyrrha, that was not you. That 'Emerald' girl caused all that; I don't know what she made you see but-"

"I should've seen that coming! For Dust's sake, Tanya warned me it could happen!" Pyrrha began tearing up again. "I knew what could happen, yet I did exactly what they wanted me to! It doesn't matter if Penny had or had not prosthetics, I still mutilated her! How can anyone expect me to protect the world when I can't even control my own powers? When I can't control myself?!"

Jaune was honestly at a loss. Pyrrha was upset, that much was clear but he did not understand what she meant by 'not having control' over herself. "What are you talking about?"

She wiped the tears away, not caring that she smeared make-up across her face. "Do you remember what we talked about, after Yang's fight? Destiny?"

"Um, yeah?" Jaune nodded hesitantly. He did remember, alright; until this very moment he had no idea what he had said wrong.

The moment of silence dragged on for several seconds before she croaked. "I- I can't do it…"

"What? Of course you can! What happened today was an accident; it wasn't your fault, okay? Even the media now know the truth! Nobody's gonna blame you for-"

"Stop it, Jaune!"

Stunned by her outburst, Jaune could do nothing as Pyrrha grabbed the neck of his hoodie and yanked, bringing their faces closer until they were mere inches apart. "Just shut up and hear me out, please!" She hissed in a low voice. The frown on her face reminded him that she could easily be as terrifying as any Grimm he ever came across. However, the pained look in her teary eyes betrayed her inner anguish. "But first… this has to stay between the two of us!" Jaune nodded almost instantly. This did not seem to satisfy her. "I need you to say it!"

"T-this stays between us!" He stammered out, getting the message.

The hand gripping his hoodie moved behind his neck, keeping him from pulling back. Not that Jaune would try; he was stunned by Pyrrha's unusual, almost frenzied behavior. Even though her fierce expression softened considerably he could not help but be afraid of her… just a little bit…

"You know what exactly was supposed to be my destiny?" He had to force himself to meet her gaze; it felt like if she was actually staring through him. "There's someone… someone incredibly powerful… but she's dying. They wanted me to… to take her powers… to keep them from falling into the wrong hands. But those powers were linked to her soul… Had I accepted… I would- I would-"

What if you could suddenly fulfill your destiny in an instant, but at the cost of who you were?

Everything had suddenly become much clearer.

That was what got her so depressed lately. That was why she reacted so poorly to his 'advice'. That was why she seemed so unfocused during her fight against Penny.

"I never cared for power, Jaune, and this… I would never choose… But they said it was to protect the world, so I considered… but after today I- I just can't… I'm not the person they're looking for."

So she turned them down?

"I'd have to kill a person in order to gain that power, I'd lose everything that makes me who I am… I'd become a complete stranger, Jaune! Or I would go insane!" Pyrrha hung her head, the strength in her voice slowly fading away. "Even while I'm nowhere as strong as- as her, I still hurt people! I hurt Polendina, I hurt you… What would become of me if I agreed to replace her-"

Pyrrha broke off, on the verge of tears.

Not knowing what to say, Jaune responded by pulling her closer to him and enveloping her in a tight embrace. Pyrrha instantly wrapped her arms around him and rested her head against his shoulder. "I- I guess I just wish you told me sooner." He said after a moment of silence.

"I couldn't… There's a reason why it's all kept secret." Pyrrha sighed. "I probably broke countless regulations by telling you but… You deserved to know. Just promise you'll never tell anyone."

"I promise."

Another pause.

"Do you want to head back down?"

Pyrrha raised her head. "Jaune… Could we stay like this a little longer? I don't think I'm ready to face our friends just yet." She asked, blushing slightly.

Jaune chuckled a bit. "Take as much time as you need, Pyr. I'm not going anywhere."

"Thanks." She replied and snuggled up against him.

Jaune could not help but laugh quietly as a certain thought crossed his mind. "Tabloid journalists would probably go mental if they saw us like this."

Pyrrha snorted. "Believe me, I do not give a damn."

Now that I think of it… neither do I. "But seriously, you don't have to worry about what your friends would say. I mean, Nora, Ren, Ruby and her girls, well, everyone knows you're innocent in all this."

"I know, it's just… I guess I haven't really gotten over it yet."

"I don't blame you, Pyr." Jaune sighed, viewing the campus illuminated by the setting sun. "This day's been difficult for all of us."

Pyrrha murmured something unintelligible against his shoulder, her eyes closed in a serene expression. Jaune let her rest and went back to enjoying the view.

Ozpin's office…

In the room near the top of the Beacon tower, far above the rest of the campus, headmaster Ozpin was typing away at his computer, sipping from his cup of hot coffee. While he may have appeared calm, in fact he was anything but. After all, it was rather taxing to uphold the illusion of peace and order when it was starting to crumble apart.

The Tournament fraud was something he did not see coming, not in the way it was executed. The culprit was detained, waiting for a thorough questioning from Ironwood but there were still many questions that were left unanswered. What was the motivation behind it? Did Sustrai act on her own accord or was she simply following orders? And the person pulling the strings in the background, who was it? And what of the mysterious intruder that broke into the CCT tower during the Beacon dance? Could she be connected to all this? Interestingly enough, the remaining members of team MSER seemed to have disappeared from the campus. That might have pointed to their involvement in the fraud; the headmaster made a mental note to ask his Haven counterpart to do a background check on the missing students.

To top it all off, Ozpin also had to deal with the onslaught of questions from the city council. They were demanding, rather harshly, why the Tournament was being halted. The councilors were quite difficult people to please and frankly, he was used to their constant carping, even though it did grate on his nerves sometimes.

He was in the process of writing another paragraph of his lengthy reply to the Council when an icon on the screen flashed, signaling an incoming message. Rolling his eyes, he clicked open the message box.

First thing he noticed was that it was from an anonymous mailer; no way to identify the person that sent it.

Secondly, the message had an ominous, almost threatening tone to it.

The time has come. The rotten society will know fear when the ignored make themselves known again. Humankind will know their true place in the world when the Fang rises. While they celebrate in blissful ignorance, we prepare for the reckoning.

The revolution is coming.

The headmaster frowned as he read through the message. The White Fang would not be so stupid as to announce their next move over the mail. There must have been something else to the message…

Another icon began flashing on the screen; this time it was an incoming video call.

Heaving a sigh, Ozpin accepted. He was instantly greeted by the grim face of General Ironwood.

"James, I believe we have a situation."