10 Years Later

A man hidden by shadow high in a tree watched as a cloaked woman rode a horse down a dirt road lined with low wooden fences. The man wore a cloak himself, yet unlike the unaware woman's brown cloak, his was pitch black and seemed to absorb all light. Underneath his cloak, he wore dark leather armor over chainmail. Multiple belts crossed his chest, each one carrying tools and weapons such as throwing knives, daggers, and various small bombs. Across his back sat a pair of long swords, the hilts darkly ornate, resting in equally dark scabbards all of which possessed the mechanical quality of mechashift weapons popular in this day and age. He also wore black steel toed boots with lightly padded soles to aid in stealth. On his hands were a pair of black gloves with short, steel claws at the end of each finger. He wore a wide cloth over his left eye covering a large portion of that side of his face. His hair was styled into a fade and colored a silvery white, the only part of him that was brightly colored. He also had a slight stubble that showed a darker color. The eye that could be seen was a blueish grey.

Watching the woman travel down the path, the man spoke, though there was no one else around.

"Target approaching the ambush site. Won't be long now."

A woman's voice answered, "Good. If favors us, then this will go smoothly. The sooner it's done, the sooner you return home."

"I know. I'm looking forward to it." the man replied while shifting his position. "She's climbing off of her horse. It's starting. I wander what she's seeing to let her guard down like that."

"Likely a crying child, considering our profile of her."

"I suppose so. The fighting has started. The children seem to be holding their own so far but they're obviously outmatched… Ah, Miss Fall has finally joined them. And she has yet to acquire proper combat attire. And heels! I will never understand some women's insistence on fighting in heels and a dress. Well, I suppose it doesn't matter. The maiden is down and Miss Fall is making her approach."

"It's over then. Ozpin is a fool to have left her on her-"

"Hold up!" the man interrupted. "Someone else is fast approaching. Looks like Ozpin did assign protection. I see him. It's Qrow Branwen." -Sigh- "I guess the infiltration will begin sooner than planned."

"Unfortunate, but this is our best chance to put an agent within Beacon. Give aid in saving the Maiden. It should get them to trust you enough to invite you in. From there, you know what to do."

"Yes milady. I should return in a year or so. You'll get my report soon."

With that, the man leaped from the tree and sprinted to where one battle had finished and a new one was about to start, though it would be very brief. Arriving at the scene just seconds after Qrow, the man sent a flying kick toward the woman in the red dress, the aforementioned "Miss Fall". Miss Fall dodged with ease raising her arms and summoning forth enough heat to distort the air in front of her face to hide her identity. Drawing his swords, the man got into a defensive stance. The surprise on Qrow's face passed quickly as he too got into position. Now was not the time for questions.

With a smirk, Miss Fall released a wave of heat, causing the two men to cover their faces. When they looked back, the three opponents had already gone. Seeing no one, the man sheathed his blades and stood relaxed. Qrow on the other hand turned his sword to the stranger. Now, it seemed, was the time for questions.

"Who are you? Where did you come from? And why are you here?" he demanded.

The man raised his brow at the hostilities and lowered the hood of his cloak, revealing his face to Qrow.

"In order: my name is Eric Westmasters, I come from a small village in Anima, ironically enough, and I'm here because I'm on my way to Vale and saw someone needing help. Any other questions?"

Qrow scowled, "You know what I meant smartass."

The now-named Eric smirked, "Yeah I do. Alright. Complete honesty. I wasn't lying about my name. These days I tend to wander around. I don't really have a home anymore. Haven't for a while since I left Raven's tribe. And I'm only telling you that because I know who you are Qrow Branwen."

A look of shock covered Qrow's face as he processed that little tidbit of information. Just as quickly the scowl returned. "So you know my sister then. That gives me less reason to trust you."

Eric nodded, "Yeah I figured. But right now the interrogation can wait. We need to get this girl medical attention."

Qrow's eyes widened realizing that he was right. With a nod, he pulled out his scroll and hit the speed dial. A couple of seconds later the call was picked up. Qrow put the call on speakerphone. "Oz we got a situation…"

Later

Under the cover of night, a bullhead was on approach to Beacon Academy. Its occupants, a single pilot, paid for his silence, two male warriors, and a comatose woman. On the way, Qrow had asked more questions of Eric. Qrow learned that Eric's village had been destroyed when he was just coming of age. Afterward, he had been found by Raven's tribe. With them he had learned to fight and survive. He quickly rose the ranks but pride and hubris had seen him challenging Raven herself for leadership. After a short duel that saw him nearly dead, he had fled the tribe. He had been discovered taking refuge in the barn of a retired Huntsman and his wife. It was there he had learned new strength through their kindness. From then on he had been travelling as an unofficial Huntsman, protecting those he came across, though he kept hidden so as to keep off of Raven's sharing his story, Qrow felt that he was still hiding some things but it was enough to garner some trust. Not much but it was a start.

Upon landing at the Beacon airfield, they saw that Ozpin himself had come out to meet them.

'But of course,' thought Eric. 'This is the Fall Maiden we're talking about.'

With him were some men and women, likely from the medical wing of the school if their uniforms were any indication. As soon as the door opened, they rushed forward taking the fallen girl into their care. As they rushed the girl to the medical wing, Ozpin approached the two men.

"Come with me." was all he said before turning and briskly walking to the central tower. Qrow immediately followed with Eric taking a moment distracted as he was with the architecture. After a short elevator ride, they came out into Ozpin's office. Eric had to stop and take a moment to admire the clockwork interior before he could enter any further. Ozpin took his seat behind the ornate desk, indicating as he did to the chairs in front. Both men promptly sat as well. "What happened?" was all he said.

Immediately Qrow gave his report. He spoke of how he had been following the girl, Amber Eric had learned her name was, at a distance. That morning she had woken before him and had left before him. Once he had woken up he realized this and set about tracking her down again.. Once he had, he saw that she was in danger and rushed to save her. He had seen some strange, black strands of something connecting the attacker's white glove to Amber's face. He went on to explain the rest of the encounter.

When Qrow was done, Ozpin had a contemplative look on his face. He turned to Eric and asked him for his side of the event. Eric explained how he was just traveling along the road when he heard the sounds of combat. Running ahead he saw a woman being held before another and heard her screams of pain. Despite not knowing the whole situation, he had leapt to her rescue, quite literally as he had. After he recounted the situation much like Qrow had. Ozpin began asking questions afterward much like Qrow and so Eric told his story a second time. Once again, like Qrow, Ozpin felt the man was hiding something but felt that it was irrelevant to the situation as it were.

"I thank you for helping save Amber, late as it was. I apologize as I don't trust you enough to help you understand the whole situation but there are some things we must keep secret. Furthermore, seeing as how you are very capable, I regret that I must ask for more from you." said the headmaster.

"Um, Oz?" interjected Qrow. "Before you get to that, can we speak alone real quick?"

"Of course. If you would excuse us for a moment Eric?" Ozpin asked.

Simply nodding, Eric walked out of the office closing the door behind him.

Once they were certain he was out of earshot, Qrow began, "Oz, you think this was her work don't you?"

"Of course. Only she could pull the resources to do something like this. But until the doctors get back to me on Amber's condition, we won't know exactly what 'this' is. Another thing: what do you make of our guest?"

"I think he's hiding something. And I know you feel the same."

"You're right of course. Unfortunately i also feel that it has to do with his coincidental presence at the place of the attack."

"You think Rae put him there? He did say he used to be part of her tribe. I'm not sure I believe him about running like that but we don't exactly have any way to confirm short of the obvious."

"True. I feel that our opponents are beginning to make moves. If Raven put him there to infiltrate Beacon then I believe the best course would be to make a play of falling for her ruse. That she would know of Amber's attack beforehand worries me. This Eric is the only link we have. We must keep an eye on him. I wonder if Glynda would be willing to relinquish her teaching position so we might have somewhere to keep him."

"I don't like it, but I think you got a point. You want me here watching him or what?"

"No. I and the other staff can keep watch over our 'guest'. I need you out there looking for any leads you can. We must stay ahead if we are to defend ourselves. It's settled. Could you go retrieve our 'guest'?

Qrow went and poked his head out the door, telling Eric to come back in. Once they both took their seats Ozpin spoke again, "I've decided on a course of action that might benefit all of us. Mr. Westmasters, how would you feel about teaching a combat class here at Beacon?"

Feigning shock, Eric replied, "I don't know. I never put any thought into teaching. I don't think I'd do well with kids. Um, I guess if it's a combat class I could do it. But I'm not certified."

"Don't worry about that. It's a simple task of taking a few tests to acquire the necessary certifications. Now, if you're sure then all that's left is…" he stood, extending his hand, "welcome to Beacon."

And so they shook on it.