CHAPTER 3

Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY, all rights go to the talented people at Rooster Teeth.

Speech : "Hello"
Thoughts: "hello"

"Do you always ask your clients about what they want?"

Cinder was wary of every word she said. From what she understood, his semblance wasn't passive and that he could decide when he wanted to use. He used it earlier and it made her take her hand off the book momentarily. "Is he forcing thoughts into my mind?" She thought. But she couldn't recall hearing anything in her head so that was quickly debunked.

"Or it perhaps an enslavement of the mind, forcing someone to do as he desires," But this was also instantly debunked too. His voice did something different. It was more like she doubted her own power. Perhaps that was it; his own voice was hypnotic but it couldn't be confirmed.

This entire experience was fresh for Cinder. She was too used to subduing people, never really having to bother about their semblances or any of their powers, but in this situation she had to play it coolly. She had thought about killing him and using his equipment, but she wanted an expert to handle it all. Plus, the man interested her, so she wanted to keep him around.

Cyril had shut down the store for the day. While he rarely did that, some things were worth it. He took Ms Fall to the back area of the store where he sat, on top of the desk and listened to her pleas. Cyril had taken off the pink apron which he wore on regular shifts and it left him with an appearance that would match a politician. An untucked white shirt, loose black tie and navy blue trousers to finish the outfit all off.

The entire room was packed with mail. The 4 corners of the room had mail piled up in them. Cinder quickly deduced this was not all his. No normal human get's this much mail in a lifetime. Cinder shrugged it off and passed it off as something she'd ask later.

"I've already told you, I don't work with many people. Roman comes and goes whenever he wants but you want me for things that are larger than life." He answered.

"You're right about that. I will not sit here and say that if you help me, your life won't be in danger. There's no reason to lie, but I can protect you." She said with conviction. "With me, all your fears of being caught by huntsmen and the police disappear."

"And what happens when you fail? Or can you somehow prove to me you're never going to fail?" He asked.

"That's impossible. Perfection cannot be attained. But I can guarantee you something close to perfection. There of course may be bumps in the road but humanity's greatest quality is our ability to adapt." Cinder assured.

"I agree. You know, I'd already made my mind up to help you with what you needed but now you've cemented it." Cyril admitted. "Now, what is it that I'll be helping you with, exactly?"

"Revolution. The existence of our peace is fragile and we have Head masters of Huntsmen academies who have more power than Kingdoms. Even a fool could see the tensions between the nations increasing, but while this is all going on, who do you think will suffer the most? Us, the common people. When war happens, the Grimm will be the true winners and the people will crumble. So I seek to stop that." She declared boldly.

This concept intrigued Cyril. But Cyril had seen that look on her face all too many times. From Atlas Generals to Mistral's petty thieves. It was a look of lust. Lust not in the sense of love or sex, but a lust for power. Cinder had lofty ambitions, but they were probably being used to further her own goals, but that only drew Cyril into the idea even more. If what she told him was right then she was probably the only person who could actually do this then Cyril could be one of the few people who changed the world. He could be living in a new era in just a few years.

"Revolution. Do you know why we haven't had many of those within the last few decades?" He didn't get an answer, so he continued. "It's because of the grip the Huntsmen and Academies have. The White Fang is the perfect example of this. A group which uses violent methods but has gotten nowhere. There's no reform for the Faunus and things have only gotten worse. The white fang is now considered the enemy of the people. Demonise the enemy and the public side with you. What makes you think that this won't happen to you?"

Cinder's face fell into a frown for a brief second but she regained composure. "It's simple. We demonise our enemy. Make the public lose faith in Ozpin and the huntsmen and the people will lose faith."

"Good enough answer, I guess. "Cyril muttered.

Cinder smirked at his response. "You and I, we are going to do great things together."

"Yes, we will."

While Cyril knew he was too far in to really back out, he didn't care. This was his chance to change things.

"Do you believe in fate, Mr Cyril?" Cinder asked.

She'd taken him outside on a walk to talk about their future partnership, but she'd really used it to make small talk. She held the red umbrella over the pair's head, blocking the light which came from the Lamp Post from their eyes. The cover of the moon gave the walk a nice peaceful feeling to it.

The pavement was bumpy. It was to be expected, since it was a cobblestone road.

"Hmm... no, I don't. I find it hard to believe that there's something or someone that has written out my entire life, and if it does exist, it makes us nothing more than slaves. It's quite disgusting to even think about." Cyril answered.

"You sound afraid of being controlled, a very rational fear."

It was sickening for Cyril to even comprehend. The fact that there could be someone controlling everything he did in his life was both frightening and saddening. It made him nothing more than a puppet, but even worse it meant that he had no free will to think or even the ability to be his own self. Fate was just something that people use to cope with their horrible lives. God, religion and destiny were all devices that people needed to make excuses for everything wrong in the world.

"What about you? Are you afraid of anything or are you the fearless woman you present yourself as." Cyril asked.

"Of course not. Fear is something that is within every human from the moment they are born. It's primal. If I had to say I feared something... Then probably weakness, or the concept of being powerless." She admitted with a sigh. "People think hoarding power means they'll have it forever but all it does is make the rest of us hungrier."

"Funny, don't you think? You're afraid of losing power while actively trying to take someone else's." Cyril laughed. "But I mostly disagree with what you said. While I do think some fear is primal like the dark and death but some are created through artificial means. Think of someone as an empty canvas. As they grow up they are painted with the experiences they grow up with."

"That's an interesting way to look at it." Cinder hummed. "But let's get to the matter at hand. Your mission to be more clear."

"Go on."

"I need you to get information on Ozpin." Cyril clearly stumbled on the road, but she continued. "Specifically, I need you to bug his office."

Ozpin. The one man, Cyril probably wouldn't try bothering. A challenge. He loved it. Now this would be a challenge, but Cyril could do this. But there was nothing he couldn't do. Of course he'd have to plan for this and it would take weeks for it to actually be time to pull off whatever he'd think of. Ozpin was certainly a powerful man, but there had to be gaps in his power that could be exploited.

"You're really throwing me in the deep end straight away. I'm a coward you know."

"I know you are. It's why you spy on people without their knowledge, but you're not incompetent. I wouldn't have come if I didn't see potential in you."

See, this was a win-win for Cinder either way. If Cyril get's caught then he'll be thrown in jail and she'd probably have him killed, but if he succeeded, then she'd have a direct presence with Ozpin.

"Your trust in me is flattering. I hope I can live up to it."

"You know, I've been meaning to ask you how you started doing all this." She asked after a brief pause.

"Is that important?" He sighed.

"I'm just interested." She stated with a wink.

Cinder was definitely not what Cyril expected her to be. It was probably the fact that he expected her to be more like Roman: arrogant, loud, and annoying. But she wasn't like that. She was smart, calm, and everything he wished Roman was. While he had his good qualities, he was far too... out there for Cyril to really appreciate him. It seemed that the more she spoke, the more he wanted to talk more, and that didn't happen often, given his semblance.

"Have you ever read the book The man with two souls?" He received a shake of the head, so he went on. "It's a book which explores the innate duality each person has inside them. As you can guess, the concept completely fascinated me, so I started my minor project. So I set out, a 20-year-old shopkeeper, and began to bug all my products. My goal was to see whether people really are two instead of one." He explained with a passion which she hadn't seen at all.

"And what are your results so far?" She asked.

"It's true. Humans repress a side of their true personality. No single human is purely good. It might seem obvious, but it's intriguing, right? Every day there's a battle inside us between an angel and a devil. I guess in me, the devil won."

"I assume yours is the devil of temptation?" She commented.

"Yes. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing though. I take delight in what I'm doing so maybe this is what's best for me. If it didn't I'd be working in a store, probably bored out of my mind."

"It's a unique way of thinking which I can understand, though I do find it humorous that this all started from a simple book." She chuckled while they both came to a stop.

"That's where you're mistaken, Madam Fall. There is no such thing as a simple book. All books have meaning. You just have to open your eyes to it." Cyril stated. "It's been great meeting you. Till next time."

Cyril turned around, leaving Cinder on her own.

His thoughts only created more questions for herself. This duality he spoke about. Was it present in her? He said that it could be found in every human, so it most likely was, but what was her devil? For Cyril it was the temptation that drew him in to commit crimes, but for Cinder it was her fear.

Her fear of regressing to what she was as a child.

With a sigh, she continued to walk down the moonlit road.

"Till next time, indeed. Mr Cyril, " She whispered into the air.

END

This was a fun chapter to write, mostly because I had to think about Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde which is a book that I hold dear to my heart. Ah those high school memories.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I think around 100 people read this which is crazy since It's hard to imagine it.

If you have any questions just ask away, I think it'd be fun to interact with those who read.

Also, my god I have no words for that AOT chapter. I really wasn't a fan of that chapter or the arc as a whole. Well at least a great story has come to an end.

Till next time, Goodbye.