Ironwood sat there with an impassive face.

Winter had just finished updating him on everything that had happened over the past week. He hadn't said anything yet, but the eldest Schnee dreaded how he would take all of this.

Eventually, the general sighed and pinched the tip of his nose.

"Miss Xiao Long is working with Robyn now? Correct?" He asked.

"Yes, sir."

"And what you said about Miss Belladonna, what did you mean?"

"I'll describe that to you in more detail soon," Winter said. "But I've been keeping a close eye on her otherwise."

Ironwood managed to muster a smile.

"I'm proud of you, Winter. Really," he said. "You handled my duties the best you could."

Winter blushed furiously.

"It was no trouble, sir."

Ironwood chuckled before he got to his feet. He wasted little time in changing back into his Atlesian military uniform.

"We'll need to get Amity up and running as soon as possible," Ironwood said. "The elections are closing in, and thanks to Miss Xiao Long's little stunt, I doubt I'll be winning any popular vote soon."

"But..."

"People will think I've just decided to tell them now because I was forced to," Ironwood muttered. "But I still have to give the reason why we decided to focus on Amity and not Mantle. The people still need to know about Salem, but I'm concerned people won't believe me now."

"What do you mean?"

"Xiao-Long has forced my hand, and people will be expecting a response," Ironwood said. "When I give that response, do you think people are going to believe that an Immortal Grimm witch is behind everything?"

"We've discussed this before," Winter reminded him. "Even before Miss Xiao Long pulled her stunt, we doubted whether or not people would believe Salem's existence."

"And Salem will hang back, as we predicted," Ironwood said. "But I could also be gone in the process; it's then she'll attack."

Winter gulped.

"Sir, there has to be a way to keep you from being removed!"

"There might be," Ironwood uttered with a sad smile. "But let's be honest, Winter. After everything you've told me, that's going to be a lot harder now."

Winter sighed, knowing that was true.

"First, we need to release Clover from his cell. I understand your concern about him, Winter," Ironwood said. "But I didn't make him leader of the ace-ops for no reason. I trust him and believe he made a costly mistake. One I'll be sure to discipline him about. Still, we can't waste resources that could go to the cybersecurity on Clover's background checks."

"Sir, I know you trust him, but..."

"But?"

Winter looked at him directly.

"You trusted my sister's team! And they... stabbed you in the back and lied to you! And when you were hospitalised in here, they did everything to discredit you!"

Ironwood shook his head.

"No, if they wanted to do everything to discredit me, they would have told the world about Salem already," Ironwood said. "And Miss Rose and your sister have come round, haven't they?"

"Yes," Winter said. Thinking proudly of Weiss at that moment. "But... sir. I believe you put too much faith in the wrong people. That's why I'm wary about letting Clover go."

"We all make mistakes, Winter. I can't have the head of the ops out of commission right now," Ironwood said. "I'll have him, and Qrow join Robyn and her group in guarding Amity. It's our number one priority right now, and the more people we have guarding it, the better."

"That is true, seeing as our enemies will know about it now," Winter growled.

"They won't go for Amity directly," Ironwood muttered. "It would be too well defended, and Watts will be smart enough to wait it out."

"Why would he just wait? When he could..."

"Because as we've discussed, getting the message out there can benefit Salem; he'll soon realise that and act on it to turn the Kingdoms against me," Ironwood said clearly. "It's how he operated at Beacon. Divide and conquer first and then attack directly. He's going to wait until we're at our most vulnerable. He's not going to attack when we're expecting an attack."

"So, what do we do?" Winter asked.

"We guard Amity, and I'll trust you to defend the cybersecurity. I want the broadcast to go ahead with no interruptions. I don't want another beacon on our hands," Ironwood said, shuddering at the memory.

"I understand."

"Then we've got no time to waste," Ironwood said.

Minutes later, after leaving the medical centre and marching down the corridors, Ironwood pulled out his scroll. He began making essential calls and assigning people orders and duties. Winter jogged to keep up with him. Despite how reasonable he seemed while speaking, she could see the hints of anger flickering across his face. When he talked to different commanders on the scroll, his voice was harsher and more urgent than it would have previously been.

He was taking it well, but Winter knew she had to keep a close eye on the man.

Otherwise, he'd end up back in the medical bay before long.

Yang was bored.

It had been the same job for the past week now, go out with Robyn and her band of merry misfits and guard the trucks and supplies rolled into Amity Arena. Despite telling Robyn everything, the aspiring councilwoman didn't speak much to her. As she simply said, "They had to focus on their missions for the time being..." which Yang thought was rubbish. She was merely tasked with blasting a few Grimm from the mines or mindlessly watching the empty tundra for hours on end. It was monotonous, and the worst part of it was that she was sure the soldiers were giving her these jobs on purpose.

"You're lucky you're not in jail," Debnar told her bluntly one morning as he drove his truck out towards Amity.

"Feels like I'm being imprisoned anyway," she snapped back.

"And you wonder why you've been given the most tedious jobs," Debnar said, coughing slightly, as Yang scowled at him.

"You people just don't understand that what I did was right...!"

"Keep tellin' yourself that," Debnar muttered back before falling silent. Avoiding eye contact with the blonde and not saying another word to her.

Yang was okay with this; she was fine with most soldiers giving her the silent treatment.

But for Robyn Hill to treat her this way... that is what pissed her off.

Eventually, it came to the point where Yang had grown tired of "guard duty" for enemies that weren't coming to the highly defended arena. She stomped over to where Robyn was chatting to her three teammates; they seemed to ignore her before Yang coughed loudly.

"What the hell is your problem!?" Yang snapped.

Robyn looked up calmly; her teammate, May, looked slightly more annoyed. The goat Faunus, Fiona, hardly looked concerned; however, the hot-headed Joanna got to her feet, towering over Yang.

"What the hell is your problem!?" Joanna snapped back.

"Joanna, let her speak," Robyn said, as Joanna scowled at Yang but returned to her sitting position.

"My problem," Yang spat, "Is that I told you the truth about everything! And now you're treating me like a stranger! I thought we were on the same page!"

"We are," Robyn said simply. "So what's the big fuss, and shouldn't you be on guard duty right now?"

"Cut the crap, you're all sat here having a good time!" Yang ranted. "While I'm being given all the crappy jobs!"

"Well, yes, that's expected," Robyn said.

"Excuse me!" Yang snarled. "You're turning on me now! After I...!"

"Well, we thought the military had done something awful to you," Fiona said, speaking up. "But you seem to have it quite well here. You should be thankful to them."

"You're unbelievable!" Yang spat. "I tell you this and..."

"And what?" Robyn said. "You want us to continue to steal from Ironwood? We've made a deal now; by this point tomorrow, this arena should be lifted. Then we can work on the wall. Listen, I don't like how Ironwood and Atlas have handled all this, and I'll definitely be fighting for change if I get elected. But for now, my team and I are happy to compromise and help out."

"But..."

"Wasn't the entire point of you telling us so that we could help Ironwood and the soldiers here?" Robyn said. "That's what you told me, so what's changed? What do you want me to do?"

"I thought you'd help the people of Mantle!" Yang snapped. "I thought you'd be more vocal! But you've just fallen into line with Ironwood's soldiers! You're just like them!"

"We have jobs to do," Robyn snarled. "Seems like you're just having a tantrum because I don't want to be your best friend."

"But...!"

"And you're doing Ironwood's bidding as well, so you can't really have a go at us," Fiona said.

Yang frowned before changing her argument.

"The people of Mantle won't forgive or forget this! You've abandoned them for Ironwood..."

"I'll explain it all soon..."

"Xiao Long!" came a new voice as a male soldier approached her. "I don't know what's going on here, but you need to get back to your post!"

"But..."

"And you, Miss Hill and your team, you're expected to be finishing up the inspections at the arena. You'll be joined by Mr Ebi and Mr Brawen here."

All five women looked up in surprise to see the stern-faced leader of the ace-ops back in action, and trailing behind him was none other than Qrow himself.

"So," Robyn said, gazing at Clover. "You're out."

Clover nodded.

"The General's back on his feet; they didn't find anything incriminating about me. And he wanted me here with Qrow, so I could oversee the final inspections before they send the arena into space." Clover explained.

"I just hope that whatever message Ironwood sends out will be worth our co-operation," Robyn said sternly.

"It will be," Clover reassured her.

"Well, I can only hope," Robyn said. "Don't go losing your temper again, Clover, if we end up disagreeing with each other later on. Not that I approve of you punching Schnee, but..." she smiled to herself there, something Clover picked up on.

"But?" he asked.

"But nothing," she said, returning to her proper form. "But moving on to more important topics, the General's awake, correct?"

"Yes, he's awake and very vocal," Clover said. "My ears are still ringing from his... disciplinary session. But I imagine you'll want to speak to him."

"Yes, we have a lot to sort out," Robyn said.

"Yeah, you can all start with sorting out Mantle!" Yang spat, cutting through them. "In case you've all forgotten."

"Yang," Qrow said, speaking up and stepping forward. "We haven't forgotten about Mantle. This time tomorrow, after we've finished with the arena, we can start patching up that wall. Hell, I heard Blake's working in Mantle, so you two could... reconcile."

Yang sighed, calming down slightly.

"I'd like that," she said. "And what about Ruby? Have you spoken to her lately?"

"No, I've been busy," Qrow said. "But I've heard she's doin' alright. I guess you haven't spoken to her either, then?"

"No," Yang admitted. "But I want to do that as well."

At this point, an impatient cough caught all their attention.

"This is all very sweet, but in case you're all forgetting," the male soldier informed them. "We're in the middle of a military operation, and the sooner we get these checks done. The sooner we can all chat, but for now. We need to finish the job here."

"Well, okay then. We better go," Robyn said, getting to her feet.

And like that, they all took off to inspect the arena, leaving Yang staring after them, feeling as dejected and as jaded as she'd felt the past week.

"Miss Xiao Long, get back to your post!"

"Alright," she snarled back, "I don't need reminding."

So once again, she stood there staring at the tundra, bored out of her mind. But she remembered a few weeks ago where she'd come into Atlas and where her team was united. They were all together, and times were a lot better. She'd meant what she'd said to Qrow. Yang wanted to speak to Ruby and Blake again. And she wanted to apologise to Weiss; she wanted her team back together more than anything.

But it seemed like everything in Atlas had torn them apart. Before they came to this frozen wasteland, their group still had problems. Still, they were unified, standing against any threat (like Adam) thrown their way.

Now they were divided.

"Why can't things just go back to the way they were?" Yang thought wistfully to herself.

Blake kept her eyes away from the body as the soldiers hovered around it.

Blake already knew the man's name and who had killed him, and why it had happened. Yet, in this alley, she had to play dumb and keep guard to make sure any civilians didn't stumble onto the site while the military began its investigation.

Blake felt sweat build on her skin as she tried to look as calm and composed as possible. It hadn't helped that Penny, of all people, was brought in to analyse the puncture wounds on the body. The Faunus wanted to slap herself in those moments; why hadn't she stabbed him more? Or at least tried to hide Gregor's corpse? Would Penny be able to make the connection between her two blades and the wounds through Gregor's back? Blake prayed to whatever God was listening that they'd turn a blind eye to this; after all, this man had deserved what was coming to him.

"Why didn't you just restrain him?" a voice in her head argued.

"There was no reasoning with him," she thought to justify herself. "Besides, the way Atlas is. He'd be right back on the street, a human word against a Faunus' one. They'll always believe the human, and then he'd be out and about and would kill Roula."

Blake tried to stop her hands from shaking.

She had done the right thing.

She tried turning her anxiety into anger; she knew if Roula was lying bled out in this alley. There'd be no investigation like this; it would just be another Faunus lost to Atlas.

"Well, a woman found the body this morning..." Blake overhead, one of the soldiers, tell his buddy. "He's been identified as the guy whose family was killed about a week back."

Blake gulped; it seemed that part of the story was true then.

"Guy turned into a raving lunatic after his family died," the soldier's buddy replied. "Screamed at us to find the killer. Said it was some rat-Faunus woman. Couldn't find any links or footage, though..."

"Yeah, but the cameras around his family's home were disabled at the time. It was a pre-planned murder, that was for sure."

"And we told the guy we'd try and find her, but he was determined to find the woman himself... said he saw the whole thing..."

"That doesn't make any sense," Blake said, chipping in and acting naive, "I mean, why would he just watch his family being butchered?"

"Well, you're right about that; personally, I think he killed them himself," the man said. "And he tried to cover it, and now someone's got to him. But it doesn't make much sense. Maybe someone did kill his family and returned to finish the job."

"I think a hitman wasn't paid enough," his buddy said.

"Well, what did this guy do? Did he upset anyone?" Blake asked. "Was there any domestic abuse charges against him?"

"No domestics or anything, and he ran a small store around here, family business," the soldier replied. "I don't think some pissed off customer would go this far, but if you've ever worked retail, you'll know that's no guarantee."

The two soldiers laughed to themselves at this point as Blake sighed. She saw the Atlesian military were taking this seriously then, and what would they know about working retail? Had they worked in shops before themselves? If that was the case, why on earth were they in the military? Shouldn't better-trained men and women be here instead?

But no, they were most likely here because they were both humans.

"Well, this is just more work for us," came a new voice, as Anna Bronsan herself came out of the alley and shook her head. The two laughing soldiers fell silent in her presence as Penny herself tailed behind the lieutenant.

"What did you find?" Blake asked, continuing to play dumb.

"Two puncture wounds through the chest, he was stabbed from behind with a bladed weapon," Penny said. "But at the moment, I'll need to do more scans on the body to find out exactly what type of weapon was used."

"Okay," Blake said.

"We also found traces of dust," Anna added. "So whoever did this wasn't just your average street thug."

Blake felt her heart drum louder against her chest.

"You're saying a huntsman or huntresses did this?" one of the soldiers asked.

"Maybe, or maybe a criminal that knows how to utilise dust well, either way, this whole thing doesn't sit right with me," she muttered. "Guy has his family brutally murdered, then a week later he's found dead in an alley. And he was insistent that a rat-Faunus caused this."

"We didn't get the name of who this rat-Faunus woman supposedly is," Penny said. "We have a description, but it's quite general of a lot of rat-Faunus here in Mantle. We'll have to do more to investigate this."

"And I would love to," Anna muttered. "But we've got a million and one other issues that need dealing with."

"But this case could be important!" the soldier piped up. "I mean if it was a Faunus that caused this. Could it be the FAH returning or a branch of the white fang? After all the celebrations after Adam died, it got a bit over the top. And I heard Marrow got injured."

"So you think the Faunus would do this for revenge?" Penny inquired.

"The Faunus wouldn't do something like that!" Blake said hotly, "They want equality, they don't want to start killing like the White Fang, or the FAH did!"

"Not all Faunus want peace," Anna said. "Besides, you're the one that killed Adam. You must understand better than anyone that sometimes you can't reason with these people."

"What are you saying, that someone killed him in self-defence!?"

"It's possible," Anna said. "I heard he wasn't the most accomodating to Faunus in his shop, and I've heard all about your little crusade Miss Belladonna."

"What, are you saying I had something do to with this! I didn't do anything!" Blake ranted.

Anna raised her eyebrows.

"I never said you did," she responded. "But maybe you saw him and his family beforehand? Or maybe you've known, or you've seen a Faunus that relates to this case."

Blake shook her head.

"I didn't see him or anyone relating to this case," she snapped. "I don't know anything, so stop trying to accuse me!"

"Again, I wasn't accusing you. I think we just need to look into..." Anna began before she interrupted by a panicked soldier that rushed forward.

"Just a got a message from Squad 2! There's been an attack on the local hospital! The fall maiden was seen leaving the scene!"

"How many dead!?" Anna asked instantly.

"I don't know, but urgent assistance has been requested...!"

"Alright, head on over there now!" Anna ordered as the two soldiers hurried off, with Blake following straight after them. Thankful for the distraction, she ran onwards, ready to help the people of Mantle.

Yet she didn't notice how Anna and Penny hung back as Anna turned on her scroll.

"General," she said, as Ironwood and Winter's faces came into few, "We've examined the crime scene, and the weapons she has, matched the wounds found on the body. We also found dust shards and piecing them together; they looked like remains of a shadow clone."

Ironwood sighed and rubbed his forehead while Winter's face remained impassive.

"I told you, sir, to keep an eye on her," Winter said. "I knew the second I ordered those guards to leave her that something like this would happen."

"Winter, there's no concrete evidence..."

"She's a symbol that will attract the extremists in Mantle," Winter said simply. "If she hasn't already become an extremist herself, and now this happens..."

"Winter!" Ironwood snapped, "We don't...!"

"Sir," Anna said, intervening, "I'll have to side with Winter on this one. All evidence points towards Miss Belladonna. If the FAH has returned in some form, then it's obvious Watts will use it to his advantage. If we continue to tail Miss Belladonna, she'll lead us directly to them."

"If that's the case..." Ironwood growled. "Then make sure Miss Belladonna remains unaware of our suspicions and keep tailing her. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," Anna said. As she switched the comm off, the lieutenant turned to Penny.

"I know you and Miss Belladonna are friends, but can I trust you to keep an eye on her without her knowing?"

Penny looked uncomfortable at this request, but she knew that she had a job to do.

So with that in mind, she nodded and muttered, "Okay."

Being the protector of Mantle was a heavy burden to bear.

Ironwood slowly got to his feet as Penny and Anna dissappeared from view, he was aware of Winter calling his name as he stood there. He wasn't able to hear her, but only the loud drumming of his own heart against his chest.

Why?

Why was everything going so wrong? What more did he have to do to earn their trust!? Where had it all gone wrong? First Beacon had fallen, Ozpin had abandoned them. Ironwood had been on his own for so long, and now his allies were betraying him.

He growled in frustration, his balled-up hand hitting the wall; it didn't feel painful for him; it felt like he was simply taking a breath and relieving stress.

It wasn't until he saw Winter apply some cream to his bleeding fist or the giant dent in the metal wall that he became aware of his own strength and stress levels.

He collapsed back on his chair, his hand stinging. Winter hovered above him, concerned and loyal as she always was.

"What do I have to do?" he asked of her. "Why does this keep happening?"

Winter offered him a strained smile.

"You're doing everything you can," she assured him. "That's all any of us can do. We've given Miss Belladonna far too many chances. When this is all over, she'll have to be punished."

Ironwood groaned.

"I just can't believe they've turned out like this, Ozpin, the team... everyone, even Clover, acted out of line."

"Winter remained silent, as Ironwood gazed blankly ahead of him, before long his eyes focused on Winter once again.

"Winter," he muttered.

"Si... James," she replied.

He smiled.

"Let's run away."

Winter scratched her ears to make sure she'd heard that right.

"Excuse me?" Winter asked.

"I... I was joking," Ironwood muttered before he smirked once again. "I just wanted to see the look on your face."

Winter knew she turned red, although it was strange of Ironwood to tease her, especially now with the situation so tense.

"It's not like you to humour me, not now at least," she observed. "Maybe you just need to blow off some steam. Maybe practise with Oscar again?"

Ironwood's dark eyes brightened at this.

"Yes!" he mused. "I haven't trained with him in a while."

"Just don't go overboard, sir," she said.

Ironwood continued to beam.

"When have I ever gone overboard?" he asked before laughing at his own joke. Winter chuckled as well, yet she couldn't help but feel as though something was wrong.

She wanted her general to laugh and smile some more, but this... this didn't feel natural.

She knew that he hadn't taken the news well at all.

"Well, that was simply marvellous, marvellous!" Watts said mock-clapping as Cinder and Tyrian re-entered the small room they had established as their temporary headquarters. Constantly moving from one abandoned building to the next, the group of four had been on the move, stealing supplies and keeping themselves hidden. Watts' skills at hacking at Neo's disguises had worked wonders at keeping them invisible.

That was until today.

"Your face will be plastered over every news channel going," Watts snapped.

Cinder scowled.

"So what?" she snapped. "They already know what we look like; they know we're here. I'm just reminding them not to forget about me," she mused with a smile.

Neo rolled her eyes while Tyrian cackled from behind her.

"I told you to cause some ruckus by attacking the other large hangar in Mantle," Watts snapped. "In case you've failed to realise, it's thanks to my connections that we've gained access to one. If we eliminate competition, we'll have a hold-in what supplies come in and out of Atlas and Mantle; it will give us power. How many times have I explained that to you?"

"Why attack a hangar, where there are barely any people?" Cinder asked. "Tyrian and I agreed; we can do that at any time."

"I gave you an assigned target and disabled security around it," Watts said. "And rather than follow through on this chance, while Ironwood is busy with Amity. You choose to attack a hospital; why?"

"Easy targets!" Tyrian said, "Too easy for my liking! But you should have seen them panic...!"

"Slaughtering the vulnerable, how chivalrous," Watts said. Watching the live broadcast and seeing the hospital in flames and people being pulled out of the building, alive or dead. It was a sight that didn't concern the former scientist. Still, the blatant disobedience of Tyrian and Cinder had really irritated him.

"They'll be an outrage!" Cinder mused. "All these people slaughtered because Ironwood was so focused on Amity. Imagine the anger it will generate against him! Then you can use that anger to get your little pawn onto the council..."

Watts tapped his chin.

"Well, I suppose I'll have to work with the botched job you've given me," he muttered.

"Botched!?" Cinder snapped. "I'm tired of being told to sit by and wait while you make your calls! I was told to cause destruction, and that's what I intend to do!"

"Yes, and it possible Mantle will turn on Ironwood for this, but in case you've forgotten, they don't like him already," Watts pointed out. "And I think people will be more likely to blame the terrorist who did this, a terrorist who now has a face attached to her."

Cinder continued to smirk.

"So they'll know who to fear," she said.

"Atlas can only be defeated from the inside," Watts reminded her.

"Then why don't we sabotage Amity and stop Ironwood's plan...!"

"No," Watts said bluntly. "Or you can try; I won't stop you. But you and I both know it's too well defended. James will expect me to attack there, especially after that Bimbo let the Kingdom know about his plans. But I won't fall into such an obvious trap."

"If I had your support," Cinder snarled, "We could disable security around Amity and with the four of us..."

"No," Watts said once again.

"It would be fun, though!" Tyrian said.

"I'm sure it would be," Watts said. "But Salem's orders were clear; you don't want to upset her, do you?"

Tyrian shook his head rapidly.

"No! No, of course not!" he exclaimed.

"Good," Watts said before he turned to Cinder. "It concerns me that even Tyrian here was able to escape the carnage without being seen. But you had to make a spectacle."

"Well, I'm proud of my work," Cinder said, smiling at the burning hospital on the holo-screen. "If you can't create fear, then how do you tear a Kingdom apart? When I gain the Winter maiden's powers, you'll see what I mean Watts, I won't even have much use for you after we take Atlas."

Watts didn't look concerned with this threat.

"Your arrogance will be your downfall, girl," he said simply. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have several people I need to contact."

"To do what?" Cinder spat. "What's this all for Watts, to disable another hangar, is that all?"

Watts smiled.

"What I have planned will make that burning hospital look like child's play," he boasted.

He left them hanging on that note. He had his plans, and before long, he'd share them with the other three, but for now (except for the burning hospital), everything was going as he planned.

And before long, James wouldn't know what had hit him.

A/N: Okay everyone sorry about the wait, life's got busy but I'll try to keep on updating, although these updates maybe infrequent, but yes, thanks for reading through this chapter!

As for events that happened this chapter, yep Ironwood is slowly starting to lose his marbles, and I wanted Atlas and the team to retain their smarts by suspecting Blake. As getting away with a murder that blantant would have felt like jumping the shark and it shows that Atlas are as capable as Watts when it comes to planning. The theme of this chapter is sort of how James/Watts have to deal with disobidence, while making their own plans against each other, showing how both good/bad guys are on almost equal footing/smarts at this point in the fic which may change soon.

But yeah altogether this is another slow chapter, with plot points being started (Penny spying on Blake, Watts' endgame plans, Ironwood slowly losing it). Next chapter we'll get back to Oscar/Ironwood sparring and we'll check in again with Glynda and Theo anyway onto answering reviews!

E31174- Thanks for reading and liking this fic so far, I have yet to watch Rising of the shield hero but I've heard good things about it, so I'll have to check it out at some point!

Shinigami-Fallen- (grow of characters, funny moments, inteligent actions that make sense, etc.) followed by Yang or Blake fucking everything. I think that's pretty much what I change the description of this fic into, but yep appericate your review and about Blake I liked that you picked on the fact she's more concerned about hating humans at the minute than actually helping Faunus. Even this chapter to try and justify her murder, her thoughts get darker and even tiny things (like the soldiers mentioning retail work) sets her off. But I hope you like this chapter regardless, always great hearing from you!

ThatSexyShikamaru- Thank for you for the respect, hopefully I can keep it as the chapters progress!

Bluerose160- Only time will tell, but let's just say we've only scartched the surface of the Roula, Gregor, Blake situation this chapter. Much more evidence and truths will come out later on.

Kayden Delta- Thank you! Also yeah the characters act a lot more dramtically than they would in canon, but I find it makes the fic more fun to read and write! I know it can lead to cheesy or OOC moments sometimes, but I try and keep it somewhat grounded and try to avoid going completely off the rails. But once again thanks for reviewing and keep them coming!

Engineer1869- Yep, Qrow isn't going to change overnight and his apperance this chapter was brief, but hopefully it shows that his taking tiny steps by at least being on duty and speaking to Yang. Also about Blake, yep this plot is going places but only time will tell, thanks again for reviewing!

Hellbreaker- Haven't seen the transformers reboot, but I get your points and I loved your detailed analysis of the situation and how you felt like it was a set-up. Because I wanted the whole situation that occurred there to feel "off" and for the reader's to start questioning what's going on. Obviously I can't reveal the answers here, but I like to leave hints and clues that people can pick up on and the fact you noticed a few things shows you're invested in the fic and that makes me proud! So thanks again for leaving your thoughts and I loved your analogy of Blake thinking she knows everything when she's really just a dumb kid. I don't know if I'm the only one that notices that films or TV shows these days always has "the kid that's smarter than adults" trope and it annoys me how self-righteous or smug these know it all's always seem to be. This fic is kind of a reverse of that, as the Atlas personnal are pro's at what they do and no novice huntresses are coming in to tell them what's right and how to do things, anyway before I rant forever thanks again!

The Amazing N- Glad you're enjoying the Qrow/Clover friendship and that you're questioning Blake's actions. I can understand people saying Blake should have restrained the man and gather more evidence, but in Blake's mind she'd already justified killing him before she landed the blow and I'm glad you noted that the last chapter pointed out her flaws, as that's what I was aiming for.

Guest- Ignorant? Yep? Slut? Nah.

Havalt300- Will she end up fully like Adam, or will she repent? Again only time will tell...

Cooldude- Real life analogy to the situation? Interesting, glad to have your insight and thanks for your review!

MadTitan9- Well at least you understand where she's coming from, but her attitude has put you and many others off. Wonder how this chapter will get you raging? Anyway thanks for your thoughts!

EternalInternalScreaming- Why does your name go so well with the review! Laughed when I saw that!

avaize- Yep golden girl duo and that pizza meme is one of my favourites and pretty much sums up the situation at the moment in the fic. and I liked that you noted that Blake is something of an anti-hero but her emotions and attitude are making it almost impossible to side with her, but how will things change? Well only time will tell, thanks again for your thoughts!

merendinoemiliano- Thanks again for reviewing!

Luffy L Deathwalker- Yep the fascist in the making here, I see it in real life far too often where people feel like they're helping, when they're really just making things worse. Controversial opinon here, but enviormental activists, who'll glue themselves to trains, or go on protests. But then also drive to these events and leave tons of litter behind defeating the purpose of them being there in the first place. Anyway before I go on thanks for leaving your thoughts and I see you like Assassians creed! Good taste!

OBSERVER01- Ironwood now awake just to suffer... but once again thanks for thoughts!

SilverRei- Well, as I always say only time (or more chapters) will tell...

SuperSaiyajin4Vegeta- Yeah Blake's had an easy ride so far, and has had it easy despite everything she's done. but that maybe about to change as this chapter points out.

Masterix- Yeah, I know a few people in real life that are like Blake as well (or at least have her mindset) one minute I can speaking to them and get on with them really well. But the second politics or something controversial is brought up they turn into wannabe dicators (this is what should happen, this group has always been like this, we should punish them, I know they did it etc...) just general phrases I hear. But it concerns me as I don't think they realise they're not using their brains or logic when making these arguments or ranting, just following what everyone else is saying. So yeah this fic kinda reflects how harmful that mindset really is and what the consquences for it can be. But once again thanks for reviewing!

joecola00- Thanks and yeah I try to add lighthearted moments so it's not all doom and gloom and you can find some leveity in this fic. Glad you appericate it!

mr nod- Blake/Watts team up? Who knows. But I think Watts values smarts and I don't think he'd tolerate Blake for long.

CdnInquisition- Strong thoughts there

Hyperpixal and ReDestrobo- Thanks for your reivews and insights on Blake's character and the liking the Qrow/Clover scene.

Anyway until next chapter!