AN: Last chapter before Christmas! Happy holidays everyone!

I also want to thank everyone that liked the direction I'm taking Cinder.

Without further ado, enjoy!

Chapter 31

Aqua watched out the massive window of Ozpin's office alongside the headmaster himself and Glynda as an entire fleet of airships flew by, with some taking up positions in the skies above Vale. Apparently, these airships had come from Atlas, and were escorting the general and the students traveling to Vale with him for the Vytal Festival.

Ostensibly, anyway. Truth be told, Aqua had no idea why those ships were really here. It seemed like overkill.

"Ironwood certainly loves bringing his work wherever he travels," Glynda said derisively.

"Well, running an academy and a military makes him a busy man," Ozpin said. "But yes, those are a bit of an eyesore."

"So I take it General Ironwood is the person you wanted to introduce me to?" Aqua asked.

"Yes. James is an…old friend of mine," Ozpin answered. "I imagine Qrow has told you a few things about him."

"Yes," she said. "And very few of them flattering." Her husband had never kept it a secret how much he disliked Ironwood and the way he did things, and Aqua was inclined to agree. Particularly about his decision to combine Atlas Academy with its military, funneling Huntsmen and Huntresses away from the front lines against the Grimm and towards working for him personally as his Specialists. But, she wouldn't jump to conclusions until she had a chance to meet him herself.

Apparently, that chance was coming very soon, as a beep on Ozpin's desk indicated that someone would like to enter his office. He pressed the button to confirm it, and the elevator door swung open, revealing a large, imposing man with black hair and a white military uniform. His hair was turning grey along the sides, and for some reason, he only wore one glove, on his right hand.

"Ozpin!" he greeted happily, stepping out of the elevator.

"Hello, General," Ozpin greeted, approaching the larger man.

"Please, drop the formalities," Ironwood said as he shook Ozpin's hand. "It's been too long. And Glynda! It's been too long since we last met."

"Oh, James!" Glynda said in the fakest voice Aqua had ever heard. "I'll be outside." And she walked away.

"Well, she hasn't changed a bit," Ironwood commented, before finally noticing Aqua's presence. "And who's this?"

"Oh, James, I would like to introduce you to Beacon's newest instructor," Ozpin said, and Ironwood approached, his hand offered.

"A pleasure to meet you, Miss," he said. "James Ironwood." She took the offered hand and shook it.

"Aqua Branwen," she introduced herself.

"Branwen?" the general asked. "Any relation to Qrow?"

"Yes, he's my husband." The general froze, blinking in confusion.

"…I'm sorry, I'm not quite sure I heard you right," he said. "It sounded like you said Qrow was your husband."

"Why is that always so hard to believe?" She asked in frustration.

"I didn't mean any offense," he said. "I just didn't think he had it in him."

"…I'll leave you two to get caught up," Aqua said, heading towards the elevator.

"…I get the feeling she doesn't like me very much," Ironwood commented after Aqua had left. He turned to look at Ozpin. "How much does she know?"

"Nothing yet," Ozpin answered, taking a seat behind his desk. "This is only her second semester teaching here, but I'm not ruling out bringing her into the fold. In any case, I would love to take this opportunity to catch up, but the small fleet outside my window has me concerned."

"Well, concern is what brought them here," James said.

"I understand that travel between kingdoms has become increasingly difficult…"

"Oz, you and I both know why I brought those men." Ozpin took a sip from his mug.

"We are in a time of peace. Shows of power like this are just going to give off the wrong impression."

"But if what Qrow said is true—"

"If what Qrow said is true, then we will handle it tactfully," Ozpin interrupted him. "It's the Vytal Festival. A time to celebrate unity and peace. So I suggest you not scare people by transporting hundreds of soldiers halfway across the continent."

"I'm just being cautious," James stressed.

"As am I," Ozpin countered. "Which is why we will continue to train the best Huntsmen and Huntresses we can."

"Believe me, I am. But ask yourself this: Do you honestly believe your children can win a war?"

"I hope they never have to," Ozpin said solemnly.

"So, am I sensing some history between you and the General?" Aqua asked Glynda as they walked back to the faculty residence together.

"We do have a past, yes," Glynda answered calmly. "It never would have worked out. He was too obsessed with his job to make any time for me, so we parted ways. Besides, he was always pig-headed and never acknowledged his own flaws and was never wrong about anything in his life and—"

"Okay, sorry I brought it up," Aqua said awkwardly, stopping Glynda before her rant could continue for much longer. "…Do you want to talk about it?"

"No, I've gotten over it," Glynda said. "But thank you."

Yeah, Aqua didn't believe that Glynda had gotten over it for a second. Before she could enquire further, the pair spotted an airship letting students off. They were wearing all black uniforms. She was grateful that her daughters had not chosen to go there, if only because the unform skirts were almost scandalously short.

"Which school are they from?" she asked Glynda.

"Those are the students of Haven Academy," she answered.

She looked at the group of students, and for some reason, a particular group of three caught her eye, a girl with mint-green hair, a boy with grey hair, and a girl with black hair.

She didn't know why her attention was on those three, but she shook her head and kept walking.

"I gotta say, these uniforms are pretty cute," Emerald commented, giving a little spin to show it off. The girls' version of the uniform consisted of a black jacket worn closed and a short black skirt. "How do I look?"

"Fetching," Cinder said, giving her Tea Leaf a smile. "And me?"

"Lovely as always."

"But of course," Cinder said, tossing her hair to the side playfully, making both of them laugh.

"I just don't get why combat schools even need uniforms," Mercury complained, fidgeting with his tie.

"What's wrong, Merc?" Emerald asked sarcastically. "Not used to actually looking good?"

"Oh, so you do think I look good," Mercury said, making Emerald angry.

"That's not what I meant."

Cinder was content to just let her protégé and the mercenary bicker, but then something caught her eye. She briefly caught a glimpse of a woman, with long blue hair.

Was that…?

…No, it couldn't be.

Ruby was sitting with her team in the library, playing a rousing game of Remnant: The Game. She was sitting directly across from Yang, and Blake and Weiss were on either side of her. Team JNPR were at another table doing who-cares-what. Not important.

What was important was taking Yang down.

"Yang Xiao Long, prepare your kingdom for battle!" Ruby yelled, pointing aggressively at her sister.

"Bring it on!" her sister answered.

"I deploy the Atlesian Air Fleet!" she declared, slamming a card on the table. "Looks like I get to fly right over your Ursai and attack your walls directly!"

"You fiend!"

"And since Atlas is part of Mantle, my repair time is only one turn," she said, only to be surprised when Yang started laughing.

"Pretty sneaky, sis," she said, holding up a card, "but you just activated my trap card!"

"Whaaat?!" Ruby cried.

"Giant Nevermore!" Yang yelled, slamming the card down. "If I roll a seven or higher, fatal feathers will slice your fleet in two!"

"But, if you roll a six or lower, the Nevermore will turn on your own forces!" Ruby yelled, trying to convince her sister to back down.

"That's just a chance I'm willing to take," the sisters stared each other down, before Yang threw the dice.

It came up seven.

Yang cheered.

"Noooo!" Ruby cried. "My fearless soldiers!"

"Eh, most of them were probably androids."

"Goodbye, my friends, you will be avenged!" Ruby said, starting to get genuinely choked up.

"Not until I draw my rewards!" Yang said. "Which are double this round thanks to the Mistral Trade Route!"

"Bah!" Ruby said.

"Oh? And what's this?" Yang asked. "Smugglers of Wind Path?"

"Bah! Bah, I say!"

"Looks like I'm taking two cards in my hand!"

"Have you no heart?!" Ruby despaired, collapsing against the table.

"Well, Weiss, it's your turn," Yang said, turning to the heiress who was looking at the cards in her hand.

"I have absolutely no idea what's going on," Weiss said. Yang slid over next to her.

"Look, it's easy. You're playing as Vacuo, which means that all Vacuo-based cards come with a bonus."

"That sounds dumb," Weiss said. Yang started looking through the cards in Weiss's hand.

"See, you've got Sandstorm, Desert Scavenge…Oh! Oh! Resourceful Raider! See, now you can take Ruby's discarded Air Fleet—"

Ruby sobbed.

"And put it in your hand!"

"Okay…" Weiss said.

"And since Vacuo warriors have an endurance against Natural-based hazards, you can use Sandstorm to disable my ground forces and simultaneously infiltrate my kingdom!" Yang suddenly pointed a finger aggressively at Weiss. "Just know that I will not forget this declaration of war." She slid back over to her seat.

"And that means…" Weiss said, still not quite getting it.

"You're just three moves away from conquering Remnant!" Ruby said, still crying in her seat. Weiss stood up, laughing maniacally.

"Yes! Fear the almighty power of my forces! Cower as they pillage your homes and weep as they take your children away from your very arms!"

"…trap card…" Yang said nonchalantly.

"Huh?" Weiss asked.

"Your armies have been destroyed," Yang said.

"I hate this game of emotions we play!" Weiss cried, slumping in her chair. Ruby hopped into Weiss's lap and hugged her.

"Stay strong, Weiss, we'll make it through this together!" The young Keybearer declared.

"Shut up! Don't touch me!" Weiss yelled, hugging Ruby back anyway.

"Alright Blake, you're up!" Yang said, sitting back in her chair. Blake jumped up slightly, as if she had been thinking about something else and had been snapped out of it.

"Oh, um, sorry, what am I doing?" she asked.

"You're playing as Vale, trying to conquer the Kingdoms of Remnant."

"…Right," she said apprehensively. Just then Jaune appeared.

"Hey! Can I play?" He asked.

"Sorry Jaune, we've already got four people," Ruby said apologetically.

"Besides," Weiss said. "This game requires a certain level of tactical cunning that I seriously doubt you possess."

"Uh, you attacked your own naval fleet 2 turns ago," Yang pointed out.

"Bring it on, Ice Queen!" he said, puffing out his chest. "I'll have you know that I've been told I'm a natural born leader!"

"By who? You mother?" Weiss asked.

"And Pyrrha."

"Hello again!" The aforementioned redhead greeted from her seat with a wave.

"Come on, let me play your hand for a turn," he begged.

"I'm not trusting you with the good citizens of Vacuo!" Weiss said.

"Why not? You've trusted me with way more important stuff before. I mean, you told us all that Blake is secretly a Fa—"

"Fun-loving person, whom we all admire and respect," Pyrrha said suddenly, slapping her hand over Jaune's mouth to shut him up. Blake glared at the group, and Jaune in particular.

"Right," he said. "That. Ladies, enjoy your battle," he said with a bow.

"'Sup, losers?" Sun asked as he walked into the library with a blue-haired boy they hadn't met yet. He was wearing a red jacket, and had goggles strapped to his forehead.

"Hey Sun," Ruby greeted.

"Ruby, Yang, Blake," Sun greeted. "Ice Queen."

"Why does everyone keep calling me that?" Weiss asked.

"I never got a chance to formally introduce you to my old friend," Sun said.

"Uh, isn't libraries for reading?" his friend asked.

"Thank you!" Ren cheered from JNPR's table.

"Shut up," Sun said. "Don't be a nerd."

"Intellectual, okay?" he said, wagging a finger at him. "Thank you. I'm Neptune."

"So, Neptune," Weiss said. "Where are you from?"

"Haven," he answered, walking towards her. "And I don't believe I caught your name, Snow Angel."

Ruby braced herself for Weiss to explode.

"Oh, I'm Weiss," Weiss answered with a faint blush.

"Are you kidding me?!" Jaune said in frustration.

"Pleasure to meet you," Neptune said.

"I never took you as the board game playing type," Sun said to Blake. Blake stood up, shoved him aside, and left.

"Right, well, I think I'm done playing, actually. I'll see you guys later."

The rest of the group watched her leave in confusion, wondering what got her in such a bad mood. Actually, she'd been in kind of a bad mood for a while now.

"…Women," Nora commented, drawing confused eyebrows from the rest of the room.

The Night of the Fight at the Docks

"Well, this has certainly been an eventful evening," Ozpin said, sitting across the table from Blake in a small, dimly lit room. Blake grunted an acknowledgement of the Headmaster's statement. "I'm sure that after a night of thwarting an attempted robbery, you probably just want to go home and take a nap. But, I was hoping that maybe we could have a chance to talk."

"Of course," she said.

"Wonderful. As you know, in order to enroll at my academy, students must first pass a rigorous entrance exam. Most applicants spend years of preparation at one of the many combat schools around the world. You are one of the few that did not. And you passed the exam with flying colors."

"I was raised outside the kingdoms," Blake said, careful not to give too much away. "If you can't fight, you can't survive."

"Well, you have most certainly survived, Blake. I admire your drive. And I am proud to run a school that accepts individuals from all walks of life. Rich, poor, Human…" He took a sip from his mug. "…Faunus." Blake sent him a glare. "Why do you wear that bow, Blake? Why hide who you are?"

"You may be willing to accept the Faunus, Professor Ozpin, but your species is not."

"True, but we are continuing to take strides to lessen the divide."

"With all due respect, you need to start taking larger strides. You let someone like Cardin into this school, after all. Until then, I'd rather avoid any unnecessary attention. I want people to see me for who I am, not what I am."

"And what are you?" he asked.

"I don't understand what you're asking."

"How did you know the White Fang would be at the shipyard tonight?"

"I didn't. I just happened to be at the right place at the right time."

"You wouldn't have been the first. But what happened tonight was not an isolated incident. I may be your headmaster, but I am also a Huntsman, and it is my sworn duty to protect this world from the forces that conspire against it. Blake, are you sure there is nothing else you would like to tell me?" She narrowed her eyes.

"I'm sure."

"Very well. Thank you for your time, Miss Belladonna." He stood up and moved towards the door. "If you ever need to talk to me, please don't hesitate to ask."

Blake sat on her bed, staring out the window with her knees pulled against her chest. She could hear voices approaching the door.

"Ugh, we should have never let him play!" Yang complained as the rest of Team RWBY entered the dorm.

"You're just mad cuz the new guy beat you," Ruby accused. "See, if you had just attacked when I told you none of this would have happened."

Blake got off her bed and headed for the door before Weiss stopped her.

"Stop!" Weiss shouted, pointing a finger at her. "Lately you've been quiet, antisocial, and moody."

"Have you met Blake?" Yang asked sarcastically.

"Which I get is kind of your 'thing', but you've been doing it more than usual. Which quite frankly is unacceptable. You made a promise to me that you would let us know if something is wrong. So, Blake Belladonna, what is wrong?"

"I just don't understand how everyone can be so calm," Blake said.

"You're still thinking about Torchwick?" Ruby asked.

"Torchwick, the White Fang, all of it! Something big is happening and no one is doing anything about it!"

"Ozpin told us not to worry," Yang said. "Between the police and the Huntsmen, I'm sure they can handle it."

"Well, I'm not!" Blake snapped. "They don't know the White Fang like I do!"

"Okay, between fighting Heartless, stopping thieves, and fighting for freedom, I sure the three of you think that you're all ready to go out and stop these ne'er-do-wells," Weiss said.

"Who?" Ruby asked.

"But let me once again be the voice of reason. We're students. We're not ready to handle this sort of situation."

"Well, yeah, but…" Ruby tried to argue.

"We're not ready!"

"And we may never be ready!" Blake snapped back. "Our enemies aren't just going to sit around and wait for graduation day. They're out there, somewhere, planning their next move, and none of us know what it is, but it's coming! Whether we're ready or not!"

"Okay!" Ruby yelled, getting the group's attention. "All in favor of becoming the youngest Huntresses to single-handedly take down a corrupt organization conspiring against the Kingdom of Vale…say aye."

"I'm in," Yang said.

"Well, I suppose it could be fun," Weiss conceded.

"None of you said 'aye'," Ruby said sadly.

"Alright then, we're in this together," Blake said.

"Let's hatch a plan!" Ruby said excitedly.

"Yeah!" Yang cheered. Ruby gasped.

"I left my board game at the library!" Ruby yelled, bolting towards the door. "I'll be right back!

"…We're doomed," Weiss said.

Ruby threw the door open and sprinted into the hallway, only to immediately slam into someone, getting knocked to the ground.

"Oof! Oh, I'm sorry, are you okay?" she asked.

"It's fine," a green-haired girl wearing a black uniform said while offering her hand to Ruby. She was accompanied by a grey-haired boy wearing a similar uniform. "Just watch where you're going." She pulled Ruby to her feet.

"Uh, right, sorry," she said. "Are you new?" A new voice answered.

"Just transferred from…Haven," a third girl, one with black hair and amber eyes, said, her voice losing it volume towards the end as she looked at Ruby in shock. Ruby was confused until she saw the girl's necklace. It looked just like the one around Ruby's own neck.

It was an amber Wayfinder.

…There was no way.

"…Ruby?" the girl asked.

"…Cinder?!" Ruby asked, her eyes wide open.

"What?" Yang asked from back in the dorm room, but Ruby didn't pay her any mind, throwing herself at Cinder and wrapping her arms around her in a tight hug.

"Is it really you?" Ruby asked, tears in her eyes.

"It is," Cinder said, wrapping her arms around Ruby.

"I knew it. I knew I'd see you again."

"No way…" Yang said, poking her head out of RWBY's dorm. "Cindy?!" she yelled, and pulled both Ruby and Cinder into a hug of her own.

"…Um, who are these girls?" The green-haired girl with Cinder asked. Blake and Weiss had poked their heads out of the room to see what the commotion was about. Ruby, Yang, and Cinder hastily broke up the hug and turned to the others awkwardly.

"Uh, guys, this is Cinder," Ruby said to Weiss and Blake. "She lived with us for a while when when we were kids. She was like our big sister!"

"Cindy, these are our teammates, Weiss and Blake," Yang introduced.

"Hello," Weiss greeted.

"Hi," Blake said.

"Girls, these are two of my teammates, Emerald and Mercury," Cinder said. "This is Ruby and Yang."

"Yo," Mercury said, giving them a two-fingered salute.

"Um, it's nice to meet you," Emerald said.

"Where's your fourth teammate?" Ruby asked. Emerald scoffed.

"Who knows? She comes and goes whenever she feels like it," Emerald said.

"So, Cinder," Ruby said. "How have you been? You go to Haven? What's your weapon? How—" Ruby bombarded her old friend with questions until Yang put a hand over her mouth.

"Geez, sis, give the girl some space," Yang said. "Save the interrogation for later. There's someone else she needs to see."

"Oh, yeah!" Ruby said. "She'll be so excited! Let's go!" Ruby said, and grabbed Cinder's wrist to start dragging her down the hall.

"Wait for me at the dorm!" Cinder called out to her teammates. "I'll be back later! Ruby, where are we going?"

"Stop pulling!" Cinder said as the three of them approached one of the doors in the faculty residential area.

"We're here," Ruby said happily, and Cinder looked at the name on the door.

Professor Branwen

Branwen? Did Qrow start teaching at Beacon? She suddenly felt nervous.

Qrow just happened to be the one who interrupted her, so she wasn't eager to see him again in case he recognized her. She was about to come up with some excuse to not go in when Ruby opened the door before she had the chance to.

"Hey, Mom," she said.

Mom?

"Hey, honey, what's up?" A woman's voice answered. A strangely familiar voice.

"Look who we found," Yang said, gesturing for a very confused Cinder to enter the room.

Cinder stepped inside, and froze the second she saw the room's blue-haired occupant.

"…Aqua?" she asked. The woman's eyes widened.

"Cinder?" Aqua asked, before quickly running up and engulfing Cinder in her second hug of the day. The hug lasted for a few seconds before Aqua pulled back, looking Cinder in the eyes "Look at you," she said quietly. "You're all grown. So beautiful."

"I didn't think I'd ever see you again," Cinder said. "I'm so happy."

"You're going to Haven now?" Aqua asked.

"Yes, I am." She said. "I'm a first-year."

"Where have you been? We tried to get in touch after you left, but we couldn't find you." Cinder sighed.

"My step-mom kind of kept me isolated," she answered, trying to keep the real story hidden. "All I wanted to do was become a Huntress, but she wouldn't let me. Once I turned 17, I left, but I needed to catch up on my training, so I had to lie about my age to get into Haven."

"Well, hey, it means you're here now," Ruby said. "And we're together again!"

Cinder didn't realize how much she had missed Ruby's optimism.

"So," she said to Aqua. "You and Qrow, huh?" Aqua nodded. "I knew it." After all, Aqua had always been like a schoolgirl with a crush whenever she was around him.

"Come here," Aqua said, gesturing to the couch in her office. "We need to catch up."

Cinder walked into the door room she shared with Emerald, Mercury, and occasionally Neo, a smile on her face.

"So, is this something we need to worry about?" Mercury asked. "Those people knew you."

"It won't effect the plan in the slightest," she said. "Well, you'll have to do some socializing."

"What does that mean?" Emerald asked.

"You'll have to make friends," she answered. "It'll look suspicious if we don't spend time with Ruby and Yang's team."

"Oh, good," Mercury said. "I can get myself a piece of that blonde." Cinder's eyes lit.

"And what exactly do you mean by that?" She asked.

"Relax," he said. "I'm not gonna force myself on her or anything."

"Pig," Emerald commented. Cinder glared at him for a few seconds before dispelling her flames.

"Get in touch with Neo," She said to Emerald. "We just enrolled in a new class, and we're going to need her."

"A new class?"

"Yes. It's called Advanced Combat and Team Tactics," she explained.

Well, we have Ironwood's introduction and Cinder's infiltration of Beacon, and her team will be joining Aqua's class.

And of course, Ironwood made a bad first impression.

So, I've got a question: Do we know what name Neo used when she was posing as Cinder's teammate? I'm gonna need one and I don't know if there's a canon one or even a fan-accepted one.

So, I hope you guys have a great holiday. I'm going to take a few days off for Christmas, especially since I did 3 chapters in four days. Happy Holidays, and thanks for reading!