Weiss didn't lower Myrtenaster until the Atlesian forces showed up. They had to carry their intended target off in a body bag, but general Ironwood was more than happy to arrest Reaper. She was brought to a cell in the city jailhouse specially made for dangerous aura users with a strength semblance. Even after her wound finished closing, there was no chance for escape on her own. There she would stay until the Valen Council organized a trial for her. Reaper expected to spend the whole time alone, just her and Ember, but she soon found herself with visitors.
"I must remind you it would be a bad idea to pass her any items unless they are cleared for her possession." She heard the guard speak from down the hall, out of sight from her reinforced glass wall.
"Don't worry, we won't be giving her anything." Weiss's cold voice sounded from around the corner.
"The 'we' must mean at least Blake is with her." Reaper spoke aloud to Ember and raised her hood.
What the hell are they doing here?
"I'm sure she's more than willing to yell that info at us."
"Blake, what are you waiting for?" Weiss's voice came again. Blake didn't speak for a few moments.
"How often does she talk to herself like that?" Blake asked, likely to the guard.
"More than I want to hear. Crazy broad…" the guard answered.
Weiss walked into view with Blake in tow. Two seats rose from the ground outside the cell for the visitors to sit on. One rose inside for Reaper as well, but she decided to continue leaning against the back wall of her cell. Weiss waited for her to move in vain.
"Well, if you're not going to sit with us, at least lower your hood so we can look you in the eye." The heiress told her. "Or are you that much of a coward now?"
Under the hood, Reaper flinched. She was a coward. After everything she abandoned, she still couldn't look her old friends in the eye, especially after Blake witnessed her express her chosen namesake. She didn't lower her hood, but she did go to sit on her seat.
Weiss huffed. "Good enough, I suppose."
"What are you doing here?" Reaper asked them, wanting to just get this over with.
"I need to know why." Blake started. "Why did you leave? What happened to you? What turned you into this?"
"I learned life was no fairy tale." Reaper replied quickly.
"You once told me that that's why huntsmen and huntresses are here, to make things better." The cat girl used Ruby's words against her.
"And I turned out to be a great example of 'making things better'." Reaper shot back. "Ruby was a naïve fifteen year old girl when she told you that. With big dreams of being a huntress and making the world a better place. But the world doesn't care. There are no heroes."
"You never let that stop you before. Just when did you stop trying to be one?" Weiss asked.
The scythe master recalled a night in an ally, what felt like an age ago now, when Neo found her. "When I learned I couldn't be one anymore. When I learned it was better to start looking after myself first, instead of everyone else."
Blake looked at the girl she saw slaughter Adam just a few hours ago. She wanted to hate her for willingly becoming a criminal. She wanted to be angry at her for becoming 'Reaper'. But she couldn't. She knew her mind was broken and everything Beacon taught her, everything Ruby and Yang taught her, screamed at her to try and help.
"Ruby, you know my past." She told the scythe girl. "If there's one thing I've learned, it's that it's never too late."
"That's not my name." Reaper made sure to pronounce the words clearly. She was sick of people calling her 'Ruby'.
"I told you this was pointless." Weiss scowled and stood to leave. Blake hesitated for just a moment before following her girlfriend out of the jailhouse.
"Turns out the princess is even less forgiving than we thought."
And that's saying something.
An hour or so later one of the visitor seats rose again, as well and the inside seat.
Must be Ironwood again, trying to squeeze information about Torchwick out of us.
To her surprise, it wasn't Ironwood. Instead, a grey haired man, well dressed in a green suit and carrying a cane.
"Ozpin?" Reaper spoke incredulously as he sat on the visitors seat.
"They should really find a way to make these more comfortable." He though out loud, trying to sit comfortably.
Well, I doubt they get used often.
"Well, I doubt they get used often." Reaper repeated the remark from Ember. "What are you doing here?"
"I just wanted to speak with you, Ruby."
"That's not my-! You know what, never mind… call me what you want, everyone else fucking does." Reaper's eyes tinted red.
"My apologies, Reaper… I hope you can forgive an old man and his hopes." Ozpin told her.
"What are you doing here?" She repeated.
"Like I said. I just want to talk."
"About?"
"Roman Torchwick."
Reaper rolled her eyes and turned her back to Ozpin. Of course.
Why not just tell them? What do we owe that asshole?
"He may be an asshole, but if we get out of this, he's still our best option."
And how exactly will we get out of this?
"I don't know… Neo will probably come for us when we don't return after a day or two."
We could grovel to Ozpin. He is right here.
"I'm not going to-! Shit, I'm talking to you out loud again, aren't I?"
Yup.
"If you can tell, why don't you fucking warn me!?"
Since you can't see it, I just shrugged.
"Oh my god… you're an asshole too… at least I can get away from Roman…"
Ozpin cleared his throat loudly, demanding the attention of the captured criminal. "Reaper, you remember that you owe me a favor, correct?"
Shit.
He wouldn't… would he?
"You want to waste it on stupid information? Trust me, it will do you no good." Reaper warned Ozpin.
"Not just information. Cooperation." The headmaster clarified.
"How so?"
"If you can help us take down Torchwick, it would go a long way to prove a defense I've prepared." Ozpin explained.
"Defense?" Reaper asked, confused.
"What would you say if I told you I may have found a way to place you back at Beacon? Under a 'Rehabilitative Custody' program?"
The scythe girl's eyes widened. "Bullshit. Why the hell would you want me back?"
"I told you I made a promise. I intend to keep it." the headmaster reminded her.
"That promise was for Ruby." Reaper huffed. "I'm not Ruby. There's no helping me, no 'saving' me."
"It's not too late to change again."
"You all keep saying that!" Reaper yelled, her eyes brightening. "You, Blake, Velvet, you keep saying 'it's not too late'! It is! Ruby! Is! Gone! I can never come back as a huntress!"
"Why do you believe you are so irredeemable?" Ozpin asked.
"Because of who I've become! I'm a liar, a thief! I'm certifiably insane, and I'm a killer!" Reaper shouted.
Are you shouting at Ozpin, or at yourself?
Reaper froze at Ember's words. So much had happened, she had changed so much. But she didn't regret her life now, did she?
I don't regret killing Adam… I don't regret stealing… Hell, I don't even regret sleeping with Neo.
But you do regret not taking Ozpin's offer before. I know you, Reaper. I've always been the voice of your deepest desires. Back during our infiltration of Beacon I told you of your growing addiction to Neo, of your desire to spar in class and be with Velvet. You would want to call them temptation, and maybe I am a temptress. But I've never told you anything you weren't already thinking deep down. And one desire, buried deeper than the rest under layers of betrayal and survival, was the hope to one day return to Beacon.
Reaper knew Ember was right. But was it really possible? Would anyone accept her back? "I still don't know… if I can be saved…"
Ozpin stood to leave. "You're the only who seems to think you can't. So the question is, is everyone else wrong, or are you? Are you really beyond saving, or do you not want to be saved?"
Reaper walked through the courtyard at Beacon. Everything was bright and shiny, and far too empty. "What the hell are we doing here?" Silence. "Hello? Ember?"
"She's not here. It's just you and me, Rubes."
Reaper turned to the voice and saw Yang standing behind her. "Of course. This is a dream. And that's not my name."
"Mmmmmmm I don't care." Yang smiled and ruffled Reaper's hair. "You're still my lil' sis!"
Reaper stared the blonde in the eyes. "Even after everything I've done?"
"Things have been hard for you." Yang shrugged. "And having my semblance certainly hasn't helped you much. Besides, you know me. I go with the flow of things, always quick to move on. When I look at you, I see Ruby. Even with the blood on your hands. Hell, if it had been the other way around, I probably would have raided Atlas to kill Adam with my bare hands."
"Yang… are you really here?" Reaper asked.
"That's on you to figure out." She smirked. "Now it's my turn to ask you a question. And you're not allowed a vague answer or an 'I don't know'!"
"Hey, that's not fair!" Reaper shouted.
"Mmmmmmm I don't care! So, Ruby." Yang looked her sister in the eye. "What do you want?"
"Want…?" Reaper looked down. She didn't know.
"Yeah. Forget your life choices up until now. Forget Neo, forget Velvet, forget 'Reaper' and 'Ruby'." Yang poked the scythe girl in the chest. "In your heart, what do you want?"
What do I want? I don't know… I've been working with Roman not because I wanted to, but… I don't even know why. Survival? Something to do with myself? Can I really leave it behind? It's not like I regret it…
"You know, you don't have to regret something to not want it anymore." Yang pointed out.
Reaper looked back up at her sister and realized she was right. She didn't regret her criminal life, but it wasn't what she wanted. "How can I do this, though? I can't just flip a switch and be Ruby again, and I'll always have to deal with Ember. No way am I medicating out my one way to control your semblance."
"You'll always be Ruby to me, but as far as out there in real life? I saaayyyyy… Don't be Ruby. Be Reaper the huntress. That's your path forward. Who knows? Maybe someday, you'll magically find Ruby again."
"I doubt it, Yang… I think Ruby really is gone forever. But Reaper the huntress? That does sound good."
Yang smiled and turned to face Dream-Beacon. "The view from Vale's got nothing on this."
Reaper turned around as well and smiled. The rest of the memory faded into the dream, with all the people and their weapons.
"Of course, you still see the weapons first. 'That girl's got a fire sword!'" Yang teased.
"Shut up!" Ruby shouted and the sisters shared a laugh.
"I love you, Rubes."
"I love you too, Yang. Goodbye."
Silver eyes opened to see the ceiling of her cell. The clock chimed midnight.
There you are! What the hell happened to you? You kinda vanished, it was weird…
I was gone? Could that really have been her?
Who?
Instead of answering Ember, Reaper got up and banged on the glass of her cell. "Guard! I want to talk to Ozpin!"
"I said I wanted to talk to Ozpin." Reaper told Ironwood.
"Anything truly urgent can be passed along." He replied.
Reaper may be turning herself around, but she still found the general hard to trust. She didn't like the way she read him. "I'm talking to Ozpin. Not to you."
"Please, Ruby-"
"That's not her name, general." Ozpin spoke as he stepped into the room. "Nothing needs to be passed on if I'm here to hear it. You may leave us if you wish." Ironwood glared at Ozpin and stood from the seat, but didn't leave the cell block. Ozpin sat down. "You wanted to see me?"
"I know what I want. I'm taking you up on your offer." Reaper told him. "On a few conditions."
"We aren't going to negotiate with the likes of-"
"James, please." Ozpin turned to him. "You have no reason to remain in Vale, and unlike during the last festival where you held security, I still maintain higher jurisdiction over this situation. Now, this time I really am asking you to leave."
Ironwood's glare strengthened, but he had no choice but to take his leave this time.
"You two have a bit of a falling out?" Reaper observed.
"One could say that. I was supposed to give you a false drive with a tracking device within during your last 'visit' to Beacon." The headmaster confessed. "We have strongly different opinions on how you should be treated."
"For one of my conditions, I won't be 'treated'." Reaper took the comment as a segue. "I may be crazy, but Ember, the other voice? She can take over and control the Red Haze. It's one of the reasons I feel comfortable coming back."
"I see. I believe we can work with that. And the others?" Ozpin asked.
"Just one." Reaper told him. "That we follow my plan for taking down Torchwick. All of his files are stored on his system, everything you need to take him down. He also has backups, hidden in locations only he knows, so that if the complex was raided he could delete the files, and then you wouldn't even find enough to hold him."
"So we can't raise his suspicion. You're suggesting an inside job. You want me to sanction you returning on your own." Ozpin deduced.
"One way or another, either my return to Beacon is genuine or it isn't." Reaper explained. "I'll give you the location of the underground complex where he hides his gang. You can raid it when I give the all clear, or when I don't return after a while."
"Forgive my cautionary lack of trust, but how can I know the location is genuine?" Ozpin asked.
The scythe girl smiled. "You're headmaster of Beacon. I'm sure you know someone who can scout a location like that without being caught."
The headmaster nodded. "Very well. We'll consider this your first test of your new leaf. Once the location is confirmed, you will have a few hours to find your opportunity to steal the files and get them to me before we raid."
