Korruption paced the room that was 'hers'. Much nicer than her previous accommodations, though it was easy to beat 80 years in a glass tube. Still, when a queen sized bed takes up a fraction of the floorspace and one wall was entirely windows with an excellent few of the dark scenery beyond, one had to appreciate it. "Not much'll beat that." Korruption spoke to itself. A frown soon grew on her face, however, and she piloted her stolen body in front of the full-body mirror nearby. She looked into her own eyes, amusement far from her appearance.

"I know you're still there, Reaper." Korruption warned. "Poking around… trying to find a way to push me out. You won't win."

Shut up.

"You're lucky, y'know. This brain was already so broken before I got here you actually have a refuge in the cracks. A first-class seat to the show." The Grimm taunted.

SHUT UP!

A powerful and familiar migraine shot through the woman's skull, making Korruption double over and grip her hair. "Noooo! Stop it! You can't push me out!"

I think I can! LET'S FIND OUT!

"AAAARRRRGGHH!" Korruption fought her host with all she had, keeping a death-glare on the mirror. "This won't kill me! You'll only delay the inevitable!"

THIS WILL KILL YOU! AND EVEN IF IT DOESN'T, AT LEAST I'LL BE FREE OF YOU!

Korruption strained against the pounding in her skull, and made a decision. She drew the small knife Reaper kept in her belt, the one Neo gave her to draw the Red Haze. With zero hesitation, Korruption drove the knife into her gut. With two hands and Reaper's strength, she snapped the handle from the blade, leaving the metal in her intestines.

The shock affected Reaper as well, giving Korruption some reprieve. "Now I'm all that's holding us together… my parasites are keeping the wound from affecting us… You kick me out, and whether I live or die, you die too."

Korruption's smug victory didn't last long. It didn't take long for Reaper to decide.

I don't care if I die. As long as IT KILLS YOU TOO!

The pain returned to her head, and Korruption could have sworn she felt blood vessels popping. "AARGH! You don't know if it will kill me! Can you really take the chance!? I'LL JUST INFECT SOMEONE ELSE! MAYBE FROM YOUR TEAM! WHAT WAS THE COLORFUL ONE'S NAME AGAIN!?"

All at once, all the pain and pressure stopped. "That's what I thought." Korruption gloated, the smug grin returning to stay.

You leave her alone. You kill her, and I don't care what you do to the world. I. Will. Kill you.

"Well, you'll try. But don't worry," Korruption raised her hand like she was making a vow. "Little Neopolitan is safe from me. Cross our heart."

Reaper stayed quiet after that, and Korruption got a good look at herself in the mirror. Blood vessels did pop, and now a large black splotch covered the right side of her face where her parasite bodies were keeping the mess contained. Blood vessels in her right eye pooped as well, and all the white was covered. While her left eye still had white, the right looked more like Salem's own eyes. Which Korruption didn't mind, but it meant spying was out of the question. Can't keep up Reaper's identity with such a glaring Grimm trait.

She poked at the black spots on her temple. Her true form was a mess of hundreds of microscopic Grimm. Only one of the forms was the Korruption that spoke and thought, the rest controlled through a hive-mind. The only real guarantee someone would kill her is if they destroyed the mother cell, which was a one in a million shot even if it was reachable from the surface of her host.

Korruption found her smile again. More than likely, any attempt to kill her would only kill Reaper and leave her free. She was safe. She was alive. And more importantly, I'm going to have so much fun.

Salem, Hazel, and Kale were already seated when Korruption entered the hall. The Grimm Queen's eyes were immediately drawn to the obvious flaw on the side of her creature's face. "What happened?"

"My host is feistier than I care to admit. But I have her subdued now." Korruption assured.

"Are you sure?" Salem asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Positive." Korruption nodded.

"Very well." Salem nodded. "Though, we may have to work the plan around your current appearance."

"What plan?" Hazel asked.

"Tyrian has yet to pin down the summer maiden's exact location. I was going to have Korruption spy at Beacon, but that seems unlikely to succeed now."

"And once the maiden is discovered, I will make my way to her and capture her power," Kale spoke up.

"What about me?" Hazel asked.

"You shall stay here and stay silent until I decide what to do with you. Although…" Salem thought deeply, "You may very well be useful once it is time to capture the summer maiden's power. Cinder had her two cronies to help her. Though she only got half the power, and Emerald and Mercury have vanished."

"They're dead," Korruption spoke up.

"Excuse me?" Salem responed.

"My host told me she killed them. A few years ago, now."

"I see…" Salem narrowed her eyes at her pet. She turned to Hazel, "So, you and Tyrian will help Kale subdue the maiden when the time comes. Until then, patience. I still haven't forgiven you."

"And what about me?" Korruption asked.

"I would have asked you if you thought you could resume your presence at Beacon, but you cannot pass for Reaper now." Salem informed her. "Even if Ozpin isn't already on the lookout for something strange, he'll definitely notice you now."

"So… what? Sit here and wait?" Korruption scowled.

"You will have your fun, in time." Salem assured.

"I want to have fun now."

"Be. Patient." Salem clearly enunciated her lack of that trait with the current conversation.

The meeting dismissed soon after, and Korruption stormed back to her room. She may walk and talk like a human girl, but parasite in control was still a Grimm. She craved destruction, she craved the pain of humanity. Her new body only ensured her fury at not being able to fulfill these desires.

The Grimm girl brought her fist down on her bedside drawer. The breaking wood was satisfying, but that feeling was fleeting. She was soon hitting it again and again, reducing it to splinters. Then, she moved on to the armoire until it was a pile on scrap wood on the floor. Then she tore apart he bed and kicked the bathroom door in. It wasn't long before there was nothing else to break, leaving the Grimm girl to stare out the window.

Korruption didn't want to disobey her mother, but she could hardly hold back. She felt Salem enter the room. "Please… Let me go…"

"What do you expect will happen?" Salem asked.

"Chaos." Korruption told her. "In this body, I can bring Vale to its knees. Perhaps even destroy Beacon…"

"Chaos will only detriment our goals." Salem warned.

Korruption punched the window, cracking the entire pane dramatically. "I can do this."

"Know your place," Salem warned. "Ozpin doesn't yet know I'm active. We need to keep it that way."

"I can kill him," Korrupiton promised.

"No, you can't," Salem deadpanned. "I will find something for you to do, but first you must learn patience."

The problem with trusting a Grimm was their inherent need to destroy. No sooner did Salem leave did Korruption take advantage of being able to move outside of her careful gaze. She would show her. She would make her mother proud. She would destroy Vale, and maybe even kill Ozpin.

Neo didn't know what to do. The days passed, and she couldn't seem to feel anything but alone. She wasn't even sad about Reaper being gone, because the loneliness swallowed everything else. She was simply there, unable to process the world around her. It left a hole inside her, and she just autopiloted from class to class. Luckily, the teachers never tried to engage her, although she didn't doubt at least Goodwitch knew what was going on.

The colorful girl had no idea how she made it through each day. She could stay in bed and it would make little difference. She just wanted to know. Even if it turned out Reaper was dead, at least Neo would know, and then she could grieve. She was starting to understand how Velvet might have felt a few years ago… the not knowing was definitely worse.

They finished yet another day and Neo slumped onto the desk. She kicked open the fridge, hoping a drink or two would help her cope. It didn't take long to mix the ingredients. Glass in hand, mismatched eyes stared out the window as she sipped away. Sunset passed, the darkness covering the campus, and Neo made another drink. A moving shadow on the courtyard almost missed her attention, but something about it was familiar. The walk, the sway of the hips, the flow of the… cloak.

Neo's eyes shot wide and she dashed out of the dorm. She dropped the glass along the way, shattering it and waking Weiss and Blake. The couple noted the ex-criminal dash out of the room and groggily sat up, giving each other curious looks. The black figure reached the main doors as Neo bolted down the entrance hall. She smiled when she saw the familiar black hood.

Reaper stepped closer and closer, and Neo's smile failed. Something was off… her aura didn't feel right. It felt like Reaper's, but as if it were barbed and twisted. The multi-colored girl reached for her umbrella, realizing she didn't have it on her. Panic set in, panic that Korruption gladly fed off. Neo looked back to the hooded girl, and saw her eyes. Burning red, the right eye set entirely in black. It looked like a Grimm.

Not me.

If there was somehow a Grimm inside Reaper, it would explain everything. But not why Neo wasn't already running. As if broken from some spell, the ex-criminal turned to run, but it was too late. She was lifted up, and slammed against the nearby wall. She started to fall, but felt the hand around her throat once again. She felt the life being drained from her, staring this monster in the eye.

Korruption's grip suddenly slackened, a pained look passing through her dark eyes momentarily. Then she rolled them. "Yes I know…" The Grimm girl looked Neo dead on. "You're lucky she cares for you so much. Normally, I would kill you." That was the last thing Neo heard before the darkness came.

Korruption knocked the girl out. She couldn't kill her, but she couldn't let her get in the way either. "Now, where is Ozzy's office again?"

The dark woman walked off, leaving Neo alone until Weiss and Blake came along. Blake's faunus eyes saw Neo first, and rushed down to her side. "Neo!"

"What happened?" Weiss asked, kneeling next to her girlfriend.

"Neo, wake up!" Blake cried.

"Neo!?" Another voice spoke behind them. Pyrrha, Jaune, and Nora joined them. "What happened!?"

"That's what we're trying to-"

"HIYA!"

THWACK!

Neo Shot awake after Nora karate-chopped her in the chest, some electricity coming off her hand. "You're welcome!" The pink terror cheerfully greeted.

"Neo." Weiss asked. "What happened?"

Neo signed hastily, Weiss barely keeping up.

"What's she saying?" Jaune asked.

"She's just repeating 'not Reaper' over and over again." Weiss told him.

"I thought I saw Reaper down the hall when we showed up." Pyrrha pointed out.

"Wait, what? Are you sure?" Blake asked.

"Yes? I was under the impression she was sick." Pyrrha answered slowly.

The faunus and the heiress traded uneasy glances. "'Not Reaper'…" Weiss repeated. "'Not me'… I don't like this."

"No." Blake shook her head. Her eyes passed JNPR's way and she noticed something. "Where's Ren?"

"He must have already been awake, probably meditating. We woke up when we heard glass shatter, but by the time we three were ready to go he was already gone." Jaune explained.

"What direction did you see Reaper?" Weiss asked Pyrrha quickly. The warrior nervously pointed down the hallway towards teacher offices. "We have to hurry."

Line

Korruption made her way through the halls quickly. There was no time to waste. This shouldn't take too long. Then after, she could have a little fun before returning. A dark smile was in permanent residence on her face as she found her way to Ozpin's receptionist's office. Within was the waiting room and the elevator to the headmaster's office. Korruption kicked the door in and bee-lined to the elevators, reaching towards the button.

Bang!

A bullet struck the wall next to her hand, and she stopped short. She clenched her fist and turned slowly. It seems she was going to have some fun before reaching the office. The smile stayed as her eyes fell on an average looking man, dressed in green mistralin-style clothing with a pink streak in his hair. He held out a green auto-pistol with a blade coming off the front.

Ren

Thank you, Reaper.

No!

"Hey Ren, I need your help. I thought I saw someone sneaking into Ozpin's office. We need to stop them." Korruption tried to play it off. She looked at Ren, who was still aiming his pistol at her. "Mind putting that thing away?"

"You're not Reaper." Ren stated.

A large smile stretched Korruption's face once again, showing her teeth as if she were trying to bare fangs. "I didn't think that would work, but hey." She pulled out Brutal Thorn. Then, like whiplash, she was doubled over with her free hand covering the left side of her face. She was clearly in pain. "No! No, you've reached your limit! OR DO YOU WANT ME TO GO BACK DOWN THERE AND SNAP YOUR LITTLE ONE'S NECK!?"

"Reaper…?" Ren asked.

Korruption straightened out calmly and smiled. "Sorry about that. We won't be interrupted again." She pulled her hand away from her face, revealing that now her left eye was drowned in black as well.

Ren's resolve steeled. "I saw what you did do Neo. I don't need to know what you are or what you're doing to know I need to stop you."

Korruption rasied her arms out. "I may not be Reaper, but this is still her body. You know she's still in here, you saw it. So take your shot, and kill her."

"I know Reaper." Ren stated. "We never talk, but I've seen her with her team, with Neo. And I'm sure she would gladly give her life if it meant stopping you, especially after threatening Neopolitan's life."

Way to go Ren.

Korruption laughed. "Are you really going to bet your friends life that killing her will kill me too? I'll be honest, I don't even know if that will work or not."

Ren threw his other weapon out of his sleeve, readying his combat stance. "I won't hold back." He promised.

Korruption only laughed more, licking her lips when it finally died out. This is going to be so much fun… Her features narrowed and twisted, one eye more open than the other as she stared down Ren, her full malicious smile matched by the look on her face. She looked like a monster, and her next comment was spoken in a fitting growl. "Then I won't hold back either!"