Chapter 15: Truth

"The night you and I met, when you took me back to your apartment and helped me out was the night my best friend died. But that was only a chapter ahead of what actually happened. We had been hired by Cinder Fall, in order to cause havoc in the city of Vale, to make it crumble under the heel of her benefactor. We never met the woman, but I have a good idea of who she is now.

We were tasked with stealing dust and hoarding it. It started by coordinating an attack with the White Fang to steal an entire train's shipment of dust heading from Atlas to Vale. Afterward, it was a shipment of Schnee Dust from a freighter in the docks in Vale. But that had been thwarted by a robot girl with a giant laser.

Everything spiraled out of control after that, eventually leading to my first encounter with Weiss, and her friends, Ruby, Blake, and Yang. Me and my friend fought them, but we made our escape. When next we met, it was on a train, leaving the abandoned settlement of Mountain Glenn. The train breached Vale and with it, brought Grimm to the city. That was but a precursor for what was to come. Not even I was aware of what Cinder was planning for me, for my friend, for the whole world.

I disguised myself as my old contractor, Remilia Scarlet, and entered the Vytal Tournament as a student of Haven Academy. That was why I was able to procure a Haven Academy license, I already had one, all I did was tweak it. No one knew my name, I had no identity, the world thought I was dead, and honestly, I wish I had been too.

That's when everything started. The attack, the White Fang dropping Grimm onto the school. I won't lie and say I didn't enjoy it, because I did. My task was to break out a prisoner from the Prydwen, the Atlas Flagship. I was to deliver a payload which would allow Cinder to take control of all of Atlas's Fleet. It's because of us that those knights attacked the citizens of Vale. It's because of us so many people died in Vale. It's because of my own hubris that ended up separated from my best friend. And it was because of Ruby that I had gotten flung from that ship, and ended up broken and alone in Vale, near where you lived.

I won't hide it anymore. The man who saved my life, who raised me and saw me turn into a hitwoman was Roman Torchwick. I built a grave for him outside of Vale, and his cane still sits there. It's his hat that I wear on my head. And it's because of him that I decided to come to Mistral with you.

I made him a promise, that I would get revenge on the ones that did this to us. He didn't want to work with Cinder, but he was coerced. I had gotten sloppy on a job and had gotten kidnapped. His hands were tied and he agreed. He enjoyed it, but he wasn't aware of what was being planned. All he knew was that there was no stopping it.

I used you, Levi, as a means to get here to Mistral. I thought of you as nothing but a stepping stone, another tool to dispose of when my mission was done. If you fell in battle, it would no skin off my nose. But that changed.

That changed when you showed me how kind you were. How genuine you were. When you gave me your trust despite knowing I was a criminal. When you agreed to my training sessions, and sparred with me, when we walked through the rain, fought Grimm, and escaped from bandits. I've heard you laugh, seen you cry, and felt every ounce of pain you have. Because I lost everything, just like you. I have nothing. I had nothing.

Weiss made me realize that I had to focus on what truly mattered, and that was not losing you. Because you are my closest friend, my new partner. I know I fucked up, and I know I can't beg for your forgiveness, I don't deserve it. All I can say is I'm sorry, for everything."

The mechanical voice finally stopped, after what seemed like ages. Levi didn't say anything. He was stunned into silence, his face unreadable. There was a great many things he felt at that moment. Anger, Hate, Sadness, Rage… all of them blended together into one indescribable feeling. It was as if his world had shattered, for a second time in his life. Everything had been a lie. All of it had been a lie. The journey, the fights, the stories… all of it was just, nothing.

But it just couldn't be nothing. One could fake a story, but he knew her emotions were real. She was crying, her shoulders shaking in silent sobs. This was not the proud woman he had met in Vale, the same cocky, confident, silent, and deadly hitwoman who he had traveled with. This was a girl who was alone in life, and just as scared as he was. But he couldn't just forget everything.

Roman had attacked Vale. It was him who was in command of the fleet, all because of Neo. That scroll he had found in that ship all of of those months ago had been given to her by Cinder. She lead that sky attack. She hacked the Atlassian Knights. She had gotten people killed.

Their negative emotions had attracted Grimm. Grimm that had infested Beacon Academy. Grimm that had killed his mother, Grimm that had carried away his partner. Grimm that had beaten Aria to death while she protected an injured Sonata. Grimm that killed so many others, and continued to terrorize Beacon Academy and Vale. Everything that had happened had happened because of Cinder, but it had been jumped started by her.

Neo.

Who was she? Was she just another lowly criminal? A liar? She was just like Cinder, she was just like Roman. She was just another disgusting criminal that needed to pay for what she had done. She had gotten Aria killed, she had gotten Cadence killed. She had gotten his mother killed. His mother.

Everything happened so fast. He registered a scream in his mind, but he didn't care who it had come from. All he knew was that he was kneeling on top of Neo, his hands on her throat, squeezing with all his strength. He could see the look of fear on her face, her eyes a solid chocolate brown. They were soaked in tears and mascara, all running down the sides of her face while she clutched his hands, digging her sharp nails into his flesh.

"I hate you. You are nothing more than a dirty liar, a criminal who should pay for what she did. Why should you get to live when Aria is dead? When Cadence is dead? It was because of you they died, it was because of you my mother is gone! I will never see them again, you fucking bitch! You ruined my life, you took everything from me. EVERYTHING!"

He grit his teeth in anger as he continued choking the petite woman, his ears blurred with tears. He could hear her gasping, a soft sound coming from her throat he had never heard before. Was she even a mute or was that a lie too? The only other sound that registered in his mind when he squeezed harder was the sound of glass breaking.

He growled as he stood up, looking around the room. He spotted her standing by the other side of the room, panting for breath, a hand on her throat. He lept over the couch, hand wrapping around Myrtenaster's handle, as he took a swing at the girl. Even in her stunned state, she was able to parry the attack with Hush. He formed a glyph beneath his feet, shooting himself forward.

"I told you didn't I? If you lied to me I was going to kill you!"

"Levi, stop it!" Weiss cried, falling on deaf ears. The two swung their weapons with all of their strength, the audible metal clangs filling the apartment. Neo dodged a heavy slash, ducking away from Levi, springing forward, burying her parasol into his unprotected chest.

His aura absorbed the hit, the blade not even penetrating his skin. He shifted to some fire dust, forming a glyph behind Neo, pelting her back with condensed fireballs. He followed it with an ice slash, a miniature explosion filling the room. Neo clutched her sides in pain, her pink aura flashing a bit before holding true. She held her weapon akimbo, not ready to let herself be defeated yet.

His hand shook a bit as she looked at him, a look of sheer pain and anguish on her face. He had never seen this look before, but it was just another ploy. Her eyes had changed, back to brown and pink, the color she usually sported. He could see the hurt in her eyes, but he didn't care. He formed a glyph under her feet, holding her in place as he darted forward, aiming a stab right to her heart. She deflected it, causing him to stumble back.

Neo drew her hidden blade, striking Levi just as he swung Myrtenaster, sparks raining around them. The two continued their fight, parrying, deflecting, redirecting, and counter-attacking, neither giving any ground. Weiss only stood watching as the two continued to fight, each of them giving it their all. She didn't even hear the door opening or Sienna walking in, the woman stunned into silence by what was going on.

Finally, after another moment, Levi ended the battle, forming a shield with hard light and willing it to shatter. He launched himself forward, delivering a solid punch to Neo's face, sending her flying back into the wall. Her aura shattered, small wisps of pink flittering around her body as he walked forward. Myrtenaster's cylinder spun around, clicking loudly as lightning dust was infused into it. He held it above his head, about to trust it downward.

"Please, Stop!"

He stumbled a bit, his eyes flickering around the room, it was now he remembered where he was, who he was with, and what he was about to do. The voice he had heard didn't belong to Weiss, nor did it belong to Sienna, who he had realized had finally returned home. Who did it belong to? It was light, airy, and had a sophisticated Atlasean Accent. He shook his head, glancing back down at Neo, who still had a look of fear on her face, though he also noticed a hint of acceptance in her eyes. As if she had come to grips with what was going to happen.

Levi grabbed the girl by her shirt, forcing her to her feet. He pinned her hard to the wall, holding Myrtenaster's blade to her throat. She didn't flinch, she didn't move. She didn't do much of anything, aside from breathe. She moved her head slightly, as if exposing more of her throat, the light making her ivory-colored skin glow. She looked into his eyes, seeing the swirl of emotions written in them. But the one that stuck out the most was grief. His hand was shaking as he held her, she could feel the delicate blade of Weiss's weapon threatening to slip from her neck. A single swipe would end her life.

Her blood would spill like a fountain. And in a blink, she'd be gone. Would she be with Roman? Or would she go somewhere else. Given the number of lives the attack on Vale had taken, she'd likely be given eternal punishment in hell. She wasn't very religious, but she did fear for her soul, at least at this very instant.

The man moved back after a moment, lowering the sword. He stood there, shaking his head, his ears twitching, tail straight and still, she had forgotten he even had one. He looked up after a moment, only for his hand to snap up, a resounding slap echoing through the room. He turned around, tossing Weiss her weapon back.

"If you aren't gone in 5 minutes, I will slice your head from your shoulders."

"Levi, aren't you being a little too-"

"A little to what, Weiss?" he barked, glaring daggers at the former heiress. "You tell me if I'm being a little rough on her. She admitted to attacking Vale. To killing my mother, my friends! She brought Grimm to the city, had Atlas's good name smeared in shit, and for what? For what?"

"Would somebody fill me in on what the fuck is going on?" Sienna asked, making the faunus look in her direction.

"What about you, Auntie? Did you know her? Know what she did to Vale? After all, she and Roman Torchwick worked with the White Fang, the ones who brought Grimm to Beacon. Did you know what she did, but kept it to yourself because you wanted to hide it from me?" he asked, glaring at the tigress. "Because if you did, then you are just as low as she is."

"Levi now is not the time for this!" Weiss said, making his head snap in her direction. His eyes flashed briefly, taking her by complete surprise. His pupils had become nothing more than thin slits, his tail moving around, almost like a panther about to pounce on its prey.

"So, you'll forgive her too? he asked, slowly approaching her. "She got people killed, Weiss. She worked with the man who cut off Yang's arm. She worked with the bitch who has Haven Academy in her sights."

"And she wants to bring her down."

"As revenge for killing her best friend, who happens to be a criminal! A man who stole dust from the SDC! A man who attacked innocent store owners, threatened people left and right, slammed a train through Vale's outer wall, and got thousands of people injured and killed! Are you willing to just shake hands and call it even with her?"

"Of course not! But we can't hang onto the past forever, Levi. All of us make mistakes, did you not listen to a word her message said? Or were you just too focused on the parts that seemingly mattered to you? She is just as scared as we all are, but we need to swallow that fear and step up to the plate! We have to work together to fight the one who's responsible for everything!" the former heiress cried.

He let out a laugh, a boisterous laugh, disbelief clear in his voice. He wiped the tears from her eyes as he placed his hands on his waist. "Oh, this is just too good. This has to be some sick twisted joke. Weiss Schnee defending the people who tainted the good name of Atlas?"

"I don't give a shit about Atlas or its name right now! What I give a shit about is my friends fighting with each other. Yes, she fucked up, yes, people died, but people would have died regardless of if she had been involved or not. Can't you see that, Levi? She is just another victim of all of this."

"Why are you defending her?!"

"Because I'm all alone and you three are everything I've got!" she screamed, her cheeks turning red in both anger and sadness. "I ran away from home, left everything behind, got caught by bandits, and followed you two here. All so that I could maybe do something good with my life, and become more than just my father's fucking doll. We have to move on from the past and focus on what's right in front of us!"

Levi fell silent, being taken aback by Weiss's words. He hadn't ever considered what she was feeling. The Schnee family had suffered a lot at the hands of Roman and all of his dealings. All of the thefts, the many shipments of dust that had been stolen. Certainly, she would be mad at Neo too, she had to be.

"I don't understand… she's done so much shit to us, to the two of us and to your teammates, and you just wanna ignore it all and move on?"

"She tried to kill me in a communal bathroom, Levi. She wanted to make Ruby suffer by killing her friends. I defended myself and she backed off. Don't you think if she truly wanted to kill me she would have? She's conflicted, she wants to do what's right but doesn't know how to do it!"

He heard movement behind him and swiftly turned around, only to see the young woman in question picking her weapon up. She made her way to the patio door, slowly opening it, just enough for her to leave. She spared a glance back, a look of anguish on her face before running off. He watched for a moment, before moving toward the door, looking around for her.

"Neo, wait!" he cried, but it was too late, she had disappeared. His ears dropped down, flattening themselves against his scalp. A myriad of things swirled in his mind, all of them making him more conflicted than before.

"I have no idea what is going on here, but you both need to stop acting like children," Sienna said, lowering her hood, a look of anger and annoyance written on her tired-looking face. "Yeah, she's done fucked up shit, yeah, she's killed people, but so have I."

"Yeah, well you're different, Auntie."

"Different how? Because I didn't kill your mother and she did? Because your partner was carried away by a Nevermore? Because Aria was beaten to death? I know you still feel your deaths and blame yourself for them, but that is not right. You can't forgive someone for one thing and then condemn someone else for the same thing."

"She and you are the same, Levi. Both of you lost something precious to you, and despite all of that, you moved on. Neo may have helped Roman and Cinder with what happened at Beacon, but she isn't at fault, not entirely. Roman did the killing, Cinder forced them into it. All she did was break him out."

"She handed him the keys!" he cried, glaring at Weiss. "That's all she did, she's the catalyst, if she hadn't been there, Roman wouldn't have taken over those ships!"

"If she hadn't been there, Roman would have still done it. If Roman hadn't been hired by Cinder, someone else would have done it. I know, because Adam made deals with Cinder and the White Fang. He told me various times to trust those lowly humans, and I didn't because what he was doing was not right. So I am just as much to blame as Neo is. Because Adam led most of the attack, and I did nothing to stop him."

He tightened his fists, feeling his muscles tightening at her words. After a moment, he turned away, grabbing Neo's discarded scroll, shoving it in his pocket. "Whatever, you wanna collude with terrorists, be my goddamned guest. I don't give a flying fuck anymore."

He took off, slamming the door behind himself as he left. The tension in the room was so thick it could be sliced with a knife. Sienna's frown deepened as she clutched her head with her remaining hand, her ears bending slightly in sadness and regret. Weiss hadn't moved an inch from her spot, looking at her reflection on her rapier, mentally wondering why she had even jumped to Neo's defense so readily.

Was it because she was lonely? Because a part of her could see just how truly alone Neo was, despite being surrounded by people? That had to be it. The old her wouldn't forgive a lowly criminal, and yet, she readily had. Nothing mattered anymore. All she knew was that there was a threat looming over their heads and that was far more important than anything Neo had done in the past. She wouldn't forget it, but she would forgive her.

"God, what a fucking mess. I leave you, kids, alone for a few hours and come back to a broken house."

"What were you expecting?" the former heiress asked, causing Sienna to smirk.

"Two girls being drilled by an attractive 19-year-old,"

Weiss's face turned red like a tomato, her hand immediately punching Sienna's arm, with so much strength that even her aura couldn't deflect the hit. "Ow!"

"What is it with cats being perverted? First Blake with her smutty books, then Levi with his random sexual jokes, and now you? Are all feline faunus the same?" she howled, sliding her rapier through the ring at her waist. "I'm going for a walk, we need to get some dinner, and hope that Neo decides to come back."

"Yeah, you do that. I'm going to grab a shower and get my thoughts in order, we have a lot of things to discuss and not a lot of time to discuss them in." the tigress said, moving toward her bedroom. Weiss sighed, shaking her head.

"This is terrible. I had expected this day to come but I wasn't expecting it to come so soon, and not like this. We need to find Neo and get her to come back."

With several more things on her plate and a heavy heart, Weiss Schnee left her apartment, wondering what the hell she was going to do to get her friends back together. She had many more thoughts in her mind, including thoughts about Ruby, who was apparently in Mistral. She needed to find her, and quickly, perhaps uniting their groups would strengthen their resolve. At least, that's what she hoped would happen.


Location: Downtown Mistral

Regret was an interesting feeling. It was that feeling you got when you did something wrong to someone. You knew it was wrong, and they knew it was wrong, and it hurt their feelings. Yet you did it anyway because somehow you thought things would change. Regret was something you felt when you knowingly revealed someone's secret or said something you shouldn't have, but to Levi, regret was what had happened an hour ago.

He downed another shot of rum, the intense burn serving to wake him up. It had been hard to find a bar that accepted faunus, given how much discrimination happened in this place. It was harder to find one that sold booze to minors, but sliding a hundred to the bartender for a bottle seemed like a reasonable request. The slight woozy feeling from the alcohol served as a reminder of what was going around him. He didn't seem to care. He needed to drown out his sorrows, so there he was.

Neo's scroll had been a treasure trove of information. There was nothing concrete about the girl, Nothing about her identity or who she was before being a criminal. But what he had found was a diary, one that had been started on the night of the Fall. He had read every single entree that was written. He had learned quite a lot about Neo from those entrees.

She was contemptuous. She held a lot of contempt toward Cinder and everything she had done. In fact, there were quite a myriad of words that had been used to describe the woman in detail, along with various vulgarities he wasn't aware a woman of her stature even knew.

She was patient. She talked about getting closer to Mistral every day, wondering when she would be able to stab Cinder through her chest for what had happened to Roman. She was grieving his death, filled with anger at herself, for everything that had happened. But there was one thing that stuck out to him, one thing that made him regret every single action he had taken against her.

"I regret waking up today. It's been 234 days since the Fall of Beacon, 234 days since my best friend was killed, 234 days where I question what I am doing with my life. I am traveling with Levi, yes, but that's all I'm doing. Traveling. Drifting. I feel so lost. The only thing I have left to hang onto is my promise to Roman, but even that is starting to weigh heavy on my heart. I had a good talk with Weiss, about telling him the truth but everything is just so… shit.

I know what his reaction is going to be. His bitter hatred will return and he'll want me dead. It scares me to my very core. I hate myself for growing so attached to him. He's become such a good friend, a confidant, a partner. He isn't the same as Roman, he's so much better. He's a good person, and that's why I hate myself. Because he doesn't deserve a slimy snail-like me by his side.

How could I have let myself fall this far? How could I have enjoyed killing people? Why did it have to be him to make me feel this way? I didn't think about the people I killed in the past. I didn't care about them. But every day I spend with Levi, with Weiss, I see the goodness in their hearts, how they want to help everyone, and I am reminded of the crimes I committed in the past, the sins I'll have to carry with me.

I can hear their voices, their pleads of life, the begging, the screaming, the anger. All of them met with silence as I ended their lives. I can see Roman just standing there, watching me from afar. I can't even see his face anymore, it's all starting to blend together. I'm starting to forget his voice. It makes me wanna die.

Yes… I think that would be a fitting end. It would make everything stop. I wouldn't hear the screams in my nightmares, I wouldn't see Roman anymore. I wouldn't have to worry. Death would be… a welcome change.

I regret waking up this morning… perhaps I should take care of that."

He downed another shot, hastily chasing it with another. He was suddenly glad miqo'tes inherently had higher tolerance to alcohol. He would be able to walk away with nothing more than a buzz, but someone else would likely have passed out from drinking. His eyes traced each word, each one pounding harder into his head, making him have a new swirl of emotions on his mind.

He had to hate her. She got his mother killed, his friends.

His conscience said otherwise. It was Cinder who had obligated her to do it. He read and reread this diary entree, along with what she had typed back at the apartment. Everything just crashed down on him. It had been 234 days since the fall since he had met her. He hadn't seen her for a while, but every other day, he had spent alongside her. They had fought bandits together, spent cold nights by the fire together, sparred, trained, and even cried together. If not for her, he would have been sold to slavery, if not for her, he wouldn't be a better fighter. She had made him realize everything he was doing wrong and had helped him improve.

Neo had truly become his friend and his partner. She wouldn't ever replace Cadence, but she was a partner nonetheless. He didn't realize that, and in his anger, he had attacked her. He had almost taken her life. He had slapped her and he had said many hurtful things. He felt remorseful of every single act. He clutched the bottle tightly, forgoing the shot glass.

"You're uh, hitting that bottle a little hard there, kid." a gruff voice said, causing Levi to pull the bottle away from his lips. He set it down, glancing to his right.

A familiar man sat beside him. Silvery gray hair, bright red eyes, stubble around his chin. He wore a dark gray and black outfit, along with black pants and boots. Several rings adorned his fingers, he wore a cloak around his shoulders, barely hiding the massive weapon strapped to his back. Levi gave him a once-over, his gaze returning to his bottle.

"Fancy meeting you here, Professor."

"I don't teach any more kid," he replied, grabbing the bottle he had brought along. Vacuoan Whiskey. Levi had to admit, the man had great taste. He poured himself a glass, downing it in one go. "Though I'm surprised to see you all the way here. Thought you'd be heading to Shade or Atlas with the rest of the Beacon students."

"With what team?" he mused, holding back the bitter laugh threatening to erupt from his throat. "Two of'em are dead, the last one is in a coma. I don't think Shade or Atlas accepts large packs of 1."

"Better than drifting around, drowning your sorrows," Qrow mumbled, rattling the ice in his glass. "Things haven't exactly been great since the Fall of Beacon. In fact, I'm willing to say the whole world has gone to shit."

"The world was shit before the Fall of Beacon, I was just too naive to see it," the faunus shrugged, taking another drink. "Makes me wonder, what are you doing here? Making sure your niece is safe?"

He pressed his lips into a thin line, not wanting to answer his question. Levi rolled his eyes, turning to fully face him. "You don't have to answer that."

Qrow scoffed, reaching for his whiskey, pouring another glass. He took a slow steady sip, letting the smooth amber liquid roll around his tongue before swallowing it. "You must be here for your own reasons. It certainly isn't Haven Academy. It isn't exactly the most ideal place to come study, at least not at the moment."

"What makes you say that?" the teenager questioned, pretending not to know anything. Of course, the general population knew Haven was out for the semester. But not a lot of them knew it was a target for the White Fang. "Is something going on that a young huntsman-in-training should be aware of?"

Qrow suddenly stood up, placing some lien on the bar, grabbing the bottle he had bought. He used it to fill his flask, gulping down the small amount that was left. He gestured for Levi to follow. He left some lien on the bar as a tip, deciding to leave the bottle behind. The last thing he needed was Weiss yelling at him for being inherited.

For a few minutes, they just walked. The sun had set, and the dust-powered lamps had sparked to life, lighting the streets of Mistral. Despite this, they were still filled with people. Tourists visiting the city, citizens that were out for night on the town, and everything in between. He made sure to keep his hood up, to avoid all of the glares the other faunus were getting. While they were accepted like in Vale, that didn't stop the derogatory remarks from being thrown around. Once they had cleared the heavily populated streets, Qrow began to speak, taking slow sips from his flask.

"You were one of my best students back in Signal. Maybe that's the reason I'm choosing to trust you. But it's also because we don't have many options. I'm sure you've noticed a lack of huntsman in this city." he said, causing Levi to nod. "That's because all of them went missing. It's almost like they wanted them gone."

"Wanted them gone? No… does this have to do with the attack on Haven Academy? Could Cinder be behind that too?" he thought to himself. Truth be told, he had seen the boards talking about missing huntsmen and huntresses, some of them from Haven Academy, but he never considered the two things to correlate.

"Professor Lionheart said the negativity caused by the Fall of Beacon brought Grimm to the cities, and I believe him. What I don't believe is the fact that so many huntsmen and huntresses lost their lives during that initial attack. I know things haven't been swell for the world, but there's no possible way 100 trained huntsmen can disappear like that."

"Professor Lionheart never seemed like a trustworthy person. I remember meeting him briefly when graduation was coming around. He painted me so many sweet things about Haven Academy, but they didn't seem genuine. I had chosen Beacon by then so it didn't matter. His behavior, even on the news, is abnormal." Levi noted, glancing down at Neo's scroll, staring at the diary entree he had read back at the bar. "You think something's going down?"

"I'm certain. We have reason to believe there are forces against us, and against the academies. Beacon was brought down, why wouldn't Haven be next?"

"You bring up a good point. Shade Academy is where most of Beacon's former students went, and Atlas Academy is full of trained soldiers. Haven Academy sticks out because not only is it empty, but it's also in a country that's in disarray. General Ironwood's embargo and the closure of borders, the White Fang movements, the missing huntsman, the high rate of Grimm attacks… hell, if no one does something, I would be extremely surprised." the faunus spoke.

"Which is why I want to extend an offer to you, kid. I'm not alone here in Mistral, both of my nieces are here, along with some other kids from Beacon. Normally I wouldn't bring another trainee on board but we're out of options." he said, holding his scroll out. "We need to protect Haven Academy, at all costs."

"At all costs huh?" the faunus thought, giving the man a look of interest. "Why? I get that the world doesn't need a repeat of what happened at Beacon. But why make it sound like this is life or death?"

"Because it is, kid. If Mistral's CCT goes down, then there are no chances of ever reestablishing Global Communications. There are other reasons that we will explain in detail, should you choose to join us. If not, then just pretend like we never even spoke."

Levi closed his eyes for a moment, thinking things over. He had royally screwed up with Neo, to the point where he likely wouldn't be seeing her again. He had information, relevant to what might happen at Haven Academy. Perhaps this was the world extending an olive branch to him. So many things had happened in the last few months. He had come a long way, and he was close to fulfilling his promise. The more he thought about Cinder, the more he realized just how close he was to finally getting what he wanted. She was going to be there. He knew it. He could feel it in his bones. His hand shook a bit as he looked up, giving Qrow a firm look.

"Here's my contact information. I've got some friends to get back to, I've done a few things tonight that I'll likely regret for the rest of my life. Before I even think about joining you, I have to make sure they're on board. Something tells me one of them is going to be extremely excited about this venture." he admitted. Qrow chuckled, holding his scroll up to Levi's instantly copying his information.

"You shouldn't have left that booze back at the bar, kid. Something tells me you are gonna need it after this meeting," he said, taking another drink from his flask. "Keep in touch, I'll give you the address when you decide to join us."

"Sure thing, it was good to see you again, Professor. I'm sure my mom would have tugged your ear off for drinking in front of me."

The man held a hand up in a wave, glancing at the metal flask in his hand. "Yeah… she sure as hell would have."


Location: Haven Academy

It hadn't been hard to get into the academy, in fact, it was a lot easier than she was expecting. She had searched the entire campus, making sure it was truly empty. Not a single person was there, no students, no faculty, no one. It was weird, to see one of the world's top schools completely empty. She passed by a few posters on the way there. "Join Haven Academy." they read, with pictures of huntsmen and huntresses printed on it. They were decorative, inspiring, hoping to catch the attention of people who wanted to make a difference in the world.

Joining Haven was a hilarious thought. When she was younger, she had given it some serious thought. She had learned how to fight small Grimm and had gotten good at it. Her parents had encouraged it, at least until everything went south and they died. Her dreams of being a proper huntress had been shattered, and Roman had picked her up and taught her a new trade. One that he himself was disgusted with, but felt the need to learn in order to survive.

Perhaps this was why she felt nothing but irony as she stalked the empty halls of Haven Academy. The oriental architecture was beautiful. The Entrance Hall had been grander than Beacon's, the beautiful marble statue seemingly tying everything together. Mistral's emblem was embossed everywhere. From the large seal on the floor in the Entrance Hall to the doors, to every single poster. Even the antenna atop Haven Tower was in the same likeness as the emblem. She was honestly growing sick of seeing it.

Neo continued walking, she had a sense of purpose. She had nothing left to lose so she may as well go all in. She knew the headmaster couldn't be trusted, and he was hiding something. All she needed was confirmation. Confirmation that all of the information she and her friends had amassed was valid.

Her friends. Ha, what a joke. She had no friends, at least not anymore.

She made it to the Headmaster's Office, the doors being firmly closed. She placed her ear at the door, making sure there was no one inside. All she could hear was the mutters of a clearly frightened man. She held back a smile, knocking three times on the door, ducking into a nearby classroom.

"Ah! H-hello?" the man's nervous voice said. Neo waited for a moment, watching as the door slowly, but surely, opened.

Leonardo wasn't a tall man, in fact, he was of average stature, with sandy blonde hair and an equally matching beard, making it look like a lion's mane. His dark clothing made him look more like a studious man than a headmaster. Dark browns and bright copper made up most of his outfit, adding to the lion motif he had going for him. A matching brown tail moved around behind him, tipped black. This man, this scared child, she mentally corrected, was the proud headmaster of Haven, who held two seats on the Mistral Council, and was likely planning something with Cinder. She had been in the game long enough to know the cowards usually were the ones planning big things.

"I must be hearing things. Get a hold of yourself, Leo. You are alone, no one is going to hurt you." he spoke, taking a shaky breath. He turned around, slowly heading back into the office.

That's when she sprung, she grabbed a hold of his shirt, forcefully shoving him to the nearby wall, a scream leaving his lips. He felt a blade being pointed at his throat, digging under his thick beard. His eyes were filled with fear as he looked down at the petite young woman before him.

"W-who are you? What do you want?" he fearfully asked, causing Neo to pull out her scroll, the same black scroll she had used to bring Atlas's military to its knees.

"I know what you are up to, you bastard. I know you are colluding with Cinder and her benefactor. I know you are responsible for the missing huntsmen and huntresses as well as for getting Cinder, Emerald and Mercury into Beacon through your academy. I know everything, and I have reason to suspect you are going to allow the White Fang to destroy this Academy."

"Wh-what? What are you talking about? How d-dare you insinuate I would do that?!" he exclaimed, trying to wriggle free, only to feel Neo's blade pressing harder against his throat. She flicked her thumb, showing him the next message.

"I knew you would say that, you disgusting gnat. I know all of your tricks. You are going to give me exactly what I want. If you don't, then I will go straight to the news with this information. Is that what you want, Lionheart? For your entire career to be ruined because you colluded with the wrong people? That makes you worse than the people who attacked Beacon." the message read, causing the man to squirm.

"I don't know what you want."

"Whatever Cinder wants is what I want. So give it to me, unless you want me to kill you right here, right now." the next message demanded. He shuddered a bit, clenching his eyes shut.

"B-but I can't… the R-relic is precious, and I can't just…" he paused, his eyes widening. "Are you perhaps her? Can you open the vault?"

"The Vault? What the hell is he talking about?" Neo thought to herself. She didn't know how to reply, so she just gave him a nod. He looked around for a moment, before gesturing for her to lower her sword.

"Come, I'll take you there."

This was a surprising turn of events, Neo mused. She had merely wanted to confirm her suspicions, and she had. He never denied not knowing Cinder, meaning she likely was involved in what was going on. But this relic thing… she had no idea what that was. Her childish curiosity needed to be sated, so she followed along, gleefully skipping like a 9-year-old girl. It was something she did to intimidate her targets, make them think she was playing with them.

They arrived back at the Entrance Hall, much to Neo's surprise. She had been expecting him to take her to the CCT. This was a surprising turn of events. He reached inside his pocket for a watch, pulling it free from its chain. He gave the top a twist, placing it in a special slot on the pedestal before him. She watched the hands on the watch slowly spinning, clicking loudly before finally becoming still.

She jumped a bit as the platform started to move. She watched as the floor started sinking in. "An Elevator?" she thought, watching as the entrance hall disappeared. She held her sword to Lionheart, who jumped a bit in fear.

"Please, I am taking you there, what more do you want?"

She rapidly typed her message, holding it up to the man. "An explanation, I want to know who forced you to do what you are doing and what is going to happen here."

"It isn't safe, wait until we get there," he replied, making her even more confused.

Silence returned, the only sound being the mechanism of the lift bringing them down to wherever it was he was taking her. She had Hush at the ready, just in case he planned to stab her in the back. Finally, the lift hit the bottom, the gates slowly rising. Lionheart stepped out, gesturing for Neo to follow.

Her eyes widened as she took in her surroundings. This place was unlike anything she had ever seen before. It must have been a massive cavern, hidden deep beneath Haven Academy. The area in front of her lit up, large markings on the floor seemingly glowing as if by magic. She continued walking forward, staring up at the trees, which were growing from a large stone structure. The tree was glowing bright orange, brilliant leaves slowly falling around her, slowly turning green as they fell. She came to a stop in front of the large door, which bore intricate designs, unlike anything she had ever seen before.

"This is the vault. Hidden within is the Relic of Knowledge. That is what Cinder wants. You can have it, just leave me alone!" the man spoke, clearly fearful of his life. Neo narrowed her eyes, more confused than before. She tapped her parasol on the floor, holding her scroll up.

"What the hell is the Relic of Knowledge?"

"It's a lamp! Capable of answering 3 questions every 100 years! The wishes for this century have already been used. But the lamp is still important. Take it, and hurry. I am expecting a meeting with Her Grace's henchmen." he said, briefly glancing over his shoulder.

"Her Grace? Could this be that lady that Nora girl mentioned? What the heck was her name again?" she thought. She smirked in realization, typing the name out in her scroll.

"Salem?"

"Y-yes. I didn't know what else to do, things were turning sour fast, so I joined her. She offered me protection. But if you take the lamp, I can just tell her that I was attacked. The Spring Maiden was said to travel with the Branwen Tribe, and now she appeared before me. It must be fate!"

"Alright, this guy has clearly lost it. Though that Maiden thing sounds familiar, something that Nora girl also mentioned. Only the maidens can open the vaults, and I'm not the Spring Maiden. I can't exactly tell him that, but I also can't open the vault. I need to keep this information close to the chest."

Suddenly, Lionheart moved, his eyes widened as he looked back at the lift. He turned back to Neo, a look of fear on his face. "You have to hide, they're here!"

She looked around for a moment, dashing toward a rocky outcrop, quickly diving behind it. She watched the lift, seeing a tall, lanky man making his way down, using hard light panels of all things. He had a smirk on his face as he slinked forward, the tall man was hunched over, sneering as he looked around the place.

"So, this is what Haven's vault looks like? I must admit, whoever created it had quite a sense of decor," he spoke, in a posh Atlassian accent. He continued walking forward, stopping in front of the vault door. "It's a serene place, but something tells me you aren't here to look at the trees."

"I uh, just came down here to make sure things were in order. With the Spring Maiden being in the Branwen tribe, they could show up at any moment. There might be other ways to get in here." he said, rubbing his neck.

"Hmm." the haunched man uttered, looking away from the vault doors. "You do make a point, but you shouldn't worry. The Spring Maiden is now under our control."

"What? Are you certain?"

"Indeed, I just returned from meeting with Raven Branwen. Let's just say we now have her on board. All we had to do was convince her into thinking her tribe was more important than the Relic of Knowledge. She will be here at the allotted time, once we receive confirmation from the White Fang, of course. So far, they have selected the night of the full moon as the night of the strike."

"The Night of the Full moon? That's in a week." Neo thought as she pressed herself against the stone, in an attempt to hear what was going on.

"What about Cinder? Will she be here as well?" Lionheart asked, briefly glancing over his shoulder. The haunted man didn't seem to catch his gaze. He turned back around, giving him the widest of grins.

"Indeed she will be. After all she has to be here, in order to get the power she was promised, and Salem will get the Relic, just like she promised. Finally, you will earn her protection from what she will make of this world. Just like she promised to you. We are all men of our word, Leo. Let's just hope you are a man of your word."

He placed a hand on Leonheart's shoulder, urging him toward the lift. "Come, we need to give this great news to her Grace."

"I-" he paused, briefly glancing at the vault, though his eyes were actually staring at the rock Neo was hiding behind. "-Alright, let us have a drink before we do, to celebrate Her Grace's magnificent victory."

The two men climbed aboard the lift, slowly heading up. Once the lift was gone, Neo finally left her hiding spot, glancing up at the lift shaft. She moved toward it, pounding her fists against the grate. She backed away from it, bowing her head in defeat. "Shit, now I'm stuck here. Does he really think I'm the spring maiden?"

There was another thought in her mind, as she looked back at the vault entrance. She walked toward the edge of the path, staring down into the abyss. She looked around for a moment, finding a rock, which she tossed over the edge. She strained her ear for a moment, waiting to hear the thud at the bottom, only to be greeted by a soft splash.

"Well, at least the landing isn't going to be rough. If there's water then that means there's an exit. Here's to hoping I don't drown."

She glanced back at the vault, flicking her parasol open, a frown on her face. "I know it'll take a lot to get you to forgive me, Levi. But this is the least I can do."

With a deep breath, Neo lept from the edge of the stone path, slowly drifting downward, being reminded of the day of the Fall. When she had been separated from Roman by Ruby. She doubted she would ever forget that day, but it was one of the things she longed to scrub from her mind.


Location: Levi's apartment

"The night of the full moon, huh?" Weiss asked, earning a nod from Sienna, who slurped her noodles with gusto. She had been forced to sit on the floor, just to use chopsticks. She had been too embarrassed to ask for help, especially for something as simple as eating.

"That's right, Little Miss has a vast network that covers all of Mistral, for the right price I was able to buy information. It wasn't the only thing that I managed to get a hold of either," she said, reaching inside her cloak for a scroll. Levi looked at its slimmed design, seeing it was just one half of the usual mechanism. She pressed the home button, the screen sparking to life. "Here you go, Levi. Since this is important to you, I figured you'd have the honors."

His eyes landed on the device, scanning the photo that was displayed on it. It was a picture of a woman, short black hair, a large fleck covering her left eye, a visible scar over her nose. She was wearing a crimson dress with golden markings, a long black glove on her right arm, and a pair of matching boots on her feet. She was stepping outside of an airship, alongside two familiar faces, a silver-haired young man and a green-haired young woman. They were flanked by a tall, lanky man he didn't recognize, but held an air of spite, judging by the look on his face.

Weiss peered over his shoulder, her hand covering her mouth as she recognized the woman in the picture. To his credit, Levi remained silent. Given his hatred of the woman, Sienna had expected his reaction to being slightly different. Instead, he set the scroll down, his focus returning to his own food, which he was picking around with his chopsticks.

"Well?"

His eyes met Sienna's, a frown on his face. "Well, what?"

"Aren't you going to say anything? This is the woman you've been hunting down, the one who wronged you, took family and friends from you. I was expecting you to, I dunno, say something?"

"I'm not in the mood Auntie. Can't you see Neo is out there all alone, all because of what I did to her?" he questioned, his face falling back to his food. "Cinder is the least of my worries right now."

He felt Weiss grabbing his hand, giving it a tight squeeze. She forced a smile onto her face as she looked into his eyes, seeing the anger and hatred swimming around in them. She could see much more than that, her stomach tightened a bit, as she gathered her thoughts.

"Hey, I'm certain she'll come back. She has a promise to fulfill too and knowing her, she's going to keep it. It's taken her all this time to realize the truth, that Ruby wasn't at fault, and that Cinder is the one that has to pay. She wouldn't miss this for the world."

"But I hurt her, Weiss. I choked her, fought her, and almost killed her. Why would she come back? I broke her trust."

"She killed people important to you, Levi. And her actions caused the deaths of countless others. It was in your right and in your nature to react the way you did." Sienna added, setting her food aside. "I sure as hell would if the person responsible for the death of my mother and my friends was right in front of me."

"But she isn't responsible," he countered, causing Weiss to sigh.

"She is. She is responsible for setting Roman free and for bringing that scroll to the Atlas Flagship. That act alone is enough to condemn her for life. But no one knows she was involved, no one knows what she did. It falls onto you to forgive her, but it falls onto her to forgive herself." the former heiress said. "Both of you are responsible for so many things, and your broken trust will take time to be mended. You and I are similar in that regard."

He quirked a brow, gesturing for her to elaborate. She sat down beside him, taking a hold of her carton of food, and her spoon. She still wasn't used to eating with chopsticks and had decided not to even try. "When I found out Blake was once part of the White Fang, there were so many things I wanted to say. So many things I wanted to do. I wanted to yell, to scream, to tear her apart, rip her ears off, turn her into an example for the acts of terrorism she commit against my family and all of humanity."

She paused, licking her lips as she looked at Levi. It was a lot more awkward, considering she was addressing two faunus, who had feline ears as their traits. Fighting the urge to blush, she continued. "She ran away, and we searched and searched and she didn't turn up. My hatred turned into discomfort, and then into regret. Finally, it turned into worry. I was more worried about her wellbeing than I was about her being part of the White Fang. Do you know why that is?"

"Because you got to know the real Blake before you knew about her faunus traits. You learned about the person she was. The woman she wanted to be. You learned her likes, her dislikes, and also realized she dealt with a lot of racism, and that you felt awful for unknowingly using those slurs without even realizing she was a faunus."

"You hit the nail on the head, Sienna. For a human-hating faunus, you surely know how to read one."

"Spend enough time blending into society and you learn a thing or two. Though I can see what you mean, Weiss." the tigress said, shifting her gaze to Levi. "You met Neo before you knew about what she had done. You got to know the girl, not the criminal. You learned her likes, her dislikes, you shared a promise with her. Fought bandits, slept under the stars, and even rescued a very prissy princess,"

"Hey!" Weiss cried, earning a chuckle from the older woman.

"What Weiss is saying is simple, you met and befriended someone who is different from who they were. Don't judge her for the choices she made in the past, judge her for who she will become tomorrow."

The pair had been stunned into silence, neither expecting the older faunus to speak so wisely. She cleared her throat, deciding to focus on her food, not wanting to speak anymore. Levi closed his eyes for a moment, thinking about everything that had taken place today. The fight, the yelling, almost killing his friend…

His friend. That's right. Neo was his friend.

His sister in arms, his confidant, his partner in crime.

They weren't acquaintances anymore, and she wasn't that woman he tried to hire in order to have someone killed. She understood him far better than anyone in the past, far better than Aria, Cadence, or Sonata. Far better than his own mother. His ears twitched as he looked up from his food, staring at the wall he had pinned her to.

"I think she's my best friend," he stated, letting out a laugh. "I don't think I've ever had someone who just… listened. Like, people heard me speak but they never listened. Even my teammates didn't do that. She understands the pain I'm in. She lost someone dear to her. Sure, our circumstances are different, but we're…"

"Exactly the same." Weiss finished, giving his shoulder a squeeze. "Do you know why I defended her?"

He shook his head. She reached into her pocket for her scroll, doing a quick search in her personal files. When she found what she was looking for, she tapped the screen, placing it down next to him. "Read those words out for me."

"Mirror, tell me something, who's the loneliest of all. Wait… these are song lyrics, I remember you singing this at the Vytal Festival Opening Ceremony," he said, causing her to sigh.

"I did… and while I fought Neo in that smelly communal bathroom, I realized she and I weren't too different. She didn't have anyone left, meanwhile, I have all my family, yet despite that, I am all alone. My father is a racist bastard, my mother is an alcoholic, my sister is so busy she doesn't even reply to text messages, and my brother… he's my father's spitting image. I realized without my friends, I was nothing. My teammates became my sisters, and you became my close friend. You taught me something, Levi…"

"I did?"

"Yes, you taught me that even though someone did a lot of bad things in the past, they are still able to be redeemed. Neo is far from perfect, and she is far from forgiveness. But she gained something special. She taught you to fight, made you realize what you were doing wrong, and helped you correct it. She saved you from being sold to slavery-"

"Wait, what?" Sienna suddenly asked, a mouth full of noodles. She swallowed what was in her mouth, ears twitching. "What's this about slavery?"

"Later," Weiss said, dismissing the woman. "She also told me she owes you one. Because you saved her life. Neo is the type of woman who is loyal to her friends. This will pass. But you need to be apart, so you can gather your thoughts. Only then will you be able to forgive her, and in forgiveness, become stronger friends."

Levi remained silent, grabbing his drink from the table, rising to his feet. He glanced at the clock mounted to the wall, before walking around the sofa, stopping briefly to glance back at the ladies. "Thanks for the talk, you two. I don't know what I would do without either of you. Finish up and get some rest, we have a big day tomorrow."

"We do?"

"Yes, Auntie, we do. We need to prepare for what's to come. The stage has been set, all we have to do is wait until next week. We are going to stop Haven from being taken, it's our job as Huntsmen and Huntresses to protect the masses. Be they from Grimm, or from petty terrorists. It's all the same."

"Well said, I'll follow you wherever you need. You're my friend, Levi, and I want to be there to see you fulfill that promise." Weiss said confidently, a grin on her face. He gave her a bow, gasping a bit when he realized what he had done. He cleared his throat, turning back toward his bedroom door.

"Goodnight," he said, quickly closing it, holding back the urge to blush. He sighed, shaking his head. "Fantastic, now I'm starting to bow like she did. She really did make a positive impact on me. I was an idiot for yelling at her. But Weiss is right, we need space right now."

He flicked his scroll open, hovering over Qrow's contact. It was rather late, so he was sure the man was either asleep, drunk, or sleeping off a bender. So he instead opened a text chat, sending him a quick message.

"Hey Professor, I wanted to let you know, whatever it is you and your nieces are planning, we're in. Keep in touch."

He finished his drink, walking over to his bed, peering out the window at Remnant's broken moon. The broken pieces were obscured by darkness, most of its face being visible. It was close to being full, just another week and things were going to heat up for him and his friends. And he would finally face down the bitch that ruined his life. He just hoped his weapon came in on time because he wasn't going to fight Cinder empty-handed. He was going to fulfill that promise, only then could he allow himself to let go of everything.


A/N: So I'm going to be busy for the next few days and won't be able to post anything. I am now very glad I built a backlog, haha. Since now I can take time off and not worry about having nothing to post. I'll be returning home in a couple days, god willing, but I got more shit to do, appointments to go too, all that fun stuff. Not to mention visiting my niece which I of course, wasn't able to go while I was gone. So yeah, this will likely be my past post of May, maybe? I might be able to get on long enough to edit and post a chapter. All of them are here on the site so that shouldn't be an issue. But since I'm really happy with how these two chapters came out, I will be doing a double post. I think it's a fair trade off. I managed to finish Chapter 7 of the Atlas Arc late last night so I am in a good position. (I am also reminded of the fact that I haven't written anything for Fate since March, oof) Blame RWBY dammit, Volume 8 was good and simultaneously bad and it kicked my ass into gear for working on this story. Though I gotta thank my buddy PokemanSuperAllStar for talking with me about this idea and actually inspiring me to take it into a fullblown story.

I would also like to thank the people reviewing. It may be only a few words, pointers and just pointing stuff out in general, but in inspires me to keep doing my best and even go back and change things. I am going to go back and reread this story and fix a few issues here and there, including the Grammar that Grammarly doesn't fix, which happens more often than not. Should really think about getting the full upgrade to catch everything haha. My sister has been helping me proof read, but she only understands English when reading it and not really speaking it, so it can be a bit hard for her to spot things. It's thanks to her wifi hotspot that I've even been posting lol. Regardless, thank you reviewers! Your criticism helps me better my writing and my story. Good or bad, it doesn't matter to me, it's all helpful so I appreciate it. I dedicate these two chapters to y'all.

I don't have much to say about the story, aside from the title change happening in this update. But it's nothing too major. Aside from that, I'm hoping to keep things flowing smoothly, but you know how life is, haha. I hope you all have a good couple weeks, if I don't post anything that is. Happy Memorial Day, just in case I don't post by then. To anyone who's servering in the Military, thank you for your service! Now then, I'll let you all get on with Chapter 16. See you!