Another week another chapter.


Click. Clack. Click. Clack. Click. Clack.

"Pyrrha!" Green eyes blinked as her concentration broke, causing the metallic balls she had been bouncing off another with her Semblance to scatter throughout her room. She quickly panicked, bringing all of them back into their cradle.

"Yes Mom?!" Pyrrha called back, still within her room. She grabbed a crutch, and was very happy that the Doctor said she was well enough to use only one, and made her way to her door. She opened it, waiting for her mothers' response.

"You have visitors!" Came Pelé's voice. Pyrrha frowned briefly in confusion. Her mom wouldn't let anyone into their house to see her unless she approved of them directly. Which meant no photographers, reporters or journalists.

Her confusion was abated when she got to the overlooking balcony into the main foyer, and a set of ocean blue eyes looked up to her. "Hey cuz."

"Neptune!" Pyrrha smiled in surprise, as the blue haired boy gave a wave. He wasn't alone, she noticed. Beside him were two members of his team, one tall with green hair and dark skin, and the other with red hair and complete undercut.

"Heard you could use a friendly face." Neptune smiled, before looking back to his teammates. "Guys, you know Pyrrha, don't freak out or anything." He warned jokingly.

"Cheers." The redheaded boy said with a wave and fanciful bow. The taller boy just gave a soft grunt of acknowledgement. Pyrrha had made her way down the stairs, ignoring the chair lift, much to her mother's disapproval, and made her way over to her cousin.

"It's good to see you." She said, as the two shared a quick hug. "I'm sorry we didn't interact more at Beacon."

"Eh, it's fine." Neptune gave a shrug and good natured smile. "Besides, we were both busy."

"You mean you were busy flirting." Pyrrha smirked as the boy suddenly flushed red and began to sputter in denial, as the two behind him shared a chuckle. The spartan turned her attention to them. "Sage and, Scarlet. Right?" She asked.

"That's us." Scarlet smiled, looking to Sage. "Don't mind him though, he's about as conversational as a brick." The taller man frowned, looking to his teammate, before a sly smile broke the stern façade.

"At least I didn't think the Bullhead we took here ran out of headlight fluid." A deep chuckle came from Sage, as Scarlet let out a noise that sounded like a bird being strangled.

Pyrrha couldn't help but laugh, bringing a hand up to try and muffle the noise. Neptune sighed, shaking his head. "They're idiots. But they're my idiots." He said with a wide smile. Pyrrha understood the statement all too well, remembering incidents with her own team.

A small frown flitted across her face, remembering the absence of her friends once more. Before her mind could venture into worse, she was distracted by her mother speaking up from the doorway to the kitchen.

"I've made some snacks if you boys are hungry. Pyrrha, why don't you show them to the dining room?" She gave her daughter a soft smile, and Pyrrha gladly took the opportunity to be active.

"That sounds grand." She smiled. She felt a bit self-conscious using her crutch in front of them, but at least it was only the one. They were all aware of her injury that happened during the Fall of Beacon, enough journalists asked her about it.

She kept a majority of the details to herself, however. Like the fact Cinder had the powers of the Fall Maiden, and a blinding white light erupted from Ruby's eyes. She recalled the moment the light faded, and it was only her and Ruby left on the tower.

Whatever that was, and Pyrrha doubted it was a Semblance, it had removed both Cinder and Crue from the tower. It was all she could do to crawl over to Ruby's collapsed form and protect her with her shield.

Luckily, she didn't need to wait long. Qrow, the same man who had stood alongside Ozpin as he explained the stories of the maidens, appeared atop the tower. She tried to explain what happened, but he was more focused on getting the two of them off the tower.

Though he did stop to pick up Crue's glasses. The only thing of him left. She was brought back to the present by a bird squawking in anger. She blinked, and realised it was Scarlet.

"IT WAS ONE TIME!" He exclaimed.

"You slept upside down to see if you would dream upside down!" Neptune countered. Once more, Pyrrha found herself smiling at the antics. She also found herself wondering why there were only three of them there.

"What happened to your Leader?" She asked. She knew of Sun, he was one of the finalists in the Vytal festival, and as such warranted a certain amount of acknowledgement. Each male suddenly bore remarkably similar scowls.

"Sun…" Sage began, closing his eyes for a second and concentrating. "Is currently on a boat over the Levante Sea." Pyrrha blinked in confusion.

"He's, what? Why?" She asked.

"He's-" "Chasing pussy." "Sage!" Sage cut across Neptune, much to the boy's annoyance. Pyrrha simply found herself blushing at the statement.

"Technically, he's correct." Scarlet said with a raised finger. He turned to Pyrrha, almost looking into a mirror with their matching hair and eyes. "Sun went off to follow Blake Primadonna."

"It's 'Belladonna'." Pyrrha corrected.

"I know what I said." Scarlet smiled, but there was a hollowness to it. "This is the second time he's run off. First it was to get to Vale, even though that was kinda our fault, and now it's because he wants to get lucky. Apparently it's not the first time he's chased after her."

Scarlet turned to look at Neptune, who was fidgeting uncomfortably in his chair. "Yeah, I know it sucks he's gone, but we've managed before. And he just wants to make sure she's ok." He explained, but the excuse felt weak even to him.

"What about us?" Sage asked, his yellow eyes staring at Neptune. "He's meant to be our team leader. He gets distracted by everything and just, goes off whenever he wants." He crossed his arms in anger, leaning back in the chair.

Pyrrha swallowed awkwardly, feeling very out of place and depth. "I'm sorry to hear that." She said, breaking the silence. "I suppose we're all missing teammates, then." Her eyes flit downward to the table, where they remained.

She heard Neptune sigh. "Sorry, Pyr. I hoped showing up and bringing some friends would help you feel better. Guess we're all too down in the dumps for something like that." He tried to smile, but it came across a bit forced.

"You can say that again." Sage sighed.

"Guess we're all too down in the dumps for something like that." Scarlet repeated exactly. Sage turned to frown at Scarlet, before a faint smirk made its way onto his face.

"Maybe you could hang with us for a while?" Neptune suggested, turning to Pyrrha. "I know Headmaster Lionheart's eager to get the new semester underway, which might be hard for us without a leader."

"I have been meaning to try and get in contact with the Headmaster." Pyrrha nodded. She wanted to talk to him about fairy tales, maidens, and whoever the 'Queen' Crue mentioned to Cinder was. "I don't know how much use I will be in a fight, however."

She looked to crutch leaning against the table with a frown. "Maybe you can turn that into a sword. Or a gun." Scarlet thought, scratching the side of his face idly. "It'd be pretty funny for someone to attack you cause they think you can't fight back and then bam!"

He slammed a fist down on the table for emphasis, but instead of a 'bang' and the rattling of cutlery, there was an odd squelching sound. Scarlet raised his fist up, allowing everyone to see he had accidentally squished a grape from the plate of snacks Pelé had brought them.

"Aww. I like grapes." He moaned. It gave the table a round of laughs, something they desperately needed.

"I'm just gonna say it now." Sage spoke up, bringing everyone's attention to him. "If you do join up with us, you're not being our leader." His frown seemed serious, which made Pyrrha wonder what his relationship to Sun was.

"Hey, Pyrrha'd be a great leader." Neptune immediately came to defend his family. To his surprise, Sage nodded.

"She probably would be." He accepted. "But, then that'd change the team name to…" He trailed off, looking at everyone. It took a moment for his words to sink in. Pyrrha. Neptune. Sage. Scarlet. Team PNSS.

Everyone broke down laughing, with Pyrrha desperately trying to stifle her laughs and failing miserably. "Alright! I'll be leader! Just to stop that happening!" Scarlet spoke up through wheezing laughs. "We can be Team Sunup. SSNP."

"Team Sun still works." Pyrrha said, wiping away a tear. "You can just use my surname. SSNN." It appeared that Scarlet hadn't thought of that.

"The new semester doesn't start until March, so you've still got a month to figure out whether you wanna be stuck with us." Neptune said, a smirk playing on his face. "At least until we drag Sun by the tail back to Haven."

"Thank you, Neppy." Pyrrha said, before noticing Neptune's face suddenly turn the same shade as his teammate's name.

"NEPPY?!" Scarlet and Sage said at the same time, grins of shit eating proportions on their faces, the kind of grins that suggested they had been handed the holy hand grenade of teasing ammunition.

"She couldn't pronounce T's when we first met, ok!" Neptune exclaimed, his voice reaching a high pitch as he explained the reason behind the unfortunate nickname. When it didn't seem to stop his teammates' laughter, he pointed a finger accusingly at Pyrrha.

"Her name was Rha-rha!" "Neptune!" Pyrrha practically screeched, her face matching her hair as she futilely hit Neptune. Well, it would have been futile for most people if you weren't the four-time winner of the Mistral Regionals.

Neptune went sailing from the chair after the first strike, with a cry of surprise as he ended up on his rear end. The room suddenly fell silent in shock, before once more erupting in laughter.

From outside, Pelé Nikos smiled warmly at hearing her daughter laugh. She really should thank her sister-in-law for sending Neptune over. But for now, she'd just be happy that Pyrrha was having fun. Even if it ended with her staying at Haven.

She frowned slightly. Her daughter still had a long way to go before she could fight on the same level as she used to. She would heal, in time. But it would mean sending her daughter away again. She could probably get in contact with the Headmaster, it was where she studied after all.

Theta had even been reached out to for a mission on Lionheart's request, but he turned him down to spend more time with his daughter. There weren't too many Huntsmen in Mistral right now, as a large majority of them had been at the Vytal festival when everything went to Hell.

A lot of them were still over there, working on reclaiming Beacon from the Grimm. Pelé hadn't heard of the progress thanks to the loss of the CCT, but she had faith in Mistral's Huntsmen. She should, considering she was one.

Not quite retired, of course, but more focused on her family than anything else. Argus had Grimm as well, though they were well protected by their massive walls, as well as the Atlesian military base within city limits. Her green eyes rolled as she pushed herself off the wall.

Argus was meant to be a mix of cultures between Mistral and Mantle, and it succeeded in that aspect. But they really should have picked better representatives for their Military. Ignoring their terrible choice of personnel, being so close to Atlas meant they had their own relay tower for the CCT.

Which was constantly on the fritz. She personally laid the blame with that technician. What was her name again? Arcotta? Pelé couldn't remember, but the relay was working now, which allowed her to grab her Scroll and compose a message to Headmaster Lionheart.

"Dear Leo. I'm sure you know my daughter is staying with me…"

Mercury Black wondered how his life had gotten to this point. "I really think a shock absorber would work better, Doctor." "Nonsense, Doctor. My microprocessor would get rid of the need entirely." He watched two people talk about how best to replace a part of him.

Watts and Aloe continued to, Mercury wouldn't say argue, discuss what the best kind of prosthetic replacement for his leg would be. Which would be fine, if it didn't make him feel like a science experiment.

The assassin was currently sat on a surprisingly clean workshop table within Salem's castle. His remaining leg was off, which left him awkwardly leaning against the wall behind him. The two Doctor's examined his old leg.

The only one that remained after Cullen had torn off his other. He shuddered involuntarily despite the remarkable heat of the workshop. "Uh, I have two legs." He spoke up, causing Watts and Aloe to turn around in sync.

"We are aware." Aloe nodded, pushing up their glasses with the palm of their hand. "As do all Humans and Faunus."

"Well now, Doctor, there are some Faunus born with the lower half of fish, so we can't count them amongst us lucky enough to be bipedal." Watts countered, twirling his moustache slightly.

"A good point, Doctor." Aloe conceded, before turning back to Mercury. "Regardless, you do have two legs, what of it?"

Mercury let out a sigh. "It means you could both make a leg, and I can use both." If it meant he could actually walk around the place on his own, he'd take a leg made out of rubber ducks.

"He does have a point." Aloe nodded, bringing a hand to their chin and looking to Watts.

"Indeed." A smile played on the man's face. "Shall we make it a competition? Whoever makes the better leg wins?" He suggested. Mercury was about to speak up and say he didn't want to be the challenge of some competition, before realising that it would probably push both to do their best.

And who was he to stop them from putting in their best effort to make a better prosthetic and please him. "A competition." Aloe agreed with a surprising smile. "I shall remain here to work on mine, you may go to your preferred workstation."

"My preferred workstation is wherever you are." Watts said, almost softly, reaching out and taking Aloe's hand and pressing his lips gently against it. "But, I do understand the competition would require us to be separated."

He lowered Aloe's hand with a short bow, and left the workshop. "I thought you weren't into that kind of thing." Mercury spoke up. Aloe turned like they had been stung by a Rapier Wasp, having momentarily forgotten Mercury's presence.

He noticed their hand briefly flit to their hip, where Mercury was fairly certain he saw a surgeon's scalpel. Remembering he was meant to be there, Aloe composed themselves and fixed their lab coat. "Whatever gave you that impression, Mercury?"

Their jade eyes seemed to bore into his eyes, only amplified by their green tinted skin. "Uh, well you called what Solaris and Tyrian were doing revolting."

"That was revolting." Aloe said, practically shuddering. "Do you know what Solaris got Tyrian for his birthday last year?" They asked, tilting their head slightly as Mercury shrugged his shoulders. He had a few ideas in his mind, mostly stemming from that shop she brought him to in Vale.

He briefly wondered if it survived the Fall. The idea of Grimm running rampant in a sex shop was a funny one, but any ideas of comedy died as Aloe continued. "She got him a brown paper bag." Seeing the look of confusion on Mercury's face, they continued.

"A brown paper bag, with a lifelike drawing of our Mistresses profile on it." Mercury's expression looked as though he might never consider the concept of intercourse again.

"For her to… wear?" He dared ask. Aloe nodded, their own eyes crinkled in disgust. "No way!"

"Yes way." They confirmed, looking somewhat annoyed at using that language. "Evernight Castle was… particularly loud that night." They both shared a shudder of revulsion at the idea.

"Well. I think that's killed my sex drive for… ever." He leaned back against the crystalline wall. "I guess crazy attracts crazy." He watched as Aloe inspected his old prosthetic.

"Quite." Aloe agreed, walking over to a computer and bringing up some schematics that they quickly examined and altered. "There is the old saying of 'opposites attract', but I find myself drawn to those of intellectual equality. Such as Arthur."

Mercury noticed they didn't use 'Doctor'. "That explains the fuck outta Crue and Neo." He thought. A flash of anger surged through him briefly at the idea. All the time they thought they had Neo dating Crue to get information on him, it was the other way around.

The bastard knew who Neo was from the start. And according to what Solaris had said on their journey from Beacon, she went against them because Crue had given her the means to do so. Because they were in love.

Mercury shook his head in annoyance. Love wasn't real. Love was something he watched hidden behind a closet door, while the only person who ever defended him was beaten like a dog. Love didn't let up. Love eventually killed her. Love turned on him instead.

The idea of Crue loving Neo like that pissed him off more than he imagined. "You seem to be drawing the ire of my dear friend, Mercury." Grey eyes blinked as they looked up to see a plexiglass box rattling, as something within bashed against the glass.

It looked like a black and green seed. "The Hell is that thing?" He asked.

"My greatest accomplishment." Aloe smiled somewhat eerily. "And the thing that caught our Mistress' attention." They turned away from the computer, adopting a pose Mercury had seen several times during his time at Beacon.

"Tell me, Mercury. What do you know of the Tragedy of Mountain Glenn?" They asked, resembling one of the many professors he didn't pay attention to in class.

"Uh, it was a failed expansion of Vale that was overrun by Grimm." He paused for a moment, thinking. "Wait. Was that her?" He asked, referring to Salem.

"No, actually." Aloe smiled. "It was me."

Despite the remarkable heat of the room, Mercury found his blood turning cold. "What?" He asked, pushing himself closer to the wall, and further away from the Doctor.

"Oh yes. Inadvertently, mind you." They said, almost casually. "I used to work for a man known as Doctor Merlot." A look of disdain came over their face. "An idiot. He believed he could control Grimm. That evolution had failed to perfect them."

"He experimented on Grimm. I did as well, of course. Only I did it better." They smiled once more. "Merlot couldn't handle it. The idea that someone could be better than him. So, he tried to catch and experiment on more and more Grimm. He summoned them to Mountain Glenn in droves, which eventually led to its fall."

"I survived. I saw the actions of Merlot for what they were. An idiot's last attempt to grasp onto something and got out." They turned to the seed within the see-through box. "But because of Merlot's actions, studying on Grimm became highly watched over to prevent another Mountain Glenn. And my experiments were outlawed."

"I was angered. Obviously. My research halted in its tracks. Thanks to that imbecile." A surprisingly deep scowl formed on Aloe's green face, causing their glasses to skew. "But I would hardly let the laws of man stop me."

"It was then that our Mistress found me." Aloe turned their attention back to Mercury, their previously green eyes now glowing gold. "She was impressed by my dedication. By my lust for knowledge. And she allowed me to research and experiment on Grimm to my heart's desire."

They paused for a moment and laughed, their eyes returning to their natural green shade. "I do wonder if that is why my gift is what it is."

"Your gift?" Mercury finally found his voice, having been paying attention to the story with the fear of a man who figured he would be quizzed afterwards.

"We of Salem's immediate circle have gifts given by her." Aloe explained, fixing their glasses. "I do believe you were there when I explained that." Mercury nodded.

"Our Lady's gifts relate to what she believes we embody." Aloe explained. "Solaris takes on her Gluttony, able to 'eat' the attacks of enemies, and return them twofold, as well as making her stronger. Her Semblance actually just lets her repair things. It's why she wears so many strange outfits that seem to rip and tear easily."

Mercury was fairly certain there was a completely different reason for that, but he kept his mouth shut. "Cinder is Envy. I do not feel like I need to explain that one." They chuckled slightly, and Mercury did as well, knowing that it would never get back to Cinder.

"Her power is what allowed her to take the magic of the Fall Maiden. To take what others already have and she craves." Aloe took a moment to look at Mercury properly. "I myself have been given the power of Salem's Lust. And my gift…" They trailed off, their eyes briefly flashing gold as they stared at Mercury.

"Well, I always feel a practical demonstration is the best way to learn." They brought a flat hand up and held it before their mouth in the direction of Mercury. The legless boy suddenly realised he had nowhere to run as his grey eyes widened.

Aloe blew and what looked like gold dust escaped from their mouth and surrounded Mercury. The boy immediately brought his arms up to shield his eyes, expecting a great deal of pain to come from whatever Aloe had done.

"Mercury."

His breath caught. He recognised that voice. But, it couldn't be. He lowered his arms and felt his body begin to tremble. "Mom…?" He swallowed. A woman stood before him, smiling patiently with lovely black eyes.

"Come on dear. It's time to visit your father's grave. And then we can grab a bite to eat. What do you say?" She extended a hand to Mercury, her smile never fading. Mercury reached out a hand to grasp it.

His hand passed through her. Mercury blinked, and suddenly he was back in front of Aloe, who was watching him like one might a particularly interesting reaction between chemicals. Mercury's hand clenched tightly into a fist, his nails nearly piercing his Aura.

"What was that?" He asked, his voice coming out stilted and wavering. His grey eyes were filled with a myriad of emotions, sadness and anger chief among them.

"I am afraid you would have to tell me." Aloe said, bringing a palm up to fix their glasses. "I do not see what you see. My gift allows you to see your heart's deepest desire. What you want for more than anything else in this world."

"And what Salem can help give you." Their words caused Mercury to blink as he looked up to the Doctor. Could Salem bring back the dead? She was an apparently immortal Queen of Grimm. If anyone could…

"Just. Don't do that again." He shuffled uncomfortably on the table, now feeling more like something to be dissected rather than fixed.

"Of course." Aloe nodded. "Doctor-patient confidentiality. Now, how do you feel about bio-mechanical legs that can stretch? Or shift into a gun? Everything is also a gun, nowadays." A strange smile made its way onto the Doctor's face as they examined Mercury much too closely for his liking.

The boy felt his sweat drop. He hoped Emerald was having as uncomfortable a time as he was.

"And apparently, they kissed! And the first I heard about it was when we were trying to kill him!" Emerald complained, brushing the brilliantly blonde hair in front of her.

"Really!? I didn't know the girl had it in her." Solaris gasped while braiding long brown hair, almost feeling proud of Cinder for finally working on the advice she had given her.

"I wonder if the King's true gift is attracting dangerous women." Said Tyrian Callows, as he took two long strands of green hair and weaved them into a surprisingly beautiful bow.

"What do you mean, Buggy?" Solaris asked, almost finished with Tyrian's braid.

"Well, he has the intrigue of our Queen. Cinder kissed him. And from what else you've said, he apparently was close to one who shares tendencies of my own!" Tyrian would very much like to meet this 'Neopolitan'. Maybe they could exchange notes!

Emerald paused, thinking over what the Scorpion Faunus had said. "Holy shit I think you're right."

"I'm surprised you have no issue with our Queen taking interest in another, dear." Solaris said, finishing the braid and proudly displaying its similarity to her lover's tail.

"Oh I did. I spent many a moon in the training rooms taking my anger out on Grimm. But, I soon realised how wrong I was to go against our Goddess' wishes!" He held the braid aloft and gave a delightfully insane sounding laugh at how well it turned out.

"When the King fell from the sky, I was overjoyed to have a new toy to play with." Tyrian explained, swinging the braid around his finger. "And then, it turned out we have much in common!" His smile was almost too wide for his face as Solaris and Emerald shared a brief glance of confusion.

"Like what, Buggy?" Solaris asked, as Emerald continued to brush her hair.

"Well, I do believe he said that we were both 'crazed clawed Faunus'." Tyrian tapped the side of his cheek in thought. "Which is correct! Such a similarity between myself and the one our Queen chose! How could I bring myself to hate such a man!"

Emerald thought she could bring herself to hate him pretty easily, considering he had stolen Cinder from her. Well, at least he was dead now. "Wait. Did you know he could turn into that werewolf thing?" Emerald suddenly asked, as Solaris looked at her confusedly.

Tyrian's golden eyes were wide with glee. "Oh he managed it?! How wonderful! Tell me, did he sow destruction and chaos?"

"He sowed something." Emerald muttered. That thing he turned into sowed fear like she had never experienced deep within her. She could still remember the sound of bones cracking and flesh ripping as Crue transformed.

"Ah, the Goddess' Wrath in action. How I wish I could have bore witness to it." Tyrian wiped away a tear, as he stood tall with a vigour and mad smile. "And I am to be the one to avenge his death! I shall not fail my Goddess!"

He dashed from the room with a cackle, intent to play with- sorry, practice on more Grimm before departing on his mission, leaving the two ladies on their own, Emerald remarkably impressed by his job with her hair. "What do you see in him?" She asked Solaris.

"Well, it's not what I see in him. It's what I see him putting in-" "Grossgrossgross!" Emerald quickly shook her head as she covered her ears, desperately trying to drown out Solaris' laughter.

She hoped Mercury was having as uncomfortable a time as she was.

Cinder Fall waited in the throne room of her Queen. Her vocal cords were still shot, and her two minions were nowhere to be seen. Oh, she knew where they were. Not next to her. Instead cavorting with the rest of Salem's followers.

Well, save for one. She looked across the table to the resting form of Hazel, leaned back in his chair. He said nothing, did nothing, and showed nothing. Cinder's teeth ground together at his mere presence. His nonchalance in the face of everything around them. It irked her to no end.

"If you keep that up, you'll get a headache." His deep voice rumbled, not even bothering to open his eyes. Cinder stopped grinding her teeth almost immediately, before frowning as she realised she was being told what to do.

She went to start grinding her teeth again, when an eye that matched the man's namesake opened to stare at her disapprovingly. Cinder's mouth did click shut, but she made no move to grind them against each other.

Hazel's eye slowly closed with a nod. She didn't know why he was there. She wasn't sure if she should care. She didn't need him there. She didn't need anyone. Not Hazel. Not her lackeys. Not Crue-

Her one eye blinked. That damn Faunus had invaded her thoughts once more. There wasn't a night gone by that his face didn't appear in her dreams at some point. Whether hunting her or being hunted. Crue was meant to be here. Quite literally, Cinder thought as she looked to the throne at the other end of the table.

He was meant to be Salem's King. She knew of her Mistress' fondness for chess metaphors, but Cinder had the feeling he was not to be the same as the piece in a game. The king piece in chess did very little and could usually only move out of harm's way or put another piece in front to sacrifice itself.

That could not have described Crue any worse. He did everything he could to go against her plans, and frequently put himself into harm's way on purpose. To 'protect' others. Cinder wanted to scoff, but her vocal cords would not allow it.

The idiot was so focused on protecting the ones he cared about that he would fight her when he was without Aura. At the time, she thought he was just The Wolf, come to get in her way once more. But with the knowledge that it had been Crue under that green mantle all that time…

He knew who she was from the moment they met in Beacon. From the second he dropped from the ceiling on the night of the dance. And he had beaten her. Twice. Stalling for time in the CCT, and actually knocking her out during their spar.

The only time she managed to defeat him was when he was already on death's door. The victory, if she could even call it that, felt hollow. How could she claim that she beat him when he still haunted her dreams.

The look of defiance in his eye, his only eye thanks to her, when she had him dead to rights. The unwavering determination, the refusal to die. And then she killed him. She had planned to decapitate him. Give him a swift death.

A show of kindness. The back of her mind whispered the action for what it was. That she had wanted to spare his suffering. That she… liked him. And then, he said those words. "Fuck Destiny." She could not speak the words herself, but she had no problem recalling them. They echoed in her dreams.

Cinder believed in Destiny. How could she not. She clawed her way to power from the bottom. When everyone stood against her. It was her Destiny to be powerful. To not have to run anymore. To never be controlled again. But Crue… he rejected the idea of Destiny.

He forged his own path. A path that made Cinder not want to kill him. To regret doing so. She went for his shoulder. A grievous wound, yes. But a survivable one. She would have left him there, along with the False Maiden, bleeding out atop the tower and given some excuse of finally having beaten him as enough reason to leave.

If he survived that, if he went against his Destiny to die, then she would have to admit him stronger than her. More powerful. And then, the silver-eyed warrior arrived and ruined everything. According to Aloe, her eyes affected both her and Crue.

And if it was to the extent that she was injured… Cinder subconsciously grabbed her covered arm. Or, lack thereof. It had been completely reduced to scar tissue. It was unbearable to even move it. Her Mistress took care of that.

A revolting thing had taken refuge in her arm, just above her elbow. Or, where her elbow once was. Even now, she could feel it. Cinder had always run hot. A side effect of her Semblance, she often thought. But with this thing in her, it practically drained the warmth from her body.

A cold void of twisted flesh that wasn't even her own. She was scarred. Tainted. She was proud of her looks. She used them to her advantage. Bewitching men and women alike into working for her and doing her bidding. But it was just that.

Letting them think they had a chance with her, and they would practically throw themselves on their knees. She had never actually gone further. Content to leave them wrapped around her finger. Her beauty could make anyone fall for her. "Except Crue." Her thoughts betrayed her.

The feeling that burned within her was ugly. He was immune to her charms from the start. That in itself is what sparked her intrigue, though she didn't even recognise it as that at first. A man that stood against her. One that would not be swayed by her power.

She should have incinerated him on the spot. But, there was just something about how he remained calm in front of her. Like a man standing before a storm. The shared belief that each could beat the other.

And he continued to get in her way. She believed herself immovable. Unbreakable. But then Crue moved her. Broke her shell. In the least violent way. Her amber eye shifted slightly in what might have been mistaken for a good mood.

The least violent way was still violent, as she remembered their spar. He took her superheated blows with nothing but the odd curse and retaliatory attack. That's when it started. Her realisation that she might have had actual feelings for the Faunus.

And then she let him rest on her lap. She could have moved him, if she put in enough effort. But, she didn't want to. Maybe in a different life, a different time, that could have been something they did often. Her thoughts were distracted by a blue box suddenly entering her vision.

She focused, seeing a box of 'Kleinex' brand tissues being pushed towards her by Hazel. Once he saw that she had taken notice, he leaned back in his chair once more. Cinder looked up to the much larger man with confusion.

He silently tapped his right cheek, close to his eye. Cinder brought her own hand up to her face. Her eye widened as she felt dampness through the cloth of her arm length sleeve. She glanced to Hazel, his eyes looking upon her without judgement.

He closed them once more, allowing her a semblance of privacy. She glanced down at the box, the image of a cartoony bald man with a moustache that looked much less ridiculous than Watts' giving a thumbs up and saying: 'Cleans dust and Dust!'.

Cinder made sure Hazel's eyes were closed, before she quickly ripped a tissue from the box and dried her eyes. She drove thoughts of Crue from her mind. He was gone. She wouldn't get a chance to explore what might have been.

Not that she had a chance in the first place with Neopolitan in the way. Her tears were definitely dried now, as she scowled, remembering the brief snippet of conversation she had overheard between them. Crue still loved her then. And he knew who she was, according to Solaris. She wondered what Crue saw in Neo that he didn't in her.

Did he like girls that were likely to kill him in bed? If that were true, he would have been head over heels for her during their time at Beacon. In the end, it didn't matter. Even if she had somehow captured his admiration, Neo didn't seem like the type to share.

Maybe things would have been different if everything had gone down in Vacuo. She heard, unwillingly, from Solaris that harems were considered acceptable over there. Her amber eye blinked several times.

"Please tell me I did not just entertain the idea of being part of a Harem with Neo under Crue." She requested of her mind. Her mind shrugged as if to say 'hey, this one's on you'. She attempted to bleach the idea from her brain, but it was proving difficult due to multiple reasons.

Chief among them being her knowledge of what Crue was like below the belt. Thanks to Neo once again. "Goddess give me strength." She closed her eye and took a rasping breath. On the bright side, no more tears. On the other side, she feared what her dreams might contain now that that idea was in her head.

The sound of an iron bolt sliding across the massive door broke her from her thoughts, as she shifted uncomfortably. It was time for her treatment again. To let the thing within take shape and give her something to work with.

She wondered why Salem hadn't allowed Watts or Aloe to make her a replacement. She didn't like the treatments. The Grimm within her became restless as its master approached. And here Cinder was, without Emerald or Mercury. Without Crue. With no one to aid her through the process.

A soft grunt caught her attention, as she looked up. Hazel still remained, as still and unreadable as ever in his chair. But he was there. Cinder wondered if that's why he was in the throne room when he didn't need to be.

The door opened as Salem entered, arms folded across one another. A single pitch-black eyebrow rose at Hazel's presence, but she said nothing as she made her way to her throne and sat before Cinder.

"Are you ready?" She asked Cinder. The Fall Maiden briefly wondered if she could say no. But, that would require being able to say anything at all. Cinder nodded, swallowing as she rolled up her sleeve and allowed the stump of her arm to be shown.

Salem placed her hands against it with surprising tenderness. She recalled the first time Salem had touched her and expected her hands to be deathly cold. They weren't. Even though her skin was white as snow, it still contained a beating heart, which let blood flow.

The thing within her squirmed and began to exit, causing Cinder to wince and grip the table with her other hand. She barely managed to crack her eye open and found herself meeting Hazel's eyes. They were staring at her reassuringly.

And then, they briefly glowed golden. Cinder felt the pain disappear. Hazel rarely used Salem's gift, but Cinder knew what it was.

The gift of Salem's Sloth allowed him to ignore what others give unto him.

Somewhat redundant, given his Semblance allows him to ignore pain, his gift allows him to ignore what caused it in the first place. If he was stabbed and used his Semblance, he wouldn't feel it. If he used his gift, there would be no blood spilled when the blade came back out.

Her own gift activated unwillingly, taking that which she wanted. A release from the pain. Cinder's eye glowed gold, siphoning Hazel's power. She was able to ignore the feeling of the Grimm shifting and changing within her.

Salem must have felt the use of her gifts in such close proximity, but she remained silent as she controlled the Grimm. Cinder's treatment lasted longer than before, as she was able to ignore the pain until Salem deemed it time to finish.

"You have made good progress, Cinder. Soon, you may have useof your arm once more." Salem stood from the throne and spared a glance towards the large man across from her. "Hazel." She nodded, the ghost of a smirk playing on her lips.

"Ma'am." Hazel nodded, his eyes losing their golden glow and closing as he leaned back in his chair. Salem made her way out of the room, gliding silently before the giant wooden doors closed with a bang.

Cinder looked to her arm, a miasma of black spreading out and up from the stump. She pulled her sleeve down over it, frowning at the piece of her that was missing. She then glanced up to Hazel. The older man's eye twitched ever so slightly, as if he had been observing her before closing.

Cinder tried to speak, but it still came out in a raspy hiss. The noise caused Hazel to open both his eyes. The Fall Maiden's mouth moved, but no sound came out. The older man seemed to understand, as he nodded with a hum and closed his eyes once more.

Cinder had never properly thanked anyone for anything before. She wondered if she ever would again.

I think… I think this is the first chapter in either this or EHL that has had no Crue whatsoever. Like, mentions of him obviously but, none of the actual lad himself. Huh. Anyway, a bit more of an exploration of how the 'Villains' are handling things.

I can't imagine getting that Grimm arm grafted was a pleasant experience. I know Salem said she needs to make it fear her in order to control it, but getting it to that point must have been Hell. And we also get to explore the powers of Salem's circle that do not involve turning into a big fuck off wolf.

Solaris never actually called her ability to bounce back her Semblance in EHL. Of course, with all these extra powers it will certainly make fighting Salem's followers a more interesting and dangerous interaction.

Also, Cinder is human, regardless of the Grimm currently working its way inside her. She had a terrible upbringing that destroyed her emotionally and mentally, but those emotions are still there buried deep inside.

Emerald still has some strong opinions on the fact Cinder kissed Crue, and apparently has taken to Solaris to vent. Also, can you imagine how long Tyrian's hair must be for that braid? Wouldn't surprise me if a guy like that was good at all the different hairstyles.

It's kind of a shame Hazel and Crue didn't speak much to each other aside from 'yeah a scorpion will die from constipation' because they would probably be able to bond over what they've lost. Oh shit I wonder if I can have Crue convince him to swap sides instead of Emerald or Oscar.

Speaking of… We'll be seeing a certain farmboi soon. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, let me know if you did, and as always…

Until Next Time

-Friday