The Empty Seat Chapter 35 - Trust, a rwby fanfic

Chapter 35: Trust

In which the Beacon Ball draws to a close, but its fallout endures.

"I just had two squadrons of my finest men comb through the building. They found no masked intruder nor evidence of tampering with CCT equipment or uploading a virus…"

The little huntress-in-training slammed her bare foot down. "It happened, I swear!"

General Ironwood raised a hand to calm her. "I wasn't finished. They did find several unconscious guards, a room full of destroyed computers, and several pipes that seemed to have been bent upwards, corroborating your account. Fret not, Miss Rosa. We believe you."

"It's Rose, General," corrected Oz. "Ruby Rose. Like her mother, Summer Rose."

Why his old friend felt the need to point that out, James would never know.

Ozpin swirled the coffee around in his thermos and blew on it to cool it down. "Is there any information you can provide in regard to your assailant's identity, Ruby?"

Young Miss Rose paused in thought, idly tapping her finger against her nose. "I didn't see her face, so I wouldn't recognize her. Black hair, black mask, dressed like a cartoony burger. I mean, uh, burglar. Sorry, nerves. I just fell from the top of the CCT."

No, she didn't. She couldn't have. It was impossible. Her semblance was said to be super speed, and no amount of aura could protect her from a fall from that height. No one could survive that.

And yet, here she was. It just didn't make any sense. Alive, after facing down the motherfucking Fall Maiden, the same woman who'd killed Amber. It had to be Fall – Raven Branwen was several stories below them (he'd frantically checked after the attack), Fria was well guarded by Specialist Schnee in Atlas, and the Summer Maiden was secure in her hiding spot.

Ironwood set aside his doubts. He was a military man, a man of science, but magic was real. For now, he could stomach the fanciful but evidently accurate story of a teenager dropping from the top of his CCT if it meant collecting useful intel on Salem's agents.

"Go on," Ironwood coaxed. "We may yet catch her if you can tell us anything of her identity." It was 2am, and the attack had happened under 30 minutes ago.

"Hmm. I told you about her eyes and her semblance…s. For some reason, she didn't kill me when she had the chance at one point. I don't know why."

That was new information. Not useful to the situation at hand, but worth bearing in mind.

"Maybe it's because I wasn't a threat to her. I barely hurt her. The fight was pretty one sided."

"You hurt her? Did you inflict any visible injuries? Bruises, cuts…?"

"I shoved broken glass down her mouth. It cut her throat before…before…" Ruby stared blankly before looking up at James. "She was at the ball."

"Miss Rose, have you remembered who she is?"

"No, but she melted the glass in her throat and vomited it up. Punch came out, the same stuff they had at the ball."

"That's hardly evidence. Many drinks could resemble–"

Ruby interrupted him. "Yeah, but many drinks don't have candy fishes floating around in them. Fox put some in the punch bowl at the dance. I knew it was punch because there was the crushed up bits of a cherry mola mola in the vomit."

Oz lidded his thermos and set it down. "You have quite the memory, Ruby."

"Candy is a matter of great significance to me. Plus, my brain's kinda buzzing around into overdrive."

Ironwood placed a hand on her shoulder. "That would be adrenaline. You've just fought back any extremely dangerous foe in what sounds like one of the most brutal duels in Beacon history. You did so unarmed and without backup, and you retreated to inform the proper authorities when the opportunity presented itself. Every call you made was the right one."

Ruby blushed and kicked at her heel. "Aw, gee."

"The CCTs were a gift from my country to the world, and the Vale tower is still standing because of you. Know that Atlas won't forget this. You will always be welcome in my homeland, should you ever choose to visit."

Ozpin ushered her to the elevator. "Beacon is proud as well. I believe that we have no further questions for you, Miss Rose. Some well-deserved sleep may help with the nerves and that buzzing brain of yours. Your first mission will be assigned tomorrow, and I'd hate for you to fall asleep during the announcement ceremony."

"Don't worry, Headmaster. Your speeches aren't that boring."

Ironwood sputtered at the casual but genuine insult, but Oz seemed to take no offense. "I'm glad to hear it. Now, off with you."

Ruby began her second descent from the top of the CCT tower to the ground, this time at much slower pace.

Ozpin turned to face James. "Finally. We're alone. I thought she'd never leave."

"We have a problem, Oz." James reached down to his waist. "I don't think you've been getting your daily dose…of Iron!" He unclipped his belt, and his pants fell to the floor.

Ozpin knelt down in front of Ironwood. "Then why don't I show you just why they call me head-master…"

"That did not happen!" exclaimed Weiss. "Headmaster Ozpin would not...he just wouldn't!"

"Yeah, Ruby. I mean, how would you even know what happened if you'd already left the room?" asked Yang. "Not gonna lie, it sounds like a load of bull. Specifically, the shit of that animal."

"You guuuuuys!" Ruby whined. "I was just getting to the good part. Professor Port joined them, and he grabbed Ozpin's–"

"How did he get there?"

"He came up the elevator."

"I thought you were heading down the elevator."

"Uh, I mean, he was waiting in the shadows. He'd been there the whole time, watching."

"Ruby…"

"Okay, fiiiiiine. I don't know what happened after that. Dove was waiting for me at the bottom of the elevator. He carried me home, and I fell asleep on the way."

Yang frowned. "Dove's a nice guy, but I gotta check: no funny business?"

"Nope."

"Great. I'm glad he didn't de-flower this Rose."

Weiss stared at Yang in disgust. "Seriously, Xiao-Long? A pun about your sister's virginity?"

"Well, her lovey-dovey was alllllllll over her at the dance. I worry that Ruby may not have been the only thing that Rose last night."

"She's fifteen!"

"And she met with the General afterwards. The guy's name is literally Ironwood…"

Ruby began her second descent from the top of the CCT tower to the ground, this time at much slower pace.

"Keep an eye on her, Oz. Many soldiers of mine crack jokes and laugh it up to hide stress. I wouldn't be surprised if she were just putting on a brave face in front of us. And to know that her attacker was a fellow student who is likely still is nearby…"

"I train hunters. I'm all too familiar with the symptoms of PTSD, James. Just to be on the safe side, I shall try to give her a light mission." Ozpin turned to face James. "Well, friends. It would appear that the Queen has made her move."

A dusty old bird dropped down from the rafters. "I told you she had agents in Beacon. Where's Jaune?"

"Retired for the evening with his girlfriend."

Branwen sipped from his flask. "One of youse two gotta call him. I don't have his scroll number."

Ozpin sighed. "Qrow, it's poor form to interrupt a couple on their night off. I know you haven't had a romantic partner in decades, but please try to empathize…"

"Woah, Oz, check this out. I've gained the ability to transform into two birds." Branwen raised his middle fingers on both hands. "How magical."

"Charming. Now, as I was saying, the Queen is moving her pawns. The maidens are more vulnerable now than ever. Amber hasn't checked in since before the school term began. It's safe to assume she died at the hands of whoever attacked your niece, Qrow. The timing…Raven's been on life support since our duel ten years ago, and her health fails within months of another maiden being compromised? I doubt it was natural causes."

To his shame, James hadn't even considered that. "You think Salem had a hand in Raven's declining health?"

"But if she had access, why not just kill her and send the power on its merry way?" Qrow posited. "Why leave a defenseless Spring maiden to slowly die and give it away to someone random?"

"Perhaps to weaken our position," Ironwood said. "She may believe we'll have to invest valuable time and resources trying to heal Raven. Salem doesn't know of the aura transfer machine. She believes that we cannot control who becomes the next host, so logically we'd do everything we can to keep Raven stable and maintain the power in our hands. It's almost humorous; Salem has unintentionally done us a favor. An active maiden can do more than a brain-dead one."

Ozpin dismissed this notion with a wave of his hand. "Intentionally or not, Salem has weakened our position. We may not have had an active maiden, but we had a maiden completely under our control. We could have trained a candidate at our leisure and transferred the power when she was ready. By forcing us to rush a new host without proper training and preparation, we're far worse off." The headmaster frowned. "It cost me a great deal to capture Raven alive."

"A limb well spent," quipped James, looking at Ozpin's crippled leg.

Qrow's hand slammed onto the desk so abruptly that James actually flinched in spite of his normally steel nerves. Ozpin's coffee thermos tipped over and rolled onto the floor with a thud.

"Shut the fuck up, James. Just shut up."

"What–"

"Summer gave her fucking life to bring Raven in."

"Qrow, I forgot–"

"Drop it." Qrow's voice was sheathed murder. "Now, let's talk business. The CCT may be compromised. We need to take action."

Oz sighed. "We'll investigate the attack, of course, but I suspect we won't find the perpetrator anywhere near the crime scene. She'll have discarded any incriminating evidence and retreated back in her dorm after the confrontation with young Miss Rose. Vomited punch is not sufficient evidence to warrant searching every transfer student here."

Ironwood peered out the window over the cityscape. "Salem must be stopped, no matter the cost. Oz, Qrow, we have to nuke Mantle. It's the only way."

"What?!"

"General, how would that help us?"

"You're right, you're right. I'll save that one for later," said Ironwood. "Perhaps for now, we can choose a new maiden. If Salem's got her own on the attack, we need a defender."

Ozpin grabbed some files out of his drawer and placed them on the desk. He recovered Doctor Oobleck's thermos from the floor, uncapped it, and raised it to his mouth. "My first choice was Pyrrha Ni–"

"Mistral. Too risky."

Frustrated at the interruption, Ozpin set down his drink. "Qrow, we don't know if–"

"Oz, I didn't want to believe it before, but Lionheart's clearly compromised. Cinder fits the description of the new Fall to a tee, and Leo hid things about her. Damning things."

Ironwood pretended to look at the Invincible Girl's files for Ozpin's sake, but he'd already made his mind up on that matter. "Qrow is right. I thought otherwise, but tonight was the nail in the coffin for Haven's headmaster."

"Who do you propose, gentlemen?"

"Penny Polendina."

Qrow's eyebrows raised. "The weirdo that hangs with my nieces? No offense, Jim, but just because she's Atlas military doesn't mean she's–"

"A robot."

"Um. Well, that's not what I was gonna say."

"Penny Polendina is the first artificial life form capable of generating an aura."

Ozpin shook his head. "We need a human with emotions. An AI cannot be trusted with the responsibility of this power."

"I've been monitoring her movements, Oz. That's why I sent her to Vale on her own: a field test of how she'd handle social interaction. She made friends, real friends, and saved one of their lives during a skirmish with the White Fang. She's capable of emotions. I daresay she's more compassionate than most of my cadets. Furthermore, we all saw how she handled the Neptune Incident…"

Ozpin wrote down the name on a notepad. "Alright. Top of the list, S-tier maiden candidate, but we need to consider other candidates as well."

Qrow brought his flask to his lips, but James snatched it out of his hands. He also grabbed Ozpin's coffee thermos for good measure before tightening the lids on both beverages.

"We need you both sober and not jumped-up on caffeine. It's going to be a long night, gentlemen."

"Oh, Jaune. It was wonderful." Pyrrha rolled over in bed to face him.

"I'm glad to have pleased you, my dear."

"If it's not too much to ask, um," Pyrrha fidgeted nervously. "…do you think we could go again?"

Jaune smiled. "Baby, I can go all night."

"Before that, I just need a quick nap." Pyrrha's head flopped onto the pillow. Her mouth fell opened, and her tongue slid out as she began to loudly snore.

"ZZZZZZZZZZ!"

Jaune snapped back to reality. Damn it, not again. Something always woke him before the dreams could get good. He sat up in his bed and reviewed his surroundings.

"ZZZZZZZZZ!"

Jaune rotated around to see a female figure under the sheets. Pyrrha was laying next to him, making the snoring noise that had woken him up. Jaune looked at the floor by the foot of his bed. His tuxedo lay in a crumpled pile next to Pyrrha's discarded dress.

Huh.

Maybe waking up isn't so bad after all.

Blake had left the balcony when Weiss showed up because, quite frankly, she couldn't deal with the resulting crisis that would inevitably ensue. Weiss would press the matter, Yang would confess, Weiss would explode, and Blake would be caught in the middle. The logical part of her brain excused her behavior by telling her that being there would only escalate the situation – the two would fight for her – but truth be told, she just needed to be somewhere other than in between the two of them.

Why did this have to happen? What about her was so perfect or attractive or arousing that all the women on her team fell for her? All she'd done was encourage Weiss with some tough love to help her overcome her fear of fire. And Yang…Yang had been boy crazy before the ball! At least Ruby was sane. In a platonic and completely legal way, Ruby had to be Blake's favorite little girl. Nobody could be simpler – a chirpy kid who loved guns and doing what was right. Blake wanted to bubble wrap her and hide her away from the cruelty that was being a mature adult.

Yang was already asleep when Blake arrived at the dorm. Weiss had come back in tears. Ruby had been carried home by Dove, waking up her teammates with wild tales of mayhem and madness – more proof in Blake's eyes that she was too fragile and too young to be at Beacon. Last night's drama was momentarily set aside as Yang panicked for her little sister.

With her team leader safe and her chastity confirmed, the blonde now was back to awkwardly sneaking glances between the members of this apparent love triangle of theirs. Ruby, despite her comedic over-exaggeration of last night's events, was clearly still a little on edge as she poked at her bruises. Blake just wanted everything to go back to normal – stupid pun Yang, safe baby Ruby, puppy love Weiss. Why did the dance have to go so poorly for all four of them?

A knock snapped them out of it. Weiss and Yang made no move to acknowledge it, and Blake was too tired after last night to get up.

"Can someone…you know." Blake rubbed at her temples.

Ruby was closest and started to open it when hand reach through the doorway, grabbed her forearm, and pulled her through. Ruby shrieked as the door shut.

Yang, Weiss, and Blake looked at one another and blinked. Welp, guess the truce was back in effect.

The explosion from Ember Celica, Schachmatt, and Gambol Shroud's combined Dust artillery barrage could have killed a Goliath. Instead, it simply turned the door into splinters. Team Ainbow shot out of the room in a frenzy, all three girls desperate to recover their stolen leader. Yang's eyes were as red as the fire in her hair, and Weiss looked like she was ready to kill the kidnapper. Blake actually was ready to kill the kidnapper. That wasn't an exaggeration. She'd killed before, and she'd do it again if someone endangered a member of her team.

There's another one. Ilia also loved me. Add her corpse to my growing lesbian harem.

A pajama-clad pair of green eyes saw the weapons and released Ruby. Blake's fury grew – Ruby was crying.

"I'm sorry, but I kinda need to talk to–"

Blake kicked her in the stomach before she could finish. Weiss grabbed Ruby and pulled her back to safety while Yang pinned their adversary against a wall and pressed the barrels of Ember Celica into her neck.

"Explain."

"Guys, it's me! It's Pyrrha!"

"Why did you grab Ruby?" screamed Blake. "Where were you last night after the dance?"

"Um, I really don't want to tell–"

"Weiss, get General Ironwood," Yang barked.

Weiss passed a now hyperventilating Ruby into Blake's arms and started to leave. Pyrrha raised up her hands and waved them frantically.

"That's not necessary!"

"Then answer our fucking questions!"

"I grabbed Ruby because I wanted to have a girl talk with her." Pyrrha's eyes narrowed. "About something private."

Ember Celica clicked. "Think your semblance is fast enough to catch a bullet at point blank?"

"I…I was with Jaune. We…went pretty far. A-All the way. I couldn't discuss it with Russel or Dove since they're guys, and Ruby's my best friend outside of my team. Yang, what are you doing?"

"Weiss, go check that it happened with Jaune."

"Yang! I told you that in confidence! And under duress!"

Weiss left. Blake cooed gently to calm Ruby as she broke down. Seconds turned to minutes as they waited.

Pyrrha looked at Yang with concern. "Why–"

"Shut. Or I will shoot you."

Eventually, Team Rainbow's fencer returned. A nod of her head, and Yang released Pyrrha. The red haired girl must have known her aura would protect her, but a fired-up Yang Xiao-Long tended make people forget that little fact.

"What happened? Why is Ruby crying?"

Blake answered. "She was attacked last night and nearly died."

"That's horrible! I'm sorry for grabbing her – I just wanted to talk to Ruby without anyone knowing. But, once you saw it was me, you could have let me go."

Ruby answered, her tears just barely under control. "It was another student."

Yang petted Ruby's head. "They wore a disguise. We still don't know who it was, and we're not risking anything. If it's Ruby's life on the line…"

"…then I'd happily run through the school screaming that I had sex with Jaune. Ruby, I'm so sorry for grabbing you like that." Pyrrha laid a hand on Ruby's shoulder.

"S'okay. You wanted a girl talk?"

"It can wait."

"I'd like to. It might help me get everything else off my mind."

Yang walked to a nearby room and tore its door off the hinges. "Do it in our room. We'll stand guard outside." Ruby and Pyrrha went inside, and Yang placed the replacement door where Team Rainbow's used to be, offering a modicum of privacy.

Now it was just the three of them.

For the record, Yang wouldn't have attacked Pyrrha unless she was sure of her guilt. However, the threat of force could often be used to prevent the use of force, and no one got hurt, so she guessed it all worked out in the end.

Of course, if Pyrrha had been involved in the attack on h̵e̵r̵ ̵l̵i̵t̵t̵l̵e̵ ̵s̵i̵s̵t̵e̵r̵ the CCT, Yang would have split her head open like a watermelon. With Jaune as an alibi, though, Pyrrha could have her name crossed off the list of suspects. It might have been paranoid to ever put her on the list given their close friendship, but Yang would rather be paranoid than an only child. Watching her sister grow up was all Yang had to look forward to in life. Dad was one bad day away from a suicide hotline, Qrow was a lush, Mom was dead, and fake Mom would hopefully soon be dead. Ruby was all Yang had left.

No, that wasn't true, at least not anymore. Now, she might have Blake or Weiss. Emphasis on 'or,' because to choose one was to lose the other. And Yang was ashamed to admit that she was seriously weighing the pros and cons of each choice in spite of ethically knowing that there was only one choice she could make.

She wasn't in love with Blake. It was too early for that. They'd known each other for a full semester at Beacon, but Yang had pushed Blake into the 'off limits' box for most of that time due to Weiss. They'd been dates for the prom because Blake was in that box. Ironically, the time they'd spent as dates was what had torn apart that box and burned its boxy remains.

What she felt for Blake was the potential to fall in love. A spark that, if cherished and cared for, could grow into a true relationship. It was a spark that she'd never felt before. Yang had fooled around with the boys at Signal and even inspected some eye candy at Beacon, but that was just a little fun – essentially one night stands without the sex part. None of them had ever been even close to serious. Blake could be, and that was why Yang was so willing to pursue her. She'd made out with boys plenty, but Blake was her first kiss. Yang had liked it, and she wanted more.

"We need to talk," said Weiss, the dutiful teammate.

Weiss, the tsundere Weiss-sicle.

Weiss, the friend she'd betrayed.

W̵e̵i̵s̵s̵,̵ ̵t̵h̵e̵ ̵l̵a̵s̵t̵ ̵r̵e̵m̵a̵i̵n̵i̵n̵g̵ ̵o̵b̵s̵t̵a̵c̵l̵e̵.̵

Yang felt sick to her stomach for even thinking like that. She'd been Weiss' wingwoman. Weiss had made the first move, and Blake (Weiss' partner) had shown interest back. Yang was the interloper here, making a move on Blake while knowing full well how Weiss felt. Now her team was torn down the middle because Yang thought with her metaphorical dick. Her Yang Xiao-Dong. Xiao-Schlong? No, Wang Xiao-Long…

Weiss was still talking. Damn it, Yang. Show a little decency and at least listen to the girl you're contemplating screwing over.

"–all know that I'm careless and tactless and a horrible person, but we need to come together as a team. Ruby needs us now more than ever, and even a moment of hesitation could cost her. So, for now, I'm asking you both to momentarily set aside your anger with me until we've apprehended the culprit behind her attack. After that, you can hate me and call me names and do whatever I deserve, but not before Ruby's safe. Please. Please, don't make her suffer because I'm a fuck up."

Yang's brain took a few seconds to rewire itself. Weiss hadn't seen the kiss. What was she…

Yang decided not to assume. "Weiss, why exactly are you apologizing?"

Weiss looked like she was on the brink of tears. "I'm sorry. I know I'm bad, but I'm sorry."

"Seriously, Weiss. I get you're sorry, but what are you sorry for?"

"Please, please don't, Yang. I grew up sheltered. It's no excuse, but I can't figure out what I did wrong. Please don't torture me like this."

Yang looked at Blake, but the Faunus was keeping her head down. Come to think of it, Yang had no idea what Blake was feeling. She'd clearly been into Weiss – they'd all but agreed to go to the dance before Russel's stupid plan threw a wrench in that airship engine – but now it was a mystery. Was she pissed at Yang for stealing a kiss? Or was she torn between her partner and her t̵r̵u̵e̵ ̵l̵o̵v̵e̵ teammate?

Weiss was still babbling. "– did this before at the docks, but I could only figure it out with your help, and Penny's too."

What was that about the docks? Blake, just please help me work this out.

"I hate to ask, but if you told me, I could–"

Now Yang was supposed to tell Weiss what was going on? Blake's silence, Weiss' confusing chatter, Ruby in danger…it was all too much.

"Just stop! Everyone, STOP!"

Weiss shut up, her lips wobbling. Blake looked up.

"Weiss. Answer me clearly. What are you going on about?"

Silence.

Argghhh! She was sorry, but she didn't know what she was sorry for? It was almost like when she'd called the Faunus animals, back at the–

The docks.

Weiss had walked in on Blake and Yang's post-kiss discomfort. To the heiress, it would look like they'd been made upset because of her arrival. Without knowing the real reason, Weiss had assumed she'd pulled another unintentional faux pas like last time. Now, she thought they were ignoring her, and she was doing her best to apologize for a mistake she'd never made.

Hmm. Weiss was a sniveling mess, and Blake was watching. If Yang played her cards right, she could–

Don't. Remember what happened to Dove. Him succumbing to temptation just only once nearly damaged Team Adventure irreparably. And if Ruby ever found out, it'd crush her. Yang was supposed to be the mature older sister of the team, not some troublemaker.

"Weiss, you didn't say something wrong. You didn't do anything wrong last night. Blake and I were upset before you showed up."

"…I didn't? Y-You were? Why?"

This was going to hurt. Everyone always said it was best to rip off the bandage fast, to get it over with, but right now, Yang would rather keep the bandage on and let the wound fester.

Yang finally understood why Blake had chosen to remain silent. It was Yang who had started this, and only Yang who could take responsibility for what she'd done to resolve it.

"Because I broke my promise to you. I caught feels for Blake, and I kissed her."

Emotions raced through Weiss' face faster than a lightning bolt. Confusion, shock, regret, anger, fear, then all of the above blurred into one look of plain old pain. She turned to Blake and opened her mouth, but no words came out.

Yang shook her head. "It wasn't her fault. I initiated this kiss without even asking her."

Weiss met Yang's eyes, and Yang had never understood how dirt felt better than she did now.

"Now, Weiss, I'm going to ask you for the same favor you asked me. Temporarily put aside your anger until Ruby's safe. Then, after that, you have my full permission to hate me from here to Vacuo."

A frosty glare spread over the Weiss Queen's…no, it spread over Weiss' face. Now wasn't the time for puns.

Weiss sighed. "Very well, Xiao-Long. I accept this for now, even though you–"

"–acted like Raven."

It was little more than a whisper, but it stopped Yang's heart just the same.

"What did you say, Blake?" asked Weiss.

"She thought of herself. She chose brief gratification over the well-being of her loved ones, just like her mother. It would appear that the apple didn't fall far from the tree."

Emerald woke up after a long night of pretending to party while actually keeping eyes on Team Coffee as per the orders she'd received from Cinder. She rubbed her face, silenced the alarm, took the scheduled 4 seconds of personal time to stretch, and checked at her scroll for messages from Cinder.

As it happened, there was only one unread text.

Boss: Business with the CCT taken care of.

Sage Advice: Understood. Any issues?

Boss: Alive. Throat injuries. My aura should take care of it. Rose Garden saw me, and we fought.

Dust. Fighting a maiden one-on-one…what was up with Beaconites? First Jaune Arc, now Ruby; was everyone a kick-ass fighter here?

Sage Advice: Are you made?

Boss: Negative. Still, situation too hot. My face wasn't seen, but Wizard or Mettle Man may recognize me from my general description. I'm going to make myself scarce until the heat dies down. You won't see me for a few days.

Sage Advice: Is Rose Garden alive?

Boss: Affirmative. She must survive, and Schnee too. All of Team Rainbow must live until the time comes.

Sage Advice: Orders?

Boss: Focus on keeping a tight leash on Pint Size and Tin Soldier. They're your responsibility now. Make sure they don't interfere with my players anymore.

The thermos cap came off.

"My first choice was Pyrrha Ni–"

"Mistral. Too risky."

"Qrow, we don't know if–"

"Oz, I didn't want to believe it before, but Lionheart's clearly compromised. Cinder fits the description of the new Fall to a tee, and Leo hid things about her. Damning things."

"Qrow is right. I thought otherwise, but tonight was the nail in the coffin for Haven's headmaster."

"Who do you propose, gentlemen?"

"Penny Polendina."

"The weirdo that hangs with my nieces? No offense, Jim, but just because she's Atlas military doesn't mean she's–"

"A robot."

"Um. Well, that's not what I was gonna say."

"Penny Polendina is the first artificial life form capable of generating an aura."

"We need a human with emotions. An AI cannot be trusted with the responsibility of this power."

"Alright. Top of the list, S-tier maiden candidate, but we need to consider other candidates as well."

Before the thermos was capped again, the coffee inside heard everything.

Omake

Jaune: You know, I'm below the age limit. Can I be the maiden?

Qrow: Nah, you're overqualified in the penis department.

Jaune: I've only got one!

Qrow: And that's one more than is allowed. One dick is too much for a maiden.

Pyrrha: I disagree.

Next Chapter: A Score to Settle – In which Ren patches things up before shipping out, and Bronzewing is privy to a conversation that really needs footnotes.

Author's Notes

I warned you to watch Russel. It's my headcanon that he jumped through several cups of punch as well as Qrow's liquor in order to get closer and closer to Ozpin. Of course, that may or may not have happened, there's no way to tell. Like, wo am I to decide what happened and didn't? Just some guy.

Also, I said we we're a third of the way through TES a few chapters ago, but I should clarify that that is only when counting by chapter. Wordcount wise, it hit a tad above 25% with the last update.