They met with Rhodes for brunch the next day at a small café near their hotel. The waiter initially sneered at Garek's ears, and acted like he wanted to refuse service, but backed down when Rhodes pulled him aside and had a few choice words. After that, the service sucked, but it was still service.

They didn't really care about the food anyway, but Selene still took note of yet another example of Atlas' behavior toward faunus.

After they had broken their fast, Garek began. "Selene and I discussed this, and we agree. There's no way she can stay in that place. Before we go further, is there anything we can legally do?"

Rhodes shook his head. "Not really. The Madame is Cinder's legal guardian. We can't legally remove Cinder, that's kidnapping. We could report them for abuse, but that would require time, hearings, testimony. The Glass Unicorn has influential backers, and money. They could intimidate her, bury me in legal costs, and then ruin me. I might even end up pushed out of the Kingdom, Huntsman or not." He was reinforcing what they'd already expected to hear.

"So," Garek said more quietly, "we agree that legal means is out, and her staying in Atlas City is out," He rubbed his face. "She'd just be found, and taken back."

"And punished," Selene said, her shoulders tense.

Garek squeezed her hand. "What about Mantle?" He asked.

"Trying to keep her free and safe in Mantle has different problems than Atlas. Hell, she probably came from Mantle. She'd likely just end up a street kid and dead come winter, or caught and returned. Same issue." Rhodes looked miserable. "And she can't travel with me. You know how I live. I don't even have an apartment. Sure, she's coming along with her training, but she'd die out there, if they didn't arrest us both first."

Selene looked at Garek and nodded. "Mistral then."

Rhodes head shot up. "I just said I can't-" He saw their expressions. "You're willing? But you're in the same position as I am."

"Not really. We don't have to stay in Atlas. Hell, most of Atlas hates me already for these," Garek pointed at his head. "And there's two of us, and we're not actively fighting Grimm these days. More like exploring business opportunities." He smirked at Selene.

The look of relieved hope Rhodes gave them caused Selene to forgive him a little. "Are you sure, Garek?" Rhodes said.

"Don't have much of a choice." Garek grinned. "Selene says she won't sleep with me any more if I say no." The grin thinned. "We just need to convince Cinder to let us get her out, and figure out how we're to smuggle her out. I have a contact that can help me get downside once we've done that, and out of Atlas. We just need to lay low long enough for things to quiet down."

Rhodes considered his coffee. "Convincing her won't be an issue. She trusts me. If I tell her to go, I think she'll go."

Selene interjected. "Removing that thing from her neck may not be simple."

Rhodes agreed, "And doing it before they know what's happening. And without putting suspicion on me."

Garek grinned. "Sounds pretty cloak and dagger. I know just where to go for advice about that. Meanwhile, it looks like my business meeting tomorrow afternoon is amazingly not being rescheduled yet again. So, drag your sorry ass back to that den of bigotry and I'll make some calls."

Garek approached the older man, seated at a table at a teahouse's outdoor table.

"Doctor Polendina? Your assistant said I should meet you here."

"Ah yes. Huntsman Grae. In light of this being a more informal discussion, and your patience with my chaotic schedule, I told Kelsie that I would see you during my afternoon sabbatical. I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all, Doctor. I'm grateful." He sat down opposite. The waitress who came by flicked a glance at his ears, then to Dr. Polendina, and only then took his order, walking away stiffly.

Pietro Polendina was a hale older gentleman, with dark skin and dark eyes. He peered at Garek over reading glasses. "A Mistral Huntsman, by your accent. You have the look of a man who has fought and lived in the wilds. But what can I do for you, Huntsman Grae? We've no Grimm here in Atlas City. And you told my assistant you were doing some sort of research of your own."

"Yessir. I've been trying to educate myself on alternate methods of fighting Grimm, and I found a few things that I wanted to ask you about in the process. Atlas has some pretty innovative things going on. It probably won't take more than an hour of your time." They'd spend some time on the initial cover story.

"Hmm. Well, they do say it's never too late to learn something new." Shrewd eyes considered, "I'll answer your questions, assuming it's not regarding anything proprietary."

"Shouldn't be, Doctor." Garek, paranoid, found himself glancing around for cameras.

"Something wrong?"

"Eh? Oh. Sorry, Huntsman paranoia," he lied. More like conspiracy paranoia.

The doctor chuckled. "Afraid there's a Grimm in the teahouse, young man?"

"Something like that," Garek grinned.

Garek's tea came, and he added sugar and sipped it thoughtfully.

"You had questions," the scientist prompted.

"Yessir. I… well It's actually only partially related to that. I run a lot of solo missions. It can be dangerous work."

"I can imagine. Few Huntsman will do that, I'm told. It's why most Academies stress four-man teams."

"Right. My team had… issues. We lost one during Academy." Garek glanced away, "Faunus terrorists against fourth year students. Not ideal." He coughed. "The rest of the team broke apart afterward, too much guilt. Bad memories."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Shouldn't you find another team though, for safety?" The older man's eyes were sympathetic.

"I've had… issues working closely with other people since then. Though, I have found a partner recently."

Polendina smiled, "Good for you, young man."

"Thank you, Doctor. Anyway, I was thinking about the possibilities of blended teams, militia plus Huntsmen, and that got me thinking about Atlas. Don't you have those… what do you call them?"

"Specialists. Yes, The Atlas Academy Headmaster, Captain Ironwood, runs those when he's not managing a school. It's not a great secret that they exist." He peered suspiciously at Garek. "You aren't going to ask me about any of that, are you?"

Garek swirled his tea. "Nossir. Looking at that, I got to thinking about hardware, and your name came up."

Polendina laughed. It was a rich and honest sound. "Well, I'm flattered, Huntsman, but I doubt I have the time, nor you the funding, to design hardware for one man. The research and development alone can take a decade or more. Not that there aren't off the shelf solutions or customization companies I might suggest to you."

"Thank you, Doctor. I came to that conclusion too. And I'd love to hear any suggestions you might have that would keep a lone Huntsman alive a little longer. But another name was mentioned to me at the same time, some sort of technological genius back years ago. When I tried to research him, I came upon this." Garek pulled out the printout of Watts with Polendina.

Polendina's face went stony. "Hmph. Yes, I remember that. Artie was quite the prodigy. Unfortunately his ego was even greater than his intellect."

"Was?"

"Was." He shook his head. "I suppose there's no harm in saying now. He was being investigated for taking shortcuts with his research. Unethical behavior. Sabotaging others work. Ignoring safety measures." He frowned. "In my opinion, it was likely true, though unproven. He thought any means was justified, as long as he got ahead." He took a sip of his tea. "He passed away in a tragic accident, and the investigations into his behavior were dropped as not being worth further pursuit, considering."

"Oh. I see."

"But why bring this to my attention? Any work he did is over a decade old. Either on the market or outdated by now."

"Two reasons. The first is that after being told he existed, I can't find anything about him, other than this article."

"Well, most of his work was, shall we say, of a sensitive nature."

"Sure, but I mean other than this article, which lists him as "Artie Watts", any searches bring up zero. Zilch."

The scientist frowned. "That seems improbable."

"Yeah. And it gets stranger. While I was researching, I was taking my own notes on my Scroll. I've tried this three times now. If my Scroll is offline, everything is fine. But as soon as I come within range of a CCT, within say about 24 hours, something like this happens. He showed the *file corrupted* errors on the Scroll. "Dr. Polendina, I think someone out there doesn't want people looking into Watts. I've had some… near misses. Accidents, since then."

Dr. Polendina's eyes narrowed.

"Dr. Polendina, are you sure Doctor Watts is dead?" Garek asked quietly.

The man stilled. "Yes. There was a full autopsy. It was… gruesome. Several people were held accountable. I can't discuss the details."

"I ask that, because I met a person who told me that they saw a man, an older version of this man," He tapped on the paper. "Alive last year outside the Kingdom of Atlas."

"That's… impossible."

"They described him as supercilious, egotistical, and needling. Tall, lean. Dark hair, green eyes, impressive moustache. Touch of gray in the hair."

Polendina's face paled. "Our conversation is over, Huntsman Grae." He stood up, nearly knocking his chair over.

"Doctor-"

"What do you mean, coming here and dredging up old history?" He pointed a finger at Garek, and it was trembling slightly. "You come here, on pretense, and want to banter with me about ghosts." He shook his head, and stuck his hand in his pocket. "Goodbye, Huntsman. I wish you well on your… research."

Dr. Polendina stomped off, leaving his tea cooling on the table, and Garek to pay the bill. The human waiter sneered at him this time, and didn't bring any change back.

Garek groaned. Well, that went well… he thought sarcastically. Apparently, I have a few things still to learn about cloak and dagger.

Specialist Team Leader Sylvus Richmond, callsign Charlie, stood at attention before his superior's desk.

"At ease, Richmond." He waved toward the chair. "I've got our next target identified. Another of Merlot's old labs, this one underground. Is your team still ready? I was thinking day after tomorrow," Captain Ironwood queried.

The experienced specialist looked uncomfortable. "My apologies, sir… I thought we'd have more time and I… made some personal commitments to an old friend."

Captain Ironwood only looked disappointed for a moment, then waved it away. "The site will be there in two days, or a week or two later. We can push it back. Anything I should be concerned about? Do you need leave?"

"Nossir, and thank you. I was planning to give Foxtrot a week or so leave, though. To visit family back in Argus."

Ironwood picked up his coffee mug, and took a sip. "Fine. Fine. I'll trust you to keep your team in good order. Let me know when she will return, and we'll realign. Dismissed."

Selene could tell Garek was disappointed when he returned to the hotel, but she convinced him to get in touch with Broken Arrow and discuss their other problem. On video call, the three spent the afternoon hammering out a plan that had the least risk of failure. BA expressed his frustration that he wasn't there to provide more direct guidance and overwatch.

The hardest part was the necklace. They wished they knew more detail about it before committing. Would it alarm if removed? How hard would it be? Would it activate? Would it do something horrible like explode? Notify the authorities? There were too many variables there.

The next day they had agreed to extract Cinder, and his failure with Polendina was weighing on him as he considered that after breakfast, when an envelope slid under the door to their room. Selene and he blinked at each other, and he retrieved it. It had his name handwritten on the outside. Tearing it open, he read the contents.

Huntsman Grae,

My apologies for my abrupt departure yesterday. I will admit that learning that our acquaintance might not have, as I have long believed, retired from the research and development community, came as quite a shock to me.

I took the opportunity to, quietly as to not alert the competition, research some of his company's more recent products. Imagine my surprise when I found they have designs which have been updated within the past year. I am now concerned that they may be engaged in further theft of proprietary elements, or worse. I will be having some discrete discussions with a trusted associate to determine how much of a threat this competition is to our work. In light of the sensitivity of this matter, I am providing an alternate number that you can reach me at, should you learn anything new.

I thank you for bringing this to my attention. I am in your debt.

Yours,

P.P.

CEO, Huntsman Research Enterprises

Garek laughed in relief. "Huntsman Research Enterprises." Selene looked at him curiously. "Dr. Polendina has a sense of humor, apparently, and I don't suck as much as I thought I did. Maybe BA will lose that bet after all."

It bolstered his spirits for the other critical task to come. The rest of the day crawled by, and night fell.

Young Cinder sat on her dingy mattress in the storage basement. Rhodes had said he might come by. He might not, but he might.

There were a quiet series of taps on the door. Three of them. She crossed the distance and tapped back, twice.

It was Rhodes, as promised. He was with that woman again, the one with the bright blue eyes and light brown hair and soft voice. The other Huntsman wasn't with them. Conflicting emotions twisted in her stomach. Frustration that her presence would probably mean less time with her friend and mentor. A hint of what might be anger that this meant less time training. Fear of what questions the woman might ask this time, and how Cinder might risk punishment for answering.

But also, a small and unfamiliar emotion that she couldn't quite describe.

"Hello again, Cinder," the woman asked.

"Ma'am."

Rhodes walked over.

"Are we training?" Cinder asked, hopefully. She flicked eyes to the woman, then turned toward her hiding place where she kept the sword Rhodes had given her.

"Not yet." Rhodes knelt down to eye level. "Cinder, I haven't…" she blanched at the look on his face.

"What is it… what's wrong?"

"I have to go away for a while."

Cinder's breath caught. The way he said it. It felt different than usual. Usually, he would stay for a week or two, and tell her when he would be back. This was different. Her vision narrowed into a tunnel. Weeks? Months? She saw possible futures with clarity. A future of toil and pain and loneliness. Of impotent anger.

"No…" she whispered. "Please…"

"I'm sorry." He smiled softly then. "But I've asked my friends." He pointed to the woman. "Selene and Garek to take care of you since I can't."

"But… I don't…" her eyes flicked. "She will train me?"

"Garek will, but he's a faunus, so he can't do it here like I have." It was a small lie, but one she would accept.

She gasped, "Then I can't train. I can't leave. Madame will find out. I'll be punished." Her hands started to lift toward her throat.

"No." Rhodes said with feeling, taking her small hands in his rough ones. "We won't let her punish you."

Cinders' eyes widened. That wasn't possible. "How…" Her eyes flicked to the maces across his back, and Rhodes paled. Is that how she thinks, already? That I would remove the threat through violence? Is that what I've taught her, unknowingly?

How close did I come to tragedy here?

"No, not that way, Cinder," he rasped. "There are better ways. We are going to remove that," he pointed to her neck, "and we are going to take you somewhere safe."

Cinder's hands jerked to her throat. "No. No. If you… it will." Her legs failed and she collapsed to her knees. The sound was painful as they struck the stone floor. "I'll be nothing. What will I be?"

"You'll be Cinder. And you'll have people who care about you." He dragged his thoughts back to their agreed approach. "Cinder, will you something for me?"

The tween's yellow eyes widened even further. Rhodes cares about me. He kept my secrets. He gave me a gift, his own weapon. He trained me. He's the only one who's ever done things for me.

"A favor for you." And now he wants me to do something for him.

"Yes. It's a favor. For me."

Anything. She thought. Anything. Ask me anything. She inhaled with a shudder. Nodded.

"I need you to go with Garek and Selene, to listen to them. I have to stay here, to remove suspicion." He held up a hand at her fear. "Only for a while, I promise."

Anything, but that? She closed her eyes and swallowed, choking down acid that tried to rise up her throat. "Okay," she whispered. "I'll do it. I'll do it for you."

"Cinder," the woman spoke. "Will they know if you leave with the necklace on?"

She looked at the woman. "If I go more than three or four blocks, I'll be punished. Even if Madame is asleep." She shuddered. "I made a mistake once. She was angry. She punished me more after."

"And if we attempt to remove it?"

She fingered the necklace jerkily. "I tried once… I… that too."

The woman was angry. Cinder had never seen anyone so angry before. Rhodes just seemed to be in pain. "Three or four blocks," Selene said. "That's far enough. Do you have anything you wish to take with you?"

Cinder looked around the bare space with its moldy pillow and threadbare bedding. Then to her hiding space. "My… Mr. Rhodes sword."

"Yours, Cinder. Your sword," he said. Cinder made a small sound.

"Very well." Selene walked to the corner, tapping on her scroll.

"We have to move quickly, Cinder." Rhodes said. "Selene and I will open the side exit, and we will meet Garek there. They will hide you and take you somewhere safe. I'll return to my room here to avoid suspicion."

"You'll come later?" Golden yellow eyes trusted.

"After. After they have gotten you out of Atlas."

Out of Atlas. What did that even mean? Mantle? "Where will we go?"

"Mistral." Cinder didn't know where that was. Was it outside the city walls? Rhodes smiled at her, put a hand on her shoulder. "You'll be safe. And happy. Listen to Garek and Selene and do exactly as they tell you. Okay?"

"I… I'll be good," she promised.

They moved quickly after that. Rhodes had brought two thick, used cloaks with him, throwing over the thin girl both against the cold and to bulk up her apparent size. Quietly they made their way through the kitchens, empty and silent at the late hour. Cinder found her legs trembling as they approached the side door. Her shoulders and neck ached with the anticipation of pain.

What waited on the other side of the door?

The door opened a crack, words were exchanged, and it opened further, and the woman slid through.

Cinder hesitated, felt Rhodes hug her, and she tensed. He'd never done that before. It felt final. "Be a good girl for me, okay? Go with Selene and Garek."

"Come Cinder," the woman said at the same time.

Rhodes smiled and nodded as Cinder looked back. The woman's hand gently drew her through the open door. It closed behind her.

What will I be without you?

The woman, Selene, held her arm. The other man, the Huntsman Garek, stood tensely by the door in the shadows. His eyes glinted in the darkness. "This way."

They walked briskly down the alley, then one street, crossed another alley. Cinder began to shake. Too far. Too far. The pain. The pain would come soon. Suddenly the woman's hand halted her. "Here."

There was a vehicle parked in the alley with its trunk open. Inside was a large wheeled suitcase. "It's going to be a little cramped, but you won't be in here very long," the woman said. Cinder's stomach twisted. This felt… this felt wrong. Dangerous. Who were these people? What would they do to her?

The woman spoke again. "Cinder, it's okay, remember? Rhodes told you to listen to us, right?"

Rhodes. Yes, she had promised, hadn't she? To be good. To listen to them.

Even if the thought of climbing into that case made her sick to her stomach.

Cinder did so with shaking limbs and sat, face pale and eyes wide. She felt soft gloved fingers slide under the necklace at both her throat, and the back of her neck. There was barely space between the metal and her flesh for it.

She could not see, but Garek could, a hard black film form over both hands, insulating Cinder from the choker. Cinder felt a simultaneous tug, combined with a brief moment where her spine arched as familiar pain lanced through her. She whimpered once.

Then nothing.

Cinder heard a soft hiss and cry as the woman threw the thing into a dumpster nearby and shook her own hands. Then the man gently pressed Cinder down into the case, folding her sideways into the same curled position she had often found herself after punishment.

But there was no pain here. Only darkness, as the case was zipped closed around her. A soft thump as the trunk closed. Two doors clicking closed. Then a rumble. And movement.

She couldn't tell how long it lasted. The air grew close and stale, overly warm with her own breath. But no pain.

She heard the trunk open. She heard a grunt and felt her world shift as someone lifted the case from the vehicle. A thump as it was set down and a muttered apology. Vibration and movement again as it was tilted and wheeled forward. She heard muffled conversations with other voices as they paused briefly.

But still no punishment. How far had they gone now? Were they still at the Glass Unicorn?

More feeling of movement. This time upward with mechanical sounds, then forward again. A door opened and closed, a lock clicked.

"Leave the lights down. We don't want to blind her," the man's voice sounded slightly muffled.

She felt the case gently lowered to the floor, and the zipper moved. Soft light and cool air entered. She took deep breaths, savoring the feel. She stayed curled up, blinking, as the case was fully opened. The woman smiled at her softly. "You're safe for now, you can come out."

Cinder lay still, eyes covering what she could see of the room. It was smaller than the ones at the Glass Unicorn. There was a single window with shades drawn. A single entrance door. Another door to the side. A counter and sink as if it had a small kitchen. A table to eat at with four chairs. Two beds near the window.

"It's okay, sit up, your legs must be cramped."

Cinder tried to move and found her limbs were already stiff. The woman, Selene, helped her stagger up and out of the suitcase.

"Where?" she wondered.

"We are in a hotel. A different hotel." The man, Garek, explained. "Other side of town. One where no one knows you, and no one saw you come in. We've put a flag on the door not to be disturbed. As long as we don't make a lot of noise you should be safe here."

Safe.

Her fingers traveled up to her chest, to her neck. The skin was scarred in spots, but there was nothing else there. She ran her fingers across from throat to chest several times.

What am I now? She looked around the room. The counter was clean. The floors too. The beds were neatly made up. She turned slowly, eyes flicking from the two adults to the broader room. The side door was slightly ajar, and she could see what looked like a bathroom there. There was a crumpled scrap of wrapper on the floor, just under one of the beds beside the leg. It had clearly been missed when the room was cleaned. She shuddered, and quickly scurried to pick it up and put it in a nearby bin.

Then she stood for a moment with shoulders hunched. Waiting.

She heard a soft sound behind her. "Gods," the woman whispered.

"Cinder…"

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I messed up already."

"No… it's okay. We aren't… we aren't like Madame." Selene moved forward, then knelt, and Cinder felt soft hands on her arms, turning her around to face them. Not the clawed grip of Madame.

"What do you want me to do?" Cinder pleaded. She'd done what they had wanted. She'd done what Rhodes had told her to do. She needed to know what to do next. She needed them to tell her, so she didn't misbehave.

"Yes. I see." Selene sighed. Was she disappointed? "Very well then, child. Cinder, you will listen to my instructions, yes?" Cinder nodded, golden yellow eyes intent. "It is very late, and we are all tired. I have bought some night clothes for you. They are folded up in the bathroom. You will take a shower and wash your hair, and change into those. And then, you will return to this room, to that bed." Cinder's eyes widened, flicking between the two adults. "Where you will sleep until we waken you." She paused for a moment. "Garek and I will sleep in the other bed."

That… that sounded okay. A shower. And clean clothes. And a bed to herself. A real bed. "Yes ma'am," Cinder said, and hurried to the other room.

Selene could only sit on the bed in stunned silence.

"I'm going to fucking kill someone," Garek muttered. Possibly that fucking Madame. Possibly Rhodes. Maybe the entire Atlas Council.

"Quiet. She might take you literally, love. I don't think she'd appreciate you speaking of him that way."

Garek flinched. "Sorry."

She put her face in her hands. "Gods. That was. Gods."

"The sooner we are out of this godsforsaken city, the happier I'll be."

Maybe Mother isn't wholly wrong. Selene mused sourly. This is… was the division between sides in this war so clear cut? No, even Garek had allowed as much, but there was much good as well. Destruction was not the solution. "What do we now?"

"Now we get some sleep as well." Selene started, then nodded and began changing into her own night clothes. "My nerves are wrecked." Garek continued. "Next couple days, we lay low. They aren't going to organize search parties for one waif, so as long as we aren't out in public, we're safe. And if Rhodes is right, suspicion may fall on him for a bit, but there's no evidence against him and he's still there at the Unicorn. He's even planning to act pissed that his 'favorite servant' is not there to service his room." He chuckled dryly. "I hope he gives them five kinds of shit over that." He started changing too. "Then we drive back to the private field and Charlie gives us that ride back down to Mantle." Deep breath. "From there, things should get easier. BA said the topside Atlas docks would be the highest risk for checking IDs and luggage. We're skipping all that. BA has transport lined up for us already from the Mantle docks back to Argus."

They turned the covers down, and both climbed into the larger bed, Garek against the wall and Selene with her back to him. She curled against him, "Hold me," she whispered, and he draped an arm over her, drawing her closer. "Shivering slightly, she closed her eyes. She needed that. To feel a trusted person against her.

A few minutes later, she heard the soft click of the bathroom door open, then close again. Feet padded and bedding shifted as a thin body slid into the first real bed it had experienced in two years.

"Goodnight Cinder," Selene whispered.

There was a long pause.

"Goodnight Ma'am," came the quiet reply.

On the other side of Atlas, in a very posh hotel, there was the sound of a woman screeching and cursing in the wee hours of the morning. Feet stormed the empty halls of the hotel for several hours, accompanied by muttered vows of punishment.

Some of the guests of the Glass Unicorn had their sleep disturbed by this, and planned to lodge complaints the next morning, maybe even demanding recompense.

One guest in particular however, lay on top of the covers of his oversized bed, bare-chested and wearing only pyjama bottoms. His hands were folded behind his head on the pillow, and his eyes held no hint of sleep in them as he listened to the beautiful music of a certain woman's rage. He felt a cheshire grin grow as he gazed at the dark ceiling.

"Goodnight, Cinder, " Rhodes whispered.

[A/N] I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I rewatched Midnight several times, and spent a lot of time thinking about the transition Cinder underwent during the flashback portion of that episode, and tried to strike a balance in the narrative between her treatment having a clear impact, but not allowing the abuse to continue long enough to railroad her down the path we saw in canon. It also needed, from a narrative standpoint, to have enough impact to galvanize two strangers to be willing to risk their own plans and safety to save her.

Of course, this introduces a whole new set of complications, and ones that will play nicely into the overall story. Have they caught Cinder early enough such that the trauma won't set her down the path that canon spun for us? Or will a future traumatic event put her feet firmly on it yet again? How will they deal with a third person in their travels?