Author's Note: Enjoy!

Ironwood stared at his scroll in disbelief. The fact that he was getting a message from Taiyang was shocking enough, the two hadn't spoken in years, and it was a surprise to see that the Veteran Huntsman had retained his contact information. The subject of the message however, was a major cause for concern.

Tyrian Callows… here? According to everything that they had been able to dig up, he was supposed to be in Vacuo, hiding out somewhere in the desert where no one could find him. He had tasked an entire team of Specialists to hunt him down, only to now find out it was a complete waste of time.

James' first instinct was to not believe him, as much as he loathed how his response was to doubt an ally, the finest intelligence operatives in Atlas had assured him that Callows was in Vacuo. The pictures that Taiyang sent removed his doubts however, along with his faith in his own information network. There was no doubt that the man in the pictures was Callows, and the fact that he was here, chasing down Qrow and Winter, finally confirmed their fears that he was working for Salem. While they had always known Callows was unstable, that fact had also made him unpredictable and they weren't willing to risk assuming his motives.

James swore internally, stashing his Scroll away and setting a course back for his ship. He'd been in the process of speaking with the various professors and staff that worked there, subtly questioning them on their thoughts about the Headmaster and the school. Some had nothing but praise, others voiced their own petty grudges about the man, but a few of the older professors had quite worrisome things to say.

The Huntsmen of the last generation were more perceptive, they had noticed the growing shortage of Huntsmen, even if they hadn't pieced together that fact yet. They had also noticed the concerning tendencies of their coworkers and fellow colleagues; bribes, poor etiquette, questionable after hour activities. While none of it was grounds for termination, it was something that he never would have allowed in Atlas and something that, up until recently, he would have expected Lionheart to have dealt with.

The things that the older Huntsmen said about the Headmaster worried him more however, the generous ones described him as tired while the more honest ones described him as incompetent; they didn't out right say it, but their lack of faith was clear from the way they differed to each other rather than him. Haven was less a school run by a Headmaster, and more a school ran by consensus. It was likely that fact alone that had allowed Haven to still produce competent Huntsmen at all, though he was seriously questioning the quality of those still remaining in the Kingdom if Haven was the best they had to offer.

It was clear to him that Lionheart was not the right choice for Headmaster of Haven academy, not that Ozpin would ever agree with him. Maybe the man had once been the brave and strong Huntsmen his friend claimed him to be, but there was no sign of that man now. Whether he had been turned or not was yet to be revealed, but the fact remained that he had allowed all of this to happen and hadn't asked a single one of them for help. James would have sent an entire army to aid him had he asked, Ozpin would have sent his best agents as well. Hell, even Theodore would have done something to help their comrade, but the fact remained that he had not asked, nor had he warned them of his precarious situation.

Incompetence, complacency, or perhaps just fear of what they might say or do had kept him from reaching out; that was if James was being blind to the revelations Pyrrha had brought to light. Cinder had used Haven to infiltrate Beacon, that was something beyond just sheer incompetence, and James couldn't believe it had been unintentional, he refused to.

He hadn't seen anyone matching Cinder's description when walking the school grounds, although he very much doubted that she would allow herself to be seen by him. From how Pyrrha described the woman, she was far too intelligent to risk such an action for little gain. She would likely be staying as far away from him as possible, a rather unfortunate fact considering how he wished to confirm her presence at the school. It seemed that they would have to rely on Pyrrha's word alone, and while James trusted the girl, his trust was stretching thin.

He would need to reevaluate his own men to guarantee their loyalty, as well as the men he had planned to take to Vale during the festival. In the meantime, he would need to begin setting up a task force to root Tyrian and his associate out from the shadows. Thankfully, he had brought some of his best, and he had been meaning to set up a new unit to support Ozpin's agents for some time. It was a bit ahead of schedule, but he could make it work. He would need to speak with Ozpin about informing them of the truth regarding Salem.

Honesty would be crucial moving forward, if he lied to them, then they would always be at risk of turning against him if someone told them the truth. Loyalty mattered, but it went both ways. If he wanted agents he could trust, they would need to be able to trust him. Something he often wondered if Ozpin understood or not.

Sitting at his desk, James began the arduous task of recalling those that he had sent out into the city. As he began drawing up the necessary paperwork to conceal their soon to be new assignment, he tried to ignore the terrifying question in the back of his mind.

How many more traitors hid in their midst?

Taiyang stormed out the front door of the bar, startling Pyrrha due to the force behind it. She had stayed out front to watch for any sign of the two whom they were looking for, while he had gone in to ask questions. Judging by the sour expression on his face, he had been unable to get the answers he wanted, Pyrrha clenched her fist at their lack of progress. He had been so confident that they would be able to work with what they found on the hard drive, but so far they had come up empty handed.

Not a single person they had spoken with had seen Callows or anyone fitting the description of the second man. It was just like when they were looking for Qrow; Pyrrha was starting to get the impression that they were lying. It didn't make sense that no one would notice them. Winter was a Schnee and thus fairly noticeable, and yet not a single person had seen her. The man they were looking for now was a wanted criminal and not a single person had noticed him.

"Why don't we go ask the barkeeper again? The one who gave us the address for the clinic." Pyrrha tried to reason, at least he had been helpful.

"We would be putting him in a lot of danger if we did." Taiyang explained, his own irritation starting to show through his voice. "But we might not have a…" He stopped speaking suddenly, and when she looked back she saw that he had stopped walking as well, his eyes transfixed ons something ahead of them. When she looked she saw a small group of people standing outside a bar, all watching them closely.

Looking back towards him in confusion she started to ask what was wrong before a voice called out towards them.

"You're looking for someone, right?" Turning back around she saw a man approach them from the crowd, a small emblem of a spider was tattooed on his shoulder. Two more stepped from the crowd, standing on either side of the man. "We might just be able to help yo-"

"Is Malachite still in charge?" Taiyang stepped forward to stand beside her, looking the man up and down.

Said man seemed surprised and equally annoyed with having been interrupted, responding with his own critical glance. Whatever he saw clearly unnerved him because he took a step back.

"Y-yeah, she-"

"Not interested." Taiyang turned towards her. "Come on, there are a few more places we can check."

"Hey!" The man snapped at them, seemingly having regained some of his confidence. Looking around, Pyrrha noted that he had been joined by the rest of his friends and that they had formed a small crowd around them. "We're trying to help you, whoever you're looking-"

"Let's go." Taiyang stepped forward towards the man suddenly, causing him to stumble backwards slightly before one of the men behind him caught him, and Pyrrha followed closely behind.

As they stepped from the crowd Pyrrha watched the group from the corner of her eye, expecting them to make some kind of attack as soon as their backs were effectively turned, only they never did. As Tai led them down another side street, breaking line of sight with the group, Pyrrha allowed herself to relax somewhat, the confusion about what just happened finally coming to the front of her mind.

"Who were they?"

"Members of the local syndicate, they've been eyeing us since the moment we walked into the city." Taiyang explained, forcing Pyrrha to think for a moment. She had seen the tattoo on a few people so far and, while she had assumed it to be some kind of gang marking, she hadn't realized that they were watching them; but the more she thought on it, the more she noticed it. The group that had been guarding the entrance into the city had had the same tattoo, as did most of the guards at the bigger bars. "They know we're looking for someone, and so they were planning to sell us some information."

"Then…" Pyrrha hesitated slightly. They didn't have any leads on Qrow or his pursuers, they had been walking blindly through the lowest levels since they left Yatsuhashi's house hoping to find some kind of trail to follow; but there hadn't been one. "Why don't we listen to what they have to say?"

"Because you can't trust people like that." Taiyang responded. "Malachite might know something, maybe, but she might also tell the people who are hunting them where we are. It's not worth the risk."

"We're running out of time." Pyrrha bit her lip as Tai remained silent. "We have to do something, and wandering around the city hoping to find someone who saw them isn't working. Qrow doesn't have long-"

"I know, Pyrrha." Tai didn't yell, but the tone of his voice drove her to silence. "You're right, we're running out of time." Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair. "We'll go talk with her, see what she knows, but stay on your toes. If they've already bought her out then… at least they'll come looking for us."

Pyrrha nodded softly, it wasn't ideal by any means, but if there was any hope of finding a solid lead she wouldn't shy away from the danger. They would either get information that could lead them in the right direction or they would get the chance to set up a trap… they would just have to be the bait.

Pyrrha was surprised to see just how busy the tavern was, though on closer inspection, she noticed that everyone inside wore similar colors, and appeared to have the same tattoo somewhere on their body. Several of them turned from whatever they were doing to watch them when they entered.

As they stepped in, the crowds separated somewhat, marking a clear path they were meant to follow towards the back, where a woman sat, flanked on either side by guards.

"That's far enough." The woman held up a hand.

Tai didn't stop, instead pulling out the chair and sitting down. "It's been a while, Malachite."

The woman glared at him for a moment, before her eyes widened in a moment of recognition. "I can't say I ever expected to see you again, not after that nasty business with your ex." Tai's shoulders stiffened and he clenched his fists, Pyrrha rested one of her hands on her hilt as the two guards standing behind the table mimicked her actions.

After a moment Tai relaxed slightly, sitting back in his chair with a forced sense of calm. "I'm looking for someone."

The woman smirked, flicking open a small folding fan and sitting back. "Of course you are, why else would you come to see me. Certainly not to catch up with old friends."

"I was under the impression things were supposed to stay professional, Malachite." Pyrrha was shocked by the anger behind Tai's words. She hadn't known him long but had kept a calm attitude in an extremely stressful circumstance, to see him get angry so quickly was unsettling.

"Of course," The woman's smile only grew more smug. "Who is it yo-"

"Tyrian Callows." Tai spoke quickly. "He's with someone else but I don't have a name. A large ma-"

"That will be quite enough," The woman's smug expression had fallen away and been replaced by a look of irritation. "If you are going to go out of your way to be rude then I see no reason I should help you."

The two met each other's gaze for a moment before Tai sighed. "Forgive me, It's been a stressful couple of days."

"I can imagine." The woman didn't look pleased, but she wasn't ordering them to leave and so Pyrrha took that as a good sign. "There haven't been any sightings of Callows in the kingdom. Who is he traveling with?" Tai gave as good a description as he could, part way through the woman seemed fairly convinced she knew who it was. "Hazel Rainart, another client of mine."

Pyrrha gripped her handle hard enough to turn her knuckles white, but no one made a move against them. In fact, most of the people in the bar had turned their attention towards anything aside from them.

"If he's working with Callows, then he can't be trusted." Tai responded.

"I'll judge my clients for myself, thank you very much!" The woman snapped back. "But I do agree that Tyrian Callows is bad for business. Thankfully, I have done nothing to attract his madness onto myself."

"They're cover has been blown." Tai said. "They'll be taking care of loose ends before too long." The woman didn't seem worried, but she listened closely. "They attacked a Huntsmen friend of mine, along with an-"

"Atlesian Specialist, I know." The woman said.

Pyrrha grit her teeth. "How did you know? Did yo-"

"Missy, nothing goes on in this city without me knowing, and you'll do good to not interrupt when the grown ups are talking." Though she spoke to Pyrrha she never looked away from Tai. "He is one man, and if he does come for me, I have an army to protect me."

"What about when Ironwood comes knocking?" Tai asked, and the woman once again listened carefully. "When he figures out you gave up information that got one of his most trusted agents killed, he'll hunt your organization for the rest of your life."

"You would sell out an old friend?" The woman glared at Tai once more, the guards stepping out from behind the table slightly so that they would be able to strike at them.

"James is a smart man, he'll figure it out eventually." Tai met her gaze.

The silence returned, this time spread through the entire building as everyone waited to see what would happen. The woman smiled once more. "Well I must say, you have melted my heart. What would you like to know?"

"Where are they hiding?" Tai asked.

"Is that all?" The woman looked disappointed. "I wasn't lying to you when I said there was no sign of Callows, but that alone is sign enough. If that psycho is in the city, then someone would have said something. The fact no one has either means he's outside the city or is… removing any potential witnesses. It just so happens that there has been a rise in disappearances and a small increase in murder cases."

"Small for now." Tai stated.

"Indeed, I'm sure they will be digging the bodies up for years to come."

"Wouldn't that attract attention?" It took Pyrrha a moment to realize she was the one who had spoken.

"She's a bit naive for you, isn't she?" The woman asked Tai, chuckling softly at his glare in response. "No one cares if a few of the… riff raff go missing, they'll be long gone before anyone comes snooping. Especially considering the state of things."

"The state of things?"'

"Let us focus on one issue at a time shall we?" The woman waited for Tai to nod before continuing. "There are a few places within the city one could go to hide prisoners or… bodies. Most are on the old east side, the storms always leave such a mess over there and people can't always be bothered to clean up their messes. That's where I'd look."

"Thank you." Tai stood from his chair, turning and walking out before Pyrrha could say anything.

"Do tell Branwen I said hello." The woman called after them, her laughter echoing out the door until it was eventually drowned out by the sound of falling rain.

Qrow took in a ragged breath, coughing as his throat burned from the action. He attempted to reach for his flask, only to be unable to move his arms. His momentary panic subsided; however, when he remembered where he was, the ropes that secured him to the chair he sat on dug into his wrists as he once more tried to slip out of them to no avail.

Looking around the room, he tried to see if anything had changed while he'd been unconscious. His eyes struggled against him, his face beaten and bruised in such a way that it was difficult to keep them open. Despite that, he was able to tell that he was still in the same dingy basement. Looking a few feet in front of him, he could see that he wasn't alone at least.

Winter had taken her fair share of beatings as well, the two bastards had asked a few sparse questions, but Callows had simply reveled in their misery. Neither of them said anything to their captors of course, though that fact wasn't surprising. Winter was able to take a remarkable amount of pain despite the fact that she was suffering worse than him.

Judging by the way she looked though, it was getting worse. The spot on her thigh where she had been stabbed was still covered in blood, but the bandage had held and the anti-venom had done its work. When they had been captured she'd been stung again though, and again, and again, it was a miracle she wasn't dead. As he watched her, he noted how still she was and, fearing the worst, Qrow forced himself to speak.

"Winter," His voice was raspy and weak, but it echoed through the dark room well enough. "You still with me?" She didn't make a sound, nor did she move. "Winter!"

She jolted somewhat, lifting her head slightly to try and look at him. He saw her eyes from behind her hair for a brief moment before her strength gave out and her head dipped once more.

"Just hang on w-" The door creaked open, the sound drowning out Qrow's voice.

"Are you ready to talk?" Qrow hadn't recognized the large man when he attacked them, unlike his partner he wasn't an internationally infamous psychopath, and he didn't seem quite as mad as either. Though, Qrow supposed anyone who willingly worked for Salem was mad in some way. "So it seems we'll have to continue this then…"

He sounded displeased with that fact, as if the choice were out of his hands, despite whatever reluctance may be there he stepped forward towards Winter and grabbed a fist full of her hair, pulling her head up and causing her to cry out at the sudden pain. The shock seemed to bring some level of clarity back to her and Qrow recognized the fire that burned in her eyes. Their torturer recognized that look of defiance as well and sighed.

"If you wanna know about Oz, you're asking the wrong one." Qrow smirked slightly. He may not have known the man's name, but he had learned one thing. Mentioning Ozpin's name drove him mad, whatever questions he was supposed to be asking were forgotten as he let go of Winter's hair and moved over towards Qrow, wrapping his hand around his throat.

"Why do you work for him!?" The man screamed at them, the ringing in his ears hurting nearly as much as the hand cutting off his air supply. "What did you tell him!?"

Qrow's vision slowly began to turn dark, the hand finally let go and he gasped for air. A moment later he felt something strike his stomach and drive his breath away once more. As Qrow struggled for breath he looked up enough to see Winter staring back at him.

"Y-you know... Ozpin always said you'd hit a lot harder tha-" Qrow's taunt was cut off as the man kicked him in the chest, launching him and the chair he was tied to back and smashing into the ground. "W-was it… something I said?"

Qrow smirked again, so long as he was focused on him it was fine. Winter had been through enough because of him and he could take it, it was the least he could do for getting her into that situation in the first place.

Author's Note: I'm not entirely sure if I've done Hazel's character right. I've tried to angle it in the same way the show does with the reluctant action unless it involves Ozpin but… eh, we'll see what everyone says.

Lastly, this story is officially a year old! They grow up so fast!

Other than that, I hope you enjoy and as always leave a review to let me know what you think.

Sincerely, SE