Author's Note: Better late than never, right?

Salem couldn't be killed. Pyrrha still struggled to fully understand the idea, the thing that was behind Cinder's attack on Beacon, the root cause of her own death, was unkillable. The idea that there wouldn't be an end to the conflict terrified her, as it clearly had everyone else who learned it. The fact that the Headmaster had kept it a secret for so long only helped to reinforce that idea.

The question now was what to do next. The Headmaster had let her leave after telling her, for the same reason that he had told her friends to go. She thought she had gotten past the feeling of world shattering revelations, but clearly she'd been wrong. Now she was wandering the halls of Beacon trying to figure out what it meant. If Salem couldn't be killed, could they even win?

As bad as Cinder was, she could still be killed. Once Pyrrha was strong enough, she would be able to fight her and win, removing the person responsible for the attack on Beacon and Vale. As much as she hated to admit it, Pyrrha knew she would take satisfaction in that act, but that was just one battle. If they won at Beacon, then what?

Her knowledge of the future would be gone, and they would be forced to act without any idea of what was coming next, and there would always be something else. If Salem was truly unkillable, then there would be another attack at some point, and then another, and another. Maybe it wouldn't happen soon, perhaps not for years to come, but it inevitably would. Possibly one day when Pyrrha was unable to fight back, Salem would strike, because if she couldn't die, then time was always going to be on her side.

The news was devastating, knowing that their war would never be over, that everything would never return to what it had been when she had first arrived at Beacon. What was she supposed to do now? Her entire reason for fighting had been to try and get things back to the way they were, and while she didn't know if she would be Jaune's partner this time around, she was determined to be honest about her feelings this time around.

What was the point now? Salem would come for her, eventually, and if she got close to Jaune, then he would be in danger too. If he ever learned the truth it would be worse, all of her friends were safer as far away from her as possible, and she had just told Team CFVY about Salem. How was she supposed to tell them the truth now?

She'd roped them into an impossible to win war, just like the Headmaster had with her.

Pyrrha stopped where she stood, looking down the hallways in the direction of Team CFVY's dorm. She hadn't been certain why, but after she had learned the truth she had started heading towards them, agonizing over how to tell them what she had learned. She had taken the longer path through Beacon at first, deciding to circle the dorm building itself a couple times before entering. Even with all the time that she had bought herself, she was no closer to figuring out how to tell them.

Turning around, she set her mind on something else. Telling them the truth would have to come another time, whenever she could clear her head. Besides, they had enough to worry about as it was. She knew how much they would struggle with the little bit they had been told already. With her secret finally revealed, it would take time for them to process it… time that she could use to figure out what to do next.

She at least understood now why Ironwood had been so different, he had somehow learned the truth. Judging from the way he had glared at the Headmaster, it hadn't been from him either. How would the General respond? Would he lose hope as the Headmaster feared she would? Or would he turn towards Salem like Lionheart had?

Remembering his request to speak with her, she considered doing so, but quickly decided against it. She trusted him, he had never given her any reason not to, but she wasn't of sound mind at the moment and she doubted he was either. Whatever he wished to discuss could wait, it would give them both the time they needed.

"Amber!" Pyrrha looked up from the ground, turning just in time to see Ruby materialize in front of her in a cloud of rose petals. "I was looking for you, Uncle Qrow said you'd probably be with Coco and them but when I went to their dorm you weren't there, and they didn't know where you were, and then I went to your dorm and you weren't there either and-" Ruby continued to ramble, Pyrrha's plastic smile growing genuine as she watched her friend. "So I thought, 'hey, maybe she'd be at the rings' but you weren't there either and I ran into some older students and they were kind of mean and-"

Pyrrha's smile died instantly. "Who?"

Ruby froze. "Um, what did I say? I kind of… lost track." She chuckled nervously. "That happens sometimes, when I can't filter what I'm thinking and what I'm saying. Yang says it's cute." The younger girl's pout made it clear what she thought of that idea, even though Yang was absolutely right.

Pyrrha ignored it all; however, her mind set on a far more important task. "Who was being mean to you?"

"They weren't being mean really." Ruby fidgeted under her gaze, rubbing her foot into the pathway. "They thought I was a student and were just laughing about how young I was… they didn't think I should be here."

Pyrrha's blood began to boil; it had been an issue in her past life as well. A few of the students, first year and older, had seen Ruby as nothing more than a child. Even the girl's partner had dismissed her at first, although Weiss eventually grew to accept her. Those in their class had come to see Ruby as more than strong enough to be there, but the older students hadn't ever seen her fight.

"What did they look like?" Pyrrha would have to take care of it before it became an issue.

Ruby stomped her foot softly. "I don't need you looking after me too, Yang is bad enough as it is."

Pyrrha paused, watching her friend closely. Ruby had never been comfortable being seen as something special, despite the fact that she most assuredly was. She had a habit of thinking the best of everyone, that everyone else put forth the same amount of effort as she did, but that just wasn't true. Beyond that she was kind and gave everyone the benefit of doubt. She was something special, everyone had noticed that, and if Pyrrha felt protective of her… well, she couldn't be blamed for that.

The idea of some snobby older students looking down on her?

"I recognize that look." Ruby stared back at her with a flat expression. "That's the 'I'm contemplating punching them in the face' look."

Pyrrha blushed softly, coughing into her fist in an attempt to distract both herself and Ruby. "Well… they shouldn't be rude to you."

"They're right though." Ruby shrugged. "I won't actually be in Beacon for a few more years."

Pyrrha smiled knowingly. "Well, as I've said before, it comes sooner than you may expect." Her smile disappeared however as her mind once again returned to the turmoil she had been struggling over.

Ruby noticed her mood shift instantly. "Are you okay?" For all her social awkwardness, she was oddly perspective when it came to people's emotions.

"I'm fine." Ruby stared back at her, clearly unconvinced. "I've just got a lot on my mind right now."

"Does it have something to do with your mission to rescue Uncle Qrow?" Ruby asked.

Pyrrha nodded her head, though it wasn't quite true it was close enough, and despite her desire to be honest, she was quickly beginning to question if the Headmaster hadn't had the right idea. Some things may have been better off as secrets, left unknown to the masses. Forgotten.

She remembered something suddenly, reaching out to grab Ruby's wrist. "I want to show you something."

Turning, Pyrrha didn't let go of the smaller girl's wrist, nearly dragging her for a moment before Ruby got her feet moving. She didn't object however, following behind in relative silence.

Pyrrha followed the path that she could only vaguely remember from her dreams, a place she was certain she had never actually visited in either of her lives. Still, she hoped that it was more than just something her mind made up, for Ruby's sake. If this had been anything more than a spur of the moment decision, she would have checked in advance, but as distracted as she was the memory had only just come to her.

Eventually they found the building she was looking for, set off from the main path and closer to the Bullhead docks than the actual school. Stepping in through the doors Pyrrha held her breath momentarily, looking at the wall before smiling at the familiar sight. Wherever she had been before coming back, that Ruby had shown her this place. It was a place Pyrrha was certain she'd never been and yet it was exactly as she recalled it.

Ruby stepped in behind her, taking in the wall with awe. Row upon row of pictures lay before them, depicting victors of previous Vytal Tournaments. As they stared, Pyrrha set herself to looking for one specifically, finding it after only a few moments of looking. Ruby had been enthralled by the photo during her time before coming back, and it hadn't been difficult to see why.

Gesturing towards the photo, Pyrrha watched Ruby freeze up. Her mouth opened and closed rapidly as she struggled to speak. "T-thats…"

"Team STRQ." Pyrrha confirmed, despite the age difference, Qrow and Tai looked almost exactly the same. They were smaller, and neither looked as tired as they did now and each of the four in the photo looked happy. Regardless of the changes, it was still clearly them.

Ruby traced her fingers across the frame gentiley, a watery smile working itself onto her face as she wiped a hand against her eye. Pyrrha pretended not to notice the fact that it came away wet.

"It looks like they won the tournament once." Pyrrha said, though she was fairly confident Ruby had already figured that out given the location the photo had been taken at, Amity Arena being a noticeable background. "They must have been strong."

While Ruby stared at the photo in silence, Pyrrha allowed her eyes to wander to the other photos on the wall. Most depicted people that she didn't recognize, but she was fairly certain that she saw a few of the professors when they were students themselves. Steadily, her eyes came to linger upon one photo in particular, and as she focused a bit more carefully, she had to resist the urge to gasp.

The last time that she had stood here, back when Ruby hadn't been even real, Pyrrha had seen Amber in one of the photos. This time however, Amber was nowhere to be seen, and where she had once stood was a woman that Pyrrha didn't recognize. She looked similar to Amber, but there were clear differences. Her hair was a bit darker, her skin lighter, but above all else her eyes were a red colour. She felt some kind of familiarity when looking at her, but she was certain she had never met the woman before.

Shaking her head, Pyrrha tried not to think too much about it. The small discrepancy had likely been a side effect of her mind playing tricks on her. Her entire memory of that place was clouded and difficult to understand at times, and trying to think on it too hard usually caused her head to hurt somewhat.

Something collided with her chest, drawing Pyrrha's attention back towards the present.

"Thank you." Ruby mumbled into her chest, her arms tightening around her. Pyrrha returned the embrace, but said nothing. "Dad doesn't talk about mom much anymore; it still hurts him, you know?" Ruby pulled away, looking back at the photo for a moment before smiling. "It's good to remember she was happy."

Pyrrha opened her mouth to speak, her scroll interrupting her before she could. Pulling it up and answering, Qrow stared back at her.

"I just had a little chat with Ozpin." The slight undertone in his voice made her suspect the subject of said chat. "Winter and I are heading out for drinks, are you interested?"

She took a moment to think. Her time with Ruby had helped to calm her down slightly, but the idea of going out for a drink did sound nice if for no other reason than to forget about it for a brief time. Her mind made up, she nodded.

"Great, I'll shoot you the details." The screen cut to black quickly after, and she stored the device back in her pocket.

"I'm sorry to run-" Pyrrha tried only to be cut off as Ruby waved her hand.

"Uncle Qrow told me about the mission, about how poorly things went." Ruby paused, biting her lip softly as she debated something internally. "Just don't let him overdo it, okay?"

Pyrrha nodded back, checking her scroll as his message arrived. "Do you want me to take you-"

"I'd like to stay a while, if that's all right." Ruby looked back at the photo over her shoulder.

"Of course." Pyrrha nodded, stepping back towards the doorway they had entered through.

Her time with Ruby had helped calm her mind, and she had hoped that the drinks she was sharing with Qrow and Winter would do the same. However, as the number of empty glasses continued to grow, she only felt her concern return. The bar they ended up at was far nicer than Pyrrha would have expected for someone like Qrow, but she figured that was due to Winter more than anything else. The two had been sharing stories back and forth all night, Pyrrha adding one every now and then but mostly sitting and listening to the two far more experienced Hunters.

After they had finished off their latest glasses, Winter stepped away from the table they had reserved to grab a new bottle; the waitress' having kept them waiting for several minutes now. Her absence gave Qrow and Pyrrha a moment of privacy, a moment Qrow used to see how she was taking the news of Salem.

"It's just…" Pyrrha struggled to find the words. "I thought we were past this, keeping secrets I mean."

Qrow grunted, nodding his head aggressively before tipping back his empty glass; glaring at the lack of alcohol inside. "I can't say I'm particularly happy about it either. Oz… the bastard lied to us. To all of us." The vulnerable sound of his voice made it clear there was more there, something that Qorw wasn't telling her, but given the latest revelation she was hesitant to ask.

"What are we supposed to do now?" Pyrrha asked, staring down at the empty bottle she had hoped would offer her some kind of answer.

"What do ya mean?" Qrow looked at her skeptically. "The plan is the same it always was, if you could really call it that."

Pyrrha looked up to him, shaking her head slightly as she tried to clear her mind. "But everything's different now-"

"Nope." Qrow shook his head once. "The plan doesn't change, we use what you know to beat back that Fall bitch and stop the impending collapse of the Kingdom."

"We don't know where Cinder is." Pyrrha gripped her glass tightly. "She knew we were looking into Haven… I know the future and she was still one step ahead of us!" She smashed the glass on the table, causing the bottom to crack.

"Maybe… but things are going to be different now." Qrow tried to convince her. "We have you… and we have the truth."

"Even if we can beat Cinder, and that is an if, what then?" Pyrrha closed her eyes and set her forehead on the table. "Salem will just come back later… she can't be beaten."

"That's where you're wrong, kiddo." Qrow patted her shoulder. "She can't be killed, there's a major difference there. We still have hope, something to fight for, don't forget that." Qrow sighed. "For all his faults, Oz didn't do it to hurt us… he's afraid. The fact he told us at all is a big improvement, you're doing good work. He's been fighting this war longer than any of the kingdoms have even existed, even when he knew she couldn't be killed. He never gave up. Focus on the fight ahead, take it one battle at a time."

"What if Salem is destined to win?"

"Then screw destiny." Winter set the bottle down with little fanfare. What exactly Ironwood had told her remained a secret, though to be fair the three of them had tried to avoid the subject wherever possible. "Inevitable or not, Atlas won't go down without a fight. You can count on the General for that."

"We'll win." Qrow sounded confident, though she attributed that to the drink more than anything. "Today, tomorrow, and however long it takes."

"How can you be so sure?" Pyrrha wished she could share in his confidence, but her own drinks didn't seem to elicit the same feeling.

"Because we don't have a choice." Winter answered for him. "It's fight or die, and I refuse to leave my life in the hands of anyone, destiny included."

"I'll drink to that." Qrow held up his glass, tapping it against Winter's before drinking it.

Winter simply rolled her eyes. "You'll drink to anything."

Pyrrha snickered softly, hiccupping slightly as she tried to hide it behind her hand. Judging by Qrows glare she failed.

"At least this one is for a good cause." Qrow said as he poured himself another drink. "Now, that's enough talk about how we're all doomed. Try to keep up."

"Oh, that shouldn't be too difficult." Winter took the bottle from him, pouring her own drink. "Your liver has to be worn out by now, what with your advanced age."

Qrow growled back, but the slight tug on his lips betrayed any sign of real animosity. "Didn't they teach you to respect your elders?"

"So you admit to being an elder?" Winter smiled victoriously, sliding the bottle towards Pyrrha as she drank her glass. "I'm glad to see you have gained some wisdom in your twilight years."

Qrow glared back at her, gesturing for one of the waiters to come over. "Get me a bottle of the strongest thing you have, I need to show these brats how to drink."

Authors Note: Sorry for the delay, but all of my editors were busy and I refuse to upload without at least one person taking a look. The result is a day late chapter, sue me.

Hope you enjoyed it and as always be sure to review and let me know what you think.

Sincerely SE