Author's Note: Remember how I said I was going to try and upload while I was away for those three weeks? Yeah, that didn't happen. That shit was mentally exhausting. Anyways, hope you enjoy this first chapter back.

Pyrrha did her best to sidestep and avoid all of the citizens as she ran through the crowd, but despite her efforts, she still had a few minor collisions that very nearly knocked people to the ground. There wasn't time to apologize however, and Pyrrha pushed on; careful not to lose sight of her target.

The girl was easily recognizable of course, her pink and brown hair sticking among the crowd of regular citizens, but her short height made it hard to keep an eye on her. She easily hid amongst the crowd, and they could only track her due to her still having Coco's Scroll and Fox's semblance. The shorter girl moved through the crowd with ease, barely causing even the slightest bit of commotion as she ran. Meanwhile Pyrrha and Team CFVY had to force their way through, all the while watching as their target got farther away from them.

"This isn't working." Velvet sent, having just narrowly avoided running into a mother holding her baby. "Chasing someone through a crowd looks so much easier in the movies!"

"We're losing her!" Fox was the worst off; his lack of sight no doubt making the chase all the worse.

"We'll never catch her like this." Coco sent. "Split up, Yatsu take Fox and circle around on the street. We'll try and chase her towards you."

Neither of them argued, Yatsuhashi and Fox quickly separating from the group. Pyrrha, Velvet, and Coco each skid to a halt at the crossroads having lost sight of their target. The path split into several different areas; each packed with people. Pyrrha frantically looked between the crowds, hoping to spot any kind of clue.

"Shit, Fox, which way did she go?" Coco frantically asked.

"I'm not sure, there's too many people."

Pyrrha heard Coco curse softly before turning towards each of them. "Split up, keep in touch if you see anything!"

Pyrrha and Velvet nodded back to her before turning, each going their separate ways as they tried to navigate through the crowds. She received a few odd looks from people, no doubt wondering why she seemed so panicked, but she was gone before they could say anything.

She shook her head in frustration, none of this made any sense. The girl had managed to steal Coco's scroll, and if she could get that close without being noticed, why had she shown herself? The message was clearly meant to taunt her, so was this the same? Was it all a game to her?

Pyrrha growled softly under her breath, her eyes frantically looking around the crowd. It just didn't add up, what was the girl doing following her in the first place if she was going to blow her own cover?

There was a flash of pink hair in the crowd that caught Pyrrha's eye, and a moment later she saw the short girl looking back at her with a smug smile. The look in her mismatched eyes could only be described as amusement, or maybe satisfaction, but it only served to anger the former champion further. She was tired of playing people's games, of being misled and led down paths of failure.

She had managed to cover roughly half the distance before the girl took off once more, this time moving down a side alley with significantly less people. Pyrrha cleared the last remnants of the crowd just as the girl rounded another corner.

Sending a quick warning to her friends of her plan, Pyrrha spared a brief glance behind her to make sure no one was watching before turning back in the direction the girl had run. She took a deep breath, felt the familiar warmth around her eyes, and she leapt off the ground.

Controlling the Maiden powers was still difficult for her, and she hadn't yet grasped the more nuanced aspects of it. Flight was one such thing that didn't come easily to her. Despite Glynda's help, and advice from Ozpin, she had yet to master the seemingly simple matter. Her attempt at levitating quickly gave way to a rapid ascent as she launched herself to the top of the building.

She reached out with one hand as her control finally failed and her magic cut off, barely managing to grab hold of the edge to prevent herself from falling. Pulling herself up was no small task, requiring far more effort than she expected. Despite her exhaustion, she pressed onward, intending to capitalize on the advantage that she had given herself.

The alleyways below only allowed someone to go two ways, and Pyrrha was confident that the girl wouldn't go back towards the festival. Whatever she was planning, the girl seemed to be determined to get as far away from the crowds as possible; something Pyrrha was more than willing to oblige. As she cut across the rooftops, she managed to catch up to the girl quickly.

The streets of Vale were surprisingly empty now, especially considering the large crowds she had seen only minutes ago, but she paid it no mind. Pyrrha had finally closed the distance, after having taken several shortcuts over the alleyways. Her actions hadn't been ignored however, as the girl clearly knew that she was being followed from above.

Pyrrha fired off a small bolt of fire, more as a test to see how the girl would respond than any real desire to hit her. The bolt had been easily dodged, the girl leaping forward and flipping out of danger the moment she had launched the attack. One sharp turn later and Pyrrha finally realized where she was trying to head.

Vale, like all the kingdoms, was very limited when it came to space. With an ever growing population and the modern demands of living that meant the roads could easily get bogged down with traffic, and to combat that, Vale had an extensive subway network located beneath its streets.

Pyrrha fired another attack in an attempt to force her to change course, managing to leave a sizable hole in the concrete walkway but little else as her target disappeared into the station entrance.

"She's going into the subway, I'm going after her!" Pyrrha leapt form the building, using her powers to slow her descent before landing in a roll; springing to her feet she set off for the station.

"Wait for us, we're on our way!" Coco sent back.

"There isn't time." Pyrrha descended the steps quickly, taking them two at a time. "I'll keep her busy while I wait for you and the General's agent."

Pyrrha received no reply as she finally reached the bottom of the stairs, taking the silence as approval, she continued on, slowing down as she reached the platform and looked around for her target. There were a few people standing around waiting for their train, but most paid her no mind. She didn't let her guard down however, knowing that whatever the girl's Semblance was, it could be used to create a convincing disguise.

A train pulled into the station and Pyrrha began to panic. If she didn't find her quickly, she could get away to any part of the city. As the train stopped and its door opened a large crowd stepped off, the few people standing around waited for them to get clear before stepping on.

Pyrrha looked around frantically for any sign of the girl on the platform, but saw no one beside herself standing there. As she looked back to the train, she caught a brief glimpse of pink hair in the final car. She just barely managed to step in before the doors closed, setting off down the train as she tried to warn her friends.

After several long seconds of silence she tried again, only to be met with the same. It didn't take long to figure out why. She was either too far away or, more likely, the subway was too deep underground for her to use Fox's Semblance. Checking her scroll, she saw that she was also disconnected from the CCTS.

She paused before the final car, hesitating to open the door. She hadn't seen anyone acting suspicious on her way through the train, in fact, she'd only seen a couple people on board the train at all; likely due to the festival keeping most people busy at the moment. Opening the door, her heart nearly dropped.

"Not who you were expecting?" Torchwick smirked back at her. "Sorry to disappoint, I'm sure you'll be able to find another cute girl to chase after."

Pyrrha unsheathed Allos along with her shield, but made no move to step forward; instead keeping her back to the closed door. "You're under arrest!"

"How cliché." Torchwick rolled his eyes. "And after I went through all the trouble of setting this little meeting up."

Pyrrha paused, finally realizing why the girl had exposed herself in the first place. She'd wanted to be followed, and she'd managed to split them up with ease. They'd played right into their hand, even following them someplace where she wouldn't be able to call for help; Scroll or otherwise. Glancing around she half expected Cinder to pop out of thin air, after several long seconds of silence however, nothing happened.

"Why?"

Torchwick smiled. "Now that's the million lien question right there." His smile fell away, replaced with a disappointed expression. "Why are you so important? I thought you might be some kind of threat, but you were too easy to trick, and Neo is pretty confident she could beat you."

Pyrrha clenched dher sword tightly. "I won't be that easy to-"

"If Neo said she can, she can." Torchwick stated matter-of-factly, pulling a cigar out from his jacket. "So if that's not it, why did she want to know so much about you?"

Pyrrha's blood ran cold. "Cinder has been asking about me?"

Torchwick seemed surprised by her use of name, but recovered quickly. "A couple months back you were all the rage, paid good lien to find out everything about you… Amber."

Pyrrha sighed in relief, for a moment she had been worried that he had meant recently. The momentary concern for her friends aside, she focused on what his words meant.

"You told her how to find me, didn't you?"

Torchwick shrugged softly. "Business is business, and she was paying good. Was being the key word there."

He'd given Cinder the information she needed to track Amber. It was because of him that Amber had died last time. Pyrrha felt her blood boil now, as she struggled to restrain herself from attacking him.

"Judging from that look on your face she didn't want an autograph." Torchwick quipped. "Judging by the fact you're standing here, I'm guessing you won."

"Where is she?" Pyrrha spoke through gritted teeth.

"She wasn't exactly very forthcoming with her plans, you know." Torchwick pulled a lighter as well.

"Where is Cinder?!" Pyrrha snapped back, her patience having long since burnt away. She was done playing his game.

"I'm afraid Cindy isn't around any more." Torchwick took a long drag from his cigar. "I had thought you might have killed her but… judging from what Neo said, I doubt you could have. Tch." He looked disappointed. "I suppose that was too much to hope for."

Pyrrha didn't know what to say; Had Cinder really changed her plans that much? They hadn't spotted her anywhere, and they knew that she wasn't likely to infiltrate Beacon, but Cinder's new strategy remained a mystery. Torchwick's actions were equally strange, from what Pyrrha could remember, he had played a large part in the Breach that team RWBY had attempted to stop. If he was here, talking to her, did that mean there wouldn't be an attack mid year?

"So that circles back around to my question" Torchwick gestured to her with his cane. "Why are you so important? She talked about you like you were some kind of obstacle, not to be rude, but I don't see it."

Pyrrha thought about it for a moment, debating whether to answer his question. "I have something she wants. Now you answer a question of mine, why go through all this trouble if you aren't working for her anymore?"

Torchwick glared at her. "I don't see any reason I shou-"

"Did she promise you something?" Pyrrha asked. "Because if she did, I promise you won't get it. She's a monster who will kill you the second you're no longer useful." Something clicked in her head as she realized why Vale's most infamous criminal had sought her out. "She's already tried to kill you, hasn't she?"

Torchwick's glare deepened, and he showed his teeth momentarily as he practically chewed on his cigar. She'd been right.

"She won't stop until you're dead." Pyrrha sighed, gesturing towards the scar on her face. "Believe me, I should know."

Torchwick tutted and turned, sliding the back train car door open. "I suppose I'd better keep my head down. Best of luck living."

"Wait!" Pyrrha yelled. "You're just gonna run away?"

He looked back over his shoulder. "Neo and I are going to do whatever it takes to survive." Torchwick answered. "You lot aren't as strong as I had hoped, so I don't think I'll be-"

"I know what she's planning." Pyrrha said, Torchwick paused, and though he didn't fully turn to look at her she knew she had his attention. "If she wins, there isn't anywhere in the world you could hide."

"Mistral… that's where the trail on her ran cold."

Pyrrha sighed, realizing that he didn't know anything she didn't. "She was at Haven, I kn-"

"She was looking for someone." Pyrrha's mouth clicked shut. "Thought it might have been you at first, but clearly not. Whoever it was had something that she wanted though, that's all I've been able to find out so far… I'll be in touch."

Torchwick shattered like glass, leaving Pyrrha alone. Cinder was looking for someone and, judging from where she was looking, it wasn't hard to guess what she was after. The train lurched softly as it began to slow. Pyrrha sheathed her weapon and pulled out her scroll, preparing a message to send to the General.

They had to find the Spring Maiden before Cinder could. Not only if their plan for the relic was going to work, but in order to stop her from getting the power of a Maiden. Cinder was already powerful without the powers of the Spring Maiden, but she was manageable. With the power though?

Pyrrha didn't want to die again.

"So she's going after another Maiden?" Coco asked. She'd rejoined Team CFVY after the train stopped, before making their way back to Beacon. The first thing that she'd done when getting back was to talk with Ironwood, despite Coco's desire to berate her for going after Neo alone.

"It appears so." Pyrrha wished she could stop to talk to her friend, but given what she had learned, she felt rushed. Coco had been waiting for her outside the General's ship, and was following her as she walked towards the Headmasters office.

"So what's the plan then?" It was small talk, even Pyrrha could tell that. Coco wanted to rant at her but kept things professional for now. That fact worried her more however, Coco rarely being one to put off confrontation for any reason.

"Find Spring before they do." Pyrrha replied.

Coco laughed bitterly. "That easy huh?"

Pyrrha came to a halt in front of the elevator leading to the Headmasters office, turning to look at her friend. "We'll talk just as soon as I'm done with the Headmaster, I promise."

"I'll hold you to that." Coco replied. "Or so help me I will hunt you down and drag you back to the dorm myself. Rumors be damned."

Pyrrha nodded, then stepped into the elevator. As she waited for it to reach the top, she couldn't help but think how childish this whole situation was. The reason she was going to see the Headmaster was because Ironwood no longer trusted him. The two men were working towards the same goal, but due to a lack of trust they were doing so without talking to one another. That left Pyrrha to be the middleman.

Ironwood hadn't asked her to of course, and she hadn't told him what she planned to do. Did she feel betrayed by Ozpin's withholding of information? Yes. Was she going to let that stop her from killing Cinder? Not a chance in hell. If there was even a chance Ozpin might know something about Spring that he hadn't told the General, then it was worth it.

The elevator dinged softly as it came to a halt, the door opening as she stepped out.

"Miss Nikos, it's good to see you again." Ozpin sat back in his chair, gesturing to a cup on her side of the table. "I trust you've had time to process recent… revelations."

Salem's immortality, he meant. It was only then that Pyrrha realized this was the first time they had spoken since he had told her the truth. She had been so busy working with the General that she hadn't even thought to come back and talk with the Headmaster until she needed something. That thought left her feeling guilty, despite the knowledge that he had held information from her she still believed he was a good man and it felt wrong to use him.

"I'm not going to let that stop me, if that's what you mean." Pyrrha answered truthfully. Sitting down and taking the offered cup, smelling it she realized it was actually hot chocolate rather than coffee; a pleasant surprise considering how often she saw Ozpin drinking the latter.

"That's good to hear." Ozpin nodded, smiling softly. "I see that you've been working with James."

Pyrrha paused, the mug stopping an inch from her lips. "He asked me to help him go after Cinder. I agreed." She couldn't read Ozpin in that moment, his face taking on an unreadable expression that she didn't know what to make of. After a long moment it fell away. "We have a plan, one that might just beat Salem for good, but it requires us to use the Relic of Knowledge."

Ozpin looked surprised for a moment, before quickly covering that by taking a drink. "Would the General approve of you telling me this?"

Pyrrha shrugged. "Probably not, but I'm trusting you and asking for your help. The thing that brought me back might be able to help us, bringing someone back from the dead isn't easy, let alone sending them back in time. General Ironwood thinks it might have the power to kill Salem, or give us the tools to do so."

Ozpin hummed softly, but didn't outright dismiss the idea. "Perhaps it has the power to help, but whether it's willing is another matter entirely."

"It helped once already."

"Beings like the Gods… you can't possibly fathom their motivations." Ozpin's eyes met her own. "I've spoken with Gods, and I've seen them do terrible things, and I couldn't tell you why they did them. Don't assume anything when dealing with them."

Pyrrha nodded softly. "I'll keep that in mind."

"If I knew where the Spring Maiden was, I would tell you." Ozpin changed the topic somewhat, moving to answer her question instead. "Sadly she left many years ago, as you know. I've been unable to locate her."

"Is there anyone who might know?" Pyrrha asked. "Family? Or close friends?"

Ozpin shook his head. "I'm afraid not. Many of the Maiden's choose to seclude themselves from society, they don't often befriend anyone aside from other Maidens."

"The Maiden's were friends?" Pyrrha pulled her mug to her lips, enjoying the warm drink.

Ozpin smiled. "Usually, yes. The four most powerful women on the planet, and they often treated each other like sisters. Spring was particularly close with…" There was a crashing sound as Ozpin's mug slipped from his grasp.

Pyrrha nearly spit her drink out. "Sir, is everything all right?"

"The previous Fall Maiden, she trained Spring up from an early age. They were very close." Ozpin stood from his desk, moving over towards a shelf on the far wall before withdrawing a small book. "She was from a tribe in Mistral, but she never said which and… I never bothered to ask." He sounded like he regretted that fact. "If I can find a picture… here!"

Ozpin set the book down, only then did she realize it was a photo album. This particular page showed a young girl with brown skin, brown hair, and red eyes.

"That's Amber's aunt, right?"

"Yes, but look at her eyes." Ozpin gestured towards the girl in the photo. "Red eyes are very rare, outside of the occasional Semblance. It was a trait that belonged to an old Kingdom in southern Mistral centuries ago. Mistral conquered them before the Great War but their descendants are still around."

Pyrrha looked towards Ozpin. "And you think Spring would have gone to them?"

Ozpin hesitated for a moment. "This was… a little more than seventeen years ago." His shoulders sagged slightly as he came to some kind of realization. "There were other two members of that tribe working with us against Salem at that time… one of whom left without explanation." The Headmaster sighed, closing the book. "It's very likely that Spring went to her looking for protection, foolishly believing that the tribe of her friend would keep her safe."

Pyrrha's smile fell away. "What do you mean?"

"I wouldn't expect a bandit tribe to be welcoming."

Author's Note: Finally back, though there will only be four or five uploads before I go on my holiday leave and another three are missed… heh, sorry.

Hope you enjoyed it, and as always let me know what you think in the reviews. This chapter felt a lot weaker than what I would have liked, would love to know what you guys have to say.

Sincerely, SE