Author's Note: Hope you all enjoy the chapter. Let me know if not.
Qrow scratched his chin, leaning back against the wall as he thought carefully. "Yeah, that's about the same time." Ozpin had wanted to verify his theory, or at least make sure that there were no glaring holes in it. Asking Qrow to come speak with him had been tricky however, Pyrrha still wasn't sure whether he was pro-Ozpin or pro-Ironwood at this point. She was glad to see he didn't let his own trust, or lack thereof, stop him from helping.
Pyrrha turned back towards the Headmaster. "Then what are we waiting for?" They finally had a lead on the Spring Maiden, and if they could find her they had a chance of winning.
"It's not that simple." Qrow shook his head. "The tribe isn't easy to track, they live out in the wilds, and they don't have much of a connection to the real world."
"And those who encounter them and live are reluctant to tell the tale." Ozpin elaborated, painting Pyrrha a dark picture. When she'd heard the words 'bandit tribe' she had been hoping for something different. Knowing Qrow, she had figured they were more akin to rogues than actual bandits.
"Isn't she your sister?" Pyrrha raised an eyebrow in confusion.
Qrow scoffed. "That doesn't mean a whole lot to someone like her. Trust me, you wouldn't approve of her idea of family."
"Finding the Branwen tribe will take time." Ozpin held up his hand, stopping her from immediately making her objection known. "But that does not mean we will be doing nothing. Qrow, can you locate them?"
The man in question looked back towards Ozpin, the silence dragging on for a long moment. "Yeah, I can find them." He turned to look at Pyrrha. "But he's not wrong, it will take me a bit. Raven is a lot better at covering her tracks these days… and that's something I wouldn't have expected from her."
"That might lend some credence to our theory then." Ozpin sat back, and though his words were true, he didn't sound like he enjoyed that fact. "We must also think what state she will be in."
Pyrrha looked between the two in confusion. "You think she might be a prisoner?"
Qrow shook his head. "Not likely, someone with that kind of power wouldn't be kept on the sidelines for long. It's more about what it takes to survive in the tribe."
"A vicious ruthlessness that many of today's weaklings would call barbaric." Ozpin smirked slightly. "I believe that is what Raven described it as."
Surprisingly, Qrow smiled back for a brief moment. "She wasn't entirely wrong. If Spring is still there after nearly two decades, she'll have adapted to fit in."
"So she won't be willing to help us?" Pyrrha asked.
"Not for free." Qrow explained. "And lien won't do us much good either, they'll want something else of value." He shrugged softly. "No idea what might be enough. Depends on Raven's mood."
Ozpin's small smile fell away. "With our enemy moving to secure the Spring Maiden, we don't want them to know we are as well." He turned to look at Qrow. "We will need to act swiftly, but most importantly, unseen. Can I trust the General to be… discreet for the time being?"
"I'll have a talk with James." Qrow said, standing up from the wall. "Are we done here?"
Ozpin sighed but nodded. He started for the elevator, stopping beside Pyrrha for a moment.
"Stop off to see Winter when you can. Didn't say what she wanted." The way Qrow's eyes shifted back towards Ozpin made her doubt that fact, but she nodded nonetheless. He was gone a second later, the elevator doors closing quietly.
At least he's willing to talk to Ozpin.
As reasonable as Ironwood was, she was quickly learning he was perhaps just as stubborn as Ozpin. If not more so. The two men were working towards the same goal but the fact they refused to speak to one another worried her greatly. So far it seemed the mistrust was only one way, though she didn't deny it was earned. Ozpin had made a mistake, something he had fully acknowledged and tried to rectify with her.
"Are you sure you can't speak with him?" Pyrrha tried once more. "Is it really best for us to be working alone?"
Ozpin sighed once more, sitting back in his chair and adopting a regretful expression. "Were there anything I could say, I would say it, but the General is a… complicated man. He feels I have betrayed his trust, and as such unlikely to give it again so willingly."
Pyrrha looked back at him, unimpressed. She had often heard the same argument during her years at school, her earlier years anyways. When she had still had friends who didn't feel inferior due to her success, they'd often made the same kind of argument. There were no words that could fix the issue, so why say them to begin with?
It was disappointing to see two of the most powerful men on the planet obey the same logic. Their reasons made more sense, their motivation more honest, but it was the same logic. Sighing, Pyrrha said nothing more on it.
"Now, if there is nothing else, I would hate to keep you." Ozpin stood from his chair. "No doubt certain people wish to have words with you."
"Actually, there is one thing." Pyrrha spoke hesitantly. "It's about the Maiden powers." Ozpin hummed, but waited for her to continue. "What are they? Truly, I mean. I know they are magic but-"
"They are not magic." Ozpin interrupted. "Not as they are anyways." He stepped around this desk to stand in front of her, holding out his hand in front of her before conjuring a green light. "The Maiden's are powerful, more so than you yet know, but they are a pale imitation of what real magic is capable of. From destruction to creation, magic was the means of everything at its prime." The light flickered from his hand. "True magic has been lost to Humanity for eons, the Maiden powers are more akin to an echo of what magic once was. Some of the Maidens in the past have tried to channel magic in a more literal sense but… none of them have survived."
"What fuels it?" Pyrrha asked. "If our aura is powered by our Soul, what are the Maiden powers and magic powered by?"
"I'm afraid the answer is no longer possible." Ozpin said. "When the Gods left, they took it with them. The fact Salem and I still have it is due to… circumstances outside their expectations and control. Likely an unintended side effect of our conditions."
Pyrrha paused, hearing Ozpin speak of Gods as real was always strange. He didn't speak as if it was a faith, or a belief that they existed, but rather that he knew it to be true, and to her knowledge, it was. He said they had once existed on Remnant alongside Humanity, that they walked the planet alongside them. That kind of certainty always left her feeling somewhat shaken.
"In Mistral, when Taiyang and I were fighting Hazel and Tyrion, there was… something happened. Something I don't understand." Pyrrha struggled to explain. "Hazel defeated me, and was going to attack Taiyang from behind. I had been relying on my powers up to that point and I don't think I could have launched another attack, but… seeing Taiyang in danger, I knew I had to try." She couldn't quite find the words to describe the pain she had experienced. "It felt like my soul was snapping in half but… not in the same way as my Aura, or even when I'm just over using my powers, I know what those feel like. This was different, it was deeper and… far more painful."
Ozpin looked back at her, and though his face was neutral his eyes were focused on her own with an intensity she had never seen. "Hold out your hand." She did as she was told, holding her hand out for him to grab. A green light formed around his hand, just before he grabbed her own and the light seemed to sink into her skin.
She could feel it moving up her arm somehow, a feeling of warmth traveling through to her chest. The warmth turned freezing, and she gasped at the sudden discomfort. Ozpin's hand shot away from her, his neutral expression was gone now, replaced with pure shock. He stepped away from her then, moving back behind his desk; though he didn't sit. "It would be best if you refrain from using that again. It may have detrimental effects on your health."
"I-I don't understand."
"What you used was magic, real magic." Ozpin explained, and she could see the surprise in his voice. He dipped his head as he continued. "The reason it hurt you so much may be because you are untrained, and were already tired when you did so. There's also the possibility that, seeing as you're different from Salem and I, your Soul is not capable of bearing magic to the same degree that we are."
"But, you said it was impossi-"
"Until just now, I believed that it was." Ozpin replied, finally looking up to see her once more. "Again, I will stress the importance of you not using that kind of power again. If done so improperly… you would do far more harm than good. We will… discuss this further during our next training session."
Pyrrha wanted to ask for him to explain now, but the concerned look on his face and a promise for a later explanation was enough for now. Standing from her chair, she nodded her head. "Of course sir. I'll be going now."
"Miss Nikos…" Ozpin hesitated. "I do not wish to deceive you, understanding this will take time as well. This is not something I have seen before and as such… I do not know what this means."
Pyrrha offered a weak smile. "I trust you."
"Be well, Miss Nikos."
The elevator ride down was faster than she was used to, though the weight of Ozpin's words did offer her a distraction. If she had access to real magic, that begged the question of how. The most logical reason being the same way she was brought back to life. In that event, she then had to ask why.
The thing that brought her back said that he could change souls, is this what he meant? She thought he had been referring to why she had been placed in Amber's body, and that was certainly part of it, but was this a way of helping her? Magic had been gone from the world since the Gods left, Ozpin had said it was beyond human ability, had that being brought her back with the ability to use it?
Pyrrha's head began to ache as she tried to understand the reasoning of a Godlike being. She would simply have to ask when they found it again. Qrow hadn't given any specifics on how long it would take to find the tribe, likely because he didn't know, but she hoped for the best.
In the meantime, she had things to do. At the top of that list was to deal with Coco. Pyrrha shuttered at the thought, she briefly considered going to visit Winter instead, but putting Coco off would only make matters worse. Her mind made up, she set off towards team CFVY's dorm room.
The walk wasn't nearly as long as Pyrrha would have liked. She'd taken her time, enjoying the view while also taking the long route. In the end, she ended up at her destination all the same. Standing in front of the door however, she was surprised to see that it was locked. Usually, whenever Coco knew she was coming, she left it unlocked so she could let herself in. She figured it had something to do with the sounds coming from within the room itself.
She couldn't make out anything in particular, but she recognized the sound of a drill and finally knocked on the door. There was a sudden shushing sound and the drill stopped, the lock on the door clicking as it opened just enough for someone to look out. Velvet saw her then promptly slammed the door shut.
Even through the door she could hear Velvet speak. "She's here!"
Someone on the other side ran over to the door, which promptly opened and then closed in the span of a second. Coco standing in front of it with her back firmly planted against it. "Sup."
Pyrrha looked back at her for a moment, unsure of what to think. "Am I supposed to ignore that?"
"Crazy weather we've been having." Coco replied. "What are you doing here?"
"I promised we'd talk." Pyrrha tried her best to keep her face neutral. "I can come back later if-"
"No, we're almost done anyways." Coco waved her hand briefly.
"Almost done with what?"
"So about earlier today." The fact Coco dodged the question caused Pyrrha to worry, but the sudden serious expression on her friend's face allowed her to ignore that as she nodded. "Why'd you run off?"
"The girl, her name's Neo apparently, was about to escape." Pyrrha had gone over that fact a dozen times on the trip back to Beacon, though it was obvious that explanation was going to work. "If I didn't follow her then I never would have spoken with Torchwick."
"But you didn't know that." Coco stated factually, causing Pyrrha to wince.
"I also didn't know that I would be out of range of Fox's Semblance, and Scroll range." She tried to explain. "That was a mistake on my part, and I'm sorry for that."
"But not for running off?" Coco asked, once again causing Pyrrha to wince.
"She was trying to lure me out, they wanted to get me alone." Pyrrha explained again. "That's why we lost her in the crowd. She wanted us to split up, then found and led me to the station."
"That doesn't answer the question." Coco pointed out. "What if they had wanted to kill you?"
She would have been fine, that's what she wanted to say at least. She was a strong fighter, not to mention the Fall Maiden, she would have been fine. Except, Amber had probably thought that way as well. If Pyrrha had learned anything from her life, it was that no one was invincible. A well laid trap could easily overpower even the best of fighters. A trap she could have easily been walking into.
Coco sighed. "Look, I know this has to be hard for you, but you're our friend. I know we aren't your original team, and I won't try to replace them, but going it alone?"
"I'm sorry." Pyrrha looked down at the floor. "I didn't mean to make you worry." The moment she was out of range they would have had no idea what happened. While she was sure they trusted her to take care of herself, she also knew what that kind of thing did to people. Your mind always went to the worst possible outcome.
There was a soft knocking on the door, and Coco smiled brightly. "Enough serious crap, it's ready!" Before Pyrrha could ask what she was talking about her friend had already grabbed her wrists and pulled her in through the door she hadn't even noticed open. Letting go of her, Coco stepped forward and held her arms out. "We made sure it was okay with Goodwitch before we did anything, she actually looked pretty happy about it… she's kinda creepy when she smiles, if I'm being honest."
"Beacon has plenty sitting in storage, so she let us requisition a fifth one." Yatsuhashi explained.
"A little bit of rearranging, and throwing out some old junk, and we had just enough space to make it work!" Velvet practically hopped in place.
She could see that. Beacon dorm rooms were surprisingly spacious, even if it didn't usually feel like that with four people living there, but if someone knew how to work with the space they could easily fit the four beds. Even a fifth, which was exactly what they had done.
"What-" Pyrrha barely opened her mouth to speak before Coco was standing in front of her, sunglasses removed.
"I know we're not your original team, and like I said we aren't trying to replace them." Her voice was tender, her eyes soft, as she looked into Pyrrha's own. "But there's no reason you should have to be alone. That is, if you want to join us."
Pyrrha looked back at Coco, unable to speak as she was lost for words. Her eyes drifted back towards the beds aligned on the wall. With five there wasn't a lot of room left in between them, just enough for people to get up and move around without touching the other person's bed, but it was enough. Looking back at Coco she could see the hope in her eyes and that was when she knew her choice had already been made.
"I'll… grab my things from my own room." Pyrrha said, seeing Coco and Velvet's face light up. Even Fox and Yatsuhashi smiled at that. "I don't have much, so I'll only need a drawer or two."
"There's just one last thing we need to do." Coco held out her hand. "Give me your scroll." Pyrrha did so without hesitation, watching as Coco walked over to their door. It only took a second for her to sink the lock to her scroll, before she tossed it back. "You're officially a member of Team CFVY. You should feel honored."
Pyrrha couldn't help but smile, even though being inducted into a training team didn't really compare to all of the magic, conspiracies, and secret warfare that she'd grown all-too accustomed to, it certainly did feel like an honor.
It hadn't taken Pyrrha long to move her belongings, considering how little she actually owned. Most of her clothes had belonged to Amber, and she hadn't had many physical possessions aside from her combat gear, Allos and its sheathe, it's ammo and cleaning kit, and Qrow's flask. Coco had said they would work to fix that, already planning to take Pyrrha out shopping. The move was made all the faster by the fact that someone had left a few boxes outside her dorm room.
Pyrrha had a good idea who that was, and she planned to thank Glynda for that later. In the meantime, she had a meeting with Winter. There was something to say about the fact that the soldiers didn't stop her as she approached Ironwood's ship. She'd become such a regular sight that they knew who she was and that she was authorized access to a military ship.
Despite that, she had still stopped to ask directions; something they had been more than willing to give. They said Winter had been waiting in the armoury for her, causing Pyrrha to feel a bit embarrassed at having taken time to move rooms. It was too late to fix that however, and so she tried to make it there as fast as she could.
"Miss Nikos." Winter turned fully away from Qrow to face her. "It's good to see you again."
Pyrrha panicked for a moment as she used her real name, her eyes darting around the room to see if they were alone. However it quickly became clear that Qrow and Winter had been alone before she entered.
"Sorry to have kept you waiting." Pyrrha bowed her head.
"It's no bother." Winter assured her. "I have been in good company."
Qrow smirked, looking back at the Specialist. "Oh, so now I'm good company?"
"Did I say good? I meant insufferable." Winter smirked.
Pyrrha coughed into her fist. "If you don't mind me asking, what was this about? Qrow didn't say."
"Didn't know at the time." Qrow shrugged. "Though if I had, I probably wouldn't have said anything in front of Oz anyways." So her assessment had been half right, there was more animosity there than what was visible on the surface it seemed. Still, at least he was willing to work with them.
"The General wished to give you something." Winter turned, pulling up a case from a nearby table before stepping over to hand it to her.
"James had it cooked up just for you." Qrow said. "I'm a bit jealous honestly… he never gets me anything."
Pyrrha looked at the case for a moment before opening it, seeing what appeared to be a shirt at first glance. As she looked closer however she could tell it was thicker than what was normal and that it was made of something she didn't recognize.
"Some of the brightest minds in Atlas developed it." Winter explained. "It is a prototype body armor planned to be issued out to all Military Specialists within the next ten years. It's lighter than most metals, but stronger than even some Huntsmen weapons."
"Hard-Light Dust infused Kevlar. Capable of stopping bullets, blades, and just about everything someone could throw at you, all without the help of Aura." Qrow said. "He had one rushed through for you specifically."
Pyrrha stared down at the body armor. "Can it stop arrows?"
"I made sure of it myself." Qrow assured her.
Ironwood knew about how she had died, him being one of the earlier people who knew the whole truth. Every gritty detail, even when she had explained the taste of her own blood as she had died. She hadn't been able to find anything that would offer her any real protection, genuine armor being a rare and expensive thing thanks to the use of Aura.
"Your Aura will be depleted before it sees actual use, so let us hope that never occurs." Winter said. "But should that come to pass, the general wanted to do everything in his power to stop what happened from happening again."
"Thank you." Pyrrha closed the case, smiling back at Winter. "I wish I could thank him myself."
"He regrets that he can not be here for this." Winter told her. "He has been very busy as of late with matters back in Atlas."
"If I can help-"
"He will ask." Winter assured her. "In the meantime, please take time to rest. The General's orders."
Pyrrha nodded and tucked the case under her arm. It was a gift the likes of which she hadn't ever really received before, and ironically, she hoped that she would never have to test its capabilities, a sentiment that she was sure that General Ironwood himself would share.
Author's Note: That's the chapter. I did a bit of research, and found that the Beacon dorm rooms have just enough room for a fifth bed and to still be far enough apart to be comfortable. With Pyrrha practically being a member of team CFVY by this point, Coco figured she deserved to not sleep alone every night.
Also, that body armor isn't really modeled after anything specific, just a practical upgrade that makes sense. Due to Aura, one would expect actual armor to fall behind in terms of advancement. After all, why would you need good armor when your soul can protect you? We see people wearing it all the time, but it doesn't seem to do much aside from being a cosmetic choice. And hey, points for style, but the biggest difference between the real Huntsmen and those in training, is practicality.
Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter and as always I look forward to hearing your thoughts in the reviews.
Sincerely SE.