"Ah, fuck," Roman muttered under his breath, just out of view of the holographic projection that leapt up from the scroll.
"Torchwick is with you? Good," Professor Ozpin said, though he didn't sound particularly enthused. "And the others?"
"U-um," Willow stammered, running a hand through her hair and offering him a nervous smile. "Just about everyone's here or on their way down from upstairs, along with… some new people you probably don't know…"
"Team BASS?" the man on the other end guessed as those already present in the living room and kitchen gathered closer to the scroll. "I spoke with Professors Gumo and Calavera this morning. They filled me in on what happened, as well as what you know… and what they know. That being said, some details were left out, and I'm sure there are some details that all of you would like from me, as well."
Ghira moved to sit beside Willow on the couch, putting himself near the center of the frame and offering a wave with a massive hand.
"Good morning, Sir. My name is Ghira Belladonna. I lead Team BASS and would like to offer a formal apology before this conversation goes any further. Neither I nor my teammates had any intention of getting involved in this ordeal, and we certainly didn't mean to tread on any private matters of yours or Professor Gumo's. It was a series of unfortunate events that led us to this point, but we're willing to do what needs to be done to help you, STRQ, and OKRA as best we can."
"An apology won't be necessary," Professor Ozpin reassured with a nod. "The fault doesn't lie with you."
Cerise instinctively looked to the side to get a bead on Fox, who had taken to standing next to the staircase far out of view of the device. In his stead, the young woman moved to stand behind the couch and fold her arms over the backrest, putting herself directly between Willow and Ghira as she leaned forward.
"The fault doesn't lie with anyone but Salem for putting all of us in this situation to begin with."
For a moment, the only sound in the room was that of Taiyang descending the steps with Summer and Qrow. Professor Ozpin's expression hardened, and he pushed his glasses farther up his nose to hide his eyes as he looked the young woman over. He didn't seem pleased to see her at all.
"…you don't match the profile of Velvet Scarlatina…"
"Yeah, my hearing isn't quite as good," Cerise agreed as Willow averted her eyes from the headmaster. "I'm a friend of the team that got sucked into this mess too, and I know more or less what they all know. Which, admittedly, isn't much based on what I was told. So how about you fill us in?"
Professor Ozpin took an uncharacteristically deep inhale through his nose before clearing his throat, turning his chair, and snapping his attention to something on his left.
"Name."
"Cherry," Cerise said lightly, watching as the man began to type just offscreen.
"Surname?"
"Poppin'."
The glare that Cerise received was immediate and disarming enough for Summer to deposit herself next to Ghira and lean into view with a sheepish wave.
"Hey, Professor! She's fine with us, and we're being careful. It was really just a comedy of errors that led t-"
"Name," Professor Ozpin stated again with enough venom to catch everyone present off guard and silence Summer immediately. "I will not ask you again, and if you continue to play games, it is assuredly information I can obtain from Professor Gumo. Instead of wasting my time, consider complying so I can determine what to do with her moving forward."
"What to do with her?" Roman asked defensively. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"How many more people know the name Salem?" Professor Ozpin asked, staring straight through Roman. "What exactly have the nine of you been doing down in Vacuo? It's been a matter of days, and already you've managed to compromi-"
"Hey, we didn't compromise shit," Kali spat, leaning in next to Cerise from over the back of the couch. "In fact, we didn't even know the name 'Salem' until Summer had another one of her visions and just pulled it out of her asshole. Why is that, exactly? Maybe hiding things from people you trust isn't exactly the best approach anymore, especially after you stuck us with transporting a fake Relic across the border as some sort of loyalty test. Don't get shitty with us for something we couldn't even control and you could've prevented months ago. You don't even fully know what happened that led to all of this!"
"I know enough, and what information I choose to withhold is largely for your benefit, Miss Moonglove. Team OKRA was not even meant to be aware of the Relics at all, let alone Salem. I would have brought you all in on the goings on between Salem and I eventually, but… you have accelerated things to a rate that I may not be able to control in the future. I was trying to protect you all, and filling so many outsiders in on this secret is incredibly dangerous. Remnant as you know it only continues to exist because Salem has not yet made a move. If knowledge of her secrets became widespread…"
"We still don't really know what those secrets even are," Summer chimed in. "All we know is that you and Salem are immortals that are somehow capable of casting magic, we need four Relics to stop her, and a bunch of those Relics are missing. That, and only the four Maidens can really use them properly. So… it's a good thing I apparently am one, after doing a bunch of testing with Professor Gumo."
"…wait, what?" Cerise asked. "What information did I miss about that?"
"Enough," Professor Ozpin warned. "This conversation goes no further unt-"
"Cerise, alright?" the woman interrupted with a huff. "My name is Cerise Rhodes. I work at a tavern in town, and I've known BASS for a long time, now. One of their number found out about Salem because of a simple mistake, that knowledge ended up being dumped in my lap because I defended this group from some bitch that broke in to their beach house, and things are just spiraling from there. Happy now?"
Professor Ozpin took a moment to type, keeping his eyes on the apparent screen just out of view of the holo-call.
"Who, exactly, made the mistake? I need details as to how this happened."
Fox made a face before beginning to take a step forward, only for Taiyang to put himself between the boy and the hologram's line of sight.
"…Professor… with all due respect, it was a mistake. An honest one. If you want to be angry with someone, then it shouldn't be us, and it shouldn't be them. Be angry that Professor Gumo wouldn't tell you which of his students caused all of this… because we're not about to tell you, either."
"Taiyang, you are a member of the team personally selected to serve me on missions deemed too dangerous t-"
"Yeah, I've been chosen for a role like that before," Raven said loudly. "It's generally not all it's cracked up to be, and I'm still feeling the ripple effects of that decision now. So unless you tell us everything we need to know, I don't see why we should tell you what you're demanding and throw someone under the bus. What are you even doing over there, or planning to do if you find out? What are you doing with Cerise's information?"
"I am your headmaster," Professor Ozpin emphasized, turning his full attention to the group. "Perhaps I have been coming off a little abrasively, but I need your implicit trust for any of this to work, and for your careers as hunters to continue progressing in a way that makes sense."
"Is that a threat?" Kali asked, baring her pointed teeth. "How are we supposed to trust you knowing how much you've held back already, when you're still holding back now?"
"Are you not holding vital information back from me?" Professor Ozpin asked rhetorically. "I've only kept you in the dark f-"
"For our protection, right," Kali mocked. "Then tell us something else instead- what the fuck are you doing with Sasha? What are you hiding from her? She called me while having a panic attack over whatever you did to her the other day."
Professor Ozpin froze. In the monochromatic light blue hologram, making out his features was quite difficult. Somehow, Summer was still sure she could feel him turning red with anger as he returned his attention to his monitor.
"…okay, I think we all need to calm down and just refocus, here," Summer suggested as she put her hands up in a disarming gesture. "Things are getting a little heated, and all of this is too important to start fighting over, so can we all please just calm down?"
"Cerise Rhodes isn't in any database I can find," Professor Ozpin said, keeping his eyes away from the hologram. "I need an actual name."
"That is my name," Cerise insisted. "I'm largely off the grid, because I'm a fucking nobody in the grand scheme of things, alright? Sorry if that's a disappointment to you. I'm not a huntress, I'm not anyone of note. I'm just some bitch living in the desert."
"She isn't lying," Sage said, finally deciding to join the conversation. "It isn't too farfetched to believe that she wouldn't be in any sort of database. Things are different down here in Vacuo. We don't have some grand collection of information on every citizen like they do up north."
"Professor, please," Summer tried once again before letting out a sigh. "We need more information. Professor Gumo wouldn't tell us everything out of respect for you, and we've been flying blind the entire time we've been down here. Things have gotten really bad, and like Raven said, there's an assassin from Those Above All after us on top of everything else going on. We also don't know where Adam is, a-"
"You don't know where Adam is?" Professor Ozpin asked, suddenly snapping back to focusing on the group. "After the events of this past year, you've let him just run off on his own?"
"Yeah, sorry we don't keep him on a literal leash," Kali replied. "Is that what you want? Because that's how I'm feeling right about now."
"Kali, stop it…" Summer ordered, though she sounded more panicky than authoritative.
"This conversation doesn't seem to be getting us anywhere," Professor Ozpin pointed out. "I'll have Professor Calavera relay the information I need before day's end."
"Wait, you can't be serious?" Taiyang asked. "You're just gonna leave us hanging? And you don't even care about the whole assassin thing?"
"Not quite- I'm sure that you, along with Professor Calavera, can handle yourselves. There is little I can do to help you from here, but you'll be hearing from me again soon. Until then, just be careful, and follow your best judgment. Relocating to Shade Academy might be prudent."
Fox once again tried to take a step forward, only for Sage to stop him with a firm hand to the center of his chest.
"What…?"
"No," Sage said firmly.
"But I c-"
"No," Sage repeated, his voice low enough not to draw Professor Ozpin's attention as the man continued talking.
"We'll speak again very soon, once I determine what to do from here," Professor Ozpin said as Summer leaned closer to the hologram. "Until then."
"Wait! No, don't…!" Summer tried frivolously as she put a hand out, only for the projection to vanish. The girl slowly let her hand drop as she felt a full-body chill. "What did we just do…?"
"Why did you stop me!?" Fox asked as he shoved Sage's arm aside using both of his own. "I might've been able to keep him talking, a-"
"Isn't it obvious?" Qrow asked with a weary sigh as he shook his head. "We're a little tired of being jerked around and held out on. We take care of our own, and Ozpin's acting… shady, to say the least. We're not about to give you up to whatever he's planning."
"Same to you," Kali said as she punched Cerise's shoulder. "For better or worse, we're all in this together, now. Ozpin can either play ball or shut the hell up."
"We should have discussed this before making such a rash decision," Bartholomew said quietly. "I, for one, am not in favor of severing ties and burning bridges…"
"Neither am I," Summer announced as she picked up Willow's scroll and stood up. "We're fixing this, right now."
Author's Note:
Yay vacation!
-RD