Fandom Distorted Mirror [IC]

[MidwayLives]

'You feel your sins crawling down your back'

Roman's rancorous laughter died down into a meager chuckle as the two continued onwards.

" 'It's ceremonial!!!!' Oh man, ceremony schermony. If that hat was any taller, she'd have to duck walking into a room."

As he wondered where Mercury and Emerald got up to, Roman froze.

"...Hey Neo you ever get the feeling you're being..."

Roman looked over his shoulder.

"Bolt, Neo! BOLT!"​

 

[MyrtenRose]

Apparently it could be that different. Yang was frozen in place, still pointing towards the CCT but her face locked into a blank stare.

"...Dad...died?"

Some part of Yang knew that she wasn't giving herself the right distance from these people. None of them were actually who her brain was telling her they were. That wasn't Blake in that Atlesian holding cell, it was just a Blake. It wasn't her dad that died, it was another Tai altogether. This wasn't her mom in front of her, and from what she was hearing, she really was completely different from the Raven she knew and all the extremely complicated feelings that came with her. If she fought her instincts and looked at this objectively, she'd know they had nothing to do with her.

She really wished she could believe that. That this Blake didn't speak with that fiery zeal of hope that inspired Yang to be a better person. That this Ruby hadn't of sounded just like her sister in the throes of one of her old nightmares. That this Raven didn't have that same, longing sadness in her eyes, except this time without Yang having to rip it out of her. These were all the people she knew, just... different.

Which is why it hurt so bad seeing everything so horribly, viciously twisted into all the wrong shapes and stories. To hear that her dad died. To learn that this world's Yang hadn't ever really been there for the young Rose. To have it digging into her brain that their bond was far more tenuous than she would have ever believed, that if a few things were different, it just wouldn't exist at all.

"...Well thats.... s-stupid. Sounds like the me from here isn't anything... I wouldn't...."

"...Yes, I'm afraid he did." Raven sadly answered. "He's been gone for a long time now." Despite her thinking of it as an old, well-healed wound...thinking about it now, talking about it with someone who looked exactly like the daughter she hadn't seen face to face in far too long...all of it was enough to bring a tear to her eye. Raven turned away in an instant, not wanting that weakness to be seen as she rubbed it away before turning back. In silence she observed Yang, a thousand different thoughts clearly going through her mind. "I'm...sorry, Yang." She said, completely sincere. The professional huntress stepped closer, almost as if she meant to go for an embrace...but she hesitated and after a second, stepped back to where she had been as a low pained sigh escaped her lips. Despite appearances, this wasn't actually her daughter.

"You know, you don't actually have to tell me about how it is between you and me back where you're from. Not if you don't want to." ​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"No need to apologize, I needed a nap." : ) Salem let that slide jovially enough, listening in intently as Weiss went on. "Gracious of you. I, of course, would be honored to accept your aid in these troubled times. With that said, however, I hope you forgive me when I say this but your company has not had the best reputation when it comes to charity. I presume that all this aid would not come without you wanting something back. What would that be?"

Weiss made a noise of muted outrage as even the headmistress joined in on the teasing, crossing her arms and tapping finger against bicep while she waited for Salem to wake up. Had she been her teenage self, she might've been flushed red all the way to the tips of her ears.

The woman sitting at the table, however, could apparently see the humour in the situation, her smile only partially strained.

"I'll admit I get a bit carried away sometimes. It's good to be passionate about something, don't you think? Good for me anyway." She finished with a huff, returning to her cigarette. A tiny, ethereal snowflake rotated by her side, which she chipped the ash into periodically while listening to the headmistress's response. When it was through she nodded, the woman's words not striking her as unreasonable. "No, I suppose we haven't. I'm aware my father cultivated a certain... reputation, as president of my company. I'm striving to make reparations to the communities he wronged, but some of our shareholders became quite attached to his methods. It's been a difficult process."

She didn't particularly want to get into it, but there was an undeniably penitent air as she bit her lip, considering her next words.

"However, I hope you'll take me at my word when I say this isn't that. I've always held the huntsmen and huntresses of Remnant in the highest regard, and that extends to the four academies. To you as well, headmistress," she added earnestly, looking back over with a smile that veered towards bashful. "I actually planned on attending here when I was younger, you know. I'm not sure what it was that attracted me to this place, with the Atlas academy right on my doorstep, but... Well, plans changed."

Her sigh was wistful, gaze wandering out the window again as she pursed her lips in thought.

"I do wonder how it would've turned out sometimes. My opinion? I would've made an excellent huntress. So I assure you, it breaks my heart to see the school in this condition. While the council may have some requests, please consider this a personal donation from Weiss Schnee."

She let one more smile grace her lips, heartfelt if a bit self-satisfied, before a somber veil descended, and she stubbed out her cigarette in the glyph before banishing it along with any trace of a mess.

"Speaking as councilwoman, however... there were some aspects of James's report we're a little unclear about. He could be facing a tribunal shortly, so the council deemed it appropriate to send me in the hopes you could clarify some things. Would that be acceptable?" Assuming she answered in the affirmative, the executive pressed on. "These... 'doppelgangers'? Ironwood didn't seem to think they bore any relation to the attack. I reviewed some of the footage, and I must say it's a little disturbing. Have you been able to learn anything about them?"​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

"...Yes, I'm afraid he did." Raven sadly answered. "He's been gone for a long time now." Despite her thinking of it as an old, well-healed wound...thinking about it now, talking about it with someone who looked exactly like the daughter she hadn't seen face to face in far too long...all of it was enough to bring a tear to her eye. Raven turned away in an instant, not wanting that weakness to be seen as she rubbed it away before turning back. In silence she observed Yang, a thousand different thoughts clearly going through her mind. "I'm...sorry, Yang." She said, completely sincere. The professional huntress stepped closer, almost as if she meant to go for an embrace...but she hesitated and after a second, stepped back to where she had been as a low pained sigh escaped her lips. Despite appearances, this wasn't actually her daughter.

"You know, you don't actually have to tell me about how it is between you-
​

​

"Just-! ... just gimme a second." she cut off as she put out a finger and covered her face with her other hand. She sat down the curb, her face covered as she continued to take slow, deep breaths that slowly grew less rattled as they continued. Eventually her hand ran up her forehead and through her hair as her eyes looked ahead in an unfocused stare. This world sucked. She'd already established that. They'd already done more good here than anyone could ask of them, Ruby specifically saving hundreds, maybe even thousands of lives by nipping the fall of beacon in the bud.

They'd find the relic, figure out how to get home, and then all of... this wouldn't be her problem. She couldn't let it be her problem, because there was way, way too much that her heart was telling her had to be fixed here. Blake, Ruby, they were practically begging Yang to save them in her mind. But it was whatever. It had to be whatever. She didn't even know why she'd come here.

She looked back up to Raven, and gave a half hearted shrug as she crossed her arms on her knees.

"...Do you really wanna know? I mean, what do you get out of it?"

 

[Gus Gungus]

Roman's rancorous laughter died down into a meager chuckle as the two continued onwards.

" 'It's ceremonial!!!!' Oh man, ceremony schermony. If that hat was any taller, she'd have to duck walking into a room."

As he wondered where Mercury and Emerald got up to, Roman froze.

"...Hey Neo you ever get the feeling you're being..."

Roman looked over his shoulder.

"Bolt, Neo! BOLT!"​

Ding! The elevator doors opened, revealing Emerald and Mercury about to step out at ground level when they saw this all unfolding.

"..."

"..."

Merc pushed the button again, the doors promptly sliding shut almost as soon as they fully opened.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"I'll admit I get a bit carried away sometimes. It's good to be passionate about something, don't you think? Good for me anyway." She finished with a huff, returning to her cigarette. A tiny, ethereal snowflake rotated by her side, which she chipped the ash into periodically while listening to the headmistress's response. When it was through she nodded, the woman's words not striking her as unreasonable. "No, I suppose we haven't. I'm aware my father cultivated a certain... reputation, as president of my company. I'm striving to make reparations to the communities he wronged, but some of our shareholders became quite attached to his methods. It's been a difficult process."

"One must always have their passions, that is true. Life without its passions would seem...dull. As for the difficulties within your company, no need to get into the details, I understand completely."​

"However, I hope you'll take me at my word when I say this isn't that. I've always held the huntsmen and huntresses of Remnant in the highest regard, and that extends to the four academies. To you as well, headmistress," she added earnestly, looking back over with a smile that veered towards bashful. "I actually planned on attending here when I was younger, you know. I'm not sure what it was that attracted me to this place, with the Atlas academy right on my doorstep, but... Well, plans changed."

Her sigh was wistful, gaze wandering out the window again as she pursed her lips in thought.

"I do wonder how it would've turned out sometimes. My opinion? I would've made an excellent huntress. So I assure you, it breaks my heart to see the school in this condition. While the council may have some requests, please consider this a personal donation from Weiss Schnee."

"Oh? Yes, that would have been quite a different career path than the one you're on at this time. I daresay though, we would have been lucky to have you. A woman of your caliber would have been a welcome addition to student body of Beacon Academy. Just as we gratefully welcome and accept your donation." Salem smiled.​

"Speaking as councilwoman, however... there were some aspects of James's report we're a little unclear about. He could be facing a tribunal shortly, so the council deemed it appropriate to send me in the hopes you could clarify some things. Would that be acceptable?" Assuming she answered in the affirmative, the executive pressed on. "These... 'doppelgangers'? Ironwood didn't seem to think they bore any relation to the attack. I reviewed some of the footage, and I must say it's a little disturbing. Have you been able to learn anything about them?"​

Ah, so that's what this was truly about. "Certainly." Salem agreed. "So far we've learned they are not from this Remnant." : | "Beyond that, we have very little on them, but several students have volunteered to be a part of a mission, the details of which I can not disclose(I hope you understand), with which I hope we will come to understand more about them and how they have come to be here." ​

 

[MyrtenRose]

​

"Just-! ... just gimme a second." she cut off as she put out a finger and covered her face with her other hand. She sat down the curb, her face covered as she continued to take slow, deep breaths that slowly grew less rattled as they continued. Eventually her hand ran up her forehead and through her hair as her eyes looked ahead in an unfocused stare. This world sucked. She'd already established that. They'd already done more good here than anyone could ask of them, Ruby specifically saving hundreds, maybe even thousands of lives by nipping the fall of beacon in the bud.

They'd find the relic, figure out how to get home, and then all of... this wouldn't be her problem. She couldn't let it be her problem, because there was way, way too much that her heart was telling her had to be fixed here. Blake, Ruby, they were practically begging Yang to save them in her mind. But it was whatever. It had to be whatever. She didn't even know why she'd come here.

She looked back up to Raven, and gave a half hearted shrug as she crossed her arms on her knees.

"...Do you really wanna know? I mean, what do you get out of it?"

"........"

She dropped down to sit on the curb herself, about a foot away from where Yang sat. "My cowardice cost me my daughter. So much so that she and I have ended up on opposite ends of the conflict between Salem and Ozpin. I don't know if my being there would have changed the direction her life took and...I don't know if I'm strong enough to stand face to face and see the woman she's grown into. To the point she's willingly standing with Ozpin, the man who leads the Grimm...she calls him master. And I've seen the aftermath of things she's done in his name. It's..." Raven shook her head, not even wanting to vocalize how bad it looked.

"But, for whatever reason, life threw another version of her at me. You. I guess that I just want to know what kind of person my daughter could have been, had her life taken a different turn. I can tell my counterpart didn't have much, if any, influence on the person you grew up to be. I take it she abandoned you, just as I did. I know that it's probably too late for my daughter, that she must be brought to justice for what she's done...but I think if I knew that somewhere out there, despite all odds...there's a her that exists, that turned out to be a far better person than me...I think it would hurt a little less." She shook her head again, frowning.

"I was never going to be the mother she needed. And you, from the little I can tell, you're the daughter that your Raven didn't deserve. No...no, if I'm being honest...neither of us deserved a daughter like you." ​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"Oh? Yes, that would have been quite a different career path than the one you're on at this time. I daresay though, we would have been lucky to have you. A woman of your caliber would have been a welcome addition to student body of Beacon Academy."

"Naturally," she couldn't help but add, smirk a bit more self-assured.

Ah, so that's what this was truly about. "Certainly." Salem agreed. "So far we've learned they are not from this Remnant." : | "Beyond that, we have very little on them, but several students have volunteered to be a part of a mission, the details of which I can not disclose(I hope you understand), with which I hope we will come to understand more about them and how they have come to be here."

"I see..." Weiss mused, her feelings on the lack of concrete information offered guarded. She supposed she couldn't really expect anything else, though even the fact that they were definitively from some kind of alternate world was more than what they had. The once-heiress nodded, crossing her legs. "Well if there's anything the kingdom of Atlas can do to facilitate that mission, I think I speak for the entire council when I say our resources are at your disposal. As are mine."

Her gaze wandered out the window again, something she was beginning to wonder why it was doing so much of. Did she really like looking at the academy grounds that much? She let her chin rest elegantly in her hand, reorganising her thoughts.

"...Tell those students of yours to come by my airship, if so inclined. I think my technicians might be able to fine-tune some of their weapons, perhaps install some new Dust cartridges? I assume they'll need to be at their best for whatever this mission of theirs is." She returned her gaze to Salem in short order, adopting a severe edge to her delivery not present before. "There was one other thing. My main purpose for coming here, actually. I understand Blake Belladonna is still in custody."

She raised an eyebrow.

"James indicates all attempts to interrogate her have gone about as smoothly as anticipated, which is to say they haven't gone smoothly. I'm here to transport her back to Atlas to await trial."​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"I see..." Weiss mused, her feelings on the lack of concrete information offered guarded. She supposed she couldn't really expect anything else, though even the fact that they were definitively from some kind of alternate world was more than what they had. The once-heiress nodded, crossing her legs. "Well if there's anything the kingdom of Atlas can do to facilitate that mission, I think I speak for the entire council when I say our resources are at your disposal. As are mine."

Her gaze wandered out the window again, something she was beginning to wonder why it was doing so much more. Did she really like looking at the academy grounds that much? She let her chin rest elegantly in her hand, reorganising her thoughts.

"...Tell those students of yours to come by my airship, if so inclined. I think my technicians might be able to fine-tune some of their weapons, perhaps install some new Dust cartridges? I assume they'll need to be at their best for whatever this mission of theirs is." She returned her gaze to Salem in short order, adopting a severe edge to her delivery not present before. "There was one other thing. My main purpose for coming here, actually. I understand Blake Belladonna is still in custody."

She raised an eyebrow.

"James indicates all attempts to interrogate her have gone about as smoothly as anticipated, which is to say they haven't gone smoothly. I'm here to transport her back to Atlas to await trial."

"I'm sure many of them will be gladdened by that offer of assistance and potentially upgrading their weapons. In fact, I feel I can almost guarantee that Arthur Watts will be more than pleased to have the opportunity to tinker and play around with Atlesian technology and engineering again. He's certainly done enough of that with our own systems." Salem replied with an amused grin. "...Yes." The headmistress acknowledged. "Blake Belladonna is indeed in custody as of this very moment, along with several others we apprehended in the wake of the failed attack on Beacon." Salem paused, considering that request.

It was true that the Shadow Fang had been far more of a thorn in SDC operations, and generally a bigger Atlas issue than a Vale one. It was understandable that the Atlesian council would desire to be the ones to host the trial. Still, she couldn't help wondering. "Is this a personal vendetta, Councilwoman Schnee?"​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"I'm sure many of them will be gladdened by that offer of assistance and potentially upgrading their weapons. In fact, I feel I can almost guarantee that Arthur Watts will be more than pleased to have the opportunity to tinker and play around with Atlesian technology and engineering again. He's certainly done enough of that with our own systems." Salem replied with an amused grin. "...Yes." The headmistress acknowledged. "Blake Belladonna is indeed in custody as of this very moment, along with several others we apprehended in the wake of the failed attack on Beacon." Salem paused, considering that request.

It was true that the Shadow Fang had been far more of a thorn in SDC operations, and generally a bigger Atlas issue than a Vale one. It was understandable that the Atlesian council would desire to be the ones to host the trial. Still, she couldn't help wondering. "Is this a personal vendetta, Councilwoman Schnee?"

"Oh?" She pressed politely, the name Watts having her eyes narrow slightly as though in faint recognition before she brushed it off as unimportant. Her bearing was quiet for the remainder of Salem's answer, perfectly dignified and composed even as she waited for the inevitable question to drop. When it did, she closed her eyes and sighed, and when she opened them again the words that followed were spoken from the heart. Even if that heart was made of ice.

"...I grew up hating that group. God knows I did. When I think of them now, I feel..."

She shook her head.

"Nothing. I consider it very unfortunate they feel our differences are beyond reconciliation, and hope to see the end of this bloody conflict in my lifetime. It seems trials and sentences are the only way for that to happen. No, Headmistress Salem, it's not a vendetta. It's business."

Her smile, though thin, was amicable.

"Though truthfully, I think the council chose me to represent them in this matter because they believe I'll treat it with a special significance. In that sense, I suppose they're right. As I mentioned, Ironwood is on very thin ice right now, so we're deferring to you as the authority in this situation; If I might make a suggestion..." The terror of the corporate world felt truly herself in that moment, steepling her fingers as she tilted her head.

"Those other prisoners you spoke of—I take it they're of similarly high value to the Belladonna girl? Most the Shadow Fang soldiers retreated, meaning Vale could still be in the crosshairs. A second assault could be very difficult to repel while you're still rebuilding. If you believe these others could be crucial to the ongoing conflict, perhaps I should transport them all back to Atlas as a precautionary measure? Our forces here may be compromised, but our capital is still the safest place in the world, I assure you. There's no better place for them."​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

"........"

She dropped down to sit on the curb herself, about a foot away from where Yang sat. "My cowardice cost me my daughter. So much so that she and I have ended up on opposite ends of the conflict between Salem and Ozpin. I don't know if my being there would have changed the direction her life took and...I don't know if I'm strong enough to stand face to face and see the woman she's grown into. To the point she's willingly standing with Ozpin, the man who leads the Grimm...she calls him master. And I've seen the aftermath of things she's done in his name. It's..." Raven shook her head, not even wanting to vocalize how bad it looked.

"But, for whatever reason, life threw another version of her at me. You. I guess that I just want to know what kind of person my daughter could have been, had her life taken a different turn. I can tell my counterpart didn't have much, if any, influence on the person you grew up to be. I take it she abandoned you, just as I did. I know that it's probably too late for my daughter, that she must be brought to justice for what she's done...but I think if I knew that somewhere out there, despite all odds...there's a her that exists, that turned out to be a far better person than me...I think it would hurt a little less." She shook her head again, frowning.

"I was never going to be the mother she needed. And you, from the little I can tell, you're the daughter that your Raven didn't deserve. No...no, if I'm being honest...neither of us deserved a daughter like you." ​

"Uh."

Yang found herself glancing to the side, a conflicted frown on her face at the sudden praise. She didn't think that the Raven from her world hated her or anything. Like, obviously not winning any mother of the year awards, and in fact was probably in competition with Weiss' mom for worst mother that Yang had any personal stake in, but she'd shown... inklings of affection in her weird, selfish ways. Trying to get Yang to stay with her in the bandit camp, warning her away from working with Qrow and thus putting them in direct conflict, explaining parts of what they were really dealing with to Weiss and Yang that they'd hadn't known before, letting her take the relic in the end.

But getting such straightforward, warm praise with no obvious ulterior motives from some version of the woman she spent years of her life looking for... it would've been a confusing moment even if her head wasn't a mess, which very obviously wasn't the case given that she'd just been halfway to balling her eyes out about her sister's evil twin on a street corner. Of course that was just ignoring the parts of those sentences that painted the other version of her as some lunatic war criminal.

"... thanks, I guess." She eventually answered quietly. "I really don't think you wanna know about the other Raven then though. She's... Not... great."

The words were a struggle to get out. Not because she was forcing herself to be kinder or meaner than she wanted to, but just because even six months or so after everything that happened at Haven, her mind still hadn't settled on how she felt about her mom. Other than definitely hating her on at least some level, anyways.

 

[Gus Gungus]

Once the duo were clear of the escalating Goodwitch situation, they followed through on Mercury's promise of taking a walk. Albeit a quiet one. They hadn't said a word since they left Salem's tower, minds both a million miles away in different directions. Emerald's aura was apprehensive, while Mercury's was grim and pensive.

"I gotta say something."

The steel-toed gladiator had come to an abrupt halt, leaving Emerald to wander a step or two ahead before she noticed, her head still in the clouds. His fists had balled up, eyebrows furrowed.

"Hm?"

"The other two should hear it too."

"That's a relief. I thought you were about to confess your undying love or something."

"I'd rather off myself."

"Cool."

He produced his scroll, swiping over to the communicator and shooting them a text, not that he didn't half expect to see their names deactivated forever and an article saying their corpses washed up on a beach somewhere if the look on Goodwitch's face was anything to go by.

The dorm. ASAP.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"... thanks, I guess." She eventually answered quietly. "I really don't think you wanna know about the other Raven then though. She's... Not... great."

"Really? I hadn't gathered that much myself, just from the way you've been acting towards me." She couldn't help but sarcastically comment. Nevertheless, she seemed to concede on that front. "Well...what about just knowing more about you, then? The good adventures my daughter from another world went through? And maybe the not so good." Her eyes lingered on that arm for a bit longer than they probably should have. "If...if you don't mind, that is."​

 

[MyrtenRose]

"Oh?" She pressed politely, the name Watts having her eyes narrow slightly as though in faint recognition before she brushed it off as unimportant. Her bearing was quiet for the remainder of Salem's answer, perfectly dignified and composed even as she waited for the inevitable question to drop. When it did, she closed her eyes and sighed, and when she opened them again the words that followed were spoken from the heart. Even if that heart was made of ice.

"...I grew up hating that group. God knows I did. When I think of them now, I feel..."

She shook her head.

"Nothing. I consider it very unfortunate they feel our differences are beyond reconciliation, and hope to see the end of this bloody conflict in my lifetime. It seems trials and sentences are the only way for that to happen. No, Headmistress Salem, it's not a vendetta. It's business."

Her smile, though thin, was amicable.

"Though truthfully, I think the council chose me to represent them in this matter because they believe I'll treat it with a special significance. In that sense, I suppose they're right. As I mentioned, Ironwood is on very thin ice right now, so we're deferring to you as the authority in this situation; If I might make a suggestion..." The terror of the corporate world felt truly herself in that moment, steepling her fingers as she tilted her head.

"Those other prisoners you spoke of—I take it they're of similarly high value to the Belladonna girl? Most the Shadow Fang soldiers retreated, meaning Vale could still be in the crosshairs. A second assault could be very difficult to repel while you're still rebuilding. If you believe these others could be crucial to the ongoing conflict, perhaps I should transport them all back to Atlas as a precautionary measure? Our forces here may be compromised, but our capital is still the safest place in the world, I assure you. There's no better place for them."​

"I see." Salem stated. The councilwoman didn't hide the fact that she had once hated the group, but as it stood now, she no longer seemed to be carrying that level of animosity towards them. Salem had no reason to doubt the validity of those words, at the very least, for when it came to the Schnees of note...it always tended to be just business with them. "You aren't wrong on that." The headmistress agreed. Another attack taking place while they were still struggling to rebuild, their own strength weakened by so much loss...it would be devastating. Much harder to push back against. "Very well. If you want to take them off our hands and see to their imprisonment and trials yourselves, by all means. Take them. You have my permission. Anything else?" ​

 

[MyrtenRose]

He produced his scroll, swiping over to the communicator and shooting them a text, not that he didn't half expect to see their names deactivated forever and an article saying their corpses washed up on a beach somewhere if the look on Goodwitch's face was anything to go by.

The dorm. ASAP.

Eventually the pair of Roman and Neo were brought back to their dorm under the direct supervision of said professor Goodwitch, the two of them clearly having been unable to ultimately get away from the strict teacher. As soon as both were inside the dorm, Glynda directed one last stern glare at each of them in turn before she turned and walked away. If the school year hadn't been cut short, that gaze promised that the next time they were out of line, the punishment would be more severe. Luckily, it would not come to pass.

As Glynda walked away, Cinder approached her own dorm just across the hall, stepping within and hoping that she and her team could resume what had been discussing earlier.​

 

[MidwayLives]

Eventually the pair of Roman and Neo were brought back to their dorm under the direct supervision of said professor Goodwitch, the two of them clearly having been unable to ultimately get away from the strict teacher. As soon as both were inside the dorm, Glynda directed one last stern glare at each of them in turn before she turned and walked away. If the school year hadn't been cut short, that gaze promised that the next time they were out of line, the punishment would be more severe. Luckily, it would not come to pass.

As Glynda walked away, Cinder approached her own dorm just across the hall, stepping within and hoping that she and her team could resume what had been discussing earlier.

Roman clasped his hands together and looked as remorseful as one could be.

"We're REALLY sorry, Professor Goodwitch..."

Roman waited until she left before bursting out into a fit of laughter.

"Sorry we got caught! Hahahaha!"

Roman turned and scooped up his partner, wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her up.

"Hahaha! With you at my side, Neo? Who's gotta worry about Ozpin? We'll handle him just like everything else."

Roman smiled.

"Together."

Tossing Neo onto the nearest bed, Roman wasn't too far behind, folding his arms behind his head and just laying back. "I...I think I needed a laugh after that. No...I DID need one. Everything in there was so serious, I'm glad we could perk things up a bit. Even if it got us in trouble, so what? I don't regret a damn thing."

Picking up his scroll, Roman laughed.

"See how things work out, Neo? Merc wants us to meet up here? We pull a prank and Goodwitch throws us here. Everything's working out!"

"Already here! Goodwitch caught us :, ("​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"I see." Salem stated. The councilwoman didn't hide the fact that she had once hated the group, but as it stood now, she no longer seemed to be carrying that level of animosity towards them. Salem had no reason to doubt the validity of those words, at the very least, for when it came to the Schnees of note...it always tended to be just business with them. "You aren't wrong on that." The headmistress agreed. Another attack taking place while they were still struggling to rebuild, their own strength weakened by so much loss...it would be devastating. Much harder to push back against. "Very well. If you want to take them off our hands and see to their imprisonment and trials yourselves, by all means. Take them. You have my permission. Anything else?" ​

A tactful shake of the head formed the crux of her reply, the Schnee quality of sophistication always in effect. "Unless there's anything you'd like to bring to my attention. I'll assume you're as in the dark about the true perpetrator of all this as Ironwood appears to be."

Her eyes held the Beacon head a short few moments longer in case there was anything she wished to add herself, but otherwise Weiss excused herself with a nod.

"I'm sure you must have plenty to attend to. Thank you for your time, professor. I'll begin making the arrangements for everything we discussed."

She turned and made to sweep from the room, her time as valuable as the dust her company exported. She ended up losing a second or two by the window as the view of the grounds captured her attention again, but she dismissed it with a hum before allowing herself to linger too long and stepped back inside the elevator, composed in a way nobody had any business being after repeatedly manipulating one of the wisest people in the world.​

 

[Gus Gungus]

"See how things work out, Neo? Merc wants us to meet up here? We pull a prank and Goodwitch throws us here. Everything's working out!"

"Hey losers. My dad killed Weiss Schnee's dad," Mercury announced as soon as him and Emerald were inside with the doors shut behind them, deciding to skip right to the point in light of the many lengthy bombshell revelations that had already been shared today. He made sure the door was locked and moved over to the window to peek behind the curtains while Emerald watched, perplexed. "So we can't do ANYTHING to draw her eyes on us while she's here. Got it?"​

 

[Gus Gungus]

Blake's meditations—or however else she spent her time in solitary—were once more interrupted, this time by the chief officer of Ironwood's prison transport craft; A tall, clean-cut weapon of a man who glared and snapped at her every time he entered in a way no faunus could claim was unfamiliar. His scowl today was particularly venomous, the tension in his shoulders indicating the receipt of orders he wasn't thrilled about carrying out.

"Get up, Belladonna. We have orders to oversee your transfer. Your new custodian's taking you back to Atlas to fry."

"That's not how they do it anymore. And we'll do just fine without the colourful descriptions, thank you."

The officer blanched and stiffened, that voice severe enough to actually make him turn his back on the highly dangerous prisoner as councilwoman Schnee stared right past him from the hall. Her frigid eyes weighed Blake with what looked to be total apathy, posture straight and elegant, arms both folded behind her back. If she'd at all considered how utterly insulting it probably was for Ozpin to have dispatched her of all people to be the extremist's liberator, her features certainly didn't show it.

"I t-told you to wait on the bridge."

"You did, and I almost listened. Then I remembered I don't take orders from you. It's actually quite the opposite," she informed with an air of faux regret, already breaking her gaze from Blake like she was nobody important and directing it further down the hall. The officer, for his part, bit his tongue and locked the faunus's arms in a pair of aura suppression cuffs. Exceedingly gently. "Next prisoner?"

Neo, after being similarly prepped for transport, would probably have found the ensuing shuttle ride back to Weiss's own marvel of an airship 'awkwardly quiet'. The CEO sat with the prisoners but made no effort to engage either in conversation, likewise disaffected by any attempts to engage her. It seemed her mind had more important things to focus on, like examining her nails for the entire span of the flight.

When they arrived, they were led off the shuttle and brought to rooms much more comfortable and elaborately furnished than the cells they had been confined in, though the heavy click of the blastproofed doors behind them conveyed that, yes, they were cells all the same. For now.

---

Later.

Weiss was slumped in a chair in her airship's private viewing deck, the bottle of wine next to her half empty and the glass in her hand fully so as she nursed her temples and tried to enjoy the solitude while her crew prepped for takeoff. She looked tired.​

 

[MyrtenRose]

Her arrival in the City of Vale was...rather ordinary for a city that had more or less been under siege only days ago. She supposed that was because the kingdom was so in need for anyone who would come to help that their gratitude would let them look past differences in appearance and ignore where the help seemed to be coming from. Not that she ever really needed that, she was luckier than most of her kind in that regard. Still, she couldn't help from wishing that some of the looks she was getting, wasn't just because of the gratitude of people in desperate need of assistance, but simply because more humans generally trusted and accepted the faunus. That more humans and faunus could just come together without a tragedy making it possible.

But that was not why she had come.

She did what she could to help where she could, and that gave her pretty much free rein to scout out the kingdom. She was able to catch little bits of information here and there throughout the day of reconstruction. Some helpful, but none of the sort that she had been really searching for. Not until the second day of her being here, where she was able to overhear that Blake Belladonna's interrogation, or one of them, had gone poorly. The two Atlas security personnel made clear their frustration as they looked up, and she followed their gaze to an Atlesian prison ship hovering over near the edges of the city. There.

The next day, in all the activity and noise, nobody noticed her theft.

And later that day...absolutely nobody missed the arrival of a new ship from Atlas. But it was not one of General Ironwood's. No, this one quite clearly belonged to the SDC. Still maintaining the appearance of being there solely to help with the damages(this time with Beacon Academy itself), she was able to discreetly witness...was that Weiss Schnee?? Schnee, like Blake herself was dressed differently than she recalled from when they had met. Carried herself differently too. She moved with a brisk arrogance to her step, the kind of stride that said any interruption to whatever she was here for, would not be met lightly.

As it happened, she was in the perfect place to figure it out. Or at least one reason. When the councilwoman exited from Beacon Tower, at a distance she watched Schnee made her way for Beacon's landing pad, and her stepping into one of the shuttles docked there. A shuttle that's flight path went right for that prison ship. In a rush, she was quick to dash off, realization hitting her like a brick. Of course! The situation with Blake! Weiss had to be here to resolve the messed up situation with her friend.

While Weiss was retrieving Blake from her cell and admonishing some unfortunate officer, she, in the uniform she had stolen that was only a tad too big for her, was able to bluff her way onto a shuttle, ostensibly to retrieve supplies that the SDC ship had so graciously brought. By the time Weiss was in flight with both prisoners, this shuttle was just landing aboard the SDC ship. The cadre of Atlas soldiers, and their officer, were quick to disembark. She was just behind them, stepping down more slowly.

She was still in the hangar when Weiss exited her own shuttle, Blake following close behind...in...in cuffs?? She had to really struggle to keep her face from revealing her confusion and shock. Somebody else she didn't recognize, also in cuffs, was behind Blake. That group strode through the hangar and she followed, though at a distance so as not to be glaringly obvious. Their path brought them deep into the ship, and when they all took a left down one hallway, she continued straight, noticing out of the corner of her eye that the pair were being shoved into different rooms, heavy doors slamming shut behind them.

She made a mental note of that hallway before it vanished from her sight as she continued on, striding on with purpose and giving off the air that she belonged there. No staff aboard questioned her presence, and eventually she ducked off into one side room, turning out be some sort of maintenance closet. The Atlas uniform was quickly taken off and shoved into a corner, hidden behind some heavy duty cleaning supplies.

She didn't understand why Weiss was treating her friend like that.

She couldn't comprehend why Blake had been so...okay, with murdering a whole team of students from Beacon.

But despite what she didn't understand, it was oddly comforting that one thing seemed the same. SDC/Atlesian security protocols and routines. So much time spent infiltrating Atlas installations, disrupting Schnee Dust Company operations...it made this almost child's play, as she snuck through the ship back towards the hallway she memorized. Any cameras nearby were discreetly neutralized before she made her approach, striding for one of the two doors.

She stood right outside, shooting glances down both ends of the hallway before opening the door, revealing...a tiny girl, with pink and brown hair and matching eyes staring back at her. She blinked, eyes changing color in surprise and then she casually shut that door again before the girl could so much as move. Wrong door. She stepped over to the other door and repeated the process, it opening up to reveal exactly who she had come here for. "Blake!" Despite her lack of comprehension over something that would be need to addressed soon enough and the fact that one of them was in cuffs, she just...looked happy to see her old friend again, after their paths had parted ways at the Argus train station.

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

Neo was wily, but Glynda had been teaching the illusionist for over a year now. She'd been subjected to most of Neopolitan's tricks, and had even inspired/forced Neo to come up with some new ones on the fly on occasion. Years from now, Neo would appreciate these little games, and how they helped her further develop her repertoire of devious smokescreens and befuddling twists.

It was not years from now, however, and she sucked in a breath of dismay as she and Roman turned a corner into a dead end of a locked classroom door, and she turned around with a sullen huff as Glynda's heels clacked to a halt behind them.

"Do you two have anything to say for yourselves?"

"..."

Even Glynda had the grace to clear her throat at her choice of words, but she turned her glare onto Torchwick instead. "You, then?"

Torchwick didn't respond.

Which is the exact moment she knew that it couldn't possibly be the real Torchwick, and she whirled just in time to see the duo juuuust short of sneaking around the corner. She flicked her weapon, and Neo let out a quiet eep of surprise as she was was suddenly hoisted into the air by her feet, her boots glowing with the purple of Glynda's telekinesis. Glynda glowered at her, and Neo glowered back, at least a little annoyed at being caught. Besides, they weren't even students anymore! The girl's form was replaced by a decrepit old man, who pointed his finger at glynda and mouthed the words

Glynda arched an eyebrow, and thats when the lecture began. And this time Neo couldn't escape
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When they were dropped off, she was practically tossed at Roman, and she stuck her tongue out at Glynda as she left. If she got the respect lecture one more time she was absolutely going to lose her mind, and she was briefly almost happy Beacon was closing. Such thoughts were banished at the simple joy of being yote; she hated when people treated her like a kid just because she was small, but she had at least one similarity with the smaller folk in that being picked up and tossed was like a free carnival ride. She landed on the bed with a flop, and shot Roman a warm smile at his words before she glanced at her scroll's message.

------------------------------------------------------------------

"...."

Neo shot up from the bed, a baffled frown on her face. She knew Mercury's dad had been kind of a miserable jackass, but she'd never quite guessed at his profession. The hat was back on her head again, if normal sized, and she pointed at it just to confirm that it was the Weiss Schnee they were talking about and not some... other Weiss Schnee. Which when she thought about it was a lot less impossible now than it would've sounded an hour ago =w=

 

[Gus Gungus]

"...."

Neo shot up from the bed, a baffled frown on her face. She knew Mercury's dad had been kind of a miserable jackass, but she'd never quite guessed at his profession. The hat was back on her head again, if normal sized, and she pointed at it just to confirm that it was the Weiss Schnee they were talking about and not some... other Weiss Schnee. Which when she thought about it was a lot less impossible now than it would've sounded an hour ago =w=

"I know, what is it with that thing?" He tossed back with a fleeting glance, returning his gaze to outside after a moment and only drawing them all the way shut again when he was satisfied there wasn't a sniper posted on the opposite roof. "When I was a kid, my dad left the cabin on a 'business trip'. Not exactly uncommon. Real pro, my old man. He was kinda famous on the wetworks scene if you knew who was who. But oh, man, did he like to drink. He never told me anything about his contracts... Til he was at least five beers deep."

The ironic smirk he meant to flash came off more of a bitter grimace.

"The night he came back he wouldn't shut up about it. Biggest kill to his name, that's what he kept saying. Everyone thought it was the White Fang at the time, but no way did they hire a human assassin. Especially seeing as they never came out and denied they did it. Mm, nah... some business rival paid my dad a ton of lien to off the guy. All came from some shell company account in Atlas, so we never found out who. They covered their tracks. My dad covered his. Or so I thought."

He paced over to his bunk, sat down and folded his arms, even grimmer in disposition.

"...I'm not going to jail. But if they try pick me up, I want you guys to know why."​

 

[Schnee Corp Lawyer]

Blake's meditations—or however else she spent her time in solitary—were once more interrupted, this time by the chief officer of Ironwood's prison transport craft; A tall, clean-cut weapon of a man who glared and snapped at her every time he entered in a way no faunus could claim was unfamiliar. His scowl today was particularly venomous, the tension in his shoulders indicating the receipt of orders he wasn't thrilled about carrying out.

"Get up, Belladonna. We have orders to oversee your transfer. Your new custodian's taking you back to Atlas to fry."

"That's not how they do it anymore. And we'll do just fine without the colourful descriptions, thank you."

The officer blanched and stiffened, that voice severe enough to actually make him turn his back on the highly dangerous prisoner as councilwoman Schnee stared right past him from the hall. Her frigid eyes weighed Blake with what looked to be total apathy, posture straight and elegant, arms both folded behind her back. If she'd at all considered how utterly insulting it probably was for Ozpin to have dispatched her of all people to be the extremist's liberator, her features certainly didn't show it.

"I t-told you to wait on the bridge."

"You did, and I almost listened. Then I remembered I don't take orders from you. It's actually quite the opposite," she informed with an air of faux regret, already breaking her gaze from Blake like she was nobody important and directing it further down the hall. The officer, for his part, bit his tongue and locked the faunus's arms in a pair of aura suppression cuffs. Exceedingly gently. "Next prisoner?"

Blake was against the wall opposite the door when it opened, her eyes trained on it in an unblinking stare, her expression hidden behind the arm that rested on her knee. There was no reaction to the warden's words, but the person who spoke next certainly garnered one. One could almost feel the malice that suddenly consumed the cell, as Weiss' apathetic gaze was returned with a glare of abject loathing, though the faunus still didn't otherwise react.

The instant she looked away, Blake was suddenly on her feet, straight past the warden in an instant despite her lack of aura and with hands clasped like claws as she reached for Weiss' face-

Only to end up slammed against the back wall she'd just been against by a glyph, and piled on by the warden and another guard shortly after. Even after she was wrangled and secured after the failed attempt she stayed silent with her hateful stare, refusing to break it from the Schnee as long as she was in her sight. If one of Ozpin's other agents were here, or if someone somehow suspected that Weiss was not exactly what she appeared, then it certainly looked like a potent, nail in the coffin of a misdirection, a master class in method acting put forth by the faunus to make sure her escape was secured and her rescuer was without suspicion.

But Blake had never been a very good liar. She left any of those sorts of infiltration jobs, the ones that involved smiles and lies and misdirections, to people like Ilia.

She just hated Weiss Schnee that much, no matter who's side they both happened to be on.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wrong door. She stepped over to the other door and repeated the process, it opening up to reveal exactly who she had come here for. "Blake!" Despite her lack of comprehension over something that would be need to addressed soon enough and the fact that one of them was in cuffs, she just...looked happy to see her old friend again, after their paths had parted ways at the Argus train station.

When the door opened, Blake was practically in the same position she'd been in in her last cell, the comfy furnishings ignored in favor of keeping her focus on the exit and her back protected. If anything, she looked even angrier to be in this cell than she had the other one.

All of that broke once she saw who was in the doorway.

For the first time since the attack on Beacon began, a genuine, if shocked, smile lit up Blake's face as she shot to her feet.

"Ilia?!"

She strode across the room and with a heavy sigh rested her head on her friend's shoulder. Her best friend. The only one who hadn't left her. The only one who kept to Blake's side when the blood had started to spill in earnest. One of the few people that Blake could say without hesitation that she actually trusted, maybe even the only one; Sienna would always have Blake's loyalty, but she wasn't exactly a friend, not someone to confide in about anything other than The Fight.

"Why are you here though?" She asked without raising her head. "I'm glad you made it out okay, but did they send you with Weiss to make sure I didn't kill her?"

There was the slightest edge of sarcasm to the question. If only slight.

 

[MidwayLives]

"Hey losers. My dad killed Weiss Schnee's dad," Mercury announced as soon as him and Emerald were inside with the doors shut behind them, deciding to skip right to the point in light of the many lengthy bombshell revelations that had already been shared today. He made sure the door was locked and moved over to the window to peek behind the curtains while Emerald watched, perplexed.

"Oh. Uh, damn."

Roman didn't like to bug Merc too much about his personal life. If Merc felt like talking about he would. In turn it also kept Roman from having to go into grand detail about what....What happened to his and Neo's folks.

He looked around to Emerald and Neo.

"I don't think any of us expected him to say THAT."
​

"So we can't do ANYTHING to draw her eyes on us while she's here. Got it?"

At that, Roman winced a little.

"Understood. But uh..."
​

"...."

Neo shot up from the bed, a baffled frown on her face. She knew Mercury's dad had been kind of a miserable jackass, but she'd never quite guessed at his profession. The hat was back on her head again, if normal sized, and she pointed at it just to confirm that it was the Weiss Schnee they were talking about and not some... other Weiss Schnee. Which when she thought about it was a lot less impossible now than it would've sounded an hour ago =w=

"We...kinda made fun of her hat.."

But she wouldn't come after them for a minor slight like that!
​

Neo, after being similarly prepped for transport, would probably have found the ensuing shuttle ride back to Weiss's own marvel of an airship 'awkwardly quiet'. The CEO sat with the prisoners but made no effort to engage either in conversation, likewise disaffected by any attempts to engage her. It seemed her mind had more important things to focus on, like examining her nails for the entire span of the flight.

When they arrived, they were led off the shuttle and brought to rooms much more comfortable and elaborately furnished than the cells they had been confined in, though the heavy click of the blastproofed doors behind them conveyed that, yes, they were cells all the same. For now.

"..."

As she continued contemplating various ways to get back at her other. Mostly in horribly graphic ways.

She noted her cell being opened and hopping to her feet she strongly resisted the urge to spit in the guard's face. Men who thought they had power were the ones who just as quickly lost it. But then Neo's eyes rested on Weiss.

"....?"

If Roman and this world's version of her being 'good guys' took her for a loop seeing that Schnee who hung around with her 'Red' in that getup(What a stupid hat)and...clearly much older only served to confuse her. But as she was taken along to join the other prisoners, Neo huffed. Whatever was going on with this pants on head backwards world some things made sense.

Once a Schnee always a schnee.

As she was lumped in with everyone else, Neo took special notice of Blake. The one that Neo knew had knocked her Roman around a couple of times.

Bitch.
​

She stood right outside, shooting glances down both ends of the hallway before opening the door, revealing...a tiny girl, with pink and brown hair and matching eyes staring back at her. She blinked, eyes changing color in surprise and then she casually shut that door again before the girl could so much as move. Wrong door.

Here's another question for everyone here.

Why. Was. Everyone. So. RUDE?!
​

He paced over to his bunk, sat down and folded his arms, even grimmer in disposition.

"...I'm not going to jail. But if they try pick me up, I want you guys to know why."

"Bunch of bull."

Roman sat up and slipped his hat on.

"Not the story I mean. I believe you there. But if anyone tries to punish you for your dad's sins?"

Roman slung an arm around Neo's shoulder.

"Then they'll have to deal with us. 'Appreicate you letting us in on this but I'm not gonna let anything happen to you or this team."​

 

[Gus Gungus]

(What a stupid hat)

Said the chick in the dead guy's bowler