Deep in the land of Grimm, in the library of Salem's castle, Cinder sat at a table with several books and scrolls open on the table around her. Some of the books were simply bound together by handmade leather, others were falling apart at the seams but their hard covers were decorated with silver or gold runes, and the scrolls were the same, some only holding together, some fancy, and others being neither of those things.
The one eye that wasn't covered by her hair had bags forming underneath it. She had been up reading for a very long time, diligently working. Eventually finishing the scroll she had been working on, Cinder moved it to the side and went to grab a book from on one of the stacks of books. Lifting it up, she revealed the book underneath, one with a strange purple mark on it that looked like a sharply drawn heart with downwardly pointed barbed horns. The mark of Grimoire Heart.
As she began to the new book, the doors to the library opened up and Hades stepped into the room with the doors shutting behind him all on their own. "I hope your not rushing through those girl."
Cinder took a split second to look up at Hades in a bit of a glare but her voice was still just coming back so she didn't say anything, only making a slight noise of annoyance and shaking her head to answer his question.
After she turned her head back to the book, a strange white chain of magic shot across the gap between her face and the book she was reading. The claw like end of this chain gripped the book with the Grimoire Heart symbol on it, and Hades who had casted the spell yanked the book into his awaiting hand.
This caused Cinder to look back at Hades with a annoyed expression, though it also conveyed a curiousness. "Why?" She asked, her voice still a little raspy. Hades chuckled,"You are not yet ready for this text, you may read it after you have more of a grasp of magic."
"And....when will....that be?" The Fall Maiden asked, having to clear her voice to speak. "That depends solely on you child."
"What does that mean? Have I not proven my abilities yet?" Cinder questioned again, a dark and deep red light covering her right hand making it glow. "The fact that you cannot answer that yourself only proves how unready you are." The Dark Mage placed the book at the furthest end of the table, out of reach from Cinder, and then placed his hand over it. A purple magic circle appeared between his hand and the top of the book, a series of tiny magical symbols covered the book in a dark purple light before fading away.
In all the reading she had been doing, Cinder knew that he had put a magical lock on the book, most likely binding it shut. "Put your current reading on hold, its time to see if you've learned anything in your reading." Hades told Cinder as he beckoned her up.
Standing from her chair, she began to follow Hades out of the library, using a simply flick of her hand to shut the book she had been reading with a wave of dark red magic. On their way out, she turned slightly to take a glance at the book that had been taken from her and she wondered to herself what sort of magical power was kept hidden in between the pages of that book.
-Elsewhere, in Atlas-
"-I'll strangle that ungrateful narcissistic swine with his own entrails!"
James Ironwood sat at his office desk with a slightly slacked jaw and wide eyes as he listened to Irene rant on about Jacques Schnee while she paced back and forth in his office.
In the weeks since she began to teach Winter what magic was and how it could be used once she gained the power of the likewise named Winter Maiden, she had grown accustomed to talking with the special agent regarding her younger sister and one of Irene's former students.
And the red headed mage just wound out that after a public outburst regarding some mockery of Beacon, Jacques denounced Weiss as Heiress to the Schnee family company and all its associated benefits. That was something that didn't sit kindly with Winter and, for some reason that illuded Ironwood, Irene as well.
"First it was all this nonsense with control over the council, then he dared to mock my presence here, and now this?! Give me one good reason I shouldn't turn him into the cockroach he really is!" The Dragon Slayer shouted out as she continued to pace in the middle of the room.
"Besides the fact that it would greatly injure my relations with said council, even with the two seats I hold, he is still the father of Weiss and Winter." James explained to his friend as calmly as he could.
"A father? That man is no father, he is a manipulative bastard that wouldn't know what family was if it bit him in the rear." She pressed on with her rant.
The General let out a sigh,"We can't do anything regarding his decision. That's not only outside of my jurisdiction as a Headmaster and a General but also socially as well. We have no say in his inner family problems, no matter how horrid they be."
"Could you please just let me rant without constantly trying to make concise and clear points please?" Irene asked James, who laughed a little nervously as the angry look in her eye. "If I did, you would march off and actually do something so I don't think I can."
Irene held the bridge of her nose with her free hand, the other holding her staff, as she was slowly building up a headache from all the anger she was feeling.
Being a mother herself, not necessarily a good mother but mother none the less, she was more than angry at the way Jacques was trying to use the young girl for his own benefit. That was something even Irene herself was incapable of. A testament to her motherly instincts as one would put it.
"I can't even begin to think about how Weiss is feeling right now." She muttered out as the door to Ironwood's office opened and Winter walked into the room, an mixed expression of both joy and anger on her face. Having caught the end of Irene's sentence, she appropriately gave an answer.
"She is apparently feeling the need to escape. My father and Klein called and Weiss has run away. I got a proper answer from the latter and an order from my father to and I quote 'Retrieve your rebellious and delusional sister', he may have said something else but I hung up." Winter explained as she then saluted Ironwood, who quickly put her at ease.
"Good, the further she is away from the man the better. No offense." The red headed mage said, letting out a breath of relief. "None taken, I whole heartily agree."
"Do you know where she is going?" James asked his best soldier. "Klein told me she was planning to reunite with her former teammates from Beacon. I recall their leader being a....Ruby Rose?"
"That's right. I met her during the Vytal Festival." James said, remembering the girl who tried to stop Cinder Fall at the CCT tower. "Her teammates are spread thin right now. I wish Weiss would have come to us for assistance." The General continued.
"Would you have let her leave sir?" Winter asked James, who simply sat and looked at her for a moment. "No, I don't think I would have."
"Then maybe it is best that she left on her own. I have feeling that her friends will be needing her help at Haven when all is said and done." Irene said with a sigh before sitting down in one of the chairs in the room,"I wager you wouldn't have come here just for the update on your sister, what is you need Winter?" The red haired mage asked as she crossed her legs to get comfortable.
"I came to request more training, with yours's and General Ironwood's permission of course." She explained, turning to face Ironwood with a patient expression on her face. "More training? Have you not had your fill? We train four days out of the week for nearly eight hours at a time. Why more?"
"With all due respect, I am unprepared to accept the burden of power the Maiden's carry. And since our enemies already have a Maiden themselves, she will be far ahead of me in terms of experience. I need more training if I am to be ready to face her and win."
Both James and Irene exchanged looks before the latter nodded and the General in turn gave his approval,"Very well. I'll have the Ace operatives handle some of your less intensive missions for the time being to allow you to focus on more training. I'll let you and Irene figure out the details."
"Thank you sir." Winter said giving a salute. Again Ironwood saluted back,"Why don't you two go and begin this additional training. I'm sure I'll be getting an earful from Jacques here soon which means there will be yet another council meeting."
"Very well, come Winter we have much to do if you really want to up your training." With that the master and student left the office as Ironwood's Scroll began to ring and Jacques Schnee's name was written on the incoming call.
Breathing a heavy sigh, James picked up the phone and prepared to be assaulted by words.
-Elsewhere, in Anima-
The wind whipped around Yang's face as she rode her bike, Bumblebee, down the old dirt roads of Anima. Set on her way to find her sister and the quickest way to do that was to find her mother, Raven, since Ruby was with Qrow.
Though while that was her destination, the ride there was long and left Yang's mind drifting back to just a few weeks earlier when someone paid her a visit.
-Weeks Earlier-
Yang sat in her bed, staring out her bedroom window. Since she woke up, missing an arm and all her friends, she hadn't really been in the mood to do anything. Her father, Tai, had been doing everything he could to make her feel better. To make her feel normal again.
But normal felt out of reach for her at the moment, maybe even forever.
Ruby left her and their father a note that told them that she was heading to Haven with the rest of team JNPR. Qrow likely followed so Yang was at least a little at ease that her baby sister was alright.
Then there was what was happening at Beacon. Thanks to a few phone calls, Tai found out that Professor Goodwitch and Professor Heartfelia were rapidly fixing up both the campus and Vale. However the negative emotions that came from Vale was still causing Grimm to come in by the dozens, though they were quickly being dispatched by students that remained behind to assist with the rebuilding process and the professors who had also stuck around.
From what her father told her, Acnologia went off on his own to Menagerie. She still didn't believe that he could turn into a dragon but everyone else saw it so its not some trick. General Ironwood and Professor Belserion went to Atlas with Weiss going with them due to her father forcing her to return to her home.
And then of course Yang had no idea where Blake had gone. After she attacked Blake's assailant back at Beacon, loosing her arm in the process, she fell unconscious. Her teammate brought her back to safety and made sure she didn't lose more than an arm, but after that she bolted or at the very least no one could tell her where she went.
The more she thought about that, the worse she felt. Thankfully, something showed up to get her mind off that.
A knock at the houses front door drew her attention as her father answered it. Their initial greeting was to faint to understand but soon it was clear that someone was here to see here. "Yang someone's here to see you! Its -What did you say your name was- Miss Anna Heartfelia from Beacon!"
Some silence passed before Yang responded just loud enough to be heard,"My doors open." More muffled conversation continued as the Tai began to lead Anna up to Yang's room.
"How has she been?" The celestial mage asked to which Tai just let out a deep sigh,"She's recovering. What happen at Beacon....it really messed with her."
"It affected everyone, though as close as Yang was to the conflict she would have been one of the most affected. I'm just glad she got out of it alive, others were not so lucky." Anna said,"You me and both."
Their conversation came to an end as they reach Yang's nearly shut door. Anna took a breath in and then knocked on the wall next to the door as to not just walk into Yang's room.
"I said the doors open." Yang told Anna through the door with little emotion in her voice.
Anna opened the door and slowly entered the room,"Hi Yang, how are you doing?" She asked sweetly. "I'm fine." The blonde brawler told her, never looking in her direction. The celestial mage looked back at Tai who was standing just outside the door, not to ease drop but just staying for a moment to see how his daughter was doing. He looked concerned to say the least.
But he turned and walked back downstairs to give them some privacy. Anna took a breath and walked further into the room, noticing a chair near Yang's bed. "Do you mind if I sit down?"
"Knock yourself out." The celestial mage sat down carefully and kept her eyes of Yang who was still staring out the window. "Professor Goodwitch asked me to give you a hello for her. She wanted to be here but since she was the Headmistress of Beacon she has more work to do regarding all the rebuilding than I do."
Yang didn't respond to that. "Some of your classmates also wanted me to tell you that you were on their minds and that they hoped to see you soon."
"Uh huh. That's nice." Yang said emotionlessly.
"Yang I am so very sorr-"
"Save the sorry's. If you just here to pity me you can go downstairs and talked to my dad." The blonde brawler snapped, still keeping her gaze on her window.
"I do not pity you Yang, I regret being unable to help you. What happen to you and everyone else was a tragedy, I am sorry that myself and the rest of the teachers at Beacon could not prevent that tragedy." Anna told her, speaking truthfully.
"Its not your fault Beacon got attacked, you did your best." Yang replied, a little softer than before but still not looking at her. "I don't want to get into that, its not apart of the reason for my visit."
"So why did you come see me then?"
"You deserved an explanation of what happen at Beacon. More than what you may already know" Anna told Yang which finally caused her to turn her head towards her.
Over the course of the next few minutes, Anna laid everything she could to bare from the Maidens and Salem to her home world and the story of Acnologia, herself, and Irene. To say it took a moment to allow that to sink in would be an understatement. This wasn't like with the others, when there were both more people learning and more people helping explain, this was just Anna and Yang.
That of course also included a level of disbelief regarding Acnologia's rather violent past, though given his disposition when they first met it isn't much of a stretch. He had changed a lot.
"So.....Beacon got attacked because of this Salem person. Is she the one who killed mine and Ruby's mom too?" Yang asked Anna, her fist gripping tightly onto the sheets of her bed.
"I don't know the details of what happened to your mother and I don't want to give you any information I can't confirm but it is very likely." The celestial mage explained.
"Does Ruby know?"
"About all this? I'm sure team JNPR told her and your uncle will fill in any gaps they might miss. She wasn't in the best shape when we told everyone so she didn't get to ask us any questions then."
"Is that why Acnologia went to Menagerie?" Yang asked to which Anna nodded,"He wanted to find out why the White Fang were involved with the fall of Beacon, make sure that they weren't another problem that we needed to worry about moving forward."
"So Haven Academy is their next target?"
"Cinder Fall and her associates claimed to be from Haven, so we believe that it is likely that something is happening there. Acnologia will be rendezvousing with your friends and your uncle there once he is finished dealing with the White Fang." Anna explained,"What about Weiss? Is she still in Atlas?"
"Yes, I haven't heard much about her from Irene or James. Her family may be keeping her in Atlas for the time being but I'm not sure." The celestial mage explained to the best of her ability.
"And Blake?"
Anna paused for a moment, unsure of what to say and that silence was telling. "So she did just leave."
"I....I don't know what happen to Blake. James was the last to see her. He told us that she was helping at one of the evacuation points when he told her to go see a medic regarding her own injuries. After that we were unable to find her." Anna said, not wanting to lie to Yang but not wanting to say anything wrong regarding Blake and her leaving.
"How could she just leave like that?" Yang asked, gripping her covers even tighter.
"I can not speak for Blake, but she was once apart of the White Fang if I recall Acnologia's story correctly. It is possible that she felt guilty for what happen, especially for what happen to you, and she didn't want that to happen again."
"That....that doesn't give her an excuse to just leave, not without saying anything to anyone." The blonde brawler replied, wiping her eyes which had welled with tears for a moment.
"I am sorry I don't know anything more about that. I wish I did." Anna told her. More silence passed before Yang looked to Anna,"Can you take me to Ruby?"
"Take you to Ruby? Yang even if I could, your still recovering from your injuries. You need to heal before you do anything."
"I told you that I'm fine." Yang said, a bit of anger in voice but not directed towards Anna. Rather it seemed to be focused more towards her own condition.
"Physically you are better, but not mentally or emotionally. Even if you were healed I'm not like Acnologia, I have no way of travelling quicker with my Magic. You'd have to take the long way."
"Then I should get going now." Yang said as she started to get out of bed,"Yang you are in no condition to go anywhere." Anna repeated as she quickly put a hand on the young girl's shoulder, keeping her from moving. "Just wait a little while longer and let yourself recover. Before he left James... General Ironwood told me he planned to have a new cybernetic arm sent to you. At least wait for that."
"A new arm?" The young girl questioned, a bit hesitant as well as wary considering her freshly scared mind. Anna could see the worry as well as the remnants of fear in her eyes. She sat back down, inching a bit closer to Yang as she did so, and placed her other hand on Yang's only remaining arm. "I know it is scary to face the unknown. I know what happen to you left a mark far deeper than the one people can see. But I also know that you, Yang, are one of the strongest and bravest people I have ever met. I know this won't stop you, just as I know that one day you will be one of the greatest people this world has ever seen."
"But what.....But what if.....What if I lose again? I-I just.....I'm just afraid." Yang said, a sadness floating on top of of her words. "Yang, its alright to be afraid. Courage and bravery is not a lack of of fear. If your not afraid of something, then you can't be brave. Standing up to your fears, fighting back, that's what bravery is. And it takes time to build that courage up."
"Are you scared?" The young girl asked.
"I am scared of losing those I care for, yes. I have been scared of people before, I once feared Acnologia and to some extent I still do." Anna told her. Yang went to ask about that, but then recalled what Anna had told her not ten minutes earlier.
"Is....Is he scared of anything? I can't see him being scared of everything."
"Tell you what, I'll let you ask him in person when you get to Haven." The celestial mage said as she stood up,"Unfortunately I have to get back to Beacon to help get started on the last leg of Vale's reconstruction. Beacon's campus will follow. When you are ready to head to Haven, take this with you." Anna pulled out a Scroll and held it out for her.
"I-I already have a Scroll, besides with the CCT tower down it won't work right?" Yang asked,"You are correct. Most Scrolls no longer work across continents, however this one does not connect to the CCT system. It is connected to a magical system set up by Irene and Acnologia which connects our Scrolls together so that we can keep in touch."
Yang took it,"Woah....who else has one?"
"Well I do, Professor Goodwitch does, Acnologia, Irene, General Ironwood, and your uncle. That one is a bit different, it will only activate when you proceed to travel towards Haven and its calls must first be accepted by whoever is on the other end. It was sort of a test run to see if I could make more Scrolls that work but I'm not the best at enchanting so it has some conditions to help balance the strain."
"And do I just use this like a normal Scroll?"
"Sort of, instead of turning it on you have to tell it who to call. Like I said it'll only work when your on the way to Haven where the connection to the overall magical system we have is stronger."
"I....I don't know what to say." Yang told Anna, her gratitude to high for words.
"You don't have to say anything. I may not have been your teacher for very long, but I want to see you succeed in life and I want you to prosper like any good teacher should. Rest your heart and mind Yang, and let yourself heal."
The young girl reached her arm out and hugged Anna by the waist with the mage returning the hug,"Keep in touch when you leave alright?"
"I will. Thank you."
-Present day-
Dust trailed behind Yang as she continued to speed down the dirt roads of Anima. Hitting a smoother straight cut of road, she quickly glanced down to the Scroll she received from Anna. It worked as she was told it would, however she had refrained from contacting anyone in Haven.
She had a plan to get to her sister and she didn't want her Uncle Qrow to talk her out of it. There was only one person she could think of that would make this trip faster, and that person made it clear that her time must be earned.
Especially if it was for her own daughter.
Settling her mind off Anna's visit and her destination, she steeled herself as she throttled her bike and sped down the dirt road she was travelling.
-A bar in Mistral-
"Keep them coming, its gonna be a long night." Slurred a increasingly drunk Qrow as he sat across from a rather embarrassed and even more confused Oscar Pine. Sitting in front of Oscar, laying on the table they sat at, was the condensed cane of the late headmaster of Beacon.
His cane.
As a waitress brought Qrow yet another drink, taking an empty mug from the table that he had already downed, the huntsman gave another chuckle as he looked over the young farmhand before him.
"I can't believe your here Oz, a teenager no less on top of that."
"Hey!" Oscar quickly defended himself understanding the implication. "Sorry, sorry, its just.....well its funny." Qrow said with a bit of laughter chipping through his words.
'He's right you know, I was a good bit older than him when we first met so many years ago.' Ozpin told the boy he shared a soul with, though the words only echoed through Oscar's head with Qrow none the wiser.
"Its not funny." Oscar said out loud, to both Ozpin and Qrow the latter of which just shook his head. "Alright, alright sorry. So, Oscar, how long has Oz been running around your head?"
"A few weeks at most. Long enough for me to see some of his memories, uh before we get to serious with anything could you tell me who this Acnologia person is?" The farmhand asked, recalling a faint image of the man in question that had been one of the first memories to pop on its own.
"A friend, like me but a bit newer to our group. He was a teacher at Beacon. Someone you...Oz found. He can use magic just like Oz."
'Well that's not totally true, its nothing like our magic.' Ozpin corrected.
"Ozpin says its not like the magic that he can use." Oscar said, conveying Ozpin's message. "Tomato tamato, its magic. Look his story is complicated enough without all the jibber jabber. Look I've only know the guy for like two months, you can ask him all the questions you want when he gets here in a couple of days."
"He's a dragon....right? Or something like that?" The young boy asked to which Qrow nodded before downing the mug in front of him. "He is. Like I said he's complicated."
"I'm a fourteen year old with someone else's soul attached to mine, how can it get more complicated than that?"
Qrow started to chuckle but only for a moment. "Kid you got no idea. But that is a conversation for another day. Right now, while I can still speak somewhat normally, tell me about what you do know. About everything."
With a bit of help from Ozpin, who filled in various gaps that had yet to fill in, Oscar slowly went through the fall of Beacon and the true nature of the academies along side their groups over arching goal of defeating Salem. Then came Acnologia, Irene, and Anna with the latter two being names that had yet to show up in Oscar's memories.
Though the particular topic of Salem was something that felt off to Oscar. She felt familiar yet Ozpin gave no information other than how they were enemies. Then again having new memories placed alongside old ones was not exactly the best way to get information as indicated by his lack of knowledge regarding Irene and Anna.
'Ask Qrow about Team JNPR and Miss Ruby Rose.' Ozpin told Oscar who did just that,"Uh....How is Team JNPR and....Ruby Rose?"
"They're alright. Pyrrha is still a shaken from what happen at Beacon but she's regained a bit of her former fortitude. Jaune's only gotten better, the kid's got some potential. The quiet one, Ren, really started to take some initative. Same goes for that girl that's always with him, Nora. She's getting better just like the rest of her team. Now Ruby on the other hand....She used her eyes at Beacon for the first time, but she hasn't be able to use them since then."
"Her eyes?"
'I'll explain later.' Ozpin quickly interjected to which Oscar just nodded,"Okay....Uh....How much about this whole situation do you know? Me and Ozpin I mean."
The huntsman raised an eyebrow as yet another drink came to him,"Not enough apparently. Why?"
"The day I hear Ozpin's voice, I was getting water and.....I saw something? Someone? I don't really know how to describe it."
"Have you asked Oz?" Qrow questioned, drinking from his new mug. He had and Ozpin had no answers for him as the same memory problem also applied to him, he could not yet recall what Oscar had seen in the water that day.
"I have but....Never mind. Is there anything else you need to know?"
Oscar and Qrow continued to talk for a bit, with the alcoholic slowly getting more and more drunk as the minutes ticked onward.
Eventually, the farmhand had to carry the experienced Huntsman back to his temporary home where he would be meeting the team Ozpin had asked about in person. Though that was harder than it seemed as he eventually had to coerce Qrow into giving him the actually address as the drunk was unable to properly navigate the streets in his stupor.
-Central Vale-
Inside a rather spacious hotel, Glynda Goodwitch stood in front of the bathroom mirror where she washed her face with a wet wash cloth. The day had been long and she was exhausted. With Vale's reconstruction done, at least on her part, Beacon's reconstruction had commenced and it was far worse than Vale.
Despite being far smaller than the city, the buildings were nearly completely in ruin. Acnologia's battle with the Grimm Wyvern had left nothing untouched. The buildings that were left standing had massive holes torn through them.
Thinking on her other, Glynda let out a deep sigh and rubbed her neck where the Dragon Slayer had proclaimed his desire for her. She missed him and she knew that he missed her.
Due to their independent missions, they had not had much time to speak. Right now Acnologia would be flying towards Haven with Seinna Khan in tow and wouldn't be able to access his Scroll in Dragon form.
As she finished up in the bathroom, dressed in a nightgown ready for bed, the door to the hotel room opened and Anna walked in hanging up her bag and coat in the small closet next to the door. "I hope your done with the bathroom, I could use a shower." The celestial mage asked with a bit of a chuckle. Her day seemed to be going well.
"Just finished. Its all yours." Glynda replied with a yawn,"Thank you." Anna told her as she moved into the bathroom, quickly getting things ready for a well deserved shower.
Glynda on the other hand sat down on her bed, picked up her glasses from the bedside table that both she and Anna shared, and pulled out a large Scroll pad that was full of updates regarding the Beacon rebuilding project.
They were at least half way through by Glynda's estimation. Between herself and Anna, it would take at least another month to finish. At least that is what she hoped. The quicker they finished, the sooner they could meet up with the others at Haven. Maybe with new knowledge they could stop another Beacon from happening.
"Won't you take even the slightest break?" Anna asked from the bathroom, about to shut the door to get ready for her shower.
"I will take a break when this is done. Not a moment sooner." The headmistress of Beacon replied. "The sooner we are done the sooner it is that we will head to Haven."
"Ready to see Acnologia again?" Anna asked,"Yes but I am also worried about the Academy after what happen here. It is the reason that Acnologia and Qrow went there in the first place."
"I am not to worried about Haven considering we have more information than we did before, and Acnologia has already recruited that Seinna Khan to help with the White Fang problem we had. Things should be in our favor this time around." The celestial mage said,"As much as I want to agree with you, there are still several unknowns at play that could change everything about this situation. I want to air on the side of caution and have as much prepared as we can."
"Fair enough. Alright I'm taking my shower, I hope your asleep by the time I'm out so goodnight." Anna told Glynda as she closed the door to the bathroom. "I won't be but goodnight." The headmistress replied before going back to work.
-Elsewhere, Near Mistral-
With the sun setting, and appetites growing, Acnologia and Seinna Khan had chosen to set camp for the night.
The Dragon Slayer had set up a fire and had went about finding two small animals for himself and Seinna who was nearly repulsed by the action but was to hungry to refuse. It had been a long time since she had to eat something caught and cooked over a fire like this before and it did not remind her of good times.
Acnologia on the other hand could have cared less about things like that. Sure he missed the comforts and novelties of a life in the city, things he had grown accustomed to since becoming a teacher at Beacon, but he had survived for many long years without anything of the sort.
Even so, he could still tell that Seinna was not enjoying her circumstances. "To tough?" He asked, tearing through a chunk of his own meal.
"No, just disgusting."
"Well I'm sorry, mother nature doesn't exactly provide Five star meals on command." The Mage told her in between bites of his food. "The nearest town is Mistral and that's still over a day away so we deal with what we are given."
"I figured a Dragon could travel faster than that." Seinna chided to the Dragon Slayer.
"I fly faster than all of this worlds current aircraft, it would have taken far more time to get to Haven from where we were if we took one of them. Besides, if you fall asleep in the middle of our flight there's a chance I won't realize it and you'd fall to your death and if I flew as fast as I could the wind would pelt you like a hail of bullets. Unless that's what you'd like." Acnologia replied harshly.
The current leader of the White Fang just looked away from the Mage with a huff of air rolling past her lips. Acnologia growled under his own breath, this woman was annoying him beyond words could describe. She was already a bit on edge considering the attempt on her life, but she was also responsible for much of the Fang's current views on the world and that was reflected in her personality.
Silence passed for a while, all the way through them eating which left them sitting across the fire from one another. Eventually she spoke up,"So you identify as a Faunus?"
"I do though I am obviously very different from your normal Faunus." He told her, staring down into the fire as spoke. "Care to explain any of that?"
"No." He replied. She scoffed but didn't push further on the matter,"You said you were a teacher at Beacon, what brought that about?"
"Ozpin, the Headmaster of Beacon, found me after I beat up some of his students and offered me a job." He told her, not exactly conveying the events in a decent way.
"Excuse me?" She asked, snapping her head towards him in confusion. He just waved it off,"Its a long story. Let's just say that it worked out for the best."
"This Ozpin seems to be one insane individual if that is how you were hired. He was human yes?" Seinna continued to question.
Acnologia just nodded,"And you respected this man?"
"I do. I consider him a friend."
"I thought you said he was dead."
"Its complicated."
"So you've said about many things."
"For good reason."
Seinna scoffed again,"I'm sure it is." She said, her voice filled with sarcasm.
"Tell me, what exactly was your relationship with Adam Taurus? The man you were going to make your right hand if I recall correctly? I'm sure that's a simple thing to explain." Acnologia said which quickly caused Seinna to side eye him as her expression changed to one of restrained anger.
Silence rang out once more before the Dragon Slayer let out a sigh, already tired of arguing and chiding this woman in what seemed to be an eternal back and forth since they had first met. "Were you and Ghira friends?" He asked, trying to steer the conversation back into something a bit more pleasant. He still wanted her help after all and being at each other's necks wasn't going to help that.
"You know Ghira?" Seinna asked. "He is the one I went to when I first started to look for you." That caused the woman to go wide eyed for a moment,"He told you where I was?"
"Not at first, he only did so after we found out about the attempt on your life. He did not let that information go until he was sure of my intentions." The Dragon Slayer assured her, understanding how that could have sounded.
Seinna's expression soften for a moment, relief being the cause, before she quickly restored her prior stern expression. "I was his right hand while he was the leader of the Fang. I am the one who encouraged him to make bolder actions against the humans when the would attack us for just being Faunus."
"That much I figured. He didn't want me to hurt you but of course that was never mind intention."
"I'm glad Ghira still holds me in some sort of regard. I haven't spoken to him in several years." She told Acnologia who only nodded,"How was Kali? Did you see her too?"
"She was well though she and Ghira were concerned over their daughter when I first met them."
"Blake. She went to Beacon didn't she?" Seinna realized, having forgotten that the young Faunus had left the White Fang after it grew more and more violent. "I was one of her teachers." Acnologia said with a nod,"She is alive and well, she returned to her parents while I was on Menagerie."
"That makes Adam's attack on Beacon make far more sense than before. Even with what little you've told me regarding these people influencing him."
"I understand they had a close relationship, Adam and Blake."
"Their relationship was not totally clear to me, I know that after she left he became a little more eccentric. Well, a lot more eccentric."
"I think you mean crazy." Acnologia said,"Fine, crazy." Seinna relented. She couldn't exactly give him the benefit of the doubt after he tried to kill her.
"Do you have any human friends? Allies?" The second the words left the Dragon Slayer's mouth Seinna sneered in contempt,"Of course not. Humans are-"
"Check your next words carefully. You may hate humans but I have many human friends who I care for. My mate is human as well so do not lump them all together with those kind of humans you despise." Acnologia interrupted her.
"Your mate? You mean your partner?" Seinna questioned, not used to anyone even Faunus calling their partners that.
"Call it whatever you want but she is human and I ask that you put your own prejudices aside regarding them. I've told you before, not all humans are bad."
The Chieftess of the White Fang let out a deep breath. "Your partner, what is her name?"
"Glynda Goodwitch. She was also a teacher at Beacon." Acnologia told her,"A man of your stature, of your power, and you fell for some normal human?"
"She is no normal person. There is no other like her in this world. She is kind, caring, and thoughtful beyond what any normal person could ever be capable of. Yet she never shies away from scolding those who have done wrong and disciplining them to be better. Glynda drives me to be a better person, a better man."
Seinna sat quietly for a moment, unsure how to take this information. The Dragon Slayer let out a chuckle at the confusion spread across her face,"I know nothing of your history with humans, but I can assume it has been filled with the wrong kind of humans. When we reach Haven I assure you that you will meet people far different than the humans you seem to recall."
"The majority of people aren't like the ones you surround yourself with." The Chieftess spoke out to which Acnologia shook his head,"And a majority of people are not like the one's you think exists. I will not deny that they exists, but I will say that those people are fewer in number than you believe."
He paused, using a nearby stick to shift the kindling of the fire in front of them. "As for those that do hate Faunus, some of them can be changed. They can see that we are not so different, that we are people too. There was a young group of students I taught at Beacon, bullies who like to pick on those they saw different than them. One of my first days at that school, I saw them picking on a Faunus named Velvet. She was a shy but very skilled student. I lashed out at those bullies who would pick on her."
The leader of the White Fang went to speak up but Acnologia held up his hand, telling her he wasn't finished. "Soon after, those bullies came to me and asked me to help them in their training to become Huntsman. Their leader, a boy named Cardin was the worse of them. He disrespected and trashed Faunus at every opportunity. Despite his own hateful disposition to our kind, he set aside his pride and came to me and asked for help. So I did. He grew not only as a student, but as a young man. He grew kinder, more supportive of his peers, and even fostered a relationship with the very Faunus he would so often bully. He is but one example of the humans who can change and I assure you that there are many more."
Seinna turned her head away, not particularly fond of having another Faunus sit before her and tell her these things. Seeing the cracks already beginning to form in her image of humanity, Acnologia smiled slightly.
"I believe that is enough conversation. We leave as soon the sun rises so get some sleep. I will watch the fire." He told her to which she scoffed but listened and found a comfortable place to sleep in a nearby tree.
Acnologia stared into the fire, thinking on their next course of action once they reached Haven. It was sure to be a target but how long would Salem wait to make her move. The Dragon Slayer pushed the kindling a little causing ashes to scatter into the wind before burning themselves away.
He smiled a bit as he continued to think to himself. This time they would be ready, and Acnologia would ensure that this ended in their victory. No more innocent lives would be lost if he had anything to say about it.
And he most certainly did.