Beacon- Ozpin's Office

"This is unacceptable Ozpin! Something has to be done."

James Ironwood all but roared his dissatisfaction at his friend and college. The Headmaster himself sat at his desk, his demeanor incredibly calm but his coffee laying cold and untouched as he listened to James complain. Glynda stood ever stalwart at his side though if one were to look at her hands they would see how tightly she was gripping her tablet in frustration. Off to the side Archangel and Lazarus stood as silent observers, the former of which starred at the General with obvious dissatisfaction though he kept his mouth shut all the same. On the opposite side of them was Qrow Branwen, the man taking more sips than usual from his flask as he listened to the man drone on with a scowl on his face.

Just moments earlier the unthinkable had happened. With the start of the singles rounds the Vytal tournament had begun ramping into the homestretch. Unsurprisingly Yang had been the one chosen to represent team RWBY and Pyrrha for JNPR. The fight between Yang and Mercury had occurred earlier that day, one which Yang dominated and secured a victory for her team. This would have been cause for celebration had it not been for what happened afterwards. Moments after her victory, in front of everyone watching, the young blonde brawler had savagely attacked Mercury, breaking his leg in front of thousands sitting in the stands and countless more watching over the CCT network. Needless to say it had caused quite the stir and Beacon was quick to react.

While Mercury was rushed away by a medical team Yang was apprehended and taken back to her team's dorm. Upon questing the girl regarding her actions she claimed that she was defending herself and that Mercury had instead attacked her. Of course, given what had been recorded and sent to thousands of eyes all over Remnant, the girl's story didn't play out but nonetheless she stuck to it. As a result, General Ironwood, along with the Vale City Council, were adamant that she be removed from the tournament with some even going so far as to suggest she bee expelled on the spot as well. Even now James and Ozpin were arguing about the best course of action to take with Ironwood suggesting the girl be given an educational leap of absence while Ozpin stood staunchly by his student. Archangel, on the other hand, was waiting for his opportunity to speak and hopefully put in his two lien before anything got too out of hand.

"We need to do something about this immediately."

"I agree, James, and I have already taken precautions," Ozpin replied calmly.

"Removing her from the tournament and consigning her to her dorm is hardly what I would consider handling the situation."

"That maybe so James but Miss Xio Long is still one of my students and last I checked the Vale Council gave me jurisdiction over security so until our investigation proves otherwise, Miss Xio Long will be confined to her room for the remainder of the tournament."

Ozpin's tone made it clear that any argument's contrary to his decision would be overruled by his authority. It was obvious from Ironwood's expression that he greatly disliked Ozpin's handling of the situation but he nonetheless relented, his eyes roving over to Archangel and Lazarus for the moment.

"Nothing to say?" he asked. "Usually you'd have some sarcastic comment regarding my actions or philosophy on the situation."

"Forgive me General, my mind was preoccupied with something else," Archangel replied.

"That being?"

"Well, the more we've talked about what's happened the less it starts to make sense."

"What's to make sense. It's fairly clear from the evidence at hand that Yang Xio Long is guilty of attacking a student in broad daylight."

"That's exactly my point. It doesn't make sense to me."

"What part doesn't make sense?"

"All of it," he replied.

Ironwood's brow furrowed, his mind cautiously moving towards the suspicion that the vigilante was setting him up for some sort of caustic comment. When nothing came he expelled a tired sigh, knowing he was about to regret asking but nonetheless pressing forward with it.

"What specifically doesn't make sense to you?"

"How many people is Amity stadium capable of seating?"

"Excuse me?"

"It's a simple question, General. I promise it has relevance with what we're discussing. Now, how many people?"

"On a good day? Roughly 6,000 in total."

"And how many more would you estimate are currently watching the tournament from outside the stadium?"

"Given the range CCT I'd say around ten, maybe even twenty times the number of those currently in attendance."

"So, opting for the low side, one could say that roughly 65,000 people both here and all over Remnant are currently watching the tournament, bearing witness to all the events caught on camera."

"Yes," Ironwood replied cautiously.

"And we also know that this information isn't lost on the students. In fact, I'm fairly certain that all of this information is disclosed to the student body prior to participating in the tournament. Am I correct Headmaster?" he asked, turning his attention to Ozpin.

"Indeed you are. All of our students are made aware of the fact that they are being watched and recorded. Knowing that they are advised to be on their best behavior as they will be representing not only their respective schools but also their Kingdoms and their actions here will be a reflection on those Governments and Institutions as well."

"I fail to see how any of this holds any relevance to our current predicament. How could information that is known by every student in attendance hold any weight in Miss Xio Long's case."

"Isn't it obvious? If Yang Xio Long knew all of this, knew that her every action was being watched and recorded, why then did she act?"

"I don't understand? She attacked Mr. Black, we have her on the recordings."

"That's the thing, why do something like that at all? She won, she claimed victory. There was no reason for her to act in such a brutal manner, especially with so many people watching. What's more, when all was said and done, her reaction was incredibly strange. It's almost as if she expected us to be on her side, believing her claim that Mercury had attacked her and that she had acted in self defense."

"A lie, obviously, to explain her actions in the hopes that she would be absolved of them. No doubt she expected such given how she and her team evaded punishment in the past for similar escapades," Ironwood said, glancing over at Ozpin as he spoke.

"But why lie? You said so yourself General, there are recordings from at least a dozen cameras, not to mention 6,000 eye witness testimonies that would contradict her own, and yet she chooses to lie? It just doesn't make sense."

"Of course not. It's merely the delusions of a student who's used to getting her way and avoiding the consequences of her actions," Ironwood said, ignoring the murderous look Qrow was shooting him.

"Unless," Archangel continued, earning an aggravated growl from Ironwood, "unless both her statement and the evidence are true."

"What?"

"What if they're both true, the evidence showing Yang attacking Mercury and her statement claiming that it was in self defense because she saw him attack her."

"That's completely absurd. They can't both be right."

"Under normal circumstances you'd be correct. However, these aren't normal circumstances and there's something we haven't taken into consideration yet, something that, in hindsight, was starring us in the face all this time."

"And what might that be?"

"A semblance," he replied matter of factly.

"You can't be serious," Ironwood all but bellowed.

"No, he's got a point," Qrow said, rising to join the conversation.

"Qrow," Ironwood said in a warning tone.

"Think about it. We have 6,000 people in attendance. Factor in the number of those being active Huntsman and students that gives you, what, 25 or possibly 30% who might have a semblance capable of messing with my niece."

"One specially tied to allusions," Archangel prodded, "or at least something similar. We don't know exactly what she saw but so long as Yang believed she was in danger it would be enough for her instincts to tell her to react and lash out."

"You're pulling a lot of theories out of your ass, vigilante. Atlas has policies set in place- "

"This isn't Atlas General," Archangel interrupted, "and no one is pointing fingers at Atlas. We're simply pointing out the fact that we've no way of knowing for certain that what Yang claims to be true is false. Not every Huntsman registers their semblance, students too. Not only that but there could be civilians who have their aura unlocked as well as their semblance. It's very possible, however unlikely, that one of them might have a semblance capable of messing with a person's head and used it on Yang."

"I can't believe this. Ozpin, say something."

"We can't discount the possibility," the Headmaster mussed.

"Ozpin, please," Ironwood pleaded.

"I am not agreeing with them, old friend. However, given the situation and the fact that Yang Xio Long is one of my students I have a responsibility to consider every possibility, no matter how ludicrous it may sound, to ensure that the guilty party is punished for their actions."

"Alright then, tell me, what would be this person's motive for causing Miss Xio Long to attack Mr. Black?"

"Loyalty, either to Haven, Mistral, or both. By causing Yang to attack Mercury they ensured that not only would she be removed from the tournament but possibly Beacon as well, and Vale's image, along with Beacon's, would be tarnished as a result. What's more Haven and Mistral would be seen in a better light as Mercury's plight would garner them pity. It's essentially killing two Nevermore with one stone. Another possibility is jealousy or revenge. One of the previous combatants or someone who knows or roots for one of the combatants might have targeted her as a means of gaining vengeance on someone who they think didn't deserve to progress so far in the tournament."

"It's a nice theory, I'll give you that, but that's all it is, a theory. Even if what you said is true do you honestly expect the council to waste precious resources and taxpayer lien investigating the possibility of this person existing?"

"Of course not. Not without further evidence to support it."

"I'm guessing you already have something in mind," Ironwood replied with a tired sigh.

"Indeed I do," he replied, Lazarus doing his best to hide his smile as Jaune continued to speak. "Headmaster, could you bring up the recording and fast forward to a few moments before Yang attacked Mercury?"

"Of course," Ozpin replied.

The Headmaster hit a few commands on his console, causing a screen to pop up with the recording. It was turned to ensure everyone in the room could watch and was set to mere moments before the fateful encounter.

"Now, watch carefully," Archangel instructed.

With a curt nod to Ozpin the recording played. Everyone watched as Yang turned to Mercury, the young man standing across from her unassuming before she cocked her arm back and fired a shot into his leg. He crumpled to the ground, clutching the now broken appendage while Yang yelled down at him before the recording stopped.

"Would you care to explain why you made us watch a recording that we've already seen at least a dozen times?" Ironwood questioned.

"I asked the Headmaster to play it back not for our benefit but for hers," he said, gesturing to Miss Goodwitch.

"Glynda? Why?"

"Miss Goodwitch, how long have you worked at Beacon?" he asked, ignoring Ironwood's question.

"Roughly twenty years," she replied.

"Have you always been the combat instructor during that time?"

"Yes, in fact Professor Ozpin hired me specifically to educate our students on that subject."

"So it would be safe to assume that you are an expert when it comes to interpreting a students body language, especially when it comes to attacking or defending themselves?"
"Yes, I- " she stopped, her eyes widening in realization as she looked at the recording then back at him.

"Ozpin?"

The headmaster didn't need to be asked twice as he quickly reset the recording and pressed play. Glynda's eyes were glued to it, her gaze showing the same scrutiny they held when monitoring the spars that took place during her class. The recording soon ended but her gaze never wavered from the screen as her expression showed she was deep in thought.

"Glynda, what can you tell us about what you saw?" Ozpin asked.

"Her movements are reactionary," she replied.

"What does that mean?" Ironwood asked.

"It means, James, that her movements and body language show she was clearly reacting to a perceived threat. She believed herself to be in danger or under threat and acted accordingly to defend herself."

"How is that any different from her outright attacking the other student?" Ironwood challenged.

"A person's movement's and stance are dramatically different when acting in a manner that is either meant to be aggressive or defensive. Judging from Miss Xio Long's stance she shifted herself into a defensive position, one that would enable her to fend off an attack from her opponent while also allowing her to counter. Had she been preparing to outright attack him her stance would have been much different."

"This is all just speculation though," Ironwood said, waving it off as he quickly realized he was fighting a losing battle.

"I doubt the Council would agree," Archangel said, garnering the man's attention, "nor would the experts they appoint to oversee this evidence. Not only that but given Glynda's vast experience her testimony would no doubt be taken into account."

"That's assuming they don't throw it out on the grounds of favoritism," Ironwood countered.

"In terms of protecting her students from being unjustly accused of committing a crime, yes I'd have to agree. However, if there is one thing Miss Goodwitch is known for it's her ability to remain impartial and not show favoritism to any of her students regardless of who they may be."

"Kids got a point," Qrow interjected. "Glynda is a woman of her word. If she says she doesn't have favorites amongst her class, you can bet it's the truth."

"That's all well and good but you're still forgetting Mr. Black himself. Until he reaches Mistral we won't know the extent of his injuries and that's not even taking into consideration how his family is going to react to all of this."

"Assuming he has any family," Archangel replied.

"Don't tell, you have something on that front too, don't you," Ironwood replied tiredly.

"Relax, it's nothing concrete," he said, "I have contacts in Mistral looking into something."

"Care to elaborate?"

"Well, it may be nothing but I had Mercury's name ping a few hits, mostly due to his surname. I traced them back to man by the name of Marcus Black."

"Marcus?" Qrow said, taking a thoughtful swig from his flask. "Why does that name sound so familiar."

"He's an assassin for hire, well know not only for his brutal executions, all done with his bare fists I might add, but his semblance that allowed him to steal another's semblance from them, dulling their edge so to speak. He apparently operated out of Mistral but there was no concrete evidence to point us in his direction."

"So it's a dead end," Ironwood concluded.

"Not exactly. People talk and apparently, around a year or two ago, two women began making their way across Mistral asking for a man matching his description. I had my associates follow the same trail and it led them to a small village deep in the outlands."

"What did the locals have to say?"

"Nothing, they were all dead."

That little nugget of information certainly caught everyone's attention. Granted, it could simply have been from a Grimm incursion but, given his tone they knew it had to be something else.

"Grimm?" Qrow tested.

"Unfortunately no. The village was burned to the ground, man made by the looks of things but it's difficult to tell how exactly."

"What do you mean?"

"The overall lack of fuel. Aside from the wood used in the construction of the homes and walls, there was no evidence of oil or kerosene being used. We didn't even find any Dust residue. By all accounts it would appear to have been spontaneous combustion."

"Or a semblance," Ozpin pieced together. "Glynda, the night you met Miss Rose you were attacked by someone who used fire in their attacks."

"Yes, as I recall they were able to generate fire without the use of Dust. I wasn't able to get a good look at their face but judging from their figure I can say with certainty that it was a woman."

"Where does that leave Marcus?" Qrow asked.

"Dead," Archangel replied flatly.

"His body was found not far from a small shack just outside town," Lazarus said, just now entering the conversation. "By the time it was discovered much of it had decayed and there was little left of the home itself as it had been lost to a fire as well."

"Same as the village?" Qrow asked.

"No, this one was started by a kerosene lantern," Lazarus replied, "though what we found amongst the wreckage was most peculiar.

Various tools and medical implements were discovered burned, rusted, and decayed along with jars of anesthetic and bandages. What's more a pair of legs was found among the wreckage, though not the rest of the body they were attached to. From what we've been able to determine they should be those of a male adolescent."

"Was there any DNA evidence that might help us to determine who they belonged to?' Ozpin asked.

"Unfortunately no. With how much time had passed, not to mention the fire, any such evidence would have either been destroyed or decayed far beyond our ability to utilize. Had it only been a few weeks or a month then perhaps we'd have something to use but not this point."

"The town hall as well as all the records housed within was also destroyed. However, a look into the archives kept at Mistral revealed a marriage certificate with Marcus' name on it. No birth certificates though."

"So you have no evidence that Mr. Black could be tied to Marcus," Ironwood concluded.

"Not completely. The pair of legs found in the rubble have given me an idea. Even if Mercury isn't related to Marcus I think we should consider the possibility that his legs are prosthetics."

"That is absurd," Ironwood argued.

"It's a precaution and one that he doesn't need know about. When he arrives in Mistral the doctors will be able to confirm on sight that he has flesh and bone legs and not metal ones."

"And how does this relate to today's events?"

"It would prove that Yang didn't break his leg as he would have us believe. Think about it, what's the point in crying out in pain when your legs are incapable of feeling pain? If his legs are prosthetics, then it makes his reaction rather suspicious."

"As I said before, this is absurd."

"But not something we should overlook," Ozpin replied.

"Well, is that everything?" Ironwood challenged, looking over at Archangel.

"There is one other thing not related to this case but more so towards the festival itself."

"And that would be?"

Jaune glanced over at Ozpin, giving the man a hard, serious look before he continued.

"Headmaster, given the nature of recent events as well as the increased activity of the White Fang and our mysterious assailants who have not only backed them but also attacked the CCT, I think it wise that we consider halting the tournament."

"What!?" Ironwood roared.

"James, calm down," Ozpin chided the man. "I must admit I find your suggestion rather surprising. I trust you have legitimate reasoning for doing so?"

"Indeed I do. For a while now Lazarus and I have suspected that our enemies, specifically Merlot, may have been targeting the Festival itself. Given the rise in crime due to Torchwick and the White Fang's actions we never really had a solid idea of what they were working towards. However, this last fight gave us a clue as to what was happening and, through some deductive reasoning, we feel it's best to bring the tournament to a close before something far worse than a student having their leg broken occurs.

Now, what I'm about to admit to will no doubt have Ironwood demanding my immediate arrest but my actions will help to prove that the CCT network has indeed been hacked and without anyone's knowledge. In between bouts I was able to gain access to Amity Stadiums central network and upload a monitoring program into its mainframe."

"You did what?" Ironwood snapped.

"Calm down General, it's harmless. All it does is monitor the network and look for irregularities in the code. It's incapable of tampering with anything, only able to alert me to outside interference and wouldn't you know it that's exactly what happened. Early this morning I was alerted to a change in the combat roster. One of our two combatants was altered and switched with another. In short, Mercury's original opponent was forcibly switched with Yang. She was set up and I have evidence that can prove it."

"That's impossible. Atlas' networks are incapable of being hacked."

"And yet I have evidence that proves otherwise," he countered.

"Do we know who it is that's tampering with the network?" Ozpin asked, ignoring Ironwood completely.

"Unfortunately no. The program is only able to observe and alert me of changes and alterations to the code. Something capable of tracing and identifying the culprits requires time and resources, the former of which we don't have. We could circumvent that problem by having someone with the know how present to perform a reverse hack but sadly the only person capable on our team is in another Kingdom at the moment. At best all I can tell you is that they rigged the match and I've a strong feeling they'll do it again, this time to far more horrendous results."

"That's still only speculation. You've no proof that they could do it again or that the outcome with be within their designs," Ironwood argued.

"Yes, I do General and I have a strong suspicion of whom they'll chose next."

"And who would that be?"

Rather than answer his question, Archangel instead fixed the man squarely with his gaze. Instinctively, he felt his hand begin reaching for his side arm, the manner in which the vigilante was gazing at him setting off warning bells in his mind. He had to force himself to maintain a calm demeanor and prevent himself from pulling out his weapon. Whether Archangel knew this or not was unclear but the man still maintained eye contact with him regardless.

"Tell me General, if I were to ask you if you've been completely honest with us regarding the military hardware you've brought with you, what would you answer be?"

"What sort of question is that?"

"One that is completely relevant to our current discussion, I assure you. Now, yes or no?"

"Of course the answer is yes. Ozpin knows I wouldn't keep secrets from him or anyone here."

"Even if one of those secrets involved one of your students and the nature of their… inception?"

"This is ridiculous. Ozpin has complete access to the records of my students, as do the other Headmasters. It would be rather difficult for me to hide anything regarding their pasts from them."

"Would you be willing to bet your allies ability to trust you on that?"

"What are you getting at?" the General asked, the man's increasingly intrusive questions beginning to set him on edge.

Once more ignoring his question, a detail that was quickly beginning to ware on the man's nerves, Archangel instead extracted a small thumb drive from his pockets before handing it to Ozpin. Ironwood didn't know what was on it but it didn't leave him with a good feeling.

"The tampering of the competitor's roster wasn't the only thing our program picked up. It also picked up the unauthorized access of some fairly high-tech Atlas robotics schematics. I had assumed it had something to do with the missing Paladins but, after seeing what was on it, I realized it was something much more… unorthodox. I was only able to snag a few images before the connection was terminated but it was enough."

Ozpin took the drive, gazing at it curiously. The same thing was reflected in everyone else's eyes, most notably Lazarus. While most would have assumed they were going off a script, the look he gave his partner now showed that he was as much in the dark about what he was doing as everyone else.

Inserting the thumb drive into his computer, Ozpin quickly opened the file that was contained inside. His calm demeanor quickly gave way to confusion and concern as he gazed at his screen, flicking through the images present.

"You're certain of this?" he asked, gazing up at Archangel.

"I'm not the one you should be asking."

"James?" Ozpin said, turning his gaze now filled with betrayal on his friend. Glynda quickly stepped around to see what was on the screen and her expression soon morphed to resemble her employers.

"Oz, mind sharing with the rest of us?" Qrow asked.

In answer to his question Ozpin clicked a few buttons that flipped the screen around to show the others and what they saw had everyone starring in surprise, all except Archangel and Ironwood.

At first glance anyone would have mistaken the image they saw for a student's profile as information regarding the girl's hair, eye color, and even weapons was displayed on it. However, the accompanying schematics showing her robot interior as well as integrated weapons systems, power source, propulsions systems, all proved otherwise. The sick feeling that had been growing in Ironwood's stomach soon boiled over into rage as he turned his gaze upon Archangel. The man hardly flinched, gazing back at him as though he expected such a reaction from the man. He no doubt expected the reactions that soon followed as well.

"James, what have you done?" Ozpin asked.

"It's not what you think," he began.

"Then help me to understand just what this is," the Headmaster replied, his tone rising along with his temper, both eliciting a look of panic from the man.

"Penny is different," he started.

"Different?" Glynda asked, taking a stride towards the man with him taking a step back in response. "I'd say that the revelation of one of your students being an Atlisian Knight in drag makes it more than simply different. This brings her whole rise to the Vytal Tournament Finals into question. It's grounds to have Atlas removed from it completely."

"I'd say that's the least of our worries, Glynda," Qrow cut in. "The main detail people are going to latch onto is that old Jimmy here slipped an Atlesian weapon into a tournament. There'll be people baying for his blood, if not attempting to lynch him on sight."

"That's enough," Ozpin interrupted, taking control of the conversation once again. "James, explain to me why I shouldn't bring this information to the Council's attention at once?"

"For one thing she isn't like one of the drones that we use in our military. She's an A.I., one capable of generating her own aura and has even shown the capability of processing and understanding complex emotions to the point that she is showing signs of having developed a personality. While we don't know much about these new developments I can assure you she's no threat to our students."

"I wouldn't go that far, General. I witnessed this girl generate an energy beam powerful enough to slice through a Bullhead and cut it clean in half like a hot knife through butter. I may be exaggerating this a bit but I doubt even our best Huntsmen are capable of feats of that same destructive level."

"You stay out of this Vigilante. You're lucky I don't shoot you right where you stand. Given the fact that you've tampered with Atlas Military equipment, however, I'll simply leave your fate up to the courts to decide."

"I highly doubt they'll care about me and my involvement in this at all, especially when most of your resources will be tied up in an internal investigation into your competence General," he pointed out. "Assuming that is that Headmaster Ozpin decides to bring all of this to the Council's attention, at which point my involvement in revealing this information will no doubt paint me as a righter of wrongs and any attempts by you to slander my name will just make you look that much worse as a result. Speaking of, have you made a decision yet sir?"

"You mentioned you already have an idea of whom our enemies were going to target next. I assume Miss Polendina is one of those victims'. Whom might I ask is the other one?"

"It should come as no surprise that the other target would be Pyrrha Nikos. Aside from her impressive combative skills, her semblance would prove especially detrimental against Penny, especially if it was somehow made to cause a greater degree of harm to the girl."

"Yes, her polarity would undoubtedly give her a clear advantage and, if pushed beyond acceptable limits, could be used to shred Miss Polendina before a massive audience."

"Negativity would skyrocket and given the events that have just happened we can't afford another incident," Glynda pointed out.

"It's decided then. I'll speak with the Council and explain our reasons for ending the tournament early. I'll be sure to leave certain details out of my explanation," he mentioned, giving James a meaningful look, "as I expect you'll no doubt put all of this into a report for your own Council."

"Ozpin, please, you can't just- "

"I can and will, General," he said, his use of the man's honorary title making it clear the amount of personnel respect he'd lost for the man. "We will speak further of this later. For now, though, I need time to prepare. Our meeting is adjourned."

Given the go ahead to leave Archangel and Lazarus made their way into the elevator, the latter of which still giving his protégé a curious look as they entered the metal tube. They were its only occupants as Ironwood's expression made it clear should he enter with them it would no doubt lead to a double homicide and Qrow had decided to stick around to speak with Ozpin further.

/-/

"Something on your mind?" Jaune asked, glancing over at Lazarus as he spoke. "You've been giving me a strange look for quite some time now."

"Those schematics for Penny Polendina, they weren't from the observer program we installed were they?" Lazarus said, giving his protégé a suspicious look. "They came from the notes I sent to you, didn't they?"

"Their inclusion was a necessary fallback- "

"Jaune!" Lazarus interrupted.

"It was necessary risk!" he snapped. "Given everything that's happened I needed something that could give an extra push in convincing Ozpin that we should stop the festival. It didn't have the desired effect but we've at least minimized the damage."

"How long have you been planning this?"

"A few days. What happened to Yang wasn't planned but it was a useful stepping stone and before you say anything I meant everything I said regarding her. What happened to her wasn't something I could have predicted but it helped in convincing Ozpin to shut everything down. With this we can at least limit the damage our enemies will cause."

"Sacrificing the few to save the many," Lazarus replied.

"It's a burden I'm willing to take on," Jaune replied. "Now if you'll excuse me I have a call to make. Keep me posted on Mercury. The moment our friends in Mistral have definitive proof either supporting his claims or disproving them I want to know."

He didn't wait for the man's reply, instead striding out of the elevator as soon as it reached the ground floor. With the events at the tournament most people were away from the school, either attempting to forget what had happened through games and food or someplace else gossiping about what had happened. It made it easier for him to then slip into an empty classroom, checking for hidden cameras as he did, before locking the door behind him and removing his disguise. Now looking more like himself he pulled out his scroll and dialed a familiar number. It didn't take long for the girl on the other end to answer and for her shocked expression at seeing his face to show.

"Hey Weiss," he greeted.

"Jaune," she replied, moving away from where she had been sitting. "I wasn't expecting you to call. Where are you?"

"In an empty classroom at the moment. Just got finished with a meeting with Ozpin."

"What about?"

"I think you already know the answer to that," he said, the look she gave him confirming as much. "How's she holding up?"

"As well as can be expected. The media coverage of the event hasn't helped so we're staying with her."

"That's good to hear. Is she feeling up to visitors?"

"Visitors?" she asked, taking a moment to process what he was asking before replying, "I'm not sure it will be a good idea for you to stop by, Jaune."

"What if I come bearing gifts, ones that I can guarantee will lift her mood?"

Weiss glanced away for a moment before turning back and nodding her head.

"Thanks. Also, could you have Ruby contact Penny and have her stop by tonight as well?"

"Penny? What for?"

"It's best if I not disclose that over the scroll. That and it's a lot to explain so I'd prefer if we waited until tonight."

"Alright, I'll ask. We'll be expecting you but don't expect a warm reception."

"I won't," he said before ending the call.

/-/

It was around ten at night when Jaune made his way to team RWBY's dorm. Rather than use the hallways he instead climbed up the large tree set just outside their window and lightly tapped it to let them know he was there. Weiss came to greet him, opening it up and offering to help him climb inside with a smile. He smiled and nodded back, taking in everyone's expressions. Ruby's was the first one he noticed. While most of her immediate attention was focused on comforting her sister, she did force a warm smile his way before returning to Yang. The blonde brawler in question didn't even acknowledge his presence. Jaune didn't feel at all irritated by this, especially given what had happened to her. The downcast, forlorn look she was sporting was a completely foreign look to the usually bubbly, party girl he'd come to know and even admire. Hopefully the news he'd brought with him would do something to help raise her spirits.

Blake's expression was neutral as usual. Honestly, that girl only ever seemed to have two settings, neutral and, in the case of White Fang or racists, hostile. He was just glad he was squarely on the calmer end of that spectrum. In complete contrast to her was Penny who sat in an abnormally rigid fashion and had a picture perfect smile on her face that was almost creepy. Given her origins much of her personality and her physical demeanor made a lot more sense now.

"How is everyone?" he asked, having removed his usual disguise and placing it on the window seat nearby.

"Fine, I suppose," Weiss replied. "Things have been a little tense as of late but I'm sure you already knew that."

"Yea, I kind of figured," he said. "How're you holding up Yang?"

"How do you think?" she snapped. Her outburst wasn't unexpected and, after a calming backrub from her partner she sighed before starting again. "I'm sorry I just… it's been difficult. I feel like I've been backed up into a corner and no one will listen to what I have to say. I know what I saw and I know what the recordings show. They're wrong. I don't know how but I know they're wrong."

"I understand what you mean," he said, taking a seat near her. "If it's not too much to ask, could you tell me exactly what you saw exactly as you remember it?"

"Why? The Headmaster and General Ironwood already took down my statement along with the police, not to mention the media coverage all over Vale. Anyone of them can tell you the story."

"Anyone of them can tell me their version of the story you gave them but it's not the source. Now, I know how the Beacon rumor mill gets and I especially have first hand experience when it comes to how media likes to exaggerate the facts. That's why I'd rather hear it from you. Unfiltered, completely unbiased, so I can determine for myself what's truth and what's not."

Yang gave him a hard look, starring at him intently, no doubt searching for some sign that he might be toying with her. Given recent events, not to mention their shaky relationship already given how he'd kept his resurrection from them all for over a year, he didn't blame her for being as such. After a while she appeared to have either determined she could trust him or that she had nothing left to lose as she nodded her head before taking a moment to collect herself.

Jaune listened intently to her as she spoke. He didn't interrupt or ask any questions, instead letting her recite her story until she was finished. She would occasionally comment on certain moments, eliciting a nod or verbal affirmation from him, but nothing that stood out as needing a comment or more. When she was finished he took a moment to think it over, comparing her story to the evidence he'd collected so far, before coming to his conclusion.

"Well?" she asked.

"I was right," he said simply.

"Right about what?"

"Right about defending your actions to Ozpin and the others," he replied.

She looked surprised, even taken aback by his statement. Blinking several times, she tried and failed to speak, before finally managing to regain some control over herself.

"What?" she finally spoke.

"I was at a meeting with Ozpin earlier today, the subject of which centered around you for obvious reasons. Certain… members were very vocal about their belief that removing you from the tournament was too lenient. They wanted to go as far as to put you on academic suspension, to the point that you'd have to reapply for Beacon next year."

"They can't!" Yang cried, leaping to her feet.

"They didn't," Jaune countered, rising to his feet and slowly lowering Yang back to a sitting position. "Ozpin made it very clear that it was his decision to make and that he didn't believe such drastic measures needed to be taken."

"It was Ironwood, wasn't it? He was the one who suggested she be expelled," Blake said, glowering at the floor.

"I can't confirm or deny that statement," Jaune said.

"Penny," Ruby said. "You wouldn't happen to know if, um, General Ironwood wanted Yang expelled, would you?"

"Oh yes, General Ironwood was very adamant about- "she stopped, gasping as she realized something and quickly covered her mouth. "Oh my, was I not supposed to reveal that? I know General Ironwood wouldn't want me to reveal private information like that."

"Did he state in confidence and tell you to keep it secret?" Jaune asked.

"One moment," she said, closing her eyes as if deep in thought before opening them again and saying, "no, nothing in our recent conversations suggest he had implied they were to be kept secret."

"Then you can't be held at fault for letting something like that slip when he didn't specifically state he wanted it kept private," Jaune concluded.

"I see," Penny replied, thinking it over for a moment before turning to Jaune with a big smile, "thank you, friend Jaune. I'm glad you were able to clarify that for me. I'll store it in my memory banks for future reference."

Ruby gave him a grateful nod and a smile, obviously pleased with what he'd done. Technically he wasn't wrong. Given his position the General had to be careful about what he said and to whom. Given Penny's eccentric personality, it would be easy not only for her to claim she hadn't immediately understood that the General had wanted to their conversations kept private but that he also never stated specially that they were not to be repeated.

"Still, simply weighing in your support for Yang's innocence wouldn't have been enough to convince the Headmaster. I believe he'd not jump to conclusions but I also don't think he'd believe you simply because you said you had a hunch either. How did you convince him?" Weiss asked.

"Easy, I backed up my claims with some hard evidence," he replied.

"Evidence?"

Jaune then explained his meeting with the Headmasters. He left certain details out, of course, and kept the focus on the details revolving around Yang's match that didn't seem to add up. Everyone remained silent, all listening intently as they processed the information given to them. Even Penny seemed to be concentrating as she digested Jaune's recounting of the meeting. He stopped just before reaching the point of revealing Penny's "origins" to the group and waited for their response.

"That's… surprisingly well thought out. I mean, I knew you had some rather skilled informants on your side but your theories make a lot of sense," Weiss confessed.

"Yea, I mean in hindsight it all seems so obvious," Blake commented, her ears dipping low beneath her bow. There was something there, Jaune could tell, but he decided it was best not to ask. Their team had enough to deal with at the moment and they didn't need him prying into their private affairs.

"What may seem obvious now wasn't that way in the moment. Given the adrenaline and excitement it's not difficult to understand how some details could have gone overlooked by others."

"At least this helps prove Yang's innocence," Ruby pointed out optimistically.

"What about Mercury?" Yang suddenly asked.

"We've had no updates regarding his condition. Granted, he's not scheduled to be in Mistral until early tomorrow morning but even so we have friends of ours staking out the hospital to confirm visually that he did indeed make it there."

"Well, no news is good news as they say," Weiss said.

"Yea, though in this case it's more incriminating for him than it is a confirmation of innocence. To be honest I'm more worried about people's reactions to the tournament's cancellation."

"Wait, what?" Yang asked, snapping her head back to him.

Jaune hissed under his breath, realizing a moment too late that he'd let that slip unintentionally.

"The tournament's been cancelled?" Weiss prodded. "Explain."

"Look, you'll all hear about it from Headmaster Ozpin tomorrow so there's no reason for me to bore you all with the details."

"And yet I'm sure we're all very interested to hear what you have to say," Weiss countered.

Jaune looked around, hesitant to say anything else. He knew they wouldn't let him leave without hearing the truth, he just wasn't sure how much to tell them. Odds were he could attempt to curtail everything to avoid giving them a reason to complain but he knew they wouldn't be satisfied, especially if he gave them an Ozpin style answer.

"Given recent events," he started, hazarding a glance over at Yang as he spoke, "it became apparent that things had taken a turn for the worst. We've already had attacks on Vale, including one from outside the walls that managed to breach the city proper, so tensions were already running high. Add to the fact that a Huntress in training is seen and accused of purposely crimpling her opponent and you have a recipe for disaster.

While the public would believe that none of these events are at all related, you and I know better. We know something more is happening behind the scenes. The only problem is that we don't know exactly who is puling the strings nor for what purpose. From the evidence I've acquired in my investigation, along with what happened today, I had reason to believe that this was merely a prelude to something far worse and pushed to have the tournament cut short."

"Wait, you put a stop on the tournament?" Yang asked, surprised.

"Yes, because I had reason to believe that the next event would entail something far worse."

"Like what?" Ruby asked with a mixture of curiosity and caution.

"Everyone in this room knows that Penny is an android, correct?" he asked, receiving a handful of nods in return. "That information isn't public knowledge, for obvious reasons. However, with the discovery that your match with Mercury might have been a setup given that something had overwritten the program randomizing the selection processes, we believed that their next target would be Penny with her opponent being Pyrrha."

"Pyrrha?" Ruby asked. "Why would that be a bad thing?"

"It wouldn't be. While her skill is impressive, it's her semblance that drew me to the conclusion I had for cancelling the tournament."

"Her semblance?"

"Polarity," Weiss said, putting the pieces together. "She can manipulate metal objects."

"Exactly," Jaune confirmed. "And given Penny's bodily structure all we would need is for a similar event that happened to Yang to occur with Pyrrha and we could be looking at something far worse," he said.

"Of course, that's a worst case scenario," he quickly added when he saw their shocked expressions. "While it's easy to assume the worst, I felt it best to go with my gut and suggest we pulled the plug before our enemies had a chance to capitalize on this."

"I see," Weiss said. "Well, I can't say it wasn't a poor decision. Honestly, I might have said the same if I were in your position."

"But how did you convince them?" Ruby asked. "We're the only ones who know Penny's a robot aside from General Ironwood, right?"

"Affirmative. The General hasn't notified me of anyone else being briefed on my origins," Penny confirmed.

"So, they don't know?" Ruby asked, confused.

"They didn't," Jaune corrected. "However, as of this morning the cat's out of the bag on that front."

"What do you mean?"

Weiss glanced at her partner and then at Jaune. While he didn't answer Ruby's question, the guilty expression he wore left her feeling suspicious. It took only a moment of thinking back to everything he'd just told them for her to understand what he'd subtly been saying between the lines.

"You didn't," she hissed.

"It was necessary," he began.

"You sold out Penny," she snapped.

"I didn't sell her out," he argued.

"But you told them she's a robot?"

"I needed something to help press the issue, to give Ozpin unquestioning certainty that the tournament should be canceled. Yes, that meant revealing what Penny is but it's not like I made it public knowledge."

"No, you simply revealed to some of the most powerful people on Remnant," she countered.

"Most powerful people in Vale," he clarified, "one of whom already knew about her and was keeping it secret from the others. I'm not proud of what I did but at least its contained."

"But throwing Penny under the bus? You should have just left me to defend myself if this is what you were going to do to the rest of our friends," Yang piped in.

"Would you rather I had remained silent and taken a chance on her secret being revealed in a much more destructive manner to the public?" he shot back.

"You should have asked Penny first before going through with this," Yang pressed on, her temper already overwhelming her other senses.

"I didn't have the luxury. She's already under constant surveillance by Ironwood. Do you really think he would have let me spend ten minutes alone with her to discuss this issue with her?"

"That doesn't make what you did right. There had to be another choice."

"I had very few options at my disposal, Yang. I choose the one that saved the most people with the least amount of sacrifices."

"And you would know all about sacrifice, wouldn't you? A big sacrifice, keeping us in the dark about you being alive for a full goddamn year!"

"What would you know of the choices I've had to make, the decisions I've been forced to live with?" he shot back, rising to his feet with Yang leaping to hers to meet him.

"ENOUGH!" Ruby shouted.

The sudden outburst from the young leader shocked them both, causing them to forget their dispute momentarily to turn their gaze to her. Ruby was breathing hard, standing just a few feet from them and glaring daggers at the two blondes. Jaune and Yang exchanged looks, neither of them having seen Ruby in such a state, and both deciding to exercise caution. It wasn't uncommon for them to underestimate the little red reaper and now might be one of those times.

"I've had enough of your fighting, complaints, and secrets for one day. I'm tired of you two always coming into conflict. It ends now."

"But Ruby- "Yang started.

"Ruby please- "Jaune began.

"Shut up, both of you!" she cut them off. "And sit down. Now!"

Without argument the two obeyed, seating themselves back down as they continued to look at her with utter shock. They weren't the only ones as Blake's ears stood straight up and even Weiss looked rather concerned. Penny had the good nature to look upset as well, though that may have had something to do with her lack of understanding into what had caused her friend such distress.

"I get that we're all on edge from what happened, not to mention what's been happening, but we can't allow ourselves to start arguing with one another. We do that and they win. If we spend so much time fighting each other then we won't have time to fight these people when they strike again."

"Yang," she said, turning to her sister first. "I know you're made at Jaune. All the secrets, the lies, the fact that he's hurt people close to us isn't something I can ask you to forgive him for right out of the gate. However, you can't deny that he's still on our side."

"But Ruby- "

"No buts," she said, cutting her off. "You can't deny that he's trying. He even came here to tell us that he's actively trying to help prove your innocence. When so many people are convinced of your guilt, he's the only person who not only claimed you're innocent but he brought proof of it as well. How can you hate someone when they're trying so hard to help you, especially after so many have assumed your lying without giving you a chance to defend yourself?"

Ruby's words cut deep, causing whatever argument she had lined up to loss it's power. Jaune glanced between them, slowly inching backwards towards the window with his gear in hand.

"Obviously there's some stuff for you two to talk about so I'll just- "

"Don't you dare," she snapped, pointing an accusatory finger at him. "I'm not finished with you, Jaune Arc."

He stiffened, the fact that Ruby was using his full name evidence enough that she was well past the point of being civil.

"Up to this point I had defended you," she began. "I trusted you. Even when I thought you were dead, even when I found out the truth that you were still alive, even when you kept refusing to talk with us, to explain what had happened to you, I still believed you were my friend."

Her slow build up had Jaune's heart sinking into his stomach. He knew there was a large But waiting to be used, he just didn't want to be around for when it happened.

"Your decision to reveal Penny's secret, to take something away that was hers and hers alone to decide is going too far. There had to be another way, a better way, one that doesn't include you going behind her back and using her as a scapegoat just so you can get what you want."

"The only other ways I foresaw were violent and destructive, enough so that it would have caused mass panic."

"You don't know that!" she snapped. "You don't know for sure what could happen. You don't know that she might have found a way to avoid it or that we might have managed to stop the people who are attacking Vale!"

Tears were streaming down her red face, her emotions obviously starting to get to her as logic gave way to the stress she'd been holding back for so long. It was at that moment that the damn broke and everything came pouring out.

"You don't know how much you hurt everyone. How much Pyrrha cried. How much Weiss blamed herself," she said, her ramblings becoming more and more incoherent. "Or how much I blamed myself," she sobbed.

She fell to her knees, unable to stand as hot tears stained her skirt and the carpet below. "All I could think was if I could have been a little bit faster I might have saved you. I told myself it was my fault that you died. I was the leader; I should have been more attentive."

"Ruby," he said, hesitating for a moment before moving forward to draw her into a hug. She didn't fight it, instead burying her face in his chest as hot tears and snot stained the fabric.

"I'm so sorry Ruby," he said, gently stroking her head. "I didn't realize what I was doing to all of you. I just- I wanted to help you, to protect you all. I didn't want what happened to me to happen to one of you. I was already dead so I figured if I could stop it before it happened again or at least intercede in the next attack, then maybe I could spare you all that same pain I had been put through. I hadn't realized just how much I'd already hurt you already."

"You're a jerk," she sobbed, attempting to punch him but failing to in her awkward position.

"Yea, I know," he agreed, "among a lot of things."

"I'm sorry to you too Penny. I didn't mean to use you like that."

"That's alright, friend Jaune. My secret was always going to come out eventually. I'm just glad you didn't keep it a secret from me."

He nodded, glad to have that out of the way with no hard feelings. Penny was always going to be the easiest to deal with, though. He'd burned a lot of bridges in the year he was away. He hadn't thought much of it. That had been selfish of him and this was as good a wake up call as any telling him he needed to straighten up. It was certainly something he would take seriously, especially when he had such a visceral example of it sobbing into his shirt.

/-/

Vale – Warehouse District

"This is certainly unexpected," Cinder mussed.

"What is it ma'am?" Emerald asked, intrigued by Cinder's concerned expression.

"It appears the Council intends to cancel the Vytal tournament in a few days time," she replied.

"What?"

"How do you know that for sure?" Mercury asked as he tightened the bolts on his left leg.

"Idiot, the program we uploaded into the CCT allows us to monitor messages being sent to and from Beacon. Obviously this is one of those," Emerald chided him.

"I know that but how do we know for sure that the Council is going to cancel the tournament?"

"Apparently Ozpin came across some rather convincing evidence that he believes requires such drastic actions."

"Great, so our plan is messed up because of Mercury. Again," Emerald said snidely.

"Hey, don't blame me. It was your semblance that was supposed to make her look like a crazed barbarian. If anyone's at fault its you for doing a piss poor job," he shot back.

"Enough, both of you," Cinder snapped, quailing the fighting and earning their attention. "Despite what you may think this means little to our overarching plans. At best it means out time tables have moved up which isn't cause for alarm so long as our allies have accomplished their tasks as instructed. Speaking of, are the White Fang ready to move?"

"Yes ma'am. Adam's people have finished setting everything up and are ready to move as soon as we give the word. I'll send him a message letting him know we've moved things up."

"Excellent. I'll contact Merlot as well. We'll need to coordinate our movements to take greater advantage of the situation."

"What do you suppose happened? How did Ozpin gain enough evidence to bring the tournament to a halt?"

"I'm not sure, although I'm willing to bet it has something to do with our resident vigilante. I'll make sure to inform Merlot that his little pest problem is to be dealt with immediately. I'll not have him remaining a thorn in my side any longer," she hissed.

Beacon Tower

"Well, that's that," Ozpin said with a sigh as he leaned back in his chair.

"Are you sure this is a good idea Ozpin? Granted, I'm not at all pleased with James' secrecy regarding the true nature of one of his students but canceling the tournament seems a bit heavy handed."

"I agree and under normal circumstances I might have decided to press onward regardless. However, I believe Archangel was correct in advising us to shut down the tournament. Despite how his mask hides his face, I can still read his body language. He was scared Glynda, almost to the point of becoming aggressive. There's more to this than he's letting on. Either that or he wants to protect someone or several people he cares about. Either way I can at least respect his desires."

"Still, I don't like all this secrecy. It was one thing when it was Lazarus keeping his relationship with this vigilante close to the chest but now James? I can only wonder what secrets this young man might be harboring as well. It makes me shudder just thinking about it."

"I highly doubt Archangel's secrets are of the same nature as James'. I believe he might be keeping things hidden from us, such as his identity, more so to protect people rather than prevent us from discovering something potentially volatile."

"The way you say that one might think you're suggesting that the White Fang do the same when they don their masks."

"Not at all. The White Fang adopted the Grimm masks to make their appearance more intimidating. In time, however, they've come to resemble the creatures of Grimm in more ways than I care to point out. Archangel on the other hand appears to merely don the face mask as a means of preventing people from discovering his identity and therefore the identities of those he cares about. The Gods only know what lengths out enemies would go to if they knew who he really was. I've little doubt he'd quickly find himself on the back foot."

"As you say, Headmaster. One other thing. Now that the tournament is being cancelled are we still going ahead with our planned Maiden?"

"Of course. In fact, I think we should issue her an invitation as early as tomorrow morning. Given the fact that it will be a few days before the tournament is brought to a close it will give Miss Nikos plenty of time to consider our offer. The sooner she makes a decision to better prepared we'll be to begin her training and start mounting a defense."

"Very well, Headmaster. I'll be sure to send her a message first thing in the morning."

I know I've mentioned this before but somehow having all this extra time to work on my stories has somehow managed to turn into more time spent on playing video games, shopping online, and basically just catching up on sleep that I managed to lose somehow in the last 30 years or so. Kind of makes me think of an artists depiction of their goals vs their reality with having every hour of their day divided out into something productive while the reality is nothing like it. At all. Story of my life right now.

So the one thing that always bothered me about the after math of the fight between Mercury and Yang was just how quickly the investigation went and how easily people slide into the belief that Yang was guilty. I'm not saying that certain opinions were ignored due to the belief that they might be biased in some way but someone had to have pointed out the obvious like "why would she attack him with so many people watching?" Just certain questions I felt needed to be addressed which somehow never were. I tried to make Jaune seem as unbiased as possible though, and I think this is important too, if he does come across biased then it works given the fact that he does consider her a friend and someone he wants to protect.

The other thing we don't see a whole lot of and I would not be surprised to see happen every now and again is an angry outburst from Ruby. I mean she's an adolescent girl who's been made her teams leader and thus as all this responsibility placed on her shoulders. As happy go lucky as she comes across she has to have a lot of pent up stress just sitting beneath the surface, waiting to burst forth. Honestly found myself chocking up at the point I wrote her starting to cry. What is it with me and almost crying every time I wright the characters crying? Hopefully I'm not the only one who does it.

I'll try working on "Ice Dragon of Remnant" next though I may skip ahead to "My Sister's Keeper" instead and come back around for it. Pretty happy with the reception "World War Remnant" is receiving at the moment and I have a good idea of where I plan on taking it. So many story arks I had on the backburner until later and I'm finally saying "fuck, let's do this."