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Chapter Text

“Tell me again how much this is going to hurt” Cinder Fall felt the chill of the metallic examination table run up her spine as her limbs are strapped down to the table, looking around the room at the many doctors and nurses that looked at her like she was the juiciest cut of meat… and at the other end of the room was a former automaton, her half-sister Penny Polendina, smiling away.

“Doctor Caduceus explained that, although you would be put under sedation, this procedure is still experimental. There is no telling if or how much this will hurt.” Penny spoke with a smile, raising her hand to set the record straight.

“Thanks Sis…” Cinder scoffed slightly, rolling her eye.

“You will remember that she explained to you that the procedure was necessary to remove any of your Grimm infection and to hopefully reverse the poisoning that your former Mistress Salem has been infecting into your body…”

“Penn, sarcasm. I'm aware of what's happening… i-i just… I'm nervous, okay?” Cinder's nails dug into her palm slightly. She had delayed this surgery as long as she could, the poison Salem was pumping into her body was clearly taking its toll, her eyes were sunken into her body, her skin becoming paler than normal and bone beginning to become visible through her skin. In short… she was dying. Removing the infection was her only chance at more time.

“Cinder, there is nothing to worry about. Doctor Caduceus is Atlas’ foremost expert on grimm biology. You're in the safest hands in the Kingdom…” Penny slowly approached the observation table, a twinge of concern across her freckled features.

“I-its not… Penny… i-i… I… I'm still me, and the moment they put me under, they could easily… Well, its not like most people would be mourning the woman who caused Beacon to fall, if you catch my meaning.” Cinder bit her lip slightly, trying not to worry her half-sister anymore than she was worried herself. “Every injury I've ever had has been treated by either myself or Doctor Watts… I couldn't trust him, but Salem wouldn't let him kill me… these guys… I'm sure Ironwood would throw them a parade if I weren't able to pull through…”

Penny's eyes widened slightly, before narrowing, the gears turning in her head as she listened to Cinder's worry, her hand reaching out to grab Cinder's remaining human appendage. “Cinder… Sister… I will make sure that no harm comes to you…”

As Cinder looked over at Penny, she felt a jabbing in her neck, the numbing agent relaxing the grimm muscles connected to her shoulder as a mask was slid over her nose, the scent of an anesthetic gas hitting her, her irises expanding and contracting. Cinder gently squeezed Penny's hand, looking at the redhead as her vision became blurred, trying to focus on the bright green eyes as light began to fade… “P-penn… h-hold… m-my hand….” Her voice slowly faded as her eyes closed…

~

Light finally hit Cinder's eye again, letting out a pained groan as a deep pain shot through her body from her left shoulder. It felt like a piece of her body had been carved out of her, hollowing out her body and leaving her empty…

As her systems began to return to her, she started hearing her surroundings, the muffled sound of a heartbeat monitor, the thick chemically scent of a hospital room, and the feeling of… something on her arm? Her vision still was struggling to come into focus as she looked to her right, but she could swear she saw the brightest hues of green and orange-

“Cinder! You have awoken!” Penny's voice echoed in the room, pulling herself up using Cinder's remaining arm to get into a deep hug, the air escaping Cinder's lungs as her hand taps against Penny's back.

“Penn! Choking… n-not breathing…” Cinder inhaled deeply as Penny loosened her grip, looking up and seeing tears in the redhead's unnaturally green eyes. Tears that were mirrored in her own golden hues. “I-it… its good to see you too, Penny… H-how long was I out…?” Her hand reached up, wiping a tear from Penny's chin with a soft smile.

“You have been unconscious for approximately 32 hours, 37 minutes, and 16 seconds. The surgery took 12 hours and 14 minutes of that time, but Doctor Caduceus has explained that you should make a full recovery with rest and a slightly more filling diet.” Penny smiled softly, moving back into the small chair she had set up in the room.

“And you were…?” Cinder's eyebrow raised slightly, looking over at Penny, her hand gently touching her throat, noticing just how scratchy her voice sounded. The closest she could remember her voice sounding this bad was after inhaling smoke from a burning hotel…

Penny's face turned a soft pink shade, her freckles disappearing into a blush, her hand gently rubbing the back of her neck. “Well… i-i… you asked me to hold your hand, Cinder…”

Cinder looked deeply into Penny's eyes, seeing the sincerity in her statement, that she had spent the better part of two days with her hand locked onto Cinder's… and started loudly chuckling. Laughing hysterically as she thought about how Penny would get in the way of doctors trying to do their job, tears beginning to flow from her eye. “Penny… please… n-never change…”

Penny's head tilted slightly, looking confused at Cinder, wondering what could possibly be so funny about honoring the request of family about to go under with the threat of death hanging over her. “I-i… I will attempt to stagnant my growth, I guess…”

Cinder reached out for Penny's wrist with her left hand… realizing her claw truly was missing, her hand now reaching for the missing appendage… ‘Oh right…’ she thought to herself, before reaching back out to Penny's wrist, pulling her slightly towards herself, “I-it's a compliment, Penny… You just… you're too sweet, I don't deserve it…”

Penny smiled softly, “You probably don't. You have done many terrible things, Cinder Fall…”

Cinder's eyebrow raised at the startlingly good sarcasm from the former automaton, “Tell me something I don't know already, Penn…”

“I will, in fact!” She smiled widely, “You probably do not deserve it, but… I care about you. And I want you to have another chance, Cinder Fall.” Penny stood up slowly, Cinder's hand still in her own, before slowly pressing it to her lips. “You are family, and family is supposed to protect each other…”

Now it was Cinder's turn to cry, feeling tears gently falling down her scarred face, pulling Penny's hand to her own lips, planting a soft kiss of her own, a small tradition the two had created. “I-i… thank you, Penny…”

Penny's free hand gently brushed the thick black hair on Cinder's head, smiling sweetly in the way only a little sister could. “You need to get some sleep, Cinder. When you've gotten enough rest and sustenance, General Ironwood and Specialist Schnee want you to begin physical therapy as soon as possible…”

Cinder sighed softly, leaning into Penny's hand. “Well, they want me on the field, if only just to stick it to Salem… let her know I'm on the side of the angels now…” Her eye gently fluttered closed as she exhaled softly, leaning back on a pillow and attempting to sleep.

Penny sighed softly, pulling her chair next to Cinder's bed, and leaning her head against her sister's, letting their breathing slowly synchronize. They were so different, and yet… maybe they could find it in each other to love what they thought unlovable…

Chapter Text

“Again.” The booming commands of Winter Schnee echoed in the training hall. Cinder rolled forward, using the momentum of the movement to propel her forward, but as she reached for her blade with the same hand she used for the dismount, she wobbled, not having another appendage to steady herself, falling backwards onto the hard flooring, the wind knocking out from her lungs.

“Again.”

Cinder had been back on her feet only a few days, but Winter had been keeping her in training since her legs touched the ground, building back up the strength that had been lost from her infection. But she was still sloppy, her form not adjusted to her lack of a second arm, and Winter was not one for sympathy in training.

“Winter, maybe let's give her a second to catch her breath…?” Penny looked on with a concerned look, gently resting a hand on Winter's shoulder while Cinder took another nasty fall flat on her back.

“She needs to get back to fighting shape,” Winter groaned softly, looking dismissively at the Fall Maiden, “Five Minutes, and then we're getting you into combat”

Penny rushed over to the collapsed form of Cinder, extending a hand and a smile to the exhausted Maiden. “You do not fight with the same ferocity as you had in the past.”

Cinder took the hand, pulling herself back to her feet, her breathing heavy and body drenched in sweat, “Well… h-having a creature pumping Grimm-fueled bloodlust straight into my veins helped for one…” She breathes, taking a long drink of her water bottle, “and for two… I'm still not used to this…” she gestured to the empty side of her Atlas Academy tank top. “You don't realize just how useful a left hand is until you don't have it, I guess…”

“Well, maybe next time, don't do enough wrong that your arm is corrupted by a monster…” Penny smirked softly, gently nudging Cinder's side with her elbow. She was still supportive as a person, but had a snarky edge that Cinder was beginning to see. She wasn't as innocent and naive as she let on, and was able to dish out sarcasm just as well as Cinder.

“I'll take that into consideration at my next hench-job, Penn…” Cinder smirked back, reaching up to pull back the hair covering her cracked eye, “Any hints on what her Majesty Schnee is gonna throw at me next?” She looked over, talking through the practice blade in her teeth as she adjusted her clothes slightly.

“No, but I will be believing in you, Sister!” Penny smiled widely, the kind of optimism that could give you a condition with its sickening sweetness.

“Let's see if that can keep me from getting stabbed…” Cinder chuckled softly, gently spinning the practice blade in her hand to adjust her grip on the weapon…

As they spoke, Winter appeared from the hallway, carrying her own practice blade, a smug smirk on her face. “Shall we begin, Maiden?”

“Promise to go easy on the one-armed woma-?” Before her words could leave her lips, Winter rushed forward, striking above her head, Cinder reacting and blocking the strike, pushing her back.

“I will go exactly as ‘easy’ as I think you deserve, Fall. Now, less talking…” Winter stepped forward, making another attempted strike to Cinder's right torso, Cinder able to block before she attempted to strike Winter. The Specialist smirked as the dull practice blade hit her own, a flick of her wrist sending Cinder off balance.

A sudden strike of wood against Cinder's left side caused the Maiden to stumble slightly before another strike to her right shoulder, Cinder dropping her blade and letting out a pained yelp. Ignoring her pain, Winter struck at her knee, Cinder doubling over. Penny took a small step forward, gasping at Winter's takedown…

Her blade gently slid under Cinder's chin, smirking and tilting her head as orange fire slowly ignited around her eye… “Salem won't give you any less than that kind of treatment, Maiden.” Winter almost spit the word back at Cinder, “And I don't care who wants to ‘give you a chance’, I remember what you did. I know who you are. And I will never forgive you for it…” Her words were cold and calculated, sheathing the practice blade and letting Cinder's chin fall back to the ground as she turned to depart. “We will pick this up tomorrow. Dismissed.”

As the sound of her boots hitting the ground reverberated through the hallway, Penny rushed over to Cinder's side, placing a hand on her shoulder. Cinder winced, trying to brush it away…

“That was nowhere near fair, Cinder! Let us go and talk to General-” Penny protested as Cinder raised her hand, struggling back to her feet, her eye still locked onto the ground.

“N-no… she's right. She's…” Cinder sighs softly, “She's getting me ready for the fight ahead… both against Salem and… well, I don't think most people are as forgiving as you are, Penn..” Cinder turned her back slightly, reaching her arm to her empty shoulder, a nervous tick she used to do when her grimm arm was there…

Penny slowly approached again, her hand covering Cinder's as a free hand moved her head to look into Penny's bright green hues. “It isn't easy, no one said it would be. But healing is just like training which is just like convincing Specialist Schnee and the rest of Remnant, it is a process. And it starts with working at it, day by day…”

Cinder sighed softly, squeezing Penny's hand. She was right, she always seemed to be… maybe it was the remnants of her computer brain, or maybe she truly was just smarter than Cinder ever could be, but Penny was right. “Y-Yeah… and it helps having you there with me…”

Penny smiled back, an idea popping in her head as she hovered across the room, grabbing another practice blade. “Come on, let's start from the top…” she tossed Cinder's blade back into her hand.

Cinder readied herself again, the two slowly working to regain the muscle memory of a solid block and strike…

“Alright, how about we try again, Sis?”

Chapter Text

There were many advantages to Penny's new humanoid form. Penny was experiencing so many of the things she had heard about from her friends, she found the concept of “naps” to be revolutionary, and every new food she tried had excited her in a way she could not have imagined in her previous form…

But the problem was that Penny often found her new digestive systems calling out to her in the middle of the night if she did not get enough food. In those moments of all too human weakness, Penny would often sneak out of her quarters and try to find some kind of “snack”.

As she slipped into the large industrial kitchen, Penny found her way into the refrigerator, her hand grabbing onto a large bag of shredded cheese, shoveling a handful of it in her mouth with a satisfied smile…

“Well, good morning to you, Penny…” Cinder smirked from the other side of the kitchen.

“I-i um…” she swallowed her illbegotten cheese, awkwardly rubbing the back of her neck, “My systems required some form of sustenance and it could not wait until breakfast…” Her eyes blinked slightly, before pointing accusingly at Cinder, “Wait, aren't you not allowed out of your sanctioned quarters after lights out?!”

Cinder shrugged slightly, gesturing with the large wooden spoon she held over a pan. “Yes, but if one were to happen to modify an identification card to gain access to other rooms…” She spoke with a wicked smirk across her face, returning her attention to the food she was cooking.

“Cinder Fall! If General Ironwood found out you are gaining access to restricted areas-”

“Relax, Penny… I only used it to get me into the areas I'm allowed to be in, just loosening the time restrictions. Besides, it's hard for anyone to find out when I programmed it to read as Winter Schnee…” Cinder chuckled to herself. Even though she was making strides to be better, Cinder still had a bit of a mischievous streak and was a decent schemer. “You're hungry, right?” Cinder waved over Penny to the stove.

Penny looked apprehensive towards Cinder, slowly approaching as the scent of what Cinder was doing finally hit her nose…

Cinder shut off the burner, grabbing two plates and dividing the contents of the pan between the two of them, “Bon Appetit, Penny.” Cinder had prepared a Chicken Florientine pasta, a Mistrilian comfort food all under the cover of darkness.

“You cook?” Penny's head tilted slightly as Cinder started to dig in, smiling to herself and adding a touch more salt to both plates.

Cinder swallowed, nodding along. “W-well yeah… I grew up in a Hotel, and a lot of what I had to do involved being in the kitchen. Mostly Atlesian cooking which is… a choice, but you have to pick up a thing or two, or else…” her hand gently touched the center of her neck, thinking about those years with Madame.

Penny blinked slowly, looking between the dish and Cinder. She had asked a few times about her time in Atlas all those years ago, but she always got like this, cagey and quiet, a far cry from her usual confidence.

Penny slowly took a fork, grabbing a hearty bite of the dish, her eyes widening as an excited noise escaped her lips. As soon as the bite was down, Penny took another quick bite, the flavor causing her to almost shake with excitement. “Oh my… You can just… do this?”

Cinder chuckled softly, brushing off the compliment. “Oh, hush, it's nothing special. Just chicken, pasta, some spinach, and a basic cream sauce. I had to swap out some of the seasonings, because this gods-forsaken kingdom believes in the most basic flavor profile in Remnant, but anyway-!” Cinder freezes, blushing slightly. “Oh, I-i'm rambling again, aren't I…”

Penny smiles, looking up at Cinder with a look of excitement. She had found another side of her half-sister, she never talked so passionately about something before. “S-so… why don't you cook more? You seem really passionate about it…”

Cinder looked down at her plate with a shrug, awkwardly taking another bite. “W-well, because… it reminds me a lot of living here. It was an escape from the worst parts of my time in Atlas, but it was still that part of my life… It's a reminder of…” she swallowed a lump in her throat, “A reminder of a time that I want to forget…”

Penny reached out, covering Cinder's hand with her own as she downs the last of her plate. “Well… I hope you might want to cook more, b-because… that was the best thing I have ever eaten, Cinder…”

Cinder's eyebrow raises slightly. “Wait, how long have you even been able to eat, Penn…?”

Penny pauses, processing the question, “Irrelevant! You are really good at it, and I find what you make delicious!”

Cinder smiled back softly, slowly pushing her own plate over to Penny as she softly chuckled. “I make no promises, but… I-i wouldn't mind cooking for you, Penn… Maybe make more of the best things you've ever eaten…”

Penny almost shook with excitement as she wolfed down the rest of Cinder's midnight snack, Cinder's hand gently reaching out to hold Penny's shoulder, Cinder had never seen someone so enthralled and excited by something that she had made before.

“C'mon Penny… let's clean up before someone finds out we're both breaking curfew.”

Chapter Text

Cinder was once again training, blissfully away from the judgemental gaze of Winter Schnee or James Ironwood. While she was still not as proficient a fighter as she was before she betrayed Salem, her strength had been mostly regained since the grimmfection was removed from her body. It was a slow process at first, but she was allowing herself the opportunity to heal from a wound.

She thought about what Salem would think of her. Salem's attitude was to always advance, never reflect unless it was penance for failing her. In many ways, Cinder never was allowed to process anything that had happened to her, only prepare for the next move. And, as much as Cinder would joke and complain about the Atlesian hospitality, having the structure of training regimens, interrogations about Salem's plans, and more training was refreshing for Cinder. Winter was a hard-ass, and Ironwood clearly despises her, but the two of them have a clear goal in mind for her, compared to the endless striving for praise she felt she had to achieve under Salem.

Atlas still brought back painful memories, but besides the occasional rough treatment from a guard, she was adjusting to living somewhere well. She knew it wouldn't last forever, but she was bound and determined to enjoy it for as long as it lasted…

“CIIIIIIIIINDER” an energetic voice echoed through the training hall, belonging to another reason Cinder put up with the judgement and past trauma of Atlas, Penny running into the large room, a bright silver box under her arm tied with a green bow.

“H-hang on a minute, Penny!” Cinder wiped her face with a towel, taking a long drink of water as she looked over the large box, “A gift…? Is it from Red? To Red? I have a feeling that Red is involved…”

Penny smirked, moving the large box onto a nearby table, “No… its your birthday present, Cinder!” Penny tossed a tiny amount of confetti onto Cinder's still sweat-drenched torso.

“Penny… I don't have a ‘birthday’. I never celebrated one in the orphanage, Madame never recognized it, and Salem is so old she predates the concept of birthdays.” Cinder placed her hand one her waist, her head tilting at the suggestion that today was her “birthday”.

“Well… I don't care! I have something that I wanted to give you!” Penny pouted sliding the large box across a table to Cinder. It wasn't traditionally wrapped, looking metallic with green glowing trimming that mirrored a ribbon ending in a large fluffy bow. Cinder tentatively pressed the large green button on the front of the box, watching as it sprung to life, the mechanical sounds whirring and spinning before it slowly opened with a hiss.

Sitting on a deep black pillow was a silver metallic arm, glowing with green highlights in individual sections. Cinder's eyes widened slightly, the green glow radiating onto her face. “I-it's…”

“A new arm! It took a little bit of convincing for General Ironwood to sign off on giving you a prosthetic, but Dad and I worked on it ourselves so he can't really say much…” Penny watched as Cinder's hand gingerly ran across the shiny metal, shaking for a moment at how cool it felt against her skin. “Well don't just stand there! Try it on! There's a temporary attachment we can use until we can get you a more permanent one…”

Cinder found the coupling unit, Penny tightening it against her body, feeling the small pinch as it began to read for commands from her brain. She reached out, picking up the new arm, almost jumping in surprise as it magnetically latched onto the coupling unit, Cinder immediately noticing the weight it added to her left side, having to shift how she stood to not let herself fall over. “I-it… it's a little weird, Penny…”

“Well duh! You've never had an arm that weighs half as much as you before. It'll get easier with a little practice.” Penny smiled, incredibly pleased with herself. “Try raising it up to give me a high five!”

Cinder closed her eye, thinking deeply about the movement she wanted to make, her arm slowly reacting and raising, Cinder taking a small step forward as Penny leaned in the air to slap the open metallic palm.

“It works! It actually works!” Penny giggled with excitement, pumping her fist in the air. “I knew the refurbishment process would allow this to be reactivated!”

Cinder's head tilted slightly. “Refurbishment? I thought you said you and Pietro built this.”

“Well… built is a strong word for it. It… might be… maybe… made of my old body?” Penny awkwardly shuffled in place, rubbing her hand against the back of her neck.

“So… this arm…”

“Is the one from the body you and your cohorts destroyed during the Vytal Festival, yes.”

“Oh… well… that does make this a little more awkward.”

“In fairness, considering that my current form is all organic, it does make you now the robotic half-sister.” Penny smiled sweetly, Cinder chuckling to herself before doubling over laughing.

“I-i… I guess it does.” Cinder laughed softly, pulling out two reflective black and green blades. “I um… i think you left some of your blade thing in the box, Penn…”

“Oh! No, I almost forgot, these…” Penny smirked, placing one in each of Cinder's hands, “are a new weapon I made for you. They are made of the same material as my floating array, but powered by your unique abilities and attuned to your new arm.”

“Meaning…?” Cinder slightly tilted her hand as Penny grabbed the blade from Cinder's metal hand, throwing it across the room. As Cinder reached out to stop Penny, the blade glowed a bright green, retracting itself back to Cinder's hand.

“Meaning they are going to always come back to you!” Penny smiled sweetly, “Also, they do have a ranged method, look at the base of the hilt.”

Cinder twisted the blades, looking at the curvature of the metallic and seeing the hilts’ unique keyhole design. “Are these…” Cinder fiddled with the two blades, finding a way for the hilts to slide together, forming a unique, slightly rounded shape… “It's my old bow design!”

“Mmmhmm, and the metal of the blades and your arrows are able to withstand the full heat of your Maiden Powers. Basically…” Cinder grabbed an arrow from Penny's hand, charging it as her eye and human hand ignited in bright orange flames before firing it to a target on the other side of the room, “You have the best of both your previous styles.”

Cinder smirked looking at her handiwork, the target slightly smoldering from the maiden-charged arrow as she split the bow in half. As she turned to look at Penny, her eyes widened, feeling a small drop of water begin to leak from the corners.

“So… what do you think?”

Cinder smiled widely “It's the best birthday present I've ever had…”

Chapter Text

Cinder sat motionless and silent, staring at the wall across from her as Pietro Polendina silently worked on the newly installed connection on her shoulder, the only noises in the small laboratory being the whirring of electronics and the soft muttering of an older man trying to fix what shouldn't be broken.

They had been at this for hours, Cinder resolving to not say anything to Pietro. There was somehow too much to say and nothing that could be said between the two of them, and the silence sounded like sweet music comparatively.

That was until Pietro felt the need to open his mouth.

“So you really don't want to talk about it, do you?”

Cinder sighed, a clear annoyance in her tone, “What is there to say? Is it ready yet?” Pietro slowly nodded, Cinder installing the metallic arm into its new socket, admiring the skill and craftsmanship. It fit perfectly flush against her shoulder. “Pietro, Dr. Polendina, whatever… You don't like me, and I don't like you… let's just be honest with each other. I'm not going to call you my father, and I'm almost certain that you would rather me drop dead than consider me your daughter. Am I wrong?”

Now it was Pietro's turn to sigh, glaring at the Maiden from his chair. “You want honesty, right? Fine then. You're right. I despise you for what you did, and regardless of what my daughter sees in you, I can't trust you.”

Cinder scoffed slightly, smirking to herself. “Here's the funny thing, and you can believe it or not, I personally don't care either way… I agree with you. I don't know what potential or whatever that Penny sees in me, but she's the only person in Remnant who ever gave me a chance, so I'm going to keep waking up every day, face the endless abuse from people who will hate me for the rest of my life, and try to be better than I was yesterday. And we don't have to like each other or be family, but by the gods, I'm going to try for her…” She crossed her arms over her chest, glaring down at Pietro.

“Good. Because as far as I am concerned, I have one daughter. And she died at the Vytal Festival. And it was your fault. By a miracle, I have her back, but I will not let you hurt her again…” Pietro glared daggers back at Cinder. She doubted Penny had ever seen this side of her Father, and, in truth, it worried Cinder. Here was yet another person who could never be convinced she was trying to change.

“But you knew for gods know how long who I am and you said nothing! It took Penny finding me for me to learn that I wasn't alone. And now, any time she or I bring it up, you get cagey. So, how about this? Who was she? We're being honest and we're talking, so let's just get it out there: Who the hell was Ignis Fall?” Cinder could feel her blood pressure rising. If she was gonna be confrontational, she might as well finally get some answers.

“Doctor Ignis Fall, and she was… brilliant. She was one of the brightest minds in the field of robotics and emotional processing. But she was ambitious. Incredibly, incredibly ambitious…” Pietro found himself looking into the distance, but made sure to look directly at Cinder when talking about her ambition. “But… I was desperate. My team was small and we were making headway, but Ignis- Doctor Fall was the expert, not me. But she was ‘retired’, wanting to start a family…”

Cinder's stance softened slightly hearing those words.

“She was already pregnant with… well, you. But I needed help, and she… she took to the project with a fervor I've never seen….” Pietro sighed softly, pulling his glasses down to pinch the bridge of his nose. “She was convinced that this breakthrough would change the way humans and machines interacted. Her life's work would be creating the kind of emotional intelligence that could make a machine pass for a person…”

“Nevermind the fact that she was growing a person…” Cinder interjected, leaning her shoulder against the wall. She felt… conflicted. Angry but also understanding of the obsession that Pietro talked about.

“She left, and we got further from the goal, and I thought we would need to scrap the project, but then… she came back. And… she didn't say anything about a family. She put all of herself into developing the emotional matrix. I-i just assumed…” Pietro got incredibly quiet, his hand grabbing his knees slightly, almost embarrassed by the thought.

“That I didn't make it… But instead, she dumped me at an orphanage and left me in the Atlesian foster system. She abandoned her daughter so she could build one for you…” Cinder's eye, despite not using her powers, almost glowed a bright orange in rage.

“She was not a perfect woman…” his voice trailed off slightly, not even looking at Cinder. He could see so much of her in Cinder. The spark, the anger, the hunger for what she wanted. In the right hands, there was nothing that couldn't accomplish…

“Now, here's my side of that little story. I'm abandoned by a woman I've never met, I grow up in a building that is nearly falling apart, twenty to a room bare minimum. But I survive those cold Atlesian winters, and am adopted by the owner of an upscale Atlesian hotel. And she treats me like a slave. She works me to the bone and if I ever step out of line… I get 5,000 volts straight through my neck.” Cinder slowly moves away from the wall, angrily glaring at Pietro as she speaks, a cold anger from each terrible truth.

“But I met a brave Huntsman! And he teaches me how to fight, how to defend myself…. And then one night, my adopted mother gets angry, angrier than I had ever seen… She sends 10, 20, 25 thousand volts through my neck, burning my flesh as I scream in agony! I defend myself, use the skills the Huntsman taught me… I saved myself from the monster. And then the brave Huntsman. He finds me, and tries to put a sword through my heart.” Her voice drops low discussing that night. These are things she would never tell Penny, never tell a soul if she could. But, she had to get these thoughts off of her chest, she needed to let some of this weight go.

“And so I do what I do best, I survive. I make the only choices I have, because I am a survivor. And, in the back of my mind, in the deep recesses of my thoughts, I know for certain that I am alone in this world, I have no family, because no one would ever willingly put their own flesh and blood through what I went through… Until, surprise surprise! The android I destroyed is back and tells me that not only did I have a mother, but that she was one of the people who created her… And, just to add insult to injury… she's gone. I can't get an answer as to why she did what she did…” Cinder feels tears beginning to run down her cheek. “I know you're angry, and that you hate me, and gods know that I deserve it… but know that this? This is the first time someone has taken a chance on caring about me. I am trying to be worthy of Penny's trust, because she's the closest thing to family that I have ever had.”

Pietro listens to her word, viscerally feeling Cinder's anger, the venom that she clearly feels towards the world, her circumstances, and he can see why she became like this. Logically, he knows that she never had a chance to live a normal, well-adjusted life… but selfishly, he just couldn't find it in himself to give her that mercy… “I wish you could have known your mother, Cinder. I really do. She wasn't perfect, but…” he sighed, trying his best to contain the anger he felt towards Cinder, “but you deserved to know the woman.”

With that, his chair began to turn away, Cinder's metallic arm digging into her bicep. “Let me know how that arm is treating you, Cinder. Dismissed.”

Cinder stood there, watching him depart. She knew he would never grant her any mercy, much like most of Atlas. And yet, it still hurt her every time she was denied.

Chapter Text

“You sure you're ready for this, Fall?” The earpiece in Cinder's ear shrieked with the sound of Winter Schnee's voice crackling from interference from the weather around the airship Cinder was sitting in.

“No, but would that really matter, Princess?” Cinder smirked slightly, stretching her arms and chuckling softly.

“No, it wouldn't. But at least you're honest.” Winter cracked a soft smile, Penny gently tugging at her sleeve and pulling on her own headset. “I can make it to you if you need assistance, Cinder!”

“No can do, Sis. Schnee and Ironwood want me to prove myself… or die trying.” Cinder stood up, slowly walking to the back door of the airship, the door slowly opening, wind whipping at her hair as rain started pelting her face. “Anything I should know before I start?”

There was a small pause in the communication, before a deep cold voice echoed in Cinder's ear. “Make Salem afraid of what she lost…” Ironwood smirked as he spoke to his newest asset. “You heard the man. Have a good Recess, Maiden,” Winter spoke with a wide smile across her face, mirroring Cinder's own.

Cinder leaped from the carrier, pulling her swords from their hilt, tossing the left blade as hard as she could straight into the head into a large Ursa grimm, extending her fingers, the blade retracting back and hitting her palm. ‘Gods, I missed this…’

Small group of grimm on the outskirts of a small Atlesian town, civilians had already evacuated, perfect for someone like Cinder to cut a little loose, her blades connecting and pulling a metallic arrow, igniting it and firing deeply into a small crowd of of Grimm, scattering them, sending some running towards her, disconnecting the blades and swinging at the nearest Grimm, rushing around the town square, playing her own crowd control.

“Damage to a minimum, Maiden.” Winter spoke through her ear again, “Rain will help, but keep those arrows away from the infrastructure.” Cinder nodded slightly, throwing the left blade to her left, tossing the right blade into her left hand and tossing the blade to a Grimm on her right. As she ran into the amassing crowd in the center of the square, summoning each blade back to her, catching each with a flip. She was not as ferocious as she used to be, but her training had been able to refocus her style around crowd control and long distance fighting. She was fighting smarter, not harder than she ever had in her life, making a mental note to thank Winter for the help when the two were on better terms.

A loud ringing of feedback entered Cinder's ear as she finished off another creature, Cinder grabbing at her ear slightly in pain. “Schnee! Keep the line a little cleaner please…”

“Oh Maiden, how far you have Fallen…” a soft voice echoed across the square, one that sent a chill up Cinder's spine, her eye expanding out of fear. “Taking orders from them now?”

“S-salem…” Cinder's voice cracked softly, slowly trying to back away as her head turned, looking for what could be trying to trick her.

“How quickly you forget, child… I was worried that you could take my secrets to them, but I guess I overestimated your value…” Salem's voice oozed out of the Grimm's maw, a sickeningly sweet tone that Cinder for a long time considered motherly.

“I-i… Y-you're not real… Y-you aren't here… y-you can't hurt me…” Cinder repeated to herself over and over, trying to block out her voice, to not see the piercing red eyes of the Grimm that allowed Salem to see her former Maiden.

“Oh, I am still very much real, Maiden. Unlike you. ‘Cinder Fall, Maiden of Atlas, Champion of the People'? Don't make me laugh. Do you honestly think that Ironwood wouldn't cut you like a loose thread if he felt like it? Do you honestly think that Winter Schnee would protect you if it meant not protecting her little sister? Do you honestly think that your little stint at helping people will make them forgive you?” Salem laughed softly, a chilling laugh that made Cinder's grip tighten against her blades, “All you have is the trust of a machine that sees you as a person, Maiden… And when you inevitably fail her the way you failed me… You won't be burdened with your power any longer, child… Oh, and… You are wrong about one more thing: I can still hurt you.”

As the voice faded from her ear, a Grimm lunged from behind her, its teeth sinking into Cinder's right shoulder, as she screamed in pain, her hand plunging a blade deeply into it's throat, coating her hair in blood as she ripped free.

“Maiden! Maiden, come in! CINDER!” Winter's voice screeched in her ear as the signal caught back up, Cinder watching as the remaining creatures scattered out of the village, Cinder sheathing her blades.

“I'm here, Princess… We just lost each other for a minute there…” The lie slipped out of her lips as easily as the truth could, panting under her breath from the fight. “Situation is clear down here, permission to return to base?”

“Granted, Maiden. Good first mission. I'm sure Salem got the message.” Winter disconnected her headset as Cinder boarded the transport, resting her bloodied head in her metallic hand.

“She sure got a message…”

Chapter Text

Cinder Fall was late. She often was late to meetings or training or meals, but there was a sort of agreement that the most hated woman in Remnant didn't exactly need to be at crowded areas at crowded times, so it was not the most important thing for Cinder to be where she needed to be the second it needed to happen.

She didn't like being late, but her ability to sleep was… hampered by the near constant nightmares. While she had always had night terrors since she was a child, they had been getting worse in the last few months, seeing Salem in her dreams often.

Cinder shook her head, trying to wake herself up as she approached the training hall, hearing laughter from across the way in the landing pad. A few voices stuck out: Penny, Winter (the thought of her laughing worried her to no end), and… she couldn't make out the others, but they sounded so familiar. Cinder, ever the curious type, slowly pressed herself into the room, the door creaking slightly as a dozen eyes locked onto her presence. It had been a long time since she had seen them, and some part of her had almost hoped she would never need to encounter them… Team RWBY and JNR had arrived in Atlas, and they were not happy.

“CINDER?!” A small crowd of voices yelled out, angrily drawing weapons and training them against the Maiden, Cinder putting her hands up in protest as the questions came at her quickly. Asking why she was here, screaming at her to drop her weapons, all as no less than 8 weapons honed in on her, a scythe and rapier pointed directly towards her neck as Penny stepped between the crowd and Cinder.

“Oh… it seems that I might have left out a few details of the last few months. So… everyone, you all know Cinder Fall…” Penny let out a soft smile, her usual kind voice trying to diffuse the tension that held still in the air, Cinder barely moving, only adjusting more of her torso to be behind Penny. “Well… she is my… half-sister… Ta-Da!” Penny threw a small amount of confetti out to the thoroughly unamused Huntsmen and Huntresses, small pieces landing on their weapons or sticking in their hair.

“H-hi, everyone…” Cinder tried her best to give a soft, sincere smile, keeping her hands above her head, “So… I know this must be a little-”

“What is going on here, Penny!? First, I don't know you're alive for months, and then I learn you're harboring a fugitive!” Ruby stepped forward, angrily pushing her scythe closer to Cinder's neck as her silver eyes never left Cinder's golden hues, “I-i thought you trusted us, Penny, not someone like her!”

“Very hurtful, Red. Accurate, but still hurtful.” Cinder tried her best to make a joke, to try and alleviate some of the hostility in the room, but it was clearly not warmly received. No one was more angry with this attempted levity than the blonde haired man with a sword.

“Shut the hell up, Cinder! For once in your life, stop. talking.” He spoke with a cold anger, the grip on his sword tight and shaking with every word, Cinder again shutting up, her hand lowering to gently pat Penny on the shoulder. “It's all you, Sis…”

Penny sighed. She knew that it was far from likely that her old friends would warmly receive this news well, but she had hoped that they would have an open mind to her, at least to Penny giving her a chance… “When I was revived by my Father, I still had all of my memories from my old form, including the signal that was used to control me in my fight against… Miss Nikos” Cinder's body tensed hearing that name again, not wanting to look any of them in the eye, least of all Jaune. “Using that memory, I had heard of Cinder at our time at Beacon, but the name did not strike me as exceptional. No offense.”

“None taken.” Cinder shrugged slightly. The only thing giving her any sort of comfort was these people's trust in Penny.

“Well, when the name came up, my Father became… distant, agitated, cagey… and so I began to investigate why he would not want me to know about Cinder Fall… It turned out that Cinder's biological mother, Doctor Ignis Fall, was one of the scientists responsible for creating me.” She held out her scroll, a picture of the team that made Penny standing in front of an exoskeleton, Ignis Fall standing right next to Pietro Polendina. Penny pointed at the woman. “In effect, Cinder would be my-”

“Half-Sister…” Yang Xaio-Long interrupted. “But if that was the case, that must be why Cinder attacked you at the Vytal Festival? She must have known about the connection.”

Cinder and Penny shook their heads in unison, Cinder noting that they were all talking around Cinder, not addressing her directly. “Sorry blondie, I had no idea about any of this. The great Doctor Fall decided that her research for the PENNY Project was more important than her newborn daughter. She ditched me at an orphanage and went back to finish Penny.”

Cinder could see a few of the Huntresses pause, Weiss and Blake each looking at Cinder with a soft look of sadness in their eyes.

“Thank you Cinder. Well, when I learned of this connection, I attempted to make contact with Cinder. She has done many, many, many terrible things… but, she also deserved to know the truth. I offered her a chance to move forward. We cannot undo the past, but I extended a hand to make a better future. And Cinder has been more than willing to take that chance.”

The group looked at Cinder and Penny, slowly lowering their weapons. They were clearly still angry and more than a little confused, but murder felt a bit extreme for the moment.

“I know that it is a lot to take in, but from my perspective…” Winter stepped slightly forward, “as obnoxious as the Maiden is, she is an asset. One that we have deployed in the field against Salem's monsters multiple times.” Cinder smirked to herself, ‘oh, my hero…’

“What if this is just a trick? She's still an agent of Salem and is using Penny to turn her against us?” The smaller Schnee interjected, crossing her hands over her chest.

“Well, Mist-... Salem, took my sudden departure for Atlas about as well as you could expect. She flooded my body with a Grimm infection through my arm that was killing me. Needless to say, that bridge is burned.”

There was a moment of silence in the room, Cinder observing how each of them reacted, the looks of doubt on their faces. She saw Ruby and Yang scowling angrily, Weiss and Blake with a mix of anger and worry, and then Jaune… his look was cold, his hand still glued to the hilt of his sword, jaw still clenched. It was the kind of look that could cut Cinder just as easily as his blade.

“How about this,” Cinder piped back up, “there's an interrogation room. We break it up, two of RWBY, two of RWBY, and then JNR. One on two, ask me anything, get all the information you want about me, Salem, Penny, my intentions, anything… You don't have to like me or forgive me, but just… anything is better than us all looking like we are about to kill each other.”

The teams thought it over, turning to whisper amongst each other before Ruby stepped forward.

“Alright, we can accept those terms. But we aren't going to let you get away easily, Cinder…”

“I know. I wouldn't want it any other way, Red…”

Chapter Text

Cinder sat silently in the interrogation room, her hands cuffed to the harsh metal table in front of her as she felt the fluorescent lights burning down on her skin. She tapped her fingers against the table, knowing that on the other side of the glass, Ruby and her team would be arguing about who should get first Crack at interrogating their greatest enemy.

Suddenly, the door swung open, Yang and Blake walking through, their eyes fully avoiding Cinder.

“Ah, so the Bees are here to interrogate,” Cinder cracked a soft smile, looking up at the two of them.

“Bees…?” The feline Faunus gently tilted her head in confusion.

“You know… you and Blondie back there…? Yellow and Black? …cause you two are…? Nevermind, I guess. Just a random thought of mine” Cinder held up her cuffed hands in a form of comedic surrender

“Moving on, Cinder. Let's talk about how Penny got a hold of you. You're not exactly an easy woman to find…” Yang grabbed a chair as she spoke, spinning it around and sitting with her front facing the back of the chair.

“For you all, maybe. She was the smartest computer on the planet. Give her a few hours and she can find any scroll in Remnant. She pinged me and told me where to meet her.” Cinder was honest, there wasn't a need to hide anything, and most anything she said could easily be traced back with Winter's interrogations from when she first arrived.

“How did you even control Penny to attack Pyrrha? You said you didn't know your mother was involved, but you clearly gained control of systems no normal person could access.” Blake chimed in, slowly pacing around the room, like a shark looking at its prey.

“Questions to ask Doctor Arthur Watts if you see him.” Cinder brought the scroll back with the Project Penny picture, pointing to a tall man with dark hair and a mustache, “yet another person who didn't tell me about Ignis Fall, so don't get rid of him yet, heroes…” Cinder chuckled softly, leaning back as far as the chain around her wrists could allow.

Yang harshly slammed a fist down on the table, eliciting a soft yelp from Cinder. “Take this seriously! Its your idea, we are just playing along!”

Blake gently touched Yang's shoulder, pulling her back slightly. “Specialist Schnee told us that when you arrived in Atlas, you looked fine but quickly developed a condition. Talk us through that.”

Cinder shook her head slightly, “I guess medical privacy only applies to the good guys… Right, well… Something you need to know about Grimm is that they aren't exactly… sentient. They have base instincts, but more complex thoughts? Their brains can't handle it. So they have a hive mind that's controlled by Salem. This will be relevant later. When I failed Salem, she replaced my left arm with a Grimm appendage, which started pumping the same chemical that connected me to the hivemind. It's why I got… worse the last time you saw me. More animalistic, less in control…”

Blake and Yang looked at each other and then back to Cinder. They had to admit that the woman they saw sitting across from them looked more like the girl they thought they had known from Beacon.

“Anyway, that hivemind Salem controls, it can make a Grimm more and more aggressive for hunts, but it can also be used to make them more obedient or, in extreme cases… cut off from other Grimm. Which was what Salem did. When I failed to report back, she assumed I was captured and started cutting me off from the hivemind, injecting a chemical that made me… sick. Really sick. I-i lost a lot of weight, struggled to stand on my own, got really pale…” As Cinder spoke, her hand gently ran over her metallic wrist.

Blake timidly put her hand near Cinder's, not inviting her to touch her hand, but clearly trying to extend a bit of peace.

“And then what? You got your arm cut off?” Yang butted in this time, resting her elbows on the table and leaning forward.

“Well, that wasn't my first choice, Blondie… I-i… I really wanted to just let it win.” Cinder let that thought hang in the air between the three. “I-i thought… ‘well, I deserve this. I've done enough bad in this world. I've told the Atlesians all I know to stop Salem. Maybe that will ease my soul when I go…’, but Penny… sh-she refused to let me take that way out… She's the one who convinced me to take the surgery… b-because, to her… sh-she said i needed more time… i-i think she was talking about herself, but still… how can you argue with that?” Cinder smiled softly, wiping a tear from her eye.

She looked at Yang and Blake, seeing a small split in their reaction. Yang still glared, her eyes splitting between their natural purple and a slight tint of red, while Blake's yellow hues looked slightly sad, a level of empathy that Cinder assumed Blake wouldn't have for her.

“And you said it was Salem who gave you that condition?” Blake looked on with a genuine look in her expression, “Why would she do that, weren't you like… her daughter? Pet? Something?”

Cinder let out a sad chuckle. “I-i wish I knew, Kitty… I-i'd like to think she was only doing that because she thought I was dead already… b-but I don't think she cared about me even that much… I was a pawn for her, a manipulatable piece on a board she could use, and she would rather get rid of me than take care of me…”. She sighed softly, “I'm aware that I'm probably the biggest idiot in Remnant for not realizing that Salem didn't care about me… b-but… when you're starved for love, you fill in the gaps…” Cinder pressed herself nails into her palm, trying not to look at Yang and Blake.

Blake could feel herself needing to pull back from Cinder. She could see the pain evident when she talked about Salem, the same way that she would talk about Adam, trying desperately to justify a level of care that never existed. “I-i…” her throat went dry as she tried to speak again.

Yang stepped in, seeing the look on her friend's face. “We're glad that you're willing to talk about that, Cinder… I'll be honest, I'm not gonna forgive you easily, but… it is nice to hear there is a person under all that…. Well, under all that Cinder.”

Cinder cracked a soft smile, chuckling to herself. “I'm not looking for salvation, Blondie… I'm… I'm just trying to prove I deserve the chance Penny is giving me…”

Blake and Yang slowly departed from the room, Cinder turning to look at the one-way window on the other side of the room, hoping that somehow, someone could see that she really was trying…

Chapter Text

Cinder could feel the cuffs digging slightly into her wrist, regretting her own stupid decisions. She wanted to maybe put the other huntresses at ease, but clearly…

“So, what's with the cuffs? We know you could melt them if you wanted?”

It was not working. Ruby looked across the table with a skeptical eyebrow raised, while Weiss Schnee stood behind Ruby, slightly more withdrawn from the confrontation.

“Well I was trying to show you guys that I am not a threat. It's a psychological thing.”

“Clearly.” Weiss rolled her eyes, Cinder sighing deeply.

“Would you like it more if I detached my other arm and put it in the corner before you two walked in?”

There was a moment of silence before Ruby answered flatly. “Kinda.”

Cinder brought her metallic hand up, pinching the bridge of her nose, sighing deeply. “Well, I didn't do that, so just trust me that I'm unarmed and not about to fight anyone, Red.”

Ruby chuckled softly at the implication of “unarmed”, before looking seriously at Cinder. “Let's talk about Penny…”

Cinder almost nervously shook in her seat, adjusting her stance to rest her elbows on the table. “What do you want to know…?”

Weiss stepped forward slightly. “Why did you voluntarily come back to Atlas with Penny? You were an agent of Salem, you had to know that you'd be a target here.”

“I went with her… because she wanted to give me a chance to prove I could be better. I-i… I've never had someone see that in me. Potential, that is…”

Ruby's silver eyes rolled as she looked at Cinder. “Come on, you don't expect us to fall for the ‘woe is me’ act, do you?”

Cinder glared into Ruby's eyes, making sure to lead with her cracked and grey eye. “It's not an act, Red. You all know about Salem, but she was an upgrade in terms of treatment to where I was before…” Cinder turned her attention towards Weiss, pointing with her hand, “Snowflake back there might know what I'm talking about… although she is a little young… ask Princess about it.”

Cinder's penchant for nicknames was… less than amusing to Weiss and Ruby, Weiss stepping into the light, looking down at Cinder. “What could I possibly know about you?” She glared with a dismissive tone in her voice.

Cinder softly chuckled to herself, looking at the anger on Weiss’ face. It was almost adorable how little she knew of her own home. “Again. You might be a little too young to remember, but your big sister could tell you a lot about a place in Atlas called The Glass Unicorn. My Step-Mother used to run it, this massive, massive hotel, a place where all the upper crust of Atlesian high society came to stay and meet over booze and the stink of cigars. Including your old man, Snowflake..”

Weiss paused slightly, her expression softening as she listened intently.

“Your father was a frequent guest of my Step-Mother's hotel. Friend of hers too. Woman by the name of Madame. If you remembered her, she might have seemed like the sweetest person in Remnant. She just had this… softness when it came to the kids of Atlas’ elite…” Cinder made a clear distinction when she spoke about Madame, her eye wandering, no longer even looking at Weiss or Ruby. Talking about Madame… it didn't matter how long it had been, the words always burned leaving her throat. “But… she wasn't an idiot. She got close to your dad for a reason, Schnee. Your big sis mentioned that your dad was very chummy with some people in high places who made sure people looked the other way when it came to child labor laws…”

Weiss let out an involuntary gasp, her hand gently touching her lips. Ruby glaring angrily at Cinder, seeing the distress it was causing Weiss. “Stop trying to manipulate us, Cinder!”

“I'm trying to tell you the truth, Red! And it's not pretty, but… it's the truth. I don't blame Snowflake back there. From what her sister told me… your dad seems like a real piece of work.” Cinder lifted her hands, slowly pulling her collar down to the collarbone, exposing her neck, a discolored line wrapped around Cinder's throat, ending in a heart right under her chin, the remains of where Madam's collar rested on Cinder's neck, looking up towards Weiss. “Its something in the waters, I guess.” Cinder gently gestured to Weiss’ scarred eye.

“I dunno how much it means coming from me, Snowflake… but I know that… what they do to you doesn't have to define you…” Cinder spoke softly, with an empathetic tone in her voice, “it took me a long time for that to set in, and… I needed a lot of help… but I know I'm not what Madame did to me. And you're not all the bad your Father did…”

Weiss and Cinder locked eyes for a moment, a recognition from the other of the pain they each endured at the hands of the people they should trust.

Weiss broke the silence, “I don't forgive you Cinder. I'm sure it isn't a shock to hear at this point, but… You hurt a lot of people, you ruined so many lives…” Cinder had a pained look on her face, her golden eye diverting back towards Ruby, “...Do you think about them, Cinder? The people you've killed? The lives you upended, whether for yourself or for Salem…?”

“Every time I close my eyes… I-i thought I could block them out, but… it couldn't be that easy…” her throat dried out, her voice becoming soft and raspy.

“Because you're human, Cinder Fall. No matter what delusions you let Salem let you believe, you are still a human…” Weiss slowly approached Cinder, resting a hand gently on the Maiden's shoulder, “I may never forgive you, but… I'm glad you let us talk to you. C'mon Ruby…”

Cinder offered back a soft smile, almost chuckling to herself with a knowing glance to Weiss.

“B-but! Weiss! I have so many more questions! This isn't over, Cinder!” Ruby's indignation moved effortlessly between Cinder and Weiss.

“No, it is for now. Cinder's been chained up here for hours. Let's give her a little time to breathe?” Weiss crossed her arms over her shoulder glaring back at Ruby as the smaller huntress grumbled, sulking across the room with her silver eyes staring daggers into Cinder's

“I've got my eye on you…” Ruby muttered under her breath

“Eye-S. You still have both of them.” Cinder smirked softly, her trademark cocky grin etched across her face.

As the door closed behind Ruby and Weiss, Cinder could hear the angry ramblings of the younger woman, letting out a sigh of relief, rubbing her eye slightly. ‘Two down… one left to go…’

Chapter Text

Jaune was pissed. He had been angry for most of the day, stewing in silence as his friends actually entertained Cinder gods-damned Fall as an ally. After everything she had done, he couldn't stand the idea that they were seriously sitting there and listening to this murderer- this Monster. And then, Cinder Fall had the gall to ask for their interrogation to be delayed. It was enough to make his blood boil, his hand grip tighter and tighter against the hilt of his sword, storming down the corridors, before entering the dingy training room.

Inside, Cinder stood in the corner, her arms crossed over her chest. “Close the door behind you, if you don't mind, Arc.”

“The hell-?”

She turned in a circle with her hands in the air. “I'm not armed, I'm not gonna do anything. Close the door, please.”

“What the hell are you doing? Where the hell are Ren and Nora?” Jaune gripped his hilt tighter and tighter, tight enough to squeeze a diamond out of dust.

“Short-Stack and Strong & Silent Type? I asked them if we could have a little privacy. They aren't exactly happy with me, but they agreed… you and I need to talk together. So, drop the sword and let's talk, Arc.” Cinder gestured to the empty space in the middle of the room.

Jaune slowly approached, unbuckling the sword from his belt and dropping it to the ground with a loud crash, his blue eyes glaring angrily into Cinder's, as if he was trying to bore a hole through her skull. “What. Is. This?”

Cinder's hand extended slightly, fingers gently touching his armor, pushing enough to keep a little distance between the two. “Hit me.” Cinder spoke softly, barely audible to anyone except the target of those words.

Jaune paused for a moment, processing the thought. “Wh-what?”

“I want you to hit me. Hard as you want, hard as you can. No weapons, no semblance, just you and me. I'm not gonna swing back.’ Cinder looked up, her eye brilliant golden, a fierce determination in her words.

“What? Is this some kind of trick? You want to prove you're tough? That you can take a hit from ‘little old Jaune’?” His eyebrows furrowed further, angrily raising his voice. 

Cinder put her hands on her hips, glaring with indignity. “No, Arc. I want you to stop gripping that sword any time you're in the same room as me. I want you to stop looking at my sister like she's sold her soul to the devil because of me. I want you to hit-”

As she started yelling, Jaune's fist connected with her cheek, Cinder recoiling back as she stumbled off of her feet. “HIT YOU LIKE THAT!?” He screamed as he approached, his other hand winding back and striking the scarred side of her.

Cinder's head smacked against the concrete wall, groaning softly. Her vision blurred slightly, blood gushing from her nose, dripping onto her chest. “Y-yes… like that…”

Jaune took the momentary pause as an invitation for another strike, punching her again in the face, his hands grabbing at her shoulders as he brought his knee up to her stomach. “Stay. Down. You made your point, Cinder…”

As Jaune turned to leave, Cinder stumbled back to her feet with a soft groan. “Again…”

Jaune gritted his teeth, pulling his fist back, connecting it with her scarred side again, Cinder slamming against the wall.

“Again.”

Jaune's fist struck her stomach, the wind knocking itself from her lungs.

“A….gain…”

Jaune screamed loudly, his fist connecting with her face over and over and over again, Cinder wheezing and groaning as he let out as much of his aggression as she could, the two collapsing onto the ground together.

Jaune stared at his fist, watching as fresh blood ran over the blood already drying on his knuckles. Cinder sat up slightly, feeling her good eye begin to swell up and bruise, blood dripping down her nose and lip splitting.

“N-need… more…?” A weak voice broke the silence, a small trickle of blood leaking with those words.

Jaune paused, looking at the heap of bloodied maiden in front of him, before roughly shoving her into the wall, gritting his teeth. “You took everything from me, Cinder… tell me why I shouldn't end your miserable existence once and for all…?”

Cinder let the question hang in the air, the only sound between them being her raspy breaths, trying to not swallow the blood pooling in her mouth. “I don't have a reason, Jaune… I really don't. I'm a terrible person…. A Monster, even… I've done more terrible things than anyone in Remnant… And if I could trade my life for any of the people I've killed… I'd do it in a heartbeat.”

Jaune listened, waiting for a sly comment, a hint of irony, a whiff that she was going to laugh off her heinous actions with a joke.

“And you don't have to like me. Hell, I'd be worried if you did… But all I'm asking is… blame me. Beat me up for what I did… I see how you look at Penny, that look that says how little you trust her because of me… All she did was give me a chance… One I deserve? Maybe not… But that doesn't make her me…”

Jaune looked at Cinder. He hated how she looked. He wanted to hate her. He did hate her. But he hated the version of her in his head. The cruel, uncaring, unfeeling monster. Not this pathetic, bleeding, scarred woman in front of him…

He slowly stood up, extending a hand towards Cinder. As Cinder took it with her flesh hand, he yanked her up to her feet, shoving her against the wall as hard as she could.

Ignoring the likely concussion she had, Cinder looked into his eyes intently, watching as he leaned in close. “If the call is protecting you…? Know that I won't ever be there. I don't care what anyone else thinks… I know what you are…”

She looks at him, channeling as much lucidity in her eye as she can manage in that moment. “Protect Her. That's all I care about, Arc…”

As Jaune let her hand go, he took one last shot at her face, his fist clapping against her cheek once again, the heavy sound of boots hitting the ground as his sword scrapes against the floor.

The door slammed shut as Cinder slumped forward, her head hanging for a moment, eye focusing on the blood dripping from her nose into a puddle in front of her. As much as she could feel the pain, it was preferable to his sword running through her heart.

Even though, in her heart, she knew she deserved it.

Chapter Text

Cinder stumbled slowly into her quarters, grunting with effort with each little movement. When she left this morning, she hadn't expected she'd need to clean up fresh wounds, but that was her stupid plan…

She slumped against the metallic door as it slid closed behind her, taking deep, slow, labored breaths. Her living conditions had improved slightly since Penny found her. Anything was better than the solitary confinement cell Ironwood put her in for the first few months, but having her own small dormitory-like room was cushier than anywhere she had ever lived before.

She chuckled to herself, thinking about just how many closets she had slept in between the Glass Unicorn and Evernight castle. As she laughed, she winced in pain before she heard some rustling in the darkness, steeling her nerves. She wasn't in any condition to fight, but she was also sure she wouldn't be able to outrun anything with a serious motivation to hurt her.

Out of the darkness, Cinder could see two unnaturally green eyes peering towards her, and a shocked gasp from Penny. “Cinder! You're injured!?”

“Yeah… didn't notice, Sis. Mind helping me get to the first aid kit?” Cinder extended a metallic hand up to Penny, Penny pulling her to her feet and adjusting her stance to help shoulder some of the Cinder's weight onto her shoulder.

“What happened? I saw you at dinner talking to Nora and Ren and then…”

“I tripped and fell down a flight of stairs, Penny.” Cinder easily lied through her teeth.

“Bullshit, Cinder!” Penny interjected as she set Cinder down on a chair, pulling an alcoholic wipe to try and clean some of the open cuts.

Cinder winced in pain, her muscles tensing. “I-i… I didn't think you used those kinds of words, Penn…”

“I don't like them, but when you are lying to me…” Penny sighs softly, “What really happened to you, Cinder?”

Cinder mulled the thought over for a moment. She wanted to be honest, but honesty would mean telling Penny that Jaune had beat her into a pulp with his bare hands… Even if Cinder asked him to get his aggression out on her, it wasn't a good look for either of them…

“One of the soldiers, his little brother, went to Beacon. He wanted to get a few licks in…” Cinder found a lie that was workable, if only because it had a little kernel of truth. She often was treated roughly by the soldiers around the complex, not undeservingly so.

Penny could see Cinder was lying, noticing the way her eye wandered off when trying to tell a story by a few millimeters, or how her hand twitched a certain way when talking about her past versus when she was talking about events recently. She didn't have a full neural processing unit anymore, but her eyes didn't lie to her… But it was also clear that whatever was the real cause of these wounds, it must be too close to both of their hearts. Cinder wasn't always the most honest, but lying about why she was hurt… she wouldn't spare her the details if it wouldn't hurt her sister.

Cinder hated lying to Penny. There was just something about those unnaturally perfect green eyes that made it impossible to not want to be perfectly honest. She felt like she was getting soft… Or, maybe she just wanted someone to trust her.

She sighed deeply as Penny placed a bandage on a cut on Cinder's cheek. “I… I made a choice, and it was dumb, but it needed to be done. I couldn't stand your friends looking at you like… like… like they look at me, Penny.” It was vague, still not giving any details, but it was honest. Cinder avoided Penny's direct gaze as she spoke. “You were so happy to see them, and they were so happy to see you, and I just… I ruined it by being me…”

“Cinder, you didn't ruin anyth-”

“No, I did… I ruined your reunion because… because that's just who I am… I drag everyone down to my level…” Cinder looked up, Penny had cleaned up the cuts and bruises and was staring intently at Cinder, her head slightly tilted and absorbing everything she said.

A soft sigh escaped Penny's lips, a hand gently touching Cinder's metallic hand. “You don't do that, Cinder. You didn't ‘drag me down to your level’... I extended a hand and am trying to bring you up to mine.”

The two shared a glance, looking at each other, Cinder fighting off tears as Penny spoke. “I know it's how your brain works, but your presence is not a nuisance to me, Cinder… I do care about you and your wellbeing. I know that is hard for you to understand and accept, but it is the truth.”

Cinder smiled softly, wincing as she forced herself back to her feet, embracing Penny in a deep hug.

“I don't deserve you, Penny…”

Normally, Penny would joke, agreeing with the assessment that Cinder doesn't deserve someone like herself, a bit of sarcasm she had ironically picked up from her half-sister. But Penny could also see that Cinder needed to hear something different.

“You do, Cinder…”

If Cinder wasn't standing in excruciating pain, she might have tried to argue the point, to laugh it off or joke about how unworthy of love she truly was… but it was late and Cinder was tired of arguing with people, allowing Penny to keep talking.

“You do deserve someone that cares about you. You were put into a bad situation by someone who couldn't imagine who you would become. You were hurt and betrayed by the people who should have loved you. You did terrible things in an attempt to be loved by people who could never find it in them to love… Cinder, after everything… You still deserve someone that can love you. I'm only sorry that it took so long…”

Cinder let out a soft cry, a barely audible whimper that let Penny know she had heard what she said, Cinder's hands tightening against Penny's dress as the two embraced silently.

It was a cruel world, an unforgiving one. But Penny had given Cinder what the Maiden believed impossible: a way to forgive herself and to be forgiven.

And even on bad days, that was all Cinder had wanted…

Chapter Text

Blake found Atlas to be… confusing. A mess of contradictions in a lavish and beautiful kingdom and an all-encompassing militaristic force that influenced every aspect of Atlesian life. And she found the food to be… depressing. Coming from a place like Menagerie, where everything seemed to be bursting with color, the food she had found in Atlas looked as if the color had been boiled out of every ingredient. It was, somehow, something she found common ground with Cinder Fall of all people.

The last few days had been an adjustment period for sure. After Cinder's gauntlet of interrogations and clarifications with each member of the visiting teams and many conversations with Penny, Winter, and General Ironwood, it seemed that most of them were less repelled to the idea of Cinder existing alongside them. Ruby and Yang still were hesitant to speak to her outside of controlled settings, and Jaune was oddly silent whenever Cinder was in the same room as her, but they weren't actively seeking blood, so maybe that was good enough.

-knock knock!-

Blake's ears perked up as the loud thud of metal hitting metal echoed around the nearly empty dormitory. Yang was training, Weiss was visiting her sister, and Ruby was off with Penny… Who could be needing her?

Her question was answered as she opened the door to see a very awkward Cinder Fall standing in the doorway, her feet shuffling slightly and eye pointed down at the ground. Blake letting out a deep sigh

“Is it important?”

Cinder nodded slowly.

“Does it involve me?”

Another slow nod

“Come in…”

Cinder slowly entered, still avoiding looking at Blake, as if she could turn invisible by not perceiving the other person in the room.

“Out with it, what do you want?” Blake crossed her arms over her chest, her head tilting with a mix of annoyance and genuine curiosity. What could Cinder possibly need from her?

“I want... to learn how to read.” Cinder sheepishly admitted, the words slightly blurring together as she spoke.

“You want to… Wait, what?” Blake finally processed the information, thinking about it a second time, “You don't know how to read?”

“Well, I didn't exactly have a real education working for my step-mother, and Salem isn't really known for a robust education system… I've picked up a couple things here and there, but… I feel kind of… dumb.”

Blake pushed a chuckle down her throat, trying to not laugh at the absurdity of the situation when Cinder was clearly admitting something deeply personal.

“Don't look at me like that! It's not exactly easy to tell someone you can barely read above the level of an 8 year old, I'm being vulnerable here!” Cinder raised her voice, slightly indignently.

“It's not that, it's just… you really don't know how to read? Like… you just never figured that out?” Blake's smile gave way to a curious glance, her head tilting slightly, “I'm more just impressed you made it this long without figuring it out.”

“I picked up some things here and there, and I can process what's on the briefing pages that Winter gives me, but… Listen, I want to trust you, but if you're just going to laugh at me, I'll go…” Cinder sighed softly, turning herself back towards the door.

“Stop, stop… I-i… I might have something that can help you.” Blake grabbed her bag from her bunk, rifling through the contents until she found a paperback book, tossing it towards Cinder.

The cover showed how clearly well-loved the copy was, the edges folding in on themselves and paper slightly cracking around the edges of the spine. On the brown cover, a silhouette man could be seen with two outlined hearts on the cover, all beneath the title The Man with Two Souls. Blake piped back up, “It's one that I always come back to. Might be a little dry to start, but if you're looking for something that can help you understand reading and themes of storytelling… you might connect with them.”

Cinder slowly twisted the book in her hand, looking intently at the description of the book, reading about the premise of a man whose body contains multiple conciousnesses, each vying for control over his body. It sounded… familiar, very close to home for Cinder.

“Besides, if you don't understand what something means, you can use your scroll, check the word or phrase…” Blake paused, watching Cinder eye up the book with a clear confusion written across her face, “Or, you can talk to me. I'm sort of… flattered you'd take something like this to me, Cinder.”

“Yeah, well… out of the four of you and your friends… I trusted you most to not laugh in my face. Plus, you seem to know the most about books and all that…” Cinder awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck, chuckling softly.

Blake stood deep in thought for a moment, smirking to herself, “Oh, I know another book you might enjoy. It's called The Girl with a Porcelain Slipper. It's… Maybe a little simpler than the book I gave you, but it's something that might hit close to home for you.

Cinder smiled back, nodding as she clutched the book close to her chest, “I'll keep it in mind, Blake… I-i… I really appreciate it. Honestly.” Cinder offered her metallic hand for a kind handshake, Blake accepting it. “Please don't tell the others. You know Red and Blondie would have a field day with this, and Penny means well, but I know that she'd hound me every waking moment if she learned what's going on…”

Blake's eyes narrowed slightly with a sly smirk across her face, “Oh… I will try my best, but secrets tend to not stick around long in this team…” She had a wicked grin enveloping her cheeks, Cinder sighing with a dejected frown.

“You're an evil woman, Blake Belladonna…”