Entrancing Flame [Azecreth & Darkest_Fate]

[Azecreth]

Beacon, one of the premier schools to train Huntsmen, and the major Academy that stood in Vale. it had a long and distinguished history of preparing warriors to go fight, to protect humanity and all those who dealt with the threat of the Grimm. It stood above Vale itself, a lovely campus that did not lack for amenities or satisfaction of its wants. Teachers taught away, lecturing bright eyed students, classes full and doing the best they could to prepare the next generation for the struggles to come. All under the protective eye of professor Ozpin, a man almost as legendary as they came. Truly, this was one of the safest places on Remnant.

Or, at least, it used to be, Cinder thought to herself as she relaxed in one of Beacon's dorm rooms at that very moment. She, one of the most wanted people in all of Remnant, and the very subject of a manhunt by said Professor, was currently residing in his Academy, taking advantage of all the resources that he had to offer. It was a tragic failure of security if there had ever been one, but she would not complain about it. After all, it was to her benefit to be here.

Seated in a wooden chair, she was currently dressed in one of the schools uniforms, forgoing her red dress as she thought and planned. They didn't know she was here, and that meant that she had the opportunity to take advantage of it Already she had gotten to work, cataloging those with useful Semblances, and keeping tabs on the most promising students. She had even managed to locate those kids who had given Torchwick so much trouble previously.

Meanwhile, she was kept appraised of things going on outside, back in the city. The plan was proceeding apace, with supplies gathered and distributed to the White Fang, their 'loyal allies'. Really, Cinder only trusted them as far as she could throw one, and that wasn't very far. They would work together, but only so long as it served her purposes. It would be safer that way. As for here, well, Mercury and Emerald were busy ingratiating themselves to the student community and gathering information. That left her with plenty of time to plan ahead, and to think up her next moves.

At the moment, her mind was on a certain individual. It had not been too hard for her to notice one Blake Belladonna, former member of the White Fang who had defected, or so Adam had told her. And now here she was, right in plain sight, and if what Mercury and Emerald had told her was correct, the disguised Faunus wasn't doing too well. Apparently she had begun something of a downward turn the day or so after that big mech chase that Torchwick had been involved in (which was annoying, to say the least. He was just lucky that she was busy) In this, she saw opportunity. To take advantage of her, to exploit that weakness, and to potentially get a new recruit and a mole inside Team RWBY, should their efforts continue to be so successful.

First, to lure her in. "All too easy," Cinder remarked to herself with a smirk as she turned on her Scroll, using the student directory to find Belladonna's number. Hiding her own ID from the girl, she would send a text message to her, one that was certain to grab her attention. I have info on the White Fang. Meet at the small courtyard at 10:30pm. Come alone. Reading it over once, her grin widened slightly as she leaned back in her chair and thumbed the 'Send' button. So it went out, undoubtedly to be delivered to it's recipient.

Now it was the waiting game. She would let the night slip by until it was almost time for the meeting, and then head out to the courtyard, to welcome her newest unsuspecting pawn. This was going to be interesting, and fun. For her, anyway

 

[darkest_fate]

This probably was a trap. It didn't take training or talent to really recognize that. Only an idiot wouldn't see a private message sent through an anonymous account claiming to meet alone wouldn't be some kind of trap. Blake knew that. She knew full well that to go to this meeting would probably be stupid, would most likely result in more trouble, may even result in her losing the position she'd fought so hard for. People needed protecting, and she needed to make up for her past sins as a member of the White Fang. They were here; they were causing problems. She knew, just knew, had known, had always known it would come to this.

How long since she'd last slept? Was it bad that Blake couldn't really remember? There had been that fight with that giant robot... why was there always giant robots? But they'd won that, right? Details were blurry right now. How long had it been? A few days? That felt about right. Days felt right. Yes, it had to be days. Days since Blake had last gotten sleep. Just a few. She'd catch a quick nap here and there... a catnap. Ha, somewhere Ruby just giggled and didn't know why.

Ruby, Blake's friends, Yang, Weiss. This was betraying them in a way, wasn't it? But they broke off and did things on their own all the time. That was part of being a Huntress. You did what you needed to do to keep people safe, to fight against the forces that would destroy civilization. Wasn't that what they were all training to be? Well, Blake was training to atone, but... but beyond that. The Faunus didn't see that she had a choice.

Still, she was going armed. She would carry Gambol Shroud with her; not that she didn't usually, but still. She wore her usual garb, one that hugged her slim frame fairly well. Her black ribbon would hide her ears, and she opted to leave her long hair free, more to look less threatening than anything else. The white of her garb would stand out a little more, but she did want to be seen. Well, she wanted to mostly be seen. Her hand almost went to her bow out of reflex, instead lowering. She blinked, wishing she could dispel the rings around her amber colored eyes. Too many nights.

Still, she was there. In the courtyard. Approaching cautiously, her body alert, tense, ready for whatever was to happen next. Should she call out? No, they'd be expecting her. Blake's fingers nearly danced along her sword. She felt, well, she felt as nervous as a cat in a room filled with chairs...

 

[Azecreth]

Things had been prepared exactly according to plan. Emerald and mercury were waiting to assist should it be needed, and Cinder was confident that they could handle whatever problems might arise. This wasn't the sort of thing that really deserved pulling Neo away from Roman, not when he was still busy making sure that the delivery of supplies went according to schedule and according to plan. She had an obligation to fulfill, much as she might not enjoy that fact. But it was fine, this could be handled easily enough by the resources she had on hand.

Soon enough it was night, the time of the meeting at hand. Cinder had planned and prepared, running through all sorts of eventualities and schemes, to account for what might happen. Yet she knew that it was excessive, the observation that her subordinates had done confirming that Blake Belladonna was not in a state that one would consider the picture of mental clarity. That would make things easier for her, and she was ready to grab on and take advantage of it as she needed to to get what she wanted.

While Blake approached tense and alert, Cinder was much less so as she stepped out into the moonlight to greet the other student. She was relaxed, calm, a saunter in her step that let her hips sway alluringly. She knew what she was doing, and would take advantage of everything at her disposal to get what she wanted, even if it was her looks. Not that she was certain Blake enjoyed that sort of thing, but it certainly couldn't hurt her.

"Well well, I'll admit I'm a bit surprised. I didn't think you would show up," Cinder noted aloud as she came to a stop near the middle of the courtyard, eyeing Blake in the process. This would be an optimal position for Emerald and Mercury to assist her if need be, but for now it was just the two of them, and she was ready to weave her webs, and set her plans into motion.