SAPR

by Scipio Smith

Recognition (New)

Recognition

The elevator door opened, and the six of them — Sunset, Pyrrha, Ruby, Jaune, Amber and Dove — relievedly exited onto the ground floor of the Emerald Tower; this early in the morning, it was deserted, save for the Atlesian androids on guard. The soft green light of the tower lobby reflected off their sleek white bodies as they moved with stiff gait and clanking noises around the room.

They paid Team SAPR, Amber, and Dove no mind, but Amber shrank back from them a little regardless, stepping closer to Dove while at the same time trying to put Pyrrha and Sunset between herself and the robots.

"It's alright," Pyrrha reassured her. "They're not here to hurt you. They're here to protect the tower; they're completely harmless."

"Unfortunately they're halfway to harmless to their enemies as well," Sunset muttered.

Ruby, who overheard her, snorted.

"There's really nothing to be scared of," Pyrrha went on. "They recognise us as friends."

Amber frowned. "How?" she asked.

Pyrrha opened her mouth, but did not speak for a moment. "I … must confess I'm not entirely sure."

"There's a database with all of our faces on it," Ruby explained, "which it has because it's got access to the official school database so it knows who all of the students are and what we look like, and then it uses facial recognition algorithms to identify us, and we're all tagged as friendly. Twilight explained it to me."

"But … how does that work for me?" Amber asked. "I'm not a student here."

"Probably Professor Ozpin put your ID into the records regardless, so that the androids would have access to your picture," Sunset said. "It's the sort of thing that he'd consider as soon as you woke up."

Amber glanced at Sunset. "You like him, don't you? Ozpin, I mean?"

Sunset stopped walking towards the door. She thrust her hands into the pockets of her jacket.

"I didn't, at first," she said, "I didn't trust him, his motives, his desires, what he'd do to my friends to get what he wanted. But … I understand him better now, and I find him a better man than I gave him credit for." She frowned. "I don't defend what happened to you, or the part that Professor Ozpin played in this situation you're in, but it was a mistake, not malice. I won't stand here and tell you that Professor Ozpin always makes the right decision, but he always tries to do what's best."

"Best for who?" Amber asked softly.

Sunset did not reply to that, because she was not immediately sure of the correct response to that; she wasn't sure of the correct response absolutely, but more importantly, she wasn't sure of how exactly Professor Ozpin would try to respond to that. Best for humanity? Best for the Maidens? Best for his agents? You could take a collection of his decisions and argue for any one of those positions based on the things Professor Ozpin had done and decided to do.

"It depends, I think," Sunset admitted. "But up in his office just now, he did what was best for you, not for himself."

Amber looked down at her hands, playing with the golden bracelets around her wrist. "That's not…" she began, before trailing off. "I suppose he was kind to me, letting me leave." She looked around, not only at Sunset but at Pyrrha and Ruby. "Thank you all for speaking up for me."

"No thanks are necessary," Pyrrha said,

"But you're welcome anyway," added Ruby.

"Now," Sunset said, "are you up for getting breakfast in the cafeteria, or do you want to go back to the dorm room, and we can pick you up something that you can eat there?"

Amber hesitated for a moment. "I … let's get breakfast in the dining hall, like we said we would."

"There are going to be a lot of people in there," Sunset warned her.

Amber swallowed, but at the same time tried to stand up straighter. "I … I don't want to hide forever," she said. She glanced at Dove. "And I want to meet Dove's friends, Lyra and Bon Bon."

Sunset nodded. "Okay then," she said. "Come with us, right this way."

They left the tower, unhindered by any Atlesian android, and ventured out onto the stone square, with the crossed axes of Beacon Academy painted in white upon the slate grey stones, where they found Penny waiting for them.

"Good morning, everyone!" she called brightly, waving with one hand as she jogged across the grey slabs towards them. "How did it go with Professor Ozpin and everyone?"

"It went pretty well, Penny," Ruby said. "Amber's allowed to leave the school grounds, so she'll be able to take in everything about the Vytal Festival."

"Although you've been volunteered as a potential bodyguard for Amber if we're not around, so prepare to be summoned for that at some point," Sunset said.

"That will be wonderful, I'm sure," Penny said, walking towards Amber. "Greetings. My name is Penny Polendina, and I hope that we can get to know one another much better and become good friends."

She did not, in spite of what one might have expected, leap on Amber for a tackling hug, but rather, held out one hand towards her.

Gingerly, delicately, Amber reached out and took her hand. "Likewise," she said. "I look forward to getting to know you, too."

"Wonderful!" Penny cried. "I can't wait!" She looked down at Amber's other hand, still holding Dove's. "So it's true what Ciel said," Penny gasped. "You did know Dove before all of this."

Amber let go of Penny's hand and pressed close against Dove, wrapping said hand around his elbow. "Yes," she murmured. "Yes, we knew each other very well."

"And now you've found one another again, that's so sweet," Penny said. "It's just like a story."

"It is indeed," Pyrrha murmured. "A rebuke to those who say that such stories are inherently unrealistic."

"Does anybody really say that?" asked Amber.

"Some people do," said Jaune.

"But why?" asked Penny.

"I can't say for sure," Pyrrha replied, "but I think they must be rather unhappy."

"You couldn't believe it either," Penny said. "Do you like stories, Amber? Blake gave me a book of fairytales to read, or do you not need to bother with reading them when your life is a story already?"

Amber laughed, a sweet sound like water pouring down a rocky brook. "I'm very lucky," she said, "but if I hadn't loved stories about love and charming princes—"

"I'm hardly a prince," Dove said.

"You are to me," Amber insisted. "In my heart, and in yours." She kissed him on the cheek. "If I hadn't read about it, how would I have recognised it when it happened to me?"

Penny nodded eagerly. "So which is our favourite?"

"The Girl in the Tower, it has to be," Amber declared.

"Really?" asked Ruby, undisguised scepticism in her tone. "That one?"

"Yes," Amber said. "Why, is that so hard to believe? I don't see how anyone could not love it, the story of a fair princess rescued from her wicked father by a dashing hero!"

Sunset glanced up at the very tall tower that rose behind them, and to the old man within who had been the closest to a father Amber had ever known.

Perhaps this present hostility was coming even before Amber became the Fall Maiden, Professor.

"Although," Amber went on, "if I were telling the story, then the great hero who came for her would have fallen in love with her via letter before he ever set eyes on her."

"But then how would he be any different than all the knights and lords who came before, who sought only to obtain the old king's realm as their dowry by killing him and wedding his daughter?” Pyrrha said. “The point is that the hero, the one who rescued her, did so without thought of reward, still less of her heart but only of doing the right thing and rescuing someone who is in need."

"But isn't it so much more romantic to fight for love?" Amber asked. "Her words showed her true self to him long before they set eyes on one another."

“It would have been better if the princess had rescued herself,” said Ruby.

“A little unfair,” Pyrrha murmured. “Her father had never taught her how to fight, after all.”

“Yeah, but that’s only … I mean the story can be whatever, right?” Ruby asked.

“Unless it really happened,” Sunset pointed out.

They all looked at her.

“'Really happened'?” Pyrrha repeated.

“Well, why not?” Sunset answered. “The Story of the Seasons happened, sort of. Who’s to say what other stories are based on truth? Why not the Girl in the Tower?”

“Well, when you put it like that…” Ruby muttered.

“Indeed, although I suppose we will never know the answer,” Pyrrha said. “One way or another. But, for my part, it is not true. What real life for the princess and the hero could ever live up to the happily ever after attributed to them in the story?”

They arrived at the dining hall shortly thereafter. The cafeteria was almost empty; it was not entirely empty — which was good, because when you’re the absolute first to arrive at a place like a cafeteria, you can’t help but be haunted by the fear that they haven’t actually opened yet — but the tables were sparsely occupied, mostly empty, with vast acres of unclaimed space within the cavernous hall. There were a couple of less notable Beacon First Year teams who had, like SAPR and Dove, gotten up early, and Sunset supposed that she ought to have recognised her classmates — and she did, a little bit; one of them was named Jack Darby, and he was the leader of Team … Team … it would come to her in a second — but the only person in the hall who Sunset really recognised was Pyrrha’s friend Arslan, who was sitting alone with a cooked breakfast of sausage, bacon, and eggs in front of her.

“Arslan?” Pyrrha asked softly.

“Do you know her?” Amber asked.

“Oh, yes, that’s Arslan Altan,” Pyrrha replied. “She is something of a rival, but also a good friend.”

Pyrrha led the way in Arslan’s direction, the others all following behind her without demur.

“Arslan?” she said again, as they drew closer to her. “What are you doing here?”

Arslan looked up at her, “Hey, P-money; I’m here to have breakfast, what do you think I’m doing here?”

“I meant why are you here by yourself?” asked Pyrrha patiently.

“Oh, right,” Arslan muttered. “Because my team either doesn’t like me or doesn’t want to get up early.”

“On no!” Amber cried. “That sounds awful!”

Arslan looked at her, leaning back on the long stool to get a better look at her from around Pyrrha.

“Arslan,” Pyrrha said. “Allow me to present Amber…” She paused, a light smile coming to play across her lips. “You know, I don’t believe you’ve ever mentioned your last name.”

“Oh, didn’t I?” Amber said. “It’s Briarrose, Amber Briarrose.”

Arslan rose to her feet. “Nice to meet you, Amber; I’m Arslan Altan.”

Amber smiled, and curtsied. “It’s nice to meet you, Arslan. Do you mind if we join you?”

“Are you sure?” asked Sunset.

“If that’s alright,” Amber replied. “I’d … I’d like to make some new friends.”

“It’s fine by me,” Arslan said. “As you can see, I’m not overburdened by company at the moment, but I’m not desperate for my solitude either. Sit yourselves down, or get something to eat first and then sit yourselves down; I doubt the table is going to be taken in the next few moments.”

“It’s this way,” Sunset said, indicating the right-hand side of the dining room, where the various hot options sat under heat-lamps to keep them passably warm, while the various cold options sat growing ever so slightly lukewarm, which might be for the best, compared to how cold it began. Here, there were sausages and rashers of bacon lying in metal trays; here, there were fried eggs beginning to fuse into one; here, there were baked beans,and porridge in deep dishes. Here, there was fruit salad, and here grapefruit; here was various brands of Pumpkin Pete’s and other cereals—

“That’s you, Pyrrha,” Amber said, picking up the box of Marshmallow Flakes.

Pyrrha laughed a trifle nervously. “Yes,” she admitted. “Yes, that’s me.”

Amber looked at Pyrrha, and then looked at the box. “But why?” she asked. “Why did they put you on the box?”

“Well,” Pyrrha murmured, “I happen to have won some small acclaim in tournaments back home; they put me on the box to honour me.”

“I see,” Amber said, “so being on this box was your reward for victory?”

“Not exactly,” Pyrrha replied. “But … it’s a little complicated to explain; why don’t we get something to eat and sit down rather than standing here, holding everyone else up, while I attempt to explain it?”

“All right,” Amber said. “Would you recommend this?”

“No,” Pyrrha said immediately. “Not only is it not very good for you, but having tried it, I can’t even say that it’s very good.”

“Come on now,” Jaune said. “It tastes great. I ate my way through fifty boxes of it, and I still liked it just as much at the end as I did at the beginning.”

“But I do wonder sometimes that you still have enough of your own teeth for that charming smile of yours,” Pyrrha said softly, and with a rather sweet smile of her own.

Amber chuckled and put the cereal box down, taking a bowl from the nearby pile and ladling some porridge into it instead.

“Is there any honey?” she asked.

“It’s here,” Jaune said, grabbing a handful of little plastic tubs of honey from one of the high shelves over the cereal and putting them down on Amber’s tray. Amber looked at them curiously, picking one up and turning it over; if she had seen anything quite like it before, then she had obviously forgotten.

“Thank you,” she said softly.

Dove reached for the porcine options on display under the heated lamps, but then thought better of it — possibly out of deference to Amber’s vegetarianism — and had the vegetarian sausages and the meat-free bacon instead. Pyrrha had the real thing, following Arslan’s lead in having sausages and bacon — although not a fried egg. Sunset contented herself with a bowl of grapefruit, while Jaune flew the flag for sugary cereals with a bowl of Pumpkin Pete’s Marshmallow Flakes. Ruby had porridge, like Amber, but unlike Amber, she garnished it with a handful of raisins and sultanas, and almost certainly with that banana that she’d just grabbed and which she would doubtless cut up into slices once she got back to the table.

Penny made do with an apple, which didn’t look like much but was quite enough to fake eating, Sunset supposed.

They returned to the table; Pyrrha sat down opposite Arslan, with Jaune on her right and Amber and Dove on her left; Sunset sat down on Arslan’s right opposite Amber, with Ruby opposite Dove. Penny sat down opposite Jaune.

“So, Pyrrha,” Amber said, “why did they put your picture on the box?”

“She only just found out about the cereal box?” Arslan asked.

“Amber has had a … somewhat sheltered upbringing,” Pyrrha explained. “The truth is … it was not technically a reward for my victories, it was not on offer as a prize for winning any fight, but…”

“But after she won the tournament three times, the first person to do so since Herakles two hundred years ago, the cereal company came banging on her door asking her to promote their stuff,” Arslan said.

“That sounds very impressive,” Amber said, “although…”

“Although what?” Pyrrha asked.

“You talk about tournaments,” Amber murmured. “That’s fighting, isn’t it?”

“It is,” Pyrrha said. “Fighting for honour, for glory, and for the entertainment of the crowds under safe, controlled, rule-bound conditions.”

“But why?” Amber asked.

“For honour, for glory, and the entertainment of the crowd,” Arslan said, before cutting off a slice of sausage and sticking it into her mouth.

Amber frowned. “Fighting for pleasure, not for anything but just because you enjoy it … I can’t … I can’t understand it.”

“I feel the same way sometimes,” Ruby said. “It feels a little bit pointless.”

“It’s fun!” Arslan exclaimed, her mouth still half-full before she swallowed.

“Do you really enjoy it?” asked Amber. “Do you like fighting?”

“Yes,” Arslan said.

“But why?”

Arslan shrugged. “Because I’m good at it. Because it’s the thing I’m best at. Because it gets my blood pumping like not much else. Because I like to hear the roar of the crowd in my ears. Isn’t that enough?”

“You … you don’t get scared then?” Amber asked. “You don’t feel afraid?”

Arslan’s eyebrows rose. “That is a big question to ask someone you’ve just met.”

“In tournaments, there is nothing to be afraid of,” Pyrrha supplied. “Everything is well-regulated, with rules in place; everything is organised. No one is in any real danger.”

“Are you sure?” asked Amber. “How … how can you be sure that it’s safe?”

“Because … it is,” Arslan said. “It is safe, nothing bad ever happens.”

“Well,” Pyrrha murmured. “That isn’t quite true. My mother had to retire from the tournament circuit when an errant stroke broke through her aura and severed her hamstring.”

Amber flinched. “I’m sorry.”

“Well, okay, sometimes, bad things happen,” Arslan admitted. “But very rarely, and it's not like anyone’s ever died in the modern era. My point is, the occasional accident aside, there isn’t really much to be scared of.”

“And on the battlefield?” Amber asked nervously. “Are you not scared then?”

Arslan was silent for a moment. “Again, that’s a big question to ask when we’ve only just met.”

Amber looked down at her bowl of porridge. “I’m sorry,” she murmured. “I shouldn’t pry.”

“It’s not a big deal,” Arslan declared, though she gave no sign of actually answering the question. “Anyway, if you don’t mind me saying so, I don’t think I’ve seen you around here before.”

“No,” Amber whispered. “No, I … um, I, uh—”

“Amber is Professor Ozpin’s niece,” Sunset said, coming to her rescue with the agreed story as laid out by Professor Goodwitch. “She’s staying with the headmaster for a little bit, while her … late mother’s affairs are settled. Professor Ozpin asked us to take her under our wing while she’s here.”

Arslan’s eyes seemed to linger for a moment upon the scars on Amber’s face. “I see,” she said softly. “I’m sorry. That … I’m sorry.”

There was a moment of silence. Amber began eating her porridge. No one else seemed to know quite what to say. The story that Professor Goodwitch had given them was convenient, to a certain extent, but it was also rather grim and something of a mood-killer.

“You know, Amber,” Pyrrha said, “you did a lot better than Jaune to recognise me on that cereal box. He once ate fifty boxes in order to win a prize hoodie, and yet, he still had no idea who I was when he saw me in the flesh.”

Jaune snorted. “You know, if you count the cereals I ate before I started trying to win the hoodie, it probably came to a lot more than fifty.”

Amber swallowed a mouthful of porridge. “Ah, but you see, that’s really romantic,” she declared. “Because it means that Jaune didn’t see you, really see you, until he beheld your true self, and that’s when he loved you.”

There was another silence. Jaune’s face reddened a little. “I mean … I might have kind of had a crush on the girl on the box—”

“And on Weiss Schnee,” Sunset added.

Arslan rolled her eyes. “Don’t try and come with that false humility; you’re the most romantic couple in the school, own it.”

Pyrrha smiled knowingly. “I think there might be a challenger for our crown now,” she said, glancing at Amber and Dove.

Arslan’s eyebrows rose, her eyes darting between Amber and Dove. “Oh,” she said, “fast, but—”

“We knew each other before Beacon,” Dove explained.

“Ah, not so fast then,” Arslan replied. “Well, no offence, but I’ll take you seriously as contenders when I see it. Not that I go out of my way to see that kind of thing; it’s none of my business. Just … anyway, you’ve picked a good time to come visiting, I must say, despite the … circumstances, what with the Vytal Festival and all. Oh, that reminds me, Pyrrha, the film crew is coming the day after tomorrow; we need to start filming our stuff for that Vytal Festival documentary.”

“'The day after tomorrow'?” Pyrrha repeated.

“Is that a problem?” Arslan asked.

“I suppose not,” Pyrrha murmured. “It’s just that that’s when my mother is arriving. That’s—”

“Lucky,” Arslan said.

“I was going to say 'unfortunate,'” Pyrrha murmured. “Sunset, Jaune, would you mind going to meet her at the Skydock when she arrives?”

“Sure thing,” Sunset said, “but that TV thing is still happening?”

“Well, it hasn’t happened yet, has it?” Arslan responded.

“Yeah, but … they’re cutting it fine, aren’t they?”

“It’s not like a cartoon or something; documentaries don’t have long production lead times,” Arslan said. “Besides, as I understand it, it’s mostly done now; they’ve got the voiceover from Autumn Blaze, talking head segments with historians back home; they’ve got everything except for us.”

“What is it that we’ll be required to do, precisely?” asked Pyrrha, a trifle trepidatiously.

“Once the Amity Colosseum arrives, we’re going to do some stuff there, talking to the camera, exploring the colosseum, that kind of thing,” Arslan explained. “But the day after tomorrow is just talking to Professor Ozpin and getting some stuff from students about what the festival means to them.”

“Might be a good one for you, Ruby,” Sunset said.

Ruby chuckled. “I don’t know if I’ve got the way with words; you should do it.”

“Don’t sell yourself short; you're very articulate once you build up a head of steam,” Sunset replied. “This thing isn’t going to keep you all day, is it? We’ve got Last Shot the day after tomorrow.”

“Hey guys,” Yang hailed, as Team YRBN breezed into the dining hall as part of the ever-growing trickle of students who were beginning to fill up the cafeteria as the morning wore on and the hour became a little less early. “Mind if we join you?”

“Hey, Yang,” Ruby said. “Sure, I mean, if it’s okay with Amber.”

Amber looked up from her porridge. “Hello, Blake,” she said, smiling.

“You two know each other?” Nora asked. “I don’t think I’ve seen you around before.”

“We’ve met,” Blake said. “This is Amber.”

“Amber Briarrose,” Amber said, standing up.

“You don’t have to get up,” Yang said, waving one hand. “It’s fine, really. So, Amber huh?” Her violet eyes widened. “Hey! Amber! Right, um, it’s nice to meet you. Really great, uh … I’m Yang, Yang Xiao Long, and this is Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren, and apparently, you’ve already met Blake.”

Amber nodded, “She and Ciel gave me some help with my makeup last night.”

“Huh,” Nora said, as she glanced at Blake. “It does look pretty good, doesn’t it, with those wings like flames on her eyes. Mind you, Pyrrha does the same thing.”

“Yes, but Blake’s eyes are closer to Amber’s in shade,” Pyrrha explained.

“Oh, right, yeah, I guess that does matter,” Nora acknowledged.

Yang put her hands on her hips. “I gotta say, I’m a little surprised to see you here, Dove.”

“Oh, hey, Dove, I didn’t see you there for a second,” Nora said. She paused for a moment. “Wait a … Dove?”

Dove blinked. “Uh, yes, Nora?”

“Amber?”

“Yes?” Amber said. “Is everything alright?”

“AMBER?!” Nora cried, making Amber flinch into Dove’s shoulder.

“Nora, don’t shout,” Ren said. “It’s still a little early.”

“But it’s Amber!” Nora yelled. “Remember? The girl who Dove came to Beacon to look for!”

Yang’s jaw dropped. “You … you’re that Amber?”

Amber smiled as she wrapped her hands around Dove’s elbow. “Yes. Yes, I suppose I am. You … mentioned me?”

Dove looked at her. “I told a lot of people; I hoped that someone might have seen you, heard something about you. And besides, why would I ever want to keep you a secret?”

“Okay, now I buy that they’re contenders,” Arslan said.

“But how?” Nora demanded. “What are you doing here, and after a year, and why weren’t you here when Dove got here even though you promised to meet him here, but you’re here now, and—?”

“Why don’t we get some breakfast before we start bombarding her with questions?” Ren suggested in an even tone.

“Perhaps we don’t have to bombard her with questions at all?” Blake added. “This is breakfast, after all, not an inquisition.”

“But I want to know now,” Nora whined. “Don’t you want to know?”

“What I’d like first is something to eat,” Yang said. “Come on, food first.”

Thank you, Yang and Blake, Sunset thought. And Ren too, I suppose. It occurred to her, as it probably should have occurred to them sooner than this, that the Professor Goodwitch approved story of Amber being Professor Ozpin’s niece come to stay with him while her mother’s affairs were straightened out did not mesh perfectly with the story about Amber being in a coma for a year.

How are we supposed to explain why Amber didn’t meet Dove when he first came to Beacon as they had arranged?

How to explain why, if she’s been in a coma for a year, Professor Ozpin hasn’t sorted out his late sister’s estate yet?

“Hey, Amber,” Arslan said, a degree of solemnity in her voice.

Amber looked at her. “Yes, Arslan?”

“Certain icy kingdoms like to act as though they’re the only ones who do good by their neighbours,” Arslan said, “but that’s a load of crap; us Mistralians invented hospitality, so, I know you probably won’t need it since it seems you’ve got Team Sapphire looking out for you, but if there’s anything that I can do for you, just ask, okay?”

Sunset frowned. Where did that come from? She looked at Pyrrha, who had no immediate obvious spark of recognition in her face that suggested she knew what was going on.

“Mistralian,” Amber repeated. “So you’re from Mistral too? Just like Pyrrha?”

“No,” Arslan said. “P-money’s from Mistral just like me.”

“I’d love to visit Mistral some day,” Amber declared. “Pyrrha’s going to take me there!”

“Really? I’d love to see Mistral too!” Penny declared. “If that’s alright with you, Pyrrha.”

Pyrrha chuckled. “That would be lovely, Penny. I’ll take you both to visit Mistral; we can all go, together. Provided that Ruby and Sunset don’t object to seeing it again.”

“I wouldn’t mind,” Ruby said. “There must be plenty more stuff to see that we didn’t get around to last time, right?”

“Oh, indeed,” Pyrrha agreed. “Even I haven’t seen everything there is to see in Mistral.”

“Not everything is worth seeing,” Arslan muttered.

“I … would certainly have no objection to seeing Mistral again,” Sunset said. Though I fear the rosepetals might have fallen from my eyes a little bit since we were there last. “But Amber … might have secured her new situation by the time it’s possible to go.” How are you going to persuade Professor Ozpin to allow this, Pyrrha?

“I don’t see that that means Amber won’t be in the mood for a vacation,” Pyrrha replied, a touch of primness creeping into her voice. “And Mistral is a very romantic city, after all.”

“It is?” Jaune asked.

“It was for us, no?” Pyrrha replied.

Okay, Pyrrha, but how are you going to persuade Professor Ozpin? Letting Amber go into Vale is one thing, but this? A whole other kingdom?

Have you thought about this at all?

Or have you thought about this and decided that the answer is you don’t care what Professor Ozpin thinks or wants?

Ren was the first of Team YRBN to return, sitting down on the other side of Arslan opposite Ruby. “I apologise for Nora,” he said. “She can be a little overenthusiastic at times, but she has a good heart. She has the best heart that I’ve ever come across.”

“I see,” Amber replied, a smile playing across her face. “That’s quite alright, Lie.”

“Ren,” Ren said. “I go by Ren.”

“Oh, I am sorry.”

“It’s not a problem,” Ren assured her. “Just something to remember, if you can.” He paused a moment. “I … I think that we can guess your story. You don’t need to relive it for our benefit.”

Amber’s eyes widened. “You … you can guess?”

Ren nodded. “The world can be a treacherous place, as Nora and I have more cause than most to know. As I say, we don’t need the details; the gist is a familiar enough story to most.”

Right. This is an awful world where people are getting attacked and killed almost every day.

Sometimes I forget.

Vale and the other three kingdoms are safe havens in a world of darkness, isn’t that right, Professor Port?

Nora returned next, her plate piled high with pancakes oozing syrup down off the plate and onto the plastic tray that she was carrying.

“Sorry about earlier,” she said contritely as she sat down next to Ren. “I didn’t want to … I was just surprised, is all.”

“It’s quite alright, really,” Amber said. “I wasn’t expecting to be recognised by anyone.”

“Are you kidding?” Nora said. “Dove said you were his whole reason for coming to Beacon in the first place!” She leaned forward. “You must feel so lucky right now, huh, Dove?”

Dove beamed. “The luckiest, the very absolute luckiest.”

Nora smiled. “You know, normally, I think that it’s us girls who love longest, even when all hope is gone; it’s our … it’s our thing, even if it isn’t something that a lot of boys would envy. But Dove … Dove’s been the real thing this whole year, even when it must have seemed like he’d never see you again. I think you’re pretty lucky yourself, Amber.”

Amber cocked her head to one side, her face falling, her expression softening even as the scars that criss-crossed her face seemed to stand out more. “Are you alright, Nora?”

Nora had just been about to dig into her small mound of pancakes. She paused, the fork halfway to her open mouth. “Uh, yeah, why?”

“You … seem sad,” Amber said.

“'Sad'?” Nora cried. “What? No! Come on, what have I got to be sad about?” She gave a laugh as hearty as it was obviously false.

Amber glanced at Ren, before she said, “Of course, how silly of me, please forgive me; I don’t know what I was saying.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Nora said. “I say dumb stuff all the time.” She stuck the forkful of pancakes into her mouth.

Yang and Blake were the next to arrive, Blake with some healthy muesli and Yang with what looked like six sausages — but more of them could have been hidden under the baked beans that she had slathered them with.

Blake sat down on Sunset and Arslan’s side of the table, while Yang sat down on the side with Ruby and Amber. Except she did not sit down, although she put her tray down on the table with a soft tap. Yang herself remained standing, looking down on Amber.

“Amber,” she said, “what has blonde hair and is here to help?”

“Jaune?” Amber guessed.

“No, not Jaune, me!” Yang said. “I’m blonde, and I’m here to help. You need anything, you just gotta ask, okay?”

“Okay,” Amber said. “Everyone … everyone is being so very kind to me.”

“The friendliest place on Remnant,” Yang said, as she actually sat down. “A place where we learn how to beat one another up. That has to be some kind of irony.” She took a drink from a glass of orange juice.

“Not really,” Ruby said. “I mean, we aren’t just here to learn how to beat one another up; that’s not even the main thing we’re here to learn. We’re here to learn how to stand together against monsters, and so of course we’re going to be all friends. So we can all have each other’s backs when we need to.”

“You’re all so brave, too,” Amber said quietly. “I could never do what you all do.”

“I don’t know; you look ready for a fight,” Arslan pointed out.

Amber glanced down at the pauldron on her shoulder. “I … I know how,” she admitted. “But I’d much rather not.”

“That’s fair,” Yang said. “The huntress life isn’t for everyone. So, what were you guys talking about before we showed up?”

“Mistral,” said Amber.

“Last Shot,” said Sunset.

“Oh, yeah, right, that’s coming up,” Nora said. “Are you guys going to enter?”

“Of course,” Sunset replied. “Why wouldn’t we?”

“You hardly need to,” Yang said. “Everyone knows that Professor Ozpin is going to pick Team Sapphire to go into the Vytal Festival.”

“Nobody knows anything,” Sunset declared. “Professor Ozpin could pick…” — she waved her arms in the direction of Jack Darby and his teammates, whose name had still not come to her yet — “them to represent Beacon in the Vytal Festival if he wanted to. If a team that hasn’t impressed much over the year has a good showing in Last Shot, and a team that looked like a nailed on bet doesn’t bother to show up out of sheer complacency, what do you think Professor Ozpin is going to think, huh? Who is he going to look favourably on?”

As it happened, Sunset did think that Team SAPR was as close to a surefire bet to get picked to represent Beacon as any team in the school, all things considered, but that didn’t mean that she hadn’t meant every word that she’d just said to Yang. Complacency could be the downfall of the greatest, as she had learned at Canterlot to her cost, especially when it came to the estimation of teachers. Especially since Professor Ozpin would probably not allow external circumstances like the services Team SAPR had rendered him to affect his judgement in any way when it came to Vytal selections.

“And besides,” she added, “I’ve never objected to showing off our skills.”

Yang laughed. “Okay, so we come to the real reason.”

“All my other reasons were valid too,” Sunset said.

“And that is why I told you we should do it,” Nora said.

“You weren’t going to do Last Shot?” asked Ruby incredulously. “Don’t you want to get picked?”

“I want to get picked; I just figured we’d probably get picked anyway, and I didn’t want to let everyone know what we could do before the tournament,” Yang said. “But now … I’m reconsidering.”

“Excuse me,” Penny said, “but what is Last Shot?”

“I was wondering the same thing,” Arslan said.

“Its real name is Voluntary Student Proficiency Demonstrations,” Pyrrha explained.

“So you can see why we call it Last Shot,” Jaune added.

“It’s a thing where,” Ruby began. “Okay, back up a second; Professor Ozpin picks the eight teams that are gonna fight for Beacon in the Vytal Tournament, right? But how does he pick them?”

Penny thought about it for a second. “Out of a hat?”

“No, I think that’s Shade,” Ruby replied. “Professor Ozpin picks by … well, I think he just picks. He decides who he thinks deserves to get to fight in the tournament, but before he picks, there’s something called Last Shot where all the teams who want to get picked … actually, I suppose that’s not strictly true because it’s voluntary, and you don’t have to participate, but basically, it’s a set of random four on four matches, teams against teams, and it's the last chance to impress Professor Ozpin before he makes his decision. That’s why it’s called Last Shot.”

“Makes sense,” Arslan said, “but if you’re going to go and have matches anyway, then you ought to just do what we do and have qualifiers. Which we are having today, as it happens; by today’s end, we will know who the eight Haven teams moving on to the tournament proper are.”

“So I guess we can’t use the amphitheatre for last minute practice,” Nora said.

“Perhaps tomorrow,” Ren suggested.

“Are you concerned?” Pyrrha asked Arslan.

Arslan snorted. “Give me some credit, Pyrrha; I could take on the entire competition on my own. With one hand behind my back.” She paused. “Okay, I’d probably need both hands, but I could definitely take any other team in Haven on my own.”

“I heard that,” Sun said, as he and Neptune entered along with what had grown from a trickle to a flood of students coming in, filling up the tables with alacrity. “Don’t forget, we’re going to be in those qualifiers too.”

“Yeah,” Arslan said. “I know.”

Sun snorted. “No respect at all,” he muttered, walking around the table until he was behind Blake. His tail flicked out to tickle her on the cheek. “Hey, Blake.”

Blake smiled even as she rolled her eyes. “Good morning to you too, Sun.”

Sun sat down beside her and kissed her on the cheek. “Morning.”

“And good morning to you too, little lady,” Neptune said, catching sight of Amber and beginning to walk around the table. “I don’t think I’ve seen you—”

Sunset put one arm to arrest his progress. “She’s not in the mood, and neither are we.”

Neptune hesitated for a second. Amber looked more confused than anything else, although Dove had put one arm around her and taken her hand with his.

“Oh,” he said. “Oh, I see; it’s like that, right. Sorry, dude; I didn’t mean to … just taking a chance, you know.”

He sat down next to Sun.

Sunset was of the opinion that Amber shouldn’t need to be explicitly in a relationship in order to be spared Neptune’s dubious charms — it was called showing some restraint. And respect, for that matter. And possessing just a smidgeon of dignity — but she refrained from saying so.

"Ignore Neptune," Sun said. "He's just … very friendly when it comes to meeting new girls, I mean, new people. I'm Sun, by the way."

"I'm Amber," said Amber. "Are you … Blake's boyfriend?"

Sun grinned boyishly as his tail once more snaked up over Blake's shoulder, resting upon it in place of a hand. "Yeah, yeah, I guess you could say that."

Amber looked at them both, and for a moment, it looked as though she might say something, but then she thought better of it and resumed eating her porridge.

"So," Blake said, looking at Sun. "You've got Vytal qualifiers today."

"Yep," Sun replied.

"You don't seem very tense about it," Blake observed.

"I'm not," Sun said. "It's going to be a piece of cake."

"Don't get overconfident," Neptune warned him. "Some teams actually had a semester together because their team leader didn't ditch them to run off to Vale early."

Sun laughed nervously. "Okay, but those teams are all a bunch of losers; who is there who's better than us?"

Arslan cleared her throat loudly.

Neptune said, "Maybe teams that aren't at war with one another? You know Scarlet literally hates you at this point, right?"

"Hates you?" Ruby said. "Why would anyone hate you?"

"Scarlet should be thanking me," Sun declared. "I'm leaving, and he can become team leader, just like he always wanted."

You're doing what now?

"Leader of a three-man team, a weakened team," Neptune replied. "Plus, thank you, from the bottom of my heart, for condemning me to serve under Scarlet's leadership."

"You said you were cool with it," Sun said.

"I said that because I'm a good friend, and I want to see you happy," Neptune said. "It doesn't mean I want to see you leave."

"You're leaving?" Yang asked. "Where are you going?"

"Don't you want to be a huntsman any more?" Ruby added.

"He's moving to Atlas to be with Blake," Neptune said.

"Well of course he is," Amber murmured. "How could he do anything else?"

Nobody took any notice of her, in part because, at that point, the remaining members of Team RSPT arrived, as the cafeteria was really starting to fill up.

"Hey, everyone, are these seats free, and are you really moving to Atlas?" Rainbow asked, already holding a breakfast tray in her hand.

"Good morning, Amber," Twilight said, "Did you sleep well last night?"

"Good morning," Amber replied. "I … slept."

"Hmm," Twilight murmured. "I see."

I suppose she'll have to take a look at Amber today at some point, Sunset thought.

"The seats are free," Yang said, in answer to Rainbow's question, "and your other question is one we're all kind of waiting to hear the answer to from Sun."

"Thanks," Rainbow said, as she, Twilight, and Ciel all sat down. "I gotta admit I'm surprised. I know I told you to work out what you wanted to do, but I didn't expect you'd do that." She paused. "I have to say, I'm not entirely sure you're gonna fit in at Atlas."

"Then it's a good job I'm not going to Atlas, certainly not to Atlas Academy," Sun said. "I'm moving to Mantle."

"‘Mantle’?" Sunset repeated. "You're moving to Mantle?"

"I didn't know you'd ever been to Mantle," Rainbow said.

"I don't need to go to a garbage dump to see that it is, in fact, a garbage dump," Sunset declared magisterially.

"Speaking as someone from Mantle, you are … far more correct than I should like," Ciel admitted.

"Precisely," Sunset said. "Mantle is one of those places where nobody you meet who comes from there is ever homesick in the slightest."

"Come on, guys, let's not discourage Sun," Yang said. "Blake, did you know about this?"

Blake nodded. "Sun told me about it a little while ago."

"So you are giving up on becoming a huntsman?" asked Ruby.

"I … yeah," Sun admitted. "Yeah, I guess I am. Becoming a huntsman or a huntress is fine and all, but it'll take another three years before I can actually get out and start helping people, but there are people in Mantle who need help now, and it's great that Blake wants to change the world, but while she's trying to do that, somebody needs to stand up for the little guy on the street."

"Mantle could do with a hero," Ciel murmured. "The current one is unsatisfactory for a whole host of reasons."

"How do you mean?" asked Sun.

"Are you going to bang on about how bad Atlas is every chance you get?" demanded Rainbow Dash.

"No."

"And are you going to kill people?"

"No!" Sun cried.

"Then you'll be doing better than Robyn Hill already," Rainbow said. She held out one hand. "Best of luck, Sun."

Sun took her hand and shook it. "Thanks."

Rainbow grinned. "You proud of him, Blake?"

"It's Sun's decision," Blake said. "It's not for me to approve or disapprove of it."

"But yes?" Rainbow guessed.

Blake smiled, her mouth closed but the corners of her lips rising noticeably. "Yes."

"I guess that does sound pretty cool," Ruby said. "It's a pity you can't graduate and get your licence, but it's still pretty cool what you're doing."

"It's also technically illegal," Twilight pointed out.

"Doing the right thing is illegal?" Ruby asked, her voice rising with a touch of disbelief.

"Unauthorised use of weapons is illegal," Twilight explained. "And so is carrying out huntsman activity without a licence. Sun … you do know that if you do this, you'll be a criminal, don't you?"

"No," admitted Sun, "I didn't know that, because it's not like that in Mistral, and it's certainly not like that in Vacuo, but … if doing the right thing is illegal—"

"Then the law is wrong," Ruby added.

"They've got a point, Twi," Rainbow said. "I've said to Ciel that if Mantle could fight back, maybe it wouldn't be in the state it's in, but even if I'm wrong about that … what kind of system looks at the guy actually trying to help and solve problems and says 'no, you're the bad guy'?"

"I never said that Sun was the bad guy," Twilight replied. "I just wanted to make sure that he understood what he was getting into."

"Mantle's a rough town?" asked Arslan.

"A rough city," Ciel corrected her, "but yes."

"With problems?"

"More than a few," said Ciel.

"And the police," Arslan went on, "ineffectual or corrupt?"

"The former, I hope," Ciel answered.

"Then once you start doing good, people will be too grateful for someone helping them out to turn you in," Arslan said, "but until you can establish yourself, you need to find a community that will protect you, people who know what you're planning to do and agree with it and are willing to shield you, not just from the cops, but from any enemies you make as well."

"How—?" Pyrrha began.

"Not every vigilante who ever tried to take on the gangs could retreat up to a big house on the upper slopes," Arslan explained. "Some of them had to find ways to survive down below, amongst the people they were fighting for."

"Huh," Sun said. "Well, uh, thanks for the advice."

"So," Blake said, "I suppose, in a way, this Vytal Festival will be your … last hurrah?"

"More like last fling of fun before he gets down to business," Neptune replied. "Which is why you should be taking these qualifiers more seriously than you are. This will be our only shot at this; we don't want to blow it."

"I told you, we'll be fine," Sun assured him.

"Is this tournament the most important thing about the Vytal Festival?” Amber asked. “More than anything else?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Ruby said. "Maybe it shouldn't be, but it is. It's the big draw; it's what most people show up for."

"I see," Amber said, quietly and without much enthusiasm. "You … are you … you're not competing, are you, Dove?"

"No," Dove said. "No, my team … we … no, I'm not. We're not."

"I am glad," Amber said, leaning on his arm and shoulder. "Even if they say it's safe, I … I couldn't bear it if you were hurt. I don't think I could bring myself to watch."

"But there's lots of other stuff going on too," Ruby said. "Even if the tournament is what interests a lot of people, if you're not interested in it at all, then it doesn't matter; there's still plenty for you. I'm sure that … okay, maybe not everyone here has some great Vytal Festival memories, and not all related to the tournament, either."

Pyrrha put her hands on the table. "I was eight years old," she said, "when my mother took me to Atlas to watch the finals of the thirty-fifth Vytal Festival."

"But the thirty-fifth Vytal Festival would have been ten years ago," Ruby pointed out.

"And it was my birthday yesterday," Pyrrha said. "I'm eighteen now."

She had spoken mildly, gently, without a hint of reproach in her voice, but Sunset felt grievously reproached nonetheless. "Pyrrha! Why didn't you say anything?"

"I didn't want to make a fuss," Pyrrha replied. "Especially with … there was a great deal going on yesterday."

"But come on," Jaune said. "You should have mentioned it; we would have done something."

"We should do something now," Amber declared. "Something to celebrate."

"I didn't mention it in order to—"

"Maybe not, but you have mentioned it," Jaune said. "Which means it's too late to back out now."

"There's really no need to do anything."

"But we want to do something," Jaune said.

"And besides the want, which we do want," Sunset said, "there is a need: the need to salve our consciences."

"Your consciences have nothing to feel bruised about," Pyrrha replied.

"Give up, Pyrrha," Amber instructed her firmly. "This is going to happen. I, for one, won't hear of anything else."

Pyrrha hesitated for a moment. "May I at least finish what I was about to say?"

"You may," Sunset allowed. "But why did you go to Atlas that year, and so young too?"

"That was the last time it felt like Mistral had a shot," Arslan said.

"Indeed," Pyrrha agreed. "That was the tournament where the Lady Terri-Belle, daughter of the Steward, swept all before her into the finals. The city dared hope that she would be the one to reclaim Mistral's glory, and many of the great and good made the flight to Atlas to witness for themselves, not only my mother but the Lord Steward himself and many others."

"Really?" Sunset said. "Can we expect the great and good to descend on Vale now?"

"I doubt it," Pyrrha replied. "Regardless of what may be said, I think that many people are privately steeling themselves against disappointment; they will not want to raise their hopes too high again. Besides which, I am … in any case, no matter the disappointing outcome of the final match, it was my first time in Atlas, and Mother indulged me in exploring the city somewhat."

"What did you think?" asked Blake.

Pyrrha smiled softly. "It was like being in a fairyland," she said. "So many lights, so many bright colours, so many amazing sounds. The robots were, I admit, rather intimidating as they clanked along, but even they … it really was as though I had stepped into another world, completely different to the one that I'd left behind. Like The Girl Who Fell Through the World, except I had fallen upwards into the sky. I'd never had to wrap up so warm before in my life; the mink fur trim of my coat was so soft against my neck and cheeks. We went to a concert, of various musically inclined Atlas students, at the Nicholas Schnee auditorium, where I must admit that the acoustics were better than anywhere in Mistral. I suppose it was designed with very scientific principles in mind. And the fireworks were—"

"Fired from the cruisers," Rainbow said.

Pyrrha looked at her. "You were there?"

"Not for the thirty-fifth — I didn't get up to Atlas for another couple of years —" Rainbow said, "but you could see the fireworks — some of them, anyway — from down below in Low Town, they were so bright. Me and Gilda sat on the roof of my parents' house, sharing a blanket, huddled up together like penguins or something, just watching all the bright colours exploding in the sky. Plus … that's how they always do the fireworks when Atlas holds the Vytal Festival."

"A fact which makes it no less impressive in my memory, those immense volleys of fireworks," Pyrrha said. "My … my father had just passed away that year, but while I wished he was with us, at the same time … the sadness, it was as if it belonged to a different world, if that makes the least bit of sense. The world that I had left behind, if only for a while."

"It feels like that even without travelling," Arslan said. "Not least because it's a public holiday in Mistral; everyone gets the whole thing off, no school, no work."

"Really?" Jaune asked. "The entire festival?"

"Bread and the games," Pyrrha murmured.

"Not so much bread, but yeah, definitely games," Arslan said. "Our lords and masters have to keep the people happy somehow."

"We used to watch the tournament in Applejack's barn," Twilight said. "With a big screen up, everyone sitting on the ground or on bales of hay."

Rainbow grinned. "Well, that's how we watched the thirty-eighth festival, but we went to Atlas for the one two years ago."

"Yeah, I know," Twilight said. "But I preferred the thirty-eighth. Remember how Pinkie decided that we should throw our own fair on Sweet Apple Acres?"

"Yes!" Rainbow cried. "Did she ever tell you where she'd gotten all of those stuffed animals?"

"No," Twilight said. "She said she'd never tell."

"'Stuffed animals'?" Amber asked.

"Yeah," Rainbow said. "We worked out that if we were going to do a fairground, then we needed some fairground prizes, and Pinkie just says 'leave it to me,' and then the next thing we know, she has this giant truckload of stuffed animals that she got from somewhere, and she's all like 'do you think this will be enough'?"

"And the funniest part was that it was just enough," Twilight said. "As in, every single bear or bunny or whatever was won by somebody. Exactly. Not a single one left, not a single kid or anyone else disappointed. Exactly as many animals as were needed for prizes."

"I swear, Pinkie is doing the exploding sprinkles thing with dust," Rainbow said. "Her real semblance is precognition or something."

"The point is that there's plenty to enjoy about the Vytal Festival, even if you're not interested in the tournament," Ruby said. "I guarantee that you'll make some wonderful memories." She put her hand on Penny's shoulder, as if to include her along with Amber without needing to say it.

Amber looked at Pyrrha, and then at Ruby, and then let her eyes sweep all across the table.

"Well, if you say so, then what am I supposed to do but trust you?" She paused, smiling for a moment without speaking. "But what are we going to do about Pyrrha's birthday?"

"There's really no need to do anything," Pyrrha insisted.

"But I want to do something," Amber replied. "What do you usually do to celebrate your birthday?"

"Mother would usually hold a ball or a soiree at home, and it was frightfully dull," Pyrrha replied. "This should be…" She trailed off.

Amber cocked her head to one side. "Pyrrha?"

"If it is my choice," Pyrrha said, "then why don't we go into Vale, the seven of us: you, me, Jaune, Dove, Sunset, Ruby, and Penny. We can do some shopping, get something to eat, have a nice day out."

A nice day for Amber as much or more than for you.

Amber's eyes brightened a little. "That sounds wonderful," she said. "But are you sure that it's what you want?"

"This is absolutely what I want," Pyrrha stated firmly.

"Then I can hardly wait!" Amber cried. "Actually, I'm afraid … could I do one thing before we go?"

"Certainly," Pyrrha said, "what is it?"

"I'd like to meet Dove's friends."

---

Tempest stared at the table on the other side of the cafeteria, where Teams SAPR and RSPT were sitting with all their hangers-on — and her.

It was not possible. How was it possible? Tempest had known she wasn't dead, but … sitting here?

Doubt beset Tempest. Maybe it wasn't her, maybe it was someone else who just happened to look like her.

But the scars…

"Tempest?"

Tempest realised that she had been staring too long and had drawn the attention of Starlight Glimmer, who was watching her curiously.

"Is everything okay?" Starlight asked.

"Yes," Tempest said quickly. "But … I need to step outside for a little bit."

"Why?"

"I need to take care of something," Tempest said. "Something personal I've just remembered. Don't wait for me." Not that they would, fortunately; Tempest wasn't popular enough with the other three members of the team for that. Starlight, the smartest of the three, might wonder what it was that she had only just remembered and why she had to dash off and attend to it now, but even she would forget about it soon enough.

Tempest didn't give Starlight time to answer; she just walked away, striding the opposite direction to the great mass of students flooding into the dining hall, pushing her way through the crowd with a swift, determined stride, turning and twisting to get through gaps, sometimes just bodily forcing people out of her way, never slowing or stopping.

She escaped the cafeteria into the morning sunshine that fell upon her as she stalked across the courtyard, her boots thumping like a drumbeat on the stone, passing beneath the shadow of the black stone statue, walking away, out of the courtyard and onto the grassy lawn that lay beyond.

She found a secluded spot where no one was. Everyone was either on their way to breakfast, or else they were lying in this morning; there was no one on the grass and nobody underneath the shady tree where Tempest stopped, hiding out of sight of the students crossing the courtyard on their way to the dining hall.

It was her. It was her, Tempest was certain of that: Amber, the Fall Maiden, the one whom Cinder had failed to kill.

What should, in hindsight, have been seen as a forewarning of the litany of Cinder's failures yet to come.

And yet, she should have been, if not dead, then certainly … not alive. Not walking around, not sitting at a table, not eating, not looking absurdly happy.

How had they done it? Tempest had really no idea. But they had, because that was the Fall Maiden, she was convinced of it. They had revived her somehow, despite the wounds that Cinder had inflicted on her.

And, with Cinder banished from Beacon, they thought it safe to let her wander around.

Possible with Team SAPR ranged around her like bodyguards.

And Bon Bon's teammate for some reason; Tempest would need to ask her about that to find out what was going on there. He had not been let into Ozpin's confidence, had he?

It mattered little. What mattered was Amber's … return, to all intents and purposes.

A slow smile spread across Tempest's face. Yes. Yes, she had the plan now; it was all coming together in her mind: first, Amber would die, and the two halves of the sundered Fall Maiden power would be reunited in Cinder. And then, with a little help, Cinder would die, and who should be in her thoughts, who should she see last but Tempest Shadow, who would inherit the magic from Cinder in turn and be a Fall Maiden in whom Salem could rely?

For many seasons more.

Comments

[Snowdrifter]

The thick plottens!
...
Trixie meant to do that.

[Kiue Jin]

Surprised Tempest isn't thinking of just taking Amber's half of the powers directly but... well, in her defense no one actually knows what happens if Amber dies at this point. The assumption is that it reconnects with the other half in Cinder, but honestly all bets are kind of off.

[Stet709]

Careful, Tempest, your overconfidence might be your undoing...
looks at story artwork with Pyrrha having Maiden powers
Yeah... I doubt Tempest is gonna get the Fall Maiden powers...

"I swear, Pinkie is doing the exploding sprinkles thing with dust," Rainbow said. "Her real semblance is precognition or something."

Maybe the Pie "Sense" is hereditary magic? In Equestria, Pinkie had it, Maud had it, so it would stand to reason the other Pie sisters have as well, plus one of the Pie parents...

[Mastermind4892]

"And now you've found one another again, that's so sweet," Penny said. "It's just like a story."

"It is indeed," Pyrrha murmured. "A rebuke to those who say that such stories are inherently unrealistic."

"Does anybody really say that?" asked Amber.

"Some people do," said Jaune.

"But why?" asked Penny.

"I can't say for sure," Pyrrha replied, "but I think they must be rather unhappy."

I should not have laughed as hard as I did!

“You … seem sad,” Amber said.

“'Sad'?” Nora cried. “What? No! Come on, what have I got to be sad about?” She gave a laugh as hearty as it was obviously false.

Amber glanced at Ren, before she said, “Of course, how silly of me, please forgive me; I don’t know what I was saying.”

Two minutes after meeting them and even Amber can see it? Those two need help.

And finally, even before Rainbow Dash had implied it, I already knew the truth: Amber needs to go to a Pinkie Pie Party. Not just to smile and live the joys of life, but to learn why life is valuable. No one can teach you how better to laugh at your troubles. You do not need to fear the dark when you learn to giggle at the ghosties and guffaw at the grossly.

On the other hand, bringing Pinkie Pie here could invite a disaster more terrifying than Salem...

******

Pinkie Pie and Nora Valkyrie stared at each other, transfixed. Something passed between them, an unspoken understanding. And slowly, a maniac grin spread over their faces.

Twilight: "Oh Celestia, no... EVACUATE THE SCHOOL!"

[Mindscape]

Okay, I thought Bon Bon would be the potential problem, and not even confirmed as we didn't know if she knew who Amber was other than Dove's lost love. Tempest recognizing Amber by sight completely took me by surprise. I hadn't even thought that would be an issue.

"I'd like to meet Dove's friends."

well, I guess we'll find out if Bon Bon is also familiar soon.

[Adser]

Hmm, Tempest reporting to Salem about Amber's fate may be what pushes Salem towards finally putting a price tag on Sunset's head. There is only one possible suspect on Amber's recovery and Salem was already wary of Sunset, this is some mayor magic and Salem should be more than aware that she has to nip it in the bud NOW before things escalate.

[Stet709]

11570874
True, when Salem berates Cinder after her duel with Pyrrha, she considered anyone of the first year group a non-threat since they didn't have magic (Ruby technically does, but, as Summer discovered, silver eyes don't work on Salem), but Sunset was never mentioned which implies Salem considers Sunset a threat with her Equestrian magic. This implication is reinforced by the fact that Ozpin doesn't want Sunset falling into Salem's hands.