Neo moved through the fairgrounds unnoticed. Using her illusions, she could hide in plain sight, becoming another face in the crowd. And she had experience at moving unseen. It was an invaluable skill, out on the streets where she'd spent most of her childhood. Most people passed you by anyway, hardly taking notice of another homeless child. A disguise was more than just appearance, though, one needed to act as if though they belonged, to stride with purpose. Head towards their destination with intent.

The only problem was, Neo couldn't find her destination. The guest dorms were somewhere, she knew, but it wasn't as if she could ask for directions, so she'd wandered aimlessly. She supposed she could text Emerald or Mercury with her Scroll, but she wanted to avoid the two as much as possible.

Neo suddenly grunted as she turned a corner and ran into someone. She stepped back, then looked up to see her old rival the blonde. Her first instinct was to raise her defenses, but she fought that down and relaxed as the blonde turned around and looked down at her. When no sign of recognition crossed her face, Neo smiled up at her apologetically.

"Sorry, I didn't see you there!" the blonde said "Are you here for the festival?"

Neo nodded. Her throat tightened, and she swallowed nervously. Though the chance of the girl recognizing her was slim, it grew more likely the longer Neo went without speaking. She was also hoping to find a way out of the conversation before she was forced to respond. She just couldn't speak, not to anyone other than Roman. She didn't trust anyone, she couldn't after what she had been through. Years of hunger, cold, and a constant fight of survival had stripped that away from her.

"I'm Yang Xiao Long. What's your name?"

Damn.

Neo closed her eyes. She felt a stab of anxiety, an almost desperate need to run and hide. Still, she had to cover her tracks. Cinder would not tolerate failure. She opened her mouth, and was about to force herself to speak when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Yang! I see you've met my teammate!"

Neo looked up to see Emerald, smiling at Yang in a familiar way.

"This is...Florence. Sorry, she's really shy."

Neo blushed. Emerald began to steer her away from Yang, smiling over her shoulder. Yang returned the smile and waved goodbye.

"Oh...well, see you around then! I'll keep an eye out for you in the tournament!"

Neo took a deep breath to calm herself as Emerald led her through a set of double doors into the school. Once there, Emerald suddenly turned and pushed her against the wall.

"What is wrong with you!? Do you want to blow our cover before the tournament even starts?"

Neo slipped out of Emerald's grasp and reached for the hidden blade she kept stowed at the back of her belt. While one hand stayed on the handle of the blade, the other pulled out her Scroll.

[You're not my boss, Sustrai. I don't answer to you.]

Emerald scowled and turned on her heel, most likely towards the dorms. Neo slowly took her hand off her hidden blade and followed her.

"Your little bit of stage fright back there could have cost us everything. You're lucky Cinder finds you useful."

Neo rolled her eyes and turned her Scroll over in her hands. Emerald's thinly-veiled threats meant nothing to her. From Cinder, sure, but Neo knew the thief would never act without her superior's orders. Neo was safe, so long as she stuck to her part of the plan.

"Look just stay in your room and don't talk to anyone. Shouldn't be hard for you right?" Emerald asked sharply. Neo gave her a sickly-sweet smile and made a note to make Emerald pay for the jab later.

She didn't intend to work for Cinder forever, after all.

/

Neo sat in the ambulance driver's seat and watched the footage play back again. She had missed witnessing Yang Xiao Long's finals match firsthand, but the footage was all over the RemNet. Neo watched intently as Yang blocked, dodged, and generally performed far, far better against Mercury than she had back on the train.

Where was this skill before? Were you really that angry?

Yang was even more fearsome when her Semblance was activated. She gave off that same firey glow, and when she waded back into the fight, she continued to dodge and block, while every punch had even more force behind it. It was no surprise that Mercury was defeated handily.

Neo almost felt cheated. If only Yang had controlled her anger, their fight on the train could have been glorious, strength pitted against dexterity, two skilled opponents engaged in a dangerous dance...instead, Yang's anger had made her sloppy. Perhaps Yang had learned in the time since their last match, but judging by her fight against the two Atlesians, Neo wasn't so sure...

Neo watched as the cameras kept rolling after the end of the fight. She knew that what she was watching didn't match up with what actually happened. The world thought Yang mercilessly attacked a defeated opponent, when in reality Emerald had used her Semblance to trick her into thinking Mercury had attacked her.

Neo...wasn't sure how she felt about that. Aside from not liking Emerald or Mercury on principle, she didn't think Yang deserved it. Sure, Neo was no stranger to using her own illusions in combat, but the purpose here hadn't been to defeat Yang, but to destroy her reputation, hurt her emotionally, and undermine her confidence. It just didn't seem...sporting.

Neo looked up. Cinder was walking towards her, putting a sway in her hips as always. Neo shut off her scroll and put it away. She noticed Cinder had her own scroll in her hands. No...this one was glowing red.

"Neo. Tomorrow is our big day. Are you ready to get Roman back?"

Neo's eyes went wide, and she nodded. Anything, anything to see Roman again, to know he was there to keep her safe! Cinder smirked and held out the scroll in her hands.

"Good. You'll be infiltrating the airship where he's being held captive...and while you're up there, you'll be making good use of this."

Neo looked at the screen. Set against the red background was the silhouette of a chess piece. A black queen, to be exact.

/

Another Atlesian soldier went down before her, and she finished him off with a swift downward stab. Neo grinned as she felt the adrenaline hit her brain.

If there was one thing she loved, it was the feeling of victory. She reveled in it. As long as she could kill, she would never have to worry about being that scared little girl who had barely survived on the streets. She'd never have to be powerless again.

These people were the enemy. They had taken Roman from her, and if she had to kill them to get him back, then so be it. She straightened herself, relishing the feeling of victory. The airship was designed to be crewed by a minimal number of soldiers, only twenty or so. That had been more than enough for Neo to take down, in ones and twos, even five at a time.

As the adrenaline faded from her system, she found her way to the prisoner's quarters. Breaking open the locker that held his hat and weapon was simple. From there, she located his cell and used the keycard taken from the captain's body to open it, revealing her old partner, Roman Torchwick.

"Well...it's about time," he said as he saw her. Neo smiled and handed him his hat and cane.

"Been practicing that one?" she asked quietly. He laughed and swept her up in a hug. She smiled and returned the gesture, giggling as he ruffled her hair.

"I missed you, kiddo. How've you been these last few weeks?"

Neo rolled her eyes.

"Terrible. Cinder's a pain, and the other two are worse."

Roman frowned.

"Well, tell you what. Let's finish this job, and then we'll see if we can't get this airship somewhere far, far away."

Neo's heart practically leapt out of her chest.

/

Neo watched as Roman fiddled with the controls. She wasn't even paying attention to what he was doing, she just loved watching him. After being held in that tiny cell, he was finally free, and he was no doubt enjoying it even more than she was. And now he was blasting the Atlesians out of the sky. No doubt Roman was finally getting some catharsis out of his weeks of imprisonment.

Personally, Neo had wanted to come to grips with Yang again, but the prospect of getting away from Cinder for good was enough for Neo to pass up on their rematch.

She watched as Roman directed the Atlesian robots in their battle below. She was sure there was some poetic irony in Atlas' reliance on machines being their downfall, but she left such musings to Cinder and her crew. What mattered was that the plan was working. Beacon at least would fall. A shame for Yang and her friends, but Neo tried not to make that her concern.

Really, Neo had very little personally invested in this fight. She didn't care about Cinder or the plan or whatever the White Fang were about. All she wanted was for her and Roman to get away safe and sound, just like they always had. Well, that and maybe have a few good fights along the way. Nothing made her feel more alive than dancing with death.

A loud thump on the outer hull of the airship broke Neo out of her thoughts. Roman sighed and waved at her.

"Go see what that is."

Neo smiled at Roman, nodded smartly, and turned to make her way to the access hatch.

/

"I may be a gambling man, but even I know there are some bets you just don't take!"

Neo felt like she was unstoppable. The little girl in the red hood who had given her and Roman so much trouble over the past year was hanging from the edge of the airship, she was riding high on the feeling of victory, and Roman was right there with her. The two had fought like a well-oiled machine. Despite the fact that Grimm swarmed through the air around him, she knew that with Roman she would be safe.

She stalked forward, extending the blade of her parasol and dragging it along the roof of the airship. Sparks danced around her feet as she approached Little Red.

"Like it or not, the people that hired me are going to change the world!"

Neo stood on the edge of the airship, the tip of her misericorde inches from Ruby's face. All she had to do was wait for Roman to give her the signal, and that would be the end. She took in every last detail of the girl's frightened face, savoring the power she had over her. It would be so easy to finish her off...

"You can't stop them, I can't stop them, and you know the old saying: If you can't beat 'em -"

Suddenly, Ruby lunged forward, pressing the button on Neo's parasol and opening it up. She had time for a brief gasp of fear as she realized what was happening, then the wind filled her parasol and dragged her off the airship.

"Neo!"

The last thing she heard was him yelling her name in despair, then the fierce winds buffeted her, carrying her away from the only person who had ever loved her.