Vale never had a roaring nightlife, but since the attack on the festival what little there was had completely vanished. Midnight revelers waiting for taxis outside the city's bars had given way to police patrols and the sounds of distant gunshots from the walls. Curfew was officially in effect, but to the fortune of one shadow-cloaked figure the soldiers who walked the streets rarely came down into the new refugee sector. Even in crisis society maintains a structure.
It was safe, at least. The presence of so many students, homeless since the fall of Beacon or merely waiting for an overcrowded transport home from the tournament kept order. They were blamed for the crisis, but for now the tension between the Hunters and civilians had yet to fully snap.
The man walking the street turned a corner and started watching the faded bronze addresses attached to the cramped buildings. He didn't need them to find his destination, he had visited several times in the week since the tower fell and nightfall no longer made the neighborhood feel strange. He found the place he was looking for and after several minutes hesitation, climbed the steps and rang the bell.
In short order the door opened to reveal a bleary-eyed Coco Adel inside. She wore an atypically unfashionable bath robe, held closed with one hand and a skewed pair of clear glasses that covered her red eyes and withering glare.
"Hey Coco, is Velvet home?"
Coco blinked slowly and resisted the urge to shout. The last thing she needed was to wake the neighbors at...
She looked at a clock on the wall.
"Jaune," she groaned, "it's three in the morning. Where else would she be?"
"Sorry," Jaune said, having the decency to look ashamed. "I couldn't sleep."
Coco sighed and shook her head. "You can't keep doing this," she said with all the kindness she could muster at such an ungodly hour.
"I know, but-"
"You don't know," Coco snapped back. "It's hard for her too, you don't get to put her through-"
"Coco."
Velvet was there, standing at the base of the stairs, dressed and ready, though her ears were slumped and she looked as tired as Coco felt.
"It's fine Coco, I'll be back soon," she said quietly.
Coco stood between the two for a moment unmoving before shaking her head again and stepping aside so Velvet could leave into the night with the Arc boy. She watched them go from the doorstep until they vanished from sight and she disappeared back inside, leaving the light on for when her teammate returned.
Velvet and Jaune were silent as they walked for a short time to a secluded corner of a nearby park. Trees and shrubs grew dense around a clearing, blocking out the city except for glimpses of a few tall towers through the highest branches.
"Coco's right, you know," Velvet said, quietly breaking the silence that surrounded them as Jaune drew his sword and readied his shield. "We can't keep doing this."
Jaune hesitated.
"But... We can tonight, right? I need to... Just one more time."
Velvet nodded and smiled a sad smile. "Of course," she said.
She held out her hands and a shimmering light shone out of her box, forming a familiar shield and spear and for the duration of a short spar Jaune felt like he was with her again.