I didn't actually wake up until we got back home. I think I had a dream, but I don't remember it very well. I can remember a Cliffside...and a mask…but that's it. When I came to, I heard people talking, it was muffled and hard to hear, but I could hear that the conversation was between Qrow, Djura and Eileen, and they were getting closer. I sat up and looked around, it was still night but the clock on the wall said that it was '06:14 AM'. I was in my bedroom; at the time; me and Ruby shared bedrooms so her bed was next to mine.

I looked to see if she was in it. She was lying there fast asleep. I looked down and saw that I was wearing the same clothes. The sleep had helped my head feel a little better but now that I was calm and out of the cold, I was really feeling the pain in my leg, I tried to not think about how much worse I must have made the sprain by running that much. The door creaked open and my Uncle poked his head in. He saw that I was awake, sighed and opened the door fully; Eileen was behind him and Djura was bringing up the rear.

"Oh, your awake", said Djura; seeing me for the first time, "how's your leg doing"? I tried to stand up, but the pain was still pretty bad and I didn't want to stress it out anymore, so I sat back down.

"Still bad", I replied; "how's Ruby"?

Qrow sighed again "I dunno...she's not hurt...but", he paused; looking at her with a kinda distance in his eyes, "she didn't say much when I asked her what happened". I looked at her, she seemed so peaceful lying there; it was almost like she had never seen the whites of that monsters eyes.

"Listen", said Qrow; coming down to my level and looking me straight in the eyes with a serious look on his face; "I'm not gonna tell your dad that last night happened". I sighed and gave him a hug; I was so worried that my dad would never forgive me for what I did if he found out. He smiled at me and stood up, "Ok, Djura wanted'a talk to you before he leaves" he said.

Qrow stepped back and, with one last smile, left the room. Djura stepped forward and like Qrow had, bent down to my level. It was hard to tell how he was feeling, he wasn't exactly smiling; but his face was pleasant.

"I know that you're already aware that what you did was the unwise thing to do" he said quietly. I looked down, embarrassed.

"Yeah, I know".

"And I know that you regret it and that you won't do it again" he said, this time a bit louder. I nodded slowly, wondering where he was going with this.

"But I'm not interested in what you feel now, he said now with a serious look on his face; no...I'm interested in what you felt when you made the decision to go out into the middle of nowhere with no means of protection". I stared at him; Djura had a look of serious concern on his face, as if worried for my life.

"Why did you do it"? He asked, a little slower and calmer. I took a moment to consider his question.

I paused to think. Why had I done it?

I knew of course, I was looking for my mom, but would he believe me if I told him?

"It's dumb" I said, embarrassed again. I expected him to laugh but when I looked at him again, his expression had not changed.

"I know you're not foolish enough to put yourself and your sister in that kind of situation for something dumb, that's not the kind of thing that someone does on a whim" he said sternly; "You're smarter than that, so tell me why you went to that barn". I felt defeated, he was gonna find out sooner or later.

"I was looking for my mom". I looked away after I told him; I didn't know what his reaction would be, I heard him sigh. I looked back, expecting him to be disappointed, but he looked quite satisfied.

"Pardon me miss but, how the hell is that dumb"? He said smiling at me like I the first time we had spoken.

"Well, I said slowly; I thought you'd say I was selfish for putting that before Ruby's safety".

"I already told you, what happened after you made the choice isn't important to me, he said; with a hint of amusement; I want to know why you thought it was a good idea".

"Well..., I thought for a moment...I didn't really think...I just ...did". I wasn't lying, the thought had just come to me at the time, and I didn't think about it at all...maybe I was afraid I would reconsider if I did think. Djura sighed again and leaned in a bit closer so that he could talk quieter.

"The desire to find your mother is only natural, but you must never let that passion control you" he said, with a warm comforting voice. "Instinct is important, you will discover its abilities when you grow up, but obeying instinct is not an absence of control, but rather a mastery of one's self". I looked at him, I looked at his smile, his rag covered eye, his scars...I guessed maybe he was speaking from experience.

"Okay", I said quietly, although not because I didn't want to wake Ruby; because that familiar lump had come back into my throat. I didn't wanna start crying again. I moved forward and hugged him, he didn't hug back immediately but then, with a bit of difficulty, hugged me back with his good arm.

"Hey", he laughed quietly; "it's okay". He smiled, ruffled my hair and straightened up, "I hope we meet again, Miss Xiao Long, maybe I could show you a few things about my fighting style". He gestured towards his metal arm," Eileen told me you were interested".

"Yeah" I replied eagerly, "It was awesome how fast you here moving". He smiled, he was clearly happy that he had inspired someone with his performance.

"Well, I'd better get going" turned to leave the room. I blurted out quickly

"Hold on, one last thing".

"Yes" said Djura, stopping at the door and looking over his shoulder.

"How did you put yourself back together after getting shot"? He paused, and then looked me straight in the face and said with a slight grin.

"My semblance, In'it".

I opened my mouth…then closed it again, that was such a throw away answer that I knew it wasn't true. Nobody's semblance could do that. But it didn't seem that he was going to discuss the matter any further with me. Djura nodded and turned to leave again. Eileen, who had been leaning against the door with her arms folded, let Djura past saying casually:

"I'll catch up with you".

"Alright, but make it quick, Gehrman gets whiny when we make him wait" After Just before Djura left the room; he turned to me and said:

"You've got guts, kid; never forget that". Then he shut the door behind him.

After he shut the door, Eileen moved forward. Unlike Qrow and Djura, she didn't get down to my level; she stood where they had crouched and reached into her cloak. When her hand reappeared, it was holding a small sheathe with a knife in it. I was alarmed for a second until she began to speak.

"Thought she'd like this back", I was confused by who she meant,

"uhh...who's she"?

Eileen slightly tilted her masked head to the side, gesturing towards the side of the room that Ruby was sleeping on.

"When I was getting into position to grab you two, I saw your sister holding it behind her back while Gascoigne was about to kill her", Eileen explained; "I supposed she was planning a counter attack, she was concealing it in her cloak, a strategy im rather fond of". It took a second for me to register what she had just told me, "Ruby...was gonna fight him there"?

"Couldn't you see her holding it when you two were against the tree as that beast charged you?" Asked Eileen; "she was planning to use its own momentum against it". From her tone of voice, it almost sounded like she was commending the sleeping Ruby on her fighting strategies.

"Yeah I saw it, I couldn't believe my eyes- she's never been like that before…and her eyes" I said.

Eileen walked over to my bed side table and placed down the knife and, looking at Ruby snoring said:

"Despite her size, Her battle smarts and instincts are exceptional, especially for someone of her age, I hope one day she grows up to refine and develop those instincts, until then; can I rely on you to keep her safe"? Eileen was looking at me again,

"Yes I will" I said, feeling a bit on the spot at this sudden vested interest she had in my baby sister.

"Thank you, said Eileen inclining her head forward in a far more formal bow; I'll take my leave then". She walked to the door and with a simple "farewell "opened the door and shut it behind her.

My eyes darted between the knife and Ruby; I could hardly believe that she had prepared for a split second decision, that I had though I had been protecting her and she was protecting me while we were staring those monsters down. I watched her role and sniff in her sleep, how could such a goof ball have such great instincts? I laid back down on my bed again and looked at the first rays of sun coming through the blinds in my window, "Guts and instincts..."

"so that's my story, said Yang still facing the black board; that's how I learned that not thinking things through is dangerous...and can screw over the people you love, how I learned to never let my passion outweigh my reason". She then turned around to face Blake, who was still sitting on the table, looking at her lap. "I'm not asking you to stop, I'm asking you to live...okay"? Blake looked Yang in the face and silently nodded. Yang smiled, took her hand; and they both left the empty lecture hall together, leaving behind the picture yang had drawn...the picture of a man with a scythe, a woman with a bird mask and a man in grey...with a rag over his eye...and a grin on his face.