A/N: Sorry about this taking so long, I hit a block at about 1000~ words and another block at 5000~ words. I knew where I wanted to go and what to write, but the words and motivation just eluded me. Thank you to all the kind reviews last chapter :)

I hope you find this chapter enjoyable.

I DO NOT OWN RWBY


Night 5


The large metallic doors groaned open as they had done the past four nights, but for some reason it felt different tonight. Like walking into a graveyard his back was stiff and breathing low and quiet, as if to listen out for anybody. More specifically, the animatronics.

Like yesterday it was oddly stuffy, which was odd given how cold and even damp the walls of the building felt, inside and out. The heavy storm outside only added to the cold, so the warm temperature was appreciated, but unexpected. Still he shrugged it off as best he could, taking a deep breath of dusty air before setting out towards the guard's office, warding off the grim possibility other guards had died in that room. The only reason he had gotten so far was because of luck, that he was sure of.

The chair squeaked as he sat down in it, pulling the camera up to eye-level. Flicking through the cameras he was comforted by the fact none of them had moved immediately, which was a good sign, for now at least. He flicked to the bathroom camera, getting silence. Cafeteria was empty and the kitchen, which had the fashionista and Velvet, was silent. Penny was motionless, or at least what he could see from the camera. Pyrrha and Nora were in their starting position, unmoving whilst the other four girls, which he dubbed RWBY, were also in their starting positions. However where Neo and Glynda were was uncertain, the latter he could only guess was in the elevator.

As if hearing his thoughts, he was startled as a figure abruptly popped into existence in front of him, pink and brown hair swaying as mismatched stared at him, filled with humour. He was idly proud by the fact he didn't faint from the sudden appearance of the girl, even if his heart pounded in his chest and he could feel adrenaline threatening to flood his system. If nothing else the short girl seemed amused by his flinch.

''H-Hey Neo.'' He greeted with a stutter.

Neo, in response, smiled and gave a two-fingered salute.

''Been a while since I seen you... where've you been?'' He asked politely, briefly glancing at the cameras. All clear so far.

She paused for a moment, before shrugged her shoulders, waving her hand dismissively as if to say 'nowhere important'.

''Hm.'' He hummed, nodding along as he diverted his attention back to the camera, movement catching his eye. Not a moment later Nora burst out of her room, the door slamming against the wall as her feet pounded across the ground, audible even from his position halfway across the building. He didn't waste a moment locking the left door, letting her run herself into it. He couldn't help but wince as she ran face-first into it, but she seemed unaffected by it, instantly getting to her feet and walking away.

Following the seemingly routine pattern, he swapped to the room RWBY always started in. Ruby had moved slightly, now in a crouch before the door whilst Weiss was missing entirely, the other two unmoved. Swapping to the kitchen he grimaced at the lack of Velvet present, prompting him to flick to the cafeteria camera, spotting her eerie silhouette in the background. Resisting the urge to keep an eye on her, he swapped back to lobby camera, tensing at the sight of the Spartan girl Pyrrha standing in the middle of the room, staring straight up into the camera with hollow emerald eyes, almost haunted in nature.

He quickly flicked off the camera to check on Ruby, only to find her out of the room and in the hallway, silver eyes glowing ominously in the darkness. He swore he saw something else behind her, but before he could double-check it heavy footfalls from the hall to his left drew attention. The door was still closed, but he couldn't help but remain tense, like she was going to tear open the door if he looked away. Whether or not she had the capability, though he doubted it, she simply came to a stop in front of the door, her head bowed.

''Why do I... feel so... hollow?''

He blinked at the shuddering, almost emotional tone she used. It would've made him think she was out of the programming had she not been so... off. It wasn't any single thing, but the air around her just didn't feel right, making him hesitant to open the door. Pyrrha continued to stand there, her heavy breathing and incoherent mumblings carrying on for a little longer before she walked off, her metal footwear thudding against the floor as she walked away. Only when she was out of the hall and back into the lobby did he dare open the door, relaxing when she didn't suddenly burst back in.

Swift footsteps to his right drew his attention immediately, prompting him to close the right door without delay. Ruby crashed into it with a soft thud, catching herself before ramming herself face-first into it. She didn't stay long either, instead spinning on her heel and trudging away, her face losing its insane smile and becoming eerily blank. Once she was out of the hall he opened the door, only then turning his attention back to Neo, ignoring his watch beeping to one in the morning.

He had to repress a chuckle at the sight of Neo lying across the length of his desk, a pout of boredom across her face.

''Say, Neo... it's been getting more difficult as the week's gone on, what happens next week?'' He asked, confusion marring his face when he saw her eyes widen in surprise.

She held up a finger, then crossed both index fingers over each other to make a plus sign, cocking her head to the side at the same time.

''Uh...'' He drawled, ''More than one week?''

She nodded.

''Well, aren't I supposed to be here for at least one week, not only one week?'' He asked in confusion... and with an uneasy feeling in his gut.

Neo shook her head, making a mock-gun with her hand and putting it to the side of her head, tilting it to the side and sticking her tongue out.

''I-I'll die?'' He stuttered out nervously, glancing down at his tablet briefly.

Neo nodded.

He was supposed to die after the end of the week? Was that why the animatronic- no, the girls wanted to hurt him, were forced into hurting him? Was this some kind of elaborate murder scheme, a grand act of a serial murderer? The fashionista's words came ringing back in his head and with it the near-death experience all those years ago. If he had any doubts about this having some connection to that disaster, they were long gone now. There was no possible way she could have known unless someone told her or 'programmed' it into her. Someone was behind all this. In the SDC? Cinder herself? Someone completely unrelated? Nobody?

Why him?

He was broken from his nigh-terrified musings as he felt a weight on him, a mop of pink and brown hair tickling his nose as Neo sat on his lap, her arms wrapped around his chest in an almost comforting manner. It took him a moment to realise that he was sweating profusely and gripping the tablet hard enough to nearly bend it, showing his fear had gotten the best of him. Like it always had, even back then.

'What?' He blinked, confused. That thought came out of nowhere.

Before he could ponder on the sudden thought, Neo stirred, pulling back from the embrace with a small smile on her face. Her pink and brown eyes held surprising warmth within them, surprising him as she gave him a peck on the cheek before she pulled back, hopping to her feet once more.

''Thanks Neo...'' He smiled, blood rushing to his cheeks.

Neo just smiled again, before glancing over her shoulder as soft thuds reached their ears. The ventilation. He almost scowled at the interruption of their moment, glaring up at the vent. A pair of golden eyes appeared in the darkness, staring into his for only a handful of seconds before backing away, the sound of the person within fading away as they left. He held back a sigh, his glare fading as he returned his gave onto Neo, who replied with a solemn smile. She jerked a thumb behind her, making a walking-away animation with her fingers. He got the message.

''You have to leave?'' He asked, almost sadly. He was beginning to enjoy her presence too.

She smiled sadly, reaching out and ruffling his hair playfully. Tilting her head to the side and closing one eye cutely, raising a hand and blowing him a kiss. Joking he raised a hand and pretended to catch it, making her imitate a giggle before she made her way to the door. As she passed the threshold her form shattered into glass shards, fading away like magic.

'Yep... definitely not normal.' He thought dimly, turning his attention back on the cameras. Both of the hallways were clear, but in the time that he and Neo had been 'talking' the others had moved. Ruby was back in the lobby, Nora was in the cafeteria sitting across from Yang, Pyrrha's heavy breathing and mumbled words were coming from the bathroom, Blake was nowhere to be found and neither was Weiss. Velvet was hidden in the shadows in the lobby, her rabbit ears peeking over the pile of boxes whilst the fashionista was stood in Hall B, frozen still as she glared at the camera over her shades.

Well didn't she look friendly?

Gentle footsteps in the right hall made him react accordingly, the door sliding closed and preventing Ruby from entering. Oddly, he noted she was breathing heavier than before, almost panting like she ran a marathon. Before he could check the other cameras a terrible, metallic screeching reached his ears as metal was torn asunder. Instantly he checked on the lobby camera, grimacing at the sight of the elevator doors being pried apart by an invisible force. The blonde, Glynda, was coming.

He was distracted from the sight as a mop of orange hair blurred across the room, heavy footfalls alerting to who it was. The left door came slamming down, stopping Nora from entering just in time. Both girls left the doors at the same time, trudging back to the lobby and going their separate ways, Nora down Hall B while Ruby was frozen in place, facing Hall A1. Before he tabbed off the camera he noticed Velvet in the corner of the room, still in the shadows, but her ears were down and she was clutching her head in apparent pain. He felt a spark of concern for the girl but reluctantly squashed the feeling, remembering she was still in kill-crazy mode.

The horrible screeching of metal finally ceased, Glynda walking out from the elevator cart with slow, methodical steps as she came to a stop in the middle of the room. He was taken aback when she waved her arm in a sweeping motion towards the camera... and the camera abruptly went off, black and white static filling the screen. He couldn't even hear over it, the audio replaced by incessant static that grated on his ears. He swapped to another camera, getting a clear picture, but when he swapped back it was still disabled. So at least it was limited to one camera.

But losing one camera, especially one so close to him, was immensely dangerous.

As his watch beeped over to two in the morning, he resisted the urge to sigh when he heard thumping in the ventilation once again. He stared up at the shaft but... no golden eyes came through. He waited, and waited, but no eyes appeared in the darkness.

'Odd.' He thought, but was jarred from his thoughts as the light overhead flickered, making him groan in a silly attempt to hide his own fear. With a buzzing hiss, the light went off and the doors opened, the lack of light plunging him into complete darkness that felt more oppressing than normal, like it was trying to smother him. Grimacing, he pulled up his tablet and checked both hallways on his left and right, finding them clear. A brief check over the rest of the facility assured nobody was just about to rush him.

Unless they were in the lobby.

He was so fucked, wasn't he?

'Head in the game Jaune, head in the game...' He repeated to himself, grabbing the flashlight and ducking out into the right hall. He didn't waste any time rushing behind the small pile of boxes, trying to make himself as small as possible encase someone came by.

That proved to be the right call, as less than a moment later a figure rushed by, moving so fast they were literally a blur. He caught sight of a pair of bunny ears on their head before they disappeared into the office, meaning it was Velvet. He didn't waste a moment, pushing himself to his feet and rushing into the lobby, darting behind a mound of boxes, narrowly avoiding being spotted by Nora, who was in the process of turning around. Keeping the light of his flashlight and tablet to the ground, he peeked over the top of the boxes, waiting for Nora to run up the right staircase before he stealthily made his way to Hall B, keeping his back to the wall.

The hall was thankfully empty, but he could see several of the others in the cafeteria, all eerily sat down staring at one another with empty gazes. He pulled up the tablet, pausing just long enough to check if the bathroom was empty - which it sounded like - before he crept down the hall towards the slightly ajar utility tunnel door. He shivered as a breeze of cool air brushed past him, probably from the shattered windows if were to guess. It alleviated some of the dust that had been lingering around at least, giving him a literal breath of fresh air.

Soft footsteps coming from behind instantly spurred him into action, pulling open the heavy door enough to slide inside the tunnel. He was tempted to close the door shut after him, but the possibility of being locked in here was... none too pleasant. Shaking the thought off he swiftly crept down the hall towards the generator, the red lights overhead seemingly illuminating even less than yesterday or the day before that. Whether that was true, or it was a trick of the mind, he wasn't sure, but his attention was quickly snatched as he realised something that made him freeze on the spot.

Penny was gone.

The spot where she normally laid was bare, revealing in its place a small metal box with multiple warning labels over the length of it. The front of it, the only section with a handle on it, was kept locked by a rather modern but simplistic 1-9 code entry, a small dimly glowing rectangle where the numbers presumably appeared after pressing the button. It was odd why such a box, especially one so distinct and apparently dangerous, was lying here in the tunnel. However it was suspicious why Penny of all people was lying on top of it. It gave off a bad vibe.

Sadly he didn't know the code and he wasn't willing to spend his time trying, so he'd have to leave it for now. But he wouldn't be forgetting it anytime soon, not when it might have something to do with this whole mess. Or maybe it didn't, and was just a locked box from long ago, he didn't know. So with reluctance he turned away from the box and moved over to the generator, pushing down on the button as he went about restarting the generator. The ominous, absolute silence that briefly overcame the whole place as he waited didn't help his nerves, but he powered on through and reactivated it.

It worked on the first try, to his relief, but that relief quickly faded when he recalled what happened every time prior. Without delay he turned and half-ran, half-crept over to the small gap behind the pipes, squishing his body in through the oddly tight spot. Pressing himself into the darkness he grimaced as he heard the thick metal door to the tunnel groan open, followed by swift footsteps and sharp taps on concrete. Glynda came into view quickly, her eyes set straight ahead as she walked halfway down the hall, stopped and waited for a few seconds, then turned and left.

He let out a sigh, 'One of these days I'm going to get cau-'

That thought was interrupted as something quickly became apparent.

Why did he just feel something move?

As if on cue, warm breath hit the back of his neck, paralysing him with the realisation. Turning slowly as if to not scare a dangerous animal, he came face-to-face with the shadowed face of Penny, a pair of glowing green eyes illuminating her face in the darkness and revealing her painfully wide, shark-like smile. It took him a minute to realise the reason why the space was smaller; she had been against the back wall, and he was sitting in her lap. In any other situation he might've gotten flustered... but the whole impending death kept that side of him at bay.

''HELLO JAUNE!'' Penny greeted in a disturbing, echoing tone that seemed more robotic than ever before, ''CAN YOU DIE NOW?''

Not wasting a second, he ducked out towards the gap in the pipes. He wasn't quick enough before he felt something strike his leg, the force behind it surprising him for all of one second before he was propelled into the opposing wall, a harsh gasp escaping him at the spike of pain that wracked his body. Nothing broke, at least he didn't think so, but it would definitely bruise. Looking back, he felt the blood leave his face as the very robotic Penny crawled out from the gap on all fours like a demented spider, her glowing eyes promising nothing but suffering.

It spurred him enough to jump to his feet, ignoring the searing pain that erupted from his leg in the process. The only thing in his mind was to get away from the suddenly murderous Penny, and get away he did. His footsteps made resounding thuds on the steps as he all but threw open the door, coincidentally hitting someone in the face with it, before he burst into a sprint into the lobby. His cobalt eyes met the teal ones of Nora and he would've let out a curse if she didn't immediately sprint towards him, an eerie grin of maniacal delight on her face. Immediately doing a one-eighty, his eyes flickered about the darkness, looking for an out and only met with the choice of the bathroom.

With the alternate choice of being mauled to death by robot-like girls, he didn't hesitate on it. The bathroom door swung open and was quickly slammed shut as he spun around, flashlight flickering to every corner of the room to look for exits. Like when he peeked in a few nights ago, the ivory tiles were damaged in more than a few places, some missing entirely to reveal the grim concrete beneath. The stalls on the left were worn but remarkably still on their hinges, though the mirror on the right wall of the room held a large crack in it and was dirty, the sinks worn and damaged in more than a few places.

A glance was all he needed to take before he dove over to the stalls, taking the one farthest to the door. He nearly knocked the door of its hinges with how hard he pulled it open, but he steadied it to stop it moving and then hopped atop the grimy toilet to hide his feet. Looking down, he realised there was no water in the toilet, yet rust was very clear, the once-perfect porcelain bearing a multitude of cracks upon it. If it didn't shatter under his sudden weight, it'd be a miracle.

He was shattered from his thoughts as the bathroom door slammed open, the sharp crack of wood on porcelain tiles a horrible cacophony in such an enclosed space. A single set of heavy footsteps, Nora's if he were to guess, stomped into the room with all the mad bloodlust of a rampaging bull. Silence only reigned for a beautiful few seconds before the doors started opening.

SLAM!

The sound echoed throughout the room, if not the whole building with its volume.

SLAM!

Was she planning to go down the line entirely, leaving him trapped in the corner of the room?

SLAM!

His eyes darted about frantically, looking to see if there was a second escape route. None.

SLAM!

The stall next to his slammed open. He was tempted to shut his eyes to prevent himself seeing his own death, but a sudden beeping snapped him out of it, his eyes darting down to his watch that read three in the morning. Halfway through the night. That would've been good, had it not also made him realise the abrupt silence in the room. He could hear breathing, two sets of breathing, but nobody made a sound. The chilly atmosphere of the bathroom seemed to become more prominent, oppressively weighing down on him like a mound of rocks.

His breathing hitched when the stall door slowly slid open, spelling his impending doom as a head poked in through the gap. He was greeted by the sight of Nora as she looked dead at him... and winked, before pulling back out of the stall.

''Hm... nothing in here!''

With that, one set of footfalls left the room, followed by a second shortly afterwards. As the door swung closed, he released a breath he didn't realise he was holding. That had been close, too close. Unlike other times, if he had been caught here the chances of escape were close to zero, unless he could force his way past and run back to the room quick enough. That wasn't even counting the likely chance of running into someone else.

Pulling up his tablet, which he had miraculously not dropped in his panicked run, he flicked through the cameras. Neo, Weiss and Blake were missing from all the cameras, Ruby and Nora were sitting in the cafeteria, Glynda was in Pyrrha's starting room, Pyrrha herself was in the lobby, Yang was still in her room, Velvet was in the shadows of the cafeteria and the fashionista was just outside the bathroom door, though her sunglasses were oddly broken. Weird.

Oh, and Penny was missing.

Lovely.

Shaking that thought off, he slowly pushed the door of the stall open once more, finding the rest of the room to be empty to his relief. Creeping over to the door, he kept an eye on the fashionista as she trudged past back towards the cafeteria before disappearing into the kitchen. A quick check at all the cameras showed a brief, very brief window to get back to his office. Steadying himself he sucked in a breath, before charging out. He had no doubt all of them heard the door smack against the wall, but whether or not they would act upon it was another matter entirely. His leg burned as he ran through the lobby, heart pounding in his chest as he kept an iron grip on his flashlight and tablet.

It was only when he nearly reached his room did he pick up the soft but swift footsteps behind him, though he didn't dare turn back to see who it was. He didn't even get it fully through the doorway before he pressed the button to close the door, the thick metal narrowly missing his head before he fell inside the office, a thud coming from the metal door with enough force to shake it. Closing the left door, his attention immediately went to the camera outside the right hall to find who was chasing him-

-only to find nobody.

'What?' He thought in bewilderment. He swore he heard footsteps behind him, no, he knew someone was behind him.

Frowning, he lowered the tablet and glanced up to the vent, grimacing at the single screw holding the vent in place. Blake had been busy it seems. His attention however was turned to the desk as he caught sight of a note; pristine as from a freshly printed book. Slowly, he reached out and plucked the note, frowning in confusion down at the words.

I was the second to fall, and will be the second last to fade

I'm sorry

Vague as ever, but he couldn't help but feel worry squirm in his stomach at the... almost solemn nature of the note. Second to fall? Did something happen to her? Did she... die? Was she a guard here at one point, and lost her life? What did the second part mean? Second last to fade? Was she in danger... was she going to be taken over by the supposed programming? She hadn't been so far but now that he thought about it, the time until the others 'broke out' of it was getting longer and longer as the week went on, so it was possible it was harder for her to resist it. Would she end up like that forever like Velvet, or would she break out of it near the end of the night?

More importantly... why was she sorry?

Before he could continue down that train of thought he jumped as several rapid knocks came from his left door, followed by a friendly voice, ''Hello Jauney!''

''Nora?'' He blinked in surprise. He hadn't noticed her coming.

''That's a-me!'' She replied in a chipper tone. After a moment of deliberation, he unlocked the door, allowing her to skip inside. That explained why she hadn't killed him earlier; she was no longer under the influence.

His attention went back to the tablet, even as she took a seat on his lap. Velvet now lurked out in the right hall, forcing him to keep the right door closed lest she burst right in. Heavy footfalls to the left forced him to close the other door as well, before flicking to the camera to check. It was Pyrrha, no surprise there... but something was wrong. He didn't notice it immediately, but her head... it was twitching, violently. Jerking left and right rapidly only to return to its initial position in less than a split second. It wasn't natural. Not for a human, not for a robot.

Then again, shattering into glass shards wasn't normal either.

''Do you know anything about this, Nora?'' He asked, gesturing to the camera as the twitching Pyrrha stared blankly at the steel door before her.

As his watch beeped over to four, Nora spoke, ''I can't.''

''Bad things happen?'' He sighed.

''Bad things happen.'' She agreed with a nervous chuckle.

He turned his gaze back to the tablet, brows furrowing in thought. Was 'bad things happen' what happened to Weiss? They get taken over by the programming once more? Maybe permanently? It would be understandable if they feared that, being forever trapped and unable to break out for the rest of time. He wouldn't condemn his worst enemies to that. He hoped Weiss was alright.

His attention was grabbed as Glynda walked into the lobby, her hand glowing purple before the camera abruptly went off. He tensed, flicking to the other two camera on the left and right hall, catching sight of the tall blonde walking up the left staircase. Suddenly a mop of blonde hair appeared around the corner, surprising him as Yang came barrelling down the hall, passing by the spot where Velvet once lurked. He flinched as her fist impacted against the metal door with a solid thud, followed by another punch, then another, over and over again as she slammed her fists into it, rattling the door each time.

Pyrrha stomped away in sync with his watch ticking over to four, but that was muted by the increasingly loud thunderous punches again the door, which was slowly denting inwards. Abruptly she stopped, her form stiff for several long moments before she suddenly bent down, her fingers grasping at the bottom of the door in vain to get a grip on it. He was taken aback when she managed to pry her fingers under it somehow, the metal groaning as it was forcibly lifted back upwards.

''Hide under the desk.'' Nora whispered in his ear, ''I'll hide you.''

He didn't question her, scampering under the desk and making himself as small as possible. It wasn't very big, since the desk was flat and had the supports by the sides, leaving the middle empty and with barely enough room for him to squish inside. Before he could ask how he was supposed to hide, his office hair was placed on its side in front of him, the back of it mostly covering him from being spotted. Nora herself sat in front of the chair, leaving him in partial darkness as she hid him.

The door gave one last groan before it reached the halfway mark, instantly sliding right back up the rest of the way automatically. He held his breath, catching sight of the long blonde hair swishing as she stormed in the room, only able to see the top of her head from his position. She stood in the doorway for a painfully long moment, her head turning to the side several times, before settling facing towards his position, making him tense reflexively.

''Hey Yang!'' Nora cheerfully greeted, ''Have you seen Jaune? I can't find him anywhere!''

Yang didn't respond, standing there motionless for several long moments, before abruptly turning and walking away. He waited for a few seconds before pulling up his tablet, confirming that Yang left the right hall before he closed the door once more. Grimly, he noted his power was discomfortingly low; nearly down to 25%. If he was forced to keep the doors up any longer than he currently had, it'd be a pretty messy situation.

He was released from his prison as Nora pulled the chair away, allowing him to crawl back into the light and actually breath comfortably. Too damn stuffy there. Shaking his head, he refocused his attention back on the cameras. Ruby was coming down the left hall, a small but genuine smile on her face as she all but skipped towards his office. Skipping over the cameras, he spotted Velvet peeking out from the bathroom door, her creepy smile glowing in the darkness. The fashionista was sitting at one of the cafeteria tables with a stern Glynda walking around in the kitchen, Blake and Weiss were still missing and Yang was back in her starting room, whilst Pyrrha was also in her starting room.

Oh, and Penny was still missing.

Lovely.

''Do you know where Penny is hiding?'' He asked as he took his seat, looking at Nora.

Nora just beamed a smile back, ''Nope!''

Before any conversation could continue, several knocks came from the left door, and a quick check revealing it to be Ruby. He didn't even need to call out to her to check she was sane-of-mind, not with that happy smile on her face instead of the twisted one.

His decision was the correct one, ''Hey Jaune!''

He smiled in greeting at the cheerful girl, nodding in greeting as his attention was grabbed by Pyrrha, who was also coming down the left hall. Unlike Ruby however she did not look bright and happy, instead her expression was one of insanity and frustration. He didn't hesitate to close the left door, leaving her to pound on it for a few moments before stomping away.

''Did you bring any more cookies?'' Ruby asked excitedly, almost drooling at the thought.

He chuckled and shook his head, ''Sorry Ruby, I don't have any today.''

''Aw~''

''Sorry, I'll try grab some for tomorrow.'' He smiled, patting her on the head. He got a smile in return, accompanied by a cute blush.

''Hehe... thanks.'' Ruby smiled shyly.

Their conversation was cut short as soft, rhythmic thudding came from the vents drew attention immediately. A moment later a pair of golden eyes appeared behind the grate, staring into his own endlessly. However, unlike before she did not back away, instead unscrewing the vent all the while staring straight into his eyes. He tensed, looking to Nora and Ruby, both who looked completely calm and unbothered by the oncoming threat. They had clearly seen it, hell they were staring straight at Blake.

Before he could make a move to flee, the screw came loose and dropped onto the desk with a deafening chink. Unlike before however she did not come launching at him, instead the grate was knocked off its hinges, landing on the desk in front of him. Like a snake she deftly slid out of the vent, flipping herself over herself and landing on his desk, legs folded in front of herself and a book in her hands, as if she had been reading the whole time and not done a flip that would make a gymnastic proud.

''Hey Blake!'' Nora joyfully exclaimed.

''Hello.'' The black-haired beauty replied coolly, not taking her eyes off her book, ''Sorry about the vent, Jaune.''

''Ah... its no problem.'' He smiled, waving off her apology. Then again since she was the only one who actually used it, the fact it was open wasn't much of a concern.

Unless others decided to make use of the opening.

Hopefully not.

His watch beeping over to five in the morning brought him from his thoughts. That was another point of confusion he had never gotten an answer for; why time moved so quickly. When he first started it was easy to wave it off as stress, losing focus or simply not noticing it, but he distinctly remembered it ticking over to four only a minute or two ago, back when Yang was at the door. He hesitated to ask the question to the rooms current occupants, but the knowledge of already knowing what answer he would get held his tongue. Bad things happen.

Turning his attention back to the camera, he flinched as he found Penny... within the utility tunnel, right in front of the camera. She grinned widely, insanely up into it, her face all but pressed up against it as her formally kind green eyes shone with malicious delight, like a sadistic torturer. She didn't blink, didn't move, didn't even breath, just stared.

Quickly he flicked to another camera, not wanting to look at her terrifying visage any longer. After checking both halls he reluctantly opened the doors to conserve power, which was trickling down to 17% now. Velvet was in the cafeteria, Glynda was in Hall B, Weiss was still missing, Yang was in her starting room and Pyrrha was, presumably, in the bathroom if her heavy breathing and hysterical whispers were anything to go by. The fashionista was in the kitchen, a dusty old magazine in her hands that her eyes wandered over almost lazily.

''By the way guys...'' He spoke up, drawing the attention of his companions, his friends, ''What's the fashionista's name? I never caught it.''

''Coco.'' Blake answered coolly, her golden eyes staring into his own for only a brief moment before she went back to her book.

''Like the stuff in hot chocolate?'' He queried innocently. Nora and Ruby stifled a giggle, while Blake just gave a small amused smile.

''Yes, and don't let her hear you said that.'' Blake replied, amusement clear in her tone.

Yeah, he had a feeling if she heard he'd be thrown through a wall. Girl was stronger than she looked, and scary when pissed off. As if hearing his thoughts, the newly named Coco turned to glare at the camera, which he responded with by switching cameras. If nothing else it meant he didn't have to look at her frosty glare.

''We need to get going.'' Blake spoke up, a note of reluctance in her tone as she closed her book. She bid him a goodbye nod before swiftly walking past him and out the same door Neo left from.

''Aw... so soon.'' Nora pouted, but shifted away reluctantly, ''Bye Jaune~''

She gave him a goodbye peck on the cheek, making the heat rise to his cheeks as she skipped out. Next to him Ruby pouted, grabbing his attention as she gave her own goodbye kiss on his cheek before skipping out, but not before calling out to bring cookies tomorrow. He smiled, leaning back into his chair as he flicked through the cameras. Despite not technically being off the hook, nearly half of the supposed animatronics were no longer under the programming, while the other half were keeping their distance, granting him a reason to be relaxed.

He stiffened however as he caught sight of Weiss, exiting from the library in a hurry. Without preamble or the calm she had normally excluded, she tossed a pristine piece of paper in the vague direction of the office before storming towards her starting room, one hand grasping at her head with a grimace of pain on her face. He frowned at the action, wanting nothing more to go and ask what was wrong... but with the others still about, he didn't have much of a choice.

Now that he thought about it, why was she in the library this whole time? She must've left the note in his room, so she wasn't immobile the entire night, but why didn't she leave? Was it because of the programming, or something else?

Would she be okay?

So many questions and so little answers, as always. He was tempted to storm up to Cinder's office and demand answers, but given the fact she might not even know about the others... well, it would be a dumb thing to do, both for his job and for his friends. The only people who knew what was going on, and willing to tell or elude about it, was Neo and Weiss. One of them was mute, and the other was suffering. Wonderful.

He was snapped from his melancholic thoughts as his watch beeped, signalling it was six and time for him to leave. Heaving a sigh he picked up his flashlight from its spot on the floor and walking out into the left hall. The stuffy air of the place was already being refreshed by gusts of cool air from the now-open doors, an almost melodic tune whistling through them as the chirping of birds accompanied it. His eyes however were drawn to the pristine piece of paper, the ends of it slightly torn as if roughly dislodged from a book. Picking it up, he frowned at the scrawled words upon it.

I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry

Coco can help you

I'm sorry Winter

I failed

I'm sorry everyone

I'm sorry

'What happened to you, Weiss?' He pondered morosely, gently folding the piece of paper and pocketing it. What was she sorry for? The statement that Coco could help him was dubious, given her apparent dislike of him. Was Winter a person, or was she talking about the season? How did she fail, and why was she sorry? Her note only brought more damn questions to deal with, but his heart couldn't be annoyed at her, not when she was like... this.

Turning towards the door, he was surprised by the sight of another note. Unlike Weiss' one however, this one was old and worn, the paper gaining a yellow hue to it due to its age rather than dye. Even as he approached, he could see the horribly bad writing over it, much more disorganised and messy than Weiss' one.

HOW Do you lIke ground zEro?

'Ground zero?' He wondered in confusion, looking around him. Did they mean the first floor? He assumed so, it was the only thing logical to it after all.

Walking towards the doors, he froze as he swore he heard footsteps, but glancing behind him he found none. Shrugging to himself, he - albeit hesitantly - walked out of the building and into the morning sun, his face set into a frown at what he had to think on.

Unbeknownst to him, a figure lurked behind the corner of one of the halls, a single caramel eye watching him go.

'Will you end this nightmare... Jaune Arc?'


A/N: Done! Haaah!

This took far longer than I had expected, and more writers block than I had in the past month alone. Its one of the benefits of attempting to write no less than a dozen stories; it means that your time is always productive, but it means the overall amount of work done on each story is much thinner spread.

Maybe its not a benefit...

Regardless, quite a few subtle hints and teases. Something is looming in the background, the hinges are weakening and the chains are breaking. What is happening to Weiss? Where has Neo been? What of the notes? What of the code on the box? Perhaps it has been shown in previous chapters, you never know.

Only three more chapters to go ladies and gentleman; Night 6, Interlude 4 and then Night 7, the final night and ending.

Until then~