I'm sorry for the delay, but here you go! It's a bit of filler - hopefully though it makes up for my absence.

Velvet was going to be late. Oh no… She bustled around, trying her best to do what she needed before meeting up with her team for their weekly meetings. Long fingers neatly folding the last end of paper into a crisp line, tucking it away. It's early enough that if she hurries, she won't be late! Locking her dorm behind her, she bustles out, only to bump into a strong figure.

"Ooph!" Velvet lands on her rear, but the carefully packaged bundles of glass and Dust fall away from her. She gives a squeak, tries to catch them –

They're caught by the hands of one of her classmates, gingerly handled and stacked back up.

"Sorry – I wasn't watching where I was going." He's friendly sounding, at least, Velvet decides, accepts the warm hand up. It's Cardin. She didn't know him well – He was pretty quiet in class – but still nice. She remembered briefly that he'd loaned her a pencil. "Do you need help?" He asks, gives her a concerned smile. Velvet looks up, shakes her head vigorously.

"No thank you," She smiles up at him, touched in spite of her wariness. "Cardin, right?" She asks, gathering the four packets up and walking by his side as he falls into step next to her, his large, stocky build reminding her a little of Yatsuhashi in the way he walked with her.

"That's right," He agrees cheerfully. "And you're Velvet. You got assigned to a second-year team, right?" Velvet blinked, a little surprised anyone actually remembered that. She'd been the odd student out, and Team CFY had lost a member to the Witch a previous semester. They'd accepted her with open arms, and she'd been pretty happy with them.

"That's right!" She agreed. "I'm surprised anyone remembered, honestly…" She smiles sheepishly, and he smiles back, shifts slightly as they round a corner. "I- I'm not keeping you from anything, am I?" Velvet asks nervously, smiles a little sheepishly at the idea, and he shakes his head, laughs at the idea.

"No – I don't have a mentor class," He answers with a grin. "And you're great company." Velvet's ears burn slightly, and she blushes. "I'm not stopping you though, am I?" His concern is sweet, and she answers honestly.

"I have to head out to town in about half an hour, but I'm free until then." Her team wouldn't mind if she wasn't her typical twenty minutes early… And Cardin was really friendly.

"You look cheerful," Coco remarks, and Fox tilts his head towards her, a smile on his lips. He's peaceably quiet – She knows he'd heard her and Cardin cheerfully talking when he'd headed out. Yatsuhashi looks down at her, gently places a large hand against her shoulder.

"I … Was making a friend," She says with a brilliant, beaming smile. Coco grins, gently nudges her shoulder.

"Atta girl!" Coco beams. "Our Velvet's growing up!" Coco beams, hugs her. She blushes, ducks her head at them, but she can't help but feel pleased.

Russel's walking leisurely, hands in his pockets as he meanders, occasionally pausing now and again to buy something. Something nags in the back of his head, makes him wonder if he'd picked the right side – being a Beacon student. He shakes his head, frowns deeply at his own thoughts.

"What's up?" Dove asks, returns from the store he'd been buying supplies from. Russel shrugs, looks sheepishly away. He couldn't say nothing to Dove.

"Just… Worried. Cardin's going to catch on, and Lark's not stupid either." Dove frowns, shakes his head.

"He's too focused on the rapes," Dove says, confident. "I'm sure our plan'll go off without a hitch." Cardin might have forgotten his vendetta against the White Fang, but Dove hadn't. "You better not be backing out," Dove says, glaring. Russel shakes his head, looks away.

"No… Just worried… But if we get caught –" Russel's shoulders hunch up, and Dove shoves him lightly.

"Be positive." Dove chastises him. Russel nods, grimaces sheepishly.

"Right – Positive." Russel frowns again. "What do we need to do now?" He asks, looks up at his friend.

"Just go home and make dinner. The White Fang's not going to know what hit them."

"You sure Velvet?" Yatsuhashi asks, frowns worriedly at the dark sky. She lays a warm, reassuring hand on her partner's shoulder.

"I'm sure Yatsu," She promises, smiles. "Just going to send some mail home." He sweeps her into a hug, and she returns it, laughing lightly.

"Be careful," He says warningly, before joining Coco and Fox. "Send up a flare for any reason – any reason at all." She nods, waves a goodbye, and disappears into the post office, her team reluctantly moving off to finish their own shopping.

It's barely an hour later and Velvet sends a quick message once she's out of the store, telling them she's on her way. Light, quick feet patter against the ground, dark hair flowing behind her as she walks past a rather boisterous bar. She's almost clear when something ripples past her, making her hands jump to the box she always carried on her outside of school. The ripples that moved past her however, made her ears ring, and she pitches over, hands slamming down hard enough that the skin breaks over the palm of one hand. Her hand barely manages to grasp the flare as it topples out of her box, before a foot kicks it out of the way.

No!