Greyson, Rusty, Azure and Ember milled about their dorm, waiting for Raven to wake. She had not moved on her own since her fight in Amity Colosseum three hours prior. Azure had checked Raven's vital signs upon returning to the dorm, finding that nothing was amiss. Other than her fully depleted aura, Raven was healthy, and sleeping deeply. The only cause for concern was Kita, who had vanished the night before and had not yet returned.
Eventually, Raven began to stir. First her arm, then her upper body. Her eyes flickered open, and her face immediately took on a look of confusion as she rubbed her eyes.
"Raven! Are you okay?" Rusty excitedly asked, getting closer to her.
"Wh-What am I? Where.. happened? Hungry..." Raven mumbled, nearly rolling herself off the bed.
"I'll grab her a snack," Greyson offered. By the time he returned with a granola bar and bottle of water, Raven was sitting upright, and mostly aware of her surroundings.
"S-So... what exactly did I do?" Raven asked. "Last I r-remember, Stahl was coming to attack me. I... I didn't lose?"
"No, you grew wings and demolished him! It was awesome!" Rusty complimented.
"I-I grew wings?" Raven repeated uncertainly.
"I know about this," Ember began. "Some faunus have a semblance known as an 'awakened form." In short, they can take on the form of their respective animal. So, you turned into a raven."
"I can turn into a r-raven..." Raven reflected. "Wh-Why don't I remember what happened?"
"My father told me about this when I was young. The first time this semblance manifests is in a time of immense physical or emotional stress," Ember explained. "This semblance is also extremely taxing on aura, and it requires ridiculous amounts of training to control. Last fight, your semblance controlled you completely."
"Th-That's not good, I might hurt someone," Raven worried. "D-Did I?"
"You beat Stahl pretty badly, but he was able to walk off on his own," Ember answered. "Really though, why should you care at all?"
"I-I don't know... I just don't want to hurt anyone..." Raven said.
Just then, someone knocked on the door. Greyson pulled back in surprise as he looked through the peephole, then opened it. In the doorway stood Kita, smiling slightly, acting as if she had not been missing for nearly a day.
"Greetings, Master Greyson," Kita welcomed. She bowed in respect.
"Kita! Where were you?" Greyson asked fervently, relieved she had returned.
"I have been around," Kita cryptically explained. "My sincerest apologies. I missed Raven and Pierce's battles. And I was not able to protect you where I was. You may punish me as you see fit."
"I'm not going to punish you. I'm just glad you're back," Greyson responded.
"By the way, is this you?" Azure asked, holding up a copy of Vale's newspaper. She pointed to an article just under the headline about the Vytal Tournament.
Just over a blurry, nighttime picture of a girl that looked much like Kita, the paper read "Mysterious Masked Swordswoman Saves Huntsmen!"
Kita looked at the page blankly. "...No. It is not me," she said uncertainly. "Is Raven injured?"
"N-No, I'm fine," Raven said. She lifted the covers off herself, then carefully rose to her feet with Rusty's help. "I-I'm going to go, um... I have to go outside for a bit."
She walked slowly and cautiously to the doorway, and left. Silently, Ember slipped out the door behind her. After seeing Raven needed nothing but the bathroom, Ember casually waited outside. When Raven opened the door, she started with surprise as she nearly ran headfirst into Ember.
"Oh! S-Sorry," Raven apologized, shuffling around the redhead.
"Wait. I wanted to talk to you. To discuss something I didn't want to bring up around Rusty," Ember said.
Raven shifted nervously, then looked up to her friend. "O-Okay, what did you need to say?" she asked.
"Well, if the rumors are true," Ember began, with an edge to her voice that seemed to warn of danger. "You should be careful. Quite a few 'awakened faunus' have gone missing in the past. People seem to think there's a group out there who hunts these faunus in specific."
"Wh-What?" Raven questioned anxiously. "I-I might be t-targeted by someone? Why?"
"It's a possibility," Ember admitted. "And nobody knows why. I figure some people who know about your semblance think awakened faunus are closer to grimm."
"Closer... t-to grimm?" Raven repeated. "But, th-that's not true, right?"
"Oh, it's complete bull," Ember assured. "Honestly, all of this might be. I just thought I should let you know."
"I... I hope so..." Raven said. "Hey, h-how do you know so much about this? I've n-never heard about any of this before, a-and, well... I'm the one with the semblance."
"My dad was a faunus," Ember revealed. "Not only was he built like a bear, he had the ears of one too. He was like you."
"Woah... i-is that why you d-didn't care I was a faunus?" Raven recalled.
"Might be part of it. Both my dad and Pierce. Not to mention faunus are practically the same thing as humans," Ember said. She sighed, and lowered her voice until it carried no more strength than a whisper. "You know? Sometimes I wonder if the grimm really are what killed my parents. Maybe I've been chasing the wrong answer this whole time."
Ember's uncertainty hung in the air above the two as an awkward silence followed. Nothing Raven could muster as a reply matched the consequence of what Ember had just said. Ember did not expect an answer. Silence hung between the two until Ember's scroll began to ring.
Ember pulled back with slight surprise when she looked to her scroll. Nervously, she answered and raised the device to her face.
"Hello, Miss Blackburn," Headmaster Ozpin's calm voice called through Ember's scroll. "I would like to meet you and Mister Verdi in my office as soon as is convenient. Are you available?"
"Yes, sir," Ember stiffly replied, fidgeting with her belt loop. "Should I call for him?"
"I've already contacted him," the Headmaster answered. "There's no need to be nervous, Miss Blackburn. Neither of you are in trouble."
"Right. I'll be there." Ember hung up her scroll, then let loose a sigh as she slid the device into her pocket. "How does Pierce do it so casually?" she asked herself.
"W-Was that the Headmaster?" Raven asked.
"Yeah. He wants Pierce and I for something," Ember replied. "Tell everyone I'll be back in a little."
Ten minutes later, Ember and Pierce walked into Headmaster Ozpin's office quietly. It did not seem the same office as always. Everything was coated in tones of orange from sunset, lending the silent room an eerie, unsettling feeling. The massive, turning gears above were the only hint that time still passed. Nothing else in the room moved, or dared to make a sound. Ember and Pierce's footsteps broke the silence as they stepped toward their seats, and sat.
"Greetings, Mister Verdi. Miss Blackburn. I can imagine you are wondering why you're here," Professor Ozpin began. "But first, I will ask you a question. Why do you think I let you two, a couple of dangerous criminals, into the finest school for hunting Grimm Vale has to offer?"
"You said I had talent, and that talent should be aimed in the right direction," Pierce stated. "You sure made good on the promise to keep me under strict supervision. Can't take a piss at night without being followed."
"Well, I wondered why I was accepted," Ember admitted. "My written scores were high enough, but I barely scraped by the practical exam. I'm guessing you wanted me off the streets?"
"Yes. I believed your talent could be put to stellar use in the right hands, and it seems thus far I was correct. However, your talent could also be... troublesome, should it fall into the wrong hands," Ozpin warned. He took a sip from the coffee mug that seemed eternally fixed to his fingers and paused, as if inviting Ember and Pierce to speak.
"The wrong hands?" Ember questioned.
"Yes. Forces around the school edge closer daily. Dark forces. The time may soon come when you must decide who to fight for. I urge you to continue on the path of good."
