The airship touched down on the Vale port tarmac, doors opening with an airy whoosh to allow the passengers to step out. Blake yawned and hopped lightly down on to the ground below, her ears twitching as the general hubbub and commotion of Vale's busy streets grew louder once the doors no longer muffled it.

Yang hopped down next to her and grinned, sharing in a smile before taking the lead and heading into the crowd around them. Blake kept close, walking nearly on Yang's heels as she carved a blond headed trail through the mass of other students that were going to Vale on the weekend. After a handful of seconds, the sea of students finally parted, allowing Blake to step up next to her teammate instead and walk side by side.

"So, what first?" Yang asked, sending a sideways glance in Blake's direction. Her eyes returned to roaming the crowds around them, helping to steer them in the path of least resistance.

"What do you mean? We're getting me new workout clothes and then finding a bookstore, right?"

Yang scoffed, "I'm feeling like… Rocky Road. What about you?"

'...Rocky Road…?' "We're getting ice cream?" Blake frowned.

"You can't shop on an empty stomach!" Yang raised a hand as she said it, index finger pointing up as if this was some great lesson she was passing along.

"I think that only matters when you're buying groceries, not clothes and books…"

Yang waved a hand dismissively, "Semantics! I know a great place a few streets down," she eyed Blake, measuring her reaction, "It is on the way…"

Blake sighed with a soft smile of her own. 'Why not?' "Alright Yang, you win. Lead the way."

Yang beamed and grasped her hand tightly, pulling her through the crowds that were making use of the same general thoroughfare. Blake didn't bother protesting the contact, but even still, her spirits fell a bit. She couldn't help but wonder that, if she'd done things differently… 'Would that be Violet pulling me along?'

Soon enough, Yang was stopping to open a door for her, bell jangling melodically to announce their presence. They stepped inside to be met with a line, backed up nearly to the door itself and leaving only enough space to allow people to leave once they were done. Blake moved out of the way of a couple that had just finished up grabbing their orders. The man walked with his arm slung over the girl's shoulder, both giddily exiting back out into the warm summer day.

Looking more closely, Blake could spot many different couples standing in line, all sharing in some various form of contact while they waited to get to the front and make their orders. It only served to drop her heart even further in her chest, listening to their laughter and happiness, 'Maybe this wasn't the best place to go…'

Yang seemed to pick up on Blake's mood, spotting her lowered ears and slumped shoulders. Her face flickered, perhaps the same thought going through her head while staring at the faunus. Yang bit her lip, eyes darting to the glass door and back outside as she fought with herself.

Focusing on Yang and forgetting the couples in the room, Blake forced herself to calm down. With a step forward and a bump into Yang's side, she turned her head to look up at the flavor menu listed out above the counter, "I was always more a mint-chocolate chip fan myself."

Yang's uncertainty vanished, replaced with an easy smile as she followed Blake's eyes to the menu, "Is that so? Ruby would always order chocolate chip cookie dough and finish before we'd even had time to walk back outside. I always ordered Rocky Road because she hated it," Yang smiled, a far off look in her eye while she was overcome with nostalgia, "Kept her from trying to steal some of mine," she shrugged, "It grew on me and became my favorite eventually."

Blake smiled, imagining a younger Ruby quickly devouring an entire ice cream cone and looking to her older sister with hope-filled eyes, "That sounds like Ruby."

The line shuffled forward and the two followed along with it. Blake's smile twinged towards a frown, but she shrugged off the negative emotions that came along with her next question, "What do you think Violet likes?"

Yang scoffed, "I don't see her tying herself down to any specific flavor. If anything, she'd want to try something new every time just for the 'experience' of it."

Blake frowned, "Everyone has to have a favorite though, right?"

Yang shrugged, "Couldn't possibly tell you what it is. There's a lot of things I've realized recently… about Violet and…" her words trailed off into silence for a few moments as they stepped forward, following the line. The bell jingled once more as another happy couple left, wrapped in each other's arms, "I'm sorry things went down the way they did, Blake. I knew you liked Violet, but never stopped to consider what she might have wanted. I was… just trying to help."

Blake smiled sadly, "Better than leaving me to my own devices. I'd still be pining after her with no clear plan in mind for months without realizing she didn't feel the same way I did," Blake stared at the floor uncomfortably, "I thought she was interested because of how much attention she was giving me and my," her ear twitched, "...issues."

"Her loss, honestly," Yang chipped in with a hesitant smirk.

A small giggle escaped Blake's lips despite her current mood, "You could put it that way. I think I'm the one losing out more, though."

Yang punched her on the shoulder lightly as the final couple in line finished up their orders, allowing the two to step up to the counter, "There's no one I'd rather be hanging out with more."

Blake's cheeks heated, turning away to hide her face as Yang ordered for the both of them, easily remembering what Blake had wanted to choose for herself. A couple minutes and four scoops of ice cream later, the two exited the shop to the tune of that same jingle, enjoying the tasty treats held in their hands.

Blake's mind was busy with the words that Violet had said to her, and with a glance in Yang's direction, figured she may be doing the same. For whatever reason, their leader wanted to play matchmaker in putting the two together. Blake could only guess that she'd implanted the same thoughts into Yang as well, considering how the blond had been acting all morning and the day previous, 'Ever since their little rendezvous in the dorm…'

Without being overtly obvious, Yang had definitely been dropping subtle hints, the comment in the ice cream shop only being the most recent. While the idea of moving on so soon from Violet wasn't one she approved of, the blond's presence was a far cry from being unwanted. Unlike the protectiveness that Violet gave off, Yang projected warmth and confidence, like a hearth you would cuddle up next to on a cold night to keep the fear of the dark at bay.

In her own private thoughts, Blake could admit to sending one or two prolonged glances in Yang's direction when she changed, 'J-just a few times…' The blond brawler was beyond fit, physically appealing in a completely different way from Violet, but appealing nonetheless, 'And we're friends…' Over the past week of training, the two had become far closer. There were things Blake had admitted to Yang that even Violet didn't know, or at least hoped she didn't, 'You can never tell with that girl.'

"Cat got your tongue?" Yang piped up after a few blocks, the pair of them heading unmistakably towards the shopping district of Vale. Yang had finished the majority of her ice cream cone, and popped the last of it into her mouth with a grin, finger trailing back out from between her glistening lips.

Blake felt a familiar heat building in her cheeks and turned to look forward, "I uh, was thinking about… things. You know how it is."

Yang continued to grin, "Yes. I too have thoughts," she nudged Blake with an elbow, "Care to share with the class?"

For a moment, Blake thought Yang meant she wanted to try her ice cream and her cheeks reddened further, only for her to realize she meant what Blake was thinking. She breathed out quickly, trying to get her head straight by giving it a little shake, ears perking back up atop her head, "Well, to avoid either of us making the same mistake as I already did, I suppose it would be better to get things out in the open…" Blake glanced to Yang and coughed once into her hand, preparing for the question she wanted to ask, "Do you… like me, the same way I liked Violet?"

With her eyes locked onto Blake's, Yang gave a single, firm nod.

'O-okay! Now that's out of the way…!' Blake's lip twitched into a small smile along the corner, "How, um... long?"

"Hmmm," Yang put a finger to her chin, "Around the time we started working out together, I think? I definitely noticed you in… that way… the first time we met in the forest, but Violet was so quick to start helping you out that I didn't want to get in the way. I didn't fully realize until yesterday, during my talk with Violet. She made me list off reasons why she should like you, but they mostly came out as reason why I did…"

"A-and what were those?" Blake asked for curiosity's sake alone, 'Yup! That's why! No other reason!'

"Uh-um," Yang stumbled over her words. Blake caught the tiny glance that the blond sent to the top of her head before she shrugged noncommittally, "Just general stuff, like hanging out together."

Blake raised an eyebrow, seeing a hint of red dusting the brawler's cheeks. Her ears twitched frantically on top of her head, with Blake struggling to make the words she wished to say actually leave her mouth. It ended up being slightly breathless and forced, not quite the teasing tone she'd wanted to use, "Y-you like my ears?...~"

'How does Violet tease so easily!?' Blake screamed in her mind, entering panic mode as Yang's eyes drifted more purposefully to the ears twitching on her head.

"Um, I mean, I don't know if it's racist to say it…" Yang stuttered at first, choking on the words she was trying to say. Her resolution firmed when Blake's ears froze, perked as tautly as they could possibly go, "But your ears are… so cute."

Blake's hand drifted subconsciously up to cup overtop one of her ears, feeling the nonhuman appendage and hiding it from view, 'I… never expected a human to like them…' only her parents had ever complimented her ears. Blake thought all humans would see them as an oddity, something to be removed… She'd thought Violet was exclusive in that regard, but apparently...

"You really mean that…?"

In lieu of words, Yang nodded fiercely, eyes caught on Blake's ears. The blond's hand drifted up, softly taking hold of Blake's own, fingers intertwining to pull it away and down to their sides. Blake's ear popped back up into view, both now perked as her attention was pulled away to the hand holding hers.

With Yang still staring and surprisingly delicate fingers holding her own, Blake smirked, feeling her courage return now that the blond's attention was wholly diverted, "My eyes are down here, Yang~"

"S-sorry!" Yang pulled her hand free to rub the back of her head, ruffling her long hair, "Was that racist!? I didn't mean it that way!"

Blake laughed, "You're fine, Yang. It's the same as me complimenting you on your figure," she stammered, "N-not that I've looked!"

Yang rolled her eyes, "How could you not? I'm hot, kitty cat, and I don't mean when I'm using my semblance~ I bet even Violet's peeked once or twice."

Blake begrudgingly accepted Yang's own assessment of herself. There was no denying the blond was the best looking girl in their year, aside from maybe Pyrrha. Blake had always liked yellow more than red anyway. A thought occurred to Blake, mind wrapping around the end of Yang's statement, "What do you think I was missing? What does Violet want?" she shrugged awkwardly, "I can't help but feel like I just wasn't enough…"

Yang scoffed, "A black cat crossing your path brings bad luck, so don't get in your own way by doubting yourself, alright? It's not about whether or not you were 'enough'. Violet didn't want something more, just… different," the blond shrugged, looking ahead of them towards the quickly approaching store, "What that might be, I haven't the slightest clue."

"That was… oddly inspirational," Blake admitted slowly, eyes looking to Yang with a newfound respect, "How long did it take you to come up with that one?"

Yang laughed, "It's part of a backlog. There's a lot more where that came from, kitty cat~"

"I can't wait," Blake replied sarcastically, stepping up to the clothing store's door to hold it open for Yang. The blond grinned and walked past into the much cooler interior. Blake could hear the metallic scraping of hangers being pushed along racks, and the voices of the many other patrons currently in the store.

It was a fairly sized establishment, bereft of the finery you might see in more high end stores. Blake had tried going in one once and hadn't liked it. Who wanted an attendant measuring you and potentially asking personal questions about your little black bow? The employees here kept an eye out around the store, offering assistance where it seemed necessary, but otherwise leaving the customers to their own devices.

Blake stepped inside behind Yang and scanned the room, spotting the large sign from the ceiling announcing where the womens' section began and ended. It was currently being picked through by several other women. Blake and Yang entered the fray and began searching through the various outfits on display.

After a few minutes, Yang held up a tank top and pair of shorts, partially modeling them by holding them against herself and looking Blake up and down, "What do you think? Cute, comfortable, and very you."

Blake eyed the clothes with a discerning gaze. The shorts were elastic, black trimmed in white. The tank top was also black, though it would leave a hefty amount of her midriff exposed. Yang held them out to her and ushered her towards the dressing room.

"You'd better come back out with them on!"

Blake grumbled something unintelligible as she was thrust into an open room, door pushed closed behind her. She reached over and locked it before turning back to the mirror. Blake held up the garments as Yang had, looking at herself in the mirror.

'I have to admit… This would look good.'

A minute later, she was stripping them back off, entirely red in the cheeks and feeling very hot, 'No way can I walk out in those!'

"Hey, hey, hey!" Blake could hear Yang closing in on the door as she spoke, "You aren't changing back, are you? I haven't seen yet!"

"If you grabbed a size that fit me properly then I would have!" Blake argued back, pulling her regular outfit back on.

"What!? I picked that out just for you!"

"It was two sizes too small, Yang! I could s-see-..." Blake cut off, burying her face in her hands at the mental image, "G-Go grab me the right size, or we're going back to Beacon!"

"Woah, okay!" Yang's footsteps slowly backed away, "Let's not get hasty now. I'll be right back!" her footsteps quickly receded into the general din from the rest of the customers. After a few minutes, she returned to hold the same outfit out from overtop the dressing room door.

Blake grabbed the pair of garments and checked the sizes this time, breathing out a sigh of relief when they were actually her size. Blake once more undressed and changed into the correctly sized outfit, checking herself out in the mirror once it was finally on. As she'd thought previously, and now with a pair that were properly sized, 'I really do look good…'

Blake mentally prepared herself before stepping out. Her eyes found Yang immediately, waiting on the bench nearby that was there for exactly that purpose. The blond's eyes drifted up and down Blake's body, her lips parting to let out a low, appreciative whistle.

Blake blushed, eyes darting around to see a few others staring off towards them. Her eyes cut back to Yang, narrowing in accusation while she whispered fiercely, "Yang! Don't draw attention like that!"

Yang let her eyes scan across the room and back to Blake, giving her a half-hearted shrug, "What's wrong with people being a little jealous?~"

Blake shrank beneath the eyes of the store's other patrons and hurried back into the dressing room to change, 'Yang doesn't get it! What human would?' That many eyes on her was unnerving, spitting in the face of years trying to avoid that type of attention. Faunus didn't like the spotlight. Having it only invited the gaze of racists, and Blake was far from ready to take that step.

'Violet would have understood…' Blake thought, pausing in the midst of putting her shirt back on for the pain in her chest to go away.

Once she'd finished, Blake walked back out, giving Yang only a brief wave to follow before heading straight to the register. She set the pair of clothes down on the counter along with the detached hangers and dug into her pocket for her lien, hesitant to meet the cashier's gaze.

"What's the rush?" Yang caught up next to her, frowning down at the lien in her hand, "Blake, I brought you along. I wanted this to be a gift… as uh, thanks…"

"Thanks for what…?"

Yang's eyes flinched off of Blake's own, going anywhere else around the room aside from back to the faunus's face, "For being you, I guess…"

Yang's admission cut through Blake's agitation like a hot knife through butter, melting away her fear and turning it into a bewildered laugh that surprised Yang. She sighed after a few seconds, putting her lien back in her pocket, "Is that really something to celebrate? You know what I used to be."

"Doesn't matter."

"But-"

"I said it doesn't matter, Blake. Not to me," Yang pulled out her own lien and set it on the counter. The cashier accepted it, and the two teammates walked back out into the busy street, "If everyone judged everyone else on every little mistake they made, no one would be happy with anyone else ever."

"I wouldn't call joining the White Fang a 'little' mistake, Yang."

"All mistakes are when you're inexperienced and don't know any better," Yang argued, beginning to lead them deeper into the crowd and into the portion of the district that was more heavily populated with small shops, a bookstore hopefully among them, "You're older now, and you've figured out that what you were doing was wrong, even if it was for the right reasons. No one can fault you for any of it. If they try, they'll find themselves on the receiving end of my fists."

"You're going to beat up every racist we come across?"

"Yup."

Blake sighed, shaking her head, "That isn't what I want, Yang. I left the White Fang because of the violence. You can't solve all my problems by hitting them into submission. Then how would we be any better than the White Fang?"

"Fine," Yang replied confidently, "I'll make them see how wrong they are with my words. I can't promise not to get a little loud, though."

The two were silent for a time, both staying on the lookout for anything resembling a bookstore. It was Blake's sharper eyes that first spotted the bookstore's graphic posted up above the shop. A pen and quill sat next to an open book, ink spilled partially on the pages where the bookstore's name, 'The Reading Den', was easily visible.

"Shall we?" Yang held an arm out, gesturing Blake inside while pressing the door open with her other hand.

Blake paused in place, smelling the thick aroma of fresh paper and ink. She closed her eyes for a moment, breathing in the literal atmosphere before letting her feet guide her way inside. The one story building was tall, reaching up nearly fifteen feet high and stacked along every wall with bookshelves that took full advantage of that fact. The open space was interrupted by isle after isle of more bookshelves, taken up by the occasional peruser hefting an interesting book or three off said shelves.

"So, I should just pick out anything I want?" Yang asked idly, eyes roaming the copious amount of books available with a daunted expression on her face.

"Y-yeah, you go do that," Blake replied distractedly, running her fingers lightly down a line of books to feel the different textures with each. Her hands paused on one that had been sleeker than the others, and she tugged it out to begin reading the synopsis. While she held true to the idea that you shouldn't visually judge a book by its cover, there was something about a good book that you could feel with a touch. It was a tactic that had led her to many of her favorites, and she would swear by it if ever the time arose.

Yang left her to it, wandering off to find another section to look through while Blake did her thing. The faunus tucked the book she'd already grabbed beneath one arm and started the process over again, eventually pulling out quite a few after several minutes had passed.

Yang's voice pulled her out of her search, though it was not to Blake that she was speaking. Down towards the end of the isle, long blond hair swishing in and out of sight, Yang spoke in heated whispers with someone else.

"You shouldn't judge someone like that just because of what they look like! Blake is a really nice girl, and a huntress! She's training to protect people, people like you! And yet here you are, wondering whether or not you should tell the manager because you think she's going to walk out with all those books? How dare you!?"

Another woman's voice spoke quietly, blustering and stammering, "Look, I-I didn't mean it quite that way. You can never tell when a faunus is up to no good! That's all I meant!"

"Lady, I've met more humans that were up to no good than I can count on two hands. Whether or not someone is a faunus makes no difference. It's exactly this kind of racism that makes them act out in the first place. How would you feel if you were harassed like that just for wanting to buy a few books!?"

"I-I'm sorry, okay? I won't mention it again…"

"Good. Now get out and leave us in peace."

There was the sound of feet quickly shuffling on the carpeted floor before a large red-headed woman passed through the isle nearest Blake, heading for the door. She sent one furtive glance back over her shoulder, paling when she saw Blake's eyes on her, and exited the shop in a rush.

Yang popped around the corner a few seconds later, holding a book in a white knuckle grip while the color slowly drained from her cheeks, returning to their natural tinge. Yang put on a smile and hefted the book up so that Blake could see, "Found one. Were you ready to leave, or did you want to look around a bit more?"

Blake smiled, practiced enough to read the title along the spine in only that brief moment. 'Faunus Customs and Traditions: 101 Ways to Keep the Peace'

"No, that's alright. Let's get out of here."

Yang nodded happily and the two walked to the counter. Blake noticed Yang reaching into her pocket to pay once more and laid a hand across her arm, "I've got it this time."

"Really? You already have your own books, though. Sure you don't want me to pay?"

"Of course not," Blake smirked, "I invited you here, didn't I?"

Yang smiled in return, "Oh~? And what did I do to deserve this~?"

Blake set her lien down on the counter and grabbed the bag full of books, spinning around to face away from Yang and hide the heartfelt smile twisting her lips, "For being you, I suppose."

Yang opened her mouth to reply but was interrupted by her scroll ringing. She dipped her hand into her pocket and raised it up, pulling the sides apart. The video connected, revealing Weiss along with the rest of her team and another ginger girl behind them that Blake didn't recognize. They appeared to be standing in their dorm room, with Ren and Pyrrha trying to calm down the nervous stranger.

"Hey! Get back to Beacon. I know we weren't supposed to do anything over the weekend, but Pyrrha stumbled upon something important…something..." doubt crept across her face, and her eyes glanced to Yang with a nervous frown, "Just get here, alright? We'll talk more when you're back."

"Did you already let Violet know?" Yang asked quickly, getting the question in before Weiss could end the call.

"Yes. She's on her way back with Ruby now. Hurry up," she turned to look over her shoulder, voice dropping low, "I don't know how long we can keep this girl around and willing to talk. She's been very standoffish ever since the first thing she revealed…"

Yang and Blake nodded in unison, "We're on our way. See you there," Yang ended the call, and Blake hefted the bag of books higher on her shoulder.

"Ready to go?"

"Let's see what this is all about."

Violet crawled back into bed with a huff and stayed there for as long as she could after Nora had woken her, saying she needed to come over and help in the Siren dorm right away, 'Freeze Ren's legs? Maybe i'll have to do something about the two of them soon as well. Not like I can get us all the way to Kuroyuri from here anytime soon, though… I'll see what I can do.'

She buried herself into her pillow, using a tiny amount of her powers to cool the side her face rested against. Violet had been having a good dream again, and despite having no recollection whatsoever of what it had been about, still yearned to fall back into its awaiting clutches.

Alas, it was not to be, as only a handful of minutes later, Yang and Blake began getting ready to head out. Ruby woke as well, hopping lightly down off her top bunk to land in front of Violet in her pajamas, turned away with a hand reaching up beneath the bottom hem of her shirt to scratch her stomach.

Violet yawned and sat up, incapable of drifting off with the constant scrape and bustle of hairbrushes being set down, dressers being opened and closed, and footsteps drumming against the wooden floor. With a quick flick, she pulled her blanket off herself from the corner and slipped out to sit on the edge, watching the rest of her team getting ready while silently pondering what she wanted to do with her day.

'We're heading out to the movies later, but until then…?'

A vibration from her scroll answered her question for her. Violet picked it up off the corner of the bookshelf and swiped it open, looking at the email that had been sent to her. It was an order confirmation from the SDC, giving an address for pickup along with a written apology for the delay, and a ten percent deduction in the cost of the dust cells she'd ordered.

'How thoughtful… considering I was the one that blew them up in the first place.'

Not that the SDC was aware of that. If they were, she would have been forced to look elsewhere for a supplier, and likely would have been sent a bill instead of an order confirmation. There wasn't really any alternative aside from the SDC. Violet had tried getting into contact with the business that Flynt Coal's father owned when she was first trying to outsource the job, only to find out it had been a few years since it was shut down.

Blake and Yang headed to the door after getting ready, the former heading out into the hall without a word, and Yang turning around to give Violet a tentative thumbs up. She returned the gesture with more assurity along with a confident smile. The blond's spirits rose, and she gave a firm nod before closing the door behind herself.

That left Ruby as the sole other occupant. Violet could hear her in the bathroom, door slightly ajar and tap running while the sounds of brushing teeth could be made out. Violet stood up to stretch and then headed to her dresser, piecing together an outfit for the short outing she planned on making. It was a simple ensemble, created to combat the early summer heat that she could feel radiating through the window.

Before long, Violet was standing in the bathroom next to Ruby, both fixing their hair up. Violet wore a thin, purple spaghetti strap shirt that left a small amount of her midriff exposed, and a short black skirt with thin black tights. With a quick spin, Violet was delighted to see the back edge of the skirt almost revealing what lay above her thighs.

Violet didn't know why, but she'd woken up that morning feeling like she wanted to show off a bit more than usual. There was a desire to feel sensual, a feeling she had not had since… 'When was my last time…?' Judging by the way Ruby's cheeks brightened and she quickly excused herself from the bathroom, Violet was glad to see she'd been successful in her endeavor.

The team leader exited a minute later, hair finally in order, and searched through her dresser to find the small satchel with its black leather strap that she tightened around her upper thigh. She didn't own a purse, and the current clothes she was wearing definitely didn't have pockets for her scroll or lien.

With a glance up into the bunk above her own, Violet could see that Ruby was reading the book she'd originally created for Blake, "How are you liking it so far, Little Red?"

"It's really good!" Ruby answered excitedly, showing off that she was already a good portion of the way through, "I've been reading it before bed whenever I can and it's hard to put down."

"Glad to hear," Violet smiled, "Mind tearing yourself away from it for a bit to head down into Vale with me, though? My replacement order from the SDC finally arrived and I needed to go pick it up. Seeing as someone," she flashed Ruby a grin to show that she was only joking, "was the one that used most of them in the first place, it's only fair that they help out, right?"

"O-of course!" Ruby replied, saving her place in the book before hopping back down. She'd opted to wear her usual, black and red corset with a similarly colored skirt, a red cape, and tall black combat boots over grey tights. Ruby dusted off her skirt when she landed and grabbed Crescent Rose, slinging it against her lower back.

Violet eyed Zenith leaning up against the corner of the bookshelf and decided not to bring it. With Emerald and Mercury gone, she sincerely doubted that Cinder would be attempting any large scale moves any time soon, and her modest skills at hand to hand would be more than enough for the average grunt-level threat. With a flick of her hair to the side, Violet opened the door for Ruby and stepped out after her, the two beginning the walk down to the bullheads.

"So, what are you liking most about it so far?" Violet asked, resuming their conversation about the book.

"Oh! The goddess is so cool~!" Ruby gushed, closing her hands into fists and raising them to her chest, "The way she took down that flying behemoth with a single shot through its eye!?" Rose petals fell from Ruby as she zipped ahead, striking a pose as if holding up a bow and aiming down it at a distant target, "She was all like, 'I won't let you hurt my friends!', and the dragon was all like, getting ready to breath fire on the group, and she released the arrow at the last moment, and-!"

Ruby continued to ramble on about the exploits detailed in the book. Violet could only walk along and smile, glad to hear that she was enjoying them so much and not looking for any deeper meaning to it as Blake had.

"Oh-oh, and then!" Ruby dropped the pretend bow to reach behind her back and pull out a pair of invisible daggers, voice dropping to a mysterious whisper, "Her constant companion, Ser-"

Violet's head swam, the world around her twisting in place as she slowed, holding a hand over the sudden ache pounding in her skull. As fast as it had appeared... it was gone, leaving Ruby none the wiser as she continued to regale Violet with tales from 'The Lonely Goddess'.

Violet breathed out a ragged sigh, letting her hand fall back down to her side and quickened her pace, catching back up with the excited girl currently in the midst of reenacting… 'What?' Violet couldn't remember what part of the book she was supposed to be describing, but from the look of things, Ruby was busy laying waste to a group of enemies while wielding a pair of daggers.

Violet frowned. She didn't often use two daggers to fight. It had always felt odd, out of place, and meant for other people but not herself. She shrugged, hardly bothered by it. Violet hadn't exactly paid attention to her own omniscience when creating the book. If there were a few things she'd forgotten about, then it hardly mattered. As long as Ruby was liking it, that was good enough for her.

Soon enough, the two were stepping onto a bullhead and heading down into Vale. Ruby inhaled sharply, catching her breath now that she'd run out of things to describe in the book. She gave a small laugh and rubbed the back of her head, "That's how far I've gotten, anyway. I'm really loving it!"

"Good to hear, Little Red," Violet replied truthfully, ruffling her hand through the younger girl's hair. For once, Ruby didn't seem to mind, and just accepted the normally undesired affection with a cheeky smile.

"Anything you wanted to do today?" Violet asked, glancing out the windows to Vale below. The city lay sprawled out beneath them, a wavy haze rising from the heat wafting its way up the streets.

Ruby put a finger to her chin, tapping idly in thought, "Well, we have the movie later with everyone, and we're going out to visit my dad tomorrow, so…" she shrugged, "Do you want to help me pick out a gift for him?"

Violet smirked, "What, like a 'thanks for raising me and my sister, it must have been so difficult because we're such handfuls' sort of gift?"

"You know us so well~" Ruby giggled, beginning to hum lightly while she thought of a retort, "More like a 'sorry we aren't around and you're all alone at home with Qrow' gift, though."

Violet grinned, "And what kind of a gift is that?"

Ruby shrugged, "I don't know, like a blender or something?"

Violet laughed for a few seconds before she could speak, fading out into smaller fit, "Surely you can do better, Little Red?"

Ruby shook her head, "No, he's been wanting a new one for a while. Yang wore out his old blender with all the protein shakes she used to make."

"Well then, I guess we're just going to have to make up for it with a top of the line model," Violet nodded, eagerly hopping out of the bullhead as it touched down and holding her skirt down as she did. She wanted to feel sensual, not flash an entire crowd of students and civilians alike.

Ruby hopped out next to her and the two made way for the rest of the students that had joined them on the flight, many wanting to enjoy their weekend between semesters to the best of their abilities. Ruby trailed along behind initially, following in Violet's wake as she forged ahead through the gathered mass. Eventually, the crowd thinned and the two of them were able to walk side by side once more.

The trip to the SDC storage facility was thankfully short, the two huntresses arriving in a scant few minutes to stand outside the large white complex near the middle of main street. The building rose up three stories tall, and was afforded more space to either side than any of the other structures next to it. There were no windows along the upper floors, only a singular reinforced glass pane on the bottom that allowed a line of sight into the shop itself.

Violet and Ruby stepped inside, the younger huntress gawking at the sheer size of some of the dust crystals on display. Chunks of crystal of all colors were arranged like a rainbow along the bottom of the front counter, their smaller counterparts set above them for actual purchase. Ruby pressed up against the glass with her nose to stare at the unrefined dust ore, chunks of impurities clearly visible within.

"Ah, hah, yes," the attendant behind the counter made a gesture as if to shoo away Ruby, then raised his eyes back up to Violet, "How may I be of service?" he glanced down at Ruby, "Intending to buy some ammunition for your younger friend here?"

Violet smirked and pulled out her scroll to slide it in front of him on the counter, order number apparent along with the sizable request she had made, "No, I'm here for me. My order was supposed to have come in today?"

The man's eyes widened in surprise at the five digit figure on the scroll and changed his demeanor immediately, appearing far more placating, "Oh, why yes, of course! I'll be right back out!" he backed away until he reached the door behind him, then turned to place his palm on the ID scanner. With a loud beep, the door slid open to allow him entry and closed the instant he'd crossed the threshold.

Violet took a minute to wander around the shop, looking at the stock they had on display. Powdered dust in tubes, standard for packing your own custom ammunition, refined crystals of all shapes and sizes. They were still managing to stay well maintained despite Roman's best efforts, though the shop itself didn't show any signs of an attempted ransacking.

"Why does it have all that stuff in it?" Ruby asked, still looking down at the unrefined crystals with a frown.

"They impurities," Violet walked over to stand next to her, looking down at the crystals mixed with various stone, each nearly a foot in diameter, "When they mine dust, they're cutting around rock to get to it. The crystals themselves can form in all shapes and sizes, depending on the heat and pressure that went into making them. They wanted to show off how large of crystals they usually manage to find, so they're showing them off here without cutting them," she shrugged, "About that much dust goes into each of my lightning dust cells for Zenith."

Ruby whipped around to stare up at Violet, "What!? How do they fit all that into," she held her fingers close together, "such a small object?"

"Part of the refining process. It's a fairly new technique, only discovered within the last few years. By using additional pressure, they can compact the dust itself further. Once it's in that stage, though, it becomes extremely volatile. The cell's casing is lined with a tiny amount of gravity dust to keep the crystal inside from touching it's own container. Part of the reason they're so damn expensive, but… it's worth it for what I get out of Zenith."

"And you still managed to build it like that?" Ruby whispered in awe, then shifted into a teasing laugh, "You're a nerd, Violet."

Violet laughed along, "I don't want to hear that coming from the other weapon nut in the room. At least I only fawn over Zenith instead of other people's weapons~"

"I can't help it! They're all so cool!" Ruby replied in dismay.

The door to the back opened once more, and the attendant struggled out, hefting a decently sized leather pouch. The top was flopped over to hold the contents within, a tight leather strap binding it down so that it wouldn't open. The man carried it in both arms, holding it close and breathing heavily with sweat dripping from his brow. Seeing the potential hazard if he placed it down atop the glass counter as is, Violet reached a hand out.

The mass was removed as Violet took hold of the pouch's leather handle, easily pulling it up and away from the attendant's hold, "Thank you, sir~"

"Of course, my dear. The SDC is happy to have your patronage," he wheezed out, holding himself up against the counter with both hands to steady himself, "If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask."

"I think I'm good for now," Violet looked to Ruby who nodded in return, "Have a nice day~!" the two exited back out onto the busy street, looking either way to get their bearings once more.

"Know a place to get that blender?"

"Yup! It's right down the street. Just a left, then a right, then-"

Ruby was cut off as Violet's scroll buzzed in the pouch on her thigh. She held up a finger to gesture for Ruby to wait a moment before digging it out and accepting the call.

Her heart dropped at what appeared on screen, 'I forgot about Penny! Dang it! So much has been happening recently…'

"Violet!" Weiss said in a fierce whisper, face closing in to the scroll to hide what she was saying, "We found a girl out in Vale that says she's from Atlas, and she knows Ironwood!"

Violet raised an eyebrow, pretending to be shocked, and Weiss nodded, "Yeah, that Ironwood. We're trying to talk her into saying more, but she just keeps saying she doesn't know anything and hiccuping a lot. Can you get back here and help?"

"I'll be right there," Violet hung up the call as Weiss opened her mouth to say something else. Whatever it was, she'd hear about it when she arrived. In the meantime, she needed to get their soon and make sure Penny didn't accidentally spill more than was necessary.

'How did Penny…' the connection became apparent in Violet's mind. This was the weekend where the attack on the docks should have normally taken place. With that out of the way, and with Weiss being the leader of Siren instead of a member of team RWBY, she'd led the others down into Vale to scope out rival students and bumped into Penny in the process.

'Which means Sun is around somewhere…' Violet's mood brightened somewhat, 'At least one piece of good news. I always liked that lovable idiot.'

Violet turned back to Ruby and gave her an apologetic smile, "Sorry, Little Red. I'm sure we can stop by the store on the way out to Patch tomorrow. You cool with that?"

Ruby smiled to hide her disappointment and raised a hand, trying to imitate a wave, "I'm always cooool~"

Violet laughed, "Alright, kid. Let's get back to Beacon."

The two set off quickly, weaving their way through the crowds. Ruby, to find out what all the fuss was about in regards to the cute ginger girl. Violet, to make sure said ginger didn't get in trouble.

Gah! It's been so hard to concentrate this weekend. I commissioned an artwork for my Twitter banner and got sent the pose mock up on Saturday morning. So hyped for it to be finished!

Thanks for reading,

- Sybaen