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Ruby sighed as she watched Pyrrha take out Cardin's entire team as if they were toddlers not trained warriors. Not that she thought her partner would beat up a set of toddlers. Feeling her ever-present shadow move she tried to ignore the rush of annoyance and just barely kept it from showing on her face. It'd been two days since Roman escaped from them not that she minded yet in that those two days, Blake hadn't left her side. It was starting to get annoying. She didn't mind her teammates watching her, but she felt as if she was suffocating. Leaning back, she jumped when a hand touched her shoulder.

"Careful," Mercury warned as he stopped her from hitting her head on his boot. Ruby blinked tilting her head to look at the boy before nodding. It would most likely hurt if she hit pure metal. He was probably keeping her from getting brain damage and from discovering his secret.

"Thanks," she said before looking back down at the match that she was supposed to be paying attention to.

She winced in sympathy when Pyrrha slammed Cardin into the floor. The way his body bounced back into the air meant the girl wasn't holding back. Mercury felt the movement from where his hand still rested on her shoulder; looking down at the match he could see the reason for her action. The team of boys had been totally decimated by the redhead. Then again Pyrrha was a world-renown fighter; there weren't many people that could defeat her. Emerald rammed her elbow into his ribs causing him to let go of the girl's shoulder to appease her.

"Now we have time for one last match," Glynda stated before looking up into the stands. She was looking for another victim/volunteer but she would single out a student if no one offered. This close to the Vytal Festival any practice was a boon.

"I want to fight Jaune," Ruby announced before Mercury could even open his mouth. Not only would it cut off him learning about Pyrrha's semblance, but it would also let her teammates learn that she wasn't some fragile flower. Ruby stood easily patting Jaune on the head as she passed him. The boy seemed to be horrified at catching his leader's attention. The look of pure terror he sent at her back caused Mercury to huff in amusement.

When the match started Jaune wasn't sure what to expect. Although Ruby knew all his moves, he knew almost none of her own; he just wasn't fast enough to keep up. Ruby twirled Thorn in her hand and got ready, she wouldn't need her scythe to deal with her poor teammate. Blake watched her leader fight with worry on her face, she even leaned forward to be closer to the fight. Logically she knew Ruby was strong but all she could think about was seeing her hands coated with blood. Pyrrha sat beside her teammate quietly. None of them were oblivious to Blake's mood and all of them thought Ruby's actions were reckless. While she and Jaune were ill-equipped to deal with the faunus emotionally Ruby wasn't. She was also vaguely sure that only Blake would be able to get through to Ruby.

"Your tense," Emerald whispered dragging her partner's attention away from the ongoing fight.

"Sorry," he said. Watching Ruby parry her teammates strike, he felt a bit worried for his little sparring partner. She was far too distracted.

"Both you and Cinder seem attached to that girl," his partner stated with barely concealed jealousy. Brightening Mercury turned away from the fight to look at the crimson eyed girl who stiffened.

"Aw, is Emmy jealous," he teased. The flustered expression on her face was well worth the punch she landed on his shoulder. Catching her hand before she could pull back, he held it tightly as his expression turned serious. While he might tease her, that didn't mean he was blind to her insecurities. Rubbing the back of her hand with his thumb he said, "don't worry you're still our favorite."

Huffing she looked away from him but tellingly didn't try to pull away from him. She tried but sometimes it was hard to ignore the voice in her head that told her she wasn't good enough. Seeing both the people she cared about paying more attention to a girl that wasn't her was scary. What if they decided to replace her? The thought of being alone again wasn't something she liked to entertain. She doubted that she would even survive such a situation.

Down below Ruby knocked away Jaune's swing and held Thorn to his throat winning the match. She smirked at his defeated expression although they'd both expected it to happen. When they first started sparring together, he wouldn't last more than five seconds before losing. He was getting much stronger, but she still couldn't think of him as anything more than the boy who needed her protection.

"I think, I lasted about four minutes that time," Jaune mumbled to himself causing her to laugh.

"Your improving," Ruby assured him and jumped when the bell to end class rang. Glynda announced the dance was that weekend and their training mission was the day after; Ruby had to get the Mt. Glen mission. The two walked toward their teammates while Sun grinned at them.

"Little demon," Sun shouted waving his arms in the air. He not only gained their attention but that of everyone in hearing range.

Ruby looked over at the monkey faunus and his team before grinning. She loved the nickname that Sun had given her. Uncaring of the watching students she got a running start before launching herself at the older boy. Sun caught the girl around the waist and spun her around; it wasn't that hard when she weighed less than half his own body weight. Laughing he set the girl on her feet gently as the rest of her team caught up. Blake smiled at the action and blushed when Sun sent her the same bright grin, he did Ruby.

"What's up," Ruby asked. Returning their waves, she beamed as Sage ruffled her hair. Keeping his bright grin even as Jaune and Neptune shared a look of parental exasperation, Sun turned to Blake with a grin.

"Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to come to the dance with me," he asked. Hearing the hope in his voice, Ruby grinned despite the bitter feeling she felt. Blake seemed to think about it for a moment.

"I don't-".

"She'd love to," the reaper told him brightly. Blake deserved to happy and now that she'd succeeded with getting Pyrrha and Jaune together she needed a new target. The happy grin on Sun's face was well worth it. Lacing her arm around her teammates she said, "but first we have to go down to Vale and get my dress."

"Cool," Sun said although Blake didn't look very happy about the situation. She looked over at her exited leader before sighing. There was no way she could deny her leader anything.

"I'll see you at the dance Sun," she said as Ruby spun on her heel and headed for the door dragging her teammate with her.

Neither saw the expression their partners sent at their backs or the way Sun jumped in the air from excitement. Walking toward the bullheads, Ruby hummed softly her head swinging as she moved with the sound. The dance was going to be fun for her teammates. Now everyone she cared about had a date. It was hard to describe why that idea caused her to feel bitter. She didn't want to feel jealous of her friends, but that didn't make the emotion go away.

Hearing Blake sigh, she looked up at the older girl. There was a concerned look on her teammate's face that caused her to feel slightly guilty. She knew that the other girl cared about her, and Blake didn't deserve to be the focus of her dark emotions. Grinning she made sure that none of her bitter emotions showed.

"Want to tell me what's wrong now," she asked. Blake winced the memory of Ruby laying in her arms weak flashing to the front of her mind.

"Ruby you could have died," Blake said softly as they got onto the bullhead. She hated the thought of losing the younger girl; no matter how strong she was still mortal. Wincing slightly, she said, "you could have died saving me."

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat, do you actually think I would let you or Pyrrha or Jaune take a blow that I could block," Ruby stated easily. Her teammates were much more important than her. Even with all her plans she would throw everything away in order to protect those she cared about. Knowing the future did not mean she was immune to feeling human, nor did she fear death. She knew what was waiting on her when she died.

Blake stared at the girl before she felt a sudden rush of anger. Almost snarling she pulled her leader into a corner of the airship where no one could hear them. she didn't even try to hide the rage on her face as she asked, "do you think your life is worth less than ours?"

The words were said with such brutal hate that for a moment Ruby was surprised. She hadn't expected Blake to take the words so seriously. For a moment she didn't understand why her teammate was so angry. They were huntresses, risking their lives was necessary. Tilting her head slightly she raised an eyebrow at the feline faunus.

"You charge recklessly into battles and take on all our problems as if you had none of your own. Eventually you're going to get yourself killed," Blake said once it became obvious her leader wasn't going to say anything.

The two girls stood in silence as Ruby tried to figure out how to respond to her teammate. Everything that the girl had said was true, but did the other girl expect her to stand back and do nothing when their team was in danger? She was a warrior, a Branwen, she would not allow her teammates to get hurt. Was she reckless? Yes, she never claimed to be the most careful person in the world. She'd been trained to attack rather than back out of situations.

"Blake, I care about you and the others, and I won't apologize for keeping you safe," Ruby said looking over at the faunus and forcing a smile onto her face. She could understand her teammate's concern, but it was misplaced. Running a hand through her hair she said, "I'd rather die a thousand times than allow any of you to get hurt."

"But that's not fair," Blake protested grabbing Ruby shoulders. She'd seen far too many people die in the White Fang and hearing those words form her leader scared her. Why couldn't Ruby understand that they would be worse off without her? Stilling Blake almost cursed herself for not trying the team approach in the first place. Hoping that she could get through to her teammate she said, "what if you die and leave us all alone! You're our leader and I would rather you not die by making a stupid mistake!"

Ruby's breath hitched when she saw the tears pooling in Blake's eyes. She hadn't actually thought about how her team would feel if she died; she'd assumed they would just move on without her. Her whole life as Alice she didn't have anyone to rely on, so no one would care if she'd died. She'd been alone and without thinking she'd applied the same practices she used to keep herself safe from her family. As Ruby she had a family and friends, she could let down the walls that she built around her emotions, so how did she manage to push Blake this far? She would need to think about this and examine some of her plans.

"I didn't think," Ruby said aloud reaching up to wipe away the tears that the older girl shed. Catching sight of her teammates pinned back ears, she winced a bit before saying, "I'm so sorry I worried you Blake, but I promise I won't die."

"You can't know that," Blake whispered but somehow seeing the soft smile on her leaders face she could believe it. She could have faith in the fact Ruby wouldn't die without a fight. It was nice to know that Ruby would fight for her own life now instead of just for them.

"Now onto happier topics," Ruby ordered pulling the faunus down onto the floor with her. It wouldn't help either of them to dwell on negative topics. Ruby lightly touched her hair before asking, "do you want to help me cut my hair?"

(Tyrian)

He was finally strong enough to move, so he was here sitting in front of the fire. It didn't really make sense to him; he was going to accuse the soup of having sedatives in it. Running a hand over his tail, he glanced at the woman sitting as far from him as possible on the small couch. She hadn't softened toward him even a little bit over the last few days, she was still watching him as if he was a threat to her and her daughter.

He didn't really mind being the focus of her attention, nor did he mind her daughter. He was slightly surprised at that fact, but he supposed it was due to how quiet the girl was. While the kid was usually by her mother's side, she did have a habit of approaching him when she thought he wasn't looking. Most of the time, she simply read a book beside him while he plotted. She was still skittish around him with good reason, but she didn't have anything to fear. His goddess had told him to find the Winter Maiden not to make an enemy of her.

"Ozpin or Salem," Cora asked finally. Her daughter was in her room fast asleep, so she didn't have to worry about the child overhearing. Reaching up to pull at the red pendant of her necklace she almost didn't want to know the answer.

"Why my Goddess of course," he said brightly. The wild grin on his face should have scared her but it didn't.

At least it wasn't Ozpin trying to recruit her against her will again. The last time he'd tried to force her to stay in Atlas, she'd been pregnant with Eliza. It wouldn't have been so bad if the man she loved hadn't called her a freak after she saved his life. Still she would rather live out her life here with her daughter in relative safety than have anything to do with the war between Ozpin and Salem. In her mind they were both causes she had no desire to fight for, however, this was the first time an agent of Salem had found her.

She'd heard millions of horror stories from Ozpin about what Salem would do to her but was any of that really worse than Ozpin. He'd tried to use her daughter against her; she had no doubt he would use anything or anyone he could to win the shadow war. She had no desire to be a pawn in either of their games. For ten, almost eleven, years she'd stayed her isolated just so that she wouldn't be used or hurt by anyone.

After creating a literal tornado of ice and cold to protect her, she'd made a life he away from the kingdoms. No grimm could get inside and the weather never changed unless she wanted it to. This was her world; she'd created it for her daughter. If the war between Salem and Ozpin came to her doorstep what would she do? Just one look at the man beside her and she knew he was a warrior, and maybe more than a little insane. She didn't want to fight him, hell she didn't want to fight anyone. Despite her family being born warriors she had no desire to go to war with anyone over anything. She was perfectly happy right where she was. She wanted peace.

"What does your Goddess need from me," she asked. Using his title for Salem might've been a mistake since his eyes lit up. The wild smile on his face turned just a little more genuine and she almost relaxed.

"Come with me and find out," he offered. For just a second Cora stared at him, before her defenses slammed back into place.

"No."

Standing she left the faunus sitting on the couch alone as she almost fled back to her bedroom. She didn't care that he was watching her go or that he looked so confused at her quick refusal. The only thing she cared about was the fact that leaving her personal world would make her and her daughter a target for not only Salem and Ozpin but for the family, she'd left behind as well. It was fear that kept her isolated here just as much as the longing for peace. Nothing would ever happen or change if she stayed and she was fine with that.

Hey guys.

So this was a more transitional chapter than anything else. The next chapter is the start of the dance which will be broken into two chapters, so what did you all think of Cora and Tyrian?

Also, I've been thinking about writing an original story on Wattpad, would you guys be interested in reading something like that?

As always, stay safe and have a good day.

- Shyla