It was still mid-day as Roy descended the stairs back to the tavern's main level. Azure, Aster and Dahlia were all working to clean up the broken glass. The grimm's corpse had been shoved back out through the window and a blast shield had been lowered over it.

Roy raised an eyebrow, "Why does a tavern has a blast shield for the window?"

Azure straightened up, his eyes glittering, "When your customer base is made up of smugglers, you prepare for every scenario."

Roy chuckled at Aster's slightly offended look, "I bet."

Aster waved her scroll at him, "Hey, the airfield called! My baby is all fixed!"

Roy shot her a thumbs up, "That's great! Qrow got in touch with me. Apparently they're on their way to Atlas and he's going to put in a good word with General Ironwood on our behalf."

Dahlia perked up, her eyes filling with a silent hope.

"We won't know what we're doing until tomorrow so we have a day to kill," Roy continued, "what should we do?"

Aster looked thoughtful for a moment, "Well, I know the Daydream needs more fuel. We could go do that." The pilot shot a questioning look at Dahlia.

"I'm game," The smaller girl said, straightening up and popping her back, "Is Ebony…" She trailed off and shot Roy a questioning look.

The faunus gestured to the floor above, "She's going to try and get some rest."

Dahlia nodded, fiddling with the cuff of her sleeve. Aster cracked her knuckles in a business-like manner, "Alright! Those dust crystals aren't gonna buy themselves! Let's go!"

The three of them left the tavern, heading back towards the downtown area. Before long, they reached a Schnee dust emporium. After a little haggling, Aster managed to buy several crates of fire dust crystals.

"The crystals go into the converter and the burst of energy fuels the engines," she explained as she forked over the required lien to the clerk.

Crates in hand, the trio headed back to the airfield. After showing her ID to the gate guard, Aster led the two of them inside to where the Daydream was docked. The ship looked as good as new. The dings in her hull had been buffed out, her sail was spotless and the metal plating gleamed in the sunlight streaming in through the hanger windows.

Aster let out an impressed whistle, "Damn, they know how to fix a girl up right."

Roy scanned the ship, his gaze lingering on the pin up; the paint was just as vibrant and bright as it had been when he'd first met the pilot.

"I applied a clear impact resistant varnish to the whole thing." Aster explained, reading his questioning gaze, "unless the metal itself is destroyed, she's not going anywhere."

Roy grinned, knocking lightly on the metal plate, "Good thinking."

Aster nodded and turned to board the airship. Dahlia had already stowed her crate in the storage area and was walking back down the mooring ramp to meet them. As Aster took her first step onto the sloping ramp, she lost her balance slightly. She caught herself before she fell, but the wobble had sent one of the dust crystals tumbling toward the floor.

"Shit! Catch it!" the pilot yelled, causing Dahlia to spring into action.

The smaller girl dove forward and snagged the crystal before it hit the deck. As her fingers closed around the red crystal, her entire arm erupted in flames. Aster let out a surprised shout and Roy's heart shot into his throat, the shock almost causing him to drop the crate he was holding. Setting it down as quickly as he dared, he snatched up a nearby fire extinguisher.

"Hold on Lia!" he shouted, fumbling with the release ring on the crimson canister. He knew Dahlia's Aura was up, but he also knew how fast fire could chew through it.

As he aimed the extinguisher at his teammate, Dahlia threw her hand up, "Wait! I'm okay. It's not burning me!"

The smaller girl straightened up and Roy saw that it wasn't Dahlia herself that was burning. Rather, it appeared as though her aura was channeling the fire around her arm. Roy kept a firm grip on the extinguisher as he stepped closer.

"It doesn't...hurt?" he asked.

Dahlia shook her head, "No...it actually kinda tickles."

Roy's ears turned backwards as he drew nearer; the heat radiating off of his teammate was intense. "Hey Lia, Pass me your scroll."

Dahlia handed the device over and Roy pulled up the aura reader. As he watched, Dahlia's aura stayed steady. The bar ticked down slightly, but it was barely noticeable.

"I think this is your semblance." Roy said, handing the device back to its owner.

Dahlia's eyes widened, "Really? This is amazing!"

Aster eyed the fire warily, "Can it be amazing when we're not surrounded by explosives crystals?"

Dahlia nodded and tossed the crystal to Roy. As the crystal left her hand, the fire haloing her arm died away. Roy carefully placed the dust back onto Aster's crate and picked his own back up. Once the dust was safely packed away, Roy decided to test Dahlia's new semblance further. The three of them walked over to an open spot on the airfield and Roy reached into his pocket, taking out a small variety bag of uncut crystals he'd bought at the emporium. After rummaging in the bag for a few seconds, he held out a wind crystal and an ice crystal out to the smaller girl, "Take your pick."

The smaller girl grinned and selected the ice crystal. Similar to the fire before it, the ice seemed to encase her arm in a gauntlet if ice as soon as she touched it. She grinned like a giddy school girl as she took several practice swings. "So, my semblance is to channel dust properties?" she asked, tossing the ice dust back to Roy and picking up the wind crystal.

The faunus nodded, watching a small cyclone of wind surround Dahlia's arm, "Looks like it. Can you move the effect to any other limb?"

Dahlia concentrated for a moment, but the wind stayed bound to her arm. "I don't think so. I think it stays locked to the limb that's holding the dust," she said, handing the wind dust back to the faunus.

Roy nodded, taking out a gravity dust crystal and holding it out to the smaller girl, "try this."

Dahlia's eyes glinted with excitement as she accepted the crystal. Her entire aura began to glow purple and slowly but surely, she lifted off the ground. It wasn't by much, only a few feet, but there was no mistake; she was levitating. The smaller girl whooped in excitement and quickly grabbed Roy's hand. The faunus grinned at the gesture and gave her hand a gentle tug, pulling her back down to earth.

"That was amazing!" she said breathlessly.

She made as if to give the crystal back to Roy, but he shook his head, "You keep it. Practice with it in your spare time. Just be sure to start small. I'll take it away if I see you jumping out of windows."

Dahlia laughed and slid the crystal into her belt pouch. Roy turned back to Aster, "I've been meaning to ask, do you know of any good places to have a romantic dinner in Argus?"

Aster snorted, "Short stuff, you're staying at the best one. The Blue Dust is known for its food and atmosphere." She tossed her ponytail in a know-it-all sort of way, "If you want, I can pull some strings and get you a discount."

Roy laughed, "yes please."

Aster snickered and batted her eyelashes at him, "Oh I like guys who say please." She became serious again, "Speaking of buying things, When are you guys planning to get winter clothes?"

Dahlia toyed with Comodia's handle, "I've looked around the shops here. The selection isn't the greatest, so we'll wait until we get to Atlas."

Roy nodded to the smaller girl, "Sounds like a plan. Are you sure you still want to cover Ebony and I?"

The smaller girl sighed, "I am. I owe you guys."

Roy gently touched her shoulder, "Lia, you don't owe us anything."

She punched his arm playfully, "So what? You don't want winter clothes when we get to Atlas?"

Roy put on a face of mock indignation, "That is not what I said!"

Dahlia snickered and turned to Aster, "Do you need winter clothes too?"

The pilot shook her head and knocked on the side of the Daydream, "Nah, I've got a set squirreled away in here somewhere."

The smaller girl nodded, "Sounds good. What should we…"

She trailed off and her eyes narrowed as she looked past Roy toward the door of the hanger. Roy turned to look and his ears flattened in annoyance. A small group of Atlesian soldiers walked toward them, their boots clicking on the airfield's pavement. Aster stepped in front of Roy and Dahlia, motioning for them to stay behind her, "I'll handle this, you guys stay quiet."

Turning to face the soldiers, Aster gave them her biggest smile, "Hey boys, what can I do for you?"

One of the men stepped forward. Roy could tell, by the insignia on his arm and the shine of silver on his lapels, that he was an officer. "We're here to talk to him," the man said, pointing to Roy.

The faunus stiffened, his hand tightening on Μόνος's handle. "Why?" he asked coolly, stepping up beside Aster.

The officer removed his hat, holding it in his gloved hands, "Officially we're here to issue a warning. Unlicensed weapon usage is prohibited in all Atlas territories." He passed the faunus a small slip of pink paper.

Roy scanned it quickly and shot the officer a questioning look, "And unofficially?"

The officer gestured to the men behind him, "These men had family members at the site of the building collapse. Thanks to your efforts, they are safe at home this evening." The officer inclined his head, "Thank you for what you did."

Roy was slightly taken aback; he hadn't expected this at all. "You don't need to thank us," he said quietly, "We just did what we've been trained to do."

The officer nodded and replaced his hat, "We truly appreciate it. Just a word of advice; lay low until you get your license. I have no doubt you and your team will be amazing someday."

Roy offered the troops a smile, "Sometimes, the grimm don't wait for someone with a license to come around."

The officer laughed and Roy thought he saw a glimmer of admiration in the man's eyes for a moment. "Well said kid," he said, "Take care of your team."

The faunus saluted, "will do sir."

The soldiers turned and exited the hanger, leaving the three of them standing alone once more. Aster shot a questioning look at Roy, "you weren't expecting that either, right?"

Roy shook his head, "I didn't even have my ears hidden and they still thanked me."

Dahlia raised an eyebrow, "does that matter?"

Roy nodded, "I've was tossed out of a village once when they found out I was a faunus."

Dahlia scowled and crossed her arms. "That's disgusting," she growled, "not all faunus are bad."

Roy shrugged with a sigh, "You know that, and I know that. But, in some people's eyes, we are just too different."

Aster scoffed, "Why? Because you have cat ears or a tail? How much more different can you be from us?"

Roy smiled, revealing his more pronounced canine teeth, "Using only my type of faunus as an example?" He listed each one, counting them down on his fingers, "enhanced hearing and sight, night vision, slightly faster reflexes, and better balance. And those are the more subtle ones." He pointed to his ears and eye, "There are the ears, eyes, the ability to purr, an appetite for fish...I could go on." He snapped his fingers, "Oh a better sense of smell, everyone has their own unique scent."

Dahlia looked confused, "How so?"

Roy pointed to Aster, "Her base scent is like dew on the grass." He pointed to Dahlia, "yours is like pine needles."

The smaller girl grinned, "Are you sure that's not my perfume?"

Roy snorted, "you don't wear perfume. Only one here wearing any fragrance is…" He took a deep breath through his nose, "Aster, except...it isn't perfume, it's cologne."

Aster held her hands up, "You caught me. I've never liked any female scents, so I bought some men's stuff instead and never looked back." She turned a mischievous eye to Roy, "By the way. Does you being a cat faunus make you susceptible to...Catnip?" She popped the 'P' as she said catnip as if baiting him to answer.

Roy felt his cheeks go hot and his ears flattened backwards in annoyance, "Maybe…"

Aster's eyes glinted and she leaned forward. "Details…" she purred, the mischievous glint never leaving her eyes.

Roy growled slightly, but relented, "It makes thinking rationally very difficult, we become disoriented, uncoordinated, euphoric, and we become extremely affectionate with someone who gets the scent on them."

Aster raised an eyebrow, "Affectionate how?"

Roy pinched the bridge of his nose, "Not anything like that. Get your mind out of the gutter."

Dahlia smiled, her eyes twinkling, "Is it bad I kinda want to see you like this?"

The faunus sighed, "no. To be honest, I'm kind of curious myself."

Aster grinned, "I have a couple connections. Maybe I'll pick some up before we leave."

Roy narrowed his eye at her, "If you try and get me high when I'm not ready, I will draw a moustache on your pinup."

The pilot looked affronted, "As if I would try and drug one of my best friends. Who do you think I am?"

Dahlia giggled into her hand, "Aster Ving."

The pilot pointed a finger at the smaller girl, "You stay out of this missy."

The three of them laughed and settled back into a comfortable silence. Roy looked out at the open sea, visible through the chain link fence of the airfield. Chunks of petrified grimm were still floating in the water, along with several sphinx corpses. The sun had passed its zenith and was beginning its descent towards the horizon. The hanger was quiet, with only the occasional staff member walking here and there among the landing pads. Roy heard Aster sigh.

"I remember when this hanger was full of noise," she said, "people coming in from all over with new stories tell and cargo to sell." The pilot grinned at her little rhyme, "Embargos suck, man."

Roy patted her arm comfortingly, "It isn't just the embargo. People just don't feel safe anymore. They'd rather stay locked up then brave the outside world."

Dahlia turned her head to look at Roy, "Then why are we here?"

The faunus grinned, "We're here to make sure they stay safe. Hopefully we can make things better so that they can feel safe outside again."

Dahlia grinned back, "And that's the life for me!"

Roy laughed, "Ditto!"

Aster looked troubled and Roy gave her a soft look, "What's wrong Aster?"

The pilot shrugged, "I was just wondering what'll happen after we rescue your teammate."

Roy studied her face more intently, "I'm not sure I'm following…"

Aster played with her ponytail, the violet tresses sliding between her fingers, "I just don't want to butt in on your guys's team dynamic. I mean, no one likes a fifth wheel."

Dahlia lightly punched the pilot on the arm, "You're not a fifth wheel. You're our friend. Heck, at this point we might as well make you one of our family."

Roy nodded, "You can stay with us as long as you want. We love you Aster, we can never thank you enough for everything."

The pilot looked away, scrubbing her hands across her eyes, "Dammit Short stuff, you're gonna make me ruin my makeup."

Roy and Dahlia nodded to each other and wrapped their arms around the pilot. Aster laughed and gathered them up, giving them a bear hug so tight that Roy swore that his ribs creaked a little.

Honestly the only thing that's been getting me through the last few months is good friends and my family. people who are willing to sit there and let me vent my frustrations and still love me aftewards. I feel we always need people like that to keep us sane. I hope you are all staying well during the beginning of this year and know that I'll still be here, writing away as usual. Thanks again!

Catch you later!

-Ar3mRising.