The moon crested above the rooftops, illuminating the White Fang members in a pale glow as they made their rounds of the large warehouse. Violet remained in the mouth of an alleyway a few buildings down, eyes scanning the area for every minute detail. Qrow had broken off a few minutes beforehand to 'climb' up to the top floor of the three story office building across the street.

There was a moderate amount of activity around the Fang's hideout, with four guards posted on the ground level, and the one Qrow was attempting to sneak up on. The address and building were familiar to Violet. It was the same as it had been earlier in the week. The White Fang members on the street wore no masks, but among them was at least one with a tail, and another with an extra set of ears poking up out of her long brown hair.

The deep rumbling sound of a vehicle interrupted the night's silence. Violet peeked from cover to see a transport heading down the street. It pulled to a stop in front of the wide bay doors, but didn't enter. The driver hopped out to speak with one of the guards, then headed past him into the building itself, leaving the vehicle parked outside.

'What's in there?' Violet narrowed her eyes, trying to focus in on the vehicle. A deep green canvas stretched over the back of the truck, obscuring its contents from view. Violet wouldn't have been able to see inside the warehouse regardless. With her position two alleys down on the same side of the street, anything past the bay doors would have been a mystery.

Violet's eyes drifted up to the guard in the window across the street. The window was open, drapes partially closed to provide cover. Through the six inch crack, Violet could see the faunus watching over the street. He at least wore his White Fang mask, providing a point in the dark that Violet could focus on with her human eyes.

"I'm in," Qrow's voice buzzed over Violet's earpiece, signalling that he had made his way into the top floor.

"He's right where Tukson said. Fifth window from the left," Violet squinted, "He hasn't moved since I've been here."

"Might have fallen asleep at his post. The White Fang isn't exactly known for training the best," Qrow's voice crackled back.

"Standing like that? I don't think so."

"Who knows? Maybe he's a horse faunus."

Violet let out a small snort, "That wouldn't be a very worthwhile trait."

"He's making the most of it."

Violet shook her head with a smile and continued to watch over the street, then hunkered down as the guards began to show signs of movement. The one that had gone inside returned, eyes scanning the street for a moment before waving to the guards out front. The four of them shared his look around the area before moving to the back of the truck and hopping in. The engine fired up, lights flickering back to life before driving away into the distance.

"Hey… Qrow…."

"Not now, kid. Radio silence. I'm almost to the door."

Violet's eyes whipped back up to the unmoving guard, the only one that wore a mask that just so happened to make him extremely visible to anyone keeping an eye out, "Qrow. Wait. Something isn't right."

"Getting the jitters? Happens to the best of us, kid. Don't sweat it."

"No, Qrow. The rest of the guards just left."

"What? Where did they go?"

Violet's scroll began to buzz in her pocket. She ignored it and focused on the situation at hand, trying to figure out what Torchwick may have been planning, "They left in a truck that showed up. There's no guards out here except the one in the building with you…"

"...Sounds like a setup. I'll meet you back ou-..." Qrow's voice crackled more than usual, the connection dropping for a moment as his voice faltered, "Ruby...? Ruby! Come back here! Violet! Did you give the rest of your team the address!?"

'Ruby?' "No, of course not. Where did you see Ruby?"

"She just crossed the hall into that room… Ruby! Don't think I didn't see you! We need to get out of here!" Qrow's voice came through as a loud whisper, as if he was still trying to remain silent while shouting to be heard a short distance away.

Violet stared up at the unmoving guard, 'Emerald…' "Qrow, you have to get out of there! Ruby is still at Beacon!"

"I saw her, kid!"

A flash of green hair announced Emerald's presence as she jumped from a third floor window on to the rooftop of the two story building next to it. She dropped into a roll to catch her fall and disappeared behind the lip of the roof, vanishing from sight completely.

"Qrow! Get ou-!" Violet began to shout, activating her semblance. She managed to take two steps before being hurled back into the mouth of the alleyway. An earth shattering explosion leveled the second and third floor of the building across the street, sending a shockwave reverberating outwards that caught Violet full force.

Debris scattered across the surrounding area. Huge chunks of rubble cracked the pavement and showered Violet with pieces of stone and wood. She coughed to clear her throat and pushed some of the rubble off herself, peering through the smoke and dust that lay thick in the air. Flames suffused what was left of the building, its entire top half gone completely in the blast.

"Qrow!? Qrow answer me!" Violet desperately called out over her earpiece, hoping for any sign that the huntsman was still alive.

A low buzz was Violet's only answer.

The sound of rubble being disturbed behind her caused Violet to spin around. Mercury grinned as he emerged from the smoke, body lowering into a combat stance.

"Well, well, well. What have we here?"

"They finished up your armor," Vernal stepped into the tent, holding Raven's outfit folded in her hands. The metal of the bracers gleamed as she set it down in the light of the nearby lantern.

"Thank you, Vernal," Raven moved to change into her battle garments. She had considered wearing something less intimidating to her meeting with Yang, but first impressions were important. Yang should see her for how she was, not how the child wished Raven would be.

"You're really going through with this? I don't think it's going to be a very happy reunion," Vernal stood off to the side, arms crossed and a frown on her face.

"It needs to be done. I already told you why."

"I know. Even still, it's hard to believe."

Raven finished pulling up her skirt, then began on the thin black stockings before moving on to her bracers and boots. With a few more odds and ends added in, and her beaded necklace around her neck, Raven strapped Omen to her hip. Her hand reflexively reached out to her grimm mask on the table and paused, hesitant.

"I wouldn't, unless you're trying to scare the kid away," Vernal teased with a smirk, eyeing the gruesome mask that was the source of many nightmares across the small towns of Mistral.

Raven let her hand fall to her side, "Not this time. If she decides to act out then I may have no other choice in the future."

Vernal shrugged, "Tough love. The kid's had it pretty easy up until now, living in Vale."

"You have no idea," Raven sighed, "That city breeds weakness. It makes it that much easier for Oz to control."

Vernal stepped forward and raised her hands to begin making small adjustments to Raven's outfit, tightening straps and realigning her belt, "Why didn't you bring her with you to the camp? If I survived out here, then your own flesh and blood certainly would have."

Raven scoffed, "And be forced to constantly fight off the grimm because of the child's tantrums? Where would I have left her during raids? Mercenaries don't exactly make the best babysitters, Vernal. It was easier for everyone involved that she stayed in Vale."

"She won't see it that way."

"Because Yang is naive," Raven flipped her hair over her shoulder, "It's my duty as her mother to fix that."

Vernal stepped back, final adjustments complete, and looked Raven over, "Well, best of luck. Any idea if she's alone right now?"

Raven focused on her semblance. Through it, she could gain insight into the feelings of those she was closest to emotionally. In Vernal, the smallest tinge of jealousy. In Tai, melancholy like always. He was missing his children, now that they were off to Beacon and he'd been left at the house alone. Qrow…

Raven frowned, feeling the increasing panic setting in through her connection with her brother. It was unlike him to lose his cool, even in fights to the death. Her brother was confident and collected at all times. They had been trained since birth to not allow their emotions to get the best of them during battle.

Making her decision in the moment, Raven unsheathed her weapon and slashed a red portal open, connecting their point of reality with another in Vale. Raven held up a cautioning hand to Vernal before stepping through the portal, fingers tightly wrapped around the hilt of Omen.

"Ruby! Don't think I didn't see you! We need to get out of here!" Qrow's voice was in a low, frantic whisper.

Raven froze for only an instant, eyes taking in the gallon fuel drums and fire dust charges lining the hallway that Qrow was currently standing in, along with the young green haired huntress at the end of the hallway. The girl's eyes widened, seeing Raven appear from the portal behind Qrow.

"I saw her, kid!" Qrow shouted, entirely ignoring the girl at the end of the hall. Raven's eyes narrowed, taking in how oblivious her brother was being. The girl's semblance had to have a hand in the way he was acting.

Raven shifted her stance lower, bending her knees and preparing to attack. The girl backpedaled, then turned on her heel and sprinted for the open window at the end of the hall. She dove out of it to the adjacent rooftop and spun around, raising a metallic device.

'Shit!' Raven grabbed Qrow by the back of his cloak and hurled him through her portal with all her strength. His face changed to one of shock for an instant, expression clearing as the girl's semblance lost its hold before he disappeared through the rippling red tear in space.

Raven dove through after him, simultaneously dropping control of her semblance to allow the portal to collapse, and throwing up a thick sheet of ice with her maiden powers once they were on the other side. With only a moment to create it, the ice was ripped to pieces by the blast that followed them through the narrowly closing hole. A gout of flames blasted outwards over their heads, igniting the wall of the tent.

With the sound of sucking air, the portal closed and extinguished the fire, cutting off the source of the intense heat. Vernal rushed to smother the fire with a small rug, managing to get the majority of it quickly enough to prevent serious damage. Qrow coughed, waving a hand across his face, and stared intently up at Raven.

"What the hell just happened?"

"You almost died, idiot! That's what happened!" Raven snarled, patting down part of her armor that had also been set aflame, "A kid almost got the drop on you!"

Qrow's face turned chalk white, "Ruby… No!..."

"I don't think she was actually there, Qrow," Raven fumed, rolling her eyes at her brother, "You were walking through a building full of explosives. Did you not see them?"

"What? There weren't…" Qrow shook his head, "I need to get back to Vale, now. Violet is still out there!"

Raven sighed, "Yang or Tai? You could get there faster from Yang…" she focused on her connection, "I don't think she's alone at the moment."

"Yang is fine," Qrow growled, dusting himself off.

Raven drew Omen once more and sliced it through the air before stopping Qrow with a hand, "This was your one. Don't expect me to swoop in and save you again."

"You said that last time, Raven," Qrow tried to push past, but his sister's hand remained firm.

"I mean it this time. I can't afford to continue getting myself noticed like this. You're dealing with forces beyond your control. I don't want any part of Salem's war."

"You should have thought of that before becoming a maiden," Qrow replied haughtily, then shoved past, vanishing through the portal.

Raven allowed it to close and resheathed her weapon, taking a look around at the partial devastation that had been wrought on her small abode. She shook her head, "Not even a simple 'thank you'."

"Could use some help here, Raven!" Vernal shouted, struggling to reach a patch of flames that was working its way across the ceiling.

Raven sighed once more, raising her hand to begin casting ice on to the remaining flames as she grumbled, "Gotta do everything myself…"

"How's it going over there Rubes?" Yang asked from her place on the floor, hands furiously mashing buttons on the controller she held. She sat with her legs crossed and hands in her lap, leaning forward to stare intently at the screen. Blake sat next to her, arms wrapped around her knees to grip her own controller as she humored Yang, playing as more of a punching bag than an actual opponent. Even still, a small smile tugged at her lips every time she managed to get a glancing blow in.

"I'm okay…" Ruby replied in mild distraction of her own. She had snagged Violet's notes for Oobleck's class, only to find it full of doodles in the margins and very few actual notes that had been taken, "I need to look at someone else's notes. Violet's aren't helping at all."

"Yeah, she doesn't really pay much attention in that class," Yang snorted, leaning to the side as she blocked a rapid series of attacks from Blake's character, "Must have had some expensive tutors in Atlas."

Blake tilted her body in the same direction as Yang, trying to get in a hit past the blond's defenses, "You know, I asked one time and Violet told me she had tutors since she was five. Not just a single teacher and then more later on. Multiple tutors… for a five year old."

"Well, it paid off," Ruby tossed Violet's notebook back on to her nearby desk, "I can't make heads or tails of what she wrote down half the time. Most of it isn't even in the book."

"Very expensive," Blake confirmed, both girls now tipping back the other way as she was forced to defend instead, "You can borrow my notes though, Ruby. They're under the book on my desk."

"Thanks!" Ruby hopped up and headed over to Blake's desk, quickly noticing the decently sized hardback that she'd been reading over the last week or so. Ruby hefted it and read the title, seeing that the book marker had been placed at the very end, "Did you finish the book Violet gave you?"

"Yeah! I'm hoping she gets back soon so we can talk about it," Blake sighed and set down the controller as Yang cheered in victory, edging out Blake's potential come back.

'The Lonely Goddess, huh?' Ruby flipped through it to get an idea for how long it really was, "Is it okay if I read it next?"

Blake laid backwards, getting an eye on Ruby from her upside down position on the floor, "Promise to treat it nicely? No dog-earing, no tears, no smudges?"

Ruby gave a mocking gasp and held a hand to her chest as if insulted, "You've seen my comics. They're pristine!"

"As long as you're careful, then I don't mind," Blake pulled herself back up as the next round counted down, timer audibly ticking down the seconds, "It isn't really an adventure story, though. Fair warning."

"What is it, then?" Ruby spun the book around to try and get a look at the synopsis. It certainly sounded like an adventure.

Blake shrugged, "You'll have to read it yourself for that. I'd be heading into spoiler territory if I say too much."

"But you still recommend it?"

"Absolutely. It's really interesting, at the very least. You'll find out for yourself once you get into it."

Ruby headed back over to her desk, book and notes in hand to continue with her studying. Opening up Blake's notebook, the faunus had kept far better track of the topics that would be showing up on the test. With the groundwork laid out, Ruby focused back on the issue at hand; not disappointing her team leader.

An hour later, and with a bit more help from the other two girls, Ruby was ready to call it quits. Her eyes were trying to shut of their own accord, and she couldn't help but yawn every minute or so. Ruby replaced Blake's notebook and gave Violet's empty bed a concerned frown.

"Should we give them a call? It's getting pretty late," Ruby asked the other two.

Yang shrugged, "You can if you want. Violet said not to stay up or anything though, so I think she knew it was gonna be a late night for them."

"Isn't your uncle pretty strong? They should be fine..." Blake answered as well from her place up in bed. Despite her words, she was still checking the time on her scroll every few minutes, and was obviously watching the door for their leader's return.

While Ruby was looking at Blake, she noticed the faunus's ears visibly perk up and twitch towards the window. Blake hopped off her bed and pulled the drapes aside, peering out into the night, "Did either of you hear that?"

Ruby and Yang exchanged confused glances, "Hear what?"

"It sounded like an explosion down in Vale…"

The three of them looked to Violet's empty bed in unison.

Yang partially sat up off her own bed, voice low, "You don't think…?"

Blake moved to the dressers and flung Yang and Ruby's combat outfits to them, "Unfortunately, I do. Get ready, we're heading out."

The three quickly changed, throwing off their sleepwear to slip into their outfits. No sooner had they strapped on their weapons before something appeared in the room with them. Ruby pulled the bolt back on Crescent Rose, Yang punched the air to cock her Ember Celicas, and Blake pulled back the slide on Gambol Shroud. The sound of voices could barely be heard through the red portal before Uncle Qrow barged through, straight into their dorm.

"Qrow!?" Yang exclaimed, letting her fists drop at the sight of her uncle, "How the hell…?"

"No time to explain," Qrow shouted and ripped open the door, downright sprinting out into the hallway. The door closed behind him while the three girls stood in shock, wondering what was going on. Only seconds later, the portal winked back closed and was gone, its presence only a memory shared by the occupants.

"Let's follow him," Ruby said seriously, collapsing Crescent Rose to place it on her back, "If Qrow is alone, then something might have happened to Violet. We need to go help."

Yang and Blake nodded their assent and headed for the door, determined to catch up with the older huntsman. What they were met with once they stepped out was an empty hallway and an open window. Qrow had vanished as quickly as he'd appeared, leaving no trail to speak of.

Ruby grimaced, "To the bullheads, then. We might be able to see where the explosion was from the air and have the pilot take us straight to it."

The three girls sprinted through the halls, with Ruby taking the lead. Once they reached the doors out into the courtyard, the small reaper activated her semblance to blur ahead to the bullheads in an attempt to optimize their time. Ruby ground to a halt, seeing a larger ship docked off to the side with team Coffee, a familiar figure in tow.

"Velvet! Coco! What happened!?"

The two kept a wary eye on their surroundings. Velvet's long ears stood at attention, flopping from side to side as she listened intently. Coco spared Ruby a glance, "We were about to start our escort mission for Tukson. Some crazy girl snuck on board and poisoned him," she checked back on Yatsuhashi, who was all but carrying Tukson, "Luckily, at least one member of our team pays attention in Professor Peach's class."

Hearing his name, Ruby now recognized the muscle bound man as the owner of the bookshop down in Vale. His skin was pale, while his veins were darker than normal and protruded from his skin as if struggling to break free. Tukson gave a very weak wave, barely able to raise his arm.

"Tukson!?" Blake yelled in confusion as she and Yang caught up. The two stopped next to Ruby, "What are you doing here?"

Coco frowned, "He was heading to Menagerie to act as an informant against Torchwick and the White Fang. Violet and your dad didn't tell you?"

"An informant…?" Blake tilted her head to the side, ears lowered, "Were you working for the White Fang?"

Tukson gave a small, tired nod.

"Excuse us," Yatsuhashi pressed past, forcing the girls to make way, "He shouldn't speak yet. We need to get him to the infirmary to help reduce the effects of the poison."

The rest of team Coffee followed with him, continuing to keep watch. However, Fox stopped after appearing to listen to something for a moment and turned back to the group. Ruby heard a voice in her head as Fox gestured to them, "Tukson would like to apologize… and promises that he didn't set up your teammate."

Yang's eyes flashed red, her fist clenched down at the side, "He'd better pray we don't find out differently. I'll do worse than poison him."

Blake's hand reached out to grab Yang's from behind and pull her away, "Let's go. We're wasting time here."

Yang's eyes immediately reverted to lilac. She gave a tight nod to Blake and set off at a jog for the bullheads. Ruby could still see her sister's face was set with fierce determination and hoped it was reflected on her own.

'Please be okay, Violet. We're coming!'

The wall next to her exploded outwards as Violet managed to divert Mercury's kick, edging the blow past her while backpedaling. In a moment, Zenith was off her back and held between the two of them. Mercury slowly withdrew his foot from the wall, bits of brick and mortar falling loose in a small shower compared to the devastation that lay around them.

Violet's eyes burned, tears being held back through sheer force of will, 'I failed again… All I did was trade Qrow for my team. Why did I think I could protect anyone at all?'

Mercury grinned, looking over her shoulder to the ruined building, "At least his death was quick. He didn't even see it coming. That's better than most get," he lowered back into his combat stance, "Like you, for instance."

Anger began to boil to the surface of Violet's mind, her hand quivered on Zenith's hilt as she sneered, "You think you're strong enough to take me, Mercury? I'll tell you this much right now… You wasted your explosives on the wrong person."

Mercury laughed, "Oh? I guess I won't go easy on you then!"

The assassin dashed forward with a sudden burst of speed, immediately going into a quick series of kicks to feel out Violet's defenses. With Zenith's weight currently absorbed by her semblance, she easily kept pace with Mercury's attacks. Each blow was stopped before it could reach its mark or deflected in an attempt to throw him off balance.

Violet managed one particularly good riposte, catching Mercury's ankle with the blunt side of her greatsword and knocking his attack off course. He was sent into a wider spin, ending with his back nearly turned. Violet continued with her own momentum into a swing, dumping Zenith's weight and her own body mass into the greatsword. Nearly two hundred pounds of steel slashed through the air at her target.

In the instant Zenith made contact, Violet knew she'd made a mistake. The blade whistled through empty air without hitting anything, the illusion puffing into smoke. An invisible kick collided with her back, sending her flying forward with her reduced mass. Violet rolled with it back to her feet and swung back around, blindly asserting distance between herself and where Mercury might be.

'Emerald is still around…' Violet's eyes scanned the rooftop where she'd seen the green haired thief leap to before, but couldn't make out Emerald's position. She'd moved to another area to keep an eye on the fight, and was using her powers to assist Mercury.

Violet backed up more, hoping to break line of sight by stepping into the alleyway. However, Mercury remained invisible. Violet carefully watched the rubble strewn across the ground, hoping for any hints she could get to his location. 'I could end this in an instant if I used my maiden powers, but then Emerald would be able to escape and tell Cinder… I need to catch both of them.'

The small shifting of a brick was Violet's only warning to raise her sword to the left. She rocked backwards as the attack was blocked, then stepped back, continuing to press further and further into the alley. The wafting of some dust in the air warned her next, causing her to duck. Violet felt the breeze ruffle her hair, Mercury's foot surely passing mere inches away.

Going on the offense, Violet used wide arcs across the front, seeing the rubble shift beneath Mercury's feet as he was pressed back. Without Zenith's long reach, her tactic wouldn't have been viable in the slightest. Fortunately, the greatsword wasn't something you'd want to risk getting hit by.

Violet stumbled forward as a barrage of bullets hammered into her back, revealing the direction of Emerald's position, though Violet paid dearly for it. She pressed her attack, doing her best to ignore her aura getting dropped low, and passed the edge of the alleyway. With no line of sight on Violet, Emerald's semblance dropped and Mercury appeared once more, already on the counterattack. His smug smile dripped with confidence.

Mercury launched himself up, falling down with a heel kick aimed at Violet's head. Zenith intercepted the blow, but was too slow to block his follow up kick that slammed into her chest. Violet threw herself backwards with the attack, allowing herself more distance from the alleyway. She wasn't sure how far back Emerald was, but at this rate, she'd have to take her chances.

Zenith transformed in her hands, its blade collapsing and middle splitting apart to reveal the coils within. With the gap between them, Violet had enough time to load in a projectile before Mercury was on top of her again. Violet focused on dodging instead, and bid her time. It was difficult, but with her eons of experience, she managed to keep Mercury from landing another solid hit.

After a few more moments, Violet's vision swam and Mercury once again vanished. Taking this as her queue, Violet aimed at the alleyway she'd come from and fired. The rubble strewn across the ground in front of her was instantly blown away as the forty pound steel projectile blasted from the barrel at Mach three. Amethyst colored lightning shot outwards with it, streaking through the air to whip against the building. A five foot wide hole had appeared through the wall and was cut from the corner of the nearest building. The edges of the holes dripped molten rock from the heat created in Zenith's path.

Mercury reappeared slowly, standing slightly off to the side, eyes wide as he took in the carnage that Violet's weapon had caused. Blood and gore steamed while what little was left of Emerald's body lay scattered across the ground. The corner of the building groaned, bits of rubble falling beneath the pressure of its missing support beam.

"I liked Qrow…" Violet stared at the remains of Emerald before turning to look at Mercury, a deep seated fury in her eyes, "There are a lot of characters in this story. On a scale of one to ten, I'd say he was an eight."

Violet raised a hand out towards Mercury. Amethyst ice shot up from the ground to grasp his arms and legs, freezing him in place. Her hand ignited, flames licking outwards while she crossed the short distance to stand in front of him.

"Do you know where you're at on that scale?"

Mercury desperately struggled against his bonds, ineffectually trying to tear his limbs free. His breath came out hitched, in sheer terror, "Y-you're a maiden!?"

Violet sighed and placed her hand against his chest, "Not exactly."

Mercury screamed as his body was immolated, amethyst flames rippling over his entire body, ignoring his aura completely. The assassin's muscles went taught as his adrenaline tried to kick in for a moment, feeding him all the strength he could muster. The ice cracked in a few places before Mercury's body went slack. His head slumped forward, chin resting against his chest, eyes wide open.

Violet let Zenith fall to the ground, it's coils still steaming from the recent shot it had made. She fell to her knees alongside it and wrapped her arms around her head, closing her eyes and burying her face in the rubble.

Violet could imagine the heartbreak on Ruby's face, the accusations on Yangs, the disappointment on Blake's. She had betrayed their trust while trying to protect them, and it had ended in the loss of more than Violet could bare. The memories once again resurfaced, the deaths of all those she cared for in the past boiling to the forefront of her mind. Qrow's face was one of many, a singular flickering candle among an ocean of tiny flames. Many of them had burned brightly, but one by one, they had all been snuffed out in the end.

'My fault…' Tears finally broke from Violet's hold and flowed freely, pouring down her cheeks and into the sleeves of her coat, 'I'm so sorry, Ruby. I'm sorry, Yang. This is all my fault. I shouldn't have even brought Qrow into it. I thought it would be okay… he was so tough and experienced… We could have taken on the world together…' Violet's shoulders shook, her breath coming in choked bursts, 'Now what will I do?'

"Kid!?" an echoing shout pulled Violet from her stupor. She raised her head and turned around, searching for the source of the familiar shout. Violet rubbed her coat's sleeve across her eyes, trying to wipe away some of the tears that blurred her vision. Qrow swam into view, his head on a swivel as he took in the devastation.

"Q-... Qrow?" Violet stumbled as she raised back up to her feet, realizing in the moment just how close she'd been to death herself. Her aura flickered weakly in the light of the burning building.

Qrow's eyes caught on to Violet and he rushed forward, quickly grabbing her by the forearms and checking her over, "Oh, thank god. I thought you were a goner…"

Violet stared up into his face in confusion, "Wha…? How!? I thought you died in that explosion!"

Qrow took in Mercury, propped up by Violet's ice, and closed his eyes when he noticed the pieces of Emerald that remained. He pulled Violet into a tight hug, hiding her face against his chest, "It's alright, kid. My sister managed to pull me out before the explosion… I'll explain later. For now, we should get you out of here. You look terrible."

Violet's back ached from where Emerald had shot her, and she wasn't totally certain her difficulty breathing was all due to her grief. Mercury's attack had made a solid connection with her chest in the fight, "That sounds good…"

Violet allowed her ice to disintegrate without looking back, wanting to at least keep up appearances and pretended to be ashamed of what she'd done. These were the first two people that 'Violet Regalia' had ever killed. It was an unfortunate loss, all things aside. She would have been interested to see if the two could break their ties from Salem in the future… Violet might have even helped them do so if things hadn't come to a head so soon.

The roar of an approaching bullhead put both of them on alert. Violet reached down and dragged Zenith back up, transforming it into a greatsword to hold at the ready. The engines of the bullhead stirred up the dust anew, sending thick plumes back up into the air. Violet and Qrow both held hands up to shield their eyes while trying to get a look at the occupants that just then began jumping out.

'Great…' Violet cursed her luck as the rest of team Vibrant arrived on the scene, and turned to Qrow, "Was this your sister's doing, too?"

"Kind of…" Qrow grumbled, then helped Violet along as the two made their way towards the bullhead.

"Violet!" Ruby rushed to her other side, doing her best to support her team leader, "Are you okay!?"

"I'm fine, Ruby…."

Yang and Blake both looked over the remnants of the battle. Their eyes took in Mercury's body, a spark of recognition igniting in their eyes from seeing him at the pizzeria. With a small flex of her powers, Violet made sure they wouldn't see the chunks of Emerald, nor the splatters of blood that remained.

"Vi…" Yang's hand drew back in a fist as the three got closer, then flew forward, stopping inches from Violet's face. Her body trembled, eyes downcast with tears threatening to fall, "Don't… Don't you dare ever do this again. We are your team. Qrow isn't. How are we supposed to help protect you if we can't fight by your side?"

"I…" Violet could feel her anguish bubbling back up, "I wanted to keep all of you safe."

"We can take care of ourselves, Violet," Blake crossed her arms. Her voice lacked any of Yang's acidity, though. Her eyes flickered back to Mercury's body every few seconds, "If we'd come with you, then maybe you… wouldn't have had to do that…"

"There will be time for this later," Qrow growled and pressed past, working with Ruby to help Violet into the bullhead, "Let's get back to Beacon. Now."

The rest climbed in, and Qrow gave the pilot the signal to take off. Police vehicles were already pulling in to the street below, the first others on the scene to witness what had happened firsthand. With a miniscule wave, Violet made sure to remove the obscurement on Emerald's body. It wouldn't due to try and keep it a secret.

The trip back was quiet. The others either refused to speak, or didn't know what to say. Violet could tell though, that once they were back in the dorm, she'd be getting more than what she bargained for.