-3rd person-

Lapis woke up late in the night in a cold sweat. She had a nightmare involving her reliving the Massacre of Denn. She'd been going through this torture for the past few nights. She looked around and saw she was in her sleeping bag between the makeshift bunk beds at Beacon. She calmed herself down and quietly crawled out of her sleeping bag, not wanting to wake her roommates, then got dressed.

"...Lapis...?" Blake calls softly, having slightly woken up.

Lapis walked to her. "Shh...Go back to sleep, Blake...I'm just stepping out for some fresh air..." She whispered, gently brushing some of Blake's hair from her face.

Blake closed her eyes and went back to sleep. Lapis quietly left the room shortly afterward.

-Lapis-

I walk around the grounds, sighing. "I wish my Semblance worked on me...Maybe then I could stop being haunted by these memories..." I think to myself.

"You seem troubled, Miss Lazuli." I hear Professor Ozpin say.

I sigh as I sit by the statue. "I keep reliving that night...It's haunting my nightmares..." I tell him.

"Trauma can be a burden. But it can also make one stronger." He says.

I look at him as he sits next to me. "What do you mean?" I ask.

"You've endured much pain. It's up to you decide what to do with that pain." He says. "That adds more to what I told you the other day: Lean on people you know you can put your trust in."

"...I don't know who all I can trust, though, Professor."

"I'm sure that's not true." He chuckles. "Who all do you feel comfortable around here?"

I try to think. "Well...there's Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, Ren..." I start then feel heat in my cheeks. "...and Velvet."

He chuckles again. "Ah. Miss Scarlatina. A fellow Faunus like Blake."

I look at him. "You know?"

He nods. "Indeed. In your case, I knew from the moment you set foot in my office."

I look down.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, Lapis."

I look at him. "I'm not ashamed of being a Faunus!" I accidentally snap then shrink away. "Sorry..."

He chuckles. "It's perfectly okay." He says then stands. "I'll let you have some time to yourself." He tells me then leaves.

I sigh and see the sun rising. I stand up and head back to the dorm room.

I get my pajamas back on then lay in Blake's bed with her. She nuzzles into me, purring softly in her sleep. I just wrap an arm around her and stay awake. When the sun comes up completely, I get dressed.

"Lapis? Up before the sun again?" Ruby asks.

I nod then turn to them.

-3rd person-

Team RWBY was worried about their friend. They could see the bags forming under Lapis's eyes, which told them she's been having trouble sleeping.

"Lapis, if you need to talk..." Weiss started.

"I'm fine. Really, girls." Lapis told them, but they didn't believe her. They didn't get a chance to talk further as Lapis left the room. Ruby, Weiss, and Yang turned to Blake.

"On a scale of 1 to 10, how worried should we be about that?" Ruby asked.

"Very worried. She's gotta be reliving the massacre in her nightmares." The cat Faunus said as Team JNPR walked to them. "That's the only reason she'd brush us off like this."

"If we keep offering to help, how mad will she get?" Pyrrha asked.

"It'll make her very mad, but she'll realize we're trying to help her."

Blake's friends all nodded then headed to the cafeteria. Once there, they found Lapis sitting and hardly eating. Velvet was sitting next to Lapis and trying to encourage her to eat.

-Lapis-

I soon hear Team RWBY and Team JNPR sitting around me and sigh. "Guys, please. I'm..."

"Don't say you're fine. It's clear you're not." Blake says.

I glare at her. "You think you know me, Belladonna?"

"I do know you, Lazuli. You're being haunted by your trauma again because the anniversary of it is coming up soon."

"I'll handle it like I always do!"

"By getting drunk?! What good will that do you?!"

I'm about to answer when I feel a hand on mine. I turn and see it's Ruby.

"Lapis, we're scared for you." She says.

"Let us in so we can help you." Velvet says.

I sigh. "Why can't you guys just let me be?!" I ask.

"Because we're your friends, damn it!" Yang says and I turn to her. "And we're gonna be here for you no matter how much you push us away."

I put my head in my hands and groan. Somehow Ozpin's advice echoes in my head.

"Lean on people you know you can put your trust in."

I sigh, knowing Ozpin was right. "I'm really sorry, you guys. Blake knows better than anyone that I can be a bit...stubborn. But I also still have a hard time trusting a lot of people."

"...Does it stem from Veronica?" Pyrrha asks.

I nod.

"Who?" Velvet asks and I look at her.

"Veronica Vipera...a member of the White Fang." I reveal to her.

Her eyes widen. "A...Are you one of them?!" She asks.

I take a deep breath. "I was...but not anymore. They wanted to turn my hatred of the Grimm towards humanity and that's why I left."

She slowly nods her head.

I finish eating all that was on my tray. "I think I'm gonna go take a walk real quick. You guys wanna help me train for the exhibition matches later?"

They smile and nod. I throw my trash away then step outside.

"Yo, Lazuli." I hear someone say then see Coco walking to me.

I smile softly. "Hey, Coco. What's up?"

"Not much. I wanted to talk to you about a couple things. You free?"

I nod. "Yeah. I just finished eating breakfast."

We walk a little ways away from the cafeteria.

"Do you like Velvet?" Coco asks me. She doesn't sound too jealous. She sounds more curious.

I blush brightly. "I-I mean, she's beautiful, but i-if you like her, I can step back."

She chuckles. "It's okay. Just promise me that if something does happen between you and her that you won't break her heart."

I relax a bit and nod. "I promise." I say.

She smiles and nods. "By the way, love your style."

I smile back. "Thanks."

-3rd person-

Cinder was walking to the cafeteria when suddenly...

"I knew it wouldn't be hard to find you." A voice said.

Cinder froze then turned to someone who looked just like her, but with light blue eye contacts in. "...Ash..."

"Hello...sister." Ash said.

That's chapter six.

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