Hey, just to mention that Ruby wasn't being antagonistic last chapter with her "wish my mom could be here" comment. She was giving Blake some advice. It wasn't an attack on her but a pointed comment on how Blake's family is very much in danger, so she should spend time with them and not waste time feeling embarrassed.

Cover Art: Mystery White Flame

Chapter 26

"Yang!" Weiss hissed. "Yang!"

The blonde in question turned, hearing her whispered hissing and looking over. "What's up?"

"Help me!"

"Hah-?" Yang strolled over and put a foot on the bunk ladder, leaning up to see the problem. Weiss glared at her, face locked in the crook of Ruby's shoulder with one of her arms around Weiss' stomach and the other her head. "Oh yeah, I forgot to mention how grabby she gets in her sleep."

Weiss' face burned. "You forgot!?"

"It's been years since we had to share a bed, so yeah."

This had never happened when they'd camped for training, but then that involved tents and sleeping bags, which probably kept Ruby's arms where they were. Not even the most debauched of individuals could have seen their entanglement as romantic – Ruby was squeezing her more like a pillow or human-sized teddy bear, legs and arms wrapped around her. There was a more pressing problem, however. Ruby was drooling into her hair.

"Get. Me. Out."

"Okay. How did I use to do it? Oh yeah, poke her cheek. And keep poking."

She was desperate enough to try it. Squirming in her partner's hold she poked Ruby's cheek and watched the girl's face scrunch up. A second poke earned a grumble while a third got a sleepy "Yang no". The fourth had Ruby letting go and rolling over, wrapping up a huge pile of blankets instead to hold onto. Face protected, she went back to sleep, giving Weiss a chance to hop out and jump down to the floor.

"See? It worked."

"Thank you." Smug as Yang was, she'd helped. "I take it that's something of a regular occurrence."

"Yeah, she's always been like that – with people, blankets, pillows or even Zwei. I would have warned you last night, but I was tired and it's been ages like I said." Yang shrugged. "I honestly forgot about it."

"It's fine." Weiss took a moment to run her fingers through her hair, finding the wet patches and rubbing them away. A good shower would deal with what remained, but the door was locked, and Blake was on her bed, reading through her scroll. "Is Oscar in the shower?"

"Yep. He's an early riser and goes first. Like, really early. Says it's from when he worked on his parent's farm and would wake up with the sun." Yang looked to the door. "He's not tried anything if that's what you're thinking. He gets changed in there and so do we. It's awkward suddenly having a guy around but nothing too bad. Team RVNN deal with it every day."

They were used to it, so it really didn't count. Though Yang was right; maybe she should be a little more open to the idea, provided Oscar conducted himself as a gentleman should. He gets a pass for the bed incident, considering no one warned either of us. It helped that all he'd really seen was her in her nightclothes. Everyone who joined Beacon had seen that thanks to the night before initiation.

Her having to share a bed with Ruby was awkward but not problematic – clingy Ruby notwithstanding. They were both short enough to fit and it would have been unfair to make Oscar sleep on the floor. She just wished it wasn't her bed she had to give up.

And suddenly having a fifth member…

It made her feel like she'd been replaced.

The door to the bathroom opened and the object of their discussion emerged, clean and dressed with his hair falling somewhere between wild and controlled. He was small. Smaller than her. Good. Very good. Other than that, he looked nervously at her and approached. Unsure why, she raised an eyebrow and tilted her head back.

"H-Hi," he stammered. "You're Weiss, right? I've heard so much about you." He glanced to the side, pausing awkwardly. His face flickered, almost like he was deep in thought. "A-And I have to say – sorry, wanted to say – that it's not my intent to try and take your place on Team RWBY. It's still Team RWBY and you're Ruby's partner." He bowed his body forward, bending at the waist. "Please forgive my intrusion on the team, and I hope you'll help me improve like Blake, Yang and Ruby have."

Well, that was a response. Weiss felt her tension draining away despite her best efforts to hold on. She glared down at the top of his head, but even that glare slowly lost its heat. Her eyes softened and she sighed, glaring at Yang. It was literally impossible to stay angry. Was this a Semblance? Was it a facet of his aura?

Yang winked back. "Diplomatic little thing, isn't he?"

Yes. Yes, he was. Weiss sighed. "I accept your overture, Oscar. Welcome to Team RWBY." She stressed the name. He could be a part of it, but they weren't changing the name. If he was happy with that and happy to be the fifth member – not the fourth, nor Ruby's partner – then she would accept him as such. "As for improvement, I'm sure you don't need my help for that if you're personally being trained by Professor Arc himself. Why, I bet you… Oscar?"

"N-N-Nothing." Red faced, shaking and looking around for an ambush, the boy shrunk back. "T-Training is good. Got to dodge better. Move. Always move. Never stop moving. N-Never take my eyes off the enemy."

Those were good lessons to remember, though why he felt the need to repeat them out loud and with such terror in his eyes, she had no idea. Perhaps it was a mantra. Ah, that made sense. He was reinforcing the lessons in his head. And to look so worried, he must be taking his training seriously. Good. Maybe Yang and Ruby could learn a thing or two from him.

"It will be good to have another hard worker on the team. Don't you think so, Yang?" No answer. The shower door slammed shut, Yang having claimed it. "Ugh. Interesting how I only remembered the good things about Beacon and forgot the pains of sharing amenities." Shaking her head with a little sigh, she sat down on her bed and prepared her clothes for the day. Another change was that with Oscar here, she could no longer change outside the bathroom.

He noticed her expression and smiled weakly. "I can leave if you like?"

Goodness. He was almost too eager to please.

"I appreciate the offer, but it would be unfair to accept that. I can change in the bathroom. Tell me a little about yourself, Oscar. We have time."

"About me?" he asked, pointing at his face. "Um. Well, I'm fourteen, I've lived in Mistral all my life and I worked on a farm." He paused, winced and tilted his head to the side. "A-And I did a little work for Ozpin on the side. That's how the headmaster knew about me."

"What kind of work would a farmer do for the headmaster of Beacon?"

"Uh." He looked up in though. "Oh, right. I kept an eye on Mistral and Haven. Official reports from one Kingdom to another are often politically based, so I have him more accurate updates on the situation."

The answer was strangely rehearsed – she could tell from how he said it – but she didn't detect any deceit in it. And really, what point would there be for him to lie? It wasn't like she was an enemy interrogating him. "I see. And how have you found Beacon?"

"Beacon is amazing." His face split into a huge smile. "Everything is so cool and different, and the people are so nice! I-I'm definitely the weakest here," he said sadly, "But I'm getting better. I have to. If I don't, I'll never survive."

Weiss leaned forward, concerned. "Are you in immediate danger?"

"Hm? Nah, not until six this evening."

Six? Was he talking about his training? Well, no one could expect a regimen put together by Headmaster Arc to be easy. She shrugged it off as a joke and sat back. As she did, someone knocked at the door. Blake tensed.

"Are you going to get that, or should I?" Weiss asked. When Blake looked to her hopefully, she frowned. "It was a rhetorical question, Blake. I'm not being ambushed the second I open the door. Greet your mother."

"I could-" Oscar began.

"No." Weiss stopped him. He didn't deserve it. "We know who it is."

Blake stood and approached the door warily, looking back more than once as though asking if Weiss really couldn't do it for her. Ruby probably would have but she was still asleep. Eventually, Blake reached the door, opened it and then hopped back to avoid a tackle. An empty corridor greeted her. Blake, crouched in an alert stance like a skittish cat, stood up awkwardly.

No Kali. No anyone. The sounds of people walking around down the corridor filtered through but little more. Had it been a prank or someone knocking on the wrong door and realising before they could answer?

Stepping forward, Blake peered out.

That was a mistake.

"Got you!" Kali squealed, catching Blake around the shoulders and hauling her out the room. Blake yelped but couldn't escape, and Kali took the moment to lock her daughter to her side, waving back in and ready to close the door. "Morning Weiss, is that a new person?"

"Oscar Pine," Weiss said, knowing poor Oscar was shocked silent. "He's an adjunct to Team RWBY."

"Oh. Nice to meet you, Oscar. I'd love to stay, chat and cuddle but a certain kitten needs to contact her father and I'm afraid if I give her a chance, she'll run away to Vacuo or something. I'll have her back to you in time for lessons. Byeee!"

The door slammed shut, the last sight of Blake being hauled away kicking and complaining.

Oscar asked the pressing question. "How is it possible for that woman to be Blake's mother!?"

"It's an everlasting mystery. And do you know what else is a mystery?" Weiss raised her voice. "How long Yang Xiao-Long can monopolise a shower! Get out of there, damn it! Some of us need the hot water as well!"

Ruby woke, yelped and tumbled out of bed.

It's good to be back.

/-/

"Don't you have diplomatic meetings with the headmaster?"

"Later in the day, yes. Certainly not before breakfast." Kali kept smiling as the elevator rode up. The cramped metal box meant she could let go of Blake since running was improbable. Not impossible. Blake's eyes roamed to the escape hatch above. "Don't even think about it, dear."

"I wasn't."

"Sure you weren't." She smiled as the elevator dinged. "Your father hasn't talked to you for so long. The least you can do is talk to him now, especially with how much danger he's in."

"I wish my mom was here to embarrass me."

She sucked in a breath between her teeth. Ruby's face – not angry or disappointed, more resigned – flashed through her mind. She'd apologised, or tried to, only for Ruby to point out she hadn't killed Summer Rose, so why was she acting like she should say sorry. Yang cornered her later and told her not to sweat. Ruby wasn't upset; she was just making a point. Ruby had gotten used to the loss of Summer years ago.

A point that she should care more for the family she had than any potential embarrassment. Ruby might not be disappointed now, but she had the feeling if she welched out on talking to her father, Ruby's disappointment would be palpable.

Blake sighed and stopped trying. "Okay. Let's do it."

"That's the spirit. And you needn't worry. Worry aside, we were pleased to hear you'd left the White Fang. It really was going down a darker path." Kali brought them to a cubicle and inserted her scroll, running through the on-screen options to establish a call to Menagerie. The CCT was mostly abandoned, which made sense given it was before breakfast.

Menagerie didn't actually have a CCT. Those were made by Atlas and the island quasi-Kingdom had never made good terms with them. That said, you could find signal boosters to make important calls, and being the chieftain of Menagerie, their household contained one of the few on the island. The others were owned by the shipping and transport agencies for their jobs, along with one in the centre of town for public use.

"I told him to expect us," Kali said, "So we shouldn't have to wait."

True enough, the call was accepted, and the image opened. Though grainy and with a disconnect between the movement on the screen and the sound coming through, Blake was presented with an image of her towering father. And he of her.

"Blake," he rumbled. It was hard to tell, but he appeared to be smiling. "It's good to see you safe and sound, little kitten."

"Do you have to call me that? I'm almost eighteen."

"I'll stop when you're as tall as I am."

"Tch." She rolled her eyes. "How are things in Menagerie? Mom told me about Adam."

"I'm alive. That's a positive. He's got people on the streets recruiting and passing on the message of Sienna's death. He's claiming the one Beacon has put forward as a body double."

Of course he was. What else could he do? If he didn't want to admit to lying, he had to claim they were. Sadly, there were plenty who would believe him on principle. "Kali can confirm it's her and you could announce that," she said.

"Yes. And then I shall die."

Blake's breath caught. He was right. Adam would never let that stand. "I-I didn't mean…"

"I know." He laughed loudly. "I didn't believe you were telling me to throw my life away, kitten. You're just looking at things a little too bluntly. The best I can do is erode his control without drawing attention to myself. While I would like to march on down and break his back, I would die long before I made it. The same were I to do anything that disagrees with Adam's words."

He was caught, then. That had to be painful, especially since Ghira had made the White Fang. He couldn't do the right thing and stand up to them without dying, and if he did die, Adam would take full control. It made much more sense to be subtle, even if that meant Ghira might have to agree with Adam in some small ways. Her gut twisted.

"Don't do anything stupid," she pleaded.

"Me? I think I'll leave the dangerous things to you. I intend to stand up for those who don't want to fight, but I think I can make myself useful while also defying him. That will make it difficult for him to get rid of me."

She couldn't believe they were talking so frankly about this – about the very real chance her ex-boyfriend would kill her father. And with such blasé tones, too. It was nauseating, and she wished she could dropkick Adam off a building.

"What will you do?"

"I'll work to avoid war between the Kingdoms and Menagerie. That will act as a shield for Adam's actions sadly, but it will keep innocent faunus here from being dragged in. What's more, the Albain brothers will likely see that as a good thing. They should keep Adam off my back."

Should. There was still a chance they wouldn't. Ruby's words drifted in her head.

If Ghira died, how much would go unsaid?

"I love you. A-And I'm sorry I joined the White Fang."

Ghira's face softened. "I love you as well, kitten. And I'm proud of the woman you've become – so perhaps joining and leaving was not so bad a thing. It made you experienced, and in this world that goes a long way."

Blake stood a little taller, then drew out a stool and sat. Why make it a short call when it could be longer. When she hadn't talked to him for so long. Behind her, she heard Kali do the same, sitting alongside her with a contented smile on her face.

"Now, enough about business. Tell me of Beacon. Tell me of your friends, your lessons and what silly adventures you've dragged yourself into this time."

"What makes you think I've done anything?"

"Call it a hunch."

"Well, there was this one time…" Blake's skin darkened a little. "Or… maybe more than once…"

/-/

Jaune, Oobleck and Port brought the mugs to their lips.

As one, they drank. As one, they swallowed. As one, they sighed, leaned back and closed their eyes, smiling at the subtle beauty of the world.

"Gentlemen-" Glynda began.

"Shhh." They said as one, each holding out a hand. Their voices merged in unison, creating a rumbling timbre. "Coffee now," they choired. "We've waited so long."

Glynda rolled her eyes and looked to Roman, who already had a bottle of beer open and raised to his lips. He froze, spotting Glynda watching, then remembered he didn't really care and drank anyway. Next to him, Qrow did the same, still surly over the loss of his hip flask.

"Why do I find it less problematic that you're drinking alcohol?" She pointed. "Compared to that!"

"Probably because it takes us more than one sip to get blitzed," Qrow said, smacking his lips. "Ah. Finally. It's been so long since we could have a drink here, what with the embargo and everything."

"The guy who gets to turn into a bird and fly to the nearest bar doesn't get to say that," Roman growled. "I have been without a proper drink or a cigar for weeks. I was this close to storming Vale at the head of an army of disgruntled students."

"I don't think the students were disgruntled at the lack of tobacco," Glynda said.

"Oh, they were. You see, my mood is directly proportional to how much I've smoked – and the pain I put my students through is directly proportional to my mood." Roman held up both hands like a set of scales. "Ergo, the students suffer if I don't get my fix. Really, if anyone is to blame for them hating my guts, it's Ironwood."

Jaune tuned back in time to stop Glynda reaching over and throttling Roman.

Sienna cackled in the corner. "This is more fun than I expected."

"Why is she here?" Glynda snarled.

"Because her being in our eyesight is a lot safer than her not being," he said reasonably, pulling her hands away from Roman. "She isn't here because she's trusted. Quite the opposite." The caution calmed Glynda somewhat. "And she'll be helping Bart with his lessons today while I deal with Winter, Kali and the Council." He sighed. "At least one of those looks to be friendly."

Glynda snorted.

"We're discussing the history of the White Fang," Bart said eagerly. "I'm sure Miss Khan can offer an interesting perspective that will differ from the textbooks."

He was sure she could. He didn't envy Bart trying to stop it descending into a political debate, but he seemed to like that thing so go figure. Maybe having Sienna answer questions for the students would help them come to accept her. Or not. Blake would probably have some zingers. He was glad he wasn't involved.

As the bells rang and the teachers rose, he bid each good luck and made his way to his office. The work of a headmaster was different from that of a teacher. It was both less time consuming and more stressful – which was a strange contrast.

The first hour of his day was speaking to the Council. He talked about the lift on the embargo, accepted praise on making a deal with Ironwood, assured the Councillors the good will would continue, and made his usual excuses on why he was too busy to attend a meeting.

Somewhere in the middle of that, Winter let herself into his office. Her mouth was open, ready to speak, but she saw him on a call and closed it. Rather than leave, she stood in a military pose by the door, listening to him talk.

The call was probably supposed to be confidential, but there was nothing actually being said so he let it be. The Councillors just liked to hear the sound of their own voices, and their main goal was pretty much to ensure he was on their side and staying loyal to Vale. As long as he was polite, pretended to listen and nodded along with their ideas, they were fine with him.

That all could have been handled in a text message, though. Why make him sit through this?

Once the call ended, he addressed Winter. "Sorry for keeping you waiting."

"It's fine." She moved forward. "I'm used to it with General Ironwood." The pithy remarks were on hold today as they needed to provide a united front. It was a tall thing to ask for them, but when the enemy was hated enough, they could do it. "Are you ready to address Cinder?"

He nodded. Stood. "Yes. I'll lead you there."

They'd chosen their time well. The students were in lessons and would be too busy to notice what was going on, while the Council would be mulling and self-congratulating their talk with him. The media was similarly busy coming up with stories on how he and Ironwood were making peace, while others were staring conspiracy theories on whether he was engaged to Winter, Weiss or even Whitley of all people. Those that remained, and much of the online community, were arguing over Sienna's presence in school, whether it was safe and – for some reason – whether she was the real Sienna Khan at all.

It was a perfect opportunity to deal with Cinder without people noticing.

"We've kept her looked after and safe," he said, pausing outside her door. "Someone talks to her every day, brings food and gets rid of the old."

"Is she eating?"

"She didn't for the first day and a half, but she does now."

"That's a good sign." Seeing his confusion, she said, "It shows that she has accepted her position as being a long-term one. And that she values her life still. Some will go on hunger strikes to try and force you to move them, while others will genuinely try and starve themselves to death. That she does neither means she wants to live." Winter chuckled. "We can make use of that."

It was times like this he was reminded that Atlas was a military. Beacon… They fought for what they had to, but they didn't know how to do things. Interrogation was one of those things. Atlas, on the other hand, knew exactly how to control a person. And possibly how to break them.

Would they have done that to me if Neo and Roman didn't rescue me…?

He shivered as Winter pushed ahead, opening the door.

Cinder was fully dressed, washed and sat on her bed reading a book when they entered. She paused, looked up, back down, marked the page by folding it and then closed the book and put it down on the bedside table. He had no idea what it was – maybe Bart or Glynda gave it to her. Did it mean something? Was her outfit indicative of some change? What was Winter thinking?

Neither woman gave anything away. They stared at one another for a moment, and then Winter offered a polite greeting and asked if she could take a seat.

"Help yourself," Cinder said, gesturing with one hand.

"Thank you." Winter drew out the seat and sat. "I'm sure you have an idea as to why I'm here."

"I'm sure I do. You want answers. You want information."

"That's correct."

"Hmhm." Cinder chuckled into her hand. "Not so different from Jaune in the end, are you? Oh. I should congratulate you on your impending nuptials."

Jaune's eye twitched. "Is that on the news now? It's wrong."

"Quite." Winter crossed one leg over her knee. "I'm not here to talk about Jaune, however. I'm much more interested in you. Specifically, your place within your old organisation, and your continued future on Remnant."

"I'm not incentivised to tell you anything," Cinder said.

"We could make incentives."

"And they would kill me for speaking."

"Who are they exactly?" Winter asked. "If you told us, we could protect you against them."

"Hm." Cinder's eyes closed as she considered the words. "Not bad. A little more amateur than I expected of someone in your position. Do you expect me to leap into your arms for safety? Or is it that you thought I'd blurt out the truth if you asked nicely?"

"Your situation is a delicate one."

"Is it? I wasn't aware of that. I've simply had my soul cut in two, my power stolen, and my freedom limited to a single room. And here I thought that was normal. Silly me."

Stolen? You couldn't steal what which was stolen in the first place. Roman would probably disagree, but he could to take a long walk off a short pier. The power of the maiden was with Pyrrha, and there it would remain so long as he had any say about it.

"Your situation can change," Winter said. "Atlas is willing to make an offer."

"Of amnesty?"

"Not quite. Your crimes are many. But we could see you kept out of prison, albeit serving us."

"Exchanging one master for another, except that this one is far less powerful – and my position within it would be as a mere prisoner." Cinder inspected her nails. "You're not impressing me. I'd almost expected Jaune to make this offer himself."

"No." All eyes turned to him. "That's not on the table."

Cinder's eyes burned. "It was for Sienna Khan."

"Different rules for different people. You attacked Beacon. You killed students. You brought the Grimm, unleashed death and ruined lives." He let out a long breath. "And Sienna has probably done the same, but never on that scale. I don't care how powerless you are now. I wouldn't care even if I had a magical contract that could ensure your loyalty. In Beacon, you'll never be anything more than a prisoner." He glared at her. "You'll hear no plea deals from me."

Winter nodded, accepting his decision since it left Atlas as Cinder's only recourse. He didn't like that much more than this, but at least she'd be someone else's problem there. And without the maiden's powers, she was diminished. Even if she escaped and came back for revenge, she wouldn't have the same impact. Everyone knew she had failed. No one would support her against Beacon.

She had to know that. The knowledge must have grated on someone so egotistical.

Either way, the offer was clear. Atlas or life as a prisoner.

The choice was obvious.

"I think we're done here," Cinder said, turning away and picking up her book.

Why? Why reject it? The stupid, arrogant son of a-

Winter's hand touched his shoulder. She shook her head quickly, subtly. Restraining his temper, he stood and followed her out, closing the door behind them and flicking his hands over the keypad to lock it once more. He then pushed the deadbolt into another and locked that with his fingerprint.

The door was doubly sealed and the corridor itself was sealed off as another safety measure, creating something of an airlock should she accept. Beacon didn't have the means to draw air out or pump gas in – why would it? It was a school – but they could send him, Roman and Glynda in to beat Cinder down if she broke out.

"That was a fail," he said.

"Not as such. We shocked her, and that's a victory in itself. Leave her to consider her options."

More interrogation methods he didn't understand? "If you say so. What will you do now?"

"I will wait, of course. If people cracked in the first meeting there'd be no need for me to be here. I'll report to Ironwood, tour the grounds and visit Vale. Your Council has requested to meet with me to… ascertain the truth of stronger relations between Atlas and Beacon."

"To check if I'm not lying, you mean." When she didn't counter, he asked, "What will you tell them?"

"The truth. That relations are thawing. To say anything else would be a lie that would come back to bite me. Fear not. If I wish to take shots at you, I shall do that directly." Smirking, she walked by. "You can sleep easy, Jaune Arc. Enjoy the rest of your day."

Not for the first time, he was left without a witty comeback. Typically, it'd come to him later, too late for him to do anything about it, and he'd wish for a time travel Semblance.

"Damn it. And this isn't even the last meeting of the day."

True to form, Kali Belladonna awaited him outside his office. She wore long black and white robes, a friendly smile – still so different to Blake – and warm, tan skin. Her eyes met his and her smile grew even more. She was practically glowing.

He hoped that was a good sign. "Sorry to keep you busy, Mrs Belladonna."

"Oh please, call me Kali. And it's no problem. My Blake has told me how busy you are of late."

Sharing paperwork secrets again. He couldn't even bring himself to be annoyed. "Did you have time to reconnect with her?"

"Yes. And her with my husband." The source of Kali's joy quickly became apparent. "Finally, she's stopped running away and settled down. I think I have you to think for that in some small way. You and her team, who have looked after her so."

"More her team than me."

"Not as I hear it. You put yourself on the line to keep her in Beacon." Kali laid a hand on his shoulder. "Thank you. From the bottom of my heart."

"Ah, well, I couldn't leave a student behind." He opened the door and letting her into his office. Neo was already there, sat cross-legged atop his desk teaching her Nevermore some tricks. She looked up on seeing them enter, gazed at Kali and then cocked her head.

Her expression was unreadable.

"Don't worry," Kali said, not to him but to Neo. Apparently `unreadable` just meant he couldn't read it. Kali had no trouble. "I'm married, and quite happy about it."

Neo raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, I'm sure. Believe me, while I agree he's quite interesting, nothing quite compares to my Ghira." Kali then, to his horror, held up her hands very far apart. "Especially where it counts."

Lips pursed, Neo whistled, impressed.

"How is he?" Kali asked, jerking a thumb his way.

"I think that's enough!" Jaune yelped, stepping in and pushing Neo's hands down – which had been halfway on their journey to accurately describing parts of him that didn't need to be accurately described. "Mrs Belladonna-"

"Kali," she corrected.

"Kali isn't here to hear about that," he amended. "In fact, I'd say no one wants to know. Except maybe Yang, but I'll thank you not to give her any more ammo than she already has." She was already far too smug at Jinn revealing how much she drew his eyes. She'd been in a permanent state of strut and swagger ever since. "We're here to talk business. Or as much as we can."

"We are," Kali said, "But personal health is important. You look stressed, dear. Are you sleeping enough?"

"What-? Yes. I mean, sort of." He sighed and gripped his face. "How is this relevant?"

"It's relevant because you need to be rested to make good decisions," she explained, sitting down on his sofa. She patted the spot next to her. When he sat down on a different one, she looked at him and patted the spot beside her again.

She kept doing that for two full minutes, refusing to acknowledge him until he stood, sighed, and moved over to sit beside her, hip to hip.

"That's better."

She took his shoulder and leaned him down until his head was resting on her lap and his feet off the edge of the sofa. He blinked up at the ceiling. "Wait, why are we-?"

"Shhh." Kali tapped his lips. "Now, you need to relax a little."

Neo had come over to lean on the back of the sofa and looked down on him curiously. He couldn't blame her. It wasn't every day a random woman appeared and forced you to use her lap as a pillow; or start stroking your hair like she was your mother. He was as confused as Neo. Wait, why did Neo look so impressed?

"It's all about confidence," Kali said to Neo, ironically making Jaune's head scream. Not that blasted saying again. Why did it work for everyone but him? "You just need to let them know you won't take no for an answer. Be firm."

Nodding quickly, Neo looked at Kali Belladonna in awe.

Jaune feared for his life.

"Mrs B- K-Kali," he corrected when she bopped his nose gently. "This doesn't seem… It's not the done thing. I'm the headmaster of Beacon and you're a foreign envoy. We really shouldn't be in this situation."

"Dear, I've told you, there's nothing you have that my Ghira doesn't have bigger."

He felt like saying she didn't know that, but he'd seen a picture of Ghira Belladonna, and to be honest he wasn't sure he wanted to compete. "Still, why are you stroking my hair?"

"You look stressed."

"I am stressed. And I don't just mean the mood. Neo is human, you're faunus and I'm stress. It's pretty much what I am nowadays."

Cinder, Roman, Ironwood, Winter, Glynda, Salem, Team RVNN, RWBY, Oscar and Ozpin.

Okay, maybe not so much Oscar – the poor guy really didn't deserve to be lumped in that pile, but still, whether he meant to or not, Oscar was a source of stress. Mostly due to the passenger in his head. Either way, everything was stressful.

And now he was feeling sleepy. "Don't," he mumbled. "I'm supposed to be working."

"And you've done such a good job," Kali cooed. "Both at protecting Beacon and at looking after my little girl. The Belladonna family won't forget that, so you can fall asleep in my lap if you like." She giggled. "Neo and I can keep each other company."

Why did that frighten him? Why did the smiles they shared fill him with dread!?

"I may not run a school, but I know what it's like to have a lot on your shoulders, and I've been doing it for a lot longer than you have. Why don't you tell me what's wrong? Nothing confidential, of course. Just the little things."

"W-What about the White Fang?"

"That's hardly an issue we can solve in one day. We'll talk tomorrow, when you've had a proper amount of sleep."

Jaune's face flushed crimson. "With all due respect, ma'am, I'm not sleeping in your lap!"

/-/

Blake let herself into the headmaster's office. Oscar was beside her, here for his training while she came for detention and paperwork and another night of watching Sienna Khan like a hawk faunus. She expected him to be inside with said person already, and true to form, Sienna was there, albeit with a cup of tea and a very confused look on her face. Blake saw why a moment later and slapped a hand against her forehead.

"Why is the headmaster sleeping in your lap?"

Kali looked up, lowered the cup of tea and held a single finger to her lips. "Shh. He's very tired."

Jaune Arc was sprawled on his back, head in her mother's lap, one arm on his chest and the other hanging off on the floor. His feet were kicked up on the sofa, boots removed. Gods, if Yang or Ruby heard about this, there'd be no end of complaints. Sienna sat nearby, unsure what to do, while Neo was watching from a nearby seat, somehow both amused and impressed with what was going on.

Blake didn't dare ask why the headmaster's lover would be acting like that around her mom.

Some things were better not known.

"Incredible," Oscar whispered, shaking. "I want to be just like him."

Blake sighed. "I'm going to start doing paperwork."

"Ah. My little girl is all grown up and responsible! I'm so proud."

"Ugh…"

Kind of weird writing Kali now, since I named my dog that – and yes, I named my dog after Kali Belladonna. Go figure. She's a black and white border collie. It fit. Well, except for the fact she's a cat faunus.

Omake:

"Miss Jinn." Blake said. "You called for me?"

"I did." The therapist, Jinn Reli'Knowledge – a strange name, but she was sure Jaune had called her that – smiled and beckoned her into the room. "I believe Jaune made it mandatory for you to attend a session with me this year about your issue."

"I remember." Sitting down, Blake sighed. "And I know what you're going to say. I've heard it all before. I need to stop running away from my problems. I need to face them head on. Nothing can be achieved so long as I keep running." She shook her head. "I know all that, Miss Jinn. You don't need to tell me it."

Jinn frowned and put her notepad down. "Blake, whatever do you mean? That's not what I wanted to talk about."

"Huh? My problem. My running away thing."

"Do you think that's a problem, Blake?"

"Isn't it?" Was this one of those things where Jinn wanted her to admit to having a problem? If so, she already had. "I accept it. I'm not trying to hide away from it. My teammates have already told me it's an issue and I'm trying to fix it."

"Do you believe it needs fixing?" Jinn asked.

Lost, Blake could only reply, "Do you think it doesn't?"

"It's hard to say. Ask yourself this. Has running away from your problems ever failed?"

Blake sat there, flummoxed.

"You ran away from the White Fang when they crossed a line," Jinn pointed out. "In doing so, you escaped from them before things got worse, joined Beacon, found friends and formed a team that you genuinely love."

"I… That's true…"

"You ran away from Adam when he became someone you weren't comfortable with. And lo and behold, he's turned out to be something of a jealous psychopath." Jinn chuckled. "I'd say you dodged a bullet there. Wouldn't you?"

"Yes. Yes, it was good to get away from him."

"Following on from that, you joined Beacon and had a good life here – up until the incident where your heritage was discovered, and you ran away from your team when challenged."

Blake sighed. "Yes…"

"And in doing so, you located a criminal plot and helped your teachers thwart it."

"B-But I hurt my team."

"Yes, but you made up with them after, and thanks to some time apart your issues were dealt with. Weiss calmed down enough to forgive you, and you did the same. Tell me, were there any negative consequences of that?"

Blake thought for a moment and shook her head, amazement writ across her features. "No. It all worked out pretty well. Team RWBY stayed together."

"Moving on from that, you had a similar reaction later when you refused to ignore the White Fang involvement in Vale and wanted to run off and deal with them, correct?"

"Yes. I dragged my team into it…"

"Thus, recovering the stolen Paladin and potentially saving even more lives."

Blake's eyes grew wide.

"You see, by running away you have consistently helped people. It's a winning strategy for you. I'm not sure why you discount it so, or let people phrase it as a character flaw."

"I… but… wow." Blake leaned back. "It really has worked for me, hasn't it? I wouldn't even be here on Team RWBY if it wasn't for the fact I keep running away. I was even thinking of doing so after Adam attacked Beacon. What do you think would have happened?"

"Oh, you'd have probably run away to Menagerie, followed by Sun. There, you'd have wallowed for a bit, found a White Fang plot, stopped the murder of your parents, foiled the plans of the Albain brothers and ultimately reunited with Team RWBY without any issues whatsoever. But that's all just theory, of course. I can't see the future."

"Sure." Blake laughed and sat still, mentally coming to terms with the bombshells dropped on her. "Wow. I really do win from running away. Like, all the time." She stood, all smiles and reaching forward to shake Jinn's hand. "Thank you. I didn't expect this to go so well but you've really helped me see that what everyone else calls a weakness is a strength. I've never felt so relieved before."

"That's what I do, Blake. That's what I do."

/-/

Jaune, Glynda and Ruby knocked on the door to Jinn's room.

"Hello?" the blue woman answered. "What's with the long faces?"

"Miss Jinn." Jaune's voice was clipped. "Would you care to explain why Blake has run away from six detentions, two classes, one parent-teacher conference and her midterm exams? All in the space of a week?"

"I asked her to spar with Miss Nikos," Glynda growled, far from amused. "She threw a smoke bomb down, yelled `I flee` at the top of her voice and dove out a window. I had to evacuate the training halls until the smoke cleared. And pay for repairs for the window."

"I tried to talk to her about it yesterday," Ruby complained, "And for the last two days before – but whenever the conversation gets heavy, she vanishes and leaves a clone behind."

Jaune, Glynda and Ruby stared at Jinn. "Explain," they said as one.

"Ah-heh. Oops?"

Hm. You know, Jinn isn't wrong. We criticise her for it but running away has served Blake perfectly every time she does it. I mean, she even saved her parents' lives by running away at the end of Season 3. Why stop now!? She should run away from Ozpin, trip Salem and cause her to fall into a ravine, singlehandedly saving Remnant.

Next Chapter: 19th September

P a treon . com (slash) Coeur