Much like the stories of this realm have told us over and over again, life in Remnant is far from a fairy tale, and living a long and happy life is anything but promised. It's not something that anyone would ever choose to grapple with, the full weight of one's mortality weighing upon them at such a young age, but it seemed that this night would leave Julio no choice. His parents had been gone when the power went out and they started evacuating the apartment that sat on the outskirts of town, and if there had been one thing that they'd drilled into him over and over again, it was that he was never to leave the house with strangers. But he contemplated the advice he'd been given as he began to smell smoke rising from the lower floors of the building, and laid eyes upon the Grimm that were swarming the chainlink fence surrounding the complex meant more to keep out intruders and small domesticated animals.

It had crossed his mind once or twice that maybe he should throw open the window and call for help, but in doing so there was a chance that he might also alert the Grimm, and it wasn't a chance that he was willing to take. What if no one came to his rescue anyway? What if these moments were fleeting and he needed to save his breath as more smoke crept its way into his bedroom? He just wanted to hide until his parents came back until it all went away, but what if they didn't come back and it didn't go away. He was filled with fear, and that was the worst possible emotion for him to be filled with right now. As he peered out from his blanket which he'd wrapped himself in, lying still on his bed, a mighty Grimm crashed through his wall.

He tumbled out of his bed, the nine-year-old had often imagined himself as one of the huntsmen he had seen on TV and had heard so many stories about from his parents, the kind that stood tall in the face of danger and did what needed to be done to save the day. There was no bravery to be found, however, as the Nevermore thrashed about trying to make its perch more comfortable as it hunted for its prey. His sheets which had provided him with a sense of comfort only moments ago now seemed to spell his demise as he struggled to untangle himself from them, freezing completely as the massive bird let out a cry and swung its head into the room, tilting its head and looking directly at him. Smoke poured from its glowing red eyes that pierced the night and his soul, filling him with even more fear that those eyes might be the last thing he ever saw before he was killed.

Its beak unhinged slowly, tongue drooping out as steam rolled out from its maw, an unholy squawk thundering from its throat as it threw its head back in satisfaction. A morsel much smaller than it would have cared for ideally, but it was better than nothing, and it knew this child would put up less of a fight than the bystanders below with their Huntsmen. Julio tripped, falling onto his back and flailing wildly as the bird walked towards him, spreading its wings as far as possible in the confined space to loom over its meal, its hot breath washing over the boy and converting his fear to terror. This was the end for him, and there was nothing left but to accept it.

"Hey!" Someone shouted from behind the beast. The Nevermore waddled around to face the protestor but hadn't made it more than halfway when it was frozen solid, a whip made of throwing stars crashing through the newly conceived ice sculpture and shattering it into countless pieces. A girl in tribal clothing with a man in a Grimm's pelt stood atop the rubble, looking at each other for a long moment in agreement before noting Julio.

"Help!" He cried, finally freeing himself from the restraints of his own making and leaping to them.

"Guys," Lykos shouted down to Cobalt and Tawney.

"There's a kid up here," Bái finished for him.

"What?!" Tawney replied making short work of a Creep.

"They said the building was cleared!" Cobalt concluded.

"Not completely it seems," Lykos noted. Cobalt turned to the woods, watching as a mass of creatures stormed towards Vale.

"So we get him to safety," Tawney offered, taking out another Creep.

"Really changes the parameters of the mission," Bái added. Cobalt's mind drifted to his nightmare. If he wasn't strong enough to save Tawney, who should have been strong enough to save herself, what luck would he have saving this kid? Cobalt murmured something that none of them caught.

"What's the plan?" Lykos questioned as the new pack arrived.

"Better now than later!" Tawney shouted at Cobalt. After decking a third Creep she turned to find him paralyzed and tackled him out of the way of a Beowulf. "What are you doing?"

"I don't…" Cobalt mentioned, distracted. Images of Tawney being lifted up by Salem filled his mind, her face turning purple as the witch's fingers gripped tighter, drawing blood and threatening to suffocate his friend. It played repeatedly like a bad film on repeat until Cobalt had completely removed himself from the situation at hand, his mind racing once more to save Tawney from what seemed like an impossible situation.

"Cobalt!" Lykos yelled. He created an illusion of an Alpha Beowulf to try and turn the pack around as he leapt down from the building, leaving Julio with Bái.

"We don't have time for this," Tawney gritted her teeth, slapping him. It did little to free him from his trance.

"Keeping the kid safe was going to be difficult enough," Lykos groaned. The Alpha roared louder, unintentionally drawing more Grimm that came to find out what was happening. Julio clung tighter to Bái.

"I'm gonna beat the shit out of him," Tawney roared, Lykos catching her fist.

"Can it wait until later, we have other problems to worry about!" Lykos reminded her. Tawney nodded, a solid hit to Cobalt's gut for good measure to allow her to activate her semblance as she tore through the Beowulves. The building shifted beneath Bái and her rescuee as two Boarbatusks tore through the bottom floor, no doubt in search of the boy. "We gotta calm him down!"

"I can work on that, you keep an eye on the Grimm!" Bái called back to him.

"Of course!" Lykos replied. Lykos trusted Tawney to tear apart most of the Beowulves as his illusion created chaos among the monsters, allowing him to face off against the wild hogs that had arrived. He caught one by the tusks, planting his feet and forcing it to stop after far too long, the other gouged into his side, knocking him away so that they could focus on Tawney and Cobalt. "No, you don't!"

He caught one by the tusks with his whip and pulled it to the ground, sending the shuriken flying and tearing through its body as he approached the other, wrestling it away from his teammates.

"Look at me," Bái instructed Julio. "We're professionals. My friends down there will stop the Grimm and I'll keep you safe, okay?" The boy nodded but was far from calming down as a Griffon tore through the floor above them, its claws blocked only by an ice shield that Bái had formed in the spur of the moment and fended it off with. She handed it to Julio. "This will protect you, I only need a moment."

"O… okay…" He managed. She took as much moisture as she could from the air and channeled her power through her staff, forming a large ice platform that she slid out onto and turned to face the Griffon.

"Come and get me!" She shouted. The boy watched in awe as she stood unflinching as the monster swooped down for her, gaining speed as it reached her, only for it to explode from the inside out as it made contact with her staff, chunks of frozen Grimm flying everywhere. Bái winked at him as she formed a slide down to the ground to help her friends, leaving him to contemplate following.

"You got enough for one more?" Lykos asked fighting against the boar he was trying to pin. Bái formed a sword, driving it through the beast's skull and putting it to rest as Lykos collapsed to the ground below. She helped him up. "Thanks!"

"Of course," Bái replied.

"Watch out!" Came a panicked cry, Julio held the shield as triumphantly as he could with the weight of an actual Alpha Beowulf bearing down on him, sparing Bái and Lykos a heavy blow. The shield shattered, Beowulf raising its arms to kill the boy who matched Bái's stance from before, a sudden explosion rupturing through its chest from behind to reveal Tawney, whose eyes flickered back to normal. She held a fist out to Julio who met it with his own and she nodded.

"Nice job kid," Tawney assured him. The pack had been dealt with and there seemed to be a lull that let them catch their breaths, despite Cobalt still lying on the ground in a sort of post-traumatic shock.

"You guys are awesome!" Julio shouted, leaping up and down. Lykos and Bái smiled sheepishly at each other, just glad they were able to keep him safe as Tawney fulfilled her role showboating.

"Yep. Team CBLT. Don't forget the name, we're going to kick some ass one day, you know. We're a big deal, pretty much the next Team RWBY to be honest," Tawney informed him. "But I was your favorite, right?" He shook his head, pointing at Bái who blushed.

"I was scared until I saw her go up against the Griffon," Julio noted. "My fears just kind of melted away when I saw her fighting. So cool!" He laughed like a maniac before throwing a fist into the air. "Those Grimm had nothing on you guys! Can I get your autograph, Ms…?"

"Autograph?!" Bái shrank and hid behind Lykos. "You can just call me Bái, and it was nothing, really…"

"I want to be a Huntsman like you when I grow up!" He exclaimed.

"I think we can arrange an autograph later," Lykos laughed. "She's kind of shy."

"There you are," declared a voice that came running from the road followed by another figure. Julio's father hugged him tightly as his mother reached them a second later and the three of them embraced.

"It's not safe back there yet!" Titus shouted hot on their heels before pulling up short. He looked at the family and then up at CBLT with a knowing, stoic expression. "Everything good here?"

"Everything is fine," Lykos assured him.

"Well, mostly," Tawney sighed, gesturing towards Cobalt.

"What happened to him?" Titus inquired.

"Nothing that Yatsuhiashi can't fix," she mumbled.

"How do you mean?" Titus questioned.

"No," Lykos asserted.

"It can't hurt," Tawney suggested.

"Someone want to fill me in?" Titus asked.

"How can we repay you?" Julio's father asked. Bái brushed them off.

"It was nothing, really," she insisted.

"I know how," Tawney declared, causing them all to look at her. "Take good care of Julio here. I'll need a new rival after I take down Neela." Julio chuckled and folded his arms.

"You're on!" He shouted at her.

"Cobalt?" Titus pried once more.

"Tawney is suggesting we erase his memories," Lykos mumbled.

"What happened?" Titus questioned before glancing at Tawney. "Did you two?"

"No!" Tawney yelled blushing.

"Details," Lykos laughed.

"Alright then," Titus shrugged leaving.

"I guess I should go get him then?" Tawney noted. "I was hoping Titus would carry him back."

"I can carry him," Lykos offered.

"Thanks," Tawney replied.

Will Cobalt get over this fear? Next time, Chapter 45: Daughter!

A big thank you to all of my readers, and to artists AG_Nonsuch, Helihi, Cadhla182, Carlomontie, Nliast, Y8ay8a, Sa-Dui, Diyaru4500, Demize00Zero, TheCipherNine, SketchHungry, Ookaminoki, Lightning-in-my-Hand, and Dishwasher1910. The artwork can be found at Deviantart, you can search Silent-Celica and under my favorites tab, I have a collection for NITE.

Until next time, stay healthy and stay classy!