AN: Sorry about the poor spacing last chapter! Hopefully this update doesn't have any issues...

The Vytal Festival. A time where all four kingdoms celebrate their unity, and the treaty that ended the Great War. A celebration of all cultures, and a time of peace.

"Ah, apologies!"

"Watch where you're going!"

Usually a time of peace.

Ozpin sighed as he walked over to the teen Glynda nearly knocked down, helping him up from the ground. "I'm sorry for my partner, she can be quite a handful."

"Excuse me?!"

"No, no. It was my fault." The brown-haired teen apologized again, laughing. "Really, I should have been looking where I was going."

Ozpin examined the boy in front of him. He was tall and muscular, with brown eyes and a tan complexion. He had a mane of brown hair, with the beginnings of a beard beginning to show on his face. Despite his physique, however, the clothes he wore were neat and scholarly. A bracer was strapped to his left wrist, twinkling with dust, with a light brown sash wrapped tightly around his waist.

In short, he looked like a buff nerd.

"Still, in the end you were the one knocked over on the ground, so I suppose the fault lies on both of us, Mr...?" Ozpin trailed off, the end tail of his sentence a question

The teen smiled, taking the hint. "Call me Leonardo. And you are?"

Ozpin smiled back. "You may call me Ozpin."

"Is Haven supposed to be this quiet?"

Yang shrugged, walking through the empty corridors of Haven academy.'Oz?'

"...No. Something's off, best be on your guard."

Yang turned back to Weiss and shook her head, which was reason enough for the ex-heiress to unsheathe her sword.

For better or worse, the road to Mistral was fairly uncomplicated, all things considered. Yang and Weiss had arrived to the kingdom and rested at the nearest inn before heading to Haven. Ozpin had warned them that Haven would be difficult to get into without Qrow, that the academy would be on high alert thanks to a contingency plan Ozpin and the rest of the headmasters concocted should one of the academies be attacked. To expect Huntsmen on guard, the teachers suspicious and the headmaster himself hard to reach.

No one expected a completely empty building that practically anyone could stroll into.

"What is Leo doing?"Ozpin mused, and Yang felt his worry and frustration seep in."This was against my specific instructions. Who's protecting the relic?"

'Maybe something's happened? Or...'

"Her forces have already come here? Unlikely. Salem would work quietly behind the shadows, until the final act where she makes it quite clear that she's responsible."

"Well, either way we're getting an answer." Yang muttered, the great oak doors of Leo's office coming into view, and-

"Do you understand why I'm telling you this, my friend?"

"...You want me to be part of your inner circle."

"I didn't make this decision lightly. I wouldn't have revealed my secrets to you if I didn't trust you, Leo."

"..."

A sigh. "I understand if you'd like to stay out of this. You already have enough responsibilities as it-"

"No, no." Leonardo let out a breathy chuckle. "Ozpin, if you truly trust me that much, then... Well, it would be quite rude of me to not trust you as much as well."

Ozpin smiled. "Very well then. Welcome to the Circle, Leonardo Lionheart."

Yang stumbled on air, catching herself on the oak doors.

"Yang?" Weiss quickly walked over to her teammate. "Are you alright?"

"...Fine." Yang righted herself. "Just some deja-vu, is all."

Yang let out a breath, and jiggles the door handle. Nothing.

Weiss and Yang glanced at each other, and then Yang slowly lifts her foot up.

"Yang!" Weiss gasps. "You can't just kick down the headmaster's door!"

"Got any better ideas?"

Weiss "hmphed" in indignation, then lightly raps on the door.

"Seriously? Like that's gonna-"

"I'll be right there!" Came a voice from inside the office, and heavy footsteps can be heard. "Honestly my friend, I thought you'd be calling ahead!"

Yang sighed, waving away the smug look on Weiss' face. "Hey, we had no idea Leo was here..."

A lock was turned and the doors slowly opened, Leonardo still talking as he did so. "I'm sorry to say that the Council's answer hasn't changed, but you're all welcome to visit any..."

Yang and Leonardo paused, staring at each other. For Yang, she felt severely underwhelmed at the Faunus in front of her, Ozpin's memories hyping the headmaster up to be some kind of mountain of muscle. For Leonardo, he was merely confused at the two teenagers at his door.

Hesitantly, Yang finally broke the silence. "... Leonardo Lionheart?"

Leo finally shook himself out of his confusion. "Y-yes. And you're Yang Xiao Long I presume?"

This time, it was Weiss' turn to be surprised. "You know her?"

Leonardo cleared his throat. "Well, the Vytal Festival was broadcast across Remnant..."

"Right..." Yang winced at that. "Listen, about Mercury-"

"No need to apologize, Miss Xiao Long." Leonardo chuckled. "Mistral is well aware of Mr. Black's treachery. Fortunately, kingdom pride doesn't extend to terrorists." The Headmaster paused. "But I doubt you've come all the way here just to talk about that, have you?"

"...No, not at all." Yang sighed.'C'mon, Xiao Long. Ozpin trusts him, so you can trust him too.'

With a frown, Yang thrusts out her hand, the hand she had painted green. "I'd like my cane back."

Once again, the hallway was silent, Yang standing strong, while Leo stepped back, eyes wide and almost wary, staring at the outstretched hand.

"O-Ozpin?"

Yang and Weiss looked at each other.

Weiss had expected many things when she had met Headmaster Lionheart. Ozpin's warnings of a difficult entry into Haven had been a start. Perhaps even being laughed out of the kingdom when it was revealed Yang had truly gone insane and there was no magic war nor immortal headmaster in her head.

Being dragged into an (admittedly comfortable) plush couch and being offered tea in jade cups was an unforseen (although not an entirely unwelcome) possibility.

"It's been far too long my friend!" The headmaster exclaimed, pouring himself a cup. "I apologize for not checking in with you for all these years but, well, there was nothing to check in about!"

He shrugged his shoulders, as if saying 'what can you do?'. "Nevertheless, it's quite a stroke of luck, you coming here. Now that-"

"Leonardo." The headmaster stopped his rambling, staring into Yang's emerald green eyes as Ozpin spoke. "Not that your hospitality isn't... endearing, but we have much more important matters to discuss."

Again, there was a hint of fear in the lion Faunus' eyes, but eventually Leonardo let out a steady breath. "Yes, I suppose we do. You're wondering why the school is closed."

"Yes, that's some cause for concern, I'd think."

"I didn't have a choice. After the CCT's final broadcast, Mistral was in chaos. Shambles. Grimm were swarming the kingdom. The council pressured me to send the staff on leave, to defend the city." Lionheart lowered his head. "There's some teachers that won't be returning, I'm afraid."

Ozpin's gaze softened. "I'm sorry."

"Is there really no other way to defend this relic?" Weiss asked. "Couldn't you have asked the council that you needed Huntsmen for the school's protection?"

Leonardo and Ozpin turned to her in surprise, as if just realizing that Weiss was still there.

"...You filled her in, right?"

"No, she followed me around and I've forgotten- Of course I filled her in."

Lionheart sighed. "I can't ask for more huntsmen because the council doesn't believe I need more huntsmen. I can't say the truth since the truth will get me laughed out of a job, and since Haven's in the middle of the city there's no good excuse I can make up anyway."

The headmaster sighed, taking a sip of his tea. "Either way, the relic's still safe, as long as Spring is out of Her reach. No maiden, no key, and no reason for Salem to come here yet. Hopefully I'll be able to muster up some kind of defense until then."

Ozpin winced. "About Spring..."

Leonardo waved a hand. "Qrow told me that she's become a bandit. Part of the Branwen tribe, no less. I'm trying to mount a retrieval force, but, well, I've already told you about how that's going."

Ozpin shook Yang's head. "It seems Qrow's information was only half correct. Spring is with the Branwen tribe, but the maiden is Miss Branwen herself."

Leonardo nearly does a spit-take. "A-Are you sure?"

"Well she nearly set us on fire using her hands so we're fairly sure, at least." Weiss muttered.

Leonardo sets his cup down, wiping his brow. "Qrow will need to be told about this..."

Ozpin lifts an eyebrow, gesturing at the body he was currently inhabiting. "Qrow needs to be told about a lot of things."

Leonardo briefly recounted how well Qrow deals with stress, as well as how he deals with it. "Gods, I pity that man's liver."

Qrow walks through the empty halls of Haven, still groggy from a hangover but Leonardo's earlier call far too important to ignore.

Leonardo was waiting for him in front of his office, the headmaster pacing in front of the great oak doors. "Qrow! I was wondering when you'd come."

"Of course I'd come. You said Ozpin's finally here?" Qrow asked, tapping his foot impatiently.

"Yes, as well as a companion, but I must warn you, his latest host..."

"What? What's wrong?"

"... It's best you see for yourself." Leonardo opens the door, stepping inside.

Qrow walks into the office, and immediately takes note of two things: there were two people on the couch, and he recognized both of them.

"...Yang?" Qrow says, shocked.

Yang stands up, giving a small wave. "Hey, uncle Qrow."

For a moment, Ozpin's reincarnation was forgotten as Qrow laughs and walks over to his niece, giving her a playful shove in the arm. "Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes! What the hell are you doing here?"

"Oh, you know," Yang shrugs, almost looking embarrassed. "...Ozpin stuff."

Qrow stops grinning, and carefully looks Yang in the eye. "You know?"

"Yeah." Yang glanced at Weiss. "We both do."

Qrow's eyes widen, realization setting in. "Which one of you?"

Taking a breath, Yang closes her lilac eyes, and Ozpin opens emerald green ones. He holds out Yang's hand. "Qrow, I'd like my cane back."

Qrow looks at the metal arm painted green, then at the eyes colored the same hue. He steps back, takes a swig out of his flask, then finally pulls out Ozpin's cane and hands it to the waiting hand. Then he takes another, longer swig.

"Ozpin, what the fuck."