Yes, this chapter is late. Part of that is Thanksgiving's fault. I spent the whole day baking one apple pie, going to my mom's thanksgiving dinner, then going home and preparing a second pie to take to my grandparents' thanksgiving the next morning. In short, even with Thursday and Friday off, I've had a busy weekend.

The bigger problem, however, had been this chapter. This chapter did not, under any circumstance, despite all mental prodding and self-scolding, want to be written. This emotion-heavy dialogue stuff has never been a favorite of mine to write, as I'm constantly second-guessing everything I write as I'm putting it on the paper. Luckily, after the halfway mark, I started hitting my stride and churned it all out way too late in the evening. I really should go to bed now, but I'm still writing for some reason. Uh… reviews!

To HeartMachine782: Fallen Order is on my Christmas wishlist. In the meantime, I've got plenty of RWBY, anime, and Steam games to keep me occupied.

To Stalker, I like to think that Ren simply hasn't given it any thought.

I hope to have next chapter by Friday, but no promises.

Okay, that's it. Bedtime.

Chapter Fifty-Three: Counseling

The minutes seemed to plod by as Cardin went through the last day at Beacon. With classes still down for the Vytal Festival until the day after Cardin's coronation, he had nothing to distract him from the seconds ticking away on his Scroll. Ren and Blake had proved unsuccessful in their attempts to find Cinder's cargo, and a quick chat with Ruby revealed that Qrow hadn't found anything either. Junior checked in, letting Cardin know that he had everything ready, and Ironwood gave him an extra stash of Dust, with the Schnee logo stamped on the case.

Anytime he was out of his room, his eyes darted around the school, watching for any sign of Ozpin, wondering if the Headmaster had caught wind of the fact that he had spilled everything he knew. Cardin's teammates had already heard his account of the vision, but having it confirmed as reality caught them off guard. For the rest, it had all seemed ludicrous until Cardin reminded them that Ruby could turn Grimm to stone with her eyes. To wrap it all up, he told them how Ozpin had tried to kill him. He caught Blake inspecting the elevator up to Ozpin's office, which had the doors removed and hazard tape set up in front of it. There was still the dent at the bottom of the cabin, which Blake touched with her fingers, as if to confirm it was really there or checking how it was made.

It hadn't been easy for Sky to hack open the locks on Professor Goodwitch's contraband closet, but as Cardin had hoped, Yang's gauntlets were in there. He put them in a shoe box with the envelope containing ducal orders and lingered around the dorms, keeping an eye on her room. When the guard outside Yang's door switched with Jaune's father, Cardin walked up to him.

"Will you be here tomorrow?" Cardin asked.

"I start at noon."

Cardin popped the lid on the box. The Huntsman's eyes narrowed when he saw the weapons and the envelope nestled between them.

"I have a feeling she'll need them tomorrow."

With a hand on the hilt of his sword, the Huntsman said, "I'll bring some extra Dust."

Two empty pizza boxes were stacked next to the door, but otherwise, the room was tidy. Yang wore a cream-colored jacket and black tights, and she was reading one of Blake's books.

She looked up at him with a faltering smile and tossed the book behind her head. "Way too slow of a burn for my tastes, but I can see why she keeps these hidden. So, what's up?"

Cardin handed her the shoe box. She hesitated before taking it, and when she opened it, her eyes went wide.

Yang ran her fingers over the gauntlets' sleek yellow guards. "How did you get these?"

"I stole them from Goodwitch. Keep them hidden, I don't think I'll be able to get them back a second time."

Yang slammed the top of the box shut and shoved it at him. "Put it back. I'm in enough trouble already."

"Did Ruby tell you about what's going to happen?"

"She – she did." Yang hugged the box to her chest. "I don't know what to think anymore. If it wasn't for the whole Weiss thing and that silver eyes trick, I would think the doctors went a little too deep when they fixed your nose."

"They did, actually." Cardin wiggled the implant. "I have a hole straight to my brain now. I'd give myself a lobotomy if I picked my nose too hard."

That joke earned a chuckle out of Yang. "Yikes, what did they do that for?"

"That was so someone else could try putting a Grimm in my brain."

"Would've probably made you a better person," Yang shot back. She caught herself, and a horrified expression crossed her face. "Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry. That was not cool."

"Eh, I deserve it."

"You don't." Yang twirled a lock of hair around her fingers. "You were one of the worst people I ever knew. All the things you did, all the people you hurt, I thought there was nothing good about you."

"Thanks for the compliments."

Yang glowered at him. "I'm trying to be serious here. Back then, there were times I wished you were dead. I thought that if anyone deserved it, it was you." She held up her right hand, and it started shaking. "I almost did it. It doesn't matter that I was tricked into it, fact is, I almost killed you because I couldn't control my temper. It made me realize how stupid I was. You had done a lot wrong, but you didn't deserve that."

"Are you still beating yourself up over that?"

"Yes. I need to be better than that. But that's not the point. After all that, I thought you would've used my freedom to make Ruby do whatever you wanted, convince her you could get me off the hook if she helped you." She chuckled and pointed at the pizza boxes. "Instead, you took them out for pizza."

"I can't have her expecting me to deliver on something I can't give her."

"Then you could've threatened to speak out against me, or reveal Blake used to be a member of the White Fang."

"And do Cinder's work for her? Not a smart idea."

Yang growled and asked, "Why are you trying so hard to deny that you could be a good person?"

"Because I'm not, Yang. You know that, I know that, everyone knows that. Do you really think anybody's going to change their minds if I started handing out soup to the poor, or buying everyone pizza, or helping them save the world? None of that changes the fact that I don't feel anything for anybody. I don't understand why everyone thinks helping other people is so great."

"Have you actually tried doing something nice for someone?"

Cardin sighed and racked his brain. "I'm not sure giving people champagne or bottles of wine counts."

"That sounds nice."

Cardin gave Yang a flat look. "Those were bribes."

"Oh." Yang frowned and drummed her fingers on the box. "So, you've never held the door open for anyone, helped an old lady across the street, or rescued some helpless shopkeeper from a bunch of thugs?"

"Does that last one happen often?"

"You'd be surprised. Lot of racketeering going on, or at least there used to be." Yang grinned and flexed her arms, saying, "Anytime I got bored, I'd wander around town looking for some bad guys to beat up. Made for a good workout."

"So, you just did it because you wanted to pound some faces into the dirt? That doesn't sound like a good deed to me."

Yang's smile vanished. "I guess you're right. Maybe we both suck." She thought for a moment longer and said, "It doesn't change the fact I helped all those people. They all thought I was a good person for it."

"So, if everyone thinks you're a good person, then you're a good person?"

"No, that's not it." She gave an exasperated grunt and rubbed her temples. "All this thinking is giving me a headache." Her expression brightened, and she looked up at him. "Alright, I think I have it. It's not about what others think of you, otherwise Ironwood and Ozpin would probably be a bit more popular while everyone would hate our politicians."

"That's the media for you."

"Anyways, it's not about being perfectly selfless either. I don't think anybody can do that. Ruby might, but there's times I'm not sure if she's just doing it because of mom."

"She died on the job, didn't she?"

"Yeah. The main reason why I joined Beacon was to keep an eye on my sister. I was worried that she'd run off on some dangerous mission and die trying to save everyone she can." Yang hugged the box closer to her chest and said, "Someone has to keep an eye on her."

"You're not going to be able to protect her all the time."

"I know. I just want to be there once, when she overdoes it, so I can shake some sense into her and make sure she doesn't do it again. I don't think she understands how much our mom dying hurt us. At first, I tried telling her how awesome mom was, how she saved so many people and they'll all remember her for as long as they live, but I think I overdid it. Now Ruby's obsessed with saving lots of people just like mom. She wants to help as many people as she can, no matter how much danger it puts herself in. She would've died fighting Torchwick that first time if Professor Goodwitch hadn't been there, and it still hasn't sunk in that she can't just rush into danger because someone needs her help."

"But isn't that what being good means, helping people at one's own expense?"

"It doesn't have to be." Yang closed her eyes and took a deep breath, struggling to relax. "When I helped those shopkeepers, sure, I was mostly interested in blowing off some steam, but I didn't have to stop robberies to get some action. I could've gone into a nightclub and started a fight, or challenge someone to a spar, or get dad to practice with me, but none of those things would've really helped anyone else."

"So, it's the outcome that matters, not why you did it? Wouldn't that make bribery a good thing since I'm giving someone a gift?"

Yang grimaced. "I guess you're right. Maybe it is all about intention."

Cardin thought it over and grinned. "If I burn down the whole city and everyone in it to stop Cinder from taking over the world, would that make me a good person?"

Yang looked uneasy as she answered, "That's a bit extreme." After some more reflection, she added, "That's taking the easy way out. Being good means finding the way to help the most people."

"Burning down the whole city might be the only way to stop her."

The conversation died in an instant. Yang and Cardin didn't look at each other as the silence stretched to an uncomfortable length.

"Do you know why Ruby wants to help you so much?" Yang asked.

"I was thinking something along the lines of making up for what happened at the Vytal Festival."

Yang shook her head. "Ruby thinks that the reason you don't do anything nice for anyone is because no one has ever done anything nice for you. By being there for you when you need it, she thinks you'll want to be nice to others." She laughed and said, "I know, it sounds naïve, but that's how Ruby is. She just wants to help people."

Cardin shrugged. "It might actually work."

"What, are you saying no one has ever done anything for you?"

"Well, if by nice you mean out of the kindness of their hearts, with no self interest or ulterior motives, then no."

"Not even your dad? He never took you out for ice cream, or read you a bed-time story, or help you pick out your first weapon?"

"Nope."

"Did he at least ever say something like 'I love you' or 'I'm proud of you'?"

"Does saying that I am on track to become an adequate successor to the Winchester titles count?"

Yang gave him a worried look. "He never said he loved you?"

"Well, he did once. Right before the White Fang got him, he called to warn me and give me some advice. It was the last thing he told me before he hung up." As an afterthought, he added, "He said that he wasn't even sure if the words meant anything."

"That's messed up." Yang looked on the verge of tears as she glanced away from him. "I, uh, wow. I mean, there was about a year after mom's death that dad stopped caring, and I thought that was hard. Your dad never did anything for you? What about your – right, your mom died when you were little."

"I don't see what the problem is," Cardin said. "Parents are supposed to say stuff like that?"

"Yeah, they are." Yang shook her head. "There's no way I can deal with this. You need to talk to a therapist, or at least the school counselor. I think Weiss said that was Oobleck."

Cardin's hackles rose at the mention of Weiss. Had she put Yang up to mentioning Oobleck, and if so, why? He shook the suspicions away, admonishing himself for being so paranoid.

"Is that supposed to help me somehow?" Cardin asked. "It's not like it's going to change anything."

"Honestly, I feel the same way, though I wonder what would've happened if my dad saw a therapist instead of moping around the house. Weiss said Oobleck helped her with the worst of her nightmares, so maybe it's worth a shot."

Yang's comment drew attention to the heaviness of his eyelids, and the numbness that crept around the edges of his mind. Another bout of nightmares, with flashes of Ozpin's grim countenance and striking cane mixed in, had given him a rough night.

"I'll think about it," Cardin said. He glanced at the door and checked the time on his Scroll. "I should go. Keep an eye on the news during the coronation. Once Cinder's plan starts, head to Junior's. I had him stock up on supplies. We're all meeting up there to figure out how we'll stop Cinder."

"It's just your team, ours, and JNPR, right? Why not get the rest of Beacon involved?"

"Too risky. Cinder might have turncoats among them." When Yang started to object, he added, "Plus, fewer numbers will be easier to manage, and we'll make a smaller target. If we're going to take down Cinder, our best shot is to use surprise."

Yang bit back her comment and nodded. Instead, she asked, "How will I get a Bullhead? If I just went up to a pilot, they'd tell Beacon that I had escaped my room."

Cardin gestured towards the box. Yang opened it again, and this time, she found the envelope. She slid one fingernail under the wax seal, but Cardin rushed forward, grabbing her wrist.

"Don't open it. That contains official orders for the pilot to convey you in secrecy to the nearest dock to Junior's."

"Why don't you use one for the Huntsmen?"

"They don't answer to the Dukes. Ozpin controls them, and there's no way he'd let you go."

"Why not? Can't you explain your plan to him?"

"He thinks I'm working for Cinder."

"Oh." She opened the box and slipped on one of the gauntlets, flexing her hand and hefting its weight. "Good luck out there."

"You too."

As Cardin went back to his room, he found Doctor Oobleck in the stairway, coming down. He stopped abruptly, nearly sloshing coffee out of the top of his thermos. "Ah, Cardin, just the man I was looking for? Would you mind meeting me in my office for a short conversation?"

Cardin glanced around the empty hallway, suddenly on edge by the professor's abrupt appearance. "I suppose."

"Excellent! Then allow me to escort you there."

"If it is a short conversation, wouldn't it be easier to talk in my room?" he asked, pointing at the door.

Oobleck gave Cardin's room an uneasy glance. "It would be better if we had this discussion in private."

"I could have my teammates leave."

Doctor Oobleck adjusted his glasses and sipped thoughtfully at his thermos. "Well, I was hoping to consult some of my notes while we talked, and I had left them in my office, thinking that we would talk there. If I'm going to go through the trouble of going all the way back to my office for them, you may as well come with me." He grinned shook his thermos, sloshing its contents. "Besides, I have a fresh pot waiting."

While Cardin could make further counter-arguments, he sensed that trying to deflect the professor would be futile. With a nod, Cardin allowed Oobleck to lead him away from his room, over to the teachers' quarters. As they passed Gideon's room, Cardin saw that the door was open, a sure sign that he was there.

"Did you observe any new movements in the Grimm around Vale lately?" Cardin asked, slipping in a code word. If Gideon got the message, he would know to prepare himself for any trouble.

"None for now," Oobleck said. "What you did at the stadium seems to have put the populace enough at ease to hold them back, and Atlas' battlecruisers are making regular strafing runs to thin them out. From the rapid regeneration of the Grimm horde, one can only surmise that the sheer population density of Vale is augmenting their numbers as quickly as we can destroy them, and will continue to do so until the ports open again."

"Which will be tomorrow."

"Precisely. As much as I have enjoyed gathering new metrics to substantiate our models on Grimm generation based on population density, I will rest easier once Vale can resume typical patterns of Grimm behavior."

When Oobleck opened the door to his office, Cardin was first struck by the sight of the professor's desk haphazardly shoved against the back wall, blocking off two bookcases. In the empty space, the professor had laid out a long leather recliner with plenty of pillows. Another chair, this one a straight-backed office chair, sat next to a short table with a water pitcher, a steaming pot of coffee, an assortment of mugs, and a notepad.

Oobleck sat in the office chair and gestured to the recliner, saying, "Would you care to take a seat?"

Cardin skeptically regarded the chair and said, "I'm fine standing."

The professor gave him a befuddled look. "Well, it's there if you want it. Could you close the door?"

Cardin made sure the bolt clicked loudly, letting Gideon know which room he was in. He lingered by the doorway, body tense, as he waited for Oobleck to speak.

The professor emptied his thermos into one of the mugs and topped it off with fresh coffee. He held out a second mug for Cardin and asked, "Would you care for refreshments?"

"No thank you. What did you want to tell me?"

Oobleck sighed and cradled the mug in his hands. "After your encounter with the Seer, I had thought it prudent to schedule you for counseling sessions. Ozpin, however, asked that I wait and see if you come to me. I found that odd, considering that he had had Weiss attend meetings with me, but at the time, I trusted the Headmaster's judgement. However, Weiss brought it to my attention that you may be suffering side-effects from the Grimm's touch and are reluctant to ask for the help you may require. With that in mind, I decided to ask whether you would like to try a counseling session."

His first thought was to scoff at the offer and walk out the door, but Oobleck's words caught up with him. Ozpin had specifically told Oobleck not to offer him counseling. As he thought it over, he realized how suspicious the Headmaster must have found it that he seemed undamaged by the Grimm. Had he gone to Oobleck for help in the first place, would Ozpin have doubted him? Cardin ground his teeth at the thought of that, as he hadn't even known that Oobleck offered counseling in the first place. Would taking this offer now get Ozpin to trust him, or doubt him even more, seeing it as a last-ditch attempt to throw off suspicion? He couldn't be sure either way. With that in mind, he thought he might as well see what would happen.

"I'll give it a try."

"Excellent. Then why don't you start by telling me what has been troubling you lately?" He gestured at the chair. "You might want to get comfortable. It'll make it easier."

Cardin spared a glance for the door, telling himself that Gideon wasn't far away, before settling into the chair. He felt the tension leave his muscles as he sank into the cushions. Unsure of where to start, he let the professor prod him into recounting the Seer visions. From there, that led into the nightmares and the flashes of panic that plagued him at odd moments. With that off his chest, he found it hard to stop. He told Oobleck of the rigorous training and stifling loneliness of his childhood, the misdeeds he had been instructed to commit, the small betrayals from servants and supposed friends that had made him wary of everyone, his designs for attending Beacon and everything he had done there, the last phone call from his father, and the impending ceremony, with its likely fatal outcome.

His throat was stiff and dry by the time he had finished talking. The coffee had grown cold, and the ice melted in the pitcher of water. Cardin reached for the table. Oobleck wordlessly poured and handed him a mug of water. Multiple pages of the notebook had been flipped back, filled to every corner with the professor's disheveled scribbles.

Oobleck flipped through his notes, studying them with a frown. "I have to admit, this is beyond me. I wouldn't normally dare offer you any advice."

"Aren't you a counselor?" Cardin asked.

"I'm not an expert at this. From what you have told me, I believe that you would stand to benefit from consulting a professional psychologist." He flipped to the last page and tapped a sentence. "However, from what you have told me, this could very well be your last day on Remnant."

Cardin grimaced, suddenly regretting how forthcoming he had been. He rubbed his head, blinking as a day's worth of fatigue caught up with him.

"As such," Oobleck continued, "I will attempt to offer you whatever advice I can." He cleared his throat and swallowed a whole mug of cold coffee. "Your insecurities appear to stem from a deep sense of distrust and paranoia. Trust is like an anchor. If your trust is ill-placed, it can drag you off-course, or smash you against a reef. Without it, however, you're left adrift, aimless. On a fundamental level, humans need something in which they can place their trust, whether it is a person, or scientific reason, or faith, to lend the world a sense of stability that is otherwise missing."

"You're saying that I should start trusting everyone?"

"Not at all. I am saying that you should find someone to put your trust in. Ask them for help, confide your secrets in them, and concentrate on removing as many thoughts of them betraying you from your mind as possible. It will take time, perhaps years, to learn to fully trust someone, but once you do, the nightmares should subside."

"Is that it?"

"Yes." Oobleck checked his notes again. "Actually, I have one last question. I can't help but notice that you haven't mentioned Salem at all."

Cardin froze. He warily watched the professor, wondering what he meant. "What about Salem?"

"You haven't had any recurring nightmares about it? Her? Whatever gender is associated with it?"

"No, not at all," Cardin said, picking his words with care.

"How odd." Oobleck tapped his pen against the notepad as he stared at the page. "It was by far the most well-detailed vision you received from the Seer, and from what you had said at the time, it was meant as a last resort to break you. Does the prospect of a Grimm Queen not concern you?"

Breathing deeply to calm his nerves, Cardin answered, "I guess the betrayals seemed more real to me than some immortal mastermind commanding Grimm from a castle in the lost continent."

"Is that so?" Oobleck made another note and put the pad away. "I think that's all we're going to accomplish today. If you would like, you could meet me again on Tuesday. I can have a list of psychologists you could try prepared by then."

Cardin readily accepted the appointment that neither of them might live to see.