Quick update? What? I must be slipping... Anyways, yes, I actually managed to get a surprising amount done the very next day after I posted the last chapter. Now, I just have to make that a habit for my lazy ass.

Speaking of my lazy ass and the things I do, I now have a tumblr page! For those who didn't see it on my main page, I am located at mustachedmrblender over at tumblr, though it may take a bit to find. Mikotyzini said she had a bit of trouble finding it. x) I'd include a link on the main page, but fanfiction doesn't show website url's for some reason. I dunno. Anyway! I don't have much on there, right now, (just a drawing of Ruby from this story) but I can promise I will put more on! I'm planning to draw some Anna sketches soon. So, if that interests you, go and check it out! I'll take requests for drawings, as well, if I have time. :) We'll see where it goes!

And, now, onward with AFBIS! The next chapter! Enjoy!

"Beowolf..."

"Yes, Ursa? What is it?" The darkened figure asks in amusement, glancing at the large faunus from behind their tattered mask. "Surely it must have been most important for you to interrupt my work."

"Our inside sources say that the Schnee is investigating you. They found the petals you left behind at the hospital… If they discover the truth-"

"My dear friend, you simply worry too much… Have you no faith in your leader? No faith in the one who will bring the real change to the world?" Beowolf slowly walks forward, wolf ears tight to it's head as it does so. Ursa flinches a little as a nail is run along the bottom of his chin. "You simply have to trust in me… I know what I'm doing. They won't figure it out. And, by the time they do, It will already be too late. Have I ever led you astray?"

"No, Beowolf, I meant no-"

"Shhh… I know you didn't." Beowolf whispers, glowing eyes looking right up into his. "Go to Nevermore. I want updates on our progress. The sooner she is ready, the more comfortably the puzzle pieces fall into place… The Schnee makes her move, soon… and we must be prepared to make our presence known."

"A great day, that shall be."

"Indeed. And, that, my dear Ursa… is only the beginning. The beginning of a new age. Now… run along and have fun. I have work to be doing… and a certain friend of mine to visit." In a flash, Beowolf has disappeared. Only a small amount of red petals are left behind, Ursa standing in the room alone.

He looks down with a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck as his tail sways behind him. "Just be careful..."

Ruby walks slowly down the sidewalk, the hood to her cloak pulled up and over her face. She certainly had a lot to think about, a great deal to be confused with. When Weiss had returned home, last night, she had told Ruby all about the findings the lab had discovered, more specifically that this person who had put Ruby at such unease had an exact copy of her energy signature. Not only was their semblance exactly the same, so was every part of their energies. It was more than a little hard for her to wrap her head around.

How was that even right? Duplicate semblances were hard enough to understand.

Was it, like, a clone or something? No, that was stupid.

Weiss had been absolutely freaked out, almost not wanting to continue her plans for the day until Ruby assured her that everything would be fine. Several times. This was obviously beginning to wear Weiss down, between the coming charity event and the ever-present shadow of… whoever that was hanging over her head… Weiss was pretty much frazzling down to nothing but nerves. She managed to keep a professional appearance, but Ruby could tell just by the constant look of edginess in her wife's eyes that she wasn't exactly okay.

Although, she had never quite been the same after her mother's attack. Needless to say, she kept Crescent Rose on her hip to reassure her wife that she would never be caught absolutely defenseless.

When she looks up, she finds that her steps have led her to the forest at the edge of town. She sighs and leans slowly on one of the trees, looking out over the town as the sun sets down upon it. It was a nice evening. She really wishes Weiss didn't have so much work to do. Hell, she wishes that they could have something to talk about something other than safety. They really had some things to talk about.

Particularly about something that Ruby had been finding herself imagining more and more, these days. Unfortunately, it was looking to be nothing more than just that for the time being. There wasn't really time to discuss. Honestly, why couldn't life just give them all a break, for once?

Well, that's somethin' you're gonna have to discuss with her, if ya want it in the future.

"Maybe after all this business is over..." She mumbles, then holding her hand up to rub her temples. She has started to feel almost a light… dizziness come over her, a winded feeling that leaves her breathing a little harder. That's when she sees them.

Petals.

Her head jolts up, ignoring the rush of nausea that accompanies the movement, catching the very figure that she's been trying to figure out up in a tree. The figure is standing on a large branch a little deeper into the forest, green eyes flickering with amusement. With the Beowolf mask is a long, black cloak that covers anything that might help her identify who this might be. She knows from experience that the gruff voice of this person makes it difficult to identify as a man or a woman. The obvious wolf ears and tail clearly show off their faunus nature. Ruby growls, her eyes narrowing. "You..."

In just a moment, it has bolted away from the area and Ruby's eyes narrow. "Oh, no you don't. You're not getting away, this time!"

She takes off quickly, running up the thick trunk of a tree and landing on the branches. From here, her eye can pick up the rush of red from the petals a few branches away. She crouches down with a frown, feeling herself tingle with anticipation, before shooting forward with a yell. As fast as she can, with petals shooting behind her in large quantities, she barrels into the figure and sends them both through a tree. The resounding 'crack' echoes through the forest, Ruby quickly recovering and bolting toward the downed enemy.

She manages to pin the person down… until a brutal headbutt is delivered to her face, the crack of the hard Grimm mask smacking her skull and sending her back a little. As she holds a hand to her forehead in response, a dirt-covered thumb jabs right into her left eye and eliminates her sight completely. She yells out, frantically trying to rub the filth out, only to be struck across the face with a backhand. It's followed up with three quick punches nearly as fast as her own, the last punch resulting in a loud 'crack' coming from Ruby's nose. It also sends her off her opponent and onto the ground, groaning in pain and rubbing her eye. The huntress can taste the distinct metallic tinge of blood in her mouth as her nose trickles hot blood.

She can see the blurry figure stand up, wolf ears peeking out from the beowolf mask. "Quite a punch you pack, yeah? My back's going to be killing me, come morning. Though, you could say the same for your face, I suppose. An eye for an eye- Oh, wait. You only have one left. Better not, then. You should have just let me go. I could have dealt with that. But, no, you had to just push and push and push..."

Ruby can hear the person walk up, a contented sigh coming from them as they stop right at her. She feels the nausea wash over her again, a firm hand pressing at her back and keeping her face down on the ground. Her head is pounding from the abuse as the nausea takes hold, her already blurry vision becoming blurrier. "So much better, now that I'm here, though… I certainly won't let an opportunity go to waste. I had truly forgotten how tasty you were. We'll have to remedy that, won't we, Ruby?"

"W-What are you..." Ruby tries to ask, her mind starting to panic despite the swimming of her head in confusion.

"Shh… Try to enjoy it, sweetheart. I know I certainly will."

"Get off me!"

"You're in no position to make demands, human." The figure says, voice dipping into an odd lilt. It's almost a sing-song kind of voice, chilling Ruby to her very core. It's almost as if this person knows exactly the position they hold, confident about it, as well. "For the first time, a human is completely at a faunus' mercy… Poetic, is it not?"

By this point, the nausea has become overwhelming. She breathes heavily, nearly throwing up several times, the chuckling figure not even needing to hold her down now. The strain is making the blood trickling from her nose gushing out with the nausea and spilling all over the grass. Despite this, it's hand remains on her back. "What… are you… doing to me?" Ruby asks, weakly grasping at the grass.

"Nothing you need to particularly concern yourself with… Oh, yes, MUCH better..." With a laugh, the Beowolf-masked figure stands up and takes her hand off Ruby. "Thank you for your time, Mrs. Rose. It's been… enlightening for us both, I'm sure. I'll be watching you closely, Mrs. Rose. Until we meet again…"

It takes a few steps forward, green eyes glancing back at the downed huntress. "We'll be in touch. Do take care of yourself, dear. You look dreadful."

With the last of her consciousness fading, she catches the dark form surge off. The red petals they leave behind float in the wind, a small groan coming from Ruby as she passes out. Just as she does, she can hear a whisper on the wind in the lilt of the enemy's voice.

You will learn to fear the darkness, once more.

"Councilman Baily, really, I think you're missing out on a great opportunity by not attending the event. Just think, by supporting the faunus, you will get access to a large voter pool. Statistically, faunus don't vote quite as much because none of the politicians are making the remotest effort to grant them better rights. If you were to start to support them-"

"With all due respect, Mrs. Rose, going to that event is political suicide to anyone who wants to have any sort of significant career. To attend would mean significant loss in voters on the human side, something that is a much greater risk to my career than the support of a few faunus."

Weiss grips the edge of her desk with a scowl, nails digging into the polished wood. "They aren't a risk. Consider… Consider them an investment. An investment that will be grateful that you are supporting their cause. Even you have to see the potential of the backing of so many faunus. The faunus population in just Vale, alone, is quite significant. This event will have representatives from all over Remnant, from various tribes, even faunus who have become quite wealthy-"

"I will not jeopardize my political career for this event. I don't need the support of the faunus and, let me make it perfectly clear, I don't WANT it. Everything is fine just the way it is without you kicking the beehive like you are." The man says, Weiss just knowing the expression of annoyance that is on his face just from over the phone. "Mrs. Schnee may have been a lunatic, but she knew full well that the faunus were a dead end, politically-"

It's Weiss' turn to cut the conversation off, her icy eyes brimming with fury as her hand slams on the desk. Ice pours off her hand and freezes a small spot on it. "With all due respect, Councilman, I am the owner of the single-most valuable company on Remnant. I have eradicated the Schnee Dust Company and brought it back to be better than it ever was under her influence. It would not be wise to make enemies with me. You can start by not bringing that monster into conversations."

A silence is her response, the councilman obviously stopping to consider his options based on the icy tone in her voice. "I apologize. That was quite the low blow and unfair. Though, I still am wary of this event. You have to understand that it is a… dangerous notion to consider. Not only does it put a person's career in danger, but also their life. To support faunus has never been a good alley to go down."

"I have the best security planned for the event. Three senior huntsman and huntresses to patrol, my wife in a sniper's nest over the area, and countless of my company's personal guard to watch the premises. As for your career… sometimes we have to take risks for the greater good. I promise you, this event will change your mind. You may not want the support of the faunus right now, but you will by the end."

"We will see."

With the call finally ending, Weiss groans and slumps back in her seat to rub her temples. "It can never just be 'I'll go because it's the right thing'. It always has to be 'I'll only go if it gets me something in return'..." She says lowly, her eyes glancing over the scheduled list of important people set to attend.

It was open for anybody, but it was wise to keep track of such people… especially when every single one of them had an agenda of their own to pursue. Granted, some of the human politicians and wealthy people attending believed in the cause as she did. But, she was certain a good number were there either by way of heavy convincing or just to see the event fail and raise no money. It was unbelievably frustrating to deal with these people. If her hair weren't already white, she imagines it would have been with any other color by now.

As if this weren't stressful enough, she still had to deal with the person stalking Ruby. Though she hadn't seen this person in a long time, Weiss wasn't going to take any chances. She almost didn't let Ruby go out for that walk, today, but… You can't keep Ruby Rose confined. She needs her space. She needs to be able to run free. If only Weiss didn't have so much work to do. The woman is so lost in her thoughts that she doesn't notice the door to her office open slowly, her secretary poking her head in slowly and smiling a little.

She, in fact, doesn't notice until the girl is right up at her desk and she clears her throat.

Weiss' head jolts out of troubling thoughts to look toward her. She rubs her temple again, a sigh passing through her lips. She had to wonder what else was needed, what else her secretary had words from. Some other council member or noble coming to say they thought this was a bad idea? Weiss makes a note to get the larger bottle of aspirin, the next time she's at the store. "Yes, Ashley, what is it?"

Ashley, one of two secretaries she alternated between (the other being a nice, quiet young man named Chris), was a fox faunus of the orange variety. She was quite the little bundle of energy, but very organized for her age. One of the reasons she needed two secretaries was because Ashley was also a student (a business major, interestingly enough), making this job a part-time despite the rather nice pay. Nevertheless, she worked very hard when on the clock.

"I thought you might like some tea, ma'am. That last call sounded like a doozy..."

"You have no idea. That would be nice, thank you… Hm. That look on your face suggests that isn't all you have to tell me." Weiss says, taking the small plate and cup the faunus offers her before looking at her with a raised eyebrow.

The redhead blushes a little and nods, gesturing her hand back. "There's two people here to see you. A man and a woman. The woman said that she was… um… 'totally your mistress, here to throw marshmallows at you'? I was going to call security, but the man said it was important… I believe they parked a ship on the front lawn…?"

Weiss smirks a little, shaking her head in amusement. "Yes, let them in. Of course she would say something like that."

"Very well. They shall be in momentarily. Enjoy your tea, Mrs. Rose!"

"Thank you."

Sure enough, just a few moments later, the doors burst open to reveal happily bouncing head of orange hair that dashes up and promptly takes a seat right on her desk. "Hello, Nora."

"Heya, Weiss! What's up, buttercup?" The woman asks, tugging her goggles off her face and letting them drop to the desk with a clunk. She shifts her hair back (having grown a little longer since the last time Weiss saw her), a small laugh coming from her. "Sorry if I'm all sweaty, Ren was TOTALLY-"

"For one, I really doubt she wants to hear that, Nora." Ren's voice comes from the door, making Weiss smile and glance over to him. Ren gives her a friendly nod before glancing to his wife and raising his eyebrow playfully. "And, two, that's not why you're sweaty. If it were me, you'd be sweatier than that."

Nora giggles, looking over to Weiss and leaning in to whisper to her. "It's truuue~ I get REALLY sweaty. Like 'dripping down your back' sweaty. But, it's 'cus Ren is REALLY good. Do you ever get that sweaty, Weiss?"

"I-I'm not going to discuss how sweaty I become during intercourse with you, Nora."

"Aw, okay..."

Trying to force down her blush (and doing horribly), she looks back to Ren. He's smiling that calm, reserved smile of his, showing just the amount of affection that Nora has for him deep within his eyes. She's honestly surprised they haven't disappeared for a while and come back with a child already, with the way they carry on. Blake had told her that they often got very touchy-feely while on missions, after all. "*Ahem* So, was there anything you two needed? I wasn't exactly expecting visitors, this evening."

"Yes. There were a few things me and Nora would like to discuss with you, particularly about the security of the event."

"Really? And, what would that be?"

"There's not enough."

Weiss scoffs a little, leaning back in her chair and casting her eyes right at Ren's. "You don't think that four professional huntsman can guard an event? Not very confident in our abilities, are we, Ren? What exactly is the problem you see?"

Ren walks a little closer, pulling up a chair to her desk and sitting politely down (unlike his wife, who has displaced pens and papers). "Problems. Plural. It's too much area for us to cover effectively. The sniper nests all have blind spots of some sort, giving potential threats places to hide from Ruby. There's only so much you can do with three ground force huntsman patrolling, so many eyes... I know you'll have regular forces down there, as well, but… I have a bad feeling about this. There's too many ways for this to go wrong. I suggest we bring in a few more friends."

"Like who?"

"Whoever we can. Is CFVY still together? I've only had contact with Velvet, lately."

"They are much like team RWBY and JNPR. Broken up, but still in contact with each other. I got a call from Coco just a week ago for an opinion on which boots looked cuter. I don't know where Fox or Yatsuhashi are, however. Coco would likely know."

"I would suggest getting them. Particularly Yatsuhashi and Coco. We need heavy-hitters, just in case we get visitors that are stronger."

"Hopefully, it won't have to come to that. But, I see your point."

Nora, who had been kicking her feet in silence this whole time, glances at Weiss with a smile. "Yeah. If there's one thing Ren always says, it's 'get as many people watching your ass as possible'!"

"Nora, that's..."

"Hm~?"

"...exactly what I said. Good work." Ren finishes with a sigh, Nora giving an affectionate sound and slipping off the desk to wrap her arms around him. Afterward, the man looks back to Weiss with a serious expression. "Call who you can and I'll do the same. With an event as important as this one, it's mandatory to have as many people protecting it as possible."

"Agreed. I should be able to contact Coco today, if not tomorrow."

"Good. I'll call Jaune and Pyrrha to see if they can be spared. It's doubtful, but worth a shot."

"Sooo..." Nora suddenly says, tilting her head as she moves to sit herself right down on Ren's lap. The man doesn't say anything, seemingly content for his wife to use his lap as a chair. "How's everythin' on the guest front? Any luck with gettin' people on board?"

"It's… a mixed bag. There are many faunus who will be attending, including several from the tribes that still live in the wilds, but… some are afraid of retaliation. I don't blame them, but it certainly isn't going to help if they're missing. And, don't even get me started some of the human guests. I just hope they don't make trouble."

"Well, just remember that you have Nora Lie at your service! Anyone makes trouble, I'll break their legs!"

"I'm fairly certain you would be sued, by most of those types."

"I'll break their lawyer's legs, too! And, the lawyer's lawyer's legs!" Nora says with an exuberant grin that makes Weiss think Nora really WOULD enjoy breaking the legs of a few lawyers. "It's really simple. You have to go for the knee and get the leg all straight, then stomp right into that sucker! Boom! Broken leg! It's even better if you run up and dropkick 'em right in the knees! Wha-BAM! That takes care a' both of 'em. I also have a curb stomp option available, if you so choose~"

"Curb… stomp?"

"Yeah, it's when you put a dude's face-"

"Nora, I really doubt she wants to hear those particular details. I know that I certainly don't want to, right here." Ren says, his wife pouting at him a little for not letting her tell Weiss all about curb stomping. He simply raises an eyebrow, with her giving a disappointed 'aww, okay' in response. In return, he leans to give her a small kiss on the cheek. "You may tell all about it in the Halberd."

"Even the part with the teeth?"

"...Yes. Even the part with the teeth."

"Cool beans! Anyway, uh, I hope you can get all those people on board… Seems pretty hard, to me."

"It is quite taxing, yes."

"Is that why your secretary has so many boxes of tea on reserve out there?" Nora asks, tilting her head slightly as Weiss takes a sip of said tea.

"I… would imagine. Tea is very calming to me. She happens to know that."

"Cool! So, she knows you pretty well, huh?"

"She's my secretary. It's her job to know what I need and get it for me. She keeps track of calls and when people have requested meetings, as well as get me the papers I request. The tea happens to be a nice gesture." Weiss says, closing her eyes and taking another sip of her tea.

"I wish I had a secretary to get me stuff… Secretary! Make me a sandwich!"

"That's… not how it works, Nora."

"Darn."

Suddenly, Ashley bursts into the office. Weiss is about to yell at the girl before she sees how frightened she looks, concern instantly shooting to her features. She knows what's wrong before the young secretary says a single word… and she immediately fears the worst. She KNEW she shouldn't have gone out. "Ruby..."

She practically leaps over her desk, her eyes icy and furious in conjunction with her genuine concern. Ice crackles with every step, Nora's eyes widening as Weiss' semblance manifests itself. "Where is she being held? What hospital? What happened to my wife? WHAT HAPPENED?! Damn it, tell me!" The woman says in genuine fury, the secretary squeaking as she sees her approaching boss.

Ren silently observes, his eye slowly catching his wife's. She bore a similar look of concern, obviously just as surprised to see Weiss acting this way. She was definitely on edge about something, that much was clear.

"I-I..."

"Did I ask you to stutter? I said 'tell me'." Weiss demands, her skin becoming paler and shiny with small ice crystals. The look in her eyes is, quite frankly, more than a little terrifying, like a woman whose final nerve had finally snapped into pieces.

"Jeez, Weiss, ya really don't give me enough credit. Don't take it out on the secretary because I have to make a dramatic entrance..." Ruby's voice says, causing Weiss' head to immediately whip around. The moment she sees the bits of crusted blood on her wife's nose, she has instantly left the secretary to run up and hug her wife as tightly as she can. Ruby gasps quietly as Weiss comes into contact with her, the woman's body being absolutely frigid in temperature.

"You idiot! You big, stupid, IDIOT!" She says loudly, her face pressing into Ruby. The redhead feels wetness on her clothing, realizing that Weiss is… crying… "I thought something happened to you! I-I thought it was like last time, I was sure-"

"It… wasn't like that time, Weiss." Ruby says quietly, her arms wrapping around the smaller woman just as tightly. "I'm fine, but… There are some things we need to talk about. Things… may be worse than we feared. I met it. The one with the mask."

"You… You did?" Weiss asks, looking slowly up at Ruby with tears that have begun to freeze on her cheeks. The redhead slowly wipes them away, her own eye looking away slightly.

"Yeah. She… did something to me..." Ruby whispers, her tone slightly worried. "She had me on my knees. She was as fast as me, but more… She made my head funny. I just got so nauseous, like the whole area was spinning. I dunno."

The redhead looks past Weiss for a moment, spotting Ren and Nora at Weiss' desk. "Oh. Hey, you guys! What are… What are you doin' here? Didn't see you, there..."

"Oh, we're just here to try to convince Weiss to have a three-way with us." Nora answers before Ren can open his mouth, the man's eyebrow raising slowly. That was Nora's 'brushing off hard things with laughter' tone, something she often used to diffuse emotionally rough situations. He stays quiet, letting his wife continue. "But, she wants to stick to plain ol' vanilla. No Neapolitan ice cream for that chick! Heh, yeah… Well, it's getting late. Already dark! We should probably go, y'know? Still have stuff to do. Got a hunt in the morning. Weiss? That three-way offer is still on the table..."

Nora quirks her eyebrow a little, actually getting Weiss to smile a little and sniffle. "N-No, Nora, thank you."

"Your loss. Anyway, nice talkin'!" She says, slowly getting up and giving a clap of her hands. Ren follows along silently, Nora walking toward the door before stopping just at the frame. "And, guys?"

"Yes?"

"Be safe, alright? We're all here, if ya need us."

"Thank you, Nora."

Ruby knows that wasn't what they were really talking about, but does appreciate Nora letting them be alone. They certainly had quite a few things to discuss. She feared that Yang couldn't be left out of the loop, anymore. On the other hand, she was also scared that Yang might become part of it. Her emotions were a huge, tangled mess right now.

If only she could keep her sister out of it all.

Yang finds herself walking along a path, admiring the trees and flowers along the way. It really was a beautiful day, the birds chirping happily above her as they fly from branch to branch. She smiles and hums along with their calls, thinking to herself that Anna would absolutely love it here. She loved animal sounds. She just giggled and directed her head toward the different animals… She starts to slow down a little, her brow furrowing in confusion as those thoughts enter her mind.

Anna…

Where WAS Anna?

She looks around quickly, blinking a few times. "Anna? Anna, where are you?" She asks, starting to panic a little as she moves forward. Where was her daughter? She swore that she had just been there a second ago! How could she have become so distracted that she lost her?

"Anna!" Her voice calls out in a panicked yell, her quick pace picking up to a sprint. She's brushing her way past trees and bushes, now, lilac eyes frantically searching for the little head of blonde. "Anna, sweetheart, where are ya?!"

Her search is cut short when she sees an orange light off in the distance, growing brighter and brighter as the moments pass. The blonde shields her eyes from the fierceness of the light, gritting her teeth before beginning to move toward it. As she gets closer to the light, she begins to notice that destruction is littered all around the area. Trees are set ablaze, crackling with fire as branches fall to ignite the grass below. The leaves of bushes are catching fire when small embers drop from the burning trees. Her lilac eyes widen at the destruction, wondering who could have possibly done all this…

And, why?

She hears giggling, the sound exactly like… "Anna!"

She runs as fast as she can toward the sound of her daughter's voice, her breath coming out in pants as the light around her becomes more and more intense. It blasts around her, making her skin feel hot and her veins alight with activity. She finally stops as she sees a lone figure standing in the middle of the forest, not facing her. Long, blonde hair hangs down it's back, flowing with fiery energy. Her eyes begin to widen as the figure slowly turns around to face her… allowing her to come face to face with herself.

No. Not her…

Her face is twisted in rage, the lilac of her eyes gone and replaced with a deep red. Her chest is heaving with breath, a low growl coming out of her as red comes into contact with terrified lilac. She barely recognizes herself looking like this, the look in her eyes so far gone that she may never come back… Her semblance was activated through pain, powering her with energy to fight back… But, this... The pain she must have been in to have her semblance push her this far…

She looks like an animal.

This version of her growls again before screaming out in fury, the area around her shifting and changing as she covers her ears to block the horrible sound. She closes her eyes tightly, trying to block all of this out as best she can when… it becomes deathly silent.

Chancing her eyes open, she finds that the figure, itself, had gone. But, with shaking hands, she realizes that her heart is beginning to pump erratically. Her hands shake and she feels a familiar heat surging through her body, lighting every nerve on fire. She finds a growl coming from her lips, her shaking hands moving up to grip her own hair tightly. She can feel the power swelling up inside her, pushing her past her own limits…

She feels the red taking over her eyes, sending her vision into a haze. And, she screams. Louder than she ever has before. Over and over, this power welling up inside her being too much for her to handle. Why does it hurt so much, why does it hurt?

Off in the distance, a noise draws her reddened eyes. Her daughter, wailing in fear…

"Anna! Anna, where are you?! Anna!"

She is jolted awake with a loud scream, her heart beating a mile a minute and her skin slick with sweat. She frantically grabs for anything to hold herself down, suddenly feeling two arms wrap around her tightly. She screams again, struggling to get away from the hold. "Yang! Yang, calm down, it's me!"

"Blake?" She asks in a desperate, wheezy tone.

"Yes, it's me, Yang..." The faunus whispers, fingers gently stroking through the sweat-soaked locks of her girlfriend. "Yang, are you okay? You were tossing and turning… Must have… Must have been a hell of a nightmare."

"Fuck, you have no idea..." The blonde replies unsteadily, her hands shaking madly. "Fuckin' semblance dreams, Blake… I… I haven't… had those since I was a little girl."

Blake opens her mouth to reply, when Anna's shrill scream pierces the air. A loud, scared, unpleasant scream that makes Yang gasp quietly. Blake flinches a little, her ears pressing flatly to her skull. "Yang, I'm going to go take care of Anna. I promise, I'll be back and we can discuss this further. Are… Are you going to be okay?"

"Y-Yeah… Yeah, it was just a fuckin' dream, Blake. I'm a big girl; I can handle it." She replies, gently waving her girlfriend out of the room. Blake sends her one final look of concern through the darkness, her amber eyes lit up with worry, before quickly disappearing from the room. Yang slowly gets up, moving to the light switch and flicking it on. She still feels hot and uncomfortable, her hands refusing to stop shaking and her breaths refusing to come in with a proper amount of air. "Fuck this."

She slowly plods to the bathroom, lost in thought as she wracks her brain trying to think of a reason for that terrifying dream. She hadn't had those kinds of dreams in… so long. Since she was a child. When her semblance first began to manifest itself, she would be plagued with awful nightmares of losing control. But, she had long gotten over her fear of ever doing so. So, why would she be getting these now, at random?

And, what was with that… power? She had never felt that, when she was a kid. It had felt real. Like something was forcing her semblance to grow.

Had she gotten hurt before bed?

No… She had just worked out. Her muscles were kind of painful (particularly a lasting ache in her shoulder), but that wasn't enough to do this. At most, it would have given her eyes a very light red in color. That was out.

She shakes her head and shivers, running her hand down her sweaty face. "Splash a' water should help me cool down. Fuck… Just a dream, Xiao Long. Just a dream, that's what dad always used to say. Just a dream, calm down..." She murmurs to herself as she walks into the bathroom, moving to the sink and turning on the faucet.

She collects some water in her hands, raising her face up slightly…. Only to let the water fall out of her hands with a gasp.

Her eyes.

She can see in the mirror that her eyes are a deep, rich red, very nearly glowing in coloration.

She takes a few steps back, her breath becoming strained as she looks at herself in the mirror. This had never happened to her, when she was a kid. "This was no nightmare…"

What the fuck was it, then?

"That was a big risk you took, Beowolf. If Rose had figured you out, it would have put our mission in serious danger."

"Perhaps. But, the risk was worth it. I got into direct contact with Ruby Rose and placed shards of fear in her heart. She doesn't understand me. What I am, who I am, what I did to her… I feel invigorated. I had needed this for a while. I certainly feel faster..."

"Don't get too used to it."

"Yes, yes, I know. Whatever the risk, I have sped our plan along quite smoothly. Ruby is afraid, so who will she go to?"

"Her wife."

"Precisely. And, Schnee is a nutcase. If she reacts how I expect she will, all her attention will be on Ruby. After the way she got hurt, a year ago, there's no way she wouldn't. Now that Ruby thinks she's the one in danger, Schnee will leave all manner of openings for us to exploit… including what we seek the most. The pieces fall perfectly into place. We win the game." Beowolf pauses, glancing at her taller partner. "Speaking of which, how are things coming? Has Nevermore given an update?"

Ursa smirks under his mask. "She has."

"And?"

"We're ready. As well, the construction has gotten to the point that we can move in. We will be nearly finished by the time of the event."

"Excellent… Excellent. Get the troops ready. Tell them..." Beowolf looks down at the desk it sits at, dragging a nail slowly along the wood. "...to move out immediately. It's time to go to our new home."