It was useless, Jonas thought. He had been running errands and was in a foul mood. Taking up much of the day, they hadn't amounted to much and now he was heading home. Orange evening light arced through the buildings and it was quiet around, creating a soothing and pleasant but somewhat isolating end to the day.

The electronics repair store had by some stroke of universal bad luck gone out of business just as he had needed it. The electrician had managed to get the TV cable on the roof fixed with a new wire, and the picture on the TV returned. But there was grain and flickering on the picture still. Having rung them, they said he would need to fix an adapter to the wire. He asked why they couldn't come and do it themselves, imploring he would pay them extra, and they had said they were busy. A blatant lie now that he had gone and seen the store shuttered.

It was typical, he thought. The electronics shop was now gone for a town so old that almost every other business for any other purpose not to do with finagling modern technology ran smoothly.

There was that, and other things. But he made clear in his mind that he wouldn't betray it Qrow. It wasn't something he wanted to burden him with. He had become settled, Jonas thought. But feelings like his can come back to bite. And still being in a world where everything would be new to him until they could perhaps get his memories back, it might be better if he could be kept free of Jonas' problems.

As he reached the top of his street and turned on he plunged his hands into his pockets and sighed. There wouldn't be much interesting conversation over dinner then, he thought. Even with an amnesiac with superpowers living with him, this town still found an uninteresting way to make his day more difficult. He was still on that thought when he stopped. Coming onto his strip of the street a parked car caught his eye. It was a dark blue Mercedes, a long and ominously stately vehicle among the other few cars on the street, which looked simple in comparison.

His mind began racing, but he knew immediately this wasn't right. And his earlier worries following their visit from the police came rushing back.

Bolting to the front door he passed through the entry hallway but stopped abruptly as he reached the stairs.

'Jonas, dear! How are you?'

The voice was poised yet soft, and the words were spoken with elegant brevity. It was Magda, who had just opened her door and stepped out. Her figure was small and solitary in evening light seeping through the window.

'Magda, good afternoon.' He said, chuckling. 'I'm alright, just finished up some business. But I must be going, I'm hungry. Must get dinner on.'

Clambering onto the first steps he hadn't got very far before she protested, gently grabbing the edge of his shirt.

'I won't keep you too long by guessing then. I was just on my way out anyway. But there's something I must tell you, quickly.'

Jonas stopped, forcing a smile.

'What is it?'

'Those stories you told me last week over lunch. The ones of you and your comrades from the last few years. I must say but they stuck with me more than any others I've heard from the boys coming back. You know how I'll get talking with them in butcher's or the bar and that sort of thing, you lot aren't hard to recognize after all.'

She laughed sweetly. Jonas, with his hand on the banister and in his mind begging to be let upstairs, raised his eyebrows.

'But anyway, you did tell them so well, and I wasn't able to get them out of my head. And I was on the phone with my grandson having one of our little chats. And I retold them to him.'

'Oh, that's good.' He said hurriedly.

'He seemed to like them just as much as I did. I may have told you before that he's suffered from night terrors since he was very small on account of the war and the crisis. Not that his parents tell him too much, but they get into his poor little head nonetheless. Well, after I told him those, just in the way you had, my dear Nela spoke with me the next day and said he felt much better about it all. Telling her little bits and pieces of them, and not seeming so afraid when they put him to bed.'

Jonas, listening closer now, loosened his grip on the banister.

'That's amazing. But I must be going, please.'

Magda noticed the almost plea in his voice and smiled, lightly.

'Of course. I just wanted to tell you. But please think about it while you cook. Give yourself a little credit for it, liebling. Have a good night.'

They both smiled, and she made off down the corridor. Jonas made his way up the stairs, sighing again as he did, before tripping over himself to get to his keys. Finally finding the correct one he pushed through the door and turned into the living room.

Coming into the doorway with heavy breaths. On his chair was Qrow, and on the couch were two men. The three of them turned to look as he appeared. Jonas' suspicions were confirmed.

'Herr Lehmann.' Schwarz said.

Jonas glanced at Qrow.

'Who the hell do you think you are coming in here like this? Are you from the government?'

He walked up to them, Schwarz standing up and Hoffman putting his hand to his waist.

'We are, Herr Lehmann, and we apologize for the intrusion. But we're here on important business.'

'Qrow I hope you haven't talked, you don't have to tell these guys a damn thing with the way they've welcomed themselves onto my property.' Jonas almost snarled in Schwarz's face as he spoke. Schwarz grinned slightly as he did.

'I haven't said anything.' Qrow said.

'Good, I hope you won't have to.'

'But Qrow did let us in.' Hoffman said.

Jonas turned to Qrow, bewilderment on his face. Qrow pursed his lips.

'And that was for the best, Herr Lehmann because we would have made our way in anyway. And I'm getting the impression you wouldn't have been very happy if we did.'

'Can you blame me-' Jonas paused, not knowing their names.

'Herr Schwarz, and this is Herr Hoffman.' Schwarz grinned again.

'Herr Schwarz, can you blame me? I only figured out you were here after seeing your car outside. This is an invasion of my privacy I wasn't ready for. Which ministry are you from, anyway?'

'The Interior Ministry.' Hoffman said. 'And Herr Lehmann, we'll be happy to tell you why we're here, but we need to secure your cooperation. And to do that we've confiscated your weapon for now.'

Jonas turned to face Hoffman, disdain on his face.

'You've what?'

'Don't worry, you will have it back when we're finished here. And speaking of cooperation, please don't contact the police about any of this. We've already spoken with Kommissar Voigt. Doing so would only complicate things, and I'm getting the impression you wouldn't want that.'

Schwarz seemed to smile almost coyly as he said that, even laughing a little. Between that and his youthful looks, he cut a glowing figure against the tension of the scene. The tension that he seemed to revel in.

'That's right. But I'm going to need more of a reason than that. I've been out on there for years fighting our war, and this is what my government chooses to do. I hope you can understand the feelings that come with that. Have you served, Herr Schwarz?'

'I'm not at liberty to say.'

'Whose liberty, the state's or your own?'

'I don't see the relevance. If you'd let us get on-'

'We can get on when I've had my piece. Out there we never do anything without telling another man. We don't lie, we don't take anything for granted. It's mutual respect. None of what you've done thus far screams respect. You enter my home without permission and hold my friend hostage, take my weapon, and advise me not to contact the authorities. I feel threatened. If you want to change that, give us a reason.'

Jonas' expression betrayed nothing other than what he said. Schwarz pursed his lips. Then he glanced at Qrow and sighed.

'How long have you been in the army, Jonas? Since the start of the war?'

'I enlisted two years in. How do you know-'

'Then you've felt the length of it, I'm sure. Moreso than any of us working in other parts of the government. And just like the rest of us, I'm sure some more clarity when it comes to all of this wouldn't hurt your faith in the state. Especially being sent back home so suddenly like you were.'

Jonas scowled and Schwarz noticed.

'I know I sound patronizing to both of you, but this hinges on me telling you something and its significance has to be made clear. And I need us to have at least some understanding first. Not the kind that can just be achieved with a nice knock at the door or a phone call.' He nodded slightly at Jonas as he spoke.

'I understand...a little. But it's especially hard to believe when you still haven't told us what the hell you're purpose here actually is, Herr Schwarz.' Jonas said.

Hoffman, who had been sat on the couch for some time while Schwarz held court, stood up abruptly. Buttoning his jacket as he did and pointing at Qrow. Schwarz looked annoyed.

'We're here because of him, Herr Lehmann.' He said.

'What do you mean?' Qrow said.

The whole thing seemed to be getting more straightforward, he thought. But he didn't want to beckon the idea of what they might ask now. He didn't know the significance of his 'miracle'. Jonas looked at Qrow as he spoke and bit his lip.

'We were made aware of your presence here when the police precinct submitted your profile and the report of your appearance here in Bergwand to the Ministry of Administration. Once that happened we were given the responsibility of investigating your circumstances further.'

'But.' Schwarz interjected. 'As I said, we also have another responsibility. We are working with government elements at the core of the current war effort. Elements may soon play a key role in finally bringing us to victory.'

'With the Interior Ministry?' Jonas said. 'I must have checked out when any part of the government started doing anything much different to bring us any kind of victory. I'd hope at least some of you Yes Men would notice that lack of vision these last couple of years.'

'It's not our place to notice.'

'Of course, it isn't.' Jonas muttered. 'But how does this apply to Qrow?'

Schwarz turned to Qrow. His hands in his trouser pockets, he sauntered over, before lowering himself on his haunches to shoulder height in front of Qrow's seat and interlacing his fingers on his legs. A move that prompted Qrow to lean back a little, and Hoffman to sigh and sit back down.

'We need to know if you've noticed anything...unique about yourself since you became conscious. With no knowledge of oneself, I can imagine that might've been quite difficult at first.'

'Yeah.' Qrow said, piping up. 'It doesn't feel like much of it is unique because of how little sense it made. I've just wanted to figure out who I am. It's felt like everything else I can build from there. But that's what anyone would want to do, right? The most unique thing I can think of is how I must've got here, but even that's still confusing.'

Schwarz smiled.

'We need to know if you've noticed something else, Qrow. Something more tangible than just the answers to your questions. Something that might, bend what seems conventional to most people. Something part of you. Something different, but that to you.' He moved his hands up to his face, turning his head a little and resting it on his fingertips. 'Might seem like anything else.'

Qrow dug his nails into his knees. Jonas bounced his leg. Schwarz was getting at what they both knew.

'No.'

'No?'

'It's been a rough few weeks in some ways, not having felt like I have anything. That's all I've noticed. I take what I said before back It hasn't made sense, but in a way it still all has been unique.'

'Well, I'm sure we'll have time for discussing all that. Coming with us would be a start.'

'Coming with you?'

'If it is the case that you haven't noticed anything about yourself, then the choice is yours. But do know that if you choose to stay, we may keep tabs on you as per the nature of your report. As you say, the circumstances surrounding your arrival here are the most unique thing about your situation. And we can't rule out that it wasn't malicious enemy activity.' Hoffman said.

'Surely you don't still think that's what this is?' Jonas said.

'It's not a case of whether we do, it's a case of our superiors believing that Qrow's appearance constitutes enemy activity. Nothing can be left to chance at this stage, we have to confirm it.'

'And therein is the imperative of your coming with us.' Schwarz said. 'We can dispel all of this that way. If you choose to stay, we can't guarantee when you'll be cleared.'

Qrow and Jonas exchanged a glance. They were both thinking the same thing; whether this might be worth it.

'If you want to decide, decide now. Our car's here. We're here. Qrow can come with us right now. If not, we can't guarantee when we'll be back.' Hoffman said.

'Or if it'll be us that'll be back, or what'll happen when someone else comes back.' Schwarz said. 'But as we say, the choice is yours. Stay here and wait for that or maybe a chance to find out who you are instead.' He stood up. 'Take some time to talk about it. I get the feeling that would be best.'

'We will. Come on.' Jonas said.

Standing, he gestured to Qrow to follow him. Slowly he did, and the two glanced at the two suits as they left for the hallway. Closing the door behind them, Qrow turned around with a grave look.

'We didn't-'

'Shush!' He said, gritting his teeth. 'Come in here.'

He lead them into the kitchen, shutting the door behind them again. Glancing around, he let out a sigh and leaned against the table, rubbing his eyes, his arms crossed, and raised his eyebrows, waiting for Qrow to say something.

'I don't like this. Not one bit.'

'Listen, Jonas. I appreciate that you're worried, but did you hear them? This is a chance for me! And we need to take it because I've got nothing else. No ideas other than just walking off into the country and hoping to catch a lead. Who knows how long that could take.'

'It sounds good, yeah, but did you hear anything else they said?! He knows there's something about you. This miracle of yours, they're onto it. If that is why they're here, then who knows what their plan is?' He whispered. 'All they've said is that they want to take you off somewhere. Who's to say what happens when you do.'

'They have, but Schwarz said going with them would be a start to figuring out who I am.'

'I want that for you more than anything, we've been looking for leads since I met you, but...' He sighed. 'Part of me's still saying it isn't right. That it's a white lie to get you to go with them, and for you to get nothing at the other end or something. It seems too good.'

'It does, but it's still a chance. Who knows if something like this might come up again? Then I would be left to figure it out for myself, for good probably.'

'I don't think you're wrong, but it's hard for me to accept after being sent back here like this. There are things the state does that we aren't entitled to know, apparently. Remember when I told you I saw things I struggled to believe out there? It wasn't just me. There were times when entire enemy positions would be wiped out while we were sleeping that we'd find wrecked and abandoned in the morning, without us lifting a finger, where we saw-' He shook his head. 'Things that shook us, things we didn't have explanations for. And when we approached our superiors about it we usually wouldn't get an answer. The few times we did, we were told it was best left alone.'

'Yeah, so I should leave this alone? Is that what you're saying? I'm not doing this to go to war, no matter how they want to try and spin it. I'm doing this for me.' He pointed a finger at his chest. 'I have to.'

'That's not what I'm saying. I want that for you, but I still don't trust it. It would kill me to see them promise you answers and then give you something else, to court you, and then make you some government experiment. Enemy activity? What a joke. That's bull.'

'But what if they're not?' Qrow said, with Jonas cocking his head. 'Those two are like an old couple running rings around each other. There's just as much of a chance they're a mismatched couple of agents on a run-of-the-mill mission as there is they're a government crew sent to snatch me up. Besides, I don't have to tell them.' He looked at his hands. 'I can probably keep this hidden for as long as I need to.'

Jonas grinned.

'You're going to go, aren't you? Regardless of what I say.'

'Yeah. I know how it seems, and I get why you're worried, but I have a feeling. Just a feeling that it might be the thing to help.'

Jonas had shifted to the edge of the room by the window. Opening a cupboard next to him, he rifled around for a moment before producing some crackers. Piling them into his hand, he munched.

'Make them bring me with you.' He said between bites.

'What?'

'We can come up with an excuse. Like I'm the one most familiar with your condition or something. Just make me seem important enough. If I'm not going to get you to stay, to figure this out without trusting them, then I can come and make sure everything goes your way and you still get to go.'

'Yeah, but I don't know what they'll say. They might just leave you hanging.'

'We can try. They might not all be English speakers wherever they wanna take you, and I could come in handy communicating for you if it's needed.' Jonas finishing his snack, headed over to the door.

'That's true, a combination of all that could work.' Qrow glanced at the window for a moment. 'You'd be leaving this place behind. It's not completely easy for me. You and Mauber made it so much easier for me. But I imagine it'd be even harder for you, right? This is your home.'

Jonas was silent, his hand hovering over the door handle.

'I can come back. C'mon, let's give this a try.'

Qrow pursed his lips. Jonas gazed at the floor as he spoke, before opening the door, Qrow struggling after him a little as he strode back into the living room. Schwarz and Hoffman's heads flitted over to look at them as they entered. Hoffman, who had been scribbling on a pocket-sized pad, dropped it as he suddenly stood, crawling around for it for a moment. All while Schwarz stayed sat, greeting them with a soft but interrogative glance and a small wave.

'We've decided.' Jonas said.

'Yeah...' Qrow said. 'I'll come with you.'

'We're glad to hear that.' Hoffman said, pocketing his pad. 'You can get your things ready, we'll take you to the car.'

'But we were wondering if I could accompany Qrow.' Jonas said.

Hoffman furrowed his brow, sparing a look at Schwarz, who rested head on his hand on the edge of the couch.

'I don't know, if-' He shrugged at Schwarz, who said nothing. 'If we need a chaperone for Qrow here. We'd have to talk to our superiors, which we don't have time for that.'

'What is your enlisted rank, Jonas?' Schwarz said abruptly.

'My rank?'

'Yes, at the time the reserve army expansion.'

'NCO aspirant.'

'Do you have all your papers?'

'Yes, I- Herr Schwarz, I know Qrow's condition better than anyone else. He's lived here almost a month, and besides, I'm not sure how many of your staff speak English too, so perhaps I can be useful in that regard.'

'You may come, but bring your papers. Qrow will have to do the same.' Schwarz got up. 'You've got ten minutes.'

He began heading to the front door. Hoffman strode up behind him.

'You can't do that, we have to go over it them.'

'Don't worry yourself, Sebastian, we've done what we needed to do.'

Hoffman turned back to look at Qrow and Jonas, who was standing still. Schwarz opened the door and headed out.

'Ten minutes.' He repeated as he descended the stairs. Hoffman looked back at them again, glancing between them, before striding out behind Schwarz.

...

A few people lingered on the pavements across from the car, neighbors from the opposite buildings. Schwarz sat in the driver's seat of the car with an arm resting along the open window. Hoffman paced a little by the hood, the sun shining off his cigarette case as it sat there and as he nurtured his second one from it. They were starkly out of place, and people seemed to be interested now that they had returned to their car.

In the living room window above, Qrow gazed down at them, a suitcase at his feet. Jonas was still in his bedroom sorting his belongings out. It had taken Qrow about five minutes. After all, all that he had to his name was his ID folio and the clothes he had borrowed. That and a couple of chips from Fleuscher's which he had left in his pocket after they had left; he hadn't bothered to give them back.

He was just as nervous about this as Jonas was. Schwarz and Hoffman were an odd pair, sure, but they still held the cards here. And what was going to happen on the other side was still unclear. The pressing which they were sure was about his powers. The talk of winning the war. It all added to the uncertainty. But he and Jonas were in agreement at least, and they were both glad that they had direction.

Anytime they had talked of a plan before it had seemed hopeful but there were obstacles. In Germany looking for anything or going anywhere was fraught, as Jonas had said. With the Nazis and the front to the west and the Soviet frontier to the east going in either direction would prove difficult; one side was a warzone and the other was still wary of Germans despite picking the Free German side to support judiciously. Passage out of central Europe through the Baltic was also hindered by Denmark and the low countries under Nazi control.

Getting his memories back was now a greater possibility, perhaps with caveats along the way. What they might be Qrow didn't know, and in that sense, he understood Jonas' worries. But neither of them was truly sure what was going to happen.

He was about to move away from the window but then heard some chatter from Schwarz and Hoffman on the street below. Their words were distant and echoed slightly despite their quiet conversation.

'How much longer are they going to take?'

'I gave them ten minutes, it's been six.'

'You were too soft on both of them. It could've gone smoother.'

'Oh yes pardon my forwardness, but I made everything clear, didn't I? If anything it's the impasse, your royal vagueness.'

Hoffman scoffed.

'I talked about the war effort, I made that clear.'

'Yeah, but sometimes a little heavy-handedness can help. We're not in this profession to be kind.'

'But don't we also have to understand the nature of any assignment? An amnesiac who showed up in a forest certainly seemed like it could shore up some volatility. I was making sure he didn't feel threatened.'

'Herr Lehmann surely was, though.'

'That's a given. He's along for the ride now, so I wouldn't worry about that.'

Qrow moved away from the window, eyeing them as he did. Away down the hall, he heard Jonas emerging from his room. He picked up his case and walked over to meet him. When he did see Jonas, he was at the kitchen table with his hand in his bag.

'Ready to go?' Jonas asked.

'Yeah. They're mulling it all over down there.' Qrow nodded in the direction of the window.

'What did they say?'

'Not much. But you're right, they're like a married couple, barely agreeing on anything. If that's what your government can muster for top men bringing you to victory then I get why there's a lack of vision.'

'Tell me about it. But hey, we've been over that. It's not what this is about, it's about you, getting your memories back.'

'Thanks. But that didn't strike a chord with you? A chance of winning the war?'

'If they wanted to win the war they wouldn't have sent us home, Qrow. I still think it's bullshit. Whatever happens, if they're really somehow ending it soon and sending us back had some kind of point to it I don't know. That's beyond me. Nonetheless, it doesn't foster trust. We were glad to get back home after so long, many of us. But it leaves a hole, you know? We were in it for so long that it always felt like victory was years away. That's why I'm having trouble believing it, believing anything they say. Back there, from my perspective, winning was always down the road. I'm sure you can imagine how strange it sounds when someone comes and claims to have it right in front of you and you alone; I doubt any other new reservisten are getting this kind of treatment.'

'That sounds horrible, never feeling close to winning. But I get that, and what I and my miracle have to do with it I still don't have any idea.'

'We'll see, but that's why I'm here. Thanks for agreeing to this, though. I can't imagine just sitting and them taking you off to God knows where on your own.'

'Thank you. You didn't have to come with me, but now I'll probably be able to figure this out a bit easier.'

'Let's get to it then.'

Slapping Qrow on the shoulder, Jonas smiled. He grabbed his own bags off the kitchen table and headed for the door. Qrow followed and took a last look around the apartment. Jonas hadn't had much time to clean and stuff remained out. Neither of them knew how long they'd be, Qrow thought about whether he'd even be coming back. The bare walls and neutral paints hadn't made it the most outstanding place; if anything the kitchen had been the most interesting with its archaic and rustic look. The living room where they had caught up on war the periodicals and Jonas had narrated American soaps dubbed over in German for him he would miss though. It was a place that had been good to him and the home of a person who had.

On the street, Schwarz had gotten out of the car to greet them and Hoffman had put away his cigarettes.

'Thank you for your timeliness.' Schwarz said. 'I hope you find the ride pleasant. We did on the way over, Bavaria is beyond sublime. You should be proud, Jonas.'

'It certainly is. But shall we get going, Herr Schwarz? How long is the drive anyway? Wherever we're going.'

Jonas said as he opened the trunk. Inside, next to a few covered things sat his rifle. Biting his lip, he shoved his bags in and closed the trunk.

'Nine hours. We've planned stops, so don't worry you won't be dying of boredom.'

Throughout the whole day, Jonas had had an expression of candid skepticism whenever either of the suits had been talking, he made this again as Schwarz did. Qrow was now coming to terms with it all, on the other hand. Neither of them seemed threatening, and he thought that if they had really wanted to do him harm then they would've sent people who could. Neither Schwarz nor Hoffman seemed like they could really hurt anyone, not physically at least. Where they were going he had no firm thoughts on. But part of him was sure it was going to be beneficial, unlike Jonas' worry about it having dangerous potential.

As they got in the car, the neighbors on the opposite side of the street kept watching, probably surprised by the four of them speaking in English. All still for Qrow's sake. As Hoffman turned the ignition and let the handbrake go, he could see Jonas looking back up at the apartment before looking over to the peaks looming over the town. He stayed like that as they pulled away and began down the street and away through the town, his face obscured from Qrow's view as he craned at the view.

'Get comfortable gents, first stop is in three hours.' Hoffman said.

'You're still not gonna tell us?' Qrow asked.

'You'll see when we get there. Relax, it'll go quicker.'

Qrow could see Hoffman eyeing him in the mirror. He shrugged it off and took in the view, the same as Jonas. Before long they had wound along the through roads and streets in the center of town and were at the edge. And it was a road that Qrow recognized; where he had first run into Jonas, who he looked over at, he still had his eyes still cast out the window and he rapped his fingers on the seat as well.

Turning away and looking back to the road, he noticed where the treeline came to the road, the edge of the forest where he had woken up. His mind went back to it. Waking up, walking to the edge of town, and coming out over the wine crates before making his way to the road. The car bounced over the cobbles for a while before the road flattened out. It took them forward for a while down cambering bends as trees filled in on either side; the continuation of the above forest. And finally, there was a sign reading a farewell:

"Abfahrt von Bergwand

Bis bald und Gottes Segen"

Qrow saw Jonas take a glance at it, before turning to look through the car's back window. Behind them the road trailed back quite far, and beyond it was the edge of the town, buildings slated into the rising earth of the veritable crater between the two mountains, trees wrapped around the inside of it and the buildings shone in the daylight.

Taking in the view one last time, Qrow turned away. The sun was getting lower, and he was getting tired. Slowly he rested his head sideways onto the window. The ride was smooth and he wasn't bothered by it. As the road passed by he managed to slowly shut his eyes as drowsiness overtook him.

...

He was back in the bar in town, the same one from the night he had got the note from the boy. It was quiet. Moonlight streamed in from the windows, dust shining in the beams. The whole place looked vast without the throng of drunks from when he had been there.

The barman polished a glass, and three or four people sat at tables along the walls. It was mostly deserted, but he could overhear a couple of guys table talking in German.

Qrow himself was at a table alone. Something felt off about it all.

'No, don't. That's too...it just doesn't feel right.'

'We've already put it in.'

He jerked his head over. It was the guys at the table, now speaking in German-accented English. Qrow cocked an eyebrow and tried to listen closer.

But suddenly he jumped. A glass slammed onto the table next to him, and he was greeted with the toothy grin of the barman, who he hadn't heard come to the table. He felt shocked and inclined to speak for some reason.

'From the man upstairs?' He asked.

'No, there is no upstairs.' The barman said.

'Oh, of course not.' Qrow said, a strange sense of guilt falling over him.

The glass was full of red wine but it was hefty and meant for beer. It looked unnaturally full.

'This is too much.' Qrow said, a pleading look on his face.

'You're not even going to try?' The barman curled his mouth into a frown, his mustache following it. 'Erbärmlich.'

He jumped again; the sound of scraping chairs. The two men who had been talking at the table and another two people at other chairs all stood up at once. They all walked over to Qrow's table, not saying a word, their expressions blank. Gathered around the table, they and the barman glared at Qrow. Then another voice split the silence, a lower, softer one.

'Thanks for finally listening.'

Qrow looked over to his left. Standing at the edge of the table was the boy, the one who had given him the note.

'It's going to be sooner or later, though.'

...

He jerked awake. He was back in the car, Jonas still next to him.

'Alright there?'

Qrow got out of the car, slamming the door behind him. He leaned his elbows on the roof and pressed his face into his hands. He didn't know what he had dreamed, but if felt useless.