Hello !

Here we are with chapter 17 already ! As I said, I wasn't really satisfied with the pace of the previous chapters, but I think I'm going back to something I like now n_n

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Na, I don't have more to say, good reading.

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The silence of the clearing was broken by a long yawn, so loud that it frightened several birds. It wasn't enough to wake Falcon however, who still slept soundly with her doll, and Rook kept wondering how someone so scared and paranoid could have such a deep sleep. It wasn't a bad thing though, far from it, with all the energy she was spending, luckily she was sleeping so much. It was just weird.

For her part, Rook had hardly slept in days, staying awake to look out for Grimm, especially with all the negativity her apprentice emanated. Yet none had approached them, not once. Maybe there just weren't any around, the nearest village was several days' walk away after all. And the atmosphere here was so … peaceful … Even though she could see the remains of a camp around her, grass, plants and even flowers covered almost everything, while the summer sun barely risen up lighted them gently. And to think that barely four years ago this magnificent place was a bandit camp, later slaughtered by the Grimm. Such a transformation, it was kind of … magic.

Her gaze fell on the grave in front of her. Given Falcon's admiration for her mother, Rook almost expected to find an entire temple in her memory. But instead, there was only a rock with an emblem and a name engraved on it, nothing more, no text, no flowers … Maybe it just wasn't in their culture, bandits were nomads after all, they weren't going to make extravagant graves that they would never return to, and that wasn't to mention those who died during the raids, their bodies couldn't even be recovered.

It was weird. The very idea of the raids disgusted her, an entire tribe charging on a village of innocent people and killing anyone who got in their way with the sole purpose of taking their food, their horses, their weapons, their Dust, their clothes, whatever they had that the bandits could want, leaving only bodies and ruins behind to feed the Grimm. Even for her, who was an assassin, it was barbarism. It was what she had always thought when she heard about it in the paper or on TV. Then she met Falcon.

Ever since she admitted she was a bandit, the little blonde had told her loads of stories about how things were in her tribe, and the more she talked about it, the more the myth collapsed. According to her, the man who had killed a child in cold blood was above all a very good guitarist, the woman who had set fire to a stable after having stolen the horses had taught her to play poker, the former Huntsman who had joined them long before she was born was the best cook in the world, and the girl who got rid of resistant villagers had been her nanny throughout her infancy. In her eyes, they were just people, with hobbies and emotions.

And above it all was Raven Branwen. It was a very sensitive subject so Rook avoided asking too many questions, but she still managed to get a pretty good idea of her character over time. She imagined a proud and strict woman, with a certain charisma that got her to make her way to the head of her tribe, but who became much gentler when she was alone with her daughter. A rather positive portrayal, although largely influenced by Falcon, after all, Raven could be as motherly and charismatic as she wanted, she had slaughtered countless villages across Anima on her own will, she was even the one planning and was leading the raids, anyone would have thought of her as a heartless and merciless criminal.

And yet she called her daughter "little bird". Their family must like things that didn't make sense.

Either way, she meant a lot to Falcon, and Falcon meant a lot to Rook.

Everything was calm, it was warm, and peaceful. That was why Yang liked to come here despite the horrible memories that came back to her mind, when she was there, she felt at home, with the sound of the wind and the smell of the forest, all that was missing was the incessant chatter and the smell of alcohol mixed with that of campfires. Mint had even grown in some places, and the wind carried its fresh scent to her.

Yang slowly opened her eyes, still a little sleepy. She was in her sleeping bag. The other nights she'd just curled up, her head resting on her knees, and sometimes woke up with Rook's jacket over her shoulders, although in the summer it wasn't really necessary.

Speaking of Rook, she wasn't there, but she had left her bag so she couldn't be far, looking for water or something, Yang hadn't eaten anything for the past few days so they should still have enough food.

Yang didn't even bother to put away her sleeping bag and sat on it, her doll on her lap, staring at her mother's grave. Then a detail caught her eye. Someone had put flowers at the foot of the grave. Was it Rook? Why put flowers on a grave? Was that what normal people did? Qrow had never done that, but he had been raised in the tribe just like her so it wasn't a safe bet. There were very few safe bets in her life, she didn't have a home, she wasn't sure she could fly, she could barely use her Maiden powers, her missions had repeatedly proven that they could quickly turn very wrong, despite his best efforts Qrow had failed to keep Ozpin's minions away from her or at least to warn her, even her doll was even more damaged now …

And there was Rook. Rook who had assured her that nothing would happen to her but didn't even know what she was talking about, she had no idea how big the situation was, how dangerous the magic was, she didn't know the first thing about the constant threat from Salem and the omnipresence of Ozpin. She had no role in the war. In the eyes of the man who controlled the world, she didn't even exist.

-Lucky …

At that moment, she heard footsteps in the grass approaching behind her. By instinct, Yang turned around pulling out her dagger, and found her wrist stopped in its movement by a foot. Rook stared at her surprised, a gourd in one hand and her Scroll in the other, then resumed her usual smile.

-Easy there firecracker, you risk to hurt someone.

Yang growled and put her dagger away as Rook sat down next to her laughing.

-Paranoid as usual, nice.

-Shut up …

Rook laughed again and Yang looked away as she brought her knees together.

-Seriously though, I'm glad to see you're doing better.

Better? Where did she see that? How could she do better when it was only a matter of days before Ozpin set out to find her? The blue-haired Huntress clearly recognized her, she said it herself, and she had seen the flames in her eyes. And the one with the cape… the one with the cape…

-Falcon.

Yang jumped when she felt a hand rest on her shoulder. Beside her, Rook had already lost her smile and looked worried again. Without saying anything, Yang leaned against her and closed her eyes as her mentor hugged her.

As much as her murderous teenage mind hated to admit, she loved hugs, and she missed them a lot the past few years. In the tribe, when she was sad, frustrated, angry, or just because she wanted to, Raven was never far away to give her a hug and allow her that little moment of weakness without any judgment. With the rest of the tribe, she always walked holding her head high, confidently and commanding respect, as much as a child could, she did her best to prove to them that she would be a great leader in the future, a strong figure they could count on. But Raven was her mother, she had breastfed her and changed her diapers back when she was too weak to even walk, Yang didn't try to hide her weakness from her, it was pointless, instead she showed her how she could get over it by herself, and was rewarded by a smile full of pride every time.

But now she was no longer allowed to be weak, she had to remain strong in all circumstances, because she no longer had her mother behind her to make up for her mistakes, and at the slightest misstep, at the slightest moment of weakness … everything would fall apart. Ozpin would learn of her existence, her powers, he would force her to join the war, to fight against Salem, to destroy everything her mother had done for her, everything she had sacrificed to keep her safe …

-I ruined everything …

-Don't be so dramatic, we'll figure it out.

-How? They both recognized me …

-Actually no.

-What?

Yang looked up in confusion, and Rook smirked.

-Your stupid uncle just called me. The Huntress with the white cape recognized your sword, but she thinks she hallucinated when she saw your face, and Qrow pushed her further in that direction.

Yang's eyes widened. She didn't recognize her? For real ? But… She looked her straight in the eye… and she called her Raven… And she thought she was hallucinating? It was almost too good to be true, a mistake that big wouldn't fix itself so easily, would it? There had to be a but.

-And the other one?

Rook sighed, rubbing the back of her head.

-We don't know for her yet. According to Qrow she hasn't mentioned anything that suggests she knows, but it might come back to her later. He's going to question her again in a few days, you're fine until then.

The tiny ounce of relief in Yang's heart faded away. She already knew the Huntress recognized her, she said it, she had clearly seen her face, her sword, and if she was at Ozpin's service then she must also have recognized the flames in her eyes. And on top of that, she had even seen her with her purple eyes! She was going to remember it, it was a certainty, and she was going to tell Ozpin.

Yang lowered her head again and continued to snuggle up to Rook. She was warm, almost too warm for a summer day but Yang didn't care, she loved the little comfort it gave her, even if it didn't solve the disaster to come. A few days, it was all the respite she had left …

-Falcon ?

-Hmm ?

-These people who are after you… Do they know where to search for you?

If they knew where to search? They knew the Burning Falcon was an assassin and she had only done missions in Mistral except for her mission in Atlas with Mercury, so they would likely focus their efforts on Anima. And if they knew she was Raven's daughter …

-They'll probably start by looking here …

-I thought so… I talked with Qrow about it and we think it would be a good idea to find a place for you to hide while we still have no one on our tail. And I think I have the perfect place.

Qrow put away his Scroll and let out a deep sigh of relief. Yang was doing a little better and Rook seemed to be doing well to reassure her. She apparently also knew a place where Yang could stay and no one would think of looking for her. He still didn't know what place she was talking about or how safe it was, but as long as his niece felt safe there it was enough. But the problems were far from over, and he was still mentally exhausted from his discussion with Summer.

He hated having to lie to her, she was his friend, she trusted him, she had the courage to tell him about Raven's sword even though she knew it would hurt him, because she thought it was important and that he should know, and what did he do? He lied to her, he looked her straight in the eye and lied to her, he pretended to be angry, he pretended he had no idea what happened to the sword, he pretended he would find the girl who had stolen it and would take it back… When in reality he was the one who had given it to her and was helping her hide. He was covering up for the person who had tried to kill Summer. Maybe she would forgive him if she knew that Yang was Raven's daughter, but that didn't make him any less guilty. Yang's actions were his responsibility and he just let her sink further into the crime.

It would be so much easier to tell his team about her, they deserved to know, even if Tai would never forgive him for letting his daughter become a wanted criminal when he could have been by her side helping her years earlier …

-But you promised.

Qrow frowned and took out his gourd, trying to ignore her.

-You promised her to keep the secret, just like you promised me that you would watch over her.

It had been a long time since he heard her voice, yet her arrogant tone sounded clearly in his ears.

-You really have nothing better to do than piss me off?

-I return you the question, little brother. Yang is collapsing on herself and here you are, lying on a bench with a bottle in your hand. Pathetic.

He didn't have to look at her to know that she got up and left.

-I should have entrusted her to Rook instead, she seems much more reliable than you right now.

Qrow quickly turned his head with an angry gaze, but there was no one next to him, just passers-by who were looking at him oddly.

With a sigh, he took another sip and let his head fall back. He was going crazy with all this stuff. Was that why Raven had kept it a secret? To preserve her sanity? If so he couldn't really blame her…

But she was right.

He had promised Yang not to tell anyone about her without her permission, and he had promised Raven that he would take care of her daughter, only to leave that to an assassin he had spoken to barely two or three times, and who seemed to understand her better than he did. But what could he do on his side? If Oceane remembered facing someone who looked like Raven it was over, Summer would realize that she hadn't been dreaming, and if even one member of the train crew identified the Green Rook or the Burning Falcon, Ozpin would immediately understand the situation, and try at all costs to get in touch with Yang, and if that happened, Qrow didn't even want to imagine what she would do…

-How did we get to this point…?

Qrow took several sips of alcohol, nearly finishing his gourd, and glanced at his Scroll. No message or missed call, Rook must have been talking to Yang about where she was going to hide. It was killing him not to even know where they were going, but at least when the truth came out, he wouldn't have to make up more lies to protect her.

But protect her from what?

As much as he racked his brain, he just couldn't figure out what scared her so much. Anger, he could understand, but fear? Yang had never met Ozpin and he didn't even know she existed, they never had any interaction of any kind. But Raven had. Something had happened between her and Oz that had gone wrong, to the point that she ran. No one had taken her seriously when she started saying that he couldn't be trusted, she had given no reason, no justification for something that didn't make sense, to wonder if she wasn't just lying.

-Mother did everything so that Ozpin didn't learn of my existence…

-I know, but we don't have much choice if we want you to stay safe.

-… She did it to protect me. Safe ? With Ozpin? Do you even know what he did to her?

Except that she wouldn't have lied to Yang. Yang knew what happened, and it was enough to terrify her. She had never shown more than mere caution towards Salem, he wasn't even sure she had mentioned her before, but she would get hysterical as soon as Ozpin was brought up. She was more afraid of a man who would try to help her than of the witch who had slaughtered her tribe, that said a lot about the size of the problem.

And the worst part about it was that no matter how many times Raven had said and repeated it, making her sound like a broken record, he would never have believed her without meeting Yang. Yet Yang didn't give him any further information about what had happened, after all there was no evidence that she had anything to do with her mother's departure, although it was highly probable. In fact, given the timing, there was even a chance that Raven didn't even know she was pregnant when she left. But he had believed Yang, a scared little girl he had never met before, and who only repeated word for word what she had heard from her mother, like any child would.

He had completely stopped trusting his own twin sister, he didn't even give her the benefit of the doubt, for no reason, no justification.

Just for that, he deserved all the shit he was going through right now.

But he wouldn't make the same mistake twice. Raven had a reason, good or bad, and he had no idea what it was but he would trust her, as he should have done much earlier. No matter how much he trusted Ozpin, Qrow would not let him touch Yang, even if he had to be as hated as Raven for it.

With new determination, he stood up and began to walk in the direction of the police station. He had some files to sabotage.

-Falcon ?

The young assassin didn't even turn her head and continued to stare at the cloudy view outside the ship. Rook suppressed a sigh and put the salad tray in front of her. She couldn't blame her for not pouncing on it, but Falcon hadn't eaten anything for days, she had to almost pass out from the dehydration to convince her to drink something.

At least she had agreed to come without a fuss, Rook almost expected to have to literally drag her out of the clearing, but apparently the fear that she would be found if she stayed there was enough to make her move. She hadn't been much more talkative since, but at least she let Rook give her a hug every now and then to reassure her, patting her head worked pretty well too. Even though it was an improvement, there still wasn't a lot more she could do for the next few hours of flight.

Thanks to her contacts, she had managed to find them a small clandestine ship to their destination very quickly, although they would have to walk in the cold for a while after that. Given the state of Falcon, getting her through airfield security would be a terrible idea, she was already stressed enough like that. Of course it costed her more, but she preferred that than making Falcon even more uncomfortable.

-We'll land in an hour or two, but then we'll have to walk in the snow. You're gonna need your strength for that.

Falcon sighed and reluctantly started to eat the salad in the tray. Rook sat down next to her and turned her gaze to the window. It was almost dark outside, which meant they would land just as it started to get really dark, and they would have to walk through the Grimm territory at night. As strong as she usually was, Falcon wasn't in a state to fight at the moment, she had barely eaten or drunk anything for several days, her mind was elsewhere, and she was sweating negativity. And Rook couldn't protect them both the entire trip, especially at night. No, she was going to need help. Fortunately, she had trusted friends she could ask for help, and who had practically harassed her for years to meet Falcon. It would be a good opportunity.

In the meantime, she could only watch the clouds. A few birds passed near them.

-It must be cool to be able to fly. Going where you want when you want, having the sky all to yourself …

-…

-I heard some Faunus have wings but I never met one.

-…

-How about you ? Would you like to be able to fly-…?

-Can't you talk about something else ?!

Rook jumped at the sudden outburst of anger and looked at Falcon with wide eyes. Her eyes were red, but quickly returned to their usual lilac as she looked away, growling. She didn't look furious, just in a bad mood, going to shelter and having a few days without worrying must have helped a lot. If only she could stay at such a low level of negativity until they got to the city …

-Okay… What do you want to talk about then?

Falcon didn't answer, and brought one of her knees against her to rest her arm on it. It was kind of her way of crossing her arms, although her growing chest got in the way from time to time. They grow up so fast …

-Something funny that happened in your tribe maybe?

Talking about her tribe always put her in a good mood, it was worth a try.

She was silent a little longer, then lifted her head slightly and grabbed a strand of hair from her bangs.

-Once… I don't really know how old I was but it was when my bangs started to fall on my eyes. They bothered me to see so my mom decided to cut them off, just a bit… I made her run after me in the forest all day, literally, and yet she had her portals to catch up with me quickly. Apparently that's one of the few big tantrums I threw when I was a kid.

Rook stared at her for a moment, before laughing. It was so… childish! Especially coming from her. And yet it wasn't that surprising, they were still talk about cutting her hair. Apparently she was already attached to it very young, and even her mother whom she admired so much had difficulties accessing it.

-Stop laughing!

-Sorry, I was just imagining a mini-you running through the woods, terrified of a pair of scissors.

Falcon groaned and rested her head on her knees, pouting. She already looked more relaxed, she was almost back to her usual septic grumpy state! But that would only last until they heard from Qrow again, and the news would more than certainly be bad.

The rest of the flight was quiet but much more relaxed, and as Rook predicted, it was dark by the time they reached the continent. The ship's pilot left immediately after being paid, leaving the two assassins alone at the edge of the freezing beach. As Falcon quickly pulled on a sweater and coat, Rook pulled out her Scroll to warn her friends. The Grimm rarely approached the beaches since there was almost never any negativity, but if the girls waited here too long they would end up being surrounded, so it was best to start moving forward and meet the others along the way. It was a good thing Falcon had calmed down earlier, or they would have had all the Grimm on the continent after them in a matter of minutes.

-What do we do now?

-I have friends who are already on their way with a vehicle, but they'll take a while. In the meantime we move towards the city, trying not to be eaten by the Grimm on the way.

And not to be spotted by the military, but Rook preferred to avoid another excess of negativity …

The two girls started walking. Even with a flashlight you couldn't see very far, but luckily it wasn't the first time Rook took this route even though the last time was several years ago, and the sky was clear so the stars lit up the path pretty well too, their bluish light reflecting off the snow. Well, they were midsummer, and although Solitas was a snowy continent it was still influenced by the seasons, winter here was a constant blizzard that took many lives every year, while summer was like a cold but calm winter in Mistral.

Rook took her eyes off the road for a moment and looked over her shoulder. Falcon was a few feet behind her, bundled up in her warmest clothes. The poor girl only had regular pants and boots to walk in the snow, and even if the wind was light, for someone tired and not used to such cold, she would eventually fall from exhaustion without even noticing.

-Do you want me to carry you?

Falcon lifted her head and frowned.

-I'm not that weak!

-I'm not saying you're weak, but dressed like that you'll freeze to death before we make it, and we have to move forward before being spotted by the Grimm. It would be dumb to end like that.

Falcon seemed to think for a moment, then closed her eyes and reopened them red and burning. The snow around her feet melted instantly as she walked in front of Rook like nothing happened.

-That's indeed a solution. But you'll run out of Aura.

-My flames don't depend on my Aura.

Rook frowned as she caught up with her. A Semblance always depended on the Aura, even just a bit. It might not have been the first mystery surrounding Falcon, but it was one more that she was determined to solve.

Suddenly the ground started to shake. In their situation, it could only mean one thing. Without a word or even a glance, the two assassins drew their weapons and looked around cautiously despite the low light.

-Over there !

Rook turned and looked in the direction Falcon was pointing.

-Oh great …

Still quite a distance but approaching quickly, a Megoliath was running straight towards them, blasting the ground with every step. That was very bad, Rook's weapon and fighting style were practically useless against such massive opponents, and Falcon wasn't in good enough shape. She had to find something and quickly! The Grimm was getting closer and the ground shaking was getting stronger and stronger, they were in the middle of a snowy plain so there was no place to hide and the fight might attract more Grimm so not only did they have to get rid of it but they had to do it quickly!

Let's see, the weak point of a Megoliath, the weak point of a Megoliath …

-Rook!

Rook snapped out of her thoughts just in time to roll on her side and avoid getting stepped on. The monstrous beast slowly turned towards her, causing the ground to tremble with every step. Before she could think of anything, Falcon jumped onto the beast's back, stabbing the blade of her sword into its black flesh, making it howl in pain. Rook took advantage of the diversion to move around and get behind the Grimm. Now she remembered the weakness of the Megoliaths, they were incredibly dangerous from the front because of their trunk and tusks as well as their strength when charging, but they were almost defenseless from behind!

Without waiting, Rook switched her weapon to shield mode and with the sharp edge cut a horizontal gash in the large paw of the beast. This was of course not enough to cause a real injury, but it was more than enough for Falcon to get the message, as she wasted no time jumping off her perch, leaving the Dust blade stuck in the back of the Grimm, and unsheathed her basic metal blade to continue amputating the monster. Even without being at her best, she still had impressive physical strength, it was confusing.

Of course, the Grimm didn't sit still with its leg being cut off, and started running to walk away and turn around. The two girls regrouped, and Rook noticed with concern that Falcon was already out of breath.

-Do you think you can hold on?

-Yeah… But… these things… aren't these things supposed to be super old and… and know that they shouldn't attack humans…?

-Normally yes, but they also know that nobody will come to help us here, we are still too far from the city. Beside, we are kinda right inside their territory …

-Awesome …

The Megoliath pounced on them again, its trunk flapping to strike anything in its path. But Rook noticed something, the Grimm, despite its anger, was slower, and its footsteps heavier. But it wasn't injured enough yet for its paw to prevent it from moving normally.

-Falcon, what Dust did you stab in the back?

-Gravity.

-I thought so, and it's an excellent idea. How much do you have left?

Before she could respond, the girls threw themselves each on one side to avoid the monster, who this time practically spun around between them so that neither of them was left behind it for too long, all while trying to crush them with its huge paws or knock them out with its trunk. Rook shot several arrows at the Grimm's face, but although they hit their mark, they had the same effect as a mosquito bite. Rook's arrows were quite fragile and small, and she didn't have a lot, she only had three left already. She had to do it differently.

-Falcon! Your blades!

Falcon reacted immediately and sheathed her sword to pull it out with a purplish-black blade of Gravity Dust. Unfortunately the monster already knew this tactic, and turned completely to the teenager, before standing up to its full height on its hind legs, its trunk raised to the sky. It was just gigantic, ready to crash with all its weight on the poor little human in front of it.

As Falcon stood ready to dodge, Rook wasted no time, and planted her three remaining arrows into the gash they had made in the monster's leg. She barely took the time to step back before making the explode. A deafening trumpet sounded in the plain, and the giant collapsed limply to its side making the ground shake with its weight.

There was a moment of silence, then Rook let out a deep sigh and walked around the beast to join Falcon, who was already lying in the snow, without even sheathing her sword.

-After reflection, I'd like to be carried …

Rook couldn't help laughing, she picked up her apprentice on her back, and started to walk. Falcon never would have let her do it a few weeks ago, but now she wasn't even embarrassed to ask for help when she was really tired. Basically, taking care of her was a bit like taming a wild animal, she had to take it slowly, step by step, show her that she didn't mean to harm her, not scare her or be too abrupt, leave her enough freedom so that she doesn't feel threatened, expect to be bitten if any boundary was even a little bit crossed… And in addition she had grown up in the forest.

Suddenly the ground shook again.

Rook turned back to the Megoliath, shaking Falcon who was already falling asleep. A few yards behind them, the monster was standing up, its damaged paw still clinging to the rest of its leg by a thick piece of skin, as black smoke emanated out of its wound.

-Oh no …

The Gravity Dust planted in its back at the start of the fight must have completely dissolved by now, and even with a broken leg, it could still run into them. Rook couldn't fight with Falcon on her back, and even without her she wasn't sure she would achieve anything.

The Megoliath began to charge, awkwardly and not very quickly, but still enough to hurt them badly if it hit them. Rook wanted to dodge, but if she only did that she would end up exhausting herself and having them both killed, the same if she tried to run away, she wasn't even sure she was faster than it.

-Falcon ?

-Hmm …?

-I'm gonna need your sword.

The Grimm was still charging at them, but Rook stood firmly behind him, a long, red-bladed sword in her left hand. On her back, Falcon was holding on as hard as she could without choking her, being supported only by Rook's right arm.

-Hold on firecracker. We have only one chance.

Rook started to run towards the beast, trying not to shake Falcon too much. When she was right in front of the Megoliath, the latter tried to give her a trunk blow powerful enough to behead her. Rook barely dodged the blow by sliding under it, and as the Grimm had too much speed to stop immediately, she quickly reached the injured paw, and stabbed the sword into the remaining piece of skin.

She had no idea how to detach the Dust blade, and she frankly didn't have time to worry about it before the Megoliath dropped on her and crushed them for good, so with one movement, she snapped the blade in half and slipped between the giant's legs before running as far as she could. Not even a second later, the piece of Fire Dust exploded, permanently taking the Grimm's paw, while it collapsed again.

This time, Rook didn't take any chances, she gently set Falcon down in the snow, and walked towards the Megoliath with the sword in hand. She climbed on top of it from behind, and before it knew it, she thrust the sword into its eye up to the hilt, with all that remained of Dust on it, and jumped off, leaving the sword in it. There was a sound of explosion accompanied by a jet of flame coming out of the monster's eyes followed by a trumpeting of agony, then the trunk fell to the ground lifeless, and after a few seconds the Grimm finally dissolved.

Rook sighed and picked up the handle of the sword that was now lying in the snow, and walked over to Falcon, also lying in the snow.

-Okay we're good… At least for now.

Falcon didn't respond, and Rook looked at her closely. She seemed to be sleeping, and in such cold it wasn't a good thing.

-Falcon ?

With a growl, Falcon opened her eyes slightly, and Rook sighed in relief. She settled the teen on her back again and tried to move on, but her own fatigue caught up with her, and she barely managed to take two steps before her legs began to shake. If Falcon had barely eaten anything the past few days, Rook had barely slept, and although she was more resilient and used to the cold, she was starting to feel fatigue rising…

Fortunately for her, the solution to their problems presented itself, in the form of a blast of the horn.

Yang was exhausted, she was so cold that she couldn't feel her feet anymore, and she didn't even have the strength to open her eyes, she wasn't even sure whether she was sleeping or not. All she knew was that someone was carrying her, and she could hear their footsteps in the snow.

Now she remembered, she went to the forest alone to play in the snow, and ended up falling asleep at the foot of a tree. She intended to take a nap before flying home, because on foot she had no idea of the way.

So why was someone carrying her?

Suddenly, Yang recognized the scent of mint tea and the fabric against her cheek, and a small smile spread across her face as she snuggled further into her mother's arms. Quickly, the smell of campfires reached her, along with their warmth and the sound of happy chatter. She also smelled burning meat, if Ramy was cooking then it must be late afternoon or something.

Finally, the cold disappeared completely when she entered her tent, and Yang soon found herself in her bed with a soft blanket pulled up to her nose. She felt her mother's hand stroke her hair, then heard her stand up and start to walk away.

The thought dropped a cold on her stomach, and she forced herself to open her eyes. Raven was still in her room, standing by the curtain, her long black hair cascading down her back.

-Mommy ?

Slowly, Raven turned, and Yang reached out her small hand to her.

-Stay …

For some reason, Yang couldn't clearly see the features of her mother's face, all she could see was her sad smile.

-Don't worry little bird, I won't be too far.

-No … I don't like being alone …

Raven chuckled, then turned and pulled the curtain aside to exit the room.

-You are not alone Yang, you are just not looking in the right direction. Don't make the same mistake as me.

-Wait !

Raven didn't wait and walked out of the room. In a burst of desperation, Yang reached out her hand as far as she could…

-Mommy !

… Only to fall face down on the floor.

-Ouch …

She heard a laugh next to her that wasn't her mother's, and looked up to see Rook, sitting at a table reading a book.

-And she's awake, I know you sleep a lot but I was starting to worry.

Yang blinked confusedly, then looked around the room she was in. It was a small living room not very tidy, with files and papers all over the place, a table with two chairs, a TV screen in a corner, a cabinet with an open drawer, and a sofa from which she had just fallen. Rook put down her book and came to help her up.

-Where are we?

-In Mantle, in one of my friends' home. And I know, she's messy.

A friend of Rook's home, so that was where she would be safe if … when Ozpin sent people to search for her. It was pretty simple, but at the same time, he would never think of looking for her here, or even Mantle.

Yang sat back down on the couch, it was limp and looked quite old but she wasn't the type to complain about so little. The question was, what was she going to do now? Even if she was safe here, she couldn't stay there forever, she wouldn't be able to go on a mission, train, use her powers …

-Falcon ?

Yang looked up, Rook sat down next to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

-It will be okay, we'll get you out of this.

Yang didn't respond and snuggled up against her for a hug.

-You are not alone Yang, you are just not looking in the right direction.

Yang looked up at Rook, who was hugging her, stroking her back, as her mother often did. The last few years, that was one of the few things that made her feel safe, like her mother was here again…

Unfortunately, that little comforting moment was cut off when the door swung open. Yang jumped and almost pulled her dagger out of her sleeve, but Rook squeezed her a little tighter to keep her from moving until she realized there was no danger.

The person who had opened the door entered the room, a very tall woman with very short dark green hair, even shorter than Rook, and tanned skin, who carried a large cardboard box with some papers slipping out. She quickly reached the table and put the box on it, blowing more papers off …

-Eh Robyn, while you're here maybe you could help-… Hey, look who's finally awake.

-Wow, you really know how to make a first impression.

-Hey, it's my flat!

-I know, I can tell at the mess.

-Fuck you, Robyn.

Rook laughed, then stood up to help her pick up the papers that fell on the floor. Yang watched her do it without complaining about the hug ending or wondering at the familiarity of the little insults, as her mind was too focused on another part of the conversation.

-"Robyn" ?

The platinum blond haired, purple eyed assassin turned her head towards her with a smirk.

-Yes. "Robyn".

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Yes. Robyn. Do I really need to add something ?