To be honest it was getting rather cold, even for her.
Weiss kept an eye on their party as they begrudgingly made their way through the storm, which had arrived a lot sooner than expected. Nobody was in a good mood, and in turn the foul atmosphere had served to agitate their nerves even further. Everyone was quiet most of the trip, which for Yang was a terrible sign - everything was just wrong.
But who could really blame them when suddenly having a hopeless truth shoved in their face? Worst of all this instance of 'truth' as it were had driven away one of their friends, and it did little to help in quelling the feelings of anger. Rage seemed to be the most vocal, at least at first. Yang had been one of the instigators of what they all felt, making the betrayal they experienced known to all, and yet she had lost control of herself.
Blake was able to pull the blond back to her senses, but would she always need to do that? Weiss felt terrible not being able to instantly say 'no' to such a thought, but Yang had shown just how gripping her emotions could be. She herself was hardly better though; how long had it taken her to let go of the emotional tides stirring within and realize they were only hurting Oscar?
Speaking of, the boy waved it off as if he wasn't the one being pummelled, an act that did push her respect for him to new heights. Weiss allowed her eyes to focus on the young man, to see how he limped ever so slightly, and to repulse internally at once again failing to stand up for the innocent when they were accosted by those with power. The boy said Ozpin took most of the beating, and while she could believe that - because it was coming from him and not Ozpin - she still noticed he was stuck with the after effects, as he stated earlier.
What a mess.
"When will this damn storm let up!?" Yang yelled through the winds, as if tempting nature itself. Weiss heard Maria speak up in a lightly humorous tone.
"Can't shout away the weather dearie. Mother nature hardly cares for your criticisms."
"Then mother nature can come down and fight me!" Yang screamed to the heavens. "Hear that you bitch, come and catch these hands!"
Weiss didn't mind the back and forth Maria began every few minutes, she was just trying to keep their spirits from tanking completely, and the heiress was thankful for that. However it wasn't quite enough to stir everyone into a brighter light. With her vision focused ahead she saw the man who wore the worst of it all.
Ruby's uncle Qrow was silent, stoic, and nearly unresponsive to any and all pressing, only speaking out the most automated of answers. Out of everyone aside from V he appeared to be hit the hardest with the reveal of Ozpin's secrets. From how he spoke in the showing it sounded as though he really believed wholeheartedly that the headmaster had a grand plan for it all; some monumental scheme that would fell Salem and her forces. When that turned out not to be the case it seemed to break him. He was still there mentally, but the same could not be said for his spirits.
Where once stood a man ready to banish the restless wayward spirits back to the afterlife, now lingered a husk awaiting their guidance there himself.
A small sneeze clipped the edges of her ears, and Weiss focused on Ruby who walked beside her. Her red-hooded partner wasn't doing all that well in the cold; clearly not adept to the frigid torrents of snowfall like she was. Ruby had been conflicted over everything as well, however it appeared as though her worries sat with the friend who stormed off, and with that in mind Weiss's thoughts lingered onto that irritatingly vague topic; V.
Unlike the rest of them who were lambasting Ozpin for his deception and seeming willingness to lead them to their demise, V however sat silently, and Weiss only caught the tail end of the encounter between him and Ruby due to the small surprised remark her partner quipped.
Looking into his hollow eyes had chilled the ice-queen to her core, and while the crimson rings breaking apart the darkness had once glowed with determination and power, this time they were dulled into a predatory gaze. He had been smoking just as Pyrrha once had, however there was no hatred visible in him, just this odd sense of...
Indifference.
He looked at them as if they were nobodies; complete strangers who he couldn't care less about. However his façade wasn't perfect, as while she couldn't see into what he was truly thinking, she could at least see that he was straining himself to keep up the lack of care he displayed.
This had her worried further, however she didn't get time to think about it as Blake called to all of them.
"Hey, I can make out a fence ahead. I think we found a place to sleep for the night."
"Yeah?" Qrow questioned. "We'll just have to hope whoever owns it is nice enough to let us in, or at least let us crash in their barn." This drew an odd look from Ruby.
"Barn?"
"Only farms and smaller towns make homes out in the wildlands like this." Qrow began. "And seeing as the only thing ahead is a fence I'm betting in the former."
Maria smirked a little and followed up.
"Listen to him kids, disregarding the tantrum he's throwing the man's right. Many farms try their hands at the fresh soil of the wilds, meaning there are probably some hunters around too."
Qrow scoffed a little at the 'tantrum' part, but nevertheless he stayed quiet.
Weiss let loose a sigh of relief as they came upon the home, and with a quick few knocks from Ruby - she skipped ahead quickly - they were left in waiting for an answer. Some seconds passed and Ruby tied again, and again, and again; all bearing no fruit.
"Hey!" Yang yelled with irritation. "You gonna answer the damn door!?"
Nobody had the energy to try and smooth out her attitude, but it didn't matter anyway as no response came. With negative feelings on the rise Ruby came back and started up.
"So what should we do-"
A loud crash interrupted her, and as their faces shot back they saw Qrow had kicked the door in. He turned to them, and ignoring their conflicted and tired faces he spoke.
"I'm in no mood for their games. We're coming in, whether they like it or not." Maria sighed at that.
"We're no better than bandits at this point you know." This got a smirk from Qrow, and with a mild chuckle he stepped inside.
"More than you could possibly know."
Maria shook her head disappointingly, seemingly a little fatigued herself. Ruby offered an apologetic look, one which the elderly woman only smiled for; at least she didn't hold it against him. Weiss in turn could only hope those inside would be just as kind.
.
.
This was not good, not good indeed.
Stewing alone in the farthest corners of Oscar's mind Ozpin rested in contemplation. Much like the many before who learned of the terrible truth, the small party of champions he had amassed were now in conflict with not only their own thoughts, but one another as well. He could not blame them, and he didn't hold any ill-will towards them either.
Unfortunately the reverse was not quite so true.
They resented him, for now, and while he was certain they'd both need and desire his presence eventually, Ozpin knew full well what to do in this situation; it was not the first of similar circumstance. For now he needed to allow them time to think, to settle and realize that no matter if they stand with, against, or aside from him, that Salem would always remain. Her immortality made her deceptively unbeatable, to the point that few realized.
He had tried many a time over the years, long before learning the terrible truth from Jinn. From explosives to blades; beatings to bludgeoning; Dust, he even encased her under the stony will of magma during one of their more... volcanic encounters, back in the days when she actively roamed. None would work; her immortality was picky indeed.
When damaged to the point of death for an ordinary person her body would scatter into a phantom smoke, capable of flowing through even solid stone as if it weren't even there. From then it seemed like that dust would search out a 'safe space' or so it seemed, where her body could reform without obstruction. One time he thought to trap her deep within the earth, but realized she would only suffocate, and the smoke would return to the surface anyways.
Trapping seemed to be out of the question anyways, as he learned distinctly during one of the less successful bouts that she could instantly self-destruct, emitting enough force to shatter the auras of anybody within thirty or so feet - it was how he died in one of their battles even. Worst of all it appeared to him she could do it whenever she pleased without limit.
Yet she didn't.
From all their bouts and skirmishes there was always one thing staggeringly direct; she could still feel all the pain wrought onto her person. While immortal in an eternal sort of sense, Salem was still able to experience pain, and even if she seemed to react less and less to it over the years, it was clear that she was simply getting used to it. Pain mattered little when there was no consequence to the individual, and so she looked to brush it off most times, due mainly to over-exposure.
The explosion was different.
Unlike the times he killed her, during the moments where he survived her self destruct he'd watched with startled attention as she heaved over after reforming, breathing heavy and shaking. Salem rarely used the self-explosion, and he reasoned it was this fact that caused her serious reaction to the pain; she wasn't dulled to it.
It stung his heart to see his once beloved in pain, but in a twisted way it gave him opportunity to turn the tides from time to time. All he need do in those scenarios was stall, so the others could escape. With the battle raging long Salem would eventually choose to try and end it there, and upon his survival of her ultimate attack he would rest as she tried to recover from the agony.
Ozpin had to remind himself time and time again upon the sight that this was not the same woman he'd once came to love, and that she was now a being twisted by her own hatred. Ironically, that hatred he so despised so immensely was still her own, unlike his defiance of her will. The brother gods had been the ones to instill the duty of Humanities unity and redemption to him, and his love for them might as well have belonged to the two gods than himself; he never wished to return anyway, much more intent to remain peacefully in the afterlife.
Salem's decision had been born of her own will, a choice free of the meddling deities grasp. It was during those moments he realized that deep inside the monster he saw...
Was still the love of his life.
.
.
"Hello..." Ruby called out, her eyes shifting around the environment. Stepping inside the first thing she noticed was how old fashioned everything looked, it was like how she imagined a grandparents home would look, kind of like those log cabins she saw in movies sometimes.
"Anybody here!" Yang yelled significantly louder, somewhat hurting Blake's ears a little - if the slight recoil was anything to go by. "We're breaking in, hope you don't mind!" Her hands fell and rested sternly on her hips. "Damn, there really isn't anyone home."
"Not so loud next time." Blake said as her hands too were allowed to fall now that the assault on her eardrums was over. "If they didn't hear the first time with that volume, then I'm not sure they'd hear the second time either."
"Meh, you never know. They might be heavy sleepers." Yang looked to notice Blake's flat glare, and constructed a sheepish face in response.
"They'd need to be dead not to hear your screaming."
"No stalling." Maria piped up from the back. "We're letting the cold in, so quit the chatter and move so I can shut the door."
"Oh, sorry." Yang let out as they backed away. Once Maria closed off the outer world the woman let out a small huff.
"Seems to be abandoned, and from how dusty and cold the place is I'd say it's been this way for a few months now, if not longer."
"So..." Yang began, her brow twisting as her body slumped on one side. The irritable woman waved her wrist in a rotative motion as she continued. "What you're saying is we got the whole place to ourselves?"
"So it seems."
"Cool cool." Yang looked around and called out again, at a normal volume this time. "Hey, uncle Qrow, where are you?"
"Kitchen." Was the response she got, to which she faced the others.
"Okay, at least we know he's raiding the pantry. So, anyone want to search for rooms to crash?" The goldilocks' face soured a little. "Personally I'd like to fall into bed sooner rather than later."
Maria hummed in approval, and both Ruby and Weiss had no objections. It was here where the group split apart, and Ruby helped lead Oscar alongside Maria as the other two went bed-hunting. The boy was silent throughout the entire discussion, and Ruby was worried something might have drawn his mind elsewhere.
"Oscar..." The cloaked girl began. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine." His response sounded earnest, but Ruby still felt there was more to it. Oscar appeared to notice this, and he drew a small smile. "Really, I'm doing good."
"You sure about that young man?" Maria slipped in as the two younger of the trio noticed the sudden appearance of orange light. The elder woman had gotten the fireplace started... or the house was haunted and it started on it's own; Ruby chose to believe the former. "You took quite the nasty beating back there."
"Yeah, I guess I did." The boy returned, and Maria made for a comfy looking chair. In turn Ruby helped Oscar to the matching couch, and noticed how the farm boy winced as they sat. Regardless he carried on as if nothing was wrong. "I'm just sore, remember?"
"That may be true, but believe me boy, the body is deceptively skilled at hiding the effects of major injuries." Maria looked over to Ruby. "Perhaps you should let the girl have a look at you; she knows her stuff as far as I've seen, and she's the least likely to let her feelings overtake her sensibilities."
Ruby was thankful for the compliment and faith the woman surprisingly had in her, but she couldn't help but feel it was too much. She only had a minor understanding of injuries, most of which came from her previous combat school, Signal. Worst of all she only had basic treatment under her belt before being invited to Beacon; the extreme injury training was exclusive to those in the final years of school, mostly due to the excessive gore displayed in said training. She heard horror stories of wrapping still living - and partially attached - organs in plastic until your aura returned and began closing the gash. Yes, it was all just CGI video demonstrations, but it still creeped her out that it was even a thing.
The idea of hauling around her own living guts made her want to just about puke them out.
"I'll try my best." Ruby was no coward though. Potentially helping Oscar ease the pain was more than enough reason to have a look; plus it was only bruising as far as she could tell, so there wasn't much risk of making things worse.
"That's all we can ever do dear." Maria relaxed a little, and Ruby set to work overlooking Oscar.
"Sorry about this in advance, but you need to remove the shirt." Ruby told with a little bit of red in her cheeks; she didn't think she'd be telling a boy to do this so soon in her life.
Oscar, despite being a little embarrassed himself, did as asked, and Ruby was able to focus on the dark spots over his chest and stomach. However, from what she saw it didn't look too bad. Sure it was going to be painful for a little while, but nothing to write home about. He had aura now anyway, so with that in mind Ruby assumed the wounds would clear up in a little over a day; good news for them, considering how they didn't have time to waste with what amounted to a Grimm beacon of mass destruction in their hands.
"You'll be fine." Ruby told as Oscar nodded and slipped his shirt back on. "But you knew that anyway."
"Yeah, but I guess it's only sensible to check regardless, better safe than sorry and all that."
"Yeah." Things got silent after that, and Ruby decided that rather than leave things to awkward silence she would press a few of the questions she had on her mind. "So... what was it like, having Ozpin in control."
"Huh, well..." The boy appeared to think it over, and Ruby noted the conflicted look on his face, wondering if she pressed the topic a little too early; given what they just went through. "It's kind of like watching a movie, or rather, watching someone play a video game."
"Really?" Ruby could kind of understand that a little, but luckily Oscar continued on to elaborate.
"Yeah. Think, like watching someone play an FPS. You're seeing through the character's eyes, but the person playing is making all the decisions. It's weird, seeing your body do things for you, especially when you didn't think it was even able to move in certain ways." Oscar looked to his arm and moved it about a little. "I never knew I was so flexible."
"Flexible?" Ruby questioned, to which Oscar faced her again.
"Yeah. We fought a few Grimm on our way to Haven, you know, before getting captured. Ozpin was in control then, and I got to watch as he fought."
"Huh." Ruby never really considered how many Grimm the boy must have faced on his way to Haven.
"Yeah." Oscar touched the spot on his chest where she'd seen one of the lighter bruises, and winced a little. "It also helps that when one of us is in control, the other can't feel anything. Everything just feels... numb when he's in control."
"You can't feel anything, as in at all?" Ruby found that even stranger.
"I know right. It's my body, so you'd think I would be the one feeling everything. But no, it's dependant on who's driving." Oscar's explanation made it out as if he didn't really mind it, but whenever he talked about Ozpin being in control Ruby saw how his lips would twitch, and she knew it made him uncomfortable at the very least.
Maybe there was more to it, but from what she was gathering Ruby guessed he was confused on how he should feel over it. Before she could talk however there was a weak call from above - it was Weiss.
"Guys, you should come and see this." Ruby saw how pale Weiss was, and for the Atlesian girl that was saying something. The two, along with Maria, and even Qrow who showed up again, made after Weiss. They were soon joined by Blake who was standing outside a room; door open and with an equally pale look. Qrow was the first to speak.
"What's happened?"
"We've found the residents." Blake said lowly, and with concern the group went inside. They quickly found what they were looking for, as they came across two people, a man and a woman, laid peacefully still in their bed.
They were dead.
Author's note
...
Here we go, back with the main crew - minus V. A break from the storm as Ruby has a little look over Oscar. Moral is still low, and it shows when even Qrow is beginning to crack under the pressure.
New to all, as I'm sure you noticed, was Ozpin's section. That's right, we got Ozzy's thoughts too, and a little more history on his battles with Salem. However, without him speaking up this is info that the group unfortunately doesn't have, and so is of little use...
For now.
Let me know what you think, and if you're feeling up to it throw in some things you didn't like too. Always interesting to know your thoughts.
See you next time.