Hey everyone, hope you all are staying safe and healthy. To help stave off the ever looming boredom I made another chapter for you guys!

It is a bit on the shorter side but hopefully that wont be recurring too often. Still I hope you enjoy.

Now on with the show!

Click! The sound of a camera cut through the serenity of the forest trail Fen found himself on; a sound that he had grown very accustomed to lately.

"I swear, how does your scroll have any memory left on it? You must have snapped at least ten thousand pics in the month since we left Vale."

Neo looked up from her latest addition to her nature collection. Cocking her head to the side innocently she replied, Were you saying something?

Fen just gave a groan and waved off the faux question. Since Neo had revealed her little hobby of photographing everything, he had gotten used to her getting lost in her own little world. It was amusing to him in a way with how she would turn into a completely different person when she saw an opportunity for a nice picture. More than once she had stopped them because the lighting was just 'too perfect' to pass up. There were even a few times when she forced him to take a few pictures of her acting as a model before she would let them continue. Though considering they had made it through the mountains in remarkable time, something Fen attributed to their aura-enhanced bodies, he didn't really mind indulging Neo too much.

Neo had actually opened up quite a bit in their short time together, to the point that most every evening the two would spend their time just talking by the fire before taking turns sleeping. Fen had learned that, despite her appearance, she was actually a year older than himself. Along with her age, she shared fairly common things: her favorite color being pink, favorite food was ice cream, loved Spring for all its flowers, and that she possessed a surprising amount of metal music on her scroll; though still she kept her past to herself.

A few times Neo had to catch herself and switched the topic before revealing anything of note, but it seemed to weigh on her more each time it occured. Still Fen never pressured her, knowing it to be a sensitive subject and that if she wanted to tell him she would. Oddly enough, it was this exact fact that caused Neo's guilt to grow each time it happened; his understanding of her plight only serving to make it worse. She knew that he had a right to know, and after sharing his own past the chances of him judging her were nonexistent.

As though he was aware she was thinking about him, one of Fen's ears pivoted back towards her; an action she wasn't sure was conscious or not. Seeing it almost made her want to giggle, and with masterful quickness she snapped a quick picture of her companion. The sound made his ear twitch before snapping back forward, while Neo saved the picture to a folder she had lovingly titled 'funny dog ears' and she smiled to herself.

Fen's voice cut through her musings, "Get another of your 'great shots'?"

She looked up from her scroll to see him glancing back at her, a bemused look in his eyes. Something like that, Neo cryptically replied before returning her attention to the forest around them. He gave her a sceptical look but decided it was in his best interest to not press further. So he too returned his gaze down the forest path and enjoyed the peace of their surroundings.

When evening rolled around the two set up camp and enjoyed a meal of dried rations. Many times they would rest peacefully and prepare to continue in the morning, though tonight was an exception. Since exiting the mountains Fen would occasionally wander off from the camp and disappear for a couple hours until it was time to take shifts sleeping. Neo had asked before what he was doing, to which he always gave the same reply of 'training'.

This in itself wasn't unusual, as in the month they had spent together they had sparred many times. It was something Neo actually enjoyed for the challenge it gave her; their fighting styles contrasted each other perfectly. Her ranged defence was nigh impregnable and her skill at close combat was not matched by many. The challenge for Neo was that Fen didn't possess any ranged weaponry and specialized in mid-ranged melee combat with his chains, while also having a very strong close-range defence. This combination made him a uniquely tough opponent and she was honestly glad to have him on her side. She had even noticed a sizable increase to her aura due to the constant practice.

What Neo couldn't understand is what kind of training Fen was doing, and why it had to be done alone. Tonight her curiosity couldn't be contained any longer, and she decided that she'd figure out just what kind of training he was doing without her. So after waiting a decent amount of time after Fen left, Neo set off after him. It took her almost half an hour to track him down, she even began shivering slightly from the night air, but eventually she heard the sounds of heavy panting; activating her semblance, Neo stealthed closer towards her goal. It looked like there was a clearing up ahead and she caught a glimpse of Fen kneeling when she felt something was off.

It's too cold.

The realization made her stop in her tracks; there was only a single thing she knew that could drop the temperature of a place so drastically: the Omega. She could feel her knees start to buckle at the memory of the beast and had to support herself with a tree for a moment.

Has he been struggling with memories of his team again? Neo thought to herself, remembering the first time he nearly transformed after saving her. Or is this something else entirely? Her curiosity demanded her to find out, even if her legs barely responded to her commands. So leaning on each tree she could, Neo edged closer until she had a clear view of the clearing. It took all her will to not let her illusion shatter at the scene before her.

Fen was on his hands and knees panting with a ten meter ring of frost coating the grass around him. Neo flinched when he slammed his fist into the ground and growled, the sound reverberating through her even while so far away. He cursed to himself and she caught a glimpse through his hair of his eyes glowing menacingly.

"Shit! You're meant to be a part of ME, not the other way around!" He slammed his fist into the earth again, his aura flickering from the impact. "That craving! What is it!?"

Swirls of black particles began to fill the air around him. "There is something you desire from me, but what I need to know is..." The black blizzard spun faster, the ring of frost creeping out farther. Throwing his head back Fen screamed to the air, "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT!?"

The blizzard collapsed on Fen, an explosive clap from sudden vacuum shook both Neo and the trees. Neo shielded her eyes from the blast of arctic wind that followed just after, and part of her really didn't want to open them; but open them she did and her breath hitched at what she saw. Standing in Fen's place was the giant beast that haunted every one of Neo's nightmares.

The Omega stood in the middle of the clearing like a nightmarish statue. It sniffed the air as though searching for something, before finally turning towards Neo's direction. Even with her illusion still present, the Omega's glowing blue eyes stopped directly on her. Every instinct of Neo's told her to flee, but her body refused to obey. Her heart was pounding so loud in her chest that everything else was drowned out. Yet even the sound of that faded as the Omega raised a single claw and pointed directly at her. Opening its maw, a solitary word reached Neo's ears:

"GIRL."

The sound of shattering glass drowned everything out as Neo's world went black, and for what felt like only a brief few moments her only company was an endless void. With only a blink of her eyes, color was restored to Neo's vision; only to see glimpses of stars between a canopy of leaves. Bolting upright, Neo spun around frantically before she came to the realization she was back at their campsite.

Fen looked up from casually poking at their campfire to see her awake. His voice was teasing as he caught her attention: "Ah, finally woke up huh? You must have been tired if you couldn't even wait for me to come back from training before nodding off."

What? Was all Neo could manage as her brain tried to put itself back together.

"I came back from training and you were already fast asleep." He told her, before continuing on in a chiding manner. "I know we've been lucky to not come across any grimm so far, but you really should wait until I can keep guard before you pass out."

But… but I didn't? Neo stuttered out as she recalled the last thing she remembered. The memory of the Omega seeing right through her illusion and calling her out causing her to lock up, her eyes even flashing white for a moment.

Fen noticed the sign of fear and asked in a gentle tone, "Another nightmare? Want to talk about it?"

The words caused Neo to snap out of the memory and look at Fen. Nightmare? Was what she remembered all just a dream her fear had whipped up? That didn't feel right, but at the same time Neo had no memory of what happened. She shook her head to clear the jumble of questions that were racing through it and replied.

I'm… fine. Just tired right now, would you mind if I went back to sleep?

Fen said with a small smile, "Sure, I'll wake you in a while."

Neo turned over and faced away from Fen, replaying the events before her blackout in her mind. Without anything else to go by, a dream seemed to be the most logical explanation for what Neo experienced; but at the same time something told her that wasn't correct. Still, she was legitimately tired and decided that rest would be the best thing for the moment.

Before long Fen could hear Neo's breathing even out as she fell asleep. He let out an explosive sigh as he slumped down, thankful she hadn't decided to push further. He realized they both had not been truthful just then, but took it over the alternative.

Reality was that he had seen her illusion break as she collapsed while in the Omega. He had instantly transformed back and rushed over to her, thankfully only to find that she had fainted. He had hoped that his little fib would be able to keep her from asking questions for a while, and was glad that it had played out in his favor. Fen was well aware of her fear of the Omega and felt it was best to keep her in the dark until he obtained better mastery of his semblance.

What he was still trying to figure out was the meaning behind the Omega's actions. Even with her illusion hiding her, Fen had been able to 'see' her aura; that was something he vaguely recalled noticing when he had first met her as the Omega. When he had heard about the incense she had been given, he figured that was the cause; but tonight would prove otherwise. Was it a trait unique to the Omega that he had somehow been granted access to, or something that only applied to Neo? Fen was getting tired of all the unknowns that came with the Omega.

Though what was truly troubling was what the Omega had done when he had transformed. The word he had spoken wasn't just that he was being spied on, it was the answer to the question he had asked before he transformed. For some reason, the Omega wanted Neo. In what way Fen had no idea but due to the fact that the Omega was a grimm, his guesses weren't particularly cheery.

While lost in his musings his ears caught the snap of a branch. Turning in its direction, Fen's eyes searched the darkness for the cause. It wasn't much of a surprise to find the glowing red eyes of a grimm staring back at him about fifty meters away; an ursa major. He felt a growl rise in the back of his throat as he carefully reached for his weapon. A grimm was the perfect stress relief for him at the moment; however, what happened next confused him to no end.

The usra simply turned and started to walk around him. It kept a constant distance away as Fen kept his eyes on it, but it didn't even seem concerned. When it reached the opposite side of the camp, the red eyes turned away and disappeared into the forest; leaving Fen dumbfounded at its actions. Grimm didn't ignore humans and faunus, they were natural enemies and would always attack on sight! Yet, just before his eyes, that was exactly what Fen had just witnessed. He was still having trouble believing that something as strong as an ursa major would walk away; it hadn't even growled at him!

Suddenly a realization hit him like a train; the reason they hadn't seen a single grimm in the past month, was because they were avoiding them! Lesser grimm probably gave them an even wider birth which was why they had never seen one. It was probably blind luck that the ursa major had decided to wander their way, strong enough to get this close before choosing to divert its path around them. This just brought Fen back to the question of why?

The only logical reason he could possibly think of was the Omega, but he had never experienced this kind of treatment from grimm when he had been in Atlas. He supposed it was possibly because of the training he was doing that he was releasing the Omega's essence more. Though that was more just an uneducated guess based on the limited information of the current situation. Still, while not likely completely correct, Fen knew that it probably did play a part in some way.

Like usual, he felt the Omega stir in response to his thoughts; though unlike a month ago he didn't immediately force it down: it was almost like a cloak falling over him as he felt the presence bare down on him. Raising a single hand to his face he could see the faint blue glow that came from his eyes, yet he wasn't afraid. He had come to realize this was similar to when he saw through the eyes of the Omega when in its form. It had no real power, but it still unnerved him with letting it have such free reign.

Chancing a glance over at Neo, Fen felt the core of his being throb as the object of the Omega's interest entered his vision. With the Omega looking through him he noticed a pink glow around Neo, her aura. Again he wondered if he could use this power on more than only her, but that first required him to control it. A shiver from her let him know that the air was affected by the Omega's presence and he had figured he had given it enough freedom. Letting out a low growl, the pressure eased before finally the Omega's presence receded back into his subconscious; the glow of Neo's aura becoming invisible again without the Omega's sight.

Fen's body went slack as he sat down, the exertion from his earlier training and the events from just then proving too much. Tossing another log into the fire, he did his best to stave off his exhaustion until he could wake Neo. Even if they wouldn't apparently be attacked by grimm, he couldn't be sure the effect extended to wild animals. So he remained vigilant while distracting himself from more worries of the Omega.

Thankfully he had help in that he could look forward to the fact that they should arrive at a village within the next few days. The stress from the outdoors and his own training gave him a strong craving for a bath and a nice bed; he could only imagine that Neo felt the same, if not more so than himself. He knew both of them had dealt with substantially worse conditions than camping in the wilderness for a month, but that didn't mean they were enjoying it either. Reminded of the cold ground he was on, Fen grubbled to himself at getting his hopes up too early.

Neo rolled in her sleep and faced towards the fire, allowing for Fen to see her usual impish expression replaced with one of serenity; whatever interest the Omega had with her he simply couldn't fathom. He knew that for himself, he had learned to enjoy being around her in their short time together. She reminded him of his team with her various tendencies: the way she would make bad jokes like Rema, her joy when enjoying her hobbies like Sena, and the air of maturity that would be present when they sparred reminded him very much of Thrud. He supposed that all was really due to his grief and that his mind was simply trying to ease the pain by finding similarities in his new companion, but he'd take it for now. He was well aware of how different Neo was to any of his lost family, and how she much more reminded Fen of himself.

Even if he had managed to move on from his dark past, it still was something that shaped the person he was now. If he hadn't decided he wanted to learn about his semblance and instead just embrace the darkness of the Omega, he could quite easily imagine his life falling deeper into the underworld like Neo's had. There were many scenarios that would have taken his life in drastically different directions, most of them with the likely ending of him being found in a ditch one day. Neo had the fortune to be taken in and trained to take care of herself, eventually sharpening her skills to the point that even huntsmen would be envious of her prowess; it reminded him very much of what happened after he wormed his way into Atlas Academy. The similarities were uncanny.

Their journey had only just begun, and wasn't likely to end when they reached Mistral. Neo had told him what she could about the abilities of those they were after and he honestly wasn't looking forward to fighting someone with magic, especially since they should be stronger than when Neo had last seen them. From what Neo knew of this Salem character, she had more people to call upon than those Neo had met; which only added more unknowns in the way of their revenge. This was part of the reason Fen was working so intensely to gain better control over the Omega, so that they had a trump card to use when the time came.

Looking back to his sleeping companion Fen could only let out an annoyed sigh. He was tired and decided that figuring out the Omega's cryptic desire could wait for later. Figuring that Neo deserved just a little more sleep before he made her take over, he muttered a single phrase to himself:

"You're lucky you're cute when asleep."

And there we go! Another chapter down and plenty to go.

I hope the chapter was able to relieve some of that tedious free time of yours. While I write these stories for myself, I do aim to entertain and make it just as enjoyable for you all to read.

I wish I could release more often than I do but life is rarely so accommodating. Still I will do my best to release at lease once a month and keep this story going through where volume 7 ended. Volume 8 will likely come and go before I even get to the volume 7 storyline in this story but I will keep writing as long as I can keep the ideas aflowing. Til next time everyone.

Stay awesome, WRW out.