Sasha had thought about calling out of work. She had seriously considered staying home… or perhaps fleeing Sanus entirely. Kali couldn't help her while all the way out in Vacuo. Hazel was missing and doing something she neither supported nor understood. Additionally, Sasha herself didn't even understand what she needed protection from. All she knew for sure was that something was very, very wrong about Professor Ozpin, his cane, and most likely, his entire University.

That thought only intensified as she watched the man appear on the other side of the glass door of the jewelry store and then enter in the middle of her shift. The usually pleasant tinkling of the doorway bell instead caused a wave of nausea to wash over the faunus, and she froze in place behind one of the many displays showing off a set of necklaces. Sasha was in absolutely no state to fight, mentally or in terms of her attire. Her chain was hidden behind the register, clear on the other side of the room. Whatever was about to happen, she was helpless against the man if he tried anything.

Anything like locking the door behind himself and turning the sign in the window to 'CLOSED' before he approached, causing Sasha to stand to her full height and stiffen as she backed away from him.

"Can I help you?" Sasha asked, taking a deep breath. "That woman… Goodwitch, or whatever, she told me I could leave. That you were fine with me not talking to you when I ended up in the hospital after I fell in your office."

"I was," Professor Ozpin agreed as he moved to the center of the room and stopped, his hands atop the head of his cane. "And you told her that you would stay and wait for me to come and talk to you. You didn't."

"…I panicked," Sasha admitted. "I took the first opportunity I had to get away as soon as she left to go get you. I don't want to deal with… any of this. I told you about Hazel, and I'm letting you deal with the situation. You said you were okay with it, so… leave me alone. I don't even need to go to the Academy anymore. I'm happy just working here, slowly clawing my way up the ladder a-"

"I am afraid that that is… no longer an option," Professor Ozpin warned, his eyes hidden behind his glasses giving him an unreadable expression. "I spoke to Kali this morning. She seemed quite concerned about you, and what happened in my office."

"…fuck," Sasha cursed, running a hand through her hair before shaking her head. "This is exactly why I don't go to other people for help. So you know?"

"I know that something occurred that made you run away from me," Professor Ozpin answered. "Even when the follow-up meeting was on your terms. That is… concerning."

"Yeah. Something did," Sasha agreed as she slowly began to walk toward the register, keeping her eyes on him all the while. "But you don't get to come here and threaten me j-"

"Threaten you?" Professor Ozpin asked, tilting his head. "I was under the impression that we would be working together, in your first year at Beacon. What have I done to make you feel threatened…?"

"…locking the door of a public storefront and standing there menacingly, for one," Sasha pointed out as she gripped her chain, keeping her hands hidden beneath the counter. "That isn't exactly friendly behavior, especially when I know you've been in contact with my boss about why I missed work before. You have a lot hanging over me. I don't like this. If we're still supposedly allies, then I'm going to tell you to leave. We can talk later."

It was Professor Ozpin's turn to sigh.

"I wish that we could… but that option is now off the table. The door is locked because you are likely privy to some sensitive information that could cause a lot of trouble in the wrong hands. I need to know what you know… and then I need you to come with me."

"I'm not going anywhere," Sasha asserted as she tightened her grip on her chain. "I might know some things… but there's a lot I don't know about you, and the questions I have aren't ones I like. Leave."

This may not be the best idea, the voice in the chain advised. What exactly do you think we can do to him? How do we know he won't just morph into another body, or…

"What harm is there in asking?" Professor Ozpin probed, unmoving. "If I must answer your questions for you to answer my own, then that is a trade that I'm willing to make."

Be reasonable. Standing up for yourself got you this far, sure. But what do you expect to happen in a best-case scenario, even if he does leave? How much of Vale does he control? I don't want anything to happen to you. Stay calm.

"I…" Sasha began, her breaths quickening. "I just want to have a normal life. I don't want to get involved in any of this, in any of your… whatever's going on. I want no part in this. I don't want to be a criminal, I don't want to be some pawn of yours…"

"I feel much the same way, Sasha," Professor Ozpin echoed, his voice melancholy. "But sometimes, we don't get to make that choice. I want to work with you, rather than forcing you to work with me. Please."

"If you're not giving me an out, then you're forcing me no matter how nicely you do it," the faunus pointed out. "I'll fight if I have to."

Sasha…

"To what end?" Professor Ozpin asked as he took up his cane in one hand. "Swinging a chain like that around the store will only cause damage you can't afford to repair, and I have no plan of fighting back. I would simply turn your blows aside and wait for you to see reason. There is no need for this."

Sasha let out a low growl, squeezing her weapon even tighter before letting it drop to the ground in a tangled heap.

Thank you.

"Then what? What do you want from me? To just… tell you what I know, so you can get rid of me if it's too much?"

"Get rid of you?" Professor Ozpin asked with a raised brow. "Not at all. I simply want to talk, and then… for you to follow me. I need to make an unplanned visit. One that you might even come to enjoy, if you trust me. And don't say you're working and can't join me- that can be taken care of."

"…this is bullshit and you know it," Sasha accused. "But fine. I'll tell you what I know."

"And you have a personal connection to this group? You believe them to be worthy of Ozpin's attention?"

"I do," Maria confirmed, speaking more loudly than usual to be heard over the sound of the sand her bike was kicking up as it tore through the dunes. "They're a talented bunch, if a bit hormonal and whiny for my tastes. I've been giving extra focus to one in particular throughout the school year, and he's come into his own from more or less ground zero."

"Which one would that be?"

"The one that's missing, naturally," Maria answered. "Adam Taurus. You'll like him, once you get to know him. He's been spending time with the Oaks while all of this was going on."

"I see…" Professor Gumo considered, sounding pensive. "I have read bits and pieces about him, but haven't had a chance to do any real digging just yet. If you took him under your wing, he must be something special."

"Yeah, in the 'handle with care' sort of way," Maria agreed as her bike crested a dune, bringing the beach house into view as a small dot on the edge of the far-off beach. "Listen, he… could benefit from your wisdom and experience, Ochre. He's interested in faunus activism, and he's got good reason to be. Poor kid grew up in the mines, and the anger he has over it is barely contained. There's only so much I can do, and he's slipping. He needs someone else to relate to. Someone like him."

Maria could barely make out the sound of mechanical keystrokes over the noises of her bike and the spraying sand while Professor Gumo went quiet for a moment.

"I'll see to it that we speak one-on-one. Has he been talking to Ghira about his feelings at all?"

"Adam probably wouldn't talk about his feelings to a therapist he paid for himself," Maria said with a tired sigh. "That being said… I don't know for sure. I tend not to make it a habit to hang out socially with children."

"They're adults, Maria."

"Barely, and they don't act like it half the time. Case in point, the situation we're in now," Maria reminded. "What the hell are we going to do? I knew they would slip, and the delivery of the sword should've been a red flag. Oz isn't going to be happy."

"Is he ever?"

"You've got me there," Maria admitted. "But people say the same about you, you know. Once you get to know him, he's not all bad. Sound familiar?"

"My loyalty to the man does not necessitate making friends with him, especially when his judgments are sometimes… morally questionable."

"There's that attitude I know and love. I'm serious, Ochre- this is bad. The situation is worse than usual, and his very identity is at risk of being exposed. We can't let that happen any more than it already has. Is BASS trustworthy?"

"So far as I can tell," the headmaster answered. "Ghira is headstrong, reliable, and innovative. Having him on board with this may pay off in the future, given his willingness to listen to all sides and carefully consider a path forward. Sage is a wall, in every sense of the word. He feels honor-bound to do 'what's right', even if it flies in the face of what Ghira wants. The boy often makes his displeasure known no matter who is present. An admirable trait, if somewhat… irritating and inconvenient, at times."

"And the other two?" Maria asked as she hit a section of flat sand and began to pick up speed.

"Fox… is the sort that is either going to change the world, or be broken by it. He's far too pure at heart for Vacuo, though having him here makes the Academy a better place. I can only hope that his skin hardens before that heart of his. I have concerns about Velvet."

"What kinds of concerns?"

"She is… extreme, in her ideas and methods. Constantly experimenting, pushing the envelope, and making her thoughts known when she shouldn't. It wouldn't be such an issue if she didn't advocate for others to take the most desperate and destructive paths rather than looking for amicable solutions. The rest of the team balances her out and makes use of her skills and passion, but… one wrong move could cause a lot of dominoes to fall unfavorably for those around her. She's also currently unaware of the situation, alongside Adam."

"Great," Maria muttered under her breath. "And she's with him. That sounds like exactly the sort of person he doesn't need to be around."

"Isn't that always the way? I know very little of this… 'Cerise' woman that is now entangled in this alongside BASS. I'll do some digging while you're away, and see what I can dredge up."

"You do that. I'll make sure Adam's head is on straight when I see him… and impress upon them all how important it is to color within the lines from here on out," Maria declared. "Oz still isn't returning my calls."

"Nor mine."

"Wonderful," Maria said as she rolled her eyes. "Gods only know what he's doing right now. I have a sinking feeling we'll find out sooner than we're prepared to."

"That much is guaranteed. Good luck, Maria. Watch over them."

"I'll try," the woman said as she sped up once again. "Here's hoping they don't start turning on me, too…"

Author's Note:

Storm's coming…

-RD