(See the end of the chapter for notes .)

Chapter Text

It's been three months since the start of the school year. While the four of them have come to an uneasy understanding, there's still a tension that hangs over all of them as their second-year mission draws closer.

The fact that it's earlier in the year than the last isn't helping their tension levels - nor is the fact that none of them are sleeping well still, even as they work to come to terms with the fact that they're team CFVY now.

Yatsuhashi pours the tea for both him and Professor Peach when it finishes brewing. They almost never talk while sharing their weekly tea, but it had become an important ritual for them.

"I shouldn't have let them go in," she says suddenly, looking pensively down at her tea cup. It was the first time either of them had broached the subject of the failed first-year mission. "They should never have been in there in the first place."

"It's not your fault," he says, staring down at his own tea as well. "There's nothing that would have convinced them not to go."

"I was in charge though," she points out.

"I think, at most, you could say we should have been there with them," Yatsu offers in compromise. "But if we had…"

She sighs. "We wouldn't have gotten out."

Coco and Fox had only survived because of his semblance, there was no question of that, and more people in the building would have only meant more deaths.

It's a bitter pill to swallow, and he's not sure he'll ever fully believe it. "I guess we should just take what small blessings we can."

At least they were alive and could keep fighting. It wasn't much, but it was all they had.

"How are your teammates holding up?" she asks, putting her hand on his.

He rolls his shoulders and pulls his hand back, pretending it's to take another sip of tea. "We don't really talk about it."

Professor Peach cocks her head. "Maybe you should, it might help."

"Maybe," he agrees.

It's a quiet Saturday - it's about two weeks before they leave on their mission - and everyone is trying to relax in the dorm room: Fox is stretched out on his bed listening to an audio book, Coco is listening to music while flipping through one of the latest fashion magazines, and Yatsuhashi seems to be occupied baking a mountain of cookies.

Velvet finds a good movie with descriptive audio - something low-key where no one dies - she reviews it herself to make sure - not even the dog. It was a good choice for unwinding. They'd all been pushing themselves so hard - too hard, if you asked Velvet.

He doesn't want to think about it - how he could have saved Forest if he'd just been stronger or better - but he wants to know the answer. He wants to know if the next time it happens he would be able to save them both.

It's not an easy question to voice when he finds Professor Goodwitch after class - even having rehearsed it over and over.

"If - Professor?" he asks, hesitation creeping into his voice. "Do you think it'd be possible for me to learn to - " he lets out a long breath " - take more than one person with me when I teleport?"

He hears the swish of her riding crop as she contemplates his question.

"It's certainly possible, Mr. Alistair," she says. "It would take a considerable amount of work."

He nods. "I'd like more time to think about it." He doesn't, not really - he wants to learn, but he has to be comfortable using his semblance at all again.

And he doesn't know if he can do that.

"Have you talked about it with Coco?" she asks, reaching out to touch his shoulder.

He pulls back and shakes his head. That's even more impossible than even thinking about using his semblance again.

The lengths they go to are starting to have a negative effect on their performance - not that any of them are willing to admit to it. Even Velvet is feeling the strain of the extra classes and from keeping things from her teammates.

The first-year grabbed Coco on their way out of the cafeteria, shoving her up against the wall and not letting her go.

Startled, Coco blinks down at the furious woman - she has no energy to fight back or protest the rough treatment.

She introduces herself with a growl of a name - Blake Belladonna - and Coco wonders for a brief moment if this first-year will be the last thing she ever sees.

"Do you know what they're doing to your teammate?" Blake hisses, eyes narrowing as she glares up at Coco.

And Coco honestly doesn't have a clue what she's referring to - but considering she's a first year, she probably meant Velvet.

"Who?" she asks, blood running cold at the thought of what could be happening to her youngest team member.

"Team CRDL." The name is spat out as if it tastes vile to voice. "They're in our classes and they - " She shakes her head sharply. "I know you lost someone, but you need to get your head out of your ass."

The words feel like a slap to her face - she roughly shoves Blake away, but the younger woman grabs her.

"I've seen what people like Cardin and his ilk can do to faunus." There's no sympathy in her voice, there's no gentle tone, it's only cold hard facts. "And you'd best get your head out of your ass before you lose someone else."

"Velvet - " she starts to say, weakly. She's not sure how she'd finish that sentence, though. Velvet what. Velvet hadn't said anything? Velvet barely ever spoke up unless she was asked a direct question.

"You really think Velvet would say something?" Blake asks. "Fix it, Coco. You're a better leader than this." She lets go of Coco and stalks off towards the cafeteria.

Coco thinks about going after her, demanding more answers, but really, there's not much more to say. She owed Velvet an apology - and to figure out what to do about the team that'd been harassing her.

The four of them pick at their dinner, managing to eat just enough to keep their energy up. When they got back to the dorm, Velvet proposes they move all the mattresses to the floor and stretch out to watch a movie together.

"I picked something that has descriptive audio. It's low-key, has a happy ending." She didn't say it didn't have any deaths, but Coco nodded when she looked at the title.

No deaths.

No explosions.

No loud noises.

It happens in the blink of an eye.

Fox is sparring with Yatsu after dinner one evening - they're just going for a relaxing bout to try and help them both sleep; it doesn't always work, but tonight they're giving it a go.

They're both exhausted and not as quick on their feet as they usually are - and they're playing with fire, their auras already low from intense training earlier in the day.

It's a half-second too late that Fox hears Yatsu's sword coming around at him and he doesn't have time to block it.

It's not a conscious decision - but he's suddenly across the room, facing the wrong way and disoriented. The only sound he can hear is his own heavy breathing.

"Fox?" Yatsu says after a long, painful moment of startled silence. "Are you okay?"

He shakes his head. No - it's like the first time he used his semblance all over again - he doesn't know which direction he's facing or where he'd come from.

Yatsuhashi walks over and wraps an arm around Fox. "It's okay," he reassured him.

"I've - " He takes a deep breath and starts to shake himself free of Yatsu's arm, then thinks better of it, relaxing slightly at the gentle touch. "It's almost as disorienting as it was when I first learned what my semblance was."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Yatsu asks, and Fox can only shake his head.

He doesn't know.

To know that, he'd have to know what he wanted to begin with.

He turns into Yatsuhashi's embrace and returns it, clinging to his teammate like he's the only thing keeping him afloat.

"I haven't used it since - " His next breath stutters.

Yatsuhashi's embrace tightens. "Do what you want - we're here for you."

The beds get piled into a corner of the room, all of the pillows, blankets and mattresses commandeered to form a comfortable spot for all of them to settle into.

Velvet makes tea.

Coco sets up the screen.

Fox makes popcorn.

Yatsu plates some of the cookies he made earlier.

They all settle into the pile of blankets and pillows, curling up around one another in ways that seemed comfortable.

"Can everyone see the screen?" Coco asks.

"No," Fox says with a small grin.

"Can everyone else see the screen?" she amends with a small chuckle. When Yatsu and Velvet confirm, she hits play.

Coco had never gone easy on Fox - it was one of the things that had brought them together all those years ago. She knew he could handle anything she could dish out - and he would meet her blow for blow in the sparring ring.

But their sparring matches this year lacked the usual banter to go with the vicious attacks - as they dance and fight in silence, they seem furious with one another.

When her aura shatters half a beat before Fox's, they collapse in the center of the ring, sitting with their backs pressed up against one another, both of them breathing hard.

"I'm not sorry I saved you," Fox finally says, just a quiet whisper that barely carries far enough for Coco to hear.

Her next breath hitches. "I don't want to be dead," she says. It's not very reassuring, she's sure, but it's all she can really offer at the moment.

She's never wanted to be dead.

She just wishes Forest wasn't.

He reaches out to put his hand on hers. "I know. It's okay."

And it isn't - not yet.

But maybe it will be.

It isn't the most comfortable - there are too many legs and arms and elbows and it takes a while for everyone to get comfortable - but it works, and they start to relax in bits and pieces as the movie plays, everyone managing to stay in contact with the rest of the team even as they settle in fully.

Yatsu falls asleep first, then Coco and Fox, the three of them tangled around one another in an awkward pile. Yatsu's arm is still securely wrapped around Velvet's waist, tightening when she moves to turn off the screen.

They hadn't even made it through half the movie, but that wasn't the point, so it was okay.

"I'm sorry, Velvs, this hasn't been fair to you," he whispers.

Her ears twitch in reaction as she looks up from her notes.

"I knew what I was getting into," she says, rolling her shoulders in a half-shrug, half-stretch.

"Really?" he asks, setting his notes to one side.

"Well, mostly," she says with a sigh. "Ozpin didn't say a lot, but it wasn't exactly difficult to piece together."

"Did you want to know anything?"

Velvet's ears drooped. "I know his name, but I'd love to hear you hear you talk about him more - when you're ready."

"You wouldn't mind?" he asks, uncertain. He misses his old partner, but he doesn't want to make Velvet uncomfortable either.

She shakes her head. "Not in the least - whenever you're ready."

Yatsuhashi offers her a smile, one that doesn't fade. "After we finish reviewing for the exam?"

She reaches out and gives his hand a gentle squeeze. "Sounds perfect."

It's a sparrow's song that wakes Velvet up the next morning - a sharp contrast from the usual nightmares that would have normally gotten her out of bed long before now, whether it was Coco waking up screaming, Velvet waking up to check on Fox or her own demons haunting her dreams.

She was pressed between Yatsuhashi and Fox, with Coco's arm thrown across the three of them from where she was spooned against her partner.

Normally they were all awake by now, going down to the cafeteria to get breakfast, but she can't bring herself to wake any of them.

She settles back down into the space between her two teammates - they could afford to sleep in just a little longer.