Author's Note:

More happy times dead ahead, right?

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Yang's fingers moved quickly across the screen of her scroll as she dial the emergency number, kneeling down at the same time by her sister's side, putting her fingers to her neck and praying quietly for a pulse. She waited one second, then two, then she definitely felt the blood pump. There was only one chain link that had found its way to Ruby's body, and it was in an area that was unlikely to cause any permanent damage, lodged shallowly in her left thigh. She knew better than to pull it out, though. She was more worried about the blood and yellow fluid leaking from her ears. She hoped desperately that she wouldn't be hurt permanently.

Ensured that Ruby was at least stable, she moved on to her other friends. All were out cold, just like Ruby, and all had the same kind of ear injury that Ruby had shown. Blake had escaped the chain links, Weiss had two, one in the lower abdomen and one in the right shoulder, both very shallow. Jaune had already been on the ground, so he had avoided them. Pyrrha looked like she had caught the most shrapnel, other than herself, and Yang quickly started to think about what she could do to try and help before the emergency services got there. She had a deep gash on her forehead, and it looked like it was bleeding pretty heavily. Yang knew that an open wound like that could get infected easily, even if Pyrrha wasn't doing anything. She had also caught a few chain links, but it looked like her armor had blocked more than a few from doing any serious damage. There was one that was obviously going to be a much bigger pain than the rest when she woke up. One link, twisted so much when it had split that it was almost straight, was poking through her hand. In one side and out the other.

Her examinations had taken her attention away from her scroll, so when the voice came quietly from her side, she was puzzled for a moment before fumbling to get the thing to the side of her head. "Hello? Hello, yes, there's been an…" she searched for the right word "…accident, and a few of my friends are really hurt. You need to send an ambulance, like, right away." The voice on the other end asked for her location, and she gave it without hesitation. They then said that response vehicles were on their way, and Yang thanked them before hanging up. She then returned to thinking about something that she could do to help.

As she thought about this, rummaging around for something to help Pyrrha's bleeding, other thoughts started to occur to her. Naze's puppet body had been right outside the front door the whole time, why hadn't he come in to help? With the power that he could bring to the table, they might've been able to get Nora under control. She was sure that Naze would've been able to get her under control. He had already done it, so why hadn't he now?

She felt anger start to boil over in her mind. Whatever Naze had been doing, there was no way that it was important enough to abandon them when they needed him the most. Before she was even really sure what she was going to say, she found herself storming towards the door. When she reached it, her boot was the first thing through, sending the door spinning off its hinges and clattering to the paved ground. He was still there, leaning against the wall with the same ridged and absent look that he got when the body wasn't controlled.

Yang grabbed the thing by the shoulders and shook it vigorously, practically shouting across the link the two shared "We need to talk!"

She could tell that Naze was paying no attention to her, and that only made her shout louder. When after half a minute of this Naze finally did, Yang instantly regretted certain words that she had used when attempting to grab his attention. Instead of communicating through the puppet, he spoke to her directly through their link, and Yang felt as though a massive presence had suddenly settled over her. Her very soul felt stifled beneath him. His words were slow and deliberate, conveying a very annoyed mood. "You have my undivided attention."

She could tell it was true and, now that she had it, she sincerely wished that she didn't. He was so focused on her that it felt like her own thoughts were being shoved to the side. The only thought that she was entirely sure that she could completely think out was that she wished she hadn't been quite so belligerent. The rest of her thought was taken up by trying to come up with an excuse and the question of why he hadn't helped.

'W-well, I was j-just wondering w-why…" her thoughts deteriorated with nervousness, and Naze completed her sentence for her. "What could be so important that I allow the escape of Nora? I was defending the artifact from the White Fang, then forced to retreat when a demonic rift opened, spilling demons out into Menagerie. When you contacted me, I was considering methods that might be used to contain the damage. If you believe your matter so important that I should divert my attention away from it, by all means, I could divert my resources to catching one runaway girl."

Yang didn't know how to respond. A demonic rift? As in more of the things inside Nora? If she wasn't already dead, she would've paled at the thought. Was there even really any hope of containing that?

Naze took her silence as an answer, and replied "Quite. I will explain the situation later. For now, tend to your own matters. Perhaps the local authorities may be able to stop the girl from doing any damage." His presence started to fade as he put his focus back towards his problem at hand. This allowed Yang more ability to think, and she responded "Yes, I will."

She stood there, still for a moment, wondering how she could've been so foolish. Eventually her eyes wandered to her hand, and the rag she had intended to use to help Pyrrha's cut stared back at her as if waiting to be used. Yang jumped when she realized that she had momentarily forgot about her friends. She sprang into action as quickly as she could, and started to give what little help she could to her them. They stirred a few times, but didn't wake. It wasn't long before ambulances pulled up outside, and started to treat the injuries that her friends had sustained.

Naze stood at the head of the meeting room, ornate stone table providing a place for all of those who would be involved in the effort to gather sufficient resources to repel the demonic incursion. It was a daunting challenge, but repelling the demons was not Naze's only concern. "As it stands, the living have no working defense against the demons. Paladins are more effective than normal soldiers, but demons are still very resilient. If there were a god present in the world, they would have a reliable first line of defense, but given that this is not the case, they are nearly devoid of divine energies."

Bella was the first to speak, and was closest by Naze's side. "Why concern ourselves with that? We have the power ourselves to stop them. Why involve the living at all?" Naze responded quickly, saying "Because I don't desire becoming their caregivers. They will start depending on us, and that is something I do not look favorably upon."

Another of the scholars further down the table spoke up, saying "We can produce divine energy. Might it be an option to share this technology? Do they possess the resources to give them access to such technology?" Naze shook his head. "No, they are nearly devoid of all magical knowledge. I doubt they would understand the difference between holy and divine powers anyways."

This brought a round of grumbling disbelief. They could hardly believe that the civilization of Remnant had advanced so far without discovering magic. Another scholar down the table spoke up, saying "What if we were to create a god? They will already believe nearly anything we say, and once enough people believe in it, it would form."

Naze shook his head again. "That would take far too long, and the end result would be much too unpredictable. It wouldn't take much to end up with a god that tries to eliminate us just as much as demons. We've faced that situation before, and killing a god is no easy task. Simple, perhaps, but not easy."

The gathered individuals continued to discuss the problem for hours, tossing idea after idea out. Naze reviewed every one, and pointed out its flaws. Creating a new god would be too risky, resurrecting an old god would be similarly dangerous. The living had not the capabilities to harness nor produce divine energies effectively. Naze knew that coming up with a solution would be difficult, but he also knew that they weren't the only ones who should be involved in the decision. Of all the living that he had met, Ozpin seemed the best to go to on the matter. He arranged for a shade to go to him and communicate on the matter. Numerous other shades had already been deployed around the world, monitoring for signs of demonic corruption, and Naze didn't want to remove any from that web. Demons were no subject to take lightly.

The trip back out of the Shaded Forest would have taken an entire day on foot, but there were plenty of transports that now lacked owners for Cinder and her lackeys to make use of. Now she sat in the pilot seat while Roman and Neo rode in the fuselage. She had yet to tell them of her magnificent plan, and was still debating whether she should. On the one hand, secrecy was the best armor one could ask for. But on the other, it was simply so devious, and would result in such gain that it was difficult to keep to herself. She wanted to share her genius.

The Bullhead soared over trees on its way to the nearest town, and Cinder awaited eagerly the outcome of what she was doing. She could practically feel the demons following behind the vehicle even though none of the instruments were picking anything up. They were too far behind now, she knew it, but she couldn't help but look for them.

She could still feel the wondrous power that had been granted to her so far pounding in her veins, making her body feel like it was ablaze. It was a feeling that fit her very well, and one that she found very appealing. Even her thoughts had proven to have been sped by it. Still though, she could tell that there was room to improve. She was powerful, but she could become more powerful. She almost itched for it now. She had gotten a taste, and now she wanted more.

She was well aware of the possibility that she was being manipulated, though. If this was all some trick of the mind, she was determined not to let herself he caught off guard. She only did as the object had asked because she saw a way to make it work for herself as well. It was a wonderful thing to find someone or something with similar interests. It was something that occurred so rarely for her that she was able to savor every bit of it now.

In the section of the aircraft behind her, Roman was shooing Neo away from him, saying in an exasperated voice "I'm fine! Get off!" Her face was very close to his, and he planted a hand solidly on it before pushing her away, not hard enough to hurt, but enough to move her.

She sat back in the seat across from him and pouted, crossing her arms and looking away. She wasn't really angry, but if Roman thought she was, he might actually be nice to her. It wasn't that he was normally mean to her, and he wasn't being now, but if he was trying to be apologetic, she would get special attention, and there was nothing that she loved more than that.

That was part of what made Roman special, she supposed. She had to find new ways to attract his attention constantly. Being offended was a relatively new one, and one that she knew the importance of not exhausting. If she appeared offended too often, Roman would stop caring. She had only used it two times before, and she already felt like she was pushing it. She would have to think of something else before too long. But it wasn't that time yet.

She could feel Roman's brain working, thinking about what to do, even if there was no bodily reaction. He wasn't one to feel empathy, but he did want to stay close to her. That alone made the act worth it. It wasn't all she would get out of it, though. Finally, Roman rolled his eyes and said "Oh, come on. Don't be like that."

She looked back at him, making sure that her eyes were wider and softer than normal, and Roman was suddenly very attracted to her again. He got up from his seat and transferred next to Neo, awkwardly sliding an arm behind her back. Neo pushed herself closer into Roman, and she stopped, slightly taken aback by the sudden affection, before continuing, settling his arm over her shoulder and looking forward. Neo again pushed herself closer, and Roman looked at her, saying "You're like a cat, you know that?"

She took it as a complement. Her hair met with a spot of blood on Roman's white suit, and she shifted herself away from it. It was only now that it occurred to her what they were doing, and when. Less than an hour after the largest massacre in recent history, and she and him were snuggling in the back of an escape vehicle, likely the only survivors.

That thought flitted away though as her changeling mind started to shift her focus again, casting the suffering of others out of her mind. They were unimportant anyways. Something that was much more important was Cinder. Something was off about her. The way she thought was, in some way, changed. There was more of an attraction in her thought, more of a goal. She was definitely striving towards something, but she didn't want to say what it was. It wasn't the first time that she had kept the two in the dark, and Neo very much doubted that it would be the last.

She would continue to go along with her schemes, though. She knew that Roman would, and she wanted to stay with him. She just hoped that Cinders plans wouldn't end up with Roman getting hurt. If it did, she might have to take the issue up with Cinder herself.

When Ruby's eyes opened, she found the light from above her stinging her eyeballs and a dull ringing in her ears. She tried to sit up, then felt something in her hand. She looked to whatever it was, moving away from it slightly, given as she couldn't see what it was, then waited for her eyes to focus in on it. The process was slow, but eventually a large yellow blob formed into Yang, her sister. She was holding her hand, and looking down at her from the side.

She looked down at herself, and was surprised to find herself lying on a hospital bed, beneath the thin sheets and wearing a hospital gown. She turned her head, about to ask Yang what had happened, when she suddenly became aware of a strange sensation in her ears. She put a hand to her head, giving Yang a questioning look, and her fingers found a soft mass obstructing her ear canal. She made to pull it out, but Yang made a motion for her to stop, holding up a small white paper. Ruby looked at the paper, and read, mouthing the words.

"Ruby, try not to worry. Nora screamed and messed your ears up. You had to get surgery to fix them. Pretty much everyone else did too. You'll all be fine in a few days. You have to keep the cotton in and not take it out, or it will get infected."

The note was in Yang's messy penmanship, and was about as brief as she usually wrote. Yang gave Ruby an apologetic look, then passed a pad of paper towards her, a pen resting on top of it. Ruby took it, and looked around the room again. It was isolated, well furnished, and wasn't too cold. It did look like it would be lonely, though, if Yang left. There was a TV hanging on the wall not too far from the bed, but it was off. She wondered if Yang had just been watching her the whole time.

Reluctantly, she drew her hand away from Yang's and took the pen, starting to write. The first question that came to her mind was of her other teammates, but her writing was marred by the grogginess that she still felt from waking up. It took her a few tries, but she was able to get the words out "Where are the others?"

Yang looked at the paper, and took her own pad, scribbling down "Weiss is one room over, Blake is across the hall, Pyrrha is next to her, and Jaune is on the other side."

Ruby stared at the list for several seconds before giving Yang a very concerned look. Yang looked worried by her sudden change, and tapped the pad in front of her, mouthing "Write it down." She did, setting pen to paper, but felt that the ink didn't really convey the proper feeling she wanted it to. Nevertheless, she held it up, and when Yang read it, she shook her head. "What about Ren?"

Ruby's heart dropped. Yang's not answering was a bad sign. Surely Nora hadn't been able to get him? Ruby had been knocked out by whatever it was that she had done, but that couldn't have happened to everybody. Someone else had to have been left. But, one person wouldn't stand much of a chance against Nora given the strength and speed she had shown, not to mention the other things, like claws and fangs. She wrote on the paper only one word. "Ren?"

Yang shook her head again, and wrote slowly "Nora got him. People are looking, but nothing so far." Ruby looked down, unable to believe it. All that they had done had been for nothing. She started to feel the pull of hopelessness, the same kind that had taken her over when Yang had died, but she tried to pull herself out of it. She wouldn't let herself fall to that again. She would get better, and she would lead her team out to look for the two. Yang must have seen the look on her face, because she put a hand on Ruby's again, and scooted closer to her. Ruby felt like she needed comfort, and reached her arms out to Yang, hoping for a hug. She got it, and immediately regretted it. It was a good thing that she was already in a hospital, because it felt like Yang was going to snap a few of her ribs.

Eventually the pressure managed to push her sadness out of her mind, and she wriggled out of Yang's grip. She tried to speak, but her voice was muted, even to her, and she could tell that without the normal feedback she got from her own voice, she was unable to really speak properly. Even with her words horribly slurred, she spoke as best she could, going more off of muscle memory than anything else. "We can get him back, and we can fix Nora. As soon as everybody recovers, that's what we're doing."

Yang gave her sister a look, trying very hard not to let it show how much her speech was distorted. She could barely understand what she was trying to say, but felt that she was able to catch the general drift of the message. Her sister was saying that they would go after Nora. That was all that she really needed to understand, because she agreed with that notion completely. Even if they couldn't get Naze's help in the matter, if his shades were too preoccupied with other matters, or there was something else that he wanted to do instead, she would do her best to help her sister track Nora down and save Ren. If they couldn't come together to do that, she didn't know what she would do.

She laid there in bed, waiting a while, thinking. She wished that she could take the cotton out of her ears, but if Yang said that it would be a bad thing to do, she wouldn't. She tried to think about what had happened that brought her here. The memories were fuzzy, but she was able to recall quite a bit of pain. She remembered the blood on her hands, and the brief explosion, but after that everything was simply black. She couldn't remember anything after that. Perhaps that was for the best.

After a while of waiting, Ruby started to feel a creeping boredom that seemed to follow in every hospital room. She felt bad about it, but even with Yang here, there was nothing to do. Eventually her eyes drifted up to the blank TV screen. Yang saw this, and tossed the remote over to her, mouth moving too quickly for Ruby to lip-read. She took it as an invitation to make use of the TV however she wanted, though, and took the remote in her hands, using it to blaze the screen to life, flickering images meeting her eyes. She was about to switch the channel to a cartoon show she enjoyed watching when the commercial that was playing on the first station ended, and a news report came on in its place.

The reporter's mouth moved, but Ruby didn't hear anything. Instead, the subtitles scrolled across the screen in a slow drawl, going across the bottom of the screen in bold white letters against black background. She let herself watch the woman's face for a few seconds before dropping her eyes to the words, unhappy that this was the way she would have to watch it.

"In other news, a recent string of violent crimes have been linked to a former student of the prestigious Beacon Academy. Although only a first year student, Nora Valkyrie has thus far evaded authorities, and continues to attack any who try to stop her. She has been seen traveling with another student, Lie Ren. The relation or intent of these two is unknown. If you see them, it is heavily advised to find a place out of their sight, and immediately contact authorities."

She looked to Yang, a shocked look on her face. Yang looked just as surprised as Ruby, and focused more on the television. Ruby did as well, finding dividing her attention between the words and the pictures on screen a very difficult challenge. "The initial crime seemed to have been with regards to the recent formation of the "Paladins", where almost all of this group were found near their facility, unconscious and in varying states of injury. Another small group of Beacon students were also found, their identities have yet to be confirmed. Preliminary reports have said that none have sustained critical injuries, but this, also, has yet to be confirmed."

The television blinked out of life as Ruby switched it off. She suddenly didn't feel like watching anything anymore. She wanted to get Nora, or help Ren somehow. There was no way to do this, though. It wasn't long before Yang passed her another note, giving her a sincerely apologetic look as she did so. "I'm really sorry, but I have to go soon. Naze business."

Ruby read the note, frowned, then nodded. She didn't like it, but she understood. The fact that Naze was doing something was good. Maybe he was trying to find a way to wrangle Nora. If he were to help, she was sure that Nora wouldn't be able to hide for long. Even though he wanted Yang to stay with her, she was glad that she would be going to do something that was, as much as she hated to admit it, more useful than keep her company.

It was a few more minutes before Yang passed her a note, telling her that it was "time to go". Ruby waved as Yang closed the door, and looked back to the TV once she was gone, reaching for the remote again. There was nothing else to do, so even though she didn't feel like watching cartoons, she knew that it would pass the time. That was something that she knew she wanted.

When Yang followed Naze's instructions to the base of the school tower, she knew that she was going to speak to Ozpin. What she wasn't expecting was to find his puppet body leaning against a wall outside, waiting for her. When she approached it, it moved into life, coming off of the wall and motioning for her to follow. They opened the door, and as they walked in, Naze said "I'm sure you're wondering why you're here when I am already attending this meeting."

Yang nodded, and Naze walked past the secretary at the desk without so much as looking at her, and she didn't raise any protest. Yang got the feeling that Naze had done that before. She nodded, and Naze responded without any hesitation. "You will be playing quite a role in things to come. You may be unaware, but the problem of the demons will require a large plan of action. If things continue as they are now, the demons will be able to destroy everything that you know as "civilization". I am meeting with Ozpin to discuss possible options, and you will weigh in. The more opinions that are present form individuals that understand the risk and possibilities involved, the better chance there is that whatever conclusion we come to will be accepted by those who must carry it out."

The elevator dinged as the doors slid open, and the two stepped inside. Yang was caught rather off-guard by this. Was she really going to be counted on the same level as Ozpin? That was something odd, even though she served Naze. She had never expected to be elevated to that level, at least this unexpectedly.

She gave Naze an unsure look, saying "I'm pretty clueless as to what's going on, though. Are you going to explain it to me on the way or what?" Naze shook his head, and replied "No, I'm afraid not. If you're attentive, though, you'll learn plenty. I do have to explain the situation to Ozpin anyways, so you'll know."

Yang nodded, and put her eyes back to the elevator doors. Naze wasn't very good at small talk. It felt so strange to just stand there in silence and wait. It was clear that Naze wasn't going to speak, though, so the ride continued in utter silence.

When the doors slid open again, the office opened up before them, and Ozpin looked up from his desk, a grim look on his face. Naze stepped out, and Yang followed him. As the two walked towards the desk, Ozpin stood, and gave them a look that seemed to suggest that he was not looking forward to their meeting. As they continued to grow closer, he indicated two chairs, saying "Please, sit. I'm sure that it would be best." Both obliged, and Ozpin knit his fingers together, leaning forward on his desk. "Now, I understand that this is a matter of utmost importance, correct?"

Naze nodded, saying "Yes. You recall, I assume, what I told you of demons?" Ozpin nodded, and Naze continued. "The artifact we unearthed was some form of demonic item, and when the White Fang made to steal it away, they activated it. A rift was torn, and demons are now spewed into Menagerie. Damage can likely be contained easily for now, but the hordes will not stay put for long."

Ozpin rose an eyebrow, and asked "Why are they contained now? Are they not as large of a threat as you say?" Naze shook his head in response, and said "No. Demons feed off of the life of others. They used that of the White Fang to rip their way to this world, and have likely exhausted it in the process. Without the flow of energy from new lives, they won't be able to travel far from their rip. If a demon strays too far from their power, they simply starve to death."

Ozpin took his hands apart in an open gesture. "Then I don't see what the issue is. If they require lives, we can simply evacuate the area, and they will be unable to advance, correct?" Naze shook his head. "No, you underestimate them. Their physical forms fail to manifest after a certain point, but they are still very much capable of affecting things outside of that range. They can, and will, corrupt the minds of others. They will form cults, and summon demons elsewhere. Those cults will open more rifts, allowing more demons through."

Ozpin sighed. "Then what can be done about it? You make it sound as if we might be fighting a hopeless battle. What help can you offer us?"

Yang looked to Naze just as curiously as Ozpin. She wanted to hear the answer. "I refuse to let the undead coddle you like children, you must fight your own battles. However, it would be hopeless to send you into a ring to fight a mammoth with your bare hands. We are prepared to discuss a variety of options that would supply you with divine energy, something that would increase your combat efficacy against them by an exponential factor." Ozpin raised an eyebrow again, and said "How exactly does it do that?"

Naze paused, thinking for a moment, then responded "Demons are like manifestations of hatred and anger, not just of humans, but of every sentient being in the universe. A god is like the opposite end of the spectrum. The innate desire for order and control. A higher focus of this is required to birth a god into existence, but once here, a god could perpetuate itself by cultivating followers. Essentially, belief in a god will make it real, and gods are beings that give off divine energy, the natural bane of a demon. Now, it is entirely possible to obtain divine power without the help of a god, but it is made significantly more difficult. What avenue we take is essentially up to you. We could raise an old god from the dead, create a new one, or supply divine energy generators."

Ozpin leaned back, his mind swimming with the options. "This… is… far too much to rest on my shoulders alone. I have to contact others around the world about this, and I doubt they'll have the faith in you that I do. I will contact you again when we hold council."

Naze nodded respectfully, and stood up. "Very well. I might remind you, however, that this is a time-sensitive matter. In addition to giving divine power, I am willing to task the undead with watching over the people of Remnant, ensuring that they do not fall to corruption in secret. If required, they might also find new enemies in the Grimm, which would give Hunters and Huntresses the ability to focus on the more important front." Yang gave Naze an odd look. It was strange that he was offering secondary help like that. She wasn't about to raise any objection, though. A question came to her mind, and she asked it without hesitation. "Could I be allowed to fight demons? I mean…" her voice trailed off as she tried to think of an excuse that might allow her to stay by Ruby's side. "…it would be good if I were seen in the thick of the action, right there with the rest of the heroes, right? Give the living more confidence that I really am still one of them, you know?"

Naze's lips lifted slightly, and he gave Yang an approving look. "Now you're learning the way of things. So-" he turned back to Ozpin "-you may council who you like, as you like, but a response is required soon. I might also remind you of Nora, and of what she represents. One of your very own students has already been corrupted, and wreaks havoc even now." Ozpin's eyes darkened, and he looked down, saying "I've no need to be reminded, I assure you. Now, please, leave me to my work. You've given me plenty to do."

His tone of voice was a kind of put off, in spite of his obvious efforts to cover it. Yang had never heard him like that, and she couldn't help but feel vaguely threatened. Ozpin being really riled up was something that she had never really considered before. She didn't think that that was what she was seeing now, but it was certainly closer than anything she had ever seen. He was normally so calm and collected, it was very strange to see him anything but that.

Naze started to walk towards the elevator, but Yang was hesitant to get up. Ozpin being mad at Naze wouldn't do anything good for anybody. Naze was leaving, but wasn't it her job to stay behind and fix the situation? She was an ambassador, and that seemed like it would fall under her responsibility.

She contacted Naze about it telepathically, and what she got was not so much of a structured response as it was a general feeling of approval. That was all she needed to keep herself planted in the seat, continuing to look at Ozpin. The elevator doors behind her dinged open, slid shut, and the sound of its descent slowly faded. Only when it was totally gone did Ozpin look up again from his papers and screens, raising his eyebrows and lowering his glasses slightly. "Can I help you?"

The irritation in his voice was gone now, replaced by nothing but the inquisitive nature all teachers seemed to have when they saw a student still in the room after class let out. Yang gave him as personable of a smile as she could and said "Well, that didn't seem to go very well."

Ozpin continued to look at her quietly for a moment before giving a heavy sigh and saying "No, I suppose it didn't, did it?" She shook her head, then said "Well, believe it or not, no matter how much he denies it, there is a human in there."

Ozpin blinked unbelievingly. Yang smirked, then nodded. "I know, it's hard to believe, but there is. I don't know if any of this is because of his emotions, but I just want you to know that he does have them. He's done a good job of burying them." She didn't know what she hoped telling the Professor this would accomplish, but the living knew almost nothing about him. If they knew a little more, they would be able to communicate easier.

"He certainly has done a good job, but why? I would imagine that with his vast knowledge, he would know that emotion can be a powerful thing." Ozpin spoke truth, emotion was a very powerful thing, and Naze did know it. Yang wasn't really sure what had lead Naze to try and purge himself of his humanity, she hadn't gotten that far in his magic tome yet, but she did know the paranoia that she had felt through him. If he felt anything like that while he was alive, the choice would make a lot more sense.

She was hesitant to answer on a subject that she knew almost nothing about, but decided to give it her best shot anyways. "I don't really know exactly why, but I know that he wasn't really a…" the word eluded her for a moment "…happy person. Maybe trying to destroy them was what he thought was best."

Ozpin sat back in his chair again, eyes gazing upwards at the clinking gears that hung from the ceiling. "Well, that does give him a new dimension, I think. It's difficult to see him as anything but the logic-driven person he is now." There was a somewhat awkward moment of silence between them, broken only when Ozpin looked back at Yang and said "That's a strange thing to ponder. I feel bad for him, in a way."

Yang nodded and smiled, saying "Yeah, good. Just... understanding someone else is important, and he's pretty hard to read." Ozpin smiled and said "Thank you." In a very sincere tone, holding out a hand to Yang. She shook it respectfully, then turned to make use of the elevator. The doors opened again, and she stepped inside. Just as they started to close, she saw a distinctive dark figure zip through the glass behind Ozpin and say in a reverberating, airy voice "Don't give me your pity." The voice was monotone, but there was certainly an undercurrent of indignity. Naze didn't say anything to her, though, so she had done her job well enough. She hoped that sharing that little secret would make things easier on both of them.

When Nora drew herself up against the wall, letting the small army of police officers that had been chasing her pass her by, she had to fight the urge to laugh. She was so happy, and nothing would change that. Ren was clutched tightly in her arms, looking at her with an absent, almost sleeping expression. He was tired. She felt somewhat tired as well, but she also felt like she could fight the whole of Remnant and come out on top. She had done it. After three long, agonizing days, she had reunited herself with Ren. She would never let him go now. Nothing on earth would separate them again. Not the foolish Paladins, not the disgusting undead, nothing.

She had to be careful not to crush Ren in her arms now because of how strong she had become. The energy that had filled her during the ritual that would've removed Tiny from her had not gone away, and she was loving it. She could do anything, she was sure of it. Ren, however, could not. Compared to her, he was weak and frail. She needed to protect him, and she couldn't do that if she was fighting with everything she could. She had to get Ren somewhere safe. Old factories surrounded her, and if she could find a good way into one, they would provide an excellent place to keep him for the night, which was approaching fast. She just had to make sure that the police were out of the area before she actually started to settle down. If she didn't, she could be interrupted, and Ren could be put at risk.

Her eyes, burning in the darkness, fell on one building in particular. It was large, with blown out windows and crumbled side structures, but looked more than sturdy enough to house the two. She started to make her way towards it, creeping through the shadows like a predator and doing her best to keep Ren comfortable. It was a tough task, but she was more than ready to take it. IF she couldn't keep Ren happy now, there was no way that he would choose to stay with her the rest of their time. Another pair of flashlights started to round the corner, and she hurriedly took a few back steps and turned around another corner, hiding from sight.

Footsteps drew closer, then started to fade as they continued on away from her. Gravel crunched under their feet, and Nora was glad that they were so clumsy. She could move almost silently on the small layer of rocks that covered the paved ground. If she couldn't, this would be much harder. As the footsteps continued to grow further and further away, she peeked around the corner to see if they were gone. Mostly, she could still see them walking next to each other, talking while they did so, but she knew that they wouldn't turn around.

With a kind of cautious speed, she rounded the corner and started to creep her way to the building she had decided on. There were no identifying features that really set its dull faded grey stone apart from the rest of the dull faded grey stone of the rest of this part of town, save for two large smokestacks that stretched high, several stories above the tallest buildings around. What it used to make in its heyday, she didn't know, but she didn't care. It would offer everything that she and Ren needed. She could give him the rest.

The police men did just as she expected them to, and didn't turn around as she made her way to one of the empty windows. A few shards of glass were left in the frame, meaning that it was impossible for her to simply pass Ren through, or for her to slide through carrying Ren. It would make too much noise, and she didn't want to hurt Ren.

The window had extra space, more than enough to clear Nora's height, and even then some, but it was on the second floor. That meant that she would have to jump to get it. She didn't doubt that she could do it, but Ren wouldn't like it. Briefly, she craned her neck in an attempt to scope out any other means of entry, but none presented themselves. Just then, the footsteps started to return. Every nerve in her body prickled, her every instinct telling her to turn around and fight, but she knew that she couldn't. She had to make the jump. It was now or never.

Her legs bent beneath her, and she grit her teeth as she summoned up the energy to jump. The muscles in her legs started to heat up, and she was careful to keep Ren from touching them. Steam started to lift off of the soft flesh that covered her muscles, and she blocked out everything else. Just as the voices rounded the corner behind her, she pushed off, sending herself flying into the air, pulling Ren with her, a huge grin on her face. She soared up, feet just clearing the shards of glass left on the windowsill, and she watched at the wall of the building passed below her, a feeling of triumph filling her body.

The feeling of triumph was quickly replaced by one of panic as she saw that the floor immediately in front of the window, what she had anticipated landing on, had dropped out. At the end of her arc, instead of the sturdy concrete floor that she had expected, there was a pile of jagged looking pieces of construction material and sharp looking glass shards stared back up at her. Her mind raced as quickly as it could, and she only came up with one solution to save Ren from damage. She would have to bear the brunt of the damage. In midair, before she hit the ground, she threw her head forward, bracing her back for the impact.

As she hit the ground, she put one arm tight around Ren so that he wouldn't slide away from her. Then, with her other three limbs, pushed against the ground as she connected with all her might, dispersing the force over a greater area. The feeling of sharp rocks punching into her back, and glass slicing her skin apart hurt, but it was nothing more than she could bear. The sound of her hitting was a muffled crunch, she felt her bones strain to keep from breaking, but overall, it hurt far less than she had expected.

She laid still, holding her breath for fear of giving any further hint of where she had fled to. Her grip on Ren got even tighter, not wanting him to make a sound. Flashlights above them, shining through the window that she had entered through, wavered around slightly as their holders looked around, and a voice not too far away said "Did you hear that?"

The response was quick and decisive, saying "Yeah, I did, but this place is crawling with little critters. And besides, what are the chances that crazy is still here? Come on, let's just finish our rounds and get the hell back to base. I don't want to be out here when it gets dark." The first voice replied with an "I hear that." And both pairs of footsteps started to fade again.

Nora let her body relax. She had done it. She was safe, and so was Ren.

Ren.

As soon as thoughts of the boy entered her mind, they refused to leave. With a wide smile, and almost giggling happiness, she moved both of them to the side, off of the pile. Then, once he was clear of the rubble, she rolled over on top of him, knees at either side of his hips, pressing herself against him. Their lips met, and Nora let the primal side of her body take over. She would let Ren rest, but not quite yet.