'Ruby,' Ozpin's coarse voice called, 'do you know exactly why we called you here?'

'Umm… to train me, right?'

'Correct, but that is not what I am asking. Do you know why we want to train you?'

Ruby wasn't sure how to respond. She assumed it was to make her stronger, of course. What other reason could there possibly be? Looking around the room, she realised that their training room was actually extremely small.

It's going to be hard to use my semblance in here… wait, my semblance! Could they be trying to improve my use of aura?

'We called you here to show you what your semblance is.'

'Uhh… but… I already know my semblance,' Ruby told them, a puzzled look on her face.

'No. You're half right, but there's something very vital that you've missed. Have you ever noticed that you use an abnormally large amount of aura compared to other people? For such a simple speed semblance, have you never found it strange that it should use so much aura?'

When she thought about it, he was right. Her aura did deplete rather quickly. Ruby had noticed it the few times she used her semblance, but always shrugged it off as just being her.

'You probably didn't even notice it yourself seeing as you don't have the same mastery of aura control as Glynda and I, but your semblance is not speed.'

'Then… what is it?'

Taking a sip from his coffee, Ozpin's mouth seemed to move independently from the words he spoke. What did he just say?

'Sorry, could you repeat that please?'

'You have the ability to manipulate the flow of time itself, Ruby. Tell me, when you use your semblance, do you ever notice that other people still look completely normal to you? Normally when travelling at such a speed they would appear to be blurred as you go past, but for you it's different, isn't it? When you used your semblance you yourself might believe that you're going faster, and to everyone else it would appear that way, however that is not what happens at all. You are actually manipulating your own sense of time. Your semblance simultaneously speeds up your perception of time and dulls anyone else's perception of time, giving the illusion that you are moving much faster than you actually are. Your semblance may just be one of the most powerful I've ever seen in my life, Ruby.'

She was stunned. She had this incredible power this whole time, and she never knew? And on top of that, Ozpin managed to figure it out before her. It just goes to show why he was the headmaster of Beacon for such a long time, possessing the amount of skill and strength he did.

'So, Ruby. Would you like to begin your training?'

'Yeah,' she confidently responded. 'Let's do it.'

Hour after hour, day after day, Ruby trained with Ozpin and Glynda in that room. Aura control, stamina management, situational awareness, they went through every technique under the sun with her over and over, driving the techniques into her head through rigorous repetition.

Meanwhile elsewhere in the facility, people continued going about their work, Raven all the while trying to figure out Yuki's motives.

Think… why would she completely leave them alone whenever I'm not here? She must want me but… for what?

No matter how many scenarios she came up with in her head, she couldn't think of a single thing that only she could do that could possibly be of any use to the Grimm. She had thought extensively about each of her abilities and skills, and then it dawned on her.

Maybe she was looking at it from the wrong angle.

Maybe it's not that they need me for anything, she thought. Maybe it's the opposite. Could it be that I'm the only one they deem to be a threat? No, that can't be it.

Her thoughts led her in circles. If it was a matter of being threatening to them, then why wouldn't Ozpin or Glynda be targeted? Ruby, too. Surely if it was an issue of danger then the Grimm would have been upon the base long before now.

This is getting me nowhere.

Taking a break, she decided to go make herself some coffee to calm down. Maybe she'd even ask Ozpin for some of his special brand.

'When did I fall asleep?' Yang murmured to herself, still drowsy after waking. She could feel her heartbeat pounding in her chest, as though she had just been running at full speed.

Is that because of the Grimm genes?

I guess they're starting to slowly show more physical symptoms then.

It won't be too long before I turn completely, probably two months at the very latest if I hold the transformation off.

It's colder now.

She could feel the icy air prickling her skin, the hair on her body standing on edge in the frost.

I guess it's to be expected, though. I am near the Northern Peaks after all. Still… it's really giving hell to my right eye.

The eye in question had begun to feel the effects of Grimmification much more than the rest of her body. It acted as a starting point for the takeover, her eye itself bloodshot, the sclera being a murky grey colour mixing with the swirls of red. Around her eye several thick, pronounced black veins throbbed viciously, shooting pain through her head with every beat of her heart. A never-ending headache, a permanent reminder of the monster she was becoming. Yang didn't care about the pain. It was more the fear of becoming an unrecognizable creature that lives only to kill. That primal fear that was drilled into her skull was slowly becoming a reality, and she was forced to just wait for her inevitable end. She had considered suicide several times over the past few days, and even brought herself to the edge of a cliff at one point, although she was unable to bring herself to do it. She was a scared young girl, one with a cursed fate to wander the land eternally until someone finally brought her life to an end.

The weeks passed, and her eye grew steadily worse. The black veins had expanded to her cheek and forehead now, almost contaminating the left side of her face. She knew it wouldn't be long before she began to stop recognising herself.

All I wanted was to live a normal life.

To be able to laugh with Ruby. To tease Weiss and play stupid pranks on her. To scratch Blake's adorable cat ears, and watch her cute reactions…

I wanted to have fun with my friends.

Instead, they're all either missing or dead. Even my dad's gone now. I had to abandon Ruby.

I never got to enjoy time with Raven, the sister I didn't know I had.

Why is life so cruel and unfair?

Why can't I just be like everyone else?

Why can't I wake up and find out that this was all my imagination, that my friends are all still alive and happy?

I still want to live, damn it!

But… that doesn't matter now. It's over. I took a loan from the Grimm genes that were implanted inside me, and now I'm paying the interest back.

This was how it was going to be. Tears rolling down her cheeks, she resigned herself to her fate. She knew it was inescapable. She would become a Grimm sooner or later, and that would be that. Nothing she could do would change that fact.

I just wish I could change things. If I could go back and do them differently, maybe I could fix things. Maybe I could save everyone. Maybe…

It was all just maybe. Everything she thought rode on maybes.

Sliding her body down against a rock, she let the fatigue take her again, collapsing into sleep.

I'm starting to get a lot more tired recently. Is that to do with the transformation too?

Well, I guess I'll never know.

Panting heavily, Ruby had exhausted her aura to its very limits. Three weeks had passed since these sessions began, Ruby growing exponentially stronger in that time.

'Very good,' Ozpin complimented. Ruby had single-handedly managed to fight off both Ozpin and Glynda, the control she exerted over her semblance through the training improving her ability tenfold.

'I think you're just about ready,' Glynda told her with a pleased smile. 'There's nothing more we can teach you.'

'Wait, you mean…'

'Yes,' Glynda continued, 'you have surpassed both of us completely.'

A heart-warming smile covered Ruby's face. She was proud of herself, and thankful to the two of them for their help.

'Thank you for everything. I couldn't have done it without you.'

'Don't worry about it,' Ozpin replied, taking a sip from his mug. '

Yang, I'm going to find you. Don't worry, I'll bring you back safe and sound.

Going to rest, she decided.

Tomorrow, she would go search for Yang again. The Snowpeak Valleys were surrounded on all sides by bodies of water other than the mountain pass, and Raven had found faint footprints in the snow the morning after Yang had left that led in the direction they were following, meaning she had to be somewhere in the valley. Of course, she could have just left the valley during that time, but Ruby knew Yang better than anyone. She wouldn't have that thought process, and she never really paid much attention to geography anyway so she probably didn't know about the water, meaning there was a good chance she was still wandering around somewhere.

Tomorrow, I'm coming to find you Yang.

She slept peacefully through the night once again. It had been months since her recurring nightmare had haunted her dreams, much to her relief.

When the sun rose, she went over to Raven's room, the black haired girl already wide awake.

'You ready?' Ruby asked, checking Crescent Rose as she spoke.

'Yeah, we just need to go get Adam and we can go.'

Raven noticed an impressive air of confidence about Ruby, almost as though she was a completely different person after her training. After the three of them had gathered their things, they notified the others and set out, venturing to the west of the facility. That was the largest area, so they decided to start there as it was more likely for Yang to be there. Hours of searching produced no results however, and soon the sun began to fall beyond the horizon.

'Guess we're out of luck today, huh?' Ruby said, disappointed.

'Seems so,' Raven answered. 'Let's head back.'

I guess I was wrong to doubt her. Nothing happened after all.

Raven's relief was unimaginable. She half expected Ruby to hold a grudge against her for abandoning her in the snow, but it seemed she'd already forgotten about the incident as though it never happened.

During the day, there was quite a commotion at the facility.

'I said, STAY WHERE YOU ARE!'

Gray had gone out to see what was going on, seeing a soldier pointing his gun at a girl who was trudging through the snow, shivering from the cold. She was wearing a violet yukata, and her skin was pale white. Gray pushed the soldier aside, going to comfort the girl.

'Are you alright?'

She looked up at him, her pure white eyes full of gratitude for her saviour.

'Come on; let's get you inside where it's warm.'

After covering her with blankets, she began to stop shivering as much.

'What were you doing out there?' he asked, curious as to why a girl wearing apparel like hers was venturing through the snow.

'I was looking for someone. An old friend of mine. She's got black hair and a big multi-coloured sword.'

'Ah, you're probably talking about Raven. She's out at the moment, but she'll be back soon.'

He was about to leave before he turned around at the door.

'I almost forgot, you must be hungry after being out there. You want anything in particular to eat?'

'Well, I am partial to a bit of human flesh every now and then,' she said as a joke, her smile highlighting her beauty.

Amazing, Gray thought to himself, she's so cheerful after what she must have been through.

'Oh, sorry, I just realised I didn't even introduce myself,' he sheepishly apologised, 'I'm Gray. What's your name?'

'Well,' she said, looking downwards, 'I don't really have a name of my own. My parents never gave me one, but some friendly people named me not too long ago,' she said, continuing to look towards the ground. As she slowly raised her head, Gray's blood turned to ice as he saw her eyes. Her once pure-white eyes that were now a horrifying blood red colour.

'They call me Yuki.'