We got back to Beacon, everyone was staring at us. I saw my former Tormentor standing in front of the crowd. I knew he didn't have a Semblance. I didn't want to show off what I can truly do just yet. I got on all fours the claws on my weapon extended.

“He's fighting like an animal?” Someone in the crowd saw how I fought.

“Mercury, I know we have a history.” I told him. “I was in the White Fang! I wasn't happy with the person I was back then. I ran.”

Mercury kicked me into a wall. “I don't care.” I picked myself up. My eyes focused on him.

Sumire watched From the crowd. “Gold Senpai don't use your Semblance.”

I growled and charged towards him. I didn't care if I was hurt or not. I'm taking this Demon I've been hiding down. My anger was only building.

“Gold Senpai please don't push yourself.” Azu looked at me. The Grimm turned human smiled at me.

I stood up on my hind legs. “He thinks he's Human?” Someone joked. I fired Fated Hour at him.

“Mercury, why do you want to fight? What did I do to you?” I asked and  threw off my Fated Hour.

“It's not what you did, it's just business.” Mercury kicked me into a wall once more. My Aura flickers a bit.

I gritted my teeth as blood was coming from my right hand. I drove my left hand into the ground and a row of shadow made spikes sent him to the ground. Everyone looked at me. I didn't like using my Semblance. I'm afraid of it.

“Did he….?” Someone in the crowd checked on Mercury. It was someone that looked familiar to me but I don't know where.

Ruby was gasping at what happened. I stood up. “I can explain…” My hands are shaking from the fear I had.

The crowd was still in shock, murmurs passing through the gathered students and teachers alike. Mercury was still on the ground, visibly dazed from the shadow spikes I had summoned. My hand was shaking from the strain, blood dripping from my palm, but I couldn't focus on the pain right now. I could only feel the weight of everyone’s eyes on me, judging, questioning.

But before I could say anything further, I heard Yang’s voice cut through the silence. “Alright, enough of the drama!” She stepped forward, her golden hair bouncing with each stride, her voice ringing with that familiar confidence. “Everyone, listen up!”

I turned to look at her, still unsure of what was happening. Yang grinned at me, an expression that was both playful and serious.

“Corey here?” She pointed directly at me, "He’s not just some guy. He’s my boyfriend."

I froze. A gasp echoed from the crowd, and for a moment, I thought I might pass out from the sheer shock of the revelation. Yang just said… that I was her boyfriend?

I could feel my heart racing in my chest. She had said it so nonchalantly, like it wasn’t a big deal, but for me? It felt like the whole world had shifted. People were staring at me in a mix of surprise and curiosity.

“But I—” I stammered, trying to explain, but Yang just raised a hand to stop me.

“I know you don’t like attention, Gold Senpai,” she said, a little more teasing now, “But we’re all family here, right? And if there’s one thing I’m sure of… it’s that we’re gonna stick by each other, no matter what. So get used to it!” She winked at me, her usual carefree grin returning.

I felt my face turn red as the words registered. “Wait, what?” I managed to get out, still processing everything. "Yang, I—"

She rolled her eyes, walking up to me and wrapping her arm around my shoulders. “You’re lucky you’re cute, Corey.” She gave me a playful shove. “You think you can keep running from us? Nope, you're stuck with me now.”

I blinked, speechless.

Sumire laughed lightly from the crowd. “Well, looks like you’re not getting out of this one, Gold Senpai.”

Ruby beamed from the sidelines, clearly excited, but still a little confused. “I mean, I always thought you two made a great team… but this? Wow, that’s a plot twist!”

Azu, ever the calm one, gave me a soft, reassuring smile. “You don’t have to explain yourself to anyone, Corey. We all have your back.”

Mercury slowly pulled himself to his feet, glaring at me, but his words were muted as I stood there, unsure of what to feel. His grudge, his hatred—it all seemed so small in comparison to this moment. I had people here who cared for me. I wasn’t alone anymore.

"Mercury, I’ll deal with you later," I muttered, trying to regain control of myself.

Yang nudged me again. "You’ll deal with us first, Gold Senpai. Together."

And just like that, it felt like a weight had lifted off my chest. Maybe I didn’t have all the answers. Maybe my past still haunted me. But right now, in this moment, I had a team who believed in me. No more running. No more hiding.

And for the first time in a long time, I didn’t feel alone.As the crowd continued to murmur, Josh stepped forward, his eyes wide and his hands on his hips. “Oh hell no,” he said, shaking his head dramatically. “This is a joke, right? You two? Boyfriend and girlfriend? What is this, some kind of prank?”

I could feel the heat rising in my cheeks again. "Josh, you literally tried to make out with me." I muttered, but he didn’t hear me. Or maybe he did and just didn’t care.

“Not. Happening. There’s no way!” Josh added, his voice rising in disbelief. "I mean, come on! Corey? My bro, my partner in crime, with Yang? No offense, Yang, but you’re clearly out of your mind.”

Yang’s eyes sparkled with mischief. She put her hands on her hips, shifting her stance. “Oh, so now you think you can make the rules, huh, Josh?” Her tone was sharp but playful. "Let me just remind you..." she leaned in closer to him, her voice dropping to a teasing whisper, “I’m just a passing-through Blonde, and you better remember that!”

The crowd exploded with laughter as Josh recoiled, his mouth open in shock. "What the hell?" he sputtered, blinking rapidly. "That's a Corey line!"

Yang grinned, clearly pleased with herself. “Yup, guess I’m a fan of his sarcasm now. How do you like that, Josh?” she teased, tapping him on the chest with a finger.

I couldn’t help but chuckle at Josh’s confusion, but at the same time, it felt… good. This moment, the teasing, the banter—it reminded me that I was part of something real now. People who knew me. People who accepted me. Even if they didn’t always get me.

Josh threw his hands up in defeat. “I swear to god, you’re all going to drive me to an early grave.”

Yang’s grin didn’t fade. “You’re welcome,” she said, blowing him a kiss.

Mercury, still on the ground and nursing his wounds, groaned. "Seriously? This is what I'm dealing with?" he muttered under his breath, still trying to stand tall but looking far more defeated now.

I glanced back at him, shaking my head. "Not everything has to be a fight, Mercury. I’m done with that. So can we please just get through this without all the drama?"

“Good luck with that,” Yang quipped, still not missing a beat. “Now, let’s get this show on the road, huh? Team CASD’s gotta stick together.”

And for the first time, I felt like I truly belonged with them. All the jokes, all the mess, all the complications... they didn’t matter. Because this? This was family.

Sumire smiled at this. “I guess that's how you change Fate.”

Azu looked at her. “What do you mean?”

Sumire's Violet eyes looked at me, then to Dan, then to Azu and lastly at Ruby. “It's nothing.”

I coughed up a little bit of blood. “I thought Blake would have understood and came to my aid.”

“Well my wiwwle kitty, I guess that you have me to do that. Just don't run off anymore.” Yang's blonde-hair bounced around my hood. Dan grabbed my discarded weapon.

“Well tomorrow we have class, and then Team Rwby has their investigation thing.” Sumire revealed.

“How did you know that?” Weiss looked at her.

“My Semblance, I can see the future but I can't change my own fate. There is a phrase: Man was born free, and everywhere he is in chains. Living is not breathing but doing.” Sumire getting into philosophy.

“Momori mento?” Dan recognized it. “Didn't you say that you will die at the end of the semester?”

“Yes, a fate that I've tried to avoid.” Sumire wasn't helping at all.

The atmosphere shifted as everyone absorbed Sumire's cryptic words. The mix of uncertainty and curiosity was palpable, but it was clear Sumire wasn’t going to elaborate more on her fate. The tension only seemed to grow as she continued to stand there, her violet eyes scanning the group. Her words hung in the air, and even Ruby seemed taken aback by the weight of them.

"Wait, hold on," Yang said, breaking the silence, her voice firm but calm. "You seriously think you can see the future? But you can’t change your own fate?" She leaned in, as if trying to grasp what Sumire was saying.

Sumire’s expression remained unreadable, her smile faint but there. "It's true. I can glimpse what’s ahead, but it’s not something I can control. And trying to change it only leads to more chains. You don’t escape fate—you adapt to it."

Azu, always more attuned to the subtle feelings of those around her, glanced between Sumire and the rest of the group. "But if you can see the future... why not help us avoid the things that are supposed to happen?"

Sumire paused for a moment, her gaze drifting toward the horizon as if searching for something unseen. "Because, Azu, there are things in life that must happen. For all the battles we fight, for all the victories we win, there are things we cannot escape. You can fight fate, but you can’t outrun it. Not forever."

A silence fell over the group. Dan, who had been inspecting my weapon with a distracted focus, looked up sharply at Sumire’s words. "So what’s that mean for us? If you can see the future, then why don’t you know how things are going to end?"

Sumire’s smile remained unchanged, but her eyes flickered with something deeper, something sorrowful. "Because... I don’t know my own end. I can see glimpses of what might come, but it’s never certain. Fate is a fluid thing. It’s always shifting. What I see today could change tomorrow, and what I avoid might come to pass anyway."

Weiss crossed her arms, clearly trying to wrap her head around what Sumire was saying. "And this... this future of yours? You said you would die by the end of the semester. How do you know that? What do you mean by that?"

Sumire’s eyes softened as she met Weiss’s gaze, but her answer came quietly, almost as a whisper. "Because... sometimes, the future doesn’t change. Sometimes, you’re just waiting for the inevitable."

Dan’s hand tightened around my weapon, his face unreadable. "So, you’ve just accepted it? You’re okay with dying?"

Sumire shook her head slowly, as if the thought itself was something too complex to fully explain. "No. I’ve never accepted it. But it’s there, lurking. I don’t want it, but it’s something I have to live with. It’s part of the path I’m on."

I could see Yang frowning, her usual bright confidence faltering just a bit. "That's... a lot to take in, Sumire," she said softly. "But if there's a way to change it—if there's anything we can do—"

Sumire’s eyes flickered with a moment of hesitation before she offered a small, almost sad smile. "I don’t think there is. But I appreciate the thought, Yang. Really."

The conversation lingered in the air, but for a moment, it felt like the weight of everything—our pasts, our choices, our futures—had settled over us. It wasn’t just Sumire’s fate that was uncertain; it was all of ours.

Ruby, who had been quiet for a while, finally spoke up, her voice soft but determined. "We’ll figure it out. We always do, right? We’ll help you, Sumire. No matter what happens."

Sumire’s expression softened, the slightest trace of gratitude crossing her face. "Thank you, Ruby. That means more than you know."

I coughed again, more blood spilling from my mouth as I tried to regain my footing. Yang’s hand was instantly there, helping me up, her grip firm. "Hey, stop being such a drama queen, okay? We’ve got class tomorrow, remember? You’ll be fine."

I forced a smile, my vision still blurred from the pain. "Yeah... maybe I just needed a good reality check."

Sumire glanced at me, then back at the group, as if contemplating her next words carefully. "Maybe we're all just trying to find our way, despite the paths that fate lays before us. But we can still walk together... if we're lucky."

I could hear the unspoken sentiment behind her words. Fate might have its hold on us, but we had each other. And as long as we had that, maybe there was still hope.

Azu gave Sumire a small, reassuring smile. "Well, we’ll be here, no matter what. All of us."

Dan grinned as he threw my weapon back to me. "Well, I guess that means we’re all stuck together. Like it or not."

The group laughed, the tension easing for a moment. And despite everything that had been said, despite the uncertainty of the future, one thing was clear: we were a team. And we would face whatever came our way, together.

_________________________________________________________

~The Next Day~

I woke up to Dan looking at me. “Cat, are you sure you're good?” My head was pounding. I saw my sheets are red. The Curtain between our side of the room and girl's was open. Wait, would you consider Azu a girl since she's a Grimm?

My vision in my left eye was still blurry. “Is that you Cowboy?”

Dan chuckled softly, his usual smirk playing on his lips. "Yeah, it’s me, Cat. How’s the head? You’ve got blood all over your sheets. You sure you’re good?"

I winced as I tried to sit up, the pounding in my head only getting worse. My left eye still felt blurry, and I couldn't fully make out the shapes around me. "I’m fine… I think. Just a little… dizzy." I glanced around the room, trying to gather my bearings. The curtain separating our side of the room from the girls' side was wide open, and I could make out some movement on their side, though it was too blurry to distinguish clearly.

Dan raised an eyebrow as he eyed me, still sitting beside me. "A little dizzy? Buddy, you nearly got yourself killed yesterday. You’ve got a right to be a little more than dizzy." He leaned back, his posture relaxed as usual, but there was a softness in his voice that I wasn’t used to hearing. "But yeah, we’re gonna need to get that eye checked out. You good if I go grab the first aid kit?"

I nodded, though I didn’t feel particularly good. I’d been through worse, but this wasn’t exactly one of those moments I wanted to be dealing with.

Dan stood up, reaching for the curtain that separated the rooms. "I’ll grab the kit from the medical room. Hang tight, Cat."

Before he could walk away, I heard the soft, almost comforting voice of Azu from the other side of the room. “Gold Senpai? Are you okay? I can help if you need me."

I was still struggling to focus, but I managed to smile. "I’m good, Azu. Don’t worry."

Azu’s voice, however, was full of concern as she approached. "You don’t look good, Senpai. Do you want me to go get help?" Her footsteps were light as she stepped around the corner.

"You’re not Gold Senpai anymore, remember?" Dan teased from the doorway. "She calls you that, but you’re my Cat, not some fancy title."

I grinned slightly, even though it hurt to do so. “Well, I guess I’ve got my fans. Azu’s got that whole Gold Senpai thing going on, and Yang’s got ‘Wiwwle kitty.’” My words came out a little slurred, but it wasn’t lost on me that it was becoming a sort of theme with everyone.

Dan laughed, shaking his head. “That’s right. You’re the ‘wiwwle kitty’ now, huh? I’ll let Yang know she’s got competition.”

I couldn’t help but feel a little lighter despite everything. "Aww, I’m everyone’s pet now. How cute."

Yang’s voice interrupted the banter as she walked into the room, her usual energy practically bouncing off the walls. "Oh, my wiwwle kitty’s awake! How’s my little furball feeling?" She leaned over with a teasing grin, brushing my hair away from my forehead. "You’ve been a naughty kitty, getting yourself all beat up, huh?"

I groaned, rolling my eyes. “I didn’t get myself beat up, okay? Mercury’s just a damn pain.”

Yang let out a soft chuckle. "I’m sure he is, but it’s your fault for charging at him like you did. You’ve gotta learn to take care of yourself, wiwwle kitty."

I wanted to argue, but the headache was making it hard to think straight. Instead, I just gave Yang a small, resigned smile. "I’ll try to remember that."

Sumire’s voice joined the conversation as she stepped around the corner, her gaze as intense as ever, but there was a softness to it when she looked at me. "I see you’re still alive, Gold Senpai. I told you not to push yourself." She crossed her arms, though there was a hint of relief in her tone.

I sighed, leaning back into the bed, trying to relax. "Yeah, well, I guess I’m just too stubborn for my own good."

Dan gave me a look, a half-grin still on his face. “I could’ve told you that." He turned to Sumire. "Gold Senpai, huh? I’m still going with ‘Cat.’"

Sumire raised an eyebrow, her lips curling into a smile. "If that’s what you want to call him, I suppose I can’t stop you."

Yang was still grinning, leaning down close to me with her usual mischievous glint in her eyes. "Well, whatever you call him, I’m just glad my wiwwle kitty is okay," she said, her voice teasing but with a touch of affection in it.

I rolled my eyes but couldn’t help the small smile that tugged at my lips. "Alright, alright. I get it. I’m a walking nickname." I looked at everyone in the room, feeling a warmth spread through me despite the pain. "Thanks, guys. I’m not sure I deserve all this, but… thanks."

Dan gave me a knowing look. "You don’t need to be a hero, Cat. Just be yourself. That’s enough for us."

Sumire nodded, her gaze softening. "Sometimes that’s all we need, Gold Senpai."

I looked around at my friends, the people who had somehow become my family, and for the first time in a while, I felt like I am more than just my Past.