The others heard Piper's eerie music and rushed faster.

They found the wolf pack. Claw and Emerald already had killed most of them.

The Beowolves dissolved like normal Grimm and left no trace.

"Well, that told us nothing," Piper said, drawing some deep breaths.

"Except that they seem to really want to keep us out of these ruins." Emerald wiped her forehead. "Well...isn't there something about territory in those readings Shine sends us?"

"What's the story of this place?" Royal asked. "Why did it fall? I know more Atlas history than Vale."

"You're asking me? I'm from Mistral," Emerald said.

"My dad didn't really teach." Mercury made a face.

"I know the kingdom was a precursor of Vale's Capital," Weiss said. "But there's not that much we know. You know how when kingdoms fall, the records usually are destroyed? A few people might take books with them, but usually they're just running for their lives...so we don't know a lot. Ozpin might have known."

"It was from before the Great War," Cinder spoke, surprising them. "The Great War happened in basically the same kingdoms as we know them now, but there were other wars before it. There was a Relic here, before it was moved. The Grimm attacked the kingdom because of some stir that was caused probably by Salem's agents. Ozpin moved the Relic before they got it, and then the Vault was under the current Beacon."

"Oh, wait a minute," Weiss said. "I remember that when they told us about Alicia's history with Ozpin, one of them mentioned... Oscar wrote it down in his notes, I think, for his book, that she and Ozpin were in the kingdom we now call Vale. And that was before he put the Relic under the school in the Vault. Are you saying this was here, then?"

"Oh, probably not the actual buildings, but Salem didn't destroy the entire city till later," Cinder said.

"How did you know all that?" Emerald asked. "Did Salem tell you?"

"Of course she did. Do you think she'd have explained why finding the Fall Relic was so important without venting her anger at how Ozpin slipped it through her fingers?" Cinder said airily. "I was quizzed on this practically so I would understand to find it 'under the school.'"

"I didn't know Salem gave you homework." Mercury thought it was funny. "I can see her with, like, some Grimm pointer and a Grimm blackboard, asking, 'And where will you find the Relic?'"

"And she'd probably say, 'Don't disappoint me,'" Emerald got in the spirit of mocking it. 

"Oh, and 'I don't like repeating myself,'" Mercury said. "Are you taking notes?"

"You two really think this is funny?" Claw was disgusted. "That witch coached her witch student on how to take down the kingdom of Vale, and apparently it wasn't her first time."

That just made them laugh more.

"It does sound pretty bada-- to say, 'It's not my first time taking down the kingdom of Vale'," Mercury said. "I can just hear Salem saying it almost."

"Actually she said it more like, 'In the past we've nearly gotten our hands on the Relic, but somehow Ozma has evaded us every time'." Cinder imitated Salem's tone pretty well. She was used to it.

"Oh, that gave me a chill," Emerald said. "That was eerily like how she spoke."

"Joke was on her--in the end, the Relics just got walked right to her doorstep, and we never used the d--- things," Mercury said. "All that fuss for nothing."

"I'm with Babs--I don't see what's so amusing about this," Piper said distastefully. "Other then you're reminding us all why we didn't used to trust you."

"I still don't trust her." Claw was glaring at Cinder unpleasantly.

"It's so crazy to think about how the same war was going on throughout all those other things," Royal mused. "And now that it's over, there's still problems. Then you think even your Salem and Ozpin friends were just pawns in an even bigger war that we can't really see."

"Yeah..." Emerald said, now not so amused. "That hits different. When I think about all the things we did, and we didn't have a clue what we were really working for."

"Bring down the whole mood," Mercury said. "I thought we were mocking Salem."

"Why mock her? She's not here," Cinder said, leaning on the wall of the cave. "I'm sure she's happily put all thoughts of this world behind her by now."

"Do you think she's still alive?" Emerald asked. "Every now and then I think about it and wonder if she's on the same journey we are, trying to adjust to life after the gods, or if it's so much easier because she's...you know..."

"What did happen to her?" Claw asked. "I thought she died."

"Well, there's an afterlife, you know." Mercury dodged the question. "Anyway, who knows what really happened? She disappeared."

This was true.

"I hope that doesn't mean she's still out there." Piper looked ill.

"Oh, no, she's not. We're sure of that," Emerald said. "She and the gods left at almost the same time, just like Ozpin. Ozma, really."

"Why did they all start with Oz?" Royal asked.

"The gods were cruelly repetitive," Cinder said.

"Either that or really uncreative," Mercury said. "Which would fit more."

"Weren't you afraid to face gods?" Claw asked. 

"Yes!" Emerald said.

"It was terrifying," Weiss said. "But we had to... Somehow it wasn't so bad once we got past the initial shock. They were so...awful, but so small. Once I met them, I understood why Shine and Wally thought they were small and pathetic, but the way they thought, it was so...ugh. A real god wouldn't be less deep and less creative than a man. I saw what they meant. Who would ever worship those gods if they knew of one better?"

"I know why," Mercury said. "It's safer. Why do you think the people of Remnant, before it was Remnant, chose to follow those losers? The same reason the bandits and pirates are choosing to use Grimm. You follow something that's crueler than you, or more spiteful or more vindictive, and you get to feel better than it but powerful at the same time. It's all really about making it serve you. They don't get that they're still serving them."

"You know, you're right," Weiss said. "I wasn't tempted to do as they said because I knew we had a better choice, but maybe at one point, when all I cared about was getting what I wanted, I might have liked to strike up a deal...and that's the allure, I guess. Those gods will give you what you think you want, if you give them your soul. Literally, in Ozpin's case... The real thing would not promise you everything you ever wanted."

"I don't see much difference between the one you believe in and those two," Piper said. "They both demand loyalty and service, from the sound of it."

"Loyalty and service are what you would give any god, if it was real," Emerald said. "That's not how you tell the difference. Would the fake ones ask for what the Real one would? That's a part of them lying about what they are. But the Real thing, it doesn't pretend that you're going to like everything that happens, or that everything works out perfectly for you if you do as He says. That's not true, and it says so upfront in the book. But He wants your love. That's the most important thing to Him. It would be a lie to say nothing bad would ever happen because of what you believe."

"Love? That's what you base your worship on?" Claw said incredulously. "All this time, I was sure there was more to it. Some great thing that you were working towards? But you mean a watery idea like that. Love doesn't last. Loyalty has to be based on needing the same thing."

"Love can't be what you need?" Emerald said, but she didn't like Claw's tone. It made her feel as if she was being called foolish.

"That's nice," Piper said. "But it's a pipe dream."

"Aren't you two a couple?" Meridian asked.

Piper and Claw exchanged a look.

"Yes, but our relationship is based on a need we can fill," Claw said. "That's the most sane way to live."

"That's very cynical," Royal said. "Where does what you want come into it?"

"Are you really one of us, Zapato?" Claw said, in disgust. "You know that we all sacrifice what we want to live this life. That must come into everything. It's part of the job."

"Ah, that's where Shine drew a line," Mercury noted, glancing at Weiss and Meridian. "She told us, Nikos especially, that you can sacrifice your physical life, but you can't sacrifice your soul and your inner self for the common good. There's a line."

"Yes, and sacrificing all the things you want is the same as sacrificing your soul," Meridian agreed. "They never asked that of us. In fact they asked us to keep what we wanted in mind so we'd have something to look for. If you don't dream, there's no point going forward. And look at you two--no offense, but you're doing the same thing you were doing 5 years ago and have no seeming plan to ever do any more. If you're happy, I have no beef with that, but if you're doing it just for lack of having any dream to do anything else out of fear, well, that's no way to live."

"How like a Vacutian to not care about the line of duty," Piper said.

"Ey?" Meridian was kind of insulted.

"That's not true." Weiss rushed to his defense. "Meridian cares a lot about that. He's just got other things he cares about too. Vacuo isn't as like that as Atleisians think, you know."

"Perhaps you've lived there too long then, Schnee," Claw said. "I never understood why you'd live there on purpose. Or marry one of 'em. Uncouth reprobates."

"Did you just insult my husband!?" Weiss flew off the handle.

She held her sword up, and glyphs appeared around her. "You want to say that again?"

"Ooh, fight." Mercury grinned.

"Mercury!" Emerald snapped.

"What? They deserved it after that. I'm ready to see Weiss throw it down." Mercury made a fist.

"Okay." Royal stepped in front of Weiss, which took some guts. "Let's not lose our heads."

"I appreciate it, Snow Tiger." Meridian put a hand on Weiss' shoulder. "But I don't care what these two buggers say about me. I kind of riled them up a little, I suppose, by calling them on that sacrificial stuff, and there's my Semblance. Maybe they're a little more agitated."

"Even if they acted on it because of your Semblance, they were thinking it either way." Weiss frowned.

"We shouldn't provoke her," Piper hissed to Claw. "Her sister is in our boss. Don't get a write up over a little philosophical disagreement."

Claw frowned, but then she said tightly, "I apologize, Miss Schnee."

"It's Mrs. Wallace now." Weiss didn't usually care which name was used, but she had a point to prove there.

"Fine, Mrs. Wallace," Claw said. "I didn't mean to make it personal."

Which was not quite true, but Weiss, of course, needed to let it go.

She lowered her sword and sighed.

"Dang it," Mercury muttered.

"Some teammate you are," Piper said to him, too low to be heard by most of the others. "You'd like her to beat on us."

"If you're going to start something, then finish it," Mercury said. "Don't expect me to bail you out. I know better than to piss off Weiss."

At least he did as of a few days ago.

"With all that," Cinder said, "I'm amazed you didn't already draw another Grimm."

She shouldn't have said that.

Perhaps the sheer amount of huntsmen had deterred it before, but the fighting amongst themselves must have been too tantalizing to the Grimm in the cave, which now came charging out.

It was not a Death Stalker, as they had expected (if there was one at all).

It was like a salamander crossed with a dragon. Nothing they recognized.

[Since that cave had water in it, I suppose a salamander makes sense.]

"What the h--- is that?" Claw cried.

The creature was oozing black goo, which was gross.

But it also had spines and talons, much more like the dragon Grimm.

"There were those frog-like Grimm that spat in people's eyes," Weiss recalled.

"I thought those were just Salem's hybrids," Mercury said.

"Who knows?" Emerald said. "Kill it?"

"Yes!" everyone said.

Cinder already was ready. Se had her bow--but then she hesitated. At this close range, was she likely to get a clear shot before it noticed her?

She was right to ask. The sala-dragon noticed her standing there, and its tail came swinging out, and since it was much longer than Cinder could have run even if she tried, she had to attempt to jump out of its way.

The tail was a lot wider than she could dodge easily, and she only cleared it from the waist up before it hit her into the rocks.

This hurt less than it stunned, because of Aura, but before the others could step in to help, the Grimm shot out its very long tongue, which was barbed, and nearly took their heads off.

They all had to jump out of the way.

"So is this one a mutant or regular?" Claw asked, rolling out of the way. 

"I'll just stop it." Piper held up his pipe.

The sala-dragon saw it and shot its tongue out.

It knocked the pipe right out of his hands and then retracted its tongue and...swallowed it.

"Hey!" Piper cried, offended. "You dirty lizard-frog! That was mine!"

"Thanks for telling him that. I'm sure it helped," Claw said, aiming her pike's gun feature towards the Grimm. "Go for the eyes."

She shot at one.

The sala-dragon hissed, and then...clear, lid-like things closed over its eyes. [Some birds and other aquatic creatures have built in eye goggles. Did you know that? Though I don't think salamanders do.]

"I'll mask us." Emerald held up her hand. "Just find some way to kill it."

"Mercury, you're up," Meridian said.

"All you people see me as is a pair of eyes now," Mercury complained. "Just cover yours."

His eyes flashed.

The Grimm was vaporized...well, mostly.

Part of it seemed to start to turn to stone, but Claw crushed it, and it dissipated too.

Nothing lingered that time.

"So only certain Grimm are...crystalizing," Weiss noted.

"Maybe there's no formula," Meridian said. "Just some of them are ticking bombs like that and others aren't. But it sure is a hack to kill them with the Silver Eyes. Makes us almost redundant."

"Except that he can't be everywhere at once," Weiss said. "I'd still like to know why they guard this place."

"Actually I think Cinder's nice little bedtime horror story might have explained that." Meridian leaned on his sword.

"Cinder, are you okay?" Royal seemed to be the only one who remembered she'd gotten hit.

Cinder was sitting up already. Other than being annoyed at being knocked out of the fight, she had no visible damage.

She just glared at him in response.

"She's fine," Mercury said.

"What do you mean, Mer?" Weiss asked.

"What she was saying about the Relic being here ages ago?" Meridian said. "Got me thinking, those things left magical energy behind, right? Aren't the Grimm more comfortable where magic is? The Relics may be gone, but this is a place they took over, and maybe the traces of it are still here, even now. They feel at home here, and they want us to stay out of it because they have few places left to hide. We should tell Glynda so she can get some Valeians out here to clean the place up from any traces. It'd be better if they did than we did, sine we're strangers."

"I think you're right. That has to be it," Weiss said. "I'm amazed I didn't think of that before."

"Then there are probably spots like this all over the kingdoms," Mercury said. "Wherever Ozpin had his little strongholds. The Grimm have scattered all around. They pick uninhabited areas too, but maybe we should look at the places they pick that weren't already uninhabited. We could drive them out of those too. The less they can hide, the faster we get rid of them all."

"Something to think about," Weiss said. "We didn't get much info for Winter about why they're becoming dust...but anything that helps is something... I wonder if the others are to Menagerie yet. Do you think they have any ancient Grimm sites?"

"Back when they were having those problems I talked about earlier, sure," Claw said, "but the island is too small to have ruins. They'd have been torn down and rebuilt over. There's desert all around the lush parts. Plenty of Grimm there."

[Though we see none at all while Blake and Sun are in Menagerie, which seems odd, considering the trouble that was brewing at the time.]

Royal offered Cinder a hand.

She stared at it. "I don't need help."

She put one foot forward under herself, which has was not a hard thing to do, but it brushed along her cloak and her gloves (which she always wore while using her bow, generally), and just where about two inches of her calf and knee weren't covered by boots, she suddenly had a sharp burning sensation.

Startled, she pulled her skirt back a little and brushed them with her glove, looking for any sign of a bug or something... That made it worse.

"What...?" She started to stand up, and the feeling got worse still when she tried to move, and she nearly fell over.

"Hey, are you okay?" Royal grabbed her by her arm and shoulder.

"Don't touch me!" Cinder said in a voice that sounded pretty harsh but was in reality afraid.

"Geez, didn't have to go that hard," Mercury muttered.

"Something's wrong." Emerald didn't think that was just Cinder's standoffish tone.

"Okay, sorry, I was just trying to help." Royal let go, and then suddenly he winced. "Oww...what...?" He looked at his hands.

Cinder peered at her gloves... Something was glistening on them.

"Cinder, what's wrong?" Emerald came running up.

"Stay back!" Cinder held up a hand. "Don't touch."

"Something is wrong," Weiss realized, also coming forward. "Was it the Grimm?"

"There's something on my clothes," Cinder said. 

The burning was getting worse. 

"Your leg!" Emerald suddenly looked down. "It's...blistering?"

"What's going on?" Royal was staring at his hands. "My hands are going red..."

"Wait, did that lizard thing secrete anything?" Weiss asked. "We saw some Grimm that did that before, though it's been a while. It burned like acid."

"I couldn't tell. It didn't hit my skin before, just my clothes," Cinder said.

"But it could have been on your clothes," Weiss said. "Do they feel damp?"

"I can't tell yet." Cinder frowned.

"Better not give it a chance to soak in if they are," Weiss said. "You need to take those off, but if you spread it around it's only going to get worse... Better let the medics do it. We need to get back to Argus right now!"

She pulled out her scroll. "Don't touch anything, especially your eyes. You could go blind if that's toxin."

[If you're curious, salamanders secrete toxin. Not fatal toxin usually but it can cause irritation. A Grimm one would be worse of course.]

"Can they wash it off?" Emerald asked.

"Yeah, try that," Meridian said. He pulled out some water. "Here, Royal, let's run this over your hands. Just don't touch anything."

"I'm not touching anything." Royal had his hands way out from his torso.

"We have first-aid supplies," Claw said. "If that would help."

"Do you have rubber gloves?" Meridian asked.

"No." Claw was looking in her pack. "Gauze... Maybe you could wipe it off?"

"No, that could drive it further in," Meridian said. "Rinsing it is smarter. We need to get Cinder's gloves off though--too easy to touch someone else with those on. And the cloak maybe too, if it has stuff on it. You might salvage it if we wash it, but carefully. I guess that Grimm had a few tricks up its nonexistent sleeves."

"Yes, we can't wait," Weiss was saying to Raven. "We don't know if it's lethal or not."

A moment later a red door opened next to Emerald.

"Okay, let's just go." Emerald sounded more nervous than Cinder herself.

* * *

Several minutes later the medics in Argus had rinsed the toxin off as well as they could, but some had already been absorbed into the skin.

They put some ointment on it that might slow it down.

"With Aura, you might fight it off in a few hours if it's not too potent," the doctor said to them. "If it's worse..." Well, he didn't finish that.

"Worse?" Raven had come with them.

"There's not a lot we can do with a Grimm that we've never heard of, ma'am." The doctor didn't actually seem that concerned.

"Well, think!" Raven said.

"We took some of the toxin off the contaminated clothing," one of the other medics, a nurse, said, more helpfully. "We're testing it...but that can take hours. It would help if that Mr. Arc was here. He might be able to help them work the toxin out before it gets to their nervous systems. That's where it would do the most damage."

"Pine might be able to just cure it, if it's Grimm," Raven mused. "I'll bring them here."

"If you want to go to all that trouble," the doctor muttered.

Raven paused in the doorway. "What did you just say?" she asked.

"Nothing," the doctor said.

Raven narrowed her eyes.

The nurse looked nervous.

"Just that we have to appreciate karma," the doctor said.

Raven's eyes went from him to Cinder, who had turned pale, either from pain or from realizing what he meant.

Royal looked angry. He wasn't in nearly as much pain--partially because he seemed to have a high Aura, and partially because he'd had the acid washed off him sooner than Cinder.

But before he could say anything, Raven sprang across the room and grabbed the doctor by his white lab collar.

"Get out!" she said in a dreadful voice. "I never want to see your sorry a-- in this office again."

"What?" The doctor looked completely shocked.

Raven threw him out of the room.

"You," she said to the nurse, who looked so terrified she was gripping her clipboard in a vice grip, "yet a doctor in here with actual ethics and inform the HR department that we need a replacement for that one."

"Ye-yes, ma'am," the nurse squeaked.

"I've been working here longer than you have!" the doctor angrily cried from the hallway.

Raven took one step that direction, and the doctor ran for it.

"Ugh..." Raven put a hand to her eyes. "Does it never end? I'm getting Arc and Pine."

She left the room to make the call.

The nurse pulled out a pager of some sort. "I'm--going to call a different physician," she said meekly, stepping into the hall.

"That was awesome," Royal said. "Horrible, of course, but awesome... I'm sorry he said that. I can't believe he did, actually. A doctor of all people."

Cinder was gripping the edge of the cot she was on, trying to ignore the burning that was still throbbing even with the ointment slowing it.

Her Aura kept flaring, trying to keep the toxin at bay.

"I'm...used to it by now," she said.

"I would have hit him if Raven hadn't beaten me to it." Royal seemed to feel bad he'd missed his chance.

"I don't need that." Cinder was cold. "From either of you. Though I suppose Branwen has to keep order. It was foolish of that idiot to say that where she could hear him."

"But not where I could, huh?" Royal said. "I didn't mean to make this worse, all right?"

"Why are you apologizing to me?" Cinder frowned. "You shouldn't have tried to help before. Now look at what it gets you."

"That thing could have hit any of us. It's just chance." Royal frowned. "I was just worried, all right?"

Cinder frowned to herself. There it was.

Of course her reaction, getting angry, was entirely unreasonable, and she knew it, but that was easier than being embarrassed for...other reasons.

"Oh, I know," she said cuttingly. "I'm 'fragile like glass'--that's what they all keep saying. But I'm not that weak that I can't handle myself with Grimm. That's the thing I'm fairly sure of."

"Like glass, huh?" Royal said. "Is that because your Semblance is glass?"

Cinder shrugged.

"I guess you are kind of transparent," Royal joked.

She glared.

"No, but that's good," Royal said. "But glass isn't always that breakable. There's plexiglass, like they put in airships. Just depends. I don't think they meant to be hurtful."

"Well, you act like I can't protect myself." Cinder frowned. 

Since she was sitting in the medical office because a Grimm had got in a lucky shot, this was kind of a stupid thing to say, but she didn't let that stop her.

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about." Royal wasn't in the mood to fight about it but figured he wasn't getting a choice, knowing Cinder. "I worry, but that's not the same thing."

"It--" Before Cinder could say anything else, Jaune and Oscar came hurrying in.

"Raven told us what happened," Oscar said quickly. "A new Grimm?"

Juane grabbed one of each of their hands. "It's been less than an hour, right? I might be able to remove the skin damage without there being a scar... With this kind of burn it's a little tricky."

"I can live with a scar, just no nerve damage," Royal said, cheerfully. 

"Maybe I can get a read on it..." Oscar had his staff ready and his Aura activated.

A few tense seconds.

"Okay...I believe I can remove the toxin from inside," he said. "The repair part, we can try, or Jaune might be able to do that, but if I take it out right now, I think you'll be fine internally. Might leave marks on the outside."

He held up his staff. "No time to waste. Toxin...leave."

It was hard to tell when the pain was that deep in, but it seemed to dissipate slowly and then become what was likely just the residue of the superficial damage.

"It could take an hour or so to heal the rest if I work on it steadily," Jaune said. "It's a little harder with this... I can stay... Although, we're arriving soon...so..." He hesitated.

"I'm sure I'll be fine now," Royal said. "Just fix her." He nodded at Cinder.

"Hey!" Cinder said.

"Are you getting mad at that?" Oscar thought that was weird. "But I'm sorry, Royal, I think trying to be unselfish here is a little stupid. We're not exactly sure what that thing was. Better to just heal the damage as fast as we can. If you try to move those muscles too much while they're weak, you might tear something."

"And you need your hands a lot," Jaune said. 

Raven was leaning in the doorway. "Maybe you should just take them to the ship with you," she said. "Then you can be ready to help the others once you arrive, but up till then you can work with them... I can't stand here for an hour waiting to send you back anyway. I have other missions to oversee. I'll bring them back once they're healed."

"If that's what you want," Jaune said. "I would prefer not to leave Pyrrha alone with the crew of kids for that long..."

"And Ruby was trying to corral a bunch more the last I saw her," Oscar said, sheepishly rubbing his head. "And so were the others..."

"Fine, just go." Raven opened the portal.

"Do I get a say in this?" Cinder asked.

"No," Raven said. "Do you feel like being weakened for the big fight?"

Cinder frowned, but of course her only real reason for objecting was that she wished to avoid more awkward moments...but even she knew that was crazy if you were injured.

They all went through.

* * *

On the ship, Yang was the one they were sent to.

"So, how are they--oh," she said. "It's that bad?"

"No, Raven just wants us to monitor them closely but still be available here," Jaune said. "We're close now, righT?"

"Menagerie is right there." Yang pointed to the wall outside the ship's hallway. "I've never actually been, so I'm looking forward to it... Though I've been warned they won't be stoked about humans actually setting foot off a boat. Apparently they only let the crew on the docks."

"Okay," Oscar said. "You two can just wait here... Jaune? You're not going to use all your Aura on them, right?"

"I think theirs will help mostly," Jaune said. "Once it's far enough to do the rest on its own, I'll stop. I know I need energy." He smirked wryly.

"I'd better go help the others get ready to dock then," Oscar said. "We have to start organizing stuff."

He left.

"Well, your team cannot go one day without someone getting injured, huh?" Yang had already heard about Mercury's head. "Those Grimm must be really out to get you. What a royal pain, am I right?"

"Ha ha..." Royal laughed politely.

"Good thing we have Jaune as a fallback." Yang was warming up to it. "Or we might be on a downward arc."

"Is this some new form of torture?" Cinder glared at her.

"Oh, stop being such a drag," Yang said mischievously. "I know I'm hilarious, right? It's too much."

"It's too much all right," Jaune said. "I'm not sure the waiting room humor is a big win, Yang."

"I guess when you don't have enough patients," Yang said. "But they say laughter is the best medicine."

"Then why do they say you have to take your medicine in an unpleasant context?" Royal said. "Seems like a tough pill to swallow."

Yang frowned. "Hey, you're stealing my lines."

"I'm not sure that theft would get me arrested," Royal said. "I'd have to steal something of value."

Jaune choked on a laugh.

"Oh, we've got a smarta--, huh?" Yang said. "Fine, I'll leave."

She left.

An awkward silence ensued.

"Well," Jaune said after a moment, "Royal, honestly I think you can handle this on your own. You have...a lot of Aura. Almost as much as I do. Maybe that's part of why you weren't so affected right off."

"Good to know," Royal said. "I always did have a lot of Aura. I just never use it that much for my Semblance. That's a part of it."

"I think you just have a lot." Jaune shook his head. "Even without using your Semblance. Might be partially why you almost never get hurt...and didn't you survive drowning for a pretty decent amount of time?"

"I guess so." Royal shrugged.

"Cinder, you'll just be another 40 minutes maybe, to be on the safe side," Jaune said.

Roya didn't leave the room. He focused on getting his own Aura to heal faster.

Cinder kept shooting him frowns and then looking at Jaune impatiently.

Jaune felt more uncomfortable than ever and wished Pyrrha was there to bail him out, but of course she was busy.

"What?" Royal finally got tired of the non-verbal communication.

"Nothing." Cinder refused to answer.

"Women, right?" Royal said to Jaune. "Never tell you what's wrong."

"Uh...well, Pyrrha usually tells me now," Jaune said. "She said she got tired of waiting for me to guess."

"You guys really don't help a guy out much," Royal said.

"I'm sure Cinder's just upset that she got hurt." Jaune unwisely tried to help by speaking for her. "That's all, right?"

"No," Cinder said. "This idiot," meaning Royal, "always tries to help when I don't need it, like I'm a child."

"Well, this woman has an odd way of looking at teamwork," Royal said.

Jaune got more uncomfortable. "Look, guys if you're going to fight--"

"Teamwork is not the same thing as underestimating someone," Cinder said.

"And when have I ever done that? I think I've relied on your skills multiple times," Royal argued. "What are you even talking about?"

Since he was right, Cinder had little by way of example.

"You think he wouldn't have hurt himself if he hadn't tried to help you?" Jaune said. "But anyone could have done that. He just got there first."

Cinder frowned at him.

Jaune decided to go back to focusing on healing.

"This wasn't such a problem last week," Royal said meaningfully.

Cinder, remembering the incident in the woods, flushed.

Jaune noticed and began to suspect that they were talking about something else.

"I'm just going to grab some other stuff," he said quickly. "I'll be right back."

"What? Wait--" Cinder didn't want to be alone with Royal.

But Jaune was gone already.

Some friend!

"I guess he knows this isn't really about the mission," Royal said. "Or about being injured. But since you're not telling me what it is about, I got nothing, and I'm not in the mood to argue over nothing for several minutes."

"I think you know what this is about." Cinder began to lose her cool. "You're just pretending not to."

Royal gave her a long look. "Oh," he said. "I think I have a guess... You want to do this now?"

"Do what?"

"Well, we do need to talk," Royal admitted. "But now is not the best time... Then again, you can't run."

"What?" Cinder backed up. Which still hurt.

"Relax...I didn't mean... Fine, poor choice of words." Royal rubbed his head. "Nevermind, this isn't the right time to bring it up."

[Oh brother.]