Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"Alright! These uniforms are not half bad. How did they manage to nail all of our measurements anyway? These feel custom-made in a convenient and creepy kind of way. Well, the sun's still out and I'm not feeling the least bit tired, so who's up for a little school exploration? Yeah, sure Ruby, we can go check out the... hey, Blake, where are you going? Come on, Weiss is already going to sleep in, so if you back out then it's just going to be me and my sis, where's the excitement in that? Hey, Ow! You didn't have to take that personally you little...! You sure? Ok, alright. See you later."
xx
The afternoon glow ignited the rich foliage of the school grounds a bright orange that made Blake feel... nauseous. She had learned a long time ago that there were some burdens her mind could never completely shake off regardless of how hard she might try. Yet, the flashes and silhouettes dancing in her psyche and just outside her eyes' reach had been particularly unforgiving that day. The Faunus thought herself 'mature' enough to conceal and control her emotions, but her head had been hurting ever since she had come across and saved that reckless girl. While fighting the Nevermore, she had heard voices that were not there; when watching a Faunus being bullied, she sensed impulses surging through her that she hadn't felt in a long time. But above all, the moment she realized one of her teammates' was a Schnee...
Feeling overwhelmed, Blake needed time to be alone.
But why did she have to be alone? Why did she have to run away again? Wasn't the whole point of her going to Beacon to interact with humans and discover their true nature? Despite everything she had been through and experienced, she couldn't even muster a single day before needing to isolate herself?
"No home to return to."
Blake clutched her teeth. She needed to focus. The reason she had decided to go out on her own was because headmaster Ozpin had assigned a task to her team. If she couldn't fulfill that task, she could lose her only shot at achieving her goal. She had wanted to be alone so that she could be able to think in peace. Once the situation had been dealt with, she could go back to-
"What are you doing?"
"?!?!"
Though not making any noise, Blake visibly flinched and had to exert herself to prevent her cat ears from springing upwards and outside the hair buns that concealed them. She remembered how other White Fang members would joke about her being 'jumpy'; some of them enjoyed trying to pull pranks on her to see if they could get a reaction. Thankfully, Ilia had put an end to that before it got out of control.
Turning around, Blake was surprised to be met by Oscar. She was particularly startled considering she had been standing on the roof of a small building located in the gardens, and Oscar had somehow made his way to her without letting his presence be known at any point. Wondering whether he had been sent to look for her after someone had caught her dashing around, Blake asked, a bit apprehensively:
