Epilogue

"So are we positive it is her?" asked Crow, who continued to pace around the office.

"She has been undergoing some… malnourishment. Whoever her captor was, they seem to have tried to hide her by dying her hair. However, there is no doubt in my mind that this is her." She had been unwilling to name her captor though, claiming it to be pointless. Ozpin didn't press her.

"Damn it. Do they even know what human hair dye does to feathers? And then the city… When I get my hands on them…" He stopped talking to pass his hands through his hair. "How did this shit even come to happen? For so long? And right under our noses?" Crow spat.

Ozpin could share the sentiment. They were now dealing with a half-starved, detoxing, probably suffering PTSD, and still-growing teenager on their hands. He tightened the grip on his cane as he chose the words carefully when he spoke next,

"I think we may be dealing with a …leakage of information."

"You gotta be kidding me. What about the Hiragi girl? They know she's here now. What if they go after her? And Rin? Maybe I should go back to Mistral and relocate-"

"Crow, if they knew about Ruri, they probably knew about the others too. I doubt they are in any danger this time. They wouldn't be so foolish to try the same thing." He also had a feeling that whatever they wanted from them back then, they already had it.

"Then what are we dealing with?" he asked "Ugh, we were able to keep a couple of disappearances under wraps, but this will leak out, and then the city... I know it's better than to announce it through official sources but … this is crazy."

Yes, indeed it was but it had been Ruri's request, one that would cause more troubles… but Ozpin had already caused her – to the four of them – enough sorrows.

...

"Reiji, can we talk?" requested Yuya, who had gone and waited for him to come out from the library.

"I suppose that's fine," he replied. 'Don't take it personally,' he told himself, 'that's just how he is.' Or that's what Yuzu said, anyway.

"We need to talk about yesterday," he continued. "I know you know about…you know." Ugh, he hated this.

"…Yes I do, and so do you and your friends, I assume," he said. "How long has this been going on?"

"I don't remember all of them, but the first I do remember is …when we were told Mom was MIA," he admitted.

"I see. Does anyone else know about this?" he asked.

"No, it is kinda like our secret… Do you think that Yaiba…" He couldn't finish the sentence.

"I mentioned nothing. With luck, he will think it was a onetime thing …If you don't want to, I'll say nothing either. I know secrets can weigh heavy."

"Heavy?" he asked.

"…In your conscience?" he questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh! Right …yeah they are." Well this has officially turned awkward.

"You know, you don't have to feel like that," he spoke now. This had to be the longest he had heard him talk.

"Uh?"

"Like you're losing them? Yuzu and Gongenzaka. It's not a competition, and even if it were, you would win by a landslide."

"Did…you just made a joke?" It was official, he had seen everything.

"Did I?" he stated a little…baffled? No that couldn't be. "If you wish to take it like that is fine, but I meant that they talk about you a lot …all the time. You don't need to worry. I apologize if I ever communicated that."

"…Thanks, I meant it," he said feeling his mouth tug up a little.

"You're welcome. Can you carry these to the dorm? I need to use the comms?" he asked.

"Yeah, sure," he said shrugging. "Calling home?" he asked.

"Yes, to my brother. I'll be back in half an hour," he said, disappearing behind the doors again.

So Yuya walked probably, earning some curious looks as he walked, trying to balance the books on his head, then on his forehead, and he was thinking about trying to see if he could do it with his arms.

'Wait, a brother?'

...

"We both suck at this, don't we?" she asked him, they had both run into each other in the library, time which they both took to fill the other on their end of the 'mission' – as well as the issue with Glynda – and when Masumi told her about the Yuya's Faunus double, he found himself telling her about the girl on the piers and her uncanny resemblance to Yuzu.

They were both at a loss for explanations.

After a long time, they had found a few books about doppelgangers, but they were all urban legends. They would need to talk about this sooner or later with all the others, but for now they needed some much needed time out.

"...Given the situation unfolded, yes that would be a correct assessment," he admitted. They had all been awfully quiet for the rest of the night and even now their exchanges were still clipped and forced. He should know, he was practically an expert on them.

"...I just feel so stupid, you know? I can't believe I let all that happen in front of my eyes, and let it slide," she complained. By this point, they had reached his classroom, but he knew the talk had yet to be over.

"I can relate. Sometimes warped things feel normal, because for you they are. Perspective can be hard to accept, but it is needed," he said, not really sure if he was managing to be remotely supportive.

"Talking from experience?" she asked.

"You could say that ...I noticed for a while about her, and I realized on some level that we were the source, but I was blinded by my pride. It was ...strange, wanting to be right about every little thing no matter what. It sounds ridiculous looking back." He had also not wanted to feel like an intruder. A part of him had felt it wasn't his place to say anything.

"Welcome to teenage stupidity. There will be loads of it for us in the future."

"...I suppose it was liberating too, not having to answer to anyone but myself. So I got carried away," he considered.

"Yeah, life without parents and chores is awesome, until it isn't anymore," she added. "Well, let's agree to try not to be idiots again, I guess." She turned her back on him then.

"Hey Reiji! Catch this!" he heard Masumi call out to him suddenly.

He barely caught the flying object before it hit him right on his glasses. It was a barrette; Yuzu's barrette.

"She dropped this last night. We don't have classes together until like Tuesday? Either way, will you give it to her?" she asked, nearing him at the exit of the classroom.

"Sure. So about your team…?" he attempted, pocketing the blue adornment. "Is it still together?"

"Yeah, we are. We talked some things out, and reached an agreement."

"That's good to hear. How is Sawatari's rib?"

"He's doing well, just another couple of days and it will be healed. If I knew he had that much Aura, I wouldn't have gone soft on him back at LDS."

"Oh, so that means you won't miss the tournament?"

"You would love that, wouldn't you? Less competition I guess, but you can keep dreaming. You'd better enter the tournament. It won't be the same if I don't get to kick your butt," she said, going on the other side, but she stopped at the last second.

"Hey, um you're still taking that Faunus course right, the one with Crow?" she asked. He nodded in answer. "Is it true that all Faunus can see in the dark?"

Before Reiji could answer though, there were loads of people emptying the classrooms and nearing the Amphitheatre.

"Hey didn't you guys get the email? There will be a conference with the Headmaster." Said Michio stopping next to them, truly both him and Masumi had been so concentrated that they missed it.

"About what exactly?" asked Masumi.

"Oh my, have you guys been sleeping under a rock all day long?"

...

"And now what? The cargo sailed without problems, but the police and maybe Ozpin is onto us now. And the girl is probably already with him," complained Torchwick to the hooded person in front of him.

"A minor setback. You don't need to worry about these details, just do what you are told. We hired you because we were told you were the best for the job."

"I am," he said, almost biting his tongue.

"Then prove it."

"Ugh fine. What about the girl then? Isn't she going to talk?" he asked.

"Yes, she will, she was a …messenger of sorts, if you will. It was just delivered early. After some minor adjustments, we will be ready to put things in motion."

"What message?" he questioned.

"If you turn on any kingdom's news stream, you'll find out for yourself."

Well, curiosity is crapshoot, isn't it? He thought, pulling out his scroll, and settled on the voice of the Atlas news reporter. News were boring, but at least she was hot.

It was a field report it seemed as she was in a helicopter overflying what on the distance appeared to be an abandoned settlement. But as the helicopter kept on lowering down, it became clear that it was not just a settlement: it was a city. A ghost city by the looks of it, because even from a distance, the lights were off, the streets looked empty and grey, and most important of all, the support CCT tower was smashed.

"This is Melissa Claire corresponding reporting in live from Vacuo, with the coverage of the most choking news in years, maybe decades! Maybe it doesn't look like it, but I'm currently standing in the middle of what used to be one the oldest Faunus exclusive settlement on Vacuo: The Yollotl city, most commonly referred as Heartland.

"For those who may be hearing that name for the first time, thiswas oneof the last thriving communities composed entirely of Faunus. Legend says that it was founded even before the Kingdoms themselves. Others say that it only existed after the end of the Great War. Sources are conflictive due to the reclusive nature of their inhabitants,especially after their veto on almost if not all human people to set foot into the city…"

This was getting boring, so he skipped to the part that seemed the most commented on the site.

"… One look at the deserted city and you could probably think that this city has been deserted for decades,maybe even more. There are no signs of life,and minus the CCT support tower, there are no obvious signs of destruction or death, but this is a live feed shared by one explorer from less than five years ago."

A ten second and slanted video feed of the supposed same settlement, this time colorful and populated, was seen until it was apparently shut down by an officer shouting, 'No filming please.'

"The source of this video has been kept anonymous for safety, but we can assure you that the legitimacy of the video has been proved by trusted experts. Now the question remains: What happened to this city? Where did the people go? Everything seems topoint toa Grimm attack, right in the heart of one of humanity's safe heavens and experts agree, but there are some inconsistencies. Stay tuned for more after…"

He changed the feed for the more familiar voice of Lisa Lavender on the Vale news report.

"…Overthe nextfewdays,we will continue to report about the 'Disappearance of Heartland' as it has already been dubbed by the internetcommunity. However,we advise people to remember that the important part here is not the mystery. This is not a matter of race either. This is a time to demand for answers and show solidarityforour Faunus folk. Unfortunately,there has been news of new Faunus uprising all around Remnant. Stay tuned information as it comes in...."

They were all the same, even online. Every forum, chat and blog was discussing the subject. Some in solidarity, others were just in for the gossip and the morbidity. Others were amusingly misinformed as he passed a video of self-proclaimed survivor, and that was just the first page.

"Are you…really behind this? How…?" A concert crowd was one thing, but how did one manage to spirit away an entire city's population and without a trace? Without anyone noticing?

The hooded figure was practically radiating pride at his perplexity.

"You will receive your orders in the next few weeks. Don't fail us again, Torchwick," said the person, ignoring his question. Roman could hear the smile in their voice. "…The deposit was made already, so rejoice and spend it however you like. Oh, and we added a little bonus for the trouble and as a thank you for these…" he said, putting extreme care into safeguarding the piece of his clothes still with some blood on it, and the ridiculous barrette of that girl, with still some strands of hair in its clip.

...

"…there has been news ofanew Faunus uprising all around Remnant. Stay tuned for moreinformation as it comes in."

Silence reigned over the Amphitheatre as the numerous news reports from all the kingdoms and known settlements sunk down in their heads. At least half of the people in the room already knew about them. It was all that was talked about, both on TV and online. Others seemed to have been the oblivious type, who only got to hear news if they were Remnant-wide important.

As such was the case of the Disappearance of Heartland.

"… I know all of you must be filled with questions," Glynda spoke once the feed was over. "However, as all available news reports have said, there are no clues and no perpetrator with the motive, lest of all the means for such a wide-scale …event." And just like that, the murmurs filled the room.

"Isn't this a crime? …A genocide?"

"Don't be stupid, didn't you hear Melissa? There were no bodies left. It must have been a Grimm attack."

"In the heart of the Vacuo Kingdom? How could no one notice then? For years?"

"Maybe they were hiding it? You know, trying to keep people from panicking?"

"Then why now? And with the Festival right around the corner?"

"If the government can't explain everything, maybe even they didn't know."

"Well, Melissa did say that the city was in a voluntary semi-isolation state."

"Please, where could they have gotten clean water and food in the middle of nowhere? Isolation is one thing, but self-sufficient? Not even Atlas has achieved such state."

"They were Faunus, right? My parents say they can live in a more wild-like environment than us."

The banter continued for several minutes until faint thumps from a cane were heard and everyone went quiet as Headmaster Ozpin neared the podium.

"If I may have your attention," instructed the Headmaster. "From this day on, you are going to hear a lot of theories, assumptions and talk about Heartland and as such… status about Faunus' Civil Rights." He allowed them a full minute to take on the implication, but before more discussion exploded again, he continued. "And make no mistake, such discourse cannot – and should not - be separated from what happened in Vacuo. If anything, I will ask you one thing: rather than take sides, pay close attention to what you hear about this event, for even the most inane opinions from the most inane sources will serve as a reflection of the current standing of the Faunus population in Remnant."

More silence ensued and the Headmaster retired from the mic, and this time Professor Crow was the one to speak up.

"As a show of …solidarity and respect for Vacuo and the disappeared people from Heartland, I'd like to announce that the Vytal Festival will be delayed for six months in order to allow both attention and resources to be used on the case. I understand some of you will be disappointed, but let us remember the true meaning of the Festival on which it was founded: Unity and Peace. How could we possibly honor that when we do not take the time to reflect when such principles are challenged?" The question was met with silence and faint murmurs.

Lastly, it was Professor Glynda who took the mic once again.

"I expect you to take into consideration the suggestion of your headmaster and professor. In order for you be allowed to take all of it in, classes are canceled for the rest of the day," she announced, adjusting her glasses.

"That will be all. You are all dismissed."

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TO BE CONTINUED

Let's all pretend that there were some really cool credit sequence and with music okies?

And that is the conclusion of this Volume, I hope you guys enjoyed it as much as I suffered writing it.

Don't worry I already have some extra stories meant to be set between the Volumes with a bonus of a backstory, and I already have the outline for the first half of the Vol 2.