Weiss and Winter saved them some time by using glyphs to give people a ride for a few miles, before their Auras gave out.
Jaune offered to boost them, more specifically Weiss; Winter could have used magic to boost hers.
But Weiss objected, saying they needed that for a real emergency.
Raven, who used the map to check their progress from an aerial view, announced that they might save themselves half a day by using the glyphs.
"If we don't speed this up, it'll take us half a month to cross this," she said.
And no one wanted to be in the Grimm land for that long--they didn't see it yet, but even how empty this area was was still freaking them out.
Little, from the hood, said that she didn't like it. It didn't smell right.
Hazel was looking for signs of where exactly Salem's castle was.
He said it looked different from the air, but it was in a radius of a certain circle of land...but it was miles wide.
"We might have to split up when we get closer," Shine mused. "Look around."
"We should probably stop to eat," Jaune spoke up.
It had been hours since their last meal.
Well, without much cover, all they could really do was pick a curve of the land and settle into it.
Different people stood watch on all directions, like sentinels.
Wally, in an effort to keep the mood light, asked the kids what superpower they would have if they didn't have their Semblances.
"I think I'd want to fly," Ruby said.
"That's too similar to your Semblance," Weiss argued. "Why not pick something totally different to round it out? Though, I think this game is stupid."
"Well, you don't have a better idea," Ruby huffed.
"I think I'd want the power to remember everything I need to remember," Weiss said. "It would make studying so much easier."
"Ew, do you miss that?" Yang said. "The only good thing about saving the world is there's no homework."
"Speak for yourself." Oscar had a book out.
"Hmm, that's an idea," Weiss said. "I should start reading that list."
"You are unbelievable," Yang said.
Nora snorted. "I'm with her on this one."
"What's wrong with improving your mind?" Ren asked.
"I don't think stuffing words into it does that," Nora said.
"She's not wrong," Shine agreed. "It needs to be the right words. Excuse me." She walked away.
"Funny, I thought she'd be more into this," Wally said.
Shine would have been, but she wanted to use the chance to ask Winter what was wrong.
Winter didn't really want to tell her, but Shine was adept at worming things out of people, and she cracked her after only a few minutes.
And Winter was so angry about the whole thing it wasn't as hard as usual.
"I just... He...and..." She couldn't make full sentences.
Shine was elated at first to hear there'd been any development--and then disappointed.
Winter suspected her feelings were not unbiased and got annoyed.
"Well, say something," she said tersely.
[Say Something--A Great Big World, Christina Aguilera--this song kind of fits, as more than a joke.]
"This is unfortunate," Shine replied thoughtfully.
And... triggered.
"Do not use that word!" Winter snapped. "It's deliberate. Very deliberate."
"Okay, geez." Shine held up her hands. "Fine. I must admit, it is kind of awkward. Both of you are awkward. I really never thought he'd come clean."
"Yes, well--" Winter paused. "Did you know?"
"Did I know? Woman, I've known this since I got here," Shine scoffed. "But especially recently. It's not that hard to pick up on."
"Huh... and you said nothing?" Winter was surprised Shine would have kept that to herself--she was so vocal about other matters.
"Not to you, that often," Shine said. "I think it went over your head when I did. I knew you would get mad at me."
She was right about that.
"I feel even more like a fool now," Winter said. "I don't even know what I wanted to hear when I asked for an explanation, but this was much worse than I imagined."
She paced. "It's humiliating."
"Perhaps he didn't mean it a as much as he thought," Shine mused. "He must have been embarrassed. People say stupid things when they're embarrassed."
"I don't think that part was what he was embarrassed over, that's the problem," Winter said. "I can't explain why it's bothering me so much..." she sighed. "But it's infuriating all the same. I mean, I knew what would come of this mess. Vara should have minded her own business. I wouldn't have thought about it then."
Shine raised her eyebrow.
"Not as much..." Winter amended. "I thought everyone was joking about it."
"They were, but it was also true." Shine wasn't helping.
"Do you have anything substantial to add to this?" Winter snapped at her.
"Hey, chill," Shine said. "I'm not the one who caused this problem, all right? If it were up to me, it would be resolved. No need to get mad at me."
Winter sighed. "I apologize... Well, you see this is foolish. We have bigger matters to consider than personal things like this."
"I don't know about that. This land seems to bring it out in us." Shine glanced around. "Personal issues are the turning points of all the large ones."
"I don't want them to be. That's dangerous."
"I'm afraid that things like love and pain are dangerous," Shine said simply. "And they go together. I understand that you're hurt by what he said."
"Hurt isn't the right word," Winter said. It was the right word, however. "It's..."
"Infuriating?" Shine used her own word. "But isn't anger caused by pain?"
"Sometimes it's just caused by stupidity."
"What is it to you? It's his problem. He tried to tell you that," Shine said. "If you hadn't put your oar in, it could have stayed that way."
Well, since that was true, Winter didn't know what to tell her.
"Or did you have to know?" Shine asked.
"It matters to me to know if I'm involved in something," Winter said. "But in this particular area... I can't pretend I understand anything about it. I never asked for this."
"That does have a way of working out," Shine mused.
"You know--" Winter finally glanced at her. "--I actually expected you to have more words of wisdom about this matter. You do for everything else."
"Do I look like an expert on this to you?" Shine shrugged. "It was work to get me to agree to date Wally. I'm still figuring that out."
"Odd, you seem so... in sync," Winter said.
"Good, at least it seems that way," Shine said. "There's always more under the surface, you know. And yes, I love him, but that doesn't mean I always understand him 100%, and even when I understand, I can't always comply so easily with what he wants. We're two different people--we're going to clash. We've tripped over each other enough even on this mission, and at home it happens all the time. Over small things too. I mean, it's only been a few months... and honestly it's been hard being busy all the time working on this to still be in sync. On the other hand, I think I've seen another side of him that I didn't before. I wonder if this is always how it will be." She glanced upward. "If we go on more missions after this... Certainly a good way to get to know someone."
Winter actually could relate.
"I don't know that I really want that kind of..." she said slowly. "Still, I'd have liked to think it was my choice, not just..."
"Be decided before it even got that far?" Shine said.
That about summed it up.
"Winter, it's not about you."
"You know, that's what he said," Winter said, "but in some measure, it is. I don't want to compete with someone's issues for their attention. I don't know if I want that attention, period. But certainly not like that if I ever did."
"But you didn't say a hard no," Shine said. "Doesn't that already answer your question? Why else are you so upset?"
"I..." Winter turned red. "I think the idea just offended me."
"We both know that's a lie." Shine wasn't buying it. "But you didn't do anything wrong, you know. And there is nothing you can do to change his mind if it's really made up. That's not about your worth, though. We all have our obstacles to pursuing happiness and risking things on love, and all of us have to want to overcome them. I've talked to you about how important it is, but remember, I also said that it is because it's important that it's misused and discarded. It's easier to chase something that glitters on the surface than to refine gold enough to see its beauty. Shakespeare was right about that."
["All that glitters is not gold" is from The Merchant of Venice.]
"Well, I don't want to refine anything," Winter said. "But what was the point of bringing it up to only to immediately say no? My actions are not the ones that make no sense."
Shine looked sad. "Ah, Qrow," she sighed ruefully. "What will it take? Poor, foolish man."
Winter was aware that that echoed some of her own sentiments under her anger.
Softening a bit, she began to reflect that Shine might have more insight than her in this area, though.
"I just don't understand why anyone is so determined to be miserable," she spoke in a less angry voice.
"I think he hardly knows how to explain it. But don't you understand in a way? Who would better than you, the feeling of giving up on something because you think it'll never happen? Loss can do it or... just the cold lack of it even being there. We do adapt to our environment."
Winter was silent.
"Look, what you said," Shine said thoughtfully, "it might not have been wrong, but it does overlook one thing. You have your own insecurities, and they are probably getting in the way of your judgment. You said you're not sure what you want. Why is that? Is it fear? Is it pride? Are you really disinclined, or are you just hesitant to risk anything on something you don't understand that well?"
"Shine, as you say, I can't change his mind," Winter said. "And would I even want to? I don't have time for this kind of thing."
"Winter, you have time for everything else you do out of love for family, country, freedom, or whatever you call it," Shine said. "This is no different. Don't use that as an excuse. I won't tell you what you should want, but don't use a pathetic excuse to back out of making a decision. If this matters, then fight for it. that's all there is to it. Some people are worth fighting for."
"Can't fight a battle for something that doesn't want to be won to begin with," Winter said.
"That is true," Shine said. "But I wouldn't rule it out just yet... There's plenty of time for Qrow to get his head on straight. Would you be forgiving if he did?"
"I'd have to think about that." Winter wasn't going to just decide on a whim.
"That's fair," Shine shrugged. "Still, even without that aspect of it, you guys have gotten close. And perhaps that's also why Qrow didn't want to give it up. He might realize that he's come to rely on you in a way, but he doesn't want to rely on anyone because it might hurt them. He's not wrong, either."
"Excuse me?" Winter said.
"I think the Semblance thing is stupid also," Shine said. "But behind it, Winter, you need to realize that there's a very real fear. The Semblance is just the face of it. The real fear is that being close to someone means you will hurt them. And because that is true, that fear is superficially confirmed by whatever outward things he attributes to his Semblance. But you see, that is a fact of life. That's why Qrow can't be talked out of it--life itself would prove him right. Love and pain do go together, like I said. But so do all things that are worth doing. And that pain doesn't outweigh the enjoyment or rewards of something. Singeing yourself while cooking doesn't mean that food isn't important, after all. The thing must be accepted. However, pain doesn't make cooking bad. That same flame that can burn you can also save you from freezing. It's all about learning how to handle it. That's the position Qrow has never taken. I think the last few months have been difficult for him--nowhere to run, nowhere to hide, really, from the fact that people get hurt because of him. But I think he stuck it out because he does care."
Winter was thinking something that she didn't want to say, but Shine read it in her face.
"With you it's a bit more complicated," she said. "I know you're not sure what you feel, but speaking from experience, at least on my end, with this kind of relationship, you are asking someone to commit their entire life to you in a way. Not that everything about you will revolve around them, but they will be there through it all. Even playing with that idea is terrifying to someone who thinks they only bring hurt to people. That's why it's so frightening."
Winter considered.
"All right," she said slowly. "That makes sense. And I'd almost understand it. I would feel the same way. That's why I... I don't know about it. Still, if I ever was to consider changing my mind, I'd want to think it was over something worth the risk."
"Then ask yourself if things have been better for you with Qrow around, overall. And if you'd like to give that up. The response you feel to that might tell you more than asking what you want. The reality is, we're in a very stressful situation, and our positive emotions are not going to be running high. I'm fond of Wally, but you know, when I realize I really need him is when I'm worried that he won't be there. And there's no shame in it as long as you're fair about it. Don't feel like it's selfish to think that way. If both people are in on it, it's only natural... and if they both aren't, someone has to give. That's all there is to it."
"Well, there you have it," Winter said, after a moment of thinking again. "He already decided he doesn't need it. These feelings are just a nuisance to him."
"Well, he is an idiot." Shine forgot her tact. "But he is deluding himself. And perhaps he'll snap out of it. What would you do if that happened?"
"Still won't answer that," Winter said.
"Okay." Shine shrugged. "Fair. All I can tell you then is not to let fear be the reason. Only if it's truly wiser to decline. I see no reason to think so, but I'm not you."
"Wait a moment," Winter said. "So far you haven't actually given your evaluation... Your support?"
"Of romance? It's not a bad word, you know." Shine rolled her eyes. "Winter, I was doing this job alone for years. I thought I was good at it alone. I didn't expect to get a partner, and I didn't expect it to be my boyfriend. But let me tell you something that I think may answer you very succinctly: I've had one for, like, 2 and a half months and I really can't believe I ever did this alone."
Winter raised an eyebrow.
"We are just not wired for it," Shine said. "Once you have help, you don't want to be alone again. Once you get bigger, you can't really get small again. Consider, would you want to lose your family and friends that you've gained recently?"
"No," Winter said, with an odd look like it hadn't dawned on her before now.
"It would be the same here," Shine said. "And you go well together, in my opinion. Your teamwork has actually been immensely helpful to us. It would be even better if you'd stop being so shy, but still. You know... you're not the first person I've had this conversation with. A lot of people are afraid of love. I guess we've all been hurt. I don't feel like I'm the expert on being bold about it. But I guess... I faced my fears. Maybe that counts for more than I thought."
"Why would you have reason to be afraid?" Winter wondered.
"Because, Winter, I've been mistreated also," Shine said. "And I've had misconceptions. But mostly, it was a lot to risk. And Wally and I are from different worlds. I had no idea how this was going to work for us... but you know what? I think I like it in a way, because I think he's worth not losing. And when someone is worth it, you find a way. I was foolish not to see it before, but no more foolish than most people. Humans are blind. So you know, if you lose that blindness, I would cherish that. Even if it doesn't work out, there's still hope."
Winter smiled faintly but looked sad.
"Somehow, when you say it, it sounds easy," she said. "I've always been strong... in my way. And yet in these matters, I feel inadequate. Still, when you talk, I feel a little more as if I could be different. I never thought about wanting to be that often before. I don't know what world you live in, sometimes, Shine."
"What you're describing is something I feel also," Shine said. "I don't think it's me... I think it's the Love speaking through me. I get the sense of looking at something that I want to reach and I know I haven't yet, but even looking at it gives me more strength than when I couldn't see it. There might be something in the idea that even to look at something is to have part of it already. I think if you ask Weiss, she'd say you have the same effect on her when it comes to pursuing freedom. You may not have it entirely yet, but your drive to get it helps her see it also. That's the thing about inspiration."
"You being modest always manages to sound like bragging," Winter said. "Even if it's unintentional."
"Just thinking out loud," Shine said. "I suppose I believe in what I'm saying so much I forget that it makes me sound cocky."
"At least someone does." Winter glanced behind them. "All this is a pleasant distraction from the real danger."
"It's not a distraction, it's just real life happening even during a crisis. Honestly, I'm glad of it. It'd be tempting to get too caught up in the Grimm-slaying part of this otherwise. That's kind of shallow."
[Shots fired at RWBY's earlier character motivations, I guess.]
"That's all many huntsmen aspire to do," Winter said.
"And you wonder that the world is the way it is," Shine said savagely.
[How Can We See That Far?--Amy Grant]
* * *
Raven asked Qrow how it had gone--and he told her to leave him alone.
That badly, huh?
Raven didn't tell him about her conversation with Yang--the whole thing was too weird for her.
Yang herself felt weird about it--but oddly better than she had in a long time...except for the dread of the Grimm that would be looking for them later. Still, that seemed small compared to the anger of before.
And since she was on a roll of making apologies, she thought she could try to patch things up with Neptune.
But he actually beat her to the punch.
"About yesterday," he said slowly, "I overreacted. You were trying to help... so... uh... that wasn't cool."
Yang was caught off guard.
"Oh, well...it's..." she sputtered, then she got a grip. "Funny, I was going to say I might have overdone it a little. But yeah, you pretty much nailed it."
Awkward pause.
"So why did you go in the water later?" Yang asked.
"I think Meridian's Semblance is a lot more powerful than I realized," Neptune said. "I can't explain it any other way, unless I just lost my mind."
"Nothing bad happened," Yang noted.
"No..." Neptune mumbled.
"You really shouldn't let Mercury pick on you," Yang said more severely. "He's a moron."
"Not everything is worth fighting over," Neptune said. "And besides, I'm used to it."
"Uh huh. That could be the main reason he does it." Yang frowned.
"Can we not argue about this? I appreciate it, but I'm fine."
Yang frowned. "Bulls---."
"What?" Neptune was now taken aback.
"I said that was bulls---," Yang repeated. "Anyway, it's not okay to make fun of people's fears like that. You shouldn't let them." Crossing her arms.
Neptune had no retort for that.
She was kind of right.
"It'd be better to just not be afraid..." he muttered finally. "But hey, not everyone is like you."
"I've been afraid plenty of times." Yang shrugged. "But I wouldn't let someone push me around over it. Just ask them if they've conquered all their d--- fears. Like him." She glanced at Mercury. "He thinks it's so much tougher to just not care about anything. It's way tougher to care. It takes more nerve to stand up for other people than to not give a d---. You don't want me to fight for you? Fine. It's not my problem anyway. But you should."
She walked away in a huff.
Neptune caught Sun giving him a knowing look and frowned. "Shut up."
"I didn't say anything," Sun said.
"You were gonna," Neptune said.
Sun shrugged.
[You know you're bros when he can tell you to shut up before you even said it.]
* * *
Towards the end of that second day, which again came earlier than they expected, the landscape shifted slightly.
They veered a little to the east, according to Raven, and it had turned rocky.
"Did you know the channel we crossed was called The Cauldron?" Shine was looking at the map. "And the sea is The Sea of Souls. Fitting, since that's what Anima means."
"I didn't know that," Jaune said.
"It's Latin," Shine said. "Where we get the word 'animated' from. Don't you ever wonder why your language is a mish mash of so many different odd words?"
"Not really," Jaune said. "It's just how it is."
"There's no French or Latin or Greek here," Shine mused. "I suspect that the first inhabitants of this world must have been from a world like mine or yours--" This to Wally. "No other explanation for how the language is so similar. This world seems newer, in a way. Alicia too, she was English, it seemed like. It must be why we were sent here. The connection would be stronger."
"Is that a thing?" Wally asked.
"Not for everyone," Shine mused. "But I do think it's easier for DJs to adjust when the world is somewhat like theirs."
[That explains the MHA adventure also, and why the Ninja one only followed getting to know Japanese culture better. Sorry, don't mind me constructing my lore over here.]
"How would you say Sea of Souls in Latin?" Wally asked Shine, not because he really wanted to know Latin but to see if she knew.
"Mare Animarum," Shine replied.
"Mare was my grandad's name," Neptune said.
"Fitting, since your last name means 'king'," Shine said.
"It does?" Neptune said.
"So king of the seas?" Wally said. "Just like.. Oh, that's funny."
"Very good," Shine approved.
"I love it when you make me feel smarter," Wally said.
Shine took that as a great compliment.
Oscar was looking at the scenery when Ozpin suddenly made some movement inside him.
"What is it?" Oscar asked.
"We've veered too far east," Ozpin said. "We should change course."
Oscar squinted at the hills. "Something about that, though, it looks different."
Raven turned into a bird and circled overhead.
"Maybe you should take turns, huh?" Vara said to Qrow.
"Eh, Raven likes scouting better," Qrow said, just like any brother who wanted to get out of something.
"Maybe I should take a look also," Vara mused.
Suddenly, Raven, who had gone east to check their course, gave a loud squawking sound and resuming human form in mid air.
Then she dropped out of the air.
Oscar felt a terrible clenching feeling in his chest, and he went pale and fell over.
Wally chased after Raven before anyone else could even think to move.
They would have followed him, but Vara sudden screamed, and her eyes flashed light.
"What is that?" she said, in a very strange voice. "It feels almost like...a pull..."
Cinder hissed as her eyes flashed also.
Then, like she was in a trance, she suddenly flew east.
"I know it's Cinder," Nora said, "but I'm actually kind of spooked. Maybe we should go after her."
"Raven is over there anyway," Weiss said. "Wait, where's Winter?"
Winter had been farther back, lost in thought and watching the Grimm who were still tailing them.
No one had noticed her stop walking.
She looked up, and words rang in her mind.
"You will reincarnate, but in such a way..."
This had happened once before.
Winter knew that voice. It was the god of light.
The landscape seemed to shift almost, like in a vision, and she saw trees that weren't actually there growing up around the rocks.
Without stopping to question it, Winter flew that direction at high speed, not even noticing when she hit some bushes along the way.
The Grimm who were following them had seemed to clear off and go the other direction, to the west.
Vara was on her knees, but she was saying in a ghost of a voice, "I hear something... I think it's... the god."
Theo had her shoulder. "Which god?" he said.
Vara just pointing to where Raven and Cinder had gone.
"Winter?" Weiss had gone back but didn't see her. "Winter?"
"Oscar?" Ruby had her hand on his shoulder.
"We must leave here," Ozpin's voice answered instead of Oscar's. "I feel as if he can see us."
Ruby was seriously creeped out by that.
"What's going on with them?" Emerald asked.
Shine ran the direction the others had gone, and the team reluctantly followed her.
Wally, much faster, had still almost not found Raven in time to help, since he couldn't see her well over the rocks, but he got to her in time to sort of spare part of her fall.
But he also tripped, and they sprawled into a rocky passage and hit what seemed almost like steps.
Wally sat up, not much hurt.
Raven, eyes gleaming red, looked up.
"What is this place?" she said.
Cinder suddenly flew past them and landed on the steps.
Her left arm nub suddenly seemed to smoke, and she winced. "Ah..."
Winter appeared behind them.
"Why do I know this place?" she asked in an odd voice.
"Winter?" Wally called. "Winter? Snap out of it."
Winter didn't seem to hear him. She walked inside.
Raven got up slowly and followed her.
"Ladies?" Wally said, nervously. "Ladies? You're kinda creeping me out..."
No one answered him.
"They must not go in there." Ozpin suddenly jumped up, throwing Ruby off rather rudely. "If he was to know..."
He took off running much faster than you'd think Oscar would be able to run.
Ruby chased after, and the others all were coming.
Qrow flew overhead and landed next to Wally.
He felt a little strange also, but it was much less strong in him than the Maidens.
"Raven?" he called.
Raven glanced at him like she heard him, but she didn't really answer.
The steps led to a cracked stone platform and what appeared to be a shriveled up, petrified tree.
There was no water in sight, but team RWBY all gasped anyway.
"This place!" Blake said.
"This is where--" Yang sputtered.
"The god of light's tree... and the pool," Weiss sputtered.
"What?" Sun said.
"But how?" Nora asked.
"How is this possible? I thought it was gone," Ren said.
"Technically we never saw it destroyed... entirely," Qrow said in a low voice. "But it must have been changed... Why is it here? Still... I thought that Salem wandered the world from the other god's place."
"No," Weiss said. "It never said she was near the god's house when she was left... or if she was, she wandered the world for years, didn't she? She could have just walked back. That vision never said they were that far away from each other."
"I don't see where else they could have been anyway," Shine said. "How else do you account for this place not being found on any of the other continents?"
[Hard to argue with that when there's not another continent that big in Remnant, unless you want to say it's where Atlas was, but there's never any mention of the climate of the world changing after the gods leave, so that's pure speculation.]
"This must be why some of the continent is still alive," Pyrrha said in a hushed tone. "But so much more of it is barren...why?"
"The pool of life is gone." Shine pointed. "The pool of death is not. It's easy to see which would take over. It's probably spreading, eating away into the land until the dark is more prevalent. And I'm sure Salem has helped push it as far back as she could. Of course that woman would live in the land of the gods on purpose--she is so impudent. Then again, tearing down the shrines of false gods is what we must do. Perhaps we should thank her for it."
"I assure you, she did not do this for good reason," Ozpin said in a hollow voice. "Girls, come out of there. The magic in this place is not fully gone. I can feel it."
"How do I know this?" Cinder ignored him. "It feels familiar somehow."
"It's because it's familiar to me," Ozpin said. "Though I never remember really being here. But the god's presence is still felt... This is the only place in the world where one would sense him."
"Yes." Shine didn't look happy. "Ladies, come. This won't make things better for us. I think we'd be safer in the dark lands than here."
"Quiet," Cinder said. "Something about this land is calling me."
"Calling you to be more enchanted perhaps," Shine said. "Wally, we might have to pry them away."
"Why are you not acting like them?" Ruby asked Ozpin.
"I believe they are acting like that because they are remembering this the way I do," Ozpin said. "To them it must seem more like a vision... It's not that it's a good one, but... there're no Grimm here, I just noted. Salem must not come here... Come to think of it, this would be the place to hide those Relics."
"You'll only increase their pull if you do that," Shine warned. "They're sensing their master is near."
"Well, as long as the Grimm don't get them," Ozpin said.
He reached for the Crown that was being carried by Blake at the time.
"Hey." She stepped back. "Hands off!"
"Miss Belladonna, please, be reasonable," Ozpin said.
Weiss held out her sword. "Stop it, Ozpin. This place isn't right. Winter, come on."
Winter blinked and glanced at her.
"This isn't real," she seemed to realize finally. "But it's a powerful memory."
She sounded a little shaken up.
Cinder didn't budge.
"Come on, Fall," Raven said, a little more alert now. "I don't like this place. I don't feel like myself here."
"Speak for yourselves," Cinder said.
"I don't like it," Vara muttered. She was standing behind Theo, watching.
Raven suddenly took Cinder by her one arm and yanked her to the threshold again.
Before they crossed it, both of them heard words in their heads.
"Where you seek comfort, you will only find pain."
"That was a warning about Salem." Ozpin apparently heard also. "A warning not to attempt this mad plan. We must go at once. Before it's too late."
"That's what he wants you to think," Shine said in an even tone, like she was trying not to spook him. "But it's not the truth. And we are not seeking comfort in Salem. That is not the point of this."
"Leave me alone." Cinder yanked away from Raven and held up her hand, fire blazing into it.
"You really think you can fight me down an arm?" Raven put a hand on her sword.
Shine pursed her lips.
"We're not doing this right now," she said. "I hope this works."
She jammed her sword into the steps of the threshold.