Summer Rose did foolish things sometimes. Following the orange-haired boy would be one of them.
Sure, all the boy did was just grab a cookie from a plate, and no one else saw him do it. Even if that were the case, no one would bother giving chase just for one little snack.
But to Summer, that snack was worth dying for. She quickly followed him, but when she lost the boy and found herself lost, she would have left if not for a more curious sight.
A woman dressed in what looked like flames with eyes that glowed like ember. She did not know who the woman was, but Summer knew that the woman was talking to a Faunus. Curious, she got closer.
"I see that the White Fang has...accomplished its first victory." The woman said with a voice as smooth as silk.
"Yes, with the money you gave us, we were able to feed those without jobs, and we managed to get enough Faunus to stage a protest." The Faunus rubbed his hands. Summer noticed a white wolf tattoo on his hand.
"That is a good effort, but I believe the money would have been put to better use..." The woman looked at him. "If you actually fought back."
The Faunus and Summer's eyes widened. "B-but the White Fang is a peace movement! If we fight back-"
"If you do not fight, the other Faunus will think being meek and enduring torment will earn them respect." The woman pulled out the man's hand and traced his tattoo. She then dug three of her fingers into the back of his hand, and while the Faunus screamed, she did not let go. "Faunus are hunted down like animals...no, people do not really go after animals while the Grimm are out too play. What do you think will happen if they start testing random mixtures of Dust? What would happen if they started to make these robots and turn them into mindless police, or worse, place them in the jobs you worked so hard to get? Do you think that they will continue to listen to what is right or wrong once they created weapons so powerful?"
The woman let the man go, and as the man clutched his hand, he saw three scars digging through his wolf tattoo. The woman shook her head. "But that is my opinion. Do not worry, I shall send more funding to your...organization."
The Faunus nervously nodded and ran away. Once he was gone, Summer planned to move, but she saw the orange-haired boy walk up to the woman.
"So, Granny, why do we have to play with the animals? Just give them the weapons already." He complained as he was about to eat the cookie. He yelped as he narrowly avoided a fireball, though his quick snack was now charcoal.
"Patience, Roman. It does not take much for a tame animal to go feral." The woman clenched her hand and smothered the flame within. "However, with the right training, they will become attack dogs thirsty for man's blood, and with the right persuasion, even you can command them with only a few words."
Summer Rose knew that she had stumbled onto something big. However, she barely turned around when she saw a little girl with mismatched eyes smiling at her. Summer wasted no time and sprinted past her...slamming into a glass Semblance that shattered to reveal a wall. She did not have time to recover as a big fireball knocked her down again.
"Tch, it's White again." The boy muttered.
"You were followed? No matter, we will deal with her..." The woman looked down at Summer. She pressed her hand against the Huntress's chest, making it glow hot as Summer attempted to sit up. "Roman, be a dear and give me...that."
The boy pulled out a small box that would hold a ring, but when the woman snapped it open, she pulled out a crystal...no, Dust.
"Now, this is a special mixture I managed to acquire. No one managed to activate it safely, not without blowing themselves up. However, I heard it is...painful if accidentally ingested. An exquitise yet silent death."
With her other hand, the woman pushed the crystal into Summer's mouth, her hand burning hot so that the Huntress couldn't bite down. Summer swallowed, and she convulsed. Her insides were burning so much she had not realized that the trio had left her to die. Summer never noticed she blacked out.
"And when I woke up, I found James hovering over me." Summer recounted as she put on a new dress. "Stupid Ironwood didn't recognize me, so I ran until I found you. Then again, I wouldn't have recognized myself either."
Qrow agreed with her. Summer wasn't just shorter, but younger too, probably ten years old now. He had not recognized her either, but in agreement never to bring up a certain topic, Qrow was forced to acknowledge that the little girl was Rose. "You're always getting into trouble, aren't you? I get it. You want me to find out about those guys, the White Fang, and this...Dust."
"Yes, but...I don't think I should let the old gang know." Summer admitted as she dug through her closet and looked for a white cloak. "That woman, if she has access to dangerous Dust and weapons, she won't need to convert the White Fang to hurt my friends, and frankly, I think it's too late to stop the White Fang."
Qrow pulled out a red cloak and draped it over Summer's shoulders. "Don't dismiss Glynda and the others just yet."
"Just...not yet. I don't want them to see me like this." The bell rung, and Qrow went to open it as Summer looked around to hide.
"Xiao Long, what wakes you up at this hour?" Qrow asked.
"Come on, Qrow. Has it really been 'So Long'? Hahaha..." Seeing that Qrow and his wife glared at his joke, Mr. Xiao Long coughed. "R-right. We heard something crash into your house, but we knew you'd take care of it. Still, we didn't see anyone flee like they've seen the Grimm Reaper, so we've came check up on you."
"Everything has been resolved." Qrow turned and saw that young Yang had already spotted a new friend and pulled her out. "Right, allow me to introduce my 'niece', Re-Ruby Rose."
Ruby Rose did foolish things sometimes. Following the orange-haired man would be one of them.