Sunlight cast the surrounding villas in a sheen of golden light while birds flew through a blue sky without any of the cares that filled the human world below. It was a beautiful day. More beautiful than it had any right to be.

Weiss Snee sat on the edge of her bed, tentatively feeling at the spot on her stomach where the previous day a spear had tore through her innards. All that remained was a pale white scar against her already pale skin and an uneasy feeling that wouldn't leave her.

She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't notice the finger slide towards her until it jabbed into the scar. She yelped and jumped away, the girlish scream becoming a growl of anger mid note.

"Ruby!" she shouted. The younger girl smiled at her mischievously. "You can't just sneak into people's rooms and stab them where they have life threatening injuries, you dolt."

"You look fine to me," Ruby smiled as she sat down beside her. She was trying to keep up a jovial attitude but it was clear that she had other things on her mind. "Jaune really saved your bacon, eh?"

Weiss looked down again as though she could see the scar through the fabric of her dress. "Yeah, I guess he did, didn't he. Who'd have guessed it would be Jaune who saved the day?"

"I'm just glad there was a day to be saved." Ruby spoke with a quietness that was unlike her usual bubbly self. She leant back and collapsed fully onto the bed with her legs dangling off the edge. "We all walked out of that fight safe with the relic in our hands. Looking back that seems almost impossible. But we did it. We worked together as a team and we won."

"We got lucky," Weiss cut in. "We had no right to win that battle. We were outclassed in every way. If Jaune hadn't unlocked his semblence then I'd likely be dead now. If Cinder, Raven and Vernal hadn't gone for the relic before finishing us off then we'd all be dead. If Hazel hadn't been obsessed with fighting Oscar, or if Blake hadn't turned up at just the right moment with an army of faunus then we'd be dead. Too much was outside of our hands. We can't rely on such luck in the future. Our enemies are strong so we have to be stronger."

"You're right. We do have to get stronger. Uncle Qrow says we'll be heading out for Atlas in the next few days so we don't even have much time to train before more battles happen. Everything seems so much more complicated than when we were at Beacon."

Weiss sighed and flopped down onto the bed next to Ruby. "Definitely. Did you ever think that foiling a terrorist organisation would seem like easy, laid back days? And now it seems I'm coming straight back home after finally getting the resolve to leave."

Ruby sat up and looked Weiss in the eyes. "It's okay though, Weiss. You've got all of us with you this time. Whatever you face, we'll be there to face it with you. We're a team. And not just us, Yang and Blake, but everyone. Jaune, Nora, Ren, Qrow and Oscar. A big, dysfunctional family set to do battle with your real family for possession of your affection. You're old man won't know what hit him!"

Weiss couldn't help but smile. Ruby always seemed able to lighten the mood.

"So where are Yang and Blake? They looked pretty serious after the battle."

Ruby hesitated, though a smile dominated her face. "Yang said they needed to have words. I know sis though and she isn't one for quiet heart-to-hearts.

XXXXX

The crack of a shotgun shattered the morning silence. Yang stood in the centre of a courtyard, a grim expression on her face. A shadow stood face to face with her but quickly dissipated. A blur at the edge of the courtyard caused her to send another volley of bullets in that direction.

"When are you going to stop running? That's all you ever do!"

Blake returned fire as she circled Yang, the bullets clattering harmlessly against the metal of her arm. She dove in to slash at her exposed back but Yang was quicker. Blake only avoided a direct blast to the face by a quick shadow from her semblance as she threw herself aside.

She grit her teeth together. I know that I always run. It's who I am. My semblance is another self to hide behind. My weapon was never built for taking on opponents head on but for supporting from behind. I'm not you. I could never be you, no matter how much I wanted it.

She lashed out with Gambol Shroud, trying to wrap the whip around Yang's robotic arm to leave her open. Yang side stepped it and grabbed the wire, sharply tugging it with enough force to launch Blake towards her. She raised a fist ready to meet with the faunus's face but Blake managed to maneuver herself to flip over Yang to safety.

Yang span and fired, catching Blake with a glancing blow. Her aura flickered but remained intact. She skidded to a halt and eyed the other woman wearily.

"I don't get you," Yang muttered. "You paint yourself as the loner and try your hardest not to make any connections yet people gather around you wherever you go who are willing to die for you." She gestured vaguely at the monkey faunus, Sun Wukong, who was stood at the edge of the courtyard, then at the other side of the clearing where the chameleon faunus Ilia was just visible amongst the shadows.

Blake's grip tightened on her weapon. "I may be destined to run, but I will fight that destiny with every fiber of my being. I will get stronger. Strong enough to protect those I care about!"

She sprinted straight at Yang, throwing her Gambol Shroud over to the opposite building. It caught and she launched herself into the air. Yang took a defencive stance and raised her arms, the light catching the metal of her right arm. The arms she had lost protecting her…

Blake faltered for a fraction of a second but it was enough for Yang to slam a fist into her gut. Blake crashed to the floor in a sprawled out heap.

"Stop looking at me like that! You flinch every time you look at this arm. But guess what? It's a part of me now." Yang yelled as she pointed a robotic finger at Blake accusingly. "I don't look at it as a symbol of failure or weakness. I see it as a badge of honour. I sacrificed that arm to save someone who I care about. That is what this arm represents. Teamwork. Friendship. Love. Fighting for a better tomorrow. So don't you dare look at it and feel nothing but guilt!"

"Yang. I…"

Yang didn't give her a chance to speak. She charged before Blake had picked herself up off the ground. Blake closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"No more running," she whispered quietly. Yang's fist smashed into her gut again. Blake made no attempt to dodge. Her aura fizzled out as the impact lifted her into the air. Her hands held onto the metallic wrist. As the momentum continued to carry her upwards she pulled herself closer until they were face to face. A pained smile crossed her face as she slammed her head into Yang's with all the force she could muster.

Yang took a step back and blinked a few times to clear the dizziness from her vision. Blake was an unmoving pile on the floor, one hand still latched firmly onto Yang's wrist.

Yang smiled. She eased herself down beside her friend, positioning her so that Blake's head rested in her lap. Sun and Ilia were both running towards them, concern on their faces.

"That was stupid. Brave, but stupid. What was your plan there? Score one decent hit at the cost of your life?"

Blake groaned and slowly opened her eyes to stare up at Yang. "I gave all I had knowing that my friends have my back," she said softly. Sun and Illia arrived beside her just then, crouching to check she was okay. Tears began to brim in her eyes and her smile grew.

Yang pulled her up and embraced her roughly. "I missed you. I'm just glad you're back now."

"Me too."

XXXXX

From the rooftop of a nearby building, Oscar watched the display. Ruby's sister truly was a powerhouse. Both of them fought with more skill than he felt he could ever display.

'You should go down to them. We will all be working together from now on so it is vital that you integrate yourself with the group.'

The disembodied voice was that of Ozpin, the ancient wizard who happened to share Oscar's body these days. Oscar felt a spike of anger rise within him.

"Teamwork. Is that what you call it when you override people's decisions and control them? You had no right to take control of my body yesterday. It's still mine. At least for however long that lasts."

'Hazel would have killed you without my intervention. Consider it pushing someone out of harm's way, only I have no body to push with.' Ozpin's tone was the calm, reasonable voice of a patient teacher. Oscar was growing to hate it.

"You act like the wise man but I'm beginning to doubt it. I know you can see into my mind but I keep catching glimpses of yours too. How do you justify using children as your soldiers, sending them to their deaths against an enemy even you could never defeat. Even now there is so much that you keep secret but they all trust you as their headmaster. And now what are you? A parasite eager to consume a new body and make it your own."

Oscar slammed his fist down onto the tiles of the roof. "Tell me, where exactly do we fit into your grand plans?"

Ozpin was silent for a stretch of time. He finally answered, his voice quiet. 'There are no children in war. Only soldiers and victims. I wish that wasn't the case but that is the way of the world. I've lived long enough to see it happen again and again. I set up the academies not to build a private army but to train new generations to defend themselves against the dark.' He laughed a faint, bitter laugh. 'Believe me, Oscar. I didn't want any of this. My powers, my life, they are a curse, not a gift.'

"It's just all too much. I'm just a simple farmboy. How am I supposed to help save the world from an unstoppable evil?"

'It isn't the circumstances of our birth or the powers we are given that define heroism. It is the greatness of the heart and the action taken to make even the smallest differences in the world. A student of mine who gave her life without hesitation encapsulated this. I have made a lot of mistakes, and you will too. We just have to keep moving forwards and hoping against hope that next time we will do better.'

"Yeah. I guess you're right. I might not have asked for it but I'm here now. I don't want to be a liability to Ruby and the others so I'm going to train hard." He stood up with resolve glowing in his eyes.

A mess of black feathers swooped down to the roof and transformed into Qrow. He looked worn down but offered Oscar a grin.

"Preparations are ready. We've got a private plane willing to carry all of us across to Atlas tomorrow. It's amazing what you can get when the news is playing everywhere proclaiming us as the Heroes of Haven. It never ceases to amaze me how quick word spreads these days."

He pulled his flask from his coat and took a deep sip. "Make sure you have everything ready to leave. I'll meet back up with you later. I've still got some business to attend to."

Qrow became a blur of light then emerged in his bird form, diving from the roof ungracefully, leaving Oscar to stare into the distance.

"I don't have anything to get ready…"

'You have your friends, so go to them.'

Oscar smiled briefly. "Right."

XXXXX

Crimsons and deep purples dominated the throne room. Despite spending time here it always made Emerald feel uncomfortable. Usually Cinder was there to alleviate the fear but the lack of her presence seemed to fill the room completely.

Mercury stood at her side while Hazel leant against the wall with his arms crossed. Watts stood opposite them, a look of superiority plastered across his face. All of this was just side-dressing though for the women seated on the throne like a queen. She commanded unwavering attention no matter how hard Emerald tried to look away.

Salem.

"So you failed." The words cut through Emerald like blades. "Not only did you fail to retrieve the relic but Cinder managed to get herself killed in the process. A fall maiden blessed with my powers fell on what should have been a simple operation. I am disappointed."

"Branwen betrayed us and your little puppet Leo was worthless. The supposed White Fang attack was foiled before it started too. We were outnumbered!" Emerald yelled. Tears stung her eyes as emotion threatened to boil over.

"By children," Salem said softly. "Don't fear though. This failure rests solely on Cinder's shoulders and it seems that she has reaped her reward. She bargained with Branwen despite knowing her history. She left the battle to claim her prize before the opposition was quelled. I expected more from her. Foolish child."

Emerald had to bite back the words that she wanted to scream. Her arms shook with how hard she was clenching her fists.

Salem continued. "But there will be time to dwell on failures later. Now we must plan your redemption. Remnant is frail but it has yet to shatter. We must apply a little extra pressure in the right places." Her gaze turned to Emerald and Mercury. "You two will return to Minstral. We need to spin recent events to our favour. Watts, you and Hazel will operate in Atlas to further increase the growing tension between business and military."

"As you wish, Ma'am." Watts said in his usual overbearing tone.

"Is Tyrian ready to prove himself to me?"

"Indeed he is. Tyrian is his usual, ah, delightful self."

"Good. He will join the children in Minstral."

Mercury shook his head. "No way can we work with that psychopath. He's a deranged killer, even by our standards."

"Exactly what I am hoping for. Now leave me."

Nobody argued with the dismissal. They filed out through the double doors to attend to their given tasks. The doors swung shut behind stopped a short distance away and slammed her fist into the wall.

"She doesn't care that Cinder is gone! I'm only here because of Cinder and now she's gone and I'm here alone!"

"Hey, keep it down so the witch doesn't hear you, okay." hushed Mercury. "Just keep calm. I'm still here, right? I don't plan on going anywhere just yet. We'll do what we've always done, which is survive."

There was a faint sound behind them that chilled Emerald's blood and sent shivers down her spine. She turned to see Salem standing a few feet from them, that misleading smile on her lips.

"Ah, Emerald, I'd hoped that you hadn't gone far." She placed a white hand on Emerald's shoulder. "You were close to Cinder, wasn't you. Why, one could guess that, aside from myself, you were the only person she was fond off. I wonder if that fondness was perhaps enough for her thoughts to stray to you as her life faded away."

Emerald tensed. She saw Mercury's stance change from the corner of her eye. Salem's implication was clear.

Salem ignored their reaction. "I have something that I want you to see, child. Come." Emerald didn't move. Salem's expression didn't change. "You don't trust me? Good. Trust is for the weak. Just know that if I wanted to kill you I'd make no pretence of innocence. I don't want you to trust me. I want you to obey me."

Emerald's mouth was dry. She tried to swallow but it caught in her throat. Mercury moved towards her but she managed to shake her head. Wrestling control of her emotions, she turned to Salem.

"Fine. Let's go."

They left Mercury alone looking torn. The corridors here didn't seem quite real. It was impossible to get her bearings and the directions seemed to change at random. Eventually Salem stopped outside of a door that looked like every other in this cursed place. It slid open without a sound.

A strangled gasp escaped Emerald's lips. She fell to her knees.

"What have you done…"

A/N: Hope you enjoyed this first chapter. I've been out of the fanfiction game for a good few years but I was in a RWBY mood after finishing volume 5. Let me know your thoughts.

If you like my work then I am a writer by trade. Check out my new book, Thorns of the Shadow: Blood, Blades and Bacon, for a quirky urban fantasy that kicks ass. Cheers.