A/N: Hello! I am Blade of AwE, author of such RWBY titles as Red Like Roses and now Lotus Petals!

And if you're into it, Left 4 Dead titles like Humanity and INSANITY. But that's not as noteworthy here.

This story is a medieval/fantasy AU, meaning not everything is a gun anymore. Sad, I know.

Please, if you like the story leave a review, favourite and follow, or any one of them. But definitely leave a review.

If you want, I mean.

But do it.

Enjoy!

Chapter 1:

The Crow and The Orphan

—

"Strike now!" The gruff man shouted, his voice bouncing off the stone walls of the abandoned military fort. The sound of metal thwumping into hay could also be heard, but more faintly. Qrow, the leader of Forever Fall Bandits, was training the youngest member of their camp, Ruby. Ruby had become of fifteen years the day prior, and Qrow figured it would be best if she were trained to handle herself.

He had laid out a bag of training weapons a few of their thieves had taken from the House Vasilias city, Nectar. They had been in the guard barracks, the thieves had explained, so they casually strolled in when no one was around and took them.

The bag had contained a series of knives, short swords, axes and bows but Ruby had chosen the most peculiar: a wheat scythe that they had also stolen from a farmer.

Qrow was fairly surprised. She had always been the type of girl to do something to fit in. While he was surprised, one thing he wasn't unable to teach her was how to wield a battle scythe if ever they got their grubby hands on one.

Ruby was awful at it, but he had faith that she would get better. She had a knack for being terrible at something but suddenly improving greatly. Her strike was off, the tool itself was almost too heavy for her and the wooden shaft gave her hands blisters. Nonetheless, Qrow had faith. He always had more faith in her than anyone else. She didn't exactly pick up on it, but he did.

"Dodge!" He commanded. She slid back, her heel catching on a crack in the stone floor. With a scream, she fell backward and right on her bottom.

He let out a hearty chuckle. She was embarrassed, but she didn't bother getting upset. He wasn't laughing at her, but with her. He offered his hand to help her up, which she took.

"Don't worry, Ruby," He said, ruffling up her hair. The bandit patted her shoulder afterward. "To be great you must start by being terrible." She rolled her eyes playfully, gripping the scythe in her hand tighter.

"But what if greatness never comes?" She asked, looking up at him. He was at least two heads taller than her. The crow let out a hearty laugh once more.

"Well then you move on and find greatness elsewhere!" He lowered himself to be on the same level as her. "But I think you will find greatness in being a warrior!"

She smiled. That was an uncommon sight around the hold. The young orphan Ruby never smiled, no matter how hard the other bandits tried. They did try quite frequently.

"Now pick up your spirits, and try again." He instructed, rising to his feet once more with a groan. "After all, practice is the root of perfection."

She nodded and lifted heavy scythe above her right shoulder, trying her best not to fall backward again. She aimed for her target, prepared her swing by tensing the weak muscles in her arm, and then went for it.

Qrow had hardly enough time to move out of the way of the swinging weapon before it lodged itself in the neck of the improvised target made of ripped bags and hay.

But upon reevaluation of the target, Qrow noticed that the scythe hadn't just got stuck in the neck, but went through to the other side. The head toppled over to the floor, hay spilling out as though it were actual organs. Qrow looked from the hay head to the girl, his face just as surprised as hers. She didn't know what to think of his reaction. He looked back up at her for a few seconds longer before laughing.

"Haha, you did it!" He cheered opening his arms for a celebration hug. She smiled then and jumped at him, wrapping her arms around his thick chest.

"I did! I chopped it's head off!" She shouted excitedly. The shouting drew noise from the other neighbouring rooms, all of their inhabitants confused and curious as to what was going on. They crowded the doorways and looked in to see the two celebrating, a scythe tossed to the floor, and a damaged hay target. A few nodded, proud of her. Others sneered and walked away from the crowd. And one walked in.

"Congrats, Ruby." Russel Thrush, the second youngest member of the hold, said to her. For quite a while he'd been trying to woo Ruby. She had never realized.

"Well, what do you know. Maybe you actually do have a use for us here." He teased, walking over to the straw head. Ruby came out of the hug with her father figure and stuck her tongue out at Russel playfully. The boy just kicked the head lightly, before nodding. He was actually impressed. He picked it up, trying to act like he wasn't.

"You know how hard it was for me to make that and have you just go around breakin' it?" He complained. Ruby just grinned sheepishly.

"I know!" She said proudly, happy to have made his life a little bit more difficult. Qrow clapped a big hand down on her shoulder, causing her entire upper back to shudder. She didn't let Russel know that though.

"Well, overall, well done Ruby." He said, legitimately smiling and tossing her the head of the dummy. She wasn't exactly prepared to grab it, holding her arms out to successfully catch it.

As he walked out, he chuckled and ruffled up her black-red hair, bringing nothing forward from her but a roll of the eyes. He was oblivious to how oblivious she was about his interest in her. Qrow rolled his eyes a lot less playfully than how Ruby had a moment ago, clearly not impressed by Russel's show of affection for her. He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose tiredly.

"Well, Ruby," he began, patting her on the back, "it is late and you best be getting some rest. We'll resume training in the morning."

She pouted a bit, but nodded. He was right, and even she could not deny that.

"Goodnight, father."

The Tyrant and The Wukong

—

Hammond Schnee tapped his fingers impatiently on his desk, sitting in a posture that suggested he cared very little for what lay ahead of him. His posture suggested correctly, for he felt that the following meeting was going to be a waste of his time. He wouldn't negotiate with someone like a Faunus, especially one that made a mockery of royalty and called himself a king. Even if it was in some strange language.

The ship he had called this meeting to- the Winter Winds- swayed back and forth in the bay it was anchored in. Once upon a time, it would have made him queasy and lightheaded, but he had become desensitized to it.

The Tyrant's blue eyes were trained on the door ahead of him, which was carved from only the best wood House Ironwood had to offer. His line of sight was not averted, even when the door creaked open and an elderly man with the tail of a monkey walked in cautiously, as though one wrong move would snap him.

The Faunus wore a smile on his face. It was not a smile of happiness, or of pride, but instead the warm smile Wunder Wukong always wore. Even to negotiate with age long enemies. Hammond stood, offering the old man his hand in greeting, though after this point he had very little interest in being courteous and polite. It was the last thing he cared about at the moment.

"It has been quite a while, hasn't it Hammond Schnee?" Wukong said slowly, his cracked and chipped teeth exposed when he spoke. Hammond tried to pretend not to be disgusted by the well being of the Faunus.

"It has indeed. A long time since any Fauna have tried to come back across the sea, as well." The Tyrant reminded the Wukong, leaning forward and resting his head on his fists.

"Well, with how we were treated by the peoples of this land that comes as no surprise, now does it?" Wukong gave a weak but pressing chuckle, before closing his eyes. Hammond studied him carefully.

The monkey king reached into a bag that hung at his side, removing some of the long grey hair from his face so he could see better. A few moments later, the Wukong pulled out a scroll neatly wrapped in a fine red casing.

"These are the terms my council has drawn up." The king handed the scroll to Hammond, his smile never fading. Hammond took the scroll, opening it slowly and dramatically. It didn't matter how slowly he opened it, Wukong was patient.

The tyrant's bright blue eyes scanned the parchment, reading over the messy writing that had no doubt been hastily scrawled on in a rush.

They wanted passage to Frost.

They wanted residency in Frost.

They wanted rights in Frost.

He would sooner give the head of both his daughters.

"The only gain here is for your people." Hammond bluntly stated, dropping the parchment onto his desk. Wukong shook his head as though Hammond was a child who had didn't see the full picture.

"There is gain for both parties, Your Lordship," Wukong began, "The Fauna of Menagerie get a new, better home with rights, while you get a social status of being the first Faunus-accepting city."

Hammond leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Not to mention an increase to your army, economy and-" Wukong had stopped smiling at this point, around the same time Hammond stopped listening. The tyrant stood, looking down at the elderly man.

"This meeting is over, Wukong. The Fauna are allowed no entrance to Frost or my land, and if they do enter-" Hammond took a dagger from his boot, before stabbing it down into the desk. "They will be greeted by something like this."

Wukong didn't put on a face of fear, but rather a face of sad understanding.

"I see." Was all he said, before rising to his feet achingly. Hammond did nothing but watch, his face sour. However, Wukong never made it to the door. Not alive.

All Hammond had to do was say the word "Now".

An arrow shot from the wall and hit Wukong in the rib. He groaned as he coiled over, letting out an exasperated death rattle. Hammond heard the clutter from outside as the monkey king's escort also fell dead, but to the blade of the Schnee Knights.

Unbeknownst to Hammond, he had not only killed the Wukong of all Faunus himself, but the heir to the Wukong throne who had been standing outside the meeting room with the guards.