Chapter Two: Settling In
Ace settled into their little family like he was always meant to be there. The addition of the new arrival in their small family went rather smoothly. It went much more smoothly than it had been for Yang (when Taiyang was unexpectedly a single father after Raven left) or Ruby (who had been so small that the doctors feared she may not make it). Taiyang was already taking time off from his work as a teacher because of Summer (his heart ached) so he did not need to worry about that.
Ruby and Yang had accepted Ace into their lives with the dauntless enthusiasm of children. They took turns holding Ace and playing with him, rushed to grab toys and bottles and whatever the baby needed, and would happily keep an eye on their new little brother while Taiyang cooked or did chores. However, Taiyang knew it would only be a matter of time before the sisters acted as siblings did and got into an argument over or because of their brother. That time had yet to come and Taiyang cherished it while he could.
However, the settling of the new arrival was not fully peaceful either.
One thing that Taiyang forgot from his times raising infants was that babies cried.
A lot.
Particularly while he was trying to sleep.
Ruby slept through Ace's nighttime wails but Taiyang would often find Yang with her head stuffed under her pillow, covering her ears. Taiyang was already preparing himself for the literal explosion that was going to happen when Yang's lack of sleep got to her and she finally lost her temper.
His own appearance (already unkempt because of Summer) had become more bedraggled. His eyes resembled a raccoon's and his skin had gained an ashen tinge. Perhaps that was why Yang and Ruby were being so well-behaved. Even his children could tell he needed a break.
The problem was, he was not sure how to get a break. Qrow was out on a mission, and Taiyang had few available acquaintances outside of his fellow faculty at Signal, all of whom were working. With no one else to turn to, Taiyang went to the only person he could think of.
Mrs. Margaret was their neighbor in a loose sense of the term. She lived closest to their little cottage in the woods, but was still a mile away. She was a woman on the latter edge of middle-aged, which was why it was so surprising she had another child just a couple years ago. Yang had only been three when the boy was born, but it was an event she would never forget since Mrs. Margaret had been visiting when her water broke.
A fierce winter storm had prevented them from reaching the hospital so Taiyang and Summer had buckled down to deliver the baby themselves. Neither had any clue what to do (their only experiences with childbirth did not tell them how to help another expecting mother) but everything had turned out all right in the end. Even if Qrow had relentlessly teased Summer for fainting (since she was a mother, and shouldn't she be tougher about childbirth?) Summer had smacked Qrow upside the head for that comment.
Taiyang had just finished feeding Ace baby formula (Boy did the baby eat a lot. Had he forgotten infants ate this much?) when the doorbell rang. He wiped Ace's face and lifted him from his high chair, shouting at Yang not to answer the door. His eldest daughter stomped to a corner and sulked but Taiyang could not help but be paranoid (after Summer...)
He checked through the peephole and opened the door. Mrs. Margaret bustled in, armed with a bag Taiyang knew was filled to the brim with baby essentials. He had gotten most of his baby supplies from the store and storage but Margaret would never be content unless she bought ten thousand new things for the newest addition to his family. When Taiyang said he had leftover supplies from Yang and Ruby's infancy, he meant it. Most of the stuff came from Margaret.
Margaret spotted Ace in Taiyang's arms and swooped in. "Oh, look at you! You look just like your mommy." she gasped. She tickled Ace's pudgy cheek and cooed, oblivious to how Taiyang stiffened. "He has Summer's coloring."
Taiyang shifted uncomfortably. "Yes. I just need you to watch him a couple hours."
Margaret's brown eyes softened. "You should have called me sooner, dear. You go and rest. I'll watch the children."
Taiyang did not protest. He dragged himself to bed and was out the moment his head hit the pillow.
When Taiyang woke up a couple hours later, Margaret was helping Ruby read a story to Ace, while Yang played with toys on the floor. Yang crashed two toy airships into each other while making explosion sounds as Ruby frowned at the page. The book she held was almost as big as she was.
""Then the... the... b... blue bear...""
"Brown, dear." Margaret corrected patiently.
""The brown bear."" Ruby repeated. ""Then the brown bear caught the fish and brought it to the green dragon."" She looked up at Margaret. "Are the brown bear and the green dragon friends now?"
"Why don't you keep reading and find out?" Margaret encouraged.
Ruby kicked her feet and flipped the page. Her tongue stuck out of the corner of her mouth and she brightened. "They're friends now."
"You're supposed to read the story." Yang said with the loftiness of a wise five year-old who believed she knew best.
Ruby's face went red and her cheeks puffed out. Taiyang saw the warning signs of an incoming tantrum and hurried towards his red-faced daughter.
"I think Ruby did a great job." Margaret encouraged before Ruby could throw a tantrum. She looked down at Ace and bounced him on her knee. "What do you think, Ace?"
Ace babbled in delight. He waved his tiny fists in the air.
Ruby perked up, her anger forgotten. "Ace thinks I did good so I did so there." she informed Yang.
Yang rolled her eyes and continued bashing the toy airships into each other. Taiyang knew his elder daughter well enough to tell she was sulking about something. She probably wanted to be the one to read to Ace.
Margaret noticed Taiyang and smiled at him. She whispered to Ruby who obediently got off her lap and sat on the floor. She poked Yang in the arm and Yang gave her one of her airships. The two girls got to playing while Margaret walked up to Taiyang and handed him Ace.
"Did you have a good rest, dear?"
"The most peaceful I had in weeks." Taiyang confessed.
Margaret chuckled. "Don't worry, the crying stage doesn't last forever. You'll survive."
Taiyang grumbled in disagreement and she chuckled again. He followed her to the door, leaving Ruby and Yang to play. "Thank you for coming over. I'll pay the lien once I..."
Margaret waved and cut him off. "You don't have to pay me, dear. I'm happy to help out. Especially after..."
She trailed off, gaze drifting towards a picture hanging on the wall. Taiyang did not need to look to know it was a family photo with himself, Yang, Ruby, and Summer. All smiling. All happy. Taken just days before Summer went on a mission and never returned.
"Thank you." he repeated, stiffer than before.
Margaret shot him a compassionate look. "Allow me to give you a word of wisdom, Taiyang. One parent to another. What happened to Summer... I can't imagine it." Her eyes slipped closed, slightly pained, but opened in a snap. "But don't let your fear smother your children, understand?"
Taiyang thought of his illogical fear when Yang went to answer the door. His throat felt clogged. "I understand."
Margaret patted his cheek. "Call me whenever you need me."
She hoisted her bag onto her shoulder and shut the door quietly behind her.
Taiyang hesitated a moment.
Then he locked it.
A clatter woke Taiyang from sleep. He reached under his pillow and grasped his weapon, sitting up. He glanced at Ace, but the baby was still asleep in his crib. Another clatter sent Taiyang bolt upright and he got out of bed.
Someone else was downstairs.
Taiyang's sock-clad feet made no noise as he exited his bedroom and passed Ruby and Yang's shared room. A peek inside showed both girls were still there. Taiyang kept the door open and continued down the hall. He checked his gun just in case and was satisfied with the Gravity Dust bullets loaded into the chamber. That should pin any intruders to the ceiling even if they did not have an active Aura.
He avoided the floorboard that always squeaked and looked down the stairs. A light was on in the kitchen. If it was a burglar, they were a rather stupid one. Not only had they come to the house of one of the few Huntsmen on Patch, but they were as subtle as a rampaging bull.
Taiyang descended down the stairs and stepped towards the kitchen, raising his gun.
He immediately lowered it. "I could have shot you."
Qrow Branwen (former member of the shattered Team STRQ but a man Taiyang could definitely call a brother and friend) lifted his head from the kitchen tabletop long enough to grunt. Then he laid his head back down with a groan.
Taiyang sighed and put his weapon at his belt. He crossed his arms disapprovingly. "Are you drunk?"
A flask was "discreetly" slipped into Qrow's pocket. "Maybe." he muttered.
Taiyang smelled alcohol on his breath but kept his annoyance in check. "How was your mission?"
"Fine."
"...You didn't say goodbye to Ruby and Yang when you left. They were worried about you." Taiyang said tersely.
Qrow flinched.
A cry came from upstairs. Taiyang hurried back to his room and scooped Ace out of his crib, rocking him as he brought the baby back downstairs. Ace whimpered a little but soon calmed in Taiyang's arms. Thank the Gods he did not scream and wake Yang.
Qrow gaped at the infant. "What the f-?"
"Qrow." Taiyang growled.
Qrow raised his hand to point at Ace. "What-? Where-? Where did he come from?"
Taiyang rocked Ace in his arms and rolled his eyes. "Well, Qrow. When a man and a woman love each other very much..."
"Shut up." Qrow groaned.
He rubbed his forehead. Was he hungover? In the middle of the night? Taiyang was not in the mood to ask. Qrow woke Ace with his clattering. He could sit there with a headache.
"This is Ace Xiao Long." he introduced instead.
Qrow stared at the baby. Then he stared at Tai. He looked back at the baby. His black eyebrows crept upward. "Where did you get him? I know Summer wasn't pregnant. And I also know you didn't cheat on her."
Taiyang shot Qrow a scathing glare. "Ace is mine and Summer's child."
Qrow raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay. I get the message." He shoved his hands into his pockets. "But seriously, where did you get him?"
Taiyang kicked him in the shin. He sat down and covered Ace's ears as Qrow swore and hopped around on one foot.
"Your uncle is a big baby." Taiyang informed the real baby.
Like young babies tended to do, Ace stuck out his tongue and burbled. Taiyang pretended it was a burble of agreement.
He almost smiled. It faded quickly. "Someone put him in my cart while I was in town. They left a note with his name and that's it."
Qrow reached out and gently caressed Ace's soft black hair. The baby giggled and waved his fists, smacking Qrow's hand. Qrow yelped and sucked on his finger.
"Ouch! Strong little guy, aren't you?"
Taiyang rolled his eyes and nuzzled Ace. "Whose Uncle is a big baby? Your uncle is! Oh yes he is."
Qrow scowled and shook his hand. "I'm serious! That hurt. This is going to bruise."
"Uh huh. Sure it hurt. It's not like you have Aura." Taiyang said unsympathetically.
Qrow grumbled and carefully petted Ace's head again. The baby yawned and snuggled against Tai. "So why are you keeping him?"
Taiyang's amusement faded. "We both know he'd be lost in the system. Especially since..." His fingers brushed a bit of black hair away from Ace's left eye. His silver eyes. His Silver Eyes. Just like Ruby's and Summer's. Taiyang's fingers trembled. "There is a reason there are no surviving records of Silver Eyed Warriors, Qrow."
Qrow grimaced. He was deeper in Ozpin's conspiracy than Taiyang. He had privy to more information. However, what Qrow knew, Summer would have known, and she knew little about her own powers.
Taiyang tried not to think about how those powers may have cost him his wife. Instead he held out Ace. "Do you want to hold him?"
Qrow took one look at Ace and backed away with a speed that suggested Taiyang was trying to hand him a ticking bomb. "Nope."
Taiyang sighed but held Ace securely against his chest once more. "Still scared of babies?"
"They should be scared of me." Qrow muttered.
Taiyang's lips thinned. Now was not the time to snap at Qrow about letting his Semblance affect his life. They had that argument before (and again right after Summer was confirmed missing) and Taiyang knew no matter what was said, Qrow would continue to isolate himself out of the fear of harming his loved ones with his presence.
Instead of lecturing Qrow, Taiyang held out Ace. Qrow inched away, and Taiyang followed him, holding out the baby with a blank expression on his face. Ace greatly enjoyed the silent game of tag and giggled, wiggling his arms and feet. Qrow avoided the baby like his life depended on it.
Taiyang had him cornered when he shapeshifted into a bird and landed on top of the fridge. Ace squealed in delight and reached for the crow and Taiyang obligingly lifted the baby up. Qrow fled to the ceiling fan and landed on it. he glared at Taiyang with beady red eyes.
Taiyang lowered Ace. "You were fine with holding Yang and Ruby."
The crow flew down from the ceiling fan and a black-haired man stood in its place. "That was different."
"How?" Taiyang demanded.
Qrow glowered at him with hazy, bloodshot eyes. He looked away. "It was different." he mumbled. "Summer..."
The lances of icy pain stabbed Taiyang's chest and his arms trembled. Ace felt the movement and gurgled in his arms. Taiyang focused on the baby in his arms. The baby that needed him not to shut down, just like his daughters needed him. His job done, Ace mumbled and went back to sleep.
Qrow stepped a little bit closer and peered at the baby. He remained out of arm's length. "I can already tell he's going to be another hellion. Who's going to turn you gray first; him, Ruby, or Yang?"
"Unless his Semblance lets him cause explosions when he gets mad, probably Yang." Taiyang said tiredly. He rocked Ace by instinct and kept his eyes on the sleeping baby. "Yang has to get her hair cut in a couple weeks. Do you want to stay and help me stop her from destroying my house?"
Some of the weathered lines on Qrow's face faded and he chuckled. "Maybe. What are uncles for?"
He sat down and his chair scraped on the tile. Ace grumbled and his eyes opened briefly. Both adults held their breath but Ace settled and went back to sleep.
"What a disgrace. Two professional Huntsmen, scared of waking a baby." Qrow laughed again. It sounded much less humorous. He took a long swig from his flask and grimaced. "Fine. Just don't expect me to stick around."
Three year-old Ruby Rose was on the most important mission of her young life. Ace was laying in his rocking seat (Daddy said it used to be hers but she was too big for it now. She was a big sister.) and Ruby sat next to him and carefully helped him bounce. Daddy said to be careful and stop if Ace started crying, but Ace was laughing so Ruby must be doing a good job watching her brother. (She was a big sister!) Daddy said it was only for a few minutes. Ruby was three years old, but she was smarter than that.
Daddy and Uncle Qrow were trying to cut Yang's hair. That would take more than a few minutes. It might take... take... a bazillion minutes. A bazillion was a big number, right?
Ruby looked at her fingers and mouthed numbers to herself. One, two, three, four, five, seven, ten, six, nine, ten...
"NOOOOO!"
Ruby was distracted from her very good counting by Yang's howl. Her sister thrashed in the kitchen chair, eyes squeezed shut and face red with exertion as she wailed. Daddy and Uncle Qrow had the "Tired Adult" looks on their faces as Daddy prevented Yang from sliding out of the chair and onto the floor.
"Yang, you need a hair cut. Just a little tiny bit shorter. If we don't cut off the split ends the rest of your hair will be ruined. Do you want that?"
Yang slouched in the chair and pouted. "Don't need a haircut."
Daddy sighed. "Yang..."
"DON'T NEED A HAIRCUT!" Yang screamed.
Ace flinched at the noise and whimpered, eyes shimmering. Ruby pulled her ears and stuck out her tongue and his tears faded. He giggled and clapped her hand. Beaming, Ruby did a little dance. She made her little brother happy. She was doing it!
Behind her, the scissors snipped off a lock of blonde hair and Yang exploded with golden fire and a scream.
Ace seemed to enjoy the explosions.
Since Ruby was a good girl and watched Ace like she was supposed to, she got ice cream. She wanted to share some with Ace but Daddy said no. If Ace had ice cream, he would get sick. Ruby could not get her little brother sick. That would make her a terrible big sister.
Since Yang was a bad girl and made Uncle Qrow and Daddy keep her still so they could cut her hair and she tried to bite Uncle Qrow and she kicked Daddy she did not get ice cream. Ruby smugly licked her yummy chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream while Yang glowered at her with red eyes. Her hair (now half an inch shorter) still flickered with flame-like Aura.
Ruby finished her ice cream cone and licked her sticky fingers. It was winter so she could not eat her cone outside so they were eating in the ice cream shop in town. The ice cream shop man had chuckled when Daddy explained why Yang was not getting ice cream. He promised to give Yang a really big ice cream cone if she was good next time she got a haircut.
When Yang stormed off, Daddy whispered something to the ice cream shop man. Something about thanking him for not "ena-bling" Yang by still giving her a cone. Daddy got Yang a small juice though. He said it would be mean to leave her with nothing while the rest of them ate.
Ace did not have anything except formula (which was icky. Ruby tried some and could not understand why babies would eat it. Chocolate chip cookies were much yummier). That was when Ruby tried to feed him some ice cream but Daddy said no. Ruby could not wait until Ace was old enough to have ice cream. She could show him how yummy it was, and how chocolate chip cookie dough was the best flavor and not icky strawberry like Yang liked.
Daddy got mint, which Ruby supposed was okay since it had chocolate chips in it. Uncle Qrow got vanilla. He was a super cool Huntsman so why did he get a boring flavor?
Ruby considered her sticky fingers and looked at Uncle Qrow. She raised her hands and showed them to him. "Help, please."
Uncle Qrow chuckled. "You've made quite the mess, Ruby."
Ruby pouted and puffed out her cheeks. "Not my fault. It's messy."
"Uh-huh." Uncle Qrow said.
Daddy handed him a wipe and he washed her hands and face. The melted ice cream was gone, so Ruby happily swung her feet, humming a song. There were other people in the ice cream shop. She did not recognize many, but they seemed to know Daddy. Or did they know Ace? Everyone seemed to want to see him, hold him, or coo at him. Had they known about Ace for a long time? Is that how they knew him? How could they know about him before his big sister?
Ruby frowned as another lady came and fawned over Ace. Ace did not seem very happy to see her (he looked sleepy) so Ruby felt a bubble of pride. Ace liked seeing her, his big sister. And he liked seeing Yang when she was not being a grumpy butt.
The woman asked if she could hold Ace and Daddy politely said no because Ace was sleepy. The woman did not seem mad about it. If she did seem mad, Ruby would have to kick her butt for bugging her little brother. That was the job of big sisters, right? That's what Yang did when people bugged Ruby. She kicked their butts, like the time she had punched a mean boy in the face. Sometimes Daddy got mad, other times he just sighed.
Another lady asked if she could hold Ace and Daddy politely said no.
Uncle Qrow watched her go and shook his head. "One month old and the kid is already popular."
"It's because he's one month old that he's popular." Daddy said. "Tell me he isn't adorable."
He pointed at Ace, who watched Yang with a wide-eyed expression. Yang was not doing anything special, just shaking her head and making her hair fly around, but Ace seemed to find it fascinating. Babies were weird.
"I'm surprised you aren't handing him to everyone who has offered to hold him for a second." Uncle Qrow said dryly. "Are you still in protective parent mode?"
Daddy's paper cup crinkled in his hand. A bit of soda sprayed out of the straw and Ruby giggled. It was like a little fountain. Daddy released the cup and picked up a couple napkins to clean up the mess.
"I'd rather just let family hold him. Like his uncle?"
Uncle Qrow did not look happy. "No thanks."
Now Daddy looked sad. Was he sad Uncle Qrow did not want to hold Ace?
Ruby was not mad at Uncle Qrow for making Daddy sad. She knew why he was scared to hold Ace. It was like when she was scared to hold that chipmunk Yang found under the porch. She reached over and patted Uncle Qrow's leg.
"It's okay if you're scared, Uncle Qrow. I know you're big and Ace is really little but that's okay. I'll hold Ace and you can hold me so you don't have to be scared about hurting him."
Uncle Qrow still looked sad. His hand twitched towards his pocket and away. "That's not..."
Ruby was already running over to Daddy. "Daddy, I need to hold Ace."
Daddy knelt down and handed her Ace, moving her arms a little bit. Ace was wriggly today. Like a worm. Or a caterpillar. He even had a cocoon. Was that why he was wrapped up in blankets all the time? Would he turn into a butterfly?
Ruby put aside her musing as she stopped in front of Uncle Qrow. She frowned at the huge distance between her and the top of the chair. She could not use her arms so she nudged Uncle Qrow with her head.
"Hold Ace, please."
Uncle Qrow's lips were pressed thin but he took Ace from her. Ruby climbed up his legs and settled on his lap. She held out her arms.
"I can hold him now."
Uncle Qrow carefully set Ace in her arms again. He held her in place, and Ruby beamed happily. Her plan had worked. Ace was tiny but she was bigger so Uncle Qrow could hold her and not be scared. She leaned back and looked up at Uncle Qrow with a big smile.
"See? It's okay."
Uncle Qrow was crying. Ruby did not mean to make him sad. But Daddy was not mad at her for making Uncle Qrow cry. Uncle Qrow was hugging her too, and hugs made people happy. So it must be okay.
The Author's Notes: Hello again! I have decided to continue this after the warm reception the first chapter got. I was so excited people liked it that I churned this one out. Thank you for all the love you showed for this little idea.
This will be slice of life "one-shots" for a bit but will likely become plot-driven later on (once Ace is twelve years old and Ruby and Yang's Beacon years start). Allow me my cute-kid Ace, Ruby, and Yang time before then.
I have also decided to give Ace a type of Fire Semblance in the future. I thought about giving him a different Semblance but fire is so Ace that I could not picture him with a different power. I also know what his weapon is going to be (Spoiler for its guns form, but look up Strong World Ace. The melee form is going to be a secret until the reveal).
I would also like to mention that there will be little to no romance in this fanfiction. I am not a romantic person so I have no interest in writing romance. Also, there will be few OCs, and any OCs will have tiny, unimportant roles.
I will answer questions in Author's notes since I am not comfortable with using Private Messages.
To Draak D. Soul: Thank you very much. Ace has access to Haki but will not learn about it for a while. Natives of Remnant cannot use Haki so there is no one to teach him. As for the Mera Mera, no. Since he will have his Aura activated soon, eating a Devil Fruit will only make him throw it back up and give him a stomachache, not powers. As I said, Aura and Devil Fruits do not mix (So before anyone asks, no, Luffy will not get Aura or a Semblance if he appears and no, Ruby, Yang etcetera cannot learn Haki or eat Devil Fruits. It would be like a Devil Fruit user trying to swim: it will never end well). However, Ace will have a fire Semblance that will be similar to his Mera Mera powers (with the added benefit of Aura, the ability to swim, no weakness to seawater, and no weakness to seastone). I think he might not have the Logia-like intangibility part since Aura can absorb/block the damage... I have not decided on that yet.
To JJJJ: Thank you very much. Yes, the place is called Remnant and the warriors are called Huntsmen/Huntresses. The shield is a creation for this story to keep the Grimm from getting out of Remnant and into the world at large, which would be very bad if it happened. Other One Piece characters will show up eventually.
To Guest (power balance): Thank you very much. I will try to keep things balanced but will not focus on it much. From what I have seen in other crossovers, trying to "balance" powers often ends up inviting "this world is better and stronger than this one and here is why and how dare you "nerf" this character" complaining from reviewers. I personally find power comparisons to be annoying to the point they are a pet peeve of mine (which is why I avoid things like crossover VS battles) so I am avoiding that as much as possible. Power scaling and comparisons are not what this story is about. If I get guest reviews comparing the strength of Remnant and One Piece like that, I will likely delete them. Like I said, it is a pet peeve of mine.
I had a couple One Piece fans with questions so I would like to describe some basic RWBY terms here. I am not the best at describing things but I will try.
Grimm: "creatures of Destruction". They are black, red-eyed, soulless monsters that seek to kill everything they come across. They are attracted to negative emotions like fear, sadness, etcetera. (There is a reason the World Government is happy to leave Remnant alone and isolated to fight the Grimm. If the Grimm got out of Remnant it would be catastrophic on the world and change it forever.)
The Kingdoms of Remnant: Vale, Mistral, Atlas, Vacuo, and Menagerie (though Menagerie is not a Great Kingdom nor does it have a Huntsmen Academy). Patch is an island in the Kingdom of Vale.
Huntsman/Huntress: licensed elite warriors trained to hunt Grimm.
Huntsmen Academies: institutions/schools where students are trained to become professional Huntsmen. The four Academies are Beacon (in Vale), Shade (in Vacuo), Atlas (formerly called Alsius, in Atlas), and Haven (in Mistral). The (known) prep combat schools (for before going to Huntsmen Academies) are Signal (where Taiyang works), and Sanctum (in Mistral). There are also prep schools in Atlas and Vacuo but we do not know the names of them yet.
Aura: The manifestation of one's soul in the form of a shield. It protects Huntsmen from attacks (though it is finite and will eventually shatter and need time to regenerate) and can help injuries heal faster. (It does more than that but that is the basic definition). The color depends on the person, and it is what powers a person's Semblance. (Depleted Aura equals no Semblance usage).
Semblance: the manifestation of someone's innate power. It's unique to every person (though some are hereditary). For example, Pyrrha Nikos has a metal-manipulation Semblance called "Polarity" and Qrow has a Semblance that gives bad luck to everyone around him. Think of them as personality-based Devil Fruit powers without the Devil Fruits or the weakness to seastone and seawater. The weakness is that once you are out of Aura, you can no longer use your Semblance until your Aura regenerates.
Dust: the source of energy for Remnant. It is used to do things like power technology and create bullets. For example, there is Fire Dust, Gravity Dust, and Wind Dust.
Faunus: Humans with animal traits (like cat ears or a monkey tail).
I hope that cleared up some things. This was a long Author's note but I wanted to explain some things now so I do not have to later.
Please review and tell me what you think.
