Disclaimer: RWBY is not owned by me in anyway. Dream is sung by Michael Bublé from the album Call Me Irresponsible.
A/N Hey guys, sorry for such a delay. It is inexcusable in my opinion, but I was really stumped on this one. Still trying to figure out A Prof's Perspective, but that will come in due time. I should mention, this fic is gonna be slow, both in pace and in writing. There's gonna be world-building involved and the ending of this fic isn't fully determined. That's not even mentioning plot development and canon involvement. I'll reiterate here: Canon will not be changed. This is an original plot with original characters, but little to no canon involvement and even less changes to canon. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right? As always, read, review, follow, and/or fave, your choice. Feedback of any sort is appreciated. Here's some more Henching, and a little more background into our main characters.
Chapter 2: Feuds and Dreams
Signal Academy – 10 years ago
"Wing, slow down! I'm not as fast as you!" Steven Chun called to his brother. He was running through the halls of Signal Academy, the prestigious combat school, as fast as his 15 year old legs could carry him. Up ahead, Wing Chun slowed down slightly and turned to see his brother, panting heavily, and out of breath.
"C'mon Steven, Dad's waiting with our lunches!" Wing exclaimed. A wide smile adorned his face as he thought about the delicious food their father would get them from A Simple Wok every so often. His stomach growled in response.
"Wing, I know you're hungry, but I can't keep up!" Steven said in between breaths. Wing flicked Steven's head and scoffed, "That's why you should train harder! If you're gonna be a hunter, you gotta be healthy and strong! C'mon, we'll walk the rest of the way."
They walked down the hall, Steven taking a couple breaks while Wing leant against the lockers lining the halls. They were going to continue until they heard a voice call out to them, "Wing! Steven! We're here!" Their youngest brother called out. His smile was bright and cheerful from the twins' view and he was holding a small bag in his waving left hand. His right hand was being held by an adult with their back turned to them. Steven and Wing dashed to their brother, stopping a few feet in front.
Wing was the first to recover, "Danny! What're you doing here?"
"Poppa was gonna get you guys lunch and then momma said she was gonna pack the bags and I just took a nap and woke up and asked what she was packing for and dad said she'll tell us later then we went to A Simple Wok then we had lunch and then momma called and-"
"Slow down there motor-mouth or you'll spoil the surprise!" The adult directed at Danny. Wing and Steven could now see their father facing them, all six feet of him with his broad shoulders, square jaw with noir stubble, leading to sideburns and slicked-back hair of the same glossy colour. His dark brown eyes sparkled with mirth at his youngest son. He was in more casual attire than they often saw him, his normally dark suit replaced with a white dress shirt with sleeves rolled to the elbow to display his muscular forearms. His shirt was tucked into charcoal pants and around his neck, with the inscription "#1 Dad" in childish block letters, was a bright blue tie too wide for its own good. Black dress shoes shined on his feet, as if they were just polished.
Danny held up his plastic bag, smiling, "We brought you guys lunch so you guys can eat in the car while we go home for our super surprise va-"
Their father covered Danny's mouth, "That's enough outta you young one! Jeez, you're just like your mother! Don't tell her I said that though. Danny's correct in that you two are coming home for -"
"AWESOME!" came the unified interruption from the two fifteen year olds. They didn't let their father finish as they took off, running back to their lockers, grabbing their bags and various notes and books, before rushing back to the central office and their family.
Their father's mouth was slightly agape, "…did you use your aura to go get your stuff?"
The twins sheepishly looked at each other before responding, "Maaaaaaybeeeee?"
Danny pouted, "I wanna use my aura too!"
Wing put an arm around Danny to comfort him, as Steven explained, "You've gotta finish your lessons with mom first, like the rest of us! Then you can be just as cool as us!"
Danny looked to his brother, "even as cool as Novel?"
Wing bounced about, "Hey, you can be cooler by the time you get to his age!"
All three of them were smiling as they walked through the corridors, their father in tow, watching on the spectacle. They stopped when they heard a growling sound. Wing and Steven both looked at their stomachs, then turned to Danny, who still had the plastic bag in his hand, but was now sporting a slight tinge of pink on his cheeks. "Oops."
Their father took the bag from Danny and distributed its contents, chuckling as the two tore through the Styrofoam casings, eager to get to their prizes. The smell wafted through the halls, piquing the curiosity of a number of classrooms, hunger lighting the students' eyes.
Danny walked quicker, followed by the still-eating Wing and Steven, who were being ushered along by their father. He looked around cautiously before muttering under his breath, "Let's go home".
Downtown Vale - Now
Tense silence dominated the room. Tentative looks were given to each other before the one nearest the entrance spoke first.
"You knew" Wing stated. There was hostility in his tone, but underlying that was a deep sadness, "You knew what we went through, what we promised, but we still came back."
Novel looked to his brother, agitation laced his voice, "What choice did we have? It was either this or get caught."
It wasn't true, Steven knew that, "We could have gone to another safe-house."
"After Roman left us for the cops?! How do we know none of the other houses aren't compromised?" Novel's volume was rising slowly, his normally calm composure slowly fading away.
"We're all fucking criminals! What reason would he have to rat us out?" Wing shouted, his brow furrowed and fists clenched.
Novel stood up abruptly, shouting back, "He betrayed us dammit! He left us for the police! Because we're just goons! Unimportant! Just henchmen who can do NOTHING!"
"And whose fault is that?! We're weak because of you! You took us out of school, trained us like you trained yourself! And we've just been barely scraping by."
Novel turned to face the window, "If I finished Beacon, I wouldn't be weak. But you three, you'd be dead."
Wing marched up to his elder, "Well thank the gods above that you decided to swoop down and grace us with your overbearing presence, O high-and-mighty brother of mine!"
"Stop it, please," A whisper was heard, but not listened.
"You think I had a choice?! I was ORDERED by Dad, by Mom, to keep you safe! To keep us together! By any means necessary!"
"Bullshit! We could've been put in foster care! Uncle Friedman could've taken custody! We had options, but you dragged us behind you. You made decisions not meant for you to make! Like you were our father! But you aren't! So stop making those choices for us and go back to that whore of a wife of yo-"
"SHUT UP!"
The scream reverberated in the room, causing the arguing brothers to cover their ears. The echo continued through the area, causing windows to vibrate and glass trinkets to jostle out of place. Loose books fell off the shelves and the sheets covering old furniture fluttered as if a gale blew about them. Slowly, the abnormal noise faded, leaving Wing and Novel hunched over, protecting their ears.
They both turned to see Danny standing up. His eyes shone with a flare neither had seen before.
Slowly, the youngest walked up to his senior, "Don't. Call sister. A whore. Ever."
The sheer fury Wing saw in his eyes made him flinch. But the rage was accompanied with wetness. Tears that were held back earlier were now falling from his face. His brother was in anguish. They caused this anguish.
"Danny…" he whispered, all rage gone from his system.
"I tried my best. To be like them. For us. I gave up my future, sacrificed everything to keep us together. I'm sorry it wasn't enough." Novel murmured. He walked past his brothers to his room, and closed the door behind. The audible click of the lock signified he wouldn't come out until morning.
Danny crumpled onto the floor, his expression once more taking a frightened appearance, silent sobs wracking his body again.
Wing approached him, but was held back by Steven.
"Not now, Wing"
"But-"
"Not. Now."
Wing approached the room Novel went into, his hand raised to knock on the door. He looked at his twin. A grave stare followed by a shake of the head was his answer.
Not wanting to argue, Wing frowned as he went to his old room, slamming the door behind as he entered. The entire frame shook and a few pictures were unleveled by the force.
Sighing, Steven turned to the last brother, still a mess in the middle of the living room. He put a caring hand on his shoulder, bringing the down-trodden younger brother out of his grief just for a second.
"I-I'm sorry Steven."
"It's not your fault D," he replied with sincerity.
"N-no, I'm sorry I used my s-semblance…"
Steven pulled Danny to his feet, looking him in the eyes, "It's not your fault. You don't have control yet, so strong emotions can cause it to… go off…"
He dusted his younger counterpart of imaginary lint before leading him to the last vacant bedroom.
Danny's room was painted light blue with white crown moulding. His twin-sized bed was at the far corner from the door, a small desk next to it. A built-in closet was opposite the bed and a window sat in between the bed and closet. To the left side were stacked tote boxes, full of items from their childhood. The room reeked of nostalgia.
"Now what?" Danny asked.
"Now we sleep. Then figure this mess out in the morning." Steven answered.
"Okay. Where will you sleep?"
Steven thought about it: Novel took his old bedroom and locked it. Wing took their bedroom and locked it too, which left their pare-
No. He wasn't ready yet.
"You still have that spare mattress somewhere?"
Danny gave him a small smile before pulling a foam mattress from underneath his own bed. He lay it on the floor next to his own bed before placing a pillow and blanket on it.
"Just like old times right Steven?" Danny mused.
Steven smiled wistfully, "Yeah, just like old times. Hey, wanna put on a song?" he pointed to the old record player sitting on the desk.
"Sure, what song though?"
Steven looked around for a vinyl record in the room. Sadly, none were there.
"Just wait here, I'll go get one." He answered.
Danny nodded and sat down on his bed, putting his hat and glasses on the desk beside it.
Steven closed the door as he left the room. Walking to the living room, he viewed the pictures mounted on the walls. A fine sheet of dust covered them all, but they were still the same. Pictures of their family in simpler, more innocent times.
Shaking his head of the memories, Steven continued into the living room. To the left of the television was their parent's eclectic music collection of old vinyl records and various CDs. They really liked the old school stuff and that trait was passed onto the four of them. He flipped through the vinyls before finding one in particular. It was the same song their parents loved to sing when someone needed motivation.
Just what we need. Steven thought morosely.
Trudging back to the room with his treasure, he opened the door to see Danny already in bed, arms rested above his head, face set straight in a thoughtful manner.
"You'll burn a hole in the ceiling if you stare that hard." He joked with a dead-set poker face.
Danny turned his gaze, his eyes sullen and red from the previous crying.
"We're gonna leave tomorrow, right?"
Steven sighed as he put the record on the player.
"I'm not sure D. We need a new place to stay. We can't just live with Novel and Aria once it happens."
"We could sell this place, get another." Danny suggested.
It was a good idea. Sell the old home, buy somewhere else. But this was their home, no matter how long they stayed in or away from it. Nothing could change that, or the events that had occurred.
Pushing his thoughts aside, Steven placed the player's arm over the vinyl and let go. A soft flute played in the background as he settled into his makeshift bed.
"Let's just sleep on it." Steven answered.
Seemingly satisfied, Danny turned to face the wall, slightly curling his body for more warmth. Steven closed his eyes as the deep voice started to croon:
Dream
When you're feeling blue
Dream
That's the thing to do
Just watch the smoke rings rise in the air
You'll find your share of memories there
So, dream when the day is through
Dream and they might come true
Things never are as bad as they seem
So dream, dream, dream
The fatigue was starting to set in. The music calmed his nerves. Each note from the violin was smooth and crystal, the flute playing in sweet harmony with the strings. It was a balm for the day's events. He drifted off, ever so slowly.
Dream when the day is through
Dream and they might come true
For things never are as bad as they seem
So dream, dream, dream
"Good night Danny." He mumbled half-asleep.
Danny replied sleepily, "Sweet dreams Steven."
His dreams were anything but.