Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 7 years, Level 10

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The entire family sat around the table eating breakfast. Luckily the kitchen had been spared in the previous day's grimm attack.

"So, Lenore." Ruby said, spraying little bits of waffle before remembering to swallow. "Where did you go when, ya know."

"Hmm…not sure…" Lenore used her claw to skewer a slice of apple before placing it on her plate. "I don't actually know the names of most of the places I fly… I must fix that."

"Well, why don't you describe it." Tai gathered some of the empty plates off the table and brought them to the sink. "I may not look it, but I've traveled a fair bit. Maybe I can pick it out."

"There was a lot of sand… and all the towns were by the water." Lenore thought back on the landscape. "There were griffins, deathstalkers, nevermore…"

"GRIMM!" Tai nearly dropped the plate he was trying to clean. "You need to be more careful, what if one of them had seen you!"

"They did." Lenore was ignorant to fear displayed on all of their faces. "I just flew away."

"But man." Yang was the first to recover. "I love the sound of beach towns. We should go sometime."

"...Creeps, wyrmms… and destromedaries…" Lenore finished her apple and carefully took her plate over to Tai. "I think those were all the gimm i saw…"

"Destromedaries?" Tai scratched his head. The name sounded familiar but there were certainly none in Vale. "Do they have 4 hooved legs and a big bone hump on their back, travel in big herds?"

"Yes." Lenore stood on her toes to place her plate on the counter. "But some of them had two humps."

"Phhp." Ruby laughed as she attempted to navigate her yogurt filled spoon to her mouth but still be involved in the conversation. "They sound silly looking."

"Lenore… How long were you flying over water before you got to land again." Tai had stopped washing and had his gaze fixed on the winged girl.

"About two and a half days…" Lenore responded innocently "But it only took about a day on the way back."

Tai took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Vacuo… you flew all the way to Vacuo… New rule, Lenore… When flying over water you need to stay close enough to see land."


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 7 years, Level 10

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"Alright, we've got a big day ahead of us," Tai said as they walked. In one hand he was carrying a list, in the other was Ruby. Lenore was circling just above eye level as Yang ran around after her. "First… I need to place an order at From Dust to Dawn…"

"Ooh." Ruby bounced slightly "Can I go to the magazine rack!?"

"Yes, but only if you leave when I say so." Tai stared down at his youngest, who was doing her best not to look him in the eye. "Don't want a repeat of last time."

"What happened last time?" Lenore asked, the blonde following her.

"Do you remember how we played with dominos?" Yang was trying to stifle a laugh. "It was like that, but with shelves."

"Right, after that we need to get some clothes for Lenore." Tai watched as Yang attempted to grab on to the faunus's ankles only for her to be out of reach.

"Why?" Lenore gave a good flap to stop her forward momentum. She gracefully landed behind Yang. "I already have three sets of clothes…"

For the sake of convenience, Tai had been washing her clothes every night so they wouldn't need to tear up any more old clothes. That would work in the short term but now that she would be living with them she needs a wardrobe.

Her comment caught her big sister's attention, who started to scratch her chin. "Are you counting… the bedsheet?"

"Yes." Lenore tilted her head to the side. "Why would I not?"

"Moving on…" Tai rolled his eyes. "You should change your clothes every day. If you only have 2 sets, you need to do laundry every day. Wouldn't it be better to have a larger amount so you can wait longer before needing to clean."

"Hmm... that's accurate." Lenore scratched her head. Yang had attempted to explain using fashion and taste… clothes tasted terrible. She had been mostly certain that they were not edible but … her sister's comment caused her to doubt.

"I think Lenore would look really good in a combat skirt." Ruby climbed out of her father's grip and onto his shoulders. "Dad, can we get matching combat skirts?"

"Sorry, skirts and flying are not a good combination." Tai shook his head and placed his now free hand on Ruby's foot. "So unless Lenore's going to stay on the ground…"

"No." Lenore stopped in her tracks.

"After clothes… that would be around lunchtime. "I'm thinking Party Pizza…"

Tai was cut off by squeals of delight from two-thirds of the girls. Cheers for wack-a-grimm and ball pits. He didn't miss the small smile on Lenore's face at the mention of pizza.

"Then, we finish off with some grocery shopping." Tai folded the list and placed it in his pocket when he felt a tug on the side of his shirt, a habit Lenore had developed when she wanted attention. "Yes, Lenore?"

"How will you three be getting to the mainland?" Lenore asked.

"Well, the main way off the island is by ferry." He responded pointing up at a flying bullhead. " I figured the four of us could fly together."

He noticed the odd look on her face, but couldn't figure out why… until they took off.


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 7 years, Level 10

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"Mr. Xiao-long…" Marron, the teenage girl acting as Lenore's tutor approached him as he prepared dinner. "I'm sorry but I can't in good conscience continue teaching your foster daughter."

Tai turned, fury obvious in her eyes. He had dealt with a few racist in the past but he had been careful when selecting Marron. She was one of his top students, she'd never shown any animosity towards faunus… until now. "Why."

"Sir… I swear it isn't what you think. She's a good girl if you get through her shell…" she sighed with relief when she saw his stern gaze soften. "But… I can't teach her things I don't know…"

"What do you mean?" Tai was taken aback, he was glad that he hadn't been wrong when he initially judged her character… but she was only a year out from acceptance to Haven Academy on a full scholarship, a model student. "Sure she's a great reader…"

"That's an understatement, to keep her attention I've had to assign her pre-war epics and high-level textbooks." Marron shook her head. "She's finished all the assigned reading up to a university level. She struggles with symbolism but otherwise… she probably understands this stuff better than me."

"Okay…" Tai scratched his chin. He knew about her reading advanced books as bedtime stories to Ruby and Yang but this is crazy. She grew up alone… where did she pick up reading at all… let alone being able to comprehend on such a high level. "What about everything else?"

"Applied science, arithmetic, history… she even found a physics book on the web…" Marron took a seat at the table and held her head. "I figured she has an eidetic memory, but it's more that that. She is able to understand how to apply all of what she has. I'm really glad she isn't at Signal or I could kiss my valedictorian seat goodbye."

"C'mon. You've got to be exaggerating. She's six, there's no way…" Tai stopped when he saw the serious look on his student's face. "Or...not."

"Sir, I'm glad you gave me this opportunity…" Marron hung her head. "...Sorry I couldn't live up to your expectations."

"Enough of that, how was I supposed to guess that Lenore'd be able to absorb stuff this fast. You've done great, and Headmaster Lionheart will be getting a glowing recommendation letter in the near future." Tai smiled in an attempt to cheer up the teen. "You wanna stick around for dinner, we've got more than enough."

"No thanks, sir." Marron turned and grabbed her bag with a smile. "My mom's expecting me home. I'll see you in class tomorrow."


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 7 years, Level 10

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"Ruby…" Lenore approached the small girl crying over her puppy. "What is the matter?"

"Z-zwei, he hurt his widdle paw-aw-aw" Ruby couldn't stop the flow of tears as the little pup licked them away. "It's all my-y-y-y fault. I stepted on it!"

After a quick identification, Lenore had determined that the dog was completely fine. But that did little to dissuade Ruby.

"But what if next time I D-DO! I CAN'T BE TRUSTED WITH THIS RESPONSIBILITY!" Ruby shouted, face buried in her hood. "I'll need to give him up… I need to do what's best for him."

Lenore realized that logically, it was highly unlikely that Ruby would or even could do permanent damage to the young dog… but Lenore had learned trying to talk logic to the child was meaningless. She longed to find a way to ease the girl's pain.

"Ruby. Give me some time to find a different solution…" Lenore gently hugged her… sister… they were now sisters. "I don't believe Zwei would wish to leave you."

"Alright." Ruby sniffled. "Thanks... Sis."

Lenore ran inside to get the scroll that Tai had let her use… Ruby needed help, and her sister would provide!


Tai arrived home with yang after a long day of shopping to find Lenore asleep on the couch. It was odd to find her sleeping without Ruby or Yang. He continued into the kitchen to find his youngest daughter jumping around their new puppy... it should be a completely normal scene… but it wasn't. Tai could feel it was… different.

"Ruby…" Tai pursed his lips. "Why does our dog have his aura unlocked?"


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 7 years, Level 10

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"More tea?" Ruby sat at her low play table, pouring imaginary tea into a cup. Across from her sat a crow… dressed in a frilly pink hat, red feather boa, and large sunglasses. It only responded with a squawk.

"Qrow…" Tai entered the bedroom, taken aback by how the avian attire. "If you're drunk…"

"Dad!" Ruby she shouted as her father as he glared menacingly at the bird. "That's not Uncle Qrow! That's Lenore!"

Ruby tugged slightly on the bird's wing revealing 2 clawed fingers… Tai couldn't help but think his original thought about his adopted daughter being a Branwen had far too much evidence to be a coincidence.

"Wait…" Ruby scratched her head "Uncle Qrow's not a bird…"

"Alright… you girls have fun, I'm gonna get back to…" as he was about to leave, an idea struck him. He pulled out his scroll and snapped a picture of the flamboyantly dressed fowl. As he walked back downstairs, he sent the picture to a few mutual friends. "Pete and Barty should get a kick out of this."


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 7 years, Level 10

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"Hey," Ruby said hanging over the back of Lenore's chair. "What'cha readin'?"

"Philosophy," Lenore responded, barely sparing her sister a glance.

"Must be tough to get you to make all those funny faces." Ruby giggled at Yang's comment.

"It is dissecting the futility of existence against the ever creeping darkness. How objects and emotions are fleeting and hold no value in the grand design of the universe. It all leads to a single question," Lenore spoke in a monotone voice, ignoring the dizziness evident in the young girl's eyes. "What is there in this world that truly makes living worthwhile."

The room went silent.

"Cats…" Yang said eventually "Cats are nice."


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 7 years, Level 10

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"Happy Birthday Yang," Ruby shouted, jumping up and down on Yang's bed. Lenore stood nearby, unsure why Ruby was so...loud so early.

"Awe, thanks." Yang pulled the two into a hug. "I'm lucky to have two amazing younger sisters this year."

"Younger…?" Lenore tilted her head sideways in confusion. "Yang, you just finished your seventh year, correct?"

"Uh…" Yang has long since become used to Lenore's odd word choices, but it still took her some time to figure out what the other girl meant sometimes. "Yeah, that sounds right, I think. I'm seven years old today."

"I became 7 years old the day I met you and Ruby," Lenore responded, leaving her two sisters with their mouths hanging open. After several minutes of stunned silence, Lenore realized something was off. "What is the matter?"

"Nope!" Yang snapped back to normal.

"Yang, what do you…" Ruby looked at Yang in confusion.

"Nope!" Yang interrupted, popping her the last syllable for emphasis.

"You can't just…" Ruby hopped up and down, annoyed at being interrupted. "Gahh!"

"I said… NOPE! I refuse." Yang gave Ruby's forehead a flick, making her fall backward off the bed. "I'm still the big sister. I don't care how old you are, Lenore."

"That is accurate," Lenore said as she helped the youngest to her feet. "We should go downstairs, your… dad is waiting."

"Wait, why aren't you arguing?" Yang hopped off her bed. "You just said, you were older!"

"Yes…" Lenore stepped in front of Yang and looked up into her eyes. "...But you are bigger."

'Hahahaha!" Yang placed her hands on her knees to support herself. "You're so funny."

The two apparently younger girl laughed, hugging their confused sister. Regardless of the cause, she always enjoyed these hugs.


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 8 years, Level 10

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"Check this out." Yang had produced a small grey box wrapped in wires from the basement.

"What is it…" Ruby ran her hand across the plastic case. "Some kind of… ancient relic."

"Kinda… it's a video game from when dad was a kid." Yang reached behind the television to hook the old console up. She produced a pile of dusty cartridges.

"I don't know… I'm pretty sure it's a weapon." Ruby said lifting one of the cartridges. "Why else would it have ammunition."

"Ruby…" Lenore looked at the object in her sister's hand. "Most ammo doesn't have a cartoon on it."

"Well, they should. When I make my weapon, it will." Ruby pouted. "So… wanna try it out?"

"Not particularly." Lenore returned to her scroll.

"Don't be like that." Yang popped the cartridge into the system. "Think of it as a learning experience."

Ruby giggled when Lenore began focusing on the tv. Yang always seems to know how to push their sister's buttons.


They had played for several hours. Yang's favorite had been a boxing game, while Ruby had mostly liked the Gimm hunter game that none of them could get past the first level of. Lenore, on the other hand, would pay attention for the first few attempts before tuning back out.

"Getting pretty late. We should make this the last one." Yang replaced the cartridge as Ruby yawned. They enjoyed the tune on the title screen for a moment before starting the game. "Standard slay the princess, save the dragon…"

The game had been dreadfully slow to the point that Ruby had actually fallen asleep. Yang would have called it quits an hour ago if it wasn't for the fact that Lenore had her eyes glued to the TV.

It started after the fourth or fifth boring fight… some kind of weird water drop thing… they had gained enough exp to level up. From that moment on, Lenore was hooked whether she'd admit it or not. Yang would do just about anything to make her sisters happy… but she was 110% done with this game. "I'm gonna bring Ruby upstairs and go to bed for the night."

"Okay." Yang noticed the slight fall in Lenore's mood.

"Ya know…" Yang lifted the sleeping girl onto her back. "If you want, you can play a little longer."

As Yang went up the stairs, she distinctly heard the sound of the game's boring fights.


Tai had a long hunt the night before. He didn't like staying out all night but he trusted the girls to be responsible… well… Yang and Lenore… most of the time. It was about 8:30 when he finally got back to his home.

"Huh… You're up early." When he entered he noticed Lenore sitting hunched on the couch, staring intently at the television. Lenore has always been an early riser, but it was rare to see her doing anything more than reading on her scroll without either Ruby or Yang. "Oh, I used to play this all the time. It's a classic. You having fun?"

Lenore grunted.

"Uh… Lenore are you listening?... I'm about to order pizza… Ruby's stuck in a well again." Lenore finally broke away from her game. "Wow, you're really into that game."

"No, I am on the couch." Lenore returned to her hunting. Tai chuckled when her face brightened at the sight of a little bubbling grey puddle…

"Hey, that's pretty far in…" Tai watched as the small puddle fled. "How long have you been playing…"

Lenore took a quick glance at a clock. "Fourteen minutes."

"It's morning…" Tai crossed his arms and stepped in front of the game.

"Oh…" Lenore looked up at Tai's face, attempting to figure out how he was feeling. "Twelve hours and Fourteen minutes…"

"Bed!" Tai spoke sternly, making his frustration as clear as possible. "Now!"

Tai looked back at his old favorite. It brought him back to a simpler time. He pulled out his scroll looking at an ad for the fifteenth game in the series. "Oh boy… how's she going to react to this."


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 8 years, Level 10

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"I still don't understand…" Lenore spoke as she walked hand in hand with Tai, " That woman was… angry? But anger should have a cause…"

"It… it's not your fault Lenore… entirely…" Tai was rubbing his forehead with his free hand as they walked up their driveway. They had taken a trip into the city together. It had been uneventful… until Lenore had discovered a lost purse. Tai had mentioned that they should find the owner when Lenore disappeared into the air… "That woman was… surprised by you calling out her name… from the air..."

"Why?" Lenore's head tilted "it's her name. Would she not be accustomed to people calling it."

"Then… you chased her around town…" Tai groaned at the memory. "You can't… you should land when trying to talk to people… especially, people, you've never met…"

"Alright." Lenore tended to easily learn from her mistakes after being corrected, especially social ones… problem is she'd take the advice as law… which would lead to other problems… such as the week she remained silent in public because of the 'don't talk to strangers' rule.

"And while we're on the subject… you're 'semblance'... You shouldn't use it too often…" Tai struggled to get the words out… she used her identify ability almost on instinct. To tell her not to… would be like telling her to not be herself. "Or at least… don't let anyone you don't trust know what you find out from it… Like, don't go shouting people's names when you only know about it because of Identification."

"Hmm…" Lenore was silent, thinking on what Tai had said. "Alright… that is understandable. You had told me before to keep my unique abilities secret… yet I failed to do so…"

"It's okay, Lenore." Tai patted her head. "As long as you remember to say it's your semblance, that should be enough to satisfy most people."

"Alright, I will be careful… Tai." She had her eyes focused on the ground. Tai couldn't help but laugh at her embarrassed face. "Can I ask another question?"

"Sure." he smiled

"She had an odd title… Street Walker…?" Lenore missed the exasperated look on Tai's face. "Most people walk on sidewalks… or trails… but for that to be her title…"

"Oh-okay… Lenore… you said yourself, people's titles shift around…" Tai scrabbled to come up with an excuse. "You shouldn't make decisions based off of them… and who knows maybe some of these titles are… private…?"

"Alright, but titles provide me with status increases." Tai stared down at the girl, hoping he was wrong about what he believed was coming next… "I was going to attempt to gain the title…"

"NOPE! NO! NAH-UH! NO!" Tai shouted as they walked.


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 8 years, Level 10

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"A…" Lenore stared at her sisters "Transformation call?"

"Yeah! Something you can shout right before you turn into a bird!" Ruby was jumping repeatedly into the air. "Like 'Moon Diamond Power' or 'Transform-a-gogo' or…"

"All the best heroes have one." Yang was leaning against a wall watching the fun. "Wouldn't it be awesome?"

"I don't understand the point…" Lenore said flatly as Ruby stopped bouncing. "Also… I am not a hero…"

Yang walked over and hugged her sisters. "You are to us."

Lenore went beet red as a strange heat welled up within her. It wasn't the painful heat that Tai had called 'angry'...it was kind of pleasant but difficult… She wasn't sure if she wanted the feeling to go away or continue.

"So, I was thinking something like…" Yang hopped up, landing with her legs spread apart and right hand on the ground while the left was pointed upwards. "INSTINCT AWAKEN!" she swung her arms in a circular motion, settling them at her chest. Her knees were bent keeping her crouched low, before popping up while spreading her arms out "Form, CROVIS!"

Lenore could only watch as Ruby clapped. The motions were unnecessary, and the word choices nonsensical… but for some reason, Ruby enjoyed it? Why?

"OOH! ME NEXT!" Ruby stretched one arm forward while bringing her other hand to meet it. "Change Soul, SET!" she crossed her palms over her head, "LET'S GO!" spread her arms to shoulder with, "ON!" and finally waved her arms down while jumping into the air, "WINGS! That's the part where you fly up and transform!"

"Nice one, sis." Yang patted Ruby on the back. "So, what do ya think?"

"They seem… long, complicated and nonsensical. If this is meant to be used when no one is around, it's pointless…" Ruby's face fell as Lenore spoke. "If not… it's distracting…"

"Well…" Ruby sat with her shoulders slumped and her arms and legs crossed. "...If you know so much, why don't you make one yourself."

Lenore stood scratching her chin... if she was going to do this… it would need to be short, simple, non-intrusive and be descriptive… she had it.

"Bird…" Lenore stood bringing her arm in a circular motion from her opposite hip, past her legs and towards her forehead, "GO!"

With a small flash, the girl was no more. In her place stood a raven with bright red eyes and two claws on each wing. It tilted its head sideways and look expectantly at the girls.

"Phhp…" Yang tried to suppress her laughter, unlike her sister who was rolling on the ground holding her gut. "Don't you think it's a little...simple?"

*CAW*

"But don't you think…" Ruby started

*CAW*

"Lenore, don't be like that…" Yang smirked

*CAW CAW*

"OKAY! Fine." Yang covered her face, trying to hide her laugh. "It's impossible to argue when you're like this."


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 8 years, Level 10

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"Tai…" Lenore tugged gently on the back of his shirt.

She had been living in the Xiao-long household for nearly two years. It had been the warmest… the happiest time in her life. She didn't always agree with her two new sisters, but she cared for them all the same. Tai had shown her that 'having a roof over her head' was not the world-shattering tragedy she once believed it to be. She was family…

"What's up, Lenore?" He turned to her with a smile.

"A direction pointing to a higher location." Tai often asked odd questions, she had learned to ignore these and continued with her original thought. "I… wish to travel again…"

"Lenore…" his smile lowered as he placed his hand on her shoulder. "You know how dangerous it is… Can't you just keep exploring Patch?"

"I have spent the last year exploring every alleyway, forest, cave and crevice within a 3 hour flight of the house… I… I don't want to leave… Not forever…" Lenore felt a cold feeling as she spoke. She was cold when she thought of leaving, but also when she thought of never leaving… "I can't fully understand… but I need to travel… I want to know more."

"Lenore…" Tai sighed and turned away from his adopted daughter. "I worry enough with you soaring around Vale all day… I can't even imagine what it'd be like if you were wandering the world…"

"Tai…" Lenore didn't like this feeling, the thought of Tai worrying about her made her… not happy. "I traveled alone in the world for several years…"

"I know!" Tai shouted, causing Lenore to flinch back. "Sorry, I know… but that doesn't make it okay… I just want to keep you safe."

"I… understand." Lenore hung her head, she understood his argument… but didn't like it. Logically, it would be best to stay here and learn via scroll… but she missed the freedom. She made to return to her room when she felt a hand stop her.

"I was… going to wait for your next birthday." Tai turned and pulled small box, wrapped in purple paper and a silver ribbon. "Go ahead."

Lenore gently untied the ribbon and unfolded the paper, careful not to rip it. She opened the box to reveal a new scroll, slightly bulkier than the hand-me-down she had been using, with a silver case with several durable-looking clasps on the back. She ran the back of her finger across the screen, specially hardened so her claws wouldn't scratch it.

Even though she had tried her best to take care of her previous one, two years had not been kind to it. It had become difficult to read at times, it's battery life was a great deal shorter, not to mention the time Ruby had drawn a mustache on it… but it was gift, she valued it.

"So, what do ya think? We went all out, weatherproof, extended solar battery, long range signal receiver, voice activation, and a case so tough a goliath could step on it…" Tai's smiled down at the girl gently caressing her gift as if it was made of gold. He took the scroll and attached it to her suspenders. "But this gift comes with a new set of rules…"

Lenore didn't make a sound. She simply nodded.

"First, the rule about oceans still stands. Stay on the continent. Second, call at least every other day. Third, come home every week." Tai crossed his arms and leaned against the wall. "If you can't accept that…"

"I accept!" Lenore practically jumped. With a quick flap of her wings, she had hopped out of the room and up the stairs… inevitably to tell her sisters.

Tai chuckled a bit. Despite not understanding them, she sure wears her emotions on her sleeve. "How long before this comes back to bite me in the ass…"

Lenore's head peeked back around the corner. Tai walked over and she jumped up into his arms. "Thanks… Dad."

Tai smiled to himself. He could see how red her face was, a pretty big difference from her normally pale skin. He gently pats her head. "Totally worth it."


"Daaad…" Ruby whined as her father tucked her into bed. He knew what was coming. Yang had taken Lenore's… trip much better than he expected, but whenever she had a free moment she was running her hand over her sister's necklace. Ruby, on the other hand, had asked the same thing every morning and night. "When's Lenore gonna…"

Ruby was cut off by a unique ringtone from her father's scroll. She squealed with glee as he took it out of his pocket and answered. "Hey Lenore, we were just talking about you."

"I'm sorry…" Tai pressed his face into his hand. "I'm going to need to break a rule… I just wanted to ask which one."

"What do you mean…" Tai groaned as he sat himself on Ruby's bed.

"I… have miscalculated…" He could hear her hesitation. "I would like to say that, so far… I have listened perfectly but… for me to make it home tomorrow, I would need to fly over the ocean… I could return by land, but it would take me another three days..."

"Lenore…" Tai was so exasperated, he didn't register his youngest daughter crawling into his lap and taking the scroll.

"LENORE! It's me, Ruby! Do you remember me?" She shouted into the scroll. "When will you be home, did you get me a souvenir, where are you?"

"Hello Ruby, I do indeed remember you." Ruby was shaking with excitement. "I'm in the process of finding out when I'll be home, yes, and…Vacuo…"

"Vacuo…" Tai groaned, of course, she'd be in Vacuo. Lenore was right… If she took the land route, she hadn't broken any rules… It's not like the continental boundary was drawn on the ground… "...Just… come home… whichever way is safest."

"Alright." Lenore responded "Safest would be straight back. I'll be home tomorrow evening. Goodnight Ruby… Goodnight… Dad."

Tai shook his head. She had somehow diffused all of his anger with a single word… "Did she do that on purpose?"


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Lenore Xiao-Long, Female Lenore, Age: 10 years, Level 10

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"Get your butt down here!" Yang shouted and stomped her feet as she glared up at Lenore. She was perched up on the top of a nearby tree.

"No." Lenore said firmly "My butt, as well as the rest of me, will be staying up here."

"Phhp." Ruby giggled as she held Zwei in her lap. "Butt!"

"Ruby, this is serious!" Ruby recoiled from her sister's harsh words. "Now, Lenore!"

"I'm staying up here!" She didn't budge. "If come down, you're going to hit me again!"

"That's the point of TRAINING!" Yang began kicking the trunk of the tree in a vain attempt to knock her down. "I'm TRYING to teach you how NOT to get hit!"

"I already know how!" Lenore swooped over to the roof of the shed. "See!"

"Well, she's got ya there, sis." Ruby laughed so hard she fell to the ground on top of the small corgi.

"You can't just run from every fight!" Yang dashed to the shed just as Lenore left for a new location. "What happens if you get cornered or can't fly!?"

"I'd likely die, training or not." Lenore's blunt response caused Yang to drop her attempted assault. "It's a fact. My wings are too fragile to use in combat and my fingers can't properly grip a weapon…"

"That's why dad made these tonfa!" Yang motioned to the discarded metal rods lying on the ground. "So… GET! OVER! HERE!"

"I… kinda gotta side with Lenore on this one…" Ruby raised her hand to get her sister's attention. "Two fingers means she can't switch between melee and range easy, needing to block with her vulnerable wings, and worst… if she wants to fly she needs to drop them or use her secret semblance…"

"You little weapon geek…" Yang threw down her training gloves. "Fine, but someday you're gonna need to stand your ground! When that happens, don't come crying to me!"

"I'd say that went rather well," Lenore said landing next to Ruby. "I thought she'd be angry."

"You sure this is what you want?" Ruby turned to Lenore. "If you don't start training, you'll never make it in combat school."

"I don't plan on attending." Lenore missed the shock evident on her sister's face. "I'm not like you and Yang. I don't feel the need to fight for those I don't know and I barely have the strength to stand for those I do. I'm confident that both of you will be powerful huntresses… but I don't believe that I walk the same path."

"Hmm… but you saved us." Ruby hugged the older girl tight. "I think you're wrong, but I'll stick with you. That's what family is all about."


"Well…" Qrow sat at the kitchen table, watching the exchange. "That complicates things."


A.N/ Updated 11/26/17

Here we go, the first set of fluff. These were all little cute ideas I had that i couldn't figure out how to naturally work into chapters. I mentioned the Grape one in my last note, but another story that wound up being cut was Lenore learning about Lien. I actually had been setting it up with Lenore's Magpie's nest but it turned out... dull so i cut it. figure the best way to talk about this would be to go mini chapter by mini chapter.

Breakfast:

This one actually got written a lot later than the rest of these. You guys may have realized she flew to Vacuo... But Tai certainly didn't. So, i kind of wanted to write a scene with him finding out EXACTLY how far she'll travel if he lets her. Also... I like imagining grimm being native to certain areas like animals... so i wanted to come up with a desert grimm and I had this great idea for a giant scorpian...then i remembered that we already have one of those... So camel...

Trip

I felt like I needed more family fluff and I also wanted to show that, even though Lenore doesn't understand her emotions... she still shows them. And air sickness...

Tutor

I'm not 100% satisfied with this one... maybe makes her too Mary Sue... but i feel like it will balance out later. This was also to justify her not needing to go to elementary school. As far as i have planned... which is the end of Volume 3... Marron will not be making another appearance...

Zwei

Okay...so... Ever since vol 2, me and my friends have speculated about Zwei. My favorite idea we came up with was, one day... Ruby or Yang just decided to awaken Zwei's aura without permission... Also giving that role to Lenore kinda felt right... here's the problem and here is a ridiculously over the top solution that ONLY makes logical sense and no other sense.

Tea Party

Dam... (EXTREMELY MINOR SPOILERS FOR VOL 5 EP 7) I didn't realize Qrow turning into a bird was a secret... but i liked this too much so i kept it... so :P

Cats

BMBLB CONFIRMED... joking. Honestly... this was put in mostly because I just started reading a new book series... also... BMBLB... Look, I know Black Sun is basically cannon... but I will go down with my ship. NUTS AND DOLTS FOREVER! DOWN WITH ROSE GARDEN! DOWN WITH LANCASTER!

Birthday

Okay... so everyone may have noticed that Yang was calling herself Big sis even though Lenore is older... HERE'S THE SIMPLE EXPLANATION! And yes, Yang is still big sister.

NES

So...this was originally a full 2000 word chapter that was 90% lenore plays Dragon Warrior (I live in the states so the original game was called that)... but it was probably too self-indulgent so i cut it down. Also... Yang enjoyed Punch Out... and Ruby... Ghouls and Ghosts (Ruby has some hardcore tastes). And don't sisters just know how to push buttons...

And to A Friend/Kaiser Frunn... does this answer your question? (asked if i was a fan of Dragon Quest based on my name.)

Roxanne

So... I have no words... I wanted to establish that she keeps her abilities secret for the most part and... prostitute... enough of that. The name of the Prostitute was originally in the chapter but I got cut... it follows the color rule because... YOU DON"T HAVE PUT ON THE RED LIGHT!

Henshin-A-Go-Go

Okay... this one was actually supposed to be set up for a later joke about Lenore being terrible at naming things...that got cut... but ... this was too much fun for me to write... I had a few more but trimmed them out... Like 'Henshin-A-Go-GO, Baby' but i felt it went on too long. Yang's idea is from Zyuohger (if you read my previous AN you'd know i'm a huge super sentai fan) and Ruby's was from Go-Onger... While lenore's... was actually from Gatchaman Crowds... Yes, their transformation call was that lame.

Travel

This was actually the first mini-chapter I wrote. I kinda wanted Lenore to get all huffy without knowing why because she know's Tai's reasons are good... but still be annoyed. Also... calling him dad... i've established she gets embarrassed without knowing why... but she's trying.

Training

This... This was another one that i had PLANNED a full chapter for but I just... couldn't. So the Punchline survived. I really wanted to push... Lenore is NOT a fighter, she ISN'T the selfless hero, she doesn't WANT to be a huntress. I had a couple reviews and pm saying that she didn't feel like she belongs in Beacon, they were calm and constructive... and one essentially cursing me out for that. I actually disagree, I think that you can only learn so much alone, so a school would be perfect for her to collaborate and learn with others who know different things... but Lenore agrees with the reviewers... I have plans, plans that do 100% involve Beacon. So if that's a turn off for some of you, i figured i'd give you the heads up now. But beacon is where the characters are, it's where the plot happens. I am always impressed with the people who write a good story away from beacon but... i want to have lenore interact with Team JNPR and CFVY. Deal with Cardin's bullying and Weiss's... weissness... I want her to meet Kali's daughter and "other Faunus". Lastly, Lenore is the ONLY important OC so that means that either the other game pieces are unimportant (d you really think i'd bother setting it up if that was the case) or are existing characters. And where are 90% of characters?(Don't worry, it is 100% not Jaune)... Taking the OC to beacon is a trope i don't think i can break away from...and even if i could... i don't think i would. I'm sorry if any of you don't like it but i will stand my ground. also...is the plural of Tonfa... Tonfas or just Tonfa... I'm leaning towards Tonfa...

I hope you enjoyed these snippets... Next weeks will be a bit shorter but... a bit less fluffy... if fact... one of the mini-chapters is ALMOST a full chapter but... i wanna get to cannon. Please remember to Follow, Favorite and Review. I love all the feedback i get even the negative shows that they cared enough to want to read.