RWBY /c/ RoosterTeeth


Please Note: For topics referenced in this chapter, I'm uncertain whether or not I should bump this story's status up to M. So, please leave your thoughts in the reviews and I'll update its rating.


What a Wonderful World...


Chapter 9

Have you ever had those moments where your entire existence seemed to hinge on one vital discovery, only to have it completely shattered by an inconvenient reality?

Right now Summer didn't feel sadness, disappointment, joy or any kind of emotion. After the tears had dried up; all she felt was empty. Exhausted both mentally and physically. It was her own fault. Five torturous days of stringing herself along on some stupid fate-defying hope ended in a soul crushing revelation. She couldn't even bring herself to feel relieved in some morbid way; that she hadn't failed her family a second time.

Beacon's courtyard looked miserable as ever through the glass double doors. The sky seemed content to weep enough for the both of them. Summer's back was pressed against the hallway wall while she gazed out. Desolation written over her expression and her arms wrapped loosely around herself in a halfhearted attempt to stave off the chilly draft.

Her head jerked slightly when a familiar catchy theme tune broke through her melancholy. Her scroll ring tone, which vibrated in her blazer pocket in time to the song lyrics. She slipped her fingers into her pocket and opened the scroll, and immediately felt her heart lift a modicum when she saw the contact.

'I pause and look back, and then I lose track, I spent so much time I can-' Click.

Summer pressed the answer button and held the scroll to her ear with a faintly comforted smile. How does father always know when I need a pep talk?

"Hi daddy." She answered dutifully.

"So, how was your last mission? You were gonna call me when it was over, remember?" Her father scolded her playfully, the rain's interference giving his tone a static quality. Even without his image, Summer could easily imagine his teasing grin.

But she remained silent, her mouth opening and closing many times while trying to find the words.

"... Is something wrong?" Fatherly concern bled through now.

"No… Yes... I don't know." Summer admitted heavily, resting her forehead against the glass door. Condensation from her breath fogged the surface.

"You sound like you could use ten days sleep." Her father joked lightly, trying to lift her spirits.

"I feel like it." Summer started to draw little patterns with her finger. Another moment passed. "Hey Daddy, can I tell you something?"

"Anything, sweetie." Her father returned then fell silent, waiting for Summer to finish her thought.

"I'm - I've had a rough few days. I found something - someone I should say... that reminded me of Ru-ru, a-and I guess I just," She paused to wipe her shimmering eyes. "I just got my hopes up, but-?"

She heard her father exhale heavily into the scroll's mic piece at the unspoken question.

The subject of her little sister - and her mother was always a difficult one despite their deaths being a decade ago now. Her father chose not to talk about it, focusing instead of being the best father he could for his last remaining child, doing his best to help her deal with the grief. Teaching her to channel it into her ambitions and other efforts instead.

However, while time may heal all wounds, the scars still ache now and again.

"No force in this world can reawaken the dead, Rose Petal."

"I know. And I know I was stupid to think it, but-" Summer cut herself off, despite her exhaustion she felt her eyes glisten again.

"Petal, listen to me. It's not stupidity to miss we've lost, but it is to dwell on things we can't change. We live for the sake of a better future, not to change the past."

"I know Dad. It's just - she looked so much like Ruby… but her eyes were different." Summer sighed feeling her voice crack again, her gaze focusing on her transparent reflection in the glass. "They were silver, like mine and yours."

"Hmm…" Her father hummed, she heard him exhale deeply again. "I can understand why you'd react that way, and I wish I could sound more consoling, but you know it's not possible."

"I know."

Her father cleared his throat and began again, clearly eager to change the subject. "Unfortunately, I've got some more bad news. I'm going to be on back-to-back assignments, so I can't take you to the festival next month like I promised."

"That's okay Daddy."

"It's not actually. I would have liked to have spent some time with my little girl."

"Not so little anymore, Dad. Besides, the way my team has been working, I don't think we'd be attending either. Soooo... raincheck?" Summer replied, adding her last words as a mild joke.

"Raincheck. But with that being said, the Vytal festival's only… what, six months away? Is there any possibility of seeing Team STRQ on the tourney board?" He inquired, sounding slightly hopeful, and totally not like an unsubtle suggestion.

Summer rolled her eyes with a tired smile and answered honestly. "I hadn't even thought about it."

"No pressure. Juuust floating the idea." He almost sounded completely innocent… almost. That got Summer to chuckle quietly. Thanks Dad. She thought contently, his spirits lifted significantly higher than they were ten minutes ago.

She swallowed. "Hey Dad? Can you put some flowers on Ru's and Mama's grave for me the next time you're in Atlas?"

"Of course, Rose Petal. Get some sleep and I'll see you soon. I love you."

"I love you too. Be safe." Summer ended the call, glancing at the contact photo. A selfie shot of the two of them on her first day of Beacon.

She closed the scroll and slipped it into her pocket resting her other hand on the glass door handle. Inhaling a calming breath, Summer spared a glance over her shoulder. Part of her wanted to go back and try to sort this issue out. To try and understand why this Ruby thought she was her mother. But what exactly do you say to someone like that?

Closing her eyes, Summer took another deep breath and opened them again. This time they were set with determination. She had to get her own head on straight first, then she'll talk to the Ruby who kept calling her 'mother'. It wouldn't do anyone good if she broke down into tears again.

Summer wanted to listen to her, listen her friends, and maybe together figure out how everything happened. And she wouldn't be alone next time either. She planned to have Qrow, Tai and hopefully Raven there with her. Between the four - eight of them, they'll figure out what happened and then figure out how to handle it from now on.

Summer grimaced. Another thing she'd have to do was talk with Raven too. She'd never seen her teammate burning with such fury before, even against the Grimm. The closest she'd seen was one time where Qrow was knocked off balance by an Ursa, but that was subdued, not explosive like just now.

It was a little scary and Summer could only hope she wouldn't do something all of STRQ would regret.


"- so Weiss, Blake and I went to the library to figure out what's going on, and then I came back to check on you."

Yang explained the whole story of their unusual situation to Ruby, whose eyes seemed to glaze over. Her mind still trying to process the information, as well as the harsh scene that she'd witnessed before whiteness consumed her entire world.

Pyrrha's and Penny's deaths still weighed heavily on her thoughts. Made worse by Yang admitted she had no idea how they even arrived at this strange evidently past version of Beacon. Her thoughts turned to Summer, her beloved mother, outright rejecting Ruby as her daughter. And Raven rejecting Yang in a far more vicious emotional fashion.

Now the sisters sat on her medical cot, their legs dangling over the side, discussing the situation over a cup of water. Occasionally pausing to take a slow mechanical sips. Her silver hues rested on Yang's slinged arm, which Yang noticed.

"I don't know either," She voiced, answering the silent question while giving her fingers a testing flex. She pointed to the thin red scar line just above her elbow. "Doc said my muscles are atrophied below here."

"Does it hurt?" Ruby asked tentatively, playing with her fingers.

"It's… more pins and needles than pain. It hurt when I woke, but not anymore." Yang explained, Ruby regarded her with sad eyes before setting aside her plastic cup and wrapping her arms around Yang's neck.

"I'm so glad you're okay." She choked, closing her wet eyes and hugging just a little tighter. Yang returned the hug as best she could with her working arm, leaning into it.

"Not completely, but… we'll get there." The sisters held each other for a long time, taking comfort in the other's presence and the fact they simply survived. They parted and Ruby sat back down, her legs swaying slightly while trying to collect her thoughts.

"So… what happens to us now?" She began quietly glancing up at Yang. "I mean, this isn't… our Beacon right? Where are we going to stay or sleep?"

"Oxblood - the Doctor, said that Professor Ozpin was going to bring our room keys by the Library after a memorial service. It finished a few hours ago so I think Weiss and Blake should have the keys by now." Yang explained, downing the rest of her water.

"Do you think the Doctor would be okay if we went to see Weiss and Blake?" Ruby asked, eyeing her black dress and red cape.

"We can leave a note, but are you sure you're up to walking around?"

Ruby answered her sister's concern with determination written across her features. She immediately stood up and striped off her patient shirt. "I don't know what Mum is thinking or why she doesn't recognise us, but I have to make sure my team is okay. And I have to find out what's going on."

But that's the knotty problem wasn't it. Summer did recognise Ruby, but not as her daughter, as her younger sister. Half way through slipping on her dress, which Yang helped with as best she could, Ruby glanced over her shoulder.

"Hey Yang? Mum didn't have a sister... did she?"

Yang paused, her lilac hues focusing on the ground and her brows furrowed in thought. "No. She was an only child."

"Hmm…" Ruby hummed, frowning herself as she slipped on her boots and placed Crescent Rose snuggling in her waist holster.

Yang had gone over to the nurse's desk, taking a stack of yellow post-it notes and a pen, it was the closest thing she could find to blank paper. Ruby wrote a message and sighed it before sticking it visibly on her bed table.

By the time they'd left the medical ward, twilight had comfortably slipped into night. Beacon's courtyard was lit with pale white laps made hazy through the rainfall and students scurried between buildings to avoid getting wet. Ruby froze for a minute. Memories of the Grimm ravaging the school flashed in her mind, but she shook her head and pushed the doors open in pursuit of the library.


"Whoa, back up. I started a fight with your sister?" Qrow put on a rather convincing display of indignation, hand pressed to his chest and all. He turned to Taiyang who slouched in his chair with his head propped up on his hand, "That doesn't sound like me."

Slowly, Taiyang's half-hooded blank gaze shifted from Weiss to Qrow, where he watched him silently. Weiss had her hands on her hips and her lips pursed in a thin line.

Qrow raised his hands in defense. "Hey, I don't start fights. I just provoke others to starting them for me."

Taiyang's gaze narrowed further while sucking in a loud breath, then pointed at him while his attention shifted back to Weiss. "Technically, he is correct."

"Thank you, Tai." Qrow responded solemnly.

Weiss was thoroughly unimpressed, shaking her head in judgement while her hands rested imperiously on her hips.

"You can sit down if you want, we're not gonna bite." Qrow pulled out the chair next to him for her to sit down, now sounding completely sincere.

"Yeah, please. I'm Tai, you seem to know Qrow. We're actually got a couple million questions we'd like to ask, if you're up for it." Taiyang continued, straightening up and folding his hands on the table.

Weiss glanced at him and her gaze narrowed, as if trying to read his body language for any kind of trick. A second later she took the chair, dragged it a little further out and sat down with her hands clasped over her lap in an elegant lady-like manner.

"Pretty sure the obvious one's first; how'd the hell did you end up unconscious in that forest?" Qrow said, exchanging a small nod of acknowledgement with Taiyang.

Before Weiss could answer, Taiyang held a preemptive hand up to stop her. "Sorry, before you begin, maybe you should bring your friend down?" He leaned forward and nodded to the second level where all three hunters could see Blake reading through one of the archived newspaper folders.

He glanced back at Weiss with a polite smile. "Just so we're all on the same page?"

"I think Blake's just had the same idea," Weiss noted looking up towards her teammate who noticed her gaze, then waved her down.

Taiyang and Qrow watched while Blake quickly left her seat and picked up the ring bound folder to take with her. Less than a minute later she arrived at their table, with a deeply disturbed expression etched in her features. But it was clear she had more interest in questions than introducing herself.

"What's the Umber Village virus?" Blake asked setting the folder down and opening it to the newspaper article of March, 756.

Everyone knew that was the month of the first outbreak. Taiyang and Qrow both stared at her in stunned disbelief before exchanging unnerved looks. "The reports call it 'Black Vein', what is it?"

"Black Vein?" Weiss echoed, shifting between Blake and the old newspaper clipping she'd singled out. "I've never heard of it before?"

Taiyang looked stricken, and Qrow went paler than milk. He looked like he wanted to be sick. "You don't know what that is?" He was totally incredulous, watching the two girls skeptically. "How do you not know?!"

"That plague is reason we lost Mountain Glenn and Patch to the Grimm." Taiyang explained fiercely. His tone was more even than Qrow's, but he too felt a mix of illness and anger at those memories. He simply managed to mask the majority of it.

"That damn thing is the reason we don't have more than a dozen huntsmen left in Vale!" Qrow commented bitterly, swallowing hard and trying to look anywhere by the paper clipping.

"But, Mount Glenn fell because of poor perimeter defense and excessive Grimm attack." Weiss protested sternly.

"She's right. Our history Professor told us it the surface city fell and the inhabitants moved underground before subterranean Grimm wiped them out." Blake chimed in.

Taiyang snorted. "He should check his information. Mount Glenn didn't even get that far. The people who didn't die in the Grimm attack died of the Black Vein." Even saying the words sent a shiver of revulsion down Taiyang's spine.

"But Patch is fine. It's a productive farming island that serves as a primary source of agricultural goods for Vale." Weiss explained in a know-it-all sort of way.

"It fell." Qrow said in a low voice.

"Qrow." Taiyang warned.

"I'm telling you, it hasn-"

"I was there!" Qrow snapped in a sudden burst of rage, his eyes flashing a dangerous red and Weiss recoiled, her blue eyes wide with terror.. Blake leaned across with a fierce frown, ready to defend her teammate. "I saw it happen! Don't you dare sit here and tell me it didn't goddamn happen!"

Taiyang reached across the table and snatched his forearm. "Qrow, chill the fuck out." He ordered sternly.

Qrow closed his eyes and lifted his hands up as a gesture of assent and leaned back in his chair, clearly struggling to control his breathing.

For their generation, Mount Glenn and Patch were sore spots. Sources of anger, helplessness, resentment, bitterness and an overwhelming desire for vengeance. A vast majority of young Vale and Atlas Huntsmen in-training often sourced them as motivations for becoming warriors; A chance for vengeance against the Grimm and to reclaim what was rightfully humanity's territory. Taiyang had a feeling Qrow was one of them.

"I'm sorry on his behalf," Taiyang offered to Weiss, ignoring the petulant look Qrow shot him out of the corner of his eye. "It's a… rough spot for all of us. There isn't a kid in our generation who didn't lose someone ten years ago."

"I see." Weiss nodded slowly.

"But how?" Blake interjected, her brows furrowed in confusion. "Or rather, why? Why do you recall Patch falling," Qrow shot her a nasty look, "Why do we recall a different history to the one you're describing?"

"Over here." A voice cut off any answer the question would have received. Blake and Weiss' heads whipped around to their left. Peering past them, Taiyang and Qrow could see Yang and Ruby approaching. When the young red head saw her teammates, she broke into a quick sprint.

"Ruby!" They called her name together.

"Oh thank goodness you're alright!" Ruby caught Weiss and Blake's hands together, relief visible on her face.

"Holy shit." Taiyang whispered, he and Qrow fixated on Ruby. They'd exchanged perplexed looks before one of them finally broke the silence.

"Gez, are we sure someone didn't just clone Summer?" Qrow muttered.

"Uncle Qrow? Dad? Is that really you?" Ruby's wide silver eyes darted between the two huntsmen, who delved further into shock and confusion.

"... O… kay?" Qrow began, looking and feeling suitably freaked out. "I'm your uncle… and he's your dad… " He finished while nodding slowly, as if indulging a couple of crazy kids.

"Yeah…?"

"Hmm… right…" Qrow said, looking between Yang and Ruby appraisingly. His gaze narrowing before he sucked in a breath and turned to his teammate "Well… This is straight up f.u.b.a.r. What do you think?"

"Taiyang-dot-exe has crashed, please try again." Taiyang replied, leaning on his fist. And from his expression, his brain really did seem to just shut down in mind boggling confusion. He opened his mouth to say a few words but they died on his tongue. Taiyang clasped his hands and pressed them to his lips, glaring daggers through the table.

"D-dad, are you okay?" Yang tried to ask, but Taiyang held a finger up to silence her, then resumed the pose.

"Yea-up, my brain just died. Do us a solid and explain how that works please?" He'd given up figuring it out. "Cause, I'm only seventeen, he's sixteen-"

"Seventeen, dude."

"Seventeen, sorry, and you're… what? Our age?" Taiyang questioned, running a hand through his golden locks. "So unless I was sleeping around as an infant - which is creepy - you're gonna have to explain that one."

"Yes. Explain as you would a child… 'cause he's a dumbass." Qrow tossed a thumb to his teammate, and ignored the snarl he got in return. But Yang and Ruby did giggle despite themselves.


The gym was empty this time of night, which was perfect. Raven didn't want anyone disturbing her right now. More than likely, she would have used them as a punching bag rather than the padded wooden dummies lined around the room.

Her blazer, blouse and shoes lay discarded in a mess on the bleachers, leaving her with her dark crimson tank top, now soaked with sweat. She unleashed a torrent of punches and kicks against her target before pausing. Her ears perked up when she heard footsteps and her eyes crept to her bundle of clothes. If that was the headmistress, the bitch would toss her in detention again.

"Figured I'd find you here." It was Taiyang who wondered in casually and sat himself down on the bleachers.

"Tai, no offense, I'm really not in the mood to talk right now. So please leave me be." At least she managed some form of curtsy to her friend in this frenzy. Raven pulled back her fist ready to strike again before Taiyang's words cut her off.

"I heard about what Yang did." He said. Raven's aggressive posture dropped, and she turned her face to her teammate. The blood had long since stopped and been washed, but her lip was split and her nose was darkened with a purple-black bruise.

"Did she also tell you her little fairy tale?" Raven spat bitterly, then added the next part in an obviously faked pleasant tone. "That apparently I'm her beloved mother dearest."

Shaking her head, she resumed her volleys. "Yeah. And I'm her dad." Taiyang confessed heavily. That stopped Raven completely in her tracks.

"Don't tell me you're buying into that garbage they're selling?" She replied after a minute of silence. "It sounds like the plot of a horrible b-grade movie!"

"I don't know, Raven." Taiyang tossed his hands up, shaking his head. "But they knew things, private things. Likes, dislikes, habits, hell even my secret short cake recipe."

He studied her for a moment, and his eyes narrowed. "And you believe them too, don't you?"

"What could possibly compel you to say that?"

"Why else would you be this frigging angry?"

"Cause that little blond bitch decked me in the fact and accused me of abandoning my family!"

Taiyang was taken aback. "What?" That was ludicrous! The twins were nigh-inseparable partners in crime. Tai had only known them three months but couldn't even fathom any truth to that. "So you're angry cause she hit you?"

"I'm not angry… because she hit me… I'm angry… 'cause she was RIGHT! Ugh!"

Raven punctuated her rage fueled ranting with a dizzying flurry of punches, but her last wasn't aimed properly. Instead her fist slipped and the force of her blow shot straight through her wrist. Seething in pain and anger, Raven turned a few paces away, cradling her hurt wrist before swinging back around with a massive roundhouse kick, one loud enough to echo through the empty gym.

Taiyang watched her with sad eyes. He'd never see her like this. Raven had always this air of maturity, power and grace. Now she was savage, angry. Like someone had uncaged a feral beast.

"How?" He asked simply, hands loosely linked in his lap as he leaned forward. Raven's crimson eyes spared him a look, but instead of the anger, there was sorrow and perhaps surprise before a grim acceptance.

Her chin dropped to her chest before she adopted another fighters pose and began her punching again. She could only do one or two more before the simple question forced her to stop. Steadying the punching dummy, Raven sauntered over to the side seats where Taiyang sat and set herself down, lazily unwrapping her hands.

"Back with the plague. I don't know if you saw how bad but brother got sick. Smart thing would of been to leave him, but no, I didn't." She pinched the bridge of her nose. "It got to the point where euthanasia would have been easier, than hoping for him to heal on his own."

"Gezzus."

"So what did I do?" Raven tossed a hand up, her expression transformed by bitter anger, her clasped hands shook with a mix of hate and self loathing. "When I couldn't convince my parents to let him heal, I snuck into my brother's room and deliberately infected myself."

"That's insane... !"

"I killed our parents and uncle cause I forced them to take care of us." Raven declared sadly, drifting back over to the mannequin to resume her assault. "I abandoned them to their deaths. Because I was a damn coward who couldn't stand the thought of living without my brother. One brat for three adults - how the hell does that equate?"

"I... I don't even know what to say; You were... what, six? You can't possibly blame yourself for that." Taiyang tried to reason.

"Qrow does." Raven answered with a hollow tone, adding in a few kicks to her rotation.

"I don't believe that for a second. You don't either."

"You don't know him! You don't know me!" Raven snapped back more outraged this time, performing a particularly strong high kick.

"No. I don't, but you know what I do know? In the last three months, I've seen nothing to say he blames you." Taiyang countered fiercely. "Rae - he practically worships the ground you stand on!"

Ordinarily, Raven would snap. Saying only her brother could use her nickname. But this situation wasn't ordinary. Nothing about it was.

"Raven." When she seemed intent on ignoring him, Taiyang tried reasoning again, grabbing her wrist and halting her exercise.

"Let go." Raven pulled on her wrist, irritated at the interruption to her rotation.

"Either let go, or put some gloves on and let's go a few rounds." Raven warned him, giving him a stern look. Taiyang met her gaze, then sighed defeated before releasing her hand.

"At least let me show you how to punch without hurting yourself." Taiyang offered, and to his great surprise, Raven nodded once in affirmation and took the lesson without complaint.


Author's note:

Well, so we have some history discrepancies. Intriguing. And hurray for guilt complexes and berserk buttons! And Tai being the 'dad' friend.

Also Summer's ring tone is 'Re:Re from Erased' sung by Nathan Sharp-NateWantsToBattle. I suppose you could call it her 'theme' for this story.

Please Review and Comment. I welcome Criticism (and theories~!). :)