CHAPTER 9:

REUNION

Later that day, RWBY and JNPR were watching Harry spar with the Rip van Winkle in his hands against Neo and Ilia. "Whoa," Ruby breathed in awe as she watched him twirl the staff-musket, using it to block their attacks expertly.

Pyrrha nodded. The redhead noted that Harry's fighting style had changed for the better. It was clear that he was more used to wielding the Rip van Winkle than he was the Gabriel. He used the Walter in conjunction with the Rip van Winkle to bring enemies in close or vice versa, and then use the staff-musket to attack.

It was also very clear that Neo and Ilia knew precisely how to fight him when he used those weapons. Their expertise in fighting him spoke volumes. It was like a choreographed dance. Blake knew, though, that Neo had perhaps the edge in close quarters fighting when it came to combat, given her unpredictable moves and unorthodox usage of her Pernicious Parasol, not to mention her Semblance.

Weiss looked over at Blake. "I'll admit, he's very skilled. How good is that Rip van Winkle against Grimm?"

"Very good, especially against Grimm in a whole group," Blake said. "Of course, because it's a single-shot weapon, and he needs to concentrate somewhat to get the musket ball moving the way he wants it to, the musket is usually only used when we're there to support him. The original Rip van Winkle was a gift to him from a weapons manufacturer Harry and Neo saved in Menagerie. It was the very woman who gave me Gambol Shroud…and Adam his Wilt and Blush." The Cat Faunus shot Weiss a look. "I'll be blunt, Weiss. If you ever meet Adam, if any of you meet him…you retreat. He is one of the most powerful Faunus fighters in the whole of Menagerie. Harry managed to defeat him by surprising him, and that was sheer luck. He'd kill anyone I care about to hurt me…except for you, Weiss. He wouldn't kill you for a long time."

Weiss shuddered. "I never thought anything different."

"Why would he do that? I mean, kill people you care about to hurt you?" Ruby asked.

"Because, sadly, that is the way of the world, Ruby," Blake said. "Life is not a fairy tale. Happy endings have to be earned if you can get them at all. Good people die, and bad people thrive. It shouldn't be that way, but it does. Even monsters in human or Faunus skin are rarely born that way. I met Adam a few times before he became part of White Fang. He was…he was a sad boy, and an angry boy. But now…he's a monster. That's why they wear the Grimm masks, many of them. Many humans treat us like animals, like beasts, like Grimm…and so, they do that to show, this is what you made us become."

Weiss nodded, even as she frowned. The talk yesterday had been the capping to a wake-up call, and while she still detested the White Fang, she accepted that not everything was as black and white as she thought. In any case, her sister trusted these people, so she began to feel safe doing the same. She had actually asked Blake and Ilia to sit down with her after the talk, and discussed things with them. Hell, she even went and sought out Velvet.

Weiss may have been spoiled and entitled, but she wasn't stupid by any means, and she had empathy. She just needed a shock to the system to get her to understand some things. And while Blake couldn't be called a friend yet, nor could Ilia or Velvet, they were getting there, now that the air had been cleared. She hoped that, once she assumed the leadership of the SDC (assuming her father didn't give it to Whitley), she could start making changes for the better.

To distract herself, she looked over at Pyrrha. "Pyrrha, how well do you think you would do against Harry?"

The redhead pursed her lips. "I don't honestly know. But I may have an advantage because of my Polarity Semblance. If it's stronger than his Semblance, I may be able to prevent him from using his wires or his musket ball correctly, as I can affect non-ferric metals with my Semblance. And in terms of hand-to-hand combat…I'd say I'm better, at least in terms of offence and defence. But keep in mind, this is just him sparring. If it was a life or death situation…I don't know. Keep in mind, his magic gives him another weapon to use. That being said, I'd want to spar with him some time." She looked over at Blake. "You guys have enough training to be professional Hunters already. Why come to Beacon?"

The cat-eared Faunus met Pyrrha's gaze evenly. "We can't tell you all of it, but part of it is because Ironwood believes that something is going to happen in the Vale soon. In any case, while our training is good enough to make us professional Hunters, Ironwood wants us to gain the usual experience first. On top of what we already have. Plus, some of our training was interrupted for most of a year when we were taken, along with Harry, to Earth. And there's also the goodwill being fostered between Atlas and Vale by us being here."

"Politics," Weiss observed.

"Partly. I wouldn't be surprised if Winter wanted us to unofficially keep an eye on you as well," Blake said. "She does care about you, in that ice queen way of hers."

"…I know that," Weiss said. "And I don't need babysitters."

"Look at it this way," Penny said. "We can train you to be the best. Then you don't need us to help."

"Yeah, what she said," Ruby said with a grin.

Jaune, meanwhile, looked over at Blake with concern. "How are things holding up? I mean, after what that jerk Cardin did?"

Blake sighed quietly. "Ironwood and Ozpin are handling most of it, but apparently Ironwood's having me sit down for an interview with Lisa Lavender of VNN in a few days. I knew this might come out, but I didn't think Cardin would have enough brains to look up my name. Then again, he has spite in abundance."

"Maybe one of his teammates found out," Pyrrha mused. "A couple of them work well in class. And keep in mind that you do need good grades to get into Beacon, normally."

"In any case," Blake said, "we also got notification of more people from Atlas, or from Earth, more to the point, coming tomorrow. We met them on Earth, and they opted to come here. Hermione Granger is rather bookish, as is Remus Lupin. And we were surprised to learn that someone called Luna Lovegood would be coming here. She's like Nora, only…less energetic but more strange."

"That sounds like quite the achievement," Ren said.

"That sounds like competition!" Nora declared. "I will not give up my title to an interloper from another world!"

Harry would later learn that Luna came to Remnant with her father. Being magizoologists (well, magicryptozoologists), and learning of a whole new world with creatures like the Grimm and beings like the Faunus to catalogue, they had arrived on Remnant shortly after Harry and the others departed for Vale. Their eccentric temperament meant that Atlas was loathe to keep them, but Ozpin, who had spoken with them over video link, had suggested they come to Beacon to learn from Professor Port. The fact that they had warding knowledge would help.

Hermione would be helping out in the library, and Remus Lupin would be acting as the assistant for Professor Oobleck. Officially, anyway. Unofficially, they were here as HPIN's support, and as liaisons with Atlas. Sirius Black had intended to come, but he was currently working with Ironwood to upgrade the defences of Atlas via wards. He would come to visit later.

Harry had warned Ozpin in advance that Lupin was a werewolf, and Ozpin took that in his stride. There were plenty of secure places within Beacon for Lupin to stay during his transformation. Werewolves, thankfully, were mere legends here, though no less feared.

So when they arrived on an airship the next morning, Harry smiled, and embraced them both in their turn. "Hey, it's been a while," he said to them.

"It has," Hermione said, the bushy-haired girl returning the smile, as did the scarred Lupin. She looked at the gathered teams of RWBY, JNPR, and HPIN. She greeted Blake, Ilia, Neo and Penny (she only met Neo once she got to Remnant), before she turned to the others. "And these are?"

"Oh, yes. Allow me to introduce them. Blake's part of Team RWBY. That's Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, and Yang Xiao Long," Harry said. "And that's Team JNPR: Jaune Arc, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie and Lie Ren."

"Pleased to meet you," Hermione said, shaking their hands. "I'm Hermione Granger."

"Likewise," Lupin said. "I'm Remus Lupin."

After introductions were made, Harry frowned. "Where's the Lovegoods?"

"Well…they went to meet Professor Port at a restaurant down in Vale," Hermione said. "Apparently Luna and Port both enjoy pudding."

"Who doesn't?" Nora asked, tilting her head.

Hermione was about to reply, but Ruby caught a glimpse of the weapon on Hermione's back. "Ooh, is that your weapon?"

"She's a weapon fanatic," Harry said to a bemused Hermione.

"Oh, right." She took the bow off her back. "It's called the Palutena(1). The bow can break apart into a pair of short swords. I'm still not used to the swords, though, so I'll be using the arrows instead."

Lupin, recognising Ruby about to ask questions about his weapon, pulled it from a holster. "Mine's not exactly flashy. It's just a long-barrelled revolver I can use as a club. It hasn't got a name yet."

"Why not?" Ruby whined.

"So…you guys know Harry from his home?" Yang asked, trying to change the awkward subject. She reckoned that Ruby would marry Crescent Rose if it became a robot like Penny.

They nodded. "I met Harry shortly after he was born, but I didn't see him much until recently. Hermione here only met him about a year ago," Lupin said. "Both of us are…well, outcasts, to a degree, in our society. Hermione, to put it politely, has no pedigree to speak of as far as many elements of our society have, and I have an illness that people fear. When Harry offered us a second chance here, well, we jumped at it. This place is more dangerous than home in many regards…but we're better accepted here."

"Anyway," Hermione said, "it's a pleasure to meet you all."

Neopolitan watched the reunion with a smile. Few knew what went on in her head, though they learned to interpret her body language quite well. Harry, Blake and Ilia, along with Ironwood and Winter Schnee had, and so did Roman.

Roman, she felt ambivalent about. True, he was an unrepentant criminal, willing to kill if necessary, and certainly not a nice person. But to Neo, he actually gave some affection, like he was her big brother. At first, it annoyed her, as it felt like he was trying to take Harry's place in her life. But he backed off a little. In a way, despite his sociopathic tendencies, he also seemed desperate for someone to love, even if it was only in a little sister way.

Of course, there was the problem of Roman's new allies. The White Fang for one, and Salem's little helpers. Mostly Cinder, but there was also Arthur Watts and his leverage over Leonardo Lionheart, the Faunus headmaster of Haven in Mistral.

Roman had been summoned to a meeting with Cinder while Harry and the others were on Earth, and had come back shaken, even shaking in fear. His muttered utterances suggested that he had been, if only briefly, in communication with Salem. "There are some bets you can't take," he had muttered to himself.

Maybe Neo could have fallen in with Roman, had she never met Harry. Neo knew, given her childhood, of the abandonment, of the teasing and torment for her abilities, that she could easily have done so. She would be the first to admit, she was a misanthrope. She only joined Talon to help Harry, as well as Blake and later, Ilia. She didn't help others out of altruism, not for humanity in general (though she had a soft spot for Faunus outside the White Fang, given how well she and Harry were treated during their time living in Menagerie, hence their vigilante activities in Atlas). It was for those she considered her precious people. She fought against Salem's forces because if Salem prevailed, it would mean her friends' end.

Still, she couldn't help but make new friends. She liked most of the members of RWBY and JNPR, the main exception being Weiss, spoiled little brat she was. Oh, she was getting better, but she wasn't a friend. But Ruby was interesting and skilled, if revoltingly naïve, and Yang was a skilled, if overly confident and hot-tempered fighter. Jaune was like one of those puppies you can't help but adore, and you knew he would become a wolf one day. Pyrrha was skilled and proud of it, but not in an obnoxious way. Nora was…fun and funny, if crazy, and Ren, while a little boring in his quiet nature, nonetheless had respectable skills.

And there were also her friends in Talon. Penny, while a robot, was a good friend once you got used to her quirks. Ilia held more than a little darkness within her, due to her parents' deaths, but she fought through it. And Blake…she wanted to do the right thing, and it took some time for her to start running to her problems rather than from them.

And Harry. Dear Harry. The one bastion of her childhood that didn't cast her away, but kept her close. Her big brother.

Anyone who threatened him, she would end. Slowly. Painfully. Viscerally. The pain and torment that person would endure would draw Grimm from around Remnant. No matter if it was Roman or Adam or Cinder or Salem, she would make them bleed…

CHAPTER 9 ANNOTATIONS:

So, Harry's practising with the Rip van Winkle, Hermione and Lupin have arrived, and we've gotten a window into Neo's mind.

I did say I wasn't going to update this for a while, but inspiration struck. This chapter and the next one have been written. Given how in The Stray, Ruby states that a few months have passed since the events of Ruby Rose, that gives time for quite a few things to happen.

Review-answering time! DocSlendy: Never heard of Luther Strode.

Toby860: Well, Harry's not a bitch, and in any case, the musket Rip van Winkle uses is cooler. Seras' most badass moment is when she ditches the Harkonnen and smears Zorin's face against a wall while Zorin's trying to rape her mind.

Hakon2feb: The theme of green-eyed Hunters was wholly accidental. I just wanted to use a Semblance separate from magic that would be appropriate to Harry's weapons.

Reishin Amara: Really? Hmm. Well, this Blake is more confident in herself, or at least revealing her past to those she trusts. While she's worried about Weiss' reaction, she also trusts that Weiss is able to tell the difference. The canon Weiss may not have, given her racism even late in Volume 1 (I actually watched The Stray and Black and White the day of publishing this chapter), but Blake had been upfront about her being a Faunus from the start in this story, so Weiss already had a challenge to her notions about Faunus, and Harry defending Blake and Ilia helped, though it could also have hindered matters (Harry wasn't being very diplomatic, after all). I think it is because Weiss is aware that they were part of the Atlesian military, which she respects due to her sister, and that Blake is taking pains not to excuse the current White Fang (unlike in the show, where she calls them 'misguided': here, she is under no illusions as to what they're doing), though she also points out that it used to be a better organisation. As noted above, Weiss spoke to Blake, Ilia and Velvet privately, and actually listened. She still thinks the horror stories about her father are exaggerated somewhat, but she also wants to prevent such incidents from happening again.

ILikeHotDogs: Because of Hellsing. Namely Rip van Winkle, a Nazi-turned-vampire obsessed with the opera Der Freischutz, aka The Freeshooter, using a bullet she can control after firing it from a musket. Actually, funny story within this story is that Harry actually based his weapons on the weapons of a couple of Hunters from centuries ago who defected to Salem's side. In a way, he views using these weapons as redeeming them from the bad association.

Anyway, here's a brief clip from Hellsing Ultimate showing Rip van Winkle trying to use her musket on Alucard…

watch?v=fmWWsj2qQgY

And the same scene from Hellsing Ultimate Abridged, where Rip is a would-be social justice warrior (and she's a Nazi, go figure), and Alucard…tears her right down…

watch?v=i0C3IhWcJH0

Guest: Remnant doesn't have the ability to have spaceflight. I think they cover this in one of the World of Remnant videos, where it's stated that any spacecraft sent into orbit fails due to Dust failing outside of the atmosphere. Maybe Atlas has begun to try other means of spaceflight, having learned of how it was done on Earth from Hermione and her parents, but it's a lower priority than, well, ensuring that they stop the Grimm. Yes, satellites would be useful, and Atlas is working on that, but they've also got Salem to deal with.

206er: He didn't gain a wand, he refused to use one. The Rip van Winkle can double as a magic staff anyway, but he prefers to use focusless magic, as that is what he is used to. This raised more than a few eyebrows during the Weighing of the Wands, and Ollivander was understandably surprised to be inspecting a musket.

1. I am aware that Cinder has a not dissimilar weapon, but I was thinking along the lines of Palutena's Bow from Kid Icarus. Hermione tends to use the bow part more, though.