New chapter! Author note at the bottom.
This story is strictly for entertainment; I do not own RWBY.
XXX
He was somewhere dark, with grey mist swirling around him. The only light he had came from the shattered moon above, casting a dim, silver light that just barely made his surroundings visible. He pushed through the fog, his frustration growing. Something screeched nearby, a bone-chilling noise that made him pause. Another screech filled the air, and his stomach dropped. It wasn't a something, but a someone. He began running toward the noise, sprinting as fast as he could, but he couldn't tell if he was moving. The mist around him was too dark to see anything.
The sound of metal clashing in front of him made him stop again, and this time, the mist began to clear. About fifty feet away, barely visible in the dark, were 3 dark figures surrounding a smaller, much paler figure. The dark figures were jumping around her, swinging and stabbing at the smaller figure. The smaller figure moved forward, dodging the moves, and he caught a flash of white and a pale hand reaching toward him. He darted forward, his own hand stretched out, the other hand on his weapon. But running did nothing. He wasn't moving any closer to the small figure. The dark figures lunged in unison, and a final, piercing scream rang in his ears.
"Morning!" Qrow started, swinging his head up from the table he'd been sleeping on. Winter had strolled into the room, a bag in one hand, a notebook in the other. Qrow rubbed his eyes and looked at the clock near him. It was already early afternoon. He hadn't had the best night's sleep, but when he woke up for the third time at 8:00 in the morning, he told himself he would put the early morning hours to good use. He stared at the notebook in front of him blearily, scribbles outlining the margin. He'd done nothing productive. Again. Sighing, he pulled his flask out and took in a long gulp. Already, it had been a long day.
"Do you ever run out of that?" Winter asked with a scowl. The two got along better than usual, but Qrow still wasn't quite sure the term "friends" would apply. They still got on each other's nerves, and if there was one thing Winter disliked about him, it was his drinking. The number of times she'd launched into a speech about "noble Hunters" and "being on the job" was too many to count.
"Breakfast of kings," Qrow drawled, taking another gulp while he stared directly into Winter's eyes, before holding out the flask. "Want a sip?" Her scowl deepened, and she turned her back to him.
"Drunken ass." Qrow's mouth lifted in the tiniest of smiles.
"Find anything?"
"Just a few old flyers, asking for Faunus to join the ranks of the White Fang." Winter waved a few pieces of paper at him. "I doubt it will help." She glanced up at him, raising an eyebrow. "What about you?" Her tone was cautious, careful. Like she was tiptoeing around him. Qrow clenched his jaw.
"I haven't found anything useful." Qrow stared at the notebook. He had dedicated pages to each of his goals. Find Ozpin. Bring all the Maidens together, and protect them. Find the people who had started the attack on Vale. Find out what the White Fang was up to. And the very last page held a message that he had only shared with a few people, the first of those people being Ozpin.
Queen has pawns.
A reminder that this was bigger than anything they had ever dealt with. That the White Fang, and Torchwick's Dust robberies, and the attack on Vale, were just a tiny puzzle piece in the grand scheme.
Winter furrowed her brow, but didn't comment on the worn and scribbled pages. Qrow glanced at her as she pulled out her Scroll, frowning.
"Heard from Sable?" Winter looked up for a moment, then returned her gaze to the Scroll.
"No. Very little, and nothing on the other Maiden." She shoved the Scroll back into her pocket. "She hasn't been able to get in contact with her yet." Qrow ran a hand through his hair. Nothing again. It had been days, over a week probably. He hadn't kept track of the days, and sometimes he wasn't sure he cared. Sable had kept her distance, and he was sure pretty sure she still didn't completely trust them. If she'd been anyone but a Maiden, and a key part in their world's survival, he probably wouldn't trust her either.
That's when an idea hit him. That's what had felt slightly familiar about Sable; a person he could probably trust, but also, maybe not. He knew someone quite similar, personality wise. Albeit Sable was definitely much more trustworthy. That almost made him smile. A stranger was more trustworthy than his own sister.
Raven. She might have information. He despised meeting with her though. She had abandoned Taiyang, her own daughter, and fled back to the tribe of killers that had raised them both. Qrow had left as soon as possible, desperate to break ties. Raven, though, had always felt something pulling her back. Now she helped lead the tribe, and the few times she had made contact with Qrow, she had never brought up Yang herself. Qrow pushed her about it sometimes, but she would only ever look disgusted. After Raven had saved Yang on the train, she had told Qrow coolly that there would be no next time. That was it. And each time they met, Raven only ever made him angrier, with her grudge of him leaving. Needless to say, there wasn't much peace and love between them.
Qrow grabbed his journal and shoved it in a pocket, picking up his scythe as he headed for the door. Winter looked up, eyebrows furrowed.
"Where are you going?" she asked.
"Out," Qrow said shortly. "I might be awhile. Gonna see if I can find some answers."
"Okay," Winter said warily. Qrow slammed the door behind him, not even looking back. A half hour later, he was sitting at a lonely table in the corner of a bar, casually drinking what was probably his third drink. Aside from a single hostess and the bartender, there was only two other people in the entire bar.
"What a place you've chosen. I've almost forgotten the kind of dumps you prefer to brood in." Qrow narrowed his eyes.
"Raven."
"Brother," she said sweetly, sitting down in front of him. She had her Grimm mask tucked under her arm, and her weapon at her side. She looked much the same as ever, except there were slight wrinkles around her eyes, and some grey hairs streaked through her bangs. And her eyes, a darker red than his own, held a much more cynical and dark look to them. She glanced him over, an amused smile on her face. "You don't look so good. But I know whatever is going on, it must be important, if you were willing to talk with me."
"I need your help with a few things," Qrow said coolly. "I'm sure you've heard about the things that have happened in the past month." Raven rolled her eyes.
"Of course I've heard. I'd expected as much from the Vale council and Ironwood. Even Ozpin. The man acts invincible, but he's just man." Raven leaned forward and grabbed Qrow's drink, taking a long sip before setting it back down with the same, amused smile.
"Ozpin's missing," Qrow said.
"I figured as much. The Maidens are out there, Beacon is gone, Vale is in ruins. What I'm still unsure of is why you need me?"
"I need to find the remaining Maidens. We've found the Winter Maiden, and she's trying to find Spring for us. We need to get Spring and Summer here. And make sure that Fall doesn't wake up anytime soon." Raven's eyes narrowed at the mention of "Fall", and she leaned back in her chair.
"I heard a rumor … that the newest Fall Maiden is an associate of hers. That she was the one who orchestrated the fall of Vale, and is now, for some curious reason, frozen on top of Beacon tower, along with the Grimm she summoned," Raven said.
"You heard correctly," Qrow said stiffly. Raven leaned forward again, eyes darting around, as if someone in the near empty bar was actually listening to them.
"What do you know of her next move?" Raven hissed, her voice taking a sharp edge. "What is Salem doing?"
"If you expect me to know all of her plans, you're dumber than I thought," Qrow grumbled, gulping down another swig of his drink. Raven held her gaze, red eyes boring into his own. He sighed. "I have reason to believe she's looking for the other Maidens specifically, maybe to try and replace them with her own goons like she did with Fall. Last I checked, the new Fall Maiden, Cinder, was still frozen on top of Beacon tower, so I'd imagine she'll try to free her somehow."
"But what's the witch's next big move?" Raven persisted. Qrow crossed his arms over his chest, eyes narrowing.
"I'm working on figuring it out. Everything's a different piece of the puzzle. Roman Torchwick and the White Fang are just pawns, but well-used pawns. With no Dust being traded overseas, there's a shortage on Dust. The fall of Vale attracted a number of high leveled Grimm, and with the tension across continents, the number of Grimm just keep increasing. Everything that's happened has happened for one specific reason. To leave the people of Remnant weak."
"For an even bigger attack," Raven mused.
"When she's finished with whatever the hell she's working on, I don't think she'll need to attack." Raven's eyes narrowed, and she abruptly stood up.
"I need to be leaving," she said stiffly. Qrow reached over the table and grabbed her wrist.
"The reason I asked you here is because I needed some information, not to catch you up on the sorry state of the world," he said coldly. "What information do you have for me?" Raven jerked her arm out of his grasp, hissing in annoyance.
"I might be more willing to help you if you would actually help me." Her gaze brightened. "Or returned home. With me."
"That's not going to happen. And that place, the tribe … it's not my home."
"It used to be. It's where you and I grew up. We'd be nothing without them! Before this is over, you might need them again!"
"If you want to talk about family and homes, maybe we should talk about the one you ditched so you could go back and slum it up with those bandits you call "family", Qrow growled, his hands curling into fists on the table. Raven now looked furious and she took a step away from the table.
"We're done here," she said, turning away.
"I. Need. Information," Qrow said through clenched teeth. Raven groaned in frustration, barely turning her head.
"Salem is sending someone to free the Fall Maiden. And she has other associates she's sending around to do her dirty work, like find the Maidens and rally the White Fang. And perhaps speak to some of the more … official citizens of Remnant." Qrow's eyes narrowed. Raven turned, looking him over once more. "Your "niece", that little girl … Summer's child." She drew out "Summer", like it left a horrible taste in her mouth. "I'd keep an eye on her. And maybe prepare her a bit for what's coming. She'll be in the middle of it. Whether she knows it or not." Raven slid her mask back on and unsheathed her masamune sword, slashing it through the air. A massive, pulsating, red portal opened in front of her, and she walked through without even looking back at Qrow. She disappeared inside, and a few moments later, the portal vanished. Qrow grimaced, and immediately reached for his glass, pausing, then thinking better of it. He stood up, left some Lien on the table, and skulked out of the bar. His meeting with Raven had left him in no better mood than before, and what little he had learned only complicated things further.
Cinder. The fire-loving bitch. If Salem found a way to free her, she would have the Fall Maiden back on her side. Given that Cinder had orchestrated the downfall of Beacon without yet having the full powers of the Fall Maiden, freeing her now, as the new Fall Maiden, was nothing short of distressing. And Ruby …
Qrow shook his head. No, he couldn't think of Ruby right now. He'd find her soon, and help her. But not yet.
XXX
Qrow trudged up the stairs to the hotel room he and Winter were still staying in. He fumbled for a key in his pocket, his thoughts briefly switching from Raven's parting words to their room. They'd been here for awhile now. They probably needed to leave before any of the workers got too suspicious about the strangers who'd been in the same room for over a week. It didn't help that with trade closed between kingdoms, and travel limited, most of the city hotels were near empty. He slid the key into the slot, grumbling, and swung open the door.
Winter had her coat thrown on, and was sitting in one of the chairs, legs crossed and an expectant look on her face. She raised an eyebrow at Qrow as he walked in. He glanced at her, looking her up and down. "What's up with you?"
"I've been waiting for you. Sable contacted the Spring Maiden. We can go meet her at Sable's place." Winter stood up swiftly. "Are you ready?"
"...Yeah, sure." Qrow ran a hand through his hair. "I was thinking we should duck out of here anyways. It's been a week, and though I don't think the people working here are the brightest, it'd be safest to leave before people get suspicious." Winter frowned, thinking for a moment, before slowly nodding.
"It's a good idea. Let me just pack up our- well, what little we have." She began throwing the flyers she had collected in her bag. Qrow followed suit and grabbed Ozpin's cane, clipping it onto his back alongside his own weapon. He hurried over to Winter's side and began throwing what little things they had left in her pack.
"No time to waste. Let's get out of here," he said gruffly. Winter narrowed her eyes, but nodded in agreement. They left the room, Qrow slamming the door behind them, and hurried down to the lobby. Winter pulled out some Lien and the hotel room key from her backpack.
"Wait here, I'm just going to check out for us," she said. Qrow shoved his hands in his pocket and fiddled with his rings while Winter checked out at the front desk. Something shoved into him hard, pushing him forward. He let out an oof and spun around.
"Listen, pal-," he began in an annoyed tone.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" A thin, petite face stared up at him, with wide brown eyes, partially covered by shaggy, pale blonde hair. The figure appeared to be a young boy, probably somewhere around Ruby or Yang's age, and was so skinny his shoulder blades jutted out like the branches of a tree. "Please forgive me, I was just trying to get by to the elevator!" Qrow grumbled something under his breath, then sighed.
"Just watch where you're going, kid," he muttered. The boy smiled, the thin contours of his face giving him a ghoulish look.
"I will. And you watch where, you're going sir," the boy said, still smiling. "Not a great for people to be traveling. It's a dangerous time for people like you." Qrow froze.
"People like me?" he said slowly.
"Well, people from other kingdoms. But more importantly, Hunters."
"How do you know I'm a Hunter?"
"You haven't been hiding your tracks very well. From the sounds of it, you've already upset a number of people…" The boy's face was now perfectly calm, a strange, almost secretive look in his eyes. Qrow turned to face the boy face-on, his hands forming fists.
"Who sent you?" Qrow growled.
"You can probably guess who," the boy sneered. He paused for a moment, as if something had occurred to him. His gaze traveled to the left, and Qrow followed his line of sight; Winter stood by the front desk, looking almost ready to leave, thanking whatever worker was at the desk. Qrow grabbed the boy by his shirt front, leaning in close.
"Who the hell sent you? Tell me what you're doing here, or I swear I'll-," Qrow growled.
"Sir, let go of that boy!" A concierge nearby had stopped to gape at the scene before him. Qrow scoffed, ready to fire back a retort.
"Qrow!" Winter was steadily walking over, her face stone-cold, a hand on the hilt of her sword. "Let him go."
"Listen, Sch- ...Ice Queen, this is-," Qrow began.
"I don't care, Qrow. Let him go," she said, lowering her voice. "We didn't want to cause a scene, remember? We need to leave now." Qrow looked up. The concierge was still staring, and a few more hotel workers had stopped to stare. A security guard by the elevator had pushed off the wall, slowly walking their way. Qrow loosened his grip and pushed the boy away. Winter put a hand on his shoulder, steering him towards the door. Qrow looked back as they exited the building; the boy was nowhere in sight.
"You want to tell me what that was about?" Winter asked, leaning closer to Qrow and looping an arm through his.
"That boy knew what we've been up to. He's a White Fang member, or an associate of Cinder Fall's, or-" Or one of Salem's minions.
"The boy?" Winter blinked, her eyes widening. "But he was just a kid!" Qrow laughed bitterly. Images flashed in his mind; Yang staring into oblivion, her arm missing. Ruby lying in the rubble of Beacon tower.
"Age doesn't matter," he said, scowling. "Let's get out of here, and warn Sable."
"If someone's following us or watching us, what do we do? If they know our plan, or find out where the Maidens are, then we'd have done this all for nothing. We need to figure out a way to meet with the Maidens in secret, or perhaps if we attack the White Fang…," Winter's eyes became a little unfocused, her mind clearly working to try and find a strategical way to fix their newfound problem.
"I doubt there's much we can do, Schnee," Qrow sighed.
"We promised we would protect them," Winter said.
"We'll do what we can, but we're Hunters. We aren't perfect. And the Maidens can handle themselves. They were given powers for a reason."
"Aren't there any other Brotherhood members who can help you?" Winter asked. Qrow's immediate thought was of Glynda, desperately trying to piece Vale back together despite the swarms of Grimm still invading the city, and Jimmy, attempting to reason with the rest of the Atlas council but afraid of how the rest of Remnant viewed Atlas after the Vale attack, when Atlas' army turned on innocent students and festival goers.
"No, there isn't," Qrow said with a frown. "For now, we're in this alone." Winter frowned, but she didn't add anything or argue. It took about 30 minutes to find Sable's place, and they'd almost walked right by it. It was a tiny building, snuck almost entirely behind a much larger one, with only two floors, and dirty bricks for walls. Qrow nodded, and let Winter go first, following her down the tiny driveway. She had pulled the hood of her jacket further over her head, covering most of her powder-white hair, and swiftly made her way to the door, pushing it open quickly while Qrow followed. Inside was a tiny hallway, if it could be called that. It was closer to the tiniest waiting room Qrow had ever seen, with a door on the wall opposite them, and a staircase to their immediate right.
"Sable said she's on the second floor," Winter informed him, already climbing up the stairs.
"Who lives on the first?" Qrow asked, wondering if he should check out the downstairs neighbor before meeting with the Maiden.
"No one. It's an empty apartment. Sable chose this place because it's hidden away, and since no one lives downstairs, very few would think someone lived upstairs," Winter explained. When they reached the top of the stairs, a thin corridor with a single door greeted them. They walked to the door and Winter reached forward, hesitating just a moment before knocking. Nothing. A few moments later, the door shifted, and opened an inch, a tanned, partial face with one clear, blue eye staring out, black locks falling over the forehead. The door immediately shut, then opened all the way.
"You came," Sable said, sounding both slightly impressed yet also indifferent. Greetings or manners were not this girl's forte. Not that Qrow was one to judge.
"Of course," Winter said politely, inclining her head towards the Maiden in a tiny sign of respect. Qrow rolled his eyes, strolling into the apartment.
"We said we would, didn't we?" he scoffed, inspecting the room with a small level of curiosity. The apartment opened up into a small, dusty kitchen with a square table and two chairs, and a living room with a single sofa on the other side. Qrow picked up a dust-covered coffee mug from the table, twirling it around with his fingers.
"Qrow, stop playing!" Winter snapped. Qrow raised his eyebrows, mustering his most mocking innocent face, and pointing at himself. Winter scowled, and turned back to Sable, shutting the door behind her. "The Spring Maiden. You've contacted her? She's here?"
"Yes," Sable said, crossing her arms. "I hope it goes without saying, but just in case, you don't ever tell anyone else about her, or any of this. Don't overstep your boundaries either. We agreed to help you. Don't make us regret that."
"Yeah, yeah," Qrow muttered.
"Of course. It's completely understood," Winter said quickly, shooting Qrow a hard look. Sable glanced back and forth between the two for a moment, before sighing and turning her head to the hall behind her. A young woman stepped out of one of the rooms and glided forward, stopping by Sable's side. She was slightly taller than Sable, with smooth, dark brown hair that was pushed back with a headband and fell just past her shoulders. She wore an arrangement of pale blues and greens, and had a much softer look than the sharp, angular Sable. She smiled sweetly, giving a short bow.
"Hello. My name's Beth," she said. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"I'm Winter, and this is Qrow," Winter said, taking a step forward. "Thank you so much for agreeing to meet with us."
"Sable has told me you are a member of the Brotherhood," Beth said, now directing her attention to Qrow. "We aren't often contacted by the Brotherhood, so the dangers Sable has told me about must be serious." She smiled sadly. "She told me you tried to save Amber as well."
Did she? Qrow wondered, glancing at Sable. The woman was avoiding his gaze, a scowl etched on her face. After how angry Sable had gotten when he mentioned Amber, he was surprised Beth had a more positive view of him than her friend. Unsure of how to respond to Beth's statement, he nodded solemnly instead.
"Sable also said you ran into the White Fang," Beth added.
"We had a slight altercation with them," Winter allowed.
"Sure. 'Slight'," Qrow whispered mischievously. Winter shot him another look, and he coughed. "You should also know that we ran into someone this morning who knew about our fight with the White Fang. They probably worked for them, or maybe even the woman who attacked Beacon, Cinder Fall."
"The new Autumn Maiden," Beth said sadly. "It's disappointing that our new sister is so misguided and full of hatred towards peace. If there was a better, more certain way of passing the power of the Maiden's to another, it would have a much smaller chance of falling into the wrong hands." Qrow glanced away, thinking of how Ironwood had figured out a way to do just that, how Ozpin and Glynda had agreed it was for the best, how they had dragged Pyrrha Nikos into the mess before all hell broke loose.
"If I ever see that Maiden, I'll make sure that power passes onto someone who isn't a psychotic dragon-lady," Sable said grimly, her lips curving into an almost evil smile. Beth nudged her, a look of disapproval on her face. "It's what she deserves," Sable insisted. "Who knows how many people are dead because of her?"
"Then we can find a way to stop her." Beth returned her gaze to Qrow and Winter. "Do you know where she is? What kind of information do you have?" Winter looked over at Qrow; clearly, this question was meant for him.
"I don't know where she is; last I checked, she was stuck on the top of Beacon tower, but that was weeks ago. She could have been moved. I know she's working for someone else. That someone else is a very powerful person, with multiple associates and pawns doing the dirty work for her so no one finds out who's masterminding this thing." Qrow crossed his arms, eyes narrowed in thought.
"So we go after the bigwig!" Sable said earnestly. Qrow shook his head.
"No one knows exactly where she is. And I doubt it'd be any place easy to get to. It's best if we find her associates first. The higher they are on the ladder, the better."
"The more help we can get, the better," Winter chimed in.
"Why don't we ask some of the other Brotherhood members? Or people who will surely help us?" Beth suggested, expression brightening. "The Academy leaders might listen to what we have to say."
"Maybe, but there's no guarantee," Qrow said.
"What about Ozpin? He would be a tremendous help. He must know something," Beth inquired. Winter's eyes darted over to Qrow, and he looked at the floor.
"I haven't seen Ozpin since the attack on Vale," Qrow said slowly. He paused, wondering if he should voice the possibility that old Oz could be dead, when Beth suddenly smiled, and reached into her pocket.
"Your friend, he wanted me to give you this," she said, holding something out to him. Qrow took it in his hand. It was a folded piece of paper. On the front of the paper was the sentence, "All the fairy tales are real". He unfolded it, reading the few sentences that had been written on the sheet.
SHE KNOWS EVERYTHING.
THE FALL MAIDEN WILL AWAKEN.
I CANNOT HELP YOU ANY LONGER. DO NOT LOOK FOR ME.
Qrow blinked, staring at the note. Winter leaned in close, reading the sentences quickly, her mouth setting into a grim line.
"Who's it from?" she asked in a low tone.
"I don't know," Qrow said, but it was a lie, at least partially. "I think … it's from Oz."
"Is he sending help?" Beth asked.
"No. Whether it's from him or not, it's just a few cryptic messages. Stuff about not being able to help us, and the Fall Maiden waking up."
"The Fall Maiden is frozen on top of Beacon tower," Winter said.
"Not for long," Qrow mumbled. He reached behind him, feeling around his belt, touching the tip of his weapon, and froze. He ran a hand along the cool blade, and felt around his belt, his movements becoming jerky and he tried to hide his franticness. The color drained from his face.
"Qrow?" Winter placed a hand gently on his shoulder, concern evident in her tone.
"Oz's cane," he said, a mixture of genuine shock and fear filling him. "It's not on my belt loop anymore. It's gone."
XXX
A regal looking woman sat in a huge chair of purple crystal, staring out the window of a long room. She tapped the arm of the chair with a long black fingernail, her robes and the dark, spiraling lines that inked her skin a sharp contrast to her pure white skin and hair. The door at the other end of the room squeaked open, and man stepped through, but she didn't turn. It was not just because she had called the man to her, but she wanted her associates and followers to understand what was expected of them. Punctuality and certainty were just two of many on a long list of expectations.
"Watts," she said just as the man stopped behind her chair. Her voice sounded elegant and young, not unfriendly. "What news have you brought me?"
"Puck Goodfellow sent the given message, and has returned with the object you asked for," Watts said. Salem's eyebrows lifted, but just barely. She was faintly surprised the young boy had managed, but not overly shocked or impressed. She always planned for mistakes, failures, or accidents to happen, always had a scapegoat ready for the people of Remnant. If one of her followers actually succeeded in their mission, it just made her that much more content and pleased.
"Good. I want it brought to me. Immediately."
"Of course, my lady." Watts gave a short bow, then stood up straight. "Is there anything you need me to do?"
"Yes. There is." Salem turned her dark red eyes on Watts, who held back a wince. "Send Harish and Altair to Beacon. It's been long enough. We need our Fall Maiden back. If they need anyone else, send them. Bring Cinder back. Understood?" Her eyes glowed brighter, and Watts nodded vigorously.
"Of course. Consider it done."
"And one more thing. I've heard about some stirrings in Mistral, and I wanted you to get in touch with a certain associate. A friend of a friend, if you will. I need something done, and she has the specific skill set I want. If you would be so kind as to send a message for me-."
"Of course," Watts repeated, dipping his head respectfully. Salem waved a hand, and Watts quickly made his way out of the room, leaving Salem to look over her dark dimension, filled with nothing but crystal and shadow, Grimm and moonlight, cast from the shattered moon that looked over her own world as well as Remnant.
"Finally, Ozpin," she whispered. "I've accomplished what you've feared, because of you. I have turned this game around. And you were powerless to stop me. Finally."
XXX
Well! Hi again! It's been awhile... 3 months? I'm sorry this chapter took so long. It was incredibly hard to write, and I was still figuring out how I wanted to pace it, what things should happen when, etc. I thought about cutting it off earlier, just so I could actually post something sooner. But I figured after all this waiting, you guys deserved the slightly longer version of this chapter, so here it is.
I guess I can also say that this is officially an AU now! To be honest, for this story to continue, it kind of has to be. The original plan was for this story to be a one or two-shot, and to fit in perfectly with Volume 4 of RWBY, but now, it's really developed into its own thing, and I think just re-writing Volume 4, only with Winter traveling beside Qrow, would kind of be a cop out, and not make a lot of sense. So this story will continue, and while many things will match up with RWBY, even Volume 4, not everything will. In fact, you might have noticed some characters or events that appeared in Volume 4. I like to use as many canon characters as possible, and many of them are necessary to this story as well, so you will be seeing some of the newer characters from the show.
A lot happened in this chapter! Our heroes have found themselves in a bit of a pickle, and the enemy is not giving them any downtime. There were a few hints as to what may happen in the future of this story; feel free to share any theories you have! I love hearing them! If you have any questions, feel free to leave them in a comment/review as well!
I hope you enjoyed the chapter! More to come (eventually. Hopefully it won't be 3 months).