Dragon Ice

"Come on, I'm open!"

"You won't make it this time!"

A small group of kids in a small town were playing "keep-away". As they were playing though, something suddenly got their attention, as they all dropped the ball.

"I got it!" the boy in the middle as he picked up the ball said happily, "You're out!" However, none of his friends were looking at him, they were all looking up. That was when a shadow fell over their group, and they could only stare at the bright red dragon flying over them.

Pyrrha had to admit, she may have occasionally veered off course to fly over a village a couple times. Not that she was necessarily seeking the attention, but more because in the world, she figured the people may have deserved a chance to have some wonder put in their lives. And in this day and age, what was more wondrous than a dragon?

She had been flying for a few days now, and she wasn't at all far from Mistral. Hopefully she would be there in just another day or so. Then she smelled something, something bad, like tar and smoke. It wasn't hard for her to realize what it was: Grimm. Not one to let a Grimm go free, Pyrrha swooped in the direction she could sense the smell.

Flying low over the trees Pyrrha followed her knows, until she noticed a small hut in the trees. Surrounding the hut was a pack of Beowolves. The hut had spikes sticking out, and stakes driven into the ground, marking it out as a safe house of sorts. The Grimm seemed to be trying to break in the house, presumably to get the person inside.

Pyrrha inhaled, and incinerated some of the Grimm with a single burst of red fire. She then swung her tail, and knocked few of them away. The remaining three tried to jump onto her back, but her scales harmlessly deflected their teeth and claws. Pyrrha let out a roar/hiss, as the bronze highlights in her body began to glow with heat, causing the beasts to jump off, leaving them vulnerable to her fire.

Once they were all gone, Pyrrha took a breath, exhaling some steam. She then heard the sound of the door opening, as she glanced over.

"What the hell?" Pyrrha watched as someone actually stumbled out of the hut. It was a tigress Faunus with a pair of tiger ears and some stripes on her arms.

"Are you okay?" Pyrrha asked.

"Y… yes," the woman asked, nodding her head slightly, clearly not sure what to think of what was happening to her. Not that Pyrrha blamed her. As Pyrrha looked down at her, she noticed her clothes were covered in blood.

"You're hurt," Pyrrha said with a slight gasp.

"I'm fine," the woman said as she tried to pull herself back to her feet, only to fall back down, and relenting, "Okay… I'm hurt." Taking it upon herself to help, Pyrrha coiled around her protectively, as she bent down, heating up the blade at the end of her tail like she did earlier. The woman flinched before hissing in pain as Pyrrha drew her tail over the wound, cauterizing it.

"What's your name?" Pyrrha asked. The woman glared at the serpent for a time, before she sighed.

"Sienna. Sienna Khan."

(somewhere else in Anima)

It had been a long voyage from Patch to Mistral, and Yang had been glad to finally be able to start the search. However, she wasn't actually looking for Ruby; that was completely pointless, she had no idea where Ruby had gone. She did have an idea on how to find her though.

Needing to refuel, Yang pulled her motorcycle into a gas station by the side of the road. Also in need of some refreshments, she made her way into the station's store.

"What can I get you?" the owner at the counter asked.

"Water," Yang answered as she came up. As she did, she noticed someone else in the room, a rather thuggish looking man leering at her. It wasn't like Yang hadn't gotten those kinds looks before; most guys were smart enough to keep their hands off, and those that weren't often couldn't use said hands very well after. This guy seemed to be one of the latter.

"You know, I don't think I've seen you here before," the thug said, approaching Yang, who glared down her sunglasses at him.

"What's it too you?" she asked.

"Well, it's pretty easy to get lost here. Maybe you need a guide."

"I can find my way no problem," Yang answered, looking away.

"You sure?" the thug continued, as he leered so hard Yang could almost literally feel it, "What with Grimm and now dragons bouncing around, you never can be too careful." At that, Yang actually took her sunglasses off.

"For all you know, maybe I'm one of the dragons," she said, leaning forward, "And maybe you hitting on me is a probable way of getting cooked." The thug blinked, before his sneer came back.

"Well, I've always been pretty interested in dragons," he said, as he slowly reached out and down. That was the last straw; Yang then proceeded to promptly grab that hand, and with a flick of her wrist, sent him straight out the door. The owner looked surprised at that, but then smiled.

"Thanks," he said, "He's been causing trouble all day here."

"Looking for the Branwen tribe?" the owner said slowly, arching an eyebrow, "Most people don't go looking for trouble like that."

"Don't worry about me," Yang answered, "I can take care of myself."

"And, I believe you," the owner, answered, gesturing his head to the guy out the door, "Still, those are dangerous people."

"Trust me, I know. So you got anything?"

"Not much, honestly. Just rumors that they were in the region." Yang frowned at that information, which didn't help at all. She then sighed, thanked the man, paid him, and took her leave. As she did, she walked past the same guy she had clobbered earlier slowly getting up.

"You want to try again?" Yang asked, as she put her glasses back on, "Because I'm not really in the mood."

"I overhead what you wanted," the thug said, as he looked up, wiping the side of his mouth, "I may be able to help you that." That actually got Yang's attention, as she looked at him, as she glared down her glasses, as he smiled at her, sans one tooth.

(with Sienna)

It had been a weird couple of days for Sienna Khan. First she lost her position in a coup to Adam and had to to flee to her safe house in Anima only for Grimm to come after her. And now a talking dragon was protecting her.

When she heard of dragons appearing at Beacon, she had been just as flummoxed as everyone else, but figured it wasn't important, at least not at the time. Now a dragon had saved her life from the Grimm. Yes, this had been a rather weird day.

Now sitting on the deck of her safe house, holding her wound, she watched as the dragon gather some wood. She then bent down, and a tongue of flames escaped her mouth, starting the campfire.

"So, why are you here?" the dragon asked, looking at Sienna, as she slithered over to her.

"I was betrayed," Sienna explained. Sienna wasn't sure why, but she had a compulsion to talk to the dragon. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact she was in fact a dragon, and something about her seemed trustworthy. It helped that she saved Sienna's life. The dragon looked at her with what appeared to be sympathy.

"That's always terrible," she said, nodding slightly, "How'd you get away?"

"I used my Semblance. It let's me immediately transport myself to locations I've marked."

"That must be handy." Sienna sighed, as she leaned back up to the sky, leaning against the cabin wall.

"I wish I knew what to do now," she said, "Everything I've ever had is gone now."

"Do you.. have any family?" the dragon asked. Sienna looked up in surprise at that question, before she paused to think.

"I've… I've got a sister," she admitted, "She's back in Menagerie."

"You could always go there." That actually gave Sienna pause, as she looked at the serpent. She honestly never gave it any thought; after she became High Leader, she had lost contact with her sister. Sienna wasn't sure if she'd been want to see her.

"Maybe," Sienna said slowly. It wasn't like she had any other options at this point.

"Do you… need me to stay?" the dragon asked.

"I'd need to let my Aura finish recharging," she said, "But it should be refreshed by morning. I"ll be fine till then." The dragon nodded at that.

"Well, good luck," the dragon said, as she turned to fly away.

"Hey!" Sienna called, "Thank you." For a time, it looked like the dragon was smiling at her. With that, she opened her wings, and flapped into the air.Sienna just watched as the giant serpent flew away into the sky.

(somewhere over Anima)

Weiss knew going in that the trip from Atlas to Mistral would be a long one, but didn't make her any less bored. She occupied her time by practicing with her glyphs; while she couldn't summon a big one, she made a few dragons, and a couple Arma Gigas. Occasionally she would channel her dragon powers, and turn her left hand into a claw; she also pondered if it would be at all possible to concentrate her power enough to get a pair of wings while otherwise remaining human.

It had been uneventful for the most part, which Weiss supposed was good. That said, there was one thing; as they were going, they got a distress call from another ship, which they couldn't do anything about, according to what the pilot said at least. Not that it was all acceptable to the former heiress; there was a lot she could've done, and yet she didn't. She wasn't sure why.

They were flying over Lake Matsu, a place known for it's islands filled with gravity Dust that made them float. Weiss had to admit it was something of a sight, but being in a close apprenticeship with one of her creators did leave her somewhat jaded to some things that other might find spectacular. Of course, that didn't change the fact that all that gravity Dust could be rather dangerous.

"You sure you can navigate this area?" Weiss asked the pilot nervously.

"Yeah, but I wouldn't be worrying about the islands," the pilot answered, "Grimm are pretty fond of this area. Honestly, I'm betting on the folks with the distress signal keeping the Grimm in the area occupied for the time."

"That's your plan?" Weiss asked, disturbed his his callousness, "That seems rather…. heartless."

"Hey, you want to get to Mistral in one piece or not?" Weiss opened then closed her mouth, as she sat back. She wonder what Darkness would say if he was here. That was when something out of the corner of her eye got her attention. It also got the pilot's….

"Holy gods!" he cried, as he suddenly swerved to avoid it, throwing Weiss around in the cargo slightly. As she regained her thoughts, she saw it was a Mistrali ship, presumably the same ship that had let out the distress signal. It was on fire, as it plunged down into the water. The culprits quickly reared their heads, as several Grimm that resembled wasps emerged from the islands, their eyes fixated on Weiss' transportation.

"Lancers, gods damned Lancers," the pilot grumbled, as he flicked a couple switches on his display. The ship picked up speed, but the Lancers managed to keep pace, as they fired their stingers, which were attached to tendrils connected with their body. The stingers punctured the hull with ease, slowing the ship slightly.

"Damn it," the pilot growled. As she stared out the window at the Grimm, Weiss' eyes narrowed. She then walked over to the loading bay, and slammed one of the buttons, causing the door to open.

"What're you doing?!" the pilot demanded.

"What we should've done from the get go," Weiss answered. As she stared out onto the lake, the Lancers coming up behind them, she drew her weapon.

"May the Brother of Darkness be with us," she said.

"I always am." Weiss looked around, but saw that Darkness wasn't apparently around, so she just dismissed that as a trick of the mind.

"Didn't peg you for the religious type, kid," the pilot said, "I'd probably say screw him at this point."

"Please don't blaspheme with me," Weiss hissed, as she ran her finger along Myrtenaster, as it lit up with fire Dust. She then swung the rapier out, sending a ball of fire that knocked on Lancer out of the sky. She did that a couple times, before summoning up one of her glyphs, and sending bursts of ice at the monsters, knocking them all out of the sky. Unfortunately, that only knocked out a few of what was an entire swarm. It was pretty apparent that Weiss' standing tactic of just wiping hem out one at a time wasn't efficient.

As she watched more of them approach, Weiss then narrowed her eyes, looked at her weapon, as she took a breath knowing what she really had to do. With that, she then sheathed Myrtenaster, and held up her arms, as she started to glow, and let herself fall out of the airship.

"Kid!" the pilot screamed as he saw her fall out. Granted, he couldn't really dwell on that for long, as more of the Lancers suddenly came up at him. He tried to avoid them, but the Grimm were proving far more nimble, as several came at him at once. Fortunately, there was a massive burst of white mist, and several of the Lancers were suddenly flash frozen.

"What the…" Right then, a great white form soared by. As the pilot looked closer, he saw that it was a white dragon with massive wings.

"Well… that's a new one," was all the pilot could say when he could finally form the words.

In spite of being worried she was out of practice, Weiss nimbly soared through the islands, letting out another burst of icy mist, freezing another couple Lancers instantly. To be able to fly again, far from Atlas, far from her father, and to be able to go wherever she wanted, it had been a while since Weiss felt this free. A couple of Lancers fired their stingers at her, but they harmlessly bounced of her scales.

Weiss turned to face them, as she breathed more ice at them, but they managed to avoid. Suddenly a strange sensation went through Weiss' body, all the way down to the tip of her tail. From said tip came a couple of thin spines that looked like icicles. With a flick of her tail, the icicles then shout out, and pierced several more Lancers, destroy them instantly.

Didn't know I could do that, she thought, but she certainly was going to complain about it. She quickly focused again, and created another couple icicles that brought down another Lancer. While she was doing this, the pilot was watching from his cockpit, and chuckled nervously.

"Wish I had my Scroll," he commented. This would've been quite the thing to post on I-Tube. That was when his ship got knocked again, this time by a march larger beast. It was a Queen Lancer, which Weiss also noticed.

This just got a lot harder she thought to herself as she dove back towards the ship. The beast's attention turned towards the giant reptile coming at it, and it moved to face her.

Fortunately, while the Queen still had some size on Weiss, Weiss still had agility. She quickly avoided the stinger, before turning around breathing more ice, but her spread wasn't large enough to more than freeze a portion of it. While she knew freezing the Lancer one piece at a time would take too long, Weiss figured that was still probably her best option. Aiming for its wings, Weiss dove at the Lancer, but it proved faster than its size let on.

That was when she let out a cry of pain, as she felt herself being yanked back. She looked over to see that another couple Lancers had pierced her wing membrane. While Weiss could still fly, it now hurt a lot to do so. She quickly learned her neck back, and released her ice, and though she couldn't hit the Lancers, she did hit their stingers, breaking them away.

Right then, Weiss got slammed in the side by the Queen, sending her careening towards the water. She managed to open her wings, as she soared over the water, creating a thin line of ice in her wake as she glided over it, before she flapped back up. A couple more Lancers came at her, as she released her ice breath, flash freezing them all at once.

With that, all the Lancers save for the Queen were slain, as the Grimm dove at the dragon. The two crashed together again, and while the thick scales of the dragon deflected all the blows, but Weiss proved too small to do much damage against the much bigger monster. Nonetheless, she continued clawing and biting it too little avail.

Weiss then inhaled deeper than she ever had in her life, as she felt the dragon magic surge through her body. With one solid exhale, she released a huge cloud of mist, big enough to consume the Grimm's entire body. When the mist faded, the Queen was frozen solid, before it plunged down to the lake.

Victorious, Weiss veered back towards the airship, which was still not in a good way. She raked her claws into the ship's body, and did everything she could to slow its fall, but it was too big. And despite Weiss' best efforts, it was too heavy, and it crashed into the ground. Weiss was sent tumbling head over tail through the trees, and with that, it all went blank…

Note: This was actually the first time Weiss got some real dragon action in this fic now that I think I about it.

So Sienna has met with Pyrrha (though neither clearly knew who the other was). To clarify, Sienna's Semblance is essentially like Raven's, only based on locations instead of people.

I'm on leave for the Holidays now, so I'll try and get some more writing done before the year's up. In the mean time, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Be sure to review.

I'm going to make an announcement regarding the poll: the poll has been taken down, and a new one has been posted. I've narrowed it down to two people: Ruby and Weiss. Despite my dabbles and considerations, Yang, Blake, and Pyrrha never got enough to make the cut (Penny was only ever up there as a joke), maybe in another story. Again, the poll is not to determine who he's going to end up with, just to get a sense of which is more popular. Something I recently learned was that White Knight is apparently Kara Eberle's favorite ship; maybe there's something there. Anyways, take a look at the poll, and give your opinion.