"Awwww," Yang cooed softly. "There's my cuddlebug!"

Unable to help herself, Weiss leaned onto her girlfriend with a smile. Naturally, she was attracted to her girlfriend's warmth and nuzzled her head into the crook of her neck. In response, the blonde threw an arm around her shoulders and snuggled closely.

Weiss didn't mind the open display of affection. The only people in here was her team.

As usual, the teacher's lounge was comfortable and homey. Just outside the closed door, dozens of students bustled in the halls. While people scampered to random classrooms, team RWBY could relax. The shared free period was spoiling them.

Slightly, Weiss adjusted herself and pressed closer to Yang's side. "You're so warm."

Yang saw her chance and immediately took it. "Like a warm plate of hash browns?"

Weiss pinched the bridge of her nose. "That was one time."

Across from the freezerburn pair was the ladybug couple, who was cuddling on the other couch.

Ruby couldn't wipe the smug grin from her face. "Haha, I remember that! You were so drunk!"

The priestess frowned. "I said that to Yang, didn't I?" she looked to Yang for approval.

In response, Ruby just shrugged. Her smugness never faded. "What would I know?" she said, blatantly egging her on. "I'm just a mean cherry."

Together, the three laughed from the throwback. Ruby laughed especially hard. Due to this, Blake kept a close eye on her girlfriend for the slightest hint of a grimace. Thankfully, there were none. It'd taken a few weeks, but Ruby's ribs were fully healed. It took so long because a few had been fractured.

Pouting, Weiss leaned back on the couch and crossed her arms. "I don't have to deal with this."

More snickers.

Fondly, Blake gazed around at her dear friends. Ruby was healed. Yang's concussion was gone, and Weiss was no longer exhausted. The only lingering effects from the battle was the burn scar on the faunus' back. Any cuts and gashes she suffered had faded since then.

Blake leaned forward to address everyone in the room. "Can we take a moment to appreciate how awesome Dad is?"

"He's super Dad for sure," Yang agreed. "And he didn't even question us about what happened until we were fully recovered, so that was nice. He was dying to know."

Ruby nodded with a smile. "I'm glad we decided to tell him everything."

"He was so shocked," Yang said with a wide grin.

"Can you blame him?" Blake replied. "To not only find out about the New World, but to also be told that his daughters were wrapped up in it this whole time?"

"He glued a lot of pieces together because of that," Ruby said. "All those 'work out' sessions with Yang suddenly made sense."

Weiss gripped the edge of her skirt. "Do you feel bad for telling him about the New World?"

The three shook their heads.

"No," Blake answered. "The relic is gone and our duty is finished. There's really no harm in telling him."

Yang used a solemn voice. "He's been our silent supporter this whole time. I see no reason to not tell him. Especially since the danger has passed."

"I guess that's true," Weiss admitted.

"Are you thinking about telling Klein?" Blake questioned, sensing the hesitance in her friend.

"Yes," Weiss said. "I think Dad deserves to know. He's been through a lot because of it, and was given either no explanation or a vague one."

"He'll believe you, you know," Yang said confidently.

"I know."

Ruby pointed to her head and spun her finger in circles. "You should tell him, but if we told random people, they'd think we're crazy!"

"We do have our semblances as proof," Yang was quick to remind. "So maybe not too crazy."

"That's fair," Ruby admitted. "But I'd rather not be a human experiment."

If ordinary people found out that team RWBY had their semblances, the group would no doubt be subjected to various tests from scientists. Be poked and prodded to figure out how the hell 'superpowers' were possible. When in reality, everyone has the potential to have semblances. Their aura just needs to be unlocked first. The general public didn't know about that, and the team wanted to keep it that way. It would disrupt the peace they've fought so hard for so long.

Blake grimaced from the thought of being an experimental subject. "That'd be awful. Let's agree to keep our semblances a secret."

Multiple firm "yeah's" rang out.

Lovingly, Ruby set her hand on her girlfriend's back. All this talk about taking risks led her to wonder about her injuries. "How's the burn? Do you need more medicine for it?"

The faunus put on her best smile. "It hasn't stung since last week."

"Alright!" Yang cheered. "That's what I'm talkin' about!"

"I'm glad," Ruby chirped. "You were more roughed up than all of us."

The burn throbbed for a couple of weeks after the fight. Besides Ruby's ribs, that was the most difficult injury to completely heal.

Weiss recalled the image of Blake that night a few weeks ago. "Your uniform had seen better days."

"It was just cloth on my body," Blake said in amusement. "I don't know how it stayed on me after all those cuts. There was no fixing it."

Yang adorned a smirk as she raised the heat slightly in the room. "It was fun to burn it."

Weiss squeezed her hand. "You had a grand time taking care of that for her."

"It was easy peasy!"

Suddenly, the door creaked open. Now that the group thought about it, it'd been quiet outside. Class probably already started.

None other than Glynda Goodwitch sauntered inside the teacher's lounge with a clipboard in hand. She was vigorously taking notes, so she didn't notice the four sitting on the couches.

"Hey, headmaster!" Yang greeted cheerfully. "How's the new title treatin' ya?"

Like she'd been waiting for that question, Glynda sighed and sat next to the blonde. She placed her clipboard on the table in front of her and propped up her feet. Tiredly, she tilted her head back as she stared up at the ceiling and sighed again.

The picture of exhaustion.

"Having a hard time?" Blake questioned, her cat ears perked up.

"That insolent man left me with this school," came Goodwitch's reply.

She didn't sound upset or like she was complaining. It was a more solemn tone.

Yang laughed boisterously. "Oh shut up, you know you love it."

Glynda gazed at the ceiling, knowing that Ozpin was watching over them right now.

A smile formed from the thought.

"I never said I don't."


In the corner of the living room, Zwei was spazzing out with something.

With what? Taiyang didn't know. Although, he had a hunch.

All he saw was his beloved dog spastic and acting all giddy. He'd been like this lately. Ever since his daughters told him about the New World.

"Zwei," Taiyang called sternly, which caught the corgi's attention. "What're you doing?"

A calm bark.

The corgi then looked over at what he'd been playing with like it was obvious.

Nothing.

On the couch, Ruby, Blake, and Yang watched the scene in amusement. Their father's confused expression caused them to smirk. Before, they were watching a show on T.V., but that could wait.

Zwei was playing with something alright.

Next to him sat a familiar white cub. Playfully, the friendly creature angled its rear in the air with its tail wagging. The corgi followed his companion's lead and let out a yip.

"You know how he is," Yang thought of an excuse to make her think her dad wasn't crazy. "The tiniest things excite him. I bet a spec of dust set him off."

Confusedly, Taiyang rubbed the back of his head. "You're so weird, Zwei."

That earned several giggles as Zwei pounced on the cub. This elicited many lovable licks to his furry cheeks.

"Wait," Taiyang suddenly said. "He's playing with one of The Mirrored, isn't he?!"

"Yep!" Yang said with a giddy smile. "You should've seen your face!"

Multiple giggles ensued.

"Man..." Taiyang mumbled. It was odd not being able to see it. "You know I'm not used to this yet!"

After much debate between Yang and Goodwitch, that's the term they settled on to call the creatures.

The Mirrored are creatures that are the exact opposite of grimm. After the fight with Cinder, all grimm had vanished like they never appeared. In the monsters' place came the Mirrored. They were overly friendly creatures in the purest form.

It had already been attempted to purify this Mirrored in particular. But these creatures only absorbed the white light and shined brighter than stars. They wouldn't disappear, and the team was oddly okay with that.

The Mirrored in general didn't cause any trouble. Only served to make their lives better somehow. They were a joy to be around. And by this point, this Mirrored that'd taken residence in their home was more like family by this point.

The white wolf cub adorned red streaks over his white fur. The Mirrored lacked body armor and adorned kind red eyes. Not eyes that lust for blood and devastation like grimm. It was like the grimm were transformed into these cute, fluffy creatures.

And of course, anyone without an unlocked aura couldn't see them. Which left Taiyang in this odd position.

Together, the four watched Zwei and the Mirrored cub wrestle.

"What was the pup's name again?" Taiyang asked.

"Salmon," Blake chimed with a smug grin.

"That's a stupid name," Taiyang said bluntly.

"You're a stupid name," Blake retorted.

From that, Taiyang looked skeptical.

Ruby waved him off. "We call him Sal for short."

"Now that's cute," Taiyang replied.

Having enough of watching the pups playfully fight, Ruby decided to whistle. "C'mere, Zwei!"

From the chipper call, Zwei abandoned the match and scampered up to the red-hooded girl. Ruby leaned over the couch and picked him up before giddily setting him on her lap.

"That's a gooood boy," Ruby cooed as she pet his gray fur.

In the corner of Yang's eye, she noticed that the Mirrored wolf cub was pouting. Tiny whimpers escaped the cub, and the blonde sighed.

"Sal~" Yang sang.

From the call of his nickname, Salmon darted over to the blonde's waiting arms.

Naturally, the name was given to him by Blake. For some reason, it was the first word that popped in her mind when they first laid eyes on him.

Yang set the creature in her lap and happily stroked the white fluff.

"Can I pet him?" Taiyang suddenly asked.

"Sure!" Yang beamed and grabbed his hand. "His back's riiiiight here."

Since Yang could see Sal, she helped guide Taiyang to touch the fluff. To Taiyang, it was odd to stroke air. Although, he did feel a sudden warmth that didn't emanate from his daughter. There were also the slightest vibrations that tickled his skin.

"Do you feel him?" Yang asked.

"It's really warm."

Curiously, Ruby asked. "Do you not feel the fluff?"

To the girls, Taiyang was properly brushing the cub. Salmon's fur was stroked back and then forward. All while the cub rested in Yang's comfortable lap.

"It's just really warm in this spot," Taiyang informed. "And there's a vibration feeling to it. It feels nice."

Blake's cat ear flicked. "He really likes it."

"Salmon would be really nice for dinner tonight," Yang mentioned. "Don't ya think, Blakey?"

In response, Blake's jaw dropped. She looked horrified-

"Oh my god no, not Salmon! I meant actual salmon like the fish!" Yang blurted. "Jeez, I'm not a monster!"

"Whew," Ruby said in relief. "That'd be so messed up."

"I'm just giving you crap, Yang," Blake chirped. "Salmon sounds really nice."

Taiyang heavily sighed as he set his hands on his knees, ready to stand. "Does this mean I gotta make dinner now?"

Ruby kept her hand on his back to prevent him from leaving. "We're kidding. Relax with us."

His three daughters sent him warm smiles. Lilac, amber, and silver pools twinkled with adoration and love. In return, Taiyang gave them a wide grin. Having his daughters be healthy was all he needed. It was everything to him. When he was healing their injuries, he didn't think that they'd ever be the same. Especially after the dreaded hospital visits. However, their grins showed him that he had nothing to fear. They were the same daughters he always loved.

"If you insist," Taiyang said happily.

With that, he allowed himself to sink into the couch. Leisurely, he slung an arm behind Ruby and watched what was on the T.V. screen. Ruby pet Zwei and set her hand on top of his warm fur. Her other hand was holding Blake's own. Next to Blake, Yang was rubbing Sal, who was resting on her lap.

It'd been a few moments before Taiyang spoke up.

"What did the salmon say when it swam into a wall?"

To prepare herself, Blake folded her cat ears on top of her head while Ruby held her ears to block any noise. Yang leaned in, expectant.

"What?" Blake asked in a monotone voice, wanting to get it over with.

"Damn," Taiyang finished with a smirk.

Some groans and a laugh.


BurningPeace is the one who thought of the term "The Mirrored" he's kind of a genius. It's a reference to the song Mirror, Mirror and because they're opposites of grimm. Much wow.

The inspiration for The Mirrored is from a game called Okami. If you Google 'Okami Chibi' that's what the wolf pups look like! Adorable, huh? Shadow Nightblade helped me out with that part.

Lyrics were mentioned from Cross the Line by Amalee: "This is everything to me. 'The only thing I need.'" His daughters' well-being are all that matters to him. Now that they're better, Taiyang can rest easy.

Stay dandy,

~Toto