Book 2, Chapter 5

Family Reunion

It was quiet, too quiet for his likings now. Used to be the quiet environment was calming to him, allowed him to relax somewhat and clear his head before, but now it was just... uncomfortable. It was as if he was being suffocated by the emptiness, too. A far cry from the events of recent history, that was for sure...

That's not even mentioning the fact that he wasn't wearing his battle armor right now, only having his blaster pistol on his person. No, he was dressed as he was when he first arrived at Saunders, and he couldn't help but feel as if the Academy had rubbed off on him, as now the manor he'd lived in his entire life had just felt wrong somehow, and he wasn't really sure why, either.

Maybe it was the pristine, almost regal aesthetic? Maybe it was how quiet and formal everything was? While he was not quite as much of a go-getter with mercenary work as Ruby was, he was by no means a slouch. In the short time he'd been in the guild, he'd gotten at least fifteen or sixteen missions under his belt, and fought for his life in almost every one of them in some way or another. The constant danger used to scare him, but now it was exhilarating, and the sense of impeding doom only now served to remind him that he was alive. Living on a razor's edge just held something to it, something so fun, something that made him feel just right.

So, with that in mind, his old home, the Schnee Manor, didn't quite feel right anymore. Too empty, too calm, too quiet. It was unnerving, and though once this environment was home, now it just felt hostile, oppressive even.

"I never thought I'd see the day where home felt so wrong... oh well, I suppose stranger things have occurred." Whitley muttered to himself as he sauntered down the hallways, both hands stuffed into his pockets. He was chewing on a piece of gum, occasionally blowing a bubble for his own amusement and to make a break in the silence with the pop.

Looking down at his forearms, he noted that they were far more defined and somewhat bulkier than they were the last time he was here, and could even note some good-lookin veins popping out. Though he was a Tech Specialist, he couldn't always avoid getting caught up in the melee, so he'd been both working out and training in hand-to-hand combat with both Ruby and Nagisa. He was pleased to say that those skills had come in handy in a good handful of missions now, just as in the most recent one where he had been forced to brawl with his target.

"Hello Whitley... I'm surprised to see you armed..." He turned to face the owner of the voice, taking in the image of his sister, Weiss. He flashed her a cheeky smirk, before shrugging and meandering towards her with little care for formality or appearances.

"Hello to you too, Weiss. You're here for the reunion too, yeah?" His demeanor obviously threw his sister off, as her cautious eyeing turned into a fully puzzled expression.

"Yes... are you feeling well? I've never heard you speak in such an..." she tried, pausing for a moment as if to find the right word, "...uncouth manner?"

"Suffice it to say I've been busy, and my eyes have been opened, so to speak... though I'll admit, I never realized just how dull this place is after having seen the world beyond its walls with my own eyes." He explained, before spinning on his heel and waltzing down the hall towards the courtyard, raising a hand and beckoning Weiss to follow.

"Why would you want me to follow? I thought you didn't like Winter or I?"

"Well, let's just say that the story behind my blaster has given me a little actual respect for you two..." Whitley began, shrugging lightly and looking back at her while maintaining his pace. "You and Winter used to train there, right? I wanna see how your martial training compares to my own."

"Huh?! You're seriously saying you've been fighting? I don't believe that for one second." She exclaimed in disbelief, resting a hand on her hip and swinging it out slightly.

"Then let me prove what I can do. Weapons are fine, semblances too if you'll let me get my kit first. Fair enough?" He proposed, receiving a reluctant nod in confirmation. "Finally, I won't be so bored now! This'll be fun..."

He thought Weiss and Winter's expressions were the funniest of all present when he stepped out into the yard in full kit, his helmet stowed under his armpit. His confidence and excitement were pulling the corners of his mouth up, as he made it obvious that not only was he a Mercenary of New Saunders, but that he enjoyed his work too.

Weiss's reaction was by far the most amusing, as beads of sweat immediately started running down her forehead and an extremely cautious look dominates her face and eyes. He was aware that the first mercenary she'd ever encountered was Nagisa, who absolutely bodied her that time, and the second encounter was Ruby, who despite herself getting the upper hand on the girl, still easily managed her at the docks. She knew the visor of the Mercenary, and she knew to take it seriously too.

"No way... you're... you can't be one of them!" Weiss pointed her blade at him, her aura flaring up slightly as she took up a defensive posture. He knew that his armor was throwing her off, she wasn't quite sure how to proceed against him since both times she'd lost to his comrades, she'd either acted in an offensive manner or was just incapacitated before she could act.

"Fight like you mean it, sister! No fun if we hold anything back!" He declared loudly, sliding his helmet on and entering a ready stance as he reached the center. Everyone else in the courtyard had already stepped off to the side, not wanting to get caught up in the duel.

Not needing any further provocation, she rushed forward, utilizing her semblance to launch her forward at incredible speed. Reacting with speed she'd never before seen from him, he lowered his left gauntlet and locked it against her blade, pushing it aside as he pivoted on the ball of his forward left foot, bringing his leg around.

Letting her momentum carry her, she rolled under his kick, dropping onto her shoulder and allowing the angle she'd dropped to to carry her to an upright position facing him, attempting to make a glyph as she came up to a kneel. However, he acted far more aggressively, stomping his airborne foot down heavily and spinning on the ball, shooting his opposite foot into her face and throwing her back.

Using the momentum Whitley had given her, she rolled back up to a standing position and assumed a defensive stance. He hadn't done much to her, but he demonstrated clearly that she had to take the fight seriously and created some room for himself to work with.

Working quickly, Weiss summoned a glyph and threw some fire dust into the equation, sending a massive, blazing column of fire his way. Chuckling lightly, he activated both shield drones before charging headlong into the fire without the slightest hint of hesitation. Some fire licked at him through the shield and he felt the intensity of the flames wash over him like a tidal wave, but didn't slow, instead using the small pangs of pain to push himself harder, sprinting faster through the flames and ramming straight through the glyph.

Her eyes widened in shock as Whitley had all but bulldozed through her attack, realizing that as he'd done such, that left herself totally exposed, something he capitalized on, striking her across the cheek with an electrified punch. Recovering quickly, she attempted to stab at him, finding herself surprised as he only turned right so much that it would scrap across his breastplate. Flexing his right arm to grip the blade in the joint, he grabbed the guard of myrtenaster before spinning with all the force he could muster, yanking the weapon out of Weiss's grip and using momentum to toss the weapon out of range for her to grasp. Extending his hand out of the turn, he backhanded Weiss across the back of the head, staggering her as she was pulled alongside her weapon.

Though she was staggered, she managed to catch a kick from her little brother, mustering all her strength to flip him over into his back. She was rewarded with this action, successfully forcing him to lose balance and fall on his back. Swiftly, while she had the opportunity, she used her semblance to freeze his feet and ankles in ice, before rushing over to retrieve her weapon.

Growling in annoyance yet smiling from the thrill of battle, he swapped from his cryo-sprayer to his flamethrower, melting the ice under an intense blaze while a drone shot out from his shoulder and latched onto Weiss's. She barely had a second to look back in horror before it started tasing her, halting her just short of her weapon.

It only shocked her for about five seconds, but a single second would've been all he needed to close the distance and kick the weapon even further out of reach. As he turned to face her, she swung left with her fist, and he raised his hand, catching her by her bicep before attempting to grab her opposite shoulder. His grin only intensified as she threw herself back, gracefully cartwheeling back into a low defensive position.

Summoning another glyph, she formed a handful of large shards of ice, before launching them towards him. It was an easy counter, simply raising his wrist and melting them under the intensity of his flames before they could reach him. Having seen similar tricks enough to know a ruse from an actual attack, he activated his cloaking unit while leaning back at an extreme angle to avoid a slash from his sister's blade.

He allowed himself to fall down, rolling upright with the momentum and dashing along the outskirts of their little arena. He assumed that she'd hit herself with a time manipulation glyph, otherwise he didn't see any other way she would've been able to retrieve her blade so quickly. Though she couldn't see him, Whitley didn't fool himself into believing she couldn't track him. Aura sense existed after all, and while hers may not be quite acute enough to perfectly track him, she could still gradually narrow down his signature if she REALLY concentrated.

Of course, he didn't plan on allowing her this much wiggle room. Halting in place behind her, he allowed his equipment to lock into her, before launching a dozen missiles at her and rushing directly at her with them, combat knife in hand...

Or at least she thought it was him, as she impales his running form through the chest, only for it to phase straight through her alongside all the missiles, leaving her open and exposed as her momentum carried her forward. Her face crashed into what felt like an invisible oncoming truck, and she was thrown on her back once again suffering massive aura damage. She looked up in time to watch him attempt to pounce on her with his knife, and kicked her leg up just in time to plant her foot on his chest and knock him down.

Both rising to their feet, Weiss pointed her blade at him one last time, before summoning a glyph behind herself and entering an aggressive stance, her blade held high and pointing low with her leg on the same side as the arm holding it slid back to widen her stance and bring her lower to the ground.

Not one to let his opponent finish their setup, Whitley fires his whipcord launcher at her, wrapping it around her torso, pinning her forward arm not holding the blade to her body. Without a second of hesitation, he electrified his gloves and gripped the whipcord with both hands, allowing the current of electricity to flow down and hit his sister with a constant stream of electricity. He allowed her to crumple to her knees before releasing the cord and firing off a dozen missiles at her, this time for real. Snapping off the cord, he turned on his heel and began marching away as his sister was struck with the barrage of missiles, some hitting head on and others blowing up near her, finally finishing off her aura...

"Ugh... ow..." Weiss winced as she sat up after being thrown to earth for the last time. She didn't understand, how could Whitley possibly defeat her? Sure, at this point he probably had a little more real battlefield experience, but she had some of the best tutors that money could buy in Atlas!

"You focus too much on fighting pretty and rely way too much on your single weapon." He criticizes while yelling back to her, resting a hand on his hip as he did so. "Your technique is fine, but you lack the creativity to use it in an an effective manner, and no private tutor can teach that... oh, and your Arsenal is so limited! Why restrict yourself to blade, dust and semblance?"

"Grrr... Be quiet, Whitley!" She spat back at him, rising to her feet with shaky knees as she looked around. Winter rushed to her side to help her stand upright better, shooting a conflicted look over to Whitley as she did so.

"Weiss, I know that this defeat may scathe, but take it to heart. The reason why he defeated you today is the same as why so many hunters lose when pitted against Mercenaries of a similar skill level, but unlike them, you can actually learn from this." She explained, assisting her over to a bench and allowing her to sit down.

He assumed it must be somewhat embarrassing, losing in front of the entire family, but he didn't pay the thought any further attention than that. He didn't wanna spar to put on a show, even if the fight did ultimately do just that, he wanted to spar so he could cure his boredom. To that end, this sparring session was a complete success.

"This was fun, Weiss!" He yelled over, removing his helmet as he approached the table their mother and father sat at. "Next time we speak though, make sure you're packing enough firepower to compete!"

"Oh... oh you just watch... I'll show you firepower next time..." Weiss seethed, before recollecting herself and stomping off towards her room...

"Whitley," Winter began, marching towards him while resting a hand on her own blade. "I did not expect you of all of us to enjoy fighting so much... but you too have much to learn. Your fighting style is efficient, but sloppy."

"I am aware of this, sister, which is why I continue to refine it day by day." He affirmed, before looking back to the rest of his family. "Now, I'm going to slip back into what I was wearing before I got ready for that little sparring session. Afterwards, let's have ourselves a good time!"

He'd made a real risk coming out as he had to talk with his niece, but he really didn't have any other options besides this and keeping quiet, laying low. Though normally he wouldn't have any problem with just kicking back and resting awhile, he couldn't quite do that with a clear conscience when he had other options available in such a critical time.

So with all that in mind, he was just glad to find that the window was open. Flying in, it was the dead of midnight, and the girl seemed to be in the kitchen making herself dinner. He was currently in her actual room, though the door was open he was not in her line of sight, which he was of course thankful for because he really didn't know how well she'd react to seeing him change to and from a bird, not to mention explaining it would probably take up more time than he had.

Stepping into the open doorway, he swore loudly as his niece wasn't alone, since apparently she'd invited her bodyguards in for dinner, and she was hardly the first to notice him. Acting swiftly and stealing the initiative, he grabbed the closest mercenary, a short raven-haired wolf faunas, by the side of her head and slammed her against the doorframe, disorienting her before rushing forward and slamming shoulder-first into the second's chest as he drew his blaster pistol, throwing him on and over the table.

Turning back to his first target, he kicked the blaster pistol out of her hand as she started picking herself up, before drawing back his foot and kicking her hard in the side and knocking her back down. Drawing his weapon out, he flicked it to its shotgun configuration and fired on the male behind him, drawing forth the sound of his pellets clashing against his armor and throwing him back, before flicking it back to its blade configuration and raising it overhead to strike down the mercenary at his feet-

"UNCLE QROW, PLEASE, STOP!" Yang screamed at him, drawing halt to the brief confrontation as she stepped in between him and the downed mercenary. Turning back to the girl, she offered a hand and helped her to her feet. "Are you okay, Amie?"

"I'm fine... Ugh... damnit, this throbbing pain isn't going away any time soon..." She replied looking back to the mercenary behind Qrow. "You alright, Colt?"

"Damn... shattered my aura and shredded my armor, just barely protected me... I'm fine otherwise... somehow."

"Uncle Qrow, what are you doing here?! Why are you here?! The whole Country wants you dead for what you did to Ruby, but don't hurt these two, they're only first year students!" She pleaded after questioning him, making him sigh in exasperation as the two mercs picked themselves up and got behind Yang. "Ok... I guess I should take things one thing at a time, right? Please, don't hurt these two... and you two, I wouldn't recommend trying him in combat, since he's killed Veterans."

The two eyed him cautiously and kept their blasters on hand, but listened to her nonetheless. The female spoke, keeping a hand on her blaster pistol. "We'll keep back, but we are calling for veteran backup, so whatever conversation you're gonna have, better tie it up quickly."

"Alright firecracker... why defect?" He questioned, crossing his arms after putting his weapon away. "You know that Ozpin has listed you as a traitor, right? Why? I don't understand, why would you take the side of those who help our enemies as much as they do us? Why side with these people when they're still technically at war with Vale?"

"Do you know what Ozpin has done to the Pariahs? What the IHA as a whole are still doing to them?" She challenged him, though was surprised by his reaction.

"Of course I'm aware, and it's for the greater good!" He countered, setting a hand on her shoulder. "A few will suffer so the rest won't have to, thats the cold hard truth of it, Yang. The reason they must bear this burden you already know, having fought a Pariah in real combat before. You got the better of her in at battle on your terms, but she still nearly killed you in the end. Imagine if there were more of them proficient in combat like her... They're natural born Hunter Killers, and if that's turned against the kingdoms, you know how disastrous that'd be?"

"It's only disastrous now for you because of how they've been treated by people like Ozpin for THOUSANDS of years!" She rebuked him, brushing his hand off her shoulder. "And another thing! Why Ruby?! She and I may have never been particularly close, but she was the flesh and blood of Summer!" Bringing up that name made him drop his head a little, allowing a little shadow to fall over his eyes. "Don't you care about what she would've wanted?! She LOVED Ruby more than anything else in the world! How can you just do THAT to her?!"

"Damnit, Yang... don't do that, that isn't fair-"

"And what she's been through has been fair? Tell me what she and the rest of her kind has been through is fair with a straight face!" He punched the wall with her declaration, putting a large hole through it as he readjusted his gaze on his niece.

"Just shut up for a damn second!" He yelled, hitting her off balance with his words and making her take a step back. "You think I don't care? You think I enjoy that I'm being ordered to kill my... my..." he choked up a little, but recollected himself and slammed his hand on the table. "Because I don't! As a matter of fact, I hate it, damnit! But I was given my marching orders for a much bigger plan, to secure our future against a much bigger threat!"

"If you 'care' about her so much, why not help her? You had a whole decade to help her off the street! Why couldn't you have helped her then, and why try to kill her now?!"

"Because taking her with me then would've been too dangerous for her, and now she's become too dangerous for us to leave alive! I don't want to kill her, but I have to for the good of all those in the Kingdoms! It's her versus the Kingdoms, you think I like making a decision like that?!"

"Its more than just her that the Kingdoms are against! What about all the Pariahs still there, huh? Why must they be treated like they're no better than Grimm? You and I both swore an oath to protect ALL, Yet we conveniently waive that oath whenever they come into the picture! You of know the atrocities that the IHA and society of the Kingdoms commit upon them on the daily, how can you stand for it?!"

"Damnit Yang... you don't understand, there's an evil far worse than you could possibly imagine out there that wouldn't hesitate to use Pariahs against us if they could... and that's why, until THAT evil is dealt with, they must suffer under oppression. If they can never grow strong, they can never be used as a capable weapon against us." He tried to explain, though that only got Yang's ire instead of the understanding he was hoping for.

"The only evil I see is that of the Kingdoms right now... now get out, the Veterans are probably almost here now." She warned him, turning back towards the mercenaries assigned to be her bodyguards. He held his hand towards her for a moment, a look of disbelief donned upon his features, before a sigh escaped his lips.

"Alright, Kiddo... I'll take my leave then-"

"Also," Yang cut him off, looking over her shoulder at her uncle who chanced a look into her eyes. "What you told me all those years ago, about you, Summer and Ruby. When she awakens, I'm going to tell her."

"Yang, wait. Do not tell her, you can't! Never mind the mercenaries, I don't want New Saunders CPS coming after me, and I at least want her to have something she can believe firmly in!" He pleaded, though it fell on deaf ears, as Yang had already turned back to her guards.

"Goodbye... Uncle Qrow."

Suddenly, the door burst open, revealing none other than the Mercenary Squad Captains and the Guild Master in full kit, their weapons already primed and ready. Knowing his time was up, he threw himself to the floor behind the wall and turned himself back into a bird, shooting out the window as swiftly as he could. All he could do now was hope that they didn't manage to track him efficiently, and that Yang was only blowing smoke about what she said...

"Amelia, Colt, what's your status?"

"We're fine, Captain. Xiao Long saved our skins though, he just came out of nowhere." Colt explained, with his companion nodding in confirmation. "She... talked with him. Stalled him. He tried to turn her back to Ozpin's side, I think, or at least make her doubt her position."

"I see..." it was Julius, the Captain of the Red Dragons who spoke to them. All things considered, she really didn't know that much about the Captains, though considering they were considered the very best the Guild had to offer, and that they were all here, she supposed it went without saying that Uncle Qrow's appearance was a very serious matter. "I must thank you for having him spare these two. It is always a dark day when we lose one of our own so long before their time."

"No need for thanks, sir... I think I'm just done with violence, at least unless it's absolutely necessary." She responded, though it was also clear to him that she was in a somewhat foul mood.

"Child, does something trouble you? Perhaps something said tonight?" She did not understand why, but this man was... she didn't know, but there was something warm, comforting about this man's aura.

"That man, Qrow... he's my Uncle." She admit, bringing a hand up to brush her hair back. "And Ruby... shes..."

"I think that's enough for one night, don't you?" Kamina interjected, setting a hand on Julius's shoulder and jerking his head back.

"Ah... yes, of course sir." He stood fully upright, before turning to the two Mercenaries. "Stay here for now. A team of Honor Guards will be down shortly to relieve you of this post in case he returns."

"Sir!" They both responded in salute, and like that, the Captains left without another word, leaving them all to just sit in the room without any interruptions... and a busted door...

"Forget the door, I can just lock the one to my bedroom for privacy. You two still want dinner? It was finished and I'd just taken it off the burner when Uncle Qrow popped in." Yang offered to the two of them, with both setting their helmets down on the table and taking seats in response.

"Of course! You said it was spaghetti tonight, right?" Amelia asked, drawing a wide smile out of the resident blonde cook.

"And meat sauce! Don't worry, it'll be served up in just a moment!" She beamed in a cheery tone, before briskly making her way around the kitchen to set up dinner for three and possibly more in case those Honor Guards arrived before these two were finished.

Even if Uncle Qrow was here on New Saunders, even if everyone she knows and loves was on the opposite side, she was firm in her decision to leave. She found her purpose, finally, and nothing, not even her family would make her let it go...

A/N: So, I'll admit in the department of character interaction and the sort I'm not the best. Still trying to improve in that regard, so any and all constructive criticism is welcome (please actually provide legitimate criticisms if you're going to, just saying things like "your story is garbage, so and so is better" is slander, and there's a big difference). That being said, I feel like I've got battle down pat, or at least almost do.

Still room to improve, as in all things, but I feel I'm slowly getting better.

Now, I'd like to throw a special thanks to one firewyrm2. You're constant reviews always bring a smile to my face and I feel exceptionally blessed to have a consistent reviewer in you.

Before I end this little Author's Note, I'd like to put it out there that this or the next chapter will be the last chapter for some time. I'd prefer to keep the reason confidential, but I can confirm that I'll most likely be about 8-12 weeks before I can return.

Again, from the bottom of my heart I want to thank all of you, my readers, reviewers, everyone who's favorited and followed me and this story. To those who haven't done any of those, well, you're not reading this message anyways so I ain't got nuthin to thank ya for XD

Anyways, thank you, all of you

~SugoiRaccoon