The landscape is looking dreary as Ruby can be heard breathing heavily "Just hold on, Uncle Qrow".

Ruby and Jaune carry Qrow on a makeshift stretcher. Ren is before them on the path, leading the way while Nora brings up the rear and Dante at the right. Qrow is groaning in pain and is a touch delirious "Tai. She's not… coming… Tai".

"He's getting worse" Dante said.

"How much farther?" Ruby asked.

"We've gotta be close" Nora answered.

"Without the map, there's no way of knowing. But I feel like we're close to something" Ren said before holsters StormFlower.

"What is it?" Ruby asked.

Directly ahead is a fork in the road with a signpost. They are coming from the direction of Higanbana. Kuchinashi and Mistral are to the right, where the land is mountainous. To the left is Kuroyuri, its name crossed out. The path that way remains low ground.

"Hey, hey! Mistral! We're on the right path! Oh…" Nora said.

"Well, that's some good news!" Dante said.

"Does it say how close?!" Ruby asked.

"No. And it looks like the path takes us up the mountains" Ren said.

Jaune and Ruby set Qrow down as the former speaks "Guys, I don't know if all of us can make that climb".

Ruby looks at Qrow, concerned, before rushing forward to the sign post "Okay. Well, what about this place? Kuro… Kuroyuri? Can we get help there?".

"That village was destroyed years ago" Ren said in a bitter tone.

"But if it takes us around the mountains, it's the best bet we've got" Jaune said.

"It will take too long" Ren spoke sternly.

"The town would have had a doctor, right? Maybe we could scavenge for medicine!" Ruby reasoned.

Jaune nods "Right!".

Ren closes his eyes, lowering his head and shaking it "We're not going to find anything! We just have to press on!".

There is just a brief moment of silence. Ruby watches him, clutching her hands before her chest.

Jaune takes a step toward him "Ren, why are you acting-".

Nora cuts Jaune off and coming up beside Ren "We can split up".

Ruby looked shocked "Huh?".

Nora puts her hand on Ren's shoulder "Ren and I can cut through the mountains while you and Ruby take Qrow around through the village".

Jaune shakes his head "No, we're supposed to stick together! We keep each other safe!".

"I gotta agree with Jaune on this one" Dante said, the things that live around here are not exactly pleasant to meet alone."

"We don't have time for safe! If we make it to Mistral, we'll bring back help! If we don't, at least we'll have a better view of the land! Up there, we can see if there's somewhere else we can go!" Nora said sounding desperate.

Ren turns and looks at Nora. They exchange small, affectionate smiles. Still holding his gaze, Nora drops her hand from his shoulder. All four remain silent, feeling the weight of the choice before them

Jaune did not look convinced but he looks at Ruby before turning to Nora and Ren "OK" Jaune steps forward and he and Ren shares a bro hug "Just take care of each other".

Nora smiles at Ren "We always have".

On the path to Kuroyuri, Jaune and Ruby lift Qrow. They turn to Nora and Ren, who are on the path through the mountains to Mistral. They nod and Nora waves. Ren starts to turn, looks back one more time, and then runs. Nora follows.

They began to walk as Ruby confidently tries to comfort Jaune "They're gonna be fine, Jaune".

"You don't know that" Jaune said.

…

Yang lifts up her head, arms as the ready for a fight. Tai takes a swing at her with his left hand, but she easily blocks it with her robotic wrist, pushing his hand away from her. The interplay repeats with his right and her left, only this time Yang uses the momentum to turn and come back at her father with a roundhouse kick. Tai bends backward to dodge it, his legs in a lunge. He gives his daughter a solid punch, pushing her back a few feet.

Nearby, Zwei and Julius watch the two spar, Zwei panting happily. Beside them is a low stool with two white towels.

Tai stands alone and moves forward, doing his own roundhouse kick. Yang joins both hands atop each other to block Tai's landing foot. With a loud cry she pushes it up and back. Tai regains his footing in a flip while Yang waits for his landing. Using her robotic arm, she knocks him back with a single hit.

Holding onto his right bicep, Tai slides through the dirt, his feet flat on the ground until he comes to a stop "Whoa, that thing packs a punch!".

"We've been at this for weeks. I get it, you wanna make sure I can still fight" Yang said before bumping her own fists "I think I'm doing just fine".

"You're close" Tai as he stands upright, no longer nursing his arm. Walking around his daughter in a circle, he assesses her progress.

"Oh, really?" Yang asked

"You're still off balance" Tai said.

"What?! No I'm not!" Yang said while Tai chuckles "Honestly, I'm kind of surprised "She lifts her robotic arm, looking down at it with a smile "I thought it would be just this huge weight, but it feels… natural. They did a great job with this thing".

Tai comes in from nowhere, delivering a left hook right into her face. Yang's upper body rears back both from impact and surprise. She's ready to block his right hook, however, and uses the turning momentum to deliver an elbow jab. Grinning the entire time, Tai blocks it and then dodges all the kicks she follows through with. Yang switches to punches, but Tai is too on point for her. While she uses her left hand to block an elbow thrust, Tai has grasped her robotic arm and pulled it forward. The position puts Yang in the position of having her balance rely on the weight of one leg.

"I wasn't talking about your actual balance" Tai sweeps her forward leg, sending her onto the ground on her back. He leaves her there and walks over to Zwei, who happily gets the top towel for him "Although, that could use some work too".

Damn, Summer said in Julius's head, He's gotten better.

They both have Julius thought back. He was relieved Yang had finally decided to use the metal arm, and was more than happy to help her get in on correctly.

Tai takes the towel and give Zwei a rub on the top of his head. Zwei hums happily. Arms spread on the ground, Yang takes a breath before speaking "Meaning?"

"I saw your tournament fights. During the Vytal Festival" Tai said as he wiped his arms.

"Let me guess" Yang spoke in mocking accent "I was sloppy".

"No, no, you were predictable. And… stubborn. And… maybe a little boneheaded" Tai said. Yang sits up and spins to stare at her father "Do you realize that you used your Semblance to win every fight after the qualifiers?".

"That is true" Julius said, walking over, "Granted I'm probably not innocent of that either, but I tried using it when absolutely necessary."

Tai nodded in agreement, "That you did. However, Yang doesn't have the training you do."

Julius shrugged: "Good point."

Yang spins to have her back to Tai "So what? How is me using my Semblance any different than someone else using theirs?".

Tossing the towel on the ground, Tai moves toward her "Because not everyone else's is basically a temper tantrum" He laughs and crouching by her side "I'm serious! Once you take damage, you can dish it back twice as hard, but that doesn't make you invincible! It's great when you're in a bind, but what happens if you miss? What happens if they're stronger? What then? Now you're just weak and tired! You've always been one to burn brighter than everyone else, whether it was with your smile, or, well, I remember your first haircut"

He playfully tugs the hair on the back of her head. Smiling, Yang bats him away. He chuckles and gets up, walking away a few paces with Zwei just behind him.

"But you gotta keep your emotions in check. Keep a level head, and think before you act. Your Semblance is a great fallback, but you can't let yourself rely on it. It won't always save you" He lowers his head, sadness creeping into his tone "Obviously. You definitely have your mom's stubbornness".

Tai faces one of the trees, not looking at Yang. Yang looks at him "Oh, so now we can talk about her?".

"Well, as I have been informed, you're an adult now, remember?" Tai aske

Yang looks down "Well, sorry I remind you of her".

"Don't be. Raven was great in so many ways - her strength, her ambition, her dedication to whatever cause she thought was worth fighting for" Tai said as he turns around "I'm proud of how much of her I see in you. But, I'm glad I don't see all of her in you".

"Why?" Yang asked.

"You'll find that that's a good thing, sis" Julius said.

"Your mother was… a complicated woman. Like everybody, she had her faults, but those faults are what tore our team apart. And, it did a real number on our family. You both act like the easiest way to tackle an obstacle is through it. That strength is all that matters in a fight. But if you just take a second look, then maybe you see" Tai explained as he is stepping around Zwei "There's a way around as well".

He offers his hand "Come on, one more before dinner".

"Not…so…fast." Julius says, stepping in between the two and raising his fist: "I get one crack at this."

Yang shrugged: "Suit yourself."

Julius nodded and turned back toward Tai, then leaned far back to avoid a surprise left hook from his dad. Tai, not expecting this, is sent flying forward due to momentum, far enough, for Julius so spin around and get behind Tai and deliver a jab to Tai's back, causing him to stumble forward. Tai turns back around, a surprised look on his face, but quickly recovers and delivers a front jab quickly followed by a right hook to the face. As anticipated, Julius deflects the jab with his arm, but is struck across the face by the hook. However, Julius, used to hits like this, uses his new momentum to spin around, knocking Tai down with a roundhouse kick to the gut. Tai sprawls back on the ground, then looks up and smiles at Julius: "Raven really DID teach you well."

Yang stifled a laugh: "Did you just lose to a guy with one arm and one eye."

Tai shrugged as he stood back up: "Not surprising considering that someone is your brother." Then, stretching his arms: "Well, Julius, you had your go, and damn you hit hard."

Julius chuckled: "The way I was taught, you have to hit hard, or not at all."

"Not surprised" Tai replied. Julius then turned to Yang: "It's nice to see you're finally using the arm. It'll come in handy."

Yang put her hands on her hips and smirked: "Let me guess, you speak from experience?"

Oh yeah, she's DEFINITELY Raven's daughter Summer said.

What did I tell you about talking in my head when I'm around other people? Julius thought, but his reply to Yang was: "Eh, something like that."

"Well" Tai said, "I'll start getting dinner ready. You two can hang out here for a bit."

"Sounds good, Dad" Julius said, and Tai turned to go inside. Once he did, Yang and Julius walked over and sat down on the porch.

"I meant it about the arm by the way." Julius said, "You're improving a lot. Though, in my opinion, the arm could use a paint job."

Yang lifted her robot arm and looked it over: "Yeah, it should. I think I can figure something out."

Julius chuckled, but then noticed Yang's distant expression: "What is it?"

Yang sighed: "I didn't want to ask you with Dad around, but…can you take me to Mom?"

Julius was genuinely surprised: "Wait, what?"

"Dad told me she helped raise you after Summer died. You've lived with her for most of your life. If anyone knows where she is, it's you. Plus, she could lead us to Qrow and Ruby; we're going to need to help them at Haven."

Julius shrugged: "True. Though it might not be that simple."

"What do you mean?"

"Raven's main priority is keeping the clan safe, and she's moved the clan around a lot of times to do just that. Assuming she has done so again, it may be hard for me to find her."

Yang deflated: "That rough, huh?"

"Don't give up hope," Julius replied, "I myself might not be able to find her…but I know where to find people who might."

"Can you take me then?"

Julius thought for a moment. Here, Summer decided to give her advice: You should. I'd try whatever means possible to find my mother too if she was gone for most of my life. Knowing Raven, she'll probably need the experience too, anyways.

You better be right about this. Julius thought back, the sighed and replied to Yang: "Alright. I'll take you, but we should stay here for a bit longer before we go. Dad's gonna want to hear this plan as well."

Yang nodded: "Fair enough" then, she leaned on Julius's shoulder as the two looked out towards the sunset: "Thank you."

Julius smiled and wrapped his arm around Yang's shoulders. He was happy to be with his sister, but his mind went to Haven…and how another, more murderous sister of his was still out there and needed to be stopped.

…

A cracked sign bearing the name Kuroyuri rests against ruins. An upwards pan and several cuts show the dilapidated village. Dante, Ruby and Jaune walk down the road, carrying Qrow on a stretcher, while Dante was keeping a look out with Ebony and Ivory ready. They pause and look unhappily around.

"Oh, man" Jaune whispers.

"Come on" Ruby said and they continue forward Any of these places look like a pharmacy?".

"It's... honestly hard to tell" Jaune said.

"Yeah," Dante agreed, "These signs are all too faded."

"Ren really didn't want to come here, did he?" Ruby asked.

"Uh... didn't seem so" Jaune answered.

"Do you know... why?" Ruby asked.

Jaune sighs "I think I have a pretty good idea...".

While they looked around, Nora and Ren were climbing the mountain. And both could remember why this place was so haunting to them.

…

In the past.

A pretty waterlily in full bloom floats on an aqueduct in the town center of Kuroyuri. Ren, as a child, looks eagerly at it with a smile, His mother and Ren were laughing lightly "Why, hello, little Lie. Are we trying to catch a fish?".

"I've found a flower on the water!" Ren said

"Oh, I see!" his mother said.

Ren rushes over to his mother "Can we take it home and plant it in the garden?".

"Oh no, sweetheart, that flower lives here" she said and Ren looks down dejectedly. His mother, An, rubs his head "But I'll tell you what you can do. Take this Lien and go find something nice for your father's return. He's been hunting for quite some time. I bet that the journey's been very tiring, don't you?".

Ren takes the Lien "Yes".

"Do you think you'll know what he wants?" An asked.

"I think... he wants a water flower in the garden!" Ren said with hope.

"Why did you have to inherit my sass?" An chuckled as she gives her son a playful nudge on his bottom as Ren turns away on his new mission to find a gift for his father. He crosses the planks that serve as a bridge over the aqueduct. An watches him go with a smile.

Ren rushes up to a weapons stand "What can I buy with this?".

The Young Blacksmith chuckles "Well, something just your size".

He holds up two wooden toy weapons. One is a sword, and the other is a hammer.

Ren deflates in disappointment at being unable to buy a new weapon for his father. He next waits in line at a liquor merchant "Sake, please".

The wine merchant gives him a bemused look, and with a sigh, shakes his head in the negative. Ren groans, a little frustrated.

He walks through the open town before stopping to look in a bakery window. There are several treats, including slices of lemon meringue pie, frosted cupcakes, actual cakes with frosted waterlilies atop them, and a shelf of kitten-shaped bread. Ren is happily excited but turns when he hears a voice.

"Hey, get back here!"

Ren looks around the corner of the bakery, following the sound of a group of kids laughing and mocking. Three boys stand in a semicircle around a dirty looking girl who is crouched on the ground and clutching a loaf of bread. It's young Nora.

"Where'd you get that bread? I didn't see you pay for it, thief!" The tallest boy said.

"No, look, it's all moldy!" The shortest said.

"I think she got it from the trash!" The tall one said

The Medium Boy reached out "Lemme see!" Nora bites his finger before he can touch the bread "Ah! She bit me!".

Tall Boy looks at Medium Boy's hand in horror before Medium Boy pushes Nora backward onto the ground. Nora whimpers for a second but gets up and grabs her bread off the ground. She takes a few more steps back before crouching away again.

"Where'd she come from?" The short boy asked. Ren watches, taking a few uncertain steps forward "She's dressed all weird!".

"I bet she's abandoned! Like a dog or something!" The tall boy said.

"Does that mean I have rabies?" The Medium boy said

All three chuckle meanly. Nora sees Ren getting closer and looks at him with big, blinking eyes. The bullies see her focus has changed to behind them and they turn to look. Ren panics at having their focus and he turns to run, only to immediately bump into the legs of his father, Li Ren. Next to him is his hunting partner, Anton, a young, muscular man, probably in his early thirties, with short, orange hair, and tanned skin.

He falls back and looks up at him "Father?".

"What is happening here?" Li asked.

Ren pointed to Nora and the bullies. Li looked and approached them, a fiery glare in his eyes. Anton went with him.

"Don't you punks have something better to do?" Li demanded. The bullies ran in fear as Anton approached, cracking his knuckles. Anton knelt down and picked up the girl, holding her close.

"Nora, what happened?" he asked in a calm tone.

"I…I was just hungry." The girl replied. Anton sighed, then turned to Li: "I can handle this."

Li nods and Anton turns to walk away, comfortingly patting Nora's head as he carried her.

"Do you wish to run with the rest of them?" Li asked Ren who is standing upright, but he lowers his face in response. Li puts his hand on his son's shoulder and lowers to one knee "Sometimes the worst action to take... is taking no action at all. Go home. I need to speak with the mayor".

Li leaves. Ren watches briefly and turns away thoughtfully.

…

Back in the present.

Jaune walks up to Ruby in the ruins of Kuroyuri. Both are looking dejected "Nothing".

"We should get back to Qrow" Ruby said.

Qrow leans against a dead sakura tree, groaning. Though not conscious, he holds a hand over his wound. Ruby looks at him with a feelinng of hopelessness.

Dante runs up: "Nothing on my end either. You think you would find SOMETHING around here."

A creature makes a loud noise from off in the distance, causing both Ruby and Jaune to turn. Jaune's hand immediately goes to his sword and looks around for the source of the noise. Dante points his guns in the direction of the sound.

"It's far off" Ruby said.

"I know, but Ren and Nora are still out there" Jaune said

Ruby looks at Qrow before standing and approaching Jaune "I'm sorry".

"Huh?" Jaune said as he turns around to face her, though she is not looking up.

"This is all my fault. I should have never dragged you guys into this" Ruby said.

"You didn't drag us in. We wanted to come" Jaune argued.

Ruby shakes her head "But you didn't know about Tyrian, about-".

Jaune cuts her off "Ruby. We lost... We lost Pyrrha. You lost her, too. And Penny, and your team, and in a way... your sister. But you're still here, despite everything you've lost, everything you could still lose, you chose to come out here" Ruby turns to face Jaune, and becomes emotional as he continues "Because you felt like you could make a difference. You didn't drag us along. You gave us the courage to follow you".

He puts his hand on her shoulder. She smiles at him, grateful, and he smiles back.

…

Back in the past.

Young Ren is sleeping until the sound of Grimm awakens him. An rushed in "Lie, get up. We have to go".

Ren was tired and uncertain "Mother?

An grabs his arm and pulls him up "Now, right now, okay? Let's go!".

In the kitchen beyond Ren's bedroom, the outer door bursts inward as a heavily-breathing Li enters.

"Li!" An spoke, worried about her husband.

" An, what are you doing?! We need to hurry!" Li said.

"We can go to the safehouse!" An suggested.

"No. I saw the beast. We need a Huntsman. And you two need to leave" Li said.

An was shocked by that "What?".

The creature sounds, loud and ominous, causing all three to look up at the ceiling and walls in alarm.

"Mother?" Ren said in fear.

An gets down to her knees to make eye contact with Ren "It's OK, darling. Everything's OK.

The roof breaks above her head and Ren blacks out.

Crashing and a faint scream can be heard. They are soon followed by the muffled screams of many and loud footsteps accompanied by Li's heavy breathing.

Ren comes to gradually, held by his running father. Bits of flaming sparks speckle the air "Father? What... Where's Mother?" Li is bleeding profusely from above his left eye. A woman nearby screams "What's going on?! Where is Mother?" Villagers run in a panic, and black specks of ash float with the sparks. A rumble caused the ground to shake and Li falls, dropping Ren and landing on his back "Father!".

Everyone runs past them as Li pushes himself up slightly "Lie, you have to run".

Ren moves to his father "No. Don't. Please. Get up!".

He looks up when he hears the Grimm roaring noise again. Behind them, people run while slowing flowed by a cloud of smoke. It is a massive Grimm, a horse-shaped creature with a human torso growing out if its back, was getting closer.

"Listen to me, son. You have to be brave now. Do you understand?" Li asked.

Ren shakes his head "No, please. Please, I can't!".

Li withdraws a knife from its sheath on his hip "Yes, you can!" He puts the knife in Ren's hand and pushes him away before falling back with a groan. Ren looks at the knife "Take action, son" Getting to his feet, Li looks down at his son "Your mother and I love you".

Ren was gripping the knife tighter and fighting tears "Father...".

There are large stomps on the ground behind them. Li turns and readies his bow "Go!" He notches an arrow and pulls it back. He shouts at his son one more time as he releases the arrow "Run!

Ren runs and Li lets loose arrow after arrow at the towering Grimm with a loud war cry.

Under an arch and jumping sideways down to a landing beside some steps, Ren crouches, panicking. The cries of Nevermores overhead cause him to look up. He hears sobbing from across the way and discovers Nora crouching beneath a building. A Nevermore flaps loudly and lands on the roof of a building near to the girl. It lets out a loud, dangerous cry.

The Nuckelavee stomps through the center of town releasing its own roar. Ren realizes that his father is now dead and cries. Behind him, the waterlily for the aqueduct floats untarnished. There's another Nevermore cry as Ren continues to sob. He stills and Aura shimmers over him, graying out his appearance.

Ren lets out a calm breath as color returns. He runs toward Nora, and he moves under the building to where she is.

Ren puts his hand on her shoulder "Hey!" Nora gasps but calms when she sees that she's not been found by anything intending her harm "We have to be brave".

The Nevermore cries above them, leaning down its head closer to the ground.

Nora whimpers and then throws her arms around Ren. His eyes and arms go wide before he accepts in. Putting his arms around her the shimmer happens again and both of them lose the color vivacity in their appearance.

The Nevermore, now shown to be dangerously close to where the two children crouch, turns its head and lets out a confused cry. Smoke rises from its body as it turns and cries again before attempting to launch into the air…just as a bolt of lightning strikes its face, killing it.

Color returns to the two children and the sounds of heavy steps are nearby. Nora looks up and sees Anton approaching, wearing a silver, unusually hi-tech set of armor; a knight's helmet is in his hand and a war hammer is in the other. Nora then appears form her hiding place: "Daddy!"

Anton looks at Nora: "Nora, you need to get out of here, now!"

"But what about you?"

"I'll need to fight this thing off, but I'll come find you right afterwards, I promise!"

Nora doesn't listen and run up to Anton, hugging his legs: "Please, don't go…"

Anton leans down and hugs back: "I love you, Nora, but I need you to run away from here. Get as far as you can. I promise, I will come back for you. Do you understand?"

Nora looks up, tears in her eyes, but she nods, then turns and runs to get Ren. Anton straightens back up and dons his helmet; the visor flares with a blue light. He sees a group of Grimm approaching, but behind them is something worse; a towering monster with pink skin, cloven hooves for feet, and glowing green eyes.

"Hideous Baron." Anton growls as he hefts his hammer. The Baron points at Anton an roars, sending the Grimm towards him. Anton then activates a mechanism on his hammer, and it begins spinning around, creating a whirlwind of death as he bludgeons Grimm after Grimm before facing the Baron. The demon launches multiple fireballs at the Night Sentinel with its hands, but Anton had trained to handle these creatures and effortlessly dodges the attacks before jumping up and bringing the hammer down on the demon's head, pinning it to the ground.

As the demon struggled, Anton's eyes began to glow blue as a storm cloud forms above him and a massive bolt of lightning strikes down, right on the Baron's head, killing it instantly. Anton triumphantly raised his hammer and laughed as he ran towards the other Grimm.

Nora turns and together they watch and wait as he passes next to where they hide before moving on "I'm scared...".

"Me, too" Ren said before he sees the wooden hammer on the ground. Ren moves to retrieve it but Nora clutches his arm, afraid "It's OK" With another whimper, Nora lets him go and watches with big eyes as he moves away. Ren grabs the wooden hammer and returns to her "We'll keep each other safe".

He offers her the hammer. She looks down at it, clearly emotional before she takes it from him.

"What's your name?" He asked.

Nora looked at him "Nora".

"My name's Lie Ren" Ren smiles at her, blinking.

They began running before a grimm jumped toward them…only to be tackled by a black panther with glowing pink eyes. As the two children watched, the panther tore the Grimm apart. Then stood still, not even attempting to attack the kids. Then, a man in a black coat walked up next to it.

"We still have a ways to go before this is over" he told the panther, "Let us hurry."

Then turning towards the kids: "And you should get out of here as soon as you can. I'll keep the Grimm at bay."

The panther, as well as the kids, nodded in understanding, and the two mysterious figures took off as Ren and Nora took the advantage to make their escape.

…

Back to the present

"Come on... there got to be something we can do!" Ruby said trying her best not to panic.

Before Jaune could say anything, a loud roar was heard. And it was getting closer.

Dante raised his guns: "That doesn't sound good."

He was more right than he realized.

Nearby, the sound of clopping hooves was heard as the Nuckelavee arrived.

Yup, I made Nora's father a Night Sentinel; help solidify the crossover a bit. Well, let me know what you think so far.