HOLY CRAP, Ancient Gods pt.2 is coming out TOMORROW! Didn't see that one coming! I'll have to look over the gameplay to get more Doom lore to use in this story. Thankfully, timeline and background chapters are still a ways away. That being said, back to the story.

The dinner table is abuzz as the currently present gang members all talk over each other indistinctly. The mood is quite cheery, with the children all smiling and laughing.

Yang laughs at Jaune "How do you lose your map at a time like that?".

"Believe me, I've asked myself the same thing ever since" Jaune answered embarrassed. Yang, Weiss, and Ruby laugh, while Jaune smiles and giggles sheepishly.

"Hey, but you made up for it, Mister Muscles! You shoulda seen this guy take a giant Grimm head on!" Nora said

"I couldn't have done it without Ruby wearing it down" Jaune said.

"Uh, me? Did you see Ren during that fight? He was out of control!" Ruby exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, I may have lost my temper momentarily" Ren said.

"No, no! Out of control as in awesome!" Ruby clarified.

"Oooohhh" Ren smiles "Thank you".

Everyone at the table bursts into laughter.

As dinner continues, Weiss tells her story about how she accidentally summoned a Boarbatusk during the Schnee charity ball.

Ruby gasps "You did not!"

Weiss has her head in her hands "Yeah, right in the middle of the party".

"Please tell me you let that lady have it" Yang said.

"Of course not! Even if I did really want to" Weiss said.

Nora crossed her arms, skeptical "No way, I don't believe it".

Weiss summons her Boarbatusk right next to Nora. The Grimm summon growls, causing Nora to yelp and fall to her side. Weiss, Yang, Jaune and Ren all laugh.

As dinner nearly finishes, Yang shows off her robotic prosthetic arm to the rest of the group. All of them react in awe.

"It's not a replacement for the real thing, but I'll make sure to make good use of it" She said.

"That's amazing" Jaune said.

"Incredible" Ren agreed.

Ruby gets all starry-eyed and quickly zooms over to her sister's side to admire her arm. She was holding Yang's arm up "And it's just as strong?".

"Hm, sure is" Yang said.

Suddenly, they hear a bang on the table. Nora has her arm out ready to arm wrestle "Wanna bet?".

"Nora, please, now's not the time..." Despite Weiss' protest, Yang and Nora arm wrestle. Jaune and Ren cheer on Nora while Ruby cheers on for her sister. Weiss looks on disdainfully.

"Don't let her beat you! You can do it! Come on!" Jaune shouts.

"You can do this! Show 'em what Team JNPR's made of!" Ren encouraged.

"C'mon, sis! Aw, you can't lose to a girl in a skirt!" Ruby cheered.

"You wear a skirt, Ruby" Weiss pointed out.

"Weiss, you're not cheering loud enough!" Ruby shouts as she shakes Weiss, who is still frowning.

"It definitely feels like the original, I'll give you that!" Nora said with a smirk.

Yang smirked back "Yep. But, it does have some new features!".

"Heh, oh yeah?" Nora asked.

A robotic sound is heard coming from Yang's arm, and suddenly Nora's is knocked back to the wall holding Yang's detached arm in her hand. Nora groans in pain while the others look on in concern, except for Yang, who has a smug grin on her face.

"Did she... win?" Jaune asked.

As Nora comes to, she realizes she's holding Yang's robotic arm, causing her to scream and throw it away from her. Yang laughs while she catches her arm.

Later on, Jaune helps clean up the dishes.

"Gyah... We ate it all..." He picks up the pot holding all the bowls "Oh, I think I'm gonna be sick...".

"Easy there, Vomit Boy, I believe in you" Yang said.

"Oh, we're doing nickname throwbacks now. Wonderful" Jaune said sarcasticly before walking away with the dishware in his hands.

Weiss giggles.

"I mean, the Ice Queen seems to like it" Nora said.

Weiss stops giggling, and Ruby bursts into laughter at Nora's remark. Weiss smiles nonetheless and rolls her eyes "I so did not miss you people".

Nora gasps "Oh my gosh, she really does like it! What went and warmed your heart while you were gone?".

"Hey! You make it sound like I used to be terrible" Weiss said.

"Nah. Just a lot to deal with it once" Yang said.

Weiss gave a playful glare "Hmph!".

Yang playfully sticks her tongue out at Weiss.

"It's been a long time. We've all grown in our own ways" Ren said.

"You really think so?" Ruby asked.

"Well, think back to when we were all at Beacon, would you say you ever did anything foolish or embarrassing? Or do you think you were perfect?" Ren asked

"Oh gosh" Weiss buries her face in her hands again.

"I may have been a little too gung-ho from time to time" Yang said.

"Heh, you? I tried to 1v1 a Nevermore on the second day of school" Ruby said looking down.

Jaune walks back into the room "Yeah, well... don't even get me started".

"Well that embarrassment, that desire to go back and tell yourself not to be so stupid, that just proves you're not the same person you used to be. You're smarter, you're kinder, you're stronger, and you're not done growing yet. None of us are" Ren said in a wise tone.

There is silence for a brief moment.

"Yeah, turns out Ren gets real deep when he feels like talking" Ruby said. Everyone giggles.

Ruby then sighed: "I sure wish Julius was here. He always made everything more fun."

"Ruby" Ren advised, "I know you still miss him, but if we still haven't seen him, it might be only reasonable to accept that he might be gone."

Yang chuckled: "I wouldn't be too sure Ren. He'll be along soon."

Nora gave Yang a quizzical look, "And you know this how?"

"He kinda made it to our house and helped me get here."

Ruby lit up: "He's alive!?"

Yang nodded.

"He is…not surprisingly." Weiss said, "He's…doing something else as of right now, but he promised he would get to Haven to meet up with us as soon as he could."

"Well, it's good to know he's still out there." Ruby said with a soft smile.

Yang nodded: "Yup. Sure is."

There were a few moments of silence before Nora spoke up: "Well, hold on, I thought I was pretty great in school!"

Yang looked at her "Even at the dance? When you spilled punch all over yourself in front of-"

"Yes, especially the dance! Thank you, Yang!" Yang covers her ears from Nora's yelling, who has her scroll out playing Shine. Ruby laughs.

"How can 6 kids possibly make so much noise eating dinner?!" Qrow and Oscar are standing next to Jaune. Nora presses her scroll to stop the song. Oscar gives a small laugh.

Everyone relocates to the second-floor living room, with Weiss and Yang having finished being filled in on what everyone else knows so far.

"So, the Maidens. Magic. Salem. Demons. It's all true?" Weiss asked

"Uh-huh" Qrow nods. "Though I wouldn't worry about the demon part too much; the Night Sentinels have been keeping them at bay for a pretty damn long time."

"Miss Xiao Long, is this more or less what your mother told you?" Ozpin asked.

Yang doesn't respond, still having her arms crossed. Weiss answers for her "For the most part".

"You forgot something. You forgot to tell everyone what you did to Qrow and my mother" Yang said making Ruby gasp.

"What is she talking about?" Jaune demanded.

"Oh, great" Qrow said.

"Hm, that's not a secret I thought she would give up so easily. Your mother must trust you a great deal" Ozpin said and Yang scowls at him "My ability to reincarnate, though a curse, isn't without a few key benefits. Much like the Maidens, I too possess a certain... magical power" He stands up and walks next to Qrow "Using this power, I was able to gift the Branwen twins the ability to see more, to move freely and be unburdened by their natural bodies. I... well... gave them the ability to turn into birds" He chuckles "Rather ridiculous sounding out loud, isn't it?".

Ruby looked at Qrow "Uncle?".

Ren was clearly confused "You turned them... into birds".

"Alright, now you're just messing with us" Nora said.

Jaune leans back angry "What else is new?"

"He's telling the truth. We saw it. Yang's mom... changed, right in front of us" Weiss said.

"Why would you do something like that? I mean, what is wrong with you?" Yang demanded in anger.

"Yang, that's enough! We made a choice. We wanted this" Qrow said and Yang relents.

Ozpin looks at Qrow "May I?" Qrow nods "Granting this power to them was no trivial task, and I can assure you it was not done frivolously. I required assistance in gathering information on Salem's plans, as well as searching for Maidens when their hosts became unclear".

Ruby asked: "Okay, so, have you done this with others? Like General Ironwood? Or Professor Goodwitch?".

"As helpful as that might be, unfortunately, it is not that simple. My power is finite, and if I'm being honest, dwindling. The amount that I gifted to Qrow and Raven was, all things considered, rather miniscule. You see, centuries ago, I sacrificed a great deal of magic to four young women, who I hoped would use my gift for good. They were the first Maidens" Ozpin said and everyone is silent for a moment "Miss Xiao Long it was never my intention to lie to you. To any of you. There are just some matters that I prefer to... play close to the chest" He looks to Qrow "I believe that's how you phrased it?"

Qrow chuckles "Yeah".

"Everyone has a choice. The Branwens chose to accept their powers and the responsibilities that came with them. And later, one of them chose to abandon her duties in favor of her own self-interest. Now, all of you have a choice. If anyone wishes to leave, now is the time. There's no shame or disgrace in abstaining, only in retreat" Ozpin said. Everyone is silent as they ponder Ozpin's words "Very well, then".

Yang suddenly stands up.

"Yang?" Ruby asked.

"If Ruby sticks around, then I will too. If there's one thing I know about her, it's that she somehow always knows the right thing to do" Yang smiles at Ruby after saying that "But, if we're going to help, if we're going to keep risking our lives, no more lies. No more half-truths".

Everyone remains silent. Ozpin and Qrow exchange a brief look with each other. Ozpin ponders Yang's words for one last moment, before responding "Understood".

Yang then turns to Qrow: "Same goes for you."

Qrow looked confused: "What do you mean?"

"Apparently, Salem has been hunting Julius for his whole life, and your team were the ones who saved him; something you NEVER bothered to tell us about."

The other kids looked surprised.

"It would certainly explain the eye and the arm." Ren pointed out.

"And the horrifying Grimm that constantly attacked him" Nora added.

Qrow sighed: "Look, that particular bit of information is a bit sensitive. Plus, I didn't really see a need to mention it. Julius is a special kid, kinda like Ruby. I'm not sure what exactly makes him special (he's never told me), but whatever it is, it's put a target on his back his entire life, and as you can imagine, it's attracted a lot of rather unpleasant individuals."

Ruby's curiosity got the better of her: "What happened?"

Qrow looked around at the kids, a serious look on his face, as he began recounting what happened.

"It was a little bit after we had graduated Beacon. We weren't looking for anyone in particular, but I'm starting to think us being there the same time as he was wasn't simply because we were on a mission. Ozpin sent us on a mission to take out a large cluster of Grimm that practically came out of nowhere, in one of the forests outside of Vale. We cleared out a decent number before we heard a kid's scream. As we ran over to the source of the sound we saw two Grimm, an Alpha Sabyr and something I don't even want to recall, tearing away at this little boy. Summer, being the act first type, immediately stepped in and attacked first, taking the Grimm by surprise while the rest of us joined in to finish it. We didn't kill the Grimm, but we did drive them back. That's when we took a look at the kid.

He was about 8 years old, but all we could see was the excessive amount of blood from his face and what used to be his arm. It was amazing he was even still alive at all. Our first reaction was to get him back to Beacon where, hopefully, he would be saved."

The others were all in major shock as Qrow spoke; it just seemed unfair that Julius should be attacked like that at such a young age.

"And you got him there in time." Jaune concluded.

Qrow nodded: "Thankfully, the ship we came in was close by. As it flew back, Summer kept trying to calm the boy down while Tai and Raven tried to stop the bleeding with what we had from the first aid kit. You should have seen the look on the professors' faces when we brought him in. Heh, heh, priceless."

Ozpin decided to add his own comments here: "I remember now. It was certainly a surprise seeing the boy like that. That explains why he was so familiar to me when he came back to Beacon, though he now had the robotic replacements."

"So, what happened then?" Ren asked

"Well, Summer decided to…adopt him. She took care of him the best that she could, even after she had you, Ruby. However, after she died, it was, surprisingly, Raven who took him in." he looks at Ruby, "Neither you, Yang, or Tai saw him since that day…until he came to Beacon."

"Do you know what happened when he was with Mom?" Yang asked.

"Not much, though I did spend a considerable amount of time with him; I even trained him in swordfighting. His time in the tribe was a bit interesting; Raven began teaching him all she knew in terms of combat skill and strategy when he was old enough. He gained a lot of respect from the other bandits, even making a few friends, but there was still the scars of that attack that haunted him. And for all I know, they're still haunting him today."

"I've seen him fight while at Beacon" Ozpin said, "Considering his level of brutality against them, I would say he is indeed still haunted, and is turning that fear into anger against the Grimm…and Salem."

"What does Salem even want with Julius?" Ruby asked.

Qrow shrugged: "If he knows, he hasn't told anyone. My guess is he wants to keep those he cares about out of some serious crossfire. Heh, can't really blame him."

"Well, at least we have him on our side against Salem" Yang said.

"Agreed" Qrow replied.

Yang sits back down and there is a moment of silence before Jaune asks "So... what now? I mean, what can we do?".

"Mm, that is a difficult question. One that I believe is best answered tomorrow" Ozpin said.

"What do you mean?" Jaune asked.

"The road ahead is undoubtedly filled with hardships and peril. However, it's been far too long since you have all been together" Ozpin puts his hand on Yang's shoulder "Please, take tonight, enjoy this moment"

Suddenly Oscar's eyes glow, with Ozpin giving him control back to his body. Oscar realizes he has his hand on Yang's shoulder. He quickly takes it off and nervously holds his cane in his hand.

Yang and Weiss laugh at him, before hearing a noise from Nora "Oooohhh. Raven? Qrow? They're birds! Cracked it!".

Ren shakes his head at Nora being slow on the uptake.

…

On the outside porch of the house, Dante and V stand next to each other as they watch the sunset.

"So" Dante asks, "Where have you been this whole time. You never made it back to Sentinel Prime like I did."

"I wasn't able to" V replied.

Dante looked at V in surprise: "What do you mean?"

"Before I could leave, Salem trapped me, and stole a large portion of my power. What she used it for, I don't know, but I soon learned I was unable to return."

"So, you've been here for all these years, in hiding." Dante concluded.

V nodded: "Precisely."

Dante then patted his shoulder: "Don't worry, I'll figure out how to fix you up. Once we save Haven, I can head back to report to Big Green about your little problem."

"I appreciate it, Dante" V replied, "We could honestly use the Slayer more than ever now."

"Yup. All we have to do is figure out how to punch through that little barrier Salem put up."

"That may be easier than you think."

Dante looked over at V in mild surprise: "Is that so?"

V nodded: "Only one who wields magic can bring down the barrier, and there are two of them that we know of besides Ozpin. Ironically, both exist from Salem's doing."

Dante stroked his chin as he thought about this new fact: "Interesting…"

…

At the Branwen Tribe camp's entrance, Shay D. Mann and two other bandits stand guard, conversing with each other. Suddenly, a voice calls out from the forest "Hey ugly!".

With Shay and the bandits' attention drawn, Mercury and Emerald walk out from the forest toward the camp's entrance.

"Is Raven Branwen home?" Emerald asked with an evil smile.

Shay sighs "Ya know, I've had a real bad week. So I think I'm gonna take it out on you-"

Shay stops mid-sentence when he notices Cinder and Watts walk out of the forest and joins the two of them.

"Hmph, doesn't look like he wants to cooperate, Boss" Mercury said.

Cinder chuckles "Then make him".

Mercury smiled "I was hoping you'd say that".

Emerald proceeds forward. Shay and the other bandits hold their ground while Emerald unsheathes her weapons, twirling them before they transform into their sickle forms.

Let me know what you think so far!