The Knights of Rose

by RebukeX7

Faith, Charity, Justice, Sagacity,Prudence,Temperance,Resolution,Truth,Liberality,Diligence,Hope,and Valor. These are the virtues that are adopted by those whom choose the life of a knight. In a world overrun with evil, these are the virtues adopted by desperate individuals whom seek to protect their only chance at salvation-a reluctant heroine turned Empress. Mankind's last hope.

29. Arc Reunion

Disclaimer: I own this chapter but not RWBY!

Finally, the chapter that will begin the explanation of what's going on with Ozpin, perfect timing too considering I got a lot of feedback regarding my treatment of him last chapter. Hopefully, this chapter will show that OZPIN isn't the issue.

Bout time I uploaded that actual may update lol

Featured BGMs

Everybody Knows-Sigrid

Full Bodied (Feat. Al!ce)-GHOST DATA

Where We Come From by Lecrae-Spider-Man: Miles Morales OST

Home (Casey Williams) by Jeff Williams-RWBY OST

BETAED BY: No one, still sending Will the energy needed to overcome his thesis!

Arc Reunion

(Alternate title: JNPR: RISE (Part 1))

BGM: Everybody Knows-Sigrid

-2 Weeks: Later-

"Multiple semblances? Is such a thing possible or is there something more going on? The Princess of Vale leaves researchers stumped."

*flicker*

"First the docks, now a city block was wiped from existence. It's only by luck that it was abandoned! How much more of a sign does the kingdom need that something is going on!? When will our leaders do something, or are they content with throwing children into what are effectively warzones!?"

"Bold of you to assume that these young men and women are being thrown anywhere. From my perspective, they are the only ones taking up the task of figuring out what's even happening."

"That's even worse!"

*flicker*

"The Beast's identity was revealed and a betrayal within the Beacon 8 has raised racial tensions even further. The Beast, now known as Nera Bestia escaped with her accomplices but after witnessing such a battle, we cannot blame Rose."

"Blame her? Who in their right mind would blame her? She displayed more power than huntsmen thrice her age and fought against a threat that displayed just as much power while dealing with a betrayal. The fact her weapon never wavered until it was destroyed speaks volumes."

"What truly speaks volumes is Bestia's actions."

"What do you mean?"

"Bestia bit Ms. Rose on her right collarbone. To the uninformed, it was seen as a desperate attack but for those who are savvy in regards to faunus culture, it was anything but."

"Oh?"

"The mark of equality is what it is known as. Bestia marked Rose as her equal but not only that but as someone that would inherit everything that she owned should she die. Including the Black Claw. Such an action is not taken lightly or done accidentally."

"Wait, are you serious? But why would that terrorist do such a thing?"

"Because she is not Adam and this is not the White Fang. She used his weapon to throw off the public, which was admittedly genius, but to assume their bond runs any deeper than that is a foolish mistake. She did, after all, steal his mate. Something unheard of in faunus culture between individuals with even the slightest amount of comradery."

"So what? Are you saying that Bestia is somehow on Rose's side? Despite that visceral battle we saw?"

"I'm saying that we don't have the full picture. The Black Claw claims to fight for equality and if you recall they have attacked both humans and faunus. Something that the Fang has never done. Whatever her goal, Bestia must be engaged with caution. She has intelligence to match her power."

"Well tonight Lavender has managed to get an interview with Vale's Princess, hopefully, she will provide answers to just what happened that terrifying night two weeks ago. We, the people, deserve to know what's happening within our own kingdom. Maybe then our veteran huntsman can stop having the poor girl do their jobs for them."

"Agreed."

-Vale-

"Ms. Rose! Ms. Rose! Over here!"

"You chased away the Beast! Incredible!"

"We love you!"

"Princess over here!"

Excited shouts and the shutters of cameras echoed throughout the night as Ruby strode toward the news building while the building's security kept the crowd at bay. The flashes of the cameras were blinding as Ruby strode forward confidently, cloaked by her cape as rose petals rained down around her.

Up above, a single black feather was mixed with the petals as a black crow flew to the top of a nearby building before transforming into Qrow. Silently, Qrow watched down upon his niece, her image reflected in his red eyes.

-Beacon: Glynda's Quarters-

Pouring two drinks, Glynda handed a glass to Winter before sitting next to the specialist just as Lisa's face appeared on the television.

-Beacon: Gym-

Silently, Jaune and Pyrrha stood across from each other, battered and bruised as they raised their fists. Their chests heaved as they glared at each other.

The unmovable shield and the unstoppable spear.

Pyrrha spat blood onto the floor while Jaune cracked his neck.

"You good?"

"Did I yield?" Pyrrha questioned making her partner smirk before they charged each other down.

-Team RW_Y Dorm-

"Weiss. You have to stop torturing yourself." Yang said as she gently but firmly removed Weiss' scroll from her hands, knowing that her girlfriend wouldn't stop rereading the evidence against her father or staring at the pictures.

The pictures of him.

Of those he hurt.

The first time, Weiss had thrown up but now she was numb.

Cold.

"Come on don't freeze up on me," Yang said gently, embracing Weiss from behind.

"How can you look at me?" Weiss questioned quietly. "Knowing that his blood flows through my veins?"

"Because nothing he has done affects my feelings for you," Yang answered. "You're no more that monster than I'm a homicidal bandit. Our heritage doesn't define us." Yang said firmly, resting her chin on top of Weiss' head. "You're still our snow angel and I'll tell you that as many times as I need to for it to sink in."

"Yang," Weiss whispered, gently breaking free from Yang's hold. Standing up, Weiss kissed Yang desperately, pushing forward and making her stumble back until they fell on top of Weiss' bed. "Help me."

Yang blinked, her crimson eyes softening as she felt tears fall on her face from Weiss' eyes. "How?" Yang asked as she brushed the tears away.

"Help me forget," Weiss begged. "Please, don't ever let me become him."

"I won't," Yang swore before Weiss kissed her once more. "Yang grabbed the back of Weiss' shirt and prepared to just what Weiss asked. If it was only for a moment, Yang would make Weiss forget about this mess.

-With Penny-

["You know you don't have to join them, correct? Not once did they ask to use you."]

"I know father," Penny said as she sat on Beacon's Roof. "But they are my friends and with Blake gone, someone has to look out for them until she comes back!"

["If you do this there is no turning back."]

"I know. But it's my choice. I want to help them."

["I see. Then I will be with you every step of the way."]

Penny beamed. "Thank you."

-Argus: Warehouse-

Nera leaned against the wall of the warehouse and looked on as Blake and Velvet continued to discuss the next plan of attack. Her frown deepened as the holographic image of the SDC building that was projected from her scroll was reflected in her eyes.

"We'll infiltrate through the mines." Nera interrupted the discussion. "Ilia, Deerie, and Trifa can infiltrate the workers and open the door for us. It'll take time, but it's a sure way in. Ilia can eventually get one of the overseers alone and take their keycard while the other two gather support amongst the miners. After that, we'll go straight to the top."

"What of the security?" Sienna questioned.

"Fight to incapacitate. Kill no one you don't have to." Nera answered. "Only one person has to die, but that said if your life is in danger do what you have to do." Nera turned to Blake. The second we get in we follow Velvet's plan but utilize the routes you identified."

"Well, seems that we have ourselves a plan." Velvet mused. "What of the Knights? Have they reviewed the evidence yet? Unlike their father, the Schnee sisters can fight and I'd rather not deal with their insane semblances."

Blake waved off Velvet's words. "Where do you think I got the blueprints from?" Blake questioned. "Both Weiss and Winter are on board. Expect no retaliation from them or the Knights."

"Then let's get started," Nera said as she pushed herself off of the wall. "We'll merge for this operation, beautiful, can't leave anything to chance."

"Agreed." Blake nodded. "If the Ace-Ops intervene Belladonna should be enough to keep them at bay," Blake said, referring to their merged self, the true Blake. "Let's get started."

-Kuroyuri-

Ren stood silently outside of the Cave. His eyes flashing between silver and magenta as he held a green vial in his hand. Taking a deep breath, Ren ignored how his body trembled with fear and walked into the shadows of the cave, melding into the darkness until he was no more.

-Vale: Warehouse-

Nora, garbed in a Beacon hoodie, stood in front of Magnhild which was still embedded in the ground ever since her fateful fight weeks ago. With a trembling hand, Nora placed a hand on Magnhild's shaft and pulled but like a statue it didn't budge.

["…Unworthy."]

A mocking voiced whispered sinisterly in her head. With glistening eyes, Nora stepped back and simply sat down in front of her hammer and tried to figure out how she had fallen so far.

BGM: END

-Lisa Lavender's Newsroom-

"Ruby Rose, it's a pleasure to have the Princess of Vale with us tonight." Lisa smiled at Ruby who sat across from her. "I know you've been busy between photoshoots and recovering from your injuries, not to mention I hear you've started your own clothing line named Royalty?"

"I'll be honest I didn't think walking under an old picture would blow up like this," Ruby admitted which was true. Ever since the dance people had been making conspiracies about her being connected to the Old King which led to her new nickname, and her crown didn't help.

The whole conspiracy was random, and she was almost certain it wasn't true at all, still, free PR was free PR.

She'd roll with it.

"Being a Huntress is a great job, but the pay is dependent on the contracts we take up," Ruby explained. "As it stands, as a student, I have an allowance that barely covers repairs. I'm hoping that with this I can afford ammo and maintenance for my friends and finally pay off the 'tab' I have with my partner, Weiss."

Which mostly true, it would also continue to help with their fame and give the twins something to do that was actually legal for once.

It had started when civilians had blown up her social media wondering where she had gotten her dress from. Then after the battle with Nera and seeing how well the dress held up, more than a few huntresses began asking as well.

Ruby being Ruby did what she always did when faced with a subject she knew nothing about like fashion, make-up, or any other 'girly' things.

Ask Jaune.

And Jaune, with his expert skills in delegation, gave this project to the twins along with what was essentially a blank check that he entrusted to Weiss. Safe to say it didn't take long before Royalty became a thing.

The good news? They were predicting record-breaking growth whenever they began business.

The bad news? Ruby was the main model.

Much to her dismay.

Between the twins who Ruby was beginning to suspect saw her as their doll, Yang who was making up for all the missed time when Ruby was growing up, and Weiss who was one of Ruby's best friends and a lonely child, Ruby had far too many people who wanted to play dress-up with her.

The fact that she, using the twins' words, absolutely slayed every outfit made it worse.

"Besides, huntresses fight to the death all the time might as well look good doing it." Ruby joked which made Lisa laugh lightly.

"That's a good way to look at it." Lisa smiled. "Now, I have much I wish to discuss with you tonight so I figured we could just start with the hard part first."

Ruby nodded with an understanding smile. "Just rip it off like a bandage, I know the main reason I'm here and why so many are tuned in tonight."

"Thank you for being so agreeable." Lisa folded her hands and frowned a bit. "So, two weeks ago, you confronted the Beast and lost a member of your team, turning the Beacon 8 to 7. I guess the first thing to ask is what exactly happened?"

"Well, like many people, we assumed the Beast was an ex-lover of Blake's." Ruby leaned back. "We were only partially right. It wasn't Adam, and to our surprise, it wasn't an 'ex' either. I don't know much other than she was a bastard of a distant cousin of Blake's."

"Tukson," Lisa said which made Ruby nod. "They say he was killed in his shop, possibly by the Fang. That would explain her actions against the White Fang but what of Headmaster Lionheart? Or the other casualties?"

"I'm afraid I only know a little more than you," Ruby answered. "What we're investigating now is what the victims have in common. Bestia was powerful, but she was also smart unlike Taurus, she doesn't act without reason and it's up to us to figure out what that reason is."

"You? What of the other Huntsmen or even your professors?" Lisa questioned. "Surely Headmaster Ozpin would be better suited for such a task."

"You know, of all the questions I've gotten over this incident, that seems to be the most common. Why me?" Ruby began. "And to that, I ask, why not me? I'm young, yes, but I am not a child. I have a weapon, a license to use said weapon, and Bestia is my contract."

Lisa's eyes widened when she saw the steel in Ruby's eyes.

"There was unrest that night, born from pain older than anyone alive times ten." Ruby continued. "So, when it comes to dealing with this issue, in particular, we are all too young but here's the thing. Someone has to. I may be young but I'm strong, stronger than most Huntsmen and that's not pride speaking, it's fact. I am, to put it plainly, just built differently than others."

"Your Semblances." Lisa deduced which made Ruby shake her head.

"I only have one Semblance, my petal burst," Ruby revealed. "Everything else you saw, well, I only know a little more than you do. My mother…" Ruby trailed off, taking a deep breath as she thought of Summer. "…my mother was the same. When I was a child, she'd tell me stories of a 'light' I was born with, one she saw shining in my eyes. She'd tell me as long as I had it evil would not touch me but if that were true, she'd still be here."

"Ms. Rose?" Lisa questioned with a concerned frown. "Do…do you know something about your mother's disappearance?"

This…this was groundbreaking…

The disappearance of Team STRQ's leader had been a topic of many heated debates across the kingdom when it first happened. Over the years, huntsmen of Vale to this day still questioned what could have happened to arguably the strongest warrior in Vale since the Great King.

Ruby released a shuddering breath. "The last time I saw my mother…"

-Patch: 12 Years ago-

"I can't go. The girls need me. Tai needs me." Summer spoke into her scroll, her voice quiet but harsher than the four-year-old Ruby had ever heard it. Eyes wide and confused, Ruby stood hidden, silently gripping the large red cape her mother made her as she watched Summer pace. "I know she has to be stopped!"

Ruby flinched.

"Oh, don't you tell me about time, we would have had much more time if you listened to me!" Summer snapped. "I'll go but this is the last time, I'm a mother now. I can't just uproot myself whenever you call."

With that, Summer hung up the phone and placed her face in her hands. Ruby was only a child, but even then, she knew the older woman was crying.

"Mama?"

Summer flinched and turned to see her scared daughter.

"Oh, baby, come here, it's past your bedtime." Summer said, forcing a smile on her face as Ruby made her way toward her. "What are you doing up?"

"Thirsty," Ruby answered quietly. "Are you…going somewhere?"

"Just for a little while." Summer reassured her. "I'll be back before you know it."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

-Flashback: End-

Ruby's eyes glistened as she recounted the tale and her pain was real. That memory was one she had forgotten about over the years until the Empress placed herself deep within Ruby's core, digging up once more.

"Do you know who was on the phone with your mother that night?" Lisa questioned, enthralled by this mystery that had been laid out before her.

She did.

"No." Ruby lied, unwilling to throw Ozpin under the bus. Though whether it was out of some lingering sense of sympathy toward Ozma's host who was possibly one of the biggest victims in this mess or because she still needed him to play his part in this wicked game, she didn't know.

Her crown felt heavy.

But her body felt strong, strengthened by the Empress just beneath her skin.

"This woman your mother spoke of, you believe she is responsible?"

"I know it," Ruby said firmly. "And she knows I know. All of this mess you've seen? These attacks? They've only happened when my friends and I get closer to finding her. I thought I was paranoid, crazy, but look at the people I have following me? They all follow me for a reason and that's because we've seen what this woman can do firsthand."

Lisa frowned at this, as juicy as this story was, she and the people would need evidence. "Have you found anything you could share that would support this?"

"It's circumstantial at best, unfortunately, but we've compiled a list of missing huntsmen over the years," Ruby said before revealing her scroll. "Do you mind?"

Stunned, Lisa just shook her head and Ruby took control of one of the monitors. It showed the profiles of multiple huntsmen across all four Kingdoms that had gone missing, including Summer Rose.

"What do you see?"

"Silver eyes," Lisa answered. "They all have silver eyes."

"Yes, and you might not know this but Huntsmen don't go missing." Ruby continued. "They die in battle, retire, and quit but going missing is not something that happens often. Grimm eat and leave remains, not fact that this many people, sharing this one trait, disappeared is concerning, to say the least."

"It is," Lisa said, repressing a chill.

"Another thing we discovered was what happened to my uncle Qrow's idol, the Grimm Reaper." Ruby continued. "She too had silver eyes and was attacked during a contract and not by grimm." Ruby explained. "She survived but the record will show you that she was forced to retire after she lost her eyes in the attack."

Lisa paled, and she was positive that more than a few viewers did as well when they saw Maria's records appear. Showing the details of her retirement and a picture of her in her youth. It was a rare one without her mask that showed her silver eyes before showing them bloodied and bandaged in a news article from decades ago.

"This might be unnerving, scary really, but I'm showing this to bring awareness." Ruby continued. "My fight with Bestia unearthed a power within me. I'll say this, even among those with silver eyes my power is unique, but the others still have a baseline ability that has whoever is hunting us scared, an ability to destroy grimm."

Lisa felt her jaw drop when she saw a recording Ruby had made earlier that week of her turning a grimm to stone with a single glance.

Ruby took a deep breath.

"If you want to learn how to control this power, please seek me out and I will teach you." Ruby pleaded. "But do so carefully. Don't show up immediately after this broadcast and for the love of God travel with colored eye contacts. To other Huntsmen who may be friends or teammates with these individuals, protect them."

"What of you?" Lisa questioned. "Admittedly it may be too late with your fame but will you do the same?"

"No. One, because like you said it's too late." Ruby's eyes narrowed. "And two, I've been waiting my whole life to face whoever is causing this mess and I am not hiding but I caution others not to follow my example without proper training. We are not the same. Also, I'd like to request any of Vale's historians to help me figure out any info they can find behind those with these eyes. The Great King had them, maybe he left notes or something. Honestly, at this point, I'll take anything because it's the blind leading the blind."

"Speaking of the Great King, many speculate that there is a connection between you. Is there?" Lisa questioned which made Ruby shrug.

"No idea, the Xiao Long family moved here from Mistral after the war, and the Rose family admittedly popped up out of nowhere. The only one I know of is my mother." Ruby admitted truthfully. "Honestly if there was any family in Vale connected to the Great King then it's probably the Arcs."

"I see, well you've given us plenty to think about." Lisa nodded which was an understatement. After this people would start asking questions, questions that couldn't be allowed to go unanswered much longer. The idea that there was some unknown party trying to protect the grimm for whatever reason and wreaking havoc across the kingdoms was terrifying…

…but also reassuring.

Why? Because it meant that this wasn't just random chaos. That it had a source that could be stopped especially if a young huntress with no backing could keep it at bay with just her friends.

"Bestia, do you believe that she is involved with whoever is behind this mess?"

"No, at least, not in the way you think," Ruby explained. "Whether she's right or wrong, Bestia truly believes she's doing the right thing. Even if she's misguided, her ideals are unwavering. Funny enough, you can learn a lot about someone while trying to kill them. If whoever is behind this chaos was involved in what happened two weeks ago then all they did was place me and Bestia in each other's way."

"They wanted you two to kill each other," Lisa said unknowingly drawing the conclusion Ruby wanted her to.

"Exactly and we, unfortunately, figured that out too late," Ruby said sheepishly. "Fortunately, we were too exhausted by then to do any more damage to each other. I may not agree with Bestia, and believe me, her contract is still out and I will collect on it, but I'd rather our real enemy have two headaches instead of just one for the time being."

Ruby then chuckled.

"That said, Bestia fled Vale after our fight. Her appearances outside of Vale in recent days prove that." Ruby explained. "So, until our paths cross again, she is no longer my or Vale's problem."

"You did your job." Lisa nodded. "You defended the kingdom successfully and stopped the Black Claw from amassing more power. You should be proud but I am sorry for your loss, with Belladonna gone the eight are now seven, and RWBY is forced to retire the team's name."

"Actually, that's the thing about the eight." Ruby continued. "We inspired so many people unintentionally, and we knew we were living a dangerous life. We have had, for a while now, a list of people to fill in the spots should something happen to us."

Lisa blinked at this.

"Wait you mean-"

"Yep, the eight is still the eight." Ruby smiled and pressed something on her scroll. Soon the monitor showed footage of Penny saving the citizens of Atlas during her numerous tests for Ironwood. Though she was mainly testing her combat capabilities, her deeds had given Penny quite the reputation in Atlas. "' The Angel of Atlas', once we found out she was coming to Beacon for the festival we had to meet her firsthand. We became friends, good friends, and not only did she transfer to Vale she was willing to take Blake's spot."

Lisa laughed a bit at that, and she couldn't help but smile when she saw Penny's cheerful demeanor. Penny appeared to be a slightly awkward but goodhearted girl with a simply contagious smile. Lisa could practically hear the ratings for the Beacon 8 sky rocket amongst the humans.

"Team RWBY will always be Team RWBY even though one of us walks a different path," Ruby said sadly but soon her expression became determined. "That said the time for grieving is over, we have to move forward. We have to be fair to Penny who did not have to join us but chose to, we owe it to her to start anew."

"So, a new team then?" Lisa questioned getting a nod from Ruby. "And what will this name be?"

Ruby smirked and said the only word that was worthy to belong to a team consisting of herself, Weiss, Yang, and Penny.

"Power (PWYR)."

-One Hour Later-

Eventually, the interview came to an end, closing out with some embarrassing questions about her relationship and other light-hearted topics after Ruby had given the Kingdom much to think about. As she strolled down the steps of the news station, Ruby smile at the paparazzi and fans waiting for her.

Laughing and smiling, Ruby signed a few autographs and answered a few more questions as she made her way to the limousine waiting for her. Opening the door, Ruby waved and smiled one last time before climbing into the vehicle where the rest of her new team was waiting.

The vehicle hovered off of the ground before flying off through the capital.

"Not bad." Weiss praised as she sat next to Yang. "You managed to bring up Salem in a way that didn't make you seem like you were insane."

"Thanks, the verbal gymnastics were amazing," Ruby sighed. "Followed your advice and let them draw their own more 'realistic' conclusions that were close enough to the truth to get them moving in the right direction."

"Was that story true?" Yang asked with a troubled expression. "The one about mom?"

Ruby grimaced. "Yes, I'm sorry but I really didn't remember it until that mess with the Chimera. I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Yang said softly, blinking back tears. "You were just a kid, it's a miracle you remembered at all."

Weiss silently grabbed Yang's hand and squeezed it gently.

"I…I just don't think I can be trusted around Ozpin for a bit," Yang said honestly.

"Don't blame Ozpin," Ruby said firmly, surprising her. "He didn't kill her. What he did would be no different than if I sent you on a mission and you were lost in battle." Ruby explained. "If you want to get mad, get mad at Salem or Ozma. Ozpin gave us the time we needed no matter the cost. The issue now is making him understand that his job is done. We don't need Ozpin, we need Oscar."

"A child?" Weiss asked in confusion.

"Ozpin is a relic of his time back when the War could be fought in the shadows, back when Team STRQ was still a thing," Ruby explained. "That time, that world, is gone. Oscar is part of our world and I believe that if we train him, get him strong enough, he can be one of our greatest allies."

"What of Ozma?" Weiss questioned. "I don't know all the details, but JNPR seems to really against him, well, minus Pyrrha."

"Oscar was very close to them, basically a brother," Ruby sighed. "Oscar, unfortunately, let his guard down and was unable to stop Ozma from going against a plan we agreed on that would later get both him and uncle Qrow killed."

The others looked at Ruby in horror. "And you want to trust him?" Weiss questioned.

"It's not about trusting Ozma, it's about believing in Oscar." Ruby clarified. "That he can control his curse and be more than a meat-puppet and use the past knowledge and experiences of the previous hosts and not be controlled by them." Ruby leaned back in her seat. "In his prime Ozpin, like the Great King, was one of the single greatest huntsmen in the world. His only fault was believing in Ozma. I can only imagine that at some point Ozpin found out the truth, that Salem couldn't be killed, and that broke him…now all that's left is Ozma."

Ruby gave them a firm glance.

"Don't give Ozma the credit for the feats of his hosts. Ozma is their tool and an advisor to them at best. They saved the world with his help and they only seem to die when Ozma possesses them, that's what Oscar believed anyway."

"So, in theory, we need to find a way to stop the possession," Weiss murmured.

"Exactly, and I'm testing out a theory now," Ruby revealed. "If it works, well, then we win because I need Oscar for my plan."

"Plan? What plan?"

"To beat Salem and the Tyrant," Ruby explained with a raised eyebrow. "What? Did you think I didn't have a plan? I'm not a hypocrite, I wouldn't lead you all if I didn't have a plan."

"Oh this, I have to hear," Weiss muttered, knowing just how crazy Ruby's plans could get. She shuddered as she could only imagine what kind of insanity Ruby would put into the plan.

"Still working on the slides for the presentation," Ruby said dismissively making them gape. "Jaune and Penny are helping me with that plus I need batteries for my laser pointer."

"It is quite the slide show." Penny beamed, glad to be of help.

"Seriously…a slide show?" Yang gaped.

"It'll take days detailing it so I'm going to put time into our schedules whenever Ren and Nora return, to go over it." Ruby continued. "It'll be long, but trust me, you'll feel a lot better moving forward."

"My head hurts already." Yang groaned. "Please tell me there won't be homework."

"You need to know your part intimately Yang."

"Goddamn it."

"Fortunately, right now you are getting time off, we all are." Ruby smiled. "You all deserve it after the nonsense we've gone through."

"Even me?" Penny asked curiously having been quiet up until this point. "But I didn't assist with the Black Claw?" Penny pointed out with a small pout as if disappointed she hadn't been able to help her friends.

Part of her was touched that they truly wanted to keep their promise to her father and not use her as a weapon but she wanted to help her friends. Hopefully, now that she formally requested to aid them, they would include her in more of their adventures!

"Maybe not but we still owe you for the Willow incident and your continued work on the presentation for the plan." Ruby pointed out. "So tonight, we're going to do things right. I was so busy with everything else I kind of dropped the ball when it came to working on Team RWBY's bonds but now that I have a better hold of the situation, I can get it right this time."

"Ruby, what happened wasn't your fault." Weiss pointed out. "We all played a part in what happened and it's not like RWBY is gone, we're just on a time out."

"Weiss is right, Blake was my partner. I'll hold the L when it comes to this one." Yang said with a nod, not allowing Ruby to take the whole blame for the Black Claw incident. "Besides this was for the better in the long run."

"Agreed, Blake is far more useful out there." Weiss nodded. "But more importantly…" Weiss trailed off and she and Yang shared a knowing look before breaking out into grins.

"We're not the rookies anymore!" Yang and Weiss cheered as Penny tilted her head and looked at them curiously.

"Guys, do not haze Penny," Ruby warned as Penny blinked owlishly.

"Ruby, Penny is just as real as we are, right? That means if we did it, then she does." Yang argued and to Ruby's dismay, Penny seemed to be excited at the prospect of being hazed.

"Sensational! Spending time with team-building exercises sounds wonderful!" Penny said brightly as Ruby shot her a look that said she truly had no idea what she was in for. Being hazed in the knights meant taking the brunt of everyone else's bullshit until another newbie came along to take yours in addition to everyone else's.

"Well, you'll enjoy this one then." Ruby drawled. "Tonight, we have to perform the task of having fun despite knowing that the world is swan diving into oblivion."

"Wait…" Yang trailed off before realizing that the limo was landing in front of Junior's Club and not Beacon. "…you mean…"

"Yang I wouldn't tell you to dress up just to pick me up and go back to the dorms," Ruby said as she glanced at the dresses Yang, Weiss, and Penny had on. "I just alluded Salem's existence to the world and the fact that I am being hunted. Now we have to show the world that I don't care as well as introduce our newest member."

"Hi!" Penny waved as if she needed to be introduced.

With a shake of her head, Ruby continued. "Tonight, we'll introduce the world to Team PWYR as well as spend a night out as a team."

"Don't play with my emotions Ruby," Yang said with a surprising amount of firmness that caught Weiss off guard. "Are you saying what I think you're fucking saying? Spit it out."

Ruby's shoulders slumped and she sighed before saying the one thing Yang had waited for Ruby's whole life to hear.

"Yes, Yang, tonight we're going clubbing."

A sniffle was heard.

"Yang…are…are you crying?" Weiss asked incredulously.

"You have no idea how long I've waited to hear those words," Yang said before dabbing at her eyes with a tissue and making sure not to ruin her makeup. "Sis, tonight we are going to party."

-Junior's Club-

BGM: Full Bodied (Feat. Al!ce)-GHOST DATA

The silhouettes of Team PWYR appeared at the entrance of the club, the only colors being seen on their figures being those of their hair and Ruby's cape. When the door slid open, they walked in to see a wild party going on.

The face of the clubbers showed nothing but bliss as they danced the night away.

"Wow…" Penny said with wide eyes.

"Enjoy," Ruby said as she raised a hand. "This night is for you."

With a snap of her fingers, the club went dark before being illuminated by a green light. Wide-eyed, Penny looked up to the ceiling and saw her power emblem illuminate on the ceiling.

"Hey, you made it, Red," Melanie called out and Ruby turned to see Melanie and Militia chilling at the bar with Junior. "One last night out before you head to the boonies for a week?"

"Mel…"

"What? You know it's true, if it's not the city, it's the boonies no in-between."

Laughing at their antics, Ruby took off her cape and tossed it to them. "Something like that, hold on to that for me."

Melanie waved her off and continued to drink with her sister.

"Just don't break the club again, blondie!" Junior called out to Yang who rolled her eyes but nodded.

"Well?" Ruby asked her sister as she strolled forward and led them to the dance floor. "What do you think?"

"That dad would have a fit if he saw your dress," Yang said, having not seen Ruby's dress without her cape before. "Which means I approve. Question is, how thorough was your dance teacher? Because this is not a ballroom."

Ruby rolled her silver eyes before moving her head to the beat for a few moments. Then, much to her team's surprise, broke out into a skilled and energetic dance that put the other clubbers to shame.

Never let it be said that Knight Captain Arc was not thorough in every mission he undertook.

"Penny, analyze my moves and follow suit," Ruby instructed and Penny's eyes shone green for a moment before she grinned brightly and began to mimic and match all of Ruby's movements.

"Exhilarating!"

"I've seen it all." Yang said before she began to dance as well. Though Ruby was skilled, Yang showed why she was the older sister and began to dance sensually with Weiss. Still, not one to be outdone or embarrassed, Weiss met her dance partner move for move.

Yeah, the world was going to shit and they were the last line of defense against ultimate evil, but Yang's relationship with her sister had only gone stronger, she made new friends-even a mother figure, and was now dancing in a club with her billionaire girlfriend.

"What has you so happy?" Weiss called out with a smile of her own as she watched Yang grin.

"Life, babe, life."

-Two Hours later-

BGM: END

As Weiss, Yang, and Penny continued to dance, Ruby looked down at them from the second floor of the club as she leaned against the railing.

"So, you're like, fine, right?"

Ruby blinked and glanced back to see Melanie and Militia.

"What do you mean?" Ruby questioned which made Militia shift uncomfortably.

"We've been a bit worried for a while now. About you." Militia answered which made Melanie scoff as if she were insulted. Still, the troubled expression on her face showed Ruby there was truth to her words.

"Please. I was just worried about our meal ticket."

"Melanie, enough," Militia spoke firmly which made Melanie flinch. "Forgive her, she hates feeling vulnerable."

"I get it," Ruby said thinking of Weiss and nodding to show she was far from offended. "I'm just a bit confused as to why you're worried."

"You're kidding right?" Militia asked with a raised eyebrow. "You do know that everyone saw that fight, including us, right? Not to mention your interview. We thought we knew what to expect from the incident at the docks but that had nothing on your fight with the Claw."

"Ah, don't worry about it, I'm fine," Ruby reassured her which made Melanie snarl a bit.

"The bitch tried to bite through your neck!" Melanie hissed, surprising Ruby with her anger. Melanie clenched her hands as her eyes fell on the scar Ruby didn't bother hiding.

"It really looked worse than it was."

"And the fight itself, did it look worse than it was?" Militia questioned which made Ruby purse her lips. Ruby had learned recently that though she was apparently gifted at the art of lies and half-truths to get what she wanted, it was still hard for her to lie to those she cared for and who cared for her.

"No. That was far worse than it looked." Ruby admitted knowing that the world had only seen the easy part of the battle would forever remain ignorant of the battle with the Grand Chimera and Salem. "The video missed some key parts. Our enemy made an appearance and to be honest, we all almost died that night, but we have no footage of that, or I would have shown it."

"Shit," Militia muttered as Melanie grit her teeth and looked off to the side with a glare that could have melted steel.

"We came out okay." Ruby continued. "We're fine."

"We can see that, but you need to understand. The things we saw you do? It was a bit of a wake-up call." Militia explained. "Like you're really fighting a war right now, aren't you? You fought hard and you have way more power than we expected. You could fight anyone in this Kingdom and I'm sure you would win."

"level with us, red, just how bad are things?" Melanie questioned after taking a deep breath to calm herself. "What are you actually after and why do you need us?"

Finally Ruby grimaced. "Bad," Ruby answered. "Real bad, the end of the world bad," Ruby said solemnly and maybe it was her tone, the power they saw her wield, their rapidly improving relationship, or a mixture of all three but Ruby could see that the twins believed her.

Moment of truth.

"Our enemy…is a monster, she is out there controlling the grimm," Ruby revealed which made their eyes widen. "She's a monster that's intelligent and ancient. She is the reason my mother is missing and she is working for an even bigger threat that wears my face. I'm not crazy, I've seen it. The rest of the eight have as well which is why they follow me."

Ruby turned away from them and looked down at the dancers once more.

"The only way to stop them is by uniting the world as the Great King had," Ruby explained. "Which is what my sister was doing before she was killed by our enemies. There is an attack being planned for Vale that will break this Kingdom and we are hoping to not only stop it but use it to give this Kingdom the leadership it needs to survive what's to come and make the other three kingdoms bend the knee."

"Just the three other kingdoms? Not Menagerie?" Militia questioned as both she and her sister appeared blown away by the information being shared with them. "Wait, that's what that mess with the Claw was about wasn't it?"

"Blake and Nera are not our enemies," Ruby answered. "They knew what I had planned and simply wanted their independence. The wounds between our species run deep and I rather have them as our allies than working against us for the real enemy. They'll fight alongside me and follow my command but in exchange, they will be separate from my rule. I just need them for war, they can do what they wish outside of battle and my territories."

When Ruby glanced back and saw their gob-smacked expressions she laughed.

"Vale is practically mine already." Ruby continued. "Your gang is swiftly taking over the criminal underworld and I've rooted myself too deep into Vale's politics to be removed. Every day more people look up to me and the Council thinks they can use that to their advantage not realizing that they too work for me."

This was the moment.

The moment of realization.

The moment that they understood that they were in the presence of someone who would eventually become the most powerful woman in the world.

"We have, at least, eight years left in this conflict. One way or another this will all come to an end." Ruby continued. "This war will end and it will either be us standing victorious or them. I need our people ready, but if I told them the whole truth without proof…"

"…at best you would be labeled insane," Militia muttered which made Melanie curse.

"You're spoon-feeding them the truth, bit by bit." Melanie realized. As someone who was previously on the outside looking in, she could see how it was working. Before this discussion, even she couldn't ignore that some crazy shit was clearly happening around them.

The subtlety in which Ruby laid out hints before making a noticeable, but not too forceful, push toward the truth like she did with the interview was genius. Ruby was forcing the world to think for itself, to ask questions about the issues being hidden from them by those in power.

"We were on the wrong side, weren't we?" Militia asked softly and it was clear she wasn't talking about the law. Even after all of this, Ruby hadn't stopped their gang from doing some of their less than legal activities as long as no one was getting hurt.

"Our enemy needed dust to destroy Vale," Ruby explained. "They hired Roman and he hired you. What you thought was a quick paycheck was going to destroy your very lives as he went on with his life in another Kingdom."

"Mel…"

"That bastard!" Melanie snarled her eyes shining with tears that refused to fall while Militia didn't bother to hide her pain. This gang was their family and though they were criminals they weren't evil. They cared about their home and never wanted the Kingdom itself to fall.

They had a code damn it!

"I've been fighting this fight longer than anyone my age has any right to." Ruby continued, seemingly aging before their very yes. "I shouldn't be fighting it, but someone has to. Someone has to stop them so I will. My sister fell because she lost her heart, she was tired and never wanted to rule. I'm probably going to regret saying this but you two are some of the people who are helping me not end up like her."

At this, the twins looked at her in confusion.

"What do you mean? How are we helping?"

"Well, I'll admit shopping with a practical blank check isn't the worse thing in the world," Ruby said with a small smile. "This job is hard and unforgiving, but you two keep showing me the finer things in life. You spoil me and it helps to see the perks of this job."

Ruby laughed a bit and gave them a genuine smile.

"My sister had desires for peace and did what she had to do to build my foundation but she didn't have ambition," Ruby revealed. "I love her, but our people don't need a martyr they need a leader. Someone not ashamed to enjoy the spoils of war, to live a life of luxury to balance out the pain."

At this Melanie smirked a bit. "A Queen instead of a saint. Well, well, look at you. You're becoming more of a bad bitch than I expected, almost brings a tear to my eye."

Ruby smirked. "Well, I'm aiming for Empress, but sure let's go with that." Ruby then gestured toward herself. "Still, I told you the truth about my image. I need help maintaining it and you two are good at that."

"You did look like a goth kindergartner in rags." Melanie mused getting a sharp elbow into her side from her sister. "When the clothing line takes off, we'll have even more money to play around with so don't get used to this look. I'm already planning your royal aesthetic in my head now."

"Get used to waking up early." Militia continued. "If you think the prep time you have now is bad, wait until we're done with you when you start ruling Kingdoms." Militia then smirked. "And now you can't even complain since you enjoy our makeovers. See? Being a girl isn't too bad."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "I wasn't that bad, was I? Besides, I'll admit I like looking good. I can see now why Yang works so hard at it."

"Work so hard at what?" Ruby paled and when the three of them turned to the side they saw the rest of Team PWYR approaching them. At this, the twins shared a smirked and surprisingly greeted the blonde excitedly.

"Oh Yang, you just missed it." Melanie grinned looking like a cat that caught a canary. "Our girl here just admitted to liking makeovers."

*sniffle*

Weiss blinked and looked up at her lover. "Yang…are you…crying…again?"

"I'm just so happy, you know?" Yang said while wiping her eyes which made Ruby groan knowing Yang would be unbearable moving forward. Still, Ruby couldn't be too annoyed, she and her sister got along great but they had very few things that they both enjoyed that they could spend together doing.

If this made Yang happy and helped them grow closer then so be it.

Besides, it's not like she wouldn't have some fun as well.

Still between the twins, Yang, the glint she saw in Weiss' eyes, and how excited Penny was to do anything, Ruby realized it wasn't just Yang she'd have to worry about.

"Besides, you're shacking up with two of the most sought-after people in Vale, if not Remnant." Melanie continued. "Every salty bitch in the kingdom is going to be analyzing you so might as well give the haters something to hate. You also have more than a few admirers so they'll have to upgrade their wardrobes too at some point but they don't seem to be lost causes, unlike some people."

This time Ruby flipped Melanie off which made them all laugh.

"But if you're going to be our little canvas, we have to do something about that injury." Militia mused, looking at Ruby's scar. "Fuck it, you're old enough for a little teenage rebellion," Militia said before turning to Yang. "We're getting her drunk and tatted."

Ruby blinked. "Huh!?"

Yang immediately lifted Ruby and slung her over her shoulder. "Say less."

"What? No! You don't even have a tattoo, Yang! Weiss, help me!"

"And get cut off?" Weiss scoffed. "You're on your own, I'll make sure you don't end up with anything too scandalous."

"Oh, you whipped bit-Penny, help!"

"A new experience, sensational!"

"Noooooo!"

"Besides," Weiss continued with a grin that showed that perhaps she too had partaken in a bit more alcohol than expected. "Yang does have a tattoo, it's- "

"Weiss!" Yang yelped, spinning around quickly which made Ruby a little dizzy. "No!"

"Aww, but it's cute…"

Red-faced, Yang shook her head. "It stays between you and me."

Wiess pouted but nodded all the same.

-The Next Morning: Beacon: Ozpin-

Ruby strolled into the Headmaster's office with a grimace, when she saw Ozpin standing with her back to her, hands folded behind his back with no coffee in sight she sighed.

She was too hungover for this.

"Ah, Ms. Rose, thank you for showing up," Ozpin said and though she couldn't see his face, she could practically hear his all-knowing smile on his lips. "Please have a seat, Your Majesty."

Ruby blinked and raised an eyebrow, but gave no outward sign that she had been caught off guard by his words. Strolling confidently toward his desk, she sat down and he turned and followed suit. After all, it wasn't proper decorum to sit before the Empress did.

"You have my attention," Ruby said as she rested her head on her fist.

"You made quite the reveal last night." Ozpin mused. "The other headmasters are still trying to call me."

"It had to be done," Ruby said firmly. "You can't hide this war, Ozpin."

"No, no I suppose I can't," Ozpin said as he searched her eyes as if looking for something deep within her soul. Unlike before, there was no Empress to push him out but it wasn't needed as now there was an Empress before him that wouldn't let him in. "You are powerful."

"I am."

"This strength is one you were born with, but this mastery isn't possible at your age no matter how gifted," Ozpin said as he tilted his head. "But you are you. It should be impossible, but was it time-travel?"

"It was," Ruby answered easily. "Though it's a bit more complicated than that."

"Of course, it is," Ozpin said, looking a bit amused. "I assume your title was earned long before you came into contact with whatever sent you here."

"It was," Ruby said and her pride was clear. "With all due respect, headmaster…why did you call me here?" Ruby questioned. "To let me know you put the pieces together?"

"On the contrary, I called you to inform you that you have detention."

Ruby stared at him with half-lidded eyes. "You're joking."

"No, I am quite serious, an hour a day, after you return from your trip of course," Ozpin said which made Ruby look at him skeptically.

"And why would I listen to you?" Ruby asked as she knew that he knew that she was effectively above Beacons rules by this point.

"I do believe it is because I am your Headmaster," Ozpin said before looking at her with silver eyes.

Ruby didn't bother to hide her gasp.

"Ozpin," Ruby murmured. "It worked?"

"Your restoration of my will? Yes, in a sense." Ozpin mused before giving her a sad smile. "Though I must admit that it was far too late for me. I'm on my last legs and can only keep him at bay for so long, an hour tops from my tests so far. I apologize for waiting so long to answer your summons, but I had to make sure we would not have any interference."

Ruby swallowed, stunned that her idea worked. "He…he can't hear us?"

"No. Thanks to you I can put him in quite the quaint little cage." Ozpin informed her. "One deprived of the five senses. To him, it's as though he has gone to sleep, but he is not amused by this. Not pleased in the slightest."

"Too bad," Ruby muttered. "It was your body first."

Ozpin smiled at that. "That it was, that it was," Ozpin's expression softened. "You look just like your mother, but it is clear you aren't. Had I known that fool had no plan, I would have handled that war much differently. Just because she can't be killed, doesn't mean she can't be stopped."

"You had a plan to stop Salem?" Ruby questioned.

"I did or rather, I had an idea. The four relics," Ozpin explained. "With them, we could have trapped Salem and sealed her in a vault powered by all four."

Ruby blinked at that, it was simple and straightforward and could have worked if they could get Salem inside of it. It wasn't perfect by any means and had some variables and logistics that she was sure Ozpin had thought of.

It was a desperate plan.

But it was a plan.

"So why not rally behind that idea?" Ruby questioned and she watched Ozpin grit his teeth.

"Because I forgot," Ozpin said and before Ruby could lose her composure at the excuse that might have cost her mother, she heard the pain in his voice. A pain-filled voice conveying nothing but hurt and betrayal.

"He wiped your mind," Ruby whispered.

"Ozma fears the Brother Gods more than anything," Ozpin revealed. "The Great King and his partner sought to summon the Gods after he had unified the world."

"To restore humanity with magic?"

"No. To destroy the Gods." Ozpin revealed which made Ruby look at him in surprise. "The Great King's partner believed they had found the source of the very power that birthed the Gods and believed they could use it to get rid of the brothers so that mankind, human and faunus, would never have to fear them again."

"Bold," Ruby said and she wasn't sure how she felt about the Brothers but could understand the King's actions. After all, what good was saving your people if two bored Gods could destroy them on a whim for their amusement.

Ozpin sighed. "In response, Ozma possessed the great king and divided the relics amongst the kingdoms before disbanding the alliance. He believed we could be unified but separate to ensure no one man could get the relics, an action that fractured the world once more. Ozma feared I would be tempted to be like the King. I wouldn't. I didn't care about the Brothers or summoning them, I just wanted Salem gone, and my friends safe."

Ozpin placed his head in his hands.

"I'm sorry I wasn't stronger, that I was so foolish to blindly trust the voice that appeared in my head." Ozpin scowled. "I lost everything to this parasite."

"Enough, raise your head Ozpin, I didn't tell you to bow," Ruby said, her voice like a whip. "You're the Headmaster of Beacon. The only time you bow is when I say so. Never let anyone else, especially not some ghost, take away your pride. You're better than that."

Ozpin looked at her in surprise and her gaze softened.

"You poor man," Ruby muttered seeing an image of Oscar in his place. Though she had yet to personally meet the next host, the pain she felt from her memories was real. At one point the Empress had loved him and though Ruby herself knew she would never feel that way toward him, she knew he'd be a valued ally one day nonetheless and the idea that he, Ozpin, the Great King, and so many more were consumed by a ghost infuriated her. "These…detentions…what do you wish to gain?"

"I want to detail my plan, hammer it out so that you know how to stop Salem," Ozpin explained, his face tired. "An hour a day, piece by piece, I will tell you all you need to know to make it work."

"An admiral goal, but unfortunately things are worse than you know," Ruby said, confusing him. "There is a threat worse than Salem. A monster, admittedly, of my own creation that controls Salem."

Ozpin paled.

"Then we're doomed."

"We're not." Ruby countered. "I can kill Salem. I can kill them both and I have a plan to do so that I can spend our detentions telling you and you alone. I trust you can use my power to keep your mind safe when you aren't in control?"

"I can, I would not set this meeting up if I couldn't."

Ruby smiled. "Good. Now, while I do have faith in my plan, I wouldn't mind having a teacher check my work." Ruby offered knowing full well that Ozpin carried the entire war effort on his back before they came along. He was possibly the one person that could rival Jaune due to the sheer wisdom he had gotten through a lifetime older than both of Jaune's combined.

Ozpin closed his eyes, both touched and pained, as Ruby reminded him of his original goal before his possession, his dream which he was living but unable to enjoy. Ruby was giving him a chance to live his dream in his final days.

He was no fool.

He knew his days were numbered.

He grew weaker by the day and knew that now that he had been given back his life, even if barely, he would rather die than lose control again.

"I would be delighted," Ozpin said with a small smile. "Will you be telling your allies of our alliance?"

"No, as it stands, Ozma doesn't know you're meeting with me. We need to keep it that way." Ruby said, looking apologetic but they both knew she was right. This secret had to be guarded until his time was up. "If Nora tries to kill you at some point, make sure he's in control, no point in suffering for his sins."

Ozpin blinked at that.

"Pardon my language but what the hell did he do to her?" Ozpin questioned remembering a few times he had tested his control and crossed paths with Nora who looked ready to slaughter him.

"That's…that's a story for another time, He did something stupid when we were going through a bit of a dark phase and I'll leave it at that," Ruby murmured. "Though, you've piqued my curiosity. This power that birthed the Gods you spoke of, what do you know of it?"

"Little, as far as I know, it could have just been a myth but that's doubtful," Ozpin murmured. "The Great King wouldn't fight the Gods unprepared, if that power existed, he would find it first, and if Ozma felt the need to possess the Great King…"

"…then he found it." Ruby finished getting a nod from Ozpin. "This…this is a game-changer. I doubt the other players in the game even considered this."

If Ruby could find this power source, it would give her exactly what she needed to combat the Tyrant's distortions and any other god she corrupted. Ruby knew they wouldn't be as lucky as they were with the Grand Chimera, the God of Animals weakened himself and fought with everything he could to let them kill him and that was against the full might of the Empress, an ascended Blake, and the possessed forms of Yang and Weiss along with all their followers.

Ruby needed this power source and fast and she needed it under her faction's control and it's alone.

"Is that power needed?"

"Our enemies can turn gods into grimm," Ruby answered which made Ozpin pale. "I have faith that we can stop them, even then, if we follow the plan but any help would make things much easier. Did Ozma tell you anything else about the power?"

"No," Ozpin answered, and though she expected that she still cursed. "He only told me the bare minimum of the story to persuade me against the plan and when that didn't work, he wiped the memory. It would have been lost forever had you not helped me. But…"

"But?" Ruby urged as he smiled at her.

"Perhaps you can find something on your trip," Ozpin informed her. "The Great King's partner was Joan."

Ruby blinked and frowned at the name. "Who?"

Ozpin smirked. "You may know her as Johnathan Arc."

Ruby felt her jaw drop. "Jaune's ancestor was a woman?"

"Yes, and quite close to the King," Ozpin informed her. "You hit the nail on the head in your interview, by the way, Ozma almost gave me a heart attack. The Great King's bloodline does live on…"

"…and it's in Jaune," Ruby muttered. "This changes everything. if this known and proven he can bend the knee to me when he becomes Lord Arc."

"And surrender his claim to you," Ozpin revealed. "Vale lost is monarchy because there was believed to be no heir. The truth is Joan gave her child to her brother to raise, letting the world believe Johnathan Arc had a legitimate heir before he was lost in battle."

"Joan…she was captured, wasn't she?" Ruby questioned and Ozpin nodded solemnly.

"Burned at the stake by Cardinal Winchester," Ozpin answered. "She couldn't bear the guilt of killing the Great King, but she had enough foresight to do it as a woman so that the Arc legacy could persevere and their child would be safe."

Ruby closed her eyes and nodded. "I am getting really tired of tragedies."

"As am I, Your Majesty, as am I."

"When the dust settles, and all is said and done, I will make sure the right story is told," Ruby said, a fierce look on her face. "A legitimate claim to the throne won't guarantee me the seat after all these years with the current government system but it will make my transition easier. Thank you, I will try to find out more about this "power" when I visit the Arcs."

"I look forward to our next meeting," Ozpin then checked his watch. "He will awaken again soon, so that will be it for today's detention."

"I might actually like start looking forward to them, you've made my life easier." Ruby joked.

"I daresay I've done more harm to Salem over the last hour than I've done in years." Ozpin mused. "I only wish that I could see it unfold. Before you leave, I do have one last favor to ask you in return for everything you've learned today."

"Oh? And what's that?"

"My successor, I'm no fool, if Glynda is still as sharp as I remember she has long since made herself known to him," Ozpin said and though Ruby didn't confirm Glynda had been in contact with Oscar, she didn't deny it either. "I wish to speak to him at least once, supervised, of course, call it an old man's last wish, hm?"

Ruby gave him a sad smile and nodded. "Of course. For what it's worth Ozpin, I wish I could have freed you sooner."

"Ah, ah, ah, Your Majesty, do not waste the best years of your life thinking of what you wish you could've changed." Ozpin reprimanded lightly. "Be better than me. Spend them changing what you can."

Ruby nodded, taking the lesson to heart before leaving the office.

When she was gone, the silver left Ozpin's eyes, and a scowl set on his face. "What are you doing, Ozpin?"

"What, Ozma? Can I not get one hour to myself in my own body?" Ozpin questioned from inside his mind. Ozma scowled at that, clearly suspicious as he had not idea what had transpired at all, but eventually sighed.

"You should be careful we don't know what that girl did to give you back control," Ozma said as he sat in his chair.

"Which is why I am experimenting, letting an unknown variable remain unknown is never a good idea."

Ozma grimaced a bit but acknowledged that he had a point.

He only hoped the experiments didn't come back to haunt them.

-Later: Vale: Train Station-

"Please tell me, I'm not late!" Ruby asked as she approached Jaune and Pyrrha who were tucked away in the corner of the train station, dressed in their civies. For Jaune, it was a pair of jeans and his old Pumpkin Pete hoodie that had its hood raised to hide his face as much as possible. In Pyrrha's case, she wore a simple white sundress with a matching summer hat and heels.

"Nope just in time." Jaune smiled which made Ruby sigh in relief before she frowned when she looked at Pyrrha.

"I thought we were dressing lowkey," Ruby said as she gestured at herself. Gone was her elegant attire and in its place were a pair of black sneakers with matching leggings and a crimson hoodie that had the word Royalty on the right side of its sleeve. She no longer wore her crown but instead had a pair of fake glasses.

Pyrrha pouted having heard the same thing from Jaune. "I did."

"You're gorgeous," Ruby said with an eye roll both amused and exasperated that Pyrrha managed to stand out even when they were actively trying not to draw attention. "Next time you're modeling."

Jaune chuckled. "That will be an interesting catalog. Still, surprisingly it isn't just Pyrrha standing out. Seriously, Ruby, what the hell did you pack?" Jaune questioned, glancing behind Ruby at her comically large suitcase.

"The twins have no faith in my ability to dress myself." Ruby groaned. "I'll admit I don't know too much about fashion but this was overboard. They packed multiple outfits, make-up kits with instructions that, and I quote, 'even a toddler can follow'. I barely had room for Crescent Rose!"

Jaune whistled at that.

Pyrrha shook her head in wonder. "I see you had a good night. Shame we couldn't come but, as you said, it was a team night."

"Next time, we'll plan something," Ruby said before rubbing her shoulder. "I wasn't expecting a tattoo but hopefully it being a tattoo of my emblem will soften the blow for dad."

At the Pyrrha looked amused. "At this point, you're already grounded for life without the tattoo. Might as well go all out, do what you want, and get crowned so you can order him not to ground you."

Ruby laughed. "Good idea. By the way, speaking of teams…" Ruby trailed off and both Jaune and Pyrrha grimaced.

"Ren is still missing, but if I know him, he took his lesson to heart and has left to deal with his issues," Jaune answered. "He'll be back when we need him. Nora is still in shock, I think. Not sure if she even noticed Ren is gone. She sees now that she has a problem. Once she accepts that, she'll find a way to get some help."

Ruby nodded. "I wish it hadn't gone down like that, but they were becoming liabilities. They have a darkness in them after all that they have been through and I've seen first hand what happens when it's allowed to fester."

The three lapsed into a solemn silence at that and looked up when they heard the sound of their train approaching. Clapping her hands together, Pyrrha put a smile on her face.

"Let's shelve that for now," Pyrrha spoke up. "Let's take the advantage of our time in Vale's frontier and relax."

"Who are you and what have you done with Pyrrha?" Jaune joked as Ruby giggled. "Since when do you relax?"

"Hey, even I have my limits," Pyrrha said while rolling her shoulders. "I feel like I've been fighting since the day I met you. Good for the body, but even I need a break."

"Fair," Ruby said before grabbing her large luggage. "Let's get ready for a long ride ahead of us. I still can't believe, there aren't any airship docks where you live, Jaune."

"It's pretty rural," Jaune admitted. "We don't even have a CCT tower."

Ruby and Pyrrha gaped at that.

"You don't?" Ruby questioned as Pyrrha began to realize just how Jaune managed to not know who she was.

"Do you live in the dark ages?"

"It's not that bad." Jaune defended. "We did have one it broke down and has been undergoing maintenance forever. Fortunately, the old phone lines still work and are compatible with our scrolls so we can still coordinate and do business with the rest of the Kingdom."

"You just have no T.V. or Internet," Pyrrha said, giving Jaune a half-lidded stare.

"Unfortunately, but it's just a week," Jaune said, confused by the looks Pyrrha and now Ruby were giving him. "It's not that bad!"

"Jaune…" Ruby sighed giving the man a look that said how could someone be so smart and so dumb? "…that's not the issue."

"Huh?"

"Jaune, having no T.V. and no Internet means that your family has no idea what has been going on," Pyrrha said patiently waiting for the light-bulb to go off in Jaune's head. "Towns like yours don't tend to have any news but the local paper."

Jaune paled.

"On the off chance you had regular communication with anyone from your family after you left in the middle of the night over a year ago did you let them know anything?" Ruby questioned desperately. "Or did you just give the usual, 'I'm fine, don't worry how are you?' Do they even know about us?"

"Oops." Jaune then blinked. "Wait do your parents know about us?"

"My parents don't live in the boonies, Jaune." Pyrrha joked. "They follow my career closely, of course they know."

"Uncle Qrow knows," Ruby said which he figured was good enough. Taiyang could have known if he didn't live like a hermit. The truth was when it came to communicating with Taiyang, it had to be done in person or whenever he decided to send a letter. Seeing as the last letter he sent was before the dance, there was no way for Ruby to tell him.

Ruby rubbed her temples, muttering something about blonds. "You're lucky you're cute."

Ever the agent of chaos, Pyrrha just laughed lightly. "This will be fun," Pyrrha said as she grabbed her luggage. "Because we aren't hiding are we, Ruby?"

Giving Jaune a look that sent a chill down his spine, Ruby smiled. "No, we aren't," Ruby said before both she and Pyrrha kissed the mortified Jaune on the cheek before entering the train as they held each other's hand. Solemnly, Jaune followed after them, knowing the next few hours might be his last.

["A man must always face the consequences of his actions with his head held high and his chest out."]

Jaune couldn't help be recall his father's sage advice at that moment and shook his head. Of course, it would be his luck that his weapon was broken when such a time came.

At least he still had the shield.

-Vale: Frontier: Arc Household: 6 hours later-

BGM: Where We Come From by Lecrae-Spider-Man: Miles Morales OST

Rosé slammed her axe into the chopping block and wiped her brow free of its sweat. She was a tall woman with a powerful build that wore blue jeans a red plaid shirt. Now that she was done with cutting up the firewood, she stretched a bit before undoing her ponytail and letting her shoulder-length hair fall free.

"Always hard at work, aren't you sis?" Rosé smiled and turned to see Saphron and Terra approaching her, their son held close in Saphron's arms.

"Terra," Rosé greeted before hugging her sister-in-law before nodding at Saphron. "Adrian's mom, how are you?"

"Seriously, I'm just Adrian's mom to you?" Saphron asked with mock hurt while her big sister grinned.

"What can I say, I had to make room in my heart for my little man. You had to go." Rosé joked. "Hand me the baby!" Rosé gushed which made Saphron roll her eyes before handing her son over. Rosé made funny faces to him and Adrian began giggling joyously as his aunt lifted him. Holding the boy close, Rosé wrapped Saphron in a powerful one-armed hug and kissed her brow. "I missed you, sis, always good to see you."

"Back at you," Saphron smiled warmly. "Now where are my little nieces to spoil? Or my brother-in-law who continues to prove to be better company than you?" Saphron joked, getting a playful punch from Rosé to the shoulder.

"Home, sick," Rosé answered with an eye-roll. "A kid at their school was sick and their parents had the bright idea to let them go to school despite the poor babies looking as though they were on death's door. My kids caught it and gave it to their dad."

"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that," Terra murmured, sad that her nieces couldn't make it while Saphron just looked worried.

"Are…are her parents still alive?"

"Saph!"

"What? it's a legitimate question!" Saphron told her wife, raising her hands defensively as Rosé just chuckled.

"Don't worry those idiots are okay." Rosé answered before a meaningful glint appeared in her eyes. "For now."

Both Terra and Saphron winced.

"Still, he was doing well enough to look after them, said there was no point in risking me becoming sick as well." Rosé shrugged. "I missed you all so I figured the trip would be worth it."

"Trip, ah that's right you did move to the town over." Saphron grinned, proud of her sister. "When is it going to be official? Dad's going to name you the Warden soon."

"Next week." Rosé smiled. "Which is perfect, it's about time the old man retired, he's worked too hard for too long."

"Agreed, it always impresses me that he managed to provide for and spend time with eight kids." Terra mused. "I lose sleep over the one we have."

"You guys will find your routine soon Terra, don't worry." Rosé reassured her and Saphron was going to respond when she stopped and took note of something behind Rosé.

"Jade!? What on earth happened to you?" startled Rosé and Terra turned to see an exhausted and mud-covered Jade appearing from the foliage.

Jade's hair was tied in a ponytail and she was wearing a green tank top and brown cargo shorts, on the sides of which there were two hand guns holstered. Though her eyes were covered by a pair of round-framed sunglasses with green lenses, they could still see her exhaustion.

"I was right," Jade answered, pushing her glasses up to her forehead, and as they expected her expression was tired but it held obvious excitement. "Saph! Get out here!"

"For the love of- why on Remnant are you yelling?" A cold voice practically hissed and they turned to see and annoyed Sapphire walking out from the manor. Unlike her sisters, Sapphire's expression lacked the seemingly inherent warmth that came with being a member of their family.

"Because for once in my life I get to tell you something I've waited your whole life to and I want an audience for this," Jade said before shrugging off her backpack and tossing it to Sapphire's feet. "I was right and you were wrong."

The way Sapphire's eyes widen as her rectangular rimless glasses slid off her face showed that she had never expected to hear those words from Jade.

Or anyone for that matter.

"Expedition was a success." Jade grinned. "I found John Arc's tomb, not only does it exist but it is here in the Frontier. Rosé, cover the baby's ears."

Rosé did so and while Adrian looked at them curiously, he was unable to hear a thing as Jade turned to each one of them.

"Fuck you, fuck you, and fuck you," Jade told each of her sisters. "Terra you're cool and Adrian will have my love forever." Jade grinned. "I was right."

"Unbelievable," Sapphire muttered, dropping her book as she dug through Jade's pack and cursing when she saw the various artifacts inside.

"Get comfortable baby sis because, by your own words, you will now be my partner for life," Jade said which made Sapphire tremble at the thought. "Good thing you finished your schooling early. Next week, I'm having you start cataloging all this for me."

"Nooooo!" Sapphire shouted, falling to her knees in despair, Adrian just laughed at the sight.

BGM: END

"Sapphy, we love you, but please keep your existential crisis to a minimum," Lapis said as she and Lazuli sunbathed on the lawn in a pair of matching blue bikinis.

"Agreed," Lazuli said before glancing at them from behind her shades. "Besides now you have something to do. Aren't you always crying about being bored?"

"I do not cry." Sapphire hissed.

"Sulk, whatever, the point is you've been a major vibe kill." Lapis spoke up. "Having some excitement in your life may help get that stick out of your-"

"Ah-hem." Rosé cleared her throat, making Lapis wince.

"Whoops, sorry, forgot about the baby. The point still stands though." Lapis spoke up. "I don't know why you don't just sit back and enjoy the easy life. You're rich. Act like it, sometimes I think Lazuli and I are the only sane siblings."

Lazuli nodded. "For real."

The other sisters rolled their eyes at this. The twins had always enjoyed the life of luxury and vanity and it showed, though that wasn't to say they weren't good people. They respected the work the less fortunate put into their lives and helped the community whenever they could.

Their father, in a good-natured attempt to 'get them off their lazy asses' told them that they had to do something. So, they, much to their siblings' surprise, decided to learn how to manage the family's assets from Juniper.

And that was where they found their talent.

The twins were good at wealth management, no, not just good, they excelled and essentially doubled the family's assets. It got to the point where Juniper simply decided to leave them in charge of it. The twins were also surprisingly frugal and barely made a dent in the resources even when they decided to splurge. They kept the accounts open for anyone in the family to use but surprisingly no one did unless it was an emergency or if Jade had a particularly expensive expedition she wanted to undertake.

Jade, of course, in true Arc fashion would refill the funds by selling whatever she found as to her the adventure was more than enough reward.

"I said it once and I'll say it again, honey, your family is amazing," Terra muttered with a shake of her head. "I've never seen a family so consistently born with talent."

"I wouldn't say that, I'm just a normal gal." Rosé pointed out which made them all look at her skeptically. "What?"

"As one of the seven people who lived in your shadow, I'm going to have to stop you there," Saphron muttered. "Except for cooking, I've seen you succeed at basically everything you put your mind to."

"Hey, that's not true, I fail when it comes to art." Rosé defended which might have also explained her inability to cook. "Something you wouldn't know about, how many poems and songs have you written that have won awards again?" Rosé questioned with a smirk and Saphron laughed a bit at that.

It was true, she did have a way with words and made quite the living ghost-writing for musicians and authors.

"She has a point, we were pen-pals for a bit and you made me fall for you in the first letter." Terra teased which made Saphron flush as her sisters laughed at her, even Sapphire smirked.

"If you didn't hate that lifestyle so much, who knows how famous you'd be." Lapis mused and Lazuli smirked.

"Especially if they knew you wrote nin-"

"Don't say it!" Saphron said quickly, nodding toward the baby. "I do not want him to somehow remember this and read that…that…filth later!"

"You wrote it!" Lapis said incredulously.

"Doesn't matter," Saphron said adamantly which made the twins roll their eyes. "I guess I'm okay at the arts but it's not like I'm one of the savants," Saphron said as she gestured toward Sapphire and the twins. "Or the treasure hunter."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jade questioned. "I just like exploring!"

"Jade, I love you but think about it. That tomb was believed to be a myth." Saphron stressed. "And you've made it your life's ambition to find it, and you did, and you're only sixteen. Do you know what's going to happen next? You'll move on to the next mystery after you finish this one because you have a hunger for the thrill, and guess what? You'll find it too because that's what you do. You were a pain in my behind but you're amazing."

Saphron turned to the rest of her sisters.

"You all are, I'm scared to see whatever Violet becomes because I know it will be just as grand," Saphron said seriously, and they all found themselves touched by her words, almost to the point of tears.

"Honey, you're doing it again." Terra mused making Saphron blink.

"Oh God dang it." Saphron placed her face in her hands, knowing that once again she accidentally lost control of her words.

Rosé just shook her head and gave Saphron a bright smile. "I did miss you. You have to visit more often." Rosé turned to them all. "We're going to walk our own paths, that's life, but we're family. We can't lose sight of that. Times like this, when we can all get together, are important and should be savored."

"But, we're not all together now, are we?" Sapphire asked quietly and suddenly a tense silence fell over them, Saphron and Terra noticeably wincing, as they thought of their missing brother. "I miss him."

Jade averted her eyes and grit her teeth. "I swear, if I ever see him again, I'm punching his teeth in."

"Please," Lapis said quietly. "You'll jump into his arms and be a sobbing mess."

"You followed him like a lost puppy." Lazuli joked before sighing. "And we followed you which means we followed him as well."

Rosé snorted. "He was a natural leader, which made me happy that he would be the one taking over the family. A shame he was so insecure and so fixated on that sword. If he focused on his talent, that leadership, he could've taken the world by storm."

"Y-yeah…" Saphron whispered, guilt gnawing at her as she found herself torn between her sisters and her brother. On one hand, she knew that they deserved to know he was okay-living dangerously as hell-but okay.

But on the other hand, Jaune hadn't contacted them for a reason and that was because he was clearly involved in something dangerous. He was likely trying to protect them and she always trusted his judgment, after all, that was his talent.

Saphron, for once in her life, cursed her little brother for putting her into this situation.

"Hey, now, let's perk up." Saphron said as she forced a smile on her face. "We can't keep talking about him like he's d-er-gone. You know how V would get if-"

"-What?" a voice questioned and they turned to see a confused Violet standing in the doorway of the manor. Unlike the rest of her sisters, her blonde hair was gone now having been dyed black and there was no hint of her namesake anywhere to be found on her black and grey apparel. If it weren't for those familiar blue eyes of hers, one would be unable to tell she was their sister. Violet raised an eyebrow. "What are you all talking about?"

Collectively the sisters winced.

Lapis quickly tried to come up with an excuse. "Er, uh-"

Violet's eyes suddenly widened before Lapis could speak. "Jaune?" Violet questioned which made Saphron blink owlishly.

"Uh, yeah actually how did you know?" Saphron questioned, but Violet didn't respond as her eyes suddenly began to water.

BGM: Home (Casey Williams) by Jeff Williams-RWBY OST

"Jaune!" Violet shouted and it became clear then that she wasn't talking to them. Without hesitation, Violet ran forward past them and they all turned to see where she was running only to gape when they saw their estranged brother trekking up the hill with large pieces of luggage.

"Damn it, Ruby…" Jaune muttered, exhausted from carrying Ruby's bag up possibly one of the largest hills in the Frontier. Jaune released the bag and placed his hands on his knees while panting but before he could catch his breath he was tackled by a black blur. "-oof!" Jaune grunted when he crashed into the ground. "What the-who…" Jaune trailed off, not recognizing his sister for a moment but when he saw her tear-filled eyes, it sunk in. "Violet? Violet!" Jaune grinned hugging his sister tightly.

"Jaune!"

Jaune laughed and rubbed her back. "I almost didn't recognize you. You've gotten big!" Jaune said as he sat up. "And you did something your hair."

"You, dumbass!" Jaune blinked and soon found himself knocked onto his back again after being tackled by Jade. "Ouch!"

"What the hell were you thinking!?" Jade questioned angrily, openly crying which made Jaune wince.

"No…"

"…way."

Lapis and Lazuli looked at Jaune incredulously as they approached along with the others. The twins seemed to be stuck in a state of shock, surprised that he was even alive while Sapphire looked on impassively.

"Will you two let him stand up?" Sapphire asked with a hint of annoyance. Jade and Violet wiped their eyes and got off of their brother, helping him to his feet. As soon as he was standing, Sapphire surprised them all by rushing forward and hugging him tightly. "You're such an idiot!"

Jaune chuckled and rubbed the top of her head. "To be fair, I think everyone is compared to you."

"Not the point you imbecile," Sapphire said, her voice muffled by his chest before pulling herself back. She then cleared her throat and stepped to the side, as if trying not to acknowledge her reaction.

"I see you still haven't burned that thing." Saphron joked weakly, stepping forward and pulling at his hoodie.

"You're still just jealous I called dibs." Jaune teased. It was then that Saphron grabbed Jaune in a bone-crushing hug. Jaune's face softened when her heard her sniffle and the rest of their siblings were instantly on alert.

They had all missed Jaune, especially the younger ones but Saphron never cried.

Not unless something was wrong.

"I was so scared," Saphron whispered, clutching at the back of his hoodie for dear life. Instantly, Jaune understood. Unlike the rest of their family, Saphron lived in Argus and would have had no problems accessing the news.

"Do they know?" Jaune asked quietly.

"No," Saphron answered. "I figured you'd want to ease them into it," Saphron said before stepping back. "I'm worried, Jaune, very worried but I'm so proud of you as well but you will have to be fast with your explanation," Saphron warned, confusing Jaune.

"Saphron proud of Jaune? I've seen it all." Lapis muttered. Jaune and Saphron got along great, but they spent most of their time teasing and messing with each other in their youth. Seeing them have anything remotely close to a serious conversation was rare.

The fact that Jaune had clearly changed also put them on guard, yes, he still wore that goofy hoodie but he stood and carried himself differently. His eyes were as warm and welcoming as always, but they no longer held that light of innocence.

Or any signs of weakness at that.

Something was wrong…or at the very least, not right.

"Jaune," Rosé began, getting his attention as she crossed her arms and gave him a stern expression. "Come here."

Jaune stepped forward and immediately found himself on the ground due to a vicious right from his eldest sister. So powerful was the blow, that Jaune almost wished he hadn't deactivated his aura beforehand, having known this would happen. Immediately, Jaune felt himself lifted back on to his feet by Rosé who grabbed him by the front of his hoodie and pulled him up with one hand. She was silent for a moment, gazing into his eyes as if searching for something.

"Did you find what you wanted out there?"

"I did," Jaune said and Rosé nodded before pulling him into a warm embrace. Jaune closed his eyes and hugged her back. "I'm sorry, but I had to go."

"I know." Rosé said as she pulled back and her face was filled with understanding and warmth before it hardened. "That said you could have handled it much better."

"I know." Jaune winced. "At the time it seemed like a good idea. In hindsight though…well I understand if you want to hit me again."

"I got my blow in." Rosé shrugged before stepping back, confusing him until his other six of his sisters surrounded him. "That said…"

Jaune sighed, knowing he deserved this. "Go ahead."

Violet sniffled and gently punched him in his side with a glare before calling him stupid…

…the other five however attempted to beat his ass. Even Saphron surprised Terra by getting more than a few good swings in. When they finally let up, Jaune was on his side groaning.

"What is all this commotion about?" A velvety voice questioned and from behind them, Arthur approached with Juniper. The girls were silent almost instantly and the raven-haired woman stopped cold when she saw Jaune.

From behind Jaune's prone form, Ruby and Pyrrha made it to the top of the hill after trying for minutes to get their cab driver a tip. The Lien cards they had on them were too big for change and eventually they just decided to give him the biggest tip ever so that they could continue with their day.

When they made it up the hill, they were surprised to see a battered Jaune on the ground and blinked when they took in the sight of the family as a whole. Their eyes almost immediately locked on to Juniper, who's cool expression managed to surpass even those of Weiss and Winter. Hell, even Glynda could have taken notes on how to appear impassive from her.

BGM: END

"Jaune?" Arthur grinned and laughed boisterously when he saw his son. "Boy, how have you been? I wasn't expecting you this soon!"

"You knew he was coming?" Juniper questioned coldly, sending a chill down everyone's spine as the bearded man winced slightly.

"It was to be a surprise." Arthur explained weakly.

"I called him last week and told him to keep it a surprise." Jaune interrupted swiftly, surprising his father. "He chewed me out for two hours for leaving like I did and not keeping in touch but eventually agreed."

This was, of course, complete bullshit as Jaune's father called him and they had been in a somewhat regular communication over the last year, but the woman did not need to know that. If anyone had looked at Arthur at that moment they would have known it was a lie due to how surprised he appeared, but fortunately, they were too focused on Jaune and Juniper

"Wait," Pyrrha spoke up doing a quick head count. She knew about Terra and was able to pick her out but even then, the numbers didn't add up. "Jaune, I thought you only had seven sisters?"

"I do," Jaune said, seemingly amused before gesturing toward the raven-haired woman. "This is Juniper Arc, my mother."

"What?" Ruby squeaked out as Pyrrha felt her jaw drop. "What part of that is a mom!?" Ruby questioned gesturing toward Juniper. Ruby quickly winced realizing that once again her regal dignity and poised vanished in her moment of need. "Uh, sorry Mrs. Arc."

Juniper raised an elegant eyebrow when she took note of Ruby and Pyrrha. "You have company," Juniper said before frowning at Pyrrha. "You look familiar, both of you do."

The youngest daughter gasped and pointed at the Champion with a wide smile. "You're on the cereal!"

Pyrrha laughed. "I am, but don't eat too much of it, it's not good for you."

Juniper blinked and tilted her head as she realized that was where she had seen Pyrrha. "So she is. Jaune, where the hell have you been?"

"I, uh, I've kind of been at Beacon?" Jaune answered though it sounded more like a question.

"You better be referring to a lighthouse."

"Academy," Jaune said taking a subtle step back as his sisters, minus Saphron, looked surprised by the information. Juniper worked her jaw a bit, struggling to find the appropriate response.

"How did you even get in?" Juniper questioned. "You better not have lied."

The way she said that told Jaune that only pain would await had that been the answer.

"No!" Jaune said which was, fortunately, the truth this time. "I left to train, ran into a couple of other aspiring students and we travelled for a bit until we stumbled into Beacon's combat instructor. She took me under her wing and invited me to attend."

"The combat instructor, that's…what was her name again?" Arthur questioned. "Evilbitc-"

"Goodwitch, goodness Arthur, show some tact in front of the children and the baby," Juniper hissed which made him raise his hands with a sheepish expression. "Honestly, how far did they lower their standards to let you in?"

Though her words were harsh, Jaune didn't take them at face value and knew what his mother meant. As far as Juniper knew, Jaune could barely hold his sword right let alone be capable enough to be a huntsman.

Jaune shrugged. "Like I said, she took me under her wing. Taught me a thing or two." Jaune answered which made Juniper sigh and rub her temples before turning to his companions.

"So, are you two part of his team?" Juniper questioned before glancing sharply at Saphron who flinched at the question, knowing the answer. Cursing her inability to not react, Saphron sighed knowing she would be having words with her mother as she clearly knew more than she should have.

"I am," Pyrrha answered as she stepped forward with Ruby. A few of his sisters gaped at her as they finally got a better look at her. "Pyrrha Nikos, I'm his partner and a member of Team JNPR," Pyrrha said as she extended a hand which Juniper accepted. Behind his wife's back, Arthur gave Jaune a thumbs up and winked at him as if telling him to shoot his shot.

"JNPR?" Juniper questioned with a raised eyebrow. "Did you name the team after me in an attempt to gain favor?"

Jaune blinked. "No? Where did you get that idea?"

"Let's just call it a personal experience," Juniper said dismissively while Arthur cleared his throat, remembering how he essentially named his wife to get his grandmother's approval. "That's quite a coincidence."

"Believe me the irony is not lost on me either."

Pyrrha raised an eyebrow at Jaune. "You're the leader of a team named after your mother?"

"At least the team isn't named after me," Jaune said which got an annoyed 'hey!' from Ruby.

"Leader?" Juniper questioned, both eyebrows now raised. Jaune's ability to strategize and lead had not been lost on her, but even then, that alone wouldn't have been enough to become a leader of a team of huntsmen. "What in the world are they doing at Beacon?"

"I'm still trying to figure that out." Pyrrha joked giving Juniper a warm smile before looking at Jaune with amusement in her eyes. "But honestly, believe it or not, he is very proficient at the job. I can honestly say he's saved our lives multiple times and that I am proud to be his partner."

Juniper was slightly taken aback by the sheer sincerity she heard in Pyrrha's voice before turning to Ruby. "And who might you be?

It was uncanny as if she were looking at a ghost.

But it couldn't be possible…

…could it?

Realizing there was no need to hide her appearance, Ruby removed her glasses and extended a hand toward Juniper. "Ruby Rose, former leader of Team RWBY-confusing, I know-and current leader of Team PWYR."

"Rose? Oh…my…" Juniper whispered and she didn't accept Ruby's hand. Instead, she raised her hand over her mouth and blinked rapidly for a moment when she felt her eyes burn. Rosé gasped, looking at Ruby with wide eyes. Confused, Ruby frowned as Arthur grimaced. "Sorry, it's just, we knew your mother, dear."

Jaune blinked. "Wait, you did?"

"Yes," Arthur revealed with a stiff nod. "We owe this family to her. We owe everything to her. Summer Rose was an incredible woman." Arthur turned to Ruby. "I'm sorry for your loss girl. Is that fool Taiyang still moping about?"

"I...wow, okay," Ruby swallowed, having not expected this turn of events. "He's doing better. He has his good days and he has his bad days," Ruby answered which just made Arthur grunt but he said no more on the subject.

"Sorry, forgive me," Juniper whispered. "I'll tell you how we met later since I'm assuming you both with be staying with us for the week?"

"We will," Ruby said before smiling hesitantly at Juniper. "And I would love to take you up on that offer." Ruby then turned to Arthur. "Also, would you mind if we borrowed your forge? We need to fix our weapons."

"Ha of course!" Arthur grinned. "It will be nice to use that thing for something exciting for once, well, besides Sapphire's experiments of course!"

"Thank you," Ruby smiled before turning to Jaune. "Give me Crocea, I'll take care of it."

Jaune blinked. "You?"

"Jaune, we love you, but weapon forging is not your forte," Pyrrha said and Ruby nodded. Jaune sighed knowing they were right. The truth of the matter was his sword never failed him and never dulled. It was arguably the lowest maintenance weapon on Remnant.

"Besides, it'll make us even," Ruby said, still a bit embarrassed that she was the one to break it.

"Wait, Crocea Mors broke?" Arthur questioned, sharing a look with his wife. Juniper averted her eyes and Arthur pursed his lips when Jaune nodded.

"Is…is that a problem?" Jaune questioned. "I know it was a family heirloom."

"It's…concerning…" Arthur said after a moment. "That sword doesn't just break. Regardless, how about I deal with the blade, girl? There's a special way to deal with it that I know. I'll even teach you." Arthur smirked at Jaune. "I love the boy, I do, but I know first hand how bad he is in a forge." Arthur laughed. "He's a damned genius in the kitchen though," Arthur said proudly which made Ruby laugh.

"He is." Pyrrha agreed, playfully nudging Jaune who rolled his eyes.

"That sounds good, but there are some upgrades I know he'll want that I might have to show you how to make," Ruby informed him and Arthur nodded.

"Before you head down to the forge, let's get you all unpacked." Juniper interrupted before she herded them back into the manor. "One of you can have a guest room and the other can have Jaune's old room. Jaune-"

"-I know, I know, couch." Jaune groaned and despite herself, a small smirk appeared on Juniper's lips. Just as Jaune prepared to show Ruby and Pyrrha to their rooms, Lapis smirked at Jaune.

"Don't look so down, Jaune, you know the rules. No sleeping with someone in this house unless there is a ring on their finger." The blonde teased, wanting to make up for all the lost time she could have spent messing with Jaune.

Juniper rolled her eyes. "Leave your brother alone." Juniper reprimanded as the blonde continued to snicker. "Though, as crude as your sister put it, I do have to ask if there anything else you might want to tell us?" Juniper asked pointedly.

"Oh, come on mom, I love him but there's no way Jaune could get with one of-"

"Uh actually…" Jaune began and Arthur's head snapped up, looking at his son with something akin to hope. Juniper blinked, having not expected an actual answer as the other sisters-minus Saphron-looked at Jaune incredulously.

"Oh, no way, which one?" Lazuli gasped.

"Just get it out Jaune, let them know," Pyrrha said though it was clear she was amused.

"Wow, this is surprisingly difficult," Jaune muttered as Saphron shook her head. "Um, both of them?"

Silence.

Absolute silence.

Suddenly they heard a thump, and they all turned to Arthur who had fallen to his knees.

"I have a son!"

"Dad!"

"Huh, déjà vu." Saphron mused, remembering when she had introduced Terra to the family. Back then she had been curious to see what her parent's reaction would be to meeting the woman, especially given how Arthur almost killed Rosé's husband before he warmed up to him.

Juniper was impressed by Terra's intelligence and career while her father had been overjoyed there was no 'snot-nosed-bastard', claiming he had a daughter despite having seven.

Juniper was doing an amazing impression of a fish as her mouth opened and closed a few times. "How…?"

Pyrrha and Ruby shared a look before giving Jaune matching smirks that sent chills down his spine.

"It was the name, right?"

"Definitely." Ruby agreed. "It was short and sweet, rolled off the tongue."

"How could we not love it?" Pyrrha questioned which made Arthur pale as he remembered the advice that he had given Jaune. With a tight smile, a black aura seemed to seep from Juniper's body as she beckoned Jaune to come to her with a finger while gripping her husband's shoulder so tightly that he was sure her nails broke the skin.

"Girls," Juniper called out to the sisters. "Show our guests around the house. I need to speak with your brother, father, and Terra's wife for a bit."

Saphron gaped at having been reduced to simply Terra's wife, knowing that her mother was pissed and wanted there to be no confusion on which sister she wants to talk to. Hearing a tone that they knew all too well, the other sisters quickly rushed Ruby and Pyrrha up the stairs before the screams could start.

"Cry," Terra whispered and immediately Adrian started to cry on demand. "Would you look at that, it's time for Adrian's nap," Terra "realized" before quickly scurrying up the stairs behind the rest, while her wife gave her a look that screamed traitor.

"Why am I in trouble!?" Saphron asked incredulously.

"As if you don't know," Juniper muttered. "Exactly when were you going to let us know you've seen Jaune?"

"But I haven't seen Jaune, well, not in person." Saphron corrected. "I just, you know, stumbled across some info here and there but it's not like I've been talking to him."

Juniper narrowed her eyes but nodded her head tersely. "Fine, please go take care of my grandson," Juniper said and Saphron practically bolted as her mother turned her attention to the two cowering men of the house. "As for you two…"

"D-dad?"

Arthur looked ahead solemnly. "Take it like a man, son, take it like a man," Arthur muttered before Juniper stepped toward them. Arthur smiled despite the situation. "Two, huh, that's my boy. Completely worth it."

And soon their screams began.

-Later-

"So, like, really? You three?" Lapis questioned Ruby as they all made their way back toward the main room.

"Yep," Ruby confirmed and it was clear she and Pyrrha were amused by the sisters' inability to compute the concept.

"How?" Lazuli gasped. She loved her big brother. They all did and knew he would find love someday if he got over his insecurities and shyness. That said, they didn't expect him to go above and beyond and bring two girls home.

For a moment they were, admittedly, suspicious of the girls wondering if they were gold diggers. This idea was put to rest almost immediately when they saw that Rosé, who was very overprotective of all of them more so than even their father, treated Ruby like a lost sister and Saphron, who they were expecting knew more than she let on, gave them her seal of approval.

The fact that Pyrrha was already a celebrity with her own money also helped convince them that wealth wasn't the thing she was looking for with Jaune.

Which meant she, like Ruby, wanted him and each other if their playful and likely sincere flirting was any indication.

Which left the million-lien question…

How?

"There are some circumstances you can't experience and survive through without losing your heart to someone along the way," Pyrrha answered honestly which made Ruby nod in agreement. "I meant what I said, we've kept each other alive and safe constantly since we met. I wouldn't be who I am without him or Ruby."

"Alive and safe, again you imply you were in danger." Rosé said, sending a sharp glance toward Saphron who had flinched. Rosé's eye narrowed and Saphron cursed at how similar the eldest of the Arc children was to their mother. "I know that being a Huntsman isn't the safest job." Rosé said, suppressing a shudder at the thought of her baby brother being in the same profession that took out arguably the strongest woman she had ever known.

Rosé had been against Jaune's dream of being a huntsman the moment he first spoke of it.

That said, she never vocalized her disapproval because, after all, it was his dream.

Rule one of the Arc family was to never stand in the way of someone following their dream.

"But still, you should be students. First-years at that," Rosé continued. It was obvious to her Ruby had gotten let in early, but even then, she doubted the girl would have been made to skip years in Beacon. "It should be relatively safe, right?"

"Safe my ass," Saphron muttered, getting a sharp nudge from Terra who gestured toward their son. Saphron winced and apologized as Rosé crossed her arms.

"Alright, you, spill," Rosé ordered in a way only an older sister could. "Clearly you know something you're not letting on."

"I do but it's not my story to tell," Saphron said firmly, having always been the one the others confided their secrets to whether intentionally or not. Saphron hadn't let a secret spill yet, and she wasn't going to ruin her record now. "That said, if two huntresses wouldn't mind helping a sister out, I'd appreciate it before my family disowns me." Saphron hinted to Ruby and Pyrrha while ignoring the suspicious stares her younger sisters were now giving her.

She had already been reduced to Adrian's mom and Terra's wife today.

The next step would be "that orange girl that used to live here."

Ruby nodded, not wanting to cause any more drama amongst the family.

"Well, you see," Ruby began to tell Rosé but stopped when she saw something in front of her that made her jaw drop. On the floor, laying in fetal positions were Jaune and Arthur who were now sporting sizable knots on their heads.

What Juniper hit them with, Ruby didn't know. What she did know was that the pleasant and warm smile Juniper greeted them with, while sporting suspicious flecks of red on her face unnerved her to no end. It reminded her of the time she stole cookies as a child after her mother had told her to stop for the fifth time.

Or the time Yang had told her to stop pulling her hair and she continued to do so.

Safe to say there was a reason Ruby and Yang got along so well, the alternative terrified Ruby.

"Holy sh-er-crap," Saphron said when she saw her wife's eyes narrow. "What did you do to them?"

"Hm? Oh, nothing dear, we just talked." Juniper said as her son and husband groaned on the floor. "Just had to remind them of some lessons they seemed to have forgotten." Juniper smiled down at Jaune who flinched. "You will be taking responsibility for these lovely ladies, correct?"

"Ugh…Y-yes…"

Juniper's eyes gained a dangerous glint in them. "You're an Arc, say it with your chest, boy."

"Yes, ma'am!" Jaune said after having the fear of God put into him. Salem? The Tyrant? The Grand Chimera, hell even Pyrrha had nothing on the woman he dared to call mom.

"Uh…we appreciate it," Pyrrha said not sure how to deal with this. Over protective guardians, she had no problem dealing with, but when they were protective of her it kind of threw a wrench in her plans of how to sort out the situation. "But neither of us are pregnant or anything."

Sapphire snorted. "Doesn't matter."

Jade nodded. "She's right, this house is cursed."

"Whenever someone is brought over…" Lapis began.

"…They tend to stay in the family," Lazuli finished with a nod which made Pyrrha and Ruby sweatdrop. Though they couldn't exactly disprove that as though they hadn't said it in fear of scaring one of the others off, all three of them were sure that what they had would last.

"They're not wrong." Violet drawled before she knelt between her brother and father and checked their vitals.

Rosé and Saphron blinked at that before glancing at each other and nodding as they realized they were right. Both of them had only ever brought their current significant others to the house.

"But now that I managed to reteach them," Juniper continued. "I have a surprise for you. The tower has finally been fixed and I've bought you all knew scrolls." Juniper turned to her eldest two daughters. "All of you."

"Mom-"

"You didn't have-"

"Ah, ah, silence." Juniper cut them off. "It was a gift your father and I decided on, and you will accept it."

Saphron and Rosé sighed, knowing that they couldn't dissuade their mom. They always felt guilty receiving gifts from the woman despite her wealth because they had their own money. That said, it seemed no matter how old they got, or how successful, they would still be Juniper's children first and foremost.

In contrast, the younger daughters besides Violet were excited and while Violet appreciated the gesture, she was more focused on the fact the T.V. would work again.

"Yes! No more living in the dark ages." Violet smirked and Sapphire couldn't help but nod.

"Perfect timing, I've finally run out of books to read at the library."

It was then that they realized that Ruby, Pyrrha, and even the downed Jaune seemed to pale and Saphron could guess why.

"This is why I told you to hurry up, bro." Saphron sang and Jaune groaned and this time it wasn't from pain.

"Yeah…you know, how about instead of telling you what's been happening, we show you," Ruby suggested confusing the Arc family greatly.

"You did bring this on yourself Jaune," Pyrrha told her partner and in response, he just nodded and bled a little more on the floor.

-Meanwhile: Beacon-

Professor Peach, at first glance, appeared to be an exceptionally young woman for her position with tanned skin and peach-colored eyes and hair that she wore in a long ponytail. At first glance, she could be mistaken as a student cosplaying as a professor given how the white lab coat that she wore over her black dress seemed too big to fit her properly.

Her cheerful and warm demeanor didn't help much either.

That said one look in her visible eye that wasn't covered by her hair would betray her years of experience that was rivaled only by Glynda and second to the Headmaster himself. To many, she was but a myth as she kept to herself in the school's medical wing.

Despite what you might think for a school for huntsmen, as the school nurse and counselor, she didn't get many visitors. One reason was that the students' auras healed most of the damage and the other reason being that huntsmen tended to be too prideful for therapy.

Peach scoffed at the very thought, of anyone, huntsmen needed it the most.

Just look at that drunkard Qrow who somehow became Glynda's T.A.!

If she had it her way, she'd make it mandatory for each student to have at least one session with her per school year, especially with how Glynda turned her classroom into a warzone. And don't get her started on the ticking time bomb that was the Beacon 8.

Those kids had demons.

It was clear in the way the Arc boy and Nikos almost killed each other.

Testing their limits? Showing respect?

Bullshit.

Those kids were traumatized.

Seriously, one session wouldn't hurt anybody, or were they concerned that it would work and they'd have to actually give her some damn funding?

Professor Peach sighed, her job wasn't too bad, it was effectively the easiest paycheck ever and it at least gave her time to research. Still, she became a teacher to help but unfortunately, she was trying to help the most stubborn profession on Remnant. They were too focused on their physical scars to see the mental and emotional ones.

And they wondered why the second leading cause of death for huntsmen was suicide.

Professor Peach scoffed and sipped her peach-flavored tea.

But she supposed that wasn't her business, not unless someone besides Glynda walked through her door for help.

At that moment the door to her office opened, making Professor Peach almost choke on her drink. Wiping her mouth, Peach turned to find the one person responsible for her only injury-related visit that whole year.

One of the Beacon 8.

Nora Valkyrie.

"Ms. Valkyrie?" Professor Peach questioned Nora who rubbed her arm and averted her eyes with gritted teeth.

"Professor I…" Nora trailed off before looking at the teacher with a completely broken expression that shattered Peach's heart. "Goodwitch told me…you were good and I…oh God I need help."

Peach blinked before quickly getting over how stunned she was. This child, no, no child would ever have that look in their eyes, this woman needed her help.

And she was there to assist.

With a warm smile, Peach gestured to the sofa in her office.

"Have a seat, dear, tell me what's wrong?"

Nora looked at her with something akin to hope flashing in her eyes and quietly made her way to the sofa. Professor Peach had no idea of knowing it at the time…

…but this session would change the world.

To be continued…

Before you say anything, Professor Peach is not an OC and was actually referenced but never actually shown. Even in RWBY Chibi, she was mentioned by Weiss.

Also, can we talk about the hidden Mario reference in RWBY? A short red-moustached man (Port), a tall, lanky man in green (Oobleck), and Peach? When I first read about it my mind was blown.

Anyway, on to the reviews!

AJ Lexie: Yep, but now its time to post the actual chapter! Glad you liked the chapter and yeah, Tyrian dropped the ball.

SouBU: Once again it was great discussing the story with you. It was so hard for me to not spill what my exact plans for Ozpin were with the beginning of his sub-story being so close to being published lol. I wanted this to remain a surprise but I probably might have let a thing or two slip. To put it simply, Ozpin isn't the issue Ozma is. In this story, this world, his hosts are the main ones who did the protecting with his assistance but the second they got out of line he would interfere and things would go wrong. Ozma incorrectly considers their feats as his and grew arrogant, believing himself to be the one who knows what's best for humanity which is why he continues to repeat this mistake. Still, glad you are enjoying the story!

Eldiar: Thanks for the review, glad you liked it!

Jamsieboy: Not a loss if we all win, you're right about that!

Zacatac: I first read that as "Fuck peace, let's go cycle of hatred" and laughed my ass off, but yeah, you're right glad you like the chapter!

Chris1606: Right? Could you imagine that flash back being in this chapter, it would legit be like 40k words.

Bankerrtx01: 100% Tai needs some help. Life has just been plain unfair to him at this point. Glad you liked the chapter!

Moonshadowpup: No one gets left behinnnnddddd. I responded to your last review in a PM, glad you liked the chapter and you were right, he got jumped,

Csad21: Glad you liked the chapter! Yeah basically, the idea is that one talent to an Arc (as seen in this chapter) is held at a much higher standard and Arthur did teach them all the basics of self-defense. That said, he had to basically run the frontier and raised 8 children, and well enough that none of them had daddy issues, so his training time was limited at best.

You were right though, Jaune is a dead man.

Goldcauldron: Totally a high praise right there, it means a lot to know that especially sense one of my biggest worries in this story was handling the Summer death in a way that mattered and wasn't just copy and paste of what everyone else did.

The Silver-Eyed Knight: Thanks for the review your words mean a lot! As for my favorite? It might have to be the one I'm starting now, when this arc (unintended pun) blows over you'll understand.

SaintZeira: Sometimes you have to hit someone with a two-piece, do them dirty in front of they squad. Lol But thanks for the review!

0Akarigan0: Me alegro de que te haya gustado el capítulo y la historia de fondo. Arthur fue definitivamente un trabajo, pero se convirtió en un buen hombre que mostraría exactamente de dónde saca Jaune su corazón.

¡Me alegro de que te haya gustado Juniper y la historia que escribí para Summer también!

MrCrOwZ403: Woo! Thanks for the star! And the review!

Freerunner4427: Glad you liked the chapter and I'm honored that this is one of your favorite fics. Also pleased to see you enjoyed the lore as well as the imagery of Morgan giving birth to the myriad of colors and yeah Tyrian messed up, bad. Hope you enjoyed the first part of the reunion!

Thanks for the reviews!

Read and Review

And as always…

…Stay Classy!

~RebukeX7