In no way am I connected to Rooster Teeth

Twenty seven days since the end of the Vytal Festival.

Qrow stepped through the rubble, casting an alert eye around the ruined town. He had seen many, but there was something different about this one.

One look and he knew bandits weren't to blame. He was also quite sure Grimm weren't either, not even the one that had been terrorizing Anima for quite some time. Amber was currently on the hunt for that.

The question remained: what did this?

Qrow studied the destroyed buildings. He couldn't see marks, so it didn't seem to be a forged weapon. It was almost as if something huge had crashed into it.

The reason Qrow didn't think this was a Grimm attack was that Grimm tend to attack the people, not the buildings. Most of the people here had been crushed under rubble. Very few had died of injuries that resulted from a fight. Those didn't have any claw marks on them. Blunt force trauma was Qrow's guess.

Xie-Xie was a small village, but it was one of the few which was in constant contact to both Mistral and Vale. Communications from them had ended abruptly two days ago. The last message they had sent was short: 'There's something in the sky'.

Airships don't usually come this way. Even if they did, they would recognise it as one, unless it was one that wasn't registered. It is also possible that it was a creature.

Qrow did know about what slept in the mountain. The village would most likely be overrun with all kinds of Grimm if that was responsible. So it most likely wasn't.

The Grimm dragon he was more familiar with lived in the sea and Xie-Xie was nowhere near a coast. It could have flown this far, but Qrow was very sure he would have heard about it if it had. It would have passed a lot of places and there was no record of it.

He dropped the line of thought quickly once he was satisfied it wasn't involved.

That led him back to wondering what was.

Something caught his eye.

Qrow walked over and studied a body he had previously overlooked. This man had been killed by an arrow. He pulled it out and had a look. Most of their defenders didn't have their aura unlocked, but they all used the same resources when creating their bow and arrows. This had been shot by one of their own.

Friendly fire.

He glanced around, but didn't see anyone suitable to be the accidental culprit. It was possible the arrow had been fired into the air and this one had been unlucky enough to be standing in its path. The arrow was angled downwards. If that was so, he was the unluckiest guy on the planet.

From the angle he was hit, the shot must have come from…

Qrow headed around the buildings (two were still standing) and found another group of people. They too looked like they had been crushed to death. No claw marks or weapon marks. Just bruises and small cuts from the environment.

They were all fighting the same thing, not a group of things. There are no footprints or anything and it's been raining here for the past few days. Today as well actually. That doesn't make any sense. What the hell happened here?

The lack of any trail was what bothered Qrow the most. Nevermores couldn't do this damage and he didn't think even an ancient Griffon could. There was also no blood on any of the arrows that looked like they had hit something. That suggested what they were fighting was a result of technology.

Qrow sighed.

He had expected it to be simple: bandits or Grimm. This sort of thing happened all the time; that was the sad reality.

This was a part of reality Qrow had never seen before.

Another hour and Qrow was satisfied he wasn't going to find any new clues. Whatever did this left no biological traces behind, so it almost certainly wasn't something alive. Was it some kind of war machine? Ironwood had never been clear exactly what had been stolen from Atlas and Qrow was very doubtful it was only the transfer machine eleven years ago.

After all, he had been determined that there was no way to hack into his system and Qrow just knew that it wasn't a coincidence there was a 'glitch' in his machines that night. There was also the fact that the ones in-

Qrow sighed again, his fingers unconsciously rubbing against the ring he had been given that Christmas. The good luck charm.

Then he turned and started back to Beacon. He might be home in Patch by sunset.

Ozpin waited for Qrow to leave for home before he returned to what he had been looking at before.

The floor plans for LiaGuard.

LiaGuard had been taken over that final night of the Vytal Festival. Interestingly enough, the only crime that had gone up recently was kidnapping, despite there was almost certainly more murderers running around. Beacon had been left alone that night, save for Pepper's appearance. Ozpin was in agreement with Qrow; she was only there so that they wouldn't get too suspicious if nothing happened.

This was where the disagreements started.

James thought that taking Mercury was a crime of opportunity. Qrow disagreed, pointing out that killing Mercury would have been better as it was clear he had no qualms about killing them when he felt his life was in peril. Ozpin agreed with them both; it would have been remarkably difficult for them to get Mercury into Vale on his own that night but they had had a plan in mind for it, suggesting they had had a plan of their own to manage it.

What interested and worried Ozpin was the reason why they had been insistent on capturing Mercury alive.

There was something Qrow was sure of: Mercury was in LiaGuard. His reason was that, while Ruby and Emerald sensed he was alive, they couldn't tell his direction anymore and that would suggest he wasn't running on the same timeline mentally, even if he was biologically. Only LiaGuard had that technology. If that were true, then nothing short of retaking the prison was going to get him out, provided he survived that long.

This brought Ozpin's attention to the plans.

The 'time cell' as it had been dubbed was on the lowest floor, deep underground. It had originally been a tunnel that had collapsed at some point in history and had been converted into a room. When LiaGuard was built, it became a prison cell. The simulator (possible pocket dimension somehow) was something Ozpin did not know the history to; only that no matter how much time was spent inside, a week in reality had passed.

This was not the problem.

The main problem was the prison's defences themselves. A quick recon had shown the Atlesian Knights there were still functional. Whatever had happened in Vale had not been an isolated incident. There was also the fact that the force field was still fully functional along with the jammers. Only ships that had been cleared from with the prison itself could even approach; one button press and their instruments failed, plummeting to a certain death whether or not the aura was unlocked. The force field itself would hold against incredibly powerful Grimm; even the one that slept in the mountain wouldn't manage it.

The issue was that they needed more information. From this, there was no way to manage it.

Retaking LiaGuard was a necessity, but there was an essence of 'closing the barn door after the horse escaped'. The main reason for the security was the inmates, who were almost certainly free to continue where they left off. The worst of the worst.

However, LiaGuard would also be good for their base of operations and the time cell and time simulator were invaluable. They should have listened to Qrow and destroyed the simulator when they had the chance. While the time cell was devastating, it was a single, rather small room. The simulator was exactly that: one could programme scenarios into it which included a much larger area to work with. It was almost exactly like designing a game.

Was this connected to what happened to Xie-Xie? Qrow was certain it was a weapon and not Grimm responsible. Had it been something they built?

If so, they needed to stop it.

For the moment, Ozpin couldn't find a flaw in the defences. Even James agreed that a full frontal assault would result in huge casualties for them and wouldn't gain any advancement. He had suggested that, if they could get to the control room, he could insert a spike that would shut down the Knights, but getting to that room was looking impossible. Merely getting into the prison was the main issue.

They needed more information. Unfortunately, much of their records on the prison had been wiped and this was all they could salvage.

They had needed to shut down the CCTS for two days to eliminate the virus completely.

The prisoners needed to be recaptured, but very few would remain in LiaGuard at the moment even with the new power dynamic. Given the recent kidnappings from all four Kingdoms, it would seem something else was in mind. Most likely, not all of them were connected, but it was a good guess to think most were. However, there was no clear link between them.

Weapons testing perhaps?

Ozpin sighed.

The Vytal Festival was officially a success.

In Ozpin's mind, it was not. Many criminals were once again a threat to the public. James had never found the 'glitch' in his machines, even if a virus had been found in Vale's CCTS. One had been taken that night and would not be treated kindly.

No. They may have averted the very original plan of destroying Beacon, but when had that plan really changed? That night had not been a victory.

It was the end of the year, so most had gone home for two months. There were a few exceptions. Most students did not know about the bad things that happened that night, but Ozpin's heart was with the students that did.

He would not be surprised if he was missing a few students next year.

Qrow was drenched when he arrived home. He barely noticed.

Tai did. "You're having a shower before you get your dinner."

Qrow scoffed. "Good to see you too Tai." He did drag himself into the shower and warmer clothes before heading back downstairs. The three girls were in the living room. One was the most concerning. "What you up to, Mint?"

Emerald was idly studying the flame in her hand. "I was wondering if I wanted to test how 'flammable resistant' the couch really was."

"Make a note of your results, then you're buying the replacement." He was sure one wasn't needed; if Ruby and Yang had never accidentally set fire to that couch during their pranks, he didn't think it was possible.

Ruby was lying on the floor in her pyjamas, hair still wet from a shower or bath. She was trying to read what looked like a music sheet, but upside down. Yang was next to her, leaning over the same piece of paper, only this time right side up.

"Qrow."

Deciding not to ask them at the moment, Qrow headed into the kitchen. Tai had made them shepherd's pie (or cottage, Qrow didn't know the difference) and he obviously hadn't eaten with the girls. He had also shut the door, so it was 'adult talk'.

"Thanks. They're probably listening at the door, you know," Qrow pointed out as he started.

"Probably," Tai agreed. He was just as not enthusiastic about his meal as Qrow. "Nothing?"

"Place is a fortress Tai. It's going to be a while. The virus has been dealt with at least. For us anyway. Jimmy might have more of a problem with it."

"So what was the job today?"

"Looking into a town that had gone quiet. Know Xie-Xie?" Tai nodded. "No idea what happened, but it's gone."

"…Not bandits?"

"Definitely not."

Tai was relieved to hear that. Qrow had been relieved to see it as well, even if it ultimately meant nothing.

"I'm going to have to tell her one day. But not any day soon."

"I didn't see anyone Tai. Oz has put that information on a need-to-know with no one needing to know, password included. Unless they come to Patch to ask those questions, they won't find out."

That was one worry. Mercury knew who had the rest of the Spring Maiden's power and where she lived. Would he willingly tell them? No. Could he be forced to tell them? Possibly. Probably. They didn't know exactly what was happening to him, but they could guess and it wasn't that they were treating him to tea and cookies. There were some things that couldn't be endured by anyone.

There was a very, very good chance he wouldn't be Mercury anymore by the time they rescued him, if they did at all.

Qrow threw those thoughts out of his head and waited a few seconds before trying to get back to his meal. Starving himself wouldn't do anything.

Only last night, Ruby and Emerald had woke up screaming.

"So why do Ruby and Yang have a music sheet?"

"Yang has decided to take up an instrument."

"Drum or electric guitar?"

"Neither, believe it or not." Tai laughed at Qrow's bewildered look. "Yeah, my response too. Ever heard of a kalimba?"

"No. Sounds like something they would try to pass off in Scrabble."

"After 'addictionary'."

Qrow still chuckled at that. "Exactly. So what's a kalimba?"

"A musical instrument." Tai shrugged at Qrow's flat look. "Yeah, I didn't know either. I've no idea where she heard of it."

"She after a tutor?"

"Nope. Wants to learn it all on her own."

"Ambitious," Qrow muttered. "Good luck to her. Ruby's interest?"

"The picture was pretty. She's not interested in learning anything herself."

"No, she's going to make a robot of doom that is constantly going to break the oven and steal every sweet thing in the house. And it's going to be painted red with pink polka dots."

"…I was with you until you said 'pink'."

"Fine. Black or grey polka dots."

"Better."

Qrow leaned back as his empty dish stared up at him. "Any plans for tomorrow?"

"The girls wanted to head to Beacon to see their friends. I don't see a valid reason not to let them."

"And the fact they'll sneak off regardless." Emerald's Semblance was remarkably helpful in that manner, especially as she could replicate the sense of touch.

"And that."

Qrow shook his head with a slight smile. He did make a note to follow them in crow form and only show himself if someone came looking for Emerald. Otherwise, he would leave them be.

They did still need their friends and some independence from their guardians.

That night, Qrow learned that a kalimba was apparently a block of wood with metal keys that almost fit in one hand and it was played like a piano or keyboard, only using the thumbs. She obviously had no idea what she was doing, but she had already found a nice little tune by merely experimenting.

With practice and patience, Yang would become very good.

The music was…calming. Soothing.

Somehow, Qrow wasn't surprised to find it would soon become a lullaby for Ruby and Emerald.

Normally, the holidays were a break for the teachers. There were always students that stayed, mostly ones that had nowhere else to go, but for the most part it was free of responsibility.

Glynda was both relieved and annoyed when she saw someone had decided to redecorate her classroom with banners, baubles and a disco ball. Relieved that the first years (soon to be second years) were still willing to pull pranks and annoyed that they picked her classroom.

At least they didn't paint it. I would make them take it off with a chisel and repaint it back.

On a second look, it was determined the banners were a scoring board, which constantly changed colours. Because of course Dust powered runes worked just as well on Remnant as they did on Earth.

Well, it is obvious that only Ren or Mercury could be responsible for it, so it isn't hard to find the culprit.

Next time she saw Ren, she would point out that Dust prices were still very high and caution him what to use his runes on. Along with making him tidy up her classroom.

The first one of the group she ran into was Weiss. She was troubled.

"Is something the matter Weiss?"

Weiss was startled; obviously not hearing Glynda approach. "It's…just news from home. Nothing more."

Glynda suspected she had wished to say it was nothing, but missing her had removed that option. So she said only a part of it. There had been an angry message from Jacques Schnee, but Winter said there hadn't been a valid reason for Weiss to return home after the school year. Professor Ozpin had listened to Weiss' wishes.

"Anything you would like help with?"

Weiss bit her lip. "Well…It's just that my brother's gone missing so…Well, if something bad did happen to him, could you tell me first? I'm expecting to hear 'he's fine' any day now but this has never happened before."

"I will," Glynda promised. If it wasn't for Mercury or the growing missing person's list, Glynda was doubtful kidnapping would enter Weiss' mind. "Is everything else okay?"

"Save for Remedy switching my sheets for ones with puppies on, fine. On the other hand, I have no interest in returning them or paying for them."

Glynda smiled before hearing something very familiar from outside. She sighed, very glad she wasn't responsible for them at the moment. She did wish Bartholomew luck.

Weiss groaned. "Where did they get fireworks from?"

Glynda's question was more along the lines of 'why now and not when it was dark' when she knew they were staying the night at Beacon. She decided she didn't want to know. They weren't her responsibility at the moment unless they were in actual danger.

Then the attacker would be facing the wrath of Beacon.

"That is one of the questions not to ask Weiss. Either they are not going to give you the answer or you won't want to know it when you do."

Weiss nodded with a smile. "Much easier that way." The smile faded. "I haven't asked them and I understand if it's a matter of confidentiality, but are the three of them returning next year?"

Glynda glanced out the window. The next fireworks were green. "I can't tell you Weiss. I honestly don't know."

RMEY, ZBRN and JWMP. Every student in the school had at least heard of them and they were very popular among all the years. It could be argued that came from RMEY and JWMP's original friendship.

While the teachers may complain about their antics in front of them, in teacher meetings there were unofficial bets involved and they enjoyed it as much as the students did. Unless they did something very irresponsible, but so far they hadn't. It was harmless fun and they usually acquiesced to cleaning it up.

Fireworks alone was quite…tame.

Still, no doubt the headaches would continue once term started again. Apparently, only STRQ had been as big as troublemakers.

Two days later, Amber returned to Beacon.

"It's been dealt with," she reported as she rubbed her head. It certainly hadn't been easy; for something that had been causing terror for many years, it was quite difficult to track down.

"Thank you," Ozpin responded. "Are you okay?"

"I didn't see anyone. I don't think I'm on their list until they get Spring. Has anything happened?"

"Nothing," Qrow commented. He looked tired. "If they know, they're not acting. So they don't know."

Amber sighed. "Qrow, the most likely thing that happened is that he's dead. You need to accept that."

"He's alive."

They had had this argument before she left to track down that half human, half horse Grimm. She had learned not to get in the way of a parent and their kid, especially with this family, but deluding himself was going to end badly for everyone.

Amber had seen delusion. She wasn't about to let it happen to someone else, especially a friend.

"Qrow, I understand you're attached to him. But even I know him well enough to know he's not going to cooperate with them. They've killed him. That's all there is to it. I'm sorry Qrow. I really am. You need to let him go."

"He's alive Amber. I know he is."

This was like talking to a brick wall. She wanted to get frustrated, but the last time she did…

Instead she took a deep breath. "Why do you say that Qrow? What makes you so certain?"

Amber was expecting something similar to a tantrum. She expected stubbornness and fury. She expected shouting.

"I have better basis than a gut feeling. Let's leave it at that."

"Like an Animin bond or something like that?"

Qrow flinched. Ozpin sat up straighter.

Amber narrowed her eyes. She had thrown that out there to show how ridiculous he was being. It was a fictional thing from a storybook she had read when she was a teenager. Three storybooks actually.

Is that the answer? Surely not…

"Is there such a thing?"

Qrow hesitated. Then he sighed. "Yeah."

Then the pieces clicked together. She hadn't thought about it at the time, but Hogwarts was a huge castle with countless options. How then did Ruby find Mercury so quickly when he was off with one of the others?

"There's one between Ruby and Mercury isn't there? That's why you're so sure. That's why you took him in." Qrow had had a genuine reason for it. Not just blind faith.

"…Not just between Ruby and Mercury, Amber."

During that fight, whenever the two dodged, they always went the same way: west. Mercury caught himself a few times, but it was obvious is wasn't a feint. It had made hitting them a lot easier as she could predict where they were going. It had never struck her as odd, though it certainly made sense now.

"All four of them?" She should have kept her mouth shut.

Qrow chuckled. "No. Just Ruby, Emerald and Mercury. But yeah, that's why I took them in. I made that call as an uncle, not a Huntsman. For that, I apologise."

Ozpin remained silent.

Amber thought about it. Yes she had been angry. Then again, if his niece's life was at stake…

Then her response depended on one more question.

"When did you start trusting them?"

"Two months later." He hesitated before continuing. "I told you Cinder put a Grimm mark on him. It was in those five days he was gone that Emerald got the rest of Spring. She couldn't go back. Then when we find Mercury more dead than alive and we find out why." Qrow laughed. It wasn't a pleasant one. "The stupid idiot did the one thing that should have got him killed. If it wasn't for the idea of turning him…He would."

"He refused." Amber remembered Qrow telling her that. She hadn't believed him until she saw what Mercury was willing to go through to remove it. It was why she believed he now refused to cooperate. At least not willingly.

"That's when."

Amber nodded. She had already made her decision but…Somehow, this was much easier.

"Then I can forgive you for that." She could understand family first. "...If I had killed them that day, would Ruby have died too? Even though they had never met her?"

"Yes," Ozpin murmured. He had known. That was why he had entertained Qrow in the first place. "She would have done and no one would have known why."

Amber was really beginning to hate stories now. She made mental note to never read a book again.

"Then I'm sorry Qrow."

He nodded an acceptance.

Ozpin cleared his throat. "I've contacted a lot of people, but there's no explanation for what happened to Xie-Xie. If it was a Grimm, then I can think of only a few and there would be obvious signs."

"Such as?" Amber asked.

"The one that sleeps in the mountain summons Grimm from elsewhere. The entire village should be overrun. Also, the one in the sea would have attacked other villages closer to shore first." At her confused look, he smiled slightly. "An eastern and western dragon from Earth was not far off."

"Don't suppose the sea dragon looks like Talaria?" she asked.

"Exactly. It is the other one that is more problematic. If the public find out the truth about that, then we need to deal with it when it immediately appears."

"It's that bad?"

"It's worse," Qrow muttered bitterly. "One of those secrets that will cause a panic if people knew about it. Almost instantly."

"Wouldn't it be easier for me to deal with it then?"

Ozpin shook his head. "It is nothing against your abilities Amber, but it is currently asleep in every meaning of the word. Attacking it would wake it and it is likely to head to the nearest population."

"And a good number of people would die," Amber finished. She could understand and agree with that. As much as she didn't like what she heard, she was going to leave it for now. "What if it was both me and Emerald?"

"No." Qrow answered fast.

Ozpin tilted his head. "At the very least, not until she has all of it. Then we'll ask her."

That was what Amber meant. If there were two of them, there was a better chance of dealing with it before it left. She had no interest in innocents getting involved. Emerald had lost all right to complain when she attacked her. It wasn't like Qrow was leaving her alone with her anyway, so there was another fighter.

"No luck on LiaGuard?" Qrow cut in.

Amber gave him a sympathetic look, but her argument was still the same. Qrow tilted his head sadly, before nodding to show her he understood her point before turning back to Ozpin.

"Nothing Qrow. I promise, you'll be the first to know."

"Right. Yeah, thanks. Need me for anything else?"

"No," Amber replied. "Go home Qrow."

"Giving orders now Amber?"

"I can throw you out the window if you want."

He threw his hands up and left. There was a small smile on his face though.

Amber turned back to Ozpin. "We can add three more to the missing list. Do you think they're responsible?"

Ozpin was quiet for a few moments. "The timing is too convenient. On top of that, these were murderers, rapists and thieves as well as kidnappers. It doesn't fit that kidnapping is the only crime that has increased."

That didn't make sense to Amber either. She didn't have the insight that the others did, but common sense said that they would pick up right where they left off.

"Can I just say I'm against this prison?"

"So was Qrow," Ozpin sighed. "He was of the opinion that some crimes couldn't be forgiven and it was…well I won't use his adjective, to keep them alive. It was too dangerous for everyone else."

"What's your stance now?"

"That General Ironwood doesn't have the weapons necessary to destroy it. However…I am inclined to agree LiaGuard was a bad idea."

A prison island in the middle of nowhere wasn't a bad idea. It was the fact they lost control over it that was the problem. "So what happens afterwards?"

"That will have to be discussed when we have it. However, I find myself in agreement with Qrow. At least, with the time simulator."

"Yeah, that was asking for trouble." There were a lot of good things that it could be used for, but the potential for abuse far outweighed that. "Why kidnap though? If they wanted to cause a panic, they could have focused more on the Vytal Festival or made LiaGuard public."

"I have no answer for that Amber. Kidnapping is usually followed by ransom, but not on this scale and there have been no ransom demands."

Amber had a good feeling they didn't want to know what was happening.

When she left, Qrow was leaning against the tower. She stopped, slightly surprised to see he had stuck around.

"Who did you lose?"

He had been honest with her. She had moved on.

"My mother. I came back from graduating from Haven and I was…blind to it. My mother had been in poor health. It hadn't been easy to get from Haven to home, so I didn't really try. I regret that now. On top of that, we had never really gotten along, not since my father…When I came home, I saw her with a baby. A dead baby; her stillborn. She didn't believe he was dead. She didn't listen to anyone. Not even me."

Amber hadn't been supportive at the time. She had been disgusted. Now, she pitied. She had distanced herself even more from her mother, focused on helping everyone else. She had given up on her.

"She died when the Grimm came and she stayed back to protect that child." A child that had never been alive. "I was away at a friend's at the time." She had buried her mother and that stillborn in the same grave. That baby had been the death of her, but there was no doubt she loved him.

"I'm sorry."

"Reality happens Qrow. But don't make the same mistake she did and don't let your family make that mistake either. It ends in heartbreak for everyone."

Amber headed back to Vale. Right now, she wanted something mindless to just forget the day.