Ruby slammed the cabin door open with a loud cry of "We're home~!"

Qrow waved for Lotus to enter after her, then followed in behind them. The faunus paused as Tai poked his head around the corner, giving him a hesitant wave. He returned it with more gusto, nearly dropping the large utensil he had apparently been using to stir whatever he was cooking. Zwei's tail nub wagged furiously, waiting for it to fall from as he sat next to the huntsman on the tiled kitchen floor.

"Dinner's almost ready," Tai smiled, eyes narrowing slightly when they caught on to the greasy hands the pair of them shared, "Wash up before then, alright?"

The small girl shot into the kitchen towards the sink there, glancing back over her shoulder towards the stove with a smile, "Watcha makin' old man?" The faucet was turned on a moment later, the girl wasting no time in soaping up to wash her hands off.

Lotus could hear a pot boiling, and smell the delightful aroma of a thick tomato sauce simmering along with it. Her guess was confirmed as Tai gave Ruby a glower, "Spaghetti and meatballs, and what did I tell you about washing your greasy hands in the kitchen sink?"

The faunus stopped at the doorway, eyes darting back over her shoulder as she wondered where the bathroom was. Ruby shrank under her father's gaze, newly cleaned hands retreating from beneath the faucet as she shook them off. The young girl dried them off against her skirt when shaking them proved fruitless.

"Umm… not to?" Ruby replied finally, giving her father the best shamed smile she could manage.

Tai sighed and glanced at Lotus before turning back to his daughter, "Show Olivia where you should actually wash your hands, Ruby. Small hint, some might call it the bathroom."

"Yup! No problem!" Ruby chirped, darting past Lotus back into the entryway in a hurry to escape her father's disapproving eyes. "Follow me!" The small girl led her down the hallway, past numerous framed pictures on the walls to another room that was still on the ground floor. Ruby gestured for her to enter then darted back up the hallway, going upstairs to put her weapon away while Lotus got to business.

The faunus stepped into the bathroom, her senses assailed by the scent of various soaps that lingered in the air. The bathtub was lined with dozens of shampoo and conditioner bottles, with an emphasis on 'retaining that golden blond shine'.

Lotus turned back to the sink and twisted it on, running her hands underneath the warm water before pumping one of the soap dispensers on to her open hand a few times. With a quick and efficient scrub, 'Blood and oil are equally tricky to get out,' Lotus dried her hands off on one of the hand towels and returned to the kitchen.

By the time she arrived, Yang and Ruby were both now sitting at the table. The blond's eyes darted up to her own, but after a few seconds, Yang gave her a small welcoming smile.

"Ruby was just telling me how much of a nerd you are," the blond teased with a smirk. Yang leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms beneath her breasts with an air of arrogance.

"I was not!" Ruby protested, waving her hands in denial. Her eyes shot over to Lotus, "I just told her you like the same comic book!"

"I learned a lot of my moves from those comics. You should take notes," Lotus shot back smugly, choosing to lean against the doorframe instead of sitting with the other two.

Yang snorted, "Right, as if," her eyes drifted back down, taking in the faunus's sword once again, "We still need to have that rematch."

"Tomorrow," Tai stated flatly, now pouring the boiling water out into a strainer, along with the noodles. Lotus was forced to step to the side as Qrow returned from upstairs, now freshly changed and free of his weapon.

"Sounds like you aren't training hard enough if you still have that much energy, kid," Qrow jibed, ruffling Yang's hair as he sat down next to her, "Maybe I'll have you run some drills with me in the morning."

Yang pulled away, fingers combing through her hair as she shot a glare at her uncle, "Oh, please. I'm more than ready for whatever Initiation trial Beacon is going to throw at us."

"Throw us at," Lotus coughed, remembering how the trial was going to begin with a swift launch into the Emerald Forest. She coughed a few more times, covering up what she had said as Yang gave her a quizzical glance.

Qrow laughed and shook his head, "You can never be too sure, firecracker. You're good, but I've heard there's some rough competition this year."

"Like who?" Yang asked, now fully intrigued by whatever secrets Qrow may be hiding.

The older huntsman glanced around conspiratorially, as if making sure the group wasn't going to be overheard. He leaned forward along with Yang and Ruby, both listening intently to whatever he was about to say. Qrow drew in a quiet breath, leaning in yet further, before finally speaking in a whisper.

"Sorry, can't tell ya."

"Uncle Qrooooooow!" Ruby whined, "That's not fair!"

Qrow grinned and sat back in his chair, drawing out his flask to take a swig, "You'll just have to find out for yourself, firecracker. Trust me, though. You can't slack off too much. Only so many places available each year."

"What, two teachers at Signal can't put in a good word for their dearest family member?" Yang replied sweetly, placing a hand over her heart, "Have you no love?"

"We did our part by training you," Tai answered, setting plates down around the table. He gave a nod to Lotus, gesturing for her to sit with the rest of them. The faunus took one of the open chairs next to Ruby, the other empty chair to her left where Tai would end up sitting.

Qrow smirked, "I'll gladly put a word in for my dearest niece," his eyes drifted past the blond to the younger of the two, "You've got nothin' to worry about, Ruby."

Ruby giggled, "Qrow loves me moooore~ You owe me twenty lien, Yang!"

The blond brawler continued the hurt act, "Betrayed by my own uncle," then shot her eyes over to her sister, "We only bet ten lien!"

"What!? I said twenty!"

"I know you said twenty, but I said ten!"

Tai interrupted their little spat by setting down the pot full of spaghetti on the table with a small thud, "Alright, no more bickering you two, and no more bets!"

"Ah come on, Tai. Bets are the heart of all competition. We gotta instill a little competitive spirit in 'em while they're young," Qrow chuckled, ladling out some food onto his own plate.

"Except the last bet before this one was 'who can throw Zwei the furthest', and ended up with him on the roof," Tai admonished, giving the two girls a disapproving glare.

Lotus paused, turning an eye down to the small adorable corgi that now sat beneath the table. She focused on her sixth sense, reaching out to feel for any aura the dog might possess. An animal's aura was different from a person's, like a muted version of the real deal that would go unnoticed unless you specifically searched for it.

The spider faunus froze, eyes widening as far as they could and face turning deathly pale, 'This… this is… what!?" Tai was the first to notice, his eyes catching on to the girl's panic as he reached a hand out to hers.

"Hey, you okay? What's up?"

"What's up!? Your dog is freaking indestructible!" Lotus cried out, backing away from the table to get a better look at the tiny terror.

Zwei's tongue lolled out to the side, his head tilting in confusion as he watched Lotus staring at him, 'Nicholas's aura is a drop in the ocean compared to this dog!'

Yang and Ruby looked at each other nervously, putting their heads down to eat as if they didn't have any idea what the faunus was talking about. Tai gave Lotus a concerned glance, eyes going down to Zwei as well.

"What do you mean?" Qrow asked, sharing in the confusion.

Lotus recovered a bit, enough to pull her eyes off the corgi under the table, "I, uh… can feel aura reserves, as a part of the whole 'spider' thing. Zwei's aura is about ten times the size of yours, Qrow."

Both adults immediately swivelled their attention to the two girls that had been doing their best to remain out of the limelight. Tai gave the pair a suspicious eye, "What did you two do?"

They both responded instantly, fingers pointing at each other as they simultaneously shouted that the other was responsible. They glared at each other over the table, hands dropping.

"Yang found the bag for that Aura Infusion Kibble you bought Zwei. If she hadn't been snooping around the garage, this wouldn't have happened."

"Ruby wanted to make Zwei into the greatest pet a huntress could want, so that he could go on missions with her."

"Yang dared me!"

"Ruby fed him the whole bag! I didn't say all of it!"

"Yang didn't stop me!"

"Ruby went to the store and bought six more bags because we couldn't see any difference!"

Tai waved his hands in the air above the table, cutting off the two as their argument started to get more and more heated. Which was literally the case, as Yang's hair had lit up and was letting out waves of heat in the surrounding area.

"Cut it out, you two!" Tai shook his head, turning back to Lotus, "Is there anything wrong with him?"

The spider faunus considered it for a few seconds, noticing that despite the hefty aura reserve, the corgi appeared completely at peace. There were no massive fluctuations, no hint at his aura itself being unstable or dangerous.

"No, he should be fine," Lotus replied finally, giving a small shrug, "It just… took me by surprise is all."

Qrow was giving Lotus a curious gaze, his eyes lighting up as he looked between her and Tai, "Hey kid, you can end a little bet that Tai and I have had for the longest time."

Tai gave Qrow a frown, his eyes widening slightly as he realized what the grizzled huntsman was talking about, "We made that bet in our first year at Beacon. You're still on about that?"

"Curiosity gets the better of us all," Qrow shrugged, eyes still on Lotus, "So kid, between me and Tai, who's aura is bigger?"

Lotus laughed, she had done this exact thing quite a few times in the past for members of Malachite's gang. She took a moment, taking the time to get a good read on the both of them. There was a tap on her leg, Lotus felt who's hand it was reaching out towards her with her sixth sense. With a grin, she accepted the fistful of lien that Qrow handed her, "Qrow has the bigger aura."

The blond huntsman narrowed his eyes, then turned to look down at his plate, "There, are you happy?" Tai said sullenly, stabbing a fork into his spaghetti to spin the noodles around it.

"Very," Qrow answered smugly, giving Lotus a wink while Tai's eyes were averted.

The faunus looked down at the food that had been given to her and gave Tai a half hearted smile, "It's not about how big your aura is, it's about how you use it. Besides, your reserves are only a hair smaller, honestly."

'Actually Tai, your reserves are a bit larger than Qrow's, but you didn't think to pay off the judge. Basic Mistral etiquette, buddy," Lotus laughed internally. She wasn't at all surprised that the other Mistralian knew the code of dishonesty shared by those of ill-repute.

Still, the lie that his aura was only slightly lower than Qrow's seemed to cheer him up a bit, which Lotus was thankful for. The group of five ate in silence for awhile, enjoying the food. Lotus dug in. She had been living off granola bars and cup o' noodles for the past couple weeks, not wanting to waste any time that could have otherwise been spent studying. The young faunus was proud of the progress she had made, but knew she still couldn't relax just yet. At the rate Lotus was going, she would still need to complete a few remedial courses after Beacon had officially begun.

Ruby was the first to finish, followed closely by Yang. The blond walked into the living room and turned on the console, setting up to play some games, while Ruby ran upstairs and returned with a box full of comics that she set down near the couch. Lotus ate quickly, polishing off her plate and giving Tai her genuine thanks before heading over to the young huntress.

"Alright, they're all in order. Issue #30 is…. here," Ruby pointed it out, pulling the comic up a little to show off the number printed along the top corner. Lotus reached down and pulled out #31, her eyes greeted by the cartoonish cover, drawn in a style that she had loved so much as a child. Her heart ached with nostalgia and trepidation as she slowly opened the page.

Within seconds, her face was buried in the page as all else fell to the wayside, her attention entirely diverted to the next part of the story she knew so well. The last issue had ended on a cliffhanger.

Ruby left her to it, instead sitting down next to Yang as the duo started to play some fighting game. Qrow joined them soon after, teaching them a thing or two about respecting your elders as he mercilessly overpowered them. Lotus caught quite a few accusations of 'spammer!' and 'damn smurf!' but kept her eyes glued to the comics in front of her.

Tai sat down on the other end of the couch, content to relax while Zwei lay in his lap, both watching the entire proceedings take place. After an hour, Lotus had finished five of the comics, and was greedily pulling out the next. Yang and Ruby had grown tired of the game, and losing to 'Soaring Ninja', so they popped in a movie to watch instead.

Lotus caught only bits and pieces as she read, not nearly enough to actually manage to follow the plot. As far as she could tell, it didn't appear to really have much of one. The only pauses in the action were for cheesy one liners or for when someone died, 'If anyone tried that shit on me, I'd kill them out of principle.' The idea of stopping in the middle of a life and death battle to throw unnecessary words at each other was absurd.

Tai went to bed soon after the first movie was finished, before the girls could throw in the second. Yang and Ruby got comfortable again, the blond taking a minute to pull out a package of popcorn and heat it up in her hands while the beginning commercials rolled. Ruby snagged some butter and they melted it straight on top. Lotus waved them away when asked if she wanted any. For one, she didn't want to mess up the pages, and just as importantly, she hated popcorn. 'Always gets stuck in your teeth.'

Once the second movie had ended, Qrow stood up from the couch he had been lying down on and stretched, "Alright, you kids go to bed. We've got a lot of work tomorrow."

Lotus looked up from the comic, eyeing Qrow as he glanced her way, "What else is there to do? I know it pretty much by heart now."

The huntsman shook his head, "That's good and all, but it's not a weapon that was designed around your skill set, kid."

"What do you mean?"

Qrow raised a hand, finger pointed upward as if he was giving a school lecture, "Oath', wasn't built for you. It's too small, made for someone without nearly as much strength. For starters we need to give it a bit more firepower, then we can work on changing its size around."

"I… don't know if I want to change my brother's weapon around that much, Qrow," Lotus replied, eyeing the weapon on her hip.

"It isn't your brother's anymore. That weapon belongs to you," Qrow crossed his arms, staring down at her, "Do you think he would want you to be anything less than the best you could be?"

Lotus thought it over, 'He has a point. The sword form is small compared to what I could realistically wield… and the pistol form is just dainty. I don't think Copper ever meant to use it for much more than firing off a few rounds at beowolves…' She gave in with a shrug, "You're right. What did you have in mind?"

Qrow smiled and nodded down at the weapon, "We'll start by seeing what size of gun is most comfortable for you. Even Ruby can use a high caliber sniper. You shouldn't have much trouble with a larger caliber pistol at the very least," the older huntsman scratched his chin, "From there we'll take a look at the weapon's size in its sword form and go from there."

The faunus nodded and stood up, returning the comic back into the box in a way to keep her place more easily. She hefted it, holding it out to Ruby, but the younger girl shook her head.

"You hold on to them for now. I've already read them all," Ruby smiled and retreated upstairs to her room before the faunus had a chance to protest.

Yang yawned behind a fist, then pointed at Lotus, "Don't stay up too late. I don't want any excuses when I kick your ass tomorrow."

Lotus laughed, "I'll take you on in my sleep to make it fair."

The girl was too tired to bother reacting to her taunt and just waved a hand in the air, already turning around to head for the stairs, "Yeah, yeah. Bring your A game, shortie."

Qrow and Lotus were left in the living room alone, her holding the box of comics, and him giving her a nervous glance. The huntsman waited until Yang's door closed before speaking in a quiet tone, "Go easy on her. We both know if you used the same strength that you did with the deathstalker it wouldn't be much of a fight."

Lotus shrugged, "You should give her more credit. Yang isn't weak, just… inexperienced."

Qrow nodded, "True… she hasn't fought many people her age that can keep up with her, though. Believe it or not, she's the strongest person to come out of Signal in the last ten years at least."

"I'd believe it. From the way she acted in our fight, I think she's too used to getting her way," Lotus gave Qrow a frown, "Yang tried to brute force her way through our fight."

"Can you blame her? It usually works."

"Until I came around, sure. And who knows what other students are going to be there that can compete with us?" She chuckled lightly, giving Qrow a curious glance, "I guess you know, but that's besides the point."

Qrow smirked, "Oh yeah. There's definitely one to look out for."

Interest thoroughly piqued, Lotus stared at the older huntsman, "Who?" When Qrow gave her a taunting look, Lotus decided to unleash her trump card, even if it was so soon, "Tell me, or I tell Tai who's aura is actually bigger."

Qrow leveled a scowl in her direction, "That's dirty, kid."

Lotus shrugged with a smile, "Consider it a tax for keeping me silent."

He breathed out an elongated sigh of frustration, "Fine. Pyrrha Nikos is another one of the first years."

Lotus paused in thought, finger tapping against her chin until she remembered the name, "Oh! The Regional Champion!" she spared Qrow an arched brow, "Why would she be going to Beacon instead of Haven?"

"Your guess is as good as mine," Qrow replied, heading towards his room, "Now go to bed, otherwise Yang really will get the better of you."

Lotus rolled her eyes and climbed the stairs to the guest bedroom, noting gladly that within the past two weeks, the door had been replaced. She opened it and stepped inside, turning to her left to place the box of comics down onto the floor.

Without touching it herself, the faunus felt a gust of air blow against her back as the door slammed shut silently behind her. Lotus spun and stepped away, trying to activate her semblance. Widow stared calmly back at her, arms crossed with a disapproving frown on her face.

Lotus eyes widened, trying to feel out around herself for the familiar presence that she should be feeling… Her semblance had not activated. There were no invisible spider legs poised to defend herself. They were just… gone.

"Wh-What the hell did you do?" Lotus demanded in a shout. She knew Widow would be masking any sound they made from reaching outside the room. It would be pointless to call out for help.

Widow smiled sadly, "It's as I thought. You don't have any physical sensation connected to the appendages created by your semblance, do you?" The assassin shook her head, "I can stop all vibrations in the air, little spider. That includes the ones coming off your extra limbs. Your semblance did work. Your limbs are hovering around you, even now. I'd be careful, though. Without knowing where they are, one move in the wrong direction could harm you just as easily as it could me."

'My limbs are…?' Lotus focused on moving one of them, and was surprised as her body started to shift to the side. She was definitely pushing against the wall next to her, but… 'I don't know exactly where it is… She's right...'

"What do you want, Widow?" Lotus demanded, clenching a fist down at her side. Her other hand now rested on Oath's hilt. 'Could I still shroud the limbs on my body when they're like this?'

Widow pouted again, stepping closer to Lotus and placing her hands on the younger spider's shoulders, "Oh, don't be like that, darling! I would never hurt you, you know that, right?" Widow pulled her into a hug that Lotus did not reciprocate.

The older assassin pulled away, hands resting on the girl's shoulders still, "I know you're still mad, but I just had to check in," Widow stepped away completely, shaking her head, "I wanted to know what humans would end up being responsible for breaking my poor daughter's heart."

"They aren't like that!" Lotus exclaimed loudly. She allowed her semblance to deactivate, or at least hoped so. Lotus couldn't sense any difference. She prepared herself anyway, trying to picture her semblance shrouding her limbs instead. The young spider didn't 'activate' it just yet, but was ready if she needed to.

Widow gave a mournful shake of her head, "Of course they are, dear," her mother glanced up, a knowing smile on her face, "You haven't told them yet, have you? About the things you've done? The people you've killed? They'll turn on you in an instant."

Lotus shook with both fury and fear at the prospect, her voice quivered as she grabbed a fistful of Widow's shirt, "If you tell them, I will never forgive you!"

Widow held her hands up, "I wouldn't dream of it, my dear little spider. I won't need to stoop so low, anyway. Soon enough, you'll fall back into your old ways. When that happens, then they'll see you for what you are for themselves."

"And what is that?"

Widow smiled widely as she leaned forward and whispered directly into Lotus's ear, words meant only for the child that she had claimed for herself.

"You're my daughter."

The faunus pulled back with a smile, "You and I have much more in common than you seem to think, little spider. I should know. I raised you so well."

"You don't understand me at all!" Lotus fired back, fist shaking as it still held the front of her shirt. 'I would never do the things she's done!' Jace… Crim… 'Betrayal like that is unforgivable!'

Widow idly flicked her hair to the side, "Oh, please. I know everything there is to know about you, Lotus. That is how you still think of yourself, isn't it? As long as you tell these fools that your name is Olivia, you will always be lying to them. Olivia has been dead for five years. She's never coming back."

Lotus unclenched her hand and let it drop to her side, "No… I…"

She couldn't bring herself to say it. Olivia was dead. Lotus couldn't simply forget the years of murders that lay in her wake. Olivia never would have been able to do those things. Lotus had.

Widow leaned in and kissed her daughter on the forehead, "It's okay, sweetheart. When the truth is revealed, and all hope seems lost…" Widow put a finger under Lotus's chin to tip her head up and looked into her eyes, "I will be there to accept you for who you are. You will always be my precious daughter. Don't ever forget that."

When she received no response, Widow simply sighed, letting her hand drop as well and stepping over to the door, "I'll be keeping a close eye on you, little spider. You don't need to worry about me interfering with your act, but just remember... that's all it is."

With that, Widow left. After a minute, Lotus activated her semblance, shivering as the familiar sense of them poised around her returned. 'My semblance… I couldn't protect myself with it…' Lotus had never felt so weak… so helpless…

Her mind played back the moment when her semblance had first activated. The table being tipped over to reveal her. The hand closing in...

'That's right… there was one other time…'

Her semblance had always been there to protect her. Lotus retreated to her bed and lied down, wrapping her appendages around herself as she curled her knees up against her chest. Even with them back… she didn't feel safe. The confidence Lotus always felt because of them had been stripped away so easily by Widow.

In what little sleep the young spider faunus managed to attain that night, all of it was plagued by her oldest nightmares.

"Woah! You really did try and stay up all night, didn't you?" Yang exclaimed in surprise, taking in the bedraggled state that Lotus was in. She hadn't bothered taking her clothes off before getting into bed the night before, and she hadn't thought to bring any others. They were a wrinkled mess now, several hours of twisting and turning in bed while you were haunted by the past could do that. The faunus's eyes had dark circles around them, betraying her lack of sleep.

Lotus ignored Yang's outburst and sat down at the only empty seat before laying her head down against the cool wooden table. She brought her arms up around her head to shut out the light and groaned softly into them. Her bangs helped to cover her face as she nuzzled deeper into her own arm.

Ruby leaned over to whisper to her, "Were you up all night reading?"

The assassin ignored the small girl as well, 'How quickly would they turn on me if they knew the truth? Would they even hear me out?' Lotus doubted it. Ruby would tear up, Yang would try to start another fight just to protect her baby sister, and the two adults would try and put her down for good…

Lotus wouldn't blame them if they did. It would be little in the way of retribution for those whose lives she had ended. How many lives stained her hands? She hadn't been lying when she told Mercury her count had stopped around fifty, and that had been three or four years ago. The names and faces were all a blur, the one factor they all shared… the cold eyes they'd had once they stopped breathing.

"You okay, kid?" Qrow asked, a worried tone to his voice. Lotus could feel all of their eyes on her and sighed, drawing herself up.

"Peachy."

Lotus grabbed the box of cereal in the middle of the table and a bowl, deciding that she could at least pretend to be happy for their sakes. While she was pouring out the milk, she gave them a tired smile, "I'm okay, really."

The group around the table still seemed uncertain, but after a few seconds, chose to let it rest for the time being. If the young faunus wanted to pretend everything was okay, then they would let her. Lotus could still feel their glances whenever she wasn't looking, and already expected that the conversation would resume once she was alone with either Qrow or Ruby. They wouldn't drop it so easily.

Lotus finished her second bowl and stood, looking out the windows into the early noon light that filtered in past the surrounding trees. The sun's rays were dull and muted, shining as well as they could through a thin layer of clouds that lazily drifted above.

The faunus sized up the blond sitting at the table, "When did you want to spar?"

To her credit, Yang seemed to have at least a shred of concern for the other girl, "Are you sure you want to today? I don't mind putting it off, really."

Lotus shook her head, "There's no point moping around."

"If you're sure…" the blond replied slowly, sparing a glance for the adults in the room. Neither protested, so Yang left for her room, returning a minute later with her shotgun gauntlets on her wrists.

The others followed them outside as Yang and Lotus walked a short distance from the cabin. The blond drew the other girl's attention to her bare hip, "Aren't you going to grab your weapon?"

Lotus shrugged, "We're going to be upgrading it later today, anyway. Not much point training with it until after then," she rolled her shoulders and felt the strengthening presence of her semblance shrouding her limbs, "Honestly, I'm more used to fighting like this anyway."

Yang laughed, "Well that's good to hear. I don't think my pride could have taken it if it was the other way around."

The assassin nodded and settled into a readied stance, arms up in front of her and legs parted, feet pointing in Yang's direction.

"You can do it Yang!" Ruby cheered from the sidelines, pumping her fist into the air, "Your sis has got your back!"

"Careful, firecracker," Qrow said bluntly, taking a swig from his flask, "Use your head."

Yang gave Lotus a few seconds to prepare, then started the fight with a blast of her Ember Celica's, launching herself forward with the same attack she had tried in the club. Her eyes were clear this time, trying to take in each of Lotus's movements as she approached at a blistering speed.

Hardly one to be predictable, Lotus changed it up this time. She stepped directly into the path, firmly planting her feet as Yang zipped through the air. The girl's fist flung forward, aimed at the faunus's face.

Lotus ducked, grabbing Yang's outstretched arm by the wrist with her left hand, her right reached up to grab a fist full of the blond's shirt. She diverted the girl's momentum downward, bringing her crashing to the ground. Yang bounced heavily off the ground, the wind getting knocked from her lungs in a huff.

The faunus spun, arcing her foot downwards to once again kick Yang into the ground while she was still in the air. The blond crossed her arms in front of herself, deflecting the blow but getting sent flying back instead. Yang recovered quickly, rolling back to her feet.

Lotus simply waited, allowing the blond a moment to think up a new strategy and decided to warn her in the process, "Surprise attacks won't work. Not with my sixth sense, just warning you now. I know how each of your limbs is positioned and how they're moving, even if I can't see them directly."

Yang considered her options for a moment more, then smirked, "Well, if I can't beat you close up…" Her fist drew back and punched forward from a dozen feet away. Lotus was forced to hastily dodge to the side as a streak of explosive red dust passed her by. It was followed up by a series of shots that kept her on the defensive.

Lotus was forced to jump to avoid one of the shots that strayed closer to her legs. It seemed Yang had been planning this, however, as her next shot exploded against the ground directly where the faunus had been about to land. Lotus was blasted backward in a spray of dirt and rocks, coming up from a roll as Yang once again closed the gap.

"Nice shot," Lotus laughed, now diverting each of Yang's attacks away from herself. Lotus was content to simply deny the blond any more hits, keeping her at bay with her inherently higher speed and strength. The girl was at least bottling up her frustration this time around, her face determined despite the tinge of red that had overtaken her irises.

Lotus landed a few light hits of her own, wanting to let the fight draw out longer than it had at the club. Jace's style was definitely the way to go against the blond. Her attacks were stronger than most, but with none of them connecting with a solid hit her power was being wasted on open air instead of on the faunus's body.

Yang smiled as she finally landed a solid hit. Her arm swept past Lotus's face in a wide haymaker, but was followed up by her elbow rocketing back when she fired off her gauntlet. The speed and power behind the blond's elbow as it hit her across the temple caught the spider faunus off guard, leaving her open for a few more blows as Yang took advantage while she could.

Lotus recovered, catching each of Yang's fists in her hands. She pulled the brawler towards herself, stepping forward at the same time to drive her knee into the blond's stomach. Yang doubled over, eyes flashing red as her hair started to burn.

In a quick twist of her wrists, Yang broke both her hands free and grabbed Lotus's arms instead. The blond got her payback for the club, her leg lifting up and spartan kicking Lotus directly in the chest. The faunus flew backwards, her body slamming into the tree behind her with a crack of wood that shot up and down the length of its trunk. She dropped to her knees, thoroughly out of breath, and took stock of their current aura levels.

Lotus had been doing well to avoid any damage. Her aura level was still well above half, while Yang's had dropped over the course of the fight. The blond's aura was only a handful of blows away from breaking. Lotus rose back up to her feet and settled in to a more serious stance. The assassin finally pressed the attack, dashing back into the fray with a boost from her semblance enhanced legs.

Yang brought her own hands up, both deflecting, blocking, and dodging Lotus's attacks as well as she could. The faunus didn't let up, though, and kept the blond on the defensive. Yang began to panic, her strength straining as her aura started to dip sharply. Each attack she blocked was still a strike against her aura reserves, and they were failing fast under the power that Lotus was now using.

In one final desperate attempt, Yang ducked low beneath one of Lotus's fists and tried to fire her Ember Celica off directly behind the faunus. Lotus caught her extended fist before she could, though, and used it to pull the girl to the ground. One final quick strike shattered the blond's aura, a ripple of yellow energy coursing around her body before dissipating in a brilliant flash.

They both breathed heavily. Yang was on her back, Lotus on one knee next to her, a fist planted against the ground as she shared a little of the girl's exhaustion. 'That was rougher than it should have been… note to self, get more sleep when you can...'

Lotus got her breathing under control first and half stood, offering a hand down to the blond beneath her. Yang accepted it, grunting as she was pulled to her feet.

"That was… much better," Lotus commented, having to stop a moment to breath in between her words.

"Thanks," Yang managed, using a hand on Lotus's shoulder to support herself.

"Well done girls!" Tai shouted from the sidelines, "You'll both ace initiation, I guarantee it."

Yang gave her father a thumbs up, finally straightening herself out as her breathing returned to normal.

Lotus grinned, "Nice kick. Who'd you learn that from I wonder?"

Yang smirked back, "A midget taught me."

"Oh come on, I'm not that short," Lotus shot back, trying to draw herself up to her full unimpressive five foot height. Even still, she was a good five inches shorter than the blond standing next to her.

Yang patted her on the head, "You keep telling yourself that, short stack."

Lotus glowered but let the insult pass, 'If we count my appendages, I'm fifteen feet tall at least.' She shook her head in amusement, 'I'm like, the tallest person alive.' The faunus would keep reminding herself of that fact to feel better about her own short stature.

"Me next! Me next!" Ruby cried out, suddenly spinning Crescent Rose through the air and slamming the point down into the ground in front of her. 'When the hell did she even go get that?' The little black and red haired girl was simply too fast, 'We need to get you a bell.' That would certainly be a welcome change of pace from her mentor silently stalking her everywhere.

"Another time, kid," Qrow admonished, stepping in to make sure the excitable girl didn't suddenly launch herself towards Lotus while her aura was still recovering.

Lotus started to feel the fatigue of her sleepless night affecting her in the afterglow of the fight. It had taken what energy she had left. Her shoulders drooped as she closed her eyes for a few seconds and breathed deeply. She fluttered them back open, looking at Tai, "Please tell me you have coffee."

Tai smiled, "Sure do. Come on back inside, you kids."

Lotus graciously accepted, making sure to wipe her feet off before stepping back into the cabin. She headed straight for the kitchen and to the waiting coffee pot. Lotus poured herself a cup and added a little milk, along with a few spoonfuls of sugar. She sipped at the steaming liquid and sighed, 'That's the stuff…' Lotus was suddenly reminded of the coffee shop she had loved so dearly for the first couple days she spent in Vale. 'I need to take a load off there again… and maybe actually introduce myself to that girl.'

Qrow gave Lotus a few minutes to relax and get some caffeine in her before announcing they should leave soon. Ruby snatched up what few things she needed, and Lotus went upstairs to grab her sword before the trio left. They were mostly silent on the way, other than Lotus having to dodge a few questions that Ruby sent her way about where she had learned to fight like that. Mentioning her second brother was all she needed to make the girl quiet down a little.

Lotus didn't really mind talking to the girl, but after the night before, she still couldn't shake the prospect of someone so sweet learning the truth about the assassin and potentially turning on her. One slip up is all it would take, and those happy questions could become angry demands for answers.

The older huntsman at least seemed like he was able to sense her mood, and left her alone for the most part. They arrived in town and headed straight for the combat school, back down into the basement that doubled as both a weapon's workshop and a firing range. Instead of going to the tables immediately to begin working on her sword, Qrow instead waved the both of them into the firing range.

Lotus and Ruby followed him inside, pausing in the middle of the room as Qrow walked over to a set of locked metal cabinets. He waved his scroll in front of them, the small technology acting as a key pass for the lock, and opened the cabinet wide to show off the myriad of firearms held within. The huntsman reached for the higher caliber pistols first, starting with the heaviest looking one in the collection.

"Here. Give it a try," Qrow instructed, handing the hand cannon to the small girl. Lotus hefted it in her hands, feeling the weight after it had been loaded with a magazine full of rounds. Qrow directed her over in front of a few tables that were set up between the rest of the room and the actual firing range beyond them, pointing down range to one of the targets that hadn't yet been pumped full of holes.

Lotus took her first shot without her semblance's assistance, wanting to feel what it was like with just her own strength trying to control it. The room's occupants were deafened by the sudden echoing burst. The large round jarred the faunus's arm with the recoil, sending a shock through her bones that left her forearm numb.

She set the hand cannon down and took a minute to shake her hand off, 'Okay, bad idea to not use my semblance with it.'

"You okay?" Qrow asked from behind, peeking over her shoulder to check for any injuries.

"Yeah, just caught me off guard is all," Lotus picked the hand cannon back up and flexed her aura down into her limbs this time, setting herself to better absorb the recoil. The second shot rang out, just as loud as the first, but this time Lotus's hand didn't budge. The end of the gun's barrel tipped up slightly, but that was the extent of it.

Lotus let loose, emptying the rest of the magazine down range as she tried to get a better feel for the recoil. Qrow handed her another magazine, which she promptly emptied as well. By the end of the third magazine, Lotus lowered the gun to her side and turned back to Qrow with a shrug.

"I could handle more if you've got something in mind."

Qrow stroked his chin in thought before turning back to the weapon's cabinet. He returned with a sizable looking single barrel shotgun and handed it to her, "Maybe this will do the trick."

Lotus started the same way as before, trying to fire it without using her semblance. Considering the fact that this was supposed to be a step above the hand cannon, she at least used two hands.

The flak from the shotgun exploded outwards in a tight spread, hitting the target she was aiming at and some of its surroundings in an explosion of plastic that left bits of her target littered around the firing range. With two arms, it was manageable without shrouding, so Lotus went ahead and shrouded her right arm, holding the gun out in one hand. The recoil was much more satisfying this time around, pulling the gun's end up by a few inches, and leaving a crater in the face of the test dummy she had fired in to.

Lotus gave Qrow a smile as she nodded, "That's much better."

"Good. Now let's get you set up with a bigger sword," the huntsman accepted the shotgun back from Lotus and placed it back in the locker. The trio returned to the first room, both Ruby and Lotus standing next to one of the tables as Qrow handed her a variety of swords to test out.

Lotus finally settled on a sword that was easily three times the size of Copper's original design. It was double sided like his, with a reverse curve to it that went all the way through the handle, like an elongated crescent.

With the two basic portions settled, Qrow and Ruby got to work planning out the more important bits, discussing between themselves and with Lotus on the overall shape. The two stood at a table who's top consisted entirely of one large screen, sketching out the weapon and figuring out how to put it together.

After half an hour of adjustments, they were finally content with a version that was both practical, and seamless in its design. Lotus pulled apart Copper's sword while the other two went about finding the necessary parts to create the weapon. It took several hours between the three of them, with Lotus insisting on smelting down the blade of Copper's weapon to include in the build, along with whatever inner workings could be salvaged.

Qrow made sure that the young faunus helped every step of the way. From start to finish, Lotus put the weapon together with her own hands, getting a feel for the process and steps required to form a weapon like this from scratch. By the end of it, the three stood looking down at the weapon they had all helped to create.

"It's…" Lotus didn't have the energy to put her thoughts into words.

"Amazing!" Ruby exclaimed, dripping with pure intensity.

"Test it out, kid," Qrow insisted, pushing a hand against her back to usher her forward.

Lotus placed her hand on the hilt, marveling at the sheer difference in weight between what had been Copper's sword, and what was now a combination of both. The overall shape of the weapon was more like one of her own appendages, a long curved sword, bent inwards. Unlike her spider legs, this had two cutting edges, though. With a quick flip of the switch on the handle, the blade itself lit up with lightning dust.

The faunus flexed a small amount of aura into the weapon, causing it's blade to shift halfway from the top. It bent further inwards, turning the all over shape into more of a sickle, and revealing the end of the shotgun barrel that was otherwise hidden in the blade itself. Lotus gave it a few test swings, getting a feel for the heft of the weapon.

"I like it…" Lotus admitted after a few swings, not taking her eyes off the new 'Oath'. She couldn't tell them that the biggest draw was the similarity between the sword and her own invisible limbs.

The edges of the blade had been left their natural silver color, while the metal used for the midsection had been mixed with the bronze from Copper's sword, merging into a lighter yellow. The hilt was wrapped in black leather, offering a good amount of friction so that it could easily be held on to, and was capped with a smaller, one sided blade that functioned as a sharpened pommel.

The sound of Crescent Rose shifting forms behind her drew Lotus's eyes back to the other pair in the room. Ruby was giving her a small smirk while holding the scythe out in all its glory.

"Time for a real test!" the girl yelled excitedly.

"Not a bad idea. Come on, we'll get the combat room set up for a spar," Qrow announced.

Lotus tried to summon what energy she had left in order to enjoy the spar to its fullest, but came up a little short. With a quiet groan, she followed the pair up the stairs and towards another room.

'I'll get this over with quickly... Sorry, Ruby, but the kid gloves are coming off for a minute.'

I made a simple animation for Oath, if anyone is interested in getting a better look at our spiderling's new weapon. It's rough, but you should get the gist of it. Just use your imagination to picture it folding away a bit more safely.

Can't link, but it's on my twitter account. Same username.