Trigger Warning: The following chapter contains themes suggesting sexual assault. We, the authors of this fan fiction, wish to make it clear that we do not condone sexual assault, nor do we wish to encourage it or find humor in it. If you feel uncomfortable with the idea, please refrain from reading this chapter.


Chapter 13

Reluctantly, Teams RWBY, JNPR, and what was left of CFVY made their way back to the caves. Along the way, however, Yang noticed something. "Hey, Penny: what's with the futuristic hourglass?"

With a blink, the android in question brought out the device she had found earlier and gave it a good, long look. "To be honest, I'm not sure. All I do know is that I found it shortly before I ran into Luna."

"Anyone else feel like we're walking into a trap?" Jaune couldn't help but ask.

"Oh, good, it's not just me," Coco said with an almost relieved sigh. Almost.

"Trap or no, this is the only lead we have thus far," Ruby declared, somehow sounding confident despite feeling some of the same nervousness everyone else was feeling, "so we might as well see this through to the end. I wouldn't be using our training at Beacon right if I did anything less."

Yang just gave a smile full of pride. "Well said, sis; if we aren't using our skills to protect everyone we can, then we have no business calling ourselves huntresses."

Jaune gave a flat look. "Uh, you do realize that some of us are guys, right?"

"Said the one who wore a dress to the dance."

"Touche."

It was here an unfamiliar voice let out an amused chuckle. "...and yet my colleagues wonder why I find you humans so endearing." The others turned towards a red-clad humanoid Grimm approaching them, giving a nod towards the gauntlet Yang had on her arm. "I see you found my invitation. I knew that with the coming of the Silver Light that the so-called 'Great Destroyer' could not be far from our location, but I had hope that among her kind would be those that would seek to aid us rather than destroy us. Knowing your kind to be a curious breed…"

"...you arranged for my new sword to be placed close to the academy, hoping we'd come back to investigate?" Yang asked, a look of surprise on her face.

"So, wait, does this mean that…?" Ren couldn't quite get his question out.

That said, their new companion seemed to understand, given the grim nod she gave - no pun intended. "Please understand; not all of us see humanity as a bunch of shisnos. My name is Jasmine, and I, as well as a good number of my companions, hope to put an end to the war between our two people." Giving Ruby a significant look, she declared, "I can only pray that my hope is not misplaced, and that you are not as heartless as some of my less savory companions claim you to be."

Ruby, having given Jasmine a good, hard look, nodded as she made up her mind. "My mother told me that my eyes only activate in the presence of Grimm," she remarked, before tearing off a strip of cloth off of her cap and proceeded to tie it over her eyes. "It's such a shame though that I don't see any Grimm around here," she said with a smirk.

Weiss blinked even as Jasmine gave a relieved smile. "Ruby, are you sure about this?"

Ruby could only nod to her partner. "Maybe it'll come down to a fight later on, but we'll cross that bridge when we come to it. For now, though, I won't endanger the life of an innocent."

"You probably can't tell with your eyes covered, but I'm bowing in gratitude right now, Great De...eh, I mean, Ruby," Jasmine declared, a tear-filled smile on her face despite her barely contained nervousness.

Ruby simply smiled and shook her head. "No need to bow. Despite what your colleagues like to believe, I'm just an ordinary girl, same as you. Er, sort of."

Jasmine just snorted as she straightened herself. "It's alright. I think I get what you meant."

"As much as I enjoy seeing my little sister making new friends," Yang admitted, "I'm sure I speak for her and just about everyone else when I ask that if getting us here via your little 'invitation' was step 1, what's step 2? Also, can I keep the sword?"

Jasmine gave a good natured roll of her eyes. "Yes, you can keep the sword, uh…what was your name again?"

"Oh, right. My name's Yang."

"Of course, Yang." Jasmine said with a nod. "As for 'step 2,' as you so eloquently put it, we need to find the Savior."

"Oh, well that's not ambiguous at all." Weiss replied, sarcastically. "But what the hell? I'll bite; who is 'the Savior?'"

"No one truly knows, my friend." Jasmine explained. "Not even the most devout members of our society know how the Savior will come about. But the Great Prophecy claims that the Savior will not only play a pivotal role in the defeat of the Dark One, but they will also bridge the gap between humans and Doppelgangers. Perhaps our meeting with you is a sign of the Savior's coming."

"Well, if what you say is true, we'd be happy to help." Ruby promised. "But for now, we could use your help. An evil virus has possessed one of my friends, and she's holding two of my other friends captive in one of these caves. I don't suppose you've seen them, have you?"

"You mean the cave devil?" Another Doppelganger stepped forward. "Yes, we have seen her on more than a few occasions."

"This is my trusted adviser, Mirror." Jasmine introduced. "He knows these caves better than anyone. He will take you to the cave devil you seek."

"Indeed," Mirror said with an almost easy-going grin. "But first, as a means of apologizing for all the trouble we put you through, some companions and myself would like to offer you some refreshments."

"Strawberry sunrise, no ice," was Yang's immediate request before following Mirror, who simply rolled his eyes as he led the girl to where she could apparently get her drink.

Jasmine just chuckled. "Would anyone else like anything?"

As Coco made to reply, however, her scroll went off. "It'll have to wait: Ruby's Aunt just requested that my teammates, Team JNPR, Penny, Ruby, and myself return to Beacon immediately."

Blake nodded. "I guess that means Weiss and I will stay here and try to make sure Yang doesn't get into any trouble."

As it turned out, Yang had managed not to get into any trouble… yet. As she continued drinking her strawberry sunrise, however, her head started swimming. Stumbling on her feet, she managed to lay down on a nearby couch, feeling as if bubbles were building up around her brain. Suddenly, the room's lights dimmed down, and the blonde brawler spotted what she thought was a familiar silhouette standing in the doorway. "Blakey~?" She beckoned, seductively. "Is that you? I'm feeling really hot right now… c'mere…"

Meanwhile back at Beacon, Raven had set up an improvised courtroom. "Ruby, find your mother and keep watch with Penny. Hopefully this won't take long."

Despite feeling some confusion, Ruby nodded and left with Penny.

"Alrighty then. Velvet Scarlatina, you have been accused of betraying Beacon and all of Remnant: how do you plead?" Raven declared almost immediately after her niece had left.

"Not guilty," was the Rabbit Faunus' immediate response, "and I'd also like to plead for a chance to explain myself."

Coco nodded. "Yes, an explanation would be nice."

"Fair enough, and thanks for volunteering to be Miss Scarlatina's Defence," Raven said with a nod. "Turns out that the little Jill of all Trades over here is in communication with Jean and Ciel, whom I remind you are currently being quote-unquote forced to serve Paulette. I caught her willingly gathering some supplies for the latter: specifically, components used to make explosives."

"Wait, seriously?!" Jaune shouted, before getting into Velvet's face. "What possible reason would you have for doing that?!"

"Ciel was hoping to get the supplies quietly while she attempted to sabotage Paulette's plans without them," was Velvet's reply, before frowning, "Wait, does this mean that you're the prosecutor now?"

Raven nodded. "I'll allow it."

Here, Coco raised her hand. "Uh, Raven, as Velvet's Defense in this trial, I'd like to enter a plea before we go any further."

Raven blinked, but nodded nonetheless. "Go ahead."

Coco took a breath before saying, "It suddenly occurs to me that Nora isn't here, having stayed behind in the caves to take part in the refreshments - long story - but it's only a matter of time before she finds out about this trial we're holding…"

Raven quirked an eyebrow. "I'm listening…"

Coco shrugged. "Well, if you're the judge, and Jaune is the prosecutor, and I'm assuming that Yatsuhashi, Pyrrha, Fox, and Ren are either making up the jury of my client's peers or acting as character witnesses...well, if you were telling the truth about watching us alongside your daughter and niece, then you know that Nora is going to want to play the bailiff when she shows up, and that means she's gonna wanna wear the cop uniform with the short shorts."

Velvet, understanding where this is going, could only let out a groan. "Ugh: Officer Hot-Pants."

Coco nodded. "Exactly, and I think we can all remember that dance routine from Ruby's birthday party."

Weiss couldn't help but smile as she removed the blindfold from her partner's eyes. "Surprise!"

Ruby teared up in joy as she took in the sight before her. "I can't believe you guys did this! I mean, look at the size of this cake: it looks like you could fit a person inside!" She then blinked as she took in all the people gathered. "Wait, where's Nora?" She quickly gained a horrified look, one that the others began to share, especially when she caught a particular scent. "...and what's that smell?!"

Raven couldn't help but shutter. "Luckily, that Nora kid only suffered a few burns, but it took three months for Ruby to even be able to look at cake after that…" She then cleared her throat. "Okay, I motion that we put this trial on hold until after we can make sure to arrange for Team RWBY to keep Nora busy."

Jaune nodded. "I think we can all agree to that...and while we're at it, we might as well hear whatever explanation Velvet supposedly has for us: even if it leads us into a trap later on, it might end up having some information that could turn out being useful later."

Everyone else nodded in agreement to this...just in time for Nora to walk in, looking curious. "Hey, what are you guys up to?"

"NOTHING!" was what everyone else shouted.

Just then, Ruby ran in looking rather spooked. "Hey, uh, Auntie Raven? My mom just got a call from a 'Vernal.'" Said that some guy named Shay D. Mann staged a coup in your camp and is attacking a nearby settlement."

Raven could only sigh. "Well, time to clean up another of my tribes' messes, but I've done this before: how bad could this one be?"

Sometime later, Raven slumped against the tree trunk in defeat. Attempted negotiations had not gone as planned. Now, the Branwen Tribe had been divided into two factions who were currently at war with each other. "Ruby… I give up." She sighed. "I'm thirty-nine years old, and I am one-hundred percent done with this shit. I'm calling it quits. I guess it's true what they say; 'you can never go home.'"

"No, wait, you had the right idea earlier: if we're going to survive what's coming, we've ALL got to work together." Ruby drew Crescent Rose. "The only problem was your execution. You were trying too hard to appeal to one group or the other, but not both at the same time, since from what I've seen, they'll both respond to an empathetic individual that's in touch with their dark side, but not overly so."

Raven seemed to ponder her niece's words for a moment. "You may have the right idea, kid." She nodded. "But there's just one problem; you've got the empathy, and I've got the rough edges. And I think they've made it pretty clear that they won't listen to me. Not anymore."

"No, but they'll listen to me." Ruby looked out at the raving crowd with a frustrated look in her eyes. "Paulette taught me to be angry! If I can channel that anger, I can make them listen!"

Raven arched an eyebrow. "Kid, Paulette's not in your head anymore. She infected the medic. She can't do you any good."

"Wrong!" Ruby countered. "I refuse to believe that Paulette could've gotten me to act that way if I didn't already have a little anger in me. I just have to… concentrate…"

"Uh… you okay?" Raven looked concerned as Ruby grit her teeth together.

"I just… need to focus… on things I hate…" Ruby growled; her eyes screwed shut. "Like… like… rotten strawberries! And… people who want… to hurt my friends and family!"

"I never thought I'd reach a point in my life where I miss Qrow. But here it is."

"Now, I am thinking about… cookies! No! Burnt cookies! Served with spoiled milk!" At last, Ruby opened her eyes and jumped down from the tree. With a slash of Crescent Rose, the huntress-in-training left a large crater upon landing, earning the attention of the conflicting bandits. "My name is Ruby Rose!" She announced, angrily. "And I! Hate! BROCCOLI!"

"It's the Beast!" One of the more fanatic bandits trembled. "The woman of hell come to doom us all for eternity! REPENT! REPENT! REPENT!"

"Oh, will you shut up?!" Shay slapped the bandit. "She's not 'the Beast,' she's just an obnoxious little - BLEARGH!"

Ruby blasted Shay with fire Dust, and then proceeded to attack the other bandits. Raven watched in shock and awe as Ruby tore through her former cohorts with ease. Blood splashed everywhere, multiple bones were broken, and she was pretty sure she saw one bandit explode. Despite the carnage, the older woman couldn't help the amused chuckle that escaped her lips. "She really is Yang's sister."

"Ms. Branwen? Ms. Branwen, can you hear me?" A voice seemingly called from nowhere.

"Huh? Who's there?" Raven looked around until her gaze locked onto a small portal.

"This is Velvet Scarlatina of Team CFVY." The voice called. "We're preparing our attack on Paulette's army! Are you and Ruby ready for pick up?"

"Uhhhh…" Raven looked back at the camp just as Ruby snapped a bandit's femur with a single curb stomp. "Yeah, I think we're just about ready. But I'm gonna need you to send the robot girl to us for a minute."

"Death! Doom! Destroy! Kill! Mutilate! Burn!" Ruby's battle cry echoed in the tribesmen's eardrums. No doubt her voice would haunt their nightmares for years to come after this incident.

"No… please…" One bandit begged. "Have mercy…"

"Mercy is for the weak!" Ruby lifted her weapon over her head for the kill, but two arms suddenly shot out from behind her. Thinking quickly, Penny grabbed her girlfriend by her cheeks, pulled her close, and planted a loving and longing kiss on her lips. Ruby's entire body melted into the kiss; she had kissed Penny before, but never as passionately as this. Once she was certain her girlfriend was calm, Penny pulled away to give Ruby a chance to catch her breath.

"Are you okay, Ruby?" She asked, failing to hide her blush.

"Penny…?" Ruby blinked in blissful confusion. "What happened? The last thing I remember was a very nasty strawberry."

As it turned out, while Team CFVY and company were ready for a battle with a massive robot army, the same could not be said of the robot army itself, as evidenced by the slow pace they went at as they approached Beacon, the sluggish way they yelled out "Charge!" only serving to make them even less intimidating.

Needless to say, Paulette was not amused. "Oh, for the love of…will you hurry up?!" she yelled out before turning to Ciel. "I find your work to be very disappointing, Ciel. How am I supposed to hunt anyone down with these slowpokes!?"

Ciel couldn't help but gain a smirk. "Vous avez dit que je devais vous construire une armée de robots: vous n'avez jamais dit que cela devait être rapide! (You said I had to build you a robot army: you never said it had to be fast!)"

Paulette didn't need to speak French to realize that her captive was trying to resist her. "Why you...I'm giving you 24 hours to make my army as efficient as possible, and if you even think of sabotaging anything, I'll…"

"Tu feras quoi?! (You'll do what?!)" Ciel demanded, having taken her earlier talk with Velvet to heart, "Je pourrais être forcé d'obéir à vos ordres, mais vous ne pouvez pas me faire soumettre à vous! (I might be forced to obey your orders, but you can't make me submit to you!)"

"Hey, look on the bright side," Jean couldn't help but remark, "They might be slow, but they have excellent posture. Good job, Ciel." It went without saying that Jean didn't quite know how to feel when this commentary got a smile out of the French girl in question, as well as a groan out of Paulette.

"Shut up, you!" Paulette ordered before facing the French girl, having a good idea of what she'd just said. "And you! To answer your question; I only need your hands and your mind for my army to work properly! I don't need your legs!" For emphasis, Paulette held up a rusty chainsaw, much to Ciel's horror. "Now, fix them!"

Ciel gulped. "O-oui, m'dame. (Y-yes, ma'am.)" And with a heavy heart, Team CPPR's mechanic set about repairing the robots. "Pardonnez-moi, mes amis. (Forgive me, my friends.)"

As all this was going on, Ruby, Penny, and Raven, having just returned to Beacon, were surprised to find a somber looking Yang being comforted by Blake, the latter of whom was looking like she was going to rip out someone's spine. "What's going on?" Ruby directed at her partner.

"Apparently, one of the Doppelgangers is a spy for either Paulette or Salem and said spy couldn't keep up the facade anymore," Weiss declared with a shake of her head.

"I...I'm sorry. I thought it was you, Blake," Yang said with a sob.

Blake just sighed. "I know, and that's why I'm not upset with you, my love."

"Wait, what?!" Raven demanded.

"I feel I must apologize," Jasmine declared, having shown up with a few of her most trusted allies to discuss something with Ozpin when she had heard the news. "When I invited you in, I forgot to mention that our people have limited shapeshifting capabilities...but until now, I didn't think I'd need to. How was I supposed to know that there was a traitor among my ranks who opted to drug Yang and use his abilities to…?" It was clear how upset this was making her, as she couldn't even finish her statement, but instead clenched her fists in frustration. "I assure you: I'll do everything in my power to see this scoundrel's head on a platter."

"Appreciated, but with all due respect, you'll have to get in line," Raven said with a growl, Blake, Ruby, and others, human and Doppelganger alike, displaying the same sentiment.

Meanwhile, Mirror had excused himself to his chambers and took out a communication crystal. "Phase 2 is complete, boss."

"Excellent work, Mirror," came the reply of Paulette.

"Please," the rogue adviser declared, "you of all people know that I prefer the name of Barmak. Regardless, I humbly request to know what your… our next move shall be."

"That's a bit tricky." Paulette explained. "Now, that the seeds of the 'Savior' have been planted, we must bide our time until she is born. Then, I will possess her and have an army of sentient Grimm under my command! All of Remnant will be brought to its knees!"

"Uh, maybe we can set up a democracy." Jean suggested.

"I thought I told you to shut up!" Paulette snapped. "And you, French girl! My army had better be able to hold off the huntsmen and huntresses for the next… um… Barmak? Under normal circumstances, how long does it take for a Doppelganger to be born?"

"Ten to twelve weeks, my friend." Barmak replied.

"Ten to twelve weeks! Or I shall feast on your flesh! MWAHAHAHAHA!"

"Gross! I don't wanna eat my best friend!" Jean objected.

"Que c'est généreux de votre part, Jean. (How generous of you, Jean.)" Ciel rolled her eyes as she continued tinkering with the robots.

"You're right, Ciel!" Jean beamed, despite not understanding what her friend said. "We can sort out our differences peacefully!"

"Ce n'est pas ce que j'ai dit, idiot! (That's not what I said, you idiot!)" Ciel spat.

"Both of you, shut up!" Paulette ordered. "Now, on with my plan."

Back at Beacon, Yang had suddenly developed a sickly green skin tone and began violently losing her lunch. Ordered to bedrest by her loved ones, the blonde brawler soon fell asleep while Dr. Oobleck examined her condition. After half an hour, the green-haired huntsman had finished observing Yang and approached the collected teachers and students with a solemn expression. "Well, my friends. I've completed my examination of Miss Xiao Long."

"Oh, gods. I'm the worst sister ever!" Ruby sobbed into Penny's shoulder. "I never should have insisted that we trust the Grimm!"

"It wasn't your fault, my love." Penny soothed as she brushed Ruby's hair.

"Just give it to us straight, Oobleck." Raven demanded. "What's wrong with my daughter?"

"Well, it seems that Miss Xiao Long is-"

"Dying?!" Ruby cried. "Oh, gods, I knew it!"

"No, no, Ms. Rose. Your sister isn't dying, she just has-"

"No chance to live!" Ruby cried, louder. "What am I gonna tell dad?!"

"Ruby!" Weiss screamed, angrily. "If you keep interrupting him, he's going to have two patients! Go ahead, Dr. Oobleck."

Oobleck sighed. "How do I put this? Yang is…"

Penny noticed the expressions of anticipation on everyone's faces. "Uh, Dr. Oobleck? Ruby won't interrupt you again." To emphasize her point, the android covered her girlfriend's mouth with her palm.

"Oh, I know. That was for dramatic effect." Oobleck clarified as he adjusted his glasses. "But I digress. Yang is pregnant."

A deafening silence fell over the room, broken first by Raven. "Excuse me?" She asked, gripping the hilt of her katana as if she were waiting for the word to kill.

"Yes. Pregnant." Oobleck repeated.

"That… that can't be right." Blake held her head as she tried to wrap her mind around the situation even as she looked at her lover and by extension her unborn child, an unreadable expression on her face. "Oh, baby, what's happened to you?"

Suddenly, the door burst down in a fiery explosion as Summer Rose and Taiyang Xiao Long entered the room. "Where is he?! WHERE THE FUCK IS HE?!" Taiyang shouted.

"Dad?!" Ruby gasped. "Did you run all the way from Patch?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Ruby! Raven sent Summer through one of her portals to tell me about what happened!" The semi-retired huntsman grabbed Ozpin by the collar of his jacket and pulled him close. "Now, tell me who defiled my Sunny Little Dragon, you bastard!"

"Dad, stop!" Yang yelled out, sitting up from her bed, "Drugs or no, it's my fault for mistaking a shapeshifting Grimm double agent for my Blake. And Ruby, I know that you're going to blame yourself, but you saw how Jasmine reacted when she found out what happened to me. No way she was faking that level of anger and sincerity in her voice."

"She's right," Penny said with a nod, "Jasmine said it herself: not all of the Doppelgangers have it out for us. We just got unlucky and met one of the ones that do. Speaking of which, Yang, I know that you were drugged when it happened, but do you recall anything that might tell us who to look out for?"

Yang just held her head with a groan. "It's all a bit fuzzy, actually, but I do remember seeing a snake tattoo on his shoulder right before I passed out. At least, I think it was a tattoo: might have just been a birthmark, though."

"Well, at least it's something," Taiyang declared, "And Yang, seeing how you were drugged, I promise not to inflict any of the frustration I feel on you. The one who touched you and his spawn, however…"

"You're not touching it!" Yang declared, holding her hands over her stomach, "I don't care how it came about: this is my child, and I'll do everything in my power to protect it. And before anyone says anything about me not being able to take care of a child, I seem to recall doing a pretty good job of taking care of Ruby after someone became a worse alcoholic then Uncle Qrow after Summer disappeared for at least two years!"

"You did what!?" both Summer and Raven both yelled out, realizing what their daughter was talking about.

Taiyang just gulped. "Uh...hey look: a distraction!" he yelled out before taking off running. Needless to say, however, he didn't get too far before both the women he had married had caught up to him and proceeded to beat the stuffing out of him.

Meanwhile, Blake continued to give Yang an unreadable expression before saying, "As sweet as it is that you intend to treat your kid, half-Grimm or not, like the innocent that it is, I feel like correcting you on one front: it's not your child." She then proceeded to gain a grin before giving Yang's belly a kiss. "It's our child. You said it yourself: the genetic donor took my form to impregnate you, so it's only appropriate that the genuine article help raise the child he created. Besides, I made a promise to stay by your side, did I not?"

Yang just snorted, even as a tear-filled grin appeared on her face, relieved that Blake wasn't upset with her. "An odd time for marriage proposals, but hey: I've got no complaints." Just then, her stomach growled, causing her to blush. "Well, maybe one complaint. Could I maybe get some chocolate chip ice cream with salsa and pickles?" Needless to say, everyone shuddered at the realization that Yang was already getting food cravings...which only doubled once they realized that this meant they'd have to deal with her mood swings later on.

Eventually, however, Ozpin merely cleared his throat and turned to Yang. "While I commend your sense of integrity, Miss Xiao Long, the fact remains that you will be side-lined for the time being. The battlefield is no place for a pregnant woman."

"Yeah, yeah, I hear you," the blonde brawler said with a disgruntled sigh, "but guys, if you find my kid's genetic donor, be sure to get some hits in for me, okay?"

"Oh, that won't be a problem at all, Fire Lily," Summer said with a nod that promised retribution, several others sharing the sentiment.

"Uh, guys, as much as I too wish to avenge Yang's honor, I think we've got other problems to deal with," Yatsuhashi declared as he pointed out the window.

Pyrrha, having spotted the same robot army bearing Paulette's colors coming over the horizon that the giant swordsman had seen, simply shook her head as a look of determination settled onto her face. "That's not a problem," she remarked, using her Semblance to bring her weapons to her. "It's target practice."

To be continued