"So, we're getting a break now?" Clover asked.
"Yep," Gordeau nodded, "That way you can talk about what happened in the previous viewing and I can get some things done. I'm still on the clock you know."
"Good," Clover nodded as he glanced at Harriet, "I think we need that time."
"Wait!" Ruby called out, "What about the songs?"
"Right!" Weiss nodded, "The songs about us."
"Kinda surprised you still want to, Rubes," Yang stated worriedly, "After the last one…"
"It's okay, Yang," Ruby nodded, "I don't think I've got anymore baggage to unload."
"Alright then," Gordeau pulled out his scroll, "I que one up."
"I wonder what this ones gonna be about," Jaune wondered.
Close your eyes now time for dreams, death is never what it seems.
"Well, that's a somber way to start," Blake noted.
"Almost exactly like the last one," Summer grumbled, "Is this also about me?"
"Only the first part," Gordeau nodded, "Then it switches."
Did the things you thought you should, all the things they said were good.
Raven sighed, "So the last one was Ruby mourning Summer, this one is me?"
"You never stay in mourning for long though," Tai thought, "What turn does it take?"
All your faith in ancient ways, leaves you trapped inside a maze.
"Oh," Ozpin sighed, "I understand now."
"It's Raven yelling at you for her death," Oscar nodded.
"Which means there's more than likely a jab at me in here too," Qrow shook his head.
Take the lives of those you need, sow the death then reap the seed. Reap the seed.
Cinder smirked, "You know, she's not the only one that feels that way. I know a rather large man who wants you dead for the same reasons."
"Hazel…" Nora grumbled, "I still owe him for Haven."
"Didn't you throw him through a wall?" Yang asked.
"Yeah," Nora nodded, "But he still beat us senseless."
Born an angel, heaven sent, falls from grace are never elegant.
"Sounds about right," Qrow sighed, "Born this great hero, Ozma, then fallen from grace."
"Don't I know it," Gordeau mumbled to himself.
Stars will drop out of the sky, the moon will sadly watch the roses die,
"WHAT?!" Tai, Qrow, Yang, and Weiss all stood up.
"Roses?! As in, plural?" Weiss turned in shock.
"That's not happening," Yang scowled.
"I won't lose another," Tai said with determination, "I won't!"
"Guys, I'm not dead!" Ruby protested, "It might not even happen!"
"Hey Yang?" Blake asked.
"Yeah, Blake?"
"If Ruby and Summer are supposed to symbolize Roses," Blake wondered, "Then does the Moon symbolize your mother?"
Yang and the other Watchers all looked thoughtful.
"Well, it would fit I think so maybe?"
In vain, lost, no gain, but you're not taking me.
You can't have my life, I'm not your sacrifice.
Qrow turned to Raven, "So, would you be willing to fight if it wasn't for Oz?"
"No," Raven shook her head, "I may be coming home, but I'm not fighting impossible battles. If you and the girls want to throw your lives away, I'm sorry but I'm not helping."
Tai sighed. He'd need to have a conversation with his wife again.
You can try, but I'm free, and you won't conquer me.
I won't crawl, most of all, I won't fall, for you.
"Setting aside the actual meaning," Jaune noted, "This actually ties in with what we just watched."
"Except none of the Foretellers actually thought like this," Pyrrha sighed, "If they had, the whole mess could've been avoided."
"I don't think so," Blake shook her head, "This seems like the opposite extreme from them. I think a middle ground was needed there."
Show them gods and deities, blind and keep the people on their knees.
Pierce the sky, escape your fate. The more you try the more you'll just breed hate,
And lies. Truth will rise, revealed by mirrored eyes.
"It was Ruby who showed us Ozpin's lies," Yang pointed out.
"But how would your mother know that?" Weiss asked.
"Unless…" Qrow pondered before looking at his sister, "Someone was spying on us…"
Raven folded her arms and looked away, "I was not, I was… just checking up on my daughter."
"So you were spying on us," Yang smirked.
Raven just huffed.
What if all the plans you made, were not worth the price they paid?
Even with the lives you stole, still no closer to your... goal.
"I don't think that was actually a question," Ozpin sighed.
"Nope," Oscar shook his head, "More like a statement to show how much we've failed."
"You haven't failed anyone, kid," Qrow shook his head, "Just Oz."
"Again, I need to point out that this fits perfectly with the Master of Masters," Jaune noted as he looked at Gordeau, "These aren't really random, are they?"
"No they are," Gordeau confirmed, "My system just has a good sense of timing."
You can't have my life. I'm not your sacrifice. You can try, but I'm free,
And you won't conquer me. I won't crawl,
Most of all, I won't fall for you.
"Well," Gordeau stood up, "Now that that's done, I have some things to take care of." He rushed out of the room and left the viewers to their own devices.
"Well," Summer stood up, "Clover, why don't you and Harriet follow us to the kitchen? Then you two can discuss what you need to after a quick bite to eat."
Clover nodded and the two Ace-Ops followed her out of the theater. Everyone soon worked their way out, but Sun noticed something on his way out. Adam wasn't moving.
Sun sighed and made a decision, "Hey, Neptune, you go on ahead I'll catch up."
Neptune gave him a questioning look, but shrugged it off. Sun ran off all the time, at least he had the decency to tell him first this time.
Once everyone else had left the theater, Sun approached Adam, "Hey, how are you doing?"
Adam raised his eyebrow at the monkey Faunus, "Aren't you one of Blake's friends?"
"Yep," Sun nodded, as he extended his hand, "Sun Wukong."
Adam glanced at the hand and rolled his eyes, "Why are you here?"
"Well," Sun sighed as he put his hand down, "I couldn't help but notice that you haven't really left the theater since we've been here."
"And your point is?" Adam folded his arms.
"Look, man," Sun sat next to him, "It's been a day. From what I've heard, you spent a lot of the time before we got here chasing Blake through a snow storm. I'm sure you're hungry and I was going to offer to show you where the kitchen is."
"I don't need your help," Adam scoffed, "I can find it all by myself."
Sun sighed, "Look, I'm sure you could, but I figured you could use a hand. If you don't want my help I'll go." He stood up and began to walk out.
Adam sighed, "Wait."
Sun stopped and turned around. Adam stood up and walked over to him, "Answer me one question. You're Blake's friend and yet you're still willing to help me. Why?"
Sun nodded, "Believe it or not, this has nothing to do with Blake, and everything to do with you. I used to think the White Fang was just a bunch of stupid, holier-than-thou creeps that use force to get whatever they want."
Adam growled at him, but Sun continued, "That is, until I saw your scar."
Adam backed away and folded his arms waiting for an explanation.
"Sure," Sun continued, "I knew Faunus were discriminated against, but I never saw that kind of brutality first hand until now. And, while I still don't think blowing up a school is the best way to go about it, I can see how the White Fang is needed to help the less fortunate of us."
Adam was honestly shocked. From what he had seen, this was the last thing he expected from the monkey Faunus.
"So," Sun finished, "This isn't me trying to be your friend, this is me seeing a less fortunate Faunus and trying to help them the right way. So, what do you say? Want to go get some food?"
"I'm not less fortunate than you," Adam scoffed, "But, I am hungry." He started walking towards the door, "If anyone asks, you're not helping me. We just happened to be going the same way and ran into each other."
Sun rolled his eyes, "Whatever, man. You've gotta do something about that pride of yours."
The two started walking out, when Sun felt as if someone was watching him. He turned around but saw nothing so he shrugged it off and continued to lead the most dangerous Faunus in the world to the kitchen for some lunch.
"Well shit!" Gordeau groaned as he finished watching the events of the Prime World in scroll-form. On one hand the Prime World had delivered several more people chosen by destiny to be available for the fight against the rouge viewer. The Ace-ops and Robyn Hill's Happy Huntresses would be very useful for that goal.
He frowned. It was horribly annoying that only people who got "roles" in the Prime Universe had the touch of destiny that allowed them to "grow" from watching the various universes. Otherwise he would be looking for the hundreds of Huntsman that were scattered to the wind but the note which he had gotten from his superior during the first viewing had explained why that was futile.
These "unnamed" characters could not receive ANYTHING from the viewings. Hell, they would not even be able to retain the memories of even visiting his place once they left. So he was forced to look for allies from the limited pool of people who had been touched by destiny.
If it were different, he most certainly would have never permitted someone like Cinder Fall access to his place. But, his superior had requested he gather every ally possible, and while difficult she was possible.
It honestly made him wonder something though, he hadn't chosen Clover and Harriet to be found and brought to his domain, yet here they were. Which meant his superiors were trying to do something. He shook the thought out of his head, he'd just ask them when he called them later.
Still, some of the new events from the Prime Universe made him reconsider his plans slightly. Winter Schnee and James Ironwood definitely needed more work than he expected, he had not liked what he saw there. Though he had been amused at watching Jacques being arrested. Shame that the version in his Universe was more intelligent and malicious. Willow's cameras had been quickly found and destroyed by Jacques immediately followed by him threatening to take his anger out on Weiss if Willow tried something like that again.
Sighing Gordeau started to compile several new Worlds which should help Ironwood and Winter from becoming like their Prime Universe Counterparts. Although, it would be nice to tell Clover that there wasn't a traitor among the Ace-Ops, even if the entire team kind-of betrayed humanity.
Suddenly, he remembered a promise he'd made to a certain rabbit. Using his computer, he quickly sent a mail to one of his Co-Workers so that he would go and search for the world where Coco Adel had ended up being connected to after the people from Remnant had been scattered over the Multiverse.
With the mail sent, he started on his second task of the break. A talk with a certain champion about what was going on.
"So, Hare," Clover started once the two had found their barracks, thanks to the ever helpful Penny, "That was some world wasn't it."
Harriet hadn't said a word since the viewing had finished, "I did it. It was me," she whispered to herself.
"Hare…" Clover started, but was quickly interrupted.
"No, Clover," Harriet snapped, "I caused the destruction of an entire world! I tore the team apart! How can I live with myself?" She slumped down on the bed in defeat.
"Simple," Clover nodded as he sat down next to her, "You have to realize it wasn't you."
"Yeah?" Harriet scoffed, "And how do I do that?"
"Well, I don't know if you heard him during lunch," Clover chuckled, "But apparently in one of the other universes that blonde boy was a cannibal who killed and had sex with people for no reason at all."
"But were they anything a like?" Harriet protested, "Did he really see himself in that other him at all? Because I sure did!"
"Seriously, Hare, what's this all about?" Clover asked, already tired of this charade, "Just tell me and I'll see what I can do."
Harriet sighed and sat up, "I wouldn't call us comrades."
"Huh?"
"That's what this is about," Harriet admitted, "When the Elm in that universe told me that she would never consider me a friend, I realized something."
She turned to him, "Clover, as much as we pretend, I think that the whole team does in fact see each other as friends. Because as soon as Elm said that, it cut me to the core. You saw how I got."
Clover nodded as he listened.
"So, maybe when we get back we start over?" she asked, "As a team of friends?"
"Well," Clover smirked, "That's as much up to the others as it is me, but for my part I already considered you all my friends."
Harriet went wide-eyed before smiling, "Thanks, friend."
Clover placed a hand on her shoulder, "Anytime, comrade."
Gordeau left his room and began his search for Pyrrha. As he made his way to the kitchen though, he ran into Roman, Ilia, and Neo.
"Ah, Greeny," Roman nodded, "How's it going?"
"Alright, and not so great all at the same time," Gordeau sighed, "I just found out some things that are going to make our task that much harder."
"How can we help?" Neo asked, "As much as I like spending time here, I miss our world."
"Well, at the moment I'm looking for Pyrrha," Gordeau answered, "I'm going to tell her what's going on so we'll have one more person to help."
"That's good," Ilia nodded, "I think she's still in the kitchen with her team."
"Thanks," Gordeau started to walk away when Roman grabbed his arm.
"Hey, can you do me a favor and take Neo with you?" he asked, "I noticed something earlier I need to talk to the resident chameleon about."
Gordeau nodded, "Hey, Neo, mind coming with me? I think Pyrrha will take it better if someone else is there to help explain things, and since you're the only one whose explained it other than me…"
"Sure, no problem," Neo nodded, planted a kiss on Ilia's cheek, and followed Gordeau to the kitchen.
"So, just the two of us, huh?" Ilia mused, "Well, I guess it couldn't hurt to spend some time with my girlfriend's father…" she trailed off as she looked at Roman and saw the death glare he was giving her.
"Are you done?" Roman asked, "Because you and I have something to discuss."
Ilia gulped as Roman led her into the nearest room, which just so happened to be set up like a museum for multiversal artifacts.
"Now," Roman continued, "You may not think I was paying attention during the dance earlier, what we me playing bass and all, but I was."
Ilia raised an eyebrow.
Roman rolled his eyes, "Oh don't give me that. You know, this relationship worried me from the start. Neo was alone and latched onto you because you did something nice for her, and you were looking for a rebound. Honestly, I never thought it was going to work."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Ilia muttered.
"Oh, no, you don't get to speak, Rainbow," Roman snapped, "You're going to sit there and listen to me, and then think about what I said."
Ilia snapped her mouth shut as Roman lit up a cigar, "Now, I was hoping that the both of you were just looking for a quick fling, or maybe a friends-with-benefits thing."
Ilia turned pink and started to protest.
"Oh, please," Roman rolled his eyes, "You think I don't know why the two of you spent the night in your room instead of the hideout Neo normally considered home? Contrary to what some people think of me, I'm not dense."
Ilia remained a pink hue as Roman continued, "But, what I say today worried me. Neo was totally lost in your arms during that dance. She doesn't think of this as a quick fling, no, she thinks it's the really deal."
"So do I!" Ilia stood up in protest.
Roman glared at her again, "Sit back down, and shut up, because that is the most blatant lie I've heard in a long time. And I worked for Matchstick!"
"It's not a lie!" Ilia continued to protest.
Roman squinted at her for a moment before his jaw dropped, causing his cigar to fall to the ground, "You really didn't realize you were doing it did you?"
"Doing what?!" Ilia asked.
"I'll tell you what!" Roman yelled, "Every single time my daughter had her eyes closed during that dance, you were busy looking at the Kitty Cat and Blondie with jealous eyes!"
Ilia sat down in shock, "I…I was?"
"YES!" Roman continued, "Which means you still have feelings for the Kitty. Strong enough feelings that you're not giving my daughter the attention she deserves."
Ilia couldn't believe it. She knew the feelings were still there, she just hadn't realized how strong they were.
"So," Roman lit another cigar, "I'm giving you a choice. Technically, this choice has three options: Option one: you forget about the cat and start loving my daughter the way she obviously feels about you. Option two: you break things off with Neo before she gets too invested and finds out later. Option three: you do neither of the above, break Neo's heart, and I come give you a beating you'll never forget. Are we clear?"
Ilia nodded frantically.
"Good," Roman nodded as he walked to the door, "Why don't you stay here and think about it for a while, huh? I'll send Neo your way when she's done."
Roman exited and Ilia put her face in her hands. She had a lot of thinking to do.
"You know, in hindsight, maybe you should've brought Roman with you instead," Neo sighed to Gordeau.
"Yeah," he sighed right back, "She's not really getting this whole coming back to life thing is she?"
"I mean you exist outside of time and space," Pyrrha was reasoning to herself, "So I can understand being brought back here. But going back to the world? That's just impossible, isn't it?"
"Seriously," Neo rolled her eyes, "What's not to get? We're all going back in time with our memories of what happened both in our world and here right after we help save the world."
"I just…" Pyrrha sighed, "It's a lot to take in. Plus I have to keep it a secret from Jaune and the others…"
"I know," Gordeau nodded, "Part of the lesson you learned was about not trying to do everything yourself. But you're not! Everyone in that theater will be helping. I'm just asking you to keep it a secret until Cinder, Adam, and anyone else who shows up that I warn you about changes their view."
"Okay," Pyrrha shrugged weakly, "I guess."
"I feel like you still don't quite believe me," Gordeau sighed, "I'm not supposed to do this, but if it's what convinces you."
Gordeau stood up and extended his hand, "Pyrrha, Neo, how would you two like to meet my bosses?"
"Why are we back in this room again, Weiss?" Yang questioned as after lunch, Weiss had led all the students to the same room they had the virginity conversation in.
"For a much more pressing matter than what I did last time," Weiss nodded seriously, "So serious, I had to invite the Remnant Boy's Club too."
Everyone looked over to Jaune, Ren, Oscar, Neptune, and Sun.
"I did not know we had a club name," Ren admitted.
"I didn't know they had a club name," Sun gestured.
"Anyway," Blake rolled her eyes, "If this is a Girl's club meeting, I can't help but notice we're missing a few members…"
"Well, Gordeau dragged Pyrrha and Neo off somewhere," Weiss explained, "I couldn't find Ilia anywhere, and after some comments she made in that last viewing, I don't exactly trust my sister with this task at the moment."
"I'm just excited to be invited to this one!" Penny smiled, "I can't wait to talk about girl stuff with all of you!"
"Is she always like this?" Oscar asked Jaune.
"You'd have to ask Ruby about that," Jaune answered, "She's the only one who really knows Penny."
"Speaking of which," Velvet nodded, "Where is Ruby?"
"You heard that?" Jaune asked incredulously.
"I hear everything," Velvet shrugged as she pointed to her ears.
"Ruby isn't here," Weiss answered, "Because she is the topic of discussion. I welcome all of you to the first ever meeting of the SRAACC!"
"The what?" Yang asked.
"The 'Save Ruby at all Costs Club!'" Weiss answered, "As we heard in your mother's song, Ruby is fated to die."
"We don't know that," Neptune countered, "It could just be a reference to her mother for all we know."
"No!" Weiss slammed her fist on the table, "It wasn't! Let me ask you something, when has Raven ever been wrong about anything?"
"Do you want me to answer that?" Yang crossed her arms and huffed.
"No, because I'm going to," Weiss scowled, "I didn't mean she did something wrong, I meant she was wrong about events. She was right about Ozpin. She was right about Salem!"
"Okay," Blake sighed as she got up next to Weiss, "I know you have feelings for Ruby."
"She does?!" Neptune and Jaune asked in shock.
"Yeah, that was kind of obvious," Sun raised an eyebrow, "She's been pining over her for a little while now."
"Oh this is great news, friend Weiss," Penny smiled, "I'm sure Ruby will be so pleased when I tell her about it!"
"NO!" Weiss yelled, "Don't tell her!"
"Huh? Why?" Penny asked.
"Because we don't know how Ruby feel's about Weiss yet," Yang explained, "We were hoping it would come up in the universes and that could set the stage."
"Wait," Weiss realized something, "I thought you liked her Penny? Why would you try to help me?"
"Oh, no," Penny shook her head, "Ruby is just my friend! But she's really my only one…"
"That makes sense," Nora nodded, "You can get clingy if you only really know one person."
Ren shot her a glance and smirked.
"Okay," Yang interrupted, "Conversation someone needs to have with Penny aside, I agree with Blakey. You're looking too much into this Weiss!"
"Yeah," Jaune nodded, "And even if there was a chance Ruby would die, you've got all of us here willing to protect her. We didn't need a club for that!"
"You mean…" Weiss started.
"C'mon, Ice Queen!" Yang chuckled, "Did you really think her sister…"
"Teammate…" Blake chimed in.
"Back-up partner…" Jaune added.
"Best Friend…" Penny nodded.
"Brother…from a different universe," Ren added.
"His girlfriend…" Nora nodded, "So kinda her sister-in-law…"
"Mentee…" Oscar chimed in.
"Us two jokers…" Sun smirked as he pulled Neptune close to him.
"And her Partner," Yang finished as she pointed at Weiss, "Would ever let her die?"
Weiss teared up as she looked around the room, "Thanks guys. It means a lot to me."
"No problem!" Yang wrapped her arm around Weiss, "Besides, if this works out, team RWBY will be one big family!"
"Yeah," Blake nodded, "One question though, how did you distract Ruby from this meeting?"
"Got any threes?" Ruby asked.
Winter looked down at her hand and sighed, "Of course I do."
"Yes!" Ruby celebrated.
Winter sighed, "How did I let Weiss talk me into this?"
"I have my ways," Weiss shrugged as the group left the room
Gordeau led the two girls back to his room, "Now, you two will be meeting my superiors, but just realize that they're not expecting questions from you. Let me do the talking, okay?"
The girls nodded, so Gordeau pulled a small pad out from under his bed.
"Stand on this please," he gestured to it.
The three got into position and Gordeau pulled out his scroll, "Gordeau to base, three to beam to your location."
Neo and Pyrrha exchanged a glance. They were both wondering what 'beam' meant.
Their question was soon answered when a beam of light surrounded them. In just a few seconds, the trio was now in a completely different area.
The girls looked around. They were in a completely white room, with five chairs in it. Positioned in each chair were small balls of light. They had never seen anything like it before.
"Sir," Gordeau addressed one of the balls, "I've come to ask something."
"I'm sure you have," a masculine voice emanated from the ball on the right.
"But that's not the only reason you've traveled here," a feminine voice on the left explained.
"Other wise you would have come alone," another feminine voice from the other one on the right.
"Yes," Gordeau answered, "I also came to show Miss Nikos that I'm not lying about bringing them back in time."
"Rest assured, Pyrrha dear," a male voice called from the other ball on the left, "We are not lying to you. Once the task in accomplished, you will be brought back to before your death."
Pyrrha was too stunned to say anything, so she just nodded.
"Now, your question, Gordeau," the ball on the far right asked again.
"I actually have two questions," he stated, "The first, has there been any progress on finding the traitor?"
A collective sigh fell across the room, "Very slowly," the ball on the far left answered, "So far, baring the five of us in the room, we've only eliminated three potential suspects."
"I assume that I'm one of those three?" Gordeau asked.
"Yes," the ball in the middle right answered, "With watchers R and B being the other two."
"Watcher R?!" Gordeau asked in shock, "But he's…"
"Yes, we know," the ball in the middle left answered, "But their universe was the first to go, and he truly knows nothing about it."
Gordeau sighed, "Well, we'll know about another one soon. I asked watcher Z to find a certain universe for me."
"That's acceptable," the ball on the right answered, "But if he betrays you, you can't let your feelings blind you."
"We know the two of you are good friends," the ball on the left continued, "So please think before accepting his help."
"I will," Gordeau nodded, "Now, for my other question. Why did my theater rearrange itself?"
A chuckle emanated from the ball in the middle, "I figured that would have been obvious, Gordeau. With the current development, and the fact that you've got people in your area anyway, we've approved your plan."
Gordeau gasped, "You mean?!"
"Yes," the ball chuckled again, "After we've taken care of the rouge watcher, you can lead the watchers against Salem and the Brothers."
Pyrrha and Neo gasped in shock as Gordeau smiled and bowed, "Thank you. I won't forget this."
"Just remember, the watcher comes first," the ball reminded, "Now go, I think you've got some unexpected visitors."
"Of course," Gordeau nodded and transported the trio back to his room.
Once she recovered, Neo turned to Gordeau in shock, "We're going to fight Gods!?"
"As in, the same ones your mother tried to fight and failed?!" Pyrrha questioned as well.
"Don't worry," Gordeau reassured, "These viewings aren't just for learning lessons. I've been picking them carefully so far, but remember the bleed effect?"
"You mean like Ruby suddenly being able to tap dance?" Pyrrha asked.
"Or Roman being able to play the bass?" Neo threw out.
"Exactly," Gordeau nodded, "Well, let's just say it works on certain abilities as well. As we continue watching, you guys will get stronger and gain new abilities to help us win this fight! Then the Brothers will finally pay for playing with my families lives and causing this never ending war!"
"Isn't that more your parent's fault?" Neo asked.
"Oh, it is," Gordeau nodded, "But they were played by the Brothers, kinda like the apprentices were in the last universe."
"I suppose we'll have to keep this a secret too," Pyrrha asked.
"Yes," Gordeau nodded, "Honestly, I didn't want anyone to know about this until way later, but I guess it can't be helped. So please don't tell anyone." He shot a glare at Neo as he said it.
Neo just chuckled nervously.
Suddenly, Gordeau's proximity alarm went off and a flash of light appeared in the room. Standing in front of the trio, was a young woman with tanned skin and violet eyes. Her light-blond hair was tied up in a ponytail. She had a beauty mark under her right eye and another one on the left side under her mouth.
She wore a black sleeveless coat with grey accents over a red double-breasted sleeveless vest, a brown high neck shirt and a light gray short-sleeved shirt with one right short sleeve that had a black cuff whilst the other sleeve was longer. She also wore a brown belted waist clincher with matching brown pants tucked into black knee-high boots with dark brown cuffs. Around her neck she wore an olive green scarf with tattered looking tails hanging behind her. She also wore a pair of black archery styled gloves with the index finger missing on both of them.
"Robyn Hill?" Gordeau asked.
"Did you mean what you said?"
Raven looked at her brother as he spoke to her. Glancing at Qrow, she saw that his expression was a mix between angry and confused. Sighing she decided to lay her cards on the table.
"Full House," she smirked.
Qrow grumbled as he threw his hand in the pot.
"Don't you ever get tired of losing little brother?" she chuckled, before turning serious, "But yes, for the most part. I still need to go an hour every day to check up on the Tribe and give out orders but for the most part the Tribe is now self-sufficient. The younger generation has been taught by me about how to fight and defeat Huntsman so in terms of skill I´m not needed anymore. On contrary, my status as Maiden would merely endanger the Tribe now. The only reason why I´m not completely distancing myself is because Vernal's death left me without a direct successor as leader. It will take some time to find someone as level-headed and strong as her among the younger bunch."
Qrow grunted but nodded. That made sense, Taiyang and her daughters were all decent fighters who could defend themselves easily from Grimm and Salem's Henchman. The Tribe though had not only warriors but also civilians who would be a big weak-point should Salem's followers ever come to find Raven. Now that her status was exposed, she really was just a danger to the Tribe if she stayed with them.
"Alright. Well, I suppose that's good enough," Qrow shrugged.
"Well, I don't think it is!" Tai chimed in from his spot around the table, "Our family is at risk, Raven! You said so yourself in that song!"
"Tai," Raven scowled, "That wasn't me and you know it. I don't want anything to happen to Yang or Ruby, but if their going to continue this stupid quest, I'm not helping."
"But you should!" Summer chimed in, "These are our children, Raven! Don't you care about them?"
"Of course I do," Raven snapped, "But all four of us know the futility of this quest! She can't be stopped!"
Qrow sighed. As usual, the team STRQ poker game had turned into a shouting match. He'd thought it would be a good idea, what with them all being together for the first time in forever. As usual though, everything that could go wrong had, and he didn't even have his semblance to screw things up this time.
Suddenly, Qrow got an idea, "Rae, I'm not asking you to help. I know you want nothing to do with Oz and his quest. But, I am going to ask for one thing."
"What is it, Qrow?" Raven sighed as she put a hand to her head.
"If we get in a tight spot," Qrow inhaled, "Pull us back to Tai."
"What?" the three others asked in shock.
"I'm serious, Raven," Qrow stared at her, "Keep an eye on us, and if one of the kids get's themselves into more shit than they can handle, hop in and pull them back to Tai. You don't have to fight, you don't have to risk your life, just help protect us, alright?"
Tai nodded, "I'm sure it would mean a lot to the girls too. At least then they'd know you're still looking out for them."
Raven sighed, "All right, fine. I'll do it."
Qrow let out a small sigh of relief. Maybe if he eased her into it she'd be more willing to help later. After all, he was pretty sure this was the lesson she needed to learn. At least, according to Oz's kid.
Suddenly, a bright light flashed across the room and it suddenly had a fifth person in it. It was a middle-aged man with a mane of tan/gray hair and a beard. He had a tanned complexion with brown eyebrows and dark brown eyes. He wore a brown greatcoat with a matching mantle, which had cross emblems on each side. He also wore a white dress shirt under his coat, a western necktie and carried a pocket watch. He also wore dark brown slacks and dress shoes and had a tufted lion's tail.
"Leo?" Qrow asked.
"Q…Qrow?!" Lionheart answered in a panic, "What are you doing here? Wait… What am I doing here?!"
"Whoah…" Qrow held up his hands, "Let's take this one step at a time."
"So, you're telling me that the world was destroyed. And in addition to that, there's a single Grimm queen named Salem, who also happens to be your mother," Robyn attempted to wrap her head around everything, "And the only way to bring the world back is by watching other worlds?"
"That's an excellent summery, yes," Gordeau nodded.
Robyn glared at the man, "Well, forgive me if I don't necessarily believe you right away."
"Come on, lady," Neo rolled her eyes, "It's all true and easier if you just roll with it."
Gordeau shook his head, "No, words mean nothing to Miss Hill. Actions however, mean everything." He held out his hand to Robyn, "If you don't trust me, ask me anything you'd like. You and I both know that this will get the truth out."
Robyn eyed him warily, expecting some sort of trick. Eventually she grabbed his hand and a lilac aura surrounded the hands, "Alright, I believe you then. No one who knew about my semblance and was lying would offer that up. But I do have some other questions."
"Naturally," Gordeau nodded and waited.
Robyn narrowed her eyes, "Did you have anything to do with our world disappearing?"
"No," Gordeau shook his head, "It's my world too. Why would I want it gone?"
The Aura around their hands lit up green.
Robyn nodded and began again, "What are your plans?"
Pyrrha silently gulped as she knew Gordeau didn't want his plans getting out.
But the more experienced man had expected something like this, "To help you help me rid Remnant of the threat to it."
The Aura lit up green again.
Neo smirked from behind Robyn. The man was a master at masking the truth.
Robyn looked like she wasn't fully satisfied, but continued anyway, "What's the purpose of viewing the worlds?"
Gordeau sighed, "That's a long explanation. It actually has three parts: to find the missing people of Remnant, to teach them life lessons, and to impart new skills onto them."
The Aura lit up green again.
Robyn was impressed, but decided on the big question next, "Can I trust you?"
Gordeau smirked, "Yes."
"So it turns out you were right, Leo," Qrow shrugged as team STRQ finished explaining things to Lionheart, "She can't be destroyed."
"I don't understand," Lionheart said with a confused look, "I thought you were furious with me?"
"I am," Qrow nodded, "Leading all those Huntsmen to their death is close to unforgivable. But after learning what I did, and some talks with my sister and a certain ex-thief whose around somewhere, I realize you were just trying to save yourself. While I think you backed the wrong side, I can see where you were coming from."
"A whole lot of good it did me," Lionheart sighed, "I still ended up dead. Skewered to death by that stupid Seer."
"Seer?" Qrow asked, "What is that?"
"A very specialized type of Grimm," Lionheart explained, "Salem uses them so she can keep an eye on her agents and talk to them."
"That's not great," Qrow sighed, "They showed me your body afterward. It wasn't pretty."
"If it makes you feel any better," Tai threw out, "Ozpin shaped the story so that you died a hero, trying to save the school from the White Fang."
"He shouldn't have," Lionheart sighed, "The things I did were unforgivable. And they had no purpose what-so-ever. My main goal still backfired and got me killed."
"Well," Summer sighed, "If you're here it means you're important to the universe we're watching next."
"Yeah," Tai put his arm around the disgruntled ex-headmaster, "C'mon, these things have had a way of cheering us up every time we view them."
Four of the five members walked out of the room. Raven, however, sat in contemplation. Was that her future if she kept up the life of self-preservation? She shook the thought from her head. No, she'd never stoop that low and actually work for Salem. It would never happen, right?
AN: And I'm back everybody! Sorry for the slightly longer delay, but this chapter needed some extra work to get out to all of you.
Lot's of plot stuff going on this chapter, though it always does during the breaks.
A few things to touch upon. Now you all know what this story is leading up to, and Gordeau's true motives. I hope you guys like where I'm planning on taking this.
Watcher's R and B are actually characters from a different fictional universe. It's one of my favorites, but would take too long to show, so it won't be appearing. I will probably reference it a few times though, so be prepared for that.
Anyone who's kept up with this fic and the author's notes should be able to tell who watcher Z is.
No seating chart this week, as they're not in the theater yet, but here's the poll results:
Tied for 10th: Amber, Jinn, Miltia Malachite, and Willow Schnee with 2
Tied for 9th: Nora Valkyrie, Salem (Blonde), and Summer Rose with 3
Tied for 8th: Coco Adel, Salem (Grimm), and Velvet Scarlatina with 4
Tied for 7th: Emerald Sustrai, Raven Branwen, Sienna Kahn, and Weiss Schnee with 5
Tied for 6th: Blake Belladonna, Cinder Fall, and Kali Belladonna with 7
5th: Glynda Goodwitch with 8
4th: Neo Politan with 10
3rd: Ruby Rose with 12
2nd: Yang Xiao-Long with 13
1st: Pyrrha Nikos with 14
See you next week for the start of Kingdom Hearts!
