Oscar Pines carried a pitchfork into the barn, which had loose bits of hay strung about the floor. He passed a sink with a mirror behind it, and something made him pause and take a closer look. He saw his own reflection and lifted a lock of his hair, as if expecting something different. He leaned forward and examined the mirror more closely. "Hello?" He asked.
Just as Oscar was about to back away, a voice boomed out, sending him crashing backward. "Hello! I'm Professor Ozpin!" The voice introduced itself.
Oscar looked up at the sink and mirror from the floor of the barn, breathing heavily. From outside the barn, a woman's voice called out. "Oscar? You be careful with those tools!" His aunt called. (Just out of curiosity, was anyone else pissed how long this took to explain everything?)
Yang Xiao Long was inside a nightmare. All around her were broken pieces of buildings and darkness. She looked around, confused, and let out a small gasp when she looked down. She raised both of her arms and turned them, examining their presence, particularly her right arm.
Yang looked up from her arms to see Adam Taurus walking toward her. The red accents in his hair, mask and outfit had a surreal glow. Yang stepped back defensively and discovered that she was suddenly wearing Ember Celica. She blasted Adam five times, but they did nothing to him while he steadily continued walking closer.
Adam put his right hand on the handle of his sheathed sword. Yang tried to attack him again, but her weapons were gone, as was her right arm. She stared for a moment in confusion and disbelief and then startled when Adam was abruptly directly before her. He grinned at her and started to unsheath Wilt from Blush.
Yang awakened with a gasp. She was in her room, lying on top of her bed. The golden robotic arm given to her by Serena that Lance made rested on her bedside table, out of the box. Yang looked at it for a moment before turning her face away. She heard laughter coming from downstairs.
Yang headed downstairs to discover Professors Bartholomew Oobleck and Peter Port sitting at her kitchen table and laughing with her father, Taiyang Xiao Long. There was a bowl of fruit at the center of the table.
"And, and, and then, in comes Qrow, wearing a skirt! I was just a TA, I-I didn't know what to do, so I just... I just left the room to laugh!" Port said.
Yang came to the kitchen door while the three laughed. "We told him it was a kilt! He'd never worn a uniform before, so he didn't know!" Taiyang explained.
"That is terrible! What is wrong with you!?" Oobleck said. (Seriously, what a dick.)
"Hey! The girls all said he had nice legs! I did that jerk a favor! Besides, that's not even the best part! See, then we-" Taiyang started again, but then Port put his right leg on the tabletop, cutting off Taiyang.
"Like what you see?" He asked.
The three laughed and Port lost his balance. He tried to save himself from falling, but ended up on the floor. "Whoa-oh!" He cried out as he fell.
There's even more laughter. Taiyang clapped from mirth and Port joined in the hilarity from the floor. Yang giggled too, covering her mouth, but the three teachers became alerted to her presence. Oobleck stood while Port got up off the floor.
"Oh, uh, Miss Xiao Long! Uh, please, join us." Port offered.
Yang entered while Oobleck laughed, a little bit embarrassed. "Oh, yes, yes, pull up a chair. Please, pull up a chair." He agreed.
"I'm good." She said, hoisting herself backward up onto the kitchen counter, beside where her father stood. Port and Oobleck sat back down. "So, what are you doing here?" She asked.
"Despite popular belief, teachers do have a life outside the classroom." Oobleck said.
"Professor Goodwitch is working 'round the clock to restore Beacon to its former glory! But, Mistral wasn't built in a day. And we all need rest from time to time." Port said.
"Now look, let's not worry about that right now. So, there we were, standing in the auditorium, looking at Qrow, wearing a skirt. Then Oz tells everyone, 'It's time to work on our landing strategy!'" Taiyang continued his story.
"The Branwen twins have always been... interesting, to say the least." Oobleck said.
"That sure didn't seem to stop young Tai." Port said slyly.
"Hey, come on, man, she's right here." Taiyang said nervously.
"Oh, please! She's a mature young woman! If she can handle combat, she can handle a few jabs at her old man!" Port said.
"That's not the issue, Pete! And besides, she's still a teenager!" Tai said.
Yang was annoyed at this. "'She' is also in the room, and can be directly spoken to. And I think I've been through enough to be considered an adult at this point." She said. (Seriously, she's got to be 18 at this point, or at the very least, REALLY close to it).
Taiyang sighed at this. "Adult or not, you've still got a long way to go before you're ready for the real world." He said.
"Oh my gosh! Does every father figure have the same three condescending phrases?" She asked.
"Yeah! But we only use them when we mean it!" He countered.
Port and Oobleck looked at each other as father and daughter argue, a touch uncomfortable. Oobleck took a sip from his mug while Port pulled at his collar.
"Is that so?" Yang asked.
"As a matter of fact, it is so! If you honestly think that you're ready to go out there on your own, ha, well I guess you lost some brain cells along with that arm." He countered. (What the fuck, man?!)
Yang gasped and pulled back from her father's face while a stunned Port leaned forward and Oobleck's mouth dropped open and his glasses sliped down. There's a comedic beat before the mug slipped out of Oobleck's hand to safely land on the table. All three stared at Taiyang for a few seconds. "You... jerk!" She said, playfully punching Taiyang, and the father and daughter laughed together. (That ain't funny!)
"Are we finally talking about the Goliath in the room?" Oobleck whispered.
Taiyang and Yang looked at each other and then laughed. Relieved laughter came from both Port and Oobleck as well. "Oh, Miss Xiao L— Yang, if you don't mind me asking, why haven't you tried on the arm yet?" Port asked.
"Oh, yes, yes! A piece of BladeCorp technology given out like that is rare indeed! Not to mention the effort it took to deliver it here. It seems a great many people want to see you returned to normal." Oobleck agreed.
"I'm... scared." She said. Taiyang took a sideways step closer to Yang, watching and listening. "Everyone keeps talking about me getting back to normal. And I appreciate it, but... this is normal now." She said. Oobleck and Port exchanged sad, knowing glances. "It's just taking me a while to get used to it." She explained.
"Well, normal is what you make of it." Taiyang said.
"What is that supposed to mean? Do you want me to just pretend like nothing happened? I lost a part of me. A piece of me is gone. And it's never coming back." Yang said. (No, but you can fucking replace it! Seriously, who would say no to getting a lost limb replaced?!)
"You're right. It's not coming back. But that doesn't have to stop you from becoming who you wanna be. You're Yang Xiao Long, my sunny little dragon." Taiyang said, putting his hand on his daughter's shoulder. "You can do whatever you put your mind to. So whenever you're ready to stop moping, and get back out there, I'll be there for you." He said.
"I... I..." She started.
"Fear is like any other emotion. It comes and goes. It's all in how you handle it. Why, even I find myself wrestling with that emotion from time to time." Port explained.
"Really? You?" Yang said, unconvinced.
"He's afraid of mice." Oobleck whispered.
"They bring only disease and famine!" Port snapped, pounding the table. Yang laughed while Port ranted about the creepiness of mice. Taiyang watched her. "And don't even get me started on their tails! So hairless, and simply unnatural!" He explained.
"Port, I assure you, you are safe. There's no mice here right now." Oobleck assured him.
The scene transitioned to Yang taking the last steps at the top of the stairs. She turned partially and lifted her hand to those below. "Goodnight!" She said in farewell.
The arm on the bedside table is the first thing she saw when she walked into her room. She looked at it for a moment but then moved to the window when she heard the front door to the house open followed by the voices of the three men. She decided to stand out of side beside the window and listen.
"Thanks for having us over, Tai." Port said.
"Any time. You're always welcome." Taiyang offered.
"It may be a while before we return. There is still much work to be done at the school." Oobleck explained.
"I hesitate to ask, but is there any word from young Miss Rose?" Port asked.
Behind Taiyang, Yang moved into visibility at her bedroom window. "Not yet." He said.
"Have you thought about going after her? Trying to bring her home?" Oobleck asked.
Taiyang sighed. "I've got to... look after some things." He explained, glancing toward her bedroom window, Yang moved out of sight again and squeezed her right upper arm, looking dejected.
On a path through the woods, Team SRRNJ moved forward with Ruby looking at a map. Meanwhile, I appeared to be humming "Fireflies" by Owl City, but the lyrics in my mind were QUITE different.
(We won't reach Mistral for quite a bit... But we're gonna get you, Cinder, you little bitch...) I sang in my mind.
"Someone sounds like they're in a good mood." Nora said, bouncing as she walked beside me.
"I was thinking maybe by humming and thinking about horrible things befalling Cinder, I might feel a little better." I explained.
"Did it work?" Ren asked.
"Nope, still as miserable as ever." I said.
Ruby frowned at this, but shook it off and waved for us to hurry up. "Come on, guys! If we pick up the pace, we can hit the next town before sunset!" She said.
"Assuming it's still there." Jaune said.
"Hey, I'm supposed to be the negative, depressed one. Cheer up." I told him.
"Of course it'll be there. This one's supposed to be pretty big! Hee-gan...bayn-a." Ruby said.
"Higanbana. It's a well protected village with a popular inn." Ren corrected and explained.
"Which means, no camping in the rain!" Nora said happily.
"See? Everything's going to be fine!" Ruby said.
"You know, we've had a lot of ups and downs. But things could be a lot worse. I really thought we'd see more Grimm." Jaune said.
"As did I." Ren agreed.
"I guess our luck is finally turning around!" Nora said.
"Yeah. I'll take whatever good news we can get." I said.
The scene changed to Team SRRNJ being viewed from above, a rocky outcropping just on the edge of the view.
"To Higanbana!" Nora and I said.
"To Higanbana!" Ren and Nora cheered as well.
"To Higanban... ban-a!" Ruby tried as well, but still tripped up on the name.
A Beowolf stomped into view and growled at the five of us. Just as it was about to leap, it was stabbed through by Qrow. Three disintegrating bodies of other Beowolves were just behind him, having been taken out by Draco. "Back off my homies, Grimm!" He told them.
A black crow cawed from a tree branch on eye level with Qrow. He looked at it and it fliew off with Draco, following SRRNJ. "Luck." Qrow scoffed.
It was raining on the village of Higanbana. Through the window of an inn, team SRRNJ was shown silently discussing with the proprietor. A backward zoom brought the visual out into the street, and through yet another window being viewed from the inside of a tavern. Qrow sat at a table, watching. "You think Sai's gonna be okay? I've never seen my dude this depressed." Draco asked.
"He lost his fiancee. He's grieving. He'll be fine. And hopefully, he'll put those negative feelings to good use and take Cinder out." Qrow said.
"Amen." Draco agreed.
A waitress set a glass with liquor and ice in front of Qrow. "Oh, I didn't o—" He started.
"From the woman upstairs. Red eyes. Said you wouldn't mind bottom shelf." She explained.
Qrow turned and looked up. An overhead shot showed the spacious lower level of the tavern and its several round tables, while the edge of a balcony was just visible. Qrow turned back. "Thanks." He said.
"But I went ahead and gave you top. Lucky you." She said with a wink.
Qrow watched with a pleased smirk as the waitress walked away. "Damn, man, I think she likes with you. You should go for that." Draco said.
After she was gone, he looked through the two windows to see no one visible in the lobby of the inn. "Yeah. Listen, you wait here. I'll be back." He said, taking his glass and heading upstairs. Raven Branwen waited for him at one of the tables, her mask atop it.
"Hello, brother." She greeted.
Qrow stared at her from the top of the stairs for a moment before moving to her. "Raven." He greeted, pulling the chair that was beside her and dragging it to a position across from her instead. With his hand on the back of the chair, he simply looked at her expectantly. Raven rolled her eyes and moved her mask to the side. Qrow sat down. "So, what do you want?" He asked.
"A girl can't just catch up with her family?" She asked.
"She can, but you're not. Now how 'bout we get on with it? Unless you plan on keeping these comin'." He said, setting the glass down.
"Does she have it?" She asked.
Qrow didn't answer right away, instead running his fingertip along the edge of his glass. "Did you know Yang lost her arm?" He asked.
"That's not—" She started.
"Rhetorical question, I know you know. It's just obnoxious that you'd bring up family and then carry on like your own daughter doesn't exist." He explained.
"I saved her." Raven defended.
"Once. Because that was your rule, right? Real 'Mom of the Year' material, sis." He countered.
Raven leaned forward and grabbed Qrow by the forearm, stilling his sarcastic, nonchalant motions. The view slowly spun above their heads as she spoke intently to him. "I told you Beacon would fall and it did. I told you Ozpin would fail and he has. Now you tell me. Does. Salem. Have it?" She demanded.
"I thought you weren't interested in all of that." He said suspiciously.
"I just want to know what we are up against." She explained.
"And which "we" are you referring to?" He asked. Raven glared and finally let go of her brother and sat back down with a noise of disgust. "You should come back, Raven. The only way we'd beat her is by working together. All of us." He said.
"You're the one who left. The tribe raised us, and you turned your back on them." She said.
"They were killers and thieves." He explained.
"They were your family." She countered.
"You have a very skewed perception of that word." He said.
Raven stood up, upset. "I lead our people now. And as leader, I will do everything in my power to ensure our survival." She said.
"I saw. The people of Shion saw, too." Qrow said.
"The weak die, the strong live. Those are the rules. You're lucky I don't kill that Blade kid you've been following. His family has targeted our clan for years." Raven countered.
"You'd fail. He may be weakened by depression, but he's still enough to take out your whole clan." Draco said, appearing behind her.
"Well, you've certainly got someone strong on your side. I've seen the damage." Said to her.
Raven turned away. "We couldn't have known the Grimm would set in as quickly as they did." She defended.
"I'm not talking about the Grimm." Qrow said. Still not facing Qrow, Raven looked up, eyes widening slightly at his words. "And I'm not talking about you, either." He said.
"If you don't know where the Relic is, then we have nothing left to talk about." She said, reaching for her mask, but Qrow grabbed onto the top of it.
"I don't know where the Spring Maiden is, either, but if you do, I need you to tell me." He said.
"And why would I do that?" She asked, pulling her mask out of Qrow's grasp.
"Because if you don't, you'll leave with a similar injury as your daughter." Draco said.
"No she won't." Qrow said, looking at him, then to Raven. "Because without her, we're all going to die." He told her.
A moment of tense silence passed between them as a nearby lantern died out.
Raven scoffed at this. "And which 'we' are you referring to?" He said.
Qrow grimaced as Raven walked away. The sound of her sword getting unsheathed was heard and he looked up, unhappy. Raven walked into her red portal and disappeared. "I'mma punch her in the face next time I see her." Draco said.
"Go ahead." Qrow said. There was the sound of breaking glass and a gasp. The two turned to see the waitress, trembling at the sight of Raven disappearing. She took a cautious step backward as she looked sideways at Qrow. "Make this one a double." He said, gesturing to his glass.
Back at Patch, Taiyang was outside the house, watering his bed of sunflowers. Yang came out, wearing the robotic arm. She used it automatically to shade her eyes from the sun, and then looked down at the metal hand interestedly, moving the fingers around. Taiyang stood. "Okay. Let's get started." He said.
Back at the Inn, Nora and I were sleeping together, but while she was indeed sleeping like a baby, I was tossing and turning to keep the nightmares at bay. "No... Cinder, don't... Stop. Please! Pyrrha..." I said in my sleep, the camera zooming in on my forehead.
I was standing alone in a dark void, nothing around me but darkness and silence. Suddenly, though, I heard something. "It's your fault..." A familiar voice echoed.
"Hello? Is someone there?" I asked. There was a glow behind me and I turned to see what it was, horrified at the sight. "No... Not again..." I pleaded.
It was Pyrrha, but much like the last time I saw her in a vision, she was deathly grey with black eyes and ghostly white pupils, black tear lines staining her face as she looked at me furiously and accusingly. "Why would you let me die?! Why didn't you save me?! You could've saved me, why didn't you!? Why would you abandon me, Sai!? I thought you loved me! You wanted to marry me!" She shouted at me.
Each accusation was like a dagger in the heart, hurting more than the last as they sunk in, because I knew they were right. "I'm sorry, Pyrrha, I tried! I wasn't fast enough! There was nothing I could do!" I pleaded with her.
"How was there nothing you could do! You always make yourself seem invincible, like there's nothing you can't do, but the one thing you couldn't do was save me, the woman you said you loved! What did I ever do to you to make you sit there and watch as I died!? I never wanted this, Sai. I never asked for this!" She said, revealing the wound from the arrow in her chest. "YOU did this, Sai! YOU let me die! YOU'RE the reason I'm gone! YOU'RE the reason they're alone! Jaune hates you! Ruby hates you! Ren hates you! Nora hates you! They ALL hate you for what you did to me! YOU killed me! YOU did this to me! It's ALL your fault! YOUR FAULT!" She screamed.
"No, I-" I tried to defend myself, but I couldn't. It was true and the truth was killing me. I dropped to my knees in despair, losing the strength to even stand and face her. "You're right. You're gone and it's all my fault. Please... Just tell me... What can I do? Is there ANY way I can make this up to you?" I asked.
Her spear suddenly materialized in her hand. "You can die! It's all that you deserve now is to die and burn in hell! Not just for me, but for all the people you failed to save in Beacon! Penny, Damion! They were your friends and you couldn't save them, either! And I thought I'D be the one you saved, but you couldn't even save me and you LOVED ME! And that's why you deserve to die!" She said, throwing the spear at me, hitting me in the chest the same place the arrow hit her.
I snapped awake, breathing heavily. I looked over to see Nora still asleep. I quickly got dressed and bolted from the inn, heading outside of town. I reached the forest and dropped to my knees. "I can't take this, anymore... The guilt... The nightmares... It's too much. Pyrrha's right. This is what I deserve." I said, pulling out Last Regrets.
Damion appeared beside me after this. "Sai... Don't do this. You can see Pyrrha again, remember? You just have to kill Cinder. You've been through a lot, yes, but you can't give up now. What about Ruby and the others? They still need you." He said.
"I couldn't beat Cinder the first time when I wasn't the fucking train wreck I am now. What makes you think I can do it this time? Besides, Ruby and the others don't need me. I'm just slowing them down. They'll be better off without me. Everyone will. I'm sorry, Damion. I just can't do this anymore. I'd say I'll see you on the other side, but you aren't in hell." I said, putting the two revolvers up to my head. "Enough is enough..." I say, putting pressure on the trigger, before I heard someone behind me.
"Sai!" Ruby called.
"What?!" I asked, quickly wheeling around to face her, hiding the guns behind my back. "I TOTALLY wasn't trying to shoot myself in the head." I said, putting the guns in my pocket.
"Ooo...kay?" She said suspiciously.
"So, what did you need?" I asked.
"You should come see this for yourself..." She said.
"Please don't let it be anything worse." I said, following her back.
We headed to the inn and entered my room, where Jaune Ren and Nora were all standing around the bed, where I saw something shocking. It was a little girl, maybe around 7 years old, but she was the spitting image of Pyrrha, with the exception of her hair and eyes. She had the same hairstyle, but it was silver instead of red and she had one bright green eye like my fallen fiancee, but the other one was a devilish bright red just like mine. Shaking it off for now, I looked at the child who now stared back at me. "Hello... Little girl. What are you doing in our inn room?" I asked.
"I'm trying to find my mama and papa." She explained.
"I see. And who might they be?" I asked. "Maybe we can help you find them. Or at the very least a street corner near where they live we can dump you on." I said.
She tilted her head in confusion at this. "You are my papa. Didn't you know that?" She asked.
"I'm sorry, what?!" I asked in disbelief.
"You have a kid?!" Everyone asked me.
"Let's see..." I said, thinking back to all the times I made the bed rock. "I didn't think so. I always used protection." I said, looking at her. "And what's your name, sweetie?" I asked her.
"I believe my name is... Saphyra Nikosade." She introduced herself.
I went wide-eyed for a minute, the background going black behind me as a Wheel of Fortune phrase appeared, with mine and Pyrrha's names above it, sort of like hangman in a way. The S and A of my name descended into the first two slots of the first word, while the P, H, Y, one of the R's and the A from Pyrrha's name descended into the following boxes. Then, "Nikos" descended into the second box, my A, D and E from "Blade" quickly joining it. "I-I'm sure that's just a coincidence." I said.
"I am the daughter of Sai Blade and Pyrrha Nikos." She explained.
"WHAT?!" Everyone asked, turning to face me.
"Okay, again, of all the times I've sent the snake into the burrow to look for its prey, I never sent it into Pyrrha's burrow." I defended. "Even if I did, I only met Pyrrha like, 2 years ago, she certainly wouldn't be 7." I explained.
"That is correct. I wasn't born naturally, but of the combined magic elements in the collective dust and ash you and mama left behind a few months ago. That is all I know." She explained.
"Riiight. We should look for a foster home... with excellent mental care." Ren said.
"I believe it." I said. "Awesome! I have a daughter! Just too bad not a result of the fun way..." I said quietly to myself.
"Yay!" She giggled.
"WHAT?!" Everyone asked again.
"A: stop doing that..." I said, wiggling my finger in my ear. "Second, TRUST ME, stranger things HAVE happened." I explained.
"Name ONE." Ruby said.
"When I was 13, I was taken to a different planet to travel through time and fix history. 6 months later, I had to stop a giant demon tower from destroying New York. Then I fought angels with a witch who stops time while she babysat her younger self..." I listed.
"We get it." Jaune stopped me. "This is just... A lot to take in." He said, looking at her while she looked at him.
"Uncle Jaune, where is mama?" She asked.
Jaune's heart sank at this, as well as mine. "Well, you see, sweetie..." He said.
The background around me went black again as ghost Pyrrha appeared behind me. "And now a child is without her mother because of you. Truly, you can never be forgiven." She said.
"Hey, you should be proud, you're a mother." I told her, before shaking my head and snapping back to reality, picking up my daughter. "Don't worry, sweetie. Mama's just... away for now. We'll see her again, soon, though. We just have to send a very bad woman to a very bad place." I said.
"Mexico?" She asked.
"Exactly!" I confirmed. "Oh, I almost forgot. Saphyra will be voiced by Cristina Vee, voice of beloved characters such as Louise from The Familiar of Zero, Ruri Hijiribe from Durarara!x2, Sailor Mars from Sailor Moon, Noel Vermillion in Blazblue and Marinette Dupein-Chang/Lady bug from Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir." I added.
"You've been Netflix binging when you were supposed to be sleeping, haven't you?" Ren asked.
"Yes, in the battle between nightmares and sleep deprivation, sleep deprivation wins." I confirmed.
"So... shouldn't we have someone come get her? Our journey's too dangerous for a child." Ren said.
"But... I want to be with Papa." She said, looking up at me.
I looked down at her pleading eyes and couldn't find it in me to say no. "Okay then. She's my daughter, I'm supposed to look after her, right?" I ask.
"But what about all the Grimm?! And what happens when we run into... you know..." Ruby asked. They had learned there are consequences when Cinder's name is directly spoken.
"I failed to protect Pyrrha, but I will die before I fail to protect her." I said.
"If you're sure..." Jaune said, leaving along with Ren and Ruby.
"Well then, it's a good thing I always keep a spare bed." I said, pulling out and setting up a king-sized waterbed. The three of us got in and slept soundly through the night. And in the morning we left, heading back on our path with Saphyra riding on my shoulders. The people at the inn weren't too happy about us apparently sneaking in a sixth person and we were quickly run out with an assault from the service bell and the room keys. "Jeez! Where did that come from? That inn ain't getting any stars from my yelp review." I said.
"Well, I'm sure it's gonna get better from here." Jaune said, before beowulves began to pour out of the forest in front of us. "Uh, Sai? We could use you up front, buddy." He said.
"It's just a few beowulves. You guys can handle this. I have to be a good influence for Saphy." I said, looking up at her.
Ren put his fist up to his mouth and fake coughed. "Cinder." He said after a cough.
That was the trigger. "CINDER!? WHERE?! I'LL KILL HER! I'LL FUCKING KILL HER!" I said, rushing in and slaughtering the beasts after Ruby took Saphyra off my shoulders. "You're fucking dead!" I shouted as I continued to mutilate them.