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Chapter 4
"That was awesome!"
Some people might have told Ruby that following her uncle without telling anyone was a bad idea, but those people were no fun. Sure, Patch's wooded areas weren't completely safe, as the small group of Beowolves that emerged from the treeline seemed determined to prove. Of course, Ruby was tailing one of the greatest huntsmen in the history of ever, which meant she had nothing to worry about.
The whole fight had only lasted about a minute. The six Grimm had surrounded Qrow, almost like they thought they had lured him into a trap. They had no idea how wrong they were. Qrow moved fast enough that Ruby almost missed his first move.
He drew his massive sword, which he called Harbinger, and brought it down hard on the first Beowolf, cleaving it in two. Without slowing down, Qrow turned right around as he pulled a switch that shifted Harbinger into its gun mode. He fired a single shot, hitting a second Beowolf dead-on, causing it to disappear in a cloud of black smoke.
The remaining four all attacked at once, but that had only resulted in Ruby's favorite part of the entire fight. Harbinger shifted modes again, now settling on the shape of the coolest looking scythe that Ruby had ever seen.
Well, it was the only scythe Ruby had ever seen in person, but that made it the coolest by default.
Qrow took a single wide swing, letting Harbinger cut through all four of its targets cleanly and easily. Not that Ruby was really surprised. She knew her uncle could have cut through a hundred of those monsters, no problem.
"That last move especially!" Ruby continued to gush from her spot in the brush. "That was the coolest thing ever!"
"Well, I doubt the Grimm thought it was that cool..." Qrow replied casually, confident grin on his face until up until he quickly shook his head and returned to "adult mode." The worst mode, as far as Ruby was concerned. "I mean- What are you doing out here, Kiddo?"
"Watching you kick monster butt!" Ruby jogged over to him, miming the fight she had seen as she did. "You were all like swoosh and bang and... uh..." Ruby paused as she tried to come up with another noise that the scythe had made. "Well, like I said, it was awesome."
"Yeah, thanks, but-"
"How'd you know it was gonna work?"
Thankfully, Qrow swapped his adult face for a confused one. "How'd I know what was gonna work?"
"That last move," Ruby answered calmly as she swung the imaginary scythe in her hands again. "I'm just sayin'... It looks heavy and if you'd missed those Beowolves would have been right on top of you."
"Honestly, I didn't." Qrow's grin came back as he sheathed his weapon and knelt down in front of her. "But part of being a huntsmen is knowing that you can't plan for everything. Things can and will go wrong, which means that sometimes you have to trust your instincts and hope for the best. You got it?"
Ruby smiled and nodded. "I think so."
"Good." Qrow reached out and scratched the top of her head with his knuckles. "Now are you gonna answer my question?"
"Stop it!" Ruby giggled and tried to push his hand away. "School let out early so I decided to come see you. I saw you going this way so I followed and here I am."
"Yeah, well at least let me know the next time you decide to follow me." Qrow finally pulled his hand back. "There's more Grimm on this island than you'd think."
"I'll promise if you answer one more question for me."
"This ain't a negotiation, Kiddo."
"Please..." Ruby clasped her hands together and looked at him with big eyes. He never said no to her when she asked like this.
Qrow sighed. "Alright, shoot."
"Can you teach me how to do that?"
Qrow didn't answer immediately. "You mean...?"
"Yep!" Ruby replied, making sure to sound as confident as he did. "With the scythe and everything."
Qrow paused again, this time looking away from her for as he spoke. "I don't know if that's such a good idea, Ruby."
"Why not?" Ruby felt her heart sink a little bit. "You're a teacher, aren't you?"
"Yeah, but..." Qrow turned back to her again. "So is your dad, and I bet he'd be better at this kinda thing than I would."
"If I wanted to learn to fight like him, maybe," Ruby pointed out nervously.
"And what's wrong with fighting like him?"
"Nothing, it's just..." Ruby paused, not wanting to admit her faults to her uncle. "Well, Yang is starting at Signal next year, and he's kinda busy with her, so-"
She was cut off by Qrow placing a hand on her shoulder. "You know you can tell me what's really bothering you, right?"
Ruby hesitated again before reluctantly looking him in the eye. "I'm no good at fighting hand-to-hand. I try my best, but I'm not like Yang and Dad."
"Well, maybe you just need to practice," Qrow suggested, actually sounding a bit unsure. He seemed like he realized it too. "Look, there's no rule written anywhere that says you even have to become a huntress."
No, there was no written rule, but that didn't mean it wasn't true. There was nothing else she wanted more. Ruby had been raised on stories, both real and fairy tale, and each of those stories ended with her having the same revelation: she wanted to help people and make the world a better place. This, however, was not what she told her uncle. Her reply to him was much simpler.
"I wanna be like Mom," Ruby stated, doing her best to hold back tears. She barely had anything left of her mother as it was. Next to no physical possessions, and even fewer memories. She felt like if she let go of this dream, she was letting go of her mother as well.
Ruby apparently didn't need to explain any of this to Qrow, with the five words she had said being enough. He carefully unfolded Harbinger again, holding the scythe out so she could see it.
"Okay, listen up," Qrow began calmly but sternly. "If we're gonna do this, there are three things you need to know."
"I'm listening," Ruby replied, trying not to get her hopes up just yet. She stood at attention and listened closely.
"First up, this is not one of your dad's gardening tools. Some of the greatest huntresses and huntsmen on Remnant have tried and failed to master this style of fighting. You will hurt yourself while learning to use it, and that'll be on a good day."
"I know," Ruby confirmed. "And I'm ready."
"Second, you don't have anything to prove to me." Qrow's voice softened a bit. "If this does become too much for you, you need to let me know. I'll teach you how to use something else. Hell, maybe even something like your mother used to use."
"You won't have to." Ruby couldn't keep herself from smiling now. Qrow had essentially just told her that he would teach her no matter what. "What's the third thing?"
"It's the most important, so listen up."
"Let me have it then," Ruby demanded eagerly.
Qrow smirked for a split second before his expression became serious again. "Being like your mother has nothing to do with fighting. She wasn't the best of us because she killed the most Beowolves or because she won every battle. She was the best because she always put others before her, no matter how tight a corner she was backed into, and she always showed mercy and forgiveness, even to people who didn't deserve it.
"Remember that, and I know you'll be just just as great a huntress as she was," Qrow concluded, waiting as what he had just said sunk in.
Ruby felt herself getting choked up again, this time because she was happy. Not only was she excited about having the best teacher ever, but she also liked the way that Qrow talked about her mother.
"You're the best, Uncle Qrow!" Ruby yelled as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
"Nice to know that at least one person is catching on," Qrow replied, placing a single hand on her back before standing up and separating the two of them. "Now, how about we get you home?"
"Already?" Ruby whined. "But it's still the middle of the day."
"Humor me, Kiddo. Don't know how your old man would take the news of you getting eaten by an Ursa."
"Fine..."
It didn't take long for Ruby's disappointment to turn back into excitement. So far, becoming a huntress was already living up to her expectations.
"Hey, wake up, Rubes!"
Ruby didn't open her eyes immediately, at least not until she felt her sister's metal hand bump into her shoulder. She sat up straighter in the old wooden bench that three quarters of her team were currently occupying, waiting for an incoming train that was carrying said team's last member.
If not for the train approaching from the distance, Ruby would have likely gone back to sleep without a second thought. So far, the mission was moving along slowly, with their travel time making up most of what they had done so far. Their arrival in the small town of Holzfäller had been followed by some wandering around looking for leads mixed with a lot of waiting.
Yang's reluctant suggestion of seeking out Raven had been a mostly sensible one, even if the nature of the woman's life made it difficult to actually contact her. Weiss had put forward the idea of still heading to where Qrow had last contacted Oscar, in case Raven ended up flaking on them.
At this particular moment, however, none of that mattered. It wasn't Raven who was on the train, but instead one Blake Belladonna. Ruby looked to Yang, who at this point had stood up and was pacing back and forth. She would have been lying if she said she wasn't worried about what her older sister's reaction would be once the train did come to a stop.
Ruby looked to Weiss, who seemed more concerned with the platform's other occupants. While there wasn't a lot, the few people who were there either seemed uneasy or were shooting glares in their direction.
"Don't let them bother you," Ruby told her partner. She had been in the middle of a few situations like this one while on her own missions.
The stigma that came with being a huntress had shifted slightly during the war, or at least had in certain places. Their numbers were limited, especially when put against how Grimm activity had increased as Salem grew in power. There simply wasn't enough huntresses to spare, and some smaller towns and villages had suffered because of that fact.
Holzfäller seemed to be one of those towns, likely having been raided by Grimm at some point during the war. The people had obviously survived, but were also in the process of recovering. The sight of a team of huntresses that hadn't been around to defend them probably wasn't a pleasant one.
"I'm not," Weiss replied as she averted her gaze from onlookers. "I just think that someone should point out to them that they weren't the only ones to lose things during the war."
"Yeah, I'm sure they would love to hear all about that," Yang commented sarcastically.
"I'm just saying that they could learn to show a little respect."
"Do you ever get tired of talking with your nose in the air?"
"Yang..." Ruby scolded, before a thought popped into her head and a smirk found its way to her face. "You know that's the only way Weiss can look people in the eye when she speaks."
Weiss' attention and frustration snapped over to Ruby. "You are one inch taller than I am!"
"And don't you forget it," Ruby replied in a sing-song voice. Making Weiss angry was always a calculated risk, as there was always the possibility of the attempt completely backfiring on her. In this instance, however, it seemed to have payed off, having distracted the former heiress from what was bothering her.
Ruby wouldn't have to worry about immediate retaliation either, as it was at that moment that train finally came to halt at the platform. She looked at her two teammates and her sister in particular. The moment of truth was coming.
It took all of two seconds to spot Blake, as she was one of just a handful of people to step off the train. As the faunus spotted the three of them, Ruby jogged over to greet her.
"Blake!" Ruby called out as she wrapped her arms around her, causing Blake to drop the small amount of luggage she was carrying. "Hi."
"Hey, Fearless Leader," Blake said as she hugged Ruby back, or at least tried to. Ruby's hug was currently keeping her from raising her arms.
"I'm just glad you're here!" Ruby stepped away from Blake and looked back at Weiss and Yang. While she was genuinely happy to see Blake, the degree to which she was displaying her enthusiasm was more for their benefit. She had learned pretty early into her career as team leader that acting warm and innocent helped dispel tension amongst them, as the other three often hated to ruin her good moods.
Well, Weiss didn't seem to mind doing so at first, but it wasn't long before Ruby learned that puppy-dog eyes were her partner's greatest weakness.
"I'll bet," Blake replied before looking beyond Ruby. Her eyes settled on Weiss first. "Schnee."
"Scoundrel," Weiss deadpanned with crossed arms, before allowing a small smile to appear on her face. "How's life as a bureaucrat been treating you?"
"It has its perks," Blake answered casually. "What's it feel like to work for a living?"
"Enlightening." Weiss seemed to relax a bit more. "For what it's worth, I'm glad you're here too."
Though she was glad to see things between Weiss and Blake were pretty much the same, it wasn't them that Ruby had been worried about. All eyes trained on the one member of the team who hadn't spoken yet.
"Hey, Yang..." Blake said nervously.
"Hey," Yang replied, sounding almost dismissive. She didn't even bother to pull her hands from her pockets to wave. "Let's get going. Uncle Qrow's not gonna find himself."
Yang walked off without another word. Weiss shook her head while Blake slowly picked up her bag. They moved to follow Yang, leaving Ruby alone with her thoughts for a split second.
On the one hand, Yang and Blake's reunion hadn't been the blowout she had anticipated. That said, Ruby couldn't figure out why she felt as though what she had just seen was worse in some way.
Team RWBY left the train station in silence and continued to their next destination. While they currently seemed unsure about how to proceed, that did not necessarily mean they were not a threat.
Greger moved quickly, but also carefully along the rooftops as he attempted to trail his targets. The exosuit he currently wore rendered him invisible to the naked eye, but he knew better than to assume he was undetectable. Among the group was a faunus whose more potent senses could potentially see through his guise if he didn't keep his distance.
Then again, perhaps this wasn't the case. Greger recalled the information on Team RWBY that had been given to him in anticipation of their potential arrival.
Blake Belladonna, while described as precise and hyper-lethal during the war, had ceased all huntress activity upon its end. She was likely out of practice when it came to combat, and while Greger knew better than to underestimate a target, he also felt confident in labeling her as the least notable threat before him.
Objectively, Yang Xiao Long should have been his greatest concern. She was considered by many to be the team's best fighter, and her semblance could bestow upon her physical strength far beyond that of any normal human. That said, she seemed distracted at the moment, so perhaps there was a weakness there that could be exploited.
Then there was Weiss Schnee, the former heiress of the Schnee Dust Company. Her semblance, the Schnee family's signature Glyphs, seemed to be her greatest asset due to the multiple ways they could be utilized in a fight. Still, Greger wasn't quite as ready as certain individuals to dismiss the threat she could pose without her semblance. She had managed to persevere despite having everything she knew taken from her. That was the trait of a fighter if Greger had ever seen one.
That left the team's leader, Ruby Rose. She had been Qrow Branwen's star pupil before ever attending Beacon, and was said to be a master scythe-wielder just like him. Her speed and unorthodox tactics would definitely be difficult to overcome in a straight fight, and the silver eyes she inherited from her mother could prove to be a problem to later stages of their plan. Still, all of Ozpin's top students had weaknesses if you studied them closely enough, and Greger knew that these would soon present themselves.
He continued to keep pace with them and watch them closely, despite knowing their current destination. There was still one member of their group that was unaccounted for, who was currently being watched over by Greger's partner.
Taiyang Xiao Long's presence in this scenario had not been anticipated. The former member of Team STRQ seemed to have been looking for leads while Team RWBY reassembled itself. He was a bit of a wild card here, having been mostly retired for years but still possessing a reputation to match the other members of his team.
Almost on cue, a status light on Greger's HUD turned green, indicating that his partner was ready to move. He responded with an orange light, hoping this would convince her to wait.
They had been told to operate at their own discretion, which to Greger meant minimizing civilian casualties. After all, Ozpin was their endgame.
How Qrow had found his way to this shantytown in the first place was something that Weiss could not figure out. Holzfäller was out of the way enough that Weiss was surprised it even had a train station, so the notion that it held some kind of clue to the current whereabouts of Hazel Rainart was a foreign notion to her.
The state of the town didn't help her opinion of it. While she was more than aware that this was mainly due to the Grimm attack the people had survived, that knowledge didn't make Holzfäller anymore pleasant to look at. Tooth and claw marks were still scattered throughout, and plenty of buildings were outright missing pieces of their walls and roofs. Adding the fact that recent rainfall had turned the town's dirt roads into mud, and that equated to a place that Weiss was quite eager to leave.
Not that she was going let her opinions prevent her team from completing a thorough investigation of the town. A huntress never let working conditions affect her work ethic, and Weiss had been subject to far worse than this place.
In all honesty, Weiss was more concerned about her teammates impeding their progress than Holzfäller and its people. Blake, who rarely let her nerves get the better of her, seemed uneasy and unable to take her eyes off her partner. Yang, on the other hand, kept her eyes forward and didn't look back at anyone.
Then there was Ruby, who had just jogged forward and positioned herself in between the two. She made eye-contact with Weiss, and her well-meaning and determined silver eyes told Weiss exactly what she intended to do.
Not now, Weiss tried to communicate by shaking her head and glaring in Ruby's direction.
Why not? Ruby "replied" with a shrug as her eyes darted back and forth between Yang and Blake.
Too much baggage to unpack right now.
Ruby looked at the ground for a couple seconds, obviously considering Weiss' suggestion. She then waved a dismissive arm in the air, leaving Weiss a bit irritated. She knew her advice was about to go ignored.
"So..." Ruby began as she turned to Blake. "Bet you're missing Menagerie right about now."
Blake hesitated before answering, likely having been lost in thought up until that moment. "A little bit. Weather was certainly nicer down there when I left."
"Probably not as many strangers giving you nasty looks either." Ruby divided her attention between her teammate and the people they walked by.
"You'd be surprised." Blake smirked at the notion. "Part of working in politics means that there's always someone who hates your guts."
"Still, I appreciate you making the trip up here." Despite her ulterior motive for this conversation, Weiss knew that Ruby's words were genuine. "I know it's not easy to just up and leave your family behind."
"Well, you're my family too. Besides, I've got Sun to look after my parents while I'm gone."
"I'm surprised he didn't follow you here," Weiss commented, having decided that there was no longer any point in staying completely silent. "I remember him having trouble sitting still."
"He still does." Blake smiled sentimentally before continuing. "It helps to leave him with something to do. Honestly, the reason he's probably lasted this long in Menagerie is because he's always busy."
"I'm just surprised he can be trusted with any kind of job," Weiss replied, mostly joking.
To Blake's credit, she didn't let Weiss' comments affect her mood. "You can trust him with a lot of things."
"Yeah, I bet," Yang muttered suddenly.
All of Team RWBY came to a halt at the comment, though Yang still didn't turn around. Weiss looked between Ruby and Blake, with the latter once again unable to look away from Yang.
"Is something wrong, Yang?" Blake asked. The difference now, though, was that her nervousness was gone.
"I was just agreeing with you," Yang answered as she finally turned around. If the tone of her voice didn't betray jealousy, her eyes did. Weiss could have sworn she saw them turn a light shade of red before settling on their usual lilac. "I'm sure you trust him with a lot of things."
"Oh, boy..." Ruby said softly. She knew what was coming, which was one of the reasons Weiss didn't gloat about being right.
"It sounded like you were trying to say something else," Blake pointed out, slight hint of venom in her voice.
"No, I meant what I said," Yang countered without changing her tone. "I'm sure he'll super responsible with your parents and whatever kids the two of you have."
"Good, because he would be." Blake obviously didn't want to argue with Yang, but also didn't want to be her punching bag.
"Question: Will those kids have cat ears, monkey tails, or both?"
"Yang!" Ruby yelled in shock, for which Weiss could hardly blame her. Her own father liked to wear his racism like a badge of honor, but even she had been caught off guard by Yang's comment.
To whatever little credit Yang still had after that outburst, however, she recoiled a bit. She made no immediate follow up statement, though she still held her ground.
"Are you done?" Blake asked, someone managing to both calmer and angrier at the same time.
Yang remained silent, only staring back and waiting for Blake to continue.
"I'm not doing this with you, Yang. Not here and not now." Blake didn't break eye-contact either. "This mission is not about you."
"I guess nothing ever is," Yang responded, now looking away from everyone else.
Despite still having the high ground in the argument as far as Weiss was concerned, Blake still let the Yang's words get to her. Her cat ears drooped downwards and she wrapped her arms around herself.
Apparently, Blake wasn't the only one affected by the exchange. Looking a bit defeated, Ruby pulled a flask and began to unscrew the cap.
Perhaps a little on edge as well, Weiss let her instincts take over at that second. She reached over to Ruby and snatched the flask right out of her hand.
"What are you doing?" Weiss demanded.
"What's it look like?" Ruby shot back as tried to take the flask back.
Weiss kept it out of her reach, however, and backed a few steps away from her partner. "We're on mission!"
"And I'm just taking a sip, not binge-drinking!"
Ruby dove forward, but Weiss knew her partner well enough to anticipate this. She summoned a glyph at just the right place and time, causing Ruby to bounce off it and be thrown into the mud at their feet.
"Just give it back, Weiss," Ruby growled as she sat herself upright.
It was a simple enough request, especially considering the conditions they found themselves in. Blake and Yang were at odds, and Weiss found it difficult to come up with a logical reason for putting a wedge between herself and her own partner.
Still, Weiss felt her instincts again overriding what was logical for this situation. While she couldn't give an exact reason why she carried out her next action, it didn't make her feel any less justified in her decision.
Perhaps her actions boiled down to her past experiences with her mother, who had basically drowned her sorrows in alcohol upon learning Weiss' father had only married her for the family name. In that instant, she let one single person be the root cause of her pain, despite there still being people who actually did love her. Weiss certainly didn't want to relive any of that with Ruby.
Then again, it could have simply been the growing void between Blake and Yang that Weiss had just witnessed firsthand. Blake had moved to the other side of the world, and Yang was doing an exceptionally terrible job at hiding how much this had hurt her. Maybe Ruby would end up hating Weiss for trying to insert herself into her business, but Weiss conceded that she would rather that be the case than leave her best friend to her own self-destructive devices.
Or at least Weiss wouldn't leave Ruby on her own again, anyway.
In the end, Weiss' reasons seemed unimportant, especially after she was done pouring the contents of Ruby's flask onto the ground.
"It's all yours," Weiss said as she dropped the empty container on Ruby's lap and walked away.
She wouldn't get to be alone with her thoughts for very, however, as Yang jogged over to her to stop her.
"You know you're not supposed to do that, right?" Yang asked. Despite the argument she had just been a part of as well as what she had just watched happen to her sister, she didn't sound angry. It was more like she was trying to explain to Weiss how to deal with alcoholism. "When they quit, it's supposed to be their choice."
"How well has that been working so far?" Weiss argued quietly, looking backwards as she did.
Blake was currently helping Ruby back to her feet, who herself was trying to wipe the mud from her cloak. Ruby looked at Weiss briefly, but turned away so quickly that Weiss couldn't tell if her reluctance to make eye-contact was out of bitterness or shame. Both hurt Weiss to see, but she once again reminded herself that she had agreed to pay that price.
"What are you guys doing out here?" the voice of Taiyang Xiao Long called out to them. Weiss turned back around just as the huntsman made it to them.
"It's nothing, Dad," Yang answered first, though Weiss was sure all of them shared that sentiment.
"Nothing, huh?" Taiyang crossed his arms and looked the entire team over. "So there's another team of huntresses fighting in the middle of Main Street?"
"It's fine," Ruby reiterated as she and Blake rejoined the group. "Did you find anything?"
Taiyang waited before answering, almost as though he wasn't ready to finish their conversation. He didn't push any further, however, and instead motioned for them to follow him to a nearby alley.
"No one's seen him," Taiyang stated once they were out of sight. "Or at least that's what they claim."
"You have another theory?" Weiss questioned.
"More like a feeling. Something about this place just isn't sitting right with me."
"Sounds like our best bet for now is to lay low and wait for Raven," Ruby suggested.
"Raven's gonna be here too?" Blake asked. She looked to Yang who was back to ignoring her.
"So we were told," Weiss answered, though she wasn't counting on the woman's presence here.
"She said she would be here," Taiyang affirmed.
"How much has her word been worth in the past?" Yang asked her father, though she wouldn't get an answer.
Weiss was the second person to realize something was amiss, but that was only because she had happened to look in Blake's direction. Her cat ears were twitching, with her faunus senses likely having detected something abnormal. Whatever or whoever it was, Weiss wouldn't get a chance to ask.
"Get down!" Blake called out, almost too late to do any good.
A shot rang out, and a large projectile came barreling in their direction. Taiyang caught the brunt of it, the force of the impact and explosion sending him flying through a nearby wall. Between diving for cover and the dust and smoke that was kicked up, Weiss lost track of the rest of her team.
Author's note:
So some quick acknowledgments about the flashback that opens the chapter...
First off, use of flashbacks is a last minute addition to this story, and I was a little stuck on how to implement them at first. Not only as far as just how they work with the rest of the story, but also the actual formatting of them. Seems like a small and trivial thing to get stuck on (because it is), but I wanted it to be instantly obvious that these scenes were different than the others, and for whatever reason I wasn't feeling throwing up an "X years ago" slug on top. I ended up resolving both issues by looking to SimplyKorra's The Foxtrot (it's on my favorites for any White Rose fans who haven't read it yet). To summarize, flashbacks will be completely italicized, and will only show up where appropriate rather than in every chapter.
Also, the flashback itself is very similar a fan comic I saw on tumblr a while back ("Ruby's Beginnings" might have been the title, but don't quote me on that), by Ellelehman. While I wasn't thinking of this comic while writing that scene, I would feel guilty if I didn't give it a shout out, as it was likely subconscious inspiration for what I did here.