Hey there peeps, just figured I'd get this out while I can.

Warning, bit of a time-skip involved, so not much development here.


Chapter 4: Thus Kindly I Scatter.

Ask any parent or teacher to list the most chaotic part of the school day and I'd bet my bottom dollar that the brief window following the end of class and the time to go home would be included in every top five.

Now to be fair, it wasn't all that bad in Patch, since the kids knew better than to stray too far in case of a Grimm attack, but that didn't stop the little horrors from clambering over each other in their bid to make as much of their freedom before their parents came along to drag them home.

Me? Well, considering Undyne didn't get off work till later this evening there wasn't much reason for me to stick around, so I usually made myself scarce to avoid getting dragged into anything overly strenuous.

'If I didn't know any better I'd swear Gaster was fucking with me.' I mused, smirking lazily as I casually flicked through one of Grillby's old Detective Novels about some vigilante called the Silver Shroud 'Least this time I'm not limited to only one caper'.

"Hey, freak!" a voice called out, earning a sigh as I promptly focused my attention on the book, pointedly ignoring the twat that was striding towards me, or as close to striding a prepubescent, shaved infant orangutan could get.

And just for the record, I wasn't being racist; the kid wasn't a Faunus, just really, really ugly. Seriously, how the hell did he have facial hair already? Was he actually some sort of midget who happened to get held back a dozen grades or something?

"Hey! I'm talking to you, freak!" fugly spat out, apparently not taking my ignoring him very well, several of his little cronies surrounding us while half a dozen rubberneckers found various excuses to loiter around, not close enough to get dragged into it, but close enough to catch the high-point of what had been an otherwise dreary week.

"Whats'a matter freak?" fugly demanded, his tone cocky, his arms crossed and his legs spread as he sneered down at me, much to my irritation. Seriously, why the hell was I the short kid? I was never this short even as a kid in my past life "Too good to speak to us, are you?"

"Hmm, you say something?" I evoked Kakashi-sensei, smirking to myself as the kid swelled up like an angry balloon, which did wonders for his complexion let me tell you, before shrugging and moving to walk around him "Huh, guess not. S'cuse me."

"You're not going anywhere, freak!" fugly snapped, reaching out to grab my shoulder as I made to stroll past him, only to miss spectacularly and stumble off-balance as I stepped slightly to the side "Stand still!"

"Yeah, no, not gonna do that." I quipped, keeping just out of his range while avoiding the attempts of his would-be posse to slow me down, never taking my eyes off my book the entire time "See, I don't wanna get in the way."

"The way of what?" fugly demanded, glaring at me in annoyance, wondering just what in the hell I was smirking at only to blink as one of his friends called out in alarm, the stupid git turning to see just what was going on only to squeal like a stuck pig as a boot introduced itself to his pre-pubescent man-berries with the passion of a thousand exploding suns.

"I thought I told you jerks to quit picking on Sans!" Yang snapped, the blonde brawler glaring at the pack of bullies, her eyes flashing red with irritation as she watched them scatter, leaving fugly crouched over double on the ground, gasping for breath "Yeah you better run!"

"My hero." I quipped, smirking lazily at the girl as she turned to face me "Is what I'd say if it weren't for the fact I only got jumped cause I was waiting for you. How many lectures does that make this?"

"Shut up." Yang pouted, the little sun-dragon reaching up to play with her pigtails in embarrassment "The only reason I keep getting lectured is because you never stand up for yourself!"

"And spoil all your fun?" I teased, smirking knowingly at the girl "Don't give me that look Yang, ever since you started growing your hair out the only times you get to roughhouse with the guys is when they try to start something with yours truly."

"Stupid jerks." Yang grumbled, her scowl carrying a hint of loneliness as she continued to play with her pigtails, the two of us falling into amiable silence as we waited for her dad to show up with Ruby so we could head home.

It had been several years since the Boarbatusk Incident, and since that time I'm rather embarrassed to admit I had pretty much become a semi-permanent addition to the Xiao-Long House due to Summer Rose taking a liking to me.

That wasn't to say I'd moved out of the inn mind you, Undyne was still listed as my primary caretaker, but with her new job as head of the village Militia, it was simply easier for her to pick me up from Yang's house after her shift than to leave early to pick me up from school.

Of course, any suggestions of me simply walking home myself were completely vetoed in the light of the aforementioned incident. Hell, if it weren't for Summer's insistence that she was overreacting Undyne probably never would've let me out of the inn at all.

Thankfully, Undyne eventually wound down as the years passed with nothing else trying to actively murder me, though that didn't stop her from doubling down on her attempts to turn me from a Couch Potato into a Buff Spud, though thankfully she drew the line of beating the living crap out of me. For now.

Getting back on track, while Summer had taken an inexplicable liking to me, Taiyang understandably took a little longer to warm up to the idea of a boy being around his 'little sun dragon' so often, overprotective father and whatnot.

Thankfully, it seemed my getting injured 'saving' his baby girl from a Grimm apparently earned me brownie points, as at the very least he didn't go for his shotgun when he gave be the traditional 'keep your hands where I can see them' threat like everyone else.

Normally I'd question why a pugilist like Taiyang would even own a Shotgun, but setting aside the living meme of 'everything in Remnant is a Gun', I'm fairly certain it's a universal law for all fathers to possess at least one boomstick when threatening their daughters' male friends.

That being said, while relations with the Xiaolong-Rose family were looking good, it should probably go without saying that Qrow and I did not hit it off, the Branwen having not forgotten my little prank that had landed him a much overdue beat down for the many, many rumors he'd inadvertently spread with his drunken ranting. However, since he couldn't prove anything due to his own history working against him, the bastard settled for getting his own back in his own special way.

Have you ever woken up to find your bed covered in bird shit? Because let me tell you if it weren't for the disgust and rage I felt at that moment I'd have pissed myself in terror at how easily Qrow Fuck-Mothering Branwen had gotten into my room, while I was asleep, with Undyne next door.

Lesson for the day kids; you can take the Branwen out of the bandit tribe, but you can't take the bandit out of the Branwen.

Of course, I'm sure I don't have to explain that this meant war, and once I'd calmed down, and burnt the sheets, I promptly decided to get even the only way I knew I could get away with: Making him look bad in front of Summer and Taiyang, which I probably would have enjoyed more if he didn't make it so damned easy.

So where did Yang fit into all this? How exactly did she go from wanting to pound my face in to wanting to pound other people's faces in for me? Well one thing you gotta remember about Yang is that even as a kid she was very protective when it came to friends and family, and considering I basically got hurt trying to save her ass after she all but threatened to unman me, what the hell did you think was going to happen?

It started out simple enough, she stopped harassing me during the day and even started calling out to me whenever we passed each other at school. Eventually it progressed to the two of us hanging out together during recess or study hall, nothing too fancy, just sitting down to share a meal or helping me carry my books until my arm was out of its cast.

Why was my arm in a cast you ask? Well it turns out that while Dust technology is really advanced compared to what we have on Earth, there weren't a lot of Medical Applications for it since most companies were devoted to researching new and improved ways of fighting the Grimm.

Add to that the fact that Huntsmen tended to rely on their Aura for pretty much everything short of life-saving surgery and it was no wonder the best treatment for a broken arm involved a cast, bed rest and loads of milk.

It was annoying, but there was little else I could do but grin and bear it. Sure I could've probably healed the break with a little instruction from Gaster, magic is useful like that, but since my aura hadn't been unlocked that would only lead to unnecessary questions.

See, turns out that most of the civilian populace don't even know what Aura is, which certainly explained Jaune's ignorance despite his aspirations to attend Beacon. Oh don't get me wrong, they knew there was 'something' that set their protectors apart from mere mortals, but the requirements for unlocking it was kept a closely guarded secret, even among Hunter families. The reason for this was two-fold, and actually made a lot of sense if you thought about it.

The first reason was that, even among families with a long history of producing Hunters, not everyone was cut out for the lifestyle, so it didn't make sense to unlock a person's aura until you were certain they weren't going to drop out halfway, or worse, abuse their newfound abilities for personal gain.

Think about it: recall all the crazy shit you've ever seen the Huntsmen and Huntresses do, all the nigh-impossible feats of strength, skill and sheer what-the-fuckery that they employ in their quest to fend off the Grimm.

Now, can you honestly tell me with a straight face that an ordinary beat cop, like the ones who tried to arrest Sun for stowing away and shoplifting, could possibly stand up to that kind of power?

Yeah I didn't think so. The fact is, even if you exclude Semblances, a person with their Aura unlocked is infinitely more dangerous than your average crook, so it only makes sense to screen applicants to reduce the odds of them going rogue. It wasn't perfect, but it was a lot better than the alternative.

Don't believe me? Alright, try to imagine how dangerous Cinder could be with an army of people as skilled as Mercury, as devoted as Emerald, as devious as Torchwick or as sadistic as Neo at her beck and call?

Hell, imagine the threat Torchwick could pose if he wasn't forced to rely on Hired Goons and the dregs of the White Fang for muscle. And yes, it was clear he was working with the dregs of the organization, as with the possible exception of the Lieutenant none came close to Adam, Blake or Ilya's level of skill.

Hell, given Torchwick's little recruitment drive in Season 2, I wouldn't have been at all surprised if most of the White Fang we saw in Vale were civilians whose Aura was only recently unlocked with minimal combat training, never mind unlocking their semblances.

In any case, that was the official reason for Aura not being easily accessible to the public, and the reason Qrow gave Undyne as to why they couldn't just unlock mine once she finally stopped trying to strangle him for letting me get injured in the first place. The other, unofficial reason known only to Huntsmen, was that unlocking your Aura lit you up like a bonfire in the eyes of the Grimm.

Now don't get me wrong, the Grimm would just as easily attempt to massacre an ordinary civilian as they would a Huntsman, they don't discriminate after all, but while Aura granted Huntsmen the power to destroy them, it also helped the Grimm identify them as priority targets.

It may not have mattered as much in the Kingdoms, protected as they were by their natural defences and giant 'fuck off' walls, but for small villages like Patch, having too many people with active auras at any one time was the equivalent of stripping naked, basting yourself in honey and running dick first into a Zerg rush.

To put things into perspective, one of the reasons Qrow was able to convince the Mayor to let Undyne join the guard despite her lack of credentials, was the simple fact that the village simply couldn't turn away such a skilled asset to their defences while keeping their numbers low.

Not that it mattered much to me anyway. Putting aside the unwanted attention it would've earned, having my Aura unlocked early would've essentially railroaded me down the path to becoming a Huntsman, no questions asked, and as I've stated before that was not something I planned to consider.

I had already fucked up by getting myself involved with Yang's family, but I could still salvage the situation if I avoided drawing additional attention to myself, or at the very least ensured that Qrow did everything he could to keep me out of Beacon, and away from his nieces, as possible.

Not that I was planning to make it easy for him mind you. For one thing, you have no idea how satisfying it is to screw with the guy. For another, Summer's home cooking is to die for.


Casa-del-Xiaolong-Rose.

"Ugh, I'll never understand this." Yang groaned, collapsing face first onto her notebook, having been conquered yet again by that most dreadful of childhood adversaries: Homework "Seriously, why do I even need to learn this? What good's Math going to do against the Grimm?"

"Well I'm pretty sure the Ursa would find it Un-BEAR-able." I quipped, earning a snort & a groan from two different Blondes, Yang shaking her head in amusement while Taiyang rolled his eyes in exasperation, the elder blonde turning his attention back to marking test scores for his Class at Signal, occasionally glancing in our direction to make sure we were actually doing our homework.

Well, making sure Yang was doing it anyway, I'd finished mine already and was casually enjoying the Silver Shroud hamming it up while the younger Blonde battled the horrors of mathematics. I felt no pity for her.

"You really like books, don't you Sans?" Summer noted, smiling approvingly at me as she placed two cups of hot cocoa and marshmallows on the table, earning a cheer from Yang, before giving Tai a mug of coffee and a peck on the cheek "There you go."

"Thanks honey." Tai offered with a tired smile, returning the kiss much to Yang's visible discomfort, not helped by me waggling my eyebrows suggestively at her over the rim of my novel "How's Ruby doing?"

"I just finished tucking her in a while ago." Summer sighed, a fond, tired smile adorning her features at the mention of her younger daughter "I honestly don't know where she gets so much energy."

"Maybe it's something she ate?" I quipped, smiling innocently even as I pulled my leg back to avoid a savage kick to the knee from a panicked Yang, who promptly tried, and failed, to match my expression in the face of Summer's knowing stare.

So yeah, as you clearly managed to deduce from our discussion, Ruby Rose, the Main Heroine and future team leader of RWBY herself, had been born to Summer and Taiyang a year prior to the Boarbatusk incident. Turns out that between the almost constant combat and Aura healing everything short of missing limbs, Hunters were pretty much guaranteed to rock a body most people would kill for unless they deliberately let themselves go.

I'm serious, how else do you think Qrow manages to look so rugged despite poisoning his liver every waking moment short of selling his soul to Satan? Hell, even setting aside the likes of team SSSN, who were literally based off a K-Pop band, most of the Students seen in the show could be runway models if you stripped ém down to their skivvies! Even JAUNE!

If I were the kind of guy who gave a shit about such things I'd almost feel self-conscious, but having had well over two decades to grow comfortable with being a balding fatass I wasn't about to lose my shit just to fit in with the demographic.

Getting back on track, despite recent conflicts I humbly accept the blame for, there was no denying that one of the few things Taiyang & Qrow shared, was their unconditional love for Ruby, Taiyang spending every waking moment gushing over how adorable she is ala Maes Hughes until Qrow would utter some snarky comment or act 'inappropriately' around her, which would typically result in a glorious fistfight that more often than not proved cathartic by proxy until Summer got involved.

Indeed, it was kind of humbling to see such a skilled warrior like Taiyang entering what is affectionately referred to as 'Overly Doting Papa Mode', waiting on Summer & Ruby hand and foot, to the point the former had to threaten him with grievous bodily harm just to get some privacy.

'Guess he still hasn't gotten over Raven yet.' I mused, wisely keeping my mouth shut even as Taiyang finally gave in to the pleas of his 'Little Sun Dragon' and shuffled over awkwardly on his cast to help with her homework, the elder blonde having seriously injured his leg saving a student who was messing around with Dust during training trying to impress his female classmates at Signal.

Having seen enough dramas thanks to my sisters, I had a pretty good idea of what Taiyang must have gone through when Raven took off, so it was only understandable he'd fawn over Summer, who even as an adult wasn't that much taller than Ruby. Of course, even if I didn't have the benefit of having watched the show, I knew there was no reason for Taiyang to worry. Someone as strong as Summer Rose wouldn't have died from childbirth, she'd never put her loved ones through that sort of grief.

Which of course begged the question: Just what the hell did she run into on her 'Last Mission' that could have possibly cut her down? While I hadn't seen Summer fight for real, since most of her missions tended to take her away from Patch, there was no way in hell her dispatching the Boarbatusk counted as her 'best'.

And then there were her Silver Eyes to consider, the elusive power that allowed Ruby to wipe that smug smile off Cinder's face & freeze The Dragon atop the ruins of Beacon. While numerous fan theories had arisen following the climax of season 3, even without concrete evidence the general consensus regarding the Silver Eyes was that whatever the hell that power was, it wasn't to be trifled with.

'Then again, Power like that always comes at a cost.' I mused, recalling how Ruby's initial display of the power had resulted in the Red Reaper being knocked on her cute little butt for weeks. While it was possible this was merely due to her inexperience, as the only times she'd unleashed the power had been instinctive, fueled by her emotions, there was no concrete evidence to dismiss the possibility that the power was just as demanding on Summer as it was on her daughter.

Hell, considering how overprotective Taiyang could be, it was highly likely he kept Ruby from learning the truth about her eyes on purpose. As Summer's teammate he would've been more than familiar with the benefits and drawbacks of her power, so the fact he'd opted to leave their daughter in the dark, despite the very real possibility that she could inherit the power someday, implied he didn't want her using or even learning of it at all if he could help it.

In any case, whatever, or whoever the hell Summer Rose would eventually run into down the line that would end up cutting her tale short, I highly doubted it was a mere Grimm. And given Hazel's comments during his introduction in Season 4, it was highly likely he'd been involved in the act, assuming Salem hadn't deigned to dirty her own hands for once.

'Yet another reason to stay the hell away from Beacon' I repeated, shivering at the memory of the Queen of the Grimm's crimson eyes as she promised to watch Ozpin burn. If someone like Summer Rose, with her Silver Eye power that was essentially the anti-thesis to the Grimm, couldn't take her down then I held no delusions as to my chances of survival against Cinder's Master should she deign to acknowledge my existence.

"Something wrong, Sans?" Taiyang called out, snapping me out of my thoughts to find his massive, calloused hand waving in front of my face, the elder blonde eyeing me with concern while Yang blinked in confusion "You're looking a little pale there."

"I'm fine Mr. Tai." I assured him, slapping on a lazy grin that had pretty much become my trademark as I slid off my chair, slipping the novella into the pocket of my coat "Just gotta go use the bathroom."

"First door on the right, straight down the hall." Taiyang reminded me, smiling good naturedly as he ruffled my hair with calloused fingers "Don't want a repeat of last time now do we?"

"No Mr. Tai." I assured him, though considering the last time had ended with me running like hell from Qrow for pissing in the man's shoes and the man was off on another mission for the Oz-lu-pin-ati, I think it was safe to say there wouldn't be any repeats anytime soon.

What? Don't look at me like that; the man covered my bed in bird shit while I was asleep. Do you have any idea how hard that stuff is to get out? Badass or not that's a fight, and unlike Qrow, I have the added benefit of not being called out to act my age because kids really do pull shit like this.


Several Satisfying Minutes Lay-Ter...

I was coming out of the bathroom, after thoroughly washing my hands thank you very much, when I happened to bump into a tousle-headed figure in ladybug jammies and a familiar red cloak that trailed along the ground behind her.

"Hey there sleepy-head." I greeted, reaching down to tousle her hair, earning a small whine of protest that only proved to further mess up her bedhead as she fought back "What're ya doing outta bed?"

"Need go potty…" Ruby mumbled, one hand rubbing the sleep from her silver eyes, the other clutching a corgi plush to her chest as she yawned sleepily. It was official; Five-Year Old Ruby Rose was without a doubt the cutest thing on Remnant bar none. Fite Me. "Can you get the door?"

"Sure thing kiddo." I chuckled, stepping aside to let her stumble past, "Try not to fall in this time, okay?" I teased, chuckling as I received a plush corgi butt to the face for my troubles before shutting the door to give her some privacy, only to blink as Yang stormed down the hall "What's eating you?"

"Uncle Qrow showed up so Mom and Dad chased me out of the kitchen." Yang huffed, rolling her eyes in exasperation as only children can do when faced with the unfairness of parents "Told me to check on Ruby, she ok?"

"Well I haven't heard any splashes so she hasn't fallen in the toilet at least." I quipped, earning a growl from inside as I patted the blonde on the shoulder "Here, you keep an eye on her, I'll go get some snacks."

"Bring cookies!" Ruby called out from inside, earning a shared chuckle from Yang and I before I slipped off, tip-toeing my way down the corridor until I was within hearing distance of the kitchen.

"What the hell do you mean you lost the Spring Maiden?" Taiyang demanded, sounding equal parts alarmed and furious "How in the name of all that's holy do you even manage to lose a Maiden?"

"Okay, first off? Inside voice Tai, might wanna consider using it." Qrow snarked, earning a growl from the elder Xiao-Long that he definitely ignored "Secondly, I didn't lose her, you can blame Lionheart for that fuck-up, which is why Ozpin wants us to go get her back."

"And that's another thing!" Taiyang hissed, his tone just as irritated despite the reduced volume "Why are we being asked to do this? Why isn't Leonardo mobilizing his own team?"

"He already has, but Oz isn't willing to leave anything to chance." Qrow elaborated, the mention of the Great and Powerful Headmaster sending a shiver down my spine "The only good thing out of all this is that she ran off without her Scroll, meaning she can't just hop a bullhead so she can't have gone far."

"But that also means she can't be tracked, and we'll have no idea if she's being attacked or not." Summer mused, referring to the device in the scrolls that recorded Aura levels "Who else is going on this mission?"

"Just us on our end." Qrow confessed, and I could already imagine the grimace on his face from his tone alone "Though Ozpin did mention trying to get in contact with Hazel."

"Are you sure that's…wise?" Taiyang wondered, his voice laced with concern that I didn't care for, my eyes having widened at the name, and the implications of his involvement in this mission "I mean, I 'm not doubting his skill but Gretchen's death hit him hard."

'Harder than you think.' I grimaced, swallowing grimly in a futile attempt to fill the pit that had formed in my gut as I recalled the enraged bellows of the man as he tried to murder Oscar, a stark contrast to the cold words he spoke in Salem's throne room

"We've dealt with their kind before…"

Those were the first words we the audience ever heard from the walking contradiction that was Hazel Rainart, a man that was as soft-spoken as he was physically intimidating, enough so that not even Cinder and her back-up dancers could act smug around him despite being a Full Maiden.

Hell, even Ozpin seemed hesitant to confront the bearded man-mountain, going out of his way to avoid alerting Hazel to his presence inside Oscar and later urging the boy to cut and run instead of immediately taking over to face him directly, only doing so after being literally backed into a corner.

To make matters worse, unlike the clearly psychotic Tyrian Callows, Hazel appeared to be under no illusions as to the true nature of his employer. He understood just what kind of monster Salem was, but deemed Ozpin to be the 'greater evil' due to his grief over the death of his sister Gretchen.

How much of that mindset was the result of Salem's manipulation and how much was entirely the fault of Ozpin, I honestly couldn't say for certain. All that mattered was that Hazel had professed experience killing Silver Eyed Warriors that knew what the hell they were doing with their power.

Considering what little we'd seen of the Silver Eyes' abilities from Ruby's few untrained uses, you can probably imagine my alarm to discover Hazel was anywhere near Summer Rose, especially on a mission that required her to leave Patch for any foreseeable amount of time.

"If the Professor thinks he's ready for this, then he's ready." Summer declared firmly, which didn't really surprise me, as from what little I'd managed to make out listening in on conversations the past few years it was clear her faith in Ozpin was apparently the most unshakable of team STRQ, with Qrow being a close second, at least until Djinn's revelation.

"I still don't like the idea of you going alone." Tai grumbled, clearly the only adult in the room (myself excluded) who dared to question Ozpin's decisions. How much of this was due to Raven's departure and how much was concern for Summer's safety I couldn't honestly say "I'm coming with you."

"What am I? Chopped liver?" Qrow scoffed in amusement "Summer's a big girl Tai, you don't need to hold her hand. And no offense, but you've been out of the field too long. You'd just slow us down."

"What Qrow means is that someone needs to stay behind to look after the girls." Summer countered, her tone carrying an undertone of disapproval, no prizes for guessing who that was aimed at "Tai, I know you want to help, but Qrow and I can handle ourselves, and on the off-chance something does go wrong…"

"It'll probably happen to me." Qrow cut in with a self-mocking chuckle, using the joke about his semblance to shift the subject away from the possibility of anything happening to Summer "Though Summer's right, as usual, someone has to be here to keep an eye on the kids, Gods only knows our little Firecracker can be quite the enabler when it comes to Ruby."

"I'm sure Sans will be able to keep them out of trouble." Summer chuckled, earning a scoff from Qrow and a non-committal grunt from Tai, overprotective father and whatnot "Think you can do that for me, Sans?"

"Heh, figures I'd get caught out…" I chuckled, not even surprised that she knew I was there, instead opting to shake my head as I stepped into the kitchen, slapping on a lazy grin in the face of Qrow's scowl "I told Yang I'd get crumbled trying to sneak more cookies so soon."

"Just Crumb-y timing on your part." Summer giggled, ignoring the groans from Qrow and Tai, the former taking a swig from his flask "So what you think Sans, think you can help Tai keep an eye on the girls for me while Mr. Qrow and I are away?"

"I'll get my eye back after, right?" I quipped, earning a chuckle from the woman and Tai even as Qrow scoffed, more than used to my humour by now "You going on another mission Ms. Rose?"

"Yep! A friend of ours has gotten herself into some trouble so we're going to help her out." Summer confirmed, nodding confidently to Qrow when he made to speak up "Shouldn't take too long, we'll be back before you know it."

"That's good, 'cause Grillby said to let him know if it looked like Mr. Branwen was trying to cut and run without paying his tab." I quipped, earning a stink-eye from Qrow that was only matched by Summer's disapproving frown "You're gonna bring him back right?"

"Don't you worry, Mr. Branwen isn't going anywhere." Summer assured me with a smile that was equal parts reassuring as it was terrifying, Qrow taking a nervous chug from his flask even as Tai shook his head in exasperation "Now why don't you run on back to Yang and Ruby, I'll bring some snacks with me before I go."

I hesitated, looking up at that kind, doting smile, the same smile that had welcomed me into her home, the same smile that Yang and Ruby woke up to every morning, the same smile Ruby had envisioned when she was facing down the Leviathan.

'I need to tell her.' I realised, my mouth opening to spill all my secrets, to try and avert the fate of this kind, wonderful woman whose only crime was to be born with Eyes specifically designed to ruin the day of anything Grimm related, meaning she'd have been Salem's enemy even if she never joined Beacon.

Summer Rose didn't deserve to die just because her eyes were a threat to Salem. Ruby and Yang didn't deserve to lose their mother just because Hazel blamed Ozpin for his sister's death. All it would take is a few words and I could prevent all of that pain from happening.

But even as I opened my mouth, my vision of that smile was overwritten with another, colder smile, set in a pale, corpse-like face marred by dark veins, those warm, silver eyes replaced with a deep, burning red, set in a sea of darkness that desired to nothing but for the world to burn.

"Sans?" Summer called out, her soft voice and the feel of her hand on my shoulder snapping my out of my vision to find the Silver-Eyed Warrior blinking at me in concern "Is everything alright?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine." I assured her with a grin "Just don't try to sneak in any oatmeal raisin cookies, Ruby currant stand them." I quipped, earning a titter from Summer and a set of groans from Qrow and Tai as she sent me on my way with a pat on the head.

The last time I ever saw Summer Rose, she was tucking Ruby into bed with a kiss, and the promise that she'd always be there to protect her. At the moment, I didn't think it was possible to hate myself as much as I did that moment.

I quickly learnt just how wrong I was, the day Qrow came back without her.


And we see the effect of the plot beginning to weigh on Sans.

How will this recent development affect him? Will he endeavor to change? Or lock himself away?

Only time will tell.