Journeys on the Jellybean

by Mudsaur

Look, this is another reaction-RWBY story, do I really need to spell it out? RWBY, (J)NPR, more to come, watching movies of alternate universes of themselves, you know the drill. I update Fridays, I write more than is probably appropriate for a standard chapter length, and I aim to make my reader's laugh their guts out because what's life without dancing and giggles? Come and read.

3. Inception I

So, shit. Netflix took my movie off of itself.

No biggie, just a lot of YouTube searching for the right dialogue, a little Google to get a script, and then writing it all down.

Not hard. Just tedious.

Also, Jesus, I probably should have saved this one for a fifth movie or something. This was a trip to write, let me tell ya.

\-\ JELLYBEAN /-/

Inception I

"So, Mr. Captain?" Ruby spoke up from her seat after a minute of watching their host hold his hands up to the screen. "What, uh, whatcha doin'?" She asked.

"Coordinating the theatre to pick out a new universe for us to watch." The Captain answered.

"Oh…really?" Ruby quirked an eyebrow, sounding somewhat skeptical. "Are you, uh…are you sure about that?"

"I am." The Captain nodded. Then his head quirked a little. "Or pretty sure I am, at least. Sure enough."

"Oh, good. Good, good. Okay, cool," Ruby tried nodding her head along with him. "I was just, you know, wondering because of, uh, how the screen is looking was a little weird."

For the first time since the Captain had begun his tinkering, his head turned slightly around. "What do you mean?" He asked, then tilted his head a little more. "Is it on fire?"

"Wha? No, no, it's not on fire." Wouldn't he have noticed if it were? "It's just kinda…sorta…it looks like the screen has a, uh…has uhm…"

She paused to find the right word. The Captain's curiosity grew. "Like it has a what, Ms. Rose?"

"Screensaver." Yang decided to jump in and save her socially-awkward sister like the good big sis she was. "It looks like you put up a screensaver on the screen."

Once again, the Captain quirked his head around to his guests. Then he turned his head to the screen. Then back to his guests.

"Screensaver?" He asked, looking towards Team RWBY's seats.

"Yeah, you know," Ruby tried again, "like the ones you get on computers when you don't use them for a while? When they fall asleep?"

"Sleep?" Their host asked. "Your computers sleep? Already? Like with electric sheep and everything? Oh, that's surprising – I wasn't aware your version of Remnant was so significantly advanced…"

"Not a literal sleep," Weiss decided to add her voice to the conversation. "It's a power-save function for a terminal so it doesn't waste Dust with lack of personal use. Most computers have them."

"…Oh." The Captain said, almost sounding disappointed. "Right. Power-saving. Basic functions. I knew that."

"Yeah, that's good," why it was good, Ruby wasn't sure. "So why does the screen look like you have that one where the stars are flying at us? Kinda like we're soaring through space? But not, you know, like the space outside the Jellybean but more like one that's really, really empty and boring?"

She was rambling again. And just when she thought she was getting better at talking with strangers. But Ruby wasn't wrong in this regard, either. The Captain had declared he would start the next universe, lifting his arms to his sides and straightening his fingers. He went quiet after that, but if the group has expected some grandiose display or viewing from his evident manipulation of technology far outside anything Remnant had even close to viewing, then the seven teenagers found themselves disappointed.

He was just standing there. Stiffly. Then the screen started to slowly light up with the moving-star screensaver and things just got duller from there.

"Wait, hold up, what did you just say, Rubes?" Yang asked, looking over her teammates and to her sister. She looked confused. "Stars? I'm not seeing any stars."

Now it was Ruby's turn to look uncertain. "You aren't?"

"Neither am I…" Weiss admitted between them, looking to the two sisters with a furrowed brow. "Yang, what are you seeing?"

"Clouds," Yang answered simply, waving her hand to the screen. "Weird, shifting clouds. Storm clouds, maybe. Lotta gray. Kinda meh."

"Wait, you got clouds?" Nora shouted over to the other team. "I got a weird, bouncing box. It's just moving to the edge of the screen, bounces around, and just keeps doing it over and over and over and over and-"

"Yes, thank you, Nora," Weiss interrupted. Knowing the bubbly girl, that might have gone on for a while. "Hmm. Pyrrha? Ren? Are you seeing something different, too?"

Pyrrha had been staring at her screen for some time. Coincidently, she also didn't look as desensitized as the others with whatever was going on with her side. "I see a road," she started off. "Or a trail, I guess. A straight trail going forward with no end that I can see. And I'm walking on it. O-or, at least, the screen is. And there are trees on both sides of me," she put her hands up, gesturing to the edges of the screen. "The trees change color sometimes. Sometimes there are red leaves. Sometimes yellow. Mostly greens and I think I saw an animal once, but I wasn't sure if I was imagining that." Pyrrha looked a little sheepish, then. "It…it's nice, actually. Relaxing."

One positive opinion. Weiss hummed to herself. "Ren?"

The only boy from Beacon looked up to the theatre's screen for a long moment. His eyes looked analytically at all angles. "I see green lines," he stated slowly, carefully. "They're flowing – or falling – down from the top of the screen to the bottom. The lines kinda look like they're made of letters but I may be wrong." He shook his head. "It's interesting but I can't understand any of it."

Weiss was quiet after that. Her thoughts trying to construct the details provided to images in her mind. Then find a pattern. A fitting between a person to their image. Like a puzzle to figure out. She thought there might be a connection, but then she wondered if she was simply reaching or grasping for links when there weren't any. Would this have been a form of profiling? Simpler images to simpler intellects? Was that what this would have been considered? Ruby and Nora's seemed less detailed, and clouds weren't exactly the most riveting of images, but neither did a walk in a park or green lines.

What did Weiss's vision say about her, then? Something good? Something bad? Simple or telling? She was not certain if she liked where this process of thought was going on any of these fronts. She was not certain at all.

"Weiss?"

The heiress tilted her head up quickly from her thoughts. The Captain had turned his covered head around. She couldn't make out his face, as usual, but she knew his eyes were on her.

"What are you seeing?" He asked, his tone gentle and smooth but curious. Weiss had everyone's attention and she suddenly felt very concerned if her screen would say something obtuse or irregular that she hadn't caught on for herself. She was feeling very conscientious all of sudden.

"P-perhaps we should ask Blake first?" She tried. "We haven't heard from her yet."

The attempt was obvious and Blake sent her the stink eye. She hated being the center of attention. "Paper," Blake answered with an annoyed tone. "Folding paper. Blank, nothing special, paper. Keeps folding itself into shapes and figures."

"What kinds of figures?" Ruby asked from around the embarrassed Weiss. "Origami?"

Blake stared around Weiss and towards her team captain. Her expression lost some of its tension. "Yeah," she nodded, tone softening. "Sometimes. A crane. A star, at one point," she pointed up to the screen. "I think it's making a lizard now. Or maybe a dragon? It looks like those may be wings but…" She shook her head and slouched back into her seat. "I'm done. Weiss's turn."

The heiress stiffened again. Talk about being thrown under the bus…

"W-well," Weiss began, cursing herself for her sudden bout of awkwardness. That was Ruby's thing, damnit! "I have…or, I guess, I see…um…"

Everyone was watching her. Inquisitive but not judging. They were her friends. And she would be damned if she couldn't admit something so pedestrian as to what sort of universal screensaver she ended up having while they're host perused reality for a moment in creation they could watch.

So, with a deep breath, Weiss admitted the truth.

"Balloons."

The theatre room was quiet after that.

"Balloons?" Ruby repeated innocently, uncertain if she heard her teammate right.

Weiss nodded. "Yes. Red balloons. Blue balloons. Yellow. Green. Some whites. They're all just floating up from the bottom," she pointed to the screen's lowest point then raised her arm up, "to the top. Then when they're gone, more just keep coming up from the bottom." Her cheeks were a touch red from such a simple description. "And that's it."

The two teams kept staring at her. Weiss wished she had Ruby's cloak to hide her face under.

"Balloons?" Yang asked this time, sounding just as disbelieving as her sister. Blake beside her, usually so pensive and stoic, raised a brow in her direction, as well. Weiss nodded in their direction, unable to find her voice.

Balloons. How embarrassing.

"How curious," the Captain said in an interested tone. He still seemed to be staring back to them all, but to who, specifically, no one was certain. "How very…well, different and odd, but also kinda neat."

"Does this mean anything to you, Mr. Captain?" Pyrrha asked from her seat, eyes between the host and her 'screensaver.' The Captain remained quiet for a moment. His eyes strayed up towards the ceiling, appearing somewhat pensive and deeply in thought.

"A little," he eventually said. "But, thankfully, it's nothing any of you need to concern yourselves with. Just a light bit of trivia for the mind, is all." He turned his head back turning his head back around. "For the time being, let your concerns and thoughts for these, uh, 'screensavers' take a backseat. I'd be happy to explain what this all means at a later time."

And like that, his focus was back fully to the screen.

"Any idea how long this might take, Cap?"

For all of four seconds.

It was Yang who shouted his way. "Do you need some help or anything?"

The Captain was quick to respond. "Oh, no no no no! I am quite fine!" He told her, shaking his head. "Thank you, but I'm alright. This system can just be a, a little finnicky at times. There are some calibrations that I'm assisting the ship with to get us moving a little bit quicker to our next showing. Give a little of my brute force, as it were, to the equations. Bit complicated, bit time-consuming, muscle-aching, mind-breaking, insanity-inducing, but nothing I haven't done a hundred times before."

Mind-breaking? Insanity? "Are you sure you're good?"

Their host scoffed. "Very good. It's really, mmf, nothing to worry about. Just a meticulous task that needs doing. Like I said, it's a bit, hmph, tiring, but I'm fine!" The Captain offered them up a chuckle, but there was a weary tinge to it. His fingers shuddered only for a moment before having them straightened fully again. "Best I could describe the experience would be like if I asked any of you to find a single, particular grain of sand on a beach. And finding it fast. Not fun and not the most exciting thing you can do with your time, but it helps."

"How much does it speed things up?" Pyrrha wondered. Mostly to herself, but the Captain was happy to answer such a question.

"Only a little bit," he admitted. "Not a lot, but enough. For me, at least. And with my help, this process should only take several more minutes or even an hour to finish."

"And hour?" Nora asked, somewhat surprised. "Isn't this supposed to be some kinda super spaceship?"

"Hmm. I think I said something very similar when I was your age." The Captain admitted, somewhat sheepishly. "Worst case scenario, we might have to wait a few hours as I work. Maybe even half a day, if we're really unlucky."

"Half a day?"

"Yes, I know! Believe me, I really wish I could control this whole thing a bit better!" He laughed, but like before, it had a hint of exhaustion behind it. "But the massive amount of focus, precision, and sheer willpower needed to finangle this into just the right position at just the right time and space to view our required showcasing is enough to make anyone-"

Boop.

"-lose their miiiiinnn-oooooh wait, hang on, I got one."

The screensaver disappeared. The screen went black and the Captain lowered his arms carefully to his sides. The host's sigh of relief was only barely heard from some in the room.

Nora was surprised like everyone but was also the only one to voice it. "Wait, for real? Already? Whatever happened to several minutes, hours or a day?"

"Never look a gift horse in the mouth, Ms. Valkyrie," the Captain practically slumped back into his chair. "We just got lucky. Super lucky. Let's go."

He lifted his hand up, snapped his fingers and the lights began to dim again.

Ocean waves pounded against hard stone along a beach. Foam, thick and salty, flew into the open air with rapturous noises of the sea. A single body laid on the edge of the shore, dark hair covering parts of his face while the seawater threated to drown him, even so close to the dryness of the land. The man raised his head to keep that from happening, but he was weak. Exhausted. The light hairs on his chin and cheeks felt as if they weighed more than hair ever should. His pale, uniquely magenta-colored eyes were only barely able to open.

"Renny!" Nora shouted in her seat. "We got Renny! Old, scruffy-looking Renny!"

It was Ren. And an older Ren by the looks of it. Light beard and mustache, longer hair and a more aged face. This was only barely able to be seen with the water and foam covering half his appearance, but it was undoubtedly the familiar face of Lie Ren.

Weiss made a face. "He looks terrible."

"Say what?!" Nora screeched, stepping onto her seat and glaring over to the other team. "You wanna go down, Weissy?! 'Cause I will! Don't tempt me!"

"N-Nora, please!" Pyrrha grabbed at the girl's skirt, tugging it lightly to get her attention. "Weiss didn't mean it that way! She was referring to how he looks right now!" She pointed to what might have been mistaken for a corpse on the shoreline. "He looks hurt. Beaten. I think that might even be a little blood."

Nora stopped her glaring at the Atlesian princess and stared back up to her partner's alternate self. Weiss just pursed her lips. "Sorry, that came out worse then I meant. But Ren – this Ren – doesn't look good right now. Something's clearly happened to him."

Nora paused for a moment to listen to the other girl's words. This Ren looked unpleasant, in a still handsome way. Like he had too much to drink the night before and a hangover was raging inwards. Regardless, Weiss was somewhat right; he did look (temporarily, Nora was certain) terrible.

"…Oh yeah, I guess he does look a little like shit." Nora laughed sheepishly, falling back into her seat. "Yeah, my bad."

"Hey, good news though," Yang spoke up from the side. "One of us down, six more to go. Anyone wanna bet who will pop up next?"

She was joking, of course. Trying to destroy the tension. Looking out for everyone.

Nora just huffed out a laugh and settled back in her seat. "Obviously, it's gonna be me," she nodded, sounding very sure of herself. "I mean, come on? Wherever Ren goes, I go. Right, Ren?"

Ren had remained quiet during their talk. He felt odd, admittedly, staring up to some version of himself that wasn't truly him. The bags under the eyes, the unkempt features, the scar on his nose; Ren couldn't be certain, but he almost felt the weight and tiredness of the man right through the screen. Like the older Ren's very exhaustion was spilling out from the screen and into himself.

He wanted to take a nap, strangely. But he also wanted to continue to watch what was happening. And so, with some effort, he forced his eyes open and continued with his team.

The nearly-drowned man eyed the beach for a moment. He thought he heard something. A child. Dark of hair. Tanned-skin. Playing in the sand. A small castle was made, only slightly crumbled. He was facing away from the downed man. The magenta-eyed man wanted the child to turn around, just for a moment. Even a small moment.

But then came another voice.

A young girl. Five or so. A couple years older than the boy. Light red hair. Slightly paler skin. She wore a pink dress that he knew was her favorite. It wasn't appropriate clothing for the beach but she didn't care. She still loved it. She laughed and played with the younger boy.

He couldn't see her face. He couldn't see any of their faces.

He wanted to. Just once. He was desperate. Only once.

Weariness hit him again. He was so tired. A light rest wouldn't hurt. The water wouldn't kill him, surely. Not so close to land. His eyes hurt so much.

"Who're the kids?" Yang asked. "Anyone familiar?"

Ruby shrugged. "Beats me."

"Hmm…" Weiss shook her head, but her crumpled brow suggested she was wondering and thinking about it, as well.

"I think I might have a guess," Blake said, stroking her chin, watching carefully.

"As do I," Pyrrha started to smile, turning it nearly into a full smirk as she glanced over to her teammates slowly. Both were watching the viewing very closely.

Then, the barrel of a gun tapped into his back.

"Hey, you," another man. Uniformed and carrying an automatic, spoke deeply down to the nearly-drowning man. "You alive?"

No answer.

With the barrel of the gun, he touched around the fallen man's back. Something resisted the barrel's touch towards the bottom of the jacket. Something hard. Using the barrel carefully, the uniformed man lifted the jacket up slightly, revealing a gun tucked into the man's pants.

"Hey!" The man in the uniform looked up to another uniformed figure, standing on some rocks, looking out to the sea. "Got a man with a gun over here!"

The man on the rocks nodded, starting to walk away. His aim, coming into view, was a large, intricate citadel, fortified with parapets, great walls, towers, and even a sturdy drawbridge over a man-made moat, of all things. It was a fortress; guarded by men with heavy armaments and defined discipline.

"A castle?" Weiss remarked, raising an eyebrow curiously. "Well, that's certainly old fashioned. Not too many want to live in something made of stone when plaster is significantly cheaper these days." She looked over the entirety of the place and raised her other eyebrow slowly. "Though, I must say, it does appear to be remarkably well-designed."

"Most military facilities use metals and steel as barricades now," Pyrrha added in. "Some settlements still use stone, but it's just not as effective as reinforced alloys are. It costs more, takes longer to set up; I wonder who lives here…"

The insides of the castle were discerningly more comfortable then the outside would ever suggest. The halls were lit with electricity rather than torches. Warm and carved and proper by appearance. The flooring was tiled marble and reflected the lighting all around. And in the main dining halls, sitting at the head of a larger, maple wood table, was a man being informed on a new arrival by one of the many armed faculty.

"He was delirious," the head of his security said, voice stout and hard. "But he managed to ask for you by name."

The figure was of some importance, it seemed. He paid little attention to the guard informing him of the nearly-drowned intruder, instead opting to focus on his meal.

His attendant, standing beside him and well-dressed in a suit, spoke up on his behalf. "Show him," he ordered. The guard nodded and brought to the table the weapon the stranger had carried. He placed it carefully to the table, pointed away from high figure still eating.

"He was carrying nothing but this…" The guard said. Still, the man at the table continued to ignore him. He even reached for a glass of red wine at the side, positively uninterested by the happenings. But then, the sentry wasn't finished. "And this…"

A top was placed next to the gun. More casually, the thing lacked any sort of dangerous design. It was simply made of metal; one side shorter in it's point to the other, while the middle was wide and thick. Nothing more then a children's toy, meant to offer mild enjoyment at best.

The figure at the table stopped reaching for his wine. His eyes, old and worn, stared down with intrigue.

Then, for the first time since his head of security had entered the room, he spoke.

"Bring him here."

"Ooooh, Renny's in trouble!" Nora giggled to herself, but she was still at the edge of her seat, very invested in the happenings on the screen.

"What do you suppose that was all about?" Yang wondered, interested. "That top. What's that about? Think it's worth something?"

"It didn't appear to be anything important," Pyrrha said, pursing her lips before turning to her teammate. "Ren, do you know anything about a top?"

Ren shook his head. Of course, he had toys in his youth but he could not recall any particular toy to memory that held some importance to him. Especially not some metal top. Obviously enough, to his alternate-self, it must have held some value if it was something worth keeping on his person.

The guards of the castle dragged the still weakened intruder into the dining hall under his arms. Past the figure at the head of the table and to the opposite side of the room, laying him down in a dark chair where a bowl of beans and porridge with a metal spoon waited for him.

The guards carrying him were not gentle, dropping him into his seat. The man slumped forward, nearly into his porridge, but he still had some consciousness left not to drown himself inside his food, at least.

He was slow to grab at his spoon. Slower still to put the food into his mouth. But after a few slow efforts, he began to feed himself with some measure of control. His hunger was evident by the large mouthfuls he was taking down.

"Are you here to kill me?"

The gruff, aged voice at the table spoke up finally after a time. The intruder turned his eyes away from the porridge. Only now did he realize they was alone. No attendant, no guards. Just himself in less than impressive attire along with a very, very old man in a suit.

He was still tired, however. Even lifting his head so much as a few inches from his food required effort. He struggled to find the strength to answer his host.

"I know what this is," the old man continued, hands grazing over the stranger's gun before falling onto the top. He lifted it carefully. "I've seen one before," he gave the top a little twist, letting it spin on the table. "Many, many years ago…"

The head figure watched the top spin. It did not drift away from where he let it drop. It did not shift or shake or slow down. Is just kept spinning. And spinning. And spinning. And spinning.

"It belonged to a man I met in a half-remembered dream…" The top continued to spin. "A man possessed of some radical notions…"

"Old guy's got one hell of wrist," Yang joked. "It just keeps going."

"I think there may be more to that top then we see." Blake replied quietly. Her eyes were transfixed on the scene.

The intruder's head lifted his head a little more. His strength was returning. He ignored the porridge dangling off his chin. His eyes were fixed now on the man at the end of the table. His eyes shined with new life and then-

"What is the most resilient parasite?"

The scene shifted. Now, a new man was standing at the table. Blond, handsome, cleanly shaved in a fine tailored suit. Dining on a well-made quiche.

"Oh, hey, Jaune's back!" Ruby smiled happily, before an expression of confusion replaced it. "Wait, what happened to the old guy? Why does the room look a little funny? Did I miss something?"

"No idea," Yang said, leaning forward in her seat again and smirking. "But another older Vomit Boy is A-okay in my book. Less of the wild-edge I liked from the other one, but he is making that suit work!"

Weiss seemed to find the more business-attired Jaune interesting, if nothing else. "Indeed. It fits him well." And that was all she would say to that.

Pyrrha was silent. Silent but observant. All the while pretending the teasing smile from Nora was imaginary and all in her head. "Hey, Pyrrha. You look a little thirsty. Can I get you something to drink?"

"Oh, shush, you…"

"A bacteria? A virus?"

Sitting away from the young entrepreneur was another, young, equally well-dressed man. Dark hair slicked back. Magenta-eyes calm and focused. He spoke calm and with purpose, explaining something grandiose in scale to the figure he needed to have the fullest of attentions of.

"And there's Ren again," Pyrrha stated, holding a similarly unsure expression. "But he looks different, too. Less…unclean then before."

"New clothes." Blake remarked. "And he's shaved."

"Looking good, Ren!" Yang laughed and threw up her thumbs.

"He sure does," Nora smiled and leaned a little bit further from her seat, taking in the moment for all it was worth.

For his part, Ren similarly shifted himself closer to the screen. Eyes still intensely watching, but curiously found he wasn't so tired anymore. How odd.

He gestured to the food in front of their blond host. "An intestinal worm?" He asked.

His words brought a reaction. A pause as the blond man reached for his wine, no longer than an instant. Good. He had his attention. He was listening. Maybe even interested.

His partner, a man of similarly colored eyes and hair but with a noticeable wildness to them, watched the proceedings with carefully analytical eyes.

"Hey, Blakey," Yang teased, reaching over and poking at her partner. "Look who made it to the big screen!"

Her partner was less amused with her pestering, instead deciding to shrink herself deeper into her seat and hide her tinted cheeks.

"Sun does look nice in his suit," Pyrrha remarked before giggling. "I don't believe I've ever actually seen him wear one."

The boy liked to show off his abs, everyone knew. And to some in the room, his showing off was greatly appreciated.

He spoke up. It was his move. "What Mr. Ren is trying to say is-"

"An idea," the magenta-eyed man – Ren – interrupted. The businessman looked in his direction. Interest obtained. "Resilient, highly contagious. Once an idea's taken hold in the brain, it's almost impossible to eradicate. An idea that is fully formed, fully understood, that sticks." He tapped a finger to his head. "In there, somewhere."

The capitalist bit into his salad. "For someone like you to steal?" He asked, sounding only somewhat judgmental.

"Yes," Ren's partner answered without hesitation. "In the dream state, conscious defenses are lowered and your thoughts become vulnerable to theft. It's called extraction."

"But, Mr. Arc, we can train your subconscious to defend itself from even the most skilled extractor." Ren added in, never breaking eye-contact with their host – the now named 'Mr. Arc'.

"And how can you do that?"

"Uh, okay, wait, I need a second, timeout!" Ruby raised her hands and waved them about. The gears in her brain working overtime to make heads or tails of what was being discussed. "Dream state? Extraction? Subconscious? Anybody else getting any of this?" She looked over her partner and towards her sister. "Yang?"

Yang stiffened in her seat, looking over to her sister, then to the screen, then back to Ruby. She hesitated, briefly, then smiled. Eidely. "Phht, of course!" She laughed. Loudly. Joyfully. Continuously. "I-I mean, it's pretty simple when you think about it!" She laughed some more. "But I-ah-um-I wouldn't be the best person to explain the, um, extremities of…this!" She was still laughing. Her eyes were wide and zipping around the room. "Hey, I know someone who knows big words! Help your team captain out here, Weiss!"

Weiss jerked her head to the blond. Betrayer! "Me? What would I- I mean, I…" Her eyes darted around. I need a scapegoat, I need a scapegoat, I need a scape-CAT! "I understand some of it, naturally, but my words may be a, a bit much and overly complicated for such a simple discussion." She turned her head to the last remaining member of the team who hadn't talked. Blake saw this, looked modestly surprised, then glared. "But I'm sure I know someone here who could offer a…unique perspective and way of conveying it to everyone." Her smile down to the now ill-tempered member of her team seemed eerily similar to Yang's. "Blake?"

Said called-upon young woman had her arms crossed and her eyes bared at every one of her teammates (well, save Ruby; she was somewhat innocent of all this). She huffed out a breath, thought up a line of nasty words and curses she wished she had half the confidence necessary to recite them, before turning her eyes over to Team JNPR, minus one J. They looked positively enthralled by the turmoil of their peers.

With just a raised eyebrow, Blake asked her question.

Pyrrha just kept giggling. "Oh, I don't quite get it yet," she admitted without a hint of embarrassment. "Ren, do you?"

Ren shook his head, amused as well. "A little, but I think I would need to watch a bit more before I could grasp everything." He looked up to his partner, who smiled widely.

"I have no idea what's going on and I am completely and one-hundred percent okay with that!" She held back a laugh and simply held out her hand, to which Ren smiled and slapped with his own in good humor.

That was all the team would say. Each smiled, laughed a little, enjoyed their combined cluelessness and were ready for the movie to start again.

Team RWBY was comparatively less cheery. They couldn't believe their sister team. Traitors! Some crossed their arms and huffed at the unfairness of being so easily able to admit their limits. One sat back, flush-cheeked but willing to admit she'd goofed. And lastly, a team leader, who shook her head and wished her team sometimes wasn't so…ugh.

"Because I am the most skilled extractor," Ren answered Mr. Arc without a hint of gloating or exaggeration. He was simply the best and he knew it. "I know how to search your mind and find your secrets. I know the tricks, and I can teach them to your subconscious so that even when you're asleep, your guard is never down."

Ren stood up, carrying a small glass of wine as he circled the table. Mr. Arc continued to watch.

"But if I'm going to help you, you have to be completely open to me." Ren emphasized further. "I need to know my way around your thoughts better than your wife, better than your therapist, better than anyone." Mr. Arc was watching him. Less intrigued now. More amused. Hmm. "If this place is a dream and you've got a safe full of secrets, I need to know what's in that safe." The businessman's eyes darted to the side for a second before refocusing. "For all of this to work, you need to completely let me in."

Mr. Arc was amused. Ren hadn't imagined that. The man wiped his lips with a napkin, pushed his seat back, and stood. "Enjoy your evening, gentlemen," he said kindly, nodding respectfully to both of his guests in the room. "I will consider your proposal carefully." Mr. Arc said no more, stepping towards the doors behind him, where a pair of guards waited patiently to open them and allow a wide variety of guests in many profligate costumes and masks to come into view.

Ren's partner ignored the extravagance of the outside party. He was frowning. "He knows," he stated factually.

Ren pursed his lips. He was starting to get that impression. Then the room began to shake, with the grand chandeliers clinking above.

The blond's eyes blinked upwards, narrowing at the disturbance. "What is going on up there…?"

Ren's eyes drifted down to his wrist to look over a nice silver watch. The second hand was slow. Very slow. And the minute hand was not yet at top of the hour, but still the room had shaken. Things were progressing too quickly.

Then, there were explosions.

BOOOOM.

The room stirred slightly from the noise. The scene had shifted rather suddenly.

Nora eyed south of the screen to the Captain. "Uh, Cap? I'm starting to think this universe is broken."

Pyrrha eyed the screen with inquisitive eyes. "Where are we now?"

Men and women ran through the streets of a city burning. Cars were overturned, buildings set to the torch, and folks with everything from bats and timber to guns and molotovs. They climbed over one another in earnest and rage. Screaming and wrecking the locale without care or issue. A riot of some magnitude with the castle nowhere to be found.

Ren came into view. But he was different. His dark suit was gone, replaced with a tan one. And he was sleeping. Upright, in a chair. A bathtub, of all things, filled with steaming water waited just behind him.

A nervous man paced around the enclosed space just beside him, sweat dripping anxiously down from his light blue hair. Noises in the background – explosions, wild rackets, screaming parties – made what might have once been a handsome face twitch fretfully. He pulled back the curtains of the bathroom regardless; the horde of rioters were getting closer. His mouth was dry and his fingers began to jerk.

"It's Neptune!" Ruby shouted, reaching over and shaking her partner. "Weiss, Weiss! It's Neptune! Older Neptune!"

"Yes, Ruby," Weiss shouted back, rolling her eyes and fighting off her leader. "Thank you. I know what my…my…well, my very close friend who happens to be a boy looks like." The heiress crossed her arms and hoped her face didn't show any red. "Even if he is a little older and…looks like he might need a shower."

Ruby's silver eyes widened. "Friend whose a…Weiss, is Neptune your boyfriend?!"

The excited cheer brought everyone's attention over to the white-haired young Huntress. Blake and Yang were highly amused and the other team was failing to hide their giggles. Weiss, for her part, knew she was rosy in the cheeks now.

"W-well, it's not so much that we've talked about it or anything. We've both been busy since the dance. Terrorists, Grimm, the festival, it's all been a lot to handle and we've been very busy." She said. "Whether we are officially b-boyfriend and girlfriend will have to be determined at a…a later time..."

More giggles and wider grins. Ruby still looked hopeful. Still gushing her way. Even the Captain seemed mildly interested, looking back in his seat. Weiss could have sworn she saw him smiling under his hood.

The Huntress-in-training decided then that she hated them all. Hated them all equally.

"Can we just get back to the stupid universe, now?!"

He checked over the sleeping Ren. His wrist had a pair of yellow tubes inserted into him, just above his watch. The watch's ticker seemed unusually slow and relaxed. The seconds going by very timidly. The tubes appeared to be pumping a liquid both into out of his body. Quickly and continuously.

Following the pair of tubes, the man knelt beside a silver briefcase where the hoses entered into. The insides were shown containing several additional wires, containers and knobs that seemed to work in some strange manner. It laid at the feet of Ren's partner, similarly unconscious and having another pair of hoses coursing into his arms.

But there was another pair that led into the main bedroom. And like his job required, the aqua-haired man followed them as well.

Right towards a large bed. Where a sleeping Mr. Arc rested.

"Wait, now they're all here and not in the…" Nora's mouth opened and closed. The logic of this movie wasn't found. "Cap! You haven't answered me! Is this movie, universe, place broken?!" She pointed to the screen. "Everyone's seeing this right?"

"Is the movie out of order?" Ruby scratched her head. "I think I'm missing something here and it's giving me a headache."

Blake was quiet and looking between the briefcase and the tubes. "Hmm…"

BOOOOOOOOM.

The explosions. They were getting closer. The sweating man wiped his hand over his face. Things were getting too close to the chest.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

The scene shifted with the fire of the rioters.

The man with the blue hair was sleeping now. His head balanced on the window, bouncing lightly. The outside views were flying by, quickly. Skies blue, grass green, trees. This wasn't the burning city. This was a moving train along the countryside.

Yellow tubes connected into his arm. Just like the other three men in the enclosed compartment. Right into a familiar silver briefcase.

A young woman, wearing a white coat with hair split into two colors of brown and pink, sat in the corner of the compartment. She watched the men with a bored expression on her face, yawning quietly into her hand before checking the watch on her watch.

Her watch ticked by the second. Steady and normal.

"Hey! I know that girl!" Yang pointed to the screen. "That's the whirly-twirly girl who kicked my ass!"

"Hmph. So a known associate of terrorists and a kingdom-renowned thief made it up on the screen before we did." Weiss scoffed. "Is this going to be a pattern? We seem to be frequenting the criminal underbelly in these movies more then we're seeing ourselves."

"Is anyone gonna talk about the train?" Ruby asked, hand raised. "Why are they on a train? Why are they sleeping? Weren't we just in the city? Then the castle? I'm not gonna lie, I'm really confused and have so many questions and I really hope I'm not the only one 'cause that would just make me sad."

"Ha! Don't worry, Red Leader!" Nora shouted, before pointing down to her side. "We have our combined think-tank working out the solution right here!"

Ruby, Yang, and Weiss all tilted their heads to where she was pointing.

Pyrrha had her brow creased in deep consideration, fingers stroking her chin thoughtfully. "And now we're on a train. And everyone's asleep…"

"With the same briefcase." Ren muttered beside her. His fingers started to tap the arm of his chair in rhythm. "Briefcase with tubing…"

"And then there's the watch." Blake's eyes were to the floor, her foot tapping silently. "The watches…and the time…"

"Hmmmmm…" The three hummed as one.

The four less inquisitive students watched them work quietly. Remarking quietly how it was scary how they could see the thoughts turning in each of their heads.

"It must be weird being in their heads."

"No argument there."

"Ha. Bet."

The young girl with the strange her watched as the man bounced in his seat. His head rocking against the glass.

And then another train passed by. Loudly.

BOOOOOM!

Closer and closer. Explosion after explosion. The city was collapsing inward. The man swallowed a lump in his throat and then checked again on the sleeping Ren. He was still balanced and stable on his chair, just over the tub.

Back in the castle, Ren and his partner looked out over a balcony, watching the dark sea next to the castle.

Another tremor occurred. Sudden and unsettling. They balance themselves against railing, as parts of the castle's masonry begin to chip apart around them, falling into the ocean. Even the water churned and broke onto the land with great crashed from the tremors. The other guests seem unperturbed by the shifts in the environment, continuing to enjoy their masquerade.

"Arc knows," the partner grunted, regaining his balance. "He's playing us."

Ren shook his head. "I can get it here, Sun. The information's in the safe- he looked right at it when I mentioned his secrets."

His partner – Sun – nodded. He saw as much, as well. But then, over Ren's shoulder, he saw something that caught his eye. Something wrong.

"She's here, Ren."

Ren pursed his lips at the words. He didn't seem surprised, turning around to see a women in an elegant dress, mask casually placed to her face, gazing out at the sea. Her hair was short but fluffed and neatly trimmed. A light red complimented by a soft skin and freckled cheeks.

"OH MY GOD, I CALLED IT! I MADE IT INTO THE MOVIES!"

Perhaps it shouldn't have been a surprise that Nora would react so loudly to seeing her alternate self. Or that she would jump from her seat and use it as a platform. Or do a little 'mission accomplished' dance. Her teammates certainly expected it; Pyrrha laughed, Ren smiled, and both covered their ears in preparation.

Team RWBY, however, was reeling from the piercing cry.

"How," Weiss tried, ears ringing and looking somewhat disoriented by the sudden screaming. "How do you live with this?!"

"Earplugs." Ren answered. "Invest heavily."

"What?!" Yang shouted now. "Did someone say something?!"

Blake was shaking, fingers holding tightly to her ribbon painfully. "Octaves. High octaves. Shouldn't be possible for human lungs."

"Oh hey, Nora's on." Ruby's eyes dizzily tried to focus back on the screen, swaying in her seat. "Yaaaaaay…"

"You just get to your room," Ren told his partner, shaking his head lightly. "I'll take care of the rest."

Sun didn't appear to like this but didn't argue. "See that you do. Remember, we're here to work."

He didn't need to be reminded, but Ren nodded regardless. He moved slowly over to woman looking out to the sea, taking a deep breath and stepping lightly. It didn't seem to matter; the lady in the black dress seemed only too aware of the approaching man. She continued to gaze out at the waves before peering down to the water directly below the balcony. The wind whipped through her hair softly.

"If I jumped," she whispered, just loud enough for him to here, "would I survive?"

Ren followed her eyes, looking down at the crashing foam and shoreline. "With a clean dive, perhaps." He allowed her. His eyes trailed back to hers. "What are you doing here, Nora?"

The woman – Nora – smiled with a little laugh. "I thought you might be missing me…"

Again, Ren pursed his lips. "I am," he said. "But I can't trust you anymore."

Again, a light smile graced her lips. This time, with an edge. A teasing, inviting touch that could almost be called alluring. Nora turned fully to Ren and leaned close, pressing herself close to his suit and lips to his ear.

She whispered; "So what?"

"Oh, this Nora's got a little zing to her!" Yang nodded favorably, her hearing returned and smiling to her friend with thumbs up. "I approve. I most definitely approve!"

"Heehee! Old me's got a little hot streak goin' on!" Her smile was wide and she most definitely liked what she was seeing on the screen. "Yeah! Work it, me!"

Ren was quiet and subtle when pulled at the collar of his shirt. He wouldn't even bother pretending that it was the theatre room which was getting hotter.

The pair took off for a conveniently placed suite on the far side of the castle. Ren was walking around, gathering objects and tools and placing them into various pockets within his jacket. Nora had taken to gazing over a rather auspicious painting to the side wall while sipping on champagne.

"Looks like Sun's taste," she commented. The painting was simple enough to understand; a mortal man, armored and riding a white stallion, sword raised high and challenging another man who sat inside a cloud – a god, if it was to be believed correctly. Buck naked and strong in appearance. The knight still rode, ready to fight.

"Actually, Mr. Arc is partial to medieval, French painters," Ren stated back, opening a window and glancing outwards. Guards were passing by at the ground level but were refusing to look up. Always expecting the trouble to be outwards, rather than in.

Ren procured a pair of black leather gloves, fastening them to his fingers quickly. He eyed Nora, seeing her watch him carefully. "Would you sit down for me?"

Still smiling, Nora did as she was told, gracefully falling into a leather, blackwood chair. Ren approached her, pulling out a length of dark rope and kneeled at her feet. She watched him, amused.

"Tell me," she whispered to him as he tied the rope to the chair leg. "Do the children miss me?"

"Children?!"

Another shriek from Nora. Though, thankfully, more manageable in volume and actions.

"Children? As in kids? We have kids?!" Her face was glowing. "I-I-I mean, THEY have kids! They do! Not us! I mean, why would we have kids?! HAHAhahaahaa- how? How do they have kids, Ren?!"

Her partner didn't immediately answer her. Compared to Nora, whose face was red and frantic, Ren was noticeably pale and unusually stiff. "I…I thought I explained how this can happen to you once…"

"No time for jokes, Renny! We have babies!"

Pyrrha made an effort to calm them both to little success. Might have had something to do with her own inability to stop laughing.

Ren paused in his knotting. His fingers strayed, lightly grazing Nora's ankle with the utmost care. His eyes strayed to hers once again, with a long, wanting, and miserable expression.

"More than you can imagine…"

Nora, for the first time since stepping into the castle, felt somewhat offput by the answer.

Yang's brow furrowed with concerned eyes. "What does he mean by that? Why do they miss her?"

Her team eyed one another. Possibilities and considerations danced through their minds, but none could quite form an answer that didn't seem completely ludicrous or morbid.

Ren moved to the window and gave the rope a light toss out into the open air. Nora tilted her head. "What're you doing?"

"Getting some air," he answered, tugging on the rope, testing its tautness to the chair. With Nora's added weight, it would hold. "Stay seated," he said, foot to the windowsill. "Please."

And with that, he jumped out of the suite. Nora simply watched from her chair.

The rappel down the castle's wall wasn't so difficult, in truth. It wasn't Ren's first time. A couple windows down, not a guard to be seen, and the colored-glass that caught his particular interest was coming up quick. And with the tremors and the unsettling behavior of the local environment, the sooner this assignment ended, the better.

He reached for a device at his hip. He was careful; one hand to the rope, one hand to the device.

Things were progressing well. Until he fell.

The chair in the suite flew towards the window. Crashing and banging loudly across the carpet, the now emptied seat was devoid of any sign of it's previous occupant. In fact, the entire suite seemed missing of any sign that a well-dressed woman had been in any way or shape a part of its environment.

Luck would have it, though, that the chair would wedge itself just beside the window, stopping what might have been a fatal descent for Ren.

He caught the rope and groaned. That was too close. And now, he had to start climbing up.

His disappointment was immense. "Come on…"

Ruby raised her hand. "Okay, I'm just gonna throw this out: is Nora a ghost? That was kinda ghosty, there, and I'm completely fine if that is the case and if everyone wants to just skip to the next movie now."

She wasn't joking. And the implication of an actual specter had others pausing in thought.

"Ghosts aren't real…" Weiss eventually said, though her tone lacked any sort of certainty. "It's just…it isn't possible. They're just part of scary stories to tell around campfires to get a rise out of children. They don't exist."

"Alternate universes," Blake whispered, bow twitching. She did not like ghosts. "Maybe we should start asking ourselves what doesn't exist out there."

"That's…not comforting anyone, Blake."

It took some careful hands and cautious steps but Ren made into the kitchen of the castle through the glass. It was empty now; not a workhand to be found. He stepped lightly and pulled out a pair of items and carefully fastened them together. A pistol and a long-barreled silencer.

Stealth was required now. Perhaps more than ever.

The guard standing just outside, overlooking the grand staircase didn't know what hit him when his head suddenly found itself filled with a small, foreign object. Would never know what had happened as he slumped to the floor, only to be caught by his assailant and carefully laid down without so much as glance back to the killing that had just occurred.

Down the staircase Ren went. Another guard. This one caught notice of him.

Phht.

Another quiet shot. Another bullet to the head. Another careful lowering of a body to the floor as Ren made his way to the right and towards a pair of doors to the grand hall.

"Is Ren a spy?" Pyrrha wondered aloud.

"I don't think so," Blake remarked over to her. "Too many unusual situations. Too weird to be just a spy situation."

Pyrrha nodded, taking her word for it. Ren continued pondering and watching himself work with interest.

A painting of a fair maiden, riding a white stallion in golden armor was lowered to the side as Ren worked his eyes over a dark, metallic safe in his sights. It contrasted to the more stylized space of the castle, but it wasn't uncommon. Safes weren't designed to fit their surroundings; they were meant to be secure. Fastened and locked. Safe.

Ren played with the dial in several quick motions until the faint 'click' from the inside rang in his ears. He opened it, seeing no jewels or bills or items of some importance save for a small, manilla envelope laying in the middle; a far more valuable prize. He grabbed it quickly, time was short, and procured another, identical one in his other hand. He was already beginning to place the envelope back in when the heavy doors of the hall started to groan.

The chandelier and braziers lit up. And the sound of footsteps was heard.

"Turn around."

The 'slowly' went unsaid. Ren held his hands in the air, envelope still in hand, and backed away from the safe. His eyes went to the entrance of the room; Mr. Arc, smiling and unperturbed, stood beside Nora, who stared at Ren with gun in hand and no sense of teasing to her eyes. He should have been less surprised then he felt.

"Hold up," Nora held her hands up. "Timeout. Am I betraying Renny here? The father of my- her children?! Is that what's going on?!" She asked. "Wait. Am I betraying Renny for Jaune?"

Her eyes scanned over the screen, darting frantically between the three of them before a thought occurred.

"A woman between two men…am I the mistress?!"

Yang, Pyrrha and just about everyone else in the room turned their heads sharply in her direction. "How the hell did you come up with that assumption?!"

"It was the only logical conclusion," Nora answered, voice even but her expression shocked. "The signs were always there."

"No! No, it is not a conclusion and there were no signs at all!"

"Your gun, Ren," Nora requested, pointing her own firearm in his direction. Ren didn't move, holding the envelope up and hand at the ready in case some dramatics needed to be taken, then.

But then a pair of men, each carrying weapons of their own, pushed open the doors to the hall, dragging with them a very unenthused Sun. He frowned to his partner, agitated by the handling, as Nora decided then to try another tactic of persuasion. She pointed her gun to Sun's temple and smiled a little wider.

"Please."

Ren's gun slid across the ebony table not a second after. It didn't reach the other side – about halfway, in fact – but that was good enough for Mr. Arc.

"Now the envelope, Mr. Ren," the blond businessman asked, holding his hand out. Ren could only frown and do as he was told, making sure it reached the other side this time.

Oh, the look on Ren's face… "Did she tell you?" He asked, eyeing the still calmly smiling Nora with weariness. "Or have you known all along?"

"That you're here to steal from me?" Mr. Arc asked, brow raised and smile wide. "Or that we're actually asleep?"

"Wait, did he just say they're asleep?"

"I think he did. Did we mishear?"

"I don't think so. I definitely heard him say 'asleep'."

"How can you be asleep if you're awake?"

"That's…actually a very profound question. Huh."

Sun sent a look that read 'I-told-you-so' clear enough.

"I want to know who your employer is," Mr. Arc continued, leaving no opening for debate on the matter as Nora cocked the gun aimed at Sun's head.

Ren glared over the table. "No point threatening him in a dream."

"That depends on what you're threatening," Nora countered, smiling calmly still. Until it turned sadistic. "Killing him would just wake him up…but pain?"

BANG!

"GY-aaaahhh!"

Sun screamed. Leg bleeding violently through his suit, the man lost his balance to the pain and nearly fell, only being held up by the pair of guards who were unwilling to let him go from their grip.

Blake knew it wasn't real. Or, at least, the Nora on screen said it wasn't real.

She said it was only a dream. Ren didn't deny the situation was all a dream. Even Jaune, the person being robbed, deduced the entire situation was all a dream.

Sun would be fine. He was just in pain. The blood wasn't real. Sun would be fine.

A cold hand touched her arm. Blake, startled, turned to see Weiss looking at her with sympathetic eyes.

She was keeping quiet. Respectful. The others hadn't noticed her reaction, too engrossed in the movie.

Blake nodded to her teammate, touching her hand back and smiling thankfully.

It was all a dream. Sun would be fine.

Ren tensed in his spot while Nora smirked his way. "Pain is in the mind. And judging by the décor, we're in your mind, aren't we, Sun?"

Nora aimed for his other leg. Ren decided this had gone on long enough.

The magenta-eyed thief leapt onto the table before the finger on the trigger even came close to pulling. He slid down the table, hand flying to the gun still waiting halfway there, and aimed for his partner right between the eyes.

Phht.

Sun fell like a stone. The men holding him let his corpse fall.

Only a dream. 'Killing him would just wake him up', that's what Nora said.

Sun would be fine.

And yet, Blake wasn't the only one in the theatre to react when the round hole popped up right in his head. Ruby gasped. Yang jumped. Nora cringed, feeling guilt for a situation she should have felt no blame for. And Ren, who turned his eyes down for only a second before lifting them back up.

Sun would be fine.

The room shook with Sun's death. Violently. Chaotically. As if the world was ending with his passing.

Mr. Arc's eyes took in the eruption of the room, looking for the first time surprised by what was happening. Ren bolted past everyone, skipping over his friend's corpse, ignoring the delighted gaze of Nora, and made to escape from imploding castle.

Back in the old bathroom in the similarly exploding city, Sun's eyes opened with a jolt. He blinked for only a second, ever a professional, and tore the tubes from his wrist quickly.

"What are you doing?!" The blue-haired sweating man yelled. "It's too soon-"

"I know!" Sun yelled, pulling the silver briefcase from the floor into the other room. "The dream is collapsing. I'll try to keep Arc under a little longer. Buy us a little time."

He placed the briefcase on the floor next to the large bed where Mr. Arc laid. Said man started to rock and turn in his sleep, eyes twitching behind closed lids. His breathing was starting to quicken. His sleep was ending.

The castle was breaking. Great stone pillars and chandeliers crashed all around Ren as he moved around the fallen dust and debris. The guards of the castle seem less interested in their intruder now that their world was falling apart.

Mr. Arc, panicked and distressed by the collapsing environment, looked quite contrasting next to the relaxed Nora, who didn't seem to mind all the ruination happening.

"He was close," she said, her voice managing to be heard even over the falling ceiling. "Very close." She eyed the envelope in Mr. Arc's hands.

The businessman got the idea. He tore open the envelope, pulling out sheets of paper quickly. His eyes rolled over the contents remarkably fast.

Blank. Blank. Blank. He'd been duped.

"Stop him!"

The guards of the castle seemed to have heard him and refocused themselves over the collapsing home. Nora glanced over the panicking Mr. Arc's shoulders and smiled at the ruse.

Clever, Ren. Always so clever.

"Haha, clever Renny!" Nora giggled, shaking her partner and enjoying the show immensely. "Looks like big brains are something all versions of you have in common, huh? Heehee."

Ren rolled his eyes but smiled. The situation was confusing, but he felt like he was starting to grasp what was going on. To an extent, at least.

If he was right, the concept was…intriguing.

For his part, running through a falling building while trying to open an envelope seemed like less than a clever move by Ren's standard definition of the word. Especially when the bullets started to fly.

He fired back. He looked over the contents of Arc's envelope. 'CONFIDENTIAL' boldly stamped on each page but the contents were legible. He dodged rocks and tiles. More bullets. Returning fire. One guard down. More information. Had to remember it all. Had to put it to memory. All of it. The staircase just fell around a couple guards. A few seconds to read. Another page. Last page. Almost done. Almost done. Almost-

Some words were covered up in black highlight.

"He won't wake!" The sweating man yelled. He was slapping the sleeping Ren. No reaction.

Sun worked on the briefcase from the other room, shaking his head. "This isn't gonna last. Give him a kick- dunk him!"

The sweating man didn't need to be told twice. With a slight nudge, he pushed the chair back and allowed the sleeping Ren to fall back into the tub.

Sun watched the action before turning back to the man sleeping in the bed.

Only, the man wasn't sleeping anymore. In fact, Mr. Arc had been very much awake for some time, fully mobile, glaring and holding a silver firearm to his head.

"Mr. Wukong…" He growled.

"Oh shit, Sun! Jaune's packin' heat!"

In the dream, the castle seemed to react to the shift in the city world. Gravity warped. Ren felt lighter. The world creaked and moaned ominously. Then the windows all around him started to explode inward, as the great waves of the ocean made its way into the castle by the hundreds of tons. It was vision few would ever be alive to see and Ren, in that moment of failure to receive the info he needed, could only watch as his body was taken by the waters. He accepted it all without issue.

He came too right after. Soaking wet in a new body, pulling out of a ceramic tub. It was a hell of a way to wake up.

It was also unexpected to see Mr. Arc tossing around the man they kept in check of the apartment while he and Sun did their work. Throwing the man around while beating him with the butt of a handgun, Ren was quick to remove himself from the tub and leap onto their attacker, pulling him to the tiled floor. Arm around his throat and legs doing their best to prevent any other movements besides flailing angrily and trying to find traction, Ren had the fight over before Mr. Arc even knew he was there.

It was a quick fight. Especially when Sun came from the other room, bruised under his eye, and aimed his own gun down at their assailant.

Mr. Arc paused to stare at the gun for only a second. He was no fool, of course, and casually tossed his firearm away with little other fanfare.

"That's the value of attacking from behind," Blake said. "Opponents are disoriented, very few actually train to fight against their blind spots, and limited flexibility makes these situations dangerous. An unexpected flanking can make a world of difference."

"Indeed," Ren nodded. "It's pragmatic. What can be a gamble when attacking from the front becomes significantly easier if we aim for the rear. My weapons were actually meant to focus that style of combat specifically while Nora would handle forward-center situations. We're complimentary in that regard."

"I noticed. I've always found your style unique and impressive during class. Did you study under someone? Or would I be correct to assume you were self-taught?"

"Actually, yes, you would be right," Ren admitted, sounding impressed. "Nora and I couldn't afford classes or special training while we were traveling, so we had to pick things up from traveling Huntsmen where we could. It was difficult, but watching morning exercises and, well, movies, ironically, was more educational then I thought it would be. We spent years simply watching and imitating what we saw and hoped we were doing everything right."

"Well, as someone who knows the issues with having to learn an entire new way of fighting with minimal guidance, I'd say you exceptionally well for yourselves," Blake returned the smile. "I always look forward to watching you in class. It's a pleasure to see what you do next."

"The same to you, Blake. The same."

What happened next was very reminiscent to the happenings within the castle just a short while ago. Ren and Mr. Arc in their chairs, staring down one another, with Sun off to the side watching and observing the surroundings, while the sounds of excitable individuals looking to make what might have been a dull day into something exciting and memorable echoed away from their room.

Except Ren had Jaune's gun now. Sun was looking out the window. And the people were rioters looking to burn down the city.

Maybe the situations weren't so similar.

"You came prepared," Ren mused, weighing the weapon. It was a nice sidearm.

"I bring a gun with me because not even my head of security knows about this apartment," Mr. Arc growled, eyes less than amused with the whole situation. "How did you find it?"

Boom…

"Hard for a man in your position to keep a love nest like this totally secret," Ren said, looking up to Arc's surprised blue eyes. "Particularly when there's a married woman involved."

"I was right! I am the mistress!"

"Nora, you are not a mistress! Stop!"

"Arc's having an affair with a married woman? How scandalous."

"Hehe, I think Blake got a little more interested."

"R-Ruby! I-I was already very invested in what was happening, thank you. My interest did not peak or change because of any sort of mention towards an illicit affair!" This is just like chapter thirty-seven of 'Harushi's Epic of the Shogun's Bride'! Eeeeeek!

"Separated," Mr. Arc growled, face curling. "And she would never-"

"And yet," Ren interrupted, "here we are." The thief let Arc fume for a moment. Anger made people dumb. Dumb people made mistakes. "What a dilemma…"

Boooooom.

"They're getting closer." Sun remarked from the side.

He was ignored. "You got what you came for."

"Well, that's not quite true." Ren shook his head. "You left out a key piece of information, didn't you?" Silence was his answer. "You held something back because you knew what we were up to. Now, the question is; why did you let us in, at all?"

"An audition." Arc admitted.

BOOM.

It wasn't the response Ren was expecting. "An audition for what?"

"Doesn't matter. You failed."

"We extracted every piece of information you had in there."

"But your deception was obvious."

BOOM! CRASH-BOOOOOM!

At the side, the blue-haired man glanced out over the streets. He didn't look so nervous anymore, but the explosions were getting closer. The rioters seemed to be going into individual buildings now, tearing them apart from the inside out. They would be at their doorstep before long.

Back on the train-

"Gahh, oh my God, why?" Yang groaned, hands going to her face and pulling down. "Why does this stupid universe keep jumping around?! I'm already more confused than I have any right to be! Castle, city, train, pick a spot and stay there!"

"I think they are, actually," Blake chimed in from the side. Her lips were curling up as a thought just occurred to her. "Staying in one place, I mean."

"Uh, wanna run it on by me how you came to that idea?" Now her partner was confusing her. Not exactly something new, but Blake was Blake and she usually just liked to keep to herself and let others do the talking for her. In fact, this might have been the most talkative Blake had ever been in a single day. Progress!

Blake ignored her partner, though, and turned her eyes over to Ren. He was smiling back at her. Clearly, he seemed to have come to a conclusion around how the universe worked, too.

Pyrrha still looked thoughtful but she would get it soon. Blake had no doubt. The story was jumping into ideas that defied and dealt into the concept of the subconscious so fascinatingly that Blake wished the whole story was a book. It could be a best seller. Hell, it would be a best seller!

"Uh, Blake? You still there?"

"Shhh. Keep watching. It's getting good."

-the blue-haired man wobbled slightly in his seat, unconscious still like the others. The duel-hair-colored girl looked over her watch for what was probably the twelfth time in half the amount of minutes.

The second hand hit the thirty-second mark. It was finally time.

Thank God, 'cause she was starting to lose her mind to boredom. She stood up from her seat, hands reaching out to clutch a headphone pair and place them carefully on the blue-man's ears. Tempted as she was to blare the music loud, a job was a job. She played the music at the right level of sound and let the music alert the sleeping man to the time.

A light guitar stringing started in his ears. Followed by a woman's humming.

"OoooooooooooOOOOOOooooooo…"

"Red like roses…"

Back in the apartment, the formerly-sweating man stiffened. Sun noticed. Time was up.

"So," Mr. Arc continued, disappointed and lightly shaking his head, "leave me and go."

"You don't seem to understand, Mr. Arc, the corporation who hired us? They won't accept failure," Ren warned him. "We won't last two day."

Sun kept his eye to the window. The rioters had noticed the room. They ignored the rest of the city and were moving towards them.

"Ren…"

The thief got the warning. Time was up. "Looks like I'm going to have to do this a little more simply," he reached over, hand gripping into Mr. Arc's collar and tossed the man to the floor. Gun aimed at his head, Ren yelled, "Tell us what you know! Tell us what you know, NOW!"

He thought he got his point across. This is where the answers were supposed to spill forth and mission accomplished and all that.

But they didn't.

Instead, the businessman started to laugh. "I've always hated this carpet…"

"Carpet? What does-"

"Shhhh!"

"It's stained and frayed in such distinctive ways…"

Ren eyed the downed business magnate, whose fingers grazed over the carpet gently. He glanced for a quick second up to his associates, who watched Mr. Arc worryingly. Even Sun found this shift unsettling.

"But very definitely made of…wool," the tycoon's smile widened. "Right now? I'm lying on polyester."

Every teenage eye on the screen widened as understanding dawned on even the more confused members of the teams. Each had a reaction to the developing situation.

"Wait, does this mean-"

"Yeah."

"A dream inside of-"

"Oh shit, this is trippy."

Ren's eyes could not have held more fury in them if he tried. His associate was sweating again, shaking his head.

"Which means," Mr. Arc continued, smile still growing. "I'm not lying on my carpet, in my apartment. Heh. You've lived up to your reputation, Mr. Ren," he appeared delighted by this fact, face glowing and smile ready to split his face from sheer enjoyment. "I'm still dreaming."

Beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep-

On the train, Sun's eyes opened. The timer in the briefcase had gone off, pulling him from the city – the second dream, as it were. And he was pissed.

The mocha-pink girl looked up to him. She didn't say a word, only raised her brow inquisitively.

"It went like shit," he didn't even bother with hold back his profanity.

He maneuvered around her, looking over the briefcase's many slots, cannisters and tubes. The device was fragile and temperamental at the best of times. But it was working still. Sun needed to make sure it stayed that way and kept Ren and Arc in place for a bit while longer.

"A dream within another dream. I'm impressed," Mr. Arc had removed himself from the floor, brushing off what he knew was simply dust generated by the dream. He was having a grand time now. The defeat on Ren's face was just icing on the cake. "But in my dream, we really ought to be playing by my rules, hmm?"

Ren lowered the gun, sighing deeply. They failed, plain and simple. They gambled and they lost. All that work down the drain. The door to the room was being banged on, now, and wouldn't hold for more than a few seconds longer. The rioters would see to them all shortly.

"Ah, but you see, Mr. Arc," the sweating man decided then to grow a pair and speak. His smirk was only slightly curious, the Arc entrepreneur noted.

"We're not in your dream," Ren continued.

"We're in mine."

The perspiring thief barely had the time to say the words before the door to the apartment finally gave way to the rioters. Barely clothed, unshaved masses of men toppled into the room, grabbing hold of the architect and pulling him away as they swarmed Mr. Arc and Ren with malice and a desire to see them dead.

Beepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeepbeep-

It was at this point that the briefcase timer went off, bringing both of the remaining thieves out of the dream.

"Neptune, you asshole!" Sun yelled the moment he saw them come to, glaring over to the awakening assistant. "How could you get the carpet wrong?!"

"It wasn't my fault!" The man, Neptune, tried to defend himself.

"You're the architect!"

"I didn't know he was going to rub his damn cheek on it!"

"The downside of every strategy," Pyrrha remarked. "No matter how grand and well thought out a plan may be, once it is set in motion and engages with an enemy action, it could come crumbling down in seconds. It's simply impossible to predict every consequence or contingency that a situation may bring."

Sun looked ready to strangle him then. Their young helper smiled devilishly in her seat and looked ready to tape the whole thing. Ren just rolled his eyes and checked on Arc. Heart still beating and coming off the sedatives soon. He'd be fine.

"And you," Sun turned his attention to the other member of their little group. "What the hell was all that?"

Ren couldn't be sure what he was referring to. Nora, the exploding everything, his temper, maybe all of it. "I had it under control…"

"I'd hate to see you out of control."

"Enough. There's no time for this," Ren pulled the tubes from Mr. Arc's wrist roughly. "I'm getting off at Kyoto."

"Why? He's not gonna search every compartment." Sun said, only to get a gruff sigh from Ren.

"I can't stand trains…" The thief pulled out a wad of bills and tossed them to their little helpful, who smiled and nodded kindly before slipping the funds down her jacket and between her breasts. "Listen, everyone, it's every man for himself."

With that, the three thieves left the compartment and in different directions.

It would only be a minute or two after when Mr. Arc would come to from his sleep. The young woman with the curious hair would ignore him, listening to her own music, and the world seemed weirdly simple once again. He checked around, not noticing anything peculiar or noteworthy, but then his fingers went to his wrists and searched around carefully.

Then he found it. A small indention that wasn't there before.

Mr. Arc smiled to himself. This was very good.

"Kyoto?" Weiss spoke aloud after the scenes began to change again; eyebrow raised as she glanced down to their relaxing Captain. "I'm sorry, sir, did I hear that right? 'Kyoto', was it? That place they mentioned just now; I don't recognize it."

Remnant didn't have a lot of towns or cities because of the Grimm and this 'Kyoto' didn't sound familiar at all. Weiss couldn't claim to be familiar with all locales on Remnant, but places with a train the size of the one the thieves and their target had ridden would not be so casually installed if the village, or community (possibly), it connected to were not somewhat impressive or well-stationed. There was just too much risk of attack.

"No, I imagine you wouldn't be familiar with it," the Captain answered back to her. "Kyoto is a city, of course. And a big one, too."

So it was a city. And she'd never heard of it… "Is it Mistralian? Or maybe lower Vacuan?"

"Japanese, actually."

Japanese? Weiss once again glanced around to the others. No familiarity with the word either. "Japanese?"

The Captain finally sat up from his seat. "Ah. Right. This will be your first new, uhm…hmm, how do I put this…ah. This universe you're looking at right now does not take place on your world of Remnant."

There. Done and simple. And he said it so nonchalant. As if the idea of viewing alternate worlds was something they should have easily been able shrug off by that point.

"Another world?" Ruby spoke up. Her silver eyes began to glisten. "Like, a really, really different world?"

"Mmhm, yes. To a degree, anyway. This world," he pointed to the screen, "has some similarities to your own. Animals, trees, biomes and different ways of life. Humans walk everywhere, touch everything, and have made it their own. No Grimm - feel I should point that out. No conflict of that sort. And there aren't any faunus, as well, I'm afraid to say. Although I will point out that the some of the populace of this world do occasionally like to dress up like one from time-to-time." He chuckled then, amused. "They even make holidays out of such situations. They're quite enjoyable."

No faunus. Blake pursed her lips at the thought. "Well, guess no planet is perfect…" Come to think of it, she never did see a tail on the alternate Sun. She originally chalked it up to happenstance; his suit, perhaps, covering it up from view. But perhaps she was too quick too dismiss his lack of extra appendage that he used to flaunt so openly before.

A human Sun. That's different.

"-and what's this 'Kyoto' place like?" Weiss asked, her own interest peeking through her usual regal posture. "Could you tell us a little about it?"

The Captain hesitated. "I suppose," he eventually gave in. "But only a little. I'd like to return to our viewings soon, if that's fine." Weiss nodded, only to eager to learn something new about a place no one had ever heard of before. Even if only a little at the moment. "Alright. Well, to start, Kyoto is…extravagant. Definitely extravagant. Filled just about everywhere with amazing palaces, astounding waterways, and a nightlife with such vibrant colored lights and sounds that the stars are paled in comparison to the sheer magnitude of life going on. The amount of alcohol drank in one night isn't anything to joke about either."

Yang smiled. "Sounds like my kind of place."

"It is the birthplace of a great people. A wonderful culture. A long, honorable and strong history. I think some of you would greatly enjoy such a living space, if even for only a short while." The Captain paused, thinking. "A little cramped at times. And certain social habits may seem peculiar, but I do hold it in high regard and favorable opinion. If you all want, I can maybe even show you some pictures later. Maybe even a book." The others seemed intrigued at the prospect.

"What's it called?" Pyrrha asked, eyes shining with interest.

The Captain looked her way. "K-Kyoto, Ms. Nikos. Like I said…"

"Oh, no, I didn't mean that!" Pyrrha had the decency to blush and laugh. "Sorry, I-I got caught up in what you were saying. I meant the name of the planet they're on. What's the planet's name?" She clarified, still red-cheeked.

"Oh, yeah! What's the place called?" Ruby got excited again. "Does it have a cool name? Does it have a lot of letters in it? Come on, tell us. Tell me! Tell me tell me tell me!"

The Captain did. "Earth."

It was a simple and quick word. The room was quiet for a moment after. Yang couldn't help but snort under her breath, though ("Really?").

Ruby tilted her head. "What was that?"

"The planet's name. It's Earth."

Another pause.

"One more time?"

"It's Earth."

"Again?"

"Earth."

"…I think I have something in my ears, did you just say they named their planet 'Earth'?"

"Indeed, I did."

"They named their planet 'dirt'?"

"Hmm. Kinda."

She stared down to the Captain, hoping for a quick joke or admittance she was being teased. He didn't.

"That's a little boring…"

"Eh, maybe. But to be fair, and this is coming from someone whose looked over thousands of universes, the name is actually more common than you'd believe." In fact, before Remnant was 'Remnant', the planet held a similar form of naming for itself. Now long lost and forgotten by the stretches of time and perdition by the Grimm. But he didn't need to mention that. "For now, how about we return to the movie?"

A helicopter roared over skyscrapers and streets as it moved to nestle atop a large, dark-windowed building in the center of Kyoto. The pad on the roof was bare and ready for its arrival.

Inside, Ren waited, patiently. He checked his watch, irritated and jittery. He pulled at his sidearm, again, and checked to see if it was loaded. And again, it was. Nine bronze bullets, all neatly laying atop one another.

He placed the weapon atop the glass table and reached into the pocket of his pants. From his fingers came a small metal top, balanced and simple.

He gave it a casual spin on the glass. Round and round it went. Steady and smooth, no stopping for a long moment. His mind drifted as he watched it go, to simpler times, to times he wished he could go back to, to times he wished he could change. To a train that he didn't know the destination to but wished he did and wished that he could stop and he wished the noise of its engine and its horn and it's coming and it's coming and it's-

The top fell.

His fingers moved away from the gun.

Boop. Boop. Boop. Boop.

The apartment's phone. Ren was quick to answer, making sure to swallow the lump in his throat before speaking. "Hello?"

"Hi daddy."

"Hi dad."

Two children playing in the grass. One in a pink dress. Nora's hair. The boy was small and younger, his hair, grass-stained shorts. He couldn't see their faces.

"Those are ours, Ren," Nora whispered, smiling and uncaring to correct that the children weren't necessarily 'theirs'. "Our kids."

"The same ones from the beach earlier," Ren recalled. "I'm re…he's remembering them, I think." His chest felt heavy. His breathing too. "They look…they look good."

"Yeah, they do," Pyrrha smiled over to them. "They have your hair, at least. And I think she," the Huntress pointed to the screen, "has your freckles. On her arm. There, see?"

"Oh yeah," Nora laughed. It didn't sound very jolly like usual. Almost sad. How odd. "I'm so sorry. Those are the worst, I know, but you'll get used them, you'll see."

Everyone smiled and tried to enjoy the small moment.

"Hey, guys, hey," Ren breathed out. He looked to be in pain, but also as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. "How are you? How are you both doing, hmm?"

"Good."

"Okay, I guess."

Ren smiled. "Okay?" He repeated. His eyes hurt. "Wh-who's just okay? Is that you, Li?"

Nora moved her head close to Ren's. "He's got your dad's name."

Ren's smile twitched. It was a good name.

"Yeah," the little boy's voice said. He could almost hear the child nod as if he were right in front of him. "When are you coming home, bàba?"

Ren's smile faltered. "I can't, sweetheart, I can't," the words were pain. "Not for a while, remember?"

"Why?"

"Well, I-I told you, I-I'm away because I'm working…" Not entirely a lie. "Alright?"

"Grandma says you're never coming back."

A little girl's voice again. Ren needed a second to catch himself. The vision of the two children was changing as they ran off to the side of grass, outside of his view. He would have done anything to see them not go.

"E-Estrid, is that you?"

"Estrid?" Nora whispered. She tested the name to her lips. "Her name is Estrid. Estrid, Estrid…I kinda like how it sounds."

Ren's throat was starting to feel very dry. "Would-would you put grandma on the phone for me?"

"She's shaking her head."

Ren's eyes close. His fingers tighten around the phone, ready to smash it cleanly into the table. "Well, we'll just have to hope she's wrong about that, won't we?"

The phone was quiet for a second.

"Daddy?"

"Yeah, Li?"

"Is mommy with you?"

So innocent a question. But Ren looked as if he'd been punched square in the face.

He could see her. Right there. Hair in the wind. Wearing that black dress. She wasn't smiling, which was surprising for anyone who knew her. She looked sad, actually. Nora's was a face that should never look sad.

"Li, we talked about this…mommy's not here anymore."

There was a chill that swept through the room of the theatre. A cold that came with the understanding of what the Older Ren's words meant. Words that made the room's occupants turn their attention away from the screen and down to a usually highly excitable redhead who seemed suddenly quiet lost at the words that were said on screen. Her eyes didn't hold that fire that was so common for her. Instead, they seemed lost. Uncertain. And near to panic.

I…I'm dead?

"Where?"

Oh God. Li was too young to understand anything that was going on. What Ren wouldn't do right then to just reach out through the phone, take hold of both his children, and tell them that he would-

"That's enough, kids," an older voice. Their grandmother. "Say bye-bye…"

No, no, wait. "Listen, I'm-I'm going to send some presents with grandpa, alright? An-and you be good, you-"

Click.

The line was dead.

"Hey, hey, you don't just cut off a father who's on the phone with his kids," Nora muttered softly. Eyes wide and bottom lip twitching. "What, what kind of grandma does that? What kind of- that, that not right. It's not right, it's not…it…" Her breathing quickened. Why did it feel so hot in the theatre? And at the same time, why did she feel so cold?

"Hey, Nora, it's okay," Pyrrha moved out from her seat and over to the girl. Nora's seat widened itself to her presence, allowing the champion fighter to sit beside her and wrap an arm around her. She'd never seen her teammate so hurt. "It's alright, it's not, it's…it's not you, there. It's not. I know it hurts, but it's okay. It's okay…"

"It's still wrong," Nora sniffed. She held back tears admirably. "It's just so wrong. That's their dad. That's Ren. Why would she do that? How could you do that? You don't do that to your grandkids. That's wrong, that's so wrong."

"Yeah, it is," Yang had spoken up from behind the chair, moving over to help her upset friend. She smiled softly. "You're right. Kids need their parents. Especially their dad – dads are great, believe me on that. I got the best one in the world. And I know they want to spend just as much time with their kids as moms do." She reached out over the couch and wrapped her arms around the redhead. She hugged her tightly. "But you know, it's too awesome for words how much you feel for those kids right now, Nora. It means you've got a big heart. Probably a bigger one then anyone here. But don't forget, you're still here. With us. All of us. And Ren's right there too. Neither of you are dead or in trouble. And you're both going to be great parents someday. No doubt about it."

Nora sniffed from her spot on the elongated seat. A couple tears did slip down her cheeks, but she didn't care. Didn't mind when Pyrrha decided to follow Yang's example and wrap her arms around her, too, making for a nice, strong, warm hug. She didn't even notice or feel embarrassed when Ren reached over to her hand and gave it a firm squeeze. His smile was tired and almost as sad as hers, but he didn't mind.

"Thanks, guys," Nora managed with a smile. Her voice croaked and wobbled as she wiped the tears from her cheeks and sniffed. A box of tissues seemed to grow out of the arm of her chair. The Captain returned his head around after that, allowing her even a simple piece of privacy. He was a weirdo, but tissues would be awesome right now. "You, you're all the best, you know that? The absolute best."

The Captain craned his head only so slightly their way. He listened, then turned his head back to the screen.

Ren could only stare at the device for a moment before deciding ultimately to put it back onto its receiver instead of breaking it down to its last microchip. He just laid back in his chair, stiff and uncomfortable, and waited again.

Knock knock knock.

Instinct made Ren reach for his gun as the door opened slowly so Sun could stick his head in. He saw the alcohol, the firearm, and the broken man and felt nothing but pity.

He decided to start with the good news. "Our ride's on the roof."

Breathing stiffly and coming down from a sudden shot of adrenaline was never fun, but Ren nodded. He moved to pick up his tools and bag while Sun watched at the door.

"Hey, Ren, uh…are you okay?" He asked after a few seconds.

Ren looked up from throwing some wrinkled shirts into his duffle. "Yeah, why?"

"It's just…down in the dream with…Nora showing up like that…"

Oh crap, right, he was there. "Yeah, I'm sorry about your leg."

"It's getting worse, isn't it?" Sun pursed his lips. He was dipping into dangerous territory. "You wanna talk about-"

"One apology is all you're getting, Sun," Ren interrupted, throwing a pair of pants into his bag irritably. "Where's Neptune?"

Change of subject. "He hasn't shown. Wanna wait?"

"No," Ren zipped his bag shut and threw it over his shoulder. "We were supposed to deliver Jaune Arc's expansion plans to Makarov two hours ago. By now, they know we failed." He walked to the door. "Time to disappear."

Pyrrha smiled sadly up to the screen. "This Ren must've had a hard life. There's no way ours would ever abandon someone, even if they made a mistake."

"We can't always be sure what we'll do when the situation is dire," Weiss added in frowning. "Nevertheless, I do agree with you; Ren and I may not be the closest of friends, but even I can say without issue that his character is impeccable and, should the need ever arise, I have no doubts that he would have my back in whatever way I would require." She offered a respectful nod in the young man's direction, who returned it with equal respect.

"We never know how we will respond when a situation comes to test our character," Ren said. "It's moments like those that show who we really are. And should I ever need to face such a moment, I hope I will continue to live up to your expectations."

Everyone offered him a smile and a few nods. Ruby gave him a pair of thumbs up and Nora squeezed his hand firmly. He nodded back with the faintest of smiles then turned back to the screen.

The nighttime air of the roof was almost refreshing for Ren at that point. Adding in the cover of darkness and the overly excitable nightlife of the area, and Makarov wouldn't even know they were out of the city before it was too late. Not the squeakiest of examples in running away, but when it worked it worked.

"Where do you plan to head off to?" Sun asked as they neared the chopper.

"Buenos Aires. I can lie low there, maybe sniff out a job when things quiet down. You?"

"Stateside."

Of course. Ren could almost laugh. "Send my regards."

The pilot opened the side door to the helicopter for them. They walked just close enough to step inside when they realized that something was very wrong.

Neptune was already sitting in one of the seats. Beaten, bruised, shaking and unable to even hold himself upright in his seat. He looked at the pair of them with something that looked like remorse and fear mixed together. And Neptune wasn't alone.

"He sold you out."

"Oh, shit," Nora bluntly said.

"Did Jaune do that?" Ruby asked, eyes wide and staring at the bleeding Neptune.

"He probably could from what I saw," Yang remarked, slowly returning to her seat after Nora seemed comforted enough with Pyrrha. "But something tells me a man with money like him doesn't need to get his hands dirty."

"But he-he's still the one who had him hurt…"

"Yes," Weiss answered this time. Her eyes were on both of the men on screen and in the vehicle. The situation felt tense.

Mr. Arc sighed in his own seat, turning to look at the pair of extractors. He almost seemed disappointed with the man sitting across. This news was met with mixed reactions; Sun looked ready to strangle Neptune again while Ren took a slight, cautionary step back.

"Thought to come to me and bargain for his life…" He waved to the pilot, who reached into his jacket and produced another gun. "So, I offer you the satisfaction."

The pilot held the weapon out to Ren.

"Geez, why is everyone so dark in this universe?"

"That's the way some business practices are," Weiss replied. "It can be…very cutthroat, in some parts of the world. My family and I weren't always just targets from the White Fang. Others were just as eager to get what we had, and if it meant trying to get to myself or someone else in my family, they'd do it. It would be a small price to pay for even a taste of all the riches the Schnee Dust Company had to offer."

Yang stared at her. "Being rich isn't all fun and games, huh?"

"No. No, it is not. And especially not when you are expected to inherit the largest energy company on the planet…"

The thief stared at his former target right in the eye and shook his head. "That's not the way I deal with things."

Mr. Arc didn't seem put off by the notion. Expecting it even. "Would you work with him again?" He asked.

Ren hesitated, looking at the terrified man. He wasn't a bad architect but the trust was gone. He shook his head. Mr. Arc nodded and gave a light knock on the window of the aircraft. The door Neptune had previously been leaning on opened and a man some inches taller then himself grabbed him under his arms and pulled him out of the seat.

Mr. Arc gestured for the clearly more experienced extractors to join him. They had little choice in the matter. Even as the chopper began to rise, Ren made sure to watch as Neptune was literally dragged away.

"What will you do to him?" He had to ask.

"Nothing," said Mr. Arc. "But I can't speak for your friends with Makarov Engineering."

So he was dead, then. And Arc knew about Makarov. The situation wasn't good. "What do you want from us?" Mr. Arc turned his head away from the windows as they hovered over the vast city and turned to Ren carefully.

He answered in a calm and clear voice:

"Inception."

"Inception?" Ruby repeated, blinking perplexedly. A confused feeling seemed to be the norm around this universe. "What's that?"

She looked to her friends and other team. Gears turned in some of their heads she could clearly see, but no one came out quickly with a response.

"W-well," Weiss stuttered, speaking slowly, "inception, the word, means a beginning of something. L-like the starting point. Oh! Remember our boardgame from earlier?" She asked, getting a nod from her leader. "The 'inception' point was when we first set up who was who and picked our first cards. The beginning. It was the beginning of our experience within the game."

"Or you could think of it with a book," Blake offered. "When you start on the journey of a character or learn about a situation for the first time in the pages. That's the inception of the book. The moment the novel brings you into the plot and you experience the emotions of the words. That's the inception."

"But inception is a noun," Ren spoke up. "Jaune said it like it was a verb…"

Sun's eyes widened. Of all the answers, that wasn't one he expected to receive. Ren, for his part, remained stoic.

"Is it possible?" Arc continued.

"Of course not," Sun scoffed. The businessman turned his eyes to him.

"If you can steal an idea from someone's mind," he started, "why can't you plant one there instead?"

Sun shook his head. Apparently, capitalist Jaune Arc did not know everything. It didn't work like that. "Okay, here's me planting an idea in your head: I say to you, 'don't think about elephants.' What do you think about?"

"…Elephants."

"What are elephants?"

"Think Goliaths but less black and murderous."

"...That still sounds dangerous."

"Right. But it's not your idea because you know I gave it to you."

"You could plant it subconsciously-" Arc offered.

Sun shook his head. "The subject's mind can always trace the genesis of the idea. 'True inspiration' is impossible to fake."

"No, it isn't."

Ren spoke up for the first time. Arc had started to look doubtful, but now his eyes held renewed hope. Sun turned to his partner, skeptical and surprised.

"Can you do it?" Arc asked.

"Are you offering me a choice?" Ren asked. He didn't like this businessman; it was written all over his face. The mere insinuation that he wanted to do something like that… "Because I can find my own way to square things with Makarov."

Arc pursed his lips. "Then you have a choice…"

"Then I choose to leave," Ren snarled, glaring, "Mr. Arc."

The rest of the ride was short and quiet. Sun seemed to bounce between the view of the window and looking over to Ren, still in disbelief at his words. His partner, in contrast, seemed unfocused and lost in his thoughts. Mr. Arc's eyes darted around the aircraft's small compartment, wondering about the situation and appearing to want to say something, but hesitating before he could. Eventually, they came down onto the airfield. The entrepreneur sighed but did not stop the pair from opening the cabin door.

"Tell the crew where you want to go," he yelled over the rotating blades of the helicopter. "They'll see you there safely."

The pair needed no more encouragement. Grabbing their bags, they jumped from the vehicle and onto the concrete. Neither seemed entirely pleased with the last twenty-four hours. The sooner they were thousands of feet above clouds, the better.

Mr. Arc pursed his lips, though. He had to try. One last time, he had to try. "Mr. Ren!" He called out. Fortune would have it that the pair of men did hear him. "There is one other thing I could offer you," he shouted, leaning forward in his seat and trying to convey a sense of control. The two had all the say in this matter. He would have to be careful. "How would you like to go home? Hmm? To America. To your children."

He played the best option he had. A little secret Neptune was kind enough to offer before leaving. It had an effect on Ren, though. The man went as stiff as a board.

"Jaune just played the 'family' card," Pyrrha remarked, crossing her arms. "I don't think I can really get behind someone using another person's family to get what they want. Even if the blackmail is kinda favorable to Ren's situation."

"I guess I can agree with you to some extent there," Weiss said. "Although it is somewhat scummy, offering someone exactly what they want, even a little aggressively like Jaune's doing here, can be an option any executive of a major company should consider. The carrot over the stick, essentially," she nodded to the screen. "Just like how you can catch more flies with honey, you can get a lot more work done with positive reinforcement and opportunities."

"You can't fix that," the thief yelled back. There was desperation and want all over his face. "No one can."

"Just like inception…"

Ren froze on the strip. Sun saw the look in his eyes and touched his shoulder. "Ren, come on-"

He moved out of his hold. The thief stepped up to the chopper and looked his ex-target right in the eye. "How complex is the idea?" Ren asked, voice demanding.

Mr. Arc's smile widened only ever so slightly. "Simple enough."

"No idea's 'simple' when you have to plant it in somebody else's mind!"

He was right, of course. Arc would allow that. "My main competitor is an old man in poor health," he said. "His son will soon inherit control of the corporation. That corporation is on the verge of a major expansionary opportunity that will see them become a global, energy superpower from here and into the west."

"What, will you be out of a job then?" Sun teased, stepping up beside them.

"Almost certainly," Arc allowed. "In addition, if this deal goes through, the effects it will have will be catastrophic."

"How so?"

Mr. Arc paused for a moment in thought. "How much does it cost to pay for your electric bill, Mr. Wukong?" He asked then. The thief's brows burrowed at the question. "Legitimately, I am curious. What about your water bill? Heating? I assume they're manageable."

"I guess?" Where was he going with this?

The businessman nodded, expecting as much. "Imagine if your bill suddenly went up. Not by a few dollars. Not by a couple tens or twenties. Or even twice what you pay now. No no no. I'm talking about much more than that. I'm talking about what will happen if the Schnee Electric and Water Corporation has their way. About how in the next year, we will see commodities that we take for granted turn back into luxuries all around the world."

"Wait, my family's company is in this world too?!" Weiss cried, surprised and wide in the eyes. "Wait, he also said an old man and son…is he talking about my father? Is he talking about Whitley?!"

"Seems like it doesn't matter what world your family's company is on. They don't exactly practice fair and acceptable business practices, from the sound of it," Blake crossed her arms, thinking about how one company could really be so bad. Enough to have such a notoriety on another universe even.

Weiss shook her head. "It has to be some sort of mistake. I mean, sure, my father likes to put himself into influential positions, but he's never been hesitant about wanting to ship out Dust to anywhere in Remnant. He's not evil…"

Although, Weiss wouldn't exactly say her father was a good man either. And it had been a very long time since she would even say he was a kind man. He was persistent, ambitious, and successful in his drive to make the company what it was today. That required an intellect and business acumen she could only hope she might possess one day. And for the betterment of her family name, of course.

"What did Jaune mean by luxuries?" Ruby wondered aloud to her fellow student. "Isn't water and electricity in a house a luxury already?"

"Maybe several decades ago. When it wasn't common for a home or place to have running water or being able to flip a switch and have a light come on," Pyrrha spoke up, answering Ruby. "Today, it would be less common for a home to not have those things. It's just a standard for living to have both of them together. At least in the cities or major towns. So, as a result, they're now considered commodities."

"But he said they'd be turned back into luxuries. Is that even possible?"

That was a good question. And a worrisome one.

Mr. Arc had their attention. They were curious. Interested, maybe, if nothing else. Just like they had him in his own dream. "Imagine fifteen times what you pay now for water," he continued. "Twenty times in electricity. What would it cost for a shower? To turn on your microwave?" He raised a brow. "Flush the toilet?"

"There's no way any country would allow that."

"As I said, Mr. Ren, they will be a superpower. I don't use the term lightly. They will have control over global fuel lines, pipelines, dams and powerplants and more. Absolute authority. No oversight. And with each of their newly acquired assets, they will create a stepping stone into every political faction in over seventy percent of the known world. They will have a voice in every council and every hall. They will hold the power and they will make the rules."

"Do you have any proof?" Sun asked, still looking somewhat doubtful at the claim but also weary. And the doubt was fading.

"If I did, I'd have brought it to the proper authorities," Arc pursed his lips. "I have a reliable source, however. They assure me the validity of their plans. The Schnee Corporation is going to leave a mark in the world's history and they will do it soon."

"Are you sure it's reliable? This source, I mean. This all seems kind of…farfetched? Like fiction. Insanely, impossible fiction."

"I can assure you, Mr. Wukong, it is not. And my source is very reliable. I trust them completely. They have risked more than you can imagine to bring me this information."

Sun took a moment to take in the gravity of everything Arc had said. In the end, how much could they really trust that what he was saying wasn't some enormous amount of bull that he was spoon-feeding them? Superpowers? Global control? That wasn't something that happened because when you challenged the world, the world tended to fight back and fight dirty.

But Sun was usually very good at seeing through bullshit. He didn't see even a twitch from Arc. "What are you hoping to accomplish?"

"A divergence of the Schnee empire. I want to break up their plans before they come into fruition. Have Jacques Schnee's son decide that it would better for him to break up his father's empire. Against his own self-interest."

"Save the world and make a little profit off the side? Can't imagine you'd lose any sleep if a major competitor decided to just up and dissolve itself overnight."

Mr. Arc's smile was a touch smug. "My father once told me that if you're going to do something that helps people, make sure to at least get a commission check for your efforts."

The nonchalance of this guy. Challenging the Schnee? Going inside an heir's mind and changing their basic desires? That's why he needed inception. This wasn't just a big request, it was enormous. A size unimaginable with reactions that could shake up the planet. "This is too big," Sun shook his head. Mess with a company? Done. Mess with a world power? Past his paygrade. "Come on Ren. We should walk away from this."

But Ren was invested. Not for saving the world, no. He was still strung up on what Arc said before. "If I were to do this," he started, pausing and gathering his frenzied thoughts. "If I even could do this…I would need a guarantee. How do I know you can deliver?"

"You can't," Arc told him bluntly. "But I can. And an Arc is only as good as his word." The man was smiling. He was smiling while talking about life-altering espionage. The sheer balls… "So, Mr. Ren, do you want to take a leap of faith? Or become an old man, filled with regret? Waiting to die alone…"

Everyone stared at the screen. Eyes wide, surprise evident, and Nora just finished the last of her seemingly never-ending box of nachos.

"Holy crap, Jaune," Yang scoffed, the beginnings of an impressed smile blooming on her lips. "Not exactly leaving Ren much of a choice there, are you? Really going for the jugular. Gotta admit, though, that's one hell of a way to get someone to do what you want." She laughed. "What should we call that, 'Arc charisma'? A little 'Arc persuasion'? Heh. Sounds corny, but I think I can make it work."

"It's the worst kind of ultimatum," Weiss replied, though she didn't sound particularly put off by the fact. "Potentially damned if you do, completely damned if you don't. There is no middle ground. Jaune is holding Ren's family hostage by inaction to help." She paused. "It's actually kind of brilliant."

"What would you do, Ren?" Ruby called from her side over to the stoic boy. "If you were in this kinda spot, would you take Jaune's offer?"

"For my hypothetical children?" Ren asked. "Well, I'd have to be more aware of what this 'inception' required or entailed. I would certainly need to have full understanding of just what it would take to get back to my hypothetical children in alternative manners. And there's also the matter of morality, which-"

"Renny would do it," Nora interrupted her partner. She was smiling, getting some of her good humor back to her cheeks. Even snickered a little. "Doesn't matter if it's an alternate universe or not. Ren is Ren. And I've known him since we were kids. He's ridiculously practical and likes to overthink things, but in the end, he's gonna do it. He'll put away logic and common sense and rush into whatever needs doing," she smiled a little wider. A memory bubbled up of a little girl needing help and of a boy rushing to hold her tight and say everything was going to be alright. It was an old memory, but a good one. "He'd do it. Yep. No doubt."

Ren was quiet for a moment, staring to his longest friend. "…Hmm." He allowed, offering a curt nod. "I suppose when you're right, you're right."

Pyrrha smiled at the two of them before glancing up to the screen. "I think the Ren on screen is just about to figure that out, too."

Ren considered the alternatives. The options. The angles. Every position or figure that could be moved on a mental chessboard to get him from Point A to Point B without even considering Arc's proposal.

But Jaune Arc was wealthy. Insanely so. None of the other companies or alliances Ren had ever procured for himself would come even close to the raw leeway Arc possessed. Not even combined. And with a single job, he could do what so many could not. Erase the faults, erase the history, and let him go back to his children again.

He wanted to see their faces.

And with that simple want, Ren gave a small nod to the man in the helicopter.

Sun groaned but was ignored. Arc looked like he'd already won the war against the Schnee empire. "Assemble your team, Mr. Ren," Arc commanded his newest employees. "And choose your people more wisely."

And with that, the thieves had struck an accord. For better or worse.

The screen slowly turned black. The rotating wings of the aircraft were silenced. Then, like before, the lights around the theatre came up again.

The teens took to the new lighting a bit easier then before. Didn't stop the upset groans from the crowd, however.

"Hey, wait, it's over?" Ruby protested. "It-it can't be over already! We didn't even get to see the heist! I wanted to see what inception was!"

"I as well," Ren nodded. "I was curious what could rile up myself to such an extent."

"Still, it was kind of interesting to see you both in there," Pyrrha remarked, giving a little squeeze to Nora beside her. "And with kids! Oh, they sounded so cute before!"

"Ah, Pyrrha, come on…" Nora blushed and pressed her hands to her cheeks, embarrassed. Ren simply averted his eyes away from the pair.

"While the ideas were stimulating and unique and I wouldn't mind seeing more of the bizarre the universes had to offer," Weiss began, her hands massaging the sides of her head, "I do wish they might be easier to understand in the future. Those situations in the dreams were a little much for me to fully comprehend. Interesting, of course, but also difficult. I wouldn't mind learning a little more about how the process works in the future."

"It was fun," Blake muttered quietly, surprising those around her. "I liked the way the dreams worked. And the heist was an experience I'd never even thought about. It's like nothing I've ever seen in my books, so I enjoyed myself." The joy of books was taking its reader into a world so unlike the one they lived in. The dreams could do just that; create a world to more literally jump into. What an exotic concept.

"It was weird, but in a good way," Yang smiled and relaxed herself further into her chair. "Guess a little mind-bender isn't so bad now and then. Keeps things interesting. Keeps me awake. Ha. I mean, if even dreams are places we can get to see, then there's really no telling what else we're going to see on the big screen, am I right?"

She was right, of course. There was no telling what limits would be seen. There was no telling if there were any limits at all. It was a theatre room that could project one of hundreds of billions, if not trillions, of worlds. Both alike, dissimilar, and opposite to Remnant.

Who knew what would come next?

\-\ JELLYBEAN /-/

Yeah, probably should've made this the fifth movie or something.

The details of Inception alone were a nightmare to translate to paper. That was the real tricky part, because the beginning three separate locations liked to juggle and jump around. Not easy to translate that into writing.

Also, the chapter was more emotional than I would have liked, admittedly. I like humorous situations over stress and tumultuous instances. At least in the first few chapters; we want to enjoy the experience, not cry over it.

The next one I plan to write came from a good suggestion in the reviews (I'll provide credit in the next chapter so not to spoil anything for anyone). Kinda wish I went with this next one for this chapter instead, but I already said I had a movie from 2010 I was using, so I couldn't go back on my word here. But this next one will definitely be more fun-based, and it's a crowd-pleaser.

I did add some more details to the conversation between Jaune and Ren on the helicopter when they landed in the airfield, as some no doubt noticed. Had to. While a movie can be minimalistic on dialogue and description because it's a visual media and it's also time-sensitive, a book or FF can't. So, I added a little more to it, just to raise the stakes and give a little extra flare. Hope no one was too upset with it, since it doesn't really detract from the motive of the story still. And I think it came out alright.

Alright, so, here's my hint for the next movie coming up.

Hint: Actor, director, and animator Chris Sanders worked on this animated feature in some capacity.

Peace.

Next Chapter: 26th November