Chapter 19: Keep Moving Forward

Ruby ran through the streets of Vale with reckless abandon, she had to find everyone, and quick! They had gotten a lead on Watts, and were closing in, when Watts had revealed bombs that would devastate Vale's power grid. Ruby peeled off from the main group to deal with a group of hacked Atlesian Knights that were sent at a group of civilians, and now...

And now she was trying desperately to find everyone. "Jaune, where are you guys?"

She received nothing but static. Of course Watts would jam their comms. Ruby's grip on Crescent Rose tightened. She should've expected that. There was no choice but to head for the closest target, a power distribution junction.

Her comm clicked, and Weiss's voice caused Ruby's dread to skyrocket. "Ruby, it's a trap. There are no bombs, Jaune's already dead. Stay away!"

Ruby almost tripped. Jaune dead? That didn't seem possible, considering that he had survived a duel with Adam. "No way, Weiss!" Ruby yelled, "I'm not leaving you guys!"

"Ruby, please listen." Weiss said, her pleas becoming more urgent, "Watts has-" The transmission cut out in a burst of static, causing Ruby to use her Semblance to move faster. Maybe she'd make it in time to save Weiss.

She burst into the distribution junction, and searched it as quickly as she could. She quickly found Jaune and Weiss, both of them dead.

"NO!" Ruby yelled.

"Well, now." Watts said, causing Ruby to whirl around. "I thought you knew better than to give away your position, Miss Rose."

Ruby charged, only to be batted aside by...

"Oh, how rude of me. Allow me to introduce my newest creation. I call it Copperhead, but I believe you knew it by a different name..."

Ruby's world shattered. It was Penny. Rebuilt and under Watts's control.

"P-Penny?" Ruby choked out.

"I don't know this name." Penny said. "I am Copperhead, and the Queen's will is my own."

Ruby forced herself to her feet, and gathered what shreds of defiance she had left. "No. Your name is Penny Polendina, and you're my girlfri-

"Copperhead." Watts interjected, "Kill."

Twin blades ejected from Penny's wrists, and she surged forward to carry out Watts's order.

Ruby screamed, and then there was silence.

(Beacon Academy, Team RWBY Dorm Room)

Yang Xiao Long had a very extensive hair care regiment. Each product she used was specifically chosen after painstaking trial and error, each action she took was taken with the utmost care, to avoid damaging her hair. This was a very time consuming process, as Yang possessed a near mythical amount of hair. Very few things could convince her to abandon the process. Like an impending Grimm attack, or...

Yang froze when she heard Ruby scream. Was Tyrian back? Was he trying to take Ruby again? Would she even be able to protect Ruby if he was? He would just cut through her aura again, and then... and then...

Yang looked down at her hands. They were shaking. She became hyper-aware of every sound, particularly her own heartbeat, which felt like she was trying to go a mile a minute. Get it together, Yang! If it was actually Tyrian, Ruby would be putting up a fight!

She took several deep, slow breaths, if only to try to calm her heart, then went through the door. She found Ruby on her bed, sobbing and clutching her face.

"Ruby, what's-" Yang started to say, but was quickly interrupted, as she was blindsided by a blur of rose petals as Ruby practically slammed into her. Ruby clung to her sister as if Yang was the only thing anchoring her to reality.

"Ruby, what's wrong?" Yang repeated as she held Ruby as only a sister could.

"Nightmare." Ruby choked out around her sobs, "Bad one."

Yang sighed, it was just as well that Weiss and Blake had already left for the day. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"Give me a moment." Ruby took more than a few moments to regain her composure, "Okay, uh... where do I start?"

Yang rolled her eyes, "Well, I've heard that the beginning is usually a very good place to start."

Ruby let out a weak laugh, "Right. I was in Vale, the industrial district. Watts had threatened to detonate bombs that would devastate Vale's power grid. I had been separated from everyone after I went after some drones he had set on some civilians. I went to the nearest target only to find Jaune and Weiss, both dead. Watts appeared, and..."

Yang could see where this was going, and she did not like it. "Then what, Ruby?" She asked.

"Watts rebuilt Penny, and made sure she was under his control. I tried to get through to her, but Watts ordered her to kill me. I didn't wake up until after she had..."

Yang had to suppress the impulse to go find Watts, beat him within an inch of his life, take him to Atlas, then toss him off of the city. "I'm so sorry, Ruby." Yang said, "I know it probably-"

Ruby cut her off, "Yang, there's... something you don't know about me and Penny..."

Yang frowned, generally Ruby wasn't one for keeping secrets. "Ruby?"

In a quiet voice, Ruby dropped the verbal equivalent of a bombshell. "Me and Penny were dating in secret, she didn't want General Ironwood to find out and put a stop to it."

Yang's eyes went wide, "Ruby... that's... why didn't you say anything... after?"

"Everything just happened so fast, first with Weiss's dad, then when Jaune... went away, then the White Fang..." Ruby fidgeted, "I didn't want to be a burden, and it's not like I don't know how to bottle this stuff up."

Alarm bells went off in Yang's head. Ruby was starting to sound a little too much like Uncle Qrow for her liking. "Ruby, that isn't healthy! You need to-"

Ruby stepped back from Yang, and shook her head, "What do I need to do, Yang? Let myself feel all the pain that I've bottled up over the years? That would destroy me! That would mean letting myself the pain of losing Mom, Pyrrha, and Penny ALL AT THE SAME TIME! I can't do that, because we need me to even have a chance at beating Salem!"

Much to her regret, Yang lost her temper. "So, what, you think becoming more like Qrow is the solution?" Yang's eyes burned red as she continued, "If I find you in some ditch with a bottle I swear to-"

"I didn't learn it from Qrow!" Ruby interjected, "I learned it from you!"

Yang blinked. "What?"

"After mom died, you just did what you had to do, and didn't let anything stop you! Not the pain, not the grief, nothing! When dad shut down you made sure that we were taken care of, and every time I asked when mom was coming home, you would just smile and say that she wasn't gone, she just wasn't here right now! So, Yang, yes. I learned to bottle up all of the pain and trauma from you, whether you like it or not!"

"Ruby, I'm sorry." Yang said. "Back then, I was just so focused on keeping us alive that I wasn't thinking about the example I was setting for you."

Ruby hugged herself, "I'm sorry too, Yang. My emotions are just really raw right now, and I just-"

"Don't apologize, Ruby." Yang said, placing her hand on Ruby's shoulder, "We're sisters. We might not see eye to eye on everything, we'll fight, scream at each other until we're blue in the face, but when the chips are down, I know we'll have each other's back."

Ruby nodded, "Right. Alright, if we're still going to take Oscar shopping for his combat gear today, we need to get moving. It's my turn in there, right?" She said, pointing to the bathroom.

"Do I look like I'm done?" Yang said gesturing to her hair, Ruby simply cocked her head, and Yang paled as Ruby began to look rather mischievous, "Don't you dare!"

The fact of the matter was that Yang was simply not fast enough to beat Ruby to the bathroom. Ruby giggles as she petal bursted around Yang, who was left to helplessly pound her fist on the door. "Damn it, Ruby! Get back out here, you little gremlin!"

The only response she got was a giggle.

(Beacon Academy, Training Room 2)

When Reign-Beau Arc had retired from being a Hunter, he had expected to spend the rest of his days tending to the Arc family forge, surrounded by his family, all of whom did not have the slightest inclination towards becoming Hunters, thank you very much.

Honestly, he should've expected that wasn't going to happen. Because of course his only son, the runt of the litter, if one decided to use that term, wanted to become a Hunter. Reign-Beau had thought at the time that scare tactics would keep Jaune away from it, tales of the Apathy scared most seasoned Hunters, for goodness sake!

But then, Reign-Beau had caught Jaune sneaking away to Beacon, with Crocea Mors and piecemeal armor stolen from the family armory.

Reign-Beau lost his temper, he would admit that. He had called Jaune a fool, a fool with a death wish. Then he had told Jaune to get out of his sight, which Jaune did. By going to Beacon.

It wasn't until after Jaune had left that Reign-Beau had realized that he hadn't unlocked Jaune's aura. He didn't sleep much the next few nights, expecting a phone call from Beacon, telling him that Jaune had been killed.

Instead, he got a photo from Jaune, of his team. His team. For reasons that Reign-Beau had been unable to fathom at the time, Professor Ozpin had made Jaune the leader of team JNPR.

Time passed, as it tended to do, and Reign-Beau realized that he had been wrong, he had apologized, but there was still some recompense to be paid, some lost time to make up for. Perhaps that was why he took the position of Combat Instructor at Beacon.

One of two, he reminded himself. Given the severity of what they were fighting, Taiyang Xiao Long was his partner, for lack of a better term. He still wasn't sure how he felt about having a partner again.

Reign-Beau was kept from contemplating further by Jaune and Weiss's arrival. "Hey, dad!" Jaune called out.

Reign-Beau sighed, hopefully they wouldn't hate him by the end of today. "It's good to see that you're both feeling better," Reign-Beau said, immediately diving into what passed for his teaching persona, "This training session will count as your makeup for the Combat classes you missed while you were sick. I am going to warn the both of you now, I am not going to be gentle. By now, you know full well who the enemies you face are, and you know that they will stop at nothing to achieve their goals."

Weiss frowned, "Is this really necessary? I mean, we beat Adam, after all. We know how to handle ourselves."

Reign-Beau smiled. "Thank you for volunteering to go first, Weiss."

"What? But I didn't-" Weiss spluttered.

Reign-Beau simply drew his sword, and beckoned with his free hand, before taking up his shield, "One thing, Weiss. No semblance."

Weiss glared at Reign-Beau for a beat then drew Myrtenaster and lunged, only to get a face full of shield. "You can not charge recklessly." Reign-Beau admonished, "The only reasons that you two survived Adam, was because you had each other to back you up, and because Nora intervened. You cannot count on that all of the time."

Weiss spun to the left, intending to focus her attacks away from Reign-Beau's shield, but was forced back by what seemed to be a sudden onslaught of attacks.

"A pirouette?" Reign-Beau said, his voice dripping with disdain, "Which are you? A fencer or a ballerina?" Weiss only glared in response, before pulling Myrtenaster's trigger. She knelt and stabbed the ground, causing a wall of ice to materialize between her and Reign-Beau. Okay, now I have a moment to catch my breath and-

Weiss's train of thought was rudely interrupted by Reign-Beau smashing through the ice wall and firmly planting his foot in Weiss's face. "Never take your eyes off of your opponent!"

Jaune winced as Weiss hit the ground. "Don't you think this is a little much, dad?"

Reign-Beau glanced at Jaune, "No. I do not." He then walked over to Weiss. "I thought you were a warrior, not some dilettante."

Weiss froze in the process of getting up and gave Reign-Beau a full blast of the Schnee Glare. "You dare?" Weiss seethed.

There it is. "Yes, I do." Reign-Beau said, "From what I've seen so far, you struggle in solo combat, because you can't get the space you need to use your Semblance to the fullest. You have become so reliant on it, that you flounder without it."

Weiss grabbed Myrtenaster's hilt in a white knuckle grip, and got to her feet. "You're wrong." She declared, "And I'll prove it."

Weiss moved, using Aura to increase her speed, darting in close, and then...

Weiss smirked as Reign-Beau attacked, with a flourish of her blade, she parried, then immediately counterattacked with a flurry of cuts, punctuated by a thrust to the ankle.

Reign-Beau attempted to smash Weiss into the ground again with his shield, but Weiss responded by backpedaling and unleashing a gout of fire from Myrtenaster.

"I am not some dilettante." Weiss said as she advanced. The fire petered out, and Weiss advanced with a lightning powered thrust. "No dilettante would have taken the Knight's Oath, and no-" Reign-Beau interrupted her with an overhand strike, but with twin flashes of her blade, Weiss parried and flicked the tip up to Reign-Beau's throat. "And no dilettante would be willing to follow her friends and loved ones into hell and back!"

"So, what did we learn today?" Reign-Beau asked, the Arc grin appearing in his face.

Weiss blinked, and her frigid glare was replaced by momentary confusion. "To never take my eyes off of my enemy, to remember that I can't always count on support in combat."

Reign-Beau raised an eyebrow. "And?"

"I suppose I've been focusing too much on improving my Semblance, and not enough time on my swordsmanship." Weiss admitted as she returned Myrtenaster to its sheath.

Reign-Beau nodded, "Wanting to improve your Semblance is a worthwhile goal, especially for you, since yours is so versatile. However, it won't matter how much work you've put into it when your Aura is broken. All things in moderation, Weiss."

"I'll keep that in mind, although I'm more than a little annoyed that you questioned my commitment to..." Weiss trailed off as she tried the right words.

Reign-Beau sighed, "I had to get you to fight me seriously. I hold no illusions of whether you're committed or not, because I know for a fact that no dilettante could have caught Jaune's eye."

Weiss smirked, "Well, you're right about that. I assume it's his turn next?"

"Yes, it is." Reign-Beau chuckled, "Do tell him there's no bad blood, he looks fit to burst with worry." Reign-Beau's estimation of Jaune's mental state was correct, as he was practically vibrating.

"Weiss, are you okay?" Jaune blurted as soon as she made her way over to him, "That looked... kind of rough."

Well, if that wasn't the overstatement of the week, Weiss wasn't sure what was. "Yes, Jaune, I'm fine." She said, laying her hand on his shoulder, "Thank you for not trying to rush out to save me."

Jaune smiled weakly, "I figured you would hate that, so I didn't." There was a beat of silence, then Jaune's face paled, "Oh, gods. It's my turn."

Weiss giggled, "Do try to keep your face intact, I'm rather fond of it."

A bit of Jaune's confidence returned, "Thanks, dear. I really appreciate it." Jaune walked out into the arena, then drew his sword and faced his father. "Well, dad, what'll it be?"

Reign-Beau made no motion to attack, "You have a problem, Jaune. You don't know what kind of fighter that you want to be."

Jaune blinked, "Excuse me?"

"Currently, your fighting style could easily be summed up as being a combination of what you've learned of Mistralian Dueling from Pyrrha, and Atlesian Fencing from Weiss, and it shows. There is nothing of you in it." Reign-Beau explained. "So, what kind of fighter do you want to be?"

Jaune furrowed his brow as he lost himself in thought. When he had first gone to Beacon, he had wanted to be the hero, the hero who would save everyone, who would beat all the bad guys.

However, over time, that desire shifted. He would never be the hero, because of her eyes that title most likely unequivocally belonged to Ruby. That didn't mean that Jaune couldn't be a hero.

After Pyrrha's death, as her team leader, it had been his responsibility to go through her things. While he was doing so, Jaune had found a entry in her journal. She had written a song for him. As he pondered his father's question, the words of the chorus slipped back into his mind.

I may not be the one to defeat them all

But I will be the one to protect them all

I will defend them all

At the end of this, I will stand tall

This will be my legacy!

Jaune looked at his father, he knew his answer. "I want to be a fighter that protects everyone. I may not be able to beat all of Salem's forces, but I'll still fight them to a standstill to protect those I care about."

Reign-Beau nodded, "Good, you came to the same conclusion I did. Now, using what you've learned from Pyrrha and Weiss as a base, how do you show that through your fighting?"

Jaune blinked, "I don't know."

"Well then, it's a good thing that we've got this." Reign-Beau said as he clicked a button on his Scroll, and a training dummy appeared.

"Really, dad? A training dummy?" Jaune asked, "Aren't I a little beyond this by now?"

Reign-Beau grumbled under his breath, "Damn, I owe Taiyang twenty lien." He continued, "For this exercise, you need a target that you can keep hitting until your arms fall off."

"Right." Jaune said as he stepped forward.

Okay, let's take stock. I need to use what Pyrrha and Weiss have taught me as the base, so... the flowing strikes and shield techniques of Mistralian Dueling, and parrying, efficiency and adaptability from Atlesian Fencing...

Jaune lashed out with a horizontal slash, then an overhead slash, punctuated by a shield bash.

"Jaune, let each strike flow into the next, visualize a river of steel, flowing into your enemy, can you do that for me?"

"O-okay, Pyrrha..."

Jaune attacked the dummy with an one-handed overhand strike, let his blade come around, then unleashed another, this time with two hands.

"Jaune, you must not waste any more energy than necessary, move only as much as you need to, and not a centimeter more."

"Got it, Weiss."

"Don't be afraid to mix in kicks, Jaune." Reign-Beau said, "They'll give you that much more versatility."

Jaune unleashed a potent three hit combo, punctuated by a roundhouse kick, and brutal shield bash.

"Your shield isn't just meant for defense, Jaune. It's a weapon, so use it like one! Bash your enemy, use the edge to your advantage! Together your sword and shield will become an impenetrable wall that no enemy can break!"

"Right, thanks Pyrrha."

Jaune whipped his sword around, in a manner that almost seemed snakelike, and carved a web of steel around the dummy that would've brought most fighters to their knees.

"Never strike in the same place twice if you can help it. Watch your enemy, adapt to what they do, how they move, how they strike. Adapt to them, learn their strategies, then disrupt their rhythm. "

"Alright, that makes sense, Weiss."

By this time, Weiss had come over to watch more closely. She couldn't help but feel a tinge of pride as she saw the glimmerings of Atlesian Fencing in Jaune's new fighting style. "Don't forget your Dust, Jaune. It isn't something extra, weave it into your fighting style like it's always been there." She said.

Jaune slammed the pommel of his sword into what would've passed for the training dummy's head, and an electrical charge passed through it. Weiss blinked, when had Jaune gotten a dust reactive pommel? Jaune followed it up with a slash, but at the moment of contact, unleashed a blast of wind.

Breathing heavily, Jaune turned to Reign-Beau and Weiss, "So? How was that?"

"You fight like a man with nothing to lose, even though you have everything to lose." Reign-Beau said.

"Is that good?" Jaune asked.

Reign-Beau smiled, his lips pressed tightly together, "It means that any enemy that underestimates you will regret it."

Jaune nodded absentmindedly for a moment, before his eyes went wide, "Crap! What time is it?"

Weiss glanced at the clock on the wall, "About a quarter before ten, why?"

"I've gotta get to my makeup class for Introduction to Ordinance Removal!" Jaune cried as he ran out of the training room.

Weiss could only smile. Even with everything that had happened, Jaune was still that dork that she had met that first day, and she loved him for it. "Always on the move."

As Weiss turned to leave, Reign-Beau spoke, "Weiss, you are aware that by now, Salem's forces most likely know about your relationship with Jaune, right?"

Weiss grimaced, "The thought had crossed my mind, yes."

"Based on what Glynda has told me about Salem's inner circle, I do not believe that any of them would be above hurting you to get to Jaune or vice versa. You both must be ready to deal with that."

An unpleasant mental image of her facing off against Cinder, with Jaune's broken body at her feet popped up in her mind. Weiss looked at Reign-Beau, her eyes full of defiant Schnee fire, and her voice full of resolute Arc iron.

"We will be."

(Vale, Huntsmart)

"Welcome to Huntsmart, your one stop shop for all your hunting supplies!" Yang recited.

Oscar hadn't been sure what to expect when the had walked in the building, shaking his head at the slogan plastered above the door. "When you need to hunt smart, shop Huntsmart!" Oscar couldn't help but whistle as he took in the store. The back wall was dominated by dust dispensers and other related products, which Ozpin had told him he would never need to bother with, for some reason. The old man sure loved his secrets.

The middle of the store featured weapons of every kind, and the various accessories and supplies needed to maintain them. The left side was composed of towering bookshelves holding books on every possible subject that could be of use to Hunters, from siege tactics, to Dust chemistry. Finally, the right side held the reason they were there in the first place.

Clothes designed for combat.

"Alright, Oscar." Ruby said, "What did Uncle Qrow say that you should get?"

Oscar winced. Right. Qrow. Glynda had decided that it would be best to allow Oscar to decide who trained him, and in the end, Oscar had chosen Qrow, due to what had been described as an expertise in asymmetrical combat. As it turned out, training with Qrow boiled down to Here's how to do the thing, okay, you can do the thing, now do the thing while I'm trying to beat you up.

Oscar fished a piece of paper out of his back pocket, "Uh, something light and easy to move in, and uh... stomping boots."

Yang grinned, "Oh, he's teaching you all his bar-brawl techniques, sweet."

As Ruby and Yang collected shoes for him to try on, it quickly became clear that when Qrow said stomping boots, he meant steel-toed shoes. After a few rejections, Oscar settled on a pair that was reminiscent of his old work boots. Unlike most steel-toed shoes, the steel toe was on the outside, and was supplemented by a metal sole.

Any thoughts, Ozpin?

"It's certainly not the usual footwear that our previous selves have worn, but it, and the techniques that Qrow will teach you, should serve you well."

Having traveled with Oscar, Ruby and Yang knew how to spot when he was talking with Ozpin, and that Oscar wasn't quite ready to multitask yet. Eventually, Yang spoke up, "I hate to be that person, but your normal clothes would work if you don't want to ditch them."

Oscar jerked his head towards Yang, "Wait, why would... oh, Aura." There was a beat of silence, then Oscar continued, "No, I'm... I'm not a farm hand anymore. So why should I dress like one?"

Noting the distress in his voice, Ruby placed her hand on Oscar's shoulder. "Oscar, it's okay... if you're not okay. I think."

Yang had to bite back a retort, there Ruby went again, making sure everyone else was alright before even considering self-care.

Oscar reached behind his back, and took the Long Memory in his hands. "I'm... okay, I think. I always wanted to go to a combat school, train to be a Hunter, but sometimes I just get overwhelmed knowing how high the odds are stacked against us. I always thought it would just be fighting Grimm and bandits, not... everything else. Who would volunteer for this? Who would ask for this?"

Yang remained silent, Ruby could answer Oscar better than she ever could anyways.

"I did." Ruby said, not bothering to mention that she was in the fight one way or the other, "Because when Cinder and her forces tried to destroy Beacon the first time, they killed two people that were important to me. Pyrrha Nikos, and P-Penny Polendina. If we don't keep fighting Cinder and the rest, they'll keep going, and eventually they'll succeed. If that happens, Penny and Pyrrha will have died for nothing, everyone who's died fighting the Grimm will have died for nothing!"

"We all volunteered, Oscar." Yang explained, "All for different reasons, sure, but one way or the other, we made the choice to run headlong into this insanity."

Oscar chuckled, returning the Long Memory to his belt, "Well, since I made the same choice the moment I left the farm, I should probably look the part." He walked off to find something suited to him. Ruby tried to follow, but Yang stopped her.

"What the heck, Yang?" Ruby protested, "He might have questions, or-"

Yang shook her head, "You never had this experience, since you made your own gear. He needs to do this alone."

Oscar was oblivious to their bickering, however, as he had become lost in the racks of combat gear. He decided on pants rather quickly, since he would feel naked without a good pair of cargo pants. Now came the hard part, what to wear from the waist up? Armor of most kinds was out immediately, since he had no training wearing armor. He settled on a simple white shirt, but it didn't seem complete. Ruby had her cloak, so what would his "calling card", as it were, be? It took some more searching, but then he found it.

A green, double breasted leather coat, complete with brass buttons, and red shoulder pads. Would it look odd on someone as young as him? Probably, but if he was the next to carry the mantle that Ozpin was slowly passing to him, then he was determined to look the part.

Suddenly, Oscar realized something that had come to be very annoying. Was his favorite color green because it was actually his favorite color, or was it more like-minded soul nonsense?

Gods, it was hot chocolate all over again.

Ozpin, what do you think of this?

"Not that it matters, I approve."

Oscar groaned, Ozpin was being evasive again. Why exactly?

"Because we are like-minded souls."

Any other reason? Oscar mentally said.

Ozpin was silent for five moments too long before answering. "... No."

You hesitated.

"Well, you see, green has been the favorite color of all-"

Oscar sighed. Next you're going to tell me that every one of our past selves were farm hands, right?

Ozpin chuckled, "No, you hold that singular honor."

Oscar took a moment to internalize that fact. A fact that made him different from the incarnations that had come before, something that irrevocably made Oscar... Oscar.

Mistral, Branwen Tribe Camp)

Raven Branwen was not in a good mood, as things were happening way too fast for her liking. Thanks to her daughter's complete lack of subtlety, members of the tribe had been able to easily track Yang, Ruby, and Qrow as they traveled across Mistral.

Raven had sent them home, and picked up the trail herself, using her bird form to remain close. It led right to Ozpin's reincarnation, a farm boy. A farm boy was supposed to unite the world, that made perfect sense. Her suspicions were confirmed when the farm boy left with Qrow.

It's too quick. Both sides have ramped up their urgency. This isn't going to be fought over decades anymore. This is going to be fought over months at this rate.

Some questioning of her men confirmed Raven's theory, a raiding party had tried to go after that farm several months ago, but had been stopped by Ozpin.

Months before his death.

This meant only one thing, Ozpin had gone looking for his next reincarnation.

Raven frowned. Originally she had just planned to wait out the storm in her corner of the world, but then, twelve years ago, Raven had felt her semblance pulse. One of her links was in danger. Summer was in danger.

Thanks to a momentary lapse in judgement, she had leapt through the portal, ready to obliterate anything that would dare hurt Summer Rose.

What Raven saw horrified her.

Summer was long dead by the time Raven got to her, but worse yet was how she had died.

Summer had died because Salem was experimenting on her. To learn how to corrupt a Silver Eyed Warrior with the substance from the Grimm spawning pools, and have them survive the experience.

According to the logbook that Raven had found in Salem's laboratory, if it could even be called that, Salem had administered a single drop of the substance that spawned the Grimm. While the corruption had taken hold in Summer's body, it destroyed her soul instantly.

Raven left quickly after learning that, as it did a number on her emotions. It would be a shame to have learned all of this, and lose her grip now.

After learning all of that, Raven had been more determined than ever to stay isolated from the conflict, never mind that Summer's daughter was quickly growing up and would soon be a target.

However, fate apparently had a different plan in store for Raven Branwen, because it dumped the Spring Maiden on her doorstep.

She had been weak though. The daughter of a Mistralian noble, who didn't care enough to answer a simple ransom demand. Raven had ordered her men to take her out into the wilderness and leave her for the Grimm. The girl hadn't liked that much, and her eyes had started to glow. Raven knew what that meant, thanks to Ozpin.

This girl, this weakling, was a Maiden.

Raven was a firm believer in survival of the fittest, and she was determined to be the fittest. No matter what it took. So, Raven explained to that poor girl exactly what burden had been placed upon her, and she begged Raven to take it from her.

Raven was happy to accommodate her.

Raven was interrupted in her trip down memory lane by her second in command, Vernal. "Ma'am? We have... visitors."

That didn't sound good, it never was. "Very well, tell them I'll be with them shortly."

Raven sighed. What would it be this time? Another group of idiot Hunters trying to snatch a cut of the tribes... earnings? "Be ready, Vernal, depending on the situation, we may need to use the decoy strategy." She donned her Grimm mask, to conceal the telltale glow in case she did need to use the Maiden power.

She swept out of her tent to find three people standing before her. A girl with green hair, whose clothing was incredibly impractical. The next, an unassuming gray haired boy, and finally, a black haired woman, wearing a eyepatch and a red dress, with a flowing left sleeve that concealed that arm.

"Normally I don't suffer fools who decide to waltz into my home without warning," Raven said, "State your piece. Quickly."

The woman in red stepped forward, "Greetings, Raven, my name is Cinder, and these are my associates, Emerald and Mercury." Cinder gestured to the two on either side of her.

"Enough with the meet and greet," Vernal said, "What do you want with us?"

Raven took advantage of the fact that she was wearing a mask to glance around at the rest of her men, they were uneasy at best. There was something about this Cinder that was putting them on edge, but Raven couldn't be sure about what it was.

"We come with a proposal, help our... organization rid ourselves of a thorn in our side, and we will forget that you exist." Cinder said.

"You want someone killed?" Raven scoffed, "You seem the capable sort, do it yourself."

"We don't need this person killed, we need them... apprehended." Cinder explained, "And your unique... connections will make it much easier, Raven."

"Stop beating around the bush, and tell me what you want, Cinder." Raven growled.

"Very well, Raven." Cinder purred, "We want you to help us capture Ruby Rose."

Alarm bells went off in Raven's head. These three... they couldn't... "Why do you want her? She's just a huntress in training. There's plenty of those running around."

"She's... special." Cinder said, anger beginning to enter her voice.

Another reason Raven wore her mask during meetings was so that she could observe others without suspicion. One of the things that she was observing was a black mist seeping out of Cinder's left sleeve.

Grimm. She has a Grimm arm. They're with Salem, and they want to capture Ruby Rose, a Silver Eyed Warrior. I can't let this happen.

"Fine. I'll help, if that will get you out of my face." Raven said.

Emerald grinned, "Great! Now all we need is the Spring Maiden, and then we can head back to-"

"Emerald!" Cinder hissed, "How is it, that you cannot seem to learn how to keep quiet?"

Vernal looked at Raven for confirmation. Raven gritted her teeth and reached for the power. With a nod, she began to use it.

"Well, if you're looking for the Spring Maiden, Vernal said, the sky darkening as she spoke,"I'm right here!"

Cinder grinned avariciously, "Oh, this is a surprise. It will be an absolute pleasure working with you, Raven." She turned to her subordinates, "Come, we're leaving."

A look of confusion crossed Emerald's face. "But, Cinder, what about-"

"Quiet." Cinder snapped. "How many times do I have to tell you?"

Raven took a moment to look at Mercury, he had a look of barely concealed rage on his face. Interesting. "Contact me when you have a plan." Raven called after them.

After they left, Vernal turned to Raven. "Ma'am, should I start preparations to kidnap this Ruby?"

"No, Vernal." Raven said, "We aren't helping them, we're betraying them. I know for a fact that the... master those three work for was responsible for the death of my best friend. I want payback."

Payback was something that the tribe understood. Lingering feelings for a family outside of the tribe was not.

Raven drew her sword, and cut the air in front of her, making a portal. "You're in charge until I'm back, Vernal. I have something I need to check on."

A/N: Was there scenes I said would appear this chapter that aren't here? Yes, that's correct. I moved those scenes to the next chapter to give that chapter some fluffy bits in between the seriousness that'll go down.

To the reviewer that asked if I based Pyrrha's mother off of Perseus, no, I didn't. When she appears in my writing, I typically base Mama Nikos off of Athena.

So, Nuts and Dolts out of left field. Yeah... sorry RoseGarden fans. I have an explanation, though.

Put simply, in a story like this, I want the main ships to affect the story. Obviously this story would be vastly different without White Knight. I made an outline with RoseGarden, and another without, and they were nearly identical.

There will still be plenty of interaction between Ruby and Oscar, but they'll stay platonic. That's the final word. If you drop the story because of that, well, that's your choice.

Next Chapter: Raven drops a few metaphorical bombshells on Qrow, Jaune gets blown up... again, Yang and Weiss learn to fly, Mercury tries to talk some sense into Emerald, Oscar gets a crash course in bar brawling... and unearths a memory that changes everything.