Ok so I suck I know. I failed at uploading at the schedule timed I gave myself and you all.

School and testing got in the way big time. I am trying to upload now though giving myself a bit of a mental break for the night. I have spring break coming up soon so hopefully that helps.

Also I am sorry if not much feeling or if the last chapter was rushed in anyway. I just felt like I needed things to move along a bit more. I know some of you are confused too. Some comments (and I am generalizing) are like 'How could Qrow be that stupid', 'Did Ruby's warning not mean anything', and 'Why is Ironwood there when the military didn't seem to be needed'; well I viewed it as:

Ruby to them is fifteen. As an adult (even if it is Ruby) it's kind of like how much weight are you really going to give a teenager? Especially if she really didn't give them much information to go on. Then of course Ozpin's view point of Ruby attacking him. How much of her warning is he really going to trust after that debacle in his office? After that Ironwood, the Tower being the main source of communication between all of Remnant sort of seems like a place that would be of military importance, of course a break in is probably going to raise concern seeing that everyone is going to be in Vale for the Festival.

Also recall that I gave a rather huge hint in the very beginning. Recall that the God of Light strictly told Ruby that there will be certain events that she wouldn't be able to change, no matter how hard she tried. The minor things that she did manage to change have accelerated events quicker than she would anticipate, and I will explain more later but I will just leave this quote from Jurassic Park since Ian Malcolm said it best, "Life breaks free. Life expands to new territories. Painfully, perhaps even dangerously. But life finds a way."

New Divide

Ruby stood in the corner with her arms crossed as everyone else sat down with Vernal pouring cups of tea for each of them. Once she got to Ruby, dirty and hostile looks were exchanged before she was offered a cup of the tea; but Ruby declined which seemed all well and fine for the second in command, "Thank you Vernal." Raven said nodding to her once she looked at her leader, "You can go see to their quarters now."

Vernal nods and once more shoot Ruby a look before leaving, "So, what's the 'truth'?" Yang asks getting to the point.

Raven smiles lightly and takes a sip from her cup, "You know, its' better when it's hot."

No one touched their cups just yet. Each feeling the tension between their leader and the woman in front of them. Pyrrha sighed and took a sip to try and help ease the tension, "It's very good Ms. Branwen."

Ruby nearly balked at this, but prided herself on keeping a neutral face. Yang started choking on her tea as she took her own sip. Blake patted her on the back as Weiss rolled her eyes and Jaune looked confused. Thankfully Nora kept quiet and Ren just watched on silently. Raven, for her part ignored all of this just to snort and respond, "That makes be sound old. It's Raven."

"Of course. I meant no disrespect." Pyrrha said blushing lightly, but looked at Ruby in the back.

Ruby again kept her face neutral, this woman deserves the same amount of respect as the ground I spit on, she thinks darkly, "Quit being obnoxious and start talking." Ruby eventually said as Raven took another sip of her tea.

Raven raised an eyebrow at this and stared at her former leader's daughter. Once more, the magic that dwelt within her, started to pull. Almost as if it wanted to leave her and go towards the young girl in the red cloak. Putting those thoughts aside for later, seeing that the group of teenagers was watching her, she put her cup down and began, "The truth is that 'truth' is hard to come by. A story of victory for one person is a story of defeat for someone else." She looks at Ruby now, "I assume you told them plenty of these stories if they are all still willing to follow you."

Before Ruby could respond, Jaune spoke up, "Well, for right now, she has never given us a reason to doubt her."

"Cute." Raven responded as Jaune visibly sunk low in his seat under her gaze, "That doesn't mean those reasons don't exist." She gets up and turns to the map on the wall of her tent that displayed all the kingdoms and the Huntsman Academies, "You know, you and your teammates might as well be the poster children for the Huntsman academies. Your motives vary, but you all enrolled to try and make the world a better place. It's adorable."

Blake and the others look at one another and then looks back at the bandit leader, "It's what Huntsmen and Huntresses do." She says firmly and slowly.

Raven laughs lightly at this, "My point. You all are so adorably naïve. Here is the real education you do not get at Ozpin's precious Beacon;" she looked at them closely, making sure they were all paying attention, "not all Huntsman and Huntresses enroll to 'make the world a better place'. Some people are just in it for the money and the fame, but there's even more that are just looking to grow stronger."

"Grow stronger to do what exactly?" Weiss asked slowly.

Raven looked at Yang and Ruby, "Your Uncle Qrow and I didn't attend Beacon to become Huntsmen, we did it to learn how to kill Huntsmen."

This didn't surprise Ruby too much as she heard this confession, however everyone else was aghast at this. Yang the most surprised exchanging a brief look with Blake, "Excuse me?" Weiss dared to ask.

Raven ignored her, just staring at Yang's expression, "Daddy and Uncle left that part out, hm?" She pours herself another cup of tea, "Aside from the Grimm, Huntsmen were the only ones capable of ruining our raids and hunting us down. Our tribe needed a counterforce." She turned her back to them, taking another sip of her tea, "And Qrow and I were the perfect age. The entrance exams were child's play compared to what we'd already been through. We were good. So good, that we caught the attention of Beacon's very own headmaster, Professor Ozpin. Even after we were put on a team, I could tell he was keeping his eye on us. Back then, I thought it was because he knew, but it was Team STRQ he was interested in."

"STRQ?" Jaune asked cocking his head slightly.

Raven smirked, "Summer Rose our leader and Ruby's mother;" minus Yang, they all looked at Ruby before refocusing, "Taiyang Xiao Long, Ruby and Yang's father. Myself of course and my twin brother Qrow. We were a team."

"Nice history lesson lady." Nora spoke up this time glaring at the woman. Pyrrha, Jaune, and Ren nudged her to keep quiet, but she ignored them, "What do you mean he was 'interested' in your team?"

"The history lesson isn't over yet. However let's see if this sounds familiar;" Raven looks at Ruby, "Team RWBY does the constant attention, extra training missions, turning a blind eye whenever rules were broken, and get into more trouble than should've been possible ring any bells?"

Ruby ignored the comment as all eyes looked at her. She wasn't going to respond, but seeing Weiss's curious expression, she felt forced to say something, "What's your point?"

Raven stared at Ruby and then went back to looking at the group, "How much do you know about Professor Ozpin? About his past?"

They looked at one another and then at Ruby before Weiss started to say slowly, "He was... a prodigy. One of the youngest headmasters to be appointed to a school."

Raven nodded, "Because that's how he planned it. Because the man you know as Ozpin designed those schools and has followers inside every academy on Remnant that are loyal to him and no one else."

Blake spoke up this time, "That doesn't make any sense! How could he have...? No. Why would someone even do that?"

"Because old man Oz has a great and terrible secret. One that could spread fear across the world. One that he eventually entrusted to our team, and once I knew, there was no going back. I needed to know more, but with every new discovery I made, the more horrifying the world became."

Ruby rolled her eyes, so it would seem that everything Yang had briefed her on in her own timeline when this occurred was it. Nothing more, or less, "The Creatures of Grimm... have a master named Salem. She can't be stopped, she can't be reasoned with, and she will not rest until humanity crumbles at her feet."

Ah, Ruby thought to herself, now we might be getting somewhere, "I told them this part already." Raven looked moderately surprised at Ruby's proclamation, having heard Ruby telling them nearly everything, "Is that why you betrayed us already?" Ruby now asked, "Working and giving information to Salem?"

Raven looked at her as did the rest of her team, "I've made choices yes. However as I told Qrow and yourself, I brought you time. I didn't tell her everything."

"And yet only the strong survive. That is the rules is it not?" Ruby challenged back standing tall coming forward.

"Ruby." Yang spoke up seeing that her sister was pushing.

Raven looks at Ruby and sighs, "You are really naïve. I am trying to tell you that if you continue down this road you are on, then you will end up just like your mother! Dead and useless-!"

Ruby let out a growl and before anyone could move, she whipped her scythe out and using the blunt end, she slammed it into Raven's stomach and sent the woman flying out of the tent. The teens stood up in shock looking at their leader. Ruby vanished before anyone could say anything in a swirl of petals and appeared outside in the middle of the area with Raven nowhere in sight, "Come out Raven!" Ruby yelled.

They all looked around the clearing, "Ruby-" Yang started to say.

"Ruby." Weiss said coming to her partner, "Are you-"

"Stop jack-ass-ing around Raven! Show yourself!" Ruby demanded.

No one spoke and just looked around hesitantly at one another warily when they heard a bird caw. They looked up and watched it fly around them, "A raven?" Blake asked curiously.

Yang looked up at it and a memory struck her, "I've... seen that bird before." She said slowly.

"I'm sure you have." Ruby said darkly in disgust.

Team JNPR stood back a bit, wondering if they should even get involved in trying to calm Ruby down as the other girls stood a bit closer to her. They did know one thing and that was to keep an eye on the bird in the sky, "Maybe it belongs to your mom?" Weiss asked hesitantly, but seeing Ruby's dark look, she took a little step back.

The group continued to watch the raven fly in the dusk-colored sky. It descends, flying and weaving between the trees, before shapeshifting into Raven herself. Raven lands back on the ground on her feet, while the others have shocked expressions on their faces, she notices that Ruby doesn't look surprised as she stands back up, "How...did you do that?" Yang asks in shock before Ruby could charge forward once more.

"One word. Magic." Raven answers, "However maybe I'll leave that part to your uncle if you decide to go forward and see him." Then she sees Vernal standing behind them with a curious expression on her face, "Why don't we take a break? It seems that food has been prepared for you all."

They look behind them and see the girl standing there. They then look at one another and then glanced at Ruby, "Ruby?" Blake asks as the girl stares down at the woman in front of them.

"Go. I still want to talk to Raven." Ruby states firmly.

"Hey wait a minute." Yang cut in looking at her little sister, "You promised me that you wouldn't hurt her and you tossed her out of her tent with your scythe."

Raven scoffed, "I am not hurt."

"But-" Yang starts to argue further.

"I will continue later. Now it is rude for food that was prepared special for you to get cold." Raven stated.

"Go." Ruby said looking at them all, "I am better now." She said lying through her teeth. They looked at the two and sighed, JNPR leading back through the tent to the front. Blake, Weiss, and Yang didn't move and continued to stare at their leader.

Ruby stared back, "Look I promise I will behave myself this time and you can have your mother all you want once I am finished." Yang glared harshly, but once Ruby looked at Blake, the cat faunus sighed and gave Yang a look. Yang glared at her sister before allowing Blake to lead her back to the tent. Weiss just stared at Ruby for a moment or two longer before following suit.

Ruby and Raven watched them for a moment and then Ruby glared right back at Raven, "Ok I say enough with the bull shit. Wouldn't you agree?"

Raven looks at the girl and says, "I'd say yes if it were not for the fact that I've been nothing but straight with you all from the start…unlike your behavior with your own teammates."

Ruby glares at her and asks, "Got somewhere more private?"

Raven looks at her and then slowly glances behind the girl to the tent. Nodding, she leads the girl further into the woods before coming to a stop into the small clearing. Ruby looks around and closes her eyes. Focusing on her aura, she spreads it out making sure to include the magic in the air. Sensing nothing, she opens them and stares at the older woman in front of her, "So now what? Going to try and fight me about disrespecting your mother, or are you going to play the overprotective little sister?" Raven mockingly asked as she sensed the weird feeling she suddenly got when Ruby opened her eyes.

"Neither." Ruby stated, "Yes I got angry, but I wanted to move things along. You are right however, I have not been totally straight about certain things to my teams." Ruby turned around and faced away from the bandit leader.

Raven instinctively reached for her weapon sensing a sudden change now, "Just what the hell are you talking about?"

"You know things about Ozpin. You admitted that much, so I am assuming you know his true story." Ruby said slowly, she was drastically unsure about this, but needed to know for sure. There was something stirring inside of her, it was as if it was reaching for Raven, "Well my story is similar to his."

"What-?"

"There is a reason why I hate you so fucking much." Ruby said reaching for her own in response to Raven's movement, "However we do not have time to go into this. I know about the Relics. Each are locked inside a chamber that can only be opened by a specific Maiden. Winter for the gift of Creation, Summer for Destruction, Fall for Choice, and Spring for Knowledge."

Raven lunged and there was a resounding clang as Ruby spun, Crescent Rose meeting Raven's sword. They pushed against each other before using each other to spring apart. Raven felt her power's stirring, but forced them down as Ruby began to talk once again, "When the Spring maiden was first awakened, she was determined at first, but the weight of responsibility proved to be too much and she ran. Abandoned her training, everyone. That was over a decade ago."

Raven lunged again, but Ruby disappeared in a cloud of petals causing Raven to miss her completely. Ruby reappeared, "You wouldn't happen to know anything about this would you?"

Raven growled and lunged, the scythe meeting the sword once more. This time Raven couldn't hide it. Her powers activated and Ruby felt her own awaken. Flaming red eyes met flaming silver eyes, "Well I have my answer. Both actually." Ruby responded and then they once more used each other's force to push one another apart.

"She was scared when we found her! Weak. No matter how much training I put her through, she never learned! She wasn't cut out for this world! And with those powers, she would've been hunted her entire life! What I did-" Raven was cut off.

"I don't care." Ruby stated, surprising herself how defeated her voice was. She was numb to this, and Raven's excuses did not change anything.

"Somehow you are lying." Raven growled out, "Now why don't you explain yourself. I knew your mother and the extent of her powers. Your silver eyes-"

"Are not your concern." Ruby growled out, "What is however is what I am about to tell you. So if you really do give a shit more about your tribe and their lives more than your own daughter you will listen and listen well."

Raven took another combative stance and nearly growled out, "Why should I do or believe whatever you are about to say?"

"Because ten years from now things go to hell majorly. Your tribe is whipped out by my hand and by Salem's." Raven's eyes widen, and she somewhat relaxes her stance, "Now then are you going to listen?"