A/N: Italics=Thoughts.
"Well Ms. Schnee everything appears to be in order. We haven't found anything that shouldn't be there. So, you're free to go." The doctor said as he flipped through various pages on a clipboard.
"Thank you Doctor. I'll be sure to be more careful next time." Weiss courteously said.
"Please be sure that you do. Even though you are young, you aren't invincible. Be sure to get more rest to keep from collapsing from exhaustion." He said with a smile. Making his way to the door, he opened it and turned to his patient. "I wish you a wonderful day young lady. And remember. Plenty of rest."
"Yes sir."
When he left Weiss nearly jumped out of the hospital bed. She immediately went for the bag that contained her clothes. The former heiress couldn't wait to get out the hospital gown. They were literally the most uncomfortable thing she had ever worn. Well, besides a particular pair of heels she had to wear to one of father's parties.
Once she grabbed the bag, Weiss went into the bathroom. A stiff, painful feeling hit her lower back. She placed a hand on the area. "I will be happy if I never have to sleep in one of those awful beds again!" She groaned.
After changing, Weiss made sure to fold the gown neatly and placed it in the cupboard that it was meant to be in. Now, she was going to make good on her promise to visit Ruby...The only problem was that she didn't know where her room was.
"Drat! I should have asked the Doctor where her room is." She chided herself.
Weiss opened the door quickly. She really didn't want to stay in this room any longer. The need for freedom and to see her partner was far too great to control.
BAM!
Weiss froze when she heard the sound that was accompanied with a 'fuck'. She peered around the door to find Qrow Branwen on his butt and rubbing his face.
"Sonuvabitch that hurt! Fuck me!" The man yelled. Honestly, he couldn't go a day without something happening to him. Qrow, for the millionth time, cursed his luck. First, he had to deal with a hyperactive Ruby in a parts store spending ALL of his money. "Gotta remind myself to kill Tai later." Now this! He briefly wondered if this what it felt like to get hit in the face with a giant baseball bat.
"I'm so sorry!" Weiss hastily apologized in a panic. "I didn't know you were behind the door!"
Qrow waved Weiss off. "It's all right kiddo. I don't blame you. I just had rotten luck is all." He seriously hated his semblance. What he would give to get rid of it.
"Are you sure? You're not bleeding or anything, right?"
The Huntsman picked himself up and dusted off his pants. "Yeah. I'm good. It'll take a lot more than a door to put this guy down." Qrow could see why his niece had a thing for her.
Weiss took a deep breath of relief. Then, an idea formed in her head. "Mr. Branwen. You wouldn't happen to know where Ruby is do you?"
Qrow raised an eyebrow at the sound of mister. "What's with this 'Mr. Branwen' stuff? Just call me Qrow. It makes me sound less like an old man. Also, yes, I know where that little goof ball is. And no. You can't see her."
"What? Why not?"
"Her request. She's working on something she doesn't want anyone to see just yet." He watched Weiss instantly deflate. He chuckled. Qrow put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. You'll see her soon enough. It won't take her long to finish."
The white-haired girl sighed. "Well, what exactly am I supposed to do now?"
"Well, you can come with me to see the rest of your friends and your sister. Besides, we need to talk about where we will be going from here."
"Very well. I suppose I can wait a little longer to see her and it would be nice to see how the others are doing."
Qrow opened the door to the new hotel they were staying at. He let Weiss go in first and then he followed. Once they made their way into the lobby, they could see everyone was waiting for them. Well, everyone except Ruby.
Tai was the first to see them. He waved them over. Both Qrow and Weiss smiled and walked towards the group.
Everyone looked well. Except for Jaune. He had heavy bags under his eyes. Even though Weiss wouldn't exactly call him a friend (more like someone she merely tolerated) that didn't mean she wouldn't be concern for his well being. She knew he would be concerned for her if she was in his position.
"Jaune. Are you...okay?" Weiss asked.
It took a minute for boy register what was said to him. He lifted his head and offered a weak smile. "Y-yeah. I'm fine. Really! Just...going through some things. You know?"
Ren came next to her and whispered. "I think Pyrrha's death has affected him more than maybe he wants to admit."
Weiss nodded. She wouldn't press the issue. Offering a supportive smile she said. "I hope you get through those things you mentioned."
"Yeah." He mumbled putting his face in his hands. "Me too."
Qrow watched as Weiss, Ren, and Nora converse with each other. They were likely trying to catch up with each other. Seeing them interact reminded him of those simpler days back at Beacon. It made him realize just how easy he had it back then compared to these kids now. He didn't have to go through even a fraction of the things they had to go through when he was their age.
"NO WAY! THAT'S SO COOL!" Nora yelled.
Qrow instantly covered his ears. "Damn that girl has got an impressive set of lungs. Fuck." Once the pain subsided, he let go of his ears. He could see Ren and Weiss desperately trying to keep her quiet. Didn't take him too long to find out that Weiss told them what she is and what she did. He sat down and pulled out a magazine from one the tables. Now all they had to do was wait for a certain little flower to show up.
Winter face palmed at the sight of Nora. The girl was snoring up a storm on her partner's shoulder. The specialist wondered how he ever put up with a girl like her. She frowned when she noticed Qrow sleeping with his legs spread out and a magazine over his face. Winter kicked his ankle.
"Ow!" Qrow exclaimed as the magazine flew off his face when he jolted from the kick. He glared at Winter. "The hell was that for?" He asked while rubbing his ankle.
"You are a professional Huntsman. You should act more, you know, professional and disciplined." She said sternly.
"Let me get this straight. You get uppity over me taking a nap, but you don't care that Ms. Thunder Hammer over there snores our ears to death?" He said while pointing at Nora who was now drooling on Ren's shoulder. Who immediately started to try to clean himself and close her mouth.
"They are still students. I do not hold them to the same standards that I would with someone like you." Winter sat down in the chair next to him and turned to face him. "You are a professional. You should be setting a good example for these children to follow. No matter what you may think of yourself, they look up to you. Especially that niece of yours. Instead of being such an irresponsible slouch, you should be striving to be an exemplary idol to them."
Qrow rolled his eyes. "They're not that young. They're old enough to make their own decisions and follow their own paths. They don't need anyone to look up to."
Winter shook her head and sighed. "How on Remnant did you ever become a professor?"
Before Qrow could reply with a witty remark, Ruby yelled. "I'M DONE!"
"Ruby. There's no need to yell in the middle of the hotel lobby." Tai scolded.
Ruby placed both of her hands over her mouth. She looked around to see everyone staring at her. The easily excited girl laughed nervously and rubbed the back of her head. "Sorry about that." She said sheepishly.
"You see. That's what I'm talking about Qrow. You need to be more like Tai."
"Ugh." He groaned. "What are you? My wife?"
Winter's face contorted with disgust. "P-perish the thought!"
Ruby turned around only to have her vision obscured by white hair.
"Oh dust. Thank goodness you're okay." Weiss said as she hugged her partner. Her arms firmly secured around her neck.
Ruby felt a little bit of heat spreading across her face. Having Weiss so close to her made her stomach feel like there were butterflies inside it. Her legs felt a little like jelly too. Despite these feelings, Ruby eventually returned the hug.
"I'm sorry." She whispered into Weiss' ear.
Weiss let go and pulled away a little. "For what?"
"For making you worry. I didn't mean to."
Weiss smiled. "How about next time you be more careful. Alright?"
Ruby gave her signature grin. "You got it Weiss!"
The white-haired girl felt her heart flutter for a moment. There was something just so cute and oddly handsome about that grin. Weiss couldn't explain exactly what these feelings were, but she knew she liked them and that only Ruby could make her feel this way.
"All right you two love birds. Come over here so we can actually talk about what we're going to be doing." Qrow smirked when he saw both girls' face turn red. He was going to have so much fun with these two clueless girls. However, there was a time and place for everything. Now was the time for business.
Once the blushing girls joined the rest of the group, Qrow said. "Alright guys. I got a place up in Mistral proper. So that's where we're going. Once we get into the city we are going to be visiting an old friend. His name is Leonardo Lionheart. He's the Headmaster of Haven Academy. Once that's done me, Winter, and Tai are gonna start training you guys. Winter will train Weiss, I'll be taking Ruby, and Tai will take the rest of you."
"Are you sure we should be wasting our time with that? Aren't we, you know, pressed for time from a certain enemy?" Jaune asked
"We will be fine. Also, the answer to your other question. Yes. You guys got absolutely destroyed by one person." Tai said bluntly. Gone was that happy go lucky nature. This was his instructor side showing now. "You guys got lucky. If you want to be professional Huntsmen and Huntresses, then you can't rely on on luck. You need to rely on skill, wisdom, and strength. Unfortunately, none of you are up to snuff." Tai watched as the teens looked down at the floor. He didn't like being this harsh, but it needed to be said. They needed to know that they just weren't good enough. "Especially you." Tai said pointing at Jaune.
"Come now! Lift those chins up!" Winter scolded. "You shouldn't expect to be able to match up to real professionals such as Gavrillo. You're still students after all. Worry not though. We will whip you into shape and MAKE you ready."
Ruby stepped forward with her head held high, She gave a hard look to the adults in front of her. Her face set like stone. "We're ready to do whatever it takes to be where we need to be."
Qrow smiled. This was more like the Ruby he knew. He didn't know what happened to her, but whatever it was, he was grateful for it.
"All right then. Let's get the hell out of here!" Qrow said.
"Welcome to Mistral proper!" Qrow bowed dramatically as they walked across a walkway that was next to a man made waterfall. The teens ran up to the rails and awed at the sight of the beautiful, green rolling hills in the background with rice paddy fields at the bottom. Majestic eastern architecture was everywhere. From the buildings to the bridges.
"It's so pretty!" Ruby said.
"Yeah it is. 'Course, it has some ugly parts to. Better to stay away from there." Qrow said. He started walking away. He waved for the rest of the group to follow. "C'mon guys. We got to climb up a little to get to our destination."
"So, um, where exactly is Haven Academy?" Jaune asked. He watched as Qrow pointed up to highest point in the city. Jaune's mouth hung open. "Seriously? That's not a little bit of climbing! That's a lot of climbing!"
"No point in complaining Jaune. Let's just get going. The sooner we do this, the better." Ren said.
The blond instantly hunched over and started walking. "Fine."
Once they got to Haven Academy, everyone felt something was off. Something just wasn't quite right.
"Hey guys. Is it just me or is this place a little...empty?" Ruby asked.
"Maybe everyone is just on break or something?" Jaune suggested.
"No. There should be students and teachers all over the place. Something isn't right here. Just be ready for anything." Qrow said.
Inside the school was even worse. There was no one around. Not a single teacher or student. Not even a single janitor was in sight. The whole place was essentially a ghost town. None of this made any sense.
Making it to the Headmaster's office door, the group stopped when they heard strange sounds coming from inside. They all looked at each other and nodded as they pulled out their weapons. Qrow placed his hand on the knob and started to turn it. The door immediately flew open revealing a lion Faunus with dark gray hair.
"AHHHHHH!" Leonardo screamed at the sight of weapons pointed at him.
"AHHHHHH!" The teens screamed in surprise at, well, from the sudden appearance of a person and their scream.
"Everyone relax! This is Leonardo Lionheart. The Headmaster of the Academy."
Leonardo looked to Qrow and sighed. He thought he was about to be killed. Thought that maybe someone was on to him. "Oh. Qrow! Welcome! It's been a long time hasn't it?"
Qrow smiled and shook his hand. "Yeah, well, I wish it was under better circumstances Leo."
"Come, come. Let's not talk out here." Leo waved everyone into his office.
It took about twenty minutes for Qrow to fill Leo in about everything that had happened. Except for the part about Weiss being the Winter Maiden. He figured he would wait until he found Ozpin and then go from there.
"Well, it seems like all of you have been through a lot for ones so young. And it pains me to know that Ozpin is dead." Leo said.
Qrow shook his head. " He did leave me instructions to secure the relic and the Spring Maiden in the event that he died. Which, by the way, brings me to a very important question. Where the hell is everyone Leo? There isn't soul in sight around here to protect the relic." Qrow said. Clearly annoyed about the lack of security.
Leo sighed. "I'm sorry Qrow, but after Beacon fell, the Grimm ramped up their attacks all over Mistral. The Council needed every able Huntsmen and Huntress to fight them back. So, the students are back in their homes until such a time that the threat of Grimm has been at least suppressed." Sitting back in his chair, Leo began pinching the bridge of his nose. "To make matters worse. I have no idea where the Spring Maiden could be. Or, should I say, the new Spring Maiden."
"What do you mean by 'new'." Ruby questioned.
"I mean that many years ago, the Spring Maiden had ran away. She hated bearing the great responsibility that came with being one. The young girl yearned for freedom, but we could not give it to her. She was far to important." Leo stood up from his chair and walked over to his window and stared out of it. "A few weeks after she ran, we found her body. Someone had killed her, but they left her in a place where we could find her. To this day, I still feel for her. It was obvious that the weight of what she was , was crushing her and she couldn't take it."
"That's...terrible." Ren said solemnly.
Weiss grabbed her arm and cast her gaze down. She wondered if having these powers would crush her as well. Was she even ready for it? Would she meet the same fate as her Spring counterpart? So many more questions popped in her head. She felt someone grab her hand and squeeze. Looking up, Weiss saw Ruby smiling at her. The former heiress smiled back. That smile was enough reassure her that everything was going to be okay. She had her friends and Ruby to help and support her.
Qrow pulled out his scroll and placed it on the table. "I know where the new one is. She's with my sister. Raven."
Leo did a instant one eighty. Surprise evident on his face. He was both happy and disgusted. He really hated this. Hated his cowardice, but he would continue to play his part so that he could be free of this conflict. But then he registered fully what he had said and then he felt his hope drain away.
"Raven Branwen you say. Oh, that complicates things a great deal." Leo muttered. He ran a hand through his hair.
"Maybe, but I do have the Tribe's location." He connected his scroll to Leo's desk. He pressed a button and a map of Anima popped out. "The Tribe is located here." He pointed to the highlighted area on the map. "I was able to find them by following the path of destruction and was able to triangulate their location." Qrow moved his eyes over into the direction of Tai. Signaling to Leo not to discuss strategy of getting the Spring Maiden back.
Leo understood what his colleague was saying. He understood that Tai's past affections for the woman would only complicate things."Well, this at least answers the question of where the Spring Maiden is. I need some time to look this over and think of where to go from here. Do you mind if I make a copy of this?"
"Sure."
Leo downloaded a copy with the press of a button. "I will call you when I figure something out. Until then, please enjoy your stay here in Mistral Qrow." He said as he shook his hand. Looking to the rest of the group he said. "All of you as well."
Once everyone left one of the bookcases slid open. Arthur Watts walked out. "You are a terrible actor." He stepped in front of the desk and pressed a button to reveal the map that was just copied. "But you've done good enough to get this juicy bit of information."
Leo began to rub his hands nervously. "Will this please her?"
Arthur rubbed his mustache a few times before looking at Leo with a terrifying smile. "Oh, yes. I should think so."
Qrow side stepped out of Ruby's attack. He grabbed onto her scythe and pulled her to him as he kicked out with his right leg. His foot connected with her chest and she went flying back about five feet.
She groaned as she rubbed her head. She didn't know what hurt more. The kick to her chest or the back of her head. Ruby looked up to see Qrow holding Crescent Rose to her.
"You're too slow Ruby and you make yourself too obvious. Also, you should have a tighter grip on your weapon so you don't get disarmed." He advised.
"Right! Then I'll just have to try even harder."
"That's the spirit!" Qrow exclaimed.
The two fell into their stances. Ruby was the first to move. She ran at her uncle in a serpentine pattern to dodge the rounds that were being fired at her. He quickly turned Harbinger into it's sword form and deftly dodged to the side. He jumped toward his niece to punish her over committed attack. Ruby smirked. She pressed pulled the secondary trigger and the scythe head of Crescent Rose went vertical. Turning it into a proper war scythe. Qrow's eyes widened as he watched Ruby thrust the point of her weapon at him. He barely had time to move his head. He felt her weapon graze his aura.
She immediately turned her weapon so that the cutting portion of the blade was facing Qrow. She swiped. Qrow ducked underneath the attack and shot himself at his niece to close the distance where her weapon was useless. Ruby twisted a portion of the pole and activated a telescopic function. Crescent Rose shrunk in size. Enough to be a mini pole arm and allow her to defend against her uncle's strategy. Qrow had no choice but to meet her weapon to defend himself against her counter.
The two blades meet each other with a clang. The blades were binding and winding against each other. Both combatants trying to gain leverage over the other, while also trying to control each others weapon to displace it then go in for the attack. Ruby instantly realized that this was not a position she wanted to be in. Qrow's size and superior physical strength put her at a nasty disadvantage. An idea formed in her head. She deliberately weakened her struggle. As soon as she felt that she was about to be completely overwhelmed, she activated her semblance and whooshed away as blur of red and petals.
Qrow's weapon instantly sank into the stone. Ruby took this time to angle her self behind him. She came out of her semblance. Flying through the air at great speed, she extended her weapon to it's original size to give her more reach. Qrow however, knew her plan. He activated the scythe function. Stone flew out as Harbinger formed the scythe head. With his weapon now freed, he put his weapon back into its sword form and he blocked the attack. Sparks flew out in all directions as Crescent Rose scrapped along the surface of his weapon. He pushed himself away from the attack. This caused him to spin around to her back side. He drove Harbinger into the ground with one hand and reached out to grab her cape with the other.
Qrow was forced back ten feet from the pure momentum of his niece, but thanks to his weapon acting as an anchor, he was able to stop himself. He then pulled on her cape with a roar and threw her. Ruby's back slammed onto the ground multiple times as she bounced across the ground. Switching to her weapon's original scythe form, Ruby shot at the ground to force herself away from it. She somersaulted a few times before plunging her weapon into the ground to help her stop herself.
She jumped away from Qrow's shots. She shot the air from left to right to avoid more his shots. Activating her semblance, she danced around in the air. Qrow stopped shooting. It would be just a waste of ammo to try and hit his niece. He would have to wait for his opportunity.
Ruby came in hard and fast. Going straight at her uncle. She waited until the last moment to come out of her semblance. She swung her weapon across to her right. Qrow jumped up to avoid her. Ruby flew right under him, however, pointing the barrel of her weapon out in front of her she fired once to send her back. Then, fired once again to the ground to propel her up at a diagonal angle towards her uncle. Pulling the the second trigger, the scythe head changed to being vertical once again. Ruby smiled. "I got you now!"
Qrow smirked. "You're getting overconfident kiddo." He pulled his torso back and then threw his weight forward resulting in a somersault. He waited for the last possible moment to change Harbinger into its scythe form so that Ruby wouldn't have time to activate her semblance and avoid him. His weapon hooked underneath Crescent Rose. He heard Ruby yelp in surprise as the momentum from his somersaulting in the air pulled her. Once she was aiming at the ground, Qrow pulled on one of his levers and the scythe head went vertical.
Ruby screamed as she was sent plummeting to the ground. Once her uncle changed his weapon, there was nothing to hold her in the air. A loud crash echoed in the sparring area.
"Uhhhhhhhh." She groaned as her whole spun around her. Her aura flashed to indicate that she was out. Once she snapped out of her dizziness, she found the tip of the Huntsman's weapon pointed at her neck.
"You got cocky kid. That's not something you should ever do in a real fight." Qrow smirked. He moved Harbinger away from her and held out his hand. Ruby took it and he pulled her up. "I see the upgrades you gave to your weapon. Not bad."
"I didn't know you could do the same thing!"
"Hahahaha." He laughed as she put Harbinger away on his back. "You think you're the only one who changed their weapon?"
Ruby dusted herself off and gave him a puzzling look. "Is it normal to make changes to your weapon?"
"Sure. Our weapons are a reflection of our selves. When we evolve, so to do our weapons."
"Did yours start out as a sword?"
"Nope. Started as a scythe. However, after sometime in Beacon I made changes to it. Gave it a sword function for some practicality. As cool as scythes are, they aren't very practical weapons and can be difficult to use due to how the weight is distributed and the angle of the blade. A sword is much more practical and is easier to use." He said as he sat down on a bench.
Ruby folded Crescent Rose and put it away. She followed her uncle and sat down next to him.
"And you also gave Harbinger the ability to change the angle of its blade for the same reasons I did right?"
"Bingo! Another problem with the scythe is that you can't actually cut with the blade since the sharp part is pointed down. You can only tear things apart with the point really. Unless you overshoot your opponent and then pull your weapon toward you. But that creates a big opening. Or you drive in into something and then pull, but you risk your weapon getting stuck. Flip it vertical though, and then you can actually cut with the blade. You can also thrust with it and you get more range. Should also mention that the weight is now concentrated at the top instead of it being off to the side. Much easier to manage. But that doesn't mean the scythe can't be incredibly useful. You just need to use your imagination." Qrow explained. Showing off his expertise.
Ruby rubbed the back of her head and stuck her tongue out. "Well, I can at least shrink my weapon when I need to!"
Qrow laughed. He ruffled his niece's hair. "So can I. It's called making it in to a sword. You silly brat."
"Hey!"
"AHHHHHHHHHH!"
Both Ruby and Qrow snapped their heads to the direction of the house.
"That sounded like Jaune! He sounds like he's in trouble Qrow!" Ruby exclaimed. Worry started to take hold.
Qrow stood up pulled out his weapon. "C'mon Ruby! Let's see what's going on!" Both niece and uncle ran straight into the house.
Qrow and Ruby ran into the bathroom with their weapons ready to fight, but they didn't find any enemies. All they found was Jaune pounding away at the floor surrounded by glass from the mirror he broke. Both of them exchanged worried looks at each other. Ruby put her weapon away and knelt down. Being careful not to touch the glass.
"Jaune! What happened? What's wrong?"
"He won't go away."
Qrow put his weapon away. He sat down on the toilet next to the distressed teen.
"What are you talking about kid? Who won't go away?"
Jaune grabbed his head and curled up into a fetal position. "He's in my head! That bastard! He just won't leave me alone!"
Ruby grabbed her friend by the shoulders and forced him to look at her. "Jaune! You're not making any sense. Tell us who 'he' is! Who's in your head?"
Jaune stayed silent for a moment. He continued look to into pools of silver. They had a calming effect. At least enough of an effect to get him to focus more. "Ozpin. Almost every time I stand in front of a mirror. He's there. Sometimes he talks in my head. Sometimes he comes in my dreams. He's been there for at least a week now."
"Holy shit! Oz. You really in there!" Qrow said as he knelt down to the ground.
Jaune turned to him. "So I'm not going crazy? That piece of shit is really inside me!" Jaune said. He became angrier and angrier as each word came out.
"Yeah. When Oz dies, he reincarnates himself in someone. Looks like that someone is you pal."
"You can't be serious! Get this fucker out of me! I want him out. NOW!" Jaune yelled at the top of his lungs.
"Jaune. Please calm down." Ruby pleaded.
The blond boy snapped his head toward her. The look in his eyes made Ruby jump. "Calm down? CALM DOWN!? HOW CAN I CALM DOWN WHEN THAT BASTARD IS INSIDE ME!"
Qrow frowned when he saw his niece recoil. "Look here kid. I don't know what you're beef with Oz is, but don't you dare take it out on my niece. You got that?" He warned. The older man wasn't above slugging a teen if they mistreated his niece.
Jaune glared at Qrow. "You wanna know why I hate him? Well, it's because he got Pyrrha killed. He put the idea of being the new Fall Maiden in her head. That bastard didn't give her a choice. He gave her an ultimatum. He knew she wouldn't be able to say no if he told her that she was the only one who could bear the responsibility of being a Maiden. He gave her a false sense of duty." He slammed his fist on the floor. Tears coming down his face. "That false sense of duty got her killed." He cried out.
Ruby felt for Jaune. He cared deeply about Pyrrha. Her death haunted him. She understood that, but she thought that maybe his anger was misplaced. She gently took hold of his shoulders. "Jaune. Ozpin didn't kill her. Cinder did. I saw it happen. If you want to be angry, be angry at her. She's the one who was behind the Fall of Beacon. She was the one who was responsible for shooting that arrow into her. Ozpin didn't do those things. She did."
"Not to mention she was the one who started it all when she tried to kill Amber. The original Spring Maiden. If that hadn't happened, then Pyrrha would be alive today since Ozpin wouldn't have been so pressed to find a replacement. Seems to me this Cinder is the one who's responsible for all of this." Qrow reasoned.
Jaune placed his face in his hands. He knew deep down inside that they were right, but something inside him just refused to let go completely. He looked up to Ruby with a pleading face. "You sure he didn't do it? That he can be trusted?"
Ruby had to be honest. She wasn't entirely sure she could trust Ozpin, but she was sure that Pyrrha's death wasn't his fault. So, she was honest with her friend. "I don't know how much we can trust Professor Ozpin. What I know is that he didn't kill Pyrrha. Cinder bears that blame herself and herself alone. I also think we should at least give him a chance."
Jaune found nothing but honest conviction in her eyes. This what she truly believed. Ruby had never led him astray. If she thought that he should give Ozpin a chance, then he would.
"Alright. I'll give him a chance, but only because you think it's a good idea. However, that doesn't mean I trust him. Nor does it mean I'm gonna be nice to him either."
Ruby smiled. "That's good enough."
Qrow watched as his niece helped Jaune up. For a brief moment, an image of Summer flashed. Replacing Ruby for a split second before going away. "Like mother like daughter I suppose."
Yang found herself surrounded by a group of fifteen or so White Fang soldiers.
"We have you surrounded! There's no escape." One of them said.
Yang looked around her. The combatants around her didn't seem nearly as confidant as the one talking to her tried to sound. Chuckling at the sight of seeing all of their legs shaking. But of course they were scared. This small group was surrounded by the corpses of their comrades.
Yang directed her gaze at the one who spoke to her. An eerie, crimson glow came through the eye holes of her mask. "The only thing I'm surrounded by is fear." The blonde held out her right hand. A blade of fire formed in it. "And dead men."
She surged forward and plunged her flame sword into his chest. Wasting no time, Yang yanked her arm right. Cutting the left quadrant of the man's chest in half. Immediately, she set upon the person to the left of the man she just killed. He tried to raise his gun at her, but she cut his weapon in half before he could. Then aimed a strike at his head. It split his head sagittally. Holding out her left hand, a ball of fire formed and shot out. It burned a hole right through another man's heart.
Yang moved with uncanny speed around the group as they desperately tried to shoot her. She stopped in between two of them. They aimed at her and fired. Yang practically disappeared before their eyes. The bullets fired from their guns slammed into both of them. The two fell to the ground riddled with their own bullets. Gurgling as blood oozed out of their wounds. Yang had taken advantage of their panic and knew they wouldn't be able to realize what she was doing.
Running around, Yang noticed a White Fang soldier that had dust grenades hanging off his belt. A smirk formed as an idea popped in her head. She redirected herself to this man. The blonde slid right under his line of fire and between his legs. Cutting them in half at the knee as she passed underneath him. She quickly turned herself around and jumped over him. Cutting off his arms in mid-air as he started falling to the ground. Putting a way her conjured weapon, Yang grabbed him by the collar with her left hand and threw him at five of his friends that had decided to clump up together.
They all looked down at the dismembered body of their friend. They gave Yang a questioning look. Then, she raised her right hand to reveal several grenade pins dangling from her fingers. The five instantly realized what was going on, but were to slow to move away in time. A large, red explosion engulfed them. Various body parts flew out all around.
Yang dashed at the remaining five. She jumped over their gunfire. Once she was over their heads, she aimed the palms of her hands down. A fireball formed in each hand and shot out. They burned their way through two of the Faunus from the head down. Burning them in half with their heads completely nonexistent. Their halves fell down. Smoke rising from the charred middle portions that the fireball passed through.
Touching down behind the now remaining three, she immediately pushed off from the ground. Leaving behind two small foot sized holes in the ground. Yang pulled her right arm back and punched out. Her fist going straight through the chest of her enemy. Quickly, she threw the body at the opponent furthest from her to incapacitate him temporarily as she gunned for the one closest to her.
Yang bobbed and weaved her way through gunfire. The bullets harmlessly passing through the afterimages her speed created behind her. Once she got close enough, she let loose a jab to his jaw. It completely broke and dislocated it. A number of teeth flew out and hit the ground. His mandible just hung uselessly as he let out a strained scream. Blood streamed out of his mouth. The teeth that didn't fly out his mouth from the attack were now pouring out. The pain he was feeling was inconceivable.
Yang stood there. They stared at each other for a few seconds. She let loose a roundhouse kick to his head. The force was enough to tear it of his shoulders and send it speeding towards the wall of a small building. A nasty, wet splat rang out. The man's head was nothing more than a red stain.
Calmly walking over to the last one left, she kicked the corpse of his friend off of him. Yang brought down her boot on his neck. His eyes bulged as he started making chocking sounds. He tried with all of his might to get her foot of his neck, but to no avail. Yang slowly applied more and more pressure. And the more she applied, the more desperate his struggle became.
"Enough of this. Time to end it." She thought. The blonde put her full strength onto his neck. It was instantly flattened to the width of a piece of paper. Blood exploded out and coated her boot. She lifted her foot and wiped across the now dead man's clothes. Once her boot was clean, she turned her attention to the small building behind her. She found it very odd that there were this many White Fang soldiers around it. It made her think that they were probably guarding something important. Perhaps the person she could sense inside could tell her.
Yang kicked down the door. She walked up to the locker that was on the opposite wall to the door. Rolling her eyes, she ripped the locker door off it hinges.
"AHHHHH! Please! Don't kill me!" A rather portly looking beaver Faunus begged.
Yang grabbed a fist full of his shirt and lifted him the air with one hand. "Tell me what I want to know. What is the White Fang hiding here?" She demanded.
"I-I can't. Adam will do terrible things to me!"
Yang formed a flame in her left hand and held it to his face. "Adam isn't here right now. So if I were you, I would be much more worried about what I'm going to do to you if you don't give me what I want!" She growled menacingly. The crimson glow from eyes only serve to further accentuate her threat. When she didn't get an immediate answer, she pushed the flame to the right side of his face. "TALK!"
"AHHHHHH!" He screamed and squealed as the fire burned his face.
"TALK DAMMIT!" She raised the temperature higher. This caused him to scream even louder in agony as his skin sizzled and cooked.
"OKAY, OKAY! I'LL TALK! I'LL TALK!"
Yang moved the flame away from his face. There was a nasty third degree burn now sitting on his right cheek. Smoke coming off the red and black parts. The blonde allowed him to regain his breath.
"Listen. Under the desk over there." He pointed to the desk that was to the west of them. "Is a button that opens a secrete door that is disguised as a bookcase. It leads down to a special prisoner that a man named Arthur Watts likes to play with. What he does down there, I don't know."
"You're not hiding anything else from me are you?" Yang growled.
"No. No. That's it! I swear!"
Yang searched his eyes to see if he was lying. However, she could detect to deception. It seems that he really was telling the truth. "Very well. You're usefulness has come to an end." She conjured her fire sword and stabbed him through the chest.
His mouth formed an o shape as he let out a silent scream. He weakly grabbed on to her arm with shaky hands. "B-but I told you everything."
"You did, but I never promised to spare your worthless, disgusting ass." Yang said. Her tone terrifyingly cold.
After a few moments, he died. Yang threw his corpse aside and walked over to the desk. She searched underneath it to find a button. Pressing it, the sound of gears turning echoed throughout the room. The bookcase slid forward and then swung open to reveal a staircase leading down. Yang went through the opening and down the stairs.
The further down she went, the more familiar the whole scene was. It had been a week since she found that damnable lab. She found this place simply by scouting around. Deciding to investigate it due to how many of the White Fang were stationed around the small building that wasn't any larger than a normal sized house. And it looks like she was right to do so.
Reaching the bottom, there was a sliding door. Once she came near it, a white light came over her.
"Unauthorized personnel detected. Please leave or an automated alarm will be activated." A woman's voice said in a robotic tone.
Yang let out a snort. She grabbed the side of the door with both hands and ripped it right of the wall. "There's your authorization." She shot a fireball right at the sensor. "Stupid computer."
Yang's eyes widened in surprise. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. It was none other than Neopolitan. Who was strapped onto a table that was held up vertically. Yang's eyes narrowed when she noticed that her modesty was not kept intact. Various IV's were hooked up to her body to supply her with nutrients. Her eyes looked completely devoid of life. Though she was still breathing. The blonde was incredibly confused. She thought that she was allies with the White Fang and Salem. So why was she their prisoner?
Eyeing a computer off to the right, Yang decided to use it. Perhaps the files on it could give her some clarity on to the situation at hand. Standing in front of it, she pressed the power button and the screen instantly came to life. She was a bit surprised to find that she was on the desktop screen. "What? No passwords? This Arthur guy seems to be a bit full of himself."
Yang browsed through a few files and drives. Trying to find anything that could explain why Neo was here. Eventually, she stumbled onto a file that was dated two weeks ago. She clicked on it.
"I'm not entirely sure why you decided to attack us little girl. But it was incredibly stupid." Arthur said as he shuffled through various different types of medical tools. Though, they looked closer to torture devices. There was a metallic rattling. He looked behind him. "Oh, you won't be getting out of that dear. You should be saving your energy for what is about to come."
Looking back to his tools, his eyes brightened as he found what he was looking for. He picked up an object that looked like a futuristic blowtorch. He pulled the trigger and sparks of electricity came out from the nozzle. Arthur eyed his prisoner. "Let's see how the human body reacts to something like this. I want to see what your nerves look like when I put this to you." He pressed a button and a microscope with a needle came out beside her.
Neo let out a silent scream as the needle impaled itself in her arm. She watched as her captor rolled over to her on his chair. He held the device to her face. She instinctively moved away from it. Fear now overtaking her. His terrifying smirk only made things worse. This man clearly enjoying the fact that she was terrified and in pain.
"Now. This will hurt. A lot." He chuckled sadistically. Arthur laughed even harder when he saw tears streaming down her face.
Yang punched the computer just before he started his torture. She didn't need to see the rest to get an idea of what happened. Especially if the scars all over the shorter woman's body were any indication of what really happened to her.
Yang walked up to the bound woman. She stared at her. Contemplating on what to do with her. The urge to kill her was great. Yang didn't forget what happened on that train. Nodding, she conjured her weapon. "No reason to take a chance with her." She pointed the tip at Neo's face and thursted.
"NO!" A voice yelled in her head.
Her weapon stopped just centimeters from Neo's face. There it stayed. Wobbling in the air.
"Don't do this. You know this isn't right!" The voice said again.
"What are you waiting for? KILL HER!" A different voice said. This one was darker. It sounded hateful and angry. Paranoid even.
"Don't. She is just as much a victim as the others we have found. You should help her. She has suffered enough." The more serene voice said.
"Help her? No. Kill her now so she won't be a problem later. Do not forget that she tried to kill you."
"That was then and this is now. Circumstances have changed."
" She actively participated in the fall of Beacon. She can't be trusted. Kill her now. Don't take the chance!"
Yang made her sword disappear and held her head. The voices in her head kept going back and forth. She growled as they got louder and louder with each passing second. It was honestly driving her mad!
"ENOUGH!" She yelled at the top of her lungs. Both voices stopped. Yang looked up at Neo. She narrowed her eyes as she weighed her options. The blonde sighed. Grabbing a hold of the straps, she tore them off the smaller girl. After getting to the last one, Yang quickly stood in front of the table and opened her arms to catch ice cream haired woman.
"You will regret this decision." The darker voice said.
"Shut up. I'll do whatever I damn well please." Yang said. She lifted the small woman so that she was carrying her like one would a bride. She frowned. Not once has Neo reacted to anything she had done. It made her realize just how broken she was.
Making her way up the stairs, Yang entered the small building again. "There's gotta be like some kind of blanket in here somewhere." Laying Neo down on the floor, Yang searched the room for anything to cover the smaller girl up. Eyeing a curtain, she grabbed it and ripped it off the rings holding it. "Good enough."
Once she wrapped the curtain around the naked woman, Yang picked her up and walked out of the building. She immediately went in the direction of the nearest village. She would drop her off there and let their doctor look after her. Walking into the woods, Yang looked down. "You better not make me regret this later pipsqueak."
Neo flinched a little. She felt so warm. This warmth washed over her. Taking away all her aches and pains. It breathed life into her. She blinked several times and moved her head up to find the source of this wondrous warmth.
"Finally awake huh?"
Wait. She felt like she recognized this voice. Even though it was being somewhat altered from the mask. Who was this?
Yang stopped. She looked down at Neo. "Bet you're curious as to who I am." She felt her nod. Yang felt the need to oblige her. So, she did. She kept one arm secured beneath the short woman while the other lifted her mask up.
Neo's eyes went wide with shock. She couldn't believe her savior was the same girl she tried to kill on the train at Mount Glenn. This didn't make any sense. Why? Why would she save her?
"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth Neo. Just be glad I decided to help you." Yang moved her mask back down and continued walking. It wouldn't be long now until she reached the village. "I'm taking you to a place where you can get medical attention. Hopefully you appreciate this kindness I am doing for you."
The village walls were now in plain sight. It had taken three hours for her to carry Neo here. Eyeing the two guards at the entrance, she proceeded toward them. When they saw her mask, they immediately pulled out their weapons and aimed them at her. Yang stopped a few feet away from them.
"We don't take kindly to you people around here. Leave White Fang scum!" One guard said.
"Yeah! We know what you bastards do around these parts. You won't be destroying our home!" The other one stated.
"I'm not with the White Fang. As a matter of fact, I just came from a place to the west of here that had a sizable group stationed there. They have been dealt with." Yang paused. A creepy red glow emanated from the eye sockets of her mask. " Permanently." She couldn't help the growl that escaped her mouth.
The two were clearly intimidated. Something about the person in front of them gave off terrifying vibes. Both could most certainly feel the hate in her voice. Perhaps she was telling the truth. They both exchanged looks and nodded. Lowering their weapons, they eyed the person in front of them wearily.
"If you're not with those terrorist bastards, then why are you here?"
Yang held out Neo to them. "She needs a doctor to look her over. This woman was a prisoner of the White Fang and they tortured her. I saved her."
One of the guards moved up on Yang to inspect Neo. He noticed the woman's heterochromia eyes look up at him weakly. His expression quickly deflated. "Poor thing. She looks awful." He turned to his buddy. "Hey, man. Maybe we should take her in."
The other man nodded. "That should be fine. I'm sure the doc wouldn't mind taking care of her."
"So you'll take her in?" Yang asked.
"Sure. We can't turn away anyone who was harmed by those soulless bastards."
Yang placed Neo in the arms of the guard nearest to her. "I leave her in your hands then. I hope they never find your quiet village." The blonde turned away and began walking back into the forest.
The guard holding Neo looked down at her and smiled warmly. "Don't you worry now. We'll take good care of you miss."
Neo looked toward the direction Yang walked in. Her savior had long since disappeared into the woods. The mute made a silent promise to herself. A promise to repay Yang for helping her. When she got better, she would go out and find the blonde and help her with whatever her goals were.
"Interesting choice to save Neopolitan, Yang."
Yang turned to see her mother leaning against a tree with her arms crossed. " She could be useful in the future. She does have a unique semblance."
"You know as well as I do that is lie. You saved her because you felt bad for her and because you felt it was the right thing to do." Raven pointed out. She wasn't fooled for a second. The older woman knew her daughter well enough to see through something like that.
Removing her mask she meet her mother's gaze. "Look. I-I don't know how to feel about what I did. Part of me wanted to kill her. The other wanted me to save her. I guess the kinder side of me won out over my more paranoid side."
Raven sighed. It was indeed hard to save someone who, not too long ago, tried to kill you. She would just have to leave Yang to sort out her feelings on her own. That was something only she could do and not her.
The older woman pushed herself from the tree and walked over to her daughter. "Well, regardless, if she chooses to repay the favor then she will be a great asset." Raven patted Yang's shoulder. "Come. Let's go home. The children wouldn't stop pestering me about you. Seems they've really taken a liking to you."
Yang laughed. Those goofy kids always wanted to play with her. She transformed into her bird form with her mother. They both flew high up into the sky and started making their way back to the Tribe.
Neo never thought that she would have been so happy to be laying down in an actual bed and not on that horrible, cold metal slab. It was also nice to have some fresh clothes and a nice hot meal. As well as a good bath.
The doctor that had been taking care of her was a kind, elderly man. He examined her and told her that there wasn't anything too serious. All she needed was rest and nutrition. Then she would be good to go.
Neo turned to the door when she heard the knob turn.
"Hello my dear. I hope you are doing well." The old doctor greeted. "I came by to check up on you, but also to bring your visitor here."
Visitor? She had a visitor? She didn't know anyone to have one of those. Was it Yang? She wouldn't think so. That woman seemed busy with her own thing. So if it wasn't her, then who was here to see her?
Her eyes widened as the person who came to see her stepped into view. Tears instantly started streaming down her face.
"Kept you waiting, huh?"
A/N: What's this? Another chappy? So soon? That's right! All of the ideas of how to make things connect from my notes jut flooded in. And you know what they say. Strike while the iron's hot! Also, I promised Neo was coming soon didn't I? Well, here you go!
So, as someone who has been getting into HEMA, I decided to add a pinch of realism concerning weapons. It is a known fact (in in the real world) that the grim reaper style of scythe design makes for a terrible weapon. You can't really cut with it and the blade being off to the side makes it very awkward to wield. However, you flip the blade up and you got a very effective weapon. It's called a War Scythe. These things actually existed and were used to great affect. Seriously, just google it. When Qrow turned Harbinger into that form, I was actually very happy. It was also pretty cool that they had changes made to their weapons. Glad RT went with the same idea I had for my story. Though, I was disappointed that they just gave Ruby the ability to rotate the scythe head to the other direction.
Letting her make her weapon into a war scythe would have been better for her imo. She's really short, so having the blade pointed up would have given her more melee range and allow her to use her weapon in a more closed in environment. People might not think a polearm is good for tight, enclosed areas, but they actually are useful. Ruby just has to present the point of Crescent Rose. And because the area is so tight, enemies don't really have any way of getting around the point her weapon. Any direction they move, Ruby follows with tip of her weapon. I even gave her the ability to reduce the length of her weapon to help her in those kinds of environments. Should she need it. Ruby learned and made the necessary changes to her weapon from the Gavrillo fight. I will also be making changes to the rest of the group's weapons. Ruby was just the first to do it.
I wasn't kidding when I said the story would be picking up pace. Sorry if what was said at Haven Academy wasn't what was actually said in the show. I couldn't remember exactly what happened in those episodes and I really don't want to rewatch anything from those volumes. As I think they are awful. Hopefully this isn't an issue for anyone. If anyone is wondering why Neo attacked them, well, that was answered in Volume 6. I just made it happen sooner rather than later. So she attacked them sometime in the time frame that Cinder and company were searching for Tyrian. And just for clarity, Qrow wan't trying against Ruby. Sorry Ruby. But there needs to be a clear gap in power and skill between you and you're uncle for scaling purposes. It just makes sense that she wouldn't be anywhere near his level considering he's been doing this for years. And she hasn't. Don't worry though. She'll get there. Just like the rest of them.
Anyway, I'm hoping to get out another chapter before Christmas, but I don't know if that's gonna happen. We'll see.
dudbladex: In my story, Raven loved both of them equally. It wouldn't be fair for her to pick favorites. Might make one of them feeling less loved and upset. She was also trying to torment Yang when she was talking about Tai and Summer. Think of it as punishment for Yang trying be a little shit. Also, migraines are shit! I've had one. It came in the middle of when I was driving. Shit was really scary. Hope you feel better.
Ultimatrix bearer: Raven is just giving punishment to Yang for acting like a smartass to her. Lol. To answer your question. Yang currently is 6'1 with Raven being 6'3. I headcanon Qrow at being 6'1. Made Raven taller and bigger because...she takes after a raven. They are the big brothers of the crows. Also, Tai is the same height a Raven. Summer had two toll lovers. She was one happy smol.
Kyrogue23: I can't answer anything. Don't want to give away spoilers. Just know the fight between Yang and Adam is going to nasty. Caesar didn't really make up anything besides her intentions for helping Tai. In this story she was very much so crushing on Tai. He just used her feelings for him against her to cast doubt about her and turn the tide of public opinion. While also giving them a dose of fear to make them easier to manipulate. The people in that video were real. Caesar is just an asshole. Lol
I want to thank everyone who reads my fic. You guys are really awesome. So thank you. Till next time y'all. Peace!