(A/N) Edited for clarity and making Weiss less introspective; otherwise, minor fixes. Also removed that corny nightmare sequence.


Chapter Nine – Divide


/-\ Weiss Schnee; Forever Fall Forest /-\


"Umm, a- are you coming?" I heard her ask. All of my instincts were screaming at me that she was in the White Fang, and yet, she protected me from harm. All my life, I've been led to believe that every Faunus on Remnant is not only a part of the White Fang, but also that they all want me dead… Most of the Faunus that I've come into contact with have reinforced this belief, and yet, here's one that not only has shown no hostile intent, but has also potentially saved me. "K- Kyria Schnee?"

Her voice snapped me out of my stupor. "Are you a part of the White Fang?!" I yelled.

"W- Wha?"

"Answer the question!" I commanded.

"I- I don't know!"

I blinked. "What do you mean, you don't know?" I said, my voice slightly softer, though still commanding.

"I d- don't know what that is!"

I paused, studying her face for any sign of deceit... only to find none. "You… honestly don't know about the White Fang?" She meekly shook her head. "Well, they're a group of racial terrorists whose only accomplishments are in the number of people they've killed." I crossed my arms. "They have been prominent for years, how have you not even heard of them?"

"M- My Kyria, I- I am just a simple F- Fylakas… My douleia i- is only to slay daimones."

I raised an eyebrow. "Surely you would have read something about them." I said, still disbelieving her story.

Her eyes darted all around the area before settling on the ground. "N- No…"

I crossed my arms and sighed. "Ignoring that subject, where is your team?"

She nervously shifted. "Th- They told me to f- fend for myself, that I c- couldn't be with them."

I stood there for a minute, thinking over my options. 'If I just left, she would likely be able to survive just fine, she is a Faunus after all.' I thought. 'Wait, she's a Faunus who is not in the White Fang… What if she's the only one? If I make a show of befriending her, perhaps they would finally leave me be.' I paused my train of thought, humming.

'I could ask my team to let her stay with us, and if they say no, then it is out of my hands.' I turned back towards Selini. "Since your team abandoned you, would you like to stay with mine for the time being?" I asked, struggling, and somehow succeeding, to keep the ire from my voice. "Of course, they may refuse." I said, shrugging.

She shifted nervously. "I- I suppose so, Kyria Schnee."

"Why do you keep calling me 'Kyria'? What does it mean?"

"I- It means 'Lady', y- you said you didn't want to be ad- addressed as 'ma'am'."

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. "I wanted you to drop the formalities. Please call me by my first name: Weiss."

"V- Very well, Kyr- err- Weiss."

I picked up the fallen branches I was carrying. "Good, now follow me."

The next fifteen minutes were spent in silence. Eventually, we came to where Ruby was digging her hole. She noticed immediately. "Heh, make a friend, Ice Queen?" My partner remarked as I set down the sticks I had collected. In the periphery of my vision, I noticed that Selini was immensely surprised to hear a female voice emanate from my partner's armor.

"Hmph." I crossed my arms. "If you must know, her team abandoned her and she was alone in the woods."

"Yeah, you were too." She commented. "Doesn't mean you have to go kidnapping people…"

"Wha- She came willingly!" She looked at me for a moment… …before bursting out laughing… I hid my face in embarrassment. "I'll admit, that wasn't the best phrasing I could have used…"

After several seconds, I removed my face from my hands. Ruby had recovered at this point and took off her helmet, extending a hand to the Wolf Faunus. "Ruby Rose, leader of Team RWBY."

She shyly took her hand. "S- Selini Lykos… Team MRLT (Merlot)."

"Nice to meet cha. I'm fine with you staying, we'll have extra room in our shelter anyways. But I'll have to ask the rest of my squa- err- team." She turned to me. "Alright, so I see you've got the firewood. Where's the building materials?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Right there." I motioned to the sticks that I had set on the ground.

Ruby sighed. "Weiss… those are twigs… They won't support any weight whatsoever."

"Seeing as this is the only experience I have with trying to build a shelter, I had no idea what to look for. Care to enlighten me?" I said, a slight amount of venom in my voice.

She popped her helmet on. "Sure, follow me, Ice Queen." I rolled my eyes as she approached a tree. "Alright, so generally, just look for something that looks sturdy. Kinda like-" She punched a low-hanging branch, severing it from the main tree. "-that one." She heaved it up over her shoulder.

"D- Does she u- usually do this?"

"No, but she isn't the most…" She set the branch down and started stripping it of all its resources, arranging them in neat piles. "…normal of people…" I remarked.

She turned towards us and clapped her hands together. "Alright, let's get to work ladies!"

I sighed and approached, awaiting instruction.


"See? That wasn't too hard." My leader remarked.

I eyed our shelter curiously. It was a simple design, though that was a given, due to time and material constraints. The roof was the only thing that had actually been built, given that it sat atop a hole roughly seven feet square and four feet deep. "I suppose so…" I raised my eyebrow. "I was only gone for forty-five minutes at best; how did you manage to excavate this so quickly?"

She shrugged. "The ground here is kinda soft, and I'm used to digging foxholes, though this is a pretty big one." She said. "Also, doesn't hurt that I'm a Spartan."

I pinched my nose. "Again, why am I surprised?"

"Heh, I don't know." She shrugged. "But it looks like our friends are back."

I eyed her curiously before our two remaining teammates emerged into our little clearing. Blake held a long stick on her shoulder that adorned several fish and Yang cradled her sweatshirt in her arms, revealing a yellow tank top. The former's eyes settled on the newest addition to our group. "And who might this be?"

Selini made eye contact with her and seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "I'm Selini Lykos, syngentis."

Blake raised an eyebrow before extending a hand to the wolf Faunus. "Blake Belladonna." They shook and the noirette gestured to her partner. "That's Yang."

"Hey." The blonde gave Selini a sheepish smile. "I'd uhh… I'd shake your hand, buuuut I'm kinda carrying a few pounds of berries to go with our supper… Hehe…"

She shifted nervously. "I- It's okay, Kyria Yang."

I rolled my eyes and, at Yang's confused expression, elaborated. "She said 'Kyria' is an honorific, meaning she's being formal."

"O- Oh, you don't have to do that, Selini. Just Yang's fine."

"Yeah, same here. Call me Ruby." My partner replied with a shrug before walking over and giving me a playful punch to the shoulder. "Or just Oaf. The Ice Queen over here seems to like it."

I rubbed my shoulder and rolled my eyes. "Only because you act so… Oafish, Ruby."

"Heh, I've heard worse." She smirked. "Anyways, anyone hun-" She was interrupted by a loud growl coming from Blake's stomach. "I'll take that as a yes. Do ya know how to clean 'em?" Ruby motioned to the fish on her back and she nodded. "Alright, you need a knife?"

She shook her head. "No, I always carry one on me for emergencies."

Ruby gave her a smile of approval. "Good, now, why don't you and Yang clean the fish while we get to work on the fire."

"Uhh, what should I do about the berries?"

"How sure are you that they're edible?"

She gave a sheepish grin. "Umm… about… fifty percent? Hehe…"

Both me and my partner facepalmed. "Ugh. Yang, I swear you and your sister will be the death of me one day…"

The person in question dumped the, probably toxic, berries into the woods. "Hehe… sorry?"

I sighed. "Just get to preparing our fish. I am quite famished," A smirk crawled its way onto my face. "along with Blake, apparently." Blake glared at me before both she and her partner disappeared deeper into the woods. I turned to my partner. "So, what is the first step?"

She raised an eyebrow. "Weren't you paying attention? Professor Peach went over this during the first day of class."

"I… may have been slightly distracted that day…" I admitted.

"Heh, alright. Just pay attention now." She turned to the third member of our group. "How about you, Selini? Do ya know how to make a fire?"

She shifted nervously. "Y- Yes, Kyr- err Ruby."

My partner raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?" She elaborated at Selini's confused expression. "You've acted nervous around everyone except Blake. We aren't going to hurt you."

"W- Well, we're just Faunus. W- We're meant to s- serve you."

I blinked shortly before my eyes narrowed into slits. "What did you say?"

"W- We're meant to-"

"No, you stupid mutt! I meant before that!"

Her tail stopped lazily swaying from side to side and settled between her legs. "W- We're just Faunus."

"'We', as in Blake too?" She meekly nodded.

Suddenly, my partner stepped between us. "Weiss…" She warned.

"I don't care Ruby! She could be a member of the White Fang! She could have been sent to kill me!"

"If she was sent to kill you, don't you think she'd've done it already? We've been a team for over a month!"

I stormed off. "I don't care! I want the truth!" I stormed through the bushes and came across our team's little cleaning station… …only to find a very confused Yang… without Blake. "Where is she?!" I growled out.

"I- I don't know! She just ran off!"

"Which way?" Yang silently pointed, and I started after her… …only for my partner to grab my arm. "Let go! I need answers!"

"No." She grabbed my shoulders and forced me to look into her eyes. "You've already drawn your conclusions. In your mind, she's a White Fang deep cover agent sent specifically to kill you… And that couldn't be further from the truth."

"The innocent never run, Ruby! She's hiding something!"

"So, you're saying that there's never been an innocent man sent to die? Never been a witch trial? How's about a framing?"

"Well, of course I'm not saying that!"

"Weiss. She's scared right now. And rightfully so… because of you." I blinked. "You need to calm down. She won't get far, tomorrow I'll track her down. Alone." She paused before starting to drag me back to our shelter.

"Hey! What are you doing, you Oaf!"

"You have someone to apologize to."

"What are you talking about?! Unhand-" We arrived back at camp… and a certain Wolf Faunus, that I had completely forgotten about, stood before us. "…me…" Selini still had her tail between her legs and a depressed look on her face. Suddenly it hit me. 'I called her a mutt.' I realized. 'I should probably apologize, if only to save face, and in hindsight, I probably shouldn't've use that particular slur, seeing as she's a Canine Faunus.'

I sighed before stepping forward, putting on my apologizing face."Selini?" The girl in question turned her attention to me. "I… would like to apologize." Her head tilted in confusion. "I was angry… and I said some things I shouldn't have…" I sighed again. "I know how offensive that word can be, especially to your people… and I sincerely apologize…" I said, taking a small bow. I internally groaned at my own actions, but knew they were necessary.

When I looked up, Selini had a surprised look on her face. I was just about to say something, what, I didn't know, before she engulfed me in a bone-crushing hug. "It's okay!" I squirmed in her embrace, gasping for air.

She released me, and I blinked. "…Just like that?" I asked, confusion evident in my voice.

She backed away a step before she started to fidget. "Y- Yeah. You're the first human to g- give me a meaningful apology." She said, as her tail once again began to lazily wave back and forth.

Ruby approached us and gave a warm smile. "See? That wasn't too difficult now was it, Ice Queen?" I let out a huff of indignation. "Anyways, I think you two should take first watch tonight. Get to know each other, ya know?" I opened my mouth to object… only to be cut off as she clasped her hands. "Now, we have a fire to build. Let's get to it!"

I sighed, knowing that this was an argument I could not win.


Night had fallen an hour or so ago and I sat next to my partner for the evening. We had sat in silence up until now, the occasional flicker of movement catching Selini's attention, though to me it was nearly impossible to see beyond a few feet.

I rubbed the back of my head awkwardly as I decided to ask a burning question I've had for years now. "So… just what can you see?"

She turned towards me. "W- Well… Almost everything." I raised an eyebrow. "I- Imagine the world when its daytime. Then d- darken it a bit and make everything black and w- white. Th- That's what a Faunus sees at night."

I hummed. "That is quite interesting. Also, is it like aura? As in, can you turn it on and off at will?"

She shook her head. "N- No, It just happens."

"I suppose that makes sense." I said, allowing the conversation to lull.

I was still uncomfortable talking to her, but if my plan were to succeed, I would need to get over it.

After a few moments, she asked her own question. "W- What does a human see at night?"

"Well… almost nothing to be honest. Without the fire or the moon, I'd scarcely be able to see the hand in front of my face. In these conditions, I can see the vague outlines of some nearby trees. Otherwise, the world around me is pure darkness for all I know." I paused, deciding to change the subject. "I know you're from Southern Mistral, but where exactly are you from?"

"W- Well, my chorio was in the mountains of Tykonae."

"The peninsula directly south of Mistral proper?"

She nodded. "Y- Yeah…" She paused. "How about you?"

I raised an eyebrow. "You haven't heard of me?"

"N- No…" She responded, before starting to fidget. "I- I remember you said you were an he- heiress, a- are you a noble?"

I groaned. "No. And please don't address me as one… I already get enough of that from Ruby. Anyways, I hail from Atlas. The Schnees have lived there for generations, every one of them had a profound impact on the Kingdom proper."

"Atlas? Th- The snow kingdom, right?"

"Yes, I suppose it could be called that." I remarked before I realized something else she said. I was half-tempted to ignore it, but curiosity got the better of me. "Hang on a minute, you said your… choria?"

"Chorio." She corrected.

"Was in the mountains. Did something happen to it?"

Her head drooped. "Y- Yes…" She sighed. "The daimones… Th- There w- were just so m- many…" I gave her a strange look… …shortly before she abruptly turned and hugged me. "…I… I couldn't save anyone…" She let out a whimper. "I'm all that's l- left…"

I hesitantly returned the hug, her tail tickling my fingers. "At least you made it." I said, attempting to comfort her. She eventually retracted from the embrace. "If you don't mind me asking, how did you get here? Beacon is a long journey from Central Anima."

"A- After… three days I think, a Cheiristios found me. H- He said his niece was going to Beacon this… this…" She trailed off.

"Semester?" I supplied.

"Y- Yes, that. He saw me slay four lesser daimones. H- He said I could go here if I- I wanted… I said yes."

I rolled my eyes. "Obviously, you wouldn't be here otherwise."

"Y- Yes, I suppose so." She paused for a moment. "W- What about you? The Snow Kingdom is very far from here."

"That's… a long story." I sighed. "Let's just say that if I attended Atlas academy, things would be… less than ideal…"

Suddenly, I heard footsteps behind us. I turned to face them and saw my leader. "Heh, who'd'a thought? A Schnee and a Faunus having an amiable conversation." She remarked before leaning against a tree.

"Hmph." I crossed my arms. "I take offense to that."

"Heh, take offense all ya want, Ice Queen. I'm not the one who assumed her friend was in the White Fang the second I found out she was a Faunus."

I opened my mouth to retort, but nothing came out.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." She sighed. "Weiss, you know how I feel about racists. You have to stop just assuming every Faunus is with them. I mean, sure, don't expect a warm welcome from 'em because of your father, but you can't keep treating them like you have been."

"And why not? Most of them would rather kill me on sight if they had the chance! The White Fang have been hunting members of my family for years now, who's to say that, tomorrow, I won't be in some cage; held like some animal waiting their death!"

She sighed. "Weiss, you have to realize something…"

I crossed my arms. "And what, exactly, would that be?"

"The Faunus are human."

I blinked. "No, they're not. If anything, they're human/animal hybrids."

"While they may have animal features, they are still capable of everything we can do. Whether you want to admit it or not, I'm right." She glared at me. "And when the team gets back together, I'll tell you exactly what kind of atrocities that line of thinking will bring. But the point is that they can't be lumped into one neat little category." She motioned to the shelter. "Anyways, you guy's shift is up. Can ya send out Yang? She's up with me."

I nodded, absentmindedly wondering what she meant by her statement, before opening the door to the crude shelter.


/-\ Blake Belladonna /-\


I screamed myself awake, almost falling from my sleeping place on a branch. I quickly grabbed the tree, clutching it for dear life before looking around, confirming the fact that it was just a dream. Suddenly, yesterday's memories came flooding back to me.

My eyes trailed to the ground. 'Why did I think I could hide forever?' I thought to myself. 'One of them even found out everything!' I sighed. '…She was even willing to accept me…'

"Finally up, Kitty Cat?" I heard, causing me to jump…

…and promptly fall to the ground with a dull thud. "Heh, didn't mean ta scare ya."

"R- Ruby?!" I shouted from my sitting position. "What're you doing here?! How did you find me?!"

She sat down next to me and removed her helmet. "Well, you're certainly not the best at covering your tracks… As for the 'why', I'm gonna bring you back."

I paled. "W- What?! No, I- I can't! They'll just throw me in jail!"

"Relax, they don't know about your past. All they know is that you're a Faunus."

"B- But Weiss-"

"Is willing to hear you out." At my surprised expression, she elaborated. "I had a nice little chat with her yesterday, and another one during PT this morning. She'll give you a chance, but we're having a bunker meeting as soon as we get back to Beacon."

"What about Yang?"

"Heh, she really doesn't care what you are. Sure, she's a bit mad that you didn't tell us, but she'll come around."

I looked away and felt my Faunus ears flatten against my head. "What about when they find out I was with the White Fang…?"

She sighed. "To be honest, that's probably not gonna go over very well with either of them. Yang might keep her distance for a few days, but I have a feeling she'll move past it pretty quickly all things considered. Though you'll definitely be on thin ice with Weiss… heh, no pun intended."

I thought about it for a moment. "…What if I'm not ready to come back yet?" I looked back up at her.

She hummed for a moment before giving me a smirk. "Well… maybe I didn't find you before I had to get back to my team." I raised an eyebrow. "Maybe I had to come back tomorrow, and only then did I find you."

I paused for a moment before realizing what she was suggesting. "Yeah… I think that would be best…"

She gave me a smirk before popping her helmet back on. "Alright, just come back here tomorrow. I'll be around to grab you at about dawn or so."

I nodded. "Alright, see you then, Ruby." She stood up and disappeared into the forest. I sighed. "Now what do I d-" My stomach growled, and I rolled my eyes. "Guess that answers that question…" I deadpanned.


I had been looking for a stream with which to fish from for the past half-hour to no avail. I decided that now would be a good time to take a quick break. After all, what good is a walk through the forest if you don't appreciate it?

I found a fallen, yet still solid, tree, and decided that this would be where I rested for the time being. I sat there for several minutes, enjoying the silence, before the sounds of nature resumed. A pair of birds were bickering on the branch of a nearby tree, their songs being quite relaxing to me. A wooden scraping sound emanated from another one of the red trees. Turning to face it, I saw a red squirrel scurrying up its bark. In the distance, I could hear a pair of voices eagerly- 'Wait, voices?!' My eyes widened, and I dove to the side of the log, hiding myself.

Right now, voices were just barely grazing the hearing distance of my Faunus ears. "-n't know, man… What's Adam thinking? Working with a Human of all things?"

My eyes widened, they were not just people on a stroll… They were White Fang grunts, likely on patrol. In all my haste to run from my team, I'd inadvertently run directly towards their camp in Forever Fall.

"Oh, come on, you make it seem like every Human is terrible."

"Of course you would think that, ya friggin' mutt. Just because your mother wasn't racist doesn't mean that every other Human out there isn't."

"Hey! Leave her out of this!" There was a pause. "And besides, with the Blazing Suns gettin' hammered, we need to work with that Human."

He grumbled. "Doesn't mean we have to like it though… The fucker threw a leash at me yesterday!"

"Yeah, the second that Adam gives the word… I'll kill him myself."

A few more seconds of pointless banter later, and they were out of my hearing range. I breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that they hadn't spotted me. I quickly, and stealthily, rose to my feet and headed in the opposite direction.


My eyes lazily fluttered open at the sound of a woodpecker hammering away at the tree I was sat in. My eyes trailed over towards the tiny and tasty-looking avian, my instincts screaming at me to catch it. A smirk crossed my face as I obeyed, my cat-like agility allowing me to easily snatch the bird. I quickly snapped its neck before starting a fire and cooking it.

Several minutes later, I sat at the base of the tree, a satisfied smile on my face. I let out a content sigh before curling up on the ground next to the fire I had built. I stayed there for several minutes, soaking up the heat, before I heard the familiar armored footfalls of my leader approaching my little camp.

I heard her stifle a laugh before sitting opposite me and popping off her helmet. "Sleep well?"

"Not really…" I sighed. "I have some news about the White Fang… but its best if I tell everyone at once."

She nodded. "Alright, ya ready to head out?"

I stood up and kicked some dirt on the fire, extinguishing it. "…I guess so…" I sighed. "I hope you're right about them…"

She popped her helmet back on and put a hand on my shoulder. "You'll do fine, Blake."

I looked away. "…Its not me that I'm worried about…" I sighed. "Did anything happen while I was gone?"

She motioned for me to follow her. "Heh, Nora stole Ren's weapon and cut down a tree."

I raised an eyebrow. "Why would she do that?"

"Because she wanted to drink all its sap. Only ended up drenching herself in the stuff… along with attracting one big Ursa. Heh, everyone's fine though."

"That's good to hear." I remarked.

The rest of the trip was spent in amiable silence, and soon enough, we were just outside the camp. Weiss was sitting on a fallen tree filing her nails while Yang and Selini sat opposite each other on the ground. I hesitated for a moment before feeling a hand place itself on my shoulder. I looked back and saw the smiling face of my leader, her helmet tucked under her other arm. "I'll be right behind you."

I took a deep breath and nodded before heading out into the clearing. Weiss immediately noticed me and put away her file before marching towards me. Her eyes narrowed into slits as she got closer. "Are you a Faunus?" She said in a commanding tone.

"Yes, I am."

She leaned back and crossed her arms. "What's your trait?"

I blinked before looking around to make sure that we were the only ones here. When I saw we were, I reached up and undid my bow, revealing my set of- "Cat ears." I said, twitching them.

"Were you sent to kill me?"

"No, I didn't even know you were coming to Beacon before I saw you on the airship."

She studied me for a moment before letting out a sigh. "Okay." She paused. "I was told to not bring up the subject of the White Fang yet, so I won't." She thrust a finger in my face. "But if I find out you're lying to me, I will not hesitate to kill you myself."

I gave her a nod before re-tying my bow. "Understood."

"Good." She turned away from me. "Now, I believe we need to break camp. We are to meet with Professor Goodwitch in an hour."

We all set to work, though very few words were said.


Ruby descended the ladder to our bunker, and I shifted nervously at her partner's unnerving gaze. After we had gotten back, Team MR_T had taken Selini back with them, meaning it was just Team RWBY within our bunker. "May I ask now?" Weiss asked our leader, to which she nodded. "Blake Belladonna, are you a member of the White Fang?"

"…Not anymore…"

Both Weiss and Yang recoiled in shock, though the latter was the first to recover. "Not anymore? What do you mean?"

I looked at Ruby, silently asking if I should tell the truth. She nodded, and I elaborated. "…We were robbing a Schnee Company trai-"

"That was you?!" Weiss interrupted.

"WEISS!" Our leader shouted. "Let her finish."

She grumbled. "Fine. Continue."

"Okay… Well, on the train, my partner started priming explosives. I asked him about the crew and he just… he just dismissed me as if they were worth nothing." I paused. "So I let him fight a spider-like security bot before I severed his car from the rest of the train." I sighed. "That kind of outlook was nothing new for him. Humans would constantly die on missions he led. 'They got in the way', 'They were resisting', 'It was an accident', all excuses… I guess that was just the mission that I realized the charming young beggar I met on the streets of Mistral was dead…" My fists clenched. "and a monster was parading around in his skin."

I looked to my team. Ruby was completely impassive, seeing as how she was scarily good at acquiring information, this was probably nothing new for her. Yang was shocked, she was probably still reeling from the revelation that I was once a freedom figh- no, terrorist. Weiss though, she looked conflicted. She pinched her nose. "I suppose I should thank you…" She sighed. "…For saving the innocent lives of the Schnee Company employees on that train… And also, quite possibly, my own…"

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I was on that train." My eyes widened. "If you had made it to the next car, you would have seen five Schnee Company security guards, along with myself, protecting approximately twenty passengers. Once the dust car decoupled, we just assumed that you were after the dust we were carrying."

I blinked. "Well… It's probably a good thing you didn't come out… If Adam had known a Sch-"

"ADAM?!" The heiress suddenly yelled. "As in Adam Taurus?!"

"…Yeah… That Adam…"

She threw her hands up and sat down on a crate. "I can't believe this…" She put her head into her hands… …before she began to darkly chuckle. "Great… that's juuuust greeeeeeaaaaatttt… And just to top it off, you're gonna tell me that you two were lovers…" She said sarcastically.

My face reddened. "…Umm… I… Uhh…"

"Oh, for the gods' sake, Blake…" She sighed. "Continue, I don't think this can get any more maddening than it is already…"

"Umm, well… Do you know who the chieftain of Menagerie is?" I asked, awkwardly rubbing the back of my head.

"Ghira Bellado- …Oh you have got to be kidding me…" She sighed. "Is there anything else? At this point, I just wanna go to bed and forget this field trip ever happened."

"Well… when I ran away, I may have run into a White Fang patrol while I was out…"

Ruby raised an eyebrow. "Is this what you wanted to tell us?"

"Yeah… Something is happening. They were complaining about having to work with a human, and a racist one at that."

"That doesn't make any sense." Ruby stated. "Their stated goal is to destroy racism, working with a racist seems…"

"Counterproductive?" I huffed. "You could say that again. Adam would rather cut off his own horns before he'd even consider working with a Human. And since he's the head of the Vale branch…"

"…It means something's goin' on…" Ruby finished. "Would Sienna Khan do this? She's the only one higher on the rungs than he is."

I shook my head. "No. Despite Adam being much more radical in his methods than Sienna, she shares his hatred for Humans."

"Someone's pulling the strings here…" She sighed. "Well, it looks like I'll be doing a bit of… extracurricular activity for a while…"

"So, what do we do then?" I asked.

"Well, we're gonna act like we don't have any interest whatsoever in the 'Fang." She paused. "I'm gonna spy on 'em, and when they wanna pull a big op, we'll go in and take 'em down." She sighed. "But for now, you all can take the day off. Its been a busy weekend… and I have a feeling it'll be a very busy semester."


(A/N) Bet you guys didn't think Blake would get revealed so soon… To be honest, I didn't either. It kinda just came to me when I was introducing Selini to Blake and Yang. Oh, that reminds me, here's what the Greek words she says actually mean:

(In order of appearance) Kyria – Lady; Fylakas – Guardian; Douleia – Job/Duty; Daimones – Demons; Syngentis – Relative/Cousin; Chorio – Village; Tykonae isn't a word or (to my knowledge) place; Cheiristios is a masculine spin on the word 'Cheiristis', which is a gender-neutral term meaning Wielder. In context, it means 'Huntsman'. If the huntsman was female, I would have chosen 'Cheiristia' instead… Then again, I'm not fluent in Greek, so if I fucked up the male/female translation, just let me know.

Also, I'm just gonna say it. The huntsman that rescued Selini was Qrow.

Lastly, while writing this I realized something: What derogatory names do Faunus call Humans? Like, the other way around is easy, animal, mutt, ape, etc. But all I could think of was 'Vannie' (referring to someone being 'vanilla', or plain and boring) though that's a really weak insult. Also, Stiff comes to mind, especially from a feline faunus whose extra flexible.

Anyways, that's all I had for this… On to the reviews!

psp reader – Yea, Weiss's racism will eventually be non-existent… as it should be. Interestingly enough, while re-watching RWBY in preparation for V6, I realized something: Cannon Weiss was never a racist. She was just parroting her father's opinions… which she promptly dropped the second she realized how wrong and stupid they were… With Jaune, probably not. He's only sticking around with the training until he can beat Cardin, and Ruby won't be showing him The Fall of Reach anytime soon.

John Forge – Yea, I saw that version too. There seems to be several floating around the internet and I can see both being used tbh.

Shadow Walker of Fire – Thanks! I'm good on the OC department, though. Mando Ruby would be pretty interesting, though I don't know anywhere near enough to do that concept justice.

Spartastic 4 – Actually, in cannon (according to V3C1 10:47, unless it's been retconned somewhere) the Vytal Festival is an annual affair. I just saw one person make it a Semi-annual one and I liked the idea… also, with how I'm doing the timeline (yea, the cannon one is a hot mess) it made more sense to do it this way. And I'm glad you're enjoying it!

Guest 01 – Yea, he's being a prick. Though he also knows exactly what he's doing… You don't live for potentially thousands of years and not know how to treat people nicely.

SenorGorilla – Actually, I just said her height, I didn't specify whether or not it was in armor. So, I'll just say I now: She's 6'4" without armor. So, I guess that puts her an inch or two short of being a full foot taller than Yang when she's in armor.

osterreicher97 – Thanks! And yea, I tried to make it a point that, while insanely good at what she does, Ruby is not an ungodly force of destruction. In fact, I'd put her at around Cinder's power level at this point in the show… so half-maiden. Whether she's slightly stronger or slightly weaker, I haven't decided yet.

A fan – Actually, I said in an earlier chapter (the one where Yang and Ruby go for a run… so ch3 I think?) that there's something weird going on with how time flows… given that Ruby should be 15 when she's actually 22, the same age as Kat. Hence Yang's comment in ch5 about being her "Older/Younger Sister" (Still don't know which one she is). But to be a Spartan II, Ruby would need to be almost double her current age. Also, I don't know if the minimum age for Spartan II/III candidacy was ever published, but it was probably around 4-6 years old… same with the maximum age. Spartan IV's, however, would probably have a minimum age of 18… though it'd be nearly impossible to become one that young.

red october700 – I answered the question of what she looks like in an earlier review response, though its not a big deal if you didn't read it. I'll just copy/paste the looks here, actually, its from ch5… that's quite a while ago all things considered.

So far its been stated that she wears a Recon helmet, I'm not sure if i mentioned her silver visor or HUL module, but those are also present. It's been implied that she wears the tactical recon chest from Halo: Reach (All of her armor is from there). Her shoulders are both Recon, on one leg she wears a medkit and on the other is a tactical soft case. She has the FJ/Para knees. On right wrist sits a tacpad whereas her left has a modified version of the assault/breacher, where instead of shotgun shells, it holds 60 round MA5B magazines (She really likes that gun). Her color scheme kinda breaks from the way Reach handles its versions, with the whole thing being red and a black stripe running down the back of both her arms and legs with her back being solid black.

So yea, hopefully that paints a good enough picture for ya, though you were quite close with your guess. As for the suggestion… if I ever get around to writing an Omake, I think I just found an idea or two…


Omake - Canon

Snow White and the Lunar Wolf


/-\ Weiss Schnee /-\

Team RWBY dorm; three days later


I was studying, as usual, after we had gotten back from class. Ruby had taken her sister out to spar, as she'd done every few days since the semester started. Blake had run off somewhere, likely to the library, but none of us really knew where our resident Cat Faunus went when she wanted to be alone. Things were still a little rocky between us, but we were back on speaking terms, at least.

Just as I moved onto the forty-fifth question of Doctor Oobleck's extra credit compendium, I heard a hesitant knock at the door.

I raised an eyebrow, mentally going through who it could possibly be, though that list was narrowed down quite quickly. I scowled when I realized it was probably Arc on the other side of that door.

As I opened it, I was extremely surprised to see Selini of all people. I blinked. "Can I help you?" I asked.

She nervously shifted under my gaze. "U- Umm… Y- Yes?"

"…Oh-kay…" I said slowly, trying to remain civil with my new 'friend'. "What, exactly, do you need?"

"P- People say you're sm- smart."

I sighed. "Look, I know I'm ranked number one in the entire year, but I will not allow you to copy my assignments." I sternly said as I moved to shut the door.

"W- Wait!" She shouted, but I ignored her and slammed the door…

…only for it to rebound off her foot.

She winced, but persisted nonetheless. "I- I can't copy you."

I blinked. "You should rephrase that." I said, thinking for a moment that she, as a non-native speaker of Valerian, made a simple error.

"N- No." She stuttered. "I- I can't- I'm not-" She paused. "Αγράμματος!" She said finally. "I- I don't know t- the word."

I gave her a deadpan look. "One moment…" I said, retrieving my scroll and opening the translator app. "Say the word again."

"A- Αγράμματος…"

My scroll dinged. "Recognized: Agrammatos. Language: Tykon. Translations: Illiterate, uneducated, ignorant, unlettered."

I stared at the screen for several moments, completely disbelieving, before turning back to Selini, who was looking at her feet in shame. "You can't read…"

"N- No…"

"And you came to me for help."

"Y- Yes…"

I raised an eyebrow. "Why not your team? Or the headmaster?"

"O- Ozpin said m- my team should help me." She said. "Th- they don't. Just give me s- some p- paper and tell me to w- write…"

I gave her request some thought. "Meet me every Saturday in the library at nine-o-clock sharp. Bring a pencil and a notebook."

She perked up, her tail beginning to rapidly wag behind her. "T- Thank you!" She shouted. "I- I won't be late!" She yelled before taking off.

I crossed my arms. "You better not be…" I trailed off, shutting the door.


Nearly two months later


I paged through the book in front of me, searching for the story I'd have Selini read when she arrived. She had made much progress since we started; going from literally not knowing even any letters, to being able to read children's books on her own.

While her spoken vocabulary was… workable, she still had much difficulty with larger words. Today I would be giving her a test of sorts. I'd picked out a story I thought she'd like, given that it was written by the descendants of her people.

Right on time, she sat down, her eyes lingering on my book. "H- Hi." She said.

"Hello, Selini." I reciprocated. "Have you been practicing?"

She enthusiastically nodded. "Y- yes. I got through t- that book you gave me." She frowned. "Th- that is not ano- another kid's book, is i- it?"

I shook my head. "No, I think you should be able to read this now." I said, sliding the book over to her. "It's a book of Tykon legends, though the one I'll have you read today is from Thessikon bay; to the north of Vale." I paused. "I expect you won't know a word here or there, but you should try sounding it out. And if you still don't know, ask me."

She gave a shaky nod and began reading aloud. She would struggle with the occasional word, but she was still making progress.

The story itself takes place long ago, but, being a transcription of oral history, the specific date had been lost; only that it was 'many generations before the world burned', referencing the Great War.

It follows a young would-be warrior partaking in a coming of age ritual gone awry. He was supposed to 'climb the ashen mountain and slay the beast within its maw', but when he was on his last legs in the fight, the gods supposedly intervened, striking down what was probably an Elder Griffon with 'bows that shot arrows made of water'.

Two figures, which the story claims are the aforementioned gods, approach him and speak in a 'foreign and incomprehensible tongue'. Both are described as slender beings wearing helmets with large glass faceplates, a strange purple and black cloth covering them from head to toe, strange forked feet, and only having three fingers on each hand.

I internally chuckled at the description. It was probably just some strangely dressed people from another village.

The main character returns to his village battered and beaten, but victorious. The boy, now technically a man, goes through weeks of praise, the others not knowing of the 'divine intervention' he benefited from.

Eventually, it gets to be too much for him to bear and he comes clean. Some called for his banishment, others, for another trial. The Shaman, instead, calls him a hero, as the 'gods' themselves judged him worthy. He then lives out the rest of his days as a warrior, protecting his village 'till his final breath'.

I gave a slight smile as she finished the story, she was progressing faster than I thought she would.

She looked up to me, a nervous look in her eyes. "D- Did I do good?"

"Well." I corrected. "And yes, you did." She sighed in relief. "I expected to help you with at least fifty words, but you only needed it for a dozen." Suddenly, my scroll chimed. I glanced down at it for a moment. "Ah, it seems our time is up for today." I hummed. "Seeing as you're ahead of where you should be, you should use that book to study from over break."

"O- Okay." She said. "Th- Thanks for doing thi- this on a Friday instead o- of Saturday like n- normal."

I shrugged. "It worked into my schedule." I said, packing my things. "Now if you'll excuse me, my team and I have an outing to Vale planned." I said before leaving the Wolf Faunus to do whatever she usually does.

As I walked to our meeting point, I idly noted how ironic it was that I, the Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, was getting along with a Faunus of all people. 'Two, actually…' I mentally corrected when I spied a familiar bow-wearing Cat Faunus in the distance.

Just as I remembered my friends, the image of a newly-tailless Wolf Faunus wormed its way into my mind. I remembered how I left him for dead a scant few months ago simply because of what he was.

Needless to say, I felt enormously guilty.

As I neared my teammates, I buried my thoughts and put on my carefully maintained expression of neutrality. A Schnee never shows weakness, after all…


And that's all for today! Chapter Ten 'Defanged' is next up! Also, the next chapter of 'The Fall of Reach' will be up sometime tomorrow. Its about half done right now, though It doesn't take very long to write one of those chapters, considering I'm basically playing Reach and writing down either what I do or what I think would be cool… then going in and filling out _WBY's reaction to said actions.