Hello all Storm here with a new story! Here is another unique idea that hasn't been done much before, with this being the first time it was done this way, at least to my knowledge. I won't spoil anything, but I hope you all enjoy the story. So, without further ado.
I own nothing
Anima, the second-largest Kingdom in Remnant, along with being home to the Kingdom of Mistral and Haven Academy. Anima is home to a wide variety of ecosystems, including swamplands, wind-carved cliffs, and a plethora of forests. Anima is also known to frequently have pouring rain, especially in areas near Mistral.
In the western part of Anima, there are numerous small settlements, home to people who wish to live outside of the Kingdom. Unfortunately, these settlements lack any good defenses, leaving them open to be attacked and destroyed, either by the Creatures of Grimm or bandit tribes.
One such tribe is the Branwen Tribe, a nomadic tribe of bandits that wander Anima, while surviving by attacking villages and caravans.
Almost seventeen years ago, the previous leader of the tribe passed away, passing on leadership to the strongest member, Raven Branwen. Of course, there were those that did question Raven becoming leader, especially after her brother Qrow had abandoned the tribe, rather than return after the twins graduated from Beacon.
But Raven had made it perfectly clear that her authority wouldn't be questioned, making examples of those that dared to challenge her. After that, no one even thought of questioning Raven's leadership, less they wanted to also suffer the same fate as those before them.
They also didn't want to risk crossing the three tribe members that followed Raven without question, as they wouldn't kill them quickly, like Raven would.
Currently, Raven sat in her tent, looking at her Scroll with a frown.
'So, Salem's lackeys had made an attempt to steal the power of the Fall Maiden, but only got half of it, after Qrow stopped them. It's likely that Ozpin is keeping Amber somewhere in Beacon.' Raven thought.
While Raven had long since left Ozpin's little group, she still kept up to date on what was happening in his and Salem's hidden war.
There was a time, where Raven had actually considered siding with Ozpin and her teammates in the fight against Salem, if only because she was a threat to the tribe and all of Remnant. That is until Raven saw firsthand, just what kind of monster Salem was. After that, she knew going against her was hopeless, and returned to the tribe.
Plus, Raven knew Ozpin well enough, to know that he never gave them the full details of Salem and what she was capable of. After all, the one thing that Raven had always been suspicious of, was why didn't Ozpin ever use the power of the Relics to kill Salem in one of his past lives?
Instead, he kept them locked away under the Huntsmen Academies, with only the Maidens being able to access them. It made Raven suspicious as to why this secret war has lasted as long as it has, when it seemed rather simple to how Ozpin can end it, and yet he doesn't.
She didn't know the exact reason why Ozpin didn't use them, but she had her own theories. The two most likely ones were either, the Relics weren't strong enough to kill Salem or…
Salem can't be killed.
Raven didn't know which was worse. That Salem was too strong for the Relics to kill. Given if the Relics couldn't hurt her, then what could? Or the idea that Salem can't be killed, period.
Either way, Raven had left, not wanting to be caught up in it more than she already was. With the final straw being Summer's disappearance, she wouldn't believe Summer was dead until she saw a body, since despite how she got on her nerves back at Beacon, Raven did value their friendship.
Though Raven soon shook her head, and pushed those thoughts aside, for now. Wanting to getting back to the matter at hand.
With one of Salem's pawns having half the Fall Maiden's power, she knew they'd make a grab for the other half that's now being kept at Beacon; along with a chance to get the Relic hidden there and kill Ozpin. While Ozpin would try and find some unfortunate girl to put the other half of the Fall Maiden's power in, to keep its full power out of Salem's hands.
'Neither of which can happen. Luckily, they aren't the only ones with plans.' Raven thought, smirking, just as the flaps of her tent opened up and three teenage girls entered, getting Raven's attention.
The first was a young woman with tan-colored skin, short brown hair and icy blue eyes. She had a tattoo of a bird rising from flowers on her left arm. She wore a brown vest over a torn white shirt, with a collar that appears to spike up behind her neck. She wore maroon-colored pants, with the right side rolled up to her thigh. She also wore dark brown knee guards that go down to her brown boots.
This was Vernal, a member of the Branwen Tribe, and someone that Raven trusted enough with an important assignment, years ago.
The second girl has long triple colored hair, being half brown and half pink, with white streaks on the pink side. Her eyes appeared to be heterochromic, with one being pink and the other brown, but each time the girl blinked, they'd either alternate between pink, brown, and white. Her attire consisted of a white tail jacket with a pink interior, buttons and one wide broad tail. While also wearing brown pants, black gloves, as well as black and white boots, with very high heels and multiple buttons on each side. Under her jacket is a brown corset, curved in the middle and at the bottom, exposing her hips. She also wears a multitude of necklaces, which hang haphazardly around her neck.
She was also rather short, just barely reaching Raven's shoulders, while wearing heels. But one shouldn't let her size fool them, as she could be quite sadistic when she wants to be.
This was Neopolitan, or just Neo to those she allows to call her that. She was a relatively new member to the tribe, having been brought in by the third member of the group.
The third and final girl, had long jet black hair, going all the way down to her backside and tied into two ponytails. Along with having pale skin, bright red eyes, three whisker marks on each cheek, and a black fox tail with a red tip emerging from her tailbone; showing the girl was a Faunus, humans with animal features. Her clothing was rather revealing, being black heeled boots that went up to below her knees, with studded dark crimson leather straps wrapped around them, black short shorts, a black sarashi wrapped around her breasts, and black fingerless opera-length gloves, with the same wrapping as her boots. She also had on a red amulet necklace around her neck.
Besides the tail, if one were to see Raven and this girl together, they'd either assume they were sisters, or mother and daughter. But while Raven and the girl did share blood, she wasn't her biological daughter.
This was Naruko Uzumaki Branwen, daughter of Qrow Branwen and Kushina Uzumaki, making her Raven's niece. And as of nine years ago, her adopted daughter.
Honestly, it wasn't a surprise to Raven that one of her brother's drunken one-night stands had finally ended in him getting someone pregnant, despite Qrow having sworn to never have kids with his Semblance. Though that didn't stop Raven from keeping tabs on all the women Qrow has slept with, never knowing when he might slip up.
And it paid off, when she finally found Kushina Uzumaki, a Fox Faunus, who had given birth to Naruko. Ironically a year before Raven had her own daughter, Yang.
Raven made sure to keep an eye on them, while also never telling Qrow, doubting he'd take it well that he has a child. Plus, even if he did know, he'd likely still stay away, not wanting his Semblance to affect them.
Unfortunately, after a few years, Kushina ended up dying from a Grimm attack, with Naruko being able to survive. Raven had found her seven-year-old niece barricaded in her closet, and after getting the girl to calm down and trust her, Raven had taken her to the tribe.
After she had gotten Naruko settled, Raven had been up front with her niece, answering all the questions she asked honestly; from who her father was, to why he was never there for her.
Though one thing Raven never told Naruko, was of her suspicions regarding her mother's death. Perhaps it was just her own paranoia and suspicious nature, but Raven had always wondered if Kushina dying was just a tragic accident, or something else at play.
When Raven had answered all of Naruko's questions, the little girl had then asked her aunt to train her, to make her strong. This was something Raven had been more than happy to do. Teaching Naruko everything she knew, how to protect herself and fight off, or kill, any threats, whether it was Grimm or Huntsmen.
Now after eleven years, where once was a scared little girl, was now a young woman who was calm, cool, collected, and introverted, constantly maintaining an aura of fearlessness. Though while Naruko could be cold and ruthlessness, along with uncaring for those around her, aside from a select few, she was an honorable warrior, maintaining her own set of morals and disciplines.
Naruko also had her own philosophy similar to Raven's belief in survival of the fittest, with Naruko believing that Might controls everything and without strength, you can't protect anything, not even yourself.
This lead Naruko to always be in pursuit of more power to grow stronger, but also never forgetting her morals. It actually impressed Raven how her niece/adoptive daughter could desire power and crush anyone in her way of it, and yet still uphold to her morals.
Though it also made Naruko dangerous, as she only truly cared about three people, her mother, Raven, and her girlfriend, Neo. The latter of whom Naruko had originally brought into the tribe, after they met.
Raven was well aware that the only reason Naruko stayed with the tribe, was because of them.
"You wanted to see us, Raven?" Naruko asked, crossing her arms under her bust, while also snapping Raven out of her thoughts.
"Yes. I've just learned that Salem's pawns made an attempt on stealing the Fall Maiden's power. They managed to steal half of it, before they were stopped…by Qrow." Raven revealed, while looking at Naruko, when she mentioned her father.
The moment the Fox Faunus heard her father's name, her gaze turned ice cold and she clenched her fists.
'So, he can be there to save some girl, but not be there for his own daughter.' Naruko thought, her resentment for her father shining through.
Naruko had become resentful, even hateful, to her father for never being there for her and her mother. Granted, Naruko was informed that it was just a drunken one night stand, but he never bothered to find out if that same one night stand had resulted in Kushina getting pregnant.
Though Naruko later learned that Raven had also found her mother's journal, where she wrote down that she chose to keep Naruko hidden from Qrow, after learning he worked closely with Ozpin. While Kushina didn't know the exact specifics, she didn't want Naruko getting caught up in her father's work, or worse, being targeted by anyone that wanted to hurt him.
But regardless of that, Qrow still should have at least checked after he slept with her. That way, her parents could have at least come to a compromise of what to do, rather than Kushina making her own assumptions on what would happen if Naruko ever met her father as a child, or if Qrow found out, himself.
'And he could have been there to save my mom!' Thought Naruko, feeling her anger rise.
Raven could practically feel Naruko's anger rising by the second, before noticing objects starting to rattle around her.
"Naruko! Calm down!" Raven said with a warning tone, knowing her anger wouldn't only attract Grimm, but other unwanted attention.
Neo placed a hand on her girlfriend's arm, looking at her in concern. Naruko took a deep breath as she calmed, while putting her hand over Neo's, with a small smile.
"Anyway, I'm sending you three to Beacon Academy under the guise of students. Do everything you can to make sure Salem's Pseudo-Fall Maiden doesn't get the rest of the Maiden's power." Raven said, after seeing her niece/adopted daughter's temper has cooled down.
"We'll get it done. Is there anything else?" Asked Naruko, with Raven nodding as she crossed her arms.
"If any of you get the chance, get all of the Fall Maiden's power for yourselves, and make sure they don't know it's you, if possible." Raven said, knowing it'd be good to have the Fall Maiden in the tribe.
After all, why only have one Maiden, when they could have two.
Nodding in confirmation, Naruko, Neo and Vernal left to get packed and head to Beacon.
*Timeskip – Two Days*
"So, this is Beacon." Vernal stated as the three exited.
"It's too crowded and noisy." "Said" Neo, as she created a sign with her Semblance, while being annoyed at all the chattering around her.
She was half tempted to poke some holes in their throats with Hush.
Naruko, meanwhile, looked around the campus of their soon to be school, before her eyes fell on two figures in particular.
'Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long.' Naruko thought at seeing her cousins, while noticing the strong similarities they both had with their respective mother's, having seen Raven's old picture of Team STRQ, when she showed it to her, so she can see what her father looked like.
Personally, Naruko wasn't sure what to think of her cousins. As on one hand, they were innocent and never did anything to her. Hell, Yang even knew what it was like to have an absentee parent, with Raven having knowingly left her behind! But on the other hand, it didn't make the fact that Qrow had been part of their lives growing up, and not hers, any easier.
Though Naruko soon growled lowly, when she saw Yang rushing off with a group of students, leaving her sister behind.
"She really is the drunk's niece." Naruko muttered bitterly, seeing how quick Yang was to leave her younger and socially awkward sister to fend for herself.
Well, at least Naruko knew that Yang inherited the Branwen family's ability to abandon their loved ones.
Seeing Ruby spin around in confusion at her sister's sudden disappearance, Naruko sighed, before looking at Neo and Vernal.
"You two go on ahead, I'll catch up after I look around some more." Said Naruko, with Neo and Vernal nodding, but also giving Naruko knowing looks, both aware that she would do more than just "look around", with Neo also smirking
"Just make sure to let me know if any ladies catch your eye, I'd be more than happy to help." Neo "said", while making kissing motions at her girlfriend.
While Naruko and Neo loved each other dearly, they also have an open relationship, with neither minding if the other has a harem, as long as they shared.
This made Naruko glare at the two as they walked away, before her eyes drifted down to Neo's swaying hips.
'I swear she get's on my nerves constantly, but damn, I love that little sadist.' Naruko thought, while licking her lips at how Neo was teasing her.
Once the two were out of sight, Naruko turned back to Ruby and began approaching her. Though she soon picked up her speed, when she saw Ruby getting shouted at by someone, who Naruko recognized as Weiss Schnee. Who was currently shaking a clearly damaged bottle of Dust in Ruby's face, who looked ready to sneeze.
Walking quickly up to them, Naruko pulled Ruby away, before she could sneeze from the Dust, before glaring at Weiss.
"What the hell are doing?! Can't you even see that bottle is damaged, and you're just spraying Dust everywhere?! Hmph, and here I thought you of all people would know that, princess." Naruko taunted, with Weiss's jaw dropping in indignation, that she was being yelled at and taunted by someone, especially a Faunus of all people.
Even worse, Weiss's face burned in embarrassment, when she saw the bottle was in fact damaged, with Dust leaking out.
"It's heiress, actually. Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world." Said a black-haired girl, walking up after hearing the commotion, while giving a quick glance at Naruko's tail, surprised to see another Faunus.
Though it made Blake feel a little jealous of how Naruko was being open of who she is, rather than hiding.
"Gee, thank you Captain Obvious, I so wouldn't have figured that out. I mean, it's not like she has the Schnee logo on her luggage or her jacket, or you know, the fact she looks a Schnee." Naruko said sarcastically.
This made the secret Faunus blush in embarrassment, while seeing the fact that it should have been obvious who Weiss was, but she just assumed Naruko didn't know.
"The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces, and questionable business partners." Said Blake, after regaining her composure, and to Weiss's further chagrin, in addition to Naruko's previous comments.
"The nerve of... Ugh!" Weiss said, before marching off with a huff, after not being able to come up with a retort, at least one that wouldn't only make her seem more childish.
Blake, meanwhile, also slipped away, heading for the Amphitheater.
"Are you alright?" Naruko asked, while looking at Ruby, who had remained silent during the altercation, having been surprised by Naruko's initial appearance and then not being able to get a word in after.
"Ye-yeah. Thanks for the help." Said Ruby, with Naruko offering a half smirk.
"Don't worry about it. Though you seem a bit lost, if you want, I can show you where the Amphitheater is." Naruko offered, much to Ruby's relief, as she didn't know where it was.
"Yeah, that'd be great, thank you." Said Ruby, smiling in thanks.
"Don't worry about it, you needed help and I offered. By the way, I'm Naruko Namikaze." Naruko introduced, while using a fake last name.
Given if she used Branwen, that'd be a dead give away of her connection to Raven and the Branwen Tribe. It might even make people assume that she's Raven's daughter, as well. And Naruko didn't want to risk the off chance her father finding out that she's Kushina's daughter, and his by default, given her appearance, by using Uzumaki.
"Nice to meet ya, Naruko, I'm Ruby Rose!" Said Ruby as she introduced herself with a wide smile, as they shook hands.
"So... I got this thing!" Said Ruby, after a moment, and pulled out Crescent Rose as it unfolded and stabbed it into the ground.
She didn't really know what else to say, so she decided to start with something she was both familiar and confident with, her baby.
"Wow, that is… a big scythe for such a tiny girl." Naruko stated, surprised that Ruby was using a scythe that big, and was able to swing it around like that, but it also made her feel jealous, knowing Ruby likely learned how to use it from Qrow.
Ruby pouted at the tiny part, before changing Crescent Rose into its gun mode.
"It's also a customizable high-impact sniper rifle!" Ruby said, smiling proudly as she cocked it, with Naruko nodding, knowing it was definitely a powerful weapon.
"What about you, Naruko? What weapon do you have?" Asked Ruby, eager to see a new weapon.
Seeing the girls eager expression, Naruko smirked before reaching behind her and grabbed her weapon. At first Ruby was confused when Naruko only pulled out, what looked like a large sword hilt with demonic skulls on either side of the hilt, along with part of a sword. Though looking at it, Ruby was reminded of her Uncle Qrow's weapon, Harbinger, when he's just carrying it around.
Then, to Ruby's surprise a massive black broadsword extended out of the segment she could see, until it was nearly as big as she was. Then to her further surprise and excitement, sections of the blade began splitting apart and folding backwards, while the handle extended. Ruby knew exactly what it was, and she beyond excited to see another scythe user!
Once it finished transforming, the completed form of the blade gained red sharpened edges on the inside, while the outer edge took on a serrated appearance due to the folding. The hilt telescoped in two places, which then curved like a traditional scythe.
"This is my weapon; I call it Rebellion." Naruko said, smirking as she rested Rebellion on her shoulder.
"It. Is. So. COOL!" Ruby squealed, excited that she was seeing someone else use a scythe, besides her and her uncle.
"That's not all." Said Naruko, returning Rebellion to its sword form and sheathing it on her back.
Turning around, Naruko let Ruby see as the handle split into two and she pulled them out, revealing two katana blades, one being black with a red edge and the other being red with a black edge.
Ruby gasped in amazement at seeing she also had two katana's in her sword. Her amazement only increased as Naruko attached them at the hilts and they extended, before curving inward and outward, forming a bow, while Hard-Light Dust extended from the ends, forming the string.
"Now, I can attack more quickly with my katanas, along with being able to attack from range, with my bow and Dust arrows." Naruko said, while a compartment on her broadsword opened up, revealing several tiny arrows, with the arrowheads being filled with different types of Dust.
At first, Ruby was confused as to why they so tiny, until Naruko grabbed one and hooked it into the bow, before pulling it back, revealing the arrows could extend to full length.
Having finished showing Ruby her weapon, Naruko returned the katanas to the main body, and the arrow to the compartment. Naruko had been proud of herself, upon completing her weapon. Even more so when she successfully mastered using it, in all its forms.
'And the best part, I didn't need the drunk's help in mastering the scythe. I did it all on my own.' Thought Naruko, having added in Rebellion's Scythe Mode simply to spite her father, to show him she not only mastered his signature weapon, but did so without his help.
"So, what do you think?" Naruko asked, while seeing Ruby's starstruck expression.
"Marry me." Said Ruby, still in awe at seeing Naruko's weapon.
Only for her eyes to widen as she blushed brightly, realizing what she just said. It didn't help when Naruko giggled lightly and traced a finger along her jawline.
"Aah, we just met and you're already asking for my hand. At least take me out on a date first." Naruko cooed, with Ruby sputtering as her face burned red in embarrassment.
"I-I didn't mean it seriously! I mean that's not to say you aren't pretty, you are! I just was amazed at seeing your weapon, and I didn't know what I was saying, and I-" Ruby stuttered, only to stop, when Naruko began laughing lightly.
"Relax, I'm only teasing, I know you weren't being serious. And I just can't help but tease such an adorable girl." Said Naruko, patting Ruby's head, making the younger girl swat her hand away, and pout,
Though Ruby then remembered how much Naruko's weapon resembled her uncle's, at least with the broadsword and scythe forms.
"Hey Naruko, your weapon's scythe reminded me of my uncle Qrow's own weapon. In fact, you…kind of look like him, when you had it out." Ruby said, now looking more intently at Naruko and starting to see a resemblance between them.
Having noticed how similar Naruko looked to Qrow, when she had her scythe out. Not to mention, they had the same hair and eye color, too.
This made Naruko flinch and mentally curse herself, realizing she just unintentionally exposed herself. The fact that she shares a lot of the same traits as Qrow and Raven, minus the tail and whiskers, the former of which her mother had, she might as well just shout it from the top of the tower, who she is.
"That's…that's a bit of a sore spot and personal for me." Naruko said, while looking away and rubbing her arm, with Ruby wincing slightly at bringing up a sensitive subject.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to bring up painful memories!" Ruby apologized, with Naruko waving it off.
"It's fine, we just met, so you couldn't have known. Now come on, we should get going before we're late." Said Naruko, putting a comforting hand on Ruby's shoulder, letting her know it was alright, before gesturing in the direction of the Amphitheater at the end.
Nodding in agreement, the two girls continued on to the Amphitheater.
So, what did you think, good. Yep Naruko is in Remnant and is the daughter of none other than Qrow Branwen! Not only that but after her mother's death, she was taken in by Raven and made her adoptive daughter, Naruko also brought Neo into the tribe before Torchwick found her, with everyone's favorite ice cream sadist also being Naruko's girlfriend. Finally Naruko, Neo, and Vernal have been sent to Beacon Academy to make sure Salem doesn't gain the full power of the Fall Maiden, along with if they have the chance to take the Fall Maiden's power for themselves. And when the trio arrives at Beacon, Naruko gets her first look of her cousins along with meeting Ruby as well and showing off her weapon, Rebellion, which combined with her looks, it won't be long until someone puts the pieces together of who she is. So, review if you liked go away if you didn't.
Storm out
Hello all Storm here with a new chapter! Here we'll be seeing Naruko and Ruby arriving at the Amphitheater with Naruko taking notice of some interesting individuals, along with the meeting between Naruko and Yang. So, without further ado.
I own nothing
It wasn't long until Naruko and Ruby arrived at the Amphitheater, finding it filled to the brim with people. It made Naruko tense slightly, a force of habit she developed, for whenever she was surrounded by people she didn't know.
One thing Raven taught her, was to always be aware of her surroundings, along with anyone close enough to drive a knife in her back.
The only reason Naruko didn't reach for her weapon, is the given fact that almost no one here would be a legitimate threat to her, besides Ozpin. And even then, Naruko was sure she could still defeat the Headmaster, if she went all out.
But Naruko was pulled from her musing, when she saw Ruby looking somewhere, with the Fox Faunus looking and seeing Yang.
"Ruby! Over here! I saved you a spot!" Yang called out, while waving at her sister.
"Oh! Hey, I-I gotta go! I'll see you after the ceremony!" Ruby said, waving at Naruko, who nodded, before spotting Neo and Vernal.
Walking over to her soon-to-be teammates, Naruko stood beside her girlfriend.
"So, does anyone here seem like they could cause trouble?" Naruko asked, eyeing the gathered students.
"Not really. At most, there might be a few that would stick their noses where they don't belong. As well as a few that'd try and give you trouble, given your tail, and all." Answered Vernal, having spotted only a handful of students that might get in their way, along with the regular anti-Faunus humans.
"There's also her." "Said" Neo, pointing to one other potential students.
Looking, Naruko narrowed her eyes at who she saw.
It was a young woman. Her skin had somewhat darker spots on her arms, legs, stomach and face. Her brown hair is tied back in a ponytail that curls at the end, like a chameleon's tail, and her eyes are a light gray, with a faintly bluish tint. Her attire consisted of a short black tail jacket with two tails, a gold zipper, buckle, buttons to keep the sleeves rolled up in place, and a white interior. She also wears a gray short-sleeved shirt that exposes her midriff, maroon jean pants, black sneakers with white mid-wedges and two straps, along with a black matching wristband.
"And just what is a member of the White Fang doing at Beacon?" Naruko muttered, recognizing the girl as Ilia Amitola, a member of the White Fang, from what her aunt/mother's spies reported to her.
Raven had been able to get a few of the Faunus Tribe members into the White Fang and report back to her, after learning that a portion of the White Fang had allied themselves with members of Salem's Faction.
Now she was curious of what Ilia is doing at Beacon. Though seeing the secret Faunus looking somewhere, Naruko followed her gaze and saw the black haired girl from earlier. Seeing she was meeting Ilia's stare and looked increasingly pale, Naruko realized why Ilia was here.
'Make that a member of the White Fang and a former member.' Naruko thought, now taking notice of the subtle twitches of Blake's bow.
"What should we do?" Vernal asked, wondering if they should take Ilia out, in case she causes problems.
"Nothing. Besides, it seems we just found our fourth teammate." Said Naruko, smirking, knowing with Ilia, they could be a normal four person team, while making sure that she stays in line.
Meanwhile, Ruby had gone up to her sister with an annoyed expression, having not forgotten how Yang ditched her.
"How's your first day going, little sister?" Yang asked, smiling and crossing her arms under her bust.
"You mean since you ditched me? It went great, though I accidently bumped into this really bossy girl, she started waving Dust in my face. I would have sneezed and made it explode, if this really nice girl with an awesome weapon hadn't saved me! Then she and another girl helped knock the bossy girl down a few pegs, which was really funny!" Ruby said, feeling a bit annoyed with how Yang ditched her, though her mood lightened when she recalled what happened, not taking notice of said "bossy girl" standing behind her.
"You!" Weiss shouted, with Ruby jumping up into Yang's arms in shock.
"She's back!" Cried Ruby, as Weiss glared at her.
"Okay, I can accept that I did make a mistake with the Dust. But I am not going to tolerate you talking about me, behind my back, like that! And I am not a "bossy girl", I just get annoyed when someone bumps into me and knocks over my bags, filled with highly explosive Dust!" Weiss said, poking Ruby in the chest in emphasis.
"Ri-right." Ruby stuttered.
"And I…apologize for shaking the Dust to begin with." Said Weiss, after having taken a few moments to calm down from both Naruko and bow-cladded girl's barbs about her family name.
"Well, it sounds like you two just got off on the wrong foot. Why don't you start over and try to be friends." Yang suggested.
"Yeah! Hello, Weiss! I'm Ruby! Wanna hang out?" Ruby asked, while smiling and holding out her hand.
"Yeah! And we can paint our nails and try on clothes, and talk about cute boys; like tall, blond, and scraggly over there!" Weiss said with sarcasm lacing her tone, while pointing at a blonde wearing armor.
"Hm?" The said blonde muttered, while perking up at hearing this.
"Wow, really?!" Ruby asked, surprised and happy, with the sarcasm going completely over her head.
"No." Stated Weiss with a deadpan expression, after seeing Ruby didn't get that she was being sarcastic.
Everyone's attention was then turned to the stage, when Ozpin tapped the microphone getting their attention.
Looking out at the gathered crowd, Ozpin picked out numerous students he already saw had potential to become great Huntsmen and Huntresses. Though when he saw Naruko and her group, along with Ilia, his eyes narrowed just an inch. Thanks in part to his vast knowledge and many different incarnations, he could recognize many different types of Faunus, including a Chameleon Faunus, as well as a member of the White Fang.
He wasn't sure the reason why a member of the White Fang was infiltrating his school, possibly either to locate Amber for Salem's Pseudo-Fall Maiden to take the rest of her power. She could also be here for an entirely different reason, seeing Ilia still giving side glances at Blake.
But Ozpin's main worry had to be Naruko and the strong resemblance she had with Raven.
'Meaning Raven is aware of what happened to Amber, and now is making her own plans for when Salem makes her move for the rest of the Fall Maiden's powers.' Ozpin thought, while knowing Raven would only send someone that she trusts unconditionally with such a task.
Now, the question remained, is this her second daughter, or her niece?
Either way, Ozpin knew he'll have to keep an eye on the newest Branwen.
"I'll... keep this brief. You have traveled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step." Ozpin said, before walking away, while everyone began muttering among themselves
"He knows." Naruko stated, as the three watched Ozpin leave.
*Later*
After Ozpin's speech, all the students were moved to the Ballroom, where they'd be sleeping for the night. The girls had gotten changed into their pajama's, with Naruko wearing dark crimson short shorts and a black tank top, that exposed her midriff; Neo wearing long white bottoms decorated with pink roses, a black top that also exposed her midriff, with her emblem on the front; and Vernal wearing maroon bottoms, and a gray top.
Currently though, Naruko was walking towards Blake, after spotting Ilia heading towards her and wanted to prevent a confrontation from happening in front of so many people.
"Hello again." Naruko said, standing over Blake, with the secret Faunus looking up from her book.
"Hey." Replied Blake, while Naruko smirked and looked at her bow.
"I didn't get to say it earlier, given how you disappeared, but that is a very cute bow. Along with being very subtle, as well." Naruko said, leaning down, while Blake stiffened slightly and looked at her with wary eyes.
"Is it that obvious?" Blake asked, knowing she couldn't hide from Naruko, and wanted to see if anyone else could see through her disguise.
"Just for those that really pay attention, like your friend over there giving me the evil eye." Said Naruko, while pointing to Ilia without looking.
Glancing, Blake saw Ilia giving Naruko an annoyed look, before walking away, much to her relief.
"Thanks." Blake muttered, knowing any confrontation between her and Ilia would have ended badly, likely exposing her in front of everyone.
"No problem. I doubt either of us would appreciate her causing a scene. By the way, I'm Naruko." Naruko introduced.
"Blake." Replied Blake, to her fellow Faunus.
Naruko was about to ask Blake why she keeps her ears hidden, only to be interrupted.
"Hel-looooo! I believe you two may know each other?" Yang said, walking up to the two, while dragging Ruby along, after her little sister made a comment of knowing them.
Though Yang paused mid-step and looked at Naruko with wide eyes from the strong resemblance she had with her mother and her uncle.
"You…look like my uncle." Yang said, narrowing her eyes as a thought entered her mind of who this girl was, given the resemblance she shared her uncle and mother.
"Hm, funny your sister said the same thing. I always believed I took after my mother." Stated Naruko, giving Yang a cold glare, while the busty blonde clenched her fists.
"Ha! That is funny, I always thought I looked like my dad." Yang retorted, glaring at Naruko.
"Really? From how quickly I saw you ditch your sister; you look a lot like someone else! Someone I hate!" Growled Naruko, with Yang's eyes turning red in anger.
"Say that again, see what happens!" Said Yang, refusing to be compared to her mother, potentially their mother, in such a way.
"Oh please blondie, give me a reason." Naruko said, as her nails extended into claws, while Yang's hair started flickering with flames in response to her anger.
"Why did she raise you, and not me?!" Yang demanded, wanting to know why her mother replaced her.
"Maybe she wanted a daughter that didn't disappoint her!" Said Naruko, with Yang's hair erupting into flames at those words.
Meanwhile, Ruby and Blake looked between the two girls, both becoming increasingly nervous at the idea of a confrontation happening.
"Uh, uh, maybe we should all just calm down, and talk this out." Said Ruby, acting as the mediator and hoping to prevent the two from attacking each other.
"Stay out of this, Ruby!" Naruko and Yang shouted, before glaring at each other again, ready to attack.
"What in the world is going on over here?! Don't you realize that some of us are trying to sleep?" Weiss demanded, marching up to them, only to pause at seeing the two angry girls, looking ready to tear each other part.
"Weiss, help!" Ruby begged.
Meanwhile, Blake slowly inched for her candle, before grabbing it and blowing it out, sending them into darkness.
*Next Day*
The next day Naruko, Neo and Vernal stood off the side, far away enough that no one can overhear them, discussing what their plan for the Initiation should be.
"We have two options, we can either partner up with other people and end up on different teams, then find out our teammate's strengths and weaknesses to better know how to take them down, if it comes to that. Or we can make it so we end up on the same team, which would mean less worry of having to sneak around to meet up. But regardless of what our plan is, we have to make sure one of us, or potentially all of us, is on the same team as Ilia. To keep an eye on her, while making sure she doesn't do anything reckless." Naruko explained, with Vernal and Neo nodding in agreement with the plans, and making sure one of them ends up as Ilia's partner.
Raven had informed them about how the Team Placement Test goes, with their partner being the first person they make eye contact with, once Initiation starts.
"It'd be best if all three of us were on the same team with Ilia, as there's a chance she could slip away from one of us." Neo "said", which was another good point, especially with ilia's camouflage ability.
"Well, it all depends on how things go during Initiation." Stated Naruko, having learned firsthand that no plan goes off without a hitch, something can always happens to make things go wrong.
Nodding in agreement with her words, the three then went to the Dining Hall for breakfast.
Once they arrived, they each got their respective foods, Neo getting ice cream, Neapolitan of course, Naruko getting ramen, and Vernal getting a simple sandwich.
"You two always have the strangest tastes, when it comes to breakfast." Vernal commented, knowing Naruko and Neo practically live off ramen and ice cream respectively, and yet both were somehow able to keep their figures.
In response, the couple gave Vernal dry glares, not willing to let anyone disrespect their favorite foods.
"He-hello!"
Stopping in their glaring, the three saw a nervous smiling Ruby, accompanied by Yang.
"Ruby, blondie." Naruko greeted with a small smile and cold look, respectively.
"H-hey Naruko. Yang wants to tell you something." Ruby said, looking to her sister and motioning her forward, having talked with her earlier about apologizing, though the silver-eyed girl was still worried of a fight breaking out.
"Look, I'm sorry about last night. I was just surprised when I saw you." Said Yang, having agreed to apologize to the girl, who could potentially be her other sister.
"Apology accepted, and I apologize as well." Naruko said, knowing she did go too far with her own comments, her cold look letting up a little, only to immediately come back stronger at Yang's next words.
"But you really do look like our uncle, Qrow." Yang said, along with having noticed that bringing up Qrow seemed to be what set Naruko off.
"So I keep hearing." Naruko said, gritting her teeth at being reminded of her resemblance to her father, every other minute.
Neo was also upset that Yang and Ruby were upsetting her girlfriend, and was tempted to knock them around. Vernal was also upset, though not to the same extent as Neo, mostly because Naruko was a fellow tribe member and she's seen the results of what happens when Naruko gets loses her temper.
Ruby and Yang became slightly nervous, when they Neo and Vernal give them dark looks, with Neo's being even more frightening, given the smile she had on her face. Thankfully, they sighed in relief when Naruko put her hands on their shoulders.
"Relax, it doesn't matter if they find out now or later. Ozpin either already knows or suspects it, so I might as well rip the bandage off now." Naruko said, with Ruby and Yang being more confused at her words, along with her mentioning Ozpin.
"Uh, Naruko? What're you talking about? What would Ozpin know? And why do you always get upset, whenever we mention our uncle?" Ruby asked, with Naruko closing her eyes and taking a deep breath.
"Because Qrow Branwen is my father, making me your cousin, as well." Naruko revealed, with Yang and Ruby's eyes opening wide in shock at hearing this, not expecting to find out Qrow had a daughter.
Though Yang also felt some relief that she and Naruko weren't sisters, meaning her mother didn't just have another kid and replaced her.
"I was born after my parents got together after getting drunk and having a one night stand. After that, I was raised by my mother for seven years, until she was killed during a Grimm attack. Since then, I've hated my father, blaming him for my mother's death. And not being there to protect her, or even bothering to check and seeing if he got her pregnant. That's why I get upset when you mention my resemblance to him. With the constant reminder that the drunken bastard was there for the both of you, but not me, only adding fuel to the flames." Naruko explained, with Ruby and Yang being further shocked to hear this.
Though Ruby's face turned slightly green, remembering yesterday, when she proposed to her own cousin! Even if it was unintentional and she was unaware, they were still cousins!
Even worse, was that Naruko flirted with her after her unintentional proposal!
"Bu-but ye-yesterday when I…and then you…flirting…" Ruby stuttered, turning between a mix of green and red, much to Naruko and Neo's amusement, knowing what she was talking about.
"Oh don't worry, Little Red. Unlike like with Goldilocks over there, you aren't related by blood. Besides, my lovely vixen and I have an…open relationship and seeing you up close, I would have no problem if you wanted to join in the fun~." Neo "said", while shamelessly looking Ruby up and down, only adding to the younger girl's embarrassment.
Though Ruby and Yang still felt the pedestal they put Qrow on, go down a couple pegs; especially Ruby, with how she looked up to him for training her. Though they still don't like hearing Naruko insult their uncle, but they can at least understand why she doesn't like him. Yang also felt a new kinship with Naruko, since they both know what it's like to not know one of their parents, along with the fact that their respective absentee parents were twins, only added to the irony.
Though Yang also remembered Naruko's slip up, last night, about her mother.
"What about my mom, you…mentioned her last night?" Yang asked, while still having some anger over Naruko's comment about Raven being disappointed in her.
"After my mother died, Raven found me and took me in. She's the one who told me about my father, trained me, and adopted me. So, I guess in a way, we're also sisters." Naruko answered, with Yang flinching slightly, since her mother adopted another kid, but she supposed that it was for the best, given Yang doubted that her mother would drop Naruko off in either Patch or with Qrow.
Still, it was also a small comfort to know her mother did care about family, even if she did have a terrible way of showing it.
"Where is she?" Yang asked, figuring if Naruko was raised by Raven, then she'd know where she is now.
"I'll tell you later. Given Raven's profession, and just who she is, it'd be better to not talk about her in a public location. I'll tell you and Ruby about her, once I'm sure it's just us." Said Naruko, with Yang nodding reluctantly at having to wait, but knew she'd finally get some answers, with Ruby also being curious to hear about Yang's birth mother.
Though it made them curious as to just what their mother, and step-mother in Ruby's case, did. Given the secrecy regarding her, as well as her profession and location.
*Later*
After breakfast, all the students had arrived at Beacon Cliff, with all of them being motioned to stand on metal platforms. Naruko, Neo and Vernal already knew what to expect, but still listened to Ozpin, in case anything has changed since Raven's time at the Academy.
However, Naruko's attention soon turned to one of the other students and a raised a brow in surprise, since she recognized and knew who it was. She also found it ironic that she seems to keep running into people she knows, or recognizes, recently.
'Small world, very small.' Naruko thought, as she looked at Pyrrha Nikos.
She and Pyrrha were actually rivals in the Mistral Tournament, with Naruko having entered in the same four years that Pyrrha competed in it. Their Matches had ended in a win for Naruko, two ties, and a win for Pyrrha, respectively for each Tournament. Of course, Naruko didn't fight as herself, having entered under the alia Mito Kazama, and using a Shapeshifting Semblance to make herself have blue eyes, blonde hair, no whisker marks, while also hiding her tail and replacing it with fox ears on her head.
She also used a Lightning Semblance that she copied, to help sell the disguise.
Granted, Naruko never went all out in the tournaments, as that'd just give her to much unwanted attention, or at least her alias. But Pyrrha had been the only one to really push her in battle, so far. With the only other one to do so being Raven herself, whenever they sparred. And from what Naruko could tell from those fights, Pyrrha wasn't going all out either, since she had never used her Semblance. Something that Naruko was certain of, given the nature of her own Semblance.
'Hopefully we'll get the chance to fight again, maybe I'll even switch Semblances to really put her on her toes.' Naruko thought, smirking at the thought of meeting her rival on the battlefield, once more.
As soon as she finished that line of thought, Naruko saw it was almost her turn to get launched and got in position, ready for when she'll go flying.
So, what did you think, good. Yep Ilia has followed Blake to Beacon, with Naruko making plans to keep Ilia in line and not cause them more problems. We also see Ozpin spotting Naruko and her group, while worried of what reason Raven sent them to Beacon for. Then we have Naruko and Yang meeting, with it going downhill very fast after Yang mentions Qrow and Naruko bringing up Raven, thankfully things didn't escalate further. Naruko then reveals her connection to Qrow to her cousins, while knowing Ozpin either suspects or already knows as well, with Yang and Ruby being shocked to learn of their cousin, before Naruko also promises to tell them about Raven at a later time. Finally we see Naruko has also met, and fought against, Pyrrha under an alias, but not only that it seems Naruko has two Semblances which will be explained later. So, review if you liked go away if you didn't.
Storm out