Before this chapter begins, I just wanted to offer up the statistics that I've written down from the year of 2021. Bear with me, please.
We achieved a total of 32,543 total views this past year with 11,371 of those being registered users. My goodness that is an incredible milestone!
Our best time of the year in 2021 was December with 6,332 views and 1,602 visitors (and a huge shoutout to September when we reached 1 thousand views in a single day).
Again, I wish to thank you all. You've made me the happiest person on this platform and I cannot wait to take these tears of joy in my eyes, and turn them to ink on a page (oh, you know what I mean). Here's to 2022! I hope we double these numbers!
Remnant Who
By ReaderWarrior
I do not own Doctor Who or RWBY.
It's A Small World
Beta'd by: -
As always, please comment! It honestly makes my day to read your thoughts and opinions.
Tell your friends!
Honorary (dead) companions:
Clive, Raffalo, Moxx, Jabe, Sneed, Gwyneth, Ganesh, De Maggio
'Bigger on the inside!'s:
2 (Rose, Jackie)
Fantastics:
7
Harriet Jones' greetings:
6
Exterminates!:
8
The first thing Ruby heard as the T.A.R.D.I.S doors swung open was the sound of children screaming.
After a rather uneasy push through the dimensional rift, Ruby, her teammates, and uncle were tossed around in the console room like cereal in a box. If they weren't already holding onto the main controls, they surely would have gone flying.
"Give it a second!" the Librarian yells. "She's just stabilizing and finding a good place to land." As he promised, the shaking and tossing soon stopped, much to the joy of team RWBY.
Yang rose to her feet with a smirk. "Next time, give us some warning."
The Librarian, who didn't seem to have any problems with the T.A.R.D.I.S' movements, gave her a dismissive chuckle. "Well," he explains, "usually, when all the pilots are doing a good job, we won't run into this problem. But this is your first time dealing with Time Lord technology. And most of what I had you do involved crossing into a new dimension, not actually piloting."
"So… it worked?" Qrow asked. "We're actually in a new universe?"
"Yup!"
The Remantees all looked towards the doors of the blue box. A whole new planet, they each thought. A whole new universe!
Even Weiss couldn't hide her shock. "Incredible," she whispered.
Blake nodded in agreement. She coughed and pointed at her hair tie, asking, "will I, um, be needing this?"
"…" the Librarian couldn't seem to find an answer. "Maybe? I doubt it, but that would depend on the year of our landing."
Practically jumping off the walls, Ruby runs around the console, trying to see an indication of when they are. "When are we? Is everything super-advanced like in the 'End of the World'? Or are we in some old-timey place like with Charles Dickens?"
The Librarian smiles. "Well, I tried to land in the early 2000s, right about when the Doctor picked up Rose, but as we've seen…"
"He doesn't always get what he wants," Qrow finishes. "So what do we do now?"
"Now? Now we go outside and have some fun," their guide smiles. He makes a few quick motions to the T.A.R.D.I.S centerpiece before marching to the door. "Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to the happiest place on Earth."
The doors open, filling the room with excess light and noise. Children's screams and music blares from the outside. Other sounds of mechanics and other things that are unworldly to them also follow.
"I bring you, Disneyland!"
Qrow just simply couldn't grasp it. The size, the sounds, the smells.
The sheer populace.
Even in the densest areas of the four kingdoms, Qrow had never seen so many people in one area. Hell, he wasn't even sure if the combined populations of all the kingdoms could reach the level of absurdity he was experiencing.
From a brief glance, his nieces and their friends were in the same state of shock.
"Oh-"
"-my-"
"-Gods-"
"-exclamation point!"
The Librarian laughed at everyone's shocked expressions and closed the doors behind him. "Yeah… It never gets old."
Hundreds if not thousands of people were walking around them. Most seemed themed around the image of a mouse with two cartoonishly-round ears. The T.A.R.D.I.S was backed up against a strange metal statue, where the backs of a man and that same mouse were waving to the sky. Oh, and there was also a castle.
Granted, it wasn't as big nor luxurious as Oz's, but it was still fairly impressive. What surprised Qrow the most about it was that somehow there was a moat surrounding it. It didn't appear that deep but was still able to surround the entire palace.
As they spun in a circle, they could see far-off structures that equally boggled his mind. There was a fairly small mountain to one end. Just because it was smaller than a normal mountain didn't mean it still wasn't huge. It was high enough to have snow cap peaks. And, on the other side, a desert-like cascade of cliffs and canyons. Orange and red rocks jutted upwards in strange patterns.
Am I dead? Qrow thought. This has to be heaven.
The Librarian placed a hand on Qrow's shoulder. Ushered forward, they are moved to the front of the statue, where they could see the sculpture for what it truly depicted.
Over six feet tall, and encased in metal, stood a man holding the hand of a mouse. The man had his hand waved to the sky, as if showcasing a creation. The mouse, on the other hand, kept his unused hand on his waist.
'"I think most of all what I want Disneyland to be is a happy place… where parents and children can have fun, together." Walt Disney,' read the inscription at the bottom.
"Who's Walt Disney?" Weiss asks.
"The man who brought all of this to life," the Librarian explains. He points at the man in the statue. "Walt Disney was a visionary who redefined cinematic media and created theme parks for fans of his works to enjoy. That-" he turned to point at the smaller character standing next to Walt "-is Mickey Mouse. Undeniably his most recognizable character. If Walt is a god, then Mickey is the king. His features, or just the three circles of his ears and face, are recognizable no matter where you go."
Blake frowns and studies the statue. "So this entire place is a dedication to a man and his pet rodent?"
Cringing, the Librarian gives a small nod. "Technically… but it's a little more fantastical than that. There's Adventureland, Tomorrowland, Fantasyland, Frontierland, and so much more. Whatever you want to do, it's available in the Magic Kingdom." He gives a showman's wave to the areas around them and sports a large smile. "So… where do we want to go first?"
After they found a map, which disclosed what 'lands' were available to pick from, it turned out that everyone wanted to go their own way. Blake and Yang were interested in visiting Frontierland. Ruby and her uncle decided to try for Tomorrowland.
Which, sadly, left Weiss with the Librarian. Sighing, she made no request to go anywhere in specific and let her chaperone decide.
"Why don't we just walk around and see if anything calls out to you?" he asked as they made their way down the main strip.
Weiss nodded and quickly followed behind the guide. They left the T.A.R.D.I.S behind after making sure its doors were locked. She still couldn't fully comprehend the ridiculousness of a 'chameleon circuit' that would make it nearly impossible for someone to spot it, but, then again, she was standing in an alien world at what was the equivalent of a jacked-up carnival.
Like you've actually ever been to one, she scolded herself. And I've been living with Yang for too long if I am now referring to things as 'jacked'.
"Why did you bring us here?" Weiss asked as they passed a large family all adorned with ear-topped caps.
The Librarian shrugged and smiled, waving at a kid in a costume. "I felt that after Dalek, we could use something to lift our spirits."
"I see."
Suddenly, the Librarian made a left turn, crossing the street. He waved at Weiss to follow as he walked to one of the painted doors marking the sides. The Librarian then turned around and placed his back to the door. "You're going to love this," he whispered, giving Weiss a wink.
With his fist, he knocked against the wall and made a short series of taps in a musical pattern. Weiss almost missed it as the door, and the floor beneath him, spun around. In the blink of an eye, he was gone.
"Excuse me?" she gasped. Then, repeating his actions, she did the same. With no one looking, she placed her back to the door and made the same knocks in the same order. Thanks to her close proximity, she heard a click from behind the door before it twirled around and deposited her on the other side.
Weiss blinked at the sudden change in surroundings. The room she now presided in was similar to that of her home in Atlas. Candles decorated the sides with a large, ornate carpet. The walls were ornate with drawings of the characters she had seen in their walk. However, they were dressed in suits and dresses matching that of a higher culture.
Peaking around the corner, Weiss saw the Librarian talking to a well-dressed woman through a glass partition. He must have noticed her because the Librarian quickly waved at her to join him.
"How else would I know how to enter?" the Librarian said.
The steward sighed. "Sir, there is no record of you having a membership in the past."
Rolling his eyes, the Librarian pulled out a wallet from his back pocket and held up a flap for him. "Here, see? Written permission by the man himself. I am allowed into the DC."
The hostess paused to read the paper, psychic, obviously, and then gave a curt nod, followed by a deep bow. "My apologies, sir. We shouldn't have questioned someone of your importance. Please, forgive us for this… confusion."
"Of course," the Librarian nods, pocketing his wallet. "Now, may me and my guest be offered a window seat?"
She nods curtly and grabs two menus from behind her counter. "Yes, please follow me." The hostess then leads them up a set of stairs before offering them a table at a large circular window. Through it, Weiss could see the street from before. People continued to walk past as they were completely oblivious to their oversight.
"What is this place?" she asked after they were left alone to look over the menu. Each of the items listed were themed around Mickey Mouse and, from what Weiss could tell, had no price listed.
The Librarian scrolled through the menu. "The Disney Club. Unlike Club 33, where you need to provide a huge monetary payment to the mouse to gain access, this is reserved for those who knew Walt personally."
"And you did?" Weiss asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes and no," he smirks. "Mr. Disney died about 1966, about 40 years ago. Each of the original members are permitted to give their 'key', the secret knock, to one of their offsprings. They probably think I'm one of the descendants. But, most of those friends he had back in the day also don't have a time machine."
Weiss rolls her eyes and smiles. "So this is what you've used it for? Gaining access to secret spots?"
"God no," the Librarian snorts. He places down his menu and closes his eyes. "When I first got my T.A.R.D.I.S, I spent almost three years visiting legends. Walt Disney was one. In fact, I helped Blaine Gibson with that statue of him and Mickey, it's not my fault he didn't follow my advice to have them holding ice cream cones."
"What?"
"Ah, it doesn't matter. Anyways, after I had my fine, I tried my best to help others. I trained with heroes all throughout space and time, fought in a dozen wars, and always did what I could to help improve that which people believed couldn't." He sighed for a moment before turning his gaze out the window. "Sometimes I don't think it means anything."
Frowning, Weiss places down her own menu. "What do you mean?"
"Think about it. An infinite multiverse. I can't help everyone. Then there are different dimensions with their own parallel universes. And, to top it all off, all of time and space. A near-infinite coverage and plain."
"You can't be everywhere at once," she realizes.
The librarian shakes his head. "I can't be everywhere and everywhen," he corrects. "I'm not like the Doctor, I'm human. I won't live to be one hundred. I doubt it's enough."
"Of course it's enough," Weiss snaps. "The Doctor is an inspiration and you've taken that to heart. To do what you can, even if others say you shouldn't, that's the mark of a hero."
"Then why do you still bind yourself to your father?"
Weiss froze. Is that what this is about? "What do you mean?"
"You are holding yourself back. You continue to claim yourself the 'Schnee Heiress' and yet you don't follow his wishes. Are you still planning to return to a life of business as he wishes?"
"…" She couldn't answer. What the Librarian was asking was the same thing she kept pressuring herself to seek an answer for every night. What would she do after her time at Beacon? Would I go back to regain the SDC from my father, or would I use my training to help those I can now?
The Librarian gave a soft smile. "Good thing you don't have to worry about it, then. There's more than enough time for you to answer that in the upcoming years."
Before Weiss could say anything back, they were interrupted by a waitress with a large mustache. "Excuse me, but may I take your order?"
"Yes, sorry," the Librarian said. "I'll have a virgin strawberry daiquiri with a large hot dog. Extra ketchup and hold the mustard."
The waiter nodded before turning to Weiss. "And you, Miss?"
Weiss coughed softly and looked back into the menu. "I will take a lemonade with a salad."
"Which kind piques your interest?"
"Um," Weiss rescanned the page. "Caesar?"
Nodding, the waiter took the menus with gloved hands and disappeared back towards the kitchen. But instead of doing so, he would take a small detour through the rear exit. Then, he would carefully slide each of them into a plastic bag and slide said bags into one of the many trash containers found around the park.
"Good work," a voice whispered in his ear. "Now, return to work and ensure they are treated with a magical experience."
The waiter nodded. "Yes. I shall return to work and ensure they are treated with a magical experience."
Yang pulled on Blake's arm. The blonde had a smile rivaling that of her sister's on days when Ren would bake cookies. She hastily moved them around and through crowds of families before stopping in front of a large line.
"C'mon, Blake! This one looks like so much fun," she said. The sign above them read 'Big Thunder Mountain' in bold font on a large piece of wood. The ride seemed to be designed after an old Dust mine with orange boulders and train tracks.
Peering over the heads of those in front of them, Blake noticed a separate and - extremely- shorter line to the right. She noticed a smaller sign above the entrance and reached into her pocket.
The Librarian made sure to pass along a few things to them all before splitting up. Besides warnings to not bring their weapons or to use their aura (or semblances) under any situation, he had also gifted them each with small green cards.
"This is for the FastPass lines. Those tend to be shorter," he explained. "Just use these at the gates."
Card in hand, Blake, followed closely by Yang, left the long line in exchange for the nonexistent one. As they did, they passed a large group of children consoling… a large rabbit?
Blake blinked. To her surprise, a large white rabbit, bipedal and taller than she, was seemingly having a panic attack in front of them.
"Puh-p-please!" it yelled out, stuttering as it covered its eyes. "Slow down! Slow down!"
"Relax!" the group of children yelled back. Strangely, they were also surrounded by two identical-looking squirrels (both of which were as tall as the rabbit). The children's ages seemed to range from almost as old as she and Yang were, to as young as a pre-teen.
"Why is that rabbit wearing overalls and a bow tie when the squirrels are naked?" Yang asked, equally confused.
Blake turned to her partner with scrunched eyes. "That's what you're asking about?"
"Well," Yang shrugged sheepishly, "I don't know if the giant animal things are supposed to be normal or not."
"If I were to guess, they are mascots for this place."
Shrugging, again, Yang watched as the strange group dispersed. The three animals remained near the entrance of the ride, waving, while the kids ran into the FastPass pathway. To Blake, it was almost strange to see such a diverse group of children being so close and happy. She knew there weren't any Faunus but the Librarian had made reference to racism among the different skin colors.
Be it cat ears or skin pigmentation, there was always someone trying to differentiate between 'us' and 'them'. But the children didn't care.
They were just happy to have a friend.
Yang grabbed Blake's shoulder, snapping her out of her thoughts. "Hey," she asked, "are you okay?"
"Yeah," Blake whispered. She shook her head and smiled. "There's just a lot to look forward to." Turning to look at the FastPass gate, Blake gave Yang a small smirk. "Race you."
"Oh, you're on!"
"Look at that! Oh, that's so cool! What's that do? Can we go there next?"
Qrow smiled as he watched Ruby run around. She was like a child again, jumping everywhere and exploring everything her eyes fell on. Her red cloak billowed in every direction as she dashed from side to side.
Normally, Qrow would be uncomfortable being surrounded by so many people and all these insane feats of engineering (seriously, is that rocket?!) but thanks to the Librarian, and this band on his wrist, he felt the weight of his semblance vanish.
The Librarian pulled out a small rad circlet from his pocket and tossed it at Qrow. "Just to be safe, wear this. Mini Aura-suppressor. Should be able to keep Dumbo or any other rides from flying free into the sky."
Looking down at the band, Qrow couldn't see any circuitry or signs of technological know-how. But the results were true. That dull - annoying and constant - throb that he's had to live with since unlocking his Aura disappeared as soon as it snapped around his wrist.
Qrow flexed his fingers. It was like using them for the first time after wearing gloves all day. The nerves felt alive; they seemed to react to everything, even the air.
"Uncle Qrow?"
He blinked, Ruby's voice pulling him out of his thoughts. "Yeah, squirt?"
Ruby grabbed his hand. "Are you okay?" she asked. Her mother's eyes stared into his with worry.
"Yeah," he whispered, taking a moment to breathe in the fresh air. "I'm fine. Just… relaxing."
Giggling, Ruby poked at his chest. "Usually, you're drinking from this -" her finger pressed against his flask "- when you say that."
"It does help," he smirked back. As he pushed Ruby's finger away, he made no move to take a sip from his drink. The Huntsman instead looked over her shoulder and pointed at one of the attractions. "What about that one?" He pointed to a large building with a white sign overhead. Underneath the ride's attraction were the words, 'From the Creative Forces of Disney and George Lucas - Sponsored by m&m's'.
"'Star Tours'?" Ruby read aloud. "Sure!"
They both quickly walked inside, stopping to stare in shock at all the sites. Two robotic creatures greeted them as they entered. One was a tall golden man with a silver leg, wires visible in his midsection, and the other was… a trash can? Qrow thought.
"Hello!" the golden robot exclaimed as it waved one of its arms towards them and the other group walked in with them. "I am C-3PO, human/cyborg relations. And this," he waved at the small droid, "is R2D2. We wish to welcome you to the Star Tours feature ride."
The silver bucket, R2D2, whistled and beeped loudly, cutting off his friend. Qrow instantly realized he just made a grave mistake and turned to look for his niece.
She was already making her way through the crowd and towards the robots.
Qrow quickly grabbed her hood and pulled her back towards him. "Don't even think about it, kiddo."
Pouting, Ruby crossed her arms and scrunched up her face. "Fine."
"Flight 282 will soon be departing," C-3P0 explained, motioning to a large vehicle to the side of them. "Please feel free to join us on a trudge on Tatooine. Start your trip at the Galactic Zoo, then race over to Mos Eisley Cantina for cocktails with the galaxies' most outrageous characters!"
R2D2 made a long string of beeps, turning to its companion.
"Oh, of course, I'm not getting in one of those flying machines," the golden robot explained. "It'll be up to you to make sure everyone travels safely. Check your laser cannons, who knows what things you'll run into."
"Do you think we're actually going to have a space fight?" Ruby asked, her voice strangely excited for someone wanting to go into a battle.
Qrow shrugged. "I dunno. I've never been here before. But I doubt it. Most likely it's some kind of virtual experience on a moving ride; it gives the experience a realistic feel. I've seen a couple around Vale for fairs and things."
Again, Ruby pouted. "Why'd you have to ruin it, Uncle Qrow?"
"Sorry," he winced, rubbing his neck. "I'll tell you what, when we get to… Tattoony-"
"Tatooine."
"-whatever. If we get there, I'll let you do whatever you want while I go check out the cantina."
His niece glared at him for a moment. "You'd do that as long as I didn't tell Yang," she accused.
Qrow covered his heart and made a pained expression. "Ouch. I'll have to tell your father you're all grown up now."
"Hey, can you guys hurry up," a voice behind them interrupted. "The line's moving."
Nodding sheepishly, Qrow offered a quick apology before moving ahead a few steps. He and Ruby once more gazed in awe at the level of detail that seemed to go into this attraction. Exposed pipes, tubes, and mechanical pieces littered the areas behind rail guards. Droids, similar but different from those from earlier, decorated the sides and made beeping noises as their heads spun.
It almost seemed to go on for miles. However, they soon came to a stop in front of…
"A wall?" Qrow coughed. "We came all this way for a wall?"
Almost like it was waiting for his exclamation, panels of the wall began to slide away, revealing cushioned seats facing a screen. Another robotic droid was near the front, waving its arm welcomingly.
"Oh."
Yang shook the water from her hair as she whistled the tune from the last ride. After enjoying the runaway train of Thunder Mountain, she and Blake decided to follow the mascots and the kids accompanying them. They took a quick cruise ride with a duck, where they saw machinations of animals she had only read about in Professor Port's self-written textbooks.
Then, after a quick snack, Blake made a comment about the mountain.
Sucker! Yang giggled to herself, having already seen one of the logs containing riders get tossed down the waterfall. She once again grabbed Blake's hand and pulled her up to the ride before Blake could back down. As they neared the top, they could almost see the entire park.
"It's beautiful," Blake whispered as they looked around. Even from this height, they could still hear the cheers and screams of park-goers from every direction. The colors of building tiles seemed to shine in the sun and the water almost looked perfectly blue.
Yang nodded. "Yeah. I guess the Librarian wasn't kidding when he said it was the most magical place on Earth."
And, it turned out, the coolest.
The ride, which Yang would learn is called Splash Mountain, starts off passively. They witness a story of a fox chasing a rabbit or something (she wasn't paying the most attention) with a few drops. It wasn't until the rabbit, in an attempt to escape the fox, jumped into a thorn bush that things got exciting.
Blake screamed as the ride suddenly moved outside for a brief moment only to make a sudden drop. Arms up in the air, Yang cheered as they fell into a large pool of water that splashed up like a tidal wave.
"Wheeeee!"
It wasn't until afterward, when they passed the screen of photos, that Yang realized just how exactly Blake looked during the pitfall. Her eyes were wider than saucers, her hair was almost completely straight and rigid, and, funniest of all, her arms (and hands) were out-stretched almost as if she were trying to ready herself for a harsh fall.
Yang fell to her knees, laughing at the photo as she struggled to dry her hair and breathe.
"It's not that funny." Rolling her eyes, Blake did her best to wring out her own hair. But Yang noticed a small smirk on her lips when she thought her hair was covering her face from Yang's view.
"Are you kidding?" Yang asked. "I'm saving that photo!"
"Please don't."
One swipe of a credit card later -
Blake glared at the back of Yang's head as she skipped giddily with a bag in hand. She spared no expense, buying the poster-sized version with a golden trim. While Yang was (fairly) positive it wasn't real gold but…
Did I really just spend 28 thousand lien to make Blake angry? Yes. Yes, I did, Yang thought to herself. Thank goodness for the Librarian's credit card.
"If I ever find that hanging up, I will destroy it."
Yang gives an evil chuckle. "Maybe I will… maybe I won't." She turns around to smirk at her partner, who rolls her eyes in annoyance.
"Be careful, Yang," Blake warns.
"Of what?" Suddenly, Yang stops as she feels her back collide into something. It cries out with a loud yelp and soundly crashes to the ground behind her. Yang, with all of her huntress training, barely even flinches. Turning around to apologize, Yang rubs the back of her neck and gives a sorry-about-that-please-don't-let-me-be-in-trouble smile. It quickly fades when she looks down, though.
What she had thought to be just another tourist or a random nobody turned out to be one of the mascots. It was a squirrel, she thought, and apparently one of two. Another one, this one with a red nose, had its hands covering its eyes. The one on the ground didn't appear hurt. Well, except for its missing head.
That just looks wrong, Yang thought as the head bounced a few feet away. Behind her, Blake dashed forward to grab the costume piece. As she turned around back towards Yang, Blake gasped and dropped it.
"Blake?" she asked. The mascot pushed past both of them and grabbed its head, placing it back on its shoulders and locking it into place with a soft, mechanical hiss.
The squirrel turned to the two huntresses-in-training. Its eyes narrowed and with a squeaky voice, it - he - hissed, "watch where you're going, next time, please."
Yang raised her hands defensively. "Yeah, dude, sorry."
Happy enough with that answer, the mascot joined its twin and both quickly scampered away.
"What's their problem?" Yang asks. "Did they not get the memo that this place is supposed to be fun?"
"Yang?"
The blonde shook her head, ignoring Blake. "Like seriously, we're trying to enjoy ourselves and the people who work here are going to act like that?"
"Yang."
"Yeah?"
Blake turned to her partner with wide eyes. "Did you see what I saw?"
"A jerk in a squirrel costume?"
"No," Blake said, shaking her head. She stared at the spot where the head fell a few seconds prior. "I saw a squirrel piloting a squirrel costume."
I'm sorry but I'm going to have to leave you here. I had a lot more ideas planned for this episode, and I do plan on writing them, but I just can't right now.
My girlfriend and I (well, technically, not anymore) are having troubles and it's taking a huge mental toll on me. So please don't expect a quick update for the next installment. I just need a little bit of time. It's been a difficult time and I just haven't had the heart to finish this chapter to the length I envisioned, but I would rather get out what I could (at a rough-ish) pausing point. So, sorry everyone.
Thank you all for reading and please be sure to comment below predictions or your favorite scene. God knows I could use some positivity right now.
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