"Bayonetta? Yo, where are you, sis?" Yang asked, stepping outside as she looked around for her twin. Bayonetta had left her a note to meet her outside. "Come on, Cereza. It's too early for games right now." She said with a bit of annoyance. Suddenly, she turned around and ducked just in time to avoid a jumping round kick from Bayonetta and blocking the following rear kick that pushed her back a few feet. "What the heck, sis?!" She demanded.
"It's time for you to stop moping around and get off your ass, Yang. You've been feeling sorry for yourself long enough. You have a chance to move on and get back to the way things were, but you're not taking it. I'm sick of you sitting around feeling sorry for yourself. So I think I'll just beat the self-pity out of you." Bayonetta explained, rushing in and throwing several more attacks Yang either dodged or blocked.
"It's not self-pity!" Yang cried out, catching Bayonetta's next kick and pushing her back. "I lost an arm! That's not something you can just come back from!" She snapped.
"But it can be." Bayonetta said, picking up the arm and holding it out to her sister.
"I told you and Dad, I'll put it on when I'm ready!" She snapped.
"Then you'd better get ready fast!" Bayonetta said, rushing in and attacking once again. Yang managed to dodge or block most of her attacks again, but this time she jumped and threw a round kick on Yang's right side, which she failed to block, due to her lack of an arm, sending her to the ground. "I don't know why you're hesitating, Yang, but you CANNOT deny that you're less effective with only one arm. You can get back to the way you used to be just by putting this on. It's as easy as that." She told her sister, holding out the arm once again.
Yang looked up at her sister for a moment, then the arm, before sighing and pushing it away. "Well, so glad my family is so supportive and understanding." She snapped, storming back into the house.
Bayonetta sighed at this. "She's the one that punches everything. Why would she not want something that lets her punch again?" She said, rolling her eyes and heading back inside as well.
Later that night, Bayonetta was sitting down on the couch, watching TV. However, Zwei suddenly ran to her feet, whining, so she took him outside to go to the bathroom. "Oh, Zwei. If only Yang's problem could be fixed as easily as yours." She said, kneeling down and petting the dog as he trotted up to her. They circled the house two more times to ensure the dog had completely relieved himself, before heading back inside.
However, when they came back in, Bayonetta heard some voices coming from the kitchen. There, she found her father and former teachers, Professor Port and Doctor Oobleck. Port had just finished saying something funny, before they all noticed her. "Oh, hey! Cereza! I thought you'd gone to bed or something." Tai said.
"No. Just went to take Zwei out." She said, before turning to her old teachers. "Professor, Doctor, this is a surprise. Good to see you again." She said.
"Ah, indeed! You are quite the sight for sore eyes as well, Bayonetta." Oobleck said.
"Yes. It's been too long. I'd been so used to seeing you every day or so." Port agreed.
"Yeah. It's certainly different not being in your classes every day." She said. (It's WAY quieter.) She thought. "So, how have you two been?" She asked.
"Well, attempting to clear the Grimm from Beacon and rebuild our beloved academy has proved challenging, but we're not giving up." Oobleck said.
"Indeed. We are confident we will eventually take back the school, but we must accept it will be an uphill battle." Port asked. "So, tell us. How goes your time away from Beacon?" He asked.
"It's... certainly trying. You of course know about Yang losing her arm." She said, stopping and allowing her teachers to nod in confirmation. "But now, she's been given a new one from General Ironwood himself, but she refuses to try it on. I've been trying to think of a way to get her to try it on, to move on and return to normal, but nothing's working. I wanted to be a great Huntress, but how can I do that if I can't even help my sister?" She asked.
"Ahh, yes. Your sister can be quite adamant once she takes her stance. She certainly inherited her stubbornness from her father." Port said, teasing Tai at the end.
"Hey!" Tai snapped
"I'm sure your sister appreciates your support and knows your trying to help her, Bayonetta. She knows you are loyal to her. However, perhaps you are too insistent on having her use the arm, instead of addressing why she won't." Oobleck offered.
"Yeah. Attacking her first thing in the morning probably wasn't your best idea." Tai told his middle child. Bayonetta rolled her eyes and looked away, but Tai gently grabbed her arm. "Hey. She'll try it on when she's ready. You can't force her into it, or she may never be ready. All you can do is support her." He said.
"I hope you're right..." Bayonetta said.
There was a bit of silence, before Tai smiled. "Well, let's change the subject to something a bit more upbeat. Port, what was that story you were telling?" He asked.
The mustached teacher perked up a bit at being addressed. "Oh, yes! Of course! And- and- and then, in comes Qrow, wearing a skirt! I was just a TA, I-I didn't know what to do, so I just... I just left the room to laugh!" Port said.
Yang came to the kitchen door while the four laughed. "We told him it was a kilt! He'd never worn a uniform before, so he didn't know!" Tai explained.
"That is terrible! What is wrong with you!?" Oobleck accused while laughing.
"And people wonder where Yang and I get our sense of humor from." Bayonetta said, rolling her eyes.
"Hey! The girls all said he had nice legs! I did that jerk a favor! Besides, that's not even the best part! See, then we-" Tai started to continue, before being interrupted.
Port put his right leg on the tabletop, cutting off Taiyang. "Like what you see?" He asked. The four laughed and Port lost his balance. He tried to save himself from falling, but ended up on the floor. "Whoa-oh!" He cried out as he fell and crashed.
"Whoa. I haven't felt the ground shake like that since the breach." Bayonetta teased her former teacher.
There was even more laughter. Taiyang clapped from mirth and Port joined in the hilarity from the floor. Yang giggled too, covering her mouth, but the three teachers and her sister became alerted to her presence. Oobleck stood while Port got up off the floor. "Oh, uh, Miss Xiao Long! Uh, please, join us."
Yang entered while Oobleck laughed, a little bit embarrassed. "Oh, yes, yes, pull up a chair. Please, pull up a chair." He encouraged.
"I'm good." She said, hoisting herself backward up onto the kitchen counter, beside where her father stood, on the other side from her sister. Port and Oobleck sat back down. "So, what are you doing here?" Yang asked.
"Despite popular belief, teachers do have a life outside the classroom." Oobleck said.
"I never would've guessed." Bayonetta said, getting a few chuckles from the others.
"Professor Goodwitch is working 'round the clock to restore Beacon to its former glory! But, Mistral wasn't built in a day. And we all need rest from time to time." Port explained.
"Now look, let's not worry about that right now. So, there we were, standing in the auditorium, looking at Qrow, wearing a skirt. Then Oz tells everyone, 'It's time to work on our landing strategy!'" Tai finished his story.
"The Branwen twins have always been... interesting, to say the least." Oobleck said.
"Qrow is the only one worth anything in my opinion. Not our mother." Bayonetta said, clenching her fist a bit.
"That sure didn't seem to stop young Tai." Port laughed.
"Hey, come on, man, they're right here." Tai hissed.
"Oh, please! They're mature young women! If they can handle combat, they can handle a few jabs at their old man!" Port dismissed.
"That's not the issue, Pete! And besides, they're still teenagers!" Tai countered.
"'They're"' also in the room and can be directly spoken to. And I think we've been through enough to be considered an adult at this point." Yang said, stepping over and putting an arm around her sister.
"Thank you, sis.. The two of us were often called the toughest girls at Beacon. Also scariest from time to time." Bayonetta said.
Tai sighed. "Adult or not, scariest or not, you've both still got a long way to go before you're ready for the real world." He told them.
"Oh my gosh! Does every father figure have the same three condescending phrases?" Yang asked.
"Yeah! But we only use them when we mean it!" Tai countered.
Port and Oobleck looked at each other as father and daughters argued, a touch uncomfortable. Oobleck took a sip from his mug while Port pulled at his collar.
"Is that so?" Yang asked.
"As a matter of fact, it is so!" Tai said, now turning his full attention to Yang. "If you honestly think that you're ready to go out there on your own, ha, well I guess you lost some brain cells along with that arm." He told her.
Yang gasped and pulled back from her father's face while a stunned Port leaned forward and Oobleck's mouth dropped open and his glasses slipped down. Bayonetta looked ready to kick her father in a way that would ensure they wouldn't have any more siblings. There was a comedic beat before the mug slipped out of Oobleck's hand to safely landed on the table. All four stared at Taiyang for a few seconds.
"You... jerk!" Yang shouted and playfully punched Taiyang and the father and daughter laughed together.
Bayonetta, however, still seemed shocked at this. "Am I lost here? That wasn't funny!" She said, a bit horrified at her father and sister's morbid humor.
"Are we finally talking about the Goliath in the room?" Oobleck whispered.
Taiyang and Yang looked at each other and then laughed. Relieved laughter came from both Port and Oobleck. Bayonetta simply rolled her eyes. "Oh, Miss Xiao L— Yang, if you don't mind me asking, why haven't you tried on the arm yet?" Port asked.
"Oh, yes, yes! A piece of Atlas technology given out like that is rare indeed! Not to mention the effort it took to deliver it here. It seems a great many people want to see you returned to normal." Oobleck agreed.
"I'm... scared." Yang said. Tai took a sideways step closer to Yang, watching and listening. "Everyone keeps talking about me getting back to normal. And I appreciate it, but... this is normal now." She explained. Oobleck and Port exchanged sad, knowing glances.
"But it doesn't have to be." Bayonetta told her.
"Exactly. Besides, normal is what you make of it." Tai agreed.
"What is that supposed to mean? Do you want me to just pretend like nothing happened? I lost a part of me. A piece of me is gone. And it's never coming back." Yang told her father, then glared at her sister. "And you don't have a lot of room to talk, ambushing me and practically biting my head off to put the arm on!" She snapped.
"You're right. It's not coming back. But that doesn't have to stop you from becoming who you wanna be. Bayonetta's just trying to make sure that it doesn't stop you. That you can keep going, like we all know you can." Taiyang explained, Bayonetta smiling and nodding at her father's understanding. "You're Yang Xiao Long, my sunny little dragon." He told Yang, before putting his hand on his eldest daughter's shoulder. "You can do whatever you put your mind to. So whenever you're ready to stop moping, and get back out there, I'll be there for you." He told her.
Bayonetta put her hand on Yang's other shoulder. "And so will I." She said.
"I... I..." Yang started.
"Fear is like any other emotion. It comes and goes. It's all in how you handle it. Why, even I find myself wrestling with that emotion from time to time." Port told her.
"Really? You?" Yang asked, unconvinced.
"He's afraid of mice." Oobleck whispered.
"They bring only disease and famine!" Port snapped, pounding the table. Yang laughed while Port ranted about the creepiness of mice. He father and sister both watched her. "And don't even get me started on their tails! So hairless and simply unnatural!" He added.
"Port, I assure you, you are safe. There's no mice here right now." Oobleck assured his friend.
"Even if there were, I have three different methods of bringing them down." Bayonetta told him, referring to her transformations.
"Three?" Everyone asked. Since Bayonetta didn't have her weapons on her, they assumed she meant her transformations as well, but they only thought of the panther and the crow. Bats don't attack mice, do they?
Bayonetta smirked and suddenly transformed into a cobra, shocking everyone and even causing her former teachers to jump onto the table in fear. "Nice. I always wanted a snakeskin scarf!" Yang said, picking her snake of a sister up and draping her around her neck and shoulders.
This backfired, however, when an irritated Bayonetta returned to her normal form, causing her and Yang to drop to the floor, Bayonetta now laying on top of her sister. "I'm not a fashion statement, thank you very much." She told her sister with a glare, Yang glaring back at her... before everyone broke out laughing once again.
The scene transitioned to Yang taking the last steps at the top of the stairs. She turned partially and lifted her hand to those below. "Goodnight!" She told them. The arm on the bedside table was the first thing she saw when she walked into her room. She looked at it for a moment but then moved to the window when she heard the front door to the house open followed by the voices of the three men and her sister. She decided to stand out of sight beside the window and listen.
"Thanks for having us over, Tai." Port said gratefully.
"Any time. You're always welcome." Tai said.
"It was fun. We'll have to do it again. Although, maybe break out a board game next time." Bayonetta said.
"It may be a while before we return. There is still much work to be done at the school." Oobleck explained.
"I hesitate to ask, but is there any word from young Miss Rose?" Port asked.
Behind Taiyang, Yang moved into visibility at her bedroom window. "Not yet." Tai explained.
"Have you thought about going after her? Trying to bring her home?" Oobleck asked.
"I doubt we could, even if we wanted to." Bayonetta said.
Taiyang sighed. "I've got to... look after some things." He said as he glanced toward her bedroom window, Yang moved out of sight again and squeezed her right upper arm, looking dejected. Bayonetta also glanced to the window, before looking down trying to think of how to keep her sister from falling apart.
On a path through the woods, Team RNJRR moved forward with Ruby looking at a map. "Come on, guys! If we pick up the pace, we can hit the next town before sunset!" Ruby told them.
"Assuming it's still there." Jaune said grimly.
"Of course it'll be there. This one's supposed to be pretty big! Hee-gan...bayn-a." Ruby explained, but struggled with the town's pronunciation.
"Higanbana. It's a well protected village with a popular inn." Ren explained.
"Which means, no camping in the rain!" Nora cheered.
"Definitely a welcome relief." Ryu said. While both in this and his last life, he was used to having to camp out in the rain and, on occasion, even go on for a day or two without sleep, he definitely took a warm bed when he got the chance.
"See? Everything's going to be fine!" Ruby assured the blonde.
"You know, we've had a lot of ups and downs. But things could be a lot worse. I really thought we'd see more Grimm." Jaune noted.
"As did I." Ren agreed.
"I guess our luck is finally turning around!" Nora declared.
"Yes... Luck..." Ryu said, looking back. He had known almost from the beginning they had a watcher keeping an eye on them and making the trip as Grimm-free as possible, but he decided to go along with it so he wouldn't hurt the current morale.
The scene changed to Team RNJRR being viewed from above, a rocky outcropping just on the edge of the view. "To Higanbana!" Nora declared.
"To Higanbana!" The three boys in the group cheered.
"To Higanban... ban-a!" Ruby struggled to repeat.
A Beowolf stomped into view and growled at the five kids. Just as it was about to leap, it was stabbed through by Qrow. Three disintegrating bodies of other Beowolves were just behind him. A black raven cawed from a tree branch on eye level with Qrow, catching his attention. He looked at it and it flew off, following RNJRR. "Luck." Qrow scoffed.
The next morning, back at Patch, Taiyang was outside the house, watering his bed of sunflowers, while Bayonetta finished mowing the lawn. Yang came out, wearing the robotic arm. She used it automatically to shade her eyes from the sun and then looked down at the metal hand interestedly, moving the fingers around. "It's about time." Bayonetta said with a smile, walking up.
Taiyang stood. "Okay. Let's get started." He said.
