Here's chapter 67, everyone.

Summer was standing alone, a decent ways out from the warehouse, her only thought on the mission at hand, and what it meant to be apart of it. On one hand, she remembered Raven's words on continuing to honor who she is as a huntress. To not lose what made her want to be one in the first place.

And on the other hand, she couldn't bring herself to go on the same path as Raven. Her methods were tough, but they brought results. Yet on the more, ruthless side of her, she couldn't bring herself to go that far.

"Why did I even suggest interrogation…"

The blacksmith sighed to herself, cursing under her breath while debating on what was right and wrong. In her mind, she was doing something right. Helping a woman, not just any woman, but Weiss' birth mother, escape a life she was forced to endure.

Even then though, she still didn't enjoy what she may have to do for it. To kill others, was not something she would allow herself to do.

"Hesitation will get you killed, so if you won't allow yourself to get something done in that way, then find an alternative."

Raven told her that once. The woman who had given up on letting people live if it meant she'd die, but Summer was thankful to her for those words. It showed her that Raven accepted that she didn't wish to kill others, but it also showed her she was looking out for her, and hoping she'd find ways to stop a foe.

"There are other ways." Summer gently spoke, not saying that to anyone in particular, since she was alone to begin with. "I just need to figure that out…"

"Well, don't try to figure it out on your own, cause that's leaving me out of the loop." The voice of her husband said, startling her a bit as she lifted her head up to see Tai standing ten feet from her.

Summer's downed expression changed. She was instantly happy, and as she walked up to her husband, she embraced him with a hug for two seconds, only to pull away and kiss him. He was one of the few people in her life who would be able to bring light into a dark situation for her.

After pulling away from the kiss, the blacksmith leaned on him once more, feeling him wrapping his arms around her. "Hey, come on. Last time you were like this, it was because you stubbed your toe."

The joke made her smile, and she closed her eyes as she snuggled into him. "I'm just happy you're here… Thank you for coming over, honey."

"You know I wouldn't say no to you." Tai rubbed the back of his wife's head, gently running his fingers through her hair as he didn't let her go. "Do you want-?"

"Shh." Summer shushed him, snuggling more into him. "All I want, is this."

Tai let out a light chuckle, nodding to his wife, staying still and letting her have the comfort she needed. He remained quiet for her, waiting to ask the questions he had when he knew she was okay.

"I know you have questions, and I have answers. Trust me. I'm just… Taking it all in right now." Summer said, slightly pulling away from her husband. "So, if you have them…"

"How are you?" That was his first question, and the meaning behind it made Summer smile, as she leaned up to peck his cheek.

"Conflicted… But still a lot happier now that you're here." Summer answered, taking his hand to bring him closer to the warehouse. "Qrow and Raven are inside if you wanna know more about the mission we're on."

Tai already made his peace with Raven, having assured his wife he wouldn't let anything personal get in the way of their mission. "Yeah, knowing more will help, but what's gotten you like this?"

Summer sighed and let his hand go. "The mission isn't… It's complicated. And Raven told me that, there may be people who need to be…"

The trail off was evidence enough to give Tai the reason she was conflicted. "So that's what it is." He knew all too well about Summer's distaste in taking another person's life. "You know Raven won't make you do that, honey."

"What if I have to?" The blacksmith questioned, her eyes full of worry. "I told myself, there has to be other ways, and… I won't stop trying to find another way, but what if I can't in time? What then?"

"Then I'll be here to help you figure out that other way." Tai assured, reaching his hand out to gently caress his wife's cheek. "Don't try to take this on alone, honey. I'm here, and while I hate to admit it, even Qrow is here. We won't let anything happen that'll force you to take someone's life."

Summer lowered her head. She knew that would be his answer, and while it was nice to hear, it wasn't going to solve everything. People would find ways to get her in a situation where either her life, or another person's life was in danger, and if it meant she had to kill someone to save herself, or someone else, the blacksmith didn't know if she could truly do it.

"Come on. Let's get inside so I know the rest of the details on this." Tai gently walked her over to the warehouse.

"R-Right." While she was still unsure about some things, the blacksmith kept others in mind. She also hoped that once Tai was inside, he wasn't going to have trouble with Qrow or Raven, since that was the last thing she wanted to deal with on top of the added stress she already had.

"It's not about staying alive… It's about choosing to spare one of them. I just don't know if I can…" Lazuria said, her fists clenched in anger. "They've hunted more than just me, and you know this. After all this time…"

As she trailed off, Raven knew what she was going to say. "Sometimes I'd agree with you. People like that can't change, so what's the point of putting them in jail?"

Qrow spoke up, giving his sister a serious look. "The point is us not sinking to their level. We didn't train to be hunters to kill."

"Maybe not you…" Raven muttered silently, her own motives were not so open, even to her own brother.

Lazuria took a seat, the exhaustion of everything she's dealt with catching up to her. "Either way, sparing one of them isn't going to be easy for me… When I see them, I only see… I only see their blood."

Raven took her sheathed blade and laid it on the table in front of Lazuria, who looked surprised. "It's easy to forget how to view others differently sometimes. I've had enemies look at my blade, and their first instinct was defending themselves. Without my blade, well, they may not be as defensive."

"What's your point?" Lazuria asked.

"I don't want to frighten you, but have you ever thought that those people could be out there? Just on the streets without their armor, without their gear. You could have walked the same sidewalk as them before, and you wouldn't have known." Raven explained, and Lazuria tensed up.

"Maybe…" Lazuria took a breath to try and calm down at the thought, and as she looked at Raven's weapon, she wondered why the black haired huntress was telling her that.

"Just because you only see blood, doesn't meant you can't spare one. Don't think of the gear, the armor, the weapons they have. Think about your freedom." Raven suggested.

Lazuria truly wanted that. Freedom, and the chance to hug her daughter, so she took in what Raven said to her. "Sparing one of them… I never thought I would."

"Well, if you want to be free, you'll have to." Raven bluntly said, grabbing her weapon from the table.

Qrow spoke up. "My sister isn't wrong. It's our best shot, so you gotta be able to agree on this."

"Yes, I know. The only problem I can think of now is surveillance. I can't say when I'll be attacked again, so keeping to me day after day might be difficult." Lazuria explained.

Raven nodded, acknowledging the problems. "They could notice us and realize what we're doing. That is, if we get caught," She looked to her brother, who seemed confused by the look she gave him. "Meaning don't get caught."

"And why the hell are you looking at me?" Qrow questioned, dropping his flask on the table.

"I'm not even going to explain." Raven turned back to Lazuria. "Qrow and I will be hidden, though it's hard to trust my brother not to fuck this up." A groan was heard from Qrow, as he flipped his sister off.

"Summer and… Tai, will also be in the area, but not as close as we will be to avoid detection." Raven assured.

Lazuria thought about the plan and folded her hands, thinking more about what she'd be doing. "Is it too much to say this plan might need a miracle to pull off…"

"Try being optimistic." Qrow suggested as he took a drink from his flask. "My sister here likes being pessimistic, and that doesn't get her anywhere, trust me."

Raven glanced over and shot a glare at her twin brother. "Shut it and pass out already. No one needs to deal with you right now."

Lazuria sighed since the two siblings began to bicker, but she noticed Summer was walking in with who she believed to be the Tai, that Raven was speaking of, so she got out of her chair and met with them halfway. "You must be Tai."

Tai looked at the woman, her clothes weren't as tattered as they were when she met Raven, but there was still enough damage to see she had it rough. "Yeah, and I've heard a bit about you. I'm sorry for what you're going through."

A somber chuckle escaped Lazuria's lips, and Summer frowned hearing that. "I can't say I've heard a lot of people say they're sorry about that." Lazuria sighed. "Being hunted for this long, you tend to forget to connect with people."

The blonde huntsman pitied the woman in front of him. "Well, I'm here to learn a bit more about this. So if my wife here is helping, you can count on me too."

Lazuria looked at the couple, thinking of her own love. It wasn't something she could bring herself to picture though, not at the point she was at in her life, so all she could say to the man in response were two words. "Thank you."

Summer let go of Tai's hand and walked up to Lazuria, looking down for a moment as she took a breath. She lifted her head back up and gave the woman a determined expression. "We'll make sure to get you out of this."

The way she spoke. The softness in her voice. It reminded her of Willow. "No wonder she told you about me… I can see how much I can trust you." Lazuria let out a smile, and behind her, Raven had finally taken note of her husband.

"Tai…"

Cerulean eyes slowly blinked open. Light cascaded over them as she felt a person over her, and the cold tiles of the arena she was on under her. "H-Huh…"

A gasp was heard, and the white wolf could feel her fur was a bit wet on her back, since her partner had been crying on her. "Weiss!" She heard Ruby cry out, and as her vision cleared up, Weiss noticed that she was still on the arena.

The others heard Ruby's cry, so they ran over to check on the wolf, since they had given her and Ruby some space when she had collapsed. "What's going on…" Weiss asked as she slowly began moving her body.

Yang was the first to answer, the white wolf now seeing her worried eyes. "Thank goodness you're okay. We were about to call the nurse, Weiss." She helped her friend lay on her belly and gently hugged her.

Weiss was utterly confused. She was fine a moment ago, but she was suddenly just waking up on the ground. "I, Yang, what happened?"

Blake spoke up. "You collapsed."

Weiss' eyes went wide. "I… Collapsed?"

Ruby wiped a few tears away, and she had gotten off the white wolf to let her up. Yang removed herself from the embrace and her little sister began to explain. "Y-You used up all of your aura, Weiss."

"Oh… I guess that explains it." Weiss sighed, feeling like an idiot for risking using all of her aura for a simple sparring match. "Ruby, please don't cry for this… I'm fine now."

"But you weren't…" Ruby whimpered.

The white wolf looked around, wondering what she meant and noticed that Jaune was sitting down, his partner looking over him as Ren and Nora were near too. "What happened to Jaune?"

Yang chuckled, looking over at her fellow blonde with respect. "I'll tell ya in a bit. For now, we gotta make sure you're doing okay, ice wolf."

Weiss sighed and tried to get on her paws, but Ruby stopped her. "Ruby."

"Rest. Please." Ruby's voice was soft, and showed desperation in her pleas, so the white wolf chose not to go against the request and laid her head down. "Thank you…" Ruby hugged her from the side and rubbed her cheek on Weiss' fur. "Don't scare me like that again…"

Her words started making Weiss nervous. "W-What… How bad was I?"

Yang looked down, and Blake chose to relay the news. "Your heart was slowing down…" Weiss was shocked by that, and Blake continued. "That was when we were about to call the nurse, but," She looked over at Jaune. "Something happened."

The white wolf looked over at where Blake was staring at. "Did… Did Jaune do something?"

"Like I said, we'll tell you soon, ice wolf." Yang leaned over and rubbed her fur a bit. "Honestly, I'm kinda wondering how you made those glyphs."

Weiss tensed up, remembering the glyphs just then. Blake herself had a similar reaction, while Ruby lifted her head up. "No more questions." The team leader ordered. "I want her to get rest…" The way she wanted to protect her partner made the white wolf blush.

Yang didn't argue and nodded. "No problems here, sis. Get some rest, ice wolf. Once we get back to the dorm, we'll talk about, uh, well, all of that just now."

There were too many questions in her mind to simply ignore, but she knew Ruby wouldn't relent, so she simply closed her eyes and stayed laying on the arena floor. In the back of her mind though, she thought of one image. The spinning rune that had appeared in front of her during their sparring match.

"Just what was that…"

Tai and Raven have some words, and Weiss will need to learn more about what she had done. It's an idea I've been enjoying to work with, since it still kind of stays true to canon, while letting me have my own twist on it. And I'm sure for those who watched the show probably know what Jaune did.

To JJ- Yup. She got glyphs, but to what extent is what you'll learn in the later chapters. Weiss will of course have some knowledge of how glyphs work through watching Winter train when she was younger. And I'm glad you're enjoying the slow burn. It's so much fun to write this way.

I hoped you all enjoyed chapter 67. Remember, reviews are welcomed, but not required. See you all in chapter 68.