Here's chapter 77, everyone.
"Mother," Winter said over the scroll as she made it to Beacon, her airship being looked at in awe by some of the students who were out in the courtyard at the time. "I've just landed, so where would you like for me to meet you?"
"I'll be outside in a bit. Let me just wake your sister up and I promise you'll know what's going on." Willow felt bad about not just up and telling her, but over the scroll was just not the way she wanted to tell Winter about what was happening.
"She's asleep?" Winter looked around, seeing that the sun was still out, so it was a bit confusing with no context. "Did she overdo it on training?"
"No… Just… I promise we'll talk more when we get things situated." Willow assured and Winter was going to have to accept that answer.
Winter let out a light sigh, but she knew she'd get more answers soon enough. "Very well, but please don't leave anything out, Mother. I'll wait by my airship."
"Oh, you came in on your own this time?" Willow let out a short chuckle.
"It's for those to know I am onboard. Speaking of that, my request for time off is limited sadly, so if I'm needed for more than three day, I can't." Winter hated having to say that, but her duties were to be taken serious.
"That's why you're as high up as you are, sweetie." Willow said, as she was always proud of how far Winter had come. "I'm grateful that you even found time off for your sister."
Hearing how her mom phrased that brought a bit more worry to the Specialist, but she remained composed. "Of course. I'll see you soon, Mother."
"Bye for now, sweetie." Willow ended the call.
Winter looked at the school in the distance, and she took a moment to sigh to herself. "What's going on, Weiss…"
After asking Team JNPR to look after Zwei for a bit, Blake and Yang chose to go to try and unwind. "Anything you wanna talk about?" Yang asked her partner, while Ruby went to take a walk on her own, while Summer went to her office to work. "Cause… I don't got a lot on my mind…"
"I know what you have on your mind, and I'm sorry we can't do anything yet." Blake sympathized.
"Hmm." Yang sighed and took a small bite of her sandwich. After eating it, she set it down and shrugged. "Yeah it sucks, but sulking won't help either. I just don't really know what to do is all."
Blake blushed a little, since she had retrieved a book of hers from the dorm before the two went to the cafeteria. And with Yang not knowing what they could do while Weiss was dealing with family issues, she thought about sharing a bit more about herself. "I could… Show you some of the art I'm working on."
Yang perked up the moment she said that and let out a wide smile. "Really? Oh man, that sounds awesome. Show me." She tried leaning over her partner's shoulder, but Blake scooted over.
"H-Hold on. I'm still working on a few pieces, so… I'd like to only show what I've finished so far." Blake explained as she opened her book up, but kept the page contents out of sight of her partner.
The blonde brawler pouted a little, but she respected her partner's wishes and waited on her to show what she had. "Okay, okay, but don't forget to show me the ones you finish later too."
Blake's cat ears twitched a little under her bow, since Yang was showing more interest in her hobby than she thought. "Um, yeah, sure." She wasn't sure how to respond properly, so she flipped to a finished piece and showed the blonde.
It was art of an Okean, the kind of Grimm the team fought a lot of at the Sapphire Coast, so she had more to work with in terms of photographic memory. "Oh wow…It looks exactly like the Okeans we fought. You're an amazing artist, Blake."
"Fighting more of them helped me finish this up, so I guess it was lucky for me to be on that mission." Blake said, letting out a small smile from the compliment.
"Just a few looks at a Grimm and you can draw them spot on. Pretty damn impressive." Yang wrapped her arm around Blake, who blushed from the sudden move, while Yang didn't notice since she was looking at Blake's art. "Can I see some more?"
"Y-Yeah…" Blake knew the next page was a finished piece, so she flipped to it and showed Yang the art of Weiss on one page, in her wolf form, and a second wolf on the other page, one that was colored black, but with red highlights to the fur.
"Hmm? Ice Wolf?" Blake nodded to Yang's assumption. "Okay, well that one is Weiss, so who is the other wolf?"
Blake thought about Weiss' relationship with Ruby, and how the two always doted over each other in some way. "Well, I drew what I think Ruby would look like as a wolf… Since they're together."
Yang noticed the blush at that point and found that to be adorable. "Aww, you sooooo gotta show them now. This is too cute!" She wanted to grab the book to gush over it, but she kept herself behaved and simply smiled at the art in front of her. "Ey, you need to draw her as a pup too. She'll be so embarrassed." Her grin was showing.
"I'd rather not be frozen solid or bitten, thank you very much." Blake said while flipping to another page, but she gasped when she realized it wasn't done yet, so she instantly closed the book and pulled it to her chest.
The blonde felt her partner scooting away, so she held her hands up in a defensive manner. "Whoa. Calm down there, Blake. I'm not gonna try to peek."
Blake's cheeks got a bit redder, as she really didn't want Yang to see that specific page of her book. "S-Sorry. I'm not done with that piece yet…"
"Hey, don't worry. I promised not to look at the unfinished ones." Yang let out the pleasant smile that Blake knew she could always trust, so the cat Faunus started to calm down a bit. "How about you look at the ones you want me to see, take pics of them and show me that way so you don't accidentally show me one that isn't done yet."
The fact that Yang was coming up with a middle ground was something the cat Faunus appreciated, so she nodded in response. "O-Okay." Blake started doing just that, and Yang let out a small chuckle, but in the back of her mind, she was thinking about the art piece she caught a glimpse of.
"It looked like a cat and a dragon…"
"Hmm?" Weiss mumbled a bit in her sleep, but opened her eyes when she felt her mom nudging her to wake up. "M-Mom?" She slowly sat up and rubbed one of her eyes, only to see Willow offering her hand to her.
"Come on, sweetie. Someone wants to see you." Willow said in a soft tone, while Weiss took her hand and was helped out of bed.
The white haired teen was still a bit overloaded from what she had learned, but she was at least able to walk with her Mother at a normal pace. "Who wants to see me right now?"
"You'll see." Family is what she needed right now, so Willow continued walking with her daughter down the hall, while Weiss was wondering who it was.
As they got outside, Weiss' eyes widened, since the first thing she saw was a familiar airship, so she let go of her Mother's hand. "Mom… Is that-?"
"Yes. It is." Willow answered before she could finish her question.
Weiss took a few steps forward, her heart racing a bit as she looked as far as she could and saw her. "Winter…" She started running towards her older sister, the tears threatening to fall.
Winter didn't take long to notice her sister running towards her, so she took a few steps forward, her arms held behind her back. She took note of Weiss' pained expression.
"Winter!" Weiss stopped a few feet in front of her sister and took a few breaths. "Y-You're here? When… Why are you here? I mean… I don't mean to ask like that, but… I thought you'd be busy with-."
"Sister, take a moment and breathe." Winter waited, and Weiss lowered her head, taking a deep breath as Winter nodded. "Okay, now before you ask more questions, Mother told me you were-." She stopped when their Mother walked over. "Mother,"
Willow walked over to her eldest daughter and gave her a gentle hug. "It's good to see you, sweetie." She whispered the next part. "Thank you so much for being here." She pulled away from the embrace. "Weiss, I asked your sister to come over today. We… We have a lot to talk about."
Weiss lowered her head again as she stayed silent, not a good sign for Winter to work with. "You keep not explaining what you're talking about, Mother…" Winter said in an impatient tone, but not out of annoyance, but out of concern.
"I know… But you're here now. So let's find a private place to talk." Willow requested. "I'd have asked you to come to Weiss' dorm, but-."
"It's fine." Winter assured and the small family began walking in the courtyard together, while Winter took note of Weiss' silence. "There doesn't seem to be any students in that area." She said while pointing at the spot, and Weiss looked to see it was by her favorite tree to rest at with Ruby.
Willow nodded and they walked over, with Weiss gravitating over to the tree. "If it's okay… I'd like to sit by the tree." Weiss requested, and neither her Mother or sister would deny her that, so they nodded and watched as Weiss slowly sat down against the tree.
Winter stood next to her, looking down at her little sister while sighing a bit. "I'd like to know now. Please. What is going on, and why are you feeling this way, Weiss?"
She couldn't answer the moment she heard the question, so Weiss looked up at her Mother, who started sitting down. "I can tell her, sweetie." Willow assured as she brushed some of Weiss' hair from her face.
"O-Okay…" Weiss felt Willow wrapping an arm around her.
"Winter, I know you don't like to sit on grass like this, but-." Winter knelt down before her mom could finish talking, and the Specialist hand her hand on Weiss' shoulder. "Winter," Willow was thankful, but the next part she was going to have to say was hurting her.
"Something as trivial as grass won't ever be an issue, Mother. Now please," Winter couldn't wait any longer.
"Your sister… I…" Willow bit her lip, since she had to talk about the truth a second time. "She's-."
"I'm not a Schnee…" Weiss outright said it, making Willow gasp as she didn't expect her youngest daughter to do that, while Winter looked shocked.
Winter moved her hand off her sister's shoulder, not believing what she said. "Excuse me? What in the world are you talking about, Weiss?" When her sister didn't respond, Winter looked to Willow. "Mother, what are you trying to tell her? Is this some kind of joke?"
Willow watched as Winter stood up and looked upset with what she heard. "This isn't easy to talk about, Winter… Your sister-."
"Is sitting right there, so Weiss, tell me what you just said right now." Winter lost her patience, and Weiss sniffled a bit.
"I'm not a Schnee… I'm not." Weiss shook her head and looked up at Winter, a few tears falling down again. "Mother didn't give birth to me, Winter."
The shock of hearing it a second time got to the Specialist, and she stared at her little sister, knowing that the way she was crying meant she was telling the truth. "W-What," She turned around and held her hand against her head, trying to fabricate what she just heard.
Willow got up and looked ashamed. "I kept this from you both, and your brother… Honestly, I kept this from the whole world because I made a promise to her birth Mother."
"Her birth Mother…" Winter shook her head and turned back around, not looking happy whatsoever. "This is ridiculous. You're trying to tell me that my sister isn't-."
"Winter please…" Weiss slowly got up and hugged her, surprising the Specialist as Weiss gently cried into her chest. "Please don't say we're not sisters… Please…"
The pleading and breaking in her sister's voice pained Winter's heart. "W-What is going on… This… This can't be real." She wrapped her arms around Weiss and looked over at Willow. "Mother…"
"I'm so sorry…" Willow turned away, her guilt making her unable to even look at her eldest daughter. "Do you remember when I showed you that basket? The day I brought Weiss home."
Winter tensed up when she thought back to the day she met her little sister. "Y-Yes… You came into my room and… Showed me the basket that held Weiss in it. Mother, you-."
"I lied to you… I told you that I gave birth to her and that's why I was gone so long that day." Willow let out a somber chuckle. "Goodness… To lie to you both this long. I was always scared that you'd question why I didn't look pregnant back then, but… I suppose my lies kept that from happening."
Thinking about it then, Winter realized how she bit into her lies. "I… You never did look pregnant. But… But she looks exactly like we do, Mother. H-How do you explain that?" Winter asked while rubbing her little sister's back as she cried.
The question was that small bit of hope that Winter had that could prove Weiss was still her little sister by blood. "Because her birth Mother also had white hair and blue eyes." She sighed and rubbed her arm while turning back to face Winter. "She," Thinking of what to say, the Mother of the pained Schnee siblings continued. "She asked me to take care of Weiss, since she couldn't… And because of that, I took her in that day as my own."
"Oh my god…" Winter looked down at Weiss. "Little sister…" Weiss was shaking a little, and Winter was beginning to feel more pain in her heart, so she hugged her tighter, not letting go. "This, This is all so much,"
"Yeah…" It was Weiss who said that, as she kept her eyes closed and hugged Winter harder.
"Mother… I am not happy with you," Winter said it as blunt as she could. "You've kept this from us for years. How could you?" She felt Weiss pulling away, and the Specialist watched her sister taking a deep breath.
Weiss wiped her eyes and shook her head, trying to calm down. "Winter, I don't want this. I don't want you blaming Mother. I don't want things to change between us…"
"Nothing will change, but-." Winter stopped herself, thinking about what she was about to have said. "Why lie for this long?" She asked, focusing on her mother again.
"Because I made a promise to her birth Mother. And because I wanted you, Weiss and Whitley to live lives you could be happy with, so… If I had to keep a lie going for seventeen years, then I was prepared to do it." Willow admitted, showing no shame at that point.
Winter groaned and rubbed her temple. "I can't agree with that. Lying to your children. You raised us better than that."
Weiss wished they wouldn't argue, but she could say nothing at that point. "You're right. I shouldn't have lied. I should have found a different way, but I didn't. I failed there, and while I wish I could try again, I can't. But now, I can at least come out and say it… It doesn't change what your sister means to me. I love her the same way I always have."
"I've never worried about that." Winter stated. "Father is the kind to lie to us though. The kind to deceive us." She walked past her sister, who almost tried reaching out to Winter, but stopped when she could tell how upset she was.
"Winter, I know I lied, but don't you ever compare me to that man." Willow was starting to get upset herself, as her eldest daughter wasn't backing down.
"And why not? Seventeen years. That's how long you've lied about her life to all of us." Winter clenched her fists. "Did you even think of what that would cause?!" Weiss and Willow were taken aback by her raised voice.
"It shouldn't cause anything between you two!" Willow yelled back, but out of instinct, since living with Jacques for so long made her react to someone who'd raise their voice to her.
"This isn't about us! You had no right to lie to all of us like that!" Winter shouted back.
Willow bit her lip, but couldn't keep quiet. "I had no choice!"
"Stop!" Weiss yelled, so her Mother and sister turned to face her, as she stomped her foot against the ground. "I don't want things to change! So please… Just stop!" She started taking several breaths, so Winter quickly moved to her and tried holding her up from falling.
"Weiss, calm down." Winter knew she was overloading herself, so she gently sat her down against the tree. "We're not yelling. Just… Just calm down. Nothing will change. I swear it."
Weiss had her eyes closed while taking more breaths, and she felt Winter taking her hand, so she squeezed it and nodded, while Winter sighed and glanced over her shoulder at Willow. Her Mother mouthed an apology for the yelling, and Winter looked away, unable to fully forgive her Mother for the seventeen year old lie.
"Nothing will change between us… But I can't just ignore what Mother did."
Winter's a little peeved, but it's understandable with the situation that she's learned about here. As for Blake and Yang, well, more on them has come to light, and we'll see how far it can go.
To JJ- And even more family confrontation with a bit of moving Blake and Yang's relationship forward. It does suck not being able to help when you want to immediately, but they do understand why they have to wait. Hope you enjoyed Winter's interaction with the situation here.
To the guest on chapter 76- Ah, okay. I'll have to fix that at some point. Thanks for pointing that out.
I hoped you all enjoyed chapter 77. Remember, reviews are welcomed, but not required. See you all in chapter 78.