"What am I doing again?" Neela asked as Coco continued dragging her to the building's entrance before Neela finally managed a footing and continued following on her own. "I mean, I know that I'm on a training mission, but what else am I actually allowed to know?"
"Glynda wants to see what you can do without any stipulations and wants you to do it your way," Coco explained. "There will be a meeting in the woods ahead of you somewhere. Your targets are to make an incognito handoff of Dust and you're assignment is to 'eliminate' the one that made the purchase, we already know who they are working for, and to capture the one handing it off, we need to find out who they are working for."
"Do I just start?" Neela asked. Coco nodded.
"Head on in, they'll be informed of when to start," Coco told her. Neela gave a nod, sprinting into the woods with her bow in hand, careful not to make any noise as she made her way in deeper and her instincts and training began to kick in. She took a deep breath in and let it out, it had been a long time since she'd been set out on a proper hunt like this. She noted the cameras keeping an eye on her so that she could be graded, wondering who all was watching her as she progressed. She stopped dead in her tracks as she noted boot prints on the ground. She felt them over, noting that they were at least from today, her nose picked up on a familiar scent that she couldn't place entirely, but she knew belonged to a friend.
"So, there are decoys, right?" Yang asked watching the screen from the comfort of her living room as Blake brought her a glass of water.
"Yes, there are several students that were asked to take a walk in the woods with a few of their peers. All of the assignments were random, and none of them know if they're the targets or not, they've all been given similar instructions for interacting and orders to fight if Neela attacks, but not until she does," Blake reminded her.
"Care if I join?" Raven asked entering from the kitchen where her portal closed behind her. Blake turned quickly and grabbed her by the arm.
"I think for now you should go, she's still been a little off since the whole incident with you and Tai," Blake informed her.
"She can stay for now," Yang said. Blake glanced back at Yang bewildered for a second before releasing Raven and letting her pass. Raven stood behind Yang, watching the screen as Neela took to the treetops.
"You taught her all of this?" Raven asked. Yang looked up at her and nodded.
"After years of looking for you and hunting the White Fang, I learned a thing or two about tracking that I passed on to Neela," Yang informed her. Blake rubbed her forehead, hoping that things wouldn't get out of control.
Neela's mind was able to clear entirely, she'd assigned the scent with Lykos after a minute or so, her movement slowing as she decided to focus on him first. She felt at peace. This was where she belonged. The outdoors. Without the notion of the White Fang or the Stardust gang. In control of the situation. Aware of how her opponent would behave. Her heart beat slowly as she crept through the branches, keeping note of the footprints and following them along. She stopped abruptly, the wind carrying his scent to her as her ears picked up on his voice, having a conversation with someone on the ground several hundred feet away. She moved in closer, staying out of range of the two of them as she assessed her options.
She used her semblance to pinpoint them, laying down a line of fire Dust as she prepared to head down if they made the handoff. Ivory was with him, they had pointless conversation for a bit that began boring Neela, though it gave her time to think about potential opening moves if the need arose, and she more or less appreciated the fact.
"I've seen her use her power once to her full ability," Raven stated.
"What did I tell you about semblance training," Yang shot back at Raven who stepped back.
"We didn't do any more after that!" Raven replied flaring her anger at her daughter through gritted teeth. Yang gripped tightly at the couch, trying to take a deep breath for Blake's sake before losing her cool. "It was during a fight with Ebony!"
"When was this?" Yang asked. Raven froze for a moment, recalling that Yang didn't know about the incident and she held her tongue.
"When the Fang attacked them in the forest," Raven informed her. "I trained Ebony to be a brutal fighter without the ability to show mercy. She specializes in overpowering her enemy and if all else fails, trapping them within her semblance and finishing them off with unseeable attacks."
"Neela defended against that?" Blake asked.
"It's not safe for her to use her semblance like that at this age," Yang replied.
"She was amazing," Raven recalled. "I've only seen a semblance like that once before. One of that strength anyway." She looked at Blake. "It was as though she could predict the movements seconds before they happened."
"I thought you said the attacks were unseeable," Yang reminded her.
"They are! That's the only way she could have survived an attack like that," Raven explained. Yang stood up, her heart racing.
"No more talking about it," Yang pleaded, looking at the ground. Raven looked at her concerned before nodding her head.
"Okay," Raven agreed. Blake watched the two of them, pleasantly surprised at their attempts to find a middle ground, even though Raven was largely to blame for Yang's semblance mastery taking longer than it should have and Raven was unaware of the fact.
Meanwhile, Neela watched as Ivory exchanged the item, giving it to Lykos. She had one shot at this and to her luck, Lykos lifted the canister, turning it over to view the Dust within. Neela made her move, firing earth Dust arrows at Ivory to effectively ground her while leaping down, flipping her sword out as her feet met the ground and pulling herself forward with her grappling hook and slicing into Lykos. Lykos slid away, concealing himself and creating a Grimm that Neela used her semblance to see past, firing an arrow that grazed him, exploding as it struck a tree behind him. It threw him forward and he landed on his chest, using his whip to swing out of the way of another attack as Ivory swatted Neela away with her stone covered wings.
"Retreat to the old station at the railroad tracks, extraction is waiting for you," Neela heard Coco tell them over their comms with her heightened hearing. She grappled Lykos, pulling him in and clashing with him as he tossed her away with the whip, allowing her to spin herself as she careened away and grapple Ivory, pulling her through Lykos and knocking him to the ground. She needed to break his aura and take Ivory back, but Ivory's wings were going to prove problematic even if Neela had a solid plan. She fired an arrow, exploding beside Lykos who dove away from it and ran in to help Ivory who'd broken free, using her wings to fly just above the ground, spinning herself and kicking Neela in the jaw.
"We need to get to the station!" Ivory shouted to him.
"I'm trying!" Lykos yelled back. Ivory took off but only for a moment, Neela's fire Dust served its purpose as she swung through it with her ax and was met with a powerful explosion, throwing her back to the earth as Lykos scattered his shuriken to occupy Neela.
"She's calculated like you, and she knows how to use what she's got," Raven told her. "But what happens when things don't go as planned."
"What do you mean?" Yang asked.
"When I started training Neela she fought like a younger version of you, always directly through a problem. One solution," Raven told her.
"Like you'd know," Yang scoffed. Raven was hurt for some strange reason, wondering if this was what guilt felt like. "I wanted to teach her the basics first."
"You were well beyond basics at her age," Raven said.
"Everyone learns at a different pace, we had no choice when I was at Beacon, two of our friends died right in front of us, I lost my arm!" Yang shouted.
"Yang!" Blake yelled at her. Yang's eyes flared for a moment before focusing on Blake. "She's not criticizing you." Yang folded her arms. Raven had no right to tell her how to parent, she wouldn't have it.
"I'm not saying that you did a bad job, and I…" Raven stopped to choose her words. "I realize that you don't want her to get hurt, but she's ready to take that next step. I can show her how to fight better." They looked at the screen, watching as Ivory overpowered Neela, laying into her with her ax. "Watch."
Neela grunted as blow after blow from Ivory made it harder for her to maintain her defense. The girl was strong and Neela's fast and agile execution had taken a turn for the worst after one misstep that found her in an endless struggle to keep Ivory from attacking her. She didn't want to admit defeat, but with every passing second, the odds increased that Lykos, at the very least, would reach the train station and she would have failed the training. She thought back on her fights with Raven. The woman had taught her to be aggressive, but to also think her way out of a situation. She had a flashbang and a single electrified arrow specifically designed for neutralizing enemies. Both could be deflected easily.
After a moment, Neela thought of her way out, realizing that the next time she needed to be quicker about her countering move, but for now, she'd settle for this. As Ivory pulled back to swing down again, Neela took the small window of opportunity and paired it with her speed, planting her sword and pulling herself forward to kick Ivory in the chest. The force wasn't enough to topple Ivory but she stumbled back and Neela grappled past her to come up from behind. She maneuvered quickly, stopping on a dime before grappling back towards Ivory. Ivory turned around in full swing, prepared to clothesline Neela and end her training short. Neela's mind raced, finding a solution in time as she thought about possible moves, smirking to silently thank Raven. She released the grapple short, dropping her enough that she could safely grab part of the staff on Ivory's weapon and using the momentum from being swung around to reach her sword again. She lightly gripped the hilt, swiveling around it and planting her feet on Ivory's back, placing the lightning arrow between her shoulder blades before springing off.
She rolled off of the ground, pulling her sword out and flipping it into a bow as Ivory hit the ground behind her, down for at least a few minutes while she stopped Lykos. She found his footprints, feeling confident as she picked up her speed and overclocked her grappling hook. She spotted the train, and Lykos just seconds away from reaching it as she shot herself into the air and fired the flashbang, effectively halting the unexpecting Lykos who made a last-ditch effort to escape her with his semblance but paired against hers, it was no use. Neela pulled him in, using her bow's limbs to slam him against the earth and halt him, drawing back an arrow and aiming it between his eyes.
"I yield!" he shouted, blinking fiercely as his vision finally returned. She smirked, helping him to his feet as she returned to Ivory to take her in.
"That was insane!" Coco shouted pointing at the screen before looking over to Glynda for her reaction.
"Far too many of you are invested in that girl," Glynda replied shaking her head.
"You have to admit that it was good!" Coco noted.
"Yes, it was good. But would that have worked against Sun, per se?" Glynda inquired. "Ivory is one of the best second years, but with field experience, anyone would have been able to defend against that attack." Coco rolled her eyes and headed for the door of Glynda's office.
"They have a word for people like you," Coco mumbled.
"Crotchety?" Glynda asked with a smile. Coco laughed.
"I wasn't going to say it," Coco remarked. Glynda sighed.
"Yes, it was good, but we need them to be better than good," Glynda told her standing. "I want you to go over the fight with her in great detail tomorrow and run through counter scenarios. The rest of Remnant is preparing for something terrible and we need to be as ready as possible." Coco nodded and left the room, leaving Glynda in silence who opened the top drawer of her desk, removing a picture of Oz. "What would you have done? I'm trying my best, but I'm afraid it won't be enough."
"That was amazing!" Blake screamed. Raven stood with her arms folded, smiling as she beamed with pride, Yang watched the TV as they finished, Neela secured Ivory and began heading back to the school, allowing her to take a deep breath.
"Who would have guessed that my granddaughter was so good at fighting," Raven noted.
"You could have known sooner, had you ever been around," Yang replied without thinking. Yang's eyes softened, unsure exactly of her reason for being so harsh on her at the moment. She had to admit, Neela was getting better and maybe it was from Raven's help.
"What's going on out here?!" Shadow demanded. "I'm trying to play in my room!" She stopped as she saw Raven, racing to her and using a shadow clone to throw herself up onto her grandmother's back. "You're here!"
"I saw you yesterday," Raven reminded her. Shadow giggled.
"So?" Shadow asked. Raven smiled before glancing at Yang, clearing her throat before setting Shadow down and patting her on the head, crouching to meet her level.
"I think Mommy Yang would be happier if I left for now," Raven told Shadow.
"No," Yang stated as she stood. "She doesn't need to leave." Raven met Yang's eyes, both of them hesitant to say anything to each other. Raven simply nodded, smiling at Shadow who reflected Raven's emotion on her lips and in her eyes.
"I can stay for a while," Raven informed her. Shadow lit up, running to Yang and hugging her legs.
"Thank you, mommy!" Shadow declared before running back to Raven and dragging her off into the next room. The door closed and Blake slowly approached Yang, wrapping her arms around her wife.
"Thank you, Yang," Blake told her. "I'm proud of you, if for nothing else, at least for Shadow's sake."
"Yeah," Yang said dismissing her. She pushed Blake away, making her way to the door and opening it. "I'm going to go for a walk. I'll be back shortly."
"No, Yang," Blake replied. "I'm going with you." Yang shook her head before cocking her hip and smiling.
"Okay, thanks," Yang told her.
"Was it awesome? I bet it was awesome!" Eliana exclaimed as she played her card and moved her pieces across the game board. Titus looked the cards over and slapped them down on the table as he shook his head.
"Just once, can't I get a good hand?" Titus asked.
"He's such a sore loser," Ilia laughed.
"I'm convinced you're cheating!" Titus yelled. "You've got extra cards or something, don't you?"
"Where would I be hiding them?" Ilia inquired. "In my bra?" She leaned over towards him. "You wanna check?" He shoved her away.
"No, but you've never lost a game of this and we've been playing for months," Titus pointed out.
"Mad skill," Ilia laughed.
"Uncanny luck!" Eliana announced. She glanced at Neela who was biting her bottom lip. "Neela?"
"Raven's training applied well to the battlefield, but not so much Remnant: The Game," Neela sighed drawing laughter from her teammates. Titus smirked.
"It's nice to have you back, Neela," Titus said. Neela chuckled.
"It's been hard, but I'm trying," Neela told them. "Eliana is mostly to thank." Eliana blew her off.
"Pfft, please," Eliana said. "I was just telling a story. I really missed my calling, to be honest, I should have been an author."
"There's a difference between being good, and being entertaining," Titus explained drawing another bout of laughter.
"How did it go though?" Eliana inquired again. "You fought Ivory and Lykos, right?"
"Ivory seems tough," Ilia offered as she played her trap card and Neela and Titus threw their cards on the table.
"Come on!" Neela groaned.
"We have time for one more game," Ilia insisted.
"No," Titus replied without missing a beat and standing up. "Fourth quarter is a few days away, we need to study for the end of quarter exams."
"He's probably right," Neela agreed.
"Just tell me about the fight one more time!" Eliana begged.
"You're persistent," Neela told her exasperated. "You like hearing that I passed more than I like hearing that I passed."
"It just sounds like it was cool, that's all," Eliana replied putting the board game away.
"How about I help you study Dust mechanics instead?" Neela asked her.
"Can we cuddle?" Eliana requested. Titus and Ilia glanced at each other before smiling at Neela who was blushing.
"Sure," Neela agreed.
"It seems like all of you have been spending a lot of time out here recently," Blake told Yang as they approached the gravestone and Yang brushed it with her left hand. Yang stared at it for a long moment before returning to Blake and steadying her breath.
"It's one of the few places that I can be alone and feel like I can clear my head," Yang explained. "I don't talk to her too often like Ruby does, but sometimes I feel it's appropriate. Even though she died while I was still young, she always knew the right advice to give me and the perfect time to tell me. It's calming." Blake rubbed Yang's back and nodded.
"It's been a rough year," Blake said. "I'm just glad that I have you here or I'm not sure what I would do."
"Probably die from a panic attack," Yang joked. "Dealing with Raven is annoying but seeing the way you get when we see the White Fang…" Blake gave her a stern look as her ears flattened. "Sorry."
"What was she like?" Blake asked.
"What?" Yang replied confused as she looked over at her wife.
"Maybe it'll help your nerves if you try to recall Summer how she was," Blake suggested. "I know you consider her to be your mother more than Raven, right?"
"Right," Yang agreed with a nod.
"Try and think of what advice Summer might give you," Blake said. Yang nodded, recalling one moment vividly as she often did out along the cliffside.
"Summer!" Qrow called out as he sighed, carrying Ruby on one arm and Yang on the other. The two girls had a few scrapes, but Yang was crying uncontrollably as Ruby simply looked at her sister, unsure of what to do.
"Mommy, Yang crying," Ruby noted as Qrow set her down and she ran to Summer, grabbing her tightly.
"Where were they?" Summer asked Qrow as she rubbed Ruby's head, trying to calm her daughter's nerves before she began crying along with Yang.
"Heading for the north end of the island," Qrow told her. "Tai must be at Signal I take it?"
"He's providing for the family, Qrow," Summer reassured him. She knelt down and hugged Ruby. "Can you go play in the other room for a moment?" Ruby nodded and bounced away as her mother stood up and reached out for Yang. "I was in the garden and I thought that they were in the backyard." Qrow nodded, flapping his arms at his side with his thumbs hooking his pockets.
"I'm just glad that I came by and found them before a Grimm did," Qrow informed her. Summer smiled at him.
"Thank you, Qrow," Summer told him.
"That's all I was looking for," Qrow jested. "And maybe some of those amazing chocolate chip cookies."
"They're on the stove," she informed him. He nodded again and passed her. "Bring one to Ruby!" He glanced back at her with his mouth full.
"Mmhmm," Qrow complied. Yang had mostly stopped crying, she had no more tears left to give though her body still shook, clinging to Summer as tightly as she could as she gasped for air.
"What's wrong, my sunny little dragon," Summer asked Yang as she sat her on the table and grabbed her by the hands.
"Why won't my mom come back?" Yang inquired. Summer felt a great pain as she looked into her older daughter's eyes, knowing the answer that Yang wanted to hear, though she was unable to give it to her.
"Your mom is out there fighting Grimm, Yang, and she loves you more than you can imagine," Summer told her. "She wants to make sure you're safe because that's the best way that she knows to show her love."
"But I want her here with me," Yang whined. Summer wrapped her arms around Yang and pulled her in.
"And I'm sure that she wants to be here with you," Summer assured her.
"Tell her that I want her here," Yang demanded. Yang pushed Summer away, her eyes fiery and red. "I want her to come home now."
"Throwing a tantrum will not get you what you want," Summer sternly informed her. Yang's eyes returned to normal, almost filled with hurt as she held back more tears. "It's not that simple, Yang."
"But…" Yang stopped short as Summer kissed her forehead.
"When Raven is ready, she'll come back to you, okay?" Summer asked her. "I can be your mom for now until she does." Yang's eyes filled with tears again, but this time they were tears of joy. "Would you like that?"
"Yes!" Yang exclaimed throwing her arms around Summer to keep her from leaving.
"It's a shame that I never got to tell her how much that meant to me while she was still alive," Yang said. "And I've never called Raven 'mom' since that day."
"She was right you know," Blake noted. "Raven came back when she was ready."
"Do you think she was right about the rest of it?" Yang asked Blake as she looked out at the landscape below, the sun finally setting on the horizon at the end of what had begun as a long day.
"I can't speak for Raven, but if she was, I think that you're the only one who can decide that," Blake explained. "I can't entirely relate, I was the one who left home against my father's wishes, but they knew that I needed to learn who I was on my own. If you can find it in you to love her, forgiving her should be easy…" Blake sighed. "But it's not that black and white, no one would blame you if you feared she'd do it all over again."
"I want to forgive her for Shadow's sake," Yang admitted. Yang stared off into the distance as she balled her fists and shook with rage. Her hair burst into flames, turning to meet Blake's gaze from the corner of her eye. "But if she left us again I'd kill her."
When Raven is ready, she'll come back to you, okay?
No mom, it's not okay, because I'm not ready for her.
Will Yang forgive Raven? Next week, Chapter 109 - Coco vs. Orion!?
A big thank you to Helihi, Cadhla182, Carlomontie, Nliast, Y8ay8a, Sa-Dui, Diyaru4500, Demize00Zero, TheCipherNine, SketchHungry, Ookaminoki, Lightning-in-my-Hand, and Dishwasher1910. All of their artwork can be found at Deviantart, you can search Silent-Celica and under my favorites tab, I have a collection for NITE.
Until next week, stay classy!