So, I leave for basic on the 26th of this month. That means that, for a 4ish month span, I will have no access to my computer. It doesn't necessarily mean I won't be writing- pen and paper exists, after all. Still, my ability to write and continue this story will be nonexistent until my basic training is over. This story is NOT being abandoned. I am way too damn close to the end to abandon it now. I will try to upload another chapter, maybe even two, before I leave on the 26th.

Onto reviews: Someone asked why Sibyl didn't just heal Weiss and himself with miracles. The answer is simple: he can't. As explained in this story previous,ly "his faith in those gods were lacking, while Gwyn and Velka had always favored him." Thanks to everyone else who reviewed, gave some ideas, or complimented in general. Glad to see my pacing in turning this story from monotone to dark in tone was a gradual one, because that was the goal. I'll have a few more words at the end, but onto the chapter!

Glynda sighed, rubbing two fingers against her forehead to try and relieve her massive headache. It felt like she'd had this headache for damn ever since she met Sibyl. It had only really gotten bad back when him and Blake had been captured, but that seemed to follow with the revelation he was an undead of all things, then James arrived with his merry band of robots, and now, a breach on Vale had resulted in twenty-three casualties, including children.

Said attack had also put the sole protection of the Vytal Festival on James Ironwood of all people. Ozpin and herself were no longer in charge, simply advisers that James would, in all likelihood, refuse to listen to. Oh, not to mention: Sibyl was missing and ear, and one of her… yes, at this point, screw student-teacher relations. One of Glynda's friends was deaf.

They were asking her to set aside that friendship as a professional, because Ozpin had chosen her to evaluate if Weiss Schnee was fit to be a huntress. There wasn't a lot to evaluate, actually; it was a very cut and dry situation. Hearing was imperative to a Huntress. Without it, making calls in the field, communicating with civilians, heading the Grimm around her in the heat of a fight, it all became impossible. Without hearing, a huntress could hardly function.

But Weiss. The girl, she had come here to escape from the clutches of her father; she'd come here to prove she was more than just another Schnee. And now, in the midst of hers and Sibyl's blooming relationship, the soon-to-start Vytal festival that she'd been looking so much forward to, and her own learning of Sign language, Glynda was being chosen to make the choice if she could even continue attending Beacon.

Regardless of what decision was made, Glynda knew that Weiss wouldn't be allowed to enter the Vytal festival. Resisting the urge to scream, the blonde-teacher reflected on that a bit more. Weiss hadn't been able to stop talking about how excited she was to showoff in the Vytal festival. She was convinced that, with the help of Sibyl's sorceries, she'd be able to shock everyone and even beat Pyrrha.

That, in front of the whole world, Weiss Schnee would spit in her father's face and prove she was the best, that her choice to attend Beacon had been the right one. And now… Glynda was going to stomp on that dream.

Grabbing the glass of whiskey in front of her and downing it in one gigantic gulp, she slammed the glass back down. The liquid made her shudder, it made her throat burn, but God, a part of it just felt good.

There was also the matter of something else, something which made her decision all the harder. It also made her immediately begin making a draft to change some of Beacon's more archaic rules involving what they were to do with Huntresses and Huntsman who took injuries in the field that led to them being classified as disabled.

Because the longer she stared at the envelope on her table, one complete with the Schnee family crest, the sicker she felt about what would happen. Nothing could be easy, could it?

Life, Glynda concluded, just wasn't fair.

Weiss didn't feel anything when she'd been called up into Ozpin and Glynda's office, discreetly. She hadn't felt anything when the two laid out everything for her, how despite how proficient she was, how talented, being deaf was something that would put her and her whole team in danger. She certainly hadn't felt anything when they explained that, due to the deafness, she was being disqualified as a Huntress.

The only reason she hadn't felt anything was because she knew it was coming. A small part of her had hoped that with Glynda being one of the ones in charge, maybe they could scoot some lines. But it was unfair to expect that, and it was even more unfair to hold it against Glynda. After all, she was purely professional about it.

No matter what she told herself, Weiss was a liability. She wouldn't be able to hear anything in the field; she couldn't hear anything in her own bedroom. Everyone would have to work twice as hard to make sure she wasn't taken by surprise, to make sure that her lack of hearing was accounted for. Weiss had accepted that she might not be able to be a real Huntress from the moment the doctors had told her about her deafness.

She hadn't been ready for… this. The layout of just what was supposed to happen to her due to her disability. Gods, she was disabled now. She hadn't really thought about it like that, but they were right- Weiss Schnee was disabled. She was deaf. One of the most crucial parts of life just wasn't there for her.

It made sense, what they had planned in the case for disabilities. Of course, usually in their field, it involved more missing limbs and not deafness, but still. It made sense to return young Huntsman and Huntresses home to their guardian, so they would be in familiar hands and be able to deal with their injury. After all, Weiss couldn't just go into Vale and apply for a job. She was deaf. She couldn't even talk to people!

What was going to happen to Weiss Schnee was very simple and made a crude amount of sense.

She was going to be returned to the loving, caring arms of her father.

Helplessness. It was a feeling he hated, yet one he had grown far, far too familiar with. So familiar with it, in fact, that he was damn tired of it. For once, he was not going to bend to the whims of it. He wasn't going to sit back and watch as those close to him were hurt. He was going to solve things. He was going to fix things.

It was why he was scrunched over his desk, pieces of paper thrown and crumbled all across the room behind him. He, he had to come up with something. He was Sibyl of Lordran, a master of pyromancy and sorcery! And, if there was something that defined every sorcerer of legend, it was that they came up with a few spells of their own, be it a school of spells or a few unique ones in particular.

He had to come up with something to… help Weiss's deafness. He didn't want to say fix, because nothing about Weiss needed to be fixed. He had to help, though. He had to. It was more important than attending some stupid class about history that he had no interest of. It was why he'd skipped today without hesitation, and no fool was dumb enough to say anything about it.

His initial desire had been to spend time with Weiss, but she had requested time alone. It burned his heart to give it to her, but Sibyl had listened. He could understand how she was feeling; sometimes, when everything went wrong, you simply wanted to be by yourself. He'd requested the same thing when he'd awoken from the tail-end of Blake and his own capture incident.

Still, while Weiss didn't want him helping her get through this with physical comfort at the moment, he could be here and try to figure out a solution. That solution? Soul Sorcery. He'd thought about pyromancy, but the flame could not do what sorcery could. Sorcery was special. It could do damn near anything- or so he was inclined to think.

Soul energy was amazing. There had to be some sort of way for it to amplify sound, to translate it directly to a person from the surrounding area. Maybe even just another way to listen to the soul energies around a person, because that would practically be as good as hearing.

If sorcery could turn one transparent, repair seemingly irreversible damages, and create full illusions, there had to be a way for it to help Weiss.

Design by design, he went through, each one of varying degrees of worthlessness. One of his earliest designs had been a soul energy that surrounded the person casting almost like a mist. From there, the hope was for him to come up with some way for it to directly translate sound, either through things like a general feeling or some sort of shock. After all, Weiss could make do without conversation; the biggest thing was enabling her to fight as a Huntress.

The issue with the idea was it would take far too much energy to keep up, and it was also... annoying? He had tried to imagine constantly fighting in mist, and it sounded awful. Certainly not something Weiss might appreciate.

A more simple spell he came up with was a soul-connection, connecting two people's soul in a distant way that might allow for telepathic communication. Again, these were all just ideas- further development was needed before he could even imagine something like that working. But, even with that spell, the problem was it only solved speech, not everything else she'd need to continue being a huntress.

Everything else he'd come up with had been just as bad for what was needed.

Being blind in one eye, while unfortunate, was something he'd been able to adapt to and overcome with some troubles, thanks primarily to his countless experience. He still recalled his earliest bumbles, being blind-sided by simple beasts and in private spars. Even still it could affect him if his opponent was particularly good. Still, it was limited vision, not a lack thereof.

And similarly, hearing. If Weiss could still kinda hear, she might be able to survive. Adapt. But she couldn't hear at all, and sound was everything in a fight. It stopped one from being ambushed; it was far more central to situational awareness than seeing was. Without the ability to hear, one was practically deadweight in a fight.

Weiss, an aspiring Huntress, was now without this crucial detail.

It didn't matter what he came up with. No matter how many awful concepts he came up with, thought deeper on, and dismissed, unless the soul could simply repair her hearing, then this endeavor, this… this hope that he might be able to help the one most precious to him, was worthless.

There was no replacement for hearing. There simply wasn't. Nothing he could do besides healing her ability to hear would ever help. And so, Sibyl was forced to face a terrible conclusion: he was helpless. Again.

"Gaah!" He screamed, standing up at his desk and flipping it, uncaring as pencils and papers went flying everywhere. Why was he so worthless?! He should have stood up to Ozpin. He knew something would go wrong on the girls' trip. Something always did, but he had allowed himself to relax. To believe that, since Sif and that Huntsman were there, things might work out okay.

He stayed standing for a few moments, staring at the mess he had caused in his anger. His breathing stayed deep, and his eyes snapped to gaze at Solaire's helmet nearby. Slowly, he sat back down in his chair, leaning back and sighing.

The clicking of his door opening made his eyes, previously closed, snap back open. Great. Someone was going to see this mess and think him absolutely insane. Well, better to not put it off. Glancing back over his shoulder, his angry scowl faded into a flat expression at seeing it was Weiss who had come to his dorm. She was looking around the room in confusion, slowly making her way towards him.

She stopped, leaning down to pick up a piece of paper before unfurling it into something readable.

Sibyl's turned his head back straight, not willing to look at her. He was failing her. He had to come up with something. There had to be something.

The undead said nothing when she wrapped two arms around his neck, leaning in close and hugging him. The usually comfortable feeling left him feeling quite hollow. What good was it? What good was he?

Weiss unfurled herself from him, grabbing him by the shoulder and forcing him up out of his chair. She led them to his bed, and as they sat down together, he finally realized Weiss was holding something outside of his worthless concept papers.

It was a letter, one with her family crest on it. He felt his heart drop when he noticed her hands shaking as she tried to present it to him. He took it from her hands gingerly, doing his best to ignore her choking sobs. She wasn't even able to hear them, was she? Sickening.

Sibyl frowned, giving the letter a browse. It was from her father. He quite hated the man.

Said hatred only grew as he read more and more of the letter. It was… an arrogant letter. There was no concern in the letter, only the words of a grouchy, child tyrant who masqueraded as a man. The letter, it read almost as if he was… smug about her injury. Because he outlined that she had failed, that her deafness was disqualifying her as a Huntress, and she would be returned to Atlas soon so they could discuss her proper future.

Atlas. Weiss had often spoken of her home fondly, but he'd always seen through the lies. Sibyl crumbled the paper he had previously been reading, slamming it into the bed beside him and breathing deep through his nose so he wouldn't accidently light it on fire.

Slowly, he turned to face Weiss, grabbing one hand and wiping a few tears away. He grabbed the paper she'd been holding, pushing it against his thigh and using a pen to write a quick message.

'You're not going anywhere. I will handle this.' And he had a plan to handle this, all beginning with a certain Atlas General who was relying on him to win a war that threatened the world. He'd been willing to do it on goodwill alone, but now… now he had a price.

As he stood from his bed, going to leave this room and deal with things, Weiss snatched his hand. "S-Sibyl, it's useless. I'm not a Huntress anymore, and… my father, he's a tyrant. He has connections everywhere- nothing we do will matter!" Sibyl closed the distance between them in an instant, pulling her in for a passionate kiss.

He didn't know how long they kissed, just that he helped it got the point across that he wasn't going to let anything happen to her.

Eventually, after their lips separated and he was done staring into her beautiful eyes, he took to writing on the paper again. God, he wished she could hear the conviction in his words. But no, she would have to read them. 'Please, Weiss. Trust me. I will not allow you to be taken against your will. I promise.' She didn't say anything after that, simply curling into a ball on his bed. He hesitated, wanting more than anything else to hug her, to comfort her, but he needed to find General Ironwood now.

Not looking back for fear it'd break him, he walked across his room with a confident stride he didn't feel before finding himself standing in the familiar hallway. He shut the door behind him and gave a long sigh, resisting the urge to go back in there with Weiss. Instead, he began making his way to Ozpin's office, one where General Ironwood now resided.

General Ironwood was under no illusions about why Sibyl had suddenly busted into Ozpin's office, interrupting a meeting between himself, Glynda, and Ozpin. He wasn't intimidated by the action, either. In fact, ever since he heard about the situation with one Weiss Schnee, he'd been expecting this to happen. It was slightly sooner than he had expected it to happen, but maybe that was because he'd underestimated how much Sibyl cared.

When Glynda took a step back and Ozpin sucked in a breath, James Ironwood took a step sideways and presented himself fully to the young man. General James Ironwood was not a man who got intimidated… though, he would admit, staring into Sibyl's grey eyes was intimidating.

"Weiss has received a letter explaining how she is to return home, stating her… deficiency in disqualifying her as a Huntress. Is this true? Were you three aware of this?" Ironwood nodded without hesitation at his prodding question. There was no point in beating around the bush. Weiss Schnee was now deaf. She was unfit to be a Huntress.

"Regardless of your feelings towards the girl, she's unfit to continue as a Huntress," James explained carefully and without emotion, "If we were to put her out in the field, she'd only be endangering herself and others." He wasn't happy about Weiss's situation, but it was a reality. Their field didn't lend itself very well to happy endings.

"I don't care what you think, General." Sibyl explained, marching up to him and clenching his fists, "In fact, I don't care what the official laws state, if Weiss is by all means unfit to be a Huntress. She is going to stay here," the undead stated as if he was the headmaster of the school. That was the confidence in his tone. The power.

Sharing a look with the other two adults in the room, and almost wishing Dusk was here to reprimand him before he began prodding the young man in front of him, Ironwood held his tongue when Glynda sighed and took a step forward.

"I don't like it anymore than you do, Sibyl. But, as of now, Jacques Schnee is her legal guardian, and while she is over eighteen and technically an adult, Beacon has… rules and infrastructure in place for Huntsmen and Huntresses injuries in the field." It was certainly one way to describe them. Say what you will about Atlas, James had at least updated their standards.

"Rules that involve sending a girl back to the man she hates are hardly rules worth following, Glynda." Sibyl stated with a bit of ice at the tail-end of his tone. It seemed that his close relationship with Glynda wasn't even enough to shield her.

"It is an unfortunate situation," Ozpin piped in finally, "but if she were to be returned to her father, it would not be permanent. Only temporary until she had the means and ability to-"

"Shut up," Sibyl spat, and the room went deafeningly quiet. No one told Ozpin to shut up. The undead began pacing back and forth, furling his fingers and allowing a flame to dance in his palm. "I've put up with a lot since my arrival. I've done a lot to help- I've lost an ear and nearly died protecting a world that isn't even my own!"

His breath went ragged for a moment as he glared at all of them, his gaze only slightly softening at Glynda's gaze. "You three are going to do something to fix Weiss's hearing and her status as a Huntress. General, I've seen the technology you're capable of- I refuse to believe you can't resolve her hearing issues."

Ironwood raised an eyebrow. "Atlas doesn't have that sort of tech, unfortunately. We've never had a need to develop it, compared to-"

"Well," Sibyl interrupted, "now you have a need to develop it."

This was an interesting opportunity. Fixing Weiss Schnee's hearing issues wasn't a large issue, and in fact, would hardly take any of his attention at all. But Sibyl was technologically illiterate. He came from the medieval ages, so it made sense, but still. For all his wisdom, for all his strength, for all his raw intellect that showed in his sorceries, he didn't understand how things worked.

And that meant James could lie.

Standing up straighter and to his full height, James sent a cool glare at the boy in front of him. "You would have me reroute whole science divisions for one girl? Do you have any idea the kind of work they do? It's the kind that helps the masses. Millions. Everyone."

"I do not care, General. I am done caring." James almost smiled, but instead he kept his expression flat.

"You have no leverage here," Ironwood tried to interject, and Sibyl laughed.

"No leverage? General, I have all the leverage. If I recall correctly, you asked me to document all of my accumulated magic knowledge. Not just the spells, but the theories, how the soul works." Sibyl paused, taking a step closer to him. "You even asked I break sacred vows and give you my miracles. I even agreed to do all of this, out of the goodness of my heart… but not anymore. The condition for my accumulated magic knowledge is simple: find a cure for Weiss's hearing, be it based in technology or something else.

Sibyl allowed the words to sink it before continuing. "Until then, you will reinstate Weiss as a Huntress still being evaluated."

"Sibyl," Glynda began to explain, voice pleading, "if it was someone unknown, we might be able to, but this is a Schnee. The legal troubles if-"

"If you cannot do the only thing I've asked of any of you, in return for all that I have done, than perhaps I have wasted more time here than I thought!" Sibyl declared, turning his attention to Ozpin with furrowed brows,. "I haven't come in here like a child demanding evidence of Lordran. I've been more than understanding that these things take time, and now, when I finally ask for something back in this relationship, you try and dismiss me!?"

Ironwood took a deep breath. "Twenty-three people died during that breach, Sibyl. Including children," he added, gesturing backwards towards the city of vale behind them through the window. "You're asking me to divert millions in research cost, in time we could spend developing new weapons against the Grimm so what happened just last week doesn't happen again. All of this to help one girl who's not even dying- she'll be able to live a near-normal life!"

Sibyl was silent for a few moments before he almost whispered. "But she will not be a Huntress."

"Countless children want to be huntresses and fail to do so, Sibyl. Should we develop the means for them to do so, too?" Nobody said anything, so James decided to push a bit further. He wanted to see what made the man who was going to save the world tick. "You're trying to leverage me to help one girl over the possibility of helping millions. You're from a time a lot different than ours, so I don't expect you to understand just what my scientists are constantly doing. It is critical."

"It means more than a dozen students at this school," James explained, "Are you willing to push all of that aside for one girl? Are you that mad?"

Everyone waited for a response, and Sibyl's didn't disappoint.

"Yes. And until I see tangible evidence that you are working towards a solution for Weiss's deafness… I won't be giving you my countless pages of documentation. I am willing to swing by your research facility, however, if you reinstate Weiss as still being evaluated. Until that happens, I won't be helping you with anything." So, he stood firm, hmm. Twisting him hadn't been so easy this time as the last.

"Glynda," Ozpin interjected from behind, "I do believe we will have to prolong our evaluation of Weiss Schnee's ability to continue as a Huntress." Glynda hummed softly, nodding thereafter.

"You're being selfish, you realize," James called out as Sibyl turned his back to them, returning to the elevator that had brought him here. Everyone could be selfish, but he'd been under the impression Sibyl was above it.

"I don't care to listen to someone who's funded by Jacques Schnee. Good bye."

It took a few moments after the elevator door to close before someone spoke, breaking the silence that had overtaken them. "I'm glad he did that," Glynda admitted, blowing a bit of hair out of her face. She was looking at him with cautious eyes. Maybe he was a better actor than he thought?

"So am I," he admitted to the surprised looks of those around him. He rose an eyebrow. "What? You do realize Winter Schnee is one of my closest commanders, and she cares for Weiss very much." He paused, tilting his head. "In fact, I suspect she would have forced me to help Weiss regardless."

Glynda sagged in relief, her shoulders losing a bit of the stress in them. "I'm glad we're all on the same page as far as helping Weiss goes. I've been learning Soul Sorcery next to Weiss since just a bit after Sibyl's arrival, and… well, I care for her. More than most of the students here, at least. I'm glad she won't be made to go back to a father she hates more than the Grimm."

She turned back towards Ozpin. "How exactly are we going to defend keeping Weiss here? Jacques is going to be furious."

Ozpin waved off her worries, turning around in his chair to face the far window. "I believe that is a concern for James to deal with." Despite himself, he couldn't help but chuckle. Jacques was a worm he didn't like working with, but the man had money and a lot of funding.

Sighing, James ran a hand through his hair as he stared at the elevator Sibyl had left from. He couldn't help but smile softly, though it flickered briefly when he wondered if maybe he had pushed the boy a bit too far. Ironwood was helping for a fruitful relationship, after all. A long one, too. There was so much he could do for all of them, and he didn't even realize it.

And, honestly, fixing Weiss's hearing shouldn't be a huge issue. It wouldn't be done soon, but with two of his research teams focusing on it, they should get it figured out within four to six months. And he thought about diverting more, but at a certain point, it became too many people for a somewhat simple issue. The primary reason he still thought of more than two people was due to what Sibyl was able to offer them was impossibly important. What he could contribute to the world was worth more money than Jacques Schnee had in his whole bank account.

The best thing to come out of all of this was the discovery that Sibyl was very close with Weiss. She might be something to keep him anchored here, to make him forget all about his so-called home. If that was the case, then James would have won without ever doing anything.

Besides, this would put Winter in a good mood, especially when he explained what Sibyl had done. His second-in-command had been dreading having to take Weiss home. Winter was supposed to arrive today. Hopefully this put everyone in a better mood. In fact, he was going to give her a call and update her as soon as this meeting ended. Speaking of…

"Right, well… back to the subject at hand." The mood plummeted into a much more serious tone. After all, deciding who might be their new Maiden was serious business. Doubly so, in fact, if it might be the Princess he had found himself falling for as of late.

Yang was about five seconds away from tearing Beacon apart, because she had come back from classes to find Weiss in Sibyl's room, curled up in a ball on his bed, sobbing her heart out. And why? Why was she like this? Because they had 'evaluated' her as a Huntress and decided she was unfit. Weiss, unfit as a Huntress?

If Weiss was unfit, then what were Cardin and his little three stooges?! Weiss could probably beat them deaf and blind-folded! Still, Yang wasn't the only one furious. Apparently, Weiss had explained through her tears, Sibyl had left like a man on a mission to do… something. Something to keep Weiss here. It was the only reason she wasn't going up to Ozpin and demanding a meeting right away.

Ruby was somehow even worse than the both of them. She was crying harder than Weiss! Blake was really the only one keeping it together, and that was a sort of tentative 'keeping it together' because she seemed equally pissed. Blake just… expressed things in a different way.

What they had all been doing to try and pass the time, though, was go through the papers on the ground that Sibyl seemed to have thrown everywhere. Also: his desk was flipped upside down, which… made a lot of sense. Fireball was hard to get frustrated, but he could get frustrated. And, much like a fireball, when he got frustrated, he sorta'… exploded. Figuratively, at least.

And, apparently, when he was under stress, he could come up with some crazy ass ideas. Going inside someone's soul? Connecting two souls telepathically? It all went over her head, especially when he started talking about flow and natural soul energy, but it was all interesting. Weiss seemed to make some sense of it, though, and her crying had gotten less sad and more joyful when she saw just how hard Sibyl was working to try and help her.

It was another thing. Whenever Sibyl described Weiss in his writings, he always said help. Never fix. A small thing, but when Ruby had pointed it out and explained it to Weiss, she'd finally smiled. It was definitely progress.

This whole ordeal, though, sucked. All her fairy-tails? All the excitement she imagined life as a Huntress could entail? Going far-distant places, saving people, stopping evil-doers and Grimm? Yang had enough of it. Because while she had sorta done all of those things, there were a lot of things she hadn't imagined.

The stories didn't mention finding one of your closest friends in a train with her stomach sliced open, her bleeding out of the back of her skull because someone had slammed her into the ground and had planned on cutting off her fingers and shoving them into empty eye sockets.

The stories didn't mention accidentally stepping on a woman's corpse in the middle of a fight against Grimm because if you so much as hesitated for even a second you'd be joining them, dead on the ground with frozen eyes that refused to close and a look of stricken horror on your face as you watched your best friend die or your parents or Ruby and oh god there had been children-

"Y-Yang!" Blake hissed, shaking her shoulder. Yang acted involuntarily; she threw out a fist, one which slammed into her partner's stomach. When her mind finally stopped panicking enough to realize what she did, Yang couldn't even breathe. Everyone was silent in the room for a few moments, and nobody said anything when Blake embraced Yang in a hug.

"It's okay, Yang," Blake insisted, rubbing her back as she tried to get her breathing under control. She wasn't going to cry. What did she have to cry about? She hadn't been cut open. She wasn't deaf. It wasn't her family and friends out there dead in the streets. What did she have to cry about?

Pushing Blake off her and running a hand through her hair, Yang took a deep breath. Right. Everything was fine- Ruby was still alive. Blake was alive. Sibyl was alive. Weiss, while deaf, was alive. Everything was fine. Except it wasn't, and it was never going to be fine. That was what life as a Huntress was all about.

"Sorry. I, uh… got lost there for a second." Ruby nodded knowingly at her words, and somehow, that made Yang even more sick.

"Being a Huntress isn't exactly what we'd all thought it would be, huh?" Ruby admitted, voice not as chirp as it should be. She was so young. What if Ruby died out there? Yang had dismissed the thought, because, hey, they were the good guys. They were so skilled. Then she'd found Weiss with her stomach cut open.

"It's… different," Blake admitted, rubbing at her arms. A sniffle of tears caught all their attention, and they froze when they realized it was coming from Weiss. Yang's face transformed from one of sadness to shock.

"Oh, shit. Weiss- she can't hear us, and we're just talking around her-"

Ruby began to approach Weiss, grabbing some paper to try and apologize, but she, somehow, spoke through her own cries. "No! Get out! Just, just! Get. Out."

They all listened, leaving before waiting outside the door awkwardly. They… they weren't just going to leave Weiss alone, but Yang understood why she was mad. "We really screwed that one up, huh?" She muttered, rubbing at the back of her hand. None of them wanted to admit it, but Weiss was deaf, and that changed things. Everything was different.

Yang wasn't exactly sure how long they all stood outside of Sibyl's dorm, just… waiting. But, eventually, Sibyl had arrived, his expression, if Yang had to describe it, tired. He looked drained, and upon seeing them, he rose an eyebrow.

"We… we sorta screwed up with Weiss. Started having a normal- I mean, a conversation, and she couldn't hear anything," Yang explained softly, and Sibyl nodded knowingly.

"You will adapt. Please, come in; I'll deal with Weiss's rage if there is any." He opened the door, entering… well, it was hard to describe. Yang noticed that he entered not with noise, but with a lot of vibrations; he threw the door open, shaking a few things on the walls. He stomped into the room, shaking the floor to the best of his ability. And, before any of them had said anything, Weiss had already turned around and seen him enter.

No one had to grab her on the shoulder, get her attention. Weiss was aware of what was around her.

If it was at all possible, Yang would have turned invisible. That was how someone who actually cared dealt with things. Sibyl… he was just better than them at this, wasn't he? He'd thought about everything. He was trying to make Weiss feel as normal as possible, not remind her about her issues. God, they were all idiots. Ruby and Blake looked rather downtrodden too, so at least it wasn't just Sibyl who realize this.

"So, Sibyl, what's the-" He held up a hand, shushing Ruby before she could say anything more. He moved over to his flipped over desk, grabbing a notebook off the ground and a paper. Everyone just sat there in silence as he wrote rapidly. It was awkward, but it was better than Sibyl treating Weiss like an afterthought.

How would it have felt, she wondered, if Sibyl had explained everything to them verbally, then done what he was now doing? It would have been insulting. It would have hurt.

As he finished writing, he moved next to Weiss on his bed, taking a seat next to her and holding the page in front of the both of them. As Weiss read, so did he, but aloud.

"Weiss, you will not be returning home. I did not make any of you aware, but I met with Ironwood during the day you left on your trip. It is why I was unable to see you all off. He asked that I share intricate knowledge on pyromancy, sorcery, and what miracles I do know, so he might upgrade the world's defense. I agreed at no cost, after some… pushing.

He paused, clearing his throat before continuing. "Right. Well, I've spoken with him. He will be setting his-" whatever Sibyl was going to say was stopped, because Weiss tackled him onto his bed and began what looked like the start of a make-out session. Sibyl looked ready to enjoy it for what it was worth, but slowly pushed Weiss off with a massive smile, gesturing towards the rest of them in the room.

Weiss blushed, turning to look at the ground, but not before scooting closer to Sibyl and holding his hand closely. "As I was saying," Sibyl said with a slight laugh, leaning his head against Weiss's, "I strong-armed Ironwood. He will not get any of my information until I have tangible evidence that his research teams are developing some sort of hearing device to help Weiss. Additionally, opposed to sending her home, they have opened up Weiss's status as a Huntress as still under evaluating. It will remain that way until your hearing troubles are solved, Weiss."

Yang cheered, bumping a fist. "You're freakin' amazing, Fireball," she declared, and at that, Sibyl's smile faded slightly. He grabbed his pencil and notepad, beginning to write but hesitating. He shook his head, powering through it.

"It… it does mean Weiss will not be able to participate in the Vytal festival. I'm sorry. I… I wish I could-" Weiss just pulled the bumbling oaf closer, hugging against the side of his body without a worry in the world.

"It's fine," Weiss declared, though her voice suggested it was less than fine. She still seemed mostly happy though. "You did more than enough." She gave him a small peck on his cheek, and the undead blushed and rubbed at the back of his head.

He wrote something down quickly, and Weiss slapped the back of his head playfully thereafter. It was… awkward, to see them interact but not really be apart of it. It wasn't bad; it was cute, if anything. Ruby rushed across the room, stealing the notebook out of his hand and pencil, writing it in her own messy style that clashed so heavily with Sibyl's.

"This is awesome! Weiss gets to stay as a Huntress, and Sibyl is super cool- who else would strong arm General Ironwood?! Honestly, who cares about the Vytal festival? We'll just win the next one!" Ruby paused for a second, frowning before writing a bit more and handing it to Weiss.

"And… compared to what we just did, competing in it just feels… empty." Yang nodded at that, as did Sibyl and Weiss. Really, they wanted to parade them all out there like dancing monkeys when they could be doing actual good. The Grimm didn't stop- maybe everyone else didn't realize that, but they sure did.

Sibyl snatched his notebook back, writing a quick sprawling note and reading it aloud for all of them as Weiss tried to stay up to date. "This calls for a celebration!"

A knocking on the door interrupted them, and Blake was the first one to answer.

The woman standing there was… imposing, prissy, and proper, with a military uniform that demanded respect and long, flowing white hair which complimented her beauty. She looked like Weiss all grown up. Wait…

"W-Winter?" Weiss asked with hesitation from her position on the bed. Winter smiled softly, if only for a moment, before it flattened into a much more serious expression.

"Please," Winter began, giving a look around the room as she entered, "I would like some time alone with my sister."

Sibyl had been a pain to escape from, but eventually, Weiss had managed to do so. He had wanted more than anything to stay at her side- and Weiss had half a mind to let him, after what he'd done. He had fixed everything. He had placed himself against General Ironwood, against Atlas, for her. He had spat in her father's face without a care, and she nearly giggled at the thought.

She would, eventually, be able to be a Huntress again. Sure, she wasn't going to be able to participate in the Vytal festival, but who cared? She felt so vain; she had been so concerned with showing off, with proving herself before all of this. Beating Pyrrha had been one of her biggest priorities. Now, she was just… happy. And now she was in an open courtyard with her sister, who looked confused with how to proceed.

It hurt, but she was in too good of a mood to let it drag her down. Sibyl had all but forced his notebook into her hands when she had finally assured him that it was fine, that Winter wasn't going to try and take her away- which, initially, she had thought was what was going to happen as well.

Weiss bit her lips before she spoke, hoping that everything came out right. No one had corrected her yet, and she was inclined to think someone would have rather than let her look like a fool. Sibyl, at the least, would have said something.

"How are you?" Speaking without hearing yourself speak was so… odd. She could feel her jaws move, could feel the back of her throat, but she could never be sure if she was actually speaking. Winter hesitated on how to respond, so Weiss held up the notebook and pencil with a sheepish smile that did a lot to mask how she was really feeling.

Winter took it, writing for a few moments before sliding it back to her. 'I am… well. Better now that I see you're in good hands.' Weiss rose an eyebrow at that, one which Winter raised right back.

"What do you mean?" She maybe-asked. Maybe she should just start writing everything out, too? It would make it easier to keep track of.

Weiss waited patiently as Winter began to write once more. 'I received a call from General Ironwood that one Sibyl of Lordran barged into Ozpin's office, interrupting a meeting between himself, Ozpin, and Glynda Goodwitch, with one express purpose: my sister.'

"I apologize for his behavior," Weiss began, "Sibyl can get… worked up. He's really quite-"

Winter waved off her words, writing at a rapid pace.

'Please, Weiss. He told General Ironwood, and I quote: "I don't care what you think." He went on to say that he didn't care what official laws stated, that regardless of if you were technically unfit to be a Huntress, you would be staying here. He also told Ozpin to, and once again, quote: "shut up"'

Weiss felt her face burn red, both in embarrassment and something else. Sibyl really had undersold exactly what went on up there, didn't he? "He was just… angry. I promise, he's-"

The younger Schnee sister went silent as Winter started laughing, which was made obvious by her facial features. Weiss could almost hear the laugh, but realized it was just memories. Winter began writing again, and Weiss was ashamed to admit she fidgeted in her seat.

'Weiss, I'm not angry with him. He was ready to force General Ironwood to reroute multiple research teams all for one girl. My sister. How could I be mad about that?' Weiss didn't say anything at those words, and she nearly flinched back when Winter laid a hand over hers before pulling the notebook back.

Conversing like this… it was such a pain. But it was sweet that everyone still wanted to talk to her.

'I don't know what I expected out of your first boyfriend, but he most certainly wasn't it. He's built like a man, too. Maybe the three of us should have some family bonding, hmm?' Weiss squealed, covering her face with both hands and trying to ignore that her sister had just suggested a threesome with her boyfriend!

Winter laughed, though Weiss, again, couldn't hear it. The mood at the table faded before Weiss picked up the courage to speak again. "Will they be able to help me?" She wondered, and Winter nodded before writing.

'I expect there'll be a solution to your issue within four-to-six months. This sort of technology is well within Atlas's capabilities, it's just not something we've seen as needed in the past. I was planning on pressuring Ironwood to assist you regardless of Sibyl's bold actions. Still, his demands have sped up the process. It likely would have taken a year or two if I was the only one pressuring him to assist you. Instead of just one or two scientists working on a solution… you'll have a whole team.'

It was an absolutely massive relief, and Weiss visibly sagged. Six months… Weiss could survive without hearing for six months. She needed to stop looking at this in a negative way: this was just an extended opportunity for her to learn another language. And sign language could help team RWBY in the future as well, regardless of when she got her hearing back.

'Now, before we get into your combat abilities, or discuss your semblance… tell me a little about Sibyl. How did you two meet?'

Weiss sighed softly, as she remembered going through the walkways of Beacon only to find her path blocked by a massive man, one who had a, somehow, even larger greataxe resting against his shoulder, and one who was staring above at the sky like a complete buffoon.

Her buffoon.

"It's a nasty scar," Cinder commented as he glared at his own reflection in the mirror, "but it's almost fitting." Hmph. Chester appreciated the lies and comforting words, but the fact of the matter is he was rough looking. She stepped closer to him, wrapping two arms around his waist and slowly moving back to their bed. Chester allowed her to pull him, not able to get too mad.

"I'm going to kill that girl," he commented idly, imaging all the ways he could do it. Oh, he would make good on his previous promises. This time, he wouldn't turn his back to his opponent like a complete imbecile. Really, it was sad he'd been bested in such a pathetic way.

Cinder laughed softly as the two sat down. "I'm sure you will. But first, we need to get rid of Sibyl." Yes, it was a central part of their plans. "Is there a reason he hasn't come to talk to you yet? I figured you'd be higher on his suspicion list."

Rolling his eyes, the deranged killer fell back on the bed fully. "It's that mutt, Sif. He trusts the dog's nose more than he should. Lining my clothes with dust had been a wonderful idea, by the way. The wolf never expected anything."

Cinder hummed, reaching over and running a finger across his bare chest. "The day before," she mumbled. "That's when you want to send him away?"

"But of course," he explained patiently and with a bit of glee, "whether it's me or Emerald that conjure up some evidence is irrelevant. He's going to hear something that threatens him, something that makes him flee, but I don't want him to go too far. I want him to watch, to hope against hope that he might get back in time to save all he holds dear. I want to watch him fail."

"…I'm trusting you when you say you'll be able to sneak into Ozpin's office," Cinder hissed, leaning in close to his ear. "Because if you fail, and they realize what we're trying to do… you better hope they kill you before I find you."

He waved off her worries and ignored the tingle in his pants at the threat. "Relax, I'll be fine. Their little detection shield can't exactly spot someone without an aura now can it?"

"Besides, if I find nothing incriminating, we always have Emerald to conjure up an illusion." Chester paused, tapping his chin foe a few moments. "I think a better question is: why are we still working with that little weasel Roman? He wants to betray us, you realize."

"Want and will are very different," Cinder explained as she examined her nails, "Roman is a coward, and he knows better than anyone that betraying us means death. I have no doubt if there was some way for him to get away with all of it, he'd stab us in the back… but there isn't a way, and he knows it."

"Well, if he tries anything, I want to be the one who kills him. He insulted my appearance, you realize? It was quite hurtful." Cinder rolled on top of him, pinning him between her legs.

"Oh, my dear Chester, such a sensitive soul…"

Well, that was one way to put it.

Next chapter will get into the Vytal festival, Ironwood's research facility(aboard one of his cruisers) and Qrow will finally make another appearance. I just wanted to give a brief thank you for everyone who's been following this story, because we're getting nearer and nearer to the end. A part of me is tempted to pull some all nights and try and finish this story before I leave for basic, frankly, but we'll see.

I'm just happy. I've made a lot of mistakes in writing up to this point- my paragraph spacing early on was awful, and I've learned a lot in terms of how to make my writing more aesthetically pleasing. It's gradual, but I'm much happier with the technical aspects of my writing at this point in the story than earlier. The point of this story was both to get my ideas on paper and just improve myself, and I think I've done a fairly solid job at both. Anyways, again, just wanted to thank y'all for following this story. I really do appreciate it.

Also: I wish I was good at drawing so I could make a cover photo, but I simply am not. Feelsbadman.