The rumors of my demise weren't that far off, it just wasn't today.

Disclaimer: Rooster Teeth owns RWBY, I own my OC's...for now at least.

Explosions.

Those were the sounds that Yang Xiao Long would hear as she found herself walking the halls of Beacon Academy, immediately recognizing it as the same set of halls she had walked to and from Team RWBY's dorm room day in and day out in her time as a student.

"Wait, these halls were trashed the last time I saw them." Yang would look down to find her Howling Dragons firmly around her wrists as the sounds and the force of each successive blast seemed to creep closer, her instincts compelling her forward into the chaos that no doubt awaited her as she recalled the events of the night before. "The two of them were fighting. No, Bàlor probably picked the fight first." The blonde brawler knew that the amber-eyed wolf was a notorious hothead and had displayed such tendencies during his early days at Beacon as he had knocked out a member of Team CRDL simply for bothering him in the cafeteria. "And if I know that idiot as well as I do, he's probably around the corner."

True to her own predictions, she would round the corner to find the wolf Faunus locked in combat with the silver-haired transfer student from Haven. Although this time he seemed to be holding his own as he used his new sword to deflect the shots from Mercury's boots with only slight difficulty, the weight of the blade seemingly affecting his movements somewhat as he bobbed and weaved away from Mercury's kicks. "Will you two morons knock it off?!" The blonde could feel her Semblance come to life as she glared at the quarreling huntsman, neither one really expecting her to have shown up but were seemingly still ready to fight one another regardless of her interference. "Honestly, you two are acting like I'm a piece of meet for you two horn dogs to fight over. That's not how I roll."

"Who said any of this was about you?" Mercury would say this simply while keeping his eyes on his Faunus opponent before leaping into the air and firing a cascade of shots from his boots with the cold precision of an assassin. "Like I told you before Yang: We're just two people having a good time messing around! It's not like I was taking any of it seriously!"

Yang would clench her fists tightly at Mercury's words as her eyes flashed red in response to the anger that was bubbling up inside of her, being treated like a trophy prize was insulting enough to her. But to be told that the time and energy (not to mention Lien in some cases) meant nothing to him was enough to send her charging recklessly into the fight even as Bàlor held back the silver-haired pugilist's shots with his own Semblance, giving her an opportunity to start throwing hands with the Haven student herself.

"So, you think you can just run your mouth and expect me to just sit here and take it like a bitch?!" She would snarl as she kept trying to plaster him with punches, kicks, and the occasional shotgun blast from the Howling Dragons even as Mercury held his own without much effort. "You really must have a high opinion of yourself if you think I wasn't worth taking seriously!" The blonde would throw a wild punch as she could feel the anger getting stronger and more intense, even as the silver-haired young man in front of her easily moved his head to the side before delivering a harsh knee to the bridge of her nose and giving the barest hint of a grin as she reeled back.

"Considering how easily I'm managing to deal with you two idiots without even breaking a sweat? I'd say having a high opinion of myself is a bit of an understatement" Mercury would sneer as he cracked his knuckles nonchalantly before taking a few practice jabs at the air in front of him. "Please, feel free to team up and try a little harder to entertain me at least."

Yang would growl quietly as she looked back at the wolf Faunus who was sporting the beginnings of a bad black eye, wondering if he would even be willing to fight alongside her after what had happened between them previously. "B, I know you're probably feeling a little fired up right now but if we don't work together then we're toast." The blonde would place a hand on his shoulder, not surprised to feel him tense up under her touch before brushing her off completely. "Hey! You can be pissed at me later, we need to-"

"What part of "this isn't about you" do you not comprehend?!" Bàlor would glare at her with an uncharacteristic level of hatred before charging back into the fray with Mercury as he started using his sword more aggressively now, the weight that seemed to be hindering him earlier had been forgotten as the wolf Faunus pressed forward with his assault despite Mercury seemingly dodging his blows with a cocky smirk on his face. "I get that you're used to being the center of attention Yang, but right now you and your need for teamwork is the last thing I need to worry about!" He would lean back to avoid a blast from Mercury's boot and bring down his sword on the other man's leg, only for him to cry out in pain as he was rewarded with a sharp clanging sound for his troubles before jumping back. "What the fuck man, either those things are made of some seriously tough metal or you're a fucking amputee!"

Yang would look on as the transfer student calmly shrugged his shoulders at the pair, his lax demeanor was a stark contrast to the murderous look in his eyes as he looked out at his two opponents. "Now will you let me help you?!" Her eyes were now blazing red as she stepped forward to continue the fight, neither man moving to stop her as she calmly switched out the empty ammo casings in her gauntlets for fresh ones. "Jesus, I swear you're more stubborn than Weiss was back when I first met her."

The wolf would chuckle tiredly as he tried standing up with the help of his sword, seemingly willing to keep fighting the good fight despite his own injuries. "That's rich, coming from someone who's partnered with Blake. I thought she'd be the last person you'd put up with considering your history with runaways." He would sigh as she gave him a skeptical look, the brawler's eyes reverting to their normal lilac for a split second as she was caught off guard by his statement. "I mean, your mom bailed out on you pretty early right?"

Any thoughts she had towards pummeling Mercury were now squarely focused on the wolf as the blonde bombshell grit her teeth angrily. "I'd suggest you pick your next words very carefully B, or what's gonna happen to you is going to make the beating Mercury gave you seem like a sparring session!" Yang would ignore the outburst of laughter from the man in question as she kept her heated gaze on the young man she had once regarded as someone she treasured dearly, the wolf would return her glare with a quiet hatred all his own even as his body seemed to tremble with exhaustion. "Then again, this is just like you isn't it? Always running off at the mouth like you're some big tough guy but backing off when someone decides to step up and try to call you out on your bullshit!"

The brawler would emphasize this by taking a few steps toward him, watching as he struggled to keep standing as she now towered over his trembling form even as he bared his fangs at her in defiance.

"At least I can show people what I'm feeling! I don't try to hide everything behind this fake flirty thrill-seeker personality, I KNOW my mother abandoned me and I accept it!" Bàlor would be sent flying back to the wall with a punch from Yang as he felt blood dripping from his busted lip, laughing quietly as he slumped down against the wall. "And there's your typical Xiao Long response toward anything that threatens her shiny little world-view: punch it in the face!"

This time she would retaliate with a shotgun blast, the heat was enough to keep him from laughing even as the silver-haired Faunus still held some mirth left in his eyes as he forced himself back to a standing position. "My God you are obnoxious, you really think that ANY of what you're saying means a goddamn thing to me? I am sorry your mommy decided to run away, but considering how much of a little shit that her boy turned out to be-"

Her words would be interrupted as a slab of broken wall was flung at her face, the two former lovers would now be slumping against opposite walls as they glowered at one another with a silent, smoldering hatred. "You really have a bad habit of speaking without thinking, dont'cha blondie?" The wolf Faunus would groan as he weakly massaged his temple as the beginnings of a headache began to rear its ugly head, his amber eyes glowing dimly as he kept a few pieces of debris levitating in case the brawler decided to lash out at him once again. "Can't you ever just say what's on your mind?"

Yang would roll her eyes in response to his words, slowly moving the slab from off her chest and wiping the dust from her night clothes as she got to her feet and popped her knuckles as she watched the silver-haired Huntsman-in-training slowly will himself back to a standing position. "Fine. You wanna know what's on my mind?!" The feisty blonde would slowly walk her way over to the injured Bàlor and deliver a hard punch to the gut, not feeling a twinge of sympathy as he slumped forward and dry heaved to try and catch a breath. "I'm tired of carrying your whiny ass every time you get in over your head!" She would instinctively go to launch a Dust shell into his stomach before noticing the glow in his eyes as more pieces of debris were flung at her, growling in annoyance as she dodged what she could while blasting away the larger pieces as her eyes turned a menacing red.

"That was YOUR CHOICE! You chose to carry me like a goddamn princess every time I took a beatdown." The wolf would ball a fist as he tried to focus on the battle in front of him even as the throbbing pain of a headache was now becoming more apparent, flashes of the times she had carried him were playing out before him even as he started to smile sadly. "You chose to open your heart to me, promised me that you wouldn't let me fall back into the dark."

Yang would snort in disgust at his outburst even as the hallway around her seemed to fade into literal darkness as she felt her muscles tense in anticipation of another fight, only to find the masked visage of her mother standing further on ahead. "What the hell is this, why is my mom here?!" The brawler would glare at the still-wounded Faunus boy in front of her, his sad smile serving to further irritate her as she broke off from the fight at hand to pursue the masked woman. "How did you manage to get here without anyone seeing you, and why did you disappear after saving me in Mountain Glenn?"

The lilac-eyed Huntress would continue to chase after the masked woman, the blood red tint of her sword lighting the path that she was running on as she desperately tried to grasp her missing parent by the hand, flashes of her earlier days as the reckless little girl who had put her sleeping younger sibling in a wagon as she doggedly pursued the raven-haired woman played out before her. "No! I'm not the same idiot I was back then, I can handle myself now!" Yang would grit her teeth and fire off a few shots from the Howling Dragons, the force of each blast allowing her a boost of momentum that pushed her closer and closer to the raven-haired warrior. "Why do you keep leaving me behind?!" She would continue to fire whatever ammo was left in her gauntlets, with every inch she could feel her fevered desperation for answers rising to a mighty crescendo as she made one last grasp for the woman's hand.

Only to feel the sudden rush of pain as the masked warrior severed the brawler's arm from her body with a stroke so casual, one would think that the latter was just carving off a piece of fruit for a snack.

"Wh-why? Am I really worth so little to you that you'd cut me down like some low-level Grimm?" Yang could feel herself falling down into the endless black void all around her, the path that she had once been running upon had disappeared entirely and naught but a sea of sorrow and heartbreak awaited her. "Then why did you even bother saving me at all, why not just let me die on that train if I mean nothing to you." Tears would slowly begin to fall from her eyes as the blonde brawler sunk deeper and deeper into the depths of her own despair, the memories of her younger self relentlessly hunting for any sign of her mother would appear in tiny bubbles around her as if to mock her.

RWBYRWBYRWBY

Bàlor had refused sleep after having banished Yang from his room (and by extension his life) and had instead set to the task of trying to remove the golden dragon from Black Waltz's scabbard, angrily hacking away at the symbol with the hilt-heavy sword as his muscles cried out for rest as he finally managed to make a tiny scuff on the damned thing.

"I can't believe that I let her back in like that, I even told her about Aubrey, and she tried to make it sound like I was having a fucking wet dream!" The furious Faunus would sigh and kick the scabbard aside with a huff before sighing tiredly and sitting down on the air mattress that he called a bed, looking over at the table where he had salvaged some of his less damaged possessions- including a faded and battered photo of the late Aubrey Magenta. "I haven't forgotten my promise, I'll make this a world where there doesn't have to be anymore senseless death and violence. But before that, I'll be sure to make that jackass Creed suffer for everything he did to us in that prison!"

The wolf would ball a fist in anger as the objects around him began to tremble as his telekinetic Semblance had once again decided to make itself known, not even blinking as his front door once again collapsed to the floor.

"Guessing you woke up on the wrong side of the..mattress?" Jaune Arc would carefully peer inside of the room in question, not expecting the surprised reaction from its occupant as the silver-haired Faunus looked at the fair-haired knight with a look of befuddlement. "Come to think it, that was my exact reaction when Ozpin "asked" that my team escort you down to the arena today." The young man in question had never had the greatest of association with the still-confused Bàlor as the wolf had spent the majority of his first few months either making Jaune the target of his Bullet Club-related shenanigans (mostly by randomly delivering the random Superkick whenever the latter's guard was down.) or basically pretending that the first-year student simply didn't exist. "So, are you ready to go or…"

The wolf Faunus would try in vain to stifle a yawn before shaking his head, his silver-hair swaying to and fro with the motion. "Man, I haven't slept. I haven't eaten. And for the benefit of everyone around me, I should probably shower." The amber-eyed young man would stand up slowly, sniffing the air as the scent of something sweet wafted in his direction. "Good morning Miss Nikos, sorry you and Jaune have to play prison guard because of me." Bàlor would quickly move about the room, gathering the supplies necessary to get ready for the day before bolting into the bathroom and shutting the only working door he had.

"Okay; is it wrong for me to be slightly creeped out by this non-aggressive Bàlor, because I'm really feeling unnerved by all of this." Jaune would cautiously breathe a sigh of relief before turning back to his friend and fellow teammate Pyrrha Nikos, the red-haired spear-maiden seemed as perplexed at the lone wolf's behavior as he was. "I'm just waiting for the eventual kick to the face at this point."

Pyrrha would give a sympathetic smile, having had to look after the young man on more than one occasion thanks to the silver-haired antagonist. "It'll be alright Jaune, just remember that you can just take a couple steps back once he throws the kick. You'll be out of range of the hit, and he'll be left vulnerable to a counterstrike." The invincible girl would do her best to boost Jaune's spirits in the wake of having to deal with their unwanted guest for the day, in addition to having to fight alongside Nora later in the Doubles round. "After all, pro wrestling is choreographed and thus very vulnerable to rhythms and patterns." This seemed to settle the knight's jittery nerves as the pair waited patiently for Bàlor to finish dressing, spending the time chatting about their plans following the Doubles Round.

"Whew, sorry I took so long guys. Trying to get the tangles out of my hair was a nightmare!" The wolf-Faunus would give a cheeky grin to the chatting pair, neither one knowing how to handle the latter's eerily upbeat attitude. "What, I did date Yang for a while remember? She kinda beat the finer points of proper hair care into me."

Jaune would chuckle nervously as the knight seemed to try and force a smile even as his instincts were still screaming at him to stay on guard for an eventual attack, no matter how upbeat that the silver-maned young man seemed to act he could quickly turn on a dime and decide to try and kick his head off.

"O-of course, that makes total sense." The fair-haired knight would carefully step back through the debris that was littering the hallway behind them, the janitorial staff giving the wolf Faunus the stink eye as the trio carefully made their way through the worst of the mess.

"I don't suppose that your time with Yang helped contribute to this mess as well?" Pyrrha would look back at Bàlor with a knowing gaze, wondering just how he would try and wriggle out of taking responsibility for the chaos around them. "I know that she's quite the..energetic fighter when it comes to sparring."

This time it would be Bàlor's turn to laugh nervously, wanting to avoid having to explain his childish reasons for having fought with Mercury the night prior.

"To be fair, most of it was in self defense."

I know most of this chapter wasn't up to my usual standards, but I've been away from my RWBY-fics for so long that it might take some time for me to get back to snuff, for those of you who hung on through the self-imposed "Hiatus", you're Saints for enduring my insufferably long drought. I'll try and get back into the swing of things here.

Ta-ta for now!