This is going to be a fairly important chapter. Now, before we start I wanted to talk about the question from last time. A number of you said you wanted Ruby to call both Qrow and Tai dad, while some said that Ruby should call Qrow dad and Tai her uncle. I've decided to have a bit of a compromise: due to the fact Qrow's semblance works differently in this story (reduces a person's situational awareness instead of giving them bad luck) Ruby's Analysis would give her effective immunity at the cost of not being able to use a specific aspect of it (the one that boosts her situational awareness) when around Qrow. This will lead to Qrow being able to actually spend more time with Ruby growing up, so she actually would view both Qrow and Tai as her dad. After this chapter, if they're all together or Ruby's talking about one of them without them being there, Ruby will refer to them by name, but when she's with only one she'd call them dad. Sadly, due to the exact nature of things in this story and Tai being overprotective, things are going to strain Ruby's relationship with him as time goes on, which, when combined with what happens with Qrow in volume 4, will result in Ruby starting to see Qrow as more of her dad than Tai, so eventually Tai will become "Uncle Tai" as things go on.
Other than that, this chapter will end with an explanation of Jacques Schnee's and Adam Taurus' motives and a summary of Bisman's personality and motives, making him the first character in this story that we'll be looking at who isn't a villain.
Lastly, there's another question at the bottom of this chapter's closing AN. If you have time, please look at it and provide your input. Now then, let's begin.
Chapter 15: Revelations and a Father's Regret
"There can be no secrets or distrust between family members if we intend to stand strong in our defense of Sanctuary. The problems of one Rose are the problems of every Rose, and I will gladly help any of you with your issues. No matter what, you are all my children and I would gladly lay down my own life if it would keep you safe." -Aurelius to members of the Rose Family
Beacon Academy, RWBY's Dorm Room
Ruby let out a sigh as she stared up at the ceiling, still trying to wrap her head around what she had discovered. She was going over all the times Qrow had come to visit, trying to figure out if there was ever a time he might have said anything about it. Yang sat next to her on her bed, trying to help the faunus girl through it. "You sure you're ok with it sis?" Yang asked, getting a weak smile from Ruby.
"I'm not sure, I think I'd like to talk to Tai or Qrow first to see if they're willing to tell me why they kept it secret from me," Ruby said before sitting up and giving the blonde a hug. "I'm glad this doesn't change anything between us though, Yang."
"Of course it wouldn't. It doesn't matter if we're cousins instead of half-sisters, you're still a sister to me," Yang said with a grin.
Ruby slid back, smiling playfully. "So, I noticed that you seemed pretty happy to have Blake back last night…" Yang groaned. "Relax, I wasn't going to tease you about that, I just wanted to ask if maybe you think Bisman was right about his Initiation joke."
Yang shrugged. "No clue, other than you defrosting the Ice Queen a bit and the kitty cat being more open lately, it seems to be one way right now. Besides, Pyrrha and Jaune would have been affected too and so far all I've seen is Pyrrha taking Jaune up to the roof to train him every night." Yang paused before turning to look at Ruby. "T-that's… That is what they do up there, right? They don't just sneak up to the roof every night so they can-"
Ruby covered her ears. "Yang! Gross, don't put that image in my head!" The door opened before Weiss and Blake walked in, the two each going to their own beds before Ruby looked down from hers at the heiress. She felt bad for doing this, but she didn't want Yang to continue their line of discussion. "Hey Weiss? Can I ask you something about what happened a few days ago?"
Weiss sighed. "Sure, just don't expect me to apologize for any arguments it starts."
Ruby took a breath before starting. "When Blake said the White Fang was tired of being pushed around you said they should have waited or picked their targets better…" Weiss flinched before Ruby continued. "What did you mean by that?"
Weiss looked around, noticing Blake and Yang watching her as well before she decided to speak. "This is going to take a while to explain Ruby…"
The girl nodded. "I have time, I'm curious about what you meant."
Weiss closed her eyes before she started. "My grandfather, Nicholas Schnee, was the person who founded the SDC. He was well known for being a compassionate, charitable man that led every expedition to find more Dust. He became a Huntsman to protect his workers, willing to lay down his own life for them, but… Dust mining isn't the healthiest occupation and, eventually, he became too weak and sick to actually continue running the company. As he was trying desperately to find someone who could take over for him, a man by the name of Jacques Gelé had charmed his way into the heart of my mother, Willow, and approached Nicholas with a proposal. He would marry my mother and take on the Schnee name if my grandfather would name him as his successor. Nicholas, thinking the man truly loved his daughter, agreed to this."
"When my father inherited the company, it became clear he was nothing like my grandfather and didn't really love Willow. All he cared about was money and prestige. Rather than take care of his workers, my father only hired people who were truly desperate for the Dust mines and paid them the absolute minimum he could."
"The faunus, right?" Blake asked, getting a nod from Weiss.
"As any rational person would do, they started to become upset at being exploited, but he ignored them. As the White Fang started to organize protests and boycotts, the SDC's profit margin dropped, giving my mother, who by this point had spent years trying to be the voice of compassion my father so desperately lacked, a chance to finally get through to him, but his brother, Alphonse, spent a great deal of time trying to convince him that they were just animals. Eventually, my mother managed to get the board of directors to help convince him to consider improving the quality of life of the miners and other faunus workers…" Weiss let out a hollow laugh. "My mother and the board of directors were going to announce it at the next protest with Alphonse… But the White Fang decided they were done with peaceful protests."
Blake paled. "Y-you don't mean…"
Weiss nodded sadly. "The White Fang attacked in the middle of her speech, killing Alphonse, a large number of the directors, and seriously wounding others, including my mother. She suffered serious mental damage and never recovered, while all the directors that were still alive had either agreed with Alphonse to begin with or were now too scared for their own lives to continue supporting my mother's goal of making the faunus' lives easier. Even worse, one of the White Fang members who was captured admitted they not only knew representatives of the SDC were going to speak there, but they also knew who exactly would be there. Someone in the White Fang knew what was going to happen and either didn't bother to look into it or deliberately sent along false information."
"After my father heard about what happened… I'd never seen someone so angry before. He just flew into a rage and, since my mother could no longer keep his anger in check, had the workers' benefits and wages cut to almost nothing before making the PR department paint the faunus in general as bloodthirsty animals that needed to be controlled." Weiss sighed. "It was the absolute worst timing…"
During Weiss' story, Ruby had climbed down from her bed and sat next to her partner, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I-I'm sorry you had to go through that Weiss. Nothing like that should have ever happened…" Weiss looked at Ruby with a weak smile before someone knocked on the door, causing everyone in the room to groan before Ruby hopped up. When she opened the door, Bisman was standing on the other side. "Professor Bisman? What are you doing here?"
"Ozpin wanted me to come get you, he wants us to meet him, Professor Goodwitch, and Qrow in his office." Ruby blinked before answering.
"I-I'm not in trouble, am I?"
Bisman shook his head. "No, but if he needs Qrow there, it's something big. We'd better not keep him waiting." The man immediately turned and started walking away, leaving Ruby to scramble to grab Crescent Rose and run out, her team watching in confusion.
Base of the CCT Tower
Ruby was following Bisman when she saw someone out of the corner of her eye. Glancing over, she realized the man was Qrow, causing her to glance at Bisman. "Professor Bisman, can you tell Professor Ozpin I'll be there in a minute?" Bisman let out a sigh but nodded, heading to the elevator as Ruby ran up to the other man, wrapping her arms around his arm, causing him to look at her in surprise.
"Alright, who's the pipsqueak- oh, hey there, petal, what are you up to?"
"Hey Qrow! Did you miss me?"
Qrow blinked before he responded with a smile. "No." He lowered her to the ground before she let go with a playful pout. "Seriously though, why are you here?" he asked before pulling out his flask, only for it to vanish from his hand. "What the?" He glared at Ruby, eying the container she was now holding. "Ruby, give it back."
"Not until after we meet with Professor Ozpin. Besides, I need to talk to you about something."
Qrow let out a sigh. "Great, so Oz is involving my little rose petal in this now too, is he?" "Fine, but if I don't have that in my hand by the time I leave Oz's office, we're going to have a problem, got it?"
Ruby nodded and went to the elevator with Qrow in tow, waiting for the door to close before speaking up. "When were you going to tell me about you and mom?" she asked suddenly, causing Qrow to flinch.
"H-how did you-"
"Does it matter?" she looked up at the man she viewed as her uncle for most of her life sadly, ears drooping and tail low to the ground. "I just want to know why you didn't tell me, why nobody told me…"
Qrow sighed as he leaned against the side of the elevator, running a hand down his face. "L-look, I didn't have much of a choice…"
"What do you mean? What could have possibly stopped you from raising me for so long? What could have stopped you from telling me I was your daughter? Did you and mom have a falling out? Were you ashamed of me? Was-" Ruby was in tears when Qrow slammed his fist into the elevator wall, cutting her off.
"I never want to hear you say that I'm ashamed of you again, understand?"
"Then why?"
"Because… I was ashamed of myself," Qrow said with a sigh. "My semblance makes it hard for me to be around people. Anyone who's around me just… Can't keep track of things going on around them. They just… lose all situational awareness. The worst part is I can't turn it on or off at will like most people. The only saving grace for me is that if someone's willing to stick around me long enough, they might be able to adapt to it. Sometimes I get lucky and it sticks, but usually if I'm gone for a while, they need to start up from the beginning… Summer, your mom, she was one of the only people willing to stick around me long enough to build up a resistance in the first place and she was lucky enough that she didn't have to deal with it again every time I had to go off on my own to do something."
"We were married for a while when she told me you were coming along, and I won't lie and say I wasn't equal parts thrilled and terrified. By this point we'd been helping Tai deal with Raven ditching him to take care of Yang on his own, so it was easier to tell her she was going to have a little sister. As long as Summer was around, as long as Tai and I stayed alert, we could handle it. But then, one day when I was away on a mission, I heard that Summer got killed and ran back home to make sure everything was fine. Tai was so out of it he couldn't take care of anything on his own when he heard the news, so I tried to help out the best I could, but…"
He looked down and continued. "There came a day that you were running around in the yard and you got bit by a snake. A really nasty one that I knew for a fact you'd heard a number of times before. I remember sitting in the hospital thinking I'd lost my little rose petal too, all because of my semblance, and Tai… He never coped well with Summer dying, she was practically a sister to him and he blamed it on me for not being there to cover her weaknesses. When he heard about it he blamed me for what happened to you too, and for once I really couldn't argue with him… So, I did the only thing I could do, even if it hurt."
"You let Tai take care of me and pretended you were my uncle instead of him?" Ruby asked sadly.
Qrow nodded. "I made sure to visit from time to time, but I couldn't stay too long. Then one day your secondary semblance awakened and I came to visit. I was so surprised when I noticed that you were still so alert when I was around, how you were still just as aware of everything going on around you as you were any other time. I could actually spend time with you without having to worry about you getting into an accident because of my semblance. It was the happiest I'd been since you were born… But I knew I couldn't just walk up and tell you I was your dad. It wouldn't be fair to Tai, and I figured I was too much of a failure to call you my daughter. I'd promised Summer I'd take care of you if anything happened to her, and I couldn't even do that."
Qrow was surprised when a pair of arms wrapped around his arm again. "You're not a failure. After my secondary awakened, you visited every day you could and gave me advice when Tai couldn't or wouldn't. You're my father just as much as he is…" She smiled up at Qrow, tears in her eyes. "You've been as good a dad as you could be, and I love you for it."
Qrow smiled at her before wrapping her in a hug. "Thanks, petal, I needed that." They heard the elevator chime and broke apart before it opened. When they stepped out into the room, Ozpin stood up to greet them.
"Ah, Ms. Rose, Qrow, we were wondering where you were." Ruby smiled sheepishly before sitting down in front of Ozpin while Qrow gave her a pat on the shoulder before stepping next to Ozpin, Professor Goodwitch standing on the opposite side as Bisman stood staring out the window, seemingly disinterested in everything around him. "Now then, I'm sure you're wondering why you've been called up here."
"A-actually yes, professor," Ruby said as Ozpin took a sip from his hot chocolate.
"Bisman has informed me that you've made a great deal of progress towards learning about your family… He's also told me that you intend to follow in your mother's footsteps. Is that correct?"
Ruby smiled and nodded before answering. "Yes, from what I can tell this is something my family should take care of. If I sat back and watched while other people fought and died to stop something my family's been going against for thousands of years, something that I could help stop with fewer lives being lost, I wouldn't be able to live with myself." Ruby noticed Qrow smile and grinned.
"Very well. Tell me, what do you know about the name Salem?"
"Nox," Ruby muttered under her breath before speaking up. "The Black Rose, Aurelius gave his life trying to destroy her, but considering the Hunts, most of my family born in the last century, including my mom, believed she somehow survived. If that's the case… She's probably the greatest threat to the world right now."
Ozpin nodded. "And what do you know about the Maidens?"
Ruby hesitated for a moment. "I know they played a part in restoring Aurelius' faith in the people of Remnant and he gave them a piece of his power or some of his knowledge. Other than that, not much."
Qrow spoke up next. "The Maidens, as I'm sure you probably suspect, are real. The power they hold has been passed down through the generations through a set of rules the Blue Rose probably made to be as inconvenient and difficult as possible."
"Qrow!" Goodwitch glared at the man before he shrugged.
"What? It's true. When a Maiden dies, their powers go to the last person they thought about, if that person is a young woman. If it's a guy or a hag, their powers go to a random person who'd fit the first requirement. There's no real reason for it and it just makes keeping track of their power annoying as all hell. And if a Maiden is murdered by someone who fits the bill, well…"
Ozpin sighed before glancing at Ruby. "It's long been known that the Maiden's powers could be used for great good, as Aurelius intended, but they could also find their way into the wrong hands they could lead to disaster… Such an event almost happened shortly before this year's Initiation." Ruby's eyes widened as Ozpin continued. "Amber, the current Fall Maiden, was attacked by a young woman who attempted to steal her powers from her. Qrow was able to stop the attack, but Amber is in serious condition at the moment and part of her power was already stolen. We're currently trying to keep her alive underneath this very tower, but her chances of survival are grim."
Ruby swallowed before she spoke up. "You're afraid that either she'll die and her powers will go to whoever tried to kill her or the woman will come to finish the job, aren't you?" Ozpin nodded before Ruby asked the next question. "And since you're telling me this, I'm guessing you think this is why Salem was manipulating the Hunts? Something that the Rose family knew that could stop her from doing whatever she needed to do?"
Ozpin nodded. "That's correct. In fact, we believe the woman you and Glynda encountered the night you stopped that robbery was the one who attacked the Fall Maiden. We have called you here because, now that we're aware that Salem and those under her are making their move, we need to be prepared."
Bisman turned around, looking at the group for the first time as Ozpin addressed him. "Arthur, since you were so insistent on taking part in the expedition, I expect you to keep an eye out for anything that might help us. Old relics, ancient texts, anything that might tell us something about what Salem's goals are or what she hoped to accomplish during the War of Roses. If at all possible, we might find something that could be used today to help us in our task."
Bisman's eyes glazed over for a moment before he nodded. "I think I have an idea of what to look out for…" Ozpin watched the man for a moment before turning to face Ruby.
"Ruby, we need you to get your team prepared for anything. If at all possible, try to encourage the other teams to push themselves to become as strong as possible. The more prepared they are, the more easily we can respond if the situation becomes desperate enough to need them."
Ruby nodded. "I'll take care of it Professor Ozpin." Ozpin nodded before dismissing the group, sitting in his chair for a moment before leaving as well.
White Fang Hideout
Adam Taurus smiled. Today marked the fifth anniversary of the White Fang's first attack. Five years ago today, he'd convinced Sienna Khan to make an assassination attempt on members of the SDC board of directors. All it took was a… small lie to convince the new leader of the White Fang that the SDC was going to clamp down on the faunus workers to get them to act. "It doesn't matter what the Schnees said, it was only a matter of time before they started exploiting our brothers and sisters again. That's how it always is with humans, after all…" He was drawn out of his thoughts by the woman behind him.
"So, do you agree to allow our associate to speak at your next meeting?"
Adam scoffed. "If it will benefit the White Fang, then fine. He won't be welcome, but he will be allowed to speak." The woman nodded and turned to leave, letting Adam return to his thoughts. "You and your "associates" are nothing more than tools to benefit the White Fang. When the time comes, we'll get rid of you as well."
Okay, this chapter's done. For anyone who's upset that I had Ruby get brought into Ozpin's mysterious group, please remember that the Rose family has been fighting against Salem's influence for centuries, even if they weren't aware she was still alive until after the Great War. In order for her to follow in Summer's footsteps, Ruby would naturally have to continue that fight as well, meaning Ozpin doesn't really have a reason not to include her.
Now then, on to the characters we're discussing in this chapter. Jacques Schnee is, just like in canon, motivated by money, power, and control. He likes to be in charge of the situation, even more so if he's able to trick people into doing what he wants without them realizing it. More than that, however, is his complete hatred of the faunus. To him, they're nothing more than tools and animals that need to be controlled or put down. At this point, if he's aware Weiss was paired up with Ruby he only tolerates it because he assumes Weiss has Ruby on a short leash while not allowing our favorite Rose to influence her. By the time we reach the end of volume 4, Jacques Schnee will probably be the most hated character in this story, with most major characters and groups wanting to either destroy everything he's worked for or simply get rid of him. In this story, Jacques is actually one of three people I've considered as potential members of Salem's group influencing Atlesian politics and diplomacy toward her own final goal.
Adam Taurus was a character that wasn't very well defined in canon. It's obvious that he doesn't like humans and has a distinct hatred of traitors, but beyond that there isn't much of a motivation for him to do anything. In this story, after a long time considering his people's situation, he decided that humanity was the cause of all the suffering the faunus have gone through and, possibly due to an event in his past, has decided that humanity needs to pay for this suffering tenfold. Adam Taurus wants nothing more than to bring humanity to heel in the way Jacques wishes to do to the faunus at best, or the outright destruction of humanity at worst. When it comes to the faunus as well, there's two groups in his mind: those that support the White Fang and those who are traitors to their kind. If Adam Taurus takes over the White Fang in this story, expect a war between 3-4 different groups to break out.
As the first nonvillainous character we're discussing in this story, Bisman's role in the plot is large enough to warrant talking about him at all. Bisman isn't much in a fight, as he himself said, but he has a talent that makes him important to the story even outside his role: he excels at finding things, whether useless trinkets or ancient texts and artifacts. To him, the most important thing is the pursuit of knowledge and history. While he loves discovery, he has a deep hatred of people who misuse knowledge and power to harm others. On top of that, there's the fact that he's always drawn towards Draconys. Even before Ozpin found him at the age of 12 and tried to direct his energy, Bisman would often find himself gazing randomly in the direction of Draconys, but since the current school year started he's found the annoying tugging to be becoming an irresistible pull. The question of whether he's going mad or there's something else at work has secretly been on the minds of many people, including Ozpin, Goodwitch, Qrow, and Bisman himself.
While I was writing this (literally, as I was getting ready to upload it) I stopped to think about how I compared Sanctuary's automatons to Atlesian robotics and how I stated a Rose could call on the spirits of the dead with a blue rose and that made me realize something. Penny is sometimes considered (by some members of the fandom) to be the result of Atlas taking the soul of a person and putting it into a robot. The question, or questions I have are: do you think Sanctuary might have been able to do something similar, just before their collapse, by calling on the souls of the dead? And if you think they could have had that ability, do you think it would be interesting to use in this story?
Let me know what you think in a review. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter.
