Butterflies

by TheVermilionRose

The Great War was meant to serve as a reminder to keep the four city-states in line, but memories blur and Remnant collapses into turmoil. Four years after the start of the war, Team RWBY is left no choice but to rewrite history, stuck between two terrible choices. (Character Development and Experimentation)

6. Six - Cracks

Chapter Six

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Cracks

---

Beacon - Arena Three (Partially Destroyed) - 0200 Hours

There was a reason Summer was rarely allowed on solo missions and never allowed to patrol alone. If she was left alone then there'd be nothing in her head, leaving her alone with her thoughts; nothing but a blank canvas.

Her mind was her self preservation instincts incarnate. It was a danger to spend time with her team, let alone other Hunters. It had taken weeks for Summer to convince herself that Kara was not a threat to her.

Months later, her mind had settled. She had some control over which thoughts she listened to. Sometimes it called for the blood of everyone it deemed a threat, sometime sheer carnage could placate it, and other times it just wanted to have fun.

The absolute void surrounding her on top of the arena she perched on was threatening to let these thoughts loose.

It didn't help Ozpin had assigned them to the east side of the campus where they had burned the corpses of the White Fang members they had caught who were stupid enough to not listen to the retreat call. She'd been forced to burn them when the penitentiary had been destroyed and Bianca didn't have the Aura to spare to keep them imprisoned.

Ozpin had given them this sector for a reason, a quiet disagreement to their methods. But what was a dozen more deaths added to their kill counts. The man had more blood on his hands than the four of them combined anyways.

A hand on her shoulder broke her line of thought, as if sensing the violent properties of them.

"We have visitors." It was only by the grace of the moon she could read Kara's handsigns.

"You know, this sounds like the beginning of a bad joke." Summer quipped to the empty air. "Two mutes, a headmaster and a team leader meet atop a destroyed arena."

The air in front of them shimmered briefly before cracking into hundred of shards, each shard reflecting a different piece of scenery. They hung in the air before collapsing onto the floor, revealing the same background but this time including a white, brown and pink haired mute, ever accompanied by her parasol.

"I was wondering why your teammates knew sign language." Neo replied. "Having a teammate unable to speak explains it. It's always a pleasure to see our language being used. May I ask your names?"

Summer gave her name and Kara signed hers in return.

"I came because I was curious, but Nova's words brought my attention." Summer's silver eye glowed dull against the moonlight. "I can tell she wasn't wrong. I can feel your emptiness."

"An unfortunate byproduct of my time as a prisoner of the White Fang."

"Mine was from the years of systematic identity destruction. Liberating, isn't it?"

"To a certain degree. To no longer feel fear, pain, envy, or hate. Nothing left but a blank slate left to be drawn on anew."

"To create something new, carve yourself a new personality from the shambles of the old." Neo finished for her. "What comes out can only ever emulate, never truly feel."

They let the silence enfold them, each gauging the entity hidden within the other. Neo's was much older, much more tame and Summer's was newer but much more primal. Invisible avatars appeared behind the two women, chained only by the wills of their masters, ready to shed chaos on the world around them.

"I like you." A predatory grin made its appearance on Summer.

"I'm flattered and all, but I've one love and he happens to be listening in on this conversation."

"A man is curious." A new voice spoke from the shadows of a column. "A man is flattered."

"A girl is irritated. I don't like the name Ozpin, change it."

"Tough. I'm liking this name and the position I'm in. I intend to keep it for as long as I can." Ozpin stepped from the shadow and joined the triangle, his usual mug of hot chocolate in his hand. "You two don't look surprised."

"I don't care about your relationship."

"I've seen weirder."

"They probably already knew. Why have you come from your tower to greet little old me? You shouldn't have."

"I haven't seen you in years, but your movements have been much more easier to track since you attached yourself to Roman Torchwick."

"He died in the assault on your school. It was fun while he lasted; all the chaos we caused. The people he attached himself to were a different story however. Not the most pleasant sort."

"I warned you to stay away from her."

"I met her once. She's nothing like you. Emptiness is a much more pleasurable feeling compared to the ball of wrath, spite and vengefulness trapped within her. It took everything I had not to throw up when I sensed her."

"And here I thought my team had fucked up family dynamics. Therapy at least helped with us, but you and Salem really take the cake."

"Lack of discipline and care in our childhoods I'm afraid." Ozpin looked the trio in front of him over. "Neo, you're welcome to make your appearances at Beacon public or you can disappear into the world again. Your choice."

"And leave the fun to all your underlings? Fun is all I have left. No, I'm going back to Salem and Cinder. They'll use me as they always have and I'll have some fun while I'm at it."

"I can't save you if you get caught."

"Then I guess I won't get caught." She retorted. "Do I at least get a kiss for good luck this time?"

"If only you were taller." Neo's image cracked and fractured again, shards falling away as she stepped up to Ozpin, revealing a taller version of herself, reaching his eyes.

She pressed a chaste kiss to his lips before stepping away and turning back towards her fellow broken soul.

"I'll come by every once in awhile for a chat or a spar." Her image started to shatter again, but not before she mouthed a last farewell. "Bye Evander."

She was gone.

"I wonder if she ever was here or if we've been talking to an illusion this entire time." Summer pondered.

"Her illusions are good enough to fool all of us. You really don't care about our relationship at all, do you?"

"Care? No. Interested. Yes. Neo never said anything about knowing you in our dimension, but then again, you were MIA. There was never a reason to bring you up."

"You said something about allowing her to make appearances publically, as in she's on Beacon frequently but in disguise."

"It's a game. She sends me a message whenever she happens to be on campus and I do my best to find her. She's frighteningly good at imitating her target and I haven't managed to figure out who she impersonates whenever she comes by."

"Guess me and her will have some fun then."

"Don't destroy my school if you do find her. I have enough of a mess to deal with as it is." He let the silence drift over them momentarily. "How are you dealing with your time jump? You weren't expecting to jump dimensions and even if you did, you're still dealing with having to see all of your friends alive."

"It's beyond jarring. I didn't think we'd get here in time to save Pyrrha, but not only did we save her, but also the school, the CCTS and you. It's weird seeing people and districts you know are dead or destroyed."

"I doubt you'll seek me out for help since you have each other, but you and your team are always welcome to talk to me. War never leaves anyone unmarked."

"Have you reviewed the mission proposal I sent you?" Summer brushed aside his concerns.

"Not yet. I was busy with the gift you left me."

"Everything on the hard drive was a gift. You'll have to be more specific."

"An unprofessional and very lewd video." Kara got the hint as her jaw set and cheeks turned a rosy red.

"Professionality is overrated." Kara smacked her on the shoulder. "The video's existence slipped my mind, but you're welcome to forward a copy to Glynda."

Kara smacked her again, expressing her displeasure.

"Nevermind. Keep it to yourself and try not to over excite yourself, crotchety old man."

"Old I may be but I'm far from crotchety." Ozpin bantered back. It was relieving she wasn't calling him 'sir' or watching her language in front of him. He got more than enough of that from his students. "What is this proposal?"

"It's permission to establish an outpost at Mountain Glenn. No funds would be needed and no teams besides my own. The proposal contains the blueprints from the outpost established in our dimension."

"You just got out of a war that demolished your world and you're already planning for the next one in this dimension. Do you not take breaks?"

"Salem will not stop planning. Stopping her attack on Beacon will do nothing more than cause her to change her plans. Do I have your permission?"

"You don't need my permission. The mission proposal is nothing but a courtesy. Vale doesn't control Mountain Glenn and neither do I. You're not asking for anything from me except for time, time you already have for this summer. What are the reasons as to why you want to create an expansionary base instead of fortifying Beacon?"

"Salem will not attack Beacon again, even with the slight she received from the failure she had. She knows the holes within Atlas' droid programming will've been fixed and lacks Roman to steal her the source code again."

"Adam will not consent to losing any more men, especially after this failure. The only reason he boldly attacked Beacon was because of the guarantee Atlas' droids provided in minimizing losses, allowing the White Fang to show its dominance by attacking the main base of the Hunters. If they succeeded, Vale would've begun to truly fear the White Fang, not the passing fear they received for raiding convoys and causing unrest."

"Mountain Glenn would allow the Hunters to truly have a base of operations. Most of the city remains below ground and we can cave in most of the access points, using the existing train lines as a major route to and from. The roof can be reinforced by scrapping the above ground buildings, and if I'm correct, the water and electricity lines are intact, just turned off."

"I'll do you one better. I'll siphon money from the council, claiming we actually lost more in infrastructure than we thought and the excess money will be forwarded to the project. I'll obtain the deed to a building on top of an existing rail line and have it converted to a station. I'll also move half a dozen teams away from Beacon to help, if you'll agree to take over the position of High Commander."

"Done." The instantaneous answer caused Ozpin to falter, having expected more resistance from her, but he didn't let it catch him for long. He should have expected it from the woman he expected to succeed him. "I knew you'd ask me eventually. The moment you refused to take the emblem from me and I learned you had no successor, was the moment I resigned myself to watching over the Hunters again."

"Many would feel honoured to be in the same position as you."

"Most people also don't have the knowledge or experience to lead the Hunters. The only person who comes close to either is Neo, but she's known as a criminal. The next people in line would be Glynda and Qrow, but Glynda doesn't have the aptitude nor temperament to lead and Qrow is needed as a spymaster, leaving someone out of your chain of command. Do not mistake my acceptance for honour. It is nothing more than duty to my people."

"I won't be abandoning your side during the conflicts to come Summer. I'll be right there by your side as an advisor, if you need me. I can advise, I can mediate; I can still perform my duties as an administrator. I can do everything except lead in battle, which you'll do for me."

"If you need a charismatic face to lead in battle, then you clearly haven't read any of the notes from my therapy sessions or any other reports compiled. You want charismatic; make Bianca the High Commander. If you want brutal efficiency, decisive battle planning, and a touch of immorality, then I'm your girl."

"Why should Bianca take on this role over for you?"

"My leadership was only secured because of Bianca. She was the face of my command, the power behind long term plans and one of my anchors. The only job I performed better was leading in battle, fighting on the ground, and paperwork."

"Yes. I read the reports. Without her Semblance, your war would have been lost much sooner." Ozpin agreed. "But your presence on the battlefield was a deterrent for even engaging in firefights. Why do you keep selling yourself short?"

"Selling myself short would be retiring. It gets tiring watching people die Ozpin, especially the ones you're responsible for." Summer realized his point. "Which is why you asked me. I'll do it, but you're scraping the abandoned bases from Vale's military and shipping their contents to Glenn."

"Is that all?" Ozpin raised an eyebrow. Bargaining with an equal was always refreshing. "It'll take a long time you understand of course. Vale's council mustn't know we're expanding in this manner."

"Of course. One last few things." Summer added. "Does the armory contain either flashbangs or air horns and duct tapes?"

"Flashbangs, yes." He hadn't received any other requests from her team. "Planning for a raid?"

"Something like that?" Summer grinned at him. It wasn't a pleasant one. "Are you interested in a prank?"

"Always. On who?"

"Just Tai for now, but when Winter comes by for Weiss, then her as well."

"Your plan for Winter might not work. James has been cooped up in the tower all day in video conferences with his council, Vale's council and I'm assuming Winter." Ozpin got an inkling of the way their pranks were to be structured. "But I'd be glad to help with Tai."

"Tai will visit later on today to check on his daughters. Did Summer ever leave a backup white cloak at Beacon?" Ozpin's eyes lit up in mirth. "Did Raven ever leave any of her clothes here as well?"

"I'm sure they did." All students and Hunters treated Beacon as home. Certain lockers remained under storage for this particular reason, even those whose owners were AWOL or deceased. "That's mean Summer. I want pictures."

"Kara and Bianca will snap plenty. Be sure to warn us when Tai is close to Beacon. We'll need some time to set up." Summer let the wind speak for her, ending their conversation. "And the next time you disagree with my methods, make sure you give me an explicit no kill order. Don't do this passive-aggressiveness. I'm not one of your students anymore."

He gave a noncommittal grunt and disappeared. No shadow, no gust of air, no portal, no shimmer; no indication of any mode of transport. He just vanished.

Summer looked over to her wife. They still had a couple hours to go until sunrise.

---

Room 217

Summer stepped into their room first to protect the tray of food Kara carried. They were lucky the rooms were generally soundproof or the shotgun slug Summer tilted her head to avoid would have woken the teams around them. It left a clean hole on the door frame.

"Good morning." Summer replied to her sister's greeting as she juggled a pair of grenades in her hands. "Slept well?"

"How was the patrol?" Nova jibbed back, throwing the covers off of them, both her and Bianca jumping out of the bed and ready for the day. "Any late night meetings?"

"There was one. Neo did show, but Ozpin also decided he wanted to join in." Summer debriefed them as Kara handed out two of the smoothies and granola bars to her teammates. "She'll be returning to Salem for the time being."

"I'm surprised you two didn't get into a fight." Bianca growled out through a yawn, shaking off the night's clutches. "Why did Ozpin show up?"

"Neo and him have a relationship apparently." Summer waited for Nova to drink from her smoothie. "More than a platonic one."

Nova sputtered out a gulp of her smoothie as she struggled to clear her air passage from the shock. Bianca hit her once to dislodge the rest.

"She's half his height." Kara looked at Bianca akin to disbelief, tilting her head to further emphasize her point.

"And you're a head shorter than Nova. Your point?" Kara balanced the tray of food on one hand and signed out with her other. "She only gave him a light kiss before she disappeared back to Salem."

"She can make herself taller through her illusions, and can apparently make them solid enough to interact with the environment around her." Summer continued. "She also roams the school from time to time, in disguise, for amusement and has never been caught."

"An ability our Neo never revealed to us." Bianca filed away this piece of information away, her words muffled as she pulled on a silver sports bra. "Can we use her relationship with Ozpin as leverage for her cooperation?"

"Perhaps, but I err on the side of no." Summer analysed. "They are both old enough to easily cut ties with each other at a moment's notice, but I don't know the strength of their relationship. She could have always been working for Ozpin, or she and him are nothing more than two acquaintances who happen to cross paths and enjoy playing with each other."

"Which sounds more like the Neo we know." Yang fitted her breasts into their binds as she prepared for the day. She regretted their size at times. "We could ask her nicely. We speculated about her reasons for helping us in our dimension, but she never confirmed any of it."

"All we got from her was she was helping us for fun and chaos. Perhaps without Ozpin to curb her tendencies and take her attention she retreated into the only thing Summer and her share in common, sowing chaos and death."

"Yet if that was her reason, then she would have racked up more chaos by constantly switching sides, disguising herself as different people and creating tension." Bianca added. "The Neo we knew stayed by our side throughout the war, feeding us information which usually proved to be true."

"She may have stayed by our side as Neo, but we can't assume she didn't join other factions as anyone but Neo. She could have always been on Salem's side and deceived us and everyone she knew with her illusions."

"Neo would have never stayed by Salem's side by choice. She described Salem as an pit of malice and vengeance she could barely stand to be by." Summer told them of the small fact she learned from her night meeting. "But you're also forgetting what Neo and I both need to be able to create chaos."

The other three members thought about her words, but Bianca beat them to it first.

"People." Summer nodded her head in confirmation.

"Neo didn't simply fall back to killing and chaos. Without Ozpin to guide humanity's continued existence, Neo took over his job, performing it the only way she could. Staying at Salem's side would do nothing but eradicate us and leave her with nothing to play with."

Another silence covered them as all of them tried to rationalise the Neo they knew with the plausible theory they created. For an entirely selfish reason of lacking people to entertain her and kill, and possibly for whatever respect she held for Ozpin, she had helped them.

Ozpin may not be the most insignificant piece on the board, but his influence had greatly altered the path of another. Forging a relationship with a psychopath had created a misguided sense of right and wrong in Neo and for that, Kara, Bianca and Nova would be eternally grateful.

Dealing with one psychopath was hard enough, but two of them was nearly impossible. Add in a war and the management of elite forces, and cracks start to emerge in the realms of possibility.

"That's how we get her to cooperate with us? A theory her morals aren't more screwed up than Summer's, and an aged Headmaster to reign her in?" Bianca summarised for them. "We've worked on lesser odds before."

"Killing her is the last objective on my mind. I will not kill her and will never attempt to." Summer defended. "I'm not even sure if I could, and if we did fight, then we'd level tens of districts."

"I wasn't going to suggest it." Bianca placated and Kara placed a soothing arm onto Summer. "She's too valuable to dismiss as an ally, but too much of a wildcard to properly read her off of two meetings. We need to meet her as a team and discuss."

"She'll be around Beacon." Summer reminded. "All we have to do is find her."

"Do we have any guarantee when she'll be on Beacon?" Nova asked.

"She said she'd drop by for a chat or spar." Summer responded. "I'll get a message from Neo asking for her to play or from Ozpin asking for help asking to help find her."

"Do you believe she'll react violently to being exposed?"

"Hopefully." Summer's face betrayed nothing, but Kara could feel the urge to test herself against her elder, a rolling maelstrom of restrained annihilation eager destroy the other.

Bianca was already planning how to contain the friendly spar the two would get into. Her glyphs would handle the worst of any fallout from them, but she'd need Nova if they ever decided to turn any of their attacks onto her barriers.

"Try to not destroy this place." Bianca couldn't do anything to stop it from happening, but she would do anything she could to mitigate the damages. Nova would of course help where she could and Kara would calm Summer down after she beat Neo, or Ozpin would calm down Neo after she beat Summer.

"Get dressed." Summer couldn't promise anything once her mask fell. Summer and Kara stripped from their previous day's clothing and replaced them with more apt workout clothes, donning sports bras or shirts, and shorts in their respective colours.

"Summer." Kara interrupted her from leaving the room. "Your scars are visible."

Lengthy and thin scars marred her arms and shoulders, crisscrossing from muscle to muscle and rippling with each movement she made. They further extended across her trapezius, moulding into burns stretching across her entire back. Lichtenberg figures spanned across her midsection, branding red lines across her abdomen.

On the middle of her left shoulder blade sat a copy of Kara's tattoo, charred brown and raised off the flesh, a mark of degradation from her captors. They had torn flesh from her, whipped her repeatedly, waterboarded her, and strangled her; the marks of which she hid with Kara's bow. They did everything they could to mutilate her body except for her face.

They liked her pretty face and refused to harm it, loving the look of defiance on her face as they repeatedly used her body for their depraved purposes. If Kara was a kinder person, she would have let her die in that cell.

"Yes?" Summer rested Crescent Rose on her shoulder. She saw no problem exposing them. While a lesser being may have hidden them away as a sign of weakness, Summer wore them as armour, letting the world see what she endured for her people.

"I know you're fine showing them off, but Ruby might not want to see a scarred visage of her future." Nova explained as she got Summer's usual blank stare in return. "Which most people don't want to see."

"I'm not covering them up. Ruby will be curious and I'll tell her how I got these scars." Summer replied, unphased to keeping Ruby innocent about her life. "She can stare all she wants."

"You're going to tell a sixteen year old that you were tortured, for six months?" Bianca dictated slowly. "Bad Summer."

"Why?" Summer spun her grenades in her hand.

"Because good people don't scar their younger selves."

"I'm about to toss a military flashbang used to blind and deafen combatants into two teams' room as a wake up call, and none of you are going to stop me." Summer explained. "Here's how it's going to go. I'm going to toss one into Team RWBY's room and Nova will toss one into Team JNPR's."

She still slipped on a red shirt over her sports bra, heeding the words of wisdom from her family. Kara tied a tight knot around her shoulder with Gambol's ribbon, hiding her controversial tattoo from any judgemental eyes.

"You don't have to hide the tattoo." Summer added. "You and Bianca will be helping General Ironwood and Headmaster Ozpin with the incident." Summer ripped off the silver moon emblem and handed it over to Bianca. "You have my leave to act in my stead."

Bianca accepted the badge without question, affixing it to her top. She knew Summer couldn't be in multiple places at once, but the High Commander had to be. It also separated Kara and Bianca from the eyes of Team RWBY and Team JNPR, allowing Summer to manage both teams easier without the distraction of two more members.

She also wasn't going to complain at having to spend time with James, and Kara would be instrumental in stepping around the delicate balance set in the conflict between the White Fang and the Hunters.

"Yes sir." Summer dismissed them with a nod of her head. The duo left through the window, bounding off a glyph, and sprinted towards the tower.

"Ready?" Summer tossed one of the flashbangs to Nova as she made her way out the door and walked the short distance to their targets' rooms, swinging Crescent Rose around her finger idly, leaving Nova to carry the tray of food.

Nova jogged the distance and caught up as Summer placed her scroll against Team RWBY's scanner and ran one of Kara's algorithms, breaking the code within seconds, a muted green flash indicating its success. She removed her own scroll from her pouch and ran it on Team JNPR's door, giving her sister a thumbs up as it succeeded.

Summer gently turned the knob of her door and pushed it forward, well oiled hinges preventing any squeaking. Pulling the pin, she rolled the grenade into the center of the room and waited, clamping her ears and eyes shut.

Nova opted for a more violent approach, kicking open the door and throwing the flashbang in with abandon.

Shrieks of surprise and pain emanated from both rooms as the teenagers within struggled to deal with a violent bang tearing them from their dreams. The initial slam of a door opening would wake the Hunters, but the following flash and piercing noise would shake sleep off faster than a cold shower.

Ruby managed to be the first to stumble from her room, small trails of smoke escaping into the hallway, hands furiously rubbing away the bright image seared into her photoreceptors. She blinked away the light as her receptors regenerated and saw two blurry figures standing in front of her.

"What was that?" Ruby rotated her eyes around in an effort to bring her vision back. Once it came back, she continued to blink and blink away in an effort to wipe the image.

"Mom?" Ruby looked up into Summer's silver eye, recognizing the familiar face and hair from foggy memories from her childhood. She ignored the void in place of an eye and rushed forward, leaping up and wrapping her arms around Summer, tears leaking down her cheeks.

Nova stiffened as Ruby collided with Summer, unsure of how she'd react to unknown contact. Thankfully, Summer had slipped into her passive neutral state. Enough contact with Kara kicked her muscle memories into drive and she returned the hug.

"Hello little Rose." Summer rumbled deeply into Ruby's ear. The girl grabbed tighter onto Summer, happy her mother wasn't gone, even if the logical part of her brain told her otherwise. Summer threaded her fingers through Ruby's hair, calming her down. "I'm not your mother."

"Hm?" Ruby wiped her tears away and looked up to Summer. Like Qrow, Ruby had made the same mistake of seeing what she wanted to see and not what was real. The same eye colour, the same facial structure, the same hair, but altogether, Summer was her mother's antithesis.

Yang stumbled out of the room, shaken from her wake up call, but even more alert when she noticed her sister hanging onto Summer.

"Mom?" Yang grabbed the door frame as she tugged on her earlobes to clear the ringing in her ears.

Summer's response was cut off as Nora crawled out of her room, exaggeratedly coughing and rolling to show her displeasure.

"Who was the idiot who decided to wake us up like that?" Nora looked up towards Nova, mistaking her for Yang. "Yang, how could you! I was dreaming about pancakes."

"You can have pancakes later." Nova offered a smoothie and bar to her. "These will have to do for the morning."

"Thank youuuuuuu-?" Nora took notice of the two identical Yangs standing in front of her and the mess of red tangled with red on the ground. "Future?"

Nova was barely able to nod before Nora disappeared back into her room cackling madly, screaming unintelligibly along the lines of her being correct, awakened fully by the realization. Similar shouts echoed from the room, this time of shock as Nora further awakened her teammates.

"Hello mini-me." Nova spun around to face Yang. "Breakfast?"

Yang accepted the offered food, chugging the smoothie down with impunity, sneaking in a thanks between gulps.

"So...mom?" Yang looked down at Summer and Rose as the former tried to explain she wasn't the latter's mother; only that she looked like her and shared the same name.

"But can I call you mom?" Ruby insisted, refusing to release the death grip she had on Summer's shirt. Summer looked up to Nova, lost, unable to decide how she should handle her request.

"I'm sure Summer won't mind." Nova pulled the girl from her leader. "Though it might be a little weird when Tai shows up later today."

"Dad's coming?" Ruby and Yang replied before the empty shell of the spent flashbang collided with Yang and clattered onto floor. "Ow."

"Do you know how loud that bang was?" Blake stormed out into the hallway, rounding on her partner, oblivious to the paradoxical twins next to her. Weiss walked out behind her, already dressed somewhat for the day. "I will hurt you."

"It wasn't me." Yang defended, pointing to her counterpart. "She did it."

"I'm not going to survive long with both of you here." Blake rubbed the bridge of her nose in exasperation. "Why?"

"Technically, Summer was the one to throw the flashbang into your room." Nova offered the next round of shakes and granola to them. "And to wake you up of course."

"And you couldn't knock like a normal person?" Weiss arched an eyebrow at the older Ruby.

"Normal is overrated." Nova held back an internal flinch. This wasn't her normal voice, but the one she modulated to appear normal by society's means. "Now get dressed and ready for training."

Summer held Ruby back from dashing back into her room in a frenzy of excitement by her cloak's hood.

"For now, you will call me Summer, but if you're uncomfortable calling me so, then call me Rose." Summer released the girl and grabbed her breakfast and handed it over. "Breakfast. Eat."

Ruby snagged her breakfast and disappeared into her room without as much as a thank you, nearly tripping over a disoriented Zwei. The dog looked at the weird ensemble of people in the hallway, finding the double scents and images of its masters confusing.

"You three should also get ready." Summer padded over to Zwei and knelt next to him, letting him sniff her hand. "You don't want a hyperactive Ruby on your case."

The trio briefly fought over door space as they all collided in a helpless mass of limbs as they tried to enter their room.

Poor Zwei didn't know what to think of Summer and Nova. While Nova looked and smelt like Yang, he was smart enough to realize Yang didn't have a twin. Summer completely threw him. She radiated nothing, but smelled and look liked Ruby, who usually radiated bubbly happiness. He whined pitifully at her.

"I know buddy. I know." She waggled his ears, causing him to wag his tail in satisfaction. "Kara even likes you so it'll get more confusing."

A clamour behind her caused her to stand and about face, taking in the disorganized array of Team JNPR as Jaune presented them for inspection.

"I told you I was right." Nora presented her findings to her team, which look much less impressive than it should have. Summer and Nova stood in the hallways with Zwei tumbling between their feet as usual.

"This proves nothing Nora. Can I go back to sleep?" Jaune stretched, cracking her back.

"No." Summer's chilling voice answered for her, momentarily dropping its modulation to instill attention into the team. "We've woken you and Team RWBY for team training. Return to your room and get dressed and equipped for the day. Nikos, stay behind."

Team JNPR rushed back into their room, unwilling to contest the oppressive aura this Ruby look alike slammed into them. Pyrrha stood alone, heavily favoring her left leg. Summer would have to smack Jaune with the code of conduct manual for leaving Pyrrha alone to face a supposed superior. She fell under his command and thus was his responsibility.

"I understand you have an injury, but also understand so do two members of Team RWBY. Training will be modified to fit yours and theirs needs, but your effort is to be expected." Pyrrha nodded gravely. "Rely on your teammates if you struggle. Dismissed."

Less than a minute later, Team RWBY and Team JNPR stood across from one another, facing Nova and Summer.

"As you may have guessed already, I'm not Ruby Rose. My name is Summer Rose and as of approximately 0300 this morning, I am your commanding officer." Summer held up her hand to prevent the onslaught of questions. "I will answer all your questions as soon as we arrive at Arena Six. Move out."

Another second passed as the teams exchanged nervous glances before another movement order was barked out. They ran down the corridor, equipment clanking and footsteps echoing among the empty hallways.

Summer and Nova observed them carefully, watching in amusement as they completely failed the initial objective of the exercise. Ruby and Zwei sprinted at the head of the pack, Ruby helped by her Semblance and Zwei by the vast amounts of Aura funneled into him at a younger age.

Behind them ran the rest of the pack in no discernible formation.

Lagging behind them all ran the injured members. Yang struggled to deal with her issues of balance while Blake and Yang winced at every step they took, bolstering their injuries with their Aura.

It was a wonder how either of their counterparts reached even A-rank.

When both teams arrived at the stadium, they looked around to find Summer and Nova.

"You failed." Summer and Nova landed in between the teams without a sound. "20 push-ups for everyone except for Rose and Arc. You're both doing 30."

Sounds of protest began to make their way to their ears until the threat of doubling the punishment reached theirs in return.

"Why?" Ruby voiced her complaint after she completed her set. "Were we not fast enough?"

"Your speed had nothing to do with it. It was your severe lack of coordination and spatial awareness towards your teammates which got you your punishments."

"You completely disregarded team form as you moved through an environment. You had one single leader running forward with her pet while three other members lagged behind due to injuries. Not only was this not spotted by your teammates, but it went unnoticed by your team leaders."

"Furthermore, none of the three injured made efforts to call out towards their team leaders, preferring to shoulder their burdens by themselves. While this is perfectly fine during critical or solo missions, you have a responsibility to voice your concerns, of which your leader will then decide your course of action."

"You are a team. You succeed as a team together and fail even if one of you fails. Learn to act like one." Nova's last words caused them all to look down in shame at their failure. "You're both first year teams. We don't expect the most out of you, but we do expect competency."

"Now that you know some of the standards we expect of you, relax. You may ask questions while we stretch and then I'll go over the regime you'll be going through for the summer." Summer sat down on the ground, crossing her legs. Everyone else followed suit. "Ruby will get the first question and we'll go clockwise."

Everyone turned to Ruby, wondering what her first question would be. The girl squirmed under the attention.

"Where is your cloak?" Ruby gripped hers like a security blanket, basking in the warmth as it chased away the morning cold. The sunrise hadn't crested the top of the arena, leaving them drenched in the morning dusk.

"It got torn to ribbons on a mission and I've never worn it since." How fate seems to guide its champions; how destiny moulded the world around them. All because of a gift from her mother more than a decade previous.

"You didn't get it fixed?" The Dust infused cloth was notoriously easy to repair. A simple infusion of Dust and Aura and the cloak would look freshly fabricated.

"My cloak nearly got me killed. I stopped wearing it and had Nova burn it." Summer looked deceptively small and dark without her cloak. Ruby on the other hand sat in a pool of bright crimson. "I would suggest you stop wearing it and store it somewhere safe before it nearly kills you as well."

"But it's mom's gift." Ruby stretched the material around herself, hiding within the red, a mop of deep red hair and pale skin was the only indication there was a body hiding underneath it.

"Then I suggest you cherish the gift instead of letting it get destroyed by accident." Nova added softly. That cloak had gouged the stability of their team immensely and sent them into desperation as they searched for Summer, refusing to believe she was dead.

Bianca had stepped up to the plate and filled Summer's role, surprising everyone as she managed their forces, organized search parties and dictated the pace of the war, all the while maintaining a facade of an impenetrable figure, hiding the depths of mental strain and traumatic stress.

"Yang, you're up." Zwei jumped over Ruby and nuzzled into Yang's side as he followed Summer's questioning order.

"Woo! Nova told me on our trip she couldn't properly describe you, calling you a walking contradiction." Summer stared at her blankly, waiting for the question. "Why?"

"Nova shouldn't have told you that." Summer proceeded cautiously, wondering how she'd dig herself out of the hole her sister put her in. "I thank her for her kindness in not putting me on the spot, but I'm no different from Ruby."

"So the war Nova told me about didn't affect you at all?" Yang played her hand, looking at a shrugging Nova, understanding it was meant as indifference. If she wanted to know, she'd let her pry.

"War?" Everyone snapped their heads to look at Yang, wondering how she knew something they didn't.

"Yes. War changed all of us. We're nothing more than a byproduct of it." Summer confirmed their questions.

"But you're still Ruby. Aren't you?" Weiss prodded, unable to imagine what war could have done to her leader.

"I'm not sure if I remember how I was before the war started." Summer admitted, avoiding the question. "But don't worry about it. There won't be a war if we get our way this time."

"How did the war start?" Blake asked, a sudden feeling of dread setting into her stomach.

"It started two days ago, when the White Fang tore Beacon apart." Blake released a breathy noise of disbelief, her ears flattening themselves against her hair, almost indistinguishable. "You are not them Blake, stop blaming yourself."

"What changed?" Pyrrha continued the line of questioning. "Obviously the White Fang didn't succeed this time around. Is that why you came back?"

"Yes. The initial attack destroyed the CCTS tower and killed around two hundred Hunters, including the Headmaster and the Fall Maiden."

"Me." Everyone turned to face her. "You came back to save me. That's how you knew I was in the tower."

"I watched you die in my time and I wasn't going to let you die again." Summer explained. "Your death gave Cinder complete control of a Maiden's power, a power we could not let her have to exploit in this time."

"Thank you." Pyrrha finally took the chance to thank her rescuers. "I assume I wasn't the sole reason you jumped in time then?"

"No. While you're important, the Headmaster and the tower took precedent. You happened to be at the right place at the right time." Summer replied coldly, making Atlas' winter seem warm in comparison. "Which is the reason why both Bianca and Kara are with General Ironwood right now."

"Who?" Team JNPR hooted in sync.

"Bianca is Weiss and Kara is Blake." Nova replied succinctly. "Can anyone tell me what happens when Atlesian mechs and droids are used to attack Vale and then neither country can open communications with the other?"

The question hung in the air as they began to imagine the fallout between the two superpowers of Remnant.

"Why would the White Fang instigate a war between the two? What do they gain?" Blake didn't even notice as Zwei nudged her with his nose, begging for scratches.

"What they gained was a smokescreen to begin undermining the councils of Mistral and Vacuo to begin pushing equal rights for Faunus through."

"So they were going to let Atlas and Vale duke it out while they brought equality into Vacuo and Mistral?" Blake frowned. "Let me guess what came next. After Vale and Atlas suitably weakened themselves, the White Fang would stage a coup and implement a fair and equal government."

"Noble cause and I'd agree with them if they decided to do so non-violently." Summer stated her honest opinion. "If this was all they planned, then we'd have let Vale and Atlas slug it out until the White Fang succeeded. We'd simply play the fields and work with General Ironwood to minimise collateral damage."

"You'd let hundreds of thousands of people die, simply because you wanted to accelerate giving Faunus equal rights?" Blake stared at her aghast. "You're no better than the White Fang!"

"You're right." Summer took the accusation in stride. "What the White Fang couldn't prevent was both Mistral and Vacuo joining in on the war, seeking out greater power and status."

"The Second Great War would have been even more devastating than the first if it wasn't for the Hunter Pact of Cassus, signed by each nation's Hunter Commander. Under the guidelines set, the Hunters would force their respective city-states into a state of cold war."

"How?" Pyrrha and Weiss immediately tackled the vague answer. "Vale's Hunters aren't even a quarter of a percentage of Vale's standing army." Pyrrha nodded along to the facts, knowing the same could be said about Mistral's forces.

"By forcing them to fight us instead of one another." Nova finished for her. "Under the Pact, every Hunter faction broke away from the military core and sealed the main airfields, ports and land routes. If any forces made it through the blockades, then we'd be required to kill them."

"So instead of committing murder, you committed treason and murder." Blake stared at them in horror. "I was wrong. You're worse than the White Fang. At what point did you stop being a Hunter and become a murderer?"

"I've committed genocide in the name of peace and I would do it again to prevent it all." Summer stared her down, amber disappearing into her abyss. "Did you think being a Hunter was all glory and fame? Do you actually know what it means to be a Hunter?"

She posed this question to them all. While Professor Oobleck may have posed a similar question to them before, this question asked them what they believed their jobs to be.

"We're supposed to protect people from Grimm." Ruby chimed in, her fair skin nearly matching Weiss' as she struggled to deal with her older self casually dealing in death. "But how can killing your own people be protecting them?"

"War gets confusing Ruby. Every Hunter realized we didn't have the numbers to fight a war on multiple fronts, so we took the path of action yet inaction. We didn't want to see our nation's slaughter each other in a pointless conflict, so we stayed to the side and prevented conflicts. They eventually learned we were to be taken seriously, but we weren't perfect."

"The Hunters were originally created to deal with Grimm, but that doesn't mean we can avoid human conflict because it's not our job. We have a duty to humanity, and if that means we have to take morally grey actions, then so be it."

"I can only assume since you decided to time travel, you lost the war." The calm voice of Lie Ren washed over them. "It would explain why you're here and not there."

"We did." They could feel regret drip from Nova. "Vacuo was destroyed first, then Atlas, and we made the jump directly after we saw Vale burn. There wasn't much sense staying when there wasn't anything left to stand on."

"Can you imagine how much fear a cold war can generate?" Summer supplied. "Then try to imagine the Grimm such fear can create. That was our mistake, and by the time we realized what we had created, it was far, far too late."

Silence descended then as the sun peaked above them, blasting them with waves of heat.

"I believe Blake has the next question." Summer prompted. They had long ago finished their stretches, but questions were easier to answer while sitting and not training.

"Where is Kara now and how can she possibly support your actions?"

"Kara and Bianca are both with General Ironwood, helping to prevent such a war from happening in the first place. While Beacon wasn't hit as hard as it was in our timeline, there were still several civilian injuries caused by Atlesian property. Kara is with them trying to minimise the collateral the White Fang will take. She's trying to take the diplomatic approach with them this time."

"You make Summer out to have a dictatorship on our team. Everyone has an equal vote on actions we take as a team, and if Kara has any reservations, she is always allowed to voice them. You think she liked the actions we took? None of us did, but we all understood what needed to be done. War isn't pretty."

"The ends justify the means, don't they?" Blake scoffed at them. "Adam once told me the same."

"Do you know what he did as he lay dying in Kara's arms?" Summer's question stopped her short, causing her to shake her head. "He cried and asked for forgiveness from her. Not because he regretted turning the White Fang to violence, but because he regretted he'd alienated you and wouldn't be there to see you succeed."

"His actions weren't wrong in his eyes. He truly believed he was in the right because he believed this was the only way the Faunus could ever be seen as equals. Does this make him a terrorist? Yes. But does that make him less of a human, for wanting better for his people? No."

"What would you have had us do Blake?" There wasn't a correct answer to this question, and much as they would have loved to deal with absolutes, the world was nothing but shades of grey. "Would you rather we fight three city-states, including their Hunters, or would you rather we do nothing?"

"I don't-. I can't-."

"Which is why Kara is busy trying to prevent many more needless deaths. Weiss, you're up."

"What happened to your eye?" Weiss idly scratched Zwei head as he jumped into her lap, watching his two new masters carefully.

"I was wondering when someone would notice. Ozpin says it's one of my most defining traits." Summer played with the mechashift of her weapon, testing for any wear and tear in the precision milled parts. "My eye is a recent development. I'm not used to being blind on my right side."

"You can't see?" Ruby's eyes never left the upgraded version of her weapon, tracing out the familiar contours. She tore her gaze from it and looked Summer in the eye, flinching at the lack of silver staring back at her.

"Just because I can't see doesn't mean I don't know Jaune's fawning over Pyrrha behind me." True to her word, the team leader was looking at his partner with love struck eyes. "Or that Nora is subtly moving to cuddle up to Ren, and then subsequently beg him to make pancakes for her."

Nora jumped away from Ren as if electrified, staring sheepishly back at the crimson Huntress.

"Anyone who knows Nora knows that." Jaune rebutted, ignoring her earlier statement. Summer sighed.

"Yes, I can't see and I'm not used to it. That's all you'll get from me about it so move on." Summer stared Weiss down, daring her to press forward. "Ren, you get the next question."

"What happens to my team in your future? How do we deal without Pyrrha?"

"You continue as a team of your stature should. You each cried and consoled one another until the Commander kicked you out into the field. Jaune refused to take on a replacement for the team and you continued to operate as a three man cell until your death about two years from today. Jaune and Nora survive Vale's fall." Nova recited from memory.

Ren pondered their fate before nodding at her, accepting his counterpart's demise. If what Summer told him was true, then there would be no point in asking how it happened, just that they were working to prevent a larger scaled conflict.

Seeing him nod, Zwei jumped over to Nora, making the short leap on his stubby legs and burrowing into her lap. Summer gestured for her to ask her question.

"When do we meet Kara and Bianca?" There wasn't really any questions she needed answered. Their future wouldn't be theirs, but she was still interested in who booped who. She just had enough tact to not ask the question out loud.

"Breakfast." Summer sent off a quick message and received a reply, confirming they'd drag the General with them. "Yes, they'll join us."

"How do I deal with Pyrrha's death?" Jaune jumped in with his query. Pyrrha slide her hand over his, gripping it in a gesture of comfort.

"You wore her red sash and vowed to get revenge." Summer looked at the two dispassionately. It was hard watching Jaune descend into madness the first time. He didn't need to know anymore. "But you eventually move on. Nora hit you a little too hard with Magnhild."

"Good to know I don't change much." Nora caressed her weapon. The grenade propelled hammer looked especially menacing knowing she'd use it on her teammate. "Did I generally keep my teammates in line?"

"I think anyone with a large enough hammer and an itchy trigger finger could keep us in line." Ren slyly shuffled away from Nora, more than privy to her tendencies of landscaping. He usually resorted to his Semblance to deal with her.

His efforts were in vain as Nora dragged him back to her and forced him to endure her presence. Everyone released light chuckles at his misfortune, even if they suspected he enjoyed the manhandling.

"Every team has their Nora. We happen to have Nova." Nova released a blast of fire as she slammed her fists together, scorching everyone with minuscule licks of flame. "They're there to get us moving in the worst of times. Don't be afraid to use your hammer Nora. The boys should be able to take a few hits."

Jaune and Ren looked at Summer and Nora in horror as the former gave the latter carte blanche to motivate them.

"Pyrrha, you have the last question before we proceed with training." Nova spun around on her spot on the floor to face her.

"I was actually going to ask what you planned for our training?" She thought the question may have been a waste but she didn't have much to ask about her future. She was dead and she already knew how it'd have happened if Bianca and Summer hadn't saved her.

"Glad you asked. We won't be working with your team as closely as we'll be working with Team RWBY. We may know your fighting styles but we're not experts on your Semblances. We can give prompts but Semblances are usually highly personal intricate operations only the user can understand. You'll be on your own for that. What we'll work with you however is team dynamics; how to effectively operate as a squad."

"Your mornings will be comprised of group stretching following by a run anywhere from two clicks to ten clicks. After it, you'll all participate in a team or two on two sparring match with a random team member after which you'll criticize yourself and each other. The second part of your morning training will be explained after breakfast."

"Now get up. We have a run to complete." Summer quieted Pyrrha's concerns about her injury. "Since we're beginning, you'll only be running three clicks and because both Pyrrha and Blake happen to have injuries prohibiting them from running with their Aura, someone in each team will be required to carry her."

Pyrrha blushed at forcing her teammates to have to carry here. Jaune, being her partner, immediately volunteered.

"The person carrying the injured team member will switch off to another team member after the first kilometer and so on after the second. Easy enough?"

Everyone agreed to the terms, understanding it was nothing more than training for a similar real life situation. They at least could bolster themselves through their Aura to help carry the load, at least they thought they did.

"Now everyone except for Summer, Pyrrha and Blake please grab onto me." Nova beckoned them forwarded, allowing them to swarm around her, letting them place a hand onto her.

In one unremarkable moment, just over a full second, she tore most of their Aura from their bodies and filtered it into her own, her Semblance taking the cost from her own. Even from six fully rested people, her reserves barely edged over a quarter full.

They all staggered at the impossibly quick feeling of losing their Aura, gasping as they felt themselves drop to a critical point of survival.

"One more note. You'll be doing this exercise without your Aura." Nova gave them a cheeky smile before moving to stand by Summer's side. The two younger Hunters spared the process stared at her in confusion. "You'll get your Aura back if you succeed in the task."

"You took their Aura away?" Blake and Pyrrha looked at their downed teammates.

"Most of it. I left enough to keep them alive." Nova waited for them to stagger back to standing. It never was the most pleasant sensation to get your Aura forcibly taken from you without warning. She'd be more gentle tomorrow, but for the first time, she had to do it this way to avoid protest. "I have more than enough room to store it. Get up you pansies and learn how to rely on yourself rather than a preternatural force inside of you."

"You couldn't give us a warning?" Yang glared at Nova, angry at the blatant disregard to their safety.

"You're not dead." Summer replied. "That was your warning. Stop whining and stand up straight. You're a Hunter. Whoever is carrying your team's injured, pick her up and follow us out of the Arena."

Summer and Nova began their light jog, causing them to scramble about. Jaune lifted Pyrrha bridal style while Yang slung Blake over her shoulder, keeping her secured with her arm.

They caught up to their two taskmasters as they entered the tunnels.

"We'll be setting the pace for your runs for the first week, but after that period is up, you'll be required to set your own paces depending on team ability." Summer stated, returning to their jog. "As two of you are carrying an injured teammate, this is about the speed you wish to run, providing you're all out of Aura. Jaune, I suggest you switch to carrying Pyrrha over your shoulders."

Jaune reluctantly did so, abandoning the idea of carrying Pyrrha like a princess. Pyrrha climbed onto his shoulders, lying across them on her good hip. His sword secured her other side.

There was little life during these early hours. They could see a few other teams running in the distance but no one else. These were apparently the tryhard teams.

"Your shoulders are stronger than your arms and should always be used whenever they can to transport an injured teammate." Nova lectured before sinking back into silence, focused on her run.

Jaune and Yang agonized over their runs, regretted choosing to carry their teammate, but refused to stop, instinctively feeling an unspoken threat from Summer and the spoken threat of Nova not returning them their Aura.

They felt their kilometer couldn't take any longer as they jogged behind Summer and Nova. Jogging. Not even running properly. Yang mentally cursed whatever caused Ruby to become a sadist in the future. She was sure she was getting off on this.

A sudden stop in their pace nearly caused them to fall over. Their part of carrying the weight was apparently over. Yang released the jostled Blake onto the ground, letting her stretch her legs and inspect her injury.

Nothing seemed out of place. She'd been sending Aura to the spot to facilitate cell growth and prevent tearing from her journey. She thanked her partner and placed a kiss to her hairline, her own ears wiggling in an expression of gratitude.

She wasn't paying attention to her surroundings.

"Did Blake just kiss Yang?" Nora whispered to her team. Summer's keen ears picked up the chatter and moved to silence it.

"Yes Nora." Her voice caused them to flinch in surprise, having not heard the Hunter walk up the them. "I suggest you leave them in peace until you've finished the run or you'll find yourself without your Aura and more running added to your training." She wisely shut up, but her eyes never left the pair she decided were secretly dating.

"Who'll take up the burden next?" Nova's call prompted them to choose the next member. Ruby stepped up to carry Blake, taking her duties as leader seriously and passed Crescent Rose to Yang. Ren motioned Pyrrha to climb onto his back and shoulders, adjusting her until he could balance the weight.

Without prompt, they moved towards their next stretch of the run. Ruby held a deceptive amount of strength in her frame as she shouldered through the weight draped on her shoulders. Blake played her part brilliantly, hanging limply and silent.

Ren's steps barely changed as he followed his team, Pyrrha clinging to his green scrub. Summer's words at the start of their stretches resounded in him. If he failed, then his entire team would fail and none of them would get their Aura back until tomorrow, after a night's sleep.

Ren and Ruby could feel what Jaune and Yang felt as each of their steps drained strength from their limbs, the exponential struggle starting to wear them down. Ruby wasn't glad she decided to wear her cloak for this. While it chased away the morning chill, it trapped her body heat, leaving her overheated.

When Ruby felt her strength about to fail her, Summer and Nova blessedly stop and told them their second kilometer was completed. Ruby limply collapsed onto her knees, letting Blake step onto the ground, who quickly offered her hand to fit her leader up.

"Thank you." Blake smiled down at her, but she could see her words wouldn't be enough for the girl currently pouting at her. Releasing a sigh, she bowed her head and let the girl attack her ears. Pulses of pleasure ran through her spine as her ears screamed their agreement with the light massage Ruby was applying to them.

Feeling she had had enough time with her ears, Blake gripped her wrists and gently pulled them away. She almost let her continue if Nova and Yang hadn't forced a cough to interrupt their moment.

"You're not wearing your bow." Pyrrha couldn't look away from the pair of feline ears resting at the top of Blake's head. This was the first time Team JNPR saw Blake without the bow on, but they hadn't even realized it until Ruby touched them. The black velvet of her ears blended seamlessly with the material of her bow, causing them to mistake the two for the same. "Where is it?"

Blake pointed to Yang's wrist. The black material was wrapped around several times around the forearm with the ends neatly tied in a flat bow clamped underneath Ember Celica.

Nora would have jumped on the revelation as more evidence to their relationship if she didn't feel the cold breath of a reaper dance along her neck and raise goosebumps. She didn't need to turn around to know Summer was watching her, daring her on.

"Kara doesn't wear a bow. My secret would have been revealed anyways." Blake ruffled her hair and ears, letting them feel the freedom her bow stole from them. "You're the first people outside my team who've seen me without it."

"You're going to permanently keep your bow off?" Ren didn't care why she took it off, but she counted as one of his friends and once the accusations and discriminations can flying at her, he'd have to help her.

"At least while on Beacon." Blake watched Summer and Nova, unable to glimpse any disappointment at her decision. While they both understood she needed a push, they could respect her boundaries for now. "I'll see about not wearing it outside of Beacon."

"Questions later." Summer pushed, wanting to finish their run."Weiss and Nora, you're the last to carry a teammate. If you fail, your entire team fails and will be forced to go without Aura for your spars."

Weiss gulped heavily. Blake was a larger person than her. Her diminutive stature wouldn't help her with strength, especially if she wasn't allowed to use her Aura. She briefly wondered if Nora would have any trouble, but she dismissed the idea. Her exuberance wouldn't let her fail.

She started to regret not following Yang for her morning lifts.

Passing Myrtenaster to Yang, she slung Blake onto her shoulders, testing her balance with a few steps forward. Nora handed Magnhild's collapsed form to Ren and easily bent down to lift Pyrrha onto her back. Wielding her hammer had done much to build muscle.

Seeing them adjusted to their burdens, Summer and Nova took off to complete their runs, not even turning around to see if they were following, the threat of their Aura forcing them to follow.

Weiss vowed to beg Yang for her workout schedule as every step forced her to nearly drop to her knees. She could feel how Ruby and Yang had to hold themselves back from helping her but could also feel they believed in her to succeed.

The greatest point of inspiration to complete the run wasn't the reward of her own Aura, but her team's reward of getting their Aura back. If she failed now, then either Yang or Ruby would be forced to carry Blake, making her look weak in comparison or force Blake to finish the jog, having to use her own Aura when she should have been able to rely on Weiss.

Nora pitied the heiress, but knew telling her so would invite her ire, not to mention probably both Summer's and Nova's for interrupting the morning peace surrounding them. Pyrrha wasn't the heaviest person she could have been asked to carry, but she certainly wasn't light or easy to carry. Even she could feel the toll.

Digging into their last reserves and unwilling to be seen as weaker compared to their teammates, they pushed back into Arena. Once Summer and Nova stopped, they gladly released their teammates, sighing in relief as their shoulders relaxed.

"Easy?" Nova asked, immediately receiving glares of contempt in return. Neither her nor Summer carried anything for their runs, making their runs drastically easy, even if they refrained from using Aura. "It wasn't that bad. Stop your whining."

"Says the Hunter who didn't carry over fifty kilo for a kilometer." Weiss' trademark bite ripped into Nova but had no effect.

"Do I hear you voluntarily declining the return of your Aura." Nova spun the tables around. "Why thank you. I'll gladly add it to my stockpile."

"You wouldn't dare." Weiss stepped up Nova. Only now did the size difference strike her. She stood just short of full head shorter than her opponent and she could feel the smugness oozing off Nova from this fact.

"Try me princess." Nova stared down at her quarry, bending down to close the distance with a smirk plastered on her face. Weiss' pride wouldn't let her pull away from the face breaking into her personal space, centimeters away from touching.

Completely missing the point Nova was perfectly comfortable being in a person's personal space, especially if that person resembled her wife to a tee.

"Stop flirting." Summer watched them with amusement. Weiss blinked away confusion before recoiling from the closing in blonde.

"I wasn't flirting!" Weiss flushed bright red, vehemently denying any such action taking place between the two. "Just because Bianca fell for this brute doesn't I'm attracted too."

Yang had a trail of tears falling down her cheeks at Weiss' insincere comments. Nova whispered soothing thoughts, telling her she was too good for her anyways and should focus her attentions on a certain receptive Faunus.

"I hear love in the air~!" Nora twirled over to then, taking full advantage of Summer's warning no longer applying. She landed in between Yang and Nova, leaning her head between theirs. "Spill. Why did Blake kiss you and what did Weiss mean by Bianca falling for Nova?"

"Probably because she's always secretly harbored feelings for me since she met me and accidentally gave me a kiss as a gesture of gratitude without realizing she was surrounded by her friends." Summer felt a light pulse of pain return to her shoulder as Blake hit Yang in the exact same spot. "They deserve to know Blake. They're our friends."

"You came onto me if I remember correctly." Blake responded coolly. "And I, in my heart, found place for such a brute like you."

"I can see your relationship is starting nicely." Summer supplied. "I hope it flourishes as nicely as Bianca's and Nova's."

"So no one is going to say anything about an elder Yang and an elder Weiss getting together?" Jaune asked, his team sharing his curiosity, especially the ever romantic Nora.

"We already knew." Ruby spoke for her team, everyone nodding in agreement. "They explained they were from a different timeline and their actions and ours would not have an effect on one another."

"But still." Nora pressed. "How did Yang and Weiss end up together? They're polar opposites."

"We just did. That's the easiest way to explain it." Nova could see Nora ready to explode with some statement. "It wasn't love at first sight, but it was damn something. You'll see Bianca at breakfast so you'll see how we interact."

"What about you Summer?" Nora asked. Team RWBY also looked to her. They hadn't even thought about her. Summer hefted her scythe onto her shoulder, spinning it along its shaft.

"I'm married to Crescent Rose." It wasn't technically wrong. The weapon had replaced the security the cloak had offered before its destruction and subsequent storage. Kara had to share her affection.

Ruby didn't look too disappointed she hadn't found love, but looked amazed at the upgrades Crescent Rose went through. Summer extended the weapon to her before she even had to ask. Not even her ordeal could change her love and care for her chosen weapon.

She grabbed the weapon and drew out her own, laying them both on the ground. Compared side by side, her weapon seemed several times smaller. Summer's Crescent Rose boasted a longer and thicker shaft along with appropriately scaled mechashift components. They were both identical in colour.

Releasing both weapons, she watched in awe at Summer's weapon eclipsed her own entirely. The blade had been changed to a serrated edge, nastily sharp teeth lining the bottom edge while the mechashift casing was pushed back from the top, allowing more of the gleaming silver to show itself.

A familiar dastardly hook acted as a counterbalance for the weapon and as a secondary close range attack, letting both sides of the scythe be used effectively rather than leave an weak spot.

"Can I borrow it?" Ruby wished to take it apart and examine it to its fullest and see which parts she could add to her own.

"Later on today, but if you don't put her back together exactly as she was before then I'll take yours and scatter it to pieces around the Forever Falls." Ruby didn't doubt the veracity of the threat. She'd probably do the same so even getting Summer's agreement to let her do this was amazing. "And I'll let you fire one shell."

"Thanks mom." Ruby slammed into Summer with a hug, conveniently forgetting Summer hadn't let her call her that yet, pending Kara's consul. Perhaps, acting even friendly with the girl was going to cause problems. She peeled off realizing her mistake, muttering a sheepish apology.

"It's fine." Summer gently ran her fingers through familiar hair. She was reasonably sure Kara wouldn't mind Ruby calling Summer mother. It was the problem of Kara asking Ruby to call her mom which was a challenge. It could screw with how their team functioned. "You can call me 'mom' if you want to."

It was going to be weird meeting with Tai anyways. She might as well toss another wrench in their meeting and secretly hoped Neo would crash it to escalate it further.

"Okay...mom." She tested the word out but found it weird knowing she had permission to actually use it.

"Am I missing something here?" Pyrrha asked the gathered Team RWBY as they watched Ruby interact with Summer.

"Summer looks exactly what Ruby's mother, also called Summer, looked like before her death." Yang supplied the answer. "Ruby was already on track to be Summer's twin, but seeing it in the flesh only cements it."

"Enough sap Summer." Nova would've let the bonding continue if she wasn't sure Summer was very close to breaking from her emotional facade and letting them see the true side of her. She wanted to keep that side of her away from any impressionable minds as long as possible. "Who's ready to fight?"

The two teams snapped to attention and waited to receive their instructions. Ruby reluctantly handed Summer her scythe back. Her own felt measly after seeing what it could become.

"In an effort to forge stronger team bonds, and because you received no warning of this training beforehand, they'll only be one match before breakfast." Nova explained. "Seeing as there are three injured Hunters does put Team JNPR slightly in favor but I expect Team RWBY to give it their best."

"The goal of the exercise is not to win, but to protect your injured teammates. While they can still fight, their fighting capabilities will be hampered. It doesn't matter if you beat the entire other team. If you lose one team member, you lose the match."

"Will you not be fighting today?" Ruby called out to Summer.

"Ozpin has ordered us to avoid fighting and training inside Beacon's grounds." Summer replied. "Once we deem you ready, we'll take you on a hunt and you'll see for yourselves."

"I advise you use your opponent's weakness as they'll be using yours." Summer and Nova had already identified the weak points. Blake couldn't perform her usual acrobatic maneuvers, Yang would be overcompensating for her balance and Pyrrha would be much slower than normal.

Ruby could easily target Pyrrha with her speed or Weiss could create a glyph underneath her to destabilize her. Jaune would be the best suited to protecting her.

Nora would be more than a match for Yang, the brute force of Magnhild would override any shielding Yang threw up.

Ren would handle Blake. Both were martial artists but Ren held advantage over her. He only suffered heavy bruising while Kara suffered a laceration. Any balancing act or tension would interrupt her, causing her to waste Aura to keep herself stable or be forced to deal with the pain.

If Ruby or Weiss were talented enough to occupy both Jaune's and Pyrrha's attention, then the other could help out one of her teammates. While Yang and Blake would fight together under usual circumstances, splitting Ren and Nora apart gave them a better chance over fighting them together.

The only factors in the air for this battle would be their imagination and intelligence. They needed to analyze an opponent team's fighting styles and be able to appropriately react based on their own abilities.

"I almost forgot." Nova jumped from the bleachers in one bound and landed in between the teams, holding her hands out. "Come and get your Aura."

Team RWBY grabbed onto her left side and Team JNPR onto the right. The process of infusing Aura took much longer as several dozen seconds ticked by until finally everyone was back to full. "Now have fun and show us what you can do." Nova returned to her spot next to Summer, observing them.

Ruby and Jaune shared nods before absconding to opposite sides of the battlefield. It was nothing more than a large dirt circle with no discernible markings.

"Once this knife hits the ground, the match is officially started." Summer removed a throwing knife from her leg pouch, casually flipping it by its handle and catching it perfectly. Each team watched for the moment, until Summer missed the handle and the knife embedded itself into the dirt.

Ruby blasted off with a shower of petals and rocketed straight for Nora, deeming her the largest threat in their team. Nora met her scythe with her warhammer, the two clashing in a symphony of steel. The orangette grinned before releasing a grenade to propel her weapon forward, catching Ruby off guard and sending her spiraling into the dirt.

It seemed neither remembered their primary objectives were to protect their teammates as they each prepared to clash again.

Before the other six Hunters could move, a shower of black rose petals appeared behind Pyrrha, causing the girl to instinctually block with Akoúo̱.

"I've noticed you're not carrying Miló." Summer watched her blankly. "Why not?"

"Cinder may have melted through it in our fight up in the tower." Pyrrha replied, ashamed her Xiphos was destroyed.

"Use this until you get Miló repaired." Summer removed one of of the forearm blades strapped underneath her vambraces and handed it over. "Her name is Shadow. Treat her well."

Summer returned back her position next to Nova, pulling back her rose petals, before Pyrrha could thank her for the weapon.

Weiss was kind enough to let the brief exchange happen before running at the Vermillion pair, casting a glyph under them as she prepared to parry Jaune's swing. She mentally thanked Bianca for making her carry the cargo yesterday. Maintaining only one was a breeze.

The sudden loss of traction made Weiss' job easy as she smashed through Jaune's guard and sent him sprawling outside the glyph and into the dirt.

Pyrrha couldn't move for fear of following in her leader's footsteps and instead gripped Myrtenaster with her Semblance. The sudden pressure on her rapier caused her to drop it and Pyrrha's Semblance caused it to rush into Akoúo̱.

Weiss noticed Jaune get back up as Yang and Ren clashed. Ren was too nimble to get hit by her punches, but Yang had enough Aura to spare to tank Ren's bullets and quick slashes. It would be a battle of attrition as Yang tested Ren's acrobatics and Ren tested Yang's reserves.

Weiss sidestepped Jaune's strike and focused on keeping the glyph keeping Pyrrha immobile stable. Brief flickers of power showcased a near break in concentration but she managed to keep the glyph active.

She summoned another glyph onto the palm of her hand and pushed aside another sword strike as she danced around the glyph on the ground. Pyrrha was stuck watching her partner futilely strike at the small princess, unable to land a strike.

Seeing Weiss occupying both Jaune and Pyrrha, Blake rushed off to help her partner finish the fight with Ren. Even with both of them injured, Ren struggled to deal with attacks coming from an experienced duo. Blake covered Yang's missing side while Yang intercepted whatever attacks Ren could launch at her.

Pyrrha watched as Ren dueled two members of Team RWBY and focused on thinking about how to get out of her situation. If Jaune could break Weiss' concentration long enough, she'd be able to escape the trap.

Her plan fell to pieces as Jaune overextended on one of his swings. Weiss ducked under it, the glyph on her palm deflecting it, and positioned herself between Jaune and her glyph.

Jaune understood his folly as Weiss broke his footing and pushed him into the glyph. In an instant, the white of the glyph was replaced with a glowing black, trapping both of them. The white at least gave them a possibility of movement but the black robbed them of it completely. Weiss had them trapped and she knew it.

Pyrrha looked at the rapier attached to her shield. Weiss was more dangerous when lacking a weapon. It forced her to use her mind instead of the blade. She looked over her opponent. Locking them both in a glyph must've taken more concentration than her usual glyphs did as she stood still and watched them.

Nothing on her person was metal unless she counted the thin silver necklace resting in the hollow of her neck and she doubted it would cause her to lose concentration. Another looked revealed a weakness she could exploit.

She grabbed at the tiara keeping Weiss' hair in place. The removal of it caused the heiress' head to move to the side and sent white strands of hair into her face and eyes.

It was enough.

The glyph under their feet dissolved as Weiss raked her hair back with her hand. She had nothing to to tie her hair back with, the white strands dancing freely around her head, obscuring her vision.

Jaune seized the opportunity and rushed forward. Weiss, lacking both a weapon and now a clear view of her opponent, she backpedaled and deflected strike after strike on her person.

Perhaps Bianca had the right idea in cutting her hair down. It was a severe detriment if it became unraveled during a battle. Her only saving grace was that Pyrrha had decided not to move, letting her more easily take on Jaune.

She understood if Pyrrha was to move to attempt to help Nora or Ren, then she'd probably be a detriment as her teammate would need to defend Pyrrha's weaker side and also defend themselves.

Yang and Blake were the exception to this rule as each understood the other would watch out for themselves and watch each other.

Ren slashed at Blake with Stormflower, landing a deep slash against her abdomen. His success lasted only briefly as a fire clone took her place and blasted him back, the original walking away cleanly.

Yang beset on him, dashing above him and made to slam him into the ground if a sudden force on her gauntlet didn't pull her off course. From the corner of her eyes, she could see Pyrrha's eyes trained on her. Even injured, she still helped her team.

Yang didn't know if Pyrrha could manipulate multiple weapons at once with her Semblance. She could only be able to control Ember Celica at this distance or she could be able to control Gambol along with it.

Deciding to err on the side of caution, she dropped her gauntlet and checked her person for anything metal. Finding nothing, she returned to pressuring Ren away from Blake.

She only later realized it was a mistake as it gave Pyrrha control of the only weapon in their skirmish, namely Blake's katana. Said weapon couldn't obey any of it's master's order and Blake was forced to sheathe it.

That only gave Pyrrha greater control over Blake as the metal was now parallel to Blake's body. While she couldn't throw Blake around, she had enough control to influence subtly, altering her paths just enough to give Ren the advantage.

Fed up with Pyrrha dictating the pace of the fight, she removed Gambol and its sheath and tossed it as far away from Pyrrha as she could, leaving her and Yang to wage the fight with fists and Aura against guns and blades. Their fight was in their hands now.

Seeing she could no longer affect Jaune's or Ren's fight, she looked to see Ruby and Nora duking it out. Ruby was utilizing her Semblance to constantly throw off Nora to her position and harass her, but Nora was quick enough with Magnhild to counter every slash sent her way, though she refused to use her rifle against her.

For every three passes Ruby made, Nora made one titanic blow to Ruby, causing her to use more of her Aura to slow down, alter her course, or even stop to avoid a crushing hammer blow.

The polarity user attempted to pull on Ruby's scythe, but Ruby moved too quickly to establish a solid hold, the weight of the weapon tearing it from her grasp. There was little else of potential on Ruby's person for Pyrrha to pull and even if there was, she had doubts she'd be able to grab her.

Focusing back onto Jaune's skirmish with Weiss, she saw neither side gaining the advantage, both locked in a stalemate. While Weiss couldn't attack directly, she could defend with her glyphs, constantly pushing Crocea Mors away from her and causing Jaune to falter in his footing.

She missed the important fact Weiss was slowly leading him towards Nora and Ruby.

As Weiss finished her loop to Ruby, the young leader skimmed Nora in her side, barely sliding past the traveling arc of Magnhild. Slamming her Semblance the other direction, she pulled Nora off of her feet, throwing her forwards towards Weiss.

Jaune took his last step of the fight towards Weiss as she created a line of glyphs away from him. His foot traveled along the line of glyphs and Ren found the time to cringe as Jaune was forced into a split.

With the two team members disoriented and downed near each other, Weiss used the last of her Semblance to lock them to the ground. The glyph wouldn't last long by the state of her reserves, but it gave Ruby enough time to face off against Pyrrha.

The fastest Hunter against a crippled one.

It was over before Pyrrha could blink.

She felt the flat of the scythe slam into her shield and break her guard, causing her to fall to the ground. Ruby leveled her rifle to point at her face.

A loud buzzer sounded around them to signal an end to the fight.

"Team RWBY wins. Congratulations." Summer announced. "We'll discuss your performances at breakfast. I'm sure you're hungry."

Summer and Nova gave them no chance to rest as they left the Arena and proceeded to the canteen, Zwei nipping at their heels. Lifting their downed or trapped friends, they gave chase to the elusive duo, all of their stomachs growling in unison at the thought of food.

---

AN: I know it's later than it should be but I'm in Uni. I have other assignments to do and while I do enjoy this more than those, they still need to get done.

I've never seen an Ozpin x Neo story yet, but that doesn't mean it'll happen. It was a spur of the moment idea. There character development bios get updated every time I use them.

Longest chapter so far. The ending may look abrupt because it is, but does tie into Summer's personality. I wanted to get this chapter ended and up as soon as possible.