RWBY Reading of 'Relic of the Future'

by Starsyc

The cast of RWBY from a time before the events in Relic of the Future find themselves brought to watch and learn from the adventure of Jaune Arc in said story. is what they learn worth it? will they change their own fate? read to find out. RWBY belongs to it's creators and 'Relic of the Future belongs to Coeur Al'Aran, credits to each for their works. tips to improve are accepted.

7. 7 Qrow vs Jaune

The creator of Relic of the future is Coeur Al'Aran, all credits for the Story go to him, I'm just building from there, go read it if you haven`t and then come back to read this.

Carajo me tarde un chingo con este.

Well it's obvious Jauney boi aint coming, which was what I expected to some degree, although I thought there would be at least some on par with the idea but oh well.

The reason I asked about it is because I don't just discard the ideas I read from the reviews and maybe there's potential that I might not be seeing. But yeah, him being there wouldn't be fun and could damage the integrity of the whole event apart from not apporting anything.

Now for the one who asked of the pairing for the pairing…I aint got the faintest idea, to be honest, while the whole 'ye everyone gets a piece of Jauney' is funny on paper, it just gets repetitive when everyone does it, so I guess he'll be a normal person with one similar other.

Who it'll be, pffff probs Ruby because yes, Lancaster is cute, but who knows, maybe I'll change my mind and shove Winter onto Arc boi, or I'll make magic and he'll be a virgin forever, only time will tell.

Another thing, no I did not forget about Roman and Neo, I simply didn't find anything that they could say that another character could do better.

So ye, imagine they've just been watching silently like a movie.

-In other news -

I've had this idea of making various reactions to something from people of different franchises (each franchise has their own reaction I mean)

Then it came to me that I could connect everything by making whoever they might be reacting to take part in the new story just like Jaune boi is planned to be. -wink - wink-

It just sounds fun and in the end I'm doing all of this because of fun.

Now, this whole thing is just an idea, not something on paper yet and the other reactions are just plans for the future and won't start to be developed until this has way more chapters at least (which I hope to go so far working on this)

And by that point I hope to have gotten better at making my own story withing others watching a story.

Anyways, this is said because I like hearing what ya think and if anyone might have suggestions on that.

We also have some prep work for leaving Em vulnerable enough to accept the fact Jauney is very nice, so yea, Cindy's an ass today.

Funny thing is, I was writing a part about Cinder when I read a review exactly about that.

I won't take much else from your time and please enjoy the story.

---

Paradox -Mystic POV-

A few minutes have passed ever since the end of the las chapter, the Raven vs Jaune had just transformed into a Qrow vs Jaune that had both Branwen having a passive aggressive conversation with one another.

"you really went and did that" the simple desire of punching anything was making Qrow go mad, and like most of the time, it was his sister who brought said desires to him.

Raven smiled knowingly as if the events were some sort of plan she's had from the beginning instead of a last minute idea. "yes, I find it amusing to a degree"

"come on Rae he's my own student" the Jaune kid had pointed that out countless times, and along with how observant he was it made so he was the only person that could know his fighting style better then himself.

The woman laughed, she hadn't remembered that, and it caught her by surprise. "that just makes it funnier" seeing one's brother inconvenienced, truly a pleasure of life.

"it isn't funny" the man sighed, just to mutter afterwards. "this is just my luck" Qrow's semblance was always at fault, always.

"just like always has been brother" she heard him but agreed anyways, that was something they would always agree on.

Tai, Vernal and Oscar watched from the sidelines as the two continued. Oscar and Tai sharing a look, both of them feeling lie the twins were behaving like little kids.

Vernal on the other side was cheering for her boss, she couldn't lose an argument against a stupid traitor.

While the siblings had their little squabble, others were more interested in other things not some irony that came with Qrow fighting his student.

"Seriously what is it with you?" Cinder had enough of Emerald at this point, whatever she had told her for the past chapters had been met with half-baked responses and a distracted attitude. "I'm pretty sure I left it clear enough when I said that you have to pay attention"

"Cinder I- I…"

"I- I- that's all you're going to say!" Cinder had enough of this, apparently all the time she had spent on Emerald had been a waste after all. "it doesn't matter how this makes you feel, if you mess it up now, you're putting in risk any plan I might be able to come up with" the woman knew that Emerald had that blind admiration for her, and had she been actually thinking what she was saying the conversation might have gone another way.

But she didn't have the self-control to do so, not when everything she had planned could fall and break like a sandcastle. "what a waste you are" she muttered to herself, so Emerald wasn't able to listen, but still looking at her disappointed.

(no, no nononononono!) Emerald started to get desperate, that kind of look was exactly what she didn't want to see. (I need, I need to prove her I'm useful, yeah that's all) fear soon started to overtake her, she'd always known she would be abandoned if she stopped being useful, but after she had tried so hard to please and be useful. "please, Cinder…just one more chance please"

Ah, that what she wanted to hear. Cinder had to know that Emerald was still eating from her palm and that this place hadn't been doing anything to her. "just one Emerald, don't you dare disappoint me"

What? you thought Cinder was just going to waste all of her efforts on Emerald like that? Yeah right as if she'd be that much of an idiot.

This was nothing but a simple way to keep Emerald of off any kind of thoughts this book might give her, after what happened with Roman and his little 'betrayal' she had to make sure the others were still in line.

Even if it may end up having consequences she didn't expect.

While these two were having their little issues in another side of the library there was Lancelot who had stayed in the room, having a little conversation.

"I didn't say anything yes, but it also held more meaning when you were shown that violence had its consequences" he had been questioned by Glynda about the whole knockout on Qrow for the whole time the viewing had been stopped.

The woman wasn't very pleased with such an answer. "It would have still had a form of impact if we had known, and there's also the fact that he wasn't even trying to attack seriously"

"hmm, maybe you are correct, but it was still recognized as hostile action, so measures were taken" Lancelot didn't actually deny it, more so he just stated what happened. "its is not as if I could change the rules the Boss stablished nor change something that has already happened"

What he wanted to arrive at was that the discussion over Qrow's little altercate, and knockout was pointless, which was something Glynda understood, it wasn't as if she was asking for Qrow's sake.

The real problem and the one she wasn't saying was one of more importance.

How much actual power the Knight had over them, what could or couldn't do to them, would they know if he decided to go behind their backs? would he even need to do that?

In the end all she was trying to do was get some information of him.

It was impossible for her to trust an individual with not only very doubtful motives, but that had kidnapped them to show something to 'change the future' along with his unknow capabilities and has forced some rules over you.

It was a unfruitful conversation anyways, Lancelot was firm in keeping his answers as vague as possible and sometimes not even responding at all.

Disappointed she decided to go back to the rest of her colleagues, only to find the twins insulting each other.

Now she hoped she had gone with her students.

Speaking of them.

The beacon teams along with Neptune and Sun had decided to take a detour and explore the library around them as they wanted to cool off for a bit and stretch their legs.

The halls had a slightly warm light that came from somewhere, the carpet in the floor making a crunching sound whenever they stepped in it.

The atmosphere around them felt calm and quiet as they strolled, all too curious with their surroundings.

Well, it was as calm as Nora and Sun running around from side to side could get.

"this place is surreal" Weiss couldn't believe something like this existed, it held a limit by walls but at the same time it was infinite in space.

"you tell me" Yang agreed, happy to hold any kind of conversation rather than the weird silence they had going on until now.

"should we even be allowed this far?" they had been walking for a while and it worried Ren that they might get lost. "what are we looking for anyways?"

It was an idea that Ruby suggested, and as good friends they had gone with her for company, but there was something else going on.

"I- I want to see if there's other books here" Ruby spoke without confidence, not too sure about what they were doing. "Lancelot didn't say anything about not looking around and…and maybe there are other books like the one we're reading here"

As if puzzle pieces had fallen in place Blake was able to understand in some way what Ruby was trying to say. "you're saying there might another book that can tell us our future?"

It was a logical assumption, after all they might have a better shot at fixing everything if they were to see their future and not some alternate one.

"y-yeah of course" once again Ruby stumbled with her own words, Blake's idea was somewhat correct but at the same time not what she wanted.

She wanted to know what herself from the future thought about her uncle's words about being a huntsman.

What she had always wanted to be and what it actually was were two things that didn't line up as she was told, and if she can't even trust what her family told her about being a huntress, where could she find someone to tell her the truth?

Before the search could continue they were all dragged back to the center, where the holo-space seemed to be activating once more.

Qrow and Raven had been separated and were once again in their respective places, Mercury had surprisingly fallen asleep during this break as there was nothing of interest for him.

Cinder and Emerald now stood a certain distance from each other, no one from the students team RWBY and JNPR.

"we decided to begin so I took the liberty to bring you all back" those were the first things they listened to as they realized they were back onto their last seat.

"and please, it would be better if we were to avoid spoilers alright" everyone had shivers down their spines when he spoke, it was the same tone used the first time they arrived. "now that we clarified that, let us begin"

Once again the space encapsulated the room, leaving everyone back in a similar position from the one before.

The bandits surrounding the camp began to cheer and shout, sensing the oncoming combat and pushing to get the best view. The circle crowded in, tents and other items pushed away as a ring was roughly formed, not ten meters in diameter. The walls of it were flesh, muscle and the odd weapon. Had Qrow or Jaune wanted to leave, they wouldn't have been able to. Through it all, Raven smiled, goading her warriors on with a nonchalant air.

"Fight him?" Qrow asked, not at all bothered by the display or at least hiding it well. He looked Jaune up and down in what could only be a dismissive manner. "Alright, shouldn't be too hard." He brought forth his weapon and started to swing it, loosening his muscles. "But if I win, you have to stick to your side of the deal."

"arrogant much?" if Winter didn't like Qrow already, this much more arrogant version of him was going to be a big pain for her.

"Qrow's confident teenage phase lasted way more than it should have" it was only after Summer had died that Qrow's arrogance had been truly dealt with, which wasn't done in the best way possible.

"this whole chapter is going to be like this isn't it?" Qrow didn't like how this was going, and it definitively will get worse with time, he then looked for his flask only to notice it was empty once more. "oh for fuck sake"

"I don't go back on my word."

"that's the only thing you can do apparently" Yang muttered in a angry tone, it was low enough so only Ruby was able to hear her.

Ruby smiled sadly at her sister and got closer to her, making an attempt to put Yang's head on her shoulder as a way to comfort while he looked at her smiling a little.

"yeah, Summers is my mom, you're right" it was clear to her what Ruby was trying to tell her with that look, that she shouldn't care about what Raven does.

If it was only that easy.

"Heh, I guess that's at least one thing you're good at sticking with. It's a shame you never managed it with anything else."

The barbs and taunts never ceased and the crowd loved it, lapping up the tension and the promise of a good fight. Jaune was less keen and caught Raven by the elbow, pulling her aside. "What are you doing?" he hissed. "I'm not your champion and this isn't my fight. I don't want to fight him."

"just do it you fucker!" Vernal wouldn't stand being taught and getting beat up from a coward that didn't accept a fight like that. "if you're Branwen you fight till you drop"

"Arc isn't one of your disgusting pigs" Weiss countered, the idea of a Jaune in the tribe was somehow worse than him being the annoying dork he was now.

"pfff, he'll be when we're out of here" he had managed to get the boss interest and trained another her, Vernal would be dammed if she didn't bring the actual one to the tribe.

"we won't let you!" Ruby was quick to intervene, it wasn't as if she was going to let Jaune be taken.

"I'd like to see you try pipsqueak!" and Vernal wouldn't back from a challenge like that.

"It's a little late for that now."

"No, it's not. Fight him yourself. I've got no reason to do this."

"Oh? And here I thought you wanted your sword back," Raven smirked when he froze. Her hand gently took his, prying it off her arm and pushing it back against his chest. "Fight Qrow on my behalf and I shall give it back, no questions asked. You'll have what you came for and be free to leave."

while in the background Ruby and Vernal still had a 'nice conversation' Raven and Qrow were having one of their own.

"of course you're using his sword as black mail" the deadpan on the huntsman face and voice couldn't be more obvious.

"if I have an advantage like that I might as well take it" Raven didn't pay any mind to her brothers face, things were getting interesting fast.

"you're probably too scared to fight" Qrow said smugly. "I wouldn't expect less from you"

Raven's grip made a chilling crack as the veins in her forehead were visible. "if I had my sword I would have castrated you for that, so it'd be good for you to remember that"

Maybe Qrow should keep his mouth shut for a while.

It was a good offer… or at least a good point. He had to fight Raven to get it back anyway, and Qrow was on the same level as Raven, at least when she wasn't using the Spring Maiden's powers. He had no idea if she actually had those yet, but if he had to pick between fighting her and Qrow, then Qrow would be the easier choice, if only because he knew more about how the man fought.

The bigger problem was that fighting Qrow aligned him with Raven and against Ozpin, and while it was definitely the case on the latter, he didn't exactly want that to be a known fact. His anonymity was supposed to be his biggest advantage, and that wasn't just being thrown out the window - it was being mailed directly to Ozpin with a gift tag. There was no way the headmaster wouldn't be hearing about this the moment Qrow got back to Vale. If he won, it would only be worse!

Ironwood nodded along with Jaune's reasoning, fighting a possible maiden could be a death sentence for someone unprepared.

At the same time however he could also see how much of a problem it could be having his anonymity blown off, it would take to much liberty over his movements if Oz had his eyes on him.

"this is not very favorable" it was the conclusion the general decided to express in words.

"ya figured that on your own Jimmy?" it was honestly something everyone could see so Qrow's comment was met by giggles from those near, which had finally gotten Vernal and Ruby's argument behind.

"be as funny as you want Qrow, but the situation is growing from a simple fight very fast"

"Why are you doing this?" he demanded, pulling Raven aside so that Qrow couldn't hear them whisper. "What do you have to gain?"

"That is for me to know and you to find out." Raven shucked off his hands and reversed Crocea Mors, holding it by the blade and pushing the hilt out towards him. "But if you need a little more incentive, I shall give it to you. Your goal is to reach Vale, and as soon as possible, no? The journey would take a week or more, perhaps two. I can have you there tomorrow, or close enough to cut your travel down to just a few hours."

Her Semblance; he'd almost forgotten about it. She could only move to people she had a bond with as far as he understood, but the hint on travel time suggested she had Taiyang in mind, which meant Patch. The small island was close to the city, barely six hours away by ferry. It would cut a lot of time off his trip and save any more distractions like this one. The only reason he hadn't thought of it before was that there was no real way to convince Raven to open one for him, or there hadn't been until now.

Again, she made it sound like such a good offer.

"it does sound like a good deal" Pyrrha couldn't stand seeing Jaune so pressed for this because of Crocea Mors, so if this is what he needed to do to get out of there, then it might not be a bad choice. "I just hope he doesn't get hurt anymore"

"Pyrrha, Jaune is an adult and a huntsman there, you can't keep worrying like that" Ren intervened, he'd seen how much of a worrywart the champion could be, but also he knew that Jaune thought of that worry as a lack of trust in him, as he was told by him once. "have a little faith in Jaune"

"Yeah! Our leader will never lose to some cocky bird!" Nora's proclamation made Raven actually laugh, seeing how her brothers supposed side cheered for his fall.

"The alternative is that I fight him," she said. "We're evenly matched, so if he wins I'll need to travel to Vale to see Ozpin. It might take a while for me to have the freedom to face you, which means I shall be keeping hold of your weapon for quite a while longer, and you'll have to accompany me to Vale if you want it back. Of course, even should I win, I might be too injured to fight you – so you would need to wait another week or so for me to heal. Can you afford to waste so much time?"

"not only threatening him with keeping his sword but also delaying him" Winter could see now how cunning Raven could actually be, and it made clear why the Branwen tribe had thrived for so long.

"he has no choice but to fight now" Oscar reaffirmed, he would trust Jaune to win this fight.

"poor kid, being in the other side of Ravens machinations is never good" Tai felt sorry for Jaune, getting Raven's attention might as well could be considered sentence for life.

No, he couldn't. Even assuming she won, he'd end up stuck here. If she lost, then she'd have to go to Vale, and he – needing his sword – would be forced to follow. Meeting Ozpin this early wasn't just a bad idea; it was madness.

With a sigh, Jaune accepted his sword.

Raven's eyes sparkled like gems.

"I'm not doing this for you," he pressed. "I'm doing this because it helps me."

"I would have no respect for you were it the other way around. I'm not a damsel in distress who needs a man to fight her battles for her. This is simply entertainment. That and confirming something."

"I agree with myself here, I'd really would lose all respect for him if that were the case" Raven rambled as she shook her head in a way to show disapproval towards jaune's thoughts.

Oscar got close to Qrow while Raven was still speaking as whispered to him. "isn't it a bit egotistical to agree with yourself?"

Qrow snorted at that. "its Raven who you're talking about here kid, egotistical is a second nature to her"

Well, that was certainly an ominous way to put it, but he shouldn't have expected any less. Jaune held his hand out for his sheathe but hooked it to his belt after a moment's thought. On the one hand, fighting without his shield would be a little harder, but having a surprise weapon against Qrow would be useful, and since this was inevitably going to be reported back to Ozpin, he wasn't sure it was a good idea to show a weapon's ability that would be identical to the one a certain student would have in ten years' time. Crocea Mors' blade looked different enough from the one that would exist in this time, but the shield did not.

Jaune stalked away from Raven and toward Qrow, who stood waiting for him in the center of the ring. The man, though it felt odd to call him that when he looked so young, watched him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.

"Finished flirting?" he asked.

"I wasn't flirting with her," Jaune replied. "And I'll thank you to not involve me in your family squabbles. Whatever is between you and her is between the two of you. Leave me out of it."

"going at it with half of the weapon, that might complicate things" Neptune wasn't liking all of this, each passing moment it seemed as if Jaunes chances decreased. "you think he'll be alright?" he asked Weiss.

"I'm not sure, that barbarian Ruby calls an uncle is strong enough to fight my sister and I'm not sure if Arc can handle something like that" Weiss answered, it wasn't as if she had little faith in Jaune, which she had, but that Qrow may be too much for him if his fight with Winter meant anything.

"sorry to burst your bubble kid but that fight at the entrance of Beacon was us messing around" neither him nor Winter wanted to actually destroy more than what Glynda could repair at that time, especially with so many people near. "either way, you shouldn't doubt him, I trained him after all"

"what's admirable is that he stayed sane after that" Winter send a verbal jab in Qrow's direction, which visibly hit him.

"hey, don't say that about uncle Qrow, he trained me and I'm like, super strong" Ruby pouted in Winter's general direction.

"that explains some things" Weiss knew that wasn't the truth, but how could she waste this chance to annoy Ruby.

The scene continued as everyone chose to ignore the flirting commentary from Qrow, this was something they had already gotten out of their heads and would rather not think about again.

"Not possible. Not when you stand alongside her."

I don't, asshole, Jaune felt like saying. Unfortunately, Qrow would never believe him. He had no reason to, and there wasn't much else of a good explanation for why he was here, nor why Raven had chosen to call him her champion.

Losing on purpose wasn't an option, as amusing as it would have been to see the look on Raven's face. If he lost, she'd show her displeasure by keeping his sword all the way to Vale and forcing him to meet Ozpin. Between beating Qrow and earning suspicion or losing and having to meet Ozpin directly, the choice was easy.

Ignoring that he was called an asshole he muttered to himself. "yeah, anything better than Raven pettiness" Qrow had experienced so enough times. (although…now I wanna see the face she'd make)

Raven purposefully ignored Qrow, for her, the man was a delusional idiot. (bah, as if I'd have time for mere pettiness)

"fight well and win, it seems there's no other option" Glynda could see Jaune and being enemies if this got way out of proportions and their interest clashed. "let's hope the other us pick the right side"

Did said side exist, she wasn't sure, but she was sure the events to come would clear things us.

Assuming he could beat Qrow at all, that was. Jaune readied his sword, held in two hands before him in a guard stance. I guess we'll soon find out.

"You shall fight until surrender, injury or death," Raven called, leaping up onto her raised platform where she would have a wonderful view of the fight. To both his and Qrow's annoyance, she made a show of sitting down on a seat, slinging one leg gracefully over the other. "Do try to avoid the last option. I don't need a corpse stinking up my campsite."

"finally someone says something interesting!" nobody knew when Mercury had gotten up, but he was up and ready to see them fight.

"keep it down you useless assassin" Cinder ordered, if he wasn't even going to be useful there was no reason to waste her time with him.

"is not as if our uncle would kill him" Yang said confidently. "the most he'll do is beat his ass" she wasn't rooting for Qrow, but knowing the Arc she knew, even if he was stronger now, it's a lost battle for her.

"No promises," Qrow said.

Seriously? Jaune wasn't sure if it was to try and get into his head or not, but this Qrow seemed a lot more bloodthirsty than he was used to. Raven's terms were as brutal as he'd expected, though he doubted she had aura meters of combat arenas out here, so she did have an excuse. The lack of a ring-out option was a problem, but he'd just have to fight on and hope for the best.

(What a way to make me look bad) her thoughts may have been sarcastic, but Yang was nervous, she wasn't able to feel it, but the fact that Jaune saw him as more bloodthirsty wasn't a good sign.

"I'm not sure your uncle agrees with you" Blake spoke in a flat tone while looking at her partner. "he seems ready enough to kill him"

"urgh, is like watching yourself doing the cringey things one wants to forget" his past self-attitude was not something Qrow was very proud of for the profession he had chosen and was also very embarrassing. "I hope the kid beats it out of me"

His hopes were to be taught not to be an arrogant ass, not to lose, but hey, one cant have everything in this life.

Luckily, he knew Qrow's combat style, both from watching the man fight and sparring with him numerous times. The moment the bout began, Qrow would bait him in with some taunt, taking a defensive stance and waiting for an opening to—

"Begin!" Raven called.

Qrow rocketed forwards with a roar.

"it was a good analysis of your style" Glynda complimented, it seemed as if Jaune's analysis went farther than simple in the moment thoughts. "it's a shame you were a reckless idiot back then"

Glynda and Qrow had been forced to work together back then and let's just say it wasn't a very pleasant job.

At the moment Qrow was ready to argue back a roar from Qrow drew the guest eyes and showed the man's burst forward.

"WOAH!" Ruby could run, but wow her uncle was really fast without a semblance like hers.

Winter seemed to be shocked momentarily from this, she had assumed her and Qrow were on similar levels, but to her surprise, the younger version of him was far quicker than she expected. "how far has he fell from then"

Jaune's eyes had a moment to widen in shock before he backpedaled, catching Qrow's sword on his at the last second and knocking it aside. The huntsman pushed forward and used both hands to force Jaune back, hurling him away. Jaune landed hard, stumbled on one leg, but ignored it as he parried the next attack, Qrow attacking with blistering speed and aggression.

Too much so! Qrow was faster and stronger than he had been before, now in his prime and more than willing to use that to his advantage. Jaune found himself pressed before he could realize it, falling back under a withering hail of blows. It was all he could do to parry and try to put distance between them. Sweat beaded on his brow as he flicked another thrust aside, and took the chance to counter-attack, knocking Qrow back and giving himself some space to think.

The interaction was fast, incredibly so.

Some of the spectators who weren't prepared ended up missing the first strike as they didn't expect that their fight would flow so smoothly and fast.

Oscar was impressed by this, Qrow was incredibly faster and stronger in his swings than he remembered seeing him.

"SO COOL!" Ruby couldn't contain the excitement, the thrill of seeing her uncle and Jaune in action letting her forget for a while about her own dilemma. "I never knew you were this strong uncle Qrow"

Before the man could say anything, Tai intervened. "that's your uncle in his best" a nostalgic look was evident in Tai. "man I had forgotten after so long"

"Time has really hit you hard brother" Raven of course had to drop her comment, for her it was a shame to waste a potential such as Qrow in a lost battle like the shadow war…or what used to be a lost battle.

Pyrrha on the other hand, rather than being worried about Qrow strength, was more so with how would Jaune handle him.

And then there was Qrow, who looked at his other self with a look of shame, to himself for having lost the strength he once had, and to the other him, for nor having the right mindset for battle.

This was madness. This wasn't how Qrow fought – not at all. Jaune ducked under a wide swing and slipped under the man's guard, coming up behind him but leaping back when Qrow spun and cut down towards him. The constant assault was so bizarre that he had no idea what to do. Qrow was quick and strong, but had always been something of a strange combatant. He wasn't a strategist by any means, but he fought cautiously, using the terrain and every trick in the book to overwhelm his foe with brutal efficiency.

He was not a male version of Yang Xiao-Long, replete with grunts on every attack, laughter whenever he knocked Jaune back, and a mocking smirk. And yet that was what he found himself facing. This was a Qrow in his prime, though as Jaune quickly realized, it was Qrow's his physical prime, not mental.

"is this how a battle between huntsmans is?" Blake felt inadequate, this whole time she had thought she was the closest to being a huntsman due to all things she did with the fang, but this was a level that only Adam could have kept up.

"I'm with you there kit-kat, this is awesome!" from the way they moved to the strength between each hit, it made Yang feel the blood running trough her asking her to enter herself. "beat his ass Vomit Boy!" she was so busy shouting that she didn't even notice the comment about her style.

(no encouragement for dear old uncle? How cruel) Qrow thought, not really expecting anything else since it would be better if the kid won anyways, and its not like his pride was as fragile as his past self, so as long it wasn't humiliating, it be fine.

"kill the traitor!" Vernal joined in on the cheers for Jaune, even if they felt more hostile than Yang's.

Even as some others joined in cheering on Jaune, the struggle in the fight was clear, showing how the man that everyone knew as a strong alcoholic man had once been an even fiercer and stronger fighter.

This was Qrow at his best indeed, well almost.

(there it is, you really catch up quick kid) Qrow knew Jaune would figure him out, and when he did, then the path to victory was clear.

"What's the matter?" Qrow taunted. "Is that thing an ornament or are you going to swing it?"

"There's time for talk in a fight, but only in very specific circumstances," a more grizzled and guarded Qrow had told him. "If you need to stall, fine, but in all other cases the one who talks the loudest is the one who isn't paying attention. Don't be that idiot."

They'd all been like that once, not only him but Yang, Ruby and Nora, all. They'd learned better as they grew older, only talking to shout out commands or warnings to one another. Was it possible Qrow hadn't learned that yet?

It looked like Qrow's lesson in the future had been built on personal experience.

"even if you are stronger and sober it seems your fighting habits are still there" Winter sighed, Qrow could be very infuriating whenever he mocked anyone and during battle wasn't an exception.

"not quite" it was Glynda who denied it. "as much as Qrow is a pain outside of combat, in it his mindset is one of the best one could have, his mocking is nothing more than tactical distraction"

It was at that moment when the image of an even older Qrow than the one they knew now appeared and gave his lesson to Jaune.

"god I look terrible" Qrow complained looking at his hair that was ever grayer and he now had some white ones. "age could do this to me in two or less years could it?"

"maybe not age, but stress" Tai couldn't imagine how it must have been for Qrow those times, but he got an idea by how much he had changed in so little.

The message itself was something the students understood, it seemed logical enough and was something maybe they had been taught at some point, but there was something that came with hearing it from Jaune.

And that was the fact that they most likely didn't do so and had to learn it when it was too dangerous to actually learn.

"Nothing to say?" Qrow mocked.

There really was nothing, so Jaune leapt in and sent a probing attack for Qrow's left side. The man's blade parried his with ease, knocking it aside with a sharp bark of laughter. He cut inward, aiming for Jaune's throat, but a tilt of his body gave it nothing but air. In turn, he slipped in and drove the pommel of Crocea Mors into the side of Qrow's ribs, and then used his own weight to push the man back.

As much as it irked him to admit it, Qrow had the advantage when it came to a typical fight, even with Jaune knowing the man's fighting style, and Qrow being ten years younger than he had before. Still, there were some small differences and it was one of those Jaune decided to place his faith in. As he rammed the man, and before they parted, Jaune let go of Crocea Mors with one hand and sent it crashing into Qrow's face. It caught him in the jaw and knocked his head back, for once cutting off that smirk as Qrow bit his own tongue.

The bandits cheered wildly, deciding Jaune was the better one to support even though Qrow had once been a part of the tribe.

"WOAH, that was close Ha ha!" a loud voice exclaimed when Jaune dodged the cut to the neck, said voice had come Nora, who was having a blast watching her leader fight and every clash made her eyes shine in excitement, it'd be incredible when they get their own Jaune to this level.

Then Jaune rammed his sword's hilt on Qrow's side.

"ouch" Oscar winced, being very thankful that aura was a thing, because that would have been awfully painful with it, so without it would have been worse.

"he wasn't a waste to be left alive after all" Raven had a feeling within her when she saw her other-self save Jaune and it turned out to be right, this fight would have been fun to have herself.

Hearing Jaune think on what to do got Qrow on alert. "oh boy here it comes" Qrow knew this would happen eventually since it was something he himself used quite frequently these days and probably taught him as a way to fight someone stronger.

More so considering the kid in their time had noodles per arms.

And then boom, Qrow's face met Jaunes fists.

"oh, nice one kid, although he still lacks some technique" Tai complimented, it was a well thrown punch if he said so himself. "But I don't think that would do a lot to Qrow considering he has faced me before"

To Qrow's credit, the blow barely fazed him. He staggered back, warding his sword before him to prevent a follow-up. Once there was a little distance between them, he reached up with one hand to test his jaw, wincing.

"Tch," he said, spitting a little blood to the side. "Cheap shot."

Had it been any other situation, Jaune might have fainted. Cheap shot? Cheap shot!? This was a fight. Not only did anything go, but the one he'd learned that technique from was the person currently insulting it. Hell, he'd only learned it from Qrow because the asshole kept using it on him. There were only so many times you could be punched in the face before you had it down by memory.

And Tai was right, as he was able to brush the hit off and continue fighting.

"cheap shot? Coming from you Qrow?" James was actually laughing at this, the idea of a Qrow fighting with some form of honor was hilarious for some reason.

And despite how actually important the outcome of the fight was, most of the guest couldn't help but laugh when the general said that.

Qrow pinched the bridge of his nose irritated. "urgh, I never living this down"

Glynda said with a satisfied smile, as if every irritating thing Qrow had done was now being paid back. "no you aren't, not when even your own student feels that way" there was a palpable frustration in Jaune's tone when he mentioned being punched in the face repeatedly.

This really wasn't Qrow at all, was it?

"people change, sometimes for the better and others for the worse" Winter answered to someone who wasn't listening.

"and what would you say how it went for me Ice queen?" Qrow tried to be cheeky.

"you're horrible in every version of yourself" the woman didn't even bat an eyelid and responded in hard cold tone.

Or it was, but it was different. The physical factors were there, but he'd not counted for the other parts – the ten years difference between the man who stood before him and the man he'd meet at Beacon. He'd expected things to be different, that maybe Qrow would be a little weaker, but by this much? No, not weaker. Less refined. Qrow's strength and speed was ridiculous, as was his skill, but the huntsman was somehow less tempered. He didn't have that wary edge that gave Qrow the advantage; that constant caution that spoke of a man who'd been through hell and learned to expect it at every moment.

Perhaps that was it. Perhaps this Qrow just hadn't been through enough. But what could have changed in just ten years to turn a man from the sober huntsman before him, who resembled Yang at her best, to a jaded and paranoid shell of a man willing to give his life for Ozpin? Something big, that much was for sure.

"he's right to think that way, Qrow may be stronger physically, but he's lacking in experience to make up for that" honestly, Tai was getting fond of this kid, seeing what he became from what he heard from Ruby he was in their own time showed how much he improved himself.

Strong and smart, there were little people like that these days.

…

One could hear a breeze pass when the tone of the narration was drastically shifted while Jaune's thoughts were being laid down for everyone to see.

It was actually the man who the comment had been about the one who spoke first in this situation. "…paranoid shell of a man huh…" hearing that hurt more than he had expected it to, and it did because it was true. "I'm starting to hate this fucking place" he couldn't even get drunk to avoid his problems.

And as much as he hated it, he also saw it as beneficial.

This was basically an answer for a literal eternal war, than not only showed them what they could do right or wrong and gave them answers about themselves they might be too stubborn to realize or accept.

It gave him things to think about.

A touch in his shoulder from Oscar snapped him back into reality. "Qrow, are you alright?" he had been silent for a while as he looked at the nothingness in the sky in the process worrying some people.

"yeah, I- I guess this is just something I should have thought about so long ago" getting his shit back together was the first thing he'll have to do once he gets out of this place.

It would be difficult to do so, but it would be an ever harder hell if he was to fight Saleem how he currently is.

Their blades crashed together again, Jaune giving ground as he parried each attack, keeping his sword central to his body and refusing to take any of the gaps Qrow left him. In the future, those would have been traps, and a part of him still saw them as such and feared Qrow getting the upper hand. The worst part was that given by Qrow's savagery and lack of guard, they really weren't traps at all. Qrow really did have gaps in his defense.

Sun and Neptune couldn't help but admire the two men battle each other with all they had, it got in their heads what was the level they wanted to surpass once they were huntsmans themselves.

On the other side there were those who were trying to see what the blonde was talking about. "how could anyone take those?!" Pyrrha could see where Jaune was pointing the holes in Qrow's guard but felt as if it would be an impossible task for her to explode any of them.

"we've got a long way to go" Blake concluded, they weren't anywhere near capable of that, they'd walk all over them even if they went all together.

It was on the next pass that Jaune decided to test one. Qrow's attack came in high and clashed off his sword, but Jaune ducked low, stepped under and rammed his shoulder into Qrow's gut. With their swords locked above them, he drove the huntsman forward and let go, tossing him a few feet. Though Qrow managed to land, it was awkward and clumsy, and that left him unable to properly defend when Jaune slashed down with a two-handed blow.

Qrow tried nonetheless but his footing wasn't there. He managed to deflect it but flew back, falling on his ass before he rolled away and staggered back up. As the crowd jeered and laughed, Qrow's cheeks tinted.

"Alright, so you're no mere bandit. I guess I'll have to take you seriously."

Qrow gave a very smug smirk towards his idiotic other self. "well done kid" his hit was well timed, executed and followed by an even better strike than the first, he couldn't help but feel proud of the boy he had yet to teach.

"indeed, who would have thought Mr. Arc could adapt your style into something more civil" Arc's truly resembled some of the best of Qrow and at the same time had his own stick to follow.

He'd gotten better than she had ever expected him to.

"wait, you weren't going all out?" it was unexpected for Tai, he didn't remember Qrow being stronger than this.

Qrow waved lazily at the man. "he's just trying to regain his confidence, but yeah, have you forgot my mecha-shift?"

Tai thought about it for a second before his cheeks got slightly red out of embarrassment.

"A real huntsman always takes his foe seriously," Jaune said, breaking his own rule to speak. He couldn't help it, though. Qrow's words felt like a personal insult to his own teacher, as ironic as that sounded since he meant Qrow himself.

"uncle Qrow was…different" to Ruby, seeing her uncle act like this was one of the strangest she's seen him.

And it was something Yang could agree. "yeah, you said it alright sis"

"Just shut up and let me enjoy!" Vernal shouted as the sister were talking to each other, wanting to enjoy the sound of a good fight.

(bitch/Meany) the xiao-long-Rose siblings thought at the same time after the bandit shouted at them.

The older Qrow wouldn't have taken someone anything less than seriously, no matter who they were or what they looked like.

"Oh, the bandit thinks he knows something about being a huntsman?" Qrow mocked, fighting to regain what confidence he'd lost. "That's cute. I'll have you know I graduated from Beacon Academy, the best academy in all of Remnant. I'm one of the strongest huntsmen in Vale."

He was, and to be fair if this were a fair fight of Beacon-sanctioned spar, Qrow would have won easily. The problem was his attitude though, and the fact that Jaune had been trained to ignore things like honor and fair play and seek victory wherever he could. Like Qrow said, the older one that was, the only thing that mattered in a fight was winning. And seeing this Qrow stood before him with a cocky smirk and a lackadaisical attitude?

"he most likely knows more about being a huntsman than you, and he has been one for less time" Winter said with slight venom in her voice, It was starting to upset some of them the fact that past Qrow just boasted cockily like that. "I never thought I'd say this, but I'm glad you are the way you are Qrow" Winter accepted the drunken and annoying Qrow over the sober but somehow even worse Qrow.

At that moment Qrow could have chosen to do a very dark joke about his alcoholism or could have made fun of Winter, but he was tired if he was being honest, so he simply nodded, accepting the compliment.

It was honestly a little disappointing.

(I'm beginning to believe there's nothing we can get out of this) Cinder's patience was running low, six chapter full of non-usable information for her that simply gave her enemies the advantage.

Seeing these two fools go at each other while the ignorant children cheered at two mans going for each other's throats was just a waste of her time and efforts.

Meanwhile the other chapters while a bit insightful they didn't hold any of the actual information she needed.

Like the idiot had just said, it was honestly a little disappointing.

Especially when she looked to her side, finding one of her stupid subordinates like a small child in a candy store while the other, more useful, one was looking for anything in a frenzy, most likely overworking to gain her favor once more.

Jaune went on the attack suddenly, closing the distance between them and lashing out with wide and heavy blows, forcing the huntsman onto the defensive. He'd always been more of an endurance fighter himself, never quite capable of the graceful techniques Pyrrha had tried to impart. He'd learned them as best he could, but flips had to be traded for rolls and snap-kicks for shoulder-charges.

Pyrrha was one of a kind while he was just one of many, but that didn't mean he hadn't picked up a few tricks, and as he pushed Qrow back toward the crowd, it was one such he employed. With a mighty crash, he knocked Qrow's sword wide, but also allowed his own to over-extend, providing an opening. Qrow saw it, and like the aggressive fighter he'd never really been, couldn't hold back from taking advantage, lunging in.

"ah~ seems like I'm about to get my ass handed" the kid had played it incredibly, Qrow felt a chuckle escaping as he knew very well the other him had just fallen into Jaune's schemes.

"what do you mean uncle Qrow?" Ruby didn't actually get what Jaune was planning so hearing her Uncle claim he knew indirectly got her to ask.

"short stack, let this be a lesson, or well, two actually" ignoring the glare Tai was sending his way for teaching Ruby dirty tricks Qrow pointed to Jaune on the ground. "one, expect the unexpected"

Jaune's knees hit the dirt, along with his shoulder and body, watching Qrow sail by overhead, wide-eyed at his opponent's sudden dive. As Qrow stumbled over him, Jaune scraped up a healthy pile of dust and pebbles and threw them in Qrow's face.

Ruby and some others let gasps of surprise when Jaune just went up and threw dust at younger Qrow's eyes.

Raven placed a hand on her mouth to contain the laugh while Vernal celebrated beside her.

"number two, there's no such thing as a dirty move in a fight" Qrow ended with a sarcastic smile in his face. "fucking irony really" he had most likely pulled this trick on the kid in so many occasions that it was just karma acting at this moment, not even hos semblance.

"but- he- that's so cheap!" Yang said, very unpleased with what the blonde had done.

"if your life is one the line, is it cheap?" Qrow shot back her shouts with a question. "fighting isn't a noble act or any kind of bullshit, means to an ends, huntsman train to fight Grimm and people worse than them, there's no glory and shit in doing that"

There it was once again, another thing that contradicted everything Ruby thought being a huntress was, another thing the person who trained her supposedly knew but never told her.

Everyone might be incredibly upset with the headmaster, but it wasn't like Ozpin was the only one who hid things from those close to them.

"Arghhh!" Qrow staggered back with one hand clutched to his face, trying to wipe the debris from his eyes. He cried out again when Jaune's leg swept around, catching him in the back of the shin and sweeping his foot away. Qrow fell hard and tried to roll away.

But Jaune was on him before he could. One hand grappled with Qrow's sword, wrenching it from his grasp and tossing it away, while his other – too close to use his own – instead hammered down with the pommel, striking Qrow in the neck with a blow that left him gasping for breath.

With a grunt and a final kick to the groin - just to make sure he stayed down - Jaune scrabbled off and pointed his blade down to tickle Qrow's throat. "You've lost," he panted. "Yield."

Sighs of relief and some celebration happened once Jaune's sword came below Qrow's neck but the tactic used for victory made It somewhat of a weak victory for some.

"YEAAAAHHHH YOU GO JAUNEY" Nora was obviously outside of that group.

"and you were defeated" Raven felt great, all of the situation surrounding Qrow's encounter with Jaune was hilarious and a pleasure to watch, so much that she almost didn't mock Qrow, almost. "it's precious seeing you get beaten by your own tricks"

"you're just mad you can't beat me" Qrow wouldn't just roll and take that, not from Raven anyways. "this just shows how good my teachings are"

"keep saying that until you believe it" Glynda drily said, considering Qrow a good fight instructor and a good teacher were two different things and she'd never be caught calling Qrow a good teacher.

In the end, Qrow hadn't fired off a single shot, nor revealed his weapon as a mecha-shift. He'd not had the chance on account of how he didn't take Jaune seriously, relying on what he believed to be a natural advantage in skill and ability. Raw skill and talent wasn't everything, however. It worked to a degree, but there was always a way for the weaker combatant to eke out an advantage. It all depended on how hard they were willing to train… or how low they were prepared to go in his case. Puling hair, low blows, dirt in the eyes, ambushes, the man he knew as Qrow had taught him and his friends all of that and more.

"oh, so it wasn't just the kid, seems like you should all be calling me master Qrow from now on" Qrow sounded oh so proud of himself when saying that, so it was a heavier hit to his pride when everyone just ignored him.

"hmm, whatever to survive I guess" fighting dirty wasn't something Ren was a fan of, but if it meant keeping his team and friends safe, it was a low he's more than glad to go.

Blake and Neptune agreed with the sentiment, better dirty than dead.

But the Qrow beneath him hadn't realised that yet. Had he, the fight might - would - have gone a different way.

Instead, he stared balefully up at Jaune.

"Dirty move," Qrow coughed, wiping an arm over his face. "What kind of bastard taught you that?"

"oi, fuck you too" he wasn't about to let an alternate past him call him a bastard for training people properly.

"as sore of a loser as always" Tai didn't honestly expect the man to insult himself like that, but it surely was hilarious, the kids were all laughing to some degree.

"I thought he wasn't drunk right now?" Winter questioned, not sure if he was well in the head.

"he always is, even without alcohol in his system" the general clarified.

"A really mean one. But a good man, and someone I respected even if he did drink too much." Jaune laughed, before he raised his voice to call out, "The fight is over. I could have slit his throat but didn't. We're done here."

Said man smiled, genuinely for the first in quite some time. "thanks kid, really" he muttered to himself, it felt good not being the drunk asshole for once in a while.

"a bunch of misplaced respect" Raven's voice had a toxic feel to it, not willing to acknowledge a traitor as a respectable man.

"a person who abandons her family has no say in a talk about respect" it frustrated Yang to no end that Raven talked about things with moral implications as if she had some herself.

Ravens expression darkened, once again an external and strange kind of feeling made her way trough her body a dug up a guilt that she had gotten rid of long ago.

Lancelot moved slightly, adjusting his posture to be straight after jerking up a little, utilizing the boss influence over emotions had quite the strain over him.

The crowd started to cheer, shout and groan in equal measure, some having no doubt bet against him. None seemed willing to help Qrow up however, who lay on his back with a frustrated and shame-faced scowl. Again, it wasn't like the Qrow he knew, but Jaune felt a little sympathy for him nonetheless. He knew what it was like to be in that situation, and really, he should have been happy the Qrow he'd met here wasn't the same as his. It meant he was happier, if not at this moment then at least in general. His Qrow had always carried something around on his shoulders; something he drunk to forget. Jaune moved forward and held a hand out, offering it to his opponent.

"Good fight," he said. "Just be prepared for an opponent who fights dirty next time and you won't have any problems."

"urgh, he's to nice" Qrow may have had his happiness moment, but getting this sentimental was not his style.

Even so, It's not as if he was going to deny it.

Some family members and colleagues of him looked with concern in his direction, some already knew about his 'weight' while others didn't, as for himself, he'd rather not talk about that.

Qrow stared at the hand in surprise for a moment, but a scowl soon replaced his expression and he slapped it aside. The huntsman forced himself up and spared a brief glare for his sister, and then a much longer one for Jaune. Without a word, he limped away, defeated.

"sore loser" Raven repeated once more, but was strangely met with silence, not the usual bickering she'd have with her brother.

Said brother was now laying down with a horrible posture while looking at the sky, an artificial sky that was as real as the one in their own world.

Qrow's mind had a lot of things to process, some he'd rather leave behind, but that he carries within himself, and since he couldn't get drunk this time, he'd preferably tried to sleep through it.

Maybe sleep will clear his head.

A man could change a lot in ten years. Jaune had gone from being useless to what he was now in three or four, and it looked like Qrow still had a little growing of his own to do. I guess the fight against Salem doesn't really kick off until later. Qrow's still a fairly new huntsman now, so he probably hasn't had a chance to really test himself. Or to realise how much stronger he can be. How much stronger he needs to be.

Maybe their spar here would help him. Like any other huntsman, Qrow wasn't someone who took a loss lying down. He'd improve himself.

"yeah, he's not one to go down like that, not even after so long" Tai said confidently, knowing his friend to be like that.

"a big change in so little time, there's still hope" Oscar had seen how long Oz had been fighting, it was clear that no matter how much time passed there was no way to win and Oscar might have agreed at some point… but after seeing this, it wasn't even a question.

Raven's hands clapped together as she descended her dais. He knew she'd done so early to make sure Qrow heard, and if the man's stiff shoulders as he picked up his weapon were any indication he certainly had. He didn't pause to speak with Raven, but instead pushed through the crowd, knocking one person aside as her jeered at the huntsman.

"Ignore him," Raven said, laughing delightedly. "Qrow will fly back to Ozpin to sulk like the little child he is. He was never one to accept defeat gracefully, nor embarrassment."

Jaune nodded and sheathed his sword, relieved to have it back on his hip. He wiped away some sweat with the back of his hand. His breathing was a little heavier but not overly so. The fight with Qrow had been hard but not long, mostly because he'd cheated to end it sooner, forcing a surrender instead of the two of them beating one another into near-unconsciousness. It could have been so much worse, and Qrow's strength and speed couldn't be underestimated. Or his Semblance. I'm lucky the fight didn't last long enough for it to take effect.

Or he was unlucky; it was hard to tell with Qrow's semblance sometimes.

"he really got out with the best scenario he could" the best possible outcome was completely impossible, Ironwood knew so, but it was great that he hadn't just gone and taken the worst one either.

"but that'll incapacitate his future cooperation with both Qrow and Ozpin Sir" Winter interjected, giving her own thoughts on the matter.

"yes, but that's not something of immediate importance and that can be rectified" James argued. "even then, he was already seen and fought for Raven, we can't change that fact"

In the end, they were nothing but spectator to the whole story Jaune was living.

"I was right," Raven said, looking him up and down with a wry smile. "You really are strong – and not just as a huntsman. The brutality you showed, the way you fought, even the lack of pointless conversation. I can see why you were strong enough to defeat the Nucklelavee."

"And now Qrow is suspicious about me," Jaune said, panting lightly. "Thanks for that." He couldn't help but think that was intentional on her part. At least he'd managed to hide the sigil on his hand, wearing one of his leather gloves.

"Is it Qrow you're concerned about, or Ozpin?"

"AAArrrccc" Weiss dragged the boy's name with frustration as she slapped herself in the face as Jaune let another piece of information for Raven to use.

"he's…doing his best?" Pyrrha tried to appease the heiress, preferring to avoid any issue possible.

"hmph, as if he could trick Raven" Vernal boasted, she might want to bring that fuck-faced idiot to the tribe for his strength and to repay a favor for her other self, but there is no way for him to b over Raven in her eyes.

Glynda looked with an unforgiving eye in Jaune's direction. "he better get a hold of the situation before it's to late"

Jaune tensed. The action didn't go unnoticed and Raven began to laugh. She continued to do so until she had to take a step back, one hand over her mouth. Several of the people in her tribe watched her curiously, so she motioned for him to follow and stepped back into her tent, closing the flap behind her. He followed.

"Care to share the joke?"

"Not so much a joke as satisfaction," Raven replied, finally controlling her amusement. "I was so very certain, but had no way of proving it. It was a gambit for sure but it seems it paid off. Even someone like I can occasionally take pleasure in fooling another." She leaned back into a seat and gestured to one opposite, on the other side of a thin, wooden table. "Drink?"

"so it was only about his mistrust in Oz after all" the general should have honestly seen this coming, after all, one could count with the fingers of one hand the people who didn't trust his judgement.

"you were expecting anything else" the smile Raven had couldn't be differentiated as a genuine one or a smug one. "the other me might be able to use that to convince him"

"what? With a drink? Sorry to say but he isn't Qrow" Glynda didn't see it happening, Jaune had showed a remarkable control over himself while he pushed forward.

Jaune didn't sit. "You promised me a way to Vale. I think I'd like to collect."

After he said that Glynda nodded satisfied "you see, he just wants his leave"

"I don't think he'll get away that easily from her" Raven had been difficult in her Beacon years and nobody knew better than Tai, so he was speaking from experience.

Oscar looked at his confused. "what do you mean?"

"well, Raven and her semblance can appear anywhere if they made some kind of connection or bond so…" Tai began to explain.

"if you caught her attention and talked enough with her you won't be able to get rid of her" Oscar finished, having understood what Tai was saying.

"I promised you that tomorrow. The means for said transport isn't ready yet," she added when he made to complain. "If I tried to use it now, you would fall into the ocean."

Confusion warred within him for a moment, until he realised she was talking about her Semblance's limit. If it could only connect to people she'd bonded with, then she must have meant that Taiyang or Yang were on a boat somewhere. It was the only thing he could think of, since Raven wouldn't have known Ruby to make a bond with her, and Qrow couldn't have been too far gone at this point. If there was nothing she could do, there was nothing she could do. Not that he had any way to prove or disprove what she was saying.

"I'll take you tomorrow when they settle down." She gestured to the seat again. "Sit."

"you aren't trying to seduce him are you?" the question came out of nowhere from Ruby which made some choke on air, not expecting that.

Raven herself had a little of a shock before recomposing and facing her. "don't be a fool brat, my interest in him is nothing outside of business" she justified. "you are as much of an idiot as your mother"

"hey don't say that to my sister" Summer was a sensitive topic for both of the sisters, and Yang wasn't about to let Raven badmouth her.

"you listen here impertinent chil-" an absolute silence grew and consumed everyone, the final word from Raven having been cut.

"we've wasted enough time" as the feeling of silence went away, Lancelot continued reading.

This time, he did so, grudgingly. He unhooked Crocea Mors and laid it against a crate beside the table, next to Raven's. It was an oddly casual gesture, though after chatting with her for the better part of two weeks, it felt natural.

"I wasn't so certain at first, but little things started to add up," Raven said. "Your desire to reach Vale, but your goal of taking the huntsman tests in Atlas. Your reaction to Qrow, and what you said about Ozpin. You know him, don't you?"

Jaune's instincts said to deny it. His brain knew it would be pointless. "I know him."

Raven leaned forward. "And you don't trust him."

"Oh, I trust him," Jaune replied, earning a small frown. "But trust doesn't mean I agree with him. Ozpin will do what he thinks is right, and maybe it is, but I don't approve of his methods."

"He's not the man he portrays himself to be," Raven said ominously.

"No," Jaune agreed. "He isn't."

Raven laughed again, delighted at something only she understood. "I'm not sure why I'm so happy. I think I'd given up hope on ever finding someone who could see the truth as I do. Ozpin always shows himself to be the kind and caring grandfather figure, but he's not."

"He is," Jaune countered, "but he's also more than that."

Because even now, he knew Ozpin had cared about them all. He'd cared about Beacon, Vale and their teams, but he'd just cared more about defeating Salem. Enough to leave Beacon when it fell, abandoning his former colleagues. Enough to lead children on a dangerous quest across the kingdoms, regardless of the risk. Enough to send them against Salem, and to not only trade their lives for victory, but to accept death on behalf of Oscar, too.

Ozpin cared, but that caring was always second to the bigger picture. That was what made him so dangerous, and what led to Jaune both hating and not-quite-hating him. Either way, he didn't have to despise the man to work against him. In an ideal world, they could have worked together, but Ozpin had no reason to trust him and if he knew the future, he'd want it re-enacting perfectly. If the easiest way to achieve that was to kill the outlier, himself, then so be it. In the end, Ozpin and he were enemies. They just weren't hated ones.

Yet, anyway.

There was no telling what first impression Qrow would be taking back.

"He can't be trusted," Jaune continued. "He's a man that will lead others to ruin, which is why I want to avoid him. His heart's in the right place, but it's his way of doing things that I don't like. He always puts others in the way of danger and wants them to fight on his behalf. It'd be different if he actually joined in, but he's always the one behind the scenes pulling the strings."

It was like a rapid fire of truths that they had never realized, Raven and Jaune were chatting and exchanging ideas and thoughts on Ozpin completely unaware of how it had been heard by the spectators.

The first and most clear of all the reactions was Raven's obvious joy.

Both Glynda and James lowered their heads, they had been eating from Qrow's palm ever since they met him and they knew he had the right intentions, however…

"they are right, as much as I want to believe there's some sort of hope for Oz, but he'd never give up on what he's been doing" a tired sigh came from the general as he spoke. "it'll be up to us to get rid of Salem for good"

Glynda nodded at his side, the good man she knew Ozpin had been once had been buried under a very long and bloody history.

The students were silent, most of them knowing the man as the distant director that came when he pleased or he, apparently, knew they had a problem.

"that's…too much like Adam" Blake murmured, both of them man's that had a good heart once that drowned in their own actions.

Cinder, however, was very much pleased.

Maybe it was the faces of all the fools were making over things they already knew, maybe it was the fact that the old man might as well be losing the trust of all of his allies, or maybe just the simple vent over Oz those two were making.

It didn't matter too much, because for once in maybe the whole time they've been here, she's feeling great.

Emerald stared at Cinders growing smile, unsure of what was she thinking about. (why is it that I fail to make you smile like that?) what was she doing wrong?

where had that person who taught her gone to?

Why did it seem as if no matter anything she did, it would never be enough? When did she stop being useful?

No…Emerald couldn't get distracted, Cinder might get mad once more after all.

"Hm, that much I can agree to. Qrow is a fool for trusting him."

"And I thought you didn't care for your brother. I see I was wrong."

"What?" Raven gasped over her drink. "I do not care for Qrow at all!"

Jaune chuckled and drank his own, marvelling at how nice it was. He'd half-expected some horrid, overly-strong booze, but Raven had probably stolen nice wine from somewhere. "I think you do, otherwise you wouldn't want him to stop trusting Ozpin. You're trying to look out for him."

A 'tch' could be heard from Raven, not willing to acknowledge the fact that he's somewhat preferred him not dead.

(you're looking for a heart in a stone kid) Tai thought, what happened long ago isn't important now, but if he could avoid Jaune some trouble he'd do it by warning him of Raven.

Raven huffed but refused to answer. She took a long drink and slammed the cup down. "Qrow isn't who we are discussing here."

"Who were we discussing? Ozpin? I think we've both agreed we don't like him much."

"That's what is so unusual." Raven leaned forward. "I've not met a single other person who sees him the same way I do. That man doesn't allow people close to him and he keeps his secrets against his chest. How do you know him so well?"

"I trusted him once," Jaune admitted slowly. While the whole truth was out of the question, a little couldn't hurt. "I listened to him, followed him and believed in him." He took another long drink, banishing memories of what had happened to his friends. "I paid for it. My friends paid harder."

A Grimm reminder of what it could have been had Lancelot never taken them.

"…oh Jaune…" Pyrrha constantly sees Jaune mentioning her, comparing her, or not letting anyone say things bad about her.

It showed how much he cared, and how much it hurt him to lose her.

Ren and Nora got closer to her, making their presence known as an act of reassurance that it would not happen this time.

Team RWBY all had some expression of regret at what happened.

Raven was unusually quiet. "And now you no longer trust him," she said. "I see. Perhaps that is why I found it so easy to speak with you. I don't normally find it so simple to bond with another like this." She gestured towards him, her and the table between them. "You intrigued me from the moment we first met but I couldn't understand why. I get it now."

"It's not my magnetic personality?" he joked.

"No. It's because we are the same."

Jaune frowned. "I'm not sure I like that comparison…"

"me neither Vomit boy, me neither" it was something Yang would never accept, Raven was someone that only looked after herself and what she wanted, Jaune had literally risked everything to save them, and as much as that could have been nothing but a selfish desire, it meant he wasn't abandoning them like Raven did with her family.

"Jauney is way better than the bandit lady!" Nora also disagreed but preferred to express it in a different way.

"you can keep dreaming you loud bitch" Vernal came to her boss defense quickly, she wasn't about to let fuck-face's little followers insult Raven.

"Nora please, don't start now" Ren tried to calm her down, and since it was him, it worked.

"Similar, then," she decided, too excited to let it go. "We both trusted Ozpin and both discovered the truth, striking out on our own paths. You can deny it all you want, but our circumstances are the same. I'd imagine both of us faced some level of disagreement from our old friends."

"I never understood something about that" Glynda spoke, his face making a doubtful expression. "why didn't you say anything?"

Raven was caught with her guard down at that.

"you knew about Salem's immortality, yet you didn't even try to say anything" she continued, looking directly at the bandit queen. "you thought your own family wouldn't believe you? Or try to show them the truth?"

"I had nothing to prove, I simply chose the tribe, they were the ones who raised me and my family" Raven said firmly, but there wasn't an instance where she looked at Glynda directly.

"hmm" the woman closed her eyes and shook her head, Glynda really couldn't understand Raven.

He didn't, on account of them all being dead, but try as he might to deny Raven's words, he couldn't. Had Ruby still been alive, she would have sided with Ozpin still. She was selfless like that; willing to see her life end for a chance for peace for everyone else. He wasn't. He was selfish.

Jaune finished his drink and poured himself another.

He had never abandoned his family for one. Oh sure, he'd left to become a huntsman but it wasn't like he'd done so without a message and without occasionally sending a letter home. He hadn't walked out on a spouse and child.

It was undeniable, Ruby would sacrifice herself to save everyone if that's what was needed, but hers and her friends life, she wasn't too sure.

(fools, things like that have no value in the face of strength) thinking about it was pointless, the brat Rose left behind with her meaningless death met the same end her mother had, only that she'd some something useful.

But he couldn't argue against them sharing some similarities.

"Our situations are similar," he admitted. "But we're not. We are different."

"Of course. It would be foolish to suggest otherwise. I'm just pleased to find someone else who shares my opinion. Few do."

The raven haired woman took a moment to breather out her frustration before looking at the scene, enjoying the moment of understanding.

"can't we move along already, I'm tired of seeing this woman" Sun complained, the whole time she'd been on screen was nothing but strength talk, distrust in Ozpin or just her being her.

"what was that?" Raven asked threatening the faunus with a glare.

Sun flinch at her look, she couldn't do anything to him, and he knew that.

He nodded. "Makes sense."

Raven offered the flask again. "Drink?"

Jaune held out his mug.

Instead of the usual fade to black whenever they shifted scenes, this time the time around started to accelerate, letting the guest see how much both of them spent drinking.

/-/

"alcoholism is a family thing apparently" Winter couldn't help but stare in awe at the sheer amount of alcohol two people could drink in one sitting.

"remind me to never let Jaune drink" Ren remembers the few times Jaune mentioned going out drinking with him Sun and Neptune, but if this is how much they drank, it might not be a very recommended thing.

Slowly, Qrow got up from his sleeping position while rubbing his head.

"bah, I can drink twice as much in an hour" he said, having heard what Ren had said even though he had yet to see the mess of bottles.

"oh, you're awake, I expected you to sleep through the whole thing" Tai mentioned, not far from the truth as it was Qrow's intention from the start.

"and I was, but apparently knighty over there said that I slept enough" the fact that nobody had heard Lancelot talk was concerning if what the bird man was saying happened.

(some form of mind reading or communication?) Glynda thought to herself, adding it to the list of things he could do. (that means he could share information to someone in specific without the rest knowing)

She wanted to continue thinking on that, but the story wasn't going to wait for her to finish.

Rays of sunlight peeked through the tent flaps and poked him in the eye. Jaune fought against it for as long as he could, but when not even rolling over got rid of it, he groaned and opened his eyes, pushing himself up on his hands.

Long, flowing, black hair greeted him.

His eyes widened. Had he-?

"oh, he doesn't think they did, does he?" Mercury wanted to laugh, this Jaune guy was a complete idiot in his eyes.

Since they had seen everything, they knew that nothing had happened, but it was still very funny for the assassin.

Raven sighed, the situation wasn't all that clear so she couldn't actually blame him for thinking that…except that she could because she doesn't care if the situation was clear or not. "take those dirty thoughts out of your head fool"

No. The impact of his hangover struck first, followed by reality as he noticed that not only was Raven fully clothed, but that she was half slumped on her cot, one arm and leg over the edge, and that he'd fallen asleep at the table, also still in his outfit. The stench of alcohol permeated the tent along with some scraps of beef or chicken they'd had later on. Two plates remained on the table with scraps remaining, alongside three empty flasks.

Had they really drunk themselves to oblivion? That felt remarkably unlike him, and her to be honest, but that was only because he still struggled to see her as anything other than a power-obsessed absent mother. Then again, she was a Branwen. He was more surprised she felt comfortable enough to fall asleep near him. Did she trust him so much that she felt no fear letting her guard down?

Or maybe she drank so much she didn't have a choice. Either way, I need her portals, so it's not like I could do anything to her, and she knows it.

"lightweights" he didn't have anything else to say, and Qrow would make sure his apprentice had a better alcohol resistance when he began training him in his own time.

Tai almost laughed when he heard that. "I don't think that's what happened" Raven lowering her guard because you felt good about you, yeah not happening.

The second option however, it seemed more than likely.

He stood with a little assistance from the table and limped over to a stack of crates, atop which lay a corked flask. Pulling it out, he sniffed the contents, and tested a little on his tongue when it smelt of nothing at all. Discovering it was fresh water, he guzzled at it, washing the headache away. Alcohol hadn't ever really been his thing, even if he'd tried a little. It was impossible not to with Qrow around.

Raven and he had talked through the night, he recalled blurrily. There hadn't been anything too deep or complicated, and they'd mostly just discussed strength, destiny and Ozpin a little more. He couldn't say he fully understood how much it meant to her to have someone who could talk on the level of an equal, and who didn't despise her for betraying Ozpin, but then again he'd only been in this world for a few weeks, so he didn't have much to go on either.

"it really is always the same conversation with you" Qrow said annoyed, it wasn't as if every time he spoke with her for anything those were always the same topic they ended up.

"there's nothing more important, after all they are the principles of the tribe" Raven said with the same dignity someone preached about royalty.

Vernal nodded beside her, the tribe held the most importance, no traitor could dare to say anything else.

Nice or not, however, he had places to be. With a quick look to make sure her sword was out of reach – on the other side of the tent – he moved over and placed a hand on her shoulder, pushing her gently. "Raven, wake up."

"Mmf…"

"Raven!" He shook her a little harder. "Hangover or not, you promised me a way to Vale. Wake up."

"get out of here soon Arc" Weiss ordered with a tired tone, she wasn't sure she could keep being in this ranch Raven called a tent.

"don't worry, he's going to" Neptune reassured her with his charismatic smile, only to receive the cold end of a humph from Weiss.

He may have apologized for the dance, but she wasn't that easy.

Qrow looked at the figure of his sister sleeping before speaking. "god you were always a pain to wake up"

"Qrow for fuck sake, shut up for a while" This whole time Qrow had done nothing but be an annoyance to her and now Raven was tired of it.

"Ngh." Raven's brow creased, but she slowly started to wake up. Like him, she sought to escape the light by rolling over, this time so that her face was buried in his chest. Her fingers gripped at the fabric of his robes. "You smell good," she whispered sleepily, eyes cracking open. She smiled and nuzzled against him. "Come back to bed, Tai…"

"…this is the past…it doesn't matter…" Raven tried, but everyone had already heard her say it.

…

…

Tai didn't say anything.

It was too much of a sensitive topic for him to want to talk about it at all, especially not after seeing this.

He had moved on, he loved Summer and that's what matters in the end.

"It's Jaune, actually."

"I don't know, they're both pretty similar" Mercury said, looking to ignite the fire even more.

"actually…oh god he's right!?" Yang felt honestly disturbed at their similarity, especially considering the possibility of him and Ruby having something. (It's like mom and dad all over again)

Raven's eyes snapped open. Her hand, still bunched in his chest, pushed away with sudden force, hurling him back into the table with a crack. When he shook away the shock, he was in time to see Raven stand and turn away, brushing a hand through her hair.

When she turned back, her face was business-like, with no sign of her earlier behavior and a frown in place. "What are you doing in my tent?"

"I woke up here."

"You-?" Her eyes closed and she sighed. "Right, we were drinking. I remember."

"You called me-"

"You shouldn't wake someone up so easily," she interrupted, stalking past him. "Had I my sword to hand I might have cut you down. What time is it?"

"you're blaming him for your own decision to be there?" James asked with amusement, it was not everyday he could see Raven be careless like this. "now I know that to defeat the mighty Branwen tribe I just need to attack early in the morning"

Was he being somewhat petty for all his failed attempts at her capture, maybe, but he was just human after all, it was natural.

"keep talking, it'll just increase the amount of bodies I'll leave in Atlas later" Raven didn't take it well.

"Yeah, shut up asshole!" Vernal didn't either.

"I don't know?"

"Hmph." Raven strapped her sword back onto her waist and peeked out the tent flap, shielding her bloodshot eyes from the light. "The sun is up. Someone will be making breakfast."

"Raven, you-"

"I'll create a portal for you after we eat. You can leave after that."

She wasn't going to answer his questions. Jaune let it go with a sigh, not sure he could take the answers either way. "Alright," he said. "Thank you."

"we're finally advancing again" Glynda noted, two whole chapters in this place was enough for her. "and going by what he said, Vale is his next objective"

"yeah, but the queen has to eat first, because it's that important" Qrow said with all the sarcasm he could muster.

"does that mean he'll be coming into contact with one of you, if his luck is anything to go by" Winter speculated, it had been proven that he had a knack for crossing path with any of them.

And suddenly, Emerald felt as if she'd understood something. (oh god…I'm next aren't I…he'll kill me)

It was an understandable assumption, and if what happened in Amity coliseum made him hate her…that'd be more chance for him to do it.

And the child version of herself wouldn't be able to defend herself from him.

Raven's mood persisted for at least another hour or two, long enough for them to eat in relative silence and for her to bark critique at several bandits sparing nearby. Even Jaune thought her demands too much for them and they stared at her open-mouthed. "Well?" she snapped. "Get to it! The strong live and the weak die. Do not disappoint me."

"Y-Yes, Raven!"

It wasn't the hangover making her act out, he knew, but at the end of the day he couldn't afford to ask and make things worse. He needed to get to Vale. Whatever issues she had were her own and chances were he'd just make them worse.

It was closer to noon when she finally calmed down enough to draw him aside, outside of the camp and in a small thicket of trees that concealed them from view. "My Semblance allows me to create portals," she explained, and he pretended to be suitably awed and unaware of all of it. Noticeably, she kept the part about `bonds` out of it. "I can make you one to Patch, which is a small island a short journey from Vale. You will need to secure a ferry for yourself, but that should not be hard."

"I'll manage. Thank you for this, and for saving me," he added. "You put me up for almost three weeks and helped me heal. I appreciate that."

"Don't ruin what respect I have for you by crying," Raven said. Her lips tugged up just a fraction.

"all day to calm down while doing that, really?" Sun had met people with severe issues in temper, but this was a new level for him.

Yang chuckled with Sun's comment. "she's a bitch what else was there to expect" if Raven was going to act as if she didn't exist or was not worth her time then Yang would have to be extra infuriating with her.

A perfect plan in her mind.

Said woman glared in the blondes direction but said nothing, instead Yang and Vernal started their own argument.

"urhg, she regressed all the way back to the snooty child the other her is" Glynda groaned in frustration at both Vernal and her own student for fighting like idiots.

As Jaune thanked Raven the movement of her mouth was noticed by a few people.

"someone's gotten attached" Qrow said, even if the idea itself felt wrong.

"huh, as if, I'm just not going to allow him to cry like a child" she responded.

"I'm not that grateful."

"good" Raven nodded, crying was for the weak either way, and if he had any respect for her saving his life, he would not cry.

"you really just said good to him not being all that grateful?" Qrow sounded genuinely surprised at that. "I'm not going to pretend I understand that"

"How cruel. Still, it was enjoyable while it lasted." She made it seem like admitting that physically hurt. "Are you sure I cannot convince you to join the Branwen tribe? You would be a fine addition and I would welcome you."

"You can't. I have places to be."

"A shame..." Raven laughed. "But I could tell as much. Still, it does not hurt to ask." She turned a little to the side and concentrated on the space before her, slowly willing a portal to life. It was not the first time he'd seen them, but it was closer than any other and the first time he'd use one. "You can step through and into Patch," she explained.

"Jauney would never follow anyone, he's to be followed like the fearless leader he is" Nora's leader would never be part of a thing like a tribe if he wasn't the leader, she'd make sure of that. "oh, maybe we could become our own tribe!"

Pyrrha made a weird face in doubt before speaking. "I don't think that's a good idea Nora" Ren agreed silently as he usually did, leaving Nora outvoted and pouting in her seat.

Raven looked flatly at the pink bomber before scoffing, as if a child would understand what it means to be a tribe leader.

"Thank you." He hesitated. As odd as it sounded, he would miss this. It was hard to explain, and maybe it was just him talking to someone for the first time in a while. He took a deep breath and steeled himself. Everyone else came first, and he really wanted to get into Vale and out before Qrow reached Ozpin. It would take the man a day or two by flight, which meant he was working on limited time. "I guess this is goodbye."

"kid, don't get attached to her" Qrow would rather not see what would happen if he did, since he knew what his sister was capable of.

"he simply knows how to appreciate good company" Raven wouldn't deny she also enjoyed to a degree the conversation, maybe a little bland, but her past self was like that in some aspects.

"you will become good company the day Salem wins" Ironwood said back to her.

"don't bother any more Jimmy" Qrow had spent a good deal of whatever time he had been here arguing with Raven, it was not worthy to keep going anymore.

"We shall see one another again."

"if he's going to Atlas then I doubt it" Winter wouldn't allow any kind of bandit enter freely in her kingdom.

"if you haven't noticed, you're probably still a minor in this time, so who's going to stop me, tin man over there surely won't" the Schnee had to give that one to Raven, there was nothing the other her could do, and the general probably less, considering how much he has to work normally.

Would they, or was that just some means to make him feel better? He had no idea and Raven wasn't saying, her knowing smile the only answer he received.

"If you say so..."

With a deep breath, he stepped through the portal.

The cold hit him first. He wasn't actually sure what season it was, but it was a little later in the day and the breeze was far stronger than it had been in Mistral, with a salty air that told him the ocean was nearby. His feet landed on soft grass, and when he looked behind him the portal was already winking out of existence. Raven was apparently a lot better at goodbyes than he was.

He was outside what looked to be a pub or inn of some kind, with him being in an alleyway off to the side. It was made of wood with simple decoration and a sign hanging over the door marking it as the `Huntsman's Pride`. He wondered if Qrow was inside, before dismissing the thought. Even with his bird form it would take Qrow longer than this to reach Patch. It must have been Taiyang.

Neither really mattered. He had to find a ferry to Vale, which hopefully wouldn't be too difficult. Patch was an island, so even if he couldn't get directions, he could just head to the closest body of water and skirt around it. With that in mind, he stepped out from the alley, almost bumping into a short woman with dark hair and a white cloak.

They all moved through the portal, in a sense, since it was as if it had surrounded the whole holo-space to bring them along with Jaune.

The sight of patch brought along a nice change of scenery that most appreciated considering the Branwen camp wasn't the best place to be.

"oh, this is my favorite bar" Tai's seat was near said tavern, where he and Qrow used to drink together after missions.

Then Jaune began to walk away fast, bumping with the woman.

"Summer?!" Qrow didn't expect to see her again so soon, not in a situation like this anyways.

Yang and Ruby smiled, their mom had appeared once more.

"maybe now she'll have her chance to thank him" Qrow somewhat expected that Summer to go look for Jaune when she fully recovered to show her gratitude, but maybe this would be solved earlier than they expected.

"Sorry," he whispered, brushing by.

"Oh, it's my bad," she replied. "I wasn't lookin-"

The woman cut off with a gasp.

"You!"

"he's just…passing by?" Yang blinked surprised that he didn't recognize her.

"well, Jaune never knew how mom was" there was no way to recognize a person you didn't know after all. "and she did look very different when she was…hurt"

All of what Qrow thought could happen went down the drain, leaving him with a flat look as he saw Jaune walk away. (never mind then)

But Jaune had already moved on.

/-/

The image suddenly was dragged along, separating from Jaune and going to where Summer had been standing.

"We're watching her perspective now?" Glynda questioned, the answer was kind of obvious, but it never hurt to ask.

"she did recognize Jaune so maybe there's still a way for mom to catch up!" Ruby said excited, a big Jaune playing with them when they were little sounds like something really cool for her.

Summer gasped, shook and tried to spin at the same time. Weakened as she was, she almost fell, and was only able to catch herself with one hand on the wall beside her. Had that been-? But he'd been in Vacuo! No, she wasn't wrong. She couldn't be.

Could she?

Seeing Summer almost fall made some wince, aware that the hit probably hurt a lot.

"well short stack, I don't think she can" it was easy to forget that even with aura some wounds wouldn't just heal in so little time.

"aew" Ruby's face was that of a kicked puppy, as the illusion she had made up was completely broken.

Her heart hammered in her chest as she scanned the crowd, hoping to catch a sight of him again. It had been less than a second but the face, the hair and those eyes, she couldn't have mistaken them. To her frustration, he was nowhere to be seen. The moment's shock that prevented her from crying out had been all he needed to elude her.

And any thoughts of chasing after him were ripped away when a voice called out her name. Or better yet, a title she loved all the more.

"Mommy!"

"AWWWW!" the little Ruby on screen caused the hearts of her friends melt away, if the red reaper was adorable as she was, a child version of herself was much more.

The round cheeks of a baby, her big eyes and adorable little hands calling for her mother made it all the more adorable and it embarrassed Ruby to no end.

Weiss facade of indifference was completely crushed by her partners other self and it took all the control she had to not start awing in her direction.

There they were, a little down the street and drawing more than their fair share of attention. Ruby struggled on her father's shoulder, fighting her way down and nearly causing Taiyang to drop her. He was no rookie, however, and lowered her with a laugh. Ruby streaked towards her, though Yang kept pace with her easily.

Once upon a time, hugging them both at once had felt awkward and complicated. Not now. Summer wrapped her arms around both and crushed them against her, fighting the urge to break down crying then and there. She was only partly successful and a few tears trailed down her cheeks.

"pretty small there Yang" Blake actually made a little mock to her friend who always did the same, but instead of flustering like her sister, Yang took it with more pride.

"damn right I was adorable…not as much as Rubes though"

Tai let some tears escape the same way Summer did at the sight of his family all together once again, oh how jealous he was of the other version of himself.

Qrow placed a hand on Tai's shoulder, supporting him as he let himself vulnerable for a while.

"Mom, what's wrong?" Yang asked, suddenly afraid.

"Nothing, sweetie. I'm just happy to see you. People can cry when they're happy." She couldn't do it. She couldn't tell them how close she'd come to death. Maybe when they were older - when it wouldn't hurt them so much. Right now, she didn't want to ruin this moment.

Taiyang came in close behind them, leaning down to take her cheeks in both hands and lay a firm kiss on her mouth, one she reciprocated with an almost desperate need. He knew the truth. He knew how close he'd come to losing her, and she to losing them all. "Welcome home, Summer. We all missed you."

I was scared, his words didn't say.

"so she hadn't seen them until now" Glynda didn't expect that, apparently Summer had needed more time to recover than she'd imagined.

"that's too much like her, hiding the pain she feels" taking the burden to herself was an usual Summer thing she'd done for a long time, that didn't mean Qrow had to like it.

"yeah, however, this is too big for her to hide" and if she didn't tell him, Tai was sure his other self would ask Oz directly.

Of he received an answer or not, that was fully up to the wizard however, and he could be evasive.

"I'm sorry it took so long," she replied.

I messed up. Forgive me?

"All that matters is that you're home. Maybe next time you should take Qrow or me with you."

"There won't be a next time, at least not for a while. I've asked Ozpin for some time off. I… I want to spend more time with the kids. With you. I'll be doing simple huntress stuff in the area, but nothing so far away or dangerous."

Taiyang's face lit up. Although he'd never questioned her drive, the sheer relief he showed hurt a little. It told her he'd always worried, and that she, despite her best efforts, had never realized. She'd always put being a huntress before them. It was one of the things she wanted to change. Even if Taiyang always assured her Yang and Ruby loved her dearly, it was always distant. She did her best to be super-mum when she was home, but she so rarely was.

Tai's face also lit up in a sad smile as his other self, he understood the feeling of that fear all too well. "it's alright, everything's forgiven" he knew Summer wouldn't hear him, but he had to get it out of his chest anyways.

Yang look in expectation, she wanted to know what could have been, so when she faces Salem in the future she has all the more reason to break all her subordinates.

Ruby too wanted to know, but instead to treasure those images, some very happy images.

"I'll be spending a lot more time here," she said, this time to Ruby and Yang, squeezing them both. "How does that sound?"

"Awesome!" Yang crowed.

"Cookies!?" Ruby asked, giggling.

"you two haven't changed all that much" Weiss said in her usual attitude, hiding the actual appreciation behind her voice.

"it's not like we'd have it any other way" Blake complimented, giving a rare smile for the two.

Team RWBY was like a family, a family they wouldn't lose to Salem.

Summer laughed as well, as did Taiyang. It was that which finally calmed her down, but it also sapped what energy she had. Tai saw and caught her, supporting her with one arm. "How about we decide all the things we'll do as a family once we're back home?" he suggested kindly. "Your mom looks like she needs to sit down. Give her some room now. She's not going anywhere."

"I'm not," she promised, hiding her tears in his shoulder. "And home… home sounds perfect."

Darkness came when the spectacle finished, however, a light of the size of a window was still visible.

And through it, there was something.

---

-END-

Soo, how does it look?

Was it enjoyable to read?

Does it have enough dialogue?

Do the characters feel good, or they need something else?

Is it getting better or do I need to get some more work in?

Whacha think is behind the light?

Let me know and Thanks for reading.

-Mystic-