XLVII - Patch Cut

~~~(XLVII)~~~

Weiss slowly came too, and when she did, she quickly took in the strange circumstances she found herself in. It was dark out, either late at night or just before dawn. "Wha... What's going on? Where am I?" The last thing she remembered was the large Grimm, followed by the transport crashing, and then…

"You know…" A short haired girl interrupted her thoughts, the rough looking girl walked out of a tent and towards her cage. "I never thought I'd see a Schnee in this camp."

"Vernal!?" The two bandits suddenly stood at attention. Whoever this was, she was high up on the chain. The girl, Vernal, walks over to Weiss and her cage. Her blood boils at the sight of the girl holding Myrtenaster in her hand. Weiss gets to her feet as she gets closer.

"What do you want?"

"Straight to the point. I like it. We don't normally deal in trafficking people - not really worth our time. But, once we realized we had Schnee…" She pointed Myrtenaster at her, and if Weiss could, she'd slap the girl with her blade. "That changed."

So, they're after her money like every other low life bottom feeder. How original.

"You're going to ransom me back to my father, is that it?"

"It's a shame you're a Schnee. You'd probably do quite well around here."

Weiss sneered at the thought. "I would never sink to your level."

Vernal's expression quickly changed to a frown as she stared at Weiss. "Just keep quiet and cooperate and you'll be back in your mansion before you know it. Don't make this complicated." The girl began to walk away, but Weiss wont let her get the last word.

"What's going to make this complicated is when my sister finds out I didn't make it to Mistral. You know my sister, don't you? Winter Schnee? Special Operative of the Atlas Military? She's in Mistral now, and when she hears I'm missing, it won't take her long to find me - and you."

Suddenly, the bandits start laughing, much to Weiss' surprise. "What's so funny?"

Vernal turned back around and laughed at her. "Oh, I don't know if it's more funny or sad, but you're clearly out of the loop. Your sister isn't in Mistral anymore. No Atlas personnel are in Mistral anymore. General Ironwood closed the borders and recalled all his little troops and-"

"That's enough you bratty little shit."

The bandit girl's face sours as a new figure walks up to the two. He had dirty blonde hair and the showings of red stubble in his face. His hair was long and done in a few braids that had beads in them. He has a familiar pair of eyes, a deep green that stared into her own. He didn't look too much older than Weiss, but he had a haggard expression that aged him.

His body was completely covered in a grayish blue cloak with white decorative threads at the bottom few inches. The fabric looked as if it was an ocean with white seafoam at the base. Far different from the rough outfit of the smaller girl who'd been antagonistic during their chat.

"What do you think you're doing? Just because she's caged, doesn't mean you can act the way you do. A guest is still a guest, nonconsensual as it may be." The two shared a glare, clearly they were not friends despite their common allegiance.

"What's it to you? Don't you have a fight to stop or a raid to criticize?"

"Maybe, but my mental "Vernal is being insufferable" alarm was blaring. I came to stop whatever it is you were doing." The older man glanced at Weiss for a moment before looking back at the other bandit. "Now that I see I was right… Scram, get out of my sight."

"Oh yeah? And why should I?" He seemed unimpressed at her attitude. She couldn't see anything other than his neck and head, but there was a slight shift in his posture. Weiss thought she heard the slightest sound of metal scraping together.

"Last time you tried this, I fed you dirt and moss with one hand tied behind my back. You want to try your luck again, in front of a captive audience no less?" The girl bristled in anger before looking away from his cold gaze. She mumbled some rather scandalous words as she stomped off.

"Sorry about her, she's got more strength than manners."

"Thank you, though I'm curious as to why you're here." She didn't trust the intentions of this person, this bandit. He was clearly a part of this band of criminals, but he seemed to have a distaste for the younger bandit girl. "Are you here to ask how best to extort my father?"

He looked at her for a bit, his eyes appearing to judge her. "You can call it… Curiosity on my part. Have you been to western Mistral recently? Near the settlements that live along the swamps and bogs?" Again, those eyes seemed all too familiar.

Weiss shook her head in confusion. "No, I have been to the main city once before, but not in years. And definitely not somewhere like that."

"That's what I thought." She heard a rustling from inside his cloak for a moment before a hand appeared, bringing out a small metal disk. It was the metal pendant Oxon had crafted for her birthday. "A curious little thing, it's not made of silver, gold, platinum, or even encrusted with precious stones. It's a cheap looking thing, titanium with some polished, blue hued steel in the middle. Not something a rich girl like yourself would have."

"I don't see why you should care, it's something that I was given. And even if it's not worth the lien you would hope for, it's still valuable to me." She met his strange, curious look with a confident one of her own. She was glad they hadn't taken the one she was wearing, they'd probably have pawned it due to its high value metal. "If it's not worth stealing, I'd appreciate it being returned."

He ignored her words as he turned over the disk, looking at the wheel now. "The Schnee sigil is expected, but this wheel? Why would a girl, a huntress like you, wear it?"

"Why would a bandit like you care?"

His eyes softened ever so slightly as his hand returned into his cloak. "Because there's only one group of people who know its design. Them, and someone I have been trying to find for a long time now..." His concealing garment shifted, exposing the right side of his torso. There she saw two very familiar symbols.

His outfit was a loose grey shirt and deep blue pants. There was a shine of chainmail underneath as well, signifying his combat preparedness. Going from his right shoulder and over to his left hip was a green sash with a white horse stitched into it. Over his waist was a wide black dyed leather belt with a rusted bronze wheel, and it had eight spokes. Weiss only knew one other person who wore such symbols. Its signature color brought to mind the times she'd seen it on her pouch charm and Oxon combat outfit.

There was also a long rectangle of fabric hanging from his belt, showing a seal with an arrow in its mouth. She'd seen that once before, after The Breach, it was on a familiar black revolver.

"You're…"

"My name is Taxus Adhmad, of Prism." He knelt by the cage, tightly holding the gift Oxon had made for her over a year ago. His eyes were the same as his brothers she could tell, though his were narrowed in clear concern. "So tell me, Schnee… Where. Is. My. Brother?"

~~~(XLVII)~~~

Oxon was given a small shack to stay a bit further down the coast from the main settlement of Kuo Kuana. The place was simple, and he loved it. There was a wood fire stove in one corner, a small doorway that led to a bathroom, and at the far end was his bed. Though, it wasn't the sort he was sure about.

The bed provided was what one of his escorts called a hammock. It was… an experience. Though it wasn't one he hated, it was surprisingly comfortable for last night's sleep.

He'd been advised by the twins to not wander too far without an escort. There are many here that have poor opinions of humans, and may act out if he wanders too much. He couldn't really argue with that, he wasn't here to cause trouble.

He wasn't here to stay either, but the brothers he'd met last night seemed interested in keeping him around. That was a bit suspicious, he'd completed his task that Adam had given him. He knew he was a bit simple and prone to being conned, but even he knew it was strange that the Fang was trying to keep him on the island.

He decided to give the "suggestions" no mind and walked outside with the goal to wander the new environment. If his presence caused any issues, he'd apologize and come back here. He left his usual clothes behind, only bringing Bulls Breath and Virginiana. Stepping out, he was grateful for the clothes he was given.

Light and airy pale green pants were held up by his leather belt complete with silver belt buckle. He had a brown button up shirt that had no sleeves on it covering his stomach and most of his chest. It was too warm in this place to have all the buttons up, so he only fastened half, he wasn't an exhibitionist like Sun. He also decided on no boots either, his feet were getting too swampy, and they weren't exactly built for sand.

This place is too hot, I can't even cool off with a fan or A/C unit. This land truly is hell on Remnant…

Stepping out onto the sand, he was hit with a strong and salty breeze. It was… odd, but not unpleasant. He saw a few other people on the sandy shore, though they kept their distance.

The suspicious looks did hurt a bit, but he was in their home, so it made sense. In order not to cause any issues, he stuck to the areas with less inhabitants. The ecosystem he explored was like nothing he could ever imagine. The strange looking plants and wildlife mesmerized him.

As he walked, he found a small community with a large amount of fishing gear. Out in the water were boats and people swimming. He saw them hauling in fish with nets and fishing rods. Thankfully, the folks here were more accepting of his presence.

"Welcome!" A tan faunus woman with gills on each side of her neck waved at him from the surf. She was waist deep and holding a few exotic shells in her arms. He waved back, glad to see a friendly face. "It's not every day someone visits us here in Wai'ānapanapa. Definitely not any humans either."

"That's not an issue, is it? I can go if you want." She shook her head at his uncertainty.

"It's no issue, we have no qualms with humans here. Though I am curious as to why one would be here." She glanced at the armor on his shoulder and the weapon on his back. "Are you perhaps a huntsman?"

He wasn't, but he supposed he did have the image of one. "Sort of, I have experience dealing with the creatures of Grimm, but it's not what I am best at." Not exactly the truth, but he was confident in his Grimm killing skills enough to claim it. Though, he didn't know if this place had the same Grimm as Vale and Prism did.

"That's wonderful to hear! It's always nice to have someone able to fight nearby." Suddenly another person came out of the water. He had fins on his forearms. The young boy looked curious, but not upset thankfully.

"Mom, there's a big meeting outside the chief's house."

"I'm sure if it's important, we'll hear about it tomorrow. For now, fetch your father, we have a guest." The child dove back into the water and Oxon watched as a ripple in the water moved down the coast to a group of houses. "Follow me"

The woman walked closer to the shore and guided him through the quaint village. There were a few houses close to or even partially in the water. Further inland were many more homes. Eventually Oxon was led to a small house that was on the edge of the surf. Once there he saw a man with scales over his face bringing out some drinks.

"I appreciate this, but don't want to intrude ma'am. I'm sure you and your family are busy." The man chuckled at his nervousness but set the tray down on a small table on the sand. Awkwardly, Oxon sat down in the sand at his gesture.

"It's alright son. There's no need to be shy. We heard someone was using that old shack down the way, Holo here thought there was a new neighbor." The woman with the gills nodded kindly. "It's a surprise for a human to have moved in, no offense."

"None taken, though I'm not here for long." The adults seemed saddened at the words, he wondered why and asked them. The woman, Holo, explained it to him.

"We don't have our own school here like Beacon, so we rely on ourselves. When I saw that you wore a weapon, I was hopeful that we'd have nearby protection just in case."

"Oh, sorry…"

"It's not your fault, though I admit were curious about why a human is visiting Menagerie." There was no suspension, no apprehension, no anger. Just curiousity.

"I'm just delivering a message, with the CCT down, someone needed to deliver it by hand. And a human traveling between kingdoms right now is not as suspicious, so here I am."

"Life for other faunus must truly be rough on the mainland if this is how some communicate. Though I am grateful that you're kind enough to help, I'm sure the White Fang would love to have you."

He almost spit out the drink he was given at that. The action confused the two and they gave each other a confused look.

"Yeah, I don't think I can do that. I don't really agree with what they've done. I don't condone extremism." What I've done.

"Extremism? I understand that they've been more forecefull, but I'm sure it's just exaggeration?"

He looked at the two for a moment before he realized it. They didn't know… "Ah well…" He had been worried coming to the island, that the population was equally anti human. And realizing that they didn't know… Oxon didn't know whether or not he should say anything. If things went bad and it got out he'd told people about The Fall, then he might be at risk, the Fang was all over and they had been making him paranoid lately.

But he couldn't just do nothing, not again. Mustering his courage and looking around in case there were any of those terrorists nearby, once he believed it was clear, he leaned forward to the couple. They were paying strict attention at his sudden shift in mood. He hoped they would believe him.

"I know that since I'm a human, it could sound like I'm making this up, but I swear it's the truth. I believe in equality asuch as you, but the White Fang doesn't. Vale and Beacon were attacked, and the White Fang was there, leading the charge. Along with the Grimm…"

~~~(XLVII)~~~

In the kingdom of Mistral, Ren looked over their group as they learned a rather large bundle of information. It was such a large pill to swallow, that he would have dismissed it entirely. Except that Mr. Brawnwen backed up the story.

Ozpin's soul was now trapped inside some farm hand… How is this real life?

"This is perfect! We were stuck at a dead end, but now, we can just take little cute boy Ozpin to Lionheart and have him set things straight!"

Ozpin seemed disgruntled at the nickname from Nora as Qrow chuckled. "Please don't call me that."

"We're not sure that's the best idea."

What!? Why?

"But I thought the Headmasters all took their orders from you."

Ozpin sighed before speaking to the group. "That was the intention. Four lieutenants I can trust, especially during times of reincarnation. But Qrow told me about your meeting with Leonardo. He isn't just behaving irrationally, he's disobeying specific instructions I had left him. Something's wrong. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but I don't want to rule out any possibilities, either. No one outside of this room knows that I've paired with Oscar, and I think it may be best to keep it that way."

That was concerning. Ren had hoped that while random people might be untrustworthy, the idea that the headmaster of a school was up to no good? That could be bad, he hoped team SSSN and the other teams they'd met were safe.

Qrow turned to look at the group. "Your old "pal" Ox told me a few things about his team. They picked him up from a well known underground organization and put him in Beacon in order to get information."

"I wanted to talk to Ox after what hay, but by the time I woke up, he was already in prison." Ruby had admitted to wanting to question the teen. Personally, Ren wanted nothing to do with him. "We… We had some information about someone who had potential to be a double agent, but we couldn't find anything in time. Then the Fall happened and Oxon helped them. And then at the tower…"

"Yeah, I talked to him before his trial, he certainly had a lot to say." That was a shock to everyone except Ruby. She seemed like the only one who still had some belief in the criminal. "His cover story was about as flimsy as a paper napkin. But he told me that they had help from someone inside Haven Academy. I didn't want to think it was Leo, but…"

"So we should play things close to the chest until we get a better hand." That… Was smart, if Lionheart was like Oxon, then they needed to be cautious. They couldn't make the same mistakes again.

"Precisely. Now, we have two steps ahead of us. The first is enlisting the aid of more Huntsmen."

Ren wanted the help, but the fact was that it wasn't up to them. "But the Mistral council-" But he didn't get far before the drunk relative of Ruby interrupted him.

"Doesn't own every Huntsman in the Kingdom, and I've been here enough times to know where we can find some more."

"So long as they're trustworthy." Trust was something that had been in low supply lately. Both with old "friends" and the Mistrali headmaster.

"You can trust them to put up a good fight. I'll throw together a list tonight." He hoped so, Ren refused to allow this group to destroy another school. Not on their watch.

~~~(XLVII)~~~

Weiss was stuck in shock as the words sunk in. This man in front of her is Oxon's elder brother. The one who he'd spoken so well about on the rare occasions he talked about his old life.

"Where is Oxon? He's the only person who should know this design outside of our people." This couldn't be happening, she'd heard that his family was dead… but, he must have not actually seen them die.

"I… I don't know. The last time I saw him was when Beacon was attacked." And she'd helped arrest him. Should she tell him that? It was probably the right thing to do.

"That's one of those schools for Grimm hunters, correct?" She nodded and he stood up. "Why would my younger brother be there? The map I gave him should have led him south from the mountains and then east, away from the kingdom. We couldn't be sure if Vale was safe for us due to our origins."

"Uh… He said it fell into a stream after a week." The older man stared at her for a moment, trying to decipher the truth. He must have seen her sincerity and sighed into his hand.

"Dammit brother…"

"But he was found by a huntsman and brought to the city. From there he eventually made it to Beacon, though, not with the best intentions."

His eyes narrowed at that. "Explain." So she did, she told Taxus about his brother working with criminals and terrorists that caused chaos and destruction in the kingdom. How he ended up leaving the group and became imprisoned in Vale because of Cinder and her allies. He took in the information with a shocked expressions as he placed back and forth in front of the cage.

"Oh little brother… What have you done?" He swallowed whatever grief he had before he looked back at Weiss. "Thank you for the information, I'll need to figure something out… But I still need answers on why you have this symbol among your possessions? You're not one of us and I doubt you know what it means."

"I know very well about the Prism War Wheel." She took slight pride at his baffled expression. Clearly he didn't expect her to actually know anything about it. "And, according to him, I deserve to wear it. It's the sigil of your home's guard, for your warriors."

He was still shocked, but his eyes softened slightly as he observed her while he continued pacing. He was deep in thought as he looked from her to the symbol in his hands. Eventually he took and released a deep breath.

"He gave you this, likely because he believed you worthy, it's an honor that is hard to achieve. Ox himself earned it as well at a younger than average age, even though he never joined the guards." The last part was muttered regretfully. She remembered him talking about it. How he always belittled himself and thought he never deserved the mark. Which was annoying because he still wore it.

"He said it is a symbol of honorable people… and that he believed I earned it."

He paused and looked at her for a moment before tossing the old gift into her hands. "If my brother claims that you are, then I will not doubt it. As the son of the chief guard, I acknowledge you as one of us, regardless if you never laid eyes on our home." Her readjusted his cloak, hiding his body once more.

"I… Thank you." He started to leave, but she had questions for him as well. "Wait, if you're here, does that mean there are more survivors? If he had known… What of your father and mother? Did they make it out as well?"

He didn't look at her, but she saw his shoulders tense. "Our mother and father are gone. Both gave their lives protecting others, mine almost was as well. I thank the gods that our efforts to save Oxon succeeded, we didn't expect to live that night."

"But he's been beating himself up for what happened this whole time! He believes he killed you by running away!" She noticed him shudder a bit, and realized it was wrong to get upset at him, so she asked the most important question. "How did you survive?"

"The town hall had a passageway into one of the mountain tunnels, we created a kill zone. I- I almost fell but my mother took the hit instead." That, that was darker than she expected, that his mother would do that... When he told her his name and that he'd survived, Weiss had thought there was a successful defense, not a last stand. She had hoped the rest of his family survived, but they hadn't.

"Afterwards, when we saw out home in ruins, we had no choice but to leave. It was still winter and our buildings were not safe… Eventually we found sanctuary after making it to Anima. Once on its shores, Raven and her… tribe took us to safety, to a settlement named Rozaki which took my people in. Part of the debt for such 'kindness' was that I join and aid their tribe until I repay her."

"So you're just going to help these bandits? You're going to attack innocents, what happened to fighting to protect people?" What was with this family and joining criminal groups? Taxus turned to face her, and he looked upset at the words she'd said, clearly he wasn't happy to be here. "You two really are siblings…"

He sighed at the harsh comparison. "I do not wish for this, but the survivors I led would have died if not for these people. It's a debt I hate, but one I must repay. Once I am done, I will find a way to free my brother, and if I take on more debt to do that, so be it." He walked away from the cage as the sun began to peak over the trees. But not before saying one last thing.

"I will ensure that no harm comes to you while you're here. My brother clearly thinks highly of you, I could never face him if I let these people do anything… untoward." With that, the man left, and the sun finally peaked over the treeline.

~~~(XLVII)~~~

Bum bum buuummmmm! Looks like Ox isn't the only one who survived after all! Now Weiss is the one who is meeting the family. Though it seems big bro Taxus is less judgemental than Winter.

I've been looking forward to writing this chapter for a while now. It's part of the reason this chapter came out so fast, I had the bones of it done over half a year ago. I had this bandit camp interaction, and another one coming up, before I wrote the birthday party or even the dance.

I'd be happy to see a few reviews on how y'all think about it.

~~~(XLVII)~~~

Omake: Are You Sure You Don't Want More Armor?

The Belladonnas had a few hours before their public speech. And Ghira was watching as Blake inspected the wound on her friend's chest. The injury reminded him of a conversation he'd had with his daughter.

"You know." The two teens looked at him and he fought down a glare for the boy. He'd helped his girl and kept her safe. "I hope this helps convince you about more armor."

His daughter's ears wilted slightly. She grumbled to herself, but he heard the words. "Ugh, you sound just like him…"

"Oh? Did someone else have the same advice? A professor, perhaps?" The blonde winced and Blake frowned.

"No, not a teacher." She seemed deep in thought for a moment as she and Sun shared a frown. What that meant, Ghira was concerned about.

The blonde spoke up next. "They're not someone worth thinking about. He's part of the reason Blake got her scar."

"She said Adam gave it to her."

"Yeah, and that slimy tree freak helped the bastard attack Beacon." Blake nodded solemnly at the boy's words.

Well, that explained the looks on their faces. Still, this person clearly had at least some positive traits, trying to convince others to protect themselves. Anyone who wanted others to be safe couldn't be completely bad. He just wished his daughter would listen to such advice and keep herself safe…

~~~(XLVII)~~~

They really should have a bit more protection. Seriously…