The Amity Colosseum was still floating high amid the cheers of an excited audience as the two opposing pairs of partners for the match, the grinning Mercury and Emerald against a confident Coco and meditating Yatsuhashi, waited in the center of the stadium for the holographic roulette to pick the field.
"Emerald and Mercury of Haven, versus Coco and Yatsuhashi of Beacon!" Port announced over the broadcaster speakers.
"Good luck, you two!" Velvet cheered from up in the stands alongside Fox and Ruby.
The Colosseum chose four fields to rise up from below in quarter sections: A patch of tall grassy plains which had a single tree and some rocks; the ruins of a city, complete with buildings holding shattered windows and rubble among the pavement; a hot spring containing geyser spots along a small river and some blue Dust crystal growths; and a familiar section of dense forest.
"Hey! Love the outfit, kid!" Coco said as she lowered her sunglasses and eyed her opponents.
"I'll try not to get blood on it." Emerald said.
"I can't promise you'll leave without a scratch." Yatsuhashi warned, getting up as he removed his sword from his back.
Emerald elaborated, stretching out her arm. "I won't be the one bleeding."
"Ooh, I like her!" Coco said.
"Three, two, one, begin!" Port announced along with the countdown behind the combatants.
It was an intense match, but still painfully one-sided as Coco and Yatsuhashi were soundly beaten by the younger students. "And with an amazing upset, Emerald and Mercury are victorious!" Oobleck announced in the announcer's spot with Port.
"Coco?" Velvet said worriedly with a hand over her mouth as Fox shook his head.
Kratos growled at this. "They hid like cowards and separated Coco and Yatsuhashi! They were too afraid to fight them together." He growled.
"Mercury was handling both of them quite well on his own at first, if you remember." Bayonetta said.
"What I'm more concerned about was how brutal they were. Especially Mercury. He brought down Yatsuhashi with little effort, so he could've beaten him quickly, but he drew out the fight far longer than he needed to. He wanted to hurt Yatsuhashi. He was enjoying it." Ryu said.
"And that, Ryu, is why you're the brains of the team. Those two definitely did more damage than they needed to and I've got a pretty good feeling it wasn't an accident. There's definitely something off about them. Hell, there's something off about that whole team." Dante said, looking across from them at Cinder and Azula.
Fox placed a reassuring hand on Velvet's shoulder as Ruby looked into the stadium at her "friends", no one noticing the smiling Cinder and Azula behind them, getting up from their seats and walking away amid the combined cheers and boos from the crowds.
In an elegant twilit pavilion area of ivy-covered pillars, rounded archways, and lion-decorated fountains, Weiss, Dante and their elder sister Winter were sitting at a simple table with a plate full of croissants and strawberries. Winter was sipping from her teacup as Dante and Weiss looked at her with slight sadness and disappointment.
"You're... leaving?" Weiss repeated the news she was just told.
"That's a shame. You were barely here for a full day." Dante said.
"Yes. I was merely needed to oversee the transport of additional units to Vale." Winter explained, setting her cup down. "Our last shipment was lost to an ambush. I believe you had a run-in with its cargo, actually. It's fortunate those Paladins were in the prototype stage; otherwise your team may not have fared so well."
"Hey, they did great out there. Besides, we were there to bail them out if they were in too much trouble." Dante said.
"Good thing you were there to save the day. Because clearly we couldn't." Weiss sighed and looked down dejectedly.
Winter grabbed her sister's hand reassuringly "Weiss, you've done... well, out here. You've truly excelled alongside Dante. You should be proud. I'll be honest, it was quite amusing seeing Father's face the day you left for Beacon!" Winter said, almost chuckling.
"It's nice to wipe that arrogant smirk off his face from time to time." Dante said.
"I can't wait to show him what I learned!" Weiss said proudly, straightening up and smiling now, arms crossed.
"Oh? Then what do you think you've learned?" Winter asked.
"What do you mean? I'm getting better and better with my glyphs! I've even advanced in Time Dilation! Dante and I have been training almost every day." Weiss explained, not directly looking at her sister.
"And what of your Summoning?" Winter asked, staring intently at her sibling.
"I'm... getting better at it." She said.
"We've been practicing, but everything she summons is only half the size its supposed to be." Dante explained.
"It is a difficult ability. I had quite some trouble with it myself, at first." Winter said, before smirking at Dante. "But now, it's one of the few abilities I've managed to stay ahead of you in." She said confidently.
"Oh, I think you'll find I've improved my summoning quite a bit." Dante said.
Weiss sighed at this. "Well, I'm so glad the two of you can brag about your summoning so confidently, while it's the one thing I've been having trouble with!" She said while splaying her hands exasperatedly.
"We Schnees are unique. Unlike many, our Semblance is hereditary. But that doesn't mean it will come easily." She explained as she lifted her hand to summon a small, elaborate glyph over her palm. "Your Semblance is like a muscle. The more you practice with it, the stronger it will become. But if you only focus on one aspect of it..." She continued, the glyph expanding suddenly in a bright flash, causing Weiss to turn away before looking back up in awe at the white-and-blue Beowolf now at her sister's side. "If you fail to test the limits of what you think is possible, then you'll never truly grow." She explained, stroking her companion.
Weiss smiled at this display of power she hoped to achieve, before cutting to...
"You'll never beat me, old man!" Ruby cried out as red action lines appeared behind her with oriental battle music playing.
"You're nothing but talk, kid!" Qrow countered with similar blue lines behind him.
"You can do it, Ruby!" Yang called out her support as purple lines followed her and Bayonetta.
"You've got this, sis!" Bayonetta cheered alongside her twin.
Then the entire scene was revealed to be in team RWBY's dorm room at Beacon Academy and the screen of the video game Ruby and Qrow were playing was shown just as one of the pixelated ninjas decapitated the other, with the announcer saying "SOARING NINJA WINS! TOTAL ANNIHILATION!" Qrow grinned at his victory as Ruby lowered her head in shame.
"Ouch." Yang whispered.
"And by the way, don't ever call me old." Qrow warned.
"My turn!" Yang said eagerly, pushing her sibling out of her spot as she grabbed the spinning controller from the air.
"Now, where was I?" Qrow asked while the game began again with "NEW CHALLENGER APPROACHES!"
"You were telling us about your last mission!" Ruby answered, popping up from behind the two players excitedly.
"Right, right..." Qrow remembered as the scene flashed back to his story as the art style changed to reflect the dark setting and eerie neighborhood the blade-wielding warrior was walking through. "I'd come across a small village in the swamps west of Mistral. Right off the bat, I knew something wasn't right." He explained.
"What were you doing there?" Ruby asked, mystified.
"I needed information. Tired from battling Grimm along the way, I decided to start my search at the town's inn. The place was crawling with lowlifes and thugs, even a few Huntsmen that I could only assume had been hired by less-than reputable people for less-than respectable jobs. And that's when it happened." He said grimly.
"What happened?" Yang asked as Qrow looked at something in the shady inn, wide-eyed at what he saw.
"I was defeated..." Qrow said, kneeling in his flashback under a spotlight, before suddenly grinning. "By the mere sight..." He continued, before what he saw was revealed. "Of the innkeeper's skirt length!" He finished as the vision of pink hearts, a beautiful maid with slightly-skimpy clothing, and the very happy Qrow was shown.
This was interrupted by a thrown dog-head pillow, which Qrow deftly caught much to Yang's ire, not helped by the game announcer calling out once more "SOARING NINJA WINS! TOTAL ANNIHILATION!".
"You are the worst!" Yang snapped.
"We didn't need to hear that. Ruby DEFINITELY didn't." Bayonetta said. Despite both twins being rather flirtatious and somewhat lewd, they fiercely defended Ruby from any form of smut, to the point the youngest sister doesn't know what making out is.
Qrow and Ruby simply laughed at the twin's shared anger. "Bayo, you up for a try?" He asked.
"You're going down, OLD MAN." She taunted, sitting beside him, taking the controller and starting up the next fight.
"Oh, it's on." Qrow said, now determined to defeat Bayonetta.
"So, Uncle Qrow, did you get in trouble with Ozpin?" Ruby asked as she sat herself on Weiss' bed.
"Nah, me and Oz go way back. We're cool." Qrow said, waving the question off.
"Cool for an old guy." Yang scoffed.
"Not funny." Qrow said, looking mad now.
"So, what are you doing here anyway? I thought Dad said that you would be on a mission, for like... ever." Ruby asked.
"Well, a professional Huntsman like myself is expected to get results, as soon as possible." Qrow explained, before his jaw dropped and his eyes widened at the screen in front of him.
"KUNOICHI WINS! TOTAL ANNIHILATION!" The game announced as Bayonetta smirked.
"Even professionals can lose if they get too full of themselves." She taunted her uncle.
"Yeeeeaaaah, I get that." Ruby laughed. "We're pretty much pros, too."
"Oh, really?" Qrow asked slyly.
"Psch, yeah! Read the news sometime. We totally saved Vale while you were gone." Yang said.
"Who knows what would've happened if we weren't there, saving everyone." Bayonetta added.
"Funny, because I heard Vale suffered a Grimm attack after you almost managed to stop a train." Qrow taunted, leaning over to rub it in his niece's faces as Ruby scowled. "But they don't give out medals for almost." He said.
"They do, and it's called silver!" Ruby said resolutely.
"Well, we helped take down Roman Torchwick! That's basically a bounty mission! Sure, he got away, but still, crime's been down ever since!" Yang said.
"And we even put down Dio, one of Remnant's most wanted. Not just Vale's most wanted, but one of the most wanted criminals on the planet!" Bayonetta boasted, despite not being the one who defeated Dio.
"Sure, you may be acting like Huntresses, but you're not thinking like one. You really think four girls and their friends could end all crime in a Kingdom?" Qrow asked.
"I mean, I did until you said that..." Ruby grumbled, tapping her fingers together in embarrassment.
"With friends like Team SCRN, it's not unreasonable." Bayonetta said.
Qrow rolled his eyes at this. "Easy, there. You kids are good, but you're not invincible. One of these days, you'll run into people easily on your level, or even past it." He told her, sounding more serious now. "Violence hasn't dropped since Roman got nabbed; it's stopped, completely. No White Fang activity around the city. You cut off the head of the King Taijitu, but now the second head 's calling the shots. That's what Ironwood can't get through that thick metal head of his." He explained.
The three sisters exchanged a look, before turning back to their uncle. "You... know the General?" Yang asked.
"Hey, I know everybody to some extent. Remember, you're talking to a member of the coolest team that graduated Beacon!" Qrow said, back to his usual joking demeanor as he reached behind him into one of his pockets and pulled out a photo lined with stains and age of four figures - himself, Raven Branwen, Taiyang Xiao Long, and Summer Rose - as Yang's eyes widened and he sighed in remembrance. "Hah, Team STRQ... That's where I met your parents. We were pretty well known back in the day." He said.
"Well known for crummy fashion sense!" Ruby teased.
"Hey, we looked good! And I have a number of inappropriate stories to back that up!" He said, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.
Bayonetta noticed Yang staring at the picture, particularly their mother and elbowed her out of her trance. "Yang." She said as her older twin snapped back to reality.
Qorw also noticed this and put the picture away. "But, I'll save those for when you're older." He said.
"Oh, gross!" Ruby said, recoiling in disgust.
"You'll save them for never, or at least for your own kids." Bayonetta warned him.
"Anyways, I'm too old to be hanging out with a bunch of kids. You're gonna cramp my style." Qrow said, getting up and walking out. He paused in the doorway and sighed before addressing his family; Bayonetta, Ruby and Yang looking up to him and Zwei sleeping on Blake's bed. "Look, just remember that you've still got a long way to go..." He said, turning around and holding a finger up to express his seriousness. "And don't think for a second that graduating means you're done." He warned, hitching a thumb over his shoulder. "Every day out there is worth a week in this place. You three, you're gonna go far. But only if you keep learning; if you never stop moving forward." He finished.
With these immortal words of wisdom, Qrow exited down the hall.
Back in the pavilion, a caterpillar was slowly inching around on the edge of a fountain at Weiss pointed her Myrtenaster at the ground, creating a rotating glyph made of blade symbols with Winter and Dante behind her, appraising the effort.
"Excellent form! Now think to your fallen foes! The ones who forced you to push past where you were, and become who you are now." Winter instructed. The glyph flickered in and out of existence and Weiss grimaced in concentration. "Think of them, and watch as they come to your side." She finished.
"You can do this, Weiss! We believe in you. You need to believe in yourself." Dante said. The glyph began to flicker even more, threatening to fade altogether. "Picture yourself in battle! This summon will stand between you and your enemy. It may be the only thing that can save your life!" Dante instructed.
Weiss' eyes snapped open fearfully at this, before closing them, the Armor Gigas appearing before her... but only slightly taller than Weiss herself.
"Good start. Just give it more energy." Dante said.
"You're close, Weiss. Just keep pushing! You're almost there!" Winter said.
"I'm trying!" Weiss snapped, turning around to face her brother and sister.
"If this is what you call trying, then you have no hope of winning the tournament, let alone succeeding as a Huntress!" Winter countered, before suddenly smiling as if an idea had occurred to her. "Why don't you just move back home? I'm sure Father would give you a nice job as a receptionist!" She teased.
"I don't need his charity!" Weiss snapped, looking away.
"But you do need his money, don't you?" Winter asked, leaning in.
"What!? How did you know about that!?" Weiss asked, surprised.
"Lucky guess. I may have been in a similar situation when I joined the military. I warned Dante about it, but I figured he would've warned you." Winter explained, straightening back up.
"Eh. I never thought Daddy's little angel would go so rogue." Dante said teasingly.
"Hey! I wasn't his perfect little angel all the time!" Weiss snapped.
"So, what have you done this time?" She asked.
"Well, that's the thing: I'm really not sure! I went to pay for lunch the other day, but the card didn't work!" Weiss explained as Winter circled. around her.
"How embarrassing." Winter said sarcastically.
"I know!" Weiss said, before seeing Winter shaking her head. "Well, it was! Why would he cut me off like that?" She demanded.
"Perhaps so that you'd stop avoiding him and call home." The eldest Schnee suggested.
Instead of answering, Weiss attempts once more to create a summoning glyph and creating the Gigas again, but even smaller than before. She clenched her teeth and closed her eyes tightly, to which Dante sighed. "Okay, time for something extreme." Dante whispered to himself. "Weiss! If you can't make the Gigas its full size, Ruby is going to die!" He shouted.
"NO!" She suddenly screamed, her eyes snapping open and her summoning finally reaching its full size and bowing to her. "I... did it..." She said.
"The desire to protect the ones you love gave you the extra push you needed." Dante said.
Winter smiled and nodded. "Indeed. Well done, Weiss. But don't allow yourself to solely rely on that feeling." She warned. "Emotions can grant you strength. But you must never let them overpower you." She explained, the summon now disappearing. "It sounds to me like you have two choices in front of you. You can either call him, beg for his money back, and explain once more why you would want to study at Beacon over Atlas, or you could continue to explore Remnant, discovering more about the world and honestly, more about yourself." She said, allowing Weiss a moment to absorb this information.
"Any advice for me there, sis?" Dante asked.
Winter smirked. "For one, you could certainly do without the cocky, careless attitude. Mark my words, it WILL get you in trouble one of these days." She said, Dante rolling his eyes. "Beyond that, I can only tell you to keep training and improving, like you always have." She finished, before revealing... "It's time for me to go." She said as she gave her sister a hug, which was returned.
"It was really good to see you, Winter." Weiss said, breaking off from the embrace.
Winter nodded at this, before her and Dante shared a hug. "Stay safe out there, sis. Don't do anything I wouldn't do." Dante said.
"So, in other words, stop being me entirely?" She teased again, before smiling sadly. "Until next time, my dear brother and sister." Winter said.
The three Schnees walked out of the pavilion and went in opposite directions.
Later at night, Weiss and Dante were in the school courtyard, waving goodbye at the airship carrying their sister. They stopped just as Weiss' scroll started vibrating with an incoming call from "FATHER". Dante rolled his eye at this while her finger hovered over the screen in uncertainty until she closed her eyes and forced herself to press it.
Dante smiled at this, putting a hand on Weiss' shoulder. "I'm proud of you, sis. Winter would be, too. Eventually, you'll be just as good as her, if not better." He said.
"Maybe even better than you?" She asked.
"Don't push it." He said jokingly, to which she rolled her eyes before widening them at the new card he handed her. "Oh, by the way, I stopped at the bank earlier today and set you up a second account. You won't have to worry about lunch again for a while." He said.
Weiss smiled, first at her brother, then at the sight of her closed scroll and the setting of a new path in life, she put it away and the two of them walked back inside as the scene faded to black.