Here we are at Chapter 77. Time for some happy reunion time with most of the members of Team RVWBY as well as Velvet's old crew. I do not own RWBY or Tales of Berseria. They belong to their respective owners. Here's chapter 77. Enjoy.


Chapter 77: Much to Discuss

In Mistral, most of the members of Team RVWBY are in the dining room, along with Velvet's old allies, and the members of Team JNPR, all eating and happily chatting with old friends that they haven't seen in a long time.

"It was crazy! I was alone at the house, with just Zwei, and Dad was gone, and all of a sudden, I find the man they called the Reaper in my living room. I thought he was a burglar, and I tried to fight him off. Of course, that didn't go so well, and then I find out that he was an old friend of yours," Yang explains.

"Come on, it wasn't that bad. Besides, I did save your butt from that one Ursa," Eizen notes from the other side of the table.

"Yeah, because your Reaper's Curse caused it to show up," Yang deadpans.

"Great, first Qrow's misfortune semblance, and now Eizen's Reaper's Curse. Say goodbye to things being normal for us now," Velvet says, before eating more noodles.

"This coming from the girl with a demon claw, and that apparently came from another world. I think 'normal' went right out the front door the moment you joined our team," Weiss says.

"Hey, was I that bad?" Velvet asks.

"No, just made things a lot more complicated," Yang notes.

Velvet activates her demon claw, "You want to go flying like old times back at Beacon?" Velvet warns her.

Yang holds up her hands, "No thanks, I'm good," she relents, and Velvet deactivates her demon claw.

"So, Weiss, you actually went to Patch to find Yang and then after training, went to find Ruby?" Velvet asks the white-haired girl.

"Yes, I-," Weiss begins.

"She was drowning in tears over missing her beloved, and so she rode on a white horse to come to her loved one's aid. Oh, it was so romantic," Yang dramatically interrupts her.

"D-D-Don't make things up, you brute!" Weiss yells while madly blushing.

"Ah, but you know I'm right, right?" Yang smirks.

Weiss looks away, "Well... not exactly in that way, but I did want to see you again," she mutters.

"Ah, you're so adorable when you're blushing, princess," Yang says as she pulls Weiss in for a quick kiss on the cheek, making her girlfriend blush even more.

"I felt the same way when I reunited with Velvet," Ruby says, holding Velvet's hand, and making the demon girl smile back at her.

"Yeah, I was surprised to find out that you two found each other again... After the Fall of Beacon, you went missing and we had no idea what happened to you or if we'd ever see you again. Hey Eleanor, did you know about what happened to Velvet?" Yang asks.

"I apologize for not telling you sooner, but we weren't exactly told to do so by Summer Rose. Yes, we knew that Velvet was alive, but she was indisposed at the time. She needed time to rest and train in the realm between worlds where Summer Rose is before she could return to your world, and we had our objectives with your team to focus on. But, we always knew that one day you would be reunited with each other again," Eleanor explains.

"We needed to guys to focus on getting back on your feet and getting back to Ruby. That was the task that was assigned to us," Zaveid adds.

"Yeah, that's still hard to wrap my head around sometimes. That Ruby's mom is the one that sent Velvet here from wherever you guys originally came from," Jaune says, rubbing her head.

"Hey, it was a little weird getting used to how things are done in your world, but I got to used to it soon enough. Besides, I'd go through a hundred different worlds if it meant finding Ruby again," Velvet says, smiling lovingly at Ruby, who returns the gesture.

Eleanor notices the exchange and smiles, "You've changed, Velvet," she notes.

This gets Velvet's attention, "I have?" Velvet asks, confused.

"Yeah, even more so than when you were with us and Laphicet. You smile more and are more open with others. Not to mention the fact that you're in a relationship with Ruby. That still takes me for a loop at times," Eleanor explains.

"Who knew there'd be someone out there that could conquer the Lord of Calamity's heart?" Magilou says, laughing a bit, and making Velvet blush a bit.

"Anyway, it's good to see that you're really enjoying life again, despite all that's going on with you guys and your world. I can only assume that it has something to do with Ruby Rose here," Eleanor says.

Ruby rubs her head and laughs sheepishly from the attention.

"Well, it was definitely a surprise for me at first. But as time went on, I began to feel like nothing else mattered unless Ruby was there. She's surprised me in so many ways, and I'm grateful for her for so many things. I guess you're right, Eleanor. I have changed, and it's all thanks to Ruby," Velvet says, kissing Ruby on the head.

"Get a room, please," Nora says, making the couple blush a bit while the others laugh a little bit.

"Say another word, and I'll send you flying," Velvet threatens her, activating her demon claw again.

"Sheesh, I can't get anywhere with this girl," Nora mutters.

"That reminds me, you're not the only one with a wicked arm now, Velvet," Yang says as she stands up to show everyone her new arm. "What do you guys think, pretty cool, huh?" she says, showing it off.

The others are in awe a little bit, "Wow, that's amazing," Jaune notes.

"It's not a replacement for the real thing, but I'll be sure to get some good use out of it," Yang says.

Ruby gets stars in her eyes and immediately zips over to inspect the prosthetic arm.

"And it's just as strong?" Ruby asks.

"Yup, sure is," Yang replies, but then they hear a loud bang on the table.

"Wanna bet?" Nora challenges Yang with an arm-wrestling match.

"Nora, please, this isn't-," Weiss begins, but the two are already at it, with the others cheering or watching on.

"Come on Yang. You can't lose to a girl in a skirt!" Ruby cheers for her sister.

"... You wear a skirt, Ruby," Weiss says, frowning.

"Weiss, you're not cheering loud enough!" Ruby shouts.

However, a sudden demon claw clamps down on the clasped hands of the two competitors, making them look up to see Velvet with her demon claw out. Velvet looks unamused as she picks them up and tosses them aside. However, after they land on the floor, Velvet notices Yang missing her right arm and then notices said arm still in the grip of her demon claw. She raises an eyebrow to it before tossing it back to Yang, who catches it.

"Aw, I was hoping that would at least startle you a bit," Yang pouts as she puts her arm back on.

Velvet deactivates her demon claw, "Come on, you're talking to the former Lord of Calamity here. I practically invented true fear back in my world. Nothing scares me these days," she says, hand on her hip.

After things calmed down, the others cleaned up their empty plates and traded them in for cups of warm tea, sitting or standing around the table.

"A lot has happened since Vale, and even while we were at Beacon," Yang notes.

"Indeed. We've all grown up a lot in our own ways," Ren notes at the center of the table.

"You think so?" Ruby asks.

"Well, look at it this way. Did you think you did something embarrassing, or that you were perfect, or that you weren't the most open with others," Ren lists off.

"Oh, gosh," Weiss says as she hides her face in her hands, embarrassed.

"I may have been a little gun-ho at times," Yang notes.

"Well, I know I wasn't exactly the friendliest student at school," Velvet adds.

"Yeah... Well, don't get me started," Jaune notes, leaning against the wall behind some of them.

"Yeah, we weren't there to see what you guys were up to, but if it involves Velvet, I'm sure it must've been one wild ride," Magilou notes.

"Yes, well, that embarrassment – that desire to go back and tell yourself not to do something stupid or embarrassing, or to be more open with people... That just proves that you're not the same person you used to be. You're smarter, stronger, kinder, more open and willing to be with others. It's all a sign that you're growing up. And we're not done growing yet," Ren says.

"When did you get so wise, Ren. You sound like an old Malik from my world," Velvet notes, making everyone laugh a little bit.

"Well, I thought I was pretty great at school," Nora says.

"You mean like at the dance? When you spilled punch all over your-," Yang begins, until Nora suddenly ends up behind her, with loud music playing from her school.

"YES, especially the dance! Thank you, Yang!" Nora yells, making her cover her ears.

"Can't you guys have one dinner without causing so much commotion?!" they hear someone call out and look to see Qrow enter the room, with Oscar by his side.

A few minutes later, everyone is in the living room, with some on the couches and chairs while the rest are standing around the table in a circle. Ozpin has taken control of Oscar's body again and has just finished explaining the situation to Yang's group.

"So, the Maidens. Magic. Salem. It's all true?" Weiss asks.

"Uh-huh. All of it," Qrow says.

"Yeah, we were already informed about this stuff for the most part by Summer Rose before we were sent here. This is just a refresher course for us, if nothing else," Eizen says, flipping his coin as he gestures to his group.

"Miss Xiao Long, is this more or less what your mother told you?" Ozpin asks.

Everyone looks to Yang, who has her arms crossed and a not-so-happy look on her face.

"Almost. You forgot to tell them what you did to my uncle and my mother," Yang says, looking at Ozpin now.

This makes Ruby gasp, while a few of the others glance at each other.

"Oh, great," Qrow mutters.

"Hm. That's not something I'd suspect Miss Branwen would divulge so easily. Your mother must trust you a great deal," Ozpin notes, but Yang only scowls at him. "My ability to reincarnate, though a curse, isn't without a few key benefits. Much like the Maidens, I too possess a certain... "magical" power," he says before standing up and walks over to Qrow. "Using this power, I was able to gift the Branwen twins the ability to "see" more, to move freely and be unburdened by their natural bodies. I... well... gave them the ability to turn into birds. Heh-heh-heh, rather ridiculous sounding out loud, isn't it?" Ozpin explains.

"Turning people into birds. Well, at least that's nowhere near as bad as when humans turn into demons in our world," Eizen notes.

"Hey, magic is supposed to be my thing," Magilou says.

"Is that really true, Uncle Qrow?" Ruby asks.

"It's true. We saw Raven Branwen change before our eyes. It was quite bizarre, to be honest," Eleanor says.

Yang gets a little angry now, "Why would you do something like that? I mean, what is wrong with you?" she almost yells at Ozpin.

"Yang! That's enough. We made a choice. We wanted this," Qrow defends the former headmaster.

Ozpin looks to Qrow, "May I?" he asks, and Qrow nods. "Granting this power to them was no trivial task, and I can assure you it was not done frivolously. I required assistance in gathering information on Salem's plans, as well as searching for Maidens when their hosts became unclear," Ozpin explains.

That reminds Weiss of something, "But, what about Velvet? Didn't you say that she had a part of the Fall Maiden's power?" Weiss asks.

Velvet activates her power for a moment, conjuring a small flame in her right hand, "Yes, but again, it's only a piece of it. I'll need to get the rest from Cinder should we ever face her again. And, given that she's Salem's lackey, that's a very likely possibility," she says, deactivating her power.

"Do you want to become the Fall Maiden?" Yang asks.

"Honestly, no. But, it's better that I have the power than Cinder having it," Velvet replies.

"Okay, let's retract a little bit here. Have you done this sort of thing with anyone else? Like Professor Goodwitch or General Ironwood?" Ruby asks.

"As helpful as that might be, unfortunately, it is not that simple. My power is finite, and if I'm being honest, dwindling. The amount that I gifted to Qrow and Raven was, all things considered, rather miniscule. You see, centuries ago, I sacrificed a great deal of magic to four young women, who I hoped would use my gift for good. They were the first Maidens. Miss Xiao Long, it was never my intention to lie to you. To any of you. There are just some matters that I prefer to... 'play close to the chest'. I believe that's how you phrased it?" Ozpin says, looking to Qrow.

Qrow grunts, smiling, "Yeah," he replies.

"Well, it's not like I'm any better. I kept secrets from you guys, after all," Velvet notes.

"Yes, but you told us a lot sooner, and besides, your story is a little more far-fetched than Ozpin's, from a regular person's point of view," Weiss notes.

"Indeed, though hardly any of us are really normal at this point. Everyone has a choice. The Branwens chose to accept their powers and the responsibilities that came with them. And later, one of them chose to abandon her duties in favor of her own self-interest. One of you now has a part of an amazing power, though not by choice. Now, all of you have a choice. If anyone wishes to leave, now is the time. There's no shame or disgrace in abstaining, only in retreat," Ozpin says as he turns his back to them. When no one declines, he smiles and turns back around. "Very well, then," he says, but then Yang stands up.

"Yang?" Ruby asks.

"Velvet, what do you think about all of this?" Yang asks her teammate.

Velvet takes a moment to think upon her words, "Honestly, I have no idea. I'm no saint or great savior. There's too much blood on my hands to ever be considered such a thing. But I also know something else. I know Ruby won't give up or retreat. I know that she always knows what is the right thing to do. So, wherever she goes, I go," Velvet declares.

Yang stares at her and then smiles, "Alright then. If Velvet is so sure, and if Ruby sticks around, then I will too. If there's one thing I know about her, it's that she somehow always knows the right thing to do. But, if we're going to help, if we're going to keep risking our lives, no more lies. No more half-truths. We've all been pulled into this mess now, so you need to be straight with us," Yang tells Ozpin.

Ozpin eventually nods, "Very well," he replies, and Yang sits back down.

"So... what now? I mean, what can we do?" Jaune asks.

"Mm, that is a difficult question. One that I believe is best answered tomorrow," Ozpin says as he walks over to where Yang and Weiss are sitting.

"How so?" Ren asks.

"The road ahead is undoubtedly filled with hardships and peril. However, it's been far too long since you have all been together. Please, take this time to enjoy your reunion," Ozpin says as he places a hand on Yang's shoulder, making them smile.

Suddenly Ozpin's eyes glow as Oscar is given back control of his body. He then notices the position he's in with Yang, and freaks out as he jumps back. Some members of the group laugh at his expense before they hear a new sound coming from Nora.

Nora comes to a sudden realization, "Oooohhh. Raven? Qrow? They're birds! Cracked it!" she says, smiling at her 'genius', while Ren shakes his head at Nora for being slow on the uptake.

"Well, it's been a long day, so I think we'd better go and find ourselves a place to stay. There's not enough rooms in this place for all of us," Eizen says as he, Eleanor, Zaveid, and Magilou take their leave.

"Wait, where are you guys going to stay?" Weiss asks.

"Don't worry, we'll figure something out. We're smart that way," Magilou says.

"Besides, you want a guy with a misfortune semblance and another guy with the Reaper's Curse to be rooming in the same building?" Zaveid asks.

Just after he said that, the dining room table breaks in half, and then the chandelier hanging above falls down on top of it, spooking everyone in the room.

"I'm thinking we let them go," Jaune nervously says.

"I rest my case," Zaveid says before they continue on.

"Will you all be helping us as well?" Ren asks.

"For a little while longer, but not for the whole thing. We can't stay here for too long. We have things we have to take care of back home. When the time comes for us to return home, we'll let you guys know," Eizen says before they all leave the building.

"Well, at least that means we should have more help for a while," Ruby says.

"Wait, Velvet, when your friends leave, will you be leaving as well?" Nora asks.

Velvet is a little surprised by the question, but smiles and shakes my head, "My time in my old world came to an end when I stopped Artorius from completing his objective. This is my home now, and I'm sticking around for the long haul," Velvet replies, making the others smile.

"Welp, with that said, I think we should all turn in shortly. It won't be long before the fall semester at Haven begins, and you kids still got some training to do. Go rest up," Qrow says.

"Good idea. Let's go, princess," Yang says to Weiss.

"We are sleeping in SEPARATE beds, Yang," Weiss tells her.

"Oh, come on. It's not like I was going to do anything... yet," Yang replies, smirking.

Weiss blushes, "This is hardly the place or time, you perverted blonde brute!" she retorts.

"Well, if you guys are going to do something, better not do it while we're around. Like these two lovebirds here," Nora says, pointing to Ruby and Velvet.

Yang gets suspicious, "What's she talking about?" she asks.

Ruby and Velvet blush and look away, "Um well, that's private, between us," Ruby replies.

Yang starts to put the pieces together, and her eyes turn red, "VELVET!"


And that's the chapter. Yang's group is informed about the current situation in Mistral. Yang also learns how far Ruby and Velvet's relationship has progressed, and not in a good way. Things will soon be moving to a head in this part of the story. Will Team RVWBY be ready for them? Will Velvet be able to handle an angry Yang? Until then, please Read and Review.