Chapter 62: Leftovers

Author's Notes

Volume 4, baby! Let's go! Starting for real this time, hitting the road to Haven!

Happy rats, and don't do crime!

In which the people who survived get to pick up the pieces.

Blake loves me.

Blake kissed me.

Yang's eyes opened. For some reason, she felt really good about her life right now. Yawning, she stretched out her arms and pushed the sheets off her legs.

Odd. She could only feel the sheets on one side. What was–

Her arm was missing. Her right arm wasn't there.

What?

Her arm, it…it still wasn't there. She made to rub her eyes, but she didn't have an arm with which to do it.

No.

No, this wasn't real.

She tried wiggling her absent limb, in hopes that this was some kind of prank. Nothing happened. In desperation, she swiped her other arm at where her missing hand was supposed to be, and it passed right through.

No.

She repeated swiping, again and again.

No, this couldn't be real.

She opened her mouth to scream for help, but she realized she had no one to scream for. Whose name would she call? Ruby was just a kid; Yang was supposed to be the big sister. Blake…she didn't want to be seen by Blake like this.

"WEISS!"

Ruby appeared in a flash of rose petals.

"Yang! I'm…I would've sat by your bed and waited, but…I tried to. I stayed with you for a full week, but you didn't wake up. I'm sorry, you shouldn't have had to wake up alone–"

"Where's my arm?" Yang looked around at the room. This wasn't Beacon. "Why are we at home? What's going on?"

"Yang, what's the last thing you remember?"

"I…you were knocked out in your tournament. How did you recover so fast?"

"We–"

Ruby's prior statement sank in, and Yang cut her sister off mid-sentence. "Did you say a week?! I've been asleep for a week?"

"Yang, it's been more than a…ummm. Ok, you remember me losing to Cinder. Can you think of what came next?"

"Um, we took you to a hospital. Weiss, Blake, 'n' me worried that you were going to be attacked. We sealed the door. Blake and Weiss…broke up again? Blake kissed me, and…oh, Dust. We were attacked, weren't we? Whoever tried to kill you came back to finish the job. Well, you're alive, so they didn't succeed."

"Yang…"

"They must've snuck up on us and…they…my arm– oh, I guess Weiss and Blake fought them off!"

Yang forced herself to calm down. She was missing an arm, and yes, that was very unsettling, but Ruby was alive. Her little sis was gonna make it, and nothing else mattered. She'd have given both arms and legs to protect her baby.

Distract yourself. Focus on Ruby.

First thing's first. Ruby always felt guilty for things that weren't her fault. Yang needed to reassure Rubik's Cube that she didn't blame her at all. She must've been tearing herself apart over this. Yang would've felt horrible if her partner had lost an arm defending her while she was unconscious.

"My arm's…it's gonna be okay, Ruby. I'll be okay. Atlas makes replacements, right? I'll be up and kicking again in no time. Or punching, heh!"

"Oh, right! Dad made some calls and got in touch with an old friend, and he already got you a cybernetic prosthesis from Atlas."

That's right, Rubes. Focus on the positives. "Perfect."

"I threw it away," Rubes declared proudly.

"W-Whuh?"

"Well, I didn't throw it away. That'd be wasteful. I donated it to starving Vacuoan orphans. No sister of mine's getting Atlesian scrap metal for an arm."

Ruby vanished again. Yang heard a clatter downstairs before Ruby reappeared, holding out a homemade prosthesis. It was painted the same shade of yellow as Yang's hair, cyber.

"I built you this baby! Her name is Amphitere. She's got a buncha features: regular fist mode (Ember Celica compatible), buzz saw, flamethrower, corkscrew, cattle brand–"

"You built this all in a week?"

"Ummmm, well…mrlkamnth…"

"I didn't quite catch that last part, Rubes."

"It took me a month to build Amphitere."

"When did you find time to…o-oh. That long, huh?"

"Beacon excused, well, everything. Headhostess Gladiatrix would never bother us over missed homework, not after everything we went through."

"Cool, I guess. You know, I'm honestly surprised it took you a month to build her if there were no classes in the way – you're usually faster. You built Crescent Rose in, like, three days. Hey, lemme see Amphitere! You mind if I try it on right now?"

Ruby was sitting on Yang's right side when she held out the arm. Yang reached for it with her right arm, only to realize that she didn't have a right arm. She tried to reach over and grab it with her left arm, but her stomach hurt when she twisted. It took her a moment to phrase the request politely.

"Hey Rubes, funny thing. I can't exactly…you know." Yang tilted her head toward her missing arm.

"What do you mean?"

Yang wobbled her stump.

Ruby said nothing.

"Think you could come around to my left side? So I can, you know, grab it? It's painful to reach."

"Oh! Sorry!"

Ruby disappeared into her semblance, blurred over to the other side of the bed, and held out the arm.

"Why're you using your semblance, so much?" Yang asked as she fitted Amphitere. "Lemme guess: without your big sis around, you grew lethargic and slothful, and now you're burning off all the excess calories."

"Nah. It's just easier. No one wants to wait while I feel my way around with my hands and feet, so I just do it at super speed. Try it on, try it on! Is it the right size? I can tune it up, if you need."

Yang had to admit, her sister was a regular weapons wizard. Amphitere fit like a charm, and no sooner than putting it on was Yang able to wiggle the fingers.

"I maybe kinda sorta kept the aura implants from the arm Atlas sent," Ruby confessed. "It would've been impossible to make those on my own through touch alone. How does it feel?"

"It's official – Yang Xiao-Long is armed and dangerous once more. Put her there!" Yang extended the mechanical arm out for a handshake to Ruby.

Yeah, losing the arm sucked, but she'd been able to stave off the initial panic by worrying about Ruby instead, and now she was getting some sick new and improved arm? With a motherfuckin' cattle brand? Sweet! There would probably be times when she forgot about it and panicked, but she could deal with that later. All of the problems could wait until later. Honestly, the way she'd made it this far was just speeding through every major revelation so fast that she didn't have time to let any of them sink in before she'd already moved on to the next one.

Ruby still hadn't shaken her hand.

"Sis?"

"Yeah? What?"

Yang balled up her cybernetic hand into a cybernetic fist. "Fist bump!"

Ruby fist bumped into the air above Yang's fist.

"R-Ruby?"

"Sorry, I'll try again!"

Ruby's hand was lower this time, but she still missed.

"Wait a sec, I got this!"

Yang kept her arm up, and Ruby pummeled her tiny fist around blindly until she made contact. "Woohoo! Rose 'n' Xiao-Long for the win!"

…blindly…

"Say, Ruby. Your silver eyes are looking silvery-er than usual."

"Yeah. They still work on the Grimm, though. I absolutely would've gone mad if they didn't."

Yang's arms, both metal and meat, covered her mouth in terror. "Ruby, are you – were you blinded? In the attack?!"

"…yes. Yeah, I – don't freak out! I'm getting used to it, and my semblance helps me move around. It gets easier every day."

Yang wanted to cry.

Yang wanted to scream.

No. Yang wanted to kill whoever blinded her kid sister.

"What happened?" Yang growled. "Who did this?"

"You – I don't – Yang, you need to promise not to go hot. Your bedsheets are flammable."

"Who? I'll skin them alive!"

"They're already dea– wait, that's not a good thing…okay. I'll tell you, but only if you pinky promise not to lose it."

Yang's sister offered her a cyborg pinky, and she took it.

"Now. Who did this?"

Ruby pointed to her eyes. "Blake."

"Here's what we've got so far. Weiss told me everything Blake told her. Apparently, the White Fang had some kind of rich woman who was supporting them from behind the scenes, but also trying to convince them not to go for their original, destructive plan. Dove and…and his team thought that it was Team Caiman behind all this, but it turns out they're innocent."

"Relatively."

"Right, relatively. At least, we know Cinder isn't the person who attacked me in the CCT. Maybe they were all rotten apples 'cept for Neo, maybe not, but they weren't the ones targeting us. That was Blake all along."

"May she rest in worms."

"Weiss said she was going on about the sheer power that she had as a maiden, but that doesn't mean anything to any of us. Does it?"

"No."

"Nope."

"Nothing."

"No. If she was so powerful, how did you…you know, do the deed?"

"I…I did something. Not entirely sure what. There was a surge of power when I first…got it, and it made me feel weird, and then I saw Yang, and things got all blurry after that. Pyrrha said that her semblance was like controlling an invisible arm that could control metal, but this felt like I had a million invisible tentacles reaching out in all directions and controlling the matter around me. I haven't been able to reproduce it, but I'll keep trying. It's not very intuitive to control, not at all easy to tap into like a semblance, this…whatever it is."

"So if you've got nothing to go on, where are you going to go?"

"Here's the thing. Now, Dove was investigating the Caimans with his team and the headmaster. Most of what they found was useless, since it was Blake they really wanted, not Cinder, but he believes they had a bigger secret. Jaune, Pyrrha, and Russ–" Ruby and Team Castle collectively hung their heads. "–all died before they could tell him anything good. The only thing he has that's not about Team Caiman is that, when they were researching, Russel wanted him to investigate Leonardo Lionheart."

"The headmaster of Haven? Why?"

"We don't know. Dove says that everyone on his team, as well as Ozpin, was very curious when they learned that Mistral was using less and less Dust every year. Apparently, Russel told Dove that Ozpin was especially interested in the years when Lionheart was in charge."

"So, you're going to Haven for answers? To Mistral?"

"Yep. Officially, my Lovey Dovey and his doting girlfriend are going to return his fallen comrade Pyrrha Nikos' armor and weapons to her family. Unofficially, the White Fang operates out of Menagerie, and Anima is the nearest continent, so their presence there is the greatest. We're hoping to find out more about what they're planning and learn why Dove's team was killed. Two Nevermores with one stone."

Nora paused and raised an eyebrow. "Dove's team was killed by your uncle."

"No, they weren't. I don't care what the police or newspapers say. Qrow didn't kill any of them."

"Good," Nora said, nodding. "Just checking."

"I know it's not much of a lead, but it's what we've got. I'd follow it through the Grimm wastelands if that was what it took. So, are you guys coming?"

Nora suddenly realized that the window was very interesting. Sky saw something on the ground that caught his attention. Cardin's fingernails found themselves in sudden need of an in-depth inspection.

"You don't have to come," Ruby said. "I won't be mad. You guys didn't lose anyone on your team, so you can still go through Beacon and graduate. It'd be nice for at least one of our teams to stay here and keep the Headdress Glibwedge on her toes."

Team Castle collectively sighed a breath of relief.

"It's not that we don't want to help you, Ruby," said Cardin. "We just…we'd have to get up and leave our entire lives behind."

Ren shook his head glumly. "Headmistress Goodwitch excused Team Rai– you, Yang, and Weiss, but our team was unaffected by the tragic events that befell you and Team Adventure. If we went with you, it would be considered relinquishment of our spots in Beacon. As horrible as this was, life at the academy hasn't stopped. It might be different if Beacon had fallen, but it didn't. The term's started up again, and Professor Port is already urging students to come to his therapy group to cope with the stressful end to Vytal this year. I've been to three sessions already." He tapped his head. "Still getting used to the whole 'emotional being' thing."

"We'll come anytime you get into a tight spot," promised Sky. "Give us a scroll call, and we'll be on the first airship to Mistral."

"Awwww, you guys. C'mere!"

Team Castle hugged Ruby.

"We're really sorry."

"It's okay. Yang's not coming, and I'm not mad at her either. People have lives."

This statement caught Nora's attention, and she took Ruby by the shoulder and led her away from the others. "Let's talk for a second, one leader to another."

"What's up, Nora?"

"There's another reason we can't go. Cardin's pregnant. It's mine."

"Oh! Congratulations! I heard that Chocolate Chip Cookie is a great name for both boys and gi–"

"Yang really said she doesn't want to go?"

"She kind of hasn't said anything since I told her about Blake and Weiss. Like, at all. I left out the…more colorful bits about Blake's opinions on her."

Nora scrunched her face. "What's she going to do? You and Weiss are both gone. Beacon's not really up for a one-woman team, no matter how badass the one woman may be."

"I don't know, Nora, I just don't know. Dove and I waited for a month to ask her when she woke up, and now it's been two more weeks. We can't keep waiting. Dad will take care of her back in Patch, and we can come back when we're done. Maybe…maybe we'll make Team Ruby Yang Weiss Dove. Team RDWY. Team Roadway? I'll workshop it."

"Are you sure you want that? From what I know, Blake was kind of the center of your team. Both Weiss and Yang were–"

Ruby shook her head without any enthusiasm. "As I said Nora, I just don't know. If Yang does come back to Beacon while I'm gone, could you look after her?"

"You got it! She can be the godmother to my unborn babe."

Ruby reached out a hand, and Nora grasped it firmly.

"Godspeed, Ruby Rose."

"I know you'll be the best huntress to ever grace Beacon with her presence, Queen of the Castle Nora Valkyrie."

"Awwwww!"

"…because I'm leaving."

"Why, you!" Nora shook her fist.

The two hugged once more. The rest of the Castles approached them when Nora called them over and did the same.

"I'll miss you guys!"

"We'll miss you, too! Now go find out who's behind all this…oh, and break their legs!"

Nora wiped a tear. "They grow up so fast."

Team Castle left, and Ruby slowly maneuvered to where Dove was quietly waiting. "I guess it's just you and me."

"That's all we'll ever need, Rose."

"Darn tootin'! Now, I believe we have an airship to Mistral to catch!"

Heh.

Heheheee.

Heheheheeeehehheheee!

Bwahahaha!

Ohohoho!

Heeeeeeeeeeee!

Ha ha ha ha ha!

AAAAAHAHAHA!

The other Faunus was demented, but he was still a Faunus, so Adam appreciated his presence here more than the human.

The table was a glowing, purple stone with murky Dust crystals shooting out at odd angles. The chairs were wooden but not carved. It was as though they were trees that had grown into the shape of chairs. This entire place exuded a haunting aura, but Adam needed to be here. She had given Blake incredible strength, so perhaps she could grant Blake's true love some arcane power to avenge her.

A male human dressed in his formalwear sat opposite Adam and the scorpion Faunus. The man reeked of human chauvinism and often gazed across the table with naked disgust at his comrades, but Adam curbed his tongue. Blake was dead, and all that mattered was avenging her. If he had to sit through meetings in a cursed fortress deep within the Grimm wastelands and fraternize with insane Faunus and racist humans, he would do so happily. As long as I get my shot at those who took her.

He'd heard it from the news first, seeing her picture come up alongside the headline, "Faunus Plot against Schnee Heiress Foiled." The newscasters hadn't been subtle in stating their views on the White Fang. Needless to say, the television screen was now in several pieces.

This is taking too long. I could be out there now, tracking down the humans and avenging my beloved.

"When do we start?" Adam snarled impatiently.

"As soon as our goddess arrives," cackled the scorpion Faunus.

"And when–"

The doors opened, and all three of them rose. In walked Salem, Queen of the Grimm. She slowly strode towards the seat at the end of the table, ensuring to make eye contact with each member of her council as she walked. Adam knew the strategy: make subordinates wait, then leisurely stroll to your seat. It was a way to ensure that all those around you knew who was in charge. Sienna employed it often with the White Fang's commanders, and he had occasionally copied her when dealing with the more unruly members of his war camp.

She finally arrived at her tree chair and took a seat. The others did the same, though the scorpion Faunus chose to squat in his chair. To some degree, it made him look like a predator, coiled up and ready to strike at any moment. It also made him look like a lunatic.

"I'm glad we could all be here."

Adam wasn't in the mood for time-consuming pleasantries. "How shall we proceed?"

Salem's grin was a sickening sight.

"We?"

"You called me to this castle. I assumed it was to prepare and execute a new plan."

"I'm glad you count yourself among our numbers, Adam. Loyalty is essential for a member of my inner circle. And with the seat formerly occupied by Blake empty, we have a great need for you."

Blake. It had always been about her. She'd loved Adam. She'd adored him. And they'd taken her away from him. The nightmares were different, but somehow always the same. Blake screaming for him to save her as a multitude of hands dragged her into the darkness. Blake bending over in agony as the Schnee stabbed her again and again and again. Blake begging Adam, asking him why he hadn't been there for her.

"What can I do?"

"The maidens are moving for the first time in generations. Watts will go to Mistral and prepare with Lionheart for the next vault to be opened. When it does, the dogs of war will be unleashed, and chaos will erupt. We cannot afford to lose the relic to Ozma when the war begins in earnest."

Adam did not care for relics nor maidens. "What can I do?" he repeated.

"We'll need you and Tyrian to locate a silver eyed warrior. Our Atlesian friend has confirmed that she is the new Spring maiden, that she is in Mistral, and that without the tutelage of a mage like Ozpin or an elder maiden, she lacks the ability to tap into her pool of powers. That may change at any time, though. Consider her dangerous beyond compare, but do her no harm."

Salem rose, keeping her hands on the table.

"I need her alive. She is the key to our success."

"If I do, you'll give me the names and locations of the ones who killed Blake?" Adam asked.

The witch-Grimm nodded. "Bring the silver eyed one to me, and I give you an army with which to destroy your human enemies."

"Yes," said the human, Watts. "Be a good boy and fetch. Your master will bring you a treat."

Adam rose and placed a hand on Wilt's hilt. "You dare?"

"Brother, calm yourself," said Tyrian, gently pulling Adam's hand away from the straight-sword.

Adam broke free of his grip and addressed Salem directly. "I will bring you your maiden. Be sure to make good on your end of the deal." With that, he stepped towards the two large wooden doors.

Tyrian intercepted him. "Brother Adam, I feel your anger. Your pain is my pain, one Faunus to another, but that human is nothing more than a self-important simpleton. None of us hold any love for him in our hearts. I've often had times when I wished to disembowel the arrogant oaf myself."

"Then why don't you?"

"Goddess Salem has need of him. She is a gracious queen to those who serve her faithfully. And I assure you, she supports your noble quest to liberate our brothers and sisters. You've seen it here today; the majority of her closest council is Faunus."

Adam grumbled and turned away from the madman. "I shall obey her commands. But only for Blake."

"Sister Blake died trying to execute a plan that she and Queen Salem mutually agreed upon. Is it not sensible that her enemies are also our enemies?" He gestured to himself and the others at the table.

Adam paused at that, his one eye turning back to the broad table. "I–"

"Why, it is said that it takes a maiden to kill a maiden. No ordinary human could have struck down one as skilled on the battlefield as Sister Blake. I'd venture a guess that our new Spring maiden had a hand in taking your departed love away from you."

Adam looked to Salem. "You wanted her alive…"

"To open the vault." She waved a hand dismissively, looking away. "Then, she is yours to do with as you please."

"Then there shall be no place for her to hide. I'll scour Mistral from coast to coast."

He stepped out the wide doors and turned in the direction of the Evernight Castle's bullhead docks. The human, Faunus, and Grimm all disappeared from view behind him.

And when I find her, I won't waste time bringing her to you, Adam thought to himself. I'll kill her myself.

"Do you find such malignance necessary, Dr. Watts?"

"He is simply too easy to rile up, and I could not resist myself. For that, I sincerely apologize."

It had been a foolish thing to say when the queen herself was present, but restraint had been impossible. Sending him on a search and capture mission, then offering him a reward? If anything, it was Salem's own fault for setting Watts up so perfectly (not that he'd ever accuse her of it).

"Fortunately, Tyrian was able to correct your little error." Salem stroked the Faunus' hair, and he practically hummed with excitement.

"Do we really need Taurus?" asked Watts. "He's unspeakably rash, quick to anger, and downright wild. That boy makes every stereotype about the Faunus seem like a scientific fact. No offense Tyrian – I'm aware of how deeply rooted you are in the Faunus' cause."

Tyrian, as vacuous as he was, was at least intelligent enough to detect the sarcasm dripping out of Watts' voice and respond with his own. "Yes, Brother Adam certainly does seem to assume camaraderie with his fellow Faunus. Mhhhaaa!"

Salem nodded her head in agreement. "His mental state seems to have decayed since the Fall maiden's death, as has his grasp of reality. Every day makes him more violent and unpredictable. I do not believe I wish to see what happens when the fantasy world he has built to distract himself from harsher truths comes crashing down around him."

"I don't think he's going to hand the Spring maiden over to you," noted Watts. "He'll likely kill her then begin a one-man war with the Schnee and the third girl."

"Agreed," said Salem. "Tyrian." The Faunus looked up obediently at his mistress. "When you've secured the silver eyed one, see him disposed of. Sooner, if you deem it necessary."

"Gladly! A toy that disobeys its goddess is not worthy of–"

"Yes, yes. Go."

Tyrian scampered off after Adam.

"I do find myself missing young Miss Belladonna," said Watts. "Taurus will not easily fill the seat at your table her death left empty. For all Belladonna's faults, she was at least a competent lieutenant. Collected, focused–"

"Not prone to infantile fits of murderous rage?" finished Salem, with a wry grin.

Watts nodded at the assessment. "You took the words right out of my mouth. Your grace, I wish to ask, what of the Grimm?"

"You think I'd send common Grimm to collect a relic or secure a maiden?"

"No. I refer to the, um…horsefolk, was it? What are they to do in the meantime?"

"We now hold the sword and the crown. With any luck, we shall gain the lamp soon, and that shall be enough. Kraken shall remain in the Grimm wastelands with me. His strength shall be indispensable when Ozma's forces come knocking. Thrace must remain in Mistral, lest Lionheart renege on our deal."

"I don't expect that sniveling coward has the courage to disobey you with or without a knife to his throat."

Salem turned her back to Watts and glided to the window, her clock and dress' hem dragging along the floor. "True, but Thrace is the oldest of my horsemen. His mind has deteriorated over the centuries, and he has little purpose now but to cull the lower Grimm."

"And the others?"

"Morrighan was slain. Do you wish to recruit Azeban for your upcoming sojourn in Haven?"

"Aye. He and I both prefer intellectual solutions to violence. I'd like permission to bring him–"

"Granted."

Watts bowed and made his leave from the main hall.

"Oh, and doctor?"

He turned.

"Do not fail me. You're already on thin enough ice as it is after the partial failure of our…of your plans in Vale. Pyrrha Nikos is dead, and I believe you are responsible for it. My council shall soon be reduced to two. I'd hate to have to bring it down to one."

Watts nodded without fear. Only those who proved disloyal or useless were purged, and he was neither.

Omake

Yang: How long was I out?

Ruby: Don't you mean, Xiao-Long was I out?

Yang: *tearing up* Sister, I'm so proud!

Next Chapter: The Blind Leading the Blind – In which two parties set their sights on the same destination.

Author's Notes

Was that an empty seat I spotted? *heavy breathing intensifies*

It's actually the first of three. Empty Seat #1 is the spot Blake left at Salem's table when she died. Also, for Fanfiction dot net users, you may recognize that particular seat at Salem's table as the image depicted in the cover art.

So, Team Castle. They will be taking their leave for the time being. However, one of the critical flaws of the original RWBY show that I dislike was that characters (Glynda, Port, Oobleck, Maria, Pietro, Sun, Ilia, Ghira, Kali) dissolved into brown sugar the second the camera was off of them. I don't disappear characters here, so Nora and Team Sausage Party will return. I repeat, NORA VALKYRIE AND THE LADS WILL RETURN.

When? A while from now at least…

Naturally, this is the first of 'Where are they now?' bits. We still have the Weiss gang, the Jaunzpin gang, and the Qrow gang to catch up with in the next few chapters.

Happy rats, and don't do crime!