Well, five days to go until RWBY Volume 2 airs. And I have to admit, writing this has been an absolute blast.

Anyway, this fic will be going on temporary hiatus for a little bit. Not because I won't be able to write, but it's because I want to have some material prepped for later on. But either way, enjoy.

Chapter 27: Facing the Future

"Dear God, what did I eat?"

Putting my hand to my aching head, and trying to assuage the massive migraine that slowly took hold, I soon became aware of a familiar sight.

The rafters of Team RWBY's dorm.

I was lying in my hammock, wearing my pyjamas and a bandage on my head. Looking out the window, the sun hadn't yet risen, and it would be some time before it did so again. The moon was full, its cracked surface facing away from the planet, giving the impression that it was just like the one back home. But I knew that wasn't true.

I turned my body, so that I could see what was beneath me. Ruby lay snoring on her bed, while Yang sat in a nearby chair blissfully asleep, clearly having taken to watching me, in case I did anything rash. Weiss, however, couldn't be seen, though I assumed she was sleeping in her bed, nestled comfortably beneath Ruby.

Silently, I rolled out of my hammock, hitting the carpet with a soundless thud. To my relief, nobody reacted, other than Yang giving a quiet snort. Tiptoeing past her to the bathroom, my foot struck something leathery and hard, stubbing my little toe in the process. With pain flooding the digit, and repressing the urge to curse violently, I looked down at the offending object to find a book with a brown leather binding, and a familiar golden logo emblazoned on the cover, shaped in the style of a burning heart. I assumed it was Yang's, and I went to step over it, but something niggled in the back of my mind, telling me to open it. As my curiosity got the better of me, I knelt down, picked it up, and opened it. It appeared to be a day to day planner, repurposed into a diary. Quietly, I began to read.

July 19th (1):

So, the legendary Yang Xiao Long is off to conquer Beacon Academy! Not exactly happy that I won't get to see my little sis for a couple of years, but hey, she'll be fine without me!

July 19th (2):

Newsflash: Apparently, my baby sis managed to get accepted into Beacon! I don't know how, but we'll be together again! This is the best day ever!

July 20th (1):

Met a boy last night, named Darrel Conway. He talked with Ruby, helped her feel welcome. He seems nice, but he looks a little lonely. Why would that be? I guess it couldn't hurt to find out.

July 20th (2):

Got to know a bit more about this Darrel kid yesterday. We met during initiation, he seems like a nice guy. Though something about him seems a little…I dunno… strange. I mean, he didn't take the relic I offered him. He just said he wanted someone he could trust. Like me. I don't know, but… could he be sincere? A lot of the guys I've met only wanted me for my body, parties, shit like that. Could he be different?

July 22nd:

Darrel got hurt. Like, really hurt. This big dumb bird damn near sliced him in half. Reminded me of what happened during an exercise with Ruby. But the weird part is, I felt like it was me that got hurt. But why is that? He's just some lonely kid. And I'm… well, me. Maybe… maybe I… Do I actually like this kid?

Most of the entries after this were standard girl fare (I assumed. I don't make it a habit to look in other's diaries), but one caught my eye. And it was dated the day on that trip to the Forest of Forever Fall.

August 29th:

Darrel... Why do I feel this way when I see him? He's always self-sacrificing, humble, funny… and I'd be lying if I said he wasn't good-looking. But he's my plus-one partner. It wouldn't be right. I really don't think our teammates would approve. Not to mention, Cardin made me break him. I don't think he'd trust me enough for that. But I can't seem to ignore it. God, why is this so complicated?!

I exhaled. This must have been what she wrote after our kiss was interrupted that night. I felt bad enough about reading Yang's diary, but after seeing those words, I felt even worse about doing a runner for the past week. I dreaded to think about what was written in those entries. But what I dreaded even more was Yang waking up.

"Morning, Darrel."

Oh crap.

Suddenly aware of Yang's hot breath on the back of my neck, the hairs in that region stood on end. It felt wonderful, and at the same time, terrifying. Being busted reading your crush's diary by the very same girl had that effect, but it was amplified with the knowledge that any prospects of having children were fading very quickly.

Focusing all of my aura in the regions of that area in anticipation for the inevitable death grip, I turned to Yang.

"Morning, Yang. Um, this wouldn't happen to be yours, would it?" I asked sheepishly, handing her the book with a shaking hand. She blinked, and gently took it.

"Yeah. You read it, didn't you?"

It took all my energy to nod my head 'yes'. Granted, it was tempting to lie, and spare myself some pain, but after all I had put her through, and after all I had read, I couldn't lie to her. Not again. Never again.

"You should have a look at the last entry." She said, flipping the pages to a certain point I hadn't reached yet, and handing it back to me. I took it, and began to read. To my surprise, it was dated today.

September 6th:

We found him. But he was furious. So furious. He tried to attack me. I should be angry at him. For wearing the White Fang uniform. For letting my partner get hurt. For trying to hurt me. For lying to us for so long. For everything. But after all this, why? Why can't I hate him?

I have to know the truth.

Closing the book, I looked at Yang. Her eyes were brimming with tears, as they slowly slid down her cheeks, and dripped onto the floor. I strode forward, and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Darrel, talk to me. Even if no one else will listen… I will. I'm your partner. Even when no one else will stand by you, I'll be here." She whispered raggedly. I let my hand slide down her bare arm, gently gripping her wrist. Turning to the door, I tugged her out and down the deserted corridor.

"Darrel? What are you doing?" She asked. I didn't look back.

"We need to talk alone. No interruptions. And I know the perfect place."

Thankfully, the ballroom door was unlocked. Thinking back to the night I arrived in this world, this was where I first met Yang. I didn't know the reason why, be it for the quiet solitude, or for the nostalgic atmosphere, or some other reason entirely, it seemed fitting that we should talk here. But if the door was unlocked, then people might walk in, and hear us. That was the last thing I wanted, so I kept going to the door leading to the balcony, hoping that no one would find us there.

"C'mon. We're almost there."

Pulling the door open, I gestured for Yang to go through, holding it open for her. She smiled, and walked through, gripping my wrist and pulling me along with her, shutting the door behind us. She walked to the edge of the balcony, and leaned on the rail, resting her chin on her arms. I just put an elbow on the balcony rail, resting my head in my hand, and looking at the town of Vale some distance away. The sun hadn't yet risen, but a few streaks of golden light on the horizon showed that it would soon greet the morning.

"Yang… I, uh…" It was difficult to try and find the appropriate words. After all, if I were to explain the truth to anybody else, they'd have me in a straitjacket and sent to the loony bin. It was a ridiculous story, and everything hinged on the fact that she'd take it at face value. After all, aside from the Fragment of Arcadia, I had no real proof. But I still had to reason with her. She was my friend, one I couldn't keep lying to.

"Yang… you need to understand that what I say will sound ridiculous and implausible, but it's the truth. Got it?"

Yang looked at me, and nodded. Taking a breath, I began to let the truth flow.

"You ever wondered if… there could be more life in the universe? Like on another planet, or a different dimension?" I asked. She looked at me curiously, not answering for a long while.

"Well, I… uh, I'm not really from… here." I blurted, unable to think of a better way to phrase the sentence. She blinked, and then opened her mouth.

"So, what? You an alien, or something?" She asked, grinning. I shook my head.

"No, I'm not an alien. Not really." I shrugged.

"Whaddya mean, 'not really'? Are you some kind of shapeshifter? Some cosmic horror being?" Yang's questions were starting to pile on, and it was starting to get to me. I could tell she was joking, because her grin never left her face. She pushed herself up, and slowly walked towards me.

"No, I'm not those either—"

"Well, what ARE you? You can't tell me that you grew up on a different planet, and yet somehow, you have the exact same DNA as me!" She jokingly accused, stabbing a finger into my chest in mock irritation. I grabbed her finger, and gently brushed it away.

"Actually… that's exactly it, Yang. I'm from a different planet, but I'm as human as you, or anyone else." I explained. Yang's grin softened, and her jokey attitude disappeared in the blink of an eye, now replaced with a confused look.

"What…?" Yang breathed.

"It's true. I'm from an entirely different planet, called Earth." I started, before she held up a hand.

"Earth? That's a stupid name for a planet. You may as well call it Dirt. Planet Dirt." She said, drawing out the word into a deadpan drawl.

"Haha, very funny. Moving on." I responded sarcastically, before gesturing to a bench nearby, placed in front of a planter. We sat, and Yang focused her lavender eyes onto me, as I continued to explain.

"Look, back home, this world existed as a form of entertainment. A show online, made by a group of people I never knew personally. I don't know how, what, or why, but somehow, there must have been some kind of link in the universe, because now, I'm sitting with you." I babbled. Yang just put her hand on my thigh, as I continued to explain.

"Basically, the show that started this… pretty much happened like it did over the last two months. Ruby decapitating the Nevermore, Blake running off when her secret was revealed, the White Fang raid… all of it happened in the show. Because I knew about what would happen, I tried to make these have better outcomes. But…"

"It didn't work, did it? The Nevermore nearly killed you, Blake would've run off anyway, and the White Fang managed to get some of the Dust. So are you saying… we'd be better off without you?" She asked. This caused me to stop and think. True, all of these changes happened because I was here to make them happen. But… would they have turned out differently if I wasn't a factor? Who could say? Fate moves in mysterious ways, after all. And who could say, now that they'd happened? The past was the past: history couldn't be changed.

"I… don't know, Yang. I mean, it's because I was here that these things have happened. If I weren't here, Weiss and Ruby would have warmed up to each other quicker. You wouldn't've been blackmailed by Cardin, because he wanted my popularity, and Blake wouldn't have been hurt, because no one would be there for her to sacrifice herself over." I explained, looking down guiltily. I shut my eyes, playing back everything that had happened until today in my mind.

"Darrel…"

I felt her warm hand slide into mine, our fingers netting together in a neat, little tangle. Opening my eyes, I looked into hers. She was smiling.

"Keep thinking that way, and you'll just destroy yourself. Sure, Weiss hated you, but you helped her realize things about Ruby and leadership. Cardin used me to make you suffer, but you made him pay, and broke me free from his control. Blake sacrificed herself for you because she believed in you, even though you wore the White Fang uniform, and she told us she'd do it again." She said warmly. I looked away, contemplating her words. After a moment, her hand pinched my chin, and she pulled my face so we were perfectly eye-to-eye.

"And besides, the past is the past. Stop wishing it could've ended better, because what good does wishing do? It won't bring you peace. It won't heal Blake's leg. And it sure as hell won't change anything. Stop looking back on what you can't change, and start looking forward on what you still can."

I smiled at her, a genuine smile, one like I hadn't done in ages. She leaned in close, our lips a hair's breadth away from touching. So close… I could feel the air flaring from her nostrils… her soft touch quietly eroding all sensibility away. And I was about to kiss her back, when…

"Ahem."

Yang pulled back, looking for the voice that had interrupted our kiss again, an annoyed look on her face.

"Are you kidding me?! The same thing?!"

Looking around the dark balcony, I saw a hooded figure, almost concealed by the shadows, but still visible, if one looked hard enough.

"What now, Kimba? You kind of ruined the moment here." I deadpanned. Kimba just stepped forward, pulling her hood back. Yang looked at her curiously.

"My apologies, Darrel, but it's imperative— oh, hello." She finally saw Yang in her pyjamas, as she gave the new arrival a dirty look.

"Darrel? Who is this woman? And how do you two know each other?" She asked, her face twisted into a scowl. I held up my hands defensively.

"Yang, it's not like that! Kimba's the one who brought me from planet Dir—planet Earth, to here." I began, before she started laughing.

"Relax, Darrel. I know you wouldn't do that to me. Anyway, keep talking." She guffawed. I rolled my eyes at her prank, then turned to Kimba.

"What is it, Kimba?"

"You said that there was no guarantee you'd be able to go home. Well, Ozpin and I have been discussing and… there may be a way to circumvent that for a brief period." She answered. I nearly fell out of my seat in shock. I'd be able to see my home again?!

"Kimba… what are you talking about?"

"In my time on Remnant, I've managed to come across an incredibly rare form of Dust. Using it, I may be able to extract your soul from your body, and send it to Earth for a short time. You won't be able to be seen or heard, and I don't know exactly how long you'd be able to be in your world, an hour at most, but you would be able to experience home. Do you agree?"

I looked down. Home… I'd longed to go back for a long time. No matter how good Remnant would be to me, Earth would always be my real home. But I'd been away so long, gotten too used to being a hero. Would I be able to adjust?

"Do it."

Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I looked back, to see Yang rubbing my shoulder blade. She had a sad smile on her face. Looking into her eyes, I closed mine, and decided.

"Kimba? I agree. But on one condition: Yang comes with me."

Kimba and Yang gave me surprised looks, as if they were trying to believe what I had just said. After a moment that seemed to last an eternity, Kimba nodded in agreement.

"Very well. I should warn you, though, the process will be… odd. Silver Dust is extremely volatile, and incredibly rare. "

Before either of us could respond, she pulled a silver crystal out from the folds of her robe, and stabbed it into the ground. From it shone a beam of light, piercing the heavens, and causing the clouds overhead to swirl. On the ground before us, a gigantic glyph lit up on the ground, lined with swirling rings, decorated in cryptic hieroglyphs that I'll never understand.

"Come on, let's go!" Yang yelled, pulling me into the spinning beacon. Like gravity had somehow disappeared, we began to float into the air. Immediately, I began to feel a pain in my chest, like something was trying to tear me apart from the inside. I retched violently, and before I knew it, I was looking at my body from above, watching as it hung in the air like a corpse in space. I looked around, and saw Yang's was doing the same. Only above hers, a golden orb hovered gently. Trying to look closer, I could make a faint outline of her face. It was difficult to tell, but it was her.

"Go and have fun. You'll know when you have to come back." Kimba smiled up at us, and before we could respond, the silver light faded, and everything turned black.

As my vision slowly returned, I suddenly became aware of the feeling of weightlessness, almost as if… I was floating. Looking at my surroundings, I saw a forest of multicoloured coral, dotted with fish, krill, and other forms of marine life. To my left, an orb of golden light twisted, and turned into the upper torso, arms, and head of Yang. She looked around, confusedly.

"Darrel? Where are we?" She asked curiously.

"I dunno. Somewhere in the ocean. We need to get above water, then I can guess." I responded, feeling my soul contort and shape into the muscular torso of my body. Looking down, anything below the belly button was just faint wisps of dark blue energy, drifting away like steam. Yang's body was doing the same, though her chest had been flattened. I didn't know why, but I think it had something to do with the fact that unless placed in a body, souls had no set gender. But now wasn't the time to guess these theories. I only had a short time, and I wanted to spend every second of it with Yang, showing her the beauty of my world.

"Hey, Yang? Come on, I wanna show you—" I never finished, as a shark seemed to turn in our direction, as if it became aware of two tasty snacks that had suddenly appeared in its territory. Flicking its powerful tail, it swam towards us like a torpedo. I threw myself in front of Yang, shut my eyes, and prepared to feel the iron jaws sink into my flesh.

But through my eyelids, I saw the shark swim towards me, and watched as it kept going through my torso, inflicting no pain whatsoever. If I hadn't seen the predator before it swam to us, I never would have known it had done so. Then I remembered.

'You're just a soul, you idiot. Nothing can hurt you.'

Wrapping my fingers around Yang, I swam up to the surface of the water. As our heads broke the surface without a single splash, I looked around to see land some distance away. I recognized the beach: the one where I'd last stood on my planet. I turned to Yang.

"Come on, I'll show you my world."

And taking her wrist, we soared into the sky, enjoying the short time we had together on my home planet.

Almost an hour later, after some time spent in museums, on football pitches, at theatres, and the like, we were hovering just above the 88th floor of the Eureka Tower, well known for its panoramic skydeck, and the Edge, a glass cube extending from the tower, giving the impression of standing on nothing.

"Darrel, your planet… it's incredible. It's so much like Remnant, and somehow it's not. We don't have skyscrapers, but you don't have Dust. How do you live?" She asked innocently. I just snickered.

"Eh, we get by. Anyway, what you've seen is just the tip of the iceberg. This is just my hometown, after all." I responded. Yang giggled, floating off to look down on the city below. I was about to join her, when I saw two familiar faces in the crowd.

Dad and my brother, Jaden.

Curious, I moved closer, interested in hearing what they were saying.

"…don't know that, Dad. I'm sure he's fine. Besides, he knows how to handle himself."

"I know, J.J, but I pushed him too hard back at Rye, on that stupid test. It's my fault we've become involved in this stupid mess."

J.J. That was a nickname I hadn't heard in a long time. Jaden, or J.J., as he preferred to be called, was my older brother, of about 36 months. Where I was the more physical of the two of us, Jayden was the more grounded, intelligent sibling, and damn good with electronic parts. People said we look a lot alike, which, in some respects, was true: while he wasn't as muscular as me, he was taller, and had darker hair. It wasn't a lot of similarity, but it was enough where people, including my own Dad, got us mixed up.

"Dad…"

"I'm tired of this. I've had to deal with losing Felicity, and now Darry. I… I…"

"Dad, it's okay. I miss him too. Now, we came here for collection, so let's just do it and go home. Okay?"

"You got it, son."

Were I not a disembodied soul, I would have called out to the pair, made a noise, do anything to get their attention. But no one would be able to see or hear me, so it would be pointless. As they walked through me, I noticed that they held special collection tins, with a cartoony image of my face laid on top of an image of Earth, flanked by mirrored question marks, printed on the side. Underneath were some faint words.

THE D.C DONATION FUND

HELP BRING MISSING CHILDREN BACK TO THEIR FAMILIES' TENDER EMBRACE

Dad had never been big on charity, so this was a major step. I watched the pair of them disappear into the crowd, feeling guilty for having disappeared without so much as a goodbye.

"Hey Darrel! I think we need to—you okay?"

Yang had rejoined me, startling me slightly. I turned to her, a grim expression on my face.

"I…I just-"

I couldn't get the words out. It wasn't like I didn't want to, I did. But it felt like I couldn't sum up the energy. And then I remembered. Our time on Earth was nearly up. Well, it was fun while it lasted…

Slowly fading into blackness, I gripped Yang's wrist, right as my vision faded into the abyss.

Coming to, I saw the orange glow of the first rays of sunshine slowly illuminate the dark sky. Kimba was nowhere to be seen. She must have taken off. I understood why: her war with the White Fang did take precedence. Rolling onto my side, looking directly into Yang's closed eyelids, I became a little worried when a few moments passed, and she didn't move them. Propping myself onto my elbows, I began to check her, trying to see if her soul was now back in her body. Her pulse was dull, to the point of nonexistence, and her body was cold, like she was dead.

"Nonononononono! Not now!" I gibbered frantically, grabbing her shoulders, and shaking her limp form, as if trying to wake her up. Still she didn't respond. I hung my head. Had her soul been lost in transit? Was it my fault? Maybe the world of RWBY would be better off without me, after all…

"Psyche!"

Feeling a pair of strong hands grip around my diaphragm, I was unprepared for the shove, which sent me tumbling onto my side, a laughing Yang now positioned directly on top of me, pinning me to the ground.

"I really had you, didn't I?"

"Uh… well… y'know…" I stammered nervously, before regaining my composure, trying to get free. Yang looked at me oddly.

"What's wrong?" She asked, letting me free. I got to my feet, and walked to the balcony railing, looking at the sunrise.

"Yang… Before we left Earth, I saw my brother and my dad. The last time I saw them… My dad and I had a fight. And it ended badly: I punched him in the jaw, and locked him in a broom closet. And now... he looked absolutely awful. Like he hadn't eaten, drunk, or slept for a month. All that time, searching for me... and I never said goodbye." I choked, feeling a tear slide down my cheek. Yang leaned on the railing, looking at me.

"Darrel, it's okay. I'm sure he'll be fine. If he could see you now, he'd be proud."

"But disappearing for this long? I'm probably driving him crazy, and I don't know how much longer I can deal with that."

Yang gripped my cheek, and prepared to say something. But before she could speak, I saw something on her back. Reaching around her, I gripped it, tearing it off, and revealing it to be a slip of paper. I took a quick glance at it.

Darrel, if you're reading this, then I'm long gone. I knew you'd see your family at some point. You needn't worry about your father too much: I've told him that you're needed for a special cause elsewhere, and that you've got friends on your side who will watch over you. Even though he's not happy you can't be with him, he understood, and he wants you to know that you're doing him proud. Even if you don't believe it, he will always love you.

Kimba

P.S.: I also told him about you and Yang. His words: "Kiss her already, you idiot!"

Grinning, I crumpled the note up, and shoved it in my pocket. Yang looked at me.

"Something about your dad?" She asked. I nodded.

"Kimba's told him about me. Why I disappeared, and all that. Surprisingly, he was pretty cool about it. A lot of parents would be pretty angry about being told their son was needed in another dimension."

Yang laughed, looking back to the sunrise. I pushed myself up from the railing, and turned to the doorway leading inside.

"Okay, I'm gonna go and get some breakfast, see if Ruby and Weiss are awake." I said, but before I could reach the door, Yang grabbed my shirt collar, and pulled me in close to her. Really close: our noses were almost touching, and I could see my reflection in those lilac eyes of hers.

"Before you go… we have a little catching up to do." She smirked, a sultry leer on her face. I began to panic inwardly: girls had never, and I mean never, shown an interest in me. And now that such a beautiful girl was holding me in her arms, close enough that I could feel her breath on my lips… it was nearly overwhelming.

"Um, Yang? What are you-mph!"

Any further attempts at speech were muffled by Yang's lips, as they planted firmly onto my own. Even after everything that had happened, from Yang offering the sleeping bag next to her to me, to having attacked her in a fury… All along, I had this dark feeling in my gut that these feelings I had weren't real. That they never could be real. Because she wasn't real. But in this moment…

All of those feelings disintegrated into nothing, as I finally learnt the truth.

These feelings are real.

And in that instant, everything washed away, as the joy took over, and I kissed her back.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this. And to be brutally honest, I was expecting this to be a bit more harshly received. But with 101 reviews showing nothing but praise, constructive pointers and encouragement, and nearly 40,000 views… well, thank you guys so much for giving it a chance.

One more thing: if you're stuck with trying to find a good RWBY story, try StorSpeaker's The Power of Dust. If you liked this, you will love his work.