Winter Schnee had not slept that night.
How could she? More than simply losing sleep, how could her outlook on life ever be the same after what she had witnessed last night?
They say that a lack of sleep did things to the body and to the mind. You heard and saw things that weren't there. However, Winter knew for certain what she had seen last night. Even in the moonlit darkness, she knew what she had faced. What her dear sister had become. What Weiss was.
A monster.
The word was etched in her mind even as she brought a shaky hand up to sip on her morning coffee. She needed to liquid caffeine running through her veins to even operate right now. As much as she wanted to return to her quarters and fall asleep, hopefully to wake up from this waking nightmare, she knew she couldn't. She had to discuss what had happened with someone. There was only one person she could even fathom sharing this information with.
She owed him the same courtesy he had once shown her.
Said man arrived to the small coffee shop down in Vale. The Brew Moon Café was a charming little place that Winter might have enjoyed had circumstances been different. For now, however, she would merely take advantage of the outdoor patio seating so that she and her guest would be able to speak candidly. Away from prying ears. Away from huntsmen. Away from any kind of authority figures from an academy who might be listening in to their sensitive conversation.
"You're late," Winter growled. Unsurprising for a drunk, but even she was hard-pressed to believe the man was drinking at nine in the morning.
"Sorry, I didn't realize you'd mind if I was…" Qrow started before fishing his scroll from his pocket. "Three minutes late." The man chuckled in that annoying, gruff tone of his. "Guess you finally decided to give me the time of day, huh? I apologize for being late for our date."
"Shut up," she snapped. A harsh breath shot through her nose. "This isn't a date."
"Relax, Ice Queen," he said, sliding the chair across from her out to take a seat at their table. The man settled in, his hands coming to rest on the table as those tiny red eyes of his bored into her. "And I don't mean to sound rude here, but you look awful. Did you not get enough sleep last night or something?"
She hadn't. Winter knew she must have had monstrous bags under her eyes. Her hair was probably a disheveled mess. Had it not been for her Aura being regenerated by Jaune, she might have looked far worse than she did right now.
Jaune. Just who was that boy? What was that boy? Was he another lost child like Weiss was? Or was he somehow in control and in command of her as well as Qrow's nieces? Too many questions, and not enough answers…
"So why'd you call me down here?" Qrow continued. "I'm sure it wasn't for my charming personality. I'm the last guy you'd want to have coffee with."
At least he wasn't drunk. Qrow clearly had enough sense about him to remember that despite what some people might think, she despised him. She despised everything about him. His rude behavior. His cocky attitude. His complete lack of respect for authority. And most of all, his weak, pathetic addiction to alcohol. The substance stirred thoughts and emotions of her childhood to the forefront of the Specialist's mind, but she had to cast them out. Right now was not the time to think about home. Now was all about Weiss.
"I called you here to discuss what happened last night during the dance," Winter explained. "More specifically, the… Grimm attack that was reported as having happened on campus."
Qrow leaned back in his chair, locking his fingers behind his head casually. "Yeah, I heard about that. Couple kids got a bit roughed up, but thanks to their Aura the worst they walked away with was just being a little spooked." A soft laugh shot through his lips. "Probably one of Peter's pets that got loose while he's out on that training exercise with Team CFVY. I really should go to his little menagerie later today and put all the beasts down."
"Don't you dare!" Winter snapped.
The outburst took Qrow aback, who even now eyed her with a curious expression. "You okay, Winter?"
No. No she wasn't. Still, it wasn't befitting of both an Atlesian Specialist nor a Schnee to have a public outburst like that. The woman composed herself the best she could before continuing. "Nothing," she said with a soft shake of her head. "It's nothing. Forget about it."
He didn't. A look of genuine concern crossed his face. Utterly alien to anything she'd ever seen from the man before. "Winter, I can tell something's going on. We may not be close, but I know you well enough to know that this type of behavior isn't you. Something happened, otherwise you wouldn't have called me. If there's something on your mind, you can trust me to be discreet."
He'd better be. Drunks tended to have loose lips. She was taking a huge gamble in telling the man what she knew. However, since it involved his family as well, she trusted that this information would not find its way to anyone else's ears.
"Qrow. You once asked me to trust you. To take a leap of faith when you told me that Weiss was alive. Will you do the same for me?"
To his credit, Qrow didn't smirk or laugh off her serious question. He nodded, stone-faced as he stared into her eyes. "Yes. Of course."
"I can't trust this information with anyone else. Only with you. And you have to promise me that you won't tell Ozpin about it. Can you do that for me?"
He nodded again. "Yeah, sure."
"Promise me Qrow," she insisted. "Right here and now. Give me your word or else I'm walking away."
The man's hands rose in an attempt to placate her. "Easy there, Winter. Okay, okay. You have my word. I promise whatever you're about to tell me will stay between us. Not a word of it will get to Ozpin. Better?"
This time it was Winter who nodded. It was as good as she was going to get without having one of the Schnee Dust Company lawyers writing up a legally binding contract. She would simply have to trust Qrow's word and his honor. If he had a shred of that left, it would be tested when it came to her family. When it came to his family as well.
"The Grimm," she began, not quite knowing how to broach the subject. To admit to the truth. "The one from last night. I saw it."
Qrow quirked an eyebrow. "Oh? So you were the one to put it down, I take it. What kind was it that it gave two students such a rough time? Alpha Beowolf? Boarbatusk? Honestly it wouldn't surprise me if Peter was keeping a whole freaking King Taijitu locked up somewhere in that dungeon of his."
Winter shook her head. Her next words came out as a whisper. "It was Weiss…"
Qrow's eyes narrowed again. He leaned in closer. "What was that?"
"It was Weiss!" she repeated, harsher in tone, but just as soft.
The man leaned back, his eyes never leaving hers even as they narrowed in suspicion. "Winter… are you okay? You look really tired. If you need to go back and get some sleep before we talk…"
"She's a monster, Qrow," she said, ignoring his suggestion. Her words were as shaky as her breath. "A monster. I saw it. I saw it with my very eyes. The way her skin paled until it was white as bone. Her eyes melting into pools of blood. The black veins twisting across her beautiful skin… I saw it. She's a beast, Qrow. She's a Grimm. Oh gods… the horn." Her hand rose to rest above her right breast. "She impaled me with her horn… but she didn't try to finish me off and I don't know why. And then the boy, Jaune, started to heal me and-!"
"Winter!" He gripped her arm before quieting his voice again. "You're not making any sense."
"None of this makes sense!" she snapped. She didn't care right now if anyone else in the patio heard her outburst. They wouldn't know what she was talking about. "My sister, my sweet, innocent sister, is a monster. And if she is… Qrow. If she's a monster, I fear that your nieces might be as well."
The tension in the air was palpable. Winter's body was shaking. Whether it was from the lack of sleep or the fear which coursed through her veins, she couldn't say. She could only imagine how frazzled, how frightened she appeared to the seasoned huntsman across from her. Right now, however, her appearance didn't matter to her. Only the truth did.
"I thought… that if I could force her to reveal her Semblance, that it would prove beyond a doubt that she was a Schnee. That it would give me reason to take her back to Atlas, by force if necessary, to reunite her with her family. No one could protest if she had the Schnee family Semblance. But I hadn't counted on her being a monster, Qrow. I couldn't have imagined…" she trailed off.
"What did you say she looked like again?" he asked softly.
She couldn't meet his gaze anymore. Winter closed her eyes, recalling the sights from the previous night. Remembering how her sister's beautiful face melted away into that of a beast's. One that she'd scarred with her own saber… "Her skin turned white as her hair. Her eyes went from a beautiful Schnee blue to red as blood. Her body was covered in black veins. And out of her forehead… a horn. It sprouted like a tree from the ground. A horn, Qrow. A real horn. Sullying the perfect face of my dear, sweet sister…"
Winter's eyes squeezed so tightly that tears welled up in them. Twin trails dripped down her cheeks, a shuddering breath escaping her lips as she exhaled. The imagery of Weiss twisting into a monster would be forever burned into her memory. She could only hope that Jaune had found her. That he'd done something to save her. To cure her.
She hadn't attempted to make contact since last night. She was too scared. She doubted that they would have even agreed to see her even if she had made the effort to find them.
"Salem…" she heard Qrow mutter softly.
Icy eyes snapped open to regard the man across from her. "What?"
"Salem," he repeated. "What you saw… sounds like something Ozpin once told me. Or rather, someone he told me about."
"Who?" she pressed. "Who is Sa-"
My family is Salem alone.
Weiss' words, some of the last she'd spoken before Winter had succumbed to unconsciousness, rang in her mind. Winter's face fell.
"Winter?" Qrow asked. "What's wrong?"
"Weiss said that name. Last night. She called Salem… her family."
Qrow released a harsh breath. "Shit."
"What does that mean, Qrow? Who is Salem? If you know something you have to tell me."
The man nodded solemnly. "I know a lot of things, Winter. Things that I've been sworn to secrecy to, just as you did with me."
Despite her tired state, a surge of anger coursed through Winter's veins. It gave her newfound strength she didn't realize she still had this morning. "If you're even thinking of keeping what you know from me I'll have you imprisoned and tortured until you speak."
Qrow raised his hands again. "Easy, Winter. You don't need to go that far. Just calm down."
Being calm was impossible right now. Not after what she'd witnessed. Not after finding out that she and Qrow had different pieces to the same puzzle. She'd shared hers with him. It was time for him to return the favor.
"Speak," she ordered.
"There's a lot you need to know," he said, standing up from his seat. Winter was about to explode once more, but he urged her to stand as well. "Things best not said in a crowd. Even if these people will have no clue about what we're talking about, what I'm about to say to you is confidential. Bigger than any military secret you might have been let in on in Atlas."
Winter stood, the rest of her coffee going unfinished. However, her interest in her drink was nothing compared to what she anticipated hearing from the veteran huntsman.
"Then walk with me," she urged. "And speak candidly."
"I will," he agreed. "Because if what you said about Weiss is correct, then I fear… I fear it may be true about Yang and Ruby as well. Even that Jaune kid. We have to assume that they're all as you said. Monsters…"
That was one rare thing she could agree on with the man. They would err on the side of caution. Absolute caution. No one could possibly know what they did. No one else would understand. No one else would care. Not Beacon's faculty. Not Ozpin. Not even General Ironwood. To all of them, the monsters beneath human flesh might just be other Grimm. To herself and Qrow, however, they were still family.
And only family could possibly be trusted with the secrets which they were now privy to.
Leaving a few lien notes for her drink, Winter and Qrow set out from the coffee shop and onto Vale's streets. They walked side by side, a grim parody of what a loving couple might look like on a morning stroll after just having enjoyed coffee together.
"Salem," he began. It sounded to her like he didn't even know where to begin. "Well, you see, Winter. The Grimm. They aren't just mindless beasts. They aren't some wild, uncontrollable force of nature. They aren't random. They have a leader. They have a queen. And her name is Salem."
The previous night had been traumatic. Following Weiss' rescue and recovery, she had opted to go straight to bed. She had been exhausted, both physically and emotionally. Jaune had been drained as well. Both had agreed that anything that needed to be said could wait until morning. They would be okay until then. Weiss had proven to be stable enough, and was apparently okay with Jaune being human. The fact that she'd taken her normal place at his side in bed was proof enough of that.
Now that morning had come, however, everyone was wide awake. Everyone was eager to clear the air. Ready to lay all their cards on the table and be honest with one another. With a night to sleep on it, Jaune didn't know if Weiss' mind might have changed about anything. The fact that he was still breathing was a good sign, seeing Weiss seated on the bed across from his was different. Especially because he had Ruby sitting next to him on their shared bed.
Only moments ago Weiss had chased Yang from the room by loudly proclaiming that she was about to have sex with Jaune this morning. To Jaune's surprise, and admittedly, disappointment, that hadn't come to pass. He could only guess that Weiss wanted to get the one remaining hybrid who didn't know his secret out of the room so that they could discuss it openly. The fact that she sat across from him so she could look him in the eyes was another hint.
Seconds passed by, and the tension in the room grew. Someone had to break it. Jaune decided it would be him. "So…"
"You knew all along, didn't you?" Weiss asked abruptly, bypassing Jaune's attempt to get things started, and instead focusing on Ruby.
Jaune's focused on the redheaded girl next to him as he turned his neck to see her. Ruby's shoulders shifted and squirmed a bit, uneasy about the accusation leveled at her.
"Not all along," she admitted meekly. "Blake's the one who knew all along…"
And the one who was best at keeping secrets. It suited her. A girl who lived in the shadows. Hunted in the shadows. Even here at Beacon, her presence was never made apparent until it was too late. He didn't know where the elusive hybrid had made her lair. Every time Jaune had checked underneath his bed there was no sign of the girl. The fact that she didn't have a favorite sleeping spot like she had back in Salem's realm scared Jaune. Familiarity and routine were comforting. Here, Blake offered him neither.
Weiss' arms folded across her chest, head turning to look away in disgust. "As if I didn't need more reasons to distrust her."
"You should trust her though," Jaune argued. "She kept my secret. Ruby has too. The question is… will you, Weiss?"
Her attention snapped back to him in a flash, the anger etched on her face still present even as she looked at him. "Of course I will! Do you think me incapable of keeping a secret?"
"You do talk a lot…" Ruby muttered.
"I speak when I have something to say, not when I have to say something," she argued back. Jaune wasn't sure he would agree with that, but bit his tongue. "And speaking of secrets," she continued, refocusing on Jaune. "How long were you planning on keeping this a secret, exactly?"
Jaune didn't have an answer to that question. It wasn't like he had planned on telling her. He hadn't planned on telling Ruby. He hadn't even told Blake at all. Both of the times he had confessed his true nature to the hybrid girls had come in times of crisis. First when he believed he was near-death at the hands of Cardin. Then as a way to show Weiss that humans, including her sister, were not bad. That they could and would accept her for what she was. To give her comfort and peace of mind.
"I don't know," he admitted.
"We're mates, are we not?" she asked, standing from her seat on the bed. "We're a pack. All of us." Weiss took a few steps over to where he and Ruby sat, her hands drifting up to her hips as she looked down on them. "We're a pack… and you kept this from me…"
She was hurt. That much was obvious in both her words and her tone. Jaune didn't know if she would have felt similarly without her Aura. Without unlocking that part of her that made her more human. In a way it was good that she was hurt. It meant she had empathy. She could feel human emotions that weren't inherently negative. She could feel genuine love and hurt. Their relationship wasn't about mating or producing strong hybrid offspring anymore. Weiss… cared for him. Just as he did for her.
Jaune stood up, closing the last of the distance between them and wrapping Weiss in his arms. "I'm sorry, Weiss," he whispered, burying his face into a head of snow-white hair. It smelled of the shampoo he had worked into it last night. "Can you forgive me?"
When he felt the girl's arms wrap around his waist he knew in an instant that she had. Even if her words told a different story from her actions. "You have a lot of making up to do," she said, speaking the words into his chest. "I expect… delicious meals for a week. Three times a day."
"That's fine," Jaune smiled, grinning into the top of her head. "I can do that."
"A-and a night alone with you! Exclusive rights for one night!" she hurriedly followed up.
Jaune chuckled. "Yeah. That's fine too. I owe you an apology, after all."
"Yes you do," she huffed.
Jaune felt something butting against his left arm. Lifting his face from Weiss' hair, he saw Ruby to his left, pushing her head against the arm he had wrapped around Weiss.
"C-can I get in on this too?" she asked, giving him the saddest, most intentional pout he'd ever seen in his life. "We're a pack, right?"
He laughed again, and threw open his left arm to welcome Ruby into the embrace. "We are. Get in here."
Ruby eagerly joined in, wrapping an arm around Jaune and Weiss each. Weiss growled at first, but quickly moved so that her own right arm had gone around Ruby's back rather than Jaune's body. The three stood there in one big group hug for long seconds, standing as equals now. No secrets between them. All knowing about Jaune's nature. All knowing in their own way that Salem's plan was wrong.
When they came apart there was a smile on Weiss' face. She wore it far better than an angry scowl. Ruby of course was beaming, happy as can be that all was right and well in their pack. That her hybrid sister had accepted Jaune for who and what he was just as she had. It only left one person in the dark now.
"So what do we do about Yang?" he asked the pair.
Moving back to the bed, Jaune sat atop the mattress, with Ruby returning to her seat on his left, and Weiss now taking one on his right. Things were back to normal now. At least until the Yang situation needed to be resolved…
"So Blake knew for a time before Ruby knew," Weiss mused.
"Yup," he confirmed.
"And Ruby knew for a time before me."
Jaune nodded wordlessly.
Weiss harrumphed. "Then I think it's only fair that I get to know this information for a set period of time before we tell Yang," she argued. "I deserve an opportunity to be able to craft witty one-liners to the girl where I suggest that I know something she does not, but refuse to tell her what."
Jaune rolled his eyes. Of course that's the first thing that would come to her mind. That kind of response was just so… Weiss.
"Weiss, it's not a competition," he pointed out.
"Well it should be!" she insisted. "And I would win it too!"
"Actually wouldn't you come in like… third place?" Ruby corrected her.
Weiss scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous, Ruby. Didn't you pay attention to the fable of the turtle and the rabbit? It doesn't matter who comes in first, only who eats the other last."
Jaune bit down on his lip to stifle the grin from taking over his face. Speaking of being so Weiss… as usual she managed to say something profound, only to screw it up with her own hybrid logic in the end. It was quite frankly charming. Something about her that he never wanted to change.
Apparently his reaction had been easy to read, as Weiss' eyes narrowed on him before she spoke accusingly at him. "Did I say something amusing?" she asked, like a wife asking her husband that very question during a marital argument.
Jaune chuckled before wrapping an arm around her body and pulling her close. He planted a kiss on the top of her head. "Gods, I love you," he answered instead.
Being quite used to his situation by now, his left arm pulled Ruby close where he gave her the same treatment. "And I love you too," he told the other hybrid as he kissed her.
Arms clutched around him, and Jaune sighed contently. It was the little moments like this that gave him sanity. They gave him strength. They gave him the will to go on with this struggle. It was all for them. For his girls. His mates. His pack. His family.
The door clicked, and Jaune's head shot up to see Yang return to the dorm. He was surprised that she would come back so soon after Weiss' earlier proclamation. Only… it wasn't a head of long blonde hair that stepped through into the room.
Instead it was long and black. A pair of golden eyes burned with such intensity that Jaune could swear that they were literally ablaze. In an instant the peace and joy he felt had turned to ash.
"What. Happened," she spoke dangerously as the door shut behind her. The expression on her face and the tone of her voice told a story of anger and punishment coming his way should he say anything to displease her.
Jaune stood, hoping that speaking to the woman face to face and eye to eye would be deemed more respectful. "What are you talking about?"
Cinder took a step forward, causing Jaune to instinctively take one back. "Apparently, the rumor going around campus is that there was a Grimm attack last night during the dance." Her eyes continued drilling holes into his, and Jaune could now see there was very real fire glowing in them. "Here, in one of the most secure and fortified places in all of Remnant." Her head turned, and Jaune saw how her focus passed over both the seated hybrids. "Would you care to explain to me how that possibly could have taken place?"
Ruby turned her head to avoid the woman's gaze. Weiss shrunk in on herself, ashamed and embarrassed that her actions were the cause of this outburst. Knowing that she was to blame.
Cinder knew. He knew she knew. One of the hybrids getting loose really was the only logical explanation to those who were in the know about what they truly were. Playing dumb here wasn't an option. Denying it would be a foolish move against the angry henchwoman of Salem. All Jaune could possibly do now was limit the damage.
To protect the innocent.
"I unlocked Weiss' Aura," he lied. "At the dance last night. It… didn't go smoothly at the beginning."
A long breath slipped through Cinder's nostrils before she inhaled with anger once more. "You idiot. You absolute and utter idiot. What were you thinking! Did you learn nothing from what happened to Yang?"
He learned, all right. He learned how to bring Weiss back from the brink of insanity. He also learned a valuable piece of information that not even Cinder was privy to. Winter Schnee knew her sister's secret now. And considering that they hadn't been dragged from their beds by professional huntsmen and Atlesian soldiers, he assumed that the woman had kept that secret to herself.
"I did what I had to do," he continued to lie. "She needed Aura for the tournament."
"You're a damn fool!" she shouted, one of her hands igniting with the same fire that blazed in her eyes. Her other hand gripped him harshly by the shirt. "I should kill you right here and now…"
Angry snarls brought both Jaune and Cinder's attention to their sides.
With teeth barred and eyes narrowed dangerously, Ruby and Weiss had both stood up from their spots on the bed. Before his very eyes he saw their skin pale until it had turned a pristine white. Horns jutted from their foreheads, and eyes shifted to a crimson color which foretold of the blood about to be spilled.
Both sets of glowing red orbs were locked onto the woman threatening their mate. Ruby moved to the left closer toward Jaune, while Weiss slowly began to circle around behind Cinder's back. Jaune held his breath at the chaos which threatened to erupt in the tiny room.
"Stand down," Cinder ordered the hybrids. Animalistic growls were her only response. The fire in her hand grew in both size and intensity. "I said stand down!"
They did not. Jaune didn't know how far gone Ruby and Weiss were, but one thing was for certain. They did not take orders from Cinder Fall any longer. Not when it concerned his safety. Or in this case, his lack thereof.
Cinder, for all her stubbornness, refused to stand down as well. Whatever power she possessed was immense, and she was confident in it and her ability to take on two hybrids at once. "I'm warning you…"
Even as Cinder's head twisted all around to eye the two stalking hybrids, Jaune's eyes widened at the new sight entering his vision. Like a pair of spiders dropping down from the ceiling on their web strings, two barbed tentacles slowly descended down above Cinder's head. To slither around her neck. To not make so much as a single touch until they'd wrapped themselves threateningly around the soft, vulnerable throat of the older human woman.
In an instant Cinder froze, recognizing the feeling of something constricting around her neck. Not tightly, but lazily hanging in place ready to squeeze at a moment's notice.
"Blake…" Cinder hissed softly. "What in the world are you doing here?"
The barbed tip traced a line across the woman's throat. Jaune saw how Cinder visibly swallowed, but otherwise showed no sign of fear on her face. However, a creature like Blake didn't need to see fear in order to know it was there. Cinder must have been giving off quite a pleasant aroma to the twisted hybrid who clung to the ceiling above her.
"What I wish," Blake answered cryptically.
"No. You will do as I say," the woman stated through gritted teeth. "I am in command of this operation. And you're not even supposed to be here."
Blake laughed. "How can one command those outside their authority?"
Jaune had to admit, as psychotic as Blake was, her logic was impeccable. Even more impressive considering the tense standoff that it was taking place in.
"If you so much as draw a single drop of blood…" Cinder warned.
"I thought," Blake whispered from above, "That we were to slaughter all humans, were we not?"
Cinder's eyes shut as she spoke again. "I am not one of the humans you are supposed to cross. When Salem learns of this…"
"Salem isn't here."
"Not. Yet," she spoke threateningly.
For long seconds the quartet remained locked in battle-ready positions. With Jaune and Ruby in front of her, Blake above her, and Weiss behind her, even Cinder knew she had to be in over her head, right? Or would her pride truly make her blind to the peril she found herself in?
Thankfully discretion seemed to be the better part of valor for his former professor, and Cinder extinguished the flame in her hand. Her eyes opened to reveal a pair of amber orbs, rather than the fiery coals which had burned only seconds before. "Release me."
Jaune's eyes darted above him for a second before returning to Cinder's neck. Blake, like Ruby and Weiss, had not obeyed.
"Release. Me," she ordered more deliberately.
Again, Blake did not. Jaune realized that just like with the others, Blake must have been waiting on his own command. But if that didn't work, if Blake took orders from nobody but herself, Jaune didn't know what he would do.
"Blake, it's okay," he said at last. "Let her go."
Dark giggling sounded above him. "As you wish."
The tentacles removed themselves from Cinder's throat, and the woman took a step back as she relinquished her hold on Jaune's shirt. She, along with Jaune, peered above them to see a familiar tendrilled hybrid above them. An unasked question burned in her glare, surprise evident on the woman's face. She did not waste her words.
An upside down grin was all Cinder would receive as a response. No longer their professor, she had no authority over the hybrids here in the human kingdoms. Salem might have, but Cinder certainly did not. No, if anything, the only person who stood a chance of commanding Blake and the others here was Jaune himself.
He wondered if Cinder herself realized that in this moment.
Cinder took another two steps back, and she was coolly brushing any wrinkles from her Haven Academy uniform. Eyes focused on Jaune once more as she spoke again. "Do not allow this to happen again," she warned him. "Keep them in line or your life is over. This is not a threat. It is simply reality."
Without waiting for a response Cinder strode from the room, allowing the door to slam behind her. Jaune released a breath he hadn't known he had been holding in.
He glanced around, and Ruby and Weiss were still staring at the door the woman had just exited through. Tension was still in the air. He could see on their flesh that their muscles were tense as well. "It's okay, girls," he said soothingly. "Calm down. It's over. It's over."
Two sets of glowing red eyes focused on him as both girls turned to face him. It had been a while since he'd seen Ruby's Grimm form. Since he'd seen those uneven horns and gnarled black arm. Jaune moved over to her, leaning in to rest his forehead against hers just below where her horns had sprouted. "It's okay. She didn't hurt me."
He felt the girl nod, moving his head slightly along with hers. "I'd have torn her apart," she whispered. "If she burned a single hair on your head… I would kill her."
Jaune had no doubt that she meant it too. He'd seen Ruby rip Cardin in half with her scythe for trying to kill him. "I know. I know." He shifted to kiss her forehead.
A familiar poking, one he hadn't felt in weeks, jabbed him in the back. Turning he saw Weiss with her own head lowered, prodding at him with her horn. It reminded him of the good old days back in Salem's realm. If one could possibly call those days good. Then again, it had been where he'd met Ruby and Weiss. Blake and Yang. For all the suffering and torment he'd gone through, it was all worth it to meet them. And to have the opportunity to rescue them from what they'd been turned into.
Jaune knew what Weiss wanted, and he enveloped her in a hug before kissing her on her forehead as well. What Ruby got, Weiss got. It was the way of the world. At least the way of his world.
Out of the corner of his eye he saw Blake drop down from the ceiling. By the time she stood up to her full height she was already in her human guise. One wearing the outfit of a Haven Academy student. "I find that I do prefer this black uniform over the others. It suits me, don't you agree, Jaune?"
The hybrid girl daintily pinched the hem of her skirt with her thumbs and forefingers, and even performed a graceful twirl in the middle of the room which was perhaps the most unfitting thing he'd ever seen from her. All part of a sweet and innocent act of hers, Jaune had no doubt.
However, the complete lack of color in the uniform did indeed suit her. With black hair, clad in black clothing, and smooth, pallid skin even in her human form, Blake was almost entirely without color. Only her piercing golden eyes shone on a body that resembled that of a ghostly apparition haunting the shadows.
The comparison wasn't far from the truth.
"Beautiful," he deadpanned to the girl in response. Her smile told Jaune that she either didn't pick up on his sarcasm, or that she simply didn't care. "Blake. Do you think it was a good idea to provoke her like that?"
The dark beauty smiled as she took a few sauntering steps over to where he and Weiss stood. "What will she do? Drag me back to Salem?" Blake shook her head, and brought up a wrist before tapping on it with her other hand. "No. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock."
"What does that mean?"
"It means," she purred, stepping in close to him. Ignoring Weiss' scowl. "She doesn't have ti-ime~" The singsong melody Blake spoke the words with was childlike. Mocking. "I learned many things in the White Fang. One such lesson was that plans are delicate things. They don't like distractions."
"So Cinder won't have time to deal with you?" he guessed. "If she wants to stick to whatever she's doing here at Beacon."
"Mmhmm. And she doesn't know that I knoooow~" she sang again.
What exactly it was that Blake knew, Jaune didn't know yet. After all, he still had his end of the bargain to keep. More specifically, to keep Sun away from the shadowy hybrid.
"Can you give me a hint?" he asked. Jaune just wanted something. Anything. Any sort of edge against the woman who had just threatened his life. "Please?"
Blake giggled girlishly, bringing a palm up to his chest. "Begging doesn't suit you, darling. Not the behavior of an Alpha…"
"He is an Alpha," Weiss insisted.
"Yeah!" Ruby agreed. A rare agreement between the two.
Blake's head swayed fluidly as she looked between her fellow hybrids, as if she was moving to a melody that only she could hear. "A hint," she mused. "Very well. I do so enjoy stringing you along…"
Jaune braced himself for whatever Blake was about to tell him. He cleared his mind, preparing it for the mental gymnastics he would need to perform in order to understand the hybrid's twisted logic.
Blake leaned up against him, standing on the tips of her toes and using his shoulder for balance, as she brought her lips to his ear to whisper her clue into it.
And coughed.
Jaune's body reacted instinctively as he recoiled from the noise. A glance down at Blake showed a wide, satisfied grin revealing white, human teeth.
"What was that?" he asked.
"Your hint," she answered smugly. The smirk fell from her lips a second later, being replaced by an obviously forced pout. "Don't worry. I'm not contagious."
Without another word Blake spun on her heel and strode to the door, opening it and leaving without so much as looking back. Jaune was left with nothing to go on. She'd coughed into his ear. Was she just messing with him? Entirely possibly for the girl. Probable even.
Or had she been trying to give him some sort of clue? Coughing? Contagious? Sick? Was Cinder planning on spreading some sort of disease at the school? Biological warfare? It would certainly weaken the defenses of the kingdom if huntsmen were ill, and even dead. A plague would spread panic throughout the population. Vale would be ripe for a Grimm attack should disease hit it.
"We should take you to the nurse's office," Weiss stated, breaking the silence. "Just in case she did give you something."
"We should probably be getting ready for class," he argued.
"Weiss is right," Ruby seconded. "The nurse. You won't be killed or sent out into the Grimmlands to be culled here."
Jaune remembered that incident all too well. How he'd feigned illness and nearly died as a result. Where Tyrian had very nearly gotten him killed by forcing him to walk back to Salem's academy in order to prove his strength.
He had indeed become stronger. He'd unlocked both his Aura and Semblance. He wouldn't be where he was today without that near-death experience, loathe as he was to admit it.
"What if Blake gave you… the Red Pox?" Ruby gasped. "We need to get you checked out for Red Pox!"
"Red Pox?" Jaune questioned.
"Or Kruts!" Weiss continued.
What even were these diseases they were naming? Jaune had never heard of either. His stomach dropped, and he wondered if there were new and terrible plagues that Salem had engineered just waiting to be released upon the world of man.
"Creeping Buboes?" Ruby asked.
"Purple brain fever!"
Jaune's eyes widened. "These… these aren't real things, right?"
Twin sets of red eyes focused on him. "Jaune. Don't panic," Ruby said cautiously. "But I'm going to need to check you for boils and inflammation." Her clawed fingers were up, wriggling like she was some sort of sadistic doctor who needed to perform a physical examination. "Just hold still, okay?"
The boy swallowed. "Ruby, that's really not necessary. I feel fine. I don't feel anything!"
"Numbness," Weiss frowned. "Not a good sign."
Ruby nodded. "Hold him down, Weiss."
Jaune yelped, barely getting it out before Weiss tackled him, and along with Ruby, began stripping him of his clothes.
As one of Ozpin's top field agents, Qrow was used to dealing with the man one on one. He was used to sharing his findings with the man. After what Winter had told him earlier today, however, he knew that this kind of honesty was no longer readily available.
Standing in Ozpin's office, the rotating cogs which decorated the room reflected Qrow's own mind right now. Internally spinning, wondering what he was going to say. Or rather, what he wasn't going to say. To learn that Weiss, and with all probability, Yang and Ruby were monsters. Some sort of fusion of both human and Grimm. Minions of Salem herself.
The thought of his girls resembling anything like what Winter had described made his stomach churn. He knew that despite his loyalty to Ozpin the man couldn't know what had become of his family. Not until he knew more. Not until he could accurately predict how the ancient being would react.
Winter stood alongside him, standing straight and tall at attention, though not for Ozpin's benefit. No, to the old wizard's left stood General James 'Jimmy' Ironwood himself. Like Ozpin was for Qrow, he was a man who Winter owed her unyielding allegiance and honesty to. Words that sounded so pretty when spoken or on paper, but when faced with the harsh realities of life were often cast aside without a second thought. The fact that this situation had allowed Specialist Winter Schnee of all people to conspire to withhold information from her superior officer spoke of just how dire it was.
The fifth and final person in the room spoke, opening up the dialogue between five of the most knowledgeable and powerful people in all of Remnant. Deputy Headmistress Glynda Goodwitch slowly paced round the room with her arms folded across her chest. "We had an exciting evening last night," she spoke evenly. "And I'm not talking about just the dance."
Qrow hummed softly. They'd all been briefed on the incident concerning the Grimm attack in the late hours of the previous night. Here and now, however, in the mid-afternoon the members of Ozpin's inner circle had gathered to discuss it along with other more pressing matters in person.
"Your initial report claims you saw it, did you not, Specialist Schnee?" Glynda asked her female counterpart.
The question caused Winter's attention to snap over to her. "Yes. It was a Boarbatusk, and a large one at that. It attacked me briefly before running off. I gave pursuit, but by the time I caught up with it the beast had been dealt with by students."
"A Boarbatusk?" Glynda asked. "Eyewitness accounts from the two students that were attacked say differently. While they didn't get a clear look at it in the darkness, they claim it was bipedal. That it attacked them with a large horn."
"A tusk, more likely," Winter amended. Qrow could hardly believe his ears. Winter, as straight-laced a soldier as had ever walked the face of Remnant, was lying through her teeth. He couldn't blame her. He would do the same. He in fact likely would be in only a matter of seconds. "One capable of causing the piercing damage we found on the boy's tuxedo."
"A tusk, yes," Glynda agreed. "But a Boarbatusk standing on its hind legs? Are you sure your report is accurate?"
"My subordinate has no reason to report inaccurately on the matter," James stepped in.
Qrow frowned. Ironwood was vouching for his officer, but that put him at odds with Glynda. By extension, perhaps with Ozpin. This could spiral out of control very easily if Beacon's Deputy Headmistress decided to press the issue too far.
"My report is true and accurate," Winter stated with unwavering authority. "Perhaps it is the childrens' report that is inaccurate. If I remember correctly, they were the ones who found themselves knocked unconscious by the Grimm, and only awoke later when it was already slain."
"Very well," Glynda conceded, though Qrow was uncertain whether the woman believed Winter's words or not. "With that being said, do we have any idea where the Grimm came from? How it was able to get past our defenses and into a school filled with trained and aspiring huntsmen alike?"
Qrow took a step forward to offer his own explanation. "It was probably one of Professor Port's pets. The ones he uses for class demonstrations and exercises. With him being out on his training mission there's been no one to check up on the beasts. It's not only possible, but likely that one of them got loose and decided to wreak a little havoc on campus before it got put down."
"As likely an explanation as any," the General agreed. The man's fleshy hand came up to gently stroke his chin. "Vale's defenses are strong, and with my men's presence here there's no way a Grimm could have snuck into Beacon."
Qrow suppressed the smirk from growing on his lips. As much as Ironwood's pride usually annoyed him, here it was doing them a favor. It was indeed unlikely that an outside Grimm could have penetrated both Vale and Atlas' defenses. No, the only logical explanation was that it came from within. And with their ignorance to what Weiss was, the only explanation could have been that it was one of Port's captured Grimm.
"I went down to his classroom and let myself in to his little Grimm prison," Qrow continued. "I killed them all myself to make sure something like this never happened again."
He had in fact done this. To make sure this cover story was accurate and believable. Plus, no one would ever mourn the loss of a few creatures of darkness.
Unless, of course, those creatures were family…
"It sounds like a fairly open and shut case to me," Ironwood said matter-of-factly. "And a valuable lesson for our students. As future huntsmen they must always be ready to face off against the Grimm, no matter where they are. The moment they let their guard down is the moment they sign their own death warrants."
"Agreed," Winter stated all too readily.
"Spoken like true soldiers…" Glynda sniped.
"With that matter settled," Ozpin spoke, wisely cutting off an argument before it had time to take root. "Qrow. Specialist Schnee. Do you have anything of note to report on our students of interest?"
Now came the real test. An issue that couldn't be explained by a fictional dead creature of Grimm.
"Nothing more out of the ordinary than usual," Qrow commented casually. "From what I've seen dealing with them in class, they're mostly just socially awkward more than anything else."
What he said wasn't untrue. But it wasn't the whole truth either. Qrow had left out the part about Weiss at the very least being a monster who believed Salem to be her family.
"They appear the lack certain etiquette when it comes to normal societal customs," Winter added. "For example their… acceptance of polyamorous relationships. It's my opinion that they were raised outside of the kingdoms where such… unorthodox practices may not have been considered taboo."
There was an edge to Winter's voice there when she discussed their relationship status. Qrow knew she didn't approve of her sister sharing a boy with another girl. To be perfectly honest with himself, Qrow didn't exactly approve of it either. Still, if what Winter had told him was true, the teenagers all seemed to genuinely care for one another. And if it was true that they were under the thrall of Salem, maybe they needed each other for support. Maybe they needed each other to survive.
"But no explanation to why they might be hiding their true identities?" Beacon's Headmaster inquired.
"No," Winter lied. "For all of their awkwardness they appear to be normal students. At least as normal as their behavior allows."
Qrow found himself casually nodding in agreement. He forced a frown on his face, as if disappointed that he hadn't learned more about his nieces. An unspoken lie that couldn't be further from the truth.
"How disappointing," Ozpin sighed. "But not unexpected."
"So you believe that they may have been raised outside the kingdoms?" James asked. "Like yourself in the Branwen Tribe?"
Qrow found himself under the scrutinizing glare of Atlas Academy's Headmaster. In that moment Qrow wondered if what he had just said was just one of many reasons why the man didn't like him. James Ironwood, a General and keeper of peace and order. Qrow Branwen, a former bandit sent to Beacon to learn to kill huntsmen. They couldn't be further apart on the spectrum of law and chaos.
"Maybe," Qrow admitted. The fact that they worked for Salem gave Ironwood's question more credibility than the man himself realized. "They seem harmless, but we can't rule out them being a part of a tribe like the Branwens. Ones here to learn how to deal with huntsmen just like my sister and I were."
Qrow was pleased that Ironwood had just given him an out. Another logical explanation behind all of this. Yes, being a part of a band of outlaws here to learn how to kill huntsmen was bad. But it was far better than the truth. Qrow would take the former over the latter any day.
"Then we will continue to observe," Ozpin concluded. "Qrow, Specialist Schnee, continue to give them special focus during your lessons. And use your own experiences to try and gauge their intentions," he added, nodding to former bandit specifically.
Qrow nodded. "Yeah. Can do."
"Very good. Now then, lunchtime will be over soon, and some of you have classes to teach. Carry on."
With their dismissal, Qrow turned to leave, catching sight of Winter saluting General Ironwood before she too spun on a heel to walk beside Qrow.
The two reached the elevator shaft, stepping in and closing the doors before Glynda could even think about joining them. She was probably staying afterward with Ozpin to discuss the previous conversation. He hoped that she believed them.
He heard Winter sigh next to him. Unusual and unbefitting behavior from the prim and proper woman. Qrow tilted his head toward her. "Rough day, huh?"
She hummed noncommittally in response.
Qrow frowned. "If you're feeling bad about lying, don't. We did what we had to do. For our families."
He saw how Winter nodded in agreement, but still said nothing.
"We're going to have to talk to them at some point," he said softly. His gaze fell to the bottom of the elevator as it descended down to the ground level floor. "They know that we know. Or at least that you do. And if they let you live… it doesn't make sense, does it? Why would they allow you to live when you found out their secret?"
"Maybe they're not on Salem's side," Winter said, barely louder than a whisper.
It was optimistic thinking, and Qrow was nothing if not a cynic. Still, he could see where Winter was coming from. Or at least why she would want to believe it. "You told me Weiss said that Salem was her family."
"Maybe not by choice," she argued. Again, the desperate optimism seeped into her voice as she spoke. "Think about it, Qrow. Weiss went missing after her air ship went down. Clearly she was abducted either during or after the crash. Perhaps the same is true about your nieces. Taken against their will and forced to become what they are today. Forced conscription rather than willing servitude."
It was an appealing explanation. One that offered hope. One that clashed with his learned cynicism.
"Still good, just misguided," he offered for the sake of discussion. Not because he truly believed it.
"Exactly. Brainwashed. Something done to affect their minds. Raised from a young age to serve Salem. But…" she trailed off, the positivity in her voice almost infectious. "What if that's not who they truly are deep down? What if they can still be saved? What if that's why Weiss didn't kill me when she had the chance?"
"I never would have pegged you for being such an optimist," he said, finally uttering the words aloud.
Icy eyes stared up into his red ones. "I have no choice in the matter," she stated bitterly. "We have no choice. If we're to rescue our girls we have to consider every possibility. Leave no stone unturned in going about this. Fight, kill, and be willing to lay down our lives for their sakes."
Spoken like a true soldier, the words of Glynda echoed in his mind. "This just took a dark turn."
"No, it took a realistic turn. We're skirting the line of treason here, Qrow. And if we throw in our lot with minions of Salem, then it is very real treason. I never could have imagined a scenario in which I would even think of betraying General Ironwood's trust." She sighed once more, bringing a gloved hand up to her face and dragging it down. "Until now. If we do this we have to go all in. Nothing and no one will stand in our way. We will risk and sacrifice everything to save the ones we love."
An almost certainty of death. A small chance of success. Qrow smirked. He liked those odds. What were they waiting for?
"Count me in."
Author's Note: Yesterday marked the one year anniversary of publishing this story. I never could have imagined that it would go on this long. Or that it would have gotten this popular. On page 1 for all RWBY stories for reviews. Page 1 for follows. Page 2 for favorites. This story has somehow become not only my most popular story, but one of the most popular RWBY stories. I can't thank you all enough for this. Really, you guys are awesome. You've given this story and myself so much love and support. There's even a TVTropes page for it! And these things are what keep me going. Your love and support allow me to keep writing on an almost weekly basis. So thank you. Thank you all so very much.
This was a very Qrow and Winter heavy chapter, but it was necessary. They've been impacted the most by the truths that have been revealed. But there's more to come. Someone else is going to learn the truth soon, and it won't be pretty. I won't say who, so you can leave your guesses as to who it might be.
But even with so much Qrow and Winter, the hybrids themselves were a treat to write as always. Loyalties have shifted for sure, as seen with their response to Cinder threatening Jaune. How will this affect things? Only time will tell.
Again, thank you all so very much for your support and your kind words. And my thanks go out to Burkion, Lightningstrxu, as well as the Work in Progress Discord server who've been with me from day one helping in ways both big and small.
I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Thanks for reading.