Chapter 75 - Vale - Legend of the Fall

71VE, December

Cover Art by Mi Chumi

Summer Rose rode through the wilds of Northern Vale. The deciduous forests common near Vale City had long since given way to a mixture of evergreens and hardwoods, though these had lost their leaves with the winter.

She was basking in the sights and sounds. The winter sun hung low over the morning sky, casting its gradually increasing warmth upon Remnant. It wouldn't be enough to melt all of the snow that blanketed the ground, snow that muffled the sounds of three sets of hooves and softened conversation.

The landscape spread out before them like a wonderland. A wide clearing ribboned its way through the woods, with the riding path running down its middle. Few had used it since the last snowfall, as evidenced by the lack of muddy ruts ahead of them. She breathed in deeply, and exhaled slowly, relishing it. Neither she nor her two companions had felt the need to fill the silence with speech since they had broken camp that morning. And their prey was still too far away to converse with, though they were gaining gradually by the day. A single set of hoofprints led the direction they were travelling, indenting the snow that had fallen two days prior.

They were getting closer.

It had taken a year and half for Summer to reach this metaphorical point in her life. A year and a half of bonding with her family again, reassuring both her and them that she wouldn't put herself at catastrophic risk like she had once before. A year also of counselling with Dr. Mazarin, so that she understood where her personal triggers were and wouldn't be likely to lock up if faced with Grimm or worse. A year of retraining with Tai, Qrow, and Raven using her new weapon, Briar Rose, which was holstered beside her in rifle configuration.

And so here she was, on a mission again, her teammate Qrow to her left and a third to her right.

Just like old times, she mused, with a few exceptions.

Raven was on standby just in case anything stupid happened, and Tai was probably chewing his nails back in Patch and pretending that he was completely fine.

And he should be fine. This wasn't a combat mission. If anything, it was a headology mission, and between her two companions, her own training, and Raven's Semblance she was probably the second-most-protected person in all of Remnant.

That wasn't to say it was completely boring. They'd run into two packs of Grimm during the trip out here. One had been on the trail. The second had been when a pack of Ursae had attacked a walled village they were staying in.

Both instances had been little more than a light workout for Qrow and Summer. They were mature Huntsmen in the prime of their careers, despite Summer having to retrain herself after a three-year 'sabbatical'.

As they rode, she turned her head to consider the woman to her right. A woman who, like she and Qrow, was only minimally bundled up against the cold, since their Aura worked to shield them from the worst of it. It was yet another characteristic about the three of them that should scream "Huntsmen" to both the civilians and any potential bandits. The woman had apparently gotten hers unlocked sometime during the previous year.

You'd have to be pretty stupid to rob three people, two armed with mechashift weapons and one with a large-caliber rifle, dressed like we are, out in the middle of nowhere, Summer thought, shifting her gaze back to the landscape.

You'd have to be even dumber to attack a single woman who looked unarmed, which was apparently something my saddle-companion is well aware of from personal experience.

They hadn't shared that little story with Qrow, yet, either.

There was still a lot that she wasn't talking about around Qrow.

This mission was a first step toward changing that. She'd consulted with Selene and the Lone Huntsmen, as well as Raven and Tai, about it.

. . .

Qrow was playing back how all of this had gone down in his mind, and he was beginning to get a sneaky suspicious feeling that he'd been played from the beginning.

Summer's offer to accompany him on this little quest had been a surprise. For one thing, she'd shown zero interest in missions since her return, other than the few times Raven had called for reinforcements. For another, he'd just been venting to her about how stupid the whole thing was. The idea that she'd offer to come with him, as if she'd be able to convince Amber to come back to Beacon when he hadn't, well that'd just sounded kinda stupid.

But in the end, he'd agreed just because... Well shit, I could use the company, he'd reasoned. And he'd thought about telling Oz that she was coming with him, but Oz had gotten a little prickly and even more secretive than ever. And besides, he'd already kinda broken the rules just telling her about Amber in the first place.

He'd decided that if Oz did find out, he'd pretend that Summer had tagged along, and figure the rest out later.

And then, a few days ride out into northern Vale, things had gotten more complicated.

They'd arrived at a modest walled town called Schist two days prior, stabled their horses, and acquired lodging for the night at the local Inn called The Quarry. It was, unsurprisingly, a mining town, though not for Dust. It apparently had a rich vein of some sort of gorgeous stone that was rare enough and sold lucratively in the major cities of Remnant, though you wouldn't have guessed it by how the inhabitants of the town were living.

Rocks, Qrow grumbled to himself as he leaned back against the wall of the common room, sipping his whiskey and scanning the locals. These folks are living out here in the Grimm-infested wilderness cause rich people want freaking rocks on their kitchen counters.

Oh, he knew it wasn't that simple. If it wasn't rocks, it'd be Dust, or timber. Or any number of other things. People couldn't just wall themselves off in a handful of big cities without resources. Somebody had to live, and die, out in the wilds to get those resources.

But still. Rocks?

The stuff was apparently expensive, but these folks sure didn't look rich. He suspected that the majority of the profits were made between mine and customers, not here where the stuff came out of the ground. But the people in the town didn't seem unhappy. They had sturdy walls reinforced with stone, and a resident Huntsman, a guy named Blanc Wentworth who was surprisingly not an arrogant ass despite his name.

After dinner, Blanc had offered to buy him and Summer a round of drinks, and then happily accepted when Qrow refused and bought him a drink instead. They'd chatted about comings and goings and even gotten another lead on Amber from Blanc. Based on what Blanc'd said, Amber couldn't be more than a few days ahead of them at this point, which was promising.

Eventually Blanc had headed off to do some rounds, and Summer had said she wanted to head to their shared room and call her family, since the town had a CCT Relay.

When Qrow got to their room. Summer was already in her pyjamas and looked happy, which… shit how could she not be? She had her husband and kids, and she was out on a mission with the best damn Huntsman in Vale (no matter what Tai said).

"How's the fam?"

"Tai was relieved, though he's trying to put on a brave face. The girls apparently have been whiney, but they perked up as soon as they saw me. The fact that I'm calling from the bedroom of an inn helps. It doesn't feel like I'm all alone."

"Good. Good." Qrow nodded.

Summer gave a crooked grin. "They said to make sure you didn't get drunk." She tapped her cheek. "No that's not right. They said, to make sure you didn't get 'stupid drunk'."

"Dammit, Summer," Qrow groused, and she laughed at him, which made it impossible for him to stay mad at her.

Gods I love to hear that laugh. It was worth all the teasing.

"Yeah, yeah. I told them you were being best boy," she finished, flopping around to bounce onto her bed sideways. "And it helps that they know 'Auntie Raven' is on standby."

"I still can't believe Rae lets Yang and Ruby call her that," Qrow said, shedding weapons belt and sheath.

Summer snorted. "I can. Cause it's preferable to the alternative of 'Dearest Mommy'."

"Heh. Oh yeah that'd be something. Turn around so I can change, pirate woman."

"I could just swap the patch to my other eye," she grinned.

Qrow rolled his eyes, and then glared at her until she shifted so she was facing the wall while he changed.

It was a lot like old times, Summer thought. Sharing a room but separate beds. Heck at Beacon all four of them had shared a room, and Tai and Raven had been dating for half of that. That had been awkward as heck sometimes. This? This was just rooming together.

"Done," Qrow said, and Summer turned back around to find he was wearing something akin to exercise clothes. Sweatpants and a loose gray shirt.

"Huh. No PJs?"

"Nah. I got caught too many times with my proverbial pants down when I was working solo. These days, I like to wear something to bed that I won't be embarrassed seeing in the local news sheets the next day."

Summer giggled. "So, no fluffy bunny pyjamas?"

"That was a setup by you and Rae, Summer, and you know damn well."

"Still hilarious. And the third years thought it was just adorable."

Qrow let memory take him for a few seconds. It had gotten him some attention, and a few dates. Still…

Summer interrupted his reminiscing. "So, you think we'll find Amber in a few days?" He turned back to see she'd gone more serious. She'd always been like that, able to switch back and forth between joking and deadly earnest in a heartbeat. Part of the Rose charm. It was no wonder Tai had been helpless before her.

He shrugged and sat down on his bed sideways. "Looks like it. She's not moving fast, and we're going at a steady pace." He frowned at a thought that had been eating at him. "You know, I still don't understand why you wouldn't just let me fly to her, and then have Raven port you over."

"Because Qrow, where's the fun in that?" She leaned back against the wall and stretched. "I needed this, Qrow. I needed to be out in the world. To see that I can do this without freaking out, and it needed to be something safish so Tai and the kids would let me go."

Qrow leaned forward, letting his elbows rest on his knees. "Fair."

Summer went thoughtful. "Given any thought about what you're gonna say when we do find her?"

Qrow sighed. Yeah. That. "Not really. Last time I talked to her, she was pretty pissy about Oz trying to get me to drag her back to Beacon." He shook his head. "And I don't have any better arguments this time, either." He tilted his head. "When you offered to come with me, you said you had some ideas." He narrowed his eyes at her in an exaggerated fashion. "You wouldn't say what, though."

He watched as Summer's face twitched. Then she put on a fake expression of nonchalance. But she wasn't fooling him. "Heh. Nah I guess I didn't." She rolled off her bed, stood up, and started walking over to where he was still sitting on his own.

His nerves twinged. She's building up to something. He'd known her long enough to know that. Right now, he felt like he did right before his Semblance decided to screw him over. Shit. What now?

"I guess now is as good a time as ever," she finished, waving him to scoot over so she could sit with him on the side where her good eye was.

"Eh?" He made room and she eased down beside him. "What the hell do you have baking in that brain pan of yours, Sum?"

"Lots of stuff," Summer smiled. But he could tell she was a little nervous. "Truth is, I do have some ideas. But you gotta promise to keep it a secret for me."

Qrow relaxed. Was that all? "Summer, you're not even supposed to be here. Why the hell would I admit that it was your idea that got Amber to listen to me?"

Summer's silver eye bore into his, and she went really still. "So you promise you won't go blabbing to Oz? Or anyone else for that matter?"

"Yeah, sure. Like I said, you're not even here."

She seemed to regard him like he was a stranger, and it hurt a little. "Fine. Truth is, it's not an idea, it's a person. I've got kinda an ace in the hole here, Qrow."

Qrow looked around the room. "Wait… what?"

"I'm saying that I need to bring someone else in on this. Was just waiting for the right time so Raven can bring them over."

That left a sour taste in his mouth. I mean, yeah, I agreed that we'd tell Raven that Summer and I were going on a mission, so she'd be available if things got ugly. But that didn't mean I wanted her opening portals and adding a third wheel to the party. "This isn't some normal mission, Summer. This is sensitive stuff! I'm already bending Oz's instructions just by including you."

Summer punched him lightly. "You think I don't know that, dummy? We're chasing a freaking Maiden." Somehow, that made him feel better.

But still. "Then why are you asking to bring in some stranger that doesn't even know what we're doing?"

"I'll tell you, but first you need to really mean what you said earlier. You have to promise and mean it, that you won't tell anyone. I'm serious Qrow. They're putting themselves at risk here, for us."

This felt… a lot like when she'd cornered him before sending him back to Beacon to notify Oz and Goodwitch that she was still alive. When she'd explained how exactly she'd gotten herself imprisoned by Salem. "You promised me that there weren't any more dark secrets."

"I said there weren't anymore about me, Qrow. Other people get to have secrets too. And this one isn't bad," she crossed her arms in front of her chest in an X pattern. "Cross my heart, Qrow."

Shit. "Alright fine. I promise not to blab. Now spill it."

"Well first off, she's not a stranger, Qrow. We did the Kuroyuri mission with her."

Kuroyuri. Raven? Nah, she wouldn't have made a big deal out of that. Vernal? Better not be that little shit. It was a woman. Summer kept saying 'she'. Who else. He snapped his fingers. "Crystal? It's Crystal, right?" He frowned. She'd been pretty good with that rifle. Not really a merc. More like paramilitary. "Why the hell would you bring her in on this? She's not even a Huntress."

Summer put one soft hand on his shoulder and squeezed. "Because she's not just anybody, Qrow. She and Amber have some very specific things in common. If anyone can get through to Amber, it's gonna be Crystal."

Qrow felt his brain lock up, then he mentally shifted gears and got things working properly for the first time since he'd walked into the room. "Holy shit, Sum. Are you serious?!"

"Serious as a one-eyed Huntress, Qrow," his friend replied sagely. "And now you really have to swear you won't say anything to anyone. Especially to Oz."

She kept saying that. Don't tell Oz. Don't tell Oz. "But shouldn't—"

"Qrow," Summer actually glared at him, and her fingers dug into his shoulder. "Nobody knows about her except me and a few of her closest friends. Not Salem, not Oz, and not even Lionheart. Heck, I found out by accident." She paused. "Right now, she's completely safe from anyone who might be hunting Maidens, and her," Summer lowered her voice and leaned closer, "Relic can't be accessed by anyone because of that." She shook his shoulder a little to emphasize the point. "That's the best of all possible worlds. I'm telling you now, because she's agreed to help us out here and I didn't want to lie to you about why we needed her along. But that means You. Have. To. Swear."

"I already did!" Qrow objected. And he had. And he'd meant it. But this? This was serious shit. Qrow considered his teammate. His friend. He sighed. "How come you don't trust Oz anymore, Summer?" He considered. "No that's stupid. I know why. But… "

Summer pulled back her hand, and to his surprise, she leaned against him and rested her head on his shoulder, deflating slightly. When she spoke, it was quieter than before. "Because he's kept secrets from us, Qrow. Look how he treats you. He tells you just as much as he thinks you need to know and sends you off on a mission, and you don't even know what the big picture is."

Qrow felt himself stiffen against his will. Those words hurt. It wasn't like that. Oz didn't treat him like a lackey. "Now you sound like Raven, he said sourly."

Summer held really still for a second, then laughed softly against him. "And Raven was right about that part."

Qrow flinched backward and hit his head on the wall, dislodging Summer who grumbled and righted herself. He rubbed the back of his head. "Gods it's like getting stabbed in the brain every time I hear you say that."

Summer's expression went evil. "Raven was right. Raven was right. Raven was—"

Qrow flailed his arms. "Okay! Geez. I get it." He rubbed his face. She wasn't gonna stop until he convinced her he was serious. "I'll keep your little secret, Summer, if you promise not to say that in front of my sister anymore. She's already a big enough pain the ass."

Summer laughed. "Deal. And I'm not joking, Qrow. If word gets back to Oz because of you, I'll never forgive you."

That… hurt like a wicked bitch. And besides… "It's not gonna be easy to keep this a secret forever, Summer. Oz isn't stupid."

"Well, play dumb." Summer punched him lightly on the shoulder, "You're good at that."

"Hey…"

He watched as the silver-eyed Huntress bounced back over to her bed, pulled out her scroll. "It's settled then," she said blithely, "I'll have Raven bring Crystal over in the morning."

Wait. What he fuck? I don't remember agreeing to this?

Shit. She did it to me again.

. . .

Qrow was just too dang easy, Summer mused. You just gotta ease him into it, and he is, yet again, powerless before the Summer-Raven Axis of Estrogen.

Oh he'd complained some more, but he'd been on his best behavior when Crystal, fetched first from Argus to Branwen Camp, had walked through Raven's portal into their room. The innkeep hadn't even blinked at the addition of a third person, though they'd been confused when they'd asked where they could get another horse.

Crystal had taken it all good-naturedly and thus they'd found themselves here. A Huntsman, Huntress, and Maiden slowly gaining ground on another Maiden.

. . .

A few miles down the trail, they found something rather interesting. While you'd have to be dumb to attack a single woman who appeared unarmed out in the wilds of Vale, there were apparently no shortage of idiots in Remnant, as Crystal could attest based on the bandit crew she once ran with.

The trail had turned in a relatively sharp curve to the east, providing a bit of a blind corner where the trees crowded closer to it, and heard the sounds of muttering, moaning, and whimpering from further ahead.

Crystal and Qrow dismounted immediately, while Summer stayed on horseback but readied Briar Rose. Crystal hung back, her own rifle at the ready.

Qrow on the other hand drew Harbinger, waved both of them to hold position, and eased his way down the path on foot.

After a minute there was the sound of his laughter, followed by cursing and pleading, and then they heard Qrow calling them forward and asking them to bring his horse.

In the clearing just past the curve, the perfect place for an ambush, a dozen men and women were plastered onto nearby trees, encased in bands of tree branches cemented together with ice that had begun to melt in the warming morning sun.

They didn't look dead. But they also didn't look like they were doing very well, either. Several had visible bruises and burns, one had a clearly broken and bloodied nose, two had black eyes. And they'd likely been stuck like that overnight. Two were unconscious and might be suffering from hypothermia. Weapons were scattered around the clearing. Well, the remains of weapons. Shattered swords. Destroyed firearms. Split bows. Fractured arrows.

Qrow stood before one of the bandits, smirking at a woman who was glaring and cursing at him.

"Look lady, all I'm saying is we can leave your asses here for another four hours until the ice melts," He took a drink from his flask and wiped his mouth. "or you can tell us what we want to hear, we can build you a campfire, and you can get a four hour head-start on not freezing your asses off." He glanced back at Summer. "Might even tell you where that pack of Beowolves were heading that we saw a few miles back."

That was a lie, of course. There was no pack of Beowolves, Summer mused.

Well, not anymore there wasn't. The memory brought a smile to Summer's face. The three of them had gone through those Grimm like a hot knife through butter. Just like old times.

The bandit leader, an older woman with a scarred face and graying hair looked about to panic. "Shit. Fine. Whaddaya wanna know?"

Over the next thirty minutes, as Crystal started a fire and Summer carefully freed the bandits who appeared to have gotten smart enough not to try to attack them, they learned that the bandits had tried to ambush what had looked to them like an easy mark on horseback. A woman about Qrow and Summer's age on horseback. And instead they'd found themselves thrashed, mocked, and left plastered to trees 'to teach them a lesson'.

"And what lesson did we learn today, children?" Qrow said to the shivering bandits huddled around the rapidly growing campfire. The unconscious ones were starting to stir.

"Uh… to not to," the leader said tentatively.

"Good. Good. Also, might want to find a different line of work. Something less dangerous. Like Grimm wrestling."

The woman cursed and rubbed her arm where a huge knot stood out. "Yeah. Right. New job."

"I hear Branwen Tribe is hiring," Summer quipped, and got a glare in response.

. . .

It was later that afternoon when they rounded another turn in the trail, and found a woman on horseback dressed in a long green hooded cloak waiting for them, mount turned sideways on the trail. She didn't even have her quarterstaff out.

Their quarry had a light brown complexion and shoulder-length, straight brown hair. Her expression was… well she looked like Summer figured she did when she was deciding whether she was going to have to put someone down.

That doesn't bode well.

Summer didn't move, waiting for Amber's brown eyes to finish evaluating each of them, before they finally locked onto Qrow's. She'd hoped recognizing him would cause her to relax, but the Maiden's posture didn't change as the seconds ticked over. Finally, the brown-skinned Maiden spoke. "Branwen," she said flatly.

Qrow kept his hands on the reins of his horse, and nodded slightly. "Amber. It's been a while."

Amber frowned slightly. "It has. And you came all the way out here to find me." Her brows drew down and the beauty mark under her left eye creased slightly. "You could have just called."

Qrow scoffed, which caused Summer to stiffen. "I did call. And message you. You never answered."

"Funny that. It's like I didn't want to talk to you." Amber spared another glance for the two women on the other horse. "Who're your friends?" She considered their outfits and gear, and tensed slightly.

"This is Summer Rose she—"

"Oh…" Amber's posture loosened a hair as her eyes widened. "Yeah. I heard about her." She examined Summer with a slightly more sympathetic expression.

"And beside her is our associate, Crystal," Qrow continued.

Amber's eyes narrowed. "Associate?"

"They thought you and I might get along," Crystal said quietly. "We both have some things, and some enemies, in common."

Amber flinched back, causing her mount to prance for a moment. She stared at Qrow and her voice lowered. "You brought one with you?" she hissed quietly, "Are you people nuts?" She seemed to reconsider, and glared at Qrow even more than before. "Or do you think she'll help you drag my ass back to Beacon and lock me in a basement somewhere?"

This was getting freaking out of hand. "Whoah whoah. Nobody's dragging anybody anywhere," Summer objected. "We're here to talk. That's all."

"Talk," Amber said flatly.

"Yeah," Crystal said. "And maybe make you an offer you won't wanna refuse."

. . .

Later that evening, they found themselves camped off trail. Amber had started the campfire with an offhand gesture, causing Crystal's eyes to widen. That kind of… thoughtless competence in the Maiden power was eye-opening.

"I don't see why I need to do this," Amber grumbled, "I've spent years training both as a Huntress and as a Maiden." She stuck her thumb out, pointing back toward the trail. "You saw those bandits. That was nothing." Her tone was so much arrogant as matter-of-fact. Amber was confident. "I can take care of myself."

Crystal eyed her. "Oh really? You don't sleep?"

Amber huffed, but didn't reply, so Qrow pushed the point home. "Anybody can be caught off guard, Amber. And it only takes one time."

"Tell me about it," Summer groused.

Amber looked at the trio. "Look, I appreciate you coming all this way." Her gaze lingered on Crystal. "And it's always nice meeting a fellow Maiden. But I like my freedom." She frowned. "And I won't get that under Ozpin's thumb. Qrow, you never met Fria. We used to talk by Scroll. And then… nothing. She managed to send me a message, saying that they were going to be sticking her somewhere more secure." She spat the word, "and then nothing ever again. And Ozpin knows they did it, and did he object? That was two years ago. I don't even know if she's alive or not. And Summer, not you Huntress Rose, the Maiden. Nobody knows where the hell she is. Last I heard she was 'communing with the desert' or something." She glared. "I didn't ask for this."

"Yeah. Don't I know it." Summer and Crystal said at the same time, looked at each other, and then grinned.

Amber just looked confused. "Uh.. what?"

"Oh, yeah, I forgot not everybody knows about these," Summer pointed to her left eye. "Let me tell you a story."

And with that, she launched into a long explanation of what exactly Silver Eyes signified, and what had happened to her as a result, almost four years ago now.

Qrow had already heard this story. Or most of it. But this time, she added a few more details. Things she hadn't mentioned before. About the Relics and what would happen if they were gathered together. About Salem and what she really wanted.

And that too, was part of the plan she'd cooked up. To introduce things to Qrow, things that Oz hadn't told him. Gradually. To chip away at Qrow's misplaced trust.

She just hoped he didn't start mistrusting her because of it.

. . .

"Holy shit," Amber said quietly when Summer finished.

"Pretty much," Summer agreed. "You already knew about the Relics and how the Maidens are the 'keys' to them. But I'm betting Oz never told you the other reason they have to be protected from Salem."

"What, the fact that bringing them together is the only way to defeat Salem but risks destroying all of Remnant in the process?" Amber shook her head. "No, he never told me that."

Summer spared Qrow a glance. He was clearly pissed, but was holding his tongue, so she threw a bit more detail into the mix. "And the fact that Salem's more than willing to drop all of Remnant into a black hole, if it means she doesn't have to wake up tomorrow," she added neutrally.

That broke Qrow's silence. He cursed and took a pull from his flask, staring off into the distance. "Gods dammit, Oz. That woulda been good to know." He looked at Summer, awareness making his expression bleak. "That's what you meant, earlier, about holding things back."

"Yeah." Summer shrugged, and turned the focus back on Amber. "Anyway, that's the real reason why you've got a target on your back. That's why Oz is willing to let Atlas lock Fria away without throwing a holy fit. And that's why he's freaked out by you wandering the wilds alone."

Amber crossed her arms, rejecting the truth of it. "Yeah but how does that change my situation?"

Summer gave a soft growl of frustration. "Did you know that Salem will never stop? Did you know that she can spawn a sea of Grimm? Did you know she has literal magic, the same kind that Oz gave the Maidens but ten times more powerful?" She gestured to Crystal. "Like my friend said, you have to be aware, awake, and lucky all the time for the rest of your life. She just has to get lucky once, and she's got all the time in the world. And those agents of hers are no joke." Her hand fiddled absently with the lacings of her corset, just over the scars.

Amber turned her head and closed her eyes. "Maybe so, but I'm not locking myself in a damn basement. That's not living." She seemed near to tears. "I don't care. I didn't ask for this."

"Not suggesting you do that," Summer said quietly.

That got her attention, and she turned on the silver-eyed Huntress. "What are you suggesting then? Oz wants me to go back in Vale City, at least. How does that help me? Why should I trade this," she gestured to the wilderness around her, "for a city full of people, any one of which could have a knife out for my back? At least here I can see danger coming."

"Ah. Well… that's a really good question." Crystal interrupted. She and Summer had discussed this opening. She turned to Summer and Qrow. "Mind if I have a private word with Amber? Maiden to Maiden?"

. . .

Several yards from the fire, they could hear Amber and Crystal conversing quietly, but not what they were saying. Qrow took the opportunity to round on Summer. "All that stuff you said about Salem and the Relics. Where the hell did you learn all that? And what the hell are you talking about that Salem can't be killed?"

Ah. Time for Phase 2 of Summer's Awesome Plan.

"Yeah that. Qrow, she's not just immortal as in she doesn't grow old. She's cursed with immortality. That's… one of the things Oz has been hiding from us. Literally nothing we can do will kill her permanently. Not even these." She pointed to her remaining eye, which gleamed in the near-darkness with reflected firelight.

Qrow stared at her in disbelief. "That's…. wait you didn't answer my damn question. How the hell can you know this?"

"Got it from her own filthy mouth," Summer spat. That memory was still raw. But… she'd used Dr. Mazarin's techniques. She'd talked this out already, several times, with Selene and Tai.

Qrow looked like he was having some sort of fit. He grabbed her by the shoulders. "From Her? You're taking Her word for shit?"

She pushed his hands off gently. "Qrow, no. Not just her. I was able to confirm all of this. Enough to know that she was mocking me with the truth to hurt me, not lying to me. It's not like she expected me to escape, Qrow," she added more quietly.

"But still, you can't trust anything She says. She's the literal personification of evil."

"Like I said, I got confirmation on everything I just said. And Oz isn't exactly the personification of good. You heard what Amber said. And you've been taking his word for everything for how long?"

"Well… no he's not like… a god. He's just… Oz."

"Right. And sometimes he screws up, Qrow. Like I said, he keeps things close to his vest, and it nearly got me killed."

Qrow put two and two together and his jaw tightened. "You planned all this out."

"Smarty pants. Yeah, guess I sorta did. I'm not playing by his rules anymore."

She let Qrow work through that. He grabbed her arms again, more gently. "You haven't been just taking time off for family, have you? You're teaming up with…. Raven?"

Summer leaned into her friend, her teammate. Her voice was muffled by his shirt when she answerd. "I'm teaming up with STRQ. And you've seen what effect that's already had on Raven. She's gone from murderous outlaw to whatever the heck she is now and is literally saving entire towns from Grimm. You tell me, whose side is that on?"

Qrow blinked. Whose side? Pieces fit into place. "Why did you want to come on this mission with me?" Summer didn't answer, and he didn't need her to. "Holy shit. You're trying to recruit Amber. You've already got Crystal. What the hell are you doing?"

"See, I told Raven you weren't as dumb as you looked," she pulled back and patted him on the cheek.

"Summer, is Tai—" She nodded. "Holy shit. Tai too?"

"Yep. So now you have a choice, Qrow. This is for all the marbles. You can go crying back to Oz, and you know exactly what'll happen. He'll start watching me and Tai like a hawk, and we'll never be free again. Might try to lure Ruby away from us so he doesn't lose his next Silver Eyed Warrior. Might even ask you to spy on us. Heck, he might decide you can't be trusted any more either, regardless of what you tell him." She shook her head. "Or you can trust us. Trust your team."

She pulled back slightly, though she didn't let go of him. "Look at what we've been able to do already. Raven saved me from dying in one of Salem's prisons. The girls are the happiest they've been in years." She poked him with a finger. "You're even drinking less, don't think I haven't noticed. Raven's reforming, kinda. We saved an entire dang town from a Nuckelavee." She finally released him and crossed her arms. "You tell me, Qrow, whose side are we on here? Does that sound like Salem's side?" She lowered her voice. "Whose side are you on, Qrow?"

"Can't… can't we all be on the same side?"

"Nope. Not with Oz running the show. You want more stuff to prove it? Salem is his ex-wife, Qrow. They had kids together, and those kids literally died because they had a family quarrel. He's lost everyone he's ever loved. And he's bonded with person after person and watched them fade away in his head. What do you think that does to someone? How do you think he sees us? How exactly do you think he sees you? Did he tell you any of this before he offered you the power to change shape and be his 'special agent'?" She shook her head. "He didn't. Because he's the puppet master. Oh he loves his puppets. He cares about us. Heck, he cares about all of humanity, I think. But that's what we are, Qrow."

She turned back toward him. "So yeah. You gotta decide whose side you're on. That doesn't mean you have to betray Oz, cause I'm not doing that either. But it means that just like him, you get to decide how much you tell, and how much you keep close. You're just as important as he is," her expression softened, "at least to us."

"Fuck…"

"Yeah," she smiled. "Potty mouth."

. . .

When they made it back to the fire, Qrow was quiet and thoughtful. They found the two Maidens in good spirits.

"So Amber and I talked," Crystal said. "And she's agreed to go back to Vale City as a gesture of good faith."

Qrow's face went several colors.

You know, Qrow could use some counselling himself, Summer mused. He's gonna have a stroke at this rate. "Oh gods, Qrow," she exclaimed. "This is what Oz asked you to do. What the heck?"

"I didn't expect it to work, Summer!"

Amber laughed at him. "You know me that well, huh."

He shook his head. "What exactly did you two talk about?"

"Oh, girl stuff. Maiden stuff. The importance of life insurance policies. You know." Amber said airily. "Crystal and me promised to have each other's backs. I like her spirit. She needs some training, though."

Crystal picked up the thread, "And Amber says she can train me, without setting off alarms, since the important people already know she's a Maiden and they can't exactly differentiate between two powers getting used close together."

Qrow stared between the three of them. "I don't believe it. There's more going on here."

"Yep," Summer quipped. "And you don't get that yet. Not just yet, Qrow. We can talk after we get these two back to Vale. And then we can have a Team Meeting and hash it all out." Just as soon as I'm sure you aren't going to break under Oz's stern gaze. "Meanwhile, you get to go back to Beacon and tell Oz that you actually convinced Amber to come back to Vale. Oz'll be elated. Might even spill his cocoa."

Qrow scowled. "That was part of your plan, wasn't it. I get results, and I look like the hero, so he doesn't dig too deeply."

"Yeeep."

"Holy shit, Summer." His teammate arched an eyebrow. "Yeah, yeah. Potty mouth." The Huntsman threw his hands up. "Shit, fine. I need a drink. I need ten drinks and a good night's sleep."

"And then tomorrow, we can head back to Vale. Unless you want Raven to just port us to Tai."

"With horses? She'd kick all our asses. Let's take the scenic route."

[A/N] Thanks again to my repeat reviewers.

-AtomicR4y: Team November are going to play central roles later on down the road, so you'll get to see a LOT more of them. I'm so glad you are enjoying them and Kudos to Coeur for their initial concept!

-Shadowstorm-Vash: Winter likewise will feature heavily later, in conjunction with Team November! That doesn't mean Ace Ops won't occur, just differently.

-Rookie80: I think I said it before, but you'll see later how the butterflies impact Weiss and Winter's relationship.

And another chapter in the bag. Summer has initiated "Operation Get Qrow On Board" but unlike with Raven and Tai, she's having to chip away at him. And I bet you can guess what conversation that Amber and Crystal had. Somebody's about to get another "Hey mom guess what..." message.

Watts is gonna be pissed.