The Great Temporal Step-Sibling War!
By Sift Green and AndrewJTalon
Disclaimer: This is a fan based work of Prose. RWBY is the property of Rooster Teeth and ViZ. Please support the official Release.
Making everyone tell their side of the story had taken a while, but if there was going to be peace among them it needed to happen. Ozpin could tell that some people hadn't shared everything; Emerald had seemed quite uncomfortable talking about Cinder for instance, but everyone had shared enough for today's purposes. The old wizard smiled as the stories sowed the seeds of empathy, and when they were done he began to work his metaphorical magic.
"Now before we continue there is something I want to make clear," Ozpin noted as his eyes roamed over the crowd assembled in his office, looking each time displaced child in the eyes, "I understand why you chose to do what you did. The situation you've found yourselves in is completely unprecedented and all of you understandably believe your lives and the lives of your siblings are in danger. I won't say you shouldn't be scared, this is uncharted territory after all. However, I want to assure you that I will be doing everything in my power to ensure each and every one of you will make it through this alive."
Ozpin then met the eyes of every mother in the room except for Glynda. Part of him wondered if his deputy headmistress had realized the Dorothy girl was hers; Glynda had shown no sign of recognition and the identity of Dorothy's mother hadn't been mentioned in anyones retellings of this morning's events. The girl was doing her best to always have someone between her and her mother, a nervous and embarrassed energy emerging from her every time she looked in her mother's direction. Irregardless of that drama Ozpin addressed the mothers:
"I'm not going to blame any of you for getting swept up in a feeling of maternal protectiveness and lashing out at a perceived threat to your child. Having such maternal feelings is probably a first time experience for most of you, and almost everyone makes the wrong choice the first time around." Ozpin's expression turned from being a kindly and understanding one to being the stone cold face of a judge pronouncing his sentence as he addressed the crowd as a whole; "That being said further acts of violence to solve this issue will not be tolerated in any way, shape or form. Don't test me on this: I have lived a very long life and I can get extremely creative with displaying my displeasure, so don't give me any reasons to get creative."
The crowd shifted nervously, and Ozpin pressed on, "To ensure that all of you know where I am coming from your children will be shadowing you over the next few weeks. On Monday you will be shadowed by your own child, on Tuesday you will be shadowed by someone else's child, on Wednesday you will be shadowed by a third child and so on until you've been shadowed by every time displaced child here. At the end of each day you will write a short paper detailing how well you got to know the child you were attempting to erase in your little skirmish today."
And there was the uncomfortable squirming he wanted to see in them; the moral implications of their rash decisions were starting to sink in. Ruby, Pyrrha and Yang were starting to look like they were going to be sick. Blake and Arslan's eyes were starting to widen from a realization of horror. Weiss was still wearing the look of flabbergasted incomprehension she had worn since Glynda had brought her into the office so Ozpin figured she was still processing, but May and Emerald were interesting. May Zedong had a look of sorrowful guilt on her face that made Ozpin think she already knew where this might end up, and if that was the case he might have to do something to apologize for raking her over the coals with the others.
Emerald had a look of relieved acceptance, which Ozpin figured was fair. The girl hadn't technically participated in the skirmish; she had spent the entire fight trying to not get murdered by her team leader. The girl probably figured the rules he was laying out meant she had a chance to fight for her daughter in the arena of social combat. She was right to think that, but she might be caught off guard by the ways Ozpin planned to shape that arena.
Satisfied that the process of leading the girls to come to the difficult realization on their own had begun Ozpin once again adopted a more kindly demeanor to continue his address.
"Now, I'd like Mr. Arc to stay behind for a more private discussion, but while that happens we should get our time displaced guests settled in for the day. If you could all go down to storage closet A113; it should have a wide selection of cots, sleeping bags and pillows that will let everyone sleep in the same dorms as their mothers tonight, we'll figure out more long term arrangements tomorrow." Ozpin then focused his gaze on Emerald, "Ms. Sustrai, since Ms. Fall destroyed your dorm room would you rather spend the night with Team JNPR, Team BRNZ or Team ABRN?"
Emerald appeared to think for a moment, trying her best to not glance at Jaune while everyone's eyes were on her. "I think Amethyst and I will stay with JNPR sir."
"What about the children who's mothers aren't here sir?" Glynda asked before Ozpin could dismiss anyone.
"From what you've told me Ash and Ashley will remain in the Nurses Office tonight," Ozpin answered. "Have Theodore come back here once he's collected his cot and other necessities. I'll get in contact with General Ironwood and find out when he plans to bring Winter back to campus." Ozpin then looked to Dorothy and asked, "Is there a particular reason you aren't telling her?"
"Nooooooooooo," Dorothy shifted back and forth on her feet, "It's just, this is super, super awkward."
"Then there's no point delaying any further: rip the band-aid off." Ozpin instructed.
Dorothy sighed and then turned to face Glynda, taking purposeful strides towards her mother. Glynda's eyes became wider and wider with each step, until Dorothy stood directly in front of her.
"Hi Mom," Dorothy grinned nervously.
If the school's chief disciplinarian fainted, and everyone was there to see it, did she really faint?
The answer is no if the witnesses know what's good for them.
After the excitement of Glynda fainting wore off and the deputy headmistress had recovered enough to lead the group out, AFTER GLYNDA HAD NO ISSUES WHATSOEVER AND SHE LEAD THE GROUP OUT, Jaune Arc was left alone with Headmaster Ozpin.
"What did you want to talk about sir?" Jaune asked once the elevator doors had closed.
"I'm guessing you're feeling overwhelmed right now, am I right?" Ozpin asked.
"Yeah," Jaune chuckled mirthlessly, "You could say that." Ozpin remained invitingly silent, which prompted Jaune to continue, "I mean, I always expected to be a father someday, after I became a successful huntsman you know?" Ozpin nodded in agreement, he had met enough promising young men to know. "And now I'm suddenly meeting kids who could be my kids one day and they all seem like great kids I'd be proud to call my own, but they all have different moms and that means I'm going to have to chose which one's my real kid. But how can I? They're all my kids! How does someone even think about doing that?"
Ozpin got up from behind his desk and walked around so he could sit in a chair directly beside Jaune. The old wizard then looked the young warrior in the eye and told him, "Well, your first priority is getting to know their mothers better."
"I guess that makes sense," Jaune allowed.
"Just take things day by day for a little while and see where things go. I'm confident that as long as you keep your best foot forward all of this will work out in the end."
"How can you be so sure?" Jaune asked.
Because there's enough of you to go around and you'll eventually prove that to your future brides as long as you remain your earnest self, Ozpin thought but did not say. Instead he smiled and said, "I've had a lot of experience with complicated relationships, I know how these things shake out."
"Right," Jaune murmured in thought for a moment. Then he brought up the concern eating away at the back of his mind; "But what are we going to do about Ash and Ashley's mom?"
That was the million Lien question.
What were they going to do about Cinder?
There were numerous safe houses around Vale that Roman Torchwick made use of. These same safe houses were now accessible by Cinder. She'd run to the first one she could remember, a small but comfortable loft apartment in the old industrial sector of the city.
She'd stormed in, locked the door, and just... Raged. She'd stewed, she'd seethed, and blasted apart the TV and the furniture...
Then she collapsed on the one couch that had escaped destruction, breathing hard, sweat beading on her forehead.
Children... I... I was a mother... A mother in another timeline... A future...?
The looks of pain, shock, and betrayal on their faces as she burned them were stuck in her mind. She couldn't excise them, and unlike the other times, countless times really, she had caused pain to others... She couldn't take any pleasure in it.
Her Scroll rang. Cinder slowly reached for it. She checked the caller ID: MOTHER.
She trembled in fear. She took a deep breath, and opened it.
A pale, ghostly visage greeted her, as the Queen of the Grimm glared across the airwaves.
"H-Hello, Mother," Cinder managed.
"Cinder," Salem stated flatly, "You're not in Beacon. What's going on?"
Cinder sucked in a deep breath.
"Things have become... Complicated, Mother," she replied.
"Simplify them," Salem sneered.
So Cinder told her everything she could remember. About the time traveling children. About Jaune Arc.
Nothing about her losing her temper and trying to murder Emerald and her child. It didn't seem relevant and wouldn't help her situation at all.
When she was finished, Salem slowly nodded.
"I see... Well. Most likely, your current plans for Vytal will have to be revised. If this Jaune Arc survived in these future timelines, and they all reacted like they did to you? They know what you were doing."
"I... I understand, Mother," Cinder murmured.
"For now? You must gain more intelligence," Salem stated, "I'll have Watts start working on a new virus, just in case his part in the plan has been revealed. You must continue the plan, but come up with a new way to accomplish it."
Cinder slowly nodded.
"Of course, Mother."
"You will do this with your future children," Salem stated.
Cinder paused.
"M-Mother?"
"You can lure them out," Salem said, "Even after what you did in your foolish anger. You can use their feelings for you against them. That... Or you can lure this Jaune Arc out. Indeed, capturing him should be a priority. He is at the center of all this: Taking him hostage could grant us a great boon..."
She smirked.
"And killing him would ensure only our future comes to fruition."
Cinder hesitated.
"M-Mother... Killing him might... Wouldn't it possibly destabilize all of space and time?"
"Perhaps," Salem allowed, "Which is why it will be a last resort... But I am eternal. And you will be too, as long as you serve me."
Her keen red eyes seemed to pierce Cinder's very soul.
"Unless... You have feelings for the boy?"
Cinder's chest clenched tightly. She... Well. A few dreams about the buffoon, a few kind conversations with him... No! No, she felt nothing!
"Of course not, Mother, b-but... If he did fall for me in a possible future... I-I could... I could keep him. As a pet. As-"
"Do you really think you can deceive me, Cinder?" Salem growled. Cinder gulped.
"N-No, of course not Mother-!"
"You do have feelings for him. I can tell," Salem smirked. Cinder fell silent.
"Just... Nothing significant-!"
"I'll make this very clear, Cinder, since you're having so much difficulty handling things as it is," Salem stated, cold as the grave, "If you even thinkof putting this Jaune Arc before me in your allegiance, I will kill him. Slowly. Right in front of you. If you get pregnant, I will rip out your child from your womb and crush it before you. I am the only priority in your life. I am your only master. Let your feelings get in the way of your service to me, and I will happily remind you of what you should care about. Is that clear?"
Cinder was silent, then slowly nodded.
"Yes Mother."
"Now, dear," Salem said, smiling softly, "Don't worry about that foolish boy, or your feelings for him. Such things do not last. Power is what matters. Power is eternal. Use their feelings against them, and you will have all the power you could ever want. Tear out your weakness, and do not fail me."
"Of course, Mother," Cinder murmured. The transmission ended, and Cinder was left sitting along in the ruined room. She stared at the wall, as the image of her twin children's screaming faces dominated her mind. She wiped her eyes, fighting back tears... And failing.
Damnit...