[RWBY] The Great Temporal Step-Sibling War!

[FinalFormer]

Cross-posted From the SpaceBattles Thread.

Childhood Memories: Atop The Peach Tree
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Arc-Altan Household, Radian, Vale. Petra Arc-Altan. Age: 7

It was peaceful night. The chilly air. The chipping of crickets. It was the perfect night for the Wise Lion to make look upon her kingdom. She was currently perched upon a tree and stared at the moonlit sky. She seeked answers from the Gods, for you see, she faced a brand new enemy.

"Petra!"

...

The Vile Witch Doctor had invaded her Kingdom and decided to rule with an iron fist. She made demands after ridiculous demands. She wanted to spread her eldritch tentacles across the Wise Lion's domain. With the Rusted Knight nowhere to be found, she would have to face this treacherous foe by her lonesome.

"Petra, I know you're up there!"

...

The Wise Lion had decided tha---

"PETRA KAZUMA ARC!! YOU GET OUT OF THAT TREE RIGHT NOW!"

In truth, it was a bright and sunny day. Not a single grey cloud was in the sky. Young Petra Arc was hiding in a her family's peach tree to avoid her grandmother, Isabel Arc.

"No," Yelled Petra. "I don't wanna!"

The reason she was in the tree you may ask? Isabel had asked her to do some of the farm chores but Petra simply wanted to relax and sleep in. It was supposed to be summer vacation! She wanted to sleep in and go catch bugs with her little brothers. Not milk the cows! And to top it all off, she made wheatcakes for breakfast. Yuck.

"Little Lion, you better get down here right--"

"I SAID NO!!" Petra shouted. She then began to aggressively eat a peach.

Isabel sighed. She knew what this was really about. She had been asked to take care of Petra for a few days Jaune and Arslan had been called to Vale provide backup for Ruby and her team.

They were supposed to come back 2 weeks ago.

The poor girl misses her parents and she's lashing out. Saphron had been like that before when Nick was out on missions like these. Jaune had also been like this. It was always difficult to get them to calm down. But unlike them, Petra has been training to be a Huntress. Isabel had to be careful to not set Petra off.

Petra, meanwhile, continued eating her peach. Her father had promised they'd start working on the treehouse when he and mother came back. What's taking them so long?

Tears began to well in her eyes. No. She couldn't cry. Not in front of Granny.

"Petra, it's ok to be sad," Petra looked down, her eyes trained on her Grandmother's concerned eyes. "But you know you it's not ok to bottle up those feelings."

Petra wanted to scowl, but she knew she was right. Her mother had told her during their training together that there was a difference between being calm and being restrained. Papa had also said that there were lessons in combat that could be applied to real-life. Was this one of those moments?

"Can I join you up there?" Isabel asked. Her kind smile appeared. "Those peaches smell really good?"

Petra sat silently and then answered.

"...Ok."

And with that, Isabel got to climbing.

'Doing something like climbing a tree is getting hard for these old bones but that she needs me.' Isbael thought. Despite knowing full well that she could still take down a Goliath one-handed. When she got to the top of the tree, she took a spot next to Petra, but kept a small gap between the two to be safe. The two sat in silence, watching the sun shine over the farm and, in the distance, the town.

Petra spoke up first. "How did you know I was upset?"

"You're far more emotionally mature for someone your age, so imagine my shock when my usually stoic granddaughter started acting snippy and irritable." Isabel plucked a peach from the tree and took a bite. "I'm worried about them too. Not just me. Your grandpa, your brother, we all miss them. The worst part is always the waiting."

Petra began eating another peach. She wanted to say something, but she didnt, fearing that she would only end up crying. She missed her Mama's spiced peaches and the way she combed her hair while she ate them. Her Papa's funny stories of about Uncle Ren Aunt Nora and Pyrrha. She missed them reading the Rusted Knight and The Wise Lion to her before she went to sleep.

She felt her grandmother pull her into a hug. The warmth that emitted off her was comforting. A low purring came from Petra as Isabel started to pat her head.

"You're parents are the bravest people I've ever known. Even braver than your grandpa and I. So please, Petra. Don't lose faith in them." Isabel squeezed a bit tighter after feeling Perta hug her back.

"I will. I'm sorry." Petra muttered.

The two sat for what felt like hours, watching the sun slowly set.

"It's a nice view"

"I know. That's why I asked Papa to help me make a treehouse here."

Their silent viewing of the landscape was interrupted when the back door slammed open. Her little brother, Eustace, had a big smile on his face. He ran towards the tree with great urgency.

"Eustace, I told you to watch over Xenovia--" Before Isabel could finish, the young boy he shouted the news:

"Granny! Petra! Come inside! Mom and Dad are coming home!"

"What?" Isabel and Petra both said at the same time. Were they hearing this right?

"Yeah, they called on the CCT! They said they'll be home tomorrow! They said they were going to bring some sweets from Vale!" Eustace said ecstatically. "Come on, Petra! They're talking to Grandpa! They want to see you!"

Isabel smiled and turned to Petra, happiness shining in her eyes. Knowing her Little Lion was going to be ok, she jumped off the tree to head inside the house with her grandson. Maybe she can get Arslan to cough up that spiced peach recipe and give Jaune a good scolding for making them wor--

"Um... Granny."

Isabel looked up to see Petra was still on the tree. She looked like she was on the verge of crying once again.

"I need help getting down." Petra asked timidly.

And so, as the sun set. And the Little Lion was once again at peace.

----------------------------
At first, this was supposed to be a silly story, but about
midway through writing it, it changed into a story that explored something I'm sure most of the children of Jaune and one of his potential brides can relate to: the Away Missions. The ones that take too long. Hope you guys enjoy.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

The Pandu Royal Air ships had both survived the fight at the airfield, thankfully. May, her parents and her son had taken to the larger of the two models to have dinner. May had enjoyed spicy curry, and Saia had prepared some for all of them. They'd sat down and ate around the well appointed table, quietly talking. May scooped up the curry, ate a bite... Sniffled and began to cry. Saia and Arjun looked alarmed, while August smiled softly.

"Maia? Are you all right?" Saia asked desperately, reaching out to rest a hand on her shoulder. "Is it too spicy?"

"Are you okay?" Arjun asked urgently.

May sniffled, wiped her tears, and smiled warmly.

"I-I just... I never thought I'd get to eat at the table with my family again," she whispered.

Silence fell. Saia smiled and hugged her tightly. Arjun sighed, and rubbed her shoulder and head. August beamed, though he kept his distance. May had a feel he was used to excessive affection in his time.

Well... He had better get used to it here, too.

"Ack! Hey!" August yelped as May pulled him into a hug. "Mom! Seriously?"

"Y-You get a hug too," May sniffled with little laughs. August sighed and hugged her back, as Arjun chuckled.

"A Sarkaran woman will always get her way, grandson. Remember that," Arjun advised.

"Yeah, you told me as much," August grumbled, but he smiled a bit to appease his pouting mother.

After dinner, they retired to a small parlor that had a holographic window. It showed the rest of the airfield and the setting sun, as they sat on comfortable couches. Arjun and Saia kept May between them, while August chose a smaller one a bit further away.

Arjun's own airship was sitting in front of them, a sleek, predatory looking vehicle that resembled a bird. May studied it intently. Arjun caught her gaze and smiled proudly.

"You know," he said, "Before the coup, I was the third of five brothers. Except for Karna. I never thought I would have gotten a chance at the throne. I was planning on becoming a Royal Air Force Pilot, with Archer training." He sighed. "I love to be in the air. To be free as a bird. The Shyena is an expression of that freedom," he looked almost lovingly at the airship, "Sleek, powerful, tuned for performance."

"Excessive performance," Saia teased. Arjun huffed.

"'Excessive'? I go as fast as the ship can go, that's hardly excessive!" He looked at August. "Are you a pilot?"

"I'm training to be," August agreed, "It's a lot of fun and you always get me souped up ships for my birthday!"

Maternal indignation reared its ugly head in May's heart, as she glared at Arjun. Arjun shrugged.

"What? He's here in one piece, so he's obviously a decent pilot!"

"Of course," Saia sighed, shaking her head, "Does Jaune still get airsick? Poor thing."

"Nah, Dad is a lot better," August said with a grin, "Even took lessons since he's captain of the guard! Of course, I'm way better. I can fly through Bhikshatana Canyon back home in under six minutes! Five minutes fifty seconds if I ignore the safeties!"

"Really?" Arjun asked eagerly, grinning like a schoolboy... Until Saia and May glared at him. He coughed. "Ah... That's very dangerous, young man. I expect you to be safer!"

"Yes Grandpa," August sighed, though the winks the two exchanged were worrying for May. She shook her head again and looked out at the sun setting behind the mountains. She worried her lower lip.

"Still worried about your place with Jaune?" Saia asked, smiling knowingly. May blushed.

"I... I am," she admitted, looking in concern at August. "Did you hear anything from the Doctor or Theodore?"

August sighed and leaned back, stretching his arms up over his head to try and appear at ease.

"Nothing," he said, "Though he wants us to have another meeting tomorrow. He didn't say what about."

"Again, there's nothing to worry about," Saia said soothingly, "You and Jaune connected easily when you first met, didn't you?"

May blushed, but managed a nod.

"I-Yes, we did," she murmured, "he was so kind and handsome..."

"And he definitely noticed you in your proper attire," Saia chuckled. May went bright red.

"M-MOTHER!"

August groaned.

"Grandma!"

"What? It is a new phase of battle you have entered, young one," Saia said, "And it will require just as much cunning and determination to win as actual combat. Do you want to win?"

"I..." May looked to August, then aside, away from him. "I want us all to win... But..." She slowly nodded. "Yes."

"Then have no fear," Saia said soothingly, rubbing her back, "We will make sure you become the first wife."

"Y-You think I can?" May asked softly. Arjun nodded.

"May... You may have been taken from us. You may have been raised away from us... But I know that it could not have been easy to get here, to survive, after all you have been though." He reached out and squeezed her hand. "That is how I know you are strong. And that you will get what you want, just as we did."

May blushed, and bowed her head modestly.

There was a knock at the hatch. Saia sighed and held up her Scroll. She glanced at Arjun, who nodded. She hit a control and the hatch opened. Taiyang and Qrow entered.

"Hey Arjun," Qrow said, "You said you would loan us your airship?"

Arjun stared intently at them. Taiyang and Qrow stared back. Taiyang coughed.

"I mean, if it's about the last time-"

"Last time you took Nick and thus I didn't have an airship to get back," Arjun deadpanned. Both men coughed. Arjun sighed.

"But seeing as he isn't going with you? Take Shyena. She's the fastest ship around, I made sure of it," Arjun stated, pulling out some keys and tossing them to Taiyang. The blond caught them and smiled gratefully.

"Thanks," he said. Qrow grinned.

"Did you install Dust Afterburners in this one too?"

Arjun grinned.

"Oh yes, with a Hardlight Dust Collar system for maximum-!"

"Ahem?" Saia cleared her throat with a scowl. "Don't you have a mission to be going on?"

Qrow and Taiyang pouted a bit, as did Arjun. The two men turned to go, but Arjun cleared his throat. They paused and turned around.

"Gentleman," Arjun said pleasantly, "The Shyena is my ship, my loyal companion. So if she's brought back with so much as a scratch on her... You will both regret it. Forever."

Qrow and Taiyang winced.

"We're still regretting the last ship we took," Qrow muttered. Louder, he said: "Don't worry. Not a scratch."

Arjun's eyes narrowed.

"You promise?"

"Honestly," Saia huffed, "I wish you'd show me the same consideration!"

"Saia, I wouldn't have to warn them if they brought you back with a scratch," Arjun pleaded, "I would already be killing them mercilessly!"

"Hmph, so you say," Saia grunted, turning away melodramatically. Taiyang smiled faintly in nostalgia, before he shook his head.

"Not a scratch, promise Arjun," Taiyang said.

"Good, get going," Arjun ordered, even as he playfully ran his hand through his wife's hair to appease her. The two left, and the airship soon took off and flew off into the night.

There was another knock at the hatch. Saia sighed, and raised her Scroll again. May used her Semblance, and her eyes widened as she saw the Aura signature outside. August frowned, his own eyes glowing.

"Enter," Arjun barked, and the hatch once more opened. The black haired young man in dark clothing with the scar, the son of Cinder, entered slowly, his combat boots making no sound.

"Hello Ash," Saia said pleasantly, "What can we do for you?"

Ash coughed.

"Ah, I need a Pandavan Code sequencer," he said, "It's not very sophisticated but it will let my Scroll tap into the local networks."

Arjun frowned, as did August. Nevertheless, the king did get up, rummaged around in a nearby cabinet, and produced the small device. He handed it to Ash.

"Try not to lose it," Arjun said quietly, with a faint smile, "I only have twenty more."

Ash smiled and nodded, a bit of nervousness in his Aura.

"No problem, your Majesty. Majesties. Goodnight," he said. He turned and bowed to the others, before he turned and headed out the hatch. May watched him go, curious, before she looked over at August.

"Why would he want one?" She asked.

August shrugged.

"I mean... I guess to tap into local networks? In my future, Pandu does export a lot of high tech devices," he said, "Maybe it's the case there too?"

"Maybe," May murmured, staring after the young man as he headed back towards Beacon.

"In any event," Arjun said, "It's something that can wait until tomorrow. It's been a busy day... And it's only going to get busier in the morning."

"Yes Father," May said, and the smile he wore when she called him that made her forget her worries. For just a moment, at least.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Ozpin stood nearby the life support system for Amber as Isabel calmly and methodically went over the data, doing a few scans with her hands lit up with Aura. He sipped his coffee, a track of his mental processes still on Raven in her cell while another focused on Isabel.

He sipped his hot chocolate, and tapped his cane a bit. Isabel sighed, adjusting her glasses.

"I wish you wouldn't do that," she muttered.

"Do what?" Ozpin asked.

"Tapping your cane out of nerves," Isabel stated, her eyes flickering over the lines of data. Ozpin scowled very slightly.

"When have I ever done that?" He asked.

Isabel badly hid a smirk as she read through the stack of print outs near the device keeping Amber alive.

"The last budget review before the Vytal Festival? Our fourth year?" She asked. Ozpin sipped his hot chocolate, long and thoughtful.

"That was a bit stressful, yes," he said, "So? What do you have for me?"

Isabel sighed. She turned back to Ozpin and shuffled the papers in her hands.

"Well, even I can't complete a full analysis of all of this data in a few minutes," she complained. Ozpin cocked an eyebrow, and Isabel huffed. "I have my limits!"

"I'm glad you learned some humility since you left Beacon," Ozpin said, slightly amused but still focused, "But your initial findings?"

Isabel sighed, and shook her head.

"This... Is a bit outside my purview," she admitted, "I've never seen anyone with... With soul damage before. Even hooked up to Raven, most of the energy you're feeding her is vanishing. I'm guessing there's a connection between her and this Cinder girl who stole her..." She checked her notes and raised an eyebrow. "'Magical powers.'"

"That you're still so skeptical speaks volumes of your temperament," Ozpin said dryly, adjusting his stance with his cane as support, "What can you do for her?"

Isabel sighed and shook her head.

"I'll need to do a lot more research and examinations. But I'm going to be entirely honest with you, Ozpin: I don't know if I can save her. Medicine is one thing, magic? It's rather beyond me."

She raised an eyebrow.

"But I'll do my best, on top of everything else the universe has saddled me with," she said wryly. Ozpin chuckled softly.

"Won't we all?" He asked.

The secret door opened again. Jaune walked back in with Yang and Ruby, all looking sheepish. Right behind them was a brightly smiling Penny, and an exasperated Julian and Xia.

"Salutations, Doctor Arc!" Penny called out. "Your son is still a virgin!"

"PENNY!" Jaune cried out, his face bright red. Yang and Ruby both scowled at the gynoid.

"Aren't we besties?" Ruby protested, "Come on, Penny! Don't I deserve to be kissy kissy with my future husband?"

"What about me? I'm also his future wife!" Yang growled.

Penny frowned thoughtfully, her eyes darting to and fro as she processed this data.

"I have made a request to General Ironwood to update my security protocols," Penny said brightly, "Hopefully I can get less restrictive orders to both safeguard Jaune's life but to also allow my friends to kiss him! Wouldn't that be sensational?"

Jaune's face went much brighter red, as did Ruby and Yang's. Julian and Xia still looked a bit out of it. Isabel chuckled and took pity on her son, wrapping an arm around his shoulders.

"Let's go to bed," Isabel said gently, "It's been a long day, after all. Penny? Thank you for looking after my son."

"It is my duty and mission, Doctor Arc!" Penny said cheerfully.

"Separate rooms again?" Ruby pouted. Jaune coughed.

"I uh, well..."

"For now!" Penny said cheerfully, "But I am drawing up plans for the next week for everyone to enjoy kissy time with Jaune!"

"Hooray," Jaune mumbled.

The family headed out, bickering as they went back to the elevator. Ozpin sealed the door again with the tap of his cane, and shook his head.

"Never a dull moment," he muttered. He sighed.

Like he didn't have his own family drama to attend to...

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

The VIP guest quarters at Beacon were easily the equivalent of a five star hotel. Weiss hadn't seen them very often, naturally, but even she was impressed with the elegance and splendor they presented.

Her mother and Klein had taken one such quarters, and were busily talking on the CCT holoviewer to various connections and people. She'd stepped out for a bit to get some air. She found herself worrying where her son was, and where Jaune was, and...

She found herself staring at Blake in the plush hallway. Blake had just stepped out of another lavish set of quarters, looking a bit like a cat caught sneaking towards a bird. Weiss had to admit, she found the mental image a bit amusing.

"What's so funny?" Blake asked. Weiss got her facial expressions under control and shrugged.

"Just... A lot of things, I suppose," she said. The two girls stared at one another in silence for a bit. Blake fidgeted. Weiss raised an eyebrow.

"... I didn't suspect you were that Blake Belladonna," Weiss confessed. Blake blinked.

"Oh?"

"Yes," Weiss said, trying for a kind smile, "It's... Rather obvious in hindsight, now."

"There are a lot of Belladonnas among black cat Faunus," Blake said, as she shrugged, "But even I didn't think it would work that well."

Weiss slowly nodded.

"Mm."

Silence fell again. Weiss sucked in a deep breath.

"Had I known... Perhaps we could have gotten off to a better start."

Blake started and stared at Weiss. The white haired heiress shrugged.

"I... Would have seen you as someone to cultivate for politics, despite everything. To try and reach out..." She sighed and closed her eyes. "I'm sorry, I must sound awful to you."

"No more than usual," Blake admitted. Weiss frowned. Blake sucked in a breath. "That said... You were right to be afraid and angry when you found out about me."

Weiss' jaw dropped. She pinched herself. Then again. Blake frowned.

"You're not dreaming," she said.

"I-I was just checking for... Um..." Weiss sighed. "All right. I was just... You've never apologized for that."

Blake brushed her jacket sleeve off, and gripped her bicep. She looked to the side.

"My twins told me that the moment I saw things from your point of view, we became much better friends," she admitted. She looked back at Weiss. She worked her jaw slightly. "And after everything, I do want that. With everyone."

Weiss sucked in a breath.

"I do too," she admitted. "But... I'm not sure how far that will go."

Blake nodded.

"I don't either," she agreed. "I am still going to aim to be first in Jaune's heart. Not just for the future but... Well sort of for the future but..." She sighed.

Weiss allowed herself a slight smirk.

"You never thought of him as a partner before, did you?"

"Neither did you," Blake shot back. Weiss nodded.

"You're right, I didn't. But it's not just the future that's made me change my mind. He... He's shown real maturity. And well..." She flushed. "I can see... See glimpses of the man he will become."

Blake frowned.

"There's no guarantee he'll become the man you want," she said. Weiss scowled.

"There's no guarantee he'll become the man you want... But I'm going to help him find it."

"So am I," Blake stated. Her eyes narrowed. "I would ask that we both play fair in this. I want to believe you would... But I know better."

"After all we've gone through, all it takes is a boy and you revert back to distrusting me-?" Weiss paused, and narrowed her eyes. "No... No, this is the princess part of you talking, isn't it?"

"Like it isn't the part of you talking right now," Blake growled. The two glared at one another, as though electricity might start crackling between their eyes.

"That's enough!"

Winter Schnee walked up, wearing a scowl. Both younger women turned their glares on her.

"We talked with Ruby this morning about all this," she said in exasperation.

"And you think that that's it? One talk and everything's resolved?" Weiss demanded. "You told me to accept the world as it is, sister! Well I know what that means: Competition. Survival of the fittest."

"She's your friend, and I'm your sister," Winter said softly. "We all have a future to save. Why are you so angry now?"

"Now?" Weiss seethed. She shook her head. "Now... I..." She looked down, clenching her fists.

Because she was so far behind the rest. Jaune had been willing to meet with Cinder for Breaker's sake, the terrorist who tried to kill him! He was willing to work with her and... And he'd only spoken to her once! The rest... Had been with family.

She slowly looked up and scowled.

"I'm willing to work together to save our family and keep everyone safe," she said, "I took those words of Ruby's to heart.. But I still intend to be first in his heart, Winter, Blake. And I know you feel the same."

Winter looked hurt, but a bit guilty. Blake flushed, but nodded with the grim finality of preparing for battle. Weiss nodded, satisfied.

"Then we can at least be honest going forward," she stated.

"Ahem."

All three women looked at the newcomer. It was Ashley Fall-Arc, the daughter of Cinder and Jaune. She looked a bit nervous.

"Hey Aunties," she said softly.

Weiss forgot her anger for a moment. This was, after all, Jaune's daughter too. No matter what her mother might have done, she was innocent.

... Mostly. She still remembered her firing that laser at her.

"Hello," Blake said, wary but kind, "What can we do for you? And where are the other children?"

Ashley rolled her eyes.

"Theodore, Xander, and Dorothy are having us stay together and write down everything we can remember about the future for the adults," she said, "He's probably grabbing anyone left soonish.

Winter smiled in approval at her son. Weiss scoffed mentally. Of course she would approve of him being so bossy.

Ashley continued:

"Before that though, I was hoping to ask for a favor?"

"What kind of favor?" Winter asked calmly, apparently coming to the same conclusions about Ashley as Weiss.

"I need some Hardlight Dust and a Menagerian scrambler coil," she said, glancing between Winter, Weiss, and Blake. "My Scroll isn't working as well as I'd like so I'm trying something Julian came up with to connect better."

There was something in her voice that Weiss couldn't quite place, but she didn't have any reason to doubt her. She fished out a bit of Hardlight from her combat skirt's pockets and handed it over. Blake herself searched through her belongings before she produced the device in question. Ashley took both with a small smile.

"Thank you," she said. She nodded to Winter. "Also, I wanted to say-ACK! HEY!"

The Blue Schnee Glyph appeared, and Theodore reached out to yank Ashley through. He grinned unrepentantly at them.

"Hey. Sorry about that," he said, "But we need all hands on deck for this. Gotta get all this intel for everyone to work with."

He smiled at his mother warmly.

"Also? Aunt Penny wants to talk to you."

"Me?" Winter asked.

"Er... All the future mothers," Theodore said. He ducked in, and shoved a surprised Penny through. Whitley followed after, slamming into the floor. "Sorry Uncle Whitley!"

"Urk!" Was Weiss and Winter's little brother's reply.

Theodore vanished, as did his Glyph. Weiss glared at Winter and helped Whitley up.

"How did he turn out like that?!" She demanded.

"How should I know, he hasn't been born yet!" Winter said defensively. "Are you all right, Whitley?"

"Yes, thanks for asking... For once," Whitley muttered. He and the other Schnee siblings winced.

Ah... I still need to work on that, too, Weiss thought with a grimace. She then turned to Penny, trying to keep things moving in a positive direction.

"Yes Penny? You had something for us?"

"Oh yes!" Penny said cheerfully. "Did you know that kissing is great? I sure didn't!"

Whitley turned so bright red he could have marked the sleazy part of town. His sisters gave him a long stare, as Blake smirked a bit.

"We are aware," Blake said, "And the other?"

Penny beamed and clapped her hands.

"A solution to deepening your relationships with Friend Jaune over the coming holiday in a fair, equal manner! Would you like to hear it?"

The three women warily looked at one another, then back at Penny.

"Yes," they said.

"Sensational!" Penny cheered. She then blinked. "Oh! I need to get him too since he is part of this and I need to guard him! Excuse me!"

She lit up her rocket boosters and flew down the hall at high speed, the blowback of the exhaust nearly bowling everyone over.

"Must she do that?" Blake groaned, "I thought she was still pretending to be a normal girl!"

"She never did it very well," Weiss grumbled.

Winter looked over at Whitley with a raised eyebrow as he brushed himself off.

"So... You were kissing?" She asked blandly.

Whitley turned bright red again.

"Shut up!"

 

[AndrewJTalon]

The Fall Maiden was before her. A soft and sheltered girl who knew nothing of hardship, nothing of pain. What did she do to deserve her power? What sacrifices did she make? What suffering did she go through. She did nothing, sacrificed nothing, suffered through nothing. Her power was undeserved, unearned, and unjust. An error of circumstance that Cinder had come to correct.

Power belonged with someone who had earned it, someone who had suffered for it, someone who had sacrificed for it. Someone like herself. And now after years of suffering, years of sacrifice in the Grimm Queen's service, and years of planning the power of The Maiden would be in the hands of someone who deserved power.

The Fall Maiden stumbled backwards as Cinder towered over her, brown hair falling back to fully expose her brown face and brown eyes. Those eyes widened in terror as Cinder stretched forth a hand and grasped the girl around her neck while the other hand grasped her face covering one of her eyes. Now that the Fall Maiden was in her grasp Cinder could take what should have always been hers if the world was just, what the world owed her for her childhood hell.

All she had to do was kill this stranger. A stranger that had never had a chance to hurt her before...

...Now Amber would never going to get that chance.

Power surged between them as Cinder's hands erupted into flames and ate into the stranger's skin. Emerald screamed as the flames danced around her face and neck, her exposed red eye widening in terror while her mint green hair began to billow with the rising smoke.

Cinder blinked away the smoke as Emerald became Amber became Emerald again. Confusion welled in the back of her mind: Why was she punishing her faithful subordinate like this? Whatever the reason this light toasting was more than enough to show the thief her place, and she should stop now before any permanent damage could be done to her most loyal TRAITOR.

Her grip around Emerald's throat grew tighter as the flames grew higher. The smell of burning flesh reached her nose.

Ashley screamed as she fell to her knees in pain, pulling Cinder's left arm down with her as the Half-Maiden found herself unable to loosen her grasp. In the distance she could hear a male voice screaming "Stop Mom! Stop!" and yet she could not loosen her grip or douse her flames no matter how hard she tried.

Her daughter's pale half-burned face looked up with her unburnt blue eye begging for mercy as the flames around her neck danced through her black hair. Cinder tried to jerk her arm back and away, but it was like her hand was locked in place around Ashley's throat. No matter how hard she pulled away she could not break contact.

The man voice screaming "Stop Mom! Stop!" grew closer.

The flames grew hotter as they started to dance up Cinder's arm. Her own skin and flesh started to peel away leaving black-charred bones wreathed in flames behind. This blaze grew in intensity as it worked its' way up her arm, yet the grip of the burning bones did not loosen. She pulled as the flames ate away at her forearm, but she couldn't separate herself from Ashley. She pulled as the flames reached her elbows, yet she couldn't separate herself from Emerald. She pulled away as the flames moved past her elbow to her biceps but she could not let go of Amber.

The screaming man, a boy, her boy, was practically next to them now.

Ashley's screams of pain and terror only grew even as Cinder placed her right hand on the girl's shoulder and attempted to push herself away from Emerald. The position she needed to take to do this caused the flames moving up her left arm to start licking the left side of her face, charing the area around her left eye even as the heat started to cook that watery orb. This still failed to disconnect her from the screaming girl as the burning bones seemed to tighten their grip all on their own, as if the skeletal hand itself was terrified of letting go.

Ash latched onto Cinder's shoulders and pulled with all his might. It still was not enough to loosen her grip on Ashley, on Emerald, on Amber.

Embers fell to the ground around them, igniting the very earth they stood upon. Within moments an inferno was raging all about them, the roar of the blaze starting to drown out the panicking voice of her son begging his mother to stop.

She couldn't stop. Even as the firestorm raged and consumed the world around her she could not loosen her grip on Ashley, she could not loosen her hold on Emerald, she could not let go of Amber.

The conflagration ate away at the ground they stood upon, collapsing into a tunnel beneath them. Her power surged as they fell, turning the tight space into a kiln that would burn away everything within it...

Cinder's eyes snapped open in a cold sweat. Within a moment of waking she remembered where she was, the bedroom of the latest safe-house where she had secluded herself in preparation for the coming night. There was a list of things she needed to check up on for the new plan she had been workshopping with Iridescent, things better done under the cover of darkness, and so she had decided to preemptively catch some of the sleep she would otherwise lose during the impending nighttime excursion.

The Grimm within her squirmed about as if it was just as unsettled by the nightmare as she was, even as the details slipped away as most dreams do.

She hauled herself out of the bed and went through the motions of making herself presentable. By the time her makeup was sorted to an acceptable level only the vaguest details of the dream remained. Those vague details haunted her as she made her way from the bedroom to the kitchen to put together a light meal for the evening. She was surprised to see Mercury posted outsider her door as if he had been standing guard the whole time, but she hid that surprise well and she could hazard to guess his purpose if not his motive.

"Her semblance involves density shifting, in both directions," Cinder whispered as she passed him. If he wanted to place himself between her and any underhanded tricks the newcomer might try she might as well let him, "Her control is good enough for her to phase through solid objects."

"Hmm," Mercury grunted in acknowledgment but offered no further comment as they rounded the corner to the safe house's main living area, for the subject of their conversation was there.

Iridescent sat at the dinner table with multiple scrolls and other screens spread out before her. Several clips from a series of fights that had occurred earlier in the day at one of Beacon's training fields dominated most of the screens, allowing Iridescent to observe the action from a multitude of angles. The white haired woman took notes and muttered commentary to herself.

"The Schnee girl appears vulnerable to skilled grappling. A troop of Beringel's perhaps?" She fast forwarded to another part of the fight, "That flash came from the Rose girl's eyes. So they're actually silver, not just grey, and she has some idea of how to use them. That will be tricky to work around..."

She glanced away from her work and saw the two of them entering the room, a smile breaking across her face as she called out in greeting, "Lady Cinder! I've been going over all the footage I can find of your competition and brainstorming new ways to subdue them! Since we still have time before we need to depart for the evening would you like to go over some of my ideas?"

Cinder regarded Iridescent as Mercury continued towards the kitchen area, where he started preparing enough food for a team. Another surprise from the mercenary, but it let Cinder keep all of her attention on the purple clad woman so she put puzzling out her mercenary's sudden bout of unprompted helpfulness aside for latter.

"I suppose I could have a look," Cinder allowed as she took a seat at the table across from the other Maiden Candidate. She kept her voice neutral as she locked eyes with Iridescent, "However, an effective game-plan requires knowing not just the strengths and weaknesses of your opponents, but your allies as well. As things stand we don't know enough about each other to make a proper plan fitted to our strengths."

"That's a simple enough problem to fix," Iridescent beamed like a door to door salesman who had found the right hook to keep a door open, "We can take this time to share! What do you want to know about me?"

"How long have you been serving our Queen?" Cinder probed, "I don't remember ever seeing you at Evernight."

"That question has a complicated answer," Iridescent leaned back as a reminiscing twinkle entered her eyes. "I first met our Queen in a dream."

"A dream?" Cinder rose an eyebrow not in doubt but in thought. Salem's lectures about the mechanics of dream magic rose to the forefront of her mind, how establishing a connection to share a dreamscape normally required the two participants to be in close proximity to one another, unless the two dreamers happened to be on the same wavelength emotionally or spiritually on the night of the dream.

"I think was five or six the first time," Iridescent reminisced with a smile. "It was a couple nights after my parents had died in the arena, and Queen Salem offered me solace by carving the happy memories of my mother and father into my very soul so I'd never forget them. To this day I can still perfectly recall the glint of determination in my father's eyes as he killed for me and my mother, each fight inching him closer and closer to clearing his debts and buying our freedom. That gave me the direction I needed to survive in the Sanusian Deathmatch Fighting League, and plot my revenge of course."

"Of course," Cinder nodded as she started to puzzle things out. The Sanusian Deathmatch Fighting League had been a major presence in the criminal underworld of both Vale and Vacuo until a month into her search for Amber, when the grandmaster of the underground death sports and everyone else involved in upper management were all killed in the span of a single evening and the entirety of League's treasury had disappeared. "I presume the collapse of the Deathmach League was your work then?"

"Guilty as charged," Iridescent tittered, "Though some of the credit is owed to our Queen. She visited my dreams multiple times throughout the years and offered invaluable guidance. Her lessons also gave me a few aces up my sleeves once I was ready to strike. After that Queen Salem sent a Seer to me and we had our first real conversation in the waking world. She invited me to Evernight with the offer to further refine my skills and ambitions. She actually put me up in the suite kitty-corner from yours! I think we only just barely missed each other."

"I see, how unfortunate," Cinder commented in a tone that was genuinely regretful, though this regret hinged on how circumstances had made Iridescent such an unknown variable. If Iridescent's revenge had happened slightly sooner, or her own hunt for Amber had started slightly later she would have already established a dynamic with the purple clad woman, adding her to the list of proverbial devils you know instead of being a devil Cinder didn't.

"It really is," Iridescent agreed with a serious nod, "From what I've heard about you I think we could have become great friends."

"Perhaps," Cinder allowed. The purple clad girl seemed truly heartfelt in her sentiment, but Cinder knew better than to let her guard down at this juncture. If they had met back at Evernight then maybe that sentiment could have been reality, but this was now. "However the fact that we have only properly met today makes me wonder why our Queen didn't send a Maiden Candidate I already have a working relationship with. The stakes are too high for us to be figuring things out as we go along."

"Unfortunate timing mostly," Iridescent answered with a casual shrug, "Allie is in the middle of an experiment too important and too delicate to step away from, even with Doctor Merlot contributing his expertise. Badoura needed to go radio silent for an assassination in Vacuo so she'll be out of contact for at least a week. Fee is actually assisting Doctor Watts in writing up a new virus for us to use in case one of the time travelers knows enough about history to find and delete the old one, and your guess on how long that will take them is as good as mine. We could keep going down the list but suffice it to say I was the best candidate that was actually available."

"I see," Cinder kept the frown that wanted to form off of her face, her gut telling her that availability might not have been the only reason. The three Maiden Candidates Iridescent had mentioned were all candidates Cinder considered to be proper peers on her level, and the tone Iridescent had mentioned them with implied the white haired girl also considered them proper peers on her own level. Add in the unknown number of dream meetings the girl could have had with Salem before being brought to Evernight...

...The fact Cinder already possessed half of the Fall Maiden's power might be the only reason Iridescent was currently acting deferential and supportive instead of assuming control of the operation for herself. It was either that or Salem had ordered Iridescent to not take over as a way to test Cinder, undoubtedly with orders to take charge if she faltered at the wrong time.

That made their unfamiliarity with each other even more lamentable. Cinder knew how to dance around Badoura's zealotry, how to placate Allie's disappointment and how to redirect Fee's attention, and they in turn knew her. Iridescent could quite easily mistake a moment of contemplation or one misspoken word for abandoning Salem's cause, meaning a fight could break out between them when she least expected one.

Having real magic would give her the edge if that happened. Unfortunately only half of a Maiden's power was not insurmountable in a one on one confrontation. She wished she could take solace in the fact that she'd have backup, but looking back she had given her minions very little reason to side with her if a fight did happen.

So she needed make sure Iridescent was never alone with Neopolitan so the newcomer couldn't try to subvert the ice cream craving mute. Mercury? For some reason she felt less concerned about him being turned against her. She had kept him in line with fear and yet he was still in line even though that fear was now gone. She'd keep him close for now, see if he'd stand guard again unprompted.

In any case she now knew more about Iridescent, now she just needed to steer the conversation in a direction that wouldn't let Iridescent know more than she needed to about herself.

Fortunately Mercury came out of the kitchen at that point with the food he had prepared, placing a simple spread of toasted bagels and scrambled eggs before her and Iridescent. Cinder was slightly surprised to see the bagel buttered and glazed with honey just the way she liked it. She hadn't realized the man payed that much attention to Emerald's cooking...

In any case the meal's arrival provided a natural break in the conversation that Cinder could use to restart the conversation on a different topic.

"So with the videos you were watching, what have you learned from them?"

"Your man has a lot of raw potential," Iridescent smiled as she pulled up footage of Jaune's spar with his father. "He has the right grit in his soul, and if it came down to it I think he'd kill for you," The white haired girl sighed as if she couldn't imagine anything more romantic than that. "You're a lucky girl Cinder."

"Thank you," Cinder didn't manage to keep the frown off of her fact that time.

The conversation continued as a discussion on the fights that had been filmed earlier in the day, with Iridescent pointing out the flaws she could see in each combatant's style. Somewhere in the middle of this Cinder felt her scroll vibrate in the 'text received' pattern. When Iridescent seemed particularly engrossed with her commentary Cinder took the opportunity to discreetly look at the message she had received, her eyes widened for a fraction of a second as she red the words from an unknown number.

Unknown: Mom, these are our numbers, and these times are good times to call...

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Amethyst groaned as she leaned back in his chair in the small study room the Future Children had gathered in. Petra was meditating near a pillar, occasionally typing things out on her Scroll. August was on another desk, lying back and typing while staring up. Nicholas was surrounded by books, and scribbling down notes almost frantically. She glared over at Xander, who was typing on his own Scroll at the head of the room, putting in data points from the various kids. Many of whom weren't even around! The jerks.

"Can we take a break?" She whined. "And can't I see Moses? I feel like Dorothy's been hogging him!"

"I am not!" Dorothy huffed, floating overhead.

"Are too!" Amethyst protested.

"We're almost to bed time, there's not much point in a break now," August sighed, flipping through images on his holoscreen, "Hmm... The pass has more defenses now..."

Leandra and Leander appeared out from behind a pillar, making Amethyst squeak.

"Eep! Little warning next time you do that?" She complained. Her half-siblings snickered.

"That would defeat the point," Leander smirked. He held up some supplies. "Got what you wanted from the store, Xander!"

"Great, put it down there," Xander indicated.

"Though teleporting all the way out to Vale is a trek for us," Leandra groaned, sitting down across from Amethyst. She dumped her bag of supplies on the table, and began sorting through it. "Let's see... Who wanted Winkies?"

The snack cakes vanished in a burst of golden petals, and Julian Arc-Rose reappeared nearby, eating the confectionary happily.

"Mmmm... So much sugar," he moaned. "Not as good as Mom's but pure sugar!"

Xia walked in after him, looking a bit awkward.

"So, this where we doing our homework?" Xia asked, holding up her Scroll.

"That's right!" Dorothy cried, descending from the ceiling with a grin. Amethyst twitched again, as Dorothy hovered nearby.

"Do you have to do that?"

"It helps me think," Dorothy said cheerfully, "Besides, there's still a lot more to get through."

Amethyst moaned and slammed her forehead into the desk.

"I'm a jeweler, how much could I possibly know?!" She demanded. Leander reached out to pat her on her shoulder.

"There there..."

Nicholas grinned as he saw a message on his Scroll.

"Klein and Granny have agree to look into some more parts we need," he said, shaking his head, "It's amazing how much tech changes in just twenty years."

"Doesn't help that all of our stuff uses magic, which isn't exactly in widespread use now," Julian mumbled, munching on more sweet treats. He vanished in a flurry of petals to reappear near a stack of books, which he began to flip through.

"Applied magic in our timeline," Dorothy volunteered, "Though it's mostly tracing glyphs with Aura and Dust to create a set of logic gates to emulate Boolean logic in computers."

"Ah," Nicholas said with a nod, holding up his sword, "My weapon uses similar glyph logic gates to enhance my Glyph use. With it, I'm able to mix and match the Dust amounts I deploy to every Glyph."

"WOW!" Julian enthused, shooting over to look the weapon over, "That's cool! I use something similar in Crescent Rose: Take Two!" He proudly held out his sniper scythe. "No physical gears needed! Just Glyph Gates that act as magnetic bearings!"

"Big deal," Amethyst scoffed, "I use Magic Glyph Gate tech in my studio! It's common in my timeline!"

"It's common in all our timelines, but it only became common with the defeat of Salem," Theodore spoke, teleporting in and hovering down to the floor in front of them all, "Right now, there's nothing."

"So we need magic to interface with this stuff," Julian said cheerfully, already scribbling some notes on a holopad. "Or at least some workarounds until we find some!"

"Maybe we could ask Granny Izzy to loan us some magical items from Radian," Xia suggested, "I think half the things in Nana's basement were magical artifacts."

"Yeah, but without actually knowing how to use it, it was all mostly junk," Theodore sniffed, looking over some supplies as well. "A mirror that insults you, a hairbrush that turns you blond..."

"Why would she have one of those?" Leandra asked with a frown. Theodore shrugged.

"Got me. Her side of the family collected all sorts of magical items from before the Moonshatter."

"Weird," Xia pronounced. She scanned around with a frown. "Where are Ash and Ashley?"

Nicholas shook his head, going back to his books.

"They're working on something in private," he said. Dorothy frowned deeply.

"You're... Not worried about that?" She asked quietly.

Amethyst scowled.

"Their mom... Their mom isn't evil in their timeline," she said flatly, "And neither are they!"

"I'm not saying they are," Dorothy said carefully, "But when it comes to family? It's hard to stay objective."

Theodore grinned.

"Well! There's an easy way to find out. Excuse me."

He dropped through another Glyph, sending up a gust of wind that blew several papers and books off the desks. Xander rolled his eyes.

"He did that on purpose," he muttered.

"What was your first clue?" Xia asked sarcastically.

- - -

It was a tight spot. Between the wall and the insulation in the castle, behind a suit of armor on display. Ash tapped directly into a network bus, while Ashley worked on her Scroll. The screen glowed a low blue in the dark confines, lighting up their faces.

"Any reply yet?" Ash asked, keeping an eye on the transceiver array they'd cobbled together.

Ashley sighed.

"No... But that could mean anything."

Ash stared intently at the screen, and slowly nodded.

"Yeah," he murmured. He reached down and squeezed her hand. "It'll take time."

Ashley nodded slowly. He smiled.

"It's going to be okay," he murmured.

"Well, well, well!"

Both twins brought their dagger pistol hybrids up to point overhead. Theodore Arc grinned down at them, his head poking out of a Schnee Glyph. He held his hands up.

"Hey! Easy with those things!"

"How did you find us?" Ashley demanded. Theodore shrugged.

"I use this little nook at Beacon too," he said, "Usually when I want to get some downloads of new Mistralian animes. Or to hide from Shu when she's mad."

The twins gave him a deadpan look in unison. Theodore shook his head.

"So... Contacting your mom?"

"And if we were?" Ash asked, tense. Ashley adjusted her grip on her gun.

Theodore chuckled.

"I'm sure you know what you're doing... But be careful. And keep me in the loop, huh?"

Ashley's eyes widened. Ash scowled.

"That's it?" He asked.

"That's it," Theodore said with a shrug, "She's your mom. You'd do anything to save her. And hell..." He grinned and winked. "I'm not about to abandon my family either, am I?"

Ash and Ashley stared up at him. Theodore grinned and saluted.

"Anyway, don't run off to meet her without telling me, eh? She's still working for the bad guys. And when you got a moment, join us. We're gonna need your intel most of all."

"We can wait for a reply later, I guess," Ash murmured. Ashley nodded.

"Sure... We all want to kill that witch," Ashley stated.

Theodore grinned.

"Works for me!"

A Glyph opened up under Ash and Ashley. The two fell through, squealing. They landed on the floor of the study room, not enough room to land properly. They glared up at Theodore, who appeared via another Glyph overhead and floated in the air.

"Yay! Now we're all together!" Theodore cheered.

"And you say I'm the immature one," Julian muttered, eating more sweets.

- - -