[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.

- - -

 

[AndrewJTalon]

"I hate dealing with half-days," Glynda Goodwitch sighed as she pinched the bridge of her nose. She had just entered the teacher's lounge a few steps ahead of her peers, who had finally stopped congratulating and teasing about her, engagement was probably the best term, with Jaune Arc. The end of this congratulatory teasing had allowed other topics to be the center of their conversation, and so Glynda had begun this year's version of an annual complaint. "Too many students let themselves be distracted by the extra free time to focus on their work and I have to dole out double the discipline to keep everyone on task. Having to deal with a whole week of half-days is a chore and a half."

"You could always make this a review week," Professor Peach suggested as she went to the lounge's fridge in search of a beverage. "That's a lot easier than trying to break new ground on a week like this."

"That's easy for you to say Thumbelina," Glynda groused as she placed a stack of papers on the room's central table. "Dust Studies has a lot of basic formulas people need to have memoized that you can base a refresher corse around. Nothing in my combat classes is standardized and all of my student's fight differently enough that nothing can be standardized." Her eyes flicked over to Professor Mombi, "And don't you dare suggest making my students watch a film in class."

"I wasn't going to suggest a movie or anything like that," Mombi raised her hands defensively, "But what about the Vytal Tournament of Seventy-three? You already have the student's not fighting take notes and comment on the students who are fighting, what's wrong with having them take notes on an older match?"

"It's the principle of the matter," Glynda scowled at the librarian. "If other teachers can keep normal classes going through the holiday then I'm going to do the same."

"Some of us have an unfair advantage on that front Glynda," Professor Oobleck interjected as he rubbed a smudge off of his glasses. "For instance I usually make my classes on the week of the Emerald Festival about the festival itself, recounting its' origins and the historical context of the traditional festivities everyone will take part in once classes are finished for the day. If you could find a way to make your class about the holiday you'd probably have an easier time keeping your students' attention."

"Bartholomew's right you know," Professor Port chimed in, "It's a tactic I've used to great effect for the last five years! I've had to hunt more than one unique Grimm over his holiday season and the stories of those hunts have captivated my students every time!"

"Perhaps you could find a way to theme each day's matches?" Mombi suggested as she took a seat at the table.

"And how would I do that? Throw necklaces at them while they're fighting?" Glynda rolled her eyes.

"A reenactment!" Oobleck exclaimed while snapping his fingers, "You could use an arena with one of the new holographic generators to recreate one of the more pivotal moments in the Siege of Vale and have your students act it out!"

Glynda frown at the suggestion, but the frown was more thoughtful than annoyed.

"I suppose having each team figure out how they would have handled the defense of the Southwestern Bastion could be a good exercise... but I'm not sure I have time to prepare a lesson like that this year..."

"SALUTATIONS!" Penny Polendina joyously exclaimed as she rocketed in through one entrance to the lounge before scooping a startled Glynda up and rocketing out the lounge's other doorway.

Silence reigned for a moment.

"I guess we'll finish this brainstorming session later," Oobleck muttered with his fellow teachers nodding in response.

--------------------

A small smile graced May's face as she left the airfield. Sharing a meal with her long lost parents had been delightful, and the post meal conversation had filled her with a bubbling warmth that would stay with her for days to come. However all good things must come to an end, and not long after Theodore had shown up and whisked August away for some project May had come to the conclusion that her team might have been left unsupervised a little too long.

And so she was making her way back to the campus proper to touch base with Bronze and the others. Her pace was relaxed as she was in no real hurry. The evening was cool and pleasant, perfect for a relaxing stroll as she listened to the sounds of life she wouldn't have heard back in Vacuo. The singing of songbirds, the chirping of insects, the occasional croak of a frog...

...The rapidly approaching rockets.

"SALUTATIONS!"

"Eep!" Was all May managed before Penny scooped her up and changed corse for the VIP Guest section of the dormitories.

--------------------

Emerald sighed as she shifted through her belongings, namely her clothes, trying to determine which outfits hadn't been ruined by the fire-suppression fluid.

Jaune's father had offered to help, and she had almost taken him up on that offer, but in the end going through her things felt a little too personal and she insisted she needed to do this herself.

Fortunately the 'salvageable if you wash it right' pile was noticeably bigger than the 'irreversibly stained with fire-suppressing chemicals' pile. The list of things that needed to be outright replaced was small enough to not put a dent in her savings, so she tried to find comfort in that.

Emerald's eyes slowly slid away from her own possessions to the other storage spaces in the room. She knew in her gut that she'd ultimately be the person responsible for sorting out the things her... former... teammates... had left behind. Mercury's chest. Neopolitan's wardrobe...

...Cinder's dresser...

Emerald forcible tore her gaze from her former mistress' space in the room. She closed her eyes and silently counted backwards from ten before turning so Cinder's things were behind her, and only then did she open her eyes again.

"GAH!" Emerald exclaimed.

"SALUTATIONS!" Penny enthused before firmly grabbing the mint-haired thief around her shoulders and rocketing off with her.

--------------------

"I'm not fond of the internationally recognized constellation system," Arslan commented as she and Pyrrha looked up at the darkening sky, looking for the first stars to appear.

"Oh?" Pyrrha looked over to her rival with an inquisitive tilt to her head.

"All the major constellations in that system are Creatures of Grimm," The nun crinkled her nose in disgust. "The glory of the full Starry River illuminating the night sky filled our ancestors with wonder, and that wonder helped keep the Grimm at bay on the long nights before the first great walls were built. It feels a bit sacrilegious to fill the night sky with the terrors it kept us safe from, instead of filling it with the heroes that inspired us to greatness."

"I never thought about that before," Pyrrha murmured as she looked back to the sky. "I know the system used by the old Hellenic League only had a handful of monsters, and each of those monsters was accompanied by the hero that slayed it. So you're right it does seem odd that the International Constellation System's is basically all Grimm."

"The system Aelia Paravel used since before the mortal life of The Breaker told a story about The Tree of Life and how mankind lost access to it, with each constellation being a different character or object in the story," Arslan explained. "Heroes and sacred stories seems to have been the norm across most cultures."

"So why is the international system all Grimm?" Pyrrha frowned as she brought a hand to her chin in thought.

"If you asked the International Astronomers Union they'll sell you some dreck about not placing one culture's stories above the others," Arslan rolled her eyes at the thought. "Personally I think the real reason is that the committee that voted on these things was filled with people who never lived beyond the protection of a major city's walls, and so they had no problem adding more terrors to the night."

"I suppose..." Pyrrha's response trailed off as polarity sensed something rapidly approaching slightly before the sound of rockets filled her ears.

"SALUTATIONS!"

"Penny?!?!"

The ginger haired gynoid only slowed down for a second, and in that second she hooked her arms around Pyrrha and Arslan before rocketing off with the pair.

--------------------

The room was a small parlor not far from the VIP guest quarters meant to host informal get togethers without directly bringing outsiders into the private spaces reserved for guests. Penny rocketed into the room with Yang slung over one shoulder and Jaune slung over the other. A cloud of rose petals rushed in right after her and materialized into Ruby as Penny plopped the two blonds into separate chairs.

"Penny, why'd you grab them and rocket off like that?" Ruby panted as she got her bearings after the high speed chase.

"I knew you could keep up Friend Ruby, so grabbing you was unnecessary!" Penny enthused as she spun around and hugged her friend.

"Okay..." Ruby glanced around the room before returning the hug, taking note of everyone present. "Did you abduct everyone else here?"

"We were basically already here," Blake gestured to herself and the Schnee sisters, "So she just texted us to come to this room when she went off to get everyone else."

Ruby pulled away from the hug and looked her friend in they eyes, "And why didn't you just text or call all of us?"

Penny raised a finger and opened her mouth as if she was about to answer, but then she froze as still as a statue. The gynoid held that pose for almost ten seconds before she jolted back into motion and answered, "After reviewing my memory banks I have concluded that I was too excited to think of that at the time."

Glynda cleared her throat to get Penny's attention, then asked, "And why did you bring us all here?"

"I have devised a schedule that will allow each of you to have one on one time with Friend Jaune this week," Penny pronounced. Everyone perked up at this news and seeing that she had everyone's attention Penny continued; "With the Emerald Festival being a holiday born from a week long victory celebration it offers a wide variety of different activities that can provide a romantic atmosphere. Having compared all of your search histories to the officially registered venues I've determined the best days for Jaune to take each one of you out on a date."

"...Comparing our search histories..." Winter murmured before springing to her feet in alarm, "Penny! Did you go through our scrolls?!"

"No, of course not! That would be a gross violation of your privacy," Penny chided. "I simply purchased all of your information from a legal data-broker."

Winter's jaw worked up and down unable to articulate anything as the other girls all shared looks with varying levels of concern. Emerald looked a little queasy while May looked like she wanted to disappear between the couch cushions she was sitting on. Yang, Ruby and Glynda quickly pulled out their scrolls to double check their last ten searches. Pyrrha and Weiss shared a look as they wondered what Penny could have gleaned from their carefully monitored and managed social media accounts, and then both of their eyes widened as they were both simultaneously hit with the realization that Penny might have been able to find their secret personal accounts. Blake broke out in a cold sweat as she suddenly found the floor very interesting to look at.

Arslan pinched her nose and sighed, reminding herself that she shouldn't assume anything from the subtle panic the other women were going through. There were tons of reasons someone could be embarrassed by their search history, it didn't have to be evidence of degerqnacy or any other kind of deviant behavior.

"...Alright, let's come back to that later," Jaune interjected hoping to move the conversation past this bout of awkwardness. "Who am I taking out this week and when?"

"Monday works best for Specialist Schnee and Friend May," Penny turned to him with a voice brimming with excitement. "Tuesday is the best day for Friends Pyrrha and Blake. Wednesday would be wonderful for Friends Ruby and Emerald. Thursday is great for Friends Arslan and Yang while Friday is the best day for Friend Weiss and Professor Goodwitch!"

Two dates a day if he wanted to get to everyone this week, which he did. Jaune mentally counted the hours between the early end of the school day and the time he'd be expected back on campus if he joined the festivities in the city. He could see himself squeezing a pair of short dates into that timeframe. He just needed to figure out the specifics.

"Could you send me the list of venues you matched everyone up with?" Jaune asked.

"Of course Friend Jaune!" Penny smiled before staring off into the middle distance at nothing in particular. Jaune's scroll pinged with the e-mail received notification and Penny's focus returned to normal.

As Jaune pulled out his scroll to look things over Winter finally found her voice again.

"Penny," The military woman started, "Could you tell me about the data-brokers you found?"

Well somebody was going to be on the chopping block tomorrow. Jaune zeroed in on the activities Penny had lined up for Winter in the hopes of finding something that would help her destress from everything...

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

It was pretty chaotic. Pyrrha and Weiss, of all people, nearly came to blows before anyone else over the schedule. Ruby and Jaune were able to help calm things-Better than Glynda or Winter, for some strange reason. May tried to be a bit assertive, but she still pulled her punches out of insecurity. Yang was a bit quieter, but when Blake pushed a bit harder she stepped up with a bit more irritation than he expected. Emerald was surprisingly quiet, but given the gimlet eyes she was getting from Arslan and Pyrrha, that was only to be expected.

Ultimately though? They were able to hammer out the schedule and everyone agreed to it. Thankfully without an actual hammer, though Yang still made the joke.

He did appreciate the levity though, as Penny projected a holographic schedule:

Monday:
Winter
May
Tuesday:
Pyrrha
Blake
Wednesday:
Ruby
Emerald
Thursday:
Arslan
Yang
Friday:
Weiss
Glynda

"Sensational!" Penny cheered, at the nodding heads and some smiles around her, "I am so happy to be managing your romance, Friends! I will give it 100 percent of my efforts to ensure it is fruitful!"

Ruby blushed, and she wasn't the only one. Jaune coughed.

"Ah... Thanks Penny," Jaune managed.

"It's late," Glynda stated, her voice carrying its natural authority, "And we have a long week ahead of us. I believe we should avoid any... Further night time activities?" She raised an eyebrow at the others. Yang snorted.

"Bit rich given you were up and about last time," she shot back. Glynda cleared her throat, suddenly looking a bit embarrassed.

"I-I was doing my job-!"

"Ma'am," Pyrrha said, as polite as ever but with an edge, "We all know that's not the case."

Glynda flushed.

Jaune sucked in a breath.

"Guys? Again... We've agreed to a plan. Let's stick to it," he said firmly. He kept his voice calm and even. Pyrrha nodded first, smiling gently at him. Arslan followed. Glynda had a bit of pride in her eyes, which admittedly was something he had wanted to see from his teacher. Winter's look was unreadable, while May and Emerald both looked a bit relieved.

Yang was a bit chagrined, but she smiled almost dreamily at him.

"Sure thing, Stud," she agreed. Jaune's ears went bright red, as everyone else all stared at Yang.

"'Stud'?" Weiss asked, her tone as piercing as glass.

"Yang," Ruby said warningly. Yang shrugged, tossing her hair back theatrically.

"Well, after that kiss, I'd say he's earned a nickname upgrade, hm?"

The tension in the room skyrocketed.

"Kiss?" Pyrrha asked tightly, her plastic smile truly terrifying.

"Sorry, kisses," Yang specified with a smirk. "It was a LOT more than one~."

"YANG!" Ruby growled. Yang shrugged.

"What? You kissed him too!"

The fury was split between the two sisters, though Ruby moved towards Yang for protection out of instinct. Jaune took another deep breath.

He had authority here. He had to use it.

"Yes. I kissed them both," Jaune said, calm and authoritative. "And I'll be kissing all of you on our dates... If you want. So there's no need to get upset."

Everyone's eyes locked onto him. Weiss let out a long, slow breath, though still shot Yang an angry look. Blake wasn't much better, but looked more composed.

Glynda recovered first. She slowly nodded.

"It's not productive to fight like this, you're right," she said.

Ruby winced guiltily, but with a nudge from Yang, she found her voice again.

"That's true. Things haven't changed. We do need to keep our focus on our goals... Wh-Which do include kissing Jaune and being fair about it," she said at some looks, "But we should try not to provoke everyone else... Too much."

"How much is too much?" Pyrrha asked a bit sharply. Penny beamed and stepped forward.

"Have no fear, friends! I will monitor the situation and ensure everyone gets equal access in Friend Jaune's harem!"

"It's not a harem!" Jaune groaned.

"You really need to stop being in denial about that," Emerald suggested wryly.

"Indeed, it fits the basic definition," Blake pointed out.

"There are worse things to call it," Arslan observed.

Jaune was about to ask the nun what those were, when the door to the room opened and someone cleared their throat significantly. All eyes locked onto Isabel Arc, standing in the doorway. She gave them all a small smile.

"Hello all," she greeted, "I would like to speak with my son alone, if you don't mind?"

"We're pretty much done for tonight," Winter stated. She gave Jaune a small but eager smile, "I-I'm looking forward to tomorrow, Jaune."

"M-Me too," May professed, not quite meeting his eyes but her blush and smile gave her away. Jaune smiled and nodded back.

"Me too. To... To all our dates," he said. "See you all tomorrow."

"What, no good night kiss?" Yang joked, though she winced at the glares she received. "What? I wouldn't limit it to just one!"

Blake already made to move towards Jaune, but Arslan held her back.

"Let's avoid anymore fights tonight, okay?" Arslan advised. Blake sighed, but relented.

"Very well... But I must ask: What happened to Faunus solidarity? I would have shared."

"One, we're all going to have to share," Arslan stated, a faint blush on her face, "Second, simply because we are both Faunus does not mean we have anything else in common."

"We're both cat faunus!" Blake protested. Arslan shook her head.

"I am a lion faunus. There is a distinct difference."

"Great, she found a new argument buddy," Yang sighed. She looked over at Weiss. "Guess you're out of the running, Weisscream."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Weiss demanded.

Despite the arguments and bickering, they all managed to say goodnight to Jaune, Penny and Isabel before heading out. Jaune reminded himself to track down his children and father and tell them goodnight as well, before he turned to Isabel. She in turn looked over at Penny.

"I did say alone," Isabel said, with a gentle but firm authority. Penny smiled.

"My orders are to defend Jaune Arc, Doctor Arc! But I will not repeat anything you two discuss!"

Isabel raised an eyebrow.

"I suppose that will suffice," she managed. "Jaune?"

As though girding himself for battle, Jaune nodded grimly.

"I'm ready, Mom."

- - -

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Isabel and Jaune sat on opposing sides of one of the many little tables in the meeting room. Penny politely moved off towards the center of the room, her eyes glowing slightly as she stood like a statue.

"I am now in privacy mode," Penny said cheerfully, "For I am a perfectly normal girl!"

Jaune blinked.

"Um, Penny? I know you're a gynoid-"

"Perfectly normal girl!" Penny reiterated with exactly the same inflection and tone as before. Jaune blinked, as Isabel hid a smile.

"You certainly are, Penny," Isabel said, and Penny beamed.

Mother and son then looked at each other in silence. Isabel worried her lower lip.

"It's been a while since it was just us together, huh?"

Jaune nodded.

"Yeah... Last time was... Before I left."

Isabel smiled wanly.

"You had just gotten your acceptance letter to Ambrose... I was very proud."

"I know," Jaune sighed.

Isabel shook her head slowly.

"You could have just waited for me to unlock your Aura, then run off to Beacon, you know," Isabel said, her voice soft with hurt, "It would have been much safer for you. I would have done it."

Jaune sucked in a deep breath, and looked to the side. Isabel's frown deepened.

"I mean, you did forge your way into Beacon. Why didn't you just lie to me?"

Jaune slowly looked back at her, forcing himself to stare into her eyes.

"Fraud is one thing but... But lying to you? I just... I couldn't do that, Mom," Jaune said quietly.

She shook her head, her voice a bit tight.

"I was going to be angry when I found out, Jaune. But I would prefer you alive and a liar than dead."

His hands twitched, as he resisted the urge to reach out to comfort her. He fixed her with a steady stare.

"I wanted to fulfill my dream, mom. Not yours. And lying to you is just... It would be too far."

"You lied about you going to medical school," Isabel stated, an edge to her tone. Jaune shook his head, eyes determined.

"No, I just promised I would pass the tests to get into medical school. I didn't say I'd go, Mom!"

"You just used semantics!" Isabel argued, her posture tense. "You still lied to me!"

He clenched his fists and glared at her. A hundred old hurts and resentments boiled up and he couldn't hold them back. Not when it was just them... And Penny, he supposed, but she may as well not have been there.

"Well that's what I had to do to get around you because you just wouldn't let me make my own choices! Everything had to be what you wanted, what you decided! You were probably arranging my marriage, too! Why did all my sisters get to choose their own paths but I couldn't?!"

Isabel opened her mouth, her face red... Then she shut her eyes and mouth, her posture becoming calm. Her Aura thrummed around her as she used her Semblance. She took a very deep breath, and opened her eyes to look back at her son, who glared back, undeterred.

"You're right," she said softly.

Jaune's jaw dropped.

"H-Huh?!"

"You're right," Isabel repeated, "I did... I did want to plan out your life, Jaune. I wanted you to follow my path."

"Why?" Jaune demanded, still angry, "Because I was the sickly runt of the family?! Because I had to spend half my childhood in the hospital?! Because I was too nice, too kind?! You always told me that I couldn't handle it! That I was too soft!"

Isabel closed her eyes, and again used her Semblance to calm down. Part of Jaune felt guilty for forcing her to do this, but damnit... All the old hurts were still there, fighting with his love for her.

She slowly shook her head, thoughtful, before she spoke again:

"I talked with your father and saw your combat footage. You... You have massive potential, Jaune. Honestly, I always thought you did have incredible potential to be a Huntsman. You grew up so strong, so smart."

"Still in the bottom 20 percent!" Jaune growled.

"You've gone from an untrained civilian to able to kill Ursas in, what, a year? That kind of growth is phenomenal, Jaune," Isabel said softly, "That's faster than your father or me when we were your age. It's astonishing how fast you're growing."

"Then why?!" Jaune demanded, hurt breaking his voice. Isabel looked down at her hands, which were gently clenched.

"... Because I was afraid of losing you, Jaune," she whispered. "I'm terrified of losing any of my children-What mother isn't? But you..." Her voice was even, but tears began to slide down her cheeks. Jaune stared, again his hands twitching to reach out to her but still he resisted.

"I had had seven children, everything had been just fine," she continued, "Nothing I couldn't handle. Then you were born... And you were close to death from the moment you came into the world. I didn't know what I had done wrong. I spent every waking hour I could to save you, to keep you alive. Three agonizing weeks you were in an incubator under constant Aura treatment. I had to invent new ways of keeping you alive on the fly while recovering from labor. I saw you, so tiny, fighting for your life and... And I couldn't figure out why."

She slowly looked up at him, tears streaming from her blue eyes as her voice remained unnaturally calm.

"Then... When you were stabilized, we got an emergency call from Mount Glenn. Nick and I had to rush over, help save whoever we could. We tried... We tried... Then they blew the tunnel and..."

Jaune's hands defied his anger, and reached out to grasp Isabel's. She squeezed him back, and sniffled.

"Mom," he murmured.

"I suppose," Isabel said softly, "These things combined made me decide that... That no. I will not let any of my children go through that. And especially not you, Jaune. So many children were lost and all I could think about was... How would I feel if they were mine?" She closed her eyes.

"And in the end, my children ran off because I pushed too hard. I'm a selfish, foolish old woman."

"Mom," Jaune murmured again. He got up and scooted around the table, letting her hands go just long enough to wrap her up in a tight hug. She returned it, and he rubbed her back to try and sooth her. They sat in silence for a time, the hug familiar and comforting.

Her Aura again thrummed. She looked up at him, calm and controlled.

"And now you're... You're going to save the world," she said, her voice level but with a touch of awe. Jaune shrugged.

"I'm not the only one who does," he said.

Isabel smiled. She reached up to cup his cheek and stroke it.

"I know," she said softly, "But you're the key. And... And I have to admit, Jaune. I'm terrified for you."

"I'm... I'm scared too," Jaune admitted quietly, his eyes going down to stare at her lap. He forced them back up.

"But you and Dad taught me that it doesn't matter if you're scared: You have to push on. Too many people are depending on you."

Isabel smiled softly, tinged with sadness. She hugged him again, very tightly.

"When did you grow up?" She sighed.

"Well," Jaune said carefully, "I think becoming a dad helped."

She snorted.

"Telling bad jokes, just like your father," she murmured, "at the worst times... You're so much like him." She pulled back and again cupped his cheek. "What did you get from me?"

Jaune thought about it. He then shrugged.

"Your stubbornness?"

She stared at him... Before she sighed.

"You're right."

She worked her jaw.

"I'm still... Not totally okay with this," she admitted, "But... I'll do my best to support you. And your harem."

Jaune flushed.

"It's not a harem-"

"It is a harem, Jaune," Isabel scolded, "So you should start acting like it! And it's not unprecedented! Your Nana and Papa have one!"

"What?!" Jaune gasped in denial, "No! Great Aunt Sakura and Great Aunt Rin are just very close members of the family who stay at their house a lot and... And..."

A hundred little memories all linked together, and he buried his face in his hands from the weight of his horrified comprehension.

"Oh Breaker... Is that why you told me not to date any of their great-granddaughters?!"

Isabel smiled wryly.

"Yes... But it did work out in the end, didn't it?"

Jaune groaned.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

The old abandoned military base had a situation room that was still well furnished enough to be an ideal place for the local leaders of The White Fang to hold council. Adam Taurus sat at the head of the long table, a map of the world behind with several notes about current events pinned to it. The seat immediately to his right was empty, that place of honor reserved for the absent Belladonna. The next seat to his right, normally occupied by Ilia Amitola, was also empty; the missing chameleon having not yet returned.

To his left sat an exceptionally tall and muscular man the rank and file of their particular cell called Bonesawthanks to his choice in melee weaponry. Few people could effectively wield something as unruly as a chainsaw like a sword, but the large and muscular man could do so single handedly with one almost as tall as he was. The man wore the nickname with pride and had gone by it almost exclusively for years, only using his birth name on official paperwork and in communications to those higher up in the organization's leadership. As his leader Adam had the right to use the man's real name, but the mystique of calling one of his most loyal soldiers a codename as raw as Bonesaw meant he had never indulged in that privilege.

Next to Bonesaw sat another agent that preferred to go by a codename, a redheaded beauty with golden scales framing her face known as Salamander. The lizard faunus had chosen the name in homage to the mythological beast after discovering her semblance's link to flame, though not before scouring her family tree for any amphibian faunuses so she could silence any critics' claims of appropriation. She would proudly declare she had newt ancestry, that she was only one sixteenth newt wasn't something she'd mention unprompted.

The woman's pyrokinetic powers had made her a talented if unsubtle assassin and those skills alone might have been enough to earn Salamander her position as one of Adam's lieutenants, the fact that she possessed decent management skills simply cemented her place within his inner circle.

The last individual in the room sat next to Ilia's empty seat, a spider faunus named Trifa who was presenting the information this meeting was about.

"Play it again," Adam frowned as he leaned forward and steepled his hands in front of his chin. "All of it, from the beginning."

"As you wish Lord Adam," Trifa nodded in a short bow as her spider-like fingers danced across the keyboard before her.

Multiple holographic flatscreens flared to life, all of them showing Beacon's Training Field 12 from different angles. Some of the footage was shaky and obviously amateurish, but most of it was steadily and well shot enough to qualify as semi-professional. Standing there in the center of the shots was the human that would lead Blake even further astray, delaying the inevitable realization that she belonged with her people while seducing her into his good little house-pet.

Behind his mask Adam's good eye narrowed as he took in the features of that accused human, the vile tempter Jaune Arc. As the young human sparred with his father Adam took carful note of every movement the blond made. From the grand slashes and thrusts to the large steps and dodges to the subtle twitches and expressions on his face not a single detail escaped the bull's sight.

His experienced gaze could see the unrefined potential the young human possessed, it was clear that in a few short years the boy might stand where Adam did now in terms of strength and skill. Some small part of Adam almost regretted that his confrontation with the blond swordsman would take place before the boy had reached his zenith, for such a confrontation would have been worthy of songs and poems that would have echoed through history for thousands of years.

The pinnacle of human martial might clashing against the pinnacle of faunus fighting power, the Valean Knight against the Menageriean Ronin, Longsword and Shield-sheath against Katana and Rifle-sheath, a guardian of the old world order against the herald of the new. The two of them clashing against each other over the heart of the rightful Queen of All Faunuskind, perhaps on a cliffside at sunrise or atop the top deck of an airship at sunset or on a bridge under the light of a full moon; whichever one got Blake's blood pumping faster.

But alas such a thing was not to be as Adam's confrontation with the young knight would happen long before the blond boy was ready to challenge the bull. When the saga of his life would be retold for future generations of faunus the narrative crux would not hinge upon a duel for the woman who represented the future of faunuskind, but upon the father of the knight seeking revenge for his boy. Now being challenged by vengeful parents wasn't a bad narrative in and of itself, but it lacked the symbolism and personal weight of a climatic duel with the young knight Jaune Arc.

If only there was a way to eliminate the father before the boy...

...There had to be. If the future was not set in stone then it would be possible to arrange events into the narrative for the future he planned to build. To create a story that would inspire for generations to come. To tell a tale that Blake would enjoy her role in, even if she didn't realize it at first...

...The tools Cinder had provided allowed them to corral a substantial number of Grimm around Mount Glenn... Including a surprisingly large number of ancient and powerful Grimm... An old Huntsman dying during one last hunt was a common enough occurrence...

The video went on. Jaune Arc exchanged blows with his father until the older man was satisfied with the younger swordsman's performance. Then he switched out for the team Blake had been placed in, Team RWBY.

Blake had made good use of her teammates against some of the basic operations the White Fang had conducted around Vale. The three humans were competent enough combatants that they would have actually been worthy companions for the Belladonna if they had been faunus. The Reaper and the Brawler in particular would have made excellent bodyguards and handmaidens for the Menageriean princess, so it was honestly a shame the blessings of The Animal God had not graced their bloodlines. If those two had been the only humans Blake had consorted with he could have almost pretend that she hadn't strayed that far from their shared vision, but the third human ruined that illusion and made it clear how much she had abandoned when she left.

A Schnee. And not just any Schnee; the legally recognized heir to the SDC and all of its' sins. To fraternize with that thing in the shape of a woman, to trust it to watch her back, had Blake also abandoned her senses?

And the video showed just how foolish the idea of trusting a Schnee truly was. Team RWBY was performing well against the senior Arc right up until the Schnee broke formation. His lieutenants laughed to see the older swordsman humiliate the thing, but the flow of the fight had irreversibly shifted in favor of the elder Arc.

Blake still gave a good showing, right up until some words the cameras failed to record from the blond swordsman distracted her. With a humiliating blow to the head she was taken out of the fight, a slight Adam would need to repay at some point.

The conclusion of the match gave Adam a good measure of speed and reflexes an Arc could achieve. A glimpse at the potential Jaune Arc would have achieved if time travel hadn't brought their inevitable fight to the death so much closer to the present, for while father and son were clearly different there were enough similarities to make it clear that the son could become as skilled as the father.

And more of that skill was revealed as the next match started and the reigning champion of Mistral's arenas stepped forth to challenge the knight's father. Alongside Ms. Nikos stood a worshiper of the Tamed Lion, an unknown sniper and Cinder's sycophant, an interesting lineup to say the least.

The worshiper of the Tamed Lion rushed forward first and displayed the martial prowess that had let her face off agains Pyrrha Nikos in the finals more often than not. The roaring she opened the match with made it clear she would have to die, for any faunus that preferred the Tamed Lion to The Animal God harbored a weakness that would only weaken their people in the coming age.

In spite of her weakness she was quite skilled, making her an excellent yardstick to measure what Arcs were capable of. Then she was joined by Nikos, and the Arc stood firm against them both.

The battle played out the same way it had when they watched it before, with the Arc outmaneuvering and then pulling off a win against the so called invincible girl and the runner-up. The man's skills were truly something else, and a testament to how dangerous Jaune Arc could be if he wasn't dealt with soon.

Adam grit his teeth at the thought. A hero was only as good as their enemies, and given a year or two Jaune Arc would have been the perfect foe at the climax of the story...

...But the time traveling twins had spoiled one of the endings for Blake. Adam clearly remembered the romance games they had played together; once Blake had found an ending she enjoyed she would almost exclusively play that rout at the expense of the others, and it would take a whole lot of prodding on his part before she pursued the routs they had agreed were better. If Blake thought the ending the twins came from was good could he even get her to entertain the idea of other endings while Jaune Arc still lived?

And how would killing the young knight at this juncture affect Blake's views on him? Eliminating the option that was bad for her didn't necessarily mean she'd be drawn to the option that was the best for her and their people after all.

The future was not set in stone. He just needed to figure out the right narrative that would lead her back to him, and then arrange events in a way that would let that narrative play out. Perhaps a climatic duel over the fare princess' heart was still in the cards. A perusal of the books she left behind might be in order...

...God's Horns and Antlers what if she had taken her favorites with her? If this was going to work it had to be perfect, down to the last detail. They had discussed so many different stories over the years that some of them were blurring together in his memories, would he even notice a title missing from the collection? What if she only left the books she didn't like?

The arrival of Jaune Arc's mother in the video and her keelhauling of her husband let Adam put such questions on hold. The woman's railing accusations painted a different story than their spies had provided, and it was time to discuss the discrepancy.

"The spat between the human's parents appears to confirm one of the rumors circulating around Jaune Arc," Trifa began as she shuffled documents and pictures around on the scrolls before her. "Namely the rumors that Jaune is the subject of multiple marriage contracts and that the big fight yesterday was caused by the arrival of multiple Arc cousins that supported one contract over the others, and they started a dispute over which contract would actually be fulfilled. This rumor is becoming the dominant one, but our spies insist that the time-travel story they told us earlier is true."

"The mark of the Animal God's blessings fell upon our main spy's ears," Adam noted in a neutral voice, "It wouldn't be surprising for him to have heard things the human's didn't realize he could hear."

"So how can we test the two stories?" Bonesaw rumbled as he shifted forward in his seat. "I mean one of them has to fall apart under enough scrutiny, right?"

"The marriage contract story is probably easier to examine," Salamander noted as she casually scratched at a patch of scales on her wrist that looked ready to shed, her eyes entirely focused on the holographic flatscreens. "Let's start with motive. Why would Ghira and Kali be willing to saddle their heir with this human?"

"I did some digging into Jaune Arc's family history," Trifa tapped away at her keyboard, bringing up a family tree. "His father was an orphan with no known records, but his mother is actually part of the main-line of the Arc family. The family claims to be decedents of the Warrior-Queen known as Joan D'arc from the age of founding myths almost immediately after the Moon-Shatter, and that claim to legitimacy resulted in members of the Arc clan founding a few ruling dynasties in what's now northern Vale. Jaune's direct ancestors ruled a kingdom known as Gallia from the settlement of Radian, and the end of their reign is notably different from the end of most dynasties. The crown prince Roland III overthrew his father and then almost immediacy relinquished his power out of fear of becoming a petty tyrant like his old man had started to become, allowing Gallia to be absorbed into the friendly Kingdom of Vale. This noble act set the family on the path of becoming land rich and money poor, as well as historically irrelevant until The Great War."

"And what happened in The Great War?" Bonesaw leaned in while actually sounding curious.

"Shirou Arc happened," Trifa explained as she brought up a black and white photo of a man in uniform. "Shirou earned a name for himself during several major battles, and in so doing he caught the eye of Queen Arturia of the Vytal Empire. Marrying him was one of the reasons Arturia abdicated her throne when the war ended and made Vytal part of Vale. The two of them are Jaune Arc's great-grandparents, as their oldest son Jonathan Ilya Arc was Isabel Arc's father."

"Was?" Salamander prompted.

"Jonathan and his wife were killed by Grimm on a trip beyond Radian's walls," Trifa elaborated, "leaving Isabel as the head of that part of the family and ultimately responsible for her younger siblings. Seeing as the family fortune had been spread so thinly across all of her aunts, uncles and cousins Isabel took it upon herself to become a breadwinner and pursued a career as first a Huntress and then a Medical Doctor. She now owns and operates the Arc-En-Ciel Hospital, which is widely regarded as one of the if not the best hospital outside of the Four Kingdom's Capitals."

"An impressive enough family legacy," Bonesaw muttered. "A marriage to the boy could significantly raise Menagerie's legitimacy in the eyes of the Four Kingdoms, since he's actually a decent claimant to the thrones of a pair of the Old Kingdoms. That gives us motive."

"Then our next step is to establish when the Belladonnas could have met with the Arcs to create the marriage contract," Salamander surmised.

"I couldn't find anything," Trifa confessed as she brought her left hand to her temple and started to rub away at a bit of stress. "Not a single bit of publicly available information that even hints that the two couples had ever been in the same place at the same time before today. No newspaper clippings, no formal events the were both invited to, no candid photos or videos with them together."

"Khan would have known if Blake was engaged to anyone," Adam added with a frown. "And our shared agendas mean she would have informed me the instant she caught wind of any arrangement like that."

"So an intermediary Sienna wouldn't have suspected would have to be involved," Salamander summarized. "What about the twins? If they're truly Arc cousins then perhaps their part of the family was the go between?"

"I might have a lead on that," Trifa quickly tapped away at her keyboard, highlighting several areas on the Arc family tree as she spoke. "The old kingdom of Gallia was one of the better places to be a faunus during its era of relevance. As a result a couple of faunus clans chose to serve the Arcs in exchange for protection, with the Sith Clan in particular becoming direct vassals and even receiving a few minor titles of nobility. It wasn't unheard of for important Arc men to accept Sith girls as lesser wives or concubines or for an Arc woman to have a Sith handmaid that she'd invite to her husband's bed, and some of the less important cadet branches of the Arc family were willing to let their daughters marry some of the more important Sith men."

"To shackle themselves to their oppressors so thoroughly..." Adam's frown deepened, "Has this relationship persisted to the modern age?"

"It has," Trifa confirmed as she pulled up a publicly available map of Radian. "In fact the lands currently owned by the mainline branch of the Arc family directly borders the lands currently owned by the mainline branch of the Sith family, and apparently one of Isabel Arc's daughters is publicly engaged to the eldest son of the current Sith patriarch. So yes the Arcs do have some faunus relatives that could have acted as intermediaries between the Arcs and the Belladonnas. On top of that most of the Siths are feline so the twins would fit right in."

"Do we have pictures of these Sith?" Adam inquired as he glared behind his mask at the holographic flatscreens.

"We do actually," Trifa confirmed as she started to pull several pictures up and place them on the screens. "I've gathered a pretty even mix of historical photos and pictures from public social media accounts."

More than two dozen pictures were displayed before them, each depicting different cat faunus going about their lives. Mostly blonds with a few redheads mixed in, all clearly related to each other with a handful of them showing traits Adam was already recognizing as being distinctively Arc in origin.

"Mix in the photos we have of the twins for comparison," Adam commanded, already knowing in his gut what would be revealed but wanting his lieutenants to see for themselves.

Pictures featuring the twins with Blake joined the photos of the Siths, and after a few moments of observation Adam could tell his lieutenants were starting to notice the crucial detail.

"The twins are clearly Belladonnas of the royal lineage," Adam surmised. "The Siths don't have a single drop of Belladonna in them."

"That's... you're right..." Disbelief flavored Salamander voice as she sat up straighter in her seat. "The only traits the twins have in common with the Siths are the traits some of the Sith share with the Arcs... And with the twins next to Blake you can't deny they're Belladonnas..."

"This casts doubt on the marriage contract rumors," Bonesaw concluded in a contemplative tone. "While it passes muster on a casual glance you can't say the twins are part of the Sith Clan when they're so clearly part of Menagerie's royal family, but anyone familiar with that lineage could tell you that there are no naturally blond Belladonnas... Yet there they are..."

"But, to say time travel is the alternative..." Salamander tried.

"I know," Bonesaw agreed. "It feels wrong somehow, like we're starting a witch hunt in response to finding misshapen fruits in the garden instead of thinking things through to find a more rational explanation. But the more rational explanation has some rather glaring holes were staring at right now."

"This can't be..." Trifa muttered as she pulled up more pictures of the Sith Clan, placing those pictures next to the clearest photo of the twins. "There should be someone..." But there wasn't. Three dozen more pictures later and she hand't found a single Sith that looked like they could be related to the twins, who were damnably Belladonna. "Why isn't there anyone...?"

"If you need more proof look at Emerald," Adam prompted. "She's a nobody, correct?"

"That's right," Trifa stopped her mad shuffling of photos, "Her lack of records makes her a clear nobody."

"So how could another nobody show up and pull her away from Cinder?" Adam reasoned, "The slavish devotion the thief showed to the fire woman in our meetings shouldn't have disappeared if marriage contracts were involved, nor would Cinder be absent from those videos if this was the end result of things arranged long ago."

"Those are fair points," Salamander allowed. "But still, to move through time and upend fate like that..."

"Is it really so hard to believe?" Adam shifted his head just enough to make it clear he was looking at her even with the mask on. "There are enough esoteric semblances in this world that the possibility can't be honestly ruled out. While a round of DNA tests would fully prove or disprove either rumor I feel like we have enough circumstantial evidence to start our planning."

"Yes..." Bonesaw nodded slowly. "The more rational seeming explanation isn't holding up to scrutiny. That makes the less rational seeming explanation more likely, so we must take it into account as we plan..."

Trifa started closing all of the photos she had brought out, her disturbed shock reflecting in her eyes as she clicked away at her scroll.

"There has to be, but there isn't, so the impossible..." The spider faunus muttered as she felt the ground beneath her settle into a new shape.

Salamander thought about it for a moment longer before nodding in acceptance. "So how would time travel being real affect our current plans Lord Adam?"

"We have to assume our current plans are compromised on some level," Adam reasoned. "Even if the twins don't know the specifics they could easily be aware of enough of the broad strokes to point Ironwood's soldiers in our direction. On top of that our spies at Beacon reported that Sister Ilia was actually captured by the twins and brought to Beacon by them. As Ilia hasn't reported back we must assume she hasn't escaped yet, while I doubt she's cracked we can't assume our enemies haven't gotten anything out of her and-"

"Lord Adam?" Trifa hesitantly interrupted. "Our spies at Beacon actually know exactly where Sister Ilia is..."

"They do?" Adam turned to look her way. Trifa had been the primary contact with the spies at the school since it was less risky for her to have regular calls with them, as such she was the only person besides Adam that knew who the spies really were. "Could they get a message to her or help her escape without breaking their cover?"

"Umm.... Well... You see..." Trifa began to blush as words failed her. She cleared her throat and tried to start again, only for her blush to grow more luminous and syllables that didn't sound like words to come out of her mouth. In the end she clicked on a few things with her scroll, displaying a new set of photos on the holographic flatscreens.

The photos showed Ilia sitting on a bench next to a monkey faunus with an open shirt that did a good job displaying his sculpted physique. Ilia was snuggled up next to the blonde monkey who had an arm wrapped around her and was holding up an ice cream cone for her to lick, which she was doing enthusiastically. The reason the boy was holding the cone for her was obvious: ropes crisscrossed Ilia's torso pinning her right hand to her left shoulder and her left hand to her right shoulder.

It took a minute before anyone in the room could find their words.

"So it looks like she's already cracked," Salamander managed.

Adam heaved a heavy sigh, "Sister Trifa, take Ilia's seat."

"My Lord?" Trifa tore her eyes away from the images, her mouth incredibly dry for reasons she would have a hard time putting into words.

"Since she's clearly lost to us you'll be taking her place and assuming her duties," Adam scowled behind his mask. "In the meantime we'll be relocating to... Bonesaw do you have a location Ilia didn't know about?"

"Let me check my notes," The large man pulled out a binder and started flipping through its' pages...

 

[AndrewJTalon]

If Ren was being honest, he had been trying to blend in with the background since this craziness began. That was where he was most comfortable, just observing. He had to admit, it was extremely entertaining watching his best male friend get into these ridiculous situations. Not that he was heartless, no. He just felt that being the quiet support out of the splash zone was where his talents were best used.

But it was also where he could avoid confronting his own issues.

Perhaps that is why Nora had dragged him to the infirmary to see Nicholas Arc. That desperation in her eyes for him to finally join in.

The tall blond man grinned up at him as they entered, still in a hospital bed.

"Nora! Ren! Great to see you!"

"Father," Nora began, squeezing Ren's hand, "This is Renny! Er, Lie Ren! I think..." She blushed, "I think he's dreamy. And I really like him! And... And he likes me. A lot."

Nick looked faintly amused, even as Ren tensed a bit.

"Is this true, Ren? Do you like Nora?"

"I..." Ren glanced at Nora, who was beaming like the sun. He slowly turned back to Nick, licked his lips. His Semblance was helping him stay cool and calm, but only so much.

"I do... Sir," he added, out of habit if nothing else.

Nick studied him intensely, a shrewdness to his gaze that seemed almost out of place on the jolly man. He then turned to Nora.

"Let me speak with him alone for a bit, Nora," he said, "Then we'll get Izzy here and talk about your adoption, huh?"

Nora beamed. She sniffled happily.

"You... You mean it?" She whispered. Nick beamed back, less intensely than before but no less honest.

"Absolutely," he said. Nora hugged him, practically tackling him into the bed. Nick laughed happily, and stroked her back.

"Now now... There will be more hugs in the future, promise! All the hugs you can handle, and more," Nick said, patting Nora on the head, "But I gotta sound out your boyfriend. It's tradition."

Nora pulled back, her smile practically glowing under the LED lighting.

"Of-Of course... Dad!" She sniffled. She beamed at Ren too, and his heart skipped a beat despite his Semblance. She hesitated a moment before planting a kiss on his cheek. She then dashed off, leaving them alone. Ren sucked in a breath.

They'd talked about their future children. The future children had mentioned their offspring, so many times... Yet here, it seemed... Real. He looked back at Nick, who was smiling gently.

"Ren," Nick said, his voice warm but carrying the gravel of a man who'd seen too many battles, "turning your lifelong friendship into romance can be scary. One of the only times I was really scared was when I realized I loved Izzy, and I didn't know what to do about it."

Ren's eyes flicked to him, his voice soft but curious. "Yes, sir?"

Nick nodded, his grin softening. "Yep… but I also realized I was more scared of not having her in my life than I was of my feelings. So! I admitted I loved her… and she said she loved me back!"

Ren's gaze dropped, his hands clasped in his lap. "It's… not easy for me. I've suppressed my feelings for so long. Out of necessity, survival."

Nick's eyes crinkled, understanding etched in his weathered face. "I know. But you need to answer some simple questions. First: do you love her?"

Ren hesitated, his voice barely above a whisper. "…I'm not sure."

Nick tilted his head, undeterred. "Well, could you imagine sharing every aspect of your life with any other woman?"

Ren's jaw tightened. "…No."

"Could you handle her being with another man?" Nick pressed, his voice gentle but unrelenting.

Ren's calm fractured, a flicker of pain crossing his face. "…No. At the same time, I don't know how to… to be closer to her. Even knowing eleven futures, I'm still..."

Nick's laugh was a low rumble, his hand clapping Ren's shoulder. "Ha! I didn't either, son. But I learned. And so will you. You don't have to leap into anything if you're not sure—it's easy to get caught up in Nora's enthusiasm. You don't need to get married right now; you have a choice in this too! But you do need to choose whether or not to take the first step. Because believe me, you don't want to think you missed your chance."

Ren's brow furrowed. "Oh?"

Nick's grin faded, his voice dropping to a somber cadence. "Izzy got taken by this Count Whatever. He was holding her hostage, though we didn't know it at the time. She had to lie in front of him, otherwise he would've killed a lot of innocent people. He made her tell me she never loved me, that she thought I was pathetic and could never be someone she loved. Now… I knew she was lying. I knew she wasn't telling the truth, and we did save her and defeat Count That Guy… but it was terrifying to think of her saying those things and meaning it someday. Imagine that happening with Nora."

Ren's eyes widened, his breath catching as he pictured Nora's bright smile twisted into rejection, her voice cold. His hands clenched, the thought a blade in his chest.

"Doesn't feel good, does it?" Nick said, his voice quiet.

"No," Ren murmured, his calm shattered.

Nick nodded, his gaze steady. "So… what choice are you going to make?"

Ren took a deep breath, his resolve hardening like steel in a forge.

"Dad! Renny!" Nora called, coming back into the infirmary. Isabel and Jaune were close behind her, followed by an ever smiling Penny, "Mom and Jaune-Jaune and Penny are here and-"

Ren got up and turned, his steps deliberate as he crossed the infimary floor to Nora, who looked up, her turquoise eyes sparkling with curiosity. Without a word, he pulled her into a tight hug, his arms enveloping her, his face buried in her orange hair.

Nora's voice was a startled squeak. "R-Renny?"

Ren's voice was low, steady, but laced with a rare vulnerability. "…Nora. I think it's too soon to think about getting married."

Nora's shoulders drooped, her voice small. "O-Oh…"

"Because we need to go on a date first," Ren finished, his lips curving into a faint smile.

Nora's face lit up, her grin brighter than the sun, her eyes shimmering as she gasped, "R-Really?"

"Yes," Ren said, his voice firm. "Really."

"YAYYYYY!" Nora squealed, launching herself at him, her arms wrapping around his neck as she planted a fierce kiss on his lips. "MMMM!"

Nick's laughter boomed in the infirmary, throwing a fist up in triumph. "Hahaha! Once again, my fatherly advice does the trick!"

Jaune Arc, slouching slightly, shot his father a weary look, his blond hair falling into his eyes. "You told me I just had to be confident."

"And it worked, didn't it?" Nick grinned, winking.

Jaune's groan deepened, his voice exasperated. "You didn't have anything to do with the time travel!"

"And yet, you still have a harem! Haha!" Nick laughed again as Jaune groaned. Isabel sighed, and walked to his side. She lightly bonked him on the head.

"Idiot," she said affectionately.

"Yes, but I'm your idiot!" Nick declared, holding up his wedding ring, "Forever!"

"Don't I know it," Isabel sighed. She beamed at Nora and Ren. "So! I believe we were going to talk about adoption?" She smiled warmly at Nora.

Nora turned to Isabel, her eyes shining. She looked back at Jaune, face hopeful. Jaune grinned, and shrugged.

"Looks like we're gonna end up family sooner than I thought, huh?" He said.

"You... You really mean it?"

Isabel sighed softly, but nodded.

Tears boiled out of the sides of Nora's eyes. She leaped and tackle hugged Isabel, who barely stayed standing thanks to her tremendous strength.

"M-MOM! MAMA!"

"OOF! N-Nora! CALM DOWN!" Isabel laughed in exasperation and affection.

"I AM NOT GONNA CALM DOWN!" Nora declared, sobbing in joy.

Ren smiled as well, and rubbed Nora's back as she continued to cry. Isabel's own eyes warmed as she hugged Nora tightly. Nick reached out despite his groan of pain, and pulled his wife and newest daughter into a hug.

Jaune smiled as well, discreetly wiping his eyes. It was a wonderful moment, in a day full of emotions and revelations. He would like nothing more than to just go to bed...

But his family still needed him.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Willow was looking over several documents in the rooms Beacon had given to her, Klein and Whitley. While not the most luxurious she had stayed in, this was of no concern to her as she continued her work. There was a knock at the door, and Klein headed off to answer. A moment later, Klein returned, General Ironwood in tow.

"James," Willow said with a soft smile.

"Willow," he returned gently. Klein moved to pull out a chair for him, and the general sat down opposite her.

"Would you like the usual brandy, sir?" Klein said. Ironwood shook his head.

"I'm afraid I must decline. Too much work to do," he said.

"Tea then," Klein agreed, "Much better at this hour than coffee, sir."

"Thank you," Ironwood said with a nod, as Klein headed off to the kitchen. Willow smiled softly.

"You seem a bit overwhelmed," she observed.

"No more than you, I believe," James returned without any heat. Willow reached across the table to take his right hand, and squeezed it. He squeezed it back, just as gently.

"It is good to see you sober," he said softly. Willow grimaced.

"It's not as good to be it. Klein has me taking oxy pills to keep my head clear." She sighed. "I'll probably need to see Isabel about dealing with withdrawal. I... I can't afford to drink. Not now."

She gave James a wan smile.

"It's going to be hellish the next few days," she said quietly. Ironwood slowly nodded.

"I need your help, Willow," Ironwood said, direct and to the point as always, "Ozpin is hoping to announce a new alliance between Atlas, Vale, Pandu, and Menagerie in the next few weeks. In light of our... Future revelations."

Willow bit back an incredulous laugh.

"He doesn't think small, does he?" She asked. "And you need my help?"

"I do," Ironwood said, "If we're to defeat Salem... We need as many resources as possible. What would it take to get Jacques onboard... Or out of the way?"

"A lot," Willow admitted. "My grandsons have been giving me some hints and clues, but they didn't memorize all the details of how he was brought low. I'm looking through Warden's papers and some other things. There's plenty to build from, but as much as I hate to say it... Jacques is cunning."

Willow sighed and looked down at her hands.

"It would have been nice if I'd realized how cunning he was," she said softly. "If I had been more insightful. More cautious... Less foolish..."

"That won't help," Ironwood stated, firm but not unkind. Willow looked up at him and laughed quietly.

"No. No, it won't. Old habits are hard to break," she admitted softly. Ironwood nodded in quiet understanding.

"I suppose so," he replied.

Willow gave him a nostalgic smile.

"I am glad you are taking care of my girls, James," Willow said quietly, "And glad to have you with me in all this... Insanity. I wish you had been there for Whitley, too. I'm only now beginning to realize how... How much I failed him. Failed them all..." Her head bowed again.

"Self pity won't help," Ironwood reminded her gently. He reached out to tip her chin back up. She stared in surprise. "It never has, Willow. Whatever your challenges... I will do what I can to assist. I will offer protection for you and your family. I swear it."

Willow flushed slightly. She looked to the side and let out another small laugh.

"You know... I rather like you being this way," she admitted.

Ironwood shrugged, withdrawing his hand slowly.

"I suppose, in a way, we are family now," he said quietly.

Willow nodded.

"I think we've been that for longer. Though I didn't notice."

The door to the room opened. Winter Schnee entered, with Theodore walking alongside her. They both came to attention in front of the table, and Ironwood stood in greeting.

"Sir," Winter stated, "My son has completed the preliminary report from all the future children."

"I'm still working on Moses' side of things," Theodore said, handing over a holochip, "But he's sleeping in his mom's lab while she monitors him. Granny Izzy is going to give him an examination, see if she can't help his symptoms. But this is all the relevant information I could find on the Vytal attacks and some other White Fang operations."

Ironwood nodded, his smile faint but proud.

"Thank you," he said. Theodore nodded.

"There are... A few other details I haven't mentioned," he added. Winter gave him a frown. Theodore shook his head. "I ask that I be allowed to exercise my discretion in this matter for the time being. It is... Delicate."

Ironwood raised an eyebrow. Theodore remained very stoic and serious, a rarity from the young man.

"Does this involve the children of Cinder Fall?" He asked. Theodore slowly nodded. Ironwood frowned, but slowly nodded.

"I see. I will trust your discretion in this matter for the time being," he said. Theodore nodded, smiling softly.

"Thank you, sir." He turned to his mother, who frowned. "Trust me, Mother. Please."

Winter sucked in a breath, and slowly nodded.

"I believe you have earned it," she said, "But keep us apprised?"

"I will. Promise," Theodore said with a smile. "Now! Mother?" He handed her a holochip, "Here's everything I can tell you about your relationship with Dad. May I suggest you try something nice and casual for the first date? I've included a few pictures of things Dad really likes you to wear. I've got to handle a few other things."

Winter shook her head.

"Remember to get some rest, huh?" She awkwardly reached out and squeezed his shoulder. He smiled gently back, and squeezed her hand.

"I will," he said. A Schnee Glyph appeared behind him and he stepped back, vanishing. Winter inserted the holochip into her Scroll. She projected the first image... And blushed bright red at the very abbreviated outfit her future self was wearing.

"Oh my," Willow murmured, "Well, that will definitely get his attention."

"M-Mother!" Winter cried, turning off her Scroll. Ironwood raised an eyebrow.

"Given he's an Arc, you will need to be as direct as possible. Subtlety doesn't work on them."

"Absolutely," Willow nodded, "In fact Winter? You should wear less."

"Mother!"

"Given the competition you are up against, you will need every weapon in your arsenal to keep up," Ironwood added, "In this case, an all out assault would be the best approach."

"S-Sir!"

 

[AndrewJTalon]

"Hey Emerald."

Hearing Jaune call out to her didn't startle the green haired thief, and she didn't jump a bit as she turned around to face him. She just hadn't expected to see him after everyone was ushered out of the room so he could have a mostly private talk with his mother. It hadn't taken long for everyone to disperse after that, with all the girls splitting off into little groups to take care of a few odds and ends before getting ready for bed. Emerald had split off to close up her old dorm room for the night, taking her away from everyone else.

And there was Jaune, coming down the hallway with Penny a few feet behind him.

"Oh, Hi Jaune," Emerald managed to sound nonchalant. Was this a coincidence or did he seek her out? If he sought her out then what did he seek her out for? "What brings you here?"

"Looking for you actually," Jaune admitted with an undercurrent of concern in his voice. "I was hoping we could talk."

"Well then come in," Emerald smiled as she opened the door to her old dorm room, doing her best to not sound too eager to have his concern sent her way, "Take a seat, the fire suppressing system left most of them usable."

The two of them entered the room while Penny stood at attention in the open doorway. Emerald grabbed what was once Mercury's desk chair and spun it around so it faced away from Cinder's space in the room. Jaune grabbed another desk chair and flipped it around to face the green haired girl before sitting down with a softness in his eyes that drew Emerald in.

"What did you want to talk about?" She asked before she could get lost in that softness.

"Right," Jaune muttered with a bit of nervous energy bubbling to the surface, "So my mother shared some things about my family history I was unaware of and that's put several things into a new light for me." The blond boy heaved a anxious sigh, "I think this whole thing is going to end up being a harem."

Emerald failed to stop her snort of amusement, "Is there a reason you're not wanting to call this spade a spade?"

"The idea doesn't feel real to me just yet," Jaune admitted, "Like if I put a proper name to it then it will be real and I'll have to deal with all of the implications that come with it being real."

"I guess that makes sense," Emerald allowed with a nod. Then her gaze turned inquisitive. Having a harem was a fairly standard male fantasy, why would the fantasy scare him? "What implications are you worried about dealing with?"

"Oh man, where to start?" Jaune nervously chuckled for a moment, "I guess the greatest concern is going to be time. There are only so many hours in a day, and that means it's going to be an uphill struggle to give everyone the love and attention they deserve even if I somehow gained the best time management skills in the world. There's eleven of you, that means there's a very real possibility I'll come up short at some point."

Emerald nodded in acknowledgment. That was a fair concern, she supposed, but the fact he had even thought about it was a clear sign that they could work through it.

"Ninety percent of fixing a problem is figuring out what exactly the actual problem is and what caused it," Emerald reassured him. "Since you've identified the problem ahead of time we'll be able to avoid it."

"Maybe," The concern carried in Jaune's tone demanded her full attention, "But the reason I'm brining it up now is because if I fail it will hit you the hardest."

"What do you mean?" Surprise laced her words.

"Harem Politics would be the natural consequence of my failure," Jaune elaborated. "That means cliques and alliances will form and those cliques will compete against each other in little power plays aimed at monopolizing what I have to give at the expense of everyone else in the harem."

"I'm the odd woman out right now," Emerald's eyes widened with realization. That was a reality she had known since the brawl the day before; she had acted accordingly, but now the shortsightedness of those actions emerged from the mist. "I'd be the easiest person to cut out of the equation."

"Yeah, that's why I wanted to talk with you before anyone else, and why I looked for you now instead of waiting until tomorrow," Jaune leaned forward with clear tension in his shoulders. "I mean ideally we'll all get along well enough that competing cliques won't happen and we'll all be more or less equal partners in all of this, but in either case you can't afford to be the odd woman out."

"...Jaune, I... Thank you Jaune," Emerald stood up with a slight tremor in her lips. "Thank you for worrying about me..." She placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed, trying to push all of the gratitude she felt welling up inside into the action. "Now let me alleviate some of that worry: I promise I'll start building bridges with the others. In fact, I'll start tonight; there's a hatchet I should burry before we all go to bed."

Jaune's relieved smile would keep her heart warm for days to come.

------------------

Luck appeared to be smiling on Emerald this night, for she found the three of them together. May, Pyrrha and Arslan stood at a hallway junction that could be used to access both the regular dorms and the different guest dorms. The three of them were having a quiet discussion that trailed off as they noticed Emerald approaching, all of them glaring with different degrees of intensity. Pyrrha's glare edged on hostility, May's felt pitting and Arslan's was a picture of polite annoyance.

Emerald didn't allow herself to shrink beneath the weight of their combined stares as she walked right up to them, her intention to talk clear as she made herself part of their little circle.

"Do you need something Emerald?" The warrior nun asked in a controlled tone.

Emerald took a deep breath before ripping the proverbial bandage off; "Yes, and what I need is to apologize."

That pronouncement took the other young women by surprise, and they shared glances to that effect. May looked curious, Pyrrha suspicious, and Arslan was the neutral ground between those extremes. In any case she had their attention, so Emerald pressed on.

"I'm sorry," She forced the words out past her lips. "I'm sorry that I abandoned the plan during the fight, and that I actively sabotaged your own parts in it. I wanted the win to be my win and only my win, because it was the only thing I could think of that would get me on the same level as everyone else."

"What do you mean by on the same level? Why wouldn't you be on the same level as us?" May asked softly.

"From an objectively pragmatic standpoint I have the least to bring to the table," Emerald explained. "Ruby and Yang have parents that are friends with Jaune's parents, and that gives them an emotional connection that can compete with the raw wealth the Schnee Sisters have. You two," She pointed to Pyrrha and Arslan, "Aren't that far behind in the wealth department alongside Blake and you," She pointed to May, "Have both the emotional connection and the wealth an aspirant kingdom in your corner."

Pyrrha and Arslan looked contemplative, May looked like a deer in the headlights the instant her family's status was spelled out. In any case Emerald pressed on.

"Me? I'm a street rat whose situation was so desperate that I swore undying loyalty to the first person that offered to feed me. Two or three meals a day. That's all Cinder needed to buy my soul. The only things I can bring to the table is myself, and my skills." Emerald grabbed he right wrist with her left to stop the trembling that had just started, not even noticing she did so as she put insecurities into words, "And next to everyone here? Myself is objectively a loosing offer; I might be sexy but so is everyone else so that's not a reason to pick me. My personality? My everything revolved around Cinder, and since she tried to kill me my center has been ripped out. Objectively a bad pick when the rest of you have more than just Desperate Street Rat to fall back on."

This was more than Emerald had planned on sharing, but now that the words had started they were't stopping.

"So the two things that make me myself don't help my appeal, meaning all I have left to justify my place at the table are my skills." Emerald's eyes weren't focusing on anyone in particular and had taken on a wild edge. "But you're all the cream of the crop, the best of the best. If my skills were going to stand out in this crowd I'd need to do something big with them, something that would give me leverage that could make up for what everyone else has. So I gambled on the fight. It was the wrong choice and I just dragged all of us down instead of standing out. And for that? I'm sorry. I'm sorry my effort to stand out pushed us all down."

Her whole body was trembling now, and her voice also sook. She still felt compelled to continue.

"I don't, it's just-" A pair of hands gripped her shoulders tightly, cutting off her rambling before it could get much farther.

"I get it," May was right in front of her now, and Emerald wasn't sure when that happened. The sniper looked her in the eyes as she went on, "I really do. Before I learned about my parents yesterday my situation wasn't that different from yours, and if they hadn't existed and I was actually the orphan I thought I was? I could see myself getting desperate and trying a risky gamble too." May's gentle voice aimed to reassure even as her hands gave a comforting squeeze, as if she was expressing her forgiveness with that touch.

"It would be hypocritical of me to deny your apology when I am also seeking forgiveness," Arslan noted in a placid voice. "Especially if you're as sincere as you sound." The lioness then looked towards the floor somewhat bashfully, "And your deception isn't the only reason we lost the fight. In hindsight I should have disengaged when Pyrrha rushed in, or somehow signaled for her to pull back. In any case my response to the situation you put us in was the wrong one, so blaming you for our loss would be a pointless appeal to my own ego."

Arslan heaved a heavy sigh before looking Emerald in the eyes, "I'm willing to forgive you, and extend my trust a second time. I only ask that you not betray that trust again."

Emerald managed to nod, not sure if she could give a coherent verbal response as her emotions mixed about in ways unfamiliar to her.

Pyrrha looked back and fourth between the other women in the circle before squaring her shoulders and adding her two cents.

"The fight today was the biggest embarrassment I've had since I first picked up the blade," The redhead's tone was firm, but not unkind. "But that doesn't mean I'm unwilling to forgive you. We just need to reach a point where I know you won't turn on us like that again, and I'm willing to take the time to get to that point."

"Thank you," Emerald choked out, sagging in relief. The hatchet might not be completely buried yet, but a hole in the backyard had been dug and the hatchet placed inside it. They just needed some time to fill that hole with dirt.

As Emerald's relief washed over here the other three women shared a look and asked a silent question of each other. A brief dance of uncertain looks, raised eyebrows and head tilts ensued, coming to a conclusion with surprising swiftness all things considered. With a consensus reached Arslan cleared her throat to grab the green haired girl's attention.

"Before you got here the three of us were discussing things we could do together at the festival while we wait for our dates with Jaune," The lioness explained. "Would you like to join us for something?"

"Yeah," Emerald grabbed the offered olive branch with both hands, "I would. What kind of things were you thinking about?"

"Well," May perked up, "Pyrrha was telling us about an ice cream parlor her team visited a few weeks ago..."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

"Goodnight Xander."

"Goodnight Dad."

"Goodnight Julian."

"Night Dad!"

"Goodnight Xia."

"Goodnight Dad."

"Goodnight Petra."

"Goodnight Father."

"Goodnight Leander, Leandra."

"Night Pops." "Sleep tight Pops"

"Goodnight Theodore."

"Goodnight Pops."

"Goodnight Nicholas."

"Goodnight Father."

"Goodnight Amethyst."

"Goodnight Daddy."

"Goodnight Dorothy."

"Night Dad."

"Goodnight Ash, Ashley."

"Goodnight Dad.""Goodnight Pops."

"Goodnight August."

"Goodnight Father."

Jaune smiled as he made his way to the door, finding his children had been easier than he expected. He had originally thought that he'd be looking all over the campus for them, but Theodore had gathered them all up for the task of getting all of the important details about the different futures written down for planning purposes. They hadn't dispersed by the time Jaune had decided to wish them goodnight so it had only taken a few minutes to track them down once he and Penny had started looking.

Which was a good thing because he was about ready to crash for the night.

"If any of you need anything you'll know where to find me," Jaune yawned as he passed through the doorway, Penny a few steps behind him.

"Alright Dad," Amethyst called out, "We'll see you in the morning!"

"Right, see you all then," Jaune looked over his shoulder, "Goodnight everyone."

That set off another round of goodnights from his children all at once, and Penny closed the door once they were done.

It didn't take long for him to wander back to his dorm room, where he was greeted by a faint giggling as he opened that door.

"What are you two up to?" Jaune asked between two yawns.

Nora was in a sundress and had a picnic basket hanging off of her right arm, a giddy smile on her face as she giggled away behind her left hand. Ren was in a button-up shirt with a formal ascot and a nice pare of slacks, a book of poetry in his hands.

"We're going to go on a moonlit stroll around campus followed by a little rooftop picnic," The magenta eyed boy explained.

"That sounds nice," Jaune nodded as he pulled out his pajamas and started getting ready for bed.

"When do you plan on returning?" Penny inquired as she checked the parameter of the room.

"In a couple of hours-" "Sunrise." The two answered simultaneously.

Ren looked to Nora, who was sending her best smolder his way.

"Think about it Renny; You, Me, cuddled up for warmth with the stars as our blanket, kissing the hours away." Nora began to waggle her eyebrows, "If we find a secluded enough spot we might be able to do more than just kissing..."

"Well..." Ren tugged at the collar of his shirt as he thought about it, his cheeks flushing red. "If we stay up til sunrise you'll sleep through our history class tomorrow."

"So?" Nora asked.

"And history class won't get you enough sleep for all the things we could be doing together at the festival tomorrow afternoon." Ren reasoned.

"Hmmm..." Nora pouted as she considered that point. There were some things she wanted to do with her Renny at the festival. "I guess we can get some sleep tonight."

"And since we have proper beds we might as well use them..."

"Alright, we'll be back in a couple of hours," Nora allowed.

"Splendid!" Penny clapped her hands, "I'll make sure the defenses are set up in a way that will allow you to return."

Jaune might have asked what kind of defenses she ment, but his head had already hit the pillow and the words of his friends sounded a lot farther away then they actually were.

The last thing he heard before entering dreamland was Ren and Nora going out the door.

-------------------

"So, Xander, Amethyst, you and your Moms shared a room last night?" Ash asked. "Will you guys be sharing a room again tonight?"

"We did, and I think we are," Xander confirmed. "Why do you want to know?"

"Well, we'd rather not sleep in the infirmary again," Ashley explained. "Do you think it'd be a problem if we joined you guys?"

Xander and Amethyst shared a thoughtful look, and after some silent deliberation Amethyst answered.

"Well the room is big enough, and I don't mind," Amethyst noted. "I don't think my mom would mind either... What about you Xander?"

"I don't think my mother would object," Xander affirmed after a moment of further thought, "So you can join us."

"Great! And thanks," Ash smiled a bit at that, "We'll get some bedding for ourselves and meet you there. What's the room number?"

The number was given, and Cinder's twins split off in a different direction as the future children dispersed for the night. The two of them soon found their way to one of the linen closets and Ash began the process of picking out the right pillows and sheets. His sister had pulled out her scroll in the meantime and had opened the main messaging program.

"Still no answer. Do you think we should try again tonight?" She asked.

"Well, sending another message wouldn't hurt," Ash sighed as he found a pillow with just the right balance of give and firmness. "Maybe we should add times when we know we'll be free to talk on this one?"

"That sounds like a decent idea..." Ashley muttered as she began to compose her thoughts and typed away.

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

 

[AndrewJTalon]

North Sanus, Gallia

One Month after the Vytal Attacks

- - -

Tracking down Adam had been difficult. He was good at concealing his movements, and in the chaos after Vytal, he had plenty of ways to hide.

However, he was the one who trained Blake how to track. And whatever else he was, he was a good teacher.

Blake was a good student.

The train station was an older one on an automated cargo rail line. It was nestled in a grove of pine trees, in the depths of a verdant valley. The station itself had been abandoned for a long time, rusty roof tiles and fading paint. She could see piles of cargo boxes arranged haphazardly, a few White Fang flunkies doing some work... And that familiar figure in black with red hair standing on the platform, staring out into space.

"ADAM!"

Adam slowly turned to face her, unhurried. He stared at her through that mask. She stood there, taking deep breaths in her anger and fear. The other White Fang members turned and began to draw their weapons, but Adam held up his hand and they backed down.

"Have you come to your senses?" Adam asked, calm and condescending, "Finally decided to return? Beg for forgiveness?"

"No," Blake growled, drawing Gambol Shroud, "I'm here to kill you."

Adam looked amused.

"For your human boytoy? For the scars I inflicted upon him?" Adam asked, "For all the human lives I've taken?"

Blake lunged, her cleaver nearly going through Adam's neck if he hadn't drawn Wilt in time to deflect her strike.

"For everything," Blake hissed, dashing forward while wildly swinging her weapon in flail mode.

Adam was initially driven back by her ferocity. She had a clone split off to charge him, while she flanked Adam and opened up in gun mode. Adam smoothly deflected her bullets and used Wilt's sheath to fire back. She dropped under the shotgun blast, sliding forward to swing her chain around his ankles. She leaped up, and Adam was sent crashing to the ground. She shifted her weapon to blade mode and charged, intent on thrusting the blade through his strernum!

He lashed out with a punch which she powered through, but it was enough to stall her momentum. She punched him back, knocking his head back before he lashed out with a powerful kick to her stomach. She pulled back, leaving a clone in her place, but he cut right through it and slapped her in the face with the flat of his blade.

"UNGH!"

He backhanded her and in the same motion, unleashed a blast from his shotgun at point blank range. Another kick and she was sent flying into the wall of the train station ticket booth. She slumped, tried to get back up... But Adam swung his blade, and unleashed Moonslices. Not powerful enough to cut her into pieces... But they burned scars across her flesh right through her Aura.

"UNGH! AAHHH!" She slumped, then Adam was upon her and seized her throat.

"Hurk!"

He lifted her up as she struggled, kicking and punching. He shook his head.

"You were never able to beat me, Blake," he stated smoothly, "This... Was inevitable. This is destiny."

"Nngh...!" Blake tried to cry out, but Adam tightened his grip on her throat as she clawed at his arm. It didn't seem to phase him a bit.

"Your dalliance with the human is something I'm willing to forgive, in time," Adam went on, "After all... I was your first."

"Y-You...!" Adam loosened his grip just a bit, and she gasped before she spat out, "He's... Better than you... In every way!"

"So why isn't he with you?" Adam taunted, tightening his grip again. She flailed and grit her teeth, glaring death back at him. Adam smirked.

"Oh... I see. You abandoned them too, huh? Like I said, inevitable."

He slammed her against the wall, making a dent in the rusting tin as she squirmed.

"You might have thought you loved that man... But in the end, I know you better than anyone," Adam continued, "Because only I know what you need. What you desire. All of mankind at our feet, and me by your side. You will be a queen, Blake. It is what you are meant to be. Why else would you have run off... And come back to me?"

Blake seethed, tears running down her cheeks. Despair welled up in her chest as she saw the other White Fang goons begin to surround them.

Is he right?

The image of Jaune lying in a hospital bed, covered in scars, assaulted her mind. Adam had targeted him specifically during the attack, had beaten him to near death. Had burned scars into his body.

He'd taken Yang's arm when she'd tried to protect Jaune. He'd had his forces keep Ruby and Weiss from getting to Pyrrha... Pyrrha...

And what had Blake done? Just run off on her own, again. Left her boyfriend in a coma at the hospital.

The distant sound of a train whistle couldn't break her despair. She'd run away and abandoned the people she loved. Like she always had... Like she always...

A massive golden Aura slash erupted from the trees, ripping apart half the train platform and scattering the White Fang goons. Adam let Blake drop to the floor, leaving her gasping for breath, as he pulled his sword to parry a strike from a familiar blade. Blake gaped in amazement and horror as Jaune stood there, in full armor, his sword and shield repaired as he crossed blades with Adam.

"Here to save your pet, human?" Adam asked mockingly. "You don't seem to understand-"

"You talk too damn much!" Jaune snarled, and he swung his blade. The two exchanged blows furiously, Adam's speed and power being countered by Jaune's strength and agility. Adam jumped back and unleashed a Moonslice, but Jaune powered up and swung Crocea Mors to unleash another Aura slash. Red met gold, and the two blasts exploded against one another.

"HURK!"

Blake covered her eyes against the brightness of the flash, but lowered them immediately when she heard Jaune's cry. She gaped in horror as she saw Jaune standing there, Wilt buried in his gut, Adam smirking as he drove the blade in deeper. Blood ran from the wound, as Jaune shuddered and dropped his sword and shield.

"JAUNE!" Blake screamed.

Jaune shakily lifted his hands up to grab onto Adam's shoulders. The bull Faunus chuckled softly, as deadly as his blade, as he twisted Wilt inside to make Jaune groan in pain.

"You seem to forget," Adam gloated, "I'm the hero of this story. You are merely a side character, a distraction. Blake will eventually forget her dalliance with you. She will be mine, Remnant will be ours... And you will not even be a memory. You pathetic fraud. Loser. Weakling."

A train whistle sounded in the distance, and the roar of Dust powered engines began to get louder.

Jaune gritted his teeth in a savage grin. Adam scowled as Jaune's grip tightened on his shoulders.

"What's that stupid smile for, moron?"

"You can't see what my hands are doing, can you?"

Two small explosives slid out of Jaune's gauntlets, and he pressed them to Adam's shoulderblades. The bull Faunus's jaw dropped, he pulled away, let go of his sword and tried to remove his coat-

The twin explosions again forced Blake to shut her eyes. When she opened them, blinking the afterimages away, Adam stood there as a bloody wreck. His arms hung limp, bloody, ruined. He gaped in rage and horror at Jaune... Who lifted up his foot and kicked him in the gut towards the tracks.

"YOU-!"

The automated train roared by, covering Adam's scream with its loud horn and rush of the wind as it passed by. It headed off into the distance, not a trace of Adam left behind.

Jaune's knees wobbled, buckled, and finally bent as he fell to the rotting platform. Blake dragged herself over to him, and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.

"Jaune... Jaune," Blake sobbed. "I... I'm so sorry... I'm so, so sorry..."

Jaune wrapped an arm around her tightly, and pulled her into a hug.

"It's okay," Jaune whispered, "It's okay..."

They fell back onto the wooden platform together, blood loss and exhaustion forcing them both into unconsciousness.

- - -

When Blake awoke, it was to a well furnished hospital room. The beeping of medical machines and smell of disinfectant assaulted her senses. She looked around frantically from her bed.

"Jaune?! JAUNE?!"

He was laying in a bed next to her, groaning. His torsoe was heavily bandaged. Blake felt a strong but gentle hand take hold of her shoulder, and push her back down. She looked up: A familiar woman was pushing her back down.

"If you don't mind, I don't want either of you hurt yourself more than you already have," Isabel Arc stated flatly. Blake blinked.

"Wh... Where are we?"

"Radian. Arc-En-Ciel hospital," Isabel stated, "My son, for once, remembered to call in back up and aid. The rest of your teams are here too. My husband got you both out of there with his team and a hospital Bullhead."

Blake stared, and slowly nodded.

"I... I see," she whispered.

Isabel scowled at her deeply, and Blake shrank back.

"My son risked his life to save you-Twice," Isabel stated firmly, "You obviously mean a lot to him."

"... I know," Blake whispered, looking back at him.

"So, the least you could do is try not get him killed in the future," Isabel stated angrily. Blake winced, and bowed her head.

"... I know."

Isabel sighed slowly. She reached out and pulled Blake into a hug. Blake tensed up, but relaxed into the gentle warmth of her embrace.

"I can understand how hard it can be to face your true feelings," Isabel murmured, "But it's better than running away from them. Believe me."

She let Blake go. She turned and left, leaving Blake and Jaune alone in the quiet room of beeping machines.

She glanced at a small mirror by the side of her bed. She took it up, and stared at her reflection. Faint scars crisscrossed her flesh. She slid a hand underneath her hospital gown, tracing the lines left behind.

"Hey," Jaune murmured. Blake dropped the mirror, and struggled out of the bed. She became lightheaded with the first step, but she managed to get to the bed and Jaune's arms. He pulled her into his embrace, and she wrapped her arms around him.

"Jaune," Blake whispered, looking up into his eyes, "I... How are you feeling?"

"Terrible," Jaune admitted. Blake nodded.

"Same," she murmured. She looked up at him slowly. She reached up to touch his cheek, the whisker-like scars carved into his cheeks still dark and obvious. Scars Adam had left.

Jaune reached down to trace her own scars with his rough hands. She shivered softly, and leaned into him. His hands slid up and down her body, one going to scratch behind her ears while the other stroked up and down her back. They stayed like that in silence for a time.

"... I'm sorry," Blake murmured. "It... It's all my fault-"

"Blake," Jaune whispered, "Enough, okay? That's not helping. I wasn't... I wasn't going to let the woman I love face that monster alone."

Blake looked up into his eyes. She licked her lips.

"But you're scarred, and injured, all because of-"

"So are you," Jaune whispered. He cupped her cheek tenderly. "Because that's what you do for people you love."

Tears boiled at the corners of her eyes, warmth filling her soul. She slid up and kissed him deeply, a kiss he returned.

"... I love you too," she whispered against his lips. Jaune smiled, and nuzzled her.

"Just... Promise me one thing?" He asked. Blake nodded.

"Anything," she murmured, "I'll do the most depraved, debauched things in my books with you, I'll-!"

"Uh," Jaune blushed, "I-I mean, I'm glad and... Yeah, we'll do that... But what I want more than that? Just promise me... No more running away." He squeezed her hand. "Whatever comes in the future? We... We face it together."

Blake stared back at him. She bit her lower lip and slowly nodded. She squeezed his hand back.

"... I promise."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

He was back in Radian. The the familiar mountains, green and gray, shone in the light of the sun. A light breeze in the trees, familiar to him as the sound of his breathing, along with bird song and light music filled the air. The farmhouse he stood before was unfamiliar, yet still cozy, so he felt at ease.

It was blue with white trim... Then green with brown trim... Then red brick with green roofing... But this didn't matter to Jaune as he walked around to the back. He could see his children running around, laughing, playing, all happy. A smile came over his face. Ruby pranced up to him with a grin, wearing an apron. She'd grown into a beautiful woman, and she hugged and kissed him.

"Mm! Welcome home, sweetie!"

"Hey!" Jaune said, returning the hug and kiss. He pulled back and it was Emerald in his arms. "Hey... Wait..."

"What? What's wrong?" Yang asked, her cocky grin softened with a bit of maternal warmth. Jaune blinked.

"Ah... I'm just confused..."

"What's to be confused about?" Pyrrha asked, as they walked out into the picnic arm in arm, "We're here. Our family is here. We're happy..."

"But where...?" Jaune looked around. The children stayed the same-All of them. "Where's everyone else? Where are... My other wives?"

"You didn't need them, and neither do I," Blake stated firmly, "We're together. We can handle this all on our own."

Jaune shook his head, looking over at their children.

"I... No, that's not... That's not right..."

Glynda stepped into view, glaring.

"You can't hope to handle all of us. You know you can't."

Jaune held his hands up. Arslan was giving him a disapproving glare now.

"That's not... That's not true!"

"Is it?" Weiss demanded, striding towards him angrily, "You think you can keep us all happy? You think you can keep us together?"

Jaune began to back up.

"You're pretending, Jaune," May said, her voice still quiet but as jagged as a knife as he bumped into her. He turned to face her, as she yelped. She looked down-A knife was protruding from her stomach.

"Oh dear," she mumbled, as she collapsed. Jaune tried to catch her, but he was pulled away. He looked into Cinder's eyes, glowing with fire as she grinned.

"Only one wife, darling," Cinder hissed. She screamed as Winter stabbed her from behind with her sword. The other wives began to fight furiously, shooting, punching, kicking one another in their fury. The children fell in the crossfire, the sky turned red.

Jaune gaped in horror. He turned and ran.

"JAUNE!"

He looked over his shoulder. All his potential future wives stood there, covered in blood, their family in tatters.

"JAUNE!"

He looked ahead. The tall figure of a grim knight in rusted armor stood there. He tried to stop running but his muscles refused to respond. The Rusted Knight grew larger, larger, filling the sky, filling the space, filling-

"JAUNE!"

"GAH!"

Jaune shot up, awake, his hand reaching for his sword. He panted desperately, trying to get his bearings. Nora, Ren and Penny were standing around his bunk in their dorm. He slowly calmed down, taking deep breaths.

"Heyyyy," Nora said with a smile, "You okay, Fearless Leader?"

"Do you require medical attention?" Penny asked. A needle sprouted from her finger. Jaune shook his head, giving an apologetic smile to everyone-Nora especially. He reached out to squeeze her hand.

"I'm okay, really," he said. "Just... A lot on my mind."

"Our schedule has been disrupted a bit," Ren observed. Jaune was gratified to see him holding hands with Nora, and not looking uncomfortable about it. It was nice to see, to be honest. "How about we go and meditate before classes start?"

Jaune smiled and nodded.

"I'd like that," he said.

"Then we can weight train!" Nora said cheerfully. "Ooh! Penny! Do you weight train?"

"I do undergo periodic testing for the strength limits of my muscles!" Penny said cheerfully. She frowned slightly at the needle that still protruded from her finger. "Strange, why is it not going down?" She shook her hand. "Perhaps there is something wrong. Normal girls do not have such protrusions early in the morning!"

"That's a matter of debate!" Nora insisted. Ren and Jaune glanced at each other knowingly. Jaune gave Ren a pleading look, Ren shook his head. Jaune sighed.

"Nora, did you get into Blake's weird Mistralian comics again?"

"Me? No!" Nora shook her head with a big grin. "I got into Ruby's!"

"Well they're both wrong about that," Jaune stated firmly. There was a knock at the door. Nora, the previous conversation forgotten, turned and flounced up to the door. She opened it.

"Yes?"

"We're here to see Jaune Arc," stated a dark skinned boy in an Atlasian Academy uniform, looking grim. If Jaune recalled correctly, he was Flynt Coal from Atlas. He wasn't the only one: A lot of boys from the other Academies were all there too, including Cardin. Nora beamed.

"May I ask the reason for your visit?" She asked.

Ren was already going for his weapons as Penny pulled out a sword. Jaune held up his hands, and walked up to the door. He gently rested a hand on Nora's shoulder, and she relaxed a bit as she dropped back... Though he noted she was heading for her hammer. Jaune put on his very best 'please don't kill me' smile and greeted his visitors.

"Hey guys! What can I do for you?"

"I tried to stop them, Jauney," Cardin said, his former bully looking apologetic, "Just so you know."

"I... Appreciate that?" Jaune managed. Flynt scowled.

"You're the guy who's engaged to eleven women, huh?" Flynt demanded.

"Ahhh... Well... Yeah," Jaune admitted with a shrug.

"The guy whose father somehow talked eleven women's parents into arranging marriages for him?" Nadir Shiko, a pink haired boy, demanded, "Including my team leader?"

Jaune heard Penny's Array started up behind him. He cleared his throat and nodded, pushing past his nerves.

"Y-Yes! That's me! My dad did that!"

"Well," said a boy named Kobalt, who Jaune believed was also from Atlas, "In that case... Can your dad help us, too?"

Jaune blinked. Cardin covered his face in disbelief.

"Huh?"

"What? No!" Nadir growled. "We're giving him the business for my teammate!"

"You might be, but I'm hoping to pick up some tips," Flynt sniffed. He held up his fist. "Sir, you are a man among men, and a true bro! I mean, sure, you're marrying two Schnees but it balances out!"

"I thought we were beating him up for taking all our women?" Another boy demanded.

"HA! Like they were even your women to begin with!" Nadir mocked him.

Penny stepped forward, all smiles.

"Hello Friends! I believe it is time to prepare for breakfast!" She said cheerfully, "You should all be on your way!"

"But-!"

"Hey-!"

"We didn't-!"

Penny's swords manifested around her like the wings of an archangel. Her smile didn't change. The boys, almost as one, all sulked and headed off. Save for Flynt, whose fist was still outstretched, and Cardin, who was shaking his head in disbelief.

"Don't leave me hanging, bro," Flynt insisted. Jaune nodded and fist bumped him. "Thank you. Carry on, mad lad!"

He turned and headed off. Penny continued to smile tensely at Cardin. Nora and Ren backed her up, Nora grinning like a crazed berserker and Ren grim and cold as an Atlasian winter. Jaune held up his hand.

"He's okay, I think," he said.

"Awww," Nora pouted, but she stood down. As did Ren and Penny.

Jaune looked back at Cardin. "Cardin?"

Cardin sighed.

"Look, I don't know everything about what's going on, but I will say... Good luck buddy. You're gonna need it."

"Tell me about it," Jaune mumbled. "Listen, um, it's more complicated-"

"Yeah, I know," Cardin said, shaking his head in disbelief, "I heard some from Velvet. Enough to know I don't want to know more." His eyes narrowed. "Unless Velv is one of your future brides? I didn't see any rabbit Faunus among your future kids."

"They're not my..." At Cardin's glare, Jaune dropped the pretense. "No, no, not at all," Jaune insisted, shaking his head.

Cardin sighed in relief.

"Good! Good... I mean, as long as she was happy! I don't care about anything like that... Or her happiness," he muttered.

"Well," Jaune observed, "My future son will hate to hear that. He's looking forward to dating your future daughter."

Cardin laughed.

"Ha... Yeah... You're kidding right?"

Jaune smiled. Cardin's face turned pale.

"You... Are kidding, right Jauney?"

"Have a good day, Cardin," he said, closing the door on the now gobsmacked Winchester scion's face.

He'd had a nightmare and a rough morning. He deserved to mess with his former bully. If only a little.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Hastinpur, Kingdom of Pandu, Southern Mistral, Animus: One and a Half Years after the Defeat of Salem

- - -

Ruby Rose, adventurer, Huntress, savior of Remnant, walked into the hot, humid police precinct office in Hastinpur with a big grin. The interior walls were painted in white, blue, and reds, like most of the interiors in Hastinpur. She showed her ID badge to the sergeant at the front desk, who gaped in disbelief before letting her through.

Still not used to that, she mentally sighed, as she walked into the back of the hot station, fans going everywhere. She walked into the detention area, where someone loudmouth was berating someone.

"HA! There's no way you two are the Queen and Queen Consort! The queen is the most beautiful woman in the world and her consort could tear a man in half by glaring at him!" The police lieutenant scoffed. In the cell, sitting quite calmly, were Jaune and May-In normal civilian clothes. May had her hair under a blue handkerchief, while Jaune had a baseball cap. Both looked amused, if a bit exasperated.

"I keep telling you, I am your Queen," May sighed, shaking her head. "We just wanted to get away from our security detail for a while and go on a proper date for once."

"And where are they?" The police lieutenant demanded. Jaune nodded.

"Next cell over."

"I SWEAR TO GOD I'M GOING TO KICK YOUR ASSES! ALL YOUR ASSES!" Brawnz bellowed in the next cell over, banging at the bars. Nolan and Roy were sitting on the back bench, looking equally exasperated with their team leader.

"Look," May said, in her very best diplomatic voice, "We called Ruby, she'll be here soon to sort this all out."

"HA!" The police lieutenant scoffed, "You really expect me to believe that you know Lady Ruby Rose, one of the saviors of Remnant? The Red Reaper?"

Ruby met Jaune and May's gazes. Jaune smirked as May giggled. The lieutenant frowned and looked behind him... And then down. He blinked at Ruby, who smirked back. He slowly went pale.

"Hey," Ruby said, waving, "I'm Ruby Rose. Savior of Remnant. Those are my friends. You might have heard of them?"

"MY QUEEN! MY CAPTAIN!" The lieutenant cried, dropping to his knees and bowing, "I'M SO SORRY! PLEASE FORGIVE ME!" He hurriedly hit the cell door release button and went right back to groveling. May and Jaune stepped out of the cell, both snickering. May reached down and patted his shoulder.

"It's all right, Lieutenant," May giggled, "You were just doing your duty!"

"Can I please break his face, May?" Brawnz demanded, "Come on! Just a little?"

"No!" May admonished him, "He was overzealous in his duty but that's all!"

May took the police lieutenant's hands in hers and pulled him up. She beamed at him.

"It's all right. Just be a little more discerning before you arrest someone?" She asked.

"Y-Yes Your Majesty! Of course!" The lieutenant cried. Ruby grinned.

"So, do I have to pay the bail-?"

"No! NO! All charges dropped, really!" The lieutenant babbled.

"Aw, are you sure?" Ruby asked. "Brawnz seemed to be having fun in the cell."

"NO I WASN'T!"

"We sure weren't," Nolan and Roy sighed.

"SHUT UP!"

 

[FinalFormer]

Cross-posted From the SpaceBattles Thread

Childhood Memories: Taking A Stroll

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Hastinpur, Kingdom of Pandu, Southern Mistral, Animus. Prince August Arc-Sarkara. Age: 16

"This is a terrible idea, my Prince."

That was what August Arc-Sarkara heard from his personal maid, Tala Blackmore, when he told her to accompany him to the trader market in the city. He wanted to visit a bakery that his little sister, Pyrrha, liked. She said the meat buns were amazing.

"I'm not going to be in any danger. I can defend myself." He reassured her. He knew how to fight as well as she did, even if he was more of a sniper than a brawler.

"Then why exactly did you insist that I come along?", The Wolf Faunus asked. "Moreover, I could've went to the bakery myself if you told me to."

"Well, my mother and grandfather did say that walking among the people is the best way to understand them," August stated, gestured to the busy streets. "Getting a nice treat for Pyrrha seemed like the perfect chance to familiarize myself with my people."

"Besides," August shyly scratched the his cheek. "I... I simply enjoy your company is all."

The young prince harbored feelings for his maid ever since she was hired 4 years ago. From a glance, she could be mistaken for Atlas nobility. Her hair, her ears, her tail were all a beautiful shade of black. Like everlasting darkness. Her eyes were a piercing purple hue. To August, she was the most beautiful woman in Remnant.

Tala blushed at his words. Her ears lowered themselves in embarrassment.

"You know it's improper to make an older woman blush."

Despite her words, her tail was wagging. It completely juxtaposed her demure posture. A visage that caused August to blush as well.

"Y-you're only older than me by a year."

-----------------------------------------

There was an awkward silence between them for some time as they made there way to the bakery. August did his best to interact with everyone they crossed paths with. He stumbled his words a few times, even going on a few tangents, but it showed them his more honest nature.

At some point, August spent so much time talking to do many people that he forgot that they were supposed to be getting a treat for Pyrrha, so Tala had to get them.

"I'm sorry." August apologized for the 4th time.

"I already told you there's nothing to apologize for, my Prince," Tala sighed, taking a bite out of a meat bun. "It's as you said, you must get to know the people more personally. Though you really should learn how to stop fumbling over your words."

August winced at that. She really didn't hold back.

"And you're not very good at ending a conversation. And you--"

"Ok, I think I get it!" August stopped Tala before she could continue. She smirked at his reaction.

"You two!" A voice called to them. They turned to see an elderly woman. She wore green and black robes and had a white blindfold over her eyes. She had a staff that had small branches sprouting from the top. The branches red threads hanging off the ends. A few of the threads looked like it was pointing towards August and Tala.

"Yes, you two! Come closer," She urged them. When they got closer to her, she smiled. "Ah yes, that's what I was sensing. Interesting."

"Just what do you find so amusing?" Tala looked at her skeptically. This wasn't the first time someone tried to rob the prince disguised as a fortune teller.

"You have strong feelings for each other, don't you?," August and Tala blushed profusely. "Yes, the Red Thread doesn't lie. I can see how strong the connection is between the two to you."

"W-what?!" August stuttered.

"I-I... Th-that... Y-you're making this up!" Tala accused, her stoic demeanor completely shattered.

"Oh ho, you're quite the doubtful one aren't you, Wolf Faunus," the fortune teller said, amusingly. "But the Red Thread never lies. It tells me that you and that young man have a fruitful future together~. A beautiful hilltop wedding in Vale," She touched one of the threads. "Your families surround you, love filled in all of their hearts. And 8...," She touched a different thread. "... No, 12 children. Yes, a wonderful future indeed."

"E-enough of this nonsense!" Tala protested. She grabbed August's arm and made beeline toward the palace. August couldn't protest or respond, his brain was a bit preoccupied at the moment.

The thought of being married to Tala was... of course he had thought about it! But he could never muster the courage to actually confess his feelings to her like his dad did. He wasn't a ladies man!

What made it more frustrating was when he asked any of the men in his family they always gave him contradicting advice!

"Women love a man with confidence!"

"Just be honest with her."

But at the same time, he knew things couldn't remain the same. Especially after what just happened.

"What a ridiculous woman! Can you believe her, my Prince!? The nerve to a-assume something like--," August stopped her, pulling her close to him. He had made his decision. "My Prince, what are y--"

August silenced her with a kiss. She was a bit shorter than him, so he had to lean down to meet her lips. She smelled like citrus. He could hear her tail swishing around wildly.

This wasn't supposed to happen! He only meant to stop her so they could talk this out! But his heart decided to take over his damn body!

Once the kiss ended, the shock on Tala's face was something August would never forget. Her face looked redder than it was a few minutes ago. August stared deeply into her eyes as he steeled himself for the conversation they were about to have.

"S-so, Tala," August broke the silence. "Do you think we could--"

Tala silenced him with a kiss. She stood on her tippy toes to do so. She hated how much taller he was than her. She had dropped the bag of meat buns in order to wrap her arms around August's neck. Her tail curled itself around his waist.

After he kissed her, Tala knew she couldn't hold back. This was the man she loved. The one she would spend the rest of her days with.

It took awhile for the two of them to notice the sun going was down. Once they did, Tala grabbed the bag off the floor.

"W-we should probably head back home, my Prince. It's getting rather late."

"Y-yeah. You're right." August cleared his throat.

The two would spend the next month sharing kisses in secret. It wouldn't take long for his mother and father to notice the glances the two would often share.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Felt like writing a classic Prince × Maid story this time around. Hope you guys enjoy.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Isabel was up bright and early the next morning, typing furiously on her keyboard as she rapidly looked over numerous holo windows of data. They flashed by so quickly an ordinary person would have been dazzled by their speed, but Isabel had her Semblance on full as her brain processed it all at superhuman speeds.

"Morning Izzy," Nick greeted, walking up behind her. He kissed her cheek, and she blushed a bit. He grinned and poured her another cup.

"Oh, thank you Nick," Isabel said happily, accepting the cup and sipping it down. "Mmm... Just how I like it."

"Well it is very simple, black, nothing in it," Nick chuckled. He rubbed his chin. "Geez, I'm still aching from that hit yesterday!"

Isabel winced.

"I'm really sorry for that-I didn't mean to go that hard-"

"No! I love it when you really cut loose!" Nick said cheerfully. "I went flying so far! It was great! Think you could hit me further next time?"

"I..." Isabel shrugged and sighed in exasperation. "Maybe. We'll see."

"Great!" Nick cheered. He sipped his own coffee-Chock full of sugar and cream. "So, you sort things out with Jaune last night?"

Isabel nodded.

"I did," she said. "I mean, not fully, but... I think we're in a better place." She looked intensely at Nick. "I still... I still pray he didn't have all this on his shoulders."

Nick smiled gently.

"I don't."

Isabel raised an eyebrow.

"Oh?"

"I pray he has big enough shoulders to handle it," Nick said with a nod as he sipped his coffee. Isabel chuckled.

"I suppose that's how you would see it."

"It's a good prayer," Nick said, "It hasn't failed me yet!"

"Heh," Isabel chuckled, turning back to the data. Nick hummed as he looked it all over.

"Sooo... What are you working on?"

"Well, Ozpin has some patients he wanted me to look over," Isabel said, humming thoughtfully, "One is Moses, the other... Well..."

Nick just nodded in understanding. Isabel sighed.

"They're both frustrating cases," she admitted. "Moses, the medical data changes practically every time I look at it! I've been able to pin down eleven variations on the data. At least I think it's eleven variations. Nothing too out of the ordinary... If you discount that his father seems to change between timelines." She shook her head. "One constant though-He's under an enormous amount of stress."

"Eleven different versions of yourself and it keeps changing depending on who's looking at you? Yeah, poor kid," Nick murmured, frowning thoughtfully. At Isabel's look, he shrugged. "What? I watched Professor Paradox with you and the kids all the time! I remember stuff!"

"No, I'm just proud," Isabel smiled. Nick beamed, then looked back at the data.

"And the other patient?"

"It's like her soul has been torn in half," she sighed, "I've literally never seen anything like it! All the data suggests that any Aura added to her system to try and help heal her will just... Vanish! There's some kind of connection between her and whoever did this. Like a wound in reality. It would be fascinating if it wasn't horrifying."

"Any way to help her?" Nick asked. Isabel sighed.

"She might be too far gone. Ozpin's rigged up a system using Raven to keep her alive... But it's a delaying action. The damage to her very soul..." She shook her head. "This Salem is a monster if she came up with this kind of thing... And this Cinder is just as bad if she knowingly used it on an innocent person."

"And yet," Nick pointed out, "She does turn good in the future. Well, a future."

"Only one," Isabel grumbled.

"Isn't one enough?" Nick asked softly. Isabel worked her jaw, her frown deepening.

"... I suppose," she allowed, "I just... I pray it's enough for her."

"We both do," Nick said with an encouraging smile, reaching out to squeeze her hand. She squeezed his back lovingly.

Someone cleared their throat. Both Arcs looked at the clinic entrance.

Winter Schnee stood there at attention, ramrod straight. At her side was the nervous looking May Zedong, in her school uniform.

"Doctor and Paladin Arc!" Winter greeted, "Good morning!"

"Um, good morning, Aunt Isabel, Uncle Nick," May said, as though unsure of the terms. "Um... Well... Last night we um... We sorted things out. So we're going on dates with Jaune this week, and uh... We go first."

"Arjun must be happy about that," Nick observed. May nodded.

"He was ecstatic... Until Mom elbowed him."

"That sounds like her," Isabel mused. She smiled warmly at her goddaughter and Winter. "So, what can we do for you?"

"While my mother and commanding officer have given me," Winter paused, and her pale cheeks turned red, "advice, since you are Jaune's parents, I thought it prudent to ask you for some intel on how to conduct oneself on a date with Jaune."

"And um..." May shrugged. "My parents had suggestions but uh..." She also turned bright red, "Um... W-Well..."

"Yeah, Arjun and Saia's first date turned into a fight against bandits," Nick laughed, "Lots of fun! Not as easy to do now!"

"So," Isabel said with a smile, "What would you like to know about Jaune first? I still have baby pictures, after all."

Winter flushed.

"I... I suppose it would be nice to see them," she mused.

"I'd love to see them!" May beamed happily.

"Great!" Nick cheered. "Should we start with the embarrassing bath times, or all the times his sisters put him in dresses?"

May blushed and tapped her fingers together. Winter raised an eyebrow, flushing a bit.

"Perhaps... Both?" Winter suggested.

"Both m-might be good," May added.

"This will be good experience for when you have your kids," Nick said cheerfully, pulling out his Scroll.

Elsewhere, Jaune and all his future children shivered.