[RWBY] The Great Temporal Step-Sibling War!

[FinalFormer]

Cross-posted from the Spacebattles Thread.

Glimpses Into Another Time: Happy Endings

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Radian, Gallia, Vale. 2 Years After The Defeat Of Salem.

In her bedroom, Emerald Sustrai stared at a locket that was gifted to her by the woman she once called 'mistress', debating whether or not to discard it. It was beautiful, but it held too many bad memories.

"'Us'? There is no 'Us', Emerald. There has never been an 'Us'. There will neve be an 'Us'."

Hearing those words from her mistress stung. That party at Beacon was the day Emerald learned how Cinder really felt about her. The woman she worshipped like a goddess saw her as nothing more than a pet. In hindsight, it should've been obvious, now that Emerald had given it some thought. Cinder had made so many false promises, stringing her along like she was some hopless, lovesick girl...

Ok, maybe she was, but it still hurt to be treated like that.

Emerald left the party to wallow in her sorrow, to curl up into a ball and push down her emotions. But fate decided not to kick while she was down that day, because she was followed by a certain blonde knight.

"Um, hey," Jaune Arc let his presence be known, albeit in his awkward way. "I.. heard what Cinder said. I'm sorry."

"I don't need your pity." Emerald spat. She knew he had a problem with taking 'no' for an answer, so she hoped her attitude would be enough to get him to fuck off.

"You're right. You don't," Jaune then sat down next to her. Was he seriously this dense!? "But you do need a friend."

It was at that moment Emerald's heart latched onto Jaune. At first, she used him as a life preserver. His kindness was healing that void Cinder left, putting her broken heart back together piece by piece. But soon, the need for comfort blossomed into something more. Emerald had fallen in love with Jaune. And he had fallen for her. But that love wouldn't go unnoticed. Cinder had given Emerald a choice: Kill the boy and redeem herself or die along with him.

Emerald made her choice when she told Ozpin what Cinder and Salem had planned for the Vytal Festival. It had taken quite a bit of convincing, but her Scroll had everything she needed to earn his trust. With the attack on the Vytal Festival was successfully thwarted. But it wouldn't stop there, knowing that Haven Academy was her next target, Ruby and team JNPR went on a journey to Mistral to stop Cinder. Naturally, Emerald went with them. And it was there that Emerald had her final confrontation with Cinder.

Knock Knock

Emerald turned, snapping herself back to the present. She's more than a little nervous today.

How could she not? It was her wedding day.

"Come in." She invited the person who knocked into the room. The door opened, revealing her soon-to-be Mother-in-law, Isabel Arc.

"I knew you'd look amazing." Isabel beamed. She had given Emerald her mother's wedding dress. She had hoped to see one of her daughters wearing it, but they all bought ones of their own and Tangy made it explicitly clear she wasn't settling down any time soon.

"You think so?" Emerald smiled.

"Of course I do," Isabel walked up to her. "You're going to knock Jaune's socks off. If he's anything like his father, his jaw is gonna fall completely off when he sees you!"

"Yeah, but he always does," Emerald says dryly. "But I appreciate the visualization." She turned back to the desk, the locket stared back at her. Almost like it was mocking her. This didn't go unnoticed by Isabel.

"That looks lovely. Why don't you put it on?" Isabel suggested.

"I'm... I don't...," Emerald struggled. She wanted to talk to someone about this, but she didn't want to say anything that she couldn't take back. Isabel had always treated her like a daughter, so who better to have a peptalk than her? "Isabel, can I ask you a question?"

"What's on your mind?" Isabel raised an eyebrow.

"Well," Emerald looked at the locket once more. "I've been wondering if... If I deserve this. All of this. A happy ending."

Isabel knew about Emerald's past. Everyone in Jaune's family did. She, along with a few of her son's friends, were apprehensive of their relationship at first. But as time went on, Emerald had proven her love for Jaune was true. But there was one person that lingered in the back of the thief's mind.

"Is this about Cinder?" Isabel asked.

Emerald winced. Cinder's last words have been haunting her for the last few weeks, causing her to worry when the other shoe will drop.

"People like us don't get happy endings, Emerald."

Cinder had sounded so sure of this, even as she died. But every day with Jaune had proven her wrong. So why was she thinking about it now? She found that locket at the bottom of her jewelry box. It brought up a few emotions along with it.

"Whatever it is, I don't think it really matters," Isabel said, her tone warm. She poured a glass of water for Emerald and herself. "To dwell on the past is to deny yourself of the future. I'm sure whatever Cinder said to you was only said to scare you. To make sure you always see her whenever you look over your shoulder."

Isabel words filled Emerald with relief. She really was the mother she never had. She took a sip of water and a smile formed on her face. "You're right. Maybe I'm just stressed out. All the planning, all the messages from Weiss, the pregnancy te--." Emerald immediately covered her mouth. Dammit! They were supposed to announce this at the reception!

The sound of glass shattering on the floor startled her. Isabel's mouth was in a perfect O shape.

"P-P-Pregnancy test?" She uttered, a wide smile was forming on the Arc matriarch's face. Tears stared to fall down her cheeks. She looked like her entire body was vibrating with joy. She ran over to the former thief and held in a (surprisingly) tight bear hug. "I can't believe it! Does this mean I'm--!"

"Yes! But when we tell everyone, act surprised!" Emerald said struggling in her hold. She just noticed that time. She was gonna be late for her own wedding and she'll be damned if she's gonna let Mercury hold it over her for the rest of her life. "Mrs. Arc, we have to go!"

Isabel let her daughter-in-law go and gave her one final once over. "Yes! Yes, you're right! Can't think about spoiling my grandkids just yet if my son isn't married! Now, let's go get you married!"

Isabel grabbed Emerald's arm and dragged her out of her room. Emerald began to laugh at her Mother-in-law's switch in demeanor.

With every step she took, Emerald started to imagine the life she and Jaune would make, free from Cinder's shadow. Whatever future they will make together will be made with their own two hands.

Besides, what's the worst that could happen?

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

Wanted to take my time with this one.

In the Cinder omake, she was talking to Nick, so I thought Emerald should talk to Isabel. Hope you guys enjoy.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Glimpses into Another Time: Oh... That Day

- - -

Beacon, Vale

- - -

Cinder Fall thought she would be feeling more joy at this moment. The plan had gone off flawlessly, after all.

The Vytal Tournament had been ruined. Panic and doubt had been spread across Remnant before the CCTnet went out. Atlas' pet gynoid had been neutralized and Pyrrha Nikos had gotten all the blame. Causing her pain was deeply satisfying to Cinder, even beyond what she had felt previously.

Yet even that didn't excite her. This terror, this mayhem... She was feeling so empty as she approached the elevator to Ozpin's office, Emerald and Mercury flanking her.

If she was in time, she would catch Ozpin before he transferred what was left of the Maiden Powers into Nikos, seize them for herself, and then... Maybe she could find something to excite her and keep her mind off of-

"Cinder?!"

She froze, as did Mercury and Emerald.

No...

She slowly turned to her right. She saw him standing there in utter shock, his weapons out.

No no no...

"Arc?" Mercury hissed in shock, yet she caught a brief flash of pain in his eyes.

"Why are you here?!" Emerald demanded. She shot an anxious look at Cinder, then back at the blond knight.

"I'm here protecting the elevator-What are you doing here?!" Jaune demanded. "You should be evacuating!"

There was the temptation to lie. She'd lied so much after all. Left so many bodies in her wake.

He was... He should have just been one more. One more patsy, one more stooge.

She clenched her fists.

"I'm here for the Maiden Powers," she stated, almost meekly.

Jaune's eyes widened in shock. As much of a dolt as he could be, he put the pieces together remarkably quickly. She could practically see his synapses firing behind his eyes, so fast...

"No," he whispered.

Cinder held her chin high, even though the horror in his gaze made her want to shrink away.

No. No! She wasn't going to be stopped by this pathetic boy's eyes!

Mercury stepped up.

"Look Arc. You have two choices," he stated, "Run, or die. That's how it is."

"She's been playing you from the start! We all have!" Emerald insisted. "You-You don't mean anything to her! She just used you!"

Silence ensured, save for the distant sounds of gunfire and explosions. Then:

"I want to hear it from her."

His voice was quiet, but firm. Cinder looked up. He was staring intently right at her, his focus like a laser beam.

"She doesn't need to-" Emerald tried but Jaune shook his head.

"I want to hear it from her!" Jaune growled. "I want to hear it from her lips! Cinder... Tell me the truth!"

Cinder trembled.

"Go on, I'll deal with this," she muttered.

"But Cinder-" Emerald tried.

"GO," she snarled, eyes lighting up. Emerald and Mercury practically raced to the elevator. The doors slid shut behind them. Cinder summoned up her anger, her arrogance, her pride-Who was this boy to impede her?

"It was...!"

She gritted her teeth, her eyes still low.

"It was... It was all the lie!" She spat. "You-You were just a tool! Power... Power is what I was after!"

"Why?" Jaune asked. Cinder scoffed.

"Because it's power, Jaune! In the end, we all just want it! We need it! And only those strong enough to cut out the weakness can-can achieve it!"

Jaune stared at her for a long moment. She wanted to see some hurt in his eyes. Hatred would have been better: Disgust would make this so much easier.

Hate me, she willed, please hate me... Please...!
He slowly shook his head.

"I don't believe you," he stated.

Cinder's eyes widened.

"Wha-?"

"I mean, I believe you wanting power and all, yeah," Jaune said with a nod, "This is proof but... I don't believe you felt nothing for me. For everyone else."

Cinder grit her teeth.

"I'm the big villain you've been fighting all this time! I-I've been using the White Fang! I've unleashed hell upon Vale! I'm going to leave this city a ruin!" She snarled. "What makes you think I-I could ever care about you?! ABOUT ANYONE?!"

She ignited her Semblance, fires burning in her hands.

"So unless you want that to happen, you'd better fight me, and pray that I'm merciful enough to kill you in one-!"

A sword and shield clattered to the floor. Cinder blinked. Jaune stood there unarmed.

"Wha-What are you doing?!" She demanded. "Pick up your weapons! Fight me!"

"No!" Jaune growled.

"Wha-You're unreasonable!" Cinder shot back with a growl, "I'm an evil witch here to destroy Vale and your enemy! It's kill or be killed!"

"I don't believe you!" Jaune shouted back.

"Do you HAVE to be so stubborn?!" Cinder demanded, a familiar anger burning in her.

"Me stubborn?! You threw a fit over us going to the park even though we had a great time!" Jaune retorted. Cinder gaped.

"What-I didn't want to go out and get sweaty outside! And it was too hot! But then you had to go and-and use your stupid puppy dog eyes and we went anyway!"

"And we still had a great time!" Jaune insisted. "You couldn't have faked all of that!"

"I-!" She shook her head. She had fallen into the trap-Arguing with him like they weren't secretly mortal enemies. Teasing and toying with each other.

"I DID!" She growled. "It was all a LIE! You mean NOTHING TO ME!"

Jaune stared at her for a long moment.

"You mean everything to me," he said, and her heart nearly stopped.

No, please...!

"You don't mean that!" She growled. "You're just a stupid boy! You got a hot girlfriend! You just-You didn't-FIGHT ME!"

"No," Jaune replied. He began to walk towards her. Cinder's jaw dropped.

"Wha-What are you doing?!"

"I'm going to give my girlfriend a hug," Jaune stated, "Because she's having a bad day."

"I'M NOT YOUR GIRLFRIEND!" Cinder raged as her heart beat so hard it was nearly deafening in her ears. "And if you take another step closer I'll kill you!"

Jaune stared into her eyes.

"Then do it," he said softly. "Kill me. But I don't believe you will."

He took another step. Cinder's shook as the flames burned in her palms. Despite the heat she felt cold and twisted inside.

"Fool," she snarled.

She threw a fireball right at him. His Aura flared to life, taking the hit even as he stumbled. He looked back up... And took another step.

"Idiot!" She bellowed, unleashing a stronger blast. This one nearly bowled him over, but he kept coming.

"BASTARD!" She roared, and unleashed a massive blast of fire at him. His Aura burned and shielded him, as he kept walking towards her. She seethed as he went right through the fire. He was panting, tired, but he didn't stop.

STOP! RUN! She begged mentally. STOP MAKING ME FEEL THIS WAY!

He close enough to touch. She threw her hands out, but faster than she had ever given him credit for, he caught her wrists. Enraged, she poured on the flames, gripping his wrists and channeling her rage. He grimaced but didn't let go as she burned his wrists.

"Don't you get it?!" Cinder roared. "IF YOU DON'T GO I'LL HAVE TO KILL YOU! YOU'RE A WEAKNESS AND I HAVE TO CUT YOU OUT!"

"NO!" Jaune shouted back.

She began to sob,

"JUST GO! JUST GO!"

"NO!"

Cinder's flames burned white hot yet still Jaune didn't pull away.

"ALL I'VE EVER WANTED IS POWER! THIS IS ALL I WANT! PLEASE!" Cinder begged, her knees shaking.

"Then... Kill me!" Jaune gritted out. "If it was all a lie... Kill me! If that's what you want, then do it! I just want you to know... I love you, Cinder!"

"NO!"

She let go of Jaune, and fell to the floor. The smell of burning flesh filled the air as she wept. She felt him kneel down with her and wrap his arms around her shaking shoulders.

"You can't love me!" She got out between desperate sobs, "You CAN'T!"

"I do!"

"You're an idiot!"

"I know!"

She buried her face in his chest, tearing raining down her cheeks as he gripped her tightly. His Aura poured into her. She felt the Grimm within her writhe, scream, and die.

She turned her head and vomited black goo all over the floor. He held her hair away from her face with one hand, his other arm still wrapped around her. She was left panting, and wiped her mouth with her sleeve. Even now, she kept crying.

She leaned back into his warm. She felt his heartbeat. She closed her eyes tightly. She let his warmth fill her.

"... I'm sorry," she whispered.

He stroked her long hair comfortingly.

"I know..."

- - -

 

[AndrewJTalon]

The Ozpins



- - -



Ozpin was quite capable of multitasking. The real thing, not what a bunch of corporate consultants thought the word meant. He could split his thought processes into many streams through long practice, carrying on multiple lines of thought at the same time. It came in handy almost constantly.



Certainly, he could pay attention in budget meetings but that required very little of his faculties: The rest was indulging in far more important matters like strategy in countering Salem's movements, potential locations for Qrow or his other agents to seek out some esoteric lore, and new recipes of hot chocolate and coffee to attempt.



Glynda was always better with money matters. He didn't even know his bank account numbers any more thanks to her.



In this case, his mental streams were divided into two: One to follow the conversation Doctor Weena Nebogipfel was having with him and their son over complex temporal mechanics in the conference room they had chosen after he had returned from dealing with Raven.



The other was studying Weena's face.



Romance since Salem had been a chore for the most part. When he incarnated into people who were in a relationship, he did do his best to keep it going. Much of the time things didn't work out: He'd lost count of the women who had walked out on his hosts, never to be seen again, as they believed their beloved had been consumed by some monster.



Yet sometimes it had worked out well: His partner had managed to adjust and accept him as a fusion of an ancient wizard fighting implacable darkness and their beloved. Elphaba had been one of the most understanding: She was the wife of his persona as the Warrior King of Vale during the Great War. She had been shaken but had carried on dutifully as his Queen. She'd had great insight into politics and had practically run Vale itself during the conflict.



Yet every time they met, he could tell there was a great sadness in her eyes over the change. The only comfort he had been able to offer her was that, one day, she and her real love would be united in the afterlife while he continued. Continued in a hopeless war for humanity's survival, all alone.



When he'd told her that in their study, she had reached out and hugged him, crying genuine tears for his plight and offering what comfort she could.



She was the wife who reminded him most of Salem. Salem as she was, before his first death. Before the Darkness. Before this insanity.



When she died, he'd made sure she had the nicest memorial gardens in Beacon, packed with her favorite poppy flowers. It was the least he could do to honor her memory. A woman who had treated him with so much love and kindness.



He'd studied her face their entire lives together. Just as he had with Salem.



Just as he did now with Weena.



"Hmm... This Rusted Knight event," Weena went on, numerous calculations written out on holoscreen and paper before her, "You're absolutely sure it happens in every timeline?"



"Positive, Mom," Moses said firmly, "It-It's hard to quantify but it might be a fixed event."



"Hmmm," Weena considered the equations carefully, writing down some notes, "It might be. And the use of this Staff Relic-That's required to open the Gateways?"



"Yes, though from what I have gleaned," Ozpin said as he looked over at Moses, "Getting into the Ever After was an accident, correct?"



"Yeah, in every timeline," Moses said, wincing as he rubbed his temples. Weena frowned.



"Are you all right?" She asked in concern.



"Y-Yeah... Eleven sets of memories are still hard to keep track of," Moses groaned.



Weena looked at Ozpin in concern.



"What have you been giving him?"



"Standard pain killers and Aura supplements," Ozpin said, "Jaune's Semblance can apparently heal ailments but I'm reluctant to have him use it on Moses given what happened last time. I'll have Isabel give him a full examination."



"Good call," Moses groaned. "Hey uh... Mind if I lay down for a bit?"



"Not at all!" Weena said with a smile, "I can only imagine the strain. Here, here!"



She got up and pushed a couch over to him. Moses gratefully staggered over and fell onto it. He curled up and pressed a pillow up over the side of his head.



"Urgh... Need to block some stuff out," he muttered.



Weena pulled out an instrument and began to scan him carefully. It hummed loudly, and at tension in Moses' back muscles Weena turned the sound off.



"Geez..." She mumbled. She walked over to where Ozpin was sitting at the desk covered in their various notes. She frowned as she looked at Moses intently.



"Bad?" Ozpin asked.



"Yes and no," Weena admitted, "I'll need to get my bigger scanners into the lab, and him for examination. Good news is that he's not facing temporal discontinuity: There's no sign he'll vanish out of existence."



Ozpin braced himself.



"And the bad news?"



"He's still in temporal flux," she admitted, "I picked up smaller amounts of it off the other children, Jaune and his potential wives, but it's there. They're all connected." Weena frowned and removed her glasses. She began to pace around the room, muttering under her breath.



"It's almost like there's... An impact point in time, like a rock hit a windshield," she mused, "The integrity of the surface is still there but it is compromised. The rest of it is intact but there's increased strain upon it. As though even if they all come from different timelines, they are bound together by Moses. It's honestly fascinating and it would be a lot less terrifying-"



"If your child wasn't involved," Ozpin finished the thought. Weena turned to him helplessly, and nodded. She stared at Moses, as he fell into a deep sleep.



"... I honestly hadn't pictured having children," she said softly. Her eyes softened. "Yet we get along so easily. It's... It's so natural. Like instinct and something more interacting."



Ozpin nodded slowly.



"I have many regrets," he said quietly, "But being a parent was never one of them."



Weena stared intently at the old wizard. She flushed deeply.



"Ah... Um... Oh yes, that. That part," she muttered.



Ozpin coughed.



"I have... I have no expectations-"



"Well it's not like we have a very wide dating pool, now is it?" Weena asked dryly. "We're both immortal. Who would be my other option, your ex-wife?"



"I would hope you had better taste," Ozpin said dryly, sipping his hot chocolate, "Though honestly it feels like I win by default."



Weena looked back at their son. She smiled quietly.



"I think he appreciates us together," she said, "He looks far less stressed when we talk together. Like it's familiar."



"Mm," Ozpin said with a nod. He sighed.



"It has been a very long time for me."



"Well, I don't exactly have a lot of experience myself," Weena shrugged. "But... We do figure it out in eleven timelines, don't we? That's at least somewhat comforting."



"Mm," Ozpin grunted in soft agreement. Weena chuckled.



"Besides... We could be like poor Jaune. However is he going to choose?"



"I have every confidence that they will figure something out," Ozpin said quietly. "Though I will admit, that is more based on instinct than hard data."



He looked to Weena, again studying her face. She put her glasses back on.



"I heard that logic is only the beginning of wisdom," she said.



"Wisdom is also what men call their mistakes," Ozpin chuckled dryly. Weena raised an eyebrow.



"How many of those sayings were yours?"



"Not as many as you might think, which is comforting," Ozpin said, sipping his mug, "To know that there are things I do not know."



"For now, anyway," Weena muttered. Ozpin gave her a small smile.



"I will not lie and say that immortality is easy. It isn't, even without my ex-wife trying to destroy all existence. But at the very least... We won't be alone. However things turn out."



Weena slowly nodded. She sat back down in her chair and leaned forward.



"So... Um... If we're part of the same club... It would be nice to know about, well..." She winced. "Your ex and all. How it all began."



Ozpin nodded slowly. His streams of consciousness collapsed into one. He would need his full faculties to get through this.



"Once upon a time, long, long ago, there was a princess in a tower, and a foolish young man with four daughters..."



- - -



I just realized we had one more family to check in with.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Ren and Nora had commandeered the Odette Swan Ballroom for their brunch, and had managed to rope May and Arslan's teams into helping with the setup and preparation. Once all the tables and chairs had been set up the boys of BRNZ had been posted at the entrances to act as doormen while the boys of team ABRN were moving about the adjacent kitchen helping Ren flip pancakes, scramble eggs and get the other food items like donuts and pastries sorted out. Reese darted around the place on her hoverbard playing waitress ferrying plates full of food from the kitchen area to the buffet table.

As Nora ushered almost everyone into the ballroom with a grand flourishing of her arms and a declaration of "The stranglers get here when they get here, LETS EAT!" The stranglers in question were a small handful of people who needed to take care of this or that small chore before coming and left with assurances they would be joining the brunch soon.

Jaune had to admit that the Odette Swan Ballroom was a perfect venue for this second breakfast; it was smaller than Beacon's other ballrooms making it a significantly more intimate location while still having enough room for everyone to have plenty of elbow room. The line at the buffet table had moved quickly and people were mixing and mingling with pleasant conversation filling the air. After eating enough to please Nora he took a deep breath and steeled himself for the next daunting task in front of him: properly introducing himself to the parents of his potential brides.

He glanced around the room trying to figure out who to approach first. May's parents were his godparents, meaning they already knew him pretty well so he supposed starting with them wasn't necessary. On top of that only Arjun was in the room at the moment: Saia had taken May aside to show her something instead of coming straight to the brunch. That means Jaune was starting elsewhere, but with who?

Pyrrha was his partner and Ruby was his best friend so starting with one of them felt natural. Ruby's dad was also Yang's dad so starting with Mr. Xiao Long would take care of the introductions to the parents of two of his potential brides at once. Mr. Xiao Long wasn't a complete stranger either, he had actually met the guy when he was around three and the man's team were involved in more than one of his parent's stories form their huntsman days so it would make sense to start with him. Jaune stepped away from his seat and took a couple of purposeful strides into the space between the tables before coming to a stop as a thought popped into the back of his mind: Would starting with his best friend be a sign of favoritism? He didn't want to give anyone that kind of impression, so how could he do this without sending the wrong kind of signals to anyone?

Jaune stood there in a state of contemplation only to have his conundrum solved for him as someone else approached him first.

"Umm. Hey Jaune," Blake stood in front of her parents with her father on her right and her mother on her left. An incredibly nervous smile dominated the catgirl's face as she began her formal introductions, nerves that bled into her actions. "This is my father, Ghira," Blake gestured to her mother, "And this is my mother Kali," she gestured to her father. "Mom, Dad," She nodded her head in the direction of the wrong parent as she addressed them, "This is Jaune Arc, the father of my children."

Ghira and Kali shared a bemused look behind their daughter's back that threatened to morph into amusement. Jaune just felt relieved that someone else was as nervous as he was.

"It's a pleasure to meet you sir," Jaune extended a hand to Ghira who gladly took it causing Bake to realize her father had been on her right this whole time.

"Ghira!" She pointed to her father. "Kali!" She pointed to her mother. "Oh god." She buried her face in her hands.

"Relax Blake," Kali stepped forward and hugged her daughter from the side, "This isn't going to be like the first time you brought a boy home. Or the second time. Or the third. Your taste in boys has significantly improved."

"Yes," Ghira agreed as he place a hand on Blake's shoulder, "And on top of that the twins were clearly raised right, which alleviates ninety-five percent of the concerns we'd normally have about a suitor of yours."

"What do I need to do for the other five percent?" Jaune wondered.

"Are you anything like Adam Taurus?" Ghira asked in a tone that wasn't that serious while being very serious.

"I don't really know the guy but I don't think so?" Jaune provided.

"Then you have nothing to worry about!" Ghira proclaimed as he clasped Jaune's shoulder. "We'll just need to spend some time together and I'm sure any lingering concerns will be taken care of as we get to know each other."

"And since you're a suitor we approve of the traditions of Menagerie say we should show our approval with a gift," Kali explained with a smile as she pulled a book from behind her back and handed it to Jaune.

Jaune examined the book as he turned it over in his hands. It was a black hardcover with no words on its' front or spine, a golden image of a mountain flower with an insect being the only identifying marks in those places. Jaune opened the book to its' title page and read aloud, "The Wasp and the Orchid."

Blake gasped in horror before snatching the book from Jaune's hands and pulling it to her chest with an absolutely scandalized look on her face. Her eyes darted about the room to make sure nobody saw or heard the title Jaune had just read while her face blushed the deepest scarlet Jaune had ever seen on a woman.

"Mom!" Blake hissed, "What Were You Thinking!"

"Glynda's call made us think things were closer to the marriage and honeymoon phase than the just started dating phase," Kali shrugged in an unrepentant manner.

"Umm... what's...?" Jaune ventured with concern in his eyes.

Ghira cleared his throat and explained, "It's an old faunus relationship guide written by a priestess of the Animal God almost two-thousand years ago. Its' main focus is about how to keep the spark in the bedroom going as long as possible."

"Ooooh," Jaune then shrugged as he looked to Blake, "I'm pretty sure I've seen you read worse in public."

"No," Blake shook her head with a far away look on her face, "No you haven't." She looked down at the book and then back up to Jaune. "I'm going to burn this."

Blake darted off causing Kali to chase after her with a "HEY!" Ghira shook his head with a chuckle before looking Jaune in the eye.

"Let's do something together later so we can get to know one another better," The panther faunus grinned. "Do you enjoy fishing?"

"Ah, yeah I'm good with fishing," Jaune managed to answer.

"Great! We'll figure out a time and place later," Ghira replied before turning to follow his wife and daughter who were having a whispered argument by the doorway Kali had caught Blake at.

Jaune shook his head as he watched the argument he couldn't hear. What could possibly be in that book that it would make Blake of all people bashful about sex? The question was as intriguing as it was terrifying. In fact it might be more terrifying than it was intriguing. By a significant margin.

A firm hand grasping Jaune's shoulder shook him from that line of thought, and he looked over to see Ruby and Yang's dad Taiyang standing there regrading him with a serious look on his face. Qrow was standing just behind him with a semi-hostile scowl dominating his features.

"Alright punk," Taiyang began without preamble, "You've captured the hearts of both of my daughters, the lights of my life, so I have a moral obligation to put you through the wringer to make sure you're up to snuff."

"I'm helping," Qrow added gruffly.

"Okay then," Jaune straightened his posture and held Taiyang's harsh gaze, "What are we doing for the wringer?"

Taiyang's glare intensified and Jaune managed to keep his own gaze steady in the face of the older man's judgment. The two of them stood like that for a lengthy moment before Tai reached some kind of conclusion and nodded.

"Sunrise tomorrow, the old clocktower, bring-"

"DAD! NO!" Ruby appeared between Jaune and her father in a burst of red petals.

"Yeah Dad," Yang growled as she grabbed her old man's shoulder and turned him away form Jaune, "We talked about this: Don't beat up Jaune!"

"We're not beating him up," Tai objected, "We're just making sure he can take care of you."

"By beating him up," Yang scowled.

"Noooooooo," Tai objected again, "I was just going to put him through the hell week workout, starting with climbing the clocktower."

"And I'm going to take pot shots at him," Qrow added unhelpfully.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby stepped towards the family drifter and jabbed a finger in his chest, "Be nice!"

"What! I am!" Qrow lied as naturally as he drank.

A smile graced Jaune's lips for a moment before he banished it and steeled himself; while he appreciated what Ruby and Yang were doing it wouldn't be good to hide behind their protection when dealing with their family.

"It's alright guys," Jaune reassured the sisters, "He's just trying to look out for you; wants to make sure I'm serious cause anyone who gets scared off by dad being aggressive isn't worth his girls time. My parents did the same thing for most of my sisters when they started dating."

"Only most?" Qrow quirked an eyebrow at his statement.

"Lilac's only really dated her fiancé Primo, and we've known him forever," Jaune explained. "In any case I need to do something to show I'm serous about making things work with both of you. If that means hell week then it means hell week."

Taiyang scrutinized Jaune for a moment longer before nodding in decision again. "Qrow, you're not taking potshots at him."

"Oh come on," Qrow grumbled in disappointment, "At this rate you'll leave me with nothing to do."

Ruby and Yang shared mirrored looks that mixed relief that their father was backing off a bit with a pleased feeling that Jaune was willing to submit himself to hardship for their sakes. At the same time...

"Jaune proving himself doesn't mean hell week," Yang put her metaphorical foot down. "Too much is going on right now for him to run himself ragged for some macho test you're making up on the fly."

"Yeah," Ruby agreed. "Besides, you were gushing about us marrying into a well off family not that long ago! Why are you acting like you don't want this to happen?"

"Rubes!" Taiyang gaped, "You can't just say that in front of him! There's a pattern we men have to do these things in! Now the whole order of operations is out of wack!"

"You always told me I didn't have to do things the way other girls do when that way is stupid," Ruby humphed. "That should apply to the way boys do things too."

Taiyang raised his finger to object, then slowly lowered his finger.

A feeling of relief started to flow through Jaune's veins. That was two relatively successful introductions done. How many more sets of parents did he need to meet? If he included his godparents then the count would be four. He just needed to figure out how to slide out of this conversation and then figure out who to approach next...

"Excuse me," Arslan Altan greeted as she approached with her parents on either side of her, "I hope we're not interrupting anything."

...Or they could approach him again. He could roll with that.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

At The Brunch Part 2

- - -

Isabel ate her fill. She was keeping an eye on Jaune and Nick out of habit. With her Semblance it was rather easy to keep track of everything going on around her... Also how good this breakfast really was.

Wow, and I thought Lilac was a great cook! She thought to herself. She'll love having Nora and Ren around the house-

She shook her head rapdily.

No no no! One step at a time! I'm not Nick, I have to be the responsible one in this relationship! Even if the world has gone insane, I need to stay sane!

She watched Jaune meet Blake's parents. That seemed to go all right. She tensed a little at Taiyang and Qrow confronting Jaune with Yang and Ruby... But their body language was much more relaxed than their harsh words suggested, and they soon ended up laughing together. She smiled softly.

"I really should have kept in better touch with them," she sighed. "Ruby is the spitting image of her mother."

A black and red blur appeared next to her out of a burst of rose petals. Ruby Rose grinned eagerly at her.

"Really?!"

"GAH!"

Isabel instinctively reached out and held a hand up in front of Ruby. She shook her head and swallowed the bacon she'd nearly choked on.

"You knew my mom?! Really really?!" Ruby insisted with big, bright eyes. Yang Xiao-Long was standing nearby, a bit awkwardly but with the same expression of hope on her face.

It melted Isabel's heart. She sighed and smiled.

"Yes. And I'll tell you all you want to hear about her," she said. "Honestly Ruby, I'm very sorry we didn't keep in contact. I last saw you when you were just a baby."

"You mean..." Ruby's eyes widened, "We're... Childhood friends with Jaune?!"

Elsewhere in the ballroom Blake's ears twitched. The catgirl scowled a bit.

Isabel blinked.

"Yes? He and Yang played more together but, very much so! I think I have some pictures of you three..."

She flipped through her Scroll and beamed as she held it up. Ruby and Yang gasped happily at the sight of themselves as toddlers with a toddler Jaune. All in onesies: Jaune in a blue rabbit onesie.

"He sure did love that onesie, huh?" Ruby giggled.

"Oh absolutely," Isabel laughed, "Though the girls liked dressing him up in it much more, I think."

"Heheheh, guess that's why he always hopped to everything," Yang snickered. Isabel grimaced.

"You pun just as badly as Summer and Tai, too," the Arc matriarch groaned.

Yang's eyes were sparkling.

"Really?!"

Emerald, sitting nearby, frowned a bit. She felt a bit disconnected without any family around to bond with save for Amethyst. She'd run off to talk about things with Petra. As though sensing this, Isabel beamed and held up her Scroll.

"Would you like to see more baby photos of Jaune?" She asked. "I have hundreds!"

Emerald's mouth quirked into a smile. A smile that Ruby and Yang helped with their own.

Glynda Goodwitch loomed in the background with some mild interest. Isabel rolled her eyes.

"You can look too, Glynda."

"I wasn't curious, but I'll look if I must," Glynda sighed, looking very put upon.

Emerald grinned.

Maybe... Maybe I could get used to this, she thought.

- - - -

Arjun stood tall and intimidating before the three male members of team BRNZ. Brawnz, Roy, and Nolan, for their part, tried to scowl back and not show any fear. The Pandavan King had cornered them near the entrance to the ballroom. His stare pierced them like his arrows would if they didn't manage to impress him.

"So uh... You're May's dad?" Brawnz began.

A beat. Arjun's stare became even more intimidating. Nolan and Roy began to pray their deaths would not be too horrible.

"Yes," Arjun stated.

"Cool," Brawnz said with a nod, "Uh. Didn't know she was a princess."

"Yes, I imagine you didn't," Arjun stated, as hard as steel. Roy gulped, and being the smartest of the three (which was not saying much), he began to speak quickly.

"Also!" Roy said, "I just want you to know, we see her like our sister! Big sister! Mom! She-She does our laundry and cooks for us! Also stitches our clothes up! She's-She's really great at that!"

Arjun's eyes blazed with Aura. Roy immediately thought over what he'd said and his eyes went wide.

"N-Not that we made her our slave or-or anything! She's just really good at that stuff!"

"Yeah!" Nolan insisted, "Like a Wisney Princess! She never talked to animals or shit but she was like, super kind and helpful!"

"Also we never once touched her!" Brawnz, in his usual blunt way, declared. Roy and Nolan glared at him.

"Dude!" Roy hissed, "I was getting to that!"

"I only like petite chicks!" Brawnz plowed on ahead, heedless of anything his teammates said. He pointed to Nolan.

"Nolan here is gay so he never had any interest in her. He did screw an ugly butch chick once but he was drunk."

"HEY!" Nolan growled.

Brawnz pointed at Roy.

"And Roy's racist so he never tried anything!"

"I'm not racist, I just like girls with pale skin!" Roy growled. "It's not about race! Plus May was the only one who knew how to do our damn homework! I wasn't gonna jeopardize the only person with brains here other than me!"

"Hey! I got brains!" Brawnz growled back, offended.

"Sure aren't proving it right now!" Roy shot back.

"Look, Your Majesty," Nolan tried, "We're May's friends. She's like our family. So we're gonna do right by her."

"YEAH!" Brawnz declared, waving his finger in Arjun's face, "And you'd better do right by her!"

Nolan and Roy pulled their alleged team leader back. Arjun glared into Brawnz's eyes. Brawnz glared back.

"What makes you think I won't?" Arjun asked dangerously.

"She's our teammate and friend! We're trying to hook her up with Arc!" Brawnz declared., even as Nolan and Roy tried to cover his mouth, "So you don't get to whisk her off and make her into something she's not! She's May! Not some stuffy princess in a castle! So if you don't do right by her, we're gonna have a motherfucking problem! You got me?!"

He waved his finger in Arjun's face, despite Nolan and Roy's best efforts to hold him back. Arjun's glare intensified. Even Brawnz winced and wondered if he had perhaps made a mistake...

Before Arjun smiled at the three boys.

"I am glad she had you as her friends," Arjun said with a nod. "Would you be willing to continue to fight alongside her?"

"Hell yeah!" Brawnz shook his fist.

"Until death!" Nolan added.

"Uh, or at least... Try to avoid death as an option unless it's the only one?" Roy managed.

Arjun nodded again.

"Then I accept you as royal guard candidates for the Royal Army of Pandu," he stated.

The three young men blinked.

"Huh?"

"Well, if you are to continue protecting my daughter and our family," Arjun said with a small smile, "I should make it official, should I not?"

The idea of joining a small but prosperous kingdom's military as royal guards was a dream job for many young Hunters-in-Training. It was very difficult to get such work though. You needed connections.

... Connections the three young men abruptly realized... They had.

"Wait, so... We'd get training? Custom weapons? Good pay?" Roy asked in shock.

"If you can pass the training? Yes, absolutely," Arjun said with a smile, "And you won't even need to become eunuchs!"

His eyes narrowed.

"As long as your feelings for my daughter remain brotherly?"

"Yes sir!" All three yelped.

Arjun smiled.

"Good! I'll have the applications sent to your Scrolls by nightfall! Wonderful to meet you again!"

Arjun headed off, his natural political instincts guiding him to rub elbows and gab with others at the brunch. Brawnz, Roy and Nolan grinned at each other.

"Man... Royal Guards! This is gonna be so sweet!"

"Yeah!" Nolan nodded.

"We really gotta thank May for being a secret Princess," Brawnz said brightly.

"I'm sure she's happy about it too," Roy deadpanned.

"Also," Brawnz blinked. "What's a eunuch? The way you guys tensed up made me think it was bad... How bad is it?"

Roy and Nolan shuddered. Nolan patted Brawnz on the shoulder.

"Trust me. You don't want to know."

 

[FinalFormer]

Cross-Posted From The Spacebattles Thread

Childhood Memories: Birthright

- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Arc-Schnee Manor, Atlas. Nicholas Arc-Schnee. Age: 12.

In times past, when Jaques Schnee was the head of the household, the Schnee Manor was a cold, empty place to live in. Devoid of any of the warmth that a loving family provided. Like a cage and the Schnee family were nothing more than prisoners.

But to Nicholas Arc-Schnee, all he and his siblings had ever known was love of their family.

The Arc-Schnee Manor, after it had been rebuilt during the Atlas Restoration years, was always filled with laughter, music, and the cacophony of his sisters antics. His grandmother's garden looked more alive as each year passed. Even the tomatoes she and his sister, Yuki, planted looked lovely.

The commotion caused by his family today, however, was special. Today was Nicholas' birthday. Everyone was gathered in the ballroom, making idle conversation with one another. His sisters Noel and Yuki were playing with their cousins, eating pizzas that his father brought home after finishing up a recent Hunter in the inner city. His brother, Luc, was helping Nana Izzy and Grandma Willow watch their younger sisters, Brynhildr and Pyrrha. His Aunts and honorary Aunts were sharing stories of their recent ventures. Aunt Ruby was recently made Deputy Head Mistress of Beacon Academy, Aunt Nora and Uncle Ren were expecting their 4th child. Everyone was having a great time.

While he would normally enjoy spending time with his family, Nicholas was on a mission of great importance. It was dangerous, but the reward would be worth it.

In the kitchen, the young, white-haired boy was sneaking up to the kitchen counter. Atop the counter was a delicious chocolate cake, baked by the best mother in the world. The boy crept closer, he could smell the confection the closer he got. Now, all he had to do was stealthily steal a big slice and--

"Nicholas. Warden. Arc-Schnee. Just what do you think you're doing?"

Uh oh. Busted.

Nicholas turned to see his mother, Weiss Arc-Schnee, standing with her eyebrow raised. Despite being on her 7th pregnancy, she still looked intimidating. His father, Jaune Arc, was standing beside her, looking just a tad amused by his attempt to pull a fast one on his mother. His sword, Blónt Joyeúx, was still strapped to his back. He also appeared to be holding a big box in one hand.

"I...," He managed to get out. Unfortunately, he knew no excuse he could make would work. "I'm sorry."

"I know you're getting impatient, but the cake isn't finished, sweetie. I still need to add frosting." Weiss gently pat his head. What she was saying was half true. She mainly didn't want her baby boy to spoil his appetite. Especially on his birthday.

"I told you he has your sweet tooth." Jaune teased. Weiss raised an eyebrow at that statement. Both of their mothers, her's in particular, were responsible for Nicholas developing a sweet tooth.

"What's that?" Nicholas asked. "Is that my present?"

"Well...," Jaune started. He looked over to Weiss, giving her a questioning look. They both have had this talk everyday since Nicholas was born, and even longer talks when he told them a year ago. "Why don't we all go to the parlor for a second? Just the three of us."

The trio walked to the parlor, taking a seat on the one of the couches. Jaune placed the box on the coffee table. Nicholas was seated across from his parents. A small silence hung in the air until Jaune spoke first.

"Nick, can I ask you a question?," His son nodded. Jaune continued. "I know I've asked this many times before, but I just want to know if you changed your mind: What do you want to be when you grow up?"

"I haven't changed my mind, Father." Nicholas looked at his parents with determination. "I want to become a Hunter. Like the two of you. I want to protect the ones who can't protect themselves because it's the right thing to do."

Jaune turned to Weiss and smiled, which she returned. As Nick was growing up, Jaune at some point finally understood his mother's reluctance on his dream of becoming a Hunter. Weiss had done so as well. But just because they understood, didn't mean they were agreeing with her.

"Well then," Weiss started. "You're going to need this." She slid the box towards Nicholas. He looked at them and the box curiously. He opened the box, revealing a beautifully crafted great sword. It was a bit too big for him now, but Jaune knew that he'd be able to wield it in due time.

"This is really mine?" Nicholas asked. His voice sounded like it was trembling.

"Sure is. We had your Aunt Ruby make this," Jaune took the sword from the box. "This was made from my old sword."

"You mean the one you stole from Nana Izzy? Wasn't she really mad that you stole it?"

"She was more mad that I ended up breaking it," Jaune internally cringed. "We also used your mother's rapier. See the Dust cycle on the crossguard?" Jaune pointed to the crossguard.

Nicholas looked closer. It looked like a little rainbow wheel. Mother had been making it a point recently that he should learn the finer points of handling Dust.

"Nicholas, we're giving this to you because we believe in you," Weiss said, a reassuring tone in her voice. "We'll never try to talk you out of your dream. So, no matter what happens, we will always be with you."

Nicholas took in their words and stared intently at the sword. He then stood up and hugged his parents.

"Happy Birthday, Nick" Jaune said, softly as he and Weiss hugged their son.

"Thank you. Both of you," He said, "I'll try my best. You'll see. I'll be even better than the two of you." His father once told him that an Arc never goes back on his word. So he hoped that he could do his best to keep it.

"Now if only you had just a fraction of that confidence when you talk to Lian." Weiss teased. She learned of her son's crush a month ago and tried to push him out of his shell and say something to the Mistrali girl.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about!" Nicholas denied as easily as he breathed. His face turned a bright red. He doesn't think of his best friend like that! Never!

"Alright, let's head back to the party. Wouldn't want to be late to your own birthday party, do you?" Jaune tussled his son's hair. The trio began to head back to the party, with Nicholas leaving his sword behind, not wanting to upset Nana Izzy for opening his presents early again.

"Yes. We wouldn't want Lian thinking you disappeared." Weiss teased once again.

"Mom! Quit it!" Nicholas whined. His parents started laughing.

They kept teasing Nicholas until they made it to the ballroom. As much as the teasing annoyed him, he couldn't ask for better parents.

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

I had no clue Weiss' birthday had passed, but it gave me the idea about Nicholas' birthday party.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Nick: "Still Jaune: Great work on getting a harem!"

Jaune: "It's not a harem! I-I don't have a harem!"

Nick: "You're just like your great-grandfather Shirou!"

Jaune: "What? He didn't have a harem!"

Isabel: "Well... He kind of did, Jaune."

Jaune: "Wha?!"

Isabel: *nods* "Yes. It's still perfectly legal in Vale."

Jaune: eyes widen "Then... Great Aunt Rin and Great Aunt Sakura-?!"

Nick: "Yup!" laughs and pats Jaune's shoulder "You beat him by eight women! That's my boy! That's my boy!"

Jaune: "I THOUGHT THEY WERE JUST FRIENDLY!"

Isabel: "Well why do you think we wouldn't let you date their great-granddaughters? It is several generations removed so it would probably be okay but better safe than sorry!"

Nick: "We should give Papa Shirou a call! Maybe he could help you manage your harem-"

Jaune: "IT'S NOT A HAREM!"

 

[AndrewJTalon]

"It's a pleasure to meet you Jaune Arc. I'm Logos Altan and this is my wife Barsara," the Altan patriarch stretched his right arm for a handshake with a smile on his face.

"The pleasure's mine," Jaune accepted the older man's handshake and found that he had a very firm grip. This begged the question; "They unlock the aura's of stuntmen?"

Jaune almost cringed at the question that had slipped out of his mouth. It felt dumb. Stunt work was incredibly dangerous so of course stuntmen and stuntwomen would have their auras unlocked! To suggest otherwise would be-

"Yes, but only after you reach a certain level of certification," Logos explained as the handshake ended, having not found Jaune's question silly at all while also dispelling the reason Jaune thought the question was silly. "While the Practical Effects Guild is run by people that can unlock the aura of all of their aspiring stuntmen and any actors willing to do their own stunts they don't; because they learned long ago that a lot of producers and directors will cut corners on set safety if everyone has working auras."

"That's kind of sad," Jaune frowned at that explanation.

"There's an old saying about laws and sausages," Barsara chimed in, "That in order to have respect for either you have to have very little idea about what went in to making them. A lot of film productions are the same; for every production that does everything right and above the board there are just as many if not more that make their films like they're making sausage." The retired actress shrugged before smiling at Jaune, "I'm a bit surprised you recognized my husband enough to comment on his career as a stuntman. Most people assume I snatched up a random hunk unrelated to the industry."

"Well, one of my favorite movies growing up was Street Knights," Jaune admitted somewhat bashfully.

"Ahhh," Barsara nodded with a smile, "The mini-documentary about Motorcycle Jousting that was included in the special features."

"That was a great week of filming," Logos reminisced while a grin split his face, "Everyone on set had a blast."

"I kind of wish I could have been there to see it get filmed in person, that was some of the coolest stuff I've ever seen." Jaune then excitedly snapped his fingers as he remembered something. "I actually grabbed a Street Knights poster last week; would you be okay with signing it?"

"I'd love too!" Logos laughed in a low rumble, "It isn't every day that somebody asks for my signature before they ask for my wife's."

"Oh, right," Jaune sheepishly rubbed at his neck as he turned his gaze to Barsara, "A couple of my sisters might kill me if I don't get your signature on something."

"I'm sure we can arrange an even trade," Barsara's eyes twinkled before she nudged her daughters shoulders. "What do you think Little Lion?"

"A trade?" Jaune asked as he looked to Arslan.

"Right," the chocolate skinned nun started as she blushed a bit, "Your father and his mentor are two of the most accomplished paladins the Church has had in the last fifty years. Some of your father's more noteworthy missions have been circulating around the Temple non-stop, and I'm pretty sure a publishing house in Aelia Paravel is still paying your father royalties to make children's books based off of his exploits."

Jaune could remember a collection of children's books on the top shelf of his mother's office featuring a blond huntsman. He couldn't remember her ever reading them to him because she was already trying to direct him away from an adventurous lifestyle during those sickly years of his youth, and he had just assumed the books were gifts his mom couldn't get rid of that the family had been given because of the blond huntsman's resemblance to his father. Now that he knew it wasn't just a resemblance his curiosity about those books was growing stronger.

Arslan's blush grew deeper as she admitted the next part, "I read those books when I was a child. Yesterday when you told us that your godfather was Arjun Sarkaras I was thrown for a bit of a loop because that confirmed your father was actually THE Nicholas Arc I read about growing up, as opposed to someone with a coincidentally similar name."

"Arc is one of the most common surnames in Vale and Nick is a pretty popular name," Jaune allowed. "So I can understand why you didn't jump to conclusions before then."

"Jaune," Arslan looked him directly in they eyes while her gaze intensified with each word, "Your father was one of my childhood heroes growing up, right up there with The Rusted Knight and The Wise Lion, only he was better because he was a real person and not part of a fairytale." Arslan reached out and took Jaune's closest hand as she continued with the most serious look on her face, "Jaune, I swear to you that I will not allow this to color the way I see you as we get to know one another, and that I will always see you as your own man independent of who your parents are. I want to know you for you."

Jaune was somewhat taken aback by the intensity of Arslan's declaration. The problem she described was the kind of problem Jaune didn't even realize he could have; his brain protesting that it was an issue for kids from rich and famous families. The realization that from her perspective he was the kid of a celebrity felt surreal on all levels. And not just any celebrity either; he was the son of her childhood hero. That she recognized a potential issue that wasn't even on his radar while doing her best to nip it in the bud as quickly and as efficiently as possible was oddly touching and was putting him a bit off kilter.

This was the kind of barrier he had accidentally crossed with Pyrrha and he had been trying and failing to cross with Weiss before yesterday's events, and now he was watching Arslan trying to cross that barrier to get to him before he even realized he had that barrier with her.

What a world.

"Arslan... Thank you," Jaune gave her a small smile that he hoped conveyed the warmth he felt. "I didn't know I needed to hear that, but I think I did."

It really was a shame that a misunderstanding had prevented Arslan and Pyrrha from becoming proper friends until yesterday. Jaune could easily imagine the crimson haired spartan girl being significantly more comfortable with herself thanks to the chocolate skinned nun's influence. How different would his partner have been is she had a real friend before him? Would she have been more direct with her feelings? Could they have bonded with each other easier than they did?

Arslan reaching out the way she was also planted another line of questions: if his past had been different could he have been the one people found unapproachable? His parents were and are on a high enough level that if they had agreed to train him he could have possibly stood ahead of his peers, and if that was the case would he have been as lonely as Pyrrha was? If so, would anyone have known how to approach him like Arslan was now?

The warrior-nun had given him a lot to think about. He wondered what else she would give him to think about as they talked.

"Good, good," Arslan sighed in relief before she started rambling; "I just wanted to make that clear before I did something embarrassing like fangirl over your father. I've been adjacent to enough high society drama to know that could give somebody the wrong impression so I thought- What in the world are they doing?"

Jaune turned around to look at what Arslan was seeing before laughter escaped his lips. "They're setting the stage," Jaune explained as he pulled the warrior-nun to the table his parents were sitting at.

Or rather his mother was sitting. His father was standing, alongside his godfather Arjun, Ruby and Yang's dad Taiyang and their uncle Qrow. The four men had just finished sculpting a facsimile of a Kraken out of scrambled eggs, bits of bacon and strips of cinnamon rolls. A collection of half-eaten pancakes had been fashioned into little boats with an assortment of breakfast fruits acting as passengers.

"Alright, tape your emblems to your spoons so everyone can keep track of who's who," Nick Arc instructed as people gathered around to see the commotion. In short order the four men had strapped little colored banners with the symbols used by teams AARN and STRQ to eight different spoons that they positioned around the pancake boats. Satisfied that everything was in place and with a quick glance about to be sure that the gathering audience was paying attention Nick began the tale:

"So both of our teams had been tasked with protecting a group of boats that were transversing Lake Sawgrass on account of a spreading rumor about some kind of lake monster. We weren't sure if it was some kind of Grimm or if we were dealing with some kind of more natural creature, but in either case none of us were prepared to find a normally ocean going Grimm in a freshwater lake." Nick grinned broadly as he remembered the day, "To top it all off it was a truly ancient blighter with the experience and brains to have a plan."

"We had no idea it was there until its' tentacles burst out of the water," Arjun picked up where Nick left off. "First thing it tried to do was grab people off the deck, and while it didn't manage to grab any civilians it did manage to grab my beloved Saia as she was pushing someone else out of danger." Arjun grabbed the spoon with his wife's emblem tied to it and moved it from the pancake boat to one of the scrambled egg kraken's appendages. "Now instead of trying to pull her under it dangled her in air in the middle of all the other tentacles that had left the water, obviously taunting us and trying to get us to leave the boats."

"Of course we had to, even though it was obviously a trap," Qrow interjected. "We needed to save Arjun's main squeeze not just because she was part of the team and a friend, but also because her giant death laser was one of the few ways we could guarantee a kill on a beast that big. So Arjun started firing off Ice-dust arrows to freeze the water around the kraken in an attempt to pin it in place and keep it from submerging." Qrow grabbed a pressurized can of whipped cream and started spaying patches of the creamy delight around the food kraken to simulate ice. "While he was doing that me, Raven and Nick were getting into position to cut down the tentacles that were keeping Saia suspended in the air..."

"...While I got into position to catch her," Taiyang moved the spoon representing himself onto a different pancake boat. "Unfortunately Raven jumped the gun and while we managed to get Saia out of her calamari captivity the Kraken now had a new hostage in the shape of my ex. I tell you Summer was so incredibly mad about that, she made Raven run timing drills for a solid week afterwords..."

Jaune chuckled a bit as the men telling the tale moved the spoons around to show everyone changing position. As Arslan was still next to him she leaned in closer to him an whispered, "What's so funny?"

"I've heard this story a few times before," Jaune whispered back, "It's changed a bit each time I've heard it."

"How so?"

"The bigger the audience is the bigger the kraken is for one thing," Jaune explained as he gestured to the gathered crowd. In addition to himself, Arslan and her parents there was also Ruby and Yang paying close attention to the story, and a good number of Jaune's future children had gathered round to listen.

"Ooooh," Arslan murmured, "A bit of artistic embellishment then."

"That, and I've never heard anyone telling the story agree who landed the killing blow." Jaune grinned conspiratorially.

Somehow, Arslan made the resulting snort seem dignified.

Before Jaune could turn his full attention back to the story (they were at the part where Summer was running along the kraken's head in an attempt to drive her axe-blade into one of the Grimm's eyes) he felt a gentle tugging on his sleeve. Looking to his other side he saw the Schnee butler Klein politely standing there.

"Do you have a moment to step away and introduce yourself to the Schnee family matriarch?" The butler asked in a low tone that didn't disrupt the story.

"Go ahead," Arslan whispered, "We can talk more later."

And so Jaune stepped away from the story's audience and followed Klein to a table that wasn't too far away around which the Schnees sat. At the head of the small table sat Willow, with Winter on her right and Weiss on her left. Jaune's future sons sat besides their respective mothers while their uncle Whitley was conspicuously absent, leaving a space at the other head of the table for him to sit. Klein pulled out that chair, allowing Jaune to take his seat across from the woman he was meeting.

As he sat down he cast his eyes about looking for the missing Schnee, and it only took him a moment to spot the young man. Whitley was making large purposeful strides towards the ballroom's band stage, where Penny Polendina was perched on the piano bench observing all the goings ons in the room.

Jaune wasn't sure what to make of that, but he figured he could properly meet Weiss and Winter's brother later. Jaune took a deep breath, and began his introduction.

"It's a pleasure to meet you ma'-"

"-Wait!" Theodore interrupted as he pulled his scroll out. The young man flipped through his messages before nodding in satisfaction, "Okay, he's on his way. We can get started."

"Who's on his way?" Winter frowned at her son's antics.

"You'll know when he gets here," Theodore shrugged.

Winter pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed...

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Of all the people Jaune was expecting to show up, the Supreme Commander of Atlas' armed forces was the last one he expected to see. Yet here came General James Ironwood himself, standing tall and proud as he walked up to the table. He gave Jaune a fairly neutral look, which might have been the equivalent of a smile on a less stringent man.

"Mister Arc. It's good to meet you," Ironwood stated, holding out his hand. Jaune stood up and shook it, managing not to wince at how tightly Ironwood held it. He kept his eyes on the older man's and didn't show any strain. Ironwood finally let go, as though done sizing Jaune up for now. He took the seat Theodore offered without ceremony. Jaune sat down with him.

"It seems that all of Remnant owes a great debt to you and your children," he stated.

Jaune shook his head.

"I haven't really done anything."

"Not yet," Ironwood stated, "But your son has probably prevented a catastrophe. One that occurs in all these timelines."

Theodore shrugged, while Winter gave him a proud expression. Jaune shared it, and Theodore smiled slightly back.

"Just doing my duty, sir," he said in a far more respectful tone than the one he'd been using with Jaune, Winter, or his siblings.

Ironwood nodded.

"However," he said, "There are still greater threats to deal with. You and your family will be key, Mister Arc. I just want you to know that you have my full support."

"Well, thank you sir," Jaune said, a bit dumbfounded. Willow cleared her throat, and Ironwood looked apologetically.

"Ah. Forgive me Willow. I did not mean to intrude on a family gathering-"

"We both have siblings named for you, s-sir," Nicholas managed, looking a little nervous but gamely pushing through, "You're family too as far as we're concerned."

"Am I?" Ironwood asked, sounding almost pleased. Theodore nodded, his gaze very determined.

"Yes sir. We're going to keep it that way," he said firmly. Ironwood stared into the eyes of the younger man. Comprehension lit up in his face, and he nodded grimly.

"... Did I do my duty to the end?" He asked quietly. Winter looked aghast.

"Sir, maybe you shouldn't-"

"You did, sir," Theodore said firmly, despite Winter's slight scowl.

"My timeline too," Nicholas added. Ironwood looked between them, and nodded.

"Then it is enough," he stated. "I will... Need more details for intelligence purposes, but later. I have taken up enough of Willow's time."

He nodded in apology to Willow. She smiled softly and nodded back, before turning her gaze onto Jaune. He stood up straight.

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Schnee."

For Jaune's part, many thoughts raced through his head: The first was that both Winter and Weiss clearly got their beauty from her. The second was that her very presence was intimidating. She was sizing him up too, to get his measure. He met her eyes and stood strong, just like his father had taught him.

It was like a silent battle of wills between them as Willow's gaze felt like an icy dagger trying to pierce through him. He held his ground and stared right back, willing himself to stay calm.

Then she smiled, like the sun rising over a frozen winter's morning.

"I knew your father very well in my youth, Jaune," Willow said softly, "I am pleased to see you take after him. He is a good man."

Jaune nodded back slowly.

"He is," he agreed.

Willow sighed wistfully.

"However this turns out, please promise you will take good care of my daughters?" Willow stated, "Hearts can be very fragile things. I don't want them to suffer as I did."

Willow stared intently at him, all business.

"Can you promise to protect their hearts? To never abandon them in their time of need or mistreat them?"

"He would never!" Weiss insisted. Their eyes met and Weiss blushed intensely.

Geez, she... She never talked about me like that before, Jaune thought. He blushed as well. He looked over at Winter, who gave him a small, encouraging smile.

He turned his gaze back to Willow and put every bit of his true feelings into his next words:

"I would rather die, than forsake any one of them."

Now Winter was blushing up a storm. One that matched Weiss. A few other girls elsewhere throughout the ballroom blushed, though Jaune didn't notice this.

Willow herself flushed a bit at the intensity of his words then smiled and nodded.

"That's all I can ask," she said warmly. Her eyes went behind Jaune. He looked over his shoulder: His father was arguing loudly with Taiyang in front of their large model of the Kraken.

"I'm telling you it had ten tentacles! That's why they're called 'ten'!"

Taiyang scoffed.

"It was eight!"

"It was eight when I cut off two of them!" Nick argued back.

Willow sighed longingly. She then beamed at Jaune.

"Also... Since you're involved with more than one woman-"

"Er, I mean, uh," Jaune stuttered, trying to find the right words but none forthcoming. Willow continued as though he hadn't spoken.

"-Would it be too much to ask to put in a good word for me with your father and mother?"

"MOTHER!" Weiss and Winter gasped, scandalized.

"GRANNY!" Nicholas and Theodore groaned.

"More tea?" Klein, as unflappable as ever, offered.

- - -

Whitley walked right up to Penny. The orange-haired gynoid was serenely scanning the area with her electric green eyes, a gentle smile on her face.

Appropriate color, electric green, Whitley thought to himself. He cleared his throat

Penny looked right at him, her smile unchanging.

"Hello, Whitley Schnee! It is good to meet you! I hope we can be friends?"

"I uh... S-Same," Whitley stuttered.

Smoooth, his brain supplied sarcastically amidst his sweaty palms and racing heartbeat.

"You uh... You're... Um..."

"Yes, Friend Whitley?" Penny asked gently, her smile not altering one iota.

"... Wh-What processor system do you use?" Whitley blurted out.

IDIOT! WHY DID YOU GO WITH THAT?! His brain demanded.

Penny nodded.

"I utilize a modified version of the Atlas WOS 4.5 Unimatrix Programming system, though thanks to my adaptive data core system I am exponentially rewriting and modifying the software to accomadate the increase in data I am able to process, recollect, synthesize and create abstractions from!"

She paused and then blushed quite prettily.

"Which is what I would say if I was a gynoid! I am in fact a normal human girl, and this is a joke!" She hiccuped. "Was that amusing?"

Damn that's cute, Whitley thought.

"Oh! Oh-y-yeah! Hahahaha! Hahahaha!" Whitley laughed awkwardly. An awkward laugh Penny joined in two seconds after.

Which is when Ruby Rose approached. She smiled awkwardly.

"So um... Why are we laughing?" She asked.

"Friend Whitley found my statement on my operating system to be most humorous!" Penny said cheerfully. "I can only conclude it was based upon the fact I am a normal human girl, and thus should not have an operating system! Is that not amusing?"

"Er, but you are a gynoid, Penny," Ruby said quietly. She scowled at Whitley. "Are you making fun of her?"

"N-No! Not at all!" Whitley insisted. Ruby stepped closer to Whitley, her scowl intensifying.

"Well you'd better not!" She growled. "She's one of my good friends so you'd better be nice!"

Whitley gulped and held his hands up.

"I-I am! I am!"

Ruby's son from the future appeared behind her in a burst of yellow petals, and rested a hand on her shoulder. He shook his head.

"It's okay Mom. This is just how these two flirt," he said.

Whitley gaped in disbelief.

WHAT?!

Ruby blushed.

"Oh! Oh... Um, I won't get in your way then. Good luck with the flirting, Penny!"

Ruby and her son vanished in bursts of petals. Penny turned her eyes onto Whitley, now looking... Intrigued.

"Really? You were flirting with me?" Penny asked with a smile. "Sensational! With all the romance going on, I am curious as to how such things occur! Please, continue to flirt with me Friend Whitley!"

"Um, s-sure?" Whitley said, tugging at his collar.

How was I even doing that?!

- - -

 

[AndrewJTalon]

It had been foolish of Arslan. She had lost control. Seeing Jaune hurt so badly... She had seen nothing but red. Nothing but raw rage had filled her.

In that moment she had forgotten that her Semblance didn't work if she lost emotional control. Her incredible Aura control and power? Useless if she didn't keep herself calm.

Cinder had struck her down and everything had gone black. She wondered for a moment if she was dead. If she was about to reach the Table Breaker's Country at last.

Instead, she awoke in a cell in Aura suppressing cuffs. A cage in some run down warehouse in Mantle, below the flying city of Atlas.

It was filthy, dark, and deserted. She was still in pain.

Still... She would manage.

She got up onto her knees, and bowed her head. Her hands were bound in front of her, so that made things easier.

Oh Emperor above, please, hear my prayer...

"You're awake."

Arslan opened her eyes and turned her head calmly. Cinder stood there, a sneer upon her ruined face. Arslan studied her for a moment, before turning her head back and closing her eyes again.

She could feel Cinder's derision from here.

"You know, I could have killed you then and there," the terrorist went on, "But I chose not to. You know why?"

"Because you wish to use me as bait for my friends," Arslan said quietly. Cinder was quiet, then snorted.

"You can do nothing about it."

"I can. And I am," Arslan replied.

She heard Cinder stalk in front of the cage and crouch down. No doubt to glare at her right in her face.

"What are you doing, hm?"

"Praying," Arslan said simply. Cinder laughed mockingly.

"To your made up god? What good will that do? You hoping he'll save you?"

"My hope is that He will save both of us," Arslan said quietly. She could feel Cinder gape at her in disbelief.

"Save both of us?!" She demanded. She slammed the bars of the cage, making them rattle. "What kind of shit is that?! I'm your enemy! I'm your nemesis-!"

Arslan opened her eyes and stared into Cinder's.

"And why do you not seem happy about that?" Arslan asked. Cinder sneered at her.

"Your god's a fake. A fraud. What power has he given you? What reward? What reason to believe?"

"I do not always recognize His will, for no one can discern it fully," Arslan said, "But He has given me many things. A loving family. Friends. A man I wish to spend the rest of my life with. And opportunities to help and save people. The power He has given me is to do good. The reward is that good is done. The belief is that my actions matter and will make a difference."

"Your life has made no difference!" Cinder sneered.

"Your defeats and the lives you have failed to take speak otherwise," Arslan countered. Cinder seethed.

"You're up against the power of an immortal witch! She is the true god here-!"

"And you seek to usurp her power," Arslan surmised. Cinder glared, then smirked.

"So what if I do?"

"It will not change what happened to you," Arslan said softly, her eyes filled with compassion. Cinder's eyes narrowed.

"You don't know anything about me-!"

"The orphanage," Arslan said coldly, "The Glass Unicorn. Rhodes. Your stepmother and stepsisters."

Cinder reared back as though Arslan had struck her. She shook her head rapidly.

"Y-You can't know-How could you-?!"

"I know. It is enough," Arslan murmured. She shook her head.

"You have been through Hell, Cinder Fall. I do not dispute that. I do not deny you have suffered much. Was killing your abusive stepmother and siblings justice? I cannot say. Only He can judge you. I do know that the actions you have taken in Salem's service will not bring you peace."

"I don't want peace!" Cinder spat, "I want power! I want revenge!"

Arslan slowly shook her head.

"You want to feel safe," she stated, "You wanted love. So badly. But you decided it was not worth the risk. How could you? After how badly you were hurt when you trusted? It is the hardest thing in the world to trust, to open yourself up-"

"SHUT UP!"

Cinder flared her flames in her hands. Arslan remained stoic, staring back at Cinder. Cinder meanwhile was panting angrily.

"You can't pity me... You don't get to pity me! We're enemies and I'm going to kill you, your fucking boyfriend, and the rest so I can rule! Your prayers won't change that!"

Arslan closed her eyes and bowed her head.

"Perhaps not," she said, "But I will still try."

Cinder was silent for a moment.

"Even if there was a God, He wouldn't..." Cinder hesitated, "He wouldn't forgive me for what I have done."

"He would," Arslan said softly, "Even if I cannot... He would. If you sought redemption."

"So you can't forgive me," Cinder smirked. "You're not perfect, huh?"

"I am not, nor did I claim to be," Arslan said, sounding tired, "But I still try to do the right thing. No matter how hard it is. That includes praying for my enemies in the hope that they will turn away from evil. It is a faint hope... But it is what must be done."

Cinder glared at Arslan in silence for a bit. Arslan continued to pray.

"You're a fool," Cinder spat. She stood up. "I'm going to kill you in front of your boyfriend. The one I crippled! How does that make you feel?"

"Sad," Arslan said quietly, "For you."

Cinder seethed. She turned and stalked away.

- - -

A bit random but while this story is very Jaune-centric, no reason we can't show glimpses that showcase the other characters in more detail.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Dvipa, near Mistral

- - -

Dvipa was a small collection of about seven islands about halfway between Pandu's southernmost shore and Menagerie's northernmost point. It was one of thousands of small island chains that dotted the sea between Animus, Vale and Menagerie. Law and order could only be brought to so many of them, even with the reach of Atlas' military. So among the petty almost-kingdoms and islands where people toiled unaware of the larger world outside, there sat Dvipa.

Once it had been an outpost of the great Pandavan Empire at its height, and so the cities that dotted the archipelago featured Pandavan architecture: White and tan walls with graceful arches and turban-like tops. Wide fountains and boulevards going through dense jungles. Yet its allegiance was neutral, and it had no extradition laws.

This suited Colonel Sebastian Zaroff, late of Her Majesty's Vytalian Army, just fine. He rode on his horse through the jungle, tall, broad and strong despite his long years. His hair was a fading orange, with black and silver stripes running through it. With his bushy mustache, fearsome scowl and golden eyes, one covered by a monocle, he resembled a fearsome tiger on the prowl. His khaki uniform was still filled out well by his muscular body. He held his double rifle in one hand, keen eyes and senses scanning the underbrush.

He tugged on the reins and his horse obediently slowed to a stop. Nothing but the wind waving in the leaves and the sounds of birds and monkeys could be heard.

The colonel sniffed the air carefully. He looked to his south. He held up his rifle, eyes narrowing through the scope. He took aim, his heartbeat slowing as he went still as a statue.

He licked his lips free of sweat, revealing his Faunus fangs just for a moment-One replaced with a golden replica.

His Aura surged... And he fired!

The first round from the double rifle flew straight and true, the sonic boom ringing through the forest. There was a cry of pain-Human.

Colonel Zaroff turned his steed towards the sound and galloped after it. He crashed through the undergrowth, disturbing several beasts who hadn't scurried away with the sound of the shot.

At last, the colonel and his horse broke onto a wide shallow stream. A single figure lay in the water, dragging himself onto the rock. The figure looked back in terror, a White Fang mask upon his face. He gasped loudly, desperately, as the Colonel dismounted and slowly approached him.

"N-No... I-I'm... I'm a Faunus... Like you!" The terrorist begged. He coughed, holding his side-A hole had been shot clean through, and blood poured out of the wound into the river.

The Colonel snorted.

"Such a trivial bond we share," he huffed. "I fought the Mantlians and the Mistralians, a loyal soldier of Queen Arturia herself! Well before you were a glint in your no good father's eye. I slew Grimm, man, and Faunus. There was no challenge I could not overcome!"

He shook his head sadly, and cocked his double rifle. His sorrow was so deep it made the big man sag almost completely.

"Then the Empire ended... And I was left without a purpose," he sighed. "Without war, what use is a warrior?"

He brightened at a happy memory, which made the Faunus cower even more.

"Then... Oh, then... Ol' Duryodhana, he had a plan! Overthrow the Sarkaras! Put the Kauravas back on top! Beat drinking myself to death in a bar, telling stories of my old glories to unappreciative youths. Aye lad, was that a great battle! And so many others besides! Now those were heady days! I was fighting again! Killing again! The most dangerous prey you can imagine!"

He sighed and slowly shook his head, regret coming over his face.

"Then... Bah. Arjun retook the throne. I lost it all. Even that little shite Karna betrayed us. I had to flee to this spit o' land, retired and bored again."

He gave the White Fang terrorist a scowl.

"I had hoped hunting you down would have given me some excitement! But you... You didn't even take an hour."

He held the rifle up with a shrug.

"Still! Better than nothing. I'll put you down clean and put your head somewhere nice on me wall, I promise-"

"Colonel!"

Zaroff growled and looked away from his injured prey. A Pandavan man in white clothing with a red turban dashed through the trees, his youthful face filled with anxiety.

"Yes Asok?" Zaroff asked impatiently. "I'm in the middle of something-"

"Lionheart is calling!" Asok said quickly, skidding to a halt in the middle of the stream. He held up the holocommunicator. Zaroff's annoyance changed flavor-No longer with his aide but with the caller.

He took his time, quite deliberately rubbing his chin. He then shrugged.

"Very well."

Asok activated the projector. The tiger Faunus glared at the lion Faunus outlined in blue.

"This had better be important, Lionheart. I was in the middle of-"

"Ozpin knows I'm a traitor," Lionheart stated flatly, the rotund Faunus's voice level but the sweat on his brow betrayed his fear.

Zaroff huffed.

"And?"

"And you owe me," Lionheart growled.

"Feh," Zeroff scoffed, "For what? Sending me to retire in exile?"

"Would you have preferred I left you to Arjun's tender mercies?" Lionheart sneered. Zaroff shrugged and thought about it.

"Hmm... A glorious end might be preferred, I'll be honest."

Lionheart growled, then sucked in a deep breath. He regain his composure.

"I helped you escape and got you prey to hunt from time to time. Now... I need something more of you. I need you to go to Vale."

Zaroff raised a bushy eyebrow. He was too old a hand at this to betray his full interest though.

"Oh really? In handcuffs? Trying to save your skin?"

"Offering you would not be enough," Lionheart stated flatly. Zaroff chuckled.

"That's true. I believe you had a hand in murdering the entire Sarkaran family. My life wouldn't buy yours. So why should I go?"

"Because there's something much more valuable to be had," Lionheart stated, "A shot at Team AARN."

Zaroff paused.

"They're back together again, are they?" He asked softly, a glint returning to his eyes.

Lionheart nodded.

"Family issues... You would have a shot at them and what's left of team STRQ. All you need to do is take them down... And retrieve these two people, alive and unharmed."

An image of a blond young man, around 17, with blue eyes and white and black armor appeared alongside a boy of the same age whose features shifted almost constantly. Zaroff scowled.

"The hell is wrong with that one?"

"Long story," Lionheart said, "I'll be sending you in along with a team. They'll be hard to manage... But I have every confidence you can do it."

Zaroff hummed. Granted... He was tempted. Severely, in fact. Yet...

"And what else will I get if I go along with this little hunting expedition of yours, Lionheart? My services were never cheap."

"If you achieve this," Lionheart said, "You'll get to name your price."

Zaroff stared at him. Lionheart didn't so much as blink.

"You're serious?"

"Deadly serious," Lionheart stated.

Zaroff laughed. He shook his head and rested a hand against his hip.

"Well... I suppose I may as well hear you out," he decided. "We'll talk more back at my manor."

"Agreed," Lionheart said, before the hologram winked out. Zaroff chuckled again, nearly jumping for joy.

"Hahaha! A good old fashioned hunt! Ahh... Against the greatest of prey! Suddenly, everything is looking up!"

The White Fang member coughed up blood. Zaroff looked down at him, all smiles.

"Ah, yes... Almost forgot about you. Seems I've got a change of plans, son! I've actually got some real entertainment at last!"

"So... Are you going to let me go?" He asked hopefully.

Zaroff held out his hand. Asok pulled out a shotgun. Zaroff, still smiling, took the the shotgun then held it up to the face of the White Fang terrorist.

"You should have been a comedian, son," Zaroff chuckled, before he pulled the trigger.

- - -

Colonel Sebastian Zaroff is based upon Colonel Sebastian Moran, an associate of Moriarty's in "Sherlock Holmes" who was a British Army Officer and tiger hunter, and General Zaroff from "The Most Dangerous Game", a Russian aristocrat and big game hunter who hunts people on his private island.

Asok is named for the Indian intern from "Dilbert".

Zaroff will be the first of the Four Emperors: Four mercenaries Salem's agents will gather to counter the adults and assist her Maiden Candidates as part of her larger plans in Vale.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Moses' nap had lasted only a little bit longer than Ozpin had needed to tell Weena all the truly pertinent details of Salem's and his own immortality. He was certain they would revisit the topic at some point the the near future once the experimental physicist had mulled over what he had shared and questions had the opportunity to properly percolate. But conversations about the deep past would happen later; Moses awakening from his nap had refocused them on the now.

And so the three of them had made their way to the Odette Swan Ballroom to reconvene with the others involved in this paradox. Ozpin held the ballroom door open for his son and... girlfriend? Fiancee? They had agreed to try courting while there wasn't an official engagement yet, so girlfriend fit best. He hadn't had to put a label on a relationship in quite some time; the nature of his curse meant he had woken up already married to most of his past wives, with the remaining handful being rare stubborn souls who'd pursued him. A mutual pursuit hadn't happened since Salem millennia ago, so it would take a while to shake the rust off. In any case he held the door open for them before following them inside.

Their arrival did not go unnoticed. Glynda's daughter Dorothy was looking their way when the ballroom doors opened and almost immediately made a beeline for Moses as soon as she saw them.

"Moses!" Dorothy grinned as she seemed to float with each step, "You're feeling better, right? I mean you were in bed all day yesterday but you gave us a semblance demonstration earlier so..."

"How am I feeling?" Moses gave her a strained smile before he waved his right hand in the 'so-so' gesture, "I mean I can do stuff but my head's pounding with all the memories that are actively shifting about."

"Actively shifting?" Dorothy asked with a concerned frown, "What do you mean by that?"

"Right, so you see Julian over there?" Moses pointed.

Dorothy looked over her shoulder for a moment to confirm that she could see the silver eyed boy, "I do."

"So when I'm looking right at him the memories I have of his timeline are really fuzzy and hard to pull up," Moses explained with a grimace. "I can still do it, but it's a bit of a fight. When I look away from him the memories I have of his timeline become sharper and easier to bring to the surface."

Ozpin and Weena shared a look silently agreeing that sounded quite strange, both of them would have expected the opposite to happen. Weena discreetly pulled out her scroll and made a note of the oddity.

"Wait," Dorothy started wringing her hands together, eyes widening like someone watching a car wreck in progress, "That means with me right here talking to you... do you remember our timeline at all?"

"Sorry," Moses apologized as he winced, "It's all an indistinct blur."

"O-oh." For a moment Dorothy sagged like a child who had just been told that Yuletide had been canceled this year and they wouldn't be getting any presents. Then she rallied, squaring her shoulders with a look of absolute determination on her face. "Moses, I want to make something unquestionably clear to you."

"Alright," Moses allowed, only for a look of confusion to grace his face as Dorothy's left hand clamped onto his shoulder. "Wait, what are-" his words died as her right hand cupped his chin before her head shot forward and her mouth latched onto his. The contact only lasted a few seconds, but Dorothy did her best to push every ounce of her feelings into it.

"Mwah," Dorothy pulled back with a coy twinkle in her eyes. "I hope that cleared some things up."

"Huba da wah," Moses managed.

"You're my boyfriend, we've been dating for six months, things have been getting pretty serious," Dorothy clarified with a small smile.

"Have they now?" Weena asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Dr. Nebogipfel!" Dorothy squeaked as her eyes suddenly grew wide, as if she hadn't realized Moses' parents were standing right there the whole time.

"It appears we need to have to have a nice long talk young lady," Ozpin chuckled with touch of mischief in his voice.

As Dorothy stammered all flustered like and Moses' brain rebooted Ozpin could see August getting up from where he was sat. The tallest of Jaune's children grabbed his grandfather Arjun's arm and with a few whispered words pulled the royal archer away from the dramatization of the Kraken hunt that had just concluded. The two approached with a purposeful stride and a look that meant serous business on their faces.

"Dr. Nebogipfel, can we borrow Ozpin for a moment?" August asked once they were close. "Our topic is cloak and danger politics."

"You can borrow him," Weena allowed with a wave of her hand, "I'll be learning all I can about this young lady while you talk about things I lack the context to comment on."

"Don't be too harsh with her," Ozpin smiled as he stepped away. "She's Glynda's daughter so Moses could do worse."

"Glynda's daughter huh? In that case I know exactly where to start."

Dorothy gulped.

Leaving the young woman to her fate Ozpin lead August and Arjun to an unoccupied corner of the ballroom where they could have a private enough conversation so long as they kept their voices down.

"What do you need to tell me August?" Ozpin asked in a low voice.

"Well, me and the rest of the firstborn had a little meeting before we went to church," August explained. "We talked a bit about potential threats to keep an eye out for, and in doing so we realized nobody thought to mention to you that Professor Lionheart is a traitor: he's been working with Salem for a while now."

Ozpin heaved a mighty sigh as a flood of disappointment filled his heart and soured his good mood. He really wished he could say he was surprised, yet he couldn't. This lack of surprise didn't stem from anything overtly suspicious on Lionheart's part, the old wizard had simply been betrayed by close allies and friends enough times over the centuries that such an event couldn't feel like a surprise no mater how unexpected it ended up being.

"What has Leonardo done?" Ozpin inquired as he started to drum his fingers on the handle of his cane, each little impact adding a bit of his frustrations into The Long Memory's potency. "I know you have no reason to lie about this, but I still need something actionable to cleanly remove him from his position."

"Where do I even start?" August muttered as he brought his hand to his chin. After a moment of thought he decided where to begin; "Alright, so from a completely objective standpoint the most insidious thing he's been doing is giving the majority of students at Haven deliberately shoddy training. He then takes this a step further by making sure the teams that were decent in spite of their poor training aren't able to effectively coordinate with each other, and if a team still manages to thrive with that going against them he'll make sure they don't get the support they need once they've accepted a high-risk mission. Basically Mistral's higher than normal attrition rate for huntsman is the result of his machinations."

"I see," Ozpin scowled as he considered August's accusation. The attrition rate for Mistrali Huntsmen had been noticeably higher than the other kingdoms for a while now, but the situation was complicated enough there didn't really seem to be a direct cause. The idea that Lionheart was a traitor changed those variables drastically and Ozpin was sure that if he looked over that data again with that idea in mind he could find enough correlation to imply causation. Pinpointing the timeframe where the attrition rate started to rise could also give him a general idea of when the man went turncoat, but perhaps August already knew? "Do you know how long Leonardo's been a traitor?"

"That's something the people writing the history books are still debating," August explained in an apologetic tone. "He helped the Kauravas overthrow my great-grandfather," Arjun's eyes narrowed dangerously as his time-displaced grandson continued; "However the political clique that controlled the central government of Mistral at that time thought having the Kauravas ruling Pandu again was in their best interests, so it's argued Leonardo didn't start working for Salem until later. Some people even think the Kauravas actually introduced him to Salem in the first place."

"I'm not sure which option's worse," Ozpin grit his teeth as the bitterness he felt bled into his tone. "One means he was turned by Salem near the very the start of his tenure as Haven's Headmaster. The other means he betrayed the spirit of his position all on his own." The old wizard's drumming of his fingers on The Long Memory grew more forceful. "In either case I've failed to notice something amiss, and the people I've worked to protect have suffered for it."

"Who exactly is this Salem I've heard mentioned a few times now, and why would Lionheart take orders from her?" Arjun asked with stormy eyes that promised violent retribution. "I've gathered she's a villain Jaune and his brides defeat in their futures, but that doesn't tell me who she is or why she would have a connection to the Kauravas."

"Oh, right, you need to be told about her," August sheepishly grimaced as he looked away from Ozpin to his grandfather.

"The Dark Mother," Ozpin chose to answer the royal archer's question instead of leaving the task to the boy. Arjun's eyes widened in recognition of that name, and so Ozpin continued; "That's the title the Kauravas use for her. She's born other titles you might recognize; The Phantom Queen, The Lady Of Shadows, The Bone Sorceress, The Death Caller, The Ash Bride, and so on."

"Those titles all belong to the goddesses revered by different Grimm worshiping cults," Arjun observed with knitted eyebrows. "So this Salem has somehow convinced these cults that she's their goddess?"

"That is technically correct," Ozpin noted before elaborating as his fingers quietly drummed faster. "Salem can control the Grimm just like the goddesses the Grimm cults worship. She also possesses other esoteric powers so vast and overwhelming that anyone who hasn't met a real god can be forgiven for thinking she was one. On top of that she is unageing and has been alive since before the Moon-Shatter, orchestrating the collapse of more than one civilization from the shadows. In other words Salem is able to convince the Grimm cults that she's the goddess they worship by virtue of actually being the goddess they worship."

Ozpin sighed as he finished drumming out his frustrations with his fingers, "Me and my fellow Academy Headmasters are the leaders of a secret society that's been fighting Salem and her followers long before the Academies were even founded. We've kept her agents from burning down civilization as we know it for centuries. Lionheart's betrayal isn't just against any one country or institution, it's a betrayal of all man and faunus-kind."

"The man needs to die," Arjun concluded with a dark intensity in his voice.

"He does," Ozpin agreed as he warily eyed the King of Pandu. "But you shouldn't be the one running off to do it."

"His betrayal started with my kingdom, and my family," Arjun's hands clenched and unclenched as if he was imagining something breakable within his grasp. "It is my duty as King and patriarch to bring him to justice."

"It will be difficult to find out what secrets Leonardo shared with Salem if he dies before we can interrogate him," Ozpin reasoned. "Can you honestly guarantee that you'd aim to capture and not execute if you were to head out and confront him now?"

The King remained silent, the dark intensity of his gaze was answer enough.

"Aside from that there's your daughter to consider; you've literally just reunited with her and you've yet to establish a real relationship that could survive you running off right now to take care of this," Ozpin pointed out. "Now is the time to delegate. Qrow's available and capable; I'm planning on sending him. He could easily meet up with Karna and a few other men and women you can trust. They capture Lionheart and bring him here; I learn what I need to know from him and then I hand him over to you to stand trial for his crimes. Is that acceptable?"

The King's brow creased in thought, and after a long moment Arjun spoke; "I can live with it."

"Good, good," Ozpin adjusted his glasses, "When brunch is over let's take Qrow up to my office and make a few calls."

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Solitas, Kingdom of Atlas, Republic of Balto, Nome City
- - -
Like all the other kingdoms, Atlas was not simply one gigantic nation. It was composed of many smaller republics, most of them founded as colonies by Vale, Mistral and Vacuo but over time became independent nations-Then voluntarily united together into a larger Kingdom, Atlas, with Mantle as its capital. In the prelude to the Great War, Mantle's legitimate rulers were overthrown in a coup and the new leaders launched the Great War across the planet. Yet all the while they were resisted by half the continent, who had won their freedom from foreign rulers and would not tolerate domestic tyranny. With the overthrow of the cabal that had taken over Mantle at the end of the conflict, aided by the Allied Nations of Vale, Vytal, Vacuo, and many others, Atlas was rebuilt into a free country once more and became the leader in economics, technology, and military might.

It was a harsh continent that made strong people. A strength Corporal Maroon Polo certainly hoped was in his veins as he nervously stared down his rifle. His squad was holding the only exit out of their military depot. Something had torn its way into the top secret storage facility and was heading for them. The alarms rang loudly as his squad stood ready, guns all pointed down the darkened hallway into the base.

"Reinforcement ETA is five minutes, boss," his comms tech, Mora Carnis, said as she tapped her earpiece. She stared back down her rifle. Polo nodded.

"All right. Nothing gets past us," he ordered, keeping his voice even.

There was a creak and a groan of metal in the darkness ahead of them. Polo tightened his grip on his rifle. Sweat dripped down his brow onto his pointed nose.

Silence fell, the most terrible silence he had ever heard... Then something red ignited in the darkness beyond. Scarlet lightning crackled up and down a huge claymore, held by a gigantic man in black armor. He was covered head to toe in it, all plate, his face obscured by a tinted visor. Silver highlights were here and there, like stars shining in the blackest night. Curled horns jutted from either side of his helmet, and a great silver cape waved behind him. In the dim light, they looked like bat wings.

"OPEN FIRE!" Polo screamed, and the loud percussion of their heavy HAR-2004 assault rifles filled the air. The armored figure advanced, every Dust enhanced round vanishing into the man as he walked through the barrage.

Impossible...! Polo thought, They're just bouncing off! HOW?!

It was then the armored man lifted his sword and swung. A great blast of Red Aura erupted, and the squad was blown off their feet and slammed into the walls.

Corporal Polo groaned, his Aura broken. The black knight walked right through them. Polo tried to reach up, tried to grab onto the man... But his armor expanded out and slammed Polo into the wall. The dark figure then swung his blade, and flames erupted all around the warehouse.

As the smoke choked him and flames blinded him, all Polo could do was gape in disbelief at the figure just plodding along. As though unbothered by the pain and anguish he had inflicted.

Not noticing a damn thing.

What was that...? Polo thought to himself, before he passed out.

- - -

The trek out to the base fence wasn't too arduous. The fire he had started was providing sufficient distraction, and his employer had disabled the security systems.

He hopped over the fence and dashed out into the pine trees. He dropped into a gulley, making his way to an old railroad station that had seen better days long ago.

He pushed through the rotting timbers that were once a door and through the wrecked, mold covered interior. He broke through the other wall, revealing a cave.

He hurried through it, down the wet cavern, the sounds of dripping water haunting his steps.

Finally, he reached a hidden lake. Sitting on the lake was a small automated cargo barge, one of thousands across Atlas' waterways. He stepped onto the deck and into the cabin. Inside was an elaborate life support system, integrated into a large metallic frame chair. The man sat down and leaned back. Robotic arms and needles activated, attaching themselves to him. The man sighed quietly as the barge got underway.

A holoscreen activated, and a familiar leonine face appeared.

"I trust you have completed the mission, Lord Caliban Testoasa?"

Testoasa turned his masked face towards the holoprojection. One might imagine a frown was on his face.

"Why you? Why not Watts?" He inquired in a deep, booming bass.

"Watts is busy with something else," Lionheart stated, almost impatiently, "Did you complete the mission?"

Testoasa reached into his belt, and pulled out a single metallic cylinder. He set it down on a table in the cramped cabin.

"Yes. The nanite core has been retrieved," Testoasa stated. "I trust I will receive my payment?"

"Yes... And an even greater reward," Lionheart said.

Testoasa scoffed, his breathing low and mechanical.

"To be Watts' slave and errand boy for longer? How wonderful to hear."

Lionheart scowled.

"He is the one who dug you out of your collapsed castle. He is the one who rebuilt you, after your folly-"

"That does not make me a slave to you parasites," Testoasa seethed. "I am a warrior, a count. Twenty generations of my family were warriors, knights of Hispania."

"And now you have nothing but the title," Lionheart returned. Testoasa's fists clenched as his impassive visor stared at Lionheart. The headmaster of Haven shook his head.

"But you could get back what you have lost."

"I have heard that before," Testoasa snorted.

Lionheart switched to an image. An image that Testoasa stared at with a frightening intensity.

It showed four people-Older than he remembered, but all too familiar.

"Team AARN has become a problem for my employer," Lionheart stated, "A big enough problem that we will require a great deal of strength to end them. I believe you have some... Personal interest in this?"

He had been young, handsome. A great count and warrior heir to a noble dynasty. He had had it all...

Save for a woman he desired.

Isabel Arc. She had brains, beauty, and talents that would have let him rise to the top of Hispania's aristocracy. Maybe become their Councilman, and then? Rule all of Vacuo.

He had used the old arts to try and entrance her. His natural charm. Yet still she insisted on that bumbling oaf!

He would not have it. He found a way to get her to agree to marriage: Blackmail.

He had used his mother's ancient lessons in medicine and alchemy to addict the townspeople to the old potion. Without it, they would die. He had lowered
the dosage, slowly, and made it look like a plague had struck. He told Isabel if she did not cooperate, he would put the potion into the general water supply.
It would hook everyone in the province. If she married him, she could help him refine it, make it so they could rule together!

She obeyed. She had told her friends to their faces she was abandoned them for him. That she never wanted to see them again. Arjun, the Exiled Prince and his little maid? They had seemed convinced...

But not the imbecile. He stubbornly refused. He'd thrown the idiot off a tower into the river and driven the others off with his troops.

Isabel was his. All his. He'd put an explosive collar around her neck, just in case. But he was confident he would get her to see things his way eventually.

But then Team STRQ got involved. Helped the imbecile, Arjun and the maid get into his castle. Defeated all of his men. Freed Isabel, who had proceeded to
fight him. He'd used his powerful Semblance, absorbed all their energy to become stronger and more durable than the strongest steel! His endurance was second to none, he fought that blond moron until his castle was on fire and collapsing around them!

He had vowed to make his death the worst of all of them!

Yet... The idiot had beaten him.

Nick Arc had slashed off his arm and legs and sent him falling into the depths of his collapsing castle. He and everyone else had escaped... And he was left for dead under thousands of tons of rubble.

Only his Semblance had kept him alive... Until Watts had found him...

Testoasa's fists clenched. His mechanical breathing sped up.

"... The reward?" The black knight demanded.

"Full regeneration of your flesh," Lionheart said, "We have a man who can do it. As well as enough money to rebuild your castle."

Count Caliban Testoasa stared at the image. He slowly nodded.

"We have a deal."

He was still a slave, this was true. A slave to these bastards.

But once he had his revenge and his body back? No one would enslave him ever again.

- - -

Caliban Testoasa's name means "Black Tortoise": "Caliban" is Romani for "Black" or "Blackness" and Testoasa is Romanian for "tortoise.". His Semblance, Reinforcement, allows him to absorb kinetic energy and reinforce his body to the point he is nearly impervious to physical attacks. He's also a master swordsman. But if you hit him hard enough with enough Aura energy or in the right way? You can beat him, which is what Nick Arc did.

He's our Black Knight, very Darth Vader-like. He's been used as hired muscle by Watts to pay off all the cybernetics Watts put in him to keep him alive.

 

[FinalFormer]

Cross-Posted from the Spacebattles thread.

Childhood Memories: Starting Line

- - - - - - - - - -
Xiao-Long/Rose Homestead, Patch. Julian Arc-Rose. Age: 14.

Jaune Arc stood outside his father-in-law's home in the early morning, a cup of coffee in one hand and a stopwatch in the other.

A rumbling could be felt beneath his feet. They were almost here.

In a flash, clouds of red and gold flower petals showered the front lawn. Emerging from the flowerstorm was his wife, Ruby Arc, and their son, Julian Arc-Rose. Hitting the time on the stopwatch, Jaune approached the two. "I think you two beat your personal best."

He showed them the stopwatch. Julian and Ruby smiled wide. Last month their personal best was 44.5 seconds. Now it was 32 seconds! She and Julian had made these races a sort of morning ritual between the two ever since he unlocked his Semblance.

"OK, but I got here first, right? I definitely got here first." Julian asked. Ruby turned towards her son.

"Yeah right, slow-poke," Ruby teased. But truthfully, he actually was getting faster. Not as fast as she was, but he was getting there! "You were just a few inches behind me."

"Nu-Uh! I got here first!" Julian argued. There was no way Mom was still faster than him! He had to have gotten faster by now! "I want a rematch!"

"No way, mister," Ruby shot down Julian's demand. "We need to make breakfast for everyone. I'm starving!"

Before Julian could protest, his stomach growled. His face turned red. He was just as hungry as his mom. Ruby smirked. "You want some pancakes?"

"Yes, ma'am." Julian answered, sheepishly. The trio turned towards the house, but stopped when his grandfather stepped out.

"Uh, there's an angry rabbit Faunus on the house-line asking where Julian is?" Taiyang asked. Julian's eyes bulged in surprise.

"OHMYGODICOMPLETELYFORGOTSERENAWASCOMINGTOMEETYOUGUYSILLSEEYOUGUYSLATERBYE!!" Julian quickly shouted and disappeared in a burst of gold rose petals.

His parents and grandfather stood in silence before Tai asked the obvious question.

"Did either of you understand a word he said?"

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

"Hmmph." Serena Winchester pouted as she sat the Bullhead station waiting for her boyfriend. She had been waiting an hour for Julian to come get her!

She opened her scroll to call him again, but her ears picked up something coming towards. An explosion of gold rose petals showered over her and Julian appeared before her, trying to catch his breath.

"I'm super sorry, Serena! I was racing my and I forgot I was supposed to--"

"Hmmph," Serena crossed her arms and pouted. "You said you'd be here. You said an Arc never goes back on their word."

Before Serena could continue her pout parade, Julian pulled out his ultimate weapon: His puppy eyes! He saw Mom use this on Dad a million times and it always works!

Serena's cheeks began to flush. He's using his cute face! He knows that's her weakness! "Y-you can't just make that face every time I get upset!"

As if he was being challenged, Julian's silver eyes looked like they were getting bigger for maximum effect. Serena couldn't find it in herself to stay mad at someone so cute. She stepped forward and hugged her shroter boyfriend.

"That's so unfair. I'm literally a rabbit Faunus! I'm supposed to be cuter than you!"

"Not to brag but, heh, I learned from the best," Julian said smugly, hugging her back. Mission accomplished! He knew she couldn't resist his boyish charms. After their hug ended, he then got into a dramatic pose. "My charms are too powerful to resist!"

His smugness got swept away when Serena raised an eyebrow. "Which one of was super nervous about asking out the other: you or me?"

"Uh..." Julian's face turned redder than a tomato. He knew the answer to that and it made his insides twist at how cringy it was.

Serena was sitting with her friends when they were approached by a cloaked boy. He looked extremely nervous.

"M-may I speak to you for a minute, Serena?" Julian winced internally. Why did his voice sound like that? Was it always this high pitched? Maybe he should've listened to his friend Liu and got her some flowers. Girls love flowers!

"Yeah, sure." Serena said happily. She remembered this guy! His name was Julian! He was that cute short boy that ate nothing but cookies during lunch! He's so nice to everybody.

They were standing in the forest behind the school for 30 minutes before Julian attempted to ask her something.

"I-I-I... Um... W-w...," Julian stammered out. Why is this so hard! She was too dang cute! It was so distracting! He flipped his hood up, completely covering his face and tried again. "Serena Winchester, I was wondering if we could have a study date together tomorrow?"

She didn't respond. Did he do something wrong? Of course he did something wrong! He put his hood on because he couldn't look her in the eyes!

"Ask me again."

Julian tilted his head. "I'm sorry?"

A brief silence passed before Serena lifted up Julian's hood. She smiled and looked into his eyes. "I said, ask me again."

Suddenly, all of the fear in Julian's body disappered. "Would you like to have a study date with me tomorrow?"

"I'd love to," Serena accepted. She gave him a farewell kiss on the cheek. "See you tomorrow."

Julian stood there dumbfounded. He... He has a date! He has a date with the prettiest girl in school! He's definitely bringing her flowers tomorrow.

"Oh, come on, I never talked to pretty girls before!," Julian defended his past actions. "I'm not a smooth operator like my Dad was!"

"You think I'm pretty?" Serena blushed. This isn't the first time he said she was pretty. But she really liked it when he did.

Julian, once again, blushed. He knew he was in a trap. Serena was good at getting him out of his awkward shell but she always did it in a way that made him feel shy. Before he could give her an answer, his scroll vibrated. He checked. His sister, June, had sent him a message "Mom knows you have a girlfriend. She got answers out of Pyrrha. Her and Dad are heading your way."

"Oh. Well, looks like you'll be meeting my parents a bit sooner than I thought. Did you bring any cookies?" Julian asked. Serena's ears perked up. Reaching into her bag, she showed Julian a tupperware filled with cookies.

"Does she like snickerdoodles?"

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

I meant to get this out last week but decided to take my time with it.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

City of Viriathus, Lusitania Province, Vacuo

- - -

Vacuo was a harsh, arid Kingdom composed of many proud, squabbling cultures. One of the most famous was the small but fierce province of Lusitania on the far western coast of the Kingdom. Guarded by mountains, it had resisted numerous empires that had tried to conquer it. In a lawless Kingdom like modern Vacuo, it's capital Viriathus flouted the laws the council made in the far away capital: Especially on gambling.

Golden casinos stretched up into the night sky as tourists from all the Kingdoms walked along the boardwalks. Black Market wares were sold almost openly. Men who won big at the tables lived it up like it was their last night on Remnant, while losers were thrown out into the gutter.

Only the Magistrate's armed militia kept order in the glittering city, but they could not be everywhere. Despite this, some members of the criminal underworld actually tried to promote good order and lawfulness. After all, they were running businesses here. It would not do to antagonize their client base.

The man leading this charge was Prataeo Marfim. He was tall, dark skinned, his head shaved bald, with a neatly trimmed beard and a dark blue suit. He sat in his penthouse office of the Doreado Casino, overlooking the cityscape. His assistant, a woman in a business jacket and skirt, stood nearby in silence. She was beautiful: Tall, leggy, and curvy, with long black hair cascading down her back. Her purple eyes glittered behind her glasses like sharply cut amethyst. Her skin was pale and flawless, and her lips were ruby red.

Before them stood a militia officer. He was slovenly, balding, with pale skin and red hair. He wore his outdated armor messily, while holding his beret in front of himself nervously. The two large enforcers on either side of him, grim in their black suits, probably didn't help ease his worries.

"Carl," Marfim stated coldly, "I paid you to overlook shipments coming in. Not to start pimping kids or running drugs."

"I uh... W-Well, a man's gotta make ends meet, sir," the militia officer said, wringing his hat, "I-I appreciate all you've done for me but it's not enough-!"

"You could have put in more work for me, Carl," Prataeo went on, his eyes narrowing, "I could have given you more breaks. Instead? You broke the rules. Now you have to face the consequences."

He looked to his female assistant.

"Zhu?"

Zhu smiled cheerfully. She strutted right up to the sweating, nervous man. She pressed a delicately manicured nail against the side of his head... And Carl's eyes rolled into the back of his head. His veins turned black as he collapsed, and he began to choke.

"That's a brevetoxin," Zhu explained, "Usually found in single celled organisms in the ocean called dinoflagellate. It binds with sodium channels in nerve cells, causing a complete shutdown of your nervous system."

She smiled cheerfully at the dying man.

"I made this one especially painful," she grinned.

"I told you not to do that," Marfim growled. Zhu huffed.

"You never let me have any fun!"

"I want him dead, but quickly," Marfim stated, "Painlessly."

"Well, I chose something else, so nyeh," Zhu responded, sticking her tongue out. Marfim sighed and was about to say more... When Zhu's Scroll went off. She pulled it out, stuck an earpiece in, and answered the call.

"Hello? I'm at work, I... Ohhhh! Hello Lionheart!"

Zhu nodded a few times. She gasped.

"Really? They're back together? And..."

She growled.

"Branwen. Arc."

Poisonous fumes began to drift away from Zhu's skin, resembling the wings of a bird. Marfim's goons backed away, while Marfim discretely reached for a gas mask.

A moment later, Zhu was all smiles-Though still terrifyingly vicious.

"Of course I'll kill them! Don't you worry about a thing! Just make the deposit in the usual place, darling~! Okay, love you~!"

Zhu ended the call and turned back to her employer. She bowed low in the Fuujin manner.

"My apologies, Boss, but I have some personal business to attend to," she said.

Marfim grimaced.

"Arc and Branwen?"

Zhu nodded like an eager child.

"Oh yes! I finally get a chance to murder them."

Her pupils shrank to pinpoints and her grin shone like daggers in the well lit office. The goons cringed in terror behind the still dying Carl.

Marfim, unperturbed, slowly nodded.

"How long will you be gone?"

"Oh a few weeks! I'll file for the PTO and everything will be square! The lists of contacts and your agenda is set for the next month! Not to worry, Boss! I'll be back!" Zhu giggled. "And I'll have some new heads for my display case!"

"... That's great," Marfim said with a nod. "See you soon."

"Okay! Love you boss!" She pranced over to Marfim and kissed his cheek. She then turned and jumped out the window, smashing through the glass with a wild, child-like cheer. Marfim and his goons stared after her.

"Uh, Boss...?"

Marfim sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"I'm not gonna stand in front of the Poison Phoenix when she wants someone dead."

He paused.

"Plus, I'd be lost without my favorite secretary..."

- - -

Lusitania is the Roman name for what is now Portugal. Viriathus is the name of a famous tribal leader of the area who resisted the Roman occupation of the region.

Zhu is a Chinese surname meaning "Vermillion". She is our Vermillion Bird of the Four Cardinal Beasts. Her Semblance is Toxic: The ability to create and emit any form of poison from her body. She's also a bit of a womanchild-But a dangerous one.

Prataeo is a corruption of the Portugese word for "Silver".

 

[AndrewJTalon]

When The Schnee matriarch started making blatant inquires about his parents and their relationship an incredibly mortified Weiss and Winter had done their best to redirect the conversation to something else. After it became clear that Willow would not be deterred Nicholas and Theodore had provided some interference that had given Jaune a good reason to excuse himself from the table, to the relief of everyone not named Willow.

This left Jaune free to properly introduce himself to the last parent he hadn't met before today; Athena Nikos, the mother of his partner Pyrrha. Jaune made his way through the ballroom to the table the two were sitting at with his potential son Xander and the family's honestly ominous looking butler. The four of them saw his approach and rose from their seats, stepping away from the table and meeting him halfway.

"Jaune," Pyrrha warmly greeted him. The fond affection in her voice, the small smile on her lips, the soft look in her eyes, they were all things he had seen from her before. Breaker above he really was oblivious; her feelings had been clearly spelled out on her face this whole time.

"Hey Pyrrha," Jaune smiled back at his partner, "This is your mother?"

"Yes," Pyrrha tilted her head towards the retired actress, "This is my mother Athena."

"A pleasure to meet you Ms. Nikos," Jaune put on his best smile, but that smile became politely confused as he tried to interpret Athena's expression.

The redheaded actress was smiling a bit too wide, her eyes were a bit too big, and on top of that she was cupping her cheek with her left hand while using her right hand to muffle the giggles escaping her lips.

"It's a pleasure tah meet ya Mistah Arc," Athena preened with sparkling eyes and a cutesy voice. "And I must say you're easy on the eyes. I can totes see why my Pyr-Pyr took a liking tah ya, and I hope you can make her the world's luckiest gal!"

"Uh, I'll do my best?" Jaune answered as he looked to Pyrrha trying to gage if her mother's behavior was normal. Unfortunately Pyrrha seemed just as bewildered as he felt.

"Granny, you said you'd try to be yourself," Xander supplied from Athena's left.

"Whaaat? This is totes me!" The scarlet haired woman giggled.

Her blue haired butler placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, "You're using the word 'totes' ma'am."

"I am?" Athena's head whipped around to look Orestes in the eye, "That's totes not something-" Her face morphed into a comical exaggeration of mortification. A haunted whisper escaped her lips, "By the rainbow wings of victory I'm defaulting to Dolly. Why am I defaulting to Dolly? I only played her in a single holiday special! Why aren't I accidentally defaulting to Aurora? I played her for five seasons and three movies! AND AURORA TALKS NORMAL!"

"Umm..." Jaune looked to his son and partner for some kind of explanation.

"Apparently having a difficult time expressing oneself is something my mother and I have in common," Pyrrha winced with sympathy she was surprised to feel.

"I lived and breathed Aurora for years! I only narrowly avoided being typecast as her character's archetype, and even then a third of my characters were still some kind of variation of that archetype! I've only played six characters like Dolly, and-" Athena stretched out her hand towards Orestes and the man handed her a paper bag. The actress' rant died as she placed the bag over her mouth, breathing in and out of the bag until she visibly calmed.

"Are you alright ma'am?" Jaune asked with clear concern in his tone.

"Considering what I've learned today? No. I'm not okay, and I haven't been for a long time," Athena answered as she pulled the bag away from her face. "It's a long and involved story that we don't have time to get into here. Perhaps we'd be better off with you telling me about yourself? I'd like to know the young man that captured my daughter's heart; do you know how that happened?"

Jaune closed his eyes in recollection, and after a moment's thought he knew where to begin; "Pyrrha chose me as her partner. Initiation's set up to make each partnership as random as possible, but your daughter threw her spear at me and pinned me to a tree to make sure she could get to me before anyone else. She singled me out because I was one of the small handful of people who had no clue who she was before meeting her, and I'm eternally grateful she chose me out of the clueless people she met that day because I didn't belong here at that point."

"Don't sell yourself short Jaune," Pyrrha fondly smiled as she remembered that day. "You came up with a plan to kill the Deathstalker chasing us that took perfect advantage of our team's strengths within moments of meeting all of us. That was really impressive and is solid proof that you deserved your slot here."

"I was still in way over my head," Jaune explained to Athena even as Pyrrha's encouraging words warmed his heart. "My transcripts shouldn't have gotten me in; all I knew about swordplay was that the pointy end goes into the bad guys and all I knew about shields was that it was better to have one than not have one if your sword can be used one handed. I started out as the dead last in combat class, yet in spite of all that Pyrrha saw potential in me. Potential I wasn't seeing in myself at that point. She offered to tutor me in the art of swordplay, but I refused out of my own personal hang ups."

Jaune internally cringed at the memories, but he kept it off his face as he continued; "Reasonably speaking she should have given up on me at that point, but she didn't. She waited for me to get over myself, and when I did she stepped right in to support me. I'm no longer the dead last in our combat classes and it's all thanks to her efforts."

"I can't take all the credit," Pyrrha gently objected, "You're an exceptionally fast learner Jaune; you've mastered things in a few months that would take other people years to get the basics on."

That praise brought a small smile to his face before he continued, "To bring us back to your original question Pyrrha told me yesterday that she's been in love with me since the day we met. I don't know when that initial infatuation turned into something more tangibly real, but it did and now hindsight is making me feel like an idiot for not noticing before everything that went down yesterday."

"So how did you not know?" Athena frowned as she rolled Jaune's words around in her mind, "From what you've said it sounds like my daughter was sending you clear signals from the beginning."

"Dad was just... ya know... dense," Xander supplied from the side. "And it probably didn't help that the examples of romance he saw growing up were all very overt; nobody's learning subtle flirting from Granny Isabel and Grandpa Nick."

"Hey," Jaune objected for his parent's sake, but it wasn't a heated objection.

"Well, if we ignore that romantic density for a moment," Orestes moved forward from his position behind Athena, "It sounds like you genuinely appreciate your friendship with Pyrrha. And since that's the case I'm glad to make your acquaintance." The bodyguard extended a hand to shake, which Jaune took without prompting. "Though now that you know her true feelings I'm curious, what are your intentions going forward?"

"My intentions..." Jaune took a moment to sort his feelings into words. Orestes keeping the handshake going the entire time, which was weird but it didn't stop Jaune from answering; "My intentions are to do the right thing. For everyone. I won't give up on anyone, especially not Pyrrha, because she never gave up on me."

A blush grew on Pyrrha's face as Jaune's words set her heart to singing. The other potential brides that were close enough to subtly eavesdrop stopped being subtle, each and every one of them now keeping a blatant eye on the conversation.

Orestes broke the handshake with the nod of someone reaching a conclusion; "I suppose that's as definitive of an answer that you can give right now considering the circumstances." Then his expression became stone faced, with a dark menace in his eyes that made Jaune's blood run cold, "Though I should warn you that the heart of a woman can be easily bruised if it's handled carelessly, and those who play careless games with the Nikos' hearts have a bright future exploring local lakebeds with a nice set of concrete galoshes."

Jaune looked the blue haired bodyguard up and down as he began to wonder if the man in front of him had actually fitted someone out with a set of concrete galoshes before. Pyrrha's jaw dropped as she felt a sudden urge to stand between Orestes and Jaune. Athena blinked owlishly as if she was seeing her butler for the first time.

Xander snorted, "Yeah Uncle Orestes is always like that." The boy's flippant tone popped the tension in the air like a needle in a party balloon. Everyone relaxed while Orestes pouted at having his intimidation undercut so quickly.

"Well Pyrrha, I'm glad you've found a boy that's trustworthy," Athena concluded from Orestes extended handshake. "I just hope the two of you can be patient with me; this all feels rather surreal right now."

"Right, patient. We can be patient." Pyrrha smiled, but Jaune could see the tension behind it. He probably needed to talk with her about that later, let his partner unpack some of her feelings away from her mother.

Such thoughts were put on hold when the main doors of the ballroom opened and the voice of his godmother called out:

"Jaune!" Saia Sarkara warmly smiled as she strode into the room with May following close behind, her figure hidden by her mother's. The Queen of Pandu continued as the two of them approached the blond swordsman; "I hope I'm not interrupting? If I am I promise this wont take much time."

"I think we're good," Jaune glanced at the others for conformation with nobody objecting that conclusion. "What do you need?"

"Like I said it won't take long; I just need to formally introduce May as my daughter Maia," The Queen then stepped aside with a dramatic flourish; "Behold! The Lost Princess of Pandu!"

May glanced around bashfully as she stood there in a very modern take on the national dress of Pandu. A vermilion sari was draped over her shoulders over an equally red top that left her arms and midriff rather exposed with a floor-length skirt tightly hugging her hips. Intricate patterns that represented a long awaited betrothal had been lovingly painted on her hands and arms, and it was taking all of May's power to not fidget in fear of smearing the paints that were already well dried.

Jaune felt his mouth go dry seeing May in this new outfit. It was... well it wasn't obscene. It just kind of felt like it because May's normal outfit covered so much more of her and...

...How in God's green world did her hoodie hide an hourglass figure so perfectly... pronounced. Her hips were wide in a way that promised easy deliveries while her abdomen curved in a way that made her bust look even larger than it actually was, and that bosom was generous enough to not need any help whatsoever. Like seriously those melons were almost the size of her hea- GET A GRIP JAUNE! Don't make this weird.

"Hey," Jaune managend.

"H-hey," May managed back. "Um, It's nice to- WAH!"

Saia casually hooked her right foot in front of May's leg while placing a hand between her daughter's shoulder blades, pushing the girl forward and making her fall. Jaune moved out of reflex, and managed to catch the falling girl before she hit the ground. This left the young sniper pressed against Jaune's chest as she blushed a crimson as deep and vibrant as her sari.

"Oh dear how did that happen?" Saia asked so innocently that anyone who hadn't seen her trip up her daughter would have believed she was completely uninvolved. That innocent facade was ruined by the fact that almost everyone in the room had been looking their way when she had acted. His various future children stared with wide eyed surprise, his potential brides were glaring daggers, and his potential in-laws were creasing their brows with disapproval.

About the only people not staring Saia and May down were his own father Nick and Qrow who were still arguing about who landed the killing blow on the Kraken. As a result the tension of the room skyrocketed exponentially.

This was a complicated problem, and Jaune couldn't help but worry that this was a preview of how messy things could get going forward. He wracked his brains for a way to defuse the tension and he was coming up-

"NORA SMASH!" Nora jovially shouted as she drove her fist into the Kraken model, spraying egg everywhere. "Hah! Now I'm the one who killed the Kraken! Remember that next time you tell the tale!"

"Nora!" Ren whisper-shouted as he tried to pull her away from the mess she had made.

"Ha!" Nick let out a booming laugh at the hammer-wielder's antics before promising, "I will remember it! In fact, I think you should tell it next at your wedding reception!"

"My wedding reception?"

"Yes," Nick grinned. "Once the adoption's finalized we can take you and Ren down to Radian and rent out the old chapel where everyone in our family's gotten married for the last six generations! Heck, we might be able to get old Parson Brown out of retirement to do the ceremony and after that you can use the old family lake house for the honeymoon!"

Nora squealed in excitement while Ren's eyes grew wide.

"Nick!" Isabel scolded, "Don't promise her things before we've adopted her!"

"So we are adopting her," Nick grinned.

"I didn't say that," Isabel pinched the bridge of her nose.

And with everyone's attention on that the tension in the room disappeared and Jaune sighed in relief. He'd have to get Nora the ultimate wedding present as thanks.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

Nora and his father had provided a big enough distraction for Jaune to make for the ballroom exit. He managed to get past the bickering members of May's team, out into the hallway, and then went into an adjoining courtyard. It was small, open to the sky above, and had a small but elegant marble fountain trickling happily.

He sat down on a stone bench, took in a deep breath, and let it all out as he leaned back on his hands.

"You all right, Mister Arc?"

"Gah!" Jaune jumped. He looked over his shoulder. Glynda Goodwitch stood there, looking somewhat amused.

"Uh, y-yeah, I'm fine," Jaune nodded quickly, "Just fine. How are you?"

Glynda smiled very softly. It was, frankly, the first time Jaune had ever seen it on the woman's face. It made her look even more beautiful.

"About the same," she admitted quietly. Jaune winced then slowly nodded.

"Yeah," he mumbled, "Just... Needed some time alone."

Glynda sucked in a breath.

"I... Needed the same," she admitted. "I can go if you-"

"No! No, no, that's fine!" Jaune insisted, waving his hands, "I mean, um... It's more I just need some... Peace and quiet."

Glynda nodded again. Jaune scooted over and patted the bench.

"If you want to sit?"

"I would appreciate it," Glynda said. She walked over, and sat down next to him with the same elegance she did almost everything. The two sat in silence for a time, just watching the water fountain. Water shot into the air, and fell in a brilliance cascade down the many stone layers back to the bottom pool.

A bird chirped nearby. Jaune smiled and closed his eyes.

"It's nice," he said finally.

"Mm," Glynda agreed, "I meditate a great deal. Helps me focus."

"Same," Jaune admitted, "I do it with Ren every morning. Helped me get my Aura under control."

Silence fell again. Jaune tried to focus on Ren's teachings. To not overthink, to not stress out, to just be. To be here, aware, but not stressed. Not tensed. Just existing.

He snuck a peek at Glynda: She was doing the same. Her eyes were shut, and while she was still poised, she looked far more relaxed than he'd ever seen her.

She then opened her eyes and stared at him. He flushed and looked away.

"Er, sorry," he mumbled. "I've uh, I've never seen you... Relaxed. Or smiling."

She stared at him longer, her expression unreadable. He coughed.

"Y-You look... Really beautiful."

A blush emerged on her cheeks. Jaune coughed, and held his hands up.

"Er, um, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-!"

"We are married with several children in a future timeline, Mister Arc," Glynda said wryly, a hint of amusement in her eyes, "You need to stop acting like an awkward 12-year-old on an ice cream date."

"Y-Yeah, but..." Jaune grimaced. "I dunno... That's kind of the problem."

Glynda was silent. Jaune worked his jaw.

"I mean... You probably know about my childhood and all?"

"I was friends with your parents, so I did keep up," Glynda said quietly. Jaune's eyes bulged out.

"W-Wait, you were?! You did?!"

Glynda chuckled.

"I knew you were a fraud from the moment you walked into Beacon Academy, Mister Arc," she said with a small smile, "But the Initiation is the real test. You passed. So you were accepted."

"O-Oh," Jaune grimaced. "I-I see... Well... I guess you know why I'm... Ya know..."

He bowed his head.

"And I apparently help save the world in the future," he sighed.

"Not alone," Glynda said encouragingly. Jaune nodded.

"I-I know. It's just overwhelming. I literally just figured out my Semblance yesterday. My kids, my... You all... My parents..."

He rubbed his face and sighed heavily. Glynda hesitated a moment before she reached out and rested a hand on his shoulder. He looked over at her. Glynda's green eyes held him spellbound as she spoke.

"Your father started out as a brain damaged orphan raised by a crazy old paladin in an abandoned church. Your mother started out as an arrogant control freak desperate to provide for her four younger siblings and restore honor to her family name. Your godparents started out as exiles with only the clothes on their back and prices on their heads, their own country turned against them. And I... I was a reckless, foolish young woman who abused her powers and lashed out at the world. One who... Who said terrible things to her parents."

Glynda sucked in a small breath.

"Things she never got to apologize for," she added. The fountain sounded very loud in the sudden silence as Jaune paled.

"M-Miss Goodwitch," Jaune whispered, his voice thick with compassion. He reached up to squeeze her hand. She squeezed his back.

"We know that in eleven futures, the world is saved and you have a happy ending in each," Glynda said quietly. "It will be difficult, but knowing you can succeed helps immensely. It's helping me immensely."

"I suppose it would," Jaune said softly. He looked back at the fountain. "At the same time... Now we're not sure if those endings will happen. And... And I can't just choose one. I can't just sacrifice everyone else."

Glynda nodded slowly.

"I know," she said, "We had a similar conversation."

"We?"

"Your wives," Glynda explained. Jaune blinked.

"O-Oh... So um... What did you conclude?"

Well..." Glynda took a deep breath, "I believe we're going to do our best to... Share time with you. As best we can."

Jaune's jaw dropped.

"I uh... Um..." He slowly nodded. "O-Okay."

Glynda raised an eyebrow.

"To get to know you better," she said, "Anything... Untoward is out of the question."

"Of-Of course!" Jaune said with rapid nods of his head, "Absolutely!"

He tried to pull his hand away... But Glynda held fast. That tiny smile reappeared on her face.

"Again, acting like an awkward 12-year-old is not the way to do things," Glynda said, stern but almost playfully so.

"Y-Yes, Miss Goodwitch," Jaune said. He coughed at her look. "Er... Glynda?"

Glynda was thoughtful. She nodded as though approving of how he said her name.

"Yes... Jaune," she said quietly. His mouth went dry.

Wow... I-I think I like her saying my name...

"AHEM."

Glynda and Jaune looked to their right. Penny was in front of... All of the rest of Jaune's future wives (sans Cinder, for obvious reasons). The gynoid herself was beaming like the sun as the other women glared.

"As you can see, Friends," Penny announced, "Friend Jaune and Professor Goodwitch are not engaged in coitus!"

"W-We wouldn't be!" Glynda sputtered. "It would be inappropriate!"

"You're holding hands," Blake stated flatly, "That appropriate for a teacher to do?"

Glynda scowled.

"I am one of the potential future brides," Glynda stated firmly, "I have as much reason and right to spend time with him!"

"Perhaps I can set up a schedule!" Penny said cheerfully.

"A schedule for what?"

All eyes turned to the other side of the courtyard. Sun and the rest of Team SSSN was standing there, Illyia with them. The chameleon Faunus was still in handcuffs but didn't seem unhappy about it.

Ruby acted first to try and save the situation.

"Penny don't-!"

"For Friend Jaune to have equal time with all of his future wives!" Penny said cheerfully.

Neptune's eyes bugged out. Scarlet's jaw dropped. Sage blinked rapidly. Illiya gaped. Even Sun, who was somewhat aware of the time travel situation, gasped in disbelief.

"HIS WHAT?!"

Jaune sighed and buried his face in his palms.

"Um..." Ruby coughed. "If it helps? I already told Coco about the situation, so the whole school probably knows by now... That better or worse?"

"RUBY!"

Jaune moaned.

- - -

 

[FinalFormer]

Cross-posted From the SpaceBattles Thread

Childhood Memories: The Honored One

- - - - - - - - - -
Amity Coliseum II. Above the Kingdom of Atlas. Theodore Arc-Schnee. Age: 17.

The yearly Vytal Festival was in full swing above Atlas. Students across all four academies were locked in the hear of battle in the early preliminary rounds. This generation of Hunters were shaping up to be some of the most formidable and inspiring yet.

But the one that stood out the most was considered a freak of nature. Even by the standards of combat rankings and Atlas' top Semblance researchers.

Given the nickname "Talent Incarnate" among his peers at Atlas Academy, he was Theodore Arc-Schnee. The eldest son of Winter Arc-Schnee and Jaune Arc.

"KYAAAA!!!"

"THERE HE IS!!"

"IT'S THE BOY GENERAL!!"

"HE'S SO HANDSOME!!"

Theodore turned his head towards his adoring fans, an impish smile spread across his face. He lowered his sunglasses and winked, the crowd cheering louder than before in response.

"KYYAAAAAA!!!"

"HE-HE WINKED AT ME!!!"

"NO!! HE WAS WINKING AT ME!!"

"THEO~!!"

Theodore smirked and the cheering grew even louder. He knew his family was probably watching and his mother was no doubt scowling but hey, he knew had the looks. Besides, his father and grandfather said women love a guy with confidence. It's not Theodore's fault he was an all-natural babe magnet.

"Seriously?," Snapping him out of his thoughts was his partner, Shu Wukong. The monkey Faunus had it up to here with this guy's showboating! All year, he's been flaunting his stupid dazzling blue eyes and his stupid abs around the whole school without a care in the world! "You need to get your head in the game!"

"Yeah, why focus on those floozies when you've got me!" Quinn Katt, his other team member, flirted. She's been trying to get his attention ever since they were assigned to the same team. Unlike their Vacuoan teammate, she's made her intentions clear! But Shu wasn't her biggest problem. It was the redheaded, green robed, axe-wielding tomboy vibrating with excitement.

"Alright, you've got this! Just remember what Mama said. Smash everything in sight!" Off to side, hyping herself up was Theodore's childhood friend and last teammate, Ingrid Ren. Together, they formed team TRQS. And it was a good thing too. Ingrid remembered Theo saying he'll be with her forever when they were kids. Her heart still fluttered to this day. She was hoping that when they were put on the same team, they would one day confess their love for each other in the heat of the Vytal Festival. But she never thought she would ever expect competition!

But Ingrid was patient and perceptive. She learned stuff like that from her parents. Mostly her mom! So she knew she'd have plenty of time to get her feelings out. Because despite being raised by the General of Atlas and the freaking Rusted Knight, Theodore could not notice the romantic intentions of his teammates.

"You act like I'm doing this on purpose," Theodore quickly dismissed Shu's annoyance. He doesn't know why she's getting so bothered. "I can't control what the ladies like. Blame my Dad, I get it from him."

Shu clenched her fist, her tail furled. She wanted to take her staff and swipe it across his stupid, handsome face! "Arrogance is that path to recklessness. If you--"

"True, but that's why Ingrid is my second in command. She knows me the best and Itrusther instincts when it comes to my strategies," Theodore cuts her off before she can finish. Ingrid faces the two and gives them a thumbs up. "Besides, judging by the weapons of our opponents, I'm fairly certain we can pull a win."

"How can you be so sure? We don't know what their weapons can do or what what their Semblances are?" Quinn states the obvious question. They've never seen team TMBR train during combat class and from what she heard through the gossip mill, they're the best team in Beacon Academy. Maybe even better than the legendary team RWBY!

"I'll come up with something on the spot." Theodore shrugged. That's usually how he comes up with his best plans. He remembered his mother telling him that when he was 10, and her advice has never led him astray so far.

This answer, however, was not enough for Shu. She marches toward Theodore, almost face-to-face. "You can't be that confident! A real leader would've figured out what their Semblances were already! What if we get taken out and it's just you vs them!? You'd lose!"


"AND NOW, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE LAST MATCH-UP OF THE PRELIMINARY ROUNDS IS ABOUT TO BEGIN: TEAM TRQS OF ATLAS ACADEMY VS TEAM TMBR OF BEACON ACADEMY!!!" The announcer shouts. The time has come for them to show the world what they're made of.

Theodore looked over his shoulder towards Shu, her cheeks flushed at the sheer confidence in his eyes. He smirked and with the pride of an Arc-Schnee said "Nah, I'd win."

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

It didn't make any sense, but they won. Team TRQS was the winner. Shu was still in disbelief at their victory. There was no way they should've won but they did. And it was all because of him. That... man.

Theodore and Ingrid were doing a stupid victory dance that was strangely well coordinated. Quinn was also dancing trying to impress her team leader. They were at one of the many food stalls on the festival grounds. Shu was pouting and had her arms crossed. "Are you three done yet? I'm starving!"

"Lighten up, will you? We deserve to celebrate a little," Theodore smirked. Seriously, monkey Faunus needs to loosen up a little. He knew she was raised by warrior monks or whatever but this is ridiculous. She should be ecstatic about making it to the semi-finals. "Honestly, after all this time, you should put your trust in me. After all I--"

"You fought well, Theodore."

The coldness of her voice caused the young man to stand up completely straight. His arms behind his back. He knew exactly who that woman was.

"Thank you, mother. I'm glad I didn't disappoint." Theodore's tone was much different from his usual free-spirited and braggadocios self. He was acting a like a completely different person. The woman was a very recognizable person. Her white hair and generals uniform was the only giveaway Shu and Quinn need to guess who she was. She was General Winter Arc-Schnee. The man next could only be her husband Jaune Arc.

"However, you could've won the fight much sooner if you properly utilized your teammates Semblances." Theodore interally winced at that. He trusted the combat capabilities of his teammates, so he figured that they can handle themselves.

"So, Casanova, couldn't help but notice the massive fan club you've got." His father teased. Theodore smiled at that.

"Well, you and grandfather did say that women find us Arc boys irresistible. I can't control the ladies like."

The irony of that statement was not lost on Jaune or Winter. Just from a glance, they could tell that his teammates were deeply infatuated with him. "Well, your mother and I have an important meeting to go to. We just wanted to see you and congrats on making it to the semi-finals."

"Yes. We'll leave to your... victory noodles," Winter gave her son a warm smile. Despite his cocky nature, which she's sure he picked up from his father, she will always be proud of her son. "We'll see you tomorrow, son."

"I'll see you then, mother. Father." Theodore said politely. He was hoping he could get breakfast with them. It's something he misses about living at home.

As the couple left, Winter looked over her shoulder one last time to see her son and his team.

"So... Those girls are--"

"Yup." Jaune immediately answered.

"And he doesn't--"

"Nope."

"... He really is your son."

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

Felt like I was obligated to title this one "The Honored One".

 

[AndrewJTalon]

The Safehouse

- - -

Cinder found herself pacing in the living room of the safehouse. Clenching and unclenching her fists and jaw. Her heart beat loudly in her ears. She tried anything to maintain her calm, but it all just seemed to burn away in the fires of her fear and anxieties.

Neo and Mercury watched from nearby, sitting on a couch. Neo was eating ice cream, as she almost always did. Mercury was fidgeting, trying to look like he was just reading his Scroll but it was clear his mind was elsewhere.

Probably the same places mine is, Cinder thought ruefully.

That the sociopath was considering things like defection...

She shook her head.

No. No, you can't think about that, she thought, you need to focus. Focus... You must have all your wits about you.

Salem had told her that her 'backup' had been nearby doing another job for her. That she would arrive soon. That more were coming to support her and the operation.

And more than likely would try to take all the power for themselves.

There was a knock at the door to the safehouse. Cinder steeled herself. She walked up to the door and checked the security camera screen. She rolled her eyes and opened it up. A shaken Roman Torchwick hurried in, looking flummoxed.

"You rang, your highness?" Roman asked dryly. Cinder scowled.

"Where have you been?!"

"Getting things set of course! You have any idea how much Dust we still have to move out to Mount Glenn?" Roman demanded. He lit up a cigar and took a long drag to calm himself, before shaking his head. "And it don't help the White Fang's all worked up! Screeching and baying like something happened! I-" He frowned and scanned the room carefully. He then looked over at Cinder with a raised eyebrow.

"Your Girl Friday's missing," he said.

"Yes, well..." Cinder clenched her fists, "She decided to betray us. She joined Ozpin."

"She WHAT?!" Roman yelped. He looked over at Neo. "What the hell happened?!"

"Time travel," Mercury deadpanned. Roman's jaw continued to hang open. He theatrically reached up and stuck his pinkie into his ear to clear it.

"I'm... Sorry, time travel?"

"Emerald and Cinder's future kids with this guy came back in time by accident," Mercury stated, as Neo licked her spoon clean. The assassin shrugged. "And so she changed sides. Our operation is totally compromised."

Roman's jaw went up and down a few times. He then looked over at Neo for confirmation. The pint-sized enforcer nodded with an excited smile. Roman again opened his mouth... But nothing came out. He sighed and walked over to the kitchen, all wooden boards and cheap linoleum. He opened a cabinet, pulled out some whiskey, yanked the cork out and began to down it almost feverishly.

Cinder and Mercury stared as Roman proceeded to guzzle the hard booze down. As one, they glanced at Neo. The shortstack shrugged.

Roman finally finished the bottle, and broke contact with a gasp. He set the bottle down, and looked intently at his boss, his subordinate/adopted daughter, and Mercury.

"Okay... Maybe you should take it from the top," Roman said.

"Hold that thought~!" A bright, chipper voice called out. Every weapon in the room was pointed at the entrance. Cinder's arrows appeared, and her flames ignited around her.

Standing in the doorway was a dark skinned girl with pure white hair that went down to the small of her back. She wore a purple pinstripe suit, neatly tailored, with a short skirt. Her dazzling aquamarine eyes gleamed with delight as she beheld the scene before her. She then bowed, showing off her substantial cleavage.

"Oh, my apologies, Lady Cinder! I should have identified myself!" She cheerfully walked over, heedless of the weapons pointed at her head, and held out a card. Cinder scowled, but very gingerly reached out to take it. She held it up to her Scroll and scanned it. The Scroll beeped, and Cinder slowly nodded.

"She's our backup," Cinder said quietly. Roman lowered Melodic Cudgel. Neo scowled, lowering her umbrella but very slowly. Mercury sat back down, but kept his feet up on the coffee table as he assessed the newcomer.

"I'm Iridescent! Call me Iri!" The girl gushed. "I'm ever so glad to make your acquaintance at last, Lady Cinder! I've heard so much about you!" She beamed. "Isn't it amazing to work for Queen Salem? I'm looking forward to this operation ever so much!"

Cinder's eyebrow twitched very minutely. The girl's enthusiasm and simpering already reminded her of Emerald... But where there was desperation in Emerald's eyes, she only saw predatory hunger in Iridescent's eyes. Like a big cat sizing up a potential threat, probing for weaknesses.

"I'm sure," Cinder stated flatly. "The current operation is known to our enemies, but it's too far along to stop. So we're going to accelerate our plans. We will also need to weaken the enemy forces significantly."

Iridescent beamed and nodded.

"I've looked over the tactical and strategic situation," she said brightly. She walked to the coffee table and set down a holo projector. She brought up her Scroll and the projector activated, already showing off images of the various Hunters and Hunters-in-Training at Beacon. "I've been doing my research based on their forces and ours. I have a few possible counters, if you would like to listen?"

Cinder very slowly nodded. She put on a winning smile.

"Of course. I'm certain we'll salvage this mess and still win our prize."

"Oh, and of course," Iri said brightly, "Getting the power of time travel! It's so incredible! I know what I'd like to change if I had that ability, don't you?"

The faces of Ash, Ashley, and Jaune jumped to the front of her mind. Cinder clenched her fists but her smile remained.

"Of course. Let's start from the beginning. Roman?"

Roman sighed. He pulled out another hidden bottle of whiskey... And a second. And a third. He then headed over to the nearest chair and collapsed in it. He nodded and waved his hand.

"Of course. Proceed," he sighed. He then paused. "Neo, you're not the mother of one of those kids from the future, right?"

Neo shook her head. She looked... Almost disappointed. Something that raised Cinder's hackles internally.

Why?! She demanded of herself. Why do you care?! STOP CARING!

Roman nodded.

"Good," He stated, "Otherwise we'd include a shotgun wedding in the plan. Before the shotgun."

Neo pouted. Cinder glared.

"I believe we have more important things to discuss," she stated coldly.

"Yes Lady Cinder! Right on!" Iri cheered.

Cinder sucked in a breath. This was getting even more dangerous. Usually the thrill of such games excited her. The look on the faces of those she outwitted and defeated just before she killed them was am ambrosia.

Not this time. Maybe not ever again.

Now? All she could do was what she had always done:

Survive.

- - -

The secret White Fang base in the Forever Fall Forest was bare bones and simple. An old base from when Vale had a much larger, more powerful military. The barracks and headquarters were still serviceable, and they were deep enough in the wild that they attracted little attention.

Adam Taurus was meditating in the old headquarters atrium. Here, plants were growing free and unrestrained, and light shone through the still intact windows overhead. It was almost peaceful... Yet he needed this solitude to focus his rage, not to gain peace.

Blake...

To think she had betrayed them, betrayed him. Ran off in the face of the grim necessity of their work.

His Aura flared like a bonfire before he brought it back down. His rage was only useful if it was focused, concentrated, and honed: Like a fine blade.

He envisioned that blade... How he would use it on Blake. Pinned down, tied up, helpless before him... She had enjoyed such things in the past. It was how he would break her.

How he would save her.

Yes... He would even take inspiration from her erotic novels. She'd love that-

His Scroll rang. He growled in irritation. He pulled it out and opened it up.

"This had better be-"

"It is," his agent spoke. Adam glared.

"You're not supposed to call me directly from Beacon. The risk is too high-"

"We have enough encryption anyone watching won't know anything. Long enough for this," The Faunus spy stated. "I thought it worth breaking radio silence."

Adam paused, weighed the situation, then slowly nodded.

"What is it?" He demanded.

The agent then told him... The impossible. Time traveling children from the future? It didn't make any sense...

But the urgency in the agent's tone and face made clear this was no deception.

After all the Semblances he had seen... Well... Time travel was hardly impossible, now was it?

"They are all children of Jaune Arc..." An image of a fairly unremarkable looking blond human boy with blue eyes, smiling awkwardly for the camera, appeared, "And at least eleven other women."

Adam's eyes narrowed a bit.

"Blake Belladonna included."

Adam's grip on his Scroll tightened.

"What," he hissed, his rage threatening to erupt.

"I got several pictures during the ruckus and an event after," the spy stated. These pictures appeared on the screen—each one of a trio or pair of teenagers.

All from a distance, but enhanced enough that features could be made out.

The one that caught his interest the most was that of Blake. She was standing in one of Beacon's many gardens, smiling softly at two blond cat Faunus. Both were around Blake's age. The shapes of their faces betrayed their relationship to Blake: Both every inch Menagerian aristocrat. Yet there was a bit of the human in their noses, eyes, chins, and of course, hair.

Her children with... Her children with...!

"He is dead," Adam stated, hard as steel.

"Ilia has also been captured," the agent went on, "It is possible the entire operation has been compromised, my Lord.

Adam glared hatefully at the image of Jaune Arc... Yet slowly nodded.

"All right. Keep me apprised. The plan continues. Do nothing to compromise your position."

"Of course, My Lord," the agent spoke, before the communications link went silent.

Adam stared at the images of the children, Blake... And Arc.

Time travel is real, he thought, Blake mated with... With this... Human... In the future... Had children...

He felt... A rush. As though he was standing at the threshold of the gods. Indeed, it was. To have such power... It was terrifying. Unbelievable.

Yet multiple children from multiple timelines meant... That the future was not set in stone.

Adam Taurus sucked in a deep breath. He focused his rage.

Blake... You fell for this... Interloper in the future. I won't let that happen. And in the end...

He envisioned his blade going through Jaune Arc... Those blond children becoming redheads...

He smiled darkly.

You will be mine.

- - -

A revised bit for how Adam learned of the situation. He'll have a chat with Cinder about it later but it felt better to focus on his character here. As well as establish a spy in Beacon.

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

Blake went off with Ilia and the rest of Team SSSN to discuss things privately. Meanwhile, the rest of the very large crowd came out into the courtyard with Ozpin leading them. The headmaster looked about the large assembly and cleared his throat.

"Well. That was educational," he said, "However, there is work to be done. Isabel? Glynda? Arjun and Saia? Qrow? Taiyang? Ghira and Kali? I will need you in my office please. We have much to discuss with James.

Weena stood at his side with Moses. She gave him a small smile. Ozpin cleared his throat.

"And Weena-"

"I'll be handling the lab," she said, "Just catch me up later. Moses needs some examination, anyway."

"I'll go with him!" Dorothy volunteered, taking the time shifting boy's hand and squeezing it with a smile. Moses coughed, as his half-siblings all stared.

"Uh, yeah, that-that'd be great! I..." He focused on Xander. "Your Semblance will help things go faster."

"As long as you two don't suck face," Xia snickered. Yang dopeslapped her. "OW! MOM!"

"Don't be rude," Yang sniffed, "Unless you make a pun. Then it's okay."

"Ugh," Xia moaned.

"Meanwhile!" Nick said cheerfully, as he wrapped an arm around Jaune's shoulders, "I'm gonna see how you've all been doing! We'll be sparring in the training field! Number 12, right?"

"It is still open," Glynda nodded, "But please don't destroy it this time?"

"That was mostly Saia," Nick grumbled.

"I said I was sorry!" Saia insisted with a sigh. She smiled. "But I will go along to make sure things don't get out of hand."

Arjun nodded.

"I'll relay everything to you after," he said.

"I expect good notes," Saia said cheekily, nuzzling her husband.

"I always produce the best," he chuckled back.

August grimaced. May blinked a few times.

"I... Wow... This is gross," August mumbled.

"Why?" May asked curiously. "I'm happy my parents are happy together!"

"Hopefully you won't find out," August groaned.

Ozpin then looked over at Willow.

"I would appreciate your presence as well, Willow."

"If it's about Jacques," Willow stated calmly, "I'd prefer we talk about that alone. I... I need to reconnect with my family and friends."

Ozpin slowly nodded. Isabel scowled at Willow, but the Schnee matriarch gave nothing away.

"Very well," Ozpin stated, "Everyone else? I'm sure you have a great deal to catch up on. I'll leave you to it."

"Besides," Arslan said with a broad smile, staring intently at Jaune and Nick, "I would love to test my skills against the Paladin Nick Arc!"

"Seeing him in action would be incredible," Logos agreed.

"Wait, your dad's a big deal?" Ruby asked. Jaune coughed.

"Uh, well-"

Nick shrugged as the party began to break up.

"Eh! I just did my part. AARN and STRQ? We did our best work together... Which I will tell you all about!" He grinned cheekily.

"That, and I wanna see which of my future daughters-in-law is the best at combat!"

"YEAH!" Nora cried, popping up with her hammer as Ren followed, "LET'S SEE IF THEY'RE WORTHY TO JOIN THE FAMILY, DAD!"

"AGREED, NEW DAUGHTER!" Nick laughed, high fiving Nora.

"Dad!" Jaune protested, "That's hardly necessary-!"

"LET'S GO!" Pyrrha, Arslan, and Yang shouted at the same time, before they glared at one another. Ruby had a familiar scary grin on her face that reminded Jaune and Julian of yesterday's brawl. Emerald wore a nasty smirk. May looked determined. Weiss was already assessing everyone like they were targets. Even Winter looked very focused.

The various future children exchanged some knowing looks. This did not fill Jaune with any confidence at all.

"It would be a great honor to challenge both Nick the Paladin and Saia the Witch Queen in a spar," Winter said. Nick laughed while Saia blushed.

"HA! That's the spirit!"

"Oh my," Saia shook her head, "I'm terribly out of practice... But I would love to show off for my daughter and grandson!"

"Witch Queen?" Weiss asked in disbelief. "Wait... She's that Witch Queen?!"

"It's amazing how little you actually know about anything," Emerald said dryly. Weiss fumed.

"Well if people would just talk it would make things a LOT easier! Besides! There are countless Arcs in Vale! How was I supposed to know Jaune was of the most famous ones connected to a King and Queen?!"

"Guess we'll have to start hitting the books," Yang grinned, "But only if we end up fighting in the library."

"YANG/MOM!" Groaned most of the people around her. Nick laughed.

"Good one!"

Yang shot a smug look at her fellow potential wives. Jaune gulped at the determined looks on everyone's faces.

Something tells me the war's not over... Not by a long shot, he thought. Where's Penny when I need her?!

- - -

Penny beamed as she projected her programming language in front of the young Whitley Schnee. The white haired boy eagerly drank it all up.

"What do you think of my coding?"

"It's sublime," Whitley breathed, "Especially the syntax. So intuitive! Do... Do you think I could see your full operating specifications?"

Penny blushed. Her Virgin Alarm went off. She then mechanically extended a hand and whapped Whitley across the face.

"GUH!" Whitley cried, as he was sent sprawling onto the floor.

"Kiyah! Wh-What kind of a girl do you take me for?!" Penny cried. She blinked.

"Strange. Why did that happen?" She scanned her systems. "Oh... It is part of my Parental Lock systems! I wish Father would explain why I have those. It makes searching for certain topics extremely difficult. I am sorry, Friend Whitley. Are you all right?"

"F-Fine," Whitley wheezed.

"Your face is very red. Your temperature seems to be increasing. Do you require medical assistance-?"

"N-NO!" Whitley shouted, getting up and rubbing his cheek. "I-I'm totally fine! Everything's normal! Because I am a normal human boy who doesn't get aroused by the idea of gynoids slapping me!"

Penny stared with her usual gentle smile. Whitley's face burned like it was on fire.

"Sensational!" Penny said, clapping her hands together.

Her sensors were still fixed on Jaune. She could arrive at his aid in moments if required, and would move to follow to better facilitate this. But interacting with Whitley was proving to be very interesting!

- - -

 

[FinalFormer]

Cross-Posted From The Spacebattles Thread

Glimpses Into Another Timeline: Yuletide Dinner - Yang

- - - - - - - - - - -

Arc-Xiao-Long Household. 4 Years After The Defeat of Salem.

"Ok. Let's try this again, Xia. Say 'Mama'."

Yang Arc-Xiao-Long stared expectantly at her daughter, hoping for her to finally call out for her mother. The 11-month-old stared at her mother then to her stuffed pig, then back again at her mother and said "Oink, oink?"

Yang lowered her head. This is the fifth time today that Xia referred to her as 'Oink, oink'. In fact, that's all she calls her ever since she started talking!

"No, Xia. That's Mr. Pig. Say 'Mama'," Yang begged her. Xia once again looked at her stuffed pig. In a desperate move, Yang decided to bargain. "Please! I'll give you a cookie!"

"Yang, you shouldn't rush her." Taiyang, her father, advised. He came to their house to celebrate the holidays as a family. And, more importantly, to fawn over his adorable granddaughter.

"I feel like she's doing it on purpose. Ruby wasn't like this," Yang sighed. Xia began to giggle as Tai picked her up. "Can babies act smug?"

"No. Every baby is different, you know that," Tai stated, using his 'Fatherly Wisdom' tone. "You just need to be patient. Isn't that right, Firecracker? Your Mama just needs to wait a little longer."

Xia began to laugh as Tai rocked her in his arms. The 11-month-old's laughter always brought a smile to Yang's face. She was just too damn cute!

DING

"Crap! The turkey!" She hurried to the kitchen and pulled the turkey out just in the nick of time. Yang wanted Xia's first Yuletide to be really special. So, she pulled out all the stops! Turkey! Mashed potatoes! Bacon-wrapped asparagus. Everything! She was glad that her In-laws were willing to give her a hand, because it was a lot of food. Yang saw the perfectly cooked turkey with a smirk. She was a bit worried she might've screwed up, but this looked pretty dang good!

"Gods, that smells really good." Entering the kitchen, Jaune was going to steal a dinner roll. Yang slapped his hand right as he reached for one.

"You can a dinner roll after you help the others set the table, Vomit Boy," Yang admonished. There'll be no early eaters in her kitchen! She untied her apron and started to head to her father. "I'm gonna head upstairs. Me and Xia still have to get changed."

"But you already look beautiful." Jaune smirked. Her hair was a mess. She was dressed in a pair of sweatpants and a loose-fitting t-shirt. But to Jaune, she looked beautiful in anything.

"Flatter," Yang smiled. "Now, go. I'll be back."

"Alright, but I doubt Weiss is gonna want to help." Yang heard Jaune say as she took Xia from her Dad.

"Not unless she wants to starve!" Yang yelled back to him and hurried upstairs. Going into their room, she immediately got her nicest dress and Xia's adorable overalls. Xia whined, wanting to stay in her bunny pajamas.

"I know, sweetie. But you can't stay in your pj's for this. Now let's get ready, little lady." Yang smiled. Yang was no stanger to getting dressed in a hurry. Today seemed like she was setting a new record.

After thirty minutes, Yang and Xia were ready for dinner. Almost ready. She still had to comb Xia's hair. They sat at Yang's vanity, with Xia sitting in her lap. As she started to brush, she looked over at one of the pictures on her vanity. Her wedding day picture. It was a beautiful day. Ruby was her maid-of-honor, Weiss payed for everything. It was such a great day. Everyone she cared about was there--

Yang stopped combing Xia's hair.

After defeating Salem, she and Raven had started repairing their extremely strained relationship. It took some time vut they seemed to be making a lot of progress. At least, that's what Yang thought.

She remembered the days leading up to her wedding, Raven had started being distant. When Yang confronted her, what Raven told her shattered her heart.

"What do you mean you're not going!?" Yang questioned Raven. The Spring Maiden had told her that she wasn't going to be at her wedding.

"It means exactly what it means," Raven says, dismissively. She stared back at Yang's rage filled glare with a cold, uncaring one. "I need to rebuild my tribe. I don't have time to waste--"

"You think my wedding is a waste of time!?" Mom, there's no war! Salem's gone! There's no point in leading a tribe of bandits!!" Yang screamed at her mother. It hurt to for Yang to refer to Raven as 'Mom'. Part of her chastised herself for even trying to reach out to Raven in the first place. In truth, she should've seen this coming.

"But there will be a power vacuum. And a power vacuum in Mistral means that aby one tribe can take over all of Mistral's underground. I'm not going to let an opportunity like that slip from my hands."

She saw Yang's eyes soon began to fill with tears. The part of Raven that she thought was dead crept up. The part that reminded her that she was still Yang's mother. The part that hurt to see her cry.

"You can come with me," Raven offered. Yang took a step back, shocked. "You don't have to chain yourself down with that boy. You and I can rule over Mistral," Raven reached out with her hand. "What do you say, daughter?"

Yang slapped away her hand in disgust. Raven's face remained unchanged. She knew Yang would decline her offer but she still felt obligated to ask.

"I'll never go with you," Yang hissed. Her eyes were red and her hair looked like it was going to ignite. "I love Jaune. He's going to be my husband. Nothing you can say or give can ever make me leave him!"

Raven stared at Yang for awhile. Yang mentally prepared herself for a fight. But Raven turned away, her back facing Yang.

"Fine," Raven said, coldly. "Cripple yourself by marrying that weakling of man. It matters not to me what you do with your life. If you want to stay weak then by all means, stay weak."

Before leaving, she looked over her shoulder and said "If it means anything, I hope your wedding is... nice."


Yang was pulled out of her by Xia shifting in her lap. She looked down to see her daughter looking up at her curiously. She realized that there were tears in her eyes.

"Sorry, Firecracker," Yang wiped her eyes. Xia tilted her head. "Mama was having a bad memory."

She continued to comb Xia's hair. Despite being only 11-month-old, her hair grew a considerable amount. It looked like a full mane. Once she was done, she tied Xia's hair into a ponytail.

"There! All done!" Yang looked at the two of them in the mirror. Xia giggled, squeezing Mr. Pig closer to her chest. Yang looked at how happy Xia looked and frowned, remembering all of the horrible things Raven had put her through. She picked up Xia and looked her the eyes.

"Xia," Yang said to her, getting her undivided attention. "I know you can't understand what I'm saying. But I want you to know, I will never leave you or your daddy. You two are the most important people in my life. So are the brothers and sisters you'll have," She knew for a fact her and Jaune aren't stopping at one kid. "My little Firecracker, your Mama loves you so much. I want you to always remember that."

Xia stared at her. Then placed her hand on Yang's head.

"Mama."

Tears began to well up in Yang's eyes. A content smile grew on her face. She finally said it.

"Yeah. I'm your Mama."


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

Hope you guys enjoyed this story. Nice little holiday special

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -

Radian, Vale

Three Years after Salem's defeat...

The Arc Farm covered quite a lot of acreage in Radian, even after selling off much of it to pay the family's debts. While their power had waned considerably, the people of Radian still loved their protectors, and the feeling was mutual. Therefore, there was plenty of room for Jaune and Emerald to build their house on the property when they were wed.

It had been a gift almost all of their friends had contributed to. An act of charity they couldn't turn down.

It was the kind of home Emerald had never imagined herself living in, much less being happy in: Only two storeys, red brick and timber with blue and green painted eaves. Cozy, small, warm in the winters and cool in the summers. It was humble, simple... And she loved it completely. Especially now with the snow falling.

Though learning how to be part of a family was still a challenge, it was something she relished. Even now, as she gamely tried to pull some wrapping paper out of the fist of her baby daughter, Amethyst. They sat on the floor near the fireplace and the decorated tree. Emerald was wrapping gifts while Amethyst kept grabbing onto anything she could reach.

"Come on Gemstone, that's not yours," she said with a gentle smile. The nine month old whined, again trying to get at the colorful paper. With dexterity born of her thievery, she swapped it out with another sheet of wrapping paper. Amethyst squealed and began to jam the paper into her mouth, bouncing her feet in her blue bunny onesie. Emerald shook her head fondly.

"You really need to learn to not take what's not yours," Emerald admonished. Amethyst whined, and again reached for shiny wrapping paper. Emerald giggled.

"Never thought I'd hear you say that," Mercury Black drawled as he walked into the living room. His hands were in his pockets. Emerald snorted.

"Yeah well, a lot has changed," she said with her nose in the air. She rubbed Amethyst's head as she clumsily turned around. She cried out happily upon seeing Mercury. Mercury started.

"Huh? What's her deal?"

"She missed you," Emerald explained, as the nine-month old clumsily crawled towards Mercury's feet. He stared down at her with a confused frown.

"She's only seen me like twice," he stated, as the nine month old wrapped her arms around his leg and looked up at him.

"Well, it's not my fault my daughter likes you even if you're too rude to visit," Emerald sniffed as she resumed wrapping presents. Mercury blanched a bit as Amethyst cried out at him.

"Wha-What does she want?"

"She wants you to pick her up," Emerald explained in exasperation.

"Wha... Er..."

Mercury winced, and slowly reached down. He took the baby up from under her arm pits and lifted her up. Amethyst squealed and Mercury cringed.

"Is... Am I doing it right?"

"Oh for..." Emerald rolled her eyes. She got up and took hold of Mercury's arms and her baby. She rearranged both so that Mercury was now holding her against his shoulder, wrapping securely in his arms.

"You don't hold her like she's a time bomb," she admonished.

"I dunno, when did you last change her?" Mercury asked. Amethyst laughed and grabbed onto Mercury's hair. "AH! Ow! Hey!"

"She does that," Emerald said, sitting back down to resume wrapping, "Just deal with it."

"Geez," Mercury sniffed as he sat down on the couch, "She may be part Arc but she's definitely your kid-OW!"

"Don't I know it," Emerald smirked. "So, what brings you by?"

"Uh, well..." Mercury shrugged. "Since I'm working with the Global Alliance, I... I got time off."

Emerald nodded.

"... And?"

Mercury snorted.

"And I don't know what the fuck to do with it!"

"Language!" Emerald scolded him. Mercury scowled.

"Seriously?"

"Completely," she stated, "Watch your mouth around her!"

"What does it matter if she starts swearing-?"

Emerald glared at him.

"It matters to me," she stated, firm and angry. "So watch. Your. Mouth."

The two stared at one another for a long moment. Mercury snorted.

"... Fine." He looked at Amethyst, who was whining and trying to grab onto his face. "Ah... How do you make her stop?"

"You don't," Emerald chuckled. Mercury sighed.

"I don't see the appeal of this," he said. "Like... Doing normal things? Like normal people? Celebrating some lion guy coming back from the dead, and..." He shook his head. "I just... I don't."

Emerald paused. She looked out the windows onto the porch. Jaune was out there, chopping firewood. The scars from the war were still visible on his skin, even through his coat and scarf. Burns he had taken... Taken for her.

She licked her lips and thought about it.

"... It's knowing that someone will always be there for you," Emerald decided, "And they're not there because they think you're useful or you're their slave. They're genuinely... Genuinely happy to have you there. You make their life better."

She turned and smiled warmly at Amethyst as she continued to squeal and fuss.

"And when I look into her eyes? She just... She loves me. She loves us. She knows nothing else but joy and love."

She clenched her fists.

"And I'm going to make sure she never goes through what we did," she swore, "Never."

Mercury stared at her. Emerald sighed.

"I think... I think it means having an actual future. It takes a lot of hard work... And we struggle. But we struggle together. So..." She nodded.

"Yeah. That's... That's basically it."

Mercury wet his lips. He was otherwise silent, staring into the eyes of Amethyst. The baby stared back, wide eyed and innocent. He slowly shook his head.

"... I don't know if I'll ever feel that way," he admitted. "I... I don't know if I can."

Emerald smiled.

"I think you're getting better."

Mercury shot her an incredulous look.

"I would never have trusted the old you with my baby," she said.

Mercury flushed, but then scowled.

"Yeah, well... Arc would kill me if I hurt his kid."

"You think I wouldn't?" Emerald asked, amused. Mercury shook his head.

"I'd want Arc to kill me instead of you. He'd put me down quick and painless."

Emerald chuckled. The door to the patio opened. Jaune entered with a smile and a pile of firewood.

"Hey Em, hey Amethyst, hey Mercury!" He deposited the wood in the iron log holder, before he walked up to Emerald. She eagerly let him pull her up to her feet and kissed him happily.

"Mwah... Hey Jaune," Emerald said happily. "Mercury's gonna babysit Amethyst for a little while!"

"Oh?" Jaune asked. At Emerald's warm look, he blushed. "Oh... Well... Thank you, Mercury."

"I'm wha..." At Emerald's look, Mercury sighed. "Yeah. Sure. Go have your sexy times."

"Thanks Merc," Emerald giggled as Jaune pulled her up and threw her over his shoulder. He smacked her bottom and made his wife squeal. He walked towards Mercury, bent down, and kissed his daughter on the head.

"We're making you a new sibling, don't you worry sweetie," Jaune whispered.

"JAUNE! DON'T TELL HER THAT!" Emerald giggled.

"Too late!" Jaune laughed, carrying his laughing wife up the staircase. Mercury sighed and looked down at Amethyst, who was now sucking on her thumb and staring up at him.

As much as he was loathe to admit it... He had changed. So had Emerald. In her case, she'd just accepted it happily. Him?

It was still a challenge. Still ongoing.

Amethyst giggled, and clumsily reached out to pat his cheek. It was warm, and her toothless grin was happy and innocent.

He sighed and patted her back.

"You're just as conniving as your mom, kid," he muttered.

Amethyst whined.

"You're looking forward to it, aren't you? Me being all domesticated, your uncle Merc," he sneered, "I bet you think you'll have me wrapped around your little finger and that I'll do anything for you, don't you?"

Amethyst burped, and nuzzled her face into his chest. She began to breath more slowly and evenly as she fell asleep.

Mercury sighed, and rubbed her head.

"... You're right, you little monster," he mumbled, a hint of a smile on his face.

- - -

All right guys! To help Sift Cheer up, let's have more Aslanmas episodes from the other timelines! Write them up! And let's have some fun!

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Radian, Vale

Six Years After Salem's Defeat

- - -

Jaune walked into the kitchen of his house, a smile on his face.

"Pyr? Pyr!" He called out.

"Ah! Jaune!" Pyrrha gasped, turning from the stove. She waved her wooden spoon, an apron over her dress, and her round belly. "You shouldn't surprise me like that! Do-Do you want the house to burn down?!"

Jaune laughed happily and walked up to his wife. He hugged her tightly and kissed the top of her head.

"Come on. You only burned down the kitchen at Beacon twice. You're not going to burn it down in our own home."

"Thanks for reminding me," Pyrrha groused. Jaune chuckled.

"Relax, relax... You're doing great," he said. "The ham's coming along great."

The timer went off with a loud buzz. Pyrrha gasped and turned back to the oven.

"Stop distracting me, you-you goof!" She giggled and kissed his cheek. "Go check on Xander and Nora, will you?"

"Not Ren? Or Lian?" Jaune asked in amusement.

"You know why," Pyrrha teased. Jaune nodded and headed out. Pyrrha shut off the timer with her Semblance, then made the oven door open. She carefully pulled the ham out, and set it on top of the oven. She checked the temperature and sighed in relief. Everything was perfect.

The right kind of perfect. She smiled happily as she prepared the ham.

There were times during the war with Salem that she had thought she would never see something like this. Never get to experience this joy of family, warmth, and love. Now... Now she had a home. A family. And children.

Speaking of... She put the ham on the platter and prepared the other sides. She floated the metal platters and pulled her apron off. She rubbed her round belly and headed out into the living room.

She beamed as she saw the scene before her. Nora and Jaune sat on the floor in front of the Yuletide tree. Jaune had little Xander in his lap-He was only six months old. Facing him, Nora held her own seven-month-old baby girl, Lian. Ren was relaxing with some tea, smiling softly at the scene.

"Hey Pyr!" Nora greeted happily. "Come on Lian! Say hello!"

Lian whined, then reached out to Xander. She then grabbed his pacifier and pulled it away. Xander began to cry.

"Ah, hey!" Jaune scolded. "Don't bully my son!"

"No! Assert your dominance, Lian!" Nora giggled. "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

She pushed Lian up against Xander.

"Now kiss, kiss, kiss!"

Jaune pulled Xander back and patted his son on the back. Xander soon calmed down.

"Come on Nora, they're not even one year old!" Jaune protested.

"But-But if they get married we'll be able to hang out forever!" Nora whined. "We'll be a real family, forever!"

"We already are," Jaune chuckled. Pyrrha walked up and shook her head.

"We are, Nora," she said kindly. Ren smiled and nodded warmly. He slid off the couch onto the floor with his wife and wrapped an arm around her waist. Lian giggled.

"But you should teach your daughter to be nicer to my son, if we're going to get them married someday," Pyrrha laughed. She knelt down and cuddled with her son and husband.

"Pyr," Jaune protested, "We're not going to arrange any marriages for our kids."

"Fine," Pyrrha sighed. She then brightened. "But you didn't say anything about encouraging them to get married!"

Jaune sighed and hugged his wife and son.

"All right. But it's not gonna turn out like those romcom mangas."

"I somehow doubt that," Ren deadpanned.

And he was right.

 

[FinalFormer]

Cross-posted From The Spacebattles Thread

Glimpses Into Another Timeline: Aslanmas Miracle - Blake

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

Arc-Belladonna Household, Menagerie. 2 Years After The Defeat of Salem.

It was a good year for Blake Arc-Belladonna.

In March, she had gotten married to the love of her life and the days before that she found out she was pregnant. The days after that, she and Jaune spent time buying things for the baby... Then buying more baby things after finding out she was having twins. That fact alone made her mom start drafting her and her father's will. They put the finishing touches to the house last month. It looked exactly as she envisioned. They decided they would invite all of their friends and family over to spend the holidays together.

Truly, she never knew how happy one person could be.

She was making herself a tuna sandwich when she realized she might've spoken too soon. She felt sudden pain. Her senses knew what was happening. They were coming.

"Jaune!" Blake yelled as she held her belly. This isn't good. Isabel said they weren't due for another week! Was she wrong!? Did she overestimate her due date!? Did the smell of fish make them this excited!?

"Blake! What's wrong!?" Jaune asked, concern in his voice. He held onto to Blake to stop her falling. Blake started to slow down her breathing.

"Jaune," Blake said as calmly as she could. "I think I'm going into labor. I need you to tell your mom to get the medical kit from the closet."

"Wait, you're having them here," Jaune, while really happy that their kids chose now to meet the world, wasn't too thrilled at what Blake was implying. "I can get Ruby to rush you to the medical center--"

"It's too far," Blake cut him off. "And I don't want to risk moving that fast. I want to have our kids in a controlled environment and your mom is the only person with the practical experience to deliver a baby outside of a hospital room. Jaune, I need your mom to take me to the bedroom. Please, before it gets worse."

Jaune breathed in. He knew she was right.

"MOM!! WE'VE GOT AN EMERGENCY!!"

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

Hours had passed when they rushed Blake into the bedroom. Jaune paced around the living room. He couldn't stay still. He was really worried. He wanted to stay with her but his mom insisted he waited outside. Especially after Blake started yelled stuff like 'You did this to me!'. His mother-in-law Kali took his place to provide Blake comfort. Jaune felt a hand place itself on his shoulder. He turned to see his father, smiling at him with reassure.

"Everything's fine. Relax." Nick said.

"Sorry, Dad," Jaune took a breath. "I just... This is a bit cathartic for me. They're my first kids. I don't want anything bad to happen."

"That's natural, son. That's how being a father starts," Nick told Jaune. "Probably gonna be worse for you since you're having twins. But still, it's all one big learning curve."

"He's right," Ghira spoke up. "You and Blake will struggle at first but that's the part of the joy of raising a child."

"Thanks. Both of you." Jaune smiled. The door to the bedroom opened. His Mom and Kali walked out. Both looked frazzled, especially his mom. Before his worrying crept up again, Isabel removed her mask, revealing a smile. Tears were in her and Kali's eyes.

"A boy and a girl. Jaune, they're... they're beautiful!" Isabel cried. Jaune made his way to his wife. He closed the door, hoping everyone could understand him wanting to get a little alone time with Blake and their kids.

"Hey," Jaune smiled. Blake had bags under eyes, her hair looked unkempt, and ears were flattened. She was holding (Or at least trying to) the twins. Two blonde cat Faunus. One was flicking their ears and the other was sound asleep. "Are you feeling ok?"

"Yes. I'm exhausted but I feeling better," Blake smiled. The twin that was asleep began to stir. "Can you take Leander? He wants to meet his daddy."

Jaune picked up his son...

His son.

That was something that he was gonna have to get used to saying. Along with the words 'his daughter'. Wait...

"Leander?" Jaune asked.

"Yes," Blake confirmed. "Leander and Leandra Arc-Belladonna."

"I guess you weren't kidding when you said you were going to name them after the characters in 'The Sword and the Sheath'.

"There's nothing wrong with those names." Blake immediately defended herself. They're supposed to be the prince and princess of Menagerie! She had to give them names that would--

Blake stiffened a little. She was starting to sound like Weiss. Great.

Leandra's stopped flicking. Blake looked to see why, only to find her daughter staring up at her. She had shining blue eyes. Her ears began flick again. Maybe she was happy when the attention was on her? Blake didn't know. All that mattered was that Leandra was happy.

With Jaune, Leander yawned, wide awake to see his father for the first time. Jaune smiled. He had his eyes. "You two really wanted to meet us so badly, huh?"

The only response he got from his son was a small, soft "Nya".

The rest of the night was spent with everyone cooing over the newborn twins and congratulating the couple, only stopping when Jaune remembered that he was supposed to be cooking dinner for everyone.

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

This one is a little on the short side but hope you guys enjoy!!

 

[AndrewJTalon]

- - -



The trip to Ozpin's office was fairly brief. The old wizard certainly knew his way around his castle, using secret doors and hallways Isabel had never seen in all her four years at Beacon. Even Arjun looked impressed. Given his Aura Sight, it couldn't have been easy to hide these passage ways.



They arrived in the office, only the ticking of the clocks filling the room for a time as Ozpin made his way to his desk.



Ozpin's Scroll buzzed, and he checked it. He sighed.



"I will be a few minutes, everyone," he said, "Just relax in the meantime. Glynda?"



"Of course Headmaster," Glynda said with a smile. Seemed that she felt a bit more comfortable in this situation. She waved her riding crop and summoned up her Semblance's power.



Several chairs appeared for everyone to sit on around the table, and like students back in school, they took their seats. Arjun took her right side, while Kali Belladonna took her left, while Taiyang and Qrow sat behind her. Kali beamed, even as Isabel began to develop a bit of a headache.



"I just wanted to say, Isabel," the faunus queen said, "We have heard of your incredible work in Menagerie."



"Thank you," Isabel said politely, "I had wanted to attend the International Regenerative Medical Association's Conference there last year but... Well..."



"The White Fang," Ghira rumbled, sitting next to his wife. Isabel nodded.



"Yes," she said. Kali nodded.



"I've looked up Arc-En-Ciel in Radian. It's very impressive work you've been doing for research," she said, "And on such a tight budget, too!"



"We only take donations that wouldn't be politically compromising," Isabel said carefully. "Even Arjun has to be careful with his support."



"I wouldn't want Arc-En-Ciel to be seen as an arm of our foreign policy," Arjun rumbled, his eyes narrowed.



"Of course," Kali agreed, "And given our current connection, we will need to be more careful in the future."



Here it comes, Isabel thought.



"Oh?"



"You might as well spit it out, Kali," Qrow chuckled, "She's onto you."



"Naturally," Kali said with a smile, "But one must stick to certain rituals when it comes to politics. Menagerie has been working very hard to be recognized as the Fifth Kingdom. If you established an annex of your hospital in Menagerie, that would go a long way towards that goal."



Isabel blushed.



"I-I'm not actually that famous or influential-!"



"Only because you have that frustrating Arc nobility," Arjun grumbled. "You're a daughter of queens!"



"And I have no throne," Isabel sniffed, "And I didn't start this to get famous or rich! Just to help people!"



"And we started Menagerie for the same reasons," Ghira agreed. "Our people deserve the best medical care possible. Faunus medicine is woefully unexplored. There are so many different twists to our physiology that having a doctor with your organization right in Kuo Kuana would be rewarding for both you and us."



Isabel sighed.



"I'm not against expanding the hospital," she said carefully, "But I'm not sure this is the time to be thinking about such things!"



Arjun shook his head, looking grave.



"We probably should be, Izzy," he stated, "After all. A war is coming."



Isabel took a deep breath. Kali nodded in agreement. Taiyang grimaced. Qrow sipped his flask.



"He's not wrong," Qrow stated flatly. "In every story from the kids, they say the same thing: Salem turns this secret war into a world war. A lot of people die. A lot of destruction happens. Expanding out the support system might help us win without so much loss."



"August also says her agents and the White Fang caused the Mistralian civil war and isolated the Kingdoms from one another with terrorist attacks and false flags," Arjun added grimly. He looked over at Ghira. "Making alliances stronger to resist this would also be wise."



Ghira locked eyes with Arjun and nodded back slowly.



"I also think that would be a good idea," Ghira said, "Pandu is one of the few human nations to trade with us. An official alliance would be very beneficial."



"It probably helps that the only reason you started trading is because Arjun overthrowing the Kauravas pissed off half of Mistral, so he needed cash and quick," Taiyang observed dryly. Arjun frowned, but slowly nodded.



"You are not wrong, Tai," Arjun stated, "Even with Vale's support, we weren't recovering fast enough."



"Of course that pissed off Atlas," Qrow stated with a shrug, "The fact you kept doing it didn't make things easier."



"Indeed," James Ironwood spoke as he entered the office, striding with his usual military efficiency, "That you continue to defy Atlas and Valean rulings on trade with Menagerie has always made Pandu a thorn in our side."



He locked his steely eyes onto Arjun.



"Your stubborness is one reason I have always counseled against bringing you into our fold," Ironwood stated coldly, his eyes narrowed. They focused on Ghira and Kali.



"And against bringing you two in on this," he added, "Given your inability to keep White Fang under control."



Ghira tensed and met Ironwood's gaze evenly. Kali's smile seemed far sharper. Arjun stared back at the general, his silvery-blue eyes lightly glowing. Isabel tensed, and put a hand on Arjun's forearm. The king didn't so much as twitch.



Please don't say anything stupid, please, Isabel prayed, not for the first time for her former teammember.



"Given that you have had a traitor like Lionheart operating with impunity in your group for decades," Arjun stated, "I wouldn't be talking right now about trust."



Damnit, Isabel swore.



Ironwood's eyes narrowed as his gunhand twitched. Glynda moved closer, her intimidating glare at the ready. Ghira and Kali sucked in breaths. Qrow cursed low under his breath. Taiyang rose and held out his hands.



"And we wouldn't know about that," Taiyang announced, "If our grandkids didn't time travel. So blaming each other isn't going to do any good, is it?"



Isabel sucked in a deep breath and again used her Semblance to calm herself. She stood up and nodded at Taiyang.



"He's right," she said. She looked at Ironwood. "Like it or not, we all have a vested interest in stopping Salem. Our kids are the ones who defeat her and save the world. We need to do everything we can to make sure that happens."



"Then the best approach," Ironwood said, "Is to bring Jaune and Moses to Atlas."



"What?!" Taiyang and Isabel sputtered. Ironwood nodded.



"We have the best security in the world. The best training facilities. The most scientific resources. We bring them all to Atlas, along with the other potential brides," he nodded to Glynda, "And we prepare for war."



"Now wait just a minute!" Kali insisted, "You do that and you'll just be broadcasting to Salem 'attack here!'"



"And you would argue that Menagerie is better?" Ironwood asked in a deadpan tone, "With White Fang operating with impunity?"



"Not impunity," Ghira stated, standing up to support his wife, "Indeed, that may be the perfect cover. And making Jaune and Blake's relationship public could give us the means to suppress White Fang! Get back control! That would solve a LOT of our problems given Salem turns it into her catspaw!"



"Think about it," Kali argued, glancing at Isabel briefly, "Our heiress publicaly engaged to a human with as many connections as Jaune would let us declaw White Fang for good! Denying Salem a vital asset!"



"Something you haven't been able to do for decades," Ironwood shot back.



Arjun rolled his eyes and stood up.



"Unlike Atlas with Doctor Watts, and Menagerie with White Fang," Arjun stated, "Pandu is not compromised by Salem's agents. Or at least not to the same extent as having our entire computer network under her control."



Ironwood winced at that, but he remained firm. Arjun glanced over at Ghira and Kali.



"Nor does the White Fang operate on our soil... Or have politicians in their pocket."



Ghira glared. Arjun shook his head.



"Besides, we have something neither of you have," and here he looked at Taiyang, "Ancient knowledge of the Silver Eyed Warrior Clan."



Taiyang's eyes widened.



"Wha-You do?!"



Ironwood frowned deeply. Kali shook her head.



"You mean, that ancient myth-?"



"It is no myth," Arjun said, "A Silver Eyed Warrior intermarried with my family long ago, and we have kept a Semblance based on it ever since. Not as powerful but of the same type. We have ancient writings that only a true Silver Eyed Warrior could interpret, and I myself can train both Ruby and May in the arts of sensing with it. We also have exceptional security and have allowed trade with all the Kingdoms-Even those who hate us." He gave Ironwood another glance. The general sneered.



"You were neutral because you had no other choice but to lower your standards," Ironwood growled, "And White Fang still operates out of your country!"



"We're cracking down on it as much as we can," Arjun stated calmly, "Perhaps if Atlas aided us in that, rather than denying trade, we could do better!"



"So now it is up to us to help you when you failed?" Ironwood demanded.



"My daughter is key to anything in the future," Taiyang argued, "We have to consider her powers, James!"



"They can be considered and trained up properly in Atlas!"



"Turn her into a science experiment, you mean," Kali sniffed, "We've heard what you did to your last Maiden!"



"That's not what happened!"



"Then what did?!"



Glynda and Isabel shared an exasperated look. Glynda nodded as the argument intensified. Isabel sighed, and channeled her power. Qrow gracefully moved out of the way as the doctor slammed her hands together, and with her brute strength the clap was as loud as a bomb.



Everyone stared at her. Isabel shook her head.



"Now that I have your attention," she said dryly, "We have a lot to discuss but arguing like petty children isn't going to help!"



"She's right," Glynda stated, "This horse trading isn't going to stop Salem."



"You've been fairly quiet, Glynda," Qrow observed. Glynda sighed.



"I know I am biased because I am directly involved," she admitted, "So I know anything I say will sound suspect."



"Yet you know me, Glynda," Ironwood said, "You trust my judgement-"



"Most of the time, yes," Glynda stated firmly, "But not when you're being influenced by your emotions."



Ironwood scowled in silence... Before he slowly nodded. Kali let out a sigh.



"You'll have to forgive my enthusiasm," she said, "It... It's not every day you're told that everything will turn out all right, and there's a happy ending in your grasp."



"Or rediscover your lost daughter," Arjun said quietly.



Isabel nodded.



"That's true," she stated, "But we have to work towards the future. So... Let's put everything on the table. Everything we know about Salem, about the futures, and about what will help."



Taiyang nodded too.



"That sounds good, Izzy," he said.



"You were always the bossiest one," Qrow opined.



Arjun nodded.



"Indeed, she was."



"Without question," Glynda deadpanned.



"Always," Ironwood added.



"One hundred percent!" Taiyang grinned.



Ghira and Kali tactfully did not comment, but their silence was telling.



The doctor's cheeks flushed red despite her Semblance.



"I'm not bossy!" Isabel growled, putting her hands on her hips. "I just knew what needed to be done! Besides this is my son and the fate of the world we're talking about here!"



The argument continued, though far less heatedly. Ozpin, hiding in a nearby alcove, sighed in some exasperation.



What was the phrase? Ah, yes.... Like herding cats.



- - -

 

[FinalFormer]

Cross-posted From the SpaceBattles Thread

Glimpses Into Another Timeline: Aslanmas Dinner- Ruby

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

Arc-Rose Homestead. Radian, Vale. 10 Years After after The Defeat of Salem.

"Dammit!"

Ruby Arc-Rose shouted after cutting her finger. She really should've asked Yang for those cooking lessons when they were at Haven Academy. This was way harder than Jaune made it look!

"Ooooh. Mommy, you said a bad word!" Her son, Julian, chastised her for using foul language.

"I'm sorry, sweetie. But Mommy hurt herself... again." Ruby apologized. She opened a drawer and put a band-aid on her cut. So far, Ruby had burned her hand taking the potatoes out of the oven, cut her fingers chopping vegetables twice, and bonked her head against an open pantry. But that's okay! They didn't hurt as bad as they looked.

"Mommy, how come you're not making cookies?" Julian asked. She always makes cookies!

"Well, your Daddy broke his arm on a mission and he's still fixing it. And your grandpa, grandma and Auntie Yang are taking care of your sisters. So, it's all up to your Mommy to save the day!" Ruby answered. While she wasn't a masterclass, triple-star chef like Julian, she wasn't a slouch! Sure, she was a bit of a klutz when it came to kitchen safety, but the results were always a warm, yummy family meal!

"What about Grunkle Qrow? Does he know how to cook?" Julian asked.

"Uncle Qrow isn't allowed in my kitchen. You know that Julian. Remember what happened last year?" Ruby said. Her dear uncle almost blew up her microwave after a drunken bet with her father-in-law. Suffice to say, both were promptly banned from entering her kitchen without Ruby or Jaune's supervision.

"Why don't you go check on June and Olive, Julian. They probably miss their big brother," Ruby requested. She knows Yang could probably use the help. Jume threw up on her boots the last time she took care of them. "Dinner is almost done."

"But I wanna help you make dinner." Julian crossed his arms. Why does he have to watch them. Auntie Yang was already doing that!

"You are helping me. I'm sure your Auntie Yang would really appreciate you help--"

"But I wanna help you make dinner!" Julian cut her off. He doesn't like it when she Ruby sighed. It looks like she's gonna have to pull out the big guns again.

"Julian, please check on your sisters. Will you do it for Mommy?" Ruby made her infamous and reliable puppy eyes. Even her baby boy wasn't immune to the most devastating weapon in her arsenal!

"O-ok, Mom." Julian said, immediately taken by the effects of his mother's big silver eyes. He ran out to the living room to do as his mother asked.

"You know, eventually he's going to learn how to do that," A voice came from behind Ruby. Her husband, Jaune had entered the kitchen. A smirk was on his bearded face. "And once he does, there'll be no stopping him."

"Which is why I have to up my game and out-puppy eye him! Did you ever think about that, Vomit Boy!" Ruby rebutted. She walked over and kissed him. "How's your arm?"

"A little stiff, but it'll do for now," Jaune flexed his mechanicical fingers. They moved slowly. "Bit of a rough patch job. My mechanic was busy. Said she needed to have some family time."

"She sounds like a very busy woman," Ruby smirked. She knew he was talking about her. She was the one who built and maintained his prosthetic. He even told her that she was the only one he trusted with it. "Especially since she and her husband are raising five kids."

Jaune looked at Ruby confused. Five kids? They didn't have five kids. It was just Julian, Pyrrha, June, and Olive. Unless...

"Really?" Jaune asked. Was this really happening?

"Yup." Ruby answered, adding emphasis on the 'P'. She went up on her tippy toes to kiss him. It was so unfair that he still kept getting taller. The two were locked in a passionate kiss when they heard a voice of their son.

"EW!!" Julian shouted with a look of disgust. "GRANDMA!! MOMMY AND DADDY ARE DOING YUCKY FACE THINGS IN THE KITCHEN!!"

"SERIOUSLY, JAUNE!? CAN THE TWO OF YOU KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF EACH OTHER FOR MORE THAN TWO MINUTES!!" Isabel yelled from the living room.

"But if we did that, then you wouldn't be getting so many grandkids." Jaune yelled back.

As Jaune and his mother were bantering with each other, Ruby smiled at her family,
wondering if this is how her mother felt when they celebrated the holidays.

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

Another short holiday special. Hope you guys enjoy!

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Radian, Gallia

Five years after defeating Salem...

- - -

Having leave of any kind was alien to Glynda. Her entire life had been about work, work, work. All to fight against the encroaching darkness.

Now? The darkness had been defeated. Oh certainly, the Grimm still existed and now that magic was known to Remnant again, there were bad actors seeking to use it. Salem cultists had sprung up and certain elements of the White Fang were still up to their old tricks despite their leader being long dead.

But true peace, it seemed, was found in what you didn't have to do anymore. And that drop in workload allowed her and Jaune to settle down and relax a bit in Radian. The farmhouse he'd built for her was simple, almost quaint. Cedar wood from Mistral, pine and redwood from Atlas, with austere white walls and dark oak trimming. Vaulted ceilings and large windows with worn but comfortable furniture.

It was, in short, her dream house. Something she could have never imagined sharing with someone. Especially not the man she loved.

The man she loved who was dressing up in a big red suit with a wine red, white furred lined coat. He pulled on a papakha, the traditional furry hat that Father Winter wore, and examined himself in the mirror. Nearby, her father-in-law Nick and mother-in-law Isabel sat on the couch. Nick grinned as Jaune turned around, resting his hand on his knee.

"Perfect fit!" Nick chuckled, slapping his knee. Jaune smiled almost bashfully back at his father, and stroked his beard.

"You think so?"

"You look just like your father at... At his age," Isabel said, warm but a bit sad. Nick huffed.

"Worse things to lose than an eye and some years, Izzy. I should know." He sighed as he looked down at his missing left arm and right leg. Glynda winced and Isabel looked guilty. Jaune frowned deeply.

Everyone had sacrificed a lot during the war with Salem. Nick himself had helped in the final assault, taking down three Grimm Dragons almost single handedly before he fell. Isabel had kept him alive, but his arm and leg could not be recovered. Not even by Jaune's Semblance.

"Dad," Jaune whispered. Nick frowned for a bit, before he brightened.

"Bah... My only regret is that I can't play Father Winter anymore! Hard to wield the two sabers with a real and an artificial hand," Nick chuckled. "Don't you feel guilty about any of it. Any of you. We're alive, breathing, and I get to see my son and my wonderful daughter-in-law make children smile! That's what it's all about."

He grabbed Isabel's hand and squeezed it. Isabel smiled back, though tears still shone in her eyes. Jaune sniffled a bit too, but manfully hid it. Glynda rose from her seat, her red dress flowing around her, as she hugged Jaune. He smiled at his wife, and she smiled back warmly.

"It is a bit crooked," Glynda said, reaching up to adjust his furry hat. Jaune sighed.

"I must have a lopsided head."

"Yes, we knew that," Glynda chuckled. Jaune huffed and nuzzled her... Before he pinched her bottom. Glynda squealed.

"Or a picky wife."

"You're lucky I'm picky," Glynda sniffed, "I wouldn't have chosen the best!"

Jaune laughed.

"You're right about that... Well! Lady Winter, shall we?"

He offered his arm. She took it and cuddled up against him.

"Of course, Father Winter!"

"Great!" Nick cheered. "I'll drive!"

"Maybe I should handle that," Isabel said carefully, "You crashed the tractor."

Nick grumbled.

"That tree came out of nowhere! A Geist was in it!"

"Yes dear, of course," Isabel sighed fondly, already picking up the keys.

- - -

In the central square of Radian, the marketplace was busy and bustling. Electronics wares from Atlas were sold alongside local furs and caps. But near the statue of Joan D'Arc, the Fire Maiden, was a big wooden chair decorated in red, gold, silver and green ribbons. A pair of sabers were crossed overhead, held by a protective wreath of holly. Under this, Jaune sat down like a barbarian king on a throne. Glynda stood alongside, ever vigilant... As children from across Gallia came to sit on the lap of Father Winter, and ask for gifts.

"What is your name, son?" Jaune asked.

"Alex!" The boy declared. Jaune nodded.

"Have you been good, Alex?"

"Y-Yeah... Mostly!"

"Mostly?" Glynda asked with a raised eyebrow. The boy winced. Jaune boomed in laughter, and patted Alex on the head.

"I'm sure he's done his best," he said, "What would you like for Aslanmas, son?"

"I... I want a sword like the Rusted Knight, F-Father Winter!" Alex said, "To slay Grimm with!"

"Oh? Will you use this sword like the Rusted Knight?" Jaune asked, "To protect the weak and innocent? To save those who need it?"

"Yeah!" Alex said, determined. "I won't let anything happen to them!"

Jaune grinned beneath his beard. Glynda hid a small smile.

"Then you will get it! Just remember to be careful, you don't want to cut yourself. That is a mark of shame for a swordsman."

"I won't, sir!" The boy swore. He got off and ran back to his parents, who were taking pictures with Scrolls. The next child was a little girl with a big smile and pigtails.

"And what is your name?" Jaune asked.

"I'm Suzie!" She declared.

"Well, have you been good this year, Suzie?" He asked.

"Yeah! My brothers are really mean though," she made a face, "They're all little and brats."

"They'll grow out of it," Jaune assured her, "Just means you need to be a good big sister to them!"

Suzie nodded.

"What would you like for Aslanmas, Suzie?"

"I want a-a mechashift sniper scythe like Lady Ruby's!" She enthused. "She's so cool! She saved the world!"

"Ah, but she built it herself," Jaune said. Suzie's eyes widened.

"How do you know?"

"Cause Father Winter knows everything," Jaune said firmly. Suzie frowned.

"Then why did you ask if I was good or bad?"

Jaune smirked.

"Because if you tell the truth, I'll consider you a good girl. If not? You're bad."

Suzie's eyes widened in understanding.

"Wow... So um... Could I get a kit to build a sniper scythe?"

"Sure! But don't make it the only weapon for you!" Jaune counseled, "You want to be your own kind of heroine!"

"Okay!" Suzie beamed. She posed for some photos with Jaune, then ran back to her parents.

"Next!"

Lilac Arc-Sith and her husband, Mercer Junior, approached with their twins, Castor and Polly. The boy and girl were barely three years old, and immediately began to tug on Jaune's beard when they sat in his lap.

"Heh, enthusiastic, aren't they?" Jaune chuckled.

"Cut that out!" Mercer barked. The twins winced and their lips wobbled. Mercer shook his head.

"Ohhh no! You're in front of Father Winter! Santa himself! You need to be polite!"

"Mercer," Lilac gently scolded her husband. Mercer grumbled and bowed his head.

"Well they should be," he muttered. Lilac smiled encouragingly at her twins.

"Go ahead you two. What do you want from Father Winter?"

Castor and Polly calmed down and looked up at their uncle in wonder.

"Choo Choo train!" Castor declared.

"Dolly!" Polly insisted.

"And have you been good?" Jaune asked, his eyes twinkling in amusement. The twins winced.

"Yeah?"

"Then good," Jaune said, "You'll get your gifts. Just be kind to your parents: They love you very much."

"And your aunt and uncle, who will be buying you more gifts if you behave," Glynda advised. The twins gasped happily.

"YAY! MORE TOYS!" They cheered, sliding off. Though not before Polly kissed Jaune's cheek. They rushed away giggling.

"Hey! Wait! We need to take your pictures!" Mercer cried. Lilac giggled.

"Oh, those two~!"

Jaune and Glynda shared a smile.

On and on it went. Each child came up and sat on Jaune's lap. Many of them cried. A few babies wet themselves. A few parents had to deal with temper tantrums, and yet, Jaune remained cool, calm, and collected. Glynda found herself spellbound by the boy turned man.

At last, the sun began to dip behind the horizon. The Yuletide market began to close up. Jaune relaxed in the chair, just looking up at the stars. Glynda walked up to him and handed him a mug of something warm and sweet. He smiled at her.

"Thanks." He sipped the hot cocoa. "Mmm..."

"This was quite the ordeal," Glynda chuckled. Jaune nodded.

"Mm... My dad did it every year, without fail," he said, "Every year. This year, well..." He sighed. "The injuries took their toll."

Glynda nodded slowly. It was clear there was more going on with Nick than Isabel had related. It wasn't that she was being shut out... Just hard to talk about.

"He's still Nick at heart," Glynda consoled, "He never gives up. And he lives every day like it's his last."

Jaune nodded, a sad smile on his face.

"Yeah... That's-That's why he was perfect as Father Winter. The spirit of Hope and Wonder. He always tries to bring a smile to every child's face, and make life better. I... I want to be just like that."

Glynda smiled lovingly.

"You are... You will be."

Jaune smiled back, and took her hand in his.

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love you too," Glynda murmured back.

He made to get up, but Glynda reached out with her hand and pushed him back. Jaune blinked.

"Eh?"

"Lady Winter has a request for Father Winter too," Glynda said with a small smile. She then sat down in Jaune's lap, and snuggled up against him. Jaune smiled broadly and wrapped his arms around her.

"And what would that be, my lady?"

"That... That next year? We can bring..." She took his hand and rested it on her lower stomach, "Our child here, so he or she can experience that wonder and hope for themselves."

Jaune's jaw dropped. Glynda blushed and shrugged.

"I-I just learned this morning... Surprise?"

Jaune lifted his wife into the air and whooped for joy.

"BEST! ASLANMAS! EVER!"

Glynda laughed with her husband, and they embraced under the twinkling stars overhead.

"The first of many," she agreed.

- - -

@Insomnius wrote the first Glynda Glimpse. I hope he likes how I handled the second!

 

[AndrewJTalon]

Maharaja Palace, Hastinpur, Kingdom of Pandu, Southern Mistral, Animus: Three Years after the Defeat of Salem

- - -

Jaune Arc was the Consort to the Queen of Pandu, and her Chief of Security. As such, part of his duties were to sweep the Maharaja Palace every day for any signs of security breaches. The structure itself was over a thousand years old and had gone through multiple renovations, upgrades, and rebuilds. So it was a painstaking process, involving physically examining every part of the palace and checking through records of maintenance that often went back centuries.

The Pandavans were pretty good about maintaining records, but invoicing was a lot more complicated in the days before phones and electronic databases.

It was critical: Mai was meeting with several officials from the province of Magadha, who were among the most skeptical of her rule. Any intruders would just make things worse.

He trudged into the royal bedchambers, feeling exhausted. His wife, May, was taking off her elaborate headdress as she sat in front of the vanity mirror.

"Rough day?" She asked, looking sympathetic. She frowned. "You're wearing different clothes."

"Had to check out a security alarm in the sewage tunnels," Jaune grumbled, sitting down on the bed, "Used the guard locker room to clean up."

May winced. She got up and scooted over to hug him tightly. He wrapped an arm around her waist.

"How are you?" He asked.

May sighed heavily and rolled her eyes.

"Apparently Lord Mathvira was 'concerned' that a pregnant woman was running the country and our alliance," she huffed. "'It's so stressful! Shouldn't you be more concerned with your baby?'"

Jaune rubbed her rounded belly with a comforting smile.

"Well, it's my job to keep you as stress free as possible," he murmured. He kissed the side of her head. She sighed happily and leaned into him.

"You do such a good job," she whispered, kissing his cheek. He smiled and nuzzled her back. His hands began to wander, and May giggled.

"C-Come on... I'm fat and bloated and-"

"And carrying our child," Jaune whispered, nuzzling her neck, "That makes you the sexiest woman alive to me."

May giggled. She let him feel her up a while longer, before she reluctantly pushed his hands away. Jaune pouted.

"Don't make that face," May cooed, kissing his cheek. She slowly rose, rubbing her belly. "Oof! She's getting feisty!"

"Speaking of," Jaune frowned, scanning around, "Where's August?"

May giggled. She extended her hand to him.

"I have a surprise for you," she said. Jaune took her hand and let her lead him out of the bed chambers. The guards saluted as they exited, May and Jaune both nodding in acknowledgement. They headed down towards a small courtyard. Jaune frowned at the holographic hazard signs all over it.

"This was closed off for renovations," he said, "Brawnz marked it off as checked-"

The holographic field dissipated.

"HAPPY ASLANMAS!"

Jaune gaped. May grinned. Gathered around a Yuletide Tree were his parents, her parents and younger brother Abhimanyu, his sisters, team RWBY, Nora, Ren (with baby Lian), Brawnz, Nolan, and Roy, Professor Goodwitch, Winter and Whitley Schnee, Penny... And baby August, who was being held by Ruby. The baby lit up and cried out happily when he saw his parents.

Everyone was smiling broadly. Jaune turned to his wife, who smiled warmly.

"It took some doing... And a security alert in the sewers to keep you from knowing," she admitted, "But... Happy Aslanmas, baby."

Jaune sighed and kissed her.

"Mmm... Thank you," he murmured. "But I'm definitely gonna punish you for sending me off into the sewers."

"I look forward to it~," May murmured with red cheeks.

"HEY!" Brawnz shouted, "Make out later! Party now!"

"Ha! Just because you're not getting any is no reason to lash out!" Yang shot back.

Brawnz scowled at her.

"How's your apartment full of cats?"

Yang sucked in a deep breath. Her eyes blazed red.

"Yup."

Ruby gulped and teleported out of the line of fire with baby August. The sounds of Brawnz begging for mercy soon filled the air.

"GO YANG! HAHAHA! THAT'S THE SPIRIT!"

As well as his father cheering on the violence.

"MIND THE TREE!"

And his mother trying to mitigate the damage.

"Geez, they never change," Ruby muttered. August whined, and Ruby handed him back to his parents with a beam. Jaune and May took August between them, both exasperated.

"Is this what happens at every Arc family Aslanmas?" May asked. "I remember your mother getting drunk on eggnog last time and punching out Professor Goodwitch."

"I recall that going very differently," Glynda muttered.

"You would," Isabel sniffed.

"Why do you think I always join their parties?" Arjun, now with a cyborg arm and leg, laughed uproariously. Saia rolled her eyes.

"So you could slack off?"

"That's the point of the holidays, sweetie!"

Ruby giggled, and turned back to August. The baby laughed and reached for her face.

"He's really growing up so fast," Ruby cooed, "Kind of makes me want one."

Abhimanyu, tall and smirking, leaned in close to her face. He was the spitting image of his father as a teenager, dressed in a blue gold-embroidered coat and white pants. His bow and arrow quiver were on his back, and his face was clean shaven under his messy black hair.

"Oh?" He asked. Ruby blushed.

"N-Not right now!" She insisted. Abhimanyu pouted a bit. Ruby smirked and bumped against her boyfriend.

"But~, I wouldn't be opposed to talking about it in private," she cooed. Abhimanyu blushed deeply. He coughed, as his princely bravado all vanished.

"Ah, w-well, uh, ya know..."

"Yang's distracted," May muttered, "You two can 'talk' without any issues."

Ruby's cheeks went bright red. Abhimanyu flushed.

"Er, I-I mean-"

"Come on, let's go!" Ruby grabbed her boyfriend and vanished with him in a flurry of rose petals. May smirked and nodded to August.

"You're gonna get a cousin with your new baby sister, yes you are, yes you are~!"

Jaune stared at his wife. She blushed.

"What?"

"Just happy that you're my wife... And not evil," Jaune said, holding her tightly. "We wouldn't have stood a chance."

May chuckled and kissed the top of their son's head. Now Nora was joining in the fight as Roy was now brawling. Everyone else pulled away and were cheering, shouting, or exasperated.

"You're absolutely right."

- - -

Just a short bit for May's timeline. Hope you enjoyed.

And Abhimanyu basically looks like this:

Spoiler

He's got Arjun's fighting style with ranged weapons but he's much dorkier at this age. He's had a crush on Ruby since he met her when he was 15 and she was 17. Now he's legal and a handsome prince... But still a bit of a dork around her.

But she LIKES dorks. As we well know.