23

Chapter 23: Paranoia

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Jaune did his best to calm his heart that was threatening to beat out of his chest. He walked forward out into the arena, applause greeting him and his partner as they took the field. Jaune knew at least three quarters of the applause was for the legendary Pyrrha Nikos, and the remaining mostly for their opponents, but it was still a sight to behold.

"They're cheering a lot for you." Jaune turned to his partner. "You must be really famous." He said with a goofy grin.

Pyrrha laughed lightly. "I suppose you could say that. But I'd give it all up in a second for a partner like you."

"What do you mean?" Jaune asked. They already were partners. But Pyrrha just winked and turned to their opponents.

Jaune readied his weapons and shared a smile with Pyrrha as the announcers read their names and the crowd reached a fever pitch. The arena whirred and the terrain shifted around them until a snow-capped mountain, a field with a single large tree, a muddy swamp, and a windswept desert appeared.

Across the way, Jaune eyed his opponents from Vacuo. The first wore a red cowboy hat over her long black hair with a matching red vest, twin pistols holstered on her hips. The other had the same dark tan complexion, a bow and quiver of arrows slung across her back. Her braided brunette hair was tucked into her jacket, itself the color of mud.

Jaune was positive that both of their weapons were more than met the eye. The bullets and arrows were definitely going to be dust enhanced, something to watch out for. Jaune glanced over at Pyrrha discretely, seeing her go through the same analysis.

"Three… two… one…!" Professor Port's voice boomed overhead.

Jaune barely had time to raise his shield at both of his opponents drew their ranged weapons and fired a barrage. The cowgirl's bullets plinked harmlessly off of Jaune and Pyrrha's shields. One of the arrows, which was definitely dust enhanced, managed to dent Jaune's shield as he followed Pyrrha in rushing forward. She knew better than to sit back and try to outlast a ranged attack.

The archer switched tactics and took off running into the field while the other girl grinned and twirled her pistols in her hand. When she took hold of them again, they were tomahawks. She charged Pyrrha, who had changed Miló into its javelin form. She parried the first strike and kept both weapons well out of reach of her. Using her superior reach, she was able to control the tempo of the fight, stabbing, slashing, and redirecting attacks as needed. Jaune was tempted to press in from behind, but his instinct told him not to, after all the archer was still missing.

It was a good thing too, because just as Pyrrha was able to tear one of the cowgirl's tomahawks from her grasp, Jaune's head snapped to the woods. In the tree, he could just make out a figure, looking to score a hit on Pyrrha. The arrow came whizzing out from woods, but Jaune was in position to catch it with his shield, earning another dent in his shield for his troubles. Ruby was going to have her hands full with repairs after this one.

Jaune felt kind of useless, but this was the dynamic of their duo. Pyrrha fought, Jaune protected. Pyrrha was relying on him to protect her so she could go all out on whatever opponent she was fighting. It was a winning formula, as Jaune heard the buzzer go off, indicating that the cowgirl had run out of aura.

Jaune risked a momentary glance at the scoreboard to see that Pyrrha only lost a tiny sliver of hers, probably from subtle uses of her semblance. Nora was definitely cheering for Pyrrha as loud as she could from the stands, and Jaune swore he could hear her from down here.

Jaune and Pyrrha regrouped and ran into the field together. They ran towards the tree, Pyrrha in the lead. She turned to tell Jaune that the archer had disappeared and taken refuge in the tall grass, when Jaune spotted the archer, high up in the tallest branches.

His mouth opened to warn Pyrrha when his entire body seized, his heart clenching, a sharp pain in his chest. The archer flickered to a more familiar image, a girl with long brown hair billowing, a sleeveless blue-and-white striped sun dress, a small golden pin, glinting in the artificial sunlight. A faint memory of a long-forgotten song echoed on the wind.

But the moment he understood what he was seeing, it vanished, replaced with only the archer aiming at Pyrrha. Jaune shouted a warning, and Pyrrha raised her shield above her just in time to have an arrow pierce it, lodged within its thick metal plates. Jaune cursed himself silently that his distraction had almost meant that Pyrrha had gotten hurt, but he quickly put such thoughts behind him. There was still a fight to win.

He had no idea how they were going to get archer out of her tree. It was easily thirty feet tall, and she was at least twenty feet up. Jaune couldn't climb well on a good day, much less in full armor. Pyrrha meanwhile preferred to fight on the ground, and trying to climb while being sniped while Jaune couldn't protect her was not a situation either of them relished.

Jaune took a moment to reassess, and called Pyrrha over to him. He deployed his hard light extensions to their maximum extent, enough for both he and Pyrrha to take cover behind them. Pyrrha meanwhile changed her weapon into its rifle form, loading it with a present from Weiss that Pyrrha had received during their first month at Beacon. Pyrrha preferred not to use dust when fighting, but like all great fighters recognized when it's use was warranted.

She peeked out from the protective walls just as the first arrow bounced harmlessly off of the hard-light dust. She fired a few rounds into various points in the tree, the fire rounds burying themselves into the larger branches and trunk before bursting into flames.

The archer desperately tried to scale back down the tree as it erupted into flames, forced to jump from a high branch to avoid their aura being consumed by the flames. Jaune and Pyrrha were there and in only a few swings Pyrrha was able to disarm her opponent and secure the victory for the two of them.

Pyrrha turned to Jaune, beaming, and ran over to hug him. "That was amazing!" she exclaimed.

"You were amazing." Jaune was still in shock from what he had seen, but he managed to return the hug.

"We were amazing." Pyrrha corrected.

"I… I don't know what happened." Jaune said. "I just saw…"

"Saw what?" Pyrrha asked, pulling back to look at him.

But Jaune shook his head. "It's nothing. I'm just happy we won."

Jaune felt his heart still racing as he thought about what he had seen. He was sure that it was just his imagination, but he could have sworn he saw the girl from the void in the tree. It was just a glimpse, but it was enough to send his mind racing. Was it her voice that he heard in his nightmares? The one from his memories that he couldn't quite remember? He shook his head to clear his thoughts. There was no way that was possible. He must have just been seeing things.

"You know…" Pyrrha whispered to him, her arms still around his neck, "this wouldn't be a bad time to finish what we started at the dance."

"But we already captured Cinder." Jaune said as they parted, perplexed.

Pyrrha chuckled softly. "I meant our other dance, silly."

Jaune laughed awkwardly as he blushed. He wasn't sure if Pyrrha was saying what he thought she was saying, but…

"I think I would like that."

---

Glynda stepped into the CCT tower just in time to catch the ending of some of her star pupils two versus two matches. Just in time to watch Pyrrha Nikos and Jaune Arc easily dispatch another one of the hopeful teams from Vacuo. Not that Glynda had any doubts that they would. A gifted duo in every respect, she understood now why Jaune Arc had excelled with his wealth of experience, but that somehow only made Pyrrha Nikos even more impressive. A natural prodigy.

Glynda rode the elevator up to the very top, directly into Professor Ozpin's office. She had been surprised to find Atlesians loitering around the landing pad when she returned from a remedial training mission with a group of third years, and scoffed openly when the soldiers demanded to see her credentials. Glynda figured it was simply a few out of line troops, but as she walked the grounds, she saw Atlesian personnel and drones planted everywhere.

She had kept up with the news from the council while she was gone, and given their ever-sterner decrees, she had expected to see Atlas' forces greatly diminished in the city. Instead, they were more plentiful than ever.

The elevator dinged and Glynda stepped out to see Ozpin and Ironwood locked in the middle of a conversation. "Oh joy," Glynda said joylessly, "just the man I was looking for. Care to explain, James, why your forces are accosting travelers and visitors of the Vytal Festival?"

Ozpin gestured to her without looking up from the plans he and James were looking over. "Please, come in."

Glynda didn't wait for his permission. "I leave for two weeks and I come back to find that Beacon has more soldiers than students." She glared at the general.

Ironwood faced her sternly. "The Vytal Festival started. This is what it takes to protect it, since we have determined that the festival must occur."

Glynda made a sour face. She was no expert in physical security, but having so many troops seemed unnecessary, almost counterproductive. Still, after the Vytal Festival was over, the troops would depart, so their presence needed only to be tolerated for another week or two. That is… if Ironwood would be taking them with him.

Glynda's eyes narrowed. "And what if our fugitives do not show their faces and are not caught by the end of the Vytal Festival? What happens then?"

James pondered that for a moment. "Well, with no troops needed to provide security for the festival, I would be able to redeploy security forces to occupy potential terrorist locations. Catching them would simply be a matter of time."

That caught Ozpin's attention. "I'm afraid that would not an be acceptable course of action. The council chooses to overlook your… disregard, for their wishes so long as the Vytal Festival is ongoing in the name of safety, but should you continue to flout their authority when it comes to a close, they will be moved to action."

James looked to the old headmaster. "I would be doing Vale a favor. If-"

"That is not how Vale will see it." Glynda added.

Ironwood stood up from his chair. "Then what would you have me do? Leave the city undefended? So that Salem's pawns may plot and succeed in tearing down this academy?!"

"Vale has its own police force, along with huntsmen in its employ." Glynda reminded the general.

"Forces unequal to the task before them." Ironwood countered. "My soldiers are trained for this, they are. At this very moment, they are protecting the Vytal Festival, and doing so admirably."

Ozpin moved to mollify the general. "Indeed, they are, and we would be worse without them. However, she's right, James. We need not resolve this now, but before the Vytal Festival is over, you must see the folly of that course. And I may remind us, this is not the only decision we must make soon."

"Right, the maidens. Any changes while I was away?" Glynda asked.

"Both falls remain stable, one in prison, and the other in her coma." Ironwood reported.

Glynda nodded, expecting as much. Ironwood has assured them all that Cinder's prison was inescapable, and while she had her doubts, it seemed that Cinder had put it through its paces and yet it held fast. A comforting fact, if not for the other person with which she shared the vault. Amber would not remain in stable condition forever. Her power needed to be transferred to a suitable replacement.

"Have you selected a guardian yet?" Glynda asked her headmaster.

"I have not. I thought it best to discuss first." Ozpin responded and gestured towards the others in the room. "The situation has changed, so we must change accordingly."

"Right," Ironwood spoke up. "About that, we have the first recordings of Huntress Rose's conversations with Cinder."

"You have… what?" Glynda asked. Recordings of her meetings with Cinder? "Does Miss Rose know that you have these recordings?" Glynda asked, already knowing the answer, damned general. Ironwood had the gall to not even look sheepish as he informed Glynda that they had started to spy on their student. Glynda pinched her nose. "Let me make sure I understand this: Ruby Rose is one of the greatest allies that we have ever encountered, she is a strong fighter, a loyal huntress, and has literal knowledge of future events that has resulted in us capturing one of the greatest threats to ever attempt to attack Beacon, and you reward this… with spying on her?"

"I am merely being cautious." Ironwood defended.

"Cautious?" Glynda asked incredulously. "Cautious of what? That she is going to defect to Salem?"

"No, not defect. I am worried that she may have been a sleeper agent, working with our enemies from the beginning." Ironwood said.

"A sleeper agent?" Glynda asked. "She was raised by her sister in on a small island off the coast of Vale, hardly ever leaving. Her mother attended this very academy, and was lost in service to it. Her father guards one of our most closely held secrets. So, I ask again, a sleeper agent for who?"

"I was not taking any chances." Ironwood said.

"And what of the chances that you were taking with her trust?" Glynda asked.

"I was not-"

"She trusts you, James." Glynda said. "She trusts us. And you are violating that trust."

"I was only-"

"Spying on her." Glynda interrupted. "You are spying on her." Glynda repeated. "Do you have any idea how damaging this could be? You are chasing shadows."

Ironwood pursed his lips, and Glynda was ready to unleash another tirade against him, but Ozpin spoke up. "I fear you are right, Professor Goodwitch. We were wrong to listen in without her permission. Next we meet with her, we will discuss the matter with Miss Rose, to see if she would be amenable to their conversations being recorded. However, we will not admit that we have already done so, and should she refuse, we may continue anyway."

Glynda scowled but said nothing. It was probably the best result she was going to get. Ozpin looked to both his lieutenants before continuing. "Now, let us discuss what we had planned to from the start, the next Fall Maiden."

---

Weiss fluffed the pillows they were using for this afternoon's movie. It was a shame that Ruby was busy attending one of her team leader trainings (after which she always whined that they were only teaching her things she already knew), since she was the one who usually took care of the pillows while her sister prepared snacks.

Yang was still in that same role, so in Ruby's stead Blake helped Weiss set up. It wasn't that there was much work, but Yang insisted she be left alone when getting everything together, shooing everyone out of the dorm's small kitchen. When asked, she said Weiss was banished for safety reasons, and Blake for enforcement.

So, that left Blake and Weiss waiting for their friend while surrounded by cozy pillows. Weiss quickly pulled up the romantic comedy that Yang had picked out and queued it on her scroll-projector. A gratuitous waste of her father's money. It was one of her favorite purchases.

Weiss glanced over at Blake, who had grabbed one of her books off the shelf and was absent-mindedly flipping through the pages. Ever since Weiss had asked Ruby to tell her about what the future held for her and her family, Blake had taken to making sure Weiss knew she had someone she could talk about regarding her family situation.

Weiss had taken her up on her offer once or twice, never in presence of her teammates, of course. She had intended to explain her situation to Blake, but found that, of course, she already knew it. Like everything else about Weiss. Though Blake took great lengths not to show off just how well she knew the heiress, it was still so strange to Weiss to have someone understand her so well. In some ways, Blake knew her even better than Yang, a rather unpleasant feeling.

Blake had proven herself to be a good listener and gave good advice. She had asked Weiss what she truly wanted out of all this. That had taken Weiss by surprise, even though at its heart it's a simple question.

Though Weiss had talked about her family, Blake hadn't mentioned hers one bit. Weiss assumed that her family situation must be similar, how else was she able to understand Weiss' predicament so well?

"Hey Blake?" Weiss asked, startling Blake out of her novel. "What's your family like?" She asked bluntly.

Blake smiled sadly. "They're… wonderful." Weiss didn't respond right away, the answer far from what she expected. "You seem surprised." Blake noted.

"I—I guess I just assumed that your family was, well, like mine." Weiss said.

Blake's smile faded a little. "No, they're nothing like yours." Weiss felt a lump form in her throat. Blake quickly noticed and tried to mollify her. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean-"

"It's alright." Weiss interrupted. "Do you miss them?"

Blake nodded. "Every day. I've… thought about trying to contact them, and even come close a few times, when I first arrived back at Beacon."

Weiss tilted her head slightly. "What's stopping you?"

Blake smiled apologetically. "The last time I contacted my parents it led to them being attacked by the White Fang. I needed them then, more than I was willing to admit. I don't regret going to see them, and I know they didn't regret seeing me. But this time, the next time I face them, I want to be able to look them in the eye and tell them that I atoned for my past."

"By taking over the White Fang?" Weiss asked. She had been invited by Blake to listen to one of her planning sessions, though it had mostly turned into Blake ranting against the organization. Not in the way Weiss would have, but how ineffective it was, how corrupted it had become, how it had strayed from its original goals, how it needed to be reformed. Blake was still trying to come up with a coherent plan internally, but should she ask, Weiss would help her carry it out.

Blake nodded. "They're not bad people. I once told you that they're misguided. I believe that. But something has to change, and I can change it."

"You're more idealistic than you think." Weiss said.

Blake shrugged. "I guess I am." The two women were silent for a few moments, lost in their own thoughts. Blake was the first to break it. "What about you? What do you want out of all this?"

Weiss took a deep breath. "I want to be able to look my father in the eye and tell him that I don't need his help. That I can make it on my own. That I'm not a little girl clinging to the family name anymore."

Blake nodded in understanding. "That's a tall order."

Weiss huffed. "Tell me about it."

The door to the dorm opened, and Yang walked through with bowls of popcorn, sweet tea, and a batch of chocolate chip cookies. "Hey girls, you both ready?" Yang beamed.

Weiss smiled and nodded as they all got settled in. Blake watched Yang as silently as ever, but more and more Weiss began to take notice. It wasn't like Blake was staring at Yang like Weiss did. It was always sad, almost sorrowful. Weiss watched as Blake stared at Yang's right arm until she sat down between Blake and Weiss.

Weiss grabbed one of the still warm cookies and a glass of tea and wasted no time cuddling up to her girlfriend. Yang wrapped one arm around Weiss, and she snuggled into her, happy and content to spend all afternoon just like this.

Not that she could. She still had class this afternoon.

Yang seemed to notice Blake's attention, and as Weiss held Yang's other arm, she offered to let Blake cuddle up to her other.

"No, it's alright." Blake said quickly, pulling away slightly.

Weiss frowned. There was nothing wrong with platonic closeness. "Are you sure?"

Blake nodded. "I'm fine, really."

Yang shrugged and pulled Weiss closer. "Suit yourself."

The movie started, and for a while everyone was content to watch it. It was one of those movies that was so bad it was good. The plot made no sense, the acting was terrible, and the writing was even worse. But it was still entertaining in its own way.

Still, when Weiss paused it, citing that she wanted to get to class early to ask Professor Peach questions about her end of semester project, no one objected. She kissed Yang on the cheek before letting go of her, and shut the door behind her on her way out.

---

Yang watched her girlfriend depart, a pleasant smile on her face. Afternoons with her team would never get old. "Do you want to finish this or have you been subjected to enough torture for one day?" Yang grinned.

Blake smiled at the joke. "It wouldn't be the same without Weiss. If we're going to suffer, she needs to too."

Yang laughed and started to clean up the various bowls and glasses they had scattered about. Blake was quick to help, and as they worked, Yang saw Blake's gaze flicker between her work and Yang's arm. The one that Ruby said her sister had lost trying to defend Beacon… and Blake.

"You can touch it, if you want." Yang blurted out, after catching Blake staring once again.

"… What?" Blake blinked.

"My arm. You can touch it. Weiss isn't the jealous type. I mean, she sometimes is, like this one time we were in Vale and I swear she was about to send a clerk that hit on me into the ceiling with a glyph, and it was really cute. Her face got all pouty and-"

"Yang." Blake nearly rolled her eyes.

"Right, sorry." Yang smiled sheepishly. "Uh, I just… If it was me, and Weiss had lost an arm protecting me, and then got it back and she couldn't remember it… that would fuck me up inside. It's enough to fuck anyone up, especially if they don't talk about it."

"I don't want to make you uncomfortable…" Blake trailed off.

"You won't." Yang held out her arm. "I promise."

Blake moved to her hand to touch it, as if Yang would pull away at any moment. Her touch was feather light. Blake's voice was trembling as much as her fingers. "It was my fault that you lost it."

Ruby hadn't mentioned that. "Was it?" Yang asked gently.

"I was the one that the White Fang was after that night. The leader… Adam… I was the one he was after from the beginning. It was always me. I put everyone in danger by being here. And I… I dragged you into it. And you paid the price." Blake's voice cracked.

"Hey, it's okay." Yang said, pulling Blake into a hug. "It wasn't your fault. It wasn't anyone's fault-"

But Blake pushed her away. "But it was! You weren't there! If I wasn't here, the White Fang, Adam, they never would've hurt you. It was my fault, and I don't want to be babied by being told otherwise. It was my fault, and I have to live with that."

Yang didn't know how to respond to that. It wasn't fair that Blake was holding herself responsible for something that, in Yang's mind, never even happened. She couldn't comprehend what Blake was going through, how much that experience had traumatized her. And so, Yang did the only thing she could think to do.

She listened.

Blake told her about that night, that horrible, awful night. Yang was thankful that she would never have to live through it. If only the same could be said about her teammates. Blake told her about why the White Fang was there. About why Adam Taurus was there. And how Yang had attempted to save her from him.

"You were so brave." Blake said, her voice barely a whisper, her expression pained. "You saved me. And then… and then you lost your arm. You lost consciousness before you hit the ground."

"You got me out of there?" Yang asked.

Blake nodded. "I had to."

Yang smiled sadly. "Then you saved me, too." Yang knew that Blake might not accept that, but she did. If what Blake said was true, she wouldn't have stood a chance against Adam. "What… after Beacon, what happened to Adam?"

Blake frowned, her ears flattening against her head. "We were at Haven; Sun and I drove him off. So, he started following me. Cornered me in Argus."

"We really got around." Yang joked, trying to lighten the mood.

It didn't work. "He was going to kill me, Yang." Blake looked away. "I thought… I thought I was going to die. And then… then you showed up. You saved me again." Blake took a deep breath. "We killed him, to protect each other. Together, you and me. Stabbed him with the same weapon I use every time we go to train."

"We…?" Yang said shakily. She had gone that far… for Blake?

"I thought I would never have to face him ever again. Never. I buried him, Yang. Deep down in my mind, he was something I could postpone dealing with forever. My feelings about what had happened to him, what we had to do to protect each other. Something I could unpack once I was stronger, once I was ready. And now- and now…" Blake trailed off.

"And now he's back." Yang finished. Blake nodded weakly. "What did Ruby say about that?"

"I never talked about it with her." Blake said.

That surprised Yang, they talked about everything. Heck, they talked more than she and Weiss did, and with fewer words needed. "Why not? She could help you, I'm sure she would have ideas about what to do about him."

Blake shook her head. "When I left Adam, separated from him, he was my fight. I was going to be the person to take him down, prove that what he stood for was wrong. I wasn't willing to share that burden with anyone. Not with Sun, not with my friends from the White Fang, not even my own parents. Then the Fall of Beacon destroyed that. It became our fight. You and me. If I was ever to face him again, I'd need you by my side."

Yang's expression hardened. She wanted Blake to know she was serious. "Just say the word, and I'll be there."

---

Ruby carefully unscrewed the back of the heating unit from their dorm's common room. It had been a bit of a pain to lug it all the way down here, along with her tools and materials and she had gotten more than a few strange stares for dragging it with her into the CCT, but if she was going to have yet another fruitless conversation with Cinder, she was going to at least work on something productive.

"…Then Nora took the broken bench and started using it to block Weiss' shots, but since she couldn't get to Weiss without getting her face impaled, she threw the closest thing at her. That's how the heater got involved." Ruby rambled. "Truly, it was the real victim here." She said mournfully, giving the metal box a pat.

"Do you ever stop talking?" Cinder snarled.

Ruby pretended to think about that. "No, not really. Anyway, some duct tape and soldering and this will be back in business, with Professor Goodwitch none the wiser!" After that, Ruby would be implementing new rules about roughhousing in the common room. And about Nora provoking Weiss.

Ruby hummed happily to herself as she performed her task, having already asked the requisite questions that she knew Cinder wouldn't answer (seriously, where were Mercury and Emerald?) After that, Ruby began telling Cinder about the Vytal Festival, her terrible leader seminars, whatever was on her mind. Ruby was especially excited to tell her about how Weiss and Yang had won their doubles round, and she gushed at length about how proud she was of her teammate and sister. She really did have the best team ever.

When Ruby had told the pair that they would be the ones taking part in the doubles round, they were both against the idea. Weiss stated outright that Ruby and Blake were the stronger pair, and they shouldn't risk it. But that was precisely why Ruby thought they should 'risk it.' Because it wasn't fair that Weiss and Yang thought of themselves as the 'weaker' pair. They were strong, just like she and Blake were. Watching them sweep through the doubles round, Ruby hoped they thought so too.

Cinder complained the entire time, or tried to provoke Ruby, but she didn't mind. Anything was better than the awful silence that filled their earlier meetings.

Ruby would never run out of things to say, but whenever she stopped to concentrate, the omnipresent beeping of Amber's life support kept her mind focused. Before long, Ruby flipped the switch and the heater quietly groaned back to life. Ruby pumped her fist in the air. Score one for Ruby Rose!

She got up and dusted off her work clothes. Though she still carried Cresent Rose with her, she no longer felt the need to always be prepared for battle by wearing her combat gear anytime she was with Cinder.

"Well, unless you've got anything to say, I'm going to return the heater to its rightful post before it's missed!" Ruby turned to leave and was already a dozen paces from the elevator when Cinder interrupted her.

"Wait." Cinder spat the word out like it offended her. Ruby smiled before turning to face her. "Were you… serious, about wanting to help me? Did you really mean it?"

Ruby took a step closer. "I did. I want to help you, Cinder. I want to help you because… because you're my friend."

Cinder scoffed. "Your friend?" She repeated incredulously. "You think we're friends?"

"Well, not yet." Ruby amended quickly. They weren't actually friends, Ruby wasn't naive. "But we could be! If you let me, I could be your friend, Cinder. I could be the best friend you ever had."

Cinder stared at her for a long moment, and Ruby could see the wheels turning in her head. She was trying to figure out if Ruby was sincere, or if she was just trying to get information from her. Ruby hoped against hope that Cinder would realize that Ruby didn't harbor any malice against her.

In the end, Cinder must have decided that she didn't, because she finally answered. "Fine." Cinder gritted out. "We can be friends."

Notes:

Chapter 23!

Only two weeks this time to get the chapter out! :D The more comments this gets, the more likely I can cut that back down to one week for the next chapter :p

Also: you may have noticed that I've changed the archive warnings to "Choose Not To Use Archive Warnings". I want to be clear about why. Specifically, this relates to the "Major Character Death" warning. Now, I have no plans for major character deaths in the future, but if I did, changing to that tag would be a massive spoiler. I want to avoid that. As for the other warnings, I have no intention of ever including explicit sexual content in this fic. I consider myself to be ace, and I have little interest in reading or writing anything sexual. As for graphic depictions of violence, the fight scenes we've seen are indicative of what this will look like going forward. I plan to include this explainer in the notes for the first chapter too.

Anywho... while I always plan to finish this work (after all this is my love letter to RWBY), I am wanting to start another project that I can work on whenever I get stuck on this, or when my motivation to write this is low. I've got a few different ideas and want to hear what you guys would be interested in reading. Let me know in the comments which of these ideas peaks your interest (or if none of them do, feel free to suggest your own!) This would definitely be a secondary project, so it won't impede progress on finishing this.

1. Go back to working on When Are You Coming Home? It's a Jaune-centric Renorarc (Ren x Nora x Jaune) post-canon fic. I'm three chapters in and I have a rough outline of most of the story. Chapters are much shorter. Probably going to finish at around 70-90k words. This was originally going to be my practice fic for this one, but I didn't keep up with it. Still have all my docs though about what's supposed to happen in the story. Even got the next chapter fully outlined. Happy ending guaranteed.

2. A psychological horror story centered around a future "Siege of Vacuo" that is further in the story (as of writing this, we're still waiting for vol9). Side bumbleby and maybe renora. It centers around the relic of destruction, and a particular power I've created for it. It involves time loops. Saying much more would mean spoilers. I'm expecting 40-60k words, and not a happy ending.

3. A political drama that I've been kicking around in my head since before I watched RWBY. Either bumbleby or bee's schnees as the main ship. This would probably be very long assuming I could get into it, 200k+ words. No clue what will happen through most of it. I wrote a summary for it at one point, so I'll just put that here:

Blake Belladonna has been hailed as the most successful Faunus Valean politician of all time. But, even her supporters had to wonder what she was thinking when she announced she was running for president of Vale.

Not only had no Faunus ever won, Blake was facing one of the most entrenched industrial families of all time, the Schnees. With their youngest daughter running and all the money in the world to back her up, even Blake knows it will be a tough election.

But even if Blake could overcome the money, she couldn't overcome demographics. Now, only two months before the election, and with over 90% of the human population supporting the Schnees, defeat is all but certain.

Determined to fight it out to the bitter end, new life is breathed into the campaign when Blake receives a very strange phone call from Weiss' chief of staff, Yang Xiao Long, in which she asks Blake to be Weiss' vice president.

Together, Weiss and Blake must learn to reconcile their differences as they and their dedicated team of staffers struggle to balance the needs of Vale with the political realities of the presidency.

4. And my craziest idea... A history of the Mexican revolution with characters from RWBY. Ruby Rose would be Felipe Angeles, Weiss would be Álvaro Obregón. Blake would be Emiliano Zapata. Yang would be Pancho Villa (yes, that Pancho Villa, the last person to lead a land invasion into the continental USA). Cinder would be Venustiano Carranza. Salem would be old Porferio Diaz. Jaune would probably be Francisco Madero. I've got more people mapped to characters. Unfortunately, the Mexican revolution is a massive tragedy for basically everyone involved. Of the people I mentioned, only one (Porferio Diaz) doesn't get assassinated. Everyone else dies violently, so... not very friendly. I have a deep love of political history, and I've been wanting to write something like this for a while. Original my idea was to do Yang as Gaius Julius Caesar (the Roman Republic was my first introduction to political history), then as Simon Bolivar. But I just finished a historiography of the Mexican Revolution, so that's what's on my mind.

So yeah, lemme know what you guys