Of Solitude and Self

(Open POV)

Patch...

"And on the wind, Alyx heard one more question... What are you?" Summer asked, closing 'The Girl Who Fell Through the World' book and looking at young Ruby Rose and Yang Xiao Long, fast asleep. "I love you... just the way you are." She stands up and places the book along with her brooch on top of the drawer. "Always..."

Summer turns off the lights and leaves the room. After heading downstairs, she looks outside the window at the nighttime forests of Patch.

"It's not like you rush off on a mission in the middle of the night." Taiyang said, walking down the stairs.

"You know how Ozpin gets. Mystery after mystery." Summer said.

"And when it turns out to be yet another run-of-the-mill patrol, it'll be..."

"'I always prefer discretion.'" Summer and Taiyang said, imitating Ozpin.

The two share a laugh, before Taiyang looks down frowning.

Summer rubs Taiyang's cheek and comforts him, "I'll be back soon."

The two then hug each other.

"I know." Taiyang said.

Forest of Patch...

Summer walks carrying Sundered Rose. Raven Branwen jumps and lands on the ground.

"Nobody suspects anything?" Raven asked.

"No." Summer said, while she took off her hood. "They think it's a typical mission."

"Summer Rose telling lies... first time for everything." Raven said, smirking, but falters. "And... Uh... What about... You're just going to leave them?"

"You're one to talk." Summer said, scowling.

"It's..." Raven said, sighing. "You're better at that life, better than I was..."

"If I do this right..." Summer said, walking past Raven. "...then there's nothing to worry about. Trust me."

"Let's get it over with, I guess." Raven said, letting out a sigh.

Raven opens a Kindred Link portal with Omen. Summer enters and Raven follows suit, sheathing Omen. The portal disappears.

The plane...

After seeing a glimpse of Summer's memories, Ruby stares at Sundered Rose in the glass case.

"What? What was that? She... She lied. She left with Raven. Why would she...?" Ruby asked.

"Who knows why people keep the secrets they do. Maybe you're not the only one who has felt the weight of other's expectations. Like Alyx, like your mother." The Blacksmith said.

Ruby pushes down the case containing Sundered Rose. The case is broken with shattered glass.

"Are you just trying to tell me that it's useless? That I shouldn't even try? Is that the big lesson I'm supposed to learn? Just... give up?" Ruby asked, dropping on her knees; her reflection appeared in the shattered glass pieces. "Become someone else?"

The Blacksmith approaches Ruby and stands behind her in the broken reflection.

"Is that what I'm telling you?" The Blacksmith asked.

Smoky Mental Plane...

Jaune regains his consciousness and finds himself in the smoky mental plane. He stands up. His form flickers between his current self and his past self.

"You never were the hero." Someone said, nearby.

"Alyx..." Jaune said, sadly.

Alyx appears behind Jaune, "You couldn't save me."

"I... couldn't save a lot of people..."

"Maybe it's time for a change, to be the kind of man you always wanted to be." Alyx said, holding her hand towards Jaune.

Jaune slowly reaches his hand to hers, hesitates for a moment, and takes her hand. A light begins to glow, engulfing Jaune and Alyx. Jaune suddenly stumbles out from the smoke. He hears an explosion and looks up to see some bushes containing the leaves on fire, making a multi-colored smoke.

(Jared's POV)

The Tree...

Back up top in the Tree, the Curious Cat possessing Neo's body leaps forward and uses their claws to swipe at me. I dodge their attacks and try to attack back, but NeoCat's form shatters.

"Crap. Where did you go?" I asked, holding Ebb and Flow. "Blake!"

NeoCat then kicks Blake from behind, launching her several feet away. Weiss stabs Myrtenaster into the ground blanketing it in ice, and Yang follows up with a ground smash, the two doing their Freezerburn combo attack. NeoCat leaps back and the combatants charge towards each other again, but suddenly, a tree branch drops in front of them.

"The leaves!" Jaune said, his voice nearby.

Weiss, Blake, Yang, and I look up to see Jaune cutting down another tree branch.

"Burn the leaves!" Jaune said, angrily.

Following his instructions, Yang fires some rounds from Ember Celica setting the leaves on fire, with Blake using a fire clone from her Semblance, I used Thermal Incendiary arrows on the leaves, and Weiss uses her glyph to blow the smoke towards NeoCat's way.

"When did you get trick arrows?" Jaune asked, jumping and landing on the ground, regrouping with Team RWBY and I. "You didn't have them before."

"From Hawkeye." I said, smiling. "Clint Barton. Amazing person."

"Taking a page out of the caterpillar's book, hm?" NeoCat asked, cackling before inhaling the smoke. "The leaves have no effect on me."

"Maybe not, but that's not the case for Neo." Jaune said.

"All we wanted to do was push Neo back in front." I said, while NeoCat feels a sudden reaction and begins to cough, collapsing on their knees. "Come on, Neo. Fight it! Fight for control!"

Hallucinations of Ruby, Cinder Fall, Jimmy and Carmel, and Roman Torchwick appear within the smoke for NeoCat.

"No! These cracks, these feelings! I can't... I can't!" NeoCat said, worried.

The Cat is exorcized from Neo's body as Jaune, Team RWBY, and I look on in shock. Neo, now freed from the Cat's control, runs out from the smoke and collapses on her knees.

"Guys, you handle the Cat. I'll look after Neo." I said, walking over to Neo. "I want to make sure she's safe."

Team RWBY, Jaune, and I look back at the smoke, and see the Cat has now taken on a much more monstrous form than before, becoming the Furious Cat.

"Okay." Jaune said.

"We got this." Weiss said.

"We know Neo needs as much help as Ruby." Blake said.

"Yeah." Yang said, smirking.

The Furious Cat leaps forward and slams into the ground, knocking Jaune, Weiss, Blake, and Yang back.

(Open POV)

The Plane...

Ruby is still on her knees, despondent.

"Your time is running out." The Blacksmith said, appearing before Ruby. "You must choose. Choose for yourself one who could leave your burdens behind." Ruby stands up. "Or choose one who'll be enough to bear them."

Back at the Tree, Yang and Blake are seen fighting the Cat. They try to dodge and attack, but the Cat grabs Yang and swings her into Blake, knocking them both back.

Ruby continues to walk around looking at the various weapon cases, passing a sword and dual curved swords.

The Cat is then shown punching Jaune hard in the gut, breaking his Aura. Juniper tries to defend him before the Cat turns around and Weiss, Blake, and Yang charge towards them once more.

Ruby stares at the knife, before collapsing on her knees once more.

"I love you..." Summer said, her voice nearby.

Ruby turns to see the red glowing light behind her.

"Just the way you are." Summer said, her voice nearby.

Ruby stands up. The multiple cases containing many weapons begin to dissolve underground. Ruby begins to run towards the red light as the Blacksmith watches on.

"This one." Ruby said, standing up before the case containing Crescent Rose. "What happens... if I choose me?"

"Then maybe... that girl is enough." The Blacksmith said, reappearing and kneels beside Ruby, placing a hand on her shoulder

Ruby smiles at the Blacksmith as she places her hand on the case. The red light with rose petals engulfs Ruby.

(Jared's POV)

The Tree...

As Team RWBY fights the Furious Cat, Ruby's wooden form begins to crack. Elsewhere in the dark, Crescent Rose falls down as Ruby propels herself to go after it. Ruby's wooden form continues to crack. Ruby manages to reach her hand and grabs Crescent Rose. Ruby's wooden form finally breaks, causing a powerful bright light explosion. Team RWBY, the Cat, and I shield our eyes. The Cat looks back to see the silhouette of Ruby with her red cloak. Ruby now has her emblem brooch back on her belt. Ruby brandishes Crescent Rose, her Silver Eyes now filled once more with determination.

"Ruby!" Weiss said, happily.

"You're... You're you!" Yang said, sadly.

"How?" Blake asked.

"She knew what she needed to be all along." Jaune said, grunting.

"How PURRFECT!" The Furious Cat said, cackling.

"Ruby, I'm looking over Neo." I said, while the Furious Cat starts to pounce towards Ruby. "She needs protecting."

"Okay. Thank you for letting me know." Ruby said, deflecting the Cat's claw attack with Crescent Rose. "Just lay back until this is over."

"I understand. Now kick that Cat's ass, Little Red." I said, while Ruby swings her scythe with a flurry of attacks at the Cat, now comfortable with fighting like how she used to before. "He shouldn't have helped break you."

"I agree." Ruby said, while the Cat tries to grab Crescent Rose and punch her, but Ruby uses her Semblance to dodge and then fire at the Cat with Crescent Rose's sniper form. "It's nice being able to have conversations like this again."

The Cat is knocked back and angrily glares as Team RWBY surrounds them. The Cat unleashes their energy beam attack again, Ruby dodges while Blake slashes and dodges the Cat followed up with a Semblance-enhanced Yang punching it back. Weiss then traps the Cat's feet in ice as she launches a Nevermore summon, which the Cat dissolves with another energy beam. Ruby attacks from behind as the Cat leaps into the air. Suddenly, the Cat is surrounded by Ruby, Blake, Yang, and a multitude of Weiss's glyphs. They attack the Cat with all they got leaping off of the glyphs, before all four girls of Team RWBY launch one final devastating blow on the Cat, knocking them to the ground. I then ran away from Neo and back towards Team RWBY. As the smoke clears, the Curious Cat have been reverted back to their normal form. Team RWBY and I stand triumphantly over them.

"You're broken! You break everything you touch! I call Humans... weak! Confused! Incomplete!" The Curious Cat said, struggling to get up.

"No, you're wrong." Weiss said.

"She's never been any of those things." Yang said.

"That's why we follow her." Blake said.

"We're going to Remnant, and you're staying here." Ruby said.

"And no. You're not going to Earth either. You're staying here permanently." I said, and Team RWBY and I walked past the Cat.

The Cat angrily hisses and attempts to attack Team RWBY and I but they are stopped by the Jabberwalker clones created by Neo's Semblance.

"No! No, no! NOOOOOOOO!" The Curious Cat said, terrified.

"Neo, thank you for helping us." I said, while Team RWBY and I watch the Jabberwalkers mauling the Curious Cat, horrified, before turning to see Neo. "Cinder was the reason you lost Roman Torchwick. Her unleashing all of the Grimm towards Vale was a terrible idea. A few minutes after Ruby sent you away, Roman was eaten by a Griffon. It wasn't Ruby's fault that you lost Roman. It was Cinder's. Even so, Cinder was manipulated by Salem. Salem was the true reason you lost Roman Torchwick that day."

"How did you remember that?" Ruby asked, while Neo becomes exhausted and collapses from using her Semblance. "After all this time."

"You all were good role models." I said, as Team RWBY and I ran towards Jaune, who slowly began to stand up. "Especially you, Ruby. You, Weiss, Blake, and Yang helped change me for the better. Jaune, Nora, Pyrrha, and Ren too. It has been a long journey for me with you all."

Ruby stops and gives a quick look at Neo before joining her friends. Weiss, Blake, Yang, Jaune, and I embrace Ruby and Ruby embraces us back with a relieved look. Neo, after regaining her posture, looks on with Hush in her hands.

"To have what they have." Neo-Roman said, standing besides Neo. "What a thing, huh?"

Neo looks down, walks away and towards the edge of the tree trunk-like platform. She looks down at the multi-colored leaves on the branches in the deep dark part of the Tree.

"So, that's it then?" Neo-Roman asked.

Neo turns around to Neo-Roman with a sad look on her face. She places her hand on Neo-Roman's face. He sadly smiles.

"Yeah, I know. I'm not real." Neo-Roman said.

Neo-Roman begins to dissipate as Neo watches on.

"What about her?" Jaune asked.

"Neo is going to have a therapy session like Ruby. She also needs it after the journey she had." I said, while Neo points Hush at Team RWBY, Jaune, and I, and gives a bow, tipping her hat off. "I know her story too. Well, most of it. Good luck, Trivia Vanille."

"Was that her original name?" Blake asked.

"Yup. It was." I said, as Neo places her hat back on her head, jumps off and opens Hush. "We can leave Neo for her to think things through."

Team RWBY, Jaune, and I watch Neo floating down.

"You're right. She'll find herself, one way or another." Ruby said, looking at me.

Neo closes her eyes as she floats down deeper with the tree branches encasing her. They look up to see the wooden statue form of Neo is erected on the tree branch with multi-colored leaves resembling Hush. Team RWBY, Jaune, and I walk away. Ruby stops and looks back at Neo's wooden statue. Yang looks back and turns to Ruby.

"Ruby? What's wrong?" Yang asked.

"When I was in the Tree, I never saw Little. I wish I could say 'thank you'." Ruby said.

"Do you guys think... we might have... made things even worse in the Ever After? Just like Alyx did?" Blake asked.

"I'm... not sure. I'd like to think we did at least a little good. Right?"

"Yeah." I said, happily. "We could have helped Little. I don't know."

"Wait!" A voice that sounded like Little's said, nearby.

Ruby turns around to see a humanoid child-like mouse wearing an orange cape with a hood and a leaf-shaped pattern running towards them. They pant after they stop running.

"Little!" Ruby said, gasping.

"Do I know you?" The Mouse Afteran asked.

Ruby stops her happy hopping in realization, "Oh! Uh, I don't believe we've met yet. Please, what are you?"

"I'm..." The Mouse Afteran said, realizing that they don't have a name. "Well, you know I haven't thought about it yet. You look like you have wits about you. What do you think I am?"

"Well, uh... To me, you seem like a friend." Ruby said.

"A guide." Blake said.

"A protector." Weiss said.

"A companion." I said, smiling.

"A...dorable." Yang said, as Weiss giggled.

"Do any of those sound close?" Ruby asked.

"Hmmm. Somewhat. Yeah. Somewhat. I'm not any one thing, I'm somewhat of a lot of things!" Somewhat said, rubbing their chin.

"It is a true pleasure to meet you, Somewhat." Ruby said.

"It will be my honor to serve you." Somewhat said, bowing.

"You've already done more for us than you know." Ruby said, smiling.

"You do feel... familiar. Like a happy dream I can't remember." Somewhat said, pondering for a bit.

Ruby tears up, "I'm so glad we got to meet you. I'm sure you'll help lots of people. But now we have to say goodbye."

Ruby and Somewhat give a warm hug while she smiles, shedding tears of joy quietly.

"It will be alright, Huntress." Somewhat said.

Ruby's eyes widen upon hearing that and smiles. They part from the hug.

"Hey, Somewhat." Jaune said.

Somewhat gasps and quickly approaches Jaune and Juniper.

"I am at your service!" Somewhat said, excitedly.

"Will you look after Juniper? She means the world to me." Jaune said, nuzzling his face into Juniper's.

Somewhat looks on and holds their hand to their chest in conviction, "I will never leave her side."

Jaune smiles hearing this. Juniper lowers her head to allow Somewhat to hop onto her back.

"Somewhat." I said, taking out a sonic screwdriver and tossing it to Somewhat. "Don't lose this. It will keep you safe. This thing can get you out of sticky situations."

"How does it work?" Somewhat asked, grabbing the sonic screwdriver and looking down at it.

"Just point and think. It's simple enough."

"I understand. I won't lose this device." Somewhat said, saluting Jaune and I and they and Juniper marched off in the opposite direction.

Team RWBY, Jaune, and I begin to head towards the door, with Jaune taking one last look at Juniper as she heads off with Somewhat, wiping tears from his eyes.

"Somewhat was sweet when he was Little." I said, grabbing Ruby's hand.

The six of us hold each others hands at the doorway, and step on through.

"Yeah." Ruby said, smiling.

The plane...

Team RWBY, Jaune, and I appear and land in the spiritual plane of the Tree. We walk and see the Blacksmith in their forge. The Blacksmith whittles a wooden figurine of the Hawker and places it with the other figurines of the Afterans.

"Welcome... to my workshop." The Blacksmith said.

"Um, Ruby, is this the Tree?" Blake asked.

"Something like that." Ruby said.

Jaune approaches the Blacksmith.

"I've been waiting a long time for you." The Blacksmith said.

"Well, I made it." Jaune said, sighing.

"I'm glad you did."

"Can you... answer a question for me?" Jaune asked, picking up a wooden figurine of Juniper. "I need to know if it's true what the Cat said that Lewis went back and... Alyx..."

"Yes." The Blacksmith said, standing up. "Only Lewis returned home. The Girl Who Fell Through the World is the story as he wished it happened."

As the Blacksmith walks around the table, two figurines of two certain familiar dragons are seen on the table.

"Are those...?" Weiss asked.

"The Brothers." Ruby said, realizing.

"The Brothers Grimm." I said, laughing a lot. "In my world, they were the creators of Little Red Riding Hood along with Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. But here, I guess the Brothers were made in the Ever After."

"Yes, you're right with your assumption." The Blacksmith said, picking up the Brothers figurines on both hands. "These Brothers were the Tree's earliest blossoms and the first to inhabit the Ever After. Remarkable beings, very ambitious. The Tree did not perceive what they would become. But that is the joy of creating. The not knowing."

A flashback begins, with the Blacksmith creating a projection in front of us to show a dense forest covered in thorny vines.

"Back then, the Ever After was overgrown, wild and dangerous. The Brothers were meant to help tame it and build the world that was to come after." The Blacksmith said.

The Brothers are shown being born from blossoming flowers, the God of Light having a deer form, and the God of Darkness having a goat form. The two split off and begin their work. The God of Darkness is shown eating the thorny branches.

"First, they were given the power to destroy, to clear the wilderness away." The Blacksmith said.

The God of Light kicks a tree to knock some acorns and plant them into the ground. The plant grows, and from the flower, a blue butterfly flies out from it.

"Then they were given creativity, to imagine what -- and who -- could replace the wilderness." The Blacksmith said.

The Brothers are shown continuing their roles. The many acres of the Ever After are shown surrounding the Tree.

"The Brothers built homes for them, and gave them roles to play." The Blacksmith said.

"If this is what they were supposed to do, how did Remnant come about? Us? Excluding Jared, since he came from Earth." Weiss said.

"The Brothers grew curious. They wanted to do more." The Blacksmith said.

A fire engulfs the scene transitioning to the Brothers, now shown older and looking more draconic.

"And so, using the skills and tools they have been given, they began to design their own creations... in utmost secrecy." The Blacksmith said.

The God of Darkness breathes purple fire at the fire. The God of Light picks up a wooden figurine of the Curious Cat and breathes black smoke, thus bringing the Cat to life. The Cat places their head inside a hole.

"Soon they realized their new creation could do their job for them." The Blacksmith said, while the Cat takes their head out of the hole and walks towards the leafy Afteran sitting on the trunk, seemingly distraught. "Finding the broken parts of the Ever After." The Cat hugs the leafy Afteran as they give a piece of their heart to them. "After this success, the Brothers designed a second creature to finish what the Cat started." The Brothers are shown breathing life into the Jabberwalker. "It came out brutal... and effective." The Jabberwalker roars. It's shown terrorizing various parts of the Ever After. "One Brother believed they had disrupted the balance, while the other refused to condemn their creations for their mistakes." The Brothers are shown destroying and making and then destroying the Jabberwalker again. "But balance was not two forces locked in never-ending battle."

"So it is like the world of Avatar then." I said, sadly. "That's sad, really sad. And that world needs its Avatar to maintain balance."

The Brothers roar and begin to clash with each other.

"It is similar to that. Yes." The Blacksmith said, while the Brothers' conflict is visualized with the light and dark halves encircling each other, before the two are split into separate threads. "Balance is an ecosystem, an organism, a living breathing thing. Thus, balance cannot be restored with force or calculations."

Two threads emerge into one red thread. The three other threads (white, purplish black, and yellow) join the red one.

"True balance finds its own equilibrium. It only requires love and the patience to see things through in the end." The Blacksmith said.

The four strings of light dive into the soil, four flowers grow and bloom.

"So how did they get to Remnant?" Yang asked.

"The Ever After could no longer bear the Brothers' experiments. And so, the Tree built them a special doorway to a greater beyond where the Brothers could try creating worlds of their own." The Blacksmith said.

The Brothers, in their humanoid forms, stand before the door of the Great Tree. The Brothers look at each other, the God of Light nodding at the God of Darkness. The Brothers enter and leave the Ever After. Team RWBY, Jaune,'and I watch it unfold from a projection above the Blacksmith's forge.

"A doorway that would remain open for the Brothers' return, and any of their creations. And what truly remarkable things they accomplished. Whenever the Brothers' creations have come to the Ever After, the six of you have had a greater impact than you know. Just like Alyx and Lewis did before you. Just like others will after you." The Blacksmith said.

The wooden figurine of Somewhat appears on the Blacksmith's palm. Ruby picks it up with both hands. She thinks back to her various memories with Little.

"One small kindness in one small moment would be such a marvelous transformation." The Blacksmith said.

Ruby smiles at Somewhat's figurine with tears welling up in her eyes.

"Much like one act of dishonesty... caused an unfortunate change..." The Blacksmith said, holding the figurine of the Curious Cat.

"Alyx broke her promise to the Cat." Jaune said.

"A terrible thing to have a broken heart... And there's nobody to send them back to the Tree for repair."

"But what will happen to Neo?" Ruby asked.

"Neo lost Roman Torchwick back on Remnant." I said, frowning. "Her heart has been broken since the Fall of Beacon."

"She will have the chance to return her broken heart..." The Blacksmith said, placing the Cat figurine back on the work table. "And becomes something new." The work table flips and she holds Alyx's knife in their hand. "Such is balance."

"That's Alyx's knife. Wait, how did you have this?" Jaune asked.

"When Alyx's life ended, she chose to leave a part of herself behind. A wish to fix what she had broken."

Jaune takes Alyx's knife and is engulfed by a glowing light. An apparition of Alyx appears, smiling. After Alyx's apparition, along with the light, disappears, Jaune is now back to his younger self, with an exception of white streaks on his hair. Jaune becomes overjoyed.

"I... I can't believe it. It's been so..." Jaune said, stunned over the sound of his voice. "This... is what I sounded like?"

"Yeah. It was." I said, while Weiss laughs. "Welcome back, Jaune."

The Blacksmith summons a portal, resembling the ones made by Ambrosius previously.

"Where will this take us?" Ruby asked, looking at the Blacksmith.

"Not where, when you are needed most. Jared, this portal is like the TARDIS. She never took you where you and the Doctor always wanted to go, but she always took you both where you needed to go." The Blacksmith said, walking towards the portal.

Ruby smiles and nods at the Blacksmith.

"Jared, I have two words for you." The Blacksmith said, looking at me. "Bad Wolf."

"It is about Trenzalore, isn't it?" I asked, looking at the Blacksmith. "Who told you about it?"

"Melody Pond, also known as River Song. Good luck on your adventures with Team RWBY and the Doctor."

"I will." I said, smiling.

The Blacksmith returns to their work table as Team RWBY, Jaune, and I proceed to walk through the portal one by one.

Ruby lingers a bit and turns around to give the Blacksmith one more smile, "Thank you."

The Blacksmith waves at her as Ruby goes through the portal. She rejoins her friends and I as we are now back in Remnant in the desert of Vacuo.

Vacuo...

We see the capital city in the distance, with Shade Academy towering over the kingdom. In the skies above, there are various airships from Vale, Mistral, and Atlas, as well as a retrofitted Amity Colosseum/Tower. Team RWBY, Jaune, and I look upon the impressive sight as the portal closes behind them.

"We made it." I said, looking at Team RWBY and Jaune. "Took us time."