One of A Kind

-Three Weeks Earlier-

Sometime came and went since Team RWBY found and took the sisters Destiny and Cristal to Beacon Academy. Even though it had only been a short time it had already felt like it has been forever. True, they knew a little about them but it had felt as though they knew them their entire lives; Even team JNPR felt the same way.

Destiny had adjusted to her surroundings despite being at Beacon for only three days and would often spend time with either RWBY or JNPR playing games and what not. Cristal on the other hand was still skeptical, as she would just do her own thing on her scroll and what not.

Unless Destiny asked if she could, which they found surprising honestly.

Today however, wasn't one of those days of just fun and such. At first things had started out fine. The two sisters had eaten their breakfast though Destiny had felt a bit chatty as she made conversations with the girls, as they told the two of them about the friends they made in Beacon.

Once their stomachs had settled they went outside to play a classical game of hide and seek, while Cristal had been doing her own thing; she had been reading one of Blake's many books and needless to say she was hooked on one of its stories.

It was pretty fun, until around the fifth time they started to play.

RWBY had been looking for Destiny as she had been the last one they needed to find. They had started to get worried when she hadn't called out to them. That was until they heard Cristal calling out to them for help. When they followed her voice, they saw Destiny in her arms, with a hand over her heart and she had been desperately gasping for air, despite the fact medicine had still been pumping into her heart.

Their first instinct of course was to call for an ambulance, but Cristal had told them not to. They tried to make an argument about it, until they realized why Cristal asked them not to call them. The White Fang as they were told by them, had made many connections to themselves, and now they could be working in any places around the cities, even something as simple like a janitor. They took her straight back to the dorms just as Destiny passed out in her sisters arms.

About an hour had passed by and she didn't show signs of waking up. Cristal sat at the floor just at her bedside, Blake sat nearby as well, while Ruby was pacing around the room with a worried look on her face.

Weiss had her gaze out the window as she was tapping her foot at a fast pace, while Yang had been drumming her fingers on the table nearby. All of them were worried sick and why wouldn't they be? A child could be dying right in front of them and they couldn't even bring her to a doctor.

All of them were worried sick.

Finally, after what had seemed like an eternity, Destiny had let out a groan as she opened her eye. Immediately, the girl's had perked up when they saw her sit up on the bed; Cristal quickly stood as she looked over the child before she uttered a sigh of relief.

"Thank the Gods…" Cristal said as she gave her a kiss on the forehead, making Destiny smile a little. It hadn't been long before she was crowded by the rest of the team, making the two of them jump.

"How are you feeling?!" Weiss asked her.

"Are you okay?!" Ruby asked immediately after.

"Is there any pain!?" Blake added.

"Does your chest still hurt!?" Yang asked.

Destiny put her hands up as she had replied calmly, "I'm okay. My chest still hurts a little, but it's not as much as before."

"You scared us half to death though…" Ruby said with her voice filled with concern, "... We wanted to take you to the hospital, but… Your sister told us not to."

"You sure that was a good idea?" Blake asked, as she turned to Cristal, "Maybe we should have a doctor look her over?"

"Trust me, it's better this way." Cristal replied, "This kind of thing happened more times than I can count."

The girls looked surprised at this. "You mean, this happened before?" Weiss asked concerned. Both of the sisters nodded their heads in reply. "It… Sort of happens at random." Destiny said, "Doctors looked me over too, but, they couldn't really figure it out. Sometimes it won't come back after a few weeks, or a month… Sometimes it'll come back the next day. But like I said, it's random."

"You were sure there's no way of knowing it'll happen?" Yang asked.

Destiny gave a sad look on her face as she shook her head, as she looked down at her hands. Team RWBY's eyes softened at this, as they thought they had to really be careful about it. "Is there anything else we should know?" Blake asked.

"After it happens, she has to stay in bed." Cristal replied not even batting an eye to any of them. The girls flinched at Cristal's sudden tone of voice, but they quickly noticed the look on Destiny's face, as she had been down by this outcome; Cristal soon noticed this too. "I know Princess." Cristal said patting her on the head, "But you know how this works."

"Yeah… But still…" Destiny said softly. She started to mumble to herself as she started to play with her hair a little. The girls couldn't help but feel sympathy for the young child. They didn't want that sad look to stay on her face. Yang's expression soon brightened, as they saw she had the biggest grin on her face.

"Don't you worry about it!" Yang said to her, putting her hands on her shoulders, "They're other ways we can have fun while we're indoors!"

"Really?" Destiny said curiously, "Like what?"

"Two simple words Dessie…" Yang said, before she raised her fist in the air, "...SLUMBER PARTY!!!"

Team RWBY had been surprised to hear this kind of thing, as for Destiny and Cristal on the other hand… They were just confused.

***

-Present-

Ruby, Destiny and Cristal managed to catch up with Weiss who had been way ahead of them as they had reached the courtyard. They saw that she had been making her to the docks where all the ships from all across Remnant had landed.

"COULD YOU SLOW IT DOWN ICE QUEEN!?" Cristal yelled as she was trying her best to breath as she ran, "SERIOUSLY, WHERE'S THE FIRE!?"

"HEY WEISS!?" Destiny called out, "WHY ARE YOU GETTING EXCITED!?"

"YEAH, I MEAN WHAT IS THE BIG DEAL!?" Ruby shouted, "WHAT WERE YOU TALKING ABOUT BEFORE!? WHO IS SHE!?"

Weiss stopped in her tracks when she saw that familiar ship at the dock. The ship opened and they saw a young woman with white hair tied into a bun, stepped out with her hands behind her back. She stood up straight with her head held high and by her side were of Atlas personal. Three of the girls noticed the smile Weiss had on her face as they had never seen her this happy before.

"Winter…" They heard Weiss say.

"Winter?" Destiny said confused a little before she realized something, "... Wait a second, isn't she--"

"--Your sister you told us about?" Ruby finished for her.

Cristal took an up and down glance at the woman before she said, "Well, there is the resemblance."

"WINTER!!" Weiss soon called out.

Weiss took notice of her younger sister's presence as well as the girls; She gave Destiny and Cristal a curious eye, towards the child especially. Destiny couldn't help but shrink at her gaze as she felt a chill, while Cristal raised her eyebrow at the look she had been giving. Destiny hid behind Cristal, though she couldn't but feel afraid; Than again she supposed it was because she was a part of the military, or at least, that's what Weiss told her.

They approached the beautiful yet cold looking woman.

"Winter! I'm so happy to see you!" Weiss said with a smile, "Oh, wait I mean--Your presence honors us."

Winter took a look around the area, taking in all that surrounded her. Finally she spoke, "Beacon. It's been a long time. The air feels… Different."

"Well I mean, it is fall." Ruby said, "So I guess it's probably colder."

"Yeah maybe." Destiny added nervously, "I mean if your cold you can buy a sweater or something. Wait, it probably wouldn't work for your uniform." Weiss's eyebrow twitched while Cristal shook her head. Cristal bonked Destiny on the head while Weiss hit Ruby so hard that she was paralyzed with pain.

"So… What are you doing here?" Weiss asked her sister.

"That information is classified."

"Oh, right! Well… How long are you staying?"

"That's also classified."

"Of course."

Destiny stood there twiddling her thumbs while Ruby and Cristal stood there awkwardly.

"Well… This is… Nice!" Ruby said trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah it is!" Destiny said trying to help out, "... I guess."

"More or less maybe?" Cristal said as she shrugged.

"You're going to love it here!" Weiss started to say, "I know you travel a lot, but so much of Beacon is different from Atlas! Vale to--The government and the schools are completely separate, can you believe it--!?"

"Weiss." Winter said stopping her, "I'm well aware of how each of the kingdom handles its… Bureaucracy. However that is no the reason why I came here."

"Right. I'm sorry." Weiss said, putting her hand down slightly.

"Nor did I come here to watch my own blood fail so miserably in battle. But it looks as though I have no choice in the matter."

"Fail? But we won!"

"Only a novice would refer to that as a victory. I counted at least three strikes missed on your opponent. How do you expect Van and Nilla look up to you?"

Thus there was silence among them, only the sound of the birds and the people chatting were heard. "Leave us." Winter soon told the robots to which they complied and gave them their space. Winter let out a sigh as she gave a friendly smile to her sister, "How have you been?"

The girls were taken back when they noticed how gently Winter had sounded; though than again, she was her sister.

"I'm splendid thank you for asking!" Weiss said with her expression brightening, "Thank you for asking! It just so happens that I'm the top ranking student in our sparring class! As for the rest of my studies, it's been going wonderfully too and--"

SMACK!

The three of them jumped when Winter gave her a hard slap on the head; they saw a large bump forming on her head.

"Silence you boob!" Winter yelled, "I don't recall asking about your ranking! I simply asked how you've been. Have you been eating properly? Are you taking up any hobbies? Have you been making new friends?"

"Well there's Ruby, Destiny and--" Weiss cleared her throat a little, "--Melody."

"Boop." Ruby said poking her head at where the bump was formed.

"Hi." Destiny said as she waved a little.

"Sup." Cristal said as she saluted a little.

Winter turned to Ruby, looking her over. "I see." She said, "So this is the leader you wrote about in your letter. How appropriately… Underwhelming."

Ruby gave a quizzical look as she didn't know whether to take it as a compliment or an insult. "Um… Thank you?"

Winter soon turned to the sisters; Destiny couldn't help but hide behind Ruby at her gaze while Cristal looked unphased. "Although, I don't believe Weiss has mentioned the two of you before. Destiny and Melody was it?" She said giving them a glance, "If it's alright may I ask who the two of you are exactly?"

Destiny peeked out from behind Ruby as she soon replied nervously, playing with her hair a bit "I'm uh--Blakes cousin. From Vacuole. I'm uh--Just visiting till the Vytal Festival is over."

"And you Melody?" Winter asked, "Where are you from?"

"I'm from Patch like my cousin Ruby here." Cristal replied calmly, "I'm here to see the Vytal Festival as well. Was going to watch it back at home with my uncle, but eh--" Cristal merely shrugged before she continued with a smile, "--Didn't want to miss my cousins in action. Took some time convincing my Uncle and sister, but they said they'd understand."

Ruby and Destiny (Especially) were left baffled by what she had told her, surprising how calm she sounded by what she had told her. They had no idea she was such a natural; Thankfully Winter seemed to have bought they're story, despite the look she gave.

"Nonetheless…" Winter soon said, "... I wish to thank you three for taking an interest in my sister."

"Oh!" Destiny said before she smiled kindly, "Well, your welcome."

"Hey, it's not a problem." Cristal said with a smile.

"Yes!" Ruby added while bowing, "The honor is in our--Court!"

Ruby tripped on her feet, almost losing her balance; she made Destiny stumble but Cristal was knocked over and she fell to the floor. Ruby merely laughed nervously before earning a hit on the arm by Cristal, which Winter couldn't help but chuckle amusingly at this.

"I have some business with your headmaster…" Winter said, "... But seeing as I am early, why don't you take me to your quarters?"

"Wait, really?" Weiss asked.

"Yes." She replied, "I wish to inspect them, just to see if their up to my personal standard."

"Yes of course!" Weiss said leading the way, "Just so you know, the bunk beds only look unstable."

Winter had been taken back at this, "Bunk… Beds…?"

Ruby, Cristal and Destiny looked to Winter and Weiss as they left; the Atlas personal following behind them. "So we'll catch up--!" Ruby said before she stopped herself, "--I mean! We will--We'll reconvene with you both! At a later--Juncture!"

"Um, yeah!!" Destiny added, "We'll do that! It was very nice meeting you Miss Winter! I hope talk to you later! Sometime! Maybe!?" Ruby quickly took Destiny's hand and they fled the scene; Cristal couldn't help but laugh a little as she had a smile.

"Smooth." She said with a smile, "Real smooth you two."

She soon followed behind them as she couldn't help but snicker at the way they looked.

***

-Three Weeks Earlier-

Team RWBY had been setting everything for tonight's slumber party that they planned to have with team JNPR. Destiny sat on the couch that they provided while Cristal sat by her side watching as they worked. They watched as they were choosing a board game to play, the snacks they were going to have, and even what kind of movie they should watch. Just as the sun started to set, they were just done putting the final touch.

"There we go!" Ruby said triumphantly, "Objective complete!"

Destiny and Cristal looked around seeing that there was a total of 10 sleeping bags, one of them had a cartoon bear on it, and the snacks and movies of choice. They both had an unsure look on their faces. "Something wrong you two?" Yang asked.

"I'm not sure about this…" Destiny said playing her hair a bit.

"Yeah, you guys sure this is a good idea?" Cristal asked.

"Oh it's no problem!" Ruby said, "If you guys aren't a fan of horror films, than we got other films we can watch."

"You kidding?!" The sisters both said in unison.

"Cristal and I love horror films!" Destiny said excitedly, "My favorite one is called Escape! It's a horror slash thriller! It's about a man who is about to about to marry his lover. Her family actually hypnotises people and takes over their minds so that they can live longer! It's been one of my favorites since dad took us to the theater for a good old fashioned fright night! It's always had me at the edge of my seat no matter how many times I've seen it."

The four girls looked surprised at this, as they didn't realize a little girl who had been no more than twelve be into that sort of genre.

"Personally my favorite is the one about the abandoned insane asylum." Cristal said with a smirk, "It's about a news reporter who tries to uncover a big conspiracy by a super secret government. I remember the look on your old man and big sisters face when we finally got the ending!"

"Hey, he's your dad too, you know!" Destiny said nudging her slightly, "Don't call him old man!"

The four of them had been taken back at the term they were using; Big sister, who could they be is what they were all thinking.

"Those sound like interesting movies!" Blake said just surprised.

"Who's big sister?" Weiss asked curiously.

"She's our dad's friend." Destiny replied, "She often looks after me and Cristal whenever he's away. We call her big sister, since… Well that's what she's like to us."

"Yeah, she's always been family." Cristal added.

It hadn't been long before the girls noticed the looks on their faces. There was sadness on their faces as they couldn't help but feel lonesome at the thought of it all and for a moment they were in silence. It hadn't been long before the child spoke again. "Cristal and I… We've never been to a sleepover. I couldn't make friends because of my condition. Big Sister and Cristal were the only ones I had outside of dad." Destiny explained, "Whenever I tried to talk to the other kids, they would leave when they saw how I was or even if they…"

Destiny began to play with her hair as she started to mumble something incoherent. Cristal gave her a couple of pats on the head before she said, "It's just been hard for the both of us. We're grateful to dad for all that he's done, but as for the choices on… It's just been difficult to try and get out their, you know? I try to do my best for her sake, but…" Cristal looked over to Destiny as she kept her head down, "... How can I when she's...?"

The girls didn't really know what they could say at that point, or at least, Ruby, Blake and Yang didn't since they didn't really know how to deal with this kind of situation. Weiss however stepped forward and kneeled down to Destiny's level, before she gave her a pat on the head which Destiny couldn't help but flinch at.

"Don't look sad Destiny." Weiss said to her with a warm smile, "It'll be alright."

Destiny couldn't help but turn red from embarrassment but she still had her head down; though she wouldn't lie as she felt comforted by Weiss. She soon saw hands on top of hers, and came to realize that it was Ruby as she had a warm smile like hers.

"Don't worry about anything else Dessie." Ruby said to her, "This sleepover is gonna be good for you and your sister, I promise."

"Meh, if you say so." Cristal said as she shrugged a little.

"But… What if--" Destiny started to say before she had been cut off by Yang. She had stepped forward and went to pinch her cheeks, pulling them upwards as to make it look like she was smiling. Ruby and Blake couldn't help but snicker at the way she looked; Cristal did the same as she tried to stop herself from bursting out loud.

"No downers okay?" Yang said as she did this, "You know what they say, no one likes a party pooper!" Just after Yang said this, she let go of her cheeks before she had started to tickle her, causing her to laugh and giggle. Soon enough there was a knock at the door.

"They're here!" Blake soon said.

"Well that was quick." Yang added as she stopped tickling.

Destiny shrunk again, and Cristal couldn't help but flinch a little; the team could tell that they were both still nervous about this. "It's okay you two." Yang said, "Just take a deep breath, relax and just have fun with out!"

Destiny played with her hair nervously, and Cristal stood there awkwardly.

Blake soon took a turn to speak up, "Yang's right you two." She said with a warm smile, "Like we told you, the members of JNPR are our friends. Just think of this as a way to get to know, alright?" The sisters took a moment to exchange glances, giving it a thought, before they turned back to RWBY, all of them eager to await their reply.

"I'll…" Destiny soon said with a gulp, "... I'll try."

"Me too… I guess." Cristal said, while she rubbed her elbow.

***

-Present-

Ruby, Destiny and Cristal sat with each other on one of the many benches provided in Beacon. Each of them had cotton candy in their hands. While Ruby and Cristal were eating the clouds of candy, enjoying the taste. Destiny on the other hand, looked a bit down, as she only took little bites from it. It hadn't been long before Cristal and Ruby noticed this from the child as they looked at her with a bit of worry.

"Something the matter Princess?" Cristal asked the child.

"Is the cotton candy not any good?" Ruby soon added.

Destiny shook her head as she took another bite, "The cotton really is delicious! It's just that… Well…"

As Destiny started to mumble while playing with her hair again, Ruby and Cristal drew their own conclusion as to why she looked down.

"You're still thinking about your dad, huh?" Ruby asked.

Destiny nodded her head at this, before taking a piece of the cotton candy, popping it into her mouth. "I… Really miss him." She admitted, "It was hard enough not to see him when the White Fang had us. With the Vytal Festival here… It's just…"

Cristal gave her a pat on the shoulder, "... I know Princess… I miss seeing him too."

"I can understand why it must be away from him." Ruby soon said, to her solemnly.

Destiny let out a sigh before she continued on, "Our dad… Told us a lot about the Vytal Festival. He would take our mom to see the festival whenever they came to Anima. They would play games, watch fights live, and eat their food. He even promised to take us to this one when the time came. Don't get me wrong, it's fun, but…"

"... You wish he was here with us, huh?" Cristal finished for her.

Destiny nodded her head, as she couldn't find an appetite for the candy anymore. Ruby soon gave her a hug, which took the child back. "I get what that's like. Really I do." Ruby said as she gave her comforting pats.

"You do?" Destiny asked.

"Really?" Cristal also said curiously.

Ruby nodded her head, pushing herself out of the hug gently, "Yang and I have cousins. They're both twins and daughters of our Uncle Qrow. They're the best of the best, you can tell they took a lot from our uncle. We attended Signal together when we were old enough, but…" Destiny and Cristal noticed that Ruby had a sad look on her face; her hand shaking a little at a certain thought.

"... After we graduated, Melody or well, she likes to be called Wren, decided something for her family." Ruby continued, "So she left Patch without telling our dad or hers. Yang, Maize and I helped her buy a ticket for the boat, and we said our goodbyes. She's been away for almost two years now."

"... Why did she leave?" Destiny asked.

Ruby had soon replied, "It's a long story, but let's just say, she made a promise to her sister and Yang. Because of Melody's decision to go off to the world without attending Beacon, Maize refuses to attend any Huntsman academy, and helps out with our dad at Signal."

"Didn't you… Try to get this Melody girl to stay with you?" Cristal asked curiously, "And maybe attend the same Huntsman academy too?"

"We did at one point…" Ruby replied, "... But in the end, we knew we couldn't change her mind, and we just let her go." Ruby looked up to the sky, as she had a solemn look, "Yang and I still miss her. And we think about her a lot. She keeps in touch with us on our scrolls but it's still not enough."

Destiny's expression softened at this as Ruby kept her gaze to the clouds. She could tell that this Melody, or Wren as she called her could tell that she means a lot to them, like how their dead meant to them. Just from her expression, she could tell that she missed her, probably Yang too. She just didn't understand why, she could just ask their cousin just to come back.

Almost as if she read the child's thought, Ruby soon turned back to her with a smile, "But you know, despite that, Yang and I know we'll see her again. We still hold onto that hope… You and your sister should hold onto that too. Because no matter how far apart you guys are… You'll find a way back to each other."

Destiny's eyes widened slightly at this, and Cristal was taken back by this phrase. The child smiled warmly to Ruby before Cristal let out a chuckle, "That sounds corny as hell, you know?"

"Really, I don't think so." Ruby said with a giggle, "What do you say we head back to the dorms for a good old fashioned competitive Soaring Ninjas?"

"I think I'd like that." Destiny said, "But the loser has a prize for the winner!"

"You're on, Princess!" Cristal said with confidence as she stood up, "Get ready to lose!"

"I'll beat you two in that game with my hands tied behind my back!" Ruby added, raising her fist in the air.

"You're on!" The sisters said, before they started to follow Ruby. The three of them started to make their way back towards the dorm building, excited to play the game. Though just as they were halfway, they were soon drawn to the sounds of swords clashing with one another in the distance. They soon spotted a large crowd, either watching or recording something, and they saw--

"Hey, isn't that Miss Winter?" Destiny asked the two of them.

Ruby looked closely and saw the resemblance as she almost flew in the air. "I think you're right!" Ruby said, "Come on! Let's go check it out!"

The three of them soon made their way towards the crowd, pushing their way through the sea of people until they got to the front of it all, where Weiss had been. Destiny saw what appeared to be an older man with black hair, bearing a sword that was also a gun as he fought Winter. As she saw his red eyes, she couldn't help but feel a familiar sensation.

"That man…" The child said softly.

"Ice Queen!" Cristal said getting Weiss's attention without noticing the man at first, "The hell's going on!?"

"Some crazy guy just showed up and started attacking my sister!" Weiss replied as she had nearly yelled her answer.

"Oh no!" Ruby said worriedly, "Who would do such a--"

The moment Ruby's eyes laid upon the man, she let out some sort of squee, making the three of them jump.

"OH MY GOD!" She exclaimed, "THAT'S MY UNCLE!!"

"What!?" Cristal and Weiss exclaimed in disbelief.

"Your Uncle?" Destiny said surprised.

"KICK HER BUTT UNCLE QROW!!" Ruby cheered on.

"TEACH HIM RESPECT WINTER!!" Weiss shouted.

Destiny nor Cristal couldn't believe what they were hearing, let alone seeing, than again as the saying goes, seeing is believing. Not only did they meet Weiss's older sister, who she often spoke highly of, but Ruby and Yang's uncle had been here as well. The Uncle that taught Ruby how to fight, the one who Yang and Ruby often told stories of to Destiny every night, the one who had been the father of twins.

Honestly, they couldn't believe that this was happening right now. None of them seemed to have noticed that just behind them, Mercury had been in the back of the crowd. He had an anxious look on his face as he saw Qrow engage Winter, before he quickly made his way out of the area.

The fight between Qrow and Winter pressed on.

No matter how many times they went to attack, they were both equally matched in this fight. Eventually Winter had run up a pillar after having dodged an attack from Qrow. She ran across the way, before Qrow armed himself; catching up to her, he fired several shots in Winter's direction, but with great agility she was able to dodge every bullet she fired. Qrow soon managed to get in front of her, as he finally got a shot near her feet, forming a dust cloud.

Though Winter had been quick to recover as she emerged from the smoke, flying towards Qrow with a war cry, drawing another sword from the saber she held. Despite Qrow blocking her attack, the two of them toppled onto the ground and back onto the courtyard. Swords started to clash with one another as almost no one around the area had trouble catching their movements, as Winter finally managed to push him back from her.

Thrusting her sword into the ground a glyph appeared, and the next thing anyone knew, blue birds came practically out of thin air as they started to fly towards a Qrow at full force. He was blinded momentarily, before a slash of wind came her way, as she nearly managed to dodge his attack.

A glyph appeared behind her, as she prepared herself to charge, and Qrow started to make preparations of his own. With a push of a button, the gears on his swords started to move, making his blade more curved; however to Winter and everyone's surprise really, he released the button and it formed back to his sword.

Once again to Winter's surprise, he disarmed himself, as he had put it back on his holster. Qrow merely smirked in her direction as he coaxed her to come get him.

Winter had complied as she flew towards him, with her sword armed and--

"SCHNEE!"

The tip of her sword nearly touched his neck as she stopped herself just in time. She turned and saw it had been her general, General Ironwood to be precise.

"General Ironwood, sir!" She said as she stood straight.

"What in the world do you think you're doing!?" Ironwood asked, practically demanding an answer from her.

Winter gave an immediate reply, "He started the altercations sir!"

"Actually that's not true." Qrow soon added, before he put his hands behind his head, "She attacked first."

"Is that right?" Ironwood asked, giving a quizzical look in Winter's direction.

Winter was about to say something but stopped herself from doing so as she turned her gaze to the floor. That pretty much answered his question,

"And you…" Ironwood said, turning to Qrow.

Qrow looked over to him as he pointed to himself, as if to ask, "Are you talking to me?"

"What in the world are you doing here?" Ironwood asked as he approached.

"I could be asking you the same thing." Qrow replied.

"I--"

"Now, now."

Ozpin soon came into view of the crowd, as he had a cup of coffee and Glynda was at his side. Destiny and Cristal took note of Ozpin, though Cristal on the other hand couldn't help but give him an odd look.

"That's your Headmaster?" Destiny asked curiously.

"Yup, that's him." Ruby said, as she stepped in front of the child, "Stay behind me for now okay?"

Destiny nodded her head at this, while Cristal looked to Ozpin with a quizzical look. "Is something wrong?" Weiss asked, noticing the look she gave.

"Nothing, just thinking." Cristal replied as she put her hood over her head to hide her face, not realizing that for a moment, Ozpin looked in her direction.

"There's a sanction fight just around the corner at the coliseum." The Headmaster said, "That I can assure you has better seats. And popcorn."

"Break it up everyone!" Glynda said to the students, "We will take care of this mess!"

"Let's go." Ironwood said as he fixed up his tie a little.

Winter merely followed behind him, without saying another word. Ruby, Weiss, Destiny and Cristal proceeded to get themselves through the crowd just as they began to disperse. Just as they saw Ironwood and his men leave they soon noticed Penny among them. She waved to Ruby as she had a smile on her while Ruby waved back, leaving Destiny and Cristal to wonder who the girl with the pink bow had been.

It hadn't been long before she leaped, clinging onto Qrow's arm, making him grunt.

"UNCLE QROW!!" She yelled as she hung like a monkey when he lifted her up, "Hi!" She couldn't help but kick her legs a little, "It's so good to see you! Didja miss me!? Didja miss me?!"

"Nope." Qrow replied with a smirk.

He gave a pat on Ruby's head which she couldn't help but enjoy, though--

"Qrow." Ozpin soon said, getting his attention, not taking note of the fact that his niece slipped off, "A word, please."

Ruby had been able to recover quick after but a few seconds; just as she did, Qrow leaned over to whisper in her ear, "I think I'm in trouble."

"You did kind of tear up the courtyard." Ruby said with an amused expression.

Qrow made the same expression, "Yeah, I did." He gave her his fist and in turn she gave him hers, "Catch you later kiddo."

Before Qrow went to join up with Ozpin he noticed Destiny just behind Weiss, and Destiny seemed to have noticed him looking at her. She shrunk a little at his gaze. Though Qrow simply gave her a smile as he gave her a wink which honestly surprised the child as she watched him join up with Ozpin and Glynda.

"And suddenly your recklessness makes sense." Weiss couldn't help but say.

"You're just mad because he whooped butt." Ruby said as she nudged her elbow.

Weiss merely gave her a look at this, "That was a draw at best."

Cristal gave a shrug, "Meh, they were both evenly matched in my opinion."

It hadn't been long before she noticed the face Destiny had been making as she watched Qrow walk away.

"Hey, Princess?" Cristal said leaning over her, making her jump a little, "Something the matter?"

Destiny shook her head as she replied, "It's really weird but… I feel like I've met him before..."

***

-Three Weeks Earlier-

The sleepover that Yang had planned was actually going better than expected. Destiny's nervousness seemed to have just faded as she talked more with JNPR, and they even found Cristal engaging in their conversations. They had all kinds of fun with the horror films that they had watched and the video games they had played. They even played the board game known as Remnant: The Game.

Ruby did warn the two sisters about playing the game and how they would get their hearts broken, though let's just say they didn't take their warning for granted as they learned the hard way what EXACTLY her words had meant.

Right now they were playing the classic game Truth or Dare. Nora had just done a dare, as did Weiss which had been to put makeup on each other with their eyes shut; they were currently getting it all off of their faces just as Yang was finishing up telling a truth.

"... And then after I beated up Junior's henchmen, or well--henchwomen I punched him right out the window, nearly busting up the entire building!"

Everyone couldn't help but be amazed by this story as they were all invested. "And that really happened?" Blake asked, turning to Ruby.

"In my defense, the fight was over by the time I got there." Ruby replied.

"Well that is one way to spend a night out on the town I'll give you that!" Cristal said with a laugh; Yang laughed along with her at this.

"What were you doing in a place like that anyway?" Ren couldn't help but ask.

"That's a story for another day." Yang said, "But enough about me, Pyrrha! It's your turn! Pick your poison!"

Pyrrha couldn't help but laugh at Yang's enthusiasm, as she thought about it for a moment, "I think… I'll go with the truth this time."

"Who's got a question for her?" Nora asked.

"Oh I do!" Destiny said as she raised her hand, "Out of all the stories you've heard, which one was your favorite before you went to sleep?"

"My favorite story?" Pyrrha said before she started to think of her answer, "I think my favorite one is… The Story of the Seasons."

Everyone seemed to be in awe by her answer, Destiny especially as her eyes practically sparkled.

"That's a really good one!" Jaune commented, making Pyrrha turn red a little at the smile he gave.

"That's my favorite story too!" Destiny soon said with a smile.

"Oh is it now?" Pyrrha asked with an amused look on her face.

"Does your sister read it to you?" Ren asked.

"Sometimes." Cristal answered, "Most of the time dad reads it to her."

"Aww, that's sweet!" Nora commented, "You're dad sounds sweet!"

Destiny laughed a little, "You know sometimes, dad would do an impression of the Wizard, Cristal and big sister and I would play the maidens!"

"Please don't bring up something embarrassing." Her sister said as her face turned red.

"What do you mean? It sounds cute!" Ruby said.

"OF COURSE YOU'D THINK THAT!" She couldn't help but yell, causing everyone in the group to laugh at her outburst, making Cristal turn even more red.

"It's your turn now Destiny." Ren soon said, "Truth or Dare?"

"Um…" Destiny started to say, "... Truth?"

"Okay, since we're on the subject." Blake soon said, "What's your father like? If you don't mind sharing that is."

Destiny soon started to twiddle her thumbs as she started to turn a little red as well, "Where do I even begin…?" She started to say, "... Well… Ever since I can remember it's always been us and our father. He's not really home as often as we would like, but he does his best to spend whatever time he has. People might not see him as a nice person, but he really is sweet when you get to know him. He's sweet to big sister, Cristal and I, and is pretty funny."

"Spoken like your mom." Cristal said as she ruffled her hair a bit, "As you can tell, the little Princess here really looks up to him."

"When you say people don't see him as a nice person, do you mean to say, he's tough around the edges?" Ruby asked.

Destiny had been a bit hesitant at this as she replied, "I uh… I suppose you can call it that."

"And you said he's barely at home?" Nora asked.

"He's always busy with work." Cristal soon replied, "Has the landlord happy where we live."

"We're…" The child started to say, "... Not exactly rolling in money I'm afraid. He has to work all the time to keep our home from getting lost, as well as my medicine. I miss him whenever he's away, but… I know it's not his fault. He still tries his best to be there and I'm grateful to him for that."

"You must really love him." Blake said.

Destiny nodded her head at this as she gave a sad smile.

"She takes a lot after mom." Cristal soon said to the group, "... She was like that too when she was around. Despite what people thought about him, or what his past was like she still loved him for who he is. I might've had my ups and downs with him, but Destiny on the other hand… She'll love him no matter what even if the world says it's wrong to do so."

Everyone soon noticed the look on Destiny's face when she thought about her father again. Though she had a smile, her eyes looked sad and distant, like she did a couple of times prior.

Thankfully, Ruby thought of a way to lighten the mood, "You know, the nights still ahead of us, why don't we watch a good old fashion animated film?"

"Oh! I know a good one!" Nora said, before pulling out a DVD box, "MY NEIGHBOR CATARIO!!"

"Ooo, that sounds like a good one!" Yang said.

"That's the first I've heard of it." Weiss said.

"Me too." Blake added.

"You guys are gonna love it, trust me!" Nora told them.

"You sure you guys don't need to get up early?" Cristal asked.

"It's fine! We have time for one more movie!" Ruby reassured her before she looked at Destiny, "What do you say, one more flick?"

Destiny looked unsure but her expression seemed to have changed to a warm smile, "... I'd like that."

All of them cheered and went ahead to get the snacks and set up the movie, which Destiny of course helped to gather. Though halfway through the film each of them fell asleep. Some had been scattered across the floor, while some had been resting against each other's shoulders.

Destiny and Ruby included.

***

-Present-

After the encounter in the courtyard, Mercury had told Cinder who he had seen and needless to say, she had been distraught by this.

"And you're sure?" Cinder asked as she paced.

"Bad hair, had a scythe, and smelled like our dad after a bad day." Mercury said sitting on one of the chairs provided, "It was him."

"This is bad." Emerald said nervously, "What do we do?"

Cinder had thought about it for a moment before she had given her reply to them; sounding calm, "Nothing. We stay the course. They have no idea who we are. So we have no reason to worry."

She had gone over the table, picking up a scroll as she did. "Besides…" She said as she opened up something on it, "... The heavy lifting has already been taken care of… Thanks to our clever little friend."

An icon of a pawn soon popped up at the corner of her scroll and it looked as though she had finished downloading something.

"Speaking of which…" She said, "... It appears we have a new access point."

"Anywhere good?" Emerald asked.

"You could say that." She replied, "Go to your rooms. I'll prepare everything for tomorrow."

Emerald and Mercury nodded as they went to rest; just as they left the room, a familiar girl with pink and brown hair entered the room.

"Ah, Neo." Cinder greeted not taking her eyes off the screen, "How goes the search?"

Neo soon took out her scroll from her pocket, pulling up a photo. She held it out for Cinder to see after she took her eyes off of her own device. There in the photo she saw a picture of a child and a teen, in the crowd of students from the courtyard earlier. One had magenta hair and the other had black hair.

"So you found them together?" Cinder said pleased, "Perfect. This will make things a lot easier."

She had soon noticed the look Neo had been giving her. She had a look of anger, yet her eyes were written with concern for the two girls in the photo. Cinder had been quick to conclude what she had been thinking.

"You're worried about those two? You have no reason to fear, I have no intention of making contact or hurting them in any way. Well… For the child anyway…"

Neo pulled out her blade, holding it close to Cinder's face, though she didn't seem phased by this as she looked at her calmly.

"Still willing to protect them even with everything on the line? Be careful with what you're doing. Despite them being free I can make sure they have a little accident."

Neo still held her glare as she pressed the blade a bit closer to her cheek. It was almost as if she had been asking what it was she was planning.

"You know I can't tell you that. All I can tell you is that child… His Princess… Has her part to play. As for the girl, well, let's just say that another story."

Neo tilted her head a little at this as she wondered what she meant by that. Cinder merely pushed the blade away from her face before she gave her reply, "You'll see when the time comes, but for now…"

On Cinder's device she pulled up a couple of photographs of different students on her scroll, which resemble that of a slot machine. It appeared as though she was choosing, as she soon picked her candidates.

"Let's give the crowd a good fight…"