#may cinder and winter all standing or something

[peterneptune16]

⚠️Warning, Major RWBY Volume 9 Spoilers⚠️

WhiteKnight - A ship I did not appreciate fully until the past few volumes

As I have probably proven with my posts in the past, My ideals on Weiss and Jaune ships are a bit odd. I’ve shown expressions of support for Arkos, Iceberg, and White Knight. And these are all ships that I love and always will love. But I wanted to make a post talking about how I feel about White Knight. Because really the more time and volumes have gone on, the more and more I really really love this ship and hope it becomes canon. As I have seen a lot of evidence for it someday being a canon ship, not quite as much as RG, but still a very substantial amount.

To start things off- I want to talk about Jaune’s relationship with Weiss, cause this is overall a far less complex part but still very worth talking about. As we all know, Jaune started off with a crush on Weiss. But then that slowly faded with time, instead his crush being on Pyrrha, especially in Volume 3. But ever since then, Jaune has shown signs of truly appreciating and liking Weiss’ friendship. And for most of the recent volumes, he has at first seemed to keep things mostly on a platonic level from my point of view. But, the more I look into it, there is legit evidence he could still have some serious feelings for her. Especially in Volume 8, he was devastated whenever Weiss didn’t come back with Winter. And it could be argued that he even felt this way in V5, with his devastated reaction to her being impaled by Cinder.

Next thing- Weiss’ feelings towards Jaune. This is a bit more of a complex and fun part. Weiss of course started off thinking Jaune was unqualified and not worth her time, even finding him annoying. Although, she did start to feel differently about him towards Volume 3, seeming to overall appear more friendly towards Jaune in the few interactions they had. Then, there was Volume 5, where it was shown it seemed she did truly miss Jaune and his antics, and she was grateful for his help at Haven. Clearly she was happy to see Jaune again and to be reunited with all of her former classmates. Then in Volume 6, She was even quick to try and defuse Jaune’s anger towards Oscar. Whereas around the time of Volume 1, she likely would have just made fun of him or done something else to make him even more mad. Then there was Volume 7, where she was quick to actually want to go see a movie with him and Oscar, a parallel to her rejecting his offer to see a movie together in the earlier volumes. Showing that she had grown more comfortable around Jaune in all this time. Then it became even more complex in Volume 8- to start things off- all of the characters seemed to be divided via people they were closest with/in a relationship with. Ruby/Oscar, Blake/Yang, and Nora/Ren. This would leave Weiss and Jaune as the last pair. That may not be actually concrete evidence but I do find it kind of fun and think that there was a choice there for symbolism, CRWBY loves the smaller details. Then we have the ending episodes of RWBY Volume 8, and in those Weiss showed more worry for Jaune it would seem. Even looking worried as he stopped boosting her aura and ran towards Penny. Then ofc, they sat together and she seemed to wanna keep her eyes on Jaune. Then finally, in the finale of that Volume, Jaune and Weiss were there for each other the whole fight. Weiss showing remorse for Jaune due to him having to kill Penny and actively wanted to help him out, physically helping him stand again after he fell to his knees. Finally- Volume 9. Of course we had Weiss saying Jaune was more “Mature~” and blushing profusely afterwards. But more than that, Weiss also showed genuine concern for Jaune’s mental state and also was the first one to try and ease Jaune’s mind over him feeling like a failure, like he wasn’t a good enough hero, and subsequently being the first one to hug him. She then also showed the most expressive response to Jaune being his old self again, giggling at his reaction to being back to his old self. It may not be the most concrete evidence to say she has feelings for him, but there seems to be a lot of stuff pointing to there being something there that wasn’t there before.

So while there may be less solid evidence for it than with RoseGarden, I really really like this ship and would not be mad if it became canon. It would make me happy to see these two get a happy ending together, they both deserve a happy ending after all.

#rwby #jaune arc #weiss schnee #rwby whiteknight #rwby spoiler tag #rwby spoilers #rwby volume 9 spoilers #rwby v9 spoilers #rwby volume 9 #rwby v9

[bestworstcase]

It’s fascinating to me to read the anon you got (and your extremely well-thought-out response) about Penny’s transformation being distasteful, because I’ve always had an instinctually viscerally negative response to that particular critique of the scene. My issue isn’t with your analysis, which I think stands up, but specifically the complaint that “Penny’s transformation is bad writing/symbolically hurtful, because it takes away the thing that makes her unique/means she no longer has to struggle to be perceived as real.”

I don’t think the text supports the idea that Penny disliked her transformation, or was more comfortable in her robotic body than in her new human one. Her finally getting to feel hugs is probably the single purest moment of joy in all of RWBY. I agree with you that it may have been disconcerting for her to have to re-learn how to fight as a human, but I think it’s entirely possible that Penny herself would say it was worth it—in those moments, she’s as happy as we’ve ever seen her.

Through that lens, the critique of her transformation is pretty distasteful, at least to me—Penny has always longed to be a “real girl.” Is the argument that she (or you or I, if we were given the choice) should have rejected the opportunity to get something she’d always wanted, because then she would no longer be unique? Is it morally better for her to remain a robot even if being a real girl is what she wants? This is probably just me pitting my own projection against someone else’s, so feel free to ignore it if you don’t feel like it adds any value to the discussion. But this has been one of my biggest RWBY pet peeves going back 2+ years, so I felt like I had to write this out.

tbh i think where a lot of folks get tripped up is with expecting rwby to handle the 'sapient robot' character in the typical way of that character's foremost concern being do i count as a Real Person?

but, like. penny raises that question once in a context where she a) clearly expects ruby to freak out, and b) is clearly trying to preempt the freak out by explaining what she is in the simplest, most straightforward terms. "you're my friend, right? you promise you're my friend?" / "you wouldn't understand" / "i'm not real" — but look at how she responds when ruby goes what? of course you're real, you've got a soul! "you're taking this extraordinarily well." and then "you're the best friend anyone could ever have!!"

<- to me that does not read like penny genuinely thinks she isn't a 'real person' so much as that is what she is primed to expect ruby to think, and she's terrified her new (only!) friend is going to reject her, so she tries to sort of... soften the blow by saying it first.

only ruby does not think that. at all. and that's the last time penny describes herself as "not real" and she generally seems to be quite comfortable in her skin as a robot. after that point the only time it's ever a pain point is when she reacts to other people treating her like a Thing instead of a Person. and like i said, that's very wrapped up in the broader narrative of dehumanization and authoritarianism going on with atlas, hence why this arc for penny is so intertwined with winter's.

all that to say, i don't really buy into the interpretation that penny ever had a problem with Being A Robot so much as she had a problem with the way people Treat Her As A Robot (and i think cinder is used narratively to make the point that obviously penny receiving this new flesh body does not make the people who saw her as a Thing before suddenly realize that she's a Person instead).

& that's why personally i see her loss of the robotic body as loosely equivalent to yang losing her original arm. it's acutely traumatic not so much because the new flesh body is weaker but because that's her body and she loses it in a pretty horrible way, and in an ideal scenario where the evacuation went off without a hitch and penny made it to vacuo in one piece, i imagine there would have been a major period of adjustment, both physically and emotionally, as she processed that loss.

her new flesh body is more akin to yang's prosthetic arm—it's not bad, per se, and certainly there are things she can find to love about it, but i would expect for her to have complicated feelings about simply because the way she got it is rooted in this traumatic event. and then just in terms of the before/after on her physical capabilities, objectively surviving the virus in this way is disabling, and that's a big thing to adjust to.

is that better than dying? yeah absolutely. and penny isn't the type who would resent her own survival simply because it came with some unpleasant consequences and big changes to adjust to—absolutely, she would think this was worth it to have a chance to live her life freely. same as yang chose not to regrow her arm in V9.

and there's no moral value to put on robot body over flesh body or vice versa; i think applying the 'robot vs real girl' lens to a story that so emphatically rejected that dichotomy right out of the gate and then went 'the real problem is this exploitative, dehumanizing military state that treats everybody like an expendable tool' is a bit disingenuous overall. what makes a person a real person in rwby is whether they have a soul, and it's stated upfront in no uncertain terms that penny has a soul. she's never not been a real girl. my read on her is that what she always wanted was to have her personhood respected moreso than she wanted to be 'real'.

[scham-wcan]

Heyo! Hope you're having a great day/night

Was wondering if ya had any more angst headcanons for cinwin buzzing around, or fluff if you're not up for angst atm

Heya!

I do have a couple angst/hurt-comfort ones about my kids absolutely—this got a little long, hope that’s okay!

I do enjoy thinking about when all of everything is said and done the pair of them are left with just are covered in scars, wounds, and injuries that will take time—even with Maiden powers—to heal. These are two people who are obsessed with how they’re perceived, Winter with her former status haunting her and her new life she’s made in the ashes of the old, Cinder with how far she fell to get power she thought she needed or deserved only to be used as a tool for someone else which she is damned to never let happen again. So these wounds and damages are far more than just superficial, they’re injuries which they believe damage their character, make them appear weak, underserving of what they have obtained, because why would the winner be anything else besides capable. Even worse if there are injuries which impede their lifestyles, like a busted leg or back, or a new prosthetic which refuses to cooperate in place of a Grimm abomination. They’re just incapable of accepting that with all of these damages that they’re still worthy of what they achieved or had.

Which—And this is where the hurt comfort I promised comes in— is why I think a scenario like that is so perfect for these two. Because in spite of how they view themselves, the other one still values strength, perseverance, and they’re able to see those short comings as things beyond damages to an ego but semblances of pride. They’re mementos of the tough times each of them have gone through, and ones they have gone through together as well.

Like a scene where Winter is breaking herself over backwards trying to come to terms with a brace, or an assisted recovery piece, refusing to use it and feeling the pain in that injury just grow so much worse. Cinder wouldn’t be the one to force her back into using it, but she’d be damned if she would listen to what was once one of her greatest foes and now greatest partner beat herself up over being unable to run. Despite all of that pain she may not be able to run, but she can stand, she can hold her own weight, she can walk—albeit with Cinder close by for her own peace of mind.

Or a piece of Cinder just angry beyond belief that she cannot do something as simple as pick up a mug with her prosthetic, refusing to believe she’s being defeated by something she caused and something so simple as a scrap of metal shaped like a hand. Taking periods where she goes without the thing while fuming so hard she’s steaming. It’s a bad memory again where she knows she has no one else but herself to blame for her being like this, its the biggest symbol of how terrible her life and actions were to that point; and that struggle is made manifest with her being incapable of doing the simplest of things. Yet there’s Winter, ready to pick up the arm when its thrown, bring it back when Cinder’s prepared, there help her attach or remove it, and always prepared to be there with Cinder, in silence or in voice, to persist that she’s improving.

Other than that there’s also the obligatory scar worship and devotion they show to one another, where one damns themselves because of their wounds while the other notes constantly that she is the most beautiful mosaic piece they have ever seen covered with losses and victories more poetic and powerful than the stars in the sky.

But other than that yeah I have some CinWin buzzing around usually, thanks for asking!

#anon asks #thanks for the question! I love my kids #cinder fall #winter schnee #cinwin #snowfall #scham rambles

[steviesmarigold]

M’s Week on AO3

6/27/22

—

First Reads

You’re a Peach: 6.6k words

But before Steve can worry himself into a cinder or give himself an actual erection, the little dots appear again, and a moment later, a picture comes through, of Bucky standing proudly in front of a raised bed garden.

Holding an eggplant.

Steve wonders if it's possible to sink through the bed, the hotel floor, and into some dank hotel basement or laundry room where he can hide from the fact that Bucky, apparently, is still using emojis completely literally and he, Steve, is a fucking idiot.

In which Steve accidentally panic sexts Bucky.

Coming Out At The Ripe Old Age Of 99: 22k words

The only reason Wanda knew Steve was gay was because she had invaded his mind, it never would have been something she guessed. He hid it so well, like it was second nature to him, as easy and subconscious as breathing. She never would have known. She had violated his privacy in so many ways and spoke a secret he held close to his chest into existence without a thought. She had been under the impression that Steve was out, just not super talkative about his love life in the same way he was about essentially all of his personal life, but that wasn't the case at all.

And even if it was just one other person she had revealed the truth to, it was still two more than Steve had thought would ever know, and she had still, unintentionally, outed him.

The decades of someone else's repressed emotions hit her all at once.

The Impossible Return: 25k words

In 1996, the wreckage of the Valkyrie was found off the coast of Greenland. The cockpit was empty. There was no body and no shield. There was, however, a leather-bound journal filled with letters to a man long dead.

In 2011, that same man is found frozen at the bottom of the Alps, still very much alive.

Or: The Winter Soldier Steve AU I never thought I'd write.

Portland, Maine: 8.2k words

It was a mutual separation if there was such a thing. They were going to different colleges across the country and neither of them wanted to do long-distance. Besides, they knew the statistic: only 2% of high school relationships lasted, and while they did last longer than the national average, the odds were against them.

Or, after nearly two decades, Bucky finds Steve again in the small town of Portland, Maine and they spend the week together

under the salty sea: 8.1k words

Steve goes into the ice wrapped in his sealskin.

He wakes up cold and empty.

A selkie isn't supposed to be separated from their coat. He has to adapt to the twenty-first century while adjusting to having a hole ripped out of his soul. He can feel that it's out there, somewhere, waiting. It's not destroyed.

But where?

{A Winter Soldier AU}

shakes your hand, takes your gun (walks you out of the sun): 6.3k words

One rainy autumn evening, a man from Steve Rogers’s past comes looking for help. Can Steve move past their history and help break the curse? Or is Bucky doomed to destroy everything he touches for the rest of his life?

Re-Reads

the long game: 6.8k words

In 1945, Steve Rogers trades himself to the Red Room in exchange for the Winter Soldier. They accept his offer, but don't let Bucky go. After all, their supersoldiers come as a matched set.

(Featuring crafty Steve, pining Bucky, and a very noisy metal arm.)

broken people (living under loaded gun): 5.8k words

“It’s him, Nat.”

“He may look like Steve, but that’s not Steve.” Distress mars her calm, professional mask, a sign of how shaken she is. “You saw how many men he killed, the way he did it. That’s not Steve.”

Bucky knows what she means. The man in the cell was merciless and ruthless, and he killed with such brutal grace that Bucky hadn’t been able to look away. But strip Steve of his higher ideals, and that’s how he’d fight; smart, efficient, lethal; leaving dead bodies in his wake, instead of just broken bones and contusions.

So the question is, what had Hydra done to Steve, and who did Bucky have to kill in recompense.

this love immortal is an assassin’s delight: 12k words

“Captain America lives on the top floor. Roof access. This is the closest we can get with camera surveillance. Stark hasn’t started sweeping random bakeries, not yet. Think you can handle the mission?”

The Soldier has killed presidents and priests, drug lords and diplomats, people with small armies to protect them and people who could make him break a sweat as they fought for their lives. He has shaped the century.

These are facts, not memories.

But he knows this is nothing, this mission. Follow a lone man around the city. Break into his apartment. Watch and observe.

“Yes,” he says.

“Guess Pierce was right. This is ironic. Fucking poetic even.” Rumlow snorts. “Barnes is a supersoldier. You’re the only one who can take care of him, isn’t that right, Cap?”

That is not the Soldier’s designation. He nods anyway.

-

After the Battle of New York, Captain America refuses to work for S.H.I.E.L.D. and remains in New York. Alexander Pierce activates the Winter Soldier to handle the situation and unknowingly signs Hydra’s death warrant.

The Roommate: 28k words

In which Steven G. Rogers, a.k.a. Captain America, gets a roommate. Who rapidly turns into his "roommate"—in the euphemistic sense of the word.

It takes SHIELD and the rest of the Avengers an absurd amount of time to notice.

A Soft Place To Land: 10k words

Plant witch Steve spends his days with his tight-knit coven, gardening and loving on plants of all kinds. Bucky has a gloved hand and dark energy he can't quite hide. This is the low-fi magical realism story of their love.

#stucky #steve rogers #bucky barnes #stucky fic recs #m’s week on ao3

[harvestmoth]

anyways heres an actual thing on the role swap au that’s literally the exact same as every other thing i’ve drawn for this au

#rwby #cinder fall #may marigold #cinder rhodes #winter schnee #help i can’t do anything with this au except the same darn doodle #may cinder and winter all standing or something #just the top halves of them #may looking as crazy as i can draw with the maiden powers #cinder and winter being tired and smad #i #am really bad at this whole au deal #this might actually be the last post i do of this #maybe #i kinda wanna draw other dumber things #still rwby though #there might be some of the tole swap here and there though #cause i really like that whole au idea #i should really stop rambling in the tags

[arc-misadventures]

For Hunters drones could we get something where one of the villains tries to break into Jayne’s lab but are caught by the girls

Or if you go with Cinder, Emerald, or Mercury they are caught by Jaune who’s so tired that his voice sounds like that of a disappointed father

I don’t know just kinda sounds funny in my head

I want to use this idea, but not yet. So, Imma gonna tweak it, just a bit.

Hunter Drones VIII

Nearly a dozen White Fang grunts were walking through the hidden hallways of Atlas Academy searching for the secret robotics facility.

WF#1: You sure this is a good idea?

WF#2: Greg, we’re nearly there! You’re asking us this now, now?!

WF#1: Well… You didn’t really ask us if we wanted to do this, we just left after that guy gave us the access codes.

WF#3: He’s right, we don’t even know who that guy was; can we even trust him?

WF#4: He smelled like a human; are we taking the words of human now?!

WF#2: Quiet! We’re already in too deep as it is. We’re going to get caught no matter what; so lets raise some hell before we do!

WF#3: Well, let’s go then.

WF#4: Now that, sounds fun then!

WF#1: Well, what else can we do…

WF#2: Lets do this then!

The group of White Fang, ran down the halls trying to reach the nearest lab when they ran into an unexpected figure.

WF#3: What the?!

WF#4: Why is there a kid here?

WF#2: Who cares; Hey, kid, get out of here if you know what’s good for you!

Penny: Faunas / White Fang / Here?

WF#5: Okay… that’s a weird kid…

Penny: The White Fang are enemies of, Atlas, no?

WF#2: And, all those who oppose us! We will slaughter any who stand in our way!

Penny: Interesting~!

WF#1: I-I don’t like this… This doesn’t feel good…

WF#3: What does it matter it’s just a kid, even you could take her, Greg.

WF#1: You want me to kill a kid?!

WF#4: No?! Go, and bonk her on the head, and knock her out!

WF#1: To a kid?! Do you have any idea how bad that is for a growing kid?!

WF#2: Why are you such a pacifist? We’re here to kill humans, and mess up their shit! Why are you here with us, why aren’t you even armed?!

WF#1: I’m the medic?! My job is to treat the wounded, not make them!

WF#3: Ugh, you’re such a… Uh-oh…

WF#5: We’ve got company!

Yang: Penny, there you are. What are you doing out….? Oh, hello~!

Ruby: Oooh! White Fang?! How did they get in here?!

Yang: Good question; why are you all here~?

Blake: We could just ask them?

WF#2: A faunas?! Why are you helping these, Atlasian bastards and not you fellow faunas brother, and sisters?!

Blake: Because these are my sisters, and I may appear as a faunas, but I am no faunas.

WF#4: What are you then, some sort of sick Atlas experiment?!

WF#5: Some sort of spy perhaps?

WF#2: It doesn’t matter! Get out of our way now, or die!

Yang: Die?

Blake: Would those weapons even put a scratch on our aura.

Ruby: Hmm… Arbiter Mrk. 3, Vulture Pattern Auto-gun. Created, and manufactured in, Vacuo. High capacity cartridge, and high fire rate. Heavy recoil resulting in poor accuracy. Weak to even low level, Grimm. Best used in large concentrated numbers. Designed as cheap weaponry for civilian purchase.

Yang: That bad, eh?

Ruby: It’d be like getting shot with foam pellets.

Yang: Okay then… First things first: Surrender now, or die…

Penny: Do we really have to ask them to surrender?!

Yang: Yes; Jaune, would be upset if we didn’t.

Ruby: That’s a good reason…

Penny: I still hate it…

WF#2: Surrender?! Like hell! We rather die before we surrender to you Atlas scum…

YBRP: …

Yang: Is that so~?

WF#1: I don’t like this… I don’t like this at all!

Yang: If it’s like that then… Penny, would you do the honours~?

Penny: Hehe~! At long last! We can finally do it!!!

WF#2: Do what; kill faunas?

Penny: No.

WF#2: Then what is it?

Penny: Dismember meatbags~!

WF#1: Oh no…

~~~

Winter: Move, move, move!

Clover: This is bad, really bad! How the hell did they get security codes to get in here?!

Harriet: And, why are they here?!

Winter: It could be anything! There’s so many weapons, experimental tech, and whatever the hell it is that they keep down here!

Marrow: What about, Dr. Arc? Isn’t his lab down here?

Winter: The alarm sounded just outside his lab!

Harriet: Shit!

Elm: Do you think he’ll be okay?!

Winter: Hard to say; his lab is one of the most well defended there is. But, that’s only the bulkhead that protects his lab. There are no weapon emplacements whatsoever!

Harriet: Why the hell not?!

Winter: Safety per-caution; Don’t want a stray bullets flying about, and hit something volatile!

Clover: Good reason. What, about the, Hunter Drones could they be of any assistance?!

Winter: They’ve only taken down Grimm before, who knows how they’ll stand against a human opponent. Humans tend to be a hell of a lot smarter than, Grimm!

Vine: Is there any word from the doctor?!

Winter: No! The cameras are down, and the coms are dead! We’re going in blind! Dammit!

Marrow: Let’s just hope everything is… Freeze!

WF#2: Specialists?!

Winter: Surender now, or…?!

WF#2: I surrender! I’ll tell you everything you want to know, and more! Just please, by the gods you gotta protect me! Please, I’m begging you! Save me!

Winter: Protect you? Protect you from what?!

WF#2: Those monsters!

Greg pointed down the hallway to see another member of the, White Fang member run around the corner. He was about to scream when, Yang, appear. Grabbing the faunas by his shirt, and punching the mans skull, causing it to explode and paint the wall with a shower of blood, fragments of bone, and a shower of brain splatter. Yang: held the headless terrorist in her hand for a moment, blood dripping for her fist as she let the lifeless body fall to the floor with a wet spatter. All as she grinned as a monster in shear delight at the gruesome carriage she left in her wake.

Yang: Hehe~! That’s what you get for messing up with my hair you fucker!

Blake soon appeared behind her, casually tossing a decapitated head to the side as she stood besides her sister.

Blake: Haa~! Now that was was relaxing. We should do this again sometime~

Yang: Hell yeah we will!

Ruby appeared next, in her hands rested one of the faunas rifles. She slowly counted off all the faunas they massacred as she scratched a series of tally marks on the side of the rifle casing.

Ruby: Twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two… Hmm… I counted twenty-three, we’re missing one… Oh wait, Winter has him. Hi, Winter!

Penny: We can still gut the meatbag, no~?!!

Penny, the last of the Hunter Drones, rounded the corner, her face, and throat covered jn blood as she finally lived out her dream; Drinking the blood of the meatbags.

Yang: Hey, Winter! You going to keep that one, or can we have him?

Winter, and the rest of the, Specialist stood in horror at the gazed upon the gruesome sight before her. She had seen the aftermath of Grimm, and White Fang attacks before, the horrors of battle. But, the shear casualness of the, Hunter Drones killing, and the shear delight they seemed to take in killing scared her like nothing else before. The only logical response any of them had was to stare in horror at the sight before them. Or, in the case of, Specialist Marrows case; faint because of it.

Yang: Is that a no?

#rwby #jaune arc #yang xiao long #blake belladonna #ruby rose #penny polendina #winter schnee #vine zeki #harriet bree #elm ederne #clover ebi #marrow amin

[help-i-need-a-cool-username]

Renorarc Week Day 8: FREE DAY

@renorarcweek

So i found out about Renorarc Week halfway through, so i didnt have enough time to make more than one entry. Its the first draft, and more outline than fic, but i wanted to share something. Heres Day 8: Free Day which ive chosen to do as Reunion

When Jaune and RWBY come back to Remnant, they pop out where they entered: Atlas

When they come through they see the destruction of the cities, streets still flooded by about 10 feet

They're standing on a rooftop or a cliff when they hear a airship

Qrow, Robyn, Elm, Harriet, Marrow, Maria, and Pietro have managed to stabilize Amity Colosseum and its where they've been staying. When RWBYJ came back it alerted their sensors so Qrow and Robyn came in their sole airship to check it out

Qrow gets pulled into a hug by his nieces. He thought they made it all the way to Vacuo, he had no idea about what happened inside the portal realm and how they all fell

Qrow and Robyn take them back to Amity. Ruby is the one to tell Pietro about Penny. No one mentions what Jaune did, though Weiss does correct Pietro when it becomes clear Pietro thought Penny died by freezing in the atmosphere and falling off of Amity, not by fighting Cinder

A few days pass. Food supplies are almost gone. Pietro has been trying everything to get a signal high enough to call for help (since they are in a communications tower). Their last ditch effort is going to be Qrow flying the airship as far as he can before their limited fuel runs out towards the nearest town, and flying himself the rest of the way in his crow form.

They manage to do it, they have to sacrifice gravity dust from Amity to send what is basically another satellite up higher, but it works. They not only have a signal but a far reaching one. Its weak and finicky but Pietro figures its high enough for global communications.

Weiss asks if its strong enough to call Winter, Pierto tells her to give it a shot. She does. Winter's voice keeps cutting out but they can hear her. Winter passes the phone to her mother and when Weiss hears Willow crying she takes it off speaker and they all give her a little privacy.

Weiss comes back and says everyone thinks they're dead. That they should call the rest of the group to figure out whats going on down there. Jaune calls Nora while Yang is going to call Oscar and Blake is going to call Ren

Jaune's scroll rings for the longest time. Nora picks up and by her response its clear she didnt check to see who was calling. She sounds a little out of breath so Jaune says "did you misplace your scroll again?" and he just hears her breath hitch. "Jaune?" "Hey. Yeah its me." "Jaune." "Yes" "Jaune!" "Nora" "ARE YOU ALIVE" "Yes" and through the static Jaune can hear Nora sobbing and what may be a threat and Ren's name is said a few times

Jaune vaguely notes RWBY all passing their scrolls around to talk to Oscar and Ren

Jaune starts tearing up a little because he's just now realizing he could of actually died and never seen Nora or Ren or anybody really ever again

Jaune just goes "i missed you too" because its all he can really say. Theres silence while Nora's sobbing turns to sniffles. "I love you. I love you so much. You know that right" and Jaune replies "yeah. I love you too"

Nora doesnt want to get off the phone with him, but RWBY and Qrow are all done talking to Oscar and Ren so they're patiently waiting for Jaune to swap scrolls. No one wants to hang up and risk losing the signal. Jaune tells Nora that RWBY's here and they wanna talk to her too, and she chokes up again. Jaune hands his scroll to Ruby, who has tear tracks on her face

Weiss hands him a scroll, and he sees it has Oscar's contact on the call screen. Jaune says a watery "hey Oscar". Oscar is happy, if a bit watery too, to talk to him. He gives Jaune the rundown of whats happened while they were gone.

Eventually he hands Oscar off again and someone hands him Ren. "Jaune? Jaune is that you?" "Hey buddy" "its so good to hear your voice again" "its good to hear yours too". Jaune can hear Ren sniffling on the other side of the scroll and the voice cracks in his voice. They just kind of sit in silence for a while, with only a few words thrown back in forth. The static starts getting worse. Jaune promises he'll see Ren soon. That he'll call him and Nora the next chance he gets. Ren ends the call with "i love you" and Jaune says it back.

Everyone is exhausted after that. Its been nearly 2 hours. They talk a little about whats happening in Vacuo but most of them call it a early night. Pietro says help will get here by tomorrow afternoon.

Jaune glances at his own scroll when its returned to him and sees he has 23 text messages from Nora, two from Oscar, and one from Ren. He spends the night sending and receiving very slow text messages.

When RWBYJQ get to Vacuo, the old fashion way, theres a welcome party waiting for them. Sun actually picks up Blake when he hugs her, and she yells at him to put her down. Jaune meanwhile has just got bulldozed by Nora and is now blinking stars out of his eyes. "Ow"

Nora crushes him in a hug before letting him sit up, and even then she still has a leg thrown over his lap. She's kissing his face all over. She gets his mouth a few times, Jaune doesnt mind. He's actually laughing a little and puts his arms around her waist.

Him and Ren have the longest hug of Ren's life. Ren buries his head in Jaune's neck and just stays there for two minutes. He only moves so Oscar can join.

Ren and Nora find excuses to touch him the rest of the day. Brushing shoulders as they walk, pressing legs together when they're sitting, hands on his shoulders and his back, hand holding. Nora eventually parks herself under his arm with her arms around his waist

When he goes to bed that night he's sharing a tent with Nora and Ren. Nora demands he's not leaving her sight and she drags him over to her sleeping bag. She curls up to his side and holds onto him like she did all day. When Ren enters the tent he comes straight over and takes up Jaune's unoccupied side.

That ends up becoming Jaune's nights: sharing a bed with Ren and Nora

When Ren and Nora get back together, that doesnt change

Jaune doesnt realize its weird. Ren and Nora's relationship on a break and Ren and Nora's relationship when they're dating are very similar. Its not like there was a huge development for him to realize that maybe he shouldnt be there. But its not just him, Ren and Nora always end up in whatever bed or sleeping bag he fell asleep in that night

Heck they both kiss him goodnight when they kiss goodnight

Its not on the mouth but still

The problem is none of them realize they're dating. Ren and Nora's relationship was ambiguous for the longest time. And Jaune went half a school year not noticing his roommate was in love with him.

It takes splitting up again to really make that connection

They're on their way back to Beacon, to protect the last vault. Something happens, and the whole group gets split up. Everyone agrees they'll meet back up at Beacon. Jaune, Nora, and Ren all ended up in different groups

Jaune's group gets to Beacon first. Its not abandoned, but the only people there are staff and thats only because Glynda refused to leave the relic unguarded. Ruby's father is one of the huntsmen there, a favor to Glynda. Ruby is very excited to see him, but everyone has mixed feelings about being at Beacon again.

It takes two days for the next group to make it. Neither Ren or Nora were a part of that group, but Yang was, and she's also excited to see her dad again

Nora's group comes the next morning, Jaune has no warning before he's face down in the courtyard because Nora decided to announce her arrival by bulldozing him over from behind

Nora actually wants to nap, and drags Jaune with her, but later they go and re-explore Beacon. Tai sees them walking around holding hands and laughing and asks Ruby "oh, are they dating?" "No dad, Nora is dating Ren. Her and Jaune are just teammates". Taiyang "entire team" Xiao Long simply goes "yeah, sure. Thats it."

They get to the spot where Nora found out about Pyrrha, where Yang was bleeding out next to her, where she heard Blake's hopeless sobs, the spot where she couldn't even stand up to keep fighting and just sat there in horror, holding onto Ren's hand because thats all she could do. And she decides she needs to make it perfectly clear how she feels about Jaune.

Jaune looks at her concerned, asks if she's okay. Nora simply turns towards him and grabs both his hands. "I need you to know how much I love you. I don't want to think about a time where i dont and one of us isnt here anymore-" "Nora-" "i love you. I love you so much it hurts sometimes. I love you more than ive ever loved anyone besides Ren. I love you LIKE i love Ren. I cant picture a future without you in it and i never want to. I just care so much about you Jaune-" and Nora's crying. Jaune pulls her into a hug. With their height difference Jaune actually has to lean down to rest his head on top of hers. He rubs her back and kisses her hair and they just stand there swaying for a time.

Jaune, with some hope, eventually asks "so when you said you loved me like you love Ren, what did that mean?" "It means im in love with you dummy" "Really!?" "Yes really" and Jaune looks so happy and so cute Nora just decides to go for it, she grabs him by the collar of his chest plate and uses it to pull him down and herself up to kiss him

They share a few more sweet kisses, smiling and laughing to much to do more than that

Ren's group makes it that night. Its well past dark, and they had a few close calls. All he's thinking about is sleep and wanting to make sure his teammates are safe. Someone points him in their direction and he heads off to find them

They're set up in the dorms, but a different building than their original dorm. He trudges up there. They're in the common room in the dark watching a movie. They're curled up on the couch, Jaune has his arm around Nora. Ren sees this and gets hit with a wave of affection.

He enters the room and walks up behind the couch. He leans down to fold his arms on the backrest and waits for them to notice him

Nora does first. She turns around in her seat and leans up to hug his neck and give him a big kiss on the mouth. Jaune turns to say hello and Ren's sleep drunk brain decides to have Ren lean down and kiss Jaune on the mouth.

Its a much longer kiss then Nora gave him. Ren breaks away to see Jaune smiling. It takes a minute for him to realize what he did. Nora giggles at the face Ren makes. Jaune's still smiling. Ren goes "screw it ive wanted to do this for a while" and grabs Jaune's face to kiss him again. Nora cheers.

It turns out sleep deprived Ren has much less control then regular Ren, and next thing he knows he's pushed himself almost all the way over the couch back, his tongue is in Jaune's mouth, and Nora is making excited comments. "Sorry" "no its fine. Its more than fine"

Ren pretty much passes out after that. But he thinks this reunion was a lot better than the last



#renorarc week #hinacu rwby #rwby #renorarc #poly jnr #polyam jnr #noras boys #jaune arc #nora valkyrie #lie ren #day 8

[shellyseashell]

QUEER REP IN MM BOOKS

Rhjrhhrjrjjff I really woke up today and decided to talk about queer rep huh.

Alright. So mm. She’s one of my favorite authors and I love her books, but something that’s always stuck out to me is her queer rep. She’s straight, so as much as she tries (which aren’t very good tries), the rep is always going to be off.

For context, I’m an ace lesbian. I haven’t read the books in a while, so if I get anything wrong, I apologize.

The way I’m going to do this is by series/book. Some things might have specific things I want to talk about, I may go by character, idk. Be prepared for an incoherent rant.

TLC

I talked about it on the tlc unpopular opinions post, but I’m gonna say it again. Not all the couples had to be written as straight. Even if they all ended up in m/f relationships, with 9 main characters, it’s unrealistic none would be queer in some way, whether it’s sexuality or gender.

And why couldn’t it be? Honestly, the gender of either character in the couples could have been swapped and nothing would change. Why did they only recruit males for genetic modification? Why are dashing criminals always guys? Does Levana recruit only male guards? She has plenty of female Thaumaturges, so clearly she doesn’t discriminate based on gender.

Wolf and Scarlet could still find her grandmother. Cress and Thorne would survive the desert. Winter and Jacin still wouldn’t be able to be together, which honestly could add another layer to how oppressive Lunar society is, if she wanted to go that route. Which honestly, probably better she didn’t, since that’s something definitely better handled by queer authors. But my point still stands.

The only one that might be slightly changed is Kaider, and that’s only if Kai was a girl. Even then, Levana could have easily been the evil king instead of queen. Yeah, it would’ve changed how the whole Winter-Evret-Solstice situation would happen, but you’re the author, figure it out. And honestly? Levana would have been ten times more terrifying as a guy who only saw Kai as useful because they could have kids. Tyrants are terrifying, yeah, but that’s someone you meet in everyday life. Like Aimery, y’know? Idk where I’m going with that but it just seems like something that could add depth.

I talked about Cress in my original response, but I’ll go more in depth here. Cress was locked in a satellite for years. A lot of what she knows about the world is what she’s read and seen on shows, which is . . . exactly how comphet can develop. And what Cress has with Thorne definitely feels like that. We get no say on what queer rep and acceptance is like in the tlc universe, so for all we know all the netdramas have straight couples. Cress loves netdramas. She copes by pretending she’s on one. If Cress grew up watching only straight couples and didn’t even consider any other option, she would think that’s normal. That she can like men, and only men. Because if she wants to live the perfect netdrama life, she has to like men. So when she learns of Cinder and Thorne escaping, she focuses on Thorne because he’s a conventionally attractive man and she’s supposed to like him, right? She learns all about him and idolizes him and mistakes it for a crush. But she hides the Rampion because Levana is looking for Cinder. Yes, I’m saying I think Cress actually had a crush on Cinder. What about it.

What Cress knows about Thorne is what she’s read, which paints him as the perfect hero. The perfect man. Even as a criminal, he’s exactly what she thinks a man is supposed to be like, going off fictional standards she probably has from netdramas. And in the desert, they were working to keep each other alive, so it’s only natural they’d grow close. And I think Cress mistook platonic love for romantic love, because Thorne’s a man so it has to be romantic.

I’m way too invested in Cress and her sexuality, so I’ll try to wrap it up. Cress could have had an arc where she realizes she doesn’t like men. Her and Thorne are forced together for days and she realizes, yeah, this isn’t for me. Now, whether she realizes she’s a lesbian like I think she is, or she realizes she aro or ace or aroace or whatever, it would have been a nice arc, and I think she had the most potential for one.

RENEGADES

Oh god, Renegades. If I have her publishing order correct, her first series with queer rep. It was . . . not a great try. I think some characters had their sexualities confirmed in an interview or q&a or something, but not in the series, so I’ll be talking about what is confirmed in the series.

Starting with Humon (that’s the ship name right—). Look. I thought they were great. They were amazing dads, for the most part. I wasn’t too invested in them, so I don’t have many points to say, but I have a big one.

So the Council is notably, not the best people. Honestly, I feel like they were more of the villains than the Anarchists. Not to say the Anarchists were great, because they definitely weren’t. But it was a bad move to make the two queer superheroes the leaders (I know they Council didn’t have one leader, but honestly, Hugh was the leader) and then turn around and make them antagonists.

I know as a community, we love to headcanon villains and antagonists as queer, but that’s our own thing. It feels off when a straight author makes the villains queer, and none of the heroes (I’ll get to Danna and Narcissa in a moment). Especially when those characters are antagonists because they’re oppressing others. Agent N was used to punish prodigies who didn’t join the Renegades, and they treated the Anarchists horribly after their defeat. Sure, the Anarchists were awful, but they could have at least done something better than shoving them in the train tunnels to be forgotten. They didn’t even care about them enough to find out they had a child living with them.

And to make the two people in charge of that project, using their son to create Agent N, and then using it to oppress people queer, when queer people themselves have been oppressed? Bad move.

Queer villains are fine. Horrible queer people exist. But it’s not fine when they’re really the only queer characters.

Onto Danissa! Look. I love Danissa. That doesn’t mean they didn’t have problems. This time I’ll analyze each character instead of both of them together.

Starting with Danna. Honestly, she didn’t get much development. She was hardly there in Renegades, and she was hardly there in Supernova. Throughout Archenemies, and Supernova I think, she was again, more of an antagonistic force. Her actions were justified, yeah, but she was still an antagonist for Nova.

Even going away from that, she wasn’t very developed. Outside of being a problem for Nova, I honestly can’t remember anything about of her. Most of her personality is headcanons and fanon, honestly.

Narcissa was a little more developed, but even then, barely. She was just the mirror walker from the library in Renegades, I don’t think she was in Archenemies at all, and she played a major part in Supernova. I can name a few things about her personality, like how she likes reading. I don’t think she was ever really portrayed as an antagonist? But still feels weird that most of the queer characters, if not all, were villains.

Both Danna and Narcissa had their parts to play, and they honestly didn’t need to get together. The only time we see them interact is with Phobia, and even then we just get a line saying they grew closer during that experience. But we don’t actually see that development. Honestly, them getting together (which was just one throwaway line) felt like diversity for diversity points. There was no build up, both their characters were hardly developed, and they barely interacted. As with Danna, everything with their relationship is fanon.

HEARTLESS & INSTANT KARMA

I don’t have much to say on these, so I’m combining them. Starting with Heartless, I would have liked it so much more if Jest was a girl. Look. Look at me. I don’t care about your bullshit historical accuracy excuse. Queer people have always existed. Jest and Cath’s entire plot is that they can’t be together. That Cath would lose everything for loving Jest. You know who have been kicked out of families and lost everything just for loving someone? Queer people. We’ve been denied the right to love who we want and to just exist, and plots where straight couples are forbidden from being together have always rubbed me the wrong way. I know if Jest had been a girl it probably would have fallen into the bury your gays trope, and Cath becoming a tyrant would feel off, but Jest died because he and Cath had tried to be together, even if it wasn’t the direct cause of his death. Queer people die all the time just for being queer. Coming from a straight author, it would have been done poorly, yeah, I’m just tired of stories where two characters can’t be together due to social or political reasons being straight. I know that wasn’t specifically about queer rep but I’ve been thinking about it for a while.

I barely remember Instant Karma, so all I have to say is that she honestly had no excuse for not making someone explicitly queer. I can guarantee that in a modern American high school, it’s very hard to find a friend group without at least one queer person, if not impossible (obviously there are circumstances that change things, but in general). Prudence also had so many siblings? You’re telling me they’re all straight? Some of them were definitely old enough to know their sexuality. So which one is the gay cousin?

I haven’t read Gilded yet, and I know there’s stuff in there I’ll want to talk about, so I’ll reblog with a rant about that when I do.

#tlc #the lunar chronicles #mm crit #renegades #heartless #instant karma

[itsclydebitches]

A great example of “RWBY+ can do no wrong” is the whole “Let Penny make her own choices” thing. They keep doing it over and over, yet while watching I never got the idea RWBY+ doing it was bad. They’re never called out, they never regret it, or anything. Ruby takes the scroll from Penny’s hand and answers Ironwood for her, and makes her human without her consent. I get the not killing Penny thing, BUT THAT’S THE ONLY THING THEY DO FOR HER. WTF?!

Yes let's take a hot second to unpack all this.

Now, I'm going to be focusing on late Volume 7 and Volume 8, but in reality this problem started way back during Penny's introduction. Namely, presenting her as a literal tool of the military who has to break the rules set down (go out, have friends, etc.) in order to be her own person. There's a small problem here in the form of making Pietro the shadowy scientist and then changing him into the doting father with no acknowledgement that he a) built Penny with the purpose of being Atlas' tool and b) went along with dictating her actions through that whole run. However, given that Pietro is a minor character we may never even see again, we have a much larger problem in the form of Ruby being entirely disinterested in Penny's plight. Ruby cares about making sure Penny feels real, not that Penny has all the freedoms a real person innately deserves. Admittedly, this is less of an issue back in Volumes 1-3 because RWBY was a less serious show then, Penny was a new friend, and Ruby was the teenager student. But come Volume 7 when our show is questioning the characters' morals, Ruby is an adult now, Ruby has her huntsmen license, and she supposedly has this incredibly strong bond with Penny, it's now a problem that she hears things like "Ironwood doesn't want me to have friends" and just... doesn't seem to care. Or do anything. Or suggest that Penny do something. It's a non-topic. Ruby only becomes interested in Penny's autonomy when that autonomy threatens Ruby's own goals. When Ruby is working for Ironwood, it's totally fine if Penny works for Ironwood too, no matter how she might be being treated. (Though, frankly, I think the show did a terrible job of establishing Ironwood's supposed mistreatment. The no friends rule makes zero sense when Penny is being sent to celebratory parties organized by Ironwood. So that's a whole other issue.) But when Ruby is against Ironwood... well, then Penny needs to be on their side. Of course she'd be on their side. It's presented as inevitable, despite the fact that it very much should not be. But the point is that Ruby cares about keeping Penny away from Ironwood and giving her an illusion of choice only once she is breaking away. Otherwise, Penny's autonomy is not her concern.

So that's where we're starting out which is pretty bad. Already Ruby's status as the contrast to Ironwood is falling flat, but the show admittedly helps smooth things over by giving us such an extreme. Meaning, we learn fairly early on that Ironwood want to hack Penny and take that autonomy away, full stop. Ruby doesn't. Ergo, Ruby is the lesser of two evils here. I can see why so many fans dismiss the scroll scene given its seemingly, comparative insignificance, but it definitely rubbed me the wrong way. Part of that is because Penny never gets to express her own opinions to Ruby. She gets to do it with Winter and, notably, Penny comes to a sort of, 'We can manage both' stance. The dilemma of going after Cinder or saving Winter and fighting Salem or saving the people of Atlas/the Relics are meant to mirror one another and Penny manages to achieve both. She saves Winter and keeps the power out of Cinder's hands too. Then, she's given the one key that controls the latter dilemma: the Maiden powers. So what will Penny decide? How does she view the situation to leave or stay? How will her decision regarding Cinder and Winter impact her decision about Atlas and Mantle?

It doesn't. We have no idea what Penny thinks outside of a 'I'm sad when friends fight' line (which, again, puts a huge damper on the idea that Penny was always Ironwood/the Ace Ops' puppet and should be glad to be rid of them). Penny is brought into Ruby's group and her opinions disappear because Ruby makes all the decisions. Whatever Ruby says goes and THAT'S why the scroll scene is so horrible. Because we just watched Penny deciding for herself what to do about Winter. We just watched Penny deciding to take on the Maiden powers, making herself the most important person in the Kingdom right now. And then Ruby picks her up and all that goes away. Penny is given the chance to decide things again when Ironwood calls and Ruby takes the scroll away, speaking on her behalf. It does not matter whether Penny actually agrees with Ruby's decisions here, the act of not allowing her to make those decisions for herself speaks volumes.

From then on Penny just stops making choices. Ruby is the one who talks her into forgetting about Ironwood and the Ace Ops. Jaune is the one who decides to split the team and Ruby decided they need to get Amity up. Pietro literally takes control of Penny's body to hack into the system. Penny gets cut off from the group due to the Ace Ops and Nora is the one who decides to help. Prior to literally being hacked, she was more of a puppet in their hands than she was with Ironwood because it's in Ironwood's employ that we actually see Penny pushing back: She's going to be friends with Ruby no matter what, she's going to challenge Winter on her views, she's going to take the powers because that's what needs to be done, etc. But that lack of agency is completely overshadowed by Ironwood's hack Penny plan. Everything looks better compared to that, even if what we're left with is pretty awful on its own. Remember, this is the point in the story where Ironwood is fully evil, post-shooting Oscar and the Councilman. The group can do whatever they want at this point and come off looking "heroic," simply by means of not being Ironwood.

The next time Penny makes a decision is when she stands up to Pietro. Note that prior to this everyone talked her into doing something she says she does not want to do: leaving the group to stay on Amity. Pietro suggests it, Ruby justifies it, Weiss says it might be for the best and Blake ends the conversation by saying they need to leave. Penny goes, "I guess we all have to do some things we would rather not." They all make that decision for her. So she goes, fights Cinder, and then Amity starts to fall. Pietro says, "You’re in no condition to do something like this. Even just the temperature out there could--" and Penny counters "It is our only option."

No, it's not. This is Ruby's option. You can very much not send the totally useless message out, supposedly risking your life in the process ("supposedly" because, again, why this is such a danger for Penny when she was just flying outside with Cinder remains a mystery). Penny treats Ruby's plan as something inevitable. They can't fall back after Penny hacked into the Atlas systems, Penny fought off the Ace Ops, Penny defended Amity from another Maiden. She has to go one step further and risk another death because the concept of saying, "Hey, Ruby's plan isn't feasible anymore" is just never on the table. Ruby is in the mansion sitting around while Penny does all the dangerous work to put her plan into action.

So she pushes back against Pietro in a way she NEVER has with Ruby, insisting that this is how she's going to live her life. Even Maria chimes in with a "we need to remember the big picture." (Wait, the potential death of a Maiden and the loss of the key to the vault isn't a part of the big picture?) Pietro is supposedly in the wrong because he cares about Penny, not the war, but if that's such a bad thing... then what does that make this?

We have a whole scene where Penny wants the group to destroy her to (again, supposedly) help them in the war - take her out as a threat - and they give a resounding, 'Fuck that.' Ruby doesn't want to see her friend dead for the sake of this war. Pietro doesn't want to see his daughter dead for the sake of this war. Yet Pietro is the one who is framed as too narrowminded. Penny standing up to Pietro is meant to be celebratory, but Penny giving in to Ruby is meant to be celebratory too.

And then, of course, once it's Jaune with a sword to her throat, Penny's desire to die is honored.

Then, finally, we have the Ambrosius fiasco. I've spoken at length about this already, but suffice to say we never got a scene where Penny expressed a desire to be turned human. As the above scene demonstrates, her desire to risk her life/die is ignored only when it's Ruby making that call. Otherwise, with Pietro and Jaune, Penny's agency is upheld (however horrible the circumstances). Does she want live a life with a flesh body? Does she have any other ideas how they might eradicate the hack? Would she prefer Ruby try to put her into a new android body first? We have no idea! We never see Ruby ask. We never see that Ruby cares beyond what she wants for Penny. They clearly had the time to hash out all these loophole wishes, but we couldn't have gotten a ten second scene where Penny goes, 'I'm cool with this'? Assuming that Penny knows what they plan to do and that she has no reservations prior to waking up with flesh hands doesn't work, not when her character largely revolves around agency and Ruby has not been showing her that particularly well.

Ruby decides that Penny is on their team (scroll scene). Then she decides that Penny will not die (contrast to Jaune and Pietro). Then she decides that Penny will be saved by stripping away a core part of her identity. Penny goes from being hacked to watching that part of herself actually die, glitching out while her friends smile about it. Ruby spent Penny's entire run insisting that she was a person just as she was, but then Ruby is the one to turn around and take that away from Penny, prior to leading her into a battle where she died again, likely because she was now a fragile flesh girl. Ironwood was given the extreme of trying to take Penny over completely, once he went full Bad Guy, but Ruby is the one who made decisions for Penny throughout this run, with Penny given no chance to speak up for herself. Penny, once at Ruby's side, subscribed to the overarching belief that Ruby is always right (fitting in nicely with Ren's arc of learning to stop questioning things). The story didn't even consider giving Penny different opinions, hesitations, anger, or anything that would truly jeopardizes what Ruby wants, because what Ruby wants is, consistently, treated as the only way to go.

#rwde #rwby #mymetas #death tw #suicide tw #violence tw

[aspoonofsugar]

The “One” Divided Into “Two”

Hello anons, hello friend,

these asks can be answered together!

First of all:

Hello! I just want to say that I love your RWBY metas! So I'm wondering, have you ever done metas about Emerald and Mercury?

Thank you! And yes, I have written a little bit about Mercury and Emerald here. I would also recommend this wonderful meta by @hamliet because it has an interesting Mercury theory in it.

Now. this answer is gonna mix some analysis with speculation because Emerald and Mercury’s story must still enter its climax. Once it does and we are given a specific interpretative key I will be happy to write more metas on them!

I’ll start with this:

Those two are so out of place in Salem's faction and the last look they share made me doubt that Mercury is rotten to the core and more of a kid who didnt know what he's in for. Since Em has switched sides, is it possible that Merc might follow? I really like him, so I'm hoping that he won't go down like Watts.

In my opinion, yes and here is why.

CHILDREN LOST IN A NARRATIVE

1) Emerald and Mercury have been child-coded since their first appearance:

Roman: Oh, look! She sent the kids again! This is turning out just like the divorce!

2) Both have received a save the cat moment early on:

Emerald: It's almost sad.

Mercury: Emerald, get up, we need to go. (...) Emerald!

Both child-coding and save the cat moments are often used to make characters more sympathetic and this applies to both Emerald and Mercury, even more so than Cinder.

This is why, for example, the major death they are directly involved in:

turns out to be a temporary one.

As a side note, I like thinking of Emerald and Mercury as the Cat and the Fox in Penny’s story since they act as false friends to the main cast, betray them and cause Penny’s first death. Moreover, in the novel, both characters end up suffering consequences for their life-styles. The two murder kids are the same:

At the same time, details about Emerald and Mercury’s backgrounds and motivations are given to the viewers pretty early on:

We are shown Cinder recruiting both and these scenes clearly paint them as two vulnerable kids that get manipulated and groomed:

Raven: Two children you’ve tricked into following you.

Emerald is presented as a scaredy cat and Cinder wins her over by promising the bare minumum aka some security and basic care.

Mercury is given even less aka a narrative to keep himself together:

Cinder: And you're his son. We saw your fight from the treeline. He's taught you well.

Mercury: Guess so.

Cinder: What's your name?

Mercury: Mercury.

Cinder: Mercury... Tell me, are you anything like your father?

Mercury: All my life, my father trained me to be a killer, an assassin like him. And then moments after I killed him, you two showed up looking for someone with my exact skills. Just felt like it was meant to be.

Cinder praises his abilities and frames his trauma as something that makes him strong, not broken. And Mercury has completely embraced this narrative since then.

In short, Emerald and Mercury are framed as two kids lost in an illusory narrative Cinder has crafted. That said, they are also characters in a proper narrative and they are given sympathetic backgrounds and positive qualities that hint they can be better than they currently are.

In particular, Emerald should overcome her emotional dependence on others to make the right thing:

In both volume 3 and volume 8 she is shown the destruction of a city. However, the first time she puts distance between herself and others’ pain, as symbolically conveyed by her looking from above. In volume 8, though, she is shown the same pain up close and she can’t ignore it anymore. This is why the others drag Emerald towards the people crying and light invades the screen when she finally meets the sheltered crew. She is forced to face an uncomfortable truth she wants to ignore.

Mercury should instead let himself depend on others more. He should open up to others and fight for his one positive bond:

Mercury: Back off, freak.

Which leads us to:

What do you like most about Emerald and Mercury's relationship and bond as it is explored in RWBY?

EMERCURY: COMPLEMENTARITY

Emerald and Mercury’s bond being a key one is conveyed both symbolically and in terms of their respective abilities.

When it comes to their abilities, I have written about it in the meta linked above:

In short, Emerald mostly relies on her semblance, while Mercury mostly relies on his legs and fighting prowess.

This detail adds to the idea that Emerald and Mercury have been acting as a unit and have been complementing each other. Emerald acts as the “soul” and Mercury as the “body”.

The soul is one’s personal essence (like the semblance). It is where (once again) wishes reside. The body is what protects the soul and is animated by instincts and self-survival.

They complement each other. This complementarity is shown in Emerald and Mercury’s fights.

In the Vytal festival, Mercury takes on both Coco and Yatsuhashi for a short while, so that Emerald can size her chance to fight Coco at her own terms (and she wins by using her semblance).

In the Battle of Heaven, Emerald uses her semblance to help Mercury fight and, in a sense, she compensates for his lack of one:

The human soul is about wishes, but also duties:

Penny: I feel like I wish I could do both the things I need to do and the things I want to do. Is that normal?

One must accept their feelings, but also struggle with them:

Winter: But yes Penny, we must still acknowledge our personal feelings, wrestle with them. It ensures us that we’re on the right path. It’s what makes us human.

And must do the right thing out of their own free will:

Winter: Penny. The general is making hard choices so we don’t have to.

This is Emerald’s personal struggle. She must let go of her feelings for Cinder and fight her own fear in order to do the right thing.

The human body lets people feel both others’ warmth:

And others’ cruelty:

However, Mercury refuses to feel both. He refuses to truly process his own trauma and pushes his feelings of care for Emerald away:

As far as their symbolism goes, they are linked in at least three different ways.

1) One of the attributes of the Roman god Mercury is that he is the protector of thieves and Emerald’s surname capitalized means thief. What is more:

Mercury: Ooh, Emerald! Master thief! Please don't take my money! I barely have enough to get by!

2) Mercury/Hermes is also the god of alchemy and the one who wrote the Emerald Tablet aka a tablet with the truth of alchemy on it. You, @hamliet​, have written a meta on it, so I won’t add more.

3) According to at least some traditions, emerald is the gemstone associated with the planet Mercury.

So, it is clear the two characters are meant to be important in each other’s arcs.

Let’s now look at Emerald and Mercury’s bond, as it is explored through their interactions.

Mercury clearly cares about Emerald and gets along well with her. She is the only person he shows vulnerability to.

This is what their scene in Lost is about:

Emerald: Why did you come with us, the night Cinder and I found you?

Mercury: Why are you asking--

Emerald: Just answer the question.

Emerald is trying to open herself up and wants Mercury to open up too. This is why she gets annoyed when Mercury gives her a superficial answer. Still, in that conversation, Mercury is genuinelly trying to answer Emerald’s feelings:

Mercury: I'm sorry you didn't have a mommy that loved you, but I had a father who hated me! He never went easy on me! Every day of training was a beating. And when I unlocked my Semblance, he stole it with his! "This is a crutch!" "This makes you weak!" He told me I could have it back when I was strong. So I got strong, but I never got it back! I've had to work harder than anyone to get where I am. You may not like it here without Cinder, but I think I'm right where I'm supposed to be!

Here, Mercury is telling Emerald details of his past he would not be sharing if he did not trust her. He can’t let himself be completely vulnerable, though, so he discloses them by lashing out at Emerald. He mixes violence with authentic vulnerability and also with care:

Mercury: Cinder doesn't care about you! She doesn't care about either of us!

He has seen how self-destructive Emerald can get when it comes to Cinder:

And he is trying to have Emerald move on from her obsession.

However, Mercury’s small steps towards opening up and caring for another person are constantly challenged:

Tyrian: Oh yes, the world is mean, and I'm a big, bad man now just like the others.

Mercury: How long have you been standing there?!

The moment he opens up to Emerald, Tyrian appears to threathen and mock him.

Mercury’s positive development lies in accepting his own feelings of pain and in sharing them with others, so that he can be helped. However, the environment he is in goes in the way of it:

Emerald: Mercury, I wanted to...

Here, Emerald is trying to either apologize to Mercury for their fight or to at least check out on him. Still, Mercury is not listening to her because he is too frightened by what Salem is doing.

Mercury’s current struggle is conveyed in a nutshell by the glance he gives to his left in Midnight:

Is he looking at Emerald out of concern?

Or at Salem out of caution?

It is not clear. Still, what is sure is that Mercury should focus on Emerald, but Salem goes in the way. He deep down wants to care about others, but he is too scared to do so:

Tyrian: All you ever learned was pain and violence, and now you're too afraid to leave it. Such a tragedy.

At the same time, Mercury is for Emerald what she has been looking for in Cinder:

Emerald: We don't need him! Everything was going fine!

She initially refuses him, but it is clear that with time Mercury becomes the thing most similar to a family Emerald has:

She has been so fixated on Cinder and on how she can be worthy of Cinder’s love that she has missed how much Mercury has tried to protect her all along.

This is why Hazel is important for Emerald’s development:

Hazel: No more Gretchens, boy.

His sacrifice is about breaking his personal cycle of pain. His story starts with Gretchen dying when she was only a girl and it ends with him preventing another girl’s death. At the same time, he also helps breaking the cyle of abuse between Emerald and Cinder.

Emerald is told the truth about her relationship with Cinder by Mercury. Moreover, it seems something finally clicks for her here:

She observes Salem’s manipulation of Cinder and understands Cinder has been manipulating her in the same way.

However, it is thanks to Hazel’s sacrifice that Emerald sees what a genuine parental bond should be like. It should be about the parent protecting the child:

Hazel: What Gretchen would have done. And that starts with getting you away from here. Both of you.

And not the child protecting the parent:

Emerald: I know I can’t beat you. But I can fill that thing full of holes before you take me down.

It should be about the parent caring for the child unconditionally:

Hazel: Go.

And not about the child working hard to gain a parent’s love:

Cinder: You… You brought me back here. We failed.

Emerald: Cinder, you were hurt. I was just trying to help.

At the same time, Hazel’s death has taught Emerald the pain of losing a loved one:

And has forced Emerald to stand on her own two legs:

Oscar: I've seen what you can do, Emerald. However this fight ends, we could really use someone like you.

She can’t be protected forever, but she should start protecting others. She is powerful enough to do so and she must accept this responsibility.

So

I think Emerald could be key to Mercury's redemption

I think so too. Emerald saving Mercury is the perfect objective for her personal arc. It forces her to act as the savior instead of the one being saved.

Moreover, Mercury told her the truth about herself:

Mercury: You're in denial.

So Emerald might do the same for Mercury. This would also fit with her being the Emerald Tablet. The Tablet is written by Mercury to convey the truth to the world. Here, it might very well be the inverse: the Emerald Tablet might convey the truth to Mercury.

In general, Mercury and Tyrian’s foiling has to pay off, just like Emerald and Hazel’s:

The set-up is there for Tyrian and Mercury’s subplot to be about breaking cycles as well. Mercury’s story is about a child left alone with his abuser. Nobody comes to save him, so Mercury is forced to save himself by killing Marcus. Still, this only leads to him being stuck in the idea he is nothing, but an extension of his father. Right now, the cycle is repeating, but it is possible this time things will go differently because there is at least one person who cares about him.

Not only that, but (and this is nothing, but a baseless theory) even Qrow (aka a character who has unfinished business with Tyrian) might be a thematic fit to help Mercury:

Mercury: Bad hair, used a scythe, and smelled like my dad after a long day. It was him.

After all, Mercury himself draws a comparison between Qrow and his father since they are both alcoholic. However, Qrow has started a journey of rehabilitation for the sake of his nieces and their friends.

Qrow sees himself as bad for others and fundamentally unlucky because of his background and his semblance. So, his third fight with Tyrian being about saving a kid, who, in a sense, is even less lucky than him and has no semblance might be thematically fitting.

Despite it all, Qrow found a family and a place to belong and he might help Mercury find his (Emerald) as well.

SEMBLANCE OF THE SELF

Got no gun But I gleam like a blade and I'm harder than iron

Delusion I'll steal til your blind and defeat you from inside your mind

Emerald’s best weapon is her semblance, while Mercury’s semblance was stolen, so he could become a weapon.

This difference symbolizes their respective reactions to abuse.

Emerald uses her illusions as a coping mechanism.

This mechanism is well conveyed in CEM’s fight against Amber:

On one hand, Emerald creates a child version of herself who is well dressed and owns a bike. It is a rich version of Emerald because she must think that is the kind of child others would stop by to help. She does not believe she is likable or lovable. This is why she makes an illusory alter-ego, which is both true (she deep down is a crying child) and false (she is a street rat with nothing).

In general, this is Emerald’s way to approach others:

Emerald: Just left the stadium after your amazing fight! You guys were awesome!

Ren: Because she's scared. Just like us..

Emerald: Or maybe because I know how to get out of here. Anybody coming?

She either fakes an overly friendly demeanor or acts tougher than she is. In any case, she hides her true self.

On the other hand, Emerald is symbolically trapping herself in an illusion together with Amber. Amber can’t see the dangerous thief in front of her, but Emerald too can’t see the generous woman who is offering food to a crying child:

Cinder: Follow me, and you’ll never be hungry again.

Cinder promises Emerald food and love and this lie makes the girl unable  to see the genuine article when it is right there.

So Emerald tricks both others and herself. This is how she survives abuse.

This is why she keeps believing in Cinder while she is gone:

Emerald: You’re here! I knew you’d co--

And this is why symbolically her semblance grows stronger in an abusive environment:

Emerald: I’ve been working on my Semblance. I can help. I won’t tell anybody.

Salem: You really have been honing that Semblance of yours.

After all, this is when Emerald gets a “power-up”:

She has just lost Cinder and finds herself stuck with Salem. Her reaction is to have a breakdown and to project an illusion in the minds of nine people, when she had previously stated she could only do one/two minds at most.

Mercury weaponizes his trauma.

This is why his legs are Mercury’s true weapon, while Talaria is there just to cover and embellish the pain and ugliness under it.

Mercury fights Amber with only its bare legs because symbolically his trauma is still fresh and he has yet to work out a structured coping mechanism to it. His meeting with Cinder is the first step in this construction that evolves in the following months and is still evolving:

In CEM’s fight against Amber, Mercury uses his unfeeling legs to whitstand the violence of the elements:

Fire

Earth and Water

Air

He goes through the whole cycle without feeling any pain simply because his trauma has made him unfeeling:

I'm the one That was ripped from the earth and exposed to the sun

Marcus has literally turned Mercury into Iron:

But I gleam like a blade and I'm harder than iron

Still, the point is that mercury as a metal is not as hard as iron, but (in the alchemical scale of metals) is way more refined and closer to gold. Mercury can be better than his father, but his way to survive abuse is to repress himself.

This is why his semblance was stolen by his abuser. It is because abuse has taken away Mercury’s personhood.

So, both Emerald and Mercury face abuse by masking or repressing themselves. The difference is a matter of degree. Mercury can suppress his emotions and needs more, while Emerald can’t.

Theirs is a foiling about feeling too much to the point of self-harm and of feeling too little to the point of negation.

So, Emerald must struggle with her feelings not to be controlled by them, while Mercury must aknowledge them.

Emerald’s Hallucinations is a Semblance of The Self because it hides both Emerald herself and the truth.

This is interesting because, as stated above, the Emerald Tablet should convey the truth about alchemy. However, Emerald’s environment has turned her into an inversion of herself:

I'm the one Who rose out of filth and was loved by no-one

She is a gemstone, but is currently covered in dirt. She needs to polish herself, so she can shine and fit better in her allusion.

Mercury’s stolen semblance is a Semblance of The Self because it is linked to Mercury’s self-expression, which he must claim back.

Until then, he is bound to be stuck in an abusive cycle as nothing, but a weapon.

In general, there is some symbolism around Mercury which needs unpacking:

Mercury quoting Marcus:"This is a crutch!" "This makes you weak!"

Firstly, he has clearly interiorized what his father told him here. He refuses the idea of weakness and crutches to the point that his prosthetics, which are literal crutches get turned into weapons and even covered by other weapons. However, this refusal of crutches means Mercury can’t heal. After all, crutches, bandages and treatment are necessary to become healthy once again.

Secondly, there is this: 

I'll run circles round ya, I can touch the sky

The God Mercury’s main attribute is that he can overcome any boundary. He can go wherever he wants in no time. However, Mercury is the opposite because no matter what, he can’t leave his abusive environment. This has to do once again with his father’s abuse which culminated with Marcus taking Mercury’s legs. This is symbolically why Mercury is trapped.

Like for Emerald, Mercury’s arc should be about growing into his allusion, so that he can finally be free.

Still, how to turn Emerald and Mercury in the positive versions of their allusions? The answer has to do with this question:

(I think Emerald could be key to) maybe Cinder's (redemption) too

I’M THE ONE

Emerald and Mercury are two parts of the individual (body and soul) and two parts of a Huntsman (semblance and weapon):

Ren: A common philosophy is that a warrior's Semblance is a part of who they are.

Ruby: Just weapons? They're an extension of ourselves! They're a part of us! Oh, they're so cool.

Together they make a unit. Together they make Cinder. They are two sides of her trauma, her two sins:

Emerald: Actually, I was wondering, do you have any copies of "The Thief and The Butcher"?

And the wounds behind those sins.

This is why Cinder takes them in, but also why she abuses them.

She uses them as weapons:

In CEM’s fight against Amber she lets them go in first and has them take the majority of Amber’s hits.

Not only that, but she uses them as “red herrings” she hides behind.

She acts as if Amber’s blow takes her out of the fight, while Amber focuses on Mercury who resists her attack:

She has Emerald display her semblance at full force, so that the girl becomes Amber’s first target:

She makes her own illusion where Emerald and Mercury are her smokescreen.

However, her two disciples are not just things she can use as she pleases. They are two people who depend on her:

Mercury: You mean--

Emerald: She's alive?

They are literally two kids she takes in framing their relationship as parental/hierarchical hence she is responsible for them.

However, she fails them and leaves them in a dangerous environment. This is why they both leave her out of self-survival.

Narratively, Emerald and Mercury are two kids that must grow up. Right now, they are in some kind of adolescent phase. They have started their emancipation from their “parent”, but they have still to grow until they’ll be able to truly face Cinder.

It will probably be in this confrontation that they will affirm their growth. Right now, Cinder does not need to be coddled, but to be called out. Both Neo and Watts try to, but Cinder ignores them and retaliates against them. She needs a call out she can’t ignore and Emerald and Mercury are too rooted in who she deep down is for her to be unaffected by them.

At the same time, it would mark Mercury and Emerald’s first step into adulthood. Only then they can stop being a “half” and can truly become “one”, so a whole person.

#rwby #rwby meta #emercury #emerald sustrai #mercury black #cinder fall #my meta #asksfullofsugar #anonymous #hamliet #murder kids #rwby murder kids

[kingangelrose]

RWBY Volume 8 Chapter 1 Recap

“Divide” ------------------

We start off this new volume by seeing a girl scrubbing a wooden floor, that girl was Cinder Fall, before she was with Salem, this memory caused the Cinder now to scratch the seat of the airship seat that Neo was sitting in.

Cinder tells Neo to fly the ship over in the storm where the giant Grimm whale is, along with swarms of flying Grimm around it, going to return to Salem and give her the relic.

The whale opens its mouth, letting Cinder and Neo land the airship inside of it, they both walk up the stairs, to see Salem sitting on her throne. This was Neo’s first time ever seeing Salem in person.

Cinder bows to Salem, addressing her as her queen, Salem gets up from her throne, turning around with a little smile on her face. Salem tells Cinder that when she chose her for the vessel for the Maidens, she had put her trust in her, saying that she trusts she wouldn’t return empty handed.

Cinder presents the relic of knowledge to Salem, saying that she herself took it, which made Neo upset, Tyrian arrives saying to Cinder that outsmarting Ironwood speaks less of her intellect and more to his, saying that she was outsmarted by the heroes first, Cinder responds by saying that Ironwood and his forces outsmarted him as well, also saying that it was a shame Arthur Watts didn’t return with Tyrian. 

Tyrian says that Watts a necessary sacrifice and hopes Neo doesn’t become another. Cinder tells Salem that Neo has very useful abilities and has proven to be a valuable asset, Salem says that Cinder really enjoys collecting them, which made Neo have second thoughts.

In new attire, Emerald and Mercury arrive, along with Hazel, Emerald runs to greet Cinder, but Cinder tells her to be quiet, stopping Emerald in tracks. Tyrian says while him and Watts were wreaking havoc in Atlas, Cinder was atoning for her past failures.

Cinder says that Penny stopped her from obtaining the Winter Maiden’s power, saying that now that she knows she has said power, it won’t take long before she finishes what she started and obtains the Winter Maiden’s power. However, Salem says that she gave Cinder no such commands.

Cinder tries to plea with Salem to reconsider, but Salem says that this “game” is not hers to win, it is Salem’s herself, she also says that just become she is of more value to her than a pawn, that doesn’t mean that she is a player, saying that everything is already set in motion, and that all that Cinder has to do is act when Salem tells her to.

“Of course.....without you....I am nothing...” - Cinder Fall With that, Salem waves her hands to everyone in the room, telling them to leave her presence, as she watches along as Atlas and Mantle are slowly about to be taken over. ------------------

Meanwhile, Oscar was in a poor looking village with a lot of homeless people and children in it after surviving the fall thanks to Ozpin, who returned in his mind, one offering him food in which he accepted and thanked the poor man for. The heroes arrive in the airship over the village, picking up Oscar.

Oscar says that he was stupid to think that Ironwood would listen to him, and every choice he made was wrong, Ruby says to Oscar that they all did what they thought was best and she’s glad that Oscar is safe. Just then, Joanna Greenleaf of the Happy Huntress waves her arms high to get the heroes’ attention to descend and get inside their base, in which they did.

Ruby, Weiss, Oscar, and  met up with Yang, Blake, Jaune, Nora and Ren, also with who were already there, Nora walks towards Oscar, but instead of an intense and big hug, it was a soft and embracing one, Weiss asks Oscar how did he end up in the slums, Oscar responds by saying it’s a long story, and he has the feeling there was a few of them from everyone else as well, Ozpin in Oscar’s mind asked if he was going to tell them what happened, but in his mind, Oscar replied by saying that him and Ozpin aren’t done talking yet.

Oscar then asked where was Qrow, but none of them knew, unaware that he was arrested along with Robyn Hill. Joanna arrives in the room asking the heroes are they ready to work, she tells them that a large Grimm horde is hovering over the tundra and the people of Mantle are suck with no heat and no military protection, and while the Happy Huntresses are happy to give the heroes a place to lay low for the time being, the time came to give the people of Mantle help. 

Ren asked how when Ironwood has stopped evacuations to Atlas, and with Salem’s forces surrounding them, they couldn’t get them out themselves, Joanna says that a crater beneath Atlas should suffice, even though it isn’t the safest route to go, she says the carter is warm that with all the people of Mantle in one place, they can do a better job protecting them. Joanna says that May Marigold can send the heroes where they are needed most, saying that they all have to get the people to the carter before nightfall, and that may have a chance in the slums.

“We’re never going to sleep again, I know it...” - Weiss Schnee “Either you’re helping, or you’re baggage...” - Joanna Greenleaf

While the plan was already being set in motion later on, Yang stands up and says to everyone that they have to go out and do what they can for Mantle, Ruby says that they need to do what they can for everyone, asking about Amity and telling the whole world about Salem and that they can’t do it all alone, needing help. Blake agrees saying that the Happy Huntresses are handling the evacuation better, saying there is a bigger picture.

Yang goes on the say that Amity isn’t complete yet, Ruby asks Pietro what would be needed to launch Amity, Pietro responds by saying that him and others made a progress with construction and fuel collection, which were all potentially manageable, however, it couldn’t be launch without clearance from Ironwood’s terminal, Yang tells Ruby that it’d be impossible for Ironwood to cooperate with them, Ruby says that he doesn’t have to and they just need the green light from his terminal, Yang questions Ruby about going back to the academy.

Pietro tells them at there are two terminals, one in Ironwood’s office and one in main Atlas Military Compound, in the base of the city, if they get in the compound in the operations room, which wasn’t certain, Oscar asks if this was the easy opinion.

Yang says that what Pietro is trying to say is that it can’t be done and it was pointless, telling Ruby that even if she were to somehow get the message out, there would be no guarantee help would come, Ruby snaps back at Yang and says it isn’t pointless, saying that Atlas is Salem’s current target, no longer being in hiding and once she’s done with Atlas, she’ll move on to the rest of Remnant, saying that they need to warn them.

Yang sighs and says to Ruby that when they arrived to Atlas, everyone said she would follow her lead, but things haven’t worked out, by everyone’s expression, deep down the feeling was mutual. Ren walks to the Ruby and says that there are people who need them now, which was something they could actually do, Ren decided to go with Yang later on, while Nora went with Ruby. Nora tells Ren that this isn’t about just Atlas, but about all of Remnant, agreeing with Ruby about warning the world of what’s coming, so they can prepare.

Jaune intervenes and says that they all can do both get Amity up and running and warn Mantle, Ruby then says that Salem has gotten this far by dividing them and that they have to stick together, Oscar disagrees and says what Salem really wants is to turn them against each other and that they can work separately and still be united. 

Penny suggests that she could give the relic to Salem and hopefully call off her attack on the kingdom, Oscar says that they couldn’t trust Salem to actually do that and the moment she obtains the relic of creation, Atlas falls under Mantle. Yang says that no one is turning Penny in to anyone, that’s the one thing they can all agree on.

Ruby asks Pietro if he could helps to the terminal, but Penny intervenes and says, with the maiden flare in eyes that she’ll go with them instead, Before Yang walked out, Pietro toss a set of keys to the pharmacy to Yang, with a set of new tools inside of it. Nora tells Ren that she’s going with Ruby, Ren asked what about Mantle and Nora replied by saying she is saving Mantle, because she actually believes that she can do this.

So the teams are now set, one is Yang, Jaune, Ren and Oscar, the other is Ruby, Weiss, Blake and Nora. Blake tells Ruby that they still united, even if their separated. Maria says through Weiss’ communication com that she can fly in the airship and take Pietro to Amity to prepare, but she doesn’t know how we’re getting Ruby’s team to Atlas, however, Weiss had a idea for how they could, before she could tell her what it is, everyone got a call on their scrolls from Ironwood himself.

Penny answers the call and Ironwood says hello, he says that he’ll come pick Penny up right away if she tells him where she is, and that Atlas need her. Ruby was the one who responded to him and says that Penny isn’t going anywhere until he changes his mind about Mantle and there is still a chance for all of Remnant.

“Mantle...? You’re still worried about Mantle? Remnant is doomed, Ruby! Unless we leave, Salem will destroy Mantle and with it, any hope humanity has left. We need to think about that future...if she makes it through the defenses...everything that falls will be on your hands...” - James Ironwood

As Penny felt scared, Ruby embraced her with a hug.

Meanwhile, four of the Ace Operatives, Marrow Amin, Vine Zeki, Elm Ederne and Harriet Bree mourned the lost of their leader, Clover Ebi, who was killed by Tyrian, while Ironwood, with a new robotic arm was with Winter Schnee, who was in a hospital bed, bandaged up after her fight with Cinder. 

An atlas guard notifies Ironwood that the prisoners had arrived, being Qrow and Robyn, Ironwood asks the doctors the give him and Winter the room, Winter says that she’ll be fine, but she could barely move her left arm and had a cast on the right. Ironwood then thanked Winter and that he wouldn’t know what to do without her, he says to her that no one has ever seen a Grimm force before, saying the city’s hard light shields will hold, but not for long.

Winter asked Ironwood what he would do, suddenly, Councilman Sleet and Councilwoman Camilla arrive, demanding answers from Ironwood as to what he was doing and why did he declared Martial Law, Ironwood answers Winter’s question by saying.... “I’m going to do everything I can defend this kingdom....no matter the cost....” - James Ironwood

Solidifying this vow, Ironwood walked out of the room, pulled out his gun and shot Councilman Sleet, possibly killing him, Camilla was shocked and afraid to even say a word afterwards, and all Winter could do was watch as Harriett looked back at her.

Meanwhile, Salem said to Jinn inside the relic that she had a question for her, she held the relic up to a Grimm to get the scent of Oscar, wanting it to bring him to her, so he could show her how to use the relic. ---------

With division and desperation all coming together in this chapter, what else can and will possible happened?

Will this volume be the heroes’ chance to united the world of Remnant or will this be repeat of Volume 3 filled with death and despair? Only time will tell.

#rwby #rwby spoilers #rwby8 #rwby8 spoilers #cinder fall #cinder backstory #salem rwby #neopolitan #emerald sustrai #mercury black #hazel rainart #tyrian callows #oscar pine #ruby rose #weiss schnee #maria calavera #joanna greenleaf #jaune arc #nora valkyrie #lie ren #penny polendina #pietro polendina #james ironwood #marrow amin #vine zeki #elm ederne #harriet bree #clover ebi

[conspirwbytheorist-inactive]

can i just say, i’m loving the final boss fakeouts we’ve been getting all throughout this volume? first we think it’s gonna be salem because just how do you stop an immortal being? but nope she goes boom mid volume. Then so we think there’s gonna be a big showdown in the vault vs Ironwood and the remaining aceops. But NOPE wrong again ironboots gets put out of commission by winter in the first five minutes of this ep. So now Cinder (and Neo) seem to be the TRUE final boss of this volume

I know, right?! Like, seriously! At least let a man catch his breath over here, lol.

But, yeah, no, I am SUPER excited to see what goes down with those two. Having those two be the final bosses in a volume featuring Doom Whales and Mega Bombs, it just plays so well into RWBY's themes of power on a small scale. Salem and Ironwood were huge and powerful enemies, but in the end they were so isolated from others that they didn't stand much of a chance. Neither invested in their lieutenants or took the time to forge relationships with/even consider people and it came back to bite them.

In contrast, Cinder and Neo may not have giant doom whales, but they do each have very personal conflicts with/projections upon the main cast. They aren't focusing on giant kingdoms. They each have something to prove and a need for validation that hinges on going after Team RWBY (specifically Ruby). Smaller scale. And a more personal one that could hit our characters' vulnerabilities way better than a Doom Whale could.

#ask #anon #it's a conpirwby! #cinder fall #neo politan #rwby spoilers #rwby vol 8 spoilers

[tanakavox]

A look into the multiverse chapter 8 SAOA

Many thanks to my friend friend @bssaz97 for his work on the reactions. And TheGoldenBoy2188 for the strict for SAOA making writing easy. The next reaction will be a suprise so stay tune.

Amidst the streets of Mantle, Whitley Schnee walked towards a destination while wearing a disguise consisting of a coat, scarf, shaded glasses, and a flat cap. He had a mission and he would not waste this opportunity!

It was not every day that he could simply leave the manor without Father's permission or notice so he needed to be quick but not noticeable. He had waited months for this day to arrive. Whitley had pre-ordered the latest MMO game of his favorite game series a week before the initial release date and had come to pick it up. Having connections in the right places certainly did have its benefits. The only downside was he had to acquire his prize somewhere outside of his father's notice. So what other place to go than Atlas's sister kingdom.

Outside of his notice, a young white haired faunus woman with sheep ears followed close behind him. Fiona Thyme was out picking up some food for the rest of the Happy Huntresses when she noticed an unfamiliar person walking around. She knew almost everyone on this side of Mantle, so a new person popping out of the blue was very suspicious. Normally she would have reported this back to Robyn but upon further inspection she recognized who this person was.

It was the sole son of the worst man on Remnant and the newly appointed heir of the Schnee Dust Company, Whitley Schnee! Why was he here in Mantle?! Fiona determined he was up to no good and decided to follow him. Wherever the SDC goes, trouble usually follows!

Whitley finally arrived at the destination he was seeking… the Post Office! Now all he had to do was open the door, enter the establishment aaaaaand- stare dumbfounded as the inside of this place was a theatre.

"What the-? This isn't the post office. Where am I?!" Whitley shouted at no one in particular.

"Ah-ha! Caught you right where I- Huh? Where the hell? This isn't the post office!" Fiona also dumbfounded.

"Whitley?" Both Weiss and Winter stated in a mix of shock and disbelief at seeing their little brother. Maybe some hostility on Weiss part.

"Weiss? Winter? How-?"

"What the hell is this?!" A loud female voice shouted as four more people arrived out of nowhere. Consisting of two normal sized humans, a bunny faunus and a very large man.

"Coco/Velvet/Fox/Yatsuhashi!" Teams RWBY and JNR said collectively.

"Oh hello everyone! This… is a surprise! When did you get to Vacuo?" Velvet asked the group.

Fiona turned towards the new strangers, "Vacuo? What are you talking about? You're all in Mantle?"

"I'm most certain we're in Vacuo at the time." Yatsu spoke.

"You are in neither at the moment." Ozpin spoke up.

"What the- Teach? Weren't you supposed to be dead?!" Coco confusingly points out.

"I believe an explanation is in order."

*One short but informative explanation later*

"Wait so we were brought here to watch… alternate realities?" Fiona says after she and all the new arrivals had been told everything about the theater.

"We call them viewings but yeah pretty much." Ruby said.

"Hold on, I can understand why all of you were brought here, seeing as you all are huntsmen and huntresses. But that doesn't explain why I'm here." Whitley, having taken off his disguise.

"A great question indeed." Weiss mutters.

"I think I have a theory." Blake stepped forward. "So far now, I've noticed that the people who are here have at least some involvement in the viewings that we have been seeing. Remember that one viewing we saw of Whitley being stuck inside a video game?"

"I was stuck in a video game?"

"Also if you die in the game you die for real." Nora added.

Whitley's eyes widened at the implications.

"Well you're still stuck as far as we know. But apparently you're very good at the game so you might be fine." Jaune clarifies. Slightly feeling guilty that his alternate is the one who traps him there.

"Oh joy, now I'm trapped inside a place against my will in two realities!" Whitley throws his hands in frustration.

"Oh boo hoo! Is the rich boy gonna cry because nothings going his way today?" Fiona says in a mocking tone.

"Oh I'm sure you would know so much about crying and complaining about trivial things, thief." He shot back at Fiona.

"At least I think about the people of Mantle! When was the last time you thought of someone outside of yourself, Schnee!" Fiona retorted.

Winter sensing that this conversation was going nowhere stepped in between her brother and the happy huntress.

"Enough! None of us came here by choice so let's just stop this pointless arguing and move on."

Fiona huffed, "I couldn't agree more." She stomped away from the two siblings and found herself a seat in the theater.

Winter sighed, "It may not be ideal but as long as you are here Whitley, I would just suggest sitting tight and wait until you or all of us are able to leave this place."

"Hmph, very well. Thank you sister, it almost sounds like you care." Whitley took his leave and found a seat that was about four seats away from Weiss's team.

"Isn't there anywhere else you want to sit," Weiss practically hisses.

"Oh but Weiss it's the only seat that's close enough to you." Whitley affirmed.

Weiss groans in frustration, 'Hopefully it's only for one viewing…'

An acoustic guitar plays in the background as a montage of the events of and post-Episode 1 appears on the screen and a narrator began to talk.

" A month had passed since that fateful day. When everyone's world got all twisted, leaving them stranded in a castle in the sky. Since then, 2000 poor souls came to an abrupt and tragic end. Some by bad luck, others by sheer stupidity. I mean, really. Why would you just stand in fire? Anyways, that didn't bother The Kid none. He only cared about one thing, and one thing alone. Himself. 'Cuz in a game of life or death, you either live... or you die."

The scene transitions to Shirou leaning against a wall with an annoyed look on his face.

"What?! Two thousand of the players have died already!" Ruby yelled, tears starting to form in her eyes.

"Not surprising, seeing as many of them looked weak last viewing." Cinder coolly replies.

Many huntsmen and huntresses glared at the red clad woman. She paid them no mind.

"Well thank you very much Narrator, you're doing a wonderful job of explaining the total death count of this video game prison." Whitley commented dryly.

"Oh, WOW. What brilliant insight! It's so deep it loops right back around to being stupid." Shirou snarked.

"The Kid ranted at no one, it slowly dawning just how alone he truly was" Narrator continued..

Whitley's eyes narrowed, "Am I being sassed by the narrator?"

"Maybe you said something to piss them off." Fiona added.

"Wait, what was that?" Shirou asks, shocked.

"He asked the sky, like a preacher to his silent gods."

"What gods? What are you talking about?! It's all bullshit metaphors with you!"

"He cried, not knowing the difference between a simile and a metaphor. The tininess of his brain dwarfed only by the tininess of his di-"

Whitley's eyes narrowed and face twitched at how much of an annoyance this narrator was being.

Weiss was doing her best to conceal her smile but was failing and breathes out a laugh. She was enjoying the exchange that her brother was going through and found it amusing. Her team gave her a side glance while Fiona and a few others laughed at the roast session the young Schnee was being given.

"Narrator off." Shirou commands the system with an annoyed tone.

"YOUCANSILENCEMEBUTYOUCAN'TSILENCETHETRU-" The narrator got cut off.

"Dick."

"Thank gods that's over, that narrator was extremely rude." Whitley sighed thankfully now that the narrator was silenced.

Weiss and Fiona grumbled that their fun was ruined.

Fade into December 2, 2022, on a strategy meeting led by man called Diabel. He gave a big smiled out to the crow

"Hey everyone. Thank you all for coming to our little powwow. Now, I know many of you may be discouraged by the fact that 2000 people have died so far."

" WHAT?!" A player screamed

" 2000 PEOPLE ARE DEAD?!" Another screamed.

"IT HASN'T EVEN BEEN A MONTH YET!"

"OH MY GOD, WE REALLY ARE FUCKED!"

"Pretty much, sucks to be you!" Mercury laughed.

"These are the people that have to survive this game. Honestly what was blondie expecting," Emerald facepalms.

"Hey! Just because they've lost numbers doesn't mean that they have to lose hope!" Ruby glared at the two assassins.

"And I know even more of you are a little down because we haven't even cleared the First Floor yet." Diabel added, trying to keep the smile on his face.

"WE HAVEN'T?!"

"I THOUGHT WE WERE ALMOST DONE...!"

"You were saying." Cinder looked back at Ruby.

"Well…" Ruby trailed off, thinking of a way to defend these players.

Diabel's smile wavered

"Uh, you guys do know there are 100 Floors, right?"

"WHAT?!" A crowd of players yelled.

Diabels sighed a bit.

Ruby, despite her best attempts, also sighed and sat back down.

"Oh jeez, I am just making things worse. Point is, we found the Boss Room!"

The crowd gasps.

"Now, we've formulated a few strategies with some help from the beta testers-"

"BETA TESTERS?!" A voice yells out.

"Oh goddammit!" Diabel groaned argnily

A player named Kibaou jumps in.

Kibaou, what do you want? Diabel looked tired addressing this player.

"Beta testers? They're the reason we're stuck in this game!" Kibaoyu sneered

Many that heard this player's statement and quickly frowned at his blatant accusations towards these 'beta-testers.'

"This guy can't be serious, right?" Coco stated.

Dianel looked at Kibaou flatterausted at the stupidity of the statement he heard

"What?! Do you have any evidence to back that up?"

Kiabrou scoffed at the question. "Pfft! Evidence. I don't need no evidence. Isn't that right, Jesus?" He points to a player named "Jesus"

" It's pronounced "Hey-Zeus", and I don't know you."

"Wow, really selling your reasoning by having no one else to support your claim." Jaune stated while crossing his arms.

"Well, they still should have helped us newbies!" He exclaimed

"If I might interject...:" A deep voice called out.

A big muscular man gets up and comes to the stage.

Velvet taps Yatsu's arm excitedly, "Hey you're in this game too Yatsu! …oh gods you're in this game too."

"So it seems," Yatsu, doing his best to keep a straight face.

Coco lowered her shades along with a confused look. As far as she knew, Velvet was the only one who played video games on their team. Unless...

"And who the hell are you?!"

"I am known by many names.", "Closed eyed demon. The memory easer., "Hooked clawed tiger". But you? You may call me... "Velvet".

"Velvet huh? That's a... pretty masculine name." Kibaoru said adwarkley

"Shouldn't be. It's a woman's name." Velvet replied casually.

"Damn it. I had a feeling but I didn't want to be right." Coco cursed quietly while shaking her head.

"Wait, why would Yatsu have a character named after me? That doesn't- ...Oh ...oh my gods." Velvet's eyes widened at the implications, tears starting to build. That is until she felt a nudge on one of her shoulders. She turned her head and there was Yatsuhashi looking at Velvet with a gaze that said, 'It's not your fault.'

"Kay, I don't know how to talk to you."

"Good. Then you can shut up and listen. Does everyone here have this book in their inventory?"

" Yeah.

" Yes."

"Yup."

"Yeah."

" No... Wait, can I change my answer?"

Velvet/Yatsushi held up a book to show to everyone.

" This book is full of tips and strategies on how to survive this game, put together by the beta testers. Everyone read it, yet some people still died. The beta testers did everything they could."

"Yeah, that means Mace Hair has no reason to blame the beta testers!" Ruby points out.

Many of her friends nodded and Yastu's team smiled at the sound defense his alternate presented.

" Actually, I didn't read it." One player chimed up.

"Yeah, I didn't read it either."

"I skimmed it."

"OH COME ON!" Many members of the audience shouted in agitation.

"What? Didn't ANY of you read it?! It is literally a matter of life and death." Velvet exclaimed

"Well, dude. It's like 80 pages." A player pointed

"2000 people are dead!"

"THEY ARE?!"

"Again. These are the people that have to survive this game." Emerald reiterates.

Brief pause. Shirou looks shocked at their stupidity.

"I am so done with you people." Velvet mutters, walking off the stage.

" What do you mean "you people"?" A player asked a bit offended.

The Faunus in the room narrowed at their eyes at the implications made by that player.

"What do you mean, "you people"?" Fiona asks no one in particular.

Velvet and Kibaou take their seats.

Diabel continued with the meeting. "So, as Mister Hooked clawed tiger was saying, this book has some great strategies, including how to beat the First Boss, Illfang."

He clears his throat and starts reading from the guide.

"So as you enter the Boss Room, he's gonna throw wave after wave of disposable minions at you... and you must answer in kind."...?

"Uh, what?" A player asks, mirroring Diabel confusion.

Many in the audience reacted just as confused. All except Whitley, who had a good feeling where this was going.

Diabel continues

"Send the weaker players first. Good rule of thumb: If a player asks you for gold 2 seconds after meeting you, front lines."

"Ha, serves 'em right!" Kiaboru said with a laugh

"If they hijack conversations to rant about their political views, front lines."Diabel said with a smirk looking at Kiaboru.

Kibaou went pale. "Aw, shit."

"Ha! Serves you right!" Nora laughed.

"If they ask female players for pics of their boobs, front lines."

"OH BULLSHIT!" One player screamed out in rage.

"THAT'S DISCRIMINATION!" Another one howled.

"BOO!"

Many of the women in the theater frown at the way those players reacted. Winter was more than certain that those players were the type that participated in the mentioned acts the speaker spoke on.

Diabel smiles and waves them down. "Now, now, people. I think there are some valid points being made here. Now, it goes on to say when Illfang's health goes into the red, he's going to switch from his axe and buckler to something called a "Talwar". At that point we should initiate a strategy called "The Final Solution" and- I'm just gonna stop reading! Jesus, who wrote this thing?"

Shirou giggles evilly.

"Of course Whitley wrote that book." Weiss sighed.

"Why sister, it sounds like that didn't surprise you in the least." Whitley pretending to act hurt.

"Please. The manipulative tone of the text almost makes one sound too much like you." Weiss bit back.

"Well I suppose you would know." A wide smile on Whitley's face.

Weiss scoffs turning her head away from her traitorous brother.

Team R_BY and Winter watched the exchange and sighed.

"Okay, so the guide's a bust. But it'll be fine. I'll come up with a great plan for us." Diabel smiles at the crowed.

"Like what?"

" Well... we... could... Uh... Uhhhh... I'm open to suggestions."

"Woah, guys, we could- we could, you know, like, group up and-"

"And hit it 'til it DIES!" Another yelled finishing the other player sentence

"Woo, nice!"

"Yeah!"

" High five!"

The two hive five.

"Well. It's something, right?." Velvet does her best to be optimistic.

Many of the more experienced members of the theater shake their heads.

"That's... a good start. But let's hear some other suggestions."

"I'd like to hear more about this "Final Solution"." A player in a german accent piped up.

"Fuck it, group up." said Diabel said tirely.

Shirou slides down the seats towards a girl, named Fiona, who's on her own.

Fiona blinks in surprise, "Oh my gods, that's me! I'm in the game! Hey other me, stay away from the Schnee!"

"You have my condolences." Weiss says to the sheep faunus.

"So, why aren't, uh, you joining anyone's group?" Shirou asked.

"I have my reasons." She said mysterioly

" Is it because you're a girl?"

"No. It's because... I don't know how to play."

"Because you're a girl?"

Many of the females and males who enjoy video games, such as Yang, Ruby, Velvet, Nora,, Jaune, Oscar, Ren, surprisingly Mercury and Emerald, along with Fiona herself, threw questioning glares towards the current heir of the SDC. Weiss and Winter glared at him as well but for other reasons.

Whitley looks around to see all the glares directed towards him. "Why are you all looking at me? I said nothing."

"No!" Fiona snapped. "It's just... I don't know how to open the menu."

"What?" Both Fiona and Whitley asked.

"Jinx!" Nora shouts.

"What?!" Shriou looked at the girl in shock. "But you can't do anything in this game without the menu. How have you survived all month?"

Cut to Fiona holding a piece of bread. She is staring at it intensely. "HOW DO I EAT YOU?!" She screamed at it.

Many laughs were had at the poor girl's predicament, despite some of them doing their best to not do so but could not help themselves.

Fiona slowly sank into her chair, covering her face in shame. Her alternate was the utter definition of a newb player.

Back to the present.

"It's... been a challenge…" She muttered before looking at Shirou. "What about you? Why haven't you join the others?"

"Oh, lots of reasons. Mostly because they're a bunch of mouth-breathing neckbeards who think "LMAO" is how French people laugh."

" Ha ha, that's so Le Mao!" Said one player far away causing to Shirou shudder.

Whitley in the theater also shudders in disgust. If these were the people that he would have been surrounded by inside the game, then he too would have avoided them like a plague.

"Wow. You certainly... speak from the heart."

"Funny, I thought I was speaking from my mouth. But, eh, shows what I know about biology." He said with a smirk.

"No one else wanted you in their group, did they?"

"Shut up! It was mutual!"

"And who would blame me? Have you seen the players of this game? I'm honestly surprised they lived this long."

"You're just saying that 'cause no one wanted a smartass on their team." Fiona smirked.

"I'm sorry, were you speaking Menu Girl?" Whitley nonchalantly retorts.

Fiona's face grew red in embarrassment and agitation. She wanted nothing more than to raise her hand and activate her semblance right now. 'Give me a reason Schnee, I dare you.'

It cuts back to Diabel smiling and clapping his hands.

"Alright, looks like everyone's grouped up. Get plenty of rest tonight, people! We leave at noon!"

A player groans "Noon?"

"That's so early!"

Diabel sighs. "Alright. What about 1 o'clock?"

" Dude, come on!"

" God, fine! We leave at the crack of... 2:30, I guess. Lazy butts…"

"Christ, I'm gonna have to set my alarm."

Everyone in the theater did not have high expectations for these players as they would face their first challenge.

Cuts to December 3, 2022 Floor 1: Illfang's Tower, 7:30pm. Everyone's at the Boss Door and everyone except Diabel is exhausted.

"Okay, so there were a few more stairs than we realized. Apparently real life athletic ability translates into the game. Good to know." Diabel looked out to the sad sight in front of him.

"Oh, god. I can feel my lungs trying to kill me." One player whined.

" Is this sweat?!"

" I peed a little."

" Jesus, this is sad." Diabel said with a grimace.

One player vomits.

"Congrats Jaune, someone else has now become the new Vomit Boy of this viewing!" Yang exclaimed.

Jaune rolled his eyes at her attempt at making him feel better.

"Fuck it. Why don't you all just take a Cheetos and Mountain Dew break, and we'll reconvene in an hour."

1960 Batman-Esque transition with Cheetos and Mountain Dew.

" Dammit, guys! I was kidding! You weren't supposed to actually take an hour!" Dibal said in a rage."God, we've lost so much time. Let's just do this already! You all know the plan!"

Illfang jumps into the center of the room and roars. Kobolds pop in, and an error message pops up on the third one that says "Error: "Sentinel_ " not found."

Ruby and Nora laughed at the mob that got glitched.

"Alright, men!" Diabel began,"Form up and-"

"EVERY MAN FOR HIMSELF!" A player screams

The armies converge on each other.

"Are they serious! You can't just go gung-ho in a boss battle!" Jaune exclaimed at the increasingly apparent, dim-witted players.

"What?! No! Goddammit guys!" Diabel begins to bark out orders. "Squad B, quit attacking the Boss and keep the Sentinels off us! C, D, stop attacking from the front! Do you even know what "flank" means?! Squad F, for fuck's sake! Stop playing Bejeweled! *Groans* Squad G, get in there and help A and B!"

"Got it!" Shirou said with a nod rushing in.

"Don't talk back to…" Diabel did a double take."l Holy shit, really?!"

"How is Whitley the most sensible minded player in this game?!" Weiss asked.

"Weiss, have you seen the other players?" Blake asked her in a deadpanned tone.

"...Yes you're right, that's actually too much of an insult." Weiss admits.

Shirou attacks a Sentinel, leaving Fiona to finish it off.

"Okay, Fiona! What you're gonna wanna do here is-"

Fiona lets out a Battle Cry and kills the Sentinel in one hit.

Fiona in the theater perked up at this display, "Oh my- I can fight! Oh thank gods I can fight!"

Shirou eyes widened in shock "Wow, I thought she was hopeless, but her technique is flawless. If I didn't know any better, I'd say she's even better than I-"

"Hey Shirou! I killed the thing and now it says I have XPs! Is that bad? Am I dying?! Fiona cried out to him in fear."

Shirou rolls his eyes"Or... maybe... not."

"Miss Fiona, either your alternate is very lucky or is very out of base with technology. I can't tell which it is." Whitley stated.

"Shut up Schnee, she's trying!" Fiona defends her other self.

Illfang's health drops into the red. He snarls at the players and he tosses his weapons.

"Alright, men! This last part's gonna take careful coordination…" Diabel ran towards Illfang. "which is why I'm just gonna do it myself!"

Diabel charges his weapon art. Illfang draws his Ōdachi.

Ruby's eyes widened, "OH NO!"

Shirou looked and saw the weapon and his eyes widened calling to Diabel. "Oh shit! Diabel, look out! That's not a Talwar! It's an Ōdachi!"

"What's the difference?!" Diabel ask still running towards Illfang.

"Well, a Talwar is of Indian descent while an Ōdachi is Japanese! While both are primarily slashing weapons, the Talwar was favored by cavalrymen, as opposed to an Ōdachi which was mainly used for dick measuring!" As Shirou is talking, Illfang starts jumping off the walls.

" What's your point?!" Diabel asked impaintely.

"Well if you let me finish, I was getting to that! You see…"

Diabel gets hit by Illfang, screaming in pain.

Many of the huntsmen and huntresses in the theater either gasped in fear or looked away at the surely doomed player.

"What's happening? Did I miss something?" Fox called out.

"Oops." Shirou sheepishly said.

Illfang hits Diabel again, sending him flying.

"DIABEL!" Kibaou yelled out.

Illfang pops down in front of Kibaou and roars. A message pops up "Bonus Item: Soiled Pants". Above Kibaou

"Hey, rare drop!' A player said cheerfully.

Mercury laughed at the joke while most of the others were disgusted by the fact that that achievement was unlockable.

Shirou runs over to Diabel and holds him up.

" I was trying to say an Ōdachi's a little bit longer than a Talwar, so it'll have more reach and do a bit more damage."

"And why couldn't you say that first?" Diabel asked weakly

"Yeah you dummy! You almost might've killed him!" Ruby cries out.

Whitley was actually taken aback by that statement. Sure he had moments of pride and arrogance, sometimes he looked down on people but he didn't believe he would ever intentionally kill someone.

" I like to think of myself as a teacher. Anyway, drink this."

Shirou tries to give Diabel a healing potion but he stopped Shirou shaking his head.

"No. It's better this way. I just can't do it anymore. I had such high hopes at first. But now? Our best player is a girl who thinks DPS is some kind of sex thing." Both turned to glance to Fiona.

"I know. It's weird, right?"

Fiona sulked more into her chair.

"You're clearly not like the rest of them. How do you stand it, Shirou? Where do you draw your strength?" Diabel look at Shirou like a sage.

Shirou sigh and drops his wisdom onto him. "I've been playing MMO's a long time, Diabel, and if there's one thing I've learned, it's that lions do not concern himself with the opinions of sheep. Just take that little voice in your head that tells you to be tactful and understanding... and shoot it. Shoot it in the goddamn face."

" You are so wise. If only I'd met you sooner. Perhaps, things would have been different. You must lead them now. Show them this game can be beaten." Diabel let's go of Shirou wrist.

Weiss was taken aback that this man was actually willing to place trust in this alternate of her brother. This stranger who barely even knows him placed the lives of all the players into his hands. Much like how she tried to trust Whitley once… this caused a bitter frown to grow on her face in recollection. Even if this was a different version of him, it was still Whitley in her eyes.

Shirou smiles fondly at Diabel. "Another life... in another time... I think we could have been friends."

"I... doubt it." Diabel gasps out before turning to shattered glass, dying.

" Well fuck you, too!" Shirou said angrily his smile dropping into a frown.

Fiona slips in by Shirou's side and began to lay out a plan.

"Alright, Shirou. Here's what we'll do. One counters his blows to knock him off balance and the other switches in to attack. Rinse. Repeat. Victory."

Shirou looked at her with one eye. "You came up with that, but you can't open a menu."

"Shut up!" Fiona cried out.

Illfang roars and they take off running toward him.

"Alright, so you counter and I'll attack!" Shirou yelled to Fiona.

"What? No, it's my plan! I should attack!" Fiona yelled back.

"Fine, just get ready!"

Shirou makes a battle cry and counters Illfang's attack.

"SWITCH!"

Fiona moves in and gets her cloak destroyed by Illfang before attacking revealing white curly hair and sheep ears.

" See? You almost got yourself killed! I'll attack him!" Shirou yelled again and began to attack Illfang.

"Oh, that was a fluke, and you know it! He's mine!" Fiona yelled back.

Fiona attacks Illfang.

"Oh shit. They're actually giving that boss the work!" Coco called out.

"He's mine!" Shirou yelled.

Shirou blocks Illfang's next attack, but Fiona attacks him before Shirou can do so himself.:

"Mine!" Fiona screams

"NO! HE'S! MIIIIIIIIIIINE!"

Shirou slices Illfang and he explodes. Everyone is stunned. Lame party kazoo sound effect and a banner with the word "CONGRATULATION" appears.

"Yeah!" A player cheer.

This caused almost everyone in the audience to laugh. Despite the dark humor of it all, it was still pretty hilarious.

"What happened? Did they win?" Fox asks

"Oh yes, I'm sorry Fox! They beat the boss and a victory banner came out."

"...heh." Fox chuckled.

Shirou is panting. He gets an item as a reward for defeating the Boss.

"Congratulations!" Velvet said, patting him on the back. "That was even more impressive than that cat that learned to play."

Cut to a player with a cat's head, with another player staring at it.

"Meow."

"Huh what did you know?" Yang replied.

"Oh my god! You guys can see it too?! So I'm not crazy! Isn't that great, Jesus?!" We see things from the players' perceptive, with a giant hallucination of Jesus Christ looming over the crowd.

"That's right, Jeffrey. Now... kill them all." Jesus said, his voice growing darker.

"As you command, my Lord." Jeffrey whispered.

"Somethings very wrong with that guy." Qrow states.

"I honestly agree with you, Branwen… Blegh! That left a horrible taste in my mouth." Winter stated.

Cut back to Velvet talking to Shirou. The other players are applauding his victory.

"You've led us to victory, Shirou. These men and I will follow you to hell itself. Now... address your people." Velvet is smiling and pushing Shirou to the crowd.

Shirou gets up and smirks. "I always knew this day would come. Ahem. Fellow gamers! We have traveled far and up many stairs to get to this point. Fighting side by side, noobs, and leets, alike. I'd like to take a moment to say that I couldn't have done it without the help of each and every one of you."

"Aw, that's a nice thing to say-" Velvet was cut off when Shirou counties.

"Of course, I'm not a liar, so I'm not gonna say any of that."

"Oh shit."

"I thought as much." Weiss states.

Shirou grins look at the group. "I mean, really. I could've done this whole Boss Fight myself. But to be fair, I guess you did absorb a bit of damage for me, which was nice. You were an adequate meat shield, and no one can ever take that away from you."

"Fuck. Fuck! Shut up! SHUT UP!" Velvet started to say.

"So for those of you who came in late, and that one guy playing Bejeweled back there... shoot for the stars... it'll make it more fun when I kick you back into the dirt."

"You're not better than us!" Kiaboru said.

"Yeah! What makes you think you're so cool?!" Nora shouts to the screen.

Shirou equips the coat he got for beating Illfang and smugly looks at the group."My sweet-ass coat begs to differ."

"Dammit, he's got us there." one player muttered.

Shirou ascends the stairs out of the Boss Room. Fiona follows him and grabs him by the shoulder. "Shirou, wait!"

Those in the audience looked on at Fiona's alternate in hope. Surely she could turn him around after their excellent display of partnership.

"I want half." She said, staring at him blankly.

That hope was quickly squashed, shot at, and finally burned to death via gasoline and cracking a fire dust crystal.

Shirou turns to her confused. " I'm... sorry. What?!"

"I want half the coat. I did half the work, I should get half the coat." Fiona explain and extends her hand for him give it to her.

"No! It's not fabric I can cut! It's just a bunch of 1s and 0s!" Shirou was getting frustrated.

"Fine, then give me the 1s."

" Fuck you! I want the 1s!" He groans and open the menu. "I am not having this argument. I'm disolving this party." Shirou opens his menu and "Di-solves" their party.

"Shirou! If you walk away with my half of the coat, I will make your life a living hell!" Fiona screamed.

"You know what? Fine! I'll give you the damn coat! Just send me a trade request."

"A... what?"

Fiona's eyes widened as she watched from the theater, "No…"

Shirou grins viciously "Oh, it's quite simple really... Just open your menu." Shirou starts laughing maniacally as he walks out the doors as Fiona screams at him:"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" At him.

Outro Plays.

Fiona screams, "I can't believe the nerve of that-! GRAAAAH!"

"Can you please stop screaming! You're going to cause everyone's ears to bleed." Whitley said while using a handkerchief to rub his ears.

Fiona huffed then matched off, going to another place in the theater.

"Well that was interesting. So you all say there's other viewings where we see other worlds besides this one." Coco asked the group.

"Oh yeah, we've seen a couple worlds ourselves, but only a handful I'd say." Yang admits.

"Well as long as we're here, we might as well take time to catch up." Velvet smiled.

"Yeah, this will be great! It's almost like we're back at Beacon, right Weiss? ...Weiss?" Ruby looks beside her but noticed that her partner was not with them anymore.

In another side of the theater, the all three Schnee siblings stand together. Both of the youngest siblings look at Winter who brought them here.

Winter clears her throat, "I understand that there are some… tension between the three of us during this viewing. So I asked you both here so that we may come to terms with our situation."

Weiss scoffs, "Come to terms with him! I highly doubt that."

Whitley crosses his arms, "Yes it does seem like a lost cause Winter."

"Enough! Both of you!" Winter raised her voice causing both of her younger siblings to go rigid. "I'm not expecting you to get along or even apologize to each other at the moment. What I ask is if you two can at least act civil with one another while in the theater?"

Both Weiss and Whitley looked at each other and sneered at each other.

"Why of course I can be civil with Whitley. It is a virtue of a lady to be civil at all times." Weiss said with hidden venom.

"Quite true, but being civil is also a quality an heir of the Schnee family must cultivate as well. So I look forward to spending this immeasurable amount of time with you my sisters." Whitley said with his best presentable smile.

"Yes, how I enjoy us taking this time to reacquaint with each other." Weiss said while one of her eyes was twitching.

"Well then sister, shall we?" Whitley gestured for Weiss to go ahead of him. Almost would have been believable if one did not notice the glint in his eyes and his strained smile.

Winter watched as both Weiss and Whitley walked back to the auditorium where everyone else had remained.

"...This can only end badly."

Hope you enjoyed.

#rwby #jaune arc #ruby rose #team rwby #team rnjr #team alpn #rwby nora valkyrie #rwby nora #nora valkryie #rwby lie ren #lie ren #weiss #rwby weiss schnee #rwby yang xiao long #rwby yang #yang #blake belladonna #rwby blake #rwby mercury black #whitely schnee #fiona thyme #rwby qrow branwen #rwby salem #headmaster ozpin #ozpin #cinder fall #emerald sustrai #team cvfy #look into multiverse #sao abridged

[rachetmath]

Ren’s Discovery

Ren: Jaune?

Jaune: Yeah.

Ren: I was on the computer.

Jaune: Okay so-

Ren: I've seen it.

Jaune: *raises an eyebrow* What did you see?

Ren: Us.

Jaune: *relieved* Oh thank brothers, you meant just all age approiate fan-

Ren: On rule 34.

Jaune: Crap it was to good to be true. Okay, what's up?

Ren: I saw Qrow having sex with Nora.

Jaune: Okay. And?

Ren: And!? Jaune she was drawn having sex with Qrow.

Jaune: Yeah. So was Ruby, Gylda and Winter. So what?

Ren: Jaune you don't understand--

Jaune: Ren?

Ren: I mean what if Nora descides-

Jaune: Ren!?

Ren: I mean maybe I should---

Jaune: Ren, calm down, rule 34 does everyone like that!

Ren: Really?

Jaune: YES! Dude, I'm basically screwing Pyrrha, Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Nora, and Blake! Including you and Oscar!

Ren: Me and Oscar? That's kind of-

Jaune: Insane? Crazy? Fucked up? Kind of devinant? Yeah, that's rule34. No character in any series is safe from it.

Ren: No character?

Jaune: No character. Dude, some people drew me doing it with Cinder and Emerald, Pyrrha's mom, my own sister, and even with Cardin.

Ren: But I got-

Jaune: Cucked? Basically cheated on? Yeah join the club pal. People will do that. I been through it. (I also make sure Ruby never finds that out.) And don't blame the artist most of them are doing a job while few are just because! The point is rule34 is literally porn with characters from the show acting like porn stars. Basically don't take it too serious just admire the detail and the work the artist put into their stuff.

Ren: So nothing is true?

Jaune: Non-canon. Imagination. That's it.

Ren: So I can still-

Jaune: Stick your sword in Nora? Yes.

Ren: *relieved* Oh thank you.

Jaune: *sigh* Man. Glad you feel better. But since we're on the subject, be lucky you are not team RWBY.

Ren: Why? I mean they got most drawings.

Jaune: Yeah. Of them being horny, big penis sized fuck girls who would let anyone or anything smash them. Trust me, if they saw what you saw they be going crazy.

Ren: *nervously* Oh. Um... Jaune?

Jaune: What?

Ren: I left the computer on.

Jaune: *exe stopped working and rebooted* OOOHHH SHIT!!

Jaune and Ren run to the computer only to be too late. Team RWBY and Nora saw everything. Every image of them doing sexual things with strangers, eachother and their families. Yang was angry, Weiss was discussitsted, Blake embarassed beyond belief, Nora a bit unphased but Ruby feeling very ashamed of herself.

Jaune: Okay. Girls? Ladies? Mature young women? Listen, I get this looks bad but... I mean... well...

Yang: I'm going to kill them! *trys to walk away only for Jaune to stop her*

Jaune: NO YANG IT'S JUST FICTIONAL PORN.

Yang: SCREW THAT! THEY CRIMATED MY SISTER AS HOOKER!!

Ren: I mean red riding hood did have darker stories with-.

Jaune: REN, YOU ARE NOT HELPING!!!

Ruby: *in tears* Is this what everyone thinks of me? As some girl who can't control her urges. As some kind of slut.

Yang: SEE!? JUST FOR THAT, I'LL MAKE THEIR DEATHS SLOW AND PAINFUL!!

Jaune: *while being hit by Yang* Look Ruby, i-i-it's not that ba-

Weiss: How could people draw me like this?

Nora: I mean you do have an ego the size of that thing.

Jaune: NORA!!

Weiss: HOW DARE YOU!!!?

Blake: Wait didn't we see a few pictures with you and Jaune doing it?

Nora: I mean, if Pyrrha and Ren weren't going to shoot their shot then I'll shoot mines.

Ren: Oh so would sleep with Jaune!?

Jaune: Damn it, come on people, can someone help me!? Yang, is trying to kill somebody. Please, Yang, calm down!

Yang: NEVER!!

Oscar: Hey.

RWBY and JN_R stop what there doing to see Oscar and Penny.

Jaune: *scared* Oh no.

Penny: What's going on here? Why is Jaune holding Yang?

Jaune tells eveyone to play along.

Jaune: I'm just giving Yang a hug. Right, Yang?

Yang: Y-Yeah. Oh Jaune I love you so much.

Oscar: *looks to Ruby* Ruby, why is there tears coming out your eyes?

Ruby: *staring at the computer and Oscar back and forth* Umm just something on the web. You know... a sad video.

Penny: Really, oh Ruby, let's watch it together if you can't handle it.

Weiss: No-no-no just stay right there.

Oscar: But why?

Ren: Oscar, i-it's just-

Oscar sees everyone look at the computer. Penny sees this well and stares Oscar who agrees as he nods his head. Penny rush in and takes the computer only for her and Oscar to be stunned at the results. Oscar then sees his name and was ready to click on the link however-

Jaune: Oscar wait!

Oscar: ...

Jaune: Listen. Buddy there are times when a man or woman will sometimes have to let things go. Trust me, when I say, this, is right now the time to walk away and leave with your inncocence still attached. Oscar, please, don't click the link with your name on it.

Oscar: Oh how bad could it be?

Oscar clicks the link only to regret it in the end. He saw horrible images of himself and then proceeds to lye down on the floor and crys.

Oscar: I've been a good boy haven't I? I don't deserve this, do I? Did I do something horrible to deserve this? Why? Why?

Ruby: *comforts him* It's okay Oscar. We'll get through this together. *starts crying again with Oscar*

Jaune: Damn it.

Penny: *confused* I don't see the problem. I thought sex was a natural process for humans.

Jaune was about to explain only for Yang to wave her head and stopping him, knowing Penny would ask a bunch of questions if he tries to explain.

Nora: But to be clear, I still stand by to what I said, I would bang you Jaune.

Jaune: Okay, Nora, we get it. But like I said it's fiction, no one would do-

Blake: Jaune, let me be honest, I would do you if Pyrrha, Sun, Ilia or Yang weren't around.

Yang: Same here. You are nice guy.

Ren: No denying it.

Nora: *smile* Oh Ren!

Ren: Hey I being honest.

Weiss: Okay, perverts, but I wouldn't-

Jaune: *nervously* Yeah... Weiss... um... how do I put this?

Weiss: Jaune, not you too.

Ruby: *sobbing* Weiss you still have a big ego.

Weiss: Okay but still, I may have hated Jaune but I would never-

Jaune tairs Yang's shirt off, revealing her chest.

Yang: Jaune!

Weiss: *blushes*

Jaune: Guilty as charged.

Weiss: Shut up!

Blake: But would you screw Jaune?

Weiss: Oh gosh n-

Nora tears off Jaune's pants, revealing is sword and butt.

Jaune: Really Nora?

Weiss: *blushes brighter than before* You guys are mean. *walks off*

Yang: *staring at Jaune's 'sword'* Aren't you going to cover up?

Jaune:*staring at Yang's breast* Why haven't you?

Yang: You can look but never touch.

Jaune: Touche.

Ren/Blake: Will you both cover up. Please? I don't want look at Jaune's/Yang's dick/breast all day.

Nora: Admit it, you both like it.

Ren and Blake: Shut up Nora!

#rwby #JNPR #ruby rose #weiss schnee #blake bellodona #yang xiao long #Jaune Arc #lie ren #nora valkyrie #pyrrha nikos #cinder fall #emerald sustrai #cardin winchester #Oscar Pine #penny polendina #qrow branwen

[dragonturtle2]

Charting Penny's course, on the eve of the V8 finale.

I just realized that one of the lengthiest essays I ever posted online was never copied or cross posted over here to Tumblr.  A huge mistake on my part.  For one, as a big fan of transhumanism, I got a kind of enjoyment mapping out the distinctions Penny Poledina’s series-wide arc, even with the flaws.  Two, I’m actually kind of proud of the predictions I made at the end.  Not because I was correct about one of them; I remarked how I’d LIKE Rooster Teeth to do something, not that they’d actually take the shot.  But some of the stuff I thought of was fun, and I do feel a bit of validation for having my thoughts line up with the actual writers; especially in lieu of how heated other people’s reactions were to something sorrowful and unexpected.  

Tonight I had been responding to a critique I'd found earlier on Tumblr. They had remarked that Penny's conflict in Volumes 2, 7 and 8 were just recycling the question of whether Penny was a real girl. That doing so was just boring as heck, when the question has been answered firmly with Penny becoming the Winter Maiden. I thought the question of “what makes a person a person, and not just a simulated pattern of behaviors with the instinct to survive?” was broad enough to get a few arcs’ worth of visitation.  But I thought just responding with that one lengthy sentence could come off as belittling sarcasm. So tried to offer up an my actual interpretation and clear opinion. I got this monstrosity.

Volume 1 has Penny reaching out to make friends, V2 is finally admitting her robot nature to someone and vocalizing her fears about being a real girl.  Volume 3 dangles the upcoming conflict of her wanting to exercise independent action, step away from the national military organization that bankrolled and housed her, and go to Beacon with her friends.  But that got cut short.

Volume 7 picks up the thread of Penny’s independent actions.  Not just with the ability to disagree with or full-on disobey orders, but her own value system and initiative.  Not only is she asking Winter about how to make decisions in life, she is also silently (and not-so-silently) judging whether Winter is morally right, or even truly happy with her own choices.  When she takes Freya’s hand, she asks something that no one has probably said to Freya in awhile: “Are you OK?”

Volume 8 is focused on the things being taken from her.  Her previous family-unit-facsimile of James, Winter and the Ace Ops have labeled her a traitor and are now hunting her.  Being targeted as the Maiden makes her distance herself from her friends, so they aren’t further harmed .  In doing that, she also leaves behind her previous dedication, protecting Mantle, to launch Amity Tower and assist in the bigger picture of warning the entire planet.  Then in the pursuit of that goal she damages herself, pushes her body to it’s limit, and says goodbye to her father.  

Volume 8 might seem to backpedal, and spend much of the season emphasizing how inhuman Penny is. That’s the point.  After Freya essentially canonizes Penny as human, with her ‘blessing,’ Penny’s new identity (to herself and the audience) is arrested in the most traumatic ways possible.  Her body is peeled back and cut open.  Her schematics are passed around and assessed by characters and factions more than ever.  The hacking is the Atlas military complex literally claiming ownership over her, exploiting the body and code they created alongside Pietro.  (In contrast with the earlier consensual control and teamwork with Pietro, which even then she hardly enjoyed).  How much pain can you inflict on a person until they devolve, or abandon rational thought?  Little wonder Penny ends up begging the team to end her own life.  She’s now taken Winter’s role from Volume 7, her self-esteem having sunken even lower.  “My life doesn’t matter!“

When that ghastly moment was (temporarily) resolved with a quick revelation and Jaune’s Semblance, it was a moment of mixed feelings for me in an episode I otherwise loved.  But I really came around to it afterword.  They have to head to Vault for a permanent fix pretty much immediately, so it doesn’t feel like the writers used Jaune to kick the can down the road until they felt like tackling it.  A very direct benefit is that by pausing Penny’s affliction, Penny gains the ability to actually have a conversation with people, to have scenes beyond just desperately wrestling her.   It also spared us the repeated dialogue of “I must go to the Vault.  I don’t want to!  I must - I don’t! - I MUST- I DON’T!”  Seriously, that routine was wearing thin.  

Whether any fans predicted Jaune’s Semblance being able to help or not, I’m pleased when characters are able to quickly conceive applications of in-universe fictional powers.  This is such a refreshing improvement over how CRWBY previously couldn’t bring Ruby to even ASK about the Silver Eyes that put her in a coma.  

There were missteps along the way.  Ruby really should have reacted more to her friend coming back to life; RT leaning on the Fourth Wall doesn’t fully remove the sting. ("It seems we will have to wait!”)  We also never see any of our protagonists outside of Ruby even react to the revelation of a robotic life form.  When they meet Penny again at V7′s start, apparently ALL of them, even Oscar, were so acquainted with Penny’s story that none of them had any questions for her the entire Volume.  There was no sense of betrayed trust, or trauma from watching one friend be ripped apart by another.  These are disappointments, but not deal breakers.  Now, I want to talk about how post-Ambrosius Penny may fit in with the rest of the story.  Maybe it’s stupid of me to try to get this out by 4 in the morning the day the finale drops, but I’m on a role, and I want to get my ideas out in the open before they’re tainted by hindsight.  Otherwise I won’t feel like even finishing this.  

I’m not going to launch into a tangent with the metaphysical mechanics on whether Penny’s new body would have ‘logically’ been conjured or not.  (For the record I think it works).  I just want to talk about the message the show is conveying, and what they could do with it.  My base assumption is that Cinder is going to get the Winter Maiden power.  It would be great way to coincide with her (GASP) actual character development this volume.  But more importantly, if she doesn’t succeed in her goal, and get an upgrade to compete with our leveled-up protagonists, I can’t see how she can be an interesting or threatening villain going forward.  A few ways this can end for Penny:

Pietro could give up the last bit of his life to bring her back.  He’d probably need to get assistance from Abrosius, since he’s lacking in equipment; he’s a brilliant scientist, so explaining it certainly wouldn’t be an obstacle.  Maybe Penny would be back to being a synthetic, maybe she remains organic.  Either way, it’s a compromise with having a functional villain, while keeping around a fandom darling.  Personally, I think RT needs to evoke the spirit of Volume 3, and make people cry.

Actually killing Penny would be bold and stand-out.  By taking away Penny’s function of a core that can be salvaged (as explained at the start of Volume 7), and having her body get incinerated just like Pyrrha, RT can fully signal “This character is dead, and can’t be resurrected.”  The heart break would be brilliant, with Penny getting to know the joys of an organic body just to be immediately ripped away from life.  This would beautifully parallel with General Ironwood.  James clamped down on human emotion because he thought it would give him the strength to stand against the darkness.  Penny’s friends made her MORE human in a loving act of rescue, but now have to watch as she dies like any other human.  Both characters would be cautionary tales regarding the Atlas Arc’s question of Trust.  To leave yourself open.

Alrighty, now that I’ve gotten to feel like an intellectual by making some proclamations of doom, I want to throw out a tinfoil hat theory that actually combines the two previous versions.  What’s fascinated me for years, and the show hasn’t re-visited, is the nature of Cinder’s parasite.  Can Cinder talk to it?  Will it begin gaining sentience?  What’s relevant to Penny is what exactly this thing DOES.  When it comes to it’s soul-power-absorbing function, we’ve never actually seen it’s full extent.  The process with Amber was interrupted, with half the power just zipping over to Cinder after Amber expired.  With Raven and Penny’s power, Cinder’s arm only got a little taste of them both, since both of their captures were unsuccessful.  What if Cinder’s parasite can absorb more than raw power?  Pinnochio is eventually swallowed by a monstrous beast.  We were all sure it would be The Whale.  But what if it’s Cinder?

I’ll be watching the finale in about 5 hours.  The idea that I could be correct about something that takes everyone else off guard (Penny’s death) has an electric feeling, and I totally understand why people can get hung up on the stories they compose in their head.  But I don’t want to start thinking any of MY ideas HAVE to come true for me to get joy from whatever happens to Penny or Volume 8.  Regardless, reviewing character arcs that preceded wherever we are in the present is always worthwhile.  

#reddit #RWBY #rwby volume 8 prediction #penny polendina #pietro polendina #cinder fall #james ironwood #Rooster Teeth

[sid471]

An OBJECTIVE look at James Ironwood

A much needed TL;DR: Ironwood’s story is sad. But it doesn’t excuse his actions just cause we’ve known him longer.

So I’ve made it.... abundantly clear on many many posts that ever since the end of volume 7 and into volume 8, I’ve hated General James Ironwood. I’ve made SOME posts “throwing him a bone” but I usually end up still emphasizing his flaws. So... Here’s a post where I DON’T focus solely on his flaws. Here’s a look at Ironwood’s actions from his introduction in volume 2, to now. And I’ll try to be as, well, objective as possible.

So James’ first appearance is in episode 2 of Volume 2 where he talks to Ozpin and, briefly, Glynda. He clearly has some history with Glynda, maybe a romantic relationship that I personally support 😗... Well I mean not NOW but I did. So Ironwood seems to be a bit of a 3rd wheel to Oz and Glynda, Glynda dismissing him and his compliment and Oz not being PARTICULARLY happy with him and his army’s presence in Vale and after a bit of arguing, James says the infamous line, that’s even quoted in his theme track, “Do you honestly believe your children can win a war?” James bringing his army to Vale, and then later going behind Oz’s back to the Vale counsel to get permission to protect the kingdom, and also get Ozpin in the Counsel’s bad graces? He... meant well. But it was still a betrayal of Ozpin’s trust. Which is ironic considering trust is Ironwood’s whole... thing.

And it also tells us something interesting. He UNDERESTIMATES the capabilities and potential of humans. I know that may sound a bit like I’m reaching but think about it, Atlas mostly sends soldier bots to take care of Grimm attacks instead of humans. And even when he DOES send human soldiers, they rely on surprise attacks to get the job done, like the Ace Ops arresting RWBY and friends at the beginning of Volume 7. And when they DON’T have surprise attacks, Atlas’ huntsman lose. The Ace Ops lost to RWBY, they basically lost to Penny in a 1v4 fight, which Harriet admits in saying “Good work would’ve been capturing Penny.” So yeah they lost, Clover lost to Tyrian and Qrow, which I know is a different scenario but still if he were among the best of the best he would’ve either recognized the bigger threat in Tyrian, or would’ve been able to hold them both off, or, 3rd option, would’ve retreated and let Qrow and Tyrian have it out then come back to arrest them both, or the remaining one considering Qrow vs Tyrian, when we get it again, is GONNA end in a death. Fair Game bias aside, everyone blames Qrow but Clover also could’ve been smarter in his final moments. 

In fact EVERY major Atlesian we’ve seen has lost a fight at least once. Winter lost to Qrow in Volume 3, if you count that AS a fight, and Cinder in Volume 7, Ace Ops lost to RWBY and Penny, Clover, as mentioned, lost to Tyrian and Qrow, Watts lost to Ironwood, and Weiss has, notoriously, lost a lot of fights but among the first was against Banesaw, the White fang lieutenant in Volume 2, and most recently, Rhodes lost to Cinder, if you count him. Whyyyy? I’m personally of the belief that it’s because of Atlas’ over reliance on its tech, and I know I’m not the only who thinks this 😗. Atlas has the best Tech on remnant and can easily create robosoldiers or mechs to protect the pilot while also allowing the pilot to still fight. What use is training humans to fight when they have mechs and robots to do it for them? 

Phew. That was a little off topic. I’m sorry, anyway, so in volume 3, James brings Penny to Vale to participate in the Vytal festival which, speaking of trust, he didn’t tell anyone about. I understand not making it public knowledge. Soldier bots are one thing but a robot that looks like a little girl? I don’t think that woulda sat right with people. So, yeah not making it general knowledge, makes sense. But not trusting your 3 closest allies, and FRIENDS, in Oz, Glynda, and Qrow? Like Glynda said, it’s time to stop talking about trust and start showing it. That aside, things go decently well. No DIRECT signs of any conflict *looks at Cinder* and the festival goes well until the one on one finals. Yang attacking a “defenseless” student, in James’ mind, is horrible yes, but people’ll move past it, especially cause he disqualified her. But then shortly after that, Pyrrha, Ozpin’s chosen one for the Fall Maiden’s power, dismembers Penny on national TV. That is a huge blow for both the festival and him personally.

Continuing with Volume 3, while he’s calling for reinforcements, the robosoldiers that’re in his plane with him are hacked and cause him to crash land. Also a hit to him personally, HE ordered these be created and the fact that they were so easily turned against him and the people he swore to protect? Yeah... Kinda get it. Although, something else interesting in Volume 3, when he DOES rendezvous with Qrow and Glynda, Qrow immediately turns his sword into Scythe form for the first time in the show. And James’ immediate reaction? “Qrow! This wasn’t my doing!” and preparing his gun for a fight, before turning around and realizing that Qrow actually just saved him from a Griffon. This is........ interesting. Why would he assume a colleague he’s worked with for so long would suddenly be turning on him? I dunno. Just seems a little... paranoid wouldn’t ya say?

Volume 4, we see a new side of James. We see that he cares for Weiss, at least somewhat. More than Jacques, but granted a squirrel cares more about the Schneeblings than Jacques. But yeah, James has some pretty sweet moments with Weiss in volume 4, standing up for her at Jacques’ party, offering her a place at Atlas academy, he’s a pretty stand up guy to Weiss. But, big picture? This volume shows the signs of his paranoia being something serious. He completely shuts down Atlas. In his own words, “No one in. No one out. Not without the Counsel’s permission.” now, he knows about Salem. But he doesn’t know what she’s CAPABLE of, as implied by Qrow last volume. So, from James’ perspective, this DOES seem like the safest course of action. But this is exactly what Salem wants. Separation. Anxiety. Paranoia. FUEL for the Grimm. And this is the first sign of a common theme of James inadvertently playing into Salem’s hands.

Jumping to Volume 7, we don’t see him in 5 or 6 😗, James is still hella, HELLA paranoid, but he’s still happy to see Qrow and happy to have new allies. Now this is where we get a little dicey because volume 7 is a.......... divisive volume 😓. I’m gonna talk about JAMES’ perspective of events. Not necessarily my thoughts because... well... I’ve done that already lol. Many times 😓. So JAMES’ perspective on Volume 7. James sent the Ace Ops to investigate a stolen air ship and arrest the ones responsible for... ya know... stealing the air ship. So the Ace Ops do. And then they go back and take them to James’ office, and it’s the general’s old friend Qrow and his niece’s team and her friends, and a mysterious young man. We can see that James is happy to see Qrow, especially cause of the hug :3, and he’s especially happy to see Oscar, the new Ozpin. He trains Ruby and her friends with his Ace Ops, and allows Winter to help Weiss. And he DOES start to relax more. He starts to, dare I say it, let loose. He allows some lenience, he lets RWBY have the night off. Ruby going to Robyn’s celebration, Yang and Blake going on a double date with Flynt and Neon, and let’s the boys and Weiss have a movie night. He even gives RWBY and their friends their huntsman licenses. These are really great things to do :3

But where things start to crumble is after he announces that Amity is ready, which is a whole speech full of half truths, that he didn’t tell any of his allies about once again, to lure out Watts. It works, they fight, he wins, and we see THIS face.

This is a man who is completely CONTENT. He is happy in this moment. He’s arrested a man who’s always, by his own admission, been a pain in the ass, he has Clover, Qrow, and Robyn on the way back with Tyrian Callows, everything is great right now. He KNOWS that Ruby and her friends lied to him because Oscar told him, but he can sort that out with an honest conversation right? In my opinion, THIS screenshot is Ironwood’s last GOOD moment in the series. That thought process of everything is great goes to shit when he sees the Black Queen piece that Cinder left expressly to fuck with his head. And THEN he gets irrational and, once again, plays into Salem’s hands. He directly ORDERS the divide of the people. He plans to abandon Mantle, leaving them to die in the process, and he plans to completely sever Atlas from all of Remnant basically by launching it into the atmosphere to keep the Vault safe. That only ACTUALLY accomplishes one thing, being keeping the vault, which IS important. But it isn’t more important than keeping the people, ALL of the people, calm and prepared to face this threat, like he did at Beacon. He should have remained calm, like an experienced military official should, and made an announcement to all of Atlas and Mantle saying kind of what he did in Volume 3. “Grimm are all over the kingdom. You can either stay and protect your kingdom, or save yourself. No one will fault you if you leave.” 

Ironwood has a thing with fear. He doesn’t want to admit he’s afraid of Salem. As evidenced both times he’s shot someone....... interesting 😓. In the last episode of Volume 7, The Enemy of Trust, this exchange happens. Ironwood: You still think I'm afraid? Oscar: We all are. It's what we do in our fear that reveals--Ironwood: That's easy for you to say!

And then later, in the first episode of Volume 8 Divide, he shoots and kills Sleet once he says... Well... His last words “And what’s this about martial law? Have you lost your damn mind?! Are you that scared of what-- “ And notice, Ironwood shoots after Sleet goes to say “Are you that scared of what might happen?” And he IS right about one thing. It IS easy for Oscar to say “It’s what we do in our fear.” Because Oscar is child who can AFFORD to be afraid. James doesn’t have the luxury. He’s denying his fear because he’s the general. He’s James Ironwood. He can’t AFFORD to be afraid. If he’s afraid, everyone is going to be afraid. And, well, he can’t have that. That would attract the Grimm. He thinks he HAS to have a level head at all times for the sake of the kingdom. But James even generals in the military have feelings.... and sometimes need therapy to talk through some shit 😶. But... well... Maybe too late for that 😶😓.

In conclusion: James Ironwood is indeed a tragic character. A character who has taken A LOT of blows. A character who has always been paranoid. ALWAYS been ready for an attack. But even though he’s always been ready, he still wasn’t PREPARED. He wasn’t prepared for the sheer strength and AMOUNT of Salem’s forces. If he was more calm and more rational, he could have prepared better. He could have had Mantle and Atlas united against Salem, and that’s what can beat Salem, like Ruby said. James Ironwood is a tragic character, he has had it rough. But that doesn’t mean we should overlook his OBJECTIVELY horrible actions through out these last 2 volumes. Like ya know... Murder.

Phew .-. This is DEFINITELY my longest post. This better get attention I didn’t do all this for nothing >_>

#RWBY #RWBY2 #RWBY3 #RWBY4 #RWBY7 #RWBY8 #RWBY analysis #James Ironwood #General Ironwood #Siddy Rambles #Side note: this whole time I thought Sleet's name was Slate .-. #Turns out Slate is an entirely different character from After the Fall 😶 #I have to go back and edit some posts even though it's kinda... #Too little too late .-.