Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)

[JohnnieBoy123]

Mmm, drugs don't seem to be a thing anymore. We now get pills from the shop gacha, and yrs seems to be being very careful not to give us super broken drugs like we had last year.

Anyway, my position on exploration is two-fold: first, that this isn't the best time for it narratively - the space it would usually fill is being used by the War. Second: the AP concerns are honestly overdone. We do not need to hit G5 by, uh, turn 15 I think the current plan is? Our growth is already really really good. We can absolutely spare the odd AP for exploration and other things somewhere down the line (though admittedly things might get tighter if we start needing to burn AP on duties).

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I don't really see the war being resolved significantly before the end of our time with the Sect and is likely to become a bigger presence in the story over time. This could potentially help us reconcile with the Bloody Moon but I don't think we want that? Of our patrons, Dreaming Moon is mildly opposed to war, Hidden Moon is getting crowded out, and Grinning Moon is sort of just there?

Combined with how we will have the soldier arc after we are done with the Sect, I don't see how this view leaves any room for exploration.

 

[Neshuakadal]

I don't really see the war being resolved significantly before the end of our time with the Sect and is likely to become a bigger presence in the story over time. This could potentially help us reconcile with the Bloody Moon but I don't think we want that? Of our other patrons, Dreaming Moon is mildly opposed to war, Hidden Moon is getting crowded out, and Grinning Moon is sort of just there?

Combined with how we will have the soldier arc after we are done with the Sect, I don't see how this view leaves any room for exploration.

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I am all for exploration, but I have no idea what you are trying to argue here.

 

[picklepikkl]

Combined with how we will have the soldier arc after we are done with the Sect, I don't see how this view leaves any room for exploration. "Don't mind the captain, she's just going on religious pilgrimages to Moon shrines and leaving us to fend for ourselves."

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What soldier arc? The Cai bought out our service. We're not serving in the military after we leave the Sect, we're doing whatever Cai Renxiang says to do, which is whatever Cai Shenhua says to do, which is probably something just barely on this side of impossible like "I want you to fill your dangerous borderland barony with happy people to the population density of pre-Cataclysm Golden Fields countryside and bring me the heads of three Cloud Tribe warleaders a year."

We don't leave the Sect until after Turn 26. There is a lot of time for exploring between now and then.

 

[JohnnieBoy123]

I am all for exploration, but I have no idea what you are trying to argue here.

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That our connection to the Moon is going to get strained by the events of the next several years of our life and so we need to do our part to nurture it when we can.

 

[Vanguard_D]

Ultimatly this was our last chance for exploration for a few reasons.

The war will most likely go on the rest of our time in the sect, so our time will be taken up with that and the argument that it is bad to go on exploration runs during a war will exist like in this vote.

By the time we get to turn 15(where maybe if the math cabal is willing to break there perfect schedule, which is doubtful as they only threw the vote out to appease the people that ask for it the last year) or after turn 18 where the plans go a vague. More then a year/ year and a half will have gone by. (Going by the time it took to get to turn 9) So arguments that it is not in "LQ´s character to explore" will pop up in greater force then this time.

More responsabilites, it is not we are going to get more free time the more time pass leading to less time to play with. CRX duties, family duties, sect duties. LQ will keep on picking more and more of em up.

Lastly, exploration got a problem in that it is ultimatly a dice roll to see what happens. Even if it is indulging in a Moon given object the narrative weight to argue is low unless something good happens. As we could see in this vote even an action about experimentation could be argued to be about a "great communication narrative arc", could help with ZHengui, Hanyi and Six or give good stuff to the sect. It is the sapling vote allover again really. One vote is "better" then the others because people can just go ham on unfounded speculations.

 

[Neshuakadal]

That our connection to the Moon is going to get strained by the events of the next several years of our life and so we need to do our part to nurture it when we can.

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Dreaming moon is connected to those that create. Artists and what not. Ling Qi is constantly creating new pieces of music for different occasions. Hidden moon is connected to knowledge. Well we are exploring art modding this turn gaining knowledge that we didn't have before. The grinning moon's core, the one we arguable know the most about, is about choosing to act. Ling Qi's acts. That is sort of her core. We are in no danger from being strained towards the moon. Besides the path of the moon is a personal one as our Moon Sempai told us in the outer sect. Each persons follows it differently.

Ultimatly this was our last chance for exploration for a few reasons.

The war will most likely go on the rest of our time in the sect, so our time will be taken up with that and the argument that it is bad to go on exploration runs during a war will exist like in this vote.

By the time we get to turn 15(where maybe if the math cabal is willing to break there perfect schedule) or after turn 18 where the plans go a vague. More then a year/ year and a half will have gone by. (Going by the time it took to get to turn 9) So arguments that it is not in "LQ´s character to explore" will pop up in greater force then this time.

More responsabilites, it is not we are going to get more free time the more time pass leading to less time to play with. CRX duties, family duties, sect duties. LQ will keep on picking more and more of em up.

Lastly, exploration got a problem in that it is ultimatly a dice roll to see what happens. Even if it is indulging in a Moon given object the narrative weight to argue is low unless something good happens. As we could see in this vote even an action about experimentation could be argued to be about a "great communication narrative arc", could help with ZHengui, Hanyi and Six or give good stuff to the sect. It is the sapling vote allover again really. One vote is "better" then the others because people can just go ham on unfounded speculations.

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I am all for exploration. I was one of it's most argent supporters this vote. It makes me very frustrated to see this kind of view. Thinking this was the last chance to explore is wrong. I saw no arguments this vote that it's not in LQ's character to explore. None. Could you quote me on a few? Because it's a pretty bold claim to say that people were saying that. I did see arguments that this wasn't the narrative time, but I think those arguments are pretty bogus and only one or two people were using it. I also have no idea what the sapling vote is, but exploration block is no stranger to hamming things up on unfounded speculations. As for responbilities? Yes those will increase, but the arts we need to level will decrease. One of the reasons that AP is so tight is because we have so many good arts to fill up our time with from the Bai library. Once those arts cap out than it will be a struggle to get so many other amazing arts at the same time. Hopefully this should increase the free AP we get over time.

In the end if you want to explore than we should make plans for exploring. The math cabal gives us the most efficent cultivation schedule, but if we don't like that plan we don't have to vote for that plan. It is amazingly infuriating to see this kind of fatalism pop up again and again in regards to exploration. No one knows what the future holds. That .1 increase from reaching our current rewards level did a lot to accelerate our growth. If we keep getting such bonus from increasing our rewards we will get more time. Giving up hope on things you want to do now is a bad idea. If you want something, do it.

 

[tired_ann]

Also we just had our Wind Thief bonanza, so it isn't like we're ignoring the moon spirits. There's more than one way to pet a cat

 

[Huo Yuhao]

Why are you so sure about that? Exploring was so very close to winning and is very emotionally resonant with many people. It has very good chances down the line.

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I think exploration has good chances in some circumstances, but not when it is a clearly suboptimal option. It almost won this time around because we had a free AP open - we didn't have to sacrifice cultivating anything in order to do it. I doubt that the thread, myself included, will go for exploration if we have to make real sacrifices like reaching G5 a turn later for it.

 

[JohnnieBoy123]

Dreaming moon is connected to those that create. Artists and what not. Ling Qi is constantly creating new pieces of music for different occasions. Hidden moon is connected to knowledge. Well we are exploring art modding this turn gaining knowledge that we didn't have before. The grinning moon's core, the one we arguable know the most about, is about choosing to act. Ling Qi's acts. That is sort of her core. We are in no danger from being strained towards the moon. Besides the path of the moon is a personal one as our Moon Sempai told us in the outer sect. Each persons follows it differently.

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I somehow doubt that a war is great opportunity to continue to develop as an artist. That's not always the case but, when it's not, it is generally for either propaganda (which Ling Qi would be terrible at. Stirring songs of pride are... not her thing) or talk about war's horrors ("oh great, the captain is making another song about how horrible this all is and how she misses her family"). Our connection to the Dreaming Moon, Sixiang, almost decided to die because of their dislike of violence. That in particular is obviously not going to be a problem but the fact that the Dreaming Moon and high intensity violence don't get along well remains.

We know that the Hidden Moon is about understanding those different from you and recovering things lost or hidden. There is some room for that initially, as seen by our discoveries of the nature of the Shishigui, but that will rapidly fall by the wayside as the enemy becomes a known quantity. Messing with arts has nothing to do with the Hidden Moon and I don't know why people keep saying that, it has no basis in the story. Understanding some particular person's or group's Arts would but that's not what is happening here.

The Grinning Moon's wanting us to act with confidence works the best and we are least likely to drift away from them.

And so we our connection to two of three facets of our patron that we are closest to will become strained. Not broken, those are definitely not the stakes, but strained. I would prefer to try to make them stronger instead and that will require us to make choices to that effect. War is an ideal time to connect to the Bloody Moon, maybe we should try to do that?

 

[tired_ann]

I somehow doubt that a war is great opportunity to continue to develop as an artist. That's not always the case but, when it's not, it is generally for either propaganda (which Ling Qi would be terrible at. Stirring songs of pride are... not her thing) or talk about war's horrors ("oh great, the captain is making another song about how horrible this all is"). Our connection to the Dreaming Moon, Sixiang, almost decided to die because of their dislike of violence. That in particular is obviously not going to be a problem but the fact that the Dreaming Moon and high intensity violence don't get along well remains.

We know that the Hidden Moon is about understanding those different from you and recovering things lost or hidden. There is some room for that initially, as seen by our discoveries of the nature of the Shishigui, but that will rapidly fall by the wayside as the enemy becomes a known quantity. Messing with arts has nothing to do with the Hidden Moon and I don't know why people keep saying that, it has no basis in the story. Understanding some particular person's or group's Arts would but that's not what is happening here.

The Grinning Moon's wanting us to act with confidence works the best and we are least likely to drift away from them.

And so we our connection to two of three facets of our patron that we are closest to will become strained. Not broken, those are definitely not the stakes, but strained. I would prefer to try to make them stronger instead and that will require us to make choices to that effect.

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I feel like this is making a lot of assumptions- that the kind of war we're facing means Ling Qi can't continue development as an artist (or that any art based around the horrors of war is automatically less valid), that Sixiang's personal experiences speaks for the Dreaming Moon as a whole, and that the scholarly pursuit of art modding isn't of interest to the hidden moon. Especially considering Xin, an actual aspect of the hidden moon, was sorta the mascot of the potential scholar path we passed on in favor of CRX.

That isn't speaking of the very strong lines you're placing in your interpretation of what it means to act in a way harmonious with a certain phase of the moon, which feels sorta presumptuous?

I honestly don't think that we have to worry about this decision leading to a strained relationship with the moons- it isn't like dropping thievery meant dropping the Grinning Moon, and we aren't even dropping exploration in general.

 

[Vanguard_D]

I am all for exploration. I was one of it's most argent supporters this vote. It makes me very frustrated to see this kind of view. Thinking this was the last chance to explore is wrong. I saw no arguments this vote that it's not in LQ's character to explore. None. Could you quote me on a few? Because it's a pretty bold claim to say that people were saying that. I did see arguments that this wasn't the narrative time, but I think those arguments are pretty bogus and only one or two people were using it. I also have no idea what the sapling vote is, but exploration block is no stranger to hamming things up on unfounded speculations. As for responbilities? Yes those will increase, but the arts we need to level will decrease. One of the reasons that AP is so tight is because we have so many good arts to fill up our time with from the Bai library. Once those arts cap out than it will be a struggle to get so many other amazing arts at the same time. Hopefully this should increase the free AP we get over time.

In the end if you want to explore than we should make plans for exploring. The math cabal gives us the most efficent cultivation schedule, but if we don't like that plan we don't have to vote for that plan. It is amazingly infuriating to see this kind of fatalism pop up again and again in regards to exploration. No one knows what the future holds. That .1 increase from reaching our current rewards level did a lot to accelerate our growth. If we keep getting such bonus from increasing our rewards we will get more time. Giving up hope on things you want to do now is a bad idea. If you want something, do it.

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As it stands, there's just no real objective in exploring. It's not clear what Ling Qi would search for, she does not have established habits as exploring for exploration's sake, and nothing in recent narrative presents any motivation towards starting at this moment.

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Exemple for in not being in LQ´s character part.

Sapling vote was a vote for a bonus way back during the tournament arc. We got 3 options moonshadow, sapling and winter storm. The vote went on and on until the sapling voters had worked themselves up to sapling doing everything the other votes did but better on top of its own thing. That it was a great narrative need to take it because stuff would happen. In the end moonshadow won and the results was a 0.1 bonus to a keyword. That was what that vote was about. This vote is did go they same route with the art modding, it went from experimentation to this super communication arc that has apparently been in the works for a long time(?). Among other wild claims.

Arts ap needed will actually go up due to how insanly ap intensive it is to make successors.

We only got a ap this time because the math cabal deemed it so. Unless we somehow get more the math cabal will be vehmently against an "ineffective use of AP". As long as that free ap does not exist any attempt to get a new plan going is doomed to failure.

 

[Liliet]

I was specifically referring to the argument that it's OOC for Ling Qi to go exploring even though she has SSC, because she has never done it before. Sure it would have been a good idea, but it hasn't happened yet, meaning it's out of character for it to happen in the future either!

Ling Qi is cultivating Songseeker Ceremony. She's taking new steps on the path it represents, which is to say, by definition ones she hadn't taken before.

And sure, some of them will be identical, but that doesn't mean it's OOC for her to do new things, yeah?

 

[veekie]

I was specifically referring to the argument that it's OOC for Ling Qi to go exploring even though she has SSC, because she has never done it before. Sure it would have been a good idea, but it hasn't happened yet, meaning it's out of character for it to happen in the future either!

Ling Qi is cultivating Songseeker Ceremony. She's taking new steps on the path it represents, which is to say, by definition ones she hadn't taken before.

And sure, some of them will be identical, but that doesn't mean it's OOC for her to do new things, yeah?

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Thats one person arguing it. Doesn't mean it actually has traction

 

[Neshuakadal]

I think exploration has good chances in some circumstances, but not when it is a clearly suboptimal option. It almost won this time around because we had a free AP open - we didn't have to sacrifice cultivating anything in order to do it. I doubt that the thread, myself included, will go for exploration if we have to make real sacrifices like reaching G5 a turn later for it.

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The question then becomes what is suboptimal? Suboptimal only refers to goals not an absolute state. If your goal is to have fun reading the thread and you think that exploration would be a fun read, then it's suboptimal to vote for anything but exploration. What is your goal in this thread? My goal is to have fun reading, so I plan on introducing exploration plans in the future. We'll see what happens.

 

[JohnnieBoy123]

I feel like this is making a lot of assumptions- that the kind of war we're facing means Ling Qi can't continue development as an artist (or that any art based around the horrors of war is automatically less valid), that Sixiang's personal experiences speaks for the Dreaming Moon as a whole, and that the scholarly pursuit of art modding isn't of interest to the hidden moon. Especially considering Xin, an actual aspect of the hidden moon, was sorta the mascot of the potential scholar path we passed on in favor of CRX.

I honestly don't think that we have to worry about this decision leading to a strained relationship with the moons- it isn't like dropping thievery meant dropping the Grinning Moon, and we aren't even dropping exploration in general.

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IIRC Xin is a student of humanity's sins. She would fit into "uncovering things hidden" and "understanding those different from you". I don't see why Xin would be particularly interested in manipulating Arts in general and I don't remember any indications to that effect.

And yes, I am assuming that the Dreaming Moon spirits that we've met are representative of the Dreaming Moon. That seems like a pretty obvious way of going about things and it gives us a Dreaming Moon that isn't inherently opposed to hurting people but doesn't really do high intensity prolonged conflict well, which is what war is. After all, Sixiang wasn't opposed to the violence existing but rather the quantity of it. They had seen us hurt a bunch of people before and that wasn't in itself the problem.

 

[Neshuakadal]

IIRC Xin is a student of humanity's sins. She would fit into "uncovering things hidden" and "understanding those different from you". I don't see why Xin would be particularly interested in manipulating Arts in general and I don't remember any indications to that effect.

And yes, I am assuming that the Dreaming Moon spirits that we've met are representative of the Dreaming Moon. That seems like a pretty obvious way of going about things and it gives us a Dreaming Moon that isn't inherently opposed to hurting people but doesn't really do high intensity prolonged conflict well, which is what war is.

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We know from our grinning moon trip that agents of a moon phase are not all encompassing of the different aspects of that phase. Taking what few examples we have of representatives and saying they encompass all aspects of that phase doesn't seem like it fits with the other things we know about the moon.

 

[Huo Yuhao]

The question then becomes what is suboptimal? Suboptimal only refers to goals not an absolute state. If your goal is to have fun reading the thread and you think that exploration would be a fun read, then it's suboptimal to vote for anything but exploration. What is your goal in this thread? My goal is to have fun reading, so I plan on introducing exploration plans in the future. We'll see what happens.

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Yeah, just to be clear, I'm not saying that voting for exploration is inherently wrong. I completely understand the desire for a better story. I just don't think the thread (not just the math cabal) is likely to go for it outside of situations like the last vote.

Personally, I'm not that interested in exploration since I think it's likelier than not that nothing of interest will happen. If we do end up getting lucky, an interesting character arc like the Bloody Moon one would be nice, but it would likely come at the cost of a really long turn, which I'd prefer not to have anymore.

 

[Liliet]

Thats one person arguing it. Doesn't mean it actually has traction

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Well that's the person I'm arguing with then -\/(0_0)\/-

Yeah, just to be clear, I'm not saying that voting for exploration is inherently wrong. I completely understand the desire for a better story. I just don't think the thread (not just the math cabal) is likely to go for it outside of situations like the last vote.

Personally, I'm not that interested in exploration since I think it's likelier than not that nothing of interest will happen. If we do end up getting lucky, an interesting character arc like the Bloody Moon one would be nice, but it would likely come at the cost of a really long turn, which I'd prefer not to have anymore.

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A really long turn = tighter pacing, more things actually happening. Narratively it's something that needs to happen, maybe not every turn, but frequently enough.

 

[tired_ann]

IIRC Xin is a student of humanity's sins. She would fit into "uncovering things hidden" and "understanding those different from you". I don't see why Xin would be particularly interested in manipulating Arts in general and I don't remember any indications to that effect.

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Honestly, just shows a lack of creativity to me. How could the Hidden Moon not love the noble act of pushing the boundaries of one's knowledge? Exploring the possibilities innate in even the seemingly untouchable final product of a well worn art? Teasing out its hidden potential through tinkering and cleverness, pushing the bounds of what that art is capable of?

There is hidden potential in every fleeting mote of existence that surrounds us, and I'd argue that exploring those hitherto unknown aspects is well within the interest of the Hidden Moon.

 

[Liliet]

"Hidden Moon" is a poetic description of the phase/spirit/deity aspect, not a defining phrase the rest is built around explaining.

Not everything that can be described as hidden is the hidden moon's domain, much like the grinning moon's domain is not in fact centered around facial expressions and the bloody moon doesn't preside over surgeons.

 

[tired_ann]

I was basing my post on the phase "uncovering things hidden," which is a part of the hidden moon's domain. I do have the ability to understand the difference between a name and a domain. As we saw with the Wind Thief speech, there's some flexibility in interpretation.

 

[glyph]

Let's be honest, we couldn't even convince a majority of the thread to vote for exploration over art modding experimentation. How are we going to convince people to pick exploration over something like an art cultivation point? Barring super lucky rolls that free up AP, I don't see us doing any exploration until turn 18.

 

[Alectai]

Let's be honest, we couldn't even convince a majority of the thread to vote for exploration over art modding experimentation. How are we going to convince people to pick exploration over something like an art cultivation point? Barring super lucky rolls that free up AP, I don't see us doing any exploration until turn 18.

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We're going to have to start committing some AP to the War anyway, the best place to shake loose AP from is spiritual, because we're already scheduled to get way ahead of the game minus plot gates as it is.

 

[Erebeal]

We're going to have to start committing some AP to the War anyway, the best place to shake loose AP from is spiritual, because we're already scheduled to get way ahead of the game minus plot gates as it is.

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Also that base cult tends the be the place where we can get the most ap saved from pills.

 

[Neshuakadal]

A Brief Meeting, and a Promise of Cookies.

Ruby knelt at her mother's gravestone and enjoyed the silence that hung about. The waves below and the birds in the trees behind seemed so very distant at this point. But, Ruby thought as she unfurled crimson rose, it never should be this quiet. At the clearing's edge a pack of beowolfs had gathered. Ruby eyed them as they prowled about. Just one pack. No problem! She triggered her semblance and the fight started.

Ruby was standing on the shoulders of one of the beowolfs ready to finish the job when an explosion blew both of them over. Trees groaned and wind howled before it suddenly stopped. Ruby's stomach curdled with fear. What had happened? Was someone in trouble? Fear only grew. Now her heart had jumped into her throat. What was happening? Why was she so afraid? A quick shot stopped the beowolf the explosion had briefly saved and then Ruby dashed off into the woods at full speed. She didn't know why she was afraid but heroes overcame fear and that explosion couldn't be anything good! She was here to save the day!

It wasn't long before Ruby came to a new clearing in the woods. Trees had been toppled and stripped of leaves. Small fires burned in the undergrowth. The fear had also gotten much much worse. She could feel her limbs shaking and her vision swam. Everything in her body screamed at her warnings. The slightest breeze would cause her to bolt away. Yet she could hear fighting ahead so she gritted her teeth, told herself that heroes overcome fear and moved forward. At the center of the new clearing a small lady with brilliant white hair and clothes stood surrounded by evaporating grimm corpses. In her hand a whip writhed through the air, seeking more targets. When the lady turned to face Ruby she could see golden eyes. She froze like a mouse. Fear gripped everything and refused to let go. There was nothing she could do. But, heroes overcame fear, so with everything she had Ruby spoke.

"Do you need help?"

The lady blinked once. Then the light faded from her eyes until they were just a pale golden color. Ruby gasped for breath as the fear receded from her mind.

"Is that why you are here? To help?" The lady asked.

"Ah…," Ruby gulped down air, "Yes?"

"Why?"

"There was this huge explosion and I knew something wasn't right because I got afraid. I only get afraid when something isn't right. Or when watching horror movies. But! I knew something wasn't right, so I came to help. It does look like you're O.K though."

Ruby nodded. It was important to check though! So, she dashed closer to the lady to make sure. At least that was what she tried to do. Instead she felt her entire body come to a stop before she meant to. Then the pain came. She gasped as a slender hand slowly started to crush her throat. Dangling above the ground she waved her hands and tried to breathe. Pressure only grew and the fear was back. She was going to die. To die! Then the lady sighed and Ruby dropped to the ground. She gasped like a fish and rubbed her bruised throat while looking up at the stranger. No one had managed to catch her before!

"Why did you do that?" The lady asked.

"I wanted to make sure you were alright! Uncle said that some injuries don't hurt until after the fight so I wanted to check!"

The lady sighed. "Don't jump towards people like that. It looked like an attack."

Ruby gasped. An attack! She would never do something like that! "An attack! I would never, ever, do that!"

"How would I know?"

Ruby blushed. "It was still mean of you." She said. Who would just start choking someone?

"I am a Bai." The lady said.

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"Hmm… You don't know." The lady hissed, long and slow, before looking around the clearing. "It appears I am farther from home than I thought."

"Oh, would like a place to stay then? Maybe some food?"

The lady turned back towards "You would offer food and shelter to a stranger?"

"Of course!" Ruby said, "I won't turn my back on someone in need! You can even have some cookies. Not all of them, I want a couple, but some."

The lady stood still for a minute studying her. Ruby squirmed under the gaze. Why was the lady's gaze so intense? Then the lady spoke up, "My name is Bai Meizhen. I accept your offer. Please lead the way."

Ruby spun around. "All right!" She said, "This way to cookies!"

It was almost half an hour later before Ruby and Bai got to the house. Yang was standing outside looking towards the explosion. "Oh hey Ruby, who's your friend?"

"Hi Yang! This is Bai!" Ruby explained, gesturing with both hands towards the girl. "I found her after that big explosion and she mentioned being lost so I offered some cookies!"

Yang shook her head in exasperation. "Always cookies huh." She turned towards Bai. "Well Dad's not home, he went out to figure out what caused that explosion, so I hope you are O.K with some warmed up leftovers, and yes Ruby, cookies."

Bai Meizhen inclined her head slightly. "Don't concern yourself with feeding me. I do not need to eat now."

"Well, all right then, make yourself comfortable. I'll go warm something up for Ruby and I."

Ruby and Bai entered after Yang, Ruby spread herself across the couch and Bai looked around before sitting in one of the wooden chairs. Ruby looked across the living room and bolted upright. "Are you a princess?" She asked.

"Princess?"

"Yah! The way you sit. It's all prim and proper and stuff."

Bai shook her head. "No," she said, "But, I am a noble. Posture is important for one of my position."

"Really?"

"Yes."

It was then that Yang walked back in with a plate of cookies and looked between the two. "Sorry for not offering early," she said, "but is there anything you want to drink?"

"Juice!" Ruby cried.

"Not you."

Bai hummed. "Tea if you have it, please."

"Tea, huh." Yang muttered, setting the plate next to Bai. "I think Dad has some, let me rummage around a bit."

As Yang left the room, Ruby turned wide and sparkling eyes towards Bai. "The weapon you used earlier was so cool! Could I see it again?"

"My urumi?"

"Is that what it's called? It looked so cool!"

Bai wove her hand and the blade appeared. "It is nothing special." She said.

"So cool. Does it have a name?"

"No. Why would it?"

"That's so sad! All weapons should have names. Mine's Crescent Rose."

"It is an impressive looking weapon."

"She's my baby. I made her all by myself!"

Bai blinked. "That is quite skillful."

"Thanks! Are you a huntress? I bet you are."

"A huntress?"

"The ones that go out and hunt the grimm. You know those monsters you fought. A huntress?"

"No. I am a noble. There are others that hunt creatures."

"But you have such a strong semblance!"

"Hmmm?"

"You know, that fear thing. Everything was so scary until your eyes dimmed. Isn't that your semblance?"

"Ahh… Those are called domains in my homeland, but yes fear is a large part of it. I assume your speed is your semblance?"

Ruby nodded. "Yah! No one has been able to catch me before. How did you do it?"

"A good friend of mine is also very fast. I have worked hard to track her movements."

"Is she faster than me?"

"Much faster."

"Wow!" Ruby leaned back into the couch. "I hope I meet her sometime for a race. I've never met anyone faster than me."

"The world is a big place," Bai said, even as Yang reentered the living room and set down a cup of tea by her.

"I hope you like it, Bai." Yang said. "I could only find the one brand."

Bai nodded her thanks and sipped the tea. "Thank you."

"No problem." Yang said as she collapsed on the couch next to Ruby. "So how did you end up here anyway. Patch isn't exactly a crossroads."

"I was fighting in a place called the Emerald Sea, when I was struck by attack. Then I stood in a crater surrounded by those foul creatures. The rest Ruby knows."

Yang scratched her head. "So that explosion was you then? I'll have to let Dad know."

A crash resounded through the room. A great wave striking a cliff. Then again, louder. Furniture vibrated and Ruby and Yang covered their ears.

"What the fuck is going on!" Yang cried as her head snapped about, searching for the noise.

"Language!" Ruby screamed.

"It seems an acquaintance has found me." Bai Meizhen said as seafoam green hexagons appeared around her, like some great hexahedron. "It was a pleasant visit." And like that Bai Meizhen vanished into sparkling motes of green light, the scent of the sea heavy where she had been sitting.

Ruby and Yang stared at the missing chair, only the very bottoms of the legs remained. Yang through her hands up into the air. "I'm going for a ride," she said, "You get to explain this," she waved towards the much diminished chair, "to dad."

"What! How am I going to do that?! She just upped and… and disappeared!"

"Not my problem. You brought her home."

"Yang!"

The door closed shut and Ruby could hear the motor of Yang's bike start up. She huffed as she turned and glared where the chair used to be. Honestly, a little warning could have been nice. Then she paled. The cookies went with her!

A.N
@yrsillar Omake for the Omake throne.
Here's another omake. If you're wondering why I decided to use Bai all the time instead of Meizhen, it's because I wanted the piece to feel a little uncomfortable, and the fact that RWBY uses given names first, family names second and likely wouldn't know about Bai Meizhen being name being flipped. Please enjoy. It is very different style than I think I normally write. I enjoyed most of it but the end was very sudden and I couldn't think of a better way to end it with out it dragging on and on.