Chapter Text
Qrow’s day had left him completely exhausted. An understatement, really.
His Semblance had caused his alarm clock to malfunction early that morning and he ended walking up with no luck of falling back asleep. Then after lunch, Tai had booted the rest of them out the door whilst he did some long-overdue spring cleaning, insisting they all needed fresh air away from the cabin. Managing a heavily pregnant Summer Rose and a hyperactive two-year-old in the crowded streets of Patch’s market was no easy feat. But Qrow managed.
Mostly. The bag holding their apples had torn, spilling them all over the cobblestone; a seller’s stall collapsed entirely; and Yang tripped and scraped her knee up real bad on the walk home — Summer insisted that one wasn’t because of his Semblance. His niece was young & reckless, she always fell and got scrapes.
After they’d gotten home from the market, he’d spent the rest of the day entertaining Yang to give her tired parents a much-needed break. They needed all the rest they could get before the new baby was born. They had just finished putting Yang down for bed — which, yes, required all three of them — and were getting ready to turn in themselves when everything went dark.
Qrow awoke face first on a hard surface. Had he fallen asleep on the floor or something? It’d happened before once or twice, usually after a few drinks with friends, but he’d never felt this bad before. He groaned, pushing himself up. His eyes widened in confusion as he took note of his surroundings; this wasn’t the cabin.
“The hell…?”
The room was entirely unfamiliar to him. The floors were a deep caramel hardwood flooring, the walls made from smooth marble, with silver wall sconces lining the walls, and there were no visible doors or windows. Three large plush couches were arranged around a large, circular coffee table, as well as a love seat off to the far-right. Situated at the very front was a TV stand with a large holographic projector sat on top.
“Qrow?” a familiar voice said from behind, and he turned to see Tai on the ground as well, rubbing at his head. Summer was beside him, looking around the room equally confused.
Qrow opened his mouth to respond, but the words died in his throat as he realized they weren’t the only ones in the room. Looking around, there was a dark-haired man with striking golden eyes, a white-haired woman he instantly recognized as Willow Schnee, a Mistrali looking man, a woman with bright red hair & glasses, a man with blonde hair, and a young man with ginger hair who looked barely old enough to shave. Everyone was in a similar state of confusion.
He also noticed Professor Ozpin standing near the couches, barely a shred of panic on his face as his eyes scanned the room. Like always.
The same couldn’t be said for everyone else in the room. The silence was broken as everyone got over their own shock and began to shout all at once.
“What in the hells–!?” came from the Mistrali man. He reached behind him like he was searching for a weapon, but only grasped at air. Another Huntsman?
“Where am I!? Who are all you people?” Willow shrieked, eyes darting around the room widly. Her knuckles were gripping the fabric of her sleeves as she stumbled backwards into the wall.
The ginger man swore loudly, turning in a circle like he expected something to lunge at them. The red-haired woman stepped back, accidentally bumping into the golden-eyed man who was still sitting on the floor in a daze. The blonde man's jaw was set tight, his eyes scanning the room for exits that didn’t seem to exist.
“Everyone, calm down! Panicking will achieve nothing.” The golden-eyed man rose to his feet — gods, he was tall as hell. Built like a damn wall, too.
Qrow rubbed at his face, frowning. He was starting to get a headache from all of the noise these people were making. He heard footsteps and looked up to see his teammates coming to stand beside him. Tai frowned, chewing at his bottom lip. “Were we kidnapped or something? Where the hell are we?”
“No clue,” Qrow replied. “But if everyone would just stop screaming, we could probably figure it—”
Summer suddenly gasped, her face paling in horror. She grabbed Tai’s wrist roughly, her voice cracking as she spoke. “What about Yang?”
Tai’s face equally paled, muttering a curse under his breath. If they really had been kidnapped, he didn’t want to think what could’ve happened to his little girl.
Everybody was still shouting, their voices echoing against the walls. Gods, his headache was splitting now—
“Enough!”
Thank the Gods for Oz.
The shouting quieted, and they all turned towards the front of the room where the silver-haired man stood. In his hands he held a small folded piece of paper marked with a blue seal.
“If I may, everyone. I believe this might answer all our questions.”
“Where did you find that, Professor?” Summer asked, swallowing the lump that’d formed in her throat.
Ozpin turned the paper over his hands, breaking the seal with a quick swipe of his finger.
“Oh. It fell onto my head, actually."
“What do you mean fell—” Someone asked.
Ozpin cleared his throat and began to read.
“Dear guests, you have all been brought here to witness the future as it currently stands, and afterwards be given the chance to change the outcome. There is no way out of this theatre, in case any of you had ideas of escape; food will be provided once the first four visions are completed, as well as rooms for breaks. Time outside of the theatre is unaffected, when you return it will have only been a split second, so all your children are safe & sound. Fair forewarning, there are some secrets that will be revealed in some of the visions even if the holder of them prefers them to stay hidden. Have fun! :)"
“Does it actually say ‘smiley face’ or are you just saying that part aloud for fun?” Qrow asked dryly. Oz’s smirk told him it was the latter.
“The future?” The Mistrali man scoffed. “There’s no way I’m believing that.”
“I have to agree,” Willow’s voice cracked despite her attempt at composure. “There’s just no way any of that is remotely possible.”
“It’s bullshit,” the blonde-haired man muttered, crossing his arms, “We should just look for a way out of here.”
"The note said there wasn't any way out, though." Tai snarked back, gesturing around the room with his arms. "Besides, do you see any doors in here? We're trapped."
"Which is all the more reason we should—" Qrow tuned the rest of their pointless argument out.
“Everyone.” Ozpin stepped forward.
“I understand your doubts,” he said gently. “But whoever brought us here wants us to see something. I think it would be wise for us to see this through.”
“What? You’re seriously proposing we entertain this nonsense?” the tall man asked incredulously, his brows knitting.
“Indeed, I am.”
Qrow sighed, still reeling from everything. It sounded impossible on paper. Watching the future. Really? But his outlook on things such as magic had changed drastically since entering Oz’s circle. Besides, he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t curious about what the future held.
Summer beat him to the punch. “I say we do it. Besides, the note promised to return us home once we finish.”
“I agree with her.” The ginger man spoke up, a hand on his hip. “I mean, why would whoever brought us here lie for no reason?”
Murmurs of agreement rippled around the room. The blonde & the Mistrali man still looked skeptical, but neither protested further. The decision was made.
“I suppose introductions are in order, then. We could be stuck here with each other for quite a while.” Ozpin said with a small, reassuring smile. The rest of them looked between each other and nodded in agreement.
“I’ll go first then. My name is Zoroaster Ozpin, though just Ozpin will suffice. I am the current Headmaster of Beacon Academy.” He gave a professional little bow.
The ginger man whistled, muttering under his breath. “Ooh, big shot man.”
The tall man went next. “Ghira Belladonna. I'm the, uh… current High Leader of the White Fang.” He wore a dark violet sleeveless shirt with beige pants tucked into black leather boots, along with a matching violet sash wrapped firmly around his waist.
Qrow blinked. The White Fang?
He could see around the room that he wasn’t the only one who was surprised, Ghira didn’t seem to have a prominent trait. Qrow wondered what it was, but it might’ve been impolite to ask.
“Willow Schnee.” She spoke with a soft, airy voice and gave a small bow to the room. Everyone already knew who she was anyway, but it was interesting to see her in person. She wore a navy jacket over a white long-sleeved blouse that left her shoulders bare, with a matching ankle-length skirt and silver heels.
“Taiyang Xiao Long, and this is my wife, Summer Rose. We’re both Huntsmen.” His arms were wrapped around her shoulders. Summer smiled kindly and waved to everyone.
“Li Ren. I hail from Kuroyuri in Mistral.” He spoke quite formally, his voice low & steady, giving a bow. Qrow found himself wondering how old the other man was. There was already some gray threading through his hair. He wore a sleeveless green tailcoat over a white shirt, with black pants tucked into open-toe sandals; he also wore a black archer’s glove on his left hand.
The blonde-haired man went next. “Nicholas Arc. I’m a Huntsman from Vale.” His voice was deep and steady, and he was quite well beat. He wore a simple dark green long-sleeved shirt with gray jeans, along with some sturdy-looking black boots.
“Cordelia Nikos, it is a pleasure to meet you all.” The red-haired woman spoke evenly, also giving a wave to the room. Her voice carried a calm, musical quality — it was quite soothing. She wore a black turtleneck sweater with a long, brown skirt and a pair of beige wedge sandals.
“Joro Valkyrie.” The ginger-haired man — or perhaps boy — spoke next. Qrow was fairly certain he was the youngest in the entire room. He wore a faded tee of some band he didn’t recognize, and a pair of blue jeans with some black sneakers.
All eyes turned towards Qrow, and he realized he was the only stranger left. He cleared his throat awkwardly. “Qrow Branwen, I’m also a Huntsman. I’m on a team with these two lovebirds.” He gestured to Summer & Tai.
They all stood there for a long, awkward moment just looking around at each other, unsure of how to proceed. The note hadn’t said anything on how these visions of the future would take place.
A low mechanical hum filled the room, and they all turned towards the front. The projector flickered to life and the massive holographic screen appeared moments later.
They all scrambled onto the couches, with Ozpin claiming the loveseat, intrigued by what these visions of the future could entail.
Another folded note was already waiting for them on the coffee table. Summer reached to pick it up this time to read.
“The visions will begin automatically in a few moments. They're made to ensure sure you don’t miss a single detail. Whispering or talking lightly among yourselves while watching is fine, but full-on conversations will pause them.”
“Well, I suppose that’s helpful.” Li muttered. Truth be told, he didn’t trust these "visions" as far as he could throw them.
“Alright! Everyone quiet so we can watch!” Joro exclaimed, causing Nicholas to wince beside him at the volume.
“None of us were even talking.” Willow muttered, but she was ignored by the younger man.
The lights on the walls dimmed, casting the room into shadow as the first vision began to play.