#if tai guards the crown and qrow knows

[strqyr]

qrow's reaction to leo's staff being away—"what? leo, you can't be serious. who's guarding the relic?" // "no, reckless is leaving one of the relics completely unguarded."—is actually pretty damn telling when not a single soul in the know shows any concern over salem getting the crown of choice.

there certainly isn't any staff at beacon to protect it, and it's not like the lamp of knowledge was out in the open, ready to be taken; the vault alone was accessible by a hidden elevator, the spring maiden was unknown at the time, yet they still considered the lamp to be at risk while the crown isn't, despite the fact that salem has full control over beacon and cinder is the fall maiden.

so, safe to say the crown isn't at beacon, yet by qrow's own words, any relic should still be guarded by someone; it would be reckless to not do so.

and when qrow also says that tai is on an assignment that prevents him from being in vacuo when everyone else is already there, well... put that as another point towards tai guarding the crown of choice, wherever it might be hidden.

[bestworstcase]

option 1: tai’s guarding the crown of choice.

pros:

a legitimately important task that recontextualizes his ongoing decision to remain on patch as a personal sacrifice he makes for the greater good.

ozpin would pick the guy named for the god of light to be the gatekeeper of choice, huh.

if any parent in this story is meant to die, it’s him, and narratively this is the most intuitive way to do it.

cons:

realistically, what can tai do to prevent salem / cinder / summer from accessing the vault if they find it? if he’s the gatekeeper, staying on patch alone after everyone else evacuates achieves nothing except, ah, signaling to the enemy that the real vault is under signal academy. bad plan.

it means oz is breaking his promise to be honest and forthcoming, undermining his character growth for the sake of ‘surprising’ the audience with the most obvious answer.

means qrow has either been kept in the dark (see prev point) or he’s also deliberately hiding this information from his nieces after they asked him outright if he knew where tai is; this is so far afield for his character as to border on character assassination, and likewise undermines his positive growth since v7.

honestly makes both yang and ruby seem kind of stupid. they know the crown is hidden somewhere near beacon, that ozpin did something to protect it differently from the others, and that their father hasn’t left patch. ruby was sharp enough to guess that long memory might be a relic hidden in plain sight; yang is just as smart, and she knows tai had “some things” to look after on patch. are we expected to believe that “hey, is dad guarding the relic?” somehow hasn’t occurred to either of them?

tai harbors a whole lot of resentment toward ozpin, and based on qrow kicking him out of ruby’s bedroom to drip-feed her hints on where to go next, he seems to have been on the outer perimeter of the inner circle. why would oz entrust him with the relic’s safety?

glynda—ozpin’s scrupulously loyal second-in-command whose emblem is a crown and whose semblance puts her on par with a maiden—is a far more narratively plausible vault-guardian than tai, and the “sun dragon” makes a damn good red herring.

if he’s guarding the vault, he dies. sorry. but the point of putting the father of 2/4 protagonists in between the two main villains and the thing they want most (choice) is so they can kill him to get it, increasing tension and raising the emotional stakes of negotiating peace. to be clear, rwby is willing to Go There, but i think it’s an unsatisfactory way to close out the rose xiao long family arc.

option 2: survivors trapped under mountain glenn, and tai is taking point.

pros:

a genuinely important, worthwhile thing for him to be doing—even more so than guarding the crown. likely sets up a resolution for him in the vein of “you can be a good huntsman or a good father, and tai picked being a huntsman,” which is an elegant way to balance his contradictions.

gives him meaningful stuff to do in v10; for example, one stealthy huntsman with a bullhead could slip in and out of mountain glenn to get a few dozen people out at a time, and/or run supplies and messages between the kingdoms.

we get to see zwei back in action around mountain glenn :)

introduces a natural segue from playing defense in vacuo to mounting a counteroffensive against beacon as tai’s work clarifies the situation in vale.

easily the most 'heroic' direction for him without contorting the story to arbitrarily lionize tai: he’s a scout preparing the stage for the heroes to take the fight to salem, making him the good counterpart to watts.

cons:

makes no sense to keep it a secret. the emotional beats of B4 can still happen if the girls know this is what tai’s doing: instead of “do you… wonder why he’s not here? i know qrow said he’s on assignment, but what’s more important than here?” yang says “do you… wish he were here? with us? i know qrow said he’s looking for survivors, but how many of them can there really be by now? we need all the help we can get,” and ruby says “maybe we don’t have the full picture” as in maybe dad knows something we don’t and that’s why he hasn’t given up yet. the emotion is the same, and the big "they’re hiding in mountain glenn" reveal is hinted without spoiling.

leaves hanging the narrative thread of what tai has been doing since the fall of beacon, because the “some things” he was dealing with in v4 obviously wasn’t this.

option 3: tai is dead.

pros:

explains the apparent secrecy; qrow knows tai was away “on assignment” (i.e., had taken a huntsman contract that brought him out of the kingdom) at the time salem attacked vale, so he is missing but not yet presumed dead.

might reopen the mystery box of summer’s last mission through the real-deal “left on a mission and never came back” echo.

cons:

raven would know.

it’s a cheap, narratively unsatisfying twist that fails to deliver on the bread crumbs set up in v2-3 (tai starts going on missions again) and v4 (“some things”), and also undermines any serious emotional resolution with regard to yang and ruby’s complex relationships with tai.

option 4: summer’s working with salem, and tai is trying to convince her to come back.

pros:

“some things” being his presumed-dead wife who left him to join the enemy and with whom tai is now having an affair or otherwise hoping to coax back to the heroic side through the power of love whilst also keeping his mouth shut about her being a) still alive and b) a traitor is OBJECTIVELY the funniest answer.

brings forward and interrogates the way tai’s romantic grief informs the choices he makes as a parent: from hiding raven and then refusing to talk about her with yang, to shutting down when he lost summer and letting his five-year-old pick up the pieces, to discovering and then keeping summer’s secrets for the sake of some faint hope that she might finally come back to him.

cogent with the Dead (Absent) Mother / Neglectful Father / Evil Stepmother fairytale paradigm rwby deconstructs with raven, tai, and summer; the father chooses the stepmother over his children.

raises the emotional stakes of the war for summer through direct confrontation with the life she left behind, creating narrative opportunities to develop her character (is she still in love with tai? how does she feel about being his first priority, over their children? does she resent that he has her on this pedestal even now?) and apply pressure to her relationships with salem and cinder (do they know? is summer keeping her communication with him a secret, too? or is he an “asset” she’s using for salem’s benefit?).

consequently, raises the momentum of the narrative toward negotiation with salem; tai still has the coalition’s trust, however strained his personal relationships may be. summer is the obvious ambassador for salem’s side of the war, but she’s also the traitor who needs someone to vouch for her good intentions.

the secrecy needs no explanation: just as summer’s last mission was a summer secret, tai’s "assignment" is a taiyang secret and the girls know everything that oz and qrow do, because all of them have been left in the dark. raven might know, and she has the means to find if she doesn’t, but tai’s whereabouts are entangled with what raven knows about summer, so she can’t explain where tai is or why until she reveals her deep dark secrets about what happened between her and summer that night.

foreshadowing is solid: tai starts to go on "missions" again in v2, after the inner circle becomes aware that salem has infiltrated beacon and just before the breach downtown. when ruby visits summer’s grave in v3, she says "[dad] told me he’s going to be on some mission soon! i think he misses adventuring with you." he’s got to "look after some things" (but he isn’t talking about yang, because he stays home after she leaves). and then with B4 we have ruby echoing what the blacksmith taught her about summer in relation to tai, "maybe we don’t have the full picture?"

juicy

cons:

???

dependent on the unconfirmed theory that summer is working for salem as herself, not some unrecognizable enslaved monster, but i am as confident in that as i was about salem going to vale next and we all know how that turned out :)

taking their mom was not enough salem had to go for the full set APPARENTLY

option 5: secret fifth thing

pros:

???

cons:

???

[deadbeatbirdmom]

I think I've recovered enough from watching the episode to actually say something about it, or at least more than I managed right afterwards.

I loved it.

It's great to see chibi-ish!Ruby used for comedic effect again, for the first time since Volume 1 I think. First acting playfully mad with Yang, and then in her excitement at the boba.

On that note, it's great to see and hear Ruby excited again. It's impressive how high her voice can go without breaking, especially considering Ruby's VA's normal voice seems to be lower pitched than Yang's voice.

I'm not surprised Ruby's uncomfortable with the cult that has sprung up around her message to Remnant. She always wanted to be a normal girl, if one who became a huntress, which is a fairly normal thing in Remnant. Especially for someone born to a family of them.

It's good to see that refugees from Patch can set up their business in Vacuo, and even better that it lets Yang and Ruby carry on the tradition they had before Beacon. That it was something they did with Tai also ended up revealing why he isn't there with them: he's on assignment, according to Qrow. What is more important than being in Vacuo, where the majority of Remnant's population is gathered? And more important than being with his daughters, who he might have heard were presumed dead and miraculously reappeared.

I've seen the suggestion that Tai's guarding the Crown aka Relic of Choice, but I've also seen the great point that if that's the case and Salem finds him, there's not much he can do to stop her, no matter what his Semblance is. Although I guess Raven might feel that he's in danger and open a portal for him to escape through. It's not confirmed that's how her Semblance works, but it explains how she knew when Yang needed saving in Volume 2.

Anyway, back to Yang and Ruby! I love that Yang brought up what happened in the Ever After. That she's understands, or at least understands enough after what Yang herself has been through, and the important thing she gets across to Ruby is that she's not alone. That she's not going to carry the weight of leading them alone. Not anymore.

It's also important that they've figured out a code word to signal that Ruby needs help, because she doesn't always know how to reach out. I figure that they will tell Blake and Weiss about that, or it could confuse them:

Ruby: "Boba!"

Weiss: ...

Blake: :3 ???

Yang: Hugs Ruby. "I'm here for you."

Weiss: "Is. Is this another weird Xiao Long-Rose thing?"

What I particularly appreciate about it is that Yang acknowledged her mistake but didn't actually apologise for it, and Ruby didn't mind that. Because the important thing isn't saying sorry, it's changing things so that Ruby never feels that alone again. Actions speak louder than words.

It's also equally important that Ruby recognised she still has issues saying when she needs help. They're a team and they need to work together.

It just reinforces RWBY's message of hope, and to keep moving forward, and that no one is perfect but that they learn from their mistakes.

Asjhgsdkjghfdkshjkakjhdhlsj FEELS AUGH

Also that last line kinda hints that Ruby likes to go shopping with Yang, but they haven't got around to it. Shopping for new outfits, perhaps?

[tumblingxelian]

Tai "guarding" the Crown Makes No Sense

I dislike the idea that Tai is the guardian of the Crown because it feels so utterly nonsensical to me.

Choosing a guy who seems to dislike Oz's conspiracy and its impact on his life makes no sense. Choosing a man who has spent nearly two decades as a high school martial arts instructor makes even less sense. He is not going to do shit against any of Salem's elites, save her tech guy. 

So unless Tai is some kind of insanely powerful god level fighter, him being its guard rather than all the academy staff (Minimum) is a horrendous idea and invites so many questions and plot holes on its face.

If he is that strong why not have him help clear Beacon? Is it a one pump thing? How was Ozpin protecting the crown before Tai was born? This makes no sense. 

Plus he is either at work or at the house, meaning its either just at a different school with even more vulnerable students or its beneath a house that two children lived in.

Lets also keep in mind that the Relics are Grimm lures so that's obscenely dangerous and stupid even if we ignore the fact he'd not even be on hand to protect it a lot of the time. Hell, there's also that one person is a terrible guard in concept because they need to sleep! 

Even more than all that, it fails to me on a narrative and thematic level because it also means the conspiracy has fallen back hard on keeping secrets. Because there is literally zero reason to hide this from Ruby & Yang.

In fact, it only makes things actively worse because they cant make informed decisions, which was kind of the main sticking point about Ozpin's secrets in V6. 

Conclusion:

The only context in which "Tai is guarding the crown" makes any sense is that he's just hanging out at whatever more sensible place Ozpin stashed it.

With his soul bond to Raven meaning if and when Salem Shows up she can just disgorge a horde of Hunters, Maidens and war machines via a portal in ambush.

But again, there is no reason to hide that, not unless they all know its basically just using Tai as a one of sacrifice for a one off ambush and they don't want to hear protest.

Thing is, that doesn't align thematically even with the "Older generation fucked up" angle that STRQ embodied. Qrow's drinking wasn't something Oz made him d, Raven wasn't forced to run away, Summer chose to keep secrets.

It breaks the trend because while the show was sympathetic to Qrow's drinking, It did not ignore that it was and long has negatively impacted Ruby & Yang. This would basically just be a "The girls drop everything to stop their dads noble/foolish sacrifice" It makes it all about him and not the actual main characters.

[citadelofmythoughts]

Personally in regards to Tai's behavior, I frankly think there's a good chance that it might actually be a PERSONAL kind of secret mission, one that even Ozpin and Qrow doesn't know about.

Because one other downside about the idea that "he's guarding the Crown" is that it strongly implies that Ozpin is still keeping secrets despite everything, which would be a step backwards in how he approaches things, and especially given that he's now trying to actively fight his fate for Oscar's sake.

Whatever's going on with Tai is very likely his own thing, some other fly in this already fly-infested ointment of secrets.

Well, that's certainly an intriguing notion. I have no idea what it'd be but it's certainly an interesting idea.

[nightofmiracles]

i kinda agree with the popular theory of Tai guarding the Crown but, if that's the case, nothing has changed, has it?

like, it's sort of implied Qrow knows the mission Tai is in charge of. if it's relic related and he didn't disclose it...? still half truths in Oz' circle?

even if Qrow doesn't know more than "Tai is doing his own thing", Oz WOULD have that knowledge. yeah?

[waheelawhisperer]

I've noticed some speculation that Tai isn't actually much more out of Oz's secret war than Qrow, and the 'things he had to take care of' include the Crown's concealed location somewhere on Patch or the Vale mainland (though probably not at Beacon proper), hence his not accompanying either daughter despite clearly being concerned for them. Not that I think this totally *validates* his V4 writing, but Oz's agenda continuing to fuck over this particular family unit seems about right.

I have also seen this theory and it makes a lot of sense, but until we actually see evidence of it in the show instead of the heads of the fanbase, I can't rely on it to explain Tai's actions. RWBY has this issue a lot, actually, where things that need to be addressed on-screen just aren't, and then the fanbase comes up with very logical and reasonable explanations that fill in the gaps and then treat those explanations as canon. Like, yeah, maybe Tai's guarding the crown, but we don't know that and it's never presented as a serious possibility in-universe, so for now he just looks like he doesn't care enough or isn't strong enough to overcome his own lethargy to make sure his recently-traumatized daughters are safe.

100% agreed that it is entirely on-brand for Ozpin to continually screw over Tai's household long past the point where they're completely justified in wanting out of the war though.

[blazingstar24]

Ironqrow Week Day 4: Futuristic AU

@ironqrowweek

Summary: Space pirate crew STRQ travels the galaxy, having adventures and stealing from people like the Schnee Dust Corporation. Today was meant to be a routine job: steal some dust from the SDC and cause a bit of havoc for those stuck up elites. What he didn’t expect was the ship they chose to attack to be a stolen vessel by operatives from the Black Queen Organization. More over, he didn’t expect to find James Ironwood, the supposedly dead crown prince of the Atlesian Empire, to be held captive aboard either.

Notes: I kinda got really invested in a whole story for this AU, so I might continue writing this after the week is done. I snuck in some elements from my Grimm Hybrid Ironwood AU in here. Also I have some Watt x Tyrian in here, idk what their ship name is though.

“Remember, this is a quick in and out mission. I don’t want to have to outfly the SDC Guard again, Qrow.”

“Relax, Summer. I’ve always been good at stealth missions.”

“Oh so crashing the ship into that asteroid field last week was your definition of stealth?”

Qrow let go of the controls of the ship and playfully shoved Summer. She giggled and shoved him back. The ship dipped slightly. He quickly grabbed the controls and the two of them shared another laugh. They were approaching the dwarf planet Patch. According to their intel, a SDC ship was going to stop off at Patch to pick up another shipment of Dust before heading to the Vale Frederation.

Summer, the captain of their little pirate crew, had insisted on coming along with him. Usually he would be going in alone, his ability to shift into a crow meant easy escapes. Well as long as they were on planet and not in space. But Summer had said she refused to spend this whole mission on comms while Raven and Tai were having another one of their arguments. Apparently Tai had been noticing Raven had been sneaking off at night when they were at home base on Beacon.

Qrow was interested, but he also knew his sister had her secrets. And she would probably die before telling anyone something she didn’t want to disclose. But Tai wanted to know what she was doing, where she was going. Hence the arguements. Honestly, he was also getting tired of listening to them as well.

“Alright set us down right there.”

Summer pointed out a small cliffside in the forest below them. Qrow slowly landed their ship and began prepping for the mission. Summer had gone out and pulled herself on the top of ship, scanning the skies for the SDC ship. He slung his sword scythe Harbringer onto his back and joined her on top their ship.

“Have you heard about the recent attacks happening at the headquarters of the SDC?”

“The ones by the White Fang?”

Summer shook her head. “Doesn’t seem like them, even though Jacques Schnee claims that they are. Apparently there have been rumors that a black queen symbol had been left behind at the scene.”

Qrow frowned. “The Black Queen Organization disappeared decades ago. I thought the last time they were seen was when the Great Hero of Vale took the throne.”

“Well sure the Great Hero brought peace between the Vale Frederation, the Atlesian Empire, the Republic of Mistral, and the outer rim planets in the Vacuo system, but it’s not like the Black Queen’s followers just disappeared.”

“Sums, they haven’t been seen in decades. Why come back now?”

Summer shrugged. “It’s just a rumor. But some people say that King Ozpin’s control over the Vale Federation is slipping.”

“Heh, that’s because the Atlesian Empire has been slowly invading into Oz’s territory. Strange move for an empire that just lost it’s crown prince.”

Qrow remembered seeing the news that the prince of the Atlesian Empire had tragically died in a military accident. It definitely threw all the big players in interplantary politics for a loop. Prince James Ironwood had done quite a bit for the Atlesian Empire and for the galaxy as a whole. The Atlesian Empire was known for its technological advancements, supplying their allies with technological marvels. But they were also highly militarized, constantly making upgrades to their defense and offence capabilities. Which was bound to make the other systems and kingdoms nervous. There had been talk after the news broke that it was actually an attack by one of the other systems. Yet, nothing had turned up from those rumors. In all honesty, it had seemed like the death of their prince had left the kingdom in a power vaccuum.

“Look! Right on schedule.”

Qrow snapped out of his thoughts in time to see the familiar symbol of a white snowflake painted onto the side of a massive ship. Definitely a SDC ship. However, what was strange was that there seemed to be blast marks scored on the normally pristine ship.

“Must have ran into the White Fang before getting here.”

Summer hopped down. “Makes it easier to steal from them.”

“Or makes them beef up security.”

“Chickening out, Qrow?”

“Hey don’t blame me if we get ourselves blown up.”

“Just don’t get caught then.”

Qrow let out a quiet laugh. He winked at Summer and then transformed into a crow.

******************************************

Qrow had made it inside the ship without any problems. Yet, that was what alarmed him. He noticed a surprising lack of guards, but an incredible amount of Atlesian Knights. Something that the SDC never had before. Moreover, the Atlesian Knights weren’t glowing the calm blue, but instead an angry red.

Qrow turned on his comm link. “Sums? You copy?”

“Did you get caught?”

“No, but there’s at least a whole squadron of AKs here.”

“What? The intel didn’t say anything about the SDC aquiring that kind of security.”

“There’s something off about them too. I’m going to press on.”

“Be careful, Qrow. We don’t know what we’re dealing with now.”

Qrow turned his comm back off and stealthily made his way to the cargo bay. At the sound of metal footsteps, he quickly ducked behind one of the boxes full of dust. Six Atlesian Knights marched past his hiding space and then began taking some of the boxes back with them. Qrow frowned. Wasn’t this supposed to be a pick up of another shipment?

Ducking and weaving behind the boxes, Qrow followed the robots. Hiding in an empty corridor, he peeked around the corner to see what they were doing. They were taking the dust into one of the rooms on the ship. Perhaps a trade of some kind was taking place? The AKs left the room and walked back to the cargo bay. Qrow was about to step out and see what was happening in the room, when a man stepped outside. He was on his scroll, stroking his big bushy mustache.

“You can tell our queen that the experiments are going quite well. He’s lasted far longer than any previous subjects.”

Qrow could faintly hear the other person on the call. Their tone was full of manical glee. “Will he be fun to play with when you get back?”

“Now, now Tyrian. He’s not a toy. He’s going to be our weapon.”

“How awfully boring. But if it’s what our Goddess wants, it’s what she will get.”

“Don’t worry, darling. When Salem is done with him, you can break him to your heart’s content.”

Qrow shuddered as he could hear the tail end of chilling laughter. The man ended the call and walked back inside the room. This was not looking good. The man had mentioned a queen and the other had referred to her as a goddess. There was only one queen in the history of the galaxy that presented herself as a goddess. He switch his comm back on.

“Sums, I think those rumors were right. There are operatives of the Black Queen Organization on the ship.”

“Are you sure? What would they want with a SDC ship.”

“For what I heard, they are doing some kind of experiment on some poor soul.”

“Forget the dust. Get out of there, Qrow!”

“I’m working on that.”

He left his comm on this time just in case. He was about to sneak back the way he came when a scream rang out. Qrow winced as he could hear what was most likely the subject the man spoke of. He took a couple of steps down the hallway and then stopped. He really should just go. Make his way back to Summer and just forget about the conversation he heard. Put the cries of agony coming from the room out of his mind. But yet...

***********************************************

In hindsight, maybe he really should have kept going. Because the sight that awaited him when he flung open the doors was mindbreakingly unexpected. Qrow had expected to jump into action, save some poor guy from being experimented on, and make a hasty escape. He didn’t expect to see the crown prince of the Atlesian Empire strapped down to a medical table, with his entire right side being cybernetic and his left arm black as tar. It looked eeriely similar to the monsters that plagued the more backwater planets. The left behind creations of the one and only Black Queen herself.

“What!? Who are you”

Qrow didn’t even bother pulling out Harbringer and just punched the mustached man in the face. The man crumpled to the floor. Three Atlesian Knights in the room started shooting at him, but he quickly dodged and pulled out his weapon. The Atlesian prince growled as he managed to rip himself free from the straps that were pinning him down. As Qrow sliced through one of the AKs, the prince managed to disarm another and using his cybernetic arm, punched straight through it. The final robot shot at Qrow, who blocked it with his sword. He swiftly started blocking the array of bullets coming his way. A shot rang out and the AK fell to the floor.

Qrow smirked. “Not bad.”

“Where did Watts go?”

Qrow scanned the room. There was no sign of the mustached man. “He must have escaped during the fight.”

“He’s going to pay for what he’s done.”

Suddenly an alarm started blaring throughout the ship. He could just barely make out Summer’s voice coming over on his comm.

“Qrow, what did you do?”

“Uh, don’t worry. We’ll meet you outside the ship soon. Be ready for a fast getaway.”

“We?”

Qrow looked over at the prince. He was searching through the notes that Watts guy left behind. Qrow wasn’t sure how the prince had normally looked like, but he definitely looked worse for wear. On his chest where the cybernetics met skin were scars, most of which looked decently recent. Not to mention his left arm. He kept clenching and unclenching his fist. Qrow couldn’t tell if that was voluntary or not. What Qrow did know was that this guy was not going to be able to make it out of here alone. No matter how much of a good shot he was.

“Picked up a friend along the way. Just be ready.”

*********************************************

“Hey we gotta get moving if we want to make it out of here.”

“You can leave, I’m going after Watts.”

Qrow scoffed. “You know that thing I did back there? It’s called saving your life. I heard what he wanted to do to you. It wouldn’t have been pretty.”

“I am grateful for your help. But I can’t let this man leave.”

“Look, your highness. He’s got a whole squadron of AKs. You have what? A gun and cybernetics? You wouldn’t even make it to him. Getting revenge can wait another day.”

“This isn’t about me! This is about what he is going to do to Atlas. My Empire! My people! If he lives, he will destroy everything Ozpin and I have worked so hard to build. He makes every sacrifice I’ve made meaningless.”

For a brief moment, Qrow could have sworn that the prince’s blue eyes flashed red and his voice took on an animalistic growling quality. He noticed that in the middle of that rant, the man had clutched his left arm. The prince was shaking, Qrow couldn’t tell if it was from fear or with anger.

Qrow sighed. “You can’t help your empire if you’re dead, your highness. If we leave now, my friend and I can get you out of here and bring you to a place you can contact your people. But if you go after Watts, you’re as good as dead.”

All the fight seemed to leave the prince at those words. His head dropped into his hands. In that moment, Qrow felt the urge to comfort the man, but he didn’t know how.

“Maybe you’re right.”

“I’m always right. Let’s go, your highness.”

“You can call me James”

The prin-no James stuck out his hand, blue eyes locking with his red ones.

“Qrow”

They shared a nod then stepped out the door.

[jadekitty777]

Who Needs Gifts When We Have Love?

Finally, after all this time, the long awaited second chapter of the Summer/Tai/Qrow mini series is up. Technically, I just ended up dropping what I planned for the original ‘ending’ (of which will become super obvious what it was when you read this). I may finish that part later, but it was hanging me up way too much and I didn’t want this series to just go on an eternal hiatus because of it. 

Rating: M

Word Count: 3,500

Pairing: Summer/Tai/Qrow

Ao3 Link: Who Needs Gifts When We Have Love?

Summary: Qrow didn't really care for the fanfare involved with birthdays, especially his own. Luckily, Summer and Tai's combined creative efforts made it much more bearable.

Qrow hated birthdays.

It came to no surprise to him that all the main ‘traditions’ tied to a birthday came from Atlas – as if the overly commercialist kingdom didn’t have enough money to fatten their prestigious family’s wallets with. There had to be cake with your name on it, an expensive dinner out, enough colorful balloons and streamers to make a person go blind – and one could definitely not forget the “perfect” gift, as if there really was such a thing or, even if there was, that it could be found every single year. It felt like a bunch of frivolous fanfare.

So, he hated birthdays. Especially his own.

Except, it wasn’t his “own” – and that made it infinitely worse because it only served as a reminder of the missing presence in his life.

Despite his misgivings though, it didn’t seem to stop Tai and Summer from breaking the rules, in their own way. They didn’t cook his favorite dinner, they cooked his second or his third. There was no cake, but plenty of cookies to go around for the next week. They never gave him anything wrapped up with a neat little bow on top, but they did ask what he wanted to do and then followed through with as many extreme measures as they were allowed.

So, his request for ‘a quiet night in’ equated to dropping Ruby and Yang off at a babysitter’s house.

Don’t get him wrong, he loved those scamps with all his heart – but some days their energy was a bit… much. So just one night away from any father-uncle responsibilities was definitely a treat. He also figured this was the only ‘gift’ his partners had planned for him.

The bouquet of sunflowers sitting on the front step to the house seemed to laugh at him and his gullibility.

He looked to the woman beside him. “Summer.”

She looked back at him, her mask of innocence doing nothing to convince him she wasn’t up to something. “Oh my! Look at this lone bouquet just sitting out here for you, completely unprecedented and without a clear reason!”

“Summer.” He repeated.

She fluttered her eyelashes at him. “You should really pick it up.”

Damn her for being pretty. “I swear, those eyes of yours are lethal weapons.”

“Was that a pun?”

For the good of his own sanity, he absolutely refused to answer that. God knows what mileage Tai would get out of it if she told him. He leant over to pick up the vase and discovered that pinned underneath it was a note. A single instruction was written on it:

Follow the trail.

He rose an eyebrow at that but it wasn’t until he opened the door that the direction became clear, as from the doorway to up the stairs was a trail of white rose petals. He imagined he knew where it was leading, but he questioned anyways, “What are you two up to?”

“Something you’ll really like.” Summer said, practically bouncing with excitement. When he only hummed uncertainly, she added, “Come on, have we ever let you down before?”

“Well, there’s a first time for everything.” He snickered as she gave a little huff, shoving him forward. Obediently, he started to follow the rose petals, hearing the door shut behind him before Summer was trotting along after him. As expected, they led to their bedroom, but instead of them ending at the bed, they continued into the bathroom.

The door was open but the light was off – yet a warm, orange glow still emitted from within, beckoning him towards it. Curiosity growing, he headed that way, setting the bouquet on the dresser as he passed by it. “Tai?” He called.

“Welcome back!” Was the returned greeting.

Qrow stopped where the trail did, right at the door’s threshold, sucking in a surprised breath.

The room had been meticulously transformed with strings of winter holiday lights carefully tacked around the walls. Candles were perched in various places, including the counter, the windowsill, and the tank top of the toilet. They emitted a gentle but familiar vanilla scent he was particular too. Tai was lounging back in their oversized tub, the water filled three-fourths up but seeming much higher with all the bubbles. And it was in that Qrow finally understood his real surprise.

Having grown up washing in cold rivers and lakes, he hadn’t had the pleasure of knowing what a warm shower was until he went to Beacon. It was even longer before he’d been introduced to a bath, but it instantly became his preferred method of bathing. Something about being able to lounge in a vat of pure warmth was so undeniably relaxing. He figured that nothing could top it until Summer learned of his fondness for them and, on a whim, imported specialty bubble bath mix from Atlas. Qrow was instantly enamored, the experience stirring something almost childlike in him as he popped the shiny spheres between his hands and made bubble beards and crowns. From that day on, he would have gladly run a bubble bath every day; but because it was both expensive and fairly hard to find a supplier, he’d limited running the bubbles for special occasions or those particularly trying days.

“So?” Tai tilted his head towards him, grinning in that excited way he got whenever he felt he was pleasing one of them. “What do you think?”

Qrow wanted to tell him he loved it. That it was the best gift either of them could have given him. But, years of poor social skills meant he still wasn’t particularly good at expressing his gratitude, which was why he waved at the candles and said, “I think this might be a bit of a fire hazard.”

Something wet and cold hit the back of his neck, making him jump. He whirled around, seeing Summer grinning at him, a pseudo-weapon aimed his way. “Don’t worry, we’ve got your semblance covered.”

“Is that a water gun?” Qrow exclaimed, only to yelp when another blast hit him right on the ass. He shot a scowl over his shoulder.

“Two water guns.” Tai winked at him. Where had he even been hiding it? “So now that you have nothing to worry about, get in here!”

“Or what?” He challenged.

The blond rose an eyebrow, his gaze sliding to the one behind him. “Summer?”

“Barrage him.” She said gleefully.

And then Qrow was being pelted from both sides by blasts of cold water. He quickly rose up his arms in a poor attempt at guarding, laughing all the while. “Alright, alright you heathens!”

The moment they let up, he reached over his shoulder to grab the back of his shirt, yanking it up and over his head. The move earned him an appreciative wolf whistle.

“Whoo! Yeah, baby!” Summer catcalled. “Take it off!”

He threw his shirt in her face.

“Ack!”

“You’re terrible.” He told her, toeing off his shoes and unfastening his belt simultaneously.

It was her turn to wink as she started to undo the ties on her corset. “Is it truly such a crime to marvel at a work of art?”

“If so, then guess you’ll just have to lock me up.” He countered, deliberately roving his eyes over her.

“Oh I’d never miss the opportunity to put you in handcuffs.”

Before he could think up a fitting comeback, a snort drew his attention behind him. Tai had propped his arms over the rim of the tub, an amused smile gracing his features as he watched them try to out flirt each other.

It hadn’t always been like this; in fact, when Summer and he first started dating, she would get so easily flustered by even his weakest of lines that she usually just spluttered her way into an embarrassed silence. Qrow had thought it was cute, so he kept up the charade, even made a bit of a game of it to see how fast he could make her go from collected to bashful. But Summer wasn’t Summer if she didn’t try to rise to a challenge – and soon enough she started to return as much as she was given. It eventually developed into somewhat of a couples’ quirk of theirs, so commonplace he usually didn’t realize when they were doing it anymore.

Having joined them later on, Tai didn’t tend to participate but at least he was never short on entertainment.

“See something you like sunshine?” Qrow asked, shimmying out of his pants.

He smirked. “Quite.”

His socks were the last thing to go. He padded over the tile, taking that first, wonderful step into the tub, sighing contently as he sunk into the water. Tai adjusted to lean against the back, holding his hands towards him, an invitation Qrow couldn’t ignore as he slid over. There was always something immensely comfortable about having the brawler’s arms wrap around him. Toned from years of training, they just seemed to completely envelope his thinner frame, the strength and security it invoked undeniable.

Which made it rather ironic that despite being built like a tree, at heart, he was the biggest softie. Qrow didn’t have to even wonder whose plan this whole set up was. When it came to romance, Summer and he had always kept things simple – she would have stopped at just the bath; but welcoming Tai to their relationship had also meant welcoming his eye for more grandiose gestures. That sometimes equated to waking up to toast cut into heart shapes or finding love notes in his pack long after he’d left for a mission. Or, in this case, petal trails, candles and mood lighting.

“Gotta say,” Qrow said, relaxing against the other. “This isn’t too shabby for a gift.”

“Gift? What gift? Are we celebrating something?” Tai replied with a tone of mock-innocence.

He rolled his eyes, kissing away the other’s teasing grin.

The door was shut, encasing them in the candle and string light’s yellow-orange glow, reflecting off the bubbles rather dazzlingly. The two of them made room, Qrow silently glad Tai had splurged for a larger tub as Summer was able to settle in easily with them.

“This is so nice.” She commented, sinking down.

A few nudges had Qrow shifting around in Tai’s arms until they were back to chest. “Want to come over here?”

She answered by sidling right up against him, tucking her head in the dip of his clavicle. She was just above the water and her hair, free from its typical rose bun, floated around her shoulders like a fan. It was tempting him to run his fingers through it, so he did.

“So, after the bath, we have a little proposition for you.” She said.

Every word ghosted along his neck, making him shudder. “Oh?”

She walked her fingers up the center of his chest, saying, “Tai and I were talking and we realized how long it’s been since we’ve had a three-way. Even longer since you’ve been in the middle.”

Qrow snorted down a laugh. “Oh, so the flowers were supposed to lead to the bed.”

Tai nipped his ear. “There are some on the bed, thank you very much.” Of course there was. He should have never doubted. “Anyways, it’s only if you feel up to it. We just don’t get this opportunity often.”

Didn’t he know it. Between full time jobs, long missions away, and two tykes that could drain the energy out of the sun, it was a miracle just to get time away for just himself – and sometimes he was too exhausted for even that. When they were desperate for a little downtime together, often, they appointed one of them to watch the kids for a time so two of them could slip away. But all three of them? He could count the instances on his own two hands – which, for a four-year relationship, was a ridiculously pathetic number.

So, with the very idea stirring arousal through him, it really wasn’t a question he had to think hard about to answer. “’Course I’m up for it. But, Gods be damned, I’m enjoying the bath first.”

They both laughed, their joy reverberating through him from either side. Summer kissed the side of his jaw. “Of course.”

~

“Why don’t you two go get comfortable while I clean up in here?” Summer offered, maneuvering carefully to wind the towel around herself without elbowing one of them.

They’d been fortunate so far that nothing had caught fire, but since luck was bound to run out, Qrow certainly wouldn’t argue putting out all the candles before they got into it. Not that there wasn’t a little foreplay in the bath anyways – it was hard to avoid, with their hands all over each other and the promise of what was to come lingering in their imaginations. Still, it felt a little unfair to have their wife do all the work. “You sure?”

“Mmhm.” She strung out her hair over the tub, a small rainfall pouring down. “It won’t take more than a few minutes. Go have fun.”

As Tai finished tousling his hair, the wet strands sticking up at odd angles, he replied, “Now that’s an offer I won’t refuse.”

It was hard to say if it was from the door he just opened or the way the blond aimed him with a hungry gaze, either way Qrow felt shivers running down his spine. “Yeah, alright.” Not about to be outdone, he turned and headed into the room, unnecessarily swaying his hips as he did so. The swift, harmless swat to his ass told him the motion did not go unnoticed. “Hey careful now. You’re about to use those goods.”

Tai chuckled. “Sorry, want me to kiss it better?”

That wasn’t a half bad idea. But as he approached their bed, he found himself distracted by a small, colorful array left in the center of his pillow. Flowers, just as promised. But not just any flowers; Dahlias. One white, one black, and one yellow, neatly tied together with a blue ribbon. It was one of the few plants he knew what they were meant to symbolize.

Qrow was not a romantic, that was as true as the sky was blue.

But once upon a time, he tried to be.

When he and Summer had first started to date, nothing had changed incredibly much about their lives – except their days were filled with a lot more kissing and sneaking away between (or sometimes during) classes for a quick romp in the dorm. They didn’t even really go out that often; since they already saw each other every day, it felt arbitrary to ‘make time’ for just each other. It was comfortable and easy. But on the anniversary of his and Summer’s first date, he had wanted to do something she’d never expect. Because somewhere along the way he’d done something stupid.

He’d fallen in love with her.

And like all idiots who fell in love, Qrow was swept away with the desire to tell her in the most memorable way possible. What better way to do that then to give his Rose a rose?

When he dragged Tai along for his ‘expert’ opinion and told him his idea, he was quickly shot down.

“What do you mean it’s a terrible idea? Roses are practically the romantic flower queen!” Qrow had argued, shoving a fistful of them right in his face.

Tai’s eyes continued to judge him over the tops of the blooms. “Buddy, if you want her to know you put exactly zero thought into this, then give her roses.”

“Well what would you do Casanova?”

He hummed, giving the shop a once over, before laser focusing on one corner of the room. “Oh, over here!”

Qrow grunted as he was dragged by his elbow to another display of flowers. They came in a variety of colors, with tall stems and petals that burst out in multiple layers. He recognized them quickly, as the tribe would collect them occasionally. The roots were thick like potato tubers and very sweet. They were useful for a kick of energy during seasons in which they didn’t have much food. He didn’t know anything beyond that. But that was why Tai was here – back where he was from, his family owned a flower shop. He had a fairly detailed knowledge on the whole ‘symbolism’ matter.

“Dahlias?” He asked.

“Yeah, they’re a wedding flower.”

His heart practically jogged a marathon. “What?! Dude! I’m not proposing!”

Tai laughed, already plucking two out from their vases. “I know, I just wanted to mess with you. But the reason they’re a wedding flower is because they stand for loyalty and commitment.” He held them towards him; a white one and a bloom so deep red, it appeared almost black. “Tie these two together with a blue ribbon and that’ll tell her you want to make this serious.”

He didn’t have to guess why the ribbon had to be blue. That was a Mistralian custom. Many that hailed from there were told the same folktale about how the sea and the sky once were colorless and sad, until they fell in love. They began to stretch, on and on, to try and reach one another. When they finally touched, making the horizon, they turned blue and from their love, they birthed the continents.

He knew now that was all utter nonsense – but the tale was practically the foundation for the culture of his people. From the fact parents still named their children after things either of the water or the sky to the very shade of their Kingdom’s symbol, blue would likely always be Mistral’s most significant color. Therefore, giving something blue to a significant other was meant to represent that they had the same unending love for them that the sky and the sea had.

So, he did what Tai suggested – and while the flowers didn’t last long, his and Summer’s relationship did, growing and thriving. Every year, he still gave the dahlia pair to her on the anniversary of their first date. They’d become so iconic, something that represented them, that she’d even had fake ones sewn to her wedding dress. Her bouquet had real ones and had been tied together with a big, blue ribbon.

They had planned to have some yellow ones strewn in with the black and white ones, but Tai had been adamantly against it, not wanting to step into their tradition like that. So, they had let it be, and settled on sunflowers instead.

It seemed something had finally changed his mind.

Qrow picked up the mini bouquet, smiling as he ghosted a thumb over the velvet soft petals. “You know, someone once told me that giving these flowers away means you want to be with them forever.”

“Oh really?” Tai loosely wound his arms around his waist. “Must have been someone pretty smart.”

He gave a thoughtful hum. “He was blond; so no, not really.”

A swift nip to his shoulder reprimanded him. “I changed my mind, you jerk. Give them back.”

“No. They’re mine.” He said holding them to his chest. He squirmed as Tai wiggled his fingers up his stomach, making a move to grab them. He slapped them. “Go away!”

“Not until I get my flowers.”

One of those hands started to tickle his side, and he burst into laughter, trying to twist away as the other came to loot him again. He pinned it. “Get your own thief! I’m – WAAH!”

Qrow’s vision swiveled around as he was suddenly hefted up like a bride and tossed onto the bed. He tried to scoot backwards and out of reach, but Tai was quicker, climbing up on top of him and pinning him down as he demanded, “Give me those flowers!”

“Never!” He proclaimed, throwing his arm up above his head. When Tai tried to stretch over him, he grabbed his shoulder, pushing him back. He was satisfied when he felt fingers only skim his elbow. “You’re gonna have to do better than th-”

The rest of his taunt was lost when Tai smashed their lips together, forcing his tongue into his mouth. Not that Qrow was complaining, eyes slipping closed as he was coaxed into returning the kiss. A moment later, they were easing up, falling into a rhythm only two people could have from doing this more times than they could count.

When they broke apart, Tai’s voice was husky and his eyes were dark, a storm of passion in those deep blue irises. “What say we see how far down your body I can get until Summer joins us?”

He was all too happy to tilt his head back and reply, “I’m all yours sunshine.”

[killua-and-company]

Killua's gifts to the hangout.

*Killua was in the basement checking on the gifts he got his friends at the hangout*

"Alright, let's see mercury's leather jackets and hoddies check, Adam's oni mask and books on poetry check, qrow's aged 1986 whiskey iced at sub zero and numbers to all liquor dealers that owe me favors check, raven's book "art of war" and new tea set check, weiss' new custom made combat heels for more movement and new coffee maker check, neptune's new goggles with binocular and night vision capabilities and combat gloves check, Reese's hoodies and goggles for travelling check, arslan's empress of the shalion temple robes and book on tai chi check, nebula's massage chair and bracelet with a rare gem in it check, jaune's first edition and signed comic books and comic book vault to keep them safe, ren's bracer with him and aria's insignia combined and books on herbs for healing and relaxation plus plushies of them for the twins check, taiyang's shaving kit and tools for both motorcycle and home repairs check, Sun's engraved jacket leg guards check, ilia's arm and leg guard sets with her insignia on it check, the twins Mel and mil's necklaces and ear rings with different colored gems check, tyrain's list of strong fighters that I know and where they hang out and weights for training check, ruby's rose petal cape and special ammo from back home check, Blake's new copy of "ninjas of love" signed by the author and book vaults to keep books safe check, yang's tools for motorcycle repairs and book on puns check, pyrrha's metal stress relief balls and tiara check, nora's gaunlets and list of pancake spots check, coco's list of fashion companies I know and new sun glasses check, velvet's new camera and camera case check, yashi's sheath for his sword and face mask for colder weather check, cinder's flame proof crown and bracelet check, last but not least new coat and hat for Roman check"

Killua leaves the basement

"Anything I'm miss aria?" he gives her a small package

@atlesian-mistralibattlemage @rwby-muse-hangout

[strqyr]

it's going to be so funny if tai really is guarding the crown like ozpin says he made it a bit more challenging to find like hey. does tai being it's protector count towards that "challenging" bit and if so, what kind of a beast this man is like i know his arms are HUGE but after people were being like "idk, he seems a bit weak :/ definitely not in the same league as qrow and raven" when he sparred with yang and it turns out ozpin trusted him to protect the most important relic all on his own?

like this could be legendary. what a power move.

[bestworstcase]

In general I'm far more partial to your thoughts on whatever Ruby & Yang's dad is up to than the fanon-consensus fall vault guard angle, though I do wonder about, say: Oz having the crown stashed somewhere outside said vault so whomever else is in on this could play keep-away with it. Of course that has no shortage of logistical drawbacks, though Raven sort of rejoining the fold does open up handy rapid-evac options so long as Salem doesn't catch her directly. Still, the 'dragon dad has totes noble rational Reasons, not that deep' conclusion does seem damn simplistic.

tbh i think the fanon presumption that tai MUST be guarding the crown is equal parts

1. the fandom completely failing to engage seriously with the (very obvious by now) factor of summer rose being alive – by which i mean, a huge swath of the fandom has grokked she’s still around in some capacity and treats this as little more than a trivial detail meant to twist the knife for ruby (and to a lesser extent, yang) in a shocking way, rather than, you know, the load-bearing pillar it clearly is in this given how her fate has been one of the central narrative questions since the beginning. which is to say that i think a lot of people are just brushing past the possibility that tai’s absence in vacuo is directly related to summer being at beacon, because they’ve either not added two and two to figure out where she is or they have but don’t consider that to be salient to the question of tai’s motives.

and

2. kneejerk backlash to the cyclical tai parenting discourse, with people who read him as a decent-to-good father getting defensive in reaction to the discussions that circulated after B4 revealed that his whereabouts are more or less unknown. it does in fact look Really Bad for tai to not be in vacuo for unclear reasons! which is why the subset of fans who read him as a good parent were predisposed to assume that he has a justifiable, crucial reason to stay in vale, namely guarding the crown. and then any other speculation on the subject of why he isn’t in vacuo was instantly conflated with the tai-is-neglectful reading and thence dismissed out of hand as "character bashing."

eyeroll. the point being, i think this defensive reflex toward tai resulted in a lot of people circling the wagons around the first snap assumption they made even though tai guarding the crown doesn’t make a whole lot of sense even if one accepts the fanon presupposition that he’s The Best Dad.

because he quit working for ozpin after summer disappeared (and to judge by the 9.10 flashback, didn’t have much respect for oz before that!) – we know this because,

it’s a notable enough change for ruby to comment on it when tai starts going on missions again; he’s been off active huntsman duty for over a decade, meaning he wasn’t taking any assignments from oz during this time (which is a point in his favor re: the question of his parenting and i think it’s really funny that people in the “good dad” camp were the loudest voices pointing out that tai clearly wants nothing to do with ozpin right up until the boba incident)

ruby and yang had no idea that ozpin had any particular connection to their family beyond having been headmaster when their parents were in school; they didn’t even know that qrow worked for him. tai kept him so much at arms length that he was just a random public figure to the girls.

tai is explicitly not involved in glynda’s effort to reclaim beacon, nor do port and oobleck seem to have any expectation that he should or will be once yang is back on her feet. they’re his friends, but there is zero professional or collegial relationship.

and frankly after tai watched his team implode and lost not one but two of his loves at least indirectly because of ozpin, why in hell would he want anything to do with that man ever again? did we forget him seething at qrow in v3? did we forget how palpably he wanted to just smack ozpin in IQ? hello?? if we’re starting from “tai is a loving dad who would move mountains for his kids” then i simply do not believe he’d stay in vale while qrow led ruby to round two with salem just because that’s what ozpin’s “in case i die” plan said he should do. like that’s flat nonsense.

the only way i could even consider that as a possibility with any seriousness is if i were convinced that tai straight up just Didn’t Care That Much about his kids, because that kind of coldly pragmatic decision-making—i’ll let my teenage children fight on the front lines while i putter around home keeping an eye on things for a dead man, because the crown is the most important thing—does not track with a man who gives a shit about his kids.

but i think tai does in fact care a lot about his kids, however dysfunctional the family relations may be, so like

the explanation that makes the most sense to me is that he figured out summer was alive and with salem in some capacity sometime in v2-3 and he’s been torn between the two sides of his family ever since. does he go after ruby or does he try to save summer? <- isn’t that a lot more balanced. a lot more understandable. potentially a lot more sympathetic, depending upon exactly what the circumstances are and how much he’s learned. for him to be Just Some Guy having to choose between His Kids and His Wife?

like?? i firmly believe that if the good-parent-tai crowd hadn’t immediately dismissed every other theory besides dragon-guarding-the-crown as hysterical character bashing then within a few weeks at most someone in that camp would’ve remembered that tai fucking hates ozpin and they would’ve eventually landed on “oh. duh. he’s staying in vale for summer” – because it is both obvious and casts him into a much more tragic, sympathetic light versus the stiff upper lip sorry kids it’s for the greater good crown guard angle.

[bestworstcase]

anyways. enough spitballing

i was so right abt fun parent tai

YANG: Do you… wonder why he’s not here? With everybody else? I know Qrow said he’s on assignment, but what’s more important than here? RUBY: Maybe we don’t have the full picture. YANG: I don’t know. Some things you just need to be there for.

first. there are two possibilities: if qrow knows what this “assignment” is, he hasn’t filled in his nieces and the old guard backslid HARD after team rwby fell—the exclusion of ren and nora from the secret meeting in B1 also points in that direction, so it feels quite plausible; on the other hand, if raven knows where tai is and what he’s doing, it seems strange that ruby and yang would not also know, unless the girls haven’t asked her about summer at all (in which case i’d believe that they’re just not really on speaking terms).

like if raven had a conversation with ruby about summer, i can’t see her hiding ‘the full picture’ with regard to tai if she knew about it, even if qrow wanted her to. maiden of knowledge, begrudging oz his secrets, and all.

on the other hand. if the girls know everything qrow does, that would imply that tai’s “assignment” is either an ozpin secret (and oz hasn’t been keeping his promise to be honest, which feels incongruous with him actively fighting his curse now) or a taiyang secret, in which case i am one hundred percent sure it isn’t to do with the crown of choice.

“maybe we don’t have the full picture,” says ruby, thinking about what the blacksmith showed her and what the blacksmith said. that’s the big lesson she learned in the tree, not to jump to conclusions on incomplete information. so that narratively links tai’s mysterious “assignment” to summer’s mysterious “last mission,” which was a “summer secret.” if tai stayed behind in vale to deal with a taiyang secret that not even oz knows about… it’s summer. lol. it can only be summer. if it were the crown, oz would know because ozpin would have given him that assignment in the first place; if it were defending people hiding in mountain glenn, there’s no reason for it to be secret.

but if he knows summer is alive and well and with salem, and he’s trying to, i don’t know, turn her against salem (or ‘save’ her)… well. maybe we don’t have the full picture indeed.

second. oouuugh the weight of what yang doesn’t say. back in v4 she forced herself to put on the prosthetic before she was ready and white-knuckled her way back to functional so she could go find ruby because her dad said he hadn’t gone after ruby because he had “some stuff to look after” at home, and yang thought he meant her; that the only reason he wasn’t out there with ruby was because he had to be here with her.

so she removed herself from the situation—left to find ruby herself—and tai… stayed at home. it’s been months, now. atlas fell and everyone is regrouping in vacuo, trying to prepare for an attack they know will come sooner or later, except tai, who is “on assignment.” what’s more important than here? what’s more important than being here with both his daughters, at the end of the world? if qrow knows, what’s so important that he has to keep them in the dark? if qrow doesn’t know, then it can’t reasonably be to do with the relic at beacon—which is the only thing that could arguably be more important than joining the vacuo coalition.

“some things you just need to be there for,” says yang. my dad just kind of… shut down. and then dad was always busy with school and ruby couldn’t even talk yet; i had to pick up the pieces. i had to keep things together, alone. ruby starts to reminisce about coming to this place with tai when they were kids, and it’s a fond memory for yang too…but one undercut with all of this. the outings were fun—they slowly increased from once a month treats to twice-a-week because ruby got so excited—(ruby is over the moon when she sees the boba shop; yang spends half the walk there second-guessing herself and downplaying the surprise; both reactions speak to their experiences of these outings in childhood)—and why isn’t he here now? why is it, once again, yang trying to pick up the pieces alone while he’s busy with something else more important?—and this time it isn’t even that he’s going to work to put food on the table and make sure bills get paid, he’s just “on assignment” doing… something. that qrow either won’t tell or doesn’t know.

and that feeling is what incites her to talk to ruby about her own failings, and the first thing she says is i don’t need an explanation, because she doesn’t want to make ruby’s crisis about herself but also because she’s about to apologize for not being attentive enough or present enough or aware enough to Be There when ruby needed her.

which is not untrue (surprise! parentified children don’t make good parents for their two-years-younger siblings!) but also. back in v5 when she confronted raven, yang compared herself to raven (you’ll give me the relic and run because you’re afraid of salem; i’m afraid of salem too but i’ll be here waiting for her when she comes after me).

and that’s what yang is doing here with tai (he was physically there and provided for their needs and took them on fun outings sure, but he wasn’t there, when yang looks back on her childhood what she remembers is a sense of overwhelming responsibility and isolation because her dad wasn’t present, and now he’s not even here; she let ruby down in a similar way, being around without really seeing what ruby was going through, but she sees now how she failed and knows what she needs to do to make up for it and she will, she promises, she already is.)

[strqyr]

Any early theories as to why Raven chose now to return?

Also where do you think Taiyang is?

well, this is the context eddy gave for the epilogue: "chapter 11 of volume 9 originally ended with the gang getting back to remnant. they're looking at their own gravestone and there's a little bit of a cliffhanger where someone appeared and walked up to them. we didn't know who that was, and that comes back into play in the animatic."

soooo... it's hard to tell if she was already in vacuo and at the gravestone, or if she immediately made a portal to yang when the link came back online. kinda thinking it's the latter, bc there's not much in the epilogue hinting at her already being in vacuo beforehand—unless she was there as a bird and it doesn't show in the animatic—other than maybe, if i really wanted to read into qrow's mood, he's feeling more optimistic bc Raven's Back and willing to help??? that must mean something lol

as for tai, i'm thinking patch, or he's with glynda. if it's the former, my "tai is guarding the relic" senses are once again tingling. question is if salem is razing down vale for the sake of finding the crown—he lieutenant at beacon (summer) has not found it in a year and counting, she didn't get answers out of ozma, and the lamp is out of questions, so might as well try to brute force it a bit—and if so, if she's heading towards the right direction (west of beacon, and thus, patch) or not.

like. i'm sure most of them are just jokes and what not, but i seriously doubt they killed him off off-screen when the tone is turning more and more towards hopeful.

[strqyr]

in another episode of me trying to figure out what is tai up to (aka what level of involvement he might have re: the not-so-secret-anymore war), and i put together a timeline because why not:

i. ruby thinks that tai misses adventuring with summer, so we can assume they used to go on missions together after graduation (makes sense, since raven and qrow were spies)

ii. as per yang, "our parents were huntsmen. our dad taught at signal, and our mom took on missions around the kingdom." from the sound of things, after yang was born tai did The Responsible Parent thing, and picked up a less dangerous job that guaranteed he would come home every day. (in same vein, summer seemingly did not take any missions that would take her outside vale's borders.)

iii. tai continues to teach at signal to this day, but after beacon's CCTS terminal was infiltrated, he sent zwei to be taken cared by by the girls, explaining in a letter that he's got to leave the island for few days.

iv. the beginning of V3, according to ruby, tai told her he'd be going on some missions soon—this is the same time when ruby thinks tai misses adventuring with summer, implying he hasn't been on missions before this—which raises a question: was tai leaving patch in V2 not a mission? while there could be a completely simple and normal reason to leave, leaving for few days and it happening right after the infiltration definitely raises some eyebrows.

which is why i believe there's a real possibility that it was a mission, just not an official kind. more... off the books, so to speak, the kind you don't want people asking questions about, or even know that what you're doing is huntsman business in any way or form.

and while my instinct is to connect this to the "tai is guarding the crown (hence staying home all this time)" theory, there's a hitch:

he left patch. allegedly. we obviously can't say for sure, but still.

on top of that, he stayed away for few days, which is probably somewhere along 3-6 days. so, let's speculate: if the crown is not at beacon, or patch, where would it be that would require that many days to check up on it and leaving zwei with the girls? mountain glenn would be far enough to require few days, but i'm doubtful since that's where team rwby and oobleck went at the same time. forever fall might be bit on the nose, and it's not exactly that far—though it's completely plausible that those days were less about the travel time and more about camping on site and making sure there's no other activity around.

i'm not really sure where i'm going with this anymore at this point. but since team strq could be fittingly renamed team secret, i feel like there's something here.

[strqyr]

to jump deeper into the "what if the crown is not at beacon?" idea:

when qrow arrives to haven with team rnjr, he immediately notes the lack of staff and then proceeds to call out lionheart on leaving the lamp – which was very much secured within the school – unprotected.

yet, was that not what ozpin did when beacon was attacked, sending glynda and qrow to defend vale instead? qrow gets one "but" in (which could have been about amber, anyway), but neither of the two disagree further when ozpin tells them to get there "now".

why send two of his closest allies to defend vale, if the crown is currently at high risk at beacon?

unless... the crown is not there, and ozpin believed beacon to be lost anyway, so it would make more sense to defend the line and make sure the grimm don't take over the kingdom as a whole... and perhaps, get closer to patch, where the crown might actually reside.

let salem take control of beacon and keep looking and wasting time; she's not going to find the crown there, anyway.

it would also give an additional reasoning why team strq settled down on patch and why tai and qrow are/were teachers at signal rather than beacon, where they would be – supposedly – closer to the crown to protect it if there was ever a need to do so.

it also gives tai a reason to stay on patch, rather than go adventuring across remnant with everyone else. he's certainly part of the inner circle – whenever qrow and raven talk about this stuff, they include him as well – and by ozpin words, there's "no shame in abstaining, only in retreat." with how tai is being treated by others in the know, it doesn't seem like he abstained in the first place, but he hasn't retreated either, meaning that he likely has different kind of orders that allow him to stay home.

and before anyone comes in and says "but tai's just tending to his flowers, he's not protecting the relic!!"

he's not going to be literally standing guard 24/7 wherever the crown is hidden. that would defeat the whole purpose of keeping it hidden and making it seem like it's still at beacon.

right now, salem might be thinking "damn, looking for this relic at beacon is taking forever, surely it's here since that's how it goes with the other relics... unless it's not. hey, what's that fourth person from ozpin's super special team doing currently, he's been kind of low profile lately? gardening?! yeah, he's not doing anything suspicious, back to looking around beacon it is, then."

and that's exactly how ozpin wants to keep it.