Ruby looked across the airship at Weiss. The older girl was standing at the window, looking out at the city. She could not help but wonder how this was possibly going to be resolved without fighting. Weiss believed Ozpin had killed her parents, so it would only make sense that she would never forgive him.

She sighed and looked out at the city as well. She couldn't forget that, only the day before, Weiss had been attacking the same city. She strained her neck to try and get a glimpse of the blast sight but it was at one of the ship's blind spots.

Finally, the ship arrived at Beacon. As the door opened, Ruby and Weiss walked together to get off. They stepped onto the empty landing pad. "You ready?" Ruby said to Weiss. She nodded and they began walking towards the main building.

As they reached the main walkway, people began to notice them. They heard multiple gasps of surprise and quite a lot of mumbling about their presence there. They kept their heads held high and looked straight ahead as people began to gather in the courtyard.

As they entered the main building, they saw Glenda coming towards them. She pretended not to notice them and moved to the front entrance. They heard her voice coming from behind them, "This doesn't concern you." She told the crowd, "Please go back to your dorm rooms." As she closed the doors behind her.

The two girls made their way to Ozpin's office, which they promptly entered, not needing to knock or announce themselves. Ozpin was sitting there, sipping on his coffee. Glenda came up behind the pair and closed the door, staying outside the room. Ruby guessed she was guarding the door in case anyone tried to hear what was about to happen.

"So," Ozpin began, "Have you decided to come back to us?"

"We'll see." Weiss replied.

A few awkward moments passed before Ruby spoke up, "Professor, can you explain what you did regarding Weiss' village nine years ago?"

Ozpin looked at her, then back to Weiss, "So you told her?"

Weiss nodded. "Why would I keep what you did a secret?" She snapped back.

Ozpin shrugged, "Ok." He took another sip of his coffee and began. "Back when I was a hunter, I had been approached by the King to take on a serious assignment. There was a village in the north that had presumably been running an illegal Dust smuggling ring, as well as experimenting in using the Grimm as weapons. They were trying to train the beasts for their own purposes, and my team had been chosen to shut down the operation."

Weiss then interrupted, "So you killed them?!"

Ozpin's face was one of confusion, "We didn't kill anyone that day, Weiss. We arrested the leaders and were forced to fight some that came to try to free them. Those people then escaped, but we sent in the local police to occupy the town and restore the King's rule." He looked deep into Weiss' eyes, "I promise you, I did not kill your parents."

It was Weiss' turn to be confused. "How...Then where are they?! If they weren't the leaders and they didn't come back to get me, where did they go? Why did they leave me?"

Ozpin replied, "That, I do not know. But I do know that we did not kill anyone that day, nor did the police that were sent in."

"How can I trust what you say?" Weiss shot back, "For all I know, you could be lying to save your own skin!"

"Weiss," Ozpin said, "I do not lie. I have not lied in my entire life, and I would not start now."

Weiss, searching for something to be angry at but finding only pure honesty in Ozpin's eyes, broke down, "W-Why did they leave me?" She fell to her knees, putting her face in her hands. She sobbed until all her tears were gone, not even noticing Ruby putting her arm around her shoulder.

She managed to get a hold of herself, "Ok." She said, "I...I believe you." She managed to say in between hiccups. "But I warn you, I-If I ever find out t-that you're lying…." She left the statement unfinished.

Ozpin nodded, understanding what the girl must be going through. "Now," He said, "Will you return to our school?"

Weiss seemed to think about it for a moment, and then looked Ozpin in the eye, "As long as you promise me this. If I ever...EVER hear any whisper about my parents, you will let me go and try to find them."

Ozpin nodded slowly, "Of course." He then looked past the girls to the door, "Glenda! Make sure Weiss here is treated well upon her re-integration to the school."

The door swung open and in burst Yang and Blake, still battered by their battle with the woman in the red dress. They rushed to the two girls and wrapped their arms around them, bringing their group into a crushing hug. "Oh Weiss!" Yang exclaimed, "I'm so glad you're ok!"

Blake said, "I knew you'd come back!" Showing more emotion than she had in her entire time at Beacon.

Yang shouted, "I TOLD you we wouldn't be split up so easily!"

At this point, all the girls had tears in their eyes, but these were tears of happiness and affection.

Weiss croaked, "Yang…"

"Yeah?"

"You're crushing me." Weiss was able to say.

Yang pulled away and looked at Weiss, "That's what you get for running off like that!" Weiss looked down in shame. "Hey," Yang quickly said, "None of that matters now. All that does matter is that you're back safe and sound."

Blake pulled away as well, wiping the tears away from her eyes.

Ozpin then spoke up, "I suggest you girls all go get some rest, you've had a long few days."

He could not be more right. All four of them were about to fall over from exhaustion. Blake and Yang didn't sleep at all that night from worry about Ruby. They had felt so powerless just sitting in their hospital beds.

They made their way up to their rooms, Yang and Blake hugging the other girls good night. As Ruby and Weiss approached their room, they noticed an envelope slipped halfway under their door. Ruby stooped down to pick it up, then handed it to Weiss. There, in neat handwriting, was a single word, "Weiss".

Weiss' hand trembled as she opened the envelope. The letter inside read,

Dear Weiss,

We are sorry to have to write you this letter, but we can't be there ourselves. We have been watching you grow up from afar, and we wanted to let you know how proud we are of you and what you've done up to this point. Everyone goes through hard times in their lives, but what defines a person is how they deal with those times. If you are reading this, it means that you have made the right choice, and are on the path to goodness. We know this may sound shallow coming from us, but we hope that you will continue to make the right choices and stay on that path. We fully support your endeavor to become a huntress, and will be keeping an eye on you every now and then. It is best that we do not meet for now, however, as we are still wanted for crimes against Vale, and rightly so. We have not always made the right choices, Weiss, but you have the chance to be the right kind of person. Just know that we will always support you, and always love you know matter what.

Love,

Mom and Dad

[*****************]

Thank you all for sticking with this to the end. Honestly, when I started this story, I had no idea where we would end up, but I'm glad you all stayed along for the ride with me. I don't think we have seen the end of this plot-line though, and I definitely foresee a sequel in the near-future. You guys and gals don't know how awesome it is to see how many people have enjoyed this story, and I humbly thank all of you from the bottom of my heart. Stay tuned for the next adventure! Until then... ;)