It’s been a long while since I’ve read anything on ffnet since I’ve migrated more to ao3, but I am sure glad that I checked this site for RWBY fics as well because this story is MAGNIFICENT. It reads like a full-fledged novel: the tight-knit plot, the neatly segmented arcs, the revolving 3rd pov, the informative but not overbearing descriptions, the way the finale takes place in the same area that the story begins. I enjoyed how you repurposed canon worldbuilding/elements for your own fic, too—like the Faunus, the scar on Weiss’s eye, theie weapons, Dust, puns, lines (“Don’t be so dramatic.”), the nods to fanon (Chess, Team Monochrome). Everything is just so cleverly constructed that I’m in awe! It’s clear that you must’ve done a lot of research while writing this, and I have to say it paid off handsomely in the form of a fabulous fic.

Usually I don’t enjoy OCs (given that this fic came to existence during V1 days, it’s understandable why there are many), but all of your characters have so much life and personality that I found myself invested in each of their individual plights. As I mentioned earlier, I really enjoyed the revolving 3rd povs for that reason. I found it very engaging how you used some minor character povs as an element of suspense, where otherwise following just the main characters would ruin said suspense (for instance, Lutege breaking into Blake’s home and getting whacked over the head with a chair by Weiss.)

You mentioned thet you hadn’t intended to go full Monochrome with this fic, but I’m quite impressed by that fact! It’s quite funny in hindsight, then, because I definitely raised an eyebrow a few times at how Blake and Weiss think about each other throughout the fic, even befors they meet. Especially during that passage when Weiss likens the process of conjuring an imagined rival to that of... a romantic partner (I would say it’s almost not even subtext at that point, but the fact that it’s all somehow unintentional just strikes gold). The romance buildup feels very natural as a result, and I’m grateful for that because it’s rare for plot-heavy fics to feature a significant f/f romance (thank you for that, by the way!). I’m a sucker for the whole “enemies-to-begrudging allies-to-friends-to-lovers” dynamic, so their dynamic really hit the spot for me. I also think it’s interesting how, if measuring story-length, the romance is a slow burn, but the story itself only covers about a weeks’ worth of time so it’s a quick burn in that sense! I’d say it’s a rather peculiar mix of being a quick burn with the full-on satisfaction of a slow burn, which is great.

The action scenes were CRAAAZY, too! I found myself at the edge of my seat at how disaster keeps springing on the girls—all the close calls and paper thin margins for victory! Especially during the night where they investigate Jekyll’s old house: the subsequent assassination attempts and then having to crawl back to the White Fang base, only to get thrown into a cell. Safe to say that’s probably their roughest night?

I loved the recurring theme of pride! Seeing how Weiss’s ideals of pride evolves throughout the story is so gratifying. Watching Weiss grow up from a stubborn and foolhardy girl to one who finds something to believe in and fiercely protects and upholds those ideals—it’s been a great journey to follow.
It’s been about three years since you’ve finished this fic, but thank you for givling me something fantastic to read during this global pandemic.

I have been reading fics for years without an account, but this was too good to not let the author know what a fantastic job you did characterizing and world crafting this story.

The salt that’s apart of the sanity formula. It’s ivory dust, isn’t it?

And the adventure continues!

Great story. Really, you have a talent for steampunk that many steampunk pro-writers don't; you understand the genre of the times, and don't fixate on brass dohickeys and steam-powered power-armor like so many unfortunately do.

Absolutely loved it. Characterization was great, dialogue well written, monoqt's tastefully handled. Honestly wouldn't be surprised to see it as a novel in a store. RT probably wouldn't have a problem putting it up, they're already doing fanwork anthologies already so an ebook would be nothin' while helping more find this great work.

Garbage. Just a load of fucking sjw shit garbage.

Coming to this way late, but I just wanted to say thanks and that this was a wonderful read.

This was a fantastic and complex story that I thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish. Thank you so much for putting so much time and effort into it.

So glad I decided to go back and reread several stories because the second reading of this one was just as good as the first. Knowing how it plays out I could spot several subtle foreshadowing points that I never saw or took notice of in my first reading. One of the best, well written pieces on this site by far.

I really like the language in this

My. God. That, my friend, was absolutely stunning, truly a masterpiece! It's rare to come across a story as thrilling and riveting as yours in the world of FanFiction, so reading this was a joy. Dialogue, setting, characterization, everything about your writing was fantastic, truly above par. Wishing you all the best, and thank you for creating such a wonderful read.

holy crap, this was.. beautiful. absolutely beautiful. thank you so much.

I’m not even halfway through this story and I’m already immensely impressed and the way this is written. It comes across as a professional novel, not as a FanFiction story by a fan. The writing has so much more meat to it it makes my stories look like skeletons in comparison. That and while I can see and endgame and I have ideas on how you’re going to get there, I can’t say that the story is anything near predictable, which is an accomplishment in of itself. Plus I’m enjoying it too. As of writing this I don’t know if this story is completed but regardless keep up the stellar writing cause you have a serious talent for it.

So I finally finished this epos of a fanfic. And I must say I thoroughly enjoyed every bit of it.
Also the fact that the Schnee Dust headquarters had once been in munich, coupled with the poster for munich's tram and bus museum, made me think of Ruby and Yang from Burning Gold, getting nearly ran over by a dust powered formerly horse drawn tram carriage as Weiss and Blake sit inside it looking forward to the horserace on the wiesn. So I'll maybe pick up my ballpen(because yes I still write stuff on paper before typeing it up) and see if I can actually write a story where that can happen.

Any way thank you for writing this awesome story.

Thank you