Welcome back! Sorry for the ridiculously long delay - I've had university work keeping me busy.

Here's the fourth chapter of Red Reflection. Short-ish one, but the next will be along more swiftly (within this week).

What kind of mayhem happened here?

As a gentle rain washed across the rubble before her, Weiss found herself utterly lost as to what had befallen the town of Oniyuri.

This was supposed to be where I'd find Qrow, where I'd find all of them.

Where I'd find her.

Instead, she found herself cautiously stepping through a settlement reduced to ruin. Ornate, artistic architecture had been torn apart and fractured all around; not a single house or structure seemed to be left untouched by whatever destruction had descended on this place. There was certainly no sign of residency, though Weiss did not expect as much.

The last thing she needed was a dead end to her world-spanning quest to find her teammate. And yet, a dead end was exactly what she had been given.

There seemed to be no clear evidence to suggest that Ruby, her friends or even Qrow had been in this place.

To her left stood a derelict clock tower, tainted by various dents and scorch marks upon its surface. The front doors and part of the wall had collapsed, with the interior exposed to the elements; decaying leaves had gathered at the precipice of the former entrance. Clearly, this had once been a beautiful structure - a proud landmark of the town.

Not anymore.

Well, it's better than being out in this downpour.

Taking refuge within the old tower, Weiss slumped to the floor with a defeated sigh and leaned her head back against the stone wall. She stayed silent and still for several seconds, contemplating the misfortune she had suffered again and again in her journey.

Maybe I should never have left home.

Maybe I should have stayed in my room. Served the family.

She wearily slung her backpack around and opened up the zipper, retrieving a red apple. It was one of the few items of food she had remaining - and hunger was becoming more and more distracting to her, wearing her down.

Weiss bit into the fruit tentatively, staring at nothing as she searched her mind for ideas.

I need to find Qrow. He must still be guarding Ruby, surely.

But how?

Where do I go from here?

What do I do, when there's nothing to go on?!

What am I supposed to do?!

In frustration, she snapped - and slammed her clenched fist hard upon the cobblestone floor.

Why did I...?

She recoiled her hand to her chest, a dull pain throbbing in her fingers which flushed red with inflammation.

Her own action surprised her - Weiss knew herself to not be prone to spontaneous outbursts of physical violence. It was not in her nature.

Clearly, she was more fatigued and desperate than she had noticed.

She took a couple deep breaths, restoring her calm and closing her eyes to focus.

I just have to think back. Use whatever information I've got.

If I can just remember what that Blackthorn guy said a week ago...

Weiss exhaled, and slipped into a semiconscious trance - casting her mind back and recalling her recent memories upon arriving in Mistral.

"Don't be shy. Come on in. It's dreadful weather out there." said a well-spoken voice.

Weiss turned her head to see the innkeeper, a stout local man who beckoned her over with one hand whilst dusting a table with the other. His charcoal-black sideburns stretched nearly to his jawline, and his broad shoulders combined with his short height gave him the appearance of a fairytale dwarf. His polite tone did not match his appearance at all.

Maximilian Blackthorn.

"And don't just stand there the door open, please. You'll let all the cold in."

Weiss nodded and hastily shut the door, approaching the sole man in the charming oak bar she found herself in.

"Sorry about that," she replied curtly, "I wasn't sure I'd found the right inn."

Blackthorn raised his eyebrows, as he casually began polishing a pint glass.

"The right inn? That's a little suspicious, young lady. There's plenty of inns around the coastal regions of Mistral. And there's more than one inn in Sparrowbrook. What makes this one your...intended destination?"

Weiss straightened herself, arms behind her back, posture perfect.

She was a girl on a mission, and she was going to act like it.

"You are Maximilian Blackthorn, correct?"

He nodded hesitantly.

"Okay...good." Weiss marched confidently over to Blackthorn, careful not to sway her hand near the rapier on her hip, lest he think she was about to attack him. "My name is We-uh, Amber. I'm looking for Qrow - Qrow Branwen. I have reason to believe you've seen him recently and-"

"No you're not." Blackthorn interrupted her. She paused in shock momentarily, unused to being challenged so quickly.

"Excuse you?"

"You're not 'Amber'," he replied, not even looking at her. "You're someone called Weiss."

Weiss's heart skipped a beat. Had she been compromised? Did her father and brother know she was here - had Blackthorn been hired to capture her?

"...No. I'm not. I told you, my name is Amber and I need your help finding-"

Blackthorn scoffed and set the pint glass down.

"You're Weiss. A Schnee, correct? Got a zippy little 'best friend' called Ruby?"

The white-haired huntress felt the blood draining from her face, in some kind of mortal dread.

It felt wrong. Someone she didn't know happened to know her exact identity - and also knew about Ruby.

She especially disliked him saying Ruby's name. It sent chills down her spine - and Weiss could not shake the feeling of being afraid.

She cleared her throat and sent him an icy glare.

"Tell me how you know all of this. Now."

Instinctively, she slowly moved her left hand closer to the handle of Myrtenaster.

"Easy, princess. Don't start a fight." came the reply. Blackthorn hefted a metallic crossbow from under the bar onto his shoulder; a wordless warning to the girl facing him.

Weiss raised Myrtenaster just a little higher in defiance.

"I've come this far, and I'm not letting you drag me back to Atlas. If it's a fight you want, then-"

Blackthorn scoffed and held up a hand.

"Set your weapon down. I'm not affiliated with any Schnee, and I'm sure as hell not going to Atlas anytime soon."

"I'm not open to trusting strangers right now," Weiss said flatly. "You know more about me than a stranger should. Everything points to you being a pawn of my father. How much did Jacques promise you in lien to hand me over?!"

Blackthorn rolled his eyes and exhaled, frustrated.

"Listen. You're the stranger here. In my tavern, might I add. Even if your old man did give me an offer, I'm not interested in his dirty money. You wanted to know why I saw straight through your alias?"

Weiss paused, and gave only the most hesitant nod she could.

"First of all, I had a visit from a certain patron of mine who-"

"Qrow."

Blackthorn looked surprised, but nodded and continued.

"That's the one. He got a few whiskies deep and decided to share his troubles with me all evening, as he always does. Seems to trust me with this kind of information. No idea why." Max Blackthorn grunted as he stowed his crossbow and leaned back against the wall, arms folded. Weiss cautiously returned her rapier to her hip. "Started talking about his niece. He does that a lot. This time he seemed...off. Nervous. Said he had to look after her, and that he couldn't stick around town for long. I suppose he was following her or something, because when she was here the day before-"

Weiss suppressed a small gasp, strutting over to the bar.

"She was here? Ruby? Red cape, carries a scythe, would have been with some others?"

The man before her shrugged his shoulders.

"Well, yeah. There was four of them, her and three other kids - what's your interest in it anyway?"

The Schnee girl sighed with an air of impatience.

"Forget the rest of the story, where did she say she was going?!"

Blackthorn narrowed his eyes.

"She didn't say, alright? And don't raise your tone - I'm doing you the favor, remember?"

Weiss took a deep breath and restrained herself from delivering a classic Ice Queen put-down.

"Alright. Fine. Where did Qrow say he was headed to, if not Ruby?"

"That's a little more like it, young lady. For your information, old Branwen did mention that he knew his niece was going to end up passing through Oniyuri, and that he'd have to be close by. Didn't seem to pleased about it, and I don't blame him. Oniyuri's a ghost town. Wouldn't go there myself...definitely not alone."

Weiss Schnee paused for a few moments in contemplation.

"And I can reach Oniyuri just through signposts?"

"Well...yeah, but like I said, it's a creepy abandoned town. The one and only Qrow Branwen didn't wanna go! Why the hell would you want to-"

"Goodbye, Mr. Blackthorn."

She turned about on her heel and dashed out of the tavern, leaving the stout barkeep confused.

"...Thanks for your patronage, madame." Maximilian Blackthorn dryly muttered behind her as she left.

Snapping out of the daydream, Weiss fluttered her cerulean eyes open. The biting chilly air swept into the clock tower; it was startling enough to prompt a shiver from Weiss, though only briefly.

Living in Atlas had long since taught the young huntress to dismiss the cold.

She stared outwards to the forests and mountains upon the horizon, bathed in sparse rays of grey light from the setting sun which crept through thick, looming clouds. As the light began to recede, shadows were beginning to advance across the land. Night would soon be upon the ruins of Oniyuri.

Soon I won't be able to search the area.

And there'll be Grimm to deal with.

Got to get up and carry on while I still have time.

Come on Weiss, she thought to herself.

Get up.

With weary legs and weary heart, Weiss Schnee stood up from the ground and quietly stepped back into the outside - not that she had had much respite from the elements inside anyway.

It was time for some detective work.

She sauntered along besides the skeletons of houses; once, these had been much more. They had been homes.

Now, fragments of glass and brick were scattered in chaotic patterns across the ground. Mementos of these previous lives were mixed in with the debris - among the debris, Weiss spotted cooking pots, children's toys and shattered furniture throughout the rubble. She paused to process the lives which had been torn apart. The livelihoods which had been forever changed, the children who would grow up without parents or siblings. The grief and sorrow which would last for so many lifetimes.

Something, or someone, had destroyed this paradise. Stripped it of its joy, stolen the light of its hopes and dreams, and left those who survived with only sadness and despair.

Just like what happened to Beacon. My real home.

Just like Team RWBY.

With each street she searched, the glimmer of hope within her waned a little more; nothing seemed to suggest that Ruby had even so much as passed through. Again and again, she walked down cobblestone roads to find that there was nothing distinctive or peculiar, outside of the various pieces of wreckage dispersed throughout the streets. Weiss began to worry that her eyes were too tired to find vital clues - that she was missing obvious breadcrumbs which could give her a trail to find Ruby.

Gently turning a corner into the town's courtyard, Weiss sauntered aimlessly towards its centre, staring longingly up at the ominous clouds overhead.

She felt something solid collide with the front of her boot.

Weiss looked down - and gasped suddenly.

A great scorpion stinger, mottled with what appeared to be droplets of a deep purple liquid, lay motionless at her feet. The purple stains collectively formed a barely discernible trail, leading away from her current position.

Perhaps come kind of wounded creature...or Grimm?

In disgust, she hastily stepped backwards from the dismembered tail. Before her attention faded, a glint of light beckoned to the corner of her eye. She glanced down at the source of light.

A used sniper rifle cartridge, reflecting what little was left of the weak sunlight straining through the clouds.

Could it be...?

With a heightened sense of urgency, Weiss cast dazzling glyphs across the ground, allowing her to dash around the courtyard rapidly in her search for more clues. To and fro, she swept across the centre of Oniyuri, squinting her eyes for even the smallest of potential clues. With much enthusiasm and determination, little time had passed before she skidded to a halt, hardly suppressing the smile which blossomed on her pale face.

An object both dampened and abandoned, it was the most elating sight Weiss had experienced in months.

Before her on the ground was a single, crimson magazine for a rifle.

One that Weiss recognised only too well as belonging to a certain Crescent Rose.

With an uncharacteristic burst of excitement, she knelt down and grabbed the magazine, fervently inspecting it for any further details which could aid her. Though she found nothing more, it was enough - enough to reignite her motivation, to keep moving forward.

It's a start, Weiss thought. She swiveled her head around to scrutinise the intermittent splotches of purple leading out of the town and into the wilderness. Ruby had fought something here, and yet neither she nor her opponent were to be found. The only certainty was that Ruby had left this place, along with the source of the strange coloured substance - blood or poison, Weiss could not discern - and that the only way to catch her partner was to follow the unnerving trail left behind.

Weiss exhaled and rose to her feet, surveying the journey which lay ahead. stretching out of the ruins and into the unknown. She pocketed Crescent Rose's magazine in a pouch on her hip. She did not know why.

And when I find you, I'm going to remind you not to leave litter on the floor, Ruby Rose.

Thanks for reading guys :)

Next chapter will be much sooner, I promise! Four/five days I expect.

Let me know what you think, see you next time!

- H