A Living Myth RWBY X Child!Dragon Faunus! Male! Reader

Chapter 12 (W): End of the Beginning

Well, I've taken my break long enough for this. Mostly, I've just been figuring out how to fit this into the timeline given how much they were saving for the Atlas arc. Oh well, guess we'll be meeting a few Ace Ops early. I own nothing
Chapter 12: A New Path

It was Weiss.
Her expression was somber and her hair seemed to have been hastily put up to allow her to search for him. For anyone else at any other time, the Schnee likely would've been annoyed and begrudgingly helping in the search, but not now, not with (Y/N).
"Come on, sweetie. Let's go back."
(Y/N)'s lip quivered as he put his face back into his knees.
"I can't! I can't go back there!" He sobbed.
"(Y/N)..."
"Yang got hurt and Penny and Pyrrha died because of me!"
"(Y/N)!" Weiss repeated firmly, kneeling down to grasp his shoulder. "That is not true in the slightest. Don't even think of believing such an awful lie."
"It is true!" He insisted. "I knew something was wrong with Cinder! I saw her soul when I first got my power, but I was too scared to tell Ozpin! If I had just said something-!"
"We don't know what would have happened." Weiss interrupted, pulling him into a hug. "You were confused, that doesn't make this your fault. (Y/N), you are one of the kindest and bravest people I have ever met, but you're not a Huntsman, you're just a little boy. This shouldn't be your responsibility."
"But, Penny and Pyrrha-,"
"Would've never have blamed you for any of this. General Ironwood and Ozpin couldn't even see this coming. We were simply overwhelmed."
"I couldn't protect Yang, though! She needed me, and I couldn't help her!"
"(Y/N), you saved her and Blake." Weiss corrected. "The man who attacked them, you stopped him. If you hadn't been there, who knows what he would've done to them. Yang may have lost her arm, but she's alive because of you."
He looked away. "I still could've stopped this."
The white haired girl sighed, knowing she wouldn't be able to convince him entirely. Right now, her priority had to be getting him back to safety.
She tucked his head under her chin, embracing him once again. "Failure is, unfortunately, an inevitable part of life, sweetie, but those failures don't define us. It's what we do after that does."
He grunted, but this time sunk into the hug. Sensing he wasn't going to resist anymore, Weiss scooped him up and headed back to the hospital. She sent a text out saying he was safe as they slowly trudged back. Whether it was the swaying of her steps, or the entire ordeal catching up to again, by the time they arrived back, (Y/N) was fast asleep. Carrying him inside, she was met by Team JNPR (or what remained of them) and Taiyang.
"Is he all right?" Tai asked.
Weiss nodded. "He's fine. Where's Blake?"
"Not back yet." Nora informed her.
"Weiss, I'm so sorry." Jaune apologized. "This is all my fault. I never should've yelled at him."
"Jaune, we're all still...processing everything." The Schnee girl assured, trying to let (Y/N) sleep. "Don't be too upset with yourself. Just...apologize to (Y/N) when he wakes up."
The blonde nodded as Weiss headed back to the boy's room, tucking him back into bed and kissing his forehead before exiting. Once the telltale click of door hit her arms, she leaned against it and slid down, letting out a sigh and slid to the floor, her face in her hands.
"Need a hand?"
Looking up, she saw Sun standing there, a somber expression on his face. She put her forehead to her knees.
"It's just...so much to take in. Yang losing an arm, Ruby being unconscious for some reason, and now (Y/N). I don't even know how Blake and I are supposed to help him when he wakes up!"
Sun looked down. "Blake isn't coming back."
Weiss shot up. "What!?"
"I saw her. When you texted (Y/N) was safe, she headed out of the evacuation zone. I tried to follow her, but I lost her." Weiss gripped her head, on the verge of a breakdown. "And, there might be a different problem."
Weiss rolled her eyes. "I don't know how this could possibly get any worse."
Shouting came from down the hall, and the two recognized the voices as belonging to Qrow and Ironwood. Concerned, they ran back to the waiting room in front of Ruby and Yang's room. The two men were face to face, Qrow looking furious and Ironwood stoic. Tai was also there, seemingly trying to pull Qrow away, but also looking at the General in disappointment.
"This isn't up for debate, Qrow." Ironwood said firmly.
"Not up for debate?" The drunk repeated. "This isn't your call, James. You don't get a say in what happens to him!"
"With Ozpin gone, we have to be ready. He needs to be ready."
"He just a boy, Ironwood." Tai interjected. "This isn't what's best for him."
"It's what's best for Remnant."
"Who are you talking about?" Weiss asked, making her and Sun's presence known."
The adults turned to them, not saying anything for a moment. Eventually, Qrow gave the General another stink eye.
"Go on, you tell them what you're planning to do with (Y/N)."
Ironwood sighed before turning to the teenagers. "Ms. Schnee, Mr Wukong, please understand-,"
Sun's eyes widened with realization. "You want to take (Y/N) away!"
"I know it seems harsh-,"
"Harsh? It's crazy! After all this you seriously want to take him away from his family!?"
"General Ironwood, with all due respect, you can't take (Y/N) to Atlas." Weiss said sternly. "He's already terrified after everything that's happened. Moving him now will only traumatize him more!"
"Ms. Schnee, while your concern for his well-being is understandable, the fact of the matter is th-...(Y/N), is too exposed here in Vale. I intend to take him back to Atlas Academy and place him under military protection."
"Military protection?" The monkey Faunus repeated. "What? You think the White Fang or whoever Cinder's with could come after him?"
"That's exactly what I believe." The teenagers blinked in shock as Ironwood turned to Qrow. "Do you want to explain this to them or may I?"
Qrow narrowed his eyes before turning back to the kids. "You kids have known from the start (Y/N) was special. Dragon Faunus don't just turn up everyday like your run-of-the-mill bird. Unfortunately, being a rare breed means at some point, you're gonna catch someone's eye, usually the unsavory type. It's possible whoever's behind this might be setting their sights on the Firebreather."
"Set their sights on what?" Weiss demanded. "He's just a child."
"Ms Schnee." Ironwood interjected. "What (Y/N) did tonight is not something a mere child could pull off. The White Fang member who attacked him, Ms Xiao-Long, and Ms Belladonna, was Adam Taurus of the White Fang."
The two looked at each other, recognizing the name as the General brought up a series of articles listing Adam's exploits, including theft, terrorism, and murder.
"Adam Taurus is one of the highest priorities in regards to the White Fang. He's a high ranking member and known terrorists wanted for many assaults and even murder. He's a dangerous individual, yet, after besting two Huntresses-in-training, he was beaten back by (Y/N), not by convenience, but with brute strength. (Y/N) is powerful, and dangerously so, especially if he isn't trained to properly harness his powers. He's already evolving at a rate faster than any Huntsmen on record. If he were to lose control of that power, the consequences could be devastating."
"And you think sticking him back in a lab isn't going to have consequences!?" Tai snapped. "James, (Y/N) still has nightmares about what happened to him! You put him back in a lab, and he'll relapse.
"He won't be in a lab, Taiyang." Ironwood assured. "I'm well aware of (Y/N)'s trauma and I'm not so short sighted as to put him into an environment that will trigger memories of his endeavors. He'll be housed and trained in Atlas Academy, alongside other students. He'll be safe and well looked after by the staff and specific members of my team like Winter Schnee."
Weiss shook her head. "This still isn't right. Atlas is the last place (Y/N) needs to be. He needs to be here in Vale, with his family!"
Ironwood gave her a look, one that straddled the line stern between stern and sympathetic. "Ms Schnee, I've been informed of your father requesting entrance into Vale's airspace."
"What?"
"It seems he intends to have you return home to Atlas." The General then eyed Sun. "I also heard Ms Belladonna is now missing as well. Considering we don't know when or in what state Ms Xiao-Long or Ms Rose will wake up in, that leaves you as (Y/N)'s main caretaker. Wouldn't it make sense to have him closer to you?"
Weiss shook a bit at the thought of returning Atlas, a nausea feeling settling in her stomach at the thought of (Y/N) following her back.
Qrow forced Ironwood to turn back. "James, I'm warning you right now, back off. Being isolated in that Ice Palace you call a city is the last thing that kid needs."
"No, the last thing (Y/N) needs is to lose control of himself and end up hurting someone else!"
"Am I really that dangerous?"
Everyone turned to see (Y/N) standing behind the teens, wrapped in a blanket with a scared look on his face.
His sister ran up to him. "(Y/N), you should be asleep."
"Am I really going to hurt someone?" He asked, looking over at the adults.
Qrow and Tai looked ready to murder Ironwood, but the General remained steadfast.
"You have a lot of power, (Y/N). If you aren't careful, you very well could."
"James!" Qrow growled as Tai pushed.
"Are you trying to scare him!?"
(Y/N) began to tremble. "I-I don't want to hurt anyone..."
"Hey, hey, little man." Sun said calmingly. "You're not gonna. We know you'd never hurt anyone who didn't deserve it. What you did tonight was protect yourself and your sisters."
"But I don't even know how I did it. What if...what if whatever I did makes me attack one of you guys?"
"Sweetie, it was your Semblance, your power." Weiss assured. "You're in control of it."
"Not necessarily. Semblances by their nature are unpredictable. Without proper training, using them is a gamble. Sometimes, they can even act outside of the user's control. Wouldn't you agree, Qrow?" Tai held back the red eyed male, as if he expected him to charge, as Ironwood looked at the dragon Faunus. "(Y/N), I'm not trying to scare you. I want you to understand the position you're in and what you could be capable of. I promise you, if you come with me to Atlas Academy, you can learn to properly utilize your powers. But, it's only fair for it to be your choice."
(Y/N) looked down at the ground, pondering the offering. He didn't want to leave. Everything was already going to be so different, and traveling to a new Kingdom pretty much on his own seemed like too much. Then, he remembered how he had blacked out and somehow managed to beat the man who had hurt his sisters. If he hadn't stopped after beating that guy, would he have hurt Yang and Blake too? The thought made him sick to his stomach just thinking about it. With Ozpin gone, (Y/N) didn't have many people to turn to about his dragon Faunus powers. General Ironwood at least was an experienced fighter, maybe he could learn a thing or two from him. Besides, it wasn't like he'd be completely alone. Weiss wouldn't be too far...right?
"I'll do it." He finally said. "I'll go to Atlas."
"Kid, are you sure?" Qrow said, trying to talk him out of it. "If you go, we don't know how long it'll be before you can come back."
"I-I'm sure. I want to learn to control my powers, and I'm not going to learn that here. I'll go."
Ironwood nodded. "I'll have preparations made right away."
As he turned to leave, Qrow grabbed his arm, glaring him down. "James, if anything, and I mean anything happens to that kid, you have me to deal with."
"Qrow, I promise, he'll be safe in Atlas."
Qrow let go. "That's not what I'm worried about."

(Timeskip)

The time to leave came all too soon for (Y/N). Everyone tried to talk him out of going, but despite his doubts, his mind was made up. He had to find a way to control his powers. Their last hope of talking him out of it was Yang, who had woken during this mess, but she had almost immediately shut down after seeing her arm was missing. She didn't even react when he told her she was leaving. Eventually, the dragon found himself on a flight track, hugging Jaune, Ren, Nora, and Tai goodbye.
"Last chance, Firebreather." Qrow said, standing a little bit away.
Nora also joined in. "You don't have to do this."
"I'll be fine." He affirmed before turning to Tai. "Can you tell Yang bye for me? And tell Ruby I'm sorry?"
Tai ruffled his hair. "Will do, little guy."
"This won't be forever." Ren tried to comfort everyone. "We will see each other again."
"Yeah, and I'll be way stronger then too."
"(Y/N)!" Ironwood called out. "It's time."
He gave everyone else one last hug. "I'll be back. I promise."
With that, they were forced to let go and watched as the boy ran to join the General. As Ironwood led the boy to their craft, he noticed (Y/N) taking a few longing glances back. Ironwood attempted to place a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder, but it came off as stiff and awkward, making him jump.
"This...is temporary. You'll see them eventually."
"Yeah." (Y/N) said, looking down again. "I know."
As they approached the craft, (Y/N) caught sight of Weiss walking with a man he could already tell was a rat.
"Weiss!" He called out, running to her.
Weiss turned and ran towards him, hugging him. She caught sight of Ironwood, who made no move to interrupt.
"You're really coming then? You don't have to, if you don't want to."
"It'll be okay." He assured her. "Besides, you won't be far away. We'll be able to see each other, won't we?"
Weiss gave him a sad smile. "Yes, we will."
"Weiss." The man she was with said. "We're leaving."
As she hugged him one more time, (Y/N) looked over at the man, seeing him sneer at them. He growled, showing his teeth, causing the man to flinched. Satisfied, the two separated.
"I'll see you in Atlas." He said.
"See you there." She said as they finally let go.
Weiss seemed to drag her feet back to the man as Ironwood walked up to collect (Y/N). The dragon watched as the other two disappeared.
"That was Weiss's dad, wasn't it?" (Y/N) asked.
Ironwood nodded. "Jacque Schnee, current head of the Schnee Dust Company. He's a very powerful man."
(Y/N) crossed his arms. "He's a rat."
Ironwood had to choke back a laugh, but patted the boy's head, this time managing to be less awkward. "Then you have good instincts, (Y/N). Come, Atlas awaits."