#RWBY speculation

[misstrashchan]

The Little Prince and the Ever After

So it was confirmed a while ago that Oscar's allusion is the Little Prince, which many Oscar fans and Rosegarden shippers in particular where theorising back in V6, with Oscar's crush on Ruby Rose being proof that she was the Rose that the Little Prince loved and cared for. Both @conehatcryptid and @chaikachi have written wonderful posts about Oscar's allusion to the Little Prince here and here.

However, after V9 I'm inclined to think both Ruby and Oscar interchangeably play the roles of the Little Prince and the Rose, in much a similar way that Blake and Yang both interchangeably are the Beauty and the Beast (Blake's surname means beautiful woman, and she likes to read like Belle, but she is also the Beast who wishes to redeem themselves, and is a literal Beast as a faunus "black the beast descends from shadows". Yang is introduced as the "yellow beauty burns gold" and wishes for a life of adventure like Belle, but she is also the Beast, being left by their Beauty and having a fiery temper).

This is in part theorising/speculation, as V9 obvious main allusion is Alice in Wonderland, and the similarities I see maybe coincidental, since both stories deal with similiar themes. Both stories have a child that travels to strange lands to meet characters that represent the misgivings and absurdity of adult society and the pressure to conform to these as you grow up, and the confusion as to who you are and should be that follows.

Alice's journey to adulthood is a path that takes her from a confused child changing size and unaware of her true identity to an assertive girl scolding the immaturity of the Mad Hatter and ends with Alice being brave and confident enough to confront the Queen of Hearts.

The Little Prince's story is about the importance of reconnecting with your inner child as an adult/someone growing up.

"No! I will grow up, but I'll never forget about being a child!"

In V9, Ruby must grow into an adult like Alice does, but also reconnect with her inner child as she does so like in the Little Prince.

RWBY is known for its multilayered literary allusions, and Oscar, the Little Prince, does introduce us to the story The Girl Who Fell Through the World in V8, which is Remnant's version of Alice in Wonderland. Not to mention Ruby and Oscar's arcs are intentionally foiled, so maybe it's not coincidence. It's entirely possible with how V9 also appears to be following the story of the Little Prince too. While Ruby is in the Ever After she travels through the different acres like the planets the Little Prince visits, meeting similar characters.

She is confronted with the question "what are you" on an existential level:

Little: What's wrong?

Ruby: Have you seen other people- humans- like me?

Little: Exactly like you?

Ruby: No, not exactly like me. We're similar, but different.

The Little Prince:

"Good morning" he said courteously.

"Good morning--Good morning--Good morning," answered the echo.

"Who are you?" said the little prince.

"Who are you-- Who are you-- Who are you?" answered the echo.

"Be my friends. I am all alone."

"I am all alone-- all alone--- all alone" answered the echo.

She meets Little (as in "Little Prince" as well as "Little Red Riding Hood" and "Alice Liddell") who is meant to symbolize Ruby's inner child, as the Little Prince reminds us of the inner child we have forgotten as we grow up. Both Ruby and Little "die" in a sense as the Little Prince does, but ascend and come back.

In fact the whole way ascension is described in the Ever After is on par with how the Little Prince and the Snake describe how they will leave their body as an empty shell behind to go back home, being "called back" home to the Tree.

"It'll look as if I'm dead and that won't be true, this body is simply an empty shell, I can't take it with me"

Purple Paper Pleaser: Then, the wisest of our village suggested breaking from our physical forms, so that the winds may carry us back to the Tree.

...Which leads me to how the Curious Cat and Neo are both the Snake who convince Ruby/the Little Prince to "die".

We get Cats and Snakes being linked together early on in the first episode of v9:

Mouse Leader: You have our sincerest apologies! Please understand that our kind is a bit skeptical of cats… and snakes… and cats.

This stuck out to me considering this is foreshadowing of the Curious Cat being the main antagonist of the volume, but we don't ever see any snakes in the Ever After.

The Curious Cat's first appearance is akin to the one of the snake in the Little Prince movie (2015) of two eyes peering out at the Prince

The Snake is a character who speaks in constant riddles and is confident they have all the answers to life's mysteries, similar to how the CC knows so much but is incredibly cryptic in how they speak. The snake is also meant to represent the inevitability of death, and part of the CC purpose is to help the inhabitants of Ever After to ascend, which is a process of death and rebirth.

Curious Cat: Mmmm, when we break or wear out or simply finish what we were made to do, we’re called back. But Herb… his heart was too weak to listen, so I gave him a little bit of mine.

Blake: Is he… dead?

Curious Cat: (chuckles) No, no! Well, maybe a little bit, but not at all.

When it comes to Neo being the Snake, she manifests her illusions of the Jabberwalker to terrorise RWBYJ after killing it, the one being capable of dealing permanent death to Ever Afterans.

She's also the one who offers their "poison" to the Little Prince, (the tea made from the leaves of the Tree) which they accept.

Additionally the way the Curious Cat enters Neo is like that of a snake slithering inside her. Once the snake bites someone, they are described as becoming an "empty shell", and the CC is looking for an empty human vessel to possess, while Neo wants to destroy Ruby and make her feel empty.

Curious Cat: You’ve lost something most important, haven’t you? And now you have nothing left. How delightful! An empty host, perfect for me to fill.

Neo-Torchwick: You don't deserve to die Red! You deserve to be broken down... torn apart... wiped from existence.

And when the Little Prince believes their Rose has perished (Penny) or will perish (Oscar), because of them, they give themselves over to the Snake completely.

But, Neo and the CC also play into the Fox allusion as well. The Curious Cat's ability to give his heart and understand others is similar to the Fox's sentiment in the book, who tells the Little Prince the importance of taming, and of looking with the heart:

"Now here is my secret. It is very simple. It is only with one's heart that one can see rightly. What is essential, is invisible to the eye."

"Men have forgotten this basic truth. But you must not forget it. For what you have tamed, you become responsible forever. You are responsible for your rose..."

Curious Cat: I know, Your Majesty, it truly isn’t fair. You must play your game and win at any cost. It must hurt your heart. Let me help.

Curious Cat: But Herb... his heart was too weak to listen, so I gave him a little bit of mine.

He "tames" the Red Prince in managing to calm him down from executing RWBY to just exiling them.

He helps Herb to "see with the heart" when he becomes blind to how he has stagnated and forgotten his purpose in being overwhelmed by his work.

The Fox is meant to show us the importance of the patience and compassion that is needed to understand and connect with others, to reach out to them. This is part of the CC purpose in the Ever After in fixing those who are broken, but becomes the negative declination of this in becoming manipulative over time. (like him "taming" the Hawker to make him do his bidding)

Neo is like the Fox in that she dislikes hunters (huntsman and huntresses) and she has lost the person who has tamed her, who was "unique to her in all the world" with Torchwick. Part of what escalates Ruby's conflict with her is that she does not take the time to understand and empathize with her:

Ruby: Is that seriously what this is all about? You still blame me for what happened to Torchwick?!

Neo-Roman growls

Ruby: If you’re looking for an apology, you’ve wasted your time!

and much like the Fox points out here:

"One only understands the things that one tames... Men have no more time to understand anything"

And that it is only when Ruby takes the time to understand Neo towards the end that shows how she has started to grow, to understand the importance of looking with the heart, the very first step of "taming".

"You must be very patient. First you will sit down at a distance from me-like that- in the grass. I shall look at you out of the corner of my eye and say nothing. Words are the source of misunderstanding"

(...I believe this will continue on in Remnant with Mercury and later Cinder)

The idea of intertwined allusions of the Fox and Snake with the CC and Neo in V9 interests me. Because it makes me wonder if my theory/prediction on Emerald/Mercury both being the Fox to Oscar's Little Prince may not be entirely right, but that they will both be the Snake also. If they are it will likely be an inversion, with the Prince (Oscar, and maybe Ruby) helping the Fox (Emerald) realise the importance of "taming" (taming Mercury, specifically) while the Snake may play a more positive role in saving instead of killing.

After all, the baobab tree roots in the book are meant to consume and threaten to kill the rose if she is neglected too long, and while Ruby is consumed by the Tree in the Ever After that very much resembles the baobab, and she does "die" in a sense, the tree is a positive force that helps her to be reborn and grow into her true self. So, Emerald/Mercury could have a similar duality in alluding to the Fox and the Snake, capable of killing and saving the Little Prince.

@aspoonofsugar I think has mentioned Emerald's design resembling a snake puts me in mind of this, plus Mercury's main allusion being, well, the god Mercury, whose symbol is this:

A staff with wings and two snakes entwined around it. His emblem also features wings, and like a snake he technically has no legs (in a symbolic sense too, his lack of semblance and agency, the freedom to be his own person) Alchemically I believe the mercurial character is meant to shift between life and death also? So there is something there in how the Snake simultaneously saves and kills the Little Prince. (also this is me really really stretching here with my red string but. The Curious Cat. Like Mer-curius. Mercury. Both the Snake for Ruby and Oscar.)

Depending on your interpretation of the stories ending, the Little Prince ends up dead because of the Snake's bite, or the Snake genuinely helped him return home and be reunited with his Rose. Mercury/Hermes is said to be able to travel anywhere, any plane of existence without limitations, which has lead to theories of Mercury's semblance being flight or teleportation, which, well, in relation to the Snake aiding the Little Prince:

"I can carry you farther than any ship could take you," said the snake. He twined himself around the little prince's ankle, like a golden bracelet. "Whomever I touch, I send back to the earth from whence he came," the snake spoke again. "But you are innocent and true, and you come from a star . . ."

This is of course just me going off on another theory for funsies, but it would be interesting if Mercury was placed in between a choice of killing or saving the Little Prince and helping reunite him with his Rose. How Emerald and Mercury would save Oscar/help him and Ruby is unknowable. They could be save their life, help delay the merge, or just helping assure him of his own personhood and agency (this could be explored through how both Mercury and Oscar lack semblances relating to the "curses" placed on them in relation to their father figures), or something else entirely, but either way I'm pretty confident they'll have a significant role to play in the Vacuo arc.

I am aware most Rosegarden fans are mainly theorizing Tyrian as the Snake, (I've even seen some say Ruby is the Snake as well as the Rose, with a similar sentiment of the Snake being capable of saving/freeing the Little Prince, not killing him) especially since the first scene Oscar is introduced is him waking up from a nightmare following Tyrian being sent to capture Ruby Rose, as well as like, him being a venomous scorpion faunus present in the desert right now. But even that only makes me more certain in a way since Tyrian is meant to be Mercury's dark foil (and the antagonistic mercurius for Emerald/Mercury) accompanying him into the desert. So like, it Could Be Both.

Ruby also meets a King/Narcissist like in the Little Prince (the Red Prince). The Narcissist demands to be complimented and coddled, much like the Red Prince. The King is drawn wearing a crown too big for him (in the 2015 movie adaptation it is constantly crooked and threatening to slip off his head), similar to the Red Prince.

The King claims absolute authority, that what he says will happen if he orders it so. However this is untrue, as he will only order what will already happen. The Red Prince claims he always wins his games, but the board game he plays with RWBY is already in his favour as the pieces on their side throw the battle so he can claim victory. Both cheat and find loopholes in order to maintain their superiority over others. The King symbolizes rulers who make a big deal about the power they have, but who in actuality are pretty ineffective as rulers and will cheat and find loopholes to justify their power. It also mocks their grandiosity and showiness, which is kind of funny because they think they are way more important than they actually are, all of which fit with the Red Prince (...and with two other characters that were significant during the Atlas Arc *points at Ironwood and Cinder* even moreso after episode 3 of RWBY Beyond)

The Lamplighter, whose job on his tiny planet is to continuously light and snuff out the single lamp, but because the night and day cycle is so short he essentially never rests and is caught in this loop, always stuck working and nothing ever changing. Jaune as the Rusted Knight is stuck doing the same jobs everyday in a Sysiphus task of preventing the Paper Pleasers from ascending, and rests very little. He is also the Geographer, who maps out other planets but can never travel himself (because he is too busy drawing maps) and suggests to the Little Prince to visit Earth (the acres that Jaune maps out but has yet to properly explore because he can't leave the Paper Pleasers, is trying to find a way back to Remnant, their "Earth").

Another interpretation is the Lamplighter as the Caterpillar, who similarly has a neverending and thankless task of helping the Afterans ascend, and has stagnated as a result.

The Stars are not a character in the book perse, but they do come up a lot both in RWBY and in the Little Prince, especially when it comes to the theme of death and rebirth, and grief. In V9 in the Ever After we meet the Paper Pleasers (origami stars) that Jaune is desperately trying to stop from ascending, essentially keeping them trapped as he monitors them. There is a character in the Little Prince that obsessively monitors the stars and keeps them trapped, the Businessman. It is pointed out by the Little Prince that while the stars make him rich, the Businessman is of no real use to the stars.

In much the same way the Paper Pleasers do not need Jaune as much as he needs them to prove his own worth.

The climax of the Little Prince movie (2015) adaptation is the stars being freed from their entrapment, ascending into the sky, free from control, by the protagonist who is a young girl trying to break free of the expectations placed on her by adults as she grows up, is like one of the stars herself, rising into the sky.

The paper pleasers ascending, while initially seen as tragic, in actual fact allows them to grow and be more, and the Genial Gem that appears to once have been the Paper Pleaser called Ruby is the one who explains this process to WBYJ as they are worried about Ruby and how the process of ascension will affect her.

The Pilot is likely WBY, as for them Ruby is like a younger sibling to all of them who helps them reconnect with their inner child early on in the story, much like the Little Prince does for the Pilot. For Weiss, Ruby helps her connect with her inner warmth and heart. For Blake, she helps reignite her lost idealism. For Yang, she is her inner child to nuture, the one who lost her mother. The author Antoine Saint-Expury based the character of the Little Prince on his own younger brother who died, and that the Pilot as the narrator of the story is himself as an older sibling remembering and grieving for them. When WBY all watch Ruby drink the tea, it mirrors the scene where the Pilot watches the Little Prince give himself to the Snake, and is too late to intervene, particularly for Yang.

Their body disappears, and it is uncertain whether the Little Prince has died or found their way back home to their planet, and to their Rose. For Ruby, it is both. She dies and was reborn, literally reclaiming Crescent Rose and regaining her Rose emblem, she reunites with her Rose, her own sense of self. And in her ascension is able to come back to defeat the Curious Cat, and return home to Remnant with everyone. (coincidentally I think this is how Oscar's story will go, he will sacrifice himself to the Merge fully and "die" in a sense, momentarily, but return fully to himself later on, reuniting with both his sense of self and his Rose, Ruby Rose).

Oscar is also Ruby's Rose in a sense, someone she has tried to protect and care for. Even the pattern on the back of his outfit can be seen as the stem and thorns of a rose, like Ruby's hood can be seen as the petals of a rose. The Little Prince believes that if the Rose is left alone, then it will be his fault if they die:

“If some one loves a flower, of which just one single blossom grows in all the millions and millions of stars, it is enough to make him happy just to look at the stars. He can say to himself, 'Somewhere, my flower is there...' But if the sheep eats the flower, in one moment all his stars will be darkened... And you think that is not important!"

"He could not say anything more. His words were choked by sobbing."

When Ruby cuts down an illusion of Oscar, killing him, it is foreshadowing that Ruby is afraid she will not be able to save Oscar from his fate. This is the final breaking point for her (along with Little's death) that leads to her drinking the tea.

...But as much as I am a Rosegarden shipper, it's actually her mother Summer Rose and Ruby's identity that is the main "Rose" to her Little Prince in V9 that she becomes separated and united with, imo.

She learns that their Rose (Summer, and themselves) are not uniquely one of a kind, but "like any other common rose" the same as all the other hunters represented through their weapons in the Tree with the blacksmith. Like the Little Prince in the Rosegarden:

"Good morning" said the roses.

The little prince gazed at them. They all looked like his flower. "Who are you?" he demanded, thunderstruck.

"We are roses" the roses said.

And he was overcome with sadness. His flower had told him that she was the only one of her kind in the whole universe. And here were five thousand of them, all alike, in one single garden! ... Then he went on with his reflections: "I thought that I was rich, with a flower that was unique in all the world, and all I had was a common rose."

Not in the sense of being a SEW who believes they are the only one of their kind, but that like her mother Summer Rose, or any other huntress or huntsman that has lived (represented through the weapons she looks at, and her saying they all have the same weight to them) she is not perfect, or unique in always knowing the right thing to do and being a flawless shining hero. Ruby thought the ideal of the hero Summer Rose she carried and tried to emulate was unique and special, what made her "rich" in the sense it defined her self worth, but she was a "common rose", a person, a human being, just like Ruby. Being like any other common rose means Summer is much like Ruby herself, just a person trying their best, with their own flaws and burdens to carry. Ruby leaves the Rose behind initially (gives up her Rose emblem that Summer left her, rejects Crescent Rose) and the pedestal she puts her on shatters, becoming disillusioned with Summer like the Little Prince does with his Rose, specifically after finding out that they lied.

Ruby: What? What was that? She… She lied. She left with Raven. Why would she…?

Blacksmith: Who knows why people keep the secrets they do. Maybe you’re not the only one who has felt the weight of other’s expectations. Like Alyx, like your mother.

What makes Summer unique to Ruby is not her being an ideal hero, but the love she had for her as a mother, and that in of itself is incredibly beautiful and powerful, because it helps her realise and affirm her self worth.

Summer: (voice) I love you…

Ruby turns to see the red glowing light behind her.

Summer: (voice) Just the way you are.

"Of course I love you," the rose said to him. "If you were not aware of it, it was my fault"

Much like the Little Prince learning and understanding that his Rose is unique to him, not because she is one of a kind, but because of their time shared together, loving and caring for one another. That it is our ties to people that makes us special and unique in the world, to the people we are connected to and choose to care for, more than any power or titles do. Which goes back to the source of Ruby's power as a Silver Eyed Warrior, her love and compassion of those around her. The true power of humanity.

[asm5129]

Long shot theory time—

Scenario: Summer and Raven track down Salem’s hideout. They go to do reconnaissance, see if they can find some sort of weakness before they call in the cavalry. Salem catches them. Summer ends up falling into a Grimm pool. Raven is scarred forever.

Summer now lives as a recluse, similar to what Salem was doing when Oz found her the very first time

she disappeared because she knew that no one would ever accept her as part Grimm, maybe even has to fight against some Grimm instincts

So now she’s like Salem except she didn’t spend as long totally isolated

Creating a really interesting mirror for Salem and definitely a reason for her to be intrigued by Summer

But now, with everything at stake and seeing her daughters message, she finds the courage to come to vacuo

And thus she is the mystery woman in Beyond episode 1 that Neptune and Sun glimpse

And yes I know hiding Summer’s return from Yang and especially Ruby is something that Oz and especially Qrow are dedicated to not doing anymore, but I think Summer being both ALIVE after all this time AND Grimm-y would be enough of a shock and scare that they would at the very least want to be very very sure in how they present it to the girls

So I could see them keeping it quiet for a bit

But that’s just a theory. A RWBY Theory! Thanks for reading.

[fadedneonzzz]

I’ve been thinking for a while about one of RWBY’s most complicated characters: Raven Branwen. Ever since it was revealed that the original plan for the V9 finale was to have Raven teleport RWBY + Jaune to the capital of Vacuo I wondered what brought Raven back into the fold. As we see in this clip from RWBY: Beyond, Raven was in a secret meeting with Oscar, Theodore, Winter, and the mysterious character who we don’t know the identity of.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with this, in fact I expected Raven to return to the story sooner or later. But if I were anyone in the story, especially Yang, I’d be skeptical about Raven. I’m not sure how I feel about her just waltzing back in like nothing happened. I know we’d all like to forget V5, but the last time we saw her she was willing to put her brother, daughter, and everyone with them in danger just to cover her plan to take the relic. A plan she easily gave up on the moment Yang told her Salem would be hunting her down forever until she got said relic.

I know a lot of people love Raven, but I would’ve liked to have seen what inspired her change of heart. If it was Ruby’s message to the world, then that begs the question: why didn’t she intervene earlier? Was it the disappearance or presumed death of her daughter that brought it on?

As I said earlier, I can see some lasting animosity between Yang and Raven. And rightfully so. Or maybe it’s just me, but I find it hard to believe Raven was just readily accepted back by the good guys so quickly.

[short-wooloo]

What a twist it would be if Cinder actually manages to collect all 4 of the Maiden powers

Like, that's not something you usually expect, the villain rarely if ever "collects em all" in fiction, usually they get all save one or only briefly has all the macguffins before the heroes pull a last minute win

That is the usual way these things play out, and RWBY loves going against the expected

Furthermore, I feel that based on the rule of three format, Cinder will get the Summer Maiden's power as she has already failed twice to claim the powers of the other Maidens, and once she has 2, it will be all the easier for her to take what's left from Raven and Winter

(To clarify, I'm not saying Winter and Raven will die, we already know there are ways of transferring the powers without death)

Which leads us to the final question:

What happens when Cinder has all the maiden power? What will she become, what will she do?

Cinder is defined by always wanting more power, so what does she do once she's the most powerful non immortal character?

[deadbeatbirdmom]

Personally I don’t expect team rwby to solve all bigotry, but I’d like to see them make any sort of attempt to at least begin to change something? Even relatively small scale?

The SDC seemed like the perfect opportunity but nope,

And maybe don’t kill,of characters like sienna and have characters like Robyn hill who are actively trying to combat class inequality get competed into fighting Salem instead

Movies like nimona manage it I don’t see why rwby can’t

This is the last time I'll be answering an ask to do with these issues in RWBY. I don't feel that there's a satisfactory answer, and certainly not one that I can provide. I've mentioned something along those lines before, but I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt that you're not the same anon and didn't see my posted answer.

I recently reblogged a post about these issues, but that doesn't mean my answer has changed. That post basically said there is no simple fix, and that means it isn't possible to do in RWBY, unless it was a fictional fix that wouldn't work in reality, which would be disrespectful.

I'm not sure what you expect four teenagers to be able to do, even small scale. They're good at fighting Grimm, but that doesn't mean anyone's going to pay attention to them about anything else.

Ruby's lucky at least some people listened to her broadcast about Salem, but that's connected with Grimm.

Weiss was the SDC heiress but ended up having that taken away before she could do anything good with it, and actually doing anything would have had to wait until her father was no longer in control.

Blake persuaded Menagerie's faunus to form a militia and help save Haven from Adam's corrupted White Fang, but that took a serendipitous attack on her parents and their house partly burning down. She can't command that militia to do anything else.

Yang would struggle to persuade anyone to do anything. The last time Remnant at large saw her was during the Vytal tournament broadcast, apparently breaking Mercury's leg unprovoked. The CCT is still down, so chances are most people have no idea she was set up. I dunno, maybe she could intimidate some sense into people?

I'm not sure when team RWBY would have had time to do anything while in Atlas. Ironwood kept them busy. Were they supposed to take down or reform the SDC with the one night off they had? If they'd tried they might well have found themselves arrested, the SDC and its Dust is rather important to the Atlas military. And then where would they be with their goal of getting the second Relic from the Atlas vault?

As for after things fell apart with Ironwood... As important as these issues are, avoiding arrest and doing their part to help get word out about Salem, or helping Mantle and then rescuing Oscar had priority.

It's not the reason they've done it, they just happened to fall in love, but I guess it could be argued that Blake and Yang's romance is some sort of proof that faunus and humans are equal.

After Salem is eventually somehow defeated, I can imagine at least Blake working with or even leading the reformed White Fang and campaigning for faunus rights. I'm sure the rest of her team would help her if there's anything they can do.

But survival against Salem has to come first. So a huntress like Robyn Hill doesn't really have any choice. There won't be any world to improve if Salem isn't stopped.

As for Sienna, take that up with Adam. I'd much rather she hadn't been killed off too, but there was no other way that was going to end between them.

That's the best I can do, anon. I'm well aware it's not a great answer. I can't provide one. I don't think there is one.

I haven't seen Nimona, I don't have a Netflix subscription. Maybe I'll watch it the next time I want to rewatch She-Ra. I've read the Nimona graphic novel years ago, but I don't remember bigotry being solved in there. Unless you meant an attempt being made? I need to reread it.

Edit: this got long and I forgot about a read more cut until now. Apologies!

[dreanner95]

Maybe it is unlikely but with me actually believing in the Glynda is the Relic of Choice Spectre, I actually think she is the one who opened a gateway to the Ever After. Port did say she was looking for help. Obviously if that was the case it needs to be explained why she is now able to open a gateway but couldn't before to save RWBY+J.

[sunnysunsins]

Random rwby thought time 4876874:

When Raven was pregnant with Yang... what exactly happened to her shapeshifting?

Option 1: She just couldn't shapeshift anymore until she gave birth

Option 2: She could shapeshift, but only to a certain time. After Yang got to a certain size (only several weeks in tbh), Raven went "okay, nope, that would kill me, she's bigger than my entire bird body."

Option 3: Egg.

[st-whalefall]

Mountain king sneak peak

[bumblebyfan]

One of the things I look forward to the most in RWBY's next volume: the reunions with everyone, but SPECIALLY Ruby and Qrow, Qrow looked scared and hurt as hell when he couldn't contact them, and honestly, it may go quite similar to Qrow's first appearance with Ruby on the show, which I would find a cute and awesome call back Qrow Branwen and Ruby Rose (RWBY Volume 3) - YouTube Q: "Ruby!" R: "Uncle Qrow!" *They both hug, then Ruby smiles at him* R: "Did you miss me?" Q: *smirk like on that scene, but this time obviously holding back tears, maybe even his voice breaking a bit* heh, nope (note, he definitely did, also, he's the one holding on to Ruby in the hug this time)

[moondrop04]

This is my personal preference/opinion and a head-canon I would really like to see in volume 10, but I would really like to see each member of team RWBY to individually receive training from the other 3 maidens, in preparation to fight against Cinder and ultimately Salem.

Team RWBY are amazing as a team, but with their past experiences and losses against a certain maiden, and “magic” in general, I feel now is a good time for them to learn on how to better handle against “magic” users.

And with potentially Winter, Spring and Summer being in the same place, there in no better opportunity to learn about “magic” then right now….

So to begin with the most obvious pairing….

Weiss and Winter:

One reason I would like to see these two train together is that it could play into Winter’s fear of losing Weiss again. She would want her sister to be ready for anything and practices with Weiss relentlessly. Weiss would more then love to have Winter train her, but it could possibly lead to uncomfortable tension between the two as Winter pushes Weiss more and more.

This could inevitably lead to Whitley, Willow, and Klein cutting between the two sisters and have the whole Schnee family go into probably their first heart to heart conversation with each other, since the fall of Atlas, and begin building the new foundations of the Schnee family moving forward.

Now for the next pairings, be prepared, I’m throwing curve balls at you….

Blake and Yang, with the Summer Maiden:

Now for this pairing I have to give a little a context. I am under the same camp of people who theorized that each maiden has a “connection” to each member of team RWBY.

Ruby - Cinder (enemies)

Weiss - Winter (sisters)

Yang - Raven (mother/daughter)

If we follow this train of thought then it would be easy to assume that the Summer Maiden might have a “connection” with Blake. I’m imagining that whoever the Summer maiden is that they could have a much better working relationship with Blake, compared to the other girls.

Now for the reasons I included Yang together with Blake are actually fairly simple…..except for one.

Yang is actually one of the most fairly easiest people to get along with. If the Summer Maiden is who I think it is then they would no doubt love to train together with Yang, along side with Blake.

After the official Union of “Bumblebee” in volume 9 and after how much their teamwork has synced near perfectly, it’s almost impossible to see them apart now.

The Summer Maiden would no doubt train them individually of coarse, and both Blake and Yang could give each other pointers on how to get better at a certain topic that one another is lacking on.

Now I said there was one other reason that Yang would be training with Summer Maiden, and that is because of her mother Raven. Obviously the two have a discomforting relationship with each other, so before things could start mending between the two of them I can imagine they would keep their distance from each other for most of their time in Vacuo.

Now for the last pairing you are definitely going to be asking yourself “Why?”…..

Ruby and Raven:

To me……I believe that after what Ruby had experienced back in the Ever-After, she will begin to experience a “change” within herself to have a strong desire to be better, and to be stronger then what she currently is. A desire to better focus on the aspects of herself that she feels that need to be approved upon, without the burdens of responsibilities weighing down upon her.

I imagine Raven would see this “desire” building up within Ruby and oddly feel reminiscent to how she felt back in her younger days, and find a particular kinship with her former partner’s daughter, and agree to train Ruby.

Not only that but I can also imagine Ruby would feel immense pent up aggression, in regards challenging against Cinder, and Raven would be a fitting teacher for Ruby.

Raven has several years of training as maiden and would no doubt know certain “tricks” to utilize against another maiden. She also has first hand experienced fighting against Cinder and actually won between the two.

Another reason why Raven and Ruby would be together is because of their connection with Summer Rose. There is obviously something building up to happen between the two, after what was discovered in Volume 9, so it seems fitting that putting these two together is a must definite story-wise.

I obviously know that something like this may not actually happen when we finally get into Volume 10 and Vacuo (#GREENLIGHTVOLUME10), but I would find it amazing to have training arc like this to happen for team RWBY, especially for future battles to come.

What do y’all think? Would you be interested in seeing a joint training session between the maidens and team RWBY in Volume 10???

[misstrashchan]

I know people have picked up on the board game scene in RWBY V2 Episode 2 (Welcome to Beacon) as foreshadowing the events of the show, but for funsies I want to take a stab at how it foreshadows the general arcs of each four kingdoms myself.

So we have Blake playing as the Kingdom of Vale, and she's completely unaware of the events of the game unfolding and not really paying attention, clearly distracted.

"Alright Blake, it's your turn!"

"Huh? Sorry, what am I doing?"

"You're playing as Vale, trying to conquer the four kingdoms of Remnant!"

"...Right."

The Vale arc is the first three volumes of RWBY, where all our protagonists are at Beacon, but during that time, much like Blake during the game, they're unaware of the larger conflict with Salem, and aren't actively participating in the war at that point. They are ignorant and reactive instead of active. However it's ironic that Blake plays as Vale, since the reason she's not paying attention to the game and seems distracted is because, out of all the main characters in the Vale arc, she is the one most concerned about being kept in the dark and that they're ignorant as to what's really going on.

Blake: I just, I don't understand how everyone can be so calm.

Ruby: (approaching Blake) You're still thinking about Torchwick?

Blake: Torchwick, the White Fang, all of it! Something big is happening and no one is doing anything about it!

She also leaves the game during her turn, much like how she runs away after the FoB and the end of the Vale arc.

"Right. Well, I think I'm done playing, actually"

Yang is playing as Mistral, and she's the most savvy and knowledgeable (hah) player, winning many rounds of the game, teaching Weiss how to play, and has the other players falling into her trap cards.

"Heh, pretty sneaky sis, but you just activated my trap card!"

There's two ways this can be interpreted, with how the Mistral arc (volumes 4-6) is when our protagonists start to gather more knowledge and awarenesses of themselves and the world. It's also in Mistral that our heroes have their most decisive victory so far. It's fitting to have Yang playing as Mistral then, since during the Mistral arc she's the one who who learns from Tai to fight smarter, and to question the authority figures around her from Raven, and after confronting her in the vault is the one who retrives the relic of knowledge.

But, most of the losses our heroes experience are because of Cinder, who is from Mistral, and them falling into her own "trap cards" with the Fall of Beacon being orchestrated by her, killing Pyrrha and Ozpin. And in Atlas the same, with her manipulating Ironwood, undermining the heroes plans to evacuate everyone from Atlas, and killing Penny. She often finds ways to trick and exploit others, and is most dangerous when overlooked and underestimated, like falling into a trap.

Which brings me to Ruby playing as Atlas, where Ruby and Yang have this exchange after Yang's trap card is activated by Ruby:

"Giant Nevermore! If I roll a seven or higher, fatal feathers will slice your fleet in two!

"But! If you roll lower a six or lower, the Nevermore will turn on your own forces!"

"That's just a chance I'm willing to take"

In the Atlas arc (volumes 7-9) the theme of trust and taking risks is very prevalent. Like the move Yang makes in the game it is a risky one, that could end badly for her, but it is one worth taking nonetheless. They take the risk of trusting Ironwood but he ends up turning on our heroes. Oscar takes a risk trusting Hazel and Ozpin, as well as Emerald later on being accepted into their group, and it ends up working out for them. Ruby takes a risky chance in sending a message out to all of Remnant and evacuating Atlas, which saves a lot of people, but they still lose some, including Penny, a dear friend of Ruby's.

"Noooooo! My fearless soldiers!"

"Eh, most of them were probably androids anyways"

"Goodbye my friends... you will be avenged!"

Ruby acts distraught when losing her turn in the game as Atlas, expressing anguish over losing her friends who are described as androids by Yang, just like how Ruby is incredibly depressed and broken after the Fall of Atlas in V9, mourning the loss of Penny, who was both a sentient android and Ruby's friend. (I do wonder if Ruby's comment on avenging her friends might be foreshadowing for her wanting to avenge Penny's death in the future, like how Jaune tried to 1v1 Cinder in V5 to avenge Pyrrha, but I think it's too soon to say)

As a sidenote the fact it is a Nevemore in this turn that has a chance of turning on Yang or helping her is interesting, as it puts me in mind of two characters who can turn into ravens/crows, like the bird and poem Nevermore is associated with. It could pertain to Raven, someone who turns on Yang in v5 during the battle of Haven, but appears to help her and her friends in the V9 epilogue. It could also be about Qrow and his semblance, since during the Atlas arc it begins to evolve so that it is not simply a bad luck semblance, but one that can generate good luck too. In other words he can affect whether the chances are in people's favour or not.

After defeating Ruby (Atlas) Yang says this:

Yang: Not until I draw my rewards! Which are double this round thanks to the Mistral Trade Route!

Ruby: Bah!

Yang: Oh, and what's this? The Smugglers of Wind Path?

Ruby: Bah! Bah, I say!

Yang: I say, it looks like I'm taking two cards in my hand!

After the Fall of Atlas Cinder retrives not one but two relics for Salem, and with Atlas falling into Mantle, two kingdoms are destroyed in one fell swoop.

Then it's Weiss's turn. Weiss is playing as Vacuo, but has no idea how to play the game. Yang takes it upon herself to teach Weiss how to play and what she can do to win the game:

Yang: Well, Weiss, it's your turn.

Weiss: I have... absolutely no idea what's going on.

Yang: (Yang slides up beside her and puts her hand on her shoulder.) Look, it's easy! You're playing as Vacuo which means that all Vacuo-based cards come with a bonus.

Weiss: That sounds dumb.

Yang: See, you've got Sandstorm, Desert Scavenge... Oh, oh! (She pulls up a card to show Weiss.) Resourceful Raider! See, now you can take Ruby's discarded Air Fleet—

Ruby: (crying) Nooo!

Yang: —and put it in your hand!

We know from the end of V9 that what remains of the airfleet of Atlas, as well as the airfleet of Mistral and Vale, have all flocked to Vacuo's defence. What remains of the kingdom of Atlas, the airfleet, but most importantly the people, have now fled to Vacuo and are trying to make a home there.

Yang continues to give Weiss advice on how to win the game to Weiss, building her up, until Weiss starts to get arrogant, believing she's going to win the whole game and is the one in control:

Yang: And since Vacuo warriors have an endurance against Natural-based hazards, you can use Sandstorm to disable my ground forces and simultaneously infiltrate my kingdom! (Yang points a finger at Weiss.) Just know that I will not forget this declaration of war.

Weiss: And that means...

Ruby: You're just three moves away from conquering Remnant!

But then Yang turns on Weiss, activating her trap card, and Vacuo loses.

Since this is may be foreshadowing for the Vacuo arc that we haven't seen yet, I can only speculate what this might mean.

...But judging from the V9 extended epilogue and the books, my best guess would be that if Yang/Mistral is meant to be in part Cinder/Salem and their forces, then Weiss as Vacuo is in part the Crown. In the extended epilogue Jax and Gillian appear to be recieving help from Tyrian and Mercury, meaning Salem has decided to recruit them to her cause.

The Crown wants to restore the Vacuoan monarchy and detest outsiders, especially Atlesians. They do however wish to protect Vacuo from the same forces that destroyed Beacon, aka Salem, and so they are likely going to be manipulated like Weiss is by Yang in the game, being offered aid and giving them advice on how they can win and achieve their objectives, making them believe they can "conquer Remnant", only for them to realise later they were being tricked and used.

"Once again, Vacuo had been isolated from the conflict raging throughout Remnant—only this time it was an opportunity. With the global CCT network disabled, Vale in ruin, Haven leaderless, and Atlas closed off, Vacuo was theirs for the taking. This was likely their last, best chance for a generation. And it was their only hope to defend Vacuo against whomever had been targeting the other kingdoms. In likelihood they had written off Vacuo, like everyone else did, but if they tried to move against the Crown, they would have an unpleasant surprise.

Vacuo wouldn't break this time around."

Weiss: (Weiss stands and a thunder clap accompanies Weiss' overjoyed psychotic laughter.) Y-yes! Fear the almighty power of my forces! Cower as they pillage your homes and weep as they take your children from your very arms!

Yang: Trap card... (Yang's arm appears holding the card.)

Weiss: Huh?

Yang: (Yang shuffles the pieces on the board, Weiss' pieces disappearing in a puff of smoke.) Your armies have been destroyed.

Weiss: (Weiss slumps in her chair, cries and whines.) I hate this game of emotions we play!

Weiss as Vacuo may lose to Yang after realising they've been tricked, but is offered comfort afterwards by Ruby who relates to her losses and empathises with her, which is interesting since Ruby plays as Atlas. So I'm predicting at the end of the Vacuo arc they'll experience somewhat of a loss, whether that's the Crown, our heroes, or likely both, but Atlas will give support to Vacuo and the two kingdoms will come together to heal and ultimately work together, making steps to overcome their tense history with one another.

"Stay strong Weiss we'll make it through this together!"

"Shut up, don't touch me! "

...Which does make Weiss specifically playing as Vacuo especially intriguing, as she is the SDC heiress from Atlas, and Vacuo is a kingdom that has suffered the most in being exploited and colonized for it's natural resources by Atlas. From the epilogue it seems like the Schnees are being confronted directly with all the harm that has been caused by their family and kingdom, so I wouldn't be surprised if Weiss recieves a certain amount of focus during the Vacuo arc in deciding what her legacy as an Atlesian and heiress to the Schnee name will be. Moving forward to make amends, maybe inspiring the citizens of Atlas/Mantle to come together with Vacuo so they can all help and support one another, instead of isolating themselves and suffering alone.

Jaune offers to plays Weiss's hand for a turn also, with Weiss refusing:

Jaune: (Begging with both hands folded together.) Come on, let me play your hand for a turn!

Weiss: I'm not trusting you with the good citizens of Vacuo!

Which is reminiscent of how Vacuo is mistrustful of outsiders, as we've seen in After the Fall and Before the Dawn books.

Yang follows up to say that Weiss attacked her own forces, which could reference the infighting in Vacuo, especially with the Crown.

Weiss: Besides, this game requires a certain level of tactical cunning that I seriously doubt that you possess.

Yang: Uhh, you attacked your own naval fleet two turns ago. (Weiss makes an annoyed sound.)

Overall Weiss as Vacuo recieves the most help as any player during their turn, being taught how to play by Yang, offered comfort by Ruby after losing, and Jaune wanting to help her by playing her hand for a turn. This seems to fit with both how all kingdoms have flocked to Vacuo's aid in response to Ruby's message, but also Weiss as a character, who starts out "the loneliest of them all" but gradually opens up and warms up to other people. The crux of her arc being looking outside herself and at the people around her, relating to their struggles and coming to support them and being supported by them leads to her better understanding herself and becoming stronger for it... Which is kind of what the Kingdom of Vacuo needs to learn too!

Following this is Blake's turn as Vale, which I covered at the start of this post, but that's not the end of Vale's turn. We don't actually see it, but we know the aftermath of the game is this:

Yang: Ugh, we should have never let him play!

Ruby: You're just mad cuz' the new guy beat you!

Blake leaves the game during her turn as Vale, and presumably the "new guy" which is likely Neptune, who they'd just been introduced too, takes over her hand as Vale and wins the game of Remnant overall, even beating Yang and her trap cards. This is likely the endgame of RWBY itself, our heroes return to Vale after the Vacuo arc during the last volume for the final stand, where they win.

How and what that victory will look like I don't know, as we don't see the last turn of the game, so yet again this is even more vaguer speculation. Neptune doesn't really have much plot significance so I can't think there's any meaning to that except that he's a minor foil to Jaune, and the line of it being "a new guy" that wins, so maybe someone who recently joins our heroes side in the final act of the story, possibly Mercury or Cinder.

[miki-13]

for the rwby ask thing, and I’m curious to what you think;

Do you think that Mercury’s gonna get a redemption arc like Emerald did? It’s hinted with how he left in v8 that he’s having second thoughts, but he’s also been the more ride-or-die with Cinder and Salem of the two (not to mention he wasn’t, you know, coerced and blackmailed into working for Cinder like my man volunteered for this). I’ve seen a lot of different takes on how his story will end and I’ve always like your rwby takes so… what do you think?

@thatringboy

Absolutely.

But how it happens and what he gets from it will be different from Emerald's redemption arc because he has different needs from her.

For Emerald, she needed to realize the "love and care" she got beside Cinder wasn't what she needed. After that, all that kept her there was the fear of Salem, which she overcame. And Mercury was instrumental in that.

She needed honest and open care/love (which she got from Hazel in him protecting her, and which she is now getting from RWBYJNPR).

But for Mercury, it's not so easy.

It's as Tyrian said: he grew up in an abusive and violent household and only switched to another abusive and violent enviorment under Cinder.

It's all he knows and like all humans, is afraid of what he doesn't know and chooses an uncomfortable but familiar routine over trying something unknown.

He feels like all he can do is BE someone who hurts others because it's all he knows.

But I have a feeling that exposure to Tyrian will show Mercury exactly what he DOESN'T want to be. And that Emerald will absolutely return the favor in helping Mercury Heel-Face Turn as he did with her.

But that's all I'm sure of before seeing what Vacuo will have in store for everyone.

The land of the Relic of Destruction.

The land that was rendered a desert by colonization and resource exploitation.

The land of imperialists and their own enemies independent of Salem.

And who knows? Maybe we'll get backstory that we never expected from Emerald and/or Mercury.

But I do know for certain that Mercury will Heel-Face Turn.

@strqyr thank for the inspiration for this <3

[misstrashchan]

I'm afraid I can't take credit for either theory, though I can't actually recall who/where I first saw the theories pop up. I do have some thoughts to add to this though if that's okay.

In light of volume 9 and the epilogue, I have been leaning more towards the time related semblance though more than the astral projection one.

The astral projection semblance theory is mainly based on the ties to Oscar's allusion to the Little Prince, of seperating himself from his body to go back home, and how unlocking such a semblance might help Oscar free himself from the effects of the merge and to remain his own person. However, during V9 I realised how much the whole way ascension is described in the Ever After is on par with this idea already, how the Little Prince and the Snake describe how they will leave their body as an empty shell behind to go back home, even if it looks like they've died.

"I can carry you farther than any ship could take you," said the snake. He twined himself around the little prince's ankle, like a golden bracelet. "Whomever I touch, I send back to the earth from whence he came," the snake spoke again. "But you are innocent and true, and you come from a star . . ."

"It'll look as if I'm dead and that won't be true, this body is simply an empty shell, I can't take it with me"

Curious Cat: Mmmm, when we break or wear out or simply finish what we were made to do, we’re called back. But Herb… his heart was too weak to listen, so I gave him a little bit of mine.

Blake: Is he… dead?

Curious Cat: (chuckles) No, no! Well, maybe a little bit, but not at all

Purple Paper Pleaser: Then, the wisest of our village suggested breaking from our physical forms, so that the winds may carry us back to the Tree.

Coupled with the fact that ascension is meant to help you you leave the old shell of self behind to grow into the you that you want to be is pretty much... what Oscar says he wants in V8:

"I started to feel like... me. Not the same me I was before all of this but, the me I always wanted to be."

Blake: This is them, isn’t it? They’re back.

Weiss: It’s just like they said. They came back from the Tree, better.

Yang: No flood or fire will ever hurt them again.

Jaune: I’m trying so hard to save them... I stopped them from becoming what they needed to be.

Alyx: Maybe it’s time for a change, to be the kind of man you always wanted to be.

...Which initially I thought was foiling between Ruby and Oscar, one not wanting to be themselves anymore given the choice of being anyone, the other struggling to be the person they want to be when being forced to merge with someone else. Which it still is, but after the end of RWBY Beyond Ep 3 where Somewhat sees someone they recognise emerging from a portal that suddenly appears (that looks like the ones that Ambrosious created/the one that connected Remnant to the Ever After) in an episode that also happens to be narrated by Ruby herself... I have to wonder.

And of course it could just be Ruby deciding to visit her friend way in the future after the events of the show, but given that all the other RWBY Beyond episodes foreshadow/set up what's to come next, with the Summer maiden, Oscar struggling with the merge, Jaune dealing with the aftermath of being the Rusted Knight, Ruby being seen as "the girl who sent the message", Yang assuring Ruby they won't let her carry her burdens alone, Tai's absence, etc. I can't help but think whatever the reason for their return is it has to be related to the plot. And taking Oscar to the Ever After tree in an attempt to save him is the best reason I can think of why they'd go back so soon. (... I'm not sure the Tree/Blacksmith would be capable of stopping the merge altogether and would more so assure that Oscar still remains himself after the merge happens, and helps him to accept it)

This is also just another theory lmao but if it happened then I'd see less of a reason for Oscar's semblance to be astral projection if that were the case.

Another reason of why I'm leaning towards the time semblance more is that in the V9 epilogue, Oscar is emphasising himself and the world feeling like they "never have enough time" and in V6 saying he wanted to make the most of the time he had left, which given how little both he and the world seem to have would make it all the more precious.

If we wanted to see how it could tie into his allusion to the Little Prince, there's this sentiment:

When it comes to the importance of Taming, it is about the time one has spent on the people they care about that make them unique and special more than any powers or titles do. The idea of Oscar making use of "time" and spending it to help those he cares about as a semblance would be fitting imo.

Additionally while I agree and love how all semblances tend to be tied to character's allusions, when it comes to the main cast I feel like their semblances are connected to their love interests also:

- In V4 we see Ren awaken his semblance and goes to help calm down Nora so they can hide from the Nevermore

- In V5 Jaune awakens his semblance to heal/resurrect Weiss after she is impaled by Cinder

- While Blake and Yang's semblances are already active when they meet, they are also complimentary to one another as Shadow and Light.

... So when it comes to why and what Oscar activates his semblance to do will likely relate to him trying to help Ruby. This is me just speculating but I'm personally fond of Oscar awakening a time semblance that can either stop/slow/rewind time, in order to give Ruby more time to use her Silver Eyes when she struggles to do so (we still haven't seen her use them since Penny died, so... I'm kind of expecting her to still struggle with using them when she's still overcoming her grief/loss *glances at potential second Nevermore Wedding*), so she can take the time to slow down (in contrast to her speedy semblance) to let herself feel what she's feeling to use her Silver Eyes. Idk tho, it maybe too similar to Ruby using the relic in V6 for the same purpose, but it's a theory I like all the same.

as a final final addition (and then I'll stop rambling) is how a time related semblance could potentially fit in with Oscar's sun symbolism too, because. Sundials. Can be used to tell the time. But the name implies you could turn time like a dial for you to control (kind of like gears).

Any thoughts on what Oscar’s semblance will end up being? Since Oscar’s magic has come from Ozma and is more in line with “destruction” as a contrast to Ruby’s eyes which are tied to “creation”, I’ve often thought that it would make sense for Oscar’s semblance, as a means of self-affirmation to be something that also represents creation/preservation, which would make him more like Ruby and also find his own sense of who he is as a person. After all, if Oscar/Ozma are supposed to achieve a balance by the end then he should possess elements of both, no?

That said, the most common headcanon/theory I see for Oscar’s semblance has been for him to create barriers for defense… but not only can he already do that with Ozpin’s magic, I feel as though Jaune is actually the character who is more set up to have a defensive evolution for his semblance. There was the flash of light in V1 and his “it’s like a forcefield!” line, Vine’s comment about extending his aura, the shield grenades he used in V8, and just his general tendency to leap in front of people using his shield or body to protect people.

So, to me, this would be a bit of an odd choice for Oscar’s semblance and just make the existing overlap between Jaune and Oscar’s progression as characters more confused. Do you think I have the right idea with the theming of Oscar’s semblance? Or do you think it’ll come from a different place altogether?

Hi!

It is very difficult to say, cause there could really be many things that fit Oscar.

I agree about both Ruby and Oscar ending up having elements of both creation and destruction, as they are two philosophical children.

When it comes to Oscar's semblance, I think it will be worth the wait, since:

It will appear toward the end and there won't be time to slowly develop it, like Blake, Weiss or Ruby's

Ruby kind of told us so tbh, as she said when Oscar gets a semblance "everyone will be jealous" ;)

I think most semblances tie with the characters' allusions too:

Ruby is super fast cause she is Little Red Riding Hood, so she rides

Weiss's glyphs allude to the Snow Queen fairy tail, but progressively become more Snowhite-like (her summons are characters in Snow-White)

Blake's shadow is symbolic of the beast, as in jungian terms the shadow is also called inner beast

Yang's power has her become too hot, with her hair catching fire, like Goldilock

Jaune gives his aura (his spirit) to others to heal them (he makes miracles), which ties with his Jeanne d'Arc allusion (I agree with the fact he will become a barrier warrior to an extent btw)

And so on...

So, tbh the majority of ideas for Oscar's semblance seem to tie into this theme:

Some theory think his power will tie with time, as time is a recurring motif for him and Ozpin

Other theories (I think this one is @misstrashchan ) instead think he will get the ability to make an astral projection of himself, in a tie in to the Little Prince (the little prince dies, so he leaves his body behind). This could also be used to separate his own soul from Ozpin's

These are my two preferred theories, but again it is impossible to say for sure. I don't think there is much foreshadowing as to what Oscar's semblance will be, differently from Jaune's.

Thank you for the ask!

[deadbeatbirdmom]

Your opinions of the disturction of vale, where tai is, and the return of the team

The destruction of Vale makes a lot of sense, even if I didn't see it coming. I feel like I really should have. It fits. Salem flexing after the destruction of Atlas, and maybe experimenting with her shiny new Relic, or letting Cinder play with it. Ambrosius can't destroy, but he can create things that do, like the extra fires that killed Watts. Ambrosius is probably very bored and wants to see someone new.

Up until I heard Vale was destroyed I thought Tai would still be on Patch. He does have a job to do, and it's pretty important to keep training more huntsmen and huntresses. There wouldn't be nearly as many students at the remaining academies without the combat schools training them up first.

But with Vale destroyed and the proximity to Patch? I don't think Signal would be safe for long. And it would be Tai's duty to protect his students. I think he'd either die fighting to protect them, or he'd get as many students evacuated as he could. That would mean he's either in Vacuo, or fled with them elsewhere. Mistral? Argus? Menagerie? The last is more likely if he has at least some faunus students and wanted to get as far away from Salem as possible. The ocean and a good chunk of the continent of Anima are between Vale and Menagerie:

It's also possible Raven gave him the means to get out before he would have died. Bandit Tai? That would be an incredibly weird side hustle for him. But I don't think he'd sink to that.

Tai would also want to get Zwei from home if he wasn't at Signal with him.

Raven: "I don't have a bond with your dog. You'll have to find your own way back."

Meanwhile Zwei is quite capable of taking care of himself. Volume 2 certainly implies he can use a can opener, and he's got Aura. He'll be fine even if he's not with Tai.

On the return of the team: I do love what we got. I just can't help but wish we had more. I really wanted to see Raven reunited with Yang. Maybe I'll get that from RWBY Beyond. I'd also like to see the reunion of the Schneeblings. And Willow and Klein with them of course.

[gltzgghln]

faunus spec bio brainstormin

[sunnysunsins]

Random rwby thought 5836583702

So unless i'm tripping, it was confirmed that Tai and Raven were married. So, when she left, did they get a divorce or???? Is she technically still his wife? Does then his marriage to Summer count as polygamy or does Raven running off nullify it? Just something to ponder