SXD: Incident that’s Impossible to Ignore (Patreon)

The Emerald Forest hummed with eerie silence. The air still shimmered faintly with leftover energy from Dust blasts and Aura clashes, the black carcasses of dissolving Grimm drifted through the sunlight. The smell of scorched bark and iron hung heavy, a reminder of just how close the last wave had gotten.

Weiss stood among her team, chest heaving, Myrtenaster pointed toward the ground. Around her, Ruby, Yang, and Blake were catching their breath as well, panting, bruised, but victorious.

“Well,” Ruby said, wiping sweat from her brow and giving a small, satisfied grin. “I think that’s enough for today.” Her voice came out in little gasps, and Weiss didn’t blame her. The fight had been long, ten Beowolves, a Nevermore, and 2 of what might have been the biggest Ursa she had ever seen.

Meanwhile, a few feet away, Issei Hyoudou stretched his arms over his head like they’d just finished a light jog instead of a full-on Grimm extermination. His grin was easy, relaxed. Not a scratch on him.

“That was easy,” He said, his voice far too casual for someone surrounded by fading piles of monsters.

Yang scoffed, hands on her hips. “Yeah, for you maybe. Honestly, are you even human?”

He blinked, lowering his arms with an almost sheepish look. “Uhhh...I don’t know.”

Ruby, still catching her breath, frowned. “Wait—what do you mean you don’t know?”

He shrugged. “Amnesia, remember?”

Yang rolled her eyes, while Weiss rubbed her temple.

Before anyone could reply, Blake’s ears twitched. The calm that had begun to settle over the clearing suddenly snapped taut again. Her golden eyes widened.

“Guys,” she said sharply, hand drifting toward her weapon. “Something’s coming.”

Weiss turned her head, scanning the trees. “What now?”

The rustle came from above.

Before anyone could react, a shadow passed over them fast. Weiss’s instincts screamed, but she barely had time to look up before a massive claw seized her around the waist.

The air was ripped from her lungs as she was yanked skyward.

“WEISS!” Ruby’s voice echoed through the trees, panicked and high-pitched.

Yang was already sprinting after them, Ember Celica flaring with heat. “Hang on!”

Blake’s whip-like weapon snapped outward as if to grab the creature, but it was already too far.

Weiss struggled against the Griffin’s talons, heart hammering in her chest. The claws dug into her dress, the wind roaring past her ears. Her Glyphs sparked in the air beneath her, but she couldn’t stabilize long enough to use them.

Below, the others raced through the forest or tried to. Ruby activated her semblance, rose petals scattering as she prepared to burst forward.

And then Issei moved.

His expression, usually carefree, full of dumb jokes and confidence was gone. In its place was something Weiss had seen only once before: pure, blazing anger.

“Issei—?!” Ruby barely got the word out before it happened.

There was a sound, a deep, tearing crack, like the air itself splitting as massive red wings burst from Issei’s back.

They unfurled wide, red and leathery, their span large enough to cast a shadow over the group of girls. The membrane caught the sunlight and the girls froze mid-motion.

Yang’s jaw dropped. “What the—”

Ruby stumbled to a stop. “He… he has wings?!”

Blake, for once, was speechless. Her bow fluttered slightly as her hidden cat ears twitched in disbelief. “That’s… not human.”

But Issei didn’t hear them. His entire focus was on the monster that took Weiss.

Weiss’s scream echoed faintly from above.

His wings beat once, powerful enough to throw up a gust that scattered leaves and nearly knocked Ruby off her feet and in the next heartbeat, he was airborne.

He soared upward in a blur of red, the wind howling past as he cut through the clouds. The Griffin screeched as he closed in.

Weiss’s eyes widened as a flash of red light approached her through the moonlit air. “I-Issei?!”

The Griffin twisted mid-flight, shrieking, its wings buffeting hard, but it was too late. Issei caught up easily.

He slammed his fist into its flank with enough force to make the entire air vibrate. The Grimm’s roar turned into a pained screech as black ichor sprayed into the air.

The impact jolted its talons open and Weiss fell. 

“Got you!”

Issei dove after her, wings folding in close as he cut through the air. In an instant, his arms were around her, pulling her securely against his chest. The rush of wind whipped through her hair, and for a split second, Weiss forgot to breathe.

He’d caught her — again.

Then his eyes lifted up, furious, toward the wounded Grimm still flailing above them.

Weiss then felt the heat building before she saw it.

Issei exhaled and fire erupted from his mouth.

A torrent of flame engulfed the Griffin mid-screech, its body writhing before disintegrating completely, leaving only falling ash behind. The sky blazed for a brief, terrifying moment before the light faded.

The two descended slowly, Weiss still in his arms. She clutched his jacket, her heart pounding wildly against her ribs.

The forest greeted them with stunned silence.

When Issei landed, the ground trembled under the force of his weight. He carefully set Weiss down before retracting them. The leathery appendages shimmered and folded into nothingness, leaving only the faint glow of red energy fading along his back.

Team RWBY stood there, staring like they’d just watched something impossible happen before their eyes.

Processing…

Ruby’s mouth hung open. “Issei… you—you flew. You breathed fire!”

Yang blinked, utterly dumbfounded. “I… I don’t even have a joke for that.”

Blake’s tail swished under her bow, eyes narrowing in quiet awe. “That wasn’t Aura. Or Dust.”

Weiss, still trembling, tried to compose herself. She smoothed her hair with shaking fingers before looking up at him. Her lips parted, but words failed her.

Issei, for his part, looked almost… confused. His wings were gone, his eyes normal again, as if the display hadn’t even registered. “Weiss, are you okay?” He asked, voice gentle.

She blinked up at him, realizing only then how tightly her hands were still gripping his jacket. Slowly, she loosened her hold, exhaling shakily. “…I’m fine. Thanks to you.”

He smiled, relieved. “Good. You scared me there.”

“You—” She stopped, looked around at the stunned faces of her teammates, then back at him. “…You have wings.”

He tilted his head, scratching his cheek like he’d just been told his shoelaces were untied. “Yeah. Guess so.”

Yang finally found her voice. “Guess so?! Dude, you turned into a flying, fire-breathing dragon guy!”

Ruby’s eyes were still wide, but they softened when she looked at Weiss. “That was amazing… and kind of terrifying.”

Blake folded her arms, studying Issei carefully. “He really isn't normal.”

Weiss glanced at him again. His eyes were bright, warm and full of worry. Despite everything, despite the fear and confusion swirling inside her, all she could think about was that he had risked his life, once again, for her. Weiss opened her mouth but didn’t know what to say as she had so many questions. Finally, her lips curved into a faint, tired smile. “You really are full of surprises, Issei.”

Issei grinned, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, this is a really big one for me too.”

The others didn’t know what to say after that. The forest was silent except for the soft hum of fading embers and the rustle of leaves overhead.

Weiss reached out, brushing a bit of soot off his sleeve, her fingers lingering for a heartbeat longer than necessary. “…Thank you,” she said quietly.

He blinked, then smiled, softer this time. “Always.”

And as the night deepened over the Emerald Forest, Team RWBY stood in stunned awe while Weiss Schnee silently realized, once again, that her boyfriend was unlike anyone else in Remnant.