Since most of the JoJoxRWBY stories have been taking the JoJo cast and putting them through the RWBY universe or adding Stands to the RWBY universe, I decided to take a different approach. For some form of reference, my favorite JoJo parts are 4, 5, & 7. Those three parts are what helped shape my views and tastes in manga into what they are today. This will be my second story that isn't a sequel to HtH and I'm happy to try my hand at something different. For those of you from the RWBY fandom, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure has my highest possible recommendation to watch/read. For those of you in the JoJo fandom, RWBY is an okay web series from Roosterteeth, with a talented and very creative fanbase.
With all the formalities out of the way, let's start the show.
Beta Reader: Poliamida
A red SUV traveled down an empty highway. The sky was nearly empty, spare for a few clouds that failed to provide any cover from the morning sun. The back of the car was loaded with cardboard boxes and a few had been piled in the rear seats next to a girl who was currently asleep. The girl had short black hair with red tips and wore an eye mask as she slept. The occasional bump in the road would jostle her body, but she would just as quickly rest her head back on the pillow and return to her dreams. A man with short blonde hair in his forties was driving the car with care. Turning his head he saw his other daughter in the passenger seat staring out of the window.
"Are you sure this was a good idea, Dad?" The blond teenager in the passenger seat asked.
"I know you and Ruby aren't exactly thrilled about the move, but I think this will be good for everyone. A fresh start in a new city and an even better paying job for your old man." The driver said as he looked in his rear-view mirror to check up on his sleeping daughter.
"I get that. I'm just worried about Ruby. You know how she gets when she meets new people."
"This isn't ideal for any of us, but we have to make the best of it." He pulled a bottle of water from between his seat and began drinking it. "We just have to look on the bright side. A new school means new friends and new possibilities."
"Alright. It's going to be a pain trying to fit in, though. Everyone else has had three years to form their own circle of friends. I doubt I'll have any trouble fitting in since I'm me," Yang said confidently before casting her gaze towards her sister. "Ruby, on the other hand, is something else entirely."
"Ruby can also hear you two talking about her while she tries to get some sleep." Ruby pulled her eye mask off and glared at the two. "I'm not a kid anymore, Yang. I can take care of myself."
"You still crawl into my bed whenever you have a nightmare." Yang retorted, watching her little sister's face turn red.
"Both of you calm down. We're nearly in town and soon you'll get to check out the new house." Their father tried defusing the argument, seeing how worked up his daughters could get.
"Fine," Both sisters said in unison.
The rest of the ride was completed in silence as the two sisters stared out the window at the passing scenery. The houses seemed to be fairly spaced out with each on having a front and backyard. Driving over a hill, they were greeted with the sight of farmland in the distance and a few neighborhoods that made up the boundary between the two sections. They even had a forest that nearly came up to the neighborhoods and ran up the surrounding hills. The sight was something the sisters had never imagined being able to experience.
The car slowly drove down the hill and turned left into a suburb. The houses were all two stories in height and street lamps adorned every corner. Eventually, they came upon a house with a moving truck parked in front of it. The driver of the truck was standing outside his car and drinking from a flask. The man appeared to be in his forties with his spiky black hair beginning to show some signs of graying. Ruby nearly ran out of the car the moment it stopped and leaped at the drinking man.
"Uncle Qrow, what are you doing here?" Even with Ruby hanging off his arm, Qrow easily lifted her off the ground.
"Helping out your dad. Someone had to drive this thing across the country." Qrow tapped the truck with his fist. "Did you have a nice trip coming down?"
"Got plenty of sleep. Did you have any adventures since you last visited?"
"Sorry kiddo, but I haven't done anything crazy in a while. Give me another month or two and I'm sure something will pop up. Speaking of which, did you learn any new tricks while I was away?"
"Haven't had much time to practice since Dad gets angry when I play with her." Ruby sheepishly replied.
"Give it time, it's as much a part of you as your arms and legs. It just takes some practice to work out the little details."
"Qrow, get over here and help me unload the car." Ruby's dad yelled as Yang popped the back of the car open and started getting to work.
"No reason to blow a fuse, Taiyang. We have a long day ahead of us and I rather not start off on the wrong foot."
"Alright, Qrow. Now let's get unpacking. We only have this truck for another day so everything has to come out of it before tomorrow night." Taiyang pressed a button and opened the garage revealing a nearly pristine empty space. Sitting in the corner of the garage was a bright yellow sports bike.
Yang immediately set her box down and rushed over to the bike. She wrapped her arms over the bike in a hug. "I'm so glad you made it here safely."
"Should I be worried?" Qrow asked, seeing his niece begin to rub her cheek against the frame of the bike.
"Yang get likes that around Bumblebee. It's like how I get around some of my creations." Ruby said as she carried a box to the back of the garage and set it down against the wall. "Yang did make her with some help from dad."
"This entire side of the family is composed of gearheads. Never had the patience to learn that sort of stuff myself, but if you like it then it's at least something you enjoy." Qrow stacked his box on top of Ruby's.
"Come on Yang. You can give Bumblebee all the love she needs once we've finished offloading all these boxes." Taiyang said, causing Yang to sorrowfully part with her bike and get back to work.
They emptied out most of the SUV when Ruby pulled out a box revealing the small kennel behind it. The sudden increase in light shining through the front had awoken its occupant. Ruby heard the shuffling and went over to the kennel and poked her fingers through the door. It was met with a dog licking the appendage as Ruby laughed from the sensation. Ruby opened the door and a small corgi walked towards the rear of the car and jumped out of the back of the car. Seeing its owner, it ran towards Taiyang. The dog began running circles around its owner in an attempt to gain his attention. Taiyang knelt down and began petting the now energetic dog.
"Who's a good boy? Who's a good boy? That's right Zwei, it's you." He picked the dog up and began to spin him around.
"I think it's time for a break." Qrow reached over and grabbed the car keys from Taiyang's jacket. "I'll grab us some food from a nearby burger joint."
"Can I come along?" Ruby asked nearly leaping at the chance to see the town.
"Why not? You two going to be okay by yourselves?" Qrow turned around to see that his brother-in-law was already tossing a ball for the dog and Yang had gone back to her bike's side. "They'll be fine. Come on, Ruby."
Ruby opened the passenger door and stepped into the car while Qrow closed the back. It wasn't long before the car was slowly pulling out of the neighborhood and into the town. After they made it over the hill it became apparent that the rural town sat on the edge of a city. The towering buildings easily recognizable across the horizon as they passed over the freeway. It almost seemed like a miracle that something so quaint could exist so close to something so large and busy. Ruby was pulled from her thoughts when the car came to a stop outside fast-food joint called Keith's Burgers.
Stepping through the entrance they saw a single cashier minding the front and two people in the back chatting away with each other. The girl out front had dark red hair in a waist-length ponytail and green eyes. She smiled at them as they entered the empty venue. "Welcome to Keith's Burgers. How can I help you?"
"We'll have two chicken sand combos, the largest burger you have, and what do you want, Ruby?" Qrow moved to the side to let Ruby step forward.
"I'd like a four piece chicken strip, if that's okay?" Ruby shied away from the girl and back towards her uncle.
"That will be 27 dollars and 86 cents. Will this be for here or to go?" The cashier asked as Qrow handed her a fifty dollar bill.
"It's to go," Qrow answered.
"We'll call your number in a few minutes then." She handed a receipt over to Qrow with the digits 307 in bright red ink running across its top.
Qrow and Ruby turned around to take a seat when they heard someone behind the counter let out a cheer. Hearing the noise, Qrow turned his head to see the cashier don a sheepish smile before walking back to the kitchen. Two more girls were working the back. Both surprisingly had light red hair at roughly the same shoulder length, though one kept hers curled. Ignoring the commotion, Ruby and Qrow headed to a booth.
"So, how's your Crescent Rose project coming along?" Qrow asked, seeing Ruby perk up immediately from mentioning the subject.
"Ran into a bit of a roadblock when I tried miniaturizing it. I finally got her to launch spheres fast enough to shatter branches and crack tree trunks, but I can't exactly hold it in one hand now."
"I'm sure you'll figure something out. You always had a good head on your shoulders for things like that." Qrow brought a finger to his chin in contemplation. "Then you've given up on Thorned Rose?"
"I haven't given up on her, it's just that it doesn't have any real stopping power unless I cheat."
"Using your abilities isn't cheating, Ruby. It's just using a skill that's unique to you. The world is very unfair and you'll need every edge you can get to come out on top." Qrow could see the beginnings of shame cross Ruby's face for a moment.
"Can we avoid another discussion on our world views between what is clearly a pessimist and an optimist."
"Hey, I'm not a pessimist. I've just come to expect the worst in most situations, so I can respond appropriately. Gives me an edge in my line of work." Qrow proudly stated.
"It can't be- "
"Order 307," The cashier said.
"-that bad. We can talk about this on the ride back." Ruby got out of her seat and walked towards the front with her uncle.
Qrow walked up to the counter and picked up the two paper bags while brushing his hand against the girl's. The shadow of his hand flickering for a moment as they touched. Ruby frowned, but remained silent at the sight. "Sorry, about that. Come on Rubes, we need to get back before Yang decides to eat Zwei."
As they walked out of the restaurant Ruby punched her uncle in the arm. "What the heck was that about? She was nice and everything."
"I don't know what you're talking about."
"I saw it come out of your hand. You shouldn't do stuff like that to people who aren't jerks." Ruby argued with some anger clear in her voice.
"She'll be fine. She got a small dose and should be back to normal in under 5 minutes. The place was deserted anyway, so what's the harm?"
"You're the one who told me not to go showing it off."
"A little fun now and then never hurt anyone. Besides, I know how to keep it subtle. With enough practice, you'll be able to manipulate objects through your own hands without the glow, instead of drawing it out entirely."
"Fine, but if I come back and it turns out she was fired then you owe her. I don't mean one of your drunken apologies either. You'd need to actually help her."
"Alright, alright, if it comes to that I'll help her out. I doubt a high schooler like that would get fired for being a little out of whack for a moment." Qrow got in the car and tried to get the keys in the ignition, fumbling the metal in his fingers for a moment, as Ruby got in the passenger seat.
"Aren't you supposed to see the worst outcome for things like this?" Ruby pulled a chicken strip from one of the bags and began eating it.
"I see the worst when it comes to me, not others' problems. It's tough enough looking out for number one when I'm not looking out for everyone else." Qrow brought a hand up to his forehead to wipe off some the sweat.
Ruby rolled down her window to let a breeze pass through the car. "Are you okay, Uncle Qrow? You seem a bit pale."
"Just a little tired is all. I had a long drive and all that manual labor didn't help. It will pass once I get some food in me." Qrow turned his head to see Ruby staring out towards the highway.
The rest of the ride was quiet, save for the occasional wrinkling of paper as Ruby dove back into her bag for some more food. Pulling into the driveway, Ruby jumped out of the car and ran to the house with both bags in her hand. Opening the door revealed Her father and sister both resting their heads against the kitchen counter. Both looking exhausted as Zwei ran at Ruby to greet her. Ruby placed the bags on the counter and went to petting her dog as it flopped over on the cool tile. She barely got to rub Zwei's belly when the sound of paper being viciously torn apart filled the room. Looking up, Ruby saw her dad devouring one of the chicken sandwiches and her sister trying to bite into an oversized burger.
"Sweet, delicious meat, you've saved me once again from the precipice of death." Taiyang sang while taking another bite.
"This is so good." Yang managed to say after swallowing the first bite from her meal.
"I think we might just pull through this Yang. The heavens are shining upon us today and have granted us a feast after being abandoned."
"I was gone for 20 minutes at most!" Ruby shouted back at the two.
"Tai always did have a flare for the dramatic. Now, how about we all pull up a seat and enjoy our meal." Qrow pulled a cardboard box over and sat atop it.
"Fine," Ruby said in defeat as she grabbed another box to use as a seat.
Half of her meal was already eaten on the car ride over, but it helped that she tended to eat slower than the rest of her family. After a moment, Yang and Tai pulled up their own seats as everyone ate their meal. Yang's burger almost appeared comical due to its sheer size. The blonde teenager pressing on the top and bottom bun to try and make it a more manageable size. Ruby laughed at the sight along with Tai, as Yang managed to take another bite of her meal.
Everyone was enjoying their meal when the sun had begun to set over the mountains in the west. A soft glow was all that remained to light the darkness as Taiyang went out to lock up the cars and the garage. When Tai came back inside, he brought three sleeping bags and pillows. Walking into the living room he laid them on the carpet floor.
"Well, this has been fun," Qrow started, "but I have to go check in at my hotel. I'll see you guys in the morning and help you finish unpacking. If you're lucky I might even bring some breakfast."
"See you later, Uncle Qrow," Ruby shouted while waving goodbye.
Yang and Tai also waved goodbye as Qrow walked out the front door. The moment it was closed, Yang flopped over on the floor to join her dog on the cool tile. "Do we have anything to do for the next few hours?"
"Give me a minute to find the Television and I might be able to find the VHS player." Tai said walking towards the garage to sift through the boxes.
"Think Dad will find it?" Ruby asked rolling off of her box onto the floor.
"I doubt it, but as long as he finds the television we can blow a few hours on some games. I made sure to pack them in a labeled box so they should be easy to find." Yang replied with a smile as she got up to start going through the boxes with her father. While the rest of her family was away, Ruby reached into her pocket pulling out a 1-inch ball bearing. Taking it in hand she began tossing it up and catching it repeatedly. A soft glow encompassed her hand as she got ready to throw it again when Yang and her father came back in. The glow dissipated immediately as she stuffed the ball back in her pocket.
"Found the television," Tai said happily.
"And I found our consoles," Yang said with a grin. "Who's up for a game of Mario Party 3?"
Ruby leaped up and strode over to her sister before taking the box and plugging in the system. It was an easy process as Tai put the TV up against the wall and found a power outlet for it. With a flip of a switch, both devices turned on. Ruby happily sat on her sleeping bag as Yang leaned up against a wall. The three enjoyed their night, each with a controller in hand.
Sun seeped through the window and woke Ruby up from her slumber. Turning her head away from the source, Ruby found herself still wearing yesterday's clothes. Having fallen asleep in the restrictive confines during a match. Trying to move, she found something had wrapped itself around her in a crushing hug. Ruby began to struggle when she realized a blonde mass of hair was obscuring her view. Any movement seemed to only increase the pressure so she reached into her pocket and pulled out a ball bearing. A red glow began to burst from her hand for a moment. Tightening her grip on the ball, she watched as the glow subsided and the once steel ball turned a shade of crimson.
Ruby tucked the ball between her thumb and forefinger before launching it from her hand with a flick of her thumb. The ball launched out of her hand and struck the wall and ricocheted off in complete silence. Bouncing off the ceiling, it catapulted downwards to strike with a thump. The move had the intended effect as Yang let out a cry and brought her hand up to press against the forming lump.
"Did you hit me on the head?" Yang asked as Ruby rolled away from her sister and stood up.
"Of course not." Ruby used her foot to scratch the back of her leg. "I just dropped a steel bearing on your head."
"You do know I'm going to have a red mark on my forehead, right?"
"On the bright side, at least you aren't going out today," Ruby gave a light laugh to ease the building tension.
"That makes me feel so much better about all this. Man, that stung." Yang continued to rub her head to alleviate the pain. "Try not the do that next time or at least let me watch when you go for a trick shot."
"Pfft," Ruby sputtered her lips in shock, "What? I'd never do something like that. You know dad doesn't like it when I play around with my abilities."
"We both know you'd never stop trying to learn something because dad told you not to. So how'd you do it this time?"
"From my hand to the wall then dropped it from the ceiling atop your head." Ruby automatically replied with a hint of pride in her voice.
"Not you most creative one, but still pretty cool. Maybe we can try something in the woods later. Set up some cans and see how well you do with trees." Yang gained some pep at the thought of some bonding time.
"You know I'm not good with bark and stuff nature created. It makes the angles go all wonky since nothing is flat." Ruby complained. At least in civilization everything was smooth and angular, making it easy to predict the path of her spheres.
"How do you plan on getting any better unless you practice on your weak points. Why do you think I started taking leg day so seriously a year back? Got my butt handed to me by some girl who crescent-kicked me in the head. Now I can do all sorts of stuff besides boxing. You have to mix up your repertoire if you want to see something new." Yang brought her left leg up and raised her arms in a defensive stance. Her arms and legs had some definite tone to them thanks to all the work she put in.
"Maybe after we finish unpacking. I don't know about you, but I want to get our beds finished today. Nothing beats sleeping on your own mattress." Ruby said dreamily as she thought about how comfortable she would be tonight.
Yang pumped her arms at the success and went upstairs. The sound of running water could be heard while Ruby walked outside and saw her dad pulling things out of the moving truck. "Ruby, do you mind helping me haul some of these boxes in before Qrow gets here."
"Sure thing, Dad. Do you think we could reassemble our bed before tonight? It'd be nice to have an actual bed to sleep in for the night."
"Shouldn't be a problem." Taiyang brought a box from the back of the truck and handed it off to Ruby.
Qrow showed up after about an hour had gone by. All the boxes had been offloaded and all that remained were the items that couldn't be boxed. Items like the fridge, freezer, beds, chairs, tables, and furniture in general were all that remained. Ruby had even started sorting the boxes into categories depending on whether they would come inside the house or stay in the garage.
"I brought breakfast for anyone whose interested." Qrow said, walking up to the two as Yang ran out the front door.
"Sounds great," Yang said with a grin as she grabbed one of the bags.
"Come on. We better head in before she eats everything." Tai told Ruby.
"You're probably right." Ruby walked towards the front door.
Going inside they saw Yang standing at the counter and eating one of the egg sandwiches. Ruby walked up and grabbed one of the other sandwiches and pulled up a nearby box to sit on. It wasn't long before Qrow and Tai came in and started eating with the two sisters. By the time, they finished their meal it was already 9 and Ruby could already feel her arms aching from the inevitable work they'd have to put in today.
Luckily, a few well-placed pouts and cries could easily force some work off of her and towards Yang. It had been 8 hours of hard work when they got all the furniture out of the truck and into the house. Ruby was amazed at what a few chairs, tables, and couches really did to make the home appear more lively. Yang was collapsed on the couch in exhaustion, while Ruby sat in an armchair. Qrow had left to return the truck and head back to his home. Even their father had left to go to the grocery in hopes of making dinner. Yang was the first to move by popping her head up over the couch to look at Ruby.
"You still up for some target practice?" Yang asked.
"Sure. Just leave a note for dad so he doesn't flip when he comes back home." Ruby suggested, knowing how protective their father tended to be.
It wasn't long before Yang had donned her gloves, jacket, and pulled out a spare helmet for her sister. Ruby ran into the garage with a backpack and jacket on. She got on the back of the bike as Yang handed her a bright red helmet. Ruby gripped her seat as Yang gave a thumb up and started driving out of the driveway and onto the street.
The wind was whipping around them as Yang pulled onto the freeway. The sun was still beating down on them providing enough heat to help keep the wind from chilling them. Time flew by Ruby rested her head against Yang's back. Before Ruby knew what happened, Yang's bike had started to slow down.
"20 minutes on the freeway and 10 on the backroads. I honestly expected it to take us longer to get here." Yang's bike came to a stop on the dirt road. Bringing it close to the edge of the road, she hit the kickstand out and removed her helmet.
"Are you sure we're out far enough?"
"We'll be fine. Let's just get a little way away from the road to set up the targets." Yang pulled a few sodas cans out of her backpack and placed them on a few low hanging branches in the area.
While Yang began setting up the targets, Ruby reached into her backpack and pulled out a slingshot. The weapon was attached to an arm bracer with a magnetic strip running along both sides. 8 steel bearings were stuck to each strip for easy access to the ammunition. Ruby had a grin run across her face as she slipped the familiar weapon back on her left arm. Tightening the device, she gave a few quick swings of her arm to make sure it was secure.
Yang came back out of the brush and took Ruby by the arm to lead her to the targets. The bright red cans stuck out against their green background making it easy to see them as they approached the firing position. Ruby plucked a ball from her bracer and held it in her hand. After a moment, a red glow began to radiate from her right hand. Ruby loaded the red sphere into the pouch of the slingshot and looked around expectedly, but whatever she expected to happen failed.
"She didn't show up this time either?" Yang knew the look her sister was giving. Disappointment, regret, and sadness all rolled up in one.
"No, I've only seen her twice Yang. It makes me wonder if I'm ever going to get as good as Qrow. He can manifest his Stand whenever he wants and I can barely draw out mine's power. Makes me feel like I'm broken or something." Ruby was nearly in tears when Yang hugged her.
"You're not broken, Ruby. Qrow is old and has been doing this for god knows how long. Can you even imagine what he's had to do to get where he is?" Yang thought back to all the stories he told about tracking down other people like him and Ruby. "Do you still want to shoot some targets or do you want to go home?"
Ruby stepped back from Yang and used her own sleeve to wipe her eyes. "I'll shoot a few."
"That's the Ruby I know." Yang ruffled her sister's hair before leaning back against a tree to watch.
Ruby raised her left arm and drew the sling back with her right hand. Ruby leveled her weapon with the can in the distance for a moment before aiming at a nearby tree. Releasing her grip, the ball shot forward at blinding speeds towards the tree. The red blur bounded off the tree and the crimson coating vanished as it neared the can. Instead of a clang though, all that was heard was the bristling of leaves as the ball passed through some leaves.
Loading in another ball, Ruby fired at the tree. The shot went off course completely after the first ricochet. The ball being propelled into the forest and out of sight. Ruby continued firing shot after shot with each one deviating further and further from the intended target. Taking one last shot, Ruby released her sphere only for it to rebound and shoot back past her. Yang jumped up and rushed to Ruby fearing that her sister may have been hurt.
"Ruby, are you okay?" She asked concerned.
"Can we go home now?" Ruby weakly asked, refusing to look up to meet her sister's eyes.
"Sure thing. Just let me collect the cans and we can ride back." Yang went to work as her sister took off the arm bracer and stuffed it in her backpack.
Ruby was sitting on the bike with her helmet on when Yang walked onto the road. They were quiet as Yang put her helmet one and started the engine. Ruby wrapped her arms around her older sister. With a nod of confirmation, she brought her kickstand up and took off. The sun had begun to set and it would only be a few minutes before it dipped below the mountain.
While the opening is as bombastic as my other series, I felt this type of build up and tease made for a okay first chapter. When I was creating the outline for this story, the first thing I did was create about 18 stands. Felt appropriate to create a bank of Stands and figure out how fights could play out between them. I decided to take an old friends advice and gave every named character a background so they have a life outside of the story's happenings. I can't say the story writes itself, because it sure as hell doesn't, but some parts have become much easier to envision and get on paper. The next chapter should be up in 2 weeks on Sunday. Until then, I hope you have an enjoyable 14 days. Also, like my other stories, feel free to message me or ask something through the review. I tend to answer within 24 hours of receiving the message. Worst case scenario is that I don't get to it for 48 hours if I have a 14 hour work day, so feel free to ask away.