Full Summary: Thrown into the mysteries of Kingdom Hearts, Team RWBY is charged with becoming the next Keyblade wielders in the war against the Heartless and their corrupt masters. Together Team RWBY must test the bonds of their friendships as well as themselves, while they travel across worlds, desperate to save their missing friends and Remnant from being lost to the darkness of the Heartless.
Author's Notes: Hello, everyone! This is my first attempt at a RWBY or a Kingdom Hearts AU, so please let me know what you think. This work is cross posted on AO3 under the same name. While I do not have a regular update schedule, I shall do my best to update as much as possible. I might tweak the lore of the worlds of RWBY and Kingdom Hearts to best fit this story and the merging of worlds, but nothing too drastic will change that should affect your understanding or enjoyment of the work. So, when in doubt, just roll with it. This fic is canon compliant up to the end of Volume 2. Comments are always welcomed and much appreciated! Enjoy!
A Scattered Dream
"A scattered dream that's like a far-off memory. A far-off memory that's like a scattered dream. I want to line the pieces up - yours and mine."
- Sora from Kingdom hearts II
"I've been having these weird thoughts lately…"
Ruby was as weightless as she was eternal, drifting down into infant darkness with no end in sight. Why she was drifting further into the depths of the sea, she did not know. And yet Ruby felt at peace as she closed her eyes, drifting further away from the light. She released a breath she had forgotten she had been holding, only for her silver eyes to flash open blinding her and the world around her.
It took several seconds for the light to die down enough for Ruby to see again, the strain from her eyes and from strenuous use of her Aura was enough to make the young Huntress hesitate as the scene that greeted her was that of the shoreline of one of the beeches found around the island of Patch. Scanning the horizon against the setting sun, Ruby gasped as a flash of white broke the dark blue of the crashing waves.
Weiss stood in the shallows of the cove, as the water and gentle breeze from the ocean flowed around her. Her stark white dress and ivory hair danced in the wind as the Heiress titled her head towards her partner, a rare smile gracing her lips.
"Like is any of this real…"
Ruby shook her head in confusion, never remembering having taken Weiss to visit her childhood home in Patch. But as she continued to stare at her partner in uncertainty, the water around her feet receded as a large tidal wave appeared behind her partner, looming ever closer as it gained strength from the pull of the rushing tide. Ruby called out to Weiss, but the white haired beauty ignored her plea. Her ice-blue eyes seemed to sparkle in the light of the setting sun as Weiss turned to reach out with a delicate hand for the red-cloaked Huntress. Ruby ran towards her, but time around them seemed to slow to a crawl as the distance between the two girls shrank with each labored step. Ruby's fingertips grazed her partner's before the monstrous tidal wave crashed around them, pulling the younger girl away in a dizzying spin.
Righting herself in the water, Ruby grit her teeth as the salt water stung her eyes. She searched the water's depths desperately for the other girl, but she had nothing to fear. Weiss stood before her, seemingly unaffected by the water surrounding them as the Heiress continued to hold out her left hand in offering. Ruby ran in vain across the bottom of the ocean only to be pushed back by the swirling tide further into the water's depths and away from her smiling partner. Ruby's lungs screamed for release as she came to her senses and swam back to the surface. Ruby spluttered as she drew in deep gasps of air and shook her short choppy locks to rid them of the water.
Glancing around the shoreline for Weiss, Ruby was instead greeted by her cheerful sister waiting at the edge of the water. The tall older girl seemed to be laughing as she waved towards Ruby. A dark haired Faunus girl reached out with a tentative hand and placed in on the blonde's shoulder, making Yang smile down at the feline brunette before lilac eyes flickered back toward the younger Huntress stranded in the ocean's relentless waves.
Ruby smiled as she waved back at Yang and Blake before wading through the shallows, all of her attention now focused on her two teammates. Ruby leaned over and caught her breath before smiling up in greeting at her jovial sister and elusive partner. Before Ruby could speak, Blake's cat ears flickered forward as her amber eyes widened in shock as her attention was drawn to something behind her leader's head. Ruby turned around only to gasp in shock as streaks of light shot down across the fading sunlit-sky, the meteor shower blazing across the open heavens. The three young Huntresses gasped as one as a lone figure could be seen falling amongst the trails of light. Ruby narrowed her eyes as she took in the form of the person falling head first towards the open sea, only widening her eyes in shock upon realization that the lone figure was her.
"… Or not?"
Ruby was falling. The air whistling around her claimed her voice as she tried to shout for Yang and Blake, only to fall just out of reach. But instead of meeting the water below, she was falling in the sky. Day had become night, and as she flailed in the air, the shadows of the night consumed her on her inevitable journey into the unknown. Ruby twisted in the air in an attempt to control her fall as she tried to see what fate awaited her below, but she saw only darkness. Her crimson cloak and black combat skit flitted around her body in a dance against the wind as she rushed down into the unknown. She reached on her back for Crescent Rose, hoping to use the sniper function to slow her fall, as she had down countless times before in training over her last year and a half at Beacon, only to realize that her precious weapon was missing. In one last ditched effort, Ruby extended her hand before her into the sky, not know for who or what she reached for.
It was only then that her Huntress training kicked in. Using this sudden insight and her Semblance, Ruby spun into the air only to gasp down in horror as the sight of the vast ocean lay before her. Her senses took in the deceitfully beautiful sight before her; the ethereal glow of the broken fragments of Remnant's moon reflected off the sea of waves as black as ink, the color of the pools of Grimm she had read so much about. Her mouth tore open in a silent scream as her body fell into the cool embrace of the waves.
A rush of air bubbles clouded her vision as her body slowly righted itself in the water. Her silver eyes widened in awe as she realized her escape from death. The fractured moonlight gave her limbs an eerie glow as Ruby checked her body for harm, only to discover that she was untouched. Before she could truly marvel in her apparent immortality, pressure from the water around her dissolved as the darkness of the deep dissolved into shadows.
Looking around, the young Huntress took a tentative step forward, jumping back as light erupted from her footstep as the darkness under her transformed into a flock of black crows with beady red eyes that flew away in mass to reveal the surface of a glowing stained glass floor.
The colored glass mosaic lit up the area in its brilliance, so much so that it took several moments for Ruby's eyes to adjust to the light and take in the artfully crafted scene that lay before her feet. A pale woman with red-tipped hair in a snow white cloak leaned against a large weeping willow tree, its branches protecting the hunched form of the woman.
"Mom?"
Ruby's timid voice echoed around the dark abyss as Summer Rose lay before her feet captured in the colored glass, frozen in moment with her silver eyes glowing from the light below. A single wilting red rose rested between her slender fingers. Around Summer's bent head were circular stained glass panels depicting each of the other members of Team STRQ: Taiyang Xiao Long, Raven Branwen, and Qrow Branwen. Ruby's eyes lingered on the cracked panel with the depiction of Raven's smirk; the shattered colored glass made the woman's features almost indistinct. At the bottom of the stained glass panel near Summer's feet were four words that Ruby knew by heart as they had been the epitaph on her mother's tombstone.
"Thus Kindly, I Scatter… Such a bittersweet message, and yet the truth."
Ruby held back a scream as she scrambled backwards a few feet in shock as her attention was torn away from her mother's image by the disembodied voice that echoed around the empty chamber.
"What?! Who said that?" Ruby searched around the room frantically as she fell back into a fighting stance and instinctively reached for Crescent Rose only to find open air. "Who are you?"
The voice chuckled and as Ruby strained her ears she determined that the voice belonged to a young boy, not much older than she was. Before she could ask again the voice spoke again in a more soothing tone. "Soon Little Rose, I shall reunite you with your companions."
No sooner had the words been spoken then Yang appeared across the stained glass floor.
"Ruby?! Where are we? What's going on?" Yang's worried questions were cut off as Ruby used her semblance to race across the room and tackle her older sister, knocking the both of them to the ground in a heap of flailing limbs.
"Yang! I'm so glad you're here. I – I don't know what's going on." Ruby sprang to her feet and held out her hand, which Yang took gratefully to rise to her feet. The older girl brushed imaginary dust off her brown jacket and black compression shorts before noticing the glowing glass tiles below her feet. "Where are we? Have you seen Blake?"
"I'm right here. Although, now I'm not sure where here is…"
Ruby smiled as she heard the Faunus's drawling voice behind her. Yang quickly rushed over to her partner, taking notice of Blake's arms wrapped protectively over her midriff as she glanced around into the growing darkness. Although the girl was dressed in her usual Huntress combat outfit, Yang noticed with surprise that Blake's feline appendages were not covered by their usual bow, as the velvety soft ears flicked around on the top of her head amongst small tuffs of protruding hair. Yang smiled at the rare sight, but was saved from a reply as an articulate voice pierced the growing silence to their left.
"Ruby… Is that your mother?" Weiss stood off to the side, having appeared sometime during Blake's arrival only to walk over to the head of the woman depicted in the colored glass below, the soft light that emitted through the glass seemed to pulsate as the girls walked on its surface closer to the main image.
"Yeah, that's Summer Rose," Ruby took a deep breath as she looked at her namesake, noting the forlorn expression etched into the glass as the woman examined the wilting rose in her fingers. "Good ol' Mom."
Yang walked several paces to the right, just slightly behind Summer's head where the broken panels with the likeness of Raven lay shattered, yet the jagged pieces still left the floor intact. "Figures." The brawler scoffed at the panel as she toed the broken glass with her right boot.
Blake walked up to her partner and gently placed her hand into Yang's, giving the blonde a light squeeze. Yang's face softened as she glanced down at her partner. "I'm alright, Blake."
"I don't mean to be rude…" Weiss spoke, but she was cut off before she could continue by a snarky voice to her left.
"And yet here you are."
"Shut up, Blake." Weiss lifted her chin and crossed her arms in defiance. "Where the in Hell are we? And would someone mind telling me what we are doing here?"
"Ahh…" Ruby held up one finger before slowly lowering it. "I'm not sure… But he does!" Ruby smiled cheerily as she made a sweeping gesture with her left hand towards the darkness that surrounded them.
Weiss arched her left eyebrow, making the scar tissue appear white in the low-lit glow of the chamber, as the scar stretched taunt from the sarcastic movement. "Who's he, Ruby? It's just us here, you dolt."
Not a second had passed since the Heiress' biting remark then the young voice from earlier answered the young leader's call.
"Do not be afraid."
Which of course had the opposite effect on most of the members of Team RWBY. Not expecting a disembodied voice of a boy to answer their leader, the other girls jumped and crouched into their various battle stances only to find that they too were without their weapons.
"Him!" Ruby smiled as she pointed up in the air at nothing in particular.
Yang stepped forward, her lilac eyes narrowing in challenge as she stared into the dark abyss. "Who are you and why are we here?"
"I was the one chosen who came before you," The voice answered cryptically. "There is a war coming. One you all need to be prepared for properly. The Kingdom Hearts has chosen you, like it did countless others at the start of time."
"Well then… That answered none of my questions." Yang replied sarcastically as she popped a hip and crossed her arms, matching the Heiress' stance in annoyance.
Weiss sighed deeply as she pinched the bridge of her nose in frustration. "Well I for one would like to know where we are exactly."
"Patience, Weiss Schnee." The voice chastised, making the girls jump at the sudden intrusion.
"How do you know me?" Weiss took a step back, clearly upset at being named so freely.
"I know all of you: Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long… But how is not of your concern. You have been chosen for a very specific task, and should you chose to accept, the fate of the worlds depend on you.
"I'm sorry, did you say worlds, as in plural?" Blake asked incredulously.
"Yes. The worlds of this universe and the next are being consumed by darkness." The boy stated calmly.
"Darkness… Do you mean the Grimm?" Ruby asked, only feeling slightly ridiculous talking to someone that could not be seen, only heard.
"Not the Grimm exactly, although these creatures of darkness seem to have a similar purpose as your soulless Grimm."
Blake stepped forward so that she was standing shoulder-to-shoulder with her young leader. "I still don't understand. Why us and why come to us now?"
"You four have been chosen as the next wielders of light. You shall hold the keys to lock out the darkness and secure the light, bringing balance into the worlds once again. So I ask this of you all, young warriors, do you accept?"
Ruby looked around, catching the eyes of all of her teammates. "If we do this, we do this as a team. Together, and it sounds like there is no going back." Ruby sighed as she looked down onto the likeness of her mother. "But it looks like they need our help and it's our jobs as Huntresses to help all who need it." She looked up at her teammates with a determined glint to her striking silver eyes. "So I'm going to accept and I hope you will all join me."
Yang took a moment to think before stepping forward to lay her right arm across the shoulders of her younger sister. "If my baby sister wants to help, then you know I'm in." Yang used her other hand to rub her knuckles into the Ruby's red-tipped hair, messing up the already disheveled locks as the younger girl yelled in protest.
Blake smiled as she watched the two sisters play-fight, forgetting for a moment of the weight of the decision she was about to make. But as she stared at her friends before her, was there ever really a choice to have been made? "Fine. I'm in."
Yang let go of their leader to beam at her partner before punching the air in victory. "Yes! Bumbleby is in it for the fight." Ruby chuckled at their team attack nickname before nodded her thanks before turning to her own partner, noticing the Heiress' face as one of contemplation as she stared out onto the beautiful glass mosaic.
"Weiss…" Ruby started, but before she could pester her, the white haired Huntress simply shook her head before nodding towards her friend.
"Where you go – I go. You know that, Ruby."
"Thanks, Weiss." Ruby jumped the space between them and grabbed the petite girl, shaking her roughly as she yelled into her ear in excitement. "See! You are my BFF!"
"Not even close," Weiss snorted, but she couldn't keep a small smile from gracing her lips from her partner's antics.
"Have you made your decisions?" The voice asked, making Team RWBY all glance towards their leader, each nodding their consent.
Ruby smiled at them all in determination before giving her answer. "Yes, we have. We accept your proposal."
"Excellent. Now, come closer to the center of the mosaic."
The four girls walked towards the center of the circular floor, going so far as to stand in order out of habit. Each member had to hold back their shock as four different items materialized in the four cardinal points around them, each item shone in a soft spotlight while hovering on a carved stoned pedestal.
"Power sleeps within you. If you give it form…"
Team RWBY looked around in wonder and apprehension as each item seemed to call to them. Weiss watched Blake's feline ears flicker back and forth, and for a moment, Weiss wondered if the girl could actually hear the voices that seemed to whisper to them from around the room.
"It will give you strength… Choose wisely."
They said nothing, each girl taking in the strange sight before them, the soft, but insistent whispers heard by all four Huntresses as their gaze traveled over each item. It was Yang who finally broke the tense silence.
"What's with all the theatrics?" Yang asked as she moved closer to the pedestal with the floating sword.
"Choose wisely." The voice only repeated again.
Yang seemed to hesitate for second before she grasped the blue and grey crossed-leather grip. The blade, while simple in appearance with a golden cross guard with a simple black insignia in the pummel, was perfectly balanced, and with a quick feel of the edge with her left thumb, revealed the steel blade was razor sharp.
The moment Yang touched the leather grip of the blade, a hundred voices entered her head speaking the same three lines as if they were the one who had called to her.
The power of the warrior.
Invincible courage.
A sword of terrible destruction.
Yang glanced around at the rest of team and noticed by the looks on their faces that they had heard the same passage, although the brawler was sure that hers was the loudest retelling of the tale.
"Is this the power you seek?" The voice asked.
Yang adjusted her grip on the weapon, noticing how the handle perfectly fit her hand. Warmth traveled up her arm as she swung the blade in a few test swings. The sword felt as if it was made for her.
"Yes." Yang smiled as she accepted her choice. As soon as she chose the blade, the sword vanished with a flash of light, leaving only three other items before them. As soon as the weapon disappeared, Yang's eyes flashed red as she felt strength and adrenaline enter her body as if her Semblance had been charged by a wave of physical attacks.
"Yang! Now we don't get that choice." Weiss shifted her weight in annoyance as she shot the blonde a glare. The brawler blinked back her eyes until they returned to their normal lilac color. Once she had physically calmed down, Yang had the modesty to look sheepish before she shrugged.
"I'm sorry, Weiss. I don't know how to explain it, but I felt like it called to me." Yang shrugged again as she gestured to the now empty pedestal to in front of them.
"I – I think I understand, Yang." Blake spoke softly as she left the group to stand directly in front of a large kite-shaped shield. The field was black with a golden insignia that had matched the sword; one large black circle with two smaller ones protruding on either side of the top. To an untrained eye, they almost looked like ears, although Blake highly doubt that was why the red trimmed shield seem to call to her. The closer she stepped to the shield, the louder the whispers became until she fit her left arm into the attached red leather straps. As soon as she tightened the straps into place, the whispers of a hundred voices became as clear as if spoken by one.
The power of the guardian.
Kindness to aid friends.
A shield to repel all.
"Is this the power you seek?" The voice asked to the young Faunus.
Blake nodded her head and had to clear her throat before she answered, "Yes."
In a flash of light the shield was gone. Blake felt a fierce wave of protectiveness and courage overcome her, her hands tightening into fits at their newfound resolve.
Ruby and Weiss looked at each other before the younger girl gave an over-exaggerated bow towards the Heiress.
"After you, Princess." Ruby smirked as her partner rolled her eyes.
"A princess? How fitting…" The voice spoke catching the attention of the Huntresses.
"It's heiress actually." Weiss sniffed and raised her head high as she walked gracefully over to the last two options located behind the group and to their left. One held a staff and the other an old book.
'They say knowledge is power after all,' Weiss thought to herself as she looked over her options. 'Besides, I was always good at my studies. The book would be best for me in the long run. I have a better chance at learning more about this place with it.'
Nodding once to herself, Weiss made her way towards the book, but with every step she took towards the old tome, the whispers that she heard throughout the room seemed to fade. Weiss frowned before coming to a halt in front of the old book. She stood their unmoving for almost a minute, trying to will the book to call to her as the other items had done for her beloved teammates. But the book remained just that – an old book.
"Weiss… Is everything okay?"
Weiss had to bite back a laugh as heard Ruby's concerned voice. Of course, she would be visibly rejected in front of her most trusted friends… Some of her only friends, to be honest. She felt her fist tighten in response, but willed herself to keep on her mask of indifference as she turned away from the old book and walked slowly towards the staff.
"Yes, Ruby I'm fine." Weiss chanced a glance at her partner, but regretted her choice of actions right away as she could see that her partner did not believe what she had said.
Ruby's worrying only increasing as the Heiress put on a fake smile. One Ruby had only seen Weiss wear when she was hurting or uncomfortable. Before the young leader could call her partner out on this behavior, Weiss had already stepped before the floating staff.
It had appeared that Weiss was making the right choice as the voices in her head became so clear and loud, she was beginning to grind her teeth in annoyance. The staff's tip was the same circular design on the shield and sword, only a bright blue that matched her eyes. The staff's body was green with brown and gold highlights. There was nothing flashy about the weapon that stood out to the Heiress, nor did its length seem very practical for physical combat. But then again, most things are more then what they appear, so after a moment's hesitation, Weiss stretched out her left hand and pulled the staff from the pedestal. The polished wood under her fingertips seemed to radiate warmth as electrical currents ran down her hand and into her arm.
The power of the mystic.
Inner strength.
A staff of wonder and ruin.
"But… there's no such thing as magic." Weiss let out in a horse whisper as the magic staff seemed to pulsate in her hand as sparks of light traveled the length of the staff.
"Is this the power you seek?" The boy asked, his voice cutting through the murmured whispers that kept reciting the same three lines in her head.
The middle line stood out the Weiss in the end: 'Inner strength.'
"Yes," Weiss replied in surprise at her own acceptance of weapon choice, but she had to trust her instincts, of which were right now telling her that she had made the right choice for her. No sooner had the word left her mouth then the staff disappeared, but as it did the power she had felt from the staff seem to radiate from inside her. Weiss smiled as a hand reached up to touch her pounding chest, as each pump of her heart sent another bolt of electrifying current through her body.
Ruby let out a long whistle as she observed her teammates pick their weapons. She felt herself rock back and forth on her heels as she waited for her turn and now that there was only one choice left, she used her Semblance to speed up to the last item. The book's cover looked worn with time, although the three circles insignia was still easily identifiable on the cover. She reached out for the book without hesitation, barely giving thought to the loud hum of voices that had become one the moment she had picked up the text.
The power of the strategist.
The necessity of sacrifice.
A tome full of secrets.
"Is this the power you seek?"
"Yes!" Ruby smiled as she replied in earnest. As soon as the book disappeared Ruby felt the smile slip from her face as she was hit with a deep uneasiness that coldly gripped at her heart. Ruby placed both hands on her chest as she felt a deep ache settle in her heart. As suddenly as it hit her, Ruby's mouth slipped open in a gasp as she felt an overwhelming sense of calm flood through her system, slowing down her frantically beating heart.
"Ruby?!"
It was like the volume had been turn back up in her ears, as Ruby turned to find Yang had rushed to side, and judging by the worried look on her face, her sister had probably been calling her name for several seconds now.
"I… I'm fine, Yang. I just wasn't expecting… that." Ruby leaned over with her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. She felt as if she had run a marathon in less than a minute while simultaneously been forced to age up by several years. The voice spoke again, catching the attention of the entire group, although Ruby admittedly let her attention slip for a second as she tried to gasp for more air, trying to shake off the feeling of unease that seemed to cling to her bones.
"Your path is set. Now what will you give up in exchange?"
"What?" Yang let go of her sister to glare around at the empty chamber, barely noticing how the four original items had returned to their positions on the pedestals around the room. "You never said anything about giving up something."
Weiss sighed as she walked up to the sword. "Life is not without its sacrifices, right Ruby?" Weiss asked as she grasped onto the handle of the sword which disappeared on contact.
Ruby nodded as she watched the Heiress calmly walk back to her side before speaking again.
"Besides, we'll all be there for each other. We can cover each other's weakness, if needed."
"Weiss is right. We have each other's backs. Just pick whatever you feel most comfortable with giving up." Ruby had walked up to the staff during her speech and upon the end, she had touched the polished wood so that it shimmered in a flash of light before vanishing once more.
Nodding in unison, Yang walked up to the shield while Blake approached the book. Together they touched their respective items, which vanished into the air upon contact.
With all the pedestals empty, the four stone pillars disappeared leaving only the girls behind on the glass mosaic.
"So… That was a thing," Yang stated as she stretched her right arm over her shoulder. "Now what?"
As soon as the words were spoken, an intricately carved door appeared by the top of the stained glass mosaic, resting just above where Taiyang's head was placed.
"I guess we need to go through that." Ruby stated as Weiss rolled her eyes at the girl's obvious remark.
"Maybe it's an exit?" Yang asked.
"Knowing about what's happened thus far, I highly doubt it." Blake remarked she crept closer to the door, her curiosity getting the better of her as her hand hovered only inches away from one ornately carved handle. Before the girl's hand had touched the handle, the door opened on its own accord, blinding the Huntresses with light from within. As if a moth drawn to a flame, all four girls walked through the open door only to find themselves in a familiar courtyard.
"Hold on. The door won't open just yet." The voice stated as the members of Team RWBY took in their new surroundings. They had somehow been transported into the inner courtyard of Beacon Academy. The proud statue of the Hunter and Huntress fighting the Grimm stood several yards away before the grand entrance to the combat school. But before they could move, four familiar people appeared in front of each member of the team.
"Jaune?! What are you doing here?" Ruby exclaimed in shock as her blonde friend smiled at the younger Huntress, although he made no attempt to respond to the girl's joyful greeting.
Weiss waved a hand in front of Pyrrah's smiling face, the redhead's eyes never breaking from their stare.
"I don't think they are really here, Ruby. At least, not like you or I." Weiss stated as she glanced over at her overeager partner before lowering her hand back to her side.
"Oh, right of course not." Ruby seemed to visibly deflate as she noticed that all the members of Team JNPR seemed to be in the same frozen state. "Then why are we here with them?"
Before anyone could answer her, Nora began to question the girl directly opposite her, which in this case, happened to be Yang.
"What is most important to you?"
"I'm sorry, what?" Yang asked as she placed her arms on her sides and cocked a hip. "Why?"
Nora only smiled and repeated her question. "What is most important to you?"
"My friends and family." Yang's reply was almost instantaneous.
Without missing a beat Nora nodded and then followed up with another question. "How will you protect them, if you can't save yourself?"
Yang looked visibly shaken as she took a step back. "I-I don't understand…"
But before either girl could respond, Ren had taken it upon himself to address Blake with his question for all to hear. "What are you afraid of?"
Blake's cat ears visibly flatten against her head and she gripped her arms across her chest. When she replied her voice shook. "… Failing my friends."
Ren's response was prompt. "If you do not fail, then how can you learn?"
Blake opened and closed her mouth in thought, before she frowned, her feline ears swiveled to flatten against her head.
Without waiting for a reply, Pyrrha turned to face Weiss.
"What do you want out of life?"
Weiss blinked in confusion for a second before her lips pressed into a hard line. "My freedom."
Pyrrha tilted her head to the side in slight confusion. "If faced with the chance for true freedom, would you have the courage to seek it, no matter the cost to obtain it?"
Jaune turned to face Ruby, ignoring the affronted Heiress to turn a shade of bright red, before asking his question. "What do feel like you are meant to be?"
Ruby paused as she brought a hand up to her chin in thought. "Well, I'm leader of Team RWBY and I want to be a Huntress. So a leader, I guess?" Ruby shrugged, not all confident in her answer.
Jaune's smile fell slightly at the uncertainty of her answer before replying, "That is what the world asks of you, but who are you really beyond your silver eyes?"
"I – I don't know." Ruby stated quietly as she cast her eyes down at her shuffling feet.
Ruby took a deep breath and looked up to reply more earnestly, only to find that Team JNPR had vanished. Ruby heard her teammates shift into offensive attack positions as the world around them began to crumble and shake around them. Within seconds of their friends' disappearance, the towers of Beacon fell and the ground with it, causing all the girls to scream as they fell down into the dark abyss of the unknown once more.
Ruby heard the sounds of several people groaning before she rolled to her side to find that Weiss was standing over her, offering her a hand to get up, which Ruby took after a few moments to get her bearings. With a sudden sigh, Ruby noticed that they had fallen back onto the stained glass mosaic of her mother.
Team RWBY was alone once more.
"How did we end up back here?" Ruby asked as she rubbed a sizable lump that was forming on her head. She must have landed face first on the glass floor.
"Bad landing strategy," Ruby groaned as she tenderly touched her sore head.
Weiss poked her in the side, causing the younger girl to double over in giggles. "After everything we have experienced tonight, that's what you are asking?"
"Hey! Leave her alone, Ice Queen." Yang yelled as she helped her partner off the ground. "How's the head, sis?"
"Tender. Which is odd since it didn't hurt the first time." Ruby frown as she looked at her teammates confused faces.
"Care to share, Ruby?" Blake asked, one of her ears twitching in annoyance as she rubbed a hurt elbow from her fall.
"The first time I fell down here." Ruby continued to explain while pointing to the floor.
"What do you mean by that?" Weiss asked, her eyes widening in surprise. "You didn't just appear here like everyone else?"
Ruby shook her head, the movement making her dizzy. "No, I was having this weird dream where I was with you, but then a wave hit me and I found myself with Blake and Yang. But then I was falling again and landed here, but I landed on my feet that time. So why is now different?"
Weiss continued to stare at her in growing concern.
"Or at least, I think it was a dream… Or maybe this is a dream. But I thought you can't get hurt in a dream?" Ruby asked as she looked to her partner for answers. But the white haired girl seemed at a loss for words. They stood there, just staring into each other's eyes hoping to find answers to this mess they were in and exactly what they had gotten themselves into.
"Either way, I hate to break up whatever moment you two are having, but the door is back and I think we should try to get thought it again before it disappears on us!"
Yang's yell broke both girls out of their trance as they turned around to find that the same door from before was standing upright only a few yards away from their current position.
Weiss cleared her throat and looked away. "Yang's right we need to try to get out of here so we can figure all of this out later."
Ruby nodded. "Alright Team RWBY, let's try this one last time. But be on your guard. I have a feeling this isn't over yet."
Together the Huntresses slowly made their way over to the lone doorway. It was only when Ruby stood right before the door that it opened once more and spilled its blinding light onto the girls, so much so that they had to shield their eyes. Just as Ruby went to pull the door's handle open all the way, she turned to look back out at the darkness behind them.
Yang noticed her sister's hesitance. "What's wrong, Rubes?"
Ruby starred out into the darkness, narrowing her eyes against the light behind her to look for shapes in the growing darkness beyond her mother's mosaic. "It feels like something's missing."
One of Blake's cat ears flickered in response. "I can feel it too. There's this energy, or rather, it seems like something is missing. My Aura is going crazy trying to feel for something that's not there."
"You're right." It was the voice of the boy again.
Weiss frowned, having hoped she had heard the last of that boy's voice again. She was tired of being bossed around like a pawn by some unknown chess master. Besides, the young voice always seemed to be followed by trouble.
He spoke again once he had captured their attention. "But the challenge you would face is not one you would do as a team, but as an individual. It seems that the Kingdom Hearts has deemed you worthy without it… At least, for now."
"That's reassuring…" Weiss stated with a frown.
"We'll handle that challenge later when it comes. Until then, let's head out everyone." Ruby ordered as she slowly forced her way through the doorway and into the blinding light that lay before her, followed by the rest of her teammates.
When Ruby opened her eyes again, it was only to shut them again as the blinding light streamed directly into her face and across her pillow.
'Wait what?!'
Scrambling to her feet, Ruby jolted awake as she hit her head on the ceiling with a loud 'CRACK'! The room spun around her as she fell backwards onto her bunk bed, clamping her mouth shut against the wave of nausea that afflicted her from her head injury until her aura would kick in fully to heal the possible concussion. Ruby try to sit up, only to roll over again as the world seem to shift on its axis.
Make that a definite concussion.
"You dolt! What do you think you are doing?! You could have collapsed your bed on top of me!"
"Less yelling and more sleeping, Weiss." Ruby groaned as she used her pillow to cover her ears from the Heiress' yelling which was causing her throbbing headache to reach an overwhelming state.
"What's going on? Ruby, are you alright?"
Ruby cracked open one eyelid to meet the concerned gaze of her sister from across the room, the girl's bunkmate down below also having woken up from the loud commotion.
"Go back to bed, Yang. And I'm sorry for waking all of you. I just had a weird dream and when I woke up, I slammed my head on the ceiling. I'm okay, really." Ruby gingerly touched her head, already feeling her aura calming down the swelling. She glanced up at the ceiling, wincing as she noticed the sizable dent her cranium had left in its wake. "Although not so much can be said for my ceiling." She patted the dent gingerly in her half-concussed state.
"If it helps, I had an odd dream too." Blake announced as she tucked her slender legs back under her covers before rolling away from her teammates to face the blank wall.
"Oh yeah, Blakey? What was yours about because let me tell you, mine was like I was on some bad trip, if you know what I mean." Yang said as she winked at the disgruntled Heiress from across the room.
"No, we do not all know what you mean, Yang. Not all of us are thrill-seeking party girls." Weiss proclaimed as she fixed her night gown before laying down to turn off the bedside light that she had first turned on when the bunk bed had shift precariously overhead.
Yang stuck out her tongue. "You're just jealous because I'm living my best, free life!"
Weiss looked visibly shocked. "What – what did you just say?"
Ruby rolled over, ignoring the growing throbbing in her temples, to give her sister a hard stare.
"Yang, leave Weiss alone. It's too early for this. Blake, what time do we need to be at the arena tomorrow morning?"
"Eight O' Clock, sharp!" Blake's remark was slightly muffled by her pillow as she had already snuggled down further into her covers over the last few minutes.
"Exactly! Which means we have exactly…" Ruby peered over to her bedside shelf to read the time on her glowing scroll. "Roughly five hours until we need to be up and ready to fight in the first round of the Vytal Festival. Since we're starting the team rounds, we need to all get back to bed and get as much sleep as possible before then. Good night, Team RWBY!"
"Way ahead of you," Blake replied before curling up into a ball under her sheets.
"Nighty-night, Sis!" Yang exclaimed through a yawn.
Night settled down for the four girls as each one of them drifted off into a dreamless slumber. As they would awaken the next day, their memories of the night before would fade to become a sense of unease, but their dream was nothing more than a scattered memory, just out of reach for the coming days to follow.