The first entry! So I was given a ton of single word prompts or phrases and decided to write them all about Yang/Ruby and their relationship both with their mother (Summer Rose) and how they grew up after she was gone. This will be a collection of different stories, some happy, some sad, from all different time periods of their childhood. It will all be pre-Beacon though, so no Weiss or Blake (unfortunately). And for some reason, these make me reallyyyy emotional to write, but I hope that other people can enjoy a peak into what childhood was like for our favorite two sisters.

The titles of the chapters are my prompts, so you can see what I drew my inspiration from.

Please read/review if you'd like to see more Yang/Ruby childhood tears and shenanigans!

"Leave me alone!"

The boys only snickered at her, circling like sharks sensing blood in the water. They knew they had her just where they wanted her – alone at the edge of the parking lot they played on during recess.

"What's the matter Little Rose? Can't do anything without the teachers here to look out for you?"

Ruby frowned at the speaker, clearly the leader of this little band of bullies. She had never realized that she had done anything to make him mad at her…

"Just leave me alone," she repeated, trying to keep her voice steady even as her eyes filled with tears. She took a deep breath, reminding herself of all the things Yang had told her.

'Don't panic, don't try to run, don't call for help – That will only make it worse. Stay calm, use your head, and wait for me to get there.'

"Why should we leave you alone?" the leader spoke out, stepping closer so that he could put his face inches from her own. "I thought we were having fun."

"Hey Redd, maybe we should leave her alone," a second boy piped in as he stepped forward and gave Ruby a small shove on the shoulder. "I mean…her own mom left her, so she should be pretty used to being alone by now."

He grinned widely as his two friends laughed at his joke.

"Yeah, you're right, her own mom couldn't stand sticking around," the third boy added as the three of them snickered.

Ruby looked down at her shoes, scuffed and well-worn. A tiny dark spot appeared on the tip of her right foot as a single tear fell from her eye.

"Excuse me?"

She looked up to find the boys' attention now directed behind her. Her heart began beating faster as she immediately recognized the voice.

"He said that her own mom didn't want her," Redd replied with a sneer, still pleased with his crony's witty remark.

Ruby turned around slowly, eyes finding her older sister standing directly behind her, arms crossed over her chest.

The blonde was only two grades higher than Ruby, but at their age two years made a very significant difference. It meant that Yang had learned some control over her semblance, she had been taught more advanced fighting techniques, and she was just bigger than the four of them.

Yang nodded her head in understanding as she cracked her knuckles, now alive with flames.

"That's what I thought you said. Unfortunate too…Ruby, please stand back."

She did as her older sister instructed and stepped off to the side, where she watched as Yang turned the three bullies into crying, sniveling babies in a matter of minutes.

With the three boys running off to tell the nearest adult what had happened, Yang walked over and knelt down in front of her. A smile revealed the blonde's newly split lip, while a scratch above her eye looked to be on the verge of bleeding. Other than that, the brawler was none the worse for wear.

"Hey, sis," Yang said softly as she grabbed ahold of both of Ruby's hands.

The warmth of Yang's bigger hands instantly removed any fear or sadness Ruby had felt instants earlier. She had learned long ago that this feeling meant she was safe.

"Are you ok?" Yang asked, lilac eyes searching within silver.

Ruby nodded her head slowly, managing a small smile as her mood began to lift.

"Good!" Yang replied with her own smile as she stood up.

"Now…let's head to the principal's office, shall we?"

Uncle Qrow arrived half an hour later to take them home for the day, finding them both seated in the chairs located outside the principal's office. They both tried to overhear the brief conversation he had in the office, to no avail. Minutes later, he had motioned for them to follow him, not uttering a single word as they left their school behind.

Ruby was in much better spirits now that she got out of school a half day early. The young brunette was skipping down the sidewalk, trying to hop from crack to crack without missing a step.

Uncle Qrow and Yang followed a few paces behind, walking side-by-side as they continued their trek home.

"Another misunderstanding?" he asked lowly so that Ruby would not overhear them.

"Yup."

Yang's answer was uncharacteristically blunt, but, then again, this was not the first time they had taken this walk home together.

"And what was it this time?" he pressed his oldest niece, trying to get her to open up to him, to trust him.

But Yang refused to look at him, keeping her eyes steadfastly trained upon her little sister.

"They misunderstood how I feel about people picking on my sister," Yang responded, voice thinly concealing a wave of anger.

Uncle Qrow sighed as he placed one arm around Yang's shoulder, pulling the tiny girl gently into his side as his suspicions were confirmed.

"One day…you'll realize that she doesn't need you to protect her all the time," he said, his own eyes watching the happy little brunette bounding back and forth in front of them.

"She is much stronger than you know."