I'm tentatively stepping into new fandoms. Slowly. But I'm also excited.

Um, the timeline? I don't know, but this is alternate to the story line of fighting Roman or the White Fang and just a normal time at school, learning how to fight Grimm, and than actually fighting Grimm.

And in this story, you'll know the characters Cinder, Neo and Roman and the others are not evil, just running a cafe. Yeah, it'll be a boring story, sorry not sorry.

It's Falling Petals. in case you didn't know. (But still like White Rose and blah de blah da blah).

See this is why I re-read it (before, referred to her scroll as a tablet, had to change that), but sometimes things slip by... so sorry for that.

In which Ruby tries to make friends

(Outside of Beacon)

Keyword: tries

Sighing, Ruby plopped down onto Weiss' bed, she was tired of not knowing. Not knowing why she wasn't included, was it because she was younger?

At first, it was simple. Say a 'hi,' to Weiss, Blake or her sister. It would work enough to jostle them out of their worldly haze of schoolwork, preparing for the real world and other stuff Ruby didn't quite understand yet. She was only 16, two years behind everyone else. It was understandable, though, to Ruby. They would get more busier with their social life, unlike her. She was shy as ever, people who were intimidated by her enthusiasm for weapon knowledge.

But then, during nights, Yang would pull Weiss, however unwilling the heiress screeched out in protest, and Blake went with no complaint, just an eyeroll and a sigh. Ruby could only stare at the closed door, alone in the room.

The silence was deafening.

'Why did they leave me alone,' would be reasoned by her conscious: 'You know they are nearly adults, it's understandable how Yang could get them underage alcohol when they could pass as adults.' Or: 'You're being too clingy, it's time to be independent, finds more friends than teammates or other teams, go to the outside world and take a chance.' But the second reason was more like an option Ruby ended not following once.

Hopefully today would be different. It was nearly a year since attending Beacon, having been fed up with the other three partying at night, fighting the Grimm, Ruby felt ready to expand her world, to accept more people into her world.

It would start...after she was done with this lecture for the day. Slumping, she continued listening to Professor Port drone on about his past for the hundredth time it seemed. Maybe more.

-x-

Now how would she go about making friends outside of Beacon? The scythe wielder pondered for a moment before shaking her head, planning for friendships wouldn't work out well. It would be best to just be "her." That way she wouldn't have to keep up a pretense and stress herself over whether or not they would like her real self.

Heading to a cafe sounded good in her head, she used her speed semblance to waste as little time as possible when she could be making friends. Maybe this was her subconscious wanting revenge, after all, having hardly been included in Yang's partying did hurt her a bit. She felt that it was time to build up her nearly non-existent social skills and to get rid of the underlying hurt every time Weiss called her a child or immature.

The cafe's heading read, "Read and relax." Biting her bottom lip gently, Ruby took a deep breath and walked in stiffly, all the way to the counter. She could feel the stares, a heat flushed her body as embarrassment was read easily on her face. The person behind the counter looked bored and immersed in a book. 'I guess she didn't hear the bell ringing,' Ruby wanted the person to look up and notice her. Clearing her throat, the person finally looked up. Ruby had her breath catch in her throat at how beautiful the person was. Well, seductive, really. Amber eyes, nearly a deep, rich orange with arching eyebrows and a slender face framed by long glossy hair that had curled ends. Her lips had a feminine bow that quirked up a bit into a slow smile. Ruby blushed, looking down before glancing back up. 'The person behind the counter is...beautiful!' Ruby thought, feeling inadequate in a cafe that seemed fit for more mature people.

"Well, are you going to order?" The tone held a hint of amusement, the woman leaned forward on the counter, still smiling at Ruby.

She browsed the menu quickly, noticing it also offered deluxe baked cookies which had her drooling a bit and to seem older than she looked, she decided to pick chamomile tea, if only to impress the lady. The woman raised an eyebrow at how much cookies Ruby ordered and chuckled before leaving to the back, where Ruby guessed was an entrance the kitchen.

Nearly twenty minutes of standing in the same spot, Ruby noticed that the woman came back, with two trays in her hand that held cookies and a cup of tea in one of the trays. The young girl grinned, eager to help set the trays down at an empty table near the window. Upon sitting, Ruby finally spotted the name tag on the woman: Cinder. A beautiful name for a beautiful woman, she blushed, watching Cinder's hips sway as she went back to the counter. Munching on a cookie, Ruby silently wondered why this woman wasn't a model and why was she working at such a quaint place. But she wasn't going to complain, especially since it seemed to be one of those unknown places.

Just with the bonus of having such a beautiful person on their staff.

It was nearing twilight, Ruby didn't even notice how long she spent her time here or if her teammates even bothered to notice. If they didn't so much as leave her a message, she was listing the three of them as a-holes number one, two and three in her contacts listing. Turns out when she turned on her scroll, there were 10 messages in total, 5 of them from Yang, 3 from Weiss and 2 from Blake, which was surprising, seeing as how they didn't care for her presence before.

"Well, I see you have to go home now." The low timbre of the voice sent shivers up her spine, leaving behind a delightful tingle in her body. Ruby shakily inhaled when the manicured hand plucked her scroll from her hands and then positioned it in front of them to take a picture of them together.

"This is a memento, hope you come again tomorrow."

Yes, Ruby planned to come again. A fluttering feeling in her stomach told her so she would gladly spend her meager allowance here from now on. But her conscious told her it was because of the crush she had for Cinder.

-x-

When Ruby entered the shared room, Yang was engulfing her into a breath taking hug, literally. She couldn't breath. Patting her sister's biceps in quick succession told the blonde to let go of her and she took huge gulps of air in, almost choking on air itself. The silver eyed girl saw Weiss standing with her arms crossed, a pinched expression on her face and Ruby prepared herself for the long upcoming tirade.

"Ruby Rose, why were you out so long? Do you know what we thought happened to you? I guess this is what we get for having a child as our leader-" To this point, Ruby could no longer feel anything, not even annoyance. She just watched on, almost like she was out of her body as the white haired young woman march around in her speech. While Weiss was still pacing a hole in the floor, Ruby decided it was best to change in her pajamas and did so quickly with the help of her semblance.

Blinking, Ruby turned around to see them staring at her, silence ruled the room. Why they were staring at her, she had not the slightest clue.

"Um, guys," Ruby gave a hesitant smile, "if you're going to sneak out for your parties, you better leave now before security rolls out." Yang nodded slowly, gesturing for the other two to get ready. After all, they did deserve their time just like she wanted hers. She got used to being alone in this room. 'Forgotten,' her conscious whispered but Ruby pushed it into the deep depths of her mind.

Settling into her hazardous bed, she pulled the covers over her body and closed her eyes, ready to dream of hot orange eyes and the mysterious smile of Cinder whilst forgetting the pain of being forgotten.

-x-

Not surprisingly, Ruby woke up the second the sun was shining its rays on Beacon. She blearily looked around and saw her teammates passed out. She shook her head as she wondered how they didn't get caught yet into coming back in the dorms while drunk off their asses. Ruby vowed to not irresponsibly drink, especially after witnessing the horrors of a hangover via watching Yang.

Besides, she was eager to finish the school day and head to the cafe. She headed down to the diner hall, ready to start her day. Hopefully it would go by fast. She took out her scroll, tapping the photo apps and enlarging the image of Cinder and her. She had a blush on her face but her eyes were strangely sparkling, Cinder had a smirk while looking at the young girl. Ruby mentally face palmed. She probably looked like a dork in front of the hottest woman she ever saw, which was not the image she was going for. But it would do, it was all she had of Cinder, for now. There were plenty of future meetings between Ruby and Cinder that were going to happen, especially now that Ruby found her haven.

Classes were boring, the day crept to a slow pace until it was afternoon. Ruby struggled to sit still, Weiss having to occasionally shush her or kick her shin. After many bruises later and the class coming to an end, Ruby sped out of the classroom, leaving behind a swirl of rose petals in her drift. Her teammates could only shrug off the weirdness that was Ruby as of lately.

-x-

She burst into the cafe, surprising some of the regulars there who choked on a tea or pastry. Ruby ignored the glares in favor of the beautiful woman behind the counter. 'And you still refer to Cinder as the beautiful woman behind the counter,' her conscious mused. Ruby paused, "Shut up." A delicate brow rose, and lips pursed, "Me?"

Ruby gasped, turning around. "No, not you. Definitely not you. Me. It's me. I should shut up but I get nervous-" A finger landed on her lips, stopping her from speaking anymore. It went away. Ruby was seriously tempted to chase the tip with her tongue but rebelled against the urge. She gulped, caught in the fiery stare of a fiery setting. It was like she could see a battlefield in those eyes, the remnants of dying embers flowing gently on the wind.

Cinder seemed to realise their surroundings and tapped the bottom of Ruby's chin softly, waking her from the haze also. "Are you going to order, little one?"

'Little one? Oh boy, you have to escape that obstacle.' Ruby agreed with her conscious. She didn't want Cinder to see her as a child like Weiss did. It felt weird, since her heart and mind didn't want that to happen.

"I'll have some tea for now." The silver eyed girl gave a small smile to Cinder, who nodded and went to get tea. Ruby sat in the same table as yesterday, looking out the window with no focus, lost in her listless thoughts.

The clink of the tea set roused Ruby, turning to Cinder who waited there patiently. Taking a small tea, Ruby winced at the taste. She guessed trying to seem mature was an acquired taste too, just like how Yang told her drinking alcohol was the same. Cinder sighed, "well, if you're going to be here for most of the day, do you think I can ask a favor of you? I know this might seem suspicious but we need a dishwasher until we can hire one but no one seems interested."

Ruby hummed. Her conscious decided to speak up: 'Take it. It's a favor that you can ask almost anything of her and it'll get you that much closer to Cinder, the beautiful woman behind the counter, in this case, just right before you.' Her head was nodding before she knew it. Cinder giggled, resting the tray against her chest as the giggles became full blown out laughter. Ruby was in awe, the sound of her laughter was beautiful. It made her want to hear the sound for the rest of her life, her chest felt tight and hot with sensations.

"Thank you, but may I know your name?" Cinder sat down, looking her with her head tilted slightly. Ruby looked into her tea, "it's Ruby." She mumbled, feeling the flush creep up from her chest to her face.

"Ru. By." Cinder tested her name in a slow way. It was making her dizzy with ecstasy to hear this beautiful woman say her name. 'You better cool down,' her conscious seemed to mutter.

She stood up, finishing off her cooling tea in one painful gulp and bowed to Cinder. "When shall I be here? Tomorrow, there is no classes so I'm free all day."

Cinder also stood up, smoothing her black skirt of wrinkles. "Around eight-thirty AM, if that is alright with you."

Ruby nodded, fighting back the excitement already vibrating throughout her body. "I'll be here for sure!" And with one last wave, she sped off to the dorms, her excitement helped her getting there quickly.

-x-

Yang huffed, "Where did Ruby disappear to now?" Weiss was at her desk, studying before she lifted her head to address the question.

"I do not think we should bother. Ruby is obviously playing somewhere."

"I'd understand that but she's been...happier?" Even the overprotective sister didn't know and it was unsettled since Ruby always shared her ups and downs of each day. Now that they thought about it, they mostly ignored Ruby for partying. Most nights of the week were spent going to a club Yang managed to get them in, drinking to the point of near unconsciousness, even Blake succumbed more than a few times. At first, they excluded Ruby because she was too young, too obvious in her shortness, attitude and baby face. Then Yang introduced them to more clubs, staying out late longer and often waking up with splitting headaches caused by hangovers.

Altogether, they forgot Ruby was their team leader, or even there. Sure they said the hello occasionally but it was far too few. Yang bit her lip, Weiss gnawed on her pencil in worry and Blake sat on her bed, book placed to the side of her.

"Well, Ruby is 15, she is growing up. And of course she'll be curious about the world. Maybe she is just exploring parts of Vale." Blake said thoughtfully. Weiss nodded, agreeing.

"After all, she is still a child."

Yang sighed heavily, "She's 16 now. She had her birthday a while ago." She scratched the back of her head sheepishly at their bewildered looks and also out of guilt. Being caught up with the world shouldn't excuse them from nearly forgetting her little sister.

Just then, the center of their discussion entered - more like skipped - into the room, oblivious of the tension and their stares. Ruby had a blush on her cheeks and was humming happily a nonsensical tune as she stripped out of her usual outfit and into her pajamas. Blake turned her head away, face buried into her book. Weiss gaped as her eyes roamed over their leader's body, no longer did Ruby have a skinny stick of a body. It was lightly laced with taut muscles on her abdomen, in her arms and defining her jawline, slowly filling out her body in the chest, hips, thighs and butt- giving the appearance of puberty finally hitting the young girl.

Yang approached her sister carefully, as if she was a new species not yet seen. The haze that filled their minds now blown away from a strong wind, namely Ruby. The blonde didn't know how to act around the young girl, it felt like they are worlds apart. The tangible bond they once shared was a thin line.

Ruby placed her scroll on the dresser by their bed and hopped into her blankets, snuggling deeply before settling into a sleep.

Yang looked at Blake as if the cat faunus had the answer. She shook her head before returning to reading her book. Weiss stomped over, ripped off Ruby's blankets, in turn, the girl tumbled from her bed and landed on the floor with a thump and a groan.

Yang shot a hard stare at Weiss who glared back. "Well, it's not like staring at her would do anything!"

Ruby stood up slowly, holding the side of her head as she peeked through her fingers. "Why did you do that for, Weiss?"

"We want to know where you're going." The ice queen stated curtly, crossing her arms as she looked at Ruby. Yang shifted uncomfortably. 'Awkwaaard.' She sing songed in her head.

"Just to a cafe," Ruby mumbled, "now can I go back to sleep that you rudely interrupted me from, Your Highness?" She even curtsied, giving a mock polite smile.

Weiss glared than harrumphed, going back to doing her studying. Ruby growled under her breath, swinging back into bed and pulling the blankets over her head. Yang slumped down the wall. 'So much for tact,' she thought. 'We'll have to follow lil' sis tomorrow. But for tonight, no partying until we figure out where Ruby is going.' After all, she might have not been the best sister of the year but she'll make up for it starting tomorrow. But first thing to do tomorrow was making sure Ruby wasn't getting herself into trouble.

Wow, what a long chapter I wrote since...a long time. Welcome me warmly please, anyways, I'll try to update more consistently. But I have to worry about exams soon. x_x