The First Day of Winter

"Hey mom… it's me again," greeted Ruby, her voice barely above a whisper. "Dad doesn't know I'm here, since I'm supposed to be on best rest… I haven't got a chance to talk to you in a long time…"

The girl wrapped herself tighter with her red cloak. It had begun to get colder.

"I know I said I would tell you the results of the tournament… but something crazy happened. Grimm invaded the school, and the Atlesian Knights started attacking the students…" Ruby began to sniffle at the memories of that day.

"I thought we were doing a decent job taking them out, but right before the invasion… Penny… she…" Ruby couldn't bring herself to say it. "Mom, if you find her… please take care of her. She was my friend, and she didn't deserve what happened to her. And… Pyrrha… she's with you too, right? She has to be, she was such a good person… I know what happened was a freak accident, so don't be mad at her… I know I'm not…" Ruby sat in front of the grave stone, ignoring the frost in the air.

"I guess you're really not coming back, are you?" she asked hollowly. "I know I come here a lot to talk, but I always had a feeling you'd come back… Now… after seeing how evil people can be… I know you're gone…" She felt angry tears begin to well up.

"How could you leave me!?" she sobbed at the gravestone. "You promised you wouldn't!?" Ruby wiped her eyes and stood up, and walked around in a circle, trying to vent out her frustrations. "You promised, 'I'll cling, clutch you'd hold on to you and never let go!' Don't you remember? I hear those words every night I go to sleep, and but I don't remember what your voice sounds like anymore… just the words you failed to keep!" Ruby fell to her knees and looked at the gravestone as tears fell.

"Why do people keep leaving me?" she whispered. "First you did, then Penny, and Pyrrha… even Yang won't talk to me anymore…" She looked over the cliff, and then up to the moon. "You know, mom… I still have a place in my heart that only fits you… but it's been empty so long… it hurts. I thought I've been living a nightmare every day until today… but I know it's all real. You really did die… and just like Penny and Pyrrha, you're never coming back. I still don't want to believe it, but it's like Blake said… 'life isn't a fairytale'… and no matter how much I've tried, I can't make this world a better place… because it will never be a better place without you…" Ruby walked to the grave again, and ran her hand over it.

"Sometimes, I want to forget about Vale.. Remnant, and even dad and Yang, and just go to you… just fly off this cliff and find you wherever you might be…" She began to inch towards the ledge. "I think… I think I might try…" Ruby took a few steps forward, and looked straight down. She had never really realized how high up it was. "I'm sorry mom… I know you wouldn't approve… but I just miss you so much…"

Ruby leaned forward, her eyes closed, unable to force herself to look at the ground. Before she had felt the freefall, she felt a strong arm wrap around her waist and toss her back to safety. Unsure of who to expect, she looked up to see her uncle Qrow breathing heavily.

"Damnit kid," he muttered.

"I-I'm sorry," she said, ashamed. What she had just attempted had just dawned on her, and she felt disgusted with herself. "It's not what you think!"

"Isn't it?" he sighed, standing up straight. He still didn't turn to face her, but Ruby could smell the alcohol on his breath. "You just tried to kill yourself. Or am I wrong?"

"I…"

"That's what I thought," he mumbled. Qrow turned to face his niece, and walked over to her. He gently grabbed her chin and made her look up at him. "Ruby, I know it's hard right now, with everything that's going on… but you have to keep on fighting. Quitting doesn't suit you."

"I just want to see her again," she cried. "I just want to see her one last time!"

"You can see her whenever you feel like it," smiled Qrow. Ruby looked up baffled. Qrow took out his scroll and took a picture of the tear soaked girl. "See? Look at what you've done, you made your mother sad."

"Wh-what?"

"Ruby, you are the spit and image of your mother," he said softly. "If you want to see her smiling, smile. If you want to see her angry, get mad."

"Uncle Qrow…" Ruby looked at her hands. "Why did she leave me?"

"She didn't want to," he answered. "Your mother loved you and your sister very much… I know we've had this conversation before, but you were just a kid then. She's dead Ruby, but that doesn't mean she left you… Do you think your friend Pyrrha left you? No, some evil woman took her from you. Your mother would never dream of leaving you alone, an-"

"But she did!" she sobbed. Qrow felt the girl hug him, and he couldn't help but feel remorseful.

"Ruby… you know better than that…" he chided gently. "Come on, let's get you back home before your father has a heart attack." Ruby tentatively followed.

Summer's Gravestone: Before RNJR's departure

"Hey mom," greeted Ruby, her cheerful tone sounding a bit forced. "I'm leaving to Mistral today! Jaune, Ren and Nora are coming with me, so I'll be safe… I'm sorry about what almost happened a few weeks ago… but I didn't know what else to do…" Ruby looked back to her three friends, and sighed.

"I don't think I'm going to come back," she finally said. "Don't get me wrong, mom, I love our talks… but this is the last time I'm going to visit your grave… it hurts too much to be reminded that you'll never come back, and uncle Qrow promised he wouldn't tell dad what happened… I don't know if he's doing it for my sake, or his, but I'm grateful… so, goodbye mom… I'll see you someday, I hope." Ruby turned, and lifted her hood to walk back towards her new team.

"Are you ready to go?" asked Jaune. The hooded girl just nodded, not trusting her voice. "Alright, let's go to Haven. We got a long way to go."