KryHeart and I have gotten together and had a party! This will be a full length story with likely sequel, it will also be more mature as both characters believe this is a dream and are a bit more open then they otherwise would be.
A Rube Awakening
Ruby lay in the shade of a large tree, the summer breeze soothed her tired brain. She had just left her dorm room after a heated argument between her teammates. It was all Yang's fault really, she brought costumes for the four of them and to say Weiss was offended at the idea of wearing a rabbit costume, ears and all was a bit of an understatement.
What had started with Yang forcing everyone to wear animal suits had turned into a fight about faunus and their rights, Blake thought Yang was being cruel and insensitive and Weiss's refusal to humor the blonde brute just added fuel to her anger. In an attempt to defuse the situation Ruby had taken the rabbit ears and placed them onto the heiress's head, a light hearted comment about her cuteness on her tongue. This had just made things worse and Ruby felt she had no choice but to leave the room giving her team a chance to cool down.
You'd think that after nearly four years Team Rwby would be above such pettiness sigh guess not. Even now Weiss was prickly to be around at best, Blake still didn't share a lot of personal history she still more of a loner and Yang, well Yang never changed. The only one who might have changed was Ruby herself, getting into Beacon two years earlier had forced her to grow and mature to match her elder teammates. Ruby didn't mind so much, it just meant that people saw her less as a little girl and more their equal.
Ruby was nineteen now and a more capable Team Leader then anyone had thought possible, she smiled, she owed that to Professor Ozpin, he was the one who had given her a chance. He had seen something in her and decided that bringing her to his school two years before she could apply was a worthy idea. To this day whenever they bumped into one another he never told her what had prompted his decision that first night and Ruby didn't care much anymore, always thankful for the chance to prove herself to the unusual Headmaster.
Now she lay in the grass thinking how cute Weiss had looked with those ears on, what would Yang had been dressed as, mmmm maybe a bear and Blake… Ruby yawned and closed her eyes the sun moved across the sky slowly, Blake was already a cat but…Another yawn, what would she be...zzzzzz.
Something tickled the side of her face, lifting her hair, there was a sniffing sound before Ruby grunted wafting with her hand at whatever had disturbed her slumber. Several thumps sounded on the ground near her and Ruby opened her eyes. The first thing she noticed was that the sun had started to set, the field was bathed in an orange light and crickets started singing as night drew closer.
Ruby turned her attention to what had disrupted her sleep and had to blink several times before she rubbed at the eyes. Was that a rabbit, a really big rabbit? Crouched nearby in his white suit he shuffled about, glancing around then running forward again. Being the curious girl that she was Ruby got up and followed the White Rabbit, she had the strangest feeling that she couldn't quite put her finger one.
A loud bell started to sound in the distance and the Rabbit gasped, shooting up straight and ran in the direction of the Emerald Forest. Ruby heard the rabbit mumbling what sounded like "I'm late, I'm late, for a very important date."
Ruby brushed her skirts down watching the Rabbit disappear into the treeline. "Where is he going?" Her curiosity peaked, she leaning down she called up her semblance and raced towards the fluffy bunny leaving rose petals in her wake.
She hadn't gone far into the forest before she caught sight of her white haired friend crawl behind a tree. How unusual, did she drop something? Once Ruby rounded the tree she could see no trace of her friend, instead at the base of the tree was a large hole.
Ruby dropped down to the ground and leaned into the hole, "Hello?!" no answer. She had definitely seen her round this corner, but the hole was so dark and deep she couldn't even see the bottom let alone her partner. Ruby pulled out her scroll but grimace when she saw the lack of signal. "Urgh." She grumbled annoyed.
Ruby peered back at the hole and spotted something glittering in the darkness, was it within reach? She used one hand to hold herself up while the other reached into the darkness. Before she could touch the shimmering object a masculine voice spoke from behind her.
"About time!"
It was the last thing she heard before a foot kicked her and she fell into the hole.
The darkness surrounded her body and pulled her further down. Ruby tried to reach out for the sides but found nothing, it was like she was falling into the abyss and she screamed in fear.
"Oh be silent girl some of us are trying to sleep." A voice said to her right. When Ruby looked around her she saw a painting falling besides her. The woman in the picture looked a lot like a red ace card but in the shape of an elderly woman. With red hair and green eyes that keening watched Ruby, their sharp gaze made Ruby want to shiver.
"Yes, yes please be quiet." Another voice to her left called out, this time it was a portrait of Red Knight.
"Sir-" Ruby started to ask.
"Knight." he corrected her automatically
"Knight, what is happening to me, why are we falling?" Ruby finished her question with a cock of her head.
"And why do you think we are falling Miss Rose?" He questioned her, pushing his visor up so it didn't fall over his eyes.
"Because I was pushed into a hole." Her rump still hurt.
"Ah." His face smoothed out in clarity. "Well that would explain why you are falling and not us."
"What do you mean?" Suddenly she was falling faster, the portraits the cards seemed to be suspended in air while she fell deeper into the darkness. She never even got to ask why they were pictures and yet still able to talk to her.
Wind started blowing across her face and suddenly a light appeared below her. Once Ruby's body reached that light she realised she was falling from a sky and that the ground was rushing up to meet her. With no way to slow her descent she closed her eyes tight waiting for the pain to come.
Thump! Instead of hitting the earth she landed on something slightly softer and it let out a clear "URGH!" as she fell on it. Ruby who had been sure this was the end of her sat up on the soft ground and used her hands to check all the limbs were still there.
Once she was assure that she was still alive she sighed sagging in relief
"As much as I enjoy a woman on top any chance you can get off."
Ruby squeaked at the clear voice coming from beneath her and she shuffled away from her landing pad to discover she had been sat on top of the one man she never expected to see here.
"Professor Ozpin!" Ruby yelped and bounced slighting then scrambled to get off Professor Ozpin's lap, kneeling in the soft grass blushing furiously at the predicament. I am in so much trouble, Ruby lifted her eyes up and met the coppery ones of her headmaster. Ozpin straightened his clothes and lifted a knee to lean his elbow on returning his attention to the young woman sat besides him.
"Well I wasn't expecting to see you here Miss Rose." He said lightheartedly, like she hadn't literary fallen into his lap.
"Sorry Professor but I didn't really get a chance to fix my landing strategy." She paused and thought for a moment "How did I even get here. I remember being pushed into a hole and falling." She pointed towards the sky. "Then it was like the hole opened up into the sky and I landed, sorry again on you."
"That sounds very unbelievable Miss Rose, but as this is a dream I don't think it matters very much." Ozpin leaned back into the grass and shut his eyes on the dream version of his youngest student. A soft breeze flowed over the air stirring the grass, it smelled sweet and put Ozpin to ease. For a dream it really very lovely here, he was more than content to sit here till he woke up.
"A dream? That's not possible." Ruby frowned, she clearly remembered falling after chasing the White rabbit. She glanced over to her Professor and blushed, he was only wearing a dark green shirt, jacket, trousers and shoes rather than his usual composed outfit.
"This must be a dream Miss Rose for I have never heard of talking flowers before." Ozpin indulged this dream vision of Ruby, he was a little amazed that his dream was giving such an accurate depiction of her. He was quite sure he had no real way to know how much she weighed, or how she felt in his lap.
"Huh?" she tilted her head in confusion, did Professor Ozpin hit his head or something?
Ozpin sighed again and rolled his eyes before sitting back up and pointing to a patch of flowers nearby. Ruby stood and walked over to the patch unsure. There was no way flowers could talk, was there? As she grew closer she heard the faint whispers and feminine voices. It was so quiet you'd think it was nothing more then the wind brushing your ears.
Ruby's eyes widened in disbelief when the flowers, a mix of daisies, tulips and peonies moved within the light breeze and began speaking to one another. They appeared to have no features but the voices became more clear and she could understand the multiple conversation the flowers seem to be having with one another.
As Ruby watched the flowers trying to wrap her mind around the idea of talking flowers, a few turned up to look at her. Their round faces scrunched up at her towering form before signalling their companions. "What is it that you are staring at being? Have you never seen a tulip ask about the weather before?"
"I'm sorry but I have never heard flowers speak before." Ruby blinked, the voice had been quiet and melodic but the words rude and unnecessary.
"You beings are all the same, your eyes may be open but you're not capable of seeing and appreciating the important things in life." Many of the surrounding flowers mumbled their agreement nodding heads, their petals brushed up against one another.
"Excuse me but isn't that a little closed minded of you, not all human beings are the same, just like not all flowers are the same, right?" Ruby said crouching down.
"Oh my goodness ladies, did this being just compare herself to us?" The tulip gasped, blanking Ruby and her attempt at being nice.
"How disgraceful." A daisy replied lifting its head into the Sun's direction.
"The insolence, she is terribly rude." Another tulip commented before the small patch of flora started raising their voices. Poor Ruby had no idea what to do, she wasn't very diplomatic like Weiss or soothing in her speech like Blake. She really wished her friends were here right now.
"Now ladies, should you really be so unkind, her ignorance isn't to blame and as her elders shouldn't we all strive to instruct youngsters on manners instead of blaming for the lack of experience." Ozpin had left his sunny patch of grass when his peace was shattered by the unruly noise coming from his student and a handful of flowers and weeds. From the look on Ruby's face he could see her social interactions hadn't improved in the slightest.
Still even though this was a dream he couldn't stand the idea of someone or something discrediting his precious students. "I apologise for her conduct, as her teacher, her behaviour reflects onto my own."
The flowers outrage quickly dissolved into giggles and whispers, their voices blended into the wind as they conversed among themselves before addressing the older man. "That is quite alright Sir and you are correct. It is up to the more experienced to instruct the newer generation." The flowers giggled some more their faces turned back to Ozpin, completely ignoring the fuming brunette. "You have your work cut out for you."
A few snide comments just loud enough for Ruby to hear had the young woman stomp her foot, how dare they talk about her like this and the way they were flirting with professor Ozpin both annoyed her and left her in a strange sense awe. She had often wondered what is was like to flirt with another person, Ruby hadn't had much chance before with her die hard training and Yang's protectiveness, it kinda put a lot of potential suitors off.
Professor Ozpin made it look so easy, he had those flowers eating out of his hand and they were so obvious in their giggling. Was that what guys liked? Just the thought of laughing and fawning over a little attention didn't sit right with Ruby, it seemed so fake. She lifted her foot intent on leaving but froze at the sound of a weak. "Help."
All the flowers turned to Ruby and when she looked down she noticed that in her childlike behaviour she hadn't noticed a stray peony and stepped on it. Ruby immediately kneeled down and started gently straightening the stem of the slightly crushed flower. So intent on fixing it she didn't notice the furious voices around her.
"I'm so so so sorry. I didn't look where I was going. Please forgive me." Ruby stroked the fragile petals smoothing them out like how they were before. She stepped back and took in her handiwork, the stem was still a little crooked but nothing else appeared to be damaged.
"You evil little creature, we shall have assault charge brought up against you for this attack." The flowers all spoke at once, angry and Loud, their voices no longer harmonious but laden with fury.
Ozpin tried to defuse the growing tension "Ladies it was an accident-"
"No! She had assaulted one of us, we will not stand for this injustice, give us your name child at once or we will send word to have you arrested."
"I didn't mean to do it. I'm really sorry." Ruby never thought the day would come where she feared a bunch of weeds but they appeared so intimidating, shouting and calling her names.
"NAME NAME NAME!" They chanted, their voices growing
"I am really sorry, my name is Ruby. Ruby Rose." Ruby rushed the words out, their chatting made her heart seize, she still wasn't good with crowds or really people at all, this was like her worst nightmare come true.
Silence greeted her, all the flowers swaying with their voices raised had stopped completely. A few moments passed before the tulip and a daisy whispered to one another. The conversation was too quiet for Ruby to catch and after they appeared to have finished the tulip lifted its leaf gesturing her to come closer. Ruby bent her head over the flower, her short dark hair brushing the blades of grass as she listened to the mouthless whispers.
"You must walk through Wonderland, you are needed deeper in."
"For what?" Ruby squinted confused
"We can not say!" The wind grew pushing the flowers, a stray leaf detached from the tulip but before it could flutter away it suddenly reattached itself to the stem, like the small action had never been.
"But if I leave now what will happen to my punishment?" Ruby hadn't wanted to mention the focus if their fury but the flowers behaviour was so odd she couldn't wrap her head around the sudden change.
"It was an accident seek out your quest and we will forgive." The flowers chanted in a chorus style. "Now go."
"But I don't know the way and I really need to go home." Talking flora was one thing but listening to them and going off on some sort of wild goose chase because they told her to was a bit unbelievable. Ruby looked back at her headmaster, Professor Ozpin stood by observing the scene, his form towered over her but his expression was soft and soothing, she had always felt safe in his presence. What was it he said, that this was all a dream? If that was true then she could wake up any moment. The flowers were speaking again and she returned her attention to the speaking flora more calm and comfortable with the situation.
"Why child, why come to a place if you don't know your destination." They were generally confused.
"I wasn't given a choice." Ruby remembered the way she had been kicked into the hole and the feeling of emptiness as she fell. It was such a peculiar thing. Had that been part of her dream also? What about the White Rabbit? It had all seemed so real before.
The flowers continue to speak to one another, fear tainting their voices "She will not make it. If she has come alone and not of her own free will, oh dear what shall we do?" The daisies squeaked together the shrill of their voices hurt Ruby's ears, what had happened to the melodious tone?
"She simply cannot go, not alone, not like this". One partially large flower shouted.
"But she must," Another chided. The patch of flowers began arguing, more voices added to the group and they became more rowdy by the second before a calm singular voice cut through the ridiculous babble.
"She will not be alone." A soft voice sounded from behind them.
All the flowers plus Ruby stare at the silver haired man, Ozpin had decided that enough was enough. His peaceful dream was shattered now but he was intrigued, something about this interaction between his pupil and a patch of talking weeds pulled at his curiosity and he wanted to understand the strange dream.
"I will go with miss Rose, wherever it is, but I want some information first." He said calmly but firmly.
"You will, go with the young Rose?" They asked as a collective disbelief evident in their tone.
"Well I don't think I will be getting anymore rest now." Ozpin held out his hand to Ruby effortlessly helping her to her feet.
Ruby sighed, even after four years of growing she hardly reached his shoulders, Professor Ozpin was annoyingly tall sometimes. Even with Ruby's growth spurt she still only stood at five feet and seven inches, unfortunately Professor Ozpin towered above her at six feet and six inches, Ruby really hated being short sometimes.
"But before we leave can you tell me some things." Ozpin prodding the flowers for information again.
"We know very little Sir, only what goes on in this place." The flowers chuckled, their voices changing to flirting tones. Ruby felt the childish urge to gag but refrained, she was no longer a child that and her childish behaviour had already gotten her into trouble twice today.
"Then I will ask only a simple question, where are we?" Ozpin pushed his glasses further up. The flowers howled in laughter their bodies shaking in unison while Ozpin looked as perplex as Ruby, they shared a look of confusion before ozpin cleared his thought addressing the patch of flora. "May I ask why that is so amusing?
"You came to this place but have no idea why." Their laughter started to die down but then it picked up again. A faint trail of red decorated the older man's cheeks. After a few more moments of the strange laughter one flower, a yellow tulip tilted her head upwards craning to see him "Why my dear, you are in Wonderland."