Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY. Also, I am not the best writer. You may notice some tense slips, or some typos, or whatever. Please let me know, and I'll try to fix them as soon as possible. I also apologize for the amount of separate paragraphs. Lots of dialogue and my own paranoia with making them too long.
Roman Torchwick and his group of borrowed cronies made their way through the darkened streets of Vale. The crook and his men stopped in front of the shop From Dust Till Dawn, glancing around and making sure there weren't many people around. After that, Roman led the black-suited men into the shop, casually smoking his cigar and taking a look around the store.
"Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a Dust shop open this late?" The orange-haired man spoke up, addressing the old man behind the counter. As he spoke, one of the henchmen brought a pistol up, pointed directly at the shopkeeper.
"Please! Just take my Lien and leave." Roman shushes the man, as if to calm him.
"Calm down, we're not here for your money," Torchwick said, before his voice harded and he addressed his men. "Grab the Dust." At his words, the other men spread out throughout the shop, starting to steal the Dust and making sure there was no one around. However, one of them noticed a short figure in the back, a small hand touching over magazine titles.
"Alright kid, put your hands where I can see 'em." He took out a sword and approached the girl. However, she doesn't react, her hand still casually touching the magazines as if nothing was wrong. "Hey, I said hands in the air! You got a death wish or somethin'?" He went up to the shorter person and put a hand on their shoulder, grabbing it along with their attention. The figure's hood gets pulled down, revealing a young girl with headphones on.
"Eh?" The girl let out a small noise of confusion as she got turned around, staring up at the man with listless, glazed-over eyes of silver, strange, faded scars everywhere. For some reason, they made the man uncomfortable despite the much more concerning things he's seen and done. Regardless, he pointed at his ear with a grimace, signaling the black-haired girl to take off the headphones.
Doing so, she tilted her her head and innocently asked, "Yes?"
"I said, put your hands in the air. Now!" The man was getting disgruntled at that point, his voice raised in annoyance.
"Are you...robbing me?"
"Yes!" He shouted, growing angry at the girl.
"Ahh." The much younger one said, as if realizing the situation. Back with Torchwick, he was examining one of the red crystals in boredom when one of his men flew past him, crashing into some merchandise. Unconcerned, he nodded his head in the direction he came from and sent another henchman to check it out. Moments later, him and another person flew through the store and crashed into the window, breaking it and sending them outside. The group of criminals all poked their head out, getting a good look through the broken glass at their assailant.
Seeing a young girl, weapon folding out into a scythe larger than her, Roman addressed the rest of his men. "Okay..." glancing to the men on either side of him, he finished, in an exasperated tone, "get her!" At once, the other criminals ran through the door and attacked the girl, a little confused as to why her eyes were closed. As the first man came close, the girl suddenly spun in place, using her scythe, and kicked him away, simultaneously pulling her scythe out of the ground and readying it.
A shot rang out, and the girl spun once more, the power of the shot from her scythe propelling her and allowing her to use her weapon to knock another crony up and out of the way. At the end of the swing, she twisted her body and position her scythe to hammer down on another unfortunate man in black, sending him to the ground quite painfully. And, with quick reflexes, she was able to immediately dodge the bullets sprayed at her from a remaining henchman, eyes still closed as she ran circles around him, kicked him into the air, and finished him off by slamming her weapon into his midsection, ramming him into the ground in front of Roman.
"You were worth every cent, truly you were," the orange-haired criminal muttered. "Well, Red, I think we can all say it's been an eventful evening!" Torchwick said, dropping his cigar and snuffing it out on the ground with his cane. "And as much as I'd like to stick around..." he pulled up his cane, a sight popping up, aimed at the girl. "This is where we part ways." With a loud, flaring noise, a firey projectile shot out at the girl in red, exploding violently as it hit the ground instead of her, as she jumped into the air at the last second. As soon as she landed, there was no hesitation as she jumped up onto the roof Roman was escaping to, rose petals left in her wake.
As he jumped up the last few rungs, Torchwick noticed the girl already on the rooftop. "What the- Tch, persistent..." Cornered, the man fired off another explosive round at the girl, making her dodge off to the side. However, that bought him enough time to run to the other edge of the rooftop, a bullhead rising up and allowing him to hop on. Turning around in the bullhead, seeing a ruffled and frowning girl, he held up the red crystal he was inspecting in the shop and shouted at her. "End of the line, Red!" And, with that, he threw the crystal down at her feet and shot it, making an even larger explosion ring out on the rooftop.
Roman let out a lough, gleeful cheer at the sight, but was quickly silence when the smoke cleared and saw another woman with Red, both completely unharmed. The other woman pushed up her glasses before swinging her arm, and the riding crop she was holding, at the bullhead, purple projectiles weaving in the air and rocking the bullhead as they hit. Roman, stumbling from the rocking, made his way to the cockpit. Shortly after, a woman in a dress took his place at the cargo area, fighting with the well-dressed blonde. The girl in red stood by, unsure of what to do with all the energy flaring around. Her uneasiness was soon assured, as she found herself flung away from an explosion by the blonde woman, and heard the bullhead distancing itself from them.
As things calmed down, the two left on the rooftop found themselves staring at each other wordlessly.
"I hope you realize that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly young lady." The blonde huntress was already prepared for a long tirade from the sound of it, pacing around the small room as she spoke to the hooded girl from earlier. "You put yourself and others in great danger."
The hooded girl grumbled slightly, "They started it..." The woman kept her pacing, ignoring the younger girl's words.
"If it were up to me, you'd be sent home," the tall blonde started, "with a pat on the back...and a slap on the wrist!" She punctuated her final statement with a loud slap of her riding crop on the table the younger girl was sitting at, causing her to jump in her chair, startled. "But...there's someone here who would like to meet you." With those words, the blonde stepped off to the side, a gray-haired man walking into the room with a plate and a cup.
"Ruby Rose," the man said, leaning closer to the girl and examining her eyes. "You have...been through a lot." Straightening his posture, the man resumed speaking as the blonde behind him played the fight with Torchwick's men over. "So! Where did you learn to do this?"
The now named Ruby was slightly hesitant, but answered him nonetheless. "Signal Academy...?"
Sounding skeptical, the man responded, "They taught you how to use one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed?"
"Well, one teacher in particular."
"I see..." he said, placing the plate down, cookies stacked on top of each other aimlessly. With a bit of hesitation, Ruby reached out slowly and took one, taking a bite to make sure it was alright. After that, she quickly finished it and started to eat the rest of them at the same pace, feeling quite hungry at that time. "It's just that...I've only seen one other scythe user of that skill before. A dusty old crow..."
The girl seemed to perk up slightly at that. "Oh, that's my uncle Qrow. He's a teacher at Signal. He took me under his wing, and helped me out with a lot of my problems." She didn't specify what problems she had, but her tone made it sound like it was more than just weapon problems.
"I see. And what is an adorable girl such as yourself doing at a school designed to train warriors?" The man set down his cup, coffee it seemed, and put his hands on the table, leaning forward a bit once more.
"Well," she started, hesitation holding her back again. "I want to be a huntress."
"You want to slay monsters." The way he said it made it sound like a statement, rather than a question.
"Something to that effect..." she muttered, before speaking up a bit more. "I only have two more years of training left at Signal, and then I'm going to apply to Beacon. My sister is starting there this year, and I want to help people. My sister as well." The wording was a bit awkward, as if she changed what she was going to say halfway through, but it got the point across.
After a moment of silence, the man spoke up again. "Do you know who I am?"
"Professor Ozpin, headmaster of Beacon," she stated. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
Ozpin chuckled lightly. "Hello. So, you want to come to my school?"
Leaning forward a bit, the girl nodded slightly. "More than anything, sir." Respect was in her voice, and it was stated factually, rather than pleadingly. Ozpin and the blonde shared a look, with the blonde rolling her eyes before looking away, making the gray-haired headmaster smirk ever so slightly.
"Well, okay." Anticlimactic, spoken quite casually. His words took her a moment to register, but Ruby ended up with a seemingly uncharacteristic, wide grin after processing that.
"I still can't believe my little sister is coming to Beacon with me! I'm so proud of you!" Blonde hair and a loud voice greeted Ruby as the airship began it's flight to Beacon.
Unperturbed, Ruby responded with "It was nothing, Yang."
"Are you kidding? It's incredible! Everyone at Beacon is going to think you're the bee's knees!"
If she didn't have her hood up, hiding her face, Yang might have backed off at the dirty glance sent her way. "I don't want to be the bee's knees. I just want to keep to myself...and have normal knees."
"What, aren't you excited?" Unable to read the mood as usual, the elder sister kept on talking, seemingly oblivious to her sister's mood.
"Of course I'm excited. But I got moved ahead two years, not to mention my other issues. I don't want people to think I'm special or treat me differently."
Yang's little pep talk quickly deflated, and she looked away, posture shrinking in on itself. "Right...I understand, I guess..." The short silence, in which Ruby struggled not to fall into the same old argument with her sister, was quickly broken by the sounds the blonde woman, introduced as Glynda Goodwitch, welcoming them to Beacon.
Yang looked out the window, gasps coming from students all around them as they approached Beacon. "Hey, there's Signal, down there!"
Ruby allowed herself a wry smile and she grabbed her sister's hand to gently squeeze it, feeling the blonde's haze on her. The touching moment was quickly ruined by the sounds of a boy retching. "I guess the view's not for everyone," Yang said with annoyance. Ruby's nose wrinkled up at the smell as the airship lowered down to allow them to exit.
The boy who vomited was the first to rush out, finding a trashcan to empty the rest of his stomach while the rest of the new students got off, ignoring or ridiculing him as they passed. The two sisters passed by without a glance, instead taking in the school grounds in their own ways. Yang had her arms behind her head, grinning as she looked all around and examined every detail she could. Ruby, on the other hand, just stared straight ahead, content with listening to all the other students wander around.
After a few moments, Ruby heard a small group approach them and her sister seemed sheepish as she spoke up. "Sis, my friends are here. Will you be alright by yourself?" Suppressing a sigh, the shorter girl nodded and waved Yang off.
"You know I'll be fine, Yang. Go." With one last concerned glance at Ruby, the elder sister took off with her friends to explore the grounds. Finally releasing the sigh she was holding, the girl in red double checked her gear, including the weapon on her back, before stepping forward to head out.
And promptly tripped on a cart with multiple suitcases on it, crashing onto the ground and knocking a few of the cases off. Having been distracted by her sister and her own self-consciousness, the short girl never even realized what was around her, used to people keeping their distance from each other.
"Hey! Watch where you're going, you klutz!" A female voice shouted at her, making Ruby tilt her head up in the direction of the voice. "Those cases are full of Dust! Do you know how much damage you could have caus-" The yelling girl stopped short as she neared the fallen girl and got a good look at her face, hood having slipped down. Closed eyes. Faint scars, like her own, but much worse, all over. While the white-haired girl was stunned, Ruby got up and dusted herself off before attending to the cases she knocked off, gently placing them back on the cart.
"I'm sorry, miss. I wasn't looking where I was going, I suppose." Ruby's voice had a hint of humor in it, and broke the other girl out of her stupor. Flustered, and unsure of how to react, the girl responded mostly out of habit.
"W-Well, make sure it doesn't happen again, you dolt!" And with that, she stormed off, some men taking the cart and following the moody girl.
"Jeez...I said I was sorry. What a princess," Ruby muttered, senses acute and aware to make sure something like that doesn't happen again. Years! Years of this, but she's still so clumsy some times...
"Heiress, actually. Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company," a voice from behind said, though Ruby was aware of her walking by. But, before the short girl could start up a conversation with the new stranger, the other girl kept walking and just blew past her. Seemed kind of rude, really.
"Is everyone here going to just snub me? Is it because I'm younger than them or what?" Disgruntled, Ruby was about to move on and follow the rest of the students, but a voice called out and stopped her. Great, another interaction to deal with...
"Hey! You alright?" A male's voice. It seemed familiar...Ah, the guy who retched all over the airship.
"Oh, I'm fine. Thanks for asking..?"
"Jaune. Jaune Arc. I saw what happened and wanted to make sure you were alright," the newly introduced Jaune said, rubbing the back of his head. Ruby, antisocial as she was, just wanted to get the day over with. She was already exhausted, and she'd only been here for a few minutes!
"Ruby Rose. I think we should get going, yes?" As she finished speaking, a voice over the loudspeakers called the new students to report in. "See? Come on, let's go." Without waiting for a respond, the girl in red walked towards the school building, following the sounds of other students. She also heard Jaune run to catch up to her before settling in with her pace. Though she was used to silence, she could tell the boy was uncomfortable with it and was trying to find something to say. Sighing mentally, she decided to throw him a bone. "So...what kind of weapon do you use?"
Jaune blinked a couple times, not really prepared for that kind of question, but responded by drawing his sword and expanding the sheath into a shield. "Er, a sword. And a shield! How about you? I don't see anything on you."
Idly, she noted that he didn't say anything about his weapons having any ranged capabilities. Perhaps a love for the old classics? Regardless, she took Crescent Rose off of her back and released it, scythe form gliding out smoothly and startling Jaune. "A scythe that's also a high-impact sniper rifle. I...kind of went overboard when designing it, I guess."
"Wait, you designed that thing?" Ruby was a tad surprised at his own surprise.
"All students at Signal designed their own weapons. Didn't you?"
Hesitation. "Well...I didn't go to that kind of school. This is a hand-me-down from my grandfather, who fought in the war." And with that, another slightly uncomfortable silence fell between them. But their little chat passed enough time, and soon they were in a large room along with all the other first year students. Hearing her loud, blonde sibling in the crowd, Ruby excused herself politely from Jaune to go stand with her sister.
"Aw man, now where am I going to find a quirky girl to talk to?" Ruby's ears caught his voice over the din of the other students, and she couldn't decide how to react to those words. So, with a slight blush, the hooded girl sidled up to her older sister and waited, wordlessly, for someone to speak.
By the time Yang realized her sister was next to her, it was too late. Professor Ozpin came up to the stage in front of the students, clearing his voice in the microphone to catch everyone's attention and silence them.
"I'll keep this brief," he started, after all the students quieted down. "You've traveled here today in search of knowledge. To hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you're finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."
After finishing his speech, he stepped away and allowed Glynda to take the microphone. "You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You're dismissed." And with that the students began to talk among themselves once more.
"He seemed...off," Yang said to Ruby.
She agreed. "It was almost like he wasn't even there."
"It's like a big slumber party!" Yang dropped down on her bedding, next to Ruby, as her eyes scanned the people around them.
"I doubt Dad would approve of all the boys," was the younger girl's response. They, along with everyone else, were dressed in their pajamas. Ruby's grimm-eyed sleep mask was drawn over her eyes, hiding them along with the scars, since she didn't have a hood to hide behind. It drew a few strange looks from the people around them, since she was still awake and functioning normally, but overall nothing came from it.
"I know I do," the elder replied, growling playfully and looking over said boys. Then, taking on a slightly more serious tone, Yang asked Ruby a question. "Did you at least try to make friends today, sis?"
Ruby couldn't help the sigh that escaped her lips at the familiar question. "There was an attempt," was the succinct answer given. Yang returned the sigh at that answer, poking her sister in the side and making her flinch.
"C'mon Ruby, you can't just stay in your own little bubble the whole time..."
"I talked to people. Like, two people! Jaune seemed like an okay guy. Does that make you feel better?" As she spoke about him, Jaune walked past the duo, waving a bit and making Yang cringe slightly at his choice of pajamas.
"Okay, okay. I just worry about you, you know?" Yang and Ruby's attentions were drawn to a nearby wall as the sound of something lighting caught their ears. A girl with black hair and a bow was reading by candlelight off to the side, and Yang saw an opportunity. Without saying anything, the elder sister took Ruby's arm and dragged her over to the girl, intruding upon her reading time.
The stranger looked up after hearing the struggling Ruby fight against her older sister's grip. "..aren't you the girl that tripped over the Schnee's luggage?"
Yang looked at Ruby questioningly and the younger girl just hung her head, recognizing that voice from earlier. "Y-Yeah. That's me. My name's Ruby, and this is my sister Yang." Awkwardly, she held her hand out for a moment, before quickly retracting, not even giving the girl a chance to respond to it.
Yang just looked at her sister, exasperated. "What are you doing?" She whispered, loudly. Ruby just turned her head and grimaced, translating to something like 'I don't know, help me!' "What's your name?" The blonde asked to the girl who had gone back to her reading.
"...Blake," she said, looking up from her book rather annoyed.
"Nice night, right?" Yang said, doggedly trying to keep a conversation going. The two sisters looked just as awkward as the situation felt.
"Yes, it's..lovely. Almost as lovely as this book. Which I'm going to continue to read. As soon as you leave."
Yang complained about the girl being a lost cause, but Ruby took a step closer, curious. "What's it about? The book, I mean."
A bit surprised, Blake slowly responded. "It's about a man with two souls, fighting for control over his body."
Ruby smiled, a bit wistfully. "I love books. Yang used to read to me all the time, and I just kept looking for books whenever I could. Though, the books I read now are a bit different than before...They're part of the reason I want to become a huntress, the stories of heroes and such."
Blake's curiosity was piqued at this point. "Why? You hope to live happily ever after or something?"
"I hope we all do," was the response. "And I know the real world isn't like a fairy tail, or whatever your response would be. But that's why we're here, right?" Blake was a bit caught off guard by Ruby's words, and reading her response so easily.
The mood was quickly broken though, as Yang came in and squeezed Ruby against her. "Oh, I'm so proud of my baby sister!" But the hug was quickly broken off, though the blonde clearly wanted to do much more to show her approval. This made Blake raise a brow, but any questioning was cut off by another girl entering the scene.
"What in the world is going on over here? Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?" She hissed, causing Yang to prepare a loud retort. However, her younger sister stopped her before a shouting match could happen.
"Yang, she's right. And we should be trying to sleep too, we have something important to do tomorrow." The eldest sister pouted and puffed out her cheeks, making Weiss question if she was actually the younger one despite her stature. Sighing, Blake decided to just blow out her candles and force everyone off to bed.
After all, tomorrow would be a very busy day. And a very eventful one, not that any of them knew that yet.