Decided to go one(+) more. I couldn't just leave Ruby in the hospital.

Fred walked into St. Cloud Hospital for the second time in three days. A little over an hour ago, he got a call from the hospital saying that Ruby, the girl he picked up from the side of the interstate, was ready to be discharged. The problem was, she didn't have anywhere to go besides back out on the streets. The hospital couldn't even tell if Ruby was an American citizen, or if she had any insurance. It was either Fred or Natalie pick the girl up, or they'd have no choice but to send her to an orphanage.

Not willing to let that happen, Fred drove back up to St. Cloud to take Ruby to his house. Still, he felt really, really awkward about taking a teenage girl he didn't know home with him. If his friends in the marching band knew about this, he'd doubtlessly end up the butt of every crude, vulgar, humiliating joke and rumor. It wouldn't matter if they knew that Fred picked up Ruby while she was unconscious on the side of the road and had saved her life.

He sat in the waiting room for a few minutes until a nurse showed up with Ruby in tow. That was the first time that Fred got a good look at the girl. She was a short one, her head just coming up to his shoulders. About as tall as his sister, actually. Fred thought he was pale before Band Camp, but Ruby looked like she hadn't seen any sun in a few months. As far as he could tell, Ruby wore the same stuff as when he picked her up off the interstate. Her clothes looked like something out of a Victorian-themed anime, with a black-and-red corset, skirt, boots, and a cape. It was rather odd, to say the least.

Still, she was up and walking around, and that was the important thing. Ruby didn't even have a scar on her forehead from where the cut was. Sure, she looked as uncomfortable with the situation as Fred felt, but she looked physically healthy and intact.

Fred walked over to the girl and stuck his hand out. "Hello, I'm Fred Olson."

Ruby hesitantly took the outstretched hand and shook it. "I'm Ruby Rose…So you're the one who rescued me from the road?"

"Me and a cousin anyway. We couldn't exactly leave you there. The shoulder on an interstate isn't exactly the best place to take a nap."

"It wasn't exactly my choice." Somehow, Ruby looked even smaller than she was.

Fred winced. Apparently the girl wasn't in a joking mood, which was completely understandable. "Look, I know this is an awkward situation for all of us. If you're not comfortable with this, I'm sure the police or someone here could find another place for you to stay."

Ruby shrugged. "It was this or an orphanage, they told me."

Fred nodded, then looked at his watch. "We should probably get going if we want to beat rush hour." He looked at the nurse that accompanied Ruby. "Is she all checked out?"

The nurse nodded. "Yes. You two are free to go."

"Okay then, I'll go get my car." Fred looked back at Ruby. "It's on the other side of the lot and you're not exactly wearing winter clothing." Ruby nodded slowly, then Fred turned around and walked into the frigid afternoon air. It was warmer than three nights ago, but not by much. A cold front moved in and school districts across the state were closed due to cold weather and wind chill. Fred rolled his eyes at the thought. This was Minnesnowta. Those kids could take the cold.

Fred arrived at his car and got in. Luckily it hadn't completely frozen over on the inside. He drove under the overhang and waited for Ruby to come out. When she did, she sprinted from inside the building over to the passenger side door. She flung open the door, took a seat, and closed the door in what looked like a single motion. After shivering for a second, she said, "It's freezing out there!"

"Could be worse." Fred put his Camaro into drive and pulled out of the parking lot. "Some places north of us are getting fifty mile an hour winds."

Ruby shivered again. "That can't be easy. I wonder how much Weiss had to deal with this."

"Weiss?" Fred half turned to look at Ruby.

"She's a friend." She looked around the Camaro for the first time. "This is a nice car."

Fred smirked. "Yep. Not many college juniors can say that they have their dream car, and even less can say that they didn't have to pay anything for it."

"Wait, what?"

"I won a contest earlier in the year. One out of over a hundred thousand chance, and I got this baby." Fred grimaced. "Sometimes I wish I didn't win though. The taxes and insurance are killing me."

Ruby nodded unsurely, then turned around. "Wait, there was another person in here when you picked me up? How'd you manage that?"

"Natalie and I laid you against the side with your legs across the seats. Don't ask me why they put seats back there though. There is literally no leg room." Fred turned onto I-94 south and hit the gas. "You hungry? There's a really nice bakery farther along the road. There's also a few Culver's further along."

"What's at the bakery?" Ruby sounded genuinely interested.

"Doughnuts, cinnamon rolls, cookies, pretty much anything you'd expect. It's really good stuff."

"That would be nice, but... I don't exactly have any money." Ruby shrunk into her seat.

"I'll take care of that. It's not like they're five bucks a pop." Fred took his phone out of his pocket. "Mind if I put on some music?"

Ruby shrugged. "You're driving." Fred set his phone beneath the dash and opened Spotify. He opened his 'Random Mix' playlist. The sound of a violin mixed with drums and electric guitars played over the speakers. Of course Skillet was one of the first bands up, even though he had it on shuffle. Apparently Ruby recognized the music. "Wait, is that Frying Pan?" Fred looked over and saw a look of genuine confusion on the girl's face.

"Close enough. Skillet's made that joke once or twice. You listen to them?"

"Maybe?" Ruby stared at the radio, eyes narrowed and unblinking.

"If you don't like it, I can change it."

"No. I like this song." Ruby closed her eyes and laid back in her seat. Fred watched her through the corner of his eye. Skillet wasn't exactly the kind of band that lulls a person to sleep. They also had a very distinct sound. Ruby should know if she listens to their music.

Fred turned off the interstate at the right exit and pulled into Nelson's Bakery. Luckily there was a spot close to the entrance so Ruby wouldn't have to spend too much time outside in the frigid air. They both ran into the warmth of the bakery and were immediately immersed in the smell of freshly baked goods.

Ruby looked at the selection and her eyes bulged out of her head. Fred simply smirked. "I told you they had good stuff here."

"These things are the size of my head!" Ruby gestured at the oversized cookies. "If size says how good they taste, they're amazing!" That got a hearty laugh from the people behind the counter.

"I don't think there's anything here that isn't good." Fred walked over to the counter. "Tell you what, you just got out of the hospital, I'll get you five of these things." Ruby's smile grew, then she turned back to the counter to pick different flavors out.

Fred's phone vibrated in his pocket, accompanied by his Avengers themed notification sound. He took out his phone and saw what the interruption was about. His heart dropped into his stomach. "Son of a…" he said, louder than he wanted to.

Ruby turned around from the counter. "What's going on?"

"Omaha's being attacked by Grimm." Fred opened his contacts to call a cousin that lived in the city. It took a few rings, but the call was answered. "Caleb, what's going on down there?"

"I don't know," Caleb said over the phone. "The tornado sirens went off, police started streaming toward downtown, TV and radio stations are telling everyone to stay inside, and to grab guns if you have 'em."

"You're not in that area, are you?"

"No. It's more toward Omaha U. I was by the zoo when the warning went out. I'm home now and dad's got his rifle upstairs."

Fred sighed in relief. Uncle Kevin was a soldier who served in Desert Storm. He wasn't particularly decorated or anything, but he knew his way around a rife. "You think you'll be safe there?"

"Hopefully, but then again, look what happened to Duluth." Fred nodded sadly. Duluth was one of the failed defenses against the Grimm. At first, the police and locals looked like they would be able to hold them back. Then the giant elephant came in. It must've been hundreds of feet tall, with dozens of large bony spikes all over its back, coal-black skin, and orange-red eyes.

Nothing the locals had could stop it. They were all forced to the long island between mainland Minnesota and Wisconsin, crammed in like sardines. It took an entire day, dozens of tanks and jets, and over a thousand infantry, all armed with high caliber weapons, just to take it down.

The mainland portion of the city was almost completely leveled, and the death toll was enormous; twenty-five-thousand people estimated dead. People had to be air- and boat-lifted off the island because the bridge connecting the island to the city had been destroyed.

After the disaster, the Air Force had fighters in the air over the entire country twenty-four-seven. Every place in the US could have at least one jet overhead in under an hour if needed. Everyone was on high alert, and Washington would be taking no chances. It was 9/11 all over again.

"That's the only elephant that's been seen so far. I think you'll be fine if that's what you're worried about."

"Dude, don't jinx me."

"Just stay inside, and I can't believe I'm saying this, get out and get some Krispy Kreme when it's over."

"Don't have to tell me twice. I'll call back when this is all over." The line went dead and Fred returned the phone to his pocket.

"How far away is Omaha?" Ruby asked. Fred looked at the girl to see a surprising determination in her eyes. Her whole body was stiff and her fists clenched. She looked like she was ready to fight.

"A few hundred miles southwest of here. We're safe from that batch." Fred walked over the counter again. "I'll take one of the chocolate covered long johns, and I'm paying for her too." He pointed a thumb at Ruby.

"How are you not freaking out about this?" the girl asked.

"Like I said, Omaha's a few states away. There's no way the Grimm will make it here. It's not like I could do anything about it anyway." Fred grimaced. "Though I think most of the U.S. is going numb to these attacks, unless it's in their own state."

"…I guess I can understand that."

"That's the way the world is now." Fred payed for their food. Then he and Ruby sprinted back to his Camaro and got back on the road. A few miles down, Fred looked at the three boxy cases on Ruby's belt. "What's in those boxes anyway? Tablets? School supplies?"

Ruby grabbed one of the cases off her belt. "Two of them have .50 caliber Dust rounds of various types."

".50 caliber what?" Fred knew that .50 caliber bullets were huge, lethal, and illegal for civilian use in most states, even with the Grimm threat.

"Very large bullets." She smirked at the case.

Fred couldn't hold back a laugh. "Okay, if you don't want to tell me what's in there, you don't have to." Ruby opened up the case in response. A single massive, red bullet popped out the opening. Fred nearly lost control of his car when he saw it. "Uh, why do you have…what is that even, incendiary ammo?"

"Close. It's Burn Dust. Explodes and tends to start fires on impact." Ruby pushed the bullet back in and sealed the ammo magazine. "As to why, I may not look like it, but I fight Grimm. I'm fairly good at it too."

"I-I'm tempted to believe that. Where would you even get that kind of ammo?"

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." Ruby sank farther into her seat.

"Try me." Fred would believe almost anything at that point.

Ruby looked down at her lap, then back at Fred. "I'm not exactly from Earth."

...Except for that. "Okay, you lost me." For the rest of the drive, Ruby told Fred about where she came from, a place called Vale, on a planet called Remnant. At first, Fred didn't believe what he was hearing. What she described shouldn't be possible. How would anything be powered by dust?

As Ruby went on though, the sheer length of her explanation gave her credibility. What she was saying couldn't be made up on the spot. There was also the fact that the hospital couldn't tell if she legally existed, and then there were the bullets that she carried nonchalantly.

As Fred took the exit that lead to Blaine, Ruby explained her team's mission before they got separated. "Then the bomb exploded. The next thing I remember is falling into a snowdrift in the forest."

Fred ran a hand over his face as he waited at a stoplight. "Let me get this straight. You're essentially training to become a mercenary, you fight the Grimm easily, you have superpowers, and you got here because of a bomb blowing up." He sighed. "This sounds like a bad fanfiction."

"I know, but it's the truth." Ruby sank into her seat. "I can show you Crescent Rose if it helps you believe me."

"No, that's fine." Fred pulled onto his street. Why had they let her keep a massive sniper rifle in the first place? "So about winter clothes, I'm sure my sister can take you to a J.C. Penney's or something tomorrow. I think I heard her say something about the Mall of America too."

"Thanks…" Ruby said sheepishly.

Fred pulled into his home's driveway and parked next to a car older than he was. As he turned the car off, he remembered one possibly very important piece of information that he should have said back in St. Cloud. "Uh... you're not allergic to cats, are you?"

Ruby perked up at that. "You've got a kitty?"

"A couple of month-old kittens to be precise."

"Aww!" Ruby's eyes practically sparkled. "They adopt them out that young here?"

"Not typically. One of my grandpas lives on a farm down south. He 'adopted' some stray cats, but didn't have them spayed or neutered. So now, we have kittens, and they're the friendliest little balls of fur you'll know."

"I want to see the kitties!" Ruby unbuckled and opened the door. "Ooh! It's still freezing out here!"

Summer Rose felt better than she had in years. She didn't care that she was in danger of being shot at any second, or the fact that she could cook an egg on her sword given the current temperature. Someone else from Remnant made it to Earth, and she was her baby girl's partner no less! There was also a good chance that Ruby was on Earth as well, given the circumstances.

At the same time, that last part terrified Summer. While Earth was far safer from Grimm compared to Remnant, there were several countries in the world that wouldn't exactly welcome foreigners with open arms. She was in one of them. Also, Ruby could very well be on her own. Weiss said that Ruby could take care of herself, that she was strong and capable, but Summer still worried about her daughter.

At the moment, her squad, plus Weiss, were going to investigate reports of Grimm a few miles west of Baghdad. At first, Summer's superiors didn't want Weiss anywhere but on a plane to Frankfurt or another safe city. After an impromptu sparring match though, Summer was able to convince them to allow Weiss to come along.

The heiress looked out of place in the back of the APC. She was the only one not wearing standard combat gear, though it was rather justified, given that Weiss was to short and small for anything else and her white skirt actually was her standard combat gear.

The only difference between her normal attire compared to now was the flat shoes Summer loaned her. Heels didn't exactly work in desert combat. The elder Huntress made it clear that if anyone made the girl feel uncomfortable, she would personally remove their manhood. No one even looked at Weiss after that threat.

Weiss herself didn't look that comfortable either, and it had nothing to do with her being in an APC with a bunch of soldiers. Summer wasn't exactly a mind reader, but she thought Weiss was either missing her friends, or more likely, she felt awkward spending time with her partner's supposedly dead mother.

"We have contact! Twelve o'clock!" Someone up front called. "Looks like a large group of Werewolves and a few Bears." Beowolves. Ursai.

"Alright ladies," Summer said, once again in mission mode, "form up on Jones when we get outside. And check your fire, some of us are going to get up close and personal."

"Sir! Yes, sir!" came the chorus of soldiers. Weiss just grabbed her rapier. The large machine gun on top of the APC started firing as the vehicle came to a halt. The back door opened and the soldiers quickly filed out. Weiss slowly followed them, leaving Summer to take up the rear.

Out in the desert heat, a horde of hundreds of Beowolves and a dozen large Ursai turned to look at the newcomers. The other members of Summer's squad rapidly fired at the Grimm, cutting down the front ranks rather quickly. Weiss stood behind the line of soldiers, then looked up at Summer. The older Huntress smiled and drew her own sword. It had been far too long since she'd taken Sun's Light out on a mission.

"Hold fire!" the squad leader called. The soldiers obeyed, though not without hesitation. "We're going to show you boys how Huntresses deal with monsters." Summer nodded at Weiss, then looked at a spot directly in front of the Grimm. She activated her Semblance, and she was there in an instant.

Immediately after she teleported, Summer started slashing through Grimm. At first, she met no resistance as she passed through their ranks, but after she was surrounded, the monsters started to lunge for her. Summer looked straight up in the air and teleported again. Now airborne, she switched Sun's Light to its sniper form and started shooting at the Grimm below her. The recoil on her weapon kept her in the air. It looked like the experimental gunpowder was working just fine.

As she was in the air, Summer saw Weiss also cutting through the Grimm. The girl used the distinctive Schnee family Glyph Semblance to great effect. Bouncing off of them, she sped around the Grimm, barely letting any of them touch her. One thing that was strikingly absent though was the summoning. The Schnee Family was always so proud of it, and used it whenever they could. Why wasn't Weiss doing so now? It would have made things much easier.

Summer was brought back into her own thoughts as she heard a click from her weapon. Out of ammo, she fell back to the ground. She flipped Sun's Light back into its sword form and stabbed it through the head of an Ursa Major. Back on the ground, Summer cut, slashed, and stabbed her way through many more Grimm.

As the last Beowolf fell and began dissolving away, Summer let her sword arm fall to her side. She hadn't had a good fight like that in years. She looked over at Weiss, who was panting and sweating up a storm. It had to be the heat more than anything. Schnees never did like the heat.

Suddenly, the sand shook beneath Summer. A few seconds later, an absolutely titanic Deathstalker burst out from beneath the desert. Both Huntresses fell into a defensive position. Then, a thought struck Summer. "Weiss, give me some speed." As she spoke, she flicked the switch for the third mode of Sun's Light. The whole blade started spinning around, faster and faster until it was a blur. Sure, she could only swing the now-buzz saw up and down, but that was all that was needed.

A large Glyph appeared under Summer's feet and a few more leading towards the Grimm. Summer ran faster than her ever had before, right at the monstrous arachnid. Instead of jumping to give herself the normal edge needed to kill the Grimm, she just plunged the saw in between the scorpion's eyes. The added speed was enough to completely break through and shatter the creature's bone mask. Once that was gone, the saw tore the monster's head in half.

Summer stopped her spinning blade, reformed it to its base mode and sheathed her sword. She turned around to face Weiss and smiled. "Piece o' cake."

Weiss just blinked. "Wow. Ruby fights a lot like you do."

The mention of her daughter made Summer smile even more. "I'll have to see for myself someday soon."

"Lieutenant!" One of the soldiers back by the APC yelled. "The Colonel says we need to get back to base as soon as possible."

"Alright then, ladies!" Summer yelled. "Load it back up. I want to be out of here in less than two mikes!" There was another round of 'Yes sir', then the squad filed back into the APC.

"How can you be so formal and so much like Ruby at the same time?" Weiss asked Summer as they walked back to the APC. "I always thought those two terms were contradictions of each other."

"Well, since you're going to Beacon, you obviously aren't the military type." Summer switched back to her friendly voice. "And since you're friends with Ruby, you can't be completely uptight."

"Hey!"

Summer smirked. "If Yang is anything like she was back before I left, I'm sure you get that kind of flack all the time."

"Everyday, practically." The two Huntresses entered the back of the APC and the hatch closed behind them.

"Hey, Weiss, was it?" Private Parker asked the girl. "That was... incredible, out there. Your drink's on me when we get back to base."

Weiss recoiled. "I'm only seventeen, you dolt!" Parker's face blanched, as did several others in the squad.

Summer narrowed her eyes and growled. "Parker. What did I say about losing your manhood?" No one spoke the rest of the way to the base. There wasn't even any after-mission banter. No one wanted to risk the wrath of Summer Rose.

The APC arrived at base and Summer walked to the command building with Weiss in tow. Even though she respected most of the soldiers around her, there were some among them who she wouldn't trust with a goldfish, much less Weiss' safety. As such, the heiress followed Summer almost everywhere, save the most classified meetings.

This apparently wasn't one of them. Summer met the Colonel outside her own office, which was very strange, given the man's typical by the book attitude. Then again, it was weird that Summer had an office in the first place. Summer saluted the man. "You wanted to see me, Colonel?"

"Yes, I did." He cast a glance at Weiss, then looked back at Summer. "Your friends in the FBI think they found some more of your people. They sent you an email with the identities of those they believe are from Remnant."

Summer blinked. "With all due respect sir, how did you know about this?"

The Colonel scowled. "They sent me an email saying that, depending on your findings, you may be headed back stateside a few weeks early. I don't know why you're so special. The Secretary of Defense himself signed the order."

"Ask my squad what Weiss here and I did to that Grimm horde. If there are others from Remnant, we need to have them on our side. Now if you'll please excuse us, Colonel." Summer walked past her superior and into her office.

As soon as the door closed behind Weiss and Summer and they heard footsteps leading away on the other side, the older Huntress let her current emotions be known. "Please be Ruby and Yang. Please be Ruby and Yang..." She quickly sat down behind her computer and worked to get to her e-mail. Sure enough, there was one from her former boss at the FBI titled '3 possibilities.'

Summer opened it up and the first thing she saw was a picture of a girl with black hair and a bow in her hair. "That's Blake!" Weiss practically yelled.

"Your fourth teammate?" Summer asked. Weiss nodded frantically. "Okay, looks like she's in Plano, Texas. She went to the police there saying that she's looking for the rest of your team." Summer tried not to let her eyes freeze on the names of her two daughters. "She also left the station before the FBI could offer her shelter. They don't know where she is now."

Summer scrolled down the e-mail to show a beautiful young woman with a staggering amount of blonde hair. Concerned lilac eyes shone in the police station image.

Aside from the color differences, Yang looked so much like her birth mother and Summer's teammate, Raven. "There you are, Little Sun Dragon." Summer felt tears form in her eyes. "New York, huh? I'm sure you'll love it there." She looked up where her step-daughter was staying, and let out a chuckle. It was the same apartment that she stayed in during her last months with the Bureau.

"She does like downtown Vale," Weiss admitted.

"Sorry kid, but Vale ain't got nothing on The Big Apple." Summer scrolled down more until the name 'Ruby Rose' was at the bottom of the screen. Her throat clenched up, and she could barely breath. She scrolled down one tick more, and the words 'hospital record' appeared.

Summer's heart dropped into her stomach. My Ruby? In the hospital? She scrolled down more to see the full story. A picture of an unconscious Ruby with a large cut on her head appeared on screen. Summer covered her gaping mouth with a hand and tears streaked from her eyes.

"Oh my god," Weiss breathed. "What happened?"

Summer read the report out loud. "Ruby was picked up on the side of Interstate 94 by Fred Olson and Natalie Landry. She was treated for hypothermia and head trauma at St. Cloud hospital. Released at 3:00 PM local time yesterday to…Fred Olson?" One of her eyes twitched and she scrolled down even more. A picture of the two leaving the hospital together showed up, Ruby walking under her own power, and both looking like they wanted to be anywhere else.

"Who is this guy?" Luckily, her former boss answered that question for her. Fred was a junior at North Dakota State University, majoring in emergency management and minoring in music. He had no criminal history whatsoever, not even a speeding ticket. His family showed much of the same, and hefty charity work from every one of them. On the surface they looked fine, but what were they like in the dark?

Then Summer read the words 'under surveillance.' If anything could have calmed her racing heart, it was that. Whoever this person was, he wasn't going to so much as look at Ruby funny without the FBI knowing about it. Summer laid her head down on her keyboard and let her tears of relief flow. She couldn't control herself and started sobbing. She then looked skyward. Thank you! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU!

"This sounds like a bad fanfiction." Fred would be good at fanfiction sins (ding!)

Yes, I know Ruby has Zwei, but I can really see her enjoying being cuddled and licked to death by a couple of kittens.