A.N: Guess what? Another chapter! Sorry for the long wait it's just that a lot happened in my life all at once. My GF dumped me, my antidepressants began failing me and needed an increase. I was locked up in the psych ward for suicidal depression for two days and… Like I said, A LOT. But through it all, I've managed to keep this up.

Also, I think I got the continuity error in my plot all figured out; though it will be edited in the rewrite of this when (if) I finish this and don't run into a road block.

Here's how it goes: The episode "Ruby Rose" takes place before the "Yellow Trailer" (I.E the robbery and the bar fight take place in two different nights.) The chapter "Arrival" where Yang and Ruby fight Lilly takes place after the "Yellow Trailer". The part where Cole wakes up and starts healing takes at least a whole day so that's the day after the night where his twin ends up in the hospital. This chapter takes place during the day where Ruby and Yang are just getting into Beacon so the initiation and the meeting between the two groups will be in the next chapter.

Do note that I WILL RETCON ALL OF THIS IN THE REWRITE!

Now that I think I got that mess all out of the way, enjoy the chapter!

(BEWARE! There are some medical terms that I ended up putting in here for the sake of the story.)

"… but now you know why and how I heal as fast as I do." Cole finished. Taking a sip of tea Veronica's doppelganger had been kind enough to bring him. The girl, Amelia, just looked at him with a blank stare. In her eyes he could see she was processing everything that he'd told her.

After the long drawn out silence, the village healer put down her own cup and finally spoke. "That sounds… well, insane!" she exclaimed with a shaken tone. Holding her head as though she didn't want to believe him.

The wastelander chuckled at her reaction. "Well, you wanted to know. That is my story." He gave her a nonchalant shrug of the shoulders as if it didn't bother him; still watching the girl in front of him whilst taking another sip. Behind his friendly demeanor, Cole didn't blame her for the reaction she'd given him. Even though he'd only told her a half-truth, twisting his story so she wouldn't know too much about him and where he'd come from; If he had told her where he'd really come from, well… Cole knew her reaction wouldn't be as "understanding" as it was.
Any sane person would think that a world that had destroyed itself would be impossible to live in; let alone for them to still possess technology to transport someone from said world to this one and still be alive. But here he was, sitting in front of her as living testament to his sister's experiment. All he needed for Amelia to do was believe his story and not go shouting from the rooftops that he was an outsider in every sense of the word.

He set down his tea cup and mulled over what she had told him of her own world. A deal the two had made, in exchange for him telling her of his world, she would tell him of hers. Amelia had given him a brief history lesson on the world of Remnant, apparently this world's version of Earth. The continents were divided by Kingdoms and the one he was currently in was Vale; known for its prestigious academy of training youths into huntresses and huntsmen, and the vast shipping fleet it possessed. She'd explained the use of an element known as "Dust" and how it was used to help battle the creatures known as "Grimm". Although it also helped in making life simpler for peoples everyday lives.

"Much like uranium in our world." He thought silently. Except this Dust didn't seem to have the extreme destructive capabilities, nor the hazardous health risks, like the radioactive material their world had come to rely upon so much. "Still, we're more alike than I would have thought."

Amelia continued to stay silent. Content to simply rub the sides of her head while she thought over everything the man in front of her had just said.

Cole, his father hadn't given him nor his twin a last name after their mother died in child birth, had explained to her how he had been a forced test subject in the government's sick twisted experiment after his father had been killed. Their work was on something called "mutagens;" some type of genetic body enhancement that was meant to increase strength and agility. He'd went on to tell her how people were forced to live underground because the surface was uninhabitable, having been destroyed by something called "atomic fire" and that almost everywhere underground was under permanent martial law. He eventually told her how they'd forced him and his sister into becoming lab rats for some kind of experimental teleportation device and that was why they'd found him so badly burnt.

His whole story sounded so strange to her, and yet, she couldn't help but feel sympathy for Cole. The man had gone through so much in life and was still alive, unbroken by the challenges life had thrown at him.
She lowered her hands to hold her teacup and stared down into the brown liquid. A thought occurred to her and she asked her question with hesitation. "Where… do you think your sister could be?" she didn't have the stomach to look him in the eye when she spoke.

Amelia's question had caught the wastelander somewhat off guard. Cole had, of course, given plenty of thought as to where Lilly might be throughout his time confined to his sick bed. Even in his sleep nightmares had plagued him with what might've happened to her.
Given the new information he now had, the wastelander had to consider where his counterpart could be. Remnant wasn't as small as their broken continent of America. He'd also given thought as to what condition she could be in. Was she like him? A half burnt corpse rotting away somewhere? The questions and worries he had plagued him. Eventually Cole turned his fear in to fuel his, stoking his determination to find her that much more.

He stared at a spot on the table for a time, unsure of how to answer her question. "I don't know." He finally said in a soft tone. Cole tried his best to keep the worry from over taking him. Turning his head to look out the window, he gazed out at the greenery that covered Amelia's world. The sky was painted a shade of blue he'd only seen in picture books when he was. "But I intend to find her, wherever she might be," he stated. Looking back at Amelia who was now looking at him with a blank expression.

The healer adverted her gaze and idly toyed with the cup in her hands. "But what if she's…" Amelia didn't finish her sentence though both of them knew what she meant. She could feel Cole's eyes on her and it caused her to squirm in her spot. They both remained silent, neither one wanted to think about the prospect of a family member possibly being lost.

Footsteps from outside drew their attention away from the morbid topic. They heard the door open and the man that had stayed at Cole's bedside came around the corner. "Amy, I'm home~!" he sang out, his voice more of a rumble than anything else. He stopped short upon seeing the wastelander sitting at their table. "Who's this?"

Cole detected the suspicion behind the man's voice; the wastelander saw it clearly through the thin veil of his calm demeanor. Deciding to defuse the situation quickly before things could get out of hand, the wastelander stood and turned to him in full, sticking out his hand as he spoke.
"My name's Cole. I'm the guy you found burnt to a crisp in the forest." He introduced himself. Now that Cole stood in front of him, he was amazed to see that he barely came up to the man's chin, even with his boots giving him a few extra inches.

The man eyed both the wastelander and his outstretched hand mistrustfully. Opting to look over Coles shoulder at Amelia who seemed to do something that eased his suspicion, if only by a bit.

The bear of a man then took his hand, the paw nearly enveloping the limb entirely. "Quint Santangelo." Quint greeted. Giving Coles hand a firm squeeze, expecting to see the stranger crumple from the pain. He was surprised to see Cole hold his own, not even flinching a bit and returning the pressure he'd put on the his hand twofold.
They let go of each other and Quint rubbed his hand, massaging the ache the stranger had left.
"That's some grip you got there," he commented. For a moment there was a heavy silence between them until Amelia moved to stand beside the two, subtly stopping any possibility of a fight before one could begin.

"Interesting to see you up so soon, Cole." Quint remarked. Raising an eyebrow as the man simply responded with a grin. Even though he'd been the one to rescue him when he was laid out in the forest, something about Cole rubbed the villager in a wrong kind of way. A feeling he didn't really know how to describe.

The wastelanders grin widened. "I'm like that." Cole repeated the phrase he'd said earlier to Amelia. The healer let out an exasperated sigh which caused Cole to chuckle from her reaction.

"Must you always be so brief with your answers?" she questioned, her tone filled with annoyance. Cole simply smiled at her, causing the healer to shake her head again. "We should sit." She gestured to the table. The two men nodded and the three moved to sit at the table. Amelia sitting in between them so she could continue mediating incase anything arose.

Quint leaned forward in his chair, leaning his head on his knuckles before speaking. "So, Cole, how long have you been up?" His inquiry didn't seem to catch the stranger off guard. If anything, he seemed to have been expecting it.

"Since this morning. I've been busy explaining to your wife how I ended up the way I did and how I healed as fast as I did." He answered honestly. The wastelander had few reasons to lie to these people. Unless they asked something about where it was he came from and just how exactly he got here. Aside from those reasons, he tried his best to be as honest as he could with them.

Quint looked to his wife who simply nodded in confirmation. The bear didn't like the idea of a stranger being all alone with his wife for half the day. "But if all they did was sit and talk then I guess it's alright…"

He cleared his throat and asked another question. "So what're you gonna be doing now that you're vertical?"

Cole's expression changed at that. The cheerful demeanor he'd had a moment ago faded away and was replaced with a more serious one. "I intend to travel to the city of Vale." he answered in a somber tone.

Quint narrowed his eyes at the man's answer, suspicious of the sudden change. He was clearly hiding something but what it was he didn't know. More so, he detested the fact that he thought he could leave without giving some form of recompense.
"Vale's a day's hike away from here. And even then, it's too dangerous to travel alone without some sort of escort." The older man explained. "The last caravan left this morning, and the next one won't be here until later next week."

Cole's mood changed drastically at this. "I can't sit around and wait for a week. I have something… urgent, to take care of in the big city." His cryptic answer caused Quint to narrow his eyes at him. The bear obviously thought he was hiding something, and in a way, he did. However he couldn't simply go around telling everyone he ran into that his sister was missing.
The wastelander knew he sounded desperate, and he was. But he couldn't afford to stick around in one place while Lilly was out there, in this strange world, possibly hurt… or worse.

"Whatever it is, I'm sure it can wait until you've paid what we're owed." Quint said plainly. He wasn't about to let someone off the hook after he and his wife had gone out of their way to help them. After Cole had paid his dues, then he could go for all the bear cared.

The two men stared each other down. A silent battle of wills taking place between them.
For a heart pounding moment, it seemed like her husband and Cole would come to blows. The standoff between them was so intense that she could feel the weight of the air around her. Had she not stepped in, Amelia was sure the two men would have torn each other apart.

"His sister is missing." She said softly.

And in a flash, the tension in the air significantly lowered. Both men now looked at her; Cole with a blank expression, although his eyes conveyed more then what he let on physically. Her husband stared at her with a stunned expression, he clearly wasn't expecting that sort of thing.

The healer looked down at her hands on the table and didn't look up for some time. During their conversation, Cole had asked her not to reveal anything he told her to anyone else, even her husband. She'd found it strange but she'd agreed to his request.
But surely there wasn't any harm in telling Quint about Cole's missing twin, right?

The older man slowly turned to look at the wastelander. "Is this true?" he asked. His tone was soft but still held an edge that left no room for him to try and persuade the bear otherwise.

With no alternative, other than shoot up the place, Cole gave him his answer.
"Lilly could be out there, just like how I was, or worse." He paused to gauge Quints reaction, "That's why I have to get to the city as soon as possible. Someone there might know something." Cole did his best to put as much sincerity into his voice as he could. If he didn't, tensions were sure to arise once more.

The bears shoulder's sagged and the hard look he'd had in his eyes faded completely. Quint knew what it was like to lose family; having lost his mother and father to a White Fang attack and a younger brother to Grimm some years ago. Amelia reached out and took his hand, an attempt at comforting him. He gripped her small hand in his and held it gently, running a thumb over her knuckles as he fought to keep the memories from bubbling up.

He finally let out a sigh, pulling a reign on his emotions. Returning his gaze to Cole, he spoke. "Alright." he conceded, "I'll let you go look for your sister's sake. But you better come back sometime and help us, else I won't forgive you."

The wastelander gave a grateful nod. "You can count on it." The three stood up and moved for the door. Before they left, Amelia grabbed Cole by the shoulder and stopped him.

"You'll need some supplies. It's a long walk from here to the big city and I'd feel better if you took some supplies. Wait here." Veronica's lookalike darted off into the house. Moments later the two men heard sounds of pots clanging and a string of curses, causing them to share a slightly concerned look. Finally the healer came around the corner carrying several small packages bound and wrapped together in some kind of leather.

"This is just some bear and wolf meat we had leftover. Along with a small jug of milk that should last you a day at the least." She held out the packages and Cole took them gracefully; giving a smile of his appreciation.

"Thank you. I promise I will return when I can." He inclined his head to both of them and turned to open the door, balancing the supplies in one hand.

Upon stepping outside, Cole had to pause and take a moment to drink in everything he saw. Sure he'd seen the greenery when he and Amelia had sat at the table, but to actually see this amount of plant life up close like this; and in such a vast amount! Even though he'd seen plant life multiple times in small pockets in the wasteland, this… this was different compared to those brief instances.

"You alright?" he heard Quint ask behind him.

Cole shook himself out of his stupor and nodded. "Yeah… yeah I'm good." They descended the steps and upon reaching the fresh ground Cole stumbled for the first few steps. Walking on fresh earth that wasn't hardened by atomic fire felt strange. It was prone to shifting ever so slightly under his weight wherever he stepped.

Quint helped to keep him steady so he wouldn't fall over. "You sure you're okay to travel?" he asked.

Cole gave him a nod. "Yeah, it's just… we don't have ground like this where I'm from." Once he'd finally caught his balance, the trio began walking in the direction of the gate.

While they walked, Cole took in everything around him. He saw the thriving community, all sorts of people moving around them, all doing something that must've aided the village in one way or another. Children ran around in clean clothes, ones that actually fit.
As they went, some of the villagers stared at him while they passed, others whispered and for a brief moment Cole felt self-conscious about his bald head.

Hopefully it'll grow back. They eventually came to a gate made of wood and reinforced with metal. Two sentries stood guard with rifles. Once they were close enough Quint shouted out to the two men.

"Open her up!" he called out. The two turned to see who was yelling at them and upon seeing the bear of a man, scurried to the levers that would open the gates.

"Vale is north, northwest of the Emerald Forest, where you are now." Quint began while they watched the gate slowly split in two, "Be careful of the Grimm, especially at night as they're more active." Cole nodded and made a mental note of everything the man said. "If it becomes too dangerous to sleep on the ground, climb a tree and hunker down. Make sure to climb to a decent height else the Beowolves will still have a shot of getting ya'." By now the gate was fully open. The sentries resumed their positions and took aim as they watched for any sign of movement from the forest line.

"Watch for Ursa as they have a tendency to sneak up on you. They might be slow but that doesn't mean they can't do some serious damage if you get hit." Quint continued, "And a Nevermore can swoop down and pluck you off the ground when you're in the open. Keep your eyes and ears open at all times." He gave Cole a hard smack on the back which caused the wastelander to stagger a bit. "Good luck with your search."

With that, the wastelander set off on his journey. Following in the direction that Quint had pointed him in. Once he was far enough outside the wall he heard the gate close behind him.

Cole walked right up to the tree line and stopped. Staring into the dark, beast infested forest in front of him felt more intimidating than any abandoned vault or ruin he'd explored in his whole life. That said, he wasn't about to give up and leave his sister all alone in this strange new world. Dematerializing the supplies in his hands, he took a deep breath and broke through the flora; stepping into a whole other world entirely.

All around him there was noise; a huge difference compared to the wasteland, which was constantly influx with long drawn out silences or the sound of gunshots in every direction. The air itself was cleaner in here. It didn't leave a bitter taste in his mouth and instead it made his lungs feel lighter than when he breathed in the irradiated air back home.
"Is this what the world was like back then?" He asked himself as he stepped through a bush and into a small clearing. The sun peaked through the tree branches and illuminated the area, giving him a brief sense of serenity at the sight of the flora within. This small area was filled with a verity of flowers, all of which were different colors. Reds, blues, purples, oranges; they were all there.

The moment of peace was interrupted by the sound of rustling to the far left. The presence of something looming behind the brush caused Cole to crouch low activate his suits helmet. The casing enclosed around his head and obscured his vision. A second later the view he'd had a moment ago appeared along with the HUD giving him a reading on his vitals and the threshold of the suits armor.

The artificial intelligence that Lilly had ported over from the stealth suit MKII spoke up as well. "Hello Cole. It has been approximately four weeks since you have last worn me. Did I do something bad?" The synthetic voice asked in a worried tone.

"No, Samantha. You didn't do anything wrong." He replied reassuringly, "I need you to scan the area over there for any traces of life." He pointed to where he'd heard the disturbance.

"Right away!" she chirped. The view inside his helmet changed as Sam sent out a pulse. An infrared image appeared where he'd heard the noise; what looked to be a wolf, minding its business, was hidden behind the bush. He ordered Samantha to change the view back and stood up, sighing to himself while doing so. This place, the forest, had him on edge. He wasn't used to being around so much life and not have it trying to kill him. Well, not yet anyways.

"Shall I prepare for engagement?" Sam asked somewhat excitedly.

"No. I'd rather not waste our supplies fighting the local fauna. We'll find a way around." He turned around ready to leave the small clearing but was stopped by the sight of… something.

It looked like your average Yao guai, except with thick, black fur covering its body, and much larger and stockier than the average bear. Bony spikes pointed outwards on its back and legs and a white, bone-like mask covered its face; decorated with red, tribal like detailing.

The bear sniffed the air for a moment and its red eyes stared at him through the bone mask. It seemed unsure of what to make of the wastelander that stood before it. After sniffing the air for a last time, the armored bear propelled itself forward; charging him.

Uh-oh.

"Threat detected!"

Cole narrowly ducked under the clawed limb and took two steps backwards. He glared at the beast behind his helmet. Materializing his ranger sequoia in his left hand he took aim at the things head. He let off two shots and sidestepped to the left as the beast made for another charge, seemingly undeterred by the pistols regular rounds.

Let's try these then. He unloaded the bullets and replaced them with his custom armor piercing rounds. These were made to penetrate thick armor and then explode seconds later. Something he always prided himself on was his quick reflexes and ingenuity. Even if he wasn't as smart as Lilly when it came to the science-y stuff.

The spiked Yao Guai was just about turned to fully face him when he let off the first three shots into its hide. It seemed to wince as the rounds pierced its hide. It then let out a roar of pain as the bullets exploded inside of it, causing blackish red blood to spew out from the wounds, splattering all over the flowers.

"That's not exactly normal." He commented as the bear corrected itself and charged again. He prepared to dodge like he'd done the last time, however just as he went for it, the earth underneath him shifted; allowing the beast to get a hit on him. The force it had used in its attack had been enough to send him flying into a tree, knocking the wind out of him. He staggered to his feet as fast as he could and felt at his side. The talon had torn through his coat but the fabric of his armor had held together, keeping the claw from ripping into his flesh.

"Minor damage on the left. Administering MED-X." Cole felt the drugs flow into his system and lessen the pain by a small margin. Even though the attack hadn't priced the skin, the force that it'd hit him with and the impact with the tree hurt like a bitch.

He readied himself for round three and instead of waiting for it to come to him he charged the monster. Materializing his industrial hand and feinting to the left, the beast readied its claw to hit him again. Reacting in the split second he had before the blow landed, he shifted his body and propelled himself into the beast. Burying the saw blade deep into its chest, causing the blackish blood that coursed through its vein's to pour over him; obscuring his vision. Without waiting for Sam to clear his view, he pushed forward and moved underneath it, trailing the saw hand behind him as he went. He rolled to his right when he felt the weight of the beast bearing down on him.

"Clear HUD." He ordered. The substance covering his helmet was removed by way of electric vaporization. When it was fully cleared away, Cole beard witness to his handiwork.

The wastelander had effectively disemboweled the beast. Its guts were strewn about the place and its blood stained the once colorful bed of flowers. It wasn't the grisly sight of his work that disturbed him though. What bothered him was that the beast appeared to be evaporating. Black and red flakes rose up from the corpse and dissipated into nothing.

"What in the-." He was effectively cut off as he was sent flying out of the clearing.
His flight was made short as his body impacted with another tree. Several of his bones made a loud crack that resonated throughout the forest as his body collided with the tree. His head spun and the corners of his vision darkened; his body once again threatened to succumb to unconsciousness from severe pain, but he couldn't let it. To do so would mean death for sure.

Samantha began reporting on the damages that had been caused, "Severe damage detected. Several fractures to both pectoral girdle (shoulder blades), major shift in thoracic vertebras (upper spine) one through six, and a concussion caused by blunt force to the occipital and parietal bones (skull). Administering stimpak and buffout for pain relief."

The relief was almost instantaneous. The drugs eased his pain and gave him the boost he needed to stand. He leaned against the tree he'd hit and saw the thing that had sent him flying.
A beast that stood on its hind legs, albeit with a slouch. It looked extremely muscular, more so than any Deathclaw he'd encountered. It shared the bone like mask and spikes that the bear had. The wastelander was beginning to suspect that these were the creatures of Grimm that Amelia and Quint had told him about.

By this point he was running on adrenaline and the drugs that his suit pumped into his system. His mind slowly began thinking up ways of how he could possibly take this thing down.

It began moving towards him and he glared at the beast behind his helmet. "Looks like I'll have to improvise." He thought.
Dematerializing his Sequoia and materializing his ballistic fist in its place, the wastelander took a deep breath and dashed forward. The beast began sprinting to meet him halfway, opting to run on all fours. When he was in arms reach of the thing, he slid underneath the lunge intended for his head and slammed the shotgun fist into its gut. The slugs tore through its thick skin and left a sizable hole, though it didn't go all the way through. The pain caused the beast to let out a howl of pain.
He rolled to his right and the beast struggled to follow him, but he didn't give it the chance. Avoiding its attempt at a grab, he traced the industrial hand across its leg and continued moving to the rear. Once he was behind it, he slammed the ballistic fist down on its back, blowing a hole clean through the beast and into the opening he'd first made.

He waited several long minutes until the monster's body stopped twitching and went still. When it did he wrenched his hand out of it, sparing a distasteful look at his arm as it was covered in the creature's blood.

Hopefully… it'll wash out… he thought absently.

"Movement detected behind us!" Sam warned. Cole whirled around just in time to barely duck a swipe meant for his head from another one of the furry Deathclaws.

The wastelander did his best at quickstepping away to give himself some distance but the thing kept up with him. Cole hadn't had time to ready himself for another fight and he paid for it with a slash from his left; the attack raked across his chest, fortunately he wasn't lodged through the air like the last two times. Instead the attack had knocked him on his back and the beast took this as an opportunity to pounce on top of him; jaw ready in an attempt to bite into his neck.

He'd just had enough time to catch the thing and keep its maw a few inches from his head. He stared up at the row of serrated teeth that snapped in front of him.
Out of the corner of his eye, something else drew his attention away from the beast momentarily. Out of nowhere a blue light struck the beast in the back and began emanating from its chest, eventually bursting outside, covering the wastelander in the blackish red blood and leaving a gaping hole that went all the way through. The light stopped just a few inches from Cole's own chest and subsequently faded away. Cole pushed the decaying corpse off of him and stood, not bothering to spare the beast any thought as he began looking around for anything else that might try and attack him.

"Well, well. Colour me impressed." A voice echoed around him, "I didn't think someone with such a peculiar scent would hope to stand against the creatures of Grimm. Yet here you are, victorious." It continued, its tone condescending.

"What… now…" he panted out. The radar in his helmet picked up movement right in front of him but he couldn't see anything.

Unless…

"Up here, silly man." Cole craned his neck, causing himself some discomfort by doing so. Above him, in the tress, he could faintly see the silhouette of someone idly lounging on one of the large branches. The figure slowly stood and jumped down to forest floor, landing on the ground seemingly uninjured from the height they'd just fallen from.

The figure stepped in to the light of the clearing and revealed themselves to be… a young woman? She had fiery orange hair that turned redder and redder as it went; It flowed long down behind her, lazily done up in a ponytail in a half attempt at keeping it orderly. Her attire was… different. She wore leaves that looked to be made of glass and they clung to her body like leather. In her right hand she held something akin to a staff partially made of wood and metal. A blade at one end buried itself into the ground while the same blue light from earlier emanated from a glowing gem on the other.
The feature that caught his eye the most however were her ears. Two orange protrusions that blended in with the rest of her hair.

Her emerald eyes stared at him with blatant amusement, "Don't get me wrong, I suspected you could handle yourself when I first saw you. But skepticism is a must in these trying times, hmm?" she spoke. Approaching the wastelander, the girl reached out and traced a clawed hand across his chest plate. She stepped around him as if examining something, allowing him to catch a glimpse of her rear before she suddenly stepped in front of him again.

"Very interesting." She grinned a toothy grin, flashing her fangs at him.

Cole wasn't sure whether she was flirting with him or trying to intimidate. "Who and what are you?" he blurted out.

The woman curled her lip at him as if he'd just offended her. Crossing her arms, "Have you never seen a Faunas before? My, what strange human you are." Her sour expression turned back into a grin and she stepped even closer to him, "But so very interesting."

Cole took a step back from her and let out a tired sigh, his shoulders sagging as the pain began to come creeping back. "Thank you for your help back there." He inclined his head to her in thanks.

The woman pursed her lips, seeming disappointed with his appreciation. "I guess that will have to do." She said with a sigh, "Very well, my name is Igren. Igren Azyan. I am a Faunus living in these Grimm infested wilds. A pleasure." She finished her introduction with a small curtsy.

Cole gave her a blank stare behind his helmet, unimpressed with the show she'd just given him. Not that he wasn't ungrateful for her help just a moment ago, but something about her seemed… off. Like she was trying to hide something with all the spectacle she'd put into her performance.

"You stare as if you're trying to figure something out. Didn't your mother ever teach you it's impolite to-?"

"My mother's been dead for years." He cut her off midsentence. The wastelander briefly caught a glimpse of her remorse but it was soon replaced with the condescending demeanor she'd had before.

"Ah. My sympathies then."

Cole simply gave her deadpanned stare, one she couldn't see due to his helmet. "What do you want?" His question seemed to cause the girl more annoyance as she huffed at him for no obvious reason.

Placing her hands on her hips, spoke as if the question she'd posed, had already been asked. "I wish to know who you are and where you are going." She stopped to re-cross her arms and let her question sink in. "I saw how you handled the Ursa and Beowolf. You seem quite capable of handling yourself. And that trick with the light and your weapons." She gestured to his power fists that he still had on, "fascinating trick."

Cole raised a concealed eyebrow at her, "Why do you want to know where I'm going?"

Her hair bristled at this, her annoyance rising to a fever pitch. "You're the first interesting thing that's crept into this forest in a long while." A sly smile crept onto her face, "I wish to see more interesting things from you." She said with a seductive tone.

The wastelander ignored her attempts at seduction and let out another tired sigh, his shoulders sagging even more; the drugs in his system were beginning to where off and that meant the pain that had been inflicted on his body was slowly returning.
The sudden ache in his back and head caused him to stumble, only just managing to catch himself on a nearby tree. The corners of his vision darkened and he struggled to keep himself from passing out again.

"Stay awake Cole, else you won't wake up." Samantha warned. He knew the AI was right. Sleeping with a concussion wasn't a good idea.

"Administer stimpak." He ordered and the AI did so. The relief to the pain was instantaneous and he let out a sigh of relief as the pain slowly faded.

"Are you alright?" he heard Igren ask through the haze.

Cole did his best to give her an answer, "I'll be… alright… Look, you say you want to follow me? Fine. But on one condition; help me get to Vale."

"Deal." She agreed without hesitation.

He gave her a curt nod and pushed himself off of the tree he'd been leaning on. "Now… which way is north?" the question caused his new companion to frown. She pinched her chin in thought and then pointed north.

Igren looked back to see him give her another nod and the two began walking. Cole stumbled here and there, but every time she asked if he was alright to move he reassured her that he was fine.

The Faunus smiled to herself. Finally she'd found something that was bound to bring her some amusement for some time. The fox walked happily behind her new companion, watching him correct himself whenever he stumbled.

Secretly, she hoped that he wouldn't die on their way to the big city. That would definitely put a damper on things. It had been far too long since she'd had anything as interesting as him fall into her grasp.

That evening in Beacon Academy...

Ruby tossed and turned in her bedroll, unable to fall asleep. The day had been… well, to say it hadn't been a disaster would be a lie. Yang had ended up abandoning her, then she accidently caused an explosion at the front of the school, which made possibly one of the snobbiest girls she'd ever met to start yelling at her. The feeling of hopelessness of made the young girl curl tighter into the ball she'd wound herself in.

The day hadn't been a complete loss, as she'd managed to make one friend at least. Vomit Bo- Jaune, had been kind enough to give her a hand up when she was down. Helping her with looking around the school grounds, even though he had turned out to be entirely useless in the long run.

"He's still a friend. That's something… right?" Ruby tried desperately to convince herself that the day hadn't been a complete disaster.
"Oh who am I kidding? Today was awful." The tiny reaper turned over again and stared at her sisters sleeping figure. The blond had rolled out of her bed roll and was happily drooling all over her pillow. The sight of her sister sleeping blissfully caused Ruby to sigh once again; secretly wishing she could sleep as heavily as her sister did.

"I guess with everything that's happened it isn't a surprise that I can't sleep," she thought warily. At that moment, the young huntress decided she needed some air. Feeling cramped in room she and the other first years had been stuffed into for their first night at Beacon.
Siting up, she wearily looked at everyone's' sleeping forms. As quietly as she could, Ruby stood up from her bed roll and stepped around everyone, heading for the balcony doorway while doing her best not to disturb anyone.

"Owe!" someone cried out just before she'd reached the door.

"So much for quite," the young girl thought absently. "Sorry!" Ruby whispered before quickly stepping outside into the cold night air. Goosebumps instantly arose on her skin and she absently shivered; wishing she'd grabbed her cape before coming outside.

"I guess this'll be fine," she muttered prior to walking to the railing. The huntress in training stared up at Remnants shattered moon. Thinking. She slumped to her knees and huffed out a sigh. "What am I supposed to do tomorrow without a weapon?" A huntress is useless without a weapon. Sure, Ruby had other types of skills like… baking and…
"What am I going to do?" she murmured. Without Crescent Rose to back her up, Ruby was nothing more than a girl who could move faster than normal. And she doubted her semblance would be of much help without her beloved weapon.

She shook her head and slumped farther down the railing. Looking out to the city of Vale through the bars. The lights shone off in the distance, the sight somehow reminded her of the night she and her sister met their ward. Ruby felt her mood worsen at the thought of the girl who was currently in intensive care.

"Why did this have to happen now of all times?" she whispered. Her eyes watered and she blinked to clear the tears away. She wouldn't break down like this.

"What are you doing out here?! You'll catch your death you dolt!" Ruby heard a familiar voice behind her. The tiny reaper whirled around to see Weiss Schnee through her clouded vision. The girl who she'd mistakenly P'd off with her explosive antics earlier today.

"I-I-I was just getting some air!" Ruby stuttered out. Wiping the unshed tears away before raising her arms to block her face. "I didn't think anyone would notice if I slipped out," the tiny reaper whimpered out.

Through the gap in her arms, she saw the heiress give her a dubious glare. "Of course I would notice. You stepped on my arm, klutz." She said with an annoyed sigh, crossing her arms in the manner she usually did when annoyed.

Ruby muttered out a barely audible sorry, lowering her hands and scratching the back of her neck. She sniffled and wiped at her nose. "I didn't mean to. It was an accident, I swear." She looked up at Weiss through her bangs and could see that the heiress was contemplating whether or not to accept her apology.

"I guess that will have to do," she finally said. Walking closer to the young huntress and sitting next to her. "Why were you out here, really?" she asked.

Ruby fidgeted next to Weiss and didn't speak for a few moments. Sitting next to someone who has yelled at her more times than her dad made the young girl feel a sense of awkwardness she hadn't felt since she'd first arrived at signal.
Taking a deep breath, Ruby told her the truth. "I couldn't sleep and need someplace to think." She started, "I… have a lot on my mind right now and it's stressing me out a bit."

Weiss gave her a silent nod as she listened.

"I recently lost my weapon and I'm worried about what I'm going to do tomorrow." Ruby continued, "Not to mention that I…" she stopped short before she let slip about the task that Ozpin had given her. Was it okay for her to tell Weiss, a girl she barely even knew, about something like that?

"That you…?" Weiss trailed after her.

Ruby gulped down the lump in her throat. "N-never mind," she stuttered out. Avoiding the heiress' gaze.

She felt Weiss stare at her for a long while. Giving an abrupt hmp, the heiress stood and walked toward the door. Before walking back inside, she turned and spoke; "Don't stay up too late." She called over her shoulder, "Initiation is tomorrow. We all need to be at our best if we want to get through it." With that, the heiress disappeared into the room.

Ruby stared at the ground, contemplating whether or not Weiss actually cared about her or not. Every interaction with the young heiress had been very unpleasant for the tiny reaper; up until this point anyway.

Maybe, just maybe, Weiss cared more then she let on.

A.N: Kinda a shitty way to end this chapter but this one has been stuck in editing hell for long enough. Granted I had valid reasons for it taking so long, but hey, at least it's done.

Please R&R and I'll see you in a while.