I do now own RWBY

"Sun," Ruby shouted before tackling the monkey faunus in a hug with a surprising force that threatened to send them both to the ground. Sun stumbled back caught off guard by the tiny human, but he still returned her hug without hesitation. Frowning Neptune grabbed his leader's shoulders to steady him while the other two members of their team watched in amusement. All four boys were fond of the girl although they still considered them a demon. Blake watched the interaction with a smile; it was always nice when Ruby turned her attention to someone outside their team. Noticing her, the blonde gently set Ruby on her feet before turning all his attention to Blake.

"Hey Blake," Sun greeted smiling. Blake returned the smile even as she felt her cheeks heat up in a blush at the warm greeting; he was always so happy. Sometimes she felt like she didn't deserve to be around someone like him.

"You guys were amazing, and Neptune was super funny," Ruby said catching the blue-haired boy by surprise. His fear of water was not funny it was completely rational and sane; there was nothing wrong with him at all. He didn't need to be tossed into the river to learn how to swim or anything else, there was no reason to look at him like he was an idiot.

"I know right, and we get to go on to the second round," Sun said exited as he tried to take attention off his friend. Ruby smirked and he winced when he saw the look on her face as his mood deflated. Dread filled his body as he realized that he might have to fight them. Pouting he asked, "you two are going on to the next round, aren't you?"

"Yep," Ruby said almost bouncing in place.

"And I actually thought we'd have a chance to win," Neptune grumbled as he realized that he had no chance. He already knew if they fought the girl they would lose it was a conclusion that he hated to admit. Mainly because Sun would hold back due to being fond of Ruby and if they were really unlucky then the battlefield would have water in it again. Shuddering at the thought of having to fight near water he didn't notice the amusement on the faces of his other two teammates.

"You might," Blake said lightly not actually believing it in the slightest. Ruby watched the banter with a smile; her plan for the two to get together was working well. Neptune caught her look and grinned in silent agreement.

"Hey Ruby," he started waiting until she looked over at him to continue, "isn't your dad supposed to be coming to Beacon today?"

The girl nodded happily; Qrow was supposed to arrive in less than two hours. Giving the blue-haired boy a fond smile, she said, "yep, I was about to go to the docking bay. Blake came to ask Sun on a date."

"Really!"

"Ruby!"

The two faunus snapped at the same time. Smiling innocently as Blake began to stutter, she ignored the embarrassed blush the feline wore as she tried to downplay Ruby's words. Staring at Sun with a look bordering on panic, she tried to literally wave away the idea of them going on a date only for the boy to grab her hands. Grinning brightly at her he didn't hesitate to lean closer as if the idea of them going on a date wasn't some strange thing that would never happen.

"I would love to go on a date! Do you want to go to a café," he asked brightly. Freezing the black-haired girl could do nothing but nod in agreement while Ruby smirked as Sun brought Blake out of her shell.

This was what she wanted. If her team was happy then she was happy. Watching the two she didn't notice when her smirk became a small smile but Neptune did. Tilting her head slightly she sighed before turning away and walking toward the docking bay. They didn't need her here anymore. Before she could fully escape a hand wrapped around her wrist keeping her from getting away. Turning she frowned as Neptune's blue eyes met her own. The knowing glint in his eyes didn't help her at all but she simply raised an eyebrow.

"I'll come with you," he said before looking at his blonde partner. Letting go of her wrist he took a step back putting distance between them as he offered her a small silent thank you for helping his partner. Sun would never have offered to take Blake on a date by himself. Straightening he held out his hand.

Glancing at their teammates for a moment she watched as Sun was teased by his teammates while Blake tried to resist covering her face out of embarrassment. She wanted her teammates to be happy and right now they were happy. While she appreciated Neptune's offer, she didn't really need him to escort her, however, she didn't know if refusing him was the right choice. Slumping in defeat she places her hand in his allowing him to lead her off toward the docking bay. It was weird that he suddenly wanted to be around her, but she had no idea for what reason.

The second they reached the courtyard and saw the chaos around them Ruby knew immediately that it had something to do with her dad. Meeting Mercury's eyes as he rushed past them, she dropped Neptune's hand and stalked toward the front of the crowd. She had a good idea of what was happening from the sounds of clashing steel her theory was confirmed. Hearing Neptune stumble behind her she twisted her hand reaching out to grab his wrist. Tugging him upward, she steadied the boy easily despite the pushing of the crowd around them.

"Thanks," he mumbled only for her grip on his wrist to tighten. Glancing down at her it was easy to notice the cold silver of her eyes was unreadable. He was slightly worried at the expression however she didn't hesitate to pull him toward Weiss.

"What's going on," Ruby asked Weiss coming to a stop beside the girl. She already knew what was happening, so she didn't wait for the girl to answer before looking at the fight and asking her next question, "why's my uncle fighting your sister?"

"Of course, he'd be related to you," Weiss complained although there was no anger in her tone.

Ruby smirked even though she couldn't call Qrow her dad in public she could still claim him as her family much to the man's amusement. Her eyes followed the fast-moving fighters the best she was able and determined that her team still had a long way to go before they'd be on the same level as them, although she could follow the battle easily. When Ironwood called Winter's name and stopped the fight Ruby pouted since he'd ruined her chance to see her dad using his scythe. Rolling her eyes as Neptune sighed in relief, she released his wrist and started toward her dad.

Leaping forward Ruby wrapped her arms around her dad in a hug that he was already expecting. Qrow caught the reaper easily and ignored the surprised look James and Winter wore at the way he spun her around. If he wanted to hug his daughter, he would hug her; they had no say in the matter. Ruby laughed the sound filling the air before tapering to a shriek as he tossed her in the air. Seeing her eyes widen he smirked before catching her and allowing the girl to hang off his shoulder.

Pressing her face against his neck she hugged him tightly ignoring the whispers and coos of the students around them. Most of them knew her as the brilliant prodigy first year, they'd never seen her smiling or laughing like this. Keeping a gentle arm around her waist, he glanced at Ozpin's approaching form before gently moving to sit her on the ground. The annoyed expression that crossed her face was all the warning he had before she was sending a glare at James. Tapping her nose before she could assault the general, he grinned at her.

"That was so cool," Ruby said. Smiling she leaned toward him when he laid a hand on her head to ruffle her hair. The smile on her face was bright and happy as she ordered, "you've got to teach me how to do the shockwave thing with Thorn."

Chuckling he wondered what kind of chaos she would cause once she got stronger. Ignoring the wary look Winter was sending him he said, "maybe later or you could figure it out yourself."

"But that wouldn't be as much fun," Ruby protested she wanted to spend time training with just her dad. She hadn't seen him since they left Patch a week ago, they still called each other every other night but it wasn't the same.

"Qrow what are you doing here," James asked interrupting the reunion. Qrow's eyes hardened as he pushed Ruby slightly behind him in an action that clearly stated what he thought of the general around his daughter. James may not hurt a child but he also brought a fleet of ships into Vale airspace and that wasn't the smartest move; such a paranoid person could be capable of anything. Qrow didn't want him near his daughter until he figured out what the man's agenda was.

"I could ask you the same thing," Qrow said coldly narrowing his eyes.

"Qrow I-"

James started only to be cut off by Ozpin laying a hand on his shoulder. The action was enough to make both men reconsider starting a fight in the courtyard. Laying a hand on Ruby's shoulder he nodded to his boss before turning his full attention to his daughter. An action that caused Ironwood to scowl at the lack of respect he showed the man. In his mind, Qrow had no respect for the chain of command much less the sense to stop getting in fights with the military.

"I'll stop by your dorm later kid," Qrow told her as a soft smile appeared on his face. Winter froze the reprimand on her lips refusing to be spoken; she'd never seen that expression on his face before. Turning away from him she glanced toward her sister before stiffening as she put back on the mask of a good little soldier. Frowning as Ozpin called for him to follow Qrow took the time to mutter, "I think I'm in trouble."

"I would think so too," Ruby teased before motioning to the destroyed area. Following her action, he smirked it was fun to cause chaos at Beacon again. Ruffling her hair one last time he started to follow Ozpin and the others up to the tower.

"Your attitude makes more sense now," Weiss said coming to stand beside the younger girl. Ruby grinned at the heiress with a playful expression that made the white-haired girl's lips twitch.

"I'll admit I didn't think this was how my day would go when I offered to escort you," Neptune admitted once he'd finished hiding from her dad. Feeling the urge to tease the older boy she turned her attention to him as Weiss moved to meet Yang.

"Just how did you figure it would go," she asked amusement in her voice.

"I kind of figured I'd at least get a date out of it," he said with a smirk just short of arrogant. He was lying she could tell because he seemed to force himself to say the words.

"Cute," she said much to his shock. Seeing a faint shade of pink stretch across his cheeks, she took a moment to study him. Neptune had always just been Sun's partner to her; she hadn't really considered him beyond hat. Maybe she should; he was after all another potential asset and she was interested in why he felt the need to flirt with her rather than simply have a conversation. Deciding to focus on him later she frowned but didn't move when Yang drew her into a hug and started stressing about the upcoming family meeting.

(Tyrian)

Today was the day Cora was finally taking down her barrier for the first time since its creation, he could tell that she was nervous. Hence why he'd been watching her for the last hour. The blonde was staring at the icy hurricane with doubt in her eyes as she hesitated. There was so much riding on this, he knew that, however, he wanted to get back to his queen. He longed to return home despite how fond he'd became of Cora and her daughter.

Reaching out slowly Cora laid a trembling hand on the wall. She could feel her power intertwined with the hurricane, so she tugged. He expected the storm to simply disappear, instead, it seemed to shiver before lashing out. Magic was volatile, unpredictable, he knew that after living with his queen all these years, it was why he noticed when her own magic attacked her. The icy storm seemed to condense and impact her chest seconds before her feet were leaving the ground. Cursing darkly, he shifted into her path.

The instant he touched her it felt like his limbs were freezing, gritting his teeth, he wrapped his arms around her body. Stumbling, the faunus held her tightly as he stared down at the sunlight colored flames surrounding her eyes. He barely noticed when the ice crept along her skin while his tail subconsciously wrapped around her waist. Kneeling slowly, he did notice how dark her eyes were when they opened. Except they weren't brown but a metallic gold that seemed to blaze as she looked up at him.

"Gold looks good on you."

Blinking at his words, she looked away much to his amusement. Light pink dusted her cheeks catching his attention and causing a smirk to drift across his lips. At least now he knew that she wasn't immune to his presence. Feeling her shift, he allowed her to escape from his grasp despite the fact his tail stayed wrapped around her waist. The slightly annoyed glance she gave his tail was all the reaction she gave to his possessive display.

(Ruby)

Tai shifted uncomfortably from his seat under his daughter's gaze much to Qrow's amusement. Ruby sat across from him while Yang bounced nervously on her sister's bed. Ruby's team had taken an evening trip to the training room so the family could have some much-needed privacy. That had been Pyrrha's idea since both her puppy and kitten wanted to be there for moral support. Qrow watched it all from his spot near the door ready to catch any of the three who made a run for it since their family was prone to trying to run away. So far Tai seemed the one most likely to bolt.

"Okay, can somebody just talk already," Yang told them unable to take the awkward silence any longer, instead of actually talking all three of the others turned to look at her as if she volunteered to go first. Paling she shifted slightly and turned away from them broadcasting her unwillingness to go first in their discussion. Rolling her eyes Ruby focused all her attention on Tai who seemed to find his shoes very interesting. Given that they were a bright orange fashion nightmare she could see why he would pay attention to them.

"So how'd your mission go papa," she asked aiming the question at Tai who blinked in surprise before letting out a cooing noise that made her uncomfortable. Qrow smirked at as his friend latched onto the lifeline she'd thrown him like a drowning man in the middle of the ocean. It seemed his daughter was unwilling to let either of them go without a fight; it was something he was both grateful to and a little worried about. Ruby listened to him recount his mission with a small smile unaware of her father studying her. Hearing a scroll ring all three once again looked over at Yang who was blushing while looking at the screen.

"Sorry," the blonde mumbled before answering the call from Weiss.

It only took a few moments for her to jump off the bed and shoot out the door still yelling something about late-night pancakes, and team bonding that she was late for. Ruby looked after her sister in amusement at how easily the girl's priorities shifted. She could understand the devotion to her team, but the second Weiss called her name Yang would drop everything and go to the girl's side. It was strangely adorable that the blonde valued Weiss so highly when in the previous timeline they were nothing more than friends. Still, she found the smitten actions of her sister causing her to compare the blonde to a golden retriever. Maybe she needed a pet; it might stop the animal comparisons.

Watching his blonde daughter leave, Tai found himself comparing Yang's action to his own during his time courting Raven. From the smirk on Qrow's face he was thinking the same thing; resisting the urge to flush scarlet he huffed before turning his attention back to Ruby. There were many things he regretted about his actions following Summer's death especially considering his team leader would murder him if she ever found out about his actions. He'd been so scared of losing Ruby that he'd ignored the fact Qrow had lost Summer too.

He still didn't regret making Ruby his daughter. The girl was brilliant and compassionate. She was the best part of both his teammates. It was true that he could have handled everything much better after Summer died, however, his choice had led to him raising a beautiful amazing daughter who would go on to become one of the strongest huntresses to ever live. He wouldn't change anything despite how much pain Summer was going to put him through when he died.

"I'm sorry," Tai said finally catching her off guard and drawing her attention. The curious and wary look in her eyes was enough to make him slump in defeat as he admitted, "we'd just lost Summer and I was so afraid that I'd lose the last piece of her left that I stole you from Qrow. I just-"

"Tai shut up," Qrow ordered before the man could start sobbing. From the way, the blonde was talking it was only a matter of time until he curled up and cried into the pillow. Wincing a bit he rolled his eyes before saying, "we don't blame you, idiot."

"Well I blame myself," Tai shot back as tears came to his eyes. Qrow sighed in exasperation, how could his best friend go from sarcastic grimm slayer to whiny crybaby? It just didn't seem possible, but it was, and the whole reason was the giant soft spot the blonde had for Ruby and Yang. He also had a soft spot for his wife who was currently running around the wilds of Anima playing bandit queen.

Ruby tensed discomfort flashing through her gaze. Twitching slightly, she threw a glance at her dad who had no idea what to do. From the exasperated look on his face, he was at a loss as well; it was slightly annoying that he was leaving her to deal with Tai. Shifting nervously, she considered running away but she knew her dad wouldn't allow her to run. In fact, she wouldn't allow herself to run. This was the conversation she envisioned. Eventually, Tai was going to start crying like a little baby and they would have to deal with it.

"Thank you," Ruby said blurting out the first thing to come to mind so that he would stop crying. she hated listening to him cry or whine. It was terrifying when Tai started crying and she had no idea how to deal with tears. She hated when those that belonged to her were sad or even just a little upset. When he looked up at her in shock tears frozen in their place, she hurried to finish speaking, "you raised me better than most would have and treated me like I was actually your flesh and blood, so thank you."

Seeing him tense she readied herself as Tai lunged forward wrapping his arms around her tightly. Ruby returned the hug with just as much force hoping that he would stop crying soon. Throwing a glance at her dad she noticed the small smile on his face as he leaned back and watched the two settles in to talk. Crossing his arms, the man wondered how much things would have changed if Summer hadn't died. For one thing, he was sure that she would have encouraged Ruby's possessiveness. He missed Summer and wished against all logic that Raven could be here with them even if she was complicated. He wanted things to be easy for both him and his family, yet as he watched Ruby comfort Tai, he had to ask himself if life would be any better if things were different?

Hey, guys I finally posted a chapter Yay. Anyway, what did you guys think of this chapter? The next chapter will be a little about Ruby's plans and I'm hoping to start the battle of Beacon by chapter 35. Cardin will be meeting Adam before Ruby's does just like in the original.

stay safe and have a good day

- Shyla