Author's Notes: Guess who's back for more? That's right! It's both of us. Now, I know the last chapter got a little weird, but this one should be back to form. I'll keep trying to pump more of these out as best I can, but here's some good news: this chapter is longer than the last two! So enjoy, and I hope this continues to pique your interest.
Chapter 3: The Butterfly Effect
The flight to Beacon Academy passed by in silence. Ruby said nothing as Yang praised her, the young girl's mind was too caught up in her thoughts. She stared out the window, towards the horizon, hoping that she could really stop the fall. She grit her teeth, glancing over to her sister as she watched the news of last night's robbery. Her heart ached as the blonde gleefully praised her, having missed her sister's smile the moment it vanished. Ruby smiled back, but it was filled with pain. Yang watched as the girl turned back around, both of them paying no attention to the puking teen. Ruby turned around, "Yang, there's p—" The girl's eyes widened slightly as there wasn't any puke on her shoe at all. Yang raised an eyebrow. "Uh, never mind." Yang narrowed her eyes a bit at the less-than-normal behavior of her usually lively sister as Ruby hoped that what she saw was just a fluke.
The girls stepped off the airship and stood among the passing students, their weapons all out on display. Yang watched Ruby carefully as the girl paid no attention to the surrounding eye-candy and crossed her arms. The younger of the two paced back and forth as she thought, racking her brain for the term. "I time traveled, right? That means that I can change the outcome, I mean I've already changed Yang's shoe incident. It can't be the butterfly effect, right?" She thought for a moment longer as Yang cleared her throat behind her, clearly becoming increasingly pissed off. "Well, there's a chance…" Ruby nervously fidgeted as Yang began, "So, what's going on with you? You're acting like a completely different person." Ruby bit her lip. "Looks like I've messed up already," she thought. "I-I've just got a lot on my mind is all, really it's nothing." Yang stepped forward a little. "Doesn't seem like nothing to me. You've hardly said anything all day!" Ruby backed away slowly as Yang got more and more fired up. "I-I just," she didn't quite know what to say, but she began anyways. "I just don't… want people to think I'm special. I moved ahead two years and… I'm worried." Ruby watched as Yang instantly backed down, her emotions moving from anger to empathy. The blonde quickly moved in to hug her sister. "Aww! Well, you should've said something sooner! We're sisters, right? We can talk about anything! People are going to love you, so don't worry so much." Ruby sighed in relief as Yang finished the hug while ruffling her hair. The blonde quickly switched gears to talk about making friends and quickly ran off with her own, leaving the red head alone. "Talk about anything, huh?" she thought as she turned to walk into Beacon, only to run into someone.
"You've got some nerve!" a familiar voice yelled out. "Don't you watch where you're going?" Ruby looked up to see none other than Weiss Schnee herself. "Sorry, I was a little preoccupied," she said with a chuckle, happy to see her friend again. "Well, you should learn to pay more attention! I'll have you know that I…" Ruby tuned out the girl as she thought back to her first conversation with her. "Alright, I get it, princess." Ruby said, waiting for the response. "It's heiress actually," Blake said, showing up to the chat in the same way as before. "Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company. One of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world." The heiress smirked, "Finally. Some recognition." Ruby smirked as Blake continued, "The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners." Weiss stuttered and stumbled as she huffed and walked away, her heels clacking as she went. Ruby could only smile, missing these memories as she lived them again. But her mind continued to wander to the end of it all. The team breaking apart, the death of her friends. It seemed that it was all she could think about now.
Ruby glanced over her shoulder to see Blake walking away. "This is mostly the same. At least I didn't blow up this time." She thought, closing her eyes, but a tap on the shoulder quickly pulled her out of it. "Hey, I'm Jaune," the blonde said reaching out his hand. Ruby shook it, smiling. "Ruby." Jaune chuckled a little as scratched his neck, "So, it's a nice place, right?" Ruby nodded, "Sure is, best to not puke all over it though." Jaune waved his hands around wildly. "That was motion sickness, and I'll have you know it's very common." Ruby began walking to where the assembly would be. "I'm sure it is, vomit boy." Ruby smiled as she talked. Felt like nothing changed, for the most part. "Aren't you lying to them though?" Ruby's smile instantly faded as they neared the hall. "Well, we're here! And there's my sister, I'll see you later!" Ruby ran away, running up to her sister before she even noticed her. "Oh, Ruby! How's your first day going, little sister?" Yang smiled, happy to see that she wasn't as quiet. "It's going good, I've met a few friends already." Yang quirked an eyebrow. "Don't you mean made a few friends?" Ruby just nodded, "Isn't that what I said?" Yang shrugged off the weirdness as a certain white-haired girl showed up and started yelling. "You!" Ruby jumped, forgetting how loud the heiress was when she yelled. "Oh hey!" Yang leaned over, whispering into Ruby's ear. "One of your friends?" Weiss crossed her arms. "No, we aren't friends. In fact, she had the audacity to bump into me without saying sorry!" Ruby tilted her head. "But I did say sorry." Weiss thought for a moment. "Well, even if you did! You certainly didn't sound sorry." Yang scratched her head as the heiress huffed, crossing her arms as someone tapped the mic, drawing everyone's attention.
Later that night, after the brief assembly. Ruby scribbled into her notebook. "Before, I was writing a letter. Now, it seems like the world could end in the blink of an eye." She tore out a piece of paper and crumpled it up, sighing as she did. "It's like a big slumber party!" Yang said as Ruby rolled her eyes. "Yeah, but I don't think Dad would approve of all the boys, though." Ruby turned over onto her back as Yang declared her approval. Ruby sat up, glancing at the group of boys before her eyes landed on a certain one. "Ooh? See someone you like?" Yang pestered, poking Ruby in the ribs. Ruby jerked back, feeling ticklish, and threw a pillow at her sister. "No! He just seems familiar… somehow." The boy had darker skin with black hair and striking green eyes. He was wearing pretty casual gray clothes, but he was reading a book. He held himself confidently, and Ruby could've sworn she'd seen him before. The boy looked up to catch Ruby staring at him, and they made eye contact for a second before Ruby looked away. "Where have I seen him before?" she thought as a candle was lit nearby. Ruby looked over to Blake, who was also reading a book. "Huh," Ruby said, getting up. "You know her?" Yang asked, as Ruby walked away. "Something like that."
Yang quickly got up to follow her sister, finding it strange how she took the initiative for once. "Hey, you might not remember me, but we talked to the heiress earlier." Blake lowered her book slightly, taking a look at the red head. "Yeah, I do remember you. What is it?" Ruby sat down next to the black-haired girl. "What are you reading?" Blake looked a little surprised at the question while Ruby remembered the story. "It's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over his body." Ruby smiled. "You know, those stories of heroes were the main reason I wanted to be a huntress." Blake set down her book. "Really? Hoping to live happily ever after?" Ruby shook her head. "I wished we all could, but sometimes reality seems far too cruel for any happy endings." Yang frowned at hearing that, surprised that her sister held such an opinion. "I don't know if that's always the case, though," Blake said. "Those fairy tales might just be fairy tales, but it doesn't mean that there aren't any heroes or happy endings." Ruby leaned back against the wall. "Then I guess that's what we're here for, right?" Yang was far too stunned to say anything, but Blake smiled at the mature conversation. "You seem very mature for someone so young." Ruby chuckled. "That's probably the first time I've heard that sentence." Blake and Ruby continued to quietly talk for the rest of the night as Yang sat down to sleep, leaving the two to themselves.
Ruby rolled around in her sleep, mumbling as she did. Flashes of various images played in her mind. Fire blazed around her. Her friends all screaming out for help as she ran towards the sounds of their voices. She saw Yang fall into a deep abyss, her one good arm reaching out to her. Ruby turned to see Weiss reaching out as a spear lodged into her stomach. She saw Blake, crying on the ground as she slowly disappeared into nothing. She appeared in front of Beacon, the towers collapsing as they burned. Her eyes traveled down in front of her as she saw Pyrrha kneeling on the ground, bleeding from her wounds. "Not again," Ruby thought as she watched Cinder disintegrate the girl, grinning wildly at Ruby. Tears fell down her face as she rushed the evil maiden, but her surroundings quickly changed. She stood in the entrance of a small room, with Yang lying on the bed inside. "You knew about this?" Ruby's eyes filled with tears. "Yes," she said, choking up. "Why didn't you say anything?" Ruby fell to her knees and began sobbing uncontrollably. "I'm sorry, Yang! I'm so sorry…" Ruby then shot awake, breathing heavily with tears streaming down her face.
Ruby slowly dressed herself for her initiation, her head swimming with the images from her nightmare. "It was all so real…" she thought, grabbing Crescent Rose and closing her locker. A deep sigh left her. She heard some screaming and a thud as she saw Jaune get pinned to a locker by Pyrrha's spear. Ruby tried to smile, but nothing came of it, her worry for the future having already set in. "You seem awfully out of it this morning," Yang commented, "Are you worried about the initiation?" Ruby gave her sister the best fake smile she could muster, "Nope! I am in tip top shape." Yang didn't buy it for a second, but before she could say anything, Professor Goodwitch calling everyone to the cliff.
Ruby closed her eyes as she stood on her launch pad, thinking about everything that was about to happen. "I wonder if anything will be the same, will I even be on the same team?" A worried look crossed her face as Ozpin continued talking. Ruby glanced to the side to see Yang staring straight ahead, an unusual frown on her face. Ruby didn't have time to really think about it as she launched without even looking at the red head. Ruby's heart sank as she too was launched into the sky, bringing out Crescent Rose. She flipped and tumbled for a second, only to activate her semblance to direct her movement. She kicked off the side of a tree, conserving momentum and she activated her semblance again to pop herself into the air to land with a roll. She stood still as she thought for a moment. "This way, gotta find Weiss."
Ruby ran through Emerald Forest, scanning her surroundings until she skidded to a stop in front of the heiress. Ruby stood up straight as Weiss turned to walk away, only to come back a few moments later. "Glad you came back," Ruby said. "By no means does this makes us friends." The two walked together, silence filling the air for a good while. Ruby kept her pace matched with Weiss's easily, forcing no conversation between the two. "How'd you make it into Beacon anyhow? You're obviously far too young," Weiss said, finally breaking the silence. "Professor Ozpin saw me fight, he decided to accept me into the academy early. Not really much to it." Weiss stopped for a second. "Not much to it? That sounds like a pretty big deal to me. I mean, if Professor Ozpin wanted you himself, that makes you pretty special, right?" Ruby shook her head. "I'd rather not be seen that way. I just want to be a normal girl, with a normal life." Weiss rolled her eyes. "Well, you certainly picked a bad place to have a normal life." Twigs suddenly snapped nearby as Ruby readied herself, already knowing what was coming. Weiss stared at the red head for a moment, noticing the seriousness in her eyes. "I wonder why she's on edge like that," Weiss wondered as multiple Beowolves surround them. Weiss didn't have much time to react as rose petals fluttered in the wind as Ruby began to strike down Grimm after Grimm.
Weiss caught on to the fight quickly and began making Ruby's life easier by slowing the Grimm or even speeding up the rapid pace of the red head. The two of them worked almost flawlessly as a team, bouncing off each other to take care of all the Grimm. "Feels like there's more than last time," Ruby thought as she went back-to-back with Weiss. Weiss charged forward, taking care of her side, as Ruby did the same to hers. Flurries of slashes and kicks reigned over the Grimm, mincing the monsters. The horde finally let up as Ruby sliced the head off the last of the Beowolves. Weiss panted, her hands on her knees. "That was a lot of Grimm," she said, sweat dripping from her brow. Ruby nodded, taking in deep breaths to calm her heartrate. Weiss stood up straight, turning towards Ruby. "I feel like I should apologize for my behavior. I clearly underestimated your abilities," she said. Ruby gave the heiress a deadpanned stare as she turned to walk away. Ruby watched her pace around, "You don't know where you're going, do you?"
As Ruby and Weiss finally made it to the temple, only to find Yang and Blake watch Jaune fall out of the sky. Ruby ran up to her sister, eyeing the chess piece in her hand. "Good, it's the same." Yang said nothing to Ruby as the red head grabbed the sibling to Yang's piece and turned around to see a Deathstalker chasing Pyrrha. Ruby narrowed her eyes at the Grimm, rushing it to try to quickly take care of it. "Ruby!" Yang yelled, as Nora made her grand appearance on the back of an Ursa. Ruby zipped by Pyrrha and slashed the Deathstalker's tail with tremendous speed, nearly severing it in one blow. She spun around the tail leading to the giant Grimm to try to stab her, only to miss and hit itself. The creature cried out, angrily shaking off the huntress as the Nevermore showed itself, firing feathers at the young girl. Yang burst into action, her maternal instincts kicking in as she watched her kid sister fight on her own. Ruby quickly ran from the feathers, glancing back. "Not this time," she thought as she dodged every feather, however, she was violently tugged back by her cape again, but it wasn't a feather that caught her, but the Deathstalker's bright yellow tail.
As the feathers shot into the ground, Yang punched her way through them as she watched Ruby get picked up by the Grimm. Worry coursed through the blonde as a white blur shot past, freezing the giant scorpion. "Looks like some things don't change at all," Ruby thought as Weiss stood below Ruby, the stinger of the tail swaying back and forth with Ruby's cape caught on it. "You should really try acting like your age," Weiss said as Ruby swung off the tail, leaving it intact for now. "What do you mean?" Ruby asked, not quite piecing it together. Weiss crossed her arms. "Well, you are younger so you should really act like it sometimes. You aren't some old veteran huntress, so stop acting like you can do it all on your own." Ruby stopped for a moment before she just waved her off. "I'm doing this for us. I can't afford to be careless like last time," she thought, looking to the sky to see the Nevermore circling above. Yang quickly tackled her younger sister, a barrage of worried sounds coming from her. "Ruby! I'm so happy you're okay!" Yang hugged the young girl tightly, as if she wouldn't ever let go. "I'm sorry about before, I just—" Yang was cut off by the screeching of the Nevermore. "Guys? That thing's circling back. What are we gonna do?" The group quickly came together, coming up with a plan. "Look, there's no sense in dilly-dallying. Our objective is right in front of us," the heiress said. Ruby smirked, "She's right, our mission is to grab an artifact and make it back to the cliffs. There's no point in fighting these things." Ruby thought for a moment, "Even if we're about to fight it anyway." Jaune looked relieved. "Run and live. That is an idea I can get behind." Ruby quickly set off ahead of the others, scouting forward to see the Nevermore circling around the large temple. "Here we go again," Ruby thought as the battle began.
Sweat rolled down Ruby's cheek as she stood on the cliff, the headless Nevermore floating down to the abyss below. She sighed as exhaustion began to set in, forcing the girl to sit down. "Was that harder than last time? I thought everything was the same," she wondered. She laid on her back, heavy breaths forcing their way in and out of her body. She thought for a long while, waiting for the others to find their way to the cliff. The girl closed her eyes for a moment, the thought of the future persisting. "It feels so close," she said, reaching her hand into the sky, the memory of all the Grimm around Beacon filling her head. She quickly stood up. "Gotta keep going," she thought as she went to go meet the others.
Ruby, Weiss, Blake, and Yang were all called up to the stage at once. Professor Ozpin greeting them. "The four of you retrieved the White Knight pieces, and from this day forward will be known as team RWBY led by Ruby Rose." Ruby breathed a sigh of relief, thankful that everything had stayed practically the same. Ozpin quickly walked up to Ruby, seemingly to congratulate her. He shook her hand, "Congratulations, young lady. I wish to see you in my office after this." Ruby quirked her eyebrows. "That's different," she thought, as the newly formed team was sent on their way.
Ruby quickly made her way to the elevator to Ozpin's office, her heart racing as she escalated. The doors opened to reveal his clock-inspired office, his back turned to the elevator doors. "Tell me, Ms. Rose, why do you lie to those around you?" Ruby narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean?" she asked, feigning innocence. "I've seen you interact with others. Your sister, for example. You keep lying to her, but what about? It seems awfully important." Ruby stayed standing, not wanting to take a seat. "I don't know what you're talking about." Ozpin sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He sat down, pulling out a scroll that played a video. "This is you before we met that night," he said. The video showed a cheery young girl, nearly the opposite to what Ruby was now. Not a care in the world behind her eyes as she happily enjoyed her life. Ruby's heart ached upon seeing it. "And this is you now." The video switched to show Ruby's dark glare. She continually looked tense and on edge. It showed her meeting Weiss, arguing with her sister, and taking on the Deathstalker alone. "I want to know what changed, and how you changed. Because this," he said, showing a comparison of her fighting at Signal and fighting Roman, the difference in skill being completely obvious, "Does not happen overnight." Ruby's silver eyes tilted downwards as she saw the sheer difference in how she held herself. The scroll turned off, showing her reflection to the young girl. The sight shocked her, she had bags under her eyes, and she looked over all disheveled. "It seems to me like you are almost a different person," Ozpin stated as Ruby looked at her reflection. Ruby sighed, her eyes almost glued to the scroll. "I…" she began, her heart aching. A sharp pain swelled in her chest as she took in a deep breath. "I'm sorry, but I still don't know what you're talking about."
Consequences? Character development? Struggle and strife? Oh whatever will I think of next? Just kidding. I was really happy with how everything turned out. Not sure how much of it made sense, but I hope I could make Future Ruby compelling. And if you want to know things like, "What made her change so suddenly?" or "Why doesn't she tell anyone else?" you'll just have to wait and see! (Maybe Next Chapter?) Anyways, hope you enjoyed it and I'll see everyone next time!