Two joyful souls decide to play. While six hope they remain okay. A price is paid and six join two while one poor soul will be forced to play too.
Finished another chapter on time I'm currently 6 for 6 and enjoying the fact that I've somehow managed to keep to this schedule even with the semester coming to an end in another few weeks. Sorry about the last chapter it's not one of my best works as most of you noticed since it was rushed in some areas. If I ever get ahead of schedule Chapter 5 will undergo some rewriting to fix the pacing issues it has. (I've edited Ch. 5 as of 8/14/2015 It's fixed I swear)
Also thank you once again to everyone who gave a review I appreciate your feedback and will try to better myself for future chapters.
Now back to your regularly scheduled program.
Disclaimer I do not own RWBY or Bloodborne both pieces are owned by their respective publishers.
Yang was stood in the middle of a black abyss standing on what appeared to be glass. Looking around for any land marks all she saw was darkness in every direction. Suddenly Yang could hear something faint in the distance calling her name the once empty void had something appear in it. The object looked like a small orb of light hovering in the distance. Seeing nothing else Yang started to trek towards the light finding she grossly underestimated how far away it was. Getting closer she started to feel the warmth the light gave off along with the voice becoming more clear. Ruby's voice seemed to emanate from the light as it grew in size engulfed Yang and covering her in its warmth.
Opening her eyes Yang was greeted with the sight of Weiss standing over her, "Look who finally decided to join us."
"Weiss," Yang said as she wiped away any residual tears. "I'm sorry I got you involved it should have only been me."
"Yang it's alright. Sure it didn't end well for us, but look at the bright side." Weiss said.
"What bright side would that be?" Yang asked before she was tackled by a red blur.
"Yang you're awake." Ruby cheered, as the elder sister was overcome with emotions. Yang wrapped her arms around her sister giving a crushing hug with what strength she had left, eliciting a yelp from her sister.
"Yang you're crushing me." Ruby chocked out getting her to let go.
"I'm just so happy to see you I thought I'd never get to hug my sister again. I'm so sorry I wasn't there to protect you I should had at least been able to do that much."
"That wasn't your fault and you know it. I got carried away and didn't mind my surroundings if it's anyone's fault its mine."
"I'm your older sister and teammate I'm supposed to look out for you so this stuff doesn't happen." Yang paused for a moment remembering what her failing would likely cause. "Dad is going to be so angry when he hears I let this happen to us."
Weiss was starting to get visibly annoyed with the two sisters trying to take blame for the mission. "Would you two please stop blaming yourselves and just say that everyone involved has some blame."
"Weiss is right," Blake said joining the conversation. "Ruby should have contacted us the moment she made contact. I shouldn't have jeopardized the mission by going after her when we all knew I wouldn't make it back in time. Yang was wrong to try to avenge us and Weiss shouldn't have given her and JNPR a means to try."
"I'm amazed that all of you are taking this so well." Yang said marveling over how her teammates handling their situation.
"Well it was bound to happen eventually." Blake added.
"Do you remember how much damage we caused on the highway when Roman was in that mech chasing after you?" Weiss recalled.
"Not to mention when we failed to stop that train at least Miss Goodwitch was there to patch up most of the damage then." Ruby said thinking of all the shops that got destroyed during the breach.
"Yeah those were good times. So what's everyone's plan to do now that we're dead." The rest of the team looked at Yang as if she grew a second head. "What is the question to personal? I plan on getting some haunting done at Beacon try to make the most of it."
"Uh Yang," Ruby squeaked trying to grab her sister attention.
"Yes."
"We're not dead Yang possibly hurt, but still not dead." Yang started to laugh at her sisters words.
"You're going to have to do better than that if you want to trick me Rubes."
"But Yang," Ruby whined.
"She'll figure it out eventually." Blake said half hopping it would take the brawler some time to realize she wasn't dead.
"Are we really going to entertain this idiot's idea?" Weiss was clearly angry with how Yang rationalized the situation.
Thinking it over Ruby started to weigh the possibilities of what Yang could possibly do and came to a decision. "Come on Weiss how bad could it be? it's not like we can get in to anymore trouble."
"Ruby Rose don't you dare say that." Weiss said clearly angry at her leader tempting fate.
"Fine, I still want to see what she does though."
"Agreed, I just hope this doesn't come back to bite us."
"So what happened to JNPR after I was taken out?" Yang was actually curious about how her friends had fared in the battle. Possibly even sad over what fate she forced on them for trying to help her.
"They were so awesome Jaune leaped in to save you with his shield then Nora brought her hammer down and then Pyrrha and Jaune were all 'swish, swish, stab' until Dunstan gave up." Ruby described while making gestures to imitate each weapon as it entered her story.
"How do you even know all this Rubes?" Yang asked.
"Weiss explained what happened to me after she finally calmed down and let go of me."
"Don't tell her that part you dolt." Weiss said as she slapped the back of her leader's head.
"Its fine Ice Queen It's not every day you get to see your dead partner."
The bullhead touched down at Beacons docks and the doors opened to reveal that the other one had landed beside them along with team JNPR waiting for them to exit. RWBY saw a slightly saddened team JNPR who had their heads held down except for Nora who seemed to be her usual self. Making her way to Nora Yang pulled her into a hug.
"Hey Nora want to help me haunt Beacon for the rest of the day?"
"I told you we were ghosts," Nora said pointing her finger accusingly at Jaune before running off with Yang through Beacon's halls.
"We finally managed to convince her we weren't dead." Jaune said as he watched his hard work get undone by the blonde brawler.
"Should we go after them?" Pyrrha asked concerned over the possible damage the duo could cause.
"Nora will tire herself out eventually." Ren calmly stated.
"How long does that usually take?"
"Give or take 8 hours if we're not in a lecture. Since she was just lost a fight though it should only about 4 hours before she crashes."
"So what did Goodwitch ask your team to do?" Ruby asked wondering what she had in store for her friends.
"Just to attend today's classes and once we're finished to go to the headmaster's office." Jaune looked almost depressed with the knowledge that he'd have to wait an entire day before he knew his own fate.
"Looks like we're going to be sentenced together than." Ruby said with her usual cheery attitude knowing that whatever happened to them they could face it together.
"Can you not say it like that? It makes me think we're going to jail or something."
"What makes you think we aren't going to jail?" Blake said in her uninterested tone causing Jaune to go into shock over the possibility of going to jail.
Seeing her partner in distress Pyrrha stepped in to calm the knight's worries. "Jaune no one is going to jail. Maybe we get suspended or expelled but we're definitely not going jail." Especially if she had anything to say about it being a celebrity did have some perks including a fair amount of wealth and a team of lawyers. She also knew that the Heiress would never allow such a fate to befall her team and her friends.
"Thanks Pyrrha, I really needed that." Jaune said glad he had such a good friend to lookout for him. "I don't know about you, but I could use a shower." Looking over his combat attire they saw the dirt, scratches, and the prominent dent that know adorned his chest piece. His usual blonde hair had a layer of dirt coating it along with stray debris hanging off the locks.
"I wouldn't mind taking some time to clean up." Pyrrha said looking over her current appearance and noticing that she wasn't at her best currently.
"You do realize that we'll be late if we take the time to shower?" Black said taking note that their first class of the day would be starting shortly.
"You ok with being a little late to class Weiss?" Ruby asked her partner who froze momentarily over the possibility of her first tardy.
"Ruby I do not even want to consider the idea of me getting my first tardy because you wanted to take a shower." Her cold expression softened once she got a better look at her partner seeing the dirt that clung to her skirt and face. "However it was bound to happen eventually so it might as well be on my own terms."
"Thanks Weiss you're the best." Ruby quickly hugged her before letting go with an apologetic look on her face. Weiss looked down at what used to be her perfectly white dress now covered in dirt. In the moment her eyes filled with rage Ruby had vanished leaving behind a cloud of rose petals leading to the dorms.
Team JPR and WB made their way to the dorms only to find Ruby sat in front of the door cradling her knees and rocking back and forth. Team JPR not wanting to interfere or perhaps set off the distressed leader silently walked back into their room and began cleaning up. With only Weiss and Blake left they slowly approached Ruby wonder what could have possibly caused her to become like that in such a short time.
"Ruby are you ok?" Weiss asked concerned.
"No I'm not fine!" She yelled with her eyes red from crying earlier.
"No matter what it is we can help." Blake said trying to fill Yang's roll as the helpful sibling since the brawler had decided to run off.
"I left my baby behind. What kind of person am I to just forget about her. I'm worse than a murderer I mean who leaves behind the very thing they brought into this world."
"Ruby would you please just tell us what's wrong?" Weiss asked slightly fearful for her partner's mental health.
"I forgot to grab Crescent Rose along with my scroll before we left and now it's stuck in the Emerald Forest somewhere. If we get expelled I won't be able to get back there and retrieve her." At the mention of weaponry Blake reached for Gambol Shroud only to realize that she never got hers back either.
Weiss pulled out her scroll opening the door and ushered Ruby in. "Ruby I promise that I'll help you get Crescent Rose back. Worst case scenario is that I have to borrow a company airship to get us there." Weiss looked over and saw that Blake was also lacking her usual weaponry. "If you want you can tag along."
"Thanks Weiss." Blake gave a small smile appreciating Weiss' offer.
"Now let's get started on those showers. I may be willing to get a tardy but I am not going to be absent today even if it is only Port's class."
Walking out of their dorm the remains of each team walked over to Port's class only to find a small piece of paper sloppily taped to door.
'Class will be held in the training arena today –signed Peter Port'
They began to wonder how Port managed to get the arena for the day since it was usually booked for other classes, until they remembered where their combat instructor had to be earlier today. As they approached the door they could hear the sound of a Grimm hissing along with metal clashing against bone.
Opening the doors to the stands they saw Port overseeing the arena with Cardin Winchester stood in its center fighting off a human sized armored scorpion. Every time it would try to swipe at him with its claw Cardin would match it with a blow from his mace effectively negating both of their attacks. Not willing to push forward for fear of the monsters tail coming down onto him left them at a stalemate.
"So what did we miss?" Ruby asked one of the other students siting in the stands watching the fight.
"Nothing much, Ports been selecting students at random to fight some Grimm he caught. Apparently Miss Goodwitch is away at the moment so he managed to have the arena for today." He immediately turned back to the fight when a small explosion erupted from the arena.
The Death Stalker backed away from the flames momentarily allowing Cardin to try and think of a plan. Taking another swing with his mace the dust crystal in his mace let off another chain of explosions towards the monster blinding it. Leaping into the air Cardin hoped to smash through the bone plating and end the fight. Unfortunately his plan was interrupted when a watermelon smashed into him midair knocking him off balance and tumbling past his intended target.
"A Huntsman must always be prepared for the unexpected. You'll never know when you'll face fire from multiple sides during a battle." Professor Port bellowed to the stunned student.
Cardin tried to refocus on the fight and get back into his fighting stance when whole cooked turkey flew into the arena smacking into the side of his head allowing the Grimm to hit him with its right claw smashing him into the arena wall. Looking around Cardin saw Yang Xiao Long and Nora Valkyrie carrying a copious amount of food and taking aim at him.
Ruby spotted her sister almost immediately after the turkey was thrown into the arena and walked over to her. "Yang what do you think you're doing?"
"Just having some fun, Cardin's a jerk anyway so I figured that it would be fun to mess with him." Yang went over the pile of ammunition at her feet and picked up two apples. "Want to join in?" Passing her sister an apple Ruby eyed it for a moment before running back to the others. After a talking to them they all walked back over to Yang and Nora.
Pyrrha walked over and grabbed the baguette smiling and got ready to throw it like a javelin. Nora looked over at her teammates happy that they decided to join in and began to shake a few of the soda cans and toss them into the fight watching them explode into a colorful mist.
"Should we really be doing this what if he gets hurt during the fight?" Jaune asked not wanting to be convicted of involuntary manslaughter along with grand theft auto.
"Don't worry vomit boy Port wouldn't let a student die on his watch. Besides don't you want some much deserved revenge against that jerk?" Yang lobbed Jaune a watermelon who stumbled from the sudden action. Taking a moment to consider his options he opted to throw the melon as hard as he could towards his former bully. Seeing it fall towards him Cardin smashed it with his mace obliterating the melon and causing its innards to spill over him in a shower of bits.
"Is that the best you got?" He yelled back into the stands unknowingly unleashing the flood gates that were team RWBY and JNPR who began to dig through the pile for anything that could be used.
Now fighting a Death Stalker of such size would usually be a one to two person job however adding in the bombardment of food that hit Cardin each time he began to gain an advantage made it impossible to land a deceive blow. Cardin could feel his aura draining since each failed attempt would allow the monster get a hit on him and the two teams attacking him seemed to have an infinite amount of ammunition.
Deciding to get out while he could Cardin signaled the teacher. "Professor I give up!" as he ran circles around the arena with the scorpion in pursuit.
"Bring it over here lad. I'll end the beast myself." Port pulled out his blunderbuss with axe blades built into the stock and got ready to leap at the beast as it past him. Jumping down with his axe ready he chopped though the tail and plunged the blade into the armor carapace that made up the beasts exterior. Letting out a screech it began to shake violently trying to uproot the professor who held onto his weapon which was still anchored to the monsters head. Once it settled down he pulled the axe out and aimed the gun into the wound unloading a shot into its head causing it to fall to the ground dead.
"Good show lad, good show. Now I'd like all of you to take note that while Mr. Winchester did have the advantage originally all it took were a few stray meals to throw him off balance and keep him there for the remainder of the fight." To make a point he picked up one of the baguettes and smashed it into the wall leaving an indent of the bread. "Even the simplest of objects can be turned into a Huntsman's tool if they put some aura into it."
"This wasn't fair I had two teams gunning for me the entire match. How was I supposed to win under those conditions?" Cardin violently protested smashing his mace into the floor.
"You can't win every fight and it's an important lesson to know when you should make a strategic withdrawal." Port advised Cardin along with the attending students. "Thank you Team RWBY and JNPR for making this session so much more interesting by participating in class."
Yang froze and pointed to herself, "You can see us?"
"Oh course Miss Xiao Long. Why wouldn't I be able to?"
We're alive?" Yang looked to her teammates then back to Ruby before crushing her in a bear hug as she swung her sister around in joy. "You're alive. I'm so happy right now." Yang was on the verge of tears over the situation. Dropping her sister she walked over to Blake who put up no resistance to the brawlers embrace before moving onto Weiss.
Holding out an arm she stopped Yang's approach momentarily. "You are not hugging me before you take a shower and clean those clothes of yours." When Yang put her arms down Weiss lowered hers knowing they came to an understanding, until Yang rushed in and lifted her off her feet with another crushing hug. "Get off me you brute, unhand me this instant." Weiss fumed at her situation unable to get out of Yang's grasp until she was set back down.
"Come on Weiss it wasn't that bad. Now we can celebrate and enjoy the rest of the day." Yang was nearly jumping with joy and was ready to enjoy the rest of the day with the team.
"Sorry Yang we have to attend the rest of our classes then head to Ozpin's office for our punishment." The looming threat of whatever Ozpin gave them would weigh on them for the entirety of the day until they went to see him.
Sitting in the lunch room both teams were starting to feel the strain of their pending fate and it was very apparent on Jaune who kept rambling about what could go wrong. From having to return to his family to becoming a criminal so he could stay in Vale, that being said his constant talks were beginning to drain everyone.
"Jaune would stop being so depressing. I know our entire lives are up in the air at the moment, but please just let us enjoy our meal in peace." Yang said in annoyance as she bit into her sandwich.
"Sorry I'm just really stressing out over this. I mean for some of us this was our entire life, I just don't know what to do if it all falls through." Jaune said as he dipped his Grimm shaped chicken nuggets.
"And you worrying isn't going to make this any better just relax. We can't get out of this so just enjoy the ride." Yang saw her sister sadly starring into the plate of pancakes sat in front of her and decided to talk to her. "Why the long face Ruby?"
"I'm just worrying about my baby she's still out there somewhere." Everyone on team JNPR stopped eating and turned to the fifteen year old leader in shock.
"She means Crescent Rose." Yang added to stop any thoughts that may have sprung to JNPR's mind. "Where was the last place you saw it?"
"It should still be in that church somewhere, but even if we get to stay in Beacon I doubt Ozpin would let us venture out there again after what happened last time." Ruby said as she started to very delicately pour syrup over he pancakes.
Yang took notice of Ruby drawing out lines over her meal, "so what's that you're drawing?"
"I've just had this image stuck in my head all day. I figured drawing it out might help get a better idea on what it is." The image was simple unlike most of their own emblems lacking any curves and only dealing in a straight line up the center and what looked like pincers coming off the bottom. Putting on the finishing touch Ruby poured a single drop between the pincers making it look like they griped the orb.
"So any idea what it is now that you have a sweet picture to go off of?"
"No, but I do feel drawn to it. It's kind of calming actually now that I can focus on it." As Ruby peered at her design and felt a calm sensation wash over her. Looking around everyone at the table looked at her in fear as Yang reached for her only for her hand to pass through Ruby before she vanished in a pale mist. Nora took immediate action and flipped the plate over destroying the evil pancake along with any magic it may have possessed.
Everyone was in shock over what had just happened until Yang smashed her fist into the table grabbing their attention. "What just happened to Ruby?"
"She just vanished into thin air." Weiss said as she waved her hand over where Ruby was sat trying to see if it was all some trick.
Jaune brought his hand up and slapped himself across the face and looked around hoping that he was dreaming or perhaps hallucinating. When he saw that Ruby was still gone he slapped himself again with the same result. "Sorry just had to double check."
"We need to go to Ozpin." Pyrrha offered hopping the headmaster would be able to help the situation.
"Weiss, do you remember what Ruby drew out before she vanished?" Blake asked looking over the ruined meal.
"Of course I remember, why?"
"Ozpin will want all the details of what happened here. We'll need another copy of what she drew incase it's connected to her vanishing." Weiss nodded in agreement as they went to meet with the headmaster a little earlier than expected.
Ruby was sitting in front of a small lamp that glowed a ghostly blue. She felt oddly comforted by the light it put off and started to look around. She instantly recognized the place as the Dunstan's workshop complete with books stacked high around the edges and the coffins still out across the floor. Ruby realized her opportunity and began searching for her weapon opening a few of the coffins that sat around the workshop. Opening the first one she found a wide assortment of cloths from masks to top hats and even what looked like student attire mixed in. The next two coffins she opened where full of all sorts of weaponry that would usually make Ruby yell in delight at the sight of such craft, however she was on a mission to save her sweetheart and wouldn't be distracted.
Luckily fourth time was the charm and Ruby found Crescent Rose along with Gambol Shroud placed neatly within the coffin next to her scroll. Pressing a button Crescent Rose unfolded into a sniper rifle with a scythe blade running off the barrel. In doing so however she knocked over a few stacks of the books lying around causing them to fall to the floor rather loudly. In fear of what would happen if Dunstan caught her going through his stuff she rushed back to the lantern. Attracted by the soft glow and what comfort it brought she reached out touching it before she felt a familiar sensation of weightlessness before vanishing.
Dunstan heard the books in the workshop fall over and rushed back in from the graveyard. Entering the building he caught the sight of mist fading away from where someone was previously stood. Walking over he saw the lantern was still lit and he realized that someone had just entered the Hunter's Dream. Taking a quick inventory Dunstan found that a good number of his storage coffins where opened and the only thing missing was Ruby's weapon. Taking a guess at what had just happened Dunstan took a seat in front of the lantern to wait for the inevitable.
"A dream that calls to all Hunters whether asleep or awake, but how many lanterns have you lit little Hunter? Have you another path to follow or have you walked into a dead end?"
Ozpin had two files sat at his desk as he drank his coffee when the elevator doors opened and team BWY and JNPR spilled out into the office. Yang was the first to speak up among the group, "Ruby just vanished."
"What she means to say is that Ruby vanished into mist while starring at her pancake." Weiss immediately noticed how crazy she sounded as soon as the words had left her mouth.
"And what makes you so sure Miss Rose has vanished and is not somewhere in Beacon?" Ozpin asked closing the files.
"Despite how crazy this sounds Sir Weiss is telling the truth we can all vouch for how Ruby vanished." Jaune added.
Pulling up a camera feed of the Lunch room Ozpin watched the video feed and saw Ruby disappeared into a pale mist. "Sir, Ruby drew this symbol out before she vanished." Weiss pulled out a slip of paper having a copy of whatever Ruby drew before vanishing.
"As long as she has her scroll on here we can track her down."
"Ruby never retrieved her scroll after today's incident it should still be in the emerald forest."
Looking over the tracking program Ozpin noticed a slight discrepancy. "It says she was in contact with her scroll 3 minutes ago."
"Are you sure it was her?" Yang asked hoping for a solid lead.
"Every individual has a unique aura Miss Xiao Long and your sister is no different. Her scroll registered that she was indeed holding it before it lost contact."
"How does a scroll just vanish?"
"Any number of ways can cause a signal loss. They may be destroyed, out of range, or the signal could be blocked." Looking over the information Ozpin saw where the signal last transmitted from. "I'll need all of you to return to class."
"You can't just tell us to leave my sister is gone and I won't lose her again."
"You will return to your classes while I retrieve Miss Rose once again. You have my word that I will find her." Yang saw the unwavering resolve that Ozpin held in his eyes and knew that Ruby would be fine.
"Just make sure nothing happens to her alright?"
"I'll do my best as a Huntsman to make sure she gets back here. Now run along I have some calls to make before I can leave." Yang and the others all left as Ozpin looked over the symbol Weiss left him with. Tapping a button on the screen he contacted Glynda.
"Ozpin what is it now." She said still angry over what had transpired earlier today.
"Are both the bullheads we brought in today still available?"
"Yes, although the one Miss Schnee took is undergoing a very heavy inspection to make sure everything is still working. Why are you asking?"
"I need to take a bullhead to visit a new acquaintance of ours who can hopefully be able shed some light on a new development."
"Would you like me accompany you again?"
"No that won't be necessary, instead can you do some research into something I recently received?" Standing up Ozpin began walking to the elevator scroll in hand.
"What is it?"
"A strange symbol which may be linked to a problem that was just brought to my attention."
"The bullhead is ready for you whenever you want to take off. Do try to be careful you are after all the Headmaster of Beacon." The elevator began its decent as he held the scroll out to continue his conversation
"The symbol is on my desk currently, also while I'm gone make sure to keep Beacon safe."
"Should I be worried that you're leaving that tower of yours so often nowadays?"
"Something is happening in Beacon's own backyard and I plan on finding out what's causing it."
"That didn't answer my question."
"Glynda Beacon is one of the few bulkheads that holds back the darkness, training children to be the next torch bearers to light the path for the next generation. I doubt that we will ever be safe."
"Just try to be careful Ozpin."
"I'll try not to cause too many problems." Ending the call Ozpin walked into the bullhead ad prepped it for launch. Turning the engines on he lifted off the platform and set his trajectory to the Hunter's Workshop.
A few of you may have noticed this chapter had next to nothing to do with the Hunter's Dream which is something I said I'd get to in my AN last chapter. I couldn't get the story to go there in one chapter so sorry about the misinformation. I do try to stick to what I say in these notes, but sometimes it just can't happen. So take these notes at the beginning and end with a grain of salt since I may not always be able to hit all my points.
Time for a dream sequence in the next chapter, although I guess that every scene that takes place in the Hunter's Dream counts as a dream sequence. It's just that these dreams actually matter and affect the real world in this story. Ruby is going to visit the Doll and I'm going to try to give the messengers a little something next time along with Team RWBY and JNPR finally getting there punishment for Hijacking a bullhead.
This is Brassleader and until then farewell.
Edit notes: Grammar and Punctuation. For those of you wondering yes I did Rhyme two with too I ran out of ideas okay I'll probably go through and adjust them as this series continues. Also how come no one ever told me that in my disclaimer I was using there instead of their? My guess is because everyone looks over the declaimer. Don't expect a rewrite.