Let's get this out of the way before you guys point it out…
Yes, this is another idea.
Yes, I do have other stories I could've worked on.
Yes, I know I rarely update these days.
NO, this will probably not be the last new idea I post.
With all that said, here we find ourselves with a new idea from me. This one is a first for me, though.
It's my first idea that is NOT a Naruto story; crossover or otherwise. Instead, this silly idea is a cross of the phenomenal Kirby series and the wonderful RWBY series.
Please read and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I, Raymond Smith, Own Nothing
A Family of Black, Gold, Pink
Chapter 1: The Fallen Star
The world of Remnant.
A moniker rightfully given to what remained of the world of old. Where once mortal lives resided alongside the Gods of Light and Darkness, and magic wasn't an element of fantasy, but an ability available to everyone with the right training and guidance.
Many centuries have passed since the Brother Gods vanished from the world and magic became a thing of mystery. People grew, learned, fought, killed, destroyed, and rebuilt throughout the years, leading up to the modern day where the most common threat was the Grimm.
Grimm: creatures of Darkness who attacked Humans and Faunus without prejudice, and without mercy. They varied in looks and strength, but one thing remained a constant no matter what shape they took.
They were always a danger to life, threatening the Kingdoms and civilizations with their presence and always leaving people on edge. Of course, they were attracted to negative emotions; so, the people of Remnant did their best to live positive and happy lives. Those who could fight became Huntsmen and Huntresses, warriors trained to combat the Grimm and keep people who couldn't fight safe.
There were also those who weren't Huntsmen, but still fought against the Grimm…or did something else.
One such group was the infamous Branwen Tribe which resided on the continent of Anima. They were a tribe of bandits, founded and led by the Branwen family, and they made their living by attacking settlements and stealing supplies from those who couldn't fight hard enough to keep them.
The current leader of the tribe was Raven Branwen, a former Huntress who only learned the skills so that she could train to fight other Huntsmen. After all, with a tribe of bandits that had not unlocked their Aura, they stood no chance against trained Huntsmen. But with her skills, she could take them on.
Raven was a beautiful woman, tempered by time into a fierce warrior who held a "survival of the fittest" mentality. Her eyes were crimson red like blood, and her jet-black hair was tied by a red bandanna and loosely done up in a ponytail with the ends resembling curved black feathers. A cowlick could also be seen protruding from the top of her head.
For her clothes, she was garbed in a shallow cut black and red dress with black shorts underneath, a series of beaded necklaces, and a belt that wrapped around her waist and carried her weapon's sheath. Attached also was a long black object that looked to be feathers, with a red and white bandana-like material hanging from behind her. Her forearms bore red armored gauntlets that protruded outwards alongside black fingerless gloves. Finishing the look, she wore black mid-thigh high leggings with red splatter patterns and black heels.
Currently, she was sitting outside of her tent and stargazing, admiring the view that wasn't obscured by the trees surrounding her camp. As she gazed at the vastly distant balls of gas and light, she thought back to the family she had left behind.
She thought of Taiyang, the man she had called a teammate and had married.
She thought of her brother Qrow, who she once believed betrayed the tribe but later realized that he had viewed their extended family as more important; something she had grown to respect.
And lastly, she thought of her daughter, Yang. The daughter she had left behind in favor of returning to a group of, as Qrow put it, "killers and thieves". The daughter who had, in Raven's eyes, the best mother to raise her.
Summer Rose was a sore subject for Raven. Possibly the only person she trusted in as much, if not more than her brother, Summer was the leader of Team STRQ when they were all still affiliated with Beacon Academy and its Headmaster, Ozpin.
'Ozpin…' she thought with a sneer.
Just the name vexed her, for he led them all on a foolish and worthless crusade against the "Mother" of the Grimm, Salem. While she had no actual proof, Raven strongly believed that Ozpin was stringing them along in a shadow war that had no end in sight; a hopeless fight that wouldn't end in their generation, nor their children's, nor the generation that followed.
It was Summer's unwavering belief in Ozpin and his crusade that, in Raven's bitter opinion, led to her death. She was the best mother for Yang and her own little girl, Ruby; but she died fighting Ozpin's battles when family should've come first.
She gave a hollow smile at that last thought, knowing she was a hypocrite of the highest order. She stated constantly that "the strong thrived while the weak fell", but she knew she was promoting that simply to hide her own cowardice. In truth, the thought of Salem and her power terrified Raven, alluding back to her belief that helping Ozpin against her would be meaningless.
Her hands were stained with the blood of an equally terrified girl; a girl who was unfortunately the Spring Maiden. Raven would claim it was an act of "mercy", but it didn't change the fact that the girl could've had a life free of this pointless war with Salem, but happenstance made her into the Spring Maiden.
The poor girl was marked from the moment she received such power.
Every time Raven thought of the girl she killed for her power, she thought of Yang; how she could become the next Maiden and be placed in Salem's sights. The power was "passed down" upon the current Maiden's death, with the thoughts of another girl or woman "inheriting" the power.
Why wouldn't Raven think of her daughter, the girl she gave life to and still loved, upon her death?
A stray tear fell, dripping onto the ground as she stared at her hands and the sight of blood only her eyes could ever see. Guilt tore at her, but she had to stay strong in the eyes of the tribe.
If they sensed weakness in her, they would turn on her like a shark when there was blood in the water.
Wiping her eyes to remove any further tears, Raven made to go back into her tent before she caught a streak of light from the corner of her eye. Turning her head to see what it was, her crimson orbs widened in surprise when she saw one of the stars in the sky move through the night like a blur before suddenly curving inward and growing larger and brighter in the span of a couple seconds. She found herself frozen in place as the falling star crashed down not far outside of the tribe's camp.
The impact shook the earth, also shaking her from her frozen state and prompting her to grab her sword, Omen, and rush out of the camp while absently ordering her subordinates to stay put. As good as they were against settlers during raids, they had no Aura; no natural defense against stronger threats. Even Vernal, who did have Aura, was ordered to hang back in case something else came for the tribe while she inspected the fallen star.
As she approached the newly formed crater, she saw that multiple trees had been destroyed by the touchdown and impact. The crater was still hot, but her Aura provided some protection from the heat. With her hand on the grip of her sword, she slid down to the bottom of the crater and kept a vigilant eye on the surrounding area.
It wouldn't be a stretch to say that Grimm could've been attracted to the impact and the sudden spike of panic and worry from the tribe.
When she finally reached the bottom, she couldn't help but blink in stupefaction, for before her very eyes was something small, pudgy, and-
"…pink?" she asked aloud, totally dumbfounded that the falling star was some strange pink thing that was already sitting up and looking around curiously.
It was small, reaching up to just her knee, and round with stubby arms without fingers and large, rounded feet that were red in color. Those curious, and innocent looking, eyes were a bright blue and locked with hers after a few moments looking around.
The strange pink thing gave her a bright smile with closed eyes, calling out to her with an enthusiastic greeting and waving one of its stubby arms.
"Hi~!"
She was so stupefied by this whole thing that she awkwardly waved back. "Uh… Hey…" she greeted back, taking her hand off her weapon.
The thing looked positively harmless, almost childlike in nature.
She watched the thing get to its feet and waddle over to her, standing in front of her with its smile staying just as bright and just as strong. Reaching down, she gripped it by the top of its head and lifted it to eye level.
"You're a weird little guy, aren't you?" she asked rhetorically. "And here I thought that alien life would look more…threatening."
The smile dropped for a confused look. "Poyo~?"
A chuckle escaped her at that. "Well, if alien life is as admittedly cute as you, I don't think we have much to worry about outside of our mudball of a planet."
She would've said more, but he sounds of growling and movement reached her ears. Frowning, she tucked the pink alien underneath her arm and quickly made her way out of the crater. As she leapt out, she looked over her shoulder and cursed under her breath at the sight.
Beowolves… Dozens of them on the other side of the crater. She could easily handle them, but she also saw some Beringels and a Death Stalker behind them. The wolves, she could handle just fine.
The others on top would be difficult, especially with the little pink thing she wanted to bring back to the tribe.
Setting the pink alien down, she pointed to some fallen trees and ordered, "Get behind cover, kid! Now!"
It tilted its head in confusion at her before staring at the Grimm ahead. Looking back on her, it must of saw her concern because it frowned cutely and stepped up beside her.
"No, I need to bring you back to the tribe," she told it, using a leg to push it behind her. "Don't try anything!"
It pouted – actually pouted – at her when she said that, shaking its head and puffing its cheeks.
"Look kid, I can't fight the Grimm and look after you at the same time! Just get behind those trees and-!"
An extremely loud grumble echoed across the cratered forest, and her eyes widened when she noticed it was coming from the alien kid. Its pout was still in place, but it was now rubbing its stomach in discomfort.
Before she could even comment on the absurdity of this moment, its blue eyes narrowed at the Grimm, and it took a bracing stance on the ground. Then, to her shock, it opened its mouth while inhaling; deeply and continuously.
The shock grew into genuine awe as the suction of its inhale became a vacuum, with a force strong enough to rip the Beowolves off their feet, drag them through the air over the crater separating them from the duo, and aim them toward the kid's mouth where it swallowed them whole.
Dozens of Grimm, swallowed and disposed of in mere seconds! And the suction only grew stronger, pulling the Beringels next and turning them into the alien kid's next victims! The Death Stalker was far enough to avoid getting pulled in, and it actually turned tail to retreat!
With the Grimm dealt with, widened crimson eyes looked down at the pink blob that let out a cute burp followed by a very satisfied sigh. It then turned to her, and she would've dived out of its line of fire if it didn't give her another bright smile and waddled over to hug her leg.
Her mind blown by the recent moment, she absently patted the kid's head and lifted it up to tuck under her arm. She then slowly walked back to camp, never looking back at the sight where dozens of Grimm once stood ready to attack.
Sneaking the alien kid back to camp without the others noticing it was child's play. When asked about the crater, she lied and said it was a meteorite that burned to practically nothing before the impact destroyed what was left. She did tell them about the Grimm that had approached, but she told them that she had taken care of the creatures.
Now within the privacy of her tent, and with the tribe's curiosity and concerns dealt with, she sat across from the pink alien as it enjoyed some slightly stale bread. It looked so innocent and harmless, even though it devoured so many Grimm just a few minutes ago.
"What the hell are you…?" she asked, her voice oddly soft in response to her building curiosity.
It stopped chewing on bread and looked at her with a cute tilt of the head. "Poyo?"
Sighing, she questioned again, "You don't understand a thing I'm saying, huh?"
Innocent confusion stared back at her, making her groan and palm her forehead.
"Of course, you don't…" She then removed her hand and pointed at it, getting its attention. "You," she said firmly before pointing to the floor beside her. "Come. Here."
She repeated her actions a couple more times before the alien seemed to understand, getting to its feet and waddling over to her. It looked at her curiously before being lifted by Raven and turned this way and that as she inspected its form. It was then placed back onto the ground before being rolled onto its back as she poked its body with a finger, earning a few giggled from it due to being ticklish.
Ignoring the giggles, Raven mused, "Can't tell if your male or female… I'd say girl because you're pink, but that's a stupid reason. Not to mention I don't know what to call you…"
She stopped poking the alien and let it return to a sitting position. It was still smiling from its earlier giggles, and she fought back a small smile of her own. This kid was unconsciously having her develop some parental bonding, and it hurt her to feel them.
She had abandoned her only child for the tribe, and here she was fighting a smile while looking after some random alien that crashed outside her home.
"Screw it… I'm just gonna say you're male until I'm proven otherwise," she decided. "As for a name… You sucked up all those Grimm like a living vacuum… And before I left, they were promoting a new one back in Vale… So, your name shall be Kirby. You got that, Kirby?"
She stressed the name as he looked at her curiously. Pointing at him, she repeated his new name multiple times until she saw realization shine in the blues of his eyes. He must've liked the name, for her got back to his feet and dove into her lap to hug her around the stomach and nuzzle her affectionately.
Awkwardly, she kept her arms out in a refusal to hug him back. She held an uncomfortable expression and awkwardly patted him once on the head.
"Okay kid, that's enough," she said before pulling him away from her. "From this point on, you belong to me. I will teach you what you need to know and train you to become the strongest you can be…"
She stared at him looking at her curiously for a few moments before she took a breath and sighed.
"…But not here," she continued. "You're just a kid, and the tribe will tear you apart…" Her gaze became vacant as she looked down at her hands, again seeing blood staining them. "I can't let another innocent life be taken by the tribe's ideals; my ideals…"
Memories of Yang as a newborn in her arms at the hospital plagued her mind then, and she blinked away the tears that threatened to show. Her gaze became firm again as she looked back at Kirby and his curious face.
"Tomorrow, you and I will be leaving the tribe…"
Raven looked to the direction of Vale; the direction where Yang was.
"…We'll be going home," she finished, her crimson eyes gaining a newfound since of determination.
And that's that.
Pretty short, but this was mainly to set up the direction I wanted to take this story.
Raven is one of my favorite characters from RWBY, one of my Top 5. In case you're wondering, the other 4 are Yang, Neo, Blake, and Pyrrha (gone too soon, but never forgotten).
Anyway, since Raven is a favorite of mine, it bothers me how RWBY's story seemed to make her such a hypocritical and almost hated character due to her cowardice and her disregard for Yang. I think they could've treated her character better, and I'm sure I'm not the only person who believes that.
As such, I'm going to be giving her a sort of redemption in this story, allowing her another chance to actually step away from the tribe she clung to and be a part of Yang's life; to be the mother she never was to Yang.
As for why I chose to cross this with Kirby? Honestly, I thought the idea of Kirby – adorable, innocent, and happy Kirby – with a more cynical person like Raven to be both funny and interesting. It was a random idea that wouldn't leave me alone, no matter what I did.
So, I talked to my friend Curious Kitsune654 and the two of us bounced ideas around before I decided to finally take initiative and post this first chapter!
Hopefully, it turned out well and I've left you – if even only slightly – interested in more to come! After all, this is my first story without Naruto elements at all!
I need to break away from my safety net!
Until next time, if there is a next time!
Stay safe, healthy, and positive!
pain17ification