Ruby Rose was 12 years old when she started hearing voices.
To many, this would be a sign of a serious mental disorder like schizophrenia or something equally as bad for a developing young mind.
But ruby was never really concerned with the voices as the also took the (strange) appearance of colourful marines in armour. They never really interacted with the world and were akin to ghosts in how they acted, (an observation that amused two of them and infuriated another to no end, especially when referencing 'Church').
The origins of the voices themselves was a subject of great debate among the three of them, with theories ranging from magic to a freak teleporter accident. But as far as Ruby was concerned they came into existence when she fell asleep on night at her mother's grave.
It was a calm night at Summer Rose's grave, Ruby had come to visit after a particularly bad day involving an (literal) exploding oven, a (metaphorical) exploding dad and a (literal) exploding yang. She couldn't remember exactly what happened to start the argument, all she knew was that she needed to get out of the house now. So to Summer's grave she went, the night had passed quietly but when she woke up they were there.
"Uggghhhh," Someone said near her, as she was waking up.
"Where are we?" A gruff, unknown, voice called out. The sound of a stranger was enough to snap ruby from her dazed, half asleep state as she jumped up, prepared to open Crescent Rose only to find… Atlas soldiers?
She blinked twice as she watched three soldiers, one in blue, another in red and the third in grey with yellow, all get up and look at their surroundings. "This...isn't Chorus." The grey one said, seemingly evaluating his surroundings.
"No, it's a forest agent Washingtub!" The blue one said in a very chipper and matter of fact tone.
"How do we know this isn't Chorus?" The red one demanded.
Causing the one named Washingtub(?) To groan. "Well for one I'm getting no signal and as I recall, Chorus doesn't have a shattered moon." He finished by gesturing to said moon which was oddly still in the sky with the sun.
"Fair point blue," Red said, which confused Ruby, the other man wasn't blue, he was grey. Unless he was talking about the other soldier? But he didn't say anything.
It was at this point the blue soldier said "Oh! Why don't we ask her?" Causing the other two soldiers to turn around to face Ruby.
Hoping to make this less awkward she waved, "Hi?"
Red and Washingtub (a strange name) seemed to be confused at her mere presence while blue was a lot more friendly, "Hello!" He waved back "My name is Caboose! Who are you?" He said loudly.
"R-Ruby, Ruby Rose." She stammered out, caught off guard by his loud and friendly tone.
"Nice to meet you Ruby! We can be best friends!" This loud declaration was enough to kick the other two out of their stupor.
"No Caboose!" The grey one said before turning to Ruby herself. "Nice to meet you Miss Rose, I'm agent Washington."
"Sarge," The red trooper grunted out. "Mind telling us where we are, lil lady?"
"P-patch, near my house," Ruby said nervously.
This was met by three silent looks, of what she could only describe as confusion as Washington, (not tub) sought to clarify. "Uh...what? Where?"
"Patch," More blank stares, "In Vale." They didn't stop, "It's a continent in Remnant."
"You're making that up," Sarge accused as he stepped forward.
Thus began one of the most nonsensical arguments of her life as she tried to convince the three that they were on Remnant and not some far away planet called Chorus.
Oddly enough Caboose had no trouble accepting her arguments as he told her, "Makes sense, the grass feels strange." She didn't point out he had armoured boots on.
Something told her that they weren't the most competent Atlas soldiers.
Washington and Sarge however seemed to question even the most basic concepts of how the world worked "Dust? What's dust?" And, "What is Sam hell are Grimm?" Being the most difficult to answer.
"Dust," Ruby scrambled for words "Is… Dust." Yeah, she was unable to answer this basic question, so what? Everyone knew what dust was.
She moved on, "A Grimm is a monster attracted by negative emotion."
"Can they be weaponized?" Sarge asked curiously as he leaned forward.
"No," Was the firm answer.
Further questions were put on hold as Yang came barrelling out of the woods.
"Ruby!" Yelled Yang as she went to hug her baby sister.
"Who's this?" Washington asked. (It was still a strange name in Ruby's opinion.)
Pulling herself free from Yang's death-bear hug, Ruby made the introductions. "Guys, this is Yang my sister," Ruby gestured at Yang. "Yang, these guys are Sarge, Washington and Caboose!" She pointed to each trooper as she said their name.
But rather than greet the trio, Yang instead looked at Ruby weirdly. Super weirdly.
"Ruby," Yang asked full of concern. "Are you feeling well?"
Ruby waved off concerns. "I'm fine Yang, but why aren't you greeting the guys?"
"Yeah that's really rude!" Caboose nodded in agreement.
Yang knelt to her sisters level and placed her hand on ruby's forehead. "Ruby… no one's there." She broke the news to her sister gently causing a great deal of indignant protests from Sarge, Caboose looking directly at the sun and Washington tilting his helmet in a troubled manner.
Ruby looked shocked, "W-what? B-but they are right there!" She protested, it's not like they were ghosts right?
The following walk back to the house and argument with dad proved more frustrating for Ruby and concerning for Yang and Taiyang, as little red kept referring to people who didn't exist.
Soon she was sent up to her room for 'bed rest' which frustrated Ruby even more. She. Was. Not. Crazy!
During the whole affair Caboose and Sarge had been far from quiet with Caboose making increasingly silly suggestions and Sarge increasingly violent threats, but Washington, Washington was silent.
"What do you think Mr Washington?" Ruby asked while she lay on her bed, sending Caboose and Sarge quiet as they looked at Washington for his opinion.
Washington was silent in his corner of the room for a moment before giving his two cents "I think that we are..." He hesitated, "I think we're no longer in our world, and I think that we're stuck in your head." He finished.
The four occupants went silent as they considered what Wash said.
It was Sarge that broke the silence
"So… what now lil miss?" He asked in that weird accent of his.
Ruby was taken back "Your… asking me?"
"Of course! It's you head after all," Sarge told her.
Ruby contemplated the situation for a moment. On one hand no one else could see the three not-Atlas soldiers (possibly space marines?), so there was a (small) chance she was losing her mind.
But on the other hand, Washington's theory made sense and they seemed friendly enough, plus Yang always did tell her she needed some friends outside of her...
She made up her mind.
"Alright," Ruby said after a few moments. "We'll pretend that I didn't see anything and that this was, caused by sleeping in the cold." The others nodded. "Then we can hang out and find a way for you guy's to get home."
Wash nodded. "That sounds reasonable, and I know that this probably seems like a very strange situation to you, it is for us as well. But I'm sure that working together we can figure this out."
They would not figure it out.
But they would indeed become fast friends.
There was some trial and error at the start (figuring out how to effectively communicate without seeming crazy) and some awkwardness (they had to wait outside while Ruby got changed or used the bathroom), but ultimately Ruby benefited from this partnership getting (terrible) combat advice and (great) mechanical advice from Sarge, a true friend in Caboose and some amazing strategies and combat advice from agent Washington.
It wasn't perfect, but it worked.
Then on the eve of Yang's enrolment to Beacon, Ruby went shopping at a place called 'From Dust Till Dawn.'
It was Yang that bought Ruby to Vale.
Okay, that was a simplification.
It was actually Yang going to Beacon academy tomorrow that bought Ruby to Vale. Dad was busy with paperwork for Signal, so she and Yang had been given money and told to 'celebrate'. Naturally this meant that Yang ditched her to go to some 'cool' club that Ruby couldn't go to.
So Ruby went to a local dust shop.
Alone.
Well, not exactly alone.
"Ruby. Oh! Ruby!" Called out a far too enthusiastic voice.
Ruby gave the full body sigh that came with interacting with the Blue for too long. "Yes, Caboose?"
"Can we get this blue dust for nice Church?" Ruby gingerly looked at the cobalt, electric dust which was, surprisingly expensive for some reason.
"Maybe later Caboose" She told him gently, the notion of her dad being 'Nice Church' being a sore subject between caboose and the rest of the group as while Taiyang did sound like Church; the syntax, means of expression and tone where all different. As such Caboose took to calling her dad 'Nice Church'.
Caboose nodded and went back to his browsing, allowing Ruby to go back to her own browsing of the magazine section of the shop.
She looked at the titles, 'Vale Weapons Weekly', 'Mechs Today' and 'Shotguns Today'. Speaking of shotguns...
"I'm telling you with the power of my mighty shotgun-" Washington's voice climbed another octave as he cut Sarge off "And I'm telling you Grimm. Cannot. Be. Weaponized! Not even using a shotgun!"
Ruby sighed, that particular argument had been going in circles for hour now even since she read an article about Grimm in capture, which had Sarge remark about how if he had a shotgun he could easily control a Grimm and set it on the blues, which caused Washington to disagree. Leading to now.
Tired of the argument she pulled out her headphones, set them on her head and pulled up her hood.
She pulled out her scroll and hit shuffle. Loud music filtered through her ears as she recognised the beat, it was one of her favourites. "Faaaaallling toward the skyyyyyy, waiting for myyyy ride."
Her head moved with the beat as she continued to browse the magazines. Oooohhhh the latest issue of 'Huntresses And Hunters Legends' had just came out!
She reached over to take it off the rack she felt a tapping on her shoulder. Turning around she saw a well-dressed man in a suit with Sarge and Wash standing behind him. She paused the song and took off her headphones.
"Yes?" She asked eloquently.
"I said, put your hands in the air, now!" The bargain bin criminal demanded.
Ruby looked at her invisible friends for clarification "Is he...robbing me?"
"Unfortunately" came Wash's reply, which contrasted with Sarge's "yeah, sic-em!"
Ruby nodded "Oooohhhh..."
Using her semblance, she moved faster than the robber could react and punched and pushed him through the shop window, sending them both outside. The other men that were robbing the store looked outside as Ruby got up and unfolded Crescent Rose into its scythe form.
The guy in the white suit scowled, but Ruby smiled back at him before twirling her weapon around, striking it into the ground, daring them to attack. The (what she presumed was) leader seemed confused by her.
"Okayyy..." He gestured to his remaining henchmen. "Get her!"
The henchmen headed out of the shop and ran at Ruby, who spun around on top of her scythe and kicked the first approaching criminal in the face. She pulled Crescent Rose out of the ground and fired it off to hit another of the henchmen with the butt of her weapon, sending him flying. She fired again and brought the side down on one attacker and dodged the next one's gunfire with her rifle's speed, getting close enough to knock him into the air and followed him upwards so she could beat him towards the bad guy's feet.
Mister bad guy sighed "You were worth every cent. Truly, you were." Dropping his cigar and crushing it with his cane he looked directly at Ruby "Well, Red, I think we can all say it's been an eventful evening, and as much as I'd love to stick around..."
He raised his cane and opened the bottom to reveal a rifle with a cross grid "...I'm afraid this is where we part ways."
"Of course his cane had to be gun as well." Wash sighed as he reflected.
It seemed like every other thing on this planet was some form of gun.
Sarge seemed to have a similar, but more optimistic viewpoint. "Well seems to me like that should be the natural order of things, why shouldn't everything be a gun?"
"Like freckles!" Caboose nodded along.
The peanut gallery was interrupted by the crime lord who unleashed a red blast at Ruby, who thought fast and fired at the ground leaping over it. When she landed and looked up, crime dude wasn't there.
"Over there," Wash pointed out the criminal, who was climbing up a ladder on a nearby building.
Ruby looked to the onlooking shopkeeper, "You okay if I go after him?"
The shopkeeper gave a short "Uh huh." And Ruby set off, leaving behind a Captain, a Colonel and a Freelancer.
"Let's get moving," Wash sighed, as Ruby used Crescent Rose to jump to the top of the building.
"You know," Observed Sarge, "She could be more thoughtful for us"
Caboose nodded in agreement. " Yeah we I need cookies!"
"Not what I mean Caboose," The trio climbed the ladder awkwardly in their power armour. Only to see a large explosionas they got onto the roof proper.
The evil dude was laughing but stopped when he saw something new on the roof "Huh?"
A woman in a purple cape landed in front of Ruby, casting what looked like a spell over them with her wand. As Ruby looked on, the trio ran up to her.
"Are you fine lil lady?" Sarge asked.
"Fine," Ruby mumbled. "Aura protected me, and I am NOT little."
"Whatever you say red," Sarge chuckled. Wash however had more concerning matters to deal with.
A new person had entered the fray, an (admittedly attractive) woman was on the airship. Her hand was on fire. It was times like this that he was glad Tucker wasn't here.
The woman reached back and her arms and chest light up like fire, aiming and throwing a burst of energy at this huntress. The Huntress blocked it, but the flame splattered behind her and glowed hot with the enemy's raised hand. The mystery huntress back-flipped out of the explosion, which destroyed part of the roof, and magically gathered the shards to create a large arrow, which she threw at the craft. The fiery woman shattered the arrow with several blasts, but it reformed just in time to hit the side of the jet due to the pilots quick aerial lean. The wreckage separated and reshaped into more arrows that encircled the jet, but the fiery woman summoned several glowing rings around herself that expanded and destroyed the shards.
This was enough for Ruby to be torn from her conversation finally acting, she reverted her scythe into its rifle form to fire at the woman, who blocked all of the actually pretty accurate shots (suck it church) and created several blazing circles around her two opponents. The huntress telekinetically pushed Ruby and rolled herself out of the explosion's radius.
Wash wished he could do more than look to up to see the hatch close and the craft fly away.
Ruby pushed herself off the ground and knew the only correct thing to say. "You're a Huntress!" Her face became a pleading, awe-stricken face one.
"Can I have your autograph?!"
V.P.D Interrogation room
After years of military service and at Freelancer, and several in the company of the reds and blues and the spending the last three in the mind of a fifteen year old girl, very little could surprise agent Washington. That being said some things could scare him. like Glynda Goodwitch, who sounded scarily similar, to Tex.
An angry Tex.
"I hope that you realise that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly, young lady. You put yourself and others in great danger." Goodwitch scolded Ruby, which bought memories of Tex to the trio, who were standing in the room for emotional support. Ruby however, had a very well thought out and mature comeback.
"They started it!"
Goodwitch (the name had been given on the way to the station) was unimpressed. "If it were up to me, you'd be sent home" She paused "With a pat on the back..."
She noticed Ruby's smile "...And a slap on the wrist." She demonstrated with her riding crop, which Ruby barely avoided giving out an "Eeek!"
Goodwitch collected herself "But... there is someone here who would like to meet you."
Caboose got excited "Oh! Oh! Is it the tooth fairy?"
Ignoring Caboose, Wash leaned forward eager to see who it was. Goodwitch moved to the side allowing a man with grey hair, and green clothes, holding a batch of cookies enter.
Wash recognised him immediately "Ozpin."
"That headmaster fella? The one for Beacon?" Sarge pulled a contemplative pose
"The same.'
Ruby shifted nervously as Ozpin came close.
"Ruby Rose...You...have silver eyes," Observed Wash.
Wait, what? HE didn't say that. It was Ozpin!?
"T-t-thanks?" She stammered out unsure of how to react. In contrast the red, blue and freelancer seemed unfazed.
"Of course I have a voice double, of course." Wash mumbled, eh, he'd seen stranger things.
"Hmm, if that's your double then mine, can only be someone of unimaginable power and combat ability!" Sarge boasted/mused.
Caboose had more pressing concerns. "Are those cookies!?"
Unaware of his voice double, Ozpin asked Ruby "So! Where did you learn to do this?" He gestured with his head at the tablet on the table showing Ruby's fighting.
Ruby recovered as best she could "S-Signal Academy." She stuttered out.
"They taught you to use one of the most dangerous weapons ever designed?" Ozpin's tone betrayed nothing.
"Well, one teacher in particular."
Wash remembered having helped with her marksmanship and hand to hand, on top of some physical training that filed the gaps her uncle's physical training. Sarge had boosted her already good mechanical skills with some...unconventional techniques. Caboose… Caboose had kept her entertained in class.
"I see..."
He put the cookies on the table in front of Ruby. She tentatively picked one up and...ate it in a single bite. Then, not seeing any rebuttal, she shovelled the rest into her mouth. Caboose looked on jealously.
Ozpin continued, "It's just that I've only seen one other scythe-wielder of that skill before. A dusty, old crow..."
Mumbling through her full mouth, Ruby replied "Oh! That's my uncle!"
She then swallowed the remaining cookies and wiped her mouth, embarrassed. "Sorry. That's my Uncle Qrow! He's a teacher at Signal. I was complete garbage before he took me under his wing. And now, I'm all like— Hooowaaah! Witchaaaa!" ruby then proceeded to make some karate-style poses and noises she learned from Wash, who had in turn learned them from Carolina. Well not the noises, they were all Ruby.
Ozpin smiled "So I've noticed." He placed his cup on the table as he leaned in and then sat down opposite Ruby. "And what is an adorable girl such as yourself doing at a school designed to train warriors?" He asked.
"Well... I want to be a Huntress," Ruby replied nervously.
"You want to slay monsters?" The headmaster questioned.
''Yeah! I only have two more years of training left at Signal! And then I'm going to apply to Beacon! You see, my sister's starting there this year, and she's trying to become a Huntress, and I'm trying to become a Huntress 'cause I wanna help people. My parents always taught us to help others, so I thought, Hey, I might as well make a career out of it! I mean the police are alright, but Huntsmen and Huntresses are just so much more romantic and exciting and cool and really, gosh, you know!" she finished breathlessly.
As Glynda and Ozpin studied her, Wash caught on to what they were considering. Interesting.
"Do you know who I am?" Ozpin put forward.
"You're Professor Ozpin. You're the headmaster at Beacon," Ruby replied.
At this Ozpin smiled. "Hello."
Ruby returned it "Nice to meet you."
Ozpin put his cards on the table (metaphorically speaking), 'You want to come to my school?"
"More than anything."
Ozpin exchanged glances with Glynda, who showed her disapproval with a "Humph" before he turned back to Ruby "Well, okay, then welcome aboard Miss Rose."
Ruby smiled, wide-eyed and open-mouthed and Sarge followed the gesture.
"Finally, some adventure!"