Disclaimer: I do not own RWBY, all rights go to Rooster Teeth.

A/N: I'd just like to start out by saying I started this story on a whim, an idea entered my head and I decided to stop obsessing over it and just write. This came out of a desire to see a what if scenario of how the story would be different if Yang and Ruby had a baby brother, just a forewarning that this may have angsty and drama filled moments, but the best stories usually do, don't they? I don't want to say that this is an "abandonment fic" where no one pays attention to the main character and just behaves in baffling unrealistic and uncharacteristic ways just to force angst into the story, I find those types of stories to be lazy and very lacking(Yes I'm looking at some of you Naruto fanfic writers :P), instead the core of the story is a family that is damaged by a loss(i.e. Summer Rose's death at the hands of Salem), and their baby brother trying to find his place in the world of Remnant, there is no bashing in this fic as I find that also to be distasteful, just people who are imperfect, and yes, that includes Ruby Rose, Ruby is a pure soul but she still has her faults as all human beings do, and she also has many unresolved issues that she has repressed. The chapters will be named after PoV's.

Ignis I

Eyes slowly flutter as light enters view, the morning breeze is still present as it hits the small mass form slowly getting out of bed, said mass form makes the typical sounds and groans a person makes when first waking up in the morning, especially if said person is one Ignis Rose, who was about the biggest non-morning person you could ever know.

A yawn escaped him as he stretched the kinks out of his non-existent muscles, his hands go to the scroll on the nightstand to see the time, 7:00 A.M. that gave him an entire hour before he had to take the 8 o'clock bus to Signal Academy along with his sister Ruby.

Yang was preparing to go to Beacon which started it's school year differently than the normal combat schools, the house would have one less occupant, and he doubt she'd move back in after finishing all three years at Beacon.

Yang was a thrill-seeker and more than that she never gave up the search for her mother, that longing ensured that a part of her was never really here, that's not to say she didn't love Ruby and himself or never watched out for them, a part of him wished that was so, it'd make her eventual departure remarkably less painful.

He was sure they'd see her on the occasional holiday, but he also feared that she'd eventually inherit her mother's proclivity towards total isolation from the people that loved and cared for her, he shook these thoughts and got his clothes ready for school.

When he got out of the bathroom refreshed from the shower, dressed in a black shirt with his family's rose insignia embroidered with fire red thread onto the center, and fire red colored jeans with black sneakers, the most pleasant scent hit his nostrils and he smiled, that could only mean one thing, Ruby was making him his favorite breakfast, chocolate chip waffles.

As Yang became a surrogate mother for Ruby after the death of their mother, Ruby in turn felt it was her responsibility to take on certain maternal roles for Ignis, she started learning how to cook, and eventually succeeded in doing so with flying colors, not that Ignis was surprised, his sister could do anything she set her mind to, it's why she was such a prodigy at Signal, and at times that legacy could prove to be a pain as everyone looked at him at the school and understandably felt him lacking in comparison.

He inherited his mother's eyes, complexion, and hair color, though his red was a lighter shade, hence his namesake, but that was it, he was no prodigy like Ruby or his mom, his aura only manifested itself last year when he was eleven, Ruby and Yang both manifested their auras at 7 and then their semblances at 10, he had yet to do the latter at 12, as he went to the table he noticed it was already done, the waffles were the center piece, with a bowl of fruit to the left of it and a plate of eggs and bacon to the right.

He was blown away, she went all out, he looked to his left and she was standing there full of light and smiles in a dirty apron, and what looked like waffle batter sprinkled a little on her face.

"Good morning Igni!" She chirped, Ignis looked amused, "What exactly is the occasion sis? Not that I'm complaining." Ruby pouted, "Did you seriously forget? Today is the day you make your weapon! It's going to be a huge part of your life from now on, it's an extension of yourself! Please Ignis, take this seriously!"

Ignis put his hands up in surrender, "Okay, okay, you're right, I should have remembered that", then he frowned, "And I do take it seriously! I already have my blueprints ready to go, all that's left is to assemble them at school!" Ruby looked overjoyed, in a split second, using her rose petal semblance, she was before Ignis and immediately gave him a warm hug, all protestations died in Ignis' mouth, he smiled and returned the hug.

There was nowhere he felt more loved than in his sister's embrace, his father and Yang did their best and he was loved by them, but neither of them understood him like Ruby did, the both of them had a special rapport that could never be broken.

"I am so proud of you, Ignis" she whispered, he heard happiness in her tone, but there was something else there that he couldn't place.

His smile brightened, "Thank you, Ruby, I couldn't have learned how it all worked without your constant lessons being drilled into my head about weapons"

She blushed out of embarrassment, and then ruffled his unruly mane, "Eat your food before it gets cold Igni" he nodded and then left her embrace to eat.

He sat next to Ruby on the bus to Signal, on the back of all the seats were transparent screens that would relay regular news updates, such was the necessity of a society that could face an imminent Grimm attack at any time, heavy regulations were put on media companies that had this responsibility.

If they put out anything that strayed from the truth, even by just a little, they faced severe sanctions and fines, and it was regularly enforced, as some media companies had to learn the hard way.

Ignis was grateful for this, he couldn't imagine how chaotic it would be if the news media were biased in a world such as theirs, the news report was rather uneventful, giving basic information such as the weather and traffic.

Ignis looked out the window to admire the natural beauty of Patch, he loved the forest, there was just something about it that felt right, he remembers fondly of camping trips that his father took them out on at times, camping was still a possibility in the world of Remnant, for which Ignis was grateful, but it required a huntsman or huntress in the family in order to do it safely.

To predict Grimm movement patterns is second nature to many a hunter/huntress, luckily for his family, they had a veteran hunter for a father, who eventually drilled into their heads the basics of tracking Grimm movement so they too would be safe when venturing out into the world.

Ignis lowly chuckles at a memory of Yang, she would always find trouble whenever they did camp, but such was expected of her free spirit and thrill seeking ways, he remembers specifically one time when they were all little, he was 4, Ruby was 7, and Yang was 9, she found a grey mass stuck to a tree trunk, and naturally being Yang, poked at it continuously with a stick out of curiosity.

She pierced a hole and an entire swarm of hornets erupted out of the nest, she was stung twice before their Uncle Qrow intervened and dealt with them, Ignis found it uncanny how their uncle always knew when to intervene when one of them were in trouble, but was nevertheless thankful. The scolding she got afterwards by their father was something he doubt Yang was thankful for.

Ruby in typical fashion was relieved and happy their sister was okay, but was also sad and cried for the hornets, Uncle Qrow consoled her and claimed they were an invasive species of hornet that was bad for the local ecology, so in a way Yang was a hero for saving the local wildlife.

If his uncle were anyone else he'd think he was just telling a white lie to console a small child, but his uncle was not that kind of person, he was not in the habit of sugar coating anything, so when he claimed anything, Ignis took it as gospel.

Ruby noticed Ignis' chuckling and nudged him with a questioning glance, "I was just remembering Yang's misadventures with the hornet's nest", Ruby groaned but chuckled shortly after, "That was one heck of a vacation", Ignis full on laughed now, "Yeah, especially when you found out the swarm died at Uncle Qrow's hands"

Ruby blushed in embarassment, Ignis put on a sad face and tried to imitate little Ruby's voice, "Daddy, the hornets are okay right? Pwease tell me they're okay", Ruby blushed even further and then lightly punched Ignis' shoulder, "S-shut up, I was a kid!" Ignis looked at her bemused, "You still are a kid" Ruby gave him a flat look, "You know what I mean"

The news report changed to an alert about another dust theft, making this 13 dust thefts in just one month, which was simply unheard of, just one major dust robbery would have been enough for any two-bit criminal to live the rest of their life in comfort, but only a very select few criminals ever stole dust because of the heat it brought on them, and for the few that did, they never stole this much dust in such a short amount of time, whatever this was, Ignis did not have a good feeling at all.

Ruby had a look of annoyance on her face and Ignis started to feel bad, he always wanted to be careful when teasing her, being sensitive himself he knew firsthand when it could go too far, he put a hand on her shoulder, "Ruby, you know I was just joking around right? I actually kind of find it adorable that you were so sad for the hornets"

Ruby looked at him in surprise, "Oh! No, sorry, it's not you, it's something else on my mind, I'll tell you about it later" Ignis looked at her strangely, he couldn't figure out what could make her that upset, the only other thing to interact with was the news feed in front of them, but that didn't seem right, that would make Ruby concerned, not mad.

As the bus they were on got more and more out of the countryside, it finally reached civilization in the form of Patch City, "city" was a generous designation, it was more of a medium sized town, but it paled in comparison to mainland Vale.

Still there are plenty of fun things to do in town, and sometimes Ignis would skip the bus ride home and wait for his dad to get off work as a teacher, and go to a game store or comic book store to read newest editions of his favorite heroes and villains, there was also the local arena that hosted tournament fights, and would even have people participate their own recreational fights for a fee.

Ignis would often go to the arena just to see the big screen out in front that showed some of the fights for free since he couldn't afford an actual ticket to the events, they had a lot of great fighters, but they were nothing in comparison to the great Pyrhha Nikos, he heard recently that she too was applying to Beacon.

He couldn't help but feel envious of Yang, she'd be in the same year as a certifiable fighting legend, then again he'd likely make a fool of himself in front of the girl, it was a well known fact in their household that he had a poorly hidden crush on the champion, and was subsequently mercilessly teased by Yang for it.

After a while the bus parked out in front of the school, there were masses of students but he stuck close to Ruby so as to not lose sight of her, before we entered through the front doors she stopped looking like she wanted to say something.

Ignis looked at her strangely, "Ruby, what's wrong?", Ruby just seemed frozen for the longest time, he was starting to get worried, "Ruby, it's okay you can tell me", Ruby has a face of raw emotion and just hugged Ignis, "Igni, I love you"

If Ignis was concerned before, now he was terrified, "Ruby... I love you too, what is going on?" Ruby just shook her head and ran into the building, Ignis runs after her into the building but because of her semblance she is long gone, he shook his head, knowing it couldn't be helped, he tried to get ready for first period.

The first class is just a glorified study hall, and usually students took this time to get all their notes in order and prepare for the rest of the day, and then they usually just socialized until the period ended, he knew some students as mere acquaintances, but there was nobody in this school he would label as a close friend.

Ignis planned on going over his blueprints to make sure everything was in order for when he made his weapon today, but he couldn't, Ruby was still at the forefront of his mind, he had only seen her like that a few times in their life, and without fail it was always because of something serious, he really wanted her to see the weapon he was making today, something told him she'd appreciate it a lot.

What passed for food at this school was something that neither him or his siblings would tolerate, so they bring their own lunch, Ignis didn't mind, they could keep their cheap pizza, he had a hoagie with a cola, that was all that was needed.

He glanced at his sister's usual table and it was filled with her usual crew, but she wasn't there, he raised a brow at this, Ruby was a prodigy at his school, and could have easily attained the popularity that comes with such a title, but she didn't, that was the funny thing about his sister, she romanticized the hunters/huntresses to a great level, she wanted more than anything to be the hero in the old legends that Yang would read to both of them, the ones that protected the innocent and the weak.

It didn't come from a place of ego, their parents(he assumes it was also the case with their mother), taught them to always help their fellow man whenever they could, and Ruby decided that the best way to do this was to be a huntress, he'd also guess it had to do with honoring their mother's legacy as a huntress, maybe she felt more close to their mom being in this line of work.

Whatever the case, for someone who hated being queen of the hill, her natural talents naturally made people regard her in that way as a mere huntress-in-training, he could only imagine how worse it would get when she became a full fledged huntress, he kind of worried how she'd handle the pressure and attention, then he chuckled, people usually worked hard to be popular, for his sister, she just wanted a close circle of friends, her weapons, her family, and being a hero, it was the school that wanted her to be popular, not the other way around.

It took some time but she finally got to the lunch room, he wondered what had taken her so long, she awkwardly waved to Ignis and he simply waved back with a questioning glance, obviously wanting to know what earlier was about, she opened her mouth then heard her friend's beckoning call to their table, then looked at Ignis, looked down in shame, and went over to them.

Instead of being concerned, now Ignis was just hurt, she had never given him the cold shoulder like this before, even when she was upset with him she still talked to him, not in a polite way, but she still talked. A voice in his head that sounded suspiciously like their Uncle Qrow uttered the infamous phrase "It must just be that time of the month, kid", he rolled his eyes that his brain would remember that utterance at a time like this.

He remembered that day well, in fact it was just last month, they had ordered pizza the night before and Yang was hoping the last slice would still be locked safely away in the fridge, only for Ignis to claim it the next morning, he still remembered that shriek of frustration as he tried to play his game, she came barging into his room, red eyes ablaze, hair glowing, and asked if he had eaten the last piece of pizza, and of course Ignis just meekly replied with a 'yes', she had tears in her eyes and simply yelled that he only thought of himself.

He then asked his Uncle Qrow about it later that day, sad that he had made his sister that upset, unawares that Yang had calmed down and tried to track him down to apologize to him, and of course Qrow just said that phrase in his typical blunt fashion, and of course Yang was listening to the whole conversation, and if she was mad before, she was livid then. She made her presence known, and her anger was a quiet one, but no less terrifying, her eyes were full to the brim with tears, and Qrow knew he had made a grave mistake.

Their father then came home and Qrow explained what happened, and his father just gave Qrow a deadpan expression and told him he was a moron, and simply said that it was the "anniversary" of "her" leaving, Qrow's expression immediately turned to sorrow, and he no doubt had mentally kicked himself for forgetting such a dark day for Yang and the entire family, he likely always had repressed that day from his memory.

Ignis felt even worse than he did before, if he had known he wouldn't have eaten that pizza, if anything, he would have teamed up with Ruby to surprise her with something pleasant to take her mind off of her "mother". He still remembers going to her bedroom door and hearing her crying, he had never seen or heard Yang that sad before, and he'd hoped he never would have to again.

He didn't even bother to knock, and she was too lost in her grief to hear him in any case, her head was face first in the pillow, he carefully motioned to her and gently touched her shoulder, she quickly snapped her head to his, her eyes red for a second, before going back to the violet color they usually are, fresh tears formed and she just hugged him and he hugged her back, he just remembered her repeatedly saying "I'm sorry", I tried to apologize too but she wouldn't have it, saying that as a big sister she had no excuse for what she did.

Qrow was listening the entire time and went to apologize too before coming up with an even better idea, he had them go outside, and said that she got one free punch in after what he said, anyone else would have hesitated at first, but Yang just smiled viciously, and Ignis remembered being terrified for his uncle.

In the end, the punch sent him flying into the woods, if it weren't for his aura, he likely would have broken and/or fractured several bones in his body, luckily for people like Yang, people with aura can take quite the punch.

If there was one thing he learned from that whole situation, it was that while true, women, especially teenage girls, go through PMS, it probably wasn't the best policy to just assume that if they are in a bad mood, especially to vocalize such suspicions.

Looking at Ruby, he just shook his head and stood up, resolved to find out what the problem was, but just as he got the mettle to do so, the headmaster, Mr. Gules, came in to the cafeteria with his boisterous and offensive bright red suit to make a no doubt insipid announcement.

Ignis supposed he should be less of a hypocrite and less mean, considering his own coloring was a bright fire red and it could have been something important, but considering he had just resolved himself to find out what wrong with his sister, a sister who usually took great strides to make it seem as though she was always okay, even though he knew that was false, he couldn't help but feel annoyed, Ruby looked frantic, as if not expecting this.

He stood in the center, with the poise and demeanor of a stage performer, rather than the headmaster of a combat school, he cleared his throat, "Good day to all of you, this is a rather special announcement, and one that as headmaster of this fine school, I am personally proud to announce, it's not every day this happens, and so it only felt right to make this announcement."

He looks at Ruby, and Ignis suddenly looks very bewildered, Ruby has a face of utter dread, one that begged Gules not to do whatever he was about to, but he apparently did not see this and so continued, "It is my distinct pride to announce that one Miss Ruby Rose, whom you all no doubt know, is ending her time with us here at Signal, she will be attending Beacon in a few months, a whole two years ahead of schedule! This is not without precedent, but something that is still extremely rare, rare enough that it reflects greatly on not only the recipient of said invitation, but the school that the recipient hails from! Please join me for a round of applause and congratulations for this exemplary student!"

The entire school rose in applause, many obviously happy for her, the social climbers that wanted to be in her good graces doing so more vigorously, Ignis just sat there, his face lowered, multiple emotions were hitting him at once in an emotional cocktail of anger, sadness, and betrayal.

He should have known, he should have known that her making such a large special breakfast for him, her hugging him so meaningfully, saying 'I love you' like she did before school, the way she looked at him, the way she looked at Gules as he unknowingly dropped a large dust explosion on Ignis' heart, against his will, tears started to fall and hit the table in front of him.

The more that he thinks about it, it was the first two things on that list of red flags that left him vulnerable to the rest, she would cook his favorite breakfast at times, and of course she would frequently hug him, but it was the way, with hindsight now, that she did it, that should have warned him something was off, when he saw her in the kitchen this morning, her eyes made it seem like she was eager to please him with the meal, whereas in previous times she was simply happy to have fed her brother, the hug she gave him was a more intense one, as if he would disappear if she let go.

He shook his head, this was not how it was supposed to happen, he knew, naturally being three years younger than her, that she'd eventually leave him for Beacon, but he took solace that he at least had 2 more years with her, he realizes part of the reason he worked so hard to get recognition and improve his skill, was that he was hoping that through sheer effort, and perhaps lucky genetics that would kick in at some point, he'd be one of the few that got to go to one of the big 4 combat schools early around the same time Ruby would have to go.

Ignis just chuckles bitterly, seeing how foolish that was, fate obviously had different ideas in mind, both of his sisters would leave him, it would just be him and his father in a big empty house, all of his sadness turned to righteous anger, more than all of that, she refused to say anything to him, made a fool out of him, he had to hear the news the same way some random from their school heard it.

This lie hurt more, he knew people lied, but his sister never lied to him, their relationship was such that they never lied to each other, she was the one he trusted most of all, and that trust shattered today.

Gules went on, but Ignis could hear no more, he stood abruptly from his chair, making a great racket, "ENOUGH!" he roared, all the celebration died as soon as it started, one look at his tears and furious eyes and they knew that this quickly became something else entirely, family drama, the kind that outsiders felt awkward being part of.

Gules just cleared his throat again and looked at Ignis, with maybe a hint of sympathy? "Mr. Rose, perhaps this isn't the best time and place? I understand how y-" Ignis wouldn't let him finish that sentence, he just walked away, taking his things with him.

On his way to the exit, Ruby appeared before him in a burst of pedals, she appeared shocked by something for a split second before trying to stop him from leaving, "Igni, please wait!" Ignis simply looked at her with barely restrained sadness and anger, "When were you going to tell me? The day that you left? Was I just going to wake up one day and wonder where the hell you went?"

His accusatory tone and words stung and he knew it, but in the moment didn't care, Ruby shook her head, "N-No! Ignis, I'd never do that to you!" Ignis just scoffed, "Yeah, I thought that too, I thought you were above lying to me, above making a fool out of me, do you know how much it hurt, how humiliating it was to hear that you'd effectively be leaving your family 2 years early by our damn principal?!"

Ruby's eyes were tearing up now, and even now, a small part of Ignis wanted to make her tears go away, but his overwhelming anger nipped any such notions in the bud, "I was going to tell you, Igni, I was going to say everything before we went to school this morning, I told Dad and Yang not to say anything, that I was going to tell you myself, but I panicked! I was so scared how you'd take it, I was so afraid of hurting you, I've always wanted to be a huntress and I always wanted to look after you as your big sister along with Yang, and- and, it was just so hard, the hardest thing I've ever had to do, please believe me Ignis, I would never hurt you on purpose."

Ignis closed his eyes, "But you did, you did Ruby", he took a step forward to leave and time seemed to have stood still, he could faintly see Ruby outstretching her hand to try and stop him but in an instant he seemingly teleports to the rooftop of their school, he blinked and looked at his surroundings, bewildered at these turn of events, how had he done that?

As he took a few steps to the side of the building he smelled something peculiar, roses, and as he found out more specifically when he turned around, rose petals, he looked around for his sister, but could not sense her anywhere with his aura, and as he looked at the color of the petals he paused, and had a look of exasperation before laughing mirthlessly, of course, of course he'd have the same semblance as her, the petals were a different color, fire red, like some of his hair.

He went to the edge of the building, reached to the cylindrical container that was carried on his back, and took out the blueprints to the weapon he planned to make today, the design was simple enough, it was a scythe, like the ones Uncle Qrow and Ruby had, it didn't serve a dual function as a high calibre sniper rifle, instead it had a dust receptacle placed at the bottom of the long shaft, that would be used to channel whichever dust energy he chose to put in and the energy would run along the blade of the scythe itself, doing additional damage. The coloring would have also obviously been a brighter red.

In a rage, Ignis tore apart the blueprints and watched as the pieces fell to the earth off the edge of the building, he then consciously used his apparent semblance, he didn't know where he'd go, but he knew he couldn't be at this school, he would run around the city, until it felt right to stop somewhere and collect himself.

A/N: So that's that for the first chapter, I don't plan on diverging from established lore that much, just some stuff that I think would be common sense for this established universe, and also some fun things that aren't that far fetched to be true for the world of RWBY.

Feedback is always appreciated, but not required obviously, if it's something you want to share feel free to post, with exception to flames and mean-spirited comments.