A/N: *reads reviews* I, uh… I meant the *other* moment you've all been waiting for. Ladies and gentlemen (a.k.a. my 6 faithful readers), I give you the first chapter featuring an AU Ruby officially made by someone else – Rosey the Faunus Ruby!
Disclaimer: Rosey the Faunus Ruby created by The Layman. And yes, he gave me permission to do this.
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Subject: 2525-Blake
Target: Remnant-9412 (Faunus World)
Details: Scan incomplete. Initial readings show inverted frequencies of unknown origin, unknown strength, unknown effect. Faunus-Human relations considered volatile. Minor timeline interruption detected.
Mission: Locate and identify source of energy reading originating from Remnant-1802, respond as needed.
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(One hour before Blake's arrival, Island of Patch)
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The sky overhead was completely overcast with thick, gray clouds. They gave the late afternoon a sense of doom and gloom that seemed to infect everyone on the island. No one moved quickly, nor did they have any sort of spring in their step. Of course, that would have been the case even on a nice day – no faunus could afford to enjoy themselves at a time like this.
There was a storm in the region, and the ocean at the foot of the cliff was rather wild. Waves crashed quite high, almost reaching the tiny, makeshift graveyard positioned at the perfect spot for an epic view of the coast.
It was a graveyard that was, sadly, still growing.
As the young girl gathered the damp soil into a mound, she choked back the tears. Even after doing this so many other times, it never got any easier – if anything, the weight of the losses pressed down harder on her shoulders.
She placed stones around and on top of the mound, just enough to protect it from the harsh sea air for a little while. No one on the island could cut stone, even a little, so this tiny monument would have to be enough. The other four mounds were in various states of disrepair, but she often came here to tidy them up. It was ultimately a pointless gesture, but it kept her busy – the alternative would see her going insane.
Ruby Rose, known as 'Rosey' to her friends, took an empty, well-worn flask from her pouch and placed it at the foot of the newest mound, right next to the one for her father. The other three mounds each had a small token to honor someone she had lost – Yang's mound had one of her golden bracelets, Tai's had a battered scarf, Weiss' had an old snowflake pin Rosey had found in the trash a few weeks ago. Her own mother's grave had a simple, pure white stone.
And now, on the fifth mound, sat Uncle Qrow's flask. It was all she had left of him.
Rosey sat on her heels before the graves of her family. Her entire family. Mother and father, sister, best friend… and now her uncle. She was truly alone.
"I m-miss you, M-M-Mom…" she stuttered silently, her voice carrying a faint whine. Her dog ears were flat against her head in grief.
Most people who knew her would have assumed she was muttering to Summer Rose, the woman who gave birth to her… but they would be wrong this time.
She was currently missing someone else… someone who had 'adopted' her and wanted nothing more than to love and protect her, just like a real mother…
One year ago, Rosey had gone on the most fantastic journey of her life. She met several copies of herself (none of them faunus, by the way), started learning how to read, and even got to run in a fun race against most of the look-alikes.
Most surprising was that world's version of Blake – she was a faunus, just like Rosey. She was also nothing like the Blake here. She was kind, loving, gentle… just like a mother.
Rosey wanted to stay with them, rather than come back to her own home… but in the end, she had no choice. She was pulled back here against her will.
But she did not sit idle while the lessons she learned swam through her mind. Rosey quickly petitioned to the leaders of the White Fang, an organization of faunus who were fighting for equal rights, to acquire some books and start teaching other faunus how to read. Uncle Qrow was her biggest supporter, and he even led two successful raids to bring back some books. Things had been going so well.
Now he was gone. Dead. Killed two months ago by the woman who shared the same face as the one Rosey had learned to call 'Mom.'
Blake Belladonna. The greatest enemy of the faunus in all of Vale.
With Qrow's death, the White Fang leaders were left in a panic. The Huntsman were making progress at tracking them down, so the logical move was to relocate – interestingly, they moved to the abandoned island of Patch, Rosey's old home. No humans remained after a massive storm nearly leveled the place a few years back, leaving it not only empty… but unwatched. Perfect. The faunus made themselves at home in no time. Most of the operations were underground, in case of any fly-overs.
Rosey came with them for the move… but she wasn't really there. Not anymore. Qrow's death hit her harder than anyone else. It took away every scrap of motivation she had gathered after returning from her journey one year ago.
Things were bad before she met the faunus Blake… but now they were even worse. It felt as though her entire world was only moments from falling apart and leaving her for dead. She had considered ending her pain more than once already.
After all… there was no one left who would miss her.
"Miss Rose…!"
A voice called out to her from the tree line, but by the time Rosey looked around, Mister Oobleck was already right behind her. He was that fast. The green-haired man barely looked out of breath as his squirrel ears twitched. "Fall sent me to fetch you. We have Belladonna."
This was enough to get Rosey to her feet. "B-B-Bellad-d-donna…?" She growled as she forced herself to speak normally. Stupid stutter. "How d-did she get here?"
"No one knows for sure. They say she appeared suddenly… and there was some kind of bright light. Fall thought you might want to say a few words before we do anything drastic… Especially after what she did to Qrow…"
A bright light?
… … …No, it couldn't be.
…Could it…?
Rosey nodded, pulling her ragged cloak tighter around her shoulders, "Let's g-go." She tugged the hood over her head out of sheer habit, a move that hid her faunus ears from onlookers. Oobleck gave her a kind smile before zipping away. Rosey didn't need to follow him – she could navigate these woods with her eyes closed.
A bright light? She came out of nowhere?
… … …Was it too much to hope that the woman who arrived… might not be the Blake Belladonna they thought she was…?
Was it too much to hope… … that her Mom might have finally come for her?
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Chapter 31:
Hope (part 1)
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(Two hours after Blake's arrival, White Fang jail cell)
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Even though she had proven to them that this Blake was a true faunus, the other members of the White Fang remained suspicious. Moving the girl to this holding cell was supposedly for everyone's protection. But it was clear that a faunus version of Blake Belladonna was rather …unsettling.
Since it confirmed Rosey's story. And they didn't like that.
The young dog faunus sat in a chair just outside the bars of the cell, watching the older cat faunus that sat within. She had woken up about ten minutes ago, but so far had remained quiet. Rosey hadn't said anything, either.
The silence stretched for several minutes, which soon became an hour. Any hope that this Blake was the one who knew her, the one she called Mom… was fading fast. Her Mom would have known her instantly, but…
"So… you're a faunus Ruby?" Blake asked quietly.
Rosey shifted in her seat, suddenly uncomfortable in the presence of a stranger. "Y-yeah… I'm c-called R-R-R-R-Rosey. Nice to m-meet you."
Amber eyes glittered in the dim light. "You spoke like you knew me… before…"
Rosey couldn't stop the whine from coming out as she replied, "I thought I d-d-did… b-but I was wr-r-r-r-ong… S-s-sorry…"
"No, I'm sorry…" the older faunus replied quickly, "I should have said something sooner. I thought you were someone else, too…"
Both girls giggled half-heartedly at the awkwardness of the situation. Both of them would just be apologizing all day at this rate.
Rosey started the conversation back up, "A-actually, I… I thought you were the B-B-Blake I r-r-r-r-remembered b-b-because… you were a faunus… and not the human one from this world…"
"… … … …Wait…" Blake finally shifted and stared full into Rosey's face, her eyebrows tightly knitted, "…Why do you know about other worlds?"
"B-B-B-Because… I've b-b-been to one…?"
She didn't think those golden yellow eyes could get so big, but they did. "You… How… What… Why…?" Blake's eyes darted around as she thought fast, then locked back on Rosey as she said, "…Do you know the name Carmine? Or Rain?"
"Umm… N-n-no, sorry. I was p-p-pulled into that other w-w-world by someone named R-R-Ruvys…"
"What kind of name is Roo-vees?"
"She used magic…"
"Oh, that makes sense."
"And there was also R-R-RJ… and R-R-Rubin… and C-Cress…"
"Okay…" Blake put her hands up to stop the girl, "…I think we have a lot to talk about."
And so they did. The next several hours were spent deep in conversation. Rosey gladly told Blake her story, just as she had done countless other times since coming back. In turn, Blake told Rosey a different version of almost the same story.
Rosey enjoyed hearing about the other, new Rubys. She wanted to meet a few of them, too. Cherry sounded like a real cutie, and Rose sounded like a fun big sister.
In the end, though, she couldn't hide her disappointment that this Blake was, in fact, not her Mom. It was a real letdown.
But maybe… she could be…?
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(Same time, White Fang main headquarters)
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"And you can confirm that Belladonna's ears were… genuine? That Miss Rose made the right move?"
"I can indeed. I've felt the most accurate false ears the humans can make, and these were quite real. That was not Belladonna."
"…Thank you, Ironwood."
"Ma'am."
*sigh* "If she's really a faunus, that means… Miss Rose was right. There really was another world with different humans and faunus…"
"Do you suppose that means that she was right about everything else?"
"I don't know, Ozpin. I would like to think so, but this is all still… so…"
"We just need to take it one step at a time. We know that our visitor looks like Belladonna, but she has true faunus ears. We know that our Rosey seems to know her, and I know that the two of them are currently getting acquainted in the basement."
"I hope that child knows what she's doing."
"Have faith, Cinder. And trust her… if anyone knows their way around a visitor from another world, it's our Rosey."
"I suppose you're right. I only wish… I had the chance to deal with the real Belladonna right now. After what she did to Qrow, I…"
"… … …You will have your chance, my dear. Soon enough."
"Indeed. You know, I suddenly feel like having a drink. Care to join me, Oz?"
"Only if it's not too strong."
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(Later that same night, Beacon Academy)
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Being rich certainly has it's advantages.
For one thing, you never really have any problems. Throw enough money around and things tend to take care of themselves. If not, you would hire someone else who was able to take care of it for you. It didn't matter if it was your own money or your parent's money, things got done. Still, there was something about using your own money… it was a sign of true success.
As she sat in her private dorm room in Beacon's dormitory building, Blake Belladonna thought of these things. She was currently sitting behind her massive oak desk with ebony inlay, an expensive piece that was the pride of her collection of imported furniture. She loved her money almost as much as she loved her parents, and right now she was staring at an item in her hands that could, potentially, hold the key to her greatest success in this world.
It looked like a stainless steel collar with a hinge and a locking mechanism, but deep within the metallic shell lay a ridiculous level of technology. She called it a 'Calmer.'
This thing… had the power to change the world.
In the right hands, of course.
Belladonna neither knew nor cared who it was that gave her this gift, but she knew what needed to be done. She had two of them now, and the one in her hands had just come back from her labs back home. They had finished scanning the circuitry and were ready to begin the prototype phase, followed closely by mass production – it wouldn't be long before she had at least three Calmers in the hands of each law enforcement officer all over the world.
Once worn, they had an instant calming effect – hence the name – but they also compelled the wearer to obey any command they were given.
Any.
Belladonna stood up, tucking the miracle device into her pocket, and stared out her window at the rest of the campus and the city of Vale beyond. And she thought about money.
Dust was not as profitable as it used to be. The Belladonna Dust Company held an absolute monopoly on the world's supply of dust, but demand was dwindling. Father guessed it was due to the so-called 'black market' supplying dust to Huntsman under the table. They were being out-sold, in other words.
The heiress snorted at the thought. As if some black market nonsense was to blame. She knew the truth.
It was the faunus. It was always the damn faunus.
But that's why the Calmers were necessary – to bring the faunus to heel. Right where they belonged.
A few months ago, Belladonna had taken the lead against a faunus raiding party that was trying to steal books, of all things. Useless. As if any faunus could even read. The leader of the criminals put up a serious fight, but the heiress had a lot of backup on her side – the man was overwhelmed with no trouble.
It was possible that taking the man's head home with her was a little too much… but what good is a hunting story without a trophy?
She also made sure a photo of that head made it's way to those White Fang mongrels. No doubt it had them all pissing their pants. Heh.
A small noise pulled Belladonna's attention back into the room where Snowball was huddled in the corner. She was whining lightly, nudging her empty food bowl. The heiress could clearly hear the low rumble of the empty stomach.
"Aw… is Snowball hungry?" Belladonna cooed. The creature could be so cute when it wanted to.
Snowball's face was a mix of indignation and misery as she merely nodded. She didn't speak because she was a mere animal – and animals didn't speak human words. She wasn't allowed.
Belladonna smugly walked over to a cabinet just over her head (so Snowball couldn't get into it) and pulled out a case of dry cat food. She dumped some of it into Snowball's dish, not caring if a few pieces went flying.
Snowball's fluffy white cat ears went flat against her head in irritation. She really hated this stuff, but it's what cats were supposed to eat. She had no choice.
"Snowball will just have to get over it, won't she?" the heiress said in a mocking tone as she bent down and scratched the space between those ears. Snowball growled threateningly, but did nothing to fight back. The Calmer around her neck glittered in the light.
According to Atlas law, faunus were legally allowed to be owned as slaves – however, that only applied in Atlas. Faunus slaves were illegal everywhere else (for now). Belladonna actually found a loophole, though – her dorm room legally qualified as Atlas property, so she was able to keep Snowball here with her.
Unlike a real cat, Snowball had no fur coat to keep her warm. She used to shiver in shame and cold, but now she was pretty much used to being naked all the time. Cats didn't wear clothes, so why should she?
At first, Snowball fought tooth and claw against Belladonna. Every day was a battle. But once the Calmer was put on her neck, the rest was almost too easy. Snowball became a docile, friendly kitty cat in less than a day.
The heiress went to stand up, slapping Snowball on the ass just because she could and earning a yowl of rage in return. Snowball never spoke, but growled, hissed and meowed just like a cat – that was her first command. "Good night, pretty kitty…" Belladonna grinned evilly. She knew Snowball hated being called a 'kitty.'
Snowball glared at her master with those intense ice-blue eyes. Her hair, once a glowing white, now lay matted and mangled against her head. Her ears were still laying flat. But she said nothing, as instructed.
Yep… these Calmers would change the world, alright.
As Belladonna got ready for bed, she wondered if she should find a way to give Snowball a proper tail. Surely there were shops that sold kinky things like that, yes?
Ah, it was good to be rich.
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Author's Note: This part of the story has been swimming around in my head for quite a long time (I started working on it with The Layman back around chapter 5 or 6). And now that it's here, I can hardly wait to deliver it. Prepare for awesomeness!
Just as a note, I will refer to the 'human' Blake of this world simply as Belladonna, rather than Blake. For clarity. Also, that whole faunus slave 'Snowball' part was meant to show just how twisted this bitch is. I'll try and make the next few chapters longer, I swear!
Until next time!
=^w^=