Six Years Ago ...

Inside of a cozy yurt, under the light of the shattered moon, buried deep in the Forest of Patch Island, little Ruby lay on her bed against the West corner inside of the tent. She was covered with wolf fur, her scarlet cape encasing her with extra warmth. The fire at the center of the of yurt kept the chill of the seaside winds away, and leftovers from a wild hog stew boiled next to it, giving the air the smell of home and safety. Yet, little Ruby was nervous, and unable to sleep. She bit down on her thumb, the blood against her lip comforting her a little; it was a terrible habit that she had learned, one that her sister would often scorn her for. But, Yang was gone that night. She had been away since morning with their mothers, the shaman Summer Rose and the Chieftain Raven Branwen, in a campaign to thwart off Vale's expansion of territory, one that would see the wilds of Patch destroyed entirely. The thought of such ancient landscapes, the ancestors of Old Vale, being lost in an effort to further Signal Academy's influence, was terrifying.

But, nothing scared little Ruby more than the thought of losing her family to the conflict. She wandered how she could ever sleep again if something horrible happened to her mothers, or if Yang never returned. She thought she could never be happy again if she ever lost her strong sister, who seemed to protect her against everything. She was always more fragile than her Yang, always more afraid.

On that night, not even the guards outside of the yurt gave her solace. So, she sat up in her bed, watching the tapestry covered doorway, waiting for her family to come home. Then, a miracle happened; the door was pushed open, and her older sister peeked her head into the yurt, a big grin on her face, and several bruises on her cheeks.

"Yang!" little Ruby squeaked, jumping out of her bed, her cape covering her neck.

"Sis!" Yang stepped into the yurt, grabbing Ruby from under her arms and lifting her up, charging for her bed and throwing her back into it. It made Ruby laugh with relief. Yang felt invincible to her, the only thing that could make the dangers of living among the Ursai that inhabited the forests of Patch leave her mind.

"You made it home!" Ruby tried to get up from the bed to hug her, but Yang pushed her down on the shoulder and kept her pinned.

"Nuh-Uh!" Yang threatened teasingly, "I told you I'd kick your butt if you bit your fingers again. Time to pay!" she tickled her armpits.

"Stop!" Ruby laughed, kicking her sister away.

Yang grinned, "Is that all you got, feather brain?"

The door to the yurt opened again, Cinder Fall stepping inside and breaking up their playful fight. "Now, now, calm down girls." her voice was as soothing as the sound of the stew boiling next to them, and her long red dress, embroidered with feather patterns, gave her a parental presence. "You two must sleep tonight."

Ruby and Yang walked up to her, holding her around the waist. Cinder crouched down and wrapped her arms around their shoulders, their cheeks pushing together in an embrace.

When Cinder let go of them, Yang stepped back, "The boys didn't give you trouble again did they, aunt?"

Cinder kissed her thumb and rubbed a spot of dried blood clean from Yang's face, "poor Yang, If it were up to me, you would stay home, protecting your sister. You shouldn't be out there with the men. Look what those city dwellers did to your pretty face?"

Ruby nodded, "Yeah. You should stay home with me, sis!"

Yang shook her head, "I have to do what mom says, as mean as she is. Besides, Uncle Qrow is doing his best to keep the worst of them away. Cinder, you've got to tell me; the guys, did they hurt you again?"

Cinder smiled, caressing Yang's head with her fingernails rubbing through her scalp, "Don't you worry about matters of the tribe, girls. That's adult affairs." She sounded upset, a slight hollowness in her throat as she spoke. "You two should be playing, not fighting with us like this." She stood up, patting dirt from her dress. "I won't argue tonight. I'll leave you alone. Remember, you two are precious. Its important that you take care of yourselves, for the good of the Branwen's future."

Yang saw a chair at the other side of the yurt, and she walked over and pulled it close to Ruby's bed, sitting down in reverse with her arms crossed over the back of it, "We'll go to bed soon. Thanks, aunt."

Ruby ran back to her bed, jumping over Yang's head and landing on her blankets, which she threw over her body instantly, "I'll sleep good, Aunty!"

Cinder turned away from them and went for the doorway, opening the flap of the tapestry.

"Goodnight, Aunty!" Ruby yelled.

Cinder looked back, smiling with furrowed brows before leaving the sisters be. There was stillness for a moment, the crackling of coals from the fire reverberating in the yurt.

"Mom and Aunt have been fighting a lot." Yang said, breaking the silence. "I don't know if they'll ever stop."

Ruby changed the subject, "Yang, your face." she frowned. "Your hurt."

Yang leaned forward a bit in her chair, "It's not so bad. Mom makes me defend the back line, so its just a bunch of losers, anyway. Hey, I got something for you!"

Ruby gasped, "From the city?"

Yang nodded, reaching for her belt and into the bag at her side, removing a large hardcover book from it and holding it up for her sister to see.

"A new story!" Ruby kicked her feet under the blankets. "What is it?"

Yang smirked and examined the front cover, "I don't know. I just took what I found." she opened it, and read the title. "Beetles and You..." she paused for a moment, then looked up at her sister.

"...I don't like that story." Ruby said, crossing her arms.

"Eh," Yang threw the book over her shoulder and to another side of the yurt, "guess its time for a classic. What do you wanna hear?"

Ruby covered her face with fur, "The Gods..."

"Again?"

Ruby nodded rapidly, her cheeks lifting up as she grinned.

Yang laughed, resting her chin over her forearms, "You're too predictable, troublemaker. But, okay," she sighed, "here it goes..."

"Long ago, when there was no life, no water, no plants, and no air, and there was only Dust, there were Two Brothers who lived in the Sky. The Older Brother was very sad, and lonely, while the Younger Brother enjoyed the solitude of darkness. One day, the Older Brother grew tired of being alone, and so he created life to look after. He cut his lips with his teeth, and spat into the Dust, and he made the Oceans. He brushed his fingers against the Dust, and drew pretty patterns, creating the flowers and the grass. Then, he gathered Dust in his hands, and he made it into clay, and he carved it. First, he made the Great Corvid, to play in his creation, and he gave him a Semblance of his power."

Ruby interrupted, yawning, "That's our tough mom..."

Yang replied, "Hold on, troublemaker, I'll get to that."

"With that Semblance, the Great Corvid created the fish, the bunnies, the lizards, and birds. He created all the animals, but when he was done, he had nowhere to sit and rest. The Older Brother saw that the Corvid was unhappy, so he needed to create more life. From Dust, he created a Dragon, and he gave it another Semblance of his power. It roamed the Sky, flying higher than the Great Corvid ever could. With her Semblance, she created the mountains, the deserts, the forests, and even the rain. This was the beginning of Old Vale."

"I really like that part." little Ruby said, sniffling.

"You interrupt me a lot, you know that." Yang replied. "Put your head down!"

Ruby's eyes widened and she plopped her head deeper into her fur blankets.

"At first, the Older Brother was happier than ever, and he didn't feel lonely, anymore. But, the Great Corvid grew angry with the Dragon, the storms she created waking him up from his sleep. The Dragon and the Corvid began to fight, and they destroyed many of the Older Brother's creations. The Younger Brother watched his work, and laughed, then said, 'See Brother, the darkness is all that is, and all that will ever be.' But, the Older Brother didn't give up. As his creations fought viciously, he had an idea. He would create a new kind of life after his own image, a life that would be wise, but weak, unable to destroy his work. They would need to Unite to survive. And so, from Dust, he created mankind. Each of them were gifted with a tiny piece of his Semblance, and they used it to make his creation a better place. Man was happy for a little while, but the Older Brother realized that he had made a horrible mistake. Mankind began to fight each other too, over food, and water, and land. They made friends with the Great Corvid and the Dragon, but split into enemy tribes. Without realizing it, the Older Brother had created war. The Younger Brother watched his work again, then laughed and said, 'See Brother, the darkness is all that is, and all that will ever be.'"

Little Ruby opened her eyes after a snore, "I want to hear about the Garden..."

Yang replied, "You're pretty impatient for a tired runt." she sighed. "Okay..."

"His world was too harsh for them to live in. There was not enough for mankind to be happy, so he had one last idea. He drew with his finger in the Dust, and he made Eden, a Beautiful Rose Garden filled with fresh air. Then, he carved one last life from Dust, the Keepers of the Rose Garden, made in his image. He granted them a special piece of his Semblance, the ability to Sow the Garden. The Keepers of Eden learned to carve into Dust themselves, planting flowers, vegetables, fruits and all sorts of wonderful things. Now, mankind would have a safe place to live, a peaceful retreat filled with food and color. Surely, they would never have a reason to fight again? For awhile, the Older Brother was happy, but, mankind became too comfortable. They were petty, fighting over the tiniest of things. Soon, there was another war, and the Older Brother was sadder than he had ever been. The Younger Brother watched his sibling's work again, then laughed and said, "See Brother, the darkness is all there is, and all that will ever be.' The Older Brother felt nothing but grief. So, he finally gave up on his creation, Leaving behind the Remnants of his lost cause..."

"But it wasn't over...mankind continued to live on, and eventually they would face an enemy so powerful, that they would have no choice but to Unite..."

Yang heard snoring under her sister's blanket. She smiled and stood up from her chair, walking over to her loved one's side. She crouched down and looked at her sister's cute, pale face, brushing her hands over her cheek, trapped in a deep sleep. "I'll tell you the rest of it again tomorrow, Ruby."

Yang approached the central fire and removed the lid from the boiling soup pot next to it. She sat down, picked up a ladle and a bowl on a table, and poured herself a hot meal. She drank the broth quickly, despite its heat, enjoying the sounds of humming insects from outside, a brief moment of peace at home.