Chapter 1) A Smaller, More Honest Soul

Even the most brilliant lights will eventually fade away and die. And when they are all gone, the darkness will return. So prepare your guardians. Build your monuments to a better world. It matters not. There will be no victory in strength.

…

Perhaps victory is in the simpler things that have been long forgotten. Things that require a smaller, more honest soul.

Ruby really liked this little shop. It was nice and quiet, rarely very busy, and the shopkeeper didn't mind her hanging around and reading the magazines in the corner for hours on end. Whenever she came in, he simply left her to her own devices and carried on with his own business. Even though she didn't often buy anything, he never told her to leave, unless it was getting late, and he needed to close up for the day.

Granted, she didn't actually visit this shop too often. After all, she didn't live in Vale proper, and Patch wasn't exactly a quick walk away from the capital. But these past few months, with her sister preparing to move out, the whole family had been making semi-frequent trips to the city for one reason or another. Between the multiple interviews Yang had needed to attend, as well as the entrance exam, orienteering days and so on, Ruby and the rest of the family had been spending a lot of time away from Patch, so having somewhere she could go when she needed to be by herself had been a lifesaver.

Today however, Ruby had not come to Vale with her sister or her father. Today she had come to Vale by herself, having earlier that week received an incredibly unexpected invitation. An invitation which she had, at first, assumed had to be a mistake of some sort. That is until Dad took one look at it and had swiftly sent her along to Vale to meet this rather unusual appointment.

He and Yang would have come with her, but it had all been on such short notice. None of them had expected this. After all, how often does something like this happen?

Maybe it really was a mistake.

That particular line of thought had been swirling around and around in Ruby's head during the entire trip to Vale. So instead of being able to sit back and enjoy watching the world go past outside the window of the airship, she had instead been focussed on keeping herself calm.

Ruby had gotten so much better at managing herself lately. She hardly ever needed Yang to help her ground herself anymore. Gone were the days when she would shut down entirely when she got too stressed. But try as she might, today Ruby just could not get her nerves to settle enough. She hadn't even been able to respond to the steward when he had asked her if she wanted anything. Her swirling thoughts just carried on inside her head, and she soon started to feel overwhelmed. The sounds of the other passengers' chatter, the noise of the engines, the shake of the cabin…

Before long, Ruby was starting to feel the first tendrils of panic begin to wriggle around in her chest.

She was scared that she was going to start to spiral. So much so that as soon as the transport landed and the passengers were allowed to disembark, Ruby had instantly made a beeline for that familiar little shop, desperate for something to settle her down before the worst could happen. And so, with her headphones on and her hood pulled up, she had spent the last half an hour or so reading a magazine while listening to her music, shutting out everything else.

It had helped, as it always did when she felt like she was spiralling. The welcoming familiarity of the shop was calming, and the combination of headphones and hood shutting out the rest of the world were always a comfort. Soon enough, the feeling of panic had receded. Now Ruby could simply enjoy reading the magazine she had grabbed while she waited until it was time to make her way to her strange appointment.

Crescent Rose's scope could certainly be better. But if I use one that's too big, it'll throw off the balance. Maybe I could strip it down and remove some of the redundant parts? So long as I keep the weight down, it should be OK. Of course, if I do replace the whole scope, I'll need to readjust the folding mechanism to make sure it doesn't get jammed, so maybe it would be better to work with the scope I already have. Replacing just the lenses shouldn't be too tricky. I mean, it wouldn't be the first time those have needed replacing…

Ruby could obsess over the finest details of her pride and joy for hours on end quite happily. She had poured a lot of time and effort into making her weapon, but she could and did still make adjustments quite frequently, oftentimes for no real reason other than because she enjoyed working on it.

Yep, I'll replace the lenses. And while I'm at it, I may as well readjust the folding mechanism anyway. If I can get it to deploy a bit faster, it'll make is easier to-

Ruby's train of thought stopped dead in its tracks when she felt someone's hand roughly grab her shoulder. She was spun around, and her hood fell off as she did so.

The man was rather tall, and he was holding a sword in his hand. It didn't look like a particularly fancy weapon. It was a mass-produced model that could be picked up in most places that sold weapons and other gear. The only thing notable about it was that it had been spray-painted red, which Ruby could appreciate. It certainly made it stand out a bit more.

Ruby then realised that the man was trying to talk to her, and was gesturing for her to lower her headphones.

Ruby felt a twinge of embarrassment as she realised that he was likely annoyed that she was ignoring him. Sheepishly, she removed her headphones and switched them off, switching her gaze from the man's hands to his face. He was wearing a hat and sunglasses, and was frowning at her.

Yep, he looks annoyed.

"I-I'm sorry, d-did you say s-something?" Ruby asked, cringing internally as she was unable to keep her voice from stuttering. As much as she had improved in other ways, she still had trouble talking to people from time to time.

The man pointed his sword in Ruby's face. "I said, put your hands in the air, now!" His tone of voice, combined with the threatening gesture, made his intentions quite clear.

Ruby cocked her head to one side. "Are you robbing me?"

"Yes!" exclaimed the man, sounding more annoyed than intimidating. "Now put your hands up, you dumb kid!"

Ruby stood still for a moment longer, considering what to do next. It didn't seem like this man had any other weapons on his person, and judging by the way he was holding the weapon he did have, he didn't really know how to use it well. Ruby highly doubted that this would-be thief had much in way of actual training.

Slowly, Ruby made a show of raising her hands, taking a deliberate step back as she did so. The thief would likely interpret this as her backing off out of fear, when in reality she was putting a bit of distance between him and her to allow her to make her move.

Ruby Rose was a girl who struggled to talk to people, who would start to get anxious in new situations, and who often worried that she would be unable to hold herself together when she started to get stressed and panicky.

But there was a lot more to Ruby Rose than that.

Just as the thief began to lower his sword slightly, Ruby threw her headphones at his face. He ducked his head to the side to avoid them, which was exactly what Ruby had been hoping for.

Before the man could regain his balance, Ruby had reached behind her and unclipped her weapon from the holder attached to the small of her back. With fluid, practiced ease, she swung the compact form of Crescent Rose out in front of her and triggered the mechanism to extend the handle to its full length.

The end of Crescent Rose slammed into the man's stomach with immense force and sent him flying back across the shop. He collided with the far wall and slid down to the floor, knocked unconscious by the force of the impact.

Definitely not much training.

Ruby then noticed that the shop was not as empty as it had been when she had arrived. A few more men dressed in similar clothes were seemingly in the process of stealing everything they could carry, while the poor elderly shopkeeper was hiding behind the counter.

"Freeze!" shouted one of the men, aiming a pistol at her. Another off-the-shelf model by the looks of it.

Either way, Ruby wasn't about to let him just shoot her. And she certainly wasn't going to let these guys hurt the shopkeeper if she could help it.

Tapping into her Aura, Ruby drew upon the power of her Semblance as she leapt forwards. She felt her body become lighter as she accelerated towards him, before letting her Semblance fade and her body's mass return to normal. Twisting in the air, Ruby's feet connected with the man's chest and they both went flying through the window with a loud crash!

The man landed on his back, while Ruby landed on her feet, her knees bending to absorb the impact. Footsteps behind her alerted Ruby to the presence of the other thieves who had followed her outside.

Ruby turned to see that indeed, three more black-suited men were standing outside the shop with weapons drawn. A fourth man in a white jacket and holding a cane was standing with them with a rather puzzled look on his face, in comparison with the rather more apprehensive looks the others were wearing.

Ruby allowed herself a small smile, satisfied to see that she had succeeded in getting them all to follow her.

Spinning Crescent Rose around, Ruby triggered the full unfolding mechanism to reveal her weapon's true form. The large blade of the scythe gleamed in the light of the streetlamps as she slammed it into the ground, embedding the tip in the sidewalk.

The man in white looked a little more thrown off. "Okay…" He looked at the other three men on either side of him. "Well, get her!"

One of the three men charged at Ruby head on, sword raised high above his head, leaving him wide open. Ruby simply leapt up and used the handle of Crescent Rose to help her spin around. Her boot connected with the man's head, knocking his hat and glasses off and sending him sprawling on the ground.

The second man, also wielding a sword, thrust forwards rather clumsily, leaving him off balance. Ruby pulled her scythe's blade out of the ground and swung the blunt end into the man's side. He flew away from her and slammed into a streetlamp.

The third man was a bit smarter than his friends, staying at a distance and taking aim with his gun. Just as he fired at her, Ruby pulled the trigger of her own weapon, using the recoil to help her quickly dodge to the side. A second shot sent her hurtling towards the gunman. An upwards swing sent the hapless man cartwheeling through the air, his now very much unconscious body landing in a crumpled heap at the feet of the man in white.

The man in white snorted dismissively. "Well, you were worth every Lien. I knew I shouldn't have paid in advance."

Ruby held Crescent Rose in both hands, barrel aimed towards her target. He didn't seem to have a weapon, but something about the way this man held himself told Ruby that he was likely more dangerous than his associates.

Ruby then registered the sound of sirens in the distance, and a moment later realised that they were police sirens. The shopkeeper must have triggered his silent alarm early on.

"Well, Little Red," said the man in white, his voice almost conversational. "This has been an eventful evening. As much as I would love to stick around, I'm afraid we have to say goodbye." With that, the man lifted his cane, and Ruby realised with a mixture of alarm and intrigue that this was the man's weapon all along, just as he fired a red blast in her direction.

Thinking fast, Ruby jumped as high as she could, aimed Crescent Rose downwards and fired a shot of her own, using the recoil to launch herself over the blast as it destroyed the sidewalk she had been standing on.

Ruby landed and quickly began to scan her surroundings. She saw the man in white a few buildings away, climbing a ladder.

Ruby didn't hesitate. She took off after the man, reaching the base of the building just as he reached the roof. Once again, Ruby used the recoil of her weapon to boost herself upwards, reaching the roof of the building in a single bound. The man in white had reached the other side of the roof, and it seemed he had nowhere to run.

"Persistent one, aren't ya?" he said, taking a step back towards the edge. "But I'm afraid this is the end of the line."

Ruby heard a sound like breaking glass, and watched stunned as the very air behind the man in white shattered to reveal a bulkhead hovering right next to the roof. The door slid open, and the man hopped inside.

"But I will leave you with a nice parting gift!" With a flourish, the man tossed a red crystal towards Ruby, raised his cane and fired at it.

Ruby knew she wouldn't be able to escape the blast if she tried to run. All she could do was focus her Aura and hope that it would hold enough to at least keep her from getting too badly injured.

Squeezing her eyes shut, Ruby heard the explosion go off. Aura or not, this was going to hurt. A lot.

Only, it didn't. Which was very odd indeed.

Opening her eyes, Ruby found herself staring at the back of a tall woman with a black cape and blonde hair. A woman who Ruby had met before, when she had accompanied her sister to one of her orientation days.

Professor Goodwitch.

Ruby suddenly felt all her confidence from a moment ago evaporate as she remembered what she actually came to Vale for in the first place.

Ruby heard another gunshot from the man in white's cane, and watched as Professor Goodwitch swung her riding crop and made the rubble in front of her rise up to form a barrier that blocked the shot quite effectively. With another gesture, the Professor and trained Huntress sent the rubble flying through the air towards the bulkhead…

… only for said bulkhead to shatter like glass and vanish.

Professor Goodwitch tsked with annoyance, before turning to face Ruby, looking decidedly unamused.

Ruby looked down at her feet, her hands wringing around the handle of Crescent Rose. She felt herself shrink under the Professor's gaze.

"Miss Rose." Professor Goodwitch's voice was icy enough to freeze lava. "Just what do you think you are doing?"

"I hope you realise that your actions tonight will not be taken lightly, young lady. You put yourself and others in great danger."

Ruby said nothing in her defence. She simply kept her gaze aimed downwards at the table and allowed the Professor to admonish her.

This was not the great first impression she had been hoping to give.

The police had arrived swiftly and arrested the four thieves Ruby had incapacitated, recovering all of the Dust they had attempted to steal and returning it to the shopkeeper. They had then asked Ruby a slew of questions, which she had answered in stops and starts, her stammer making the whole process a lot more awkward for everyone. And all the while Professor Goodwitch had stayed very close by, arms folded and frowning in her direction, which did not help her nerves in the slightest.

Once the police were done with her, Professor Goodwitch then escorted Ruby to the café several streets over where they had been supposed to meet. However, rather than an interview, the Professor had instead launched into a lecture.

"That all being said," continued Professor Goodwitch in a slightly softer tone. "I'm sure the owner of the establishment is grateful for your assistance tonight."

Ruby looked up slightly at that. "Is he OK?" she asked. In all the chaos, she hadn't been able to see if he was safe.

"He is unharmed," replied Professor Goodwitch. "Although I imagine he is still rather shaken by the ordeal."

Just then, Ruby heard the door of the café open behind her.

"Glynda, I hope you are not being too harsh on the poor girl."

Ruby knew that voice quite well. Even before she had met the man in person during her sister's orientation, Ruby had known exactly who this man was. Almost everyone in Remnant knew who he was.

"Only as harsh as is necessary, Headmaster," replied Professor Goodwitch. "It is important that Miss Rose understands how reckless she was being."

Footsteps, accompanied by the sound of a cane, echoed in the empty café. No other customers were present besides themselves. Even the owner had disappeared shortly after Ruby had arrived.

The sound of a chair being pulled out spurred Ruby to lift her head fully to look at the man who was now sitting in front of her. Messy grey hair, black spectacles perched on the bridge of his nose, and a small but welcoming smile that was almost always present on his face, there was no mistaking who was in front of Ruby.

Professor Ozpin. Headmaster of Beacon Academy. And the man who had sent the letter that had summoned Ruby to Vale in the first place.

"Ruby Rose," the Professor greeted her warmly. "It is nice to be able to meet you properly for once."

"Uh, um…" Ruby floundered desperately for something to say. This was Professor Ozpin, one of her heroes, arguably the most famous man on the planet, and Ruby had no idea what to say!

"Would you like anything to drink?" he asked her. "This establishment serves a wonderful hot cocoa."

"N-no thanks." Ruby didn't think she would be able to eat or drink anything right now, with her insides flip-flopping around as much as they were.

"Well then, let us not delay any longer." Professor Ozpin pulled his Scroll from his pocket and placed it on the table between them, tapping a few buttons to make it project its display in the air. Ruby saw several tabs open on the display. The Professor tapped one to open it up fully, revealing what Ruby assumed were her school reports, judging by the logo in one corner.

"Am I right that you presently attend Signal Academy, Miss Rose?"

"Th-that's right. S-Signal," Ruby replied. "I-I'll start my s-second year next month."

Professor Ozpin swept his finger through the display to go to the next page. "Yet I see that you have already taken classes meant for third-years."

Ruby felt her face heat up slightly. "I-I'm not the only one who sk-skips ahead." She was proud of what she could do, she truly was, but Ruby still did not really like people bringing it up very much. She felt self-conscious enough as it was, being in classes alongside people two years older than her.

Professor Ozpin hummed at that, flicking to another page. "Your transcripts are quite impressive as well. Not many first-years can boast a win-loss record like yours, especially against opponents with more training than themselves."

"I-I have had other t-training." Ruby could feel her blush growing. "M-m-my uncle…"

"Oh, I know about your uncle, Miss Rose," Professor Ozpin interjected. "Qrow and I have known each other for a long time. In fact, I was a teacher of his once."

Ruby knew this, of course. Uncle Qrow had told her, as had Dad.

"And it would seem that you truly do take after him." Professor Ozpin switched tabs to a video, which he began to play.

It was a security recording from outside the Dust shop. Ruby watched herself on the display as she engaged the thieves, and once again marvelled at just how incompetent they had been.

Why didn't they all attack me at once? Were they afraid of getting in each other's way?

"They weren't very good," Ruby murmured.

"Well then, what about this young man?" Professor Ozpin switched tabs to show another video. The Ruby in this recording was wearing her Signal combat uniform, and was having a live-fire sparring match with a fellow student. A third-year student. This particular fight had happened a few months earlier.

"This opponent of yours was no petty thief. Yet you hardly seem to be struggling at all in this recording."

Ruby watched herself and the older boy engage each other. This was the tail-end of the match, around when the boy had run out of ammo and been forced to rely purely on melee combat. His weapons were a pair of hatchet-pistols, and while he had been very skilled with them, they just didn't give him as much reach as Crescent Rose gave Ruby. Without any ranged options left, Ruby had quickly whittled down his Aura until he was forced to concede to her.

"I have only ever known two other scythe-wielders who possessed that level of skill, one of whom was your uncle." Professor Ozpin closed the video and switched to another tab. "And your scythe is quite the impressive piece of weaponry itself."

Ruby did smile at that. She may not like it when people talked about her, but Crescent Rose was another matter. "I d-designed her myself. C-Crescent Rose, I mean. W-well, I did base the c-core design on Uncle Qrow's, b-but I've made quite a f-few alterations. Instead of a shotgun, I w-went with a s-sniper rifle for more range. Also, unlike Harbinger, Crescent Rose doesn't have a second melee mode. I did try it once, but I'm not as good with a sword as I am with a scythe, so I stuck with that. Plus, I try to keep the weight down as much as I can so I can move around easier, and so the folding mechanism doesn't jam up…"

Ruby trailed off, realizing with considerable embarrassment that she had been rambling, and the two Professors were staring at her.

"S-sorry," she mumbled. "I get a little c-carried away s-sometimes."

Professor Ozpin chuckled. "That's quite alright. I can see you are quite passionate about your weapon."

Ruby nodded, once again feeling her face heat up.

"So what I see is a very talented young girl, leaps and bound ahead of her peers, who has already begun to establish the exact kind of fighter she wants to be." Ozpin closed his Scroll and pushed it to one side, his expression turning serious. "My question, then, is what kind of person does she want to be?"

Ruby took a deep breath. This was it; this was what she had come to Vale for.

"I want to be a Huntress." Ruby spoke very slowly and deliberately, making absolutely sure to keep her stammer from getting in the way. "I want to be like my uncle, and my dad, and my… my mom."

Professor Ozpin laced his fingers together and levelled her with an even gaze. "I assume you know that such a life is not an easy one."

Ruby nodded. That was a fact that she knew very well.

"So when you graduate from Signal, do you intend to apply for my school?"

Ruby nodded again. "I w-wanted to even before m-my sister started to apply, but now I know f-for sure."

Professor Ozpin's expression gave nothing away. "You know why I asked you to come here today." It was not a question.

Ruby swallowed. "T-to be honest, I thought it w-was a m-mistake."

Professor Ozpin quirked an eyebrow at that, lowering his hands to reveal that he was smirking slightly. "Well then, allow me to make myself clear." Reaching into his pocket, the Headmaster of Beacon Academy withdrew a letter, which he unfolded and slid across the table towards Ruby. "I would like to offer you a place at my school, starting this semester."

Ruby looked down at the paper she had been given. Right there, in plain letters, was the real thing. An offer to start down the road to making her dream come true, a full two years ahead of schedule.

This is actually happening.

"If you would like some time to think about this, I understand. This is a big decision-"

"Yes!" Ruby blurted out, rather more loudly than she had intended. "I-I mean, I accept. I w-want to go to Beacon."

Professor Ozpin smiled and handed her a pen. "Then let's begin. We have a lot of paperwork to complete."

"Oh, this is the best day ever! My baby sister is going to Beacon with me!"

"Please stop," wheezed Ruby as she struggled and failed to extricate herself from Yang's strong embrace.

"Nope!" Yang said simply, although she did loosen her grip slightly, so she wasn't crushing her younger sister to death. "I'm so proud of you, Ruby! You've gotta be the youngest person to get into Beacon in, like, ever! You're incredible!"

"Third youngest," Ruby replied. "And I almost didn't. You should have s-seen how mad Professor Goodwitch w-was at me."

Yang rolled her eyes at that. "Don't worry about that. I mean, it's not like she can give you detention for something you did before you even joined Beacon."

Ruby gave her sister a small smirk. "If that w-were true, you'd be in detention forever."

Yang gave a mock gasp of indignation. "Are you implying that I, Yang Xiao Long, am a troublemaker?"

"More like a trouble-chaser," Ruby retorted, her smirk growing into a proper smile as she felt herself relax a little, enjoying the banter with her sister.

"That sounds more like me." Yang released Ruby from her embrace and gave her a warm smile. "But seriously Ruby, you've earned this. No matter what anyone else says."

Ruby's face fell at that, Yang's words reminding her of what had happened after she had accepted Professor Ozpin's offer.

"We are pleased to announce that Signal's very own Ruby Rose will be enrolling at Beacon Academy. Miss Rose, congratulations from everyone here at Signal!"

Congratulations were not what her classmates had given her that day. Quite the opposite. For the entire final week of the semester, Ruby had been subjected to all manner of comments and barbs.

"What makes you so special!?"

"They rejected my application but let you in? That's not fair!"

"You're just a kid!"

And that had just been what people had said to her face. What she overheard some people say behind her back was worse.

"I heard her uncle is friends with the Headmaster. He probably pulled strings to get her in."

"Maybe they let her in out of pity. I mean, it's Ruby."

"I bet she gets killed by a Grimm within a month."

A gentle hand on her shoulder brought Ruby out of her thoughts. "Hey, think of it like this," said Yang. "No-one knows you at Beacon. This is a fresh start for you, a clean slate."

A clean slate…

"I hope so," mumbled Ruby, mostly to herself as she turned to look out the window of the airship. Vale was far below them, sprawling out in all directions. If one squinted, it was almost possible to make out the tiny shapes of people wandering the streets.

In the distance, but getting closer by the minute, was their destination. The high tower of the CCT was an unmistakable sight. It was the tallest building in the kingdom, and it was situated on the campus of Beacon Academy itself.

Ruby wasn't the only person taking in the view. Quite a few other passengers were also peering out the windows to take in the sight. The rest milled about the passenger bay in small groups, talking to each other, while a holoscreen was playing the news, although it didn't seem like anyone was actually watching-

"Hey, wait, turn that up," someone called out. A moment later, the sound of the holoscreen became louder, and Ruby found her attention drawn to it.

"This Saturday's Faunus Civil Rights March turned violent when members of the White Fang joined the proceedings. Protesters clashed with law enforcement for several hours, resulting in dozens of injuries, although no fatalities have been reported at this time. In response to the recent escalation of protests, Vale City Council has declared a temporary ban on any forms of large, organised gathering in the metropolitan area, while calls for a curfew to be imposed on Faunus citizens continue to gain support. We go now to our correspondent, Cyril, who was at the scene of the protest when police became involved-"

Whatever the news correspondent was about to say about last night's protest-turned-riot was cut off when the holoscreen's display switched from the news to a projection of one Professor Goodwitch.

"Hello to you all, and welcome to Beacon Academy!" In stark contrast with how she had come across when she was speaking to Ruby, Professor Goodwitch was smiling and speaking in a much friendlier tone. Ruby suspected it was a recording.

"For those of you who do not know me, my name is Glynda Goodwitch. You are among a privileged few who have received the honour of being chosen to attend this prestigious establishment! Although our world is presently experiencing an incredible time of peace, as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it shall be your duty to uphold this peace.

"You have all demonstrated the courage and commitment required for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to become the best versions of yourselves. You will be arriving at the campus shortly, where I and my fellow staff shall greet you properly. I look forward to meeting you all in person soon enough."

With that, the holoscreen switched back over to the news, which was now reporting on the sports by the looks of things. The chatter of the passengers resumed, much more excitedly than before, and Ruby felt the airship accelerate slightly as it began to make its final approach.

Ruby felt nervous, and worried, and more than a little uneasy. But she also felt a thrill of excitement. Two years early or not, this had been her dream for some time, and now the day was here.

"You gonna be OK?" Yang asked, concern in her voice.

Ruby smiled. "Yeah. I think this is gonna be great."

Hello there! I'm Not Scot! Some of you may have already read my first attempt at a RWBY fanfic, 'A Different Way Down'. Well, it's been a while since I touched that one (the past year has been insane), and after re-reading it, I decided I wasn't happy with how it went. Combined with the fact that I have since lost a lot of my notes for that one, I've decided to abandon it and try a slightly different approach. So allow me to introduce my new and hopefully much better fanfic, 'RWBY Re:Mixed'!

As the title and this first chapter implies, this is going to be my own reimagining of RWBY from the very beginning. I've seen a few people on YouTube put forward ideas for how they would rewrite or 'fix' RWBY, but most of them just list their ideas without actually doing much with them. Anyone can think up some cool ideas (e.g.: wouldn't it be cool to have Character X have Weapon Y?), but actually making them work as a coherent story is something else entirely. Also, I personally think that it is a bit arrogant to claim that you can 'fix' someone else's product without having a full understanding of how much work actually went into creating it, including the limitations they had to work with, not to mention that plans often have to be changed and reworked on the fly due to unforeseen circumstances. Hindsight may be 20/20, but that doesn't really help much in the moment.

So this is not me saying I can do a better job than Miles, Kerry and the rest. This is just what I would do if I were tasked with writing RWBY, and I'm doing it for fun, not for a living with dozens of employees depending on me to get it right so that can get their pay checks. I'll leave it up to you, the readers, to decide if my version is any good.

That all being said, I am imposing some rules on this little project of mine. This is partially just to make it more interesting for me, but also to give myself some small idea of what the writers of RWBY are working with. So my rules are as follows:

1) I am limited to the same number of episodes/chapters per Volume as the canon series. So for Volume 1, this is 16 episodes/chapters, for Volumes 2-4 this is 12 episodes/chapters and so on. This will force me to progress the events of the story at a similar pace to the main series.

2) I have a maximum limit of 10,000 words for each chapter, with one exception (although this exception won't be coming up for a while. See if you can predict which one it will be). This rule is to prevent me from making super-long chapters that go against the spirit of the first rule.

3) I am allowed to include a single 'World of Remnant' side-chapter in each of my 'Volumes' (I know there are more WoR instalments than this in canon, but I won't be contradicting what any of those say too much, so I won't be re-doing those. My WoR episodes are just to help me explain some of the changes/additions I will be making to some of the mechanics of the series).

4) While I will be allowed to make (reasonable) changes to the existing characters, I will not be allowed to create new characters, save for nameless background characters as and when they are necessary. Otherwise, I must use the same characters as the series. I can omit characters if I wish, should I decide they are not necessary to the plot, but I should try to avoid doing this too much.

5) For the sake of my own sanity, I will be disregarding the wider expanded universe of RWBY. Any and all events and characters depicted in the novels, comics, manga, video games and so on will not be referenced in this series, as I personally am not especially familiar with those. If something I include happens to line up with anything from these other sources, chalk that up to coincidence.

With that, I take my leave for now. I hope you all enjoy this little experiment of mine, or at least enjoy it more than my last attempt at writing a RWBY fanfic went.

Until next time,

Not Scot.

P.S: I won't promise any sort of upload schedule this time around. The chapters will come out whenever I get the chance to upload them.