Yang and Ruby had been given their monthly allowance the other day, so the two of them went out to go clothes shopping. They had already gotten off the boat that took the two sisters to Vale. It only took a few minutes to find a store they often went to, known as "One Size Fits All." They went in to go clothes shopping and emerged from it after another few minutes.
Yang looked over at her younger sister and noticed how upbeat she was. "I take it you got a good deal?"
"Worth every Lien!" Ruby chirped. "I can't believe I had to go that long wearing a bra that didn't fit anymore."
Yang gave a soft laugh. "Is this the sixth one you had to buy?"
"The seventh," Ruby replied. "But seven's a lucky number, so who knows? Maybe this is the last one I'll ever need."
"Yeah, no," Yang retorted, as she shook her head. "You're still fifteen. From my experience, you have a year or two of growing to do."
Ruby reflected on Yang's logic at that moment, then gave a disappointed sigh. "Yeah, that's true…"
It was a shame, really. The money she had to spend on her wardrobe could instead go towards her hobby of making weapons, or perhaps spoil Crescent Rose with another upgrade. But at the end of the day, Ruby didn't mind. In fact, she took pride in how quickly her body developed. Yang didn't notice at first, but it came as a surprise when all of her old bras became obsolete.
Yang originally felt jealous of Ruby (which only fueled her younger sister's ego time and again). However, the new dynamic that had been introduced into their sisterhood now felt natural. Yang became content with what she already had, and there were times, such as now, when she didn't envy how much Ruby had to put up with. Yet, somehow, Ruby made it all work for her, and she was still a terrific fighter to boot!
Ruby perked up when she remembered something. "Oh, right! I think I still have some money left over for school supplies."
Yang raised an eyebrow. "School supplies?"
"Yep! I finally figured out how to make Dust rounds for Crescent Rose. But I already used up most of the ammo practicing against Grimm."
Yang smirked down at her sister. "Good job," she mocked.
"Hey, I just wanted to make sure I got the ratio right," Ruby shot back. "I've got to be ready for when the weekend's over, you know?"
"Alright, that's fair," Yang conceded. "I still have a few places to go myself. We'll just meet up at the docks at the usual time." She knew Ruby could take care of herself. "Sound good?"
"Sounds good!" Ruby replied, before turning and making the trip to her favorite Dust shop.
A group of five men walk down an alleyway in Vale. Most of them were unremarkable, save for their black clothing and red accessories. But the fifth one, standing at the very front? He was the important one; the leader. He crossed the paths of several bystanders as he walked, and they dared not get in his way. Even without his entourage, he was dangerous. From his black bowler hat with a feather plume secured by a red band, to the expensive-looking white jacket, everyone knew who he was: Roman Torchwick.
He was after a Dust shop that was still open late into the night. He had an arrangement with the owner; pay up and he'll make sure nothing bad happens to the business. The problem was the old man missed the deadline. Of course, he saw it less as a "problem" and more as an opportunity. Roman needed as much Dust as he could get his hands on. So, rather than take the owner's money, he'd liquidate his entire stock as payment. If Roman played his cards right—and he always kept aces up his sleeve—he could get in and get out without Ruby Rose being any the wiser.
That brat's always been a thorn in my side.
Fate was cruel to him tonight, however. This very store, From Dust Till Dawn, was the same one Ruby arrived at moments earlier. They didn't realize they were about to cross paths once again; Roman couldn't see his rival, as she was at one of the far corners of the store, obscured by shelves of Dust productions. Meanwhile, Ruby was busy reading an issue of Weapons Magazine that was on sale and simultaneously listening to Jeff Williams music.
Roman approached the elderly man who stood behind the counter. "You know, it's a good thing you're open this late. Otherwise, we would've simply broken in and taken what we needed."
The shopkeeper had already noticed the goons when Roman walked in. He was afraid, but he had enough nerve to hold his tongue. Even as the master criminal removed his cigar from his mouth and tapped flecks of ash off of it, the shopkeeper didn't dare chastise him for his messiness. But a part of him wondered if he should; he knew the only customer in the store was a regular, training at Signal Academy. He also knew that she wouldn't hesitate to intervene if she realized he was in danger.
"You know why we're here, don't you?" Roman asked.
The shopkeeper stared at Roman with hesitation. After deciding to play it safe, he reached for the cash register.
"Ah-ah! We're not taking your money this time."
The old man stopped and again stared at Roman. "Then what are you after!?" he asked, raising his voice with the hope of getting Ruby's attention.
Luckily, there was a moment of silence between songs where Ruby heard the conversation. Curiosity led her to take off her headphones and listen.
"Calm down, old man," Roman told him. "Normally, I'd start trashing the store, so you know not to skimp on me next time. But thanks to a new business partner of mine, we don't have to do that."
New business partner? Roman's words echoed in Ruby's mind as a new puzzle for her to solve. Since when did Mr. "I'm my own man" start collaborating with people? She wasn't just referring to who Roman's new associate was. It was also unlike him to have this much help, let alone for something as simple as a robbery.
Roman signaled for his men to get to work. Two gray cases were placed on the counter and opened. One was filled with several large, empty canisters, taken one at a time by each of the other henchmen and filled with different types of Dust stocked in industrial tanks. The other case was completely empty. A henchman glared at the shopkeeper through his red sunglasses.
The old man understood what was expected of him. Hesitantly, he reached for the Dust crystals behind the counter and carefully placed them inside the case.
Ruby turned away from the scene and pulled up her hood, opening up her magazine to look at the contents. A decent facade until she could think of a plan of attack. When she watched it all play out, she counted three or four goons, but she could not ignore the possibility that there were more waiting outside. She could dispatch them with Crescent Rose, but the simple act of wielding it would turn her into a Manticore in a China shop. This left her with only the element of surprise and some basic CQC moves she learned from Signal and from her sister. Those might be enough to get the drop on Roman.
One of the henchmen responsible for filling the Dust canisters stopped what he was doing. He noticed a girl wearing a red hood standing in the corner of the shop, her back turned to the rest of the shop. She looked distracted by what she was doing, but this was a loose end that could bite their posteriors if it wasn't taken care of. Calmly, he drew his sword and began approaching the girl.
Click, clack, click, clack...
Ruby listened carefully as she heard someone taking the bait. From behind, she wasn't moving at all. But from within the cover of her cloak's hood, she turned her head in the henchman's direction. When the henchman was close enough, Ruby spun around and threw her magazine at his face. He brought his other hand up to shield himself out of reflex, but he inadvertently created an opening. Ruby grabbed the henchman's sword by the blunt end with both hands and tore it from his grip, before jabbing the handle into his abdomen. The speed at which this happened took the disarmed goon by surprise, while the punishment delivered to his midsection forced him to double over in pain.
Ruby dropped the sword, then ran directly into the goon and grabbed him. She wasn't maneuvering to tackle him, but instead, her Semblance kicked in as both Ruby and the goon became a spiraling blur of red and black. Ruby propelled her unwilling combatant forward, then let him go. Like an Atlesian Manta firing a missile, the henchman was propelled forward and forced to crash through the window and into the city streets. Ruby flew through this new opening, even catching some loose shards of glass in her tailwind, before landing on the ground and materializing back into herself.
From Roman's perspective, all he saw was a blur of red in the corner of his eye. That alone startled him into alertness, but it was the glass shattering that made him run away from the front counter and peer outside. The rest of his henchmen did the same, and they all saw two things: not only was another one of their own incapacitated, but there was a small girl with red-and-black hair and silver eyes standing between him and the broken window. They also saw this same girl hunched forward with her hands on her thighs, breathing heavily.
Roman saw this and was reminded of when he was Ruby's age, still surviving off of scraps and gullible marks in the streets of Mistral. "Don't feel too bad, Red," he told her. "Carrying another person isn't easy. Even for us grown-ups, it's a hassle without two people."
Yep, Ruby thought as she finally caught her breath and stood upright. It isn't Matchstick if he isn't using back-handed insults.
"Then I guess I'll have to get stronger," Ruby replied with a slight shrug.
Roman gave Ruby a smirk, retrieving the cigar he had enjoyed earlier. "I say you're already on the right track with that over-sized gardening tool of yours."
Ruby leaned to the side, as though looking behind Roman. "Speaking of tools, where's Neo?" she teased.
"Oh, her?" Roman said with a chuckle, then slipped the cigar into the corner of his mouth. "She's a big girl. She can carry out heists like this by herself."
Heists? So, this isn't the first shop being hit?
Roman didn't say anything else after that. Instead, he clapped his hands twice to get the attention of his goons, then gestured towards Ruby. It didn't take a genius to figure out that a fight was about to happen.
Ruby flashed a smile to Roman, then focused her attention on the henchman flooding out of the front door. She reached behind her cape and drew out her weapon. All the moving parts unfolded to reveal Crescent Rose, her big, red gun-scythe. As a show of force, Ruby twirled her scythe around herself. The blade was then buried into the asphalt and caused the resulting debris to fly upwards.
The group of goons recoiled at the sight of a weapon that was practically larger than each of them individually.
"Having second thoughts already!?" Ruby taunted, her expression teetering between confident and cocky.
The group shared looks with one another. A henchman gave a nod, then continued charging towards Ruby.
The first henchman swung at her with his sword, but Ruby was too quick. She gracefully spun away on the handle of the still-stationary Crescent Rose like an acrobat, before coming back around and countering with a dual-boot kick. She let herself fall to her feet as she pulled Crescent Rose out of the ground. Two more henchmen charged at her. Ruby held her weapon behind her and waited for the right moment to strike. She placed her finger on the trigger, and when the moment was right, she fired her weapon. She rode the recoil and gracefully spun with the weapon still in her hands. The first goon was knocked in the air, then Ruby used her remaining moment to slam the second to the ground like a peg.
Only one henchman remained, and he was the only one who had a ranged weapon to fight with. An assault rifle of standard make, no doubt supplied by Roman's "business partner."
Ruby was already on the move, firing off more rounds just as the henchman let loose with a spray of bullets. The recoil of her weapon gave her an added speed boost, thus allowing her to evade the bullets and get closer to the goon. Once the gap was closed, Ruby swung Crescent Rose around and batted the goon away. He was helpless to stop himself from flying into the air. The only thing to cushion his impact against the shop's door frame was his back, and then his face as gravity beckoned his limp body to the ground.
Roman walked out of the Dust shop in time to see the last henchman fall down. So much for these being good mercenaries. "You were worth every scent." They weren't. "Truly, you were." His disappointment was immeasurable, and what would've been a good night of heisting was ruined. If this was the first encounter Roman had with Ruby, he'd mentally berate his hired help for getting their butts kicked by a single teenage girl. Roman discarded his Cigar and stamped it out with his cane.
"Like I said before, you've gotten better already," Roman commented.
Ruby smiled at the compliment. "Better than when I first tried stopping you? I still have that old laptop-gun."
Roman laughed as a feeling of nostalgia came to him. "Now those were good times." There was something about Ruby that made the life of a criminal so much more interesting. Maybe it was her naivety when it came to good and evil. Perhaps Roman was unconsciously rooting for Ruby to become a Huntress, with each encounter giving her practical Huntress experience later down the road. Either way, Roman knew crime would be dull if it was easy.
"Well, Red, it's been an eventful evening as usual. As much as I'd love to stay and chat…" Roman raised his cane, pointed it at Ruby, and armed it with a button press. "I'm afraid this is where we part ways." He aimed through the cane's flip-sights… then fired.
A bright red projectile shot out and cut through the air with a howl. Ruby turned Crescent Rose and pointed it beneath her feet, using recoil to fly out of the way. This allowed her to narrowly avoid the resulting explosion, but in doing so, she lost track of Roman. It took her a moment to find him climbing up a ladder to the rooftop of building behind her. Ruby then looked back over at the Dust shop to see the shopkeeper poking his head out.
"Stay safe," Ruby told him. "I'm going after him."
Roman was the first to make it to the rooftop, with Ruby not too far behind. All it took was her Semblance and Crescent Rose's recoil to catapult herself up the building.
"It's the end of the line, Matchstick!" she called out to him.
Roman slowed to a stop as he was already on the other side of the roof. She would not be Ruby Rose if she didn't have her little sense of perseverance, would she? Roman also realized why he enjoyed his encounters with Ruby so much: she saw herself as a comic book hero, chasing after the villain. It was adorable, but some day, she'll need to learn that this wasn't how the world worked.
"Never change, Red."
The high-pitched squeal of a Bullhead filled the air as it rose into view. Spotlights shone in her general direction, and she was forced to shield her eyes from the bright lights.
The side door to the Bullhead opened just as Roman stepped up from the edge of the roof. He used the stone perimeter as one step on a set of stairs, then another step into the aircraft. He turned around and looked to Ruby. "AND FOR THE RECORD, RED,"—Roman had to shout so he could be heard over the Bullhead's engines—"THAT'S SUPPOSED TO BE MY LINE!"
Roman grabbed a red Dust crystal that was in his pocket and threw it. Light from the bullhead's spotlights refracted through the crystal, resulting in a gleaming that, for a moment, got Ruby's attention. Fortunately, she was not dazzled enough to miss Roman raising his cane and firing another shot. Ruby dove out of the way just as another firework-howl rang out, but it was a futile attempt. An explosive mushroom cloud, the product of an unstable Dust crystal being damaged, engulfed the roof of the building. Roman raised an arm to shield himself from the intense light as the Bullhead gained altitude. He anticipated that Ruby did the smart thing and Petal Burst away, which meant his diversion worked. Worst case… he just killed a child.
Fearing the worst, he lowered his arm. That was when he saw something he didn't expect.
A blonde woman, dressed in formal attire and wearing a black-and-purple cape, stood in front of Ruby Rose (who was getting back onto her feet and assuming a battle posture). A violet glyph was present in front of the blast zone, then vanished.
Ruby recognized who this was: Glynda Goodwitch. Ruby wanted to get into Beacon Academy when she finished her curriculum at Signal, and she realized that there was no better opportunity to impress than this.
Glynda used her telekinesis to create projectiles from the surrounding rubble, appearing as streaks of purple that knocked the Bullhead off-balance from where it drifted in the air.
The turbulence knocked Roman about, his shoulder banged against the wall separating the cabin from the cockpit. Now that he was within speaking distance of his new partner in crime, this was a good time to warn her of this new development.
"We've got a huntress!" he exclaimed.
The mysterious woman got up from the pilot's seat, which prompted Roman to sit down and take over piloting the Bullhead. During all of this commotion, Glynda prepared herself to do another attack. With the flick of her riding crop in the aircraft's direction, a sparkling ball of energy fired forth before exploding into a rune in the air above. Dark clouds formed over the Bullhead, catching Roman's attention.
"What the hell...?"
Roman had little time to react to the sudden hail of thick icicles. He jerked his body to the side and narrowly avoided one that would have otherwise skewered him. Then the world would have been without one pilot-slash-kingpin.
Ruby slammed her scythe down in front of herself so she could take aim. She aimed at one of the engines, but noticed a new target show up. Her face was obscured by the dark interior of the Bullhead, but what was visible were high heels and a red dress.
This has to be one of his new accomplices! Ruby thought to herself. Ruby aimed Crescent Rose directly at the mysterious woman and fired a couple shots.
The accomplice countered with a ball of fire, which Glynda blocked with more runes. However, like paint being flicked off of a brush, the fireball splattered across the rooftop as stains, which were already glowing yellow with heat. With another gesture from the pyromancer, the glowing intensified.
Ruby reacted by moving out of the way, using Crescent Rose to jump up diagonally in the air. A pillar of explosive fire barely missed the aspiring huntress, and her landing involved doing a mid-air cartwheel over Glynda before landing, now standing opposite from before.
Glydna was quick to make use of an opportunity of her own. That explosion caused more debris to shoot up, which was something she could work with. Using her semblance, the glowing hot fragments of the roof became a much colder purple, before forming a large shape akin to an arrow or a serpent. It launched forward to the Bullhead, which the pyromancer blasted repeatedly in order to reduce its size.
The arrow reformed despite this, and it dove to strike the woman, but Torchwick leaned the bullhead in such a way that made the arrow graze the top of the craft instead. The arrow split into three, relentlessly moving to strike down their intended target.
The pyromancer's response was an area-of-effect attack. Rings of indecipherable runes materialized around herself. Then, both of her arms went out, causing a sphere of orange magic to shatter completely and burn the arrows into embers.
Ranged attacks clearly weren't working, so Ruby thought to try something else. She ran forward along the roof, then used her semblance to fly into the air. As she slipped back into normal form, she aimed her scythe backwards and fired off a shot. The recoil was enough to fling herself forward and deliver a kick against the pyromancer's midsection with both feet. The accomplice was flung back and felt herself impact the other door of the bullhead.
Now that they were in the same vehicle together, Ruby got a better look at the pyromancer. She was thin, had fair-skin, black hair, amber eyes. She wore a black choker around her neck, and her red dress had intricate yellow patterns on the sleeves, which ended in triangle shapes that were wrapped around her middle fingers. She had a beautiful face, but it was marred by an intense rage, as though offended that Ruby got the drop on her.
"GET AWAY!" The amber-eyed woman called forth a gust of wind that ejected Ruby out of the Bullhead.
Ruby had to make a recovery now and fast! She aimed Crescent Rose to the ground, placed her feet on the blade like she was using it as a Pogo-stick, and with a well-timed shot, she gave herself the momentum to spin in the air, simultaneously do a flip, and land next to Glynda. Ruby looked up in time to witness the Bullhead close its door and fly away. And so, the bad guy gets away once again.
"Man...!" Ruby groaned. "I nearly had him this time, too!" Remembering that there was someone else that took the time to help, Ruby looked over to Glynda.
Glynda's only response was to cross her arms and raise one of her trimmed eyebrows.
"Uh, I mean, we… nearly had him." Ruby corrected herself nervously, trying to appease the woman who could easily approve or deny an application to Beacon. Ruby regained her composure. "That was fun! I never thought I'd get to fight alongside a Huntress!"
Ruby had a look on her face that was three parts disappointment and one part guilt. She thought to herself, how did I go from fighting one of the bad guys to being arrested!? In her thoughts, she had tuned out the sound of Glynda's heels.
"A Dust shop robbery at this time of night!" Glynda exclaimed, which yanked Ruby out of her train of thought. "Do you have any idea how dangerous Roman Torchwick is, young lady?"
"Yes."
Ruby's matter-of-fact tone gave Glynda pause. She stared, taking in Ruby's features. The black-and-red hair, the… silver eyes…! Glynda didn't even notice those eyes until now. She was only looking for any sign that Ruby wasn't being serious with her answer, but the truth was there all along.
That explains so much.
Glynda adjusted her glasses. "Would you care for some pointers regarding your fighting style?"
"Always!"
Glynda already saw some of Summer in this girl. Glynda did her best not to betray a smile or any hint of endearment.
"Your fighting style is overaggressive and more on the sloppy side. When you attempted to board that aircraft, you could have gotten yourself hurt."
"Yeah, I… I'll admit it: that plan was less thought-out than what I usually come up with. But hey, it was either that or just standing there and letting Matchstick get away."
"Matchstick?" Glynda wondered.
"Just a nickname," Ruby replied. "He calls me Red all the time, so I thought "Matchstick" fit him well."
Glynda paused, ruminating over this information. She heard there was someone curbing Roman Torchwick's activities as of late. But she never imagined someone as young as Ruby was responsible.
"… I suppose that explains why he wanted to see you," Glynda commented.
"He?" Ruby wondered.
Glynda moved from standing in front of the table Ruby sat at, front-row center, to one of the sides of the table. Ruby immediately recognized who it was that walked in: Professor Ozpin. His white hair, his circle-lens glasses, his affinity for the colors black and green, and especially his posture, made him recognizable on any occasion. He held in one hand a plate of cookies, which he leisurely brought to the table for Ruby to enjoy.
He then grabbed a chair and sat down. "If there's one thing I always forget, it's that the world is sometimes a lot smaller than I realize."
Ruby, cookie already in hand, stopped herself from taking a bite. That remark left her perplexed. "How so?"
"Your family," Ozpin answered. "Not just your parents, but also your sister's side of the family as well. Do you know what they all have in common?"
Ruby thought for a moment. The question was too broad, however, so she could only give him a confused expression instead of a guess.
"Team STRQ," he pointed out. "Qrow and Raven Branwen…"
Now that Ruby realized what he was getting at, she brought a hand to her face. "Right, I remember now. Yeah, my parents were Beacon alumni. Sorry, this has just been a pretty strange night." She took a bite of her cookie and let Ozpin lead the conversation.
"I understand," he replied. "Still, it's remarkable that you inherited your mother's silver eyes. They're an incredibly rare trait, you know. There's a legend or two about how those with silver eyes are destined to lead the life of a warrior. And from what we've seen, you're already on that path."
Ruby smiled. "You know, it's always been a dream of mine to be a Huntress. I was even planning on attending Beacon after I finished training at Signal." She betrayed enthusiasm as she talked more of her passion for Huntress life. "I also had my Uncle Qrow give me extra-credit training! Plus, I've been fighting Grimm on occasion so I can get some practical experience, which is also why I was fighting Roman Torchwick all this time! Sure, I could be a cop, but Huntsmen and Huntresses are a step up in the food chain, not to mention THEY'RE WAY COOLER AND MORE EXCITING AND—" Erupting from Ruby was a squeal of unbridled excitement, thankfully subdued enough not to harm present company's eardrums. "YOU KNOW!?"
Glynda simply stared at Ruby, but Ozpin gave the young girl a bright smile. "Do you know who I am?"
"Of course," Ruby replied, calmer now. "In fact, I know who both of you are. You're Professor Ozpin and Headmistress Goodwitch."
"So, you've done your homework," Glynda remarked. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Likewise!" Ruby replied.
Ozpin leaned forward more in his seat, gazing at Ruby. "I have but one question: do you wish to attend my school?"
"More than anything."
Glynda and Ozpin shared a look with each other. They knew that Ruby had potential and even practical combat experience, which put her above most candidates. Under normal circumstances, Ruby would simply be told to wait until she graduated from Signal. But the opportunity was there for him to seize.
"If it means that much to you," Ozpin said, "then you have my personal invitation."
To say Ruby felt joy was an understatement. She had wanted this for so long, and she had Professor Ozpin to thank.
The news that Ruby was going to Beacon hadn't reached her sister yet. This was good, as Ruby figured that she could surprise Yang. Ruby had been waiting for the airship to take off, and once it was on its way to Beacon Academy, she went around to look for her sister. At first, she couldn't find her, and there was a mild sinking feeling that they weren't on the same airship together.
But then she saw her. That long blonde hair and those lilac eyes were proof that the girl Ruby saw was none other than Yang Xiao Long. As Ruby approached her, Yang finally noticed who had joined her.
"Ruby...?" Yang asked, surprised. She met up halfway with her younger sister. "What are you doing on here?"
Ruby brought both of her own hands behind her back and together. "Well~! I thought I'd let you know that your little sister got invited directly to Beacon by none other than Professor Ozpin!"
This left Yang wide-eyed and even more surprised than before. "You're kidding!" she exclaimed, a feeling of joy now swelling within her
"Nope!" Ruby was beaming as she then pulled out an envelope. "I've got the invitation and everything!"
Yang was quick to snatch it from her sister's hand and examine the message inside. It had the same message and signature, so there was no doubt the letter was real. "That's amazing!" Yang went in for a sisterly hug, still clutching the letter and envelope in her hands. "I can't believe my sister's going to Beacon with me! This is the best day ever! "
In Yang's excitement, however, she neglected to show restraint. Ruby's breathing became a lot more restricted than she was comfortable with. "Please stop...!" she gasped out.
Yang let her go. "Sorry, but I'm just so proud of you! Tell me all about it!"
And here, Ruby gave a summary of events. "Well, I ran into Matchstick again, but this time at a Dust shop. Then one of the professors at Beacon showed up to help me fight him and this other girl he was with. They got away, I was escorted to a police station to be interrogated—"
"So that's what was keeping you!" Yang interrupted, relieved that she wasn't there for anything serious. "Whew! Man, I can't believe you can get locked up for trying to help around nowadays."
"I didn't get locked up!" Ruby continued. "I had my fighting style critiqued at most. But then Professor Ozpin showed up. We talked for a bit about our family, how my silver eyes are symbolic."
"Because of The Legend of the Silver-Eyed Warriors, right?" Yang asked.
"Yeah! Then he invited me to join Beacon. I accepted, and here I am!"
Yang grinned after the full explanation was given to her. "That's incredible! I knew fighting crime would get you somewhere!"
Ruby chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly. "Thanks, but... could you please keep it down? I'm not looking for that kind of attention."
This confused Yang a little. "Why not? You get to skip ahead two years, so people already know you're going to be a fighting prodigy!"
"Well, yeah, but..." Ruby felt an instinctual need to refute her sister and say that she wasn't anything special. But she couldn't. "... Okay, fine. You're right! I'm fifteen and I fight crime, so it's not like I don't deserve to be called a prodigy."
Yang walked around and gave her sister a one-armed hug while Ruby talked. "Yeah, there you go! You're attending Beacon, so you need to stay confident. Because..." She then brought her free hand forward, as though motioning to an imaginary big picture. "Confidence sells!"
Both sisters had their attention drawn to a Vale News Network broadcast being played nearby. There was a mugshot of a familiar, orange-haired man being displayed. "The robbery was led by a nefarious criminal known as Roman Torchwick, who continues to evade authorities. If you have any information..."
Focus was lost on what was being broadcast when Yang leaned a bit closer to Ruby to ask something. "Huh. So that's—"
"Yep," Ruby replied with a nod. Roman "Matchstick" Torchwick. Had it not been for him, she wouldn't be going to the same combat school as her sister.
Another report was being told about a Faunus Civil Rights protest and the White Fang, but Yang was still focused on the current topic. "Did you get a look at his partner? The woman you mentioned?"
Ruby thought back on that night. "Black hair, amber eyes, fights with Fire dust woven into her clothes, old enough to be our mom..."
"Eugh!" Yang groaned a little at that, even recoiling away from her sister from how grossed out she was. "I don't want that image of dad and someone like her in my head."
The news feed was cut off by the holographic projection of Glynda.
"Who's that?" Yang asked, pointing to the hologram.
"Headmistress Goodwitch," Ruby answered. "The one who helped me fight Roman that night."
The hologram gave the passengers its message. "Hello, and welcome to Beacon! My name is Glynda Goodwitch. You are among the privileged few who have received the honor of being selected to attend this prestigious academy! Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsmen and Huntresses, it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world." And, with that, the hologram disappeared.
The other passengers went over to the glass window-walls to admire the outside view. Ruby and Yang couldn't help but examine them as well.
"Oh, wow!" Ruby quickly approached the glass, with Yang following suit. "Look, you can see Signal from up here!" she mentioned, pointing out the small island known as Patch.
"I guess home isn't too far after all!" commented Yang.
The two of them then heard a groaning passenger. He was hunched over and frantically running to the back of the ship, leaving behind evidence of his nausea.
Ruby commented with, "Someone must be really afraid of heights."
Yang rolled her eyes, mainly in response to the retreating passenger they just saw. "The moment was nice while it lasted. I guess the view isn't for everyone."
Ruby smiled as the two of them looked at each other. "I wonder who we're going to meet! I just hope they're better than Vomit Boy," she joked, which got a small laugh from Yang.