"This is a stupid idea." Ilia wasn't happy. It had been Nora's idea to throw a surprise party for Ruby and, like the idiots they were, none of the other sisters had bothered to question her on the specifics of what she had in mind. It had been only a few moments ago that Ilia had found out her role in the 'surprise' and it was clear she was far from happy with the plan. Nora had decided that it would be fun to do a pretend kidnapping and bring Ruby to the club after doing so. Immediately Ilia had tried to convince her otherwise; there were so many things that could go wrong, and it honestly scared her.

Originally, she had tried to talk the ginger out of the idea, stating that Ruby could lose control again and potentially endanger them. Nora had, however, simply smirked and said that they weren't going to go anywhere near her whilst she was conscious. Instead Ilia had found out that she was supposed to shoot Ruby with a tranquilliser as she approached home. This had sent Ilia into a tirade about how that was even more dangerous, Ruby could either react badly to the tranquilliser or completely shrug it off and panic, not to mention when she woke up. However, Nora had shrugged and passed Ilia a dart with said tranquilliser in it.

Ilia hadn't bothered to check the contents of the dart until only a few moments ago and was now realising how in over her head she was. The dart had been labelled 'Carfentanil' which had sent Ilia reeling in disbelief. This is the stuff they use on ELEPHANTS! She had quickly called Nora and the twins who were waiting in the wings to retrieve the hopefully unconscious Ruby. After a moment of ringing Ilia's earpiece beeped as Melanie picked up.

"Ilia? What's the problem?" Melanie was relatively calm, though she had shared ilia's concerns earlier and clearly was not in the know about what Ilia had loaded in her rifle which she had previously intended to point at Ruby.

"Put Nora on the Phone!" There was a long silence and Ilia could practically picture the twin's face confused at the sudden request before she complied.

"Ilia?" Came the slightly surprised voice.

"What were you thinking?! I could kill Ruby with this stuff!" There was a long pause, seemingly as she was figuring out as to what Ilia was referring to, before Nora eventually replied.

"What? Nah… she'll be fine." Nora let out a nervous chuckle she hoped Ilia didn't hear. Ilia caught it.

"Zero point zero two milligrams of this stuff can prove lethal to regular people! This dart has at least three grams in it!" Ilia's outburst was met with a thoughtful hum as Nora contemplated on the other side of the phone.

"Your right… I shoulda' made it five… Oh well, I'm sure she'll be drowsy enough for us to move, at least for a few minutes." Ilia simply stood there, mouth agape and mind reeling from Nora's words.

"Nora, perhaps you didn't hear me right; two-hundredths of a milligram is lethal to people." Ilia spoke slowly and calmly, hoping that perhaps Nora had missed something in the conversation. Her hopes were quickly dashed.

"Yhea, I know, you said. What's your point?" Ilia couldn't hold herself back anymore, the ginger woman had gone mad.

"The point is, she has a better chance of surviving if I just straight up shot her with a regular bullet! How can you be so calm?! You're asking me to kill her!" Ilia paused to let her words sink in for a moment and Nora didn't reply, the earpiece having gone silent. After a moment longer the sound of raucous laughter broke the heavy silence. Ilia just stared at the dart, seriously considering the chances of the older woman having gone insane. After a few more moments of snorting and giggling, Nora finally spoke up.

"Ilia, remember that time we went to the Vacuo when you and the girls were younger?" A few images from Ilia's childhood flashed in her mind causing her to hum in confirmation after a moment. One image in particular forced its way to the front of her mind's eye, the sight of a near catatonic Ruby, pale, lifeless and sprawled across the floor like a toppled mannequin. "Then I'm sure you remember that Ruby was bitten by that cobra in the sand. As much as it was a harrowing scare, it taught us something about Ruby's immune system; it isn't human." Ilia looked confused for a moment; as a child she hadn't been privy to the scene of the adults trying to stabilise Ruby, being told she would only get in the way.

"I'm sorry, I'm confused; she survived sure, but Joy was there to help…" she was cut off as Nora let out a small chuckle.

"Yhea… you see that's the thing; Joy's semblance is useless against venom. It allows her to forcibly regenerate tissue and creates proteins and energy for the body to use to speed up the healing process exponentially, but it can't force a foreign element out of the body." Ilia's confusion only deepened; if that was the case, how had Ruby survived, the next morning the young girl had been almost back to one hundred percent and running around with the rest of them. Then it clicked.

"But… how?" That snake was super venomous, she had some of said venom back home to use, not that she ever had, but it was nice to take precautions. No human had any right surviving a bite without immediate medical attention, let alone be back to normal the next day.

"Funny thing about Grimm blood; it's very resilient. I've only got a little bit in me, so it helps me shrug of illnesses quickly and makes me immune to most common colds and the such. Ruby, on the other hand, has a lot more than me, trust me when I say, if she is unconscious for more than an hour, hell would have frozen over." Ilia let out a bated breath, finally happy that Nora had a reason for giving her the dart. She was far from comfortable with the prospect, but at least Nora presented a sound case.

"Well… Ok, as long as you're sure that she'll be fine…" The faunas made to continue but was cut off by a slightly stuttered cough which immediately set her on edge again. "Nora? She will be fine right?" The tone she used was sharp and tipped with an underlying threat that Nora was all too aware of.

"O-Of course she'll be fine! I mean what kind of big sister would I be if I would inject my younger sibling with a slightly altered chemical? Yhea… she'll be right as rain… one hundred… ninety… sixty percent sure… Hey, did you know how expensive coffee is these days?" Ilia's concerns reignited as she heard Nora begin to try and change the topic.

"Nora, what did you do?" She was met with only silence as the seconds tick painfully by. "I swear if you…" she was interrupted by a sudden and almost unintelligible slew from Nora.

"Ok so I may have added in something to make her lighten up a little bit. Ya' know, just to take the edge off for a bit, maybe mellow her out some? I've seen her worked up over the last few days and I thought maybe it would be best if she forgot about that for a bit." The ginger trailed off as Ilia stared thoughtfully at her rifle and dart. Long moments past before eventually the Faunas laughed. It was short, to the point and controlled, more akin to a chuckle than a proper laugh, but it was heartfelt. Another moment passed as Nora heard the tell-tale sound of a rifle chambering a shot through the phone. "Ilia?"

"Don't say I never do anything for you." Nora let out a sigh of relief; the whole plan had banked on Ilia agreeing to make the shot, Ruby being too dangerous to subdue with other methods. "Ruby should be here any minute now, make sure you're hidden but nearby to pick her up when I take the shot." Nora practically cheered her agreement, making to hang up after doing so but was interrupted by Ilia speaking one last time. "Just know, if I kill Ruby with this, I can hit a speeding car over a mile out and these roads are looking mighty empty of witnesses." She practically sung the slightly playful, but simultaneously serious, threat across the call as she caught sight of red and black on the horizon.

Nora gulped a little; she could put Ilia on her ass in a straight fight, not to mention with her Grimm, but Ilia hadn't been trained to fight, at least not primarily, and Nora didn't like her chances with over seven hundred meters between them. Everything will be fine. Ruby's a tough girl, certainly a monster in her own right. It's all under control…Right?

A shot rang out eventually followed by the sound of drowsy stumbling and finally a dull thump as an unconscious body hit the floor.

Bart suppressed a chuckle as Nora walked into club with Ruby slung over her shoulder. He found it rather amusing really, after all, though the method may be unusual, it was far from abnormal for a family to throw a surprise party and yet his family were all clearly tired from the amount of effort this party had taken to throw. He himself had to mark thirty-two papers from the test Ruby's piers had taken that day, he may have only had to mark the history section but it was at the beginning of the paper and so, unlike other subjects, wasn't likely to have many blanks and he had only three hours to mark if he wanted to be here for the party. He supposed he only marked thirty-one papers, his gaze flicking over to his youngest niece, a slight frown found its way onto his features. They would work on her punctuality, or Glynda would make sure he never heard the end of it.

A groan drew the history professor's attention from his nieces as they worked on securing ruby to a chair without her Grimm getting too aggressive, they had known the rose wouldn't react kindly, but had banked on it being told to never harm them by Ruby herself, luckily it seemed their gamble had paid off. The groan belonged to Jax as he held an ice pack to the side of his jaw and Joy repeatedly swatted his shoulder and reprimanded him for his recklessness. The note they had left for Ruby hadn't been entirely false, there had been a gang war, but only some of them had gone to sort it out. The group wanted to be back in time for the party and it seemed Jax had decided it was taking too long and thrown his restraint to the wind. Ultimately, he was fine but a lucky swing from a bat to the jaw had been causing him grief since the adrenaline wore off.

"One of these days Jax, you are going to pull a stunt like this and the punk who gets a lucky hit in will have more than a baseball bat and I won't be there to stitch ya' back together." The big man made to get a retort out but a slap to the uninjured side of his head made quickly shut him up, though he made a point to growl to the best of his ability, his jaw making it harder than he would likely admit. "Oh, quit grumbling like a mutt, or I'll buy you a muzzle." Jax remained silent but let his distaste show on his face. Bart tried to hide smirk as he saw Ilia sneakily record the pit fighter being talked down to by a woman as minute as Joy.

He tore his gaze from the comical scene, taking in the rest of their misfit family hastily apply the final touches for the party. He watched as they scrambled about, hiding ladders, presents and anything else that would give away the surprise too soon. Nora planned to have only the part of the room immediately around Ruby illuminated and everything else hidden in the shadows, she wanted to play with the girl a bit before revealing that it had all been a pleasant ruse. Bart himself, along with most of the others had been against this plan initially, thinking of everything that could go wrong, but eventually Nora had won out and stated that if things went south they only had to turn the lights on and Ruby would realise it had all been playful and she was in no actual danger. He himself still had reservations, but alas she managed to convince the majority and that had always been how the club operated. Junior made the important decisions and more often than not people would agree with whatever he said, but he would never do something that they all openly objected to, that is unless he thought it was for their own safety.

A sad sigh passed his lips, the only outward sign of battered mental state. He wished Junior could have been there, with them all, to see their youngest take her first steps into adulthood. He wished he could see as the largest man he had ever known struggled to bite back tears as the party transpired and the girls laughed amongst their family. Junior had always been a softy at heart; sure, he had broken some bones to get where he was, but he had always done it for the greater good of their family, never once raising his hand against any of them, even when they perhaps deserved it. Bart subdued another chuckle as the memory of a young Jax and Junior arguing in an alley surfaced in his mind, it had been long and drawn out and eventually Jax had gotten physical. At the time, Jax hadn't really gotten into fighting yet and Junior had already started becoming a giant and could have easily sat the smaller boy on his ass. Yet, every time Jax swung, Junior took it, every time Jax knocked him down, he stood back up and never once struck back. Junior was aware that blood sometimes had to be spilled in their way of life, but he would never do it to those he didn't think deserved it.

Junior had originally been the only one amongst them to have a hand in criminal dealings. He had tried to keep them separate from the life they now lived, hoping that they could turn a blind eye to his struggling as he did what he needed to keep them all fed. In a way Bart wished his family had done as Junior hoped, that they had managed to pull themselves from the poverty into which they were thrust and emerged as pioneers in various areas of business. However, a much larger part of him couldn't think of his family in that light; they were far too stubborn. The system that was supposed to protect them as children had failed them, but rather than crawl back crying and complaining like most children their age would have done, they had stood together, on their own feet, and survived without it, whatever the cost.

A surprised yelp split the silent anticipation, drawing the historian out of his darkened stupor, quickly he turned on his heels to see what had happened. He didn't have to look far as he beheld the scene before him. It seemed that Ruby was close to waking, it had, by his best estimates, been at most half an hour since she had been injected with the tranquilliser and the girl was already beginning to stir. As the their youngest tossed around slightly in her chair the rest of the club watched as faint tendrils of black snaked their way along the floor, almost imperceptible if not for the bright light swinging gently over the girl's head. She wouldn't likely wake calmly and more than a few of them found themselves once again doubting Nora's plan. Ilia was the most vocal as she began glaring at the ginger and speaking in a hushed voice.

"Nora, I thought you said we had an hour!?" She hissed her eyes and freckles flashing yellow whilst her skin slipped to a bright shade of red, something they had come to know happened when she was angry. The ginger let out a forced chuckle, sweat dropping slowly off her brow, as she backed away from the agitated Faunas.

"Heh… well… technically I said she wouldn't be asleep for more than an hour…" The twins an Ilia continued to glare at the older woman causing her to raise her hands in mock surrender as she took another step back.

"It's been twenty-seven minutes! I set a timer to make sure we didn't get caught off guard!" Ilia waved her wristwatch displaying that she had indeed set a timer and that they were roughly halfway through the twenty-eighth minute.

"Okay… so I may have slightly overestimated our time allowance." Nora dared another glance at the girls grilling her only to immediately re-avert her gaze from the seething trio. There was a moment of tense silence before Nora let out a defeated sigh. "It's not like I could just search it up on the internet okay. I mean, the Branwens are the only ones who are likely to know this stuff, it's not exactly public knowledge." This seemed to only ignite Ilia further.

"Why not ask Raijin? He is a Grimm!" Bart drew worried as the hissing between the girls began to grow louder and his youngest niece seemed to stir more and more. Nora simply scoffed.

"Oh, and I'm sure he knows the in-depth effects of a man-made drug on a Grimm's biology…" the sarcasm only stoked the flames and Ilia made to comeback but was cut off as Bart stepped in between the two.

"Girls, I'm not sure now is the best time for this." He gestured to the slowly rousing Ruby and both seemed to immediately remember what they were arguing over. He held back a chuckle as he practically heard the 'shit' in their heads. The girls immediately backed off, rushing to finish what they could in the few remaining seconds they had left before their younger sister awoke from her forcefully induced nap.

A tense minute passed as the club members clambered into their various positions ending with Ruby bathed in light from the lamp above and the rest of the room swamped in a thick black curtain of darkness. Ilia took her post beside the main light switch, being a Faunas, could see in the dark and so would be the best at noticing if the situation went south. Nora waited in trembling anticipation behind Ruby, waiting to do her part to scare Ruby as best she could before they sprung the surprise. Bart and the others waited with bated breath in the seemingly endless black shadow, waiting for their cue.

Bart prayed his breathing was quiet enough as he struggled to suppress a gulp as red eyes flickered drowsily opened.

She could feel before she could see. The usually smooth vines coiled around her arm were coarse and tense, agitated, afraid and aware, of what she did not know. She moved to calm them, or at least she had tried, only to be restricted by the biting iron grasp of some form of hand cuffs tying her to whatever she was sat against.

Ruby made to open her eyes, the process slow and agonising, an overwhelmingly bright light flooding into her recovering vision. Even after her sight became clearer, she couldn't see much; the only illuminated part of the room she could see extended to a few inches from the edge of her feet. Glancing at her body she let out a relieved sigh to see she at least hadn't been touched yet, she still had time. She could feel the rose around her wrist writhe as heavy footfalls slowly began to pace just outside of the illuminated ring that surrounded her.

For a moment she strained to catch a glimpse of her captor, but every time she thought she managed to make something out it seemed to withdraw further into the shadows. A faint shuffling in the background alerted her of other people in the darkened recesses of the room, likely henchmen or other gang members. Ruby found herself silently praying for her family's safety; if the gang war they had gone to stop had gone south then perhaps these people were here to clean up the remnants. It was but a moment later she huffed in amusement; of course, that couldn't be it, no gang could hold even a flicker of a candle to Junior's club, hell, Jax was capable of putting some gangs down himself and Nora was a small army in and of herself. So then why were they here?

She wasn't left to ponder for long, the rather exaggerated pacing came to an abrupt halt behind her, whoever it was exhaling hot and heavy breath down the back of her neck. Ruby looked across what parts of the room she could, refraining to call on the red eyes that hid within the shadows around her. It was rather comical she supposed, after all, her Grimm came from her shadow and her captor had unknowingly surrounded her in her greatest advantage over them. All it would take was for her to loosen her grip on the snarling creatures that hid in the darkness and the room would become a slaughterhouse. The tests today may have been tedious and unfair, but it was exactly that which made her strong. The applicants had all been very stressed, some distraught at their performances and others livid at the rules that had been presented to them. The rose had been feasting like a king all day, storing each and every emotion for later use, a use which it was now itching to trigger. She would bide her time, but she wasn't helpless.

"How nice of you to join us Miss Rose." The voice was robotic, likely ran through a voice changer of some sort. She wandered why they felt the need to take such measures, but assumed there was some reason, perhaps she had known them, or may go on to know them. Regardless, she made a show of struggling and answered.

"Who are you?" She growled her words, something she could hear echo throughout her Grimm, it was an intimidation tactic. She was surprised when she was only met by metallic chuckling and further pacing behind her.

"Miss Rose, where would the fun be in me just telling you that? But, if you must know something, it's that I do not fear you little pets. After all, I'm sure your sisters wouldn't appreciate us resorting to our contingency plan." Another dark chuckle as Ruby's eyes widened at the thinly veiled threat. She found herself loosening the grip on her Grimm as her captor spoke, only her fear for her sisters keeping her in check.

"What do you want?" The words were once again more growled than spoken but the mysterious person seemed to hear her none the less. Ruby could hear the heavy footfalls circle around her, eventually coming to a halt mere inches from the edge of the black abyss.

"What I want?" A short laugh followed. "What I want is something only you can give me. Something, that no matter how hard I tried, I could not obtain without you. Something you have denied me for the last four years." Ruby tensed as the person grew closer features slowly becoming clear as they spoke. "What I want…" a white shirt, tightly wrapped around a sizeable bust, emerged from the shadow. "All I want…" the voice slowly changed towards the end, becoming less robotic and turning into a woman's voice, a familiar voice, though she failed to place it immediately. "Is for you…" ginger hair burned in the overhead lamp and Ruby's eyes widened. "To enjoy your damned birthday!" As if by clockwork the lights flashed on and Ruby was startled by the sudden chorus of her family's voices.

"Happy birthday!"

For a moment the room fell silent as the girl processed what happened, her heart threatening to burst from her chest with its rapid beating. Eventually her mind cleared, and she let out a small relieved laugh. Her gathered family seemed to immediately brighten again and began cheering and mingling, her sisters moving to un-cuff her as Nora threw the voice changer across the room, Ruby staring at her all the while.

"I hate you, ya' know that?" the words were lighthearted, and Nora simply laughed them off as she offered Ruby a hand up. "I mean, I've heard of fake kidnappings before, but knocking me out? Really?" She rubbed her wrists, a little sore from the cuffs being perhaps a little too convincing.

"What else were we supposed to do? I mean, if we tried to do it when you were awake you would have either known it was us or reacted poorly and used your mark." Ruby supposed she had a point, she didn't like it and pouted to show her disapproval. She made to speak and argue but Nora cut her off. "Hey, cut me some slack okay, it was the only idea we came up with and I refused to let you talk us out of holding a party for you for a fifth year in a row. I will not let you take this from me Rubes; I've always wanted to do this, and your sisters were always off partying with friends for their birthdays." Before Ruby could argue further Nora pushed her into the waiting arms of the twins who promptly dragged her over to the present table.

The whole club was a little guilty of being at list a little doting on Ruby, even Joy's stone-like exterior seemed to soften around the girl, but Melanie and Miltia took it to another level. The twins had practically raised Ruby and Ilia and had never quite realised just how much they would enjoy having younger siblings, unfortunately Ilia had always been very independent, so they sometimes went a little overboard for their youngest.

Nora was plucked from her thoughts as Jax shimmied up next to her, the lack of his ice pack indicating that his jaw had at least stopped aching him. Her wrapped her in a one-armed hug and she found herself leaning into the big man as they watched the girls as Ruby fought to get a word in amongst her older siblings.

"Always wanted to throw a party huh? Never pictured you for the doting type." Jax mumbled it into the top of her hair and she stifled a giggle as she slapped his stomach. It was true, she had tried to be a little stricter than some of the other club members, wanting the girls not to forget the importance of standing on their own feet, but she wasn't about to let him get the last word in.

"Sure I am; I even let you be on top every now and then." Jax, who had been drinking some of the probably spiked punch, coughed at the remark and some of the surrounding club members laughed at his embarrassment. Nora herself failed to restrain her own laughter at his reaction but didn't move from her place pressed against his chest. "What about you tin man? You seemed to want to be here badly enough, you weren't even the one who had to convince Ilia to shoot Ruby." Jax simply shrugged as she looked up at him.

"Eh, what can I say, things have been to serious lately, a change of pace would be nice." Nora lent further into him, humming her agreement as she stole his drink and took her own swig. "Bedsides, I'm basically bullet proof" Nora scoffed and lightly smacked his jaw causing him to wince and hiss as she did so.

"You aren't immortal, if some punk with a bat can get lucky so can someone who could actually harm you for real." Jax just huffed, as if bored, and waved her off. Eventually he donned a grin.

"And you're one to talk." Nora adopted her own smirk, deciding they had been talking for long enough and that Ruby probably needed saving from her sisters right about now. Jax groaned as he made to get up from the bar side with Nora's help. An errant thought entered her mind a moment before she moved, causing her to turn to Jax once more.

"Have you got it?" Jax's smirk dropped, a sympathetic tone entering his eyes. Eventually he nodded, pulling out a small white box with a red ribbon tied rather comically atop the lid from behind the bar counter. The box was roughly two feet in each dimension, being ever so slightly longer in one than the others. Neither of them had dared open it, or even touch when it wasn't necessary, Junior had expressed the need for Ruby to have it and they weren't about to go against his wishes. A sad smile made its way to Nora's face. "I guess it's time we give it to her huh?" Jax simply mimicked her smile and nodded again.

Ruby found herself actually rather enjoying the party so far, though she was determined not to let it show. She had managed to dissuade her family from throwing her a party for the last four years; there wasn't a secret reason or anything, she just didn't like overblown celebrations. Luckily, it seemed Nora hadn't invited any people her age or any of her sister's friends, Ruby could deal with just her family.

She could, however, go without the twins for a few minutes; their cooing and 'aww-ing' at seeing her wear everything they had got her had gotten tiresome very quickly. She loved them dearly, but she didn't love the babying. It was, however, nice to see them so animated, ever since Junior had been kept in the hospital they had both been rather muted and depressed, but she was happy if they were and so for the sake of their enjoyment she would grin and bear it.

Her Grimm had mostly calmed down, the thorns had retracted, the vines had smoothed, and her shadow had obediently shrunk back into its natural position. She may not have known much about it, but she supposed she was lucky that it listened at least, most of the time. However, as the twins fell into another argument about what she would wear for them next she felt the rose grow lively once more, not in alarm or panic but, as it pulled on her arm, almost in longing or excitement.

Ruby looked up, towards where the Grimm was pulling her, to see Nora and Jax approaching, slightly solemn smiles plastered across their faces and a box in Jax's arms. Ruby tried not to let her growing concern show even as she could feel the vines of the rose slowly peel back her long sleeves in avid anticipation as the two drew close. Slowly Jax extended the box towards her, a rare showing of warmth entering his eyes.

"Happy birthday squirt." The room was silent as Ruby let her own smile grace her lips and she cautiously reached her hand out towards the gift as if scared touching it would tarnish it. Jax knew one of the things in the box, he had help design them after all, but as to what else was in the box he didn't know and was almost as eager to find out as he knew Ruby was, though admittedly she seemed hesitant. Even after she fully grasped the box Ruby found herself pausing to open it. A moment later a gentle hand settled itself on her shoulder. She traced it back to its owner, meeting an encouraging smile from Nora. Levelling her gaze appreciatively towards the ginger, she slowly began opening the box.

The ribbon came away with little resistance, the silken material falling to the floor as it released its grip of the box. Ruby paused as she inspected the box, it was plain, with nary a marking on it, the only break in its perfectly white surfaces were the occasional crease or slight dent, indicating that it had be moved around a fair amount. Carefully, as if it were made of glass, she removed the lid and immediately her eyes widened.

There, atop a black sheet of cloth with golden embroidery of the club's logo, was a note written in Juniors handwriting addressed to her. It was clear that there was more underneath the cloth, but Ruby felt that the owed Junior enough to read the note first.

Dear Ruby,

I'm sorry I couldn't be there for the big day; I hope you can forgive me.

Bart told me how well you did in the combat exam and I want you to know that I couldn't be prouder, none of us could.

As with each of us before you, inside is a personalised weapon to show you will always be a part of our family, though in your case it is technically three weapons.

There is something else in this box as well, something I hope you like. I found it about a year ago and was going to give it to you after you got accepted into Beacon, but I figured that, with things being the way they are, it was best to give it to as you became an adult instead. I only wish I could be there to see your face.

Ruby sniffed, wiping a tear she hadn't realised she had been shedding, a faint chuckling escaping her lips as she flipped the note over to continue reading.

No matter what happens, whether I survive or pass away, whether you make it into Beacon this year or not, even if hell itself comes calling, you will always have a home and a family here with us. Don't you dare think, for even a second, that we won't still protect and love you just because your other family have shown interest in you at last.

Whether you are a junkie, a half Grimm, a huntress or even a princess.

You'll always be my little girl.

Nothing can change that.

~Junior

Ruby failed to stop a tear fall onto the note and wiped her eyes with her sleeve before carefully placing the card on the nearby table. Almost surgically she lifted the cloth, unsure if she could continue opening the gift if she stopped. With the sheet removed, three objects were revealed, held by the gentle caress of a pristine white fabric.

The first was a handgun she was familiar with, the newer model of the piece she had strapped to her thigh. It supposedly had far greater stopping power than her own, but that wasn't what gave her pause. No, it was the intricate design that had been lacquered and fitted to the weapon. It was primarily black with the barrel and trigger guard being delicately wrapped in golden vines and a dozen silver roses flowering on either side of the grip. It was beautiful, but with great effort she tore her gaze away to look at the other two objects.

As she somewhat expected they were a pair of twin daggers crossed over each other but their blades gave her pause. From hilt to pommel were once again decorated with rose patterns, one with gold and the other with silver. The blades were long enough to reach from her wrist to her elbow, almost long enough to qualify as short-swords, but more noticeably, they were each inscribed with the mantra 'keep Moving Forward'.

Ruby could tell that she was close to crying in full, the occasional tear slipping through her defences, but she tried to press on. She picked up the weapons and almost reverently placed them beside the note. She breathed deeply, mentally preparing herself for the last thing in the box, whatever was underneath the cloth. The box didn't feel that heavy, so she assumed it was something small, but was caught off guard as a flash of pain shot up her arm as she reached to move the material.

Everyone gathered simply stood in shocked awe as, for the first time in eight years, the rose, that had symbiotically attached itself to Ruby after she created it, separated from her wrist and slid into the box and disappeared beneath the whit fabric. Ruby herself hissed slightly as she grasped the now bleeding hole left behind from the plant's sudden departure. Her aura quickly fixed the injury but couldn't do anything about the uncomfortable loss of the familiar weight against Ruby's arm. A moment passed and Ruby decided to see what the rose had done and why.

She grabbed the white cloth and pulled it from the box, expecting to see the rose and an object underneath, only to be met with an empty box. For a moment she simply watched the box, confused and unaware of what transpired in her hand.

Bart noticed and his eyes widened in disbelief. Ruby noticed her uncle's reaction and slowly turned to look at the cloth in her hand. Only to drop the box as she drew her hand up to cover up a gasp at what she saw. The cloth had unfolded into a long familiar white cloak, the inside a stark red in contrast with the pristine white outer layer. Her mother's cloak. Ruby froze as she watched the Rose weave itself along the collar and edges of the inside of the cloak, thinning its vines into minute threads of black string, the roses dotting themselves seemingly randomly along the interior.

The girl simply stood in trembling silence before falling to her knees the cloak cradled in her arms. Carefully Nora lowered herself to Ruby's level and pushed the smaller girls head into her shoulder and gently wrapped her in her embrace. The twins and Ilia quickly but cautiously joined the pair and it was then, amongst her family, her sisters, her uncles, her aunts and her mother's cloak, that Ruby let her grip falter; and she wept.

An: As always thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed. This was the last chapter before we get into Beacon, which hopefully means I update faster as I find it easier to write that sort of thing. Reviews and constructive criticisms are welcome and appreciated.

-Tabaxi