Chapter 2: First contact
I do not own RWBY except OCS- Rooster teeth own all copyrights and claims to RWBY
I also don't own legend of the five rings material- Copyrights go to Fantasy flight games
For both Ruby and Cao, it felt like an awkward eternity. Cao was speechless and didn't know what to do due to the onset of sudden feelings. Ruby being a mere peasant in the presence of a samurai couldn't press the issue. It was outside of her station to and could spell ruin for her. Finally, after a minute Cao was able to snap himself out of it and answer her.
"Sorry about that. I was lost in thought…" Cao said, trying to brush their awkward start behind them
"No, it's perfectly fine samurai-san…" Ruby said nervously
"Please call me Cao." Cao interrupted her, though not with his usual grace
"Of course, Cao-san. C-can I get you anything to drink to start out?" Ruby asks nervously
"I'll take the travelers sake." Cao replies as Ruby jots it down on her notepad and hurries off to get it
Cao sighs heavily when she does leave to get his drink and looks down. He has never been at such a loss for words. Not even to high ranking officials has he ever been at such a loss for words. He always knew what to say, even if he wasn't telling the truth or talking out his ass. Yet for some reason this random peasant woman caused him to lose his senses. No other woman had ever done something like this to him. He was thinking deeply about this when Ruby snapped him out of it by bringing him his sake.
"Here you are Cao-san. Would you like me to pour it for you?" Ruby asked politely as she tried to remain calm and collected
"No thank you. I can handle it myself." Cao said, slowly pour him a cup
"D-do you require more time to decide your meal?" She asked
"I will have the sweet and sour fried carp. Carp after all are the animal of good fortune." Cao said, trying to regain his normal composure
"It is?" Ruby asked in surprise
"Yes, it is. It is a lucky charm of good fortune. I hope the carp that I will dine on provides you with good fortune." Cao said, at last feeling like himself and finally able to put his grace and charm into the conversation
"Thank you, Cao-san. Though I don't think it as smiled upon me very much." Ruby said, quieting her voice after thanking him
"I'm sorry to hear that miss…" Cao said
"M-my name is Ruby… Ruby Rose Cao-san…" Ruby interjected quickly and nervously
"Ruby. A lovely name." Cao said musingly
"T-t-thank you Cao-san…" Ruby stammered out
"Are you from this city miss rose?" Cao asked politely
"Yes sir… I was born and raised here my whole life." Ruby replied, still nervous from the initial encounter
"It is quite the lovely place I must say. A lot of trade and people seem to come through here." Cao said
"Regrettably its not much for those that live here Cao-san. I was barely able to get this job." Ruby said, starting to feel more comfortable around the Ronin
"Then I merely hope my mercantile presence will give you and your family better prospects Ms. Rose." Cao said with a small smile
Ruby was about to reply when the bell came out for Cao's order. At that she jumped lightly, quickly excused herself and rushed to get it. She then hastily, but carefully carried the piping hot meal over to him, place it and a bowl of rice in front of him. Cao smiled, then dismissed her to let her deal with other tables and to think. Indeed, there was a lot to think about. Afterall he was inside enemy territory to sell goods and remove them of their ryu coins. And he could not wait to get those gold coins in his and his Yasuki masters pockets.
"Here is your food Cao-san. I am deeply sorry for the delay." Ruby said humbly and bowing her head as set the food down
"It is okay milady. I am in no rush." Cao replied politely and curtly
"Is there anything else you require sir?" Ruby asked
"Cheer up and put on a smile. A sweet face such as yours should not look so dour and subdued." Cao said gently
With a crimson blush Ruby nodded, bowed, then turned to her other tables. Cao then turned to his food and slowly ate, more focused on his thoughts than his meal. His thoughts gravitated from his mission to Ruby. The feeling he had when he saw her was like nothing he'd ever experienced. She was a simple peasant, someone of no status and there to labor and serve people like him. Yet no samurai-ko, geisha, or lordly woman had ever done this to him. He began to think something was wrong with him.
"I must be sick, or my hunger is disturbing my brain…" Cao thought as he slowly ate
"Is something wrong with your food Cao-san?" Came Ruby's voice as she walked up to check on him
"Everything is excellent Ms. Rose. I merely have a lot on my mind right now." Cao said somewhat quickly after being taken out of his train of thought
"Are you sure?" Ruby asked kindly
"I am sure Ms. Rose. Don't worry that sweet head of yours." Cao said with a smile, causing a blush from ruby before leaving with a stack of plates
"Perhaps nothing wrong with me after all." Cao mutter to himself as he picked up some rice with his chopsticks
After another ten minutes Cao finally finished up his food. In that same time however he hadn't made much progress in his thoughts. Between what happened here and the details of him mission was too much for him to handle all at once. It would require careful deliberation over a longer time than he initially thought. As he took the last sip of his sake ruby arrived with his bill. Cao pulled out three eighth ryu pieces to pay for the meal, then pulled out a whole ryu and held it out to her.
"Sir you already paid…" Ruby said confused
"Yes, I did Ms. Rose. This is your tip for your excellent service." Cao replied pleasantly
"Cao-san, as much as I appreciate such a gesture, I'm not worthy of such a tip…" Ruby refused politely
"I understand your trepidations about receiving such a sum as payment, but I insist you deserve." Cao replied undaunted
"Sir I'm really sorry, but I couldn't live with myself for taking such a sum from you…" Ruby said a bit more panicked and flustered
"Surely you can't think so little of yourself and your own abilities to not take a just reward?" Cao asked with a slight smile
Ruby stood their mortified. Codes of bushido throughout the region stated that to be refused three times in a row was an afront to a samurai's honor. Where there was difference in the punishment. To samurai it was mostly minor and used to toy with another samurai in a joking fashion. For peasants however it brought a hefty toll. The offended samurai now had full jurisdiction over the law to punish the guilty party. Now Ruby stood before a trained warrior, with the decision to either stick to her principles, or accept something she believed she didn't deserve.
"Thank you for your generosity Cao-san…" Ruby said as she put her hands out to accept it and bowing her head in respect
"Not generosity Ms. Rose. Merely rewarding hard work and good work ethic." Cao replied as he put the Ryu in her hands
"I swear not to waste this…" Ruby started but was cut off
"The money is now in your hands. It is free to be done with however you see fit." Cao said politely as he stood up
"Yes sir." Ruby replied and bowing to him in respect, "Have a good day Cao-san."
"You as well Ms. Rose and may the carp smile upon you this day." Cao replied with a respectful bow of the head, then turned and left
Later Ruby arrived home after a long day of work. The smell of food came leaking through the modest and woren door as she opened it up. The interior was small, furnished with rustic and modest furniture and amenities, and a crude staircase to go up to the second floor for bedrooms. Tai and Yang were already making dinner and looked to be nearly finished. As Ruby walked in, their black and white corgi Zwei bounced his way happily towards his youngest master.
"Hello Zwei. Have those two been neglecting you again? Don't worry, I've got you." Ruby said with a chuckle as she picked him up, to receive shortly thorough licking from the small dog
"I see you got home alright today. How was work." Tai said as he turned away from cooking
"Very good. I met a Ronin merchant that gave me a whole Ryu as a tip. He was kind of strange, but very nice and polite." Ruby said as she sat down on the couch and relaxed with Zwei in her arms
"A Ronin? A samurai took notice of you?" Tai asked both with surprise and interest in equal measure
"He was probably hitting on her dad." Yang said while stirring a stew
"You didn't say that about Azura. You hit on him and it stuck." Tai replied firmly
"Azura is part of a clan. Are you seriously going to trust a Ronin? Who would trust anyone without a master?" Yang said, turning her head to her father
"I was hesitant but accepting of your relationship with Azura. I am willing to give this samurai the same chance I gave Azura. Regardless of if he has a master or not, he still is a samurai Yang. No daughter of mine under my roof will dishonor and disrespect a samurai regardless of his origin." Tai said to his oldest daughter sternly
"Yes father." Yang said, surprisingly backing off and soon returned to cooking
"Continue Ruby." Tai said as he turned back to ruby
"Well he didn't say anything for a minute when I first walked up to him. I think I surprised him. Then he turned into a very polite and respectful person. He called me Ms. Rose a lot." Ruby replied as she looked back on what happened
"A man of manners and common courtesy. That is a rarity these days. I thought our luck ran out with Azura, but it appears that I was wrong." Tai said joyfully
"What's the big deal about this Ronin anyways? Better yet why are you making a big deal out of it dad?" Yang asked
"Yang, I became very fortunate and lucky with you and Azura. If both of my daughters could be with samurai, then my worries and fears can finally be put behind me about my baby girls' futures." Tai explained passionately
"Dad I didn't mean any of it like that! I just met him!" Ruby said in a panic, shocked her dad went there so quickly
"Looks like you've scared little red." Yang said teasingly
"Quiet you. Don't go talking like your uncle Qrow in this house young lady." Tai shot back
"We just talked was all. I simply served him sake, carp and rice… nothing more and nothing less…" Ruby said with a blush growing on her face
"How much did he tip you Rube's?" Yang asked, turning with a curious look on her face
"Finally, a good question tonight Yang." Tai chipped in
"Quiet you." Yang said, imitating her father's earlier remark
"H-he… h-he gave me a Ryu…" Ruby stammered out, almost unable to say that
"Get out of town!" Yang yelled in utter dumbfounded shock at that
"That's incredible new Ruby! That's my girl!" Tai replied with joy and pride in his voice
"Are you serious!? A whole Ryu!?" Yang asked again in pure shock
"Yes, he did… I tried to refuse it, but he insisted I take it. He said for hard work and good work ethic." Ruby replied embarrassedly
"This guy must be loaded if he can throw around that kind of money to cute girls in taverns." Yang said, causing Ruby to blush at the cute part
"That's enough from you Yang. All your doing is distressing your sister." Tai sternly said to Yang, causing the older blonde girl to zip her lips
"Aren't you guys taking this a little far?" Ruby asked sheepishly
"Ruby, regardless of what we have said, we are happy and proud of you. Never forget that little red." Tai said with a smile, kissing his daughter's forehead
"Good job Ruby. Keep that up and you'll be rich." Yang said with a smile
"I think that's a little excessive…" Ruby replied with a gulp
"Don't be so pessimistic about things. Where did my upbeat sister go?" Yang asked
"It left when mom left." Ruby said sadly, moving her head down
Yang's face saddened and sat by her sister, wrapping an arm around her. She then pulled her close and Ruby put her head on her big sisters' shoulder. No one knew why Summer had to leave, but all she told them was to keep them safe. Since that day Ruby waited for her, but she never came. The specter of what happened to her and where she went haunted Ruby. She sighed and put Zwei down, who rubbed himself against her legs to comfort her. The two sisters then got up to eat dinner.
"I'm sorry Ruby for bringing it up…" Yang said
"Its okay Yang. To be honest I should stop thinking about it. She had a reason. To keep us safe." Ruby replied as she sat down
The family then began to eat. Ruby however at slowly, like Cao earlier that day. She had a lot on her mind. Her mind went back to the Ronin she met and questioned everything. Who was he, why was he here? Many more other than that soon followed, but it stewed slowly. Soon she wanted to know more, decided to find out for herself.
And the train begins a rolling. Not gonna lie feels great to write again, and to know people seem to like this story. Also forgot to mention last time the Sotora clan and Azura Sotora belong to Uzumaki Ricky, and he let me use them. Thanks pal. As always, if you have something to say, leave a review. Any and all feedback and comments help me out greatly in improving and writing a better story. Have a great day everyone.