Destiny Finds Us

by RWBY Order

They are a universe, and every star is a story, bound by Destiny. Between these stars, some things change. In one she is blind, in another, a soldier, and in yet another a huntress. But for everything that changes, something stays the same. Ruby always defends what she loves, Weiss is always stronger than she thinks, and Blake always runs. Only, what if Weiss never came to Beacon?

4. 4: Guns and Blood

Ruby sat in a small chair outside of a door in dimly lit hallway. Her elbows were on her knees and her forehead rested in her palms. Her breathing had calmed down and her body had stopped shaking, but the anger and shame had yet to fully dissipate. She hated what she was now. She could remember so vividly the sensation wind in her hair, the feeling of crying out her joy as she soared over the tops of trees. She could still feel the buck of her weapon in her hand, only enhanced by the dull thudding of gunshots coming from the firing range beyond the door. Ruby could remember what being a huntress was like, and that made her pain all the more crippling. 'Falls from grace, I guess,' she thought to herself.

Ruby had dreamed of being a huntress for so, so long, ever since she was just a little girl. She had fought her whole life to fulfill that dream, only to have it snached away, after-

"Hey, Huntress."

Ruby looked up, pulled from her thoughts by the gravelly voice across from her. The man was sitting a few feet in front of her in a chair similar to hers. He had deep-set eyes, a thick beard that was just starting to show grey hairs, and a heavy wool beanie on his head to drive off the Atleasian cold. The bridge of his nose was broken to one direction, and he had a deep scar just barely visible on right cheekbone above his beard. She met his dark eyes, and he said simply, "You shouldn't be here."

One of Ruby's eyebrows raised, and she asked suspiciously, "I'm sorry?" She sat up straight in her chair, and crossed her arms over her chest, hiding the wince as her still-aching chest muscles pulled awkwardly.

"I said you shouldn't be here," the old soldier repeated, "This isn't some heroic bullshit you people deal with. So, you shouldn't be here. This job isn't for a huntress like you." He leaned forward, continuing, "You're not gonna be saving people, do you know that? You very well may have to hurt someone, and I highly doubt you can do that. "He jutted a finger at her, "I know you Huntresses, and you're all caught up in your own little fairytale. Someone as naive as that isn't cut out for this."

Maybe a few years ago Ruby would have been offended, but now, she knew. She had seen his kind before, too. She let the insult, which her sister would have re-broken the man's nose over, roll off her back. She understood more about the world than this man knew she did, but she also knew she would never convince him of that. As the gunshots died off, the door opened, and Weiss Schnee stepped out, saying, "Sergeant McTavish, you're next." She then retreated back into the range.

Ruby offered a small smile, and said simply, "I guess we'll see," but her eyes flashed threateningly, in a way she knew McTavish could see. He held her gaze for a moment before standing up and walking wordlessly to the door.

After a few moments of silence, a gun fired, then fired again. Ruby sat back in her chair and sighed. Her hand ran over the holter she had strapped to her hip, and gave one last thought to the smell of wind, sweat, and gunpowder of her past before focusing on the present. She pushed the sadness out of her mind like she had trained herself to do over the past several months since her life was turned on its head. The huntress brushed a lock of short, red hair behind her ear, and stood. She massaged her eternally stiff shoulder, and prepared herself for the task ahead.

The gunshots finished, and, after a moment, the door opened. Weiss Schnee stepped out into the hallway entirely this time. Ruby's eyes passed up and down her form for a moment. She had seen the white haired woman on television before, but never really committed her to memory. She was a beautiful woman with a regal air about her. Long legs hidden by a pair of white dress pants, a white business jacket over a light blue blouse that complemented her stunning blue eyes. She had long, flowing platinum hair and a smooth face. She stood straight and proud, not a single muscle moved without the white haired woman's command. 'She looks like a living ice sculpture.'

Briefly, Ruby's eyes caught on the seemingly only imperfection on her hopeful boss: a pink scar running down her left eye. 'How did that happen to a cushy business woman?' Ruby wondered. She, of course, knew of all the recent violence caused by the White Fang, but in her years training to be a Huntress, and her relatively short time as one, she had seen her fair share of scars, and had a few of her own.

That on looked old, much older to have been caused by a recent attack. 'Definitely not caused by an explosion, too. Looks like a blade, but that's not the White Fang's MO. Weird,' Ruby thought. She then truly met Weiss's eyes. The CEO held her gaze for a moment. There was a certain weight to the younger Schnee's gaze, as if trying to convey some unheard message. Whatever it was, Ruby didn't understand. After a few moments of just staring, the businesswoman piped up, "It is your turn, Ms. Rose. Follow me."

Ruby shook out her arms and breathed out huff of air, fully putting herself in the moment. In an attempt to familiarize herself to her hopeful employer, Ruby said, "Good, I've been looking forward to this part of the test."

Weiss turned and walked to the door, pausing briefly before opening it. The huntress noticed the ice sculpture of a woman crack, showing a brief hint at humanity beneath all the etiquette. Ruby had trained her hearing and perception over the years to a fine, razor edge. She heard the icy woman let out a sigh that would have been inaudible had Ruby not been there, before she said cryptically, "Well, I certainly hope you live up to expectations," and disappeared behind the door. After a moment, Ruby followed after her.

There was work to be done.

The shooting range was an impressive setup. For an indoor range, it was incredibly large, so much so that Ruby didn't doubt that she could use it as a small rifle range. Winter Schnee stood by the shooter's position, behind a small table. Ruby followed Weiss to the table. Upon it was a few non-reloadable 'magazines' as well as a pistol. Winter picked it up by the barrel, and held it out towards the retired Huntress, saying, "The standard Schnee-Manufactured Security pistol, used by nearly every police force on Remnant. I trust you are familiar with it?"

Ruby took it from the Specialist, her nose wrinkling. It was an ugly contraption, in her mind. It propelled caseless rounds using dust batteries contained in the grip of the pistol, showing several tubes across the surface of the gun. Ruby was more than familiar with the pistol, with the way it kicked like a baby rabbit, how there was almost no moving parts, and how it lacked the satisfying noise of a shell casing clattering against the ground. It was a wholly unsatisfying weapon to fire. The ex-Huntress set the pistol back on the table and looked to the Specialist, saying, "Yes, I know all about it, but I'd prefer to use my own, if that's okay? I like the more...conventional guns, you know? " She tapped the black nylon holster on her hip.

Winter looked to her sister for a moment, who shrugged. "I don't think that will be a problem," said Winter. Ruby nodded and moved up to the firing line, standing behind a waist-high table that ran the length of the room, and facing downrange. Winter took a small remote from her pocket, and stood by as Weiss said, "You will be shooting at a series of wooden targets as they appear. They will appear in groups of five, and you will have thirty-five rounds to hit as many targets as you can. You will be timed."

The older Schnee sister added, "Luckily for you, we stock several types of ammunition on the shelves beneath the firing counter, so load up beforehand since you won't be needing the caseless ammunition the Schnee Pistols use."

Ruby nodded, and bent over to pull out a blue box of forty-five ammunition and a few magazines. As she loaded her bullets into the magazines, she said, "It's been too long since I've been on a firing range. I know this is for business, but still, I'll enjoy this."

Winter gave a small hum, and was silent. A bit put off by the cold demeanor of the sisters, Ruby loaded up the last clip silently. As she set down her final clip on the table, she turned to look at the younger of the two Schnees, who picked up a stopwatch from the table and said simply, "Begin when ready."

Ruby gave the platinum haired woman a grin and turned back towards the range. Pushing her mishap on the obstacle course into the back of her mind, Ruby focused instead on the obstacle before her now. She slipped her own pistol from her hip, looking over it for any imperfections before she began. From behind her, she heard the older Schnee speak up, "Hmm, that's an older model, where exactly did you find that?"

Ruby grinned. She always did enjoy talking about her guns. "I made it, actually. The base for it was nineteen-eleven, but I modified the design." She turned around, briefly forgetting the course behind her in favor of explaining her choice in firearm. Winter, moderately interested, maintained a professional facade, but did move closer to better observe the pistol. "I used a stronger metal than the old model, which wasn't sturdy enough for most dust rounds, as well as added the coloring." She turned the gun in her hand, and held it up for the two sisters to see.

Ruby could see the hidden interest in the CEO's eyes, something she saw frequently when explaining her arsenal to people who weren't usually around guns. 'Looks like she's more human than she wants us to believe,' the ex-Huntress thought to herself, before turning her attention back to her chosen weapon. The body of the gun was a vivid blood red with black accents. The grip of the antique-modeled firearm was a deep, midnight black, and along the left side of the slide in stylized black italic print was the word "Rosebud".

Winter gave a small hum before saying, "You certainly picked a decent model to base your sidearm on. Let's see how you handle it." Ruby understood, that was her queue to get back on track with her demonstration. Looking her potential boss in the eye once more, Ruby turned back to the range. With practiced ease, the redhead slid a magazine into place, chambered a round, and extended her right arm out, pointing the gun downrange. Her left arm was loosely hung by her side. "One handed?" Winter asked, surprise hidden in her voice, "That is a powerful gun, and you are going to shoot it one handed?"

A small chuckle rose up Ruby's throat, and she said, a laugh audible in her voice, "You should see my other gun." She didn't see Winter's reaction, as Ruby immediately thumbed the safety on her gun and said simply, "Ready."

After a moment, five targets popped up from hidden slots in the floor. A smile spread on Ruby's face. This was no hunt, these were no Grimm, and she wasn't helping anyone, but damn if it didn't feel good to shoot again. Rosebud barked five times in quick succession as Ruby shook the rust off, having only shot sparsely over the months since her injury. She dispatched the first group of targets with a practiced ease. In the brief lull before Winter sent up the second set, Ruby took in a deep breath, letting the sweet scent of gunsmoke fill her lungs. "God, I missed this," she thought to herself. She let everything disappear, there was no job on the line, there was no injury on her body, no Schnee sisters standing behind her, there was only her, the scent of gunpowder, the buck of her pistol in her hand, and the soft, pleasant clattering of brass shell casings on the tile floor.

The next set appeared, and was just as quickly put down. Five bangs, five smoking holes in the head of the body-shaped targets, five more shells on the floor. In the blink of an eye, her gun had a fresh clip, and was shooting again almost before the next set had a chance to present itself. It was so much easier to do this, to just shoot, without a care in the world. No snarling Grimm in her face, no terrorists or criminals screaming and firing back, just the report of the gun in her hand, the thud of .45 rounds impacting on the backstop, and the brass on the floor. She felt almost serene. All too quickly, thirty-five rounds were downrange and the timer was halted. Ruby thumbed the safety, set Rosebud on the table, and let out a pleased sigh. 'Back to reality, I guess,' the ex-Huntress thought, before turning around.

There was a smile on her face and a phantom ache in her right wrist. The younger of the two's eyebrows were raised, impressed. Winter had a small, yet pleased smirk on her face. Barely a quirk of the lips, but Ruby could see it. It was an microexpression she had become good at spotting at Beacon, thanks to her sister's partner. Thankfully, Winter pulled Ruby from her thoughts by saying, "Consider me impressed. I couldn't have done better myself."

If it was at all possible, Ruby's grin spread further. She gave Weiss a knowing look as she said simply, "Well, I certainly hope I lived up to expectations." The younger Schnee gave a small huff that Ruby couldn't tell if it was amused or annoyed.

Regardless, Weiss said, "You certainly did, but there is still another stage you must go through. Collect your things and go back to the gym. We will be waiting." The two women turned and left, Ruby not far behind them. The three women walked back to the gym, Rosebud still warm against Ruby's thigh.

The three women entered the gymnasium to the remaining ten or so potentials. They were all standing in a loose group, and Ruby moved to join them. She didn't miss how the man from before, McTavish, if she remembered right, tracked her with his eyes all the way to where she stood. She didn't meet his gaze. The silence was broken as Weiss stepped up in front of her sister and addressed the group of former warriors and peacekeepers, "This will be the final stage of the selection process," she motioned towards a large mat on the floor a few feet away from the end of the obstacle course, as well as a rack of what appeared to be an assortment of wooden and plastic hand-weapons, "A small tournament between the rest of you. Whoever wins said tournament will be most considered for the position, but remember, victory does not mean you are guaranteed the job. Good luck."

She stepped back, and Winter drew a scroll from her pocket. Expanding it into it's tablet form, she said, "The winner of a match is determined by the first strike. Select your weapons from the racks over there, and the first match is between Retired Corporal Samuels and Retired Officer Burton. Step onto the mat when ready." At that, she turned around, and the two sisters walked and stood by the mat. As the men and women dispersed to find a weapon and get ready for their bout, Winter checked to make sure the medical crew she had waiting just outside the gym were ready, just in case. "I'm curious how Miss Rose will do, what with her injury," the older sister wondered.

Weiss simply shrugged, hopeful now. After Ruby's performance in the shooting range, Winter seemed to have taken an interest in Miss Rose as well. 'Though probably not for the same reasons as I,' Weiss thought. She felt a bit guilty keeping her real motivation for rooting for the huntress from her sister, but it was for the best. "I don't know, but I suppose we will see. " The conversation ended there as two people stepped onto the mat, and Winter watched on, acting as a pseudo-referee for the sparring matches. Weiss was uninterested, her hope lied elsewhere.

Though she acted indifferent, she was more than a bit anxious. She scanned the crowd, and found her best hope at evading Winter's attempt to change her lifestyle pulling a weapon off the rack.

Ruby bounced the hardened plastic military-style combat knife in her hand. It was weighted to have the balance of its lethal counterpart, and Ruby was satisfied. She had used one of these during her hunting career as a utility knife, and a combat knife when the situation required more subtlety than her main weapon. The redhead was a bit worried, as she hadn't practiced in months, and unlike her shooting, hand-to-hand combat wasn't exactly as ingrained in her as her guns. A hand reached past her, grabbing a knife from the row.

Taking his knife, McTavish walked away, grunting out a simple, "I hope we meet on the mat, Huntress." He walked away, and Ruby frowned. She wasn't sure what exactly he had against her, but she never did like generalizations. From what he said before, it seemed like he just hated Huntsmen for some reason.

"I know you Huntresses, and you're all caught up in your own little fairytale."

'He thinks we aren't real warriors, because of how romanticised we are. He's partially right, but still,' Ruby concluded. It made her a bit angry. He didn't know anything about what she'd been through. She ended that line of thought before it started. She never did like remembering.

"Next up, Retired Huntress Ruby Rose and Vale SWAT Officer Derrick." Winter spoke, over the relatively quiet group of candidates. Ruby pushed her way toward the mat, knife in hand. She held it in her right hand, and as her opponent, a muscled dark skinned man wielding a wooden saber, stood across from her, she flipped her knife into a reverse grip, and held it at her side. Winter said, "Begin," and she began circling. Derrick took a step forward and swung at her. The strike was just intended to test her defenses, but Ruby never was one to play by the rules. Semblance or not, Ruby was still very fast. Instead of blocking or dodging, Ruby ducked under the swing, kicked forward, and planted the tip of her knife lightning fast underneath the man's solar plexus.

"Damn it," he said under his breath. He walked off the mat, to the opposite side that the losers were standing at. Ruby walked back to the weapon rack, but didn't miss the approving look on the sisters' faces. She felt a small amount of pride at having an impression on her judges. Ruby stood by the side, and for the next few minutes, she watched the bouts, analyzing and taking note of anyone who was particularly dangerous. McTavish more than anyone else.

He was very aggressive and strong. He focused on throws, too, tossing his opponent to the floor before finishing them off. As physical as he was, Ruby saw a keenness in his eyes that showed he was more than a brute. Over the next hour, he won almost every fight with ease, but so did she. As it stood, it looked like they would face each other after all.

"Now, for the final round," Weiss said, this time, "Retired Sergeant McTavish versus Huntress Ruby Rose. Begin!" In an instant, every muscle in Ruby's body tensed up. She stood with her knife in a reverse grip in front of her, staring down McTavish. He stood in a low stance, his knife, identical to hers, held in a normal grip and crouched low, square with her.

They were both sweaty from the fights they had already completed. They were tired, but Ruby was nowhere near spent yet, and by the look of things, neither was McTavish.

He moved first, going for a quick stab at Ruby's sternum, she lunged forward, to the side of his blade, getting into his guard. She spun past him fluidly, going for a stab at his kidney, a move that had eliminated a few before him, as she went by. Almost without looking, her turned with her and parried her stab.

'He's been watching me too,' she thought as she darted away. They began to circle each other. The next move is made by Ruby, who darts towards him, and makes a swift swipe for his jugular. She knows what his first reaction will be, so as he moves to block the slash, Ruby instead feints, pulling her arm back and using her momentum to swing around and deliver a sharp kick to his stomach. He grunted and stumbled back. He recovered quickly, though, too quickly for the huntress to press an offensive.

They continued circling. He took a step forward, and Ruby saw the stab coming from a mile away. The blade was thrusted towards her face, a move Ruby didn't quite understand. Maybe in her heyday, Ruby would've realized why he was using such an odd attack, and reacted in kind, but this was not her heyday, and she was more than a little rusty. As she ducked down and to the right, she realized her mistake all too late. He knew her style, and knew her tendency to duck forward.

Even as the knife brushed past her ear, a heavy fist impacted into her ribs. It was a dirty move, but effective nonetheless. Her breath rushed out of her, and she stumbled backwards. He followed her, pressing the advantage. Still reeling from the hit, she took a desperate stab at his chest. It was sloppy, and she overextended herself. McTavish ducked underneath the wild stab, and caught her arm, hauling her over himself and slamming her into the ground.

What little air she had regained rushed from Ruby's lungs, and she struggled to simply breathe. She didn't have a chance to recompose herself, because as soon as she could open her eyes, McTavish was over her. He straddled her stomach, and plunged his knife with both hands at her neck. Purely on reflex Ruby managed to catch his arms. Her forearms were braced against his. He beared down with all his weight onto her, and she barely managed to hold him at bay. Very slowly, the knife crept closer and closer, and the Huntress craned her neck to maximize the distance between the wooden blade and her jugular. The muscles in her chest began to cramp as the stress on her injury increased. It's burned like fire.

Then he began to speak. His face was less than a foot from hers as he said, his voice strained through their locked arms, "You shouldn't be here!" Her arms faltered another inch, "You Huntsmen are all the same!" Her chest and shoulder flared again, and she lost another centimeter. Even so, she gritted her teeth, refusing to give up. "You don't know how the world works, and you are all so damn soft!" The knife was growing ever closer. "You don't know what the world even is! You aren't willing to do what's necessary to survive!" A millimeter now. "You can't even hurt me!" He leaned over his knife, his face filling Ruby's vision, and said, "Go back to your little Fairy Tale, Huntress, and let the soldiers work!"

He beared down on Ruby even harder, the knife tip almost brushing her jugular, but her eyes strayed, and met his. There was a layer there, beneath the anger. Underneath the hate and rage, she saw a strange sadness. There was fear in his eyes, an inward facing, twisted fear. Ruby had seen those eyes before, that fear, the anger held up like a thorny shield to protect through pain. Yes, she had seen those same eyes before. For a moment, she seemed to travel back, where she was in a near identical position. There was only one difference: the eyes weren't the deep, pained brown of past tragedies...

They were a vivid amber.

Golden, almost.

Suddenly, Ruby's expression changed. The strain she was putting her body through no longer reached her face. McTavish saw her face change to one of a calm, simmering type of determination. Gunmetal eyes met Brown, and Ruby Rose spoke simply, "You don't know me." With all the strength she could muster in her right arm, the huntress redirected the knife away from her throat and allowed the Soldier's force to slam towards her. She bucked her head up to meet his, and bashed the bridge of his nose with her forehead.

With a wet crunch followed by a startled, pained scream, McTavish rolled off her of, clutching his re-broken nose. Blood spattered across the redhead's face. It was dirty, it was violent...

'It was necessary,' Ruby thought. He screamed, and writhed on the ground in pain. Scrambling, Ruby scooped up the knife from the ground, and, heedless of the blood now running into her eye, jammed the plastic blade into the soldier's stomach. McTavish's shouts died down into a series of groans. Ruby heard over the roaring in her ears Winter calling the medical team to cart him away. The Huntress stumbled onto her feet, and turned to look at her pair of judges. Weiss's eyebrows were raised in surprise and mild shock, whereas Winter wore a satisfied smirk. Ruby wiped the blood away from her eyes, and couldn't help but smile, flush with her victory.

Winter was pleased with the performance. This retired huntress showed talent in all regards, and in her final move, proved to the specialist, if unintentionally, that she was just ruthless enough to do what she had to, but not so much as to be viscous. It was an even grey area she always looked for in picking operatives, and she felt it would work wonderfully with defending her sister. Not only so, but also Rose's personality. The lightheartedness she had shown on the range and on the course would hopefully help heal her sister's scars left by their father. The risk posed by the redhead's injury was a one Winter was uncertain about, and felt a bit uneasy allowing Ruby this job, but felt the reward outweighed the risk. She looked at her younger sibling out of the corner of her eye.

Winter Schnee was never a very religious person, but right now she prayed that she was making the right choice. Winter looked back to the winning contestant. What a sight she was. Sweat made her hair stick to her brow, and the knife was still clutched in her hand. Blood was splattered across the upper portion of her face, and her breath came in pants, yet there was a smile on her face. "Miss Rose," the older sister said, "it appears you have won. Congratulations."

Weiss stepped forward, and gave her possible savior a meaningful look, before addressing the crowd, "That will be all. Calls will be sent out later tonight to you all, informing you of whether or not you will be hired. You know where the door is. Goodbye."

Weiss sighed. She sat on her bed. It was seven o'clock that night, and she sat with her scroll in her hand. Winter had left about thirty minutes ago, and would not be back for some time. She was being deployed to Vale, and had said not to expect her back for at least three months. Weiss hated to see her sister go, but it was the life she had chosen. Not for the first time Weiss wondered what her life would be like if she had pushed just a little harder to train as a huntress.

She shook her head, dispelling that thought. It was useless to dwell on what-ifs. She glanced back down to the screen of her scroll, and the number she had already typed in. She sent out the calls to the rejected many already, now all she had to do was call her personal assistant-to-be, as she and Winter had decided, much to Weiss's relief. Fear gripped her now, though.

Even if this was the lesser of two evils, the CEO would still have her reality altered. Solitude was the only constant in her life, and now even that would be restricted by giving power to another woman over her. She had no idea the effects of this change, and it was that fear of the unknown that stilled her hand above the call button. She could still veto the idea. She could tell Ruby Rose that she also would not be hired, and continue on in freedom.

No, she had promised Winter she would at least try. Ice formed in her gut as she thumbed the green call button, going past the point of no return. She remembered the pain of having someone over her. She didn't ever want to feel so damn helpless ever again. All those years under her Father's control had changed something inside of her, and she was scared of what allowing this Ruby Rose woman a modicum of power would do. Doubtlessly, she would lose the one thing that kept her sane.

Working like she did was the only thing that ever helped push back that crippling ice inside of her, and she feared that pain. As the years grew longer, Weiss felt that pain and fear grow only stronger, and the CEO was absolutely terrified of what losing her only remedy for it would do to her. She forced those thoughts out of her head, though. She had to follow through with this, for Winter if nothing else. She brought the phone up to her ear, and listed to it ring.

Finally, after a few seconds of pained anticipation on Weiss's side, a voice spoke up. "Hello?"

"Miss Rose?" Weiss asked, wanting to be totally sure she had called the correct person, and was definitely not stalling.

There was a quiet hum on the other end of the line, before, "This is she."

Weiss cleared her throat and said, "This is Weiss Schnee. Return to my home tomorrow at twelve o'clock, and we will discuss any remaining details. You've got the job. Welcome to the Schnee Dust Company."

A/N

And with this chapter, this on now the longest story I have ever written. I sincerely hope it continues for many more chapters to come, and I hope you all stick around, because the next few chapters are gonna be a wild ride for our favourite CEO and Huntress duo! The next chapter may take a little longer to put out, because I plan on making a sweet, smutty little gift for you all around Christmas, so stay tuned for that.

I post updates about my stories on my iFunny account (read: Cult), "RWBY_Order_Of_The_OTP", so sub to that if you please.

Don't forget to review, it helps a fuckton with motivation and actual help, critically. I can't wait to see what you all think of this chapter, and those to come. It will be rife with awkwardness, but what good story isn't?

-Order

Update (6/22/2018): Grammar and flow changes, fixed a few things with the fight scene. Finally, finally, fixed the part where my stupid ass had Ruby loading 9mm into a pistol chambered for. 45 ACP.