Hello! Welcome to the second chapter of Bloodbound! Enjoy!
Thoughts
"No, Neo is not telepathic, but this is the way she communicates and this is what it looks like. No questioning it, this works"
Ruby Rose, age four
Ruby was trapped in shadows and pain.
"GOLD! Get out here now!"
She was drowning in images of claws and teeth, all ripping and tearing at her body. Trying to take her apart in gluttonous rage.
"Mr. Torchwick! Oh, whose is that?"
"Don't ask stupid questions and get this Bullhead in the air. We're going back to Vale."
She wanted to scream. Gods above, she wanted to scream at the flood of memories that nearly cleaved her body apart. But she couldn't make a sound, her tongue was a growth of useless flesh in her mouth. Memories of terrified silver eyes, soulless faces that seemed to leek blood, and infernal howls among the trees. So much terror coursed through Ruby and she couldn't make a sound.
"Shouldn't we take her to a hospital, Mr. Torchwick?"
"Oh, yes! I'll just pop my head in and drop the girl off! After all, that is a perfectly normal thing for wanted criminals to do. Anyways, I used my semblance, what she needs the most now is rest."
"Your semblance? The healing one?"
"Yes, Gold, the healing one."
She wanted her family. She wanted her mother. But the only thing that was there with her, out of place in her darkest memories, was indistinct voices that ebbed and flowed in her awareness.
"What about her family?"
"I found her dying in the middle of some muddy forest, she looks about four-years-old, and I couldn't find anyone near her, remains or otherwise. Her family is probably dead, eaten by the Grimm."
"That's…blunt."
"That's life, as much as I would like it not to be."
But there was something else, something that was very near to nothing. A spark with her in the mental hell, it wasn't bright and pulsing, but it was still there. A thing that danced at the edge of her awareness, a silver light.
"Sir, we're almost to Vale. Should I set her down at the warehouses or the Loft?"
"At the Loft, Gold. And tell the rest of the underlings that I may be late tomorrow."
"Do you think the kid will wake up tomorrow?"
"Not really, no. But I rather that I don't leave it to chance and have her hurt herself when she wakes up in an unfamiliar house."
"If you don't mind me asking, Mr. Torchwick, what about your daughter?"
"Neo is a six-year-old girl, not a territorial she-wolf. That's a stupid question and I could have sworn I told you not to ask those."
"Technically, the name for a female wolf is a bit-"
"I KNOW what the proper name is, Gold, but given that FACT, you do understand why I might feel averse to calling my daughter as such. Now, hurry up, stop speaking, and get me home."
Ruby felt light on her face. Not the lifeless illumination of artificial lighting, but nor was it like the warm rays of the sun. It was like the shadows of horrific memories were finally fading away, being replaced by a blessed awareness. Ruby Rose felt the darkness fade from her mind.
"We're here, sir!"
"Once we're inside, get the Bullhead back to Warehouse Four and tell the Syndicate members there what happened. Make sure they spread the word to the other warehouses."
"Yes, sir. Anything else?"
"No, and as always, it was SIMPLY a pleasure riding with you."
"Why, thank you, Mr. Torchwick!"
"Remind me next time I see you to introduce you to something called sarcasm, I'm not going to see my efforts wasted because you're an idiot."
The darkness was gone from Ruby's mind. Forever or only for a day, she didn't care, all she cared about was that she was free of the torment and despair. Free of the fact that the last memory of her mother was her laying on the wet forest floor, with her head caked in blood. Unmoving and silent. But it was gone now, faded from view, and Ruby drifted off into a dreamless sleep that was long overdue in coming.
"Rest now, you're safe. You're safe."
xXx
When Ruby woke up, it was in an unfamiliar bed and with someone very small and extremely colorful staring down at her, she started screaming but stopped when she discovered it hurt too much.
So, Ruby did the only other thing she could think of, something her father taught her and her sister back in their warm home.
She punched the girl in the face.
It wasn't a very hard punch of course; Ruby did not have much in the way of physical strength even in the best of conditions, much less after feeling like her stomach had been ripped apart and then shoved back together. But the colorful girl was so surprised at being hit square in the nose that she fell over backward, sprawling out on the ornate rug beside the bed with a loud thud.
Needless to say, the girl on the floor looked up at Ruby as if she had been smitten by the gods instead of just slugged by a four-year-old. Her nose turning a bright red (In fact, it reminded Ruby of a tiny strawberry), the girl pushed herself off the floor and looked torn between leaving Ruby alone and tackling her in a fit of fiery vengeance.
Both were so focused on each other that the suppressed chuckle made both of them jump and whirl their heads around to see a man with hair like burnished copper standing there, a barely hidden smile on his face. He wasn't sure if it was proper or not to laugh at the fact that he just saw a four-year-old punch a six-year-old in the face.
Shoving down his mirth, the man stepped forward and raised up his hands when Ruby scurried back in fear.
"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you." The man kneeled, his hands still held out in front of him. "My name is Roman, Roman Torchwick. The person you just hit is named Neopolitan-"
"That's a weird name." Ruby cocked her head to the side as Roman's arm was suddenly around Neopolitan's shoulders, a simple comforting gesture if a person could ignore the fact the Neopolitan was straining to break free and tackle the already injured Ruby to the ground.
"Well, she likes to be called Neo. What's your name?" Roman could not help but find this girl's total lack of decorum just the tiniest bit hilarious, mostly due to Neo's reactions.
"Ruby Rose. Like the flower, but also like the rock." Ruby had heard Yang put it that way once and thought it would help clear away any confusion. The thought of her family made Ruby frown and look around her, searching for someone who she could not seem to find.
"Where's my momma?"
At that, the room fell into reticence, a silence so heavy that even the sounds of the house and the world seemed to hush and watch. Roman cleared his throat, preparing himself for what he was about to say and what might happen afterward.
"Ruby, I found you in the forest two nights ago, you were hurt badly and…" Roman took another breath. "You were alone, Ruby, I couldn't find anyone else."
"But that doesn't make sense." She looked into her savior's face, her forehead scrunched together as she tried to untangle the thought of her being alone. "My family is always with me, dad and momma said so!"
Roman lips tightened. Oh, this is going to be unpleasant. Wishing he was better at this, he kneeled down in front of Ruby and looked her in the eye.
"Ruby, your family is dead."
Unpleasant did not even begin to describe the storm that followed those accursed words.
Ruby forgot the throb of her stomach, forgot the ache of her body, and the fogginess of her mind. A new agony had drowned them all, a pain so great that Ruby wanted someone, anyone, to tell her that those words were not true, that they were lies!
But no one would, all they would do was watched as Ruby Rose crumbled into a ball on the floor, weeping as her soul was torn in two. However, she was alone in her misery only in her thoughts. One moment, all she felt was cold and anguish, but the very next second, warmth and solace encompassed her.
Roman hugged the girl close as she sobbed, not minding the salty tears that soaked his dress shirt, not caring about the fact that the girl's cries were loud and unceasing. Those things were unimportant and barely worth noticing. All that mattered at this moment was to comfort the child who had just lost everything.
"It's alright, it's going to be alright." Roman soothed. "Just cry for now, it's going to be okay."
And so she did. And when the tears stopped tracing paths down her grief-wracked face, when her voice turned into a harsh whisper, Ruby just stayed there, wrapped in the warmth of a father's hug. Even if it wasn't her father.
Even Neo felt a twinge of something in her chest, a faint memory of a long-ago time where there had been more people, more laughter, in her life. Before flashing blades snatched it all away in a dark alley and she was left alone in the pitiless streets. Before a man with green eyes and hair like burning metal took her under his wing.
But this girl, this Ruby Rose, she was safe. Even though it might have felt like her heart would never mend again-and who knows, maybe it never would-despite all of that, she would not be left to steal food from the trash and refuse of society, she would never have to glance over her shoulder every minute of every day. She would be safe and cared for because Roman Torchwick would sooner turn himself over to be hung than let a child live a life alone and despairing.
When Neo joined the comforting hug (for what else could she do?), Ruby unlatched one of her arms from around Roman's neck and immediately fastened it around Neo's, pulling her in tighter. While Neo felt uncomfortable in the extreme by hugging someone other than Roman (And even then she did not hug him often), she pushed aside the near-overwhelming desire to pull away from the contact and stayed where she was, holding a sobbing girl who had lost everything and everyone she had ever known.
xXx
"Is she going to stay here?" Neo looked up the spiral staircase where Ruby laid, sleeping heavily, on the bed, her sobs had giving way to exhaustion so deep, it craved a groove through her very soul.
Roman, who had long ago grown used to Neo's preferred method of communication even though he still had no idea what exactly it was, nodded. "She has no other home now and this is the safest place for her at the moment."
There was no way in the darkest Hells that he was going to let the so-called orphanages sink their scum-encrusted claws into her. The ones in Vale were barely even dumping grounds for the unwanted. No, Ruby would stay here until they could find out if she still had any living relatives left and if they could care for her.
If no relatives existed, if she was truly the sole survivor of her entire family, then Roman made a vow to himself. A vow that he would not let Ruby Rose be cast aside by anyone, that, one day, she would be strong enough to take down anything that might stand in her way or try and hurt her. Roman vowed to himself that Ruby Rose would survive, no matter what.
A sharp tug on his dress shirt made him break out of his solemn thoughts and look down to see Neo with a pout on her face. "I'm tired."
Roman smiled softly. "Well, let's get you to bed then. It's been a busy evening."
"She punched me in the face." Neo's eyebrows pulled together at the memory. "It hurt too."
"She'll fit right in." Walking behind the staircase, in the space beyond it, was a nest of comforters and pillows that were piled onto and draped over a bed that Roman had not seen since he first brought it into the loft.
Neo jumped right into the mass of blankets and burrowed through them until her head stuck back out at what Roman could only assume to be the head of the bed. Bending over, he kissed his daughter on the forehead.
"Sweet dreams, Neo, I'll see you in the morning."
Roman turned off the lamp that hung near her bed and went back out into the main area, switching off lights as he did. Once everything was fully flooded by darkness, he paused by the large windows that looked out towards the glistening buildings and towers of Vale. His city, his kingdom, the place he had stolen, murdered, and cheated to gain. A place where the mere mention of the Torchwick Syndicate sent the scum of the criminal underworld fleeing back to whatever hovels they had crawled out of.
And he cared more about two children he found alone and dying that he would let this entire kingdom burn to ash if it meant protecting them. One of the children he had known for less than a day!
But then Roman supposed that did not really matter, he was ruthless when he needed to be, but he wasn't soulless. He could not have lived with himself if he had just walked away and left Ruby Rose to die and rot in some nameless forest.
Having a heart in this business is a dangerous thing, but it is worth every threat of pain. Roman chuckled slightly as the words passed through his mind. The sound seemingly loud in the sleeping home. Quieting down, Roman turned towards the shadowed-shrouded space where he knew she was.
"Good-night, Ruby." He said softly. "I hope the nightmares stay away and good dreams can find you."
And, though no one ever saw it, Ruby's sleeping form relaxed and, for the briefest moment, a smile flashed across her face. A smile to chase away the nightmares.
Yang Xiao Long, age six
"Momma, where's Ruby?"
Yang looked up curiously at her mother, sitting at the kitchen table. A normal action except for the fact her mother looked as pale as the tattered cloak that hung from her shoulders and stared bleakly at nothing.
A ragged red gash zig-zagged up the side of her face, black thread stitching it together. But the pain in her mother's eyes was not from the wound on her face, but the wound seared onto her heart and soul whose pain felt as real and as agonizing as any physical injury.
Her mother did not answer, but her father did. Yang did not hear him come into the homey kitchen, but suddenly he was there, strong and reliable like some ancient mountain.
"Hey, firecracker." Taiyang knelt down and smiled at his daughter. Yang might have been reassured, but her father's smile looked strange and it trembled like a leave caught in the wind, as if it might fall off at any moment. "Why don't you go show Uncle Qrow your drawings?"
Yang frowned and looked at her mother before turning back to her father and nodding. "Okay."
Padding out of the kitchen, Yang risked a quick glance behind her to see Taiyang immediately sit beside her mother at the table before she walked through the door and it swung back close, blocking out her sight.
Glancing around the living room, she noticed that her uncle was nowhere to be seen, though Yang could see a light shining underneath the bathroom door. She wasn't quite sure for exactly how long her uncle as going to be staying with her because when she asked, all he did was look at her parents and sigh. "I don't know, kid."
Shrugging, she turned back to the door and studied it for a long moment before glancing swiftly at the bathroom door and walking quietly back to it. Pressing her ear against the smooth wood, she could hear the sounds of her father's voice and just make out the words that were being spoken.
"- wasn't your fault, Summer." Her father almost sounded like he was begging, his words desperate. "Please, see that."
"I couldn't protect her." Summer spoke and Yang had to stifle a gasp. Her voice was unrecognizable, hoarse and sounding like it was the voice of an ancient crone than her mother. "Tai, I couldn't protect our baby girl."
There was a long silence, Yang pressed her ear closer to the door. Finally, it was her father that broke the quiet.
"You nearly died trying and then you searched for her until you could not even move." His words were heavy with emotion. "The Grimm are the ones to blame, Summer, only them."
The sudden sound a hand slamming down on the wooden surface of a table was like a clap of thunder in Yang's ears and she jerked away from the door. Not that it mattered much because Summer Rose raised her voice enough to be heard throughout the house.
"Damn it, NO!" She shouted, harshness radiating off each word. "I could have killed every single one of those monsters! But all I did was get knocked unconscious, rendered useless, while the Grimm…they…ripped into our…they ate Ruby, Taiyang! Those monsters killed my baby girl!"
And then, there just sobs. Heartbreaking cries of never-ending grief.
Yang's mind seemed to have stopped, her whole body seemed to pause as those words were branded onto every fiber of her being. They ate Ruby.
Ruby was dead. Her little sister was gone.
The sounds that choked out of Yang's mouth were more like screams than weeping, tears running like wild torrents down her face. Misery consuming her soul.
Suddenly, warmth encased her and Uncle Qrow and pulled her into a tight hug. Yang latched her arms around his neck and buried her face into his shoulder, salty tears staining his clothes.
"Easy now." He murmured and Yang managed to form words instead of screams.
"U-uncle Qrow! Ruby isn't dead, right? She isn't?!" She lifted her face and stared pleadingly into his eyes. "Please, tell me Ruby isn't dead!"
His eyes glanced away from her own and his lips tightened until you could barely see them. Taking a deep, shaky breath, he answered. "I'm sorry, firecracker. I am so, so sorry, but I can't."
Yang's sobbing echoed throughout her home.
Distantly, Yang heard the creak of a door opening and the arms of her uncle were replaced by the much more familiar warmth of her mother's arms. The scent of cinnamon and rose petals calming her thrashing heartbeat.
"Don't worry, my little dragon." The soft, gentle murmur of her mother's voice lulled Yang's sobs into whimpers of despair. "You're safe now. Me, your dad, your uncle, we'll never leave your side. I will never leave your side."
And in a forest home on the island of Patch, a family mourned for their lost daughter.
Ruby Rose, age ten
Ruby really hated shattering short people.
She didn't care at all about the shattering and she was actually quite fond of short people. She just did not like it when the shattering and the short people combined to form the nightmarish she-devil known as Neopolitan.
Okay, don't-don't panic. Ruby prowled among the large crates that were scattered throughout the ground floor of the warehouse; her scythe, a high-caliber death machine named Crescent Rose, unfolded in all of its deadly glory. She has to reappear sometime and when she does, I'll-
The thought was cut off as someone hit Ruby on the back of the head with what felt like a steel beam.
"ARGH!" Ruby spun around, her scythe whistling through the air…only for it to be stopped dead by an uplifted parasol held by a tiny girl with a huge smirk on her face.
Dang it! Ruby scowled, her grip on Crescent Rose tightening as her eyes bore into Neo's. No, It's not over yet. I can still win!
Spinning away from her opponent, Ruby swung her scythe in a deadly arc. Neo responded by flipping over it and landing somewhere on the top of the crates, high above Ruby's head.
"Will you just stand and fight for once?" Ruby gazed all around and above her. "Otherwise, this will go on all day and I'll miss the expo!"
"Aren't you only ten? How are you so obsessed with weapons?"
"Hey, weapons are awesome!" Ruby shifted down Crescent Rose to form a compact rifle, something that she proudly stated was a high-caliber sniper rifle. "It's not my fault that your view on weaponry stops with your dumb umbrella!"
"Deadly Elegance is a parasol! We've been over this!"
Ruby leaped to the side as Neo emerged from the shadows like a vengeful pink wraith and unleashed a barrage of lightning-fast attacks upon her weapon's red-cloaked slanderer.
"This would be over sooner..." With a twist of her wrist, a polished spike slid out of the tip of Deadly Elegance. "If you just held still!"
"You're descending into psychotic violence again." Ruby twisted her body away from the sharp point of the spike, her dark clothes making her a hard target to hit amidst the gloom of the crates. "Roman told you never to descend into psychotic violence!"
"Nah, he just said not to do it in public." Neo jabbed at Ruby again, a smirk on her face. "Here, you're fair game."
"Why are you so mean?" Ruby swung her curved blade at Neo's torso. "Outside, you are all sweet and innocent-looking. But on the inside, you're all rude and mean and bad attitude!"
"Hey, I have a great attitude. I have the best attitude ever. People gasp in wonder and awe when they see my attitude."
Ruby sucked in her stomach, the skin barely escaping the point of the parasol's spike, and jumped away from Neo. "Are you sure they're not standing around in awe of how crazy you are!"
"We really need to up your witty banter game; this is just kinda sad." Neo sighed dramatically as she leaned gracefully out of the way as Ruby swung her scythe in a vicious strike. "All the things I do to help you, Ruby. I think I have just lost count!"
Giving in to enraged frustration, Ruby abandoned all forms of sensibility and charged her petite opponent head-on.
Only to have her face introduced to the cement floor of the warehouse.
The crack of her nose breaking was the only warning she got before pain spread like hot embers across her face and blood dripped down her chin. Causing the usual innocent looking girl to transform into a nightmarish visage of a deranged demon.
A deranged demon with an extremely large weapon.
"You look mad." Neo cocked her head to the side. "Was it something I said?"
Feeling her eye twitching, Ruby pushed herself off the floor and back to her feet. Her eyes locked onto Neo as she ignored the blood on her face.
"Okay, no more playing around. You will suffer for what you've done to me, to Crescent Rose, to-"
WHACK
"Rule number ten." Neo stood above Ruby like some sort of triumphant conqueror, her parasol resting on her shoulders. "Never, under any circumstances, give a monologue."
"Ugh, noted." Ruby groaned as bright lights flashed before her eyes, her head throbbing where Neo had clubbed it. Crescent Rose discarded beside her. "Does this mean I lose?"
"Miserably!" Neo's smile was a beacon of cheerfulness. "Da should probably disown you after that disgraceful attempt."
"A yes would have worked just fine, you jerk," Ruby grumbled as she stumbled back onto her feet. "And why am I doing this again? This whole training thing is really dumb!"
"No. This training thing is the result of you wanting to be a hitman, common sense, and the fact that you nearly got us all killed when you tried using that scythe for the first time."
"I didn't know that crate had Fire Dust in it!"
"Still blew up half the warehouse."
"I said I was sorry!"
"Yeah, after screaming for a solid five seconds and then attempting to put it out with Wind Dust."
"At least, I tried! You just stood there laughing at me and being completely useless!"
By this time, the two girls were each trying to stare the other down. Neither girls balking from the threats lurking in each other's eyes.
The faceoff was interrupted by the sounds of the sliding doors of the warehouse being pulled open and the appearance of Roman Torchwick.
"Oh, good. The warehouse is still standing and no one is bleeding excessively!" Roman cast a critical eye on his merchandise. "Even if my shipments have a few gorges carved into them."
"Minor damage." Neo waved her hand carelessly, turning away from Ruby to face her father. "Easily repaired."
The crime lord shrugged. "I call in some underlings tomorrow. Now!" Roman shut the doors behind him with a dull bang. "How is training going?"
"She is still too careless and ruled by her emotions." Neo ignored Ruby's squawk of protest and charged on bluntly. "Plus she is totally useless when it comes to close-range combat."
"Don't worry about sparing my feelings. I didn't need them anyway." Ruby picked her weapon up off the floor with a huff. "Why don't you destroy my hopes and dreams while you're at it."
"I tell it as it is, and right now? You still have a lot to learn." The prismatic instructor looked dead into her trainee's eyes. "Things that, if you don't know them, will cause you to end up rotting in a sewer somewhere."
"Neo's right." The thought of softening what Neo had said did not even cross Roman's mind as he spoke to the girl he found five years ago, dying under the dark forest canopy. She had to know the reality of their world, their world of thieves and assassins, and what would happen if you were not prepared for it. Roman had always known this and he wanted to make sure Ruby did as well. "You have to be able to crush those who try to hurt you, you have to be able to protect yourself no matter what you're up against you, you have to survive."
The emphasis cemented onto the last word brought to Ruby's mind what was unanimously the Torchwick family motto.
Lie. Cheat. Steal. Survive.
Roman made it clear, however, that they were to fulfill this as one unit. Another, much more important, Torchwick motto was that family always came first.
"Ruby?"
Snapping out of her thoughts, the little reaper in the red hood focused on the inquisitive eyes of her guardian. She blinked. "Mmm? What?"
"You didn't hear a word I said, did you?" Roman sounded resigned.
"Learn to fight so I don't die." Ruby summarized. "Yep, I got it."
"Good." Roman rested a hand on Ruby's shoulders, looking into her eyes, before stepping back towards the iron staircase that spiraled up into the alcove above. "Now that we got the life lessons out of the way, you may want to duck."
Ruby never noticed the shadow falling over her. "Wha-?"
WHACK
As Ruby thudded to the ground for the second time in less than eight minutes, light brighter than the sun flashing dizzyingly in front of her eyes.
"Rule number nine, always be aware of your surroundings."
"STOP WITH THE DEATH LESSONS ALREADY!" Ruby pushed herself off the polished cement, her face caught in between a frown and a snarl. "I'm tired of this! Can't we just call it quits and play some more Deathmatch: Macabre until it's time to go to the expo?"
"Video games won't help with training, ya know." Neo placed Deadly Elegance on her shoulder and placed a steadying hand on Ruby's arm, helping the stumbling scythe master regain her balance. "But sure."
"But they might help, right?" Ruby rubbed the back of her head. While still in some pain, the cross frown that creased her face was replaced by a grin. "Maybe if we play it long enough, I'll learn the Five-fingered Doom-punch of Complete and Utter Catastrophe!"
Neo linked arms with Ruby, her own smile like a length of silk. "When that day comes, Rubes, we can celebrate by stopping the death lessons."
"What, really?" The more talkative of the two peered at the other. "Are you sure you're not just lying?"
"I wouldn't dream of lying to you, Ruby, now let's go rot our brains out."
"YEAH!"
As the two girls and the sounds of their conversation faded as they went up the spiral staircase set in the dim corner of the warehouse, Roman just chuckled to himself. When Ruby joins Neo at the Syndicate, either the resulting damage would be cataclysmic or they would take over the entire world.
"Hey! No cheating!" Ruby's indignant voice drifted down the stairs, catching Roman's ear.
"I'm not cheating! Deadly Elegance is having a malfunction."
"I'll malfunction your face if you don't get your parasol out of the way!"
"Nice comeback."
"Do you want to fight for real?"
"Do you want to lose again?"
Roman rolled his eyes, still smiling, and headed towards the staircase himself. Ah, home sweet home.
He wouldn't trade it for the world.
Yang Xiao Long, age twelve
"FIGHT ME ALREADY!"
"Get away from us, you psycho!"
The gang of boys scrambled away from Yang as she was engulfed in golden flames once more, her fist trembling as her aura healed the broken skin of her knuckles.
Yang Xiao Long, an aspiring Huntress and hero, stood panting in the middle of some back alley. Her dreams of heroics and glory shove aside in favor of the wilder emotions of wanting to brawl until her body was bloody and her mind numb.
Mom.
Taking a deep, shaking breath, she started after the fleeing forms of the boys. "I SAID FIGHT!"
The words came out in a screech which only made the gang run faster, as far away from her as they could get. They got into this by assuming a twelve-year-old girl could not be that much of a threat and they were leaving vowing never to bother people again. Yang, however, was not happy about her victory. That fight wasn't enough.
She could still remember, the thoughts still swarmed like locusts inside her head. Not again, please Gods, not again!
Gritting her teeth against the yearning to remember, Yang charged forward intent of tracking down either boys or anyone else she could set herself on. Her footsteps echoing around the alley, Yang splashed through puddles of oil-tainted water and piles of stinking trash.
Don'tremembercan'trememberwon'tremember. The never-ending cycle of thoughts was like a million records playing at the same time with a horrible discord. Yang ran to escape it, racing forward only for trying to find a way not to look back. Nearly without conscious thought, she ran faster and half-hoped she would never stop.
Only to fall, sprawling hard across the refuse of the alley.
Feeling the blood drip past her broken skin and run down her body, Yang picked herself off the littered asphalt and rose to her feet. The pain in her body only being a flicker of relief to ease the agony in her mind.
But it was not just the relief, it was a way to scream out to the world of what nightmares invaded her head, it was way to get rid of the anger that burned inside her, it was a way to punish herself for not being able to do anything.
Rearing her fist back, Yang drove it into the ground. Her knuckles splitting and her bones breaking as she punched the asphalt again and again and again, her aura fading out after so much of the abuse. She barely felt the tears of both pain and despair sild down her face, all she was focused on was unburdening herself of the maelstrom of emotions that were torturing her.
"YANG! STOP!"
Before she could drive her hands into ruin, someone caught her wrists and crouched down in front of her, amidst the trash and blood. Yang looked up wearily, into a pale face with eyes as black as midnight and brimming with grief and distress.
"Ebon." Yang's voice was cracked, broken, and her gaze held nothing but shattered sadness. Ebon, meanwhile, did not know which emotion to put first. Grief for her best friend, distress for what had been done to her, fury at the monsters who caused her friend pain, or despair that Yang had been reduced to this. Reduced to nothing but rage and desolation.
Letting go of Yang's ruined hands, Ebon threw her arms around her friend and hugged her as if to protect her from the world and its hells. At first surprised at the sudden contact, Yang wrapped her own arms around Ebon and together they sat there. In a dark alley with a heavy shadow hanging over them.
"Yang, it wasn't your fault. It wasn't anyone's fault!" Ebon drew back to look into Yang's eyes. "Please, don't do this to yourself, please." Her voice tore at the end of her plea.
"I…" Yang tried to speak, tried to describe the monsters that tore at her from the inside, but the words wouldn't come. Words failed to capture what was happening to her. Instead, she just clutched Ebon tighter and hoped it would be enough to keep from being lost among her thoughts.
It wasn't my fault? The mere suggestion of that seemed like a bad joke. Her father stayed behind to watch over her, her father could not protect her mother because of her! How was this not her fault? If had just been stronger, smarter, better, than maybe her mother would still be alive.
"Yang." Ebon's eyes showed a sliver of steel through the unshed tears, knowing what that lifeless look meant. "Stop and listen to me. Hurting yourself won't do anything, blaming yourself won't do anything." She took a deep breath. "The Grimm killed your mother, not you, only the Grimm. They are the ones to blame for this."
Yang's heart skipped a beat before racing into a rapid pulsation, not from desolation, but from hate at the mention of the soulless abominations that had caused it in the first place.
The Grimm. Unholy monsters who do nothing but steal lives. The monsters that had killed countless people since the dawn of Remnant. Monsters that had killed her mother and her baby sister. That had torn her family apart. Yang abominated them, loathed them with every piece of her soul. She didn't care that it was hate that drew in the Grimm, she despised the beasts and wanted to scorch their foul stain from the planet.
I want to eradicate them. Every. Single. One! Yang felt the hot flood of hate course through her body. I want to make sure they can't hurt anyone ever again. I want to avenge Mom! I want to avenge Ruby!
Ebon felt Yang rise off the ground and rose with her, lilac eyes hidden by blond bangs, before Yang raised her head and stared into her friend's eyes.
"No more death, Ebon." Yang's voice was low and steady, a stark contrast to the fires that burned in her eyes. "I've had enough. I'm going to stop the Grimm, I am going to wipe them out, I'm going to stop them from hurting anyone else ever again."
Ebon looked at her friend, at her posture that screamed defiance at what was considered the natural order of things, whose eyes had spawned into something near-demonic looking, and shook her head. Raven locks swaying gently.
"No. You are not going to do anything alone. If you're going to take on a soulless race of Hells-beasts, then I'm going to be standing right there next to you."
Yang felt a small smile cross her face. It was tiny, but it was still there nevertheless. A flash of something besides dark emotion and horrible thoughts. Even if those thoughts and emotions still lurked in the depths of Yang's mind, she could push them down. However long it took and however hard it became, she would fight until the countless deaths, the immeasurable suffering, was finally put to an end.
I'll make you proud, mom, I'll make both of you proud. Aloud, Yang simply said to Ebon. "Come on, my dad is probably worried about me. Mind walking with me?"
"I wouldn't mind at all. In fact, I think I'll send the night. My parents shouldn't mind." Ebon and Yang started walking out of the maze of alleys. For a moment, they were silent, just listening to the world move around them. Yang felt her aura heal her hands as it was revived from zero.
"You know," Ebon looked slantwise at her friend as they walked. "If you and I are going to be saviors of Remnant and all its peoples, we're going to need some heroic weapons. I'm thinking swords, really big swords."
Yang shook her head, her lips curling up into a smile. "You can have all the swords you want; I'm going to stick with Ember Celica."
"That's cool, but until those gauntlets are finished and ready for some Grimm punching." Ebon took a deep breath. "Swords. Think about it."
Yang rolled her eyes even as the smile remained on her face. "Okay, Ebonbob, I'll think about the swords even though me using one is just a crazed fantasy of yours."
Ebon smiled at the stupid nickname. "A girl can hope, right?"
Slinging an arm around her friend's shoulders, Yang nodded. "Yep, a girl can hope, alright."
Later that night, back at home and Ebon sleeping soundly there with her, Yang stared out at the night sky and listened to the sounds of her father's tears downstairs. Her heart clenching tighter with every sob. Even the abyssal silence that emitted from here her Uncle Qrow was staying was deep and terrible. She looked up at the moon, gleaming full and bright among the inky darkness and whispered to two people that were now far away and lost to her.
"Mom? Ruby? I know I can't hope to see you again, but I hope I can finish this war against the Grimm and let both of you finally find peace." Yang felt fiery emotion flare up in her heart at these last words. "No, I don't hope I can do this. I swear it."
Ruby Rose, age fifteen
Ruby watched as the man she was going to kill stroll down the street.
Let's see, human, stupid overcoat, even stupider haircut, overall just stupid looking. Yep! That's him! Ruby couldn't help but smile at successfully tracking the arms dealer down in the wide expanse of, even with butterflies fluttering frantically in her stomach. She was perched on a rooftop, her hood casting her face into shadow, watching the man stroll under the streetlights who had no idea that a reaper hunted him under the twilight sky.
Remembering Roman's words on making sure it was done as quietly as possible, Ruby decided against sniping the mook right there in the street and instead simply waited. To be honest, she wasn't quite sure for what, but she was sure something would come up that she could take full advantage of and put the dealer down for the great, celestial, dirt nap.
And maybe then, she would go through his pockets for anything remotely more valuable than pocket lint. Despite Roman's and Neo's protests that she was a hitman and not a mugger. Ruby ignored them both as she still yet to receive an allowance.
Plus, the guy had tried to shoot Roman when he found out that the crime lord knew that the arm's dealer was cheating him; that was reason enough for some looting. And so, Ruby waited to kill him. And waited. Aaaaaand waited.
Just go into a dark alley already! Vacant lot! A sewer! I don't care, just move of the light so that I can kill you!
Trained by Neo and Roman to not let her impatience turn into something that might give her away to one of her hits, Ruby settled for a dark glare directed at her quarry. The uncooperative jerk.
The glare, however, may have tipped off the man's more primal instincts, the instincts that had warned people that things were out to eat them and that they should run, very fast, in the opposite direction. The arm's dealer stopped dead in his tracks and glanced around warily before moving off again, faster than before. In fact, he was flat out sprinting.
DarndarndarndarnDARN! Ruby leaped across the rooftops, trying to keep the dealer in sight. She wasn't going to spend another day trying to find him, tonight had to be his last night in one piece. If she failed and the man lived, if her rite of passage was ruined and she did not secure a place among the Torchwick Syndicate, she would be in utter and unforgivable disgrace and forced to become a hermit.
Hermitage was not a dream profession for Ruby and she doubled her speed to chase down her target.
Deciding to take the next possible chance to finish the job, Ruby slowed her pursuit on the rooftops as the man slowed down on the sidewalk below. Even from her height, Ruby could see the light reflecting off the arm's dealer's sweaty forehead.
The street he was on was empty and the streetlights few and far between. Her target was still trying to catch his breath. In other words, it was murder time.
Dropping silently down into a patch of street that was murk with darkness, Ruby crept to the each of her target's circle of light on feet as quiet as mist. Her clock making the tiniest amount of rustling as she reached under it to grip Crescent Rose, preparing to strike.
The man stiffened and peered into the night, primordial wariness warning him that something was out there, watching him.
"Is anyone there?" The man's right hand slid into his overcoat, presumably to grasp the handle of whatever weapon he had hidden in there. "If there is, you better come out now!"
"Okay!"
The man whirled around, but not quickly enough to avoid the scythe that gleamed like gore in the harsh streetlight. The blade of which cleaved into his right shoulder and kept going till it scraped up sparks from the surface of the sidewalk, a sidewalk that was quickly drenched in blood and littered with the severed arm of the man. A pistol still clutched in its pale fist.
Screaming was quickly cut out of the options list when his lungs were deflated as the wickedly curved blade slashed deep into his chest. Falling on his back amidst hard cement and wet blood, the arm's dealer last thought was the fact that the Grim Reaper was much shorter than he had previously believed.
Ruby stood over her fallen prey and waited until the last wet gurgle was forced out of his lips. When all was silent except for the sounds of the city. First kill. Uh, I thought I would have been more torn up about this, but…She watched as the blood pooled closer to her boots. There's just nothing to feel.
She sighed, as if the thoughts had tired her, and brought the blade of her sweetheart down to her level to clean the gore left by the man's corpse. The cloth she used quickly turning crimson and useless from the process of wiping the blade, Ruby resolved to properly clean her baby of mass destruction when she got home.
Speaking of which…Ruby looked down at the cadaver at her feet. Let's finish this up.
Collecting the corpse's pieces and dragging them all into the recesses of a side alley, Ruby reached into the small pouch that hung at her belt and withdrew a Fire Dust crystal. She looked at the body, then at the crystal. Well, this is going to be less than subtle, but what can you do?
A few minutes later, with consuming fire now burning fiercely behind her and a trail of smoke drifting unseen in the night sky, Ruby Rose walked out of the alley and down the street, headed for home. She was ready to stand alongside Neo and Roman in the family business. To take her place in the world as a member of the Torchwick Syndicate. Ready to help her family.
Also, Ruby was ready to take a hot shower; she was pretty sure she had blood in her hair.
Yang Xiao Long, age seventeen
Yang's eyes narrowed as the Ursa lumbered through the forest. Her breaths quiet and calm. Her eyes focused and determined as she followed its abyssal shape through the underbrush.
I've got this. She clenched her fist, the comforting weight of Ember Celica resting on her wrists. Ugly over there will never know what hit 'em.
Breathing deeply, Yang moved from her hiding spot underneath the tree and stalked the hulking monster through the sunlit forest, careful to not make a sound. Getting eaten just because she stepped on a twig would be too embarrassing to bear and when Ebon got to the afterlife, Yang would never hear the end of it.
Just a little closer. Yang crept closer to the Ursa, its slow shambling making it easy to stalk and ambush. Just a little bit closer…
The Ursa's roar sent the woodland birds scattering away from the audio torture and made the trees shudder as the woodland nightmare-beast came barreling towards the Human youth.
Might have gotten a little too close!
Yang rolled out of the way of the Ursa as it tore at her with claws the size of her forearm. Spinning out of her roll, the aspiring Huntress prepared to smash a Grimm's face in. Her irises leaking crimson red and her hair whirling around her face like a miniature fire-storm.
Complete this, you can get into Beacon. Get into Beacon, you can become a huntress. Become a huntress, and you can finally kill every single one of these monsters!
Her fist clenched and gauntlets ready, Yang charged the Ursa, shouting. "Come on! Let's see how hungry you really are!"
And with the roars of the Grimm and the blasts of gunfire, the forest was transformed into a war zone with the acceptance into the most prestigious academy in the world hanging on the outcome. And with Yang Xiao Long driven on by her thirst for vengeance and memories of when her family was whole and happy, the soulless Grimm didn't stand a chance.
When the Ursa was dissolving back into carnal shadows at her feet, Yang Xiao Long of Patch wanted to throw back her head and scream out her victory for the whole world to hear. But instead, she simply smiled as the glimmering of tears appeared at the corner of her eyes, where violent crimson was slowly being replaced by calm lilac.
I did it, mom, Ruby. I finally did it. You can rest now; I'm going to Beacon to avenge you both. Please, rest now.
Retracting her gauntlets, Yang made her way back through the forest and towards where her instructors were awaiting news of her victory. And in just a few short months, because of today and what happened amidst the trees, she would be on the airship to Beacon and taking the next step of her life as a guardian. As a protector of the innocent and punisher of the wicked.
As a Huntress of Remnant.
Ruby Rose, age fifteen
"I feel like celebrating my first hit is really morbid." Ruby looked at the glass of sparkling liquid in her hand and then back at Roman, her legs swinging from where she sat on the countertop. "Don'tcha think?"
Instead of giving her a straight answer, Roman just shrugged as he wiped at some microscopic dirt speck on the kitchen counter. "I…know a person who writes down his every kill in what he calls his Victory Book. This is normal for people like us."
"Still morbid, though!" Neo lazily pointed at Roman from where she lounged on the sofa. "And these drinks taste like watermelon!"
"What's wrong with watermelon?" Roman turned to Neo, a single eyebrow raised. "I like watermelon."
"Yeah, well you also like cleaning, so how much can we truly trust your taste in beverages?"
"Don't you live under the stairs like some sort of gremlin?" Roman raised a slow eyebrow. "Why are you judging my choices in drinks?"
"That is all completely irrelevant." Neo crossed her arms. "Don't use my bedroom choices to justifying your poor taste in fruity drinks!"
"Did we really go from celebrating my first kill to arguing about watermelons?" Ruby asked, leaning back in her seat. "How did that even happen?"
"I'm not sure." Roman picked up his own glass of the supposed watermelon liquid and studied it as if it might give the answers to the mystery that was his daughter. "I think Neo is slowly going insane and trying to drag the rest of us down her dark path."
Neo responded by throwing a couch pillow at them and Ruby stuck out her tongue in retort. Roman just caught the pillow.
"You've both totally ruined the moment." Neo looked positively grumpy as Roman walked over to place the pillow back where it belonged. "Utterly destroyed it!"
"There wasn't much of a moment to begin with. Ro' made a weird, gremlin comment and you threw things at us." Ruby stretched, her glass tilting dangerously in her hand. "So, with that out of the way, what now?"
"We go about business as usual." Roman moved from where he leaned against the counter and placed his hands on Ruby's shoulders. "Except now, you are an official member of the Torchwick Syndicate."
"Does that mean I get paid now?"
"Always focusing on what's important, eh?" Roman rolled his shoulders in a small shrug. "You're a Syndicate hitman now. You'll get paid every week you remain as such."
The young hitman brightened at that. "That sounds simple! I like simple! But what if I can't kill the person?"
Roman bent down to look Ruby in the eye. "Are we talking about morally or physically?"
"Given the fact that I just bisected a dude a few hours ago, I don't think morals will be much of a problem." Ruby fidgeted, her eyes wide. "I mean, what if I go up against a seven-foot guy with flaming chainsaws for arms?"
Neo rolled her eyes.
Roman, however, give it a kinder response. "It would be an interesting fight, to say the least." He rose back up to his feet. "But if a hitman fails, it usually means they were imprisoned or killed. Either way, not getting paid would be the least of your problems."
"So, don't worry about it?" If Ruby was being honest to herself, that was not exactly the answer she wanted, but then again, it was the only answer she got. "Or just don't fail?"
"Do your best and try not to die," Roman said instead. "Me and Neo would miss you if you keeled over in an alley somewhere."
"I would definitely be sad." Neo nodded sagely before pointing a firm finger at Ruby. "So, no dying! It's not allowed anymore."
"That's an order I will happily follow." Ruby snapped her fingers. "Oh! Before I forget, don't we have a new job offer?"
Roman nodded, moving back to his old spot against the kitchen granite. "I was going to meet the client tomorrow, out in the Glenn ruins."
Ruby and Neo shared a quick glance. "Uh, Mount Glenn?"
Roman nodded.
"As in the Grimm-infested mass grave of horrible death?"
Roman smirked. "Apparently, the new client shares your taste in dramatics, Neo." He stared at the two girls before him, considering. "I was going to meet the client alone, but if you two want to come along, you can."
Neo arched an eyebrow. "And what will the client think about that?"
"Whether they know it or not, they will be facing the most feared enforcer of the Syndetic and a hitman who is a prodigy with one of the most dangerous weapons on the planet." Roman crossed his arms. "They should be very afraid."
"Fun times." Ruby rubbed her hands together like some sort of small fiend. "Alright, I'm in. When are we leaving?"
"Late tomorrow night." Roman plucked his cane from where it leaned against the kitchen counter. "We take one of the Bullheads to the outskirts of the city and then meet in a nearby theater that used to be called the Evening Star."
Ruby's eyebrows drew together. "Used to?"
"I think the title Filthy Pile of Useless Rubble would be more accurate today, but that could just be me." Roman the Ever Fastidious said while standing in what could very well be the cleanest home in Vale.
"I think that's just you." Ruby hopped down from the counter. "Anyways, today has been fun in a weird sort of way, but I'm tired and want to go to bed."
"I can get behind that." Neo rose from her position on the sofa, untangling her limbs as she stood to her feet. "I have had a long day of doing nothing and laziness calls."
Roman rolled his eyes. "If the men knew what you did on your day off, I think your reputation of being a dangerous lunatic would take a downward plunge."
"Hey! Aren't I the 'most feared enforcer in the Syndetic'?" Neo waved her hands mockingly. Ruby nodded.
"Yeah, a lazy, dangerous lunatic is still a dangerous lunatic. You just have to wait a bit until she gets around to killing you."
"You know, you two are the reason why the Atlasians think I run a bizarre operation." Roman said, trying to be serious, but not being help the amused twitch of his lips.
"That's because the Atlasians are a bunch of stuck-up snobs with no sense of humor or fun!" Ruby frowned, thinking lowly of the northern mob. "But that's okay since we could crush them if we wanted, right?"
"Without a doubt." Roman agreed before bouncing his cane off the floor and catching it in his hand. "Now, without any more distractions, good-night, you two."
"Good-night, Ro'!" Ruby called out as he went off to his bedroom alcove at the other end of the loft, leaving her and Neo alone.
"Welp, there is a pillow calling me and I hate standing people up. See you in the morning, Rubies." Neo padded towards the spiral staircase where she had created a nest of comforters and pillows on a bed Ruby had never seen, all in varying shades of pink, between the iron stairs and the wall.
"Good night!" Ruby moved from the kitchen, still awash with artificial light, and stood in front of the windows that looked out over Vale.
I am a hitman now. The full meaning of the word rushed through Ruby like a stream through forest earth. I kill people for money, I already killed a person simply for the right to do that. Ruby frowned at that and shook her head. Wow, way to state the obvious, Ruby.
Deciding that was enough thinking about that for tonight, Ruby rubbed at her forehead and got away from the "Window of Weird and Slightly Morally Thoughts". Switching off the lights as she came to them, she headed towards the staircase and bed. Neo was practically buried in her nest when Ruby tiptoed up the iron stairs, seemingly fast asleep.
Ruby, however, knew that one sudden movement or one noise louder than the hum of her own breathing would bring her out of her tangle of comforters so fast that she would just be a blur of color and flashing steel. Ruby learned that Neo slept with her parasol by her side the hard and painful way.
Tiptoeing up the spiral staircase, she crept to her bed and slipped underneath the blankets. Ruby took a deep breath, the memories of the day rushing through her head like a great swell, and felt her body relax and her mind cut loose the mooring with the coherent world.
I wonder what would happen if the Grimm didn't attack my birth family? The thought, like all deep and answerless thoughts, popped into Ruby's head as she started to drift off, the faint smell of rose petals and cinnamon accompanying it, something that came with every memory of her old family though Ruby had no idea why. Would I be raised to respect all life and people? Would I be thought to preserve it all? Would I want to become a hero? Ruby dwelt on that for a moment before stifling a giggle. Nah, that's STUPID!
Yang Xiao Long, age seventeen
Ebon Winters was sitting in her friend's front yard, looking up at the starry sky and trying to ignore the shouting match that was happening in the house behind her.
All was not well in the Xiao Long household. In fact, things seemed to be on the brink of a second Great War. And all because Yang wanted to be a Huntress.
Which, of course, was an explosive issue with Taiyang Xiao Long, Yang's father and ex-Huntsman.
"Why not?" That was Yang, very close to shouting at the top of her lungs. "Why are you so against the idea of me saving lives?"
"Because you'll be putting yours on the line to do so." Her father's voice was calm, but less of an 'everything is good' calm and more of a 'this is my furious whispery voice' kind of calm. Honestly, Ebon preferred Yang's method of loud yelling, it was less creepy.
"I will do what I want with my life," Yang sounded out of breath as if her rage was constricting her lungs. "and I want to help people! To give them hope! To make sure that what happened to Mom and Ruby DOESN'T HAPPEN TO ANYONE ELSE!"
"But what if it happens to you?" Taiyang's voice rose. "What if the exact same thing happens to you? What good can you do if you're dead?"
Silence engulfed the house and Ebon turned around, looking through the kitchen window to see the Xiao Long family staring at each other in a terrible mix of anger, shock, and grief. On opposite sides of the kitchen, it looked as if they were about to engage in a duel.
Ebon hoped they weren't about to engage in a duel.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Yang spoke. "What good can I do if I don't even try? What can I do if I just sit here, safe and warm, when people are dying every day? What good can I do if I am too much of a coward to even realize that my life doesn't outweigh the lives of dozens of others?"
"Don't say that." Her father slashed his hand punitively through the air. "Never say that. Your life is worth more to me, your life is more to Ebon. And what about her, what does she think of all this?"
"Ebon supports me in my decisions. She's becoming a Huntress too, you know." Yang looked coolly at her father. "But this isn't about Ebon, so leave her out of it. This whole thing is about you and your assumption that you can decide what I do with my life, an assumption that is very wrong by the way."
"I'm not losing you too." Taiyang said, looking angry. "I'm not letting you go off just because you have a death wish."
"I don't want to die!" Yang's back was straight and strong. "But I refuse to let the fear that I might, stop me from saving lives. I know that becoming a Hunter is dangerous, I know that I could be killed." She stepped forward, closer to her father. "But more people will be killed if someone isn't out there protecting them, so why shouldn't it be me?"
"Because it doesn't have to be you. There are hundreds of others who want to be hunters, there are hundreds of others who will be Hunters. There is no reason why you should put your life on the line when you do not have to."
"Dad, I-"
"No, Yang." His voice was calm and quiet, but there was steel stamped into each word. "This conversation is done. We can talk about this in the morning if you are still hanging onto these dreams, but for right now I think it would be best if we both went to bed."
Taiyang moved past his daughter, walking out of the kitchen and away from Ebon's sight. Yang was left alone in the kitchen with only her thoughts and her anger. For a minute, she stood as if she was still arguing with her father, but then her fists clenched and her face contorted with rage. Whirling in a flash of golden hair, Yang stormed out of the kitchen.
Ebon waited in the yard. Since Plan A went up in flames and angry words, then Plan B would have to do. Still, Ebon was looking forward to not being anywhere near here when Taiyang woke up in the morning.
Near-silent footsteps approached her and she turned to see Yang standing with her weapons on her wrist and a pack on her back. Ebon smiled faintly.
"You packed quick, got everything you need?"
Yang snorted. "Everything except dad's approval, but that's not essential." She offered her hand to Ebon. "Ready to go?"
"Definitely ready to leave your yard." Ebon grasped Yang's hand and pulled herself up, her own pack rustling slightly with the movement. "Let's go fight some monsters."
"Ebon, it's a school, they are probably not going to fling us to the Grimm on our first day there."
"No. no, no. It is a Hunter academy. The staff is most definitely going to make us fight huge abominations just to break the ice." Ebon pointed a finger at Yang as they began walking away from the warm house behind them. "That's what Hunter academies are like, their staff is almost always partially insane."
Yang grinned and shook her head. "I still think you may be in for a disappointing surprise, but sure. Why not?"
"That's the spirit!" And with that, Ebon marched forward boldly. No hesitant thoughts seemingly to hold her back. But Yang was not so free of the crawling thoughts of doubt that made her wonder if she made the right decision, if maybe her father was right about this being an idiot's endeavor.
No! Yang squished down every rebellious thought deep down inside of her, grinding off their gnawing edge. This is what kept me going through every nightmare, through every dark moment, this is what I have to do to avenge my family.
"Are you okay?" Ebon looked at Yang, eyebrows lifted over gentle eyes, she noticed the worried look that darkened her friend's face. The runaway nodded and smiled softly.
"Yeah, I'm good. I mean, I am most definitely disowned now, but other than that, I'm good."
"Your dad is not going to disown you." Ebon nudged Yang as the dirt path under their feet joined with the proper road towards town and the nearest airship ferry. "He's going to be furious, sure, but he'll get over it because you have a good dad and that is what good dads do."
"I hope you're right." Yang couldn't help but think back on the words that were exchanged in the kitchen. Ebon nudged her again, harder this time.
"Of course I'm right, now come on! We have an airship to catch, Grimm to kill, and people to save!"
Her energy untarnished, the Huntress, for that is what she already was in her mind, charged forward in the darkness. Her friend laughed and quickened her pace to keep up.
As they completed the first step of their journey, Yang couldn't help but smile. They did it, she did it. She was well on her way to making good on her promise she made to the memories of her lost family those years ago. She was going to avenge them, immortalize their memories with every Grimm she slaughtered.
And Yang, running away from home as the night sky spun in its mass of light and darkness high above her, knew she was going to become a hero.
It may be long, but this backstory is pretty much essential for things later on (Plus it is a good way to show the vastly different paths Ruby and Yang are taking). A note to remember is that I will not be publishing two chapters at once from here on out, not normally anyway. So, I'm sorry about that.
Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this and I'll see you in the next chapter!
The next update will be on 1/4/2019 (Also, happy new year!)