Ruby looked at… herself?
The taller, older version of herself that was, if Ozpin was right.
Same face, same eyes, same style of clothes...
Yeah, it was either her or she had a long lost older sister nobody had bothered to tell her about.
But where was Crescent Rose?
Ruby stepped around Ozpin, walking towards the older woman.
"Ruby!"
Ruby ignored the call of her sister, continuing forward.
The giant dog stood as she got close, before cocking his head and whined in confusion.
It looked between the Rubies, before his owner patted his head.
"It's alright, Drei."
Ruby blinked.
Drei? Like Zwei? That was another point towards this being real (or a really weird dream).
Drei lay down, and even like that, he came up to the older woman's knees.
Ruby took another step forward, ready to run if something happened. The group behind the other Ruby was watching her, but didn't make any movements for their assorted weapons.
Ruby ran her eyes across them, sword and shield, crossbow, daggers, greataxe, sword and shield again, explosives, staff greatsword, staff, greathammer, staff and some sort of empty hilt, bow, long sword, daggers.
By the time she was done, she was standing in front of the other Ruby, who was looking down at her.
Ruby looked up at the silver eyes, there seemed to be something… harder, in them. But there was also something like fire, controlled, inviting, but ready to burn out of control at any moment.
Ruby reached out, taking the gauntleted hand, and noticing that it seemed to be made out of bone, of all things, and tugging it gently down. Not trusting herself to speak at the moment.
Luckily, the other Ruby understood her meaning, kneeling down until they were even.
Ruby reached behind the other woman's head, running a hand along the collar of the cloak. It felt like hers, but there was only one way to be sure.
Ruby flicked her hand in a familiar motion, pulling out the little card in the pocket at the nape of the neck.
Ruby read the familiar scrawl, worn with age. Her eyes flicked up to meet her own gaze.
"You're me," she whispered in awe.
"Yeah," the older version of herself said softly, "yeah, I am."
Ruby couldn't help the smile that spread.
"Cool."
The other Ruby lifted her right hand up, rubbing the back of her head in a familiar way, laughing sheepishly. Her canines were sharp, almost like fangs.
"Who, me? Nah."
"Where's Crescent Rose?"
"It's a long story, I'll explain when we get to the restaurant."
"Nothing bad happened to her, right?" Worry leaked into her voice. The idea of her beloved scythe being damaged, even if it was another version of it, was too much to bear.
"Nothing bad happened, she's just back at Skyhold."
"Skyhold?"
"My castle."
"You have a castle!?" Ruby couldn't keep the excitement out of her voice.
She had a castle! Well, the other Ruby did, but if they were the same person, that technically meant it was her castle too!
"Yeah, I'll show it to you at some point," the other Ruby stood, looking at Ozpin, "So, do you have that place or...?"
"I know somewhere, I'll reserve the table in a minute. Tell me, what should we call you? With two Rubies, it would be difficult."
"Call me Inquisitor, or Herald. Everyone does anyway."
Ruby looked at Inquisitor in confusion, "Isn't Harold a boy's name?"
Inquisitor laughed, reaching over and ruffling her hair.
"Herald, not Harold, little Rose."
Ruby ducked out from the hand, sticking out her tongue out and trying to smooth out her hair.
"Can't we just split the name, I be Ruby and you be Rose?" Ruby felt a feeling of dread, "Or you could use our middle na-"
"We are not using that," Inquisitor's eyes flashed red, her teeth bared in an animalistic move of anger, and something red seemed to pulse along her veins. Ruby took a step back. Drei stood, putting himself between the two Rubies, aimed, strangely, at his owner. His lips rolled back, and he lowered himself, ready to pounce.
"Ruby!"
The call came from the black haired woman in plate armor, who had drawn her sword, alongside the black bearded man and pointed them at the Inquisitor. She closed her eyes, breathing out from her nose.
The boy, around Ruby's age, muttered under his breath, just loud enough for Ruby to hear, "Rav-?"
"Cole. What am I thinking about?"
The boy, Cole, opened his mouth, before turning to the woman who had spoken.
"She spends too much time around you."
"Why?"
"Because you both seem convinced my hat would fit up there," Cole reached up, gripping the large brim of his hat in fear.
"Kid," the crossbow wielding man, Varric, sighed, and Ruby couldn't help but stare at his chest hair. It was just so… bushy, "Petals doesn't think that's possible, and she wouldn't actually do it if it was."
"What about Cassandra?"
"The Seeker might," he admitted easily.
"Hey!" Cassandra cried in indigestion.
Well, there was the Weiss of the group.
"Call me Rose if you want," Rose opened her eyes, which had reverted to silver, "but we're not using that name. Why'd you ever think I would use it, you're me!"
"I don't know, maybe you decided you liked it in the… however many years older than me you are!"
"I'm nineteen. And, no. I haven't."
"Ok! Ok!"
Ruby felt something wet cover her hand, and looked down in shock. Drei was panting up at her, tongue lolling out as he panted at her.
Ruby reached down, scratching Drei behind his ear. The minute she did, Drei's back foot started to jump up and down, creating a heavy thud every time he did.
"Huh. Guess it isn't that surprising," Rose crouched down, moving her right arm to a spot on Drei's side and scratching it.
Drei processed to melt into a giant dogsaurus sized puddle.
"What isn't?"
"That he's treating you like me. We are the same person, and you're only a few months younger than I was when I got Drei. As far as he's concerned, we probably both register as his partner."
"Partner?"
"Yeah, Mabari imprint on their partner, and it becomes nearly impossible to separate them. There are stories of a Mabari's owner getting mauled because they wouldn't let it go be with its partner.
"Rose, we're expected within an hour. Shall we?"
"Yeah-"
"I have also called Professor Goodwitch and had her grab Misses Belladonna and Schnee. I thought it best if all of Team RWBY was there."
Rose didn't miss a beat, "Come on, boy," at Rose's call, Drei popped up, "How's Skinner?"
A salvo of language came from the woman laying in the truck bed, leaving Ruby red behind the ears.
"Fine, I see," Rose snarked, "come on, everyone."
-X Line Break X-
"So," Rose drawled, playing with the steak knife, "I guess introductions are in order?"
"Yeah," Yang said, watching her younger/older sister, apparently, "That would be nice."
"Right, there's way too many people here, so please save all questions about titles until the end. I am Ruby Rose, Herald of Andraste, First-Thaw, Inquisitor, and half-a-dozen other titles I don't particularly care about but need to know for political reasons."
Cassandra leaned over, swatting her on the head, "Couldn't you handle this with a bit more grace? This is technically the first meeting between leaders of Thedas and Remnant."
"That," Rose came up with significantly more grace than she had any right to, "is Seeker Cassandra Pentaghast of Nevarra, advisor to the Inquisitor and one of my best friends."
Cassandra looked away, a dusting of red across her cheeks.
"He," Ruby pointed the knife at the dwarf, "is Viscount Varric Tethras of Kirkwall, another one of my best friends. Writer of such book series as Swords and Shields, Hard in Hightown, Veiled Empire, The Tale of the Champion and All This Shit Is Weird.'
Ruby gasped, looking at him before reaching for her backpack, flicking it open and pulling out a book.
"You wrote this?" She asked, pointing at The Tale of the Champion.
"I'll autograph it later, Peta-" Varric stopped, before looking between the two, "Looks like I'll have to come up with a new nickname…"
"Vivienne, Madame De Fer, of Orlais," Rose pointed at the darker skinned women wearing a hat shaped like a pair of horns, "First Enchanter of the Orlesian Circle of Magi, Knight-Enchanter, Court Enchanter of the Inquisition, anything I'm missing?"
"No, dear," Vivienne answered, reading the menu, "well you're in luck, they serve red meat here."
"Most places that aren't Orlesian noble parties do," Rose answered rolling her eyes.
"Why aren't you introducing yourselves?"
"We're letting Petals feel useful, she's been complaining about being bored for months. Something she should really stop, since I'm supposed to be the Inquisition's complainer."
"Tell Dagna to hurry up then," Rose bit back, before turning to the waitress who had walked into the room, "I'll have the largest steak you have, as rare as possible, please," Drei barked from his spot next to Ruby, "Make that two, actually."
Once everyone had ordered (a rather lengthy affair, considering how many people there were) Rose continued.
"Thom Rainier, the Blackwall," She pointed at the man with a giant black beard, a dour look on his face, "he helps put the Inquisition troops through the paces."
Thom bowed his head in Goodwitch's direction, who was taking every word down.
"Magister Dorian Pavus, of the Tevinter Imperium," The bandaged man waved, a slightly punch drunk look on his face. It wasn't helped by the fact that half his handle-bar mustache was burned off and his white coat singed.
"Cole," Rose pointed to the boy immediately to her left, "he doesn't really have his own last name, so he tends to use mine or Varric's if the need arises, since, according to Blackwall 'we adopted him'."
Cole was staring at Yang, eyes bulging, unblinking, through straw like hair.
"You should be careful," he said softly, "Fire blazes bright, bringing both mortal and spirit before you, but one bad breeze, and it burns them, scaring them away. You help, and that's beautiful, but a wrong move and you will-"
"Cole!" five voices cut him off, Rose, Cassandra, Varric, the horned Faunus, and… Blake?
Cole stopped, look embarrassed.
What the hell was that?
"Next," Rose continued, "is Sister Leliana, Nightingale, advisor to the Inquisitor, Seneschal of Skyhold, spymaster of the Inquisition and another of my closest friends."
"A pleasure to meet you."
"Lace Harding, head of the Inquisition's scouts."
"Just Harding."
"The Iron Bull," the Faunus smiled, waving with a jovial look in his one eye, "Leader of the Bull's Chargers."
"Then we have the Chargers themselves, Krem," Ruby pointed at the armored man, "Dalish," The tall willowy woman with green tattoos on her face, "Rocky," the shorter man scars across his face, "Skinner," the bandaged women, "Stitches," the man with a shaven head, "and Grim," the blond man, "Not here are Ambassador Josephine Montilyet and Commander Cullen Rumford."
Yang looked at the group, before Rose said something that shocked her to the core.
"And finally," the knife stopped, pointing at the girl to Weiss's left, who seemed to be doing her best to sink under the table, "Blake Belladonna, Inquisition agent."
-X Line Break X-
Blake closed her eyes, waiting for the explosion.
It never came.
Cracking one eye open, she took in the students and teachers of Beacon. Yang and Ruby's jaws hung open, and Weiss looked taken aback. Goodwitch had closed her eyes, and Ozpin hadn't really reacted.
"And why," he asked the Inquisitor, "did you feel the need to send a spy to my school? It can't be that you don't trust me, or you would have warned her to go to ground the minute we met, and not connected her to you."
"I never said she was a spy."
Ozpin cocked an eyebrow, "Then why is she here?"
"Because something bad happens, and she was going to be here anyway."
Oh, yeah. Turns out her boss was a time shifted version of her team leader, and not just using her younger sister's name as an alias. Apparently, that hadn't been deemed important for her to know, unlike Solas planning to tear the Veil from The Maker only knew where.
Wait, had she just sworn by The Maker? She had been spending too much time around the Inquisition.
"And does that 'bad thing' have something to do with your arm?"
Ruby cocked her head, "Huh?"
Rose glanced down at her gauntlet, before her eyes flickered up to meet Ozpin. From Blake's spot, she could see that the pupils had contracted in slits. Blake had yet to get an adequate explanation about that, and now that she knew the truth, it was really bugging her because she had never seen Ruby do so and never heard of someone becoming a Faunus outside of stories. Of course, she had never heard of people able to read minds or cast magic outside of stories either.
"What gave it away?" Rose asked.
"Not only are you favoring your right hand, while Ruby favors her left, but you haven't so much as moved your left hand an inch since we met."
"Wait," Ruby was looking between the two, confusion clear, "What are you talking about?"
That would never show up on Rose's face, Blake noticed, even if she didn't know what was happening, she wouldn't let the other side have that sort of advantage. Blake had asked why, at one point. Rose had mentioned the Orlesian "Grand Game", alongside a tirade about how much she hated it.
Apparently, Rose hated Orlais and almost everything to do with it.
It was probably good for Ruby to get out, even if she was giving Cullen an ulcer. The Inquisitor had been getting increasingly erratic from what Leliana had said last they spoke.
She lifted her right arm, undoing the straps that kept the pauldron on her shoulder. Once that was done, she pulled her left arm out.
Despite knowing what was coming, Blake flinched slightly at the sight of the missing hand. Ruby wore her gauntlet constantly, to the point Blake could count on one hand the amount of times she had seen her without it.
The rest of her team's reaction was much worse.
A startled curse slipped from Yang's lips, and Weiss gasped, bringing one hand up to cover her mouth.
Ruby, however, didn't say anything, simply staring at the stump and desperately mouthing something. Her right hand coming up to clutch her left as her eyes shone with something Blake wasn't used to seeing. Fear.
"I, I lose my arm?" Ruby's voice cracked at the end, and she started to shake slightly.
"It's not-" Rose stopped her default brush off, her face softening, the inner fire of her eyes having died to a dull burn.
Rose stood, walking around the large table and kneeling before Ruby. Like this, it really did look like they were sisters.
Rose reached out, talking Ruby's hand and placing it on the stump.
Ruby wrapped her hand around it, looking scared.
"Listen, I understand you're scared, but this," Rose shook the stump, "isn't going to happen to you. It's part of my life, but it won't be part of yours if I can help. Besides," Rose grinned, "once Dagna gets done deciphering Fiona's notes, you won't even know I was ever missing a hand to begin with!"
"How?"
"Uh, Vivienne, do you mind helping me out?"
"Not at all, dear," Vivienne raised a hand, a ball of static forming above it.
Rose curled her hand into a claw, and blood red flames appeared along her arm, concentrating into talons at her fingertips. Ruby's breath hitched, but she wasn't staring at Rose's right hand.
Instead, her eyes were locked onto Rose's face.
"What are you?"
"Something to be feared," Rose admitted, her voice rougher, "but that isn't a bad thing. If people fear me, they won't fight me, attack my men, or attack those I protect for risk of provoking me. People live, because I made this choice. I chose to be Infused, to be Broken, so that others do not."
"It feels like you're staring right through me," Ruby muttered with awe, and Blake immediately knew what she was seeing.
Piercing red eyes with slitted pupils, taking in everything you are, judging you by some unknown metric, and finding you lacking of what they were searching for.
"'The act of becoming is a defiance of all expectation. I am above. I see where the blade must go. I see through you,'" Rose said, obviously quoting something.
"How?"
"Magic, like the type you hear about in stories," Rose said, "it can do many things, but our Healer kind of…" She mumbled out the last bit, turning her head away from Ruby, allowing Blake to see her blush.
It was kind of cute.
"Sorry, what was that?"
"I said, he blew himself up. And the only set of notes we have is in a cipher, so now Dagna needs to translate them before we can have someone learn how. Once that happens, I should be able to be healed, or failing that, get a prosthetic made."
"Rose," Ozpin called out, "can we get back to the matter at hand?"
The flames along Rose's hand disappeared, and she stood turning to Ozpin with a serious look on her face.
"What do you want to know?"
"Everything."
-X Line Break X-
Weiss looked at Blake, feeling quite uncomfortable.
But why? Because Blake was a Faunus? Because Blake had been a member of the White Fang?
Or was it because Weiss didn't know how to take back what she had said during their argument?
How was she supposed to know Blake was a Faunus! It wasn't like she had given any sign of it.
...Actually, now that she thought about it, the name Belladonna did seem familiar. Where had she heard it? Her father, she thought, but why…?
So she was on a team with a former terrorist Faunus who was also working for the Inquisition. But in what order? Did the Inquisitor know that Blake had been in the White Fang?
Weiss had heard of the Inquisition, they had popped up on the border of Vacuo and Vale a couple of months before the school year had started. Despite attempts from both kingdoms to find where they had come from, there was nothing to show for it. Their members would disappear into the Alba Mountains, and any attempts to track them died there. One of their members had come to Atlas to set up a trade agreement with her father a couple months back.
It had ended with fifty Faunus workers disappearing, alongside several valuable paintings and statues. Her father hadn't been that angry in a long time.
"You said something bad was going to happen, how bad?" Ozpin asked, drawing Weiss out of her thoughts.
"The CCT was destroyed, Pyrrha Nikos was dead, Penny Polendina was dead, you were presumed dead, trust in the Atlasian military was severely damaged, Yang lost an arm, Blake ran away, Weiss was dragged back to Atlas, Grimm were starting to overrun Vale, and at least some of the White Fang had gone so far off the deep end that killing them would probably be for the best," Rose said, apparently unfazed by the future she was laying out.
"This doesn't seem to affect you," Ozpin accused her.
"When it first happened, it was the worst day of my life, now, it's lucky it makes the top ten. What happened there was a tragedy, but if I gave up every time something bad happened, I'd have thrown myself off a cliff a long time ago," Rose said, "and besides, you have something we didn't."
"What?"
"Me. I've burned the names of the ones behind the attack into my brain. The exact exact events leading up to it. What happened to my Vale doesn't matter, because it won't happen here. This," Rose gestured around with the knife, "is my chance to make up for that. Cinder Fall, Mercury Black, Emerald Sustrai, Roman Torchwick, Adam Taurus," Blake gave a small gasp, but Rose didn't seem to notice, picking up steam as her eyes turned red and a slightly wild look came into them, "those are the names of the men and women you want, Ozpin. Three of them will be at Beacon soon, pretending to be students from Mistral. Watch, and when the moment comes, don't hesitate to leap! Execute them on the spot, or have us do it if you don't have the guts, but don't let them-"
"RUBY!" Cassandra roared, stopping the tirade in it's tracks.
Rose stopped, before spinning and walking out of the room, Drei stood from his place next to Ruby, following on her heels.
After a brief, yet entirely silent conversation, Varric stood, following after her.
"My apologies," Cassandra bowed her head, "Ruby is normally in much better control than that. But the fall of Beacon has always been a sore spot for her despite what she said, and she isn't used to being able to show it anymore. I suppose she got a bit too heated. I can assure you that it won't happen again."
Nobody said anything, an uncomfortable silence settling across the room. Team RWBY shifted uncomfortably, while Ozpin seemed to look several times his age.
"Do you know, was it as bad as she said?"
"Ruby lost two friends before her eyes within hours of each other, watched her home be destroyed, played a vital role in the death of at least one person, and watched her friends be torn apart. Weather it was as bad as she says doesn't matter, it is one of the events that made her the woman she is today."
"Walking through the streets again, Beowolves howling in the distance, people screaming. I turn the corner, looking at the landing pad. Blake's there, one hand reached out to grab Yang's remaining hand, the other clutching the bloody hole in her stomach. Out of the shadows steps the red haired man, a face to finally put to the name. He's scarier this way, somehow. Sun moves to stop him, decapitated. Sage moves to stop him, run through. Neptune moves to stop him, throat slashed open, spilling his life-blood out. Scarlett moves to stop him, the blade was forced through his eye. Adam steps forward, and Blake pushes herself back, fear radiating from her form. Adam stops, gutting Yang in one swift move. I start to move, Aura and Blood and Fire gathers into dragon's claws. Blake raises her arms in a futile effort to ward off the blade that takes her head from her shoulders. Adam doesn't live to regret it, I fall onto him with a roar, tear into him, consume him, until nothing remains but a bloody pile of meat," Cole's voice cut through the room, "I spin looking to the sky, searching, praying. There, against the broken moon, the blighted citadel. It's a dream, it's the Fade, just Spirits and Demons who don't know what they're doing, that they're hurting me, none of this is real."
If anything, the atmosphere in the room grew even heavier at that. Weiss wasn't sure what Cole meant when he said 'blighted citadel' but it was clear that whatever it was, it featured in Rose's dreams often enough that she had the presence of mind to look for it as evidence of the fact that she was dreaming.
"And she hopes to stop it." It was Blake who said that.
"More than anything. I can not stress enough how much this means to her," Cassandra sighed, "Ruby called me one of her best friends, and she is one of mine. We've known each other since the first day of the Inquisition. I've watched her grow from a little girl trapped in a world she didn't understand who constantly looked to me or Leliana for for cues, to a confident leader. It would take me days to explain what we have been through, and Varric could do it better. Not once in all that time, did I seen Ruby cry. I'm not sure if she did it away from us, or didn't at all. When she found when we were, that we had a chance to stop it from happening, she cried. Then, she locked herself in her room, when she came out, she had plans drawn up for what we would do to make sure it didn't happen. She didn't want any of you involved, not even you, Blake."
"Then why did she-?"
"I insisted," Cole said, his quiet voice carrying, "It's still hard to look at Ruby, the Anchor tied her to the Fade in a way that can never be really undone, but I didn't need powers to see that she missed you, and that you and Weiss disappearing before she woke up hurt her. I don't like her being hurt."
"Oh. Sorry," Blake mumbled.
"Why are you sorry? You didn't do anything."
"What are you?" Weiss finally caved, asking the burning question.
"At one point, I was a Spirit, then a Demon, then something in-between, now, I'm a human or close to it."
That… was vague.
Blake pushed herself out of her chair, leaving the room.
-X Line Break X-
"Petals," Varric called softly, "you're there, right?"
Ruby didn't answer, leaving the Dwarf worried, before Drei barked.
Varric walked into the alley, where Ruby was shaking.
Not for the first time, Varric was reminded of another girl with short black hair and all too many expectations forced onto them at a young age. Add a swipe of blood across the nose, turn her eyes blue, and give her a relentlessly sarcastic attitude and she would be a clone of a young Marian Hawke.
The Champion and Inquisitor had become fast friends when Varric introduced them, though that didn't surprise him. After Marian somehow keeping Anders and Fenris from murdering each other for seven years, Varric was half convinced she could talk a Darkspawn into laying down its arms and joining the Chantry, and Ruby had been in the midst of successfully managing to keep the powderkeg the Inquisition had been at the time from blowing up through sheer force of personality (and a lot of acting lessons from Leliana and Josephine). Add in the fact that it was probably refreshing for both of them to meet someone else that the world seemed to have a personal grudge against, and the two had bonded rather quickly. From what Varric had heard, they had exchanged letters up until Weisshaupt had gone silent.
Maker, he missed her. Even though they had never spoken about that one time, after the rebellion… hadn't had time to really, with her having to go to ground. Maybe when they got back to Thedas. It would be good to move on from Bianca.
He supposed there was something about these types of stories he liked. The type he would write about. The Ferelden refugee, searching for every opportunity to claw themselves out of Lowtown, fighting through the grief of losing her sister and her uncle's debts. The lost girl, thrust into the cutthroat world of Thedas politics and desperately learning to not only survive there, but to thrive. It was easy to be brave when you had learned from a fencing master, it was easy to control the court's favor when you grew up watching your parents do the same. Ruby, Marian, they hadn't had that, they had been just a pair of relatively normal people who refused to give up, no matter how many times the world pushed them down and kicked them in the ribs. Somehow, they became larger than life in doing so.
In the end that was the problem, they weren't. Not Marian, and certainly not Ruby.
Varric grabbed Drei by the collar, dragging him to the end of the alley.
Varric had never met two Reavers whose abilities were exactly the same, but they almost all followed a few uniform rules. Draconic motifs, fire, pain.
Ruby had gotten lucky. Maybe because of her Aura, maybe she had some Faunus blood a few generations back and the ritual had latched onto that, maybe the Anchor had done something, maybe because she was a mage and accidentally created some new version of Hedge Magic, maybe Andraste and the Maker actually did like her. Every possibility had been offered, they weren't any closer to an answer. That didn't change the fact that Ruby had managed to avoid the ritualistic self harm most Reavers went through. Instead…
Ruby threw a thankful look over her shoulder, before throwing aside her cloak, and, for lack of a better word, exploding.
Her Aura coated her body, the bloody flames briefly forming into the outline of a dragon before lashing out in a wave of pure force. A rat that got caught in it writhed on the ground as Ruby's Aura drained its.
Ruby roared, her Aura scarring the ground as she let her grip go completely. She fell to the ground, driving her fist into it until it cratered. Blood leaked down her hand, even as the wounds healed, her Aura repairing the damage.
In the end, the Aura retracted into Ruby, and she was left gasping.
"Sorry… Sorry you had to… see that…"
"What? You finally venting? Petals, you should probably do that more often."
"And... risk Orlais learning? They're already looking... for a reason to end... end us, I can't give the-"
"Orlais isn't here."
Ruby froze, like that hadn't dawned on her.
Of course it hadn't. She had spent the last three years looking over her shoulder, watching every word, waiting for the next assassination attempt to come. Compared to that, coming back to Remnant must have left her confused. Politics wasn't quite as cutthroat, one wrong comment didn't see a slew of knives aimed at your back.
Varric was enjoying it, nice big cities, idiots to scam, no Merchant's Guild riding his back. Hell, if Hawke wasn't still in Thedas, he'd probably stay. Maybe he could take her back here with them, when Solas wasn't trying to cause another world ending calamity.
There was Grimm to hunt when they got bored, heating was cheap, so was food. Yeah, he could imagine settling down here.
"It doesn't matter, we're going back to Thedas, I can't risk slipping up there because-"
"Petals," Varric cut her off, "you need to relax. You're turning into a miniature version of Ruffles and Curly."
"I'm not-"
"When was the last time you did anything that wasn't at least tangentially related to the Inquisition?"
"I went to the spa with Vivienne-"
"That was six months ago, and from what she said, you spent the entire time stressing. Peta- Ruby," Varric ditched the nicknames for a moment, "You're going to run yourself into the ground. Those rumors about you being divine are just that, you're not-"
"What rumors?"
Trust her to catch that, instead of the point he was trying to make.
"Some people in Kirkwall think you're Andraste and The Maker's daughter."
"That's completely insane, I have a father, he's not some god who might not even exist!"
"Look at it from their point of view, you came out of a rift after hundreds of loyal worshipers died, nobody could find where you were from, you started to seal the Breach-"
"I was only trying to help-"
"-You fought off something that looked like an Archdemon and one of the original Darkspawn-"
"-I told Leliana to make sure that didn't get out!"
"-You survived dropping a mountain on it, broke an army of Grey Wardens and Demons-"
"I just led the assault, Cullen was in charge of the actual planning-"
"-entered the Fade and forced back an ancient demon-"
"That was because of you and Alistair-"
"-saved the queen of Orlais, supported an extremely popular Divine, and had Inquisition agents stop the war brewing between Tevinter and Nevarra and break Choir Boy's siege on Kirkwall. If you had really wanted too, you probably could have kept the Inquisition going without worrying about Ferelden and Orlais by moving to the Free Marches."
"But, I was just trying to help people!"
"I know that Petals, and I think that's the problem."
"How is helping people a problem?"
Varric sighed, this wasn't where he had expected this conversation to go, but knew Ruby wouldn't let them get back on topic until then. Varric ignored the person walking from Ruby's end of the alley.
"Because you don't want a reward for it. To you, helping people is just something that comes naturally. They're used to people wanting something, especially in Orlais. Someone who's just as comfortable helping a farmer find their lost Druffalo as fighting-"
Ruby staggered, then, dropping to one knee, and Varric grunted as something struck his shoulder. Then two bangs carried, and Varric felt the burning feeling.
"What in Andraste's name?"
"Did you really think," Adam Taurus growled, dropping Blush and raising Wilt over his head with both hands as he stepped behind Ruby, "that I wasn't going to get out if you left me alone?"
"You're about to make the worst mistake of your life," Ruby's voice had dropped an octave, her eyes a bright red.
Adam didn't respond, swinging Wilt for her neck.
There was the sound of choking, followed by a hiss of flames, and the body hit the floor.
-X Line Break X-
Blake walked out of the room, mind reeling.
Adam. Adam helped destroy Ruby- Rose- The Inquisitor- whatever's version of Vale? Impossible.
But, was it? He had already been sinking to new lows when she left, and there had to be some reason Ruby had nightmares of him killing Yang and her often enough that knowing what he looked like "was scarier."
In hindsight, The Inquisitor being an older version of Ruby made a lot of sense. When, exactly, they had met, why she had been so willing to invite her to the Inner Circle, and why the other members seemed to know things about her she had never said. She had just written it off as Cole being incapable of keeping a secret, as usual. Why she had always been given a bit more supplies than she probably needed on the odd jobs they had sent her on before Beacon, and Ruby always seemed worried that she wouldn't come back.
They also had several behavioral traits in common. Both tended to get distracted easily, both tended to take metaphors at face value (though Blake suspected that, at least in Rose's case, it was a deliberate thing), and both had a rather large sweet tooth.
There were differences, Rose was less vocal about supporting Faunus rights, but also routinely had supplies sent to Faunus settlements in Vacuo, had Leliana hire on Faunus as spies, and had Cullen send guards to help deal with bandit attacks. Ruby was very clear on her dislike for the taste of alcohol, but Rose had both a tavern named after her and a wine cellar (neither of which Blake had admittedly ever seen her actually use for their intended purpose).
Blake stopped at the front desk, asking if they had seen which way Ruby, Drei and Varric had gone.
After being pointed into the streets, Blake slipped out into the night.
Why had she… or, well, the other her (Maker, this was confusing) run off?
...She had just sworn by The Maker again, hadn't she? Dammit.
Who was she kidding, she knew exactly why she would have run. She had left the White Fang to get away from the path Adam was leading them, to get away from him.
A pair of woman rushed by as an inhuman roar echoed across the city, and Blake reached for Gambol Shroud just to be safe.
Where would she go, if she ran away from Beacon? To get away from Vale?
Probably Skyhold. The fortress was nigh impossible to find if Ruby didn't want you too, something about the Fade having bleed into the walls and mountain, and the Inquisition would probably be more than willing to put up with her until Adam gave up. They did it with Vivienne.
But that didn't answer her question, the other Blake, Rose's Blake, didn't have Skyhold. So where would she have gone?
Not Atlas, despite Blake being able to easily pass as a human, and that Adam would never go there, Blake didn't think she would be able to sit by as the Faunus there suffered. Vacuo, maybe, even before she had personally gone there on a supply run with Bull and Krem, she had known it to be a haven for Faunus, second only to Menagerie. They had gotten a few odd looks, but to be fair, it wasn't everyday you saw a seven foot tall man with grey skin and giant horns.
Maybe Minstal? But that's where the White Fang based, and there was no way she would go back to Menagerie.
...Right?
Blake stopped, before slinking into the shadows.
Shit. Shit. Shit shit shit SHIT!
Adam walked past her, apparently missing her completely as his hand gripped Blush so tightly it groaned, dragging one of his legs behind him.
What were the chances?
Blake's eyes flickered to opposite end of the street, wondering if she could sneak away? Adam looked like he was out for blood. She could pretend this never happened, not worry about-
Ruby's face came to mind, tight as she walked onto the wooden platform, Cullen behind her with Mercy in its sheath.
Blake looked up from the crowd, Krem's hand on her shoulder.
"Let the blade pass through the flesh,
Let my blood touch the ground,
Let my cries touch their hearts. Let mine be the last sacrifice," The Chantry mother recited, standing before the kneeling man.
Red spikes grew from his body, and he was shaking like a leaf. He coughed suddenly, blood spraying from his mouth.
"What's going on?"
Krem didn't answer, eyes locked onto the platform.
Blake frowned, she had never seen everyone so serious.
"Raleigh Samson," Ruby's voice rang out, the familiar confidence she put on around the Inquisition ringing true, "You know why we are here?"
Raleigh laughed slightly, before wincing, one of the red spikes quivered, before growing another inch. They were crystals, Blake realized.
"Can… can we get this over with?"
Ruby's eyes softened, and she held out her hand. Cullen stepped forward, allowing Ruby to grip Mercy's hilt.
"For what it's worth? I couldn't have wished for a better enemy, Samson. I wish we could have found you before Corypheus. You were a good soldier."
"The feeling is mutual, girl," Samson smiled, bloodshot eyes coming up to meet Ruby's. Then he lowered his head.
Ruby nodded at the Chantry Mother, and she recited another verse.
"Here lies the abyss, the well of all souls.
From these emerald waters doth life begin anew.
Come to me, child, and I shall embrace you.
In my arms lies Eternity."
Samson's eyes seemed to widen, his head snapping up to look at Ruby.
"Girl…" his voice cracked.
The Chanter flicked the tome in her hand to a different page, reading the words. Krem's hand tightened on her shoulder, and he leaned in, "Don't look away, he deserves that much."
What? Then it dawned on Blake. No.
"I cannot see the path.
Perhaps there is only abyss.
Trembling, I step forward,
In darkness enveloped.
Though all before me is shadow,
Yet shall the Maker be my guide.
I shall not be left to wander the drifting roads of the Beyond.
For there is no darkness in the Maker's Light
And nothing that He has wrought shall be lost.
I am not alone. Even
As I stumble on the path
With my eyes closed, yet I see
The Light is here.
Draw your last breath, my friends.
Cross the Veil and the Fade and all the stars in the sky.
Rest at the Maker's right hand,
And be Forgiven."
Samson lowering his head again, a choked laughter rising, and Blake realized he was crying.
As the verse ended, Ruby drew Mercy from its sheath, the rune of fire igniting the blade.
Samson's sobbing laughs grew worse as Ruby raised the blade.
The blade came down, cutting through bone and tendons and muscle in one move, the flames searing the wound shut. Blake flinched, but didn't look away, Krem's hand on her shoulder.
"Why?"
"Samson only ever got this bad because Ruby put off his execution so he could work for the Inquisition. This was her fixing her mistake. Nobody will ever remember what evils Raleigh Samson did, they will remember this, him being forgiven in Andraste's name by her Herald."
Blake snapped out of it, realizing she had started to follow Adam as she thought.
Adam turned into an alley, firing Blush twice. Blake rushed ahead, staring as he walked behind Ruby, raising Wilt.
"You're about to make the worst mistake of your life."
The blade started to drop, and Blake rushed forward, training with Leliana coming up as she wrapped her arm around his throat and pulled back.
The blade missed Ruby's neck by an inch, and she turned, flames forming around her hand as the fist shattered Adam's mask.
Adam crashed down on top of Blake, she lay there winded for a second, before Adam was pulled off of her and thrown against the wall. Drei bounded over from his hiding place, teeth an inch from Adam's throat.
Ruby grabbed her hand, helping her up.
Looking over, Blake watched Varric drink something from a vial, before pouring another down Adam's throat, and pulling out some rope to tie him up.
"Thanks," Ruby coughed, "but you really didn't need to do that."
Ruby grabbed Adam by the scruff of his neck, dragging him toward a truck in the distance.
"Come on, let's drop this idiot off and get back in there, I still need to finish talking to Ozpin."
-X Line Break X-
Ruby looked up from where she was examining Rose's gauntlet as said Inquisitor, Varric, Drei, and Blake walked in, looking tired.
Was that… blood?
Rose's hand had blood splattered across it, as did Varric's coat.
Rose walked up to her, holding out her hand. Huh? Oh! Ruby handed over the gauntlet, looking up at Rose.
"What kind of bone is that?"
"Let me guess," Blake said, walking to her spot, "Dragon?"
"Do we use anything else?"
"Exactly."
"What can I say," Rose shrugged, letting Cassandra help her put the gauntlet back on, "I have a kinship with the Dragon we got this bone from. It was the first one I killed, it was also the biggest."
"Dragon?"
"They're giant winged beasts! Kind of like Wyvern Grimm, which are completely different than Thedas's Wyverns. They're magnificent, once every hundred years, they leave their caves and rampage, hunting livestock. That's when we come in!"
"You seem… oddly passionate about this," Ozpin said, watching Rose.
Rose let out a giddy laugh, "It's my favorite part of my job. There's no guilt, no political motives, nothing but searing flames, a storm of blades and the knowledge that I did something to help. If you gave me the choice between going to one Orlesian party or fighting six High Dragons, I'd gladly take them all on at once!"
Ruby couldn't help but squirm in her seat, she liked a good fight, yeah, but she wasn't bloodthirsty like Rose seemed to be.
What had happened to cause her to change? Was leading the Inquisition that hard?
"Still don't like parties?" Yang asked.
Hey!
Oh Dust, she was turning into Weiss.
"I can put up with them, I'd just rather die because my armor, Aura, and weapons failed me, instead of someone poisoning my wineglass. Again."
"Why would someone want to poison you?"
"Because it's Orlais, their nobility is made up of assholes who don't have anything better to do then kill each other because someone was... I don't know, wearing flat shoes and owned a breed of dog they didn't like."
Ruby started to giggle.
"Still sore about that particular attempt, Inquisitor?" Leliana asked.
Ruby stopped giggling. Someone had tried to kill Rose, kill her, for that?
"Yes! It's petty. My support for the College of Mages, I can understand, or me backing Gisele, but shoes? Really?"
"Rose," Ozpin drew attention back to them, "where is Thedas?"
"Hell if I know. We were thrown here by an ungodly powerful Elven Mage."
"Then, what are the Inquisition's intentions for Remnant?"
"Stopping the destruction of Vale, finding a way back to Thedas, stopping Solas, and then some of us might retire here. Why?"
"Because, currently it looks like you're trying to create a new Kingdom."
"No…?"
"Then why are you sending armed forces to villages near the Alba Mountains?"
"To help? Huntsmen can't be everywhere, and we have enough men garrisoned at Skyhold. We haven't sent out our best men for much."
"Still, it would be for the best if you met with the Councils now, rather than later."
"Uh… Can we at least wait to get Josephine here?"
"How long would that take?"
"Two… Three days? Less if you're willing to let us borrow a Bullhead. It gives us an excuse to show a delegation Skyhold while we're at it."
"We can do that."
"Can we also get the paintings you stole from my home back while we're there?" Weiss asked.
"No."
"Why not!?"
"Because we sold them on the black market and used to processes to pay for supplies for several Faunus settlements," Rose admitted without shame.
"Snrk."
Everyone looked over at where Blake was covering her mouth, trying to hide her laughter.
"Ruby?"
"Yeah, Blake?"
"I love you."
"Love you too."
Why did she get the feeling they meant two different things when they said that?