According to an old wives' tale, if you died in a dream, you died for real. When Ruby was ten, she learned how wrong that was.

She found herself wandering in a black wasteland. Darkness was everywhere, and shifting clouds of black fog rolled across the landscape, blown by a cold wind. She shivered, pulling her hood up, but it did little to hold back the chill. But then, the darkness shifted, the ground melding together with the fog and the shadows into a thick forest. But though the terrain was now more recognizable, it still seemed... off. Its features were darker, colder, more foreboding than a forest should have been. Its only saving grace was that, despite the darkness, she could still see her surroundings, if only barely

She looked around herself, feeling more and more uneasy, her fear quickly growing. And then, she heard a growl from behind her. She jumped in fright, spinning around to look behind her, and saw a black outline silhouetted against the shadows of the forest. It was like a cross between a man and a wolf, pitch-black except for its red eyes. It stood, glaring at her for a moment, before charging at her.

She could do nothing. Frozen with fear, she was helpless as it pounced on her, seizing her with one arm, lifting her up as easily as if she were a paper doll. She tried to struggle, but her muscles wouldn't move. For a terrifying moment, it held her, drawing her in close, opening its jaws and breathing in, salivating as it tasted her fear. She had enough time to let out a whimper, before its jaws closed around her neck.

She woke up with a scream. Yang was there in moments, braving the younger girl's aura of terror, ignoring her own fear to help soothe her sister's. They held each other tightly as Ruby explained what had happened. Then Yang told her not to worry, because she'd be right there with her. Soon, Ruby's fear was replaced by fatigue, and she lay back down on the bed, but left room for Yang to lay beside her. And, with Yang still holding her, she quickly drifted off to sleep.

But a week later, the nightmare repeated itself. Then it came again, on the fifth night after that. After a month of them, Ruby realized that they weren't going away anytime soon. No matter how much Yang or her father tried to comfort her, no matter what they did to try and soothe her sleep, the nightmares always returned, sooner or later. She couldn't even be woken from them, once they began – no matter how much people tried to shake her, or splash water on her face, she kept thrashing about until finally she perished in the dream. And though they varied in details, they always had the same pattern.

The nightmares always began the same way, in that strange, ephemeral shadowscape. This would twist itself into terrain of some sort, a shadowy mockery of a forest, or a city, or some other locale. Then, monsters would come after her, sooner or later. Sometimes they arrived quickly, other times they took their time stalking her before pouncing. Their forms and number would vary – sometimes, a pack of Beowolves would come after her, or she might find herself facing an indescribable multi-limbed, hellish horror. She'd be pursued by Grimm, or humanoid phantoms, or creatures she'd never seen before.

But no matter what they were, they would always find her. Sometimes she ran blindly through the terrain, while the creatures slowly gained ground. Sometimes she tried to hide, only for them to sniff her out. She even tried begging for mercy, only for the humanlike shape to callously raise its blade, then bring it down on her neck. No running, no hiding, no reasoning. It didn't take Ruby long to realize there was only one option.

She had to fight.

One night, when the nightmare came, she stood her ground against the creature that approached, the very same wolfman that had come for her in her first nightmare. Terrified though she was, she was determined not to run. But as it advanced on her, her resolve started to waver. She was alone and unarmed, and though her Aura was unlocked, that would only buy her time, not give her a weapon.

Then she tried to think of someone brave, someone skilled in fighting. Someone who could protect her. She thought of her uncle Qrow. And then, his scythe was in her hands, as though it had always been there and she just hadn't noticed. She blinked, then gripped the weapon tightly and focused on her foe.

The wolfman growled at her, halting its advance, but showing no sign of backing down. So, she hefted her newfound weapon with all the strength her young body could muster, and swung it across at the monster. But it stepped back from the strike, and the scythe continued to move, unbalancing her. After it spun her around to face the wrong direction, she fell backwards onto the ground, looking up and back towards the wolfman. It growled, almost disdainfully, and swung a claw at her. She raised her arm up to block, and her Aura pulsed at just the right moment, stopping the attack in its tracks. The monster growled again, but didn't press its advantage. Instead, it merely watched as Ruby got to her feet again and lifted the scythe.

Ruby's hands shook, which did not help her wield the exotic weapon. It was too big for her, on top of the weapon's already unwieldy nature. But she didn't let that stop her as she swung the scythe overhead, aiming the blade for its head. It leaped back once more, causing the blade to bury itself in the dirt. It narrowed its eyes at her as Ruby adjusted her grip, not hesitating in trying to heft the weapon free. Trying to recall how her uncle had used the scythe, she swung the blade back behind her, ready to swing forward if her foe approached. She looked back into the creature's eyes, afraid, but determined to do her best. She would fall, but she would go down fighting.

After a few long, tense moments, it pounced again. Ruby tried to swing her scythe, but the creature was too fast, parrying away the haft with one claw, and swiping at her with the other. The combination attack knocked the scythe from her grip, depleted her remaining Aura, and knocked her to the ground. It placed its foot on her chest, pinning her to the ground and crushing the air from her. It leaned in, staring into her eyes.

As her breath left her, Ruby started panicking again, feeling weak and helpless once more. But even as she stared back, her hand scrabbled around, seeking the scythe. And as she looked into its eyes, she thought she could see something different from the sadistic glee she'd seen in the eyes of so many of her nightmares' creatures. It looked... angry? Impatient? It was hard to read its night-black face.

And then, inexplicably, it stepped off her. Ruby sucked in a gasp of air, then dove for the scythe, awkwardly bringing it up to face the monster. But it was backing off, letting out a threatening growl, but retreating nonetheless. Slowly, it faded into the shadows, as Ruby stood and stared in confusion. A few moments later, the forest itself faded away, and then she found herself in bed, awakening peacefully. Morning sunlight streamed in through the window.

And she smiled. She hadn't beaten it, and it was quite clear that it had simply let her live... but she'd fought, and survived all the same. Still, as she got up and stretched, she knew she would have to do better in the future.

The first thing she did after getting out of bed was to get her scroll to call Uncle Qrow.

Fortunately for everyone involved, it was too early in the morning for Qrow to be drunk. At least, not when he had family to look after.

He sat at one end of the dining room table, with Ruby across from him. To his left was Taiyang, and on his other side was Yang, though Yang was just eating breakfast and being groggy rather than contributing to the conversation. Ruby's Zone of Terror, as they'd taken to calling her powers, was probably the only thing keeping Yang awake.

Ruby had just finished her retelling of her latest nightmare, and its surprise ending. And she was smiling, for the first time that Qrow had seen in months.

"So… I want to train," she said. "I want to learn how to fight."

Normally, Qrow wouldn't have even considered trying to train someone of her age. She wasn't even done growing, yet she wanted to start learning how to use a weapon? But Ruby wasn't an ordinary kid. And these weren't ordinary nightmares she was dealing with.

"All right," he said. "I'll train you."

"Qrow-" Taiyang began, hesitantly.

He paused long enough for Qrow to interrupt. "I know what you're going to say, and you have a point." He sighed. "But nothing else has worked." Yeah, there were risks. But Qrow was weighing that against the prospect of the nightmares continuing, and what that would do to Ruby if she had no way of fighting against them. Qrow didn't want to think about what she would become, after countless nights of dying in dreams. He'd been in life-or-death situations before, and even he couldn't imagine what Ruby was going through. He, after all, had never died.

Taiyang looked like he was going to continue with his admonition, but then he sat back in his chair and nodded. "I want to be there when you're training."

Qrow smiled. "Of course." He knew the two felt the same way. Here was a chance to actually do something for Ruby. Of course they'd both take it.

"Hey," Yang piped up, looking much more alert all of a sudden. "If Ruby's training, I want to train too!"

Taiyang chuckled. "I guess it'll be training for the whole family."

Ruby smiled appreciatively at her big sister, before looking back at Qrow. "When can we begin?"

Qrow smirked. "Why not this afternoon?"

That afternoon, the four of them had gathered in the open space next to the house. Taiyang was leaning against the side of the house, while Yang stood next to him, watching Ruby and Qrow expectantly.

"All right," Qrow began, holding his weapon before Ruby, in scythe form. "First things first. The scythe is one of the most difficult weapons you could learn to use." He sighed, taking on an exasperated tone he usually reserved for... well, anybody but family. "It wasn't designed as a weapon, it was never meant to be a weapon, and it requires a fighting style that... doesn't actually exist.

"All of that is why Harbinger has a sword form." With the press of a switch, the scythe compacted itself, its segments lining up and slotting into each other. When it finished, it resembled a triangular, single-edged sword rather than a scythe, though the gears in the hilt, and the lines between the sword's segments, hinted at complex machinery and different modes. "This way, it's a lot more maneuverable, and useful. All that machinery makes it a lot more complicated to operate, though." He rested the weapon on his shoulder. "So, you still want to learn how to use a scythe?"

Ruby nodded slowly. "I can't think of anything else I want to use."

"Even if learning to use it is a nightmare of its own?" Qrow sighed. "Ruby, the reason I trained myself to use a scythe is because I was an idiot – and maybe a little drunk – and though it'd be... okay, not exactly "cool," but something to help push people away, so to speak. And even then, I still had this sword form to fall back on."

Ruby tilted her head, frowning. "It'll be easier to learn if you're teaching me, right?"

"Maybe. I mean... this is me we're talking about. " He took Harbinger off his shoulder. "With my Semblance, expect anything and everything to go wrong." He hesitated a moment, before presenting the weapon to her.

Ruby's eyes widened as she slowly reached out her hands and grabbed hold of Harbinger, handling it delicately, as though it were a holy relic. She shifted her grip, grabbing the hilt with both hands. Its size and weight made it difficult for her to hold, but she was determined to not lose control.

Qrow backed away several paces, giving her room. His eyes were on her hands. "That's it, dominant hand up top."

Ruby nodded, starting to lift and lower the blade, getting a feel for its weight. After a few moments, she raised it and swung it diagonally. She did this a few more times, putting more and more of her weight into each swing. Finally, she overextended herself, stumbling slightly as she swung too hard.

Qrow kept his distance. "Just keep doing that until you're comfortable with it. Then you can practice with the scythe form."

Yang, meanwhile, was starting to look bored. She had sat down on the grass, her eyelids drooping slightly. Next to her, Taiyang looked at her, and said, "Yang, you said you wanted to train too. This is what it's going to be like, at first."

"Ugh," she said, rolling her eyes. "When is she going to get to hit things?"

Taiyang smirked. "It might be a while. Of course, if she were training with her fists, she could get to punching right away."

Yang turned and looked up at him, starting to get an excited look on her face.

Meanwhile, Ruby continued to practice with Harbinger, completely focused on the object in her hands. Qrow felt a bit of pride well up in him, watching her. She was still new to this, but the intensity in her eyes as she practiced her form and her swings… he knew at that moment that she was meant for this. She was meant to be a Huntress. That determination in her would accept no less.

But then, her hand brushed the switch as she held it upright. Immediately the blade began to extend in an arc. Ruby was unprepared for the transformation, and the point of the scythe smacked into her forehead.

Immediately, Qrow took off towards her, while Taiyang and Yang looked over from where they'd begun sparring. Ruby stumbled, raising up a hand. "I'm all right."

As Qrow approached, he could see a drop of blood on her forehead from where the point had impacted her. It looked like her Aura had taken most of the impact, but even so…

"I think that's enough for now." He reached a hand towards Harbinger's haft. "We'll get you a training weapon to use later. Now, let's get that cut cleaned up." He gestured towards the house.

Defeated, Ruby let go of the weapon and started walking towards the house.

It didn't take long to reach the medical supplies in the bathroom. Qrow wiped away the blood before applying an adhesive bandage to Ruby's forehead. "I told you anything could go wrong." He smiled. "Still, not a bad start."

Ruby just nodded, staring ahead as if lost in thought. After a few moments, she said softly, "It's funny, isn't it?"

"Huh?"

"I have a semblance that makes people afraid of me..." She rested her head in her hands. "...And now I have these nightmares..."

Qrow tried to think of something to say, and failed. He settled for resting a hand on her shoulder, hoping that would be enough. No, of course it wouldn't be enough, but it might at least help.

At times like these, Qrow really wished he knew how to be a better parent. But he'd been trying to avoid that very role for too long, in large part because of his Semblance. When he brought misfortune to everyone around him... well, he always felt that life was trying to tell him he just wasn't meant to be around people. But... try as he might to avoid having people to care for, here he was, trying to comfort a girl with her own "gift" that was really more like a curse.

Actually, lately he'd been more of a father figure to Ruby than her own biological father, though that wasn't really Tai's fault. It was just... well, as it turned out, shared misfortune was great for bonding. When Ruby's "Zone of Terror" first manifested, Qrow had said to her, "Ruby, sometimes people get Semblances they don't want, powers that seem like they don't fit them, or that just make things harder for them. But, they're part of our souls. They'll always be with us, so we might as well make the most of them. And maybe one day, the moment will come when you're glad you have it."

But now, he didn't know what to say. A Semblance that affects everyone around you that you can't turn off is one thing, but nightmares like these? He'd never heard of nightmares so real, in the worst possible ways. Maybe they were related to her Semblance, maybe they weren't, but either way... what could someone say to comfort a girl who experienced in dreams what adults weren't meant to go through?

Truth be told, he wasn't using to talking about issues with people. He dealt with his issues with a bottle of strong drink. He sure as hell wasn't going to suggest she do the same.

But he could at least train her to fight. Normally, he wouldn't have considered it for a girl her age. But if her nightmares weren't willing to wait, then she couldn't wait either.

Then, he knew what to say. "Ruby, if there's one thing you should take from this... it's that you can fight these nightmares. And I'm gonna do my best to make sure that when you fight them, you win."

Ruby lifted her head up and smiled at him. "Thanks, uncle. You're the best, you really are."

Qrow chuckled. "Don't say things like that. I'm just doing what I can, that's all. But for you, that's my best."

Author's Notes:

And here we have something different! These nightmares are part of the reason this fic might get a bit dark – dying takes a toll on a person. On the bright side, we have Qrow making an appearance!