Ruby woke with a jolt and a burst of Aura. She had been roused because she thought she had sensed Jaune was standing in the room, but quickly realized that wasn't the case.
"What is it, Ruby?" Blake muttered. She was always a light sleeper and was still used to being on alert
"I thought I felt something from-" Ruby was cut off as she felt another burst of Jaune's Aura. Only this was much stronger than his usual Aura. This much Aura released at once could only mean one thing.
"He's found his Semblance!" Ruby slammed the door open and ran out. She startled Weiss awake, who said, "The sun's barely up, you dolt!"
Ruby ignored her and ran to the rooftop where Jaune and Pyrrha had their nightly training sessions. She slowed down to a walk as she got to the top of the building, not wanting to scare Jaune, especially if he was using his Semblance. Uncontrolled Semblances were never good. Yang would never live down the incident at the beach when she had lost control of her Semblance.
Ruby peered out the door and didn't see either Jaune or Pyrrha at first. Then she blushed as she saw Jaune and Pyrrha kissing against the wall next to her. Her mouth agape, Ruby tried to quietly sneak away when Nora came barreling past her pulling a bleary eyed Ren along. "Hey, you got your Semblance!"
"Agh!" Jaune stumbled away and fell backwards. Pyrrha was blushing with her hands cupping her mouth. "Um, Pyrrha was just, um,"
"Can you guys keep it down?" Weiss stomped through the door with Blake behind her. "Some of us were trying to…" Weiss voice trailed off as she saw Pyrrha and Jaune both blushing furiously and avoiding everyone's gaze.
"Nope, don't want to know." Weiss stuck her nose into the air and strode away.
"Yeah, I'll give you two some privacy." Blake said.
"So, you two." Nora advanced upon the helpless couple with the intensity of a hungry Beowolf. "As best friends, Ren and I require details!"
"Uh…" Jaune quickly backed to the roof but saved by Ruby.
"Your Semblance! What is it?" Ruby dashed around Jaune confusing both him and Nora in the process. "Is it a force field? Is it elemental based? Ooh! Is it healing? Your Aura's white, right? Maybe it's light based. Like, a flashbang or a signal flare. Or maybe it was a manifestation of a fire based Semblance like Yang's! Oh, this is sooooo cool!"
"We're not sure." Pyrrha said. "His Semblance didn't seem to have any immediate effect."
"Yeah, go figure." Jaune sighed.
"No, it probably only shows in battles!" Ruby said, "Can I fight you? Please, please, please?"
"I've been fighting with Pyrrha for the past months," Jaune said, "Maybe she and I could go again?"
"I bet you guys just want to go again." Nora said from behind Ren."
"Shut up!" Jaune yelled.
"I think you should fight Ren." Pyrrha said, "You've been training with me for so long, your body might feel that Ren is more of a threat."
"Aw, but why can't it be me?" Ruby said, "I wanna see Jaune's Semblance."
"I would feel better if I knew Jaune's opponent had self-restraint." Pyrrha said.
Ruby rolled her eyes but walked to the side of the roof beside Nora. Meanwhile, Ren crouched and held his right fist in front of him while he kept his left by his fist. Jaune raised his shield in front of him and kept the tip of his longsword pointed towards Ren. The two boys faced off with each other for several seconds. Ren slowly moved around Jaune who kept his distance.
"Come on! Let's have some action!" Nora yelled.
"Yeah, Ren, beat up Jaune so he can use his Semblance!" Ruby added.
To Jaune's credit, he didn't drop his fighting stance while being heckled. Ren hoped he would be distracted and started running towards Jaune. Jaune backed away slightly as he braced himself for Ren's attack.
It didn't come from the front. Instead, Ren jumped over Jaune's shield and lashed out at Jaune's face with his foot. Jaune backed away, but Ren used his momentum from the last jump to deliver a front kick to Jaune's shield. Jaune was sent tumbling back several metres, but he kept his shield up.
Ren darted around Jaune, but this time Jaune was ready for him. He slashed at Ren to keep him from coming too close, making sure to keep his shield held between him and Ren. He swung again, but this time Ren used his palm to strike at the blade.
Infused with Aura, Ren kept up the offensive, deflecting Jaune's strikes by hitting the flat of the blade. Ruby's mouth was hanging open as she saw Ren dance around Jaune. There was no other way to put it. Ren's punches seemed to flow as swiftly as a coursing river. His limbs moved unpredictably, yet every time he moved it seemed like part of some great pattern.
The fight ended when Ren ducked under Jaune's sword, only to spring up into a kick that cracked Jaune's fingers and sent his sword flying. He dusted himself off as Jaune clutched his fingers and bowed slightly, then hurried over to Jaune. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah." Jaune said, "Don't worry. I'll just go to the nurse." He got up, but suddenly his hand emitted a white flash. He stumbled into Pyrrha as he dealt with the sudden loss of Aura, but his hand was fully healed.
"I was right!" Ruby said, "You can heal yourself."
"Can I heal others?" Jaune asked.
"Let's see." Pyrrha said. She used her lance, Milo, to prick herself in the arm and held it out to Jaune. He gripped it and emitted his Aura again, which coursed through his arm and into Pyrrha's. When he pulled it away, the wound had scabbed over, though it was still moist.
"I probably didn't have as much Aura." Jaune said. He leaned against the wall for a moment before grinning. "I've got a Semblance!" He looked at his hands again and said, "I've actually got a Semblance!"
Pyrrha hugged him, and Nora pounded him on the back, causing him to stumble a few steps to the left. The window below them opened and they heard Cardin yell, "Congratulations! Now can you guys shut up and let us get some sleep?"
Ruby left team JNPR to go tell her team. She couldn't wait to see the look on their faces. Well, Weiss would probably be mad at being woken up again, and Blake would probably be indifferent. But Yang would be so happy for Jaune. Maybe she would…
Where was Yang? Ruby hadn't given her a second thought in all the excitement of Jaune discovering his Semblance, but Yang hadn't even gotten up from bed. No, Yang had to be alright. She was, well, Yang. And what dangers could she get into in Beacon? Ruby opened the door to their room quietly, but her entire team was absent from the room.
Alongside the note Qrow had left, Weiss had written in elegant cursive, Gone to look for Yang. Meet in the courtyard at eight if you haven't found anything.
Ruby sighed and jumped out of the window, going to the garage where Yang kept her motorcycle, Bumblebee. The motorcycle was where Yang had left it, and judging by the dust on the tarp thrown over it, Yang hadn't come here. Ducking underneath the Bullheads the school used, Ruby tried to think of where Yang might be.
Ruby could leave it to Weiss and Blake to check the obvious places like the dining hall and the gym. Ruby tried to think of where Yang was unlikely to go. Junior's place was possible, but Ruby didn't want to go to that side of town unless she had to. Besides, Yang would kill her if she knew Ruby voluntarily went into a bar meant for over eighteens.
As she was walking through the courtyard of Beacon, her uncle Qrow landed in the middle of the unkempt grass. Ruby beamed, but her smile faded as Qrow ran towards her. "Have you seen Yang?"
Ruby's mouth dropped. "How did you know she's missing?"
"A crow sees things if it flies high enough." Qrow muttered, more to himself. "I have to tell Ozpin."
He started to run towards the citadel behind them, but Ruby dashed alongside him. "Where's Yang?"
"I don't know." Qrow said. They reached the walls, but instead of going through the doors he ran up the towering walls. Ruby tried to follow but without Weiss' glyphs, she was only able to go up several metres before she tumbled back down to the ground.
"What's going on?" She mumbled to herself. Ruby turned around to see Yang walking through the middle of the walkway, as if she was just going to breakfast like normal.
"Where were you!?" She asked.
"Oh, you noticed?" Yang twirled her hair around her finger anxiously. Ruby also noticed that Yang's Aura was almost completely depleted, and her blond hair hung in sweaty clumps around her body. "Well, I sort of got sidetracked."
"Sidetracked?" Ruby said, "You've even got uncle Qrow worried." She kept on staring at Yang and realized that Yang's right arm was covered in dry blood.
"Oh." Yang shrugged, and that was what made Ruby worried. Yang slouched as she walked, not even bothering to smile. It was that, more than Yang's depleted Aura, that made Ruby stretch out her hand. She wanted to help Yang, but she never knew what to do. This hadn't been her job.
"Yang, what-" Ruby was cut off when Qrow fell from the top of the tower and strode to Yang. Ruby gulped when she saw how agitated her uncle was. He was one of the most laidback people she knew, and to see him anxious was as weird as, well, seeing Ozpin act harshly.
"You saw Raven?" Qrow asked.
"Yeah." Ruby realized again how tired Yang was when she didn't even flinch from Qrow's intense gaze. She seemed as tired as a war veteran who had seen and felt too much.
"What did she tell you?" Qrow asked.
"It doesn't matter." Yang said. The tone Yang used sounded familiar to Ruby. She thought back and remembered hearing it from Mako, who had once been named Burgundy, telling her how he had given up on her dreams.
What had happened to Yang?
"We need to know." Qrow said.
Yang looked at Qrow with a mixture of cynicism and disgust that made Qrow step back. Yang's eyes were lined with deep bags, and she swayed slightly on her feet.
"We all need to know." Ruby stepped in and tried to appeal to Qrow's better nature. The Qrow that had a bro code with her dad. The Qrow that played tag with her and always cheated by climbing up trees. The Qrow that had guided Ruby's arms until she could swing her scythe in her sleep. She flung her arms out to the side and continued, "Why does Ozpin keep on hiding things from us?"
"Because Cinder Fall was the biggest mistake I made in decades, and trying to fix it was one of the hardest things I had to do." Ozpin had somehow travelled from his office down to the courtyard. "But, yes, you are right. The high stakes and personal betrayal I felt on the day of the Vytal festival is no excuse for not telling you Hunters the truth."
Ruby slowly nodded at Ozpin's apology. The headmaster turned to Yang. "Now, I need to know what Raven told you."
"Funny you should ask." Yang said.
Ruby remembered all the times she had thrown tantrums at Tai Yang when she was told to go to her room, or take a shower. But now Yang just replied as if she was tired of Ozpin.
"Tell me, Yang." Ozpin walked up to Yang. "What did Raven say."
"She was pretty crazy." Yang said, "Ravin' about this and that, I couldn't really understand it."
Ozpin wasn't amused. "Yang, you test my patience dearly. Please refrain from doing so again, or more stringent measures will need to be taken."
"What, like you did with Ruby?" Yang's spirit trickled back into her as she was reminded of the threat Ozpin had made to Ruby. Qrow and Ozpin both stiffened and released a small increment of Aura in surprise. They controlled themselves within a fraction of a second, but Ruby felt a flash of raw power that made her take a few steps back.
"I don't think you realize the gravity of the situation." Ozpin said, "Raven stands at the pinnacle of terrorists trying to bring down Remnant. She is more powerful and influential than even CNDR. Meeting with her is tantamount to meeting with one of the most malicious people in Remnant." Ozpin was already directly in front of Yang, but as he released a small increment of his Aura, he seemed to grow taller and tower over Yang. "If any of my other headmasters realized this, you would be facing life imprisonment. The only reason you would have escaped execution would be so they could interrogate you."
Yang gulped as Ozpin held her gaze for a moment. "This will be your last chance, Yang Xiao Long. Don't waste it." Ozpin walked back to his office and Qrow jumped over the walls of Beacon and vanished from sight. Ruby waited until both adults were out of sight, then hugged Yang tightly. Yang's mouth dropped at this unusual display of affection and patted Ruby on the head. "Hey, what's gotten into you?"
"What's gotten into me?" Ruby asked, "What's gotten into you? You seem so… tired."
"Yeah, I probably shouldn't have done an all-nighter." Yang tried to make a joke, but Ruby could see right through her. Yang hadn't even smiled. She started dragging Yang to the breakfast hall where she knew the rest of her team would be waiting, but Yang pulled away. "I'm just not ready to see them."
"What?" Ruby felt like Yang was crushing her ribs together. "But… but why?"
"I just don't."
"But, Yang!" Ruby dashed in front of Yang, only to see her sister looking at her with so much sorrow and pity that Ruby flinched back. "Yang…"
"I'm fine. I just need some time to myself."
And with that, Yang plodded away from Ruby.
"What do you mean, you found her?" Weiss asked. Ruby was using her arms as a pillow to try and sleep through Weiss' tirade during breakfast. "How did you let her go?"
Ruby ignored Weiss and replayed the image of Yang giving up. It seemed plain wrong! Like… Qrow and Ozpin becoming threatening.
Great. She had been plunged into a world where everything was turned upside down. Next thing she knew, Weiss would be humble, and Blake would be a racist.
"Fine, be that way." Weiss said. She kept on eating in silence. For another five seconds. Then she lashed out at Blake. "Why are you drawing that horrible Faunus?"
"Don't call him that." Blake said, taken aback by Weiss' blatant racism.
"Oh, I'm sorry, is he a terrorist or not?"
"Am I a terrorist or not?" Blake shot back. She knew full well that Weiss was tired and needed something to lash out at, but Blake would never take an insult to her species.
"You haven't gone around killing anyone in the last year." Weiss said. "You've helped humanity."
"You don't know what Adam's been doing." Blake said, "I don't know what Adam's been doing. For all you know, he could have had nothing to do with Torchwick. So maybe the two of us are the same."
"Oh, I'm sure your precious Adam is a reformed pacifist." Weiss said, "Maybe we'll see him with Aurum Vingthor trying to reform new laws!"
Ruby's head started to ache as Blake yelled, "Why do you always have to be such a bigoted racist?"
"I'm just being realistic. It's much more likely that Adam's doing horrible things like, I don't know, blowing up more trains."
"Why do you always have to take time to tell me all the bad stuff Faunuses are doing? Do I rant to you about the number of deaths in your Dust mine there are every month? Or how many of those deaths are due to simple equipment failures that could have been prevented if the family in charge actually cared?"
Ruby clenched her fists as the two continued arguing. Where was Yang? She would never have let this happen. And why couldn't Ruby do anything? "That's different," Weiss was saying, "At least we're not terrorists."
"Your mines kills people, permanently injures others, and takes advantage of Faunus who are too poor to do anything else because of the prejudice that you humans perpetuate."
"Well, at least we-"
"CAN YOU JUST SHUT UP!?" Ruby yelled. She let out all the fear and unease inside her. Dust! She couldn't even stop the rest of her team from some stupid fight!
She had stood up and had her hands on the table. Panting, she looked around the dining room, and almost everyone was staring at her. Blake and Weiss had never heard Ruby even raise her voice at them, and their argument was now forgotten as they stared at Ruby, who seemed to be shocked at her own outburst.
"While impromptu and coincidental," Ozpin said as he walked through the door, "Ruby's desire for silence is exactly what I wanted." Ozpin let the doors slam behind him before he continued. "What I am about to share with you all has never been shared with any Hunter in over a century. I had been charged with keeping something in Vale safe and secret, but when the latter jeopardizes the former, I have decided to cast away the veil."
The students sat so still the only sound that could be heard was an occasional gust of wind outside the wooden walls. "Dust occurs naturally in the earth, and is dug up. Yet, it is not formed like any other mineral. The Schnee Dust Corporation has had only one mine, and yet it seems to dig up endless amounts of Dust."
Some people looked to Weiss for confirmation, but she and most of the other students had their gazes riveted to Ozpin. "This is because Dust simply appears. Crystals form out of the air, which coalesce into shards that are then mined. There is a force that orchestrates this. The heart, or life system to dust."
Mouths now hung open. The origin of Dust was literally legend, along with fairy tales regarding the moon's shattering and the origin of Grimm. Yet Ozpin spoke about this ancient knowledge like it was fact. Once again, everyone regarded him with awe. "The heart of Dust was once a single jewel, but was split into four Slivers. CNDR has stolen one, and seeks to steal the other three. And it is there that she shall fail. Students from Beacon will assist defending the other three splinters. You will receive your assignments this afternoon and depart tomorrow morning."
Ozpin looked at them all and asked, "Are there any questions?"
For the first time Ruby could remember, the dining hall was completely silent. Ozpin nodded. "Good. I wish you all the best of luck."
Even after he left, silence reigned for a few more seconds. Then slowly students began to murmur to their neighbors, and suddenly a torrent of voices were trying to be heard at once. The only ones who weren't talking were the remnants of team RWBY. Weiss and Blake sat in shamed silence while Ruby's head crashed into her arms.
Ruby tried to tune everyone else out, racking her brains, trying to imagine what Yang had even done. Yang hadn't even left Beacon, had she? What could a few hours alone have done to her?
Jaune sat down in front of her. She looked up as the rest of team JNPR followed him. "Did you hear what Ozpin said!" Nora asked, "This is so cool! Almost as cool as Jaune's Semblance."
"Still feel like a failure?" Ruby asked Jaune. She tried to make it sound like a joke, but it she couldn't muster up the tone and it sounded damning.
"Not as much," Jaune laughed, "And neither should you."
Ruby sighed. How could she be so much faster and stronger than Jaune but still not have the same harmony team JNPR had? Weiss snapped had been snapping at everyone, Blake barely talked unless it was to call Weiss out on something she said, and Yang… seemed defeated before the fight had started.
The crowd seemed to close in on her, and she just wanted to get away from the frenzied discussion that had followed Ozpin's revelation. She got up, not saying anything, and headed to her room where she curled up. The rest of the day passed in a blur. Weiss, Blake and Jaune tried talking with her, but Ruby just kept replaying Yang's retreating figure in her mind.
She dozed off and dreamed.
Ruby stood on a cliff and saw Yang falling from the sky. She yelled Yang's name, but Yang turned into a serpentine dragon. Shedding scales and droplets of blood, the yellow dragon crashed into the ground. From the dragon's corpse, three smaller ones emerged and roared a shrill note into the air, which resonated through the entire land. Trees fell and huge waves crashed into the land. Twilight fell and the moon shone like the last torch against the darkness.
"Yang! Yang!" Ruby ran towards the three dragons, but stopped dead as a dark cloud obscured the moon, spilling over through the dimly lit sky and turning the heavens an inky black. The cloud then materialized into a wolf with red eyes, so malevolent Ruby could believe that it swallowed the moon just because it could. The wolf then surged towards Ironwood and Ozpin, who stood between it and Vale. It tore up mountains and forests and streams in its wake, all of which converged upon the two humans.
Ruby screamed inside as the wolf swallowed one of Ironwood's arms. Ironwood fell to the ground as blood pumped out of his arm, but the blood darkened to iron, and a new arm formed out of the metal. The blood that became metal continued to pour out of Ironwood, forming chains that wrapped around the huge wolf, who struggled and heaved but eventually crashed into the ground.
The wolf grew smaller and smaller until it almost seemed to fade into the ground, leaving Ironwood standing there with one arm of flesh and one of a dark metal that seemed as black as the wolf itself.
Ironwood then turned to Ruby and stretched out his hand. Chains soared from his arm and enveloped Ruby, tightening until Ruby couldn't breath. "No, please, no." Ruby tried to struggle but her vision was blackening. She saw Ozpin mouthing something, but then…
…she was being shaken awake by Weiss. "Come on! Our next assignments have been posted." Ruby's eyes had shot open at being awoken, and she sat upright, making sure she was still in her room. Her hands trembled and she jerked her head around, making sure she really was back in her room.
Weiss stood there with her hands on her hips. "What's gotten into you? Are you alright?"
"Um, nothing." Ruby said, "Just had a weird dream."
Weiss sighed. "Well, let's get going." She headed out the door as Ruby picked up Crescent Rose from the floor. But she then stopped in the middle of the corridor and Ruby bumped into her.
"Um, there's actually something I need to tell you." Weiss said. She had her hands clasped in front of her and stood unusually formally. She tried looking at Ruby, but broke her gaze and said, "I sort of got this message from my parents last night."
"After the race?" Ruby remembered that both of their scrolls had come to life when they had gotten to Beacon. Apparently communications between kingdoms was now authorized.
"Yeah." Weiss said, "You remember that I sort of…" She grasped for a diplomatic way to phrase what had happened last night while Yang and Blake had lagged behind during the race.
"Threw a tantrum after losing?" Ruby asked.
"I didn't!" Weiss said. "And you cheated during that race!"
Ruby snickered and Weiss continued, "Well, after that, I sort of read my scroll." Weiss took a deep breath but before she could say anything, Blake dashed through the corridor. "Guys! You've got to see this."
Weiss turned to snap at Blake, but she took in the sweat on Blake's face and her heavy breathing. Without arguing, the three of them ran to the main hall to see their assignments.
Ruby realized what was wrong immediately. When she read the list of names, only hers and Blake's name were visible. "Where's Yang and Weiss?" She asked.
"Yang will be accompanied by Qrow on a two-man mission." Ozpin said from behind them. "Qrow has told her, and the two will be departing when-"
There was a crash as the doors to the main hall flew open and Yang strode in. Students looked between her and Ozpin while Qrow followed wordlessly behind. Flames fell from Yang's hair, fading away as they hit the floor. Yang's eyes burned a deep crimson as she glared at Ozpin. "What the hell is this?"
"You are to spend some time with Qrow," Ozpin said, "I thought he made that clear to you."
"Yeah, he made that very clear," Yang said. "There's no way I'm leaving my team alone."
"Of course you are." Ozpin said, "Until you've regained our trust, we will keep a tight eye on you."
"No, I won't go." The temperature had been rising ever since Yang entered the room, but Ozpin was as collected as ever. He was the only one in the room who wasn't sweating.
"You will, or face the consequences." Ozpin said.
"I won't." Yang said. Ruby saw the air around Yang shimmering from the heat.
"You engaged directly with the enemy, then tried to hide it." Ozpin said, "You-"
"Engage this!" Yang swung with all her might at Ozpin. Ruby jumped backwards to get away from Yang's blast radius, but the explosion never came. Ruby looked and saw Yang's face locked in a mask of rage while her body was frozen. Her fist was centimetres away from Ozpin's face, but Ember Celica hadn't fired. Ozpin turned to Ruby and Blake and said, "It seems Yang has decided to be confined. Qrow will accompany the two of you. I'm sure he will make up for the loss of your two team members."
He dragged Yang away by her outstretched arm like he would a statue, while students looked on in shock. Qrow looked at Yang sadly as Ozpin towed her away then opened his mouth as if he were about to say something. Then he closed it again and walked away.
Ruby's eyes blurred and she was horrified to realize she was crying. She tried to hold it in, but that seemed to set her off even more. She slumped to the ground with her head between her legs and curled into a ball, trying to hide her tears from every Hunter in Beacon. She felt the brush of Weiss' silken sleeve around her neck, and Blake's firm hand on her back. "I'm sorry," She mumbled, "I'm so sorry."
"Ruby! Why are you sorry?" Weiss asked with a shaking voice. She sniffed, and Ruby knew that Weiss had her handkerchief out.
"This is my team." Ruby said, "I'm supposed to lead you guys. But I can't do anything."
"We're your team." Blake said, "We'll support you. We're here for you."
Weiss hiccupped, and said, "About that, I can't."
"What?" Blake's voice had an edge so sharp Ruby thought Weiss might start bleeding.
"I got a message from my dad." Weiss said, "He wants me to go home."
Ruby felt like her throat was being crushed. It ached and made her shiver, like a winter cold had seeped into her bones.
"Just say no." Blake said, "You're an adult now."
"You… you don't understand." Weiss' voice was controlled in the same way shattered window stayed in its frame. Both kept the semblance of completion when the smallest touch would send them crashing to oblivion. "He's my dad. Before I came to Beacon, everything I did was because he let me. I can't just run away."
"Of course you could." Blake said, "We'd help you."
"You don't understand!" Weiss said, "I'm the heiress. Not just some random girl. I have responsibilities. I have the family name to think about."
"So Ruby's less important than your reputation?" Blake asked incredulously. "I can't believe you're still this selfish!"
"I won't be losing Ruby." Weiss said. She didn't raise her voice because she knew that doing so would cause her voice to break and she would lose the control she had fought for for so long. "We can still talk, and once this is over, I'll go back to Beacon, I promise."
"It's fine." Ruby mumbled. Both of her teammates looked at her, expecting her to elaborate.
She didn't.
Instead, the three of them sat there until everyone else had left and night had fallen. Ruby fell asleep there for a bit, and when she woke, she saw the moon gazing through the window at her. She idly wondered whether her dreams would include a huge wolf, but decided that she didn't care.
The three of them slept huddled in the corner of the main hall while the night passed on.
I hope that the gap between updates won't keep on getting longer and longer. Oh well, hope you enjoyed it. Once again, if you have any feedback or opinions on this story, please let me know.
Thanks for reading!