Rider Time Zi-O: Roze from Remnant

Chapter 13.5 – A Day in the Life of Ruby Rose

Woz paced around frantically before taking a deep breath and calming down, "Usually written in this book, average high schooler Tokiwa Sougo embarks on a path which leads him to become the overlord of time, Oma Zi-O. Yet again we have a story that does not focus on him, but a smaller and more necessary one, just to show how far one Miss Rose has come."

Earth – Early November 2018:

It had been a few days since her birthday and Ruby was in a fairly good mood. Breakfast had been mostly quiet aside from Sougo insisting they try and bring Geiz back. While Sougo and Tsukuyomi were concerned despite her reassurances, she felt Geiz would be fine. Maybe it was her brief conversations with him during the Ryuki Incident, but she figured things would work out in the end.

Sougo and Tsukuyomi had chosen to head out for the day to search while she was currently in her room at her desk. In front of her were the various Ridewatches that she had obtained over the course of two months. Cross-Z, Brave, Kaixa, Beast, Birth, TaJaDor Combo, and Knight all sat on the table in front of her. She picked up Cross-Z's Ridewatch and sprayed it with a small spray bottle before wiping it with a cleaning cloth.

Ruby hummed to herself as she continued to do the same for the other Ridewatches she had, going for Beast's next. While it wasn't the same as maintaining her weapon she couldn't help but feel relaxed. Not to mention the fact that the Ridewatches were always out in the open, so them getting dusty and dirty over time was inevitable. And while Sougo wasn't one to really clean them, she was, or at least the ones she used consistently.

"Got to admit Takkun," Ruby spoke to herself as she worked on cleaning up the final Ridewatch which ended up being Kaixa's. "This was a really good gift."

She had to admit that Takumi's gift while obvious and small, was rather nice. While she couldn't maintain the Ridewatches due to their otherworldly nature, she could at least clean them. So a cleaning kit was the perfect choice of gift.

BEEP BEEP BEEP

She was broken out of her thoughts just at the end of her cleaning session, putting down the Kaixa Ridewatch. She looked over at her phone and noticed a reminder that she had set to go off.

"Well, looks like duty calls," Ruby chuckled as she pocketed her phone and went to get ready.

[BANG BANG SHOOTING!]

"On your left, don't get overwhelmed!"

"Like you should be telling me that?"

"Hey I'm just saying-ah, right, right!"

"You know I'm on it!"

"Yeah well I think you're better with an axe than a gun!"

To say Ruby and Parado were currently in for the fight of their lives would be incorrect. The two were currently holding small Gashacon Magnum's in front of a television. They in fact were playing co-op for a sensor gun game based off of Bang Bang Shooting from Genm Corp. The game had actually only just recently come out, thanks to new company management the game had all its bugs worked out that had originally caused it to be unreleased.

The two were currently in the CR's office space using one of the televisions. They were fighting against a multitude of soldiers that were spewing forward. That was until a familiar sight came into view, the Bugster and Boss of Bang Bang Shooting, Commander Revol. The two worked to deflect his shots while firing at but their health was slowly being whittled down.

"I've got this!" Ruby called out.

"H-Hey don't kill steal!" Parado gasped.

"Sorry but not sorry! We don't have much health left so we got to finish this quick!" Ruby had flipped open the sensor gun into its rifle mode before taking aim to fire. Her enhanced shots hit against the boss and blew Revol away.

[GAME CLEAR!]

The scores were tallied up and to Ruby's expectation but Parado's surprise it was Ruby who had ended up scoring the most points.

"Aw man!" Parado called out as he let his arms and head drop.

"Hehe…" Ruby smirked and switched the sensor gun back to its magnum mode before twirling it and pretending to blow on the barrel as if it were smoking. "I'm not a gunslinger just for show!"

Parado though couldn't stay sad for long and gave a grin as he rose, "You really are something else Ruby, only Emu's ever been able to get my blood pumping like this."

"You're pretty good yourself," Ruby smiled before sending a punch in the air. "I mean you're like one of the most intense players I've ever faced, whether it's in actual versus matches or score attacks!"

"Well what can I say, that's what happens when you face a Bugster like me," Parado answered, before realizing something. "Oh right, did you enjoy the new game you got?"

"Absolutely, still working on beating it though," Ruby replied as she went to set down sensor gun. "But it's a real big help when it comes to killing some time. Thanks for that Parado, and tell Emu I said thank you too."

"No problem," Parado smiled.

Geiz currently wasn't sure why he was here at the moment. He was sitting down at a bench in the park, glancing around every now and again. It was as if he was looking for someone or something.

"Relax, they're not around here," Ruby walked over as she held two bento boxes in her hands. She handed one to Geiz and sat next to him.

"I still don't get why you're doing this for me," Geiz remarked.

"I figured you might be hungry," Ruby answered as she opened up her box and gave thanks before pulling out some chopsticks and handing them to Geiz, "Plus the place where I got these does cheap but really good bento's."

"Whatever you say," Geiz scoffed as he opened his box, giving thanks before going to dig in.

Ruby couldn't help but chuckle a bit before working on her box, "So how have things been?"

"Quiet, all things considered," Geiz admitted. "Well as quiet as this city can get, you know?"

"Yeah that's true," Ruby agreed between bites. "After all we're living in a city with dozens of other Riders."

"Still not used to that," Geiz replied.

"It does take a bit of getting used to yeah," Ruby nodded. "But it feels nice honestly, having such a large amount of allies and friends. Makes you feel like the part of a big old family."

"Emphasis on big," Geiz said before continuing to work on his lunch. "We've run into how many Riders in the past month?"

Ruby had attempted to count each Rider by memory but had given up after a bit, "A lot actually, too many to count sometimes especially with Riders like Ex-Aid and Ryuki."

"And yet there's still more where they came from," Geiz replied.

"I think we're doing pretty well," Ruby admitted. "The more Riders we help out means the Time Jackers have less options."

"And the more options they lose the more dangerous they might get," Geiz warned.

"Nothing we can't handle," Ruby raised her arm as if to flex.

"Nothing you can't handle," Geiz corrected as he rolled his eyes.

"Oh cut it out Geiz," Ruby smirked. "You're still as much a part of the team as you used to be. You just want some space which is why I'm respecting your decision."

Geiz scoffed as he looked away and began to finish his food faster, "No need to be such a brat about it." He muttered between bites.

The two's banter eventually died down as they focused on finishing their lunches, especially since Geiz didn't want to risk running into Sougo or Tsukuyomi. It wasn't long before Ruby offered to trash both of their leftover boxes while Geiz took his leave.

"Stay safe out there," Ruby waved. "See you next time!"

Geiz glanced back before continuing on, "Right."

It was a short but simple stop, mostly going over to Sento's usual warehouse base for an update on trying to figure out a way to Remnant. Sento had made some progress but nothing too substantial, still it was enough for Ruby.

After that she was walking along the streets when she noticed someone in particular roaming around. "Huh?" She hurried over to try and catch up, "Goto?"

"Huh?" Goto turned before noticing Ruby, "Oh Ruby."

"I knew it was you, but well…" Ruby gestured towards the man's clothes as he was wearing a suit now instead of his combat gear.

"Oh right, well I'm not really a full time Rider," Goto admitted. "In fact I mostly returned to work for Kougami for Eiji but it's my secondary job."

"Wait, what's your first then?" Ruby asked.

"I'm a police officer," Goto replied. "After the whole mess with the Greeed I figured I'd go back to my roots."

"Huh, you know sometimes I forget the police exist," Ruby admitted absentmindedly before realizing what she said. "O-Oh wait I mean uh…"

Goto couldn't help but chuckle, "Its fine, honestly given the way things go and my experience alongside others in that field, we've tried to get the police to relax a bit in Rider related business."

"Really now, I didn't know that." Ruby asked before realizing what he said. "Wait, others?"

"There are a few others in the police force who were Riders or know them," Goto replied. "In fact one of my superior's ended up being one as well. We worked together a few times briefly in the past."

"Oh that's pretty cool," Ruby admitted. "So I guess you guys have been working overtime given the Another Riders and stuff?"

"Yeah, I've been pretty insistent in trying to keep anyone from getting too crazy of an idea," Goto admitted. "It's best if I left it all up to you all and whatever Riders are involved."

"Thanks for that," Ruby gave a bow. "I'd have no idea what to do if suddenly things became a lot more restricted."

"I'm sure you all would find a way," Goto admitted before a question suddenly hit him, "Oh right, how was your birthday? I know Kougami was going crazy over it."

"It was really good," Ruby replied. "Mr. Kougami sure knows how to bake cakes huh?"

"That is one of his specialties," Goto couldn't help but chuckle.

Unbeknownst to the two there was someone watching their conversation intently, simply slinking back into the shadows as the two parted ways.

Ruby hummed as she was currently sitting at a white plastic table nearby the Donuts Shop Hungry, having stopped there for a snack break as she bopped her head to some music she was listening to. She was honestly surprised at how Sougo and Tsukuyomi were able to tag team into getting her a perfect set of two gifts. Tsukuyomi had gotten her a pair of red and black accented headphones with a rose emblem on it while Sougo with some help from Junichiro, had gotten her an MP3 player so she wouldn't need to clutter her phones space with music.

She was currently doing some mindless browsing as she had a plate of specialty chocolate chip donuts in front of her. Having had one during her birthday and loved it she decided to frequent the food truck whenever she felt the craving for one.

"I see someone enjoyed the gift I got."

The voice was loud enough for Ruby to hear over her music. She put her current track on hold and shifted her headphones down. She looked over to see Haruto with a bag of donuts as he went to sit down on the other side.

"Oh hey there Haruto," Ruby greeted before taking a bite of her specialty donut, "And yeah they were great! How did you know I loved chocolate chip?"

"Mayonnaise told me," Haruto answered.

Ruby had to stifle her laugh so she didn't spit out her food. Once she swallowed she started laughing a bit, "I didn't know he had that kind of nickname."

"It's fitting though, isn't it?" Haruto pointed out.

"It really is," Ruby managed to calm down enough to take another bite. "So what's your go to donut?"

"Plain sugar," Haruto smirked as he drew out the simple donut before taking a bite of it. He swallowed before sighing in satisfaction, "It's just right."

"I see someone enjoys the classics," Ruby remarked but decided to keep the conversation flowing. "So you hang around often?"

"Here and there," Haruto replied. "Admittedly I've gotten used to traveling quite a bit, did it for a spell after my battle was done. It was for a particular reason but even though that's done with I still enjoy seeing new places."

"Traveling can be fun or tedious… depends really," Ruby said, remembering how her journey to Mistral, while interesting was also filled with its fair share of issues.

"True," Haruto replied. "Sometimes the fares are a hassle, but it can be worth it for what you get to see."

"I guess you could say I'm sort of traveling right now," Ruby admitted. "Though I've also settled down a bit, but a year ago, Tokyo was a bright new place for me. And even a year in I'm still finding new things."

"I guess you could call that the magic of traveling," Haruto chuckled.

Ruby couldn't help but laugh a bit at the referential pun, "That's true."

Seeing a text on her phone from Sougo, Ruby checked and answered it, saying that she'd probably get home before dinner was served. As she walked along the streets she glanced at the setting sun, realizing how late it was finally getting.

"Hmm," Ruby looked around before heading for a quieter location, finding a railing that was high enough to where she could see the setting sun over the city. Staring at it for a while she heard some rustling and sighed. "You can come out…"

"I was wondering when you'd notice."

It wasn't long before of all people, Ankh suddenly jumped down from a nearby tree.

Ruby couldn't help but roll her eyes a bit but still gave a smile, "Nice to see you too Ankh."

"Whatever," Ankh scoffed as he walked over before standing beside her. "I'm curious…"

Ruby raised an eyebrow, "Curious about what?"

"Your desire," Ankh admitted. "Being a Greeed I can figure how much desire someone has just from a glance."

"What, do I really have that much of a desire to you?" Ruby asked.

"You do, and it's driving me nuts," Ankh admitted as he ruffled his hair in frustration before glaring at Ruby. "Just seeing your routine outside of being a Rider, it just doesn't make sense. Just what is it that pumps a strong desire out of you?"

Ruby couldn't help but smirk a bit before looking away and into the sky, "Now I can't really say that now can I…"

Ankh's eye twitched, "You…"

"But I will say this," Ruby added. "I do have pretty big desires, especially when I came here a year ago. It looked a bit hopeless at first, but well… I think things are starting to look up. At least I hope they are."

Ankh couldn't help but stare straight ahead, putting his hands in his pockets, "If your desire is strong enough then you'll be able to reach it."

"Yeah… it's just a matter of time," Ruby admitted, thinking back to her friends and family back on Remnant. It wasn't long though before her thoughts shifted to all the friends and allies she had made on this world as well. She was sure that if she kept working at it, even if it was slowly, she'd manage to find a way back.

Ankh simply scoffed before turning away and walking off, "Just make sure you don't let that desire consume you."

"Well aren't you a bundle of sunshine…" Ruby muttered as she glanced at Ankh walking off. She gave a chuckle to herself before beginning her trek back to 9-5-DO. Giving a stretch, she wondered what the coming month would bring to the table.

Unbeknownst to her, Woz watched her walking off while he gripped his book tightly, "Truly she has adapted to living here quite well. Though one wonders how that will help her in the future…"

To Be Continued…

Next Time: Chapter 14 – Cyclone Effect 2009

Author's Note:

This was a fun chapter to write since I felt the need to do several small skits that were loosely interconnected. So having Ruby go about her day and show off some of the gifts she got alongside some cameos worked out nicely. Also it's just a nice way to show the big but small world the Riders live in.

So other than that, I figured I'd spare a few words in regards to the future everyone's been speculating on. First, trust me when I say that the RWBY side of this story will be getting some love. And Second, I do plan on making use of nearly everything in Zi-O which also includes picking out pieces and concepts from the recent Rider Times. For the most part I've figured out where to put mostly everything Zi-O related. I literally only have one character I don't know what to do with at the moment.

But aside from the future I do want to give shout outs. So going in order, while not exactly as said, Kamen Rider Yokai mentioning a toolkit did lead me on the path of having Takumi give Ruby a cleaning kit for her Ridewatches. I briefly touched on a new game she got from both Parado and Emu as per one of WaterDragonMaverick's suggestions. And Nanairo the Keyblade Samurai reminded me of Ruby's headphones from RWBY Episode 1, so I decided to go for a double play via a headphone/mp3 combo.

A special thanks again though to the idea from everyone else even if I didn't end up using them. But to Unknown in regards to the brooch alongside Dreyagon with the bracelet and charms, they do spark some ideas that may occur later. Still, it was nice to hear some feedback in the comments. So I might end up doing some more community interactions in the future.

Either way, next time we meet we'll be tackling W's Arc, which is funny since just recently they announced the W Manga was getting an anime adaptation. So hey, topical chapters with recent announcements am I right? Anyway thanks for stopping by, I'll see you guys next time.