Author's Note: Some of you have noticed that this story was already posted before. Indeed it has.

Here's the short version: with no exception, first drafts always suck.

Now for the long version: I posted this story here and on AO3. It became difficult to upload and edit chapters on both sites, so I scrapped the original story here and focused on AO3. Eventually, I realized my chapters needed to be more concise. Reading published books taught me that chapters are typically around 3000 words, while 5000 is the upper limit. So I decided to remake the entire thing.

So far, I'm proud of what I've written. Even if this version's writing needs more work, it no longer matters. This is an idea that I've been stuck with for the past couple of years. Whether you love it or hate it, what matters to me is that it's being written. And that you, dear reader, are willing to read what I've created. Thank you.

The airships floated to numerous docking platforms. Every future student of Beacon, plus one airsick blond, disembarked and made their way to the front of the school. Ruby and Yang walked out to see tall ivory towers, a circular pond, and other architectural marvels that were sights to behold. Ruby felt excitement and anticipation during the trip here. But now that she was at Beacon? The weight of such a significant change in her life pressed down on her mind. At Signal, she had plenty of friends and a home to return to once classes were over. But now? She had neither of those things. She was in unfamiliar territory.

If this is too much, I could drop out and try again when I'm older.

Ruby was appalled by that thought, as random as it was. She just got here, and Ozpin himself invited her! Ruby wasn't going to throw that away because of some anxiety. But the fact she even considered dropping out made the sinking feeling worse, like her psyche was quicksand that the rest of her tried to escape from.

"Whew! The view from Vale's got nothing on this!"

Ruby's focus went to her sister. "Yeah…" How are you so sure of yourself, sis? If only I had your resolve right now…

Ruby's eyes scanned around her. She saw people walking along campus, from passengers disembarking the airship to students starting a new year. There were even school faculty among the roamers. But there was something else Ruby was focused on, which shoved aside her doubts.

"YANG, LOOK!" she exclaimed, pointing at different people. "He's got a collapsible staff! That girl has a fire sword!" She gasped as her index finger then went to a Faunus with a Komodo Dragon tail. "And that girl has nunchucks with three ends instead of two!"

Yang rolled her eyes as Ruby channeled her inner weapon nerd. "Relax, sis. They're just weapons."

"Just weapons?" Ruby snapped back, almost offended. "They say more about a Huntsman or Huntress than most realize! How we fight, the strengths we play on, and the weaknesses we compensate for. They're extensions of ourselves!" She beamed as she made one last point: "And they're so freaking cool!"

Yang was often happy for her little sister and the things she was passionate about. But she didn't always share in Ruby's enthusiasm about weapons.

"Aren't you happy with your own weapon?" she wondered.

"Of course I am!" she exclaimed with little hesitation. "I just really like seeing different ones. They give me ideas for new weapons I could make." She then brought out Crescent Rose, still collapsed in its box form. "And how to improve what I've already made!"

Yang shook her head and smirked. Just what was she going to do with this girl?

"Dork," Yang blurted out, bringing Ruby in a firm arm-lock and ruffling her gradient hair with her other hand.

"ACK!" Ruby giggled as she did her best to resist Yang's hair-ruffling but was already released by the time the urge came up. She turned around and looked up at her sister, only to notice a tinge of worry on her. "… Yang? What's wrong?"

Yang sighed. I can't get anything past her. Then she said, "I worry about you sometimes. You should be less focused on people's weapons and more on… you know… people? We may be attending Beacon together, but that doesn't mean we'll be together as much as you'd like. So I think it'd be good if you made some new friends."

"That might be easier said than done," Ruby commented. "Besides, I have you. Don't I?"

"Um…" Her first instinct was to say yes. After all, she loved Ruby with all her heart. But she also knew that if Ruby were to be a Huntress and even become part of a team, she needed to learn not to rely on Yang as much. This question was still a difficult one to answer. But she recognized some of her peers from Signal waving to her.

Saved by the bell! Yang spoke faster than usual, barely within her sister's capacity to keep up. "W-we'll talk later, Ruby! I made plans with some of my own friends! See you soon!"

"Wait, Yang! Yaaang!" Ruby did her best to call out to her sister, but she was already out of earshot. Plus, some of her realized that Yang intentionally avoided the question. At this realization, Ruby thought to herself only one bitter word: Great!

Ruby's earlier anxiety crept up on her. The feeling was the same, but now it manifested into something else. She felt alone without her sister looking after her. Usually, Ruby could handle being autonomous and independent—even when she had to play the role of vigilante against Roman Torchwick. But here? Her feet were planted in the unfamiliar. And everyone, as far as her eyes could see, was a total stranger. Which, again, was a reminder that—

A sudden tug at her feet and a change in her body's gravity interrupted her thoughts. Ruby was fortunate to have activated her Aura in time.

"What are you doing!?"

"Huh?" Ruby took a moment to process what was happening. She tripped and collapsed onto a neatly-stacked pile of white suitcases, now a disorganized mess beneath her. And as she looked up, she saw a girl wearing an expensive white dress that matched her snowy mane. Of note was a thin scar over the left of two ice-blue eyes.

"I'm sorry!" Ruby exclaimed as she scrambled to get up, even using one of the suitcases as an anchor. "I didn't mean to—"

"Sorry!?" the girl in white snapped. "Do you have any idea how much damage you and those oversized udders almost did!?"

Ruby was in the middle of cleaning up after herself when she heard that comment. "Udders?" She betrayed hurt as her ego was bruised.

Just how slow is this brat!? The rude woman then ripped one of the suitcases Ruby held. "Give me that!" She opened the suitcase and checked the contents. The bottles of dust inside weren't even cracked, luckily. She closed the luggage and looked ahead to see Ruby glaring at her.

"If you must know," the girl began, "these are full of dust, mined and purified from Schnee Dust Company quarries."

An eavesdropper perked up when she heard the name of that company. She glanced away from her boot to the suitcases being argued over, then at one of the girls: Weiss Schnee.

"What…?" The source of Ruby's confusion was understandable. If Weiss was that concerned about her stash of dust blowing up, why put them in suitcases? There were safer means of—

"Are you brain-dead!?" Weiss barked. "Dust! Fire, water, lightning? Does any of it ring a bell?"

"That's not what I—"

"How does someone like you get into an academy as prestigious as this without knowing how dust works?" Weiss continued.

"Listen, I—"

"Actually, you shouldn't even be here at all!" Weiss interrupted again. "How did a dunce like you even sneak aboard the airship? Why are you even here?"

Ruby did the intelligent thing and refrained from back-talking again. In contrast, however, she was about to do something else. Something that only someone clouded by annoyance and anger would resort to. But the thought that made her commit to her next course of action was her father's advice: "The only time you should answer with violence is if there's no other option."

"Is any of this even sinking in!?"

The eavesdropper was about to step in and stop Weiss's incessant badgering. Weiss falling back caught her by surprise and brought her to a sudden stillness.

Ruby felt the dull tingle of her knuckles after they made contact with her target like a speeding bullet. She hesitated to withdraw her hand, caught up in the sudden realization that she didn't even hold back. Nobody had driven her to such rage before! She should feel bad about it, but at the same time, she was only standing up for herself. She even answered one of Weiss's questions in the process ("Why are you here?"), making the motivation behind her action two-fold.

The eavesdropper shook herself out of her stupor and made her way to the two of them. She looked at Ruby and said, "I was just about to step in until you did that."

Ruby finally lowered her hand, sheepishly holding it with her other. "I-I don't know why I did that. I'm sorry."

"Don't worry about it," the eavesdropper said with a smile. "I'm actually impressed." She then reached out and added, "I'm Blake."

Ruby glanced down at her extended hand, then up at Blake. She allowed her earlier embarrassment to roll off her back just before they shook hands. "Ruby," she responded.

Blake nodded, then turned her attention to Weiss and frowned. "Okay. Clearly, the two of you got off on the wrong foot. Ruby didn't mean to knock over your luggage. It was just an accident."

Weiss could only look up at the two girls. She held her nose in anticipation of a subtle dripping on her palm, which inevitably meant her dress would be stained if she wasn't careful. Fortunately, her Aura went up in time, rendering the pain of a mighty blow into an abrasive tap. Still painful, but only on a superficial level.

Blake continued. "Maybe instead of bullying people trying to get back into your good graces, you should be nice to them."

"And why would I do that?" Weiss barked, unceremoniously lowering her hand to the ground she sat up from. "She could've blown us all to smithereens!"

Blake gave Weiss a scowl. "Well, she didn't. Besides, your family's got bigger problems, such as your father's mistreatment of Faunus labor and his own dust miners."

Weiss could only stare at Blake as her anger evaporated after being reminded of her dad. She couldn't respond with a rebuttal and could only swallow in a throat that had suddenly gone dry.

"Um…" Ruby looked between the two girls before settling on Blake. "I'm kind of out of the loop on this one. Who is she?"

"The girl you just punched?" Blake began, not even breaking eye contact. "That's none other than Weiss Schnee. Heiress to the Schnee Dust Company."

Weiss glanced down, sighing through her nostrils. As she did so, she thought: They know who I am now. Let me guess. Ruby is going to get on her knees and beg for forgiveness because she knows I have a lot of money. Right? Weiss glanced up expectantly at Ruby and was met with a hand extended down to her.

"You're right. I really should've watched where I was going. And…" Ruby's expression grew sheepish. "… Punching you was really uncalled for. How about we start over and be friends? I promise I'll find a way to make it up to you."

So I was half-right, Weiss admitted to herself. There was no begging, but there was an apology. Weiss acknowledged that Ruby was the bigger person by accepting the blame. And while Weiss was willing to do the same, the dull ache of her nose made it harder to forgive Ruby. For now, at least.

"I'll think about it," Weiss replied, trying to get up. Multiple glyphs materialized around the fallen suitcases, which then moved to set them back on the luggage cart the way they were before. "If it puts your mind at ease, I'll at least pretend you didn't assault me." Once satisfied with how she put everything back together, she looked between Blake and Ruby and gave them a nod. "It's been a pleasure."

Ruby watched as Weiss pulled the luggage cart and lowered her hand. "Well! My first day here isn't as bad as I expected." Her tone was chipper, but her attitude didn't lean in the positive or the negative. "Thanks for your help, by the… way…"

Ruby trailed off as she lost sight of Blake. She was nowhere to be seen. And there weren't any hiding places in the middle of the open plaza, which only baffled her further. Did she turn invisible or something? Whatever the reason, Ruby was alone again.

"Welcome to Beacon," she sighed, lowering her head.

"Are you alright?"

Ruby looked behind her and perked up. It was... Vomit Boy! Ah, crap. It was Vomit Boy. And he's reaching out for a handshake.

"I'm Jaune."

Jaune, Ruby echoed in her mind, committing the name to memory. Not Vomit Boy. Got it. She shook hands with Jaune and replied back with, "Ruby." She paused, then suppressed a snicker as a question came to mind. She would hate herself later for asking him, but the temptation was overwhelming.

"Aren't you the guy who threw up on the ship?"

"All I'm saying is that motion sickness is more common than people realize!"

Ruby grinned out of amusement. She resisted the urge to laugh as, even after a couple of minutes when they started walking around campus together, he was still being defensive about the incident on the airship. "No, really, I get it! It's just that "Vomit Boy" was a nickname I came up with on the spot."

"Oh really? In that case, why don't I call you "Schnee Puncher" from now on?" Jaune retorted.

"Hey, she was being rude and a bully!" Ruby shot back. "I was just standing up for myself. The last thing I need on the first day is to be known as Beacon's doormat. Anyway, I won't call you… that name anymore. Especially since I know your name is..."

"Jaune Arc!" he clarified. "It's short, sweet, and rolls off the tongue. Ladies love it."

Ruby huffed through her nostrils as she gave a silent laugh, too brief for sound. "Do they?" she asked with visible skepticism.

"Uh…" Jaune hesitated, then pointed to Ruby. "Do you?"

Ruby stared at him with a smirk, then said, "Sure. Why not."

"Yesss!" It was a small victory, but Jaune took it with pride. "What about you, though? Do you have a cool last name?"

"Not really," Ruby replied. "I'm just Ruby Rose. Two words that mean the same—"

"Wait, hold on!" Jaune quickly moved in front of Ruby, stopping her in her tracks. "Rose? As in, Summer Rose?"

The reaction was unexpected, and she was nearly at a loss for words. "… U-uh, yeah! I'm… Summer's daughter…" The words came out with a hint of melancholy. Her mom was presumed dead before Ruby turned two. But there was more to it than that; attending Beacon Academy was so she could forge her own path. She didn't want to live in her mother's shadow, at least not forever.

"That's incredible!" Jaune exclaimed, oblivious to Ruby's inner turmoil. "She attended this academy and became leader of Team STRQ, so it makes sense you're here too! So, what's she like? Is she as awesome as the stories say?"

Ruby's lips became a thin line for a moment. "I wish I could tell you. She died when I was still a baby."

Jaune's smile and optimism vanished. "Oh… Gosh, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to bring up any bad memories."

"No," Ruby replied, shaking her head. "You don't have anything to apologize for. You just didn't know, that's all."

"I know…" Jaune replied. "But, still. I'm sorry for your loss."

Ruby only nodded in response. During the ensuing silence, her mind returned to the story her dad had told her.

"One day, she said she had to go on one last mission. Then we never saw her again." And Ruby would never see her at all. It stung, knowing she was robbed of that part of her childhood. Yang became her mother figure in Summer's place, but was it the same?

"Sooo…" Ruby tried her best to push those feelings aside for now and break up the awkward silence. "What's your weapon like?"

Jaune glanced down at the sword-and-scabbard attached to his hip. "Hm? Oh, well…" He passively unsheathed the blade. "It's nothing special. This is just a sword. But this part?" He grabbed his scabbard by a handle built into it. A button press widened it into a new shape. "It doubles as a shield!"

"Oh-h-h!" Ruby placed her fingers across the shield, even knocking on it, to get a feel of the material used. It was made with traditional steel, heavier than Ruby used to make Crescent Rose. The emblem on the front of the shield was a nice touch, as it reminded her of a crescent moon. "Do they do anything else?" she wondered.

"Nope," Jaune answered, putting his weapon and shield away. "What you see is what you get. They're a hand-me-down from my great-great-grandfather. He used them to fight in the Great War."

That explains the material used, Ruby thought. Then she said, "I like it! I prefer something a little more complex, but a sword-and-shield is practical. Can't beat the classics!"

"Heh. Yeah. The classics." Jaune rubbed the back of his neck in response to his own words. "What about you? What's your weapon like?"

Ruby reached behind her and brought out Crescent Rose. She held it by its grip while the weapon was in rifle form.

"Oh! That's nea—"

Crescent Rose fully extended into its scythe form, revealing a weapon bigger than Jaune! He backed away to get a better look at it.

"You made a scythe?" he wondered.

"It's also a customizable, high-impact sniper rifle!"

Jaune took a moment to process what Ruby had just said. "… So it's also a gun," he deduced. "Cool!"

"Thanks!" Ruby folded the weapon back into its box form, then put it away. "Do you mind if I ask you something?"

"Go ahead."

The two returned to walking as Ruby asked, "You saw me punch Weiss earlier. How come you still wanted to say hi to me?"

"Well, why not?" Jaune answered. "You looked bummed out, and I wanted to cheer you up. And my mom always told me, 'Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet.'"

Ruby couldn't keep herself from smiling, even if she wanted to. "Your mom sounds like a wonderful person." Ruby's silver eyes glanced around their current surroundings. "Do you know where we're going?"

"Oh, I don't have a clue," Jaune answered. "I was just following you. Honestly, I was expecting there to be signs posted up. Maybe a few landmarks."

Ruby shook her head at the situation they were in. "Yeah, you would think. But here we are anyway."