New Remnant: Odyssey

by Ben10Extreme

Ruby Rose dreams of becoming the Demon Queen, in a more benevolent nature than one would expect from such a title. She begins her odyssey in a revitalized World of Remnant, alongside her beloved Jaune Arc and friends, as she gradually amasses the influence and power to realize her dream. Ruby's goal soon picks up speed when they encounter a ferocious Dragon...Cinder Fall.

20. Home Intruder

And now we've reached the chapter in which things are likely to worsen even more. And I do mean even more, especially in a personal sense.

Getting this written down was a bit rough, though not necessarily hard. It took a bit of time and patience but somehow me and my beta managed it again. Appreciate him lots.

Now let's see where this goes!

---

Ruby and Yang were both sitting at the table while kicking their feet back and forth, swaying their heads while eating their breakfast; the smell of strawberry waffles, pancakes, and juice filled the kitchen, the sisters having eaten several stacks of their breakfast each. They then had several refills of strawberry juice to complete their strawberry breakfast combination. Salem was in front of the sink humming a serene tune, cleaning the dishes with her hair tied back and a black and red apron around her waist, which read 'Greatest Demon Grandma'.

"You girls are going to want even more, won't you?" Salem asked the girls, smiling as she was well aware of the answer already.

"Yes please!" Both girls exclaimed in unison.

"Hm. So, the strawberry breakfast sequence continues in earnest. Very well."

Ruby and Yang were in the middle of munching more of their strawberry waffles, before they heard the sounds of arguing eventually coming into the room. They remained focused on their breakfast as two figures entered the room at once.

"I'm telling you, that shithead was asking for it! He shouldn't have been looking at me funny!" The woman with pale white skin and blood red eyes grumbled, as she walked into the room. Pushing some of her hair out of her face despite the very bad case of bed head. Not at all helped by just how much hair she had. "Fucker was lucky I didn't castrate him right then and there."

"Raven...that was the mailman. He meant no harm." Summer smiles tiredly while shaking her head, her wolf ears currently drooping a bit.

"That's what he wanted us to think, but I'm not fooled. I'm shutting that shit down before it even starts! We can't trust a word he says!" Raven insisted with a snarl while folding her arms, shifting her red and black robes around herself, open enough to reveal a bit of her ample bust. She walked by Yang and rustled her hair. "Hey, brat. Mind saving some of those waffles for me?" She grumbles, 'brat' being said with a stoic yet gentle warmth.

"Okay, Mum!" Yang beamed brightly while handing a plate over to her.

"Mother made strawberry pancakes. Mind if I have some as well, Ruby?" Summer smiled while hugging her daughter from behind, the both of them nuzzling each other with wagging tails.

"Kay Mommy!" Ruby beamed while also sharing a plate with Summer.

"Goodness, Raven. Must you swear so early in the morning? Think about the example you're setting for the girls." Salem hummed while turning away from the sink for the moment, Grimm claws continuing to clean the dishes for her once her own hands were clasped.

"It's too early in the morning for me to be worried about that." Raven grumbled while munching more of her waffles. "Yang, when you become a grown woman, you'll be allowed to say whatever the hell you want."

"Cool!"

Salem sighs while shaking her head with a knowing smile. "It would seem that my daughter is proving the more positive maternal model this morning. You're falling behind quite fast, Raven. You'll have to improve quickly if you're going to catch up."

"You want to say that again, Salem?! I'll kick your ass!" Raven clenched her fist at Salem while a vein pulsed from her forehead.

"Oh? Sparring? I suppose I can indulge you in a little bit. But I'll have to freshen up." Salem casually did a curtsy in her current robes and apron. "Doing the dishes has left me quite dirty, you see. A classy lady should not engage in a sanctioned spar while in such an unpleasant visage." Salem smiles knowingly. "Mind freshening up yourself, Raven? You'll be showing your daughter the importance of cleanliness."

"She should take nice and good care of her hair, too." Summer also smiles. Raven grumbled while running a hand through her hair.

"Tch. Fine. Brat, you and I will be bathing together later."

"Can I bring my bath toys?!" Yang beamed excitedly, hopping in place.

"...Fine."

"Yay!"

"See? It doesn't have to be a bother, Raven. It helps to be a little bit more presentable sometimes!" Summer smiles fondly, then her ears twitch as she hears even more arrivals into the room. "Speaking of looking presentable, there's always someone we might want to impress in such a way. Is that not right, Taiyang?"

"No need for that, for you both always look beautiful." The blond man smiled while rubbing the back of his neck. "It might just be a natural thing for both of you. Even when it's nicely kept and groomed..." Taiyang turned to Raven with a shrug. "To be casually unkempt. There's something beautiful about that too. It really works for you."

"Don't try and sweet talk to me so early in the morning, Tai. It's not going to work." Raven huffed while folding her arms and turning away.

"Come on, Rae. He's just complimenting you." Summer soothed, slightly patting Raven's shoulder.

As Ruby and Yang watched them, they had their own shoulders tapped onto and they both turned and giggled as a man with a rugged expression soon shifted his head between them while making a shushing motion. "And now we see, in her natural habitat, the ever-grumpy Raven, who tries to shrug off many attempts at affection with aggression."

"Piss off, Qrow."

"And there is one of her many warning cries. It's so fascinating to hear every time she calls one out." Qrow casually continues, making the girls next to him laugh. "She tries and she tries to insist otherwise, unwilling to admit with a straight face that she melts like butter whenever Taiyang compliments her."

"Shut the fuck UP, Qrow!" Raven growled, unable to keep the red off of her face for much longer.

"Swearies." Ruby pointed towards Raven with a soft pout.

"Now even the youngest is ridiculing you. I don't think your pride will recover from this, dear Raven." Salem chuckled behind her hand.

Taiyang was understanding, though. Raven muttered curses towards her brother while Taiyang moved over to her and pulled her into a hug. Distracted by her grumbling towards Qrow, Raven ended up not minding her husband embracing her. Summer smiled at this as she joined in on the hug, tenderly hugging them both. Raven immediately realized what had just happened eventually and looked slightly grumpier than before.

"I got caught..."

"You didn't try and get away." Summer chirped cheerily as she nuzzles both Raven and Taiyang, her tail wagging delightfully at their shared hug. Taiyang himself was smiling at being a part of the gathering, while Raven had her arms folded while rolling her eyes.

"Why I put up with you two?"

"Because we love you."

"...Aside from that." Raven insisted, seemingly hiding her face away as the red on her face brightened. Though at one point, she eventually realized that such an image doesn't fit her at all. So, with a sigh, she eventually broke free of the embrace and turned towards them with narrowed eyes. "You're going to suffocate me with your excessive optimism."

"It's our biggest defense in order to balance against your excessive pessimism." Summer chuckled, with Taiyang joining in and having a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't sass me. What's it going to take for you to shut your mouths already?"

"A good morning kiss for our husband." Summer smiled at Raven's disbelieving face, briefly turning to Taiyang, who was just watching her, appreciating her beauty, and overall having fun seeing her so embarrassed. Raven looked in-between the two of them, and then briefly looked towards Ruby and Yang, before she sighed with furrowed brows.

"F-Fine..." Raven gathered up her nerves as she moved closer to Taiyang. Not wasting another moment so they could find even more opportunities to embarrass or sass her, she grabbed him by the collar as she pulled him into a rather forceful kiss. It was always how it began, though Taiyang's patience and understanding with her manages to shine through; his hands rested above her hips whilst he pulled her closer into the embrace. Ravens grip softened somewhat as her arms just as well made their way around Taiyang and pulled him deeper into their kiss. She still held the aggression with how she pushed forward slightly with Taiyang stepping back a bit, but he welcomed it gracefully while sliding his arms fully around her waist. Before long, they separated for the moment, with their shared gaze unbroken. Raven had collected herself during the kiss, at which she scoffed at the smile on Taiyang's face and turned away. "Tch, wipe that stupid smile off your face. And look at how you're hugging me. Just itching for an excuse to get your hands on my ass, huh?"

"I wouldn't immediately. I was more occupied with looking into your eyes."

"I already told you that flattering me isn't-" Taiyang briefly kissed her again, which she didn't even bother fighting against as her hands cupped his face, both of them closing their eyes in the moment, swift as it was. They separated just as quickly, with Raven opening her eyes again with a much softer expression, albeit still tinged with annoyance. "...going to work."

"No, but it's a pretty effective lead-in, isn't it?"

"Can it." Raven grumbled as she and Taiyang eventually released one another, before Summer hopped up with her waving bushy tail. "Oh look, now it's the wolf's turn. Hopefully she doesn't end up pouncing on you too harshly."

"Rae! I would never do that! At least not with the girls watching." Summer slyly admitted, which had Raven knowingly smirking at her, whilst Taiyang was now under both of their thralls and ended up being the one embarrassed due to it. Nevertheless, the lead in was much gentler and slower with Summer, once she latched onto Taiyang with her hands, and pulled him closer to her while pressing her lips against his for a tender kiss. Her wolf ears twitched several times as Taiyang settled his arms around her back and pulled her closer to him, allowing their kiss to deepen and for Summer's maternal bust to press against his brawny chest. Summer's tail delightfully wagged behind her due to her dropping just a few moments to catch her breath, before closing the distance again with further kisses for her husband. Several small kisses on his cheeks before going back for longer lasting ones on his lips, all the while Taiyang gently rubbed her shoulders and the small of her back to coax her further into them. After enough time the two eventually separated, with Summer nuzzling his cheek with a wagging tail, and Taiyang warming her with his strong yet welcoming hugs. "I have to agree with Raven on something, though. When the opportunity presents itself, you'll definitely attempt to hold your butts in your hands."

Taiyang chuckled while scratching the back of his neck. "Well, when I'm not focused on how illuminating your eyes are...that's when I remember there's quite a lot to hold."

"Hmph. At least he's frank about it." Raven scoffed, even though she also smirked.

"Figured that Tai would appreciate you having a fatter ass, Sis." Qrow teased as he tended to his own breakfast, only for his plate to be snatched from him in a blur of black feathers. "What the-hey!"

"Bratty younger twin brothers don't get breakfast today." Raven uttered with an irritated twitchy eye.

"Hey, Rae! You're not seriously going to punish me for speaking the truth, are ya?"

"Since you're going to joke about me having a fat ass, then maybe your breakfast will serve me better by making it even more so!" Raven soon began ravenously eating Qrow's food, much to his dismay as he attempted to steal it back from her.

"Knock it off, Raven!"

"You want your food back so badly, take it from me, jackass!" Raven taunted her brother through furious mocking munches of his precious breakfast. Qrow turned towards Salem for support, only for her to shrug her shoulders and simply continue observing, almost playfully gesturing to the kitchen wares and painfully reminding him that there were no more waffles or pancakes to be seen. The last of them that were supposed to be his were now being forcibly claimed by his sister.

So unlucky.

"Mum and Uncle Qrow are duking it out again. And Mum is winning." Yang pointed out while tilting her head.

"As always." Salem chuckled at the scene herself.

"Breakfast battle?!" Ruby gasped with both of her hands over her mouth.

Summer and Taiyang calmly stepped out of the way as Raven and Qrow began fighting with each other over who gets to eat what. The push and pull aggression of Qrow calling his sister fat and Raven mocking her brother's insult by eating even more of his food continued well into the morning. All the while, Ruby and Yang giggled and laughed as soon enough the entire kitchen descended into chaos, with only Summer and Taiyang relatively trying to set things back in order, Raven and Qrow fighting over food, and Salem cackling and allowing it all to continue for her and her grandchildren's entertainment.

And Ruby, eyes sparkling and smiling about how much her father got along with both wives, and how they both cherished him in return. It looked and felt so cozy and fun. She wondered if she could have something like that one day.

All in all, yet another common morning with the Rose/Xiao-Long/Branwen Family.

---

Ruby slowly opened her eyes, finding herself lying on her side whilst in her bed. Her ears flicked slightly, her eyes briefly searching the room for something out of the ordinary, before she winced from the sudden pain across her chest. She shot up and growled, holding herself whilst noticing that there was slightly more scarring than before, adding onto how her clashes with Mara Marzikeen left several across her chest. Her Aura was gently dulling the pain to an extent, it didn't take long for her to realize that she's been healed quite a while ago, likely by Jaune.

Jaune...

Jaune.

Ruby lowered her eyes slightly as she laid back down on her bed, her eyes having lost a little bit of their current shine. It was all coming back to her. The fight she had with her fellow Celestians. How they mocked her grandmother wanting to seek happiness even if she sought it the wrong way once. Of how Juno mocked this desire of her beloved grandmother and even spoke ill of her dead daughters by saying they deserved to die for being born from Salem's womb. Then she attacked her over her bond with Jaune and how ultimately it was doomed to fail so long as she was connected with Salem. Of how despite everything she and Ozma did in order to achieve greater happiness together, it ultimately fell apart because one had lost faith in the other, which caused both of them to emotionally collapse. And it led to the deaths of their daughters.

Ultimately, no matter how strong their bond was, it was destroyed due to one of them losing faith in the other, which led to a collapse on both sides. Such a strong romantic bond had been completely torn apart due to a brief lack in understanding managing to tear them both apart at their cores. And if it could happen to those two, who found a certain kind of freedom in each other that they could not maintain, then what chance did she have to avoid the same fate?

She wasn't blaming her grandmother for this influence on her thoughts, absolutely not. She wouldn't dare do something like that to her, not over something like this. But she couldn't deny that she allowed all of their words to get to her. Their insults towards Salem and their questionings towards her relationship with Jaune, and how one could ultimately influence the other in the worst possible ways, should events conspire to put them on the spot in that manner. It was enough to give Ruby pause, and it was enough for Juno to savagely wound her in her bit of hesitation.

The realization hurt more than her physical wounds.

Ruby sighed at herself while allowing the events to replay in her mind several times, and she only grew more disappointed in her performance every time. Her mind eventually desired to shift to something else, as she reached for the Scroll left by her bedside and checked on something. She quickly realized she's been out for a week, and that plenty has happened since then. Though the most alarming was the first event, which wasn't too long after she lost the battle and lost consciousness.

'The Mistralian city of Boreas has been ravaged by a series of silver colored lightning strikes, leaving a majority of their citizens dead, whilst others have been taken away and haven't been seen since. Four individuals were last seen in the center of the storm, before vanishing along with the selected people they've captured. Aside from the captured people, there were no survivors.'

So, Boreas has been destroyed. Despite her best efforts, it was destroyed.

Not only that, but either through kidnapping or through destruction, it's been completely wiped of life, leaving behind only the sheer wreckage left behind in the wake of Juno's power. Ruby could have prevented that had she stayed focused. He she simply not let their words, taunts, and insults get to her. And yet they constantly went for badmouthing her grandmother, which she never could tolerate. Then planting doubt in her relationship with Jaune, with how easily it could fall apart whether quickly or gradually, from even the slightest misstep that anyone could make.

It was too much for Ruby after she had just woken up, so she simply laid back down on her bed without a word simply staring at the ceiling with a blank expression, her eyes not shining nearly as much as they usually did. There was little reason for them to shine after such a critical failure, one that resulted an entire city getting destroyed, with many captured and likely been converted to their cause, and many more were dead because they weren't deemed worthy. All of that happened because she couldn't defeat the enemy.

All of those lost lives were on her.

She laid down while contemplating this, as the door to her room very slowly opened. A cautious step through the door, before fully pushing it open.

"You awake, Ruby?" Yang quietly asked, taking another step when her sister didn't answer immediately.

"Oh. Hi, Yang." Ruby attempted to muster a proper greeting, though found herself lacking the energy.

"Yeah, I figured you'd be down. That's why I brought along someone to help you lift your spirits!

Ruby blinked in surprise as she noticed a corgi ran up to her with a few energetic barks. She eventually sits up a little bit as the patiently sits in place, tilting his head at her. "Hi, Zwei." Ruby quietly called. She sits up, and Zwei quickly hops up onto the bed with her, licking her face several times, before he laid himself across her lap with his belly exposed. Ruby was quiet for another moment, before she placed a hand across his fluffy belly and began rubbing softly, warning happier barks from the canine. "Good boy..." Her voice didn't pick up much, but her expressions turned from a frown to a thin lined, tired smile.

Yang considered it a step in the right direction.

"Is she good?" Jaune could be heard stepping in as well, with a small wave.

"It's a start. Toldja beginning with Zwei was a good idea." Yang elbowed Jaune slightly. "Brought your man too, Rubes. Figured you could use his company when you came to. I'll leave you alone for now." Yang briefly hugged Ruby and caressed the top of her head, before turning to leave the room, and thus the duo and Zwei, on their own.

Jaune sits closer to Ruby noticing just how downtrodden she looked, through her tired eyes and unkempt hair. The events from the battle must have been weighing down on her. And then he remembered that things went down the way they did because he was the one who got captured when he didn't have his guard up properly. Blake was able to help everyone locate where he was, which allowed Ruby to storm the cathedral in order to reduce him, and she ended up suffering a physical and mental beatdown in response to it. On top of her likely taking the guilt of an entire city's worth of people being killed for failing to stop what happened, at the hands of those who were of the same bloodline as her. The sense of personal responsibility must have been instinctual, and it was likely hurting her harshly.

He felt at fault for this turn of events. This wasn't her fault at all, being unprepared for him getting captured and being led into the kinds of enemies they ran into. But since she's Guild Leader, he knew she wasn't going to believe that even if he tried his best to convince her, for the weight of the responsibility lies with her. That wasn't the approach to take for now, so he opted for the simpler and quieter path. He pulled her into a hug, and she didn't reject it. Just slightly, he felt her leaning against his chest.

"Hey."

"Hi..."

"How ya feeling?"

"Not very good, honestly..." Ruby uttered. Jaune rubbed her shoulder, while Zwei relaxed quietly on her lap. Her ears were flattened and pinned back, her stress from the events made clear. Ruby more closely leaned against him, taking soft comfort in his scent being so close to her. The smell of strawberries was all over him, he must have been baking at some point. "I seriously messed up..."

"You're taking this pretty roughly. And I don't blame you." Jaune hugged her closer, feeling progress as she leaned into his embrace, simply wanting to bask in his scent more to relax. "I just want you to know that I'm here for you, alright?"

"Thanks..." Ruby muffled as she lightly reached to touch his arm, pulling herself back a bit. "...I need some time. This entire thing has messed me up a bit. I don't think I'll be able to answer this well or make any sound decisions as a Guild Leader like this. I...I need to take some time to collect myself before I decide on something big." Ruby lifted her head to meet Jaune's eyes. "How is everybody else...?"

"Getting by. We've all been keeping ourselves busy until you wake up." Jaune scratched his cheek. "I've had to take care of a chunk of the leading tasks since you were out, and nobody wanted to sit on their haunches after what happened." Jaune showed her through the Scroll, some of the tasks they've been able to complete with Ruby unconscious for those two days.

"Is that so...? That's good. I'd hate to hold everyone back like that..." Ruby uttered quietly, looking to the side. Jaune lowered his eyes at this, seeing the weight return to her eyes and posture. She looked so much more stressed than before, and he wouldn't want her feeling that way for long. But what he would say is unlikely to work right now. "Did...did anything else happen while I was out? Anything super important?"

Jaune wondered how he should approach this, but for this particular subject he would be completely truthful. If only so Ruby could get an accurate gauge on what happened whilst she was unconscious. "The Grimm Devils. They're being wiped out."

"...What?" He understandably noticed the disbelieving shock going in Ruby's eyes when he relayed this. He knew he didn't believe it either when he first heard about it. But of course, there was evidence recorded throughout many Scrolls. Indeed, leading from the front, Juno was taking point as a bolt of silver lightning crashed down from the heavens, and obliterated the Grimm Devils gathering around her in that bright flash of light.

"Ever since everything that went down in Boreas, they have been relentlessly hunting down all the Grimm Devils around. With their shared abilities they've found all of them within the old generation and killed them. They've been gaining even more followers like this, due to everyone being afraid of the Grimm Devils and the damage they can all do with their power and influence. It's caused a lot of conflicting feelings to well up between everyone." Jaune sets his Scroll down. The footage began playing.

Grimm Devils were attempting to regain their ground, to fight back against whatever was trying to crush them beneath their heel, when it's supposed to be them that crushes everything else. That was their inherent nature, as well as their inherent right, as beasts of death and destruction, walking calamities that could not possibly be obstructed by human hands. They could do naught but be destroyed in the wake of their presence.

The problem they currently face, was that the hands they were being obstructed by, weren't human hands.

"Who would have thought there'd be even more of you running around...?!"

One of them hissed as a wall of malefic energy surrounded them, attempting to defend themselves against the brilliant silver light that was summoned to smite them. But as strongly as the walls held up, they simply couldn't last. The dark barriers have been broken though, and silver beams of light pierce through, smiting them where they stood. Even more attempted to escape or fight back, only to be met with the same fate.

One of the Devils clashed their claws against a spiral of glowing Silver Chains, which Themis currently wrapped around them, causing them unending agony throughout their entire body. "AGH! You bright eyed bastards have always been getting in our way, no matter how much we've attempted to wipe the rest of you out!" The Grimm Devil slashed their claws at her, which she dodged by ducking under it, similarly wrapping the other arm in glowing silver chains. She violently pulled, and the dark creature was torn apart in a brilliant silver light, destroying it completely. She swiftly spun as her chains extended and slashed through nearby Grimm that tried to approach her with her back turned, ending with the chains wrapping around her fists, and she slammed them into the nearby Devils right before her, obliterating their heads, their bodies following soon after.

"You Devils have tarnished this world enough with your darkness. You should just accept that the Dark Ages are over."

Celimene smiled as she held out her hand, a silver barrier manifesting around her as multiple Grimm Devils attempted to pierce through. "I'm terribly sorry if Lilith managed to mislead you all into thinking that this was your time, but unfortunately, that ended a very long time ago, you see. It's been over for years, and yet still, you refuse to accept it." Her barrier suddenly pulsed, and multiple spiles shot forth from said barrier and pierced the Grimm Devils where they stood, including through their heads and chests, obliterating them in bright glimmers of light. "Peace is the superior element of this era, not chaos. Your influence is no longer a factor."

"Tch, you really believe that you all are going to be the superior ones of this world?"

"Being superior in a sense, means being able to turn the world to any direction that you feel is the best one." Celimene conjured several series of barrier orbs, before they expanded quickly and crushed them underneath the intensity of their weight crashing onto them, obliterating them in a flash of light. "I believe the superior path is peace. Of course, you and I won't ever understand each other on that prospect."

Just a few paces away, several more Grimm Devils attempted to send their swarms of Grimm towards Orella, though they were suddenly caught in bubbles of silver energy and were summarily vaporized by them when they tried to approach her. She smiled as silver energy pulsed, eyes softly glowing. She pushes her hands outwards, and the destroys the horde, and pushes back the Grimm Devils while severely damaging them with the force of their light.

"Your futures are set in stone. And wouldn't you have it, none of you have one that goes past today." Orella smiles as she flashed another wave of light against Grimm Devils, as they came upon her from all sides, their dark energy surging and attacking everything around them in an attempt to kill her. But a ball of silver energy gathered in her hands and continuously expanded, until she guided it to swing around and pull in all of the Grimm Devils attempting to gang up on her, and then the orb explodes and destroys them in a beautiful, sparkling flash. "Our futures, however, are looking to be quite bright and prosperous."

This was how it was. They probably should have known better, but they thought they had a real chance. But none of them could have expected them to be of this level, and to be of this immensity of power. Nor could they have realized the sheer mercilessness of this light that these women held at their fingertips. One of the Grimm Devils realized this, as they felt their chest pierced through, by a blade of Silver Lightning.

"It was an inevitable result. The fate of all things born from darkness, created by darkness, or holding darkness within their hearts, it's where negativity dwells and grows, before spreading its corruptive influence further. You Grimm were always merely annoying pests to be exterminated, and nothing more." The Grimm Devik found itself sliced in two, vertically in a flash of lightning, as Juno kills it right then and there, with Silver Lightning infused into Crocea Mors. Her silver eyes pulsed with power. "The destiny of darkness, evil, negativity, is to be destroyed. It matters not what the source is, they are not allowed to exist anywhere."

Juno's eyes pulsed again, as her fellow Celestians crushed the remains of the opposition within this area. And many bystanders and onlookers, who witnessed their touchdown and immense sacred power used to slay the Devil's that sought to slaughter them, found themselves submitting themselves before them.

"We will restore the radiance that Remnant once had. This is the divine duty that must be upheld."

Ruby watched the footage end, dumbfounded. "Is...is this for real...?"

"It's for real. I checked with your grandma to confirm it; the Grimm Devils she knows were being systematically killed one after another, with no room to fight back."

So, it really was true.

Her grandmother Salem confirmed it. Nobody would know about the status of the Grimm Devils more than her, even if she couldn't directly locate them. So, to just hear that they're being hunted down while Ruby was unconscious...made her feel mixed. On one hand, she couldn't exactly deny that the Grimm Devils being culled would be a massive boon for Remnant, so she's not exactly sad that they're being killed. On the other hand, due to being the ones who further spread the falsehood that Salem was behind the massive attack on Vale, there were now fewer ways to dissipate that belief. Ruby wouldn't be surprised if that's precisely why they went ahead to try hunting them all down quickly and destroying them. That's one less way for Ruby to warm the world up to her grandmother's name, the one way that would provide the best results available given the current atmosphere of the world.

It's being completely denied to her, now.

"...I appreciate you letting me know about this sooner rather than later. At least I won't be in the dark about it. But...now I don't know what to do." Ruby muttered while stroking Zwei's belly as he laid idly on her lap. "I don't think I'm capable of leading the guild right now...I'm feeling a bit off."

"Is there anything that I can do for you? Anything else I can do to support you?" Jaune sincerely asked as he gently hugged her closer to him again, and she gingerly laid against his chest.

"...I could use something yummy to eat." Ruby sniffed Jaune, leaning closer to Jaune. "You've been baking something delicious. Can I have some of it? Pretty please?"

"Whatever you want." Jaune nodded, briefly pressing his forehead against hers, before getting up to retrieve what he baked. Ruby sits idly on her bed, gingerly striking Zwei's back with a soft nod. Zwei simply lays down and closes his eyes while Ruby pets him, relaxing in her cuddle, and her relaxing a bit more letting Zwei. She was feeling slightly better now, but the heaviness was still weighing on her chest. Eventually Jaune returns in due time, with a sizable platter of strawberry cupcakes. The strawberry scent reached Ruby's nose rather quickly, and she felt hungry enough where she felt her mouthwatering at the sight and scent. "I have made plenty for everybody, but I managed to save a platter entirely for you. Never really forget you and Yang's taste for strawberries."

"Strawberries..." Ruby uttered with a calmer tone than usual, but there was no fooling Jaune once he saw her drooling and heard the grumbling from her belly. He placed the platter next to her and she wasted no time taking in as many cupcakes into her hands and munching on them en masse, the sweetened frosting gracing her lips which she quickly licked away. Already she's eaten quite a few of them in single bites each, with her mood somewhat improving with every bite into strawberry goodness. Her tail softly wagged behind her, which Jaune took as yet another sign of her gradual improvement, no matter how small it was. Zwei peacefully continues laying across her lap, indulging her current sweets frenzy for the time being. Ruby having lost herself for a moment, was unaware of Jaune adding to her feeding with a glass of strawberry milk. "Oooh, it smells nice!" Once she made her way through her cupcake platter, she also drinks her strawberry milk in no time flat. She sighed as she finished her glass quickly, wiping her lips, the cool refreshment doing well to similarly refresh her soul. "Thanks, Jaune..."

"You're going to want more, aren't you?"

"Probably, but I'll take a break for now." Ruby held off while setting the glass to the side. She leaned back a bit while gingerly rubbing her newly filled belly, burping cutely. "I feel a bit better..."

"I'm happy I can help." Jaune kindly declares. It wasn't quite far, but she was doing a bit better than before now that she has some food in her belly. That was always one way to improve Ruby's mood enough for her to rise from her funks to talk more openly. "Now then, is there anything else you might want?"

"I...I don't really know. But I know I wouldn't want to hold anyone back with me being out there with them, when I can barely hold myself together." Ruby wondered with a sigh, taking Zwei into her arms as she laid on her side. "Anyway, how did the other missions go with the others? Were you able to do alright?"

"Relatively. Everyone manages to get back home in time whenever we go out. I always make sure of this, because I know you want everyone to stay together and be safe. I'd want you to have some peace of mind in that aspect, at the very least." Jaune reports as he goes over several mission reports across Mistral. "Of course, there was always someone staying behind to watch over you, when most of us are gone. Yang was usually the one taking up that spot. Course, nobody argued against it." Jaune swiped across the Scroll, showing several images of the gang across Mistral. "We've been working closely with Haven, for the most part. They're the closest and easiest to contact at the moment."

"Oh, so you've had help. Thank goodness...wait." Ruby blinked as she reached out her hands and held Jaune's face, seeing the bags under his eyes. "...Jaune. Have you not been sleeping?"

"Huh? Oh, that. I kind of had to pull a few all-nighters, making sure everything was okay, making sure you were okay, that the others were organized. It was a lot on my mind admittedly." Jaune scratched the back of his head. "But it's not like I'm about to fall to pieces any time soon just because I missed a few z's. I've got plenty of energy left to spare, so it's alright."

"No it's not alright!" Ruby pouted at him worriedly.

Jaune lightly lifted his hand to caress Ruby's cheek, lifting her head in the process. "Listen, I know you've been worried about everyone else, but you still haven't fully recovered from what happened, and you still feel a bit shaken by it all. You won't be able to focus on or do your duties right now." Jaune gently relayed to her. Ruby seemed to quietly concede to this, her head gently pushing against his hand as his thumb moved slightly across her cheek. "I have it covered. Just worry about and focus on yourself for now. Okay?"

Ruby sighed as she lightly held his hand with two of her own and nuzzled into it, her tail softly wagging, opening her eyes to look into his. "Okay." Ruby softly hums with a gentle nod. Jaune nods as well, pulling back his hand to give her cheek a kiss, which she accepts full heartedly. "Since...well, since I'll be staying behind a bit, do you think you can get me a few other things, too? Like more snacks?"

"You got it."

And thus, Jaune kept to his word. Throughout the morning Ruby was lying in bed petting and cuddling Zwei, as Jaune tended to her however he could before he had to get any work done. For the time being, Ruby distressed by changing into her strawberry pajamas and putting on her black Beowulf sleeping mask. She was once again greeted by Jaune as he had also given her a strawberry cheesecake breakfast parfait, as well as strawberry breakfast shakes.

Delighted, she happily takes the breakfast treat and takes several bites, the cool strawberry goodness sending pleasant chills through her body, causing her to kick her feet. "Sooooo sweet! Strawberry sweet treats!" Chuckling at this, and brightened by his adorable wife's slowly relaxing mood, Jaune even went out of her way to properly clean and fold her signature red cape, before returning it to her nice and neat. When she was done, he took it upon himself to ensure that the dishes were cleaned.

It was a bit difficult to do, but he also gave Ruby her space when she gingerly asked for it. He wanted to stay close to her and be there for her but understood that she might want half an hour to herself and with Zwei in order to improve her own mood. Dopamine fills her and soothes her spirit as she cuddled the corgi, with him lifting himself to give her cheek several puppylike kisses, which made her giggle and laugh a bit more. That on its own brought plenty of joy to Jaune's own heart, seeing her slowly pulling herself together. Not completely, he could still see the tired and doubting look in her eyes. But it wasn't as heavy as it was when she woke up. And that was a decent start he was willing to work with and support.

After enough time had passed, Ruby eventually calls Jaune back to the room. Jaune smiles as he gives Zwei's chin a few nurturing scratches, as Ruby leans against him and pulls him into a hug. He readily returns it, pulling her closer to jus chest and rubbing her back and shoulders soothingly. They didn't say anything immediately, they just basked in each other's presence and allowed that to soothe the both of them, with Ruby in particular taking comfort in Jaune's scent being close to her again. Their cuddle lasted a while, as Zwei simply rolls about on the bed while panting without a care in the world.

Four minutes later, Ruby finally breaks the silence.

"...Thanks. For being here for me."

"Not a problem. Think you're doing a bit better now?"

"Mhm..." Ruby lowered her eyes, her wolf ears flicking every now and then as Jaune continues gently rubbing her shoulder. "Jaune. You...you know that I do appreciate you a whole lot, right?"

"...What did she say to you?" Jaune nailed it immediately, and Ruby didn't even bother to deny it. Though he pulled himself back from being upset, for that wouldn't help Ruby right now. "Never mind. You don't really have to tell me." Ruby shook her head at this.

"No, I want to tell you. I'd rather not keep this inside for longer than I need to." Ruby insisted, and she did, after gathering herself, tells Jaune about her encounter with Juno, specifically her mentions of him, and their disagreements on where his true alignment would ultimately lie. Once she finished, Jaune nodded in understanding.

"She got to you like that, huh?"

"I knew what she was doing, and it still messed me up." Ruby's eyes shifted to the side. "Does...does that mean..."

"Don't fall down that spiral, Ruby. It's what she wants." Jaune gently urged her, hugging her closer and rubbing her back in gentle circles. "She doesn't know a thing about either of us, and I don't care to know anything about her. All I do know, is that she hurt you, and I'm not about to let that slide." He briefly took her hands into his own, resolutely looking into her shining silver eyes. "You're in a bad place right now. I'm not even going to say that you're wrong to feel doubtful. It just means that I'll have to prove those doubts wrong, and help you prove them wrong, too. I know you're capable of that, I've seen it multiple times. I just have to help you bring that strength we both know is always there."

Ruby softly blinks at this, her head lowering slightly as Jaune reassured and supported her as always. Her heart swelled up in gratitude both for his words and his presence both helping her feel more at ease, even if only for a moment. Still, she was feeling a bit better than before, and she wanted to maintain and hang onto that feeling so that his words and encouragement wouldn't be wasted. "...Thanks, Jaune."

"I'll get you more snacks. Be back in a bit." Jaune reassured, giving Zwei a last scratch under his chin, before he turned and left the room.

Ruby watched him leave, and continued to pet and caress Zwei in silence, the corgi occasionally lifting himself up to give her cheek puppy kisses. The silence that ensued between them was somewhat deafening, but she also appreciated the calmness such silence brought. It left her alone with her thoughts, both the good ones and the bad, and she had a bit of time to herself to process and sort them out.

...Juno. She's of the Celestian bloodline, like me, Mom, and Master. She uses the same light powers as I do. And yet, the malice that I sensed from her was so intense...I couldn't stand up to it at all...what can I do?

The answers weren't going to come to her today, unfortunately. It drove her a bit up the wall, but there was nothing that could be done about it currently.

"They said that I would be able to find you here." Ruby blinked and lifted her head, as someone was seen in the doorway after knocking a few times. Ruby blinked at the presence, surprised.

"Madam Xahn?" She hasn't seen the elder in a while, and coming out all this way to see her was a surprise to be sure.

The elder woman smiled as Ruby turned towards her fully. "You seem to be having a rough time as of late, Ruby. You wouldn't mind a bit of company, would you?" She soon makes her way inside and takes a seat next to Ruby. "Thank you. Now, what seems to be troubling you these days?"

Ruby wondered if she should say anything. But then again, not confiding about these kinds of things was more likely to hurt her rather than help her, so she submits to the desire. "I'm facing another enemy this time, and they're...a lot closer to me than I'd like to admit. Related in a way that I'd rather not be with them. But it's not something I can do anything about, so..."

Madam Xahn hums while lightly placing her hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Ruby. It would seem that these new foes of yours draw much of their strength from the power of light. And from the beginning of time, light has been seen as a beacon of safety from darkness, as the latter has been seen as a malevolent thing. After all, you cannot see anything in the dark, it is a very primal fear, one that can't be rationalized or reasoned with. This is what allows them to paint darkness and negativity in an even more sinister perspective than usual and use that to influence others to their causes." Madam Xahn gently nodded to Ruby once she saw that she was following along. "Ruby, do you remember when you first visited me?"

Ruby tilted her head, her ears twitching. "...I, uh...I was in a pretty uncertain place. I was still in training, and I wasn't quite sure what I was supposed to do when I..." Ruby lightly pushed her fingers together with a sigh. "It was the first time that I completely failed in a mission...and people ended up dying because of it." She lowered her head with a whine. "I had completely messed up, and it didn't help that those people had others who cherished them, and blamed me for being unable to save them..."

Madam Xahn softly nods. "That sense of failure greatly hurt you, as well as its consequences. From an emotional and mental level, this failure was damaging." She lightly patted the top of Ruby's hand. "However. Once you took your time to recover from that sense of failure, endeavoring to do better for the next person and making sure you didn't fail them, you ended up becoming more resilient to the sting of failing, and it's more devastating effects to your emotional health."

Ruby rubbed her arm; she could still sometimes head the jeers and hate filled exclaims of rejection she endured when she was on her way home. How Yang held her close and glared heatedly as she quietly dared their jeerers to come closer and attempt to harm her for her failures. People were overwhelmed by the negativity within their hearts and having no real way to process and deal with them, which ended up nearly placing them on self-destructive dark paths. Ruby didn't want her sense of failure to turn her into something like that, hence why she went to Madam Xahn for help.

"Don't wallow in that guilt; turn it into a source of energy towards positive change. When you feel overcome by negative emotions due to factors outside of your control, the key is taking your negative emotions and channeling them into actions that ARE within your control."

Madam Xahn gently grabbed Ruby's hands and caressed the top of them, with the adolescent rose surprised by the warmth they held, and the healing light that bathed over them. She looked up to the elder, who smiled softly. "Will I really be able to do something like that? I knew that it would be hard. But to think that it could feel so harsh and cruel..."

"Sometimes it can feel that way, Ruby. It's not easy to build up emotional resilience. But once you do, facing and overcoming various challenges with greater ease than before." Madam Xahn lightly caressed the top of her head. "It's important to remember that you're not powerless to help yourself. You can improve from these experiences, and you don't have to let them define you or let them ruin your future."

"Right...right." Ruby nodded slowly, willing to believe in that, but also wanting to hear it first from herself to redouble her firmness. As she calms, Xahn takes something from her carrying pouch, and hands it to Ruby, who takes it gently into her hands. "What's this?"

"It's a charm necklace. I was looking for someone who might like to have it, and I decided to give it to you, dear." Xahn smiles softly. "I crafted it myself, in my spare time."

"No kidding?" Ruby peaked closer to the charm necklace and realized something about the appearance. A dragon, a skeletal, purple glowing one. Wings with the membranes somewhat decayed, ornate spiral horns on its head, with the skull having emptied eye sockets. "This is a charm necklace of the God of Darkness?"

"Yes. A charm necklace that represents the Dark Lord. There aren't a lot of these due to express stigma, but quite a few exist. Including some made by me." Xahn expands her Scroll for Ruby to see. "When you have this around with you, you'll find better comfort in looking towards darkness for help. For there are some things better to be found in the dark, when light has obscured everything else."

Ruby lightly clasped her hands. That did sound like the sort of issue that she was currently dealing with, and she wasn't completely sure how to, just yet. Though from what she could tell, she understood enough that fighting light with light was not going to get her anywhere in this battle. Juno was effectively the better wielder of it, challenging her on her terms was unlikely to work with so little preparation. Her recklessness ended up getting her easily swiped aside, and her friends nearly killed.

I can't approach this on their terms. Think. There's gotta be a way...

Ruby's ears flicked, and she raised her head to see that Jaune had returned with more snacks, and Yang made her return as well, waving cheerily. "Hey sis. Jaune says that you're feelin' a bit better now, so I wanted to see for myself." Yang sits next to Ruby again with a smirk. "Sisterly duties require it, ya know."

"Yang, we're both in our twenties. You don't have to hover over me so much." Ruby gently pushed back with a sincere smile.

"Nah, age doesn't matter in this instance. Older siblings look after their younger ones, always." She lightly punched her shoulder. "Hopefully you'll be able to get back into the swing of things."

Jaune smiles as he places a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "It'll be alright. We'll find a way through all of this, once we've all collected ourselves." Ruby smiles back at this, and nods in agreement.

Then her ears twitched, her eyes widened, and a familiar, sinister scent hit her nostrils. She immediately turns towards the source, suddenly on high alert.

"How cute."

Ruby was the first one to immediately sense the danger looming over them all.

"Nicely snuggled, accompanied by your lover, your sister, and your loving canine. Eating snacks and drinking milk. Winding down and recovering from your troubles. You're within your own personal space, home sweet home, and therefore you are, for the moment, safe from harm."

Juno was levitating right outside, with her chin in her hands, leaning forward with a quizzical expression...and taking a bite out of a sandwich, it seems. Jaune swiftly looked toward the kitchen to see that there were sparks around where their fridge was. On sight, he could see that one of the sandwiches he made for Cinder to eat later had been swiped, and the culprit was immediately obvious.

"...Now why would you assume that? Simply because you are within the space of your own home base, that suddenly means that you are safe. You truly believed in such a randomly conjured farce?" Juno tilted her head with lowered eyes, silver lightning beginning to surge around her. "That is the rationale of a naive child. Allow me to personally remind you of how such gullibility is punished."

It didn't take too long, but it was still incredibly quick to Jaune. Ruby and Yang reacted even faster, with how Yang immediately pushed Ruby out of the way, as a strike of lightning crashed against her and sent her reeling against the wall. A stray bolt of lightning also crashed into Madam Xahn and sent her hurtling into the next room. Juno gracefully hopped into the room, landing on one foot; she pivots on it to spin and immediately kicked Jaune upside the head, knocking him out of the room and tumbling into the others. Something ended up popping into existence next to her, and it looked around with a small hum.

"Huh. This is a nicer looking base than I thought it would be." Curious Cat wondered with its paw rubbing its chin. "It's so roomy. Did you make it all yourself? Or perhaps you had one of your friends do it for you? Who came up with-" The feline paused and shook its head. "No, none of that really matters. Right now, what really matters is-" They jumped up and dodged a spiraling ball of fur as they levitated in the air. "What in the..."

Zwei landed across the room with a snarl, barking at the floating cat from where he stood.

"Oh, she has a canine companion. For your own sake, you should probably leave." Zwei barked at them louder, growling at them with an intense look in his eyes. "Well of course I'm intruding, I'm an intruder. That's kind of how that works, you know?" Curious Cat soon dodged again as Zwei leapt at them in a ball with blurring speed, again landing across the room with a snarl. "Get out? But I just got here! Let me look around a little, at least!"

Ruby eventually landed on all fours, with Yang right next to her. Jaune eventually pulled himself up and stood with his shield at hand. Juno tilted her head at them with a quiet yet condescending gaze.

"Obviously I have more important things to do than to dawdle here, but I can't very well ignore you, either." Juno uttered as lightning crackled around her. "Which is why I decided to come to you and lecture you once more, just to make sure that my messages are actually getting through to you." She then smiled. "Unless this is a bad time? Shall I try again tomorrow?"

"How about a solid never?" Jaune bitterly opposed as he defended against a blast of lightning with his shield. He made a step forward to press an offensive, but Juno was already right in front of him, electricity surging around her eyes, as she almost serenely pushed his shield downwards with little resistance from him. Even though he was trying to lift it back up as much as he could.

Juno locked eyes with him, their silver brilliance fully expressing the sheer immeasurable indifference she held towards him.

"I don't recall giving you permission to speak."

Jaune heard the voice. Then he felt the lightning infused blow to his lung, and he was once again since crashing into the wall, desperately gasping for breath as he collapsed on his side. His shield dropped across the floor. He gripped his chest and tried to use his Aura to recover from the damage, then he realized that Crocea Mors was no longer on his person. He quickly looked back towards Juno.

She was holding Crocea Mors.

"A longsword. Quite a classic weapon you have here." Juno casually observed, tilting about slightly with a glance. Then she infused it with lightning, gripped the handle with two hands, and immediately swung upwards towards Ruby, a massive wave of lightning erupting towards her. Ruby growled and jumped upwards to dodge the wave of lightning, barely missing it for several seconds.

Then she felt pain within her chest, and she coughed as blood dribbled from her lips.

Crocea Mors pierced through the center of her chest, infused with sparkling lightning. Juno looked right at her as some of the blood Ruby coughed up landed on her cheek. She casually swiped it away with her thumb.

"You should really cough into your shoulder. Doing so in people's faces is very rude." Juno sarcastically advises, before she briefly releases the blade and kicks the hilt, shoving the sword further into Ruby's chest and sending her and Crocea Mors crashing into the ground. She stomps on it to bury it even further, and Ruby ends up spurting even more blood from her mouth as the electric charges intensify the already agonizing pain. Juno huffed at this, as she roughly pulled the blade out of Ruby's choice before turning around to use it to parry Yang's incoming, Ember Celica empowered punch, the blast of fire exploding around them.

"Why don't you take a hike already, bitch?!" Yang growled as she punched the ground next, an explosion of fire briefly separating herself from Juno as they both jumped back. She kept vigilant, expanding her Aura to better sense Juno coming, and she parried several sword swipes infused with lightning, with her own flame coated fists. She ends up clashing with Juno several times, and nearly landed a blow to her face, only for Juno to parry that as well with a firm two handed stance.

"I've hiked enough today, thank you."

She ends up parrying another one of Yang's flaming punches, and then proceeds to slash across her cheek. Yang briefly winces at the gash but doesn't let up her assault, even roundhouse kicking with a flaming leg. Juno managed to block it easily enough, though the force behind it still made her reel back slightly. Yang fired multiple Ember Celica blasts with punches, with Juno deflecting some of them casually, before she rushed forth and slashed diagonally. A lightning infused slash appeared across Yang's chest, and she briefly coughed blood. Juno then rushed and slammed into her in a lightning tackle, sending Yang flying across the room. She ended up stopping herself, gritting her teeth despite the blood leaving the scars across her chest and cheek.

"Just what is your deal, anyway?! Why are you going around doing this kind of shit?! What gives?!" Yang exclaimed as Ember Celica fired upon Juno with mini explosives, which she defended herself against with an expansion of her Aura, the shielding pushing away the explosions. Though she found Juno flickering right in front of her, and right when she attempted to land a punch, found herself kicked below the belt, stunning her briefly as she fell to her hands and knees for a moment. Juno, unimpressed with her, slaps her across the face twice with a lightning infused hand, the latter sending her crashing into the wall.

"To me...the real question is why has this world has deteriorated so immensely?" She uttered while holding up Crocea Mors in the light, with Yang coughing and still collapsed on the ground. "Remnant. How can a world that has devolved into such hideousness attempt to cling to its own identity? How does a world filled with tainted hearts and corrupted souls, say that it wants to be happy in spite of that?" Juno soon lowers the blade in front of her, her silver eyes glimmering. "Evil does not have a right to happiness, nor does it have a right to exist. All things with darkness and negativity within them have already forfeited these rights. They will have no choice but to accept their impending annihilation without objection."

Growling and slowly pulling herself up from the disgraceful blows dealt to her, Yang slammed both her fists together and punched a pillar of flames towards Juno, her hair igniting. "I've got plenty of objections right here, Lady! What makes you think you're in any position to decide something like that?!" She soon pounds the ground again, a shockwave of flames spiraling outwards.

Juno slashed through the pillar and jumped over the shockwave of flames, as Crocea Mors sparked with more lightning in her hands. "As Sovereign over all those who bear Silver Eyes, it is already within divine right to decide which way the world goes." She soon slashed downwards, and Yang was engulfed in a massive flash of lightning slashing towards her. She managed to reduce the harshness of the blast by blocking with both arms but was still blasted into the wall in a large, electrified burst. The smoke cleared, and she was slumped against the wall, unconscious.

Ruby groaned as she tried to regain her bearings, only to see that both her sister Yang, and her mate Jaune, have both been heavily beaten down. Ruby grimaced as she tried to get up to help them, but her fatigue from the previous battle still hadn't gone away. Her vision was blurry, but she still managed to recover enough to stand on her own two feet. Just enough to realize that Juno appeared before her, and she barely dodged out of the way of another brutal slash. Ruby growled, as the slash still managed to barely slice upwards across her left side, leaving a vicious scar. This still left an opening for Juno to hold out her hand and blast Ruby in her already injured chest, sending her collapsing across the ground in an electrified heap, barely able to concentrate by that point.

Jaune grimaced at the entire display, and attempted to pull himself up as his Aura gradually healed his wounds. His eyes widened as Juno flashed right in front of him, and speedily kicked him across the face, enough to send him hurtling into the next room and against the beds. Juno gracefully landed on her feet afterwards. Jaune put his hands on the ground and attempted to push himself up, though Juno had already approached him, then kicked him over so that he landed on his back.

Still barely breathing from that, as well as being electrocuted by the lightning, Jaune wasn't prepared when Juno walked over him for a moment and casually sat down on his face while her eyes were firmly locked on the baffled Ruby, crossing one shapely leg over the other. He was firmly muffled by the unorthodox way of silencing him, unable to push her off or focus his Aura due to the pulsing shocks of lightning. Juno simply watched as Ruby was currently fuming at the sheer lack of regard for either of them. Especially since she was doing so mere inches away from Ruby, having rendered her unable to do anything about it.

"I don't want him speaking over me or interrupting me right now, so measures had to be taken." Juno declares nonchalantly, holding and balancing Crocea Mors in her hand. She shifts side to side a bit to further adjust to her eccentric, current seating arrangement, to Jaune's dismay and Ruby's ever rising rage. "Someone like you could never amount to what you aspire to be. And even then, your aspiration is not only childish, but inherently tainted with evil, thanks to who inspired it. The world would never accept it, and it would never accept you." Juno pushed as she stabbed Crocea Mors into Ruby's side, eliciting an agonized wince from the sudden pain. She still hadn't bothered removing her heart shaped rear from Jaune's face while doing so, leaving him unable to move or even see what was happening around him. "All you'll do is spread ruin through chasing your fantasies driven by naivety. When will you wake up and realize that your entire family is tainted with evil, due to Salem? Can you truly say with complete certainty in your soul, that you all aren't simply her latest pawns in her new long-running scheme?"

Ruby gripped Juno's ankle at this, with werewolf claws, and squeezed tightly, enough for bones to be heard shattering. Juno simply clicked her tongue and jumped away, finally allowing Jaune to gasp for breath, as she lands on one foot. Ruby lifted her head with a furious, feral glare in her eyes. Juno sighed and shook her head.

"Does the truth really hurt so badly? You glare at me like you're going to silence me and prove me wrong, and yet there you lie; a scared and wounded animal."

Jaune grit his teeth, quickly shaking off his bafflement as he tried to crawl his way over to Ruby. "Ruby...!"

Zwei leapt over to Curious Cat and tackled them in the stomach, sending the feline crashing into the ceiling. They grunted and shook off the blow as Zwei once again landed on his feet, barking at the creature. "Hey, that hurt! What's with you, anyway?!" Zwei barked at the feline some more, Aura surging around him as he viciously snarled. "You're fighting for someone like her? Why? What could she have possibly done to earn your loyalty?" Zwei growled some more, and Curious Cat blinked. "Wait, what do you mean by that...?"

Zwei's ears picked up, and he turned towards the downed Ruby as she was knocked against the wall by Juno. Whining, he immediately ran off towards her, jumping right in front of another bolt of lightning that would have struck Ruby. Zwei crumbled to the ground, twitching from the burst of lightning.

"Z-Zwei..." Ruby uttered with a shake of her head. "No, boy..."

Juno immediately blasts another wave of lightning towards Ruby, which Zwei doesn't hesitate to jump up and take again, his Aura barely taking the brunt of the blows. Landing in a heap again, he whined from the pain, before he shook his head and staggered back to his feet, snarling towards the woman hurting Ruby. Juno curiously tilted her head at these events, tilting her head.

"Such loyalty. Considering both of you are canines, that only makes even more sense." Juno hummed while balancing Crocea Mors across her shoulders. "Are you sure you're willing to go so far for the sake of your Alpha?"

Zwei barked defiantly at her, and Curious Cat blinked as they levitated closer to them. "I don't get it. What does he gain from doing this...?"

Another blast of lightning happened. And another. And another. And another Ruby was trying her hardest to force her fatigued body to move, because Zwei refused to get out of the way to protect himself, instead putting himself in harm's way for her without a second of hesitation in his ever-loyal canine heart. "Zwei, stop! That's enough! Just get out of here! Leave!"

Zwei whimpered and whined as his fur was charred and burned, and he was covered in electrical charges. But regardless, he refused to obey. Because that would result in Ruby getting hurt even worse, and he absolutely refused to allow that to happen while he could still move. As such, he exhaustedly but defiantly barked at Juno once more, who couldn't help but shake her head at his efforts.

"What a shame that an indomitable devotion is so horribly misplaced." Juno sighed, as Zwei leaped at her once again.

In a brief slash of lightning, significantly stronger than before, Zwei was blasted back against the wall next to Ruby, slamming back first into it, before he slumped to the ground, motionless. Ruby eyed the pup for a moment, her ears folding back as she crawled her way over to Zwei. The electrical surges continued for a moment before they stopped completely. Ruby reached her hand out and felt the side of his head, then rubbed along his side. She couldn't sense his Aura. Her eyes slowly widened in disbelief as she also couldn't hear or feel his heart beating.

"...Zwei...?" Ruby uttered quietly. She gently touched the sides of his head. "...Zwei, wake up, boy. You gotta get up." She utters again, her ears folding against her head, her tail drooping to the side. "...Z...Zwei...?" She turned his head, and her eyes further widened once she saw the vicious bloody slash across his neck, also charred with lightning. The realization slowly hits her as she feels herself beginning to tear up.

...

Zwei's dead...

Curious Cat watched the brutal display with widened eyes, sitting down on the ground as they tried to process what they just saw. But no matter how hard they tried; they couldn't come up with any answers. It didn't make any sense to them; none of it made any sense.

Jaune's grit his teeth as he made an even more forceful attempt to try and get to Ruby, and to Zwei as well, to try and heal and save them But Juno immediately stopped his efforts by stabbing Crocea Mors right through hid hand, causing an exclaimed grunt to elicit from him. He struggled to lift his head as Juno met his eyes again, as she wielded his sword, which was dirtied with the blood of his wife and that of her canine companion.

"This is the person you've sworn to protect. Someone who falls apart at the sight of a mere dog dying?" Juno sighed and shook her head. "You've truly a terrible sense of knowing who is or isn't worthy of your services. But not to worry, I'll be making those decisions for you, in time."

"That's...not...happening...! I completely refuse!"

"I'm sorry, but I also don't recall saying that this was optional."

Before Juno could proceed, she turned around and deflected something hurtling towards her. She slowly turned her head towards the source, revealing Madam Xahn. Her shadow had separated itself from her and began to move on its own, coated in her glowing yellow Aura. It rushed forth and attacked Juno, pushing her back into the wall for only a brief moment. She already flashed away from the shadow, and brought Crocea Mors down on Madam Xahn, who leapt away from the attack and slid across the ground.

"So, you're not just a mere healer." Not like it mattered to her. It seemed the woman was using her Aura to make her shadow move; it was slightly different than how Blake wields shadows. Juno could tell from a glance that Blake was far more extensive and combative with them.

"I was a combat medic in my younger years." Madam Xahn stood up, as her yellow Aura flowed around her. "But I can see that there's no healing your twisted heart." She uttered, as she dodged Juno's next slash, ignoring the cut across her cheek, for it healed back up quickly.

"I know not what you mean. Only light resides in my heart."

"That's exactly the problem. It has blinded you to your own evil."

"How ridiculous. My vision is unimpaired, for my soul is pure."

"Like I said, blind. There is no healing for a soul that so adamantly refuses to be healed."

Xahn's shadow made its way over to Ruby and Zwei, as it briefly placed its hands on Zwei's slashed throat. A golden glow later, and it was slowly but truly healed. Zwei remained dead still, however, which still had Ruby distraught that he met with such a vicious death for her sake. She whimpered and whined as she buried her head in his fur, wetting it with her tears.

"Don't crumble, Ruby. Don't be afraid to fall into the darkness. Trust it to catch you before you collapse." She heard Xahn speaking through her shadow, before it warped back and slammed into Juno, which she still managed to block with Crocea Mors. "Even if it appears hopelessly dark now, it'll still show you the way, if you simply adjust your eyes, and change perspectives on what you need to see."

"Madam Xahn...don't..." Ruby weakly tried to help, but only ended up collapsing with Zwei in her arms.

Curious Cat was completely dumbfounded by Xahn's interference, as pointless as it was. "I don't get it. Surely you realize that you can't win, right?"

"You don't know much about me, little kitty." Xahn utters as she dodges yet another slash, a cut across her leg that immediately heals. "To me, the victory condition isn't whether or not I win in battle, for my battles lie within the healing of others. In body, mind, heart, and soul." Xahn's glowing shadow rose from behind her and slashed at Juno, who parried the blows effortlessly and pushed through, a surge of lightning blasting Xahn in the chest. That too, healed quickly, but not as much as before. "So long as my patients eventually recover, that is what true victory means to a medic, and a dedicated healer."

The feline's ears drooped as they couldn't quite comprehend this. "Is...is that your role?"

"Yes. In this chaotic world of ours, that is the role I've played." Xahn slipped through as her Aura-manipulated shadow deflected another sword slash from Juno, if only barely. "That is the purpose I'm proud to have carved for myself."

Curious Cat blinked as they witnessed Madam Xahn also fighting against their Master. It was a losing battle for sure, far more of one than it was against the others, and yet it couldn't for the life of it understand why she was even bothering. Or why everyone else was doing the things they wanted to do. It couldn't understand any of it, and the growing desire for clarity began pulsing within it.

As predicted, in terms of combative purpose, Madam Xahn's resistance did not amount to much.

One could see that firsthand, with how lightning pierced right through the woman's chest, horribly charring it. She staggered, blood leaving her lips, with Ruby's disbelieving eyes witnessing the whole thing and being unable to contribute to stopping it. Even despite that, Xahn managed to grip Juno by her shoulder, to her annoyance.

"...Darkness gives vibrance to the world, in ways that pure light cannot. It is where stagnation goes to die, and where creativity is at its apex..." Xahn utters to Ruby, who was looking towards her, impaired by her numerous injuries. "...Allow yourself to fall into darkness, Ruby. Trust it to catch you in its gentle embrace...and within...you'll gain the kind of insight...that you'll never find anywhere else..."

"What rubbish. If you really believe that-" Juno began, only for her eyes to widen as she suddenly felt the light within her being removed from her person. She could sense Xahn's glowing yellow shadow absorbing her light into it, rapidly cutting down the reserves she currently has. This garnered an irritated look from her, as she pressed her palm against Xahn's chest and blasted a much larger burst of lightning through her back, violently sending her across the room. Xahn crashed against the wall, slumped, and fell forward. Blood began pooling around the now lifeless body, as Juno clicked her tongue, flexing her hand. "Tch, she messed with my Aura. Its healing properties have been drastically reduced for the moment." She scoffed. "Not like it matters."

Ruby eyed Xahn's body, completely silent at the sight. "Madam...Xahn...?"

Jaune winced as he could see the unresponsive look in her eyes. First the sheer number of innocent casualties in Boreas that she failed to stop, then realizing that she wouldn't be able to prove her grandmother's innocence with the Grimm Devil's not being slain by her. Then he and Yang were viciously injured, and Zwei and Xahn were brutally killed before her eyes in their attempts to defend her.

She was about to collapse.

"Now then..." Juno turned towards Ruby and Jaune, the only ones still conscious. "It's about time I've finished my business with both of you-"

Juno's eyes widened, as Curious Cat suddenly hopped on her shoulder, and leaped forward, towards Yang. They walked up to her, raised their paw, and suddenly, Yang was warped away in a bit of a colorful glitch effect.

"What did you do to Yang?!" Jaune exclaimed in outrage.

"...I sent her...back home." Curious Cat uttered, much to Jaune's confusion, and Juno's ire. They slowly turned towards Ruby. "I simply figured...she'd be more willing to play along...if her sister was out of harm's way, at the very least..." Curious Cat eyes Ruby closely, very closely. Their eyes began to glow. "There is more that I wish to know...about the woman known as Ruby Rose..."

"You rebellious beast!" Juno exclaimed as she charged lightning, but she was too slow. A portal was already appearing around Curious Cat, Ruby, and Zwei's body, and they all began to vanish into it quickly.

"Oh no you DON'T!" Leaving his sword and shield behind, Jaune didn't hesitate in the slightest to chase after Curious Cat and Ruby, causing the former to meow in surprised shock. It was too late to stop the transfer once he crashed into them, as they all vanished within the portal, leaving Juno alone.

"...Damn it. Damn that disobedient, disrespectful creature..." Juno shook her head, as she turned her head away, sheathing Crocea Mors in its hilt. There was no use in staying any longer. Both of her main targets have vanished, and the place that Curious Cat took them to a place only they could access, out of everyone within her forces. There was no chasing after them.

Whether they returned to this world or not, was entirely within Curious Cat's discretion.

Juno left the deserted Red Riding Hall and turned towards it once more. "Oh, what the hell. Might as well do some redecorating." She clapped her hands, and a massive bolt of lightning came down from the heavens and crashed down on the home base, utterly destroying it and everything that remained inside. Nothing was left behind but smoking rubble and a deep charred crater. Juno nodded at her handiwork. "I feel a bit better now. Oh well, it's time to return to my original mission, anyway." And with that, she was gone in a flash of lightning.

Nothing but destruction was left in her wake.

---

Oscar was feeling uneasy.

Currently, he and the other members of the Guild were gathered in Higanbana, the city quiet and downbeat for the night. He was leaning against the wall, running his hand through his hair as he tried to clear his head. Not very successful so far, admittedly. But due to everything that's happened in the last couple of days, not many would blame him, for they were likely feeling the same way, and expressing it differently.

Of course, his deep thinking hadn't gone completely unnoticed.

"Whatcha thinkin' about?"

"Are you troubled, Oscar?"

Oscar didn't really expect the sides of his head to be cushioned by two pairs of breasts to be what would bring him out of his trance, but that's what happened.

He gasped and ended up falling on his back, groaning slightly. He rubbed his head and realized that Nora and Penny were the ones who did so. They sheepishly smiled as they helped him up, brushing some of the dirt off his jacket. "Well...something along those lines." Oscar scratched the back of his next as he sits back down where he was, with Penny sitting next to him for company. Nora stayed standing on a rail, with a carefree kind of balance. "I guess I'm worried."

"Is it about these silver eye ladies?" Nora wondered while hopping along the rail, effortlessly managing to still balance herself. "Ruby might definitely be feeling a sort of way about members of her bloodline coming to kill her. And us. That's gotta suck."

"It is quite unfortunate." Penny uttered with her hands on her lap. "They could be considered very distant family members of Ruby, and they actively want her dead because ideals wise, they can never agree, and they won't allow her to exist." Penny turns towards Oscar. "And they want to terminate you as well, because of your connections to Ozma."

"Which is pretty stupid if you ask me." Nora grumbled with folded arms and a pout, before she hopped down and patted down her skirt. "When we are seriously thinking about it, the ones most in danger of all this craziness are Ruby and Oscar, huh?"

"For things that are not their fault. I do not agree with their conclusions in the slightest." Penny utters with a frown. "I fail to understand why they insist that things have to be this way, for any of this to be this way."

Nora stretched her arms, rolling her shoulders. "Well, either way, it doesn't change much about what's got to happen, does it? Which is fighting them and eventually beating them down." Nora adjusted her eye patch with a smile. "Right? Even with everything we know, our jobs remain the same. Keep it simple like that, kay?"

Oscar gazes towards the Long Memory in his hands, gently squeezing the cane, before he stands up and shakes off a few lingering shakes of unease, adjusting his jacket. "Yeah. What we have to do hasn't changed."

"Very true. We must be prepared." Penny pushed her hands together.

"Oscar! Oscar, dear boy!" The trio turned at the sound of panic, only to see Lionheart catching up with them. He sighed as he panted, shaking his head before he raised himself up. "I've just received terrible news from Ozpin. Your Guild Hall, it's been destroyed!"

"WHAT?!" They all exclaimed in unison, with Penny's eyes dimmed as she realized she could no longer detect the location of their Guild Hall, realizing that it was the truth. Nora recovered first and shook her head. "Seriously?! Somebody wrecked our home while we were away?! That's just dir-" Nora's eyes widened further as she realized something significantly more important. "Wait...Ruby, Yang and Jaune were still there when we left...where are they?!" Lionheart shook his head with an unknowing look of distraught himself, and Nora felt her heart sink. "There's no way. They would have definitely alerted us if they were in trouble...where'd they go?!"

Penny blinked as she sensed something off, lightly tapping her head. Then her eyes slowly widened in quiet realization. "...Something is very wrong."

"What is it?" Oscar gently held her hand once he saw the stressed and cautious look in her eyes.

"Oscar, we must move!"

Penny brought Oscar closer to her, as she, Nora, and Lionheart leapt from the current space they were occupying, which ended up being destroyed in a blast of light. They both ended up landing across the streets, where it quickly became clear just what the trouble was. Penny's eyes scanned the skies, where their current enemies were hovering over them, basked in silver light. Penny looked side to side, quickly seeing Pyrrha and Cinder taking point next to her and Oscar. Cinder's eyes ignited instantly, because there was something highly out of place, and she noticed it right away.

"Where did you get that sword?"

"Oh, this?" Juno shrugged as she held Crocea Mors across her shoulders. "The original wielder proved incapable and incompetent of using it properly, so I appropriated it for myself." Lightning surged across the blade, and Juno's eyes glimmered. "Does it not suit me?" She soon flickered away in a flash of lightning.

Cinder found herself face-planting the ground, grunting as she could feel that Crocea Mors pierced right through her back, crackling with lightning. Not only that, but Juno stabbed her back with the sword while her foot was firmly planted on her head, grinding her face into the ground while doing so..

"Doesn't this feel more appropriate? Most knights would use their swords to kill dragons, not fight in their stead. I suppose yours was quite the fool indeed." Juno calmly declared. She blinked as she realized that Cinder was making to grab the sword, so she quickly pulled it from her back and stepped away, making her stumble again. Cinder slowly turned to glare at her.

"That does not belong to you."

"Truly? I didn't see his name on it. Oh well, I suppose it matters not." A further empowered charge of lightning surged through Croce Mors, before she released it and allowed it to disintegrate into ashes. "But since you feel so strongly about it, there. I have no further desire to use the weapon of an inferior."

"Where. Are. THEY?" Cinder snarled and growled, her control on the cusp of completely breaking.

Juno shrugged. "Oh sure, allow me to inform you on their whereabouts...what do you think I am? Your informer?" Juno levitates back in the air, crossing her arms. "It's highly likely that you'll never see them again, if that provides enough of an answer."

Cinder took a thunderous step forward, only to be stopped by Pyrrha tightly gripping her shoulder. "Cinder, don't. Don't allow them to bait you."

"She messed with what's mine. I smell his scent on her. She dared to touch him when I wasn't there. She dared. She DARED."

Juno shrugged nonchalantly, smiling serenely. "It cannot be that much of a dare, can it? He didn't try too hard to resist."

"DIE."

Cinder nearly lashed out, but this time Penny was the one to restrain her, keeping her in place with Pyrrha's help. But her temper was not any better, for her eyes were flowing furiously, and her Aura was glowing and pulsing around her, cracking the ground heavily. "You harmed my friends Ruby and Jaune. That alone is enough to not forgive any of you."

"Forgiveness is not a privilege so easily given, so to say that you'd rescind it is meaningless." Themis' coldly rejected. "We've already demonstrated our power by crushing the Grimm Devils personally."

"At this point, people believe. And with that belief, comes opportunity." Orella gently clasped her hands together with a hum. "The opportunity is ripe to enact our Sacred Selection. It shall serve as our vehicle to determine the champions and heroes of the new era, while purging the unworthy due to their lack of faith." The silver glowing around her hums ever louder.

"Peace will be sought by whatever means available, so long as they have accumulated the proper worth and demonstrated their devotion." Celimene raised her hand as a silver barrier orb crystallized above her hand. "This will end up deciding who is worthy of witnessing the Celestial Cataclysm by our sides, and who will be left behind to be obliterated by it."

"Only those who have truly purged negativity and darkness from their hearts will have earned the right to see and live past the Celestial Cataclysm. There will be no escape for anyone else." Lightning surged briefly. "Now then, how about we finish you?" Juno smiled as lightning danced around her. Themis's chains swirled around her, the barrier around Celimene began to expand, and Orella's psychic silver energy began to pulse strongly.

"I don't think so."

Juno scoffs as she eventually sees Blake emerge from her shadow, holding up Gambol Shroud. "Oh, it's you again. You've become an annoyance, Blake Belladonna. One that I would do away with, now that you're here."

"You're not going to do any such thing." Blake declared as her shadow expanded around her, and something began to rise out of it after her. "Because I decided to call in an expert on Ruby's behalf." She declared resolutely, much to everyone else's confusion.

Juno immediately senses the person arriving from the shadowy portal, and seeing the skull mask ordained across her face, she narrows her eyes at the new arrival, who meets her with a casual wave on her end. Juno calmly considered her options, with her instincts insisting on her attacking the new arrival right then and there. But her rational half, rare for it to be, pulled her back.

"We would waste too much time and energy fighting her, and that needs to go towards our preparations. We're returning to the Sanctuary." Juno utters, glaring towards Blake and new arrival with a fierce gleam. "Consider yourselves fortunate. It will not last for long." With that, she and the rest of them vanished in a flash of Silver Light.

Cinder was balking at the scene, wondering what just happened. Blake sighed, sheathing her blade, before turning to the arrival with a bow. "I'm truly sorry about this. But with everything that's happened at this point..."

"Eehehehahahaha! Don't go apologizing, dear! This is what I specialize in, so there's no need to be upset about calling a pro." The arrival smirked as she rustled Blake's hair, and the fur on her ears, before she turned towards Cinder, who was still completely confused. "Ah, you're a dragon alright. Your soul is pulsing so brightly and strongly with dragon fire, it'd be harder to not see. You must be the one that Ruby was hammering to me about sharing that Jaune fellow with."

Blake brought someone extremely powerful back with her... Cinder wondered, as several things about the woman felt familiar. "...Who are you...?"

"Ooh, me? I don't think it matters too much right now, but since you asked..."

The woman gripped her skull mask, and slowly removed it from her face. Her tanned skin, blue glowing Aura, graying yet flowing silver hair, and a statuesque, curvy frame. One could see a few wrinkles here and there across her face as well to signify she's an elder, but other than that, there's no mistaking it; this woman was brimming with vibrance and life, with a truly powerful soul. There were slight hints of aging, but it didn't seem to affect her innate strength and power in the slightest. But that's not the most striking thing to Cinder.

No, that would be her Silver Eyes.

"You may call me Maria Calavera. I am one of the Grand Witches...and the strongest of them." Maria smirked confidently. "And every skill and power Ruby and Summer Rose know regarding Silver Eyes, were taught by me." She took something out of her pocket and began munching on cashews, to Cinder's utter confusion. "So! Belladonna gave me the basic rundown on this shitshow, how about you youngin's fill me in on the rest?"

---

It wouldn't be for several hours before Ruby finally opened her eyes.

She grunted as she pulled herself up on her knees, rubbing her eyes, her ears twitching every now and then. "Ugggh...what...what happened...where am...?" Ruby's eyes widened as she looked to the ground, which was a rather colorful match of grass. Her eyes lowered softly once she saw Zwei's lifeless body. "...Oh. That's right..."

Zwei was dead.

She couldn't protect him, and he desperately tried to protect her. And this was the result.

Madam Xahn was dead too. She surely didn't deserve that, for she helped her several times before.

Yang was severely injured and ended up somewhere else. She was worried sick about her as well.

She didn't bother trying to call out for Jaune; she already tried smelling the area instinctively, he was nowhere near her. Meaning she was completely alone in who knows where. Not that she was in the mindset to care. She gently licked up Zwei's body and softly hugged it, trying to resist the urge to cry into his soft fur.

It was a losing battle.

"Zwei...I'm so sorry...you didn't deserve this...you didn't have to..."

There was a rustle. She immediately turned towards the sound the second she heard it.

"You're understandably troubled. But rest assured; this is not the end for you." A voice called out, softly and silently.

Ruby turned towards the arrival, holding Zwei's body in her arms with tearful wariness. "...Who...are you...?"

"It appears that the Cat brought several hearts into this world this time. How unprecedented. You must have done something to truly earn their attention and focus." The arrival silently stepped forth, wearing a large purple mage hat with black feathers, and golden collar rings. Silver hair shimmered in the light, and violet eyes gazed into Ruby's silver ones. They held the brim of their hat. "My name is Shion Zaden, and I'm the guardian of the Heart Dimension."

Ruby blinked owlishly. "...Heart Dimension?"

Shion nodded. "That's the description of this place. Dimension of Hearts is also possible." They hummed. "Although, a more well-known name to those who gained awareness of it, would be 'Ever After'."

---

There was plenty of disrespect thrown around in this chapter, which broke apart the recovery period that Ruby was initially supposed to have to herself. But then Juno up and said 'nah'.

Ruby is having a harrowing and awful bad time right now, and the only reason it didn't get any worse is because of Curious Cat, who just committed curiosity-induced disobedience. Which dragged Jaune along as well.

Madam Xahn is a character from the comics who helped Ruby heal from her trauma and depression in the aftermath of V3. She tries to do the same here, but unfortunately doesn't work out..."

Also Shion from Ice Queendom is here! In the Ever After, as a guardian of the realm? Wonder what the story is there?

The rest of the gang have to deal with the enemies on their own in Remnant, because Ruby and Jaune have gotten brutalized and are nowhere in it right now. What does this mean for both of them?

Next time, the second stage of the arc begins!